The Judge Is Human Too

After finishing off the fleet surrounding Omicron 2, Gao Yi immediately ordered his own fleet to move in.

Leaving that battlefield behind, the Golden Ram began approaching Omicron's orbit.

Even from orbit, the devastation across the entire planet was visible to the naked eye.

Omicron was an agri-world, with a 46/54 split between land and ocean. There were no hive cities piercing the sky here; the tallest structures were mechanical constructs used for weather control.

Originally, Omicron had a primitive native species still in a tribal society, but when the Mongert Dynasty found it suitable as an agri-world, they thoroughly purged the indigenous race.

Don't think an agri-world is any better than the Imperium's hive worlds.

Even for Imperial commoners on agri-worlds, eating well is impossible—being full is already the greatest favor you'll receive.

Fresh meat and vegetables have nothing to do with these lowly commoners.

Transport ships haul those expensive products away for greater profits.

The lifespan of the commoners here is also extremely short. Endless fertilizers to boost plant growth are sprayed across the world by transports nonstop, along with countless chemicals. As long as crops grow more and faster, no one cares about the working conditions of the commoners.

Even the soil is polluted; only gene-selected crops can thrive in such a harsh environment.

Now, the farmland covering the planet's surface had been destructively harvested, and the shantytowns beside the fields where laborers lived were nothing but rubble.

The palace where the planet's governor lived had been replaced by a massive crater—clearly bombarded from orbit by warships!

From the captured crew, Gao Yi learned that Canto had destroyed most of the Planetary Defense Fleet, then plundered the planet destructively.

Warehouse crops were hauled away, buildings wrecked, and existing crops on the planet were harvested ruinously. This activity lasted a full month, and they looted not just food but also a massive population.

Don't think the Warhammer world has too many people—population is still a precious resource. On some planets, people can even be paid as tithes. Canto never intended to occupy this world; he wanted to raid like a pirate and leave.

"Damn bastard!! Activate scanning equipment, find all survivors, and start disaster relief!"

Gao Yi had thought he'd reclaim his first planet, but instead got a complete mess.

Shuttles flew toward the planet's surface. Canto couldn't have killed everyone—plenty of survivors must have hidden.

While waiting for the planet's status report, Gao Yi decided to head to the Tyrant and check out the captured Dark Mechanicus priest.

Gao Yi and Ian were about to board a shuttle when Pavian and the surviving priests approached.

"Captain! Please take us with you. I can feel the Machine Spirit of the Tyrant in pain—maybe we can soothe them!"

Gao Yi looked at these priests with their new faith and didn't refuse. He felt some kind of connection forming with them.

"Then come along!"

Entering the Tyrant, with Damon leading the way, they arrived at the corrupted Forge Workshop.

The once-sacred workshop had been defiled by Chaos.

Slender crane electro-arms, along with the steel and cables inside the workshop, had twisted into grotesque hybrids of metal and flesh.

The thick sulfur smell had faded somewhat but was still pungent.

On worktables lay dissected corpses, their bodies stuffed with all kinds of blasphemous creations. A Warp Furnace powering a Forge Fiend still burned; even mortals without psychic talent could almost hear the agonized screams of souls trapped inside.

"Dark Mechanicus, huh." Ian recognized these things. In the Inquisition's archives, even in the Expansion Zone, many Forge Worlds had fallen into the embrace of the Dark Gods. Purifying such worlds usually came at a tremendous cost.

"Good thing you took them out. If the corruption spread and the Suarez Dynasty was fully corrupted, it might take several fleets to thoroughly resolve it, and countless loyalists would die for it."

Pavian and the other priests walked in on their own.

They lit holy incense, sprinkled holy water, and ignored the nauseating mutations on the machinery as they anointed it with sacred oil.

Under their rituals, the sulfur smell in the workshop weakened, and the faint Warp energy leaking out was suppressed.

"What prayers are these priests chanting? I've never heard them. What is a Holy Machine?"

"Don't be surprised, Inquisitor Ian. Even within the Imperium, the Adeptus Mechanicus has as many sects as stars, let alone in the Expansion Zone. Isn't the Ecclesiarchy the same? They worship different saints and spread the God-Emperor's glory in their names out here."

Watching Pavian and the others, Gao Yi realized these priests had gained some special abilities. While communicating more efficiently with Machine Spirits, they also seemed to have a knack for purifying Warp energy.

Their method was performing rituals to soothe the Machine Spirits.

Gao Yi's slowly rising Psionic Crystal was the best proof.

And honestly, this haul was several times bigger than his previous ones—Corrupted Code, Forge Fiends, and the soon-to-be-purified workshop. Combined, it was enough to build a Heavy Factory and a Starport. The Yamato-class was waving at him!

With Damon leading again, Gao Yi entered the ship's Bridge. The corpses on the floor hadn't been cleaned up yet. Norris had vanished into the ship's ghost again; only Gao Yi and Damon knew of his glorious feats.

Gao Yi walked to Canto's corpse. A laser-drilled hole through his head had nearly destroyed his face. If Norris hadn't witnessed his death, verifying his identity would have been troublesome.

Ian also approached the body.

He sensed the mechanical implants on Canto. Though dead, traces of the Warp still lingered.

"Desecrator. Abandoning the Great God-Emperor for the Dark Gods—lucky for him he's dead, or the Inquisition would have subjected him to its most horrific tortures."

"Ian, as thanks for helping me persuade those ships earlier, I'll give you this credit. I think taking down a corrupted Rogue Trader could earn you quite a bit of favor in the Inquisition, right?"

"You're giving me this credit for free?"

"Anyway, the Inquisition won't reward me for killing him. You helped me, so I help you. Isn't trade what we Rogue Traders value most? And nothing's more satisfying than a mutually beneficial deal."

Ian didn't say it outright, but he was tempted. Inquisitors aren't saints—they enjoy pleasures, crave power, and even fear death. If becoming a higher-ranking Inquisitor was possible, why not?

Every year in the Imperium, countless Inquisitors fall to corruption from personal desires and ambitions.

Aside from some fanatics, everyone has their own pursuit of gain.