The two stared at each other before Hannes could not stand it anymore and butted in to explain, “This wheel had been shot. There are some tools in the trunk. Do you think you could help us fix it? You’re a Mechanic, right?”
“You should’ve said that earlier.” Han Xiao pulled up his sleeves, took out his tools, and started fixing the wheel while making a bunch of clanking noises. The group of people just stood around him and gawked like a bunch of fools.
After Han Xiao was done, Hannes reattached the wheel onto the car. Bennett then finally looked at Han Xiao and signaled before he walked off to the side. Han Xiao shook his head a few times before he followed behind helplessly.
The debt collector was finally here.
Once they were a distance away from the campsite, Bennett stopped, and so did Han Xiao.
“Humph!” Bennett turned before staring at Han Xiao and said, “Explain yourself.”
Obviously, he was talking about Han Xiao’s double identity. Bennett still could not get over it.
Han Xiao was delighted upon hearing this. Bennett sounded just like a pouting daughter-in-law…
“So, you don’t want to talk about it? Do you see yourself right now? Oh… you think you’re so tough?” Thinking back to what had happened over the past few days pissed Bennett off. “Why not tell us that you’re an alien as well?”
Han Xiao was speechless.
You might’ve guessed right…
However, Han Xiao was extremely thick-skinned, and no matter how much Bennett whined and complained, Han Xiao only gave off an occasional “huh” to let the other person know that he was still listening. When he saw how Han Xiao was not willing to speak at all, Bennett also felt helpless about it and sighed before saying, “Whatever, it’s all in the past anyway.”
Han Xiao was a friend and someone who had made great contributions to the Dark Net. He had also devoted himself to the Shelter plan, and Bennett trusted him completely. He would not fuss too much over something like this. Moreover, Bennett secretly respected Han Xiao for his accomplishments.
Bennett coughed a few times before saying in a muffled voice, “You… how did you break past the limit?”
As a superhuman, he also wanted to become stronger. Bennett wanted to ask about Han Xiao’s experience in hopes of gaining some enlightenment for himself. He actually did not care about being surpassed by Han Xiao or any of that. Bennett had never been one to not care about these small things, and he had always lived life by trusting his friends. Han Xiao was one such friend. Although this youngling would irk him from time to time, he was still a likeable helper.
Han Xiao thought for a bit before replying with a straight face, “Like the old teachings… First, take in a deep breath but wait. You also need to start circulating energy around your nether region. You know where I’m talking about, right? So basically, your bladder. You will then start to feel like energy is slowly leaking out of you, but don’t worry, this is common for all beginners. Once you can control this feeling and hold the energy from leaking on will, you will be able to break through your limit. It’s as easy as that.”
“… You’re bullsh*tting me again, right?” Bennett was shocked. He had a mouthful of inelegant terms stuck in his mouth, waiting to be spit out.
Why do you never change! Do I look that gullible to you‽
At that moment, the two suddenly quieted down as they noticed that someone was approaching—it was Hannes.
Hannes swept his eyes across the two and said in a grave voice, “I have something to tell you guys. I might’ve found the Germinal leader’s origins.”
The duo was shocked, and their expressions drastically changed.
“He is as powerful as me,” Bennett said. “This kind of character definitely can’t just be some random hooligan, but I have no impression of him at all. It’s very odd.”
“So where is he from?” Han Xiao asked curiously.
“Black Phantom… Oh, I will just call you Han Xiao. Do you still remember the mission we left for you?”
Han Xiao nodded. The hidden A-rank main storyline mission [New Ear – Origin]’s objective was to dig up the buried past of Planet Aquamarine. He had broken down the mission into different portions and assigned pro Galaxy players to deal with the mission. The first part of the mission had already been completed, but Han Xiao just had not turned it in.
He never would have thought that the leader had something to do with the hidden main storyline, and this instantly piqued his interest.
Chapter 266 - The Origins of the Germinal Organization
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
“The intelligence you found has given us new clues. And several various investigations, we’ve found traces of the Germinal Organization’s origins from a dead country’s sealed confidential scroll…”
Just as he finished his sentence, the notification appeared on the interface.
_____________________
[New Era – Origin] First Round Complete
You have received 350,000 EXP
Completion Grade: Good
You have received 280,000 EXP bonus.
You have received Lv.45 Rare Large Dungeon Crystal – [Gollum Protection Warfare] x 5.
Listen to Hannes
_____________________
“In the old era, there was a small country called Gollum. Their government went through many changes and revolutions throughout history. In a year during the old era, a terrorist group targeting Gollum appeared, going by the name ‘Mimok’. They attacked the nation of Gollum many times and created terror in society. The government took action.
“However, it was as if the members of Mimok were everywhere. The repeated attacks destroyed the sense of safety of the people of Gollum. They demanded the government take stricter measures, and the government did. They came up with all sorts of strict laws. The regulations in the nation became tight, and the people of Gollum were under constant surveillance and management. They called it ‘protective measures’. After that, Mimok seemed to have disappeared in just a night. There were no more attacks. The measures seemed to have worked.
“However, Mimok was actually an organization that was created by Gollum’s government secretly to inflict violence upon their people. For safety, the people of Gollum willingly accepted the strict ‘protection’. The government took the rights back from the people one after another. All media sources and any platform that could give the people a voice were under the government’s strict control.”
Bennett nodded and said, “That is ruling through terror. You create an enemy for the people, and you will be on the side of the people. They will feel the danger themselves. And when there’s no guarantee of safety, terror will push most people to give up freedom in exchange for safety, accepting strict regulations.”
“That’s right.” Hannes nodded and continued. “There’s no way of knowing why the government back then chose this way of ruling the nation. Maybe they didn’t want to make the same mistake that was made in history. However, some people discovered the truth about Mimok. The tricks of the government were exposed—it became a scandal that could bring them down. The people of Gollum were furious. They paraded, protested, and created a civilian resistance organization. It led to one violent conflict after another, wanting to overthrow the government.
“When the internal conflict in Gollum was most heated, the galactic civilization came. They brought along knowledge that could change the world. At that time, chaos appeared everywhere around the world. Then war broke out, Gollum got invaded by their neighboring country. Gollum had focused too much on the internal conflict. With the threat from both inside and outside the nation, the government fell. The nation was invaded and taken over. Gollum died.”
“So, the Germinal Organization is Mimok.
“The current Germinal Organization leader was a citizen of Gollum. He was once a member of the Gollum Civilian Resistance Organization.”
“Oh? The Gollum Civilian Resi
stance Organization should be an enemy of Mimok,” Han Xiao said in surprise. “What’s his actual identity? What’s his name?”
Hannes shook his head and said, “That era was too long ago; the detailed identity can’t be found anymore. What we know for sure is that the leader of the Germinal Organization was once just a nobody. Gollum died, but Mimok survived. After getting out of government control, the leader of the Mimok was ambitious. He turned the organization into a starving wolf looking for an opportunity in the war.
“They were once active before the Old Era war. However, one day, Mimok suddenly disappeared. Then only appearing again after a few years. And when they reappeared, they were called the Germinal Organization. Their power expanded dozens of times; they became a shark from a shrimp. The original Mimok leader was nowhere to be found. This is all the intel I could find.”
It got quiet, and they stared at each other.
“Seems like the leader took Mimok away,” Han Xiao said in a low voice.
Bennett was more concerned about another problem. “What happened to the other people of Gollum?”
“Some were killed by the nation that invaded Gollum, some changed their nationality, and the rest became wanderers.” Hannes paused before saying, “Also… the nation that invaded Gollum is now called Raylen.”
“So that’s what happened. Now we know the motive of the Germinal Organization leader being hostile toward the Six Nations—revenge.” Han Xiao nodded.
Everyone had hope in their life. Hope would become a wish, and that wish would become a belief. Different beliefs led to different paths that would clash with each other, resulting in conflicts and possibly even war, the ultimate form of conflict.
The Germinal Organization was created from the Old Era. They had been at the front lines of the conflict, yet not only did they still exist, they had even become stronger and stronger. The leader’s past sounded legendary. From an ordinary person that no one had heard of, he became the leader of the organization that could fight against the Six Nations. He sure did match up as one of the main characters on Planet Aquamarine.
However, only the leader himself knew his actual thoughts and experiences.
At this time, the second round of missions of [New Era – Origin] appeared on the interface. It was the same type of mission as the first round, consisting of many small missions to find clues around the world. There was a total of nine missions. Han Xiao decided to use his old method, splitting them up and giving to the players.
This hidden storyline is about digging through the history that was buried. The introduction says it will have unknown impacts on Planet Aquamarine. Will something so astonishing appear and change people’s knowledge of the entire world? Han Xiao guessed.
The basic reward of the second round was 800,000 EXP, and the grade reward was still unknown. The first round of the mission had given the reward of five Dungeon Crystals of a large twenty-man dungeon, the type that had save points and could go on for days. Large guilds would definitely be interested; Han Xiao felt he could make a fortune from this.
After some chit chat, they went back to the convoy.
Han Xiao sat at the side and ate some dry food. Suddenly, he smelled a fragrance.
Hila came beside him, then said with a serious face, “We have already escaped. When are we going to fetch my younger sister? I’m very worried about her.”
Han Xiao ate the last piece of biscuit, wiped his mouth, and said, “We have to go back there in order to fetch your sister. These people of Six Nations definitely won’t agree to us taking the risk.”
“Then we can go ourselves,” Hila said without hesitation.
Han Xiao shook his head. “If I go back, the leader might fight back again, and there will be more trouble.”
Like Han Xiao had said at the start, fetching Aurora was very troublesome. However, splitting up was a must—bringing Aurora along would have meant taking care of her and not being able to fight all out. There would have been many restrictions, and Aurora might have faced danger, leaving openings for the enemy. If the enemy had realized that the two of them were protecting Aurora and decided to focus their attacks on Aurora, the two of them would have shown more flaws in the fight. They might not even have made it out if they had brought her along.
Hila scowled at Han Xiao but did not say anything. They had been through life and death situations together, so she believed that Han Xiao would not go back on his word.
Hila and Han Xiao could be considered comrades.
The Hila now was younger and more sentimental compared to the goddess of death in his memory, who was ice cold and unpredictable. Han Xiao felt very joyful seeing the sentimental side of the person that would become one of the strongest in the future.
Friends made during hard times would definitely be closer than those made after being successful.
He stood up, tapped Hila on her shoulder, and smiled. “Don’t worry, I have someone better to do the job.”
Hila frowned. Honestly, she did not want an outsider to fetch her sister, but Han Xiao definitely had his reasons for saying that. “Is that person trustworthy?”
Han Xiao touched his chin and nodded. “We are in a trading relationship; he has no reasons to be my enemy, and his abilities are most suited for this task.”
Hila nodded. She chose to trust Han Xiao and stood to the side. Han Xiao took out his laptop and dialed into a communication channel. After a few seconds, a voice came out of the laptop.
“Black Phantom?”
“It’s me.” Han Xiao smiled and said, “How are you, Dion?”
“I didn’t think you would find me at this moment. Aren’t you on the battlefield? News about you is all over the place.” Dion was surprised. Han Xiao now had an astonishing level of influence, so his tone was also a little gentler.
“Then you need to wait for the latest news,” Han Xiao said. “How’s business recently?”
“Quite good, many big customers are willing to spend at times of war.”
“I wanted to buy something from you,” Han Xiao said. “The Bonfire Reaction Furnace, PE0 Nanotechnology Fiber, and so on. I want to buy a few more units of these; money is not a problem. I will give you a list later.”
Viper was done for, and Han Xiao wanted to build a new one. His skills had improved, so he wanted to make an even stronger version.
As a Mechanic, he just had to build another one if the previous one was destroyed—that was how life was.
“Sure,” Dion agreed immediately. “I’m in Andrea, too. As you know, war is a business opportunity. You decide on a location, and I will send the things. It’s best not to be anywhere near Ordina.”
“You’re in Andrea? In that case, I have a small favor to ask of you.”
“What?”
“Help me fetch someone.”
Chapter 267 - Exposed Intel, Turning Point of The War
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
It was dark and damp.
The rotten smell filled the air. The dark and cold air pierced into the bones.
In a pitch-black cave, a petite person cowered and shivered.
Aurora carefully tore open a bag of military use biscuits slowly, stopping after every bit of tearing, worried that the sound might attract enemies. After opening the packaging, she took small bites on the hard biscuits and took her time finishing them.
These sounds actually would not get out of the cave, but she kept Han Xiao’s reminder in mind and did not dare to make any noise.
This is already the thirteenth meal, Aurora thought.
The passing of time could not be felt in the cave. She ate as soon as she was hungry and calculated the time based on the number of meals she had.
A pair of bright eyes hid in the shadow, always looking toward the cave entrance.
In the cave, there was only a pile of resources, the sound of breathing and her beating heart, and the wait in complete darkness.
…
A few days later
, in the front lines of Stardragon camp on the South Battlefield of Andrea.
The convoy stopped inside the camp, and people waited in boredom.
Diana played with the fire sparks between her fingers for a while, then asked impatiently, “We have waited for twenty-two hours, how much longer are we going to wait?”
“Be patient. Probably not much longer,” Han Xiao said with a cigarette in his mouth.
After breaking through the leader’s ambush, they went smoothly through the Germinal Organization’s territory and came to the Six Nations’ territory. Their original destination had been a temporary base on the southern battlefield, but Han Xiao had suddenly requested to stop at this place, saying that he had to wait for someone.
Since they were already safe, the people of the Six Nations did not have any objections. They did not leave because they had a mission, which was to monitor Han Xiao and give the intel to the Six Nations. Since it was a very important matter, the Six Nations had to make sure of it.
At the side, Hila walked back and forth anxiously, continuously glancing at the entrance of the camp.
The soldiers passing by looked at them with admiration. They usually did not have the chance to see so many high ranked people.
Suddenly, there was a commotion at the entrance of the camp.
Hila stopped in place and looked over nervously.
The guards opened the gate, and man in a hoodie held the hand of a little girl and walked in slowly. The face of the little girl was pale and filled with curiosity. She looked left and right, and when she saw Hila, she could not take her eyes away.
It was Dion and Aurora.
Hila walked forward with wide strides, hugged Aurora tightly in her arms, and only let go when Aurora almost could not catch her breath. She squatted down, touched Aurora’s face, and looked at her carefully. Seeing that Aurora was unhurt, she felt relieved immediately. Then she looked at Aurora’s pale face and said apologetically, “I’m sorry, I will never leave you again.”
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