Understanding Han Xiao's motives, Melos' expression softened. He paused and asked the question he had been curious about all along, "What is my future like?"
"You..." Han Xiao picked at his ear, clicked his tongue, and said, "Sacrificed in the fight against the calamitous beasts. Died a very tragic death."
"H-How tragic?" Melos' face stiffened.
Han Xiao picked up his wine glass, clenched his fist, crushing it into shards, and shrugged. "Something like that."
Melos was skeptical. "Although I'm not one of those Grade A powerhouses, I can't believe the beasts on this planet would be able to torture me to death."
"In the fragments I saw, Senyuan City was breached by the beast tide. You held the line at the breach, fought valiantly until you were exhausted, your strength depleted, and you were torn to pieces by the beasts."
Melos looked surprised. He knew himself too well. Protecting the tribe was taking on the responsibility he shouldered, but he certainly didn't have the conviction to fight to the death. If he encountered a deadly crisis, he would immediately run away. How could he become so tenacious?
"How far in the future is that?"
Han Xiao spread his hands. "Do you think I'm the All-Seeing Venerate worshipped by the Void Spirit Religion? I'm just an ordinary foreseer, not omniscient and omnipotent."
He knew that when playing the role of a foreseer, one should not show too much foresight. This was to protect himself, and also to whet Melos' appetite.
Han Xiao knew Melos' growth trajectory. In the future, he would become a selfless tribal hero. As a growing "protagonist-type character," Melos was still relatively green at this time, unlike Bennet, who was already fully ripe.
Seeing Melos' furrowed brows, Han Xiao's eyes flashed, and he said, "What I saw are just fragments of the future developed according to the existing trajectory. If additional factors intervene, the trajectory will change accordingly. Given the current situation of the Sunil race, it will only become more and more difficult to resist the calamitous beasts, but there is a chance to avoid that future."
This statement relieved Melos. Han Xiao saying that his predictive ability was limited made Melos even more convinced. He was more likely to suspect those charlatans who pretended to be all-knowing and acted mysterious were trying to fool him.
"You said you have a solution?" Melos sincerely asked.
"The Sunil are in a very bad situation right now. The calamitous beasts are just the most superficial danger. Godora, this fallback, is not safe, and DarkStar is secretly watching. If you rise again, you may be attacked by DarkStar..." Han Xiao briefly analyzed the situation, and Melos' expression gradually became grave.
Besieged on all sides, this was the crisis facing the Sunil, like fish on a chopping board, at the mercy of others. Melos could not think of a solution and felt that the future was bleak, and could not help but ask, "So the Sunil have no way out..."
"Of course not. The way out has always been obvious, but you subconsciously didn't think about it in that direction," Han Xiao said with a chuckle.
"Obvious?" Melos was a little surprised, frowned and thought for a while, then suddenly his eyes widened and he exclaimed, "Are you saying... destroy DarkStar?!"
As long as DarkStar was eliminated, the biggest threat would be solved, but they simply couldn't do it! Wasn't this nonsense!
Melos stared wide-eyed. He didn't expect Han Xiao's appetite to be so big. In his opinion, this idea was simply insane and didn't know the immensity of the heavens and the earth.
Han Xiao calmly said, "DarkStar has destroyed the homelands of many civilizations. It is notorious in the Garton Star System and even the entire Colton Star Cluster. Its power is like a giant compared to ants, but it is not invincible, otherwise it would not have to hide from Godora all the time. You have always ignored this possibility, simply because of your fear of DarkStar, which is deeply rooted in your hearts, so you don't even dare to think about it, and think you will never be able to do it."
"We really can't do it. DarkStar's power is too great and very mysterious. I clearly remember every scene of DarkStar's attack on us, the overwhelming warships, countless laser beams, the planet's crust cracking, lava erupting..."
Han Xiao interrupted him and shook his head. "DarkStar has just as many enemies, and potential allies are everywhere. Apart from this path, you can only rely on Godora. If you are willing to give up, you wouldn't be resisting the calamitous beasts. I'm not saying to deal with DarkStar now, this is just the ultimate goal. Before that, we can only accumulate strength and hide in a low profile."
"You really dare to think..." Melos shook his head. "The hope is too slim. I don't think this is a good idea."
Han Xiao smiled slightly. He didn't intend to impress Melos with this grand direction, but merely to throw out a grand goal to broaden Melos' thinking. So he changed the subject, "Let's put DarkStar aside for now. Regardless of whether we can rise in the future, we must first solve the immediate difficulties. The Sunil's biggest problem now is exploring this planet and solving the problem of the calamitous beasts. Regarding this, I have very substantial solutions."
Melos perked up. DarkStar was too far away, but the calamitous beasts were a real disaster. He was more concerned about this and hurriedly asked, "What is your solution?"
"I can bring a lot of Supers."
Melos thought he would hear some profound insights. It turned out that Han Xiao's method was similar to the Sunil hiring mercenaries. In his opinion, the "many" that Han Xiao mentioned was at most a few thousand people.
Melos was immediately disappointed, which was directly reflected on his face. He sighed and said, "Just Supers are not enough."
"Not enough?" Han Xiao smiled mysteriously. "What if there were hundreds of thousands of Supers?!"
Hundreds of thousands?!
Melos had an expression that said, "Do you think I'm a three-year-old?" - A small mercenary from a surface civilization, how could he find so many helpers? And they were all one-in-a-million Supers!
Could it be that my naivety is limiting my imagination?
"I can bring a tide of people more terrifying than the calamitous beasts! They are fearless of death and good at fighting. Not only the calamitous beasts, but also they can help you explore the planet and mine Weird Stone veins in peacetime, and all they need is a meager reward."
At this moment, Han Xiao revealed a calculating smile! This was his biggest goal for this trip! He was eyeing the entire race's NPC resources!
If players were seeds, these NPC forces were the soil!
The Sunil race was just the beginning. Great Technician Han's plan was extremely long-term!
In the later stages of Version 2.0, under the guidance of an interstellar force, the Aquamarine Star players began to enter the interstellar space. Han Xiao wanted to replace that interstellar force and become the guiding figure.
Just entering the vast interstellar space, the players were ignorant, which was the best time to fool them. If they were given guidance similar to a novice village, they could be guided to their next area of activity and gain a preconceived advantage. Han Xiao wanted his camp to become the camp system that players transitioned to when changing maps, becoming an inevitable part of their career!
If successful, he could directly bring the players of the entire Aquamarine Star into his pocket!
He had already left a deep impression on the Aquamarine Star players and had an innate advantage!
And to guide the players' interstellar career, in addition to rewards, there was one thing that could not be avoided, and that was NPC resources.
Although the interstellar space was vast, the players who had just come into contact with it needed a transition period. They needed a stable area of activity to develop themselves, and it was best to have one or more story lines to guide their actions. This was why Han Xiao valued NPC forces, which not only had NPC resources, but also came with story lines.
The Black Star Mercenary Group had many rewards, and Rou Bao made video promotions, which were very attractive... But this was not enough!
There was an upper limit to the amount of camp rewards, which was an implicit limitation on the number of people. But if he reached a consensus with some forces and guided players to do missions and fight monsters here, he could jump out of this limitation, use other NPCs to provide benefits.
Since he wanted to use other NPCs, he had to highlight the role of his camp, so that players could feel the advantages of the Black Star Mercenary Group. In addition to rewards and exchange items, there must also be privileges! For example, he had formed an alliance with some forces, and players who joined the Black Star Mercenary Group could enjoy better treatment from the camp relationship. Or, like opening a new map requires a prerequisite, joining the Black Star Mercenary Group can be sent to some better maps to develop. His camp can play the role of a "key"... Through various operations, forming a similar effect, so that players feel that the Black Star Mercenary Group not only has many rewards, but also various indirect benefits.
The special nature of the mercenary group allows members to act independently and move between different maps, which is the advantage of his camp.
Players get an area to do missions, allied forces get help, his camp gets developed, and he gets benefits. This is a win-win situation! Players are like human resources, those forces that need help are like recruiting clients, and his camp is the intermediary that provides manpower. The difference is that these human resources all belong to his "intermediary" camp.
Or, the industry has developed to a certain extent, and then began to franchise...
These are just considerations from the perspective of interests. Another perspective involves feelings.
The mercenary group itself has no historical significance and lacks a sense of gravitas. By "helping" NPC forces, players can experience the storylines of these NPC forces and enhance their sense of immersion. The mercenary group becomes the link between these storylines, as if sharing weal and woe with the players, accumulating into the mercenary group's own deeds, thus slowly increasing players' sense of belonging to the mercenary group, which belongs to the practice of borrowing a chicken to lay an egg.
Players not only need benefits, but also need good stories, and then they will gradually substitute into role-playing and generate feelings for the camp. So Han Xiao decided to create a common enemy. DarkStar was the most suitable target. Working together to fight against the same enemy was the easiest way to generate a sense of belonging, and the Sunil, who shared a common hatred, was a very suitable ally.
Moreover, through the mercenary group's introduction, entering the territory of different NPC forces can also make players generate a vague sense of territorial awareness, which can also be grafted into the attractiveness of his camp.
Feelings, a sense of belonging, the long-term benefits brought by this kind of emotional investment even exceed the attraction of the rewards themselves.
Players are the representatives of chaos. Great Technician Han has always been committed to shaping himself into the "one of us" in the eyes of players, becoming a shadow that runs through the players' careers. Developing the camp is the core key to achieving this goal.
His layout is extremely large and requires time to slowly realize. Now he has taken the first step.
PS: (The next chapter will not be finished until midnight)