allendalepharm Page 81
Page 81
With a sharp shout, he flicked his wrist, forcibly changing the direction of the short sword due to inertia.
boom!
The short sword and the battle axe clashed, their blades rubbing together and sparking brilliant flashes. The two wielding weapons didn't separate; they began to increase the force of their attacks, gradually closing the distance between them.
With both hands pressing down on the hilt, Casio could feel the immense power traveling from the blade to the hilt, then through his hands, and finally throughout his entire body.
"How come all of you man-eating sharks are so strong?"
He couldn't help but speak in a low voice, but because of the struggle, it sounded almost like a growl.
"But I'm not bad either, bro. So, can you tell me your name now?"
The man-eating shark remained silent until Casio began to feel a slight fatigue and slowly fell into a disadvantageous position in the struggle, at which point he slowly revealed a sinister smile.
“My name is Floro,” he said. “I am a member of the hunting squad of the Man-Eating Shark Legion. Nice to meet you, Casio from the Claws of the Stars.”
Casio was slightly taken aback, then he started laughing, and as time went on, the laughter grew louder and louder, eventually turning into unrestrained laughter.
"Nice to meet you! From Fu Lao, the man-eating shark!"
After exchanging greetings, the two simultaneously exerted their strength, using their next move to create distance. Then, they looked at each other without speaking, but simultaneously launched their attacks.
Short sword, battle axe.
After they crossed paths, they separated again. Then, with their backs to each other, they slowly turned around and looked at each other.
Casio remained silent, then chuckled softly.
"Beautiful strike, brother."
He spoke as he raised his left arm, revealing a wound about ten centimeters long and half a centimeter deep on his only forearm.
Blood flowed down the wound, which was almost non-existent for the Astartes—the bleeding stopped automatically after five seconds and began to heal slowly at a visible speed.
However, for this duel, the appearance of such a wound signifies that the outcome has already been decided.
Flau looked at the few drops of blood on Casio's forearm and shook his head slightly.
He turned to the side, revealing a drop of blood on his torso below his arm.
"It's a draw, my brother."
When the man-eating shark spoke, Star Claw's expression froze for a moment before he broke into a hearty laugh.
Yes! A draw!
The audience below the stage also began to cheer. Whether it was Star Claw and Man-Eating Shark who had just participated in the competition, or Minotaur, Firehawk, Star Phantom, Lamenter, and Mantis Warrior who were just watching, they all clapped and cheered for the exciting battle that had just taken place.
"A magnificent battle, Lord of Shadows."
On a high platform in the training ground, Lin Qi looked at Tiberius, the leader of the Man-Eating Shark Battle Group, and spoke.
"You flatter me, Your Excellency the Chosen One."
Tiberius spoke to Lynch with a respectful attitude.
This was a rare attitude for the leader of the Man-Eating Shark's warband. He was used to looking down on mortals. However, after his heart-to-heart talk with his chief think tank a few days ago, he realized something.
That mortal was different from all the other mortals he had ever met.
Building a good relationship with him would be beneficial for the Chapter, the Empire, and even humanity.
"So, what are your thoughts on my proposal?"
Lynch turned around and looked behind him. Apart from Tiberius, all the chapter commanders of the Astartes Chapters on Badab were gathered here at this moment. They looked at Lynch, and without exception, their helmetless faces were deep in thought.
"The Weeping Ones are willing to form a pact with the Claws of the Stars, becoming allies who watch over each other."
Malakin Forros spoke first, winking at Lynch before bowing his head and making the Eagle Salute.
"The same goes for the Mantis Warriors."
With the first person taking the lead, a second quickly followed—the Mantis Warriors, their leader Koisan Nieldra. Like Forros, he bowed his head, indicating his willingness to accept Lynch's proposal.
Lin Qi was not surprised by the statements of these two battle groups. In fact, even if the other battle groups disagreed, the possibility of these two battle groups disagreeing was almost negligible.
However, for the remaining battle groups, it's a bit of a matter of luck.
Lin Qi thought to himself, while looking at the remaining battle leaders.
He arrived at the training ground half an hour ago. After all, for the Astartes, the most common thing they did when several chapters got together was to spar with each other in the dueling arena.
Then he saw several chapter commanders of the Astartes, and at that moment, an idea popped into his mind.
Lin Qi invited several battle group leaders to the high platform of the training ground, where he proposed this idea to them.
He hoped that several chapters could form alliances with the Star Claws and sign a new pact with each other.
The contract is very simple, consisting of two clauses.
The first rule is that when a chapter in a contract encounters an insurmountable crisis, it can send a specific star message, and the receiving chapter will dispatch its own forces to support the chapter that requested assistance.
The second point is that the various battle groups can exchange resources and personnel to avoid the complete annihilation of the entire battle group due to some sudden crisis.
If the two contracts are signed, a strong centripetal force will be formed among the various battle groups.
It's almost equivalent to forming a loosely structured legion scattered throughout the galaxy in this very era.
"Excuse my bluntness," said Morlock, the Tauren Chapter Master. "What you're doing will probably not be accepted by the Highlords of Terra."
Although the question was raised, the warband leader maintained his respectful tone.
Clearly, he also knew that he couldn't treat Lin Qi the same way he would treat ordinary mortals.
"The high lords will have no objection to this matter."
Lynch looked at Mollock with a faint smile on his face.
"And this matter does not violate the Holy Scriptures, wouldn't you agree, Commander Ortiz?"
Upon hearing Lynch's words, Ortiz, the captain of the Red Scorpion Legion, glanced at Lynch with some surprise. As a captain who strictly adhered to the Astartes Codex, he naturally knew what Lynch's actions meant.
Indeed, the Astartes Chapters are highly independent, and it's not uncommon for several chapters to form alliances with each other.
but.......
While a single clause of the alliance proposed by Lynch might not seem significant, the combination of the two clauses gives the impression that they are somewhat skirting the line.
If it were just an ordinary chapter leader of the Astartes, then unless there was an extremely deep bond between them, Ortiz would never agree to this.
But Lynch is different. He is not only the leader of the Astartes Chapter, but also a Chosen One, with the Imperial Guard, the Archsage of Mechanicus, or rather... Him, standing behind him.
Then the nature of the matter becomes very different; in fact, it could be said that for Ortiz, refusing would be something he could not agree to.
"red......."
"The man-eating shark is willing to join the Star Claw alliance."
Ortiz looked over with some surprise and saw the Chapter Leader of the Man-Eating Shark, the Chapter Leader known for his savagery, ferocity, and unbridled nature, the crimson-blooded Tiberius, who lowered his proud head and indicated his willingness to join the alliance.
Ortiz was very surprised. After all, of the four warbands present, he thought that although the Man-Eating Shark might agree, it wouldn't be so soon, and it didn't even offer any additional conditions.
"It is a pleasure to form an alliance with the Man-eating Shark, Chapter Master Tiberius. I have heard of some shortcomings in your chapter, and the Sage of Caul and the Factory of the Badab system are willing to provide assistance."
A hint of pleasant surprise appeared on Tiberius's face, and he nodded slightly to Lynch in gratitude.
"You can conduct a recruitment drive on several planets within the Badab system, and we will also provide you with sufficient basic ammunition and supplies, as well as a certain number of Rand Raiders and power armor and their supporting equipment."
Lynch made these promises without the slightest hesitation. He could easily craft the power armor and Land Raiders himself; as for basic ammunition...
Not to mention the local factories in Badab, even Belisarius Caul's mechanical ark could produce countless of those things on its own.
"Starry Sky Phantom is also willing to join the covenant."
The fourth person to agree appeared; it was the leader of the Starry Sky Phantom Battle Group.
Ortiz sighed slightly; things had come to this point, and there was no reason for him to persist any longer.
After all, this covenant did not actually violate the holy code much, and even the hermits in their own battlebands would only complain a little at most.
Moreover, even ignoring Lin Qi's original identity, the benefits represented by joining this alliance are enough to tempt many battle captains.
Not to mention that with Lynch around, even the resistance on Terra will disappear.
"The Red Scorpion Chapter is also willing to join this covenant. As you said, this covenant does not violate the Codex Astartes, and the High Lords of Terra naturally have no reason to object."
At this point, only the Minotaur and Firehawk chapters remained.
Moloch agreed shortly after hearing Lynch's words. After all, although it was widely rumored that they were the High Lords' lackeys, in essence, they were also Astartes, warriors of both humans and the Emperor.
All eyes immediately turned to the commander of the Firehawk Squadron. The aged warrior met everyone's gaze, slowly raised his head, and met Lin Qi's eyes without flinching.
“Lord Lynch,” the old warrior named Lazarek began. “Please forgive my rudeness, but the Firehawk Chapter cannot join your covenant.”
"why?"
"You should know this."
“Huron is dead. I believe the feud between the two chapters should be over. This alliance can serve as a new beginning for us, can’t it?”
"But the shame has not disappeared, not only for me, but even for the warriors of my chapter."
Has it really come to this?
Lynch sighed slightly, looked at Lazarek, and revealed his final plan.
This is a situation that we've been preparing for for several days now, specifically for today's circumstances.
"Chaptermaster Lazarek, I've heard that the Firehawks have a tradition of deciding the outcome of conflicts through duels."
".......indeed."
"Then, let's duel."
Lynch looked at Lazarek with a solemn expression and slowly began to speak.
“Each of our two battle groups will send one warrior to a duel to determine the disgrace of the past and the status of the present.”
"...How will the outcome be determined?"
“If we win, then we hope that the feud between the two chapters can be wiped clean. I don’t even ask you to join the covenant, as long as we can restore our relationship.”
"What if we win?"
“Star Claw will acknowledge that shame. When you gather your forces, I will personally apologize to you for the humiliation of the past.”
Lynch said this, which caused Lazarek's expression to change.