by <unknown>
“This is the third time that our Godora has made a transaction with you. Your intelligence is extremely important. Are you completing this transaction as an individual, or are you representing Floating Dragon?” Serbia The Fifth asked.
“Representing Floating Dragon, I guess,” Han Xiao said. This meant that he was using his status as an assurance, and it was extremely official.
“What do you want?”
Godora would definitely want to obtain the intelligence that he had, and Han Xiao was not planning on holding back his demands.
Narrowing his eyes, Han Xiao slowly said, “Fifty middle sized battleships and one large sized mothership. I don’t want Godora’s models and want pure technological products. Second, I want to gain access to your knowledge bank and allow me to make a copy of a portion of the knowledge. Third, after the matter is over, reveal my contribution to the galaxy. Fourth, I want 20,000,000 Enas.”
Those conditions of his were more than ten times harsher than the previous transaction with the Mutation Source. Every department had a limited budget, and this amount was not at all small. Not too long ago, they had just hired the many mercenary groups, and they were truly burning money too quickly. Serbia the Fifth frowned for a moment and fell silent.
“Okay, we will first pay you 5,000,000 Enas. The rest of the payment and the battleships will be paid after everything is over. At that time, we can allow you to make a copy of five different knowledges. As for announcing your merits, you want to raise your reputation, right? Alright, as long as we are successful, we can make an official announcement.”
Woah, he accepted it without even bothering to bargaining. I should have raised my price. Han Xiao coughed dryly and hesitantly said, “Is it too late to change the price?”
“It’s too late,” Serbia the Fifth said with a darkened expression.
Han Xiao shook his head. This was the largest transaction that he had made to date. While this intelligence was valuable, Godora would have to mobilize their own forces at the end of the day, and it would not be too good for him to extort them. Even if it was an extremely important piece of intelligence, Godora would definitely try and suppress the price and not casually agree to his exorbitant price.
Han Xiao was about to bring the players into the galaxy, and he needed a lot of money for the early stages of his plan. With this new injection, his capital should be enough to last him a long time. If he only considered the cost price of a spaceship, 20,000,000 Enas would be sufficient to purchase a fleet of almost a hundred spaceships.
“Let’s have a pleasant time working together,” Han Xiao said.
“Hmm, we will await the good news. Nagakin, stay behind on Planet Aquamarine for now; you will be in charge of communication.”
“Yes.” Nagakin nodded.
…
A few days after the assault on Planet Golden Gate, in some corner of the Garton Star System, a fleet of DarkStar battleships was moving at high speed.
This fleet was currently on their way to Planet Aquamarine, and Degulish was the commander of the fleet. Ember was also part of the squad together with a high ranked officer named Terry. There was a total of three Calamity Grade Supers present in the squad. In order to get rid of Black Star, Degulish had sent out more than half of their high-end combat force.
With their ambush on Planet Golden Gate failing, the leader of DarkStar was only slightly surprised and did not have much of a reaction. He only got Degulish to follow their plan and attack Planet Aquamarine. Currently, DarkStar’s plan had gone completely off-track, and they could only seize every opportunity they had to create losses for Godora. At this moment, their aggro toward Han Xiao was extremely stable.
Taking into account the fact that Black Star had the BlackLight Stealth, which was best at escaping, they knew that they had to force Black Star into a battle if they wanted to kill him. Thus, they had chosen to ambush Black Star’s home planet so that Black Star would stay behind and fight.
“We shall wait for Godora’s fleet to leave before attacking Planet Aquamarine. Make use of the space disruptor to cover the atmosphere of Planet Aquamarine. While it won’t be useful in dealing with the BlackLight Stealth, we will be able to prolong the time needed to open up a space channel to Planet Aquamarine and prevent reinforcements from the other calamity planets. I have already checked. Ames left the Garton Star System a few days ago, and Black Star’s backer isn’t around.
“Ember will lead a portion of our forces as the spear head, and the rest of us will hide. We will only make our appearance after Ember ties Black Star down. We cannot reveal all of our strength, or we will scare Black Star away.”
Degulish had a solemn expression.
Terry did not voice any disagreements.
“I will not make the same mistake that I did in Noriosse,” Ember said coldly. “My ability is capable of massacring the commoners. As long as he cares, I will be able to force him to fight me. You’d all better appear quickly. If not, I may end up massacring the whole of Planet Aquamarine.”
Chapter 568. Imminent Danger! |
The ‘Galaxy Times’ had released a new program for the week.
As usual, the players on the forums were bustling, eager to know about this week’s program.
The familiar faces of the two hosts once again appeared in front of the camera, saying the same familiar catchphrase opening sentences.
“Hello players, this is Galaxy Times, dedicated to sharing first-hand game information,” the male host said. “Your gaming career is our top priority.”
“Based on an anonymous response from our player friends, the station has decided to cancel the joke section. We’re a serious news channel, and our principle has always been to deliver the most accurate and detailed news, not gain viewers through the usage of humor… hehe.” The female host solemnly read out from the script but started laughing halfway.
“Be serious.” The male host was seated upright, his gaze not shifting, and his lips did not even open when he was speaking, as though the words came directly from his throat.
A number of the viewers cheered, and the entire screen blurred with all sorts of chatter 1 .
“Hey hey, what’s this about cancelling? This program was originally for lame jokes!”
“Hahaha, this is even funnier than their original lame jokes!”
The program continued as the female host regained her composure. “This week’s program was delayed for two days. This was because its content was originally about the Main Storyline for Version 2.0 on each planet. However, with the recent happenings on Planet Aquamarine, we had to change the content. Let’s look at the content for this week…”
This week’s ‘Galaxy Times’ episode was about the Version 2.0 Main Storyline for each of the novice planets. At this point, the majority of novice planets were already somewhat aware of the storyline and were just about to enter the most exciting phase.
But the actions on Planet Aquamarine had resulted in the Galaxy Times changing their report. This was because they had managed to end the Mutation Disaster; thus, their prepared content had to be updated.
While the players on the other planets were still happily progressing along the plot, the players on Planet Aquamarine had already completed their task.
This caused the players from the other planets to feel envious and jealous.
The last feature of the program was about Planet Aquamarine.
“In Version 1.0, Planet Aquamarine was also the only planet that managed to have players enter the interstellar area. If we look across the board, each novice planet has a certain specialty, and the specialty of Planet Aquamarine is to allow their players to enter the interstellar stage earlier.
“This time, Planet Aquamarine ended the Main Storyline of Version 2.0 way ahead of schedule. This also means that the players will enter the interstellar maps earlier than the other novice planets. Based off the current circumstances on Planet Aquamarine, it seems like the NPC guide to the interstellar path is Bla
ck Phantom, now known as Black Star. This is a legendary figure, with many channels dedicating themselves to understanding his past deeds. I will not waste time introducing him here.”
While the Main Storyline of the planet had ended early, the players had also gotten the opportunity to enter the interstellar region earlier. To all the players, this was many times better than the storyline in Version 2.0!
All the players on Planet Aquamarine were overjoyed, and the Chinese clubs were even happier. This meant that they had correctly chosen their starting planet to be Planet Aquamarine, as it allowed them to pull forward from all the other esports clubs all over the world.
“From Black Star, we found out that the other novice planets will all have a faction with a guide. We will now focus on the introduction of Black Star and his Mercenary Group’s actions on Planet Aquamarine…”
The two hosts recited their lines, analyzing the actions of Han Xiao in the Mutation Disaster from various angles. This was followed by analysis of the merits of joining the Black Star Mercenary Group, and they eventually gave a high evaluation.
Based on the knowledge given by the professional players under Black Star in Version 1.0, they knew that the privileges offered by the Black Star Mercenary Group were numerous. Furthermore, it was still a faction in its infancy. This meant that with the players fighting for the mercenary group, they could further increase its value, adding more benefits for themselves.
Thus, the Galaxy Times felt that the faction was something to be considered in the long term, and it was even possible for Black Star himself to be a hidden Main Storyline.
The players of Planet Aquamarine had long understood this from the start and thus did not show much response. Instead, it was the players all over the other novice planets that sighed in envy. Why did they not manage to get such a good NPC?
“They really did a great job inflating me.”
Han Xiao was also viewing this program. The ‘Galaxy Times’ contained a lot of complicated content, and it was unlike the video channels made by Bun-Hit-Dog that were only meant for viewership. The ‘Galaxy Times’ had a colossal audience, and they mainly reported on events that had wide reaching impact. By talking about him, they had indirectly helped raise his reputation, attracting many potential players to this planet.
Turning off the forum, Han Xiao focused on the scene before his eyes. Right now, he was in the refugee area outside the Second Sanctuary. Bennett’s Sanctuaries were no longer just shelters but rather urbanized cities. While the Mutation Disaster had just ended, a few of the stronger willed refugees had already begun to eke out a living once again and come out with their own little businesses and shops. They could not be termed refugees anymore but rather just residents.
Han Xiao sat outside a small street stall on the roadside. He had heard that the owner of this humble stall used to be a senior executive chef and had fled to seek refuge when the disaster struck. While he only used cheaper ingredients now, the taste was superb. The meat broth bubbled merrily on a stove, the rich fragrance wafting out, and the chef was even searing meat by the side using a metal pan. His wife was his kitchen aide and was stir-frying vegetables. The aroma of cooking food caused many passersby to glance back a second time.
There was a long queue in front of this booth, with people by the roadside wolfing down their food. There was a person who almost swallowed his fingers as well while eating. In the last few months, there was barely anyone who had eaten a proper meal. While the fare provided was simple, the combination of food with oil heightened their impression to that of a delicacy, allowing these people to soothe their strained heartstrings.
This street had originally been a dirty refugee camp, but now, it was so much cleaner. The atmosphere was no longer as depressed. A few of the refugees who had decided to stay had begun demolishing the tents and building simple houses, causing the streets to appear like a construction site and become a hubbub of noise and chatter.
“Sister, this is very nice!”
Seated opposite on the small table, Aurora cradled a bowl, making slurping noises as she ate. Her cheeks wobbled with every bite, causing her to resemble a tiny squirrel.
Hila only ate a few mouthfuls before she stopped. She stretched out a hand, tucking the stray strands of hair behind Aurora’s ear, softly patting her back at the same time to ensure she did not choke.
The Great Mechanic Han was not so solitary that he would go shopping alone. He had asked the two sisters along with him, to observe the situation around the Sanctuary, as well as to talk about any issues they would have with the Dragon Emperor.
Although the Mutation Disaster had ended and the problem of Planet Aquamarine was resolved along with the leaving of the Godoran spaceship, Nagakin had surprisingly stayed to be in charge of communications.
Han Xiao estimated that the players would have probably gotten used to the fact that the Main Storyline had ended, and thus decided to wrap things up and formally take the players away. In the meantime, Ames had instructed him to take the two sisters over to Floating Dragon. Having asked the two of them, he did not receive any objections.
As they ate, Han Xiao transmitted his thoughts over to Risda. Risda had been attempting to hack into DarkStar mothership for a few days but still had not managed to completely break into the database.
However, according to the update sent by Risda, the estimated time should be near. As long as the hack was successful, the locations of all the DarkStar motherships would be revealed, which would spell their death.
Recently, news has spread about the increase in development of the Mutation Source on the calamity planets. The Godoran rescue teams are getting frustrated. It seems as though the infiltration teams of DarkStar on each planet have found the Mutation Source and fed it enough energy to accelerate its development. They have not given up just yet.
Han Xiao sat there silently contemplating before shaking his head. Most likely, Godora’s current attention was no longer on providing disaster relief. He had to wait for his own intelligence to completely destroy the tumor that was DarkStar.
Wiping his mouth, Han Xiao stood up and prepared to pay. Seeing this, the chef hurriedly wiped his hands, rejecting the payment.
“Your Honor, you’re the savior of our planet; everyone here owes you their life. How could we accept your payment?”
The attitude of the stall owner was determined, and this attracted the chorus of the surrounding crowd.
Hearing this, Han Xiao did not insist, instead patting Hila on the head and saying, “Then you pay.”
“Did I allow you to touch my head? Do you think I’m Aurora‽”
Hila grumpily smacked off Han Xiao’s hand, glaring at him, before talking out her purse.
Du! Du!
At this time, his communicator sounded. It was a message from Risda.
“I’ve succeeded in hacking into their database and have located the coordinates of all the DarkStar motherships. I’ve discovered that there is a mothership that’s moving toward Planet Aquamarine. It’s extremely close, and there are three Calamity Grade Supers within. You have to be careful.”
The first half of the sentence left Han Xiao in joy, but the latter half caused his expression to sink.
A DarkStar mothership is approaching Planet Aquamarine‽
It went without saying, the three Calamity Grade Supers definitely did not come here for sightseeing!
“Could it be that DarkStar wishes to eradicate the calamity planet that has managed to resolve the mutation disaster‽”
Han Xiao’s thoughts flashed, and he came up with a conjecture that was close to the mark.
However, their motive should also be to deal with him, or else they would not have brought out three Calamity Grades.
Could it be that DarkStar had discovered his involvement and schemes‽
Han Xiao groaned inwardly. Since the Godoran frigate was not present, he alone was unable to withstand the attacks from a mothership.
The circumstan
ces were dire!
He immediately contacted Nagakin. The first issue now was to remain rational and seek for help.
“I’ve discovered a DarkStar mothership in the vicinity of Planet Aquamarine. They most likely wish to eradicate this planet, and thus, danger is imminent. We have to request for assistance!”
“What‽ I’ll report it up now!” Nagakin exclaimed.
Since they were still within their honeymoon period of cooperating, Godora would definitely come to his aid.
Han Xiao did not stop to rest, immediately contacting Bennett and the Six Nations. He requested for them to arrange staff to guide the people in the cities to take shelter in the underground air defense facilities.
DarkStar would be launching a global strike, and without the frigate from Godora to protect the planet, the danger would be a hundred times higher. This would be akin to throwing a delicate pretty girl into a group of sex-starved men. They could only try to minimize the losses before the reinforcements came.
This was the greatest crisis that Planet Aquamarine had ever faced. DarkStar was an enemy that this planet could not afford to face. If they did not handle the situation properly, their civilization would end there and then!
Just like the Sunil civilization of the past.
“What’s wrong?” Hila caught Han Xiao’s expression and furrowed her brows.
“There’s a fleet that’s about to attack us. Don’t tarry here any longer. Take your sister to the Sanctuary to hide. I’ll activate the protective shield later,” Han Xiao replied swiftly.
“Aurora will return. I can stay to protect you,” Hila replied in a solemn tone.
“Help my *ss, this battlefield is way too early for you to be participating in!”
Han Xiao was not courteous at all. When faced with three Calamity Grades, even he would feel the pressure. If not for the fact that he had received the two Molding Abilities that made him into something of a power generator, he would not take the risk of facing the enemy at all. To think that Hila, who was far from having the qualifications to participate, wanted to join in!