Though they kept their guard up a while longer, EsGod did not appear again.

“We forced him away?” Beyoni’s voice sounded in the communication channel filled with doubt and disbelief.

Ames looked at the fleet battlefield afar that was completely one-sided, shook her head, and said, “Does he not even want his fleet anymore?”

“They’re all wanted criminals. None are good,” Han Xiao said slowly. “Across the entire universe, new criminals are born every second and every minute. Countless people have sought protection from him. EsGod basically has an endless supply of manpower. How much will he care about the lives of his subordinates? If he did care, he would not have used his subordinates as bait.”

Without EsGod, this Fallen Ark fleet scattered and escaped in all directions. The dynasty’s troops chased right after them. The three of them did not do anything about those escaping battleships and returned to one of the sub-ships. Chasing those fleeing enemies was the dynasty’s troops’ task.

As the main ship had been destroyed by EsGod, Murraky had moved to this sub-ship to re-establish his command. As soon as the three of them entered the spaceship, they immediately saw the few soldiers who had been waiting beside the hatch all along.

“Y-Your Excellencies, the commander has invited the three of you to the bridge.” The soldier was a little nervous. All these soldiers on the spaceships witnessed the fight between the three of them and EsGod—they had a very clear idea of how strong these three were.

“So, now this guy’s willing to let us go to the command room?” Han Xiao laughed and walked at the front. The soldier quickly caught up and led the way.

When the three of them entered the command room at the bridge, Murraky was staring at the strategic map and talking nonstop, giving out orders to maximize the results of the battle. As he turned around and saw Han Xiao and the others walk in, his face turned respectful, and he hastily went to the three of them.

“Your Excellency Black Star, you saved my life, thank you! I’m very sorry about what happened before!” Murraky’s attitude was completely different from before, and he could not have been more respectful.

No matter how arrogant he was, he could not act that way to Black Star, who had saved his life.

Han Xiao looked at him with narrowed eyes and said indifferently, “You’re the commander. You can be arrogant, you can act all high and mighty, and you can have all kinds of problems… but you can’t forget your job. The battle has not ended, yet you left your commanding position and came to apologize to us? Putting it bluntly, no matter what attitude you have, it will never change the difference in position between you and us. Do you think we care about your apology?”

The command room became silent. The people around dared not make a sound.

Murraky shivered. His intention to apologize was sincere, but he never expected to receive such an uncompromising response. It was almost shameful. He could not help but feel somewhat wronged. However, with an awkward expression, he did not dare speak again and returned to his station to continue commanding the battle.

After Han Xiao finally left with an expressionless face, the people in the room finally dared to breathe freely.

The annoyance in Beyoni’s heart disappeared immediately. He patted Han Xiao’s shoulder and laughed. “Dynasty military officers like him don’t know how to respect the strong. That’ll teach him a lesson.”

Han Xiao glanced at him and shook his head in his mind. It was not Murraky’s attitude that he was unhappy about. If this was directed just toward him, he would have generously laughed it off. However, this did not just concern him. Ames was not an ally of the dynasty—she had helped him purely because she was kind enough to. Yet she was treated this way, so there was no way Han Xiao was just going to act as if nothing had happened.

Therefore, even though Murraky had gone to apologize sincerely, he still did not accept it at all and used the chance to teach him a lesson. Ames was not the dynasty’s ally, so she had no place to speak. Only he could help her vent her anger. Even though Ames had never requested him to do so, Han Xiao still did it.

Ames looked at Han Xiao with an interested look on her face. “Yo, this is the first time I’ve seen you show off your Beyond Grade A identity. Kiddo, has arrogance finally caught up to you?”

Han Xiao glanced at her and raised his brows. “Don’t tell me you didn’t like it.”

“Smart.” Ames laughed and shook her head. She softly poked Han Xiao’s cheek with her slender finger.

Han Xiao turned his head around with resignation, caught Ames’ hand, and pressed it down. “Your words were more than sufficient.”

They casually chatted about the battle earlier as they returned to the house. Han Xiao entered a room alone and closed the door after him. Now, he finally had the time to take a breather and recollect the battle earlier.

He had gained quite a lot from this test.

The goal on paper to take part in this elimination was to complete a mission and obtain Contribution Points, as well as to clarify his stand and draw an obvious line with EsGod.

One of the secret goals was to evaluate the combat capability of EsGod’s main body.

The Great Mechanic Han had a very clear idea of his own capabilities and knew that he was no match for EsGod at the moment, which was why he had hidden the Evolution Cube in advance. However, he was at least at the Beyond Grade A level just like EsGod, so he would not be too afraid and knew that he could at least fight EsGod.

Since EsGod was his enemy, while he had help, he wanted to test EsGod’s strength personally and feel their differences. This way, he would have a rough idea when facing EsGod in the future and would not be unprepared.

The test did give him a result—EsGod felt unfathomable, like a bottomless pit. Just seeing the tip of the iceberg had already given him a lot of pressure.

“Level, talents, and Ultimate Knowledges need to be obtained, and the mechanical army needs to be continuously expanded.” Han Xiao was planning ahead.

A Beyond Grade A Mechanic’s army could travel long distances without him having to be there. Other than his own abilities, he also had to increase the size and strength of his mechanical army. After he obtained the Ultimate Knowledge to activate [King’s Mentor], he would be able to enhance his mechanical army even further and make use of the Beyond Grade A Mechanic combat style.

The most important goal he had this time was to plant a ward on that guy.

EsGod had multiple abilities, but he was not a Mage. Even though the chances were slim, he had to try it. With this attitude, Han Xiao had secretly thrown an Observer’s Mark at EsGod during the battle. Sadly, EsGod had discovered it and shattered it instantly.

Han Xiao was not very regretful about this. It was a gamble to begin with. It would have been a great surprise if it worked, but he had been mentally prepared for it not to.

Ding.

At this time, the mission complete notification popped up on the interface.

“The battle has finally ended?”

He opened the interface and looked at the notifications.

_____________

[Dynasty Warfare: Fallen Ark (Repeatable)] Completed!

The targets you have completed are: [Elite Minions], [Brave Warrior], [Scavenger]… [Facing EsGod I], [Facing EsGod II, [Facing EsGod III], [Facing EsGod IV].

Mission Rating: Unbelievable

You have received Unbelievable Mission Rating reward: Bonus 9,000,000,000 EXP, 2 Random Rewards

_____________

“That’s quite a lot of EXP.” Han Xiao was delighted. All missions that involved Beyond Grade As had very rich rewards. It was the same back when he fought Heber.

The total EXP reward for this mission was close to thirty billion! It was plenty even at his level. It mainly came from the reward involving EsGod, which he could complete easily but was extremely difficult for the players.

Scanning through the notifications, Han Xiao smiled. He had made a huge fortune this time. The Contribution Points for the Crimson Dynasty had reached more than eight thousand, more than enough to exchange for an Ultimate Knowledge.

Han Xiao saved the two Random Rewards before looking at the EsGod Character Summon Card reward from the [Facing EsGod IV] mission.

_____________

Character Summon Card – EsGod: [Esper Ability—Esper Silence]—Through physical contact, suppress the Esper Genes of the target and forbid the target from using Esper Ability. Only effective against Espers. The Judgement success rate and the duration depends on the difference between the user and target in terms of Level, Energy Level, and Luck.

Minimum duration if effective: 0.25s

Usages: 0/2

_____________

“Esper Silence?” Han Xiao recalled that this was the Esper Ability that EsGod had used on Beyoni.

EsGod had many abilities, and the Character Summon Card could only draw one. Luckily, this Esper Ability was quite useful, thanks to him touching Feidin before the battle.

Han Xiao pondered. The ability of this Character Summon Card just so happened to counter EsGod, which was an unexpected surprise. However, the difference in the various attributes between him and EsGod was quite large, so it was almost impossible for the Judgement to succeed.

Maybe when his level caught up to EsGod, this Character Summon Card would be effective on him.

Han Xiao kept this Character Summon Card as a trump card.

“Now that I’ve drawn the line clearly with EsGod, the goal for this trip is achieved… I shall exchange for Ultimate Knowledge later on and rendezvous with the army, as well as make contact with the Constellation Corridor players.”

One of the two goals he had for this Central Galaxy trip was now completed, and Han Xiao had already planned for what to do next.

“One more thing…”

He was rather concerned with the wormhole EsGod mentioned and wanted to know what EsGod was planning.

“When I return to the Shattered Star Ring, I have to find the time to visit Harrofal’s civilization and see if I can get the data for that wormhole travel. I have to find out why EsGod was looking for that set of data…”

Han Xiao’s eyes sparkled.

He had an intuitive feeling that this was not simple. It might be a surprise…

…

In the other room, Beyoni opened his communicator and called Clotti’s number.

The communication was picked up very soon.

Du…

“Clotti, the battle here has ended.”

“How was it?” Clotti asked.

“We met EsGod’s main body…” Beyoni described the whole thing.

Clotti nodded and said, “This means that EsGod did indeed contact Black Star before, but Black Star did not agree, hmm… There is the possibility that they’re putting on a show. Anyhow, good work, I will report this to Her Excellency.”

“It didn’t look fake.” Beyoni spoke for Han Xiao. “I feel that Black Star knew that the dynasty had some doubts about him, and this was to express his stand to gain the dynasty’s trust. After all, he’s a new Beyond Grade A ally of the dynasty. Even if there are doubts, it won’t be publicized. It’s impossible to interrogate someone like him, so he needed to do this.”

Clotti did not comment about it. He was only responsible for reporting; the final judgment depended on Urranrell.

“By the way, Black Star asked me about the Mechanic Empire,” Beyoni suddenly said.

“That’s normal.” Clotti shook his head.

After a few more words, Beyoni hung up the communication and exhaled flame sparkles from his mouth.

Not only was he close to the military’s Youngsters Faction, but he was also a confidant of the Ruler. During this trip with Han Xiao, not only was he building a closer relationship with Han Xiao, but he was also secretly told by Urranrell to keep an eye on Black Star’s actions.

…

In the Central Galaxy’s desolate universe belt very far from the battlefield, another Fallen Ark fleet was hidden.

A space vortex shaped teleportation gate appeared above the fleet, and EsGod walked out of it.

The main ship opened its hatch and welcomed EsGod onboard.

As he returned to the main ship’s hall, the people on standby there stood up and greeted him.

“Your Excellency EsGod!”

“Boss!”

EsGod ignored them and walked to his throne. He sat down and glanced over the people below him. “How’s the research progress?”

“They’re still matching the data with the coordinates. We don’t know how long it will take to accurately locate the location in the data records. That set of data is too strange. It does not seem to be in the explored universe. Even if we have the data, without the matching coordinates on the star map, the workload is enormous.”

“Results are the only thing I want. Confirm the location as soon as possible,” EsGod said coldly. He then turned to look at his capable assistant beside him and said, “Help me to contact the Arcane Church’s men.”

“Oh? For what?”

This person licked his lips. His tongue was purple and covered in spikes, like a whip. A bright red mask was embedded into his face bone as if it was soldered into his face. The mask blocked the upper half of his face, not even showing his eyes. Only his mouth and chin could be seen. He was a being with an upright spine but not human, about 1.7 meters tall. His back was bent like an old man. His skin was thick, dark purple, and rough like sandpaper. He had two pairs of upper limbs and one pair of lower limbs. He looked emaciated, and his body was like a purple brunch of a dead tree. He had the EsGod-brand fashionable beggar hood on too. He emitted a sense of evil and creepiness from all over his body.

Fakisen, nicknamed the Purple Devil, one of the Beyond Grade A Seeds in the Central Galaxy many years ago. He was once a wanted criminal chased by universal civilizations, then he joined the Fallen Ark and had been an important officer under EsGod for around a hundred years.

“Tell the Arcane Church’s men, didn’t they want the data left by the Evolutionary Civilization? I can give it to them.”

“On what terms?” Fakisen tilted his head.

“To work together and snatch the Evolution Cube. Tell them, if that succeeds, the Evolution Cube is theirs. I only need to use it a few times,” EsGod said slowly.

In order not to make the same mistake, he decided to borrow Psyker’s ability to locate the Evolution Cube. As he had slaughtered many Star Pupil Holy Race members before, Psyker would not work with him, so EsGod planned to directly negotiate with the Arcane Church in secret. As long as the Arcane Church made a decision, he would be able to discreetly borrow Psyker’s ability.

The Arcane Church had an unusual passion for the Evolution Cube. Ever since EsGod stole the Evolution Cube from Psyker and made it known to the public that he possessed information about the Evolutionary Civilization, the Arcane Church had proposed many terms to him secretly in exchange for the Evolutionary Civilization’s information.

According to EsGod’s speculation, the Arcane Church’s feverish admiration for the Gods was one of the main reasons they wanted the Evolution Cube. EsGod did not know the details of it.

Although EsGod knew that he was the common enemy of the three civilizations. Since he shared a common goal with the Arcane Church, it was not impossible for them to work together in secret. Furthermore, the target of negotiation was the mysterious Arcane Church, which had the most ambiguous stand among the three civilizations. Compared to the Federation of Light and the Crimson Dynasty, the Arcane Church was the least keen to kill him.

“We’re going to make a deal with the Arcane Church? That’s really risky. If there’s a chance, they might eliminate you during the process,” Fakisen said with a mocking tone.

“Hehe.” EsGod smiled faintly and did not reply. He then said, “I’ll leave this matter to you. I need to sleep for some time.”

Pa!

Fakisen’s tongue whipped in midair and created a sound that had the same meaning as humans snapping their fingers, expressing that he would get it done.

EsGod grunted and lowered his head. His face turned back to a vortex shaped black fog and entered his slumber.

Fakisen was used to this. The various Esper Abilities of EsGod all existed in his body in the form of Genetic Chains, which had a very heavy load on his body. Continuously switching between his various Esper Abilities would cause his cells to age very quickly. When EsGod absorbed Esper Abilities from others, he was basically using his life span in exchange for power.

EsGod’s cell activity had already started to deteriorate, and his life span had entered the elderly stage. However, he also had Esper Abilities to suppress aging and temporarily return him to his youth, which had to be triggered through sleeping. This was the reason he often slept. Usually, after intense battles, EsGod always slept.

“Black Star…”

Fakisen licked his lips. He knew that EsGod had gone to negotiate with Black Star. It clearly did not go well, and EsGod had even gone back empty-handed, which was shocking to him.

…

After the battlefield was cleaned up, Murraky’s army returned to the border army base together with Han Xiao and the others.

There were millions of border army bases across the dynasty’s wide border line. The highest position in one base was colonel.

As this battle came to its end, Han Xiao and the others bade farewell to the colonel of the base and left.

Han Xiao and Beyoni said to meet again when they had the time before going their separate ways. Beyoni left alone, while Han Xiao took Ames and the others to head toward the location where the Black Star Army was going to build a new division.

While heading there, they took a detour, and Han Xiao retrieved the Evolution Cube and the other mechanical army. He felt much more assured when the Evolution Cube was on him.

As the portable base of the army had yet to arrive, they were not in a hurry, so Han Xiao slowed down the traveling time. This was the first time Hila and the others had gone to the Central Galaxy. They made stops here and there on the way, occasionally visiting the colonial planets of the Crimson Dynasty for sightseeing.

With Han Xiao’s identity, their journey was smooth.

Han Xiao had been paying attention to the Constellation Corridor page on the player forums all along and looking at the players’ reactions. Ever since more than half a month ago when he spread the word at the Shattered Star Ring that he was going to the Constellation Corridor, the players there had been in a state of excitement and anticipation. They could not wait for the Black Star Army to cross Star Fields and meet them.

The transportation in the Central Galaxy was very efficient. When Han Xiao was still on the way, the army’s main team finally reached its destination and arrived before the players.

Han Xiao had yet to arrive personally, but he could clearly feel the enormous impact of his army crossing servers on the Constellation Corridor page on the forums.

The passion of the players exploded!