Alliance Hunting Event

Back aboard the Star Origin, Feng Xiao had Elsa enter the Tianyi Medical Pod to absorb basic knowledge about the Star Sea Alliance, then took stock of their gains.

"Life energy crystals can be directly refined and absorbed. Just use the basic ability meditation method provided by the Alliance. The herbs and fruits need to be prepared first.

"I'm sure our abilities will improve nicely after we finish our journey through the Otases Continent." Feng Xiao took out all the life energy crystals and spoke to the two of them with a serious expression.

Their abilities would be extremely useful when combined with the starship. Once fully awakened, they would likely be no less useful to the starship than an Epic-class captain's talent.

"Understood!" Ilde replied solemnly. Wang Hao also nodded seriously.

This concerned the starship's combat strength and their own standing aboard the Star Origin in the future. They had to take it seriously.

"Our new crewmate, Elsa, needs to learn the basics and undergo genetic optimization. That should take about seven days. The two hundred assault troops will also need five days to become combat-ready."

Feng Xiao added a brief explanation as he swiftly brought up the search for alternate-universe anchor points.

[Special anchor point detected]

[High risk but extremely lucrative]

Feng Xiao pondered for a moment, then reached out and accepted. This was the first time he had encountered this kind of anchor-point mission. It seemed they could enter the alternate universe with a 100% success rate, too.

There was no need for the Heart of Dawn to intervene.

The Star Origin quickly faded, then vanished from the Main Universe.

The disorienting sensation of traveling through the universe passed. Only then did Feng Xiao and the other two look around, all three of them frozen in place with nearly identical expressions of bewilderment.

More than twenty Alliance starships were gathered around them. The weakest was an Elite-class starship, and three were Star-Land-class.

More starships continued to appear, and the Star Origin's arrival drew curious attention.

[Huh?]

[There's an Advanced-class starship here?]

[To take part in an Alliance hunting mission, your actual combat strength has to be at least Elite-class. If its apparent level is only Advanced-class, it must have been brought in involuntarily.]

[Ha ha, a high-potential starship. There've been more and more of those lately.]

[Hey, brother, how are you? I have a pretty daughter...]

[Forget it. She may be pretty, but can you show us what kind of figure she's got?]

[Hahahaha...]

Listening to the chatter over the public channel, Feng Xiao quickly figured out what had happened.

The special anchor point was probably an alternate-universe hunting mission issued by the Alliance. There were only a limited number of slots, and eligible starships were selected at random.

The chosen starships were transported straight to the relevant universe anchor point, and the mission rewards were generous.

But the minimum requirement was probably an Elite-class starship. Those ships seemed able to sign up for the mission, while his own had been brought in involuntarily.

As for being selected, he didn't think he was lucky.

It wasn't as if the entire Alliance only had a handful of alternate-universe missions every so often. In reality, an enormous number of hunting missions of all levels were issued every second.

Every qualifying starship could usually take on two or three missions a year. The Star Points earned from them could rival what they made from ordinary alternate-universe hunts over the entire year.

Besides that income, many Star-Land-class starships could take other starships into alternate universes for group hunts.

In short, there were plenty of ways to hunt. Otherwise, starships would have a hard time growing through ordinary hunting events alone.

The mission Feng Xiao had joined this time was essentially a group hunt, except that the Alliance was temporarily hiring starships across the whole organization.

[Briefing: Three Star-Land-class starships have been forcibly infected and brainwashed by a foreign race. They have entered this alternate-universe anchor point alongside more than fifty special warships belonging to a foreign race, each comparable to an Elite-class starship.

They intend to attack the fixed anchor point the Alliance expended enormous resources to construct in this alternate universe.

Work with the three military Star-Land-class starships and the other hired starships to eliminate them.

Minimum reward: 500,000 Star Points, 8 Titanium

Bonus: Destroy a special warship (50% destruction contribution) to earn 300,000 Star Points. Each additional 1% contribution earns another 10,000.

Assist in destroying a special warship (5% destruction contribution) to earn 30,000 Star Points. Each additional 1% contribution earns another 6,000 Star Points.

The same rules apply to Star-Land-class starships, but the rewards are quadrupled.]

Wang Hao nearly cried out. "What the hell? You've got to be kidding me. These rewards are insane!

"Even killing a level-four Elite Star Beast with strength comparable to an Elite starship wouldn't earn 100,000 Star Points, would it?"

"The rewards are indeed high, but when you consider that we're destroying warships from another civilization and dealing with traitors, it's not too hard to understand why they're so generous." Ilde quickly recovered from his brief surprise.

He glanced over at the captain, only to see Feng Xiao chatting away with a glamorous, mature captain in a qipao over a video call.

Wang Hao's eyes widened in disbelief.

The universe's ultimate alloy straight man could actually flirt with women?!

The end of an era!

Even Ilde was surprised. In the month or so they had been with Feng Xiao, they had seen more than once just how "rational" he was around women.

Unable to contain his curiosity, Wang Hao edged closer to the screen, hoping to hear how their captain flirted with the beautiful captain.

"Hello. Were you the one who said you needed a complete set of blue Star Weapons—main guns, armor, shields, and propulsion equipment?"

"Little brother, if you're looking to sell, could you give your big sister—"

"No haggling. Take it or leave it. If my stockpile weren't stu—if I didn't have so many blue Star Weapons, I wouldn't bother offering them. So, do you want them or not?"

Feng Xiao impatiently pressed her for an answer.

"The total is 700,000 Star Points."

He sent her the Star Weapons' stats and quoted the price.

The glamorous captain glanced down at her figure, pursed her lips, then looked over the data.

Most of the Star Weapons had come from the blind boxes he'd opened last time. The shield weapon had been seized in the Blood Cloud Sector.

Their stats were excellent—better than those of ordinary blue Star Weapons of the same type.

He collected the payment with a smile, sent over the Star Weapons, and ended the call before the glamorous captain could say anything.

"..."

The glamorous captain stared speechlessly at the black screen.

Her female adjutant and the other crewmembers couldn't help snickering.

Wang Hao was even more astonished. He hurried over to Feng Xiao and looked him up and down.

"Boss, I think you should find some time to see a psychologist..."

Then, under Feng Xiao's bewildered gaze, he spoke with earnest concern.

"Why?" Feng Xiao was even more confused.

"..."

"Never mind. It's nothing."

Wang Hao shook his head helplessly and turned to return to his post.

Feng Xiao turned to Ilde, his face full of confusion. Ilde could only shake his head and sigh.

???

What was with everyone today?

[I am the leader of this operation. Starship warfare is unlike conventional warfare. Though its reach is extensive, the average intensity is relatively low.

Starship warfare means exactly what it sounds like: warfare between starship-level combat forces. Its range may be smaller, but every attack is extremely powerful.

I hope everyone will act cautiously and not charge recklessly on impulse.]

[Next is the intelligence on the foreign civilization's special warships.

Strengths: High damage against single targets. They possess Retention Particle technology, which can temporarily reduce a starship's maneuverability. Pay close attention to your shield strength.

Weaknesses: Weak defenses, with average shields comparable to those of a basic Elite-class starship. An attack dealing 2,000 damage can begin wearing down its shields.]

The briefing was simple, but remarkably thorough. The Elite-class captains, veterans of countless wars, quickly came up with a counterplan.

Feng Xiao merely smiled.

High damage against single targets?

Could they hit as hard as a Star-Land-class starship?

The Star Origin had a full 60,000 shield strength. It could stand there and take the hits without a problem!