In the pitch-black outer space, two fleets faced each other from afar.
The Sorokin vanished from his throne in a flash, teleporting to the command room and standing next to Harkison.
"The enemy is the Imperial Armed Fleet, with a fleet size of five million warships. Their warships are superior to ours. The fact that they can intercept us ahead means they have precise knowledge of our coordinates. My advice is not to engage in a protracted battle, but to retreat immediately..." Harkison calmly analyzed the situation upon meeting the Sorokin.
However, the Sorokin ignored him and released his energy sensing. In his perception, there were three energy sources as bright as stars in the array of the imperial fleet, all of which were Beyond Grade A powerhouses.
Upon realizing the number of opponents, the Sorokin showed a slight look of disappointment.
"Only three people?"
At that moment, the radar alarm sounded again, and a fleet of the Arcane Church appeared in the rear, surrounding the Sorokin forces from the front and rear alongside the Imperial fleet.
Only after sensing the appearance of the two Beyond Grade A energy sources from the Arcane Church did the Sorokin's brow relax.
"Five people... that's what makes a fight worthwhile."
"The Crimson Dynasty and the Arcane Church have indeed joined forces. It seems they were lying in ambush here all along. Their fleet is more than three times the size of ours, and they intend to annihilate us. Your Sorokin, I suggest we break out and retreat immediately," Harkison said slowly.
The Sorokin didn't even glance at him, and said calmly, "Notify the entire ship to prepare for battle. Hold them off and don't let the fleet interfere with my fight."
"... Understood." Harkison's tone carried an "I knew it" tone; he knew that the Sorokin didn't care about their lives at all, treating their subordinates merely as tools.
In the presence of the Sorokin, Harkison issued the battle order, and the Fallen Ark fleet changed formation, simultaneously facing outwards to form a defensive array.
The Sorokin nodded, and the next moment, his figure flashed, teleporting to outer space outside the warship.
Immediately afterwards, a wave of mental energy erupted from the Sorokin. The warships of the Empire and the Arcane were equipped with mental shielding devices, which could resist mental abilities to a certain extent. However, the five Beyond Grade A beings received the Sorokin's mental energy and established a mental channel for communication.
Han Xiao was among them. As soon as the telepathic communication was established, he heard the calm voice of the Sorokin.
"I've been waiting for you for a long time."
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao's eyes flashed, and he exchanged a glance with his companion, understanding each other's meaning through their eyes.
--If the Sorokin had teleported away from the start, they wouldn't have been able to stop him at all. But the Sorokin's words clearly indicate that he is prepared to stay and fight, so the first step of the "God Extermination Operation" can be considered a success.
After exchanging a glance, Han Xiao and his two companions disembarked from the Imperial warship and entered outer space. In the distance, two members of the Arcane faction also flew out of the fleet. The two sides surrounded the Sorokin from a distance, and the atmosphere was tense.
Three mages, including Milizaus, secretly set up a spacetime locking zone. Manison concealed the fact that the Federation of Light had intervened and also lay in ambush, only lending his space stabilization device to others. After discussion, the five people who would finally fight the Sorokin head-on were Han Xiao, Viru, and Swordsman Fu from the Imperial faction, as well as Sun Hunter and a psychic from the Arcane faction.
Two of the psychic masters primarily serve as mental attack damage dealers, while Viru is a semi-tank warrior, and the Sun Hunter is an ADC (Attack Damage Carry). Han Xiao is the most formidable, having descended in his true form this time, going all out and fulfilling multiple roles such as main tank, control, physical damage output, and crowd control, making him a key force in the frontal battle.
"Black Star, it's you again." The Sorokin glanced at everyone, his gaze finally settling on Han Xiao.
"Since you attacked me, this day was bound to come sooner or later. You must know that, right?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"Sigh, fate is truly ironic. I clearly had no intention of dealing with you anymore, yet you persist in clinging to me. You're practically courting death... or rather, you're both courting death."
The Sorokin shook his head.
Upon hearing this, the Sun Hunter couldn't help but interject, coldly saying, "I wonder if your rotten brain still remembers how many times you were repelled by three Beyond Grade A. Do you think you still have a chance against the five of us?"
"Ha, that was me in the past. Speaking of which, I should thank Black Star for the Evolution Cube. The Empire and the Arcane will regret sending you out to deal with me."
As soon as the Sorokin finished, the Sun Hunter took the initiative, deploying a modified Psionic Energy annihilation particle cannon beside him. His tiny body burst forth with dazzling Mechanical Force lightning, and the Mechanical Force flowed through the giant cannon like an extension of his limbs, manipulating the cannon to fire beams of Psionic Energy particles that seemed capable of piercing through the universe.
The Sorokin teleported away, and these annihilation cannons, amplified by the gunners, easily pierced the shields of the Fallen Ark warships. The tough, high-strength alloy armor twisted and shattered like paper. The beams of light pierced through the hulls, and in an instant, the entire ship collapsed towards the beams of light, as if absorbed and devoured, leaving not a single fragment or part. The warships were completely annihilated at the atomic level.
The first shot was fired, and the Imperial and Arcane fleets opened fire. The Fallen Ark fleet launched a fierce counterattack, and the two fleets clashed, instantly illuminating the dark space of space with crisscrossing particle cannons.
The battle erupted!
Han Xiao and his group of five also launched an attack.
Led by Dark Emperor, the Apostle Weapon launched a siege with the mechanical legion. Viru, wielding his weapon, charged towards the Sorokin. Swordsman Fu and another psychic launched wave after wave of mental attacks. The Sun Hunter seemed to have become a never-ending artillery platform, relentlessly unleashing its power.
The scene instantly descended into chaos, and the battle escalated to a fever pitch from the very beginning.
The Sorokin's fighting style is to flexibly use various abilities according to different environments. When faced with an attack from five Beyond Grade A beings, he will not force a head-on confrontation. He has the ability to teleport, which greatly reduces the pressure brought by the attack from the five. Instead, he can pass through the mechanical legion's encirclement and interception and easily get close.
Superior mobility equals control of the initiative, making one virtually invincible; whether to attack or retreat is entirely up to the individual.
Therefore, the Sorokin had no intention of running away for the time being, but instead regarded the five as useful opponents to test his strength.
However, defeating five Beyond Grade A opponents working together single-handedly is virtually impossible in this universe. This isn't a simple comparison of combat strength; the combined attack density of five Beyond Grade A opponents is enough to leave most opponents defenseless and unable to retaliate. At this moment, the Sorokin has the advantage of mobility, appearing and disappearing unpredictably, but with Han Xiao and the other four supporting each other, he is unable to defeat them one by one.
The situation reached a stalemate for a time.
Han Xiao had been wary of the Sorokin Sorokin, worried that it would experience a leap in power after its evolution, but after actually fighting it, a huge weight was lifted from his shoulders.
During the Battle of Lighthouse Star, Han Xiao fought against the Sorokin and had a good understanding of the Sorokin's combat strength. At this time, the Sorokin's combat strength had indeed increased, but it was far from reaching the level of transformation.
'It seems the enhancement from the Evolution Cube isn't enough to drastically change his overall strength; he still falls into the Beyond Grade A category...'
Han Xiao secretly breathed a sigh of relief.
If the Sorokin truly breaks through the limits of Beyond Grade A and reaches the so-called "new level," then the difference in combat power might be as vast as a chasm, just like the difference between Calamity Grade and Beyond Grade A.
Fortunately, while the Evolution Cube is useful, it doesn't allow users to break through ranks.
When he was formulating the plan, he had already overestimated the strength of the Sorokin as much as possible, but the strength that the Sorokin was showing at this time did not meet his expectations, which made the operation more certain.
The other four basically thought the same way: if the Sorokin's strength didn't increase beyond their expectations, then they wouldn't have much pressure in holding off the Sorokin.
However, the next moment, a sudden change occurred!
The Sorokin teleported again, dodging a barrage of attacks, then suddenly spread its arms wide, sending a mental message to the crowd:
"Warm-up is over."
As soon as he finished speaking, black spheres sprang out from the Sorokin's body. These were all clones that had been created beforehand. They were activated and transformed back into human bodies that resembled black mist, containing surging energy.
Each clone received a different superpower from the Sorokin, possessing Quasi-Beyond Grade A combat strength, and the number of clones... was as many as dozens!
"How can he have so many clones?!" The Sun Hunter's expression changed drastically.
The information about the Sorokin is no secret. Everyone knows that his ability to create clones has a clear limit, and using so many Beyond Grade A clones at once has exceeded the record!
Upon seeing this, Han Xiao felt a chill run down his spine and instantly understood.
The Evolution Cube didn't allow the Sorokin to break through to a new level, but it expanded his combat power at the same level. It didn't increase "depth" but rather "breadth". Compared to other systems, the Mechanic feels the terror of quantitative change the most. The Mechanic relies on expanding the scale of the mechanical army to continuously improve combat power, eventually leading to a qualitative change.
The evolved version of the Sorokin shares similarities.
The Sorokin's own strength did not see a breakthrough improvement, but it gained a stronger ability to create clones. It has dozens of Beyond Grade A clones, each of which can be regarded as half a Beyond Grade A. Even though the clones are relatively fragile, the shared superpowers are different, and they are still an incredibly powerful force.
In other words, the number of Beyond Grade A individuals that Han Xiao and his group had to deal with increased from one to dozens!
The threat level has increased exponentially!
Historically, in numerous campaigns against the Sorokin, five or more Beyond Grade A individuals have been dispatched to ensure that even if the Sorokin cannot defeat them, they can always retreat unscathed.
This time, however, the Sorokin already possesses the ability to face five or even more Beyond Grade A beings head-on. He is not content with simply escaping. If he can repel or even kill the five Beyond Grade A beings sent by the cosmic civilization, he will break his own record, deter the cosmic civilization, and obtain the most satisfactory combat power test results.
Unbeknownst to the Sorokin, there were more than five opponents; six more were lurking in the bushes, ready to ambush him.
As soon as the dozens of clones appeared, they split up and most of them rushed over to fight Han Xiao and his group of five. The scene changed from five people besieging the Sorokin to the Sorokin besieging the five people.
The remaining clones intervened in the fleet battle, using their Beyond Grade A combat power to wreak havoc on the Imperial and Arcane warships. The Fallen Ark Fleet, which was originally at a disadvantage, gradually turned the tide.
The pressure on Han Xiao and the other four increased dramatically, equivalent to facing the attack of dozens of Beyond Grade A ability users with different abilities. If it weren't for the help of the mechanical legion, the other four would not have been able to withstand it at all.
Through his clones, the Sorokin unleashed all the superpowers he had accumulated. His main body retained "Enhanced Cellular Self-Healing" and "superpower: Black Hole," while the superpowers of his other clones All Kinds of Oddities.
In the midst of the chaotic battle, Han Xiao looked at the Sorokin's true form, which had not joined the attack, with a solemn expression.
His behavior at this moment truly lived up to his nickname:
God of Esper Abilities!
The five Danger at Every Turn. Han Xiao was relatively alright, as his physical body was quite resilient. However, the mechanical legion was rapidly being worn down by multiple Beyond Grade A attacks, and the Apostle Weapon were also struggling.
Han Xiao had originally wanted to see if he could save the "Perfect Mechanical Sense" character card, but seeing this, he knew he had no choice but to activate Perfect Mechanical Sense. The Mechanical Force lightning surged and swelled, becoming even thicker and more dazzling.
As his Mechanical Affinity soared, Han Xiao, enduring the relentless bombardment from the Sorokin's clone, gritted his teeth and ordered his mechanical legion to concentrate their fire on the Sorokin.
Each ability can only be used by one clone at a time, so most of the Sorokin clones do not have resistance abilities. They possess Beyond Grade A destructive power but lack corresponding durability, making them all quite fragile. Therefore, the mechanical legion's bombardment quickly achieved its effect.
Beams of eerie blue light struck the black mist-like figure, and the barrage of Psionic Energy cannons swiftly annihilated a quarter of the Sorokin's clones.
But what happened next made everyone's hearts jump again.
The Sorokin, relying on its "superpower: Black Hole," not only did not dodge but actively met the attack, frantically absorbing energy and then continuously splitting into new clones to replenish the losses of its clone army.
This scene, witnessed by everyone, filled each person with a heavy heart.
"This is troublesome..."
"This is troublesome..."
Meanwhile, the six Beyond Grade A beings who were secretly setting traps also learned about the abilities displayed by the Sorokin on the front lines through the consciousness communication network constructed by the telekinetic masters, and their hearts sank.
Ravenlaude's expression turned grave. "The Sorokin's ability to create clones has been enhanced. Even if we successfully set up a spacetime locking zone, he can use a large number of clones to buy him time. This plan won't work."
Their plan was to trap the Sorokin in a spacetime-locked area and, before he could escape, control Sorokin according to Han Xiao's plan.
However, the strength displayed by the Sorokin was unexpectedly strong. Even though they temporarily trapped the Sorokin Sorokin, they were unable to control him before he could break free.
"We have to try. Don't stop, keep setting things up." Milizaus wasn't entirely confident either, but for now, they had no better option than to continue with the established plan.
"I wonder how much longer they can hold out," Manison said calmly.
Before the trap is completed, they cannot intervene to help. The task of delaying the Sorokin can only be left to the five people fighting on the front lines. Han Xiao and the others are currently under tremendous pressure.
None of the six people lying in ambush were certain that Han Xiao and his group could hold out until they completed the trap.