Chapter 1198 Secret News (1)
Planet Jardinger was a rather prosperous interstellar port that was in the neutral faction, with a complex web of organizations and people that would pa.s.s through it every day. On the bustling street, two tall men were strolling as they shopped. They occasionally walked into the shops on the side of the road, looking left and right.
These two were precisely Han Xiao and Kasuyi.
It had been more than half a month since the last time they fought with Milton’s team. Han Xiao had led Kasuyi to Planet Jardinger, following the coordinates left by the mysterious man. They had waited here for several days, but there was no movement.
“It’s already been so many days. Why is the mysterious person you mentioned not responding yet? Oh, I want this, thanks.”
Standing in front of a self-service vending machine within a food store, Kasuyi pointed at the green can of an alcoholic beverage.
“They should be observing if we managed to get rid of our pursuers.”
Han Xiao shrugged and activated his Virtual Intrusion, instantly hacking into the entire store. The next second, two cans of drinks popped out of the vending machine.
Because they were illegal immigrants, without even a bank account to their name, they were naturally penniless. He could only utilize Virtual Intrusion to bypa.s.s payments like these, just like taking out cannons to kill mosquitoes. With his current level, there was no way he would leave any traces.
“Sigh, I haven’t been so poverty-stricken in such a long time. To think I’m reduced to drinking such inferior wine…” Kasuyi pulled off the tab, sipping the pale green wine in a graceful manner. “We can survive for a decade without eating. I think you’re just greedy.”
Han Xiao rolled his eyes, emptying the can in one mouthful before squeezing the can into a small ball and throwing it into the garbage bin beside them.
Neither of them had anything to do, and thus, they wandered about the streets, trying to learn about the customs.
At first, the two of them were still on guard, but their enemies never came to look for them, proving that the Cloaking Device given by the mysterious person was useful.
While they were chatting, a piece of news suddenly appeared on the virtual screen within the store, attracting their attention.
“Urgent News: The Celestial Star Alliance Superpower Security Department has issued two new arrest warrants. The contents are as follows… “Bounty Target – Black Star, Supreme level Mechanic, reward of 1.6 billion Star Alliance Coins.
“Bounty Target – Kasuyi, Supreme level Psychic, reward of 1.6 billion Star Alliance Coins.
“These two wanted criminals have committed many crimes and are extremely dangerous. They have succeeded in repelling the pursuit team sent by the department. If you find their whereabouts, please report it immediately. The contact information is…”
Seeing this news, Han Xiao could not help but laugh. “Oh, the bounty has gone up again. It seems like they really cannot find us.”
Kasuyi, however, had a face full of black lines.
Every time he saw the name on his bounty, he would flare up uncontrollably.
No matter how he looked at it, it was the imposing nickname of ‘Void Overlord’ that would suit his status as a top powerhouse! Why did those idiots ignore his claim and take Black Star’s words so seriously?
“Oh right, speaking of wanted criminals, I surfed on the internet yesterday…” Han Xiao stroked his chin in interest. “Our added bounties currently put us in second place of all the fugitives within this universe.”
“We’re number two just like that? We didn’t even do anything heinous.” Kasuyi frowned. “Plus, our bounties should not be considered high as well. There aren’t any more ferocious criminals than us?”
“It seems like there really isn’t anybody. The Celestial Star Alliance has experienced many years without chaos. Not only is their governance stable, most of the Beyond Grade As here are like obedient babies. We’re anomalies.” Han Xiao waved his hand. “Then, who’s at the top of the bounty list?”
“It’s an organization named (Eye of Insight), with a six-billion-dollar bounty. However, I couldn’t find what sort of criminal record they had online.” Han Xiao shook his head.
The two of them walked out of the shop as they chatted. Before long, they came across a store that was full of liveliness and clamoring, causing them to head over in curiosity.
The interior was shaped a little like a board game cafeteria, but everyone was playing the same game, a card game known as ‘Myriad Souls Card’.
It seemed like an event was currently ongoing, with four people each seated at a game table, playing against each other while the spectators crowded around them. In the middle of the room was an exhibition cabinet with three exquisitely-made cards floating. The host constantly added to the atmosphere, emphasizing that the winner of the game could walk away with these three limited-edition cards.
As both of them leaned over a table to take a look, their expressions turned weird.
“Do you feel that this is rather familiar?” Kasuyi whispered.
“You don’t say…” Han Xiao said this as his mouth twitched.
How could it not be? The playing style of this card game was exactly the same as the Wayne Cards in their universe. It was just that the characters were different.
Why would there be similar card games here? Could it be the will of the universe, ensuring that card players would always be present in the world?
At this moment, the senses of the two picked up something. Turning their heads at the same time, they discovered a person staring at them from among the crowd, his gaze indeterminate.
Seeing them look at him, the man put his hand into his pocket, slowly taking out a piece of green metal to shake it before leaving.
“That was the device given by the mysterious
person…”
Han Xiao recognized it immediately before exchanging a glance with Kasuyi. They stepped up to follow.
The person walked and stopped along the way, glancing back as though leading the way. They walked along the streets, soon coming into a slightly older docking terminal.
The guide opened a hanger, which revealed a plain, general-purpose s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p. He then opened the hatch, turning back to look at the two as though inviting them up.
Seeing this, Han Xiao and Kasuyi scanned the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p with their senses. Finding no abnormalities, they stepped onto the gangway, entering the s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p.
Very quickly, the hull vibrated slightly before moving off. The view of Planet Jardinger from the porthole slowly shrank.
Han Xiao finally retracted his gaze, turning back to look at the silent guide before taking out a similar piece of green-gold alloy as he asked, “Can you explain who you are exactly? Why did you bring us on board?”
аrе е
Hearing this, the guide straightened his clothes before slowly speaking. “Let me introduce myself. I’m a senior officer under the Eye of Insight, Lucidias. It was my leader that asked me to meet up with you.”
Eye of Insight… Isn’t that the wanted organization with the highest bounty?
Kasuyi glanced at Han Xiao meaningfully.
Han Xiao’s eyes flashed, and he replied, “In that case, it means that your leader was the one who sent me the anonymous messages, right?”
“My job is only to escort the two of you. I was told that as long as I showed the Heaven Concealing Apparatus, you would follow me. As for the rest, I’m also unaware.” Lucidias shook his head.
“Heaven Concealing Apparatus?” Han Xiao raised the alloy piece on his hand. “You mean
this?”
“That’s right. It is the core technology of our Eye of Insight.” Lucidias nodded.
“What exactly does your Eye of Insight do?” Han Xiao was curious.
“Apologies, but without express permission from our leader, I cannot disclose too much information. If you have any questions, please direct them to our leader.” Lucidias refused to answer, diverting it to his boss.
Seeing that he could not dig out more intelligence, Han Xiao also stopped asking, beginning to come out with his own hypothesis.
During this period of time, he was also guessing the ident.i.ty of this mysterious person. In the original message sent, it was revealed by the mysterious person vaguely that he was aware of their ident.i.ties as outsiders.
In view of the fact that this place was isolated from the outside universe, Han Xiao felt that the mysterious man might have been someone who had accidentally trespa.s.sed into this secondary dimension as well. As for why he was looking for them, it could be because he was trapped here and thus needed more helpers.
Since the Celestial Star Alliance was still unaware of the existence of the outside universe, then this mysterious person probably did not reveal anything about the main universe, instead lurking around, creating this organization in secret.
The more Han Xiao thought about it, the higher he felt the likelihood of that. In his theory, the only suspicious point was the Eye of Insight as there was little information about them on the web. But looking back, it seemed like the Eye of Insight had existed for a long time and did not seem to be created by an intruder.
Since the mission prompt has connected me to this mysterious person, the other party will probably be a friend, not an enemy. It is useless for me to overthink right now. It will be more convenient to ask things directly later.
The s.p.a.ces.h.i.+p travelled for over ten days before reaching the destination. They arrived at a huge mothers.h.i.+p resembling an asteroid, which maintained its stealth as it wandered through outer s.p.a.ce.
Swoos.h.!.+
As the hatch opened, the two followed Lucidias to step into the mothers.h.i.+p.
They pa.s.sed through various areas, seeing a large number of staff and mechanical guards. The entire mothers.h.i.+p was heavily guarded.
The group pa.s.sed through authorization certifications one after another, going deeper into the core area of the mothers.h.i.+p before finally arriving at a huge metal door.
“The leader is waiting inside. He wishes to see the two of you only, so I won’t be entering.”
Lucidias suddenly stopped walking.
Kasuyi and Han Xiao exchanged looks before stepping forward. The metal door automatically swung open, allowing them to enter.
Once they entered, the door closed behind them.
Han Xiao sized up the layout of the room. Pipes protruded from the ground and the walls, connecting to a figure in the center of the room.
This figure was tall, but his shape scrawny and shriveled, with tubes inserted all around him. He had two pairs of green eyes, one pair larger than the other. There was also a scar running through his face, blinding the eyes on his left.
Upon seeing the two, the person slowly spoke. His voice was deep and hoa.r.s.e. “We finally meet… outsiders!”
Han Xiao’s eyes narrowed.
He indeed knew that we came from the outside universe.
He had antic.i.p.ated this and thus did not feel surprised. Kasuyi was the same.
“Since you have invited us here, can you explain the situation? Who are you, why do you know about the existence of the outside universe, and what’s your reason for contacting us?”
During this period of time, Han Xiao had suppressed too many questions. Now that he had met someone who looked like they knew something, he spewed out all his thoughts.
The mysterious man listened quietly but did not answer them directly. He instead softly said, “I know that you guys have a lot of questions, but before that, I hope you can answer some of mine… What era is it outside now? Has the exploration era war ended?”
Han Xiao’s eyes sparkled.
To actually ask about the war during the exploration era, could this person trapped here be a Primordial One?
As this thought flashed past, Han Xiao briefly described the ending of the exploration era war and issued his own question.
“Are you a Primordial One?”
“No, I’m not.” The person laughed. “I’m not what you call Primordial Ones, but I’ve met them.”
“Then who are you?”
“I understand your confusion. You believe that I came in like you… but you’ve guessed wrongly. I belong here.’ The mysterious man’s tone was calm.
At this moment, many more possibilities appeared in Han Xiao’s mind.
If what the mysterious man said was true, and his source of information came from the Primordial Ones who had intruded here, then could his objective be to leave this world? Furthermore, where were the Primordial Ones that this person had once met? Why was there no record of them on the internet? Could it be that they were also taken in by the Celestial Star Alliance?
At this moment, the mysterious man once again spoke, his tone solemn.
“I know what you are most interested in right now. That’s exactly why I invited you… I require helpers, to eradicate this world and set me free. This… is also the only method through which you can leave!”