Warhammer: Don't Call Me the God of All Machines

Chapter 922 Crossing the Threshold
The entrance to the labyrinth of eternal night was not a magnificent palace gate, but a vast, rough, ancient cave that stretched deep underground.
Through the dense, chiseled marks on the cave walls, one can almost glimpse how the emperor who defeated the Void Dragon carved a tunnel into the Martian rock layer, sword by sword.

The cave was pitch black, exuding a cold, metallic aura that rejected all life, as well as a hunger and rage that seemed to come from ancient times, making one's soul tremble.

Loshi knew that the Void Dragon had already noticed the changes in the outside world.

The ever-increasing psychic energy was more dazzling to this god of the real universe than the sun in the night.

The fragments of Magladros felt an unprecedented threat, even more intensely than when it fought that damned human in the past.

Loxi entered the cave and stood at the entrance to the Eternal Night Labyrinth at its deepest point. A large door was slightly ajar in front of him.

The dust on the ground faintly revealed countless footprints of human activity, traces of Abaddon's infiltration of the Eternal Night Labyrinth to steal the magic sword Draconion not long ago.

The Black Legion suffered enormous losses here due to their carelessness and curiosity; many of them were devoured by the furious and greedy dragon, their bodies and souls consumed.

The closer he got to the gate, the more the invisible pressure from the Void Dragon fragments felt like a tangible force, trying to erode his will, freeze his soul, and force him to retreat.

However, Rose smiled at this.

“You’re scared,” Rose whispered to the bottomless cave entrance.

“You are afraid, Magladros.”

“Even gods fear the unknown. The more you threaten me, the more I feel your powerlessness.”

“If you are truly fearless, then you should ignore me instead of barking like this.”

A cold snort seemed to come from behind the half-open door.

"Do you really want to cross this threshold? Do you know what's waiting for you inside?"

Luo Xi stood there, stunned. The voice... sounded like a woman's voice.

Why is there a female voice in the Eternal Night Labyrinth? Are there still living people inside?

"Behind the door lies hunger, hatred, decay, destruction, and even death."

The voice continued, seemingly carrying a chilling aura.

"I know why you've come; you want its power, but have you really thought about the consequences?"

The person behind the door seemed to know what was happening outside; she even knew why Rosie had come.

"This path is lonely, requiring you to constantly face danger, endure pain and setbacks, and even be prepared to sacrifice."

"No one will know what you did, no one will honor you, and you will receive no reward."

The voices inside paused for a moment, seemingly waiting for Luo Xi's response, or perhaps giving Luo Xi a chance to back out.

"Nobody knows...?"

Rose rubbed his nose with his right hand, tilted his head back, and followed his heart, giving a loud response.

"This is my choice. I don't need others to know, nor do I need to be worshipped or commemorated."

"Perhaps I will die inside, or perhaps I will not be able to resist the Void Dragon's corruption and my mind will be assimilated by it."

"I understand all of this, but I still choose to do it. Some things, in the end, need to be done by someone."

As he spoke, Luo Xi took a step forward without hesitation and pushed open the half-closed door.

A completely different atmosphere from that inside the cave rushed towards us. It was difficult to describe the scene before us in words, because the Eternal Night Labyrinth was a strange world where the concepts of time, space, and even dimensions were distorted.

The Emperor created this place to serve as a cage for the Void Dragons, and now, the cage has welcomed a dragon slayer.

"You idiot." Suddenly, a woman's figure appeared in the void.

Loxi stared at the other person and realized that it was this person who had spoken up and stopped her just as she was about to step across the threshold.

“How could there still be living people in the Eternal Night Labyrinth? I thought it was the Void Dragon using that voice to persuade me to leave,” Loxi said.

“A dragon wouldn’t imitate a woman’s voice, especially since it hates me to the core,” the woman replied.

“I am Dalia Cecilia.” She extended her right hand. “You may call me the Dragon Guardian. The Lord of Man has commanded me to guard the Void Dragons here.”

"There was a Dragon Guardian before me, but unfortunately, he was no longer able to fulfill his duties, so he transferred all his knowledge and memories to me."

Loxi immediately understood: if there was a cage, then there must be a guardian of the cage.

What intrigued him even more was how the other party knew his purpose.

Dalia ran her fair fingers across her profile, as if she could see through Rosie's confusion.

“We, the Dragon Guardians, have received power bestowed by the Emperor. We have been able to survive for so long, and naturally, we have also received some inspiration from the Emperor.”

“In my dream, the Lord of Mankind told me that a dragon slayer would come to this place, and he asked me to assist you.”

“But I have a different opinion,” Dalia said, changing the subject. “I don’t know why the Lord of Man has so much faith in you, but I still want to advise you to leave. That dragon is more terrifying than you and I can imagine.”

"You have earned the emperor's favor, so you must have your own value. And a person of value should not die in vain."

In the eyes of this Dragon Guardian, Lothie's challenge to the Void Dragon was undoubtedly courting death. She was genuinely acting out of goodwill and for the sake of humanity's overall interests when she offered her advice.

"Thank you for your kindness."

"But my mind is made up."

Loxi took a deep breath and slowly raised his hand. Spiritual energy, flowing like liquid gold, condensed in his previously empty hand.

The psionic energy and the power of Om Messiah's authority merged, and a shining longsword illuminated the void before them.

Seeing this, Dalia sighed helplessly and then retreated to a safe place.

She didn't know if the man in front of her could really do the feat of slaying the dragon, but for some reason, she felt it wasn't entirely impossible.

What if he can pull off a miracle? Then I won't need to continue upholding my duties and stay in this cage forever.

Loxi raised his sword high, and a layer of silver-gray armor began to spread and cover his body like flowing water.

Swords and armor, like the sun and moon, radiate golden and silver light, distorting the unique rules and environment here.

When the Emperor imprisoned the Void Dragon, he erased everything here, leaving only a chaotic power. Only in this way could he trap the Void Dragon, who could control matter.

As the golden and silver radiance around Loxi spread like a tide, the cage deep within the Eternal Night Labyrinth, which had been forcibly smoothed out by the Emperor and transformed into chaotic rules, began to undergo drastic changes.

The chaotic energy was dissipated like a receding tide, and the fundamental physical laws of the real universe—mass, space, time, and the speed of light—began to re-establish dominance in this realm.

This also means that the first and most basic shackle imposed on the prisoner has been removed.

A terrifying roar that reached the very soul erupted from the deepest part of the labyrinth.

The voice contained boundless rage, the humiliation of being imprisoned for ten thousand years, and a boundless hatred powerful enough to incinerate the Milky Way and its stars.

The scene before Rosie became completely clear, and he was able to see the giant beast.

Void Dragon Magladros.

Although its name contains the word "dragon," it is not a giant dragon as understood in human culture, but a terrifying being that is more humanoid and composed of pure living metal and cold energy.

Its body is as majestic as a mountain, and its height far exceeds that of any human Titan.

The humanoid torso was covered with layers upon layers of eerie green metallic scales with sharp, knife-like edges. Each scale was naturally engraved with incomprehensible, strange runes that contained the fundamental rules of the universe.

It has strong arms and legs, and a long and powerful metal tail that sways slowly behind it, the tip of which flashes with a chilling green electric light, leaving tiny cracks in the space with each sway.

The most striking feature is the Void Dragon's head, which lacks traditional facial features, consisting only of a smooth, cold, and elongated metallic face with two "eyes" that burn with eerie green flames like supernova debris.

Behind its head, a sun-shaped structure made of the same eerie green metal floated, slowly rotating and emitting a cold and majestic light.

A pair of enormous metal wings unfolded from its back, and countless violent, spacetime-destroying bolts of starlight lightning burst, leaped, and hissed incessantly on the surface of the wings, the joints of the limbs, and the surrounding void, scorching and distorting the surrounding space.

Its very existence is a condensation and refinement of the physical laws of the real universe.

Pure material forces spread outward from it like substantial waves, attempting to reintegrate everything into its cold, absolute system of rules.

The air inside the labyrinth of eternal night became incredibly heavy, the light was strangely refracted, and even the passage of time seemed to become viscous and unstable.

"Freedom...I will regain my freedom!"

A mad and violent will began to roar wantonly, venting a fraction of its inner rage.

"That thief! That usurper! That damned psionic ape! He imprisoned me! For ten thousand years! For ten thousand years!!!"

The Void Dragon's fragmented consciousness was clearly in an extremely unstable state.

The pain of being shattered, the humiliation of being imprisoned, the deep-seated hatred for the Emperor, and the primal greed for energy and souls within the Star God—all these emotions twisted together, driving it to utter madness.

"Humans! Insignificant! Fragile! Pathetic insects! You stole my power! You worshipped me! Yet you imprisoned me!"

"Damn it! You all deserve to die! Souls! I will devour the souls of every single one of you! I will ignite my rage with your wails! I will pave my path of revenge with your bones!"

Its burning gaze suddenly locked onto Loxi, and that unique aura instantly enraged it to the extreme.

"You, you reek of that nauseating psychic stench! You're from the same source as that bastard who imprisoned me!"

"And... what is that?! That's my power! The power you've twisted and stolen! Om Messiah?? Hahaha! Ridiculous! Utterly ridiculous!!"

It sensed the Om Messiah authority fused within Lothie, which was the Mechanicus's belief in the so-called "God of Machines."

The origin of the Mechanicus cult is precisely the Void Dragons themselves, which were imprisoned and confined.

These powers of faith should have belonged to it, but the emperor cleverly guided them, even turning them into part of reinforcing its cage, and now they have appeared in this human before it.

As a pure star god, the Void Dragon has no effect on the power of faith. But even if it is useless, it would never give it to its mortal enemy who imprisoned it.

The prophet of the god of all machines imprisoned and enslaved the god of all machines, even extracting power from it, and then walked the world in the sacred name of the god of all machines, receiving worship and reverence from countless people.

The thought of all this drove Magladros to madness with rage.

These damned humans are even more repulsive than those metal skeletons.

"Give it back to me, you despicable thief!"

I will devour you! Devouring you will make me whole again! I will then be able to seek revenge on that damned psionic bastard! I will tear his golden throne to shreds and burn his empire to ashes!

The Void Dragon let out a deafening roar, its massive metal claws suddenly rising and condensing into a ball of eerie green Star God lightning powerful enough to instantly vaporize stars, about to hurl it at Loxi.

The pure annihilation power contained within it made Roxi feel a long-lost threat of death.

The power of the Void Dragon was indeed beyond imagination. Even though it was not complete at the moment, it still allowed Loxi to glimpse the level of the top three Star Gods.

Now he understood why Daron's Guardian Lyra was so pessimistic about his challenge against the Void Dragon, even thinking he was just there to die.

Even if it were a Primarch who had awakened the essence of the warp, few would dare claim they could defeat or even contend with a Void Dragon in this state. This is the Void Dragon, an insurmountable calamity roaming the universe, the embodiment of extinction and death.

However, Rosie showed no panic in the face of this devastating attack.

He simply stood quietly, the longsword in his hand, gleaming with gold and silver light, pointing diagonally at the ground, the aura of psionic energy around him growing ever brighter.

The vast spiritual energy from the outside world, amplified by the Black Stone Matrix, the Star Torch, and the God Emperor Rift, was continuously flowing into his body, forming an unbreakable barrier of will and spiritual energy.

“Your madness is proof of your weakness, Magladros.”

"How tragic."

Loxi's voice was calm, yet it possessed a strange penetrating power, even overpowering the roar of the Star God Lightning.

"A fragment dominated by hatred and instinct, does it deserve to be called a god?"

Just as that terrifying ball of Star God Lightning was about to be released.

Om-! ! !
Another completely different force, also belonging to the realm of the Star Gods, carrying a sense of "rule" and "dominance," suddenly emanated from the surface of Mars.

This power was amplified to an extreme by the technological matrix provided by the Necromancer and tuned to a specific interference frequency targeting the Void Dragon, like a sharp, piercing horn that resounded deep into the soul.

The Void Dragon, which was about to attack, suddenly stopped, a great confusion and surprise flashing in its burning eerie green eyes.

“Zahulash?!” An incredulous emotion erupted from its will.

"The aura of the ruler? Why...why is it here?! Why is it helping these insects?!"

The power and aura of another Star God fragment greatly disrupted its already chaotic thoughts.

In the midst of this chaos, the instinct for the Star God fragments to devour each other was instantly triggered.

"Eat it...eat it! I can become stronger!"

Its target shifted instantly, and its desire to attack Loxi was temporarily suppressed by its greed for fragments of its own kind.

And almost at the same time.

Within the vast solar system, among the numerous stars, a peculiar cosmic rhythm achieves perfect harmony.

The astrological moment predicted by the God of Laughter and Gao Qi has arrived as scheduled.

The planets, satellites, and even the stars themselves in the solar system have moved to a very special position, forming a complex psionic matrix spanning billions of kilometers.

This enormous "ritual" matrix operates silently, and the resonance it generates instantly stirs up a subspace energy tide that is far more vast than usual!
This tide did not flow directly into the real universe. Instead, it was guided by a secret method of the Spirit Race that the Laughing God had set up in advance. As if focused by a giant lens, it crossed space and was precisely injected into the Black Stone Matrix in Mars' orbit.

The Black Stone Matrix, which had already been pushed to its limit, began to hum under the strain of this sudden influx of enormous energy originating from the laws of the universe itself.

Its amplification effect instantly broke through the theoretical limit.

The golden psionic light curtain enveloping Mars suddenly increased in brightness by more than ten times, as if the entire planet were enveloped in a miniature star.

The sacred, vast, and pure spiritual energy, like a monstrous wave, instantly engulfed the Eternal Night Labyrinth and even began to forcibly suppress the Void Dragon's surging material energy.

To deal with the Void Dragon, humanity has truly exhausted every possible means, sparing no expense, in order to continuously weaken it.

The Void Dragon let out a painful roar. This extremely concentrated and highly purified psionic environment was like poisonous acid splashed on its skin, or like an invisible mountain crushing its will, to this pure god of matter.

The starlight lightning around it flickered unpredictably, as if it might go out at any moment.

Magradiroth's movements became sluggish, its senses were severely hampered by psychic energy, and its power was greatly weakened.

The timing of the stars, the geographical advantage of the Black Stone Matrix, the power of the God-Emperor, and the interference from Danteok completed the final human element.

All the preparations came together perfectly at this moment.

From Rosie's eyes, a golden and silver light burst forth as if it were a tangible substance.

He felt an unprecedented surge of power coursing through his body. The external environment was an extreme amplification for him, but an extreme weakening for his enemies.

It's now!

Without further hesitation, he suddenly raised the gleaming longsword in his hand high.

“Magladeros!”

His voice, like a clarion call, resounded throughout the labyrinth of eternal night.

Outside the labyrinth of eternal night, countless mechanical priests and Om Messiah believers on Mars all saw an incomparably majestic figure continuously magnified.

"Your era has ended, and your strength will serve a greater purpose!"

"You have failed everything, you have failed the universe, you deserve to die!"

Before she finished speaking, Loxi's figure transformed into a streak of golden and silver light that tore through space, and she charged towards the Void Dragon, which was in a state of brief chaos and pain due to the suppression of psionic energy and interference from its own kind.

The golden and silver light clashed violently with the eerie green behemoth.

There was no earth-shattering explosion as one might have imagined; the moment the two came into contact, a violent conflict erupted at the level of rules.

Matter and spiritual energy, reality and faith, cold stellar logic and fervent human will, are like two planets from different universes colliding violently.

Boom——! ! !
A silent explosion reverberated through the labyrinth of eternal night. Even the cage built by the Emperor could not contain this power. The scattered streams of light burst out of the labyrinth and spread across the entire planet Mars.

The advanced technological community and the Mechanicus, who thought they had maintained a safe distance, immediately issued orders to continue their retreat.

But faced with this thrilling epic scene, no devout Om Messiah believer would back down.

Although in their hearts they had already vaguely sensed that the two sides in this war were their worshipped Om Messiah and the god of all machines.

However, it is clear that Om Messiah is on the side of humanity, while the god of machines seems to want to wipe them out completely.

There's nothing more to say. As long as Om Messiah defeats his opponent, he will naturally become the new God of Machines.

People kept charging toward the labyrinth of eternal night, using any available vehicles, or relying on their own two feet or modified prosthetics to move forward.

They were on a pilgrimage, witnessing this unforgettable moment.

Even if I die, as long as I can see it once, my life will not have been in vain.

Loxi's lightsaber struck the Void Dragon's raised forearm, unleashing countless shattered rule runes and scattered bursts of energy.

The Void Dragon's metallic scales are extremely tough, even able to resist the erosion of psionic energy to some extent, but Lothie's blade not only condenses vast psionic energy, but also incorporates the power of Om Messiah's authority.

That originated from the belief in the "God of All Machines," and in a sense, it shares the same origin as the Void Dragon but is slightly different.

This allows Loxi's attacks to penetrate the Void Dragon's defenses of pure material laws to a certain extent, directly scorching its essence.

"Ape! How dare you hurt me!!"

The Void Dragon, in pain, became even more enraged.

Its other giant claw, carrying the power to tear through space, swung fiercely at Loxi. Even though the Star God lightning swirling around the claw tip was weakened by the psionic environment, it was still terrifyingly powerful.

Loxi moved with lightning speed, narrowly avoiding the fatal blow.

His golden and silver wings spread out behind him, allowing him to move nimbly through the air like a swimming fish.

He didn't engage in a direct power struggle with the Void Dragon; that would be extremely foolish. Even weakened, the Void Dragon fragments still possessed a power level far exceeding that of ordinary people.

He used the extreme speed, perception, and suppression of the Void Dragon brought by the psionic environment to move around and weaken it, looking for a suitable opportunity.

Each strike of the lightsaber left scorching, temporarily unhealable psionic wounds on the Void Dragon's body.

At the same time, Loxi's powerful will, like an invisible tentacle, began to try to break through the Void Dragon's angry and chaotic consciousness defenses, in order to find the location of its core will.

He did not forget his true purpose, which was to replace the will of the Star God fragment with his own, just like Danteok, thereby achieving control over the Star God in another sense.

"It's no use! It's no use!!"

The Void Dragon roared, its massive body unleashing endless eerie green lightning that swept around like a storm, attempting to completely annihilate the annoying fly.

“I am Magradiros! I am the embodiment of matter, the manifestation of the rules. Your psychic power will eventually be exhausted, but I am eternal!”

Its attacks are ferocious and destructive; every claw strike, tail sweep, or even the energy beam shot from its eyes is enough to easily destroy a star.

The interior space of the Eternal Night Labyrinth trembled violently under the collision of these terrifying forces, as if it were about to collapse completely at any moment.

Like a small boat in a stormy sea, Rosie seemed extremely dangerous, yet she always managed to avoid fatal attacks by the slightest margin.

His will was highly focused, and the continuous supply of psionic energy from the outside world meant he had almost no worries about depletion.

"Submit, human! Become a part of me! This is your glory!" the Void Dragon roared, attempting to use its will to reverse the impact on Loshi's mind.

"Give in?" Losi retorted mercilessly as he moved at high speed.

“You are the one who should yield, Magladros, look at yourself now.”

"Broken, insane, enslaved by hatred and instinct, do you still remember your original purpose as the embodiment of the universe's rules?"
You are not the destroyer; you are part of reality. Now, you need to return to your original duty—to solidify reality, not destroy it!

The Void Dragon's movements froze for a moment.

Loxi's words seemed to have touched something forgotten deep within its broken consciousness.

But then, a stronger anger and madness overwhelmed those ripples.

"Lies! Deception! You inferior beings only know how to deceive with despicable means. I am strong enough to dominate you. The law of the jungle is the truth of the universe!"

Its attacks became even more frenzied, and it even began to disregard its own injuries, fighting a life-or-death struggle.

The battle has entered its most dangerous phase.

The pressure on Rosie increased sharply, and she was nearly hit by the violent attacks several times.

But his eyes remained calm; he knew this was the Void Dragon's last desperate and frantic counterattack.

Just as the Void Dragon gathered unprecedented energy, preparing to unleash its ultimate attack...

Loxi seized upon a sliver of a gap in its consciousness caused by extreme rage.

His will, like a sharp dagger embodying the beliefs of all humanity, pierced fiercely into the deepest recesses of the Void Dragon's frenzied consciousness along that narrow crevice.

"In the name of humanity, in the name of Om Messiah, in the name of the real universe and countless lives!"

"Magladeross, you will surely fail!"

Loxi's will, like a wildfire, began to ignite the mark of humanity within the Void Dragon's shattered sea of ​​consciousness.

The final battle of wills has only just begun.

(End of this chapter)