Han Xiao first returned to Dragon Calm to send Ames and Iso back, then decisively killed Albert and the other six. On the way to Dragon Calm, he extracted a lot of gene serum from the six.
He wasn't going to lock the six men up in the "Pirates' Happy Hut," he didn't want to take any risks, and he never showed mercy to his enemies.
After taking down six people, Han Xiao gained a large amount of experience and also obtained several long-term character cards.
Albert and the others faced death with composure, while only Eilet was filled with fear and resentment. However, none of them revealed the true identity of the mastermind. This did not prevent Han Xiao from taking action, but the loyalty of the six to their mastermind surprised and alarmed him.
The person who can command the utmost loyalty from an A+ level expert must be incredibly powerful, possibly Beyond Grade A expert. Regardless of which Ancient Ones organization he is behind, he is not someone he can currently handle.
Having eliminated the enemy's key subordinate, a grudge was formed. Han Xiao had no other choice; the enemy had taken the initiative to target him, and he couldn't just sit idly by and wait to die. Enmity was inevitable.
The third ring of [Prey] hasn't refreshed yet, and he doesn't know what kind of force the enemy will send to deal with him in the next wave of attacks. The only good news is that at least Beyond Grade A won't randomly run to other star systems to make their moves, and he won't have to fight Beyond Grade A directly. However, he still feels a heavy pressure in his heart.
Therefore, Iso specifically "read his fortune" and vaguely predicted that the Hunters incident had come to an end and would not cause any further trouble in the short term, which relieved Han Xiao.
That's true. There are long, Desolate Universe Belt between star systems, making inter-stellar travel and message delivery difficult. Albert and the others have kicked the bucket, so the enemy can't deal with him for the time being.
Han Xiao's status in Dragon Calm is growing day by day. He is Ames's best assistant. Iso values him highly and has told him a lot of secrets about the Ancient Ones along the way, helping Han Xiao guess the enemy behind the scenes.
The Ancient Ones are not of one mind; each member has their own interests and demands. They formed a force to combine the influence of all members into one, to gain a more prestigious position in the universe, and thus benefit all members. They rarely act in the name of the organization.
Iso believed that Albert's master was just one of the Ancient Ones, which was much better than facing the entire Ancient Ones.
With Albert and his group eliminated, the matter came to an end, and Han Xiao returned to the headquarters of Number One Base Garton Star System with Lagi.
Lagi is the only Grade A cadre in the Black Star Army. Han Xiao introduced Lagi to the other cadres, letting everyone know that a new member had been added. Lagi had just escaped and was still rather withdrawn, not interacting with his colleagues, and instead went to familiarize himself with the environment on his own. Han Xiao did not assign Lagi any position for the time being.
With his Grade A strength, he was qualified to be a vice-captain. However, since Lagi had only recently joined, Han Xiao felt that he needed to have a deeper conversation with him before entrusting him with important responsibilities.
The Secret War between Krent and Amethyst is not going to break out anytime soon, and there's no way to improve faction relations. Han Xiao has nothing urgent to do and is free again.
Coincidentally, while he was out causing trouble, a major event caught the players' attention.
The second professional league is about to begin!
Players uploaded dozens of exciting videos of the chaotic battle between the Calamity Grade, showcasing the Black Star network's capabilities. Meat Bun's new video also mentioned information about the next version, which was revealed by Han Xiao as being related to the Crimson Dynasty. These posts boosted his profile... However, in the face of the professional league's popularity, everything else had to take a backseat, and he couldn't steal the spotlight from the professional league.
Now in the later stages of version 2.0, after a version of operation, the number of players of "Galaxy" has continued to increase. Although it has not yet reached the stage of explosive growth in the previous version, the number is still considerable.
The first edition was quite successful, and the number of people paying attention to the second professional league skyrocketed. The Galaxy Times devoted several consecutive issues to the professional league to promote it.
Han Xiao returned to his room, took out a bottle of "Handsome Otaku Happy Water," gulped it down, and then opened the latest issue of the "Galaxy Times." This was the last issue before the start of the league, a final pep talk to add the final spark to this grand event.
The two hosts showcased their talent for dry humor before getting down to business, emphasizing the rules of the second league.
Version 2.0 added several beginner planets, but most players have already left the beginner planets and officially entered the interstellar realm. Therefore, the division of the competition and the book area is no longer based on the beginner planets. An adjustment has been made - each star system with a beginner planet is used as the competition area. Since some beginner planets are located in the same star system, several competition areas have been merged.
Last season there were thirteen divisions, now there are nine, which means that teams from some countries will meet in the regional qualifiers, with strong teams clashing for qualification. Even though the number of qualifying spots has been increased this year, the competition will be even fiercer.
The regional competition venues are no longer the beginner planets, but rather several nearby uninhabited planets are selected for each region, with the entire planet serving as the venue. Players who have already entered interstellar space can naturally come to the competition venue.
The competition format remains largely unchanged, still consisting of two main stages: team competitions and individual competitions.
Last season only had three battle formats: arena battles, team battles, and individual battles. This season, a fourth format has been added, called Survival Mode. As the name suggests, it is a battle royale mode that will appear in the points-based regional regular season and international regular season, and will also be applied to team battles and individual battles.
According to the Galaxy Times, the team survival competition is a free-for-all between four teams, with the sole winner receiving a large number of points, the second and third place teams receiving a certain number of points, and the last place team receiving no points. The individual survival competition is a free-for-all between sixteen individual players.
In terms of the schedule, the first stage still consists of regional qualifiers and secondary leagues. All players can register for the qualifiers and compete fiercely. The secondary league is a stepping stone for some clubs' second-tier teams. The two stages will determine the top 40 teams and the top 64 individuals. Then, there will be a preseason for team cohesion, followed by the regional regular season.
The regional regular season adopts a round-robin, points-based system. The top eight teams and the top sixteen individuals advance to the regional finals. After the regional regular season, the champion of each region will participate in an exhibition-style international all-star match.
The regional finals are best-of-five, with teams battling it out to determine the regional champions and runners-up. This year, due to the reduction in the number of regions, the number of teams qualifying for the international competition has been increased. The top four teams and the top eight individuals from each region can qualify for the international regular season.
The intervals between the international and regional competitions have been greatly shortened this year, making the schedule more compact than the previous edition.
The international regular season also uses a points system, where the most elite players from each region compete. The top eight teams and the top sixteen individuals advance to the final international finals to compete for the world championship.
Han Xiao watched the forum video and nodded secretly.
The competition format is the same as in his previous life; what has changed are the participants.
The program then focused on introducing the top players from Huaxia. During the interview segment, they invited the captains of Huaxia's four top clubs, as well as Frenzied Sword, who ranked among the top in the previous international individual competition.
The two hosts interviewed several people, asking them questions about their preparations. The group interacted normally, and the atmosphere was relaxed.
In the final question, the two hosts inquired about each team's goals for the season and their individual outlooks. The answers from the four powerhouse teams thrilled countless Huaxia viewers.
The Kings and Generals of the Dynasty chuckled lazily, "This season, our Dynasty has only one goal: to achieve a grand slam in the team competition. We are determined to win the regional championship and the world championship!"
The Temple's Li Ge spoke formally, "We will do our best in every match, giving it our all, hoping to achieve something in the international competition and not disappoint all the Temple's supporters."
The Sun Eggplant at Fish-Fragrant Eggplant said expressionlessly, "Last season, we missed out on qualifying for the international competition. This season, we're determined to avenge that defeat and strive to be the ultimate winner."
Hao Tian, sitting upright in the Long Sky, said earnestly, "Our only goal is the world championship!"
The four powerhouse teams all declared their intention to win the championship, displaying great confidence and exciting Huaxia players.
Last time, the Dynasty came in second place. Although their performance wasn't bad and they weren't criticized, they still missed out on the championship, which was quite a disappointment for Huaxia players.
Because they are close to the top, they are even more determined to pursue the final victory. The declarations of the four great clubs are very inspiring.
"The qualification for this international tournament is the top four in each region. If our four powerhouse teams take all four top spots and qualify for the international tournament, that would be really interesting."
"Hehe, that's not necessarily true. While the four powerhouse teams are formidable, other top-tier teams are no slouch either. Jiang Yuluo's Rainstorm Team and Yan Ran's Madman team are not to be trifled with, and teams like Heavenly Palace, Nine Gates, and Dragon and Tiger are also very competitive."
"I have high hopes for the Jiangcheng Team. Frenzied Sword was among the top 16 in the last international individual competition. Jiangcheng has rebuilt the team around him, and they might just be a dark horse."
Many viewers discussed the topic using video comments.
On the show, Frenzied Saber didn't have the same domineering presence as the captains of the four top teams. He said that this was his first time leading a team, and he would do his best to qualify for the international competition, but he dared not make any declarations of victory.
Clubs from other countries are under considerable pressure. Planet Aquamarine is the home base of Huaxia players, having entered StarCraft a year or two earlier than them. This has resulted in a very high average level for Huaxia teams, all of whom are formidable opponents with no weak players. Even the reigning champions, the French team, dare not underestimate them and have stated that they will do their best to defend their title.
Han Xiao was quite looking forward to seeing what ranking Huaxia could achieve this time under his influence.
In the second league in the previous life, Dynasty and Temple won the world third place and the international top eight respectively. This time, Huaxia's overall strength has a significant advantage, not only in equipment, skills and experience, but also in the fact that professional players have participated in interstellar battles at an early stage, and their operation level has been honed to a high standard.
"The second league is a crucial stage. The first league was just a trial run. The second league had a much larger promotional effort and its influence was many times greater than the first. This directly led to a massive influx of new players into version 3.0, resulting in an explosive increase in the number of players. The better the Huaxia's performance, the higher their exposure, which is also beneficial to our faction."
Han Xiao thought to himself.
Currently, the Black Star Army has over a million players, all of whom are the earliest and most ancient players. In the future, even more new players will join.
The massive influx of new players in version 3.0 presents a second opportunity to expand legion size. Without the advantage of leading a faction, they will have to compete with the numerous factions in version 3.0. Leagues, on the other hand, serve as a channel to increase attractiveness.
Besides long-term benefits, each league also presents business opportunities.
Players earn money to convert into combat power. During the league, the demand for equipment will surge temporarily, and the massive amount of gene potions in the warehouse will be in high demand. He is only worried that the stock will not be enough.
Professional leagues have stimulated players' spending demand, and players are happy to empty their wallets, as this is a chance to make a fortune.
The competition venue is several uninhabited planets in the Garton Star System. Han Xiao plans to gather his fleet to sell equipment on-site, becoming the logistical support center for all participating players. Whether it's repairing equipment, selling items, or learning skills, players can spend money on the spot—how fun would that be?
Regardless of whether the players are happy or not, Han Xiao is very happy.
"The league starts in ten days; it's time to set off."
Han Xiao's eyes lit up.