More than ten days later, the Imperial Fleet and the Black Star Army escorted all the Kunde Race civilians to the Odoran system in the Gaolu Star Cluster, which is one of Black Star's territories.
The handover between the Black Star Army and the Empire went smoothly, and Han Xiao chose to settle the Kunde Race in this star system.
With land in hand, he felt secure. With a wave of his hand, he temporarily lent over a hundred habitable planets to the Kunde Race race, resulting in an average population of around ten billion on each planet.
With the productivity of interstellar society, a single planet can easily support a population of tens of billions, and the living conditions are quite good. However, compared to the original situation of the Kunde Race, it is undoubtedly much more crowded.
Before acquiring stargate technology, the Kunde Race were crippled, with relatively poor mobility in space, resulting in extremely low efficiency in transporting people. Although the Kunde Race occupied several star systems and established thousands of colonies, making their territory quite large, the limited mobility in space meant that most of the colonies had small populations; people there were basically settled and there was little movement between them.
At this very moment, the fleet deployed the Empire's planetary terraforming kits, rapidly establishing makeshift cities on the surface before landing and transporting all the Kunde Race civilians to these planets in batches.
On the landing platform, countless Kunde Race immigrants obediently followed the Empire's instructions, stepped out of the spaceship, and onto the unfamiliar land, like waves flowing out of the hatch of a docked spaceship, converging into a boundless sea of people.
Countless people looked around curiously, taking in their future new home.
Meanwhile, in the command hall of the Black Star Palace's inner ring main base, countless staff members in legion uniforms were working at their respective positions. At the front of the hall was a super-large screen composed of hundreds of small virtual screens, monitoring the immigration status of each planet.
Han Xiao stood with his hands behind his back in the center of the hall, looking up to take in all the surveillance footage.
"Relocating the entire population of a star cluster-level civilization is truly a massive undertaking," Aurora remarked, hands on her hips.
"After the Kunde Race leader died, they were leaderless and could only follow orders. They were very obedient and docile, so the migration went smoothly," Melos nodded in agreement.
He had come with the fleet and missed Han Xiao terribly, having not seen him for a long time. He would occasionally steal glances at Han Xiao's the Sight of Father's Back.
"Not many unexpected casualties, very good." Han Xiao nodded.
"Having suddenly acquired so many human resources, how should we utilize them?" Sylvia's remote projection brushed a strand of hair from her temple and asked softly.
Han Xiao raised his hand and stroked his chin, slowly saying:
"These human resources can't be put to immediate use. The Empire has plans for them; they're responsible for cultural transformation. During this transformation, the Kunde Race's communication networks will be blocked, preventing them from accessing interstellar society and developing technology... The only thing suitable to impart is superhuman knowledge; they need to grow slowly."
"The time for these human resources to play their role has not yet come. We must support them for now. After the Empire lifts the ban, they will become the Black Star Army's talent pool and an important source of manpower..."
"Therefore, in order to achieve this goal, you must incorporate something extra into the cultural transformation of the Empire, namely, ideological construction within their legions..."
With a population in the trillions, more than the entire legion, so many leek seeds must first be planted and fertilized before they can be harvested. Therefore, it is necessary to strengthen the Black Star Army's position in the hearts of the Kunde Race.
Although the rewards of the Last Wish quest include a large amount of faction favorability, proper ideological work is also essential and will yield twice the results with half the effort.
At this point, Han Xiao suddenly paused, and pondered for a moment before saying:
"Furthermore, spread the doctrines of Mechanic Faith among the Kunde Race, and try to get as many people as possible to convert to Mechanic Faith."
During the transformation, the Kunde Race were unable to access the internet by climbing over walls, effectively isolating them from the world. There was no better environment for proselytizing, which allowed the Mechanic Faith to act as an outside religion and challenge the Kunde Race's beliefs.
Without interference from external information, their object of faith is naturally only themselves. In this way, the Kunhe-Tu-Shude tribe can become a treasure trove for powering the [Key to the Mechanic Faith].
For other mechanics, recruiting new followers is the best way to activate the [Key to the Mechanic Faith], although the proselytizing efficiency is very low, it is at least better than nothing.
What Manison wanted was the faith of the existing believers—that was the biggest prize. Besides that, he was happy to see others proselytize. After all, as the strongest mechanic, expanding his territory would only benefit him; there would always be believers flowing to him, so he would never lose out.
To Manison, everyone else recruiting Protestants was like planting leeks for him; he just had to harvest them at the right time.
Therefore, unless someone tries to take his position Mechanic Faith, Manison will not intervene; he would rather the number of followers of the Mechanic Faith increase.
As everyone was chatting casually, one of the operators nearby spoke up to offer a reminder.
"Commander, the immigration is complete."
Han Xiao turned to look at the screen, where the surveillance footage showed that all the Kunde Race civilians had set foot on the ground.
"Alright, project the virtual canopy."
As soon as the words were spoken, spaceships from various planets projected virtual celestial screens that unfolded above the heads of the Kunde Race immigrants, and everyone looked up.
Han Xiao's figure appeared on each of the enormous sky screens, a smile on his face, and he spoke, his booming voice sweeping across the heavens:
"My friends from the Kunde Race, I am Black Star. From now on, I will be in charge of your resettlement, so you will see me on television frequently for a long time to come."
"Today, you will move into your new home. These planets are all my territory. You can always ask the Black Star Army members stationed on each planet for help. Don't worry about your safety."
"I deeply regret what happened to you. The Empire is investigating the masterminds who used you. I will do my best to find them, punish them, and seek justice for you."
In short, I wish everyone can get rid of past pain and embrace a new life soon.
Han Xiao didn't launch into a long speech; he wasn't yet qualified to expect the Kunde Race to be grateful, so he stopped short of it and played the good cop.
The virtual canopy then disappeared, and the many Kunde Race immigrants looked at each other in bewilderment, causing a slight commotion.
Compared to the Empire, most people have a passable impression of Black Star, though they wouldn't call it friendly.
He said he would help us get justice? I don't know if he was just saying that.
Having experienced dramatic changes, the Kunde Race find it difficult to trust verbal promises from outsiders.
After finishing his brief speech, Han Xiao nodded to Melos beside him, Melos then left the room.
After a while, a series of rapid footsteps came from outside the hall. Melos led a group of academy graduates, including Nero, into the hall. They had returned with the fleet and were being received by Han Xiao today.
"You've arrived."
Han Xiao glanced at the group of students.
After about four months of fighting, many people have shed their naivety from when they first met, and their demeanor has changed a lot.
After falling into the "enemy's" trap, Nero learned his lesson and reflected on his actions. He has now developed a more composed demeanor, and Mia beside him also appears much more capable.
However, Han Xiao couldn't help but look down at the clasped hands of the two adulterers.
"Ahem." Noticing Han Xiao's gaze, Mia awkwardly let go of his hand and casually tossed her hair.
The two were originally classmates and close friends, but their relationship was somewhat ambiguous. After the last incident, the level of ambiguity skyrocketed. Although neither of them made a move, they have been very affectionate lately, behaving like a real couple.
I feel like I've become the matchmaker...
Han Xiao's lips twitched, but he composed himself and praised:
"I am very pleased to see the changes in you. You are now qualified Legion soldiers."
Upon hearing this, the students couldn't help but straighten their posture, quite proud.
After offering a few words of encouragement, Han Xiao turned to Mia and smiled, "I promised to find you a teacher of Calamity Grade. From today onwards, Melos will be your teacher, and he will do his best to teach you."
Melos already knew about this. He was extremely loyal to the Legion and had no complaints. He smiled and nodded.
"Although I'm usually very busy, I'll still try my best to make time to guide you. Don't worry, I'm different from Reynold; I prefer a more relaxed teaching style."
"Thank you, Lord Black Star! Greetings, teacher!" Mia was overjoyed and quickly thanked Han Xiao before stepping forward to greet Melos.
Seeing this, a large group of students behind couldn't help but show envious expressions.
Who is Melos? He's a high-ranking member of the Legion, one of the earliest veterans who fought alongside Black Star!
Becoming his student guarantees a future as a key member of the legion, undoubtedly setting one on a promising path.
However, these people weren't the most envious; Nero, standing to the side, gritted his teeth in jealousy.
--I just want a normal teacher! Why did I have to end up with Reynold?!
Han Xiao withdrew his gaze, stared at Nero, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "What's with that expression?"
"... nothing."
Nero was suffering inside, but didn't want to talk about it.
He paused, then suddenly remembered something. "By the way, godfather, I captured an enemy weapon during a battle a while ago, and I think there's something strange about it. I'd like you to take a look."
Is there anything strange about it?
"I got it as a trophy from a Kunde Race officer during boarding action. I had my teammates appraise it for me..." Nero scratched his head, "It looks like a high-level enchanted magical weapon."
Han Xiao was slightly taken aback.
Enchant weapons?
This thing is very common in interstellar space, but the Kunde Race has no superpower system, is a purely technological civilization, and knows absolutely nothing about magic.
Where did the Kunde Race officer get his magical weapon?
"Let me see." Han Xiao immediately became interested.
"I left it in the house, I didn't bring it with me, I'll get it for you later." Nero scratched his head.
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao was about to criticize him when his communicator suddenly beeped, interrupting him.
He took out his communicator and saw that the caller was none other than Iso.
Why is that old man contacting me first?
Han Xiao muttered to himself, waved for everyone to leave, walked to the side, and connected to the communication.
"Iso, what do you want?"
"You're the one who needs something," Iso said impatiently. "I anticipated you'd contact me, so I reached out to you to ask if you needed anything."
Han Xiao's face twitched.
Preemptive strike, huh? That's some serious skill you've got...
"That's right, I do need your help with something. I need you to use your ability to predict the whereabouts of a group of people..." Shaking his head, Han Xiao gave a brief account of the Kunde Race.
Iso was equally straightforward, "Send me the data later. The more information we have, the more accurate our predictions will be."
"Understood." Han Xiao nodded, then paused, suddenly changing the subject, "How are Ames and Hila?"
"Going on adventures everywhere, what else can I do?" Iso rolled his eyes. "You can contact her, why are you asking me? Okay, I'll hang up if there's nothing else. I'll tell you when the prophecy comes out."
After saying that, Iso immediately cut off the communication.
Han Xiao reluctantly put away the communicator. Having an elder in the family is like having a treasure; there was nothing he could do.
However, he didn't intend to rely entirely on Iso. He stepped out of the hall and went straight to the airport dock, opening one of the hangars.
The hangar contained a badly damaged spaceship, completely beyond repair—this was the crashed ship that the stowaways had dropped on the Kunde Race, and which was captured by the Empire after the war.
Han Xiao made a special request to Tarrokov, Old Tar specially sent someone to deliver the spaceship.
Technology, magic, and metaphysics were all used, but the Empire found no clues on the crashed spaceship. Therefore, they did not mind letting Han Xiao examine it, as long as he could find any clues.
Iso's prophecies can only show what will happen in the future, but Han Xiao's special skill [Bold Explorer] can see fragments of an item's past experiences.
He felt that by taking a two-pronged approach, he could surely achieve something.
My hand ran over the charred outer armor of the spaceship. It was pitted and uneven, the metal of the armor looking as if it had been corroded by some kind of corrosive liquid. It was not smooth at all and felt icy cold to the touch.
Let's see what clues we can find this time.
Han Xiao exhaled and activated [Bold Explorer].
call--
Suddenly, my vision spun around me, and everything in front of me seemed like shattered glass, scattering in all directions.
Suddenly, the fragments paused, instantly flipped back, pieced themselves back together, and the world underwent a dramatic transformation.
The scene before me transformed into an industrial shipyard, with a massive spaceship skeleton suspended in mid-air, surrounded by countless robotic arms assembling parts, the clattering sounds of the machinery like a harmonious symphony.
Han Xiao observed his surroundings and quickly memorized the environment.
The next moment, the vision shattered and reformed again, this time into a vast universe. A fully formed spaceship was crashing into a planet, plunging into the atmosphere like a fiery red meteor. It was vaguely discernible that this was what the crashed spaceship looked like when it was intact.
Just then, the video abruptly stopped.
His vision returned, and he found himself still standing in the hangar, touching the crashed spaceship.
[The Bold Explorer] has ended.
[Your luck attribute has been reduced by 60% for 14 days]
Han Xiao was used to ignoring the side effects of skills; whether they were reduced or not made no difference to him.
Recalling the scene he had just witnessed, his eyes flickered slightly.
"This clip reveals details of the spaceship's manufacture and crash; although it's brief, it seems to offer a promising clue..."
During the dock scene, he quickly noted down the surroundings and noticed a detail—the workers in the dock all had the same markings on their clothes.
He checked the Imperial database and quickly found a matching target: the trademark of a shipbuilding company located in the Ancient Star Desert.
"The manufacturer has been identified..." Han Xiao's eyes flashed.
Generally, shipbuilding companies keep the production serial numbers of all spacecraft that leave the factory. Although we don't know which spacecraft's serial number it is, it is at least a clue.
"Looks like we'll have to send a mechanized force to the Ancient Star Desert."
At this moment, Han Xiao suddenly remembered something.
"By the way, the Ancient Star Desert... is the old lair of Manison."