After joining the mercenary group, the players took the initiative to interact with the officers. Mercenaries were also a resource, and handsome men and beautiful women like Aroshia, Fording, and Sylvia attracted many suitors. However, these suitors were not as accustomed to the players' enthusiasm as Han Xiao.
However, the mercenaries weren't impatient with these "new companions."
Some players, however, were introduced to the Veyne Cards by Melos and quickly became hooked. The Veyne Cards swept the universe with their charm; the cards have simple enchantments, and various light and shadow effects appear when playing. Not only are they fun, but each card represents a faction or figure in the interstellar world, making players very interested in the overall structure of the Galaxy.
You can actually learn something new while playing cards!
With the existence of forums, new things can always quickly attract the attention of players. There are posts that popularize the various ways to play and the decks of the card game "Veyne Cards", which arouses the curiosity of players from all over the world.
Playing mini-games within a game—two fun things combined make for double the happiness!
In its previous life, Veyne Cards were already popular among players. Now, players are getting into Veyne Cards much earlier than in the previous life, thus starting this trend ahead of time.
Melos's Shattered Star Ring deck, which he showed off to players, was also photographed and posted online. The cards were all characters from Shattered Star Ring, most of whom were unfamiliar to players. Only a few players recognized the characters, such as Ames of Dragon Emperor, and many people still remembered the screen full of long, white legs back then.
Players were also surprised to discover cards from the Black Star Mercenary Group, not expecting Han Xiao to be a member of the deck as well.
Being made into a card must be a symbol of status; doesn't this mean Black Star holds a significant position in the Shattered Star Ring?
Players were pleasantly surprised; the stronger the faction, the happier the players who joined were.
However, Han Xiao was helpless. Players could create value every minute, and wasting his limited energy on Infinite card games was just a way of reducing his earnings.
Diligence pays off, but playing games is useless, you guys!
As a great man once said, there's nothing that playing cards can't solve; if there is, then play another round. The players enjoy themselves, and Han Xiao can't force them. He sees this but feels bad because the players are the targets he recruits, so their strength is to some extent equal to the strength of his faction.
After agonizing for a long time, Han Xiao came up with a new idea.
"Since players enjoy playing cards, why not organize a card tournament in the name of a faction, with some awards? Large-scale group recreational activities can enhance a sense of belonging to the faction..."
Han Xiao thought this plan was reliable. From this perspective, getting players to enjoy playing cards earlier might not be a bad thing.
However, even if an event were to be held, it certainly wouldn't be now. It would have to be at least after players have entered the interstellar realm, at which point they could also sell some card packs...
Version 2.0 has been out for over ten days, and players are gradually adapting and getting back on track. The previous version had a level cap of 60, which was right at the watershed of the first racial ascension. Now that the level cap has been raised, players are completing the advancement one after another, which is amazing.
This topic quickly swept across the forum, firmly holding the top spot in popularity across all planetary sections.
Players analyze racial ascension, which is similar to his previous life. Han Xiao didn't pay attention to it. Instead, he approached his subordinates and expressed his intention to learn the Energy Training Method.
Energy Training Method aren't anything unusual; most are general skills, not restricted by profession. Han Xiao asked around, and Melos's favorability was high enough that he was given a new method without any additional conditions.
[Sunil Energy Gathering Method: The basic method for Sunil people to train their strength. Total effect: Strength +20. Current training attempts: 0/100. The effect of each training session depends on Strength, Agility, or Endurance (select the highest attribute). Each training session consumes 50,000 experience points and 1,500 stamina.]
Han Xiao has no shortage of experience now, and his stamina recovery rate is also very high. He finished practicing this skill in two or three days. Each training session increased his strength by 3, and the total effect became +320 strength. He was still a few hundred strength away from the standard of 9000 strength, so he needed a new skill.
The more of this skill that trains strength you learn, the more experience you will consume each time. However, Han Xiao doesn't need to worry about this issue given his current experience reserves.
Harmon agreed to share his strength training methods, but on one condition: a thorough and satisfying fight where he had to defeat him. This guy was a protagonist-type character and a battle maniac who wouldn't miss any opportunity to fight in order to build War Alliance and hone his skills.
Han Xiao had no problem with it. He had fought Harmon once when he recruited him, and he knew that his strength was among the best at the Grade B- level, and he was not afraid of anyone in a fight against someone of the same level.
The two arrived at the spaceship's combat training room and faced each other from a distance.
This battle was deliberately avoided among players. Han Xiao didn't want to reveal his strength so quickly, and for people of their level, the arena was too fragile; if it got damaged, it would need to be repaired, which was too much trouble.
However, he still made the most of them, having the mercenaries bring the prisoners over so they could experience the combat power of interstellar mercenaries and give them a good talking-to.
Hannes wasn't among the prisoners. Han Xiao granted him his freedom and allowed him to stay at the Sanctuary. Bennett was genuinely surprised to see his missing old friend, and after learning of Hannes's speculation, he felt heavy-hearted, but Han Xiao didn't care.
"Come on, if you're ready."
Han Xiao nodded and said to Harmon.
Bang!
Nonsense wasn't Harmon's style. His muscles suddenly swelled, making him several times the size of Han Xiao. With a stomp of his legs, he charged forward like a cannonball, swinging his Battle Axe down with a deafening crash, aiming a blow at Han Xiao's head.
Click click click--
Two giant mechanical hands swiftly unfolded above Han Xiao's head, grabbing the axe together and propelling the flames to escalate. They clashed with Harmon's power, creating a shockwave that sent the prisoners watching from the corner flying, turning them into rolling gourds on the ground.
The prisoners couldn't even stand up from the shock of the collision, scrambling to their feet in horror.
They had witnessed Han Xiao's prowess before, but at that time their level was insufficient to grasp Han Xiao true combat strength. Now, witnessing a direct confrontation, they realized that they were no different from ordinary people in the face of these Stars mercenaries.
Han Xiao's hands jerked, and two more giant mechanical hands unfolded at his sides, his fists striking together.
Thump! Thump!
With two Heavy Strike, Harmon was sent spinning through the air, landing with a loud thud, denting a section of the metal floor.
The four giant mechanical hands pressed their advantage, Heavy Strike a series of powerful blows amplified by their Mechanical Force. Harmon barely dodged, instead swinging his Battle Axe to meet the blows head-on. The axe clashed repeatedly with the giant metal hands, producing thunderous sounds and sparks flying everywhere.
Ding ding ding--
The sound of a collision echoed in the room.
Han Xiao stood still, not even wearing a mecha. Over the past year, he had improved his combat style, added some elite mechanical systems, and no longer used the low-end legion-style "commoner's three-strike" attack. He now had more ways to deal with opponents of the same level.
For example, this enhanced melee build comes from the High-End Knowledge [Giant Compound Machinery Technology] and the Advanced Knowledge [Heavy Mechanical Modification]. It uses mechanical giant hand-type tools as its core system. In addition to melee, it can also be equipped with other weapons, making it a one-stop shop for offense and defense.
The material used in [G75 Mechanical Claw] is the hardest alloy that Han Xiao can currently synthesize—his material technology at this time is still at the advanced level of [Advanced Material Synthesis], and he has not yet learned High-End Knowledge of materials science.
The four giant hands suddenly disintegrated, the parts flitting like butterflies among flowers, causing Harmon to miss his target and stumble, revealing an opening. At this moment, the parts reformed into giant hands, the four palms closing in from the front, back, left, and right, trapping Harmon in the center, with only his head exposed.
The mechanical fingers tightened and secured themselves, gripping Harmon's body and instantly taking control of him.
Buzz--
The next moment, shockwaves erupted from all four palms simultaneously, the ground trembled violently, the air distorted visibly, and the shockwaves shot out, sweeping through the limited space of the training room with a whooshing sound.
Despite trying to retreat, the prisoners were still caught off guard. The wind pressure pressed them tightly against the wall, like hanging paintings. Each person's face trembled uncontrollably, like layers of ripples, their expressions more distorted than when they were diving.
A series of damage numbers popped up above Harmon's head, the shockwave damage penetrating deep into his body. Harmon's tense body instantly went limp, entering a brief state of [exhaustion].
Taking advantage of the opportunity, Han Xiao stood up and kicked Harmon's head. Countless mechanical components instantly unfolded on his leg, climbing up and down. In the blink of an eye, a black mechanical foot several meters in size was attached to his calf, which slammed into Harmon's face with a loud thud.
The kick landed squarely, the immense force causing the floor beneath Harmon's feet to cave in, bend, and twist.
Before Harmon could break free of control, the mechanical feet made a rattling mechanical sound, and the alloy shell on the soles unfolded, revealing a large-caliber cannon barrel that was brought to Harmon's face at point-blank range. Light particles condensed, and a blinding light shone from inside the cannon barrel.
Boom!
The light beam gave Harmon a fiery and stunning visual boost!
The two were suddenly thrown apart, their burly bodies emitting black smoke tumbling and crashing to the ground, while Han Xiao landed lightly. The mechanical giant hand and foot simultaneously disintegrated, turning into individual mechanical components that quickly folded up and reformed into a compressed sphere, automatically retracting themselves.
This combo is a commonly used and conventional combat tactic.
call out--
Suddenly, as Harmon rolled, he threw his Battle Axe, which spun and flew through the air with a piercing whistle.
Han Xiao remained motionless as Halo Array appeared behind him. The floating cannons shot out beams of light, instantly weaving a golden shield in front of him. The axe clattered into the shield, leaving a large crack like a shattered mirror. The axe blade was ten centimeters away from touching Han Xiao's forehead.
Pushing aside the axe, Han Xiao looked over and saw Harmon stand up. Despite suffering a series of Heavy Strike and being covered in charred patches, he was still full of energy and had taken out a warhammer.
"Hey, that's awesome!" Harmon wiped his mouth, his tone rough, his breath hot as he exhaled, full of fighting spirit.
"He's really tough." Han Xiao sighed helplessly. Harmon was single-minded and liked to solve everything with his fists, unlike Melos who would admit defeat. Only by knocking him unconscious could the battle end.
Although both are melee fighters, Melos is both a damage dealer and a tank, while Harmon is a pure tank, extremely durable.
He could see Harmon's attribute panel, which had two very strong specializations: [War God's Tenacity], which had a certain chance to restore half of his health each time it dropped below 20%; and [Desperate Body], which granted a buff of +2 to Strength, Agility, and Stamina for every 1% of health lost, with no cap on the amplification effect during a single battle.
Theoretically speaking, if Harmon is lucky, his strength can increase indefinitely—and he has the protagonist's halo, making him a darling of Lady Luck, able to freely peek under her skirt. His two specializations are like an invincible cheat code plus unlimited Berserk for him... so this "theory" could easily become a reality.
This is a talent in combat!
Harmon's only weakness is his limited attack methods; he lacks ranged attacks, is not a martial artist, and cannot use External Wave. He is a pure warrior.