Why did Black Star call me over, and why did he sound so strange...?
Borick stopped abruptly, slightly startled, a variety of guesses flashing through his mind.
Have I given myself away?
"This can't be..." Borick took a deep breath, suppressing his unease, turned around to face Han Xiao, and feigned a surprised expression.
"Lord Black Star, is there a problem?"
Han Xiao stared at Borick and looked him over, then glanced at the information that popped up on the panel again.
His rank was far higher than these free mercenaries. The attributes, skills, and specialties of the free mercenaries were no secret to Han Xiao.
Borick's strength barely reached Grade B. Most of the freelance mercenaries who applied were Grade C, with only a handful at Grade B. Borick was considered an elite among them and was the first Grade B warrior that Han Xiao tested.
However, in Borick's job list, there was a [DarkStar Elite Warrior], and in the skill list, there were also skills trained by DarkStar. Han Xiao had been entangled with DarkStar for several years, so it was impossible for him to be mistaken.
Furthermore, given that Borick is a half -Goddora, his true identity becomes quite obvious.
This is one of the remaining secret agents of the DarkStar forces who have escaped!
'This guy actually dared to join my camp? He must have ten times the guts...'
Han Xiao narrowed his eyes, his mind racing, and in an instant he guessed what Borick wanted to hide.
"Wanting to gain my trust, infiltrate my ranks, and become a spy? Was this his own initiative, or was he acting on orders?"
Han Xiao pondered deeply, thinking further ahead. Not long ago, the people of Goddora told him bad news: they had lost track of the DarkStar Leader and Ashes, and the two of them had disappeared without a trace.
The DarkStar Leader is a dangerous figure. Goddora let the ringleader escape, and Han Xiao has a feeling that he will eventually return. He wonders if Borick is acting on the DarkStar Leader's orders. If so, wouldn't that mean the DarkStar Leader has secret means to contact the remaining forces?
Perhaps we can follow Borick's lead and find the DarkStar Leader!
With a slight thought, Han Xiao raised an eyebrow, then smiled and said to Borick, "Your strength is quite impressive. I want to offer you a special profession. Are you interested?"
Borick breathed a huge sigh of relief, his heart finally at ease, and he immediately realized that his anxiety had been somewhat unnecessary.
'I was overthinking it; there's absolutely no way I could be exposed.'
Borick completely relaxed, feigning flattery, "What do you need me to do?"
"Hmm, I'd like to temporarily appoint you as an instructor at the training camp to help me train the mercenaries whose skills haven't yet reached the required level."
Okay, no problem.
Borick nodded quickly, secretly pleased.
Although the instructor is not yet a cadre and has no opportunity to contact the core, this is a good start. Being granted a special position as soon as he joins proves that Black Star values him, making it easier to gain Black Star's trust!
"Do a good job. Go wait over there for a while. I'll make arrangements after the test."
Han Xiao offered a word of encouragement, dismissed the excited Borick, and secretly tossed Borick an Observation Mark.
The Observation Mark can mark a maximum of five targets at a time. He has one last empty slot, which he will use for Borick. If he wants to mark a new target in the future, he will need to replace one of the five old targets.
Borick's spy identity has been exposed, but Han Xiao not only doesn't eliminate Borick, he also intends to boldly utilize him. With Phillip and the Observation Mark, no small movement by Borick can escape his notice, and he can detect any unusual activity immediately. Of course, Borick has just joined, and in order to maintain his disguise, he certainly won't dare to act recklessly.
Most importantly, a spy who wants to gain his trust will work hard and almost without complaint. He's a useful laborer, and he'd feel guilty if he didn't exploit him properly.
The training camp at Number One Base hadn't been established yet, and only those at least at the Grade B were capable of becoming instructors for a large group of Grade C superhumans. Training others was troublesome, and Han Xiao didn't want to waste his free time. He had originally planned to call Jinda back, but now that he had Borick, that was enough—anyway, Han Xiao didn't care how he used the guy.
This little incident didn't cause any problems; instead, it excited many people even more.
In their view, this shows that Black Star values talent, and as long as you are strong, you will have the opportunity to get a better position on the spot.
As time passed, Han Xiao conducted several more tests. Approximately 5,000 people passed and became official mercenaries, while more than 1,000 were rejected and sent to training camps.
During this time, he discovered three more Grade B superhumans. Unfortunately, their specialties and skills were unremarkable, belonging to the normal level without template bonuses. They were relatively ordinary Grade B superhumans. However, even a small mosquito is still meat, and they were still Grade B. Therefore, Han Xiao promoted these three to squad leaders on the spot, giving them the authority to gather a certain number of Black Star mercenaries to form a fixed team.
The Black Star Army's promotion system is divided into two types: one is the personal merit system, which is from one star to five stars, and finally the honorary title of "Black Star's Eighteen Riders". Promotion is based on contribution, allowing individuals to enjoy better benefits.
The second type is the professional system, which is the management structure and book of the legion. Han Xiao learned from the Sky Ring Alliance. The professional system and the merit system complement each other. The higher the merit level or strength, the higher the position will be, and the more people can be managed in the team, that is, become the captain.
Since Grade B superhumans meet the strength standards, they can directly obtain the position of squad leader, so naturally no one has any objections.
Currently, the Black Star Army is divided into several factions: the Sunil faction led by Melos, the War Alliance faction led by Harmon, the Free Agents faction consisting of players and some mercenaries—this group is the largest and can be considered the most normal group—and the confidant faction composed of cadres such as Aroshia.
Only Han Xiao can command all the factions. In normal times, these factions operate independently, with the Sunil faction and the War Alliance faction being the most distinct. Their members are closely united, have strong cohesion, and are clearly divided.
Where there are people, there is conflict. Forming cliques and banding together are inevitable problems that arise after expansion. As the Black Star Army grows in size, the difficulty of management increases accordingly. If it wants to develop better, it must emulate other large mercenary groups and establish a hierarchical management system with clear division of labor for everyone. This is also a question that Han Xiao has been thinking about recently.
Senior positions are a problem.
Currently, all officers are essentially combatants without specific roles. Only Melos can be considered a de facto assistant. Many positions are vacant, such as deputy regimental commander, regional head, mercenary business head, logistics officer, and spaceship commander.
These positions are like screw holes, and the elites and cadres are the screws. Han Xiao needs to find the right screws, put them in the holes and tighten them so that the management structure of the Black Star Army will become stable.
"The legion has hundreds of thousands of soldiers, with a large number of rank-and-file troops, but a severe shortage of elite personnel. The combat strength is structured like a pyramid. Alas, I need to recruit more high-level combatants."
Han Xiao shook his head inwardly. Although his basic troops completely outclassed many large mercenaries, high-level combat power was the current weakness of the faction. The Black Star Army only had one Calamity Grade soldier, and about ten Grade B elites. Compared to the Sky Ring Alliance's three Calamity Grade and hundreds or thousands of Grade B soldiers, he was just a junior.
Han Xiao has no shortage of potential talents under his command. For example, Sylvia was Grade A in her previous life, Melos seems to have the potential to reach Grade A as well. Hila and Aurora's potential abilities even exceed Grade A, not to mention the players with huge potential.
However, potential is not the same as ability. These potential players have not yet grown up, and Fording the protagonist's halo and a powerful older sister, is not his subordinate but just an accompanying employer. Furthermore, players are limited by version restrictions, and at least in version 2.0, they cannot become Grade B.
"If only we could trick someone into joining us at the Calamity Grade."
Han Xiao sighed. Expanding the camp came with difficulties, and there were too many areas that needed improvement.
Just then, the last tester arrived. Han Xiao patted him on the shoulder, and the other person's attributes popped up on the panel.
Han Xiao's expression changed after just one glance.
Overall level... 135?!
This is the highest-ranking free agent among them!
He's only 7 levels lower than him!
Han Xiao perked up and looked up to examine the free agent named Reynold.
Hmm... he's an alien, with snow-white skin, seemingly of mixed race. His face is a bit long, with a high nose bridge. He's not as handsome as me, but he has a special aura. He seems to have a rational and cold personality, but his eyes are bright and piercing... Wow, this guy is staring at me too.
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow and subtly glanced at the other attributes of this person.
"Reynold... 1137 Intelligence, a B+ rank Mechanic? Wow, that's rare! This guy is the strongest in this group... Hmm, at least 600 blueprint skills, seems to have a wealth of knowledge. Tsk tsk, as for his specializations... wait, this guy has a template specialization?!"