The Emperor’s Angel of Death

"Just as you said, Father, the Black Rage is like a disease. It's unstable. As long as it's not triggered, he's a normal person. At least for now, the dark power within him is dormant. What the future holds is hard to say."

"Let's hope fate favors him."

"Father, I think the emergence of the Black Rage this time is also related to the pain and regret in his heart. It's not just his pain; I saw many others."

"Many others?"

After thinking for a moment, Sochoyan clapped his hands gently.

"The Lamenters have never had this situation before. This time, it only happened to Malakim. Could it be that the Black Rage is actually a slow accumulation process, some faster, some slower? Malakim is bearing the Black Rage of the entire chapter alone, but how did he do it?"

After thinking for a while without any results, Sochoyan didn't want to ask him directly, and this was likely related to the internal secrets of the Lamenters. Although they had a good relationship, there should still be some boundaries. If a member of the Alliance of Suffering was also spying on the secrets of the Star Phantoms, he would be uncomfortable.

Putting himself in their shoes, Sochoyan could only put this matter aside or wait for Malakim to take the initiative to speak.

"Since he's alright, send him back to the Lamenters first. By the way, Bandaram, did you have any special feelings or discomfort when approaching the Tyranid Hive Fleet this time?"

Bandaram shook his head.

"I am no longer of their kind. Although I can hear distant calls, it's more like babbling."

"The seers can only sense a huge will forming a shadow in the Warp. Bandaram, I have many doubts. For example, the direction of each Tyranid invasion and the invading groups are different. Does this mean they are actually divided into many individuals rather than a completely unified will? If so, does this mean that the Tyranids are actually tools of some race? Or, do all Tyranids actually come from a larger whole? If that's the case, judging from the direction of their invasion, wouldn't that mean the entire galaxy is already surrounded by them? Are they coming to the galaxy purely out of hunting instinct, or do they have other purposes?"

After listening, Bandaram floated up and stretched out her slender, white hands.

"Father, that's all I know."

Sochoyan knew what she meant, stepped forward, and Bandaram immediately placed her hand on his forehead.

In the next second, he entered a unique perspective, as if peeling away from the real world and entering a unique space, and in this space, he could see many existences that belonged neither to reality nor to the Warp.

First, there was darkness. All around was endless darkness, and against the backdrop of this terrifying vista, some flickering lights could be seen, but these glimmers were obscured by some unparalleled shadow, but this was even just a tendril of that existence, its main body extending outward, coiling tightly around the higher dark dimensions, and then extending again beyond the dimensions, and then even more distant dimensions, until its parts merged together, and even Sochoyan couldn't see what the final form was.

When he blinked, Bandaram was already back on the ground.

Sochoyan sighed softly, easing the pressure in his heart. If he wasn't mistaken, that glimmer was actually the Milky Way galaxy, which meant...

"...This is the worst-case scenario. It doesn't need to surround the galaxy; it just needs to extend a small part... So what we are encountering now is likely just a small part of a tendril."

The pressure that had just eased increased again. This wasn't just the Imperium's business; it was also the Eldar's business, the business of all living beings in the galaxy.

"Father, there's no need to worry too much. Its will is very sluggish, like a Lictor. Although it has a swift hunting instinct, it only focuses on the prey in front of it. Its behavior is not driven by thought or wisdom. The four words 'seeking advantages and avoiding disadvantages' are most suitable to describe it. It is a beast that is both clever and foolish, able to respond to changes in battle quickly, but it pays almost no attention to things outside of battle and has no countermeasures. It won't even engage in hopeless battles because of emotions like anger. It is very calculating. When the losses of battle far outweigh the gains, it will definitely give up."

Bandaram's words made Sochoyan's eyes light up.

"Is that so?"

"Yes, Father, this is its nature. Its basic logic is expansion, and any behavior harmful to expansion will be immediately avoided. So if it suffers serious injuries while hunting, it will also retreat and run away."

"If that's the case, hmm..."

Sochoyan walked back and forth with his hands behind his back.

"Bandaram, can you control Tyranid creatures?"

Hearing Sochoyan ask this, Bandaram put her hands behind her back and said with her head lowered:

"Father, I can't do it. I'm sorry."

Sochoyan walked over, squatted down, and picked her up.

"I was just asking. Thank you this time; you've helped me a lot, Bandaram."

Bandaram smiled only after receiving Sochoyan's praise.

Sochoyan then summoned Duran and asked him to arrange a ship to send Malakim, who was still unconscious, back to the battle barge *Mother of Tears*, without saying anything more.

After receiving Malakim, the Lamenters' remaining apothecaries immediately inspected their chapter master to prevent the Eldar from tampering with him. However, after the inspection, they were certain that this was their chapter master, and even his injuries had healed. As for Malakim's unconscious state, the Sanguinary Priests knew exactly what was going on and transferred him to a secret chamber without explanation.

In this situation, the 2nd Company Captain, who was temporarily acting as chapter master, expressed his sincere gratitude to Duran, not only because they had saved Malakim, but also because they had saved so many Imperial citizens. Even if they were aliens, a good deed was a good deed.

This attitude earned Duran some praise. Although there had been some unpleasantness between the two sides before, he later told Sochoyan that the Lamenters' Space Marines were at least one of the few groups of humans who were "reasonable," which was high praise indeed.

However, during this period, some Lamenters company captains inquired about the origins of Duran and the Phoenix Guard in a roundabout way. Obviously, they had realized that these Eldar were not the Craftworld Eldar they knew, and even inquired about who Duran's "Lord" was. However, Duran kept Sochoyan's instructions in mind and did not say anything extra, basically just handing over the person and leaving.

After transferring Malakim, Sochoyan immediately ordered the Royal Court fleet to return with the captured Tyranid creatures from the planet. The Tyranid Hive Fleet had entered the Storm Zone, and the military situation was urgent. He needed to race against time.