“What was I doing again when I was younger than a hundred years old? Still managing the logistics for the former chief?”
Manison was nostalgic.
At the venue, after Han Xiao listed the achievements of the army, his tone became formal.
“As I’ve just mentioned, although the Black Star Army has achieved many great things, its contribution to the universe is still too little, and I’m ashamed of that. Therefore, I felt that I should start a public report to the entire universe to show everyone what we’re capable of, to do my best to give anyone with potential the chance to showcase themselves. And that is why I’ve founded the Black Star Cup…”
“That’s quite a good way to put it…” Urranrell nodded in agreement.
She liked seeing Beyond Grade As enjoying their privileges while not forgetting about making contributions to the entire universe. Sadly, most people did not have this resolve. Although Black Star was unashamedly profit-oriented, she was quite happy he even had this mindset.
When the speech came to an end, Han Xiao smiled and said, “I’ve said enough. Now, this stage shall be given to the great kids of the Black Star Army. I hereby announce, the first season of the Black Star Cup Army Tournament starts now!”
As his speech ended, deafening applause sounded at the venue!
This was indeed an added sound effect.
If the speech ended and no one applauded, that would have been hella awkward. Plus, the army members were all in the spaceships, so their applause could not reach there.
In the cheering and applause, Han Xiao teleported away. The organizers of the competition showed up right after and started to direct the participants into the venue.
The audience also landed in their seats. The venue became boisterous.
According to the planning that Sylvia had hired some professional event organizers to do, there would be a large performance at the opening ceremony, and only a few more important competition items would be held.
Of course, combat-related events were a must. Referring to the Pro League, Han Xiao had also set up Singles, Groups, Duels, Flag Modes, and so on. He even brought up modes that only appeared in the later Pro Leagues and used them in the Black Star Cup.
There were ordinary people groups all the way up to Calamity Grade groups, as well as groups exclusive to Immortals. All the groups had to choose a representative to participate in the opening ceremony and showcase themselves.
As for the tons of sports and entertainment items, those more popular ones would be carried out.
Quite a number of sports and entertainment items did not have groupings, and Wayne Cards was one of them. Although there were no groupings, it surprisingly had the most participants, so it was chosen to be displayed in the opening ceremony.
The two Wayne Cards players who were about to play in the opening ceremony were Herlous, who was respected in the army’s card social circle, and Hadavy, who was a known rascal in the gambling social circle of the army.
Inside an indoor venue, a Wayne Cards board was set up. As soon as the two players stepped into the venue, the difference in their treatments was already clearly visible.
The moment Herlous appeared, cheering from the countless card friends he had sounded, he was clearly very sociable. Hadavy, however, received a deafening hush when he took just a few steps. The audiences were paying their sincerest respect to this rascal who was horrible at gambling.
“Idiots.” Hadavy rolled his eyes.
This time, Herlous looked over. These two card arch-enemies who had battled each other countless times looked into each other’s eyes. They both saw the same thought in the other’s eyes.
Without Feidin and Nero, the king of cards in the army shall be mine!
At the same time, the other stage was already at the Grade D group, and a player had appeared. It was a battle between a graduate of the Super Academy and a newbie player who had only joined in Version 4.0. The two of them looked at each other.
“Remember the rules. Don’t continue attacking when the enemy has lost the ability to fight. Deliberately causing heavy injuries is not allowed, as is killing the opponent. The winner shall be determined when one side leaves the stage or admits defeat…”
The mechanical judge explained the rules from the side. Basically, other than deliberately causing heavy injuries to the opponent, there were no rules.
However, there was a special rule against players—as long as the player did not admit defeat, the opponent could beat up the player as much as they wanted; the player would not die anyway.
“That’s all. The fight starts… now!”
As the judge gave the word, this academy graduate stomped the ground and charged toward his opponent without hesitation.
Clearly, this newbie player lacked combat experience. In the face of such an aggressive opponent, he immediately panicked. He raised his hand and summoned his two guns, and the high-quality mechanical suit he had bought from the logistics department quickly covered his body. He turned into a ghost-like phantom and swiftly moved around the enemy while continuously firing his guns. He was a Cannon Master.
“Shield!”
The academy graduate activated his mechanical suit too. A foldable ally shield extended on his arm, and the thin energy coating on it deflected all the blue laser beams of the newbie player.
At the same time, his other hand pulled out an intricate mechanical spear. The spear’s tip split open, exposing the barrel within, and shot out explosive bullets one after another, chasing after the fast-moving opponent. The stage was quickly filled with dust and explosions.
This man was a Mechanical Pugilist.
As the Black Star Army’s logistics department provided a lot of high-quality faction-exclusive mechanical weapons, be it the players or ordinary members under the army, many were willing to become Mechanics. After all, they could directly purchase the best equipment for their level in the army.
As long as they had money, they could even skip the gunpowder weapons and buy energy weapons very early on.
Actually, in the face of an Immortal, this academy graduate was more nervous.
Within the army, the players were a group of special beings that were almost deified. In the eyes of most of the lower-level army members, they were very mysterious. There were a lot of rumors about them possessing great power and being maniacs.
Just being unkillable was alright, but according to the rumors, the Immortals were maniacs who did not care about their own lives, which was terrifying…
The two of them fought intensely. Flames and lightning appeared everywhere they went.
The academy graduate fought cautiously, only to surprisingly realize his opponent clearly lacked combat experience. This made him much more confident. His attacks became more aggressive, and he gradually gained the upper hand.
“Looks like I’m about to lose…”
The newbie player looked at his steadily decreasing health, tutted, and took out Black Star Army Badge: Evolution with frustration.
“Roar!”
The next moment, an Aberration appeared on the stage!
This muscular monster pounced forward and pressed the academy graduate onto the ground in an instant, completely locking his movements.
An Aberration with Grade B combat capabilities was completely unbeatable in the Grade D group!
This time, the Aberration opened its enormous mouth, showing its rows of sharp teeth, and looked like he was about to bite down.
“I admit loss! H-help!”
The academy graduate was horrified. Looking at the foul mouth get closer, he subconsciously closed his eyes.
However, the bite he expected did not arrive. Instead, he felt an enormous wet and soft tongue lick him from top to bottom.
“The battle has ended. Blue has won!” the judge announced right on time.
“Ah, I’ve won!”
The newbie player jumped with excitement, shook his butt alluringly for a bit, and then ran to the edge
of the floating stage and jumped right down, using the quickest method to get out of this dreadful look.
The dance of the Aberration was too beautiful. The spectators who saw it had to hold back the urge to dig out their eyes.
At the same time, countless viewers felt a chill up their spine.
The rumors were right. The Immortals were indeed maniacs.
On the stage, the academy graduate lay on the ground covered with saliva. His eyes had their vibrance, and he started to doubt the definition of life.
It was a sure win, but the tables had been turned instantly by the opponent’s suicidal shapeshift.
What a hard life I have…
As long as no additional damage was done, items could be used freely in the Black Star Cup. The players were very satisfied with this rule.
In the Pro League, the various powerful weapons of the army were all forbidden. Now that they could use them freely, it felt really good.
Although this was not fair to the army members in the lower grades, this was exactly what Han Xiao wanted. He had a few reasons for it. The first was to show the outside world the terrifying side of the players, that they could possess very high combat capability even at very low grades.
The second reason was to stimulate the sales of the evolution badge. If those players in the lower grade competitions saw that the evolution badge could basically make them invincible and ensure they could achieve a high placement, why would they not buy it?
Furthermore, the evolution badge was not a one-use item, but it had to be recharged.
The last reason was that Han Xiao actually wanted the players to receive the reward for the lower grade competitions. After all, there was not much he could gain from the normal members, and giving the players these rewards was indirectly fertilizing his leek field.
What, the normal players are not happy about it? I didn’t say they can’t use those strong items, did I? If they have the resolve to not take their life seriously, they can go ahead and use them just like the players.
Even if someone really did it, the judge would not approve of it. Sportsmanship first, competition second. Committing suicide on-stage was not allowed… Oh, except for those who could not die.
Unfair? It is what it is. Not being able to die is their talent. Like those people who have healing powers, you can’t not let them use those powers too, can you? Wouldn’t that be unfair to them?
If you need to blame it on something, blame it on the fact that you’re not an Immortal. Anyway, the final rules are made by the Army Commander. Go find him if you have a problem.
Therefore, even the low-grade army members could not say anything about it. They might even think it made sense.
Without having to make other arrangements, this rule was all the Great Mechanic Han needed to achieve the results he wanted.
…
When the Black Star Cup opening ceremony was being carried out, at the same time, in the Ancient Star Desert Star Field, a civilian archaeological team landed on a desolate planet that no one had been to in many years.
It was called an archaeological team, but they were actually scavengers.
The Ancient Star Desert was very old. Many of its locations were ancient battlefields. There were many mysterious ruins and wastes. Therefore, this Star Field was filled with scavengers trying their luck, hoping to find something good, sell it to the black market, and make a fortune.
In the midst of a blurry corrosive sandstorm that roared across the land, a scavenger wearing a bloated protection suit was using all kinds of mechanical devices to observe underground.
A short, skinny, monkey-like looking team member operated on the screen for a while, then suddenly yelled with surprise.
“Haha, we’re in luck! There’s an ancient stratum on this planet, and the age of it can’t be detected. This means that it’s so ancient that it exceeded the upper limit of this device of ours, and more complex tests need to be done to come to a result. I’m now using shock wave detection to draw the map of the underground… Done!”
A complicated underground cavity appeared on the screen. It had a lot of splits and corners that seemed like they were built for the purpose of confusing anyone who went in. With a simple look, it was quite large.
“There are no signs of it ever being discovered!” The short man was overjoyed. “We might have run into a previously-undiscovered ancient civilization ruin!”
“Or it could be filled with rusted metal.” Another team member shrugged.
“No matter what, let’s dig in first,” someone who looked like the team leader said with a calm tone. “Have the spaceship send in the drilling rig. Let’s dive down.”
While they were about to move, this time, a team member pulled the captain’s arm and wiped away the dust on his mask with his other hand, showing a young and handsome face. He was frowning and looked worried.
“Don’t go down first…”
This man’s tone was hesitant.
“I have a feeling that we might dig out something bad…”
If Han Xiao was there, he would have definitely recognized this face.
This was a renowned explorer in the World Tree version.
The first person who discovered the main body of the World Tree!
Chapter 1094 - Pandora“s Box
1094 Pandora's Box
Harrison Moore, a well-known interstellar free explorer, had been passionate about digging for relics and searching for the unknown throughout his life. Though his strength was low, he would magically unearth and discover countless historical relics over the years. He had written more than ten works, and his adventurous spirit had attracted a large number of followers in the universe. He was regarded as a spiritual leader and a beacon of light in life.During the war against the World Tree Civilization, Harrison was in his old age and had already semi-retired. The three Universal Civilizations were the ones to be discovered and thus raided by the World Tree Civilization. They were caught off guard, suffering heavy losses. Because they did not know the origin of the enemy, all civilizations within the explored universe were basically beaten in the early stage. Their entire universe was on the defensive and could only passively resist the endless stream of invaders, as all their planets were occupied by the World Tree Civilization and used as nourishment.
The three Universal Civilizations tried their best to collect clues about the World Tree Civilization, of which the most important one was where the World Tree itself was located.
The World Tree was a Universal Treasure, and it was discovered by the World Tree Civilization during the slash-and-burn era of farming. As such, it gave rise to a distorted form of civilization, where all the development of the civilization was carried out with the World Tree as the core. Countless people tried their best to nourish and enhance this Universal Treasure.
Due to the special nature of the World Tree, only through finding its main body could the problem then be solved from the root. Otherwise, no matter how many invaders they repelled, the World Tree could still use the nutrients from the planets to transform and nurture more troops.
The main body of the World Tree was rooted within the secondary dimensions and hidden deeply. Within that era, the exploration teams mostly consisted of soldiers, and many exploration teams were spontaneously organized to search in the secondary dimensions. Harrison had also re-emerged and joined them.
Because of a series of coincidences, he was also the first to discover the secondary dimension containing the World Tree’s main body. He sacrificed his life to record the coordinates, throwing it into the spatial storms of the secondary dimension.
The coordinates were like a drifting bottle floating within the vast ocean, bobbing up and down before finally falling into the hands of the three Universal Civilizations. Thus, Harrison’s deeds were passed down, and the world knew of all his achievements.
All of these were Harrison’s achievements in the later versions of Han Xiao’s past life.
In this current
era, Harrison was still a young and new explorer. His great curiosity and desire to explore had prompted him to give up the opportunity to inherit the wealth of his financial group and instead step into this industry.
As a newcomer to this exploration team, Harrison’s intuition was obviously not convincing to them. His teammates had the mentality that they could not set off and come back empty-handed. Thus, Harrison’s spirit of questioning the source, unfortunately, went unheeded.
Harrison himself had no choice. His curiosity outweighed his vigilance, so he pressed down the vague worry to the bottom of his heart, continuing the journey with his team.
A scavenger spaceship passed through a high-altitude sandstorm, hovering around a hundred meters above the ground before dropping a multi-functional burrowing vehicle. Its outer armor was full of colorful and wild graffiti. Very obviously, it had undergone some processing by this bunch of scavengers with limited knowledge of art.
The group boarded the burrowing vehicle and burrowed into the ground under the instructions of the detection radar, quickly approaching the underground cavity on the map.
Because such underground remains had existed for too long a time, the structure was typically unstable and stood a chance to collapse. Thus, the scavengers normally did not directly drill into the passage but chose to follow the path set.
Hu!
Very quickly, the tip of the drill penetrated the rock formation, exposing a cavity. The team members got down, switching on their flashlights to observe the surrounding environment.
This was an underground cave with traces of being made by man. It was about seven or eight meters high, and at the end of this cave was a closed metal door, which seemed to be the entrance to this underground ruin.
Their short member who served as the detector jogged over, taking out various instruments to scan the metal door. He muttered, “It’s well preserved, with few traces of rust. This is a high-strength alloy material, and according to the rough detection results, the material is likely synthesized by a star system level civilization or above. However, there’s no matching material record in our database…”
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