Chapter 261 Martial Arts is Limitless

Having successfully won over Karote, Han Xiao had someone take him down to rest, then he left the room, humming a little tune, completely satisfied.

He had just poked around the guy and seen Karote’s attribute panel. Now he had obtained the most crucial talent, called [Martial Arts is Limitless], which was a growth-type ability. The description of the effect was quite complex, but it was extremely overbearing.

In short, every time he reached a new tier, [Martial Arts is Limitless] could transform once, requiring a new understanding of martial arts, honing the basics, and accumulating experience. Before the transformation of this talent, the efficiency of leveling up would be reduced by 90%, and combat power would be weakened to a certain extent. However, after the transformation was completed, the efficiency of leveling up would receive a positive bonus, with the amplitude presenting an arch-shaped curve model, with the peak in the middle reaching 1000%, and granting a high amount of comprehensive combat power bonus, the degree of which would increase with level and comprehension.

Generally speaking, the stronger a powerhouse was, the more bottlenecks they would have. However, Karote was different. His bottlenecks were basically all in the early stages. The stronger he became, the fewer bottlenecks he would have. As long as he reached a certain standard, his combat power could increase like a snowball until he reached the limit of that tier. If he stepped into a new tier, he would have to repeat this cycle once.

The reason why Karote leveled up slowly and cultivated with difficulty after each advancement was because of this. However, it also led to his solid foundation and late blooming. In the later versions of his previous life, Karote was a pillar of the Martial Arts System, just like the Mechanic Empire was to the Mechanic System, one punch to a Little Overlord, one kick to a Seven-Eyed Boy, truly shaking the galaxy with his fists.

After all, Karote and that yellow-haired cheat were only one word apart. The title this kid held in his previous life was the unique “Martial God”!

Moreover, [Martial Arts is Limitless] could also synchronously strengthen all the martial arts skills that Karote possessed, not only improving the level, but also adjusting the skill effects in subtle ways, almost tailor-made, turning them into abilities more suitable for Karote's combat mode. The introduction explained it as a unique martial arts comprehension ability. Any martial arts school could be integrated into Karote's own martial arts philosophy, assimilated, and adapted to the situation. In the end, all moves would become his own.

Han Xiao had never seen the [Martial Arts is Limitless] talent on any other martial artist. If it weren't for the lack of a suffix, he would have almost thought that this was Karote's exclusive talent.

However, as powerful as this talent was, it was of no use to Han Xiao. After all, he was not a proper martial artist, and he had no so-called martial arts comprehension. This ability would never trigger a positive effect and would only drag him down.

"I still have to find a teacher for him. There are quite a few simple-minded martial artists in the legion, but they are all Calamity Grade, and their level is a bit lacking..." Han Xiao's mind flashed with figures as he muttered, "It's best to find a Beyond Grade A to teach Karote. I know so many people. The most suitable one should be Silver Shadow. These two were good buddies in their previous life. Their compatibility must be good. Letting Silver Shadow be his teacher would probably have a very good effect."

Han Xiao scratched his chin, suddenly feeling like he was setting people up.

After thinking about it, he still had many backup options, such as inviting the martial artists in the Underworld to be teachers, or temporarily releasing Gorutan to teach Karote.

With his current strength, Gorutan could no longer cause any trouble, and occasionally letting prisoners out for a breather would prevent him from dying in the Amber of Time, which would prevent the Sanctuary from reviving.

Karote was the first of the three civilization's future direct descendants that he had dug up, and he would not be the last. Although the potential value of the other targets was not as good as Karote, Han Xiao did not intend to let them go.

As he walked and considered, Han Xiao returned to his office and temporarily put this matter aside, summoning Phillip to handle the legion's affairs.

The positions of this batch of Beyond Grade A seeds needed to be arranged, and under their influence, a large number of superhumans had joined the legion, and the personnel department was screening them, so they were quite busy recently.

After dealing with the affairs, Han Xiao took out his communicator and took a look at the internet, humming softly.

"The public opinion is still heating up. Behind the scenes, it's estimated that more than just the advanced civilizations are fueling the flames. There must be others who are afraid that the world won't be in chaos."

The rumor on the internet was that the Beyond Grade A Association would integrate the Superpower class in the future and become a new ruling force outside the three civilizations. This kind of statement was obviously a means of killing by praise, trying to push the Association to the top of the mountain and then find a chance to kick it down. The higher it stood, the more miserable it would fall.

However, although the method was old, it was quite effective. As long as it could accurately grasp the psychology of the masses, simple methods could still work.

The current public opinion trend was not good for the Association. It had taken on too many excessive expectations and halos, and had intensified the opposition with the three civilizations. The term "new ruling force" was putting both sides on the fire to roast.

Because the public opinion was somewhat fanatical, it was not suitable to express their position. Han Xiao planned to cool it down and lower the temperature of the public opinion. Even if the forces behind the scenes continued to fuel the flames, the interest of the interstellar citizens in one thing was limited, and there would always be new hotspots to divert their attention.

Han Xiao tapped on the table, pondering:

"Now that the Beyond Grade A seeds have joined the Association, and the advanced civilizations have given up on the cleaning plan, this storm is neither too big nor too small. Judging from the trend, it should temporarily maintain the current situation... I need time to integrate the Association and collect the keys. The three civilizations also need time to study the Sanctuary's revival. They won't do anything in the short term, and they have to restrain themselves a bit to prevent the Super Star Cluster from jumping around. Everyone needs time, so they will tacitly maintain a state of peace..."

All parties had a need to stabilize the situation. The three civilizations would not take too drastic actions against the Association before they were confident. They only dared to deal with the Beyond Grade A seeds as a touch-and-go, and in Han Xiao's view, the universe could still be calm for a while.

It was estimated that this kind of peace would continue until the players returned.

"The version has been updated for fifty years, and Version 5.0 is about to begin. After my influence, the current situation and the Supernatural Disaster of the previous life are completely different. I wonder what the players will do."

Han Xiao pinched his chin, lost in thought.

...

Central Starfield, Crimson Empire Advanced Academy of Sciences, Spatial Coordinate Research Group, Wormhole Positioning Project Office.

The head of the research group walked into the meeting room, where many researchers were already waiting.

Compared to decades ago, the researchers here had basically been replaced. The previous generation of researchers had either retired or been transferred to other project offices.

The head of the research group looked around and slowly said, "The Empire has issued an internal document to vigorously promote scientific research in all fields, restart the former projects, and provide reference materials for the study of the Sanctuary's revival... The funding for all project departments this year will be greatly increased, and so will yours."

Hearing this, everyone was immediately excited.

Scientific research was extremely expensive. The importance of the Wormhole Positioning Project was not as important as other cutting-edge fields. Since the Flickering World War, this project department had been operating at low energy.

At that time, Han Xiao and the Empire were still in their honeymoon period, and the Empire had listened to his suggestion. In order to focus on dealing with the Super Star Cluster Alliance, they had reduced the possibility of random risks and suspended the exploration and calculation of unknown wormhole data. Several projects of wormhole positioning were suddenly shelved.

According to common sense, after the end of the war, the wormhole positioning project would not continue to be restricted, but something went wrong.

After the end of the war, the Empire was busy dealing with the aftermath, and the relevant higher-ups did not lift the ban at the first time. Later, it was not known whether it was for the sake of insurance or forgotten, but in short, they had never explicitly stated that the ban would be lifted, so the matter was delayed. After all, for the entire Empire, the wormhole positioning project was only a very small matter, and almost no one paid attention to it except for the officials and researchers related to the position.

The attitude of the superiors would always be amplified at each level. Scientific research itself was very pure, but it was difficult for researchers to escape the influence of politics. The review department of the Academy of Sciences believed that the attitude of the higher-ups was unclear and had many concerns. No one wanted to risk their future, holding the principle of doing nothing wrong, and had not relaxed the review standards for the wormhole positioning project, which led to a large number of on-the-spot investigation topics being stuck in the approval process, causing the wormhole positioning project team to accumulate a large number of wormhole data that had not been measured. Only more important topics would be approved.

This situation lasted for several years. Because the superiors had never made a clear statement, the strict review standards for the wormhole positioning project gradually became a convention. Some twists and turns and protests occurred during this period, but the voices could not reach the higher levels, and in the end, no waves were stirred up.

In this way, the situation lasted for decades. The original researchers of this project team had basically been transferred to other departments, and most of the newcomers who joined later were inexperienced.

In the entire Academy of Sciences, the experience of the Wormhole Positioning Project Team was not an isolated case. Every year, projects were canceled, new projects were created, and there were also marginal project teams that were always muddling through, which was nothing new.

There were also academic cliques in the Academy of Sciences, and it was not uncommon for projects to be established through connections to cheat funding. Any force would become rigid to a certain extent if it grew too large and lasted too long. The three civilizations were the same, and even the relatively better Empire could not completely eliminate this phenomenon.

After giving a few instructions, the head of the research group left, and the remaining researchers in the meeting room were overjoyed.

"We are finally not a marginal project team anymore."

"Hurry up and report all the accumulated topics. We can finally measure them on the spot. There are too many wormhole coordinates accumulated over the years."

"The equipment purchase list for this year hasn't been submitted yet, right? Hurry up and change it. Buy more multi-functional remote spatial probes and deploy them on a large scale this time."

...

As Han Xiao had expected, after the assassination of the Beyond Grade A seeds failed, the three civilizations and the Super Star Cluster Alliance restrained themselves a little. Under Han Xiao's orders, the Association did not publicly promote the behind-the-scenes situation of the attack on the Beyond Grade A seeds, as if they had deliberately ignored it.

Apart from fueling the flames in public opinion, the three parties tacitly maintained peace in other aspects, without any conflicts breaking out, secretly accumulating strength and preparing their respective methods.

Perhaps the Super Star Cluster Alliance still had the idea of causing trouble, but they could not find an opportunity to seize the opportunity.

Although the two sides did not openly declare hostility, the three civilizations and the Association had gradually formed an antagonistic relationship in the eyes of the public through public opinion operations. The smell of gunpowder was gradually increasing. Any slight disturbance would cause countless people to jump out to conduct "strategic interpretations", believing that the two sides were tit-for-tat and a war was inevitable.

Although the Super Star Cluster Alliance often suffered heavy losses, they were still quite professional in fueling the flames. Perhaps this was the so-called "practice makes perfect"...

Under the calm surface, undercurrents were surging. The three civilizations gradually terminated a number of business collaborations with multiple Beyond Grade A forces and introduced some commercial policies, trying to find ways to strike at the Association in terms of power operations. Under Han Xiao's integration, the Association began to enhance its independence.

Under the Super Star Cluster's vigorous publicity, almost everyone in the universe knew that the conflict between the three civilizations and the Association would never be resolved peacefully. The two sides could not easily coexist. Many forces were watching this battle between dragons and tigers.

Time quietly slipped away in this atmosphere of an impending storm, and a year gradually passed.

And on March 10th, Star Sea Calendar 782, Version 5.0 officially opened, and the long-awaited players finally returned online!