A Light Within Darkness.

After much consideration when it came to my spaceship, I realized that doing a mid-atmosphere spatial jump deeper space would be needed as although my artifact ship was fully capable of going faster than the speed of light... That's only when it uses its inertia and spatial warper as the ship itself didn't have massive jet engines or other forces of propulsion and instead used arcane arrays that would only need the practically unlimited energies of the Warp to operate in exchange.

"So, what kind of weapons will your ship have?" Elesmere asked curiously as she inspected the shrunken down ship I had been working on.

I came to the conclusion that making the ship elsewhere was just asking for trouble as even when I was looking around for information, I randomly found wanted posters of all things with a general description of me down in the Underhive so I decided that making some kind of launch system down there was foolhardy to say the least.

So instead of making a massive ship in the middle of the warehouse that plainly wouldn't have fit, I took a week to make a small spatial array that will shrink everything down placed within its circumference so with the ship being shrunk down to a thirtieth its natural size it was kind of like assembling the world's most complicated Lego set.

And once I was done making it, we could wreck the warehouse before unsealing the ship and allowing it to take its full size.

"This ship has solar batteries on its sides, top and bottom. But in the front is a spatial cannon that rips apart space and time with its concentrated shot tiny singularity." I explained but honestly, the front cannon was going to be a bitch as my cultivation was nowhere near strong enough to fuel its use, and only over a couple hours of doing nothing, but recharging said cannon could I get a single shot out of it.

Whereas the Solar laser batteries on the side had the benefit of being strengthened and much more easily recharged by my already Yang-attributed Qi.

Finally, though I needed to take a break as my Qi was running out after engraving array plates out of the Wraith-Bone Elesmere sung into existence for me.

"Where should we go once, we leave this hive world?" I asked after I tiredly collapsed into a nearby seat.

"Well, we have a number of... options but I can foresee a number of them bringing issues should we attempt to integrate into the land. For one despite my acceptance of you as a higher being than the typical human. most of my brethren will not as despite your great knowledge and ability to shield my people from, She who thirsts gaze, they will see you as merely a smarter Mon' Khei." She explained helplessly making me hum in thought as I went over my own limited mental picture of 40k's galactic map and where I could find some relative peace to become stronger.

"What of your Exodite people?" I asked as for one the Drukhari was out for their insanity and sadism and the Craftworlders were going to be racist as fuck most likely. That left what amounted to elves that decided to become dinosaur-riding Amish people.

"The Exodite... Are insular to say the least. But didn't you say you wanted a world with working plumbing being widely available?" She prodded as she herself even with our bodies becoming more perfect with cultivation didn't want to deal with the stink of the unwashed masses that was prevalent in the low-tech worlds.

Now as to why I didn't want to deal with Imperium worlds. I was frankly terrified of being captured by the Inquisition or even them just virus bombing the planet.

Honestly, I saw four options as to places we could go.

"So, in my mind, I think we should either aim for a human, pleasure world closer to the Eye of Terror as I will be able to cultivate easily there but we would need to be in hiding. Go to the far side of the galaxy and live amongst the Tau empire's planets in relative peace. Go to one of the shield worlds closer to the eye of the terror that the Imperium uses as a bulwark against chaos space marine regiments. Or we can try for one of your people's exodite worlds where it's survival of the fittest at all times."

Granted living the game of Ark at all times could be cool but having to constantly worry about getting eaten by T-Rex armed by hostile elves with lasers would get tiring.

"So, you will gain strength much faster through combat and being closer to the warp, correct?" Elesmere asked me almost tiredly and I gave her a queer look as I wondered what nonsense her elvish mind conjured to get us in trouble.

She then pulled out a flat galactic map we got from a novelty shop and although it was missing a great number of details like the warp storms and other demon-related materials but with the large size of the map we were able to add more details in order to get an idea of where we wanted to go.

"So hear me out, Jake." She started and I automatically knew she wanted us both to die in some horrible manner. "I suggest we make a home here just east of the Great Maelstrom. In such a location we are literally in the heart of the galaxy with the greatest warp prescient for you to absorb and frankly the most enemies."

I deadpanned at her as I stabbed at different points on the damned map. "Yeah, the heart of the galaxy my ass! Literally everyone has a presence there and I made it quite clear that I had little interest in living on a planet that can be virus-bombed or likewise shattered by any other form of Exterminatus!" I scolded her making her shrug.

"That's the exact point though. Heavily Warp touched worlds simply cannot be destroyed in mass as the Warp Gods don't want their tenuous physical foothold on in the material galaxy to be destroyed. Granted they care little for the Materium as they call this reality, the 'side game' in the actual Great Game happening within the Warp itself but they still want to recruit more space marines and such as to add to their armies."

"Doesn't explain why I want to deal with living within range of the damned Harlequinns or the Drukhari?" I pointed out and she couldn't deny such... Extremes of her people unsettled her.

"Not to mention that Waagh boss Urgok is right there as well." I also pointed out making her pout as I pointed out every damned faction was heavily active in the area with even Hive Fleet Leviathan of the Tyrranids being there.

"I just think maximizing your speed of growth would be for the best. And frankly, with the fall of the human world Cadia, the Maelstrom is safer than the Eye of Terror as the Warp entities within the Maelstrom have well established themselves unlike the Eye of Terror where the factions of the galaxy are violently fighting to establish their presence there."

Honestly, her argument was sound and frankly, I knew quite well that my cultivation was going to stagnate upon this world once I hit the next realm, but should I go to a heavily Warp-touched world then I would be able to use Warp-based materials as alternatives to heavenly treasures to enhance my cultivation.

"Will you even be alright so close to the Warp?" I asked the pressing question and she smiled and nodded obviously appreciating the thought I had for her.

"Yes with the Mantra's you shared along with the moon essence I have growing within myself, I will be able to keep any ambient chaos corruption at bay while you do your Anathame eating of the Immaterium." She explained as she walked around me inserted herself behind me in my seat so she could wrap herself fully around me.

"So long as you are powerful enough to kill any demons that cross our paths what do we have to fear when planet-destroying weapons are off the table?" She asked as she gently began rubbing my shoulders.

"It's still a dangerous place... I will think about it." I said before I surrendered to Elesmere's skilled hands and just enjoyed the comfort of my beautiful elf making the universe worth its stress.

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