Chapter 352: A Few Matters About the Construction of Faos
Good times are always short-lived.
Although most people would hardly call life in the Great Rift "good times," both Hades and Angron, as well as the World Eaters, unanimously agreed that things had actually been going pretty well.
Over five years, after confirming that Angron's body was in perfect condition, Hades shifted the focus of his work to the construction of Faos.
Now, Hades could swear with absolute confidence that Faos had become a true powerhouse within the Great Rift—and upon it, the Twenty-One Cathedral was a masterpiece among masterpieces.
On that tiny sacred ground, Faos possessed a physical layer far purer than that of the material universe; thoughts were no longer monitored, logic returned to logic. Aside from math problems capable of driving people insane, no other toxic knowledge existed there.
A "fortunate" Magos might even catch faint, whispering fragments of knowledge from the murmurs beneath the cathedral.
Promise me, fellow Magos—use technology to beat Tzeentch senseless.
No one expected that it would be within the warp-chaos of the Rift itself that the blockade on technological innovation would be broken.
Under Hades' guidance, and with proposals from several Archmagos, several large laboratories were completed around the Twenty-One Cathedral. In the foreseeable future, this place would serve as an important test site for experimental data.
New technological concepts were born within the cathedral's meditation chambers, validated in the nearby laboratories, then assembled into prototypes—prototypes which would then be taken into the chaotic warp-fields of the Rift to test their reliability amid psychic turbulence.
After all, reality was not as pure as the meditation chambers.
Inside the Twenty-One Cathedral, in the highest-level reading room, countless documents handwritten by Hades were proudly displayed. Some knowledge inevitably required countless experiments and much time to prove; all Hades could do was light a few lamps in the darkness of knowledge, illuminating different possible roads.
Of course, there were digital versions as well—Hades had uploaded everything to Nirvana, where sufficiently ranked Magos could freely access them.
Compared to the research scientist Hades wished to be, he still needed to be a competent general. Over these years in the Rift, he spent most of his time fighting.
Yet in the gaps between his rather "drain-the-pond-and-beat-the-neighbors" military expeditions, Hades still managed to complete several projects.
One was the Black Casket, a personality-collection device used for Nirvana's updates, permissible only for use by top-level Magos.
Another was the Spirit Lamp, with both inspiration and technology originating from Korklan. It was a small bulb capable of sensing the psychic field within at least a one-kilometer radius around itself—the stronger the psychic force, the brighter the lamp.
Any Magos of Faos could wear one.
Though it had no offensive capability, the Spirit Lamp at least provided advance warning. Psychic-targeting attacks were still limited to the Blank, and small amounts of blackstone could create only the faintest ripples by resonating with them.
But large blackstone structures could exert certain anti-psychic effects.
Across the dense industrial districts of Faos stood countless blackstone obelisks.
It needed to be clarified that blackstone obelisks were not strictly "anti-psychic" devices—they were more like amplifiers, capable of enhancing either the physical layer or the psychic layer.
This was why, on Barbarus, aside from the main tower, none of the auxiliary towers had functioning activation systems, and even the main tower's activation circuitry was broken—only Hades knew how to reconnect and start it.
This was his safeguard to prevent ill-intentioned individuals from using the blackstone towers' reverse function—to amplify the psychic side.
Faos's blackstone towers were designed similarly: the activation system of the main tower was kept strictly confidential, known only to the highest-ranking Archmagos.
At the same time, a slab of blackstone excavated from beneath the Twenty-One Cathedral—infected with the physical layer—was always placed beside the tower's activator.
Psychics were also forbidden from entering the area surrounding the blackstone towers.
Now, whenever the Magos wished, Faos could activate a physical field that enveloped the entire planet.
In five years, Faos had transformed from a wild, barren land into an industrial world with a complete manufacturing system, an air-defense network, and even an anti-psychic defense system.
Countless mineral resources were shipped in along the trade routes Hades had carved out personally through warfare. The ports swallowed titanic cargo vessels, bullets and shells packed every warehouse to the brim, and Magos hustled about nonstop. Even the most mediocre of them dreamed of achieving some major merit—enough to earn permission to enter the deepest reaches of the Twenty-One Cathedral.
The Nirvana System had already been deployed in small, localized applications for logistics and energy distribution. After passing the next hundred-year assessment cycle, its use would be expanded further.
The holy words personally written by the Omnissiah had already permeated every Magos's cogitative engine. For truth and for humanity, in the domain of technology, Faos would become His most loyal knight, charging at the forefront.
Of course, this forge world was only a local hegemon within the Great Rift. To support wars on the grand scale across the star-sea, this rapidly developing planet still lacked quite a bit.
Hades smiled. Still, no matter what, Faos had at least grown into shape before he left. It might not have full end-game gear yet, but at least it had a complete set of transitional equipment.
A tremendous roar echoed. Hades turned his head and saw the Magos directing transport craft, endlessly loading ammunition onto the World Eaters' ships.
The Magos clearly understood that this farewell would likely be measured in centuries—especially within the time-distorted Rift.
So they seized every possible moment to resupply the World Eaters, who had suffered grievous losses earlier.
"Lord Hades," the voice of Captain Sarrin of the World Eaters came through the channel—with a hint of irritation.
"With due respect, please stop those grease-monks from stuffing any more ammo into the fleet. My lord, I don't want the Conqueror turning into a firecracker that explodes the moment someone pokes it."
Hades got along well with the World Eaters—very well. So well, in fact, that they no longer seemed to treat him as an outsider. Their blunt directness, mixed with a pursuit of order and honor, clicked perfectly with Hades' own temperament.
Hades replied playfully:
"You can always negotiate directly with the grease-monks. It's your ship, Captain Sarrin."
"If only they listened to people."
On the other end, Sarrin stared through the porthole at the flowing formation of ships outside. Beside her stood Khârn, casually resting his hands on his axe as he spoke:
"We don't need to bother Hades. We can turn the empty crew quarters into temporary storage—"
"No! Absolutely not!"
Sarrin spun around, furious. Her booming voice convinced Khârn she would make an excellent battle-roarer.
"Unless it's Lord Angron's order—What does Lord Angron think? No, don't give me that slow, dragging attitude of yours!"
Khârn looked away, refusing to argue with the captain, certain that Angron's only thought was to appreciate the Magos' enthusiastic goodwill.
Well… in truth, Angron—sensing the Magos' sincerity—found it hard to turn the grease-monks down, yet at the same time had no idea how to deal with the World Eaters' hot-tempered female captain.
"…Fine. We'll do as you say."
Khârn conceded at last.
Anyway, the ammunition the Magos had already loaded was enough for the World Eaters to fight for three or four years without stopping—and still have leftovers.
Of course, that was also partly because the legion had been heavily reduced. They couldn't recruit new warriors inside the Rift, so once they left, the World Eaters' first priority would be rebuilding their numbers.
In the end, after listening long enough to the drama in the channel, Hades finally rescued Khârn.
At a leisurely pace, he contacted Archmagos Hysen and had the Magos stop cramming more supplies into the ships.
Listening to Hysen's report, Hades pondered the route he would take after leaving the Rift. His original plan had been to look for the Death Guard—and have Mortarion examine whether Angron's brain could be healed quickly.
But unfortunately, the Emperor had no intention of giving him a vacation.
The Master of Mankind, in His infinite mercy, directed Hades to his next unpaid overtime assignment—
Nikaea.
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