The three commentators debated for a few minutes before Long Sky and Dynasty finally entered the battlefield, waving to the audience and doing the self introduction before the match.
The hero who won the previous glory for China appeared, and it incited a large wave of pop ups, so much that Han Xiao could barely see the screen.
“Okay, we can see that both sides have already gotten on the battlefield. If that’s the case, then the Pro League officially… begins!”
The moment the voice sounded, both sides moved, akin to a lightning strike or a volcanic eruption. Compared to the previous version, the tactical methods and destructive power of these professional players had obviously risen to a whole new level, so the battlefield range had also become larger.
Long Sky had a sharp penetrative force, but Dynasty was more balanced overall. Their teamwork was nigh perfect, and they were skillful in team battles as well as capturing the flag. However, in terms of individual strength, Long Sky-which had Hao Tian, Sleepy Winter, and Twinkle Fried Rice, three god-level players-slightly overwhelmed Dynasty. While King Admiral slightly exceeded all his opponents, it was difficult for him to support the entire team.
In this Pro League, the new formats for team battles and dungeon survival games also made their debut. Han Xiao was no stranger to this, but players found it new since it was their first time.
The selected dungeon was not fixed, and it was different each game. Before the game, several dungeon options would be taken out to allow players the time to study before one of these options was randomly selected. However, professional players were on a different level. When this rule was announced a year ago, the teams had already begun to do dungeon training and were familiar with most of the dungeons in this region. The team battle would be held in a normal level dungeon, while the survival battle would be held in a high-level dungeon. Coincidentally, the dungeons that Long Sky and Dynasty chose all had to do with Han Xiao.
The team battle was held in the secret war dungeon series, and both parties would be thrown into the same dungeon. The goal was not a time attack but rather to complete some special mission tasks, such as assassinating certain characters or drawing out hidden missions, testing the comprehensive quality in each team.
As for the survival battle, it was a copy of (Warfare: Defense of Planet Aquamarine), where the Calamity Grades of DarkStar ganged up against Han Xiao. Even though it was in Version 2.0, this dungeon copy was still a difficult one for the players.
The focus of the dungeon battles was to test the wit and bravery of the teams. Utilizing everything within the dungeon to defeat their opponents would make the Pro League more interesting than just a basic battle. As for the survival battle, it was more of who could struggle longer to survive. Watching the professional players get abused was quite entertaining for the audience as well.
Long Sky’s battle style was more reckless, as Hao Tian’s specialty did not lie in strategy and was not suitable for the intricacies of team dungeon battles. While Sleepy Winter was accustomed to pretending to be a pig to eat the tiger, he was unable to shake the stability of Dynasty and was completely led around their nose by King Admiral, hammered flat.
When it came to the survival dungeon, the dungeon copy replayed the battlefield at that time, where the two teams came face to face with the three Calamity Grade DarkStar supers. The threat level was basically dying once they encountered them. Luckily, the copy of Black Star was also projected according to the original history.
Long Sky and Dynasty both materialized outside of the Sanctuary, with protective shields, and had to withstand the aftermath of the three Calamity Grades as well as the bombing of the mothership. The survival game allowed them to fight each other as well, but neither side had the luxury, only scurrying around with their heads tucked low. This was the complete opposite of the image of arrogance the professional players typically showed, which delighted the viewers to no end. The live broadcast was full of lively cheers and comments.
Both teams died in quick succession, and it was Long Sky that died first. They were not that good at dodging and were turned to ash by Ember.
The first victory of the opening game was thus won by Dynasty, which directly destroyed the chance for Championship for Long Sky. Han Xiao had to admit that King Admiral was a really good representative of the Chinese professional players, and he had once admired him. This guy was a true god-level player.
Leaving the live broadcast, he could see many more posts on the forums about the battle previously. The fans of both clubs were busy badmouthing each other, and Han Xiao only swept past them before closing the forums. As he put his snacks away, his mind started to reminisce.
In his past life, China was faced with a devilishly tight schedule, and their final result was dismal, not even squeezing into the semi-finals. There was no Black Star Army in his past life, so the strength of Shattered Star Ring was pretty weak. The situation is different now. China has won the championship once, and with the increase in power for the Mechanic profession, the odds of defending it are not small at all.
Ring ring! At this point, the communicator on his table rang. With a hook of his finger, he dragged the communicator over. The caller was from the Crimson Dynasty, and it was someone responsible for the Evolutionary Totem project.
“Your Excellency Black Star, I’m sorry to intrude.” The other party’s attitude was respectful.
“Any problems with regards to the business?”. Han Xiao raised his brows.
“Yes, as you know, some bandits recently snatched the Evolutionary Totems that were purchased by our allies. Some of these stolen Evolutionary Totems are now in circulation within the black market, and some were taken away by their secret employers. According to our sources, we think that the Blood Gold Organization is one of the suspects involved.”
Blood Gold Organization…
Han Xiao remembered the past details. This was a member of the Lawful Evil faction. They were in charge of the galactic black market along with other gray organizations. They were also a black market mercenary group that players could enter, usually for those players who liked to cause trouble.
“The Blood Gold Organization is unlike the Fallen Ark. They have a set of rules to follow. As long as we warn them in the name of the Dynasty, they should know how to behave.” Han Xiao stroked his chin.
“That’s where the problem exists.” The tone of the officer dropped. “Based on our intelligence, our spies have discovered that there are radiation signals of the Evolutionary Totem on some planets of the Federation of Light and Arcane Church. They may also be buyers, and if that’s the case, the Blood Gold Organization will have their support.”
“Well… I suppose that’s still within my expectations.”
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes. The Federation of Light and Arcane Church could not get the Evolutionary Totem through conventional channels, so they searched for alternatives.
The Blood Gold Organization was also a large organization, with a wide scope of business, and they would definitely have their own agenda. But if the Federation of Light and Arcane Church approached them, even at the cost of them offending the Crimson Dynasty, they would still be willing to be chess pieces as it would allow them to get close to the other two Universal Civilizations.
Within the currently explored universe, the three Universal Civilizations were the biggest backers, so it was not surprising that the Blood Gold Organization was tempted by the olive branch thrown to it.
“So, you want to bring the knife to the Blood Gold Organization?” Han Xiao asked.
“That’s right. We hope to give them a good warning and need your help to collect some intelligence.” “Got it.” Han Xiao nodded.
They exchanged the respective intelligence and ended the call.
At the same time, a new mission popped up on his interface.
(Warning]
Mission Introduction: The erratic movements of the Blood Gold Organization have impacted the dynasty’s import
ant businesses, and the dynasty has decided to send them a warning, to kill the chicken in order to warn the monkeys.
Mission Requirements: Provide the dynasty with 3 high ranked members from the Blood Gold Organization.
Reward: 15,000,000 experience, +1,000 Dynasty Contribution Point, x1 Random Reward
Track the upper echelons of the Blood Gold Organization? It seems like the dynasty want to strike from the top. No wonder they asked for help. This is the expertise of a Virtual Mechanic.
Stowing his communicator, Han Xiao thought for a while before calling Sylvia.
“Sylvia, is there any news from the Rock Sprite Tribe?”
“They have decided to buy a new batch of Evolutionary Totems.”
Han Xiao rapped on the table. “Tell them, in order to prevent similar incidents, I’ve decided to send some of my mechanical army to follow their fleet, providing a free escort service.”
“Understood, I’ll relay the message.” Han Xiao nodded and hung up before connecting to the quantum network and calling Phillip. “In a while, hack into a black market account with a high credibility point, and anonymously hire the Blood Gold Organization to rob this batch of goods.”
Against such mercenary forces, the simplest method would be to drop some bait.
Over the next few days, while Han Xiao was waiting for the fish to bite, he was watching the Regular Season battles that were in full swing.
After a round robin battle, the Regular Season finally decided the participants for quarter finals as well as the top sixteen individuals, and entered the finals.
Dynasty ranked first in the team battles for points, while King Admiral was the first in terms of individual points. Dynasty had obtained a double first and demonstrated their powerful strength, obtaining the qualification to enter the International League.
Temple of God and Thunder Storm ranked second and third, while Long Sky was placed fourth. This result was a little unbefitting of the former champion, and they were somewhat sluggish.
Following that were Fried Eggplants With Fish and Rivervale, ranked fifth and sixth respectively. The seventh was a new club, which explosively entered the scene, named Long River, while ranked at eighth was Sky Palace.
These were the top eight teams, and they would play in the division finals in best of five games.
Only the top four teams would be able to qualify for the International League.
For the individual battles, Maple Moon reached the top sixteen this time, obtaining the qualifications to compete in the International League, along with Frenzied Sword.
After the Regular Season, a buffer period was given.
During this time, the Blood Gold Organization finally bit on the bait that Han Xiao had cast.
Chapter 913 - Entrapmen
Near the borders of the Sea of Star Spirits, a fleet of over forty battleships was currently cruising. The battleships all had the logo of the Rock Sprite Civilization.
These spaceships were the long-distance spaceships created by the Rock Sprite Civilization. Their exterior looked a bit like a bloated mining spaceship with the main weapons of the spaceship being a lightweight Ion Cannon and a Particle Cannon.
A Star System Civilization would only be able to move around the Star System if they relied on their own technology, and even if they had a stargate from a higher civilization, a Star System Civilization needed to construct a special spaceship in order to conduct inter-Star Field travel. Resources and energy would be a huge barrier between the short-distance and long-distance travel spaceships.
To a Star System Civilization, long-distance spaceships were extremely precious, and the difficulty of constructing one was far more than that of a short-distance spaceship.
In order to transport the Evolutionary Totems from the Black Star Army in the neighboring Star Field, the Rock Sprite race sent out a long-distance fleet. Their previous fleet was ambushed by the Blood Gold Organization and was completely wiped out. This fleet was their second batch of spaceships, which had travelled in hyperdrive for a period by borrowing a stargate before reaching the Black Star Army base. After a long trip, this fleet had finally returned to the Sea of Star Spirits.
In the command room of the flagship, a Rock Sprite commander instructed with a solemn expression, “Everyone, remain on high alert. Our previous long-distance fleet was ambushed around the border of the Sea of Star Spirits. We have already received news of the enemy’s operating region. Report any anomalies on the radar to me.”
“Understood,” the crew in the command room replied anxiously.
The civilizations of the Star Cluster grade and above were used to long-distance voyages, but to the fleet of a Star System grade civilization, every trip out of their own region represented unknown danger. After leaving their borders, they no longer had the protection of their civilization’s fleet, and it was akin to entering the deep ocean.
The enforcement squad would not descend from the sky, and various galactic organizations were active within this region. They would never know how many eyes were looking at them.
“There are still another eighteen days until our next stargate, and we will be able to jump past three Star Systems to leave this border region. The border is the most dangerous, and as long as we do not meet any enemies during this region, we should be safe,” the commander said.
However, right as he completed his sentence, an ear-piercing alarm rang.
Spaceship signals appeared all round them, and they entered an encirclement that the enemy had prepared.
“Again‽ Who leaked our whereabouts‽”
The commander gritted his teeth and cursed in his heart.
If not for His Excellency’s Black Star help, we’d definitely suffer a huge loss this time.
…
The attackers had more than three hundred spaceships and were rapidly surrounding them. They immediately activated their equipment to jam hyperdrive and prevent their prey from escaping.
In the flagship of the attackers, a large crystal bodied organism was floating in front of the command room’s window. His exterior appearance was a crystal with many edges, and he did not have any limbs or sensory organs. He only had two blue tentacles formed by Psychic energy that were wiggling around.
This crystal lifeform was the leader of the assault fleet and was named Kelansta. He was a Calamity Grade Psychic and an experienced mercenary of the Blood Gold Organization. He was once the traitor of a crystal lifeform civilization because he absorbed a large amount of his race’s own mental energy to become a Calamity Grade Super. As such, a bounty was placed on him, and he joined the Blood Gold Organization many years ago.
The encirclement was rapidly formed, and Kelansta made use of his Psychic energy to form soundwaves to say, “Release the magnetized radioactive waves to weaken the enemy’s defensive shields. The vanguard force shall approach the enemy and enter close-quarters combat. Do not bombard them from long range lest we damage the goods. Our objective is to snatch the Evolutionary Totems.”
The Blood Gold Organization had been eyeing the Evolutionary Totems in the black market. Not too long ago, an account with a high credibility rating issued a mission to snatch the Evolutionary Totems and revealed the whereabouts of this Rock Sprite fleet. The Blood Gold Organization then accepted the mission immediately.
They were not interested in the reward of the mission; their main aim was the Evolutionary Totems. Handing an Evolutionary Totem over to the civilizations that needed them would give them even more money, and they would even be able to gain the support of a backer. Han Xiao made use of the Evolutionary Totems to gain huge political support, and the Blood Gold Organization and other organizations snatching the Evolutionary Totems wanted to share this influence.
It would not matter if they were unable to complete the mission; snatching the totems was their main goal. However, the Blood Gold Organization was not planning to swallow the entire batch of totems for themselves. They only needed to give a portion of the totems to
their employer and claim that the rest were destroyed in battle. The remaining totems would then go into their pockets. This was a standard practice of theirs.
Because of the robberies over the past few months, the civilizations purchasing the totem made sure to keep the matter a secret. As such, it was extremely rare to come across such information on the black market. There were few transportation fleets that had their location discovered, and this employment mission had revealed the whereabouts of the Rock Sprite fleet.
Because the Blood Gold Organization had previously robbed the Rock Sprite fleet, they had a certain degree of trust toward this information. They had also gotten a large intelligence organization in the black market to verify the information before taking action.
The fleet of the Blood Gold Organization was many times larger than the Rock Sprite fleet, and they were like wolves surrounding a herd of sheep.
The next moment, a radioactive pulse was released from the Blood Gold Organization fleet, and the defensive shields of the Rock Sprite fleet began to flicker.
Such a radioactive pulse was generated by a powerful electromagnetic field. It was capable of disrupting electromagnetic and ion shields. However, it was useless against psionic and dark energy shields. However, most Star System civilizations would mainly use electromagnetic and ion shields.
The distance between both parties rapidly shrank, and the Blood Gold Organization made use of their electromagnetic chains to latch onto the Rock Sprite spaceships.
The image of the spaceships being latched on was displayed in the command room.
“Report, I have boarded the spaceship, and everything feels good. I am heading toward the control room of the spaceship, taking out any resistance along the way.”
“Very good,” Kelansta replied slowly. “Speed up, I…”
Before he could even finish what he had to say, the screens in the command room all shut down, and everyone was stunned.
The Legendary Mechanic c1-1385 Page 615