Chapter 125: Thanatos Tiger

Wang Ming walked through the jungle, clad in a suit of armor. It was merely a very ordinary set of plate, not power armor; donning power armor required assistance, and Wang Ming could not equip it alone. He had simply pulled a ceremonial suit from the store that matched his physique. He had no desire to wander the forest naked like the Primarch of the Dark Angels in his youth.

His damaged power armor was stowed in a bag slung over his shoulder; he planned to have Minerva repair it once he returned to the *Imperial Truth*, though he mused that he should definitely reinforce it with adamantium next time.

"Snap!"

As Wang Ming waded through a patch of jungle, he suddenly heard a faint sound—the noise of a large animal moving through the undergrowth.

"Sigh... why are you so eager to seek death?"

Wang Ming sighed. He knew that the flora and fauna of the world of Gobe posed no threat to him; even the apex predators of this world could be torn apart by his bare hands in an instant.

"Grrr..."

From the bushes in front of him came a low growl, reminiscent of a feline.

Hearing the growl, Wang Ming immediately recognized it. This was the apex predator of Gobe, the Thanatos Tiger. It was a beast similar to the tigers of Terra, though significantly larger, reaching the size of a Chimera armored transport. Its entire body was covered in hardened chitinous plates; standard autoguns and lasrifles did little to harm it, and only heavy ordnance or high-yield explosives could effectively penetrate its hide.

"Forget it. I won't kill it. It might be fun to catch it and keep it as a pet."

Wang Ming looked at the bushes and unhooked the power sword from his waist. Just as he sheathed the weapon, the Thanatos Tiger lunged at him, its massive frame casting a shadow that enveloped him completely.

"So you know the power sword is dangerous. Quite clever."

Watching the tiger pounce, Wang Ming struck with a punch too fast for the beast to track, landing it squarely on the creature's head. The force of a Primarch’s blow was immense; the Thanatos Tiger let out a miserable howl as it was sent flying sideways.

It crashed into a massive tree, snapping the trunk clean in two, and collapsed to the ground, whimpering, covered in splintered wood.

"Roar..."

The tiger’s eyes were filled with terror as it looked at Wang Ming. It scrambled to its feet, growling low, unable to comprehend why this creature—which usually looked like something it could kill with ease—was so incredibly powerful just because it was slightly larger.

"Come on, keep going."

Wang Ming watched the growling tiger, lunged toward it, and delivered a heavy slap that sent the beast flying once more.

"Roar!"

The Thanatos Tiger howled as it was struck, but before it could recover, Wang Ming dashed to its side and pinned it to the ground. It struggled violently, but no matter how it thrashed, it could not escape Wang Ming’s grip. He held the beast by the scruff of its neck as if it were nothing more than an oversized house cat.

"Behave. If you can't be my pet, you'll end up as the local dish."

Wang Ming grinned down at the struggling tiger. He knew full well the beast couldn't understand him; he was merely joking.

"Whimper..."

Whether it understood his tone or had simply been beaten into submission, the Thanatos Tiger gradually stopped struggling and lay flat on the ground.

"That's a good one. You really are quite smart."

Wang Ming smiled and slowly released his grip, allowing the tiger to stand back up.

The Thanatos Tiger rose to its feet, instinctively letting out a low growl at Wang Ming, but then, remembering the terror of his strength, it slowly lowered its body to the ground, signaling its submission.

Pleased, Wang Ming retrieved a chain from the store. He fastened it around the beast’s neck and then secured the large bag containing his power armor to the chain. Satisfied with his new "utility tiger," Wang Ming gave the chain a tug, signaling the beast to follow.

The Thanatos Tiger initially resisted, pulling backward, but it was no match for Wang Ming’s strength and was dragged forward. After a few more futile attempts to resist, the tiger finally yielded, and Wang Ming led it along as if he were walking a dog.

The man and the beast moved quickly through the jungle. With the presence of the massive tiger at his side, the smaller creatures that had been lurking in the shadows, hoping to take a bite out of him, wisely chose to retreat.

"Finally, we're out."

Wang Ming dragged the Thanatos Tiger out of the dense foliage. He sighed as he looked at the castle before him; he and the tiger had spent a full five hours trekking through the forest before finally emerging.

"Whimper..."

The tiger let out a low growl as it looked at the human fortress.

"Quiet!"

Wang Ming gave the tiger a sharp slap at the sound of the growl.

"Whine..."

The Thanatos Tiger whimpered and fell silent, though it continued to mutter in low, grumbling tones, clearly quite dissatisfied with Wang Ming.

Seeing its discontent, Wang Ming gave it another slap on the head.

After disciplining the tiger, Wang Ming led it toward the castle. He needed to determine his location so the Travelers could come to retrieve him.

Wang Ming had never truly lost contact with the *Imperial Truth*. From the moment he emerged from the lake, he had used a communicator from the store to reach the ship. However, due to the strange magnetic fields within the forests of Gobe, the *Imperial Truth* could only determine his general vicinity, not his precise location.

He needed a landmark to guide them.

As he approached the castle, he saw a guard standing watch at the gate, armed with a bolt-action rifle. Wang Ming headed straight for him.

"Greetings, sir. Might I ask the name of this castle?"

Wang Ming asked politely. His words were translated by the device around his neck into Low Gothic, carrying clearly to the guard’s ears.

"Eorksburg, great giant! This is Eorksburg! Wait! My lord, look out!"

The guard, recognizing the giant who had saved them previously, responded with reverence. But upon seeing the Thanatos Tiger behind Wang Ming, he shouted in alarm and unslung his rifle.

He aimed the weapon at the tiger and pulled the trigger, shouting to Wang Ming to watch his back.

"Snap!"

The bullet struck the tiger on the head, only to be deflected by its chitinous scales.

"Roar!"

Clearly enraged by the shot, the tiger lunged toward the guard, intent on snapping his neck.

Just as the beast sprang, Wang Ming caught it, pinning it to the ground with a single foot and subduing it instantly.

"My apologies. Thank you for telling me the location."

Under the guard’s astonished gaze, Wang Ming dragged the tiger away from the castle and activated his communicator to contact the *Imperial Truth*.

"Captain Jiang Tao, my location is Eorksburg. Dispatch a transport aircraft to pick me up."

"Understood, Captain Wang Ming. I have confirmed your coordinates and am notifying the hangar."

Once the order was received, a transport was dispatched, arriving at Eorksburg shortly thereafter. Wang Ming watched the ramp lower, revealing a man sitting inside.

"Wu Xuan, did that kid perform surgery again?"

Wang Ming dragged the tiger toward the transport, shoving the beast inside before boarding himself.

"Boss, it seems your little jungle tour was quite productive."

Wu Xuan joked, looking at the Thanatos Tiger Wang Ming was holding by the scruff, and even reached out to pat the beast’s head.

"If it weren't for the fact that I fell from orbit, it would have been a pleasant day trip."

Wang Ming looked down at his armor, replying to Wu Xuan while casually swatting the head of the tiger, which was baring its teeth at the man.

"Right, has that merchant ship been inspected? Are there still traces of Chaos on board?"

After the lighthearted exchange, Wang Ming turned to serious business.

"It has been inspected. The only thing on the ship was that daemon host. All personnel have been relocated to Gobe, and we are preparing to destroy the ship entirely; both the equipment and the crew have likely been corrupted by Chaos."

Wu Xuan recounted the events that had transpired during the five hours of Wang Ming's absence.

"Understood. Proceed as planned. Destroy the vessel shortly."

Wang Ming nodded, satisfied with the report.

"One more thing, Boss. How should we handle the crew of the *Warmaster’s Ambition*?"

Wu Xuan asked about the fate of the crew. Since they had been exposed to the corrupting influence of Chaos, leaving them unchecked posed a significant security risk.

"Hmm... indeed. How many of them are there?"

"Five thousand, two hundred and seventy-three in total. Most are locals from the ship, though some are passengers who were bound for Terra."

Wu Xuan explained that when the *Warmaster’s Ambition* had stopped at the previous starport, it had taken on passengers in addition to the "cargo" Horus had personally ordered to be transported.

"Five thousand, two hundred and seventy-three... forget it. Charter a one-way ship and send them to Gultor. Let them go play with the T'au alongside those cultists."

"Boss, that’s basically sending them to act as cannon fodder."

"There is no other way. The corruption of Chaos cannot be purged; as long as they live, the gaze of Chaos will never leave them."

Wang Ming sighed, and a heavy silence fell between them.

Corruption was an inescapable threat for both mortals and Space Marines alike. While Space Marines and a select few mortals with iron wills could resist it, once the signs of corruption appeared, it was only a matter of time before they fell.

Chaos never lacked the time to corrupt intelligent beings. A day, a week, a month, a year—no matter how strong the will, under the relentless, day-and-night erosion of Chaos, they would eventually fall into its embrace.

"By the way, I just remembered—did the fleet led by the Battle Sisters reach the starport?"

Breaking the silence, Wang Ming asked about the status of the Sisters of Battle.

"They’ve arrived, Boss. You should have seen it! A massive throng of Battle Sisters and Ecclesiarchy faithful, along with a company of Astartes, descended from the ships in a grand procession. The lead Battle Sister is demanding to see you; she says she wishes to conduct a pilgrimage to the son of the God-Emperor."

Wu Xuan grew animated as he described the scene at the starport.

The fleet was composed of fanatical Ecclesiarchy pilgrims and a company of the "Book Burners," a Space Marine Chapter with ties to the Church. They had originally been en route to Cadia for a pilgrimage but had been trapped in the Warp when the Great Rift opened. They had only emerged back into realspace the previous day, precisely when Wang Ming had made contact.

A fleet of the faithful, having survived a harrowing ordeal in the Warp only to emerge and find what they believed to be a literal son of the Emperor—a great Primarch—had interpreted their survival as a divine miracle. They believed the Emperor had guided them to this system to follow his son.

"Ah... I see."

Wang Ming listened to the account, shaking his head with a bitter smile, feeling quite helpless before the fervor of the Ecclesiarchy.