The conversation quickly came to an end, and ahead was the main armory of the position. This important building was guarded by an entire squad of the Star Realm Army, which was stationed deep underground, equipped with reinforced ceramic steel and filled sandbags for added strength.

  If the construction followed the standard procedures issued by the Ministry of Military Affairs, a military armory at the corps level of the Star Realm Army would be impervious to effective damage from direct hits by even super-heavy tank main guns in a short time—though in reality, most corps do not have the resources or time to complete standardized construction.

  Zhang Ge approached Sister Amelia and stepped forward.

  Upon reaching the entrance, Zhang Ge presented his credentials to the officer standing at the door. The officer quickly took out a device to carefully scan the credentials and had someone check Zhang Ge’s entire body before stepping aside to clear the way.

  Since flammable and explosive materials were not allowed in the armory, all of Zhang Ge's weapons, except for the Ascalon which was used as a decorative piece, were stored outside. Additionally, since the credentials only listed Zhang Ge, Sister Amelia had to wait outside as well.

  "I need a shield and a one-handed sword."

  After being stopped, Sister Amelia had no objections; she simply took a step back and said to Zhang Ge.

  Zhang Ge nodded to indicate he understood, and then followed the two guards into the armory.

  The three of them quickly reached the entrance, and as they descended deeper underground, the light from the entrance diminished until they arrived at the end, where a few dim yellow bulbs provided a new source of light inside the armory.

  Inside, a large number of weapons were stacked and arranged either neatly or haphazardly. However, this did not contradict what the political commissar had said about there being "nothing left," because while these weapons appeared to be many, a closer look revealed that the vast majority were laser guns and automatic rifles.

  If nothing unexpected occurred, this was likely due to heavy casualties in the troop, where the equipment of the deceased had been collected, and no new personnel had been assigned, rendering these weapons meaningless to Zhang Ge. Even if he held a laser gun with one finger, he could at most shoot ten rounds simultaneously.

  Without saying much, Zhang Ge wandered around the armory, picking and choosing, and quickly selected the few items that would be of use to him.

  Several thermite bombs, fragmentation grenades, a entrenching tool, a few clips of explosive rounds for a commoner’s explosive gun, and enough explosives.

  Additionally, there was a temporary prosthetic limb and sword and shield for Sister Amelia.

  Although the size of the former seemed somewhat mismatched, there was really no need to expect much from medical equipment meant for rapidly restoring combat capability to severely injured elite soldiers.

  "That's it."

  Zhang Ge casually grabbed a backpack to pack the items and said to the two guards.

  They merely nodded silently and soon led Zhang Ge back to the entrance. After checking, filling out the receipt form, and completing the signature, the ownership of these supplies officially transferred to Zhang Ge.

  Seeing Zhang Ge come out so quickly, Sister Amelia slightly turned her body, revealing the stump of her arm that had been simply treated in the car:

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  "Attach it."

  "?"

  Upon hearing this, Zhang Ge leaned in to press his face against hers, feeling the warmth as well as the roughness of the white cloth she used to cover her eyes.

  "？I meant to say, attach the prosthetic."

  "Oh oh."

  Taking out the prosthetic limb wrapped in a vacuum bag from the backpack, Zhang Ge unwrapped it and pressed the corresponding side against Sister Amelia's stump.

  After a series of noticeable and painfully jarring sounds, it seemed that the connection between the prosthetic and Amelia had been established.

  Zhang Ge watched her move the new arm and casually asked:

  "How does it compare to the original?"

  "Not flexible enough."

  Sister Amelia replied succinctly, then moved behind Zhang Ge, shoved the laser gun into his hands, pulled out the sword and shield from his new backpack, and held the ceramic steel shield in the prosthetic hand while wielding the sword with her preserved right hand.

  "But it's enough to use the shield."

  "Alright, there's nothing else to do, let's go find the vehicle."

  Zhang Ge responded, and just as they hadn't walked far, a servant approached and said:

  "My lord, let me take you to the vehicle."

  So considerate?

  Just now, Zhang Ge hadn’t asked where Ernesto's vehicle was simply because he forgot. He thought that a noble’s civilian vehicle couldn’t possibly be parked up front; such a large thing could be easily found by asking around.

  But unexpectedly, Ernesto noticed this detail and specifically sent a servant to guide him.

  "Okay... wait, what is that thing?"

  Just as Zhang Ge nodded in agreement, a fast-moving meteor streaked down from the sky, descending so quickly that it was almost about to crash onto the battlefield at the moment it broke through the clouds.

  In comparison to that speed, everything around seemed to be in slow motion... until the last moment, the meteor finally reached the battlefield, and as its retro-thrust nozzle operated and abruptly slowed down, Zhang Ge could see what it was.

  An interstellar warrior landing pod, but from the side of the Color Sin.

  At that moment, a piercing alarm finally rang out, echoing across the battlefield.

  But it was too late.

  The landing pod door suddenly dropped to the ground, and three giants, each over two meters tall, clad in powered armor and wielding explosive guns, appeared. They wore helmets and scanned the battlefield before them.

  This was a standard tactical squad composed of chaotic interstellar warriors.

  Unlike the deliberately diminished and slowed-down postures often seen in films and artistic works, Zhang Ge witnessed firsthand the combat methods of the Space Marines.

  Three Chaos Space Marines each faced a different direction, their explosive bolt guns accurately spewing ammunition, but their initial targets were not the infantry.

  Those explosive bolts struck with incredible precision, hitting every heavy weapon within their range. Their century's worth of combat experience, along with superhuman senses and physical abilities, allowed them to execute tactics that would seem unfathomable to ordinary people with mechanical detachment and efficiency.

  The flying explosive bolts smashed down one after another, not hitting the heavy weapon operators but directly destroying the gun barrels, rendering these pieces of equipment, which could threaten their armor, incapable of combat.

  It is important to note that the speed of the Space Marines was so fast that to the naked eye, they left only afterimages. Thus, the actions described above were completed in a time frame that an ordinary person couldn't even react to, let alone shift weapons or counterattack. Not a single round from their tightly clustered, rapidly firing bolt guns missed its mark.

  One hand gripped the gun's handle and pulled the trigger, while the other pressed down on the upper part of the bolt gun, controlling the recoil to nearly zero. They targeted the heavy weapons first, followed by high-threat units armed with meltaguns and plasma guns, and by the time they emptied a magazine, the nearest PDF forces had only just begun to mount a counterattack.

  However, ambushes, defensive responses, and mass charges were utterly meaningless.

  In the cramped trench, a Chaos Space Marine drew his chainsword. At such close range, his movements appeared almost like flashes to the PDF soldiers; they couldn't even keep up with him using meltabombs or laser guns. He could discern the positions of surrounding enemies merely through his extraordinary hearing.

  In fact, there was a moment when the entire trench of PDF soldiers was cleared out, and the upper half of the first man to be bisected only hit the ground afterward.

  In the swirling chaos, Huron's subordinates received training from the Space Marines, learning specifically how to counter them. Equipped with well-trained personnel, ample light and heavy weapons, and vehicles, the Astral Army fought against the non-starter group Space Marines with the assistance of their own Space Marines, resulting in a casualty ratio of:

  Close to 300:1.

  This was a cold number, and it was now unfolding before Zhang Ge's eyes in the form of slaughter.