After putting his clothes back on and tidying his appearance, Han Xiao pushed open the door of the combat training room and walked out.
Outside was a silver-white alloy corridor, with embedded lights in the ceiling illuminating the area. The corridor was circular, with combat training rooms on both sides. The alloy doors were engraved with the room numbers in black lettering, and floating virtual screens displayed the users' identities. This area was a training ground exclusively for officers.
The Legion Headquarters satellite is enormous, and its surface is divided into multiple bases. The place where Han Xiao is staying is the core main base.
Han Xiao rubbed his stomach. He had just completed his advancement and was full of energy, but he felt as if he had used up a lot of his energy mentally. After thinking for a moment, he decided to go to the dining area to treat himself to a good meal. He was afraid that his taste buds would become numb sooner or later if he kept taking nutritional pastes all day.
The dining area is part of the living facilities, and due to the different tastes of various ethnic groups, the chefs come from a diverse range of ethnic backgrounds.
The base was large, and the means of transportation were anti-gravity levitation spherical vehicles, all products of the Logistics Department. At home, Han Xiao wouldn't idly go for a run; he casually picked up a levitation sphere and leisurely flew towards the dining area.
From afar, the sea of people in the dining area came into view. As the distance closed, the noise grew louder. No matter when, the dining area was always the most crowded.
Han Xiao landed on the docking platform in the dining area, casually parked his hovercraft, and stepped inside. The legion soldiers who were chatting idly after finishing their meal noticed Han Xiao's figure and suddenly straightened up, their bodies leaning lazily against the wall.
"Greetings, Commander!"
"Hey, you're here too. Have you eaten?" Han Xiao nodded and greeted him casually.
When he encounters a subordinate who greets him at headquarters, he will usually respond. He puts on airs for outsiders; he is always very easygoing with his own people.
Upon entering the spacious dining hall, many people noticed Han Xiao, and pairs of eyes focused on him. The atmosphere was momentarily quiet. Then, many people stood up excitedly to greet him, while others remained seated, continuing to eat, but glancing at Han Xiao with curious eyes.
As the Black Star Army continued to expand, many new members had never seen Han Xiao in person. Han Xiao also rarely appeared in public areas, so even within the legion, the image of Han Xiao, the leader, remained somewhat mysterious.
Furthermore, the Enemy of the Arcane Incident added another layer of glory to Han Xiao, his reputation gradually increased, and his image in the hearts of the legion members became increasingly lofty.
Large forces usually have internal conflicts, and the Black Star Army is no exception. With its current size, the internal factional problems are even more obvious. Warriors from different departments, races, and backgrounds spontaneously form small circles. Only Han Xiao can completely suppress everyone. As long as he is there, the legion is a monolithic entity.
"Don't look at me, eat your food." Han Xiao waved his hand helplessly; this was why he didn't like to show himself much.
Every time I wander around the base, it feels like a leadership inspection; it's so lonely.
"Teacher, over here!" Just then, Han Xiao heard a familiar voice and turned around to see Sylvia eating there, waving and calling to him, with Aroshia sitting next to her.
Han Xiao sat down opposite her, casually picked up a caramel-brown leg of meat from the plate, and took a bite. The meat was tender and juicy, gliding lightly on his tongue, releasing just the right amount of roasted meat fat and secret sauce flavor on his taste buds. After chewing a couple more times, an even richer aroma was released.
"It tastes good, the chef here deserves a raise." Han Xiao finished one in a few bites, smacked his lips, and, still wanting more, picked up other dishes. "Remember to allocate funds to the cafeteria department to research new flavors of nutritional paste."
"I see, you really have a deep love for nutritional paste," Sylvia muttered as she chopped vegetables.
"It takes me 10 minutes to eat a meal, but only 3 seconds to drink a tube of nutritional paste. I like efficient methods. Learn from my little sister," Han Xiao joked.
I handle all the miscellaneous tasks. You're much freer than me all day long, so what do you need to save time for...? Sylvia rolled her eyes and ate her meal in silence.
Han Xiao looked at Aroshia beside him, "How have you been lately?"
"Hmm..." Aroshia didn't look up, focusing on the food in front of her, her face expressionless, her cheeks moving rapidly like a squirrel, the number of plates in front of her was more than ten times that of Sylvia.
She and Sylvia had known each other for a long time and had always had a good relationship. Aroshia's strength could no longer keep up with Han Xiao Han Xiao's pace, and she gradually became unable to act alongside him. However, she held a special position within the legion. Due to her seniority and stunning beauty, she was the object of affection for countless legion members, and incidentally, she also gained a large following among players, boosting internal demand.
Because of the [Restart] mission, Han Xiao had been somewhat reluctant to see Aroshia and Resta. At his current level, it wouldn't be worthwhile to antagonize the Mechanic Emperor over such a trivial matter. Resta kept pestering him, but Han Xiao currently had no intention of standing up for them, nor did he have the ability to do so at this stage.
"By the way, since we've met here, there's no need to message you," Han Xiao said. "The Federation of Light will send someone to meet with me in a while; you can make the arrangements then."
Sylvia was startled and looked up, saying, "Teacher, you are an ally of the Empire. Isn't it inappropriate to turn around and face the Federation of Light?"
"If someone asks to see me, I should at least listen to what they have to say."
As Han Xiao was speaking, a voice suddenly rang out behind him, interrupting him.
"Black Star, I... I have something to give you!"
Han Xiao turned his head and saw a male player with an ID on his forehead standing awkwardly behind him, holding a dark object in his hand.
Another player trying to gain favor by giving gifts... Players treat him like an NPC, thinking that giving the right gifts will increase their favorability, which leaves Han Xiao feeling helpless.
He's used to it; whenever he shows up at the base, someone will always try to do it.
I took the gift and examined it; it was a relatively rare mineral material.
To be honest, Han Xiao didn't understand why someone would give him ore. Did they think he couldn't afford it?!
Looking at the expectant old face, Han Xiao's lips twitched. Resisting the urge to lower his impression of the other person, he forced a smile and said, "Thank you."
The male player waited for a while, but when he didn't get any notification that his favorability had increased, he scratched his head, staring at the rare materials in Han Xiao's hand with a somewhat reluctant expression.
"Um, can I get my gift back?"
Han Xiao's face darkened.
Dude, you're so real.
"No."
"Sigh, what a loss." The male player persisted, "Is there anything I can do for you?"
No, get out!
Of course, this is just what I really think; you can't treat players that rudely.
"... I don't have anything for you to do right now. If you're free, you can either go to the Gular Civilization to participate in the war, or go to the Shattered World to participate in exploration. There's bound to be a job that suits you."
Han Xiao's smile betrayed a veil of utter disapproval.
"Alright..." The male player looked disappointed and turned to leave.
To avoid being surrounded by players who rushed over after hearing the news, Han Xiao quickly finished his meal and left the dining area as fast as he could, heading to the Logistics Department to check on Nero's studies.
The [Perfect Mechanical Sense] template was his long-planned specialty, and he had been keeping a close eye on Nero's progress.
Upon arriving at the Logistics Department, Han Xiao walked into Reynold's office and immediately saw Nero, who was hunched over his desk doing his homework.
After drinking the dragon's blood potion, Nero felt refreshed, energetic, and invigorated. His face was rosy and healthy, but his expression was extremely bitter, as if he had swallowed a lot of bitter herbs. His features seemed to be scrunched up, and the force with which he wrote was so strong that it seemed as if he wanted to use his pen to cut the thick exercise book into a thousand pieces.
"Little Nero, your godfather has come to see you." Han Xiao walked up with a smile.
Nero didn't even look at Han Xiao, turning his head away with a resentful expression.
Han Xiao turned to look at Reynold, "How's he doing with his studies?"
"The Dragon Blood Potion is very effective. It saved me extra sleep time, and my learning progress has accelerated a lot. I'll be able to learn the basic theory soon. I plan to add some practical mechanical assembly courses to his next stage of learning." Reynold said seriously.
"('oo)" Nero's hand trembled, and the pen fell to the table with a clatter. He froze.
Han Xiao's lips twitched.
You're a devil...
Just then, the door opened again, and Fording, dressed in a loose blue robe, walked in. He paused for a moment upon seeing Han Xiao, then flashed a warm, spring-like smile. "Black Star, you're here too."
"What are you doing here?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.
"I've come to see Nero," Fording chuckled, "And maybe play a few cards with him."
Nero hurriedly got up and threw himself into Fording's arms, his expression as if he had seen a savior, and then turned back to make a face at Han Xiao.
"Ahem, Fording sometimes comes over to play cards with him; it's his leisure time," Reynold explained.
Han Xiao's eyes widened in surprise, his expression seeming to ask, "You actually give him time for entertainment?"
"Uh, once every two weeks."
"Oh, sorry to bother you."
Finally able to play, Nero couldn't wait to take out the Veyne Cards and tugged at Fording's sleeve, urging him to start quickly. Fording smiled and slowly took out his deck, and he and Nero began to play.
Seeing this, Han Xiao's brows furrowed. He always felt that Fording doted on Nero. Could it be because Fording and Morning Star couldn't have children?
Although Han Xiao didn't like playing cards, he still understood the rules. He only glanced at the game from the side before Han Xiao gasped in shock.
Is this... this war between European emperors?
He could almost see Lady Luck practicing her ambidextrous fighting style!
Watching Nero's skillful technique, Han Xiao felt a pang of pain in his heart.
My child... you were ultimately corrupted by Melos and Hadavy.
"I still need to correct it."
Han Xiao suppressed a laugh, threw a [Luck Curse] at Nero, shook his head, and quietly left the scene of the crime.
After waiting at headquarters for a while, getting familiar with his rapidly increasing strength, and taking care of some backlogged tasks, the envoy from the Federation of Light arrived as scheduled.
The spaceship landed at the Black Star Army headquarters. Mona led his group off the ship and, guided by a reception robot, proceeded to the reception room.
Han Xiao waited in the reception room for a while. The door slid open automatically, and the delegation from the Federation of Light walked in. After exchanging greetings, they all took their seats.
"Mona, a high-ranking superhuman sergeant of the Federation of Light," Mona introduced himself.
Han Xiao sensed the energy within the other party's body and discovered that the other party was a Calamity Grade. He then opened the panel and glanced at it. Sure enough, he had personally come into contact with the Space-Time Freezer Race, and the Space-Time Amber's quest popped up with a notification.
[[The First Ones' Legacy - Space-Time Freezer] Second Ring Completed!]
[[Space-Time Amber] Soul Connection Level +1]
[Current floor count: 2/5]
[[Space-Time Amber] is starting to get closer to you]
[Your buff [Space-Time Amber's Feedback] effect has been refreshed]
[[Space-Time Amber's Feedback (Second Layer)]: Your maximum stamina +15%, your strength, agility, and endurance +120, your intelligence +240, your mystery and charm +50, your base spatial tolerance +70%, your base mental resistance +30%, and all your space-related skills receive an actual effect bonus of 18%~32%.]
[BUFF Duration: Constant]
Han Xiao was overjoyed, but his expression remained unchanged. As his Soul Connection Level deepened, he developed a sense of affinity for the Space-Time Amber. In his senses, the Space-Time Amber seemed to have become an old object that he had been handling for a long time.
Increasing the Soul Connection Level will also improve the efficiency of creating amber balls, but I'm currently meeting with someone and can't test it yet.
Han Xiao also took a look at the third round of tasks.
[Third quest requirement: Travel to the ancestral land of the Space-Time Freezer and tour their homeland with his remains.]
Well, there's no way to cheat now... Han Xiao muttered to himself.
The ancestral home of the Space-Time Freezer is located in the territory of the Federation of Light. To complete the third ring, they have to go there in person, since the Federation is unlikely to implement the Wandering Planet Project and transport their ancestral home planet to them.
After closing the panel, Han Xiao got straight to the point. "I haven't had much contact with the Federation of Light. What's your purpose in contacting me?"
Mona said seriously, "It's like this, let's not beat around the bush. Our Federation of Light is very curious about the Space-Time Amber. After consulting the data, we found that the Space-Time Amber seems to be connected to Beyond Grade A being we once had in our history."
"Oh, is that so?" Han Xiao feigned doubt, but his heart skipped a beat. The Federation of Light had access to confidential information about the Space-Time Freezer; their guess was damn accurate.
As for the Federation of Light openly expressing their interest in the Space-Time Amber, Han Xiao was not surprised at all. After the battle on Lighthouse Star, basically every interstellar power was curious about his two Universal Treasure and must have done some research in private. There was nothing to hide about that.
"Do you know about the Space-Time Freezer?" Mona asked.
"Let me check."
Han Xiao acted intently, waiting a while before nodding, his expression unchanged, not even blinking, and said:
"Hmm, now I understand. You mean the Space-Time Amber is related to the Space-Time Freezer?"
Mona had been observing Han Xiao's expression but couldn't discern anything. Upon hearing this, he said:
"We cannot confirm this either; it is merely a guess. I am a descendant of the Space-Time Freezer, which is why I requested the Federation of Light to send me to contact you, hoping to clarify the origins of the Space-Time Amber."
"Why should I care about the origin of the Space-Time Amber? What good would it do me?"
Han Xiao raised an eyebrow, but he understood perfectly.
The Federation of Light did this because they believed he had simply found the Space-Time Amber by luck and was unaware of its Universal Treasure. They linked the Space-Time Amber to the ancestors of the Mona clan, using this as a pretext to approach them. Mona's desire to find traces of his ancestors, without any vested interest, seemed reasonable enough. However, the Federation of Light knew he wouldn't allow outsiders to access the Space-Time Amber for such a reason; it was merely a pretext to approach them.
"Don't worry, because it's related to our ancestors, the Federation of Light only wants to help us investigate and supplement the data for this newly emerged Universal Treasure, entering it into a public database. They have no other intentions regarding your Space-Time Amber," Mona explained.
"I believe you," Han Xiao said seriously. "Really."