Chapter 677: Hunger, hunger, hunger

"I want your Source Blood Stack," Fabius Bile said, staring at Cawl.

"Oh?" Cawl appeared quite indifferent. "What do you intend to offer in exchange, Pater Mutatis?"

Cawl uttered the term that deified Fabius in High Gothic.

The creatures Fabius created believed in and revered him so deeply that it was said this faith, mixed with the blight residing within Fabius, had constantly grown, already forming some kind of lesser existence in the Warp.

The New Men created by Fabius called him Pater Mutatis, the God of New Men, symbolizing the aberration and distortion of both body and mind, representing the twisted new branches sprouting from the old corpses.

But Fabius Bile refused to be called such things; he refused to be worshipped as a god.

"I am not a god," Fabius Bile said with a smile.

The corners of Cawl's mouth twitched slightly, and he looked at Fabius with a somewhat strange expression.

Beside them, Melusine also shook her head slightly, appearing somewhat helpless.

"As for what to exchange?" Fabius reached out and pointed to the Primaris Head beside him. "Naturally, I shall exchange it for your most perfect creation."

Belisarius Cawl glanced at the Primaris Head with utter indifference. "He is, in fact, a failure."

"You may destroy or dissect him at your leisure; I do not care. I can still create even more perfect works."

"Yes, neither of us are people who would stop moving forward. We both yearn to create more perfect works and believe we can do so," Fabius Bile agreed, but he quickly changed the subject. "But you must admit, Cawl, some works have extraordinary significance to us, much like Horus Lupercal was to the Hua Hua Hua Di Huang."

"You love him, Cawl; I can see it." Fabius stared at Belisarius Cawl, the backpack known as the Chirurgeon unfolding behind him, a poisoned scalpel pressing against the Primaris Head's temple.

"This thing comes from the Drukhari Haemonculi. As long as it pierces his body, this scalpel will begin to grow on its own, turning into iron thorns that pierce every inch of his flesh and blood. That will be a very painful death."

"Then, his soul will be sacrificed to that so-called Lord of Hunger, so he cannot even be resurrected by you in any other way. I am sorry to have to do this; my time is not abundant."

Fabius Bile glanced toward the entrance of the laboratory. Outside this abandoned lab, Fulgrim was attempting to break through Abaddon's defensive line.

Cawl could still negotiate, but Fabius knew that Fulgrim would not hesitate.

To protect the Source Blood Stack, Fulgrim would not mind sacrificing the Primaris Head.

"I do not care; you may do so, but I will kill you the very next moment." Cawl's voice rose slightly, and the Mini-Doras beneath his robes surged out, circling around him.

Fabius merely smiled, then brought the scalpel closer to the Primaris Head's temple.

Cawl's gaze sank slightly. He could kill him, fast enough. The Mini-Doras granted him extraordinary power; he could kill Fabius before Fabius killed the Primaris Head.

"Do not do it; this benefits neither of us." Fabius seemed to see through Cawl's thoughts. "Believe me, even if you kill me, the Chirurgeon has enough autonomy to kill your creation."

Melusine, standing beside Fabius, also crouched down gently, placing her fingers on the Primaris Head's face.

"Even if he is not killed, I will send him into the court of Slaanesh."

Cawl fell silent.

Fabius indeed had an excellent grasp of his psychology. Cawl did have the possibility of taking Fabius's life before Fabius killed the Primaris Head, and he might also save the Primaris Head before the Chirurgeon killed him. He even believed he had a probability of saving the Primaris Head before Melusine sent him into Slaanesh's court.

It was just that Cawl had to take this risk, abandoning the safety of the Primaris Head to protect the Source Blood Stack.

Cawl had originally thought he would make that decision without hesitation.

The value of the Primaris Head was undoubtedly inferior to the Source Blood Stack. The Primaris Head was his private property, while the Source Blood Stack belonged to the Omnissiah-Hua Hua Hua Di Huang. Cawl had no right to hand over the Source Blood Stack, and even if he did not hand over the Source Blood Stack...

But Cawl still hesitated, feeling the impulse to use the Source Blood Stack to guarantee the Primaris Head's safety.

He felt intense shame for this, and at the same time, his fingers could not help but tremble slightly. In his long years, this was the first time he had felt powerless.

Cawl lowered his head slightly, intending to refuse.

+Agree to his request+

The voice from the Empyrean transmitted directly into Cawl's mind. Before Cawl's eyes, that round blue figure flashed by.

Agree.

Belisarius Cawl's robes squirmed slightly, and a mechanical arm retrieved the Source Blood Stack from beneath the robes, placing it silently on the table to the side.

"A wise choice." Fabius nodded with a smile, feeling a sense of relief in his heart. He actually hadn't been sure Cawl would agree; he had just been gambling.

Melusine vigilantly moved her hand away from the Primaris Head, and Belisarius Cawl walked slowly toward the Primaris Head.

Both sides moved very quickly. They brushed past each other, and in the blink of an eye, Cawl had already embraced the Primaris Head with his mechanical arm, while Fabius Bile had also picked up the Source Blood Stack with his withered fingers.

Fabius Bile shook the Source Blood Stack in his hand gently, his violet eyes admiring the blood inside, which was as bright red as a gemstone.

"Truly beautiful. The wisdom of the Hua Hua Hua Di Huang is within it; the mysteries of the Primarchs are within it," Fabius exclaimed uncontrollably.

Melusine reached out to signal that it was time for Fabius to retreat, but Fabius held out his hand and shook it, signaling Melusine to wait a moment longer.

"Cawl, Belisarius Cawl, I see extraordinary potential in your Primaris Head, but I do not understand what you want him to grow into. What exactly are you trying to create?"

Fabius Bile asked softly:

"Tell me, what is he to you, after all? Satisfy my curiosity, Cawl."

Belisarius Cawl, who was holding the Primaris Head with his mechanical arm, raised his head slightly, glanced at Fabius, and then lowered his head to look at the Primaris Head.

What was he?

He was the Primaris Head, but this was a lie—a lie Cawl had fabricated to cover up his true existence.

A Primarch? No, he was still far from that; a true Primarch was far from being so simple.

A great experiment? But that experiment had ultimately failed.

Or perhaps, was he the embodiment of Cawl's arrogance? Was he the crystallization of Cawl's intellect? Was he Cawl's most blasphemous act in his entire life, or perhaps...

"My son. He is my son," Belisarius Cawl said softly and frankly.

Those wills, nerves, simulated thoughts, and complex musings that had been designed, superimposed, and attached to his essence were all cast aside.

At least at this moment, he was not the loyalty of the Omnissiah-Hua Hua Hua Di Huang, not the Archmagos of Mars, not the Saint of Saint Doraemon; at this moment, he was just Belisarius Cawl, the father of the Primaris Head.

"I understand," Fabius Bile nodded slightly. "I feel the same about my creations..."

"You do not understand!" Cawl's voice suddenly became irritable. "He is not some freak you cobbled together! His gene sequence is incomparably complex and perfect; he was taken directly from the twenty Primarchs... he... there is a part of me in his genes." ===== CHAPTER 678 =====