The handover point is an uninhabited planet with a number. The two sides will not meet. Han Xiao will drop Beverly off and then leave. The space pirates will come to pick up Beverly later, and at the same time release the mercenaries they have kidnapped. They will then notify Han Xiao to pick up the hostages and exchange them.
Slaik did this for safety's sake. Although he was a space pirate with little credibility and often went back on his word, he was genuinely sincere this time and only wanted to get Beverly back, without wanting to completely anger Black Star.
Once he gets Beverly, he will immediately withdraw his men sent to the Garton Star System and, as agreed, never provoke the Black Star Army again.
But Han Xiao didn't think that way. He had offended him, and now he expected him to pretend nothing had happened? He was dreaming.
Not far from the numbered planet, the Blacklight Stealth silently floats in space.
Through the porthole, Han Xiao silently gazed at the brownish-gray planet.
This time he didn't call anyone else; it was a solo operation, utilizing the Blacklight Stealth known for their speed, and it wasn't just for the hostage exchange.
Beverly was marked with an Observation Mark, essentially becoming a human surveillance device. Han Xiao's plan was to use the [Chaos Observer] talent to pilot his spaceship, follow the group of space pirates, find Slaik's lair, and then... well, you know.
He had never squeezed the juice from Calamity Grade powerhouse.
The hostage exchange was a temporary measure to calm Slaik and prevent him from acting recklessly. Although the players were not afraid of threats, Han Xiao did not want anyone to disrupt the first batch of mercenary missions for the Black Star Army players.
"It's almost time..."
Han Xiao piloted the spaceship into the atmosphere and flew towards the designated location.
As the surface drew closer, he suddenly paused, noticing a pirate ship parked right next to the designated location.
"Didn't we agree not to meet? Why are you waiting for me here? Did you change it to a face-to-face handover?"
A question flashed through Han Xiao's mind. He parked the spaceship a little further away, went to the warehouse, carried the dying Beverly on his back, opened the hatch, and stepped off the spaceship.
Tap tap...
His feet stepped onto the brownish-gray sand, raising a cloud of dust. Along the undulating ground, the space pirate's ship was parked several kilometers away, appearing as a tiny dot in his field of vision. Several space pirates seemed to be guarding the ship, waving at him.
Han Xiao frowned.
"Something's not right, Resta. Don't turn off the engine. If anything happens, take off immediately."
"Okay." Resta took over control of the spaceship.
Han Xiao, leading Beverly, walked slowly for a while, approaching the pirate ship. Looking at the several pirates beside the ship, he said in a deep voice:
"I've brought the person, but where are my mercenaries?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Han Xiao's gaze suddenly sharpened as he noticed that the space pirates had strange expressions, filled with fear.
Before he could even take any action, a sudden change occurred!
Bang!
The pirate ship's hatch was violently smashed open, creating a hole. A dark figure, like a Charge meteorite, rushed in front of Han Xiao in an instant, its fist, encased in thick steel, slamming heavily into Han Xiao's chest and abdomen.
A terrifying force erupted from his fist.
Thump!!
A shockwave-like blast of air erupted, sending Han Xiao flying straight out like a cannonball. He flew over a thousand meters away, leaving a trail of afterimages, before crashing into a bare rocky mountain and being buried in the rubble, dust billowing everywhere.
The guy who punched Han Xiao suddenly stood in Han Xiao's original position. He was wearing heavy metal armor and had a face with demon Bloodline. He had two horns on his head, one of which was only half left. He was none other than "Broken Horn" Mazaks, one of the eight Vanguard Officers in the War Realm!
The force of the blow sent Beverly and several other space pirates flying, crashing to the ground a short distance away.
Several weaker space pirates broke several bones in the fall, crying out in pain, and hurriedly hid far away, trying to get away from the battlefield.
Splash--
The pile of rubble rolled away, and Han Xiao jumped out, rubbing his stomach as the slight pain quickly subsided.
"This damage... Grade A superhuman? Slaik himself came, trying to kill me?" Looking at the battle information, Han Xiao was somewhat surprised. "Not Slaik, Mazaks... Who is this guy? Doesn't seem like one of Slaik's subordinates... This name sounds familiar."
Strange, I've never met this person before, why are they targeting me? Could they be an assassin hired by someone? No, wait, one person probably wouldn't be enough to kill me...
Han Xiao looked at Mazaks, his brows furrowed, various guesses flashing through his mind.
The two looked at each other from a distance, neither speaking for a moment.
"I can sense that the attack just now didn't cause you any damage. ' Indestructible Body ' Black Star, you truly live up to your name."
Mazaks spoke first, his tone indifferent, his enunciation forceful.
Indestructible Body? Is that my new nickname?
Han Xiao's mind raced, he narrowed his eyes, and asked, "Who are you? Why are you attacking me?"
You'll know after you've fought him.
Mazaks stopped speaking, his body ignited with intense purplish-black martial arts aura, and he strode forward like a shooting star, crashing into Han Xiao. The heavy armor on his body, of unknown model, began to move, its structure becoming more complex, as if it had entered combat mode.
Han Xiao cursed under his breath. With a flash of Mechanical Force, the black and gold Mad Ape Mech suddenly took over, catching Mazaks's fist and unleashing a shockwave.
A tremendous force crashed down upon him. Han Xiao was no match for Mazaks in terms of weight and strength, and was immediately pushed backward, his legs carving a deep trench in the ground.
Buzz!
Just then, the figure of a Goddora suddenly appeared behind Han Xiao.
He used Nagokin's character card.
Muscle Is Truth!
Han Xiao clearly felt his muscle fibers swell up as if inflated, and he had inexhaustible strength throughout his body, causing his strength attribute to surge dramatically!
The retreating momentum stopped for a moment. Han Xiao planted his feet into the ground, and the torque of the Mad Ape Mech suddenly went up to power. His waist and arms twisted into a throwing arc. He grabbed Mazaks's fists with both hands and, using the opponent's force, threw Mazaks over his shoulder backward!
The moment it left his hand, it created a sonic boom as Mazaks was thrown straight out at incredible speed, becoming a tiny dot in the blink of an eye before crashing into the base of a distant, undulating mountain range. A cloud of dust billowed up in the distance, and the ground trembled slightly.
The Mad Ape Mech's innate skill: Berserk Throw!
Han Xiao glanced at the enemy's information and was startled to find that most of it consisted of question marks.
This indicates that Mazaks's overall level is far higher than his own.
Han Xiao was completely baffled as to why the other party was at the handover point and why they attacked him. He hadn't expected such an unexpected turn of events. Mazaks didn't offer any explanation, he could only fight first and figure things out later.
Han Xiao quickly cleared his mind of distractions and entered a state of focused combat. He threw out compressed balls one after another. The twelve Oathkeeper that had been repaired surrounded him, and the floating shuttles hovered behind him, shimmering with golden energy.
Because this was an unexpected event, Han Xiao didn't have enough time to fully restore the mechanical legion, nor did he have time to update and strengthen the machines used in the current combat mode. At this time, he was still using the old equipment, with the only exception being the Mad Ape.
This mech suit alone should be enough to handle this battle.
His opponent was a Calamity Grade martial artist who seemed to have no intention of killing him, so he didn't bother to bring out any more machines, as he would feel bad if they were damaged.
Mazaks is tough and wears a specially made heavy armor that provides extremely strong defense. Moreover, he has demon Bloodline and has great regenerative abilities.
Minor injuries heal automatically with a single breath.
Mazaks brushed off the rubble and dust from his body and charged again!