The Path of Technology

Guilliman pondered his next move, sorting through the current situation on all sides.

Given how things tended to develop in this universe, from the moment he awakened, the gods had already turned their attention toward him.

Those traitor Primarchs would soon begin making their moves against him as well.

The Emperor's Children's traitor Primarch, Fulgrim, would be the first to strike, if he remembered correctly.

Ten thousand years ago, Fulgrim had killed Ferrus, the Primarch of the Iron Hands, becoming the first traitor Primarch to murder one of his own brothers.

After the Horus Heresy failed, he had severely wounded Guilliman again during the pursuit at Thessala.

Most importantly, that bastard had become the chosen of the Chaos God Slaanesh and treated torturing people as an artistic pleasure.

As for Slaanesh's Daemons and followers... how should he put it?

They were very much like that. Indulgent, depraved, utterly without restraint. In pursuit of pleasure, they would do anything.

A lot of handsome young men might think they would suit this Chaos God, considering how hot the Daemonettes under Slaanesh were. They probably thought they could definitely get some.

In truth, no one could endure the horrors of Slaanesh's followers.

It was better to be hacked to death by Khorne's followers than to barely survive in the hands of Slaanesh's Daemons and followers. That was an undeniable truth.

Khorne simply wanted people dead. Tzeentch enjoyed toying with people's Destiny. Nurgle wanted to give people his twisted love. Slaanesh truly wanted everyone to suffer worse than death while enjoying pleasure.

Fulgrim's threat level: off the charts.

He would rather die than fall into that man's hands.

Besides him, there was also Magnus, the Primarch of the Thousand Sons, nicknamed Little Red. He had likewise ascended to Daemonhood and become Tzeentch's chosen. He wielded incomparable sorcery, and his greatest feat had been moving an entire planet across half the Milky Way.

Thinking of that made Guilliman's balls ache. Moving an entire planet across tens of thousands of light-years—put that in a fantasy novel, and he would be some immortal-tier powerhouse no matter what.

The more he thought about it, the more speechless he became. This world was beyond words. Technology was technology, magic was magic.

What the hell did it mean to mix magic into technology?

Little Red was immensely powerful and had inherited Tzeentch's supreme teachings. He loved plotting and scheming; if you were even a little careless, he would trap you to death.

Beyond that, there was Lorgar, the Primarch of the Word Bearers, who had a blood feud with the Ultramarines and wanted nothing more than to tear Guilliman apart. People called him the Fraud Priest.

The first two were only conflicts based on the struggle between Chaos and humanity. Their personal grudges with him were not that deep.

Lorgar, that Fraud Priest, had a personal grudge against Guilliman.

Their enmity was irreconcilable. One of them had to fall.

It began when Guilliman, under the Emperor's orders, burned Monarchia. The Emperor had even forced the entire Word Bearers Legion to kneel and admit their mistakes. That was when the hatred began.

At the start of the Horus Heresy, the Word Bearers had launched the Calth Betrayal against the Ultramarines, turning an entire planet into glass.

Guilliman had also been stabbed by Keer Phaeron, the First Captain of the Word Bearers. That wound became a weakness, and during the Battle of Thessala, Fulgrim stabbed him in the exact same place again.

It could be said that Guilliman had been screwed over by the Word Bearers from beginning to end.

During the Calth Betrayal, the Ultramarines were caught completely off guard and crippled. Countless Imperial Army soldiers and civilians died or were wounded. Radiation throughout the entire star system went off the charts, making life on the surface impossible. That was how their blood feud was forged.

After weighing the enemy's strength against his own, Guilliman's heart immediately went cold.

Those traitor Primarchs were all still alive, and the Chaos Gods were watching him at every moment.

On his side, there was only himself!

All the loyalist Primarchs had disappeared. The Emperor was half-dead, there was the corrupt Council of Terra, the deranged Ecclesiarchy, the Adeptus Custodes who acted like shut-in nerds, and Chapters that obeyed orders only when they felt like it.

Now, the Imperium had also been torn apart by the Great Rift. The other side had lost the guidance of the Emperor's Astronomican and could no longer be contacted.

The Imperium was like a patient suffering massive blood loss, liable to breathe its last at any moment.

Most importantly, Chaos was not the Imperium's only enemy. Besides Chaos, there were the Tyranids from beyond the Milky Way, the awakening Necrons, the rising T'au, and the Aeldari, who had climbed into their coffins but still had one last breath left to take.

Guilliman only wanted to ask whether surrendering meant losing only half.

With so many forces and the Imperium's current state, humanity was absolutely doomed.

If not for the Lord of Dominion Template and the Database, Guilliman would have wanted to take a ship and run away immediately.

If he could not win, what was the point of staying?

"Assistant Spirit." Guilliman called out in his mind.

[I'm here. Does the host require any assistance??]

"Where are my rewards?" Guilliman asked.

[Level One Database access has already been opened to you. You simply haven't opened the Database yet.]

"Then open the Database."

[Alright. Assistant Spirit will help you connect to the Database.]

As the Assistant Spirit spoke, a screen of light appeared before Guilliman. He reached out to touch it and found that it was not physically real, but something illusory.

As his thoughts moved, the contents on the light screen changed continuously.

"First Generation Super Soldier Modification Technology, First Generation Angel Dark Matter Computer Engine Technology, Yamato Battleship Construction Blueprint, Individual Auxiliary Combat Suit, Venom-type Plasma Gun Design Blueprint, Warp Drive Principles, Interstellar Warship Design Blueprint, Planet-Killer Weapon—Death Star Design Blueprint, Biological Gene Enhancement Surgery Principles, Biological Induced Evolution Technology, Biological Genome Reshaping, Manual for Cultivating Special Alien Plants, Sow Care from Entry to Grave, One Hundred and Eight Methods for Training Huskies."

As Guilliman read through the list, he found the knowledge in the Database incredibly vast and rich—so vast that terrifying was the only word for it.

"Is this the knowledge available with Level One access?" Guilliman asked.

[Yes, host. This is the knowledge available with Level One access.]

Guilliman looked at the Death Star and the First Generation Angel Engine and Dark Matter Engine technologies. After pondering for a moment, he asked, "How many levels of Database access are there in total?"

[There are ten levels in total, with ten authentication missions. Once all are completed, you will obtain full access to the Database.]

"Level One already gives me the Death Star and Super Soldier technology. Wouldn't Levels Two and Three be even more terrifying? Is it all technological knowledge, or will higher access grant things from the mystical side?" Guilliman voiced the confusion in his heart.

The Level One items were already this formidable. What would Levels Two and Three provide?

By Levels Four and Five, perhaps even the Void Computer Engine and Spacetime Annihilation Bomb would appear.

What could Levels Seven and Eight possibly offer?

Guilliman guessed it would probably be things from the mystical side—supreme divine artifacts that made a person immortal and indestructible, or powerful cultivation techniques.

[The Database contains only knowledge of civilization. It does not collect things that are useless to the development of civilization.]

Hearing that, Guilliman froze for a moment. "Then what does the Level Ten Database contain? A Trans-Universal Engine, a Pan-Universal Conceptual Weapon, or a Universe Reset Device?"

[The path of technology is endless. Host, there is no need for excessive speculation. Please advance toward the ultimate goal: Civilization Transcendence, Dominion of the Multiverse.]

Hearing the Assistant Spirit's words, Guilliman smiled. Just managing to survive would already be a blessing, and it was talking about transcendence.

Since he could not get an answer about what the Level Ten Database contained, Guilliman stopped dwelling on it.

He would take it slowly. One day, he would unlock Level Ten access, and then he would be able to glimpse what the Level Ten Database held.

Guilliman calmed himself and began examining the Database's knowledge.

This knowledge would be an important trump card in his efforts to reshape the Imperium and restore humanity's fighting strength.

With his brain's terrifying computational ability, Guilliman quickly selected the most important technological knowledge, as well as the knowledge most useful to his current situation.

"Gather the Tech-Priests, Saints, Chapter Masters, and the others. I need to hold a meeting." Guilliman activated the communicator in the room and instructed the bodyguards waiting outside.

He needed to hold a meeting to establish the direction of development, while also preparing a fleet to clear the remnants of Chaos from the Five Hundred Worlds.

Then, using the Five Hundred Worlds as his foundation, he would sweep across the entire Imperium, purge Chaos and Xenos, and stop the Imperium from bleeding.

Brothers who read without adding this to your favorites, please report to the nearest Inquisition as soon as possible. The Inquisitors have prepared little gifts for you.