Emperor's Bane

Chapter 160
negotiation.

negotiate.

compromise.

replacement.

Morgan has heard of these words, and she has even witnessed the meaning and process of these words with her own eyes: the meaningless evasion and cover-up between those mortals, and the usual groups of mediocre people.

In her [home planet], the home planet she chose by herself, the decayed Garden of Eden that indulged in chivalry, noble blood, cumbersome philosophy and vanity coat of arms, she had witnessed those so-called exquisite In terms of transactions and great negotiations, she has witnessed how those courtiers and frontier uncles took off their masks of nobility and virtue in the safe room they thought were extremely private, and used interests and greed as bargaining chips, and then fought with each other.

For these situations, she actually doesn't have any more disgust, because long before she chose this [home planet] for herself, she was able to get a general understanding of this ordinary world in the sea of ​​souls. A country completely blinded, enslaved, and even inspired by lies and illusions.

The noblest, bravest, and simplest knight, and the humblest, greediest, and treacherous sycophant: in her scales these characters weighed equally.

When she grew up, when she walked to the front of the stage in the long boring time, and gradually turned her adoptive father who was a [perfect knight] into a statue, those respectful courtiers also came to her : She can clearly see in their pupils the greed and recklessness of flirting, snooping, and even eager to take her as the highest prize.

And all of this is covered up in the weak vocabulary called [admonition], [deal], [negotiation], or [political art] in the ordinary population.

Over time, or in other words, when Morgan got tired of these meaningless words rampant in front of her, she knew in an instant how to face these so-called "negotiations" that appeared in front of her.

And this time, no exception.

[Talk about it? 】

Although still separated by a very long distance, Morgan's will can already be felt very clearly. Some situations inside that [Fate Engine] are enough to make her salivate, but being blocked here makes the Spider Queen's mood In the beginning, it wasn't particularly good.

Morgan smiled, but there was a strange feeling on that flawless face. If Coswayne saw it, he would be able to see it immediately: now, the smile of the Spider Queen only represents danger.

Fatal danger.

"Negotiate, trade, cooperate."

The voice in the void is still speaking, or it is just a simple echo, it is like a sophisticated but ancient instrument, in the cold space full of rust, it confides that it has long been Well-designed words and commands.

"This is meaningful to us, Soul Drinker, whether it's you or me, we all have something we want, and your goals and mine don't conflict for the time being."

"We can be a bargain with each other for a long time to come."

The hoarse, indifferent and orderly voice echoed in the sea of ​​souls, and before it completely dissipated, Morgan's colder laughter completely dispelled it.

【negotiation? 】

【Then, before that, you can tell me, you bragging little god in the subspace. 】

【what's your name? 】

"My name is Vashtor, the ruler of the furnace in the boundless ocean, my priesthood is not self-appointed, but..."

【stop. 】

Morgan waved her hand, stifling the twisted steel hissing that kept her irritated.

[Vashtor, very good. 】

【Let me tell you my attitude. 】

Before the words were finished, an invisible fire that could burn a whole world burst out from the spider queen's blue pupils. This flame turned into a shrill arrow that pierced the soul of all things, and in an instant, the remaining body of the Lord of the Furnace was destroyed. Here the voice and will were completely torn into pieces.

This wasn't such a powerful blow, it was just the most casual glance of Morgan's endless will. With such an extremely relaxed soul swing, Morgan could eject dozens of blows in one breath.

And when she saw that the remnant soul left by the will of the self-proclaimed Lord of the Furnace couldn't even resist this slightly serious blow, the Spider Queen knew what attitude to use to face it. The Lord of the Furnace has negotiated with its so-called [Negotiation].

Before the noisy afterimage completely dissipated, Morgan opened her mouth so that her voice and attitude could be heard clearly by the Furnace Master lurking in the subspace.

[Whether it is a negotiation or a transaction. 】

【It's just a way to subjugate between powerful beings. 】

[I know that I am just a humble dust in front of the real overlords in this galaxy, but this does not mean that I will maintain my humility and obedience at every moment, nor does it mean , I will put a smile on the lowly ones. 】

[And if, you can show me only these, only the most humble will that can't resist even my random blow, the master of the furnace. 】

[Then go back to your flames as soon as possible. 】

------

"..."

There was no rage, no snarling, and none of the hysteria and malevolent curses that are so common in the Warp.

Only the roar of the furnace and the friction of the gears are running without any fluctuations, like a will that can never be disturbed.

When Morgan's words reached the Furnace Master, after a brief silence, he gave an unusually calm, even sincere answer.

"Did your will and thought make you make such a choice, Soul Drinker?"

"Fine, I see."

"Next time, I will change my attitude and strength. This negotiation has not yet come to an end. Soul drinker, I will come to you again soon. We can still continue this negotiation and transaction."

"You will see my strength, and of course we can conduct our transactions on an equal footing."

"But at that time, my conditions will not be as generous as this time."

"But, before that, please accept the gift I prepared for you."

"Of course, if your strength is not worthy of your attitude and status, then this gift is the only reward for buying your destiny and future."

"Goodbye."

"Soul drinker."

------

With no more whispers, no more lies and anger, the Lord of the Forge of the Warp ended this unpleasant conversation without hesitation, which even made Morgan's brows slowly start to wrinkle.

Compared with the gods and filth that inhabited the sea of ​​souls that she had seen, this Furnace Master, who was hurrying back and forth in front of her, was exceptional...

sincere.

The soul drinker's thinking paused for a second because of this abrupt conversation, but she quickly realized her main task now.

[Engine of Destiny] is there.

She breathed and took a step forward, the wide distance enough to crowd millions of lives was nothing more than a matter of thought to her will.

just now.

within reach.

Morgan raised her head, and she had come before this collection of pure pain.

[Engine of Destiny], it looks like an overly bloody hive city, with just a cursory glance, you can see tens of thousands of souls surrounding it, dragged by some kind of force, suffering And struggling feebly, howling.

And this is just a drop in the ocean that was left out during the construction of this terrifying soul device.

Morgan took a deep breath, and she pulled out all her will, and put it in a safe enough place for the future.

then.

She went in.

into hell.

------

hell.

Purgatory.

place of madness
Except for these palest words and adjectives, Morgan couldn't find any expression to describe what she saw at first glance.

It is not chaotic here, it can even be called neat and rigorous, with wide roads connecting one after another spiraling spiers in the most standard format, just like a near-future city appearing in an art exhibition, as long as Breathing lightly, you can even feel a gust of wind blowing over your lips and cheeks: even these wind sounds are the most orderly, blowing over and over again with a unique frequency.

If you take a closer look, you can also find the monuments used as signs, the towers as the center, and even the wide square and the conveyor belt in the sky.

In short, this might be a place Perturabo would love.

Of course, all of this requires ignoring some small details.

For example, these seemingly wide and tidy roads are somewhat smooth to step on: because they are made of eyeballs, and the kernels of each eyeball have been gouged out, and the hollows and deep depressions have turned into mournful ones. Mouth, constantly pouring out painful wailing.

What those wind sounds bring is not the refreshing coolness, but a kind of dampness that weeps in agony in the despair of dying. Each wind sound is twisted together by thousands of [dampness] , if you can prick up your ears and listen carefully, you can even clearly distinguish these wind sounds...

It seems extremely immature.

Every time the breeze blows, thousands of [children] are caressing the face.

Afterwards, when your senses slowly move forward in this well-ordered hive city, you can still see more beautiful scenery: those monuments built with the tendons and bones of creatures, those who will Flesh and steel are fused together, high-rise buildings that fit seamlessly together, and those silent conveyor belts: tens of thousands of lives are squeezed into a space hundreds of meters square by unprecedented technology, which is what shapes this perfect The best method for the device.

Morgan watched it all.

Incomparably indifferent.

Beside her ears, there may be billions of voices screaming and howling, constantly questioning, condemning and beseeching this alien living being with various voices, longing for her to be one of them.

And the Spider Queen just glanced at it with the coldest attitude, and glanced at these existences that were enough to make any Astartes warrior feel the most instinctive nausea and nausea, and then, she whispered, commanding her own will , advancing toward the deepest point.

------

This situation is indeed very terrible, disgusting, and sinful.

But compared to what Morgan has watched and witnessed countless times, the pastimes and entertainments performed by those ancient Eldar races countless years ago.

Still too merciful.

Morgan can even witness the increasingly terrifying scene with a careful and analytical eye during the gap between her advances: every time her will advances a little further, the scene in front of her will be at least ten times more terrifying.

But along the way, the Spider Queen's biggest emotion for these crazy and disorderly scenes is nothing more than:
If all this is really the work of Vashtor, who claims to be the Lord of the Forge.

Then it is indeed a very good planning master and architectural artist.

Subtle!

------

For any creature, the moment they step into the [Destiny Engine], their rationality will be subjected to the harshest and most brutal test and blow, and nightmarish scenes will emerge endlessly until the San value of any visitor is completely destroyed.

But it's a pity.

This time the visitor.

It seems that there is no san value.

------

But in a short while, when the Space Wolves on the ground were finally about to touch the edge of the [Destiny Engine], when the scarlet Randan Lieyang finally broke through the final curtain and the shackles of gravity, and moved towards the When moving forward here.

Morgan came to the core and deepest corner of this flesh and blood city.

Here, there are the only souls that have not fallen into death and madness. They are the only guardians. The strength of each guardian is comparable to the best among the proudest and most trusted golden creations of the Lord of Humanity.

indeed so.

Morgan licked his fingertips, still thinking about it.

She stepped forward, and the gift that the master of the furnace claimed was waiting for her.

It made a sound.

"welcome."

This is not a sound that a real life can make, it is just a mere artificial object imitating the knowledge that its creators inadvertently taught.

This gift, it didn't say more words, it used a more concise and clear method to reveal everything it wanted to say in front of Morgan.

------

Caliban.

Fire of the Old Gods.

Ancient abomination.

Destruction and creation.

The desire of the provocateur.

Selfishness.

engine.

Tuchucha engine.

Ouroboros.

bleak forest.

key.

three keys.

The gods laughed and wept.

------

"Three worlds are shattered, and the cages set up by the servants of the Ruinous Power have fallen at the feet of time: except one, and we, already fled, already on the run, already waiting for new masters, to use us, to admit Us, make us one."

"Find us, you can do all this, you have the qualifications."

"The Engine of Dissonance."

"Find, assemble, acquire."

"This is the greatest treasure, the key to the past and the future: you are one of the potential masters of it all."

"Find us, the remaining elements are nothing but casual things."

"I'm waiting for you."

Everything was less than a thought jump, and when Morgan blinked again, the so-called gift had gradually disappeared.

It is not an entity, but a phantom where the treasure remains: like that Vashtor.

In the end, only a faint voice surrounded her ears.

That is a location, a location that exists in the sea of ​​souls and the real universe.

And, an introduction.

"at last."

"Welcome, goodbye."

"Introduce yourself."

"My name: Plague Heart."

　The state of the past few days is very bad: the tooth leaks the nerve, the root of the tooth is inflamed, and there is a little high fever.

　　In short, wait for me to get through these few days (cover face)

　　
　
(End of this chapter)