When it was Han Xiao’s turn, the ticket inspector suddenly smiled and said, “Welcome to Noriosse, Black Star.”
“You know me?” Han Xiao looked at him with a slight surprise.
“I’m just relaying a message. Have an enjoyable trip.”
When anyone entered the port, the monitoring devices would automatically detect their identities. This was how the high-level managers came to know Han Xiao’s identity. The Black Star Mercenary Group was well known in the Shattered Star Ring, especially since their Floating Dragon background was not to be underestimated. Financial groups paid attention to those who were well known in every industry, so the managers gave the order to be more polite to the Black Star Mercenary Group.
The lift was very spacious—every trip carried hundreds of passengers. After waiting for a while, the lift started moving and very quickly slid out of the space station through the track. The wall of the lift was transparent, allowing the passengers to see the magnificent aerial view.
There were tens of lifts nearby like towels that extended into the sky, all operating. At that altitude, they were above the clouds, and the track below them connected the ground that they could not see any more. When looking into the distance, the sky was right before their eyes, turning from black to dark blue as it extended to the end of the horizon where the artificial Fixed Star was shining brightly.
“How beautiful! Phillip, take photos.” Sylvia’s eyes were sparkling.
Phillip’s mechanical eyes kept blinking to shoot photos. It was an assistant, so Han Xiao had given the other officers authority to order it when he was not giving it any order.
As they passed through the clouds, the view of the entire city entered Han Xiao’s eyes as he looked down. Countless aircrafts flew around at an altitude of two thousand meters—that was the highest that they were allowed to go. Buildings that pierced hundreds of meters into the sky stood in the city like iron spears.
This was a city entirely made of metal; there were not any vegetation in sight. However, it did not look lifeless. On the contrary, it was very vigorous and filled with colorful and bright neon lights. Large ecological devices provided fresh air for the city. Many devices controlled by the city management system were hidden under the metal ground.
The foundations of the city was made from a type of mass-produced machinery that the Noriosse financial group had purchased from the Crimson Empire. Once this machinery was thrown onto a planet’s surface, it expanded into a city like this, easily modifying the planet.
There were ten or so cities on the surface of Noriosse, connected by an electromagnetic railroad for high speed trains. Han Xiao and the others were heading toward City 4.
Looking at the approaching planet surface, Han Xiao suddenly frowned as his heart skipped a beat.
I feel somewhat uneasy. It feels like something is going to happen…
…
As the lift reached the surface, they walked out of the station with the crowd. The streets were crowded with various species.
Clank!
Phillip was knocked into by a passerby and spun a few times. Seeing this, Sylvia bent down and hugged the robot in her arms, preventing it from being kicked away.
“There are way too many people here. How are we going to find the person?’ Herlous asked loudly as he pushed away a rather forceful creature that he suspected was a female in the sex industry.
Han Xiao had planned for such an issue. “As Noriosse is a very important traffic junction, many intel organizations have set up divisions here recording information of all travelers. I know what the target looks like, so as long as I ask at an intel organization, there will definitely be some clues.”
“You actually know so many things,” Herlous said. “That’s very reliable.”
They walked in the crowd for about twenty minutes before stopping at the door of a high building.
“This is it. The ninety-seventh floor is an agency of a regular intel organization.” Han Xiao looked up.
The gang took the lift up to the ninety-seventh floor. Its theme was very dark. The floor to ceiling windows were covered by black clothes, as if they were deliberately trying to create a mysterious atmosphere. After going in, the only receptionist stood at the door, and to the side was a narrow and long corridor. The space there was supposedly very huge, but everywhere else was filled up by black walls.
To guarantee the privacy of customers, this level was divided by walls into opaque rooms for discussing the details of their deal. The path between these rooms were like a maze. This corridor was the only entrance. There were many intersections inside so that the guests would not meet each other.
“I’m here to purchase intel.” Han Xiao expressed his intentions to the reception.
“One moment.”
The receptionist pressed the button on the table.
After a while, a human dealer in black formal clothes walked out of the corridor and said with a deep voice, “Follow me.”
Han Xiao and the others followed the human dealer into the corridor, took a turn at an intersection, and headed to the room.
A few seconds after they walked into the intersections, a birdman dealer led a customer who had just purchased intel out of another intersection and headed to the door, barely missing Han Xiao and the others.
“Thank you for your business.”
At the door, the birdman dealer bade farewell to his customer.
This customer was wearing a hoodie, and his entire body was covered by a black cape, blocking his looks.
He did not speak as he walked out and pressed the button on the lift.
The instant that the lift door opened, he looked down, and the light illuminated his face under the hood for a brief second.
Ember!
Chapter 475 - Strange Godoran
Chapter 475: Strange Godoran
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Of course, Han Xiao did not know DarkStar’s people were on Noriosse chasing a traitor and that they had bought intel from the intel organization.
He passed by Ember, and neither of them discovered the other’s identity.
This time, the dealer took them to a room to sit.
“What intel would you like to purchase? Our organization has a very strong intel network, be it current matters or secret information, we have it all,” the dealer bragged.
“I want to look for someone. Give me a pen and paper. I will draw what he looks like.”
The higher one’s Intelligence attribute was, the clearer their memory would be. Han Xiao quickly drew out a portrait of a human on the paper. According to the lifespan of a normal human, this person looked to be about fifty years old. He had an extended goatee, an angular face, and many wrinkles. The person looked like an ordinary middle-aged man.
“This person should have come to Noriosse before. I hope to know the time and place that he appeared here,” Han Xiao said.
The dealer nodded. He took out a device and searched for a while before saying, “We have fitting intel—this is an ordinary man. We records all the travelers who enter Noriosse. We have been running a ‘Person Searching’ promotion recently, so this piece of intel only costs 100 Enas.”
Sylvia tutted. Intel was indeed expensive. It cost 100 Enas just for the intel of a target marked as an ordinary person. 100 Enas was more than enough to travel across several Star Systems with galactic travelling agencies. Back when she bought intel on Han Xiao’s whereabouts, she had spent quite a sum as well.
If she was a coward that did not seek revenge but hid, she would never have known about her father’s true face and forever lived in false hatred. How pathetic would her life have been? She would also not have become her teacher’s student because of that and never touched the territory of Supers. Thinking back, she could not help but feel gratitude toward Han Xiao for not killing her, or she would never have ended up where she was.
The dealer transferred the information as soon as Han Xiao paid the
fee, and the others looked at it together.
“This person came to Noriosse thirty-eight days ago in a cross Star Field voyage that took off at [Ancient Star Desert] Star Field. He did not do anything irregular on Noriosse, and it looked like he’s just travelling. Last seen sixteen days ago, south of City 8.”
The detailed address was written in the intel—this was where the target had last appeared.
“Sixteen days ago? Is he still in Noriosse?” Han Xiao asked.
The dealer nodded. “We have people in the port, and there are records for every registered ID. He did not leave Noriosse, so he should still be in that place.”
“That might not be the case,” Han Xiao said.
Intel organizations were not almighty. If someone changed their appearance and used a pre-prepared fake ID, it would be very easy to fool them. Han Xiao could easily do it himself.
Furthermore, the Dragon Emperor’s teacher was an Oracle!
After experiencing the effect of the Destiny’s Child Character Summon Card, Han Xiao was familiar with the foresight ability. Prophecies were not all knowing. Plus, the future shown in the foresight would not be too far away in advance. If the target did not use his foresight ability, he would be no different from an ordinary person, so maybe he did not know that Han Xiao and the others were looking for him. However, that was delusional—the target should have known about it long ago!
Oracles were all difficult to deal with. If they did not want to get caught, it would be way too easy for them to hide with their powers.
Just like how the Germinal Organization could not find Han Xiao back then no matter what.
Han Xiao could not figure out what that person was thinking. If he wanted to see Ames, he would not have hidden. Although he still had the Destiny’s Child Character Summon Card, he did not intend to use it here as the results would not impact him much.
What was important was to carry out the ‘search’; the result was not crucial. After all, as long as he gave Ames some clues, he would have done his job.
Whether Ames could see her teacher or not, Han Xiao was not bothered.
Upon getting the clues that they wanted, he and the others left the intel organization. They headed straight to the train station and took the high-speed maglev train to City 8.
The train had many cabins, and the cabin that they were sitting in was for groups. Their seats were around a table.
The scenery outside the window dashed by. Herlous was playing cards with the three brothers again, and Feidin was observing how normal people played cards from the side. Aroshia was eating snacks, and Sylvia was playing with Phillip.
As they had gone to Noriosse just to find someone, their mood was relaxed as they chatted and joked around. Anyway, Black Star was the best at finding things—they had nothing to worry about.
Han Xiao crossed his arms and rested with his eyes closed.
This time, a voice from a strange man appeared beside them.
“Can I sit here?”
Han Xiao opened his eyes—a golden skinned man was standing beside him. He was carrying a backpack and smiling; it was a Godoran. However, his skin color was very light, meaning that he was not a pureblood Godoran.
Han Xiao’s heart tightened, instantly alarmed. He had become naturally alert around all hybrid Godorans.
“Who are you?”
“Haha, it seems like I was too direct, allow me to introduce myself.” This Godoran bowed elegantly and said with a well-mannered tone, “My name is Alvin. As you can see, I’m a Godoran. However, do not worry, I’m not an arrogant pureblood, just a normal Godoran and Galaxy Human Race mix. I apologize for disturbing, I just hoped to find some company on this short trip.”
Han Xiao and the others were puzzled.
A stranger came out of nowhere and wanted to be friends with them. No matter how they looked at it, it was really strange!
Could it be that someone’s charm had attracted this guy?
They instantly looked at Feidin then at Han Xiao.
Han Xiao pointed to the side and said, “There are empty seats over there. If you’re just looking for a place to rest, please do not disturb us.”
“No, no, no, please don’t misunderstand me…” Alvin suddenly sat down and pushed Herlous in, as if he was going to sit there no matter what. He smiled sincerely and said, “I’m a traveler in Noriosse too; my friends stayed at the port, and I’m the only one who came to the surface. It’s too lonely to travel alone, and I love to make friends. There’s a saying in my home that goes ‘Making friends with strangers is a man’s way’.”
“Hey, don’t push me. We haven’t agreed to let you sit down!” Herlous was displeased.
“Hmm? You’re playing Wayne Card?” Alvin saw the cards on the table, and his eyes sparkled. He took out a deck of cards, slammed it on the table, and said, “Well, I happen to be a master in Wayne Card. I use the Light Territory card set and have yet to lose to anyone. Come on, dare to play a round?”
“How are you so quick to become friendly! Who wants to play cards with you‽” Herlous was speechless.
Alvin laughed loudly with confidence and said, “Indeed, just playing is not fun at all. Let’s add some stakes to it. 50 Enas for a round, do you dare play with me?”
“Haha, are you challenging me?” Herlous was provoked. He felt that his position and pride as the ‘Black Star God of Gambling’ had been insulted… although there were few people in the Black Star Mercenary Group.
At the same time, Herlous discreetly turned to look at Han Xiao.
Han Xiao gave him a hand sign, signaling that it was okay.
He had checked Alvin just now. This Godoran was very weak, and his energy sign barely reached Grade C’s standard. He could crush him in a second, so it was not much of a threat.
He wanted to see what this Godoran was trying to do and what his motives were, so he allowed him to stay and observed him closely.
Chapter 476 - Attack
Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
Herlous received approval. He sat opposite Alvin, arranged his card set, and sneered, “Since you want to give me free money, I shall grant you your wish.”
“Haha, it’s still uncertain who will lose.” Alvin laughed loudly.
His laughter could be heard in the entire cabin. The other passengers looked over.
The two of them started the round, which quickly became intense. Alvin was very quick to familiarize himself with others and spoke in a tone as if they were already very close friends. After the initial awkward stage, the atmosphere soon became harmonious as they chatted and joked with each other.
Han Xiao stared at Alvin from start to finish, preventing him from having any ulterior motives. At the same time, he discreetly activated the metal detector and wave detector in case he had some devices on him.
However, Alvin did not make any strange movements at all; everything that he had on him was normal. He was just playing cards excitedly along the way, shouting and joking, seeming very forthright.
Two hours later, the train arrived at the station.
Alvin took a deep breath of the fresh air, turned around, and slightly bowed toward Han Xiao and the others. “It was a short trip, but the time spent was amazing. It will be engraved in my mind as a beautiful memory. I sincerely thank you guys for your company. We are friends now. I hope that we will have the chance to meet again in the future.”
Then, he waved, turned around, and left with his bag.
“Strange guy,” Sylvia murmured.
“Such an amiable guy,” said Feidin with a smile.
“He’s probably just an honest passerby. We might have been overthinking,” Herlous said.
Han Xiao glanced at him and did not comment. Although he still did not know Alvin’s motive, he rarely believed that anything was coincidental. Even if this guy called Alvin did not do anything abnormal during the trip, he still did not let his guard down. He patted Phillip’s metal head and said, “Captured his
looks?”
“A total of 372 photos, hum… There’s one for every angle, hum…”
“Let’s not care about him for now. We shall go search for our target.” Han Xiao nodded and walked forward. Then he casually asked, “By the way, I did not see earlier, did you guys win money in cards?”
Herlous scratched his head.
“That guy is quite good; he won a few hundred from me… I lost a lot, so I let Feidin help me. He won a few rounds, and then we arrived. In conclusion… hmm? It happened to be a tie. No one won or lost any money.”
Han Xiao’s footsteps suddenly paused, and he rubbed his chin.
“Alvin, never heard of this name before… interesting…”
…
As Han Xiao did not know Alvin’s motive, he put the matter to the back of his mind, followed the clues from the intel, and found the last place that the target appeared.
It was a narrow, rural street surrounded by tall buildings. Between the tall buildings, there was surprisingly a comparatively short villa. Its construction style fitted the aesthetic of humans—smooth, symmetrical, and with a yard. It looked like a private mansion.
The alloy door was sealed shut, so the inside could only be seen through a small window in the door. There was no one in the yard at this time.
Han Xiao looked around and noticed a button beside the door, likely the doorbell for visitors.
“We’re here to search for someone, not to kill… ahem, sneak in. It’s best to knock. The target has foresight anyway. If he wants to see us, he will walk out himself.”
After pressing the doorbell, they waited at the gate. They were used to climbing over walls, so now that they had to walk the front gate, they felt uncomfortable.
After a while, Han Xiao pressed the doorbell a few more times, but still, no one responded.
“There might be no one in, or the person inside doesn’t want to open the gate. What do you say, break in?” Herlous shrugged.
The Legendary Mechanic c1-1385 Page 278
