The spaceship returned to its home planet. On board, the several Beyond Grade A allies stopped putting on airs and officially accepted Han Xiao, formally introducing themselves.
Han Xiao already knew everyone's names; he was just going through the motions. Some were direct descendants of the empire, some were figures who had developed their influence in the Central Galaxy, and only two were big shots from other star regions.
One came from the Sea of Star Spirits, and the other came from the Ancient Star Desert. The latter was Beyond Grade A who favored the young and middle-aged military. Among this group, he was the most enthusiastic.
This person, not being particularly senior, was named Beoni, nicknamed "Burning" and "Origin Fire." His special ability wasn't playing with fire, but rather igniting various things at a microscopic level, even things that weren't inherently flammable, and it wasn't limited to matter; energy was also involved. His most famous feat was igniting an asteroid, burning everything from trees and soil to metal, turning it into a charred planet.
The situation between Han Xiao and the Empire's elite forces some time ago was naturally reported back to the Empire by their spies. Han Xiao's care for Tenny was seen as a friendly signal by the Empire's young and middle-aged faction. Although Tenny has not yet reached a truly high-ranking position, he has already shown his talent within the young and middle-aged faction and is being groomed as a future core member. Otherwise, he would not have been included in the first batch of modification teams by the young and middle-aged faction.
Therefore, due to factional reasons, Beoni was willing to befriend Han Xiao, and Han Xiao had no objection. The two got along quite well.
Besides this person, another ally that Han Xiao paid close attention to was Ravenlaude from the Ancient Ones, who was indifferent to him, and Han Xiao did not make a special effort to befriend him.
The Ancient Ones are a loosely organized alliance of extraordinary individuals, some of whom are Beyond Grade A figures, others possess special abilities. Their common trait is their long lifespan. In the Galaxy, the Ancient Ones are one of the most well-known civilian groups of superhumans, with members affiliated with three major cosmic civilizations.
For example, the Crimson Dynasty has two allies who are members of the Ancient Ones: one is Ravenlaude, and the other is one of the three strongest Pillar of the Nation.
The Federation of Light and the Arcane Church also have different Ancient Ones Allies. The Mechanic Emperor's Manison is a high-level ally nominally in the Federation of Light, but he is highly independent. After all, he is the leader of the Machine Race and has a huge force under his command, forming his own faction there.
The Ancient Ones represent a vast network of resources, but unfortunately, he hadn't survived for that long enough to meet the membership criteria. Otherwise, Han Xiao would have liked to join and give it a try.
Because of the earlier sparring, he had gained a certain status. After returning to their home planet, the group chatted on the ship, and Han Xiao officially got to know everyone and became familiar with them.
Someone asked to borrow the Evolution Cube, but Han Xiao didn't immediately agree. For Beyond Grade A, this would be a huge boost, and there's no such thing as a free lunch. Clottey, a direct descendant of the Empire, could enjoy Infinite quotas from the Empire, but other collateral allies didn't have this privilege. Han Xiao didn't want to boost their strength for free without offering some benefits, especially since the future relationship was uncertain.
Upon hearing that Han Xiao wanted benefits, everyone had different thoughts and did not immediately express their opinions.
Originally, everyone planned to make Black Star back down and offer him the Evolution Cube to curry favor with them at their first meeting. However, they didn't expect Black Star to be so tough and not to be trifled with, so their plan naturally fell through. They could only try to borrow it later. As important figures, they weren't in a hurry.
After saying goodbye to the group, Han Xiao and Ames returned to their residence. Hila and the others were relieved to see him return.
"This can be considered my official debut in the high-level combat circles of the Three Universal Civilizations, stepping onto the stage of the Central Galaxy..." Han Xiao thought to himself, this was something he had expected.
Having more friends makes things easier. By befriending these people, you can indirectly utilize some of their resources. Of course, this is also how you are perceived by others. You are each other's network, exchanging resources.
There are downsides too. It could be used as a bargaining chip by other powers, attracting the attention of more powerful forces and leading to more formidable hostility and rivals in the future.
There's no other way. If someone has so many resources from the empire and isn't willing to take any risks, they're dreaming.
"The Central Galaxy is highly controlled by Three Universal Civilizations, restricting the development of our power and making it unsuitable for focused management. We should establish our foundation in the Shattered Star Ring and the Shattered World. Here... just leave a contact point. After we've finished our business, it's best to stay away from this troublesome place for now," Han Xiao thought to himself.
To increase one's influence in the Central Galaxy, it's not necessary to establish a foothold here. Managing one's main base is the key. Only when one's own value is high will it be easier to improve one's status.
That night, Clottey told Urranrell about Han Xiao's fight with Viru, along with his opinion of Han Xiao.
"... How likely do you think Black Star is to reach a higher level of power in the future?"
It was late at night, but Urranrell's office was still brightly lit. She stared at Clottey in front of her and asked in a deep voice.
"It's not that there's no chance," Clottey said succinctly.
The First Ones are thousands of years old now. After so much research, the classification of Beyond Grade A and above has become increasingly clear, with varying degrees of strength among them. Black Star is so young, his fighting style has almost no weaknesses, and he still has Long Sky in the future. It is not impossible for him to become his equal.
Clottey held Han Xiao in high regard. In his long life, he had seen many Beyond Grade A individuals. Some had exhausted their potential by reaching Beyond Grade A from the Calamity Grade and could only stagnate with limited progress; while others could continue to grow and were the cream of the crop. In his eyes, Black Star belonged to the latter.
Having seen so much, he had long since lost interest in socializing and was too lazy to make new acquaintances. Moreover, Clottey was a direct descendant of the empire and did not cultivate power. With his extraordinary status and strength, he did not need to deliberately befriend anyone. Therefore, he ignored Han Xiao along the way, which was due to his personality and not because he looked down on him.
After all, not every Beyond Grade A technician enjoys backroom deals like Master Han.
Urranrell leaned back in his chair, deep in thought.
"In that case, it's more useful to keep him in the outer star region. His current focus is on the Shattered World, but after that, he'll most likely come to the Central Galaxy to develop... We have enough manpower here, so we don't need him."
The Three Universal Civilizations in the Central Galaxy occasionally have frictions, but since it is their main base, major conflicts will not erupt. Therefore, the Empire does not actually need so many Beyond Grade A to flock to the Central Galaxy to develop. Having enough manpower is sufficient; too many would be a waste of resources. Sending these Beyond Grade A to other star regions to strengthen the Empire's control over those regions is the true meaning of the title "Pillar of the Nation".
However, the Central Galaxy is, after all, the center of the universe, and countless people are scrambling to gain a voice here. For Urranrell, the allies here are too numerous, and she does not like so many people using the name of the Empire to develop their power here.
Black Star brought the mobile base here, clearly intending to establish a branch. Out of consideration for their ally, Urranrell was willing to provide some assistance, but she planned to secretly limit the Black Star Army's expansion speed in the Central Galaxy. In short, she wanted to reduce the chances of Black Star coming to the Central Galaxy to oversee things, and keep him in the Shattered Star Ring or the Shattered World.
Urranrell trusted Clottey's judgment. He said Black Star had the potential to reach higher levels and was definitely not mistaken. Therefore, Black Star could be considered an important piece...
Since it is an important piece, it must be placed in the right place to be effective.
The news that Black Star had been formally received by the Imperial Head of State was leaked through Imperial channels. Just as Han Xiao had predicted, the Empire would not keep it a secret, but would announce in some way that it had acquired new leverage.
His name officially entered the sights of various major powers in the Central Galaxy. Since Han Xiao had no foundation in the Central Galaxy, he had no way of knowing the reactions of these major powers.
In the following days, the Empire arranged for the troops stationed on the home planet to undergo the transformation using the Evolution Cube, Han Xiao focused on cooperating with their work.
After several days, the evolution and transformation of the Imperial homeworld forces was finally completed.
During this time, the Black Star Army did not wait idly. With the help of the Empire, the Black Star Army used a small piece of land on the Empire's home planet to establish a simple office and left a group of people to stay there long-term for easy communication. Before their departure, they had given these members a heads-up, selecting only those who were willing to stay in the Central Galaxy.
As for the legion's mobile satellite bases, the Empire naturally wouldn't allow them to settle near their home planet, so it gave Han Xiao a star map and asked him to choose a location within the Empire's territory to establish a branch base for the Black Star Army.
Choosing a location was not a problem at all; Han Xiao had already planned it out.
Since the purpose of this trip is to harvest the chives by the roots, the branch base location is naturally the main activity area for players.
Han Xiao had other matters to attend to and did not leave his home planet for the time being. He ordered his troops to set off first. The security situation within the Empire was very good, so the legion did not need his personal accompaniment on its way to establish a branch base.
Besides showing Ames and the others around, there was another reason why they stayed on their home planet: to seek Ultimate Knowledge.
Urranrell had already sent the task list compiled by his subordinates to Han Xiao's communicator. He carefully selected and finally decided on a task.
Ordinary miscellaneous tasks are not enough; only truly challenging tasks qualify one for Ultimate Knowledge. Han Xiao chose a task that required the participation of Beyond Grade A... a routine purge of the Fallen Ark forces!
In other words, fight the Sorokin!
The three star regions of the Central Galaxy are separated by Desolate Universe Belt belts, forming a sensitive and difficult-to-manage border area. As a result, thugs who dare not linger in the three major star regions flock to this border area, creating a den of iniquity.
The border gap is vast. During the ancient Exploration Era War, the Three Universal Civilizations fought fiercely, brawling in front of their own homes as if it were a fight to the death. This large area was the ancient battlefield, and countless planets were abandoned as a result, turning into man-made Desolate Universe Belt.
Currently, a large number of rioters are hiding there, making them difficult to find. Moreover, the border gap is not a dead end; it is connected to the Desolate Universe Belt outside the Central Galaxy. Once it has access to the outside world, it will be even more impossible to eradicate them.
Sensitive areas are not suitable for large-scale rectification. In any case, the Three Universal Civilizations are connected by stargates, and legitimate travelers will not travel through the Desolate Universe Belt, so the impact on the security of the Central Galaxy is not significant.
The Sorokin ' forces usually hid in the Desolate Universe Belt between the borders, remaining quite secretive. Recently, however, their whereabouts seem to have been exposed, as they were discovered by the Crimson Dynasty's observation devices.
The Sorokin were infamous, and for the Three Universal Civilizations, eating, sleeping, and Sorokin had become routine operations, euphemistically called "routine extermination."
Han Xiao still has a grudge against the Sorokin. Although the Sorokin wants to make a deal with him, Han Xiao will not consider the Sorokin a friend because of this. Since he is now making a living in the Order camp, it is best to draw a clear line between himself and this notorious thug.
Come to think of it, it was the Sorokin who used to cause him trouble; this was the first time he had gone to the Sorokin ' stronghold to cause trouble.
If it weren't for the Empire's crackdown, I wouldn't have had this opportunity. Having a powerful backer really makes a difference.
He was somewhat wary of the Sorokin's abilities and didn't plan to go himself, so he extended an invitation to a group of Beyond Grade A allies he had recently met.
Clottey had a job to do and unsurprisingly declined, as did the others, who didn't want to cause trouble or provoke the Sorokin because they weren't close enough to him. Only one person accepted his invitation.
When do we leave?
Through the communicator, Beoni swayed the horns on his head, his fiery red skin had the texture of Volcano, with nimble fire snakes flowing around it, and his eyes were blazing red fireballs that burned incessantly. He was not human, but a superhuman of the Flame Demon Race race.
"Tomorrow, I've already notified the Empire, and they'll send someone to take us there." Han Xiao scratched his chin.
Having finished his business on the Imperial home planet, he had nothing else to do there, so it was time to complete his two plans for coming to the Central Galaxy.
One is to seek ultimate knowledge, and the other is to open up the leek field. The latter only requires the Black Star Legion's signboard, without having to show up oneself. The troops can be divided into two groups and carried out at the same time.
"It would be risky for just the two of us. The Sorokin's fleet is too large, and he himself is extremely dangerous." Beoni shook his head.
"We have more than two Beyond Grade A combatants on our side."
Han Xiao glanced at Ames beside him. Ames, upon learning of this, seemed unwilling to be left out and volunteered to go along. He didn't refuse; having another person was always a helper.
Seeing him look over, Ames smiled gently, with an air of eager anticipation.