77: Chapter 77 Assassination and the Return Journey

With a loud bang, a specialized armor-piercing bullet whistled toward its target.

Xia Xingchen was moving forward; the Vindicare Assassin was quite far from him and had to predict the target's movement in advance.

As Xia Xingchen walked, a golden figure suddenly appeared before him in the next second.

The dazzling golden light stung Xia Xingchen's eyes, causing him to instinctively raise his arm to shield them.

This brief pause immediately alerted the Star Guard behind Xia Xingchen.

At the same time, Saint Sabbat, who was standing by his side, instantly moved to shield him.

At that critical moment, the bullet slammed into the ground in front of Xia Xingchen, sending stone fragments flying.

In an instant, everyone's nerves tightened.

The Star Guard quickly surrounded Xia Xingchen, using their bodies to form an indestructible human shield.

Several soldiers quickly pulled open a nearby door and ushered Xia Xingchen inside for protection.

Once they confirmed the Archon was temporarily safe, the rest of the soldiers immediately flanked toward the direction the bullet had come from.

Seeing this, the assassin on the high tower knew the assassination had failed and retreated without hesitation, vanishing into the shadows.

Only then did Xia Xingchen realize that someone had just tried to assassinate him.

That golden light just now... was it the Emperor?

Recalling that fleeting glimpse, Xia Xingchen's heart couldn't help but race.

The light was truly too dazzling; if it hadn't appeared suddenly, the bullet would have pierced through his head by now.

As expected, the Imperium still hasn't let me off.

They ignore those rebellious governors, yet they choose to target me, someone fighting for humanity.

Indeed, the methods mentioned in the group chat for dealing with Transmigrators weren't just baseless rumors.

While Xia Xingchen waited inside, the Star Guard Company Commander rushed in.

"Lord Archon, I am sorry, we found no trace of the assassin."

Xia Xingchen didn't mind upon hearing this.

Vindicare Assassins are the top killers of the Imperium; evading pursuit is effortless for them.

"Leave this matter to the local law enforcement to handle."

Having said that, Xia Xingchen stood up.

Today, Xia Xingchen had to rush back to Lanshan Planet in the Daxia Star System.

Xia Xingchen looked at Saint Sabbat and instructed:

"I'll leave the matters here to you. I must return to Lanshan Planet to handle construction affairs."

Xia Xingchen had no other choice.

There were too few people under Xia Xingchen who could handle government affairs independently; besides Nuwa, there was only Saint Sabbat.

"There is already a sufficient foundational team here, so handling administrative tasks will be much easier."

Seeing Xia Xingchen about to leave after speaking, Saint Sabbat quickly grabbed his hand.

"Be careful, the assassin outside might not have left yet."

Xia Xingchen held her hand and slowly lowered it.

"I know. Don't worry, I can handle it."

After speaking, Xia Xingchen put on his helmet and activated the nanomaterial protective layer inside his power armor.

On the way to the Spaceport, Xia Xingchen sneered inwardly.

The politics of the Imperium are truly laughable; the Inquisition begs me to help them fight Chaos, while the Assassinorum views me as a potential threat and insists on killing me. What will the Department of Military Affairs, Administratum, and Imperial Navy think of me then?

The thought of it gave him a bit of a headache.

I'm afraid the other Transmigrators in the group are in similar situations.

As the Transmigrators' power grows, by the end of the 40th Millennium, we will likely become a force to be reckoned with in the warhammer 40k universe.

So now, the closest major event for all Transmigrators that could affect the entire Galaxy is the 12th Black Crusade.

Before then, Xia Xingchen must assemble a fleet of no fewer than ten warships and an elite ground army of at least five million.

This is definitely a long and difficult road ahead.

Vanad Planet alone cannot even provide enough manpower.

The Space Elevator let out a rumble and slowly came to a steady halt.

The hatch opened, and Xia Xingchen stepped into the Spaceport.

Xia Xingchen's flagship, the dream star, was already docked here for crew replenishment and repairs.

The standard crew for the dream star is 150,000, but Xia Xingchen had previously reassigned nearly 70,000 for the construction of Lanshan Planet, so many posts on the warship are currently understaffed.

Just as he boarded the Spaceport, Nuwa hurried over and grabbed Xia Xingchen, scanning his entire body through her Augmetic eye network to check for injuries.

"So worried?" Xia Xingchen said with a smile, looking at Nuwa's panicked expression. "I'm perfectly fine, not even a speck of dust on me."

Seeing he was still in the mood to joke, Nuwa finally breathed a sigh of relief, confirming that Xia Xingchen was indeed unharmed.

"That's good, that's good."

Once Xia Xingchen's safety was confirmed, Nuwa reverted to her cold, calculating mechanical expression.

"I suggest you leave the Vanad System as soon as possible; just leave the matters here to our subordinates."

Nuwa believed Xia Xingchen could no longer stay here.

Control over the Vanad System is currently weak, so the Archon's safety must be the priority.

Xia Xingchen, however, didn't seem to care much.

"Don't worry, someone will protect me."

The person Xia Xingchen referred to was none other than the Emperor.

Since the Emperor could protect him once, he would surely protect him a second time.

What Xia Xingchen needed to do now was to organize an elite force of over a million for the war in three years.

Upon returning this time, Xia Xingchen intended to investigate the mysterious star system Leovitos mentioned in the communication to see what its origins were.

"My Lord, how should we handle the three captured warships from the Vanad System?" Nuwa asked.

An old Cruiser and two Destroyers were still docked in orbit, all models that the Imperium had long since phased out.

"Repair them. I don't expect them to have much combat effectiveness; I just want them to be able to transport troops and perform simple escort missions."

Xia Xingchen stated his requirements and then immediately added:

"Focus on strengthening their defensive capabilities."

In three years, Xia Xingchen didn't expect these old ships to achieve any brilliant results in space battles; he only wanted them to protect his transport fleet.

Xia Xingchen informed Saint Sabbat of these arrangements.

After handing over command of all five divisions to Saint Sabbat, Xia Xingchen, along with the Star Guard and Nuwa, embarked on the journey back to Lanshan Planet.