The two had a private conversation and reached a consensus. Han Xiao left a Throne and a Dominion clone in the Child of Destiny's laboratory. After interacting with the Child of Destiny for a while, he left the room and went to visit and comfort the many Revived living in seclusion in the Sanctum. The two sides held talks.
During the meeting, the current president of the Beyond Grade A Association pointed out that the Sanctum Organization should attach importance to the spiritual and cultural development of the Revived Revived, help them keep up with the times, implement the basic principle of putting people first, and implement the "two ones" requirements, namely, "We must guarantee the treatment of every Revived and we must not lose our vigilance." He also earnestly hoped that the Oathkeeper would set a good example.
The leader of the Sanctum Organization, the Oathkeeper, highly praised the association's current achievements and emphasized that both sides have always had a positive cooperative relationship, contributing together to the Super A Tier. He hoped that the association would continue to focus on the common cause and cooperate with the Sanctum's strategic assistance.
Many of the Revived expressed their deep admiration for Black Star's contributions to the cause of the Super A Tier and unanimously welcomed Black Star to come again to offer guidance and spur on the Sanctum Organization.
Regardless, the two sides exchanged views thoroughly. After this routine exchange of feelings, Han Xiao left the Sanctum Organization's base and teleported back to the Black Star Palace, several star systems away.
Back in his office, Han Xiao rubbed his chin. Without delay, he contacted the leaders of the Three Universal Civilizations and sent the information he had obtained from the Child of Destiny through an encrypted channel.
Before long, the communicator rang, and I received a remote session invitation.
Han Xiao activated the remote projection, and with a glance, he arrived at the joint office of the leaders of the Three Universal Civilizations, where he immediately saw the three men with somber expressions.
"Black Star, where did you get this information from? Is it accurate? You have to take responsibility for talking nonsense!"
Upon meeting, Mabrus fired off a barrage of questions in an extremely serious tone, as if he were interrogating him.
The intelligence provided by Han Xiao indicates that the World Tree Civilization has detected the presence of outsiders and is trying to track them back. This is a major event that affects the overall strategy and cannot be taken lightly.
This intelligence report contained no evidence and seemed like irresponsible speculation. Moreover, even they only dared to cautiously probe in uninhabited areas and had no clue about the movements of the World Tree Civilization. So where did Han Xiao get his intelligence? The three of them couldn't help but doubt its authenticity.
"I have a special intelligence channel. It's a special Primordial Esper Ability Entity called the Child of Destiny, which has extraordinary abilities at the Information State level..." Han Xiao explained the abilities of the Child of Destiny.
"The Child of Destiny?"
The three of them exchanged a glance, their small eyes filled with great confusion.
This Primordial Esper Ability Entity is not listed in the known list of extremely high-risk abilities, nor is it recorded in the confidential databases of the Three Universal Civilizations. This is the first time the three of them have learned about this Primordial Esper Ability Entity.
"So you really didn't know?" Han Xiao said helplessly.
He had spent some time inquiring about the Child of Destiny, but there was no record of them in the Empire's database. He had assumed that the relevant information might be stored in a classified database. It seemed that the Three Universal Civilizations were also unaware of the existence of the Child of Destiny. However, those who possessed Information State abilities were indeed adept at concealing their own existence.
"Is the Child of Destiny currently in your hands? Is he reliable?" Louis asked.
"It's definitely in my hands, and the intelligence is fine."
Han Xiao nodded, concealing the existence of the Sanctum.
Upon hearing this, the leader of the Arcane Sect spoke in a deep voice, "Words alone are not enough. We need to verify their authenticity before we can confirm their veracity. Moreover, such intelligence channels should be under our control."
Han Xiao shook his head, his tone becoming more serious:
"Even now, you still have doubts about me? Who provided the classified information about the World Tree? It was me, wasn't it? I showed sincerity, but what did you do? To confirm the accuracy of my information, you explored the World Tree Civilization through wormholes, ultimately leading to your exposure... Of course, from your perspective, that's understandable, and I understand you. But being discovered by the enemy is also a fact. No matter how righteous your motives were, it can't change the predetermined bad outcome... I knew you were likely to mess things up, which is why I didn't tell you about the existence of the World Tree before."
The three of them froze, their expressions tense.
Mabrus coughed and offered to explain:
"It's not that I doubt you, it's just that we can't easily believe information whose authenticity is questionable. If we don't verify it beforehand, it will be too late when problems arise..."
"This isn't the first time you've said this, but what's the result? You're still acting according to the classified information I provide. In my view, this so-called confirmation is just superfluous and only increases the risk of exposure."
The three of them opened their mouths, but for a moment they didn't know what to say.
Louis spoke up, "Black Star, don't get agitated. We've been proceeding cautiously and haven't encountered any life forms from the World Tree Civilization. Based solely on the perception of a Primordial Esper Ability Entity, I don't think we can be 100% certain they've detected our presence..."
"You want 100% confirmation?" Han Xiao's eyes widened. "Then let's just show ourselves and ask the World Tree Civilization directly. That way, it'll be 100% certain."
Louis's lips twitched, and he fell silent.
Mabrus said helplessly, "But the intelligence..."
Han Xiao interrupted Mabrus and said in a deep voice:
"I know you're worried, and I don't expect you to completely trust me. But you've stolen network intelligence, so you should be able to confirm the World Tree's external stance. Since everyone is prey, we're all united against a common enemy. Why would you need to worry about me having any bad intentions or be on guard against me?"
The threat is imminent; now is not the time for internal suspicion. Both I and you must trust that our actions are for a common goal and that we would never deliberately cause trouble. Would I have revealed this information if its authenticity hadn't been confirmed? What if your insistence on checking led to the exposure of this intelligence channel?
The three of them frowned.
That's true. We're all allies now, united against a common enemy, and we should trust each other.
But could Black Star's statement be a deliberate attempt to prevent us from confirming it, thus concealing the true nature of this information...? They couldn't help but consider this possibility; their identities dictated that they had to take all sorts of scenarios into account.
Seeing the three people's reactions, Han Xiao knew what they were thinking and shook his head in disappointment.
"Ultimately, countless years of peace have made you arrogant, making you think you can handle any situation... Perhaps my intelligence has given you too many illusions, making you think you have the advantage and can control the situation... You are sorely mistaken! I hope you recognize reality. The World Tree is more powerful than all of you combined. If it finds us and starts a war, the situation will instantly spiral out of control, and we could face annihilation at any moment, becoming the next Kama Republic Alliance!"
"... So what suggestions do you have?" Mabrus asked.
"Let me be frank, I will never hand over this intelligence channel to you. Even if you don't believe me now, you should consider how to deal with this situation: the World Tree Civilization possesses advanced unknown detection methods, has discovered traces of outsiders, and has entered a state of alert, but has not yet successfully tracked them down... Therefore, I suggest we halt routine exploration, reduce opportunities for further contact, and temporarily stand by, giving the Secondary Dimension Expedition Team searching for the World Tree's true form more time."
"But how will we gather intelligence if we don't explore?"
"Excuse my frankness, but most of the information you've gathered so far is meaningless. Since you're not getting anything out of it, you might as well stop and just use the Child of Destiny's channels."
"Does that mean we don't have to do anything, we just need to obediently listen to you, and we'll believe whatever you say... Do you think that's possible?"
The leader of the Arcane Sect spoke up, his tone displeased. He paused, then added:
"Either hand over the Child of Destiny to us, or let us send researchers to study it together and prove the intelligence is reliable."
Han Xiao laughed.
"Are you forcing me now? Yes, I can compromise for the greater good, and we can all study the Child of Destiny to dispel your doubts. But if I don't do that, it seems like it's my fault, because I control the channels, so I have to compromise, I have to give up some benefits. If I don't let you get a share, you won't accept my opinion."
"You've misunderstood, we..." Mabrus sensed something was off and tried to explain.
Han Xiao interrupted him, his smile slowly turning cold:
"You three piece of shit, I've put up with you for too long! You still don't seem to understand who needs whom, do you really think I have no other choice? I'm willing to maintain interstellar society, that's why we're interdependent, but the universe is so vast, can you really stay here? If you piss me off, I'll just take the Beyond Grade A Association and its forces and leave, to Unexplored Universe or to Secondary Dimension, leaving you to deal with the World Tree Civilization alone, to fend for yourselves, want to try?"
The three of them felt a chill run down their spines.
The Beyond Grade A Association has a way out; with their capabilities, they could live well even if they escaped into Unexplored Universe. For the Three Universal Civilizations, this is definitely the worst possible outcome.
Once a Super A Tier individual makes up their mind, they can completely abandon the interstellar society they have lived in for so long. Frankly speaking, even if all the living beings here were to die, it wouldn't concern most Beyond Grade A individuals, and there would be no reason for them to stay and fight.
If news of the World Tree gets out, some people will choose to flee. If even Black Star, who controls the Sanctuary Revival, is unwilling to stay, then the choices of the other Beyond Grade A are predictable.
With such influence, Black Star is not a partner with no way out, but an equal with bargaining power, a force they must win over.
Mabrus couldn't sit still any longer and quickly said, "Don't be angry, that's not what we meant."
"Black Star... Your Excellency, our questions are merely factual and we have no ulterior motives whatsoever," Louis quickly reassured him.
"... It was my inappropriate wording that caused the misunderstanding. Please don't take it to heart."
The leader of the Arcane Sect had no choice but to lower his head, feeling frustrated.
--We were insulted and had to apologize. When have we, the leaders of Three Universal Civilizations, ever been so humble?
Seeing this, Han Xiao suppressed his anger, regained his composure, and slowly said:
"I will continue to share intelligence; whether you believe it or not is your business, I can't be bothered. Also, I'm going to the World Tree Civilization's territory in a while to strengthen the monitoring of the Child of Destiny. Remember to prepare the World Tree Passage or High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter... If you don't even have this much trust, I don't think there's any need for us to cooperate."
"Okay, we'll handle it."
Mabrus answered before the other two could, saying now was not the time to continue haggling.
Han Xiao nodded, then suddenly said:
"There's one more thing. Quickly fulfill your promise and acknowledge the association's independent status. Don't try to delay any longer, and don't think you can renege on your promise just because war breaks out. Like I said before, at worst, I'll just walk away."
After saying that, the communication was immediately disconnected, and the remote projection disappeared in a flash.
Only three people remained in the room, looking at each other with complicated expressions.
"I didn't expect him to curse me to my face. Did we push him too hard?" Louis gave a wry smile.
"Don't underestimate him. A ruthless figure like Black Star wouldn't easily lose his temper; he's just using this as an excuse." The leader of the Arcane Sect shook his head, paused, and said helplessly, "But it certainly hit the nail on the head."
"Black Star really is..." Mabrus hesitated for a moment, then sighed, "... fully Wings."
Meanwhile, Han Xiao turned his gaze back to his office.
He snorted and casually tossed the communicator aside.
"Those three bastards have dog-like faces. If we don't slap them a couple of times, they won't know who's boss anymore."