Chapter Summaries

Han Xiao helped Nagokin capture the DarkStar command ship and commander Norcap, while the rest of the fleet escaped. DarkStar’s leaders decided to use Planet Aquamarine as leverage against Han Xiao, and Battet then claimed the captured ships as Goddoran spoils.

• Han Xiao asked Resta to hack into DarkStar’s central database, but Resta explained that the captured command ship had severed its connection to the mainframe.
• Nagokin captured the Bloody Gaol and Norcap, and Goddora counted the battle as a victory with few losses.
• DarkStar deputy leader Degulish wanted to destroy Planet Aquamarine, but the head of intelligence persuaded him to keep it as leverage and plant spies in Han Xiao’s mercenary group.
• Han Xiao returned to Planet Aquamarine and celebrated capturing nine DarkStar assault ships, which could strengthen his fleet and earn him a profit.
• Battet arrived and said Goddoran forces would take the captured ships, leaving Han Xiao surprised.

Han Xiao rejected Battet’s attempt to claim the captured assault ships, and Nagokin sided with him, preserving Goddora’s relationship with Black Star. Elsewhere, the Mutation Source absorbed an assault ship’s energy core, formed a humanlike body, and began evolving earlier than expected.

• Battet claimed the captured assault ships under Goddora’s regulations, but Han Xiao refused to recognize his authority over an independent mercenary group.
• Nagokin reprimanded Battet and allowed Han Xiao to keep the spoils, then led Battet away.
• The Six Nations and the players learned of the dispute, while Han Xiao inspected the damaged ships and sent mercenaries to salvage crash wreckage.
• At the Germinal ruins, the Mutation Source drained a crashed assault ship’s energy core and transformed a skeleton into a humanlike body.
• The Mutation Source gained clearer thoughts, spoke, and wandered away as a hidden DarkStar squad detected its energy surge and realized it was nearing its next evolution.

Han Xiao repaired the captured assault ships while Goddora prepared a military jump base station to counter DarkStar’s attacks. The Mutation Disaster suddenly entered its second stage, triggering mass riots and panic across the Sanctuary.

• Han Xiao finished repairing the nine captured assault ships and checked the mercenary group’s rapid growth.
• Nagokin explained that Goddora planned to deploy a military jump orbital base station so its scattered fleets could quickly reinforce one another.
• Han Xiao warned that DarkStar would likely attack the base station, while he anticipated that DarkStar’s next move was approaching.
• A sudden disturbance spread through the Sanctuary, and refugees and guards affected by the Mutation Disaster erupted into riots.
• Tens of millions of people fought or fled, the players saw the [Mutation Disaster] progress plunge, and Han Xiao identified the outbreak as the second stage.

Han Xiao and the Sanctuary subdued the infected refugees as the Mutation Disaster entered its second stage, while he prepared for escalating threats and waited for Goddora to develop a cure. The Mutation Source realized its senses were being restrained and resolved to retaliate.

• Han Xiao recognized that the Mutation Source was deliberately directing infected people to flee and ordered the Sanctuary and mercenaries to restrain them.
• Han Xiao used ships equipped with wide-area shock cannons to stun refugees, and the Sanctuary and Six Nations brought the outbreaks under control.
• Han Xiao warned Bennett that the Mutation Source could use beasts or infected people to attack, then ordered mercenaries to patrol and train newly joined Inhumans.
• The Mutation Source sensed that infected people had been confined and disconnected from it by suppressant, regarded Han Xiao and the others as enemies, and decided to strike back.

The DarkStar leader met with a Hutt official to urge the Hutt Civilization to seize Goddora territory in Heidegger while Goddora was distracted. Meanwhile, Ashes arrived disguised on a Goddoran colony planet and signaled a massive DarkStar fleet to attack.

• The DarkStar leader met a Hutt envoy in the Skywalker Star System and proposed that the Hutts expand into Goddora's disputed territory in Heidegger.
• The Hutt official questioned whether DarkStar could ever rule Goddora without facing punishment from the greater civilizations, but the DarkStar leader refused to explain the organization's plans.
• Ashes landed in disguise on a prosperous second-tier Goddoran colony planet and surveyed the busy port.
• Ashes snapped his fingers and ordered the planet to turn to dust, signaling three DarkStar motherships waiting nearby.

After DarkStar devastated Goddora’s colony Long Arc, Han Xiao decided to use the Mutation Source to help Goddora contain the crisis while gaining leverage. He left Planet Aquamarine to stage the source’s arrival from Dragon Calm as DarkStar’s leaders celebrated the pressure mounting on Goddora.

• Players fought beasts around Planet Aquamarine’s Sanctuaries as Goddora established military jump-orbit bases and temporary stargates.
• DarkStar attacked Long Arc with three motherships and over four thousand warships, killing hundreds of millions before Goddora’s reinforcements drove the fleet back.
• The Long Arc disaster fueled panic, demands to withdraw Goddora’s relief forces, renewed hostility toward mixed bloods, and pressure from the Hutt Civilization.
• Han Xiao decided to offer Goddora the Mutation Source, but when Nagokin could not see him, he left for Dragon Calm to make it appear he had just obtained it.
• Degulish and DarkStar’s intelligence chief discussed how the Mutation Disaster, Goddora’s internal conflicts, and Hutt pressure were weakening Goddora, and said Goddora had never recovered the real Mutation Source.

Han Xiao traveled toward Dragon Calm, stopping at Planet Golden Gate and Juberly Hub along the way. After seeing how DarkStar’s attack had unsettled Goddora and left the Garton Star System vulnerable to pirates, he discovered that Beverly and his crew planned to steal his ship.

• Han Xiao left Planet Aquamarine without informing Nagokin and headed toward Dragon Calm, intending to assess the Garton Star System and consider what to demand from Goddora.
• Han Xiao stopped at Planet Golden Gate and found its defenses tightened, its streets deserted, and Black Star Number One Base operating normally with a large stockpile of equipment.
• Han Xiao continued to Juberly Hub to refuel, where Beverly’s space-pirate crew recognized him as the enemy who had defeated Mado’s squad.
• Beverly warned his subordinate not to underestimate Han Xiao, then led his crew out to steal the Blacklight Stealth while Han Xiao was in the hub.

Beverly led a band of space pirates into Juberly Hub to steal Han Xiao’s Blacklight Stealth, assuming the ship was unattended. The Blacklight Stealth activated and blasted the pirates away, leaving Beverly facing its laser fire.

• Beverly learned the Blacklight Stealth’s premium hangar location and decided to steal it while Han Xiao was away.
• Beverly and his pirates burned through the hangar’s defenses and entered the hangar.
• Beverly’s crew prepared to attach thrusters and electromagnetic clamps while Beverly deployed a signal blocker.
• As Beverly prepared to burn open the ship’s hatch, the Blacklight Stealth started its engines and tore free of its docking track.
• The Blacklight Stealth spun through the hangar, flinging the pirates aside, and fired a laser at Beverly.

Han Xiao captured Beverly after the pirate tried to steal the Blacklight Stealth and extracted his Esper ability, then continued to Floating Dragon Island. He arrived to find Dragon Calm’s leaders waiting for him and learned that Ames wanted to see him.

• Han Xiao learned that Beverly and his accomplices had attacked the Blacklight Stealth, then took the captured pirate aboard his ship.
• Han Xiao used the Super Gene Extractor on Beverly and gained a temporary Character Summon Card for his Incandescent Eye ability.
• Han Xiao learned that Beverly’s accomplices had escaped and decided to leave the Purple Snake Space Pirate Group for his mercenaries to fight later.
• Han Xiao traveled to Floating Dragon Island, where Wilsander, Haier, and Jenny welcomed him back.
• Jenny told Han Xiao that Ames wanted to see him as onlookers speculated that his growing mercenary forces served the Dragon Emperor’s ambitions.

Han Xiao visited Ames, gained the Versatile Weapon Application talent, and discussed expanding his forces by recruiting the Cosmic Wonders from his home. Ames decided to accompany him back despite the conflict between DarkStar and Goddora, while Jenny remained wary of his involvement in the Garton Star System turmoil.

• Han Xiao used his random reward to select the Versatile Weapon Application talent, which increased the attack power of all his weapons.
• Ames tested Han Xiao's strength with a force-field attack and praised how much he had grown.
• Ames asked Han Xiao about expanding his armed forces after Jenny complained that the expansion had increased her workload.
• Han Xiao told Ames that over a million Cosmic Wonders had appeared on his home planet and that he wanted to recruit them.
• Ames eagerly decided to travel with Han Xiao to meet the Cosmic Wonders, despite his warning that DarkStar and Goddora were fighting in the Garton Star System.
• Jenny reviewed reports about the turmoil in the Garton Star System and hoped Dragon Calm would remain uninvolved.

Han Xiao brought Ames to Planet Aquamarine, where she met the Inhumans and learned of Resta’s plea to save his people from Manison. Han Xiao then revealed a new Mutation Source to Nagokin, setting the stage for a possible change in Goddora’s crisis.

• Han Xiao and Ames left Dragon Calm together, prompting speculation among its residents and distressing Jenny.
• During their ten-day journey, Han Xiao told Ames about his past and the sisters Hila and Aurora; Resta appeared and asked Ames to help free his civilization from Manison, but she refused because she could not defeat him.
• Han Xiao and Ames arrived at Planet Aquamarine, where Ames went to the plaza and astonished the players, while Han Xiao headed to the Goddoran camp.
• Han Xiao told Nagokin he had found a new Mutation Source, and Nagokin rushed out to meet him.
• Han Xiao showed Nagokin the sealed Mutation Source and proposed discussing it inside.

Han Xiao negotiated with Goddora to trade the Mutation Source for money, supplies, and long-term benefits, giving the civilization a way to advance its research into the Mutation Disaster. After Goddora accepted the deal and took possession of the source, Han Xiao reflected that his intervention would change the course of the conflict and the players’ futures.

• Han Xiao showed Nagokin the sealed Mutation Source and explained how he had taken it from a DarkStar courier, then said he would only hand it over in exchange for payment.
• Nagokin suspected Han Xiao might have ties to DarkStar, but Han Xiao told him to verify his story with Ames, who was waiting at the plaza.
• Nagokin contacted Goddora’s higher-ups, who heard the news and began negotiating directly with Han Xiao.
• Han Xiao and Goddora’s officials agreed on a deal that included three million Enas, supplies, and long-term benefits for Han Xiao and his mercenary group.
• Han Xiao gave the Mutation Source to Nagokin to send secretly to Goddora, then reflected that his actions would change the storyline and the players’ futures.

Ames arrived at the Sanctuary, drawing a crowd of players and surprising Han Xiao’s officers with her gentleness toward him. Meanwhile, a DarkStar operative spotted her on Planet Aquamarine and rushed to report the alarming intelligence.

• Ames observed the players, recognized that they could revive, and flew to Han Xiao’s base as players gathered to see her and speculated about her arrival.
• After handing the Mutation Source to Nagokin, Han Xiao planned to build an interstellar-standard branch base at the Sanctuary and use players as construction labor.
• Han Xiao met Ames at the base, arranged for her to stay and meet Hila and Aurora, and discussed Goddora’s gratitude toward her.
• The officers and players interpreted Ames’s gentle manner toward Han Xiao as evidence that they were romantically involved, and Meat Bun recorded the scene to turn into a sensational story.
• A DarkStar surveillance operative saw Ames arrive on Planet Aquamarine and hurried to report her presence to his superiors.

DarkStar learned that Ames was on Planet Aquamarine but dismissed her as a threat and continued its infiltration plans. Meanwhile, Goddora confirmed that Han Xiao's Mutation Source sample could help stop the Mutation Disaster, and Ames's visit ended with her meeting Hila and Aurora.

• Degulish ordered DarkStar's agents to watch Ames from a distance and continued plans to infiltrate the Black Star Mercenary Group and Dragon Calm.
• Nagokin delivered the Mutation Source to Goddora's researchers, who confirmed it was the source of the Mutation Disaster and could accelerate antidote research.
• The War Bureau official urged Nagokin to deepen his relationship with Han Xiao, prompting Nagokin to threaten to beat him up.
• Han Xiao guided Ames around the Sanctuary while residents and players spread rumors about their relationship.
• Ames asked Han Xiao about Hila and Aurora when the sisters encountered them, and Hila took Aurora's hand and approached.

Han Xiao introduced Hila and Aurora to Ames, who explained her interest in the sisters and offered to take them as disciples. Hila demanded proof of Ames’ strength, and Ames demonstrated it by pulling the Goddoran escort fleet out of orbit and stopping it above the Sanctuary.

• Han Xiao introduced Hila and Aurora to Ames, while Aurora eased the tension between Ames and the wary Hila.
• Ames told the sisters that their life- and death-related abilities resembled those of a pair among the ancient First Ones.
• Ames asked Hila and Aurora to become her disciples, and Han Xiao encouraged them to accept the opportunity.
• Hila asked whether Ames was strong enough to teach them, so Ames used her force field to drag the Goddoran escort fleet from space and halt it above the Sanctuary.
• Ames asked the stunned sisters whether she was qualified, while Han Xiao admired her display.

After Goddora developed cures and a detector for the Mutation Source, Han Xiao organized a planet-wide search to eradicate the Mutation Disaster. The suppression devices brought refugees relief, and players rushed to accept Han Xiao’s lucrative mission to locate the Source.

• Hila and Aurora stayed on Planet Aquamarine to help with disaster relief and agreed to train under Ames after the crisis ended.
• Han Xiao completed Black Star Base No. 2, established production lines, and continued earning money from player purchases.
• Nagokin brought Han Xiao Goddora’s area suppression devices, an injectable agent that destroyed the Mutation Source, and a detector that could locate it nearby.
• Han Xiao proposed mass-producing detectors and using players and the Six Nations’ armies to search Planet Aquamarine for the Mutation Source.
• The suppression devices were deployed across the Sanctuary and Six Nations’ cities, letting infected people retain control during outbreaks and giving refugees hope.
• Han Xiao issued the [Lock On to the Source] mission, and players flocked to accept it and buy the detector from the faction store.

Han Xiao sold Mutation Source detectors to players and mobilized Planet Aquamarine's forces for a planet-wide search. DarkStar ignored reports of the search while preparing to attack Planet Golden Gate, where Black Star Base was located.

• Han Xiao sold roughly two hundred thousand detectors to players, earning about six hundred thousand Enas, then sent them across Planet Aquamarine to search for the Mutation Source.
• The Six Nations and Goddora joined the search across the planet and its oceans, while Han Xiao monitored the detectors and decided to find the Mutation Source himself.
• A hidden DarkStar team reported Planet Aquamarine's search, but Degulish and DarkStar's intelligence chief dismissed the report as another futile effort.
• Degulish prepared DarkStar's attack on Planet Golden Gate, planning to destroy the planet and its strategic defenses.
• Degulish asserted command over the operation, including Ashes, and announced that the fleets would attack Planet Golden Gate in three days.

Nine-Tailed Fox found the Mutation Source in a beast-filled basin and completed the [Lock On to the Source] mission before dying. Players gathered at the basin to pursue the Mutation Disaster storyline, and Black Star arrived above the horde.

• Nine-Tailed Fox sent a drone with a detector into the beast horde, but the Mutation Source destroyed it before it could lock on.
• The Mutation Source attacked Nine-Tailed Fox, who planted a spare detector in the mud before dying; the detector registered the target and completed his mission.
• The Drizzle Jianghu guild revealed the Mutation Source's coordinates, drawing players from across the Western Continent to the basin.
• Jupiter urged the gathered players to wait for reinforcements rather than provoke the horde, but Black Star's Blacklight Stealth appeared over the basin.

Han Xiao arrived at the beast horde and attacked the Mutation Source, whose powerful healing and damage resistance made it difficult to kill. His attack triggered the final boss mission for the watching players, and Han Xiao set out to claim the first-kill reward.

• Han Xiao leaped from the Blacklight Stealth and landed among the beasts, scattering them with the impact.
• Han Xiao recognized the Mutation Source’s resemblance to the long-dead Germinal leader, then attacked it without answering its questions.
• The Mutation Source healed from Han Xiao’s punch and drove the surrounding beasts into a rage as he studied its formidable abilities.
• The players watching Han Xiao received the Grade B mission [Destroy the Source], and Han Xiao resolved to claim its first-kill reward.

Han Xiao confronted the Mutation Source with his four-thousand-strong Mechanical Beast Guards and weakened it with a Godoran injection, though the dose proved less effective than expected. As factions and people across Planet Aquamarine watched the battle and rushed to support him, Jupiter and the other players considered entering the fight to steal the kill.

• Han Xiao deployed the Mechanical Beast Guards, which halted the beast horde and protected the nearby players.
• Han Xiao attacked the Mutation Source on the mammoth and injected it with a destruction compound, temporarily suppressing its powers and control over the beasts.
• Han Xiao discovered the injection had weakened the Mutation Source by only about a third and prepared to keep fighting it himself.
• Jupiter and the other players saw the horde turn toward Han Xiao's machines and began considering joining the battle to claim the kill.
• Nagokin and Melos gathered forces to support Han Xiao, while Bennett broadcast the battle across the Sanctuary for Aurora, Hila, refugees, and the Six Nations to watch.
• The DarkStar infiltration squad on Planet Aquamarine also discovered the battle between Han Xiao and the Mutation Source.