Cawl's avatar fell silent.
After a moment, it spoke again.
"You have become increasingly cunning, like a despicable hunter who has learned to set traps for his enemies."
"That's not cunning, that's wisdom." Guilliman smiled, "This world isn't just where the warp can play tricks; we can too. Suspicion and doubt are deeply rooted in the hearts of those warp creatures; they are reflections of our own hearts, and a little exploitation can work wonders."
Khorne has a greater daemon under his command named Skarbrand, the embodiment of rage and slaughter.
He is also known as the Exiled One, the Anger Harvester, and was once the greatest general under Khorne, the mightiest of the Bloodthirsters.
This fellow was deceived and misled by Tzeentch, one of the Chaos Gods skilled in playing tricks, and swung his axe at his own master, Khorne, ultimately leading to his banishment.
This event proves that daemons are not invulnerable.
They are as fragile and foolish as mortals, susceptible to being toyed with and deceived by schemes.
"In any case, you have become increasingly formidable," Cawl's avatar said, "However, this is humanity's fortune; they need a leader who is cunning and powerful enough."
"Are there any other messages?" Guilliman paid no attention to Cawl's avatar's evaluation of him.
"The Emperor's Judgement Colossus, utilizing Death Star technology and Adeptus Mechanicus technology, has been completed. The Fabricator-General asks if it should be sent into the battlefield?"
"Of course, we need powerful weapons to instill some deterrence in the galaxy's xenos races," Guilliman said. "Send a message to the Fabricator-General, instructing Calgar to send the Emperor's Judgement over. We need it, and we hope it performs well in the battles to come."
"The relevant information has been encoded. Besides the above, are there any other messages to be conveyed to the Fabricator-General?"
"Not for now." Guilliman shook his head, "I hope he can quickly implement the technological knowledge I have given him and establish enough talent academies to disseminate this knowledge."
"My lord, I must warn you, this is a serious violation of the Adeptus Mechanicus' tenets. Knowledge should not be disseminated but should be passed down by the Adeptus Mechanicus," Cawl's avatar said.
"Is that your meaning, or Cawl's meaning?" Guilliman asked.
"As of now, this is merely my personal opinion," Cawl's avatar said.
"An Abominable Intelligence that seriously violates Imperial law wants me not to demand that I violate the rules established by the Imperium. Do you know what that's like, Cawl's avatar?"
"Like what?"
"Like a Slaaneshi succubus preparing to mend her ways."
Cawl's avatar: ...
After a pause, Cawl's avatar spoke again.
"Alright, I admit, you are as humorous as ever, but that joke wasn't funny. Also, I am not an Abominable Intelligence; I am merely a personality stripped away by Cawl."
"And I haven't violated the doctrines of the Adeptus Mechanicus. The knowledge of the Omnissiah and the STC Standard Templates still belong to the Adeptus Mechanicus as always. The knowledge in the talent academies is merely what I collected ten thousand years ago."
...
Cawl's avatar stopped discussing the matter; opposing the Thirteenth Primarch, who held sole power over the Imperium, offered no benefit.
"Is there anything else you need me to convey?"
"That's all." Guilliman shook his head.
"This conversation is concluded. The relevant information has been encoded. Confirm sending?" Cawl's avatar said.
"Send it."
As Guilliman spoke, the machines underground rumbled again.
A massive psyker pressure appeared, then quickly vanished.
The severed heads fell silent, and the indicator lights gradually extinguished.
Guilliman left the secret space and returned to his own battlefield.
A new battle was about to begin.
Everywhere was fire, smoke, and dust.
The Space Marines who had originally arrived to suppress the cult activity upon hearing the distress call encountered an unimaginable foe.
The terrifying traitor took shape from the sacrifices of flesh and blood, arriving from the warp.
Leman Russ tanks were easily flipped over by the opponent's powerful psyker energy, and the wreckage of gunships burned fiercely on the ground.
On the battlefield, the angry roars of the Loyalists grew fainter, eventually disappearing completely.
"You will fail, daemon." A space marine stumbled, his chainsword still spinning in his hand.
The gilded skull on his breastplate reflected light. Every time he spoke, he coughed incessantly, even spitting out bits of flesh.
His arm was broken, and his shattered armor sparked with electricity.
His eyes held endless rage, and he was still struggling forward.
The loyal Angels of the Emperor never give up, even when facing death.
"Foolish mortal." Magnus looked at the opponent with pity.
"For the Holy Primarch and the Em..."
The warrior roared, using his last ounce of strength to try and strike down the daemon Primarch before him.
Before he could finish shouting, a massive psyker force seized him.
"I don't like that name."
As the words fell, the psyker energy turned into raging lightning, reducing him to charcoal.
The space marine fell, completely lifeless.
Magnus put away his staff. He stood on the ruins of a battlefield, his loyal Rubric Marines clearing the field, finishing off the Space Marines who were still alive.
"My lord, why have we come here?" Ahriman, holding his force stave, walked over, saluted his master, and voiced his confusion.
By means of the cultists' sacrifices, they were able to cross the vast distance and arrive here in Imperial space.
"The Corpse-Emperor has lost his great vision. I shall become humanity's new enlightener, bestowing wisdom upon them, pulling them out of the mire of ignorance and foolishness. I will allow them to control the power of the warp, to walk the sacred path."
His wise single eye looked towards the distant colossal hive city. Magnus' tone was full of pride, then he changed the subject.
"I have obtained some intelligence from those with cracks in their hearts. When Guilliman was campaigning in the Charradon Sector, he sent a Saint, the Marshal of the Black Templars, and a Grey Knights Master to Pharos. He did not inform people of the reason for doing so. However, if one searches for answers in history, one can glimpse a thing or two. If we allow him to proceed, it will inevitably affect my plans."
"He hasn't even sorted out this side of the Imperium yet, and he still presumes to interfere with our actions in the Dark Imperium?" Ahriman asked, puzzled.
"When my brother Horus betrayed the Corpse-Emperor, using the screams of the dead in the Istvaan System and the power of the gods to stir up a warp storm and divide the Loyalists, a light appeared in the Ultramar System – a light that appeared in the warp without the Emperor's power."
"This light allowed the Lion and Sanguinius to ignore the warp storm and successfully enter Ultramar. And the origin of that light was Pharos."
"If I'm not mistaken, he might use this light to create a beacon in the Dark Imperium, to help Imperial ships navigate the warp. Those he sent there are likely to guard the device that produces that light."
"If that's the case, this thing must be very important." Ahriman's expression also became serious.
"My foolish brother, his attempts at playing tricks are always so clumsy. He thinks sneaking around is strategy, hahaha."
Magnus said mockingly.
"This time, our target is Pharos. I will make him understand that under my infallible plans, everything he does is futile."
"Guilliman's wisdom naturally cannot compare to yours, but I still want to know, what is your plan?" Ahriman asked.