The flowers of slaughter bloomed continuously on the planet of Armageddon.
And the army of Khorne, the Blood God, was about to win the final victory of the game.
The will seated upon the Brass Throne had already sensed the involvement of a certain power.
He seemed to have some reason for which he could not afford to lose, and he was determined to do everything in his power to win this great game!
"It is all over!"
"From now on, this planet will become my Daemon World!"
Watching as his daemons were about to charge into the core area, Khorne was extremely confident, feeling that he had already taken control of everything.
Although this battle had been full of twists and turns, in the end, mindless slaughter still engulfed this world.
Just when the Chaos God thought that everything had settled, a golden light suddenly dispersed all the bloody mist.
A golden giant stood in this wasteland, seated upon a massive Golden Throne, holding a holy sword soaked in raging fire.
His grey-brown face carried a hint of weariness, yet compared to the corpse in his palace, this piece looked much healthier.
"The Cursed One!"
When Khorne exclaimed, the Emperor had already stood up from that Golden Throne.
He opened his sharp eyes, and his original brown pupils flickered with waves of golden light.
In that instant, all the daemons retreated in fear; even the bravest daemons under Khorne did not dare to be bold enough to challenge this The Cursed One.
The Cursed One, whether it be he himself or his Legion of the Damned, was exceptionally dangerous.
This was already an indisputable fact within the realm of Chaos.
When the golden giant appeared on the battlefield, the eyes of everyone in the Imperium froze.
They were shocked by the sudden appearance of the deity, and then they realized this was their only hope: the Emperor.
"Father?"
"For the Emperor!"
The people who had been trapped in bitter fighting immediately let out their roars; even the weakest soldiers felt the light of hope.
Decadent morale was restored, and almost every human became an invincible soldier.
The Armageddon Steel Legion and the Death Korps of Krieg launched a continuous charge simultaneously.
Their bodies seemed to have been blessed by the God-Emperor, and even massive longswords could no longer pierce their bodies.
The laser weapons in their hands could now pierce through daemons, and under the daemons' hands, they were no longer lambs waiting to be slaughtered.
"Fight for the Emperor!"
"Soldiers, it is time to launch a counterattack!"
Whether it was the fortress masters on the planet or the generals of the various legions, everyone was invigorated!
The Political Commissars no longer needed to issue orders to charge, because the soldiers would excitedly shout and charge forward.
The laser rifles in their hands could also emit a golden luster, capable of completely killing these low-level daemons.
Even the weakest laser rifle could drive away daemons.
The front line stabilized, or rather, the front line pushed back at this moment.
Even ordinary soldiers could kill like Astartes, especially after being blessed by the God-Emperor; their combat effectiveness was self-evident.
"This Emperor is so useful!" Even Caleb couldn't help but exclaim.
Watching every front line enter a mindless steamrolling phase, Caleb felt relieved.
As long as the Emperor was deployed, the subsequent battles would just be moving from one victory to the next.
Based on the Emperor's current panel stats, even killing into the realm of Khorne would be more than enough.
However, just at this moment, the system had a new pop-up window.
This god-level piece actually had a deployment time; the reason its stats were so powerful was that once the time was exceeded, it would cause extremely serious consequences.
[Special Unit Deployed: Emperor!]
[Countdown to the arrival of The Dark King: 30 minutes remaining!]
[If this piece does not return to the Golden Throne within the allotted time, it will completely transform into The Dark King.]
[Please manage the time well and control this unit to complete the task within the allotted time.]
[Otherwise, the subsequent game will be directly judged as a failure.]
"What the hell!"
Looking at the countdown of nearly 30 minutes, Caleb's heart jumped into his throat.
This Emperor piece is strong, alright, but playing this piece is really dangerous!
30 minutes, to be honest, even if a mortal ran until their legs broke, it would be impossible to rush to the Gate of the Red Angel.
Even if an Astartes had the blessing of the Emperor and charged forward like a Custodian, it would be impossible to actually reach the direction of the Gate of the Red Angel within the allotted time!
At this moment, the Emperor was obviously still in a daze; clearly, he was in spectator mode, but suddenly a large hand pulled him into a first-person perspective.
"Did I wake up again?"
When the Emperor uttered this expression of confusion, half a minute had already passed.
He first felt confused, and then immediately felt a burst of ecstasy!
Caleb: Anatolus, hurry up, I'm only giving you half an hour!
If you don't get it done in half an hour, you'll become The Dark King!
Emperor: What? You actually have half an hour? Good, good, good, Golden Throne, you hold on for now; if I can't kill them in half an hour, count me as a dud!
A smile hung on the Emperor's lips; now, he was as happy as a child.
It didn't matter who was his benefactor anymore; even if the other party was impersonating him, it was worth it.
Now that the situation had reached this point, there was no need to worry about who was who.
Having the opportunity to stand up for half an hour made doing things so much more convenient!
First, beat the Chaos side until they crap themselves, and then discuss the subsequent problems later.
Just when the Emperor was still happy, his dear eldest son, oh no, his dear eldest daughter, just happened to appear before his eyes.
Seeing his daughter's Gothic skirt armor, the Emperor's brain also crashed for half a second.
"Hmm, son, oh no, daughter, it seems Malcador was right back then! Now that you've become like this, you're much more pleasing to the eye!
And you have awakened your Warp essence even faster, and awakened strength far exceeding your former body. If I had known this, you should have been the big sister to your brothers!"
The Emperor casually pinched the young Lion El''Jonson's cheek, smiling gleefully.
But when these words reached Lion's ears, it was like a bolt from the blue.
Lion's trembling body said angrily.
"Father, stop making such ghostly jokes; this is too embarassing!"
"Hahaha..."
"Let's hurry up and finish off these daemons, and then you tell me, how I should change back!"
Lion, whose cheeks were being pinched, couldn't even speak clearly; although he had begun to accept this fact in his heart, the stubborn woman still hoped to change back.
"Alright, alright, now is not the time to worry about this!
Your situation is a bit tricky, harder to deal with than Angron's Butcher's Nails back then! How about you just act as an Imperium Warmaster in the identity of a Living Saint!"
I will give you sparkling blessings in the future! This way, you can be a beloved saint like Sanguinius!"
Facing the Emperor's benevolent smile, Lion was about to petrify.
With his current body size, he couldn't even reach his father's knees if he jumped.
What is the point of this image of his?
Perhaps he had sensed that the current Lion could not accept it.
The Emperor even brought out his trump card.
He took out a ring with a golden luster, this ring was the one he had once given to Horus.
"Centaur? Wait, Father, what are you doing? I'm not going to be Horus!"
When the Emperor actually put this thing on Lion's hand, its size left Lion even more speechless.
Because the size of this ring could now serve as a bracelet for him, and his father just put it on his arm like that!
"Who said this was a Centaur ring? This is a Centaur bracelet!"
"I appoint you as the Warmaster of the Second Imperium; from now on, the sacred mission of rebuilding the Webway is entrusted to you!"
"Hey, wait!"
"Take this back first!"
"This is too strange, this is too strange, don't talk about any Second Imperium; I just want to be a proper, real Warmaster! Gah!"
Lion didn't know why, but his eyes were sore, and he really wanted to cry.
The Emperor knew too much, and occasionally bringing these secrets out to joke about them was just too damn hellish.
"Don't rush!"
The Emperor gazed into the distance, toward the objective of this endeavor, the Gate of the Red Angel.
It connected to the domain of the Blood God, and the crimson energy it radiated continuously eroded the barrier between this planet and the Warp.
"I might let you do it someday, Warmaster, but before that, remember the task I gave you. Webway technology is humanity's true hope."
"You must carry out this mission in secret. At critical moments, you may even sacrifice the interests of the Imperium or others to obtain it."
"Oh, and one more thing, remember: I am not a god!"
"You must never utter the word 'god.' I dislike being called the God-Emperor. Right now, I'm simply left with no other choice!"
As if sensing his father's despondent gaze, Lion gradually fell silent.
He pulled out a notebook and immediately wrote in it.
"The Emperor is a god!"
Witnessing this heartwarming scene of father-daughter affection, Caleb silently took a book titled *The Horus Heresy* from a drawer.
In Warhammer, does every Warmaster have to be a bit rebellious?
Even the Little Lion is like this...
In the endless labyrinth, the Lord of Change, who constantly weaves the threads of fate, suddenly sensed a powerful threat.
Immediately, all the threads of fate in his hands snapped.
These threads of fate turned black in his grasp, endless tentacles withered, and boundless chaos vanished.
Within these broken threads, he saw something terrifying: the Emperor standing up, The Dark King rising!
His emergence seemed to have no forewarning, just like the endless chaos he favored—utterly without warning.
[Tzeentch: What the hell is going on?]
[What do you mean the Emperor is standing up?]
Far away in the Palace of Sensation, Slaanesh, indulging in endless decadence, also sensed the power of destruction.
Originally, she planned to test today how many rods her endless abyss could accommodate.
But the sudden disruption of her perception jolted her from her boundless pleasure.
[Slaanesh: Good heavens, what's been happening lately? Why do I suddenly feel like I'm about to die?]
Nurgle, still tending his cauldron, felt the fading of life—the end of everything, the destruction of all.
[Nurgle: Something's wrong! How did the Anathema stand up!]
[Not good, my Garden is on fire! Put it out, quick!]
[Khorne: Stop shouting and come help!]
[My Brass Throne can barely hold back this madman!]
[I really shouldn't have opened this Gate of the Red Angel. Now the Immaterium has truly opened my eyes!]
Although the Chaos Gods all lean toward destruction, this isn't how destruction is supposed to happen!
According to the original plan, this Great Game would continue until the very end.
When the creator god Games Workshop's financial reports collapsed, the End Times would be triggered. Only then would the Emperor rise, and only then would everything be destroyed.
Yet, that moment clearly hasn't arrived. Though the Chaos Gods vary in strength, none has achieved absolute dominance.
Logically, this game should still have a long way to go. But now, that madman who was supposed to be dead has suddenly stood up.
"Blood God, I'm coming in!"
"I've brought your favorite Legion of the Damned to chop!"
"I wonder if your daemon legions can withstand them?"
As the Emperor approached the Gate of the Red Angel with a confident smile,
a vast number of Legions of the Damned appeared by his side.
Countless Legions of the Damned spawned around him like common soldiers.
Among these pieces were even troops of the Dark Angels.
The emblems on their black armor were patterns only the Fallen Angels bore during the 30k era.
This seemed to corroborate that they still chose loyalty.
"So, you've been gathering these Fallen Angels all along?"
"Wait, Father, you don't consider them traitors?"
The Emperor smiled, raised the Emperor's Sword in his hand, and commanded these Legions of the Damned to charge.
These Legions of the Damned weren't solely composed of Astartes; among them were mortals from the Great Crusade era and even human soldiers from earlier times.
When the heroic souls of humanity die, they leave an imprint in the Warp. The Emperor gathered these souls, which is why he bears the title Emperor.
At this moment, the Emperor truly seemed like a father instructing his daughter.
Because the Emperor found that after Lion became a daughter, she seemed more endearing.
"Loyalty is a matter of heart, not deeds!"
"They have always served the hope of humanity."
"Lion, I never cared who might betray me. Even if all your sons turned traitor, it would be acceptable to me!"
"From the very beginning, I was prepared for your betrayal, or rather, I long anticipated that half my children would betray me!"
"I considered the possibility of betrayal from anyone, even you, Guilliman, and Sanguinius."
"But in the end, you didn't disappoint me. You persevered and remained loyal!"
Lion's pupils constricted sharply. He had never heard his father speak like this before.
In the past, whenever his father assigned him secret missions, he never explained so much.
Lion had always believed she was merely a sword in her father's hand, to be wielded as commanded.
She had always thought loyalty and honor were the most important tenets of their Legion.
But now, it seemed her father didn't care about these things.
"But Father, then what was the purpose of your Great Crusade?"
"The dynasty you built is on its last legs. If you don't even care about betrayal, then what was the point of establishing such a dynasty?"
Lion's voice trembled slightly.
He hoped his father would take this opportunity to explain clearly.
"Purpose?" The Emperor let out a soft sigh, then raised his sword and swung it toward the Gate of the Red Angel.
In the blink of an eye, one of Khorne's eight great legions was instantly annihilated.
If Khorne hadn't finally plugged the Gate of the Red Angel with his rear end,
his divine tally would have been reduced by one today!
That daemon legion, which had collected countless skulls for him, was utterly disintegrated.
It became the first cannon fodder of this grand battle, even shaking Khorne's very essence.
Khorne: "No!"
At this moment, Khorne remained like an impotent husband, raging helplessly.
One of his daemon legions had been effortlessly slain, meaning he had permanently lost a legion.
Within the Warp, Khorne's sacred number began to waver precariously.
Some of his will had been diminished; he would need to select a new Greater Daemon to rebuild a legion to restore it.
Khorne now turned his full attention to Kooqi Jarvis.
Since Kooqi already contained a significant portion of his essence, he was the most suitable to lead his sacred-numbered legions.
Khorne was out of options now; he didn't even dare let his daemon legions approach the Gate of the Red Angel.
This Emperor's sword strike was utterly insidious—one swing, and an entire legion evaporated. He couldn't afford to send more troops to their doom.
Gazing at the continuously dissolving and disintegrating daemons, as the ground was once again bathed in bright sunlight, Lion looked up at the sky and timidly asked,
"Then, Father, did you truly know everything about the Second Imperium?"
"If we had really established the Second Imperium back then, had you considered how to handle it?"
"Heh, of course I had!" The Emperor answered almost without hesitation.
"If the Terran Webway project had succeeded, you, Guilliman, and His Majesty Sanguinius could have established a Second Imperium for all I cared."
"In fact, I would have welcomed it. Then Malcador and I could have faked our deaths and gone on vacation on an agri world!"
Lion's corners of the mouth twitched. He even felt like putting a red nose on the tip of his own and playing the clown.
So, after all this, is this what my father is really like?
No wonder so many brothers often said I didn't understand the Emperor. Now it seems they were right.