After remembering the player "Summer Night Blossoms," Han Xiao put the matter out of his mind.
This is bound to happen. After all, players are explorers, and there will always be people who yearn for novelty and the unknown. This cannot be stopped, so we might as well let nature take its course.
Only after experiencing wind and rain can one truly appreciate the value of a leek greenhouse.
After browsing the player forum for a while, the sofa next to Han Xiao suddenly shook, and someone sat down. Han Xiao turned his head and saw that it was Reynold.
"Not playing cards anymore?"
"Lagi brought Fording over to play with, what's the point of playing with him?" Reynold said expressionlessly, unusually swearing.
Han Xiao chuckled, turned to look at Reynold, and casually asked, "Do you have any wishes coming up lately? Be sure to tell me!"
"No."
"Think about it carefully again. Don't be afraid to bother me; be sure to tell me if anything happens..."
Reynold gave him a strange look. "Why do you ask me this kind of question every month or two?"
"I'm just being considerate of my subordinates..." Han Xiao coughed lightly. To maintain Reynold's Perfect Mechanical Sense, he would check on Reynold every now and then and try to trigger missions.
However, since rescuing Lothaire, Reynold hasn't received any more missions, which is making him very tired. At this rate, when will he ever have a chance to obtain the Perfect Mechanical Sense?
"How about we secretly hire some people to kidnap Lothaire and wait for Reynold to beg me to rescue her? Luckily, there are some experts in this field at Happy Hut..." Han Xiao's eyes darted around.
"Lord Black Star, how long do you think this war will last?" Reynold suddenly asked.
Han Xiao thought for a moment and said, "In my opinion, war is an opportunity. As long as there are benefits, the longer the war lasts, the better. However, compared to those interstellar civilization wars that last for hundreds of years, the scale of Secret War is only average. As long as the Crimson Dynasty and the Federation of Light finish their negotiations, Krent will also call it a day. Hmm... according to my inside information, the two cosmic-level civilizations will probably stop negotiating within a few years."
Reynold shook his head. "Given the current situation, Krent's plan is already more than halfway successful. Once the Crimson Dynasty gets what it wants, it will help Krent redraw the boundaries of the Seoul Star Cluster, incorporating the star systems occupied by the War Realm into the Seoul Star Cluster's territory. Without a powerful backer, Amethyst will have absolutely no one to help it."
"Yes, a civilization that wants to remain independent has to endure these things." Han Xiao remained noncommittal. He had some thoughts, but there was no need to tell Reynold yet. After a pause, he said, "But even if the Secret War ends, the Crimson Tide won't disappear in a short time. It's like throwing a pebble into water; while it splashes, it also creates ever-expanding ripples that won't dissipate anytime soon."
The Galaxy is home to countless civilizations and factions, each with its own interests and demands, like a pile of matches that can be ignited at the slightest spark. The Crimson Tide is like a spark that ignites their dormant desires. Once the valve controlling those desires is opened, it won't be so easy to close it again.
"Amethyst also knows that the War Realm cannot be allowed to occupy so many star systems any longer. This campaign is a large-scale counterattack, with the goal of completely eliminating all of the War Realm's strongholds in the Kant Star System and regaining control of an entire star system. This is Amethyst's largest military operation since the Secret War began, almost a full-scale deployment."
Han Xiao spoke in a serious tone.
In two days, the Black Star Army will officially set off to join its colleagues in Section Zero for an expedition to the Kant Star System.
This time, he plans to give players ample opportunities to perform, assigning them all the dirty, tiring, and dangerous tasks, mainly to cultivate them, let them complete more campaign missions, and provide them with more opportunities to grow.
Since the players won't die, if you don't go to hell, who will?
Besides, a more thrilling experience would definitely make the game experience fantastic; if players don't die at least once, they'll find it boring.
Summer Night Blossoms stared intently at the player forum, paying close attention to the replies to his own post. The majority of the replies were dissenting, which made his expression quite unpleasant.
This post was a plot clue that he had come up with with great difficulty. Summer Night Blossoms was quite proud of it. In his opinion, it would definitely awaken many confused players, guide them onto the right path, and earn their admiration.
However, the reaction to the post was contrary to his expectations. Players had already come to quite agree with the Black Star Army, and most of them were mocking him, criticizing his ideas as worthless and calling them wild guesses. This made Summer Night Blossoms Fan Hua very angry, feeling like her good intentions had been taken for granted.
"These people don't use their brains at all!"
Summer Night Blossoms was indignant. After arguing with a mocking player for a while, she was in a bad mood and decided to stop reading the replies. She figured she could avoid getting annoyed.
"Once future developments prove my point, you'll know who's right and who's wrong, and by then it'll be too late to regret it!"
Summer Night Blossoms sneered, editing the post and adding that sentence.
Meanwhile, in another part of the legion headquarters, a player named "Long Hatred of Heaven" also saw Summer Night Blossoms's post.
Long Hatred of Heaven has always considered himself a master of story-driven gameplay, enjoying discovering unknown plots from others. In the Galaxy Chronicles thread, he is one of the most enthusiastic recorders, and even established a small guild, leading dozens of hardcore players who are passionate about exploring the background of the story.
Upon seeing the post, Long Hatred of Heaven immediately felt that Summer Night Blossoms was right.
The main storyline won't just introduce a meaningless faction for no reason; there must be hidden plot elements on Krent's side!
Long Hatred of Heaven made up his mind, tagged all members in the guild, and posted the link to the "Summer Night Blossoms" post.
"Take a look at this post, it makes a lot of sense, I've decided to Krent's camp!"
People in the guild started popping up in response.
"President, think it over! If you guess wrong, you're finished!"
"That actually makes sense, President. It would be really fun if you included me."
"President, how do you plan to join? There doesn't seem to be a way."
Long Hatred of Heaven replied, "I did some research and there are news reports saying that the War Realm is also replenishing its manpower in Colton. I think as long as I go to the enemy's stronghold on the front line, I'll have a chance to join. I can take this opportunity to switch sides."
"This counts as betrayal. He'll definitely never be able to return to the legion," someone said.
"If we can't go back, we can't go back. The War Realm is a major faction, not necessarily worse than the Black Star Army, and there's still a chance to make contact with the Crimson Dynasty in the future." Long Hatred of Heaven didn't care.
"These are all just guesses; maybe they're wrong."
"I don't think I'm wrong." Long Hatred of Heaven shook his head. "Besides, so many players are currently in the Black Star Army. No matter how the legion develops in the future, they will all know. But no one has discovered the hidden storylines on Krent's side. If I'm going to play, I want to play some storylines that no one else knows..."
"But the Black Star Army has such good benefits..."
"Haha, I'm not a professional player, why would I need to be that strong?" Long Hatred of Heaven laughed.
He's a player with a strong thirst for knowledge; novel storylines are more appealing to him than tangible rewards. There are quite a few players like him.
Summer Night Blossoms ' post did have some impact. Besides those who refuted it, some people were skeptical and became curious about the Krent camp.
Only a small portion of these players are those who participate in storylines similar to "Long Hatred of Heaven," while the majority are gamblers who are after the interests of the Krent faction.
Two days passed in the blink of an eye.
Today is the day of departure. All personnel have been assembled, and the massive fleet is waiting in the military starport at headquarters.
More than a million players, acting as special warriors, formed their own units and stayed on warships, filled with excitement.
They are no strangers to such large-scale missions, but most people feel excited and nervous every time they participate in such a mission involving millions of people, with an epic sense of working together to do something big.
The Black Star Army, as a faction that unites all players, gives them a strong sense of belonging, as if they are shouldering a mission.
All the participants stayed in their respective warships, and on every virtual screen on each warship, Lagi's face was displayed as he addressed all the members... This was originally the job of the faction leader, but Han Xiao felt that Lagi was a genius at boosting morale, so he simply let Lagi, the deputy commander, do the mobilization.
So everyone had to listen to Lagi read the script in a completely flat tone.
"We'll all die sooner or later; the difference is, whether we die today or tomorrow..."
Overall morale -20.
"Whether weak or strong, none can escape death. Life is merely a slow process of decay. Everything you've done is meaningless to this universe, including this war. Victory or defeat, it has nothing to do with you..."
The morale of the entire army has decreased by 40.
"But even knowing the outcome is inevitable, we still work hard; even knowing life West Capital more precious than anything else, there are always those who take the risk; even knowing we are just insignificant pawns in the war, easily reduced to dust by ion cannons, thermonuclear missiles, annihilation beams, and all sorts of other weapons, we are still willing to risk our lives in this battle... Why?"
Morale is slowly recovering.
"Because of... money!"
Morale instantly plummeted to zero!
"With money, you can enjoy life; with money, you won't have to compromise with others; with money, you can easily solve problems. We are all warriors, and fighting is our way of making money. You're short of money? Then pick up your weapon and kill the enemy. War is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make money. Every enemy has a price tag. How much you can earn depends entirely on the number of enemies you kill."
Triggers a special effect: Incentive Stimulus, Morale +80.
Those empty slogans and beliefs will only be met with disdain by the legion members. After all, the Secret War is a struggle for interests among the Amethyst Civilization, which has nothing to do with them. They fight for money, and the best way to mobilize them is to tell them the truth. Those empty words are less effective than telling everyone how much an enemy is worth.
Countless players looked at each other in surprise; they had expected to hear a passionate and inspiring speech, but it turned out to be so down-to-earth.
Black Star, you've changed.
But we like it!
Han Xiao suppressed a laugh and quickly kicked away Lagi, who was still eager to add another sentence—if he were allowed to improvise without following the script, morale might really be gone.
Han Xiao coughed, then took over the conversation, saying in a deep voice, "The entire army shall set off."
Rumble rumble--
The next moment, the surface of the Black Star Army's headquarters satellite slowly opened, revealing numerous starport launch orbits. Tens of thousands of warships flew out of the orbits one after another, neatly arranged in the outer space of the headquarters.
The fleet simultaneously accelerated into warp drive, transforming into tens of thousands of streaks of light that vanished instantly into the boundless universe.
Passersby on Planet Golden Gate stopped in their tracks, and looking up, they could see tens of thousands of dazzling meteor streaks streaking across the sky and disappearing into the distance.
War Realm Headquarters, Planet Heber.
"Your Tyrant, intelligence from the front lines indicates that Section Zero has mobilized its entire force, targeting the Kant Star System. Black Star has also personally led the operation. I have already arranged for troops from other star systems to provide support."
War Realm Advisor Jorde looked up at the mountain-like Heber and reported respectfully.
"Um."
Heber gave a curt reply, indicating that he understood, and then asked, "Has Black Star not grown up yet?"
Jorde hurriedly said, "It's been seven whole years, and Black Star's strength hasn't changed significantly; it hasn't improved at all."
Upon hearing this, Jorde couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. Back then, Black Star was incredibly popular, seemingly on the verge of becoming Beyond Grade A, but seven years have passed, and Black Star has yet to break through, causing his popularity to decline considerably, and some forces no longer pay close attention to him.
Every Beyond Grade A Seed is a genius, but after a brief period of fame, they all fade into obscurity. Black Star was no exception; it turned out he was no different from the other Beyond Grade A Seed.
Heber shook his head, somewhat disappointed.
He had been waiting for Han Xiao to grow stronger, wanting to kill him once Han Xiao reached the Beyond Grade A. This way, he could use the achievement of killing a newly promoted Beyond Grade A to further enhance his deterrent power and influence.
Seven years ago, news of Krent's collusion with the Sorokin caused a rift between him and Krent. However, since they were allies and shared the same interests, this minor conflict did not affect the plan to continue War Realm for Krent in the war effort.
"I overestimated him." Heber felt it was a pity; given his status, killing a Beyond Grade A Seed wouldn't have yielded much.
Jorde couldn't help but ask, "Your Tyrant, Black Star has made almost no progress in these seven years. Could he suddenly break through the barrier and become Beyond Grade A?"
Heber looked down at him and slowly said, "Before the First Ones appeared, the Calamity Grade was the strongest individual strength in the universe, which lasted for countless years. Generations of geniuses failed to even touch the threshold of the Beyond Grade A. The life limit of the Beyond Grade A is not so easy to break through. Compared to talent, luck is more important. After all, becoming Beyond Grade A is almost like becoming a new species..."
Jorde had heard rumors more than once that "Beyond Grade A is a new species," and he was secretly curious about where the huge gap between the strength of Beyond Grade A and Calamity Grade came from.
But clearly, the Tyrant didn't want to tell him, so Jorde had to suppress his curiosity and change the subject, asking, "Does Black Star have a chance to become Beyond Grade A?"
"Hmm, perhaps after decades of exploration, he can become Beyond Grade A," Heber said in a deep voice. "However, Krent's plan will be completed in two or three years, the war will end soon, and Black Star will die at my hands. He won't have the chance to live that long."
Heber's patience was limited; he had made the decision that he would only wait until Black Star became Beyond Grade A until the Secret War ended.
After the war ends, the strategic restriction that Beyond Grade A cannot act at will will be lifted. At that time, even if Black Star is only Calamity Grade, he will personally kill him and settle accounts later—those who kill my Tyrant's cadres will inevitably pay the price.