Chapter 1 The New Beginning

The next day, governments in various cities on Aquamarine gathered their citizens. The first to receive the Evolutionary Cube modification were the residents of the capital city, Black Star City.

A spaceship carrying Han Xiao and Bennett's party slowly passed over the city, overlooking the masses as the energy released by the Evolutionary Cube covered swathes of people.

"Perhaps this can turn a new page in the civilization of Aquamarine," Bennett murmured, gazing at the scene.

He had already undergone the transformation last night and deeply felt the effects of the Evolutionary Cube. He felt as if he had returned to his prime, full of energy, with his mind even more agile. The Evolutionary Cube's enhancement for ordinary humans focused mainly on mental capacity.

Turning to look at Han Xiao's back, Bennett was filled with emotion. Aquamarine's current era was all thanks to this old friend.

Who would have thought twenty years ago that a traitor from the Germinal Organization could reach such an incredible height.

The interstellar spaceship circled the globe at high speed, quickly scattering the Evolutionary Cube across city after city.

Han Xiao didn't care how the people cheered and celebrated. Bennett would naturally be responsible for the follow-up, and he would definitely promote his own merits, perhaps even incorporating this event into textbooks.

Having completed his work, Han Xiao didn't plan to stay on Aquamarine any longer. He wanted to leave immediately—Sylvia had sent a message that the Crimson Dynasty's team had entered the Garton Star System and was finally about to arrive at the Black Star Army headquarters. He had to return.

The spaceship returned to the dock, where a gentle woman was waiting with Nello.

Bennett walked off the spaceship with his cadres, chatted with the woman for a few words, then turned to push Nello's back, signaling him to board the ship.

"Go on, your future is the sea of stars. Black Star will take care of you," Bennett said slowly.

Nello's eyes were red. Last night, he had learned that he was going into the universe with his godfather. He almost thought his father didn't want him anymore and cried. Bennett had to persuade him for a long time before he accepted it.

He had only seen information about interstellar society in textbooks and online. This was his first time entering the universe. Thinking of the strange-looking aliens in the books, he was both apprehensive and expectant.

Nello took small steps, struggling to climb the boarding ladder. Han Xiao stood by the door, pulling him into the cabin.

Han Xiao and Bennett exchanged a glance, nodding to each other in acknowledgment.

"Close the door," Han Xiao ordered.

*Chi—*

The hatch slowly closed. Nello looked back, his gaze passing through the gradually shrinking door, seeing Bennett and his mother standing on the dock, looking reluctant, waving goodbye to him.

*Kacha.*

The last sliver of vision disappeared, the hatch tightly locked, as if separating two worlds.

"Come with me."

Han Xiao shook his head and led Nello to the spaceship's cockpit.

Nello looked through the porthole, watching the city shrink rapidly beneath his feet, the sky above gradually changing from sky blue to deep black.

*Dong.*

The ship body trembled slightly, breaking away from the planet's atmosphere. The full view of Aquamarine was displayed in Nello's eyes. He was dumbfounded, staring blankly at the scene. This experience was too shocking for a child.

He clutched Han Xiao's pant leg tightly, his only support in his young heart at the moment.

Han Xiao stood quietly to the side, smiling, and after the spaceship entered warp mode, he led Nello away from the cockpit, introducing various interstellar common knowledge while taking him on a tour of the entire spaceship.

"...That's all for the precautions. You don't need to be nervous. With me here, the vast majority of people in the universe can't harm you."

The two arrived in the hall, where Ames, Hela, and a group of other guards were chatting. Seeing Nello, they all looked kind and teased him in turn. Everyone liked this well-behaved child quite a bit. Even Hela put away her unapproachable aura, her sharp eyebrows and eyes seemingly softened.

"This is Bennett's child," Aurora said, holding Nello in her arms, unable to put him down. She was originally the youngest in terms of age and seniority here, but now there was finally someone even younger. She was very happy, especially since this was the child of an acquaintance.

Nello's face was flushed, and he stood stiffly, afraid to move.

Han Xiao couldn't help but pull Aurora away, saying helplessly, "Don't hug him, are you trying to suffocate him?"

Glancing down at her heavy chest, Aurora's face turned slightly red. She snorted softly and punched Han Xiao's waist, but it was about as effective as tickling him.

"Oh right, Uncle Han Xiao gave you a gift, and I'll give you a gift too." Aurora's eyes suddenly lit up. She grabbed her heart with her fair hand, pulled out a warm ball of golden energy, and slapped it into Nello's chest.

"W-what is this?" Nello was startled, then felt warm and comfortable all over, as if inexhaustible strength had been born in his body.

He curiously touched his chest, seemingly not understanding how this ball of golden light had entered his body.

Aurora blinked and said smugly, "This is my ability. I gave you a ball of refined life energy, which can prevent you from getting sick and continuously activate your cells, gradually enhancing your physical fitness, so you'll grow taller and stronger in the future."

Her life ability could not only heal people but also give the target a buff, even stimulating the growth of living things.

For example, the white bear that was left at the Black Star Army headquarters, eating and drinking every day and becoming a ball of fat, was indirectly absorbing a large amount of life energy from Aurora's side, becoming a powerful individual… In technical terms, long-term absorption of Aurora's life energy had a chance to turn an ordinary template into an elite template, gaining stronger attributes.

Seeing this, Hela, who hadn't said much, stood up and said slowly, "Then I'll give you a gift too."

She flicked her finger, firing a red energy bullet that hit the back of Nello's hand.

"Ah!" The back of Nello's hand immediately felt like it was burned. He screamed, clutching his hand, tears welling up in his eyes.

He looked down and saw a bright red pattern appearing on the back of his hand, extending all the way to his elbow, like a tattoo.

"This is a necromantic brand. As long as you kill a creature, this mark can absorb the other party's unscattered remnant soul, strengthening your mental power," Hela said casually.

Although it wasn't very appropriate to mention killing people to a child, everyone was used to it. Almost everyone present was at the Calamity Grade, and who didn't have hundreds of thousands of lives on their hands? They never deliberately painted a fairytale world for children, and since Nello was being cultivated by Black Star, he would definitely not be an ordinary person in the future, so everyone didn't avoid the topic.

Nello was a little scared, and carefully tugged at his sleeve, wanting to cover the tattoo on the back of his hand.

"Then I'll give you something too." Fording smiled slightly, and his off-the-charts friendliness immediately made Nello relax.

Fording released an invisible psychic force that surged into Nello's mind, forming a psychic barrier at the Calamity Grade level, preventing others from spying on or harming him from the mental level.

Many of the guards were also generous, taking out various miscellaneous things to give to Nello. Although they were some cheap things in the eyes of the Calamity Grade, each one was a treasure in the eyes of low-level Supers in the universe.

Watching this scene, Han Xiao suddenly felt a strong sense of déjà vu.

This scene… why does it look familiar?

Isn't Nello the kind of fated protagonist figure who is cultivated by a group of old grandpas from childhood?!

"As expected, it's this kind of high-level lucky halo…" Han Xiao thought amusingly, "Receiving so many treasures from a young age, this kid's path is wide open."

Finally, it was Hadaway's turn. Hadaway touched his body, feeling like he didn't have anything he could give.

Seeing everyone staring at him expectantly, he thought for a while and pulled out a deck of Vane cards from his pocket, grinning.

"Then I'll teach you how to play cards."

"Get lost!"

*Bang!!*

Han Xiao exploded, raising his leg and delivering an Irish kick, knocking Hadaway to the ground. Nanoparticles crackled, turning into shackles that bound Hadaway tightly.

Nello was startled and quickly backed away. The other guards, however, looked around, pretending to admire the scenery.

"Wuwuwuwu…" Hadaway's mouth was also sealed with alloy, unable to move his whole body, only his eyes darting around.

"You stay on the ground and reflect for a while!" Han Xiao was furious.

Teaching people how to play cards, may heaven strike you down!

Not fertilizing my leek is one thing, but you want to poison my precious leek?!

Are you trying to make my good leek follow in the footsteps of Melloes, sinking into the abyss of slacking off?!

Ames supported her chin with her hand, smiling as she watched this scene. She suddenly beckoned, signaling Nello to come over.

Nello obediently came to Ames, a little nervous. Although Ames' attitude was also very kind, she gave him a completely different feeling from the other guards, as if there was a special noble temperament. In front of her, Nello subconsciously became reserved.

"Don't be nervous, I'll give you something too."

Ames smiled faintly and suddenly reached out, taking off the obsidian necklace around her neck and placing it in Nello's hand.

Han Xiao was a little surprised. This necklace didn't have any special function; it was just a very ordinary ornament, but Ames often wore it, and he didn't know what the story was behind it.

"Take good care of it."

Ames smiled and told him, seemingly without the intention of explaining, glancing at Han Xiao.

Nello nodded quickly, carefully putting away the necklace.

After all the "old grandpas" had given their treasures, Han Xiao pulled Nello in front of him and asked with a smile, "I promised your dad that I would cultivate you into a powerful Super. You must have studied Super courses on Aquamarine. Do you remember what Super systems there are?"

"Mm." Nello nodded heavily, counting on his fingers, "There are five: Martial Arts, Esper Ability, Mechanic, Magic, and Psychic!"

"Now it's your turn to choose. Which Super system do you want to become?" Han Xiao said with a smile.

He didn't know what kind of Super talent Nello had, so he simply asked directly.

Everyone quieted down.

Choosing a Super system was a major life decision. Black Star seemed to be preparing to cultivate Nello with all his might, so his choice was very crucial.

Nello hesitated for a while, then looked up at the floating sentry flying overhead, his eyes fixed.

"Godfather, I want to be a Mechanic!"

"Haha, good choice!"

Han Xiao was overjoyed, his mood indescribably cheerful. If Nello chose the Mechanic class, he could legitimately become his student. In the Shattered Star Ring, he was the apex of the Mechanic class, and no one was more qualified to teach others than him.

Hearing this, many of the guards sighed secretly.

Sigh, why not just be a person, why insist on not being human.

…

Han Xiao activated Nello's Mechanical Force on the ship. With his current level, the method of activating Mechanical Force was no longer the electrotherapy that Sylvia had experienced back then, but a safer and painless method.

Aquamarine was very close to the Black Star Army headquarters. Before long, Han Xiao and his party returned to the headquarters.

The next day, the Crimson Dynasty's transport team finally arrived.

The huge fleet blotted out the sky, as if Golden Gate Star had welcomed a solar eclipse.

The army headquarters became even more lively.

The first batch of resources supported by the Crimson Dynasty was unloaded in the industrial area and sent to the army's warehouse by mechanical workers.

And the first batch of Dynasty elites to be modified also stepped onto the Black Star Army headquarters dock.

There were four captains, each leading their own faction's elite members. Taini was one of the captains, representing the young and middle-aged faction of the Dynasty's military.

The elite group followed the army receptionist all the way to the hall, never looking sideways, moving straight ahead.

Walking into the hall, the Dynasty elites immediately saw Han Xiao, who had been waiting for a long time on the throne.

"Your Excellency Black Star."

*Pa!*

Tens of thousands of Dynasty elites simultaneously performed a Dynasty military salute, their movements neat and uniform, their boots stepping on the metal surface, making a crisp sound like popping beans.

Han Xiao narrowed his eyes and walked down the throne. At this time, the four captains also stepped forward at the same time, welcoming him and shaking hands with Han Xiao in turn.

These four were all famous NPCs in his previous life. Among them, Taini was the most famous. There was basically no Crimson Dynasty player who didn't know this famous Dynasty Marshal, which was also the object of Han Xiao's current attention.

Compared to his previous life's image, the current Taini was still very young, his aura like a dragon or tiger, his sharp edge fully revealed.

When it was Taini's turn to shake hands, Han Xiao stared intently at his face, suddenly revealing a meaningful smile.

"Taini Amelus? I've heard of you for a long time."

Taini was stunned.

Black Star didn't open his mouth when he shook hands with the others. Why did he only talk to me?

I've heard of you for a long time… Could it be that my reputation has already spread to the Shattered Star Ring?

Then, the information he had collected these days flashed through his mind. A few days ago, he discovered a characteristic of Black Star from these materials:

—This person has some kind of precognitive ability and possesses extremely accurate vision.

'He only spoke to me, there must be a reason!'

The thought flashed through his mind, but Taini's face remained calm. He shook hands and then let go.