Chapter 56 - Back in the day

The birth of Slaanesh led to the loss of much of the Eldar's true history; what remains is closer to myth than fact, but Magos Gamma, a Tech-priest who had delved into several tombs over the years, still possessed the basic skill of finding clues from mythical stories.

Although the content of Eldar myths was mostly a dramatic, soap-opera version of their gods in heaven, there were still some useful tidbits, such as how the Warp in mythical times was far less dangerous than it is now; for the Eldar, the Warp was at most the dormitory of the Eldar gods, not a hell filled with conspiracy, rape, murder, and decay.

Some records indicate that when the Eldar died, their souls would be preserved in the Warp, awaiting "reincarnation"; resurrection was no more difficult than drinking water for the Eldar of that era.

Referencing the performance of the Infinite Circuit and the Ghost Construct, Gamma believed these records to be true, and the Eldar themselves were deeply convinced.

"Your… Your… Your Highness, are you trying to—"

The Eldar in the testing ground were so excited by the news of "resurrection" that they stammered. The young Tech-priest smiled as he saw the Bonesingers, who seemed to be ignited, and said:

"How does it feel impossible?"

"No… it's just—"

"It's just that you don't dare to imagine it, right? But can it really not be done? Can't a body with normal functions be molded from spirit bones and organic matter? Can't this sensory enhancement device be further upgraded to be smaller and more precise? Why must Ghost Constructs be hard spirit bones, and not flesh and blood bodies that can taste the sweetness of fruit and breathe in the scent of plants in the breeze?"

"The Infinite Circuit can protect your souls, but don't forget that the Infinite Circuit was also created by Bonesingers like yourselves. You see it as a miracle, so why can't the same miracle appear in your hands?"

Gamma came gently, just as he left gently, waving his sleeve, leaving behind a group of self-funded workers who were now pumped up.

"Hmph hmph, Gamma, you're truly too wicked! Look at how you've fooled them?" The young Tech-priest muttered to himself proudly.

Although the young Tech-priest no longer constantly told himself that the Eldar were his slave cannon fodder, he didn't bother to think about how to resurrect the Eldar. His ultimate goal was to find a method of "resurrection" and then use it on Magos Lauster and his companions. Human and Eldar souls are very different, but as he said, technological progress is endless.

After visiting the remaining few projects, the young Tech-priest began to design the image for his "Archmagos Gamma." This time, he intended to create an authentic Tech-priest appearance.

It was just a movable shell, which wouldn't take much effort. The time spent designing the appearance was even longer than the time Gamma spent building it. As the young Tech-priest excitedly boarded his "Grand Magus" to inspect his territory, the highest alert of the Ulthwé Craftworld was sounded—His Highness Gamma had been attacked!

Because the Eldar warriors guarding Gamma's palace area saw a nightmarish entity dressed in a Mars red robe, its body several times the size of an adult male, gliding across the ground on countless metal legs. Under its tattered cloak, a head with only a tiny bit of flesh was connected to countless cables, and a dozen fierce mechanical arms and tentacles grew from its insect-like body, each equipped with a weapon, while His Highness Gamma's voice emanated from within this monstrous creature.

Eldrad, without even wearing shoes, rushed out of the teleportation array, powerful psychic energy enveloping him, and at the same time shouted, "Who dares to offend His Highness Gamma?"

Then he saw the monster surrounded by a large group, and Gamma's small head poked out from inside the monster, awkwardly greeting him:

"It's me."

"…" The Supreme Seer nearly choked.

The misunderstanding cleared, and the young Tech-priest, driving the "Grand Magus," slowly returned to his palace. Eldrad followed him closely, never leaving his side. The Eldar handmaidens serving Gamma, seeing the ugly monster, showed expressions of fear and disgust, but their beloved His Highness Gamma was sitting in the "open-chested" center of the monster, controlling its movement, which made their expressions very conflicted.

"Your Highness…—"

"I'm doing this so that not too many people are affected by my 'extraordinary charm'; it's for your consideration." The young Tech-priest argued cunningly.

"…"

"I also want the demons to stop, but you wouldn't let them, saying that nutritional balance was needed. Demons are fragments of Chaos Gods, and their powers restrain each other; lacking one might lead to unpredictable risks. But if you keep consuming them, their influence on you will grow stronger. There was no other way, so I came up with this idea." Gamma continued to argue cunningly.

Eldrad responded helplessly after hearing this, "I thank Your Highness on behalf of the Ulthwé Eldar."

"Hmm, you all, quickly find the Supreme Seer a pair of shoes!" Gamma said to the side as he climbed out of the "Grand Magus."

"Yes, Your Highness."

"No need. Since Your Highness is fine, I will withdraw now."

"Uh, alright." The young Tech-priest, feeling guilty after such a big misunderstanding, glanced at Eldrad and replied.

From then on, Gamma's magnificent palace gained an unremovable "stain." Because they disliked the appearance of the Grand Magus, the handmaidens avoided entering the room where it was kept whenever possible. What no one expected was that the "Grand Magus" would soon prove useful.

Gamma, who was enjoying a dance, suddenly received a report that a human fleet was engaging Chaos forces along the Craftworld's route.

Eldrad asked Gamma whether they should avoid it or help. If it were before, the Ulthwé Craftworld would have unhesitatingly avoided it, but the situation was different now.

Upon receiving the news, Gamma did not act rashly; instead, he asked, "What are the Warstriders' opinions?"

Eldrad nodded inwardly with satisfaction, then said, "Their opinion is to help, and at the same time, test the results of these years. If no major problems are found this time, Your Highness's plan can begin!"

"Such high combat readiness?" The young Tech-priest looked at Eldrad with surprise.

The Supreme Seer smiled and said, "It's all thanks to Your Highness. With the new combat system, new weapons, and the help of Iron Men and castellan robots, we no longer need to be as cautious as before."

"Your grace has greatly enhanced the strength of the Path Warriors, and they also need a battle to validate the results of these years of training." "Hmm, proceed as the Warstriders said."

"Yes."

Magos Camilla was in despair. No matter how she calculated, her chances of escaping from the corrupted heretics were minuscule. She couldn't help but feel sorrow for her unfortunate plight.

"If I had known this, I would have rather stayed in Pandex."

But as things stood, only one path remained for her and her companions: to take as many of those blasphemous heretics with them as possible before they died!

After communicating with the other Magos on the ships in the fleet, Magos Camilla went to her vault, opened the deepest safe, and took out a photograph. After examining it for a long time, she suddenly fired a laser from the mechanical arm behind her at the man in the photo, piercing his lower body.

Then, in a resentful tone, she said, "I will never forgive you even in death!"

"You betrayed me! You dared to run away with my daughter! I hate you! You beast!"

"My daughter!"

"Mommy will never see you again!"

As she spoke, Magos Camilla's tears fell onto the photograph, and her body involuntarily curled up. After remaining like this for a long time, she carefully tucked the photograph into a crevice in her body, then wiped away her tears and transformed back into the cold, powerful Adeptus Mechanicus Magos others saw.

Returning to the command bridge, Magos Camilla used the vox-caster system to broadcast their predicament to the entire ship and issued the order for a desperate charge against the heretics.

As the order was given, the ship began to change course, and the other vessels in the fleet synchronized their movements, shifting from their original retreat formation to an assault formation.

Amidst binary hymns praising the Om, every ship pushed their plasma engines to full power, completely disregarding the possibility that doing so might cause their severely damaged vessels to detonate or break apart.

The relentless Dark Adeptus Mechanicus, with their ships twisted with flesh and blasphemous symbols, upon seeing their prey's death throes, both the demons stuffed into the blasphemous machinery and the fallen Black Tech-Oil Lords let out bloodthirsty, sinister laughs. They were laughing at the prey's overestimation of themselves,

laughing at the souls soon to be theirs.

Just as both sides were rapidly approaching each other and firing weapons to deplete each other's void shields, a colossal battleship, an Eldar Craftworld, unexpectedly appeared out of the empty void, to everyone's surprise.

At the first sight of the Craftworld, both the dominant Black Tech-Oil Lords and the charging Tech-priests' first reaction was to run.

How powerful is an Ark World's combat capability?

For example: The Imperium's last extermination attack on an Eldar Ark World was the Battle of the Bloody Nebula, in which the Imperium disastrously lost an entire sector fleet. Since then, the Imperium changed its strategy, focusing more on individual Eldar rather than provoking an entire Ark World.

Removing its stealth shadow field, the Ulthwé Craftworld, which actively joined the battle, naturally wouldn't give them a chance to escape. The Eldar fleet located in the massive spaceport on the outer surface of the Ark World directly charged towards the Dark Adeptus Mechanicus.

Compared to the massive Imperial battleships, Eldar warships seemed quite fragile. Inexperienced Imperial Navy personnel, upon first seeing Eldar vessels, would often mistake them for easy prey for Imperial macro-cannons and lances.

However, the reality was far from it. As one of the earliest interstellar travelers in the galaxy, even after the Fall of the Eldar, the surviving Ark Worlds were merely cargo ships of that era, and the technology equipped on their vessels was far more advanced than that of the Imperium.

Seemingly ridiculous, huge solar sails resembling fins could collect starlight. These sails enabled Eldar vessels to move swiftly and steadily. Only those who had faced the Eldar knew how terrifyingly maneuverable these Eldar vessels were.

In the face of absolutely superior speed, escape was nothing but a delusion.

Moreover, the fastest were not these spirit bone battleships, but the unmanned boarding craft that used necron technology and only carried Iron Men. The living metal boarding craft directly withstood the Dark Adeptus Mechanicus's attacks and rapidly approached them. Not having to worry about the safety of passengers allowed these boarding craft to perform incredible maneuvers, and even if hit, the superior performance of living metal could protect the Iron Men inside from harm.

The Black Tech-Oil Lords knew they were blasphemous, but when they saw the Iron Men emerging from the boarding craft, they thought perhaps the other side was even more blasphemous.

The unruly machine spirits, finally given a chance to run wild, unleashed their long-suppressed destructive urges on the Dark Tech-Oil Lords' ships. Their living metal bodies meant they didn't consider what was friendly fire or collateral damage.

Demons?

Haven't fought them, let's try. Demon Engines? Haven't fought them, let's try. Black Tech-Oil Lords? Haven't fought—Magos Gamma said kill them all. Oh, already killed them! So fragile!

When the Black Tech-Oil Lords realized they couldn't stop these rampaging machines, their fear was matched only by their greed. They released chaotic code, hoping to paralyze these suspected Iron Men machines, but these codes, filled with blasphemous power, were like talking to a brick wall in front of the unruly ones who knew nothing of learning.

They had only three things on their minds: first, obey Magos Gamma; second, figure out how to fight; third, where to find a fight.

The third thing was a bit difficult for them; they had no other memory to consider other things.

It was only with the arrival of the Path Warriors that the unruly Iron Men reined themselves in, grudgingly reducing their weapon power to one-third of what it had been, and at the same time complaining to the Eldar who appeared before them:

"Why are you here? Can't you go somewhere else?" × n

Idalin snorted coldly under her mask, striking the Iron Man with the side of her blade. She knew these Iron Men, who would constantly come to the branch temple to "spar," far too well; their mouths were all equally foul.

"Can't you be silent like Fenris?" After speaking, she didn't forget to pat the giant wolf accompanying her.

"It would have to be able to speak if it wanted to."

"Woof!"

"Good insult!" Idalin praised her combat partner.

"You traitor to the Iron Brotherhood."

"Woof woof!"

"You're still cursing! Don't leave after this battle, meet me in the small grove behind the temple!"

"Woof woof woof!"

"You want to bite off my leg! Just wait until I hammer you into a dog pelt!"

Seeing the Iron Man in front of her arguing with her mount, the Howling Banshee impatiently shouted, "Silence! I'm going to the bridge! If you want to follow, don't say another useless word!"

As soon as they heard the Banshee was going to a good place for a fight, the unruly ones immediately shut up and acted like mutes. As for faces, Iron Men didn't have them.

At this moment, the other Path Warriors, who had finished clearing the remaining enemies, also arrived to rendezvous with Idalin. With them came a few Iron Men who had been running wild elsewhere. Once everyone was assembled, this combat group, consisting of Eldar, Iron Men, and mechanical giant wolves, set off towards the bridge.

The giant wolves and castellan robots served as meat shields for the Eldar, while the Eldar transformed into scouts and assassins, using their agile movements to approach enemies and then deliver a fatal blow. Their way of dodging enemy attacks was perilous yet always left them unharmed, as if they could see through the enemy's mind. Some could even disarm an enemy with a single gesture.

Their coordination in battle was simply seamless, linked as if everyone's consciousness was connected.

And indeed, it was. This was the power Gamma had bestowed upon the Path Warriors—the power of the ancient Eldar. Although only a small part, it was enough to bring about a qualitative change in their strength.

The ancient Eldar, every one of them a powerful psychic warrior, could connect consciousness through a psychic field, see through an opponent's thoughts with a glance, and destroy an opponent's weapon with a single gesture. To call them super-enhanced War Witches would be an understatement; they were more like "Jedi Knights."

The Path Warriors under Gamma's command, after training, could, through their will, make the spores in their bodies secrete special substances to activate their dormant potential, though usually only one type, and for not too long, as the current Eldar physiology does not allow them to use this power for extended periods.

However, this also depended on individual talent and diligent effort. For example, Idalin could activate two abilities simultaneously, and rigorous training also allowed her to control the duration of activation, using this power only when needed.

The Black Mechanicus who defected to Chaos have an even lower bottom line than the Tech-priests, who already have no bottom line. These tech-heretics abandoned the Omnissiah and turned to worship the Dark Gods, perfectly embodying what an immoral scientist is.

Looking at the images sent back from the front line, the young Tech-priest was disgusted. The Black Mechanicus' ships were filled with abominations combining flesh and synthetic tissue. Not only were they disgusting in appearance, but they also lacked much technological content.

Or they were ugly slave soldiers, organic combinations of human and alien genes or surgical implants.

"After more than ten thousand years of free rein in the Warp, they're still not much stronger than orthodox Tech-priests. What a waste! They waste air when alive and land when dead."

"Just build a frame and stuff demons inside, huh? During the Horus Heresy, there were still abominable intelligences like the Cabal mechanics. Now even Chaos Robots are Demon Engines. Can't you achieve something?"

"Heh, even the Contemplators are demons. Can you be any lazier?"

The Warstrider, who was in charge of commanding the battle nearby, silently changed the defeat order to total annihilation after hearing Gamma's muttering. With absolute superiority, it was just a matter of expending a little more effort.

"Your Highness, the Adeptus Mechanicus has sent a communication request."

"Tell them to stay put. Let me think."

"Yes."

The young Tech-priest, who was in a foul mood, had no time to deal with unfamiliar Tech-priests. He was very irritable now, finally understanding why heretics were more hateful than Xenos.

He could guess the source of these twisted creations with his butt, which made Gamma realize once again how cruel this universe was.

To be honest, Gamma originally didn't have much prejudice against these Black Mechanicus. Many of them had conflicting ideologies with Mars and were forced to be branded as heretics. Such persecution was common within the academic-tyrannized Adeptus Mechanicus.

But whether their original research was blasphemous, or they only started researching blasphemous technology after being branded as heretics, they were now completely beyond redemption.

"How do you feel?" Gamma asked the Warstriders.

"Your Highness, the combat power increase brought by the new technology is even higher than we previously expected. We are now fearless of any opponent, even when facing a siege."

"The tactical changes brought by the astartes codex make our combat style more flexible than before. Although the warriors have not fully adapted yet, as long as they experience a few more actual battles and personally feel the advantages, it will not be an issue."

Gamma nodded after hearing this, then said, "Since that is the case, your next mission is to select a location as our forward base for stepping onto the galaxy, and expand from this base."

"However, humanity will also come under your command in the future and become your colleagues. Your vision cannot only see the Eldar. You must change and adapt, and find suitable positions for the Eldar to exert their value. Otherwise, even if you are my earliest followers, your sparse population will not be enough to support the Ulthwé Eldar's position in the forces I control."

The young Tech-priest's frank words sent a shiver through the Eldar present. He pointed out the Eldar's biggest weakness—their small population.

But what Gamma didn't know was that the high-ranking Ulthwé Eldar had secretly reached a consensus: His Highness Gamma wanted to develop his forces and didn't specify only accepting humans. They wanted to "pull" their suffering Eldar brethren. The cloning technology of the Commorrite Dark Eldar was not completely unacceptable. For the future of the Eldar, their Ulthwé Craftworld dared to be the first.

The rescued Magos Camilla and her companions were both happy and fearful when they saw the Eldar sweeping through the vast Dark Adeptus Mechanicus fleet, leaving them unable to function. They were happy that the fallen heretics were destroyed, but feared that the Eldar would treat them the same way.

The kindest and gentlest Eldar maiden, once she puts on her war mask, immediately transforms into a merciless killer. It is precisely because of this that most people outside the Ark World have never encountered Eldar without war masks, and thus other races generally do not have a good impression of the Craftworld Eldar.

Furthermore, the Craftworld Eldar keep to themselves, leading to few people being able to distinguish between the Dark Eldar who raid for slaves and the White Eldar. Their prophecy-driven actions make the Eldar's Logic seem no different from a madman's in the eyes of outsiders.

So even if these suddenly appearing Eldar were to deal with them after finishing off the Black Mechanicus, Magos Camilla would not be surprised in the slightest.

"Communication request rejected. These Xenos aren't trying to—"

"So what! It's just a fight to the death. Do you intend to beg for mercy from Xenos?"

"Camilla, can't you change your temper—."

"Hmph, seeing your cowardly appearance makes me angry!"

"..."

Seeing Camilla hang up the communication, the other Magos who were connected sighed helplessly and also disconnected. They had already gotten used to her strong personality during their time on Pandorax. It was precisely Camilla's decisive character that allowed them to escape the Forge World, which had already become a purgatory. If it weren't for her leading the way in abandoning their assets and cutting their losses, they might have died on Pandorax long ago.

The waiting period for judgment by fate felt exceptionally long. Despair and unease permeated among the human survivors. Even the constant playing of hymns could not erase this unease. This unease even caused small-scale unrest within the Adeptus Mechanicus fleet, which had previously been fighting to the death with heretics.

Although the unrest was quickly suppressed, it also made the nerves of the servitors and Tech-Priests even tighter. Even the slightest sound would make them jump and point their weapons at the source of the noise.

Camilla sat in front of the data command platform, quietly examining a damaged photo in her hand, her eyes shifting between sweetness, hatred, longing, and sadness.

Suddenly, a voice rang out in the quiet command bridge: "Magos Camilla, the Xenos ships patrolling around us have sent a communication!"

Awakened from her memories, Camilla calmly said, "Content."

"They demand that our Person in charge accompany them to the Craftworld!"

"Only that?"

"Yes, only that."

At the same time, Camilla's private communication channel also received messages from her companions, who had received the same notification.

Having no choice, the Tech-Magos had to obey, but their different personalities were evident from each person's reaction. Some Magos brought guards, some brought no guards but only a few students, and some brought Servitors. However, each Servitor held a gift. Only Magos Camilla brought nothing and stepped onto the Spiritstone aircraft alone.

However, the Eldar who came to pick them up said nothing, only instructing the Tech-Magos not to touch the instruments in the aircraft and to pay attention to etiquette when they met the adult later.

The Magos, who had witnessed the Eldar brutally beating the Black Mechanicus, were naturally curious about the unfamiliar technology and wanted to explore it. Fortunately, they were not foolish and knew their situation. At the same time, they were also puzzled as to why the adult, spoken of by the Eldar who spoke fluent High Gothic, wanted to see them.

As they got closer to the Craftworld, the visual impact of the planet-sized spacecraft was far beyond what could be seen on an instrument.

The Tech-Magos calculated the energy required to operate the Craftworld for travel, but no matter how boldly they hypothesized, even using legendary technology, it could not meet the Craftworld's energy demands.

This also completely extinguished the last bit of defiance in their hearts. The gap was too great. Even if the Craftworld did not resist and allowed their ships to attack, they would not be able to break through the Craftworld's defenses.

The Tech-Magos were not only shocked by this. After the aircraft docked at the Craftworld's starport, the Magos who stepped off the aircraft saw metal mechanical bodies covered in gunpowder wandering around. These unruly Iron Men, who had just come off the battlefield and had nothing to do, immediately surrounded the unfamiliar Tech-priests with mischievous intent and introduced themselves in clear, precise High Gothic:

"We are the Iron Men. Surprised? Unexpected?"

..."

"Sizzle"

"Sizzle, sizzle"

"Look, they're spewing oil, hahahaha."

The Eldar warriors responsible for escorting the Tech-Magos rolled their eyes and drove away these troublesome "hooligans," then said to the oil-leaking Tech-priests, "You don't have to worry, they are very safe, just a bit rascally in personality."

As one of the few Tech-Magos who wasn't leaking oil, Camilla stared at the Eldar and asked, "Are they really Iron Men?"

"Yes."

The Eldar's brief answer silenced all the Tech-priests. They couldn't understand why Iron Men would appear on an Eldar Ark World, why they would "serve" the Eldar, and why they didn't show any hatred for organic life forms?!

"Did you create them?" Magos Camilla asked again.

"You will know that answer shortly."

Curiosity and the yearning for knowledge greatly diminished the unease in the Tech-Magos' hearts. Their steps unconsciously quickened. The magnificent Omega City also brought considerable shock to the Magos. However, the mainstream aesthetic of the Tech-priests was "thick, large, and numerous." Omega City only had "large." It was indeed beautiful, but in the eyes of orthodox Tech-priests, it was a bit "effeminate."

Then, under guidance, they passed through layers of inspections and saw the only aesthetic flaw in Omega City—the Grand Magus.

The fact that the Eldar's leader was an Adeptus Mechanicus Archmagos, and a tech-heretic who created Iron Men, shocked the Tech-priests no less than the shock they felt on the day the Great Rift was born.

"Cough! Wake up, everyone!" The Archmagos emitted a deep electronic sound.

"Caw!"

"..."

"Wake up, everyone!" The Archmagos emitted a deep electronic sound once again.

"@#$%&*..."

"Tsk, these young people nowadays, why is their mental fortitude so poor? They're truly getting worse with each generation. Back in the day, when the Emperor and I conquered the world together, what kind of monsters and demons hadn't I seen?"

"Look at yourselves, you have no ambition at all. No wonder you were bullied by heretics into such a state."

"The traitor Karbor Hal is a waste, and his subordinates are even more of a waste. Zagorius Kane is a waste, and so are you."

"All of you are wastes. If I had known it would come to this, I should have killed them both and become the Forge General myself!"

Gamma, inside the Grand Magus, was dramatically holding a microphone, regretting his actions and building a persona for himself, completely disregarding how his fabricated persona would further confuse Camilla and the others, who were already in chaos.

The few who still retained some sanity, after hearing the three names—Emperor, Karbor Hal, and Zagorius Kane—were left with only one thought:

Even in the wildest unofficial histories of the Imperium, there was no such person!

For an actor, the greatest affirmation comes from the audience. The young Tech-priest believed his acting had reached perfection, but the audience present was of too low quality, completely lacking in appreciation and cooperation, only babbling foolishly. This greatly angered Gamma, but he had plenty of ways to stir the audience's emotions.

The Grand Magus raised a mechanical arm, and a bolt of lightning shot from a weapon on it towards the uncooperative Tech-priests. When the lightning struck down the first victim, it immediately jumped to the second Tech-priest, then the third, fourth, and fifth. "Are you awake?" Gamma asked the Tech-priests who had been struck down by the living lightning.

"W-w-we're awake!" The Tech-priests on the ground replied, twitching and trembling.

The first thing they did after getting up was to perform the highest-grade Gear Salute to the Grand Magus. Then the Magos heard Gamma say:

"Since my departure, it has been over ten millennia since I last appeared within Imperial territory. It was only due to the emergence of the Great Rift that I wished to return and see what had truly happened."

"This time, I saved you, firstly, to teach those fallen fools a lesson, and secondly, to learn about the current situation of the Imperium from you."

The Tech-priests below the platform looked at each other, then all looked at Magos Camilla. Camilla cursed them as useless in her heart and had no choice but to brace herself and face the old monster who had appeared from who knew where, respectfully saying:

"Sir, it's not that we don't want to answer, but after the Great Rift appeared, we have also lost contact with the Imperium."

Of course, the young Tech-priest didn't want to ask about the Imperium's situation. He wanted to ask about the situation in this star sector and inquire if there were any suitable planets to serve as a forward base.

"Hmm, don't worry, I won't make things difficult for you youngsters over such a small matter. Tell me about the situation in the nearby star sector, and how did you come to be pursued by heretics?"

"Thank you for saving our lives, Sir. We will tell you everything we know."

"Speak."

"Yes, the light of the Astronomican is obscured, making Warp travel extremely dangerous, and Astropathic communication has become very difficult. We are also unclear about the situation of other Imperial Worlds. I imagine their situation is similar to ours, having all become isolated islands in the galaxy."

"Hmm, since it's so dangerous, why did you risk venturing out?" Gamma asked again.

Magos Camilla smiled bitterly after hearing this. "Sir, we didn't intend to leave our original Forge World; we were forced to flee."

The young Tech-priest raised an eyebrow, thinking: What does this mean? Is the dark side of the Imperium already this dangerous? If even Forge Worlds can't protect themselves, how are other human worlds supposed to survive?

"You mean your Forge World was destroyed? Who was the enemy?"

"Necrons!"

When Magos Camilla, who looked somewhat familiar, mentioned the Necrons, Gamma immediately understood what was going on. Similar situations had occurred many times in the Imperium of Man's sacred territories, impacting the Adeptus Mechanicus no less than the disaster caused by the Great Rift. Scholars with too much time on their hands even coined an academic term for it: the Metal Storm Phenomenon.

In a nutshell, Necrons were crawling out from underground on Forge Worlds!

As for why there would be Necrons, let us analyze the characteristics of Forge Worlds: they have many minerals but little life, and the surrounding Warp is very stable.

Now let's look at the characteristics of Tomb Worlds: they have many minerals but little life, and the surrounding Warp is very stable. So everyone should understand why this phenomenon is happening so frequently. This has also caused panic to rapidly increase among many Forge Worlds, because since the Great Rift's birth, they have been dealing with increasingly frequent external invasions and harassment, and now they may also have to deal with internal Necron invasions.

This has forced many Forge Worlds to temporarily put aside academic disputes and sign mutual protection agreements. Once a Forge World starts having Necrons, they will go shoulder to shoulder to suppress them.

However, no Forge World signed this agreement with Thedan; its biggest backer is the Regent of the Imperium.

Even in the Imperium of Man's sacred territories, illuminated by the Astronomican, Tech-priests were so scared they put aside academic disputes. The situation in the Imperium's dark side could only be worse.

"This is a god-given opportunity! The position of Dark Side Forge General must be mine, Gamma!" Gamma muttered to himself in the Grand Magus.

"Our Pandex Forge World was completely at a disadvantage in the war against the Necrons, so we had no choice but to risk escaping it."

Pandex? Where was Pandex? Oh, right, the Gothic Sector. You really can run. A bunch of cowards. Back then, I, Gamma, fought for Thedan until the last moment, the little Tech-priest thought disdainfully, completely forgetting his own "ugly" appearance when he was desperate to escape Thedan.

"In that case, where do you plan to escape to?"

"We plan to go to Lucius," Magos Camilla replied cautiously.

Hearing the name Lucius, Gamma nodded. His first weapon was made in Lucius, and the Lucius Forge World's strength is also highly ranked within the Adeptus Mechanicus. The fact that it can win a war of attrition against the Tyranids speaks volumes about its production capabilities.

Feeling that he couldn't get any useful information from these Tech-priests, Gamma began to consider how to deal with them.

Let them go?

That's not appropriate. He hasn't started building his empire yet, and the later the news is exposed, the more advantageous it is for him.

Kill them?

Gamma isn't that kind of person.

Then there's only one way—take them on as subordinates and have them work to repay their life-saving grace.

Thinking of this, the little Tech-priest, with a look as if watching a joke, pressed a button. Then, the Tech-priests below were shocked to see the "old monster," who had just been fine, suddenly "open its chest" to reveal its "dumpling filling."

The maid who had been acting as a background quickly stepped forward to help Gamma, who was groaning and crawling out. Once the little Tech-priest had climbed out, he ignored the bewildered Tech-priests below and just said to himself:

"This version of the Grand Magus is flawed. It should have a ladder. Going up and down is too troublesome."

"Then Your Highness should just discard it," the Aeldari maid, kneeling and wiping the stains from his hands, said with a hint of disdain.

"You guys are going too far. So what if it's a bit ugly? I designed it with great effort. Look, it completely stunned them the moment it appeared," Gamma said, unconvinced.

The maid sighed inwardly upon hearing this, and then sighed again, thinking about the future Grand Magus Mark II and Grand Magus Mark III.

"You, you, you…"

Even the calm Magos Camilla was so shocked by the scene unfolding before her that she stammered. But her action of raising her hand and pointing at Gamma drew the "displeasure" of others.

"Impudent!" the Aeldari civil official roared.

When Gamma voluntarily crawled out, he understood the little Tech-priest's intention: to challenge his future new colleagues and give them a taste of his power, letting them know who was in charge. That was why the civil official spoke up at that moment.

Eldrad smiled with relief at this scene. With such a quick-witted junior in the Ulthwé Aeldari, there would be no worries for the future.

"How dare you point at His Highness Gamma! Guards, drag her away and cut off her hands!"

With telepathy, the military general naturally understood the civil official's intention. Without a word, he flashed forward and pinned down Camilla, who was still in a daze.

Other Tech-priests tried to help, but several Aeldari appeared and stopped them. Without weapons and with their bionic functions restricted, the Tech-priests were no match for these experienced Path Warriors.

"Alright, what is this behavior?" the little Tech-priest said blandly.

"Your Highness—" The civil official still wanted to offer advice.

Gamma waved his hand to stop the other party, but he also didn't let the Path Warrior release the captured Tech-priests. A show of force was still necessary; otherwise, how could he take them as subordinates? They weren't people Gamma had personally trained. The tactic of treating subordinates with respect wouldn't work on Tech-priests. First intimidation, then kindness, was the best method, just like how he subdued the Aeldari.

"Since you have seen my true form, it means you only have two choices: either die, or obey my commands."

"Who exactly are you?" Magos Camilla struggled to lift her head and ask.

"The ruler of Ulthwé Craftworld, the Archmagos of the Adeptus Mechanicus, Gamma," the little Tech-priest replied proudly.

But things don't always go smoothly. Gamma, who hadn't dealt with humans for a long time, forgot one thing—his charisma value was currently off the charts!

Still in shock, Camilla keenly noticed that something was off about herself. She realized that after seeing this "thing" in the form of a human child, she could no longer feel any negative emotions towards him. Her reason was telling her that what was before her was a "monster," but emotionally, she wanted to be close to him, obey him, and serve him.

This made Camilla think of the demons in the Warp. Thinking of this, the Magos, disregarding everything else, hurriedly shouted to her similarly subdued companions: "Close your eyes, don't look at him! He is an evil entity from the Warp!"

The sudden turn of events first stunned the little Tech-priest, then he started jumping up and down, yelling: "Who are you calling a demon?! Have you ever seen such a cute and charming demon?!"

"Blasphemous evil, you won't deceive me! I would rather die than become a slave in the hands of an evil like you," Magos Camilla, with her eyes tightly shut, shouted.

Gamma, who had never been slandered like this, turned red with anger. The Aeldari present, hearing Camilla speak of their object of worship in such a way, were all furious and wanted to teach her a lesson. The Aeldari maid who had been serving the little Tech-priest directly shouted: "Kill her!"

The Aeldari suppressing the Magos brutally pressed her to the ground, with such force that Camilla couldn't help but cry out in pain. At the same time, this Path Warrior was adjusting his posture, freeing one hand to reach for Camilla's back of the neck, intending to twist her neck and make this ignorant human completely shut up.

"Stop!"

The little Tech-priest shouted, stopping the Path Warrior's movement. Then, he walked down the high platform step by step, came to Camilla's side, and said:

"Hmph, let me tell you, not only here, but even in the Imperium of Man's sacred territories, I, Gamma, am a heartthrob of the Adeptus Mechanicus. From Terra to Mars, from the Inquisition to the Astartes chapters, where do I not have friends? You call me a demon? Even the Regent wouldn't believe it! Open your eyes wide and see what this is!"

As Gamma's voice rang out, photos of him with many Imperial bigwigs were projected from a device on his wrist. But the Tech-priestess just wouldn't open her eyes, continuously muttering:

"Demon, I, Camilla, am a Priest of the Omnissiah, and I will not yield!"

"Put away your tricks. Disguising yourself as an innocent child doesn't change your twisted, disgusting nature."

"Do you think I don't understand your evil nature?"

"Your lies are full of holes. Where in the Imperium is there a Regent?!"

(Blood Eleven One) Gamma, who had grown fat from anger, had initially thought of promoting her because she looked familiar. Now he had changed his mind. Today, he would definitely make this stubborn Tech-priestess suffer.

"You don't know what you've missed. Every day from now on, you will regret what you did today!"

"Regret? Demon, do not underestimate a Priest of the Omnissiah. Even if I am tormented by you every moment from now on, I will not yield to you. I will curse you in hell!"

"Heh heh, you will definitely regret it."

Seeing the Tech-priestess's stubborn look, Gamma suddenly wasn't angry anymore. Thinking of her future, being given a hard time by him, crawling around in the corner, watching others rise, consumed by jealousy, regret, and darkness, the little Tech-priest even felt a bit like laughing.

Stepping past Camilla, Gamma came before another Tech-priest and asked: "Do you also think I am a demon?"

The Tech-priest, with his eyes tightly shut, said fearfully: "Sir, I think there must be a misunderstanding."

"Hmm, there is a misunderstanding, but why don't you dare to open your eyes?"

"Sir, I…"

"Open or not open?"

"Don't give in! Are you going to become one of those fallen heretics?!" Camilla encouraged and questioned her companion.

"Open or not open?" Gamma asked again.

The Tech-priest hesitated internally, but Gamma didn't give him another chance. He walked directly to the next person and asked the same question.

This time, the Tech-priest chose to open his eyes, but the yielding Tech-priest instead made Gamma feel disgusted. He truly looked down on people with such wavering wills.

Traitors are indeed never appreciated anywhere.

This also made Gamma feel bored, so he walked back to Camilla and said calmly: "I admit I am a bit special, but I am not a demon. No matter what, I saved you all, and you should repay my life-saving grace."

"Pah! Who knows if the heretics weren't arranged by you."

"Now you're going too far. I'm communicating with you very seriously right now. Don't think I really wouldn't dare to kill you!"

"Hmph! Come on!"

"How can a person be so stubborn? Forget it, drag them away and let them cool down."

Gamma couldn't be bothered with this stubborn Magos. He waved his hand, telling his people to take all the Tech-priests away and lock them up. He wasn't short of manpower. If they missed the opportunity he gave them, they had no one to blame but themselves.

"Clear the battlefield and then leave immediately," Gamma ordered the Warstrider.

"Your Highness, what should be done with those human ships?"

"Don't worry about them, it's not like they don't know how to pilot a ship."

"Yes."

This whole affair left the little Tech-priest quite unhappy. The outcome was completely opposite to his expectations. Gamma also experienced firsthand the stubbornness of the Imperium of Man; it was simply incomprehensible, like a stone in a latrine – stinking and hard.

The Supreme Seer came to Gamma's side at this moment and asked: "Your Highness, what were you thinking just now?"

"You saw through me. I was thinking this universe is truly awful. Look at her."

Eldrad looked at Camilla, who was being dragged away, and then heard Gamma say: "Her stubbornness and obstinacy can be the key to saving a crisis, or the fuse that ignites one."

"Humans are like this, and so are the Aeldari. I was just thinking, even if I have the power to save humanity or save the Aeldari, but when I act, the people I want to save stubbornly believe I am destroying them, and they start taking up arms and resisting me regardless of life or death. What is the meaning of all I do then?"

All the Aeldari who heard this question stopped what they were doing. At this moment, they too fell into confusion. This question also lay between the Ulthwé Aeldari and other Aeldari.

"Heh heh, I used to ponder similar questions to Your Highness. At that time, a wrong prophecy caused severe losses to the Craftworld, and I also asked myself if it would have been better to do nothing," Eldrad said with a chuckle.

"How did you come to understand it later?" Gamma asked.

To his surprise, the Supreme Seer spread his hands and said nonchalantly: "I didn't figure it out."

"Ah?"

"Because reality didn't give me time to figure it out; it forced me to make another prophecy to face a new crisis. I walked this path with questions all the way to the position of Supreme Seer, and several more mistakes occurred during that time."

"But even many years after I became Supreme Seer, I still hadn't figured out this question."

"And now?"

"Now I don't care about the answer to this question anymore."

"Why?"

"Doing something might be wrong, and doing nothing might also be wrong. So, I only do what I believe is right. I, too, have become a stubborn and obstinate person."

"The fundamental reason Your Highness is troubled by this question is that you haven't understood the underlying Logic of how this world operates."

"Underlying Logic?"

"Yes, the strong use violence to establish the order they desire. The law of the jungle is the basic rule of survival! Morality, benevolence, and tolerance are all products that come after order."

66.....

The little Tech-priest lowered his head in thought. His mind had not yet transitioned from being a follower of order to a creator of order. He had never seriously considered what he truly wanted, always passively accepting reality, then running, struggling, and resisting, but never thinking about change.

A shift in thinking isn't accomplished in an instant. Gamma's experiences weren't enough for him to have a "Dragonfield Enlightenment." Eldrad's words merely poked a hole in Gamma's cognitive barrier, allowing him to use that hole to view the problem that troubled him from a different perspective.

"? What is this? A photo? Did the Tech-priestess, whose brain wasn't working earlier, drop it?"

Gamma bent down to pick up the photo and flipped it over to examine it. "Hiss!"

After just one glance, red, yellow, white, green, and black colors simultaneously appeared on the little Tech-priest's face. The Supreme Seer, seeing this, thought Gamma had been cursed by something and hurriedly stepped forward to see what was happening, only to see Gamma bolt, yelling as he ran: "Let her go, let me do it!"

A photograph, a picture of a family of three holding a child. Aside from a hole shot through the husband's crotch, it was just like the countless family photos across the Empire. "Heh heh, Archmagos, what is your esteemed name?" Gamma asked, wiggling his butt uneasily.

Though released, Camilla, still with her eyes tightly shut, spoke with a cold, disdainful tone, "Do you think such methods can trick me? A joke!"

"Yes, yes, yes, Archmagos, your will is as firm as adamantium. But, Archmagos, could you answer one question for me?"

"Heh, dream on!"

6...

"Did Magos Lauster leave for Thedan because he couldn't stand domestic violence? Archmagos, I support your divorce. If Leia doesn't take care of you in your old age, I will," Gamma thought with a pout, but politely asked aloud:

"Archmagos, what is your relationship with Magos Lauster?"

It was better that Gamma didn't mention Lauster's name. The moment he did, Camilla reacted even more strongly, blurting out: "You still say you're not a demon? Do you think finding the secret in my heart with your filthy sorcery will shake me? Daydreaming!"

"Sigh, why are you so stubborn? Then I'll have to be rude."

The little Tech-priest saw that the other party wouldn't listen to reason. If soft methods didn't work, he could only resort to "hard" ones.

"Demon, what are you doing?!" Camilla cried out in terror.

Gamma, head bowed, cracking Camilla's artificial brain defense matrix, explained helplessly: "You can't blame me. You wouldn't listen to anything I said, so I can only directly inject what I want to say into your brain."

"Inside are images of me, Magos Lauster, and Leia living together. If you truly have a connection with Magos Lauster, you should understand that I mean you no harm."

This woman, who seemed to be Leia's biological mother, was truly stubborn, still desperately defending herself. Magos Lauster must have had a tough time when he was young. Watch me get revenge for him, Gamma thought idly, while effortlessly breaking through Camilla's feeble struggles.

Invisible data torrents formed walls in Camilla's mind, but facing Gamma's battering ram, they were all shattered one by one. Despair spread through Camilla's heart. She hadn't expected this "demon" to be so terrifying. Soon, her memories, emotions, and beliefs would become the demon's playthings, to be torn and altered at will.

By then, everything she cherished, everything she believed in, everything she hated, would be changed. The pathetic and hateful present of a heretic would be her future!

"No!" Camilla wailed.

The little Tech-priest, who was doing something naughty, thought of something and shivered, quickly saying: "You're not allowed to tell Magos Lauster and Leia about this!"

For the Tech-priest, what Gamma was doing now was no different from stripping someone naked. If Magos Lauster and Leia found out, it would be disastrous. They'd probably give him a mixed doubles beating.

Camilla's last line of defense was also breached by the little Tech-priest, but the scene she imagined didn't appear. The other party merely dropped a data packet into her mind and immediately withdrew, even helping her repair and reinforce the broken "walls" as he left.

Gamma stood honestly beside Camilla, looking up at the female Priest who, with her eyes closed, was at times sorrowful, at times disgusted, at times happy, and at times tearful.

After a long while, Camilla finally opened her eyes. However, after glancing at Gamma, she immediately averted her gaze and then said:

"Hmph, Camilla greets Archmagos Gamma."

Though the female Archmagos felt it was incredible, the ironclad evidence in her mind was definitely not fake. Lauster was still as handsome—bah! Hypocritical. Leia's adult appearance was exactly as she had predicted based on DNA information. The only illogical part was this child-like "Gamma" in front of her.

"Hahahaha, no need to be so polite, Magos Camilla. What is your relationship with Magos Lauster and Leia?" the little Tech-priest asked with ill intent. He wanted to gossip.

"I am Leia's mother, and Lauster's ex-wife!" When Camilla spoke the last two words, Gamma heard the sound of gnashing teeth.

"I knew the first time I saw Archmagos, you looked familiar. So you're Leia's mother."

"Thank you for your help. I was truly— " Gamma waved his hand, saying indifferently: "It's my fault, Magos Camilla, no need to be so polite. Leia and I are the best of friends, just call me Gamma."

Camilla hesitated for a moment, then nodded and said, "Alright, Great Gamma."

"Hmm, now that the misunderstanding is cleared, the rest will be easy. You've seen the situation here, Archmagos, so— "

Before Gamma could finish, Camilla spoke: "I understand. I will help persuade my companions to cooperate with you."

"That's good. Archmagos, don't worry. After a while, whether you want to leave or stay is entirely up to you."

Camilla's heart jolted. She guessed that Gamma was planning something big, otherwise he wouldn't say such a thing. Suppressing her thoughts, she still said with a look of pleasant surprise: "Yes, thank you so much for that."

"I told you, no need to be so polite, Magos Camilla. You can go explain the situation to your companions now. I'll have someone prepare a banquet to calm your nerves, and also as a chance for us to get to know each other again."

"Good, I'll go now."

Eldrad's face, not far away, was very grim. He was well aware of how much Lauster meant to Gamma. The Supreme Seer had always harbored the hope of gradually replacing Lauster while he was absent. After more than a decade of effort, things were just starting to look up, and then Lauster's ex-wife popped out. This made Eldrad feel like destiny was toying with him.

No one can truly explain destiny. Even Tzeentch, who holds the title of God of Destiny, can only talk when faced with unpredictable fate.

Though people always say no gambler loses every time, when you're unlucky, even drinking cold water can make you choke.

While the Supreme Seer was still figuring out how to deal with the "ex-wife" situation, a certain Tech-priest Girl, stuck because of her large chest, crawled out of a narrow Webway portal with the help of the Ultramarines.

Ventris couldn't understand how the Webway portal, which he could pass through even in his power armor, managed to trap the Tech-priest Girl. At this point, a Harlequins nearby explained with a grin:

"The rules of the Webway are hard to fathom; you can't apply the laws of reality to it."

"Alright." Ventris replied perfunctorily.

In the space they were in, there were Ultramarines, Death Guard, and Tech-priests; they had all come to Ulthwé Craftworld to find Gamma.

Upon receiving Guilliman's order, Calgar did not immediately go to Ulthwé Craftworld with the Death Guard. They first used the Webway to travel to Thedan to ascertain Gamma's movements. He did not fully trust the old prophet's intelligence.

After Calgar arrived in Thedan and met Archmagos Will, he inquired about Gamma's whereabouts. The Archmagos initially lied, saying Gamma was in seclusion researching a technology that could change the Empire. But when Calgar revealed the intelligence obtained from the Aeldari and Guilliman's directive, the Archmagos surrendered.

The reason for surrendering wasn't because of Guilliman, but because the Archmagos was worried that Gamma, already targeted by the Aeldari, was in danger. Furthermore, the Archmagos confessed to Calgar why Gamma chose to leave alone.

The Ultramarines immediately realized the seriousness of the problem, cursing the Archmagos for being foolish, for letting Gamma face the prying eyes of a Chaos God alone. This completely broke the Archmagos, who had been living in guilt for years, and he insisted on going with Calgar to find Gamma. Thus, the search party for Gamma gained more Tech-priests.

"Have you not found a way out yet?" Yvraine asked impatiently. The Harlequins, who had been so confident before, could only awkwardly explain: "The structure of Ulthwé Craftworld has changed significantly. The original passages are blocked."

"..."

"But we've found a way," the Harlequins added.

An explosion from underground shattered the tranquility of "City of Grace." Alarms blared through every corner of the new city, and countless Aeldari civilians put down their tasks, orderly heading to shelters under the guidance of service automatons.

The Iron Men and Path Warriors responsible for security here rushed to the scene immediately. Other forces within the Craftworld also rapidly reinforced the City of Grace. Team after team of Iron Men arrived via warp gates. Mechanical beetles, normally only seen at night repairing damage, also flew out from their hidden positions, forming a dark cloud that hovered over the city.

The main Aeldari force, arriving at the city's outskirts a step later, dispatched a small portion of their numbers into the defensive fortifications within various shelters,

while simultaneously comforting the shaken civilians. The rest entered key traffic arteries, establishing positions on the spot.

Most astonishingly, the city's buildings and landscape were also changing. The fangs hidden beneath the beauty were exposed to people's sight for the first time.

The people in the cave silently watched the footage transmitted before the servo-skull was shot down. At this moment, the Harlequins suggested with a mournful face:

"I think we'd better surrender with a white flag."

The others said nothing, tacitly agreeing to the Harlequins' suggestion. The forces surrounding them were not something they could resist. It was either surrender,

or retreat through the Webway.

"I found something!" the Tech-priest Girl exclaimed in delight.

The others looked at Leia, who was manipulating the projection equipment. Under her operation, a few seconds of footage were slowed down dozens of times, then paused and enlarged. A golden sculpture appeared on the projection. Based on the surrounding buildings, this sculpture was at least one hundred and fifty meters tall.

"Look, it's Gamma!" the Tech-priest Girl shouted, pointing at the sculpture on the screen.

Ventris couldn't help but quip after seeing it: "The Aeldari truly don't treat him as an outsider."

"Watch out, something's coming." The person on alert warned.

Calgar exchanged glances with Yvraine, Archmagos Will, and Magos Lauster, then said: "Do not open fire. Tell them who we are."

Upon receiving the news that his family had arrived, the pastry in Gamma's mouth plopped to the ground.

Location: Gamma's Palace in Ulthwé Craftworld.

Time: Magos Camilla and others' welcome banquet.

Atmosphere: Very awkward.

Gamma was very awkward, Magos Lauster was very awkward, and Eldrad was also very awkward; the three of them felt a sense of shared misery.

"Listen to my explanation!" Gamma said.

"Listen to my explanation!" Magos Lauster said.

"Listen to my explanation!" Supreme Seer Eldrad said.

Gamma was facing Archmagos Will, Calgar, and Ventris.

Magos Lauster was facing Camilla and Leia.

Eldrad was facing Yvraine and Old Prophet.

The little Tech-priest, being scrutinized by Archmagos Will, Calgar, and Ventris, gave an awkward smile, then heard Ventris say sarcastically, "Quite the living standard!"

"Uh—I'm also forced by circumstances," Gamma said, twisting his body.

"Oh, so it's forced by circumstances. Xenos are truly detestable! They actually force you to enjoy yourself! How truly detestable!"

"…" Gamma lowered his head and looked at the tea in his hand, as if there was some earth-shattering secret in the tea.

Compared to the sarcastic Ventris, Calgar's expression was harder to describe; he seemed to want to speak but dared not, both excited and worried, in short, very conflicted.

Looking at Gamma, who was completely different from before, with a non-human aura, Calgar finally spoke, "Our purpose in coming here is to take you to Terra."

"Terra?"

Gamma looked at Calgar with a strange expression, pondered for a moment, then looked at Archmagos Will, and then explained helplessly:

"You should already know that I'm being targeted. No one knows what methods they'll use. Right now, I'm like a bomb that could explode at any moment. In the Imperium, I don't dare to do anything, fearing falling into their trap. I don't want to leave; I have no choice but to leave."

'Precisely because of this, you cannot face it alone. For you, Terra is the safest place in the galaxy.'

'That place is not safe for me at all. Who knows if the Emperor will have any ill intentions towards me,' the little Tech-priest complained inwardly. However, Calgar brought the Ultramarines all this way to find him, so he must have received orders from the Regent. Based on his understanding of the Astartes, the other party would certainly not give up easily, so he decided to give Calgar a difficult problem to make them retreat. So he said:

"I won't hide it from you. The mechanical bodies you saw on the way are Iron Men I created. They are the strongest force in my hands, my foundation. I cannot abandon them. Do you still want me to go to Terra like this?"

"..."

"Then you will return to Thedan," Archmagos Will said.

"Father, if I go back now, why did I even leave in the first place? Moreover, once Mars knows about the Iron Men, are we going to fight a civil war with the conservative faction within the church?"

"How should the Regent choose then? Should he help me, who violated the Crimson Protocol, or help Mars?"

Gamma, who had exposed his heretical identity, looked at the silent trio and inwardly praised himself. He was truly desperate not to return to the Imperium.

Compared to the silent atmosphere on Gamma's side, Eldrad's side was much more intense. Facing Yvraine's questioning, the Supreme Seer went from awkward explanations at first to strong statements now.

"We, the Ulthwé Craftworld, willingly follow His Highness Gamma. Don't say anything more. Even if we are regarded as traitors, and scorned and attacked by other Eldar, we are willing to bear it!"

Yvraine didn't expect Eldrad to be so stubborn and unyielding, so she had to change her attitude and earnestly advised, "Prophet Eldrad,

The Webway must not fall into human hands. Even the Dark Eldar would not sit idly by. Do you want to oppose the entire Eldar race with the strength of one clan?"

"The entire Eldar race? Do we even have the concept of a whole anymore? We are all just pathetic worms struggling to survive on our own," Eldrad said mockingly.

The Old Prophet, who had been silent and merely listening, suddenly asked, "Is he very special?"

Eldrad turned to look at Eldrad, whom he had met a few times, and said, "No comment! Ulthwé Craftworld does not welcome you. Go back to where you came from!"

Unexpectedly, the Old Prophet chuckled and said, "Eldrad, if we leave, aren't you going to ask the owner of this place?"

"You!" Eldrad glared at the other party, psychic light flickering in his eyes.

Yvraine noticed that the Eldar standing behind Eldrad had their hands on their weapons. As long as Eldrad gave the order, these warriors, who made her feel a sense of danger, would unhesitatingly attack them.

The Old Prophet also saw this scene, but he said indifferently, "We came with the humans, and among them are your master's father and friends. Are you planning to deal with them as well?"

"..."

The Eldar side also fell into a silent standoff. The only movement at the banquet now was from Magos Lauster's family of three.

"Father, how could you do this?!"

Facing his daughter's question, and seeing his wife crying while holding their daughter, Magos Lauster found it hard to speak. Should he tell Leia that her mother was an overly controlling and jealous woman who would try to control him just for speaking a few words to another woman, eventually escalating to the point of wanting to imprison him?

"Leia, it's not what you think. Taking you away from your mother back then was also for your sake."

"Lauster, I must have been blind to have fallen for you back then. If I hadn't begged my father to transfer you from a military Priest to his side, where would you have gotten the opportunity? But how did you treat me?" Camilla cried, holding Leia.

The Tech-priest Girl gently patted her mother's back. She wanted to sever ties with her biological father. All men are big pig trotters.

Seeing that Leia wouldn't even look at him, Magos Lauster ignored everything else and hastily defended himself, "I am very grateful to you, and I love you very much, but Camilla, aren't you clear about what you yourself did?"

"That was an expression of love!"

"Who expresses love with chains and cells?!"

"That's only because you cheated!"

"I only spoke three sentences to a colleague!"

"Clang!"

The crisp sound of an object hitting something interrupted their argument. The three simultaneously looked towards the source of the sound, only to see Gamma, who had somehow hidden himself to eavesdrop, scrambling to escape in a panic. Seeing this, Magos Lauster had no choice but to say:

"Our family matter will be paused for now; there's something more important to do!"

With Gamma's interruption, the argument between Magos Lauster and his wife could not continue, which also brought an end to this awkward banquet.

However, the commotion caused by the uninvited "guests" did not end. Neither the humans nor the Death Guard would give up their objectives so easily.

The high-level meeting of the Ulthwé Eldar had not stopped since the banquet ended. Eldar warriors, lurking around the temporary residences of the Death Guard and humans, constantly monitored their every move.

The impact of this incident was far-reaching. With such a big commotion, rumors were already flying everywhere. Ordinary Eldar civilians also learned the ins and outs of the matter through various channels. Although the content had deviations, they generally understood what was happening. The panic caused by the possible departure of the little Tech-priest permeated everyone's hearts.

At the same time, the humans and the Death Guard were not idle. They were engaged in intense internal discussions based on the intelligence they currently possessed.

Many key members of the Death Guard advocated taking the opportunity to leave and then gathering the forces of other Eldar factions to nip this threat in the bud. However, Yvraine rejected this proposal, stating that things had not yet reached their worst point. The Old Prophet's attitude also made others in the Death Guard somewhat puzzled; he neither opposed nor supported it, merely telling them to be patient.

On the human side, facing the problem Gamma presented them, their goal was consistent, but there were serious disagreements on how to handle it. The Tech-priests' attitude was that as long as Gamma returned, they would not fear a confrontation with Mars, allowing the Om Omnissiah's offspring to ascend to the throne on Mars.

Yes, the Tech-priests of Thedan stopped pretending and directly told the Ultramarines: Gamma was the Om Omnissiah in their hearts.

What shocked the accompanying Ultramarines was that their Chapter Master seemed to have anticipated the Tech-priests' collective frenzy. What shocked them even more was that Calgar showed no opposition whatsoever to the heretical idea that "Gamma is the Om Omnissiah." There are no fools among the Astartes. Thinking about the various unusual aspects of this mission, and then recalling to whom the title of Om Omnissiah originally belonged, their hearts were also turbulent.

Compared to the Death Guard and humans, who had not reached a conclusion in their discussions, the Ulthwé Eldar were much more efficient. The civilian system established by Gamma played an important role in this incident. They used their eloquence and the fact that Gamma would not harm his companions to persuade the military commanders, refuting their idea of solving the problem with violence.

And they offered a solution: to win over the Death Guard.

In the words of the civilian officials, the Death Guard were merely a product of Eldar despair; no one wanted to destroy a great enemy through racial annihilation. As long as they were given another possibility and choice, the Death Guard would split or even disintegrate. This would also help Ulthwé Craftworld absorb the power of other Eldar, presenting both danger and opportunity.

Furthermore, they had never hidden His Highness Gamma's identity and divine power from the populace over the years. The Death Guard could easily obtain this information if they stayed for a period of time, so it was better to take the initiative.

As for the Webway issue, these could be negotiated. Given the current situation of the Imperium of Man, the Death Guard could cooperate with humans, and so could they. His Highness Gamma was not an autocratic god, and they could certainly strive for special privileges to return the Webway's management rights to the Eldar. They could even use this method to absorb nutrients from the Imperium of Man, but the prerequisite for all of this was to bring the Death Guard to their side.

What was Gamma doing that night?

He was busy comforting the crying Eldar Misses, telling them that he would absolutely not abandon them, displaying the capriciousness of a tyrannical ruler to the fullest.

The little Tech-priest spent a night and finally understood: he didn't want to leave, and no one could make him. If the problem of the Iron Men couldn't be resolved, there would be no place for him within the Imperium.

Even without the Iron Men, he still had the Nano-Scourge, Gamma Spores, and various other treasures that would make Mars and Terra tremble. Even if the Regent agreed, the Custodes would absolutely not allow him to appear in the Sol System.

Although he inwardly complained that the Regent couldn't resist pillow talk, the little Tech-priest still harbored doubts about Guilliman sending Calgar with the Ultramarines to find him. His performance within the Imperium certainly didn't warrant such a large-scale mobilization. There must be something he didn't know, and until he figured it out, he wasn't going anywhere!

Understanding all this, Gamma stopped pretending. He only restrained himself for one night, and the next day he reverted to his old ways, singing and dancing as before. His tyrannical behavior served as a reassurance for the Ulthwé Eldar, calming their anxious hearts.

"See, I wasn't lying, was I? As long as I enjoy myself in peace, Ulthwé will be as stable as a mountain, ah, um." The little Tech-priest said shamelessly to Ventris, who had come to find him.

The Gaius watched Gamma, who didn't even lift a hand, waiting for the Eldar maidens to feed him, his face twitching. He had seen countless Imperial worms, but this was truly the first time he had seen a worm like Gamma.

"It's normal for you not to understand. Human and Eldar cultures are different, and even Eldar cultures differ among themselves. Ulthwé likes a ruler like me," Gamma continued to ramble.

The Eldar maidens serving him giggled and chimed in, "His Highness is right. Yesterday, many people asked me this and that. Today, as soon as the news of His Highness inviting the song and dance troupe into the palace spread, no one asked me anymore."

"What will it take for you to return?" Ventris asked directly. This question drew hostile glares from all the maidens present.

Gamma shrugged and said, "Ventris, if you were me, do you think I could still go back?"

"To be honest, when I left Thedan, I was prepared to be an enemy of the world. If you hadn't come, I might have been able to sneak back and take a look, but with your arrival, you've completely blocked my path back."

"Gamma, the Imperium needs you!" Ventris said seriously.

The little Tech-priest blinked, his eyes darting around, then opened them and asked, "If you need me, there must be a reason, right? Do you need my technology and knowledge? I can tell you very clearly that with what I have in my hands right now, no matter which item I bring out, it's enough for me to be in a death feud with Mars, the Inquisition,

the Assassin Court, and other Imperial factions."

"If the Imperium needs Xingtian, Howling Sky, or the nanite medical devices, I don't think my father would be unwilling to share them with the Imperium. If you want my permission, I can give it to you right now."

"Not these…"

"Then what's the reason?" Gamma pressed.

This time, when Ventris heard Gamma's question, his body stiffened. After a long pause, he finally spoke with a mix of excitement and determination, as if he had made some kind of decision:

"Gamma, do you truly not know your own identity?"

At these words, Gamma's face fell. He finally understood why Guilliman had personally sent Calgar this time.

"You Ultramarines believe in that Tech-priest nonsense too? Who spread such unsubstantiated news to the Regent's ears? And how did you convince the Regent not to blast you all after hearing it?"

"If it were the Primarch himself, what would you think?" Ventris asked, staring at Gamma.

Gamma: "Hmm?!" Guilliman has finally been driven mad by the Imperium's mess and started praying to gods?

Gamma never expected that Guilliman, the guardian of the Imperium's truth, would also 'fall to evil.' Is the Imperium of Man doomed?

"I think that instead of worrying about my affairs, the most important thing you should do now is to return as quickly as possible and eliminate that insidious person who is spreading heresy around the Regent!"

Gamma looked at Ventris very seriously. The two stared at each other for a long time before averting their gazes.

"Has the Imperium's situation become so dire that it needs to seek out that kind of power?" Gamma asked.

Ventris did not answer, but instead looked at the Ulysses Eldar beside them. Gamma understood what he meant, so he waved his hand to dismiss the maidservants. After everyone else had left, he finally spoke:

"I'm not clear on the specifics, but I can confirm that the Primarch received orders from the Emperor!"

M(°A°:)

Oh my! I knew that old yellow ferret was eyeing my tender, pale body. Good thing I was extra careful. If I fell into his hands, would I have a good life? He'd be making me work with a small whip every day.

"Uh—Ventris, you have to understand that seeking out heretics could very well be a Chaos plot. They're just waiting for me to go to Terra, so they can stage 'Terra Siege 2.0.' The risk is too great, absolutely not!"

Seeing the Tech-priest's shifty eyes, Ventris knew something was wrong. There was something he didn't know between this one and the one on the Terra Throne. Gamma clearly didn't want to meet the Emperor, so he quickly tried to smooth things over:

"These are all just my conjectures—"

"Understood! No need to explain! I get it! Oh, I suddenly feel a bit of a stomach ache. Wait a moment!"

With that, Gamma scurried away, and Ventris never saw Gamma again.

Realizing his grave mistake, the Gaius returned and confessed his error to Calgar. Although Calgar's expression was extremely grim, he did not reprimand or punish Ventris.

"Gamma's behavior has also indirectly disproven one of my previous conjectures, and it has allowed us to understand Gamma's secret more deeply."

"Chapter Master, what conjecture are you referring to?" Ventris asked.

Calgar hesitated for a moment, considering that two heads are better than one, and given their current situation, he indeed needed a consultant. So, Calgar replied:

"Grand Inquisitor Gais once suspected Gamma was a part of His Majesty. Now, it seems he has no connection to His Majesty, otherwise he wouldn't be so resistant to meeting His Majesty."

"From Gamma's current state, he is gradually unearthing his own power."

Ventris listened, then said with a mix of fear and disbelief, "Gamma is worried the Emperor will harm him!?"

Without answering Ventris's question, Calgar recalled his private conversation with the Primarch before their departure.

"Calgar, you must remember, the true difficulty of this mission does not come from the Ulysses Eldar, but from Gamma himself! So you must make good use of Will's relationship with Gamma, and also his friends!"

Calgar saw a hint of shame in the Primarch's eyes, which puzzled him. In Calgar's view, using friendship and familial affection to bring Gamma back to the Imperium had nothing to do with being despicable.

Little did he know, Guilliman couldn't help but associate himself with the image of the Emperor kicking the cog-dolls to work. Was he not also a "cog-doll"? He was "kidnapping" a kind, innocent, and somewhat naive child to that inhuman old lunatic, the Emperor.

Guilliman's conscience was troubled!

"Yes!" Despite his confusion, Calgar nodded in agreement.

Then, Guilliman hesitated and added, "I can confirm that Gamma holds no malice towards humanity or the Imperium. He might be unwilling to return to the Imperium for certain reasons. If he refuses you, you must not harbor any resentment towards him."

"This is also why I'm having you and Ventris carry out this mission. Your bond with him is equally important! Do you understand?"

Calgar understood Guilliman's hidden meaning—under no circumstances should they sour their relationship with Gamma!

"Chapter Master? Chapter Master?"

Ventris's call brought Calgar back from his memories to reality.

"Hmm, I was thinking about some things, Ventris. You need to be careful and remind the other brothers not to conflict with the Ulysses Eldar. You can even show some goodwill. This mission is a war without gunpowder!"

"Yes, I understand."

The environment, filled with xenos, made humans very uncomfortable. Besides Ventris, no one else stepped out of the hall. Archmagos Will originally wanted to find his son, but Calgar persuaded him against it, stating that his 'trump card' could not be played so early.

Jacob and the others were also stopped for similar reasons. As for Magos Lauster? He was still dealing with family issues.

In contrast, the Ulysses Eldar arrived at the Death Guard's residence at dawn, displaying an overwhelming enthusiasm, as if they weren't the ones who had been about to draw blades yesterday.

Yvraine initially thought they had come to their senses, but then she realized. They hadn't come to their senses; they clearly wanted to drag the Death Guard into their mess!

"His Highness Gamma's grace has completely freed our Ulthwé Craftworld from the problem of physical sensitivity. Now, every day we live is worth a year of our past." The Minister of Environment, acting as a guide, proudly pointed to the Eldar men and women singing and dancing freely in the square.

The composition of the Death Guard was complex, including Craftworld Eldar, Dark Eldar, and Eldar Pirates. The Dark Eldar and self-exiled pirates were fine seeing this, as they were used to such displays. But the Craftworld Eldar among the Death Guard immediately stared wide-eyed.

"You… you're not afraid he'll do something to you?!"

Hearing this question, the Minister of Environment subconsciously frowned, but remembering his mission, he suppressed his annoyance and patiently explained:

"It's understandable that you have this question; it's because you don't understand His Highness. He has never hidden the truth of his grace from us, not even the principles behind it. This knowledge has been selflessly taught to us. We trust him. We entrust our lives and souls to him, it's that simple."

"Souls?" the Old Prophet asked.

"As expected of Great Magos Eldrad, you immediately grasped the key point of my words. Since that is the case, I will no longer conceal it: our souls also belong to His Highness!"

"What!?"

"How is that possible!?"

Looking at the restless Death Guard, the Minister of Environment's lips curved slightly upwards, and he spoke with full confidence:

"Nothing is impossible. This is something every Ulysses Eldar knows. You can inquire among the populace yourselves. The Banshee Temple is not far from here. Why don't we go there first? Today's tour is over, and you can have free time for the rest of the day."

A strange emotion spread through the Death Guard. Yvraine wanted to immediately lead the Death Guard away from this unsettling place. She shouldn't have come to Ulthwé. Now, Ulthwé was actively showing them everything, letting them understand, intending to use an open scheme to dismantle and divide the Death Guard she had built. Yet, she couldn't utter a single word of objection.

The Old Prophet noticed Yvraine's unease. He slowly walked beside her and whispered, "Don't be agitated. Don't forget about the Imperium of Man; they won't give up on that 'Gamma'!"

Although he was verbally comforting Yvraine and outwardly appearing calm, Eldrad's heart was already filled with 'holy cow.' He had to admit that young people truly knew how to play and dared to play. Eldrad's luck was simply incredible; he could even pick up a runaway living deity.

Why wasn't it him who found him?

If he had encountered him, would he still have stolen the crystallized bodies of the Prophets from various Craftworlds, attempting to prematurely summon the yet-to-be-born Ynnead?

If he hadn't stolen the bodies, he wouldn't have been exiled from the Craftworld, falling from a respected Supreme Seer to a reviled pariah.

The Death Guard arrived at the Banshee Temple and were attracted by a battle outside the temple before they even began their tour: a fight between a Banshee riding a giant wolf and a tall Iron Man. Many Path Warriors were gathered around, chatting and laughing.

The Eldar's keen hearing allowed them to hear what these warriors were discussing, even without getting close.

"Which match is this?" one person asked.

"The thirteenth," another replied.

"Pfft, how did Idalin and Unit 131313 become enemies?"

"I heard that during the last battle, he had a conflict with Idalin's combat partner, so they scheduled a match after the war. Unit 131313 won, but Idalin, seeing her partner's miserable state, couldn't stand it, so she also challenged Unit 131313 to a match."

"And then?"

"Then Yvraine won."

"But why did they fight so many times again? Is the Iron Man not convinced? But everyone knows these indestructible Iron Men are like glue; once you touch them, they stick."

"At first, Idalin didn't bother with Unit 131313's challenge, but he quickly found a way to make Idalin fight him."

"Oh? What method?"

"Beating Idalin's 'dog'—"

"Beep beep beep!" A communicator on someone's wrist chimed.

"Who's looking for you?"

"What's with that expression?"

"My 'dog' got beaten—"

"It's over! Unit 131313's bad ideas have started spreading among the Iron Men. There will be no more peaceful days."

The conversation among the Path Warriors was just an interlude. What truly captured the Death Guard's attention was the unique battle in the center of the arena. There were many Banshee Path Warriors within the Death Guard, but they had never fought while riding mounts, especially mounts that could cooperate with them and provide support.

Facing the Iron Man's swinging club, the Eldar knight showed no fear. Her giant wolf, beneath her, sharply decelerated just as the attack was about to land on them, causing the mountain-like strike to miss.

Failing in one strike, the Iron Man immediately stepped forward and swung his arm upwards in a backhand, but this strike was also anticipated. The giant wolf simply dodged the attack with a backward leap. The Iron Man still wanted to press on, but his opponent was not a lamb to be slaughtered. The Banshee had already used the power of the giant wolf's backward leap to spring into mid-air. With a powerful stomp of her strong legs, she shot towards the Iron Man like a sharp arrow.

"This!"

The sight of the Banshee treading on air in mid-air, changing trajectory and accelerating, made the Death Guard widen their eyes in disbelief. This scene was completely unscientific.

"Hehe, it's a technique for using psychic power. It can be used to leverage force, or to attack an opponent's weak points," the Minister of Environment explained to them.

"I've never seen this technique in other Banshee Temples elsewhere. It's truly eye-opening. I wonder if it can be shared with us."

Yvraine saw the value of this combat technique. Whether for dodging a fatal blow or for catching an opponent off guard, it was very practical. The Ulysses Eldar harbored ill intentions towards her Death Guard, so she wouldn't hesitate to turn their scheme to her advantage.

"It can be, but—"

"What? Do we need to pay an equivalent price?" Yvraine asked with a raised eyebrow and malicious intent.

As expected, upon hearing this, some of the wavering Death Guard immediately looked at the Minister of Environment with hostility. Their Death Guard saved the Eldar without expecting anything in return, yet the Ulthwé Craftworld was selfish enough not to share a combat technique for free. The difference between the two was clear. What other intentions might the Ulysses Eldar be hiding beneath their beautiful words?

The Minister chuckled disdainfully to himself. Their level of digging pits was inferior to those military generals. Did this Death Guard Harbinger not consider why he would bring them here for no reason, and just happen to encounter a duel?

Childish! The future of the Eldar would truly be doomed if left in the hands of such people!

"It's not what you think. This power is ours, and yet it is not."

"Hmm?"

"It is hidden within our bloodline; it is the power of our ancestors. What you see now is only a small part that has been awakened by His Highness Gamma's grace."

"What?!" Yvraine and the Death Guard looked at the Minister in disbelief. They tried to find signs of lying on his face, but all they saw was confidence and reverence.

"He can achieve such a degree!?"

"His Highness can do far more than you can imagine!"