I'm a magnetic field madman

Thinking of this, Guilliman's anger flared instantly!

"Why am I still alive!" Guilliman roared.

"What more do you want from me? I've given you everything, and I've given them everything; look at what they've done for our dreams!"

"On the bloated, corrupt remains of the empire, there is no longer a trace of reason or hope; only fear, hatred, and ignorance sustain this zombie's last breath! Even if we are all consumed by the flames of Horus's ambition, it is better than living to witness all of this!"

Guilliman knew that everything he said was said in anger, but how could he not get angry?

Look at what the empire did after he and his brothers left!

What did those mortals trusted by the emperor, those mortals to whom Guilliman was willing to give love and forgiveness, do?!

They were almost defeated by a group of Greenskins on Terra. Even when the Greenskins were right in front of them, the High Lords and the Insects still wanted to make a pact with the Greenskins!

If it weren't for his brother Vulcan, these empires ruled by mortals would have been fucking destroyed long ago!

Then, what did that bastard Gauche van der Erd, that madman, do to the empire he and his brothers built?

Replace former rationality with blind obedience and faith, replace Imperial truth with the false scriptures written by that bastard Lorga... and then, in the name of the Emperor and the Primarch, fucking persecute the people of the Empire!!

Look at those corrupt state church pastors, look at those who spout the rhetoric of serving the emperor yet are utterly depraved...

These insects are even inferior to the Word Bearers and the Insects under Lojia's rule during the Great Expedition!

Guilliman hated Word Bearers, but he thought they were a thousand times better than that trash!

Even when Saint Sebastian's rational doctrines replaced the madman's rule, so what? Did the empire become better?

Those mortals, those high lords, those planetary governors, those nobles—

Darkness, all Guilliman saw was an intense, impenetrable darkness!

He began to feel sorrow, not for himself but for the innocent children born into this era.

They are children of this dark age, whose lives have seen nothing but hardship, suffering, and endless conflict... Nevertheless, they fight on relentlessly, undeterred by the surrounding enemies.

But they saw no light, no hope. They were not as fortunate as Guilliman, nor as fortunate as he and his former comrades.

Guilliman, on the other hand, was fortunate to be born in a better era, a golden age filled with hope and triumph.

Even though his and his brothers' expedition was fraught with difficulties and dangers...

However, they all possessed something precious that most people in this era did not have.

That is hope.

From the expeditionary force setting sail from Terra, from the last Thunder Warrior departing from the Emperor's side, to the birth of the first Space Marine, and all the way to before the Horus Rebellion—

Why do every Space Marine, every soldier, and even those basic workers carry passion and hope?

Because they are living a better life? No, it's because they know that even if it's hard, their hard work is worthwhile; they are striving for a great ideal!

Moreover, they could see that they weren't the only ones suffering. The powerful Space Marines, the mythical Primarchs, even the Emperors they regarded as gods—they were fighting too, they were fighting relentlessly!

If our leaders are so willing to sacrifice their lives for a great cause, what reason do we have not to strive for it?

The golden age was glorious and dazzling, its light of hope so bright that even Horus's great rebellion could not tarnish it.

Even those who followed Horus in his rebellion harbored hope—they believed in the wolf god, in a great ideal, and even more so in their leader who fought alongside them.

But looking at the empire now, what do we really have left? What is left of us?

Apart from seemingly vast territory and power, we have nothing! The people are desperate, the rulers are corrupt, everything is rotten to the core, rotten beyond endurance!

Father, is this the wonderful thing you promised? Is this the result you said would happen after we are gone, after Astartes is gone, and after those mortals rule?

The double blow and excruciating pain, both physical and psychological, nearly caused Guilliman to faint... What distressed him even more was that he didn't even have anyone to confide in at that moment!

Since waking up, once again, Guilliman desperately wants a brother by his side so they can talk freely.

Perhaps only they can understand how he feels at this moment.

Does he? Yes, he does. Angron is listening, but that's all he gives Guilliman...

"Hahaha, Guilliman, how are you feeling now? How are you feeling?!"

Angron burst into laughter as he watched the devastated Guilliman clutch his stomach, finding joy in Guilliman's pathetic state!

Even Loja, who was on the verge of death after being stabbed by Angron, managed to squeeze out a few smiles with incredible skill.

"Shut up! It's all because of you traitors!" Guilliman roared.

"Us? Please, the number of humans I've personally killed over the past ten thousand years doesn't even add up to ten billion," Angron sneered.

"The number of people that Luo Jia and I have killed in the past ten thousand years is less than the number of people your empire's bureaucrats have driven to their deaths in a single day. Your corruption is your own problem, so don't fucking try to pin the blame on us!"

"Chaos is a bunch of stinking shit that should be wiped out! But aren't humans also part of that shit?"

Guilliman could not refute Anglon's words.

Because this is the truth! On the empire's rotting body, the festering sores directly affected by chaos and aliens do not make up the majority; the majority are still ailments caused by humanity's own problems!

The most exciting part of the Beast Wars isn't the power of the beasts and greenskins... but rather the Highlord Council's various infighting and pig-nose-like maneuvers in the face of the greenskins.

Van Diehl's bloody reign had absolutely nothing to do with chaos...

It was purely the work of the madman Vandir and his cronies, who abused their power and persecuted the people of the empire in the name of the God Emperor. What's even more ridiculous is that this madman is also a "loyal" guy.

"I don't have time to die!" These were the only last words of this tyrant, traitor, and religious fanatic before his death!

The Empire’s most terrible problem today does not even come from external enemies, but from the endless internal strife and strife, corruption and depravity!

These viruses ensured that the empire would decline and die even after each victory. These bloodsucking insects that clung to the empire's massive corpse spent ten thousand years turning the land he and his brothers had conquered into what it is today!

Those who have a superficial understanding of chaos will always blame all the corruption on chaos—but the evil gods are not so idle, nor do they need to project their attention and influence onto reality.

Subspace is inherently a reflection of intelligent life, a reflection of chaos, and is itself a reflection of human ugliness.

Damn it, how can the empire be running smoothly when surrounded by these mortal insects!

Guilliman felt a wave of dizziness and a sense of despair washed over him, a feeling of resignation to simply giving up.

But he was still Guilliman, that idealist, and perhaps the only hope.

If these children, who could hold onto a glimmer of hope even in these dark times, would continue to fight, how could Guilliman allow himself to give up?

What right does he—one of the emperor's extraordinary sons—have to wallow in self-pity?

To show weakness and helplessness in the face of these followers who were born in darkness but whose courage and strength have never diminished would be nothing short of indulgence and willfulness.

“All these tragedies…” Guilliman said bitterly, “all this suffering and pain should not be the fate of our people. Humanity has never done anything wrong. The culprits are those traitors who have abandoned their own race. For far too long, the descendants of Chaos have been toying with the fate of our people, and I will not allow it to continue.”

Guilliman felt a new strength fill his body. He rallied and locked all his sorrow and desolation deep within his heart, leaving only the righteous fury—which would be a powerful weapon.

To ignore the shortcomings and corruption that humanity has created over the past ten thousand years, and to blame all the problems on the aliens and humanity's enemies.

Guilliman forced himself to believe that humanity was not such a rotten race... that the empire's decay was a result of being forced into this state by these ubiquitous external enemies.

It's a form of escapism, which is shameful, but extremely useful.

It is always better to direct your anger and hatred toward groups that are hostile to humanity than to direct it toward humanity itself.

Quickly stabilizing his breathing, Guilliman regained his senses... and recovered from the despairing vision of the Empire that the Emperor had presented to him.

"There is still hope," he said softly.

Then, he looked at Angron, who was beaming with schadenfreude, hesitated for a moment, but still resolutely gave his response...

"Angron, I cannot fulfill your request!"

107. Slap the emperor three times, three times!

Is Angron's demand excessive? Of course not, it's just a small sector.

Compared to the million planets, countless star sectors, and even numerous star fields under the Empire's rule, a small star system, even if it is an important forging world hive, is insignificant to the Empire.

Moreover, the Hazy Starfield, where the Calissis Sector is located, is itself a region far from the center of the Empire...

Although it encompasses important worlds such as Caliban, the homeworld of the Dark Angels, and Kadia, which guards the Eye of Terror, it is still a frontier region close to the "front lines".

From a material standpoint, Guilliman would be happy to hand over a sector... as long as it calms Angron down and allows Guilliman to free up his hands to manage the Empire, a temporary appeasement policy is acceptable.

Although everyone says that not an inch of the Empire's territory is superfluous... Guilliman, as one of the very few politicians among the Primarchs, has a remarkably flexible bottom line...

However, Anglon's "demand" eliminated this possibility; Guilliman would never agree to Anglon's conditions!

Leaving the Calissis sector is a minor matter; what he demands is a public announcement by the High Lords Council!

What does that mean? If Guilliman actually did that, then things would be in big trouble!

Imagine a loyal Primarch coming back to life demanding that the Highlords, who now hold power in the Imperium, give an entire sector to a traitorous Primarch—that would be a huge problem!

Guilliman knew the allure of power. If he wanted to change the empire after his awakening, he would have to get involved in power, which would inevitably lead to a power game with the High Lords Council.

The high lords would never relinquish their power—not because they coveted anything, but precisely because they were all "loyal."

The more loyal they are, the more stubborn they become, and the more determined they are to believe that what they are doing and the system they maintain is the only way for the empire to survive.

Anyone who attempts to challenge or subvert this order, regardless of their character or status, is seen by the High Lords as a "traitor" plotting to overthrow the empire.

Even if Guilliman is a Primarch and has the so-called identity of "Son of God", it doesn't change this fact!

Rather, it is precisely because Guilliman is a Primarch that the High Lords are more willing to fight him head-on.

Those who could rise to the position of high lord were either top nobles in the old Terra Banner or truly powerful figures.

They won't be fooled by the state church's revised version of the Word... They don't believe the Primarch is truly the inviolable Son of God.

To put it bluntly, only a very few of these high lords truly harbored faith in the Emperor!

The closer a person is to the gods, the less they believe in them.

Unlike others, these high lords, who clearly knew the ins and outs of the Great Rebellion, were extremely wary of the Primarch's return and strongly opposed the Primarch regaining power!

These guys are even afraid to give the title of "War General" to a mere mortal like Macarius... let alone give Guilliman the even greater power of "Regency".

Nevertheless, Guilliman remains confident that he can take over the Terra Highlord Council with minimal losses.

Although he has been asleep for ten thousand years, Guilliman's political acumen remains unparalleled!

But if he agrees to Angron's conditions...

Guilliman had reason to believe that the High Lords would dare to use this as a pretext to label him a rebellious Primarch, a Chaos element, and a demon plotting to overthrow the Imperial regime, and then immediately start a war!

At best, this matter is just about the jurisdiction of a sector; at worst, it's about the Primarchs wanting to restore the Great Expedition, to establish Primarch militarism, and even, to put it more bluntly, to attempt to split the Empire.

There was a guy named Huron who did just that, although the High Lord's reason was tax resistance...

But the real fear is that Huron will become the second "Warmaster" after he takes control of the Great Vortex—oh right, Huron is also Guilliman's son, isn't he?

Such a pretext is enough to ignite a large-scale human civil war.

This is not an exaggeration. After all, war can be seen as an extension of politics, and the purpose of all human wars can be categorized as a political issue.

This is fucking politics, something Guilliman excels at, but is utterly disgusting.

What troubled Guilliman even more was that if the High Lords used this as an excuse to tie the State Church and the Inquisition to their side, things would get really messy!

Because by then, even if the emperor intervenes, the civil war will not stop!

Because those Highlord insectoids and those extremely self-righteous state religions and inquisitions actually dared to label the Emperor a heretic—

Since the real emperor is still on his golden throne and hasn't risen yet, they have the right to interpret any miracles performed by the emperor as heresy or sorcery.

Heretics are more hateful than heretics!

For people who regard faith as life itself, the right to interpret religion is an instinct upon which they depend for survival.

Any other interpretation of the doctrine, even if it came from the emperor himself, would be considered heresy.

Those State Religion Insects and Inquisition Insects have been clamoring for the name of heresy for ten thousand years, and this is not the first time they have actually labeled the Emperor (the Son of the Stars) as a heretic and tried to kill them.

When that time comes, will Guilliman try to wipe out the State Church and the Inquisition together and abolish them all?

Don't get me wrong, Guilliman really wishes all these charlatans were dead!

But his reason told him—with these religious fanatics, the empire would be finished sooner or later; without them, the empire would be finished in the next second!

Everything that held this colossal empire together was gone, leaving only a shallow faith. Without faith, the empire's disintegration was inevitable.

In fact, this might not be a bad thing. As the saying goes, what is united for a long time must divide, and the empire's current predicament is largely due to its excessively large territory.

In particular, the expeditions of Marcarius, which conquered too many worlds, have been the biggest problem that has bled the empire for thousands of years.

The division of forces can actually help each faction unify its power, resolve internal conflicts, and even gain greater strength. A tightly clenched fist might actually hurt more when it loosens.