Warhammer, about my years with the Wolfpack

"In this world, gods exist objectively. Their strength isn't just physical power; it's also their methods, vision, and vision. You may be strong, but until you reach that point, there's still a gap between you and them. For example, the God of Laughter may not be able to defeat you, but he understands the webway!" At this point, Balder suddenly laughed. As he laughed, tears as bright as diamonds fell.

In the Emperor's perception, a being appeared! A figure emerged from the depths of Balder's soul!

Chapter 38: He in the Depths of the Soul 1

"Hahaha!" Balder laughed loudly, and continued to laugh. His voice became louder and louder, and even the Emperor felt it was a little harsh. This was abnormal.

"You now stand between humans and gods, using your own ideas to infer the gods and plot against them. You stand at a lower level than they do. Perhaps you are now mocking my actions, believing my efforts to be in vain and foolish. Are certain beings in the Warp also mocking you? Do you really think that by blocking the news, you can pretend that the other party doesn't exist?" Balder wiped away a tear. He wiped so hard that it even tore off a piece of his skin!

Swish! A piece of Balder's face was torn off, revealing what was hidden underneath. It was a mixture of blue and cyan, solemn and mysterious! Seeing all this, the Emperor's pupils suddenly constricted.

Sizzle! Another scratch, this time two hands scratched the skin! A blue and light green face, emitting a metallic sheen, appeared before the Emperor. His eyes were so deep that they seemed to be surrounded by stars.

"Hey, Emperor, do you think humanity is useless?" This being, holding Balder's mask in his hand, said to the Emperor, "My humanity actually tried to reason with you! And he knew that you were a tyrant, a being who would do anything except achieve glory in your endeavors! He actually tried to reason with you!"

"I find this ridiculous!" the being said, gritting its teeth. "Stupid behavior, completely stupid!"

"And then?" The Emperor looked at the being before him with a solemn expression. It was obvious that the "Him" before him proved that Balder had gone further than he had imagined!

But the "He" in front of him was not strong, and was still within the range that he could deal with. What was more crucial was that "He" himself had flaws. With His appearance, Balder's soul fire was rapidly shrinking. The Emperor even believed that if time was longer, He might dissipate on his own.

"Then why did you come out? Are you begging for mercy and forgiveness from me, or making a deal?" asked the Emperor.

"No, I want you to make a choice! Human nature is sometimes really weak!" He stretched out a hand and pointed at the Emperor.

"Let's talk about how God came into being?" He waved his hand, and a large pot appeared in front of him, filled with water and other things. Then he took out a spoon.

"This pot is the warp. The thoughts and actions of intelligent creatures are like the spoon in my hand. They stir the warp. Some things will bring permanent changes to the warp, like this." He stirred the contents of the pot, and as the stirring became faster and faster, some things gradually clumped together and formed an egg shape.

"Do you know what this is?" He pointed to the clump of things in the pot.

"I know." The Emperor nodded. This was a metaphor for the origin of all existence. Just like before a star forms, it gathers mass and gradually compresses matter to the point where nuclear fusion is possible.

"No, this analogy is too dangerous. We can't do that." He waved his hand, and the objects before him dissipated. Then, he gestured with his hands, "Let's take a star as an example. Before the star's final ignition, it actually already existed, but it just didn't have that final impulse. The Eldar's fall may have simply been an accelerator, allowing Him to complete the final step, rather than a creative process. Do you understand this?"

"Of course I understand." The emperor nodded.

"That's easy to say. Look, humanity is huge. After the fall of the Eldar, we are the most likely to replace them. We are extremely numerous, and we have projections in the warp. We are also repeating the same process, a process of forming the original embryo of a star. This embryo may have already formed. And once it is formed, ignition is inevitable. If you don't ignite it, someone else may do it. Or ignite it in a different way. Do you understand?"

"To put it another way, in the galaxy, among the races we can understand (Pai Gu can't understand), there are two special beings. One of them is so powerful that we in the Golden Age can't reach it. This is the Eldar, they have gods. The other is the Orks, they have always been our great enemies, but they also have gods. If we use this analogy, if humans want to reach the level of civilization of the Eldar, then shouldn't we also have racial gods or beings of similar level?"

"Different people, using different methods to ignite will have different results. God is a concept, and concepts themselves are neither good nor bad. Just like knowledge, knowledge is neither good nor bad, it's just that different people use it, which results in different results. Becoming a god is the same, not to mention that we don't seem to have a better choice." Just as he finished speaking, the fire of his soul suddenly shrank, and cracks appeared on his face!

"This..." The Emperor was stunned. He hadn't even made a move yet, and this guy was already courting his own demise! Everything has a price. Clearly, this "He," who had already traveled far down a certain path, had paid the necessary price for revealing the deeper nature of this world through some of his words!

"You are a tyrant! I didn't want to do that, but there's nothing I can do. You are the strongest! Your status is also the highest! The Primarchs are not strong enough." He cursed.

"Of course, I don't know if what I said is completely correct. Anyway, I told you, and now it's your turn to choose." The "Him" in front of him was gradually disintegrating, and the face in his hand did not return.

"You know the true nature of the Primarchs. They are far inferior to you. Why do you want to be friends with Russ?" asked the Emperor.

"Russ, I have a vague feeling that he might be the only Primarch who truly treats others as equals and friends." He sneered. "Our path is tortuous and dangerous, and we need to maintain our humanity." Although He said that humanity was useless, even in the midst of collapse, He did not throw away the face in His hands!

As the soul disintegrated, countless pieces of information escaped from the body. The Emperor was able to see some of these scenes: a primitive man clad in animal skins used fire and stone to build a canoe, then crossed a small river. A man in cloth made a wheel, then assembled it into a car. Then came steam engines, ships, internal combustion engines, cars, airplanes, rockets, and spaceships, all the way to the Warp engine! At the end of the information, the Emperor saw an existence that shocked Him.

"So that's how it is. You really surprise me! I know what your anchor is, travel! You have participated in the birth of every important product about human travel in history. And then you continue to reincarnate and accumulate beliefs... You have formed your own meme." The Emperor only now felt that he had just lifted a corner of the other party's essence.

"You can't die." The Emperor sighed. He knew exactly what this being had done to convince him. To put it bluntly, it was using power to coerce others. His human side tried to convince him through the benefits, but it was useless.

His words were much simpler and more blunt. Clearly, he was implying that, due to humanity's actions, God was inevitable. Since the embryo had already formed, the Emperor couldn't, under the pressure of the Chaos Gods, smooth over the vortex formed by the Warp's fluctuations. If that was truly what he said, then it seemed he had no choice!

The Emperor took action, and a vast golden psychic energy, or rather, a power that could be called divine power to some extent, was infused into His body. This was pure power, without any mark, because the Emperor was worried that his thoughts would erode His essence, leading to unimaginable consequences.

Well, though his soul was disintegrating, his essence remained. When the Emperor's power was infused into him, the entire situation was swiftly reversed. The Emperor was puzzled. How could such a being, one who had already anchored the very concept of travel, be so weak? Of course, Balder was powerful by mortal standards, but in his essence, he was too weak. Something was wrong with him! This was one thing the Emperor could be certain of.

Chapter 39: He in the Depths of the Soul 2

"Haha, it seems my life is saved." After a while, he regained his composure and looked at the Emperor.

"I underestimated you."

"You've underestimated many people. I bear no ill will towards you. In fact, our goals are similar. I'm anchored in human travel. Underestimating me is just a loss of face, and of course, you might not care. But underestimating the great enemy is disastrous." He sighed. "I've already told you everything I wanted to say to him, everything I can say. There's more I can't say, and I don't dare to say."

"Can you see the future?" the Emperor asked. Just now, from the information that the other party had leaked out, he felt something. It was vague and unclear, but the Emperor had a vague feeling that the outcome was very bad. He now believed this guy's words.

The Emperor understands his own nature and possesses a strong ability to dispel illusions. Although he may still be deceived by certain beings, the probability is extremely low.

"Some things are the future before we know them, but when we see them they may no longer be the future. Fate and prophecy are changing. Who can grasp the truth in them?" He sighed and said.

"You are pessimistic about the future."

"Yes, that's why I took a huge risk to come to you. To be honest, if I had any other way, I wouldn't come to see you!" He said gritting his teeth.

"Haha." The Emperor laughed. It had been a long time since he had interacted with such an interesting being. The Sigillites were their most loyal subordinates, while the Primarchs were still children. If we were to talk about pure equality, the latter two were far inferior to the former.

"Who are you? A being like you should not be unknown. We may know you." said the Emperor.

"Yes! Who am I?" His face suddenly changed, then began to twist and deform. "Who am I? Why can't I remember? I've been through a lot, many of which are still vivid in my mind, but I..."

A moment later, the man who had surprised even the Emperor gradually fell into a drowsy state. The skin in his hand began to return to Balder's face, and Balder's humanity obscured his deeper nature. When the last piece of skin returned to Balder's face, the man in front of him fell into a coma.

"I seem to understand your question." The Emperor sighed. He had not expected something like this to happen today. He had assumed the worst outcome would be the exposure of a certain existence, but he had not expected the final exposure to be this. The Emperor closed his eyes, his almost miraculous mind beginning to work rapidly. He attempted to sort out the information he had received, and how Balder had come to this point.

"There's an old Eastern proverb: 'Underestimating heroes is a common mistake.'" After a moment, the Emperor opened his eyes and looked at Balder with a complicated expression. This guy was truly amazing at what he did. He was incredibly bold and imaginative when it came to the big picture. He dared to think and act! And when it came to the specific implementation, his plan was flawless, meticulously executed!

Ever since the emergence of psychics, some have considered exploiting faith. They established churches and recruited followers, using various means to gather and coerce faith, and some were quite powerful. However, amidst the infighting and fighting, these once-powerful entities were shattered. The lucky ones might even leave a trace in a hidden corner, while the unlucky ones left no trace at all.

This guy, however, was different. He skirted the boundaries. He chose the neutral concept of travel. He promoted travel in various ways, participated in the development of various transportation and navigation tools, and personally led voyages. Through countless reincarnations, he left many traces in history.

When later generations reverently pay homage to these travel pioneers and the inventors of transportation, and use the items they invented, they gain a modicum of faith. This faith is simple, consisting primarily of reverence and gratitude. After all, regardless of whether a person is good or bad, they all benefit from the convenience provided by transportation!

This kind of faith was completely different from human-centered beliefs, and was relatively free of impurities. Its contamination was not severe enough to distort its true self. Furthermore, because it did not conflict with other beliefs, no one targeted it. Thus, Balder survived for a long time.

Some might ask, then, why haven't other invented vehicles garnered such fervor? The reason is simple: Balder is a reincarnated being, theoretically capable of infinite reincarnation, and his soul is resilient. Furthermore, due to reincarnation, any traces of his past are erased, making tracking him difficult.

He might even have received assistance from the then-existing Eldar Empire. After all, in that era, the Eldar were the boss, especially when it came to reincarnation. He had never been aware of his existence, or perhaps he had encountered him but ignored it. Whether the Eldar had played a role in this was hard to say.

This process has been repeated for tens of thousands of years, and especially since humanity entered the cosmic age, its power has grown rapidly! After all, subspace engines and navigation are closely related to psychic powers. No matter who it is or what vehicle it rides, it must pay a certain amount of faith tax...

Even the Great Crusade launched by the Emperor himself had to pay a faith tax to this man! God knows how many of the countless spacecraft of the Human Empire use the technology developed by Him, and how many people use the navigation data and methods written by Him! Did He interfere with psychic navigation? Even the Emperor could not be sure, because He knew too little!

Logically, He should have been extremely powerful, and even had the potential to advance further. However, the fall of the Eldar interrupted this process! Violent warp storms isolated human settlements, and all interstellar travel was almost halted.

His greatest source of faith was gone in an instant, and the rampage of the evil gods had a significant impact on his reincarnation. He might even become the target of the evil gods.

Because of these problems, He chose to escape. God knows where He hid. After all, escaping is also a form of travel, and in this respect, He is an expert. He escaped the most chaotic and dangerous period. And now He has returned.

The Emperor even believed that his launching of the Great Crusade might have been one of the reasons for awakening Him! This made the Emperor, who was used to freeloading, very dissatisfied, but there was really nothing he could do! Fortunately, perhaps for some reason, His current condition was very dire. He seemed to have forgotten his true name, which caused problems with his soul receiving faith. When he appeared on the other side, his soul energy dissipated very quickly.

But all of this can be reversed. He can regain his true name, his true self, and his ever-growing power! And once He is restored to his former self, He has the hope of further advancement! And the better the human empire becomes, the stronger He will become! This is what troubles the Emperor! Because, in fact, their goals are very similar...

Furthermore, He has already formed His own meme. The Emperor cannot be sure. Even if He kills Him now, will the continuation of the concept of travel allow Him to be resurrected again? Or does He have other plans? By then, will He still be the same? What will He think of Himself? As for seizing this concept?

The Emperor did not know, because the Emperor's path was different from Balder's. The Emperor gained power through his own immense strength and the restoration of humanity, while Balder did not. This guy was a neutral concept. The Emperor could obliterate a powerful soul, even a demigod, but could he obliterate a concept? A concept that you used all day long?

Chapter 40 Disposal

Many complex matters are actually quite simple to judge. For the Emperor, the first question is: Is this person friend or foe? From what I've seen so far, he should be considered a friend, as he's anchored in the human concept of travel. He and humanity share a common destiny! Furthermore, the human side of him is willing to risk his own sanity to communicate with him. The same is true for the essential side of him, though the method of persuasion is different.

The second point was, would this guy cause trouble for him? He might, but whether he killed him or imprisoned him, it would probably be even more troublesome! Killing him was obviously not an option. And imprisoning or sealing him? The Emperor looked at the existence beneath Balder's humanity. How could he seal him? Who would guard the seal?

He was already too busy with his duties to seal a concept so closely tied to the Great Crusade? He would have to compromise with the Navigator, not to mention that he was facing the very being who might have been the forefather of the Navigator profession! And who could guard the seal? Who could keep it safe?

The Emperor vaguely felt that sealing and imprisonment might lead to the loss of Balder's humanity. In his spare time, the Emperor would engage in activities such as friendship, family, loyalty, and companionship—games that healed his mind and body. Clearly, Balder's birth on Fenris and his alliance with Russ were objectively a similar process. Immersed in the mortal world, he nurtured his humanity.

As for whether he could regain his lost power and become a being even the Emperor could not ignore? The thought of this made the Emperor welcome it. This exchange had a profound impact on him. While He possessed a cold and violent side, He also possessed a certain tolerance. This tolerance could be understood as not seeking personal gain. He cared only about the fate of humanity, and beyond that, everything else could be abandoned, everything else could be tolerated! If He regained his power, He would undoubtedly have an additional trump card!

Even if he were to remain in charge of Terra, he would still have a powerful presence to help him. Regardless, Balder's status was there, and his experience spanning hundreds of reincarnations was extensive. Of course, using him might not be easy; he was incredibly independent and had many ideas of his own. In terms of ability, he was considered top-tier. After all, they had just discussed how to safely achieve godhood...

"He" had much to say, the Emperor pondered. He knew that, as a being so far along, Balder had experienced and known secrets unimaginable. This revival of his essence was hasty, and due to his own weakness, many things remained unspoken. In the future, if "He" grew stronger, the two sides would undoubtedly have much more to share.

"When he was communicating just now, he was also trying his best to avoid the Chaos enemy." The Emperor touched his chin, mentally raising the threat level of the Chaos Gods by another level. He also listened to Balder's suggestion of a rational choice between faith and godhood.

The Emperor recalled the heyday of the Eldar, when Eldar gods could indeed appear. The Emperor couldn't say for sure whether the actions of the gods had foreshadowed the Eldar's downfall, or whether the Eldar's downfall had also brought down their gods. It was a mess.

"You can't get into trouble now, and I don't want anything to happen to you in the future." The Emperor injected a torrent of golden energy into Balder's body, but this energy was only stored and would only be used under specific circumstances.

"Your humanity needs strengthening." Even the Emperor felt a pang of difficulty when considering this aspect of Balder's nature. This human side of Balder was, in a way, a form of insurance. The Emperor strengthened this side, while also concealing His true nature.

"I hope you can find yourself again." The Emperor strengthened Balder's inspiration, allowing him to see more.

"Finally, all this must be covered up, and things must be restored to their rightful course." The Emperor once again unleashed his might. He and Baldur returned to the world of the living.

All around him, everything was altered: memories, timelines, logic, and destiny. The Emperor meticulously combed through everything, striving to avoid missing even the slightest flaw. As He carried out His work, He remained vigilant against the presence of the Void. However, it seemed that the great enemies hadn't focused their attention here at this moment. Even in the Warp surrounding Fenris, the demons were few and far between, as if they feared appearing here.

In the end, the whole story was woven together. In everyone's memory, the Emperor and the second-in-command of the Space Wolves Legion had a very pleasant conversation. The two sides talked about a lot of things, from history, technology, philosophy, human nature, and also talked about the Custodes. Baldur was very dissatisfied with the Custodes because their arrogance made him very unhappy.

The Emperor carefully wove the story not only to deceive outsiders, but also to deceive Balder himself. There was no doubt that when his human side dominated, Balder was still a powerful and wise man. The Emperor was worried that his human side would come into contact with his essence too early.

After the Emperor left, he retired to his chambers to rest, leaving no one aware of what had happened. Not even Leman Russ. Not even the Sigillite!

"You seem somewhat pleased?" When the Sigillite saw the Emperor again, he noticed something was amiss with his master. "Are you pleased with Balder's excellence?"

"Uh... yes, I'm happy because of his excellence." "However, he's too excellent, beyond your imagination," the Emperor thought to himself. He didn't dare tell the Sigillite about this, fearing he wouldn't be able to handle it. At least not now.

"Then I will accept him as my disciple." The seal holder said happily.

"You accept him as your disciple?" The emperor frowned and fell into deep thought. He kept looking at his left hand, worrying whether this action would lead to some bad consequences in the distant future.

"Yes, disciple, I believe we will get along well. He and I have a lot in common." said the Seal Holder.

"Very well, then, accept him as your disciple. However, he is first and foremost a sworn brother of Leman Russ," the Emperor said meaningfully. "Nurture this relationship well." The Emperor walked over and patted the Sigillite on the shoulder. This was all He could say.

"Then I'll go get ready."

"Go." The Emperor looked at the departing Sigillite. "Since that being is willing to maintain his humanity, He must also help Him maintain these chains imbued with humanity. I hope we can restrain Him."

After completing all of this, the Emperor suddenly felt a glimmer of clarity within him. Something previously invisible gradually became clearer, and he felt as if he had entered a new phase. This progress wasn't due to an accumulation of his own power, but rather a change in his perspective and thinking.

The Emperor truly began to carefully consider certain issues and how to reconcile these unavoidable problems with the conflict of the Imperial Truth. Standing at a higher position, He felt that He had handled some things too roughly before.

"As expected of someone who has come this far on his own, his insights and ideas are truly extraordinary." The Emperor compared himself to Balder. The Emperor was born powerful, while the latter, while possessing the characteristics of a reincarnated being, was likely no less powerful. However, compared to the Emperor, Balder's initial achievements were nothing compared to his own! His current achievements were a testament to his abilities.

Chapter 41: Legion's Founding 1

"Shit! What happened to me?" When Balder woke up again, he felt dizzy and couldn't even remember the entire conversation with the Emperor. He only remembered that they talked about his attitude towards the Imperial Guards. He seemed very impatient and complained a few words.

"It's nothing, a trivial matter. As long as it doesn't violate the Emperor's taboos, He won't care about a few words." Balder patted his numb head. He thought he knew the Emperor well enough; He wouldn't get angry with him over a simple verbal incident. Moreover, from his memory, the two seemed to have had a pleasant conversation. As for whether the Emperor had tampered with his memories? That probably wasn't the case, right?

"I feel a little stronger." Balder stood up, put on his clothes, and stretched his body. The improvement in his body was not very obvious, but the improvement in his spirit was somewhat surprising. Even though there were thick metal walls and special psychic shielding, for Balder, there were no secrets within a radius of 2 kilometers. And this was not the limit. His spirit could still be projected outward, but considering that this was someone else's territory, Balder decided to restrain himself and wait until he had a flagship before testing it carefully!

The meeting with the Emperor was quickly put aside. In the Warhammer world, if one wants to live comfortably, one must be open-minded. After all, there are so many disgusting things. Balder considers himself knowledgeable. He has chatted with the King of Figures, spoken on the phone with the Eldar God, and even met the Emperor face to face. There really aren't many things that can scare him anymore. He is now very relaxed. Of course, the key is to keep up with the work at hand. Honestly, Balder is truly dedicated to the affairs of the Legion. 996 was moved to tears watching it!

"Master Balder, the Primarch is here." The voice of Hake Hammer was heard outside the door.

"Okay, I'll be there right away. I'll clean up first," said Balder.

20 minutes later, in Bader's living room.

"My king, you seem quite haggard lately?" Balder could sense Leman Russ was tired after seeing him. It wasn't physical fatigue, but rather a feeling of... well, a sense of being unable to lead anyone.

"My brother, this is a private occasion, we can address each other more casually. I don't like my covenant brothers to call me king, because it will make us seem estranged. I need a friendship that transcends rank and authority." Russ and Balder first gave each other a Primarch-level hug.

"You seem very worried?" After the necessary courtesy and greetings, Balder went straight to the point.

"Yes, I'm worried. During this time, I've seen veterans of the Sixth Legion coming out of Terra, and I've also seen those guys in black smocks, each one as hard as iron and rock. I don't like them. Most of the veterans of the Sixth Legion are a group of executioners and butchers. And those guys who call themselves Dark Angels are full of coldness, pride, and disdain for other people." Russ snorted.

"And then?" Balder asked.

"However, facing these guys, my sons of Fenris were defeated like children. Although they have not yet completed the final transformation, everyone wore the same armor and weapons. In the battle, my 50 sons faced 10 dark angels, and the result was a massacre, a one-sided massacre! Only two of those guys were sentenced to death, and we lost half of them. As a result, they still shamelessly said that they made a mistake and wanted to have 2 casualties! Damn it!" Rus gritted his teeth in hatred.

"Is there a chance they're telling the truth?" Balder thought to himself. Just think about it. Who were the first instructors to train the Wild Wolves? They were all of Nimean's caliber, the first generation of Grey Knights! These were truly exceptional Space Marines. A group of talented veterans fighting newcomers—what a waste.

"Then there were those veterans of the Sixth Legion. They still suppressed my descendants in the training ground. It was 50 against 20. In the end, the other side was judged to have lost 5 people, and I also lost half of my people." Rus said.

"Haha, even if they're a group of executioners, they're seasoned and experienced," Balder said. Previously, the Iron Islands' new recruits had sparred with the Dark Angels. Fifty men against ten, they lost half their own men, but ultimately managed to take out three of them. Of those three, one was deemed killed by plasma, and the remaining two were deemed killed by laser cannons. Hmm...

The Dark Angels later commented on the Iron Islands' new recruits: they enjoyed using ranged weapons and had a certain talent, making them good destroyers. As for the subsequent 50 vs. 20 situation, facing the veterans of the VI Legion who preferred to charge and engage in close combat, the Iron Islands' scions lost half of their forces, then used heavy bolters, plasma, and lasers to annihilate the other half...

Of course, the Iron Islands were no match for Russ's heirs in close combat. Several clashes had broken out between the two sides, with the Iron Islands suffering losses in even numbers. However, the losses weren't severe; after defeating Jolin Bloodhowl, Balder's deterrent power remained strong. If Russ hadn't intervened personally, and things had gotten out of hand, those barbarians would have been in for a rough patch.

"My brother, I need your help. These guys can't just be thrown onto the battlefield like this," Russ said. "Otherwise, what awaits them is not a glorious battle, but a one-sided massacre."

"I have a plan." Balder placed the datapad in front of Russ. It included assigning experienced and decent veterans of the Sixth Legion to the new recruit companies, providing mentoring and training. This would strengthen theoretical knowledge and legionary discipline. Furthermore, the plan would be equipped with more advanced weapons, with more training and small-scale exercises. This plan was no easy task, as much of it was done with Nimean's help. Balder had also been paid for it.

"I will take a look at this plan. Now I have another question. What do you think about your arrangement?" Ruth asked.

"Earlier, when you communicated with me, you mentioned that you planned to divide the army into 13 large companies. Is that correct?"

"Yes, that's what I thought."