4: Chapter 4: The Warhammer Universe, Half of It's in My Hands

Cheng Yu stood before the black pyramid, the hunger of two hundred million clones whipping at his nerves like a physical force.

He reached out to touch the cold surface of the tower; the instructions in Simplified Chinese brought a sense of absurd familiarity.

"Carbon-based compounds... Light energy... Starch..."

He looked around. The desolate surface of the death world was filled with rotting organic matter and methane, and the starlight, though dim, was constant.

Perfect.

He didn't need to understand the principles behind this miracle; he just needed it to work.

"Hurry! Collect feces, corpses, anything that's rotting! Align the starship's fusion reactor output with the light energy receiver plate! I want to see starch flowing out before the next standard hour!"

The order was instantly transmitted to every clone through an invisible network.

Two hundred million Cheng Yus began to operate like parts of a precision machine.

They dismantled the Ork starship's conveyor pipes and crudely connected them to the circular entrance on the side of the pyramid, using them as feeding chutes.

They collected every organic residue on the battlefield, even digging up the humus layers that had been deposited underground for millions of years.

They adjusted the output direction of the starship engines, converting the violent energy into gentle illumination.

The efficiency was terrifying.

No complaints, no mistakes, only absolute synchronized execution. It was a pity that they had eaten too few Mekboys; otherwise, the efficiency could have been even higher.

Aria was "invited" to the scene by two clones. Watching this breathtakingly efficient operation, her slender eyes widened in shock.

"These identical monkeys... Do they share a single mind? What are they? Some kind of hive-mind creature?"

"Just like the Tyranids. Do the Tyranids even have humanoid forms?"

Main Body had no time to pay attention to the Aeldari lady's shock. Every day, when he opened his eyes, he saw only expressionless clones. Occasionally looking at a beautiful Aeldari helped stabilize his sanity.

His entire consciousness was immersed in anticipating the impending sense of satiety.

The pyramid emitted a low hum, and the square exit on the side shuddered, spewing out a stream of charred paste before falling silent.

"A malfunction?" Cheng Yu's heart sank.

"No, Prime!" The clone responsible for monitoring sent a message. "According to the detection, the analysis of the output substance's composition... it's carbonized starch. The energy output is too high, causing an internal overreaction!"

"Lower the power! Immediately!"

The power was lowered.

Another standard hour passed, and the number of clones doubled, reaching four hundred million.

More labor was poured into the debugging work.

The square exit shuddered again, and this time, a stream of pure, fine white powder flowed out slowly.

Cheng Yu extended a finger, dipped it in, and put it into his mouth.

Pure starch, without any taste.

But to him, it tasted better than any delicacy in his memory.

"Success!!!"

An emotion of ecstasy swept through all the clones like a tsunami.

Four hundred million Cheng Yus stopped their work simultaneously and roared at the sky in unison—a bizarre sight.

"Establish a collection system! A distribution system! Eat immediately!"

Pipes were connected to the exit, and the white starch powder was funneled into temporarily assembled containers.

The clones formed perfectly neat lines, stepped forward one by one, scooped up the starch with their hands, and shoved it into their mouths.

There was no arguing, no snatching, because every Main Body was Main Body.

"Me, Me, Me too."

As the food was distributed, the hunger was slowly receding.

Main Body finally let out a long sigh of relief, feeling almost faint.

He had survived, and he hadn't reached the miserable point of eating himself.

Relying on this damn cheat and the great crystallization of technology—the Standard Template Construct—he had survived in this hellish world.

He walked over to a pile of Ork remains and sat down, watching the absurd and grand scene before him.

Four hundred million of himself, quietly lining up to receive food, eating in silence.

The massive wreckage of the Ork starship was being rapidly dismantled to build other equipment.

The Prime had already issued an order to make the black pyramid the core, fully occupy this death world, and use it as the base of operations for our... our conquest of the galaxy.

At the same time, the army organization was too crude, which was not conducive to the Prime's micromanagement.

Moreover, every clone looked exactly the same, which was creepy to look at.

All clones who had finished receiving starch were to mark their foreheads according to their own free will.

"Whether you want a tattoo or just use a sharp stone to scratch it on, it doesn't matter; just have some form of identification to distinguish yourself from others."

At the same time, every ten thousand people would be organized into a Chapter. In the first battle—which the Prime named the "Starship Reclamation Battle"—clones with combat merits would automatically be promoted to Chapter Masters. The Chapter Masters were responsible for naming their own Chapters and creating flags.

Four hundred million clones immediately began to execute the Prime's orders; there were no lies, no arguments, just immediate completion and rapid return to their ranks.

As long as the most basic food problem was solved, the clones wouldn't even have any questions for the Prime.

"Warhammer Universe, half is now in my hands."

Cheng Yu laughed wantonly and arrogantly; by this time, he had already teleported to the highest peak of this planet.

...

In the far distance, the black pyramid stood towering, continuously converting the waste gas of the death world into the hope of survival.

Aria walked slowly to the side of a clone, her voice carrying a hint of imperceptible trembling.

"What... on earth are you?"

All the nearby Cheng Yus turned their heads, looked at her elven-like exquisite face, and smiled.

"We are I."

One of the clones grabbed a handful of warm starch and handed it to her.

"Want a taste? There's plenty."

Aria looked at the unappealing powder, hesitated for a moment, and then took it to carefully taste a little.

Her slender eyebrows furrowed.

"It has no taste."

"Being alive is the best taste."

Another clone carved this scene onto a stone slab and named it "The Great Cheng Yu Redeems the Arrogant Aeldari Maiden."

After finishing the drawing, he went to tattoo the other clones; most of the clones still preferred tattoos, as using stones to smash marks was too painful.

...

Having eaten their fill, the next problem followed.

Four hundred million clones, and the number was still growing exponentially.

This death world would soon become crowded.

The STC had temporarily solved the food problem, but what about other issues? Clothing? Shelter? Weapons?

The resources from the Ork starship wreckage and the planet itself were limited.

He needed more resources and more space.

One starship was clearly not enough.

His gaze turned toward the starry sky.

Among those twinkling stars, were there any worlds that could be put to use? Or... more food?

Just then, the clone responsible for guarding the starry sky sent an urgent alert.

An unfamiliar ship was approaching rapidly.

It wasn't the rough style of an Ork ship, nor the ornate shuttle of the Aeldari.

The ship's appearance was imposing yet strange, carrying a sense of holy absurdity.

Cheng Yu sat up abruptly.

He knew what that was.

In this desperate universe, besides the Aeldari, Orks, and Tyranids, there was also the Corpse Emperor and his rotting empire.

Hunger had temporarily departed, but a new fear had arrived quietly.