Chapter 1292 - Villain and Background (1/2)
Jupiter originally thought he would be heavily punished this time but was stunned. Suddenly, his memories since Version 1.0 resurfaced. He was both relieved about not having to be punished and touched by Han Xiao’s words. As a professional guild leader on a salary, what he had in mind had always been how to operate the guild better. Although he also had some emotional attachment to the Black Star Army after so many years, he did not see the army as his own faction like the normal players. The interests of the guild were his priority.
However, at this time, he still felt great warmth in his heart. He felt a sense of nostalgia in Han Xiao’s words.
However, though touched, Jupiter still could not help but ask, “Is this really ok? We caused bad influences after all…”
Han Xiao waved. “I understand the situation. If you people attacked a colonial planet out of nowhere, the army would strictly follow the rules and deal with you. However, your target was an enemy who kept disrupting your mission, and your mission in that area could not be carried out if you didn’t kill him. Since I told you guys to take over the black market, I gave you some freedom. Although I’m not very satisfied with how you guys overdid it… since the Feeney Civilization chose to protect your enemy, they’re an obstacle to our progress of taking over the black market, and they have to deal with the consequences of it. I can’t let them bully my men.”
“But the public opinion…”
Han Xiao interrupted him and casually said, “Although you guys were the fuse, the main conflict is still between us and the three Universal Civilizations. Even without this incident, they would find something else to shift the public opinion against us. I’m not going to punish the army’s members because of my opponent’s method of fighting us. Therefore, you guys don’t have to pay for the pressure from the outside world this time.”
Jupiter coughed and softly said, “But you became a target of the public too. Aren’t you worried about your reputation…”
Han Xiao shook his head and said, “I hope you guys can reflect on your mistake this time. It’s perfectly fine to eliminate enemies. If you come across enemies who disrupt the army’s mission again, do what you need to, but be mindful of the impact it might cause and make sure to do it cleanly. Unless left with no choice, don’t drag civilians into it. Request the army’s assistance if you need to, but don’t act alone again like this time and cause a large impact.”
Then, Han Xiao looked around at everyone’s pleasantly surprised faces and nodded in his mind. He believed these b*stards all understood his hint.
Ever since the start, he never wanted to completely forbid things like this but allowed it. He only wanted to guide them and make sure they did things cleanly, which he could not say out loud directly.
From the way he looked at it, what had happened had already happened. No matter what explanation he gave the outside world, it was not going to end up well. Therefore, he might as well ignore the public opinion guided by the three Universal Civilizations and let the army members do what they wanted to do, increasing the threat of the ‘Cancer of the Universe’ while removing the positive image the army had. Before he opposed the three Universal Civilizations, the three Universal Civilizations had always been promoting him and increasing his reputation, making the galactic residents give him all kinds of titles and auras. They did these things both to praise him and restrain him; it was a double-edged sword.
With reputation, the actions of the army were restricted. If they did something that violated the rules, they would suffer for it. This was the rope the three Universal Civilizations tried to put on the army.
Han Xiao knew very well that as the form of conflict became more complex, remaining in the rules set by the opponent would only make things more difficult. Therefore, although the players caused a big mess this time, it could be a chance to adjust his strategy.
Wanted criminals like EsGod did tons of extremely evil things, but most people were only afraid of them and did not dare say anything. This was because they knew they were evil villains and did not dare mess with them. One of the important reasons the outside world dared to condemn and scold the Black Star Army was that, in their hearts, the Black Star Army was once ‘good’, and ‘good’ entities could be messed with.
After being ‘good’ for too long, others fear him less and less… Those many civilizations who responded to the call of the three Universal Civilizations and obstructed the association from uniting the black market more or less had this attitude. They felt that they had the Peace Treaty ‘amulet’, so they thought the Black Star Army would not dare violate the rules and do anything to them.
Clearly, this mindset was part of the reason the Feeney Civilization used its colonial planet to protect Dafis. If they really cared about the casualties of their citizens, they would not have done that.
If the other civilizations learned from them and improved on it, the association’s work would only get tougher as time went on.
If the threat of the Cancer of the Universe increased through the Planet Burger incident and the outside world could see that there were a group of violent brutes in the army who were not afraid of violating the rules, some civilizations and Calamity Grade organizations would think twice before deciding to stand against the association…
Play and mess around all you like, but don’t take the Cancer of the Universe lightly!
As long as things like this happened several times and they became afraid and intimidated, a lot of trouble could be avoided, which was beneficial to speeding up the takeover of the black market.
However, these things could not be said out loud. Therefore, the army was not going to admit to any accusations and would insist they were false. As for the truth, the outsiders would have to guess.
As for the public opinion… the three Universal Civilizations controlled the most powerful promotion tool, so his reputation would be damaged sooner or later. Han Xiao was already prepared for it. There was definitely a price to pay for standing against the three Universal Civilizations. Plus, his reputation and image were unreal.
Armed organizations were not civilizations, after all. The things they cared about were different. In the current situation, public opinion did not matter at all. No matter how bad it got, when it came to what mattered, the three Universal Civilizations would not dare make a move.