Rhodes shrugged helplessly. The Emperor's love for humanity was absolute—he guarded against any threat. Rhodes didn't blame him.
But if the Emperor threatened his son, Rhodes would fight back, no matter what.
With Tartarus present, Rhodes had no fear. In a direct fight, as long as the Emperor didn't stand up from the Golden Throne, he was no match for Tartarus.
Tartarus was still a big boss—a main villain for several seasons, undefeated.
When Rhodes called, Tartarus arrived with Lelith (now merged with Isha) before the Emperor.
The moment the Goddess of Life appeared, she radiated powerful life energy. Even the Custodes and primarchs felt refreshed.
The primarchs simply felt comfortable, but for the mortals, Astartes, and Custodes standing guard, their aches vanished, and their spirits soared.
The benefits of life energy were obvious.
"Welcome to the Imperial Palace, Isha, Goddess of Life. Thank you for the Eldar's help to humanity," the Emperor said.
Truly a goddess—her divine power even exceeded his own from ten thousand years ago, perhaps even rivaling him now (at least, if he didn't stand up).
The life aura she radiated was so comfortable. The Emperor sensed she was a benevolent deity, a force for order.
In this dark, chaotic universe, a benevolent god was rare. Among the Eldar gods, only the Phoenix King Asuryan, the Goddess of Life, and a few others were good.
But there was a problem. The Emperor couldn't see through the Goddess of Life. He felt her vast life force and divinity, but couldn't gauge her true strength. She gave him a sense of crisis.
This wasn't right! The Eldar Goddess of Life shouldn't be so powerful. Equal to himself or the Eldar gods, maybe, but not so strong as to be unknowable!
Did gaining a physical body really boost the gods' power so much? Now, she felt like a Chaos God.
If not for her positive energy, order, and life aura, the Emperor would have suspected a Chaos God in disguise!
Did Rhodes do something to empower her? She had two cosmic phantom beasts, stronger than before—especially compared to Elena's.
Moreover, the Emperor sensed a familiar yet strange power—Horus's power.
The Dark Giant!
The Emperor thought immediately of a perfect lifeform he'd seen before.
He even considered uplifting all humans into that form. The giants, apart from their darkness, could possess any attribute.
"We've met before, Emperor. Back then, you were just a demigod! In ten millennia, you've become a true god," Isha said.
Now, hiding within herself, with two cosmic beasts' power and the Dark Giant Camearra's strength, Aisha was unreadable to the Emperor.
The Goddess of Life raised her hand, spreading green light over the Emperor's decayed body. With her life energy, the Emperor's corpse filled with vitality.
He transformed from a mummy to a thin man—it was hard to tell he was dead.
Guilliman, Magnus, and Rhodes were shocked. Truly the Goddess of Life—just a touch, and the Emperor recovered so much.
Could their father, the Emperor, be revived by this miracle?
But as soon as his body recovered, a dark force from the Golden Throne drained the life energy away. In seconds, he was a mummy again—as if the recovery had been a dream.
"Thank you! But you needn't waste your effort, Goddess. As soon as I recover any life, the Golden Throne drains it away. It's unavoidable," the Emperor said.
The Dark Emperor wouldn't let him grow strong. Neither would the hidden Dark King, nor the Throne. Were it not for Magnus taking shifts, the Emperor would be worse off.
The Goddess's power was miraculous, but could not save him unless she could resist the Dark Emperor and the sleeping Dark King.
As an immortal, the Emperor could instantly recover once he left the Throne—body and power both.
Only by increasing his overall strength could he recover a little. Thanks to Rhodes and Magnus, he had regained some vigor, but the life energy only let him appear normal for a few seconds.
Still, the Emperor's opinion of the Goddess improved!
"I thought my life energy could free you from the Throne, but it seems you're suppressing something more terrifying than the webway," Isha said, frowning.
She hadn't expected that the prophesied destroyer of the universe, the dark king, was sleeping within the Emperor.
If he wished, he could become the Dark King at any moment!
Isha wondered how the four gods dared provoke such a terrifying being. Did they not realize what would happen if he were pushed too far?
If he ever rose from the throne, the consequences would be unimaginable!
They should have pampered him, let him love humanity, and sit quietly on the throne!
"If even one of us had acted at full strength, before the primarchs returned, the Imperium would have fallen long ago!
Do you think he could have lasted ten thousand years, sustained by human faith?" Aisha retorted in her mind.
If not for Rhodes, the four gods would still be playing their eternal games, ignoring the real universe. The best outcome was for the Emperor to sit on his throne forever.
"I sense two strong lifeforms inside you—two cosmic phantom beasts.
They're much stronger than before. Rhodes, can you explain?" the Emperor asked.
"Of course. We encountered a small awakening Necron dynasty.
It was close to the Space Wolves' homeworld—only a few lightyears away.
We worried it would threaten Fenris, so we decided to destroy it preemptively," Rhodes explained.
"Necrons are an extremely dangerous race. If you encounter them anywhere, destroy them if you can. If not, avoid them," the Emperor said.
It seemed they'd only faced a small, impoverished dynasty.
Otherwise, Rhodes wouldn't have managed it.
Their technology defied human understanding, beyond even the Golden Age. Only the ancient Old Ones could fight them evenly.
"After we defeated the Necron dynasty, their Lord released the ultimate weapon—a C'tan!"
"You faced a C'tan? How did you survive?" the Emperor asked.
Even a shard of the Void Dragon on Mars nearly destroyed him.
"My cosmic phantom beasts are extremely effective against C'tan, and combined with my and the Goddess's psychic power, we defeated the shard.
After defeating it, my beasts discovered they could devour its power. I let them consume the shard, and even a red giant star in the system," Rhodes said.
"No wonder they're so strong—they absorbed a C'tan shard," the Emperor said.
C'tan power was immense. Even as shards, each could destroy a human fleet.
They were the true rulers of the material universe—gods.
He had barely managed to defeat and seal a C'tan shard, unable to destroy it. Rhodes had done so.
These cosmic beasts were impressive, and after eating a star, they evolved! A red giant's energy is no joke; only a full C'tan could do that.
He had underestimated these creatures.
He'd have to get more cosmic beasts from Rhodes—one for each of his soon-to-awaken sons, and one for Magnus.
"Can my cosmic Black Tortoise also devour a star?" Guilliman asked.
If so, his strength could improve!
"In theory, yes—but it must first devour C'tan shards, and other cosmic beasts must help. My ten-plus beasts together devoured a red giant.
It took two thousand years, and only with the Goddess's time-acceleration could they finish," Rhodes explained.
"Before the Indomitable Crusade, upgrade your beasts. I'll find you a suitable shard for Guilliman and Magnus to upgrade theirs," the Emperor said.
There was still a sealed C'tan shard—Void Dragon—on Mars. After defeating it, the Emperor sealed it away. If Rhodes's beasts could devour it, all the better.
Rhodes's eyes lit up. Yes, the Emperor had sealed a C'tan shard on Mars. Perfect for upgrading the others' beasts.
"Then it's settled," Rhodes said.
"Rest for now. After your child is born, I'll teach you how to unseal Mars. Destroy that Void Dragon shard," the Emperor said.
He wanted to ask about the dark giant's power within the Goddess but decided not to. Some secrets didn't matter as long as they didn't threaten humanity.
Through contact with the Goddess, the Emperor was convinced the child could not have offspring with ordinary humans or Eldar.