Glancing at the expectant looks on everyone's faces, Han Xiao opened the faction interface, placed the Sunil Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor, and some low-level mechanical blueprints that he had previously fused together that he no longer needed.
The blueprints are only suitable for Mechanic Class. Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor is the main reason why it sells better. Last time, players earned extra repair and upgrade fees from Soldier-Grade Armor. Now that sergeant-level armor is being released, players with money in their pockets won't be stingy.
There are three types of Sunil armor: Assault, Defense, and Reconnaissance. The Sergeant-level version has enhancements, with armor averaging three times higher than the Soldier-level, a total attribute bonus of 15 points, and an additional 20 attack power in close combat. It also includes new attachments. The Reconnaissance type offers high mobility, leg-mounted propulsion for long jumps, and the ability to deploy chainsaw wrist blades from its arm armor, making it fearless in close combat. The Defense type is equipped with heavy firepower, geared towards long-range combat, wielding a large-caliber autocannon firing armor-piercing rounds. The weapon can be folded in half; when unfolded, the autocannon is roughly the size of a person. Each shot fires like a burst of smoke, the bullets like small, burning fireballs, with a high rate of fire, unleashing a series of crimson flashes, and a drum-like, resounding sound. It has a 250-round magazine and several additional magazines. The Assault type combines the advantages of both types, making it more well-rounded.
Previously, Li Ge had exchanged the Whispering Bead for Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor, a Reconnaissance type. Everyone else knew the equipment's attributes and was envious. Now that the faction shop had been updated, they were all invigorated and rushed to buy it without any explanation.
His price was 1400 Enas, and he also set a reputation cost, requiring 1000 reputation points. He set it so that within the 0-1000 favorability range, 50 Enas could be exchanged for 100 faction reputation points. The player's last purchase of the Soldier-level weapon cost 500 reputation points, which was used up. After this mission, Han Xiao rewarded them with another 300 reputation points. In other words, the actual cost of purchasing the Sergeant-level weapon was 1750 Enas.
The player received approximately 5,000 Enas from the Silver Spirit People, which was about a third of the total reward. However, the player did not hesitate, as professional players earn money to buy equipment and maximize their combat power.
There were seven Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor in stock; the rest were sold via pre-order. Players were used to this and never doubted the faction's credibility. The first seven to purchase received their actual armor: a grayish-brown metal, heavy and tough, with sharp edges, exuding a strong steely aura—a silent weapon of war with a unique charm.
Frenzied Saber snatched one of the items, quickly put it on, and finally donned the helmet, which activated the helmet's built-in combat analysis view. Everything he saw was labeled with a database, and at that moment, a mechanical synthesized voice sounded from inside the helmet.
"Welcome to Black Star Armor. Your designation is H-a0001. Automatic detection is in progress... Detection complete. Armor status 100%, hydraulic power system intact, weapon system intact, ejection system intact, user's vital signs normal."
Frenzied Saber tried to move his hands and feet, producing a clattering sound as the mechanical components moved, adding power and making a buzzing sound when he punched, demonstrating its powerful performance.
"This armor is much better than the soldier-grade. I bought the Reconnaissance version, which is very agile. It goes perfectly with heavy weapons, reducing the impact of being cumbersome, and allowing for very nimble fighting." Mad Frenzied Saber said with delight.
He is a mech warrior who mostly uses melee weapons, and the sergeant rank provides the greatest boost to his abilities.
The Mechanic Class offers the highest armor buffs, but other classes can also benefit from them, with good results. They provide extra protection and firepower, an extra layer of health, and many other functions that rely on armor. For example, a fragile mage can put on a protective armor and stand still to fight without thinking. This hybrid style is both bizarre and fun.
Soldier-level and Sergeant-level armor are standard issue, while Sunil's even stronger General-level armor is for superhumans only, with even stronger attributes, which he hasn't mastered yet.
As is customary, Han Xiao held back during the creation process, leaving room for further enhancement.
Aside from armor, the few Mechanic Class players in the faction preferred the newly added blueprints. They were always on tenterhooks when gambling on blueprints, but Han Xiao allowed them to learn many blueprints directly, which delighted them.
The blueprints that Han Xiao posted were naturally of the type that were unimportant but useful. He kept the important supplies for himself and released the unimportant ones to achieve a greater effect.
Maple Moon's eyes lit up, and her adorable face was filled with joy.
"Optical disturbance trap, that's good. Hey, that scattering turret is pretty good too..."
Maple Moon is a pretty easygoing and cute girl, but she's also been raised to be a thrifty person by the Mechanic Class. A blueprint only costs three or four hundred Enas, which is much more cost-effective than gambling on blueprints. She keeps poking around with her fingers, buying and buying.
Han Xiao values Mechanic Class players more, not only because they share the same origin as him, making it easier to earn money from them, but also because once they grow up, they can become his helpers, perhaps allowing him to advance to the next stage of the Mechanic Class ahead of time.
Players of other classes naturally don't care about these blueprints; only Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor suits their tastes.
However, selling items was not Han Xiao's main purpose for this trip. He distributed a large wave of pre-prepared faction quests to everyone, with rewards consisting entirely of Dungeon Crystal. He had extracted some Germinal- stage storylines from the early stages of the game to create level 60 dungeons, as well as the recent [Campaign: The Might of the Dragon Emperor].
Dungeon Crystal can only be used as quest rewards and cannot be sold. However, rules are rigid, but people are flexible. He plans to treat these quest reward Dungeon Crystal as repeatable quests, with only one condition for completion: increasing a certain amount of faction reputation after accepting the quest.
He set it to "increase" rather than "reach" a certain value. For example, after accepting a quest, gaining 500 reputation points allows you to complete the [Campaign: The Might of the Dragon Emperor] quest and obtain the Dungeon Crystal. Other dungeon quests with lower reputation points can also be completed simultaneously, making players feel like they've gained something. This attracts players to spend money to buy reputation, and once you've spent money on reputation, you'll eventually have to spend more. Faction reputation is only valid with Han Xiao, which is perfect for attracting spending.
Furthermore, once you exceed 1000 reputation points, the cost of buying reputation increases. To obtain more Dungeon Crystal, you must repeatedly cycle through buying reputation, spending money, and then buying reputation again. Although there are sometimes no new products, there are many additional services available, such as repairs and enhancements.
If you were originally planning to buy something, this kind of task is an extra reward, a kind of promotion. If you're only after Dungeon Crystal, then it can attract spending.
In short, our service motto is simple: with me, you'll never have to worry about not being able to spend your money!
Han Xiao was cunning and sly; he only released the mission after the players had bought the armor, so they wouldn't get it for free.
"Wow, a new quest, a reward dungeon!"
"The requirement is to increase reputation. Oh dear, if I had had that quest earlier, I would have completed it immediately. What a loss."
"It doesn't really matter. We'll need to upgrade the armor and stuff anyway, and we'll definitely need Black Star's reputation later, so it won't be a loss."
"Hey, there's a new dungeon, The Might of the Dragon Emperor? Isn't that what we experienced a few days ago? Turns out, the factions not only update equipment and items, but they also turn our experiences into dungeons!"
Everyone was pleasantly surprised. As expected of a growth-oriented faction, they were immediately excited by the prospect of nurturing a new member. This was an unexpected delight. Since following Black Star to the interstellar world, they hadn't seen any dungeons. They hadn't expected this faction to come with its own dungeons. With more mercenary experiences, new events would unfold, creating new dungeons that they could choose to participate in.
Seeing this, Han Xiao thought to himself, "That's right, if a faction can reliably provide dungeons, that's also an attraction."
Everyone was most curious about the Dragon Emperor dungeon, as it was a new dungeon they had never seen before.
In the crowd, Meat Bun saw the quest [Campaign: The Might of the Dragon Emperor], and his heart suddenly skipped a beat, his eyes gradually brightening.
"This instance... might be able to recreate the scene from back then!"
His heart pounded, and he immediately bought 500 reputation points. Feeling uneasy, he touched the Dungeon Crystal, and a message popped up on the panel.
[LV90 Dungeon Crystal - [Campaign: The Might of the Dragon Emperor]]
[Introduction: On the border between the Holy Stone Civilization and the Black Raven Civilization in the Garton Star System of the Colton Star Cluster, a mercenary team is Pursuit the DarkStar Fleet. At the critical moment, [Dragon Emperor] Ames descends. This will be your test.]
[Type: Time-rewinding copy]
[Limited to 10 people]
[Current number of people who have passed: 0]
[Highest dungeon completion: No record]
[Record holder: None]
Everyone crowded around, and upon seeing the item's description, they were all immediately astonished.
"A level 90 dungeon?!"
This is already beyond our level cap!
The level of the Dungeon Crystal does not represent the entry threshold, but rather the recommended level for the challenge. Even a level 1 newbie can enter a level 60 dungeon, but the result is obvious: they can only be a bystander. Even if they hire a power leveling team, the level difference between the dungeon monsters is too great, resulting in a high experience penalty and rating penalty.
Running dungeons allows you to gain experience and practice skills, but you can't carry the equipment you get from them. However, if you get a high rating after clearing a dungeon, you can draw items and equipment from it as a reward. These are the benefits of running dungeons. Dungeon attempts are limited and refresh periodically. If you want to get top-tier equipment in a dungeon, you can forget about it unless you get the highest rating. So far, players from all planets have challenged so many dungeons, and only a handful of them actually drop reliable equipment or items, and they are all very difficult.
Not to mention them, none of the players had ever seen a level 90 dungeon before. The fact that the Black Star Mercenary Group could provide such a high-level dungeon left everyone astonished.
Han Xiao smiled inwardly, then turned and left.
"I earned a total of 98,000 Enas from the Non-Commissioned Officer-Grade Armor, blueprints, and dungeon missions. That's almost 100,000. Adding that to my savings, I have 130,000 to 140,000. That's enough to buy at least three Advanced Knowledge!" Han Xiao was very satisfied, feeling a sense of fulfillment from the harvest.
After he left, the players in the camp couldn't wait to form teams and try out what it was like to run a level 90 dungeon.
Meat Bun teamed up with three familiar faces: Frenzied Saber, Maple Moon, and Hao Tian, along with players from Long Sky and other clubs, making a total of ten people.
He crushed the Dungeon Crystal, spewing out a mist that enveloped everyone, instantly transporting them into the dungeon.
The world before their eyes had changed. Meat Bun and the others suddenly lost control of their bodies. Their perspective was pulled up, looking down at a very familiar planet, the Planet Fawn-122 where the chase had taken place.
The Silver Spirit People spaceship took off, only to be suddenly destroyed. The DarkStar mothership appeared and dispatched a large number of floating ships to pursue the three mercenary ships. It was the same event they had experienced before, but they were all on the ship at the time. Now, they were witnessing the whole process from a third-person perspective, which was a different experience altogether.
"This is a cutscene," Hao Tian, with his extensive experience, commented in the chat.
Many dungeons have cutscenes, which is nothing new to most people; they just watch them intently.
The massive DarkStar mothership was relentlessly pursued by a densely packed fleet of floating ships, while three mercenary ships fled for their lives, creating a visually striking scene. Then, they saw the Sky Ring ship suddenly accelerate, its flight path becoming incredibly erratic, and the floating fleet behind it was being led around like dogs on a leash.
Wow, this is even worse than drunk driving!
"I remember the boat was piloted by Black Phantom back then, no wonder everyone on board was so seasick," Frenzied Saber said, still shaken.
The cutscene is about three minutes long. It's a replica of the scene created by the instance, not a real scene. It condenses and modifies the development of events, making the mercenary ship entering the underground and the arrival of the supporting allied fleet happen at the same time.
The animation ends here, and Hao Tian, the team leader, receives a notification.
[The instance is about to begin, please select your faction!]
[Note: The chosen faction will affect the dungeon's objectives and difficulty.]
[Fugitive Mercenary: Your mission is to evade Pursuit and survive until the Dragon Emperor descends.]
[DarkStar Hunter: Your mission is to capture a certain number of mercenaries before the Dragon Emperor descends.]
[Support Force: Your mission is to fight off pursuers, protect the target mercenaries from capture, and provide backup for them before the Dragon Emperor descends.]