Chapter 1 Calming the Crowd

Han Xiao hadn't even had time to respond to the elven man when the other Resurrected became agitated, pulling away from each other and watching the Covenant members warily, filled with suspicion.

"Wasn't I dead? How am I alive again? What did you do to me!"

"Where is this? And who are you?!"

"What's going on? Is this an enemy trap?!"

Shock and panic quickly spread through the crowd, as shouts of questioning and anger rang out in chaos.

Even with the mental fortitude of Beyond Grade As, they were shaken by the sudden reality of their resurrection.

Seeing the commotion growing, Han Xiao took a deep breath, his expression hardening as his aura erupted!

"Everyone, be quiet!"

Boom!

As if thunder had risen from the ground, Han Xiao's energy fluctuations suddenly swept across the room, golden arcs of electricity flashing and dancing in the air.

An immense pressure descended upon every Resurrected present, as if a pause button had been pressed. All the noise vanished, everyone closing their mouths as gazes of shock, astonishment, and fear focused on Han Xiao.

The feeling was akin to being at the epicenter of a primal arcane energy explosion, the pressure coming from the outside in, triggering an intense sense of danger, like prey being targeted by a hunter, bodies involuntarily tensing.

Among the Resurrected were peak Beyond Grade A veterans, who had been coldly observing the situation. Their expressions now changed drastically as they watched Han Xiao with uncertainty and shock.

This powerful energy seemed even greater than anyone they had ever seen!

This guy in black probably possessed the power to take their lives!

Just then, before the Resurrected could react, the other Covenant members stood with their arms crossed, staring coldly at the crowd, their auras flaring up as well!

Boom, boom, boom, boom—

Dozens of Beyond Grade A energy fluctuations intertwined, colliding fiercely, as waves of shockwaves rippled out, causing the entire alloy-forged room to shake and tremble!

"These people are all Beyond Grade A?!"

The Resurrected's faces changed dramatically, shocked and horrified, their minds reeling from the impact of the combined aura.

The oppressive aura lasted only three seconds before Han Xiao had everyone withdraw it.

The demonstration of power was effective. No one dared to move rashly anymore. Seeing that everyone had finally quieted down, Han Xiao smiled.

"It seems everyone has calmed down. Very good. Now we can sit down and have a good talk."

Hearing this, the Resurrected glanced around at the dozens of Covenant Beyond Grade As present and decisively chose discretion, obediently waiting for further instructions.

Seeing this, Han Xiao cleared his throat, trying to maintain a friendly tone as he slowly said, "I know everyone needs an explanation. It's now Star Calendar 780. You are all Beyond Grade As who died in different eras. The reason you are here is that we have discovered a unique method to bring you back to life!"

As his words fell, even though the Resurrected had already suspected as much, they couldn't help but be shocked when they heard it confirmed.

—There's actually such a thing? We can live again?!

For a moment, everyone's mood was complex, a mixture of joy and worry.

While resurrection was a pleasant surprise, most people felt awkward—you dug us up without our permission!

This service definitely wasn't free. They must have ulterior motives!

"So this isn't the afterlife..." At that moment, the elven man with the honeyed tongue seemed to finally realize what was going on, speaking with sudden understanding. He then looked at Han Xiao with a strange expression, frowning as he said, "Then why are you dressed like that? Do you think you're being unique?"

"???"

Han Xiao was utterly bewildered and couldn't help but look down at his clothes. It was a bit dark, but the style was quite refined.

Did this guy have a problem with his sense of aesthetics? Clearly, the cadres in my family thought it looked good!

And in such a serious setting, he was actually complaining about my attire. Was this the time to be concerned about such trivial details?

Han Xiao looked him up and down, rummaging through his memory palace, and quickly found the elven man's life story.

"Elven King" Di'erlong, a peak Beyond Grade A mage. He was a formidable figure active from the late Exploration Era to the early Star Calendar Era. His status at the time was roughly equivalent to the current Dark Emperor, Void Sovereign, and Mechanic Emperor. He was also one of the representative Beyond Grade As of that era.

Like the interstellar human race, the elves were a large group in the universe with numerous branches. At the time, Di'erlong used his charisma to gather scattered branches, establishing a large force belonging to the elven race, similar in nature to Old Dragon's "Dragonblood Nation," a glorious period in the history of the universe's elven race.

The three Universal Civilizations extended olive branches to Di'erlong, but he rejected them and instead established alliances with multiple Star Cluster civilizations.

The reason for this choice seemed to be that he felt joining the three Universal Civilizations meant choosing only one, while cooperating with Star Clusters allowed him to enjoy resources from several factions while maintaining relative freedom.

Ultimately, Di'erlong died in the Calamity of the Supers.

'So it's this guy. That explains it...' Han Xiao realized.

According to his record, Di'erlong had an eccentric personality, always speaking out of turn and never considering other people's feelings, which led to him having a very poor reputation among the Beyond Grade A group at the time, with many enemies.

In his final battle, twelve Beyond Grade As ganged up on him, reducing him to ashes.

'This treatment is almost on par with mine...'

Han Xiao thought to himself.

As for his decision-making, Han Xiao didn't want to judge, as the times were different, and the environment was different.

In Di'erlong's era, because there was no precedent, the Star Clusters were still openly competing with the three Universal Civilizations for Beyond Grade A allies, attracting powerful figures with more lenient contracts. At that time, joining the Star Clusters was normal, and few people expected the Calamity of the Supers to erupt suddenly.

Han Xiao curled his lips, ignored him, shifted his gaze, and continued to address the crowd.

"I know you all have many questions, such as who we are, how we resurrected you, and our goals for reviving you. These questions will be explained by my friend."

Hearing this, Oathkeeper stepped forward and said in a deep voice, "Everyone, we are a secret organization called the Covenant, founded during the Exploration Era by a group of Originals. Our core goal is to be resurrected in the future. As for the means of reviving you, it is a phenomenon called Sanctuary Revival..."

Oathkeeper had already prepared his speech, explaining the origin and mission of the Covenant in detail, answering everyone's questions.

The Originals were well-known, and everyone looked at the Covenant members present, finding that they were indeed historical Originals, gradually believing Oathkeeper's words.

"Then who is he? I don't think there's such a person among the Originals."

At that moment, someone looked at Han Xiao, and everyone followed their gaze.

Hearing this, Han Xiao adjusted his clothes.

"You can call me Black Star. I am the leading figure of the Beyond Grade As of this era."

As soon as he said this, everyone's eyes changed.

The leading figure of the Beyond Grade As?

What arrogance!

In our era, even the strongest Beyond Grade A wouldn't dare to call themselves the leader of the entire group. Who do you think you are? Daring to give yourself such a title!

Oathkeeper coughed and said, "Let me introduce him. Black Star is not a member of the Covenant, but our important partner in this era. We share the same goals. In this era, the Beyond Grade As have spontaneously formed an association and united, and Black Star is the president of the Beyond Grade A Association. Moreover, his strength is among the best in the universe. At the same time, he is the only joint consultant of the three Universal Civilizations, a position of great importance..."

After hearing the explanation, everyone showed surprise and couldn't help but look at Han Xiao again.

President of the Beyond Grade A Association, joint consultant of the three Universal Civilizations... These titles were things that didn't exist before. Although they didn't know the specifics, they could vaguely sense Han Xiao's influence from the titles alone.

Recalling the energy level Han Xiao had just displayed, most people put away their dismissive thoughts and deeply etched the name Black Star into their minds.

They didn't expect such an outstanding junior to appear in the "future." Perhaps this guy called Black Star was the best Beyond Grade A in history...

At that moment, another peak Beyond Grade A on the Resurrected list spoke, saying calmly, "Whether you're powerful or not is your business. I just want to know, you resurrected us, it couldn't be to play Wayne cards with you, right? Or do you want to use us to help you achieve certain goals, like conquering the universe, some outdated ambition?"

Han Xiao shook his head and chuckled.

"You're joking. The Covenant and I disturbed your slumber not out of personal ambition, but because the entire Beyond Grade A class has reached a critical juncture and needs the strength of you seniors!"

As soon as these words were spoken, many people felt a sense of pride, and their interest was piqued.

"Tell us more. How is the Beyond Grade A class in danger?" another person asked curiously.

"This is still related to the three Universal Civilizations..."

Han Xiao spoke eloquently, explaining the unity of the Beyond Grade A Association, the attitude of the three Universal Civilizations, the significance of Sanctuary Revival to both sides, and other key issues, trying to analyze the current situation of the Beyond Grade As as simply as possible.

Seeing that everyone was deep in thought, Han Xiao added, "If this problem is not handled properly, it is foreseeable that the Beyond Grade A group will face a second Calamity of the Supers!"

As soon as these words came out, many people present trembled.

Many were victims of the Calamity of the Supers, and this term touched their sensitive points.

Seeing this, Han Xiao seized the opportunity, softened his tone, and said earnestly, "This matter is closely related to each of you and is not just a matter for our era. Even if you don't want to participate, you have to consider your own interests.

"You finally managed to be resurrected. You must want to continue enjoying life, but if you don't solve this problem, you can't guarantee your own safety. You must know that there is only one chance for Sanctuary Revival. If you don't unite, causing a second Calamity of the Supers, you will also face danger. If you are killed, your life will truly end."

Han Xiao deliberately concealed the secret of unlimited Sanctuary Revival like Oathkeeper, misleading them into thinking there was only one chance for resurrection, making his persuasion all the more convincing.

Hearing these words, everyone understood their interdependent relationship, their expressions becoming serious.

Di'erlong stroked his chin and pondered, "So, we only have two paths in front of us: either join the Beyond Grade A Association or stay in the Covenant. We must choose one of the two. There is no other choice."

"Can't we leave on our own?" someone next to him asked, frowning.

Di'erlong glanced at him disdainfully and snorted, "Use your few brain cells to think carefully. The intelligence of Sanctuary Revival is so important. Will they let people who know about it move freely? How stupid. No wonder you were killed."

The man's expression stiffened, and he said indignantly, "Why are you gloating? Aren't you the same?"

"You don't understand. I call that strategic death!" Di'erlong snorted.

Everyone immediately looked at him in surprise.

—This is a really new way to put it. I've lived a long time and seen everything.

However, despite Di'erlong's eccentricity, everyone admitted that he made sense.

There were only two choices in front of them. If they wanted to gain freedom as soon as possible, they had to register with the Beyond Grade A Association and let the interstellar society, especially the three Universal Civilizations, know of their existence, completing a risk-sharing arrangement.

If they chose to stay in the Covenant, they would be hiding in the shadows, and no one would know of their existence. Even if a great purge broke out, it wouldn't affect them, and they wouldn't have to bear any risks.

Either choose safety or choose a certain degree of freedom. There was no third path... If they had any intention of secretly slipping away and going into hiding, their fate would probably be to lie back in their coffins.

Everyone became conflicted.

Most people were inclined to hide in the Covenant. At most, they would be without freedom for a period of time, but that was better than losing their hard-won second life. If the Beyond Grade A Association's efforts succeeded, they could share the fruits of victory together. If the association's efforts failed, they could still protect themselves.

Han Xiao saw the hesitation in everyone's eyes and was secretly pleased, knowing that his words had been effective.

But at that moment, an untimely voice suddenly rang out from the crowd.

"Why must we accept these harsh conditions? Everyone, they have more people, but we also have a considerable number. Why don't we join forces temporarily and break out in one wave? They can't stop all of us. That way, everyone can gain freedom!"

As soon as these inflammatory words were spoken, many of the Resurrected's faces changed, revealing a hint of excitement.

Han Xiao's expression immediately darkened as he looked in the direction of the voice.

"Well, I thought I could really solve this problem so smoothly, but it seems that some people still need their minds physically corrected."