Chapter 996 - Tricky Question (1/2)
“Three for one?” Han Xiao jumped in surprise.
It seemed like the dynasty was prepared to bleed. Just by the amount, they indeed were expressing their sincerity.
A Universal Civilization would naturally have the technology to craft Universal Treasures, and with their many years of accumulation, they should have a lot in stock.
Bekorodi tapped on the table, and a screen popped out in front of Han Xiao.
“This is the exchange list provided by the dynasty. You may choose any three of them listed.”
Han Xiao glanced at it and immediately knew that the Universal Treasures on the list were not the complete inventory of the dynasty.
Thinking about it, he then opened his mouth to ask, “What if I want other Universal Treasures from the dynasty?”
“If you wish to exchange for those outside the list, then there will not be the privilege of three exchanging for one. Furthermore, there are important assets of the dynasty that cannot be taken out for the exchange. I hope you understand this point. Other than that, if you wish to customize a Universal Treasure, you may suggest it to the dynasty. However, it needs to undergo a review,” Bekorodi said.
That’s within my expectations… Han Xiao nodded.
Just think about it, the three for one could not be without conditions, and they would definitely not use their own strategic-level Universal Treasures to acquire his Evolution Cube.
Whatever they were willing to exchange was those they opened to everyone, which was also the Universal Treasures not too important to the civilization.
The importance of Universal Treasures was dependent on their specific role. From Han Xiao’s perspective, they were akin to magical items, with the top being held by strange, unsolvable mysteries such as the Spacetime Amber. There were also many kinds of man-made Universal Treasures, such as Austin’s Palace of Hidden Spells, Beyoni’s Land of the Fire Core, or the Arcane Church’s Ten Thousand Deity Scepter.
The Evolution Cube was the core of the technology from the Evolutionary Civilization, and this technology had since been lost, only leaving behind a series of technological applications.
With the legacy from EsGod being revealed, many advanced civilizations would also have obtained the data, which meant that whoever obtained the Evolution Cube would inherit part of the core technology from a quasi-Universal Civilization, completely exclusive to them. This was naturally of great significance.
Han Xiao pondered while scanning the exchange list again, secretly analyzing the pros and cons.
In his previous life, during the World Tree Civilization war, the three Universal Civilizations took out large stacks of Universal Treasures to equip the Beyond Grade As with, including quite a few Universal Treasures that he had seen on the list today.
Among them, magic and mechanical equipment occupied the most of them, and the majority were meant for individual scale battles, such as armor, melee weapons, or special devices.
A small part of them would be special purpose Universal Treasures, most of which Han Xiao knew about from his previous life. For example, there was an item called the Shadow Lantern, where the wick was made up of the source energy fragment of the shadow dimension, and the ‘light’ it emitted was pure shadow. It possessed many special effects, with the main effect to open the dimension portal and transform the area into a dangerous dark dimension, changing the existences of everything in the area, as well as inviting shadow creatures from beyond.
Another example would be the Key of Destruction. This was one of the defining technologies of the Crimson Dynasty, which could be mass produced and even used by ordinary citizens. Its effect was to remotely call upon the firepower of the various armies of the dynasty.
However, this required the dynasty army to cooperate. Most of the dynasty’s armies were equipped with a Key of Destruction. When activated, a special secondary dimension would be opened, and the armies would launch a cannon salvo, which would be temporarily held in the secondary dimension and transported over to the summoner.
The summoner would then release it to attack at their desired location. The range was extremely wide, enough to clean up everything in the area. However, because it was an indiscriminate attack, it was only used as a last resort.
Compared to the Multi-Dimensional Sky Opening Transportation Device, the Key of Destruction was not as flexible and was affected by spacetime stabilizing anchors, magic, or Psionic Seal Rings. However, it had its advantages of being portable and high-volume production.
As long as the operating procedures were known, even mortals could use this, but this was not a good that could be sold, and the dynasty would only give this out during special missions.
When caught unaware, even Beyond Grade As could be killed by the volley of firepower. Throughout the exploration era, the dynasty used this technology to kill many of the original pioneers, leaving them without a complete corpse. However, with the development of space technology, the Key of Destruction was now slightly outdated, and everyone knew to guard against this trick of the dynasty’s.
In addition, there were also miscellaneous items, such as golden blueprints left by the previous Beyond Grade A mechanics or magic equipment forging diagrams from mages and so on.
The dynasty had a lot stashed away and wanted to exchange their unused stuff for the Evolution Cube.
As for what the dynasty did not study or understand, it would naturally not be included in the list. Han Xiao initially wanted to take advantage of this loophole, but it was a pity that the other party did not give him a chance.
After patiently waiting for a while, Bekorodi asked, “How is it? Have you made your decision?”
“Oh…” Han Xiao breathed out before shaking his head. “This is too sudden, and I’ve not thought about it properly. I can’t give you an answer now. Give me some time to consider.”
“That’s fine.” Bekorodi nodded, and his tone grew a little heavier. “I believe, after serious consideration, you will make the best choice and not disappoint the dynasty’s faith in you. I hope you can make your decision before the Flickering World opens.”
“We’ll see depending on the situation.”
Han Xiao nodded before standing up, following the secretary out of the room.
Leaving the government building, he headed toward his small base that was used for storing his machinery while thinking about the pros and cons.
The first would be with regards to the interest. If he handed over the Evolution Cube, he would receive three Universal Treasures. According to the list, he should obtain all combat related Universal Treasures, but there was always the opportunity to acquire another strategic level Universal Treasure instead. Han Xiao had always felt that it was pointless to only have combat-related treasures.
It would be good if they gave them away for free. However, that was just his wishful thinking.
There were also other benefits, namely that the Black Star Army would not have to stand on the cusp of the storm, and Sorokin’s Limitless Financial Group would not continue to make trouble for him. There was also no need to worry about any potential attacks from both the federation and the church, which could mean a long period of stable development… given that their previous grudges were not counted.
Han Xiao also assessed the effects of losing the Evolution Cube.
This was a unique strategic-level Universal Treasure, and while it possessed no combat power, its effect could be reflected in all aspects of development for a faction. If this were to be handed over to the dynasty, the Black Star Army would lose its faction’s special product, and its attraction to players and other characters would inevitably decline. A good example would be Silver Shadow. The latter would not have been so interested in him if not for the Evolution Cube.
With the Flickering World as a foundation, his interest group derived from the cube at the start had also stabilized, but the business of the Evolution Cube was still an important pillar in the army’s finances.
Handing over the cube was tantamount to transferring the frightening profits of the Evolutionary Totem to the dynasty. The expansion and maintenance of the Black Star Army required a huge amount of funds to constantly flow in, and without the transactions of the Evolutionary Totem to support them, the army would shrink and even slow its expansion.
While they had to abide by the covenant and seek the dynasty’s permission to use the Evolution Cube, he still possessed its ownership. Once his ownership was lost, the meaning would be different.
This would mean that other organizations would no longer need to cooperate with the Black Star Army, instead directly bypassing them to work with the dynasty. The Black Star Army would be kicked out of this game, which would impact their various businesses. The financial losses were not limited to just the transactions of the Evolutionary Totem.