Han Xiao was quite surprised. He had only planned to release the slaves, assuming they would all be eager to return home. He hadn't expected that some would volunteer to stay. After asking them in detail, he decided to take the three in.
The Volga Three Brothers, the Taimihalentin People, were a small civilization in the Shattered Star Ring, with a level of civilization equivalent to Sunil before the disaster. They possessed some space travel capabilities and belonged to the Philosopher's Stone type of civilization, focusing on the telepathic branch. Their racial characteristic was telepathic communication, where they could exchange information simply by looking at each other, thus omitting language to a certain extent. Telepathy was most pronounced among close relatives.
The foundation of their civilization's technology is the Primal Magic Mine. They developed a technology tree based on substances containing magical energy. They have a religion, a high reproductive rate, and reproduce by mating. They are oviparous animals with an incubation period of about one year. Ordinary humans give birth to one child at a time, while the Taimihalentin People have several litters in their lifetime. They have always been plagued by the problem of overpopulation.
The Taimihalentin People resemble humans in appearance, but are shorter, averaging 1.6 meters tall. They have white skin and naturally occurring runic patterns. A striking feature is their pure white pupils, which resemble solid white crystals. The Taimihalentin People possess high spiritual talent, and if awakened, most will become telekinetic practitioners.
The eldest and second eldest of the Volga Three Brothers are both telekinetic masters, while the youngest, the youngest, is a magician. All three are Grade C superhumans, around level 70. Although their strength is average, they fill the gap in the mercenary group's class. In this way, the mercenary group finally has all five superhuman classes, making up for their shortcomings.
"Magicians can perform blessings and book enchantments, adding new abilities to machines, which can indirectly enhance my combat power."
Han Xiao was in a good mood. The Black Star Mercenary Group had gained three new officers, increasing its faction reward by nearly 10,000 points, bringing the total to 185,000.
The three brothers, filled with awe and gratitude, accepted Han Xiao's arrangement. Even after gaining their freedom, they would continue to serve as mercenaries. Rather than acting alone, they decided to join Han Xiao's team, not only to repay his kindness but also to look after each other.
Having accepted the three brothers, the next step was to address Aroshia's problem. Han Xiao pondered silently. The mission required him to keep her by his side for six days, and there must be a reason for this. It wouldn't be completed smoothly. Although he didn't know the specific reason, he just had to do as instructed.
What troubled him was how to deal with Aroshia's identity and become a mercenary as well. Although Aroshia had high-energy reactions, she didn't seem to know how to use them or fight. He wasn't sure if it was her racial talent or personal strength. Moreover, she had complete amnesia, so he couldn't know her identity or communicate with her.
Everyone else eagerly awaited Han Xiao's explanation of the beautiful woman's background.
"Her name is Aroshia, and she's also a freed slave. From today onwards, she'll be with us temporarily," Han Xiao said.
"Why did you leave her behind? And why hasn't she said a word?" Frenzied Saber asked, puzzled. He'd wanted to ask this for a long time. Ever since Han Xiao brought her out, Aroshia hadn't uttered a sound. Although she was extremely beautiful, perfectly conforming to human aesthetics and stunning the players, the question lingered—what's wrong with this pretty girl?
"Amnesia." Han Xiao pointed to his head, then came up with an explanation, saying, "So I was worried about her running around, so I simply took her with me. Anyway, she had nowhere else to go."
"Such a beautiful girl, it's such a pity she's mentally ill..." Tai Erzi clicked his tongue and shook his head.
"You don't know anything, this is called taking advantage of a weakness." Meat Bun gave Han Xiao a lewd look, as if to say "Brother, I understand you." Maple Moon and Jiang Yuluo next to him immediately glared at him angrily.
Han Xiao rolled his eyes. A bunch of frivolous people, can't they have any pure thoughts in their minds?
Frenzied Saber looked her over from left to right and felt that Aroshia was too calm, not like someone with amnesia at all. He asked doubtfully, "I think she's strange. Can she communicate?"
This reminded Han Xiao that Horlade had said Aroshia still remembered the language, so he immediately put a translator on her and tentatively asked, "Can you speak?"
Upon hearing this, Aroshia finally reacted and said, "Yes."
His voice was like a clear spring flowing or Yuluo the eaves, crisp and ethereal, making everyone feel comfortable, as if a pair of gentle little hands were soothing their ears. This greatly satisfied the players who had had enough of the Meat Bun, raspy voice.
"You really don't remember anything?" Han Xiao's spirits lifted; it was good that they could communicate.
"Um."
Would you be willing to come with us temporarily?
"Can."
"Uh, do you need anything?"
"Anything is fine."
"... You have amnesia, don't you have any desire to find out your identity?"
"It doesn't matter."
Upon hearing this exchange, everyone gasped, as if they were witnessing the Glory of Buddha-nature.
How can this amnesiac patient be so calm? Wait, this is more than just amnesia; you need to take your medication, beautiful lady!
Han Xiao was completely at a loss, and gave a helpless bitter smile, "Then that's settled. My teammates will take care of you, you..."
Suddenly, Aroshia walked towards Han Xiao, leaned close to his face, sniffed him like a puppy, and said, "I feel like I've sensed some kind of aura about you somewhere before..."
Han Xiao was taken aback and asked further, but Aroshia shook her head and said, "I don't remember, it just feels familiar."
'eccentric...'
He had no choice but to suppress his doubts and let everyone settle down on their own. Anyway, Aroshia didn't eat, drink, or excrete, making her very easy to care for. This was originally a characteristic of energy beings, but Aroshia was a normal living being. He didn't know the reason for this, but the advantage was that he didn't have to worry about her starving to death.
Han Xiao traveled by aircraft to the office building and met Jenny in the top-floor office.
Jenny's expression turned serious as she asked, "Can you confirm that they are DarkStar?"
Han Xiao nodded and recounted the events in detail, concealing personal secrets such as the control panel and instead stating that he knew Ashes. He added at the end, "... Ashes is the next generation of ace fighters cultivated by DarkStar. This operation must be hiding a huge secret. Although we are a neutral force and the conflict between DarkStar and Goddora is none of our business, since they dared to cause trouble in Dragon Calm, they will have to pay the price."
Jenny nodded, pushed up her glasses, and frowned, saying, "DarkStar has always been at peace with us. There must be a reason for this, but I'm not interested in understanding their intentions. I just want to hold them accountable. Luckily, you recognized their origins, otherwise DarkStar would have really gotten away with the hit-and-run. When Ames returns, DarkStar will pay the price for this provocation."
Having successfully tripped up DarkStar, Han Xiao nodded inwardly. When dealing with a powerful force, using someone else to do the dirty work or diverting trouble is naturally the best approach. DarkStar is secretive and powerful, and if Han Xiao didn't wait for the plot to begin, he wouldn't be able to do anything about them. But DarkStar has personally delivered an opportunity, so how could he not take advantage of it?
Given Ames's personality, coupled with her recent bad mood, DarkStar has essentially walked into a trap. It's just a pity that Ames isn't in Dragon Calm right now, otherwise, a Thunder move by Thunder could have nipped DarkStar's future trump card in the bud, which would have been a devastating blow to DarkStar.
Dragon Calm will not reveal any information, allowing DarkStar to believe that everything is safe, and they will settle scores later. It is because he joined Dragon Calm that he was able to successfully leverage their power, which is one of the largest forces in the Shattered Star Ring.
Maneuvering between factions and stirring up trouble, Han Xiao has always made the most of his advantages. Now, he is finally spreading his wings in the interstellar space. The complex power relationships between various civilizations are hundreds or thousands of times more complicated than those on Planet Aquamarine. Even the smallest ripple, after being catalyzed by many parties, could potentially turn into a tsunami, affecting everything!