The farce finally came to an end after Zhou Ye delivered an Imaginary Power Slap, sending an Ultramarines successor Librarian, who also served as Chapter Master, twitching to the ground. At last, everything fell silent.
He was now the focus of the entire room. All anyone saw was a faint golden light flare from his body, followed by a single slap that sent the Librarian collapsing to the floor in convulsions.
Konrad Curze and Guilliman both shuddered almost simultaneously. They were far too familiar with that technique. Guilliman was fine; he was the model student who was the least cause for concern. But Konrad Curze had personally been on the receiving end of the Emperor's psychic power slaps.
"What is this insubordination? Don't you all love the Chapter-based organization?"
Without giving the stunned crowd a chance to speak, Zhou Ye waved his hand. Behind him, Ashira Haqq nodded and stepped forward.
"I have prepared ships for you. Let's see if you're horses or mules. The Great Rift has opened. Tyranids, Orks, Chaos—they're everywhere. If you prove your worth on a grand battlefield, I'll say nothing. If you're nothing but a pile of crap, you can all roll back and handle logistics."
Seeing a sea of confused little eyes, Zhou Ye stated his terms plainly.
"Hmm?"
Guilliman paused, then quickly realized what Zhou Ye was implying. Zhou Ye's forces were terrifyingly powerful and perfectly integrated. He had always been curious about how. Now that Zhou Ye had made the offer, he decided to see Zhou Ye's domain for himself.
The grand victory parade was scheduled for a week later. According to Zhou Ye, the journey from Macragge to Trailblaze took only a few minutes. This was the perfect time to experience it.
A massive Ark Mechanicus was already in orbit above Macragge, installing a Trailblaze Jump Drive on his flagship, but that would take some time to complete. For now, they would have to use Zhou Ye's ship.
Of course, Zhou Ye fully intended to show off his capabilities. He wanted these people to help him continue paving his Star Rails. Compared to all the other chaotic nonsense in the Imperium, paving the way was the highest priority.
---o---
Soon, the bridge of the Gloriana-class battleship Hyperion was crowded with personnel.
Zhou Ye had brought aboard nearly ten thousand Space Marines from the Ultramarines and their successors, along with a portion of the Macragge Auxiliary forces.
Hehe, let's see if I can reap a harvest from Guilliman this time, Zhou Ye thought to himself. His house has deep foundations and vast enterprises. It would be a waste not to fleece him.
Looking at the big blue Smurf who was staring at everything with curiosity, Zhou Ye began plotting how to cut his leeks. In truth, despite all the melodrama and darkness, the Imperium of Man was incredibly wealthy.
The fundamental factors limiting it were its abysmal communications and logistics. He now controlled the economic lifelines of over a thousand worlds. His influence had even raised the standard of living for everyone on those planets. After all, many of the products originally produced on these worlds could not be consumed locally and were often excessively stockpiled due to the ridiculous tithe system.
They were unable to convert their output directly into more advanced production materials. In other cases, a planet might specialize in minerals but have almost no food. Due to the terrible transportation, they held valuable resources but couldn't exchange them for more food.
There were countless similar issues. It went without saying that Macragge, a wealthy powerhouse for ten millennia, surely had a massive hoard of resources. Zhou Ye planned to reap a bountiful harvest.
"This place is so pristine. And there are none of those disgusting cherub-automata. Not even servitors or servo-skulls."
Guilliman curiously observed Zhou Ye's ship. His first impression was "clean." For a specific comparison, one could look at the Ultramarines ship from the Secret War—it was filled with candles, and the corridors looked dilapidated.
Combined with the dim lighting, it was an advanced warship that somehow gave off a strange, medieval feeling.
Of course, that was to fit the Gothic aesthetic, but Zhou Ye couldn't stand it. So, he took a completely different approach. He wasn't afraid of corruption, and he didn't travel through the warp anyway, although his ships were all equipped with fully functional Geller fields and warp drives.
But aside from the unlucky Lamenters, he had never seen anyone else fall into the warp. The main reason was that any area with a Star Rail was infused with Imaginary energy, which completely suppressed the warp.
"Hmm…"
Seeing Guilliman acting like a curious child, Zhou Ye pointed a finger at him.
"?"
Guilliman tilted his head in confusion at the gesture.
And then…
"AH!!!"
A pained cry escaped Guilliman's lips. He had stepped on the tail of Klee Number 26, who had instinctively discharged a jolt of electricity.
The mass-produced Armed Puppets assigned to Zhou Ye's other warships were already quite powerful, more formidable in a real fight than an average Space Marine.
But so far, Zhou Ye had never seen anyone actually deploy these Armed Puppets on a battlefield, let alone the personal retinue of Klees he had made for himself.
They were even more powerful in combat, but they were ultimately logistics personnel. Zhou Ye would never send them to the front lines.
"What manner of xenos is this?"
"They are sacred abhumans. Also, you stepped on her first."
Zhou Ye said with a deadpan expression, looking at Klee Number 26, who was clutching her tail.
She quickly returned to her work, handing a large stack of processed documents to Zhou Ye.
"Dammit, how are there so many more?"
"We've acquired five new worlds. These are some of the documents from them that require your signature."
"Hmm?"
Guilliman blinked as he watched Klee Number 26 assist Zhou Ye in rapidly processing over three thousand documents. Then…
"Are there more like her?"
"Yes. And they're clearly priced!!!"
Zhou Ye unhesitatingly pulled out a dataslate. However, when Guilliman saw the contents, the corner of his mouth couldn't help but twitch.
"This is… human trafficking, isn't it?"
"Oh, wrong one. This is a labor dispatch contract. Do you want to sign?"
"…"
Looking at the bizarre array of payments Zhou Ye was demanding, Guilliman's face darkened. He had never met such a mercenary individual, but he couldn't find the words to object.
"Attention all personnel. Jump sequence commencing."
"?"
Before Guilliman could react, he felt the entire ship shudder violently. Looking through the viewscreen on Zhou Ye's bridge, he felt as if everything before his eyes was being stretched rapidly.
Then, with a flash of golden light, the planet outside the bridge changed. It was no longer the familiar Macragge, but a beautiful and bountiful paradise world—Zhou Ye's home base, Trailblaze.
The sight left Guilliman with a look of utter bewilderment. He looked at Zhou Ye, then back at the scenery outside, and then…
"This is the Trailblaze Sector? Tens of thousands of light-years from Macragge?"
Guilliman stared at the distant planet, his only reaction being disbelief. How much time had passed? A minute? Two? Who could even say for sure?
He felt like Zhou Ye was playing a trick on him. A journey of this distance should take years, even through the warp.
But…
"This is the Trailblaze Sector. And over there is the Great Rift."
The voice of the Ultramarines' Chief Librarian, Tigurius, cut in. His face was a mask of profound shock. He had confirmed their location through the warp.
Actually, he didn't even need the warp. One look at the impossibly long, thin line at the edge of his vision was enough. That was the Great Rift. To be able to observe it from here meant they were not far from it.
The distance from Macragge to the Great Rift was a full several tens of thousands of light-years, even to the nearest point.
"Hiss…"
Guilliman couldn't help but draw a sharp breath. Seeing is believing, as the saying goes. When Zhou Ye had merely shown him the data, he had been skeptical. If it weren't for Cawl confirming it…
From the moment Cawl dropped the anchor to Zhou Ye arriving to provide support, less than three Terran hours had passed. He had expected a long journey, but this speed…
"The Imperium of Man… can be saved…"
Guilliman muttered, speechless. Beside him, Calgar and Tigurius were thunderstruck. As Ultramarines, masters of logistics and administration, they instantly grasped the countless possibilities.
But the more they thought, the more they trembled. Guilliman's face turned grim, his voice thick with killing intent as he said:
"When I return to Terra, whether it's the Navigators or the Adeptus Astra Telepathica, anyone who dares to obstruct you from laying the Star Rails will be declared the greatest of heretics, an enemy of all mankind."
"…"
Zhou Ye showed little reaction to Guilliman's murderous gaze, because…
"What do you mean Lemont snuck onto the Thousand Sons' battle barge with a dozen Space Wolves and started a brawl with the Thousand Sons? No one hit him, and he didn't attack anyone? Then those wolf cubs got strung up and whipped by the Thousand Sons? What are you all doing?"
Zhou Ye turned to look at the Space Wolf contingent. Their leader, the Great Company's Wolf Lord, was whistling nonchalantly despite his shock. He was the one meant to be protecting Lemont Icefang.
"If the Venerable Elder wants to go, we can't stop him…"
"Forget it."
Zhou Ye rubbed his forehead and decided not to dwell on it. He had forgotten to delete Lemont Icefang's identification code, which was why he had been able to sneak onto the ship so easily.
---o---
Soon…
"What's with that reaction?" Zhou Ye asked with some confusion, seeing the strange expression on Guilliman's face after he saw the palace.
"No, it's nothing… It's just that it bears some resemblance to the Imperial Palace on Terra…"
"Resemblance? My aesthetic sense should be better than the Golden Fiend's. His tastes were Gothic, from ancient Terra. Mine is of Huaxia style. They should be completely different."
"…"
Hearing Zhou Ye's puzzled words, Guilliman fell silent.
Just how old are you…
This was the only thought in Guilliman's mind. He knew this individual was different from them, the Primarchs. He wasn't one of them at all. Instead, he was a being more ancient than anyone he knew besides the Emperor, perhaps even older than Malcador.
He knew from Cawl that Ahriman had once seen a vision from this being's memory: a young boy on a sapphire-blue Terra, gazing up at the starry sky. It was an era even more ancient than humanity's Golden Age.
Back then, humanity could only look up at the infinite cosmos from their beautiful Terra. So…
Guilliman understood why this being held such a great resentment towards the Emperor. How many years had he been imprisoned? Then, to drift in the depths of the warp for another ten thousand years, only to return with such power.
He felt that if this person wanted to curse the Emperor with every foul word imaginable, he was more than entitled to do so.
Clank. Clank. Clank…
"Father!!!"
Just then, a series of mechanical sounds approached, and a massive, Sacred Contemptor Dreadnought came running over from the distance. Upon seeing the Dreadnought and the symbol on it, Calgar and all the other Space Marines present assumed expressions of respect.
When Guilliman heard the word "Father," he initially thought it was directed at Zhou Ye, but he reacted a moment later, his face contorting in shock.
"Marcus Phillips? You're still alive? How did you end up in a Dreadnought!!!"
Seeing the Sacred Dreadnought, Guilliman immediately rushed forward and embraced the Contemptor. The sight made the other Ultramarines green with envy.
They had never seen Guilliman so passionate.
Guilliman's reaction was perfectly normal. Ten thousand years had passed, and this was the first son he recognized that he had seen alive. He had only seen the name of his formerly closest brother-in-arms, Thiel, on a memorial tablet.
"Father, we barely escaped Horus's massacre of the loyalists on Istvaan III."
The Ultramarine Dreadnought spoke with a hint of grievance. As for the reason…
"I was with an Old Lion from the Dark Angels. We were both hit by the 'General's Cannon' that Lion El'Jonson gifted to Perturabo and blown straight into these Dreadnought chassis. When I awoke, I was with our Lord, and we entered the warp together."
"…"
An icy silence fell over the area. Everyone's gaze, including Calgar's, turned towards Asmodai in the crowd. Every single Ultramarine was now looking at them with dangerous eyes.
In just an instant, Asmodai and the other members of the Dark Angels' Inner Circle were drenched in sweat.
Their secret was out. But beyond that, they felt as if they had just incurred the wrath of everyone present.