Chapter 1 The Value of the Evolutionary Cube

"The value of the Evolutionary Cube should be self-evident. Now, this cosmic treasure coveted by countless forces is in Black Star's possession, which poses a great risk to the empire. However, a cosmic civilization won't force a Beyond Grade A ally to hand over a cosmic treasure, so it tacitly approves of Black Star's ownership of the Evolutionary Cube, but this doesn't mean the empire is completely at ease."

Herber let out a faint hmm. "Indeed, continue."

"Only when the Evolutionary Cube is in the empire's hands can this risk be eliminated. Although the Beacon Star battle was a victory, it also sounded an alarm within the empire. Rather than trusting Black Star's combat power, it's better to prevent similar incidents from happening again. The Glorious Federation's high-dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter is always a threat. Just imagine, the Glorious could gather a group of Beyond Grade As at any time to raid the Black Star Army headquarters. How dangerous is that?"

"The Glorious would have done it long ago if they could," Herber said, unmoved.

"Yes, considering various factors, the Glorious Federation won't take risks rashly, so they have adopted a roundabout approach, wanting to put pressure on the empire and Black Star... But if various methods have no effect, the possibility of taking risks will increase."

Herber remained noncommittal and said faintly, "Even if there is an external threat, the empire won't force him since Ulan Rier values Black Star. The success rate of your plan is negligible. I advise you to give up as soon as possible."

"We still have to try," Loffier said slowly. "Black Star is close to the empire's Head of State faction and receives a lot of protection, but you also know that there are many factions within the empire. Since the Evolutionary Totem appeared, the calls for Black Star to hand over the Evolutionary Cube have become louder and louder. Black Star's refusal to settle on the empire's mother planet with the Evolutionary Cube has also strengthened the resolve of more factions."

Herber frowned. "You seem to know quite a lot."

Hearing this, Loffier smiled mysteriously.

"Because... I'm not only representing the Glorious and the Void Spirits."

"Hahaha—" Herber suddenly laughed, his tone playful. "Your appetite is really big, wanting to eat three families at once. No wonder. I was wondering just now, if Black Star handed the Evolutionary Cube to the empire, the Glorious and the Void Spirits wouldn't even have a last chance to take a risk. So that's how it is..."

Loffier smiled without answering, secretly marveling at Sorokin's courage in his heart.

Sorokin outwardly agreed to the deal with the Glorious and the Void Spirits. In secret, he contacted some factions within the empire, changed the plan to suppress the Black Star Army, and said it was to promote Black Star's handing over of the Evolutionary Cube. He conducted a second transaction behind the scenes, making the Infinite Consortium's intention to suppress the Black Star Army conform to the interests of the three parties.

This was both leaving a way out and maximizing profits. Sorokin was not a guy who obediently followed orders; he had his own interests.

The Infinite Consortium had developed to its current scale and no longer made war money. The series of upheavals brought about by the Beacon Star battle had caused fluctuations in the Infinite Consortium's stock price and market, resulting in no small losses.

In order to prevent such a situation from happening again, Sorokin would rather become a pacifist, completely cutting off the possibility of the Evolutionary Cube provoking a war and eliminating the possibility of the two families taking risks, thus resolving the conflict between the three major cosmic civilizations.

If the Evolutionary Cube fell into the empire's hands, the risk of cosmic turmoil could be eliminated.

He superficially agreed to the Glorious and the Void Spirits, but was actually a third-party.

Loffier paused and said in a deep voice, "When the empire owns the Evolutionary Cube, and the benefits of the Evolutionary Totem are entirely in the empire's hands, Black Star will be kicked out of the game. In this way, the empire will change from a partner to a beneficiary, enjoying all the benefits, and the possibility of opening up purchase rights to the outside world will increase accordingly. This can satisfy the Glorious and the Void Spirits' goal of exerting pressure... They also don't want to take risks. Completely cutting off this thought may even make them breathe a sigh of relief."

"Sorokin... Humph, this guy is a bit interesting." Herber narrowed his eyes and said slowly, "After saying so much, the premise is that Black Star hands over the Evolutionary Cube. If that doesn't happen, all of this is just empty talk. What exactly do you plan to do?"

Hearing this, Loffier was overjoyed. Herber's question meant that he was tempted.

"It's very simple: apply both internal and external pressure on Black Star at the same time, so that he sees that the benefits of handing over the Evolutionary Cube are greater than keeping it."

"Tell me about it."

"In the Beacon Star battle, Black Star achieved huge victories, thus silencing those factions that demanded he hand over the Evolutionary Cube, but the empire's casualties were also real. As long as the empire's losses on the Evolutionary Totem issue continue to increase, Black Star will encounter more pressure from within the empire, and even Head of State Ulan Rier won't be able to suppress it all... However, this aspect is the work of the Glorious and the Void Spirits, so I can't reveal it."

"What about external pressure?"

"This requires dealing with the Black Star Army itself, so we need your help."

"If you want me to betray the empire, then forget it."

Loffier smiled. "Don't worry, this is absolutely beneficial and harmless. Even if you don't target the Black Star Army, the War Realm will still make money, and there won't be any conflict with the empire."

"How to do it?"

"It's very simple: our Infinite Consortium will invest funds and cooperate with the War Realm to expand business, take back the market that was snatched away by the Black Star Army, suppress the Black Star Army's business, and jointly develop the Flickering World territory. We will use our influence in the empire to obtain a better territory for you.

You are also an ally of the empire. The two companies are engaged in legitimate business competition, and the empire won't have any objections... The strength of the Infinite Consortium is clear to the Overlord. With our investment, whether the plan succeeds or not, the War Realm will always be in an invincible position."

Hearing this, Herber closed his eyes and pondered. After a few seconds, he opened them again and replied faintly:

"Okay, I agree."

Loffier breathed a sigh of relief, and his tense nerves relaxed. He chuckled, "In this deal, the only loser is Black Star, but for the sake of cosmic peace, we can only wrong him."

"Cosmic peace, ha..."

Herber sneered in his heart, but there was no expression on his face. He said slowly, "The Glorious Federation, the Void Spirit Religion, some factions of the Crimson Empire, plus my War Realm. Humph, the Infinite Consortium's actions are really not small, creating an anti-Black Star alliance."

"This is business, not a personal grudge." Loffier smiled indifferently. "I hope he knows what's good for him. Anyway, he won't hand over the cube for nothing. The empire will definitely give him enough compensation."

Herber secretly curled his lips. Although he didn't like Black Star, in his opinion, the probability of Black Star compromising was infinitely close to zero. That bastard's ability to withstand pressure was terrifying. Even if Loffier made it sound like heaven, he still didn't have high hopes for the Infinite Consortium's plan.

However... the War Realm would not lose anything anyway, so Herber was happy to cooperate with the Infinite Consortium and take the opportunity to develop himself. He was unwilling to sit idly by and watch Han Xiao leave him further and further behind.

…

The next day, Black Star Army headquarters.

There were still a few days before the official gathering, and many guests were mingling with each other, expanding their social circles. It was very lively.

Han Xiao visited Sorokin early in the morning and invited him to visit the army headquarters. Sorokin gladly agreed.

The two chatted as they strolled around the headquarters. Han Xiao once again made a request to spar, but Sorokin still politely declined. Han Xiao was a little helpless.

The guy just wouldn't fight and directly admitted defeat, without any of the mentality of a strong person who refused to admit defeat.

Just as Han Xiao was hesitating, Sorokin seemed to suddenly remember something.

"I heard that Izo is here with you?"

Han Xiao raised an eyebrow. "You know that wreck... cough, old guy?"

"I met him a few times when he was still an Ancient One, and I once invited him to join the Infinite Consortium, but he refused," Sorokin said, shaking his head.

This old man Izo is really a social butterfly. Wherever he goes, there are big shots who know him... The corners of Han Xiao's mouth twitched.

"By the way, I also seem to have heard that Ames and you are in a romantic relationship?"

Han Xiao was stunned. "Where did you hear that from?"

"It's spreading in many places. I just happened to hear it," Sorokin said with emotion. "Marriages between Beyond Grade As are too rare. I can't even remember who the last couple was."

"The dignified leader of the Infinite Consortium actually has the time to pay attention to such gossip." Han Xiao shook his head helplessly.

"It is precisely because I am the leader of the consortium that I need to pay attention to any news. Business opportunities are often hidden within it," Sorokin said with a smile.

Han Xiao's eyes rolled, and he suddenly remembered something. "If I remember correctly, you seem to be the successor of the Infinite Consortium, not the founder."

"That's right."

"There is very little information about you in the universe. I'm a little curious about your experience before becoming a Beyond Grade A."

"Haha, is Your Excellency Black Star so concerned about my childhood?" Sorokin smiled.

In the eyes of many Beyond Grade As, the life before reaching Beyond Grade A was no different from childhood.

"Just curious." Han Xiao waved his hand.

"Those are all things of the past. It's nothing more than training and fighting. There's nothing to mention," Sorokin said with a smile, suddenly asking in return, "I wonder what Your Excellency Black Star's ambitions are?"

"Ambitions? Does cosmic peace count?" Han Xiao joked.

"What a coincidence, me too," Sorokin said with a laugh.

While chatting idly, Han Xiao used his mind in two ways, secretly entering the quantum network vision and contacting Izo. He soon hacked into Izo's communicator.

An old face suddenly appeared in the quantum network vision, clearly startled.

"Black Star? I'm watching a show. What are you doing hacking my communicator?!"

"Old man, I have something to ask you. Do you know Sorokin?"

Izo was stunned and asked in confusion, "I know him. Why are you bringing him up?"

"He's right next to me. I'm quite curious about him. What kind of person was he when you knew him before?"

Hearing this, Izo pondered for a while and said, "Sorokin... tsk, a cunning and treacherous guy. You never know which of his words are true. When dealing with him, you'd better be careful."

"Hmm... Then how is his combat power?"

"I don't know. He's stronger than me anyway." Izo spread his hands.

"You're just talking nonsense." Han Xiao was speechless.

"Alright, stop bothering me. Hurry up and restore my communicator to normal. I want to continue watching the show."

Helplessly disconnecting the communication, Han Xiao exited the quantum network vision, turned his head, and glanced at Sorokin. He made up his mind and directly threw a punch at him, the speed of the punch like lightning.

"Hmm?"

Sorokin reacted quickly and raised his arm to block the punch.

Dong! There wasn't much force on the fist, but it made a muffled sound, and a ring of air shockwaves vibrated out.

"...Your Excellency Black Star, what do you mean by this?" Sorokin narrowed his eyes.

"You said you've abandoned fighting. I still don't believe it. I'm just testing your reaction speed." Han Xiao smiled, not hiding anything.

Sorokin frowned, then smiled and shook his head, "As a Beyond Grade A, I still have this much reaction speed. If you were a Martial Artist, I wouldn't be able to stop this punch. Your Excellency Black Star, please don't scare me again. I'm really not your opponent."

"Okay, I was rash. I'm sorry," Han Xiao casually retracted his hand, pretending not to care.

Seeing this, Sorokin breathed a sigh of relief. He didn't expect Han Xiao to dare to attack even at the cost of offending him. He thought he was forcing him to spar, but Black Star only made one move and stopped. He was so easy to talk to, which surprised him.

After thinking about it, Sorokin was relieved. Black Star had once brazenly killed his affiliated forces, and in his eyes, his character was decisive. Although the sudden attack was unexpected, it was in line with the image of Han Xiao in his mind.

However, he didn't know that the battle information triggered by this strike was enough for Han Xiao to see his true strength.

Han Xiao quietly opened the panel, glanced at the battle prompt, and his eyes suddenly narrowed.

"As expected, I didn't guess wrong. This bastard is indeed not simple..." His level was actually a question mark!

"When I was at Level 280, Madison's level was a question mark. Now that I'm at Level 300, Sorokin is also a question mark. Is this guy's combat power also at the peak Beyond Grade A level?! He's been hiding it for so long, making all the Beyond Grade As think he's very weak... What is this pig pretending to be a tiger trying to achieve?"

Han Xiao's mind raced, and his eyes narrowed instantly.