The restoration of the Han Dynasty began with the Horus Rebellion.

Chapter 21: The Three-Minute Truce

"You have failed, Horus."

Few people would speak so frankly to a Warmaster, not even among his Primarch brothers.

Horus, seated on the throne of the Vengeful Spirit, showed no sign of anger and remained completely at ease.

"It depends on how you define victory and defeat, my brother."

The holographic image projected from the throne handle flickered continuously due to strong signal interference, and only a blurry figure could be vaguely seen.

"For me, this is just part of a much bigger victory."

"That's just pointless sophistry! This was supposed to be a simple, quick purge, a victory that could have been inspiring. Now, because of your mistake, not only have 90% of the targets survived, but we've also lost a Glory Queen-class battleship! Damn it... When I looked up and saw the 20-kilometer-long deck entering the atmosphere, my first thought was that you've gone mad, trying to wipe us brothers out here!"

"If I had really thought that way, I would have ordered the Tyrant to be shot down immediately. In any case, I'm glad my brother survived the impact of the landing."

Even with all efforts to slow it down, the Tyrant, with its size approaching that of an asteroid and a weight of billions of tons, simply could not be handled with care.

When it came into contact with the ground, it caused a magnitude 9 earthquake across the entire tectonic plate. The shockwave swept across most of the planet like a tsunami, while the Void Shield, which was subjected to intense friction with the ground to offset the impact, emitted electromagnetic shocks in all directions with each overload.

This forced the fierce battle aboard the Istvan III to be put on hold. If they did not immediately find cover and move away from the landing site of the Great Tyrant, even the Primarch would be easily crushed like an ant.

"Hmph, I survived, but what about him... never mind, let's not talk about that. Besides, the damage from the landing is a minor issue. Have you considered what might happen if those die-hards loyal to Father use the Glory Queen-class battleships as fortresses—they not only have void shields strong enough to withstand orbital bombardment, but they also have the weapons and supplies they need for a prolonged war? All of this would turn this war into an ugly tug-of-war!"

Faced with this accusation that made no attempt to hide his dissatisfaction, Horus instead revealed a smile of interest.

"I never expected that someone who never pursues tactical elegance or aesthetics in combat would have such thoughts."

"That's because it severely disrupted my original calculations. And stop pretending to be something you're not. Your legion's losses were just as severe, weren't they? The Thunderhawk that tried to board the ship but failed and crashed—wasn't your chief platoon leader, your most outstanding son, on board?"

Upon hearing the other person's words, Horus's face showed a hint of melancholy.

"To be more precise, Azekel is the child most like me, the strongest, the most determined, and also the most... ambitious. I originally thought he could not only follow me, but even achieve greater things than me—but thanks to him, I was able to discover another outstanding child of mine."

"That Sun Qian?"

The electrical noise noticeably decreased, and the holographic image gradually became clearer, making it possible to make out that the other person was a man wearing a hood.

This is a signal that the strong electromagnetic interference caused by the landing of the Tyrant is about to subside.

According to calculations by Horus's technical officers, Istvan's ground communications would begin to be restored in about 30 minutes.

Once the troops on the ground are in position, they can regroup under command and allow the war to continue.

"I think I told you before, if Izekel is my Lupecal, then Sejanus is my Guilliman, Sediri is my Dorne, and Torgardon is my Fernus... and Loken, even though he is not much like me in many ways, I still consider him my Saint Gilles."

Horus, on the other hand, didn't seem very nervous at all, like a middle-aged father chatting with his brother about his child's grades.

"Boring sentimentality, then according to you, who is Sun Qian? Alphareis? The last child to be found, and skilled in sneaky and underhanded tricks, that fits quite well."

For a fleeting moment, upon hearing the name "Alpharis," Horus's kind expression vanished and became twisted and ferocious. However, he regained his composure just a second later, but this seemingly schizophrenic emotional shift went unnoticed by anyone.

"No, I think he's more like... Magnus, with unlimited potential, yet relying on a mysterious power he can't control—and confused about the path he should take."

There was silence on the other end of the communication for several seconds, before a cold snort that sounded like a sneer was finally heard.

"That's perfect! The one I hate most among my brothers is this arrogant red-skinned idiot. Now I'm going to destroy your 'Magnus' and use the power of science and 'numerology' to save this war from your defeat!"

"Then I wish you good luck in battle, Mortarian."

As Horus rose from his throne, his communications with the lord of the Fourteenth Legion were severed.

Then the commander walked to the porthole and looked down at the surface of the Istvan III. Even the Tyrant, which was embedded in the ground in orbit, was still clearly visible.

"Come, son, prove to me what you asked Abaddon to convey—"

Has the era of the Primarchs come to an end?

-

Boom!!

The violent vibrations and roaring sounds jolted Sun Qian awake from his deep sleep, and he was immediately able to hear the mechanical reports emanating from the Thinker Array.

"Encountered a beam of light from orbit, Void Shield overload rate 45%."

It seems that the claim that the Queen Glory-class battleships could withstand the firepower of a fleet is not an exaggeration. Even after experiencing such an illogical impact as a forced landing, they still retained a fairly complete defensive system.

"Reconfigure the power distribution strategy to redirect the energy originally supplied to the engine to the Void Shield generator."

Sun Qian rubbed his temples vigorously and glanced at the system time. It seemed that he had only rested for less than thirty minutes after the Tyrant landed.

However, this at least alleviated some of the mental exhaustion caused by the previous battle.

"That's so unethical! Can't people even get a good night's sleep?"

"It's quite special that you can still sleep peacefully under these circumstances."

A sweet yet ethereal voice suddenly rang in his ears, startling Sun Qian.

"Who?!"

It wasn't a hallucination or telepathy; there really was a woman standing beside his command throne.

Logically speaking, given Astartes' sensory abilities, it's impossible that it couldn't hear even a breath within a meter.

This was a slender woman dressed in a simple Imperial employee uniform, her shoulder-length blonde hair slightly disheveled from the previous jolting.

She wasn't the kind of stunning beauty in the traditional sense; she could only be described as having a pretty and decent appearance. But for some reason, after just one glance, Sun Qian felt that her face was deeply imprinted in his mind.

Love at first sight? That's impossible, of course. Once you become an Astartes, you shouldn't have such mortal desires and passions.

This is clearly a kind of psionic energy—

Or perhaps it's the spiritual influence of a more mysterious and powerful force.

"Euphrates... Miss Kira, right?"

Although it was their first meeting, Sun Qian could easily determine the other party's identity.

"Out of goodwill, I would like to remind you that entering the bridge without permission—and coming close to Astartes—is a very dangerous act."

Sun Qian glanced at the entrance and exit of the bridge and found that it was still closed and blocked, just like when he drove away the crew in order to activate the .

However, considering the woman's identity, Sun Qian decided it was best not to ask any more questions.

Qi Le smiled calmly, her gaze fixed on Sun Qian.

"I apologize for my rudeness, but there's something they want to tell you as soon as possible."

they?

Sun Qian was initially curious, but he quickly realized that besides him, there were only two Astartes on the ship who could be considered his teammates.

Leaving aside Acton, who followed Qile, Grell was essentially dragged onto the pirate ship by himself—or rather, a loyalist rebel. His current stance... is...

However, Qi Le's next words made Sun Qian instantly put these questions out of his mind.

"We have received a message from the loyalists of Istvan III."