Aiswei'er looked up at the sky. Beneath the night's stars, the unnatural light of the Great Rift was clearly visible. The whispers of the Warp now bled through constantly. Without her protection, this hive city would have already fallen into absolute chaos.
The holy will within her was incredibly anxious.
He was waiting for a definitive message, but it was clear that throwing a Primarch into the situation had produced no ripples. Yet, his feeling was strange. For a fleeting moment, he had observed a Warp shadow belonging to Curze, but now it had vanished once more. This baffled the consciousness.
It quickly realized what must have happened. His other fragments had likely used that coordinate to do something. The fragment here did not possess immense power, but it could still sense that some of his other parts had made the most effective choice. He could say nothing against it. In the struggle for humanity's survival, even they, as the Emperor, were merely tools.
"My lady, the Primarchs cannot be trusted. We should first evacuate to a secure location. The light of the Astronomican has been extinguished," the Custodian said, his voice heavy with worry. They knew all too well what the silencing of the beacon meant for the Imperium.
"He says: 'Do not worry. Those entities each have their own affairs. For the moment, they will not cast their attention here.'"
With the opening of the Great Rift, this fragment had grown stronger. It could now accomplish more without having to borrow the little girl's body. He was reluctant to tax the child, especially now, with the Astronomican dark. He urgently needed to know how that person had achieved what he had. It was the Imperium's only salvation.
…
Meanwhile, in space, aboard the massive Zar-Quaesitor.
"What the hell is Khorne up to?" Zhou Ye muttered, his brow furrowed as he bisected a Khornate Space Marine who had leap-attacked him. The searing golden flames incinerated the warrior to ash.
His action only made the nearby Black Templar Emperor's Champion more fervent. Of course, he was the only one left; the others had been flung off to who-knows-where during the charge.
What this Black Templar didn't know was that Zhou Ye had once again quietly severed the very faint connection between him and the Emperor. The Living Saint at his side was an even more exaggerated case. Zhou Ye had secretly used the authorities of the Herrschers of Sentience and Binding to weave a custom field and slip it over her head. As long as she didn't die, she wouldn't be contacting the Emperor anytime soon. It only cut off the information transfer, of course; the blessings and power she originally possessed were still there.
Zhou Ye had no desire to see the Golden Fiend. Just the thought of him gave Zhou Ye a headache, so he had decisively and covertly snipped the signal. Even if the entity's ability to project power into the material universe had increased severalfold due to the Great Rift, he could forget about pulling any tricks in front of Zhou Ye. The entire New Tillius system, as the core of the Star Rail network, was already crisscrossed with his tracks. Here, such a faint interference couldn't even make a ripple.
As a bonus, Zhou Ye added a little something extra for the Emperor's Champion. Having never been exposed to Imaginary energy, the Black Templar only felt himself become absurdly powerful, assuming he was receiving a sign from the Emperor.
Zhou Ye just chuckled to himself and said nothing. His attention was focused entirely on the Warp. Khorne's laughter echoed from within, yet he had made no move. This was completely illogical. That entity wouldn't just laugh endlessly. He was definitely planning something. One had to remember, Tzeentch's schemes were often just a chuckle, but if you wanted real, brutal action, you looked to Khorne.
When Khorne goes quiet, he's definitely cooking up something nasty for you.
So Zhou Ye had to be careful. Extremely careful.
But…
"This is getting nowhere. That passage is about to close. And where's the Vengeful Spirit? Abaddon, that coward."
Realizing that dragging things out further was pointless, Zhou Ye cast his gaze toward the spatial rift. To his astonishment, he found that Abaddon was gone.
Weren't you just proclaiming that the era of the Primarchs was over? What's this now? Where did you go?
Zhou Ye was speechless. He had actually wanted to bait the man, to draw him over while enduring that daemon sword, and then finish him off. But as expected of Abaddon. He retreated like the wind, more adept than a certain infamous general.
Since that was the case, Zhou Ye initiated a new plan. He had to prevent this battle from devolving into a chaotic free-for-all.
Aboard the Zar-Quaesitor, Inquisitor Greyfax had found a very excited Belisarius Cawl. For some reason, the Archmagos had suddenly become much more cheerful, radiating the relief of someone who had just unburdened himself of a great responsibility. He was now maneuvering his clumsy body rapidly through the ship's corridors, purging all traces of Chaos.
One should not underestimate this Archmagos from ten thousand years past. As a unit on the tabletop, he was a behemoth. Even though Zhou Ye's current form was over four meters tall, he would still look like a small child in front of Cawl. Naturally, his combat prowess was also immense. An average Space Marine facing him would fare no better than a mortal facing a Space Marine. A vast array of weapons now melted his great foes, while he simultaneously brainwashed and marketed his Primaris technology to a squad of screaming, wailing Black Templars.
Before, when Guilliman had not yet awoken, he wouldn't have dared. But now, seeing an entire legion composed entirely of Primaris Marines, what did he have to fear? He knew the various Chapters' opinions on the technology. Now that he had an opportunity to promote it, he wouldn't miss it, starting with the most fanatical of the lot, the Black Templars.
After all, in some respects, these guys were even more extreme than the Dark Angels. At least the Dark Angels had quietly accepted the Primaris reinforcements. Look at the mess these Black Templars had made. It was only because most of them died in the process that it didn't become another one of their little secrets. They famously had a squad that killed both Custodes and Primaris Marines. One could only say every world is different. Of course, that squad didn't meet a good end either, eventually running into a Tyranid fleet.
"NO!!!"
"My Lord, wait for us!!!"
"Such a glorious moment! Why, why am I like this!!!"
The Black Templars were in a state of utter turmoil. As some of the most pious followers of the Emperor, their Chapter had participated in every single Imperial war since its founding. They were among the most decorated of all Astartes, with no equal. Now, after ten thousand years, they had the honor of charging alongside a Primarch, and they… they couldn't keep up.
For them, this was a fate worse than death.
(Uplifting music begins to play)
Today, the Primarch led us on a super-awesome charge! They will reap immense glory!
(Cool dance moves)
So, who couldn't keep up today? YOU!!!
And so…
"Those Space Marines are all Primaris Marines. They have undergone three new surgical procedures. If you had these three procedures, you could be sharing in this glorious moment alongside them!"
GAAH!!!
Hearing this, the Black Templars fell silent. This seemed to violate their dogma. But they quickly looked at the empty corridor, filled only with corpses, and expressions of misery crossed their faces. That Lord was charging ahead with his honor guard and their Champion, while they were left here cleaning up.
What was this? This was bullying. Blatant, naked bullying.
"GAAH! Quickly, I want to become a Primaris too!!!" a Black Templar shrieked. With him leading the charge, the others echoed his sentiment. They desperately needed more power to seize their glory.
Seeing this, a sly, triumphant expression flickered across Belisarius Cawl's face. But just then…
"A strange Primarch. Possibly even Horus. Are you hiding something?"
"Have no fear!!!"
The Inquisitor, Greyfax, looked on in stunned silence as Cawl waved a dismissive hand, his face now flush with fanaticism.
"That great… Primarch is almost identical to the Emperor! He is more like the Emperor than any of the other Primarchs!"
Cawl was completely unconcerned. Hearing this, Inquisitor Greyfax's face darkened. The Living Saint had already charged off with Zhou Ye, and now this Archmagos was acting like this. As a representative of the Golden Throne, Greyfax was wary of everything. Honestly, just look at the absurdly complex composition of their Chapter—or rather, Legion. It made her extremely vigilant.
Who was the last person to command so many traitor legions? It seemed his name was Horus.
And who was the first to cry "Death to the False Emperor"? It seemed to be the Night Lords.
She didn't know if Zhou Ye was Horus, but he had just dragged Konrad Curze out moments ago. And Curze had neither gotten angry nor done anything in retaliation, which spoke volumes.
Of course, Cawl paid this no mind. He had been in the Emperor's presence. And this one felt like he had been cast from the very same mold. What was there to worry about? So he continued his charge with gusto, planning to head for Macragge after dealing with these enemies. His ten-thousand-year mission was finally nearing its end. Cawl was, arguably, at his most relaxed.
As for Inquisitor Greyfax, she could only fume in helpless rage. She couldn't find a single person willing to cooperate with her, so she could only silently commit her suspicions to memory.
"Hm?"
But just then, the few of them paused and looked out the viewport.
"Such powerful psychic energy!!!"
In that instant, nearly everyone cried out in shock, because outside, a golden sun was slowly rising.
…
Winding time back a little, Zhou Ye had just cleaved another daemon in two and tossed it into his converter. He decided it was time to do something. The Black Legion forces were already retreating, but to let them leave just like that felt like too much of a loss for him. He had to make them leave something behind.
Since things had come to this, it proved his plan had worked. He seemed to have, for the first time, successfully prevented a new, chaotic free-for-all. To stop these people from pulling any new tricks, he decided to end it with one decisive blow.
In an instant, golden, illusory wings unfurled from his back.
His initial reason for this light show was so he could funnel the resulting faith to the Golden Fiend. But now, his power had somehow become a little strange. It was probably because, although he had rejected all faith and thrown that pile of shit to the Golden Fiend, that faith had still brushed past him. It didn't cause any ripples for him in the Warp, but due to some kind of connection with the Emperor, it had picked up a faintly sacred aura.
"Emperor be praised!!!"
Seeing the great wings, the Black Templar Emperor's Champion roared with excitement. But as soon as the words left his mouth…
"NO! My Lord, wait!"
A wretched scream cut through the air, right before his bewildered eyes. He watched in astonishment as the entire front rank vanished. The Primarch had disappeared from right in front of them all, his speed so immense that no one could react.
His face, like that of the honor guard, instantly turned grim.
The Primarch had gotten carried away. He had charged off all by himself.
But before they could do anything, a dazzling light rose before their very eyes.
"Oh, Emperor!!!"
At that moment, everyone, including Living Saint Celestine, wore expressions of the utmost piety. Even the somewhat fanatical Inquisitor Greyfax was the same. A look of shock washed over her face, followed by a flush of shame for her earlier thoughts. She should not have doubted such a son of God.
Because outside, Zhou Ye was now floating in the void of space. The golden sword in his hand released a brilliant golden light, as bright as a rising sun. Then, the figure swung his sword down.
A wave of supernatural fire erupted outwards. It pierced through the void shields of the few remaining intact warships, shattering them instantly. Then, with undiminished momentum, it shot through the closing rift, chasing after the retreating Black Legion fleet.
But it was a pity. Just then, the spatial rift healed completely, and the attack vanished into the depths of the universe.
PS: Not bad, wrote it overnight. So praise me.