Warhammer Cultivation: Cultivating the Tao Te Ching in the 40K Universe

He even saw that he, the "lonely Daoist Master" standing at the center of this illusory world, was in essence just a wizard, a false "personality projection" simulated by his Daoist aura filled with "order" and "harmony"!

Everything is fake.

Everything is... "data".

"So……"

Hector's lips curled into a cold smile, radiating an aura of "reason."

"...Let me use your most prized 'logic' to teach you this last and most profound lesson."

He no longer tried to "cover up" this illusion with "Tao".

He extended his other hand.

His left hand still represents "the Way".

At this moment, however, his right hand erupted with an unprecedented, cold, and absolutely rational blue light filled with infinite algorithms!

That was... a gift from Mars, belonging to the sage Alkan, concerning "soul engineering"!

"Tao" and "Qi", Yin and Yang!

Two completely opposite laws, yet perfectly harmonious within him, were simultaneously driven to their extreme at this moment!

He transformed himself into... an ultimate "compiler" that transcends all dimensions and can directly "read, write" and "modify" the "low-level code" of the real universe!

"Got you."

His strange eyes, filled with a beauty of contradiction and harmony, instantly pierced through the layers of illusion and data, precisely locking onto a faint, hidden core of this false universe—a "data singularity"—that represented "core control authority."

That place is the only "port" through which the soul of that Tzeentch wizard connects with the "Resonance Obelisk"!

Hector did not hesitate at all.

He simply and calmly issued the simplest, yet most ruthless, command to that "singularity."

"--format."

Chapter 153 Taiyi Divine Light (Bonus Chapter 4)

The moment those cold, emotionless syllables escaped Hector's lips, the entire illusionary world—that perfect logical hell constructed from the wizard's lifelong schemes—seemed to have its ultimate delete button pressed!

"Do not--!!!"

The wizard's scream, filled with disbelief and hysterical terror, became the last and only "voice" in this world!

He felt an irresistible, incomprehensible, and even undefinable "will," like an administrator's command with the highest authority, instantly piercing through all his firewalls and invading the very core of the connection between his soul and the altar!

That will is neither an impact of energy nor a physical destruction.

That's a... more advanced form of "rewriting"!

His soul data, filled with paradoxes and lies, was like an ancient program full of error codes in the face of this will, forcibly and line by line, overwritten with the purest "0" and "1"!

His memories, his emotions, his beliefs, his twisted nature belonging to "Tzeentch"... everything was silently wiped out under this cold, undeniable "formatting" command.

That illusory universe he constructed, filled with "perfection" and "death," collapsed like a castle in the air stripped of all its underlying code!

The real world, like a system that has been rebooted, returns once again.

Necromonda descends into the abandoned factory, a place already soaked in blood and despair.

The surviving Daoist guardians, along with the fanatical believers whose faith had long since crumbled, awoke simultaneously from that grand spiritual storm. They stared blankly at the devastated battlefield before them, as if they had just struggled to escape from a nightmare that had lasted for centuries.

Before them stood the arrogant Tzeentch wizard, still in that fanatical pose with his arms outstretched, attempting to drag Hector into the ultimate illusion.

But he is no longer himself.

His enormous wings, composed of pure psionic flames, extinguished completely, turning into two harmless wisps of blue smoke that dissipated into the air. His magnificent seven-colored robe also lost all its radiance, becoming an ordinary, dusty, and tattered cloth robe.

His face, which was once filled with countless small, ever-blinking eyes brimming with wisdom and malice, now had all its eyes closed, leaving only an absolute emptiness and bewilderment, like that of a newborn infant.

His soul has been completely "formatted".

He became a... perfect, thoughtless, living "vessel".

However, Hector knew that this was not the end.

His strange eyes, one like eternal night and the other like a star, calmly gazed at the "altar of lies" behind the wizard, which had long since lost all its luster.

He could clearly "see" that inside the unknown, strange crystal that served as the core of the altar, a larger, older, and purer "malice" was slowly awakening because it had lost the restraint of its "container"!

That is the real "root cause" of this disaster!

That was Tzeentch's real "backup plan" left in this real universe!

That crystal was not a simple resonator. It was a "door"! A door connecting reality and the subspace, capable of projecting that great, indescribable will of "change" directly onto this battlefield... a "door"!

A cold smile curled at the corner of Hector's mouth.

He knew that the wizard was nothing more than a pawn to be discarded.

Now, he will face a glimpse of the true "player" hidden behind the scenes.

Sure enough, the next moment, without warning, the strange crystal burst forth with an unprecedented, dazzling light that was enough to dye the entire lower nest a violet color!

An indescribable, boundless will, full of endless "changes" and "possibilities," burst forth from that crystal like a bursting dam!

That was not a psionic storm.

That was... a wisp of divine thought from a deity!

That divine thought was not intended for attack.

It is merely "observing".

It was like a chess player who became interested in an ant that suddenly appeared on the chessboard, curiously casting its gaze, which could pierce through time and space, over there!

However, this seemingly harmless glance is enough to trigger an avalanche at the level of laws in this fragile real universe... the ultimate catastrophe!

The surviving Dao Guardians felt as if their souls had been thrown into a labyrinth made up of billions of constantly rotating magic mirrors reflecting different futures! Their thoughts, their perceptions, and their Dao hearts that had just broken free from despair were like fragile pieces of paper about to be torn apart in the face of this will full of infinite "possibilities"!

A cold snort, devoid of any emotion and as cold as the shattering of ancient ice, came from Hector's mouth.

For the first time, his strange eyes, filled with a beauty of contradiction and harmony, opened completely!

He no longer tried to "deconstruct" or "observe." He wanted to use the most direct and domineering method to completely and fundamentally sever this "guest" who dared to spy on his "dojo," along with its outstretched tentacles!

He slowly raised his right hand, his index and middle fingers together, like an ancient god who held the laws of the universe, and gently touched his brow with a slow yet irresistible rhythm.

That was not an action. It was a declaration. A ritual to proclaim the existence of "Tao" to the real universe.

He spoke softly. Those were not the words of an ordinary person, but the first "true name" he uttered with his Golden Elixir Dao Heart, capable of resonating with the most fundamental "order" of the universe!

In an instant, a beam of light shot out from between his eyebrows.

That was not any kind of "light" as we know it.

It has no color, as if it were "colorless" itself. It has no temperature, as if it were "absolute zero" itself. It has no speed, because it is not "moving," but rather, the moment it appears, it already "exists" at its destination!

It was an absolute "reason" constructed from pure "is"! A... ultimate concept that negated all "not"!

New supernatural power – “Taiyi Divine Light”!

That silent "non-light" struck precisely the alien crystal that was frantically spewing out chaotic divine thoughts.

Chapter 154 Sacrifice is the Norm in This Universe (5 Extra Chapters)

There was no explosion, no fire.

Not even the slightest sound was uttered.

Under the incredulous and awe-inspiring gazes of all the surviving guardians, a miracle of "reverse creation" occurred.

That indestructible, alien crystal, which could serve as a "gateway" to the subspace, along with the vast and boundless will of the gods within it, was neither shattered nor annihilated.

It is being "restored".

Its distorted, paradoxical crystal structure was forcibly smoothed out by a higher-dimensional "order," reducing it to the most basic, meaningless silicon and carbon that constitute it.

Its chaotic divine thoughts, full of "change" and "possibilities," were covered by that absolute "reason," like a liar whose lies have been exposed, reduced to the most primitive cosmic background radiation, which has not yet been given any "meaning."

It was like a piece of erroneous code that had been completely deleted from the vast system of the real universe by a programmer with the highest authority. Along with all its backups, all its historical records, all traces of its existence, it was all… erased.

It was as if it had never existed in this universe.

The storm of laws brought about by Tzeentch's divine sense, powerful enough to drag the entire Lower Nest into subspace, collapsed like a castle in the air with its foundation severed, having lost its "source," and slowly dissipated into countless harmless energy spots.

The entire battlefield was completely restored to tranquility.

Hector slowly withdrew his finger, which was still as white as jade, as if he had only driven away an annoying flying insect.

He turned around and looked at the few remaining Dao Guards behind him, who had returned from hell and were stunned by the world-creating scene before them.

His handsome face, which was full of the charm of "Tao," was expressionless.

He simply watched them calmly.

"You've worked hard, my soldiers."

Hector's calm voice rang in the ears of the guards.

With difficulty, Barrow opened his eyes, which were blurred from excessive blood loss. He looked at the handsome face before him, a face full of the essence of "Tao," a face for which he was willing to give everything. For the first time, two streams of hot tears, filled with grievance and ecstasy, flowed down that face, which was as firm as a rock.

"tutor……"

His voice was hoarse, yet childlike, full of dependence.

"We...did not...disgrace you..."

"I know."

Hector nodded. He slowly injected a pure, life-giving golden elixir essence into Barona's already collapsing body, keeping him clinging to the last vestige of life.

Then, he slowly stood up.

His gaze no longer fell upon the Chaos Cultists who stood motionless like zombies. In his eyes, these soulless shells were no different from the rusted machines in this steel hell.

His gaze no longer fell upon the ruins of the "altar of lies," which had been completely "purified," leaving not a speck of dust behind.

His gaze simply swept calmly over this small battlefield filled with death and tragedy.

He looked at his bodyguards lying in pools of blood.

There were a total of twenty-three cold, mutilated corpses.

They were the first to follow him, believe in him, and ultimately, give everything for him and for the “Tao” he taught… martyrs.

Hector's face was expressionless.

There was no anger, no sadness.

There is only one kind of... absolute, cold calm, like the universe itself.

But deep within those pitch-black, abyss-like pupils, a flame, unlike anything ever seen before, ignited—a flame powerful enough to freeze the entire starry sea.

That was not the fire of ordinary human emotions.

That was the wrath of the "Tao".

He ignored the few surviving Dao Guards who were also seriously injured.

He slowly, step by step, walked to the remains of the long-deceased Dao Guardians.

He looked at their young faces, which were filled with determination and resentment.

He looked at their hands, which had long lost all their luster, yet still gripped the Two-Element Chainsaw Sword tightly, hands stained with blood.

He looked at their bodies, at the gruesome wounds that would move any Space Marine to tears.

Then, he slowly squatted down.

That hand, once pure white and clean, that had purified the plague of Nurgle with a single finger and severed the lies of Tzeentch with a single sword.

He gently brushed his golden elixir essence, brimming with the vitality of life, across their faces, which were contorted with resentment and anger.

We know that death is also part of the "Tao".

He was seeing them off.

For these pitiful yet admirable souls who followed him and embarked on this path destined to be filled with thorns and flames, a final "salvation" will be performed, a ceremony that belongs only to their "Intercepting Sect Academy."

He brushed his hand across the face of a young Dao Guard. The guard, even in death, maintained his charging stance, his chest pierced completely by a massive, powered spear. But the contorted expression of extreme pain on his face, soothed by Hector's life-giving true energy, slowly relaxed. The resentment and anger faded, replaced by a... relieved peace.