With the external halos not around, it wasn't a good time to settle the mission. Han Xiao closed the panel, turned to look at the Oathkeeper and Clottey beside him, and unleashed a fatal three-part attack:
"Don't you have anything to do? Is the war over? Has the enemy been driven back?"
"No..." The Oathkeeper and Clottey came to their senses, suppressed their fear of Han Xiao, and shook their heads.
"Then what are you all doing here? Why aren't you dealing with the enemy?"
"I'll go right away."
Without a word, the Oathkeeper stepped into the spatial rift and sought out a shallow-dimensional battlefield to join.
Clottey gave Han Xiao a deep look, then followed him and disappeared.
The battle between the two Beyond God Grade in the space storm was not monitored by the Three Universal Civilizations, but he recorded it all. Whether it was the Black Star's terrifying combat power or the World Tree's hidden Beyond God Grade trump cards, this crucial information needed to be reported to the higher-ups.
Han Xiao did not regroup his troops, but instead shrunk the size of the Supreme Heavenly Venerate and tore open a spatial rift leading to a battlefield. He then controlled the Mechanical Deity deity to enter it.
The sky was filled with warships exchanging fire and engaging in fierce combat, their formations interlocking and flashing with light. The battle was extremely intense, and the defending forces of the Three Universal Civilizations were in dire straits, with only three-tenths remaining, and were being surrounded and annihilated.
Upon seeing a Mechanical Deity shrouded in black clouds descend, the World Tree Familia immediately changed their attack direction, unleashing a deluge of artillery fire.
The Supreme Heavenly Venerate remained motionless. The mechanical warriors that had condensed into black clouds around him immediately split off a portion to block in front of him. At the same time, they activated their shields, and their energies linked together to form a giant Psionic Energy shield that protected the entire Supreme Heavenly Venerate. All the fleet's cannon fire was blocked, and the shield's surface shimmered and rippled like waves.
Han Xiao raised the Emperor's Space-Rending Blade, pointing it at the massive World Tree fleet that filled the sky. With a slight twist of his arm, he turned the blade halfway around. The next moment, an invisible Psionic Energy Wave emanated from the tip of the blade, quickly sweeping out and enveloping most of the fleet.
The next moment, countless warships simultaneously burst into sparks, their shields shattered and disappeared, all malfunctioning and crashing in different directions as if they had lost power.
Wherever the Psionic Energy Wave passed, warships rained down!
Now, Han Xiao no longer needs to use human wave tactics to wear down large-scale forces. The Psionic Energy Wave is a powerful weapon in group battles, and today it was finally used on the actual battlefield. The number of fleets is almost meaningless in the face of this technology.
"This cutting-edge technology is even more useful than I expected, and it's no wonder I upgraded you into a divine artifact."
Watching the spectacular sight of countless spaceships crashing into the sky, Han Xiao couldn't help but feel delighted.
Having revealed his strength this time in order to seal the Secret Tree King, he no longer needs to hide it and naturally chooses to join the battle.
"My Dominion, there are too many battlefields. You can't handle them all by yourself. Should we intervene?"
Dark Emperor, accompanied by a group of Mechanical Divine Apostle, stood on the shoulders of the Supreme Heavenly Venerate and respectfully inquired.
"Take the boys and go help." Han Xiao nodded.
As soon as the words were spoken, dozens of Mechanical Divine Apostle immediately sprang into action, each leading a group of mechanical troops to different shallow-dimensional battlefields to support the Three Universal Civilizations in their campaign against the invading World Tree Familia.
With Han Xiao's Mechanical Force boost, the mechanical troops' combat strength was extraordinary, experiencing a leap forward. One mechanical army after another was deployed to the battlefield, immediately delivering a head-on blow to the various World Tree Familia.
Han Xiao controlled the Supreme Heavenly Venerate to act alone. The colossal mechanical lifeform, reaching from heaven to earth, strolled through one dimensional battlefield after another, casually wielding the Emperor's Space-Rending Blade, a giant double-headed broadsword, constantly unleashing map-wide AOE attacks. Psionic Energy Wave slashed out like light blades, sweeping across swathes of World Tree fleets.
After a fierce battle that lasted for an unknown period of time, Han Xiao lost count of how many World Tree Familia he had annihilated. Suddenly, in the remaining shallow-dimensional battlefields, the World Tree fleets simultaneously ceased fire and retreated like a tide.
The blitzkrieg invasion came with great force, aiming for a swift victory, but it met with fierce resistance. Seeing that the situation was hopeless, the World Tree Familia finally abandoned the invasion and chose to withdraw, slinking away in disgrace.
"We've finally repelled the World Tree's offensive."
In the conference room of the main universe, the leaders of the Three Universal Civilizations watched the World Tree forces retreat and finally relaxed their tense minds that had been on edge for the past few days.
"The World Tree has finally found an opportunity to open a second front, and they won't give up easily. After a period of rest, they might come back with renewed vigor," Louis pondered.
The leader of the Arcane Sect nodded, his tone tinged with worry. "The opening of a second front is extremely disadvantageous for us. The Secondary Dimension battlefield is a far more terrifying meat grinder than the frontier of the main universe, primarily characterized by head-on clashes. Our casualties will be high, while their fleets are constantly replenished, whereas our losses are substantial. Although the Netherland can accommodate the spirits of most fallen soldiers, Aurora's energy level is insufficient to bear the losses of soldiers on the interstellar battlefield..."
Mabrus clasped his hands together and suddenly said, "No problem. The enemy has an army, but we have Black Star."
Upon hearing this, the other two had complicated expressions.
They only learned of Beyond God Grade's true strength after receiving Clottey's report. They had already raised their expectations as much as possible, but they still underestimated Han Xiao's strength.
"Sigh, the combat power of Beyond God Grade is truly astonishing. But what I didn't expect was that the World Tree would also have Beyond God Grade." The leader of the Arcane Sect said in surprise.
"Fortunately Black Star has reached the Beyond God Grade; otherwise, we probably wouldn't have had anyone to counter the World Tree's trump card, and we would have suffered heavy casualties..."
The three had mixed feelings, tinged with lingering fear.
The Beyond God Grade Black Star filled them with immense fear, but it also brought them and the books a sense of security. If Black Star did not break through this limit, the interstellar society would be at an absolute disadvantage in terms of individual power. Once the Tree God Descent, their defenses would be utterly crushed, and they would be completely unable to retaliate.
The battle situation is now barely stable, and at least half of that is thanks to Black Star, whose contribution is greater than the three of them combined.
"However, after this battle, the World Tree should be frightened by Black Star. Next time it attacks the shallow dimensions, it will probably think twice before making any plans."
The three nodded secretly, letting out a sigh of relief.
The World Tree Territory, the Palace of the Tree King.
Specks of green light gathered on the Throne, condensing into the bodies of the Ancestral Tree King and the Anchor Tree King. Both of them looked quite grim, not only because the Secret Tree King had been sealed, but also because of the aftereffects of the removal of the Tree God Descent.
"The Secret Tree King is gone too... I never imagined that the mechanic who was Peak Beyond Grade A more than ten years ago would now have reached the Tree God Grade."
The Ancestral Tree King rubbed his forehead to ease the excruciating pain tearing at his soul, and spoke in a hoarse voice, his tone filled with rare shock and anger.
When Black Star revealed his true combat power and instantly defeated the Secret Tree King, he was frightened. Knowing that the Secret Tree King was likely to die, he decisively abandoned the Secret Tree King and activated the Tree God Descent without hesitation.
The Tree God Descent was like stirring the bodies and souls of the five Tree King together, a process of extreme pain where each was intertwined with the others, forming a new, interconnected consciousness that merged with the will of the Mother Tree. The aftereffects were severe; after the disintegration, the Tree King would experience periodic identity recognition difficulties and their thinking would remain confused for a long time before they could slowly recover.
If it weren't for dire circumstances, the Ancestral Tree King wouldn't have wanted to use it. It wasn't that he wanted to compete with Black Star, but rather that he was worried that if he didn't summon the Tree God, he wouldn't be able to Escape with Your Life from Black Star's clutches and would end up like the Secret Tree King.
In addition, each use of Tree God Descent severely depletes the Tree King Crown, causing the Tree King's power to decline and requiring time to recover. Before the Tree King Crown fully returns to its peak, there is a regular cooldown period for Tree God Descent. If Tree God Descent is used continuously without regard to the load, the Tree King Crown will shatter and disappear after three uses, requiring thousands of years to regenerate. This means that during this period, the Tree King no longer has any special bonuses and is just a simple title.
Moreover, the Tree God Descent requires a special fuel, a substance called "King's Relic." This special substance is generated when a Tree King fails to advance to the Beyond God Grade and dies. The Mother Tree cannot convert it; it can only store it. Although some has been accumulated over the years, fewer and fewer Tree King choose to advance, and the "King's Relic" is becoming increasingly scarce... And this fact is known only to the Ancestral Tree King!
As the most senior Tree King king, the Ancestral Tree King also knows another secret—that any member of the World Tree who chooses to advance to the Beyond God Grade is doomed to die, regardless of talent, because of the limitations imposed by the Mother Tree.
The Mother Tree wasn't always this powerful. It grew to its current size by absorbing countless things through the support of civilization.
Only by absorbing something new and acquiring its Information State can the World Tree unlock the corresponding abilities... And the World Tree has never absorbed Beyond God Grade life form, so Beyond Grade A is the individual limit for World Tree superhuman.
However, this does not mean that members of the World Tree cannot advance. In fact, as long as a Tree King reaches the Beyond God Grade, it can reclaim the Information State that was devoured by the Mother Tree, detach itself from the World Tree, and become a completely free person.
However, the World Tree does not allow any member to escape its control. As soon as someone attempts to advance, the Mother Tree will not only fail to protect them, but will also automatically interfere, because everyone's Information State is under its control, which can easily trigger malignant mutations... Therefore, in terms of manifestation, they will never reach the Beyond God Grade. All the Tree King that have advanced have died and turned into "King's Relic" - that is, Beyond Divine Remnant Power - stored in the World Tree.
Therefore, the Mother Tree's will after the Tree God Descent generated a strong appetite and couldn't wait to devour Black Star... As long as it devoured this true Beyond God Grade life form, it could obtain a Beyond God Grade- level Information State and unlock the upper limit of its individual power.
--Infinite rebirth naturally comes at a price; their potential is capped, and only when the World Tree grows can their potential increase in tandem... However, apart from the Ancestral Tree King, no one is fully aware of this.
The Ancestral Tree King never chose to advance in rank because it didn't want to benefit others, and it kept this secret from subsequent Tree King.
Various thoughts flashed through his mind, and the Ancestral Tree King spoke in a deep voice:
"The timing of that mechanic's advancement was too coincidental; luck wasn't on our side. Fortunately, I reclaimed the Tree Secret Tree King's Tree King Crown at the crucial moment, otherwise the Tree God's power would have declined even further."
"The Secret Tree King is beyond saving. Who do you plan to let inherit this crown?"
Anchor Tree King clutched his head in pain and asked through gritted teeth.
"... Let's investigate further."
The Ancestral Tree King's face was grim as he surveyed the three empty Throne, his mood extremely sour.
Of the five Tree King, one is dead, two are sealed away, leaving only the two of them. When have they ever been so disheveled during their conquest of the universe?!
It's absolutely heartbreaking...
Moreover, the only one left to keep him company was the most wretched salted fish Anchor Tree King, Ancestral Tree King feeling utterly exhausted.
The person he most wanted to dismiss was Anchor Tree King, not only because this guy liked to slack off, but also because he suspected that Anchor Tree King might have guessed something, which was why he was so lazy, complacent, and no longer ambitious.
Unaware of the subtle glance from the Ancestral Tree King, the Anchor Tree King said worriedly, "The Tree God Descent was incomplete; he's no match for that mechanic. We're completely suppressed in terms of individual power. What should we do now?"
"We can only temporarily abandon the struggle for individual power. We must stop involving high-level combatants, otherwise every one of them will be sealed off. Moreover, we may not be able to save the Heart Tree King; that Tree King Crown may be lost forever..."
The Ancestral Tree King was feeling depressed.
Ding Anchor Tree King asked in a worried tone, "What about the Mother Tree's natural enemies?"
"... This is a ticking time bomb; I need to think of another way."
The Ancestral Tree King's eyes darkened.
The World Tree was initially quite calm and composed about this war, remaining unperturbed and fearless, sitting firmly on its laurels.
However, the emergence of the Pivot Snake suddenly struck at their weak point, making their favorable situation precarious and forcing them to race against time, dragging them into a quagmire of time-sensitive action!
If it were simply a matter of revealing the coordinates of the Mother Tree itself, the Ancestral Tree King wouldn't be worried. He has always emphasized that the mother tree itself cannot be moved. In reality, the Mother Tree itself is not fixed. Although the process of moving it is very troublesome, it can indeed be transplanted to other Secondary Dimension.
The reason for revealing false information was to have a backup plan, to have multiple escape routes, and to conveniently serve as a trap... However, to this day, no civilization has been forced to reveal this trump card, so the Ancestral Tree King has kept it a secret until now.
However, the mature Pivot Snake can sense the location of the Mother Tree's main body anytime and anywhere, which is equivalent to a positioning radar with Infinite range. No matter how the main body is transplanted, it will be useless. This is a major matter concerning the survival of civilization, and the Ancestral Tree King cannot ignore it!
Even though the World Tree can sense natural enemies, the Pivot Snake are protected by that mechanic, so they have almost no chance, which is the biggest threat!
After much deliberation, he was still at a loss.
The only way he can think of to break the deadlock is to quickly eliminate the Three Universal Civilizations, regardless of casualties. This way, even if Black Star holds the Pivot Snake's Pivot, it will be difficult for him to gather enough power to attack the Mother Tree itself.
Even so, it's only a temporary solution; that mechanic will forever remain a threat to the Mother Tree.
If there are no unexpected changes, I'm afraid...
The Ancestral Tree King clenched his fist, a shadow falling over his heart, his expression shifting between light and shadow.