The raw materials and Tu Shu for Taibo Alloy are several types of ores with low yields and are quite expensive. Han Xiao spent a lot of money to purchase enough raw materials.
Han Xiao synthesized a Taibo Alloy and forged a Folding War Blade and a Light Power Arm, both with stronger attributes than before. The Folding War Blade even reached green quality.
[Folding Taibo War Blade]
[Quality: Green]
[Basic Attributes: Attack Power 24~28, Durability 355/355]
[Attribute Bonus: Agility +3]
[Length: 0.77 meters]
[Weight: 8.7 lbs]
[Additional effect: Folding - the blade can retract into the handle]
[Additional Effect: Impact Resistance - Contains a small amount of Taibo Alloy for added durability and reduced wear.]
[Note: This is a knife that can be used as a shield.]
The properties of Taibo Alloy include strength, toughness, Impact Resistance, and high durability, making them ideal for armor.
The next day.
Feng Jun brought over two Mad Eagle Pistol. The barrels were longer than those of ordinary pistols. Han Xiao fired a few shots. Within a range of thirty meters, the kinetic energy of the bullets was comparable to that of Sniping rifle. A large hole was blasted into the head of a human-shaped target. The recoil was very strong. If you were not careful, the sights would drift upwards. However, with his strength, he was able to control these two deadly weapons.
To prepare for any potential assassination attempts, Han Xiao always carried two Wild Eagle and Folding Taibo War Blade. His clothing had a portable pocket inside, and he always carried six magazines: two high-incendiary magazines and four regular magazines. The Wild Eagle only had a capacity of eight rounds, Han Xiao chose steel-core bullets for the regular magazines, which had better penetration at close range, making them very suitable for the Wild Eagle.
Han Xiao checked his panel. After advancing, he still had about 100,000 experience points left. Adding the recent earnings from manufacturing High Combustion Bullet, and subtracting the experience gained from upgrading [Basic Refinement] and the cost of [Energy Refinement Method], he still had nearly 200,000 experience points.
There's a saying from the past that leveling up your main class after your first advancement is not worthwhile. During that period, players between levels 20 and 30 chose to suppress their character level and invest their experience into skills to improve their actual combat capabilities.
Regardless of the version of "Galaxy", levels 20 to 30 are the most dangerous areas for open-world PvP. Once a character reaches level 20, they have basic combat power. Because the combat experience is excellent and the death penalty is relatively light at this stage, countless players will seek out people to PvP in this level range to have fun. They go to great lengths to learn skills and improve their combat power, and gradually the saying that it is more cost-effective to suppress one's level is spread.
It wasn't until the system broadcast the ID of the first player to reach the level 60 cap in version 1.0 that everyone was stunned to realize that this bastard was the very guy who first proposed the idea of suppressing level caps!
Damn it!
Shameless old thief!
Han Xiao didn't want to suppress his level. He wasn't restricted by the version's level, which was a huge advantage. No matter how much experience he had, it would be wasted if it wasn't converted into combat power. So he simply consumed 180,000 experience points and leveled up three times in a row.
[Mechanic Apprentice] Upgraded: Strength +30, Agility +1, Endurance +1, Intelligence +3, gained 3 free attribute points, gained 1 potential point! x3
[Energy Refinement Method] I trained a total of 10 times in the past few days, which increased my Qi by an additional 30.
Han Xiao's strength reached 280 points, meeting the standard for level 4, and he gained a new level of attribute bonus.
[Stamina lv4 (200) -- Strength +3, Agility +4, Endurance +5, Intelligence +4, Maximum Stamina +150, Mechanical Power +4%, Manufacturing Speed +4%]
The total bonus to Strength is +10, Agility +10, Endurance +14, Intelligence +8, Maximum Stamina +320, and Mechanical Quality and Manufacturing Speed +10%, which is almost one-third of the user's base attributes, making it extremely powerful.
Since the Mechanic Class relies on mechanical combat, increasing Intelligence is definitely a good idea. Han Xiao initially increased Strength and Endurance to boost his health in order to escape the laboratory. Now that he no longer needs to, he has invested all 9 points of his free attribute into Intelligence, bringing it to a high of 58 points. This will greatly enhance the speed and quality of his mechanical creations and the power of his mechanical abilities.
Mechanic Apprentice Level 4, Total Level 24, Combat Power Level reached 160 Ona.
"Based on the current momentum, by the time the open beta launches, my strength will surpass that of the first batch of players by several levels. I'm afraid that for a short time, players won't even be able to reach my level..."
Han Xiao secretly pondered that players also need time to level up, and in the short term, they would probably have limited interaction with him.
Suddenly, a notification sound from the control panel rang in my mind.
He glanced at the contents and was immediately stunned.
[Internal beta test detected, data being retrieved... Data retrieval complete, internal beta test duration: 12 days]
"Closed beta?!"
Han Xiao was filled with doubt and uncertainty.
I completely forgot about that!
Han Xiao vaguely remembered that in his previous life there was a two-day closed beta test, with the ratio of game time to real time being 6:1, which is equivalent to twelve days in the game.
"Galaxy" is constructed and managed by the latest generation of optical computers, completely abandoning human intervention. The internal test is just a test run, so the time is very short and the number of places is limited. There are only 30,000 places in total, which are basically monopolized by large guilds and professional clubs. The remaining places are drawn from millions of applicants by lottery. Han Xiao's luck ran out back then, and he did not stand out.
According to his memory, the closed beta test took place a week before the open beta test. Converted to game time, that should only be a little over a month, but his own open beta test countdown still has more than 130 days left!
Han Xiao had a conjecture that he hadn't noticed before:
"Could it be that before the players appear, real-world time and game time are completely unrelated? Yes, that must be it. Each version update only takes two or three days in reality, but the time span in the Galaxy world is measured in years!"
This was undoubtedly good news. With each version update, he had more time to develop than the players, but it seemed... he was starting to worry about his lifespan. Han Xiao touched his chin; it felt prickly, and he had grown stubble. He had been in Galaxy for more than half a year.
Han Xiao suddenly remembered one of the most controversial versions from back then—[The Chosen Ones]. This version was unanimously considered by players to be the most nonsensical and mindless. Unlike the disasters and major events in other versions, this version was all harmony, without a theme, completely inconsistent with the version name, as if it was just for players to explore at will, leaving them completely confused.
[NPC template feature unlocked!]
[Player forums unlocked!]
Two new prompts appeared, startling Han Xiao.
"NPC functions? There's not even a brief introduction?"
After looking for a while, all I saw was a lonely panel notification floating in front of me. It seems I have to figure it out myself. Based on my name, I should have the functions of an NPC for players, such as issuing quests, selling goods, and teaching skills.
The 30,000 beta testers are spread across a dozen or so beginner planets, with each planet having around 1,000 to 2,000 people. This will not have any impact on the overall situation.
The closed beta is just an appetizer; the real chaos will begin when a massive influx of players arrives during the open beta.
However, for Han Xiao, the closed beta test was a good opportunity to verify his conjectures. As long as he interacted with the players, he could test the specific uses of the NPC functions.
The other prompt, [Player Forum], was a feature Han Xiao was very familiar with. It was the built-in official forum, and players would browse the forum for amusement while waiting to be resurrected after death, and Han Xiao was no exception.
"I didn't expect the forum to be open to me. It must only be accessible when players arrive and real-world time aligns with in-game time, which is why it's only now being unlocked."
The forum entrance is in the corner of the panel. After clicking it, the familiar forum interface appears, but there are no posts yet; it's completely empty.
He glanced at the account in the upper right corner; it was currently showing as a guest account, and the registration option was grayed out.
Out of curiosity, Han Xiao clicked on [Register] and an unexpected message appeared.
[Detecting Neural Link in the game pod... No player detected, unable to register.]
Han Xiao was taken aback, then realized that the official forum rules stipulated that only players who had entered the game pod could register and post, while visitors could only browse, in order to prevent spam from polluting the forum environment. To post and reply, one had to buy a game pod.
As the saying goes, the market determines everything. When costs are too high, online trolls disappear, and the environment of official forums becomes more harmonious and peaceful.
"Looks like I'll never be able to register a forum account." Han Xiao wasn't discouraged. Being able to activate the forum was already a pleasant surprise; at least he could still read players' posts and learn about their activities.
Furthermore, Han Xiao had always had a question: did he actually exist in reality? To find out, he could only keep an eye on the forum and see if his old ID would reappear, though the possibility of his ID changing could not be ruled out.
"Now that the player has appeared, it's best to find an opportunity to make contact."
Han Xiao's eyes flashed.
Nickname: Frenzied Sword!
"Standard start selected, character creation complete, race: Carbon-Based Human)."
Based on your preferences, you have been assigned the beginner planet: Planet Aquamarine.
"Randomizing newbie spawn locations... Randomization complete! Starting point: Big Horn Mountain Settlement, coordinates (24.152, 182.644)"
"The baby is being born, please wait patiently..."