In the main base command center of the interception zone, reports of successful interceptions kept pouring back. Simon and others were monitoring the overall situation around the real-time star map, while numerous Beyond Grade A stood by on the sidelines. The ten High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter outside the window were in a preheating state, ready to be deployed at any time.
At that moment, a ray of light flashed in the corner of the room, and a figure dressed in a Sovereign set of Kasuyi teleported back into the room, his body enveloped in Han Xiao's Mechanical Force, immediately attracting the attention of the others.
"You're back? How are you feeling?"
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow and casually retrieved the Sovereign from Kasuyi's body.
Since the High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter is only responsible for one-way teleportation, the interception force naturally wouldn't carry another set of teleporters. So Han Xiao borrowed the Sovereign Mecha and had the other Beyond Grade A take one set with them when they went out. After they finished, he would use Mechanical Force to pull them back, thus improving efficiency.
"The World Tree's Beyond Grade A is quite impressive." Kasuyi nodded seriously.
"But you ravaged him to death... I feel like you're indirectly praising yourself." The Sun Hunter beside him said suspiciously.
"Ahem, I'm evaluating based on the standard of a regular Beyond Grade A, not including Peak Beyond Grade A... The opponent's psychic power is quite strong; that pale green energy seems to have greatly enhanced his mental strength. On our side, he could probably take on 1.6 Sisko." Kasuyi pondered.
"That's good. The Empire has Kohler, and you have Sisko. These basic combat units are quite convenient for us to directly compare our strengths," Swordswoman Fu said calmly.
Fortunately, neither of them was there, so no one jumped out to refute them, and everyone nodded in agreement.
"What you're referring to is the power boost brought about by the World Tree Connection. Basically, every Beyond Grade A of every World Tree Civilization enjoys this bonus, which is equivalent to each person having a wonder-level Universal Treasure," Han Xiao replied to Kasuyi.
"So the average combat strength of their Beyond Grade A group is lower than ours?" Manison's Dominion clone asked.
"You could say that about 'and-books'," Han Xiao said, shrugging. "However, in terms of high-end combat power, we're about evenly matched. The five Tree King and their ten Leaf Executives can hold their own, the Thirteen Ancestral Spirits and high-ranking Sacred Tree Envoy are extraordinary, and there are also high-ranking military officers who are responsible for foreign conquests year-round. We can still put up a fight."
"Sounds like someone you don't want to mess with." The Secret Master shook his head.
Kasuyi frowned and said, "Speaking of which, I just tried to probe into the other party's memories, but I felt Higher Lifeform Pressure. If I hadn't withdrawn my mental power in time, I would probably have been seriously injured... Was that the power of the World Tree?"
"That's right, that's the World Tree. Don't use your mental power to probe the memories of any World Tree member. They are all connected, protected by the World Tree, and their thoughts are monitored. Any deviation will be corrected to prevent spying, possession, or other mental manipulation techniques..."
Han Xiao explained.
"They're practically slaves, forever unable to rebel against their masters..." Kasuyi sighed, then asked curiously, "So how did you get the information from them?"
"Is that even a question? I'm better than you guys." Han Xiao was very frank.
Everyone was speechless.
It's true, but why do we feel so much like hitting you...?
Ignoring Han Xiao, everyone pulled Kasuyi aside and bombarded her with questions. Although everyone present had read the information on the hundreds of World Tree powerhouses that Han Xiao had collected last time, they were still very curious about Kasuyi's combat experience.
Han Xiao didn't take it seriously, shook his head, got up and went to Simon and the others. He listened to the high-ranking officers and staff giving orders while watching the changes in the real-time star map.
The star map is covered with countless points of light, each representing an interception force that is constantly changing. Some places are marked with crosses, which indicate the locations where enemy forces were successfully intercepted. Each cross is surrounded by a halo and extending lines, representing the possible routes of other World Tree exploration forces.
"The interception is going well so far, thanks to your intelligence," Simon said as he saw Han Xiao approaching.
"It's just mutual help," Han Xiao said dismissively.
Simon nodded, then sighed.
"However, the interception circle is still too passive. We can only try our best to prevent the World Tree exploration team from entering our territory, but prolonged defense will inevitably lead to defeat. As long as the enemy goes far enough around the perimeter, there will be some that slip through the net sooner or later. We can only try to delay that moment from arriving."
"There's nothing we can do about it; after all, our opponent is the World Tree," Han Xiao shrugged.
"... Yes, this civilization is practically born for war. If it were any other opponent, we wouldn't be passively defending our home like we are now. They are truly a formidable enemy."
Simon was helpless.
The Three Universal Civilizations are also hegemonic civilizations. If their external enemy weren't a war machine like the World Tree, given their current intelligence advantage, they might already be devising a preemptive strike... However, no single tactic is applicable to all situations. Preemptive strikes depend on the opponent. Ignoring the opponent's actual situation and blindly copying examples from tactical manuals will likely result in heavy losses. After all, they can't afford to recklessly expend their resources like the World Tree. With the Kama Republic Alliance as a cautionary tale, the World Tree's greatest strength isn't its aggressive, fiery offensives, but rather its gradual, attritional encroachment.
Moreover, Han Xiao's intelligence has already indicated that the main body is the foundation of the World Tree. If this were a real-time strategy game, then the World Tree's territory would at most be a branch base, with the main base still shrouded in the fog of war. Meanwhile, the Three Universal Civilizations have exposed the location of their main bases and are under attack. Exchanging bases with a branch base is naturally not worthwhile, especially since the other side can produce troops much faster.
Composing himself, Simon took out his flip-top pocket watch, glanced at it, and said, "The interception network is still under construction, and we're desperately short-handed. How long will it take for your association's Beyond Grade A fleet to arrive?"
"They're almost there; they're gathering at the teleportation point," Han Xiao replied.
The Shattered World is rapidly transforming into a war zone, with unrelated individuals leaving at high speed. The Federation of Light has generously deployed a large number of its stockpiled High-Dimensional Apocalypse Teleporter, establishing a rendezvous point in the Dawn Star Cluster to transport subsequent troops. Fleets from Beyond Grade A forces such as the Black Star Army are en route there.
Simon nodded and said:
"As soon as possible, the more manpower we have, the sooner the interception perimeter can be completed, and the longer we can keep the World Tree outside our territory, the better."
In the interstellar age, efficiency is paramount. Advanced mobility reduces travel time, and many things can happen every day. However, on a higher scale, many things require a long period of evolution.
Over the next few days, the Three Universal Civilizations' interception forces played a game of hide-and-seek with the World Tree's 274th Exploration Corps. One exploration team after another was wiped out, but due to the detours, the battle lines were stretched out longer and longer.
Meanwhile, reinforcements from Beyond Grade A forces arrived in the interception zone and quickly began constructing the interception perimeter. Wormhole support base stations were rapidly established, interconnected, forming a vast network that created layer upon layer of barriers. The area of these barriers expanded rapidly every day, spreading further and further away.
The interception zone is now the front line, and more Beyond Grade A personnel are arriving here after finishing their tasks, quickly approaching a hundred in number.
This is the observation deck at the main base.
Han Xiao stood in front of the huge floor-to-ceiling window, gazing at the dazzling starry sky. He seemed to be contemplating life, but in reality, he was browsing the forums to check the reactions of the players who had arrived at the front lines.
Just as Han Xiao was engrossed in reading the post, he suddenly heard footsteps approaching from behind. He closed the panel, turned around, and saw Hila and Aurora.
"You two are here too?" Han Xiao glanced at the two of them.
"Just arrived." Hila said calmly.
"I know that with your personality, you definitely wouldn't miss a battle like this."
Han Xiao shook his head.
He didn't force the two sisters to participate, nor did he force them to stay behind. After all, they were already Beyond Grade A, and he had to respect their wishes. If they came voluntarily, he wouldn't stop them. Besides, the two sisters were indeed rare and outstanding combatants.
"Since we are going to fight the enemy together, we naturally cannot stand aside. Now that I have the power I have, I have no habit of accepting protection without a clear conscience," Hila said slowly.
Han Xiao glanced at Aurora, "And what about you?"
"Oh? My sister's here, of course I'll go with her, otherwise what if she gets beaten to death... Besides, my abilities should come in very handy, right?" Aurora smiled.
"She might be safer here than I am," Hila scoffed, which was one of the reasons she didn't stop Aurora coming along.
"With you here, the safety of the other Beyond Grade A individuals is more assured." Han Xiao nodded to Aurora.
"Don't misunderstand, we have other plans. This is a good place to strengthen the Netherland."
Hila waved her hand.
"It is indeed a good opportunity." Han Xiao nodded in agreement.
With the Netherland here, even warriors below Beyond Grade A have a chance to be reborn after death. The meat grinder of war has always been a treasure trove for collecting the souls of the dead, and as long as the Netherland can hold them, there will be no problem.
However, since the World Tree warriors are bound by the link and don't lose their souls upon death, they probably can't be captured. The Netherland will likely only be able to recover the fallen soldiers from the Three Universal Civilizations. Furthermore, Han Xiao wouldn't dare let the two sisters risk capturing World Tree personnel. If the World Tree Connection isn't broken, it might directly expose the Netherland's coordinates in the Secondary Dimension, and the World Tree could use this as a lead to attack the Netherland would be disastrous.
However, this does not affect the strategic importance of the Netherland. In Han Xiao's eyes, the Netherland has the ability to change the overall situation, and its role is no less than that of the Sanctuary Revival, and in some aspects it may even surpass it. It is a pity that Aurora's accumulation is still too small. If she were to grow for another few decades or centuries, the power of the Netherland could reach new heights.
Han Xiao turned back to look out the window and said in a deep voice, "These past few days I've had a vague feeling that the World Tree won't sit idly by while we set up our defenses. It's likely that it will soon launch a major offensive, and a tough battle may break out soon—the first large-scale head-on conflict between the Three Universal Civilizations and the World Tree."
"Is this your intuition?" Hila raised an eyebrow.
"No, it's just a prediction based on the World Tree's style."
Han Xiao stroked his chin, his tone thoughtful, then changed the subject with a sigh:
"No matter what, you all need to take care of yourselves. The intensity of a cosmic war is such that I might not be able to keep up."
"I will take good care of myself," Hila replied calmly.
The World Tree Civilization.
An endless fleet stretched across the universe, with streaks of light constantly shooting in from afar, transforming into new troops and merging into the collective, causing its scale to expand continuously.
Many executives watched this scene and nodded secretly.
After the Heart Tree King decided to launch a strong attack, they immediately mobilized their various army groups and assembled here to await orders.
Thanks to the superior characteristics of the Psychic Network and rapid traversal within its territory, the World Tree Civilization was extremely efficient in assembling its forces, quickly forming a massive Expeditionary Army, ready to launch an attack at any time.
"Your Excellency Tree King, when will the offensive commence?"
An executive turned to look at the two Tree King.
The Tranquil Tree King didn't speak, but turned to look at the Heart Tree King.
"The scale is still not enough; we need to gather more people," Heart Tree King slowly and deliberately.
"What are your standards...?" Tedrian asked tentatively.
"For this first battle, consider this strong offensive as a greeting. The fleet size should be at least 50 billion, otherwise it won't be presentable. If they can't even withstand this offensive, then we can adopt bolder tactics later."
Heart Tree King spoke with such composure, as if he had merely tossed a small chip onto a gambling table, completely unconcerned.
However, he paused, then said:
"Oh, right, we need to consider the possibility of that outsider joining the war; that person is not easy to deal with..."