Having successfully persuaded Carrot, Han Xiao had someone take him to rest, while he himself left the room humming a little tune, completely satisfied.
He had just stabbed the other person and seen Carrot's attribute panel. He had now obtained the most core specialty, called [Boundless Martial Arts], which was a growth-type ability with a rather complicated effect description, but it was extremely domineering.
In short, at each new tier, [Boundless Martial Arts] can undergo a transformation, requiring a new understanding of martial arts, honing of fundamentals, and accumulation of insights. Before this transformation, leveling efficiency is reduced by 90%, and combat power is weakened to some extent. After the transformation, leveling efficiency receives a positive boost, with the increase following an arched curve model, reaching a peak of 1000% in the middle, and granting a significant overall combat power bonus, the degree of which increases with level and understanding.
Generally speaking, the stronger a person is, the more bottlenecks they encounter. However, Carrot is different. His bottlenecks are mostly in the early stages. He has almost no bottlenecks as he gets stronger. As long as he reaches a certain standard, his combat power can snowball until he reaches the limit of that rank. If he enters a new rank, he has to repeat this cycle.
Carrot's slow advancement and difficult training after each promotion stemmed from this, but it also led to his solid foundation and eventual breakthrough. In the later versions of his previous life, Carrot was a leading figure in the Pugilist Class, much like the significance of the Mechanic Emperor to the Mechanic Class. He could take down a Little Tyrant and a Seven-Eyed Kid with a single kick, truly embodying the power to shake the stars.
After all, Carrot and that blond overpowered guy are only one character apart. This kid's title in his previous life was the unique "Martial God"!
Furthermore, [Boundless Martial Arts] can simultaneously enhance all of Carrot's martial arts skills, not only increasing their levels but also subtly adjusting their effects. It's almost tailor-made, transforming them into abilities more suited to Carrot's fighting style. The description explains it as a unique martial arts comprehension, allowing Carrot to integrate any martial arts style into his own martial arts philosophy, achieving mastery and adaptability, ultimately turning every move into his own unique style.
Han Xiao had never seen the [Boundless Martial Arts] specialty on any other martial artist. If it weren't for the lack of a suffix, he would have almost thought it was Carrot's exclusive specialty.
However, as impressive as this skill is, it's of little use to Han Xiao. After all, he's not a proper martial artist and doesn't have any martial arts insights, so this ability will never have a positive effect and will only be a hindrance to him.
"I still need to find him a teacher. There are quite a few clueless martial artists in the legion, but they're all at the Calamity Grade, their skill level is a bit lacking..." Han Xiao's mind flashed through a series of figures, and he pondered to himself, "It would be best to find Beyond Grade A to teach Carrot. Of all the people I know, the most suitable one should be Silver Shadow. These two were best buddies in their past lives, their compatibility is definitely good, and having Silver Shadow as his teacher would probably be very effective."
Han Xiao scratched his chin, suddenly feeling a sense of being forced into a romantic pairing.
After thinking it over, he realized he had several backup options, such as inviting martial artists from the Netherland to be his teachers, or releasing Gorutan temporarily while he was with the Book to teach Carrot.
With his current strength, Gorutan can no longer cause any trouble. Moreover, letting the prisoners out occasionally is the only way to prevent him from dying in the Space-Time Amber, which would prevent the Sanctuary Revival.
Carrot was the first of the Three Universal Civilizations' future direct descendants to be poached by Han Xiao, and he wouldn't be the last. Although the potential value of other targets was not as great as Carrot's, Han Xiao did not intend to let them go.
As he walked and pondered, Han Xiao returned to his office, temporarily setting the matter aside and summoning Phillip to handle legion affairs.
The positions of this batch of Beyond Grade A Seed need to be arranged, and under their influence, a large number of superhumans have joined the Legion. The human resources department is currently screening and processing them, and they are quite busy lately.
After finishing his business, Han Xiao took out his communicator, glanced at the internet, and let out a soft hum.
"Public opinion is still heating up, and it's likely that more than just advanced civilizations are fanning the flames; there are definitely others who thrive on chaos."
Rumors circulating online suggest that the Beyond Grade A Association will integrate the superpowered class and become a new dominant force outside the Three Universal Civilizations. This claim is clearly a ploy to flatter and then betray the association, pushing it to the top before kicking it down. The higher you climb, the harder you fall.
However, although the methods are old, they are quite effective. As long as you can accurately grasp the psychology of the Volkswagen, simple methods can still be effective.
The current public opinion trend is not good for the association. It has been burdened with too many excessive expectations and accolades, and its confrontation with the Three Universal Civilizations has intensified. Terms like "new unipolar ruler" are putting both sides in a difficult position.
Because public opinion had become somewhat fervent, it was not appropriate to express an opinion. Han Xiao planned to handle the situation calmly and cool down the public opinion. Even if the forces behind the scenes kept stirring things up, the interest of interstellar citizens in one thing was limited, and there would always be new hot topics to divert attention.
Han Xiao tapped the table, deep in thought:
"Now that the Beyond Grade A Seed have joined the association, and the advanced civilizations have abandoned their purge plan, this upheaval is neither too big nor too small. Judging from the trend, the current situation should hold for the time being... I need time to integrate the association and collect the keys, and the Three Universal Civilizations also need time to study the Sanctuary Revival. They won't do anything in the short term, and they also need to be more restrained to prevent the Supercluster from causing trouble. Everyone needs time, so they will tacitly maintain a peaceful coexistence..."
All parties have a need to maintain stability. Before they are confident, the Three Universal Civilizations will not take any drastic action against the association. They will only dare to deal with the Beyond Grade A Seed as a matter of circumvention. In Han Xiao's view, the universe can remain calm for a while.
It is estimated that this peace will continue until the players return.
"It's been fifty years since the version was updated, and version 5.0 is about to be released. Thanks to my influence, the current situation is completely different from the Super Calamity of the past. I wonder what the players will do."
Han Xiao stroked his chin, seemingly lost in thought.
Central Galaxy, Crimson Dynasty Advanced Academy of Sciences, Spatial Coordinate Research Group, Wormhole Positioning Project Office.
The research group leader entered the conference room, where many researchers were already waiting.
Compared to decades ago, the researchers here have mostly changed. The previous generation of researchers have either retired or changed positions, moving to other project offices.
The research team leader looked around and slowly said, "The Empire has issued an internal document to vigorously promote scientific research across all fields, Restart previous projects, and provide reference materials for the research on the Sanctuary Revival... Funding for all project departments will be greatly increased this year, including yours."
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately became excited.
Scientific research is extremely expensive, and the importance of the wormhole positioning project is not as great as other cutting-edge fields. Since the Shattered World Battle, this project department has started to operate with low energy consumption.
Back when Han Xiao and the Empire were still in their honeymoon period, the Empire heeded his advice and, in order to focus on dealing with the Super Star Cluster Alliance, suspended the exploration and calculation of unknown wormhole data to reduce the possibility of random risks. As a result, several wormhole location projects were put on hold.
Logically, the wormhole positioning project should not have been restricted after the war ended, but something went wrong.
After the war, the Empire was busy dealing with the aftermath, and the relevant high-ranking officials did not lift the ban immediately. Later, whether for the sake of safety or because they forgot about it, they never explicitly stated that the ban would be lifted, and the matter was delayed. After all, for the Empire as a whole, the wormhole location project was a very minor matter, and apart from officials and researchers with relevant authority, almost no one paid attention to it.
The saying goes, "What goes up must come down," meaning that the attitudes of those at the top are amplified at each level. Scientific research itself is pure, but researchers find it difficult to escape political influences. The Chinese Academy of Sciences' review department believed that the attitudes of higher-ups were unclear and had many concerns. No one wanted to risk their future, and adhering to the principle of "doing nothing is better than doing something wrong," they never relaxed their review standards for wormhole location projects. This resulted in a large number of field investigation projects being stuck in the approval process, leaving the wormhole location project team with a huge backlog of uncalculated wormhole data. Only the more important projects were approved.
This situation persisted for several years because the higher authorities never made a clear statement. As a result, strict review standards for wormhole location projects gradually became the norm. There were some twists and turns and protests during this period, but the voices could not reach the higher levels and ultimately did not cause any major disturbances.
This situation continued for decades. Most of the original researchers in the project team were transferred to other departments, and those who joined later were mostly newcomers with little experience.
Throughout the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the wormhole location project team's experience is not an isolated case. Every year, projects are canceled, new projects are established, and peripheral project teams are just coasting along. This is nothing new.
The Academy of Sciences was also rife with academic factions, and cases of people using connections to secure projects and fraudulently obtain funding did not not exist. Any powerful force, once it grows large and lasts a long time, will inevitably experience a certain degree of rigidity in its system. The Three Universal Civilizations were no exception, and even the relatively better-performing empires among them could not completely eliminate this phenomenon.
The research group leader gave a few instructions and then left, leaving the researchers in the conference room overjoyed.
"We're finally not a fringe project team anymore."
"Let's quickly submit all the backlogged research papers. Finally, we can start on-site measurements. There are just too many wormhole coordinates that have been piling up over the years."
"The equipment procurement list for this year hasn't been submitted yet, has it? Hurry up and revise it. Buy more multi-functional remote space probes; this time, we'll deploy them on a large scale."
Just as Han Xiao had predicted, after the failed attack on the Beyond Grade A Seed, the Three Universal Civilizations and the Super Star Cluster Alliance all exercised some restraint. Under Han Xiao's orders, the Association also refrained from publicly announcing the behind-the-scenes details of the attack on the Beyond Grade A Seed, as if deliberately ignoring the matter.
Aside from stirring up public opinion, the three parties tacitly maintained a peaceful coexistence in other aspects, without any conflict breaking out, while secretly accumulating strength and quietly preparing their respective methods.
Perhaps the Super Star Cluster Alliance still harbors ambitions to cause trouble, but they simply cannot find an opportunity to do so.
Although neither side has publicly expressed hostility, through media manipulation, the Three Universal Civilizations and the association have gradually formed an adversarial relationship in the public eye, and the atmosphere of hostility is gradually intensifying. Any slight movement will prompt countless people to jump out and offer "strategic interpretations," believing that the two sides are locked in a tit-for-tat confrontation and a war is inevitable.
Although the Super Star Cluster Alliance often suffers heavy losses, they are quite adept at stirring up trouble; perhaps this is what is meant by "experience makes perfect"...
Beneath the calm surface, undercurrents were surging. The Three Universal Civilizations gradually terminated various business collaborations with multiple Beyond Grade A forces and introduced some commercial policies, beginning to find ways to undermine the Association's power operations. Meanwhile, under Han Xiao's consolidation, the Association began to strengthen its independence.
Thanks to the vigorous propaganda of the Supercluster, almost everyone in the universe knows that the conflict between the Three Universal Civilizations and the Association will never be resolved peacefully, and the two sides cannot easily coexist. Countless forces are watching this fierce battle unfold.
Time slipped away quietly in this atmosphere of impending doom, and a year gradually passed.
On March 10th, 782 of the Galaxy Calendar, version 5.0 was officially launched, and players who had been away for a long time finally returned to the game!