Chapter 197 Becoming Super

Han Xiao left the star-deprived Sisko all alone on that unlucky planet used as a battlefield and spent several days returning to the Shattered Star Ring by using Void Dimension Warp.

He contacted Hela and the others, who had already left Mexborough, and had them pick him up in their spaceship. The group finally reunited in a barren area.

*Chi—*

The air pump hissed as the pressure was released, and the hatch slid open. As soon as Han Xiao entered the cabin, he saw Hela and the others waiting at the door.

Fording stepped forward and carefully examined Han Xiao from head to toe, making sure he wasn't missing any parts, and couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"Phew, it seems you're alright. We've been worried about you these past few days."

Hela snorted. "It was you guys, not me..."

Han Xiao couldn't help but smile at this. "It wasn't that dangerous. Don't you know how tenacious my vitality is?"

"Speaking of vitality..." Aurora wore a puzzled expression, her tone incredulous. "If I'm not mistaken, have you already..."

"Already what?" Hela frowned and interjected.

Han Xiao smiled and took out the Evolutionary Cube, playing with it in his hand.

"You guessed it. I already fought with Sisko. He didn't gain any advantage, and I didn't suffer any losses. It was a draw. He couldn't take the thing back."

A draw with Sisko?

Hela was stunned, her mind taking a second to understand what Han Xiao meant. She took a deep breath, and an incredulous look appeared on her usually expressionless face. Her eyes widened as she stared straight at Han Xiao.

"Could it be... you're Super-A?!"

"Just barely, just barely," Han Xiao waved his hand, but his face wore a cheeky smile.

Hearing him confirm it himself, Hela, Fording, and Aurora all showed expressions of shock.

Black Star... really became Super-A?

Although the three of them had hoped that Han Xiao would break through the limits and become a Super-A powerhouse standing at the top of the galaxy, following Han Xiao these past few months had felt like a leisurely vacation. They hadn't seen any signs that Han Xiao could advance.

In their hearts, they actually felt that the hope was slim.

But it had happened so suddenly! When they weren't mentally prepared at all, Black Star had suddenly advanced, even drawing with a Super-A who had long been famous in the Shattered Star Ring. They couldn't imagine how Han Xiao had done it.

The moment it actually happened, the minds of the three went blank.

After recovering, joy suddenly blossomed in their hearts!

Although it was unexpected, it was a good thing!

Fording was overjoyed, grabbing Han Xiao's arm and exclaiming repeatedly, "That's great! I always believed you had this kind of potential. This way, we don't have to escape the Shattered Star Ring!"

"I wasn't planning on escaping in the first place..." Han Xiao said helplessly.

Aurora also came closer, her face full of surprise. "So, you're already at the level of Master?"

Ames, it's time to have a good talk with her... Han Xiao's eyes flashed, and he nodded.

"You..." Hela hesitated, seeming to want to say something, but in the end, she swallowed the words back and turned it into a dry sentence:

"Con, congratulations."

Her mood was very complicated. She had always wanted to catch up with Han Xiao's pace. When Han Xiao was a Calamity Grade, she could still repeatedly work hard, but this time was different.

In the ten years in Longtan, she had experienced the power of the Dragon Throne countless times, and she was very clear about how powerful the Super-A Grade was. At the same time, she was also very clear about how difficult it was to become a Super-A Grade.

In all these years, there were only four Super-A Grades in the entire Star Field. Now, Han Xiao had come from behind and become the fifth. Hela had known Han Xiao for nearly twenty years. She had seen him at his weakest and most helpless, and she had also seen him invincible at the Calamity Grade. She had almost witnessed every stage of his development.

From an ordinary person to the current new Super-A Grade, Han Xiao had only spent twenty years. He might be the fastest person in history to become a Super-A Grade. It was precisely because she knew Han Xiao's past so well that Hela knew how difficult it had been for him to come this far.

Even if Hela was stubborn and refused to admit defeat, she couldn't help but admire Han Xiao's current achievements from the bottom of her heart.

If Hela originally had the idea of competing with Han Xiao, at this moment, she was willing to become the shadow behind Han Xiao's brilliance.

She had a feeling that she might be witnessing a living legend.

Of course, with her personality, it was impossible for her to reveal her true thoughts from the bottom of her heart to Han Xiao.

Hela pursed her lips and changed the subject. "How did you do it? Can you teach me?"

Uh, this can't be taught. You don't know how to harvest leeks... Han Xiao coughed and put on a serious expression, placing his hands on Hela's shoulders.

"No, you don't need me to teach you."

"What do you mean..." Hela was puzzled.

Han Xiao looked directly into Hela's eyes and said slowly, "I have always believed in your potential, just like you believe in me. One day, you will stand shoulder to shoulder with me at the top of the galaxy."

Hela broke free from Han Xiao's hands, turned around, not letting Han Xiao see the panicked look on her face that she almost couldn't hold back, and said in a low voice, "Thank you."

So, you trust me so much. I didn't even know...

"Why are you thanking me?" Han Xiao waved his hand. "We've known each other for twenty years."

At this time, Aurora grabbed the corner of Han Xiao's clothes and asked curiously, like a spoiled child, "What about me, what about me? Do you believe in me?"

Han Xiao helplessly touched her head. The texture was smooth and comfortable. "Let's talk when you reach Calamity Grade."

"Hmph, biased." Aurora turned her head away.

In any case, the news of his becoming Super-A really surprised Fording and the others for a while. Then the topic returned to handling the follow-up issues.

"Black Star, you took away Sisko's Evolutionary Cube. He won't give up easily, will he?"

"Yeah, he said he would join forces with the Tyrant to deal with me. Compared to the benefits contained in the Evolutionary Cube, this risk is already very small. We don't have to worry about him in the short term. He's busy right now." Han Xiao shook his head and smiled. In his observation mark, Sisko was still on that planet, urging Sedum to knock out a spaceship with a pile of completely scrapped parts.

Fording frowned. "Sisko and the Tyrant joining forces... that's also very dangerous."

Han Xiao waved his hand. "It's not a big problem. Although I'm a new Super-A, I'm not at the bottom of this level. Besides, I also have allies."

Isn't it just calling for people? It's not like anyone doesn't know how to do it!

Compared with other Super-As, his biggest advantage was that he had a clear path for upgrading.

Other Super-As at this level needed to find their own way to continue evolving, like groping forward in a darkness, while he was like carrying a flashlight with him, just harvesting leeks to level up. The growth efficiency was worlds apart.

"Then how are you going to deal with the Evolutionary Cube?"

"Let's take it back to the legion first and let the cadres enjoy the effects of the cube." Han Xiao touched his chin. "Then we'll use the Evolutionary Cube to unite allies and find new backers."

Sisko had the support of the Arcane Church. He had the same effect with the Evolutionary Cube. The Evolutionary Cube was a py artifact.

Compared with the former holder Sisko, his advantage was that the Evolutionary Cube was in portable mode. He, a Super-A Grade, carried it with him, eliminating the possibility of being stolen. The safety was much higher.

The news of him holding the cube would eventually spread throughout the galaxy. Sisko would never help him hide it. He might even want to create more opponents for him.

At that time, all the forces in the galaxy that coveted the Evolutionary Cube would set their sights on him. Therefore, relying on the Black Star Army alone was not enough to occupy the Evolutionary Cube for a long time. He still needed to find a new backer like Sisko.

*Di Di...*

At this moment, the communicator suddenly received a communication. Han Xiao glanced at it and saw that it was Leif, the superior of Zero Unit, who had sent the communication request.

Han Xiao waved his hand, signaling Hela and the others to steer the spaceship. He walked to the side and answered the communication.

"Black Star, I have terrible news!"

"Saying that, it's not like there's ever been good news." Han Xiao was in a good mood and joked.

Leif didn't pick up on it. His face was extremely serious. He said in a deep voice, "Just a few days ago, we confirmed some intelligence. The negotiations between the Crimson Empire and the Purple Crystal Civilization have come to a successful conclusion. The transfer of ownership of that new Star Field has entered the execution phase. This means that after the Crimson Empire takes over that new Star Field, they will turn around and deal with the aftermath of the Red Tide in various places, dealing with the mess they caused... Our secret war with Klent will also enter the Crimson Empire's liquidation phase. Perhaps the war will only last for another half a year!"

"Oh?" Han Xiao's heart stirred, and he muttered, "This is indeed bad news."

Currently, the War Domain still occupied several border Star Systems of the Colton Star Cluster. Klent was the Crimson Empire's diehard lackey. The Crimson Empire would use this as an excuse to divide these border Star Systems into the Star Cluster territory of the Klent Empire. Defining the Star Cluster area was originally a power that the three Universal Civilizations had "given" themselves. If they did not drive away the War Domain before this, the Purple Crystal Civilization would very likely lose the territory of these Star Systems.

The Shattered Star Ring was the management area of the Purple Crystal Civilization, but unless the Purple Crystal Civilization gave up its consistent neutral stance and became someone else's subsidiary civilization, they could not expect him to uphold justice. The Crimson Empire and the Purple Crystal Civilization would exchange benefits at a higher level. The Purple Crystal Civilization did not even have the qualifications to intervene and could only watch as its territory was ceded.

Of course, the Purple Crystal Civilization could stubbornly resist the decisions made by the three Universal Civilizations and unilaterally not accept the terms of dividing the territory, but the outcome would not be so good—as the rule makers, the three Universal Civilizations would not allow any civilization to provoke their authority. The three parties were all powerful civilizations that had experienced the dark forest period of exploration. It was unrealistic to expect them to be benevolent.

With the strength of a civilization that towered over the entire Star Sea, they had countless methods to make the civilizations that provoked them submit. For the rule makers, the rules were only things that allowed state officials to set fires, but did not allow commoners to light lamps.

Therefore, Han Xiao was not surprised by the appearance of the Silver Revolutionary Army, but it was too early to talk about this now.

"Black Star, your vacation is over. We need your strength. We'll take back as much territory as we can." Leif had a solemn expression.

Han Xiao touched his chin and suddenly made a decision. He smiled and said, "Klent's biggest reliance on seizing territory is the Crimson Empire, but I actually have a way to make the Crimson Empire stay out of it and not negotiate with the Purple Crystal Civilization for Klent. Even if the War Domain occupies the border Star Systems, it will be useless."

Leif's eyes lit up, and he couldn't wait to ask, "What method do you have?"

"I..." Han Xiao suddenly thought of something and dispelled his plan to tell the Purple Crystal Civilization that he was already Super-A. He casually said, "In short, the feasibility is quite high. I have to keep it a secret for now. Just believe me. Anyway, the situation can't get any worse."

It wasn't that Han Xiao was deliberately hiding his Super-A Grade strength, but he suddenly thought that if the Purple Crystal Civilization learned about this, they would definitely can't wait to publicize it to deter the War Domain.

This was actually a bit bad for him.

His original plan was to keep a low profile after advancing to Super-A, secretly accumulate strength to continue leveling up, and then let the Tyrant underestimate his strength after the Tyrant attacked, secretly ambushing him. However, because of the Evolutionary Cube, it was impossible to hide his strength, but Han Xiao didn't want the Tyrant to attack immediately.

He needed some time to build a new mechanical army, a new Super-A Grade base, and activate many of the Emperor Mechanic's skills to maximize his combat strength. Instead of letting the Purple Crystal Civilization publicize it, it was better to let the intelligence revealed by Sisko slowly ferment in the Star Field. This could give him more preparation time.

There was another reason for not telling the Purple Crystal Civilization—Han Xiao planned to sit on the ground and raise the price.

If he was a normal Super-A Grade, allying with a Star Cluster Civilization was the best choice because he would receive enough attention. The Tyrant did this, but the Universal Civilization welcomed Super-A Grades to join, but they would not value them as much as the Star Cluster Civilization. After all, things were valued because they were rare.

However, the Evolutionary Cube was different. This cosmic treasure was the only one in the universe. With Sisko's example, the Universal Civilization would give a higher price. In this way, the Black Star Army's level of influence would rise to a new level.

Due to the Shining World, Han Xiao had already decided that the Crimson Empire was the most suitable ally.

With his status and the Evolutionary Cube, he could fundamentally solve the secret war after becoming an ally of the Crimson Empire, foiling Klent's ten-year plan.

According to the normal method, the s-grade main storyline of the secret war should end in failure. Although he could get rewards because of the special nature of the mission, the mission evaluation would be lowered, and the Black Star Army players would not get the best rewards.

Considering that he had to maintain the players' trust in the Black Star Army, joining the Crimson Empire was the best choice.

Leif wanted to ask more questions, but Han Xiao directly turned off the communicator and came to the cockpit.

"Where are we going now?" Aurora sat in the driver's seat and turned her head to ask.

The corners of Han Xiao's mouth curled up.

"Back to the legion!"

...

A few days later, Sedum, who had disappeared for a while, finally returned to Mexborough and brought back surprising news. He claimed that he had personally seen Black Star, the Super-A Grade seed with the alias "Undying Body", officially become Super-A Grade.

This news quickly spread throughout Mexborough, but most of the travelers on this planet remained skeptical.

Black Star became the current fifth Super-A powerhouse in the Shattered Star Ring? Why was it so sudden? Even the Purple Crystal Civilization didn't react. Could it be a rumor?

This information sounded too much like a rumor, and there was no evidence. The interstellar citizens who had been bombarded by information explosion were dubious about this.

However, this news was personally admitted by Sisko, who was a guest on Mexborough!

All doubts disappeared, replaced by unparalleled shock!

The fifth Super-A Grade... was really born?!

My goodness, what huge news!!

The people of Mexborough who first came into contact with this news were stunned and couldn't wait to forward this news through their respective networks.

The rumor of Black Star fighting with Sisko spread from Mexborough to the entire Star Field like a virus.

A storm that swept through the entire Shattered Star Ring began to brew...