Chapter 92: Divine Revelation

Down in the physical realm, the cheering in Onyx Hall slowly began to die down as the factions mingled. Gorak stood over the kneeling hunter, his massive chest heaving slowly.

Red focused his will, projecting his voice directly into the Warlord’s mind.

“Well done, Gorak,” Red’s voice echoed through the Troglodyte’s skull.

Gorak flinched slightly. He bowed his head, his deep voice answering through the tether of Faith. “Lord. I thought you had abandoned me. I allowed her to insult you in the dirt of the Bastion, and you remained silent.”

“She was ignorant,” Red replied calmly from the Void. “She had not witnessed my power, nor had she seen the truth of the world above ground. I do not punish the blind for not seeing the sun. She is forgiven.”

Gorak let out a heavy breath of relief. “Your mercy is absolute, Lord. I will mold her into a perfect weapon for your vanguard.”

“You will do more than that,” Red said, his tone shifting to a purely logical, administrative directive. “I want you to mate with her.”

Gorak froze. His massive, bone-plated frame went completely rigid in the center of the forge-pit. He retreated far into the corner and cleared his ears even though Red’s voice was coming directly into his mind.

“I…” Gorak stammered, his mental voice entirely baffled. “Lord, the heavy blows to my head must have clouded my hearing. Did you say…”

“You did not mishear me, Warlord.”

“Lord, I cannot do that!” Gorak protested quickly, his stoic demeanor cracking for the first time. “My life belongs to Ka-Lam-Tee! I exist only to serve you and crush your enemies! Such things… mating and breeding… those are absolute distractions! I am a weapon, not a breeder!”

“You are an evolutionary anomaly,” Red corrected him flatly. “And she is the absolute peak physical specimen of your old race. Tomorrow morning, you and your team are marching out to the Fossilized Leviathan. You will be gone for months on a highly dangerous expedition.”

Red leaned forward in his chair, tapping the screen.

“This is the best time,” Red commanded. “Before you march into the wasteland, you will pass on those evolved genes. The empire needs strong soldiers, Gorak. Do not make me order you twice.”

Down in the forge-pit, Gorak slowly looked down at the kneeling hunter, Gulag. She was staring at the Warlord with a mix of absolute reverence and raw intensity.

For the first time since his brutal mutation, Gorak felt a strange, heavy biological pull deep in his chest. His newly evolved instincts flared to life at the sight of the apex hunter. He let out a slow, rumbling breath and mentally bowed his head to the Void.

“I cannot go against your order, Lord,” Gorak conceded.

Up in the Void, Red watched the interaction. He realized this could not just be a single, localized command for one Warlord. If he wanted his empire to outlast the current generation and naturally expand, he needed a massive, self-sustaining population of monsters. He needed to institutionalize reproduction before they marched off to war.

Red opened his System terminal and drafted a new set of divine laws. He was going to add a completely new Chapter to their growing holy book, The Path of the Red Spiral.

He established a direct mental uplink with Krug up on the balcony.

“High Priest,” Red’s voice boomed in the Kobold’s mind. “Prepare to receive a new revelation. Burn this into the sacred texts.”

Krug immediately dropped to one knee, his reptilian eyes glowing with violet fanaticism.

Red laid out the new dogma. Mating and reproducing were no longer basic biological functions. They were now considered the highest form of worship. Increasing the empire’s numbers to serve the Void was a sacred duty.

Red outlined the strict rules for choosing a strong partner, the absolute loyalty required to maintain a marriage under the System, what was permitted in a union, and the harsh penalties for abandoning a bloodline.

Krug absorbed the divine laws perfectly. The High Priest stood up, walked to the edge of the stone balcony, and amplified his voice across the silent cavern of Onyx Hall.

“Hear the word of the Creator!” Krug announced. He recited the new revelation word for word to the gathered masses.

The atmosphere in the massive forge instantly plunged into a profoundly weird silence. Hundreds of battle-hardened Troglodytes, towering Shell-Kin, and mutated Kobolds stared at each other in utter bewilderment. They were monsters bred for war, deep mining, and slaughter.

Now their God was officially commanding them to find spouses, get married, and raise children.

Beside Krug, Iron-Scale snickered. The metallic Inquisitor leaned on his scythe, clearly enjoying Gorak’s sudden and highly public predicament down in the pit.

Krug turned his reptilian head and glared at the Inquisitor.

“The Lord’s decree is absolute,” Krug stated loudly, ensuring the entire cavern heard him. “Those who do not follow the new path will face the fire. And that divine order applies to you as well, Inquisitor.”

Iron-Scale froze. The dark amusement instantly vanished from his glowing yellow eyes. The lethal, metallic inquisitor became visibly flustered.

His iron scales clicked together in a sudden, uncharacteristic panic. He was a weapon of terror. The idea of him finding a mate was utterly absurd.

Krug let out a harsh, barking laugh at the Inquisitor’s expense.

But the High Priest’s amusement did not last long.

“The decree applies to you as well, Krug,” Red’s voice echoed directly into the Chief’s mind.

Krug choked on his laugh. “Lord? I am your High Priest. I am the Chief of the Bastion. I oversee the logistics of the entire southern territory. I absolutely should not waste time building a family. It is a massive distraction from your holy work.”

“It is exactly my holy work,” Red countered from the Void. “Your devotion is flawless, Krug. I want you to pass it on. I want to increase the number of priests in my empire. Find a mate. That is a direct order.”

Krug stared blankly ahead, completely paralyzed by the command.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep