Warhammer 40K in a box

Chapter 407 Intense Reaction

These Prototype Astartes are a legion that Caul painstakingly built over millennia. Every suit of power armor was personally tuned by him, and every gene seed was cultivated under his supervision.

This legion was supposed to be the core military force that Guilliman would use to revive the Empire's glory after his awakening, and it was Caul's biggest trump card for the future of humanity.

Now Chen Xi is asking him to deploy some of his forces ahead of schedule, although it is to deal with the imminent disaster. However, if he were to reveal all his assets, Kaul's mechanical heart would still hesitate.

His logic engine was running at full speed, calculating all sorts of possibilities—after all, no one could predict what kind of turmoil would rage in the galaxy after the fall of Cardia and the crisis in Terra.

This legion may face even more terrifying threats, such as a full-scale invasion of the Tyranid swarm or a counterattack from the Chaos forces.

Chen Xi fully understood Kaur's concerns.

Seeing the calculating glint in the eyes of the Great Sage Mechanism, he decided not to exert any further pressure.

Although he knew better than anyone that the number of Prototype Warriors sleeping in those heavily encrypted warehouses beneath Mars far exceeded the currently promised 30,000.

But at this moment, it's more appropriate for Caul to keep these cards in his own hands.

"Thank you so much, Your Excellency the Great Sage! Your Excellency Chen Xi! The descendants of Saint Gilles owe you a debt of gratitude!" Tycho's tense expression finally relaxed, and his eyes shone with gratitude.

The promise of reinforcements eased his anxiety somewhat; at least Barr wouldn't be left alone.

Kaul's mechanical eye turned to Chen Xi, and he asked in a low voice, "You asked me to send troops to garrison Macurag, is it to welcome the return of the lord of the Thirteenth Legion?"

“That is indeed one of the reasons.” Chen Xi nodded, his gaze becoming profound. “But more importantly, it’s about ensuring his safe arrival in Holy Terra.”

His mind flashed back to Guilliman's arduous journey in the original timeline—the Red Pirates' ambushes as treacherous as vipers, the humiliation of the hijacking of his flagship "Magnagra's Radiance," and the numerous obstacles he encountered while traversing the warp storms...

Each level consumes the empire's most precious resource: time.

Chen Xi tapped his fingers lightly on the table: "Although he eventually made it to Terra, all that unnecessary damage... If we could have avoided that, we might have been able to buy ourselves a crucial window of opportunity."

He raised his head, his eyes gleaming with determination: "After all, the sooner the Primarch sets foot on Terra, the sooner the Empire can escape the shadow of decline."

Every single minute and every single second is a matter of life and death for millions of worlds.

A brief silence fell over the meeting room, and everyone's expressions became complex and somber.

The flickering light on the metal wall cast swaying shadows on the resolute faces of the warriors, as if foreshadowing the empire's bleak future.

Company Commander Galadon's fingers twisted together unconsciously, the terracotta gauntlets creaking and grinding against each other; Company Commander Tycho stared intently at the tactical holographic projection, his eyes filled with both worry for the future and concern for the safety of their home planet.

Even the usually composed Kaul's mechanical prosthetic eye flickered red unnaturally, as if it were rapidly calculating various possibilities.

In the midst of this solemn atmosphere, Blood Knights' Chapter Commander Amit suddenly broke the silence.

His voice was filled with the Blood Knight's usual suppressed rage, yet it couldn't conceal his urgency: "Lord Chen Xi, Great Sage, please forgive my intrusion, but what exactly is this 'Primal Space Marine' that you keep mentioning?" This question pierced the silence of the room like a powered sword, and the air seemed to freeze instantly.

Chen Xi keenly noticed that Garadon, the captain of the Imperial Fist, unconsciously tensed his shoulder muscles, Tycho Brahe, the captain of the Blood Angels, leaned forward slightly, and even the usually composed Black Templar representative raised his head—every chapter leader showed unusual attention.

He could see the doubt flickering in their eyes: these battle-hardened Astartes were used to being the most powerful warriors of mankind, and now being suddenly told that there was an even more powerful version was undoubtedly touching their most fundamental understanding.

Just as a faint electrical hum began to emanate from Caul's mechanical voice, Chen Xi spoke first: "That was the 'Original Forging Project' personally devised by Guilliman, the Primarch of the Thirteenth Legion, ten thousand years ago."

His voice was steady and powerful, echoing in the closed conference room.

He deliberately kept his explanation concise and clear, while simultaneously displaying a set of comparative data on the tactical holographic console: "Simply put, this is a comprehensive upgrade to the existing Space Marines. The modified warriors will become taller, faster, and stronger."

When he said this, he skillfully avoided sensitive words such as "genetic seed modification".

Yu Guangzhong noticed the almost imperceptible relaxation in Kaul's mechanical body.

Chen Xi's mind raced. He knew all too well that if these Astartes, who upheld tradition, were to find out now that Caul had arbitrarily modified the genetic seed designed by the Emperor himself—even as a Martian Great Sage, he would likely be torn to shreds by the enraged Chapter Masters with their power claws.

But if Guilliman were to awaken and the Primarch of the Thirteenth Legion were to announce the news himself... the whole situation would be completely different.

When that imposing figure, clad in the armor of destiny, stood in the throne room, and when those eyes, which had witnessed the Horus Rebellion, swept over the crowd, any doubts would evaporate like morning dew.

Because it was not only a Primarch's command, but also the surviving Gene Father's expectation for his offspring.

This endorsement from the very source of their bloodline is more persuasive than any Mechanicus edict or High Lord decree.

However, even with such authoritative endorsement, the implementation of the Original Casting Project was still fraught with undercurrents.

Some commanders of the nine founding chapters privately believed that this was nothing more than Guilliman's conspiracy to gradually erode the genetic heritage of other chapters through "sons and grandsons"—as some have pointed out with caution, the first to complete the modification were often the Ultramarines' sub-chapters.

The most horrifying incident occurred on one of the Black Templar's expeditionary fleets.

They not only slaughtered the entire Yuanzhu Company that came to reinforce them, but also executed the Imperial Guards who accompanied them.

They believed it was blasphemy against Astartes and an insult to their genetic father.

Therefore, Chen Xi and Kao Er must tread carefully at this moment.

Every word and phrase must be carefully considered; they are like walking on cracked ice, where a slight misstep could lead to a bottomless abyss.

They knew better than anyone that any wording that implied "replacement" or "elimination" would ignite the deepest fears within the Astartes like a spark setting a fuse—a collective memory of the fate of the Thunder Warriors.

These warriors, who have fought for thousands of years, are all walking war machines. If they were to feel that they would become sacrifices in the replacement of the empire, the entire solar system would probably be engulfed in flames of rebellion in an instant.

(End of this chapter)