Star Abyss Walker

Chapter 303 The Olive Branch from Southern Rare Earth Group

At 2:30 a.m., the night was still deep in the wilderness.

On the minimap, a group of people slowly entered the Arshi Basin.

"Ding Han, look over there, there's someone there!"

In the team chat, "Indifferent to the World" sent a reminder.

Sure enough, on the edge of the Alshi Basin, there were more than a dozen armored vehicles, as well as a group of heavily armed men scattered in the woodland.

They are a mercenary group in the wilderness.

"alert!"

I immediately retrieved the motorcycle, grabbed the explosive gun, and led the group to quickly approach.

"Don't fire, they're on our side!"

Just then, someone shouted from afar, and two mercenaries carrying submachine guns rushed over. One of them, panting heavily, said, "Excuse me, which one of you is Ding Han? Our commander requests an audience with you."

Above their heads floated the words "Ragal Mercenary Group," but the group was a mixed bunch, including white people, yellow people, and others whose skin color was indistinguishable and whose race was unknown.

“The Ragal Mercenary Group? Never heard of it,” Cai Cai said.

"Humph!"

With a light snort, Yu Shiwu said with a smile, "There are countless mercenary groups scattered along the border of the Crimson Dragon Kingdom. There are at least eight hundred or a thousand such mercenary groups. It's not surprising."

“Let’s go take a look,” I said.

"Well, let's go!"

The group did not refuse to negotiate with the mercenary group, after all, they were players and had nothing to fear.

If things really come to a head, it's the mercenaries who should be afraid.

Following the landslide down the basin, we soon came to the front of a three-meter-tall infantry armored vehicle, where we saw a man wearing near-third-generation power armor walking towards us.

His power armor was severely worn and appeared to be pieced together. The powered legs and arms were even of second-generation armor specifications, but the chest armor and nuclear-powered backpack were of third-generation armor standards. A heavy explosive gun was suspended at his waist, but he was not equipped with any powered weapons.

"I am the commander, Ragal."

The hood lifted, revealing the face of a scarred outlaw with a cigar dangling from his lips: "You're Ding Han?"

"Ah."

I nodded and asked, "Who are you?"

"Our Lagal Mercenary Group has an employment relationship with the Southern Rare Earth Industry Group. We accept their missions, and they pay us. It's that simple."

Ragal raised an eyebrow and laughed, "However, these insects in the Alshi Basin are not easy to deal with. There is even a Star Cave Insect Queen hidden among them, with a powerful energy level. The mercenary group they hired before suffered a crushing defeat here, almost being wiped out. Ding Han, are you sure your mere twenty people can handle it?"

"I'm not sure, but we can give it a try."

"Row!"

Ragal smiled and said, "Go ahead and do it. Leave the security on the perimeter to us."

"Then I'll leave it to you, Commander."

"polite!"

So I glanced at Cai Cai, Ruo Lin, Yu Shi Wu Zheng, and the others, and said, "Let's go, let's get to work."

"Work!"

The group raised their eyebrows and smiled, then followed me toward the insect hive.

The mercenaries of the Ragal Mercenary Group were mostly thugs, and many of them gave him provocative smiles. Some even whistled and shouted, "Hey, those girls, it's a waste to rush off to feed the bugs. Why don't you play with us a bit before you go to your deaths?"

"These scumbags!"

In the squad, Zhi Xiao gritted her teeth in anger and glared at the mercenary with her big eyes.

"Clang~~~"

Ruolin didn't speak, but instead drew the Wind Chaser. Instantly, the power sword was enveloped in a deadly glow amidst a buzzing sound.

She pointed the tip of her sword lightly at the foul-mouthed mercenary, then shook her head with a smile.

"Shut the fuck up!"

Ragal hurriedly turned around and yelled at the group of mercenaries, "You bastards who were born of mothers but have no manners! They are friends of our Ragal Mercenary Group. Show them some respect, or are you looking for death?!"

Immediately, the group of mercenaries fell silent, no longer daring to utter a word.

Even if they weren't afraid of Ragal, they still held absolute awe for the power sword.

In the world of Star Abyss, those who possess power swords are the elite, and you can't afford to offend them.

Moreover, the strength of the Ragal mercenary group is only so-so, with a total of about 300 people, equipped with a dozen or so infantry armored vehicles, and only a few heavy weapons.

The most powerful individual combat weapon was the regimental commander's near-third-generation armor, and it was not equipped with powered weapons.

A mercenary group with this kind of strength would be a piece of cake for us to wipe them out.

To put it bluntly, they are a group of desperate outlaws who live on the edge, and an extremely poor group of desperate outlaws. The reason why Ragal is not equipped with a power sword is simply because he is too poor to afford one.

……

The insect nest was damp and smelled strongly of fish.

The light in front of us was too dim, with only the faint glow emanating from the crystal vein.

So I turned on the auxiliary light for the bomb gun.

Following suit, everyone ventured deeper into the insect nest. Before long, the insect's aura grew stronger, and a large number of first-tier insects appeared ahead, swarming towards them in dense numbers.

"Work!"

At a command, more than a dozen players began firing in unison, creating a spectacular scene. Gun muzzles spat fire, and the swarm of insects fell in droves. With the addition of Molotov cocktails and grenades, the insect hive suddenly became lively.

Among the crowd, Faye Chaochen and Koumei did not use firearms. Their eyes shone with psychic energy as they unleashed the Star Speaker's AOE skill, Starlight Arrow Rain. Dense, deep blue psychic arrows rained down, creating large numbers of damage in the swarm of insects.

"Fuck..."

One of the gunners from the former royal court was stunned, shocked by the output of the two Star Speakers.

Now in version 3.0, psionic classes are officially rising in popularity. The damage output of Night Fae Minister and Mouth Girl is even slightly higher than that of the two main damage dealers, Vegetable Girl and Fat Girl!
After clearing out a group of low-level insects, a swarm of blade insects appeared ahead!
With the attack of the knife-wielding insects being so powerful, no one dared to be careless.

"Hold them off!"

I immediately drew my power sword and power shield and charged into the swarm of insects, continuously using shield bash and sword slash. Meanwhile, Zhang Ruolin, Yu Shi Wu Zheng, and other super warriors also charged forward, acting as the team's tanks and providing good output space for the backline players.

"Zhizhi~~~"

The piercing cries of the blade worms rose and fell, but even though it was an orange-tier boss, it was no match for them. Especially in front of the two power swords, they were easily beheaded or severely injured, which was no different from giving away experience points.

……

As the team's commander, both Yu Shi Wu Zheng and I have a "steady" command style. So the team proceeded step by step, gradually encroaching on the swarm's territory. Although the conquest was a bit slow, it was quite safe.

Four hours passed in the blink of an eye; it should be daylight outside by now.

At this moment, the group finally arrived at the end of the insect hive, which was a circular cave. The cave walls and crystals were covered with lord insect embryos, and at the end lay a bloated behemoth—the Star Cave Insect Mother.

The Star Cave Insect Mother's buttocks were constantly spasming and contracting as she was giving birth. Protecting her during the birth were three Kaleban, cyan BOSSes known for their high attack and high agility.

"call……"

I took a deep breath. No wonder the Lagal Mercenary Group didn't dare to attack the insect hive. Putting aside the mental attack from the Star Cave Queen, just the three Kareban alone would have been enough to give them a hard time!
"How so?" asked the detached and unambitious man.

"Simple."

I smiled calmly: "Under the mental damage from the Star Cave Insect Mother, let's deal with Kaleban first! Ruolin and I will each take down one Kaleban, and the rest of you will follow Yu Shi Wu Zheng to fight the third Kaleban. Be careful, Kaleban's attack is extremely high, its aggro is unstable, and it's common for it to over-aggro. Be careful not to get one-shotted."

"learn!"

A group of people nodded in unison.

The next moment, I switched to the bomb gun and fired a burst at the little head of one of the Karebran in the middle!

"Hiss~~~"

With a low hiss, the three Kaleban charged forward together.

Ruolin and Yushiwuzheng are both experienced players. When Kaliban was halfway there, they used their burst attack to intercept him and then used a set of skills to lock him down.

I, holding my shield, walked toward my own Kaleban. It opened its mouth full of sharp teeth, its scythes flailing wildly, and leaped into the air with a divine descent!
"When~~~"

The sharp scythes struck the Barrier of Glory with all their might, instantly causing the disintegration force field to hum and continuously reduce the scythes to nothingness.

As Caliban was in pain, I suddenly delivered a shield bash, followed by a rising dragon slash that sent him flying. I leaped into the air, my sword flashing, and in the blink of an eye, I severed all of Caliban's claws, turning him into a gourd.

The cold star chills to the bone!

With a single, freezing strike, and amplified by the overwhelming power of the attack, more than ten strikes landed on the thick keratin layer of Caliban's neck. With a "crack," an ugly insect head flew off, spraying green fluid everywhere!
A solo kill! This cyan treasure chest is incredibly valuable!
Turning to look at Ruolin, she was in a more stable situation. Caliban had already lost 36% of his health, while Ruolin still had 85% health, so she was quite safe and didn't need to be bothered with. There was no need to steal her experience points.

On the side of Yu Shi Wu Zheng, with the support of Cai Cai, Fatty, Kou Mei, and others, their attack speed wasn't too slow either.

In the front row, the Unassuming Warrior and two other super warriors continuously controlled the BOSS, providing space for everyone to deal damage. They could also take turns after taking damage, making their strategy quite scientific and reasonable.

However, the Star Cave Queen's rear end was contracting faster and faster, and it was releasing a mental force field. The closer you were to her, the more damage you would suffer per second. The players were about 50 yards away from her. Although the mental impact damage was not very high, they still had to use first aid kits constantly to keep their health up.

Three minutes later, all three calipers were taken care of.

"Go! Take down the Star Cave Insect Queen!"

There are no tricks to fighting the Star Cave Insect Queen, since she won't move while fighting. Any action at this time would be pointless, so just go for it!

This time, only Ruolin and I withstood the Star Cave Insect Queen's attack; everyone else used ranged attacks.

Even those who are indifferent to worldly affairs shoot from a distance instead of drawing their swords and engaging in close combat.

Unfortunately, he didn't have a power sword, and the Star Cave Queen's armor was extremely high. If he couldn't deal damage, he wouldn't get a high amount of lifesteal, making it difficult to withstand the Star Cave Queen's mental damage at close range.

……

It took about four minutes.

The Star Cave Insect Queen's rear end was almost chopped to pieces. With a scream that sounded exactly like a woman's, the Star Cave Insect Queen's health bar disappeared, and she died after spurting out some green liquid.

A pink treasure chest has been obtained.

No question, let's open the treasure chest first!

Congratulations! You have successfully opened your [BOSS Ability Crystal] and obtained the item: [Star Cave Insect Mother Chain] (Quality: Cyan)!

……

I actually got a cyan necklace?!

So it turns out that the Star Cave Insect Mother Set isn't all pink. Or perhaps, in the Star Abyss setting, equipment with the same name can have different qualities.

So, can a light blue necklace paired with a pink helmet create a matching set effect?

Putting aside my research, I looked at the necklace's attributes, which were actually quite good.

【Chain of the Star Cave Insect Mother】(Quality: Cyan)
Rank: Fifth Tier

Strength: +50
Agility: +48
Spirit: +46
Blessing: Critical Hit Chance +8%
Blessing: Lifesteal +5%
Specialty: Attack damage +11%
Blessing: Rock-II, increases defense by 600 points.
Biography: The Star Cave Mother Chain, a creation of alien technology, is extremely sturdy.
Strength required: 700
Required Agility: 300
……

The attributes are average, nothing special.

If we're talking about the highlights, it's that the 8% critical hit chance is the maximum, plus the 600 armor from the Rock, and an additional 11% damage increase—these three attributes are very strong.

I immediately posted the necklace illustration in Ding Han's team's chat channel and asked, "Does anyone need it?"

In the nine-person team, there aren't many people with full cyan equipment yet, so everyone should still have a need for cyan necklaces.

"Fuck..."

Cai Cai said, "The requirements for this cyan necklace are so low! Only 700 points of strength! I want it, boss!"

"Row!"

I nodded: "Since Cai Cai spoke first, then let's give the food to Cai Cai."

Fatty, Bingzi, Gushi, and the others nodded in agreement.

The necklace's attributes are indeed suitable for damage dealers, as the increased damage and critical hit rate can boost their firepower, while the armor provided by the rock can improve their survivability.

Unlike some necklaces that add attack attributes like "great strength," this one is different.

For a damage dealer, offensive power is too weak, unless they need to pull out a knife to fight in close combat with the opponent...

But if the gunners are already at close range and haven't managed to kill their opponents, then it's already a loss.

……

"Smash all these lord insects; make sure they're completely destroyed."

I smiled slightly: "Since we've taken on this job, we should do it well!"

The group from the old royal court nodded in agreement. For them, this S-level main quest was too easy to complete. The 1 point of charm plus the extra reward and a lot of experience points were all very appealing!
Just as the Lord Insects were cleared out, a bell rang in my ears, signaling that the task of clearing the insect hive was complete!

[Congratulations! You have completed the main quest "Arshe Basin Insect Hive" (S-rank)! Rewards: 1800 million character experience, +1 Charisma, and an additional reward: "Phase Teleport Core" (S-rank special item)!]

……

Not bad, 1 point of charm plus a phase teleportation core, not a bad deal!

Most importantly, this task is a prerequisite for the SS-rank main quest "Crystal Refinery". Completing this task will naturally lead to the completion of the other task.

So for other players, the reward for this task might only be slightly generous, but for me, the later rewards are the real big prize!
A few minutes later, a group of people emerged from the insect hive.

Ahead, mercenaries escorted Ragal as he approached.

"nailed it?"

Ragal glanced at his watch, seemingly unsure if we had taken down a Zerg hive so quickly.

"It's done."

I raised my hand and pointed with my thumb to the insect nest behind me, saying, "We can send someone in to inspect it now."

"it is good!"

Ragal looked behind him: "Control the drone and fly it around."

"Yes, leader!"

A blond-haired teenager piloted a drone into flight, quickly clearing the insect hive. Countless insect corpses inside the hive were clearly visible in the retrieval footage, leaving Ragal dumbfounded.

"Commander, it has indeed been cleared up."

The blond-haired man exclaimed in shock, "Those two piles of mangled corpses... are they the legendary Karebran?"

"probably."

Ragal said, "The Star Cave Queen has also been dealt with..."

As he spoke, he turned and looked at me intently, then gave me a thumbs up and said, "I'll call President Fan right now."

The next moment, Ragal dialed Fan Changgui's number and said, "President Fan, we have just confirmed that the insect hive has been completely destroyed. We are about to take over the crystal mine and set up a defense line."

Fan Changgui on the phone must have been very happy, praising Ragal lavishly.

"Oh, we're just acting as assistants for these big players, Mr. Fan, you're too kind. As for adding money... hey, Mr. Fan, how much are you planning to add?"

After a short while, Ragal finished his conversation and handed over the phone: "Ding Han, President Fan wants to say a few words to you."

I took the phone, and Fan Changgui's voice came from the other end.

"Today I truly understand what it means to be a formidable young talent, Ding Han. I admit I underestimated you a bit before. Good lad, you wiped out a medium-sized insect hive so easily. Impressive. Our cooperation is officially finalized. Are you free today? Tonight at the Tianyu Hotel, I'll be bringing two vice presidents from Southern Rare Earth Group to treat you and President Lin to dinner. We'll discuss the details of our cooperation."

"Alright, Mr. Fan, see you tonight!"

OK, see you tonight!

……

After staying up all night, everyone took out their motorcycles and sped back to Huaining City after three hours.

After having a pot of Tibetan mutton with Fatty in the neighborhood, I went upstairs, sent Lin Qingying a message saying "See you tonight," and then went straight to sleep to catch up on my sleep!
I woke up around 4 a.m., and the alarm hadn't gone off yet. But there were a few messages on my phone.

The first message came from Lu Xiaobei. She posted a selfie of herself in a scenic area similar to Jiuzhaigou. She looked beautiful and youthful, but I didn't reply. So she sent a question mark emoji: "Where did you go?"

The second one came from Zhao Yihang: "Brother, why didn't you come to work today?"

The third message was a harassing message from 10086 (China Mobile's customer service number).

She sat up and replied to Lu Xiaobei: "I went out on a mission last night and am catching up on sleep today. The scenery is beautiful and the people are nice. Enjoy it."

Then she sent Zhao Yihang a perfectly polite message: "None of your business. I'm the general manager, I can do whatever I want, it's none of your concern."

As a result, both Lu Xiaobei and Zhao Yihang replied instantly.

Lu Xiaobei: "I'm not talking to you anymore. I'm going to take a stroll around the ancient town first."

Zhao Yihang: "Bro, you're really angry today! (Sweating emoji)"

……

I got up, washed up, and then headed to Yuening.

After picking up Lin Qingying, they drove to Tianyu Hotel.

"President Fan sent me a message early this morning about the dinner party tonight."

She smiled slightly: "Have you reached an agreement?"

"Yes, it's basically settled."

I took a deep breath: "The reason I went out late last night was actually to work for Boss Fan. There's no other way; if you want something from someone else, you have to give something in return."

"Isn't that how business is? There are gains and losses, that's normal."

She smiled and said, "But it's a good thing that we were able to reach a cooperation agreement!"

"Correct!"

I nodded and smiled, "With my pink equipment and SSS-level skill book, victory is in sight!"

Lin Qingying smiled beautifully, sharing my happiness.

Shortly after, at the Tianyu Hotel.

When Lin Qingying and I arrived at the private room, Fan Changgui and two middle-aged senior executives were already there. These two were vice presidents of Southern Rare Earth Group, and in Lin Qingying's words, they were high-ranking and powerful.

After everyone introduced themselves and exchanged pleasantries, Fan Changgui waved his hand and told the head waiter to serve the dishes.

I didn't let Lin Qingying drink; she shouldn't have been the one to shield me from drinking. Instead, I used the excuse of not being able to hold my liquor to have a little Heineken with the three bosses.

After three rounds of drinking.

Fan Changgui squinted and smiled, "President Lin, your boyfriend is quite something... Young people are truly formidable. I wonder where you are now, Ding Han?"

"I serve as the general manager of Feiyang Internet Cafe chain in this city."

"Oh, I've heard of it..."

Fan Changgui laughed and said, "However, with your abilities, it's really a waste of your talent to work in a small internet cafe. Why didn't President Lin arrange for you to join Yuening Group?"

"He doesn't want to."

Lin Qingying laughed and said, "President Fan, you don't know how stubborn Ding Han is. I invited him almost three times, but he still refused to come to Yuening. He only wants to start his own business, saying that it will be more free that way."

"Haha, that's right! The more capable a young person is, the stronger their personality will inevitably be!"

Fan Changgui, his face flushed, said, "President Lin, I'll take the liberty of saying a few words now that I'm a little tipsy. Please don't be angry, haha. What I'm about to say is just drunken talk, cough cough..."

"Mr. Fan, what do you mean?"

"Is such that."

Fan Changgui looked at me and said, "Ding Han, to be honest, I really admire your talent. I wonder if you would be interested in bringing your friends to work at our Southern Rare Earth Group? Our group will definitely make good use of your team. Of course, if you are not interested, we can also establish another kind of cooperative relationship."

He added, "Don't worry, you can name your salary expectations, and our group will do its best to meet them!"

The old fox's tail could no longer be hidden.

Clearly, after tasting success, Fan Changgui has decided to shift the group's development focus to the resources of the wilderness. The Lagar mercenary group is no longer enough to satisfy his appetite. He plans to establish a player team as his military support, so that the Southern Rare Earth Group can more easily plunder the resources of the wilderness.

The wilderness is now a no-man's-land, with neither the Crimson Dragon Kingdom nor the Star Maple Federation able to touch it. As a newly emerging force, players are able to roam the wilderness freely, naturally attracting the attention of these business tycoons.

After all, in their eyes, players are also human beings with desires. As long as they are given enough money, status, and women/men, hiring players to work for them is not a problem at all.

Unfortunately, they chose the wrong people; I happen to hate this kind of money-grubbing employment relationship the most.

As soon as Fan Changgui finished speaking, Lin Qingying looked at me nervously.

She was afraid I wouldn't be able to handle the situation.

"Thank you for your kind offer, Mr. Fan."

I immediately declined, saying, "As Xiaoying just said, I don't have any great ambitions, and I'm naturally lazy. I've always pursued a life of absolute freedom, so I might not be able to join Southern Rare Earth Group. It would be a waste of President Fan's good intentions. However, if President Fan needs me in the future, it's not impossible for us to continue our cooperation."

By shattering one of his hopes and then giving him another, Fan Changgui's psychological letdown wouldn't be too intense.

"Haha, sure, sure!"

Fan Changgui and the two vice presidents smiled slightly: "Of course, no problem, that's for the best, that's for the best!"

……

The meal is over.

Downstairs, Lin Qingying was supporting me as I swayed slightly.

"Ding Han, let's add each other on WeChat so we can keep in touch," Fan Changgui suddenly said.

"Okay, that's what I think too."

I took out my phone and added them on WeChat.

"Hahahaha~~~"

Fan Changgui couldn't help but laugh and said, "President Lin, what's wrong with your boyfriend's drinking capacity? Or is it that you haven't taken him out enough? Young man, you need to practice more. How can he handle this much alcohol?"

Lin Qingying smiled helplessly: "His alcohol tolerance has always been like this, and he drinks when he wants to and doesn't drink when he doesn't want to. I won't force him."

Fan Changgui gave a thumbs up: "Ding Han, you're so lucky to have a girlfriend like President Lin! Your life is worth living!"

As he spoke, Fan Changgui continued, "By the way, Ding Han, I'll use WeChat to recommend our technical director, Mr. Xie Baoguo, to you. You can directly connect with him regarding the medium-sized crystal refining plant. I've already spoken to him and given him maximum authority."

"okay!"

I nodded, and then got into the car with Lin Qingying's help.

The vehicle slowly drove onto the road to go home.

"Are you alright? Would you like some water?" Lin Qingying asked.

"I'm doing great now!"

I sat up straight and said, "I don't care about two bottles of Heineken. I was just pretending earlier because I didn't want to play games with Fan Changgui and the others. I was so tired of that kind of conversation."

Lin Qingying couldn't help but smile.

But I'm telling the truth, I didn't care about two bottles of Heineken, but three bottles...

"drop!"

On WeChat, Xie Baoguo, the technical director, sent a message: "Hello Mr. Ding, this is Xie Baoguo from Southern Rare Earth Industry. Mr. Fan has already arranged for me to liaise with you. When would you be available so we can meet and discuss the details?"

"Okay, Mr. Xie, please wait a moment. I'll coordinate with my supervisor here, and then we'll discuss a time together."

"Okay, I'll wait for your reply!"

So I sent a message to the guide: "Brother Huan, I've got the deal sorted out. Southern Rare Earth Group will build a medium-sized crystal refining plant for us. Their technical director, Mr. Xie Baoguo, wants to meet with us. Can you arrange it so we can schedule a time to meet with him?"

"Holy crap, you've managed to break into Southern Rare Earth Group?!"

The facilitator sent a super excited emoji: "Okay, how about tomorrow at noon? I'll book a table at the Tianyu Hotel, and we'll meet up there together, hahaha, great!"

"Ahem, how's the progress on Alliance Leader Long's side?"

As an extremely kind person, I don't want others to do a lot of useless work because of my own success.

As a result, the facilitator sent a voice message, in which Gunfire said, "Don't worry, you're the only one who succeeded. I haven't made a single peep on my end, hahaha~~~"

I also sent a string of "hahahahaha" and then said, "Then there's nothing more to say, let's have lunch together tomorrow."

Then, a message was sent to Xie Baoguo to confirm the location and time of the meal, and the three parties quickly reached an agreement.

……

The next morning.

After breakfast, Lin Qingying took me to the internet cafe before going to work.

"Is Mr. Lin driving you to work again?"

Zhao Yihang craned his neck and said, "That's great..."

"You fucking..."

I couldn't help but yell, "Zhao Yihang, you have a girlfriend now, why are you still thinking about my girlfriend all the time? Is your head filled with donkey hair?"

"Cough cough..."

Zhao Yihang said, "It's different. President Lin is my ideal type, but unfortunately, ideals are often far from reality. Besides, this is pure infatuation. If even that's not allowed, bro, how can you be so domineering?"

"I've noticed you're becoming more and more of a green tea bitch."

I couldn't be bothered with him, so I went upstairs to write some code.

Around noon, I went downstairs, hailed a taxi, and headed straight for the Tianyu Hotel.

Upon arriving at the private room, the guide and Gunner were already there.

A few minutes later, a balding man in a suit walked in. He looked to be around 40 years old and was Xie Baoguo.

After exchanging pleasantries, we sat down to chat.

Mr. Xie was extremely respectful to us, and his attitude was very humble. He didn't seem like a senior executive of a large corporation at all.

It was most likely at Fan Changgui's behest. After all, Fan Changgui knew who these people he was dealing with were: a group of players plus a GM. Their power was too great for Fan Changgui to afford to offend.

Moreover, Fan Changgui is a cunning old fox. He never intended to provoke us. On the contrary, he wanted to use the players' power.

The reason for being so polite is to facilitate future cooperation.

After all, we are now in the Zerg Rise version, and the Zerg swarms are quite active and rampant underground. Although we have taken over that large crystal mine, it is hard to guarantee that the Zerg swarms will not come again. Therefore, Fan Changgui's alliance with player factions is actually for his own long-term consideration.

Soon after, the banquet began.

Gun Chu Rulong brought a case of Moutai, and the three of them drank quite a bit, while I accompanied them with tea instead of alcohol.

In the blink of an eye, the group was completely drunk.

Xie Baoguo and the guide had their arms around each other's shoulders and were already calling each other brothers.

"Brother Zhou, leave this to me. It's just a medium-sized refinery, nothing to worry about. Just wait and see. I'll make the arrangements when I get back today, and we'll start airlifting equipment and technicians over first thing tomorrow morning. At most, our refinery will be up and running in a week. Do you think that's a good timeframe?"

"Great, that's fantastic! Thanks a lot, bro!"

"We're brothers, isn't it enough to say thank you?"

"Yes, yes, yes, let me toast you again, brother!"

Suddenly everyone else seemed to have become adults, while I was just sitting there eating like crazy, unable to even complain.

……

After finishing my meal, I went downstairs.

Several employees from the legal department of Southern Rare Earth Group arrived, bringing with them the contract signed by both parties.

Although the industries in King's City had neither property certificates nor licenses, making them completely unregulated, Southern Rare Earth Group still followed the rules and signed a contract that was largely a consolation prize.

Then came other tedious tasks, all of which required the cooperation of the guide and the Gun-Out Dragon.

As for me, I went back to the internet cafe and continued writing code.

Around four o'clock in the afternoon.

Once everything was settled with the guide, a bell rang, signaling the mission's completion.

[Congratulations! You have completed the main quest "Crystal Refinery" (SS-rank)! Rewards: Character Experience +4500 million, Charisma +2, and additional rewards: "Ring of Utopia" (Quality: Pink) and "Seventy-Two Ultimate Slashes" (SSS-rank Skill Tome)!]

……

coming!

He hurriedly opened his storage space and saw a sparkling pink ring lying in a corner. He took it out, wiped it, and its attributes floated out.

【Ring of Utopia】(Quality: Pink)
Rank: Fifth Tier

Strength: +60
Agility: +58
Spirit: +55
Blessing: Critical Hit Chance +10%
Blessing: Lifesteal +10%
Specialty: Attack damage +17%
Blessing: Divine Power-III, increases attack power by 900 points.
Burst Skill: [Illusion Shield] Summons an illusion shield, granting the user invincibility for 8 seconds. Consumes 50 Yuan Energy. Cooldown: 2 hours.
Biography: The Ring of Utopia, a relic of an ancient sage, contains extremely powerful spiritual energy.

……

It's truly an exceptional ring!

With critical hit, life steal, and damage increase attributes fully maxed out, plus a Divine Power-III for 900 attack power, this ring's attack stats are already maxed out, leaving no room for further improvement.

In addition, there is an 8-second invincibility effect, which is also quite powerful.

There are so many things you can do in 8 seconds.

For some boiling substances, those 8 seconds are enough for even certain things...

A player only needs to equip one item with an invincible burst skill. According to the settings of "Star Abyss", the cooldown of the invincible burst skill is bound to the character, so even if you change the ring, the previous invincible cooldown will continue.

Therefore, my current blue Adversarial Ring is now obsolete.

But Absolute Space is an invincible burst skill for the whole group, a super rare item, and I'm really a little reluctant to give it up.

There's no other way but to give the Ring of the Adversary to a teammate, so that I can get 7 seconds of invincibility for free, plus my own, for a total of 15 seconds of invincibility!
Without a doubt, Ruolin is the first choice.

After using invincibility, she can withstand the attack for a long time thanks to the tankiness of her shield-type super weapon.

At this moment, I turned my attention to the first SSS-level skill book.

【Seventy-Two Ultimate Slashes】(SSS-level Skill Manual): Master the pinnacle of swordsmanship, instantly lock onto the target and launch a barrage of attacks at extreme speed, inflicting 12-72 immobilization and slashing effects within 3 seconds. When combined with the prerequisite skill "Extreme Speed ​​Domain", it can greatly increase the damage. Consumes 15 Yuan Power, has a 2-hour cooldown, requires level 60, and requires the class of Super Warrior.

……

It's actually a Tier 6 skill!
As for the specific effects, it's impossible to determine because the level is too low to learn them yet. However, based on the description, it's roughly equivalent to freezing the target for 3 seconds, during which time you can break through the "attack speed limit" and deal an extremely high number of slashes to the target.

As for the specifics, we'll have to learn them to find out.

But at least it shows that this is a skill with 3 seconds of hard crowd control and extremely high output; basically, whoever is targeted will die.

I glanced at the level.

Level 59, 90% experience points.

It's a bit frustrating. There's still a long way to go before reaching level 60. The higher the level, the harder it is to level up. That 10% experience gain is a huge amount, at least around 2000 million experience points.

"drop!"

In the team, "Tell a Story" sent a message: "Want to have dinner together tonight? My treat?"

"What good story is there?"

Cai Cai laughed and said, "Didn't we just have KFC together at the Insect Nest this morning? Why do you want to eat again?"

"Cough cough..."

Let me tell you a story: "I just completed an S-rank daily quest and got a five-star dungeon crystal. I was planning to give it to my boss. I noticed that his level has been stuck at 59 for several days. He should be almost at 60, right? This dungeon crystal will come in handy."

I was almost moved to tears: "Don't say anything more, let's have dinner together tonight, it's on me!"

(End of this chapter)