“The Germinal Organization fugitive has snuck into the Western Capital. These are the coordinates…” he spoke in a deep voice. “Have the intelligence department monitor him for now. I have come into contact with the target, and will slowly find out his intentions. Unless necessary, do not act.”
Deserters of the Germinal Organization were highly valued by the Six Nations as they sometimes held valuable information. Unfortunately, most of the deserters were usually small fry. Han Xiao, on the other hand, was the first person to have a bounty issued for on him; it followed that it was highly likely that he possessed crucial information.
In the workshop, Han Xiao turned his eyes back from where the tall old man had left.
His performance should have let the tall old man know that he was not hostile, and laid the groundwork for a better relationship.
There were three things for Han Xiao to gain from coming to the workshop. The first was that Old Man Lu kept a very comprehensive collection of Mechanic-related basic knowledge.
The second was that this workshop was a good place to hide from the Germinal Organization. While the Germinal Organization had spies across the Six Nations, they did not know every single nook and cranny. This workshop was one of the few places that they were not aware of. And even if they found it, there was Old Man Lu. Old Man Lu was far stronger than the current Hila. Although he appeared like some carefree good-for-nothing, he was actually one of the few Class-D superhumans on the planet. On beginner planets in Version 1.0, the strongest superhumans were only Class-C.
There was a lot of discussion regarding why Mechanics were a superhuman class, such as: ‘If Mechanics were limited to a normal human’s standards, it would restrict their inventions by over 90%’, and ‘Only a superhuman can use some of the stronger machines they make.’ At higher levels, there were stricter requirements for using the machines that Mechanics made. Some of them were even not usable by the other four classes, but only by Mechanics.
Mechanics were not all about big guns and giant robots! A high level mechanic could specialize in one of many things. They might prefer to wield swords, specialize in assassination, or even pilot mobile suits! These were but a few of the endless possibilities that the class had to offer.
The official information described the class as such: “Masters of combat machinery and compaction. Well balanced.”
After learning [Compression Technology] and [Spatial Technology], mechanics would be able to disassemble and compress huge machinery into small capsules that they could activate whenever they wanted to reassemble them instantaneously!
After learning certain skills like [Rapid Assembly], Mechanics with a large amount of energy would be able to create machines on the fly without the need for tools or equipment. All they needed was sufficient energy and necessary materials, and they would be able to bypass the creation process and instantaneously create whatever they needed.
Player inventories were weight-realistic, and with these abilities, mechanics were the only class—apart from Mages and telekinetic ESPers—to be able to disregard weight constraints.
The third reason that Han Xiao had come to the workshop was the most important one, for the secret story line! Its rewards were some blueprints of early level godly equipment!
In the future, Old Man Lu would leave the workshop and leave behind a digital safe that contained these blueprints. He would instruct Lu Qian to pass it to her father, Lu Cheng, who was a warlord amongst the wanderers. He and his father, Old Man Lu, were always on bad terms.
Back in the game, a player managed to complete the tedious quest line and obtain the password to the safe. He then had to painstakingly search for the necessary materials to craft those equipment. However, it all proved worth it. With just that equipment, he was able to dominate the PVP arena and set the highest record of 38 continuous victories!
While all that time and effort was certainly worth it for that player, Han Xiao didn’t have to go through the entire quest line as he already knew the password!
Although the secret quest line was a competitive quest, and only one person could complete it, other players that attempted it also learnt the password to the safe. Since it was not a big deal, the password was posted alongside information to the quest line in various forums.
Still, the story line only occurred after release, so there was still plenty of time before then. Han Xiao intended to foster a good relationship with them first.
For the godly equipment!
“I’ll explain your apprenticeship. Your meals and accommodation will be provided for; there is an unused room on the second floor. Your job scope will consist of helping out with maintenance work, as well as orders. I’ll pay you $1000 a month, is that fine?”
Lu Qian looked at Han Xiao nervously. She knew that he was skilled, but she truly did not have the money to offer him a higher salary.
“I accept!” said Han Xiao without hesitation, at which she rejoiced.
On the second floor was a full apartment complete with a living room, a kitchen, and several bedrooms.
Lu Qian brought Han Xiao to his bedroom. It was furnished simply with a wooden bed, a wardrobe, a book shelf, and a small work space.
“This is now your room,” said Lu Qian happily as she passed the key to Han Xiao and began to dust the area.
She really couldn’t be any happier. A thousand dollars was a very small amount of money, not even enough for an average person’s monthly meal expenses! Han Xiao was a steal!
I must treat this kid well so he won’t run away! she thought to herself.
Han Xiao didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. Shouldn’t the job applicant be the nervous one, instead of the boss?
Chapter 24 - What Is Weak?
Translator: MJ_ Editor: Millman97
Lu Qian left after tidying up the room.
Han Xiao climbed onto the bed and closed his eyes. Now, he had to wait for Division 13 to approach him.
“I am not strong enough yet.”
Han Xiao understood that he couldn’t just rely on Stardragon to deal with the Germinal Organization. He had to become much stronger in order to be able to take matters into his own hands. In any case, for now, he also had to be strong enough to gain Division 13’s special attention.
Since there were neither quests to do nor monsters to hunt, the only way to get stronger now was through crafting. Han Xiao would need money to make machines, so he planned to find some way to make extra income. The city provided him with many opportunities. His long journey had only just begun.
With only six months left to launch, he had to treasure the remaining time.
After resting for a while, Han Xiao returned downstairs. Lu Qian was working on a household appliance at the workbench. Her denim shorts truly accentuated her perky curves, and Han Xiao couldn’t help but steal glances at those slender, long legs of hers.
“The orders are in the drawer,” she said to Han Xiao as she wiped her sweat with a towel.
The workshop didn’t see much business and most of the orders were advance orders. Han Xiao picked out a few easy ones and began working.
At 7 PM, they closed for the day.
Lu Qian changed into a comfy white dress and let her hair down, giving her the air of a kind, beautiful sister. There were patches sewn onto her dress, implying that they weren’t doing so well financially. Han Xiao wondered if the reason she wore so little during work was if she was saving fabric.
Old Man Lu finally showed his face for dinner.
“Let’s eat.”
Old Man Lu with his long and, messy hair certainly did not seem the type of person to do household chores. Their meals were, indeed, always prepared by Lu Qian.
Han Xiao picked up a piece of char siu 1 with his chopsticks and placed it in his mouth. It was fatty but not oily, and was extremely tasteful. Han Xiao was visibly delighted.
“Delicious, right?” smiled Lu Qian in glee.
Now this—this is proper food! What the hell have I
been eating for the past 6 months?
“There’s still a lot, so eat slowly,” she added, pleased by the sight of his voracious appetite.
As they continued eating, Old Man Lu suddenly asked, “Who exactly are you?”
Han Xiao, stopping his chopsticks in mid-air, replied, “I’m just an ordinary person.”
“Do you think you can deceive me with such a blatant lie, kid? Tell me the truth,” the old man snorted.
Han Xiao’s eye twitched.
“And what if I don’t want to?”
“Don’t want to?”
Suddenly, Old Man Lu tilted his head back as he began to release a domineering aura of strange, wild melancholy that threatened to engulf Han Xiao.
A look of seriousness appeared on Han Xiao’s face. Twisting, he leapt backwards five meters, raising his arms in a cross-shaped guard to defend himself.
Old Man Lu’s eyes narrowed.
“I have a skill that can kill the target’s very soul in an instant. Do you want to test it?” he asked.
“Does such a godly skill really exist?” Han Xiao’s face began to pale.
“The level of strength I have attained cannot be comprehended by the likes of you!” Old Man Lu snorted in reply.
Suddenly, a black, stormy cloud arose from behind Lu Qian. Lightning crackled and thunder roared. Wearing the same usual smile that she always displayed, she tapped the table with her chopsticks and ordered plainly, “Sit down and eat.”
The duo instantly returned to their original positions and continued eating, as though nothing had happened at all.
The Western Capital was vast, comprising of eight districts and three citadels interconnected by military roads.
District 1 was the central district and the Western Capital’s seat of government. Regular citizens were not allowed inside.
Although the Six Nations were united against the Germinal Organization, they still remained competitive with one another. After all, alliances were only temporary. The assassination of important figures occurred frequently amongst the Six Nations, and although they would always blame these incidents on the Germinal Organization or other dangerous individuals, the governments knew that 70% of them were each other’s doing.
The Germinal Organization, the wanderer’s army, intelligence agencies and brokers, illegal arms dealers, individual criminals, mercenary assassins, hackers, and other kinds of shady groups comprised the planet’s underworld.
Dragonhorn Tower was the central building of the government, where the top brass operated from. Its walls were reputed to be strong enough to repel intercontinental missiles.
The headquarters of a secret department was situated below Dragonhorn Tower.
Beneath Dragonhorn Tower, at an undisclosed basement level was the Stardragon Strategic Defense Division.
Dozens of screens hung from the wall, displaying countless data and information. Intelligence agents typed away at their keyboards while even more bustled around. This place was the central network of the government, where information was filtered and channeled.
Division 13 served not only as Stardragon’s ears and eyes, but also as a hidden knife.
“Reporting: ‘Zero’ has been located.”
A gentle-looking bespectacled female secretary hastily knocked open the office door of the department’s director. A stern-faced man was seated behind the desk. Drool could be seen on the corner of his mouth.
“Speak,” he said in a low voice.
“Director, were you secretly taking a nap again?” The bespectacled secretary squinted at him.
“Cut the crap!” The intelligence director glared back. “Talk.”
“Zero is currently hiding in a machinery maintenance shop in district 7.”
The director swiveled away from his secretary and she could hear him sigh in contemplation with his back faced towards her. After a moment, he turned around to face her again and said, “The higher-ups want to adopt a friendly approach.”
“You just turned back to wipe your drool, right?”
“I really regret promoting you…”
The secretary pushed her glasses up and ignored him. “How exactly should we proceed?”
“Since Zero came to the Western Capital alone, he must want to cooperate… Activate protection protocol immediately. We must not let Germinal’s agents learn of his presence here. Have the hackers intercept any news of his trail and prevent leaks. Also, send an undercover agent to check him out; he might just be a spy they sent. Get confirmation before making direct contact.”
“A traitor worth a one million dollar bounty. There are two possibilities: either he possesses important information, or he possesses great power. For now, we are unable to ascertain how dangerous he might be, so proceed with utmost caution. I don’t want a repeat of what happened with Black Spider. Two streets bombed yet we failed to apprehend him. I was scolded for two whole hours by the minister as a result of that.”
Chapter 25 - New Talent!
Translator: MJ_ Editor: Millman97
As the workshop wasn’t that busy, Han Xiao had quite a lot of free time to look for the extra income he needed.
Kero Junkyard: the biggest disposal ground in District 7. Here, endless piles of trash were sorted out everyday.
This place fell under the territory of an underworld boss known as Big Raccoon. Where there is light, there will be shadows—such is society—and this holds all the more true in times of chaos.
Although the Western Capital was the main capital of Stardragon, it was certainly not a holy sanctuary for the law-abiding. It was infiltrated with spies from other nations, and plagued by criminal networks and illegal businesses. Small-time bosses like Big Raccoon may have been infamous, but they were certainly not the key players.
As Han Xiao entered the junkyard with a dust mask on, he was stopped by a few vicious-looking thugs.
“Kid, you’re in the wrong neighborhood.”
A bald, muscular thug blocked Han Xiao’s path as he stared him down. To them, Han Xiao, with his small frame, looked like an easy target to bully.
Han Xiao, unfazed, spoke. “I want to see Raccoon.”
The thugs instantly burst out in laughter.
“We don’t have time to play with you, kid. Run home to mummy, or I’ll break your legs,” threatened the bald thug.
“Is that what Raccoon teaches his dogs to say?”
“What did you say?” The bald thug was enraged. He began to grab Han Xiao by the collar.
Han Xiao looked back at the thug calmly as he squeezed his wrist.
The pain caused the thug to let go of his grip, and when he looked at his wrist, he found that there were already bruise marks on them.
“Friend, which gang are you from?” The bald thug’s expression had changed to one of caution.
Suddenly, he paused to listen to his receiver and stepped away from Han Xiao’s path, saying, “The boss wants to see you.”
Han Xiao followed the bald thug and was brought to a resting area inside the junkyard where a thin man sat cross-legged on a sofa as he enjoyed a glass of red wine. From his appearance alone it was hard to believe that this man was the infamous Raccoon who ruled the District 7 underworld.
“I heard that you want to see me. What’s your name?” he casually asked.
“Technician Han,” answered Han Xiao.
The Raccoon sneered.
“You should know what will happen to you if you’re just wasting my time.”
The reason why he had agreed to letting Han Xiao in was that he was curious to see what business a snotty-looking brat had with him.
Suddenly, Han Xiao reached out to steal the bald thug’s gun. The bald thug felt a tug at his waist and turned around, but it was too late.
The grunts behind Raccoon hastily drew their guns.
“What’s the meaning of this?” he asked nervously. The bald thug was one of his most trusted subordinates, and he was strong enough to take on ten people at the same time. Yet,
he wasn’t able to react to Han Xiao’s speed! Who the hell is this kid?
Unexpectedly, Han Xiao began to disassemble the gun, but it wasn’t a simple disassembly. The gun unraveled almost instantaneously, as if Han Xiao were performing some kind of magic; the disassembled parts fell and scattered onto the floor.
“Firearms are a sure-profit. I can help you manufacture them in exchange for a little bit of compensation.”
This kid can make guns!
Firearms were hot in demand in the black market. Using a gun and making a gun were two completely separate concepts. Mechanics who knew how to create guns were rare and highly esteemed. Even though Raccoon was the leader of a gang, they were just small-time hoodlums. To be able to find a mechanic willing to make guns for them was inconceivable; yet, here Han Xiao was. ‘This is my chance!’ thought Raccoon.
“What arrangements do you have in mind?”
“I will make a list of materials and parts for you to gather. Manufacturing and assembly will all be done by me. I’ll come here to work for two hours every morning. I want $1500 per gun, and freedom to take anything I want from this junkyard.”
Han Xiao had already thoroughly analyzed the Germinal Organization’s guns. He was now able to easily make simple guns.
“Since I’m providing the materials, $1000,” negotiated Raccoon.
Han Xiao instantly turned around and began to walk away.
This caused Raccoon to become flustered. He had only been trying to test out Han Xiao, and did not expect such a big reaction.
“Wait wait wait—we’ll follow your charges,” he hastily said.
One handgun was worth $3,000 to $4,000 on the black market. Han Xiao’s asking fee was still quite reasonable.
The Legendary Mechanic c1-1385 Page 16