Over the next few days, Qin Mo received several messages from Klein.
Creed had been appointed as the Supreme Castellan. Although he faced numerous political adversaries on Cadia, they all recognized the futility of dissent and therefore complied entirely with his defensive commands. The Empire was channeling additional military resources toward Cadia, rallying countless Astartes, Battle Sisters, and Astral forces in its defense.
Creed had entrusted Klein with a message: "From the moment I became Supreme Castellan, I understood why you valued me so. Cadia will not fall, my friend."
But monitoring Cadia's news wasn't Qin Mo's sole priority; he was deeply engaged in research and managing affairs across the Tyron Sector.
The majority of the sector's operations had been delegated to the Stone Men and central intelligences. Only matters beyond their jurisdiction would be escalated for Qin Mo's direct intervention.
And today, Qin Mo had such a matter to address.
A vessel from the Eldar race had just arrived in the secluded star system beyond the Tyron Sector, where it encountered Tyron's patrol fleet. The Eldar claimed they were old allies of the Lord of Tyron, seeking an audience to convey a critical message.
Qin Mo granted their request, curious to hear what they had to say.
The Tyron patrol fleet permitted two Eldar emissaries aboard a frigate to use its communications systems. Soon, the image of an Eldar male appeared on the comms screen before Qin Mo.
"Lord of Tyron," the Eldar man intoned with respectful hawk-like salutation, his etiquette and Gothic speech impeccable.
Upon seeing the Eldar, Qin Mo's lip twitched slightly—although not exactly an old friend, the face was familiar.
It was Sarl, the Eldar leader who had once aided the Tyron II resistance during the unification wars.
Qin Mo had an instinctive aversion to psychic beings, an aversion that had only deepened with the restoration of his star-god powers. Fortunately, Sarl was speaking to him from a thousand light-years away in the isolated star system.
Qin Mo nodded. "You mentioned you had something to tell me. Go ahead."
"Don't be so cold," Sarl replied with a wry smile. "Can't you tell I have some respect for you? If I hadn't revealed the position of the renegade governor on Tyron II, you might still be searching. I even got an earful from the Seer over that, calling it 'meddling.'"
Qin Mo sensed the truth in Sarl's words. A typical Eldar would hardly bow to a human, but he had no desire for friendship with any psychic creature.
"Psychic matters are like a single rat's dropping in a cauldron of food. Sure, I'll look into it—but it won't take long." Qin Mo's tone remained indifferent.
Sarl shrugged, resigned. "I'm here with a prophecy."
"A prophecy about what?" Qin Mo asked.
"You've likely heard of a sorcerer preparing a vast ritual?" Sarl countered.
Qin Mo grew more interested, as the Eldar, as psychic beings, had unparalleled insight into the myriad dimensions of the Warp. Even though he wouldn't take their words entirely at face value, it was worth listening.
"Go on," Qin Mo nodded.
"Very well, the prophecy reads…" Sarl began to recount an intricate and cryptic prediction.
The prophecy unfolded like this: there is a great jar, murky water above and clear water below, separated by a glass barrier. Then, one day, a species of insect called the 'Pincer' appears, thriving in the filth. Armed with sharp, sturdy mandibles, the Pincer bugs begin burrowing into the glass. A single insect could not breach it, but a swarm…
"Either explain the prophecy clearly or disappear," Qin Mo interrupted, his patience finally exhausted.
"I would if I could, but that's all I received from the Seer…" Sarl replied with frustration.
"Captain, where are you?" Qin Mo called to the screen.
A middle-aged man in a black uniform stepped up behind Sarl and saluted.
"Show him out," Qin Mo commanded.
Without hesitation, the captain drew his weapon, pressing it to Sarl's head, forcing him to leave the ship immediately.
Just as Sarl raised his hands, another Eldar man appeared behind him. This one carried an aura of gravitas, clutching a long staff as he introduced himself calmly: "You may call me Uslan."
Qin Mo recognized Uslan, the revered Seer of the Usvi clan.
Uslan was closely allied with the Death Reapers, a force that would play a significant role in the revival of Primarch Guilliman. Uslan was even rumored to have debated the divinity of the Emperor with Guilliman himself. Despite these connections, Uslan was no friend of humankind—his assistance was solely for the benefit of the Eldar race.
"Are you here to clarify the prophecy or deliver another riddle?" Qin Mo asked.
Uslan wasted no time with riddles, opting instead for direct elucidation.
"I see a sorcerer conducting a ritual spanning star systems, intending to temporarily weaken the veil between the physical universe and the Sea of Souls—much like the Pincer insects burrowing into the glass."
"What happens after the veil weakens, I do not know. But for Cadia's Gate, this bodes ill."
Qin Mo listened to the prophecy with patience, realizing that Uslan's "Sea of Souls" referred to the Warp itself, akin to the Celestial Heights.
A barrier existed between the material universe and the Warp. Should that barrier weaken, the Warp's influence would pour into reality, unleashing demons, supernatural occurrences, and other harrowing consequences.
"Can this ritual be stopped?" Qin Mo asked.
"It is possible," Uslan nodded. "If you had tens of millions of warships and nearly a trillion soldiers, you might be able to halt it across the countless planets from the Misted Starfields to the Tyron Sector."
Uslan paused, then added, "Yet even then, it would not be certain, for every being's emotions in the Misted Starfields fuel the ritual. This sorcerer is no ordinary sorcerer, and his ritual is beyond ordinary means."
Qin Mo was silent for a moment before asking Uslan, "Why have you come all this way to share this prophecy with me?"
"Because the people of the Tyron system are beings without past or future. In a war where those who foretell the future interfere, you possess an advantage no other life form can rival," Uslan replied.