A streak of light flashed by, and Sedim piloted his spaceship to a stop on the outskirts of an asteroid belt.
He chased after Han Xiao for a day, following the route indicated by Sisko. He discovered that the target did not head straight for the depths of the Desolate Universe Belt, but instead circled around in an arc, meandering along the edge of the Shattered Star Ring, and was not as fast as his vehicle.
He eventually caught up with his target in this asteroid belt, marking the location Sisko had given him on the star map; the target was now hidden within this asteroid belt.
"The target has stopped here..." Sedim said solemnly.
Countless meteorites stretched endlessly, like a long dragon floating in the universe. Some were huge meteorites tens of thousands of meters long and wide, while others were only a dozen meters long. They were so dense that they blocked the view, and Sedim could only slowly scan the meteorite belt with his detection device.
The meteorite belt is so vast that it is a good hiding place, and scanning it would undoubtedly be a huge undertaking.
However, the radar detected the moment Sedim had this thought.
"Report! An anomalous energy target has been detected!"
The view through the porthole immediately expanded, revealing a person sitting cross-legged atop a massive, spindle-shaped meteorite. The person's face was hidden beneath a helmet, and their entire body was encased in streamlined, silver-black mech armor with glowing, eerie blue cloud patterns adorning the armor. They were facing Sedim's ship, clearly having been spotted long ago.
Sedim narrowed his eyes, stopped the spaceship in place, opened the hatch and flew out. Golden-red armor spread from his chest, covering his entire body, forming a set of heavy armor that expanded in size twice as much, and he stood facing Han Xiao from a distance.
"Barn? Is that you?"
Sedim took the initiative to send a message to Han Xiao, his tone unfriendly.
Han Xiao smiled slightly, "You can continue to call me that."
Upon hearing this, Sedim couldn't help but snort coldly. "Barn" was of dubious origin. He already knew that the name was fake. As for the guy's true identity, he didn't ask at the time and still didn't know.
But it's okay, we can catch this guy and interrogate him later.
With this in mind, Sedim's eyes flickered, and he made up his mind.
Sisko had only asked him to track the man, but now that he had caught up, he wasn't afraid to take action. Perhaps he could pry out the information Sisko was hiding from "Barn" before Sisko arrived—why this man was running away, why Sisko was chasing him, he knew nothing about these things, only he was kept in the dark, and he was eager to figure out the whole Vein.
"I have another question..." Sedim said in a deep voice, "You hid on Planet Maixibo's beforehand, your real goal was to attack those people, right? But you infiltrated my assets and stole the blueprints, weren't you afraid of being exposed?"
In his view, "Barn" stayed on Planet Maixibo's to kill Eklin and the others, so he couldn't understand Barn's behavior at all—why was this guy so bold as to expose himself right under his nose? Wouldn't it have been more discreet to stay in a hotel in the city for a while?
"Would you believe me if I said it was all because of luck?"
Han Xiao smiled helplessly. He initially only wanted to complete his specialty quests, but then he discovered the blueprints for Eternal Light. He then only intended to steal the blueprints, but Orosen came knocking on his door. He originally only wanted to kill the wanted criminal, but he got caught up in the Evolution Cube controversy...
Could this be the will of Great Fording?
"Luck?" Sedim narrowed his eyes, sensing many suspicious points, and shook his head. "Forget it, you won't get anything out of me now. Once you're in my hands, you'll know what to say."
As soon as he finished speaking, Sedim's Mechanical Force erupted, the ship's belly opened, and golden-red barracks boxes shot out like missiles, opening in mid-air. A vast array of mechanical troops quickly formed ranks and hovered behind Sedim.
Looking around, there were at least two or three million of them, and their models were very different from Han Xiao's, being much heavier and more menacing.
As an armed mechanic, Sedim possessed more blueprints for war machines. His mechanical troops were mainly heavily armed and enormous, with many heavy mechanical soldiers standing five or six meters tall. Among them were thousands of conspicuous giant soldiers, the largest of which was over a thousand meters tall, larger than many meteorites.
In addition to various mechanized combat units, there are many other combat equipment, such as floating artillery turrets, satellite strike guns, heavy floating guards, defensive fortresses, assault pods, etc., all of which are used in interstellar warfare, equivalent to dozens of interstellar combat groups with both offensive and defensive capabilities, supporting each other.
Sedim launched a large number of compressed spheres, which unfolded into huge components that connected to his body armor, forming a giant soldier hundreds of meters tall. He then retreated to the center of the force, where numerous defensive fortresses and hovering guards surrounded him, deploying multiple shields and space-stabilizing devices to prevent warp-invasion, creating an impenetrable wall.
This is the orthodox legion-style strategy, where the mechanic is the commander-in-chief stationed in the center, focusing on troop deployment and steady progress, unlike Han Xiao's aggressive style of leading the charge while focusing fire and rushing in.
Seeing Sedim summon his legion, Han Xiao's eyes lit up. He scanned the overwhelming Sedim legion and couldn't help but lick his lips.
"So much heavy machinery, looks like a legion specializing in assaults. Good stuff." Han Xiao's fingers twitched slightly, eager to try it out.
Millions of mechanized soldiers simultaneously raised their cannons and aimed them at Han Xiao. Seeing that Han Xiao remained unmoved, Sedim frowned slightly.
"You're a mechanic too, where's your legion?" Sedim asked with interest. "Or are you unwilling to suffer any consequences and are willing to surrender?"
Han Xiao smiled and pointed behind Sedim.
"Isn't my legion here?"
Sedim was startled and turned around abruptly.
Behind his army, streaks of light shot in from afar— the Black Star Mechanical Army had arrived via warp!
The barracks crates opened one after another, and tens of millions of mechanized soldiers poured out. The black tide that blotted out the sky was like an endless swarm of insects, and its number was more than three times that of Sedim's army!
"How come you have more than me?!"
Sedim's expression changed drastically, and he was horrified.
He suddenly realized that this mysterious "Barn" was probably not the nameless person he had guessed, but a big shot who came from nowhere.
The size of the mechanical legion also represents the financial resources of the mechanics. Maintaining the legion is expensive, and in the entire Shattered Star Ring, there are only a handful of mechanics who can afford to maintain such a large mechanical force.
Names flashed through my mind, finally settling on one image.
Sedim was suddenly thrown into a daze, turned around abruptly, and stared at Han Xiao in disbelief.
"You are... Black Star?!"
"You got it right, here's a green hat for you as a reward." Han Xiao chuckled.
With the Evolution Cube in hand and his breakthrough to Beyond Grade A imminent, Barn's identity is so clearly distinguishable that there's no need for him to disguise himself anymore.
"Fire!" Sedim's contempt shattered instantly, and he hurriedly ordered the troops to open fire. The rear guard became the front guard to engage the mechanical legion attacking from behind, while the original front guard concentrated its fire on Han Xiao.
Millions of beams of light shot out simultaneously. Faced with such power, Han Xiao did not want to take it head-on. He pulled the canvas with both hands and unleashed a [Enhanced Twist Void] that caused the surrounding spacetime stability coefficient to change abruptly, creating spatial chaos.
Countless light beams were deflected, and the surrounding asteroid belt suffered greatly. Countless meteorites were pierced and blasted apart by the light beams, turning into dust and debris. Even the huge meteorite under Han Xiao's buttocks was blown to pieces.
After a concentrated barrage of fire, the area tens of thousands of meters around Han Xiao instantly became a blank zone in the asteroid belt, while he himself remained unharmed, his entire body enveloped in a dark blue Psionic Energy shield, shimmering with a watery light, which blocked all stray bullets.
Seeing that the cannons of Sedim's large number of mechanical soldiers lit up again, intending to launch a second wave of concentrated fire, Han Xiao directly escaped into the Void Dimension.
In the next instant, he appeared in the rear of Sedim's army, acting as a sharp blade to protect Sedim from the heavy guard, and joined forces with his mechanical legion to attack from both sides.
Surrounded by swarms of enemy mechanical soldiers, Han Xiao immediately activated his Apostolization. His Psionic Energy surged, and azure Psionic Energy surged forth like water, piercing through swarms of mechanical soldiers. Every mechanical soldier that stood in his way was easily dismantled into scrap metal, and he swept through layer after layer of defenses with overwhelming force.
The Evolution Cube greatly increased his combat power, and only a tank-type mechanic as tough and powerful as him would dare to penetrate so deep into enemy territory.
Han Xiao suddenly felt a darkness before his eyes as a colossal soldier, hundreds of meters tall, blocked his path. The soldier was covered by a spaceship-level shield and had thousands of ship-mounted turrets on its body, which were firing at him in rapid succession.
The enormous mechanical hand swatted down like swatting a fly, as if a mountain had crashed down upon it.
Han Xiao neither dodged nor evaded, but directly raised his hand to withstand the palm strike. Compared to the giant soldier's palm, his size was like that of an ant compared to a ball. However, his mecha thrusters spewed out incandescent flames at full power, which prevented him from being knocked away. Han Xiao's ten fingers were inserted into the giant soldier's palm and hung on it.
The giant soldier clenched his fist and grabbed Han Xiao in his hand. But the next moment, countless fine cracks spread from the giant soldier's palm to his entire arm. A faint blue light shone from the cracks. Before the giant soldier could react, the entire mechanical arm, which was hundreds of meters long, was blown into pieces by the Psionic Energy that Han Xiao had poured into it!
Countless parts were blasted away by the shockwave, knocking the surrounding mechanical soldiers off their feet.
With the [Energy Enhancement Halo) ], the energy's light and shadow effects appear very dense and dazzling—although they don't have any actual effect, they just look cool.
After taking down the giant soldier blocking his way, Han Xiao sprang to his feet, instantly accelerating from a standstill to a spinning motion, smashing through the machinery along the way, and heading straight for Sedim, who was stationed in the center of the town. The light cannons chasing behind him intertwined into a grid pattern.
"That's too fierce." Sedim was covered in sweat and hurriedly mobilized more rear troops to intercept Han Xiao.
At that moment, the Black Star Mechanical Army on the other side finally clashed with the Sedim forces.
The two sides were clearly distinct: Han Xiao's mechanical legion was black, while Sedim's troops were red. At this moment, the black forces, which resembled a black tide, transformed into a comb-like formation. The densely packed comb teeth fiercely pierced into the red forces' formation, muddying their formation and gradually turning them black, resulting in a mix of red and black.
Immediately afterwards, the black forces pressed down like an overwhelming tide, pushing the red formation forward. Both sides crashed into the nearby asteroid belt, splitting up their formations and turning the scene into a chaotic battle.
Every moment, tens of millions of light beams illuminate the space, crisscrossing and causing the area of the asteroid belt to shrink rapidly. This part of the universe seems to be illuminated by blinding light beams.
Hundreds of mechanical beasts clung to the body of a giant soldier, frantically tearing at its thick outer armor. The defensive turrets on the giant soldier's body fired continuously, blasting the mechanical beasts into pieces.
A charging formation pierced through a group of scattered mechanized soldiers, only to be wiped out by concentrated fire from all sides.
A large group of mechs were engaged in fierce combat on a meteorite when a giant soldier descended, pressed down with both hands, and crushed the mechs along with the meteorite.
A dozen or so Black Star mechs advanced at full power, propelling the wreckage of a colossal soldier and sweeping away a large group of enemy troops...
Every second, a large number of mechanical soldiers perish, turning into metallic debris floating in space.
While rushing forward, Han Xiao didn't forget about the virtual intrusion, and more and more Sedim troops suddenly turned against him.
Just as a giant soldier had shattered a Black Star mechanical unit, it suddenly retaliated with a punch, smashing the head of another giant soldier beside it.
The troops that came to intercept Han Xiao have instead become his vanguard, clearing the way for him. Han Xiao was originally advancing alone, but now he has thousands of traitorous guards by his side.
Sedim panicked and could only retreat. He could still fight back with the help of the Legion and maybe even escape by cutting off his tail, but if Black Star got close, it would all be over.
Orthodox legionary tactics are not afraid of being charged. If an ordinary mechanic were to use Han Xiao's tactics, it would be suicide. However, Sedim did not think he had the ability to break through Black Star's defenses. With so many precedents of Shattered Star Ring, everyone knows the terror of the "Undying Body". He did not want to become the next negative example.
The two armies fought fiercely for a long time in the asteroid belt, and the entire asteroid belt was reduced to dust.
After holding out for so long, Sedim finally had nowhere left to retreat, and Han Xiao caught up from behind and pushed him down.
With his surrounding defenses shattered by Han Xiao's rampage and his troops tightly entangled by the Black Star Mechanical Army, Sedim's only remaining support was the giant machine he personally controlled. He gritted his teeth and fought against Han Xiao.
Both of them possessed the ability to Apostolization. Their Psionic Energy collided repeatedly, scattering blue energy fragments like shattered jade, which spread out like shockwaves. With each punch Han Xiao landed, a large section of the giant soldier's outer armor would shatter. Sedim was sent flying everywhere by the blows, unable to withstand the impact at all.
Compared to the Legion faction, Han Xiao had more underlings; compared to his own strength, Han Xiao's combat power was far greater; moreover, the Evolution Cube had significantly boosted his attributes, widening the gap even further. The situation was a one-sided, absolute crushing defeat. Han Xiao chased after Sedim and relentlessly beat him until he was utterly routed.
The giant soldier's outer armor was dismantled, and Han Xiao rushed into the giant soldier's body, grabbed Sedim's main body, and used the Mountain Ape mech's throwing ability to throw him out of the giant soldier, leaving a trail of parts and fragments in his wake.
The next moment, Han Xiao instantly accelerated to catch up with the tumbling Sedim. His entire body was enveloped in Mechanical Force, and his fist, imbued with the explosive abilities of [Gene Liberation], [Legendary Combat Technique], [Overload], [Mechanical Force Overload], and [Lethal Critical Hit], slammed out!
Bang!
The fist pierced through the armor and Heavy Strike Sedim's abdomen. His internal organs, like drumheads, were smashed with a muffled thunderous sound that reverberated within his body, causing Sedim's eardrums to ring.
The multiple critical hits and true damage from this punch instantly rendered Sedim, a squishy mechanic, incapacitated and stunned.
Before Sedim could bend over like a shrimp after being Heavy Strike in the abdomen, his Barton grabbed by a large hand, his helmet was crushed, and the five fingers gripping his skull began to tighten.
"No, no, no--" Sedim's head was throbbing with pain, his face filled with terror, and he hurriedly begged for mercy, but no sound could be made in the vacuum.
Han Xiao tilted his head, and an air bubble popped out from his shoulder, enveloping the two of them. Then he opened his mask and asked, "You lost. Don't want to die, do you?"
"Don't kill me!"
Sedim hurriedly shouted. He wasn't stupid and wouldn't use the name of the Mechanic Emperor as a shield. The Mechanic Emperor was far away, and even if he died, they wouldn't come all the way to help him. Besides, Black Star in front of him wasn't someone to be easily intimidated. Bringing up his backer would only provoke the other party and backfire.
Being a coward is the right thing to do!
"Then stop your troops." Han Xiao gestured with his lip. At this moment, Sedim's mechanical troops were still fighting against his mechanical legion.
With life and death in their hands, Sedim dared not act rashly and quickly brought his troops to a halt.
The two mechanical legions quickly ceased fighting and stood facing each other from a distance.
Han Xiao nodded in satisfaction and smiled, "Give me your authority to control the troops as well."
Sedim's expression changed, and he gritted his teeth.
His heart was bleeding. These millions of troops were the culmination of his long-accumulated resources. Relinquishing control would be tantamount to handing the troops over to Black Star.
"You're unwilling?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow. "I can still seize your troops by killing you; the only difference is that it will waste some time. If you're willing to die a heroic death, I have no objection. After killing you, I can take over your Planet Maixibo. Tsk tsk, all your hundred years of hard work will end up in my pocket. Is that the result you want?"
"Stop, stop talking, the permissions are yours." Sedim's face turned pale, he was on the verge of tears, and he could only reluctantly transfer the permissions of the mechanical troops, enduring the pain.
The instant the privileges were revoked, Sedim felt a sharp pain in his heart, filled with immense grief and indignation—not only had he been cheated on, but he had also had to help someone else cheat on him!
"Don't be so angry. You're still alive; you can always make it back."
Han Xiao. He released Sedim and asked Phillip to take stock of the captured troops. As long as he could rewrite the permissions, the troops would be his.
Then Han Xiao took out a large number of electromagnetic handcuffs and firmly restrained Sedim.
He didn't intend to kill Sedim. After all, Sadim was a subordinate of the Mechanic Emperor. Since he couldn't eliminate him completely, he wouldn't cut the weeds. After all, Sedim had struck first, and seizing some resources was just a minor conflict. Even if Sedim reported it... what kind of status did the Mechanic Emperor have? They wouldn't care about such trivial matters. But killing someone was a different matter, and Han Xiao didn't want the Mechanic Emperor to pay attention to him at this time.
However, we cannot release Sedim now.
Sedim was both furious and relieved. He had been afraid that Han Xiao would kill him after gaining access, but now it seemed he had escaped with his life.
"I have some questions to ask you. If you cooperate, you'll suffer less..." Han Xiao grabbed him, "And let me explain, this isn't a personal grudge."
Sedim's eyes flashed, and his attitude became compliant. "I will cooperate."
Seeing that Han Xiao didn't kill him, Sedim gradually regained his composure, outwardly complying but inwardly quite resentful.
If he were to fight Black Star at the Planet Maixibo's base camp, he felt he might not necessarily lose.
But thinking about that is pointless now; the only thing Sedim can count on is Sisko, who is on his way.
As long as Sisko arrives, he will be saved. Beyond Grade A is absolutely crushing against Calamity Grade, and Black Star is no match for him.
Sedim was unaware of the existence of the Evolution Cube, and in his view, Han Xiao might not know that Sisko was pursuing him.
So before that, he planned to keep Han Xiao calm and not resist.
Han Xiao glanced at Sedim, fully aware of Sedim's thoughts: he was simply using Sisko as a savior, hoping that Beyond Grade A would arrive on a cloud of rainbows to rescue him.
That's good, it saves me energy.
"With this mechanized force, I have more leverage against Sisko. My experience level has now reached 239... Promoting them was definitely the right decision," Han Xiao thought to himself.