When the Astral Knight fleet arrived on Mars, the person who came to greet him was not the current Foundry General Oud Udia Lasky, but not even a great sage, just a ruling sage named Faustine. By.
If it were any other Space Marine, it might be regarded as an insult, but after Soshyan had a brief communication with the Fastidian Sage, he was sure that Mars did not do this out of contempt or any other reason, but It is indeed rare for this Fasdin to be able to communicate with Soshyan, a member of the Advanced Mechanicus, using non-Mechanicus thinking.
Most senior members of the Adeptus Mechanicus will try their best to erase their irrationality, that is, their emotional and human functions, but this sage instead made a separate partition for his human nature and emotions, and preserved them very carefully. , so the first thing he asked when he saw Soshyan was——
"Chapter Master Soshyan Alexei, did you enjoy your journey?"
From this point of view, the considerations of the great sages of Mars were surprisingly "humane" and they knew how to use a "normal person" to receive Soshiyang.
Mars, as the core world of the Adeptus Mechanicus, is also the largest treasure trove of technical knowledge in the empire. Its status is no less than that of Terra. However, there is one strange thing. When Soshyan stared at this red planet for the first time, He always felt like there was something whispering in his ear. The voice was very, very weak, almost like an auditory hallucination, and he couldn't even hear clearly what it was.
The fleet is docked in the Hope Airport on Mars, which is part of the huge ring of steel in the orbit of Mars. As the largest orbital space structure of the human empire, the equatorial belt of Mars is not only surrounded by the Hope Airport and the Hand of God Airport The two giant ports are also home to the Imperial Navy Assembly Plant and the Imperial Navy Shipyard. Mars has therefore become the main anchorage of the Solar Fleet. In addition, there are countless large and small space factories scattered throughout the orbital steel ring. The factory operates around the clock, providing an endless supply of materials for the largest shipyard in the empire. Another biggest difference between the orbital ring of Mars and Jupiter is that it is directly connected to the ground of Mars - through the twelve ladders. With the huge space elevator, personnel, equipment and materials on the surface of Mars can be quickly transported to orbit.
After arriving at the airport, Soshyan, accompanied by Sage Fasting, visited the giant shipyard in Mars orbit.
"It is truly a miracle of knowledge and a great creation."
Standing in the closed shuttle, staring through the huge curved glass at an Emperor-class battleship that was basically completed in the dock, Soshyan couldn't help but lament that there were not many docks in the empire that could build battleships. , even the shipyard in Ulan Huda can barely manufacture heavy cruisers.
The huge battleship is fixed in a huge frame by gravitational locks. The undulating crest without any modification is like the outline of a mountain peak. When the shuttle lowers its height, Soshyan can clearly and intuitively see countless engineering ships in the huge The activities on the ship are like a colony of ants building a nest. Through the giant tempered glass that has been installed, countless workers, servitors and technical priests can be seen installing various equipment inside.
Even Soshyan could not imagine the manpower and resources required to build such a giant ship.
"What does the Chapter Master think of knowledge?"
Fasting on the side suddenly spoke. This sage's whole body has been highly mechanized. Only his left eye and part of his left forehead are still intact. However, the voice he made at this time was a very rich and noiseless middle-aged man's voice.
.
"Knowledge is the light of reason and the way for mankind to move towards the future."
"What about faith?"
Soshyan looked at the sage. He was not sure whether the other person was hinting at him. Due to his understanding of the Adeptus Mechanicus, he guessed that perhaps his conversation with the other person was being observed by many people.
But this does not affect his attitude. After all, modesty does not mean being submissive.
“Faith is a substitute when knowledge is not enough.”
The ruling sage, dressed in red robes and holding a mechanical battle ax, stared at Soshiyang with his human eyes and suddenly nodded.
"Knowledge is the only way to save mankind."
Then, he changed the topic.
"But we still need to pay attention to the means, and we need to pay more attention to the right path in acquiring knowledge. Overstepping the bounds will make us use the acquired knowledge in the wrong place, such as... modifying the contract and teachings of Omnisiah without authorization."
The shuttle began to rise, and Soshyan also knew that what was supposed to come would eventually come, and Mars would not let Angstrom go so lightly.
"I am an Astartes. I am not qualified or capable to discuss the teachings of the Adeptus Mechanicus. In my opinion, everything is just serving the empire and war."
"Is this why Reza's heretics were allowed to get involved in Angstrom?"
Soshyan turned his head and glanced at the other party, and then said meaningfully:
"I only know one thing, Reza is very close to the Maelstrom, and Mars is far away from the Maelstrom."
"Chapter Master, Mars has the power to determine the Overlord of each Forge World. This is part of the Emperor's sacred contract with Mars."
"I respect the authority of Mars, very much, but...it was a war period, and Angstrom's stability was crucial to the expedition. I think temporary personnel appointments are more important than the outcome of an expedition.
Isn’t that too much? And I have repeatedly emphasized that everything in Angstrom is temporary, and I have never interfered in the internal affairs of the forging world. Mars can appoint a new foundry director at any time.”
"There are rumors that the Astral Knight and Reza are very close."
"I have to point out that there is a fallacy in your words, sage."
"oh?"
"The Adeptus Astartes and the Adeptus Mechanicus are very close. We regard the Adeptus Mechanicus as a whole, so we can cooperate with any forge world as long as necessary, because this is the sacredness of the Emperor and the Adeptus Mechanicus.
Contract, however, I personally always maintain respect and necessary awe for Mars. As you said before, knowledge is the only way to save mankind."
Fasting blinked his only naked eye.
"Do you agree with this?"
"most."
"I thought that in the eyes of the Astartes, only war could save everything."
"Well, that's why I said most of it, because knowledge alone is not enough, you also need force and strength."
The ruling sage nodded thoughtfully, and then they returned to the airport.
Since the foundry director was already in Terra, Soshyan had nothing to talk about with those great sages. On the contrary, it was the Fasting Sage who left a deep impression on Soshyan, who showed a strong desire for adventure.
Soshyan also welcomed the other party to explore the Storm Star Territory.
After staying for a day, I simply took a spin on Mars and visited places such as the Olympian Dune Hive, the Acheron Groove Forge Temple Group, the Second Hundred Million Watts Tribe Complex, the Sea of Sedonia, Iron
After waiting for the famous area of Mars in the Sea of Curses, he led the fleet straight to the final destination, Terra.
But before entering Terra, he had to go to another place first——
The true home of the Imperial Fists Chapter, Mountain Formation!