House Yaeger's Custodes had departed, and Trajan initially thought that only his Custodes remained.
Unexpectedly, just as this thought crossed his mind, a new contingent of Custodes disembarked from the battleship.
Zeke's Ten Thousand Strong Custodes Regiment also descended from the battleship and formed ranks.
Seeing the equally gleaming golden 'great corn' on the opposite side, Trajan was bewildered.
So, the Lord Emperor's previous revelation meant this? A new master of mankind?
Could this be the new master of mankind?
Zeke had not yet mobilized his other forces, such as the regular Space Marines and Psykic Legion/Force; these forces were held in reserve for unforeseen circumstances.
After Zeke's Custodes disembarked from the battleship and formed ranks, Trajan finally collected his thoughts.
Now, he didn't know what attitude to adopt when facing Zeke.
Even though the Emperor had once told him that this individual would become the new master of mankind, he hadn't been as shocked as he was now.
Originally, he thought House Yaeger was preparing to step forward and take over the Imperium of Man, leading the Imperium and humanity back to its peak—a prospect he could accept.
After all, this House was indeed formidable, and life under their governance would be excellent, as evidenced by Holy Terra.
Holy Terra no longer resembled the Earth of old; there were no oceans, only a vast expanse of yellow land.
Within this yellow land, however, lay a chicken-shaped plot of land, exceptionally fertile, with shades of green and blue.
That land was House Yaeger's private reserve.
According to House Yaeger, that land was their ancestral home, and its people were protected by the House.
There, House Yaeger had constructed a dome, isolating that entire tract of land from Holy Terra. It was the most fertile land on Holy Terra and the place with the best living conditions.
The Imperium of Man citizens there were true citizens; they enjoyed all their rightful privileges.
While most hive worlds in the Imperium of Man implemented 14-hour or even 20-hour workdays, only that place strictly enforced an 8-hour workday.
Furthermore, it offered a series of welfare benefits and subsidies, including weekends off, allowing the populace to live in peace and contentment even in such dark times.
This was a life Trajan had never even imagined.
More importantly, that dome was exceptionally sturdy. In the last conflict,
Horus's Great Pilgrimage had consciously bypassed that area. For ten thousand years, they had not experienced the ravages of war.
Peace enveloped that land.
Thus, Trajan actually had no objection to House Yaeger stepping in to take over the Imperium of Man, but it now seemed things were not as he had thought.
What did he see?
He saw that Zeke also had Custodes by his side, and then he recalled the Lord Emperor's previous divine oracle.
So, this individual was a replica of the Lord Emperor?
How, then, should they, the Custodes, face this 'Lord Emperor'?
This immense question enveloped Trajan's mind, leaving him at a loss, but Zeke's next words resolved his dilemma.
"Just lead the way. I'll go see the Emperor and see if I can get him to stand up for a bit, so he can explain it to you personally."
Trajan took a deep breath. Beneath his golden helmet, his expression was incredibly complex. But ultimately, he nodded and turned to move.
"Please follow me."
Zeke's Custodes and the Lord Emperor's Custodes walked side by side, their golden and silver-white armor shimmering under Terra's sun, forming a peculiar sight.
Guilliman and Rogal Dorn followed behind, both Primarchs now steeped in silence.
They passed through the grand corridors of the Imperial Palace, each step seemingly treading on the dust of history.
The bas-reliefs on the walls recorded the rise and fall of the Imperium of Man, and today, perhaps a new era was about to begin.
Finally, they arrived before the colossal doors of the golden throne room.
The heavy black stone doors slowly opened, and an ancient, powerful psychic fluctuation washed over them.
Inside the throne room, the Lord Emperor's withered body still sat upon the golden throne, but this time, His eyes were open.
Those eyes—burning with golden flames, as if capable of piercing through all illusion.
"You have come."
"Yes, I have come. Although we've met so many times in the Warp, this should be our first meeting in the physical universe, shouldn't it?"
The Lord Emperor's gaze shifted to Guilliman and Rogal Dorn. In that instant, the two Primarchs seemed to return to ten thousand years ago, to the scene of their first audience with their father.
"Father..." Guilliman's voice trembled slightly.
Rogal Dorn silently knelt on one knee, a rare hint of wavering appearing on his resolute face.
The Lord Emperor slowly raised a hand, His emaciated fingers moving slightly.
"Rise, My sons." His voice held a long-absent warmth. "You have done well."
Guilliman's eyes reddened slightly, while Rogal Dorn clenched his fists tightly.
Trajan stood to the side, his shock immeasurable—the Lord Emperor had actually spoken Himself!
And most importantly, they could actually understand what the Lord Emperor said!
For ten thousand years, He had never uttered a single intelligible word.
Although they had received the Lord Emperor's divine oracle a few years ago, even that oracle had been somewhat vague.
But now it was different; now the Lord Emperor could speak directly and clearly, in a way they all understood!
Why could the Lord Emperor speak now?
Did this even need to be pondered?
This could only be due to Zeke.
This being, who was directly identified as the next master of mankind in the Lord Emperor's divine oracle.
"Alright, everyone, if you want to reminisce, do it later. I'm going to take a look at you now."
"I'm going to see if you can permanently get up from this throne, or at least stand up occasionally without consuming my psychic power."
Zeke's words interrupted the strange atmosphere between the Lord Emperor and His sons, but these words also made Guilliman and Rogal Dorn fix their gazes on Zeke.
What did they hear? They heard Zeke say he would try to see if he could make the Lord Emperor stand up. Oh my, what wonderful news that was.
The two Primarchs closed their mouths and stood aside, waiting.
Trajan immediately ordered the Custodes to be on alert. Zeke's Custodes also began to synchronize their vigilance.
If the Lord Emperor could rise from the golden throne and once again lead the Imperium of Man, then there could be no better news for the Custodes.
Zeke paid no mind to the Custodes' actions.
His powerful psychic energy began to envelop the Lord Emperor, and he then saw the immense amount of poisonous faith on His body.
There were more than countless billions of humans in this universe; Zeke didn't even know how many humans there were here.
So many humans praying to the Lord Emperor every day—it truly was difficult for this Lord Emperor.
For ten thousand years, so much poison had spread throughout the Lord Emperor's entire body. It was truly too difficult to remove these toxins and allow the Lord Emperor to ascend to godhood normally.