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

Chapter 972 The Dark Age of Technology
The bookshelves of the Black Library are densely packed with countless books, scrolls, stone tablets, and even shimmering psionic crystals.

Their sheer number and immense scale seem to encapsulate the entire knowledge of the Milky Way.

Led by the God of Laughter, Rosie and the others passed through an invisible psionic barrier at the entrance of the Black Library.

According to Loshi's assessment, given the Black Library's defensive strength, it would be virtually impossible for a psychic below the level of a sub-god in the warp to forcibly break into it using violent means.

Even someone of this caliber might not be a match for the God of Laughter if they broke into the Black Library.

In that sense, the Black Library is truly one of the safest places in the galaxy, even surpassing Holy Terra, where the Emperor resides.

At least during the Siege of Terra, numerous Chaos Demons emerged on humanity's home planet.

The air in the Black Library is filled with a unique aroma, a blend of parchment, ancient ink, historical dust, and an indescribable scent that seems to be the result of countless wisdoms converging and fermenting.

When the scent entered Rosie's nostrils, he suddenly felt an extremely familiar smell, as if he had experienced a similar scent somewhere before.

"Well……"

This feeling was invisible and intangible, like a feather that had fallen onto the back of the neck and kept itching. This strange feeling immediately puzzled Rosie.

Looking out over the vast sea of ​​books, one can see figures moving silently through the crowd.

They were dressed in brightly colored, exaggerated clown costumes, their faces covered with masks of various expressions, yet their movements were exceptionally precise, swift, and silent, operating like the most efficient machines.

They either hovered in the air organizing scrolls high up, or pushed mobile book carts through the bookshelves, or used slender fingers to brush away the dust from ancient books, or used psionic magic to check the seals of certain dangerous tomes.

They are the librarians of the Black Library, the children of Hip Hop, the clowns who guard this fortress of forbidden knowledge.

"We've arrived, everyone." Higoki stopped in front of the library's enormous obsidian doors, which seemed to absorb souls. He turned around and made an exaggerated "please come in" gesture to everyone, his smile on his mask incredibly bright.

"Welcome to the Black Library. Please enter, distinguished guests. Watch your step, lest you step on those books that bite, or you will leave a very deep impression."

The voice of the God of Laughter echoed before the empty entrance, and the massive obsidian door slid open silently inward.

Rosie's psionic energy unconsciously extended outwards, sweeping over the shimmering brochure crystals on those massive bookshelves.

It would be impossible to read through all this stored knowledge using physical reading methods. Even if an ordinary person witnessed the heat death of the universe, they might not be able to finish reading a whole bookshelf.

Therefore, readers can use their psychic abilities to first skim through the general information, confirm that it is the content they need, and then read it carefully.

Roxi browsed through the exhibits as if he were looking at a catalog. He saw the abstract star map of nebulae condensing at the beginning of the universe, sensed the fragments left by ancient civilizations that predated the rise of the ancient saints, and touched the almost real-time record fragments of the war in heaven.

Over ten billion years of cosmic history, the rise and fall of countless civilizations, have all left their mark in this Black Library.

The War of Heaven is merely the most recent, yet most brutal, chapter in this vast annals of history.

Standing among these bookshelves, Rose suddenly felt an unprecedented sense of insignificance; compared to the rise and fall of the universe, the individual was utterly insignificant.

However, Roche quickly recovered, and his gaze and perception began to locate the coordinates closely linked to his own destiny in this boundless ocean of knowledge—the golden age of mankind.

He has now integrated into the human empire and truly become a part of this magnificent era of human destiny.

But he never forgot who he was or where he came from.

The chief's weighty entrustment and final, resolute protection remained etched deep within his soul, like a brand. Whenever he took a break from his busy schedule, he would recall the past and ponder those unanswered questions.

However, even the current human empire has long since lost track of the historical records of that period from the Golden Age to the Dark Age of Technology.

After Lothie became the Orm Messiah and mastered the essence of the Void Dragon, he attempted to travel through time to see how the Chief ultimately fared and what heinous things humanity had done during the Dark Ages.

However, the true history of that period is completely obscured on the timeline, and even Roxi cannot see the truth, as if it has been deliberately erased.

Therefore, he could only use some indirect methods to seek the truth, such as... asking the very few immortals among humans and seeing the past in their memories.

However, while this method is theoretically feasible, putting it into practice is extremely difficult.

Macado was born at the end of the Dark Ages, when the most violent storms had passed.

While immortals like Olpeson, John Granmaticas, and Damon may have existed for a long enough time, most of them lived in the lower or middle classes or on the margins of society.

They are like small boats in a storm, able to feel the destructive power, but unable to see the source and the whole picture of the storm.

As for the Emperor… Luo Xi’s gaze unconsciously swept over the figure beside her, who was wearing golden armor.

At that time, Neos was not yet the Emperor. After successfully graduating from the Chief, he chose to temporarily leave the human world, delve into the Web Path, and embark on a new adventure in the territory of the Adalin.

It was around that time that Uslan met the then-Emperor Neos and took him on a wild ride through various unspeakable places in the Comoros.

It wasn't until the Dark Ages were almost over that the Emperor returned from the Eldar. When he saw the devastation on humanity's face, he could hardly believe that this was the human civilization he remembered.

The leader of the human resistance, Makado, or the man known as Kadur, found the bewildered Neos and discussed with him the creation of an "Emperor" to completely reshape human civilization.

Now, in the Black Library, a record repository that maintains maximum neutrality and objectivity, Losi finally has the opportunity to dispel the fog of history.

He focused his mind and began to locate his target in the vast sea of ​​indexes.

The Black Library seemed to sense his intense thirst for knowledge. The surrounding psionic environment subtly changed, certain bookshelves were marked with invisible halos, and the related scrolls and stone slabs faintly shimmered with a resonant glow.

Loshi walked toward one of the marked areas.

This place contains a large number of historical books, paper documents, copies of data chips, and log backups engraved on special alloy plates.

These are original fragments that have survived directly from the Golden Age of humanity, or collected and preserved by the Eldar through various channels.

He reached out, but before his fingertips actually touched anything, psychic energy guided a cold electronic log to unfold in his consciousness.

-

299.M20 Standard Chronology |
The Golden Council once again rejected "Basic Livelihood Improvement Plan VII".

This is truly frustrating; our efforts have been completely ineffective.

Their reasoning was that resource allocation was unnecessary, the physiological structure of "ordinary humans" was already fixed, and the marginal benefits of optimization were too low.

I don't understand how they could reject us with such a cold reason. The resources consumed by the entire plan are not worth mentioning to them.

They poured endless resources into genetic experiments and subspace exploration, whose meanings were no longer fully understood, and the returns on these investments were undoubtedly monopolized by them.

Many people claim that this era is the golden age of mankind, but is it really so? Why are there so many ordinary people who have not enjoyed the benefits of the technological explosion, but instead have paid a heavy price for the negative consequences of the technological explosion?
The indifference of those stone figures towards "ordinary humans" is equally chilling. They are just like the golden figures that created them. Perhaps in their eyes, only their creator is "human."

The golden man drives the stone man, and the stone man controls the iron man; they may no longer need ordinary humans.

In their eyes, we are no longer compatriots, but merely... consumables.

-

"This seems to be a log left by someone?"

"The person who wrote the log probably never imagined that their little bit of privacy would be saved by Laughing God in the Black Library, and that it would be seen by others someday in the future."

As Luo Xi carefully read through the journal, she couldn't help but think to herself.

However, the word "Golden Man" did awaken some faded fragments of his memories.

The Golden Man is a unique species that appeared during the golden age of humankind, representing the pinnacle of biotechnology.

Through continuous genetic optimization, neural implantation, and biochemical modification, the most intelligent group of humans has created the most "perfect" human being.

The Golden Men possess near-immortality, extraordinary intelligence, and unparalleled physical strength; compared to ordinary humans, each of them could be considered a "superman."

After the first batch of golden statues were created, people continued to transform themselves into golden statues. However, when the number of golden statues reached a critical point, they cut off the path to becoming a golden statue.

After all, each golden statue requires a huge amount of resources, a number far beyond what ordinary people can imagine.

In Roch’s memory, these people eventually formed a huge interest group, perhaps the “Golden Council” mentioned in the log.

The Stone Man, Rosie, was also very familiar to them. He was a android created by the Golden Man and possessed advanced logical processing capabilities.

The stone men took on middle-level positions that the golden men disdained, and, guided by the will of the golden men, carried out interstellar colonization throughout the galaxy.

In addition, there are the intelligent Iron Men created by the Stone Men to better serve the Golden Men, who possess self-awareness, powerful computing power, and physical strength, as well as the near-limitless productivity provided by the STC system. A social pyramid composed of Golden Men, Stone Men, and Iron Men has already taken shape.

Imagine the despairing situation, and Rosie couldn't help but sigh.

Human society had already become like this not long after the beginning of the twentieth millennium. What about what will happen in the future?

He didn't believe those golden men would suddenly have a change of heart and pick up the ordinary humans they had abandoned; they would only become more ruthless.

At this point in time, they are simply ignoring ordinary humans and are unwilling to even improve their living environment. If this continues, they might just take action to eliminate these troublesome ordinary humans.

Loxi wanted to continue reading, but the log of humanity in the Golden Age ended there. She didn't know if there was no follow-up or if the God of Laughter hadn't collected any more information.

He opened another notebook from the bookshelf, which appeared to be a summary of a military briefing from some peripheral star sector at the time.

— Encryption Level: Top Secret | Source: Cruiser Indomitable Will

658.M20
…The rebellion has been suppressed. The colony “New Hope-7” refuses to implement the “Genetic Optimization Quota” and “Neural Link Mandatory Implantation” laws.

The rebels were mainly composed of unmodified "ordinary humans". We used three standard "Overseer-level" Iron Men and two Stone Men tactical squads to complete the suppression mission. The rebels' resistance was very weak.

The prisoners were processed according to the "Resource Recovery Agreement," with some of their biomass transferred to the "Organic Matter Conversion Furnace" to provide nutrients for the ecological dome of the colony's core area...

Supervisor Jin's evaluation: Efficiency is acceptable, but the attrition rate is slightly higher than expected. It is recommended to use a more efficient neurolytic aerosol next time…

-

The imagery depicted by the cold words sent a chill down Rosie's spine.

Although such rebellions and their suppression seem commonplace to the human empire, occurring during humanity's golden age, they did happen at a time when humanity was at its most powerful.

Loxi lived through that glorious and wonderful era, when human technology exploded, propelling the race toward the universe at an incredible speed.

At that time, humanity existed in a relatively loose form of alliances. Although the various member states had different political systems, ideologies, histories, and cultures, they had one thing in common.

That is, all of humanity believes that the future of mankind is bright and promising, and therefore each member state is working hard to use technology to bring favorable conditions to its people in order to strengthen overall cohesion.

Such blatant attacks on one's own colonies are utterly appalling, tearing away the veil of civilization.

It is this thriving and pioneering spirit that has forged this era known as "Golden Age".

However, the logs recorded in the Black Library tore apart the beautiful scenes in Rosie's memory, exposing the corrupt and decadent inner world beneath the golden exterior.

In this system, ordinary people are almost losing their very status as "human beings".

The rebellion that broke out in the so-called colony "New Hope-7" was simply because they did not want to undergo the horrific genetic modifications.

If the human empire committed so many absurd and brutal acts during the thirtieth millennium of humankind, the motivation was to ensure the survival and continuation of the entire race in darkness.

So, during the Golden Age, the group led by the Golden Men did these things purely because they had completely lost their humanity and regarded themselves as beings above humans, beings that were more extraordinary and closer to gods.

After all, only gods can take from these mortals at will, right?
Loxi quickly browsed through the vast database, now more interested in knowing what the chief had done at that time.

He soon discovered some clues in a personal diary.

-

What exactly did the Olympus Corporation do within the closed ecosystem of the Paradise Galaxy? And what did they take "humanity" for?!

I saw a report that they were trying to upload human consciousness in bulk to the Matrix network that serves them, and they wanted to give machines real souls?

Are our AIs not enough to satisfy their desires? What do they really want? Would giving the machines that serve them souls make them experience even greater pleasure?

This is not progress, it's blasphemy, it's madness! The CEO… the CEO publicly condemned it, but the group used its media matrix and private security forces to smear him and completely block the news…

Subspace? Nobody cares! Spaceships equipped with subspace engines are fast and stable; who cares what's behind that "veil"? The upper echelons are living in decadence, the middle echelons are blindly following orders, and the lower echelons… the lower echelons are just numbers…

-

Loshi recognized some of the entities mentioned in the personal log; they were some of the most notorious projects in the Human Alliance at the time, and ones that the Chief had vehemently opposed.

The convenience brought by the warp engine has led most of humanity to become addicted to the convenience of instant communication and interstellar travel, deliberately ignoring or even denying the eeriness and potential dangers of the warp itself.

Discussions about the "Iron Man Accord" are also commonplace. These core ethical frameworks, established in the early days of the golden age to constrain the development of AI, have been frequently questioned and tested since then.

Records show that multiple secret laboratories supported by the Golden Man are conducting research to break through the restrictions of the protocol, attempting to create a super AI that is "completely free" or "integrated with the Golden Man's mind."

Loshi saw the Chief's figure appear in many records. As the chief scientist of the Human Alliance, he worked hard to use his prestige and influence to issue warnings at joint meetings, in public academic forums, and in encrypted communication networks.

He criticized the indifference and exploitation of the Golden Class, exposed the atrocities of monopolistic giants and technological warlords, called for an end to dangerous taboo experiments, and emphasized the need for vigilance and caution regarding the subspace.

His voice initially managed to spark some discussion, but in the face of increasingly entrenched interest groups and a public indulging in a false sense of prosperity, his voice became increasingly isolated and jarring.

-

999.M20
…The Chief bluntly stated in a closed-door meeting today: “We are using technology to forge our own shackles and graves. The Golden Men treat their fellow citizens like dirt, giant corporations greedily seize every profit, warlords divide the cosmos, and the shadow of the warp has never receded yet no one pays attention. The sun of humanity's future has already set.”…

-

The records about the chief end there. On the last day of the twentieth millennium, he vanished without a trace, as if he had evaporated into thin air.

Loshi's mood grew increasingly heavy. By reading these logs arranged chronologically, he watched almost every bit of humanity's golden age slowly fade away, eventually turning into an indescribable mess.

At that time, when the Chief needed help the most, he had already entered the hibernation pod of the Red Alert and was sleeping in some remote corner of the galaxy.

When he awoke, everything was over. The golden men and monopolistic giants were no longer in the galaxy. Humanity's dark age of technology had come to an end, and even the remaining technological warlords on Terra had been completely wiped out by the Emperor.

"So much has happened in the twentieth millennium alone, and the situation has deteriorated to this extent. But the Iron Man Rebellion broke out in the twenty-third millennium. In such a long period of time, what else did humanity experience..."

The Emperor walked over to Rosie and gently patted him on the back.

"The past is the past, and we cannot change it."

"The teacher may not have been able to save humanity back then, and could only watch helplessly as humanity degenerated, but I believe he must have done everything he could, with all his might."

"And what he couldn't accomplish, we accomplished together. We reshaped humanity, reclaimed the galaxy, and even banished the malevolent enemies of the warp. If he knew, he would be proud of us."

When the Emperor addresses the Chief, he uses the title "Teacher." Back when he was just Neos, he studied biological genetics under the Chief, and his graduation thesis even received a B+ grade.

This paper, which the chief could only give a B+ grade to, gave birth to the Thunder Warriors, or rather, the Astartes, in the thirtieth millennium.

"You think he's dead?"

Loxi looked at Neos, the only man in the world besides himself who still remembered the Chief.

"Highly likely, since I can't sense the Chief's fate, it shouldn't be difficult for him to erase his own existence."

"He is not immortal, and his enemies are indeed very powerful, so the chances of him surviving to this day are very low."

Loxi nodded in agreement. For those monsters and demons of the dark age of technology, things as mysterious as time, space, and even fate were not untouchable in their eyes.

Since they can manufacture weapons with a 200% hit rate, they can naturally also modify the probability to kill off someone they dislike without anyone noticing.

If a leader doesn't even have the ability to conceal his existence, then he can't possibly fight against enemies who have completely lost their humanity.

Just as Loxi and the Emperor were beginning to reminisce about the Chief, Xi Gaoqi came over noisily.

It must be said that when staring closely at Higoki's pale mask, a strange sense of dread still arose in Rosie's heart.

"Chief? You're looking for this person?"

"He's still your...teacher?"

Loxi and the Emperor exchanged a glance. Judging from Xi Gaoqi's tone, this Laughing God of the Spirit Race seemed to know something.
"Didn't your Black Library claim to be all-encompassing and cover all of history? How come the Chief's last record stopped at 999.M20? What happened to him? Did he die or go to some unknown place?"

Luo Xi stared at Xi Gaoqi's mask and asked with slight dissatisfaction.

“The questions need to be answered one by one, Lord Loshi,” the God of Laughter said, bowing as if apologizing for the incompleteness of His Black Library records.

“I have indeed seen this human you call the Chief.”

“He is indeed the most amazing human I have ever seen. In terms of intelligence alone, even the two of you are no match for him.”

Neither Loshi nor Neos felt any aversion. They knew the wisdom of the Chief, and what was so shameful about being inferior to such a great human being?

"The information I gathered about him only goes up to 999.M20, because after that, he completely erased all traces of his existence. Whether using psychic energy or technological means, it is no longer possible to observe his existence."

"Even I, even the Black Library, are like that, which is why I say he is the most powerful human I have ever seen."

The God of Laughter ran his fingertips across his skin, as if recalling that incredible human.

"When and where did you meet the chief?"

"How far back is that point in time? Perhaps, perhaps..."

Luo Xi suddenly became excited. Since even the God of Laughter didn't know what happened to the Chief, then perhaps this great man was still alive in this world.

As long as he is alive, there is hope for their reunion, and that alone is enough to make Rosie ecstatic.

He had so much to say to the Chief. He wanted to tell him about his regret at not being able to fight alongside him, and about the great achievements he and Neos had made, and how humanity now had a bright future again.

"Right here, or more precisely, on the very bottom floor of this dark library."

The God of Laughter pointed to the dark library beneath his feet and said quietly.

(End of this chapter)