Chapter 69: Ancestors

Chapter 69: Ancestors

"Mongolia" huge form plunged into the water, splashing upward, mingling with the sparks drifting from its back and the slanting sunlight, as if igniting a cloud of mist.

The waves surged forward; even when they had weakened by the time they reached the island's shore, the layered undulations still conveyed a tremendous sense of oppression.

The civilians' formation began to waver; some stepped back a few paces, but seeing their neighbors unmoved, they hesitated and returned to their original spots.

They raised their weapons in defiance against the colossal beast, the tiny bodies versus the massive monster creating a staggering contrast, like so many overconfident ants.

The Mechanicus cultists on the beast's back noted this almost laughable scene; the priest at the control console chanted a hymn, while the artillery priests on either side of the gondola had finished their final prayers.

Blue smoke rose; after a deafening boom, the forward gun's muzzle belched flame, hurling heavy shot across the water straight toward the shore.

Then the projectile landed three hundred meters from the shore, throwing up two tall plumes of spray.

"Nobody moves! Fire! Fire!"

Chen Jian heard the civilian who had sought him out shuffling back and forth through the makeshift line, constantly pulling back those who wanted to retreat.

But his effort clearly had no effect; the formation had already lost its basic integrity.

"Don't move! Take cover; they can't hit you!"

Chen Jian shouted loudly, but likewise, no one could hear his words.

The Mechanicus' second barrage had begun, and this time the shells landed on the shore ahead of the crowd!

"Boom!"

A tremendous explosion rang out; the shrapnel shell burst, sending fragments flying with the blast wave.

Someone was nicked by shrapnel, leapt from what had been a safe shelter, and fled in terror.

Another tried to stop a solid round that was slowly bouncing on the ground, appearing harmless, but his outstretched leg twisted in a shocking arc, nearly torn from his body by the shell's immense momentum.

Agonized cries pierced the air; the line, unable to bear the pressure any longer, began to collapse.

The organizer still tried to steady the formation, but was now powerless.

Only about twenty people obeyed his command and remained; some of those twenty even lacked weapons.

What kept them standing here was only courage, anger, or perhaps despair?

Chen Jian wished he could go forward to supervise the fight, but now he could not leave his position.

Didn't I tell you to stay in cover and not move?

What the hell are you doing?!

I only wanted to give you a chance to prove your bravery, yet you insist on causing casualties to feel satisfied?

He continued to order the crowd to hold formation and wait patiently, but the more he said it, the more confused the organizer became.

He looked toward Chen Jian's direction, his face a mix of confusion and disappointment.

He had no notion of battlefield opportunism, nor did he grasp the importance of a front line; he simply felt the wait was pointless.

His heart was filled with fear and anxiety, his thoughts growing ever more chaotic.

—

What are we waiting for? Why aren't we firing?

Is this your way of fighting?

You've already seen the enemy; shouldn't you open fire at once?

You just stand here doing nothing, then watch as those Mechanicus fiends slaughter us one by one?

The monster is swimming toward the shore; it's already close.

If it lands on this island, it will be too late for everything!

At this moment, even he himself wanted to turn and run.

But he didn't know where he could possibly go.

He drew a deep breath and finally made up his mind.

Then he raised the rifle seized from the ecclesiarchy troops and shouted:

"All brothers willing to fight, come to me!"

"We stand together!"

"In the name of our ancestors, we hold this ground!"

"Our bones shall be buried alongside our ancestors!"

His words fell, and more than a dozen still holding the line sprinted toward him, shouting:

"May our ancestors bless us!"

"Take down that monster! Shoot its eyes!"

"Cultist scum! Grandfather, I'm waiting for you here!"

"Defend the land of our ancestors!"

Gunfire rang out simultaneously from water and shore; in the brief, rapid volley, someone fell from the beast's back.

But immediately after, the Mechanicus ecclesiastics returned fire; after a volley, someone likewise fell among the lakeside ranks.

Ammunition was running low.

The man at the front looked anguished, dropped his rifle, and charged recklessly into the lake.

He had forgotten Chen Jian's order; his mind held only the thought of revenge.

Without a weapon, he even thought of using his teeth to bite the vile cultists to death.

That was all he could do; he could not bear to watch his ancestors' land be defiled by evil.

Then let him die here.

The man inhaled deeply and plunged into the water.

His whole body submerged, but at the instant of entry, a tremendous explosion rang out.

Another shot fired.

He didn't have time to think; he simply dove and swam swiftly underwater.

He only wanted to get closer, ever closer.

Finally, his lungs exhausted, he was forced to surface.

But when he wiped the lake water from his face, his body suddenly froze in place.

Before his eyes lay a scene that made his whole body shudder.

The beast had reached the shallows less than three hundred meters from the islet's shore, while his distance to it was under one hundred fifty meters.

Yet the monster could advance no further.

Flames rose; the blast wave from the explosion washed over the creature's carapace.

The altar on the beast's back was struck by a shell from somewhere unknown; amid a deafening blast, the steel-built altar vanished in an instant.

Shattered limbs fluttered through the air, then scattered into the lake, staining it with a hazy crimson.

Immediately afterward, an exposed gun emplacement on the flank was likewise shattered by the blast, while on the opposite side the artillery priest’s body snapped in two without warning.

The deafening report of the guns only reached his ears at that moment, but just as he turned to locate the source, two bursts of blood blossomed across the monster’s forehead.

Then came the explosion buried deep within flesh and blood.

“Boom!”

“Boom!”

After the two muffled blasts, the creature’s head erupted into a torrent of bloody mist.

Its torso had not yet toppled, yet swiftly a blossom of incandescent flame burst from its metal‑clad back.

The metal melted, and the chitinous carapace beneath was pierced through.

The tremendous impact nearly slammed the beast to the ground; its massive carcass sank beneath the waves, while the surviving Mechanicus zealots flung themselves into the water, desperately scrambling for any chance of escape.

But obviously, no one would grant them that chance.

The man turned his gaze toward the shore and saw the iron warrior, clad in strange armor, gripping a long spear, methodically picking off the flailing zealots with unhurried, orderly precision.

So composed.

As if strolling through a tranquil garden.

And the two holy blooded ones, who towered above most men, stood silently at the iron warrior’s flanks, like faithful guardians.

Five minutes later, the gunfire ceased.

The raging beast never reached the islet, and the Mechanicus zealots had all become corpses drifting upon the lake’s surface.

The man swam back to the island, his expression a mix of shock and numbness, as he approached the iron warrior who was cleaning his weapon, staring for a moment before finally trembling and asking:

“You… you, who are you?”

Zeng Yi, standing beside Chen Jian, coughed once, stepped forward, and replied:

“They are the God‑chosen, and also your saviors.”

The man blinked, looked up, then collapsed once more to the ground.

Chen Jian watched the scene curiously, until the man slammed his forehead against the earth several times, whereupon he finally said:

“Get up, don’t kneel.”

Chen Jian re‑hung the recoilless 024 gun on its rack, then said:

“We are no God‑chosen ones, nor have we come to save you.”

“Our opposition to the Mechanicus is merely to give you a choice.”

“Choose now.”

“Stand, or kneel?”

The man stared, bewildered, then rose to his feet with resolve.

But immediately afterward he asked again:

“You say you are not the God‑chosen; then could you tell me who you really are?”

Chen Jian gave a faint smile and replied:

“I just heard your shout.”

“In truth, we are of the same kind as your ancestors.”

(End of chapter)