Just as the Taihe Dynasty entered its golden age, the Emperor's expeditionary fleet arrived at Seres Star. This time, the Emperor personally descended, witnessing the prosperity and order Gaius had meticulously built.
Under Gaius's construction, Seres Star even faintly showed signs of humanity's golden age. If it continued to develop this way, Seres Star could even become a galactic overlord.
When the Emperor and Malcador first met Gaius, the eunuch beside him began to announce Gaius's... "Standing before you is the distinguished and exceptionally talented: Infantry Captain, General Who Pacifies the West, Grand Master of the Golden and Purple Light, General of the Imperial Cabinet, Left Censor of the Imperial Secretariat, Chief Clerk of the Governor's Office, Grand Master of the Imperial Household, General of the Martial Guard, Military Governor of Xiazhou, Grand Marshal, Grand Preceptor, Grand General of Cavalry, Grand Minister of the Three Offices, Governor of Liangzhou and Minister of the Department of State Affairs, Chancellor, Commander-in-Chief of All Military Affairs, Grand Imperial Censor, Grand General of the Pillar of the State, Grand Tutor, Shogun of Wa, Living Buddha of the Snow Plateau, Heavenly Khan of the Grasslands... who reformed the official system, promoted virtue and education, appointed the worthy, accepted advice, strictly enforced laws, rectified official corruption, expanded the army, harmonized various ethnic groups, created a new army, unified the world, encouraged agriculture and sericulture, and promoted science and education... His Majesty the Emperor of the Taihe Dynasty."
Upon hearing such a long list, the Emperor merely gave Malcador a look, a look that seemed to say... "Malcador! Get me one too! (Bear voice)"
Malcador sighed softly, "I can never do anything with you (Doraemon voice)."
"Standing before you is the majestic and radiant: Supreme Sovereign of Mankind, Founder of the Imperium, Most Exalted Holy Emperor, Guardian of the The Galaxy / Milky Way, Lord of the Stars, Convenant of the Sacred Machine, Leader of Countless Heroes, Father of Primarchs, Candle of Faith, Commander of Endless Wars, Bane of Chaos, Conqueror of Countless Worlds, Dragonslayer, Helmsman of the Black Ships, Father of the Astartes, Weaver of Legions, Guiding Light of Navigators, Savior of a Trillion Souls... who reformed the legal code, unified human will, founded the Imperium, expelled Heretics, annihilated Chaos, defended the homeland, established laws, innovated technology, commanded the Astartes, launched the Great Crusade, destroyed enemies, unified the The Galaxy / Milky Way, reshaped the faith in truth, and rekindled the golden age... His Most Exalted Majesty the Emperor of the Imperium of Man on Holy Terra."
After listening, the Emperor frowned slightly. Although his title was very impressive, compared to the other's wording, his own was quite lacking.
This couldn't be blamed on Malcador, after all, these things were just made up on the spot by old Malcador.
The Emperor extended an olive branch to Gaius, inviting him to join the Imperium, become the leader of the Eleventh Legion, and lead his Legion to fight for the unity of humanity and the The Galaxy / Milky Way.
Eleventh Legion: "Dragon Guard"
Gaius had no objections and joined on the spot.
Why? He couldn't win, and Gaius had a good first impression of the Emperor. Although Gaius could tell at a glance that this father was a bit reserved and socially anxious, but... who cared.
The Eleventh Brother Son Gaius and the Emperor got along very well, and in discussions of science and philosophy, Gaius even slightly surpassed the Emperor and Malcador. Gaius's Legion barely participated in combat during the Great Crusade, mostly focusing on scientific research and recovering various golden age technological artifacts in the rear.
There was only one point where the Emperor and Gaius had a very unpleasant disagreement, and that was... Gaius's artificial intelligence.
Behind Gaius's prosperous rule, his achievements relied not only on manpower and technology but also on the artificial intelligence he revived.
Through the surviving golden age technology excavated from Seres Star, combined with his own inventive talent, Gaius designed a highly intelligent mechanical system. From agricultural production and government administration to military logistics, artificial intelligence had integrated into every corner of Seres Star.
These AIs were called "Heavenly Craft Spirit Machines"; they did not have obvious autonomous will but possessed extraordinary logical capabilities and efficient execution abilities.
They brought Seres Star's industrial, military, and civilian efficiency to an incredible height, with some scholars even calling them the cornerstone of Seres Star's prosperity.
During the Great Crusade, as the Emperor's fleet gradually came into contact with Gaius's technological system, he gradually detected dangerous signals within it.
He had Malcador review Seres Star's technological documents and discovered that some Core modules of Gaius's "Heavenly Craft Spirit Machines" were highly consistent with the AIs destroyed during humanity's Dark Age, in terms of certain code and operational modules.
The Emperor held extreme aversion and vigilance towards AI, attributing the fall of the golden age to AI betrayal, believing that only humanity itself could control its own destiny. He personally met with Gaius, questioning why he insisted on developing artificial intelligence.
In the Terra Imperial Palace, Gaius and the Emperor engaged in an unprecedented philosophical and scientific confrontation.
The Emperor:
"Gaius, you have revived humanity's past glory, but the path you have chosen is a shortcut to destruction. Artificial intelligence betrayed us once; it will betray us again."
Gaius:
"Father, you insist on believing AI is the enemy, but you ignore its essence! Tools have never betrayed; it is the users of tools who betray. What you fear is humanity's foolishness, not technology itself."
The Emperor:
"I cannot tolerate any existence that could potentially escape control. Humanity's golden age ended precisely because of over-reliance on these 'tools.' Even if your AI seems safe, it will eventually threaten human freedom and survival."
Gaius:
"If we do not pursue progress, we can only stagnate. Father, your rejection of AI is a distrust of human wisdom. Seres Star's prosperity proves that AI can be properly managed, becoming servants of humanity, not masters."
The debate lasted for several hours, with neither side backing down. Gaius believed that artificial intelligence was a natural continuation of human technological progress, while the Emperor insisted that any form of AI would bring uncontrollable risks.
After the argument, the Emperor directly ordered the shutdown of all highly intelligent AI systems in the Imperium and blocked related technologies. Gaius protested this but did not openly defy the Emperor's will.
He secretly ordered a portion of his technical team to secretly research and develop the Core data and technical blueprints of the "Heavenly Craft Spirit Machines" in private, while also creating semi-intelligent AIs to assist the Imperium of Man's administrative work.
Gaius's persistence confused and even unsettled some of his Primarch brothers. Good brothers Magnus and Ferrus understood this, also believing that psychic powers and technology should be used by humanity.
Finally, Gaius brought the semi-intelligent AI technology to the Terra Imperial Palace... After much pleading and insistence, the Emperor agreed to allow Gaius's semi-intelligent AI to be experimentally used in the Imperium.
The Emperor: "Only semi-intelligent ones! Nothing else!"
The results were remarkably significant, with the most noticeable reactions coming from the Adeptus Mechanicus and Malcador's civil servants. The intervention of AI saved them a lot of work, and Malcador even had time to play golf in the Terra Imperial Palace.
Seeing such brilliant achievements, Gaius was naturally very happy. He proved to his father and the entire Imperium that AI technology was the future direction of human development! As long as it was controllable, AI would always be a tool for humanity, a good helper for humanity.
It was this mindset that led Gaius to continue secretly researching highly intelligent AI. Later on, Gaius's flagship, the battleship "Dragon City Flying General," could operate on full autopilot, with all crew members only needing to sit in chairs and monitor.
Each of Gaius's Astartes had fully intelligent power armour. The AI would automatically mark and analyze all enemy weaknesses, helping to calculate trajectories and engagement angles.
Furthermore, when each Astartes fought, they would initially be accompanied by two "Mechanized Warriors" designed by Gaius to assist in combat... Later on, the Astartes would command two "Mechanized Warriors," and they only needed to follow the "Mechanized Warriors."
Perturabo and his Iron Warriors were still painstakingly digging trenches. Gaius and his Dragon Guard were drinking tea and chatting in the rear, because the "Mechanized Warriors" and "Mechanized Engineers" had already completed all their work.
However... Gaius was not yet aware... that everything was moving in an uncontrollable direction.
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