Recaps

Han Xiao recruited Reynold, a powerful Mechanic with the [Perfect Mechanical Sense] talent, and agreed to guide him in exchange for a long-term contract. As the new recruits settled into the Black Star Army and Reynold began lessons alongside Sylvia, Han Xiao focused on upgrading his combat machinery and finished the work ten days later.

• Han Xiao discovered Reynold's [Perfect Mechanical Sense] talent and learned that Reynold had joined to seek his guidance on reaching Calamity Grade.
• Han Xiao hired Reynold on a longer-term contract and put him in charge of the Black Star Army's workshops, factories, and production lines.
• The new mercenaries joined their assignments, while Borick began training more than a thousand rejected applicants at Number One Base.
• Han Xiao started teaching Reynold and Sylvia; Sylvia bristled at the newcomer, while Reynold treated her with strict respect as his senior sister.
• After ten days spent upgrading his combat machinery, Han Xiao announced that it was finally finished.

Han Xiao completed an extensive overhaul of his personal weapons and mechanical army, adding new equipment, legions, and combat tactics. He finished by inspecting an orbital strike cannon, expanding his strategic-support arsenal.

• Han Xiao tested the Watch Protocol hovering shuttles, which could bombard targets, form powerful shields, and transform into cannons or combine with his Mad Ape suit.
• He upgraded his mechanical giant hands with new functions and developed a short-range warp engine for the Mad Ape and aircraft.
• Han Xiao restored the designations of his four existing legions, added the G-2 Heavy Cavalry and Miniature Cube Force, and expanded and rearmed his mechanical army.
• Han Xiao created the Strong-Adhesion Electromagnetic Swamp as a heavy-control weapon and adopted strategic support as a new combat style.
• Han Xiao looked at the orbital strike cannon in the modification room.

Han Xiao finished upgrading his combat machinery and prepared to take Hila and Aurora to Dragon Calm. Ames told him to hurry there so he could accompany her to the War Realm, leaving him worried that trouble was ahead.

• Han Xiao completed his equipment upgrades, including the Eye of Divine Might and a Ravager assault pod, and considered selling blueprint skills to players for experience and potential points.
• Han Xiao saw that Veyne Cards had added cards for the Black Star Army and himself, reflecting their growing prominence.
• Han Xiao went to the practical combat training room and told Hila and Aurora to get ready to visit Ames at Dragon Calm.
• Ames contacted Han Xiao and asked him to bring Hila and Aurora to Dragon Calm soon so he could accompany her to the War Realm.
• Han Xiao asked whether he could skip the trip, but Ames refused and ended the call.

Han Xiao brought Hila and Aurora to Dragon Calm, where Ames made them her students and told them they would accompany her to the Tyrant’s gathering in the War Realm. The group planned to leave for the Seoul Star Cluster the next day, traveling aboard Han Xiao’s spaceship.

• Han Xiao arranged for Reynold and Sylvia to manage Number One Base, then took Hila and Aurora aboard the Blacklight Stealth to Dragon Calm.
• Jenny vented her frustration by firing a weapon at Han Xiao, then told him that Ames was waiting at the palace.
• Ames welcomed Hila and Aurora as her students, but postponed their training because she wanted all three to accompany her to the War Realm.
• Ames explained that she was attending the Tyrant’s traditional gathering of influential figures in the Shattered Star Ring, not going to start a fight with him.
• Han Xiao learned the gathering would take place in the Seoul Star Cluster and agreed to take the group there aboard his spaceship the next day.

Han Xiao, Ames, Hila, and Aurora arrived at Planet Heber, War Realm’s heavily armed headquarters, where Mazaks welcomed the Dragon Emperor and hinted that he had met Han Xiao before. Han Xiao denied knowing him, keeping his private contact with Mazaks from Ames.

• Han Xiao and his companions traveled through Seoul to Planet Heber, War Realm’s headquarters.
• Ames explained that Planet Heber was a mobile fortress and that Heber’s own body was his strongest weapon.
• After verifying Ames’s invitation, Planet Heber gave the Blacklight Stealth docking coordinates.
• Ames, Han Xiao, Hila, and Aurora landed and were greeted by Mazaks and War Realm soldiers.
• Mazaks implied that he had met Han Xiao before, but Han Xiao pretended not to recognize him.

Han Xiao and Ames arrived at the War Realm, where Ames confronted her former subordinate Kailo, who had defected and betrayed Dragon Calm. Ames attacked him, and Han Xiao stepped in beside her before the Tyrant, Heber, intervened.

• Mazaks tried to recruit Han Xiao away from Dragon Calm, but Han Xiao told Ames that he had refused.
• Kailo taunted Ames and Han Xiao, insulting their positions and reminding Ames of his betrayal of Dragon Calm.
• Ames unleashed a force field at Kailo, but Mazaks and two other War Realm vanguard officers blocked it together.
• Han Xiao moved in front of Ames and prepared for a fight as her force field grew stronger.
• Heber's overwhelming aura filled the War Realm, and he demanded to know why Ames was starting a fight on his turf.

Ames stopped her clash with Kailo after Heber intervened, and Han Xiao’s group went to their guest rooms. Han Xiao secretly marked Kailo to monitor him and planned to use the gathering to collect information.

• Ames withdrew her attack when Heber’s voice called from the palace, and Kailo let her group proceed after testing her attitude.
• Heber and a Krent envoy watched the encounter and discussed how Ames’s response might give Heber an excuse to attack Dragon Calm.
• Ames warned Han Xiao that Kailo had provoked her deliberately and urged him to keep a low profile on the Tyrant’s territory.
• Han Xiao checked his room for surveillance, concealed his activities, and used an Observation Mark to watch Kailo.
• Han Xiao decided to use the gathering to gather intelligence that could clarify events obscured by the gaps between versions.

Han Xiao mingled with influential guests at Heber’s gathering before meeting Heber, Ames, Austin, and Suy, an envoy of the Crimson Dynasty. Suy revealed a dispute over a newly discovered star cluster and asked the Shattered Star Ring’s Beyond Grade A powerhouses to help the Crimson Dynasty claim it.

• Han Xiao toured the War Realm and built connections with prominent Shattered Star Ring leaders, including representatives of the Amethyst Civilization and the Krent Empire.
• Heber invited Ames and her companions to a private meeting at Heber Palace, where Han Xiao met the Sorcerer Austin and his forbidden mages.
• Heber introduced Suy as an envoy of the Crimson Dynasty, surprising Han Xiao and Ames with the Dynasty’s involvement in the gathering.
• Suy explained that the Federation of Light wanted to incorporate a newly discovered star cluster into the Shattered Star Ring, while the Crimson Dynasty wanted to establish a new star field there.
• Suy asked the gathered Beyond Grade A powerhouses to assist the Crimson Dynasty, leaving Ames and Austin to consider their response.

Suy described the Crimson Dynasty’s plan to claim a newly discovered star cluster, which Han Xiao recognized as part of the future Shattered World. Ames reconsidered whether to support the Dynasty after Han Xiao’s advice, then erupted when Heber asked Han Xiao to join him; Han Xiao refused, and Austin calmed Ames before the rivals could fight.

• Suy explained that the Crimson Dynasty wanted Beyond Grade A support to seize a new star cluster and use it as a bridgehead for expansion.
• Han Xiao recognized the cluster as part of the Shattered World and realized the discovery could offer his faction a major future opportunity.
• Austin chose neutrality, while Ames changed her initial inclination to refuse after Han Xiao advised her to consider the offer.
• Heber asked Han Xiao to become his subordinate, but Han Xiao refused, and Ames unleashed her aura in anger at the attempted recruitment.
• Heber challenged Ames to withdraw her pressure, and Austin cast spells to calm her before the two could come to blows.

Han Xiao secretly marked Suy to observe the Crimson Dynasty’s recruitment efforts, then challenged Kailo to a public duel with mechanical blueprints at stake. He accepted the challenge after receiving a mission to defeat Kailo, while Ames and the others watched.

• Han Xiao placed an Observation Mark on Suy, and Austin noticed the faint energy fluctuation but kept quiet.
• Heber offered to join forces with Ames, but she rejected him and left with Han Xiao, Hila, and their companion.
• Austin teased Heber about his pursuit of Ames, and Heber explained that he wanted an alliance between their organizations.
• Han Xiao stopped Kailo at the palace entrance and challenged him to a spar, prompting Kailo to accept.
• Han Xiao proposed that the loser hand over five mechanical blueprints chosen by the winner, and Kailo agreed.
• Han Xiao received the faction mission Ames' Wrath, which required him to defeat Kailo in public.

Han Xiao challenged Kailo to a fight at War Realm’s training ground, where Kailo planned to use his home-field advantage and endless reinforcements to win a battle of attrition. After the battle began, Han Xiao’s Buddha’s Palm threw Kailo’s heavily armored fortress across the field, but its defenses held and the fight remained unresolved.

• Kailo set the rules for the fight and prepared to rely on the training ground’s steady supply of mechanical reinforcements.
• Han Xiao summoned the Blacklight Stealth to deliver his mechanical armies, while Ames and War Realm’s cadres gathered to watch.
• Han Xiao and Kailo deployed their forces, and the training ground’s protective shield closed as their armies clashed.
• Kailo fired on Han Xiao from inside his heavily armored fortress, but Han Xiao’s Watch Protocol deflected the blasts and Scrap Modification revived his destroyed machines.
• Han Xiao formed a giant Buddha’s Palm and hurled Kailo’s fortress into the protective shield, but Kailo’s defenses remained intact as Mazaks predicted a battle of attrition.

Han Xiao used a virtual intrusion to disable Kailo’s mechanical army and trap him inside the Ship Breaker Colossus. He ended the duel with a lightning-charged combo that shattered the training-ground barrier and sent Kailo flying into the sky.

• Han Xiao’s mechanical army gained the upper hand, but Kailo kept sending reinforcements to prolong the battle and exhaust Han Xiao’s forces.
• Kailo transformed his flying fortress into the Ship Breaker Colossus and used it to devastate both armies.
• With Resta and Phillip’s support, Han Xiao completed his virtual intrusion and paralyzed Kailo’s machines.
• Han Xiao’s army broke through the Ship Breaker’s shield and armor, exposing Kailo in its cockpit.
• Han Xiao threw Kailo from the Colossus, then struck him with an enhanced combo that shattered the barrier and launched him skyward.

Han Xiao defeated Kailo in a public spar at War Realm, secured the promised blueprints, and improved his standing with Ames and the gathered powers. The next day, Heber opened the official gathering, where Han Xiao continued networking and observing the guests.

• Han Xiao knocked Kailo out of the arena, winning their wagered spar while Heber watched and chose not to intervene.
• Kailo agreed to hand over five blueprints, and Han Xiao received rewards that increased Ames' favorability and Dragon Calm's faction relations.
• Ames thanked Han Xiao, and news of his victory spread among the guests, who recognized that he had defended her standing.
• The next day, guests assembled for Heber's official gathering as Han Xiao socialized on Ames' behalf and gathered information.
• Heber appeared before the silent hall and declared the banquet open.

At the gathering, Han Xiao secured financial backing for Dragon Calm and the Black Star Army, then accepted a rare Void Archlord's essence from Austin. The event ended with the Crimson Dynasty envoy Suy meeting privately with important figures upstairs.

• Han Xiao deduced that Krent had likely joined the Crimson Dynasty and that its influence was beginning to stir the Shattered Star Ring.
• Rosoth offered to invest in Dragon Calm and the Black Star Army, and he and Han Xiao agreed on long-term cooperation terms.
• Austin gave Han Xiao a Void Archlord's essence core, explaining that it could strengthen Han Xiao's control of Void energy.
• Han Xiao accepted the gift as an advance payment for possible future help, provided it did not conflict with his principles.
• The gathering wound down as guests finished their discussions, while Suy continued meeting important figures in private.

After the Tyrant’s gathering, Han Xiao returned to Dragon Calm, gained new blueprints and strengthened his Void Gene, then set out for Planet Sunil. He went to investigate strange underground phenomena and help the Sunil, while planning a third sub-base and aiming to reach level 145.

• Suy met with Shattered Star Ring representatives about joining the Crimson Dynasty, but only Krent had firmly committed so far.
• The gathering ended, and Kailo gave Han Xiao the five blueprints he had lost; Heber encouraged Kailo to do better next time.
• On the return voyage, Han Xiao examined the blueprints and swallowed the Void Archduke’s core, gaining attributes and slightly strengthening Intermediate Tenacious Life.
• Han Xiao returned Ames, Hila, and Aurora to Dragon Calm, where Ames began the sisters’ formal training.
• Han Xiao headed to Planet Sunil after Melos reported progress against the Calamity and strange phenomena in the underground Whispering Stone veins.

Han Xiao arrived on Planet Sunil and learned that the Black Star Army’s mining had weakened the Psionic Undercurrent, but underground Subterranean Mutants blocked efforts to clear the deeper Whispering Stone veins. He agreed to help the Sunil people eradicate the mutants, then ordered a new branch base and summoned the army’s mercenaries, drawing players toward Forest City.

• Melos welcomed Han Xiao and explained that the Black Star Army had found and destroyed over a thousand shallow Whispering Stone veins, extending the likely interval between Calamities to more than ten years.
• Melos told Han Xiao that exploration teams had discovered vast populations of hostile Subterranean Mutants nesting around deeper Whispering Stone veins, and a Sunil leader asked him to help eliminate them.
• Han Xiao agreed to treat the operation as a contract for war and build a branch base on Planet Sunil, with the Sunil leaders’ approval.
• Han Xiao ordered Phillip to contact the Noriosse Financial Group and Rosoth Financial Group, gather the mercenaries at Forest City, and issue an army-wide call to arms; he also gave players the mission [Army Expansion · Third Base].
• Maple Moon and other players received the mission and headed for Forest City, where Maple Moon hoped to learn new blueprints from Han Xiao.

Han Xiao gathered two hundred thousand players to help establish the Black Star Army’s third base on Planet Sunil and sold them mechanical blueprints, earning a huge amount of experience. He used it to advance from Virtual Mechanic to Galaxy Mechanic, gaining new skills and talents.

• Han Xiao assembled two hundred thousand players outside Forest City and sent them to clear land for the Black Star Army’s third base.
• Han Xiao sold dozens of mechanical blueprints to the Mechanic players, including the Void Dragon Mechanical Suit blueprint, and earned about nine billion experience.
• Maple Moon recognized that Void Dragon Bone, a material required for the suit, came from Dragon Calm.
• Han Xiao spent experience to reach level 20 as a Virtual Mechanic and met the requirements for class advancement.
• Han Xiao advanced to Galaxy Mechanic and gained Master-Level Mechanical Affinity, Ultra-Fast Virtual Intrusion, Quantum Network Matrix, and the Mechanical Theory Summary talent.

Han Xiao advanced to Galactic Mechanic and joined the Sunil’s campaign against the Subterranean Mutants, choosing to pursue all three proposed strategies. As he prepared to descend into their nest to capture specimens, Melos asked whether attacking the planet’s native species was dishonorable.

• Han Xiao became a Galactic Mechanic, improved his virtual technology, maxed out his new skills, and saved his remaining experience.
• At the Sunil pre-battle meeting, Ochizi presented three strategies for eliminating the Subterranean Mutants, and Han Xiao chose to use all of them.
• Han Xiao received the Grade A faction mission to eliminate the mutants and capture specimens, kill them, and destroy Whispering Stone veins.
• Han Xiao took Melos and Sherinde to a sealed mutant-nest entrance to capture live specimens for study.
• Melos worried that the Sunil were invading the planet’s native species and asked Han Xiao whether the campaign was dishonorable.

Han Xiao investigated the Subterranean Mutants and discovered that Whispering Stone veins appeared to sustain their collective mental network and that signs of civilization were emerging among them. After he reported his findings, the tribe in nest No. 1 mined its vein, protected the ore, and began migrating away.

• Han Xiao reassured Melos that the Sunil were fighting for survival, then joined Melos and Sherinde in descending into the underground world.
• Han Xiao and his companions captured a dozen Subterranean Mutants near nest No. 1, and Han Xiao continued deeper alone to investigate.
• Han Xiao found crude murals and suspected the Subterranean Mutants were developing civilization; when he damaged a Whispering Stone vein, the entire nest attacked him.
• Han Xiao concluded that the vein might serve as a communications base for the tribe’s collective mental network, then fought through the mutants and returned to Forest City.
• Han Xiao gave the Sunil Research Department his findings and handed over the captured mutants.
• After Han Xiao left, the Subterranean Mutants mined their Whispering Stone vein, guarded the ore, and migrated away from the shaft.

The Black Star Army prepared for the Sunil campaign, while its players gathered in huge numbers and began the underground operation against the Subterranean Mutants. When Melos found that Nest One had been evacuated and its Whispering Stone removed, Ochizi resolved to eliminate the mutants, and Han Xiao began considering an unexpected possibility.

• Han Xiao briefed the officers on the Subterranean Mutants’ psychic senses, communication, and ultraviolet weakness, then assigned One Leaf Green to develop a weapon and Reynold to build a Whispering Stone detector.
• Fording refused to probe the mutants’ psychic network, while Han Xiao learned that he and Morning Star were growing closer; the officers also met Reynold and discovered he was Han Xiao’s student and Sylvia’s junior.
• Melos led the Sunil troops and players underground, where they established a bridgehead and found that every mutant in Nest One had disappeared.
• Melos discovered that the mutants had taken all the Whispering Stone from the nest and reported their migration to Ochizi.
• Ochizi concluded the Subterranean Mutants could become a rival civilization and vowed to stop them, while Han Xiao considered a bold idea.

After learning that the Subterranean Mutants could migrate, Han Xiao decided to preserve them and asked Fording to help establish communication. As the assault on Nest No. 2 began, Fording connected to the mutants’ mental network, where Han Xiao discovered they mistook him for one of their own and had bizarre ideas about their captors.

• Han Xiao realized the Subterranean Mutants could relocate with their Whispering Stone and decided to seek a way to save them rather than exterminate them.
• Han Xiao explained his migration plan to Fording, who agreed to help communicate with the Subterranean Mutants.
• Melos led the Sunil troops to Nest No. 2, where they opened fire on the mutants before a vast swarm charged out and clashed with the players.
• Han Xiao and Fording borrowed captured Subterranean Mutants and used Whispering Stone to access their mental network.
• The Subterranean Mutants mistook Han Xiao for one of their kind and concluded that their captors fed them because they ate their droppings.

Han Xiao tested communication with the Subterranean Mutants and used it to persuade a surviving tribe to surrender and help convince nearby tribes. He left the tribe with instructions to meet the surface visitors, naming its chief Germinal and the tribe the Germinal Tribe.

• Melos led the Sunil troops in destroying Nest No. 2, killing millions of Subterranean Mutants before returning to camp to rest and replenish ammunition.
• Han Xiao told Melos to keep attacking nests but not to pursue fleeing mutants, explaining that fear would make them easier to persuade.
• Han Xiao and Fording caught up with the fleeing survivors, entered their mental network through the Whispering Stone, and Han Xiao blamed the Sunil for the slaughter while offering to protect the mutants if they surrendered and left the planet.
• The tribal chief agreed to surrender, and Han Xiao learned about the Subterranean Mutants’ separate tribes and their simple social structure.
• Han Xiao ordered the chief to persuade nearby tribes and seek out the surface visitors, then named the chief Germinal and its tribe the Germinal Tribe.

Han Xiao’s surrender strategy cleared many Subterranean Mutant nests, while the expeditionary force expanded its operations and completed Number Three Base. When Ochizi demanded that Han Xiao use a new biochemical weapon to exterminate the mutants, Han Xiao refused unless the Sunil paid more.

• Melos used the Germinal Tribe to persuade three tribes to surrender, then secured the last tribe without a fight after its members recognized Han Xiao.
• Han Xiao ordered most surrendered mutants to remain under surveillance while the Germinal Tribe’s leader accompanied the expeditionary force to persuade other tribes.
• The expeditionary force found 127 nests across 41 regions and persuaded 1.7 billion Subterranean Mutants to surrender, while killing at least as many more.
• Han Xiao and Reynold established a military factory at Number Three Base, and One Leaf Green developed a biochemical weapon against the mutants.
• Ochizi asked Han Xiao to exterminate the surrendered mutants, but Han Xiao argued that future threats were outside the current contract and demanded extra payment for the extermination.

Han Xiao refused Ochizi’s request to exterminate the Subterranean Mutants, while Melos’s forces were forced out of Nest No. 77 by the New Rock Tribe. After suffering heavy losses, Melos ordered biochemical weapons deployed, and the New Rock Tribe began discovering the Sunils’ surface settlement through a dead soldier’s memories.

• Han Xiao rebuffed Ochizi’s plea to kill the surrendered Subterranean Mutants and contacted his financial backers to prepare for their relocation.
• Germinal negotiated with Sorosoro of the New Rock Tribe, but the tribe refused to abandon its home and chose to resist.
• Melos led the expeditionary force into battle against the New Rock Tribe, whose numbers, psychic attacks, and underground tactics overwhelmed the troops.
• After the New Rock Tribe drove the expeditionary force back to the surface, Melos reported the defeat to Han Xiao and ordered the logistics troops to deploy biochemical weapons.
• A native Esper among the New Rock Tribe read memories from fallen Sunil soldiers and revealed Forest City and Planet Sunil’s surface to the tribe as a biochemical cloud spread toward their nest.

After returning from the campaign, Melos and the expeditionary force were welcomed as heroes by the Sunil, though the families of the fallen grieved. Melos pledged himself to Han Xiao, and the arrival of a transport fleet began the Subterranean Mutants’ relocation, while Fording reconsidered leaving the Black Star Army.

• Melos led the expeditionary force back to Forest City, where the Sunil welcomed the soldiers and players with cheers and gratitude.
• Families reunited with surviving soldiers while others mourned the fallen; Melos helped Lana's parents after they received his ashes.
• Melos formally thanked Han Xiao and pledged to follow him as his blade, and Han Xiao accepted.
• The Sunil leader agreed to settle payment after the Subterranean Mutants had been relocated, and Han Xiao's transport fleet arrived to begin the move.
• Fording reflected that he no longer needed the Black Star Army's help but decided that staying with it might be a good choice.