The Legendary Mechanic, page 941
“I hope so.” Kasuyi nodded before asking, “What are the next steps for the association then? Do you have any ideas?”
Han Xiao shook his head. “Continue to rest and accumulate our forces. We’ll deal with the future by the time the three Universal Civilizations carry out the terms.”
He recalled another idea he once had. When their political position is recognized and their territory was granted, the association’s reputation among the Supers would reach a new level. Maybe they could then create a nation belonging exclusively to Supers, taking in all free Supers in the universe, making the association the ruling parliament of the nation.
One reason was that in order to develop further, they had to expand the size of the association and recruit more members. Of course, as the ‘seeds’ of Beyond Grade As, the more Supers, the better. Another reason was to maintain independence. Ordinary Supers living under the three Universal Civilizations’ rule would have many worries, but if they had a new place to go, they would have a choice, and there would definitely be people who would be willing to become this nation’s resident.
Furthermore, the conflict between the ordinary people and Supers had been getting worse and worse; both sides hated each other. Maybe giving Supers an opportunity to live away from the other side would be beneficial for both sides. Of course, the three Universal Civilizations would undoubtedly be unhappy with this. Therefore, Han Xiao would not carry out any part of this idea before the threat of the World Tree Civilization erupted.
“All races are welcomed as long as they’re Supers… Hmm, why does this idea sound so familiar?”
Han Xiao scratched his head.
If I remember correctly, this is quite similar to a character in an ongoing comic in my previous life, ‘Big Mom’.
What am I then? Big Dad?
Putting this random thought behind, Han Xiao continued discussing with the others.
The meeting only ended after discussing matters for more than an hour. Everyone left relaxed and excited.
Han Xiao deactivated his remote projection. The moment his sight returned to the office, Phillip popped up. “Master, hum… you have an advanced encrypted message. It’s from the Super Star Cluster Alliance, hum…”
“Yoho, looks like their patience is running out.”
Han Xiao opened the message, and it was an invitation from the Super Star Cluster Alliance to meet him in person.
He was not surprised. The association was originally working with the Super Star Cluster Alliance against the three Universal Civilizations. Now that it had stopped fighting the three Universal Civilizations, the Super Star Cluster Alliance became alone again.
Plus, the Beyond Grade As belonging to the Super Star Cluster Alliance who were in the meeting earlier definitely passed on the information about the agreement, and the Super Star Cluster Alliance would certainly be worried that the association and the three Universal Civilizations might work together again. Hence, they hastily came to test his stand.
Ten minutes later, in the Super Star Cluster Alliance conference room, the various leaders gathered and sat in their seats apprehensively.
Han Xiao’s remote projection appeared in the room and immediately felt all the eyes focusing on him.
The Star Arc Civilization leader said with a deep voice, “Black Star, we agreed to fight the three Universal Civilizations together. What’s all this?”
Han Xiao shrugged and said, “The goal of conflict is peace. The association’s goal has already been achieved, so of course, there’s no longer a need to continue fighting the three Universal Civilizations. This is beneficial for the association.”
“What about our agreement?”
Han Xiao said slowly and calmly, “Our agreement consisted of four terms. Other than the first one being fighting the three Universal Civilizations together, the other three are all related to resources partnerships, which we can continue to do.”
The Star Arc Civilization leader could not help but ask, “What if the three Universal Civilizations have a problem with that? Will you ignore our agreement because of it?”
“Since the three Universal Civilizations have recognized that the association can take care of the virus itself, it’s an indirect way to admit that others have no right to interfere with the internal affairs of the association. Which galactic law did we violate by forming an alliance with you guys? So what if they have a problem with it?” Han Xiao shrugged. “Maybe we can change one of our terms from fighting the three Universal Civilizations together to the association not attacking the Super Star Cluster Civilizations actively other than to retaliate. Besides, the Sanctum Revival allocations I promised you guys are still effective.”
They were quite surprised to hear this. They were already prepared for Black Star to stab them in the back, but for now at least, Black Star seemed to have no intention of doing that.
Han Xiao smiled and said, “Frankly, we don’t trust the three Universal Civilizations, so we need to have a backup plan, which is why we’re willing to maintain a good relationship with the Super Star Cluster Alliance. Also, you guys provided help when the association was troubled by the trade law, so personally, I’m willing to continue working with you guys. I have that much decency.” “I see…” The Star Arc Civilization leader was relieved.
Although this felt as wrong as cheating, Black Star keeping the promise of the Sanctum Revival allocations given to them was good enough.
After the participants made their stands, no matter how wild the conspiracies were, the matter calmed down very quickly. The galactic residents and the organizations gradually went back to their normal lives.
As the trade law was removed, the various channels of the association reopened, gradually regaining business. However, the plan of uniting the black markets was still ongoing and carried out by the players. Big things happened every day, but life for ordinary people still had to go on. The issues between the three Universal Civilizations and the association went on and became just something people talked about over the dinner table, no longer brought up every single day.
However, under the calm surface, a storm was brewing. The three Universal Civilizations were secretly preparing for war while exploring the wormhole data left by EsGod that was named ‘World Tree Path’.
With Han Xiao’s warning, the three Universal Civilizations were very cautious. They had yet to discover any life belonging to the World Tree Civilization.
At the same time, taking Han Xiao’s suggestion, the three Universal Civilizations formed a joint expeditionary army to enter the deep layers of the secondary dimensions in search of the so-called main body of the World Tree.
At one of the dynasty’s outposts in the secondary dimensions, an enormous expedition fleet had gathered, carrying out its last checkup before departing. The dock was filled with the three Universal Civilizations’ soldiers with serious expressions on their faces.
Han Xiao stood on the dock and watched this.
Harrison stood beside him carrying a backpack. Not knowing what to do, he said softly, “Your Excellency Black Star, what is the fleet searching for? Why do I have to participate in it?”
Han Xiao patted his shoulder. “Searching for something that will affect the fate of the explored universe.”
“Must I go?” Harrison was on the verge of tears.
He was still young, yet to be that experienced senior explorer from Han Xiao’s previous life. Plus, the World Tree war had not broken out yet, so people were not all on their highest alert, nor could he prioritize other things above his life.
Traversing into the deep layers of the secondary dimension was no easy mission. They had to pass through countless strange secondary dimensions, so god only knew what situations they would run into. Any mistakes could cause severe damages. Plus, communication was not convenient, meaning they would be like a fleet that advanced deep into enemy territory without having stable communication with the rest.
“What are you so afraid of? Didn’t I give you a lot of equipment? They’re more than enough to protect you in times of danger. You even have a Lord’s Avatar and a Throne with you. I can teleport over anytime.”
Han Xiao slapped his forehead.
“I’m scared I’ll die before I can call you.” Harrison looked discouraged. “Plus, there are so many people participating. With or without me won’t make much of a difference, will it?”
Han Xiao sighed but could not reply. In his previous life, Harrison discovered the main body of the World Tree, but this time, who knew if the Goddess of Luck would help him again?
Furthermore, the World Tree’s main body was not without protection. Countless armies were stationed in the secondary dimensions around it; it was extremely dangerous. Once the fleet discovered them, it would be when they were discovered by the World Tree too.
However, without finding the World Tree’s main body, the chances of winning were extremely thin. Sending an expedition army in advance was already being one step ahead. Han Xiao was currently the only outsider working together with the three Universal Civilizations to find the World Tree. Other than Harrison, he had picked some trustworthy people to join the first batch of the secondary dimension expedition army, most of which were mechanical lives, along with some members of the Black Spirit Race.
As he comforted Harrison, the expedition fleet was finally ready.
Looking back several times every step he took, Harrison still entered the spaceship in the end.
Accompanied by the roaring engines made for travelling in the secondary dimensions, the joint expedition fleet slowly took off, turned into flashes of light, and disappeared in everyone’s sights, heading toward the unknown future.
Chapter 1314: Reaction |
After sending off the expedition team, Han Xiao stood at the dock for a while. At this time, Guzar, who was wearing a dynasty military uniform, walked over from behind and stood side by side.
The bearded Guzar took out a red cigarette from his shirt pocket, wiped his fingers, lit the cigarette, and took a deep breath. Then, he spat out a cloud of smoke and twisted his mouth a little before speaking. “This is only the first batch. There will be a second and a third expedition team in the future. The deeper dimensions are unpredictable. I hope that the World Tree’s main body that you mentioned really exists. Don’t let them sacrifice for nothing.”
“Don’t be too pessimistic. Maybe they will come back safe,” Han Xiao replied casually.
Guzar did not comment. He took out another cigarette from his pocket and passed it to Han Xiao. “This is a product specially provided by the dynasty’s upper echelons. You can’t buy it on the market. Try it?”
“I stopped smoking.” Han Xiao waved his hands.
“Is that so?” Guzar put away his cigarette and shook his head. “Speaking of which, I’ve never heard of you having any hobbies. Don’t you Mechanics have any entertainment needs?”
“How can smoking and drinking be more fun than machines?” Han Xiao glanced at him. “Just say what you want to say.”
“Can’t I talk to you?” Guzar shrugged.
Although Black Star had beaten them up not long ago, the two parties had now come to an agreement. The battle before was purely official business, and there was no enmity between them.
Most Beyond Grade As admired the strong, and the direct descendants of the three Universal Civilizations were no exception. They all respected Black Star’s achievements and abilities.
“Next time. I’m quite busy.” Han Xiao patted Guzar’s shoulder.
Guzar sighed and said, “Alright, I’m here to tell you that His Excellency the Ruler is waiting for you online. He wants to talk to you about something.”
“Why didn’t you say so earlier?”
Han Xiao turned around and walked into the dynasty’s outpost base. He went to the private communication room and picked up Marbruce’s call.
“Ruler Marbruce, what’s the matter?”
“Our exploration has made some progress. The probe has collected the exact coordinates. The Multi-Dimensional Sky Opening Transportation Device can already reach the territory of the World Tree Civilization, but we have no intention of sending troops for the time being.” The Multi-Dimensional Sky Opening Transportation Device of the Federation of Light had extremely high strategic value, so it was extremely useful.
It was a pity that the three Universal Civilizations only allowed him to interfere in limited areas. Most of the time, they only treated him as a consultant and did not allow him to use the World Tree passageway to send anything.
“Is there anything I can help you with?”
“We plan to bury some detection equipment and strategic killing weapons in uninhabited areas. For this, we need more intelligence, such as the star map on the other side and the division of factions… The efficiency of our detection is low, and as the detection range expands, the risk of encountering the creatures of the World Tree Civilization will also increase.”
“So?” Han Xiao raised his brows.
“We plan to try to connect to the other party’s network after we’re done with our preparation and see if we can steal some of their information,” Marbruce said. “We’re here to ask for your opinion.” Han Xiao thought for a while and said, “If it’s only superficial information, as long as we enter from an unimportant terminal node and erase the data before letting the Beyond Grade As analyze the other party’s basic code words, the risk is controllable.”
This was not hacking into the other party’s network but browsing through the information on the internet. Therefore, the difficulty was not high. The World Tree Civilization also had a communication system in the form of a quantum network, which was basically standard for advanced civilizations. However, the foundation of the communication method was not a quantum network but a mental network that the World Tree had. It was just that the latter was too transparent and simple, not as diverse as the quantum network.
“Then let the Beyond Grade A Mechanics take the lead and use the computational ability of the main artificial intelligence to gather the surface information of the other party’s network. When the time comes, the intelligence will be shared with you.”
After chatting for a while, Marbruce hung up the call. His purpose of calling was mainly to inform him of the exploration plan.
Han Xiao put down the communicator and curled his lips.
“Other than the secondary dimension expeditionary army, they did not allow me to interfere with other exploration tasks. It seems like they are still wary…”
The current situation was far from the stage of unity in his previous life. Although it was not to the extent of scheming against each other, they could not completely trust each other like they did in his previous life and cooperate without any worries.
After leaving the dynasty’s outpost and returning to the army base, Han Xiao summoned Phillip and issued a special summoning order to the hundreds of Beyond Grade A seeds in the army.
As the three Universal Civilizations strictly controlled the World Tree passageway, he did not have much preparation to do at the moment. Other than improving the Void God’s Trait Transformation and allowing his assembly line to churn out soldiers all day long, he could only wait for the players to work hard and slowly provide EXP.
Therefore, he planned to use the advantage of the interface to give the hundreds of Beyond Grade A seeds that had transferred to the army a year ago a long period of special training. He hoped that a new Beyond Grade A would be born from these people and strengthen the association’s top-tier strength.
After sending the message, Han Xiao left the room and walked around the base for a while. Suddenly, he came across Jenny.
Han Xiao stopped in his tracks and said, “Ames has already returned to Floating Dragon. Why are you still here?”
Jenny crossed her arms and snorted. “It wasn’t easy for me to get a holiday because of my refuge. I don’t want to go back so soon to work overtime. Let Ames take care of it herself. I’ll have some free time.”
“So, you’ve rested well. No wonder your hairline recovered a little. I almost didn’t recognize you.”
“If you don’t know how to talk, you can keep quiet. No one will think you’re mute.” Jenny rolled her eyes. “Then have a good rest here. However, if Ames comes to ask for you, don’t expect me to help you.” Han Xiao shook his head and smiled before taking his leave.
Just as he was about to leave, he suddenly heard Jenny speak again. This time, her tone was a little hesitant.
“Um… I haven’t seen Harrison in a while. He hasn’t replied to my messages either. Where did he go?”
Han Xiao turned around and looked at her with surprise. “The two of you really hooked up? I thought you rejected him, but it seems like you’re the same as Ames; your body is more honest than your mind.”
“Bullsh*t!” Jenny was furious. “I have nothing to do with that annoying fellow! I’m just curious!”
Han Xiao did not believe her at all, only casually saying, “He went on a secret mission. You probably won’t see him for a long time.” “Secret mission?” Jenny hesitated. “Is it dangerous?” “Of course,” Han Xiao replied straightforwardly.
Jenny choked and hesitated for two seconds before whispering, “Then please tell him…”
“Tell him what?” Han Xiao immediately became alert.
Damn sister, be careful. Don’t set up a flag so easily. It will lower Harrison’s survival rate.
Jenny gritted her teeth, turned her head, and stubbornly said, “Just ask him, when will he return the money he owes me?”
“Tsk, your words don’t even match what you’re thinking.” Han Xiao exposed Jenny mercilessly.
“It’s fine if you don’t want to help me!” Jenny was furious.
“I’ll ask… but I might not be able to contact him at the moment. Let’s talk when there’s a chance.” Han Xiao waved and left.
When he turned the corner, he looked back and saw Jenny still standing there with a lost expression.
