"I didn't lose to Goddora, but I was defeated by him..."
The DarkStar Leader had a complex expression.
Back then, when Black Star first came into his view, he was just an unknown mercenary. It was only after Black Star killed Anur that he took him seriously for the first time. He never expected that Black Star would rise to prominence at such a rapid pace, causing three Calamity Grade executives to suffer defeats. In the end, the infamous DarkStar became Black Star's stepping stone.
"A terrifying figure..." The DarkStar Leader wasn't so much angry, but rather helpless.
How did we end up messing with this guy in the first place?
Ashes's face turned ashen.
Years ago, when he first clashed with Black Star in Dragon Calm, he never dreamed that Black Star would eventually become the destroyer of DarkStar. At that moment, he only felt that the Galaxy was vast and that fate was unpredictable.
Black Star had become almost his nightmare.
Although he valued Black Star's potential more than his colleagues, it was too late to say anything now... The DarkStar Leader was about to take him away from the Shattered Star Ring, saying they were going to find a backer in another star system.
Ashes trusted their leader's judgment, so even if they knew Black Star was the real mastermind, they couldn't turn back to deal with him. Besides, the Garton Star System was full of forces Pursuit them down, and going back would be like walking into a trap.
However, Ashes was still unwilling to accept it.
The DarkStar Leader glanced at him, his eyes flickering, and said calmly, "Don't overthink it. A loss is a loss. We don't have the ability to retaliate until we regain our strength."
"I know, the most urgent thing is to go and seek refuge with the backer you mentioned." Ashes nodded solemnly, suppressing his anger and resentment. Revenge was meaningless without the power to achieve it. He paused, then asked, "Who exactly is this backer you're talking about?"
"A Beyond Grade A expert, you'll find out then."
Ashes's expression brightened. "To think we could connect with Beyond Grade A! That's great! Now we won't be held back by the Dragon Calm anymore."
The DarkStar Leader glanced at Ashes, seemingly lost in thought, before suddenly asking, "Ashes, what do you think is the best future for hybrids?"
"The best future? Of course, it's to overthrow the rule of the purebloods and become the new Goddora." Ashes without hesitation.
The DarkStar Leader remained noncommittal, slowly saying, "What level of power would constitute overthrowing the rule of purebloods? Would it mean turning all the high-ranking government officials into hybrids? Or would it mean wiping out all purebloods? Even if we successfully seize power, the inherent class structure of Bloodline cannot be changed overnight. And once the coup succeeds, the remaining supporters of Goddora will request the help of allied civilizations. At that time, we will face internal and external troubles. Even if we successfully replace the rule of purebloods, it may only be a flash in the pan. What's worse, the cluster-level civilization of the Colton Star Cluster will not recognize our legitimacy."
Ashes frowned. "Even if there are many difficulties, there will always be opportunities."
"What if there were a better solution? The hybrids would leave Goddora, break free from the rule of the purebloods, and establish a home for the hybrids in another star system. All the people would be hybrids, and there would be no more issues of Bloodline. We would rule ourselves, shedding the labels and books of Goddora, and become a new civilization, a new race."
The thought of that scene Ashes with longing, but he quickly shook his head. He had considered this question before, and answering it now required little thought:
"A blatant split leaves us nowhere to hide. Goddora will wipe us out immediately. Moreover, establishing a new civilization presents numerous challenges, including territory, diplomacy, productivity, and population. The political resistance is immense; other star system civilizations, even star cluster civilizations, will not stand idly by and allow us to establish a civilization so easily. Almost no one will support us."
"Yes, no civilization will support this unless a higher-level political force intervenes." The DarkStar Leader stopped the topic, changing the subject, "You pilot the spaceship, I have some business to attend to."
After saying that, the DarkStar Leader got up, left the cockpit, took out the communicator from the hidden compartment, and sent a communication request.
The blurry human figure reappeared.
"We'll be leaving the Shattered Star Ring soon; everything is ready."
"Yes, we've already introduced you to that person. He's very interested in your offerings and is waiting for you."
The DarkStar Leader nodded and said, "There's another matter, concerning Black Star... He's an obstacle."
"You don't need to worry about Black Star. If necessary, we'll find someone to offer him an irresistible job with a reward he can't refuse." The blurry figure smiled faintly. "He was, after all, a mercenary. To die in a mission is the most normal way for a mercenary to die."
After exchanging a few words, the DarkStar Leader hung up the communication and returned to the cockpit.
After collecting its fuel, the spaceship continued its journey, heading beyond the Shattered Star Ring, before disappearing into the universe as a streak of light.
Floating Dragon Island.
"Black Star is probably the strongest officer in Dragon Calm."
"Ames really struck gold."
"Hehe, you guys know, I fought Black Star in Dragon Calm back in the day."
"You were the one who got hit, weren't you?"
The Goddora Festival was also broadcast here, and many scavengers and space pirates docked at the pier gathered together, talking loudly and chatting about everything under the sun.
Just then, a small, iron-gray spaceship slowly descended. Its hull was painted with a special mark: crossed arms covering a cross-shaped pattern, surrounded by a ring of square patterns of various shapes that interlocked with each other.
Upon noticing the spaceship, the Stars pirates suddenly fell silent, their faces turning terrified, and they became utterly terrified.
This mark represents another Beyond Grade A force in the Shattered Star Ring — the War Realm.
[Tyrant] Heber, a powerful figure who reached the Beyond Grade A in martial arts, is known as "the moving stellar furnace" and "the one who stepped into the forbidden zone of life".
Unlike the neutral Ames, Heber is a guest of honor of a star cluster-level civilization, and his War Realm is a transcendent force that occupies a region. Compared to him, the size of Dragon Calm is like the difference between an infant and an adult.
The group disembarked from the spaceship. The leader was a burly man wearing heavy armor. He was not wearing a helmet, which revealed his face with features of a demon race. His skin was dark red, and he had a pair of curved horns on his head, one of which was only half intact.
Two deep black lines ran from his forehead, across his eyes, and down to his chin. His pupils were pure white, giving him an aura that kept strangers at bay.
With each step he took, he left a shallow footprint on the ground, a testament to the terrible weight he carried.
"That's ' Broken Horn ' Mazaks, a core cadre among the eight vanguard leaders in the War Realm."
"People from the War Realm have actually come to Dragon Calm. Could it be that these two Beyond Grade A powerhouses have some kind of plan?"
The people at the dock held their breath and whispered among themselves, watching as Mazaks from the War Realm ordered his subordinates to stand by and headed alone towards the central palace of Dragon Calm, disappearing from sight.
Not long after.
Suddenly, a shooting star rose from the palace in the center of Dragon Calm. It was extremely fast, traced a parabola, flew across the entire city, and landed heavily near the dock.
Boom!
Like a meteorite, it crashed into the ground, creating a deep crater.
The surrounding space pirates were startled and quickly looked over.
Amidst billowing dust, Mazaks climbed out of the pit and dusted himself off.
The Dragon Emperor has never been fond of people from the War Realm. After meeting Ames, he was thrown out by Ames using a force field before he could say more than a few words. Although Mazaks was covered in dust, he was unharmed.
"The invitation has been delivered, let's go."
Mazaks remained expressionless as he gestured for his subordinates to board the ship. The spaceship took off and disappeared from the sight of the people on the dock.
Planet Aquamarine.
The disaster relief Sanctuary and the Six Nations that were rebuilding were greeted by unexpected guests.
Fleets of ships from outer space landed on Planet Aquamarine. These people were members of the Free Consortium, which operated in the Garton Star System.
After discussing with the leaders of the Six Nations, Bennett decided to use Black Star's base on Planet Aquamarine as the landing point to uniformly welcome the interstellar visitors.
The consortium members gathered together and held talks with Bennett and the leaders of the Six Nations.
What brings you here?
With the precautions for contacting aliens left behind by Han Xiao, Bennett and the high-ranking officials of the Six Nations appeared much calmer.
"Hello, government of Planet Aquamarine. I am a senior director of the Lauren Financial Group..."
"I am the manager of the Radiance Financial Group..."
The conglomerate members introduced themselves before revealing their intentions:
"We hope to reach a commercial cooperation agreement to invest in Planet Aquamarine. Simply put, we will provide funding to help you transform Planet Aquamarine in exchange for operating licenses to build industries here."
With Dragon Calm's backing and the recent sensational event of Planet Aquamarine Black Star receiving the Gaol Golden Statue Medal, Planet Aquamarine has become a hot commodity for many interstellar conglomerates and investors. Not only are there business opportunities, but it also allows them to curry favor with Black Star and Dragon Calm, with a considerable return on investment.
As a result, many conglomerates decided to invest in the development of Planet Aquamarine.
Generally speaking, advanced civilizations should not interfere in the processes of lesser civilizations. However, rules are rigid while people are flexible. What constitutes interference by an advanced civilization is a vague line. Furthermore, the spontaneous investment activities of interstellar consortia are basically unrelated to advanced civilizations. As for whether there is any shadow of an advanced civilization behind them, that is even more ambiguous.
Moreover, this is Shattered Star Ring, the edge of the known universe, far from the reach of the central authority.
Bennett and the leaders of the Six Nations were overjoyed. What they had longed for was to transform from a surface civilization into an interstellar civilization. Although they were now on a slightly different path, it seemed to be an effective one.
All of this was brought about by Black Star. Having a fellow countryman who is thriving in the universe is simply a blessing from Lady Luck to Planet Aquamarine.
Sure enough, clinging to Han Xiao's coattails is better than clinging to Goddora's stinky feet.
After reaching a consensus on cooperation, the Planet Aquamarine regime held its first cooperation talks with the interstellar consortium.
This planet has gradually begun the process of integrating into interstellar space.
The interstellar age of Planet Aquamarine has begun.
The day after the awarding ceremony, Han Xiao bid farewell to the high-ranking officials of Goddora and the commanders of various legions, and received fifty Frenzied Falcon Class warships and a Fortress Class flagship. The fleet, several times larger than before, carried the entire Black Star Army and departed Goddora's homeworld in a grand procession.
This trip was incredibly successful. With the current fleet size, they are more than capable of waging a small-scale interstellar war, which can be seen as a way of expanding their business scope.
After many days, Planet Golden Gate finally came into view in the distance.
We've finally arrived at base camp.
Inside the Blacklight Stealth cockpit, Han Xiao gazed at the outline of the Planet Golden Gate and smiled.