Warhammer: The Beginning is the Crisis of Annihilation

  Chapter 218 The Emergency Situation in the Baal Galaxy (Subscribe)

   Accompanied by beams of teleportation beams.

  The imperial troops pierced the heart of the defense system of the capital of Dalova like sharp knives.

   Calgar came to fight in person.

   When he stepped out of the teleportation light.

  The sky has gradually dimmed.

  The light of the star gradually dimmed.

  The night was hazy, and traces of a large rift appeared in the sky.

  The eerie sound wafted through the planet Dalova like a breeze.

  The sky lit up with bright flashes from time to time.

   That's the light from low Earth orbit.

   After seizing control of the planet Dalowa.

  The imperial fleet’s orbital bombardment of the surface has lasted for three full hours.

  The artillery fire ran over over and over again at the scheduled transmission location like a torrential rain.

   Everything within the covered area is completely destroyed.

   Even stones are vitrified at high temperatures.

  The fleet led by Calgar is not small.

   Even if you want to fight multilaterally, you can easily crush the enemy.

   In order to complete the cleanup task as soon as possible, Calgar divided the fleet into two parts.

  Part of the fleet is responsible for cleaning up all non-imperial forces in the Dalova galaxy.

  Aliens, traitors, and the Dark Mechanicus are all cancers that the empire must clean up.

  A part of the fleet is suspended in the low-earth orbit of the planet Dalova for saturation bombing.

  The fleet's sensors are scanning non-stop, locking on to ground targets.

   Carry out saturation bombardment of ground anti-aircraft artillery positions, fortifications, and firepower points.

   Open the ground for Imperial forces to fight on the ground.

  Three hours of bombing made the sky brilliant.

  Smoke dust and water vapor scattered the laser light, forming patches of halo.

  The flames brought by the physical bomb, engulfed in thick smoke, billowed up.

   A beam of light will pierce the clouds from time to time, making it look like the gods are angry in the sky.

   "Go forward, catch that damned traitor." Calgar issued an order for a full-scale assault to other troops in the communication.

  The Knights of Mandelkerr will pay for their treason to the Empire.

   Facing the attack of the empire, the Dalova defense forces were very tenacious.

  Before the Great Rift, the Knights of Dalova had considerable military autonomy.

  The High King's authority is deeper than that of the High Lords of Terra.

   At one time, the people of Dalova only knew about the Knight High King, but they didn't know about Terra.

  The mobile artillery appeared behind the camouflaged fortifications. The barrel was almost parallel to the ground, shaking endlessly under the action of recoil.

   It was even bigger, and the fully armed walking mechs also walked out slowly from the shadow of the city wall.

   They are run by knights and serve as defenses for the High King's palace.

  Huge laser cannons and cannons, wheel ion pulses and other weapons fire at the Imperial forces.

   The battle situation fell into a stalemate for a while.

  The will of the Dalova army to resist is very tough.

  They are constantly throwing in all kinds of deadly weapons.

  Detonation assault fire system, heavy bolter, plasma cannon, pulse beam bomb, ion concussion mine and so on.

  Even after the Primal Forge upgrade, Calgar's troops were struggling to advance in the face of such ferocious firepower.

  The Mandeker family has the support of the Dark Mechanicus.

   They used all kinds of weapons that were banned by the empire.

  No scruples.

   Obviously, the High King has gone mad.

   Not afraid of the empire's subsequent liquidation at all.

   In the face of such ferocious firepower, a large number of ordinary troops were killed.

  The corpses were torn apart by enemy fire, and there were wreckage and broken arms everywhere.

   Calgar fought in the front, commanding the battle while fighting **** battles.

  The defense system of the capital city of Dalova is very strict, and there are intricate underground passages.

  The rebels use a complex network of caves to elude them.

   Often the empire took great pains to seize a defensive position, and the enemy somehow attacked the imperial troops from the rear, causing the position to fall.

  The intricate underground passages lead to the intertwining of the enemy and our forces on both sides, turning into a cruel war of meat grinding.

  The palace wall position on the east side of the capital of Dalova.

   Natal 502 regiment.

  The head of the regiment, Hawke, opened the protective mask of the exoskeleton armor, and spit on a dead Dalova soldier.

   "These **** Chaos traitors, like rats. Running around."

  Having experienced so many wars, Hawke has also matured a lot.

  There are more and more prosthetic limbs modified on the body.

  In war, injuries are common.

  A good mechanical prosthesis can better replace the original flesh tissue and make it stronger.

   For this reason, Hawke implanted many prosthetic limbs to comprehensively strengthen his own strength.

  After these years of hard work, the 502 regiment has also been upgraded from a fringe regiment to a main regiment.

  In this group, all are elites from the Natal galaxy.

  It is used to undertake the task of tackling tough problems.

  Using the special vision of the electronic prosthetic eye, Hawk watched the flames of war in the distance.

  The fighting between the enemy and ourselves has become more intense as time goes by.

  The deaths on both sides were tragic.

  The Imperial Astral Army has exoskeletons and automatic shoulder cannons, and it is difficult to counter the terrifying firepower of the Dalova defenders.

  The artillery shells bombarded the imperial attacking troops as if they were free of money.

   Caused a large number of casualties.

  Looking at the battlefield, Hawke turned his head and glanced at the poet Kakar beside him.

  The other party was lying in a crater, and was using a camera to capture a memorable historical moment.

   After a while, Kakar replied to Hawke's words.

"It's good to know that they are mice, but anyone with a bigger brain will not embark on the path of chasing chaos." Kakar filmed a picture of a Dalova soldier charging towards the imperial army being blown up by a plasma beam .

  War is cruel, whether it is for one's own side or for the enemy.

"To be honest, you can observe the battlefield through the servo skull, there is no need to come down in person." Hawke said, "For a narrator like you, the battlefield is too dangerous. If you are not careful, you may die in the here."

"If you can't go to the battlefield in person, you can't feel the blood and cruelty. People are always used to beautifying what they can't see. Look at my colleagues, how romantic they describe the war, and how artistic death is. ...but if they come and walk around the field, they will know that war and death are never romantic, nor are there any arts."

   Kakar shrugged, his tone full of mockery.

   "It's up to you, anyway, if you die, I will be one less trouble." Hawke laughed.

  Kakal has been with the Natal 502 regiment for a long time.

  In the Vitria galaxy, when fighting against the Behemoth Zerg fleet.

  Kakal served as a reporter in the 502nd Regiment of Natal together with Old Jon.

  At that time, Kakar was full of enthusiasm, but very young.

   Hearing the stories about the male and female boudoirs, he was so shy that he was ridiculed by the soldiers.

  At that time, Old Jon was still there.

  The old man will help the embarrassing Kakar to smooth things over.

  Here’s a story like [Two or three things the emperor’s angel and the noble lady have to say], [That young woman is very luscious, so I need to pay more] for the booing bosses.

  Unfortunately, in the Vitria galaxy, Old Jorn died in the attack of the swarm.

  After that battle, Kakar, who stumbled in speeches and was almost autistic after being ridiculed by the big soldiers, suddenly matured.

  He can eloquently tell dirty jokes that everyone loves to hear.

  It can also impassionedly convey the will of the imperial regent and encourage soldiers to fight.

   Now, Kakar has grown into a reporter who dares to follow the frontline troops deep into the line of fire.

  His poems and photos are full of tension and emotion, which made him famous and rich quickly.

   Many people regard him as an idol.

   "I'm dead, who will take pictures of you, do you expect those wastes to dare to go to the front line to take pictures of you?" Kakar said without turning his head.

  Hoke raised his middle finger, expressing the deep friendship between himself and Kakar, regardless of each other.

   "Captain, the wild wolves have already rushed under the palace wall."

  The voices of his subordinates interrupted the communication between Hawke and Kakar.

   "Forward, we follow the wolves into the traitor's palace, the victory belongs to Guilliman." Hawke shouted, "May we all return to the throne."

   "Victory belongs to Guilliman, may we all return to the throne."

   "Victory belongs to Guilliman, may we all return to the throne."

   "Victory belongs to Guilliman, may we all return to the throne."

   Accompanied by the battle cry of the soldiers.

  The gunboats in the sky, the fighter planes, and the Titans, which are the siege weapons, also launched simultaneous attacks.

  Jiaoyang Legion is no longer equipped with new old-style Titans, and has begun to gradually switch to multifunctional Titan vehicles like the Thunderbird.

  But the Jiaoyang Legion is the famous Titan Legion of the empire after all.

  Reserves a large number of Titan machinery.

  These machines can no longer adapt to the empire's rapidly developing military combat system.

  But those titans are not useless, and they can still play a huge role in attacking the capital controlled by the Mandeker family.

   "Wolves, keep going." Jess growled.

  The Primaris Space Marines under his command emerged from the rubble and followed the priest.

  The Heart of Guilliman endows them with great resilience and combat ability, allowing them to quickly weave between boulders.

  Looking up, the high wall stands like a dangerous peak.

   Various artillery are placed in the tunnel made of thick reinforced concrete.

  The firepower is so powerful that it is daunting and disturbing.

   Even if it is steel, it will melt in front of those artillery fires.

  The banner belonging to the Mandelker family fluttered against the wind, hunting in the smoky air.

  The red laser light never stops like a shower, and the blazing light that can blind the retina tears the sky from time to time.

  Under the billowing black smoke, it seemed that even the night sky was screaming in pain.

  Jess and the others propped up their alloy shields and personal protective shields, and rushed towards the enemy.

   They have to open the gap.

   Otherwise, you will always be blocked here.

   Fury makes them even more powerful.

  Jace ran, over the rubble and wreckage.

  His whole body was tense, like a hunting wolf king, waiting for the opportunity to rush to the enemy's line of defense.

   A storm of bullets slanted from the overhead ramp.

  The charging troops can only hide in scattered stones and metal wreckage to temporarily avoid the enemy's fire suppression.

  Seeing the appearance of the imperial troops, lasers and live ammunition weapons fired one after another.

  Jace watched those lasers and live bullets hit his shield.

   Fortunately, their power armor has been newly upgraded, which can release personal protective force fields.

   Otherwise, in such a violent attack, even the power armor would be smashed to pieces.

  Wild wolves, like a pack of wolves, rushed into the enemy's line, turned into sons of slaughter, and wiped out all obstacles with bullets and sharp knives.

   "Fire, break through." Jess shouted, pulling the trigger of the bolt gun in his hand, shooting all enemies within his vision.

  The impact of a huge number of bombs flooded the ramp leading to the palace.

   Flames blazed everywhere, blood and flesh splattered.

   Steadily advancing, the wolves do not need to aim, yet maintain astonishing and deadly precision.

  Hundreds of explosive bombs, accompanied by deafening bangs, tore enemy soldiers to pieces.

  Wild Wolf's offensive was very powerful, with such force that it broke through the gate very quickly, and even the city wall was blown away by the explosives installed.

   They swept through the gap and charged at the enemy.

  Jess put the empty bullet gun on his magnetic lock, then activated his scepter, and rushed towards the panicked enemies.

   There is an open space within the high walls of the palace of the Mandeker Knight Family.

  It is full of firepower points and barbed wire.

  Fortresses made of thick concrete and explosion-proof steel are located in the open space.

  Dalova's soldiers hastily retreated from the ruined city wall and entered the already completed fortifications.

   Unfortunately, they underestimated the strength and speed of Primaris warriors.

  The wolves were faster than the retreating Dalova soldiers.

   They mow down fleeing enemies with activated melee weapons or bolters.

  Jace lunged at a group of Dalova soldiers, waving the mace in his hand.

  Those mortals are simply powerless against the mighty scepter.

  The bodies of the traitors were beaten alive by Jess. The scene was once very cruel, and it is difficult to describe such a **** scene.

   If Jess's scepter fell on the head, it would be even more cruel. The whole head would explode like a watermelon with a bang.

  The panicked soldiers saw the imperial troops entering the city, causing panic on a wider scale.

  At this time, they had no hope of holding on to the pre-built fortifications.

  The only way to survive is to throw away your weapons and kneel on the ground begging for your life.

   A lot of people do that.

  I can't fight anymore.

  Wild wolves do not have the habit of slaughtering captives.

   They leaped over the captives who were kneeling in the rubble, their heads in their hands, and fell on the enemy soldiers who had not dropped their weapons.

   Until no one resisted, or those who resisted died, the wild wolves could barely stop. "

   Calgar led his personal guards into the palace wall and entered the palace of the High King.

   On the battlefield outside, there are no traces of pollution.

  In the palace, traces of chaos pollution can be seen everywhere.

   The darkness squirmed in the corner like life.

   Formless monsters are entrenched everywhere, making whispering sounds.

  The monsters would come out of the darkness, screaming harshly, and attack Calgar's troops.

  However, Calgar's troops are elite, all Primaris warriors.

   Several of them activated the Emperor Angel Engine and embarked on the path of demigods.

  Those unsystematic demons were powerless to stop Calgar and the others.

   They cut into the interior of the palace with the precision of an industrial jackhammer performing heart surgery.

  The sounds of fighting are everywhere, echoing in the dark palace.

  As night fell, the corridors and rooms were not lit.

  It looked very dark, very dark, and I couldn't see anything.

  The deeper the troops led by Calgar, the weaker the battle sounds became.

  Those defenders who were unwilling to surrender were massacred to death.

  In the end, they achieved their goal.

  A magnificent and wide hall.

  This is also the seat of the High King of House Mandelkerr.

  Its furnishing layout is luxurious and beautiful, fully worthy of the noble status of the owner.

  The personal guards broke open the gate and raised their weapons vigilantly, guarding against possible attacks.

   Calga strode towards the middle of the hall.

  The layout of the hall is very special.

  A long corridor connects many rooms.

   At the end is a vault about thirty meters high, inlaid with the emblem of the Mandeker family.

  Under the vault, there are two jet-black thrones.

  The culprit of this battle sits on it.

   High King Lygius and his wife High Queen Caligia.

   "Everything is over." Calgar walked up to the throne, looked at the two **** who had betrayed the empire, and said furiously.

   "I thought it would last for a while at least. I didn't expect it to end so soon." Supreme King Ligius sat on the throne calmly.

   Seeing Calgar standing in front of the throne, his sunken dark eyes turned slightly, and his eyes fell on Calgar.

   "Do you think you can stand against the wrath of the Empire with such power?" Calgar said. "If you think so, I can only laugh at your stupidity. Take it with you, traitor."

"I recognize your strength." Ligius said, "but don't think that you have won the final victory. This universe is about to be reduced to the realm of the gods. The age of the emperor has passed. I feel sorry for you, you Living in a deception that never had freedom. Being fooled and swinging swords at innocents."

"Shut up, idiot, who betrayed the empire like you, what right do you have to say innocent." Calgar said angrily, he raised his weapon and aimed at the throne, "Surrender, all your stubbornness is inappropriate of."

"Before the corpse emperor arrived in Dalowa, the Mandelker family had already led the people of Dalowa out of the Long Night Crisis. We have been living very well and free. Until the arrival of the empire, we were forced to sacrifice Send out your own soldiers and food to satisfy those gluttonous bureaucrats and a never-ending military machine."

   "I hate this kind of life. The people of Dalowa are entitled to enjoy more and don't have to deal with those bureaucrats. We are capable of living well on our own. We didn't get any benefits from joining the empire, but we were deeply burdened by it."

  Ligius stared at Calgar, his thin lips parted, showing his yellowed teeth.

   "I don't want to talk nonsense with you." Calgar didn't want to listen to the other party's sophistry.

   There are thousands of reasons for betrayal.

   And loyalty is loyalty.

  The kindness to the traitor is the injury to the loyal.

   In the face of the threat of the gods, every human being suffers from it.

  If the rulers of every world are so short-sighted, they feel that war is far away from them.

  The extinction of human beings is only a matter of time.

   Karius smiled, "I'm really sorry, you are stubborn." While speaking, he reached out to press the button next to the throne.

   But he underestimated Calgar's speed.

  After the second primary casting upgrade, Calgar has mastered various special combat skills.

   With a bang, Calgar disappeared on the spot, leaving only a cloud of mist that slowly dissipated.

   reappeared next to Ligius, and the activated power fist swung out with a punch.

  The entire throne couldn't bear Calgar's power, and was shattered into countless pieces with a crackling sound.

  The Supreme King of the Mandeker Knight Family also became shattered along with the throne, with flesh and blood mixed with fragments scattered everywhere.

  The High Queen screamed in horror.

   Two original cast warriors stepped forward and controlled her.

   "Take her away." Calgar scanned the empty hall.

   The battle is over, he cleansed the world of traitors in the name of Imperial Regent.

  But there are more battles waiting for him.

  At this time, Calgar's communication channel sent a reminder.

  The director of communications sent him a message.

   Calgar turned off the force field of the power fist and turned on the communicator.

   "Anything you want to report to me?"

   "Lord Calgary, we have received several astronomical messages."

   Calgar frowned slightly, "What kind of astronomical message?"

   "The most important one is that the Primarch has resolved most of the war at hand, and is currently rushing to the Vigilante, and he will join us soon." The tone of the communication director was full of excitement.

  The arrival of the Primarch is a good thing, and they will fight side by side with a great man.

   Calgar also showed a smile.

  The failure of Vigilante made him feel very frustrated.

  The Nachmond Corridor is closing, but he has nothing to do, he can only watch it happen.

   "But there is one more bad news." The communications director said in a low voice.

   Calgar asked: "What bad news?"

   "The Baal galaxy has summoned the children of the angels. An unprecedented Zerg fleet is heading towards the Baal galaxy. They are likely to fight the Zerg."

  The Baal galaxy is the home planet of the Blood Angels.

  The Blood Angels, like the Space Wolves, Dark Angels, Ultramarines, Salamanders, Iron Hands, Raven Guard, Imperial Fists, and White Scars, are the founding parent groups of the Imperial Battlegroup.

  The Primarch of the Blood Angels is Sanguinius.

   Sanguinius is known as a perfect person. He has a pair of white angel wings, a handsome appearance, and powerful combat power.

  The stories of the Primarch all start the same way.

   Sanguinius was stolen from the Emperor's laboratory by the Gods of Chaos and thrown on Baal.

  It is a very cruel planet.

  The war legacy of the golden age poisons Baal.

  Radioactive dust is suspended in the air, tormenting the local people all the time.

  Sanguinius became the leader of the local tribe by virtue of his wisdom and strength, repelled the mutants, and finally completed the unification of Barr.

  After the emperor arrived in Barr, father and son recognized each other.

   Sanguinius also took over the Ninth Army.

   Barr became the recruiting ground for the Ninth Legion.

  After the Horus Heresy, the Codex Astartes was released.

  The Blood Angels Legion was split, and the sub-corps left Baal to find a new home planet elsewhere.

  The Blood Angels stayed in Baal as the mother group, guarding the relics and various books.

  The Baal galaxy is of great significance, where Sanguinius, the genetic father of the Blood Angels, grew up.

  The Blood Angels will never allow any accidents to happen in the Baal galaxy.

  The Tyranid Zerg is coming fiercely, and they are about to take revenge on the Blood Angels.

  Because the Blood Angels repeatedly interfered with the Great Devourer's feeding.

   Once they come and go, hatred is formed.

   Out of blood honor, the Blood Angels will not allow the Zerg to invade Baal no matter what the cost.

   That is trampling and provoking the angels.

  The action of the Blood Angels to summon those subgroups to return shows an attitude that they will fight the Tyranid Zerg in the Baal galaxy.

  Kalgar is deep in thought, continue to protect the slowly closing Nachmond Corridor, or go to the Baal galaxy to support the Blood Angels!

   This is a very important question.

  Neither the Blood Angels nor many of the warbands on the dark side of the Empire have received Primaris upgrades, new ships and weaponry.

   They are absolutely close to death against the Zerg.

   It is very likely that the blood of the angel will be cut off.

   "We need to give the Blood Angels some support."

   Calgar turned and walked out of the palace.

  Now, the situation is more complicated.

  He has to do as well as possible.

  When the Primarch arrives, he will not be so disappointed.

  He messed up the matter of Vigilante, if he refused to save Baal, the Blood Angels would also be wiped out.

  The anger of the Primarch can be imagined.

  Accompanied by a flash of light, a Kroot battleball ship rushed out of the subspace.

  In addition to the Kroot tribe, there are also heroes such as Shadow Sun and Yong Lan of the Tau Empire in the battle ball.

  The omnic rebellion that occurred in Damocles Bay wiped out the entire expeditionary force led by Shadowsun.

   What a fiasco.

   Before seeing the enemy, there were already heavy casualties.

  Considering the omnic rebellion, Yingyang and the others dare not let the battleship A. Luo use the highly intelligent star tide hub.

   Can only fly at sublight speeds.

  That speed was too slow, so Yingyang and the others had no choice but to carry the Kroot battle ball and quickly return to the world of Dar Iss's family to report the root cause of the omnic rebellion.

  For the sake of the best way, Shadowsun vowed that he would bring his troops back and give humans a hard blow, letting them know how powerful and terrifying the Tau Empire is.

  After leaping out of the subspace, Yingyang subtly sensed something was wrong.

  Dar Yisi's family world, which is heavily defended, did not issue inquiries and warnings to them and his group in the first place.

  Just when Yingyang wanted to discuss with Yonglan and the other high-ranking legions who had escaped.

   A piercing scream came.

  The Duchess standing by the porthole pointed out the porthole and yelled in horror.

  Yingyang walked over and was stunned.

  She finally knew why Dar Iss's family world didn't intercept and inquire about the Kroot battle ball in the first place.

  In the void, countless metal wreckages were floating.

   Rotating slowly, being pulled by the gravitational pull of stars or celestial bodies, and sent into the low-Earth orbit of a certain world.

  The Tau Empire's space defense stations and rings have been destroyed.

  A large number of wreckages of Tau Empire warships are suspended in the void, and a large number of Tau corpses are floating in the air.

  Fires are faintly visible on the planet, and the atmosphere is obscured by billowing smoke from burning cities.

   It's all over.

  Yingyang looked at those floating corpses, his body trembled slightly, his legs went limp, and he almost knelt down.

   "We are late." A burst of despair emerged in Yingyang's heart.

   "My lord, we have received a message." Yong Lan at the side showed a hint of joy, "It seems to be a message from an ether."

  Hearing this, a glimmer of hope appeared in Yingyang, and she hurriedly played the message.

   is a message for help.

   Did not determine the location, afraid of being intercepted.

   It seems that one ether and a group of survivors managed to escape the pursuit of omnics.

   "We have to save them." Shadowsun said, "Get ready, we go to the surface, rescue the survivors, rescue the ether."

  The Huo clan warriors who lost their combat uniforms, their combat effectiveness was terribly weakened.

   Only with the help of the Human Auxiliary Army and Kroot and other alien races can they go down to the surface to fight.

  Otherwise, Huo Shi, who doesn't have a battle suit, is no match for omnic at all.

  After descending to the surface, everything on the surface is so shocking.

  The former prosperity turned into wreckage and ruins everywhere.

  There are corpses everywhere, it's horrible.

  A brutal massacre definitely took place here.

  Dar Yisijiamen world has always been famous for its interstellar, lively, and fast-moving free trade.

   This home world welcomes interstellar friends and outsiders.

  Hundreds of alien races and allied races have responded to the call of the world of Dar Iss's gate to fight against the Empire.

  Thousands of Thrai, Mu Jia and many other alien races live in the world of Dal Iss, creating an ideal world where the galaxy races coexist.

  In the past, Shadowsun felt that this was also the superiority of the Tau Empire.

  The Tau Empire is so broad-minded, accepting every race, and creating a true era of great harmony in the galaxy.

  The human empire is too narrow-minded, stubbornly centered on its own race, and unwilling to accept other races.

   This is the gap.

  Now, Yingyang no longer has the slightest joy and pride in the past.

  The omnic's mutiny turned this place into a dead city.

  She doesn't know how far these terrifying omnics have reached, and where they have spread? ?

  If the omnic spread to the entire Tau Empire, Shadowsun couldn't help shivering!

  In that case, it would be really scary.

   "I have detected a special signal." A human auxiliary whispered.

  Hearing this, Yingyang quickly walked over to check the signal detected by the other party to see if it was from the ether.

  Yingyang has already made a decision.

   Once the Aether is rescued, she will go to the capital of the Tau Empire.

  Go to find the ether council in person, explain the ins and outs of this matter to the ethers, and accept the punishment.

  At this time, the sound of humming mixed with whistling suddenly came.

  The machine bees flashing red light roared towards them, and the machine guns shot at the crowd crazily, starting the berserk killing mode.

   There are some omnics who hate all organic life, and they would like to kill all life.

  Yingyang and others can only turn around and evacuate. Once fighting, it will only waste time.

   Their task is to rescue the ether, leave Dal Iss, and go to the capital of the empire to warn the entire Tau Empire, not to stay here and destroy these drone bees.

   "Quick, run in the direction of the signal source." Yingyang yelled at the others, "Don't start a war with these machines, we can't destroy them, it will only attract more."

  (end of this chapter)