Any civilization capable of leaving its home planet, venturing into the vast universe, traveling through deep space, and reaching other planets had a technology tree a level or two above civilizations that couldn't even escape their own world.
Wang Zhen guessed that the metal fragment in his hand had most likely come from the wreckage of the alien ship that had been overrun by Xenomorphs. The ship had crashed on an asteroid, and its wreckage had become bait in a trap laid by the Xenomorphs.
Then the industrial ship Ellen Ripley was aboard received a signal from the alien vessel and was drawn in, becoming the fish caught by the Xenomorphs.
Even so, Wang Zhen analyzed it carefully. He understood by now that the power of Alchemy came from knowledge: the more one knew, the stronger one's Alchemy became. In particular, the alloy in the metal fragment showed a level of technology far beyond that of the Earth-built spacecraft.
"According to the theories of many online experts, there are two possible explanations for this alien ship. One is that the Yautja were transporting Xenomorph eggs to a designated hunting ground when an accident caused them to crash. The other is that the Engineers were transporting Xenomorph eggs to a designated planet when an accident caused them to crash."
"Whether it was the Yautja or the Engineers, their technology was far beyond that of Earth's civilization, which had only just entered the space age. The Yautja, in particular, were exceptionally skilled warriors. Though a single piece of shipwreckage couldn't tell me what weapons and equipment they used, a spacecraft capable of deep-space travel would still have been built with highly advanced technology!"
"But there are many elements here that Earth doesn't have, so I'll need to analyze them further. Hopefully, I can find suitable substitutes. Then I'll be able to improve the strength of my armor." Wang Zhen continued analyzing the metal fragment in his hand, filled with anticipation.
Having experienced real combat, Wang Zhen was even more eager to change his fragile constitution. His battle against the Xenomorphs had taught him a great deal. Although he'd won with ease, the fight had only been so one-sided because the two sides had been working with vastly different information.
Since he knew the Xenomorphs' attack methods and the weaknesses of their bodies, he'd struck straight at their most vulnerable spots. Caught off guard by his preemptive attacks, the Xenomorphs had been wiped out in one wave. None of them had fought back—except for the Royal Guard-class Xenomorph that had quietly changed into a Zerg Hydralisk and counterattacked.
Even the Cat Xenomorph, the one that posed the greatest threat to him, had chosen to attack Zheng Zha, who was covered in a dazzling aura, rather than Wang Zhen. Wang Zhen had seized the opening while it was unaware that he'd spotted it, ambushed it, and killed it.
The strongest Xenomorph, the Queen, had also been at a disadvantage. It had evolved into a higher-level Zerg base and even hatched eight Zerglings for a quick attack. But when Wang Zhen reached it, the most powerful Queen had only just begun its transformation. The evolution had left it completely unaware and unable to move. Put simply, it was just a wooden training dummy in World of Warcraft for players to practice their attacks on!
"So that's why the reward for clearing the scenario was only one D-rank side quest and 1,000 points." Wang Zhen casually tossed aside the fully analyzed metal fragment and murmured to himself.
The Main God was a master of throwing people curveballs, and it never played fair when setting up missions. Still, this scenario's mission had been pretty reasonable.
Overall, its difficulty matched the reward of one D-rank side quest and 1,000 points. The Royal Guard and the Queen had quietly changed into Zerg. But given Wang Zhen's strength, two Hydralisks and a Sunken Colony hadn't managed to stop him, and neither had the eight Zerglings that attacked afterward. If the Xenomorph Queen had completed its transformation into a Zerg base, the final reward probably wouldn't have been just a D-rank side quest.
"If it had really completed the transformation, the reward would've had to be at least one C-rank side quest, with no upper limit." Wang Zhen spoke softly to himself.
Wang Zhen had played StarCraft II and knew the Zerg quite well. Although the Xenomorphs had appeared in films and even spawned a whole franchise, they were still in a primitive, savage stage—like gorillas among animals. Their genes might resemble humans', but the gap in intelligence set the two species apart. The same was true of the Zerg: compared with the Xenomorphs' dim, limited intelligence, the Zerg were far more intelligent.
So Xenomorphs and Zerg were like gorillas and humans.
For a Xenomorph to evolve into a Zerg was like a gorilla evolving into a human. It was a transformation and elevation of the very essence of life, a leap to a higher level of existence. Its value was unquestionably worth more than one D-rank side quest and 1,000 points!
Thinking of the Xenomorph's transformation into a higher form of life, Wang Zhen felt a chill. If he hadn't been in an extremely excited state at the time, using the still-incomplete Lightning Transmutation Circle without hesitation, he wouldn't have instantly killed the three Royal Guards that had transformed into Hydralisks and a Sunken Colony. Then he wouldn't have instantly killed the eight Zerglings that attacked next, and he never would have seen the poor Queen midway through its transformation. He wouldn't have been able to kill it in such a humiliating and decidedly unpeaceful way.
If he'd been even a little slower, he might have ended up in a classic small-map battle between the Terrans and the Zerg!
"Mission 3: Incomplete."
"???"
"What's going on? My mission isn't complete?" Wang Zhen happened to notice the mission status on his wristband and was dumbfounded.
After all those flashy moves, his mission was still incomplete?
Wang Zhen's face hurt.
Really!
It hurt a lot!
The flashier his moves had been, the brighter his performance, the more his face hurt now!
Wang Zhen had still underestimated the Main God's talent for throwing curveballs—and how low it would stoop!
Sure, I can't make your target stronger. But I can make the mission harder!
You thought killing the Royal Guard and the Xenomorph Queen meant you'd completed the mission cleanly?
That you could happily collect your reward?
Dream on!
Wang Zhen sprang up from the metal recliner, which perfectly fit the curve of his back. His expression darkened as he stared at the metal wall in front of him. His scarred hands unconsciously started to reach out...
"Phew..."
"The Main God really knows how to throw a curveball! One simple move, and it's managed to pull something while still keeping the mission within its difficulty level. Impressive!" Wang Zhen steadied himself, realizing he'd made assumptions. The Main God had actually spelled it out in the mission from the start.
Eliminate all the Xenomorphs aboard the spaceship!
"I'm the one who failed the reading comprehension test!"
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