“They are the warriors of whom I am most proud, willing to sacrifice themselves for me. They are like pure ore, which I send into the furnace of war to be tempered into a will and body as strong as fine steel. I shall clothe them in impenetrable armor and equip them with invincible divine weapons. Plague and pestilence shall not harm them. They shall master the arts of war and strategy, grasp divine mechanisms and ingenuity, making them invincible. They are the fortress against my Dread, the defenders of all Humanity. They are my Space Marines, and they shall know no fear.”
—The Emperor
Fu Qinghai opened the Attribute Panel in his mind.
【Name: Fu Qinghai （True Name ）
Reincarnation Number: 60731920
Race: Space Marine （Bio-engineered Human ）
Height: 237cm
Weight: 281kg
Special Ability: Tony Stark Electronic Backup （Completion Degree 17% ） Bound Brain Domain
Reincarnation Equipment: None
Assimilation Points: 990 points
World Anchor: X1
Reincarnation Life: X2】
The race changed, from a Space Human to a Bio-engineered Human.
He didn't know how long he had been unconscious in the Incubation Pod, and just as he was about to ask Master Kunto beside him, he saw Ogedai and Taral rushing over in a hurry.
Ogedai was the first to breathe a sigh of relief upon seeing Fu Qinghai sitting properly on the iron box, covered in sensors.
“How is it, Master?” Ogedai asked first.
“He has mutated,” Kunto said calmly, carefully observing the data displayed on the Screen on the Workbench.
“Uh…” Ogedai was stunned.
Upon hearing this, Fu Qinghai also turned his head to look at Kunto.
Kunto knew what Ogedai wanted to ask, and without waiting for him to speak, he explained directly:
“I don’t know what the mutated Trait is for now, but I can confirm that his Gene-seed has mutated.”
Kunto’s meaning was clear: regardless of the mutation situation, he had told them, and it was up to them whether to include Locke’s future Gene-seed in the White Scars Gene-seed repository.
Kunto added, “Don’t worry, all his physical indicators are fine; he can become a qualified Space Marine.”
During the long generational transmission of Gene-seeds, mutations are not uncommon. Some are benign mutations, granting the warrior special abilities others do not possess, or making them more outstanding in certain aspects, but most are unfavorable mutations, such as the Blood Angels’ hereditary diseases, the Red Thirst and the Black Rage.
Or some mutations have obvious side effects, such as the White Scars Legion’s future successor Chapter, the Mantis Warriors, who sometimes enter an extremely self-forgetful state during slaughter, where their eyes and minds perceive only combat. Their reaction speed is so fast it’s almost precognitive, allowing them to anticipate every move of the enemy, slaughtering precisely and mowing down foes effortlessly. The drawback, however, is that in this state, they cannot distinguish friend from foe.
This combat state is an ability only possessed by the White Scars Primarch, Chaghatai Khan. However, Chaghatai Khan does not have the side effect of attacking friend or foe; he can enter this state at will and withdraw from it at will, making Chaghatai Khan one of the top three in the Primarch individual Combat Power rankings.
Ogedai asked, “Is it because of the accelerated cultivation?”
Kunto replied, “Uncertain, but I think so.”
Ogedai nodded slowly and said, “Understood, Master.”
Kunto said, “You can take him away now.”
Ogedai bowed slightly and said, “Thank you, Master, for your efforts during this time. On behalf of the White Scars, I offer you our respect.”
……
On the way back following Ogedai and the other, the Mortal Crew members who passed by were very surprised to see Fu Qinghai, who was huge in stature and draped in a Hemp Robe.
After the Boarding Action, only seven Space Marines remained on the Dagger-class Frigate. For a Frigate, that was quite a few; the Crew knew every single Space Marine, so they were surprised to see an extra one today.
Crew members who had seen Fu Qinghai before were even more astonished, because a year and a half ago, when they last saw him, he was just a skinny, tall kid trailing behind Ogedai.
That’s right, a year and a half ago.
To be precise, Fu Qinghai had lain in Kunto’s Incubation Pod for a full 15 standard Terra months.
A year is enough time to make short-lived Earthlings from a previous life feel like a lifetime has passed.
But for the Humans of the Warhammer 40,000 Universe, who are accustomed to long interstellar voyages,
it was far too short.
Ogedai sat in his wheelchair at the front with a stern face, but Taral, who knew his old friend’s temperament well, knew what he was thinking.
Too fast, it was far too fast!
Initially, the two of them didn't know why they had to escort the Biological Sage Kunto Anastasio to Mars.
The Space Marines had heard of the great name and importance of the Biological Sage.
But why so many Space Marines were dispatched to guard a single Frigate, detached from the main force for escort duty, the two were unclear about.
Now, the two of them had a rough guess in their minds.
Kunto’s feat of creating a Space Marine in just one year was enough to shock the two of them, and then shock the Imperium.
Both Ogedai and Taral had gone through the complete Ascension process.
Normal Space Marines required two to three years of selection, followed by many years to complete the Ascension process, involving the implantation of nineteen Superman Organs, one by one, waiting for one Organ to fully develop before the next could be implanted.
Some candidates were stuck at the final step, the Black Carapace, for ten years after the Gene-seed storage gland implantation.
The two did not know that Kunto had employed numerous technical methods kept secret by the Adeptus Mechanicus to accelerate Fu Qinghai’s development, and had also consumed rare Potions he had treasured for many years—a unique, non-replicable supply.
“How many Biological Sages does the Imperium have in total? It’s impossible for every Gene-smith to participate in the Ascension process of a Space Marine,” Taral suddenly said as they walked.
Ogedai knew what Taral was referring to, and the Afu-headed strongman slowly nodded, agreeing with his companion’s view.
Ogedai said, “I know without you saying it. Even if all the Apothecaries in the entire Legion were combined, they might not be as capable as one of Master Kunto’s little fingers, if he even has such a thing as a little finger.”
“Or, Kunto used many technical means on Locke that, considering the cost, should not have been used on an ordinary Space Marine,” Ogedai added another possibility.
Taral was momentarily stunned, wondering what technical means could be more costly than manufacturing Space Marines, the elites of the Imperium. After a moment’s thought, he considered one possibility:
“You mean, the Adeptus Custodes?”
Taral was not familiar with the enhanced assassins of the Officio Assassinorum, nor even the organization itself. The only thing he could think of that was more advanced than Space Marine manufacturing technology was the Emperor’s Bodyguard, the guardians of the Imperial Palace—the Adeptus Custodes.
He then asked, “But what is his purpose in doing this?”
Ogedai shook his head.
The two would soon know the answer.
…………