Emperor's Bane

Chapter 548 The Perfect City Must Die

+So you just sat back and let this shit happen? +
[Didn't you do the same thing? If you hadn't kept silent and indulged her all along, how could the Perfect City be built under Terra's nose? We have to mobilize our troops now.]

When the Spider Queen's vision swept across the dense, locust-like light spots of warships on the auspicious instrument, even though she was standing beside the Emperor at the moment, Morgan's voice was still extremely confident: even to some extent, it overwhelmed her genetic father.

[More than a thousand warships, four Glorious Queens, no less than 200,000 Astartes warriors, and a hundred times more mortal soldiers and logistics personnel: if you had made up your mind to take action in the first few years of the construction of the Perfect City, we would only need to mobilize one-tenth of the force here. ]

+You think this is my fault? +
[I dare not jump to conclusions, after all, I do not understand your mental journey, but judging from the development of the situation and the subsequent impact, you have chosen the worst method: apart from other things, the Lord of Mankind openly led such a huge military force to publicly punish a Primarch and his legion. Have you ever thought about the impact of this behavior on the Empire and the Primarchs? ]

[This is not a private reprimand, or a serious conversation between father and son. This is a punishment under the coercion of weapons, a paramilitary action without any human touch: As long as these warships surround the Perfect City, do you think the father-son relationship between you and Luo Jia can still be maintained? ]

[Even in the most gentle royal family, after fighting, the father and son are no different from enemies: Therefore, I cannot understand why you dragged things to this extent, dragging a matter that could have been resolved with a private conversation to the point where it required the deployment of several legions and thousands of warships.]

Although she was still smiling, Morgan's words were not gentle, and could even be considered presumptuous. Fortunately, the Lord of Mankind had already dismissed the guards around him: and the reason why the Primarch was so angry was very simple, that is, she could not understand the Emperor's "folly". In Morgan's view, this was even more outrageous than the Emperor's actions on Nuceria.

Whose stomach have you been living in for these tens of thousands of years?

Morgan barely managed to suppress the curse word under his angry face.

Did her father really think he could maintain a father-son relationship with Luo Jia after such a high-profile confrontation? Or did he simply not care about Luo Jia's loyalty?

Then again, even if we exclude the insignificant fellow, the Great Spokesman, and just look at it from the perspective of the other Primarchs, wouldn't Lorgar's brothers be disheartened by the open conflict between father and son in Perfect City?
Are you still planning to lead the team?

When Morgan thought of this, he felt his teeth itching with hatred.

In the final analysis, how many Primarchs would really care about Lorgar and his beliefs, and what far-reaching impact they would have on the Imperium of Mankind? The Imperial Truth is just lip service to most people. On the contrary, the Emperor's behavior that tore apart the face of the father-son relationship was seen clearly by everyone.

+Two reasons.+
+We walked and talked. +
The Lord of Mankind was not angry at his daughter's rudeness and outspokenness. He was accustomed to this way of getting along, and even relied on it to some extent. After quietly witnessing the assembly of various fleets, and even the "Macragge's Glory" at the end, entering the pre-arranged position, the Emperor took his daughter away from the battleship's control console and shuttled through the giant city cluster of the "Emperor's Vision" that was full of statues and war temples.

They each called upon their psychic powers, and each other's figures appeared and disappeared, wandering back and forth between the silent engine room and the automatic programs of various systems, until their footsteps finally stopped on a high platform that could overlook fifteen squares at the same time. This place was very secluded and was not even on the patrol route of the Imperial Guards.

+Some things can only be properly discussed here. +
The Emperor obviously liked this place very much, and he might have rested here often, because Morgan could see some things that were out of tune with the glory and splendor of the Emperor's Dream in those places that she could reach out to, such as a torn notebook and a board game that was not very exquisitely made. The Primarch was very curious, whether her gene-father would bring others to this place again?

But the Lord of Mankind was obviously not interested in answering his daughter's inner questions. He leaned on the balcony. Thousands of feet below him were slaves and mortals as densely packed as a colony of migrating ants. The blue-green exterior of Monacia was also taken into the edge of their vision. The planet was surrounded by thousands of warships.

+The first reason may sound ridiculous to you, Morgan: It is precisely because I have more expectations for Luo Jia and the father-son relationship between us that I indulge him so much, whether in Colchis or in the final solution for the Perfect City. +
【I can understand this.】

Morgan nodded.

She knew that the Emperor had not lied. One point that was more counterintuitive was that Lorgar had indeed obtained a Primarch who had received more of the Emperor's private time. When the Lord of Mankind found him, he stayed on Colchis for a full month and even tolerated the Colchis people holding a grand worship ceremony in the name of him, the "god".

Anyway, Morgan felt that this kind of worship ceremony in front of the Emperor was much more superior than the Perfect City: she had to suspect that the Emperor's improper treatment of Luo Jia was also the result of long-term accumulation of personal emotions.

[If that's the case, then why are you dealing with Perfect City now? ]

＋Because we don’t have enough time. ＋
The Emperor shook his head, and after sweeping his gaze across the hundreds of thousands of mortals below, he returned to his daughter: it was a kind of indifference, calculation, and vastness that Morgan could not describe in any words, a majesty that could make the Primarch willingly bow his head and accept teachings like a primary school student.

is truly: the Lord of mankind.

+ I know that both you and the brothers behind you are very suspicious of why I want to deal with Perfect City at this time: not when it has just started construction, not when the Word Bearers are stranded here, but when the Word Bearers have left Perfect City for a long time, choosing this time point that is not justified. +
+ Moreover, among the many reasons I gave, I don't think any of them can truly convince you, the Primarchs. +
【I really doubt this.】

Morgan tilted his head.

[As you said, you have plenty of time to deal with the issues concerning the Perfect City, instead of waiting until it is already a done deal. As for your excuses, neither of your two excuses is very tenable, whether it is faith or efficiency.]

[If you don't want Lorgar to promote your worship, then your behavior of indulging the Omnissiah faith is completely unconvincing. If you are dissatisfied with the expedition efficiency of the Word Bearers Legion, then you should go directly to the 17th Legion itself instead of taking it out on the Perfect City: unless you have deeper concerns behind this. ]

+...+
+I thought none of you Primarchs would be able to tell. +
The Emperor carried his daughter on his back, his laughter sending chills down Morgan's spine.

+ This is the second reason, my daughter: If the reason why I am emotionally unwilling to deal with Perfect City is because I am concerned about the father-son relationship between Luo Jia and me, then what urges me to rationally turn a blind eye to Perfect City is another reason that cannot be said. +
+That is…+
The Emperor paused.

+This city is useful to me. +
＋At least, the Perfect City was useful to me.＋
【…】

The Primarch raised her head, there was a hint of astonishment on her face, but not much. Instead, there was a kind of clarity, as written on her face: "As expected."

[So, this is why you tolerate the Perfect City and the Word Bearers Legion: at least in the past, they were useful to you, and now that this value has disappeared, you naturally won't tolerate the continued existence of this place? ]

"That's it."

The Emperor smiled.

"Think about it, my daughter. If I really hated any religion as I appeared to do, then, not to mention the issue of faith on Mars, why didn't I speak out to stop Lorgar from returning to the Seventeenth Legion and transforming the Iconoclasts who were breaking superstition into Word Bearers who were preaching scriptures and prayers? +

＋Even further back, on Colchis, why didn't I stop Lorgar's fanatical pursuit of faith? ＋

【……because……】

[Because you need a believer: a Primarch-level believer? ]

The Lord of Avalon was silent for a long time before she stammered out the answer. Even Morgan, who had always been unconventional, was slightly frightened by the truth she revealed. But she had to admit that this kind of careful consideration seemed to be worthy of the true face of the Emperor.

+This is a secret that cannot be told, my dear daughter. +
The Emperor turned and smiled at his most trusted son.

＋Because, as you said, I do need a believer: Although from my personal perspective, I don’t like being worshipped as a god, this does not mean that there is no place for faith in my countless plans and contingency plans. ＋
＋In fact: Faith plays a large part in my numerous plans. ＋
[So, the perfect city is also one of your plans? ]

+That's right. +
The emperor readily admitted it.

＋Since the idea of ​​the Great Crusade first came to my mind, I have been planning different plans to deal with different outcomes of the Great Crusade: so far, there may be thousands of these plans, and I am just implementing the blueprint of the Great Crusade in reality according to the best plan I have imagined. ＋
[Imperial Truth?]

When the Primarch said this, she had to suppress the smile on her lips: In fact, to this day, Morgan still thinks that the Imperial Truth is a complete joke, and the Spider Queen has never had the slightest interest in the task of actively promoting the Imperial Truth in Avalon, which makes her an alternative religious toleranceist.

+You have to admit it, Morgan. +
The Emperor sighed. + If it can be implemented, the Imperial Truth is definitely the best route. It is the most perfect gift I can give to mankind: So even if the success rate is very slim, I will spare no effort to promote the spread of the Imperial Truth. +
[But this does not mean that you will put all your hopes on the Imperial Truth? ]

Morgan nodded.

[So, you left Luo Jia behind, which means you left behind the seeds of faith? ]

"That's it."

The Emperor bent down and supported his hands on the railing. His magnificent and tall body seemed a little old at this moment: Morgan was shocked to find that the Great Crusade was indeed taking away the vitality of her genetic father. He was no longer the mysterious and powerful man who made the Primarch tremble as he had been when they had just met. His golden armor also showed obvious signs of ruthless erosion by the long years of the Great Crusade.

＋It is better to say that it is just like the battleship under our feet: the Imperial Truth is the most wonderful fantasy in my mind, but I also know how difficult it is to realize it, so even for the sake of the human empire, I must leave behind the most feasible plan. ＋
＋One: Bottom line solution. ＋
【Belief?】

"Yeah: faith."

The emperor shook his head helplessly, with obvious bitterness in his smile.

"No matter how many times I have publicly denied the significance of religion, even I have to admit over the past tens of thousands of years that in those most chaotic, darkest and most ignorant times, religion is the most powerful tool to unite people and the minimum threshold required to spread good virtues. A unified religion can even maintain a magnificent empire spanning the entire galaxy."

＋Do you know what this means? ＋
The Primarch did not hesitate.

[This means that even if your Great Crusade is a complete failure, even if the human empire can only continue to be trapped by inefficient communication systems and weak transportation systems for the next 10,000 years, and become an old galactic Leviathan, as long as a religion spanning the galaxy can still exist, the empire will still have enough centripetal force to make the various imperial worlds still recognize that they are a whole. ]

[Perhaps among the tens of thousands of imperial worlds, their languages, thoughts, political systems and social customs will be completely different, but as long as there is a unified religion, a religion that at least unifies the object of worship, which can give these worlds the most basic centripetal force, then the empire will not completely fall apart: and as long as the empire does not lose its huge size advantage, then the entire human race will continue to survive even in the worst galaxy. ]

＋Actually, violence is also OK, but it is more uncontrollable than faith. ＋
+...+
Then the Emperor looked at his daughter.

＋How long did it take you to figure out all that you said? ＋

【Within three microseconds of you asking the question, Father.】

＋I'm so proud. ＋
It was hard to tell whether the Lord of Mankind's voice was a compliment or sarcasm.

＋But, you are absolutely right. ＋
+Faith is the safety net I set up for mankind in the abyss. I certainly don't want the cause I have been fighting for all my life to end up falling into the abyss, but I can't ignore the future: if the Great Crusade ends in failure, then a mature religious system will also avoid the arrival of the second era of conflict to the greatest extent. +
[So, this is the meaning of Lorgar and his Word Bearers Legion? ]

＋It wasn’t originally like this. ＋
The emperor felt a little lost.

＋But when I witnessed Lorgar's condition on Colchis, I had to put this plan on the agenda: I know how difficult it is to convert a believer, even if he is a completely wrong believer, so it is better to make the best of a bad situation and let Lorgar's religion become one of the potential escape routes for the entire human race. ＋
[In that case…]

Morgan still felt a little strange.

[Why did you impose excommunication on the Perfect City? Aren’t Lorgar and his Word Bearers legion expanding the empire’s territory in disguise along the route you have drawn for them? How can they be punished?]

＋Are you sure? ＋

Once again, the Lord of Mankind looked straight at his daughter. The incomparably sharp edge in his golden pupils made Morgan shrink his neck involuntarily, trying hard to recall what he had said wrong: facing this emperor who opened his heart, even the Lord of Avalon did not dare to make a fuss anymore.

[So, this is the fundamental reason why you decided to destroy the Perfect City? ]

+ Of course. +
The emperor nodded, and his voice became extremely cold.

+The reason why I chose to destroy the Perfect City at this time was not because of the inefficiency of the Word Bearers, nor because of Lorgar's fanaticism for religion: it was precisely because Lorgar disappointed me in terms of religion. +
+His enthusiasm was completely misplaced. He did not accomplish the goal I designed for him. The foundation of his faith did not revolve around me as a god, but around the worship of absolute power. This led to his entire religious system being crooked, completely crooked from the root. +
＋It's too easy to be taken advantage of. It's not safe at all. ＋
The Lord of Mankind shook his head.

+ He has neither built a religious system that can function reasonably nor designed a completely self-consistent religious theory. He does not even understand the true nature of religion. Even if I were a true god, I would be angry at what Lorgar did: he actually ignored my orders for the Great Crusade and devoted his energy to his so-called missionary work and the construction of the Perfect City. +
+ If Lorgar was truly a qualified believer, if he could understand my most important instructions to him, then the Word Bearers should have been one of the most outstanding legions in the Great Crusade, instead of being the last one as it is now: If Lorgar does not even meet the basic standards as a believer, how could he possibly complete the mission I placed my hopes on him? +

＋So, religion is not the reason for the destruction of the perfect city. ＋
＋Luo Jia’s incompetence is the real reason. ＋
【……All right. 】

【This doesn’t surprise me. 】

Morgan shrugged.

So, what you mean is...

+ It was Luo Jia's incompetence that made me decide to give up the religion route, because the religion that Luo Jia spread not only could not become a retreat for mankind in this galaxy, but has become a burden to the entire human empire. +
＋If that's the case, then why should we keep the Perfect City? ＋

【…】

The Primarch listened to these words and fell into long thoughts.

[You mean to say that Luo Jia's actions made you lose hope of success in the religious path you set up for him, so you decided to give up your support for the religious path and decided to destroy the Perfect City and force Luo Jia back to the right path of the Great Crusade? ]

＋Just making use of his remaining energy. ＋
The Emperor closed his eyes.

【That……】

【What if we can get Luo Jia back on his feet on religious issues? 】

+...+
The emperor turned around, as if he had expected his daughter's smile.

+Is this in your plan? +

【Maybe. 】

Morgan smiled, and then took out the thin script that he had written long ago from his pocket.

【but no matter……】

[We still have one last chance, don't we? ]

(End of this chapter)