Chapter 76 Deal

With a large sum of money in his pocket, Han Xiao had the confidence to spend lavishly, purchasing a batch of new parts from Farrian.

A day later, relying on his advanced skills, Han Xiao enhanced all his equipment and created new blueprints.

Electromagnetic Skates: The exterior is a metallic boot with special devices installed on the heel and sole. These devices use a special electromagnetic field to reduce ground friction. A high-energy battery pack inside the boot provides power, allowing the wearer to glide across various terrains like ice skating, moving at lightning speed, comparable to a car. The energy supports a maximum power operation for twenty minutes.

He painted the skates in a silver and black color scheme, making them very fashionable. He also added a layer of breathable mesh and sponge padding, covered with leather, making them comfortable to wear even when not in combat.

Soon, the Rothschild family came knocking.

At the Vitalia Hotel, Avano sat in the VIP room, his hands placed on his knees, waiting for his guest to arrive.

The door opened, and Han Xiao walked in. Avano stood up, elegantly extended his hand, and said in a rich, magnetic voice, "Avano, from the Rothschild family. I have some matters I would like to discuss with you."

Han Xiao shook his hand, noticing Avano's thumb pressing firmly on his tiger's mouth, steady and powerful, shaking it lightly. This kind of handshake is generally a habitual action of those in power, like a territorial awareness, carrying a feeling of wanting to control the other person. Han Xiao was very familiar with this type of handshake; his old man used to shake hands with people like this. The principle is actually very simple, just like how a pervert shakes a girl's hand, lightly scratching the back of her hand and palm. Different statuses, occupations, and identities have different habits, whether it's a subordinate asking a superior for help, a man wanting to show his charm to a woman, strangers meeting for the first time, or two people in high positions fighting each other secretly.

Avano's position was clearly not that of a simple messenger. Han Xiao had already guessed the Rothschild family's intentions.

The two men sat down, and Avano said, "The Rose Armed Forces' bounty has been posted for almost three years. Countless assassins have failed, yet Mr. Black, you were able to complete it alone. I am very surprised."

"You flatter me. It was just normal operations, nothing worth mentioning, nothing worth mentioning."

*Your tone doesn't sound like "nothing worth mentioning" at all,* Avano thought to himself.

After a few casual greetings, Han Xiao cut to the chase, "Our relationship is only that of employer and assassin. Once the task is completed, there is no further connection. You are looking for me for something other than the bounty."

"You are right. I am looking for you to ask a question." Avano nodded, suddenly leaning forward, a movement that gave him a sense of pressure. He stared intently at Han Xiao and asked in a deep voice, "In the Somal Desert, did you go to an abandoned base?"

As Avano spoke, he kept observing Han Xiao's expression and eyes. If Han Xiao had the slightest hesitation, he would immediately know if he was lying. The family had learned about the research project from the experimental logs in the abandoned base and attached great importance to it. If they could obtain the Filonia serum, they might be able to research some extraordinary things.

Unexpectedly, Han Xiao directly took out a tube of fluorescent yellow serum and placed it on the table, saying calmly, "Name your price."

Avano was stunned, not expecting Han Xiao to be so straightforward.

"This thing is useless to me. If you want it, buy it with money."

Avano glanced at the serum. He wasn't worried about Han Xiao deceiving him; anyone who dared to cheat the Rothschild family out of money was already dead.

"How much money are you asking for?"

"Depends on your sincerity." Han Xiao chuckled, appearing inscrutable.

This attitude gave Avano a headache. He hoped that Han Xiao didn't know the value of the Filonia serum, but judging from Han Xiao's performance, he seemed to be aware of it. He hesitated for a long time before quoting a price that showed sincerity, but wasn't high enough.

"One million."

Negotiations always start with a low price. Avano was prepared to pay a high price. Robbery was out of the question; they were all civilized people.

Han Xiao stared at Avano for a long time before slowly saying, "That price doesn't seem very sincere."

Avano was formulating his words, preparing to negotiate.

"I accept."

"This tube of serum has been preserved for decades. I don't know if it's still effective, which greatly reduces its value. I...wait, you accept?!"

Avano's eyes were stunned.

Han Xiao pushed the serum in front of Avano, chuckled, and said, "Let's be friends."

Avano had thought he would have to spend a lot of money, so Han Xiao's action immediately made him feel favorable towards him.

Avano's expression turned serious, and he put away the serum, saying, "The payment will be transferred to your account soon, and you will also gain the friendship of the Rothschild family and myself."

[You have unlocked new faction reputation!]

[The Rothschild family's favorability towards you has increased by 1800 points!]

[Rothschild family: Friendly (1800/3000)]

Han Xiao smiled slightly. Giving up some money in exchange for the Rothschild family's faction reputation was a worthwhile deal. Money could be earned again, but the opportunity to unlock a new faction was fleeting.

Some wealthy families and groups had existed since the Old Era. After the baptism of war, some families disappeared, while others became even more deeply rooted, their tentacles spreading throughout the military, political, business, and underworld of their respective countries. The Rothschild family was one such existence, with plenty of opportunities to make money. For players, it was an auxiliary faction, where they could buy some rare items and services.

The Rothschild family was one of the Dark Net Organization's allies, so this move was equivalent to finding himself an implicit backer in the organization, which had many benefits.

Without the gene modulator, the Filonia serum could no longer exert its effects, so it was better to sell it to exchange for some other benefits. He still kept a tube of serum in his hand.

Another million was added to his account, bringing his savings to six million. Looking at the numbers, it didn't feel like much, but to put it in perspective, players in Version 1.0 with over two hundred thousand in savings at Level 30 were considered wealthy. A million was simply an astronomical figure; only the assets of large guilds could reach that amount.

With the transaction completed, the atmosphere became much more harmonious. Han Xiao asked the question he had, "What is Filonia?"

He was puzzled why a mere potion could attract the covetousness of various forces.

Avano was in a good mood and explained, "The Somal Desert used to have a country that was involved in the Old Era's war. They launched a large research project called the Filonia Project, named after a legendary myth of that country. The specific plan was to build many military bases to conduct research in a dozen different technological directions. The serum you obtained is one of those research projects."

Han Xiao suddenly understood, "I see, I thought there were real magical ruins."

Avano chuckled, "How can there be magic in the world? You're thinking too much."

Han Xiao could only chuckle and stroked his chin, muttering to himself, "There shouldn't be magic on Aquamarine, but what's with this premonition..."

…

This was a dark and deep cavern, devoid of any light source, located who knew how deep underground. Fine sand would occasionally trickle down from the cracks in the rocks.

A wind that shouldn't exist echoed in the cavern, like breathing, faintly carrying a rumbling sound like muffled thunder.

Suddenly, six oval-shaped lights lit up in the darkness, a golden expanse, arranged vertically in two rows, symmetrically and neatly. There were no objects for reference, but by visual estimation, each light would not be less than ten meters in diameter.

The "lights" flickered extremely quickly, as if blinking.

Eyes.