While Han Xiao was pondering, the individual forces of both sides had already withdrawn from the battlefield, but the fleets were still exchanging fire. Dense beams of particles crisscrossed, shattering the shields and tearing the armor of countless warships. Various large-scale war weapons were deployed in turn, and the border defense perimeter used its extremely strong firepower to keep the World Tree Vanguard outside the territory.
After defeating the World Tree powerhouse, many Beyond Grade A warriors temporarily retreated to the Sibert Fortress to recuperate. They returned to the rest room in high spirits and greeted Han Xiao, who was watching the battle there.
"Well done, everyone! This is a great victory!"
Han Xiao nodded, his tone approving.
"Haha, I used to think the World Tree experts were quite troublesome, but now I feel they're just so-so." The Sun Hunter jumped onto the table and let out a heroic laugh.
"Of course, you haven't wasted these past ten years; I've seen all your progress," Han Xiao said with a smile.
Upon hearing this, everyone couldn't help but smile, clearly in a good mood.
Upon clashing with the enemy again, everyone found it much easier. The enemy's progress was limited, but their own was tremendous, undoubtedly the result of Lord Black Star's ten years of special training.
Many Beyond Grade A students deeply appreciated the growth brought about by the special training, and their gratitude towards Han Xiao grew even stronger. At this moment, the way everyone looked at Han Xiao revealed a sense of admiration and respect.
More than a decade ago, the World Tree experts put a lot of psychological pressure on them, and they found the battles extremely difficult. But now, with Black Star as their backing, they no longer have any psychological trauma.
After more than a decade of development, Han Xiao has gained more respect. Because there is a fundamental difference between the Beyond God Grade and the Beyond Grade A, he has subtly changed the attitude of many Beyond Grade A members towards him. Now, the Beyond Grade A group's perception of him is somewhat like the awe and support that the Calamity Grade has for Beyond Grade A. The concept of superior and subordinate is more deeply rooted in people's hearts, and most Beyond Grade A members have already accepted the change in their relationship.
"We were able to achieve this great victory Aurora," Beoni said, his tone full of praise.
Upon hearing this, everyone disregarded the proper procedures and immediately began licking the boots.
This victory was achieved without casualties, with zero losses in defeating the World Tree powerhouse. This was naturally thanks to Aurora. Her healing power was even stronger and more precise than it had been more than ten years ago, making many Beyond Grade A cultivators even more eager to curry favor with her.
"It's alright, I just did my job."
Aurora usual, offered a humble assessment, expressing her trepidation at receiving the MVP award, while secretly glancing at Han Xiao Han Xiao, anticipating his praise.
Han Xiao, oblivious to her subtle glance, chuckled and interjected, "Speaking of merits, this time the Sorokin's killing... cough, forcing the Tranquil Tree King to his death, was also a great achievement."
Everyone paused slightly, turning to look at the composed Sorokin, their expressions varying.
Although he has made contributions, the Sorokin has a grudge against many people present. Now that they are fighting side by side, everyone has mixed feelings about him.
The Sorokin glanced at Han Xiao, "If the Tranquil Tree King wasn't wary of your ambush, he wouldn't have self-destructed so easily. The Tree King truly lives up to his name; he's not so easy to deal with."
Hmm... You may be modest, but the thought of you toying with the Tranquil Tree King makes me think you're just showing off...
Han Xiao inwardly scoffed, then waved his hand, "Well, you did contribute too."
The Sorokin smiled faintly and did not respond.
What good are merits? They won't allow him to be resurrected anyway. He doesn't care about making any contributions; it's just a mission from the Netherland.
At this moment, Kasuyi stroked his chin and pondered, "It's a pity that the Tranquil Tree King's self-destruction was too decisive, causing the enemy to retreat in time. We were unable to inflict greater casualties on the enemy. At most, we only killed about ten enemy Beyond Grade A, of which only the Tranquil Tree King was a significant figure."
"This isn't a big problem; from another perspective, it might even be a good thing." Han Xiao waved his hand and laughed, "Think about it, the Tranquil Tree King is dead, so the one in charge of the overall situation needs to be replaced. If we had severely damaged their Beyond Grade A group in this wave, then even if the Tree King who takes over later wants to go on an expedition, he probably wouldn't have enough strength... Now we've left the World Tree with a relatively complete high-level combat force, so the new Tree King will have the leverage to make a comeback in the short term."
"Is that how it can be explained?" Kasuyi exclaimed in surprise.
"What's so strange about that? My goal is to seal off a Tree King of sufficient strength. If they retreat, how can we make a move? I'd be happy if you didn't severely damage the enemy this time. This is called playing the long game; killing one Tranquil Tree King is enough."
Han Xiao nodded.
Upon hearing this, one of the Revived laughed and said, "Haha, luckily we kept our composure and didn't join the battle this time, otherwise we would have ruined your plans."
"Of course, we can't let the enemy test us a little and then reveal all our cards, only to catch them off guard next time."
Han Xiao smiled.
Many Revived and some newly recruited Beyond Grade A cultivators, who were initially a little disappointed that they hadn't intervened this time, were now relieved and prioritized the overall situation.
After gathering together to analyze the battle results, the group dispersed in twos and threes to do their own things, occasionally glancing at the live broadcast of the war. At this point, the situation was favorable, and there was basically no need for anyone to take action again.
Han Xiao was chatting casually with Ames, glancing at the Interstellar Joint Army's deployment, when he suddenly felt a squeeze next to him. He saw Jotina walk over, sit down next to him, and lean her body against him.
Han Xiao turned his head and saw that Jotina was staring straight at him with a fiery look in her eyes, as if she wanted to devour him alive.
"What are you doing now?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"I want to stay by your side." Jotina licked her lips.
"Then sit still and don't come any closer."
Han Xiao was helpless.
He knew that Jotina had always been lusting after him, and he had rejected her many times, but she persisted relentlessly, clinging to him like a leech.
Previously, the gap between them was too large, so Jotina would restrain herself. But ever since she advanced to Beyond Grade A, she has become increasingly unscrupulous, especially during the time when everyone was waiting on the front lines, this woman harassed him quite a bit.
"No, I want to lean on you." Jotina didn't hide anything, didn't shy away from it, and boldly hugged his arm.
Han Xiao had no choice but to pull his arm away, but Jotina took the opportunity to rest her head on his chest and wrap her arms around his waist.
Don't you think this is inappropriate? Can't you be a little more mindful of the occasion?
Han Xiao's lips twitched. After all, Jotina was Beyond Grade A who was willing to stay in the legion, so it wasn't convenient for him to just pin her down and beat her up.
"It's alright, you can continue." Many Beyond Grade A glanced over, looking completely unsurprised; they were used to it.
"... Do you think I'm invisible?"
Seeing the two of them pulling and tugging, Ames could no longer bear it and spoke up in an annoyed tone.
If Jotina had been sitting on the other side of Han Xiao, it would have been fine, but this guy took her seat and pushed her aside with his butt. Isn't that a provocation?
"Is this your reserved seat? Can't I sit here?" Jotina glanced back at her, her hostility evident.
Ames couldn't be bothered with her and the book. This wasn't the first time Jotina had targeted her, leaving her speechless.
She crossed her arms, looked at Han Xiao, and chuckled, "You look very comfortable."
"That's nonsense."
Han Xiao shook his head helplessly, pulled Jotina off him, got up and sat down on the other side of Ames, and casually pulled the sullen-faced Lagi next to him to take the seat next to him.
Seeing this, Jotina snorted and didn't come any closer. She turned and sat down to the side, watching them intently.
Ames raised her hand and punched Han Xiao's chest, saying with a half-smile, "You're quite popular now, so many people want to snatch you away from me. Are you going to find someone new one day?"
Han Xiao stroked his chin and said jokingly, "I think the reason some people covet me is because there's still a crack in our relationship. If we get married and have children, they'll be more sensible and give up."
"We'll see."
Ames rested her head on Han Xiao's shoulder and answered softly.
Their relationship had been public for a long time, and this wasn't the first time Black Star had brought up the topic of having children, but she simply didn't want to have any—it would be too much trouble... However, over the past ten years, Ames's tone had gradually shifted from a firm refusal to hesitation, and the "threat" from Jotina was making her increasingly waver.
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao did not insist.
Over the years, he tried to cultivate the race using life energy and bioengineering, but found that the life forms cultivated in this way had many defects and could not inherit the three inherited talents, thus failing to achieve the expected results. This plan to rapidly expand the race had to be shelved.
Unable to find shortcuts using the methods of a mechanic, he had no choice but to start with reproductive genetics.
"Beep beep~"
Just then, the communicator suddenly rang.
Han Xiao took it out and glanced at it; it was a message from the person in charge of the Secondary Dimension expedition outpost.
The content was simple, but it made Han Xiao's pupils shrink slightly.
"Your Excellency Black Star, the anomalous creature egg you instructed me to keep an eye on has shown unusual activity. Please come immediately."
More than a decade ago, Han Xiao reached an agreement with the King of the Boundless. He lent out part of his territory, which was then transformed by the Three Universal Civilizations into outposts for the Secondary Dimension Expeditionary Army. They have been cooperating for quite some time now.
The so-called abnormal creature's egg is actually the Pivot Snake Egg. Han Xiao specifically instructed the head of the expeditionary outpost to monitor it. Nothing had changed in more than ten years, but today was the first time something had happened.
"I have to leave for a while. Kasuyi will temporarily take over the command."
Han Xiao stood up without hesitation, gave a few words of advice to everyone, changed into his Sovereign, and hurriedly left.
On the other side, at the World Tree's headquarters, in the Tree King's Palace.
Anchor Tree King sat on his Throne, and two beams of light appeared on the other two empty seats, quickly transforming into the figures of Ancestral Tree King and Secret Tree King.
Once it regained its physical form, the Secret Tree King spoke impatiently:
"What are you fighting about? How Tranquil Tree King is dead again!"
"It was just a minor accident."
Anchor Tree King had never gotten along with him, and answered in a deep voice.
The Secret Tree King sneered, "An accident? Ha, don't make excuses for your incompetence. Look at your record. You participated in two battles, losing both the Heart Tree King and the Tranquil Tree King. You're simply disgracing us."
"This time is different. The enemy has revealed a new trump card. The reason why the Tranquil Tree King decisively self-destructed is because of the lesson learned from the Heart Tree King," the Anchor Tree King retorted.
"For Tree King to die so easily in battle, I don't think he deserves the Tree King Crown. It would be better to replace him with someone else," the Secret Tree King sneered.
"Alright, stop arguing. The Tranquil Tree King's choice was fine; at least it wasn't sealed away by the enemy..."
At this moment, the Ancestral Tree King raised his hand, stopping the two from arguing.
Although his tone was calm, he was actually just as frustrated. The Tranquil Tree King died far too quickly, practically self-destructing right out of the factory. If it weren't for the hassle of replacing the Tree King, he would have really wanted to remove the Tranquil Tree King from its position.
Upon hearing this, Anchor Tree King did not press the matter further and continued, "Tranquil Tree King's sacrifice was worthwhile; he revealed a new and formidable enemy for us..."
He shared the battle details with the two of them, specifically emphasizing the Sorokin's combat power.
After reading it, the Ancestral Tree King narrowed his eyes and said:
"The enemy actually has such powerful individuals... Adding Hyperion, there are already three people with Tree King -level combat strength. Among the other superhumans, there are also many powerful individuals who can contend with the Tree King. Their individual strength is too developed; we may not have the upper hand."
"The main problem is that powerful outsiders can't intervene, otherwise it would be much easier," Anchor Tree King helplessly.
The existence of Black Star directly crippled a large number of their foreign powerhouses, meaning that not all of their high-level combat forces could be deployed to the battlefield; otherwise, they wouldn't be in such a passive position.
The Ancestral Tree King nodded. "Yes, that's true. Our only advantage right now is endless regeneration, but the enemy's healing-type ability users are not simple. Although the exchange tactic is effective, it's difficult to execute... In comparison, their on-the-spot healing is an immediate combat capability, while ours is only a post-battle tactic, which doesn't help much in Head-On Engagement, so we are at a disadvantage."
"What should we do then?"
"Well, our advantage lies in the near-zero cost of trial and error. We can conduct several more probes today. Don't worry too much about casualties; as long as we can obtain more information about the enemy's strongmen, it's worth it."
The Ancestral Tree King pondered for a moment.
Anchor Tree King coughed and said, "But ordinary probing won't put pressure on the enemy. I think it's better if we act together."
The Ancestral Tree King, unsuspecting, thought for a moment and said, "You're right. Both of the Tree King suffered losses today. It seems that only the three of us working together can force out the enemy's true strength, and ideally, kill that ability user on the spot."
"I think it would be safer for the Tree God Descent..." suggested the Anchor Tree King.
The Ancestral Tree King frowned slightly and shook his head, saying, "The Heart Tree King's Tree King Crown is gone. Even if we use the Tree God Descent, it won't be complete. Besides... I don't like that feeling."
He was unwilling to use the Tree God Descent unless absolutely necessary, as it was not a pleasant thing.
Anchor Tree King deeply agreed, then changed the subject, saying:
"By the way, the enemy has established a defensive perimeter on the border and seems to have destroyed several star clusters to prevent us from absorbing them. What are your plans?"
The Ancestral Tree King didn't take it seriously and casually said:
"That's normal. Since they know our advantages, they will naturally make this choice... Try to steal their network intelligence, confirm the enemy's specific territory, and preferably obtain the coordinates of other star systems so that our troops can jump over and open up new fronts, bypassing their border defenses."
Furthermore, they seem to be searching for the Mother Tree itself; we don't know where this information came from, but anyway, we've ordered our forces stationed in the sub -Secondary Dimension to conduct a thorough search for their whereabouts. Also, we need to find a way to confirm the enemy civilization's entrance into the Secondary Dimension and open Secondary Dimension front.
Now is not the time for a war of interception. Now that we are near the enemy's territory, we have more options for attack. Rather than launching a direct assault on the Shattered World's defense perimeter, the Ancestral Tree King prefers to gather intelligence, open up more fronts, and amplify the World Tree's advantages.
"Clear."
Anchor Tree King nodded vigorously, secretly pleased.
He deliberately emphasized how difficult the enemy was to recruit the other two Tree King into the group, so that he wouldn't have to worry about it alone—perfect!