Chapter 553: Weapons and Another Empire

He completed the half‑kneeling ceremony.

"Father!" Sui Yang unfurled the helmet of the Thunder Hammer, looked up at Sui Bian seated on the steps, and made a request:

"All the people behind me are truly elite; if possible, I wish to enlist the majority of them into the auxiliary troops of the camp where Sui Yue and I serve.

And those led by Jing Nan, if further trained, have enough potential to become elite captains of the Empire Navy.

I hope Father will approve the transfer of those behind me."

"Hmm, then as you wish." Sui Bian did not ask any further questions about the request.

He approved Sui Yang, Sui Yue, and others such as Mark and Bai Yuekui to come for an audience, mainly to personally commend the two "biological" sons, to gladly slay 4068 and Charles, and also to meet these hardship‑ridden members of the "Spiritual Cage".

"Yes, thank you, Father," Sui Yang replied respectfully.

Then Sui Bian's gaze swept quickly over the crowd, and he soon noticed that although Bai Yuekui's body is "ageless and undying", his brain nerves have serious defects…

In short, Bai Yuekui's body is robust, but his brain will inevitably perish when he concentrates intensely.

Moreover, judging from Bai Yuekui's current state, he seems to have already reached a serene acceptance of life and death regarding his own condition.

Immediately, Sui Bian merely twitched his finger, silently released a trace of Spiritual Energy, and cured Bai Yuekui of this hidden ailment.

?

Bai Yuekui also sensed the change in himself; without much speculation, he knew it was the so‑called act of the unfathomable, all‑seeing human Emperor before him.

In an instant, myriad thoughts surged in Bai Yuekui's mind, pondering how to repay this "life‑saving grace".

But Sui Bian already said to Sui Yang and Sui Yue, "Alright, spend a few days recuperating on the Moon and Earth. Soon you can join the other Entrants and head to the Zero Three Universe, to join the expeditionary force led by OriginalBody Rog."

"Yes, Father," Sui Yang and Sui Yue replied in unison.

Then the twin brothers turned, gesturing for Mark and the others to leave the audience chamber together.

After departing.

Jing Nan and some personnel will follow other Empire officials to report to the headquarters the Empire Navy has established around the palace outskirts.

Meanwhile, Mark, Ran Bing, Elon, and Bai Yuekui will spend a holiday on Earth with Sui Yang and Sui Yue; after all the Entrants' new recruits finish their trials, they will board a space shuttle to the Zero Three Universe.

Now, Rog, Sui Meng, Shengjilesi, and the Tai Luo Insect Race are locked in a fierce battle; although their origin remains unconfirmed, Sui Bian is in no hurry.

As for the task force re‑selected and assembled by Leon, it continues tomb‑exploration operations against Space Death Spirits in the Zero Three Galaxy.

It is worth noting that Laura Crouff, head of the Archaeology Department, has already led more specialists to rendezvous with Leon.

Moreover, the Regulatory Department dispatched hunter soldiers led by A-1999 and the Stalker to assist Leon in dealing with any threats from the alternate dimension.

Indeed, when the transport ship Yudora first entered the interior of the alternate dimension, the Stalker was sliced down to just a skull by endless aberrations; even the Mother‑Hive team found restoring it to its original state a formidable challenge.

Mainly because Umbrella had long ceased all research on the Tyrant, though the experimental data were retained; reviving the entire project for a single Stalker would be cost‑ineffective.

However, constrained by Sui Bian's direct order, and with A-1999 repeatedly placing silent calls to the Mother‑Hive…

When the display showed "Regulatory Department Senior Official A-1999", the responsible personnel answered to hear only steady breathing from A-1999—no words, just a silent call.

By contrast, the pressure from A-1999 seemed greater, since the chairman rarely chastises project personnel.

In the end, the Mother‑Hive team had to spend massive funds and resources, combining the managing civilization's nanotech, to develop a stronger, faster, and more durable body exclusively for the Stalker.

The Stalker became a fortunate emblem; internally, many staff, especially intelligence officers and regulatory agents, even nicknamed the upgraded Stalker a mascot.

Of course, even after the upgrade, the Stalker's signature single eye and grin remain, forcibly retained due to minor rejection phenomena.

In short.

At present, throughout the Empire, most affairs no longer require Sui Bian's personal attention, as a host of OriginalBodies share the burden, and on the plague‑doctor side, even Wokan's cultivation work is now on track.

That is why he can spare energy to focus on the new‑recruit trials.

He eased his breath.

Sui Bian finally rose from the throne, habitually flicked his right hand to swing his trailing cloak, walked from the stepped platform onto the red carpet, and headed out of the audience chamber.

Imperial military attire highlighted the Red Queen and White Queen, each showcasing their own talents, and, as usual, they followed close behind Sui Bian, a little farther back, moving together.

The Imperial Guard stationed between the massive pillars on either side would, matching Sui Bian's pace, step out from between the pillars, forming two rows to shield their father as he advanced.

They arrived at the outer corridor.

On the right‑hand wall, gilded murals still depicted humanity of the primary universe battling evil gods, demons, and the fallen Olympian deities during an interdimensional storm, including a scene of Andre leading warriors in a sacrificial explosion.

On the left side, every twenty meters a massive rose‑wood column supported a semi‑open structure reminiscent of the Himalayas.

Today, the Himalayas retain snow only on the peaks; the rest is planted with cold‑resistant green vegetation, and nanotech‑adjusted wax plum and crape myrtle bloom in early June.

The colorful green, yellow, pink trees and flowers make the Imperial palace appear enveloped by seas of flowers and forest.

But Sui Bian only paused briefly, inhaled some fresh air, then continued down the corridor toward the palace lower levels.

Not long after.

Their party turned right, leaving the semi‑open corridor with mountain views, and entered the interior of another palace building.

Here, numerous specialty glass display cases, paired with warm overhead lighting and objects within reflecting light, made the interior of the building glow brilliantly.

Sui Bian named the building the Collection Hall.

Inside the cases were arranged countless divine weapons.

Great hammers, massive axes, as well as sleeve swords, wrist daggers, and the well‑known Black Gold Armor and Governing Sword were also placed in the Collection Hall.

However, Sui Bian passed by these weapons and armor, stopping directly before a horizontally placed display case.

Resting in the levitating display case was a power/Spiritual Energy claw, meant to be worn on the left hand, its design resembling Helusi's Spiritual Energy Claw but primarily golden with black accents.

This, in fact, is the Emperor's Claw that the Zero Three Emperor used during the Great Expedition before becoming a zombie.

Sui Bian simply placed his left hand above the case and, as if reaching through the air, slipped the Emperor's Claw onto his left hand.

Moreover, the Emperor's Claw's size was adjusted according to Sui Bian's perception, so it no longer stretched far beyond his forearm as before.

Sui Bian's current height, without the Black Gold Armor, stands at roughly three meters and ten centimeters.

As for not swelling to five meters four, he believes such a size would be inconvenient for any activity…

It is any task.

He moved his joints.

Sui Bian, after ensuring the Emperor's Claw perfectly fit his left hand, immediately dispersed it and placed it in a storage space he personally created.

He continued toward the next display cabinet.

However, inside this display cabinet it was no longer a simple floating platform, but emitted a faint golden light, a Spiritual Energy suppression and stasis field personally cast by Sui Bian.

Because what lay within was none other than one of Zero Three Emperor's weapons, the Emperor's Sword.

It burned with an ever‑unquenchable raging fire; the blade could change its size at the wielder's will, provided the wielder first earned the sword's approval. Any interdimensional creature wounded or killed by it would truly cease to exist.

Although Robert's Flame Sword resembles the Emperor's Sword in appearance and traits, when it comes to actually slaying a demon god, the Emperor's Sword is the one that can truly do it.

In a telekinetic‑like manner, Sui Bian placed the Emperor's Sword directly into the storage space.

After selecting the two weapons he had acquired but never used, Sui Bian finally left the Hall of Collections.

The two AI secretaries behind him, as well as the numerous Imperial Guard, remained silent yet each looked utterly puzzled, not understanding why their boss and father acted this way.

"Your Majesty." In the end, it was the more cheerful and lively White Queen who spoke first, trying to ask:

"Are you about to… lead a campaign against a certain alien race, or launch another expedition targeting an interdimensional demon god?"

"But…" Hearing his "sister" say that, the Red Queen immediately completed a scan and interjected: "In the known universe, there is no faction worthy of Your Majesty's personal intervention.

Regarding the interdimensional front, Your Majesty has also prepared ample 'divide‑and‑conquer' plans, but the United Empire that the temporary mourners must face may differ in scale from what White Queen and I anticipated. Could it be the United Empire?"

"No." As Sui Bian returned to the corridor with the others, he shook his head lightly and explained: "The United Empire is indeed a thorny existence; its higher‑ups can span multiple dimensions, spaces, and times, but…

they no longer constitute any real threat, so it is not the United Empire."

The United Empire's higher‑ups have no tangible projection in three‑dimensional space; in other words, they can alter their appearance in the material universe at will, guided by their subjective consciousness.

And that slender man in a crisp suit, carrying a briefcase, his pupils emitting a faint green glow, the G‑Man, is a member of the United Empire's upper echelon.

However, the G‑Man is hired by a small faction of officials within his own race; they aim to overthrow the United Empire's rule, so they dispatch the G‑Man to facilitate humanity's successful linkage experiment and lure the United Empire's main forces to invade Earth.

Their purpose is to both disperse the United Empire's attention and select suitable candidates, imprisoning them in a stasis space.

When needed, the G‑Man will release those candidates to assist it in carrying out various operations.

While Sui Bian was probing, he did not encounter the physics holy‑sword bearer Gordon Freeman, but he did discover Private Adrian Shephard.

Thus, to prevent the G‑Man from pulling tricks on Dante, Bar, and Yang Luo, Sui Bian outright erased the G‑Man and the forces behind him.

After all, the G‑Man may appear neutral, but in reality he is also one of the prime culprits driving Earth's downfall.

And those behind the G‑Man who seek to overturn the United Empire's regime merely wish to become the biggest beneficiaries.

There is no notion of pity for other races, let alone for humanity; aside from themselves, all other races are merely pieces and objects.

(The G‑Man in this text bears no relation to the official Half‑Life canon; it is wholly original. Finally: G‑Man will not count to three.)

Now, the mourners only need to contemplate how to properly deal with the United Empire.

Receiving a negative reply, the White Queen no longer continued to ask.

At this moment.

Sui Bian had returned to the reception hall with the others, but instead of going back to the throne atop the steps, his eyes flashed with a faint golden light, followed by a wave…

Swish~!

The hall filled with golden light as a group of Shield‑equipped Terminators and Gray Knights bearing the Vengeance Goddess's powered halberd instantly teleported here.

And a silver‑clad giant, standing three to three point nine meters tall after being equipped with Terminator gear, contrasted sharply with the average four‑meter‑plus black‑gold giants of the Imperial Guard.

Both sides seemed to find each other rather unpleasant and actively kept their distance.

The Gray Knight's Grand Mentor Artemis, dressed in an icy‑blue dress, nevertheless said:

"Ran Min! I'm letting you kick that demon to pieces! Got it? End it with a kick! Wait… huh??"

By the end, Artemis seemed only just to realize, and she and half of her subordinates had been instantly teleported from the Extragalactic System to the reception hall.

In fact, before initiating the teleport, Sui Bian had already warned this group of offspring, as well as the hunting goddess holding the Grand Mentor position.

However, that goddess seemed overly preoccupied with how to perfectly conclude the routine demon‑clearing, and when uploading the log, she managed to earn extra merit with the Empire.

"…"

Looking around, seeing Sui Bian standing not far away, Artemis hurriedly restrained her previously "bold" and "domineering" demeanor, immediately adopting the aura befitting a goddess, slightly bowing and saying:

"Your Majesty, I have seen you."

Her calm tone seemed as if the previous scene had never occurred.

In response, Sui Bian habitually nodded, observing that the Imperial Guard and the Gray Knights each numbered about a hundred, and whispered:

"Hmm, as a vanguard expedition against another Empire, this is sufficient."

Recently some longtime readers have hoped to see a 'Song of Courage' scene; in the early to middle parts of the book, I as the author also wished for that.

But as the story progresses, I cannot undermine the premise that Sui Bian protects all humanity.

Moreover, given Sui Bian's nature, humanity lives in a 'half‑fairy‑tale world', almost without worry or sorrow.

In fact, this is the outcome those who went to their deaths fought for, hoping to exchange.

The book also contains many explicit and implicit hints: once Sui Bian completely disappears, even with the OriginalBody supporting, the Empire would fragment.

Magnus could take the golden throne.

However, the brothers led by Rog, Rus, and Robert could very likely clash verbally with the more eccentric brothers such as Rus and Conrad over their father's sudden disappearance, eventually escalating into a civil war (they each believe they are right, and being over two hundred years old makes them increasingly stubborn).

Angelong and Shengjilesi would choose to bide their time.

Actually I have thought of this story, but it would be too toxic for the main text, though I will consider the possibility of a side story.

Finally, thank you all for your support~!

(End of chapter)