The genesis did not descend directly above the pyramid.
Leticia's figure, accompanied by her three Primarch Sisters, appeared silently above a hanging garden in the city of Tizca.
This had once been one of the most beautiful landscapes on Prospero.
Countless exotic flowers and herbs from all corners of the galaxy bloomed regardless of the season, nourished by psychic arrays, while exquisite glass birds frolicked among rockeries and streams constructed from moonlight crystal.
But now, only a deathly silence remained.
The air that had once been filled with the scent of flowers and birdsong was now replaced by thick smoke, the stench of burning, and the pungent smell of ozone left behind by energy weapons fire.
Beneath their feet, the originally mirror-smooth white jade ground was covered in cracks and craters of varying depths.
Those exotic flowers were either scorched to charcoal or torn to shreds by shockwaves, scattered across the ground in a mess, mixed with mud and blood.
In the distance, on the skyline, landing craft painted in alternating gray-yellow and black were crashing into the ground endlessly, like bloodthirsty locusts, trailing long plumes of exhaust.
Each impact was accompanied by a massive mushroom cloud rising, mixed with debris and flames.
The savage war cries, filled with primitive bloodlust, were clearly audible even from a great distance.
"Too..." Sanguinia murmured, looking at an originally exquisite observatory nearby that had been sliced in half by an orbital bombardment.
The dome of that observatory had been carved from a single piece of natural psychic crystal, capable of automatically displaying the star map of the entire galaxy at night.
But now, it was like an irreplaceable piece of art smashed by a naughty child, with only a broken base remaining, flickering with a sorrowful light in the reflection of the war flames.
"...what a pity."
Her sky-blue eyes were filled with pure sorrow and regret.
"They should have shone forever, guiding seekers of knowledge to explore the mysteries of the universe."
Just then, a building not far away caught everyone's attention.
It was a magnificent library, with the reliefs of all the great philosophers since the birth of human civilization carved into its outer walls.
Boom!
The library's adamantium-forged doors were violently blasted open from the inside by a Bolter.
A squad of Space Wolves in gray-yellow power armor charged out, grinning hideously.
Their armor was stained with fresh human blood.
Behind them, a raging fire ignited inside the library.
Faintly, one could hear the desperate cries and pleas of the scholars inside before they were consumed by the flames.
But those savage warriors turned a deaf ear to it.
One of the warriors, seemingly feeling it wasn't enough, took a flamer from his back and sprayed a scorching dragon of fire, tens of meters long, toward the library's open doors.
Countless precious ancient books and scrolls, recording ten thousand years of crystallized wisdom, were instantly ignited by this flame, which represented ignorance and destruction, turning into black ashes dancing in the sky.
"Hrr..." A suppressed, beast-like growl emanated from Angronia's throat.
Her amber pupils contracted to pinpricks due to extreme rage.
Every muscle in her body was strained to the limit as she wanted to rush down and tear those scumbags to shreds, emitting creaking, overwhelmed sounds.
Just as she was about to turn into a red lightning bolt and charge out, a hand pressed down on her shoulder.
It was Leticia.
"Angronia."
Leticia's voice was as cold as ten-thousand-year-old glacier ice, without a shred of warmth.
She shook her head.
"Our target is not these mad dogs."
"Go to the pyramid first."
Her eyes were burning too.
But it was not the pure, all-consuming war fire of Angronia.
It was a deeper, colder rage, the rage of an Inquisitor.
Angronia breathed heavily, eventually forcing down the rage that was about to erupt, but her chattering teeth already indicated her attitude.
However, among everyone present, the one with the most intense reaction was not Angronia.
It was Fogremia.
This embodiment of the pursuit of perfection just watched quietly.
She watched those rude, savage warriors use their power armor boots, stained with blood and brains, to wantonly trample over a star map mural on the ground that had been blackened by war but still revealed its exquisite beauty.
While laughing wildly, they used the metal on the soles of their boots to grind the artwork, pieced together from countless gems and depicting the spiral arms of the galaxy, into dust.
Crack... crack...
The crisp sound of gems shattering seemed to strike precisely and fiercely upon Fogremia's soul with every sound.
For the first time, on her face, which always carried elegance and pride, appeared undisguised, cold disgust—the kind one feels when looking at a pile of rotting garbage.
And, murderous intent.
A murderous intent that was pure to the extreme, born from aesthetic cleanliness, to completely erase all "ugly" things before her.
"Savage..."
Fogremia's voice trembled slightly with anger, but every word was as clear as an ice pick.
"Ugly..."
"Unforgivable..."
In her deep purple eyes, the originally brilliant sea of stars had been replaced by a cold, destructive storm.
"To burn art and knowledge to the ground, to trample wisdom and civilization underfoot..."
"This is the most unforgivable crime in this universe!"
Her voice rose sharply, carrying the absolute authority of an Inquisitor of beauty.
"This kind of 'imperfect' existence, this ultimate blasphemy against 'beauty', must be completely erased—from the soul to the atomic level!"
Fogremia's anger instantly resonated with all the Sisters.
Yes.
Saving Magnus, at this moment, was no longer just a strategic goal to acquire knowledge or expand the team.
Now, it had sublimated.
It had become a defense of beauty.
A defense of wisdom.
A holy judgment against savagery and ignorance!
Their eyes, at this moment, all became incomparably firm, filled with an unshakable sense of mission.
Leticia raised her head and looked toward the golden pyramid that still stood alone amidst the raging war.
The wailing there seemed to become a few degrees more shrill, filled with endless despair.
"Let's go," she said softly, but her tone carried a decisive, iron-clad determination.
"To meet that... broken giant who is about to be driven mad by his own ideals."
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