A post titled "[Shocking! The mastermind behind the war is actually...]" was uploaded to the Planet Aquamarine forum and was immediately pinned to the top.
During this period of time, Aquamarine players have been attracted by the war. They personally participated in a war that affected the changes in the world structure. They deeply felt that their words and deeds affected the situation of the war, and they had a sense of immersion. However, at this juncture, this post revealed the inside story. It turned out that there was a behind-the-scenes driving force of the war, "Zero", who added fuel to the flames and single-handedly caused the war.
Some players have already been able to access the bounty posters and immediately remembered that Zero was a traitor with a high bounty on his Germinal, making them very curious about this character.
A traitor turns the tables and severely damages the original organization—this kind of plot sounds legendary!
Someone who secretly instigates war is definitely a key figure in the main storyline!
The post described Zero's exploits from the perspective of the Germinal, which amazed the players. Just when they thought the introduction was over, it continued with more content, including a brief overview of Black Phantom's exploits. There was no special explanation given, and it's unclear why this part was included. Players are encouraged to read on patiently to learn more about Black Phantom.
But as they watched, and reached the final section, the players' expressions changed drastically:
--Whether it's Black Phantom or Zero, they are the same person!
What does this mean?
"Black Phantom and Zero are actually the same person?!"
Players initially doubted the post's authenticity, but the post also included a video recording of Han Xiao causing trouble at the Germinal headquarters—ironclad evidence, seeing is believing—and the players were immediately outraged.
Players may not be familiar with Zero, but Black Phantom is a familiar face. Since the open beta began, he has provided them with numerous benefits and frequent interactions. Seeing him storm the Germinal Headquarters, they feel a sense of familiarity and acceptance, a sense of identification that arises automatically after becoming familiar with the character. It's like seeing Master Kratos kill a god and feeling that it should be done that way; he has become a symbolic figure.
Now, their identities have finally been revealed.
He is Zero, and also Black Phantom.
His name is Han Xiao!
The fusion of these two identities, and Zero's exploits, complete and flesh out the image of Black Phantom. Players envision a fugitive who struggled to escape the control of Germinal in his quest for freedom. His tragic past and desperate situation did not defeat him; he gradually grew and matured into a powerful figure, secretly confronting the organization that had inflicted disaster on him and igniting a war that swept the world—a legend straight out of United States blockbuster.
The market for individual heroism is always booming. Han Xiao's awesomeness in the players' minds has risen again, making him the undisputed protagonist of the planet, while Germinal is the main villain. Although there is no inherent right or wrong in the world, people are used to making things easy to judge. Polarization is easier than diversity. Players don't care about Germinal's ideology; they are used to standing on the side of familiar characters. The image Han Xiao has created is equivalent to "one of their own" in their eyes.
The topic of this post immediately went viral. As the story of Han Xiao's past and present life unfolded, players on Planet Aquamarine felt a sense of excitement, as if they were witnessing history and a legend. The post quickly garnered tens of thousands of replies and was still climbing at a rate of hundreds of replies per second. It instantly soared into the top ten of the official forum's automatically ranked hot posts list, with its popularity index increasing every moment.
Just as Han Xiao had predicted, the chemical reaction brought about by the combination of the two identities propelled his popularity to a new peak, and the resulting impact continued to ferment, establishing his fame and status in the hearts of players.
He's been making his presence felt since the open beta, laying the foundation for his current success. It's like accumulating a pile of dry tinder; now, with a spark added, it's finally transformed into a raging fire, burning brightly.
The forum got the first-hand information, and the players were the first group to know. At this time, Han Xiao and his two companions had only escaped from the Germinal headquarters for half an hour.
Under the pitch-black night sky, the off-road vehicle swerved and sped wildly across the desolate land, like a wild dog that had broken free of its reins, as if it were about to take flight, while the towering and menacing headquarters complex receded into the distance behind it.
Han Xiao, still in the pilot's seat, hadn't taken off his mecha, but he had already opened his mask. He was puffing out a cigarette, exuding a strong sense of a seasoned driver. Hila, in the passenger seat, was expressionless, her pale hand gripping the armrest with bulging veins.
With a drift, it came to a stop, its wheels kicking up a large amount of mud.
"Switch seats, you drive. I need to modify the car a bit, first install the anti-radar coating, I don't want to get blown up by a missile." Han Xiao pushed open the door and got out of the car, casually maxing out the [SUI Anti-Radar Coating] and [Camouflage Coating] options on the panel.
He also checked the progress of the trial mission; it was currently 74/2000, not much, as advancement missions were always long-term goals.
Hila closed her eyes, took a deep breath, and got out of the car. She stumbled, catching her breath for a few seconds before finally calming her churning stomach. Although she felt terrible, she had to admit that, given their escape, Han Xiao's driving skills made her feel very safe...
Aurora asleep in the back seat, completely undisturbed, sleeping soundly. Han Xiao glanced at her, exclaimed, and said, "Your sister will definitely be more successful than you in the future."
Hila didn't respond, switched seats, and continued driving. The rearview mirror reflected Han Xiao busily rummaging through his equipment bag, modifying the car's exterior coating. She said, "We're still within Germinal' territory. We can't take the main roads, only the rugged wilderness. Crossing enemy territory will take at least eight or nine days. During that time, we also have to deal with Germinal ' pursuers. They're determined to Pursuit us down; they're relentlessly sending planes and convoys, even bombing us with missiles."
"Find a relatively safe route on the map, since you're more familiar with it." Han Xiao didn't turn around. Now that Germinal knew about his ever-changing disguises, setting up multiple encirclements was definitely a case of better to kill the innocent than let the guilty go free. Disguising oneself and escaping wouldn't work.
He wasn't wrong. This time, all the search teams were equipped with cameras, with the footage directly connected to the command post, to prevent him from disguising himself and infiltrating the team. If the camera went black, the entire team would be considered dead, leaving no room for wishful thinking.
Germinal dispatched various vehicles to search for them. Their only way out was to run as fast as possible, cross Germinal' territory, and enter the Six Nations ' camp to truly Escape with Your Life. Germinal naturally understood this as well, and Pursuit relentlessly, regardless of the cost. The escape was the most dangerous time, with enemies constantly arriving.
Fortunately, Han Xiao has an anti-radar coating that prevents him from being remotely located, which is a basic condition for his escape. Germinal can only find them by manpower.
But there is another dilemma at hand.
"We only have enough fuel for another eight hours, and we're out of drinking water and food. Our off-road vehicle also has limited ammunition. We need to find supplies; the situation is very dire," Hila said.
Han Xiao chuckled and said, "We don't need to find supplies; the enemy will deliver them to us. I'm a mechanic; if we don't have guns or cannons, the enemy will provide the parts for me to build."
Hila remained silent. By now, she had long since abandoned any thought of parting ways, and it was safer for her to stay with Han Xiao.
While making modifications, Han Xiao secretly opened the control panel and pondered deeply.
"Although we have anti-radar technology and shouldn't be able to be located, to prevent the ' Germinal Sprout' from resorting to desperate measures, it's best to find a way to counter missiles..."
It's practically impossible for them to plant mushrooms within the Germinal territory. It was likely a conventionally loaded short-range strategic missile launched from a missile silo at a nearby base. The destructive power wouldn't be too terrifying, but using it to deal with just a few of them was already quite a show of force. Keep in mind that short-range strategic missiles have a range of hundreds or thousands of kilometers and are traditionally used to attack important enemy structures.
As a Grade C superhuman, he can withstand small armed forces equipped with gunpowder weapons, but it's too early for him to expect to physically block missiles that can destroy an area within several miles.
The way superhumans deal with weapons of war is to use their own abilities to maneuver around them. For example, a metal-manipulation superhuman can avoid being hit by missiles, but if they don't use their superpowers to take the hits head-on, they will still be reduced to dust. The same principle applies to other types of superhumans. Using limited energy and health to take the hits head-on with Infinite destructive large-scale weapons of war is purely suicidal.
Compared to the terrifying and seemingly endless array of weapons of war, superhumans are inherently fragile, yet their abilities possess Infinite potential. Superhumans reaching level A or higher are powerful figures who dominate a region of space, capable of single-handedly destroying small interstellar ships. However, those who reach that level are few and far between. Most superhumans, while possessing superhuman individual strength, are unable to contend with large-scale armies... especially as civilizations advance, their military technology becomes increasingly sophisticated, ranging from gunpowder weapons to electromagnetic weapons, and even energy weapons. Even ordinary soldiers are equipped with mechs, making it incredibly formidable. Therefore, the Galaxy operates on a civilizational basis, not on an individual level.