Two powerful auras exploded and trapped Nagakin’s troops in the middle.
Nagakin hurriedly turned around only to see Anur and Ember glaring at him.
The intense killing intent seemed to have frozen the space around him.
“Why are there two Calamity Grade Supers‽ There is an error in our intelligence!” Nagakin’s face changed drastically.
Alvin’s intel had stated that the strongest person pursuing him was a Grade B Super. For Godora to send out a Grade A Super, it could be considered a foolproof plan. With Nagakin taking action, even if a Grade A Super was hiding amid the enemy’s ranks, he would still be able to fight the other party equally. However, Godora could never have expected that DarkStar would actually send out two Calamity Grade Supers to kill a single traitor. This was akin to killing a chicken with an ox’s blade. This was the trap that DarkStar had set.
Anur and Ember did not appear in front of Alvin’s doppelganger, and Forsyth had acted as the leader. As such, Alvin had believed that there were no Calamity Grade Supers in the team. DarkStar had already predicted that Godora would send reinforcements and intentionally tricked Alvin into thinking that there were no Grade A Supers. They had predicted that there would be a single Grade A Super in the reinforcements at most, and this Grade A Super would become Anur and Ember’s prey!
DarkStar did not only want to chase their traitor down. They had even laid a trap to make Godora lose one of their top fighters!
This was the reason for Anur and Ember to take action together. Godora had fallen for DarkStar’s trap.
The Godoran warriors present felt a chill run down their spines, and their backs were drenched with cold sweat. The immense pressure from facing two powerful enemies had almost caused their hearts to stop beating. They were extremely anxious and did not even know which side they should focus on defending.
Nagakin’s face was solemn, and he knew that it would be difficult for him to escape alive. Taking in a deep breath…
“We will die today…”
Hu!
The Pugilist’s flames covered his entire body, and the aura exploding out of his body matched Anur and Ember’s auras. He then got into his fighting stance, and a resolute gaze could be seen in his eyes. Gritting his teeth, he let out a deep roar.
“Before we die, let’s fight!”
Chapter 483 - Seeking Aid and Recruitment
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
In the hall of their temporary base, everyone was currently busy with their own things. All of a sudden, the image on the television screen flashed, and the news was suddenly broadcast.
“Noriosse emergency report. Ten minutes ago, a building in the periphery of City 4 was attacked, and three streets were completely destroyed. The bus station is completely crippled, and the number of casualties is being calculated. According to initial analysis, the cause of the destruction is a fight between Supers. More details will be released after further investigation. The Public Security Office is already investigating the matter. Now showing the scene of the location…”
This news drew everyone’s attention. Sylvia immediately went to knock on the machinery modification room and called Han Xiao out to watch the television.
The news displayed scenes of the location. A few dozen tall buildings had collapsed and been reduced to rubble. Just ten minutes earlier, that had still been an extremely prosperous location, but the entire place had been destroyed with thick, black smoke billowing. The aircrafts of the Public Security Office were flying around, trying to save as many casualties as possible. The entire place was filled with noise as corpse after corpse was bagged up before being thrown aside.
“That explains the tremors. I thought that it was an earthquake,” the oldest Volga brother said.
Wilsander was using a brush to clean his wings, and he asked with a shrug, “Are they fighting a war?”
“For them to create such extensive destruction in such a short time, it is probably a battle between Calamity Grade Supers,” Han Xiao said with a deep tone.
He immediately thought about Nagakin. Considering when he had met Nagakin, he felt that it was extremely possible.
However, this had nothing to do with him. He had not activated any missions from Nagakin, and since there were no benefits, Han Xiao did not care about the matter.
Beep beep!
Right at that moment, his communicator rang; an unknown number was calling him. Han Xiao accepted the call.
The next moment, Nagakin’s figure appeared on the screen. He was breathing heavily, and his entire body was covered in blood and wounds. He was obviously in an extremely pathetic state.
“Black Star… please help me,” Nagakin said with grit teeth.
…
Just a while ago, Nagakin had met the ambush of DarkStar, and after an intense battle, three streets had been destroyed with all his elite warriors dead. That foreign Calamity Grade Super had reduced all of them to ash in a single instant. They could not even let out a single cry for help.
Those were his subordinate who had accompanied him into battle for many years, and they had all been wiped out easily. Nagakin was furious but had no choice but to force himself to remain calm and face the two experts in front of him.
While he was the only one left, Nagakin did not entertain the thought of retreating. As long as he could exchange his life for one of his opponents’ lives, it would not be a complete loss.
There was also a divide between Calamity Grade Supers. Nagakin’s strength was not superior to Anur or Ember, and he was at a clear disadvantage. Both of his opponents were Espers who were extremely difficult to deal with. In just a short exchange, he was already injured all over.
The intense battle between them had quickly drawn the attention of the Public Security Office, and they arrived swiftly. Anur had originally intended to continue chasing, but after considering for a moment, he had decided to make a strategic retreat as he did not want to end up being chased by those from the Public Security Office. The result of the ambush was not up to his expectations. He had originally wanted to kill Godora’s Grade A Super quickly, but Nagakin was a Pugilist with a powerful physique and had only been severely injured.
If not for Nagakin having a powerful physique, he would probably have died.
Dragging his severely injured body away from the battlefield, Nagakin did not immediately tend to his wounds. Instead, he contacted the headquarters and reported the entire event while bearing the pain. Godora’s War Bureau was shocked and ordered Nagakin to wait for his orders with the priority being the preservation of his life.
He requested aid from the headquarters, but travelling required time, so it would be impossible for them to send anyone in time. Giving up and retreating had never been part of his vocabulary. Even if he was alone, he would stop DarkStar from accomplishing their objective.
Just when he was considering killing his way back, Nagakin suddenly thought of Black Star, who he had met at the port.
Perhaps only mercenaries could help him.
Noriosse was located far away, and there were few mercenary groups operating in that region. Currently, the Black Star Mercenary Group was probably the only mercenary group around, and he could only seek their help.
He had rejected Han Xiao’s help just a while back but had no choice but to seek help now. This was far too embarrassing, and Nagakin had never imagined that such a scenario would occur. However, he could only grit his teeth and contact Han Xiao. For his mission, casting aside his pride was not a problem at all.
“Nagakin?” Han Xiao had a weird look on his face. His guess was right. Nagakin was related to the news shown on the television, and he had already been severely injured by an unknown enemy. The help that Nagakin was requesting was obviously related to this matter. With none of his subordinates in sight, they had probably all been wiped out, and thus, Nagakin had no choice but to seek help from mercenaries.
With just a short pause, Han Xiao came up wit
h a rough idea of what had happened. He then recalled Nagakin’s crippled appearance, but after glancing at Nagakin’s body once, while Nagakin was covered in blood all over, his limbs were all still intact.
“I have a mission to fetch a character who betrayed DarkStar from Noriosse. His name is Alvin, and DarkStar sent forces to chase after him. The other party has two Grade A Supers, and I fell into their ambush…”
Nagakin described the situation honestly.
While he knew that revealing the truth about two Grade A Supers might cause Han Xiao to act warily and not help him, Nagakin would never hide the strength of his enemies and deceive mercenaries. He was an extremely straightforward person, and even if he knew that the mercenaries might reject him, he would still tell the truth.
Han Xiao was immediately enlightened. When he met Alvin before, he had already been somewhat suspicious but had no intel. This matter was really related to DarkStar.
“Who are the two Grade A Supers of DarkStar?”
“I am not sure.” Nagakin shook his head.
“What are their abilities?”
“One of them is able to reduce the human body to ash and can control a large amount of dust to form various weapons. If I did not raise my defenses with my energy, he would have been able to slowly peel away my flesh…”
A cold glow flashed through Han Xiao’s eyes, and he said, “Carbon element control, Ember!”
He had originally thought that this fellow had died in the explosion of the battleship, but never had he expected that Ember had actually escaped. Furthermore, he had even entered the Calamity Grade. When he fought Ember back on Floating Dragon Island, Ember had already been B+ Grade and far stronger than him. If not for his talent restricting the trump card of Ember, it would have been impossible for him to fight Ember to a draw.
Ember was capable of instantly wiping out any carbon-based life form, and his ability was extremely difficult to deal with. It was like a divine AOE skill. Only Aroshia and himself were immune to Ember. Wilsander was a mixed blood demon, and his body constitution was unknown. If he was not carbon based, perhaps he would be able to escape the outcome of being instantly wiped out.
However, after Ember reached Grade A, his Esper abilities might have new ways to be used. Even his ordinary attacks would be much more powerful than before.
“What are the abilities of the other one?” Han Xiao asked.
“He is a shapeshifting Esper. He can change into a strange flying creature roughly four to five meters tall. It seems as though he has the ability to control the flow of air. He is extremely fast, and it is difficult to follow him with the naked eye. When he is flying, wind pressure is generated around him. Not only is it able to form a protective shield, it is able to provide a certain degree of invisibility. It seems as though he is using a trick to bend the light rays. The faster he flies, the stronger the wind pressure generated, and everywhere he passes is destroyed by the wind pressure. He is just like a wind pressure cannon.”
“Shapeshifting… wind pressure…” Han Xiao’s mouth contorted. “Could he be the Wind Demon Anur?”
DarkStar had a limited number of Grade A Supers, and according to the abilities that they had displayed, Han Xiao was able to guess their identities. Anur was an old member and a powerhouse of DarkStar who was extremely difficult to deal with. After his transformation, not only would his speed increase, if he flew a few times around the planet, the accumulated wind pressure would form a cyclone gigantic enough to flatten the entire planet’s surface.
The two of them were extremely difficult to deal with. Before Version 2.0, Han Xiao did not really want to provoke DarkStar. However, this was a good opportunity for him to get closer to a Grade A Super from Godora and a channel for him to get in contact with the upper echelons of Godora. With Nagakin around, it would be much easier for him to gain trust when he handed over the mutation source in the future, and it would be more convenient for him to discuss benefits.
Nagakin bit his lips as he waited for Han Xiao’s response. He silently prayed that Han Xiao would not reject him—Han Xiao seemed like his last chance.
After a long while, Han Xiao shook his head. “It is too dangerous to fight two Grade A Supers…”
Nagakin’s expression froze. While he had expected the outcome, he was still a little disappointed.
“However, your mission isn’t to kill the both of them, right?” Han Xiao asked. “As long as Alvin is able to leave Noriosse alive, your mission will be completed. The problem now is that your Godoran reinforcements require time to arrive. Thus, we only need to stall for time and help Alvin escape from DarkStar. If this is the case, I can try helping you.”
Nagakin’s eyes lit up—he was overjoyed.
At that moment, a new mission was shown on Han Xiao’s interface.
_____________________
Nagakin’s Request
Mission Introduction: You have agreed to help Nagakin. His mission is to save a DarkStar traitor.
Mission Requirements: 1. Aid Alvin in hiding until Godora’s troops arrive. 2. Kill all of the pursuing DarkStar forces. (Completing one of the two requirements would complete the mission)
Failure Conditions: 1. Alvin’s death. 2. Nagakin’s death.
Rewards: 5,800,000 Experience, 240,000 Enas, +850 Relationship with Godora Faction, +30 Alvin Favorability, +30 Nagakin Favorability
_____________________
There are two mission requirements. It seems like it will be easier to stall for time, Han Xiao thought to himself. While it was more straightforward to defeat the enemy, the other party had two Calamity Grade Supers.
Han Xiao had three Main Storyline missions, and one of them was [Godora’s Ally]. The mission requirements were plenty, and Anur and Ember were all included on the hit list. While the reward for killing them was high, Han Xiao only thought about it and did not think that that it was possible for him to accomplish it.
Just when Nagakin was about to ask how they should work together, Han Xiao interrupted him.
“Just the few of us will be far too little manpower. Let me find more manpower for you.”
He then turned around to Herlous. “Go through the Mercenary Alliance and issue a recruitment notice near Noriosse. The target will be all the mercenaries in the vicinity. As long as they can rush over in time, we want them all. As many as possible.”
“What should we write for the person issuing the mission?” Herlous asked. “Nagakin or Godora?”
“No, their names aren’t the best option.” Han Xiao shook his head. “Use my name.”
Chapter 484 - Chaotic Entry
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
The mercenaries in the Shattered Star Ring were extremely active. Even in the region of Noriosse, there were many active mercenaries, but the majority of them were second or third grade mercenaries. Han Xiao issued a recruitment notice through the Mercenary Alliance, and this recruitment notice quickly spread through the Noriosse mercenary groups.
Majority of the mercenaries had the same two reactions—surprised and curious.
In the past year, Han Xiao had completed plenty of missions, and because of the backing of Floating Dragon, he had built up a large network consisting mainly of large mercenary groups including the likes of top-notch armies such as Blades, Purple Gold, and Sky Ring.
While Black Star’s position in the mercenary world of Shattered Star Ring was not considered top notch, he was considered a first-rate small mercenary group. Many mercenaries wanted to build a relationship with Black Star and tap into his connections to gain better missions. After all, the rich employers usually wanted to hire the best mercenaries, and the Mercenary Alliance would only issue these missions to the lower grade mercenaries if the large armies did not accept them. The people at the top ate meat while those below drank the soup. This was pretty much the situation everywhere.
As such, the moment that Han Xiao posted a recruitment notice, countless respondents applied, and he activa
ted at least half of the mercenaries in the Noriosse region.
…
The gathering location was extremely crowded, and everyone was packed like sardines. The colorful mercenaries squeezed together and chatted with each other as they waited for the appearance of their employer.
Clap clap…
At the very front of the group, a clapping sound could be heard, and everyone turned to take a look. Seeing the legendary Black Star before them, the noisy crowd slowly became silent.
Their gazes were all fixed on Han Xiao as they sized him up from head to toe. They were all interested in Han Xiao’s connections but did not think too highly of his personal strength. The majority of the mercenaries were wild and untamed characters. The way they saw it, Black Star was not any much more powerful than them. He was only lucky enough to gain the recognition of Ames.
Han Xiao was unmoved, and he said emotionlessly, “Everyone, I am the one who issued the recruitment notice, and I believe that all of you should recognize me. I shall not introduce myself, and since we are all mercenaries, I shall skip the pleasantries. I received a difficult mission with bountiful rewards, and I require more manpower. I hired all of you to find partners to complete the mission together. You can treat me as a middleman, and the details of the mission shall be explained by the employer.”
Nagakin made his entrance and described the situation honestly.
Very quickly, the mercenaries below broke out in a large commotion.
Many of them were thoroughly frightened by the two Calamity Grade Supers and backed out immediately. At the same time, they stared at Han Xiao in disbelief as though they were looking at a dead man.
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