T'au Rises, Then T'au Falters

Another planet has fallen.

The local Imperial Army offered little resistance and withdrew.

As per usual practice, the Tau Imperial Fleet dispatched Water Caste diplomat to the surface.

Try to persuade the Imperium administrators with words to join the Greater Good.

In the past, this work was very difficult.

The Fanaticism believers would never allow the God-Emperor's land to be invaded by Xenos.

Therefore, in many cases, it is necessary to deploy Fire Warriors to defeat the remaining resistance forces in order to achieve dominance.

However, this time, the Imperium bureaucrats on the fallen planet were very cooperative.

Why are you so compliant?

Plutonium-Il-K looked at the Planetary Governor before him and began to question him.

In the past, they would always waste a lot of time, or even resort to force, to try and persuade these guys.

But now, it's so simple.

They proposed that the T'au Empire should rule the planet, and the human nobles immediately agreed.

Think about what this means.

This puzzled Plutonium Il-K.

"Isn't this what you wanted?" the Planetary Governor said calmly.

"You always fantasize about acquiring more planets and getting more living beings to believe in the Greater Good."

"Now that you have it, you are full of doubt and can't believe it."

"But your behavior is too strange." Plutonium Il-K's tone was somewhat uneasy. "This is not normal behavior. You should resist as you used to."

"Then we will suppress the resistance again, and repeat this several times until you submit."

Upon hearing this, the Planetary Governor almost laughed.

"You T'au are really funny. If you want to rebel, we can try to organize ourselves and put on a show for you."

Plutonium Il-K: "..."

What do you mean by "performance"?

Is this how perfunctory it is?

What about your loyalty to the God-Emperor?

Where is your spirit of not yielding an inch of land?

"You weren't like this before," Plutonium Il-K said wistfully. "You really don't look like this at all now."

"Because what we did did not help the final outcome in any way," the Planetary Governor said calmly.

"The final battle has begun, and the fate of the Materium and the Immaterium is about to be decided."

"What do you mean?" Plutonium Il-K asked. "What is the final battle?"

"You'll understand later," the Planetary Governor said.

"In any case, you now have control over this planet."

"As long as you don't do anything too outrageous, we will obey your orders."

"Alright, then as the representative of the T'au Empire, I hereby declare this entire planet officially part of the T'au Empire's territory." Plutonium Il-K completed the conquest process.

After confirming that the Planetary Governor would not rebel, he led his team back to the warship in orbit.

Tell Commanders like Shadowsun everything that happened on the surface.

"What exactly are these humans up to?"

"The fighting is over, and the Fanaticism has subsided, which makes me feel very unfamiliar with it."

"..."

Many high-ranking members of the T'au Empire were unsettled by the sudden shift in humanity's attitude.

In the past, when they invaded planets that belonged to humans, they would always hear the humans cursing them as alien invaders, Xenos, and calling the Auxilia traitors.

Then he fought back desperately, jumped in front of them, and was suppressed by the Fire Caste warriors. Finally, he realized he was wrong and joined the T'au Empire.

The fact that the other party was lying flat made them feel very uncomfortable.

At least put up some resistance, instead of just sitting there like a dead fish.

"The Imperium of Man is waging a great war that we are unaware of."

"This great war forced them to mobilize all the Imperium forces and resources, to the point that many insignificant worlds were abandoned."

Commander Shadowsun made a judgment.

It is speculated that, like in previous instances, the Imperium of Man will choose to ignore the T'au Empire because of other battlefields.

"It seems that it is indeed the Aegis of the Greater Good. We can take this opportunity to expand on a large scale. When the Imperium of Man finishes its current business and rushes towards the T'au Empire, they will definitely be surprised."

"We have achieved an unprecedented victory, and the Imperium of Man is crumbling. Whatever they are doing, this war is in our favor."

Ankle Shi looked at the data projection in front of him, his face showing excitement, and he encouraged the many commanders.

As Ethereal being, his greatest role was to boost the morale of the Expeditionary Force.

Combat is secondary.

"Since the rulers of this planet are willing to submit, let the Earth Caste scientists carry out the transformation."

Shadowsun made a plan,

"We will continue our voyage, bypassing the core strategic planets of the Imperium. Those worlds have amassed a large military force, and a forced attack would result in heavy losses and slow down our progress."

"We will first conquer those insignificant planets, turn them into our resources, then use war to fuel our war, constantly grow stronger, and finally completely defeat the Imperium of Man."

"..."

Shadowsun has a great influence.

His strategy was successfully implemented.

The expeditionary fleet avoided military planets, continuously encroaching on those with abundant resources, and then establishing production systems, allowing the T'au Empire's power to grow rapidly like a snowball.

Good news kept pouring back to each of the worlds, invigorating the entire T'au Empire.

Countless T'au and auxiliary races were cheering and celebrating.

The gloom of the past was swept away, and everyone was happy for the victory achieved by the Expeditionary Force.

Especially those Auxilia who joined the T'au Empire,

The series of victories further convinced them that joining the Imperium was a wise choice.

The Imperium of Man is finished, and those foolish fanatics will pay the ultimate price for it.

Just as Shadowsun and Anthropoid, along with other high-ranking officials of the T'au Empire, were ambitious and planning to accelerate their expansion and push the T'au Empire's power to an unprecedented level.

The Farsight who betrayed the T'au Empire and exiled himself appeared before them with a fleet.

The emergence of Farsight greatly surprised them.

In the early stages of the T'au Empire's expansion into the star system, most of its military victories can be attributed to a commander named [Qing Xi].

Qing Xi was a legendary genius whose works on strategy and tactics had a profound impact on the T'au Empire.

Farsight was Qing Xi's most prized disciple.

After completing his studies, he was appointed as the fleet commander.

On their very first mission, they defeated the invading Ork with astonishing skill and wisdom.

He went on to win many more victories, cementing his reputation as a genius.

After the death of the elderly Qing Xi, Farsight became the most trusted Fire Caste commander of the T'au Empire.

And Farsight lived up to expectations, continuously winning victories.

However, possessing a strong sense of independence, he also repeatedly disobeyed the teachings and commands of the Ethereal.

These things led to a poor relationship between him and the Ethereal.

During an Ork war, Farsight to the betrayal of the T'au Empire.

They established Farsight Enclaves and refused to communicate with the T'au Empire.

Shadowsun and Anshi, along with other high-ranking members of the T'au Empire, had tried to find the reason for Farsight's betrayal, but unfortunately, they were unable to find it.

Now, however, Farsight has suddenly appeared before them.

"Are you finally coming back?"

After the two parties established contact, Shadowsun's tone was excited.

Shadowsun and Farsight are fellow disciples.

When Shadowsun learned of Farsight's betrayal, he was extremely shocked and even doubted that the news was true.

It wasn't until multiple sources confirmed it that I dared to believe that Farsight had truly betrayed us.

Regardless, Farsight welcomes Shadowsun back and will try his best to plead for him.

Today, the rapidly expanding T'au Empire also desperately needs Farsight geniuses with strategic thinking.

"No," Farsight denied calmly.

"If you're not here to return to us, then what is your purpose in coming here?" Ankle Shi asked.

"I warn you," Farsight said, "That I will prevent you from heading toward self-destruction."

"The T'au Empire is at its most powerful in history. We are rising rapidly, and our territory is expanding at breakneck speed," Shadowsun said. "I see no sign of any crisis."

"I've always had a question I wanted to ask Ethereal, but I haven't asked yet." Farsight didn't answer directly, but changed the subject, staring intently at Anselm.

"What do you want to ask?" asked Anshi.

"How much do we really know about the threat that Ethereal poses to the Immaterium?" Farsight asked.

An Shi's expression changed slightly.

He was unaware of this before, only learning of the existence of the Immaterium from members of the High Council after escaping from Commorragh.

Your question goes too far.

Anshi did not want to answer.

The truth about this issue could trigger a crisis of faith, causing the Greater Good to face a crisis, or even be completely destroyed.

Without the Greater Good, the T'au Empire will also fall apart.

Therefore, this question cannot be answered.

"I understand. You know it, but you're unwilling to tell the public." Farsight sighed softly. "You're just repeating a practice that has already been proven wrong by humanity."

"What are you talking about?" Shadowsun didn't understand their riddle.

"You don't need to know the truth. The wise choice is to stop your foolish behavior immediately," Farsight said coldly to Shadowsun. "The Imperium of Man is waging an unprecedented war to determine the ultimate dominance of the Immaterium and Materium."

"Many powerful races participated in this war led by the Imperium of Man. The Orks, the Aeldari, and the metal Necron you have seen all fought alongside humans against the Immaterium."

"The war you launched at this time is undoubtedly a stab in the back. Once the war ends, the entire T'au Empire will be purged."

"If it was a war that could decide the fate of the entire Milky Way, then why weren't we invited?" Shadowsun questioned.

"Because we are insignificant." Farsight retorted bluntly, stating a cruel truth. "The T'au Empire is too weak to participate in a war of that magnitude."

"Insignificant?" Shadowsun found it hard to accept such a statement. "Our Greater Good is enough to illuminate the entire Milky Way."

"That's just a lie. Science and reason aren't everything in this world." Farsight said sternly, "You've already met the God who was born in the Immaterium."

"The threat posed by the Immaterium surpasses everything else. We used to be puzzled as to why the Imperium of Man had become like this, questioning how such a backward and ignorant race could rule the Milky Way."

"However, our fate will definitely not be better than theirs, and may even be more tragic. As long as the race of the T'au reaches a certain size, they will become prey for those indescribable things in the Immaterium."

"Humans once had more advanced intelligent technology and civilization than we do. At their peak, they could transform the planet's environment in just two or three days."

"And now, all we see is a group of desperate people using the legacy of their ancestors to fight against inevitable destruction."

"We won't stop," Anselm said calmly. "Whether what you're saying is true or not, this is our best chance."

"This is the beginning of the T'au Empire's destruction," Farsight retorted without hesitation. "You have all witnessed the power of the Imperium of Man; they are just busy with another war."

"Your actions are suicidal. Once that war is over, we will certainly be held accountable."

They came all this way with Farsight, trying their best to persuade the T'au Empire to stop the war.

However, no one was willing to listen to him.

Shadowsun and Anthropoid Shi continue to lead the Titan Imperial Fleet in executing the Celestial Expansion Plan.

However, their joy did not last long before a crisis struck.

They encountered a fleet of Chaos Warband possessing the Ark of Omen.

To counter the Imperium of Man, Vashtorr strengthened all the Ark of Omen.

In the end, they still failed to gain any advantage over the Imperium of Man.

This caused many members of the Chaos Warband to question the meaning of life.

The fight was so desperate.

No matter how hard they tried, the Imperium kept them pinned down.

Even the blessings of the gods were of no use; the Imperium still relied on its various technologies and Old Ones artifacts to suppress them.

Now, the entire Moloch Battlefield is in a frenzy of fighting.

Those who are slightly weaker will just become cannon fodder.

The Imperium's various legends and heroes are returning.

Even Tavitz Loken, those guys who were totally dead, are back.

The various war gangs were beaten like cowards, completely serving as foils for the Greater Daemon and the Imperium Heroes.

It is easy to imagine how brutal the Moloch Battlefield was; it was essentially another Eternal War.

The four incarnations of the gods have all appeared, all to win the Molech War and stop humanity from continuing to build the Aetheric Phase Engine.

However, when these warbands faced the T'au Empire, their confidence, which had been shattered by the Imperium of Man, returned.

"If I can't beat the Imperium of Man, can't I beat these little Blue Skins?" a Chaos Lord shouted excitedly.

The T'au Empire's warships were also highly advanced, but they were completely helpless against the unreasonable Warp fleet.

An overwhelming army of demons, and terrifying warships that defy all reason.

The Air Caste even saw the warship's dashboard come to life, with cables attacking them as if they were alive.

As expected, the Tau Imperial Fleet couldn't even withstand the first wave of attacks from the Ark of Omen, and was blown up into fireballs in the Void.

In the end, it was Farsight that led the fleet to ambush them from the middle of the battlefield, covering their retreat.

However, the losses were still significant; two-thirds of the warships were destroyed.

The Auxilia went berserk, causing injuries and even deaths to many warship personnel.