The shock wave of the explosion tore through the command deck of the Eye of Aether.

Shadowsun was knocked to the ground, and the holographic projection exploded into pieces in front of her, and the data streams splattered like dying fireflies.

The alarms sounded sharp and piercing, blinding sparks flew from the metal joints of the cabin walls, and the air was filled with the burnt smell of hot metal and ionized oxygen.

"Commander! The main energy pipeline is broken! We must evacuate!"

The communications officer's voice seemed unclear amid the tinnitus, as if shrouded in a thick fog.

Yingyang's vision was a little dazed, and the scene in front of her eyes became blurry and distorted. She tried hard to concentrate, but the wound on her forehead continued to ooze blue-purple blood, which slid down her cheek and brought a stinging pain.

She raised her hand to wipe away the blood, and when her fingers touched the wound, she felt a sharp pain and couldn't help but frown.

However, she endured the pain and forced herself to wake up.

"No." Her voice was terrifyingly calm, without the slightest hesitation or delay. "Mobilize all reserve forces and guard the exit of Area B-7."

"Commander!" The voice of the captain of the Fire Clan's guard suddenly rang in her ears. He grabbed her arm and said anxiously, "The battleship has lost control! It will be too late if we don't leave now!"

Shadowsun shook his hand off and stumbled toward the tactical table. Her steps were unsteady and her body swayed slightly, but her determination remained undiminished.

Her fingertips slid across the remaining projections, trying to reestablish the chain of command on the battlefield.

However, the moment she touched the projection, the entire warship began to shake violently again, as if it was about to be torn apart.

Ryan was dismembering the ship from the inside, and every vibration made Shadowsun's heart beat violently.

"Take her away!" the Fire Warrior Commander yelled to the two XV8 Crisis Battlesuit pilots, "To escape pod number 3!"

Yingyang still wanted to struggle, her eyes were fixed on the projection on the tactical table, refusing to move away.

But the combat suit's mechanical arms had clamped her shoulders tightly like an iron clamp, making it impossible for her to break free.

She was forcibly lifted up and dragged towards the emergency passage of the bridge. Although she kept resisting, the two pilots were too strong and her resistance seemed so powerless.

The lighting in the escape passage flickered, and the flickering red light stretched the shadows of the Tau warriors into distorted monsters.

Yingyang was surrounded by four Fire Clan elites, with the Fire Warrior Commander leading the way and two XV8 battle suits bringing up the rear.

As they turned the third corner, the entire corridor suddenly became eerily quiet.

The hum of the ventilation system disappeared.

The subtle vibrations of the gravitational field ceased.

Even the alarms were eerily silent.

Xia'ao raised his hand suddenly, and everyone stopped instantly. Yingyang's pupils contracted - something was moving in the shadows at the end of the corridor ahead.

A golden figure slowly walked out of the darkness.

Lion El'Jonson.

His lion sword dragged behind him, the blade plowing sparks on the metal floor. The power armor was stained with blue and purple blood, but the primarch himself seemed unharmed.

When he raised his head, his lion-like pupils were like two small burning stars in the dim corridor.

“Alien.” His voice was as deep as thunder. “Your game is over.”

This feeling of oppression was far beyond that of ordinary Space Marines, and even the stealth master Yingyang couldn't help but feel a chill.

Besides, she was not equipped with combat uniform at the moment, so she had no way of fighting with Ryan.

Without any hesitation or extra words, the pulse rifle in the Fire Warrior Commander's hand instantly spewed out flames and opened fire first.

"For the Greater Good!" Along with his roar, this hoarse cry seemed to break through the deathly silence.

Immediately afterwards, the remaining twenty Fire Clan warriors pulled the triggers at the same time. Dense pulse beams intertwined into a deadly net in the narrow corridor, blocking all possible escape routes.

The ion cannon on XV8's battle suit was overcharged, emitting a dazzling white light, like a whistling ball of energy, flying straight towards the Primarch.

Facing such a fierce attack, the Primarch Lion seemed unusually calm. He just turned his body slightly, and this seemingly slow and graceful movement avoided every fatal beam with great precision.

The pulse bullet grazed his shoulder armor, melting honeycomb-shaped holes in the hard wall, and the ion cannon exploded where he had been standing. The powerful shock wave swept over like a raging wave, knocking three Fire Caste warriors to the ground.

However, at this moment, the original body disappeared without a trace like a ghost.

"Disperse! Cross fire!" Upon seeing this, the commander shouted hastily, and at the same time quickly replaced the energy box, preparing for the next round of attack from the Primarch.

But it was too late.

Ryan rushed into the crowd at an astonishing speed like a golden lightning. The lion sword in his hand flashed a cold light in the air, and the first strike was a fierce horizontal slash.

In an instant, blood splattered everywhere, and three headless corpses fell to the ground, but the pulse rifles in their hands still maintained the shooting posture, as if they were completely unaware of the coming of death.

With the second blow, the XV8 combat suit was split in half from the center, and the driver's internal organs were shattered by the sword wind before it exploded.

“Take her away! The Fire Warrior Commander pushed Shadowsun away and rushed towards Ryan.

He pressed his pulse rifle against the Primarch's chest and fired continuously until the barrel melted.

Ryan looked down at the alien soldier, gripping his helmet with his left hand.

“Alien.”

“Crack.”

The sound of titanium bones breaking was horribly crisp. The body of the Fire Warrior Commander fell limply to the ground, his helmet deformed like a can that had been crushed.

The remaining Fire Caste warriors did not retreat.

They knew they couldn't escape, and they knew they couldn't hurt the Primarch, but that didn't stop them from fulfilling their final duty.

"For the Ether!" A warrior detonated the hot melt bomb on his waist.

Ryan swung his sword to split the exploding flames in two, but more warriors rushed in. Some hugged his legs to try to slow him down, some used their bodies to block the escape route, and some simply released the safety valve of the pulse rifle, allowing the weapon to overload and explode in their hands.

Shadowsun was dragged back by two XV8 battlesuits. She struggled to look back and saw the last six Fire Caste warriors forming a human wall. Their weapons had long been empty, so they used the blades of their combat knives to knock against their breastplates, making a provocative metal collision sound.

"Come on! Monster!"

Ryan ignored their courage and chopped down hard.

Six heads flew up at the same time, and then all fell down.

Escape Pod No. 3 is right in front of us.

Yingyang was roughly stuffed into the seat and the seat belt locked automatically.

Through the observation window, she saw two XV8 battlesuits turn around and face the passage. They were not going to go together.

"Commander." One of them said through a voice changer, "Please tell Master Ether that we..."

He didn't finish his sentence.

Ryan's figure appeared at the end of the passage, and the blue blood dripping from the lion sword left a burning trail behind him.

Both battlesuits opened fire simultaneously, the blazing light of the ion cannon engulfing the Primarch's form.

The door of the escape pod closed automatically, blocking Yingyang's sight.

Amid the sound of pressurized gas jets, the last thing she saw was Ryan breaking through the energy storm and slicing two battle suits with one sword.