The silver alloy doors slid open slowly to the sides, revealing a room constructed entirely of high-polymer materials. The walls and floors were a pristine, milky white, their glaze-like sheen giving them a smooth, rounded appearance.
Five large display cases are arranged in a five-pointed star shape in the center of the room. Each case contains a Beyond Grade A Space-Time Amber, each in a different pose, with each person's expression frozen on their face. Apart from this, there is nothing else in the room.
This is my collection room.
The group entered the room, with Han Xiao leading the conversation, followed by Jotina and a group of former Beast Ancestor cadres.
The troops that had just gone out had destroyed the Beast Ancestor's base camp, and Jotina immediately brought a group of brothers and sisters over to thank them again. Han Xiao remembered that he had promised them a visit to Gorutan, so he brought everyone over.
This is his collection room where he keeps five Beyond Grade A prisoners. The display cases are labeled with the names of each prisoner: the Arcane "Red Devil" Tolain, the Glory "Lone Walker" Jack Gonitz, "Aura" Wormur, Hedis, and "Beast Ancestor" Gorutan.
Five Beyond Grade A specimens are displayed here, which is the best proof of the achievement. The scene alone is enough to shock everyone.
Jotina spotted Gorutan at a glance, and seeing her enemy, who had terrified her for years, frozen in amber, filled her with immense pleasure.
"You've finally met your match!"
Jotina clenched her fists excitedly, feeling that this was the happiest day of her life. The dark times of the past were gone, and the world before her seemed to have regained its color.
It was as if a refreshing breeze was rising in my mind, washing away the mountain of hatred, despair, and anger, leaving only the invigorating feeling of starting life anew and full of hope.
She turned to look at Han Xiao, her eyes filled with an overwhelming admiration and tenderness.
In her eyes, Black Star seemed to radiate a holy light, a guiding light leading her towards a new life.
Noticing the intense gaze in Jotina's eyes, Han Xiao's face twitched slightly.
He didn't have much contact with Jotina, but her straightforwardness and enthusiasm left a deep impression on him.
The rewards for [Liberate the Beast Ancestor's Forces] have been settled, and his favorability has increased significantly. He estimates that Jotina's loyalty is almost off the charts.
Han Xiao coughed lightly and said, "There are still some of you who haven't been assigned specific positions. We've just rescued a large number of the young offspring of the Beast Ancestor, so it's alright if we entrust these people to your instruction?"
"No problem!" Everyone nodded in agreement, quite pleased with the arrangement.
"You can take your time looking around here. I have some things to take care of."
Han Xiao made an excuse to leave alone. He knew that Jotina and the others had been suppressing their emotions for years, and he didn't want to disturb them. Anyway, with Phillip watching over them, he didn't need to stay there.
Back in his office, Han Xiao pondered the personnel configuration within the legion, lost in thought:
"Currently, I only have four top-tier Calamity Grade combatants under my command: Hadavy, Rotel, Fording, and Jotina. The other potential talents haven't fully matured yet. These dozen or so Beast Ancestor cadres who have defected are quite influential, and coupled with the batch of rescued Beast Ancestor cubs, they will form a new faction within the legion in time..."
The party has no factions, All Kinds of Oddities Black Star Army is also divided into various factions. If we don't count Han Xiao himself, they can be roughly divided into several major factions.
First, there's the veteran faction led by Melos, further subdivided into smaller factions like Sunil, Goddora, and Planet Aquamarine; this faction represents the Legion's long-serving members. Second, there's the academic faction led by Lagi and Nero, primarily composed of graduates from the Super Academy, and they are very active. Third, there's the mainstream faction, led by some later-joined Calamity Grade members; this is the largest faction, mainly composed of unaffiliated official soldiers and mercenaries. Fourth, there's the administrative faction led by Sylvia and Reynold, primarily consisting of non-combat clerks who manage the Legion's daily affairs, economic logistics, and other areas.
After Jotina and the others have established themselves in the legion, they will most likely band together to form a Beast Ancestor faction, or what might be called a faction that abandons darkness for light.
As for Hila, she works alone, doesn't cultivate confidants, and has no faction. The Royal Guards have limited influence over the various departments of the Legion, and their functions don't overlap, so they don't constitute a faction either. Rotel, Assassins Mutual Aid Society outside, is a secret and doesn't belong to any faction within the Legion.
These factions also fight amongst themselves in private, but they restrain themselves and are very careful to control each other. Every large organization will experience internal strife as time goes by or as it expands, but the Black Star Army is relatively young and has not been established for long, so the internal strife is very mild and is limited to internal competition for some business operations.
It's impossible to completely eliminate it. Everyone has their own thoughts, and you can't expect others to be selfless. Even a loyal core member like Melos has his own interests, which is to seek more benefits for the Sunil Race.
Power can constantly change people's minds. The longer senior officers serve the Legion, the more they want. Moreover, the superhumans who later joined the Black Star Army were seeking a broader future. Everyone strives for higher positions, and no matter how big the pie gets, competition will never disappear.
"The same goes for the Development Federation. It's just starting out now, and factionalism is vague. Once resources are integrated to a certain extent, it will definitely split into different factions..." Han Xiao thought to himself.
He guessed that the Three Universal Civilizations would use divisive tactics to infiltrate the Beyond Grade A Association. Some people did not wholeheartedly agree with the theory of the Beyond Grade A united front and were easily won over, while many more were wavering fence-sitters.
Beyond Grade A members are all unruly individuals, and the root of their factional divisions lies in differing opinions. The very structure of the Development Federation was destined to lead to future disputes, and the higher-ups, including directors, certainly understand the importance of sticking together. The association's resource integration phase is a crucial period of accumulation.
As the vice president, he was nominally overshadowed by Manison, but this did not diminish his influence. His voice came from two sources: his own strength and power, and his influence within the association.
"The resource integration phase is also an opportunity for me. I can leverage my strengths to build more connections, form my own party, and gradually narrow the gap in networks between myself and Manison... As long as I have more supporters, I can rival Manison in daily decision-making, which will also benefit my future re-election. If I don't do something, I might not even be able to keep my position as vice president..."
Han Xiao pondered for a moment; his decision to take a step back was precisely for the purpose of accumulating experience.
A good opportunity is coming up. Although the Three Universal Civilizations have tacitly acknowledged the legitimacy of the Development Federation, the Dark Emperor's mission is not over yet.
In other words, Clottey, the nominal honorary director, would also target other members, which would undoubtedly damage the reputation of the Development Federation. This is a provocation and contempt from a cosmic civilization, as well as an aggressive probe.
"In that case, those neutral Beyond Grade A hired by the Supercluster Civilization should be panicked. This seems like an opportunity for me to take advantage of the situation. If I exert influence on the Empire and get the higher-ups to stop the Dark Emperor's operations, I can not only demonstrate my importance as the vice president, but also gain the favor of these neutrals..."
With this in mind, Han Xiao had Phillip send a text message to all the neutral Beyond Grade A members in the association. He first inquired about their well-being, and then brought up the Dark Emperor, subtly hinting at the matter.
Although he decided to handle the matter personally, Han Xiao didn't want to keep a low profile. Helping others quietly is usually a backup plan; either he doesn't do it at all, or he lets everyone know that he's the one who did it.
Therefore, Master Han plans to first contact these neutral Beyond Grade A who are being targeted by the Dark Emperor, and have them raise this matter publicly at the next general meeting. All Beyond Grade A members hold general meetings every once in a while, and the pretext of Development Federation makes this behavior legitimate. This is also one of the original intentions of building a communication platform.
"Speaking of which, the Dark Emperor captured the Traveler, and this guy is trying to shift the blame to Sorokin. The Empire certainly won't let this go easily. I wonder what measures they'll take to punish the Infinite Financial Group."
Han Xiao chuckled.
Beep beep...
Just then, the communicator suddenly rang.
Glory and Arcane sent messages one after the other, containing the eleventh revised version of the redemption terms.
Han Xiao glanced through it and found that the compensation conditions for Glory and Arcane were much more generous than the initial version.
Because he didn't respond to the revision suggestions, the staff who drafted the terms from both companies were going crazy, and they deeply felt how terrifying a client who doesn't make specific demands can be.
"It's been several months, we've had enough of this torture, it's time for a resolution."
Han Xiao clicked his tongue and modified some conditions based on the two clauses, such as replacing some of the resource compensation with gold blueprints.
The two cosmic-level civilizations have abundant stockpiles of golden blueprints, and what they offer in exchange are all selected conventional equipment. But that's not important. Since this is one of the sources of Divine Transformation points, Han Xiao has a huge need for golden blueprints.
As soon as the two offers were sent out, the diplomats from Glory and Arcane were immediately excited and sent communication requests to Han Xiao to begin formal negotiations.
This time, Han Xiao didn't torment the other party anymore. After some bargaining, they reached an agreement that Han Xiao would gradually receive three blueprints for Universal Treasure.
The prisoners he planned to return in the first batch were one from each of the two families: Tolain and Hedis.
He hasn't sold the Glory Ones to the Arcane yet; while such provocation is effective, it also has its drawbacks.
Anyway, he still has two other Glory prisoners in his hands, which he can sell for a higher price. Han Xiao currently needs influence over cosmic-level civilizations to increase his voice in the Development Federation. The best course of action is to remain inactive. As long as he still has prisoners, the Federation of Light will have to save face for him to some extent, and the Arcane will also hold out their last hope. Therefore, he will not easily release all the prisoners.
Having finalized the agreement, Han Xiao looked at the two relaxed diplomatic officials and slowly said:
"I'm waiting for the day you issue a public apology."
The Glory and the Arcane issued a public apology for their attack on the Black Star Army, which was the first requirement of the reparations agreement.
"Okay, please stay tuned for the news."
The two diplomats exchanged different greetings, then disconnected, and the remote projection disappeared from Han Xiao's sight.
Han Xiao leaned back, crossed his legs, and muttered:
"The Glory Arcane have temporarily yielded, and the Empire has also fulfilled its public decree regarding the Evolution Totem, repairing relations with me. They won't openly use force against the Development Federation. As a result, the Three Universal Civilizations should be quiet for a while..."
He knew the nature of the Three Universal Civilizations very well, and estimated that things would remain calm for several months or even a year.
But this is only the calm before the storm, because the Three Universal Civilizations still have a nemesis to deal with: the Super Star Cluster Alliance, which has been quietly expanding in the Free Competition Zone while silently muttering "You Can't See Me".
Once the Three Universal Civilizations are ready, they will inevitably deliver a crushing blow to the Super Star Cluster Alliance. This time, they will not be as lenient as they were towards the Development Federation; they will use Thunder measures to thwart the unrealistic ambitions of these Supercluster civilizations. In other words, the reason why the Three Universal Civilizations are lenient towards Beyond Grade A civilizations is because the Super Star Cluster Alliance is the number one enemy that urgently needs to be dealt with.
"These six months to a year will be a good time for me to quietly accumulate experience."
Han Xiao glanced at the panel. Every day, a massive amount of experience was flowing in. Although the cost of leveling up from 320 to 340 was an even more outrageous astronomical figure, he could eventually raise the money in the face of this ruthless money-harvesting machine.
Now that players are familiar with the gameplay of the Shattered World version, they are gradually getting on track, exploring and engaging in PvP battles simultaneously, creating a lively and exciting experience.
Han Xiao planned to enrich their gaming experience by holding the legion tournament he had envisioned during this free time, turning it into a large-scale festival event for the faction.
As the saying goes, a horse won't get fat without night grass; when players are having fun, they're more motivated to grind.
Meanwhile, in a secluded location somewhere within the Black Star Palace.
A player named [Disco Elysium], led by two mechanical soldiers, passed through numerous security gates and walked into a dark and secluded passage.
The corridor was devoid of any decoration, except for the stark white ceiling lights that stretched into the distance, ending at a corner metal wall. The passage was completely silent, save for the monotonous sound of footsteps.
Disco Elysium felt the atmosphere was creepy and couldn't help but speak up:
"Hey buddy, where are we going?"
The two mechanical soldiers showed no intention of answering, not even turning their heads, their steps remaining perfectly synchronized.
"This is all so mysterious..." Disco Elysium shrank back, then opened the panel and muttered under his breath, "What kind of mission is this?"
In the task list, a task called [Special Experiment] is shining brightly.
Disco Elysium remembered that he hadn't done anything; the mission had suddenly been triggered by himself, requiring him to follow the mechanical soldiers to a designated location to conduct a special experiment. There was nothing else to say, but the reward was very generous, equivalent to the pay for seven or eight Grade B jobs.
Curiosity drove him to accept the task, and he unleashed his wildest ideas along the way.
Does this involve the Black Star Army's secrets?
Has the Legion actually been conducting secret experiments that violate some kind of taboo?
Why did it have to be me who triggered it? Could it be that I successfully smuggled myself into Europe this time?
Just as he was lost in thought, the two mechanical soldiers in front of him stopped. The passage ended at a simple, unadorned alloy door.
After swiping the access card, the door opened, and Disco Elysium curiously peeked inside, revealing a white laboratory.
At that moment, another player was already in the room, and he also looked over. The two looked at each other and were both stunned for a moment.
"You also accepted a mission?"
"[Special Experiment], right?"
"That's right, that's it. Do you know the mission details?"
"I don't know, I just arrived too."
"It's so mysterious, I love it!"
The two huddled together, chattering away as they exchanged information, their curiosity growing stronger.
Since we've come to such a secret place as headquarters, it must be something important.
Just then, a squad of mechanical soldiers pushed in two life support pods. Two of the mechanical soldiers took out sensory-blocking masks and handed them to the two players.
The captain of the leading mechanical soldiers said in a completely emotionless voice, "Lie down in the pod, put on the mask, and wait for the experiment to begin."
The two players looked at each other, then had no choice but to comply, suppressing their curiosity as they went to sleep inside the cabin.
Disco Elysium puts on the mask, he is instantly plunged into darkness, stripped of his sight, hearing, and smell, thus becoming completely unaware of anything happening in the outside world.
His hands and feet were tightly bound, and he was completely unable to move.
In this state, the waiting time is especially unbearable; every second feels like an eternity.
Disco Elysium grew increasingly curious, and even had several impulses to break free of his restraints, remove the mask, and see what was going on. However, the high penalty for failure in this mission made him hesitate.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but just as he was about to lose his patience, a notification suddenly popped up on the panel.
[Your B+ potential ability [Physical Enhancement - Musculoskeletal Inflation] has been stripped!]
[You have entered a [Ability Freeze] state, during which you are unable to use any skills related to your superpowers.]
[Duration: Infinite]
"W-what?!"
Disco Elysium paused for a moment, then suddenly turned pale.