Kasuyi smiled. “No matter what, you’ve helped me.”
“Humph, it was an election, but it looked like Black Star was the only one whose words mattered.” Manison snorted with dissatisfaction.
“That’s called ‘the support of the people led to the right result happening’.” Kasuyi laughed.
“I have no idea what benefits Black Star gave you for you to help him this much. If I ran for office, even if I might not be re-elected, I’d at least be a vice president.” Manison frowned.
Kasuyi shook his head. “He didn’t give me anything. I did this of my own volition.”
“Ever since you and him went to the secondary dimensions together a few decades ago, you’ve always spoken for him. Did Black Star grab your heart with his charm? Humph, anyway, it’s none of my concern. Just don’t forget you owe me a favor.” Manison snorted softly.
“I won’t, old friend.”
Kasuyi smiled, and his figure disappeared from the screen.
Manison hung up the call, and his eyes narrowed slightly.
Kasuyi’s request was only a very small factor in him choosing not to do anything during the election. He was actually already planning to do it.
The first reason was that he knew his place and knew that there was no way he could beat Black Star, so he did not want to humiliate himself. The second reason was that he wanted to keep a low profile and let Black Star take all the pressure so that he could look for opportunities in the dark and turn things around in future elections.
The third reason was the main reason Manison made this choice. After forty years of growth, the Beyond Grade A Association had become more and more independent, which prevented the three Universal Civilizations from gaining any new allies. He saw the brewing danger in this situation and felt that the three Universal Civilizations would very soon take the next step.
He stepped down to let Black Star take all the pressure.
Manison also understood that Black Star was the best person to lead the association in times like this. Black Star’s words mattered to the three Universal Civilizations, so he could relieve the pressure from the three Universal Civilizations to a certain extent. Black Star had a higher chance of leading the association to conquer the difficulties ahead and prevent the ‘cleansing’ from happening.
He had personal beef with Black Star, but protecting the safety of the Beyond Grade As was more important to him. Therefore, he chose to take a step back and not cause problems for Han Xiao’s election.
Manison closed his eyes.
“The three Universal Civilizations won’t watch us grow infinitely. Having rested for more than forty years, they’ll act soon… Black Star, will your method be enough to deal with the next ‘Tragedy of the Pinnacles’?
“Your philosophy is wrong; peaceful developments won’t lead to compromise. If we don’t make rulers like the three Universal Civilizations feel afraid, how can they allow us to grow stronger freely? If you can’t hold on, don’t blame me for releasing the imitation of the Virtual Mutiny Virus…”
…
“Black Star has taken over as the president of the Beyond Grade A Association.”
This news rapidly spread out in the galactic society, which had been paying attention.
Tons of reports appeared on the internet, announcing the arrival of the age of Black Star!
Suddenly, Black Star, who had kept a low profile for forty years, became the center of attention once again. His reputation and fame rocketed, and his legendary deeds of the past got brought up by the media once again for promotion, attracting tons of attention. Even the stock price of the Germinal Financial Group increased quite a bit because of it.
Overall, the galactic society had a positive attitude for this change. Black Star was the hero of the universe who solved the Intelligent Plague, a Stuarts Peace Prize winner, a receiver of the Galaxy Medal, the shared consultant of the three Universal Civilizations… These titles were so much better than the Mechanic Emperor’s. Most people trusted that the Beyond Grade A Association would peacefully grow under Han Xiao’s lead.
While the outside world expressed all kinds of opinions about the Beyond Grade A Association having a new president, Han Xiao had already teleported to the Ancient Star Desert and met with the Holy Accord organization.
He did not go there just to discuss the Primordial Ones appearing in public but also for another big matter…
The keys to open the Third Sanctum were once again all collected!
Chapter 1252 - Enter
1252 Enter
The spaceship rode into the port of a certain secret base of the Holy Accord organization. The hatch slid open. Han Xiao walked out and saw Oathkeeper waiting on the dock right away.“Yo, it’s been some time. You’re still wearing this? Don’t you need to wash your clothes?” Han Xiao laughed and joked.
“… No.” Oathkeeper’s lips twitched. “I’ve been waiting for you. Let’s talk inside.”
Oathkeeper led the way ahead. Han Xiao followed him along the corridor of the base.
The two spoke while walking.
Han Xiao scratched his chin and said curiously, “It’s only been a few decades, and you’ve collected all The Third Sanctum’s keys again. Aren’t you too efficient?”
“That’s nothing. There’s only zero times or countless times for entering the Sanctums. With experience, doing it again becomes much easier. Some keys are not single use, and we’ve kept inventory of them. For example, the Primal Esper Ability Entities. We were stuck on that previously, and we managed to collect them all the last time, so we just have to use them again… As for the other types of keys, with your financial help and channels you provided, collecting them was much easier than before,” Oathkeeper explained.
Han Xiao nodded.
Basically, the crucial items could be reused and did not have to be collected again.
It was the same in the previous life too. The Holy Accord organization’s scale was much larger than when they appeared, which meant that Oathkeeper had definitely entered the Sanctums multiple times, so being this efficient was not surprising.
This time, Han Xiao would be entering the Sanctum alone to complete the third round for the [A Relay Across Iterations] mission as well as out of curiosity.
The two of them chatted along the way and came to the elderlies activity room. As soon as Han Xiao walked in, dozens of pairs of eyes focused on him.
The many revived Primordial Ones were waiting there. As soon as they saw Han Xiao, they all swarmed over and surrounded him.
“Black Star, congrats on being elected as the association president!”
“The promised time has come. We can go out now, right?”
They spoke noisily.
Han Xiao raised his hand and signaled for them to calm down. He then said slowly, “Hmm, it’s about time. But I think it’s better to wait one or two more years.”
“One or two years?”
The expressions on their faces changed slightly.
You told us to stay here three years after three years. Now it’s almost fifty years, pal! We really can’t hold it in much longer!
“Ahem, guys, don’t be in such a hurry. I have three reasons for that.”
Han Xiao pointed his fingers and explained, “Firstly, I’ve only just been elected as the president, so it’s best to wait a little. Secondly, in the past forty years, the three Universal Civilizations have not gotten a single new ally, so they’re probably not very happy about it. I have to see what they’re going to do first.
“As for the last reason… it’s that I have to enter the Sanctum, and I don’t know how long it’ll take.”
According to Oathkeeper, the flow of time in the Sanctums was different from the outside world. Oathkeeper did not feel like he spent a long time inside, but when he came out, he found out that a few years had already passed in the main universe. Therefore, Han Xiao had to prepare for that.
Hearing this, the many Primordial Ones looked like they we
re in a dilemma.
They wanted to go out right away, but if Han Xiao was in the Sanctum and might disappear for a few years, without the support of President Black Star in this period of time, many things would be difficult.
“Doesn’t matter,” Pangon coldly said. “I wasn’t going to join the association anyway. I’ve decided, I’ll leave shortly!”
Han Xiao glanced at him, nodded, and did not say anything.
This batch of revived Primordial Ones were generally divided into three groups with different goals. One wanted to enjoy the privileges of Beyond Grade As in a peaceful era so wanted to join the association. For example, Lady Lust. They were the ones who were conflicted.
The second group wanted to continue hiding in the Holy Accord and help Oathkeeper operate the organization. They did not plan to go out, so of course, they had no problem with waiting.
The last group were the creditors from the exploration era wanting to take revenge against the advanced civilizations. They were the minority, and their representative was Pangon. He planned to be a lone wolf to begin with, so he did not want to join the association.
Han Xiao did not want these people to join either. After all, acts of revenge would heavily intensify the conflicts between the three Universal Civilizations and the Beyond Grade As. If those people entered the association, should the association help them or not when the time came? Most association members would definitely oppose helping them. Therefore, he felt he might as well let these lone wolves be so that they do not drag the association down with them.
In his previous life, these people’s acts of revenge were one of the crucial fuses of the Calamity of the Supers version. Han Xiao did not care about where Pangon and the others were going.
Han Xiao knew what Pangon was thinking too. Pangon did not expect the association to help. He knew the purpose of the Beyond Grade A Association, so he did not want to burden the association and decided to take on the responsibility of taking revenge alone.
In Han Xiao’s previous life, Pangon never leaked the existence of the Holy Accord. Therefore, though headstrong, this guy was loyal to his morals.
Han Xiao looked at Beiger and the others. “What about you guys? Are you willing to wait for me?”
Beiger thought about it, nodded, and said, “Although we can’t endure it much longer, the big picture is still more important. We might not be from the same generation as the modern Beyond Grade As, but we all represent the same grade and share the same interests. When we appear, the entire Beyond Grade A class will definitely be shaken. Don’t worry, we won’t damage the big picture for our personal interests.”
Hearing this, Han Xiao smiled with satisfaction.
After more than forty years, most Primordial Ones had adapted to the era. Some of them no longer only thought for themselves and were tricked… ahem… convinced by him to be invested in the Beyond Grade A Association’s future, letting go of their past in the exploration era. They decided to participate in this new warfare between the Beyond Grade As and the advanced civilizations and were willing to fight for the entire Beyond Grade A class.
From these people’s perspective, when the huge change arrived, they could not not have the key person, Black Star. For that, they were willing to continue hiding for some time.
Although Beiger and these guys had yet to appear in public, in their hearts, they already considered themselves members of the Beyond Grade A Association and had the collective interest in their mind.
“Great, I was not wrong about you guys…” Han Xiao laughed, quickly comforting their emotions.
As they received a response, they arranged their emotions and went back to playing cards on the side.
Han Xiao pulled Oathkeeper out of the elderlies activity room and into a side room to speak privately.
Han Xiao closed the door and said, “To deal with the drastic change that’s about to come, we need more Beyond Grade As. Are all the revival mediums prepared?”
“Hmm, they’re all ready. Thanks to the fact that many Beyond Grade As left offspring and races behind, they weren’t difficult to collect.” Oathkeeper nodded.
This time, Han Xiao would be entering the Sanctums. He was going in with a mission—to revive more Beyond Grade As.
Reviving Beyond Grade As through the Sanctums required all kinds of mediums. In the past few decades, the Black Star Army and the Holy Accord organization had been secretly carrying out this task of collecting objects related to old Beyond Grade As. They included their inheritance, the remaining people of their race, and others.
Han Xiao took the list and scanned through. His eyes narrowed slightly.
“Looks like there are some strong people in the list of people we’re reviving this round.”
“No matter how strong they are, are they stronger than you?” Oathkeeper curled his lips.
“You’re right about that. I’m f*cking invincible.” Han Xiao accepted this compliment.
He then recalled Jayz of the Celestial Star Alliance and wondered if he could revive this guy from a different Iteration.
Shaking his head, Han Xiao temporarily put away this thought. He found an empty room and entered alone. He blocked all the surveillance in the room, took out his communicator, and called a number.
He first called Kasuyi. Very soon, Kasuyi appeared on the screen.
“Black Star… oh no, it’s Mr. President now. What is it?” Kasuyi smiled.
Han Xiao scratched his chin and said, “I might have to disappear for an unknown amount of time, maybe a few days, maybe a few years. When I’m not around, help manage the association’s affairs.”
“Where are you going?” Kasuyi wiped the smile off his face and frowned.
“Remember our experience in the secondary dimensions? I found some clues and need to spend some time investigating them.” Han Xiao did not share the details, but Kasuyi knew about the Sanctum-related information too, so he would know what he was saying.
As expected, Kasuyi understood what he meant and looked surprised. He did not question him further, nodded seriously, and said, “Go then, don’t worry. I’ll take care of the association.”
When Kasuyi found out about the Sanctums from Jayz a few decades ago, he knew that Han Xiao’s path was the right one and stood on his side. They had become secret allies.
Kasuyi had no interest in power; he stepped up to become the vice president not because he wanted a higher position but because Han Xiao told him to as it would indirectly help Han Xiao solidify his position further. It had no disadvantages anyway, so he did not mind helping Han Xiao.
“I’ll leave it to you then.”
Han Xiao nodded, said a few more things, and hung up.
He did not stop there. He then called up Hila, Ames, and so on, telling them he would disappear for some time, going to the secondary dimensions to look for opportunities to undergo God’s Trait Transformation.
This was not rare for peak Beyond Grade As, so this excuse was very useful. Hila, Ames, and the others did not suspect anything.
Han Xiao told them to take care of the army while he was out.
Then, he called the last few numbers, the three Universal Civilizations’ men.
The three Universal Civilizations once wanted him to be elected, thinking he would be a more suitable leader of the association than the Mechanic Emperor. However, after decades, conflicts accumulated quicker than expected, so this slight favor was no longer enough. There was no way the three Universal Civilizations would allow the Beyond Grade A Association to continue becoming stronger just because of him alone.
Han Xiao did not know how long he would spend in the Sanctums, so he planned to restate his identity and stance to keep things stable for a period of time.
The negotiation was considerably smooth. After all, he still had the consultant of the three Universal Civilizations title. Han Xiao found out what the three Universal Civilizations were planning to do.
The three Universal Civilizations were still observi
ng the changes him becoming the president would cause, so they would not make the conflicts explode in a short period of time. This was logical and within his expectations.
After arranging everything, Han Xiao approached Oathkeeper again, looked at his anticipation-filled eyes, and nodded solemnly.
“Start the preparations and open the Sanctum as soon as possible!”
…
Three days later, at an unpopulated area near the Holy Accord organization’s base, spaceships hovered in the desolate cosmic space.
Han Xiao was the only one hovering outside the spaceships. He remained in contact with Oathkeeper using the screen inside the mechanical suit.
On the screen, Oathkeeper made an encouraging gesture and said, “Ready? Everything’s ready on my side. The Sanctum can be opened anytime.”
“Do it.” Han Xiao exhaled and calmed his emotions.
Oathkeeper nodded, turned around, and ordered, “All units, begin!”
As soon as he said that, the spaceships immediately moved. They had rehearsed the process countless times, like an impressive machine, not a single mistake was made.
Bang bang bang!
Primal Esper Ability Entities were shot out one after another, contained in special seals. Colorful light beams focused at one point, rapidly expanded, and turned into a hovering white sphere.
Under the effects of special devices, like a piece of rubber, the light sphere shrank into a bright ring only about a hundred meters wide. Its energy was extremely condensed.
Then, the remaining spaceships activated one device after another and released the other ‘keys’ into this ring through beams.
As the space seemed to have trembled, the ring suddenly shone even brighter and projected six mirage-like light gates.
The next second, five light gates disappeared, leaving only one that seemed to have materialized from an illusion to something real. It was still shaking unsteadily like it could disappear any second.
“That’s the entrance of the Third Sanctum. Go!” Oathkeeper hastily said.
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