This is the Bonus chapter for reaching 1000 Powerstones.
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The Emperor listened to Zeke with a smile and nodded.
Deep within the palace, Guilliman began to recount, in as objective a tone as possible, the Imperium's loss and decline over the ten thousand years since He was forced onto the Golden Throne, speaking to the Emperor who had just regained partial consciousness.
Most of this history was fragmented. Guilliman himself was not omniscient; he could only piece together a vague and heartbreaking outline based on scattered historical records he had consciously collected these past few days and his own personal experiences.
The Emperor listened quietly, digesting the bitter fruit of these ten thousand years.
Zeke occasionally interjected, supplementing with his own experiences.
Saving Cadia, Macragge, and conveniently teaching His disobedient son a lesson along the way.
Just as Guilliman's report reached a critical point, faint roars and the commotion of a crowd drifted in from outside the palace gates.
The Emperor closed His eyes, then opened them again. "It is Khorne's forces."
The Imperium's isolationism, high-pressure rule, and layers of exploitation had accumulated enough despair and madness within Terra, this sacred heart.
More and more hive residents, unable to bear it, secretly converted to cults preaching blood and skulls.
Although the Inquisition's cleansing flames never ceased, the rate of growth exceeded the efficiency of the purge.
Relevant departments had long issued warnings that more and more skull-shaped relics bearing the mark of Khorne were being secretly smuggled into Terra.
However, amidst the bloated Imperial bureaucracy and the pursuit of more urgent matters, this warning failed to stir enough ripples.
Until today, when the warning turned into the blood and fire of reality.
Taking advantage of the window when the Astronomican was temporarily dim, the cultists used these accumulated relics to successfully hold a blasphemous ritual of unprecedented scale.
A scarlet army from the Realm of Blood was summoned to the material universe, descending upon Holy Terra.
They were led by a true Bloodthirster, far more burly and massive than ordinary daemons.
This berserk force had already breached parts of the inner city defenses.
They were pushing madly along the Lion's Gate toward the Imperial Palace, engaging in a brutal slaughter with the hastily assembled Imperial defenders.
The roars of daemons shook the soul, and rains of blood and fel fire were spreading toward the Emperor's Palace.
"Damn it!" Guilliman growled low, the object of his curse unclear.
Perhaps it was those bloodthirsty daemons, or perhaps it was those bureaucratic wastes who held positions without doing any work.
Upon the Throne, the Emperor moved.
"Though I possess spare strength now, it is still not the optimal time to strike."
He slowly raised a hand. The Emperor's Sword at Guilliman's waist was summoned, falling into the Emperor's palm.
The Emperor's fingers gently brushed over the blade, awakening the sword's core power.
"Use it well, Roboute Guilliman."
Having spoken, He released His grip. The Emperor's Sword flew up again, landing steadily in Guilliman's eagerly outstretched hand.
The moment the sword touched his hand, Guilliman felt a majestic power, unlike anything before, flooding his body and mind.
"Go, my..." The Emperor weighed His words, but eventually, He uttered the title.
"Child."
Guilliman's body shook. The hand gripping the sword tightened. Without a word, he strode outward, his blue figure pushing open the great doors.
The Emperor's gaze turned to the Custodes who stood guard like golden statues.
Since the Emperor was trapped on the Throne, this unit of humanity's most elite guards had imprisoned themselves deep within the palace.
Deaf to matters outside the window, solely focused on protecting the Emperor's body, they had become the Imperium's strongest and loneliest prisoners.
"Custodes," the Emperor's voice rang out.
"I no longer need your unceasing guard. Terra is burning, humanity is bleeding. Your swords and shields should ring out for the Imperium."
Captain-General Trajann stepped forward from the crowd. The massive Guardian Spear in his hand struck the ground heavily, making a clanging sound.
He removed his helm, revealing his face: "Your will is our mission!"
Trajann also expressed the intent to recall the Sisters of Silence. In reality, he had already secretly gathered a batch of them.
Before the Emperor's accident, the Sisters of Silence often collaborated with the Custodes. Due to their unique "Blank" constitution, they possessed special efficacy against psykers.
After the Emperor's accident, the Sisters of Silence were continuously marginalized due to their constitution, slowly marching toward extinction; their fate was far more miserable than that of the Custodes.
"Through this war, we can prove the power of the Sisters of Silence and reintegrate them into the forces," Trajann said.
The Emperor nodded.
Zeke looked at the gate. He was actually looking forward to Khorne's forces breaking into the Imperial Palace and pushing open the doors.
It would be interesting to see the wonderful expressions on their faces when they saw the mostly recovered Emperor.
Unfortunately, the Custodes guarding the door were too strong; they wouldn't let Khorne's forces set foot here.
Having received their orders, Guilliman and the Custodes delayed no longer and left the Emperor's Palace.
Inside the hall, only Zeke and the Emperor remained.
Now that there were no idlers present, the Emperor could discuss things more deeply with Zeke.
Guided by the Emperor's psychic voice in his mind, Zeke walked into the deeper parts of the palace.
Before the next great gate stood several Galatus-pattern Contemptor Dreadnoughts. These ancient war machines, sealing dying heroes within, remained silent.
As Zeke walked past, they did not move, their armored helms looking into the shadows, maintaining eternal vigilance.
There were more gates ahead, and more rooms.
Some were massive, burning with sparks, pulsing like hearts;
A few rooms contained Tech-Priests in red robes, focusing intently as they watched servitors pray to the Omnissiah in whispers.
"Ah, you can actually rival the four Chaos Gods of the Warp alone without losing ground?"
"What? you've already planned the next step, a counterattack on the Warp?"
Zeke listened to the Emperor's "heart-to-heart" confidences. The Emperor had only recovered halfway and hadn't even stood up from the Golden Throne yet, but He had already forgotten the pain once the scar healed.
"Go directly to Nurgle's Garden, then build a Webway Nether Portal. We can go directly through the portal and assault Nurgle," the Emperor said with assurance. "And Slaanesh, Tzeentch, and Khorne. None of them will escape."
Has he already started planning how to pit me? Going to Nurgle's Garden was no different from swimming in a sea of shit.
Opening a direct channel to a cesspool... Zeke really couldn't fathom what the Emperor was thinking.
Wasn't He afraid the sewage would surge back and flood the Imperial Palace?
His own top priority was to use Terra's resources and personnel to get something like the Avaritia.
By then, forget the Warp; even the Great Devourer wouldn't be an issue.
Zeke had his own plan. Regarding the Emperor's plan: he approved, but he wouldn't get involved.
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(IMPORTANT NOTE)
T/N: Hey everyone! A bit of an update regarding the schedule. We're dangerously close to catching up with the raws (currently at Ch. 140 on Qidian), so we only have a buffer of about 20 chapters.
Even though the author uploads 2 chapters a day, we are cutting it very close. To keep a consistent flow without running dry, I have to slow down from 2 chapters a day to 1 chapter a day for now. I'll switch back to 2 daily releases as soon as we stack up a healthy buffer again! Thanks for understanding.
If anyone has any other ideas regarding the upload schedule please comment, I will consider it if I like the idea.
Next Goal = 1400 Powerstones (Not Complete)