Chapter 1 The Method of Persuading

The Sprout Tribe's method of convincing their own kind was very effective.

There were five nests in this area. One had been scared away by Han Xiao, and the Sprout Tribe had surrendered. In the following days, Melos crippled the remaining three nests, and then the Sprout Tribe persuaded the surviving aliens of the three tribes, relaying Han Xiao's meaning.

This two-pronged approach was more efficient than simply killing. The area was cleared with high efficiency.

This surprised the Sunils. They did not expect that the legendary Black Star would have such an operation. The results of the action made them sincerely admire Han Xiao. They did not need to waste time chasing the fleeing subterranean aliens. The deserters from the three tribes were persuaded by the Sprout Tribe to bring their respective "Weird Speech Stone Base Stations" to surrender, greatly saving their energy and avoiding more casualties.

Hundreds of thousands of players, however, engaged in fierce discussions about this. After discovering that the subterranean aliens possessed considerable intelligence, some players began to express different opinions on the act of "slaughter." Various comments emerged, and Han Xiao's method of persuading the subterranean aliens to surrender was quite approved by many players, but these players were in the minority, mostly those who were strongly immersed in the storyline.

At first, only a few players discussed this topic. Most players were just bystanders, here to do tasks and not thinking about so many twists and turns. However, as more and more discussion posts appeared, more players couldn't help but express their opinions and began to take sides, getting drawn into the topic, and the heat gradually increased.

Most people habitually sympathize with the weaker side. Having seen the brutal slaughter, many players felt unbearable. Although the subterranean aliens looked a bit disgusting, after looking at them for a long time, they were actually quite pretty... like hell they were! They didn't even have eyes or eyebrows, how could they be pretty!

In short, sympathy was sympathy, and players would not be soft when killing monsters for quests.

It was the name "Sprout Tribe" that made all the players laugh like pigs, getting the point.

These players had all experienced the events of Version 1.0, and the impression of the Sprout organization was very deep, so they couldn't help but happily play with the meme on the forums.

"Sprout: Coach, I want to eat a boxed lunch!"

"Sprout: Now that things have come to this, I can no longer hide it... it's time to rise from the coffin! Are kings and nobles born that way?!"

"Shocking! Actually, Sprout is the real Big Boss, a cosmic-level mysterious organization with alts all over the Star Sea. Aquamarine Star is just one of its incarnations. This huge force has been hidden for billions of years, and what we have come into contact with is just the tip of the iceberg..."

"Sprout: Hmm? (Notices), my alt has been exposed again?"

"I understand, this is the inheritance of faith, to spread the seeds of revolution throughout the universe, Sprout is immortal! The spirit lives on forever!"

"Sprout in heaven silently watches you and gives you a like."

"Keep blowing, Sprout is very satisfied."

The existence of the Sprout Tribe made the heavy atmosphere a lot more cheerful.

In this area, only the last fleeing tribe remained to be dealt with. Melos led his troops forward along the route of the fleeing tribe, while the surrendered subterranean aliens of the Sprout Tribe used their signature digging skills to clear the way. Under the guidance of the radar, the group found the newly opened underground nest of this tribe.

This time, however, there was no battle. The leader of the Sprout Tribe first contacted the leader of the fleeing tribe through the Weird Speech Stone, relaying Han Xiao's meaning.

This fleeing tribe did not resist. When the Sprout Tribe outlined Han Xiao's figure, this tribe immediately recognized him.

Han Xiao was the root cause of their fleeing, leaving a psychological shadow. This tribe was very timid. When the Sprout Tribe announced Han Xiao's name, they did not hesitate too much. The tribe members reached a consensus in the mind network with high efficiency and directly surrendered.

It was the first time that the problem was solved without a fight. It was very easy. Melos sincerely felt that Han Xiao's decision was really brilliant.

All five nests in this area were cleared. Melos led his troops out of the underground. There were more areas that needed to be replicated, and how to deal with these surrendered subterranean aliens became a problem.

Melos asked Han Xiao for instructions. Han Xiao's meaning was very simple. Because there were too many subterranean aliens, and they were unwilling to come to the surface, the cost of guarding them was too high. Therefore, most of the aliens were temporarily left in the original area to wait, and the five tribes lived together, with some monitoring equipment configured to monitor the actions of the surrendered aliens around the clock. Then, the punitive expedition took some of the aliens, including the leader of the Sprout Tribe, to other areas to continue the persuasion work.

Melos had tasted the sweetness of pulling some over while striking at others, and had no objection.

...

For the next period of time, the punitive expedition continued to use this strategy.

All the underground mines on Sunil Star were finally detected by Reynold. There were a total of one hundred and twenty-seven subterranean alien nests, roughly divided into forty-one main gathering areas. The punitive expedition cleared nearly half of the alien gathering areas around the world. After counting, the number of subterranean aliens who were persuaded to surrender reached 1.7 billion, while the number of those who were slaughtered was not counted, but it was only more than that.

The method of persuading surrender was not always successful. The alien tribes were relatively independent, and the development status of each area was different. There were always some barbaric tribes that were more uncivilized and did not understand the meaning at all. The Sprout Tribe persuaded them on this side, and they kept "rua"-ing on the other side, making it impossible to communicate normally. The only way to deal with them was to kill them all.

All the players' [Clear Subterranean Aliens] main quests had yielded considerable gains, and Han Xiao was happy to see it.

Seeing that the players were growing well, he was not idle either. During this period, he changed his tricks to harvest the players' experience and wallets, and his experience reserves gradually approached the 10 billion mark.

——The experience for upgrading later is an astronomical figure, so you have to work hard to harvest the leeks.

With the punitive action on the right track, the Third Base was finally completed. A brand new and magnificent Black Star base took root on Sunil Star.

The players gave it a good review, feeling proud of it.

Melos did not encounter any problems and did not need Han Xiao to take action himself. He had plenty of time to improve the equipment of the Third Base. This time, he was no longer alone. Reynold, as his deputy, helped a lot. The two cooperated and quickly built the military factory of the Third Base.

Reynold's personality was too serious, which made people feel uncomfortable on a daily basis, but in work, this kind of personality was simply perfect. Han Xiao was too satisfied with Reynold's work ability, and [Perfect Mechanical Sense] played a huge role.

Han Xiao had coveted this specialization for a long time. This time, he had enough time to spend with him, constantly probing and trying every means to trigger Reynold's quest, but he didn't even get a hair. Han Xiao was helpless. Facing Reynold, who was impervious to persuasion, he didn't know how to obtain Reynold's [Perfect Mechanical Sense] template specialization.

Han Xiao did know some non-template rare specializations of the mechanic series, such as [Elementary Mechanical Sense], [Precise Mechanical Sense], etc. The effects were naturally far worse than [Perfect Mechanical Sense], but he also wanted to get one to make up the numbers.

At least he was a mechanic, so it wouldn't make sense not to have a mechanical specialization. Looking at the series of meat shield specializations on his panel, people who didn't know would think he was an MT, which was too unprofessional...

Unfortunately, the location to acquire Mechanical Sense specializations was a bit far, not in this Star Cluster, and Han Xiao didn't have time to go there now.

Yi Ye Qing finally had results, developing targeted biochemical weapons specifically for the body structure and genes of the subterranean aliens. They were highly contagious. After getting sick, the subterranean aliens would slowly become weak, their mouthparts and carapaces would gradually fall off, their stomachs and esophagi would become infected with pus, and finally they would be unable to eat, either dying of illness or starvation, with a cycle of about ten days.

In the current situation, there was no need to use biochemical weapons. The goal had changed from extermination to migration.

However, since there were already research results, Han Xiao still equipped Melos with a certain amount of biochemical weapons, so that he could use them at his discretion. At least in this way, he had the means to kill the aliens on a large scale, which could improve the efficiency of the punitive expedition.

The day after the biochemical weapons were developed, Okitz, a senior Sunil official, suddenly came to visit.

In the reception room of the Third Base, the two sat opposite each other.

"This is truly a magnificent base."

Okitz spoke first, his tone ingratiating, but with undisguised envy in his eyes.

In a short period of time, Black Star had built an astonishing base, indirectly demonstrating the connections and wealth that the current Sunil could not match. Okitz could not help but be envious.

"It's okay." Han Xiao crossed his legs, tapping his thigh with his finger, and said slowly, "The punitive action is going smoothly. Is there anything else you came to me for today?"

Okitz sat upright and said in a deep voice, "Mr. Black Star, we would like to make a suggestion."

"You are the employers, you have the right."

"Your plan is very effective. Many subterranean aliens have been gathered together. I think this is a good opportunity to use biochemical weapons to kill all the aliens at once."

Han Xiao paused, looking at Okitz... This guy wanted to take the opportunity to use the current achievements of the Black Star Army to achieve Sunil's own goals?

Okitz subconsciously shifted his gaze, avoiding eye contact, and then felt that there was no need for him to be afraid. Black Star was a mercenary they had hired, and as employers, they naturally had the right to make requests, so he mustered up his courage and looked Han Xiao in the eye.

"Those subterranean aliens have already surrendered. I will migrate them to other planets. You are asking me to abandon this plan and insist on exterminating them?" Han Xiao raised an eyebrow.

"Yes." Okitz nodded heavily.

"Interesting. Migrating the subterranean aliens is something I'm paying for myself, and you don't need to bear the cost... So tell me the reason."

Okitz was silent for a while, avoiding the reason, and said, "I think this is a very reasonable request. We Sunil are the employers, and we hope you can carry out the task according to our wishes. At least you can save the migration costs."

Han Xiao narrowed his eyes, with a smile that was not a smile, "Indeed, mercenaries work according to the requirements of the employers, but in the specific implementation plan, we have the right to decide on our own. What you really need is to control Sunil Star. In my eyes, extermination is not the best solution. Although I am a mercenary, it doesn't mean that I have to carry out all the orders of the employers. I have the right to refuse any request that I think is improper. If you don't have a reason to do this, then let's forget about it."

Seeing that Han Xiao's attitude was firm, Okitz gritted his teeth, hardened his heart, and said the real intention:

"If we don't eliminate the threat forever, what if the subterranean aliens develop on other planets in the future and want to take back Sunil Star and attack us? If you don't kill them all, can you guarantee that this won't happen in the future?!"

Hey, so he really wanted to cut the weeds and eliminate the roots... Han Xiao's eyes flashed, and he spread his hands and said, "Indeed, I can't guarantee that the subterranean aliens won't be a threat in the future."

Okitz breathed a sigh of relief, "So, please..."

At this moment, Han Xiao suddenly interrupted him and smiled, "But even if they are a threat, it's still a different matter from the current task. They will counterattack Sunil in the future? Hey, what does it have to do with me?"

Okitz was stunned, and then he was about to get angry, but he thought that Han Xiao was someone he couldn't afford to offend, so he could only suppress his anger and said in a heavy tone, "Since you are a mercenary, you should at least abide by professional ethics, right? How can you say such a thing? We hired you because we hoped you could solve our predicament for us."

"That's right, isn't the Black Star Army solving the problem for you now? Otherwise, what do you think we are doing?"

Han Xiao smiled playfully, "Mercenaries are not nannies. You spend money, we put in effort. This is a transaction, but it doesn't mean that we will be responsible for your future forever. Even if the subterranean aliens counterattack, that's another matter."

"Not to mention how many years it will take for the subterranean aliens to develop the ability to counterattack, won't you Sunils develop without obstacles? If a fight really breaks out in the future... then hire me again."

Han Xiao folded his arms, with an expression of "I'm just being unreasonable, what can you do?"

Okitz widened his eyes, unable to say a word.

How could there be such a shameless person?!

"Of course, if you insist on me exterminating the subterranean aliens, it's not impossible." Han Xiao suddenly changed the subject.

Okitz ignited hope again.

"But..." Han Xiao showed a merchant-like smile and rubbed his fingers, "You have to add money."

Okitz's veins bulged and he clenched his fists tightly.

If he couldn't afford to offend Black Star, he would have overturned the table now.

What a damn black heart!