Emperor's Bane

Chapter 684 The Rebels (Part )

"A new position?"

"Of course, I would love my new position: who wouldn't like the feeling of holding more power in their hands? Since the Emperor has taken the initiative to give us power, there is no reason for us not to have it."

"It's always good to be in a high position."

"There is no credibility in these words coming from your mouth, Chagatai."

The Great Speaker Luo Jia clasped his hands tightly together, always in a praying posture. He had a smile on his face, and it was unclear whether he was smiling because he was pleased with the imperial army passing by him, or he was subtly mocking the insincerity of his blood brother beside him.

Chagatai Khan did not respond. He seemed to have a natural lack of interest in discussing or arguing with his brothers. Many times, people even forgot that he could speak: Luo Jia still clearly remembered that when Chagatai Khan and the White Scars Legion led their fleet to Ullanor, an unprecedented wave of movement arose among the mortal troops.

They are confused.

Confused about who Chagatai Khan is.

It was incredible, because when Lorgar heard the confusion of the mortals, he was actually lost in a moment of confusion, and then he remembered that Jagatai Khan was his brother: the Primarch of the White Scars seemed to be born with the magical power to hide from the sight of others, coupled with his elusive offspring, no matter how great their achievements were, the people in the heart of the empire never seemed to face up to the terrible threat of the Fifth Legion.

Guilliman would have envied such treatment.

Lorgar chuckled, and he couldn't help but think of the brother who almost had a conflict with him in the City of Perfection: in the heart of the Great Bearer, the Lord of the Five Hundred Worlds occupied a very special position, so that no matter which brother he was thinking about, he would inexplicably associate it with Guilliman.

Hmm...weird...

Lorgar faced this problem and thought carefully about his feelings towards Guilliman.

Hate? Not really.

Friendship? No.

Scorn? That's too much.

After much hesitation and thinking, Lorgar could only come to a conclusion that was a stretch and not necessarily tenable: Perhaps, he was just envious of Guilliman's shrewdness and ability in dealing with worldly affairs, and at the same time he sighed at the ignorance of this iron-headed man.

If he could have the same management level as that Macragge, or even a little bit worse, he would have been able to spread the perfect city of his dreams to hundreds of worlds decades ago and complete the holy war mission entrusted to him by the God-Emperor.

On the other hand, if there was a seed of enlightenment in Guilliman's mind, allowing the two of them to work together sincerely, then it would not be difficult to achieve this goal: but fate likes to make things difficult for selfless contributors like him. The God-Emperor did not give Lorgar the same talent for governing the country as Guilliman, or in other words, Guilliman, a mediocre and arrogant person, occupied the excellent talents that he did not deserve.

This is the fact. The greatest advantage of the Macragge people is nothing more than his usual good luck: if he was not born in Ultramar, how could Guilliman achieve such a career? If Ultramar was handed over to the Word Bearers, Lorgar guaranteed that he would achieve greater achievements.

However, there was no need for him to feel sorry for himself over such a small matter.

Even in the desert-covered Colchis and the Taiping star field where the Empire's control is the weakest, the Great Speaker has the ability to create a true paradise on earth: this is not a fantasy, he is already doing so, and the initial results are very impressive, which gives Luo Jia the confidence to stand proudly among his brothers at this time.

Sooner or later he would amaze them.

Especially Guilliman: he would admire the Word Bearers' cause from the bottom of his heart!
Let him marvel at Luo Jia!
This is his dream for the future.

And now, at least when facing the likes of Chagatai Khan, the Great Huaishen can still make the final blow with a smile on his face.

Lorgar turned his head, his eyes brushing lightly against the ranks of Dark Angels in front of the reviewing stand, and first observed the conversation between Horus, Ferrus, and Fulgrim not far away: he saw the Phoenix Army standing joyfully between his two closest blood brothers, with its arms tightly clasped around Horus and Ferrus respectively, guiding them to shake hands and make peace under his gaze.

Lorgar wasn't quite sure what kind of agreement the Wolf God and the Gorgon could reach under the mediation of the Phoenix, but considering that their two fiefdoms actually had a fairly long border, it should be related to this: The Great Speaker belatedly remembered that the kingdom of Ferrus seemed to be a neighbor of the heaven on earth that he had demarcated in the Milky Way.

The Gorgons even occupied some of the territories that originally belonged to the Word Bearers.

Of course, this contains some political conspiracies that Lorgar despises: the Iron Hands' home planet was originally in the northern Misty Star Region. Although it was relatively close to the Pacific Star Region, Ferrus' rule never extended here: from the moment Lorgar returned, the Pacific Star Region became a trophy exclusively for the Word Bearers.

It was not until the God-Emperor decided to grant them large tracts of land in the Milky Way that the Sigillites and High Lords suddenly changed the kingdom that originally belonged to Ferrus: a large area in the east was given to Horus and Jonson, and instead, a new territory was drawn for the kingdom of Ferrus in the northern part of the Pacific Segmentum further west, which served as a solid bridgehead.

As a result, the Gorgon's territory moved a long way westward, from the original simple Hazy Star Region to a country spanning the Hazy and Pacific Star Regions: the entire Pacific Star Region was no longer the back garden of the Word Bearers Legion, and the powerful Iron Hands became their neighbors.

The subtle thoughts behind this point of Holy Terra are self-evident: the Sigillites and the High Lords do not want to see the Word Bearers Legion monopolizing the entire Pacific Segmentum, especially considering that most of the powerful and threatening Primarchs are sealed off on the east side of Holy Terra. Then the Word Bearers on the west side of Terra actually serve as an ecological niche that is a thorn in their side, and Ferrus' new land will effectively restrain them.

And Ferrus's loyalty is unquestionable.

After the transfer treaty was released, Gorgon, who had never been interested in ruling mortals, naturally accepted everyone who came. Presumably, the agreement he reached with Horus at this time was also the aftermath of this transfer: after taking over part of the land left by Ferrus, the entire northern part of the galaxy, equivalent to most of the star field, would be under the influence of the Wolf God.

Didn't Terra ever think of checking him?

Lorgar shook his head. He did not feel anything about it. The disputes and harassment of worldly power were not enough to arouse his emotions. In fact, he was still carefully thinking about whether he could help Horus: The Great Bearer had been considering forming an expeditionary force similar to the Crusades with his most fanatical warriors, and sending them to support the few remaining stalemate fronts in the Great Crusade.

There is no doubt that the vast wolf kingdom will be a wonderful battlefield for them.

Horus would not refuse.

Luo Jia made up his mind and planned to go talk to the Wolf God later: but before that, his eyes needed to stay on Chagatai Khan for a while. He respected this brother who was famous for his calmness and wisdom, and hoped to see the seeds of enlightenment in him.

But as soon as the words came out, they were full of contempt and ridicule for the Khan's previous remarks.

"Seriously, Chagatai: do you really want to govern the country the God-Emperor has entrusted to you?"

Lorgar smiled, and the Khan, unsurprisingly, chose not to respond. He focused all his attention on the World Eaters, which appeared second only to the Dark Angels: this legion, known for its cold and hard attitude in normal times and its fanatical spirit in battle, had a record that every Primarch present admired.

But what really attracted Jaghatai Khan was not this incident, but the salute to the Emperor and the Primarchs when the troops of the XIIth Legion passed the Iron Platform: every legion would salute the Emperor and all the Primarchs, but the Sons of Angron were different.

Their tribute was brief, with the most enthusiastic tribute going to their Primarch, and then distributed equally to the others: yes, even the Lord of Mankind himself was only given the most basic respect by the World Eaters. The children of Angron looked at the Emperor with eyes full of loyalty and admiration, but compared to the fanaticism of the previous legions, their attitude seemed too calm.

"What's going on, brother?"

Such a situation naturally caused subtle discussions among the Primarchs, and Lorgar was perhaps the one who reacted most violently. Before the Emperor himself could say anything, the Great Speaker was already looking at Angron with dissatisfaction.

He did not rebuke, but only asked his misguided brother with some heartache: he respected Angron's military strength and did not want to see his legion lose its fanaticism for the Emperor.

But Angron did not answer him.

In fact, the Primarch of the World Eaters Legion remained silent as death from the beginning of the parade. He did not communicate with any of his brothers, and when faced with the cheers and salutes of his sons, he only nodded as the most basic response. Angron, who was standing across Chagatai Khan from Lorgar, responded to his brother with an indifferent look.

“It’s their decision.”

Angron's voice was hoarse, so hoarse that Luo Jia was stunned. He was no longer concerned about the mistakes just now, but was worried about his brother's current physical condition.

“Angron, you…”

"fine."

Angron rejected it outright.

"I just want to tell you that I will not interfere with the daily operations of the Legion. This is their own decision, and it has nothing to do with their attitude towards the Emperor: my soldiers like to be down-to-earth, and they have no talent for verbal performances."

"That's very World Eater, isn't it?"

For the first time ever, the Khan standing between the two men actually spoke up, taking over Angron's words and nodding towards Lorgar.

"Besides, Aurelion, there is no need for you to keep a close eye on the World Eaters. Didn't you notice that among the dozen or so Astartes Legions that passed by before, the ones who cheered the Emperor the most enthusiastically were the veterans of Terra who had made outstanding contributions? Those new blood warriors who joined in the later period of the Great Crusade also cheered for the Emperor's attention, but they were definitely not enthusiastic."

"This is due to your negligence."

The big talker was dismissive.

"My legion doesn't make such mistakes!"

Khan smiled and did not respond to the provocation in Luo Jia's words.

"You have to get used to this, brother. Compared to the Terran veterans, these soldiers who come from the same home planet as us, or the new recruits who were recruited later, lack a practical concept and respect for the Emperor. They have never fought side by side with the Lord of Mankind. Since they became conscious, the greatest people they have witnessed are their respective Primarchs. Therefore, in the hearts of these warriors, it is natural to regard the Primarch as more important than the Emperor."

"This is not right, Chagatai."

Luo Jia frowned quickly.

"The Divine Emperor is the only one in the Empire. He is the pinnacle and ruler of the Empire, and we are just believers, assistants and generals. If in the hearts of these most basic warriors, the status of generals like us is higher than that of the Divine Emperor, what kind of chaos will it cause?"

"This will be taken advantage of by someone with ulterior motives!"

"Don't worry, they are not that fragile."

The Khan was quite open-minded. "Or do you think we are really capable of threatening the Emperor?"

Luo Jia stopped talking.

The three Primarchs fell silent as they watched the World Eaters march resolutely past the rostrum: it didn't matter which legion was next, as at this point, the Primarchs were not paying attention to the parade except for their own legions.

As the military music that resounded throughout Ullanor had quietly passed its most exciting stage, and there were some subtle ups and downs, those most sentimental people would naturally think that after this military parade, they would be completely separated from their lord.

The Emperor is leaving.

This seemed like something that would never happen, but now it is so real.

In his loss, Luo Jia breathed heavily, and it seemed that at this moment he felt the immense sadness that came with being away from the God-Emperor. He forgot everything else and just wanted to indulge in this moment of sadness: but at this moment, the Khan standing next to him seemed to have just remembered their previous topic.

"Let me tell you, Luo Jia."

His voice was serious.

"I will govern my kingdom: I will do all I can to make it better."

The man with great ambition was stunned at first, and then snorted with disdain.

"I would rather believe that Magnus has thought about how to govern his country."

"Of course I did!"

A sharp roar seemed to come from the crowd on the other side.

"I've thought about this a long time ago! I want to let experts who are proficient in technology to manage my country..."

The roar seemed to be still selling his insights, but neither Luo Jia nor Chagatai Khan listened seriously.

"Even though I don't mind, your analogy is a bit insulting, brother."

The Khan raised his brows and his gaze shifted to Luo Jia's face.

"Why do you think I can't run a country?"

"this is very simple."

Luo Jia looked at him without fear.

"We all know that you joined the Great Crusade precisely to escape rule. You conquered a world, put the heads of all opponents on spears, and used the High Throne as your personal symbol. But such rule only lasted for six months. When the God-Emperor and his fleet descended on Jogris, you abandoned your rule without hesitation and swore allegiance to our father."

"Because six months is enough time to make you hate everything you have."

"Yes."

The Khan graciously admitted it.

“These are all facts.”

"But: people change."

"And you've become power hungry?"

"more or less."

Chagatai looked away.

"I still don't like ruling, but this time, I have a necessary reason to rule others: because I don't want my legion to be the first loser to fall due to lack of sufficient power source when the final chaos comes."

"..."

Luo Jia frowned.

"What do you mean?"

"It's very simple."

The Khan glanced at him.

"Perhaps you cannot see it now, but when Horus calls upon my friendship to fight the tyranny of Terra, I will not go to him empty-handed. I will bring with me a great army and a powerful nation, a nation born for this great war."

The Great Bearer of Words said nothing, his fingers quietly touching the handle of the hammer.

"What do you mean by oppression from Terra?"

"Peace of mind."

Khan chuckled.

"I have never had any interest in rebelling against the Emperor's rule. Although in my heart, he is just a tyrant, his conquest and rule of the galaxy can be tolerated, and in the end, the benefits outweigh the disadvantages: I don't mind becoming a governor and general who governs a region for him."

"But the real problem is..."

Chagatai looked down upon his brother.

"Aurelian, I think you should be able to see the current situation clearly. Perhaps in the next few years, it will still be our father who sits on Terra, but in the future, when he is immersed in his own affairs, will it still be the Emperor himself who sits on the throne of the Empire and oppresses us, the Primarchs and Legions, with orders and laws?"

"We all know that sooner or later he will hand over these powers to mortals."

"And when that time comes: can we not follow in the footsteps of Horus?"

The Khan's voice was cold, and even in the noisy and sweltering heat of Ullanor, Luo Jia could still feel beads of sweat on the back of his head: cold beads of sweat.

"You mean..."

"Yes."

The Khan smiled and gave his own conclusion.

"As heirs, we certainly cannot rebel against our father's rule."

"But as a Primarch: If those mortals on Terra are really foolish enough to want to use the chains of rules to bind our freedom and souls after taking over the power of the Emperor, then I don't mind standing on Horus' side. For this, I will have a powerful country."

"It's necessary preparation."

His voice was firm, as if he was declaring an indisputable truth.

"We will not oppose the Emperor."

"But that doesn't mean we won't oppose everyone on Terra."

"They do not represent the Emperor: if they are so arrogant as to think they can, I will remind them, and I will once again declare war on the new tyrants for my freedom and power."

Facing Luo Jia's stunned, Khan's smile was obviously at ease.

"I have fought tyrants."

"Trust me: I know what I need to prepare for this war."

"And the first step in preparation is to pretend nothing happened."

"Yes, Luo Jia, my brother."

"We're going to pretend nothing happened."

"until……"

"Until the day of Horus comes: it will not be far off."

(End of this chapter)