Dark clouds obscure the moon and stars, casting a long shadow of twilight over the vast land.
Under the cover of night, the ground base complex was brightly lit, with searchlight beams tearing through the dark sky. Guards searched everywhere, and the engines of armored vehicles made the night as noisy as day. Helicopters, with searchlights on, searched for traces from above, and circular spots of light moved across the ground.
The large-scale search caused considerable trouble for Han Xiao and his companion. Fortunately, Hila was familiar with the terrain, and the two narrowly avoided one group of guards after another, hiding in the shadow of a metal building on the edge of the base complex. Peeking out to observe, the southern position was in sight.
The southern position was separated from the base complex by a wide, open area with a sloping terrain. From the two men's perspective, it was a downhill path, and if they went out, they would be completely exposed to the position. At this moment, the southern position was brightly lit and bustling with activity. Searchlights swept across the slope again and again, like a white sun in the night.
"Damn it, the number of people at the position has increased several times. With the current level of vigilance, it's impossible not to attract attention. To get to the position, we have to go downhill, where there's no way to hide. Once we're exposed, we're doomed." Hila lowered her voice, her tone grave.
The organization's power was like a towering mountain range. Although it had been defeated by the Six Nations, it had not collapsed and remained a behemoth. They were outnumbered and outmatched, and a direct confrontation was not an option. The only way was to sneak away.
Han Xiao glanced at the position and clicked his tongue, "Vehicles, guns, and cannons—hey, this is practically a small-scale war. They've really gone to great lengths just to deal with the three of us."
"To be precise, it's about dealing with you; we're just extras." Hila said expressionlessly, paused, and asked, "Don't you have any accomplices to help you?"
She felt that Han Xiao's infiltration was supported by certain forces, which made sense, so someone must have been there to help him leave.
But Han Xiao categorically denied it, causing her heart to sink to the bottom.
"No backup..." Hila couldn't help but ask, "What will you do after you escape headquarters? Germinal won't stop searching, and even if you leave headquarters, you won't escape the overwhelming pursuit."
"Just adapt to the situation," Han Xiao said dismissively, continuing to organize his equipment.
Hila frowned. If there was no one to meet her, why was she still following Han Xiao?
Germinal wanted him; if they parted ways, she and her sister would be safer. She felt that taking Han Xiao out of the headquarters through the secret passage was barely enough to repay his kindness, and suggesting they escape separately wouldn't be considered kicking him while he was ahead, and she wouldn't owe him anything.
For Aurora's sake, she had to go against her usual ways and think of a safer path.
'Let's talk about it after we can escape from headquarters...'
Hila steadied herself, stopped looking at Han Xiao behind her, and focused on observing the situation on the position.
Meanwhile, on the southern front.
High-powered searchlights constantly illuminated the deep slope, ensuring that no movement escaped the observation of the position. Every fifty meters, there was a multi-barreled rotary machine gun, ready to unleash waves of metal at any moment, standing by in full battle.
The situation at each position is transmitted to the large screen in the headquarters control room via monitoring terminals, and is divided into dozens of screens, allowing the leader to have a comprehensive overview.
In the southern position, the recruited players, as Inhuman Unit, have their own separate camps and are currently gathered together awaiting orders. The [Intercept Zero] mission has not yet failed. The headquarters area includes the base complex, and the players are astonished to see the Germinal setting up such a large force.
"We're useless; if the mission succeeds, wouldn't it be a freebie?"
"Hmm, that makes sense. This might be part of the storyline; we can only watch, not interfere," said Ilex had also been recruited. Foreign players were commonplace, so no one was surprised, but no one knew that Ilex was actually a true European spy.
"Hey, does anyone know anything about Zero?"
At this moment, a player with the ID "White Hunter" said, "I know."
As soon as he opened his mouth, he was immediately bombarded with questions from the crowd.
White Hunter, a near-top-tier player from the Temple Club, obtained information from the Gods Guild and proactively came to Germinal to trigger [Searching for Zero]. As a result, he learned a lot of inside information, which he now explained to everyone. Starting from the escape of the test subject, he secretly caused trouble and crippled Germinal. These deeds were all based on Germinal's perspective, which immediately amazed the players.
"That looks amazing."
"So, he's a key figure in the main storyline, escaping the organization, single-handedly overturning the Germinal, and becoming the mastermind behind the war. That's a legend!"
"Maybe he's the protagonist of the planet! Oh dear, his affection for me is negative thirty!" someone exclaimed.
White Hunter smiled. "Although he's a key character in the plot, we shouldn't have much interaction with him. Otherwise, there's no way he would force us to become his enemies and lose favor with him."
Hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement. In games, you'll always encounter some powerful but unimportant NPCs who don't offer much interaction. Giving favor to these characters is generally useless.
After observing for a while, Hila decisively said, "No, this path won't work. Let's try another place."
She heard rustling behind her. Han Xiao, seemingly organizing his equipment, said, "The search team is squeezing out our escape routes. The longer we delay, the more dangerous it becomes. If it doesn't work here, it will work anywhere else."
"Then what's your plan?"
"Let's charge in."
Hila didn't turn her head, staring at the position, and frowned, saying, "There are too many enemies. Maybe we can kill a few hundred, but we'll definitely be overwhelmed by their numbers. A head-on confrontation is a dead end. We'd better wait for an opportunity and find another weakness."
However, Han Xiao seemed to have made up his mind, and said calmly without any room for doubt, "Remember to follow me later."
This sentence contained powerful confidence. Then Hila heard a deep hum behind her, like the sound of a turbine. She turned around in surprise and was shocked to find that Han Xiao's appearance had changed drastically. He was wearing a streamlined, jet-black combat suit mecha. The energy transmission pipes in the gaps of the armor were flashing with a bright blue fluorescent light. His imposing aura was overwhelming and brought a shock that struck her heart.
This figure, this mecha, need no identification at all, because he is too famous. Every powerful person in the entire Germinal... no, I should say the whole world, knows him; his name comes to mind instantly.
"Black Phantom!!"
Hila could no longer maintain her composure; instead, her face was filled with disbelief.
In that instant, she finally understood everything. No wonder Han Xiao dared to venture deep into enemy territory alone without any support; he himself was a powerful figure standing at the pinnacle, a one-man army!
So that's the truth!
Thinking about the information about Black Phantom, Han Xiao's experience was not at all the hiding and running around he had imagined. Instead, he operated openly right under the nose of the Germinal, taking one step at a time to become a legend!
She had witnessed Han Xiao at his weakest point, but she never imagined that he would one day reach the pinnacle and far surpass her!
"You, you..." Hila lost her composure.
Han Xiao patted the dazed Hila on the shoulder, then strode towards the southern Earth Movement, exuding powerful confidence in every gesture.
The built-in tactical screen analyzed the data of the entire battlefield at a glance. He swaggered downhill toward the southern position and was immediately exposed to the searchlights. The dazzling lights focused on Han Xiao, as if he were coated with a bright white halo, and every detail was clearly visible.
Everyone saw this look and didn't react for a moment.
"How did the Black Phantom end up here?" Cordell asked in surprise.
Only after looking past Han Xiao did they notice Hila behind them.
Everyone then realized what was happening, their heads buzzing, and emotions of horror, shock, and astonishment exploded like fireworks!
"Zero... that's Black Phantom!!"
The truth came to light, and at that moment, all the doubts were resolved. The truth shook everyone to their core, leaving them speechless with astonishment!
Cordell, who was about to give the order to attack, widened his eyes, forgot to give the command, and his confidence vanished instantly.
All the officers in the position felt a chill run down their spines to the back of their heads. All those who opposed the Black Phantom had proven their fate with their deaths!
A person's name is like a tree's shadow!
Han Xiao squatted slightly, bent his arms and swung them back, assuming a standing jump posture. The "Bonfire" reactor on his back emitted a dazzling red light, the frequency of the turbine-like sound increased, and the silver-blue energy from the armor gaps and pipes was rapidly transported to his entire body. His biochemical muscles swelled up, and he entered a powerful mode.
The armor on his lower back, inner arms, and thighs cracked open, revealing simplified Small Maneuvering Device nozzles. These nozzles released invisible power, churning and distorting the air behind him. While in the Sanctuary, Han Xiao further enhanced the Viper Mod, adding new modules. The current Viper Mod has stronger attributes than before.
Being Mechanic Class has this advantage: while other majors are stuck at a bottleneck, you can still steadily improve yourself through enhancement and modification, accumulating strength for a future breakthrough!
"Attack! Attack now!" Cordell finally reacted and roared the order. The soldiers hurriedly operated the multi-barreled machine guns, aimed them at Han Xiao, and began to preheat the barrels.
However, before they could open fire, a loud bang exploded beneath Han Xiao's feet, sending dirt flying like a cannonball exploding!
Han Xiao launched himself forward with a burst of speed, unleashing a powerful electric cannon kick and meteor punch that sent figures flying into the air.
In an instant, men and horses fell, and the battleground was thrown into chaos!