by <unknown>
The ability of the King mechanical suit that Han Xiao had displayed had completely shattered all plans the church had for Hila. She was now finally in a safe spot.
Seeing the responses of the upper echelons, Sagman and the other ‘former prison mates’ exchanged looks and saw complicated emotions in each other’s eyes. It was the resignation of knowing that they would not be able to take revenge and the delight that they had escaped this time.
This time, another church upper echelon spoke. This was a member of the Bishops. “Putting Black Star’s technology aside, the federation is going to be the one with the biggest headache. I just want to ask, what do you guys think of Black Star’s strength?”
The various Beyond Grade As exchanged looks before all looking at Kasuyi.
Kasuyi pondered for a while and said, “What Black Star has achieved in this battle is very shocking, but since we’re involved in it and know the details, we know that although Black Star is not as strong as the outside world says he is, he’s still very strong. His raw strength is not the main issue; it’s the fact that his combat strategy almost has no weaknesses. His indestructible body made up for the biggest weakness of a Mechanic, and with the help of the Spacetime Amber, his actual combat capabilities far exceed the level he’s at. It’s tough to judge… From this incident onward, we’ll have to look at Black Star in a new light. He has two states, normal and explosive, the latter being on an entirely different level to the former.
“Although Black Star burned his potential this time, since he can burn it the first time, he will be able to burn it again. Among all Beyond Grade As, not many can guarantee a win against Black Star during his explosive state. Therefore, it’s best not to push him into that situation.”
After hearing this, the church superiors exchanged looks.
Well, you’re basically telling us not to mess with Black Star, aren’t you?
…
On the other side, the Federation of Light also hosted a similar conference. The atmosphere was completely different from the Arcane Church—it was extremely serious and grave.
President Bader looked around and said with a serious tone, “A total of three Beyond Grade As are in the dynasty’s hands. Who can tell me how it ended up like this? Which one of you can give me an explanation?”
The remote projections of the various Beyond Grade As present had no words. They all uncontrollably glanced at the three empty seats.
Bader’s mood was as if he had stepped in dog sh*t on the sidewalk.
Before the mission, he felt that this mission would almost certainly be a success. Even if they would not be able to capture Hila, with the Multi-Dimensional Sky Opening Transportation Device and six Beyond Grade As, retreating safely would not be a problem at all. However, he had never expected to suffer such a huge loss.
This result made him suspect that something had gone wrong along the way.
Bader turned to look at Sierron and said with a deep voice, “You were the leader of this operation. I had high hopes for you. What do you have to say now?”
Noticing the blame in the President’s tone, Sierron said furiously, “It’s all because of Kasuyi!”
Hearing this, none of the various federation upper echelons had good looks on their faces.
Back during the Planet Lighthouse battle, the federation had plotted against the church, and now it became the other way round.
Many people felt that they could finally understand how the church felt back then.
This time, Manison calmly said, “The church’s interference is an important factor, but the main reason is that Black Star expected this and deliberately used false information of his whereabouts to misguide the outside world, while his main body hid nearby and surprised Sierron and the others. Plus, there’s the fact that they could not linger around in enemy territory and could not maximize their strength, which led to them being defeated by Black Star one by one. Don’t underestimate a peak Beyond Grade A Mechanic.”
Bader narrowed his eyes and looked over. “I heard you were involved in this too, and you fought with Gorutan.”
“That’s right.” Manison nodded and did not deny it.
Bader gave him a meaningful look, but he did not continue asking more questions. He changed the topic and said coldly, “The most imminent issue is to negotiate with the dynasty to bail the three Beyond Grade A allies out. Don’t mess with Black Star for the time being.”
Then, he left the conference immediately. He did not want to see these troubling allies of his at least for today.
…
In Tarunamir Palace’s conference room, Urranrell supported her chin with her crossed hands and looked around at those present.
“The incident has come to an end, you all know the details, tell me your thoughts.”
They stayed silent for a while before one upper echelon spoke. “Black Star has dealt with this very beautifully. He exceeded our expectations completely. Currently, we have Beyond Grade A captives as chips, so we have the upper hand in the negotiation. Black Star has displayed his trump card, so we have to judge his strength at a higher level. In my opinion, although we did not start this incident, we should still give Black Star some compensation for him burning his potential, to show him how important he is to us.”
“Hmm, not bad.”
While responding, Urranrell secretly glanced at the hawk faction’s Bekorodi, only to realize Bekorodi’s eyes were half-closed. It looked like he did not plan to speak.
Originally, Bekorodi thought that Black Star would have to rely on the dynasty’s help to get through this, so he insisted on demanding that Hila join the dynasty. Now, however, Black Star had basically handled the problem all by himself, and the dynasty barely helped at all, so this proposal would no longer make sense.
Furthermore, Han Xiao’s achievement had shocked Bekorodi too. All the dynasty’s upper echelons valued him much more. In this environment, Bekorodi had nothing to say, so he stayed silent.
Seeing that no one opposed the idea, Urranrell continued. “About compensating Black Star, I plan to carry out a plan… to temporarily open up the selling rights of the Evolutionary Totems.”
Many upper echelons’ eyes widened in surprise when they heard this.
Very few had expected this and had knowing looks on their faces.
Due to the Evolution Cube, the dynasty was not on good terms with Black Star. There were some cracks in their relationship.
However, through this incident, the dynasty saw Black Star’s abilities and decided to take a step back to fix this.
Chapter 1060. The Godlike Battle |
Bright starlight reflected in Sorokin’s pupils through the floor to ceiling windows of the top floor. He stood before the window and looked up at the starry night.
“Gorutan is done for…”
To think that just a few days ago, he had been chattering and laughing with Gorutan in his palace. Sorokin mourned for three seconds.
Although he was mostly just the messenger in this incident, he had still secretly intended to shift the direction of how things played out. However, all plots were shattered by Black Star with pure power. Even he felt a sense of resignation.
“Wasn’t able to use Hila to start a conflict, what a shame.” Sorokin shook his head. “However, considering that Gorutan is no more, it’s not too bad.”
Gorutan was a shareholder of the Limitless Financial Group, and Sorokin had used his own identity as a shareholder to gain protection while strengthening his connection with the Galactic Black Market through Gorutan’s routes.
After so many years, Sorokin had already infiltrated the Galactic Black Market using Gorutan’s connections. Even if these connections were broken, his business would not be affected much. However, he could not possibly kick Gorutan away after using him.
Due to this incident, he would have one less shareholder to share the dividends with, which would actually save Sorokin some money. Some of his businesses that he had given to Gorutan i
n the past could now be retrieved and developed as usual. At the same time, he would also be able to slowly chip away Beast Ancestor’s organization’s main business and their market share.
“Hmm, Gorutan being gone isn’t a bad thing for me. Maybe I can use the shareholder position he left behind as a bargaining chip to gain the support of other protectors of the Galactic Black Market and make me a new protector of the Galactic Black Market.”
Sorokin narrowed his eyes as he thought about how he could benefit from this.
Although he did work together with Gorutan, business partners were not really on his side in Sorokin’s eyes. To him, the relationships he had with these people were purely built on mutual interests. Therefore, he was not sad about Gorutan being gone at all. Rather, he was happy with the fact that he now had one less person to share profits with.
“Nonetheless, Black Star’s strength is indeed quite incredible…
“After this, the Crimson Dynasty will likely reevaluate their relationship with Black Star. There’s a sixty percent chance they will temporarily put aside any arguments regarding the ownership of the Evolution Cube. They’ll then compensate Black Star by opening up the purchasing rights of the totems, bribing his heart and displaying their clear intention of wooing him… Hmm, then my deal with the federation, the church, and the dynasty’s hawk faction can be put aside. It’s time to stop interfering with the Black Star Army’s businesses.”
The Limitless Financial Group had made deals with multiple parties before starting to disrupt the Black Star Army’s businesses. The core reason was the Evolutionary Totems.
The federation and the church wanted to pressure the dynasty in various ways to force them to open the purchasing rights of the totems, so they wanted to influence the dynasty through Black Star. The dynasty’s hawk faction’s goal was to pressure Black Star and convince him to exchange the Evolution Cube for other Universal Treasures. If the dynasty opened up the purchasing rights of the totems, this problem would be solved instantly. Thus, the Limitless Financial Group would have no reason to continue pressuring the Black Star Army.
Other than these considerations, Sorokin also planned to stay low for some time.
Black Star had achieved something that was more than enough to be written down in history; now would be the time his influence was at its peak. If the Limitless Financial Group acted too out of line, Black Star would most likely target them even more. Hence, keeping a low profile would not be bad.
Sorokin did not want to make things ugly. After all, Black Star was the local dragon of the Flickering World. Small conflicts would still be fine, but it would not be pretty if things escalated.
If Black Star used his explosive abilities again, even he would have to face him with all his strength. He did not want to expose his strength and lose his camouflage as someone ‘weak’ and ‘fragile’.
“Hmm, Traveler too…” Sorokin’s eyes flickered. “It’s best to get rid of him.”
…
“Didn’t expect Black Star to eliminate Gorutan so decisively. Looks like my reminder was part of the reason…”
Somewhere within the free competition zone, Secret Master looked at the news playing on the communicator and frowned.
Like Gorutan, he had been a protector of the Galactic Black Market for many years. The two of them had many conflicts both on the surface and secretly. He understood Gorutan’s strength and knew that he was no match for him, or the one taking the position as the Limitless Financial Group shareholder would not have been Gorutan.
Seeing that Gorutan had been eliminated by Black Star, Secret Master was shocked while at the same time felt complicated about losing an old rival.
Of course, feelings were one thing. If anyone wanted to bail Gorutan out, he would be the first to oppose it.
After some time, Secret Master adjusted his mindset and started thinking about how he could benefit from this.
“The organization left behind by Beast Ancestor is a huge chunk of meat. It’s best to share it to make my own organization stronger. Hmm, among those offspring of his, there seem to be some who are quite talented. I can make them work under me… If I take them to see the Beast Ancestor’s specimen, it will probably be very fun…”
Thinking about that, Secret Master could not help but smile.
“Black Star did something huge this time. It’d be best to keep in contact with him in the future. Black Star will lead the shared front of the Beyond Grade As. I should pay more attention to this matter.”
…
Somewhere in the Constellation Corridor, a dynasty patrol ship was slowly moving.
In a cabin, a dynasty male wearing a low-grade officer uniform leaned on the railing. He held a communicator and watched it with a naive smile.
This person was very muscular. He looked ordinary and friendly, without the special position marking on his uniform. It would be very hard for someone to think that this was a Grade C Super combatant of the Pugilist class.
This time, a few colleagues doing the daily patrolling walked over and saw this buff man. Someone yelled, “Yo, Karlot, what are you watching that made you smile so brightly?”
“Ah, I’m watching the news.” Karlot turned around and smiled.
This person was the Beyond Grade A potential stock Han Xiao had once paid attention to, a peak Beyond Grade A Pugilist of the dynasty in his previous life.
More than twenty years ago, he was still a child who was studying in the dynasty’s Super Academy and had yet to even awaken his class. Now that more than twenty years had passed, he had turned from a frank child to a frank adult who was just Grade C. His growth could not be considered fast; it was mediocre.
Due to Han Xiao’s interference, his growth took a different path from before but still had the same overall effect. Karlot still joined the dynasty military after graduating, and after ten years or so, he was still a low-grade combatant who was rarely promoted if at all.
This time, a few colleagues of his approached and saw the news about Han Xiao on the communicator.
“His Excellency Black Star? Ha, as expected!” a colleague joked. “Sigh, sadly, you know Black Star, but Black Star doesn’t know you, his top fan.”
“He does know me. When I was young, His Excellency Black Star once personally tried to recruit me. He…”
Before Karlot finished his sentence, his colleagues were already laughing out loud.
“Hahaha, you’re at it again!”
“Keep going, don’t stop.”
“The legendary man with so much talent that even Black Star personally tried to recruit… Poah, haha, I can’t do this. Let me laugh a while longer!”
Seeing this, Karlot was not angry at all. He only scratched his head and smiled with resignation.
Ever since he came into contact with Han Xiao when he was a kid, he had been paying attention to anything related to Han Xiao in the news. In time, Han Xiao had become his idol. A colleague had once asked him the reason, so he told the truth. However, to his surprise, no one believed him, which made him the king of jokes among his colleagues.
Black Star would personally try to recruit an ordinary Grade C dynasty officer?
Who would believe that?
Position depended on strength. Even though Han Xiao had once personally tried to recruit him, more than twenty years had passed, and Karlot’s growth had proved to not match the word ‘genius’. This incident also got forgotten and not written in his resume. He had no intention of proving it to his colleagues. He did not care if others believed him, and he did not mind being made fun of.
At the start, due to Black Star, the school had high hopes for him. However, after they realized he had ordinary talent, they gave up on him. Nonetheless, Karlot was not affected by it, nor was he in a hurry to prove himself. All he did was slowly and patiently train while enjoying the process.
Throughout the years, even Karlot occasionally wondered if Black Star had made a mistake back then. However, this did not trouble him.
The disappointment and derision of others had little effect on him, and he did not think it was something worth getting angry over.
If he was destined to be ordinary, he would embrace it. He focused on the things he wanted to do; there was no need to force others to look up to him. This had always been the way Karlot lived his life.
Shaking his head with resignation, Karlot ignored his colleagues who were laughing and looked at the communicator again. Seeing Han Xiao in the papers, he smiled from the bottom of his heart.
…
Galaxy Calendar Year 730, February 18th. This was a day noted in history.
On this day, Black Star fought a battle in the Flickering World that could rarely happen even every hundred years. Initially, the church and the federation’s assassination mission for Hila might have become the fuse to cause the conflict between the three Universal Civilizations to erupt, but Black Star singlehandedly extinguished its flames and caused a sensation!
This news even surpassed the Flickering World. Even the competition and fighting stopped temporarily. The various organizations inside the free competition zone all maintained a low profile to see how things would go from there.
Countless galactic residents knew that Black Star was a top tier individual in the universe, but as a ‘newbie’ who had only appeared a few decades prior, Han Xiao did not achieve a lot of notable things. In terms of his reputation, there was still quite a difference between him and Manison, Kasuyi, and those senior peak Beyond Grade As.
This news, however, refreshed the image countless people had of him once again. His reputation universally skyrocketed.
What happened on this day was given a nickname by the outside world—Black Star’s Godlike Battle—which surpassed all his past achievements and became the most notable deed on his resume.
At the same time, the Wayne Card company once again made an announcement to drastically buff Black Star’s card in the next version, while at the same time introducing the memorial card sets with the ‘Black Star’s Godlike Battle’ theme. They were quick and familiar with benefiting from what was popular at the time.
