Chapter 1 The Search

The empire's search in the Shattered Star Ring lasted longer than anyone expected, and three months passed in a flash. Many of the empire's Super-A grades had also been stationed in the Shattered Star Ring for such a long time.

However, the empire's search did not yield significant results. Super-A grades who had infiltrated interstellar society and disguised themselves were too hidden and too flexible. In the past three months, the empire had only captured many spies from the Arcane Church. Occasionally, they would receive information on the whereabouts of Sagman and others, which would prompt the empire's Super-A grades to mobilize, only to find nothing.

These Arcane Church spies were interrogated severely to find out the whereabouts of Sagman and others. Under various methods, even spies from universe-level civilizations could not hide their secrets. However, the Arcane Church had taken preventive measures. These spies did not know the exact location of Sagman and others, but only followed orders to go to a certain place at a certain time. Some of the information was intentionally misleading to create a smokescreen for the empire, and very little of it was useful.

When the Arcane Church decided to activate its spy network in the Shattered Star Ring, it was already mentally prepared to lose them.

In addition to the Shattered Star Ring, the Crimson Dynasty and the Arcane Church were also not idle in other star fields. In the past three months, there had been multiple border friction incidents, and bilateral relations were strained, with a tense atmosphere, giving people a sense of unease.

In summary, the Crimson Dynasty aggressively questioned the Arcane Church, while the Arcane Church bared its fangs and claws, making unreasonable demands... At least from the outside world, it seemed that the two sides were about to break out into war.

However, as members of the empire's high command, Han Xiao and others received inside information from Tarrokov that the Arcane Church had recently contacted the Crimson Dynasty privately, and the two sides were already discussing solutions to this matter behind the scenes. The attitude of both sides was just for show, and in reality, a war would not break out.

The Arcane Church's compromise was also a last resort. Two of their own Super-A grades had been captured by the empire, and they had to be exchanged, otherwise, no other allies would be willing to risk their lives for them. A head-on confrontation would only make the Glory Federation laugh—right now, what the Arcane Church hated most was the Glory Federation, the bum.

The Glory Federation's actions in the Shattered Star Ring could not be hidden from the eyes of universe-level civilizations. They kicked them when they were down, fueled the flames, and searched for the whereabouts of Sagman and others like the empire. Although the cooperation between the two sides was limited to borrowing the High-Dimensional Apocalypse Transmitter, the Arcane Church was still angry.

The Shattered Star Ring was the Glory Federation's territory, with deep roots. Their intervention led to the large-scale exposure of the Arcane Church's spies.

Friction between civilizations was basically for the sake of gaining benefits, and supporting Super-A grades was also for this purpose. The Arcane Church hoped to resolve this dispute through diplomatic negotiations and redeem Dillon and Metis.

Fleets and various high-tech weapons were the basic military power of a civilization, while Super-A grades were special weapons of deterrence. In the Exploration Era, when enemy Super-A grade combatants were captured, they were either converted for one's own use or killed directly.

However, the Galaxy Calendar was more moderate than the Exploration Era. After all, compared to the past, the current interstellar situation was generally stable, harmonious, and peaceful. No one could shake the dominance of the three major civilizations, and the battlefield gradually shifted from military to political, cultural, economic, and diplomatic aspects, with less bloodshed.

Therefore, wanting to redeem people was not impossible, as long as one was willing to pay a heavy price, it was all negotiable. Because over the long years, the three major universe-level civilizations had all had Super-A grade combatants fall into each other's hands, and there might be similar situations in the future, so they had all defaulted to the unspoken rule of redeeming people, which had become a convention... But this treatment was only limited to the three of them, and Super Star Cluster civilizations did not have the right to redeem people.

Han Xiao did not care about this. His contribution points were already in hand, and since he had handed over the prisoners, their disposal was the empire's business.

He had been staying at the Black Star Army headquarters for the past three months. Even if he was conscripted by the empire, he would only send You Zu to lead the mechanical troops to battle, while he himself stayed at the headquarters and did not go anywhere.

Maximilien was the same as him. As a Mechanic who could dispatch remote troops to battle, the biggest benefit was that he could stay at home all the time.

Maximilien was an energy-branch Super-A grade Mechanic who stayed at the Black Star Army headquarters as a guest in order to exchange techniques with Han Xiao. The two got along very well, and after three months, their relationship had become much closer.

Han Xiao had thought that Ames would come to find him, but after Ames finished the Star Gate battle, she returned to Dragon Emperor Floating Island on her own, without mentioning it proactively. This attitude was like, I just did what I wanted to do, this little thing is not worth mentioning, no need to thank me.

This tacit understanding, where everything was understood without words, made Han Xiao feel quite satisfied. What a reliable ally.

During this time, he spent most of his time manufacturing machinery. With the newly acquired [Endless Materialogy], he was able to synthesize all kinds of unimaginable materials to improve the basic performance of many machines. This was a comprehensive enhancement to the combat power of the mechanical legion, which could put even greater pressure on Super-A grades.

The Mechanic Empire could deal with Super-A grades with just its remote troops, and could fight multiple Super-A grades at the same time in different locations. That was the orthodox Mechanic combat style. His own hard power in this area was still a bit lacking, and there was still a long period of accumulation, after all, he had only become a Super-A grade for about a year.

In the Beacon Star battle, his mechanical legion suffered considerable losses. If it weren't for his mechanical legion holding them back, everyone would have been done for. Han Xiao used this time to replenish a wave of mechanical troops.

The development of the Flickering World brought a steady stream of Enas. He was now wealthy, and one of the goals of building such a huge force was to ensure that he would not have to worry about the cost of manufacturing machinery.

Han Xiao gave the three newly available Apostle Weapon slots to Silver Flash, Vajra, and Frenzied Hunt. The three awakened their respective Apostle Weapons, traits, and abilities.

Silver Flash strengthened his ranged destructive power and was a firepower outputter. His Apostle Weapon was an enhanced version of his main body's transformed Star Destroyer Cannon, a weapon exclusive to him, named [Harbinger of Destruction].

Vajra's trait positioning was as a MT (Main Tank) meat shield with immense strength. His Apostle Weapon was an enhanced version of mechanical armor covering his entire body, like armor that could be detached and transformed into a giant shield that could self-repair, named [Colossus Battle Armor], making him even tankier. Vajra's size, coupled with this armor, inexplicably reminded Han Xiao of certain comic images from his previous life called "Celestials", with a six or seven point similarity in appearance.

Frenzied Hunt was a beast-type mechanical lifeform with a different body structure than others, twisted and angular, with a rugged and barbaric charm in its exquisite and complex design. A pair of mechanical wings were attached to its back, covering a range of dozens of meters when unfolded. Its overall appearance was like a combination of a tiger, panther, wolf, eagle, and dragon. Its trait positioning was as an assault force, agile and flexible. Its Apostle Weapon was an enhanced quick-warp module with the ability to blink continuously, named [Hunter Module].

Han Xiao's Apostle Weapon slots were basically given to mechanical lifeforms from the early days. They had been growing for a while and were more reliable, and he tried to give the slots to different types of mechanical lifeforms, striving to diversify the abilities of his Apostle Weapons.

In these three months, Han Xiao released faction missions, causing many players to run back to the Shattered Star Ring to participate in the search.

Undeveloped star fields were not as lively as explored universes. After staying in the Flickering World for a long time, players had a deep understanding of the vastness and silence of the universe. They often drove their spaceships through several star clusters without seeing anyone, and it was easy to feel a sense of loneliness due to their own insignificance. Returning to the Shattered Star Ring could change their mood, and many players felt that the world had become alive again.

Exploring unfamiliar star fields was indeed very epic, and the players in the Shattered Star Ring also knew that the Flickering World was definitely a major event, but after the actual exploration, the novelty faded. In comparison, some people were more willing to stay in the Shattered Star Ring, where there were countless NPCs in interstellar society, with diverse gameplay and rich events, which was more fun.

Han Xiao did not force these players. Although he occasionally joked that players were coolies, he knew very well in his heart the nature of players. Sometimes, interests had to give way to fun, which was the pursuit of most ordinary players.

He would not forcibly restrict the freedom of players. All he did was give out missions and rewards, and whether or not the players did them was none of his business. After all, these players did not yet know that the Flickering World in the next version would be the most lively place in the universe, without exception.

On the forum, Meatbun edited his recordings of the Beacon Star battle into a video, and some scenes that were not filmed were supplemented in the dungeon, which aroused a new wave of attention.

Everyone was very curious, and after watching it, they were amazed. A melee of eleven Super-A grades, this was the first time players had seen such a big scene.

It is worth mentioning that after Han Xiao obtained the dungeon generation rights for the Beacon Star battle, he created dungeon crystals and sold them in the faction store. Although the intensity of the dungeon far exceeded the level that players could currently withstand, he was sure that players were curious about the Super-A grade melee, which was a business opportunity.

As expected, the sales of the Beacon Star battle dungeon crystals remained high. According to statistics, the average survival time of players in this dungeon was about forty-seven seconds, suffering crazily but enjoying it.

Players were mainly curious about the strength of Super-A grades, and what they wanted to know most was the true combat power of Army Commander Han Xiao, and players now had a deep understanding of this.

An ordinary cannon fodder-type mechanical soldier, with the blessing of mechanical force, was equivalent to a Boss-level monster for players, and wiping out a ten-player team was as easy as chopping vegetables. They had almost no room to fight back, and even breaking through their defenses was difficult.

Looking at the universe battlefield, it seemed that Black Star had tens of millions of such mechanical soldiers...

After experiencing the journey of suffering, players had a clearer understanding of Han Xiao's actual combat power.

Since Version 1.0, Black Star's danger level had always been "extremely lethal," because "extremely lethal" was the highest level.

...

Knock, knock, knock.

The door of the mechanical modification room was knocked, and Han Xiao, who was debugging the assembly line, stopped his work and asked Phillip to open the door.

Laki and a Forbidden Sorcerer in a red robe walked in.

"Greetings, Your Excellency Black Star." The Forbidden Sorcerer bowed. "Master Austin sent me to receive the materials that were promised."

"Okay, I've prepared them long ago. Wait a moment, I'll have the workers move them onto your spaceship."

Han Xiao waved his hand and asked Phillip to contact the logistics department to send the several large boxes of amber spheres he had prepared to the other party.

This was one of the conditions agreed upon with Austin. The old geezer had kept his promise, so he would naturally not break his word.

The Forbidden Sorcerer bowed again, chatted casually for a few words, and then took his leave.

Han Xiao was about to continue debugging the machine when he turned around and found that Laki was standing next to him, with no intention of leaving.

"Why are you still here?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.

"Do you dislike me?" Hearing this, Laki looked sad. "As expected, people like me are not welcome anywhere. My superiors don't like me, I should just jump ship..."

"Don't talk nonsense, why would I dislike you?"

Han Xiao had a headache and quickly stopped him, saying angrily, "What do you want to say? If you have nothing to say, hurry up and go back to slacking off. Don't disturb my positive attitude."

"Sigh, you didn't used to be like this to me. You used to be so respectful when you asked me to enchant..." Laki sighed and said resentfully, "As expected, you can't stand me anymore..."

What's with this resentful woman's tone?!

Han Xiao's eyelids twitched, enduring the urge to hit him, and gritted his teeth, "Speak if you have something to say, don't disturb me if you have nothing to say!"

Laki shook his head and said, "I'm actually here to make a suggestion."

As soon as he said this, Han Xiao suddenly widened his eyes and looked at Laki with the eyes of someone who had discovered a new continent.

What's going on, isn't my vice president just a decoration?!

When did he start making suggestions!

Could it be that the sun is rising from the west today... Oh, an artificial sun, it can rise from anywhere it wants.

"You... have any suggestions?"

Han Xiao couldn't help but lower his voice, feeling inexplicably cautious, like a hunter meeting a deer in the forest, afraid of scaring away the prey, so he slowed his breathing.

"I heard from Master Milizaus that your several searches have been fruitless."

"And then?" Han Xiao nodded. Milizaus was an arcane master who seemed to appreciate Laki for some reason.

As the vice president of the legion, Laki also had a status and had been in contact with Milizaus frequently recently, asking for a trick or two of arcane magic. Even for Han Xiao's sake, Milizaus would not refuse.

"The Shattered Star Ring is so big. If Super-A grades are determined to hide, how can you find them? I think you should give up the search and let the Crimson Dynasty find them themselves. Don't waste manpower and resources." Laki said.

"That's strange, why are you suddenly concerned about this kind of thing? Did you take the wrong medicine?" Han Xiao asked suspiciously.

"As the vice president, isn't it normal for me to care about the development of the legion..." Laki looked distressed. "It seems that in your heart..."

"Stop!"

As soon as he heard Laki speak, Han Xiao's head hurt.

Speaking of which, most people who had been in contact with Laki for a long time would have this reaction. Han Xiao decided to name this symptom "Laki Syndrome" in his heart.

"Okay, I've heard your suggestion, I'll adopt it depending on the situation... Can you leave now?" Han Xiao asked with a smile, his forehead veins throbbing, patiently.

"...You still dislike me after all."

"Get out!"

...

Shattered Star Ring, a large neutral spaceport.

On the bustling pier street, Sagman and Taylor D were mixed in the crowd. The two were disguised with magic, turning into two ordinary-looking Aso people. This was a humanoid creature with blue skin. The more obvious features were purple eye circles, only three fingers on each hand, and four auricles on each ear.

The two entered the port and underwent identity checks at the gate. Through facial recognition and communicator magnetic cards, the interstellar citizen identity database was searched. The screen showed that the person did exist, and the two successfully passed through the gate.

The disguises of the two came from the Arcane Church spies who had contacted them not long ago. The identities were real, and they had also obtained dozens of disguises that could be changed at any time, making it difficult to leave traces.

Entering the port hall, the two glanced around and found that there were several people in the corner of the hall whose actions were suspicious. They had been looking at passers-by, with an aura different from ordinary people.

Seeing this, the two spoke in their mind.

"They're scouts searching for us again."

"There are scouts even here. The empire is really using a lot of resources to hunt us down."

"I wonder how Nija is doing..."

After escaping from the Flickering World, the four parted ways, turning into three groups. Nija fled alone with the Scepter of the Everlasting, Sagman and Taylor D traveled together, and Cisco used the power of the Star Pupil Clan to act alone.

During this time, the scouts of the Crimson Dynasty and the Glory Federation were all over the Shattered Star Ring. Sagman and Taylor D struggled to move forward. Fortunately, they received help from batches of Arcane Church spies, which allowed them to hide their whereabouts and avoid being discovered.

The two were very depressed. As a Super-A grade, where would they not be respected? They clearly possessed great power, but now they had to avoid these weak scouts, hiding like rats and fleeing in panic... It was too frustrating!

The two had changed many spaceships along the way. Basically, they had to change one every time they went to a place. They had recently purchased a new spaceship at this spaceport with clean Enas, which was being stored in the port's hangar. The two were preparing to set off again.

As they were walking, a slight commotion came from one of the pier passages. This bit of movement could not escape the perception of the two.

Looking over, they saw a group of interstellar warriors in armor walking out of the passage. The armor's chest was engraved with the mark of the faction to which they belonged, like a black star emitting light. It was the Black Star Army's mark.

The crowded crowd made way for a path, and each person focused their respectful gaze on the Black Star Army warriors, paying their respects.

As a rising Super-A grade force, members of the Black Star Army would be watched by people in many places, enjoying special treatment.

Sagman frowned. "It's someone from the Black Star Army."

"Black Star's subordinates are very strange. Avoid them."

The two withdrew their gazes and hurriedly left in another direction.

At the same time, the group of Black Star Army warriors walked through the crowd, quite enjoying the respectful gazes of these passers-by, casually scanning the crowd.

Just then, one of the army members suddenly looked in the direction where Sagman and the other were leaving, a little puzzled, and nudged the companion next to him.

"Strange, I seemed to see two red names over there just now. They disappeared in the blink of an eye. I don't know if I saw it wrong."

"This is a neutral port, maybe they're space pirates or something."

"Go check it out?"

"Well, sure, we're here to turn in a mission anyway. We can earn some extra money by taking down a wave of space pirates along the way."