"Of course, my old friend." Opening his eyes, the Emperor spread his palm, displaying the fruits of his journey to the Warp to Malcador.
Twenty-one lesser divine essences floated in his palm, gently swaying and emitting faint glows.
A kaleidoscope of colors swirled, illuminating the surrounding environment.
It was a stone chamber, with various mysterious runes carved into the rough rock walls, and the floor was inscribed with the blasphemous eight-pointed star symbol representing the Warp, while the Emperor sat cross-legged in the center.
The next moment, the light of the lesser gods dimmed; when deities appeared in the real universe, their power was suppressed by the physical laws of reality, and their light was no longer as dazzling as it had been in the Warp.
However, one of the divine essences was peculiar; its light shone brightly, outshining all the others.
The Emperor recognized it, a special existence, a red soul upon which the Four Gods gazed.
Malcador's body was lean and long, but his back was somewhat hunched as he stood beside the Emperor.
Due to the influence of psychic power, the Emperor appeared glorious and magnificent in his eyes, radiating a sacred light, presenting himself in the most perfect image in Malcador's mind.
Lightly twirling his Aquila Staff, Malcador's expression was slightly tense, the muscles beneath his high nose bridge taut, and the nasolabial folds appeared particularly deep when his lips moved slightly.
His eyes gleamed under the hood of his linen robe, and he asked the Emperor in a lowered voice, "What is this?"
As a psyker, and a very powerful one at that, Malcador knew well.
The great powers of the Warp, even the high and mighty Chaos Gods, would have their power suppressed by physical laws in the real universe, endlessly weakening their strength.
The red soul, however, seemed unaffected by reality, its miraculous display defying the characteristics of the Warp, which was highly unusual.
The Emperor slowly opened his eyes, his sharp gaze scrutinizing the red soul: "A special existence, the only condition proposed by the Four Gods in our transaction."
With that, the Emperor proactively dispersed his dazzling psychic power and radiance, revealing the image of a weathered middle-aged man.
He wore a white robe, with gold trim woven from gold thread lining the collar, cuffs, and hem of the skirt.
He wore an olive wreath on his head, his black hair falling to his chest, every line on his noble face clearly visible, his brow ridge prominent, his eyes emitting a holy light, long nasolabial folds on either side of his nose, and a look of fatigue on his noble cheeks.
Facing the Four Gods directly was an inhuman act; the corrupting power of the Four Gods was infinite, and they would silently and imperceptibly erode external objects.
The destructive power of the Warp Gods was one part, but even more terrifying was the pervasive Warp corruption.
"Can't we destroy it?" Malcador's brows furrowed, and an orange-red psychic flame ignited from his left hand, spreading to the staff he gripped tightly.
The Aquila sculpture at the top of the staff stood firm in the flames, like a phoenix rising from the ashes, ready to spread its wings and fly, as unpredictable psychic power condensed into a textual symbol in his hand.
That was a "Daemon Mark," a symbol Malcador created to wield psychic power, a power exclusive to him, and it also symbolized his identity.
The Perpetuals among humanity called him "Daemon Mark Malcador."
His right hand opened, and red psychic light, like silk, entanglement around his five fingers, condensing into a mark representing "destruction" in his palm.
Malcador's narrow eyes narrowed further, fully prepared; at the Emperor's command, he would utterly destroy the impure thing from the Warp.
Something imposed by the Four Gods was certainly not a good thing, and to avoid further complications, destroying it was the best and safest course of action.
The Emperor gazed at his old friend, slowly shaking his head, and raised his hand to press on Malcador's hand, subtly extinguishing the Daemon Mark of destruction.
A deep sense of helplessness was reflected in his tired eyes: "I cannot violate the contract, at least not now; it is part of the transaction, the only request made by the Four Gods."
"It must be born in the real universe, as for what it is, I don't know."
The Emperor paused, thought for a moment, and added, "Perhaps even the Four Gods don't know what it is."
"That truly is a big problem, my friend." Malcador likewise gave a wry smile and shook his head, his face flickering between light and shadow in the glow of the staff's flame.
This was the helplessness of the Emperor and Malcador, and also the predicament of the Imperium of Man.
Humanity wanted to return to the depths of space, achieve a great resurgence, and reclaim the galaxy from the hands of xenos; they had to cooperate with the great powers of the Warp.
Even if cooperation with the Warp was akin to quenching thirst with slow poison, humanity had to drink that poison.
If humanity was about to die of thirst, how could they talk about the future?
The continuous storms in the Warp were scattered by the birth of Slaanesh, creating a window of safe Warp travel.
The Emperor had to seize the opportunity to reunite humanity.
A vast plan required the support of the Four Gods, and violating the contract now was not a wise choice.
"Let's go, they might be getting impatient, we must race against time, time is not on our side." The Emperor shook his head, slowly rose, and walked out of the stone chamber with bare feet.
With the successful transaction with the Warp, the Emperor had successfully taken the first step in his grand plan.
From now on, every second counted; he had to reclaim the galaxy and reorganize the human race in a short time, before the gods realized his true plan.
Humanity would once again set out from Terra, striding towards the galaxy.
"Yes, time waits for no one."
Malcador casually tossed a mark into the stone wall; the tightly sealed stone chamber opened a crack, and light streamed in, causing both men to instinctively squint.
Outside the door, shadows flickered, and a deep male voice, unable to hide his excitement, shouted:
"My Lord has returned safely, it seems everything went smoothly."
The Emperor walked out of the room, with Malcador close behind him.
Both men smiled and nodded slightly; their grand plan had taken a crucial first step, obtaining the most vital raw materials from the Warp.
Standing outside the door were a tall and a short figure; one was a man over three meters tall, perhaps even taller, who could be considered a "giant."
The other was a slender woman, remarkably elegant and beautiful.
The man had a resolute and heroic face, and his mighty body was clad in golden power armor.
Power armor was the pinnacle of human technology, providing not only powerful protection but also enhancing the wearer's strength.
The power armor the man wore was exceptionally ornate and exquisite; the chest bore a lightning relief, upon which was cast an "Aquila," symbolizing the Imperium, with wings spread, poised to fly. The shoulder pads were carved with resplendent golden eagle wings, each feather meticulously crafted, embodying the full dedication of the artificer.
Large components such as the arm guards, wrist guards, leg guards, and greaves were inlaid with pebble-sized gems and engraved with intricate reliefs.
Undoubtedly, the giant deserved this magnificent armor; his eyes were filled with an unquestionable resolve, and his heroic face was stern and noble.
The man complemented the golden armor, and the golden armor complemented the man.
Looking at his left hand, he held an ancient spear, a stark contrast to the ornate golden armor.
A golden spear shaft served as its spine, and the spearhead was cast with a "boltgun," a "brutal weapon" that fired large-caliber self-detonating ammunition. Below the boltgun, a blade extended from the grip of the spear shaft to the front of the boltgun.
It gleamed brightly, shining brilliantly. Runes were carved into the boltgun's body, and marks were inscribed on the chilling blade.
The ancient spear was by no means ordinary; this weapon was crafted by the Emperor himself, possessing incredible and extraordinary abilities, specifically bestowed upon the Captain-General of the Adeptus Custodes.
The halberd had a built-in disintegration field, which, when activated, could disintegrate anything it struck at a molecular level, making it incredibly powerful.
The power armor on the giant was exceedingly ornate, with exquisite reliefs carved into its golden exterior, like a work of art, combining beauty and strength.
The woman standing beside the ornate giant was beautiful, with flowing long hair and emerald green eyes, slender and elegant eyebrows, a prominent and delicate nose, and full, rosy lips.
A white silk court robe covered her body; her charm was boundless, possessing a noble and elegant divine beauty, and she smiled as she watched the two men emerge from the stone chamber.
The male giant was Constantin Valdor, a talent the Emperor had specifically sought out from afar, to serve as the Captain-General of the nascent Imperium.
He was the Master of Mankind's strongest and most loyal servant.
Constantin Valdor and his Custodian subordinates were masterpieces of genetic engineering, created by the Master of Mankind using "bio-alchemy," combining his own genes.
Unaffected by the Warp, completely devoid of psychic talent, they were isolated from the Warp's influence to a certain extent, possessing extremely high resistance to psychic powers.
Bio-alchemy also, on another level, fully unleashed the potential of every cell in the Custodians' bodies, developing their potential to its utmost.
The Emperor's great technology reshaped the Custodians from soul and body, transforming humanity's frail bodies into the pinnacle of combat power in the real universe.
They moved like lightning, wielding their Custodian halberds at the absolute limit of what biological beings in the physical universe could achieve.
In one second, a bare-handed Custodian could tear apart an entire company of fully armed ordinary humans.
The Custodians' stamina was even more astonishing; fighting at high intensity for several days and nights without rest would not even make them feel tired.
Theoretically, Custodians could kill all living beings in the real universe.
Constantin Valdor was the most skilled warrior among the Custodians, distinguishing himself from his many colleagues to be elected to the position of "Captain-General of the Adeptus Custodes."
When the Emperor rose to power, Valdor stood by his side, witnessing all the conquests and the dark secrets.
The woman was Erda, a friend of the Emperor, and she was a Perpetual.
She had already existed on ancient Terra when humanity entered civilization.
Like many Perpetuals, Erda hid among humanity, playing her role in history, silently guiding and protecting the development of human civilization.
She and the Emperor met in ancient times, and even spent a long time together, during which they were intimately close and inseparable.
When the Emperor launched the Unification Wars, preparing to conquer Terra, Erda allied with the Emperor to jointly realize the great vision of restoring humanity.
As the Emperor led his armies to conquer all directions, Erda, as his close advisor, offered strategies, persuaded city-states to surrender, and helped defeat stubborn enemies.
The Emperor deeply trusted and valued the two, and they, in turn, diligently assisted the Emperor in unifying Terra, and to support the realization of an even grander plan for the future, the three of them jointly established the framework of the nascent Imperium.
Yes, the Emperor had a grand vision.
He would establish an Imperium of Man spanning the galaxy, liquidating all enemies of humanity.
What he was doing now was obtaining the power to conquer the galaxy from the gods of the Warp.
"Let's go, my servants," the Emperor spread his palm, displaying the souls in his hand, whose light had receded but were still dazz
lingly brilliant.
He solemnly said to Erda, "To the laboratory, we must immediately anchor them in reality; without a vessel for too long, they will return to the Warp."