Chen Xi's cleansing of the planet continued for roughly half a month.
For an Inquisitor, this was part of his regular duties, and that remained true even though he belonged to The Inquisition.
Do not assume The Inquisition did not investigate corruption. Xenos used all manner of methods to tempt and infiltrate Imperial citizens. Aside from the T'au relying on the Water Caste's glib tongues to talk people over, there were genetic modification, mind control, identity replacement, and so on...
There were all kinds of methods; if one could imagine it, they could do it.
This was why Inquisitors of The Inquisition, like those of the other two Ordos, were exceptionally adept at following every clue to seize their targets.
And under the direction of this Inquisitorial Governor, traces of corruption across Rostov II had nowhere to hide.
Noble families suspected of corruption were rooted out one by one. Aside from the true heretics subjected to White Phosphorus Execution, these nobles had not been seriously corrupted, yet their acts of degeneracy were no fewer.
They were not Chaos heretics, but they had likewise abandoned their faith in the God-Emperor and betrayed humanity and the Imperium.
Compared to heretics who had thrown in with Chaos, they were still human, at least.
But precisely because of that, their crimes were all the more abhorrent.
After all, corrupted Chaos heretics could still excuse themselves by saying they had been tainted by the evil fiends of Chaos. These degenerates, who showed not the slightest sign of Warp corruption, could only have betrayed the Imperium out of greed and ambition.
Although many of the planet's noble lineages descended from Astra Militarum soldiers who had retired here long ago, that did not mean they all possessed unquestionable loyalty.
In fact, apart from the Krieg Death Korps, every Astra Militarum force in the Imperium had seen cases of wavering loyalty.
That was precisely why the Astra Militarum had Commissars: to maintain the troops' high morale and loyalty.
So it was not strange for some people to fall.
However, punishing them was somewhat more troublesome. He could not simply consign them all to White Phosphorus Execution and be done with it.
After fully considering the introductions and recommendations of the two locals, Rachel and General Gregory, Chen Xi decided to impose excommunication upon these Traitors and degenerates in the name of the Inquisition.
The principal offenders were naturally all executed without exception, though by the rather archaic method of beheading.
Their families and others implicated in the matter were reduced to penal laborers and sent to work as miners in the planet's mines, until they had redeemed their sins.
Usually, though, betrayal of the God-Emperor was an unforgivable crime. They, along with any descendants they might have, would never be free of that status.
In a sense, Chen Xi had still been too merciful. By an Inquisitor's usual standards, all of them would have been slaughtered or turned into penitential servitors.
Servitors simply did not suit Chen Xi's aesthetic tastes, however, so he did not do that.
Though this might leave behind certain hidden dangers, Chen Xi felt the price was acceptable.
After dealing with those wretches, he received an astropathic transmission from the sector capital. An investigation team dispatched by the Ecclesiarchy would soon arrive at Rostov II to verify the authenticity of the Blessed Wine.
Chen Xi was not surprised that the Ecclesiarchy had returned to verify the authenticity of "Loyalty."
Or rather, it would have been truly strange if the Ecclesiarchy had accepted its authenticity without even investigating.
Though the Ecclesiarchy mass-produced the canonization of nameless saints as if it were wholesale merchandise, it maintained an extremely rigorous process for certifying genuine manifestations of the Emperor.
After all, in the Warhammer world, psychic powers, technological sorcery, and the like made it far too easy to fabricate a minor "miracle."
If someone truly wished to cause trouble, they could even use a real "miracle" to disguise something as a "miracle."
Thus, it was easy to imagine how cautious both the Inquisition and the Ecclesiarchy were about such matters.
Chen Xi, however, felt neither nervous nor worried. The authenticity of "Loyalty" was beyond doubt. If anyone claimed it was false, then that person was unquestionably a heretic or a Traitor.
Of course, those likely to do such a thing would mostly be nobles or other factions. The Ecclesiarchy itself was quite trustworthy in this regard.
For the sake of faith, these religious fanatics truly were capable of anything. But as long as one could prove their loyalty, then nothing was a problem.
The Ecclesiarchy might be mad, but when it came to serving the Emperor, it genuinely spared no cost.
Chen Xi informed Rachel of the matter and had the young Lady Chancellor arrange all the relevant preparations. He himself took the opportunity to leave the 40K Era and send a package from the 3K Era.
At the starport of Rostov II, a voidship with a colossal Imperial Icon hundreds of meters tall erected outside its bridge docked at one of the berths.
As Chen Xi looked at the immense light cruiser-class vessel, as well as the gigantic Imperial Icon on its hull that would have been an absolute miracle in the 3K Era despite serving no purpose beyond decoration, his expression became strangely complicated.
Religious decoration seemed normal enough to Chen Xi, and a massive voidship having some extravagant adornments was not much of an issue. The Ecclesiarchy had a practical need for propaganda, after all, and a vessel brimming with sacred grandeur could often inspire tremendous religious awe in the Imperium's remarkably ignorant citizens.
But an Imperial Icon forged from Adamantium was simply too extravagant.
The Adamantium used to cast that purely decorative icon could even have made an Adamantium ram for the ship.
This hardest substance in the entire galaxy was extraordinarily difficult to destroy and widely used in the Imperium's military industry. Voidship keels, rams, and frontal armor often required vast amounts of Adamantium.
Even the frames of Space Marines' Power Armour were made of Adamantium.
This ensured that even when an Imperial voidship was destroyed, its Adamantium keel often remained intact and could be towed back for reconstruction.
As for Space Marines' Power Armour, the Marine might die, but the armor remained, passed down through three generations.
One could easily imagine how extravagant it was to use so much Adamantium merely to create an icon.
If that Adamantium had been used to make Power Armor for Space Marines, it would have been enough to equip at least one Chapter.
As Chen Xi entertained these somewhat blasphemous thoughts, the voidship's boarding ramp opened. Several Ecclesiarchy priests descended from the vessel, accompanied by Crusaders and Sisters of Battle.
"Welcome, devout servants of the Emperor." Chen Xi stepped forward of his own accord and welcomed the arriving Ecclesiarchy priests.
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