As the saying goes, when the sky falls, the tall ones hold it up. Currently, only the Three Universal Civilizations and Han Xiao are blocking the pressure brought by the World Tree, and the vast majority of people in interstellar society are unaware of this.
Beneath the surface of peace, undercurrents were surging. Half a month passed quickly, and it was time for the Galaxy Civilization General Assembly again.
The Galaxy Civilization General Assembly is chaired by Three Universal Civilizations, with participants encompassing supercluster, cluster-level, and galaxy-level civilizations from across the universe.
Unlike the regional civilization Civilization Council in various star systems, the Galaxy Civilization General Assembly is the most authoritative Civilization Council, the power core of the entire interstellar society, solemn and dignified, and is also known as the "Central Council".
There is a fixed meeting period every year, which often lasts for several months. During this period, meetings are held frequently to review the topics submitted by various civilizations, coordinate the development of all interstellar civilizations, mediate disputes, and discuss the management of interstellar society, including but not limited to topics such as people's livelihood, economy, military, and disaster relief.
However, most interstellar citizens don't pay much attention to this matter, because the meetings are held every year, and most of the time the topics discussed are the same old ones. Most interstellar citizens don't pay special attention to them, and usually just casually glance at the simplified version summarized by the news media after the meeting.
The main hall of the Galaxy Civilization General Assembly is shaped like a petal. At the very center is the council speaker's platform, surrounded by a ring of seats representing the Three Universal Civilizations. Extending outwards are rows of fan-shaped seats, arranged according to civilization level. Supercluster civilizations sit in the inner circle, while galaxy-level civilizations sit in the outermost circle. Invited news media have a dedicated broadcasting area.
The hall was now neatly filled with diplomatic delegations from various civilizations, and the conference had been going on for quite some time.
Having just finished a round of voting, rejecting a bill to increase the regional security budget, the Speaker turned to the next agenda item, glanced at the representatives of the Three Universal Civilizations, cleared his throat, and announced loudly:
"... The next item on the agenda is a joint proposal from the Federation of Light, the Crimson Dynasty, and the Arcane Church. This proposal argues that the Beyond Grade A Development Federation plays an indispensable and crucial role in maintaining the operation of interstellar society, wielding extraordinary influence. Furthermore, it is committed to maintaining peace and stability in interstellar society and has made indelible contributions. Therefore, it is recommended that the ' Peace Treaty ' and other Interstellar General Law be amended to exceptionally admit the Beyond Grade A Development Federation, allowing it to enjoy independent official status and rights equivalent to those of advanced civilizations... The proposer of this proposal, please come forward to present."
After the Speaker finished reading the agenda item verbatim, the previously quiet room fell completely silent.
Apart from a few affiliated civilizations that had already established communication with the Three Universal Civilizations, all the other delegates were stunned.
The Three Universal Civilizations recently made peace with the Beyond Grade A Association, and now they're so eager to offer each other assistance?!
Putting aside the inside story, there is no precedent in history for granting a non-governmental organization the same official status as a civilization. The proposal from the Three Universal Civilizations has set a precedent, and the backlash from the outside world is predictable.
What could possibly motivate the Three Universal Civilizations to bear such a cost and specifically seek political benefits for the association?!
Most of the representatives from the civilizations were dumbfounded, thinking it was a routine meeting, but the Three Universal Civilizations suddenly dropped a bombshell.
The news media present immediately perked up.
This smells like big news!
Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, the Imperial diplomatic representative rose to the stage, surveyed the room, and slowly stated the reasons for the proposal, emphasizing the unique position of the Beyond Grade A Association in the current interstellar landscape. His speech was full of praise, almost elevating the association to the heavens.
After listening for a while, the expressions of the many representatives of civilizations became increasingly strange.
--This sounds familiar. Did you guys just lazily replace all the original lockdown declarations with antonyms?
After the representatives of the Three Universal Civilizations finished their presentations, the Speaker announced the start of the debate and consultation phase, at which point a large number of civilization representatives immediately requested to speak.
Although the Galaxy Civilization General Assembly is chaired by the Three Universal Civilizations, if any new clauses are to be added to the Interstellar General Law, a vote must still be taken, and opponents can raise questions after the presentations.
However, as the ultimate winners of the exploration history and the rulers who control the Explored Universe with absolute power, the Three Universal Civilizations are naturally not foolish enough to relinquish too much power. They have all granted themselves the privilege of veto power and decision power.
A single vote can negate the outcome of a vote on an issue, sending it back to the proposal stage for a new round of presentation, debate, revision, and voting, repeating this cycle until a satisfactory result is achieved. However, if a single vote is used to decide a matter, the voting stage is skipped entirely, but its priority is lower than a veto. This means that only the Three Universal Civilizations can exempt each other from a single vote.
However, the Three Universal Civilizations have only used their privileges a handful of times. As long as it does not involve their own major interests, they will not interfere. They are careful to maintain a proper balance and most of the time they just act as referees, rarely getting involved themselves.
The representatives of the Three Universal Civilizations handled the questions from the participants with ease, glossing over the more pointed ones.
The Supercluster civilization remained the most composed, having learned of the news early on. While observing the situation with a cold eye, it secretly pondered what secrets the Black Star and the Three Universal Civilizations might have.
Amidst the fervor of the crowd, the voting process quickly arrived. The previously unaware representatives of civilization, considering various factors, generally opposed the move, as no one wanted to set a precedent.
The voting results were displayed on the virtual screen, with an overwhelming number of negative votes, failing to meet the standard for the draft to pass.
The Speaker glanced at it and said, "Insufficient votes in favor, therefore this proposal is now rejected..."
Before he could finish speaking, the representative of the Federation of Light tapped the table and said calmly, "We are exercising our veto power."
The Speaker nodded, unsurprised. "Then let's move on to the proposal stage. Please..."
However, before he could finish speaking, the representative of the Crimson Dynasty spoke up slowly, saying, "We are exercising our right to decide on the Tu Shu Ticket."
As soon as he finished speaking, representatives from the Federation of Light and the Arcane Church simultaneously seconded his proposal.
Seeing this scene, the representatives of many civilizations stirred, feeling both that it was expected and unexpected.
The reason it was expected was that the Three Universal Civilizations would exercise their privileges; the reason it was unexpected was that the Three Universal Civilizations would directly use two of their privileges.
The Three Universal Civilizations generally do not use two privileges at the same time. After a veto, they usually let everyone vote again. During this period, they will lobby and do other things to win votes and make other civilizations feel involved.
However, the immediate decision after a veto indicates a very tough stance, with the subtext that the bill must pass without question, which is quite domineering and shows a willingness to establish a one-man rule.
"Are the Three Universal Civilizations really so determined to support the Beyond Grade A Association? What's the real story behind this...?"
Representatives of numerous civilizations were itching to get involved.
As numerous news media outlets rushed to repost the news, the message that the Three Universal Civilizations were fighting for official status for the Beyond Grade A Association spread like wildfire, immediately creating a hurricane of public opinion in interstellar society!
The turmoil surrounding the meeting of the Three Universal Civilizations and the Beyond Grade A Association had barely subsided when another shocking revelation broke out, instantly becoming the hottest topic.
Many interstellar citizens could not comprehend the actions of the Three Universal Civilizations.
During the peace negotiations not long ago, although the Three Universal Civilizations made concessions, at least they had a plausible reason. How do you explain this now? Reconciliation alone isn't enough; they're even helping the association gain official recognition. What is this all about? Is it reparations?
They started aggressively, then were scared into backing down – that was shameful enough. But to make matters worse, the Three Universal Civilizations are now demanding compensation from the association, insisting they weren't cowards... Only a fool would believe that!
As soon as the proposal was exposed, it was met with strong opposition from a large number of interstellar citizens. The dissatisfaction with the Beyond Grade A had been suppressed, but with the association about to become an official body, many people could not stand it anymore and launched a massive attack on the association. The most mainstream argument was that the association was not qualified to become an official force, that a Beyond Grade A group should not have such a status, and that they opposed hegemony, etc.
Due to a series of escalating class conflicts, the Beyond Grade A Association has become the main target of hatred. Seeing the association's further development and even its impending "whitewashing," many interstellar citizens are indignant. This mentality is like seeing an enemy doing well, and it is inherently tinged with deep-seated prejudice.
On the contrary, most of the superhuman groups in various star systems were excited. They had been expecting the Beyond Grade A Association to be the leader, and they never thought that it would actually be given a title, and it was the first time in history. No matter how the association did it, a large number of superhumans admired it immensely.
With official status, the Three Universal Civilizations could no longer promote the association's illegitimacy, and they did not need to worry about losing their interstellar citizenship after joining the association.
Because the Three Universal Civilizations were running a one-man show in the Galaxy Civilization General Assembly, many civilizations expressed their opinions through various channels. They first acknowledged the association's significant influence, but subtly suggested that the exceptional treatment was excessive, claiming they were unaware of any private deals between the Three Universal Civilizations and the association, thus expressing their dissatisfaction.
In contrast, the player community reacted more slowly to the news, mainly because most people didn't quite understand its implications. In their view, as long as the Beyond Grade A Association was powerful enough, these political matters were just empty talk and seemed meaningless.
However, after some story-driven players explained the differences on forums, many players finally understood the distinctions.
"So, if we treat civilizations as individual countries, does that mean the Beyond Grade A Association used to be a company, but now it's considered a country?"
"So, this means that the Beyond Grade A has established a nation?"
"Pretty much. Originally, no matter how powerful the association was, it was still a grassroots force. Now it has finally been elevated to a higher level."
"I get it! The main storyline going forward should revolve around Beyond Grade A nation, witnessing the birth of an alternative superhuman civilization, with Black Star as its supreme leader, hence the name 'Black Star Era '?"
"666, you're a true expert."
"Sigh, as a veteran player who started with version 1.0, witnessing Old Black's journey from scratch to his current achievements is truly moving, it feels like a return to my youth... No way, I have to rewatch Meat Bun's Black Star Army series of videos from the beginning!"
"To the person upstairs, please cover your ID when you're posting your own advertorial. Thank you for your cooperation."
On the forum, many players were extremely excited.
During the Cold War standoff between the Three Universal Civilizations and the Association, many players assumed the main storyline would involve a fierce, all-out war, only to find it ended in a truce. Now that Beyond Grade A nation has been established, many players believe the subsequent main storyline will definitely revolve around this, and this time they are absolutely certain they won't be wrong!
While the outside world was buzzing about the association's official recognition, Han Xiao had already made preparations and set off for the territory of the World Tree Civilization.
Central Galaxy, the border of the Star Cluster Abyss.
A massive fleet surrounded a High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter, which was currently warming up. Inside the teleporter, only Han Xiao was present.
"We've set coordinates leading to an unused location in a deserted area. If what you've said is true, then the World Tree Civilization possesses an unknown detection method. You'd better leave your current location immediately upon reaching the other side and find a way to conceal yourself..."
In the mech's built-in communication channel, Fleet Commander Simon was carefully giving instructions.
"You just need to get me there; I'll handle the rest," Han Xiao replied.
"Well, since you have the Sovereign Mecha, we don't need to pick you up. Just be flexible and adapt to the situation."
Simon nodded.
The Three Universal Civilizations ultimately adopted the suggestion and agreed to send Han Xiao to the territory of the World Tree Civilization, since Han Xiao possessed the Sovereign and therefore did not require any assistance.
For Han Xiao, as long as he went there once and left the Throne, he could teleport at any time afterward. This was the reason why the Three Universal Civilizations had previously prevented him from intervening in the exploration.
However, he worried that the connection between the Sovereign and the Throne would become a clue for location, so he placed many Throne in different Secondary Dimension World, and he had to carefully choose the location when leaving Throne in the territory of the World Tree Civilization.
Hopefully, we can achieve some results this time...
Han Xiao's thoughts raced.
This trip to the World Tree Civilization's territory was only one of his objectives in helping the Child of Destiny pinpoint the location. Since the World Tree Civilization had already detected the intruders, as long as they didn't reveal information about the Explored Universe, they could perhaps act more boldly. If given the opportunity, he wanted to try and find clues about the World Tree's true form on the other side. This was extremely important, as relying solely on the expeditionary fleet was too unpredictable.
Incidentally, he also wanted to see if [Virtual Purification and Restoration] would have any effect on the people of the World Tree Civilization.
Just as Han Xiao was making his calculations, the High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter finally finished warming up and began to spin rapidly, transforming into a ball of light.
"Disconnect all links," Simon said in the channel, then shut down the communication network.
Han Xiao the mecha's self-isolation mode, blocking all network connections, including those of Phillip, and completely disconnecting from the network.
Soon, the High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter reached its rotational speed limit.
Buzz!
Suddenly, a flash of light appeared, and the teleporter stopped abruptly. Its interior was empty, and Han Xiao's figure vanished without a trace before everyone's eyes.