Witnessing such a scene, a burst of suppressed discussion suddenly arose in the conference hall.
The scenes displayed in those holographic images—twisted sacrificial rituals, mad mutual slaughter, and those chilling supernatural entity guards—were all challenging the bottom line of every Imperial officer present.
Even the White Scars revealed a solemn gaze beneath their visors at this moment.
The head of the Engineering Department whispered with the deputy beside him, discussing whether it was necessary to adjust the base's defense system and other module parameters, while the commander of the scout troops quickly recorded the key areas that needed further reconnaissance.
"Silence."
Company Commander Li Mu's voice was not loud, but it shattered all the noise like a cold warhammer.
He raised his right hand, encased in power armor, and made a simple yet extremely weighty downward pressing gesture.
The conference room instantly returned to silence, leaving only the faint hum of the holographic projector operating.
The gaze of this Company Commander of the White Scars First Company swept across every seat present, ultimately settling on the representative area of the Investigation Department and the Heresy Inquisition Department.
"Investigation Department, Heresy Inquisition Department." Li Mu's voice was steady and direct, without the slightest bureaucratic pleasantry. "Based on your past experience dealing with anomalous phenomena, what is your preliminary judgment on the entities in these images? The Intelligence Department's assessment report is too cautious; I need more specific action recommendations."
His question cut straight to the core, handing the right to speak in specialized fields back to the true experts.
After a brief silence, the representative of the Heresy Inquisition Department was the first to respond.
It was a figure standing in the shadowed corner of the conference room, whose full-body ancient Roman-style power armor emitted a low, pleasing sound of metal friction.
The armor was in a dark gold tone, its surface etched with complex Imperial heraldry and Chinese character inscriptions. The shoulder pads were carved with a winged lion and entwined thorns, and a faintly glowing blood-red ruby was inlaid in the center of the breastplate.
The most striking thing was her appearance—
Even in a serious military meeting, that face was so beautiful it made one dazed.
Her long silvery-white hair was bound by an exquisite hair crown, with a few strands falling onto her shoulder pads. Her skin was fair, and her eyes flickered with a certain special luster under the cold light of the conference hall.
Leroya Chevaligne Vitellius, the current Legion Commander of the Emperor's direct forces, the Legion of Glory, a name that rarely made public appearances among the Empire's higher-ups.
"Based on my personal knowledge reserve..." Her voice was clear and penetrating, carrying a sense of rhythm. "Combined with the cross-universe cultural fragment analysis provided by the Intelligence Department, I believe that the existences referred to as supernatural entities are highly likely to be sub-god species from this universe's native mythological system."
She walked toward the control console of the holographic projector, lightly tapping her slender fingers in the air, and brought up several marked high-definition images—
Those guards patrolling outside the twisted temples.
"Note their armor styles and decorative patterns." Leroya's voice was calm. "Although they have undergone obvious alienating treatments, one can still identify the mixed characteristics of multiple ancient civilizations: Egypt's scarabs and sun disks, Maya's feathered serpent motifs, Norse runic symbols, and even Mesopotamian astrological signs.
This mixture is not accidental, but a conscious construction of theocratic symbology, aimed at instilling the false concept of all gods returning to one into the subjugated humans."
She enlarged one of the images, focusing on a twisted totem etched on the side of a guard's helmet: "This symbol, in the myths of at least seventeen different civilizations, represents a messenger of the gods or a demigod.
And their physical size generally exceeding two point three meters, unnatural coordination, and the faint distortion produced in the surrounding space, all of these fit the basic characteristics of sub-gods or divine servants."
Next, her finger swiped across the screen, and the image switched to those magnificent architectural complexes standing at the core of the ruined metropolises.
"As for the interior of these temples and palaces..." A cold luster flashed in Leroya's eyes. "What resides inside is very likely the major gods in the mythological legends of this universe, or rather, existences that proclaim themselves to be gods.
Through some method, they have revived and descended, utilizing the cognitive fragments of mythology in the collective unconscious of humanity to construct their own godhood and divine domains.
And those mad human believers are the faith batteries they use to maintain their existence and draw power."
Her analysis was clear and highly logical. This was not a simple demon invasion or psychic pollution, but a complete theocratic ruling system based on mythological constructs.
"Heh."
Hearing this, Company Commander Li Mu crossed his arms over his chest. His white power armor reflected a cold luster under the lights of the conference hall. There was no expression on his face, but pure contempt belonging to an Astartes burned in his eyes.
"Gods? Sub-gods?" His voice was deep and full of power. "In my cognition, only His Majesty the Emperor, who sits upon the Golden Throne and leads humanity across the sea of stars, is worthy of the honorable title of a god.
All other existences that proclaim themselves to be gods and vainly attempt to ride above humanity—
He paused for a second, the servo systems of his power armor emitting a faint hum.
"Are all nothing but scum."
This sentence was spoken so calmly, yet so decisively, as if stating the most fundamental truth of the universe.
All the officers present, including the White Scars and the auxiliary army representatives, nodded slightly, their power armor emitting a uniform sound of metal friction.
This was the common faith branded deep in their genetics and hearts: Humanity is supreme, the Emperor is holiest.
Leon spoke up at an opportune moment. The agent also maintained a posture with his arms crossed over his chest, his gaze calmly sweeping across the images on the holographic screen.
"I agree with Legion Commander Vitellius's analytical framework." Leon's voice was steady, carrying a pragmatism honed by years of frontline work. "Regardless of what the essence of these existences is, they have already established a complete theocratic ruling system.
To deal with this kind of enemy, we need to adjust our strategy."
He walked up to the holographic control console and brought up a topographic map of the area within five hundred kilometers around the Nubian Desert.
"Given that the enemy possesses obvious supernatural attributes, I recommend immediately applying to our superiors for the following support." Leon's finger traced across several preset infiltration routes on the map. "First, dispatch additional special forces equipped with psychic perception and anti-psychic combat capabilities, preferably combat units such as Grey Knights, Greek sub-gods, Sisters of Battle, and Knights.
Second, request the allocation of higher-specification psychic suppression equipment, especially specialized countermeasure modules targeting faith transmission and mental pollution.
Third..."
He paused, his gaze looking toward Company Commander Li Mu.
"If possible, it would be best to invite the Goddess of War, Lady Athena, to directly participate in this operation."
Company Commander Li Mu remained silent for a moment.
It wasn't that he didn't understand Athena's strength, but as a frontline commander, he knew even better how sufficient a reason was needed to mobilize an existence of this level.
"Reason?" he asked briefly.
"Three." Leon held up three fingers. "First, Lady Athena herself possesses divinity. Her perception and understanding of similar existences far exceed those of us mortals, and possibly even exceed most Astartes.
Second, she has rich combat experience in fighting supernatural entities, especially maintaining a high win rate in engagements with Chaos demons.
Third, we need a symbol capable of directly challenging the opponent's theocracy from the level of mythological construction.
Lady Athena's wisdom and her godhood as the Goddess of War, if operated properly, can become a sharp weapon to disintegrate the enemy's faith system."
This reasoning convinced Li Mu. He nodded slightly and said, "I will compile these judgments and recommendations into an official report, and upload it to the main universe together with the reconnaissance data."
Li Mu's voice returned to the businesslike tone of a commander. "Before the reinforcements arrive, we cannot just sit still and wait for death."
His gaze turned toward Leon and Leroya.
"Investigation Department, Heresy Inquisition Department, please organize elite agents within twenty-four hours to infiltrate the urban areas that have been controlled by the theocracy."
Li Mu's finger tapped on three marked points on the map, one of which was Cairo.
"The mission is to collect more first-hand information about these god entities, figure out their organizational structure, sources of power, methods of control, and, if possible, find their weaknesses.
During the infiltration, the White Scars will provide remote support and emergency evacuation guarantees."
"Understood."
"Copy that."
Leon and Leroya responded simultaneously.
"Meeting dismissed," Li Mu announced. "All departments will continue to execute their tasks according to the predetermined plan. The White Scars First Company will maintain the highest alert level until the next orders are issued."
The officers stood up one after another and left the conference hall.
The footsteps of power armor, the friction of leather boot soles against the alloy floor, and the low voices of conversation mixed together, forming a rhythm that belonged to the prelude of war.
Leon and Mike walked shoulder to shoulder out of the command center's main doors.
The midday desert sun poured down mercilessly. Even with the filtering of the energy shield, one could still feel the scorching heat wave.
The engineering robots in the distance were still busy, and the White Scars patrol teams stood on the watchtowers at the perimeter of the base like moving white statues.
"Good lord." Mike pulled out a cigarette but didn't light it, just habitually holding it in his mouth. "From the sound of it, all those so-called gods have revived?
Tsk, I thought only our main universe had gods from the ancient Greek system."
The two walked along the paved main road toward the Investigation Department's camp.
On both sides of the road, the holographic signboards just installed by the Engineering Department flickered with a faint blue light, marking the functional zoning of each area.
"Anything is possible." Leon's voice was calm, his gaze sweeping over the orderly scene within the base. "The rules of the multiverse vary vastly.
We've seen worlds destroyed by zombies, worlds ruled by aliens. Running into a world toyed with by gods now is nothing to be surprised about."
"Easy for you to say." Mike let out a light laugh. "However, I'd actually like to kill a god for once."
Leon continued, "Regardless of what these existences proclaim themselves to be, and regardless of what kind of power they possess, in the Empire's logic, they only have two identities.
First, collaborators who are willing to accept the Empire's rule, abide by the Empire's laws, and acknowledge the supreme status of humanity.
Second, enemies who hinder human unification, threaten human survival, and must be purified."
His gaze passed over Mike, looking toward the boundless desert horizon distorted by heat waves outside the base.
"As for gods..." Leon was silent for a moment. "In the eyes of the Astartes, only the Emperor is the True God. But in the eyes of those of us who have walked over from the old era—
—"
He paused, recalling that lonely figure on the Golden Throne, recalling that existence who fought side by side with them during the Empire's founding period yet always maintained a certain detached distance.
"Even Athena, who fights for the Empire, cannot be considered a true god. She is merely a powerful ally, a special warrior, nothing more."
Mike froze for a moment, then grinned.
He patted Leon's shoulder and put the unlit cigarette into his pocket.
"Anyway, the closest thing to a god I've ever seen in my life is His Majesty the Emperor. As for the rest..." Mike shrugged. "They're all just messes waiting to be cleaned up."
The two continued to walk forward.
The report requesting support had been sent out, and the plan for the infiltration operation was being formulated. Once the Empire's war machine started, it would never stop.
Not long after, inside the command room of the Investigation Department's camp.
The hard-light screen was displaying detailed information on the three target cities to be infiltrated, or rather, all the information the reconnaissance aircraft could gather in a short period of time.
"Target A, formerly known as Aswan." A young technical officer was giving a briefing to the assembled agent squad. "Located on the east bank of the Nile River, relatively close to the base, with a straight-line distance of one hundred and eighty-seven kilometers.
Before the war, it was an important tourist city and water conservancy hub with a population of about six hundred thousand. The current status..."
The image on the screen was suffocating.
The former Aswan Dam had completely collapsed, and the Nile River flowed wantonly among the ruins, forming patches of muddy swamps.
Half of the city's buildings had collapsed. In the center of the relatively well-preserved remaining area, a bizarre pyramid-style temple stood majestically.
Suspended at the top of the temple was a continuously rotating complex geometric shape emitting a dark golden light, like a miniature sun.
On the streets surrounding the temple, a massive number of humans in tattered clothes were walking slowly in circles in an extremely eerie, neat formation.
Their eyes were vacant, murmuring words, holding all kinds of tributes in their hands—from rotting food to rusty metal fragments, and even... mutilated human limbs.
"According to thermal imaging and vital sign scans, the physical condition of these human believers is extremely poor, with a malnutrition rate close to one hundred percent, but their life signals are abnormally steady, lacking the physiological fluctuations that normal humans should have."
The technical officer's voice carried suppressed disgust. "Even stranger, we detected weak, same-frequency energy readings within their bodies, which seem to resonate with that geometric shape at the top of the temple."
"Target B, formerly known as Luxor." The image switched. "Located in the middle reaches of the Nile River, two hundred and thirteen kilometers from the base. A famous site of ancient Egyptian civilization, known before the war for the Karnak Temple and Luxor Temple.
The current status..."
This time, even the battle-hardened agents frowned.
The ruins of the Karnak Temple had been thoroughly modified.
Those ancient stone pillars were wrapped in a layer of writhing substance that looked like a mixture of flesh and metal. Milky white eyes without pupils opened upon the pillars.
The lake in the center of the temple had turned into a viscous, foul-smelling dark green liquid, with a large number of bloated corpses floating on the surface.
And in the original position of the obelisk stood a twisted statue fifty meters tall, pieced together from bones and rusted iron.
The facial features of the statue were blurred, but its six arms each held a different weapon: a scimitar, a spear, a whip, a scepter, and two unrecognizable, writhing organs that seemed to be living creatures.
"Strong pollution readings were detected in this area, with environmental background radiation exceeding the normal value by three thousand times. When the reconnaissance drones approached within five kilometers, they began to suffer from strong mental interference, and the transmitted footage showed slight distortion."
The technical officer took a deep breath. "Initial judgment suggests this might be the stronghold of a godhood related to war, death, or disease."
"Target C, formerly known as Cairo..."
From the beginning to the end of the technical officer's briefing, the command room fell into a brief silence.
Three cities, displaying various forms of theocracy: mad collective worship, bloody war sacrifices, bizarre temporal and spatial disorder, and so on.
This was not just a military invasion; it was a complex war involving theology, philosophy, and the essence of existence.
Leon stood at the front of the command room, his gaze sweeping over the several agents who were about to execute the mission.
These people were all elites of the Investigation Department. Having experienced the handling of anomalous events across multiple universes, their psychological quality and professional abilities could be considered top-tier.
"The mission objectives are clear." His voice was not loud, but every word was clear and powerful. "In groups of three, infiltrate the three cities respectively. Remember, prioritize reconnaissance and avoid combat."
Leon reiterated the operational guidelines. "But also remember, we are the Investigation Department, not a sightseeing tour. If you encounter an opportunity to obtain critical intelligence, or discover weaknesses that could have a significant impact on subsequent military operations, I authorize you to take necessary measures after assessing the risks."
He paused for a moment, his gaze becoming incomparably sharp.
"One last point. No matter what you see, no matter what kind of miracles those gods display, remember this firmly..."
His voice echoed inside the command room.
"The Emperor is watching us. Humanity will never surrender."
"Yes! Sir!"
______
(≧◡≦) ♡ Support me and read 20 chapters ahead – patreon.com/Mutter
Every 100 Power Stones = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.
Every 5 reviews = 1 extra chapter on Saturday.