On the high platform, the gray-skinned loli sat numbly in place, eyes still tightly shut.
His body oscillated endlessly between withered decay and full vitality. Most of the time, he maintained the state of a soft, adorable, gray-skinned loli, but occasionally, you could see a loli skeleton with nothing left but bone.
At this moment, the Emperor's predicament had yet to be resolved; he could still only communicate with Malcador through the Warp.
However, his current state was vastly better than before. At the very least, once Guilliman took a wife, they would acquire the Warp Webway repair technology.
Yet, Malcador's proposal met with immediate opposition from Sicarius, Calgar, and the others.
This was a damn massive problem—how could they possibly let their Primarch inexplicably marry an alien as a wife?
"Regent Malcador, this makes no sense!"
"The Imperium of Man is supposed to eradicate Xenos to carve out living space for humanity!"
"Cooperating with these damned Xenos was already hard enough to digest, but a marriage alliance? This is way too far!"
"Indeed!" Sicarius chimed in.
"If word gets out, how will the other Imperial worlds view us?"
"Cooperating with Xenos so brazenly—this is far too huge a matter!"
Neither of them opposed the alliance itself; it was just that this political marriage concept was... a bit too much. For other human factions, it might not be a big deal.
But for the Ultramarines, it meant inexplicably gaining a stepmother out of nowhere.
If that stepmother were a human, no one would mind. The issue was that this stepmother was a Xenos—a bitter pill that was almost impossible to swallow.
If this news leaked out, chapters with extreme anti-Xenos hatred would likely go completely insane.
Who knew what chaotic disaster might erupt then?
"Heh heh—" Malcador chuckled softly, a flicker of reminiscence passing over his ancient, withered face.
"It's not as if this hasn't happened before. The ancient Human Federation once cooperated with these Xenos!"
"Besides, this is merely a secret alliance. You will only be collaborating with the Ynnari and the Harlequin troupes!"
"Now, the shadow of Chaos draws near. The Emperor and I can feel them brewing a grand conspiracy!"
Everyone fell silent. No one was ignorant of the dire extent of the Chaos threat today.
According to current intelligence, Baal was still fending off all manner of Chaos warbands and Tyranid Hive Fleets.
Had it not been for news that Sanguinius had revived and stabilized the situation there, Calgar would likely be leading a detachment to reinforce the Baal theater right now.
Malcador added calmly, "We don't have much time left. If the Emperor is to repair the Webway, the Astronomican must be shut down!"
"When that happens, the vast majority of Warp travel will fall into pitch black darkness."
"Does the current Imperium of Man truly possess the courage to face that kind of darkness?"
Malcador's words plunged everyone present into deep silence.
Though few were gathered here, every single one of them understood the critical importance of the Astronomican to the Imperium.
Without the Astronomican, ships navigating the Warp would be like lone, fragile skiffs tossed on the sea, completely unable to discern direction.
At that point, where a ship might end up would be anyone's guess, and it could very well spark even greater catastrophes.
Guilliman and his sons felt sick with worry over this prospect, while the Navigators and psykers—who understood the Astronomican's importance all too well—were consumed by sheer terror.
For so long, many of them had only managed to preserve their minds and sanity by anchoring themselves to the Emperor's light.
If the Astronomican were plunged into darkness, and the sun's light was no longer visible within the Warp, what terrible price would the sanctioned psykers across the Imperium have to pay just to resist the temptations of Chaos?
With a single sentence, Malcador laid bare a sea of unknowns. No one dared guarantee that nothing would go wrong during that period, nor could anyone assure that Chaos wouldn't seize the opportunity to launch a full-scale invasion of the Imperium.
For the fragile Imperium of today, all of this was far, far too dangerous.
In just the few years the Astronomican remained extinguished, the Imperium might lose half of its realm.
Guilliman, endowed with sharp political acumen, suddenly smacked his forehead and said, "So collaborating with the Ynnari and Harlequin Troupes is to ensure we still have a method of faster-than-light travel during the Great Darkness, correct?"
"I see... If we can borrow the Eldar Webway, it indeed solves a mountain of problems!"
"At the very least, our fleets could offer limited support to worlds on the brink of falling!"
Hearing this answer, even Calgar and the others went quiet.
If the sun truly had to dim for a period of time, then seeking external alliances was indeed the only viable path.
At this moment, Guilliman fell into deep thought. He had also heard that Webway construction technology was crucial for the Imperium.
Realizing he could sell himself for such a high price, Guilliman's brain suddenly sparked with a bold idea.
"By the way, Regent Malcador!"
"When I went to the Imperial Palace earlier, I noticed Father turned into a girl!"
"If I find Father an Eldar stepmother... wouldn't we get to leech the Eldar's technology for free as a bonus?!"
[Emperor: Unfilial son...!!]
[Malcador: Genius...!]
Even the loli Emperor upon the throne couldn't stop his mouth from twitching erratically. If he could speak right now, he would surely unleash a torrent of furious curses at Guilliman, just like back during the Great Crusade!
In truth, this wasn't the first or second time Guilliman had uttered something mind-bogglingly foolish. Back in the Great Crusade, Guilliman used to drop even dumber lines!
His opening line back then was literally: "Do you guys not have mothers?"
That single sentence had almost broken everyone on the spot.
How devastating was that emotional damage? Forget his brothers—even the Emperor himself almost lost his mind.
Back then, the Emperor had grabbed Guilliman by the head, babbling in sheer disbelief.
Only for this guy to backtalk right back: "Sorry, Dad, I didn't know our biological mom ran off with someone else."
Silence-inducing, mind-breaking words always managed to spill effortlessly from this rational boy's mouth.
At that time, the Emperor had even prepared for Guilliman's potential betrayal, though the boy ultimately chose loyalty.
"Ahem, ahem!"
Malcador let out a couple of light coughs and continued, "Alright, go make the preparations!"
"While you are away, I will handle the political affairs of Terra on your behalf!"
"Next, you must defend the sector where Cadia resides."
"If that region falls, then I fear the Imperium of the future will only have half its territory left."
"Only half left? How is that possible?"
Guilliman found it hard to believe. Although the current Imperium was a chaotic mess with endless problems to solve, losing half of it felt a bit too extreme.
Guilliman didn't possess prophetic foresight, after all; his capabilities were grounded in processing real-time information.
"Whether half remains depends entirely on you all!"
"Although I cannot foresee the exact details of what will unfold, I can state with certainty that the other traitor brothers will participate in this battle!"
Hearing this, even Guilliman couldn't help but furrow his brows tightly.
Having learned some of the Warp's secrets, he knew that Prince Demons, having ascended to daemonhood, were immortal and indestructible.
By Guilliman's calculations, the traitor side had a full nine Daemon Primarchs!
Even if these Daemon Primarchs didn't move out en masse, just a fraction of them deploying would give him and Lion a massive headache.
Right now, Guilliman didn't even know if Sanguinius had resolved the issues in her own domain.
If only two Primarchs were sent to reinforce Cadia, it would likely be a grueling, brutal battle ahead.
---
Meanwhile—on Baal, the planet-terraforming initiative was in full swing.
The planet, which once reeked of crimson rust, had reclaimed its vitality under the influence of a miraculous power.
The forest previously conjured by Clovis had actually become the seed for this planet's transformation.
As the Gaia Planet Project progressed, Sanguinius's sons—having endured endless hardship—finally got to live in paradise.
"Phew, it really is unbelievable..." Dante murmured, gazing out at the distant mountains and breathtaking scenery, lost in thought.
He had never imagined a planet could ever be this beautiful.
Colossal mountains had been carved into angelic statues, while floating islands in the sky housed all manner of ecological gardens.
Every plot of land was filled with diverse biomes—here, you could find magnificent natural landscapes alongside repurposed, redesigned Hive Cities.
Here, you finally didn't have to pay for clean air.
Countless sweet fruits and wonderful living conditions had turned this place into a literal heaven on earth.
Compared to other worlds, even though only a little over half the transformation was complete, it was already a paradise.
Aside from the polar regions that were not yet fully renovated, the ecological environment here was not inferior to the ancient Terra of old.
Gazing afar at the new statue of Sanguinius radiating motherly grace, Dante couldn't help but sigh with deep emotion.
"Mother, if the other worlds of the Imperium could be transformed into such beautiful sights... then perhaps we truly can represent the Master of Mankind!"
"Though, Mother Sanguinius... if we do this so publicly, won't it draw hostility from the Imperium?"
"Hostility?" Sanguinius covered her crimson lips with a hand and let out a mysterious chuckle. "Ha, my child, you truly are amusing!"
"In truth, these strategies of mine were already discussed with Lion, Malcador, and Guilliman long ago!"
"The matter regarding Secundus was originally the Emperor's intention all along. The Emperor currently needs me to absorb a portion of the faith—this is the Emperor's command to us!"
When pronouncing the word command, Sanguinius laid heavy emphasis on it.
At the same time, she revealed the Emperor's deepest intent.
"The Emperor is not a god, nor can he ever be a god!"
Hearing these words, Dante froze.
The current Dante had lived far longer than Sanguinius had in this era. Over all these years, he knew all too well that the Emperor was practically indistinguishable from a deity.
Hearing this directly from his genetic mother now, Dante began to formulate a few guesses.
One was relatively mild: the Emperor wanted to prevent himself from becoming a god.
The other was utterly horrifying—so terrifying that even Dante didn't dare entertain the thought further.
"Understood, Primarch. Whatever choice you make, your sons will follow you unto eternity!"
With that, Dante spread his wings and bowed reverently before his mother.
That pair of pristine, angel-like white wings allowed all of Sanguinius's sons to become airborne combat units.
Moreover, these were no ordinary wings; they could manipulate surrounding kinetic forces to achieve flight without needing jump packs!
Of course, because most of Sanguinius's sons lacked warp-attuned powers, their flight duration wasn't particularly long.
However, the newly assembled Sanguinary Guard was selected specifically from Blood Angels who possessed long-term aerial capability.
In terms of individual combat prowess right now, the Angel's sons were likely the strongest among all Astartes.
While other chapters' sons couldn't even fly, your sons were born with wings—that was a massive gap.
Others still required drop pods to slam through the atmosphere violently.
Sanguinius's sons, on the other hand, could simply leap off a starship and fly to the target destination on their own.
"Rise, my sweet child!"
"You still have plenty of work to do. Mommy isn't very good at handling administrative affairs, so you might have to put in some extra overtime!"
"..."
Sanguinius didn't let her child kneel for long. After all, she was a very gentle, pleasant-faced mother.
Sanguinius gently cupped Dante's face with both hands.
She then spoke to him in a bizarre, motherly tone: "Goo-goo gaga~"
Seeing Dante almost coaxed into a literal infant by Sanguinius, even Caleb, who was watching from the chessboard, couldn't bear it any longer.
[Caleb: You're literally playing him like a fiddle here!]
[You used prophecy to figure out what the kid wanted, then simulated the scene based on memory, manipulating your child into worshipping the ground you walk on.]
[Sometimes you clearly just want to throw your child under the bus, yet you put on this act of a helpless, reluctant mother—you're way too dark-hearted! This isn't cool!]
There was no helping it; Caleb could read minds, and Sanguinius's little calculations were laid out entirely bare before his eyes.
Dante was completely wrapped around Sanguinius's little finger.
By now, Dante was the kind of god-tier worker who would feel guilty to the point of dying if he didn't work overtime.
Even though Sanguinius had coaxed Dante into an infant right now, when it came down to it, the overtime was brutally real!
When other people talked about "no days off for a month," they meant working hours.
For Dante, it meant he hadn't closed his eyes for an entire month.
Sanguinius was purely acting as a hands-off manager, tossing almost every duty to Dante to handle. Ah, absolute cruelty!
[Sanguinius: Ah, Mommy, don't say such things!]
[Aren't you doing the exact same thing?]
[We're in this together, on the same team! Let's not undermine each other!]
[Look at your child becoming such a good little boy—isn't that wonderful!]
While muttering her little secrets in her heart, Sanguinius gently comforted Dante with her hands as he wept tears of emotion.
Soon, Dante stood up, saluted his Primarch, and said, "I'll take my leave, Genetic Mother. I must go back to work. There are still several tons of documents awaiting my processing today. I will surely complete these tasks!"
With that, Dante departed with a powerful sense of mission. Even with the enhancements of the Sacred Blood, fatigue was clearly visible within his dark, sunken eyes.
Nowadays, whenever Dante fainted from overwork, Mommy would hand him a cup of Sacred Blood to revive him.
And every time Dante was saved by the Sacred Blood, he would feel immense guilt toward his Primarch.
"Sigh, this Dante is completely beyond saving!"
Looking at Dante—who felt guilty over even the slightest bit of slacking off—Caleb felt it was a tragic waste that Dante wasn't the Master of Mankind.
If all of humanity across the Imperium turned into Dante in the future...
Then what betrayal would you ever need to worry about?
Would you even need to fear corruption by the Chaos Gods?
"Heh!"
Caleb couldn't help but chuckle coldly.
Given the soothing tactics Dante had demonstrated, Sanguinius could easily soothe the entire population of the Imperium into infants.
By then, failing to work hard or failing to be thoroughly exploited by the Imperium would be seen as a sin.
Those people would only passionately seek guidance from Sanguinius, then frantically atone for their shortcomings before her.
Sanguinius's true form was originally a cluster of surrounding eyes; she could see fragments of the future and glimpses of prophecy.
Before a prophecy came to pass, Sanguinius was effectively immortal.
And now, Sanguinius had prophesied her own immortality.
Across the vast stretches of time, she could no longer see her own death, all the way to the end of the universe.
Thus, Sanguinius's mindset was actually absurdly chaotic and wild.
Sometimes, she would leave her children behind in the rear and drag them straight to the frontlines to go nuts chopping up Tyranids.
"Ah, whatever!"
"Besides the gray-skinned loli, we should also prepare a gray-skinned mature lady!"
"If Sanguinius knows everything, it won't be fun anymore. Why not let her guess what tomorrow's 'Mommy Emperor' will look like?"
Caleb couldn't out-talk Sanguinius, but that didn't mean he couldn't mess with the Emperor.
Sanguinius had high emotional intelligence, but that didn't mean the Emperor did!
The mind of the Legendary Lover King was quite different from Sanguinius's.
On the surface, Sanguinius cared for everyone, but deep inside, she was indifferent to many things.
Sanguinius's core personality was much closer to a dark-hearted troll seeking entertainment.
The Emperor, on the other hand, was a conflicted mess constantly bouncing back and forth between humanity and superhumanity.
Say the Emperor loves humanity? The people below live in utter misery. Say he doesn't love humanity? For humanity's survival, he was willing to go on endless crusades and sit upon the Golden Throne.
[Caleb: Sigh—I'm sure you already know, but you should prepare to stop Abaddon's Black Legion.]
[Even though he's just small fry to you, the other traitor brothers will join that game!]
With that, Caleb didn't feel like bothering with Sanguinius anymore, because this dark-hearted Sanguinius would genuinely tease her father!
[Sanguinius: Understood!]
Sanguinius waved her hand, quietly arranging the outfits for her other sisters.
Among them were many outfits Sanguinius had painstakingly designed herself—
Including a certain someone's bunny girl suit!