Two days ago, DarkStar killed someone to cover up his crime, and coincidentally discovered Paiji's Lie. So he changed his strategy. Instead of painstakingly searching for a needle in a haystack in the universe, since the Whispering Bead had fallen into Dragon Calm, he only needed to lock onto the forces that had participated in the dock battle and find out who picked up the bead. The scope of the search was narrowed down countless times.
Mercenaries were the instigators of the dockside brawl and were therefore under close surveillance. The three families of Sky Ring, Blades, and Purple Gold were all arrested. Only Han Xiao's Black Star had the authority to operate outside. Ashes hadn't yet gone so far as to attempt a prison break, so without hesitation, Han Xiao was made the best target.
That's why this ambush was planned.
--Capture Black Star, use methods to control this little mercenary leader, make him obedient to orders, use his identity to enter and leave the prison, and find out if the Whispering Bead has been picked up by other mercenaries.
The first rule of the "DarkStar Special Operations Agent Field Manual" is "When on field missions, in order to reduce the risk of exposure, try to bribe the target with money instead of using force," because most of the time the money spent can be recovered. However, in DarkStar's understanding, the mysterious force that is plotting to steal the Whispering Bead is hiding in Dragon Calm and knows the truth before them. They may have gotten there first and contacted the mercenaries early on. After the incident of being deceived by Paiji, Ashes did not want to be tricked again and decided to take a crude and simple approach and directly use force.
As members of a large-scale violent terrorist organization, they always felt superior to mercenaries, like death lurking in the shadows—high-class, fashionable, cold-blooded, and stylish. Mercenaries, on the other hand, were so unsophisticated, like country bumpkins who would do anything for money, lacking any convictions. They were even less adept than bounty hunters who specialized in hunting down wanted criminals—utterly pathetic.
We're all about style in this world! When you announce yourself, saying "I'm from DarkStar" feels completely different from saying "I'm a mercenary."
The name of DarkStar inspires awe and fear in countless races. In contrast, the mercenary industry, though vast, is a disorganized mess, a mixed bag of good and bad, like the difference between a pebble and a sandcastle. DarkStar would only take large legions like Sky Ring or Blades's Edge seriously, but what about the leader of a small mercenary group of fifty-odd men, whose strongest members are only Grade B?
Hey, that's a piece of cake.
"Who are you?" Han Xiao narrowed his eyes and asked deliberately.
"Here's a piece of advice: if you want to live longer, curb your curiosity, don't ask about our identities, and don't get yourself into trouble."
Ashes said calmly, assuming Han Xiao would be very surprised by the identities of these ambushers.
However, he did not know that the witness to the night the slaves were kidnapped was Han Xiao. He thought it was his first meeting with Black Star and kept his aloofness to put pressure on Black Star. He was completely unaware that Han Xiao had already figured out everything about him.
Han Xiao looked around. The walls constructed by the Ashes formed a cage resembling a gladiatorial arena, with eight DarkStar warriors surrounding him from all sides. Besides the Ashes, the other seven were not mere bystanders; all the special task force warriors were Grade B superhumans, eyeing him menacingly.
With seven opponents of equal strength plus Ashes, who is at B+ level, the difficulty of dealing with them is not simply 1+1. With their various abilities combined, Han Xiao cannot guarantee how long he can last. Moreover, he is also burdened by Aroshia, making the situation extremely precarious.
Han Xiao dialed the mecha's communication channel, but could only hear a buzzing sound of electricity. His expression darkened slightly.
"Don't waste your time. There are powerful signal jammers nearby; no message can get out, and you can't call for help."
Ashes's tone was indifferent, roughly meaning that no matter how much you scream, no one will come to save you.
"Looks like you think you've got me cornered." Han Xiao remained calm and probed, "Since I have nowhere to run, tell me what you want me to do. Maybe we can discuss it. I don't want to fight a pointless battle."
"We need you to inquire with the mercenaries about the whereabouts of a black bead," Ashes said.
Upon hearing this, Han Xiao remained expressionless, quickly analyzing the situation in his mind.
'It seems DarkStar Star has probably pried the truth out of Paiji, and likely knows that someone is impersonating them and competing for the Whispering Bead. But they don't know that person is me. This attack wasn't because I was exposed, but because I happened to be one of the targets. This is crucial. They don't know the bead is on me. If I feign cooperation and play along, I might be able to escape responsibility.'
He was more concerned about the extent of DarkStar's discovery. At this point, it seemed that he had just been used as a typical mercenary, and his act of replacing DarkStar had not been exposed.
It's not that we can't consider compromising with DarkStar. There's a treacherous tactic called infiltrating the enemy. If handing over the Whispering Bead could earn us the right to join DarkStar, it wouldn't be a bad option. However, the risks are unknown and hard to assess.
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes, feigning ignorance of what the beads were, and said, "This is a small matter; I can help. Why resort to force?"
Ashes took out a small, transparent box containing numerous tiny nanobots the size of grains of sand. He injected them into the body to control the brain and heart, capable of taking lives at any moment. He said, "Once you've injected this, we can talk about cooperation."
"... It seems I have no other choice."
Han Xiao shook his head, and the mecha instantly possessed him.
Injecting nanomachines means his life and death are controlled by others; he cannot allow himself to be slaughtered. Since that's the case, there's only one way.
Beat him up!
Click click click.
Electromagnetic guns sprang out from the mech's recesses, unleashing electric-like power surrounded by wisps of lightning. Han Xiao not only held the guns with both hands, but also controlled the remaining weapons with his power, firing in all directions.
Thump thump thump--
In an instant, bullets flew everywhere, and the tracer bullets, crisscrossing and intertwining like a network, spread out from Han Xiao as the center, like blooming deep blue roses!
The battle suddenly erupted!
Han Xiao unleashed a [Sliding Continuous Fire], simultaneously activating [Field Control Vision] to amplify his firing rate, and activating [Magnetic Vision - Data Flow] to further enhance his Mechanical Affinity. He also used [Mechanical Force Surge] and [Overload]. The diverse range of skills greatly increased his burst damage. The DarkStar Special Forces warriors were taken aback by this firepower and dodged and blocked in various ways.
"A waste of time."
Ashes manipulates dust into shields to block bullets, his face calm. To him, as long as the enemy's rank is lower than his, no matter what their fighting style is, it's all just for show. As long as they can't be immune to his abilities, he can kill any enemy instantly.
Buzz!
With his superpower activated, his sense of touch extended, and his vision Ashes. Ash clearly "saw" the atomic structure of Han Xiao's body. Carbon elements were marked and glowed, spreading throughout his body like rivers. He skillfully manipulated these carbon elements—he had done similar things countless times before.
However, Han Xiao's body seemed to transform into a mountain range in a daze, and his invincible superpower suddenly failed, making it impossible for him to manipulate even a single carbon atom in his body. The structure was incredibly dense and unshakeable.
Ashes's composure shattered instantly, replaced by astonishment.
It's you!
Ashes stared at Han Xiao with suspicion and uncertainty.
It turns out that the eyewitness that night, the culprit who caused the operation to fail, was none other than the mercenary group leader— Black Star!