by <unknown>
If the number of aliens continued increasing, the pattern of Aquamarine would have a drastic change with this characteristic of not dying.
The aliens can be brainwashed and are very subservient, but when asked about their place of origin, they talk nonsense, and this could be an instinctive reaction for them. This definitely requires more experimental evidence.
The transmission of this alien phenomenon was unknown, and it was impossible to determine if it was contagious or not. The results of the test were normal, and the occurrence for this phenomenon could not be explained—it could be an unique ability, disease, or genetic mutation.
The interesting thing was that no abnormal sleeping habits had been observed. From time to time, the disappearance could be the ‘sleeping mode’ of the aliens. Some aliens had other abilities, their strength was weak, and they seemed to have potential for other unknown reasons.
Is the appearance of aliens long term or short term? Will the numbers continuously increase? Is there a possibility of the beast infecting the aliens? In the long run, there seems to be some danger with this alien phenomenon, and it is necessary to implement some preventive measures as early as possible.
Writing down his conclusion, Cyberlos handed the report over to his leader. His leader’s worldview was also slightly affected, but fortunately, he was determined. Due to a huge variety of Espers around, even the average person was very resilient, so they were used to all kinds of strange phenomenon.
“The Six Nations will notice the aliens sooner or later. With this phenomenon occurring, the fact that they are our enemy is not as important. They will definitely contact the interstellar civilization to ask for the reasons of this occurrence and will have no time to set off a war. Which means, we’ll have time to breathe.”
The leader was very curious about the appearance of aliens, but he was unable to contact the interstellar civilization. However, he noticed an important problem—the aliens could actually be brainwashed, and they were very obedient!
Thus, he reached the natural conclusion.
“They are natural cannon fodder!”
Andrea mainland was the territory of the Germinal Organization, and the leader ordered people to bring back research specimens to brainwash. There were also aliens appearing in the other three continents. It was a pity that the sub-bases had been uprooted, and no one was around to capture them. The leader only realized now that they had lost an opportunity all because of Zero. He was so angry that his teeth ached, and he even wanted to make use of the ‘Son of Destiny’ to lock onto the position of zero, but he had not yet made the decision to take the risk.
I don’t know how the interstellar civilization views this phenomenon, is this rare or common?
…
There were four new novice villages in the Western Continent, and public beta had been open for more than twenty days. The average level of the players had also reached LV 10, so Han Xiao was prepared to include the [Energy Training Technique] into the list of skills. The asking price was 10,000 experience and 3,000 Aquamarine Dollars. Some players were able to afford it.
The plane had landed in Fabian’s main base on the Western Continent, and as the climate of the Western Continent was very cold, Han Xiao felt uncomfortable when he first breathed in the air.
These few days, he created the parts of the python armor using the skeleton formed by the PE-0 Nano-Synthetic Fiber. It looked like thick black tights, and the outer layer was like muscles. Han Xiao tried it on once, and it was light. He had found his physical attributes improved. For example, when throwing a punch, the fibers would stretch and twist in the direction of the punch, increasing the strength of the attack. It was similar to getting a new set of muscles and tendons, but this was more flexible, and the user could do whatever they wanted.
In the debugging stage, it was necessary to prevent the loss of power with other materials. Han Xiao had spent quite a bit of experience, using [Advance Materials Science] with other knowledge, to attain certain materials.
The power system was the most critical for the mecha frame. The ‘Bonfire’ Mini Reaction Furnace was another equipment for advancement. The seller seems to be in the Western Continent, so Han Xiao had chosen to come here.
A mecha was a quick way to improve combat power, and as long as he could create the Python-Lightweight Mecha, his combat power could increase by a huge jump.
I’ll go to the novice village and collect some experience first.
Han Xiao marked the location on the map and handed it to the driver. At that instant, his cell phone buzzed. He opened it and turned out to be a message from the Blood Pact Society.
“Black Phantom, this is a reward from the Dark Net. Your mission is to sneak into the residence of a few Maple officials and leave certain documents there. Someone will meet you at the Western Continent and give you the documents you will need, including the specific information of the location and some Maple officials.”
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow and called Bennett. “Hey, what are you up to?”
It was beneficial to know someone on the top as one phone call across could get him information.
“Maple does not want to provide assistance, and it is because these few officials are getting in the way. You know the situation over in Maple—we would be touching the treasury of these officials, so they are fiercely opposing us.”
“What assistance?” Han Xiao raised an eyebrow as he had an inclination.
“I have yet to mention to you, but the organization is planning a large-scale project—shelter. There was originally a year to plan, but as the war is about to start, we can only push forward with the plan and request aid from all the countries. Only Maple has rejected.”
Han Xiao’s eyes lit up. The shelter plan had started early. With his relationship to the Dark Net, he was confident in the plan and asked an obvious question, “What is the shelter plan? Do you need my help?”
Chapter 168. Novice Guides? |
“I will tell you the details when you return to the Southern Continent, and yes, I need your help…” Bennett paused. “Stardragon first promised to render their help, and the reason was you taking part in the battle of the Tedramira River. I owe you a favor.”
“Just give me a few small benefits.”
Bennett laughed. “This is exactly what I expected from you, let’s talk more when you return to Southern Continent.”
After ending the phone call, Han Xiao read the reward detail and triggered the mission.
_____________
You triggered Level C mission [Deterrent intimidation]!
Introduction: Some of Maple’s officials are corrupt, and it is time to let them know that holding on to the money bags will only get them bullets. We are not robbers, but we do not mind occasional guest appearances.
Mission Requirements: Enter the residence of five targeted officials and the evidence of the Dark Net.
Rewards: 120,000 experience, 500 Dark Net reputation
_____________
Without the special reward, it is just an ordinary task. I’ll just get it done and over with. Han Xiao nodded.
The transport plane took off with Han Xiao after a refueling. A few hours later, they arrived in a new novice village. It was not easy to find the airport in the wilderness. However, as the gyroscopic engines were equipped on the wings of the transport aircraft to provide vertical lifting power, it was safe for the plane to take off on the runway. The pilot was a veteran as well.
If Han Xiao did not have the discounts as an old customer, the price of chartering flights would have been several times more expensive. This connection was very important as it saved him a lot of money.
After using the Electromagnetic Hover-boots for a while after he alighted from the plane, Han Xiao soon reached the novice village. The players there were doing their missions passionately, and upon seeing the Black Phantom, they were stunned and gushed toward him.
…
Poseidon, a member of the Guild of
Gods, hummed a song as he scanned through the forum posts. President Jupiter did not bother too much about the Rank A mission, and the development of the guild was on the right track.
In the second issue of Galaxy Times, the group had invited a beautiful e-sports player, the head of the rainstorm club, Rainy Kim. She shared her experience on the show and introduced Stardragon.
She had joined the Tedramira River Battle, so she revealed some information, including news of the Germinal Organization. After Jupiter learned that the Germinal troops from the Southern Continent had disappeared, he lost hope for the A-rank mission. Dark Crow Valley Base had also been removed; thus, he concentrated on coordinating the guild and expanded toward Southern Continent’s side.
In the second episode of Galaxy Times, professional players from different planets were invited for an interview, and these players had joined different camps on the map, allowing the players to attain more knowledge of the different planets. The conflict between the Six Nations and the Germinal Organization revealed the main plot to the players of Aquamarine.
Since the start, Poseidon had never approved of the Germinal A-rank mission; he felt that it would distract the group. Fortunately, Jupiter turned his back and gave up on the A level mission. In turn, the professional guild saw this mission and allowed the players to challenge this difficult task, thus handing over the task to the team.
After the discussion, they selected a player from Andrea Mainland to find the Germinal Organization and trigger the A-rank mission. The guild also provided resources and intelligence support to help the player complete the task. If anyone succeeded, the guild could have one more potential account, and there no losses even if they do not succeed.
The players were the face of the guild, and their status was higher than that of the guild. The first-line player was also famous as Poseidon asked him for a few signatures, which made him very happy.
The guild was pleased with the A-rank mission they triggered during the novice period and gave away some prizes.
The guild had passed the unlucky period, and Poseidon was in a good mood.
Speaking of the development of the guild, the Black Phantom could not go unmentioned. Since most of them were born in the Southern Continent, with the support of the Black Phantom, they benefited in one way or another. The Black Phantom only appeared in the Southern Continent, which gave the players a huge advantage, and the guild benefited a lot.
Many opponents were born in other continents, and with the guild in front, the situation was very good.
Looking at the jealousy and envy that the old player had, the members of the guild had a sense of superiority.
Suddenly, the forum started having lots of new posts published by Aquamarine. The content could be summarized in one sentence.
“Black Phantom is coming to the Western Continent!”
Poseidon snorted and hurriedly clicked and viewed a post. After reading it, he began sweating.
Don’t tell me Black Phantom is running around every single Novice Village.
If this was to be true, everyone simply had to wait patiently, and the advantages of being in a guild would vanish.
Poseidon hurriedly informed the president and other core members in the channel. They were equally shocked.
Jupiter was extremely calm. “We can’t say things like that. We learned some skills earlier than others and were able to finish quests much earlier. There are bound to be some advantages for joining us. NPC’s actions can’t be controlled. Don’t try to force things.”
Upon hearing what the president had said, everyone calmed down. Poseidon glanced at the forum again and suddenly screamed, “What the… come look at this post!”
“What?” Jupiter doubted the post. It was a screenshot of Han Xiao’s skill list, and the focus was on an [Energy Training Method]. Seeing the skill’s effect, everyone was stunned.
“Magical!”
Energy was a key attribute. It directly affected combat strength. And with the novice players’ energy being so poor, they were usually unable to support an Esper’s consumption. Espers needed this skill for sure!
Jupiter was an Esper. He turned jealous and suddenly realized a serious problem. “Wait a moment. When we were in the Southern Continent, Black Phantom did not teach us this skill!”
Everyone stood silent.
Could it have been that when the Black Phantom was going to the Novice Village, he would give better things to them? In that case, wouldn’t players in the Southern Continent be disadvantaged?
This isn’t advantageous at all! It’s way more unlucky!
Among the core members of Guild of Gods, there was a player named Eggtama.
This unlucky feeling… Why is it so familiar…? It’s returning! Everything is returning!
…
On the forum, Western Continent players were as if they were dogs that had eaten Spring medicine, jumping up and down, posting their videos, and showing off. They, who had been always on Southern Continent for so long, finally had something to show off. It was now the Southern Continent’s players’ turn to suffer. What they originally thought was exclusively theirs was actually given to everyone.
In particular, seeing the new skills taught by Black Phantom, the [Energy Training Method], the Western Continent players were extremely overjoyed and made the Southern Continent players very tired and uncomfortable.
What goes around comes around, and it was time for the players on the Southern Continent to watch in jealousy.
“Such luck, why didn’t Black Phantom have this skill before?”
“I want to learn it so much.”
“Isn’t he a mechanic instructor? He has such awesome skills! Even though I’m an Esper, I’m tempted, too!”
Beyond the posts that were either showing off or complaining, Black Phantom appeared in the Western Continent, and this had gotten all the players to start guessing. He seemed to aim to go through all the novice villages. Could Black Phantom actually have been the official novice guide? But other novice planets did not have one. The guesses were endless. Furthermore, there were players from other novice planets coming over to Aquamarine’s forum to complain of unfairness. The novice guide broke the levelled playing field for many, but their voices would soon be overwhelmed by the everyone else.
Players from the Northern Continent and Andrea were the ones that greatly supported this statement. Looking at the movements of Black Phantom, they could very well be the next one, and they could not wait to bring themselves in front to the Black Phantom.
Do you see the huge anticipation in these small eyes of ours? Come on, hurry!
The Western Continent’s players were almost celebrating like it was a festival; some of them who were about to leave the novice village to explore the map immediately reverted back to where they were upon hearing the news of Black Phantom. They hurriedly returned to their villages, waiting for the Black Phantom’s arrival in great excitement.
[Energy Training Method] became a craze. Not only were some players wanting to change class, even Esper came to learn the skill. While the asking price was very high, this magical skill was worth selling one’s every asset for!
Esper players desperately needed to increase their Energy, and to them, the [Energy Training Method] was like a Viagra pill. It allowed them to last much longer, and the difference was between that of a three minute and three second gap. Whilst short, the concept was totally different. This was the difference between one and many, between Heaven and Earth!
Chapter 169. First Episode of Galaxy's Exploration Journal |
Han Xiao had already foreseen this type of situation; in the first advancement, everyone would learn [Energy Training Technique]. However, the players were unaware that for players at LV 8 or 9, this was a magical skill. The added strength exceeded whatever the player received for their upgrade. Also, some players did not advance in their main class; hence, they would need a skill that provided energy even more.
Aquamarine was t
he main planet for all the Chinese players. Han Xiao imparted a skill that all players were bound to learn, and while it might seem like he was scamming the players, that was not the case. It was important to note that obtaining a slight advantage in the early stages would enable one to snowball and grow stronger.
In other words, Han Xiao allowed the LV 10 players to acquire the skills that were only available at LV 20. This way, his actions were equivalent to a win-win situation.
Not only did he earn extraordinary amounts of EXP, he also enabled the Chinese players to gain an advantage over other planets’ players.
Perfect.
Han Xiao was pleased with his plan. Why would he scam the players? All those perceptions were people’s prejudices and misunderstandings toward him. He really loved his motherland; thinking back to the past when his father almost named him Patriotic Xiao, but under the authority of the tigress in the house, his father changed to his current name, Han Xiao.
[Energy Training Technique] required 10,000 EXP to learn, and the thought of the potential profits made his heart beat wildly. Only when the players advance for the first time would he then be able to impart [Energy Training Technique] and reap the profits. This was kind of a reckless deal; he would take whatever he could. Looking at the player’s degree of enthusiasm, Han Xiao felt that the EXP he received in Version 1.0 would be an astronomical number.
While he was busy with the Western Continent novice village, Bun-hit-dog finally released the first episode in the forum.
Galaxy’s Exploration Journal: Black Phantom (1)
…
Bun-hit-dog had a bit of a reputation, and the moment the video was released, his die-hard fans and curious passersby immediately clicked into it.
“Finally, this should be spicy!”
“A surprise release!”
“The subject is Black Phantom. Is Bun-hit-dog on his team now?”
