Chapter 1 The Legendary Mechanic's Attitude

The Godoran Guild's Calamity Grade first kill had been a hot topic on the forums, with players constantly discussing it. Although the Temple of Gods had been criticized quite a bit in recent years, this first kill was finally a chance to shine. Many players had an attitude of acknowledgment and praise, while also being curious about the army's attitude toward the matter.

Although the interstellar society was denouncing the incident, the players didn't care. They had all seen the Godoran Guild's post detailing the entire process, which clearly showed that Davis had actively antagonized the army. Furthermore, the Feynmann Civilization had repeatedly targeted and protected Davis. In their eyes, the Feynmann Civilization deserved what it got. They were only allowed to hit others, but others weren't allowed to hit them. It was clear they were taking sides, and being accidentally injured was their own fault.

However, regardless of the ins and outs of the external denunciations, it was an undeniable fact that it brought trouble to the army. Therefore, many players were watching to see what kind of punishment the army would impose on the Godoran Guild.

Seeing that the Godoran Guild had set a precedent, other large clubs became interested.

Although the first kill was gone, defeating a Calamity Grade Boss was itself a demonstration of the guild's strength. In the eyes of various clubs, once more and more guilds defeated Calamity Grade Bosses, this would likely become one of the basic qualifications for a large guild. When recruiting new members, if people saw that a guild hadn't even killed a Calamity Grade Boss, its competitiveness would immediately weaken. Naturally, the major guilds in various countries wouldn't want to fall behind.

However, this was currently limited to ideas. Since the Godoran Guild had paved the way, other guilds were waiting for the army's response, preparing to formulate action plans based on the army's attitude. In any case, the Bosses would definitely be fought; it was just a matter of what method to use.

Amidst the observation of many players, the official account of the Godoran Guild released a video, which was a conversation between Han Xiao and them. In just a few minutes, it immediately topped the popularity charts and was pinned to the top, attracting widespread attention on the forums.

Regarding Han Xiao's attitude, many players were first surprised, and then they felt great joy and began to discuss it excitedly.

[Germinal Leader is watching you: There's no punishment, as expected of the magnanimous Blackie!]

[The Most Handsome Guy on Aquamarine: Hahaha, I knew the Commander would still be reasonable. Otherwise, if they hid on the colony planets, we would have to keep getting beaten without fighting back. This is how it should be.]

[Imperial Concubine Washing Feet: The Commander's meaning is very clear. As long as our counterattacks against the enemy don't cross the line, the army will act as our backing. Perfect.]

[The Commander's Big Machine: Thank you, Godoran Guild brothers, for avenging me! Well done!]

[Poseidon: To be fair, this kind of leader is reliable. Blackie is still the same Blackie as before.]

[Meat Bun Beats Dog: I'm a complete newbie. Is this the treatment for old partners? Wuwuwu, I'm so touched.]

Many players analyzed it on the forums, confirming Black Star's meaning.

Firstly, as long as the targets of the guilds were hostile Calamity Grades, the army would not only not stop them but would also appropriately encourage them, such as providing certain technical assistance and helping them create an undisturbed environment to trap the targets as much as possible.

If accidental injuries were caused during the process of fighting the Bosses, as long as there was a reason – such as someone protecting the target – and the limit wasn't crossed, the army would not punish them. Although Black Star didn't explicitly state the standard for the limit, with the example of the Godoran Guild, as long as it didn't exceed the Godoran Guild's actions, there would definitely be no problems.

Many Huaxia players were quite pleased with Han Xiao's emotional play, and the vast majority of players who joined in later versions, although they didn't have much affection for Black Star himself, felt quite comfortable with the army's handling of the situation, and their wavering minds settled down.

Many guilds also had a weight lifted from their hearts.

They were also worried that the Godoran Guild would be severely punished because of this, such as being sealed by the Amber of Time. They were unwilling for their guild's backbone to face the risk of being "banned" at any time, and they could only consider leaving the army. Now that the faction's attitude was relatively reliable, they didn't have to make the worst-case scenario plan.

...

In the next ten days or so, the three great civilizations continued to stir up public opinion, and various denunciations were rampant, with a great momentum to force a palace, wanting to force the Black Star Army to give an explanation and deal with the people involved.

However, the Black Star Army remained unmoved. As for the inside story of the protection, it could be explained but wasn't necessary. They only stated that the matter was still under investigation, and they didn't accept accusations without evidence, treating the tide of public opinion deliberately promoted by the three great civilizations as nothing.

The civilizations in various star fields secretly inquired about the specific situation through various intelligence channels. They wouldn't easily believe the public opinion promoted by the three great civilizations, understanding that there must be unknown inside stories. The truth was naturally not as one-sided as the public opinion. However, the fact that Planet Billger was attacked was also a fact. Even if there was an inside story, it violated the Interstellar Agreement. Therefore, the major civilizations had been watching, acting as onlookers.

At this time, seeing the Black Star Army's attitude in the storm, many Star System civilizations couldn't help but feel a chill, sensing an ominous feeling.

The *Peace Treaty* formulated by the three great civilizations had always been their talisman. Those who violated the Interstellar Agreement would be severely punished. This was one of the important factors for them to maintain their rule. All along, the Black Star Army had been abiding by the Interstellar Agreement, like a tiger that had sheathed its claws and teeth, gradually making them used to ignoring the other party's danger… However, now was an extraordinary period. If the Black Star Army no longer strictly abided by the Interstellar Agreement, did the current three great civilizations still have the ability to restrain them?

The answer was obvious, almost none.

Currently, the three great civilizations had already used sanctions and bans on the association, closing it off to the interstellar society. This was much more severe than the usual handling of violations of the Interstellar Agreement. But in this way, the three great civilizations, apart from formally declaring war, basically had no further means of sanctioning the other party, but the other party wasn't afraid at all… Many civilizations were very clear that if the three great civilizations were willing to start a war, they wouldn't have waited until now. In the end, they were still wary of each other.

In this situation, the major civilizations didn't believe that the three great civilizations had the ability to continue to force the association to strictly abide by the Interstellar Agreement, meaning that the protection of the Interstellar Agreement for them would inevitably decline.

Of course, according to the Black Star Army's attitude, it was estimated that they didn't intend to blatantly violate the Interstellar Agreement, but Black Star would probably no longer restrain himself in some gray areas. And the three great civilizations, taking the overall situation into account, would naturally make trade-offs. As long as the association didn't openly provoke a civilization war, the three great civilizations would at most stir up public opinion to accuse them. It was impossible to expect them to take action.

After understanding these inside stories, many interstellar civilizations that had responded to the call of the three great civilizations gradually wavered. With the Black Star Army no longer restraining themselves, the talisman effect of the Interstellar Agreement was greatly reduced. Continuing to be tough against the association was clearly unwise… Even if they wanted to cling to the thighs of the three great civilizations, they couldn't immediately come forward and were just using them as pawns, and in the end, they could only bear the losses themselves.

Faced with this situation, many civilizations made similar decisions unanimously.

——When two behemoths fight, the unlucky ones are still us little shrimps. We can't afford to offend either side, so it's better to be careful and not jump around too happily. Responding is responding, but we should turn a blind eye to the super-A Grade Association's actions to integrate the black markets in various places. If the three great civilizations have the ability, they can send people to stop it themselves. Anyway, we won't put in much effort anymore. At most, we'll symbolically sweep around a bit.

This kind of consensus quickly spread among the high-level officials of multiple interstellar civilizations. Even the Feynmann Civilization, seeing this scene, felt a bit weak in confidence. When accepting interviews from various media outlets, although they were still accusing, their words were slightly restrained and contained a bit more caution.

...

"The Cancer of the Universe…"

Hormes browsed the public opinion on the quantum network, his expression quite grave.

He was a Calamity Grade esper, running a small-scale but well-known armed force in the Sea of Star Spirits, considered a local tyrant in the star system where he resided.

Since the Planet Billger incident blew up, Hormes had been paying close attention to it.

He had met Davis when he went to the Endless Star Cluster on a business trip. The two had some friendship, and they would occasionally chat to connect emotionally. Because of this, he learned about Davis' recent work.

Inspired by Davis, Hormes also secretly cooperated with the local civilizations to do the same thing as Davis, exchanging resources and benefits from the civilization by hindering the association's actions to integrate the black markets.

But this time, the incident startled Hormes.

His strength was inferior to Davis, and Davis had angered the Cancer of the Universe and was hunted down and killed. A warning bell rang in his heart.

When secretly obstructing the association, Hormes had also killed some Undying. He couldn't help but feel worried, fearing that the Undying would also band together to come after him. He wasn't as arrogant as Davis and didn't think he could withstand a large-scale vendetta from the Undying.

Originally, opposing the association was a risky endeavor, because the local civilization promised protection when necessary, which was why Hormes agreed to cooperate.

However, the Black Star Army's response to the Planet Billger incident made him start to fear. The Cancer of the Universe's attitude of revenge was so resolute that they didn't hesitate to violate the Interstellar Agreement, and the Black Star Army was unmoved… In that case, how much use was left of the local civilization's promised necessary protection?

"The risk is getting bigger and bigger. If the Cancer of the Universe comes to take revenge, my life will also be in danger… I can't continue any longer."

Hormes' expression was uncertain. He took out his communicator and contacted the local civilization's special liaison.

Soon, the communication connected, and the liaison's figure appeared on the screen, revealing a warm and respectful smile:

"Lord Hormes, what can I do for you?"

Hormes' tone was somber and went straight to the point: "From now on, the cooperation between us will be terminated. I will no longer continue to solve the black market takeover personnel for you. Let's cancel the previous agreement."

The liaison was stunned, looking surprised, and said anxiously: "This… this is too sudden. Are you dissatisfied with something in the agreement? We can talk about it. I will immediately…"

Hormes interrupted him and said in a deep voice: "I've already decided. You tell the higher-ups that the cooperation ends here. I'm out."

After speaking, without giving the other party a chance to speak, Hormes directly hung up the communicator, stood up, and paced back and forth in the room, still a little uneasy.

After hesitating for a while, Hormes gritted his teeth and strode toward the direction of the spaceport terminal.

"No, I can't stay at the base either. The enemy might come to settle the score. I should go out and avoid the limelight first."

...

Central Star Sea, the Three Great Civilizations' Joint Conference Room.

"Hmm, the Black Star Army's reaction is as expected. Black Star really won't fall for this kind of trick."

Louis looked at the report submitted by the public opinion control department and nodded to the other two.

"Hmph, that's a matter of course. If Black Star was naive enough to respond to public opinion and betray his own people, then he would be too easy to deal with. Where would we need to spend so much energy?" Mabrus crossed his arms and snorted coldly.

The Feynmann Civilization provided the public opinion ammunition, and they were just doing it conveniently, taking the opportunity to attack Black Star's positive reputation, but they didn't expect to force Black Star to submit with public opinion. That was obviously wishful thinking.

The head of the Arcane Church tapped the table with his finger and slowly said: "Although Black Star's positive reputation is decreasing, giving us more righteousness, his countermeasure of removing restrictions will only make the civilizations in various places more fearful. On the contrary, it's not easy for us to handle."

"Using the Cancer of the Universe to do dirty work, enhancing his ferocious reputation, it really is a good method." Louis frowned, "According to intelligence, quite a few Star System civilizations are unwilling to continue sending people to clean up the black markets. It seems we can only send out our Undying."

"Yes, Cancer of the Universe against Cancer of the Universe, the cost-effectiveness is the highest." Mabrus nodded.

The three great civilizations also raised a group of Undying. For them, letting the Undying fight among themselves was obviously more cost-effective than wasting their direct troops. Anyway, they didn't feel bad about the Undying dying.

The head of the Arcane Church said in a deep voice: "But the controllability of the Undying is too low, it's difficult to restrain them. If something happens…"

The three looked at each other, all feeling a headache.

The players under the three great civilizations were also difficult to control, and they had caused a lot of trouble, but the three great civilizations didn't have a good solution. They had punished them many times, but many of the people involved directly left, quitting the faction and defecting to other forces. There were also some who defected and became wanted criminals. Managing them too strictly led to a certain loss in the number of Undying.

As Version 5.0 started, the players' strength showed a trend of increasing again, and the three great civilizations also felt that the situation was grim, suspecting that the Undying had the potential to reach the Calamity Grade.

If there really was such a day, the Cancer of the Universe was the most suitable to deal with the Cancer of the Universe, so they had to have enough Undying in their hands, and they couldn't continue to lose them. Therefore, the three great civilizations now implemented special handling of the players. They tried not to punish them if they could, and they tried to suppress the mistakes they could suppress, but it was still difficult to curb the loss of Undying. The three great civilizations had been racking their brains over this problem.

Therefore, all three were envious of the Black Star Army. The Undying that they found difficult to control were already very obedient in the hands of the Black Star Army. In the entire universe, only the Black Star Army had the most effective restraint on the Undying.

And now, the Black Star Army had a trend of releasing this restraint. If the army really did this…

Mabrus shook his head and changed the subject, "Alas, these are all unavoidable countermeasures. Let's not talk about this first. The most important thing at the moment is to confirm whether Black Star can use the Sanctuary Revival again."

The other two nodded, but their expressions were quite grave, both knowing what the unspoken words just now were.

If the Black Star Army's Undying continued to develop according to the current trend, the future situation would likely evolve into one situation…

——Whether the Star Sea is chaotic or not is up to Black Star!