After discussing the Menagerie, Alex continued to learn about other legends and Heretics in the Calixis Sector.
For example, evil legends such as the Jagged Question Mark, Tyrant Star, and Soul-Stealing Realm.
Alex planned to turn all of these into dungeons for the Players to mess around in.
He wondered what kind of sparks would fly when these so-called cruel and cunning Heretics met the even more cruel and cunning Fourth Great Calamity!
Considering the Players' moral bottom line, Alex silently mourned for those guys in advance.
After discussing Chaos and heresy, the main content of the meeting once again focused on the rebels in the Calixis Sector.
After the Sintilla Hive World was recaptured, the morale of the scattered loyalist forces throughout the sector was boosted, and they launched counterattacks one after another, leaving the rebels in a mess.
Numerous battles erupted across the sector again, and various worlds were deeply embroiled in war.
The most eye-catching battle among them was the struggle for the Las Forge World.
Las is located in the Malfi Sub-sector and is the most important Forge World in the entire sector.
This Forge World was permanently granted to the Adeptus Mechanicus by Grand Marshal Drusus during the Angevin Crusade, to bind Mars and the newly formed sector together.
This Forge World consists of three planets that orbit the star in an irregular motion.
Whenever the planets' orbits intersect, it triggers a production frenzy.
Because the passing planets cause changes in the planetary gravitational field, thereby smelting rare metals and alloys.
After the Colin Family initiated the rebellion, many forces responded.
Some members of the Adeptus Mechanicus also chose to betray the glory of the omnissiah and launched a rebellion.
Originally, the rebels had the upper hand, and the loyalists were struggling, on the verge of defeat.
However, with the recapture of the Sintilla Hive World, the loyalists' morale was greatly boosted.
They launched a counterattack, actually pushing back the rebels and recapturing a large number of areas, and now the battle has reached a stalemate.
But news came that the capital planet of the rebellious Malfi Sub-sector—Malfi Hive World—was planning to send troops to support the rebels,
hoping to completely seize this Forge World to produce more weapons and equipment for the rebels.
"We must send people to support the Las Forge World. It is an important production world. If the rebels get it, their strength will definitely be greater," Alex said. "We must prevent this from happening."
"I will first send a team of God Chosen and diplomatic envoys to investigate the situation on the Las Forge World, and at the same time, prepare for the army's expedition."
Alex announced a new round of war plans at the meeting.
They were going to send troops to retake the Las Forge World and severely damage the enemy there, further crushing the rebels' morale.
Alex assigned tasks to various departments, asking them to do a good job of propaganda and logistical mobilization,
striving to ensure that provisions were ready before the army moved.
After explaining these matters, the meeting concluded.
After everyone left, Alex handed a data panel to Prophet Kasareth.
"I have granted you mission publishing authority. If you have anything, you can publish missions for the God Chosen to do. As long as you give appropriate rewards, they will not care about your identity."
"Also, when teaching them, remember to collect a certain amount of contribution points. If you want to do it for free, you can, but I don't recommend you do that."
Kasareth was a bit confused but still followed Alex's instructions and chose to do so.
The reorganized Ministry of Internal Affairs was very efficient.
Officials at all levels cooperated closely, methodically preparing the supplies needed for the war.
Large cargo ships transported goods produced by surface factories to the port, where workers loaded them into Imperial warships.
The reconstruction of the Sintilla Hive World was very fast, and the foundries and agricultural factories were all online, producing a large amount of military equipment and food every day.
The Ministry of Internal Affairs also organized a large number of people to mobilize mining guilds to exploit resources from asteroid belts, feral planets, and gas giants to satisfy the increasingly growing appetite of the industrial behemoth.
The resources contained in a star system are beyond imagination.
Currently, the resources extracted by humans on the Sintilla Hive World are not even 0.01% of the star system's total.
During this process, starships arrived at Syntilla one after another.
Among them were solitary starships, damaged warships, and shattered fleets.
They were scattered Imperial Navy and Astra Militarum forces, as well as survivors and refugees.
After learning that a Saint was stationed in the Sintilla Hive World, they crossed the dangerous Warp Storm, guided by the Imperial Glory as a beacon, and rushed over.
Alex ordered people to prepare enough food for the refugees and soldiers to enjoy,
and also had the refugees and these troops elect representatives to hold talks with him.
Void Port,
a scarred barge, guided by the control tower, entered its berth.
As the hatch opened, tens of thousands of Imperial Astra Militarum soldiers poured out like a tide.
The waiting guard soldiers quickly organized themselves,
ordering these Astra Militarum to line up, hand over their weapons, and undergo physical examinations.
Several conflicts broke out during this time, but they were quickly suppressed and resolved.
Pierce and Harry were also in the long line.
They looked dejected, exhausted, disheveled, and completely spiritless.
Their bodies, which hadn't been washed for several days, emitted a sour smell.
After the rebellion broke out, the chain of command collapsed, and they were defeated all the way, retreating from one battlefield to another, and then continuing to withdraw.
The enemy was constantly advancing, while they abandoned bodies and comrades and continued to retreat.
As soldiers, they had no clear understanding of the overall situation,
only knowing that the command was extremely chaotic,
and completely contradictory orders, such as attack and retreat, would arrive one after another,
Frontline officers were torn between dying heroically or retreating to preserve their useful lives and continue serving the Emperor.
Ultimately, the higher-ups decided to abandon this meaningless attrition and chose to send the remaining troops to the Sintilla Hive World.
After more than half a month in the dim, cramped, and crowded cabins, Pierce and the others arrived here.
"Their equipment is really good," Pierce said, his voice full of envy, as he watched the patrol guards wearing exoskeletal armor.
In addition to the exoskeleton, the guards also had drones assisting them overhead, carrying detection instruments that emitted red or green beams to scan every civilian and soldier arriving at the port.
Compared to their own carapace armor and lasguns, it was truly a world of difference.
Pierce and Harry came from the mining world of Ragnalm, belonging to the Ragnalm Regiment.
They specialized in close-quarters combat and tunnel warfare, focusing on light infantry operations.
Within the Imperium, they were quite well-known.
The Ragnalm mining world was a poor and technologically backward world.
The only things it could offer the Imperium were its people and its ore.
The Ragnalm Regiment also had no major figures, and the equipment they received from the Departmento Munitorum was only mediocre, neither good nor bad.
"Move forward, don't waste time," someone urged, "In the Emperor's name, act quickly."
Some who were slow were pushed, and even whipped.
"How rough," Pierce complained softly.
They followed the line, registered with the scribes, and were then told to strip off all their clothes for disinfection.
"All of it?" Harry looked a bit dazed.
When he enlisted, thirty-five people from his community signed up, and now only he remained.
In the trenches, he had witnessed shells falling, turning his former good friends from one person into an unidentifiable pile of remains.
"Yes, all of it," the administrator said.
Harry numbly complied, wincing as his Las-rifle slid from his shoulder and brushed against a wound.
After eating military rations for so long and continuously fighting on the battlefield, he was skin and bones, his ribs clearly visible.
Just as Pierce and Harry were complaining and undergoing inspection, a commotion arose from the crowd in the distance.
"It's the Saint."
"The Saint is here."
The cheers drew Pierce and Harry's attention.
They turned their heads and saw a sight they would never forget.
A giant wearing exquisite power armor with pure white wings on his back walked out of the magnificent building and into the crowd.
"By the Emperor's teeth, is that a Primarch?" Pierce's voice trembled as he spoke.
A glimmer of hope appeared in Harry's numb eyes.
That noble face made one instinctively want to kneel and pledge loyalty to him.
Alex did not linger; he merely passed by, waving to the refugees who hoped for help, and then left.
But it still excited those people immensely.
After he departed, many refugees and soldiers were in tears.
This era was too dark and despairing.
The appearance of the Saint was like a bright lighthouse in the endless night, giving them hope.
It allowed them to continue enduring pain and persevere in the struggle.
Harry was one of those who shed tears.
He was still very young; war had taken much from him, but it had not completely numbed him.
Alex's appearance re-energized his young body.
"Crying like a little girl just because you saw a big shot, how pathetic," Pierce teased.
But Harry quickly pointed out that the old soldier's eyes were also red.
Harry, however, argued that he simply had sand in his eyes.
This small interlude concluded.
The refugees and soldiers continued to queue for inspection.
After all the checks were finished, they received the promised hot water and food.
Pierce and Harry ate ravenously, like starving ghosts reborn.
It had been too long since they had a proper cooked meal.
After eating their fill, they found their designated beds in the assigned area.
They lay down contentedly and slept soundly.
When they woke up, they felt an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.
After spending so long in hell, even a moment of peace felt like entering heaven.
...
In the reception room,
Several fleet commanders, Astra Militarum officers, Arch-Confessors, red-robed Adeptus Mechanicus priests, and representatives of the refugees were already waiting.
There were also some officials from the Administratum.
They conversed among themselves, discussing various matters.
When Alex strode in, they bowed.
"No need to bow, no need to kneel. Time is short; there's no time for these elaborate courtesies."
Alex walked towards the person closest to him, "What is your name?"
"Quintus, Colonel rank, representing the MacBain Household Guard. We have a total of 250,000 men, all at your command."
Alex's gaze swept across the room, and the others also began to introduce themselves.
Each solemnly declared that they would hand over command to Alex.
"Very good," Alex smiled, "I will re-arm you, and then we can continue fighting the traitors."
The meeting with these representatives was not long.
Alex's demand was for them to reorganize their armies, then return to the battlefield with new equipment and a new chain of command.
The fires of war would continue to burn until the enemy was utterly reduced to ashes.