Terra.
Qin Xia, the Master of the Keshig, withdrew his gaze from the boundless starry expanse in the distance.
Terra beyond the window slowly turned within his field of view.
This birthplace of human civilization was now wrapped in densely packed orbital facilities. From spaceports to shipyards, from defense platforms to communications relay stations, countless artificial structures wove a silver-gray halo in low orbit.
"The changes here are truly immense."
Qin Xia murmured softly.
The last time he had seen Terra had been during the Great Crusade.
Terra's orbit had already been busy enough then to leave him astonished, but compared to the sight before him, it was simply the difference between heaven and earth.
Countless vessels crisscrossed through orbit, assembling at speeds hundreds or thousands of times more efficient than before. It was as though an invisible hand precisely directed them; every ship's distance and velocity were exactly right, with none of the old congestion or chaos.
Scientific.
Orderly.
Efficient and precise.
This style, which in the past had seemed utterly incompatible with the Imperium's technological aesthetic, had clearly delivered quite a shock to this Hero of the Great Crusade returned from death.
Qin Xia withdrew his gaze from the distance and carefully adjusted his equipment.
He repositioned his shoulder guard, checked his Power Armor once more, then strode toward the docking hatch.
As one of the heroic spirits likewise revived by Lord Rowan from the Cursed Legion and returned to the Real Universe, Qin Xia's circumstances differed somewhat from those of the other revived heroes.
For instance, loyalist Astartes from the traitor legions often found themselves in an awkward situation after their revival.
Qin Xia knew that, in the present Imperium, several mixed Chapters like the Deathwatch had appeared overnight, and it was basically impossible to trace their