Chapter 135: Wang Ming's Journey of Despair

"What the fuck? Where are those two demons?"

Stumbling up from a massive crater, Wu Xuan surveyed the shattered landscape around him, searching for the two Daemon Princes he had just been fighting. A profound sense of distress gripped his heart—he couldn't figure out why he felt so wretched, but the sensation was utterly agonizing.

There was no sign of the Daemon Princes, but at the edge of the crater, he spotted the three Krieg brothers.

"Wu Xuan! Can you still move? If you can, get over here and help! The Boss is way too heavy!"

Bai Qi looked down at Wu Xuan as he rose from the pit, shouting out to him.

"Yeah! Coming right now!"

Wu Xuan checked the various error logs flashing across his internal systems and called back to Bai Qi. The psychic lightning had completely fried several components of his body, but miraculously, he was still operational.

"What happened to the Boss?"

Crawling out of the crater, Wu Xuan hurried over to Wang Ming, accompanied by the three Krieg brothers. He stared down at the motionless form of Wang Ming lying on the ground.

"Sigh, the same as Guilliman."

Wang Ben looked at Wu Xuan, heaved a heavy sigh, and spoke with helpless resignation.

"This won't do. We need Yvraine to wake the Boss up; otherwise, this is going to drive us crazy."

Wu Xuan gazed down at Wang Ming. The moment he had regained consciousness, he had felt a strange, inexplicable surge of anger. He had wondered what it was, but now he knew—that fury was bleeding over from the unconscious primarch.

"Come on, give me a hand."

Wu Xuan walked over to Wang Ming's side and addressed the three Krieg brothers.

Hearing his words, the Krieg trio stepped forward as well. Together, the four of them hoisted Wang Ming up and securely strapped him onto Wu Xuan's back.

Although a vast number of components within Wu Xuan's body had been scorched by the psychic lightning, his core structural framework remained relatively intact, so carrying Wang Ming presented no real problem.

With Wang Ming secured to his back, Wu Xuan, alongside the three Krieg brothers, boarded a transport aircraft and headed back to the *Imperial Truth*.

Upon returning to the *Imperial Truth*, Wang Ming was rushed immediately to the medical bay, where Minerva promptly initiated emergency procedures.

"His physical trauma has healed completely, but there are still no signs of consciousness. This is most peculiar."

Inside the medical bay of the *Imperial Truth*, Minerva examined Wang Ming's current vitals and addressed the surrounding Transgressors.

The moment Wang Ming arrived in the medical bay, Minerva had applied every emergency protocol and advanced medical treatment at her disposal, yet none of them could rouse him.

"Standard procedure. If you could wake him up using mere technology, it'd be a bloody miracle."

Bai Qi looked at the data screen before him and let out a long sigh. He could already envision having to go beg Yvraine to save their leader.

"Furthermore, his internal organs do not match those of a normal human. I can confirm the organs are structurally pristine, but I cannot accurately determine their functions."

Minerva brought up a holographic diagram of human organ structures—a layout vastly different from that of baseline humanity.

"As expected of a true Primarch. Even his guts have been rewritten."

Bai Qi glanced at the anatomical chart for a moment before waving his hand to dismiss it.

"Alright, first things first: transfer the Boss to the chapel, then move the Primarch's command throne in there as well. Let's enthrone the Boss properly and have the Ecclesiarchy zealots hold a prayer vigil. It might actually work. Also, contact Guilliman and have Yvraine come over to take a look."

Wu Xuan stood beside Bai Qi, remarking that he himself needed Minerva and the Tech-priests to perform some maintenance, as eighty percent of the equipment across his entire body was severely damaged.

"Understood. I'll have the astropaths contact Guilliman shortly."

Bai Qi replied to Wu Xuan. They were entirely out of their depth when it came to these warp-borne anomalies and had no choice but to resort to a bit of metaphysics. Hopefully, the prayers of the Ecclesiarchy fanatics would yield some results; if all else failed, they still had the Aeldari Yncarne.

"Where... where am I this time?"

Within a dark, formless expanse, Wang Ming slowly regained consciousness. He looked around the surrounding void with a blank expression, observing his surroundings only to find himself bound to a towering cross.

Just as utter bewilderment washed over him, a bizarre sound echoed through the void—a noise resembling countless heavy metal tracks played simultaneously and amplified by a factor of ten thousand.

"Welcome to the domain prepared especially for you by the Prince of Pleasure, my dearest Gene-Primarch. To take part in the grand process of your corruption—what an absolute honor this is~"

As the voice faded, four figures materialized before Wang Ming. Evil gazes, twisted physiques, and a sickening, cloying perfume—at a single glance, it was obvious these four were the absolute creme de la creme of Slaaneshi Greater Daemons.

"What the actual fuck... Was this really necessary? Four Greater Daemons?!"

Wang Ming stared at the quartet of Slaaneshi horrors in sheer astonishment.

"No need to be surprised. My Lord takes a very keen interest in you indeed~ My Lord eagerly anticipates your surrender to Her embrace, where you and your brothers shall revel in endless, unbridled ecstasy~"

The moment that thought crossed Wang Ming's mind, one of the Greater Daemons piped up with a seductive smile.

"Can you read my thoughts?"

Wang Ming asked, eyeing the Greater Daemon with a mixture of shock and wariness.

"Naturally. This realm was crafted specifically for you by our Master; we can read every single thought passing through your head right now."

The Greater Daemon giggled as it glided closer to Wang Ming. Of course, it wasn't telling the entire truth—they could only skim the surface thoughts flitting through Wang Ming's immediate awareness. Anything deeper was completely inaccessible, as those profound memories and core thoughts had been heavily warded by that man.

Wang Ming stared at the four Greater Daemons, attempting to tap into the warp essence residing deep within his soul. Yet, that inner power felt entirely walled off, as if insulated by an impenetrable barrier, rendering him completely unable to channel it.

"Give up, Lord Primarch. My Lord has placed certain... safeguards upon you. You cannot break free."

One of the Greater Daemons watched Wang Ming's futile struggle to commune with the warp and chuckled softly.

"Sigh. Fine, whatever. Do as you like. If it's corruption you want, bring it on."

Wang Ming looked at the four Slaaneshi Greater Daemons, let out a resigned sigh, and adopted a posture of fatalistic indifference.

Having already endured numerous soul-shattering beatdowns from the Emperor himself, Wang Ming refused to believe these daemons possessed anything capable of making his soul truly wail. What was it going to be? A bunch of extreme, perverted, and disgusting horrors? Bring them on; he had already steeled his mind.

"Hehehehe... I know what you're thinking, Lord Primarch, but those things are far too pedestrian for someone like you. My Lord has prepared a very special gift just for you."

As the Greater Daemon spoke, its form suddenly rippled and shifted into someone Wang Ming knew intimately: Edwige Nils. The other three Greater Daemons similarly morphed into figures deeply familiar to him.

"Iris, Slaaneshi Chosen, Edwige... and why the hell is Minerva in here too?!"

Wang Ming looked in utter disbelief at the Greater Daemons wearing the faces of women he knew. While he could chalk most of it up to Slaaneshi psychological warfare, why on earth was Minerva—an artificial intelligence—included in the lineup?!

"Look closely, Lord Primarch. These are all women you know. As a man, surely you've harbored certain thoughts regarding them? And we know you are actually quite young at heart; ever since the day you first set foot upon Cadia, my Lord has had her eyes set on you."

The daemon disguised as Edwige cooed at him, entirely convinced that Wang Ming, a mortal elevated to the status of a Primarch, would inevitably harbor base desires.

"Uh... Are you guys trying to make me laugh?"

Wang Ming blinked, then broke into a wry chuckle as he addressed them.

In reality, Wang Ming held zero romantic or sexual interest in any of these four women. As for Iris, the Aeldari Farseer, Wang Ming had long wished he could bludgeon the riddling alien to death and feed her corpse to "Big Meow." Edwige was a maiden over thirty thousand years old; aside from treating her as a living psychic artillery conduit, Wang Ming viewed her with absolute emotional detachment. Lu Xiaoxiao, the Slaaneshi Chosen, didn't even need mentioning—if she weren't a fellow countrywoman from his past life, Wang Ming would have twisted her head off ages ago. And Minerva? Good grief, she was literally a mother-board; Wang Ming had previously toyed with the idea of ripping out her processing chips.

"Ah... Lord Primarch, it seems we underestimated you. We count this attempt as a failure."

After rummaging through Wang Ming's genuine thoughts, the four Greater Daemons instantly snapped back to their true, grotesque forms. Four familiar women—two of whom he had wanted to murder directly, one he had previously plotted to kill, and the last merely regarded as a psychic tool.

"However, what comes next will undoubtedly suit your tastes."

The four Slaaneshi Greater Daemons leered at him.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever."

Wang Ming replied offhandedly. Torture and corruption? Bring it on. His soul had been personally tampered with by the Emperor; he had nothing to fear.

"We truly hope you can maintain that nonchalant attitude after seeing this."

Pity flashed across the daemons' faces as they intercepted a fresh wave of thoughts from him. Poor Gene-Primarch—he had no idea what horrors awaited him.

"What the fuck! Not this!"

With a graceful sweep of their claws, the four Greater Daemons conjured a massive holographic screen before Wang Ming. The footage playing on that screen instantly drained all the highlights and light from Wang Ming's eyes.

There, broadcasted in high definition for the universe to see, was his glorious "heroic posture" from back at the Transgressors' encampment—the moment he had been possessed by the Emperor, stripped down to nothing but a pair of pristine white boxer shorts while battling a Nurgle Daemon Prince.

"You've got to be shitting me!"

Staring at his ultimate black history, Wang Ming realized this was infinitely more terrifying than encountering ten thousand Chaos Greater Daemons.

"Oh~ My dearest Gene-Primarch, did you not know? This video recording of your 'glorious combat stance' was distributed to every single Space Marine in your Legion by a tactical marine named Qin Ji. Almost every warrior in your ranks has a personal copy by now."

The Greater Daemons gloated maliciously, reveling in the sight of Wang Ming's shattered soul.

"I will fucking murder you, Qin Ji!!"

Hearing this, Wang Ming let out a roar of absolute despair.

"Emperor! Save me!!"

Gazing upon his mortifying dark history, Wang Ming bellowed a desperate prayer for salvation.

"Wang Ming? Oh, whatever, young people need to learn to solve their own problems. Besides, I'm rather busy right now."

At that exact moment, the Emperor—who was currently possessing Lhaust and sprinting completely naked toward the Inquisition headquarters—felt Wang Ming's frantic plea. After brief contemplation, the Master of Mankind shook His head, dismissed the thought, and continued His naked dash. He needed to make the most of Lhaust being away on a mission to experience the physical world properly through a vessel.

"Hahahaha! Lord Primarch, do you still possess that carefree composure? Furthermore, aside from this little preview, we plan to take a page out of your brother Konrad Curze's book. We'll torture you slowly, inch by inch, until your mind shatters completely into madness~ Rest assured, we have all the time in the world~"

Beaming with sadistic delight at Wang Ming's reaction, the Greater Daemons shifted their shapes once more, adopting the faces of Wang Huafa, Hu Jin, Xu Feng, and Edwige.

"Look at them. These are your loyal subordinates. Will you slaughter them mercilessly when the madness takes hold? Oh, we are looking forward to it so much~ Hahahaha!"

Laughing hysterically, the four daemons brandished a bizarre array of horrifying instruments of torment as they closed in on Wang Ming. Wang Ming stared in sheer despair at the approaching fiends. Torturing him was one thing, but could they at least turn off that damn video? Why the hell was it on an infinite loop? Was this supposed to be double jeopardy for his dignity?!

"Qin Ji! You better sleep with one eye open!"

Wang Ming thought bitterly in his heart as the first torture implement descended.

"Achoo!"

Deep within a sprawling trench across a massive island on Karsulis IV, Qin Ji suddenly sneezed.

"Do Astartes even catch colds? Why do I suddenly feel a chill down my spine, like something ominous is staring right at me?"

Qin Ji wondered aloud as he peered out over the trench parapet at the incoming Orks.

"Qin Ji, what are you daydreaming about? Hurry up, the Orks are launching another charge!"

Just as Qin Ji was pondering the source of his bad premonition, Xu Anmin, his squad leader, slapped him heavily on the shoulder and pointed past the trench line toward the approaching green tide.

"Oh, right!"

Snap out of it, Qin Ji reminded himself. The Orks were already charging; this was no time for idle thoughts. He needed to focus entirely on slaughtering xenos.

Raising his bolter, Qin Ji began delivering precise, measured bursts of fire into the oncoming horde. Through countless rounds of live-fire drills, the marksmanship of the Transgressors had been honed to absolute perfection, transforming every single one of them into an elite marksman.

Ork after Ork was picked off mid-charge by unerring bolter rounds. Compared to the surgical precision of the Transgressors, the Mortal Auxiliary forces relied on sheer, overwhelming volume: wave after wave of disciplined laser volleys scythed down the charging greenskins like wheat before a reaper.

Just as the combined fire of the Transgressors and Auxiliaries tore into the vanguard of the Ork charge, a bizarre collection of crude xenos war-machines suddenly roared out from behind the green tide, barrelling toward the human defense lines.

"Auxiliary Armored Battalion! Ork Stompas! Brothers, arm yourselves! The scrap-metal cans are making a push!"

Xu Anmin shouted into his comm-bead as he tracked the erratic, lumbering contraptions. Privately, he was constantly amazed by how the Orks managed to manifest such bizarre technological abominations on an ice world. The sheer magnitude of a greenskin's reality-bending imagination was truly terrifying.

*Bang, bang, bang!!*

Barely had Xu Anmin finished barking orders when an armored formation composed of Leman Russ tanks and Imperial Baneblades rumbled out from the rear of the fortifications, moving up to the primary line. Their massive main cannons pivoted toward the Ork Stompas and unleashed a devastating, synchronized salvo.

Meanwhile, the Transgressors drew their power swords and chainswords. They needed to neutralize the Ork walkers before their heavy armaments and firing arcs could devastate the frontline trenches.

The disciplined firing lines of the Mortal Auxiliary cleared away the infantry screening the Ork walkers, allowing the Transgressors to sprint swiftly alongside the crude iron behemoths. Channeling their strength, they hacked through the jury-rigged armor plates with power blades and chainswords, ruthlessly terminating the grots piloting the machines from within.

Oddly enough, despite being cobbled together from mere piles of scrap metal, those improvised armored hulls somehow possessed enough chaotic mass to deflect concentrated laser fire.