The World Tree Familia suffered a defeat in the Secondary Dimension battlefield, and the army groups that were originally fighting on the front lines of the Shattered World also ceased their offensive and temporarily withdrew. Compared to the dangers of the shallow dimension war, the Shattered World's border defenses were as solid as a rock.
This attack left many shallow dimensions riddled with holes. Although the enemy was repelled, the damage was still considerable because the battlefield was within the control area of Three Universal Civilizations. Some of their territory was destroyed, and the fleets of the Three Universal Civilizations quickly cleaned up the battlefield and repaired various war facilities.
Han Xiao then withdrew his supernatural powers, leaving behind a portion of his mechanical troops to help clean up the battlefield, while he himself used remote projection to meet with the leaders of the Three Universal Civilizations.
As soon as Han Xiao arrived, he was greeted with a barrage of compliments.
"Black Star, you've worked hard!"
"Fortunately, we repelled the World Tree Familia. If the enemy had ravaged our territory in the Secondary Dimension, we would have been at a disadvantage, and it would have inevitably dragged down the main universe's front. This time, we owe you a great debt of gratitude. Your contribution is immense, and we, on behalf of the entire interstellar society, thank you for your contribution."
"I didn't expect the World Tree to have Beyond God Grade combat power, but it's still not as good as you. We definitely didn't trust the wrong person."
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow and looked at the three of them. He saw that they had friendly smiles on their faces and their attitude was even more friendly than before.
"Alright, alright, stop bragging."
Han Xiao felt nothing.
He knew the three men's true nature all too well; they were only afraid of his Beyond God Grade strength, so they were showering him with compliments in an attempt to gain his favor.
Upon hearing this, the three of them abandoned their polite formalities. Mabrus asked curiously, "You fought against the World Tree's Beyond God Grade opponent. How did it feel? Did you feel any pressure?"
Han Xiao shook his head and said:
"The World Tree's Beyond God Grade combat power is called the Tree God. It doesn't seem to be a single life form, but rather an individual created through some kind of fusion. I've noticed that its combat power doesn't seem to be at its peak. I suspect the Tree God's poor condition is related to the absence of the two sealed Tree King..."
He briefly explained his findings.
"So, sealing away the Heart Tree King back then was a brilliant move, a stroke of foresight," Louis said with admiration.
Han Xiao waved his hand, "Don't be too happy yet. Although I can deal with the Tree God, it will be difficult to kill him. His regenerative ability is as amazing as mine, and he can also return to the World Tree from reality to illusion at any time, just as flexible as me."
"No way, wouldn't that be just as disgusting as you... cough, I mean, troublesome..." Mabrus quickly coughed and changed his words, almost blurting out what he really thought.
Han Xiao rolled his eyes at him, too lazy to argue, and said:
"In short, the Tree God is not easy to deal with, but I think this ability shouldn't be used casually. There must be some price to pay. Otherwise, they would have used the Tree God to wreak havoc more than ten years ago."
The three nodded, exchanged glances, and seemed to have reached some kind of consensus.
"Black Star, we have an idea, or rather a request. We hope you can temporarily take charge of the Secondary Dimension alone."
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow. "So, besides the fleet, I'm the only high-level combatant guarding the entire shallow dimension? No matter how many Beyond Grade A enemies the World Tree sends, I'll be the only one to deal with them?"
"With your abilities, you alone are equivalent to dozens or even hundreds of Beyond Grade A fighters. There's no need for the other combatants to stay here. We believe in your capabilities; you alone can completely hold the Secondary Dimension's front line!"
Mabrus spoke earnestly, his words conveying the message, "We believe in you."
Han Xiao curled his lip, "If I didn't know you guys wouldn't dare to fight amongst yourselves right now, I would have almost thought you were trying to trick me."
"You must have misunderstood us. We're not those kinds of people." The three looked helpless.
"I think you guys have a misunderstanding about your own image. When did you start acting like human beings?"
Han Xiao scoffed, shrugged, and casually said:
"Fine, since you want one man to Ten Thousand Cannot Break Through, then I'll guard the Secondary Dimension alone. It's not difficult anyway."
Because the World Tree is rooted in Secondary Dimension, this place is bound to be the main battlefield for further resistance against external enemies, and Han Xiao originally planned to wait for the right opportunity here.
At this moment, Han Xiao suddenly remembered something, his tone slightly somber, and he said seriously, "Speaking of which, the timing of the World Tree's discovery of the Expeditionary Army's outpost is quite coincidental, coming shortly after the emergence of the Pivot Snake. I suspect there is a connection between the two."
Upon hearing this, the three of them immediately perked up.
"What are your guesses? Share them."
"I've already told you about the abilities of the Pivot Snake. Once it reaches adulthood, it can track the location of the World Tree itself. Therefore, I suspect there's a two-way connection between the World Tree and it. Given the World Tree's maturity, it might also be able to sense the Pivot Snake's location in reverse, which is why the outpost was exposed."
"So what do you plan to do?" The three were slightly taken aback.
"Since I'm guarding the Secondary Dimension, I might as well protect the crucial trump card, the Pivot Snake, by my side. No matter how the World Tree attacks, they'll have to get past me first."
Han Xiao paused, then said:
"As for how to confirm this, we'll have to see what the World Tree does next. If they have information about the Pivot Snake, then they'll know they're at a disadvantage and have lost the Book. They'll definitely intensify their offensive like crazy, regardless of losses, just to buy time... They wouldn't need to do this just because I displayed Beyond God Grade combat power. So if the World Tree shows this sign, it means my guess is pretty much correct."
"That's reliable. Since you have a plan, let's do it your way."
The three relaxed and expressed their trust.
After discussing the follow-up plan for a while, Han Xiao deactivated the projector, and his view returned to the room.
He first checked on the condition of the Pivot Snake. The Pivot Snake was not involved in the battle and was still the same as before, ignoring him.
The King of the Boundless, who had been promoted from garbage dump manager to zookeeper, was even more respectful, saying that he would definitely pet the snake seriously.
Leaving more Mechanical Divine Apostle protect the Pivot Snake, Han Xiao then changed into the Sovereign and teleported back to the main universe, arriving at the Sibert Fortress on the border of the Shattered World.
He easily found a group of mascots and, without saying a word, unleashed a series of inexplicable moves.
Having absorbed enough good fortune, Han Xiao closed the door and opened the panel to complete the Tree God's challenge mission.
The task format is the same as the Beyond Grade A challenge task, with the evaluation standard being the duration of completion, but the rewards are many times greater.
The two had been fighting for a long time and had already unlocked all the reward tiers. The accumulated experience reward had already replaced [The End of Darkness] as the highest experience reward he had ever seen, reaching a full 24,000e, more than double, which is roughly equivalent to more than twenty Old Manison's.
Other rewards then appeared.
[You have obtained [Character Summon Card - Tree God) ]!]
[Character Summon Card - Tree God): [World Tree Devour] - Devours external matter or energy, converting it into the power of the World Tree to replenish its own consumption. It can also summon the World Tree at will. Maximum number of uses: 0/4]
"A restorative ability? So-so... But since I used this character card, am I absorbing things myself, or am I helping the World Tree Devour?"
Han Xiao scratched his head.
If I use this move to summon the World Tree when I'm fighting the Tree God, will those roots obey me or the opponent?
Moreover, if the World Tree sees that he can summon its World Tree, wouldn't it probably think he's its half-brother?!
[You have received a reward: draw one of the Tree God's abilities (skills/features)]
[Upgrade: The Tree God is a special life form; some of its extractable abilities have been adjusted.]
[Randomly selecting... Selection complete!]
Please choose one of the following five abilities as a reward:
[1. [Tree King Crown - Liberation] - Skill: Fusing with Tree King Crown summons Tree God. When the power of a Tree King Crown is further liberated, the Tree God's energy level will continue to rise, at the cost of destroying that Tree King Crown.]
[2. [Information Uniqueness, Conceptual Immortality] - Specialty: As long as there are information carriers recording your information throughout the universe, and people are still reciting your name, you will not truly perish. Even if your spirit and body are destroyed, you will be reborn at some time and in some space through Information State Disturbance.]
[3. [Psychic Network - World Tree] - Skill: Enter the World Tree's symbiotic Psychic Network and communicate with any World Tree life form without distance or delay.]
[4. [Inner Space Enhancement] - Feat: Your inner space domain is more robust and harder to break.]
[5. [Information State Erasure] - Specialty: You can ignore spatial limitations and chain damage to the opponent's Information State foundation, causing defects. At the same time, various types of information carriers such as individual memories, network data, and written records will also be affected.]
"Hiss..."
Han Xiao took a deep breath, his heart filled with dread.
"As I suspected, the Beyond God Grade possess the ability to inflict destructive Information State, allowing them to target opponents of the same level."
He carefully reviewed it several times and roughly understood the mechanism of [Information State Erasure]. To put it simply, it is to eliminate all traces of the other party's existence in the world. Not only will everyone forget him, but even network data and text records will disappear. It is specifically designed to counter [Information Uniqueness and Concept Immortality], and is quite similar to the Information State manifestation of Child of Destiny's sub-bodies. It is unobservable and cannot be propagated.
The abilities of the World Tree's resurrection and the spirits of the Netherland will most likely be directly countered, resulting in the complete death of those affected... As for the special Sanctuary Revival, he is currently unsure whether it will be affected.
However, this expertise cannot be used arbitrarily; it requires judgment, and one of the most important factors is the target's state... Even if there is a huge difference in strength, as long as the target has a relative ability to resist, [Information State Erasure] will not be effective.
The simplest trigger condition is that the target is in a state of "death" such as being near death or having just died, or is killed directly by the user; these conditions will trigger the effect.
Han Xiao then realized that this was precisely why the Secret Tree King dared not self-destruct. To self-destruct in front of him was tantamount to surrendering, exposing one's belly, and letting him do as he pleased. It was just that this guy hadn't expected that he hadn't mastered this ability before.
"I didn't know this move before, but you guys personally delivered this ability to me. Thank you."
Han Xiao burst out laughing.
After some thought, he finally decided to choose [Information State Erasure].
Perhaps he'll unlock this move on his own after Beyond God Grade, but he currently has no clue what it takes, and nobody knows what conditions are required to comprehend it.
Han Xiao has always believed that only benefits that are actually obtained have meaning, and this ability is a trump card urgently needed in the current battle, making it most suitable for the current situation.
Moreover, he had a hidden worry.
Having destroyed the World Tree's main body in his past life, Han Xiao always believed the Three Universal Civilizations had won. But now, seeing the Tree God possess [Unique Information, Conceptual Immortality], could it also affect the World Tree's main body?
Was the victory of those Three Universal Civilizations in the past a permanent solution, or merely a temporary peace? Was the World Tree truly gone, or did it regenerate somewhere?
Even if the possibility of this speculation is not high, Han Xiao felt that he needed to get his hands on the [Information State Erasure] as soon as possible as insurance, just in case.
[You have gained a new specialization: [Information State Erasure]!]
The next moment, a mysterious feeling welled up in Han Xiao's heart. He sensed something and turned to look at the metal table next to him.
His vision shifted, and he seemed to see fine threads extending from the table, piercing the walls and stretching into the endless distance. Following these threads, he seemed to see all the information carriers related to it, and he seemed to vaguely see the origin of the table's materials, where they were processed, where they were assembled, how they were transported here, and how many people had come into contact with it...
However, when he tried to examine them closely, the images disappeared, as if they were just an illusion.
"... That's interesting."
Han Xiao looked around the room. Each object had many threads extending from it, representing connections with various information carriers. He had a feeling that he could sever these threads.
"I can only see the connection, but not the specific details... If this ability were to advance further, wouldn't it be omniscient? Is this Beyond God Grade development path?"
Han Xiao's eyes flickered.
Suddenly, a thought struck him. He opened the panel, wanting to see the information connections, but there were only two threads. One was connected to him, and the other extended Infinite outwards, its connection unknown.
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes, and suddenly a bold idea came to him.
"What would happen if I cut this down... Never mind, let's not cause any trouble now."