117: Final Chapter of Weeding

“‘herbicide’ Operation, final phase: the core of the ‘bone crusher’ Orc War Planet—the Gravity Well Generator.” Alpha-01’s voice rang out on the bridge of the arbiter, cold as iron. On the holographic tactical map, blue arrows representing the Blade fleet's assault cluster were like several red-hot daggers stabbing into the massive object—a behemoth comparable to a small planet, crudely welded together from countless derelict ships, asteroids, crude metal structures, and a chaotic Orc energy field.

The Orcs' Waaagh! energy field raged across the surface of the “War Moon” like violent green thunder, forming a chaotic yet resilient psychic shield. Countless Orc ships of varying sizes, covered in maniacal graffiti, swarmed out like a hive, their engines roaring deafeningly, their cannon fire inaccurate yet overwhelming. Further away, Green Skin Spores, either temporarily captured or naturally generated, grew wildly on large pieces of wreckage, forming patches of writhing “Biological Turrets” that continuously spewed spore rockets and suicide craft.

“‘Adaptive Order Domain’ deployed, 70% power, focus on enemy Waaagh! energy nodes!” Alpha-01 commanded. The array of titan-class dreadnoughts, led by the arbiter, simultaneously lit up with dark-gold runes, and a field of orderly force, solid as a wall, pushed forward. The chaotic green Waaagh! energy collided violently with the Order Field, emitting a grating, ear-piercing shriek, as if countless pieces of glass were being scraped at once. Green lightning exploded on the surface of the Order Field, and the resulting energy fragments instantly vaporized several nearby dilapidated Orc frigates, yet the Order Field itself only rippled violently, remaining completely unshaken.

“Orc energy node coordinates detected, twenty-seven in total, marked!” the tactical officer shouted. Thanks to the intelligence provided by the custodian, the crucial “nodes” that maintained the overall shield and the Gravity Well within the seemingly chaotic Orc energy network were as clear as bonfires in the night.

“the purifier, the Purge, ‘Reality Reconstruction Cannon’ ready, target: Nodes Alpha-1 to Alpha-9!” Alpha-01’s command instantly translated into action. The frightening composite structures on the bows of the two titan-class ships began to charge. There was no light, but the surrounding space began to exhibit strange, inwardly collapsing horizon distortions.

Almost simultaneously, on the surface of the Orc War Moon, several of the largest and crudest energy spires seemed to sense the fatal threat, frantically gathering Waaagh! energy into thick, unstable green beams that slammed toward the purifier and the Purge!

“arbiter-class ships move out! ‘Concept Stabilization Shield’ full power! Intercepting fire!” Several arbiter-class battlecruisers acted as loyal, massive shields, blocking the path of the titan-class vessels. Dense geometric runes lit up on their heavy shields. Most of the Orc energy bombardment was deflected and absorbed, while the small portion that penetrated was endured by the heavy armor, exploding into large masses of metal fragments and electrical sparks on the hull.

In that flash of lightning, the Reality Reconstruction Cannon fired.

Utter silence. But the space in the area of the nine targeted Orc energy nodes seemed to have been erased by a rubber. The thick energy spires, the mountains of scrap, the roaring Orc Mekboyz, and their dilapidated machines, along with the surrounding hundreds of meters of spatial structure, instantly “vanished.” It was not an explosion, but a direct denial and erasure from the conceptual level of “existence.” What remained were nine massive, spherical voids, mirror-smooth at the edges and bottomless, along with horrifying gravitational aftershocks caused by the sudden disappearance of matter, tearing inward at the edges of the voids.

“Waaagh! My spires!!!” The frantic and painful roars of the Mekboyz erupted across the Orc channels. The overall shield brightness of the War Moon visibly dimmed by a large margin.

“Gravity Well Generator readings fluctuating! Structural stability decreased by 15%!” the technical officer reported.

“Continue! Target Beta Series nodes! ‘Conceptual Disintegration-Resonance Cannon’ cluster, volley fire!” Alpha-01 was merciless. The arbiter-class ships and some shadow-iv cruisers, already prepared, simultaneously lit up the turret arrays on their flanks with an intertwined glow of ethereal blue and dark red.

The next moment, countless torrents of energy, mixing the ethereal blue pulses of “Conceptual Disintegration” and the dark red beams of “Material Resonance,” poured down onto the surface of the War Planet like a deadly downpour. This time, the effect was more direct and violent. In the targeted areas, the Orcs' crudely welded armor plates first had their structural integrity “dissolved” by the blue pulses, becoming as brittle as crackers. Immediately afterward, the dark red resonance waves triggered violent atomic-level vibrations within the material. Entire sections of armor, along with the underlying structures, pipes, Orcs, and machines, disintegrated, shattered, and turned into pervasive metal dust and bloody fragments amid a chilling, low-frequency resonant hum! Large chunks of the War Planet's “skin” were violently scoured away, exposing the even more chaotic and fragile internal structures beneath.

The Orc counterattack became even more frantic. More ships rammed the Human Federation fleet formation regardless of casualties, attempting suicidal boarding actions. Large numbers of crude but powerful torpedoes and Macro Cannon shells whistled in. Furthermore, several colossal “Orc Assault Drills,” which looked like they were haphazardly cobbled together from warship engines and rusty battering rams, roared out from deep within the War Planet, trailing long energy wakes, and lunged straight for the arbiter!

“Point defense firepower maximized! Release ‘swarm-ii’ drones! Marines, ‘Defender-IV’ squad prepare for internal boarding action!” Alarms shrieked inside the arbiter. Dense laser point defense arrays and automated turrets wove a net of death, detonating approaching Orc craft and torpedoes in mid-air. Drone swarms, like black clouds, rushed toward the Orc Assault Drills, using self-detonation and micro-missiles to disrupt their trajectory. However, a few drills still managed to hit the arbiter's heavy hull with deafening crashes, their massive drill bits beginning to spin furiously, attempting to bore through the armor.

“Passages C-7, D-3, E-11 report boarding! Orc numbers unknown, but they are exceptionally savage!” The urgent voice of the Marine Captain came over the internal comms channel, backed by the roar of Bolters, the hum of Power Axes, and the Orcs' signature war cry, “Waaagh!”

“Purify them.” Alpha-01’s command was utterly concise.

The battle was equally fierce in the intricate passages inside the arbiter. The Defender-IV armored squad, relying on superior equipment, rigid formation, and the psychic protection provided by the Soul Cleansing module, engaged in bloody close-quarters combat with the surging Orc Boyz and Nobz. Bolter rounds exchanged fire with crude Orc slug-throwers, and power weapons violently clashed with Chainaxes and Choppas. The Orcs possessed astonishing brute strength and grew stronger the longer they fought, but the discipline and coordination of the Human Federation soldiers were superior, often trading localized sacrifices for the precise elimination of Orc leaders.

“Gravity Well Generator core area exposed! Coordinates confirmed! But its periphery is guarded by high-intensity energy turbulence and physical barriers!” Key intelligence arrived from the reconnaissance unit.

“It is time.” A cold light flashed in Alpha-01’s eyes. “‘Infiltrator-I’ Task Force, deploy!”

Three new “Infiltrator-class” stealth assault ships, which had been lurking in the shadows at the edge of the battlefield, suddenly dropped their camouflage. Their streamlined hulls were covered in energy-absorbing coatings, and they now slipped into the gaps of the chaotic Orc defenses like ghosts. The miniaturized Reality Weavers on their bows forcibly opened brief, relatively stable passages through the energy turbulence, heading straight for the Gravity Well Generator core.

Just as they were about to approach the core, a roar, more savage and colossal than all previous Orc bellows, erupted from deep within the War Moon!

“I am bone crusher Gruul! You tin-can shrimps, dare to touch my big treasure?! Waaagh!!!”

An Orc Warboss, over ten meters tall, clad in crude armor fashioned from ship wreckage and unknown beast bones, and wielding a buzzing, super-massive Power Klaw the size of a small turret, soared out of an explosive breach! Behind him followed dozens of exceptionally burly Orc Nobz and Mekboyz, along with several bizarre Self-Propelled Killing Machines spitting green flames and lightning. This elite Orc guard unit, like a green meteor, slammed straight toward the leading Infiltrator-I flagship!

“Orc Warboss! Energy readings... off the charts! The concentrated Waaagh! energy on him exceeds that of a regular Nob by fifty times!” The sensors screamed.