Warhammer: Starting as a Planetary Governor-Chapter 319 - 320 – Big Barrel’s Return, the Third Tyranid War!

The merchant rogue stared at the barren ball of dirt, almost frozen in place.He simply couldn't believe that this was real.

He glanced again at the star chart, confirming that the coordinates were correct.A once-prosperous civilized world had been wiped out, delivering an immense shock to this traveling merchant.

He recalled a terrifying legend circulating across the galaxy.Tyranid xenos from beyond the Milky Way, destroying every planet they encountered, consuming all life.

Wherever they passed—Not even bacteria would be spared.Worse still—The Tyranids could create a kind of shadow, making it nearly impossible for passing ships to escape!

The bridge was deathly silent.Everyone was paralyzed by fear.

"Quick! Activate the Warp drive! Get us out of this cursed place!"

The merchant rogue screamed, his vocal cords almost tearing apart.He only wanted to flee this nightmare region and never come back!

However—The Warp drive failed to engage.The ship's navigator, attempting to contact the Warp, suddenly went insane under some psychic whispering, blood pouring from his torn eardrums.

Under the influence of the Hive Mind's Shadow, the navigator lost his mind.

This news spread.The crew aboard the merchant ship plunged even deeper into panic.

A psyker accompanying the ship attempted to broadcast an astropathic message, seeking aid from the Imperium's forces.

But just as she drew on the Warp to project the message across the void,she saw gigantic, shadowy tendrils reaching out through the Warp.This astropath, whose will was far stronger than normal psykers,shrieked in terror as if she had gazed upon something utterly unbearable.

Bang—

Her head exploded from psychic backlash, splattering blood and brain matter all over the nearby crew members.The sight horrified the ship's crew even further.

"Merciful Emperor, save us! Save your poor, pitiful servants!"

These rogues who had long lived on the gray edges of law and order knelt down, begging for the Emperor's forgiveness and salvation.Never had they prayed so earnestly.

The merchant rogue wiped the blood from his face.He was about to speak when his pupils suddenly contracted, his face turning ashen gray.That was the face of true despair.

Within his field of vision—The horrific shadow stretched across the endless galaxy.

Those... were the Tyranids!He could even clearly see the disgusting, twisted tendrils—swarms of nauseating bugs filling the starry sky!

After a long moment,the merchant rogue managed to break free from his terror.

Bang!A bolt pistol roared.

Drawing everyone's attention to him.

Suppressing his trembling body, the merchant rogue rasped out:"Listen up, lads. The filthy xenos are coming. If you don't want to die like cowards, get back to your posts…"

His voice grew firmer:"Prepare for battle! Kill as many bugs as you can—only then do we have a chance for our souls to reach the Emperor's throne! Even if we die, let us die gloriously!"

"For the Emperor!!!"

He raised his weapon and roared.The crew, their spirits stirred, roared along with him.

They rushed back to their stations.They refused to die in despair—they swore to fight the Tyranids to the end!

Out in the void—The shadow surged toward the ship.

Boom, boom, boom—

The merchant ship's cannons fired fiercely.

However—After a few shots, massive tendrils wrapped around the vessel and tore it apart.

The fireballs of the exploding ship were utterly insignificant compared to the galaxy-spanning shadow.Like ants trying to hold back a tsunami.

Once the shadow passed—No trace of the ship or crew remained.All were devoured by the swarm.

This—Was the Tyranid Hive Fleet.They not only consumed biological material,they even devoured messages of hope,leaving people to await death in endless darkness and despair.

The Tyranid swarm was unstoppable.Behind them, the Vitria System was now an empty wasteland.

And their next target…was the Stygia System!

...

Stygia System — Deep Space

Buzz—

A large, battered dark green cruiser staggered out of the Warp.Sections of its hull had torn apart during the violent turbulence, debris floating in the void.

On one drifting slab—one could clearly see a sigil: a skull entwined with stars.

The moment the dark green cruiser arrived—deafening cheers and roars erupted from within.

The flagship of the Sons of Mankind had returned to the galaxy after traveling the Warp for decades!

Although due to the storms,they had actually arrived two centuries later than intended.

Fortunately—in realspace, only a few years had passed since they vanished.

On the bridge—Tyranid bones hung everywhere.Many Sons of Mankind warriors adorned their armor with chitin and bone trophies from slain Tyranids, giving them a fierce and brutal appearance.

Thud, thud, thud—Heavy footsteps echoed.

A towering, barrel-like warrior strode forward.His red visor glowed.Tyranid carapace plates were strapped to his armor; a Hive Tyrant's skull embedded on his back.He radiated a savage, terrifying aura.

This figure was none other than the Chapter Master of the Sons of Mankind,the Divine Angel,the Beloved of the Great Savior—Big Barrel!

"Contact the Savior…"

Big Barrel spoke.Under the Techmarine's operations, a secure signal was sent across the stars.

Charalton Region — Dreamweaver's Micro-Garden

Eden lounged lazily on a rocking chair, gazing at the stars.He was pondering what information he might have overlooked.

Suddenly—the communication system chimed.

"Sons of Mankind's channel?"

Eden looked down and was immediately jolted awake, hastily answering the call.

Buzz—A virtual image projected into midair.

In the image—

"Savior, my lord?"

A synthetic voice came from the warrior, clad in grotesque Tyranid-bone decorations.The pressure radiating from him was overwhelming.

"Big Barrel, you've gotten so much thinner!"

Eden immediately recognized him—it was that kid Big Barrel, clearly having suffered through much hardship.From the aura alone, Eden could tell his strength had greatly improved.

"Savior, my lord! I missed you so much!"

Big Barrel trembled, removed his helmet, and shoved his massive face right into the camera, filling the entire image.

"You know what?"Tears streamed down his face as he bawled:"I've been eating nothing but bug meat for nearly a thousand years! Even the cooking tools you gave me broke down! I suffered so much…"

"Big Barrel, you've suffered greatly!"

Eden reached out and patted Big Barrel's head through the air, comforting him:"My warehouse has stocked up with lots of ingredients. I'll have the logistics team send them all to you…"

Upon hearing this—Big Barrel was overwhelmed with emotion:"I knew it! No one cares for me like you do!"

Between a Primarch and his gene-sons, there existed an unbreakable bond.Eden was far kinder to his sons than other Primarchs, fostering even deeper feelings between them.

Especially for a kid like Big Barrel—he was genuinely loved.

As Big Barrel wiped his tears,Eden suddenly remembered something and smacked his forehead:"Almost forgot—I have a pair of Daemon Prince wings stored away. I'll send you half to nibble on now, and when you come back, we'll cook the rest together into a stew!"

Given Big Barrel's talent, he should be able to handle Daemon meat.This show of care made Big Barrel even more emotional, choking on his words.

Then—Big Barrel recounted everything he had experienced.

After being stranded on Danus,he spent nearly 800 years developing it,waiting for the reappearance of the Warp rift that had thrown them into the future.

Two centuries ago,they finally waited out the rift's reemergence and boarded the mothership to escape Danus.

However—they underestimated the time needed to cross the rift.They ended up trapped in the Warp for decades, nearly perishing.

Fortunately, they returned safely.

Big Barrel sheepishly admitted that after all these hardships,the Sons of Mankind's mothership and equipment were seriously aged and failing.

Their power armor sets were scarce and heavily patched.

"A mere trifle!"

Eden was delighted:"That ship of yours should've been replaced long ago!"

He waved his hand grandly—allocating a brand-new battleship to the Sons of Mankind.The ship had just been refurbished from ancient salvage, now waiting in the starport.

"Your armor, weapons, vehicles—swap them all out for the latest models.The Lunar Foundries recently rolled out a new batch—way better quality than before."

Big Barrel scratched his head:"Uh… Savior, my lord. We might need... a lot of equipment…"

Huh?

Eden quickly realized—over the centuries, the Sons of Mankind had been continuously expanding!

With excitement, he asked:"Big Barrel, how many Space Marines do you have now?"

Big Barrel proudly answered:"About twenty thousand… To be exact, twenty-one thousand three hundred and three! But most don't have full suits of armor…"

He had built this force through a thousand years of hardship!

They had recruited the best Tyranid hunters,subjected them to gene-seed implantation and surgical modification,creating countless new Space Marines!

The old mothership equipment couldn't keep up,and they only had around a thousand patched-up power armors.

Yet—their gene-seed reserves had swelled to over 60,000!

This news thrilled Eden.Big Barrel had done him a tremendous favor.

Those twenty thousand Space Marines alone—more than many Chapters combined!

And with sixty thousand gene-seeds—Eden's domain could soon field ten times more Space Marines!A future army of one hundred thousand Space Marines was no longer a dream!

(Continuing the translation automatically…)

Eden, overjoyed, immediately allocated the latest batch of a thousand sets of Centurion-pattern armor to the Sons of Mankind.

Other Chapters would have to wait for the next production cycle.

Because Big Barrel had truly earned it.

Following the Savior's orders,

the relevant departments sprang into action.

The massive battleship, about ten kilometers long, was officially renamed as the new flagship of the Sons of Mankind.

Tens of thousands of engineers swarmed the vessel, repainting it and modifying it according to specifications.

At the same time,

the vast supplies assigned to the Sons of Mankind were packed and gathered at the starport, ready for transport.

Once the preliminary retrofits were completed,

the supplies and the ship itself would be delivered to Big Barrel and his brothers.

As for how the ship would be further upgraded and used,

that would be left to the Sons of Mankind to decide internally.

There was also the matter of Danus.

With Big Barrel's return,

the planet Danus was officially designated as the homeworld of the Sons of Mankind,

and a new successor Chapter was to be established: the Xeno-Hunters.

The Sons of Mankind and their new successor Chapter would become the first force within Eden's domain to possess their own dedicated homeworld.

Of course, to be precise,

the War Angels and Void Angels also had a homeworld—

that being Urth itself.

However, Big Barrel's feat of gaining an independent homeworld

left the two brother Chapters burning with jealousy.

The guy went away for a thousand years

and came back so high up that they could barely look him in the eye.

Not only had he gained a homeworld,

but he had also snatched the first batch of Centurion-pattern armor.

Both Duke and Duke's brother Plu swore that whenever Big Barrel returned,

they would definitely spar with him thoroughly.

Jealousy aside,

they knew Big Barrel's achievements deserved the rewards.

After all, it was just one planet.

They figured they could earn one too with enough future military achievements!

The establishment of the Xeno-Hunters proceeded swiftly.

The newly formed Xeno-Hunters were formally integrated into the domain's armed forces.

Their Chapter insignia was a hunting knife crossed with a Tyranid skull.

Their armor livery: dark red camouflage.

Their combat style: brutal and predatory—

much like the Predators from old Terran legends.

Their battle cry:

"Hunt!"

(That was Eden's suggestion, and it was unanimously adopted.)

In the future,

a portion of the Sons of Mankind would transfer into the Xeno-Hunters,

and the Chapter would continually recruit fresh blood from the Danus population.

The Xeno-Hunters would become a massive force

specialized in brutal, high-intensity anti-xeno warfare.

They would drench the galaxy's alien horrors in blood!

The Xeno-Hunters would be jointly managed by the Sons of Mankind and the Department of Military Affairs,

but they would be more directly commanded by the Department of Military Affairs,

primarily tasked with anti-xeno hunting operations.

As for Big Barrel and his veterans— ƒгeewebnovёl.com

they preferred roaming the stars freely,

hunting across the galaxy.

Time flowed on.

At the Star Tower Spaceport,

the newly christened Sons of Mankind flagship set sail,

loaded with supplies and equipment,

headed toward their brothers.

A War Angels escort fleet followed closely behind.

Once they arrived,

they would bring back something Eden was especially excited about—

the gene-seed cache of the Sons of Mankind.

...

Dreamweaver — Savior's Sanctuary

Eden, feeling thoroughly pleased,

sipped a cold soda while watching the latest performances of the Song and Dance Troupe.

Big Barrel's return had brought immense harvests,

and he couldn't help but indulge himself for a bit.

After all—

he had fought for so many years.

Didn't he deserve to relax once in a while?

Watching the dancers' soft waists and graceful movements,

thinking about the expanding population, economy, and military of his domain,

Eden grew even more content.

Parts of the Charalton sector's mining operations were already running,

to the dismay of those arrogant High Lords who had expected him to fail.

Furthermore,

the continued liberation of human worlds from Tau control

had added even more people to his domain.

Though—

it still wasn't enough.

After two consecutive Chaos incursions,

Charalton's overall population had plummeted by 90%.

Even with reinforcements from the Goli Sector,

there remained severe shortages of population and labor.

Many areas were left deserted.

Nevertheless—

the domain continued developing vibrantly,

like a new spring awakening.

However—

Eden's good mood didn't last long.

The Department of Military Affairs delivered grim news.

Their intelligence division had been analyzing the data fragments transmitted after Big Barrel's return.

Because of the Warp and Tyranid psychic interference,

the data was riddled with corruption.

Progress was slow.

Fortunately, with Webby's assistance,

they managed to decrypt and analyze the information.

The result was a disaster.

According to the findings—

the Hive Ship Big Barrel had encountered

was merely one tendril of the Tyranid Hive Fleet.

Worse—

the fleet's trajectory pointed straight toward the Charalton region.

Based on estimates,

the Tyranids had likely already passed through the Vitria System

and were now closing in on the Stygia System.

The Department of Military Affairs declared:

if the swarm was not intercepted—

they would devastate multiple star systems,

growing ever stronger,

and in ten years,

would crash into Charalton itself.

"F*ck!"

Eden shot up from his chair,

all desire to watch the dancers gone.

His memories stirred,

his face turning grave.

That Hive Fleet—

was truly terrifying.

According to the Imperium's official records,

this was shaping up to be the Third Tyrannic War.

The Hive Fleet's name was: Leviathan.

Bigger, stronger, and deadlier than any Tyranid fleet before it.

The greatest Tyranid threat humanity had ever faced.

Eden stared at the star map hovering in the air.

According to projections,

Leviathan had likely already reached the fringes of the Stygia System.

Even worse—

investigations showed that no signals had been received from Vitria for years.

Meaning—

the entire Vitria System had likely already been consumed.

Leviathan had devoured an entire star system's biomass

and become even more powerful!

One star system wiped out,

and Holy Terra hadn't even noticed.

Typical.

Eden's view of Terra's bureaucratic incompetence only grew stronger.

On the star map,

the Vitria System was darkened,

and the Tyranid swarm marker was inching toward Stygia.

If Stygia fell,

next would be the Baal System—

homeworld of the Blood Angels Chapter and their Primarch Sanguinius's sons.

Currently,

the Blood Angels probably had 30,000–50,000 Space Marines—

a powerful, ancient Chapter.

They were the best hope to stop Leviathan along its path.

If even the Blood Angels failed—

then Leviathan would continue devouring star systems,

growing until it reached Charalton.

By that time—

it would be unstoppable.

Following the Department of Military Affairs' recommendations,

Eden made his decision.

He immediately used his authority as a Primarch

to report the situation to Holy Terra,

giving the High Lords more time to react.

The performances ended.

Eden sat alone in the empty hall,

letting out a heavy sigh:

"Ahh… this damned galaxy... never a moment's peace…"

After a brief moment of sorrow,

he squared his shoulders,

and officially declared the domain to be in a state of total war

to prepare for the Third Tyrannic War.

From this moment—

all forces that could be mobilized would be drawn to the Stygia System,

to fight alongside the Blood Angels and the Imperium's forces,

and to resist Leviathan!

While the Department of Military Affairs began drafting battle plans and organizing armies,

Eden himself boarded the Dreamweaver,

setting course for Baal.

He needed to personally meet with Commander Dante of the Blood Angels—

and deliver to him a gift they had long desired...

(End of Chapter)

[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/zaelum]

[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]

[Thank You For Your Support!]