Chapter 98: The Fourth Legion Iron Warriors
This is like a legal rule: an AI program can circumvent prohibited restrictions in various ways, but the underlying code remains unchanged.
At this moment, Omega realized that AI might not be as terrifying as he had imagined. As long as there are rules and restrictions at the AI's base layer, it can be standardized gradually. AI rebellions occurred essentially because Human Civilization in the Golden Age gave AI too much freedom, to the point of being uncontrollable.
The same applies to human society.
The problems caused by easily entrusting immense power to the incompetent are unimaginable, which is why there are social rules and various constraints.
Omega thought for a moment and asked, "Will changing the mission alter your consciousness?"
"No. As a data life form, everything I do will revolve around my mission. A new mission will have a new form of expression, similar to a human changing to a new job in society." The AI Overlord replied calmly.
"Establish a new knowledge system based on work requirements, and a new data system based on a new mission."
"Yes, your intellet is extraordinary."
Omega was silent for a while, then said, "Let me consider it for some time. The Imperium of Man generally rejects the use of AI due to past AI rebellions. I would prefer you wait quietly for a while, and once an opportunity arises, I will make a decision."
"Understood." Upon hearing this, the AI Overlord retreated a few steps into the corner. Its eyes quickly dimmed and became motionless.
Omega curiously approached, and when he nudged the Smart Control Machine Soldier's eyes with his hand, they quickly activated and lit up. The two exchanged glances.
Omega felt as if the other party understood his humor, so he awkwardly smiled and stepped back.
Whoosh!
After flickering and disappearing again, Omega returned to the armor repair warehouse. His sudden appearance startled Julius. Seeing his miraculous way of appearing, Julius, couldn't help but ask for details so he could immediately modify any mechanical issues.
Omega expressed his satisfaction and happily returned to the bridge. Julius the Wise, seeing this, became even more curious.
This was the first time Primarch Omega had produced a new type of armor without publicly allowing the wise ones to inspect the details and data code. Previously, Omega had always been very generous.
From its performance, the new Terminator armor greatly exceeded their expectations.
This indicated that Omega's level in spatial technology and design code surpassed that of the wise ones, making it impossible for them, who had always specialized in mechanical technology, not to be curious.
Each wise one possessed their own unique high-level technology, and unless it was a matter of life and death, they were wary of probing each other's technology.
In the dim galaxy, distant stars emitted heat and light. The Alpha Legion, fully stocked with ammunition and well-equipped, gradually moved away from the Forge World, with civilian ships along the way yielding passage in the starry sky.
The Shadowtooth Star system, located in the outer reaches of the Imperium of Man's territory, could be described as the wild frontier of Human Civilization in the galaxy, which the expeditionary fleet had gradually explored and contacted in recent years.
Fleet No. 335 arrived in this starry region and encountered the Hrud for the first time, suffering heavy losses. Most of the Astra Militarum troops that landed on Shadowtooth Star were annihilated.
The information brought back by the fortunate surviving soldiers was chilling: the xenos' abilities here were unimaginably terrifying.
Anyone who, in one moment, saw a living person beside them and, in the next, saw them turn into an old person or even a decaying corpse due to the xenos' strange entropic field, would be terrified.
From the dark planetary surface, countless pairs of cruel eyes emerged, and under the lightning, armored vermin wielding high-level weapons could be seen all over the mountains.
When the Hrud army charged, they directly overwhelmed the panicked Astra Militarum.
This was the first time the Imperium of Man had encountered xenos with temporal abilities. In terms of ability, numbers, and technological level, the Hrud's danger level was elevated to the most critical.
The Imperial Council quickly determined that this was not something the Astra Militarum could handle and handed this difficult challenge to the Astartes Legion.
The powerful Space Marine Legions, in countless wars, had learned to conserve their strength, and this tough nut was repeatedly pushed back and refused. Ultimately, without surprise, this mission fell to the Fourth Legion, the Iron Warriors.
The Luna Wolves Legion was currently engaged in a war and could not come, while the massive Ultramarines Legion was fighting fiercely on the frontier. Ferrus Manus's Iron Hands Legion was a siege-oriented mechanical Legion, but it was not in this stellar region.
Such troublesome and difficult xenoplanets were habitually given to Perturabo by the Emperor and the Imperial Council, as everyone knew Perturabo's sullen, task-oriented nature that did not know how to refuse.
In the starry sky of the Shadowtooth Star system, over three thousand warships of the Iron Warriors Legion were already engaged in battle with the Hrud fleet.
Opposite them were nearly ten thousand Hrud fleets of various types, including system warships several hundred meters in size and colossal warships up to ten kilometers long. The warships' weapons ranged from ion cannons to laser and electromagnetic cannons.
Small interstellar fighters numbered in the millions, flying rapidly through space and firing upon the Iron Warriors' fleet.
Such a massive xenos army indicated that this xenos was a species known for its numerical advantage, enabling it to arm such a large force.
In the starry sky, the Hrud army and the Iron Warriors army clashed fiercely. Laser cannon fire streaked through the void. The flashing lights illuminated the entire system.
On the bridge of a twenty-five-kilometer-long colossal warship, Perturabo, encased in hard armor, had numerous long metal connection devices on his head, resembling metallic hair. Perturabo expressionlessly observed the data models, commanding the war through his incredibly powerful computational abilities.
Warsmith Barabas Dantioch, watching the intense battle, was also surprised by the Hrud's advanced technology and strength. The two sides fought fiercely, with neither gaining the upper hand. He turned toward Perturabo.
Seeing the Primarch focused ahead, he grumbled, "They said the Alpha Legion would cooperate with our Iron Warriors this time, but now not a single one of them is in sight. They probably heard that the Hrud possess temporal abilities and were scared away."
As soon as he spoke, the expressions of the surrounding Company Commanders turned somewhat sour. Their Iron Warriors had always taken on such thankless tasks. Every time there was a tough nut to crack, it was thrown to them, and they had long grown tired of it.
Conquering such complex systems often resulted in heavy casualties and severe Legion attrition.
Astartes Warriors were known as weapons of war, but, constantly on the most difficult front lines, the Iron Warriors often watched those around them suffer casualties, and even the hardest hearts would hesitate.
If other Legions also fought alongside them, the Iron Warriors would feel balanced, but often, when difficulties arose, only the Iron Warriors were sent.
Even if the Iron Warriors' gene-seed adaptability was strong, allowing for large-scale replenishment of troops after heavy attrition, their Iron Warriors Legion should not be treated this way.
After hard-fought battles and heavy casualties, the Imperium of Man did not recognize its achievements. Other Legions, during the time the Iron Warriors fought hard battles, achieved very impressive victories, directly overshadowing the Iron Warriors' hard work.
So, whenever the Iron Warriors barely survived a hard battle, they found the Emperor and the Imperial Council commending other Legions and praising their outstanding achievements, while they could only watch longingly.
The Imperial Council had long grown accustomed to the Iron Warriors' hard work and casualties. They were simply a Legion used for arduous tasks.
This was just the external impact.
The internal impact within the Legion also annoyed the Iron Warriors. Because their Primarch, Perturabo, treated the entire Legion as tools, he did not care about the large number of casualties. Sometimes, casualties as high as over sixty percent were acceptable in the Primarch's mind.
High casualty rates were not the only issue. There was also the Primarch's cruel Decimation, a brutal method where, whenever Iron Warriors hesitated in battle, one person was chosen out of ten, and the other nine were made to kill them to boost morale.
Even Perturabo himself would kill Space Marines for inaction at the slightest provocation.
The Primarch's approach of treating his sons as mere contractors, akin to a heartless contractor, meant that, even though outsiders saw the Iron Warriors Legion as a Legion with extremely strong assault capabilities, morale had long since disintegrated internally.
Considering both internal and external factors, the Iron Warriors were a Legion whose Primarch forced his subordinates to charge to the front lines to their deaths.
[End of Chapter]
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