by <unknown>
“I want to suggest a reward.”
“What do you want?”
“Mechanic class advancement knowledge.” Han Xiao smiled; this was a good opportunity to make a request.
The Silvers discussed for a while and agreed to Han Xiao’s request. Far away in the Sea of Star Spirits, class advancement knowledges were not that precious—they were basically everywhere. He just had to tell a friend back there, and it could be sent over immediately—it would not even cost them anything.
Upon getting the confirmation, Han Xiao used his Destiny’s Child Card. His vision changed, entering a blurry image, and he saw some bits and pieces.
After losing focus for a while, Han Xiao’s vision recovered. Destiny’s Child’s ability was very promising, so Han Xiao already knew the customer’s rough appearance. They just had to ask around, and they should be able to find the target.
He described the intel, and the Silver sent the appointed class advancement knowledge into his communicator.
Han Xiao used his potential points to learn it immediately, and a new knowledge entered his mind.
_____________
You have learned [Rapid Assembly]!
_____________
This is the difference… Han Xiao sighed. A knowledge that he could not even learn in the Shattered Star Ring, the Silver could transfer it to him easily. That was the civilization difference, and even he was tempted to kidnap these Silvers.
But it was just a thought. He threw that suicidal idea away very quickly. He now had a faction base, and he did not want to become someone who was chased around everywhere.
After the hiring procedures were completed, Han Xiao requested for the other two class advancement knowledge regarding compression technology as well. Seeing that Han Xiao was the captain, Silver agreed with all of it—Supers looking for new knowledge was very common.
A mission was triggered on his interface, and the basic reward was one of the knowledges required for compression technology. If he successfully saved the hostages, he would then receive the other knowledge. The experience reward was more than 4,000,000, plus some monetary reward.
And the players’ reward was only money.
After settling everything, without further ado, Han Xiao and the others boarded Sky Ring’s spaceship and followed the three large mercenary groups to Floating Dragon Island.
…
In an unknown region of the Shattered Star Ring was a DarkStar base, where the Superiors of the DarkStar organization were having an emergency meeting.
“The carrier this time was kidnapped.”
“Did Godora notice our plan?”
“No, this is just an accident. The people over there chose the carrier to be a Silver, and he was kidnapped by a slave trader.”
“That’s good then. The intel shows that the fence location seems to be Floating Dragon Island. What do we do?”
“Send people over to rob those bought slaves. Find the carrier and retrieve the cargo. If outsiders don’t have the password, they can’t take out the Mutation Source and the Super-Gene Extractor inside. These two things cost the organization a lot, so they cannot be lost.”
“Who do we send to carry out the mission?”
“Since it’s this important, let [Ember] go. He has yet to fail since joining DarkStar.”
Not long after, a stealth spaceship left the DarkStar base and headed toward Floating Dragon Island.
…
“Only paid for fifteen Silvers?”
Peggy was already very close to Floating Dragon Island. He contacted the customer again and came to know of the new request. There were seventeen Silvers in the spaceship, so two of them unsold. He thought about it, then told his subordinate to bring two Silvers to him. One of them was that carrier that called himself the DarkStar emissary.
In front of the hatch at the side of the spaceship, two Silvers were kneeling before Peggy. Scavengers surrounded the two of them, anticipating a good show.
“Open the hatch,” Peggy said.
A subordinate opened the inner hatch, but the outer hatch remained closed. The two Silvers saw this and guessed what the scavengers were about to do. They were terrified and struggled more violently, but they were firmly pressed down.
Peggy signaled for the other Silver to be moved out of the inner hatch. The inner hatch then closed, and the outer hatch opened. The body of this Silver was exposed in vacuum. He slowly floated away as his eyes bulged and his limbs moved everywhere. After struggling for a while, his organs shattered, and he tragically died.
“Hahahaha…” The scavengers laughed out loud as they saw this from the windows. This was the entertainment of scavengers.
The carrier Silver panicked and said, “Aren’t you going to sell me? I’m very valuable! I have a lot of money to pay for myself, why do you want to kill me‽”
Peggy’s eyes were dark and cold, his face twisted. “You’re my property, so I can do anything I want to you. I dislike it when people bargain with me, and I dislike high up races like yours even more. Every time I see people like you, I’m reminded of the pureblood Godora *ssholes. Arrogant people all deserve to die.”
As he said that, he waved again. The subordinates did the same thing—they threw this Silver out as well, and he died rapidly in a vacuum.
The spaceship then sped up and left the area right away, leaving only two Silver corpses floating in the cold universe.
…
At the same time, the spaceships of the mercenary groups were about to land on the other side of Floating Dragon Island.
This was a land that sailed in the universe, like a galactic island. It had many stabilizers and accelerators at its base, and a translucent sphere covered the entire floating island, maintaining the atmosphere and gravity.
The construction style of Floating Dragon Island was rough. It had a city that looked like an enormous dragon spreading its wings when looking down from above, and many mechanical digging devices were fixed on the ground. The drills acquired the Void Dragon skeletons underground—it was a very valuable material.
Countless ferocious looking modified spaceships were docked at the pier, painted with different symbols. These all belonged to scavengers and galaxy pirates. There were quite a number of them who were rather notorious, such as these with a wanted reward of more than 100,000 Enas.
The mercenary group spaceships landed successfully, after going through the procedures, the people walked into the city together, criminals with anarchic looks could be seen on the streets everywhere.
The three large mercenary groups all wore uniforms, which attracted a lot of attention. Many criminals were openly sizing them up.
The air was filled with hostility, sending chills down spines. Because they knew that there was danger everywhere, they had all equipped themselves fully back on the ship before they came. The players wore Sunil Enlistee Class armor, and Han Xiao wore Amphiptere.
The three large mercenary groups did a wide range of businesses, so they had made quite a few enemies. Although these people were looking at them with hatred, they did not dare to do anything due to their fear of the name of these three large mercenary group. On the other hand, Han Xiao and the others who clearly did not belong to the three large mercenary groups attracted more attention.
Frowning, Herlous said softly, “Black Star, I’m feeling the stares from at least three Supers of the same grade. They are looking at us like they want to eat us.”
Han Xiao smiled and said, “We’re walking with the people of Sky Ring, Blades, and Purple Gold. Of course, these brutes will transfer their hatred naturally onto us. See, these people are the role models.”
Looking over following Han Xiao’s finger, a group of galactic pirates leaned against the war and pointed at them while they were chatting, their eyes filled with hostility. The leader of the pirates spat out phlegm, which happened to land on Maple Moon’s armor as she was at the edge of the team. Their expression was fearless.
“Then aren
’t we in more danger?” Herlous was shocked.
“Do you know what’s called full resource utilization?” Han Xiao smiled.
Before Herlous could react, Han Xiao suddenly bent his legs and bounce started his dash toward that group of galactic pirates. Without a single word, the scythe extended, and he slashed down.
These pirates did not expect this at all—they fired hastily.
Ding ding ding!
Fire sparks flew, and the bullets were all deflected by Amphiptere mechanical suit. Han Xiao was like a grim reaper; he slashed sideways and cut four pirates into half, blood splashing onto the floor!
“You’re asking for it!” The pirate leader was right beside them. He furiously pulled out a war axe with flame enchantment and slammed the axe down on Han Xiao. This was a grade C Pugilist.
Han Xiao’s hands grabbed the axe tightly—it could not even move an inch further. He shook the scythe, and its blade expanded into electromagnetic chain blades, which tied the body of the pirate leader like a rope. Then, he activated Flaming Will, and the scythe tightened strongly.
Swoosh!
The health bar of this pirate leader was drained instantly. Without being able to scream, he was chopped into pieces right away!
Herlous was stunned.
The last second, they had still been chatting, but the next second, he had gone out killing. Was he really this prone to fits of anger‽
Chapter 366. Slave Market |
As a neutral territory, there were not just criminals in the Floating Dragon Island; there were also residents, workers, and troops that the ruler used to maintain security called the Dragon Guards. This was a chaotic place, but no matter what, they had to pay a tax when entering the island, representing their respect for the ruler. No one dared break this rule.
Floating Dragon Island was a typical low-security area. Combat there was allowed. As long as residents and workers were not killed and buildings were not destroyed, the Dragon Guards would never bother about outsiders killing each other. The atmosphere there was lawless, chaotic, and brutal. The city did not have a proper city plan, and the buildings were all over the place. There was no sun or moon in the sky, only lights from the city lighting up the floating island, making the sky a patchwork of darkness and colorful radiance.
Villains liked this place, not just because this was a neutral supply site—they also liked the rules there. As long as they did not cross the line of the Dragon Guards, they could use violence as much as they wanted. In this place, killing and being killed both did not seem like a big deal.
Han Xiao’s sudden act of violence caused a chain reaction. The sound of machines sounded in the street, and the entire street’s brutes raised their guns and aimed at him, looking ferocious as if they were going to rush forward anytime.
At this time, all the people from the three large mercenary groups drew their weapons, not taking any steps back, and surrounded Han Xiao to back him up. They displayed their strong attitude to protect their friends.
The villains suddenly hesitated. Overcome by fear, they sheathed their weapons and backed off unwillingly. Other than not wanting to be in trouble with the three large mercenary groups, the Dragon Guards would also appear if their battle became too intense.
Stared at by villains from all directions, the hundreds of mercenaries walked past this street, and only then did they sheathe their weapons. They continued walking forward, and no one expressed any opinion about what had just happened, like it was just the most common thing.
Goa glanced at Han Xiao and did not blame his sudden action at all.
All the mercenaries backed them up, and no one took it as a big deal—it was a cooperation that needed no explanation. Not just Herlous, even the players were shocked.
“Keeping a low profile is useless here,” Han Xiao said. “You have to flash your claws and fangs to intimidate potential enemies. There is also an unspoken cooperation sense in the mercenary industry. Every mercenary on the same mission is a trustworthy teammate. As long as the trouble is not way out of line, everyone will be with you. What concerns you also concerns me.
“Furthermore, killing some criminals here is a norm, and it was a good way to express our toughness. No one will say anything about it.”
Han Xiao had skipped the quarreling and talking part straight away and jumped to fighting because, here, if something could be settled with violence, there was no need to talk.
Herlous now understood what Han Xiao meant by full resource utilization. They were acting together with the three huge mercenary groups, so they had the number advantage. Thus, it was a suitable chance for them to show their fists.
This unspoken cooperation instantly made the players feel closer to the mercenaries.
Deep into the city of Floating Dragon Island, there were far fewer criminals on the streets. They locked onto the target’s identity through the customer that Han Xiao described from his foresight—Horlaide, the owner of a local slave market and also the subordinate of a certain direct descendant of the Floating Dragon Island ruler. He managed a part of the business.
“Now this is tough. He’s Floating Dragon Island’s ruler’s subordinate, so if we rob him of his slaves, it will be disrespectful to the ruler…”
On the streets, the leaders of the mercenary group gathered and discussed the issue. Sky Ring, Blades, and Purple Gold gave Han Xiao enough respect, so the four of them were discussing the action plan.
The current situation was quite a problematic one. Although the three large mercenary groups did not fear any criminals there, they did not dare mess with Floating Dragon Island’s ruler.
“People of Floating Dragon Island cannot be enraged, or we will certainly be dead. We have to think of a plan,” the leader of Blades, Porter, said in a very firm tone.
The Purple Gold’s leader, Cerleni, contemplated and said, “If Horlaide has already bought the Silvers, we cannot snatch them back with violence. The best way would be to rob the captives first before Horlaide makes the payment. Since we know who the customer is, we can wait for the scavengers to arrive, set up an ambush in advance, then snatch the captives back when they are still on their way. This way, we will not have a direct conflict with Horlaide.”
“Then,” Goa said, “firstly, we have to confirm if Horlaide has already received the captives. As long as he has yet to buy the captives, this plan is workable. We have to contact him… but if we contact him as mercenaries, it might raise suspicion. A buyer will not want someone to have an eye on what he wants to buy. The Dragon Guards might cause trouble for us.”
This plan had a prerequisite, which was that Han Xiao’s foresight was reliable. Since they did not have many clues, they could only choose to believe. Anyway, if the intel was incorrect, Han Xiao would not be able to escape the responsibility, and since someone was taking the blame, the other three leaders had no problem with it.
Han Xiao recommended himself and said, “I’m experienced, so I can disguise myself as a buyer to test him.”
The three leaders thought that this could work. They made a simple plan—Han Xiao changed into the face simulator, took off his mechanical suit, and changed his clothes. He now looked like a captain of a galactic spaceship—this kind of customer was very common.
The slave market was not dirty or messy, but luxurious and gorgeous instead. Any information about the slaves was displayed in books for customers to choose from.
The Floating Dragon Island had its middleman in the slave business. They bought slaves from scavengers and sold them to the large customers.
“I want to buy some slaves…”
As soon as he entered the market, Han Xiao expressed his intention, disguising himself as a normal customer. A fatty approached and introduced him to slaves of different races—there were many varieties.
After not really listening for a while, Han Xiao purposely acted as if he was unsatisfied and said, “I don’t want these rough deformities, and I don’t want these cheap low-class slaves. I
want to see what rare species you have here. Do you not have anything worthy of such standard?”
At this time, a short and skinny guy walked over, wearing luxurious clothes. His fingers and neck were covered in many expensive pieces of jewelry. He smiled and said, “Hehehe, of course, I have the good stuff here.”
“Who are you?” Han Xiao asked.
“Horlaide, the manager of the slave market. Trust me, the things here can definitely satisfy your needs.” Horlaide did not have any doubts. He was very passionate toward customers.
Han Xiao sized him up, then nodded. Seeing Horlaide make a hand sign for ‘follow me’, Han Xiao followed behind him. The two of them took the lift to the bottom floor, and a white corridor full of twists and turns appeared in their vision. There was a pure white alloy gate every so often, and the gate had a small window in it.
After walking to it, only then did Han Xiao realize it was all single cells behind the gates. Inside was fully white and very clean, and there were many different creatures.
“Please allow me to introduce you to these high-quality slaves…” Horlaide smiled confidently and explained smoothly. Han Xiao occasionally responded as he observed every slave in the cells. Most of them had a numb face, and some of them were scratching the walls in rage. Quite a number of them were Supers—the slaves here were indeed more valuable and precious.
The corridor end came very soon, but there were no Silvers in those hundred or so cells.
Horlaide stopped the introduction and asked, “Who have you picked?”
Han Xiao dry coughed and said, “Are there any other goods?”
“Haha, looks like you’re a picky customer; I love a challenge.” Horlaide laughed in a very exaggerated way, then snapped his fingers and said, “There’s one last good product. She can definitely satisfy your requirements.”
The wall at the end of the corridor opened, showing a new space. Seeing that, Han Xiao felt relieved. There was only one cell, and it did not look like it had Silvers inside, which meant that these captives had yet to arrive on Floating Dragon Island.
He walked up, looked at the window curiously, and suddenly his stopped breathing completely subconsciously. Inside was a woman whose beauty was almost unbelievable; from the aesthetic standpoint of humans, she had an almost perfect face. The Great Mechanic Han was astounded by the very first look.