MTLNOVEL Chapter 455: Chapter 455: Total Corruption
In an instant, hundreds of 80mm Gauss cannons poured their firepower into the passage carved out by the electromagnetic cannons.
Pfft—Pfft—!!
The deafening roar of the Gauss rifles echoed through the air, unleashing a hailstorm of projectiles that tore apart the heretical creatures swarming the tunnel.
These twisted abominations, relying on grotesque tentacles and bony spikes to climb upward, sought to break through to the surface. However, their assault was smothered before it could fully take form, crushed under the suppressive fire of the Knight Mechs.
Ri~shoo—shoo!
Following the Gauss barrage, the two 140mm plasma cannons began their assault, releasing searing blue-white plasma projectiles.
Dozens of these plasma bolts swept across the passageway like solar flares, incinerating the tightly packed enemies and reducing them to charred remains.
The tide of heretical forces, which once surged like a relentless torrent, came to an abrupt halt, as if a gushing spring had run dry.
Sssszzz—!
When the two hovering Knight Mechs finally ceased fire, silence fell upon the passage.
The confined space reeked of scorched flesh, and the air was thick with lingering smoke and debris. Yet, no more heretical creatures dared to climb up.
For now, the tunnel leading to the underground city was completely cleared, offering the Carcharodons a brief window to proceed with their next steps.
At the edge of the passage, Tyberos had already led his hundred-strong company guard to secure the area.
Standing resolutely amidst the battlefield's smoke and ash, their gleaming power armor and menacing shark-tooth insignias reflected the cold, harsh light, making them resemble silent, unyielding statues.
Tyberos's unique chainsaw power claws gleamed menacingly in the flickering light, exuding a savage aura.
Further back, the 2nd and 3rd assault platoons of the Carcharodons stood ready to act. Their role was to provide covering fire while Tyberos and the company guard spearheaded the advance.
Meanwhile, ten thousand ODST troops, along with heavy units like Tyrants and Cyclopes, had completed their airdrop deployment.
These elite "mortal" forces were tasked with fortifying the defensive lines, ensuring that heretical forces couldn't counterattack from other directions or disrupt the landing zone.
As for the over one hundred thousand auxiliary forces—comprising more clones, Terminators, and Hunters—they required additional time to mobilize.
Coordinating these units involved far more logistical complexity than the straightforward airborne deployments of the ODSTs and Astartes.
Back aboard the Diana III, Jens, Chris, and their teams were preparing to return to Quicontor's surface alongside the Carcharodons' auxiliary forces.
Once there, Chris—equipped with a nano-protective suit—along with agents from the Department of Investigation and the Heresy Inquisition, would likely venture into the underground city to provide on-the-ground guidance and support to the Carcharodons.
As for Janes 's ODST troops, the special forces, and the Navy Marines composed entirely of "ordinary mortals," their role would primarily be to gain some real combat experience against heretical enemies, acting as auxiliary support.
However, Tyberos had no interest in pondering the timeline for reinforcements.
Standing at the edge of the passage, he used his genetically enhanced Astartes vision, augmented by the advanced HUD in his helmet and an array of scanning devices, to survey the details of the underground city below.
What lay before him was a true abyss.
But unlike the frozen wasteland above, transformed into a swamp by melted ice and mud, the swampy terrain of the underground city was corrupt and tainted.
A sickeningly chaotic atmosphere permeated the area, resembling the "blood of chaos" from some ancient, rotting organism. Thick, murky green fluid flowed sluggishly across the underground terrain, pulsating with an unsettling, diseased vitality.
Lowering his gaze further, Tyberos spotted clusters of grotesque, living plants. They looked like alien tentacles clawing their way up from the planet's depths.
These indescribable plant-like forms sprawled across the swamp, their tendrils intertwining and writhing as if responding to an unseen call.
They twisted, stretched, and contracted irregularly, seeming almost sentient as they probed their surroundings, lying in wait for new prey to ensnare.
Scattered among these writhing tendrils were decayed plant husks and perforated lifeforms, their appearances blurring the line between the living and the dead.
Tiny creatures scuttled and writhed through holes and crevices in these remnants. Some had irregular legs and warped limbs, darting nimbly among the decayed vegetation.
Every crevice teemed with twisted life. These small organisms crawled into and out of the plants' cavities, and the entire underground realm seemed to be endlessly spawning "new" life.
The sight was enough to drive anyone with trypophobia to the brink of madness.
Tyberos understood that if a regular person stood here, they would likely collapse in terror.
The chaotic landscape of countless creatures, decayed materials, and mutant plants would evoke overwhelming psychological pressure in most humans—or any intelligent beings.
But Tyberos felt no fear. He did not allow fear to exist in his mind.
What surged within him now was not hesitation or unease, but pure loathing and deep-seated hatred.
He despised the blasphemous lifeforms before him, abhorred the corruption of the landscape, and harbored a burning enmity for all things chaos.
At the same time, his heart blazed with an unwavering loyalty to the Imperium, the Legion, and the Emperor himself. This steadfast resolve drove his desire to bring ever-greater glory to them.
Tyberos's extraordinary nature had been evident ever since his initial gene-seed implantation.
Compared to his "brothers," he was taller, stronger, and capable of displaying terrifying strength even without the aid of power armor.
Even the most seasoned veterans of the Raven Guard found themselves at a disadvantage in hand-to-hand combat against Tyberos.
His innate talents quickly drew the attention of the Primarch, Corax.
As he continued to temper himself in the fires of war and accumulated experience on countless battlefields, Tyberos rose rapidly within the ranks of the Legion.
His unmatched combat prowess, coupled with his decisiveness and calm demeanor in every mission, allowed him to stand out.
When the newly formed 4th Company of the Raven Guard needed a captain, Tyberos was the natural choice.
Having endured countless life-and-death struggles and sudden crises, Tyberos had become utterly immune to fear. His iron will was unbreakable, his reactions to danger always measured and swift.
After briefly assessing the situation—
"Let's move."
Tyberos issued a curt order over comms before leaping decisively into the foul, corrupted abyss below.
The company guards encircling him followed without hesitation.
Meanwhile, the 2nd and 3rd assault platoons of over 500 Carcharodons maintained their formation, standing by to ensure the stability of the initial assault and to provide overwhelming fire support and reinforcements when necessary.
The two Knight Mechs, no longer hovering, also descended in freefall, following Tyberos and the company guards into the depths of the underground city.
Even a fearless warrior like Tyberos would never underestimate the dangers hidden within such an unknown environment, nor dismiss the chaotic forces at work here.
Underestimating any form of heresy would be a grave and foolish mistake.
Tyberos knew full well that the abyss below was teeming with millions of enemies. This was no battlefield that could be conquered by sheer individual might.
Not even Tyberos could "single-handedly" take on the entire horde.
Logic dictated that he advance cautiously, scouting the terrain and threats before proceeding further.
Before long, Tyberos and the hundred company guards passed through the tunnel's opening.
Their colossal forms emerged at the entrance to the underground city, illuminated by an eerie glow.
The space was vast and cavernous, as though the entire subterranean world had been hollowed out to create an unimaginably large urban expanse.
Boom—boom—splash—!!
Accompanied by a series of muffled splashes, they landed on the edge of the murky swamp below.
The swamp's surface rippled violently, releasing waves of foul-smelling sludge.
The swamp water was nearly black-green, its viscous surface bubbling rhythmically as though it were alive.
Strange plants growing along the swamp's edge quickly extended tendril-like roots toward the newcomers, attempting to drag them into their domain.
However, the Carcharodons reacted with battle-hardened reflexes, swiftly retreating from the swamp's reach.
Bzzzt—slash!
Several company guards swung their long-handled chain axes, effortlessly severing the tendrils that reached for them.
Their armored boots found solid ground again, avoiding entanglement with these deceptively innocuous plants.
The ground at the swamp's edge was coated with a black, rock-like substance, faintly sticky. It was evident that the corruption beneath Quicontor's frozen surface had penetrated deeply, tainting the very foundation of the land.
Using drone reconnaissance and the shared visuals from the Knight Mechs, Tyberos and
his company guards surveyed the full scope of the underground metropolis.
Though heavy smog and corrupt vegetation obscured much of the structures, remnants of the city's former "prosperity" were still evident.
Had it not been for the deep corruption of chaos, this place might once have been a thriving underground "steel jungle."
Skyscrapers, suspended railways, and countless holographic display systems hinted at a cyberpunk-like design, reminiscent of the megacities in Universe 09 (Cyberpunk 2077).
This city had once been a melting pot of diverse factions—remnants of the Covenant like Ghostface Clans and Gnolls, along with human traitors and mercenaries from the local universe. Its architecture reflected a chaotic blend of styles.
Now, however, the "steel jungle" had been twisted into a grotesque hellscape.
Even the once-functional urban structures had been warped by chaos into horrifying forms, transformed into a "swamp jungle" brimming with corruption.
Buildings were covered in pulsating, pustule-filled vegetation, their surfaces crawling with swarms of flies and other insects. Thick, greenish fog blanketed the city, reducing visibility to a mere few meters.
Most concerning was the staggering number of deadly microorganisms detected by Tyberos's helmet sensors. These microbes lurked in the air and swamp water, invisible to the naked eye.
The air reeked of decay, dampness, and rot—a suffocating, invisible miasma of death.
Anyone without the protection of power armor or Terminator suits would be instantly consumed by the corrosive environment, their bodies reduced to mere nutrients for the corrupted ecosystem.
Even before succumbing to corrosion, ordinary humans—or even unarmored Astartes—would likely die from the sheer, overwhelming stench.
Here, the smell of rot was so intense it seemed to have physical weight, pressing into every inch of space.
Ha—ha—ha—!!
As Tyberos and his guards briefly scanned their surroundings, a booming, deafening laugh erupted, echoing from all directions at once.
The laughter carried a tone of joy intertwined with corruption, further thickening the already dense fog.
"Toom'ka varath, kol'ah hai'yai kresh!"
(All things rot, but none truly die!)
As the voice faded, shadows deep within the corrupted jungle began to shift.
Out crawled heretical Ghostface Clans and Gnolls, enslaved by chaos.
Their eyes were empty and frenzied, their bodies covered in grotesque pustules and writhing tendrils. They were no longer recognizable as their original forms, utterly consumed by the chaos entities that had taken hold of them.
Behind them surged countless twisted, indescribable abominations, their grotesque snarls filling the air with nasal, guttural cries.
It was as if an awakened tide of madness was rushing out of the jungle, heading straight for Tyberos and his company.
"Wa-hahaha~!"
"Scree-eech~!!"
Among the chaotic tide were rotund, bloated "little creatures" with grotesque, almost comical appearances.
Screaming shrilly, they moved with an unnerving blend of clumsiness and speed. Their bodies oozed slime and stench as they charged toward Tyberos's line like an unstoppable wave.
But neither Tyberos nor his hundred company guards showed the slightest hint of fear. Instead, a fierce battlelust burned brightly within them.
"Heh, perfect timing."
Watching the incoming wave of corruption, Tyberos's voice carried a metallic edge, accompanied by a disdainful chuckle.
Then, with a sudden flourish, he activated his chainsaw power claws.
Bzzt—BRRRRNNN!
The massive, razor-sharp claws crackled with crimson plasma "lightning," while the chainsaw blades spun at high speed, emitting a piercing screech that struck fear into all who heard it.
Without hesitation, Tyberos charged forward, plunging headfirst into the foul, reeking tide of heretical creatures.
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