Chapter 1 The Gala
嘭嘭嘭!

The honor guard fired into the sky, and colorful fireworks exploded in the air.

Godora's capital star, city center, Glorious Gold Plaza.

This was a landmark building in the capital, covering a vast area. In the center of the plaza stood statues of Godora's historical figures, solidified with decorative enchantments. They shimmered with colorful light, as if bursting with golden light. Many large official events were held in Glorious Gold Plaza.

At this moment, the airspace above Glorious Gold Plaza was designated as a no-fly zone. Godora military vehicles patrolled the area. On the ground, the center of the plaza was cordoned off, and unauthorized personnel were prohibited from entering. A platform and seats were set up, reserved for Godora's official high-level attendees. The leaders had not yet arrived, and the seats were empty.

Rows of seats were placed below the platform, provided for invitees from all walks of life, and they were now fully occupied.

On the periphery of the plaza, countless Golden Skin people thronged, gazing at the center of the celebration from afar, their expressions excited. They did not actually need to come to the scene to watch the celebration, because Godora officials had projected the images onto the sky. Virtual screens floated in the sky above the capital, and they could be seen simply by looking up.

In the streets and alleys of the capital, almost everyone stopped and watched the virtual screens, eagerly awaiting the official start of the celebration.

"The sky-curtain panoramic cinema is so shocking."

Many players also took to the streets, marveling at the scene.

In recent days, players had freely moved around the capital, experiencing the exotic customs of different alien races, and their sense of novelty was like crystal clear, delicious candy.

Apart from the daunting price level, everything else was very interesting.

The high-level player group of dozens of people had experience from the previous version, and they were used to the scenery of alien planets. Kuang Dao and the others couldn't help but discuss the meaning of bringing everyone to Godora's home planet. Based on their experience, the Black Star Army would not do something aimless. Bringing everyone to the home planet must have a different meaning.

"I think this might lead to a new main storyline. Think about it, the Heteromorphy Disaster just ended, and the Arcane Church, seemingly the mastermind behind the scenes, has also been wiped out. Players are starting to enter the Star Sea on a large scale. I think we'll be given a big goal."

Meng Meizi Feng Yue whispered.

Kuang Dao shook his head. "No, I think the Black Star Army itself is a main storyline. Don't forget, we used to do mercenary missions everywhere, go to many planets, and come into contact with many races. Each place has a substantial storyline, so the next main storyline should be exploration-based. Using the Black Star Army as a medium, we can come into contact with more races and planets, allowing more players to adapt to the interstellar environment and complete the transition."

"That makes sense. If the next main storyline in Version 2.0 is the Black Star Army, then the significance of this celebration is likely to be a plot to strengthen the impression of the faction."

"I smell the aroma of materials!" Rou Bao's eyes lit up.

...

An army vehicle was parked in front of the official guest house. It was the vehicle that had come to pick up the corps leaders to go to the celebration venue.

Everyone got into the vehicle one after another. Han Xiao casually picked an empty seat and closed his eyes to rest.

"The celebration is finally about to begin."

Unlike other interstellar citizens, the corps leaders were not very excited about the celebration, because they had personally participated in the war, so they were very clear about the process of the war. The official announcement of information to the entire star system was nothing more than repeating the process, saying that Godora had ambushed all the mother ships and wiped them out in one fell swoop.

This would definitely cause questions from the public, curious about how Godora had locked onto Arcane Church's location, but this must be Godora's confidential source of information, and it was impossible to reveal it.

The corps leaders had figured this out early on, so the celebration did not have much appeal to them. The main purpose was to use this good opportunity to promote the army's reputation and expand business.

Everyone chatted. Although they deliberately restrained their own auras, the driver, who was in the same vehicle with more than a dozen Beyond Grade As, still turned pale and his back was covered in cold sweat.

Although he knew that these big shots on the ship were all VIPs…it was still scary!

You Yu's position was next to the driver. She glanced at him and said faintly, "Are you scared?"

The driver swallowed. "N-no."

"Don't be nervous, have something to eat." You Yu took out a strip of suspicious-looking red jerky and stuffed it in front of the driver's mouth, forcing a seemingly kind but actually malicious smile.

The driver bit the bullet and ate it. The taste was actually not bad. He smacked his lips and asked curiously, "What kind of meat is this?"

Just as You Yu was about to speak, Han Xiao helplessly opened his eyes and interrupted, "If you don't want to throw up, don't ask."

These days, he had already figured out You Yu's routine. She pretended to be enthusiastic about sharing food, but actually deliberately fed people strange things to satisfy her bad taste. The little girl pretended to be innocent and looked quite convincing.

"Tch." You Yu turned her face away.

...

Han Xiao and his party arrived at the venue in a flying vehicle, and sat down in their respective seats, attracting a burst of frantic snapping from the interstellar reporters.

"Those people seem to be the leaders of large mercenary groups?"

"That's right, they're all well-known mercenaries. They should have participated in the war too."

Below the platform, countless reporters whispered.

After waiting for a while, flying vehicles flew over from the direction of the political core building. Godora's rulers finally arrived and took their seats one after another. The sense of ceremony was very strong, giving Han Xiao the illusion of walking on a red carpet.

Seymour the Fifth appeared last. As soon as he appeared, the audience cheered and the distant onlookers shouted excitedly, their voices shaking the sky, deeply rooted in the hearts of the people.

Han Xiao casually glanced at the guest seats below the platform. Apart from the reporters, everyone present was the elite of Godora society. After a glance, almost all of them were pure-blooded Godorans. Even if there were a few mixed-bloods, they were of the type whose appearance was not too abnormal.

Seymour the Fifth pressed his hands down, and after the audience quieted down, he slowly began his speech. His voice was transmitted far away under the effect of sound amplification enchantments.

Only then did the celebration officially begin, simultaneously broadcast on various interstellar channels.

At the beginning, it was naturally a whole set of official rhetoric, thanking people from all walks of life for their efforts, emphasizing the government's achievements, continuing to implement the government's various policies, remembering the bitterness and thinking about the sweetness, and so on.

After a long speech, the Godorans sat upright with serious faces, but Han Xiao did not have Godora's patriotism and was almost asleep. At this time, Seymour the Fifth changed the topic and finally entered the main theme.

"I have an important message to announce…Arcane Church is a terrorist organization and separatist force that indiscriminately slaughters living beings under the pretext of racial discrimination. Arcane Church has always been determined to destroy Godora and has caused heavy blows to our society. The tragic cases they have committed are countless, and their hands are stained with blood! We have never feared any form of provocation and have been trying to stop Arcane Church's activities. Just thirteen days ago, we finally made a breakthrough—we eliminated Arcane Church!"

Boom—

Although the official had already revealed a brief report, the news was still explosive and ignited the Godorans' excitement and cheers when Seymour the Fifth announced it himself.

The sound waves were too strong and deafening, making people want to shake uncontrollably.

At this moment, in the VIP area of the platform, You Yu quietly poked Han Xiao's waist and whispered, "Can you hear me?"

Han Xiao turned his head, a little puzzled. "Yeah, why?"

"I'm just confirming whether you're deaf or not." You Yu said expressionlessly.

The corner of Han Xiao's mouth twitched. Seeing that You Yu didn't care about the countless gazes and cameras around her, she took out a bag of melon and fruit snacks and started gnawing on them, spitting the shells on his back like a machine gun, trying to assert her presence. The corner of Han Xiao's mouth twitched even more violently.

Dark elves really hold grudges…

The Godorans cheered for a while before gradually stopping. The reporters realized that the next step was to announce the specific process, and they were on high alert, staring intently at Seymour the Fifth, their pens steady and ready to write news reports at any time.

"This time, we received the help of a key person who locked onto Arcane Church's coordinates throughout the entire process, and finally wiped out Arcane Church's fleet in one fell swoop…"

Seymour the Fifth spoke eloquently. The content was not different from what the mercenary groups had guessed. He simply repeated the process of the war and emphasized the results.

The Godorans listened with bated breath, and the interstellar reporters hurriedly wrote it down in their notebooks. This speech was broadcast to the Shattered Star Ring, and countless interstellar citizens became deeply interested in the "key person" in Seymour the Fifth's mouth.

This "key person" must be the source of intelligence!

After Seymour the Fifth finished speaking, he signaled that reporters could ask questions, and all the interstellar reporters raised their hands in unison.

After randomly selecting a reporter, the person stood up and asked, "Your Majesty Seymour the Fifth, I would like to ask if it is convenient to reveal the identity of this key person."

Hearing this, the viewers from various star systems couldn't help but curl their lips. Although they also wanted to know the source of the intelligence, this was clearly a secret, and Godora would definitely not say it.

At this moment, Seymour the Fifth smiled slightly and suddenly changed the topic. "In fact, there is another major event at this celebration. I will hold an award ceremony for one person and award him the Gold Statue Medal."

The Gold Statue Medal?!

The brains of the Godorans watching the broadcast, as well as many reporters, buzzed and went blank, momentarily shutting down.

Compared to the puzzled viewers from other star systems, they understood the importance of this medal better.

In Godora's history, the Gold Statue Medal was the highest level of honor, awarded only thirty-two times. It should be known that that was a history of thousands of years, so this medal could be said to be extremely rare!

Each time, it was awarded to great men who had made groundbreaking contributions, such as chief scientists, war marshals, wise and brilliant leaders, and so on, all of whom were heroic figures.

At least half of them had received the honor of the Gold Statue Medal many years after their deaths.

It had been unknown how many years since the last time the medal was awarded, and he did not expect that someone would finally receive this supreme honor again…

This was unexpected sensational news!

Many reporters came back to their senses, their faces flushed with excitement.

Seymour the Fifth turned his head to look at the VIP area, and countless gazes and cameras followed his line of sight.

Han Xiao grinned and had no choice but to stand up and walk over, facing Seymour the Fifth's kind gaze with a forced smile.

It wasn't because he was nervous, but because there were still many melon seed shells stuck to his back…

"Let me solemnly introduce to you, the recipient of the Gold Statue Medal, Black Star!"

At this moment, it was as if an exhaust fan had sucked all the air out of the venue.

Countless people subconsciously gasped, their faces blank.

Suddenly, there was an uproar in the audience!

The corps leaders were suddenly stunned, and You Yu subconsciously swallowed the melon seed shells in her mouth, her legs widening in surprise.

The hundreds of thousands of army players watching the broadcast widened their eyes.

The army executives who were playing cards while watching TV all opened their mouths wide, and the cards in their hands fell to the ground.

Even many Godora officials who were unaware of the situation showed expressions of disbelief.

—This was the first time the Gold Statue Medal had been awarded to an outsider who was not a Godoran!