The Emperor’s Angel of Death

“Ugh——”

Sojun retracted his hand from the robot, his expression turning a bit strange.

Li and Dalia, not far away, were staring at him. Li was the first to speak:

“Sojun, what are you doing?”

“Confirming whether it can be trusted. I can't just trust an Abominable Intelligence without any basis, right?”

Li and Dalia exchanged glances, then Dalia slowly said:

“So, did you see anything? Evidence worth your trust.”

“Sort of.”

“What is it?”

Of course, Sojun wouldn't reveal the information about the Star God. He chose to hide a part of it.

“I saw its origin.”

“Oh?”

“This... Lin, what kind of strange culture did people have back then? This Shifting Maze isn't what you think it is – some kind of top-tier system developed by human scientists. Strictly speaking, it should be created by, uh, Stone Men. Stone Men created it as an auxiliary program for humans who seemed to be of little use, so they could better play some kind of video game. It may have evolved or been improved later to become its current state.”

Li and Dalia both showed astonished expressions.

“It's nothing. Lin... I still can't bring myself to call it that. How are you going to find the *Speranza*?”

“Signal.”

The other party's voice was still monotonous and without any fluctuations.

“Just like that? You can sense it just standing here?”

“Here, no. Signal transmitter, build, can summon.”

The other party's meaning was very simple – it needed to build a signal transmitter, and then attract the *Hope*. This was indeed much easier and more concealed than finding a ship in the vast galaxy.

“I'm not sure if that *Hope* is as powerful as you say, but Mars is the most important world of the Empire. You are too dangerous and not allowed to stay here any longer, so I will take you away.”

Although this Shifting Maze was indeed powerful, with Mu's protection, Sojun wasn't afraid of not being able to handle it. And the most crucial thing was that it now represented the Void Dragon, which might play an unexpected role at certain times.

The other party didn't say anything, probably tacitly agreeing.

“Let's go back to the ship first. I need to prepare.”

The group then set off to return to the location where the shuttle was parked. However, to Sojun's surprise, Dalia actually left with them. Her explanation was that the Dragon Guard's mission had ended. The Dragon of Mars had fallen into an almost comatose slumber. She was going to fulfill the mission given to her by the Dragon Slayer. Sojun guessed that the Dragon Slayer should be the Emperor.

Judging from Li's attitude towards Dalia before, these two should both belong to the power of the 'Vanquris'. He just didn't know what impact Dalia would have on the situation after being released from her duties as a guard. He was even more curious about what kind of power the 'Vanquris' had hidden outside of Terra.

After returning to the ship, Sojun briefly told Amnak about his experience in the Night Maze and the origin of the Shifting Maze. Then, he had him watch over the Shifting Maze – actually, it was to allow this demon who had once come into contact with the Star God to try to get something useful out of the Shifting Maze.

After handling things, Sojun put on his Terminator armor and set off with the guard to the capital of Mars, the Olympia Hive in the Arctic.

Not long after Sojun left the flagship, Li and Dalia, without his knowledge, went to another secret location on Mars, an ancient relic facility also buried deep underground.

“He might lose control.”

Walking in the dim, circular metal passage, Dalia, whose skin had returned to its normal white color, broke the long silence. Li, who was beside her, remained silent after hearing this.

“He wants to control the battle of consciousness within him. He is no longer willing to follow the plan. This is a huge risk project.”

Li still didn't speak. At this moment, the two came to a metal gate. With the head of a servitor probing out of the darkness, Li also raised his head.

“Scan confirmed.”

The servitor made a deep voice and shrank back into the darkness. Then, the circular gate rolled to the right with a rubbing sound, revealing the bright space behind it.

The two walked in and came to a white passage, continuing forward.

“If he rebels, it will be more serious than the Horus Heresy of the past, even truly ending the fate of mankind.”

Li sighed softly and finally spoke.

“So, we have to ensure that he doesn't go down a dead end.”

“What about the Eldar?”

“Dalia, haven't you realized yet? The plan has changed long ago. The situation has long exceeded the scope that the original plan could correct. All we can do is believe in His wisdom and judgment. We are not the decision-makers, we are just executors.”

“So, does that mean we're just taking it one step at a time now?”

“It's okay to understand it that way, but – we still have backup plans after all. My father has already learned the lesson of putting all our eggs in one basket.”

After passing through two more gates, the two entered a huge space.

This was a giant laboratory with a height of over a hundred meters, mainly in red and blue. The long strips of lights on the walls brought a cold light to the chemical tables that were reacting. Giant centrifuges hummed and rotated, and the fractionating tubes bubbled in a slow rhythm, giving the room a simple but vibrant feel. Various display screens were suspended in the air, and there were lifting devices of varying heights to send various consoles to the positions they needed to go.

And on the winding metal passages, various servitors walked back and forth, performing repetitive tasks in their brains.

The center of the laboratory was a huge platform, surrounded by a huge array of cogitators, where a vast being draped in a crimson robe stood.

That was a huge mechanical nightmare, with the height modification of most mechanical sages, even more so. The semi-circular, heavy back metal armor made him look like some kind of crustacean, forcing his body to maintain an aging, hunched posture. The lower body covered by the robe could see a dozen tiny metal limbs clicking as he moved. Dozens of metal tentacles extended from all directions of his body, making him look more like some kind of insect.

When he turned his head, he showed his only remaining human part, the rough and ancient face surrounded by breathing masks and sound equipment, like wearing a false human skin mask. His right eye was completely mechanical, and only his left eye stared at the two who arrived with withered eyes, then reached out and grasped the cog axe held by a nearby cherub.

“Your sudden visit surprises me, Li.”

The mechanical sage slowly walked over while making a lukewarm sound, countless tiny metal lower limbs making him slide on the ground like a snake.

“And this, Ms. Dalia, this is your first time here. I hope you won't find it simple and rude.”