"When you return to the Southern Continent, I'll tell you the details of the plan. I do need your strength..." Bennett paused, "Stardragon was the first to agree to provide material assistance, partly because of your participation in the Battle of Tedramira River. Consider it a favor I owe you."
"Just give me some benefits."
Bennett chuckled. "That's typical of you. We'll talk about it again when you get back to the Southern Continent."
After hanging up the phone, Han Xiao carefully read the bounty requirements and triggered the mission.
[You have triggered a Grade C mission [Deterrence and Intimidation]!]
[Mission Introduction: Some bureaucrats in Red Maple are extremely corrupt. It's time to teach them that clinging to their money jars will only get them bullets—we're not robbers, but we don't mind playing the part occasionally.]
[Mission Requirements: Enter the residences of five target officials and leave behind incriminating evidence gathered from the Dark Net.]
[Reward: 120,000 experience points, 500 favorability with the Dark Net Organization]
"No special reward, looks like a regular mission, just do it casually." Han Xiao nodded to himself; infiltration was his forte.
The transport plane refueled and took off with Han Xiao on board. Several hours later, they arrived at a plain dozens of miles away from a beginner village. It's not easy to find a landing spot in the wilderness, but the transport plane is equipped with steerable jets on its wings, providing the power for vertical takeoff and landing, allowing it to land in the wild. There's no need to worry about not having a runway when taking off, and the pilot is also an experienced one.
If Han Xiao didn't have the huge discounts from his long-term clients, the charter flight would have cost several times more. His Legend Points and faction relationships saved him a lot of money; relationships are very important.
After getting off the plane, Han Xiao traveled for a while on his skateboard shoes and arrived at the newbie village. The players there were enthusiastically doing quests. When they saw Black Phantom, they were all stunned, their faces lit up with surprise, and they swarmed around Han Xiao, surrounding him completely.
Poseidon, a core member of the Gods Guild, hummed a tune as he browsed the forum posts. He was in a good mood; Guild Leader Jupiter had finally stopped worrying about that Grade A quest, and the guild's development was on the right track.
The second episode of "Galaxy Times" featured Jiang Yuluo, a beautiful e-sports player and the star player of the Rainstorm Club, who shared her experiences and briefly introduced Stardragon on the show.
She participated in the Battle of Tedramira River and shared some inside information, including intelligence about the withdrawal of the Germinal. It was from this that Jupiter learned that the Germinal bases in the Southern Continent had been withdrawn, so he completely gave up on Grade A missions. Fortunately, their faction affiliation with Dark Raven Valley was eliminated, allowing them to join other factions, so they focused on managing the guild and developing in the Southern Continent.
The second issue of the Galaxy Times featured interviews with professional players from different beginner planets. These players had explored the maps and joined different factions, allowing players to learn more about each planet. The conflict Six Nations and Germinal was gradually revealed, and players on Planet Aquamarine understood that this was the planet's main storyline.
Poseidon initially disapproved of undertaking the Germinal Grade A mission, believing it would distract the core group. Fortunately, Jupiter changed his mind and abandoned the Grade A mission. Instead, the club's professional team took a liking to the mission, as professional players were capable of tackling high-difficulty missions. Thus, the guild reported the process of triggering the mission to the team.
After discussion, the club decided to select a near-top-tier player to descend upon the Andia Continent and attempt to trigger Grade A quest by finding the Germinal. The guild would provide resources and intelligence support to help the player complete the quest. If successful, the club would gain another account with potential. Even if unsuccessful, it wouldn't be considered a loss.
Players are the face of the club, and famous players have a higher status than the guild. That near-top-tier player was also somewhat famous. He came to the guild studio to exchange pleasantries, and Poseidon asked him for a few autographs, which made him very happy.
Furthermore, the club was very satisfied with them triggering the Grade A mission during their rookie period and gave them some bonuses.
The guild has weathered its bad period, and Poseidon is in a good mood.
When discussing guild development, one must mention the Black Phantom. Most members of the Gods Guild were born in the Southern Continent, and with the guild's support, they all benefited from the Black Phantom. The Black Phantom only appears in the Southern Continent, giving Southern Continent players a huge advantage, and the guild benefited immensely.
Many of their rivals were born on other continents, and the Gods Guild was ahead of them, firmly in control, and in a very favorable position.
Seeing the envious and jealous remarks from their old rivals, the core members of the Gods Guild were secretly delighted and felt a great sense of superiority.
Suddenly, a large number of new posts appeared in the Planet Aquamarine forum section, the content of which can be summarized in one sentence:
"The Black Phantom has arrived in the Western Continent!"
Poseidon's heart skipped a beat. He hurriedly clicked on each post, and after reading them, he broke out in a cold sweat. The joy he had felt vanished, and he couldn't believe it.
"Is Black Phantom going to run all over the starting villages...?"
If that were the case, all players would be equal, and the guilds would lose their advantage.
Poseidon hurriedly notified the guild leader and other core members in the channel, and they were all taken aback.
Jupiter remained calm and pondered for a moment before saying, "It's not quite like that. We still have a slight advantage because we learned the skills in advance and can complete more rewarding quests. The behavior of NPCs is unpredictable, so let's not force it."
With the guild leader saying that, everyone felt relieved. Poseidon glanced at the forum again and suddenly exclaimed, "Holy crap, look at this post!"
"What?" Jupiter clicked on the post in confusion. The content was a screenshot of Han Xiao's skill list, with one skill, [Energy Refinement Method], highlighted. When they saw the skill's effect, everyone was almost speechless.
"Amazing skill!"
Strength is a key attribute that directly affects combat power. New players currently have very low strength and cannot sustain the consumption of special abilities. This skill is the most needed by Esper Class!
Jupiter, being Esper Class, was envious and suddenly realized a serious problem. "Wait, back in the Southern Continent, Black Phantom didn't teach this skill!"
Everyone looked completely bewildered.
Does this mean that the later the starting village in Black Phantom's game mode, the better the rewards? Does that mean players from the Southern Continent are at a disadvantage?
Holy crap, this is nothing special, it's downright unlucky!
The core members of the Protoss were incredibly annoyed.
This feeling of bad luck... why does it feel so familiar...? It's back, everything is back!
On the forum, the Western Continent players were jumping around like wild dogs on aphrodisiacs, posting and boasting. They had been suppressed by the Southern Continent players for so long, and now it was the Southern Continent players' turn to feel bad. They thought the opportunity was exclusive to them, but it turned out that everyone had it.
Especially when they saw the new skill [Energy Refinement Method] taught by Black Phantom, the Western Continent players were overjoyed, while the Southern Continent players were very tired and upset.
What goes around comes around; those who were envious and resentful have become the players in the Southern Continent.
"Ugh, why didn't Black Phantom have this skill before?"
I really want to learn.
"Isn't he a Mechanic Class professor? How can he have such an awesome skill? Even I, a Esper Class, am tempted!"
Aside from posts boasting and complaining, Black Phantom's appearance in the Western Continent sparked speculation among players. It seemed he was planning to visit every newbie village. Could Black Phantom actually be an officially-designed newbie guide? But there weren't any on other newbie planets. However, human imagination is boundless. Once a conclusion is reached, various reasons will be sought to prove it, leading to endless speculation. Occasionally, players from other newbie planets would come to the Planet Aquamarine section to denounce the unfairness, claiming that a newbie guide on Planet Aquamarine was disrupting the game balance, but they were quickly overwhelmed by a sea of complaints.
The biggest supporters of this argument are players from the North Continent and Andia. Judging from Black Phantom's movements, they might be next. They're practically shoving their faces in front of Black Phantom —see our expectant eyes? You better hurry up and come here!
Players in the Western Continent celebrated as if it were a festival. Some players who had left the starting village to explore the map rushed back to their original starting village upon hearing the news of the Black Phantom's arrival, regardless of the map they were exploring, specifically to wait for the Black Phantom's arrival.
The [Energy Refinement Method] has sparked a craze. Not only players who want to change jobs, but even those with Esper Class are eager to learn the skill. Although the price is very high, people are willing to sell their possessions to learn this amazing skill!
Players with Esper Class desperately need to increase their stamina. For them, the [Energy Refinement Method] works just like Wei Ge's, making them more durable. The difference is like the difference between three seconds and three minutes. Although both are short, the concepts are completely different. It's the difference between one and several, like the distance between heaven and earth!