by <unknown>
“But…”
Ka-cha.
Ames hung up the line, and a stunned Jenny was left behind. She held onto her communicator with a dazed look. She had never imagined that Ames would reject her flatly. This was something that had not happened before.
Because Han Xiao had caught Aesop, Ames’ trust in him had increased tremendously. While her trust in Han Xiao could not be compared to the trust that she had in Jenny, it was far more than the trust that she would have in an ordinary subordinate.
Without Ames’ approval, Jenny realized that she could not do a thing to Han Xiao. Exasperated, her veins began to bulge, and her body trembled slightly with anger. Taking a deep breath, she took off her spectacles and shut her eyes. After rubbing the bridge of her nose, she gradually regained her cool. When she opened her eyes again, her eyes were filled with solemnness.
Ames’ rejection had made Jenny feel a huge threat to her position.
…
Han Xiao naturally did not know that this small conflict would make Jenny misunderstand that he was trying to fight for favor with her. However, even if he knew, he would not have been bothered. After all, the money required for his Version 2.0 plan was more important.
The version update would take less than a year, and it was important for Han Xiao to use this time to find a place and build his base. Han Xiao would not choose a deserted planet and would definitely build his base on a flourishing planet. He would then be able to enjoy the NPC resources of the planet and use the geographical location to make up for the lack of NPCs in his base.
After searching for a long time in the Garton Star System map, he finally chose a planet in Godora’s territory called Planet Golden Gate. It was very near to Juberly Hub, and he would be able to easily arrive at the star zone where Planet Aquamarine was located. This meant that transportation would be extremely convenient. On top of that, the planet was sufficiently prosperous, and from a player’s perspective, all the necessary features were present. There were shops, entertainment outlets, missions…
There were two reasons behind Han Xiao’s choice. Firstly, his Favorability with Godora was high, so it was easier for him to get things done. Furthermore, he would be able to enjoy a discount. Secondly, he would be able to lower his expenses on setting up weapons. A powerful fleet would definitely be stationed within Godora’s territory, and DarkStar would not dare create trouble there. After getting rid of Anur a while back, Han Xiao had decided to place safety as a priority.
Furthermore, since they were in Godora’s territory, they would be able to filter out the players who joined DarkStar. With the Germinal Organization as an example, Han Xiao did not wish for there to be a bunch of spies in his base.
Among all of the planets, Planet Golden Gate was the top choice.
After choosing his target, Han Xiao did not delay any further and left Noriosse.
Because Risda had joined their group, the Blacklight Stealth became their new ship. Its speed was extremely fast and movements agile. They no longer had to worry about being surrounded by enemies.
Planet Golden Gate was not a large planet, but because it was situated near Juberly Hub, it was very prosperous. Planet Golden Gate had plenty of different cities, and setting up a base there required the purchase of a permit. With the Renown of the Black Star Mercenary Group being sufficiently high within the Garton Star System, together with the fact that their relationship with Godora was pretty good, there was no problem in the application of the permit.
After spending a large amount of money, Han Xiao managed to buy a piece of land, and the efficiency of settling all the paperwork was extremely high. With the sheer size of the universe, land was abundant, and it was unbelievably cheap for an ordinary immigrant to purchase a house.
With the current wealth in his hands, Han Xiao did not have any intention of building a large main city yet. He did not have enough people or money. He only needed a fixed base for his Mercenary Group.
As for the design of the base, it had to be sufficiently big. Apart from providing a large number of players with a region to hang out, he needed to leave space for military factories. On top of that, he had to ensure that the roads are well designed and regions demarcated so that the players would not get lost in the base. Most importantly, the base had to be impressive and sufficiently high class.
With the sheer scale of the construction, Han Xiao naturally did not intend to do so himself. He contacted a construction company to build the place according to his designs. From the construction to the purchase of materials and transportation, every single aspect required a large amount of wealth.
While he was starting to build his first base, Ember had returned to the headquarters of DarkStar. At that time, the upper echelons of DarkStar were having a meeting to discuss the incident on Noriosse.
…
In the mysterious headquarters of DarkStar, ten or so individuals were gathered in a hall. Some were present physically while others joined the meeting through a holographic projection. Their faces were all hidden as they sat on a circular table.
Everyone in the room was at the highest level in the DarkStar organization. There were some Calamity Grade Supers, fleet commanders, logistics directors, intelligence agents, research staff, and the leader in charge of all affairs.
The majority of their identities were secret and not privy to outsiders. At this moment, the atmosphere was extremely heavy. With the traitor alive, all of their identities could be exposed, and they were all in a terrible mood.
Ember was also in the room. After reaching the Calamity Grade, he had the right to be present in that room. From time to time, the other members seated at the table would look at him with an unfriendly gaze.
Because of his mission failure, all of them had to endure the risk of being exposed, so they could not help but blame Ember, the only one who had returned alive.
Noticing the gazes of the others, Ember knew that he was in the wrong and could only remain silent.
Beside him was an empty seat.
That seat had belonged to Anur.
With his respected teacher dead, every time he saw this empty chair, Ember would be reminded of Han Xiao. The flames of rage would then burn, and he would spend a great amount of effort to suppress it.
After a long period of silence, the leader of DarkStar opened his mouth. “Anur died in combat, and the traitor was saved by Godora. This mission was a complete failure.”
“Before the traitor gained access to the top-secret intel, I froze his authority,” the person in charge of intelligence said with a hoarse voice. “The intel in his hands is only a small portion. This is the only good news.”
“Is the traitor aware of the mutation virus?”
“No, he isn’t aware about our plan. This requires a higher level of authority.”
“That’s good. This is an important step in our plan, and nothing can go wrong. It won’t be too long before the virus spreads, and Godora will be forced to send out a great deal of manpower to protect the affected civilizations. We will be able to seize the initiative…”
The leader of DarkStar then paused and changed topics. “I am extremely disappointed in the outcome of this mission. Not only did we let the traitor escape, we had even lost a Calamity Grade doyen. Ember, you have truly let me down this time.”
Ember clenched his fists and said with difficulty, “Something went wrong in the mission.”
“You are trying to say that as long as something goes wrong, you won’t be able to handle it?”
Ember noticed the chill in the leader’s voice and lowered his head without answering.
At this moment, another member spoke up. “This was your first mission after becoming a Grade A Super. To think that the outcome would be so embarrassing! Aren’t you ashamed? I truly wonder if you have the right to be in this room.”
The one who spoke was another respected Calamity Grade who had even more influence than Anur. He was the vice leader and the right-hand man of the le
ader.
Ember’s clenched fists tightened, but he did not retort. After becoming a Calamity Grade Super, he had been full of ambition and pride. However, this mission had ended in complete failure, so he was starting to doubt himself.
“I saw the mission report. Godora’s Nagakin joint hands with a mercenary to kill Anur. That mercenary is called Black Star.” The DarkStar leader changed the topic and did not allow the others to continue blaming Ember. It was sufficient to warn him, and it was not necessary to humiliate him.
“Kill him!” Ember said without hesitation.
“He is Ames’ subordinate, and I do not wish to have a conflict with someone like the Dragon Emperor before the start of our mutation virus plan,” the leader of DarkStar said. “I will make that mercenary pay the price, but not now.”
“He has caused us to suffer losses over and over again, and he is an enemy whom we must eradicate. We cannot wait any longer!” Ember could not help but retort. He wished that he could reduce Han Xiao to ashes in front of him.
The one in charge of intelligence said calmly, “According to my intel, Black Star is building a base on Planet Golden Gate. That planet is within Godora’s territory. If we want to get rid of him, we will have to send a large fleet. To incite such a huge battle with Godora at this important stage, do you want to ruin the organization’s plan?”
“This is worth it!” Ember grit his teeth and insisted on his view.
“Enough!” The leader of DarkStar interrupted Ember. “From now on, cease all other activities on the outside until the mutation virus spreads. I do not wish to repeat myself. The meeting shall end here.”
All the upper echelons did not say another word and went offline. Those who were there personally left the meeting room. Only Ember was left in his seat with a look of indignation. Looking at the empty room, a trace of anger flashed through his eyes.
Chapter 506. Mass Production Design, Onset of the Disaster |
On Planet Golden Gate of the Garton Star System, the Black Star base was rapidly being constructed as Han Xiao had contracted a professional construction company. In the galaxy era, the efficiency of constructing buildings was extremely high and almost everything was automated. Building a foundation, mixing cement, laying the walls, laying the lines, and so on were all jobs that could be completed quickly. As long as the raw materials were present, the construction team would be able to construct a building identical to the blueprints in a short amount of time.
Ten or so days went by in a flash, and a metal base rose up from the ground. This base was enough to house seventy to eighty thousand people. Its size was sufficiently huge, and its geography was simple. According to the blueprints, the base was separated into a few different sectors. However, the facilities were not up yet, and the base was only an empty shell.
The funds that Han Xiao currently had on hand were pretty abundant, and he did not have to be so restricted. He needed to build a factory assembly line, equip his base with weapons, and build a main system to control the entire base. All of those facilities needed to be built by him, and the main expenditure would come from the resources.
Following which, he had to solve the problem of transportation. Buying a spaceship was far too costly, and he was prepared to strike a deal with some Galactic Travel Agencies. He wanted to rent their spaceships long term. After deducting those expenditures, he would still be left with about two to three million Enas.
The problem with transportation was not urgent, and he would only require it when the players returned. Han Xiao had to first forge an assembly line. The assembly line was a requirement for him to build up an army, and he needed the relevant Advanced Knowledge and High-End Knowledge. Han Xiao had learned the majority of the Advanced Knowledge, and his huge capital allowed him to purchase new High-End Knowledge.
He instantly used a few hundred thousand Enas to buy the High-End Knowledge of the Armed Branch, [Huge Duplex Machinery Technology]. This knowledge was one of the requirements for him to build battleships and other Super large machines. He then followed the knowledge groups in his memory and merged the relevant key blueprint, [Automated Mass Production Plan]. It was not only the blueprint for an assembly line, it was also the core of an army. As long as the raw materials available were sufficient, the assembly line would be able to automatically manufacture the weapons, and it would save Han Xiao both time and effort. The only thing it did not save was money.
The assembly line was a special type of blueprint that could not be constructed on its own. If it was a player who attempted to do so, the player would need to first activate the assembly line blueprint and leave it in the active state before using the blueprint of another machine. This was the process to create a machinery assembly line, and it was like a form of combined skill.
The construction process of every assembly line had some differences. For example, the construction of cavalry and black panthers required a different production process. Thus, the assembly line of every different machine would have to be constructed individually. The raw materials required for every machine were different, and the sheer cost of the raw materials from the assembly line was enough to make a player’s wallet fall into despair. If not, there would not be the saying that the Army Style was the most money burning strategy in the game.
Han Xiao’s current Army Style was merely second-rate with his main focus being low cost. He was truly some distance away from the true Army Style. The main reason was that he did not have too much money to burn in the past. With sufficient funds on hand, he could finally start with his plan to create an army.
After all, the strength of a Mechanic was directly related to their wealth.
The specialty of Han Xiao’s [Ordnance Engineer] subclass was [Military Machinery Enlightenment], and it lowered the cost of building an assembly line while raising the quality of the created product.
Apart from creating a large mechanic army, the other motive of an assembly line was to forge the equipment that players were willing to purchase in bulk. At that time, he would be able to sell that equipment in bulk and use the money earned to create more equipment…
He could then open up a few different outlets with one shop becoming two, two becoming four, four becoming eight, eight becoming a listed company, gathering funds from being a listed company, then selling his stocks, then letting his subsidiary company be listed, then from just collecting interest he could… Cough cough, this was roughly what he meant. Just thinking about it, the Great Mechanic Han felt his mood brighten up.
The higher a machine’s grade, the more complex its assembly line would be. Even with Han Xiao’s current assembly speed, he needed a few days to complete a single assembly line. Thus, it was important for him to carefully consider which assembly lines he should build. After a long period of consideration, Han Xiao decided to place his focus on low grade machines. His level was truly too far ahead of the players, and the low-grade machines to him were just right for the players who were around level 60.
As for the high-grade machines, there was no need to create an assembly line at the moment. Han Xiao was currently level 116, and because of the Noriosse incident, Han Xiao had not had the chance to have an all-round upgrade of his core machines. Building a base was a long-term project, and Han Xiao finally had the time to upgrade his equipment.
Because of the reward from killing Anur, the amount of experience that he had in the interface had increased to 300,000,000. He first upgraded his [Automated Mass Production Plan] to the maximum level to reduce its cost to the minimum. He then gambled to obtain a large variety of low-grade machines and chose a few suitable blueprints to form an assembly line. With his understanding of the Mechanic class and the players, he was certain that the machines produced would definitely be useful.
Constructing an assembly line was a huge project, so before that, he built a main system for the base and got Phillip to manage the base. The very first assembly line that he wanted to set up was an assistant type machine. Allowing a
n AI like Phillip to operate those assistant type machines would definitely be extremely effective.
Following the blueprint that he had left behind, Phillip began to command more and more assistant type machines to complete the different districts of the base such as new furniture, security doors, equipment, and instruments. Han Xiao no longer needed to personally supervise those tasks.
The preparation for Version 2.0 required everyone to stay in the base for a long period of time. Herlous did not care and trusted that Han Xiao had his plans. As for the others, they cared even less. The Volga brothers and Sylvia were okay with following Han Xiao for anything. Feidin would not leave before suppressing Chen Xing completely. Risda was extremely patient. After waiting for a long time, he was not bothered about this little delay. He also did not mind letting Han Xiao use his body.
Wilsander returned to Floating Dragon, and the only ones left operating on the outside of Floating Dragon were Han Xiao and his crew.
Han Xiao was very clear that Floating Dragon was definitely aware of him constructing a base on the outside. Since Ames had not said anything to him, Han Xiao understood that Ames was silently allowing him to expand the armed forces. This trust that Ames had in him truly made him feel grateful.
Because of the base, Han Xiao’s core members temporarily stopped accepting any new missions, and only the Sunil Division was still active. This piece of news spread through the galaxy very quickly, and the news of Han Xiao constructing a base made many organizations misunderstand something. They all felt that this was a signal.
Does the Dragon Emperor finally want to mimic the other three beyond Grade A Supers and strengthen her armed forces‽
All along, Han Xiao’s ‘Floating Dragon Field Team’ had only existed in name, and few organizations had paid any attention to them. However, this action of his made many organizations and powerhouses fearful as they paid close attention to Han Xiao.
The construction of the base proceeded slowly but steadily.
