Chapter 1050: Chapter 458: Lorgar and the National Church (2)
"He just needs an object of faith. Before I arrived in his world, his object of faith was the Evil God. After I arrived in his world, his object of faith became me. When I discovered this issue and ultimately stopped it, Lorgar felt confused. He realized his mistake, but the core need for faith deep within his soul hadn’t changed. Without an object of faith, he was like a traveler in the desert, desperately searching for any source of water. Lorgar, a being filled with faith, could not believe in me, so he sought out new faith."
"He began to study countless scriptures and scrolls, seeking so-called true deities, the truth of the cosmos, and the essence of me—the creature known as Emperor. Thus, he reached the Eye of Fear, met the Chaos Four Gods, and embraced his new faith with an attitude of ecstatic joy. Previously, he lost his purpose, so the Chaos Evil Gods gave him one. Lorgar was like a puppy seeing a frisbee; he didn’t care what the purpose was, he just needed someone to give him one. Chaos gave him one, and he led the Word Bearers to offer all their loyalty."
"As devout as he was before, now he is just as hateful. Am I correct, Lorgar, my son?"
The purification was over. The Primarch of the Word Bearers, with a shaved head and ancient spells engraved all over his body, seemed to have lost everything. He spoke with a heart of ashes: "You even managed to convert me, willingly embraced by Chaos, back to my original state. Father, great Divine Emperor, you used your supreme power to take away everything from me. I finally found my home, and you cruelly deprived me of my faith again. Even so, you still refuse to admit that you are indeed a god?"
"How long are you going to hold on to that lie?" Hearing Lorgar’s words, Emperor’s face showed a subtle change. The Master’s displeasure was expressed through his tone: "I don’t want to debate this issue with you anymore, because it is meaningless. Ten thousand years have passed, and the great mistake has been made, nearly bringing humanity to eternal doom."
"Precisely because of that, humanity needs faith. The existence of humanity is for faith. Father, what has your empire become? The only thing keeping your empire going is what I brought to you: faith." Lorgar pressed further step by step, the Primarch of Word Bearers staring at his father, his Creator, with eyes filled with fervor, beyond madness, and devotion that erased self-awareness: "The end of the heresy era proves everything. Two points: one, humanity needs faith; two, you are a god."
"...I will change this situation," Emperor remained silent at first, then continued: "In my own way."
"Your way? Yes, your way, because no one can oppose you, no one can confront you. Who can stop you? The Judicial Court? Terra Supreme Lord Council? Or the Imperial State Church? No, none of them can stop you. They rule your empire in the name of the Divine Emperor. Now that you’ve returned, they’ve lifted the stone only to drop it on their own feet, and you, finally becoming what you once despised most." Lorgar spoke like a kind priest, but his words were sharp as swords: "Look, a banquet, Chaos, Undead, Green Skin, bugs, they enjoy a feast on the rotting corpse of your empire. If it weren’t for your return igniting the spark of hope, the empire would have long been doomed. Even so, do you still firmly believe you are not a god?"
"I am not a god, Lorgar, this is the last time I will speak on this matter." Emperor remained cold and calm: "Stop your conceited judgments and arrogant knowledge. Cut off Chaos, and walk the path of evolution and enlightenment; this is the ultimate direction for human evolution. I am not a god, never have been."
Laine, Angerong, and Clarkson, three Genetic Primarchs, sat on benches, drinking Dwarf Bagman Beer, listening to the conversation between Emperor and Lorgar.
"Brother, do you want some sausages?" Laine took out a plate.
"Give me some, oh, I like black pepper flavor." Angerong nodded.
"Clarkson brother?"
"Honey-flavored."
"Here, it’s premium raw honey."
The three Primarchs ate and drank together. Compared to someone like Kiliman, who likes to think all day, Angerong and Clarkson are not people who get caught up in this issue, and for Laine, Emperor is just his father, nothing more. He doesn’t care whether Emperor is a god. As the Grey Knight Primarch, what he should do is fight against evil in the name of the Emperor.
On the other side, Lorgar and Emperor’s debate continued.
"So you think your Imperial Truth can defeat Chaos? Do you think Chaos is that simple? Chaos comes from Subspace, and the composition of Subspace is the sum of all emotions from all living beings in the universe. The more you fight against it, the more you realize you’re actually fighting against yourself. Why did I embrace Chaos? Because it cannot be destroyed, forever. Do you know, your Imperial Truth nearly led to the birth of the Chaos Fifth God?" Lorgar’s expression was complicated, part emptiness from awakening, part despair from shattered hope: "What is the essence of a god? It is the sum of all living beings’ consciousness that eventually forms self-awareness. And you, Father, your projection in Subspace is the vessel enhanced by all beings’ faith. You can deny it, but certain things have changed during the ten thousand years you sat on the Golden Throne. My downfall was because I accepted your viewpoint that you are not a god, but through decades of investigation, I found the opposite of what you preached to me."
