Several days had passed.
Across the sprawling expanse of Hive Tyrone, Gray's forces deployed water purification systems, offering clean drinking water to the masses—an act of mercy that served a dual purpose: it bolstered the favor of the downtrodden masses while subtly recruiting those who sought a glimmer of hope in the darkness. The promise of sustenance and the chance to serve a new power was a powerful motivator in a Hive teeming with despair.
Throughout the lower levels, automated drones continued their search for Maya, scanning thousands of civilians for gene-matching data.
Everything was progressing steadily.
The Hive had quieted.
No heretic uprisings. No sudden attacks.
But Qin Mo knew better.
Silence before war was merely the inhale before the killing blow.
And so, he turned his focus to the next phase of their expansion—
The Orbital Shipyard Project.
....
A transport drone soared through the endless abyss of the Underhive, carrying Qin Mo, Klein, and Anruida toward their next objective.
Its thrusters hummed softly, navigating the cavernous ruins as the three men reviewed terrain scans in real time.
"You know," Klein muttered, scrolling through the data feeds, "we haven't heard much about the heretics lately."
"Of course not," Anruida replied dryly. "They've been exterminated like vermin. Their blood has fertilized the soil of the Underhive."
"A shame, really," Klein sighed dramatically. "One crisis ends, and another begins."
Neither of them had to elaborate.
They all knew—the real war hadn't started yet.
The transport drone pulsed with mechanical chimes, releasing terrain-scanning waves into the darkness.
Every 1,000 kilometers, it would halt, map the area, and transmit the data to their onboard Central Ai Core, which filtered out unsuitable sites.
None of them needed to personally check the scans—
But Qin Mo enjoyed being thorough.
....
Klein turned away from the data feeds, glancing at Qin Mo with visible skepticism.
"Is this even possible?"
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees.
"A shipyard isn't a manufactorum. It's massive. You can't just print one like a lasgun.
And more importantly—can it even be teleported into orbit?"
"Trust me," Qin Mo replied simply.
"If I say it's possible, then it is."
Klein frowned.
"That's not an answer."
Qin Mo grinned.
"It's the only one you're getting."
Before Klein could retort, Qin Mo activated a hololith, and a three-dimensional schematic of the shipyard flickered into view.
Unlike Imperial dockyards massive, rigid superstructures—Qin Mo's design was modular, a living thing that could be assembled and reconfigured as needed.
A colossal exoskeleton housing Matter Printing Forges.
Instead of welding hull plating or riveting sections together, warships would be printed directly from raw materials, bypassing standard Imperial shipbuilding inefficiencies.
Of course, ship blueprints still needed to be designed separately—but for Qin Mo, this was not a problem.
"It's simple," Qin Mo continued, his tone laced with a quiet confidence. "Once the primary framework is stabilized, we can generate warships on demand. No need for labor-intensive construction. No need for endless refits."
Klein shook his head, the disbelief written across his face.
"Ridiculous. It's like some kind of sorcery."
Anruida chuckled from his seat across from them, crossing his arms in quiet amusement.
"You've seen him warp physics before. Why does this surprise you?"
Klein exhaled sharply, running a hand through his short-cropped hair.
"It doesn't. That's the problem."
....
Qin Mo fell into a reflective silence, staring out into the endless ruins that stretched beneath the transport drone.
He had long understood why his technological advancements outpaced anything in the Imperium.
He wasn't just human anymore.
His soul was bonded to something far older, far greater.
The essence of a C'tan, he was a manifestation of the physical laws of the material universe.
To him, understanding knowledge of technology came as naturally as breathing.
The arcane principles of the universe, the ebb and flow of space and time, were his to command. The Adeptus Mechanicus might claim dominion over the secrets of machine and matter, but even they could not touch the breadth of his power.
But even a Star God had limitations, especially a young one like him.
His focus was finite.
His knowledge was uneven.
And while his mastery of Dimensional Manipulation far surpassed anything the Mechanicus had ever dreamed of, the intricacies of basic construction were still a foreign art to him.
He was even leagues behind the architecture guilds of Tyrone Hive.
Unless—
He dedicated time to studying it.
Which was exactly what he planned to do.
....
A mechanical chime echoed through the cockpit.
"Ding∼!" ["Optimal construction site detected!"]
The transport drone halted, descending onto the selected coordinates.
Klein and Anruida disembarked first, their boots clanging against the hardened metal floor as they surveyed their surroundings.
The terrain stretched endlessly before them—a vast, unnaturally smooth basin.
Not rough, not uneven.
Not shaped by natural erosion.
This was artificial.
A forgotten assembly yard from a time when the Underhive had once been a colossal industrial complex, a testament to the once-great workings of Hive Tyrone.
Klein crouched, running his fingers along the metallic surface.
"What was this place originally meant to manufacture?"
Anruida's voice was quiet, almost reverent. "Something important. Something... lost to time."
Klein rose, glancing at Qin Mo.
"This is ideal—but terrain alone isn't enough. The gravitational conditions in orbit are different.
If we build the shipyard here, we need to account for material stress."
Qin Mo smirked, crouching down.
Without hesitation, he plunged his hand into the ground—
And scooped up a chunk of solid metal as easily as grains of sand.
Anruida and Klein stared in stunned silence.
Even after everything they had witnessed, this still managed to shock them.
"You're rewriting gravity itself…" Anruida muttered.
Qin Mo simply shrugged, the chunk of metal floating in his hand.
"The metal here is useful. I can refine it into something stronger."
He clenched his fist—
And the chunk of metal compressed instantly, folding into a perfect ingot.
....
Then, unexpectedly, Qin Mo turned to Klein, his tone casual but tinged with something darker.
"I heard your family's crest was confiscated," he said, almost thoughtfully. "Want me to forge you a new one from this?"
Klein fell silent.
To Qin Mo and Anruida, it looked as if they had touched on a painful subject.
But in reality—
Klein didn't really care about the crest at all.
His mind was fixated on something else.
A rumor.
A cult had emerged in Tyrone Hive—
The Devotees.
A faction that worshipped Qin Mo as a god.
And now, seeing his powers firsthand, Klein realized something unsettling.
"It makes perfect sense."
Qin Mo snapped his fingers in front of Klein's face.
"Are you having a stroke?"
Klein blinked.
"Huh? Oh, no—I was just thinking about... my family."
Qin Mo raised a brow, but didn't press further.
Instead, he turned to business.
....
Qin Mo turned to his two advisors, his gaze steady.
"You've seen real orbital shipyards before.
So tell me—
Is this feasible?"
Klein and Anruida exchanged glances.
Then, both nodded.
"If gravity and material durability aren't issues," Klein said, "then yes, it's absolutely possible."
"I agree," Anruida added, his voice firm. "It can be done."
Qin Mo grinned.
"Now, we have two major projects ahead of us.
Upgrading our current arsenal or constructing the shipyard first.
Which should take priority?"
"What do you think?" Anruida asked in return.
"The shipyard." Qin Mo replied instantly.
"I've already made my decision—but I value other perspectives.
Different viewpoints bring clarity."
Klein hesitated for a moment, then said:
"I agree—the shipyard should come first.
I don't have intelligence reports, but… I can feel it.
The situation is getting worse."
Qin Mo respected Klein's intuition.
As a noble, Klein had an uncanny ability to "sense" political shifts.
He was not a general, but he would make a formidable strategist.
Klein's voice hardened.
"If war breaks out, we can handle the Hive's forces.
But if the Astra Militarum or Adeptus Astartes intervene—
Then we'll need a fleet."
Anruida nodded firmly.
He had followed Qin Mo from nothing—
And he would not let anyone take their future away.
"Then it's decided."
The shipyard would be built.
And soon—
They would have a fleet.