Super Security Department, Warehouse 001 Screening Section.
The long tracks began to turn, and a hexagonal mechanical device, resembling a small shield, was brought in through the delivery port.
Soon, the device was transported to a transparent safe in the center of the room. It has multiple functions, including space stabilization, electromagnetic interference, biochemical disinfection, explosion resistance, and high temperature resistance.
Two staff members stood in front of the safe, operating a virtual screen to view information about the item.
"This item was sent from the Leighton Star System branch. Its purpose is unknown, and it doesn't have a designation yet. The item code is C57003A. It has been temporarily transferred to the headquarters warehouse. Hmm, it carries authorization from the higher-ups of the Federation of All Stars and has passed the inspection and approval of the supervisory AI. The paperwork is complete, and the note states that detailed testing of this item is not required..."
After checking and confirming that the permissions and procedures were correct, the two staff members conducted a basic inspection to determine that the item was not a dangerous explosive or a high-energy polymer. They then operated the main control screen to place the item in an empty warehouse and pressed the confirmation button.
Click click...
The next moment, four intelligent robotic arms extended from the wall, gripped the safe, and inserted it into the delivery slot on the wall. The internal transport pipes quickly operated, delivering the safe to its destination.
The cargo transportation network covers the entire warehouse, extending in all directions. It is equipped with simple magnetic levitation tracks, with white indicator lights at intervals. The high-speed transport of the safes is like traveling through a white light.
The Super Security Department's warehouse is enormous, divided into multiple areas. Each item has its own storage room, built side by side, and isolated from the outside world by high-strength transparent material, making it look like some kind of high-tech prison. Each storage room has a display stand, the base of which is connected to a network of transport pipelines, allowing for direct transport of the stored items without needing to open the door for storage or retrieval.
Furthermore, the warehouse is constantly equipped with devices such as spatial stabilization anchors, magic jammers, automatic defense weapons, and full-function detectors, making it impregnable. Any unusual activity will be detected immediately.
Soon, the display stand in an empty warehouse suddenly opened, and a safe was brought in, with the "Throne" lying quietly inside.
Meanwhile, the Super Security Department is holding an emergency meeting.
A dozen or so people with different appearances sat at the conference table. The medals on their bodies indicated their status, with the lowest being a deputy director at the Holy Body Grade.
Since losing track of Han Xiao and Kasuyi a few months ago, the Super Security Department has mobilized more personnel to form a special task force, consisting of a total of nineteen powerful individuals. Including Milton and his two companions from before, there are now five Supreme Grade superpowered individuals, making it a formidable lineup.
The goal was not only to apprehend the two individuals, but more importantly, to understand why the target was able to bypass the detection of the Positioning Star Map. Therefore, the Super Security Department spared no effort in organizing a large number of experts to ensure absolute success.
"... Several months have passed, and there has been no trace of Black Star and Kekezi. It's as if they've vanished into thin air. If we continue to allow such extremely dangerous individuals to roam freely, it will inevitably lead to disaster sooner or later!"
A senior department head spoke with dissatisfaction, repeatedly banging on the table and glancing at Milton intentionally or unintentionally.
Milton's face darkened.
He led the team but lost track of their target, so the responsibility naturally fell on his shoulders.
He felt he was just following the rules, but little did he know that the target could break free from the Positioning Star Map's lock. He could only bear the blame and kept hoping to catch Han Xiao and the other person to clear his name.
However, after several months, the task force made little progress, and Milton became the target of everyone's dissatisfaction. They complained that he hadn't seized the opportunity. He wanted to refute them, but he was speechless and could only sulk to himself.
"Beep beep..."
Just as everyone was discussing, a communication request came in; it was a call from the department head.
A virtual screen popped up on the conference table, and the department head said in a deep voice:
"Everyone, just now, the Positioning Star Map function was restored. We've once again pinpointed the coordinates of Black Star and Kekezi. The reason is currently unknown, but regardless, this is our only lead in months. Please proceed with caution and make sure we bring them back."
"Understood! We'll set off immediately!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Milton stood up abruptly, looking impatient, eager to bring Han Xiao and the other man to justice and make amends for his past mistakes.
Moreover, even though his own forces had an overwhelming advantage, he decided to proceed cautiously this time. He would use the advantage of the Positioning Star Map to ambush the target on their inevitable path, catching them off guard, all for the sake of absolute certainty.
In some part of outer space, a small spaceship maintained a low warp speed during a jump, with Han Xiao, Kasuyi, and Jess sitting in the cockpit.
"We've been deactivated by the Heaven-Shielding Device for so long, why haven't the pursuers arrived yet?" Kasuyi asked, looking at the star map.
Han Xiao glanced at it and casually said, "They're probably lying in ambush. After the lesson they learned last time, they won't attack us unless they're absolutely certain of victory."
"Nine people came last time; I wonder how many pursuers there are."
"There must be at least twelve, or to be on the safe side, maybe fifteen?" Han Xiao guessed.
At this moment, Jess slowly said, "Between eighteen and twenty people, of whom there should be five of the Supreme Grade. I understand their modus operandi."
"Tsk, so many people..." Han Xiao clicked his tongue.
Jess remained noncommittal, saying:
"Your Universe Iteration. Unless your advanced civilization conducts periodic purges, your population will only be larger than ours. Moreover, even if beings at the Holy Body Grade or above die, they won't easily disappear at the Information State level, so purges actually have limited effect..."
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao's heart stirred, and he suddenly thought of the Sanctum Organization.
"You mean, superhumans who reach the Beyond Grade A level can be resurrected through some means, like the Sanctuary?"
Jess glanced at him and nodded.
"The Sanctuary focuses on recording information that can optimize the universe, such as new cosmic treasures, advanced technologies developed by civilizations, and breakthroughs in personal power. Once an individual reaches the Holy Body Grade... which is what you call Beyond Grade A, you will be noticed by the Sanctuary and recorded in detail."
Each Holy Body Grade being is unique in the universe. When your life level sublimates, your projection at the Information State level also undergoes a transformation, imprinting itself on the Sanctuary. Death is not your end; the Information State grants you another form of immortality. If someone successfully establishes a connection with the Sanctuary, they can use a medium containing the information of a Holy Body Grade being, and through methods such as Information State interference, disturbance, and projection, to resurrect a deceased Holy Body Grade superhuman, thus reshaping their body and soul through the Sanctuary.
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao was secretly surprised.
According to his understanding, Beyond Grade A is a watershed moment. Reaching this level allows one to back up data in the Sanctuary. Even if one dies someday, there will be a chance to be resurrected through the Sanctuary. This is also the goal of the Sanctum Organization.
"There are nearly ten thousand Beyond Grade A here; some of them probably got their positions this way."
"Some?" Jess shook his head. "More than 80 percent of them were resurrected through the Sanctuary, and some have been resurrected more than once!"
"Tell me in detail." Han Xiao was quite interested; this kind of information couldn't be found online—it was all classified.
"It's quite simple. The target of the Sanctuary Revival Choice by future generations. Advanced civilizations will inevitably revive their direct descendants and obedient allies. Some people, in order to revive in the future, will join advanced civilizations or other major powers, working hard to obtain this revival agreement. In comparison, arranging for one's own descendants to carry out the revival is too uncertain, and the Sanctuary is not so easy to communicate with. Once it fails, it's all over. Those willing to take the risk are a minority. Over time, such people gradually disappear, and basically everyone will choose reliable advanced civilizations as their partners..."
"I see."
Han Xiao suddenly understood.
No wonder the Federation of All Stars has such good security and the Beyond Grade A members are so well-behaved. It turns out that most of them are good kids who have been screened and revived. As for those troublemakers, no one is willing to help them revive; they just die.
In order to continue the recovery, most of the Beyond Grade A here have buried their ambitions.
Moreover, as advanced civilizations continuously revive their own direct descendants and staunch allies, their number of powerful figures will only increase over time, naturally leading to a gradual increase in their control over the universe.
Due to various factors, fewer and fewer people are causing trouble.
Thinking of this, a word suddenly popped into his mind.
'This sounds a bit like the Investiture of the Gods...'
Han Xiao's heart stirred slightly.
The Three Universal Civilizations haven't even made contact with the Sanctuary yet, but once they reach that point, will the future situation of Beyond Grade A beings also become like this? Will this kind of balance form between individuals and groups?
Han Xiao couldn't help but ask, "Are there any restrictions on the Sanctuary Revival?"
"Of course there are limitations, and many of them."
Jess whispered:
"Firstly, only beings at the Holy Body Grade or above can be Sanctuary Revival. Weak superhumans are not qualified. You can also think of the Beyond Grade A as a resurrection license."
Secondly, there is the paradox of personality. We generally believe that subjective consciousness is the standard for distinguishing individuals. For example, if there are two people who are exactly the same in terms of both body and memory, then they are considered to be two different individuals as long as their subjective consciousness is separate. Although the strong who Sanctuary Revival inherited the memories of their death, whether they are the original individuals has always been a topic of debate. If the subjective consciousness has changed, then this form of resurrection should be put in quotation marks, and is more like cloning.
Third, individuals resurrected through the Sanctuary will randomly lose some abilities, which seems to be related to their original strength. The level of life affects the strength of the Information State; the stronger you were in life, the more complete your abilities will be when you Sanctuary Revival. However, the more times you are resurrected, the more severe the loss of information will become.
Fourth, the Sanctuary Revival is unique; only one you can exist in the universe at a time. If you do not die, the Sanctuary Revival is invalid and will not become a copy.
Fifth, it cannot transcend iterations; it can only revive individuals within the same iteration. Firstly, there's a lack of mediums, and secondly, there's some limitation I don't understand. I even suspect that the Sanctuary Revival isn't Sanctuary inherent ability, but rather the ultimate plan of a previous iteration that underwent a Great Restart, ultimately mutating into this form... Because of the Sanctuary's immortal nature, many civilizations, including ours, have used Sanctuary as a breakthrough point throughout various iterations; no one knows how many functions the Sanctuary has mutated."
Listening silently, Han Xiao secretly memorized these thoughts.
From a certain perspective, Beyond Grade A characters seem to share the same trait as players: they can continuously revive.
So, does that mean controlling the Sanctuary is equivalent to controlling the lifeline of most Beyond Grade A characters?
'I feel like I've gained some strange new knowledge; I'll have to find time to verify it with the Oathkeeper later.'
Han Xiao thought to himself.
Thump!!
Just then, the ship shook violently, abruptly exiting its warp drive, and a piercing alarm suddenly sounded.
"Warning! Warning! Spatial stabilization anchor detected, warp forced to abort! Unknown energy source detected rapidly approaching, take evasive action!"
Radar showed that nineteen Beyond Grade A energy sources were closing in from all directions.
"Looks like you guessed right, there really are nineteen people." Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"Normal operation," Jess said dismissively.
The three looked out the window and immediately saw Milton and other familiar faces. They realized that the spaceship had fallen into a spatial trap and was trapped.
At that moment, Milton's powerful voice rang out on the wide-area channel.
"Black Star! Kekezi! Surrender! Have some dignity!"
Call me the Void Venerable!
Kasuyi was furious.
Han Xiao opened the hatch, and the three of them flew out together. They were in the center of the encirclement, and a strong sense of oppression came from all directions.
"Hmm? Another accomplice?"
Milton frowned upon seeing Jess, but then relaxed his gaze.
In his view, the prey had no way out.
He was full of confidence for this operation; with nineteen men on board, victory was assured and there was no possibility of failure.
After months of pursuit, we were finally able to apprehend these wanted criminals today!
"Stop resisting immediately, obediently come back to the Super Security Department for interrogation, and explain clearly how you blocked the Positioning Star Map. You might then be able to negotiate leniency."
Milton, confident and composed, began a psychological warfare tactic, intending to weaken his target's desire to resist.
Han Xiao smiled meaningfully, his tone unreadable:
"No need to trouble you, we'll go ourselves."
Upon hearing this, Milton frowned, looking puzzled.
"What are you talking about... Where is everyone?!"
Before they could finish speaking, a mecha suddenly unfolded, enveloping the three of them, and vanished in a flash of light.
The next moment, all nineteen of the menacing agents were stunned.
Where did they go?!
We deployed space stabilizing anchors and teleportation jammers, how did these people escape?!
Milton paused for two seconds, then flew into a rage, veins bulging on his face.
They got away again!
Utter disgrace!
He immediately took out his communicator and looked at the real-time coordinates shared by the Positioning Star Map, intending to lock onto the location where Han Xiao and the other two had been teleported before they blocked the Positioning Star Map again.
However, the moment Milton saw the coordinates, his furious expression suddenly turned into panic and disbelief.
The other party's coordinates were shockingly located at the headquarters of the Super Security Department!
This is... a confession?
Bullshit! It doesn't look like they have any good intentions at all!
Their target was actually headquarters?!
"Are these people crazy?!"
Milton was shocked, furious, and horrified.
He couldn't understand why this group of people were so audacious.