Chapter 150 Somal Desert

The *Starlight Times* objectively analyzed the group assignments, stating that Group A was the most competitive, and the highly anticipated Changkong team was likely to suffer a Waterloo. Haotian was formidable, but other teams were conserving their strength and would go all out to qualify from the group stage. In this situation, Changkong might be too rigid and easily broken.

Fans of the strong teams in Group A, especially those of the three giants, didn't buy it. They suspected behind-the-scenes manipulation and furiously tore into the officials and other teams on the forums.

However, their reasons were unconvincing. Most neutral viewers believed that it would be more like behind-the-scenes manipulation if the four giants were evenly distributed into each group.

Of course, reason couldn't calm the fervent fans. The topic's popularity on the forums continued to rise, and after the qualifiers, the preseason began.

The results of the preseason games didn't count toward the standings. They were just for each team to gain a simple understanding of their opponents in the same group, as a warm-up, to collect opponent data, and to mislead opponents.

Compared to official matches, the warm-up matches were relaxed. Each team had no pressure, and all kinds of crazy plays dazzled the eyes. The audience especially loved watching unofficial matches, where things got wild.

The mistakes and god-like plays of each team were made into funny and passionate video compilations, which were well-received on the forums. Roubao also followed the trend and made several episodes.

After the preseason, there was a break, allowing the teams to rest and the officials to increase publicity, creating momentum for the divisional regular season, with a massive publicity campaign to stir up player expectations.

By the time the regular season officially started, it was already June in the Star Sea Calendar.

During this period, Han Xiao had been grinding player experience in the shelter. Besides that, there wasn't much else of importance. The exploration of the historical hidden main storyline had reached the third stage. The requirements had all been met, but he couldn't contact Hannes and the others, so he couldn't complete the quest.

Han Xiao was dealing with this hidden main storyline for the first time and didn't know the specific process. He used the power of the Dark Net to search for Hannes, but still found nothing. This made him feel uneasy. The Dark Net was now one of the largest forces on Planet Aquamarine. If even the Dark Net couldn't find him, it was basically certain that Hannes and the others had disappeared.

After investigating from various sources, he discovered that Hannes was last seen in a barren desert called the Somal Desert.

"That name sounds a bit familiar..." Han Xiao frowned. "That's right, I went to that desert once when I did a bounty mission. I obtained the \[Low-Level Tough Life] template specialization there. It's an old kingdom's ruins, and there are remnants searching for so-called magical relics."

Although Han Xiao didn't communicate much with Hannes, Hannes was the quest giver for the hidden main storyline and risked coming to meet him in Andea. Both personally and professionally, Han Xiao wouldn't sit idly by while he was missing. Bennett felt the same way.

When the regular season started, Han Xiao left the shelter and went to the Somal Desert with Bennett.

...

Under the scorching sun, the desert shimmered with distorted hot air. Looking through the barbed wire fence of the Dark Net outpost, one could see the endless sea of sand.

"Hannes was last seen a month ago. He resupplied at this outpost and then entered the Somal Desert. He hasn't returned since."

The head of the outpost reported the situation to Han Xiao and Bennett, taking out the material allocation records to prove what he said was true.

"I've already sent out a convoy to look for their tracks, but... the desert terrain makes it difficult to preserve traces from a month ago. The results aren't optimistic," Bennett said.

Han Xiao narrowed his eyes. "Can you say something more constructive?"

Bennett was helpless. "Phone and computer communications are impossible. All contact methods are cut off. This is the only clue."

This kind of inefficient action was like looking for a needle in a haystack. Han Xiao shook his head. "This method of searching is too time-consuming... but there's no better way right now. Hopefully, we'll find something."

The Somal Desert held many secrets. Hannes might have encountered a special situation this time. Han Xiao thought of the abandoned Firona base and the rumors of magical relics. A guess suddenly formed in his mind.

"Hannes may have met with an accident," Bennett sighed.

Han Xiao remained noncommittal. In his previous life, Bennett had erected a tombstone for Hannes and the others, but this time, he felt it was different. If the quest giver died, the hidden main storyline would definitely be declared a failure, but now it was only stuck at the third stage. Han Xiao felt that Hannes and the others were still alive, and this might be a necessary stage of the quest.

Since the quest was stuck, he could only wait patiently. Perhaps time would bring a turning point. Although Han Xiao was quite curious about the final outcome of this hidden main storyline, judging purely from the perspective of rewards, the quest rewards were limited in their appeal to him. Now that Technician Han was wealthy, the quest rewards were just a drop in the bucket to him.

After arranging the tasks for his subordinates, the two took a plane back. On the plane, Bennett suddenly said, "I heard that there are more and more Super players in your shelter. You have to keep an eye on them and don't let them cause trouble."

Han Xiao raised his eyebrows. "What do you want to say?"

"The Super players come from strange places, behave strangely, and their numbers are increasing," Bennett said with a solemn expression. "They are a potential threat. If so many Super players unite, the world will once again face a bloody storm. We can't afford another war. I heard that the Six Nations have contacted interstellar civilizations. Those aliens will send a team to investigate the Super players."

"I know what I'm doing." Han Xiao smiled slightly and patted Bennett on the shoulder.

He not only knew that the Godoran would send someone to Planet Aquamarine, but also knew the specific time of the spaceship's arrival. This was the fragment that the Son of Destiny card had shown him. The spaceship sent by the Godoran civilization was one of the opportunities for him to go to space, and the time was a little over a month later.

...

In the following month, Han Xiao continued to accumulate resources according to the established plan. Due to the tournament, more and more players came to the shelter, keeping his sales at a high level.

Han Xiao occasionally watched the matches. The regular season added a arena match, which was the second way for teams to compete. It was a one-on-one gauntlet. Each side sent six players, and the team that annihilated the opponent won. The points earned were six minus the number of players lost by the winning team. For example, if a team defeated its opponent at the cost of three players, it would earn three points.

The arena matches enriched the ways for teams to earn points. As the regular season progressed, the situation became clear. In Groups B, C, and D, the top two teams had widened the gap with the teams behind them and had secured their places in the next round. They were Huaxia's Temple, Storm, and Mountain Sea, as well as three foreign club teams.

Kuáng Dāo's Jiangcheng team failed to qualify. In fact, entering the regular season was already a stroke of luck for the Jiangcheng team, exceeding Xing Duhe's psychological prediction of the results. This made Xing Duhe develop ambitions and want to achieve better results, seeing hope for a higher level. He finally didn't want to continue slacking off and developed blind confidence in the team's strength.

However, reality poured a bucket of cold water on him. Those who remained were all strong players, and the Jiangcheng team's overall strength was too poor. No matter how hard he tried, he still repeatedly lost.

Xing Duhe felt very cold in his heart, realizing that his seriousness couldn't change the fact that he lacked ability. The ambition that had finally emerged was shattered.

But after all, he was an old fox. He quickly adjusted his mentality and comforted himself, "That's enough. At least we made it to the regular season. This result is good enough to report to the team."

With this thought in mind, Xing Duhe fully expected that he, the team leader, would be rewarded by the higher-ups. However, reality not only poured a bucket of cold water on him, but also blew a cold wind on him, making him shiver all over.

At the press conference, the Jiangcheng club officially announced that Kuáng Dāo would serve as the future team leader and core, directly depriving Xing Duhe of his position. Before Xing Duhe could digest this fact, the team's higher-ups sent him a request for termination of his contract, which completely panicked him.

The club's higher-ups weren't blind. Kuáng Dāo's record was obvious to all. He had made it to the top three in the individual competition, successfully entering the divisional finals, and was the only remaining Mechanic from Planet Aquamarine in the top sixteen in the individual competition. He was even called "Huaxia's Number One Mech Warrior" by fans!

The Jiangcheng higher-ups naturally vigorously cultivated such a promising player. This was only the first season of the league, and there would be opportunities in the future. They were preparing to cultivate Kuáng Dāo as the club's pillar and build a new team around Kuáng Dāo.

Xing Duhe, who had never achieved any results and had an unprofessional attitude, was directly kicked out of the team.

Kuáng Dāo originally didn't like the Jiangcheng team, but the higher-ups wanted to build a new team around him as the core. This was a treatment that many established players didn't have. Kuáng Dāo was flattered and his resentment was swept away, and he was extremely moved.

Once one achieves results, one will have a Bole who recognizes talent, and one's professional career will soar. Kuáng Dāo was now considered a semi-celebrity player, but he was very ambitious and not satisfied with his current results. He was full of fighting spirit and even more determined to cling to Han Xiao's thigh.

Kuáng Dāo's record was better than in his previous life, and there was still room for improvement. Han Xiao had a sense of relief that his son had become a dragon... uh, it would be more appropriate to say that he had the satisfaction of nurturing a player.

As for Eilex, who had reached the top sixteen in his previous life and made arrogant remarks mocking the Huaxia players, he was eliminated in the group stage. This was mainly due to Han Xiao's influence. Eilex's development was far worse than in his previous life, even though his Esper ability had A-grade potential, he couldn't develop it.

Looking at the entire Planet Aquamarine division, only the situation in Group A of the team competition was unclear.

This was a veritable group of death. There were still a few rounds of matches left, and the top five were still neck and neck in points. Anyone could make a comeback and qualify. Changkong was currently ranked third, and the competition was extremely fierce.