The heavy boots of the Terminator armor crushed the creep beneath them, each step leaving a deep imprint in the viscous organic matter.
Roar—!
Boom—Splatter—!!
A pack of zerglings screeched and lunged forward, only to be swept aside by the power hammer. The heavy head, wrapped in plasma and disintegration fields, instantly smashed three of them into pulp, spraying chitin shards and viscera like a torrential downpour.
A hydralisk had just raised its bone blades when Gaozan's left fist struck like a cannonball. The blow from the power fist shattered its upper body, and its yellow-green ichor splashed onto the armor, only to be vaporized by the heat of the shielding field.
The swarm's onslaught showed no signs of abating, but Gaozan's advance was even faster.
Every swing of his power hammer ripped the air with a screech. Where the hammer landed, the zerg's exoskeletons shattered like paper, their flesh reduced to dust under the force of the disintegration field.
Roar———!!
A thor-like beast charged at him from the front, its massive scythe-like limbs slashing down at his entire frame.
Without heavy fire support, even Astartes bolters and plasma cannons were insufficient to kill such massive zerg units.
But to the Terminator-armored company guard, "heavy firepower" was never lacking.
Seeing their captain about to be struck by the beast, two guards stepped forward. Mini-missile pods mounted on their pauldrons and power packs immediately deployed.
Whoosh—Whoosh—Whoosh—!!!
A volley of mini-missiles tipped with low-yield metallic hydrogen warheads screamed toward the thor and the swarm flooding the street.
The next instant—
Ri~—Screech—BOOM BOOM BOOM—!!!
Dozens of "miniature suns" lit up the district, followed by devastating explosions and shockwaves.
At the epicenter, Gaozan knelt with both hands gripping his power hammer. His full-power energy shield formed a barrier to withstand the destruction of the metallic hydrogen detonations.
As the blast wave faded and smoke filled the air, the swarm's advance was severely disrupted. Gaozan resumed his push forward, determined to eliminate the source of the psionic storm that had sealed off the city.
Soon, he finally saw the massive figure clearly—
It was a zerg unlike any he had ever seen.
Its lower half was a giant spider-like arthropod body, its sharp limbs impaled deep into the creep, while its upper body was a twisted humanoid female form, its head resembling a Xenomorph Queen from the Alien universe, the entire body clad in dark violet exoskeleton.
Additionally, a pair of massive bone arms extended from its upper torso, each one crackling with psionic arcs.
"Zerg Broodmother: Psionic Variant."
His visor immediately projected intelligence files from the Department of Intelligence, but Gaozan did not spare it a glance.
The creature had already sensed his approach. It raised both bone arms high—
Crack—!!!
Blinding psionic lightning fell like serpents, striking directly at Gaozan's location.
In the nick of time, he raised his power hammer to block. The energy shield generator activated instantly, forming a semi-transparent barrier.
WHRRRRMMMM—!!!
The psionic lightning clashed with the energy field, erupting in a blinding flash as bright as the sun.
The shockwave hurled dozens of nearby zerg into the air, the creep beneath them carbonizing and fracturing under the intense heat.
Gaozan's magboots sank deep into the ground, and the servos in his armor blared overheat warnings. But he didn't budge an inch.
Roar—!!
The broodmother shrieked again. Its bone arms waved, and a second, then third bolt of lightning rained down.
Gaozan rolled aside. The spot he had just stood was obliterated into a charred crater over ten meters wide.
He charged forward, the power hammer dragging behind him, its disintegration field glowing dangerously red from overcharge.
!?
The broodmother sensed danger. Its abdomen suddenly expelled sticky web-like material.
Caught off-guard, Gaozan's left leg was ensnared, but he didn't stop.
The Terminator armor's hydraulics roared at full capacity. He ripped free and leapt forward, swinging the hammer overhead.
"For the Emperor!"
As the hammer fell, the broodmother crossed its bone arms in defense. Psionic energy clashed with the disintegration field again.
BOOM—!!!
The resulting explosion vaporized creep across a hundred meters. Nearby zerg were torn to pieces by the shockwave.
Gaozan's helmet visor flickered from energy interference, but he clearly saw cracks forming along the broodmother's bone arms.
Still, it did not retreat.
Roar!!!
Its grotesque face contorted, releasing a mind-piercing shriek. A wave of violent psionic force erupted from within.
THUMP—!
Gaozan, weighing over three tons in his armor, was lifted clean off his feet. His body plowed through dozens of zerg before crashing into a half-collapsed ruin.
Dust and rubble flew. His armor's servos screamed again, and hydraulic fluid sprayed from ruptured lines.
The broodmother gave no pause.
It raised both arms again. Psionic lightning poured like a torrential rain, engulfing the ruin Gaozan was in.
Purple-black energy beams pierced through rubble. The ground melted into boiling scorched earth under the heat.
The broodmother knew—its physical strength had been no match in melee. Its pride was shattered.
But zerg had no pride—only ruthless efficiency.
If brute force failed, then it would pulverize this mighty human with psionics and drag him back for assimilation.
Inside Gaozan's Terminator armor, the structure trembled under the onslaught. His shields were long since overwhelmed, the outer plates burned through in multiple places.
It felt as if a mountain pressed on every limb. He couldn't even lift a finger.
The tactical display blinked with an option: reactor overload.
With a thought, he could vaporize everything within a kilometer.
"Detonate?"
The idea flashed through Gaozan's mind.
But the next second, he clenched his teeth and suppressed the impulse.
Not yet!
Crack!
He raised his left hand, seized the scorched remains of his helmet, and violently tore it off.
The mounting locks broke under brute force, revealing his weathered, resolute face.
Blood ran down his forehead, but his eyes—those blazing eyes—remained fixed on the broodmother.
"For the Emperor!! For humanity!!"
His roar drowned out the thunder of psionic lightning.
Shockingly, with that shout, Gaozan began rising—step by agonizing step—against the crushing psionic force.
More bizarre still, if one looked closely, one could see golden light flickering faintly in his eyes. A power was "awakening"—or perhaps "descending" or "bestowing a blessing."
The lightning still raged, but now it could no longer bring him down.
!!??
The broodmother shrieked in confusion, its mouthparts twitching.
Why could this human resist its psionic power?
But Gaozan gave it no time to ponder.
"Die!!"
He surged forward, Terminator armor's servos in full overload, hurling himself like a projectile.
The power hammer carved a burning arc through the air, its disintegration field blazing with dazzling golden radiance. The broodmother tried to block again—
CRACK—!!!
The hammer smashed through its defense and slammed into its twisted upper torso.
Squelch—!!
The field detonated. The broodmother's body shattered like brittle glass. Chitin fragments, rancid organs, and boiling psionic blood sprayed out in every direction.
Gaozan landed firmly, the hammer embedded deep in the ground.
Behind him, the broodmother's corpse collapsed. Its spider-like limbs twitched once, then fell still.
The battlefield fell into eerie silence.
The surviving zerg seemed to lose all coordination, scattering in confused retreat.
Gaozan stood motionless, exhaling a deep breath.
The golden glow faded from his eyes—but his will to fight still burned bright.
With the broodmother dead, the psionic storm above the city began to dissipate. The dark clouds thinned, revealing the sky at last.
Though it remained a smoke-stained yellow-grey, it was no longer suffocating.
With the psionic interference gone, the static on comms channels cleared, and real-time data feeds returned to Flame Lizard HUDs.
"All units, reform the lines!" Gaozan's voice came through the comms. Though weary, it remained firm. "Priority—secure evacuation routes."
Without the broodmother's command, the swarm lost cohesion.
Zergling charges turned into chaotic skirmishes. Hydralisk volleys became sporadic. Even lurker ambushes lost their precision.
It was the perfect moment for a counterattack.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
In orbit, the Unyielding Holy Flame's macro cannon batteries thundered.
Precision-calculated strikes turned the densest zerg concentrations to ash, skillfully avoiding civilian shelters.
Each shell landed with surgical force, immolating thousands of zerg in plasma fire.
With orbital fire support, the pressure on ground units eased.
Scattered squads began advancing, purging bugs from key routes while searching for trapped civilians.
"Survivors located in Sector B—repeat, survivors located in Sector B!" came a Helljumper's report. "Approximately two hundred civilians trapped in an underground parking facility—requesting support!"
Gaozan immediately dispatched two nearby tactical squads.
Meanwhile, the thirty honor guards who had teleported with him remained busy.
Battle-hardened veterans, they split into teams to clear high-threat zones infested with elite zerg.
They performed with terrifying efficiency in close-quarters battle. Each cleared block became a new evacuation zone.
But the calm didn't last.
Though the zerg had lost their queen, their hive-mind still functioned.
Within minutes, the swarm began regrouping.
New command strains—variant brood creatures—appeared across the battlefield.
Though not psionically gifted, they could coordinate local swarms via pheromones.
"We must speed up the evacuation," Gaozan ordered. "No prolonged engagements. Our goal is rescue, not planetary purification."
It was the right decision.
Agria held tens—hundreds—of millions of zerg. Unless the Exterminatus was invoked to glass or even destroy the planet, full eradication was impossible.
And every second lost meant more civilian deaths.
As Gaozan turned to leave, his knee suddenly buckled.
His Terminator armor, after prolonged battle and psionic exposure, was nearing its limit.
So was Gaozan—both in body and mind. He was no psyker, yet had fought a brutal battle against a powerful psionic foe.
He dropped to one knee, leaning on his hammer for support.
"Captain Gaozan!"
A familiar voice called from behind.
Turning, he saw Dr. Ariel Hanson approaching with several medical aides, escorted by two honor guards and six Helljumpers.
Her white coat was now stained brown with blood and dust, but her eyes remained unwavering—though filled with open concern.
"You need a full medical scan immediately!"
She barely reached his chin even while standing, but held up her scanner and urgently said, "Residual psionic exposure can cause permanent neural damage. I must check and treat you immediately to ensure no lasting effects."
"Don't worry, Doctor."
Gaozan raised a hand, gesturing for her not to fret.
"I'm just fatigued. No serious damage."
"Besides, our Astartes physiology is already beyond human norms. Even if I did show symptoms, I doubt there's anything you could do."
He rose steadily, regaining some strength, and looked down at her with gratitude.
"See? Just a little tired. I'm fine now."
"…"
Up close, standing before this nearly three-meter-tall giant, Ariel Hanson was stunned.
Even though she had seen him before via hologram, the real thing was overwhelming.
But she quickly recovered and bowed her head in heartfelt thanks.
"Thank you so much—for your sacrifice, for risking your lives to save ordinary people on an obscure colony like Agria. I can't express how grateful we are."
"It's what we're meant to do."
Gaozan did not linger in conversation. He turned to board a transport shuttle to return to the Unyielding Holy Flame for recovery and command.
At that moment, a golden radiance suddenly flashed in the skies above the Mar Sara front-line base—
(End of Chapter)
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