The Emperor’s Angel of Death

After agreeing to Solzhenitsyn's plan for the Tomb Breakers, Doral also seized the opportunity to flatter him.

“In the past, the fight against the Necrons was a scattered effort by various arks, with even intelligence difficult to share. With this association, not only can intelligence be unified, but also the power of various arks can be combined when necessary. Your Highness's wisdom is admirable.”

Solzhenitsyn smiled slightly and looked at Starbane, saying:

“This is just the beginning, Lord Starbane. I said, the things you have lost, the dynasty will definitely help you get back.”

Starbane glanced at his spirit bone prosthetic hand and bowed, saying:

“Thank you for your Highness's kindness. Your servant will be grateful forever.”

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Solzhenitsyn then looked at Doral.

“Lord Doral, tell Lord Yvraine to have the Privy Council issue a call to arms to all the vassal races of the dynasty. Perhaps Vect has gone all out this time. If we want to turn the tables, we need even greater strength. These vassal races have been under the protection of the dynasty for some time, and it is time for them to serve the dynasty. Also, can Biel-Tan provide some fleets from the ark?”

“Your Highness, Biel-Tan should be able to provide some fleets.”

“Well, send people to secretly contact the arks of Saim-Hann, Alaitoc, and Mymeara, etc. Try to secure as many fleets as possible. Also, consider the ark worlds near the dynasty, such as Iyanden... Oh, right, has the third Blackstone Fortress been moved back?”

“Your Highness, it has already been transported back to the dynasty. The internal cleanup phase has ended, and the Bonesingers are rebuilding many damaged subsidiary structures and facilities.”

Solzhenitsyn nodded.

“Then even if the dynasty fleet is dispatched in full force, there is no need to worry about the defense of Eden. If we take down the Void Dragon Corsairs, then the dynasty will be able to add at least a thousand more warships, even if they are all small ships, it will be a huge combat power. The odds of conquering Commorragh will increase by several points, and we can also take the opportunity to weaken Vect's fleet strength, killing two birds with one stone!”

After discussing some more matters with the two, they used the remaining energy of the Mirror of Lilith to leave—this unique psychic artifact was personally made by Luvia Greta, daughter of Lilith, and it seems that she can only make it when she enters a sleepwalking state, so it is extremely rare. The entire dynasty currently only has five of them, Solzhenitsyn has one, Veronica has one, and the rest are stored in the vault. This artifact allows up to three Eldar to travel to another mirror at will, and then the one among the three who possesses psychic power breaks the veil and appears in reality.

After arranging the affairs of the Eldar, Solzhenitsyn had to face the more complex affairs of the Imperium.

He barely had time to rest before he met with Deacon Ibanks, the representative of the Ecclesiarchy. The two held a five-hour meeting, mainly discussing the recent war situation, the current social and economic conditions of the diocese, and subsequent arrangements, etc. Among them, Solzhenitsyn also explained the origin of the Abyss-class—a derelict ship purchased from the Squats.

Although the Ecclesiarchy is very fanatical, it is relatively tolerant on certain issues. For example, the Ecclesiarchy is more tolerant of the issue of abhumans than many Imperial organizations, because in their view, as long as they sincerely believe in the God-Emperor, they are followers of the Ecclesiarchy, and abhumans are not a problem. What matters is the race, not the “minor” physiological differences.

Therefore, Ibanks did not have any particular opinion on Solzhenitsyn's cooperation with the Squats. Although even he, who did not understand technology very well, felt that the style of this ship was really wrong, this Abyss-class, whether viewed from a distance or up close, had a bit of xeno-content and tech-heresy components in it, but as long as one has a loyal heart and a sense of mission to the Throne, it can be used critically.

The focus of the two's discussion was the militarization and fortification of the diocese.

The Ecclesiarchy naturally welcomed this. A territory with strong military power could even be said to be the dream of a dozen generations of pontiffs. Why does the Ecclesiarchy often have to give way to the Department of the Interior or the Inquisition on some key issues? Isn't it because the guns aren't strong enough!

However, Ibanks had concerns about this, because establishing the Faith Watch in the name of the Covenant of Suffering was, at least in his opinion, already crossing a red line. Even if the diocese was very remote, there was still a risk of being discovered by the High Lords if it was militarized in a high-profile manner, and once this was revealed, it would be a serious political event that would shake the entire Imperium.

In order to open up this deacon's “conservative” thinking, Solzhenitsyn adopted a persuasive approach, explaining the stakes to him. According to the latest reconnaissance intelligence, after the Tyranid hive fleet swept through the Vestro System, there were signs of differentiation. According to the previous Tyranid modus operandi, they will once again be divided into many tendril fleets, advancing in different directions. Some of them may leave the diocese and go to the wider Storm Zone, but others will still be attracted by the diocese's rich biomass. This enemy force is also quite large, and it will definitely not be cleaned up in a short time, requiring a long-term war of attrition.

And it is obvious that the Imperium cannot send troops to support here, and the Ecclesiarchy cannot carry out long-term “blood transfusions” to the diocese. In the end, the heavy responsibility of resistance still falls on the shoulders of the locals, so the most cost-effective solution is to arm them, so that they can train a large number of soldiers themselves, manufacture various weapons and equipment themselves, and even warships, so that the diocese has a high-quality officer class.

Moreover, Solzhenitsyn also euphemistically stated that forge worlds such as Zhao-Akad would not always provide assistance here. Ibanks should know better than him what kind of virtue the Adeptus Mechanicus has.

Finally, he added a bit of threat. Solzhenitsyn said that due to the attack on the Penitents, the Covenant of Suffering must avenge its brothers in accordance with the agreement. In addition, due to the signs of the spread of the Tyranid swarm, other directions in the Storm Zone also need to be defended, so the Covenant can no longer be stationed here for a long time.

The previous things were nothing, but the latter startled Ibanks, who quickly said that Solzhenitsyn could not withdraw at this time, otherwise, even with the Silent Sisterhood, he would not be able to resist the menacing Tyranids.

He actually also agreed to the diocese's militarization plan, but he did not know much about military affairs, so he could only ask Solzhenitsyn for help.

At this time, it was Solzhenitsyn's turn to bargain. He said with great difficulty that as an Astartes, he was really not very suitable to do this matter. After all, he was the one who proposed the plan, and he was very clear about the risks involved. Once something happened, he, who violated the Edicts of Pacification, would be ruined.

Ibanks does not understand military affairs, but he understands politics and people's hearts.

He immediately said that he could basically agree to whatever assistance Solzhenitsyn needed from the Ecclesiarchy. If there was anything really difficult, he would notify the Pontiff as soon as possible, but considering the distance, as long as it was not particularly excessive, he would agree. After all, the Pontiff gave him very high authority when he sent him here, almost a plenipotentiary representative.

Because it was a private conversation between the two, Solzhenitsyn did not hide anything and told Ibanks that if he wanted to do this safely, it would be best to put a “vest” on it.

Ibanks immediately understood what Solzhenitsyn meant, which was actually to support a sect in the diocese. In fact, this is also a very common trick used by the Ecclesiarchy—for example, the Redemptionists are a very typical example used to do some dirty work that the Ecclesiarchy is not convenient to do, and the Cult of the Dead is also similar. The relationship between the sect and the Ecclesiarchy is very easy to clear, even if it is later labeled as a heretic by the Inquisition, it will not be stained on the Ecclesiarchy itself.