The base's shortage of manpower kept them from producing much, but something very nice did happen soon after the crisis was averted. A young woman with ordinary geno armor had a second evolution. She became a Baron.
Gu Qingcheng guessed it might have had something to do with the gold raven mark. Perhaps the energy that melted into their bodies was what prompted the second evolution.
The geno armament she received was a fire type.
"If the gold raven mark can make people evolve, does that mean all these women and kids could end up becoming xenogeneics or Nobles?" As Han Sen mulled that thought over, he realized he was quite happy about it.
Any Nobles he developed could become Han Sen's loyal army, and he could be more confident about using them.
Of course, it still depended on when they could all become Nobles.
Only Black Steel and Captain Wood knew of the events that occurred in the Raven palace. It had been many days since then, and yet word had not gotten out. The news had been suppressed by all survivors, it seemed.
It did not matter much, anyway, even if word was to get out.
There were fewer Nobles in the base right now, at least, and that made things easier for him to manage. This also provided Han Sen with more time to practice and hunt xenogeneics. Even so, he was still unable to level up and become a Viscount.
"Han Sen, how are your skills coming along?" When Yisha finished practicing, she finally called up Han Sen.
"Things are going swimmingly," Han Sen answered.
Yisha, upon hearing Han Sen say that, smiled. Icebird was behind her, but she hadn't said a word.
Because Yisha had told her to review Han Sen's current situation, she knew he had lost many Barons and Viscounts. He always hunted alone, and he didn't focus on his practice.
"Good. The Moon God Festival is coming. All the elites and their heirs will be going. You should think about joining us. There'll be a test," Yisha said coldly.
"Moon God Festival?" Han Sen looked at Yisha with a modicum of confusion.
Yisha signaled for Icebird to step forward and explain. "The Moon God Festival happens every forty-nine years. Only the Rebate who are born within those forty-nine years are able to join. Because there are many outsiders within the Rebate society, especially over the past few centuries, they are also allowed to join. That is, if they are able to qualify."
Icebird explained it to Han Sen, so he'd know a bit more about it.
It wasn't random that it happened every forty-nine years. Every forty-nine years, on the main eleven planets, a moon altar would appear. Creatures that were born within those forty-nine years could enter the altar to Moon Palace.
The Moon Palace was in the center of Narrow-Moon, but it was different from the Gold Raven Hall. There was no sun. There were just the planets and Moon God Palace. It was usually cold, and hidden in the dark. Not even deified elites could sneak in.
During this time, the planet would appear, and the Moon God Palace would open up. Anyone who could make it past the altar and reach the palace would be blessed by the Moon God. This was a big thing for the Rebate, and the event would even be livestreamed. The first person to be blessed would receive a big reward from the Rebate.
No one knew what the reward would be, though; it was something that was decided by the elder, and the elder hadn't announced what the reward was going to be yet.
But Han Sen was more interested in the blessing than the physical reward. The Moon God might have been present, but there were no statues or creatures around the palace. The creatures that entered Moon God Palace looked awfully cold. The blessing was to be bathed in moonlight, it was said, and no actual god showed itself.
There was no advantage to going to Moon God Palace early. Once the palace opened, you could be blessed at any point until the palace closed again. The amount of blessing you'd receive was random, and didn't depend on timing either.
Sometimes, the last person to go would receive the most blessings. Sometimes the earlier arrivals would receive the greatest blessing. There didn't appear to be a reliable rule for how the blessings were distributed.
After many Moon God Festivals, it was deduced that the strength of the blessing depended on the person.
Normally, the actual Rebate received the strongest blessings. Outsiders rarely ever had a chance to join in, and there was a fairly obvious bias.
Yisha let Han Sen go, but Han Sen didn't think he'd receive much of a blessing. She just wanted him to witness the new elites that showed up every forty-nine years. In the festival, showing off your power was far more important than earning first place. Aside from receiving a bonus from the elders, you'd receive nothing special.
Most Rebate and xenogeneics just wanted to use the festival to gain fame. Han Sen was Queen's only student, and he would definitely be challenged. That was why she mentioned there would be a test for him.
Forty-nine years was not a short amount of time, and there were a few Viscounts that had joined. An Earl had taken part, as well. Ordinarily, they wouldn't kill anyone. But even so, Han Sen was a Baron, and it was difficult to say if he'd pull through.
After they ended the call, Icebird said, "What if too many people realize that you are letting him join? You taking him as a student has soured many of the younger ones. I am afraid they will try to teach him a lesson."
"It is good for the young ones to suffer failure." Yisha smiled.
1860 Lead Runner
Han Sen had nothing to prepare, so he went back to hunting xenogeneics as he usually did. He also spent time practicing his geno arts.
When the Moon God Festival began, Han Sen was sent to Planet Blade. It was one of the eleven primary planets, and Moon God Altar could be accessed from there.
There weren't many creatures on Planet Blade, and across the past forty-nine years, only seven to eight could join.
As the planet moved, a previously invisible planet appeared directly in the center of Narrow Moon. You didn't need a livestream to see it. All you would have to do was look up and see the planet that hosted the giant palace. It was like a heaven in the cosmos.
But that beautiful jade palace looked completely different than the planet that hosted it. The planet itself was barren, devoid of mountains and rivers. The empty side of the planet was facing them, too; the palace was located on the opposite side of the sphere.
The altar teleported you to the other side of the planet, so you'd end up facing the jade palace. You had to walk around it to get inside.
The Moon God Altar appeared on Planet Blade, and so Han Sen teleported. He wasn't interested in fighting people, as all he wanted to do was take first place and obtain the rewards he might be entitled to as a result.
When Han Sen appeared on the planet, there were many people standing atop a jade platform.
Han Sen started running. That planet wasn't very big, and it was just a small moon, but running to the other side would still take a long while.
"Han Sen, don't run!" Han Sen had only just started running when someone called out to him. It was a black-eared Rebate. He was two meters tall, and he was holding a big knife as he ran towards Han Sen.
Han Sen did not remember seeing this guy before, and so he didn't think it was likely that the man would have a grudge against him. Why was he coming for Han Sen?
After the black-eared man shouted, everyone looked over to see what was happening.
"Why are you calling out to me?" Han Sen asked, as he kept on running.
The black-eared man again shouted, "Don't run! I am Night Giant God. Let's fight and see which of us has superior knife skills."
Upon hearing what was said, Han Sen simply sped up. He ignored the man completely.
The guy was just a Baron, so there was no point in fighting. He thought the concept was ridiculous, and the last thing Han Sen wanted to do was take part in something ridiculous in front of everyone.
"Han Sen! Are you really willing to call yourself Queen's student? Take a stand and fight me, if you have the audacity!" Night Giant God kept shouting as he chased after Han Sen.
Fortunately, Night Giant God was a fighter who focused on power. He had no chance of catching up with Han Sen.
Still, he kept on running and shouting, which made Han Sen depressed. It made Han Sen wonder, "Is he crazy?"
The young ones that came to the planet were headed in the same direction as Han Sen and Night Giant God. It created a scene of Han Sen and Night Giant God in front, with many people behind them.
Moon God Festival goers usually picked their own path. This was the first time they were all following two people so closely.
"Are these guys hostile to me? When did I offend them?" Han Sen looked back at the commotion, and he saw so many people giving pursuit that it looked like a riptide. He was flabbergasted by what he saw.
Most people had just come to watch. They didn't plan on fighting Han Sen. They wanted to see how Knife Queen's student performed.
"Knife Queen is such a high and superior person. Why would she accept a student such as that? He only runs away!" 'Yes. What is he so afraid of? I thought he had a King class weapon. Why is he so scared?"
"Fight" fight."
The creatures that were all watching the streams shouted at their monitors. But they were only watching the livestream, so their voices would not reach the planet.
The Nobles who witnessed the scene wanted to laugh.
Icebird Duke didn't look fondly on the event, either. She thought Han Sen's decision to run was an embarrassment to Yisha.
Yisha was impartial to the whole thing, though. She merely watched the video.
"Night Giant God is unable to catch up. Let's help him!" A Viscount smiled to his friend.
"Let's go and stop him so they can fight." A few Viscounts nodded.
They had gone there to watch the show, and bullying Han Sen had not been their original plan. But now that he was not willing to fight, despite the challenge, they weren't very happy about it. So, they wanted to stop Han Sen and force him to compete in a battle.
A dozen Viscounts sped up, went past the main group, and came in close to Han Sen.
"Old Nine, do you think Han Sen can actually fight Night Giant God?" A beautiful man with gold bunny ears was amidst a group. He was moving casually, leading others that were behind him.
A man with a cow head, who was standing right next to him, said, "I do not know, but Night Giant God is incredibly strong. And he's practiced Night River King's skills, too. That is called Fighting River, and it is strong enough to be on par with a Viscount's power. Its strength is that of five hundred flowers, so that is a very rare number."
"So, you support Night Giant God?" The gold bunny-eared man smiled.
"I guess," said the man with a cow head.
"How about this? Only you and I are Earls. I will be number one, so there's no point in fighting. How about a wager, then? You bet Night Giant God will win, and I bet on Han Sen winning. If Han Sen loses, then I will gladly give you the first position," the handsome man said.
"What if I lose?" the cow-headed man calmly asked.
"If you lose, come and train with me on Planet Thunder," the beautiful man said.
"Okay." The man with a cow head nodded.
Han Sen was in front, and there, he saw a dozen people coming after him. He felt depressed, and so he thought, "No way! Is Knife Queen really that unpopular? All these Viscounts now want to bully her student? This is so not fair!"
Fortunately, Han Sen was prepared. He had the Teeth Rabbit shoes. He wasn't going at full speed, but now that the Viscounts were nearing, he sped up a bit.
Han Sen decided to get the number one spot, so he could get the reward first.
Chapter 1861 – Moon Palace with a Moon
"Hey! What happened? His speed is increasing!" A dozen Viscounts were trying to stop Han Sen, and they had all managed to get very close to him. But now, at that range, they were finding it getting more and more difficult to close the gap.
"He can run even faster than this? Not bad for a Baron, I suppose! But it is naive to think this will be enough to shake off a Viscount." A Viscount smiled as he accelerated.
The dozen Viscounts moved as if they were activating jetpacks. Together, they sped up towards Han Sen.
"The distance separating the Barons and Viscounts cannot be closed. The fitness is too much to compensate for. It would be shocking enough for the fastest Baron to have a speed in the five hundred flower range, but even so, the slowest of Viscounts are above one thousand flowers. Skills won't be enough to close that gap." The beautiful man smiled.
The next second, though, the beautiful man was shocked.
When the Viscounts started to speed up, Han Sen was able to speed up yet again. He managed to maintain the distance between himself and the others.
"How is it possible for a Baron to run so quickly? Is he really just a Baron?"
"Since when did Queen excel in the teaching of skills that benefit those wishing to flee a fight?"
"This speed is so f*cking fast. Not even Viscounts are able to catch up with him. Still, I wonder how long he can keep that up?"
"This is interesting."
The races that watched the Narrow Moon livestream were showing extreme interest. They were no longer complaining that the events were boring.
The beautiful man was shocked, and he said, "I cannot believe a Baron can possess such speed! It must be some secret technique he has learned!"
The man with a cow head did not speak. He just kept running.
This is strange. How is he able to run so fast?" The Viscount behind gritted his teeth. He couldn't get dose to Han Sen.
"I told you guys it would be beneficial to learn a speed geno art. You guys said the abilities of flight were useless. Now watch me!" A Rebate Viscount that had practiced speed went at an even faster pace. The wind at his back left trails like a blitzing jetpack. His legs looked like a fiery wheel as he left his own group behind to catch up with Han Sen.
"Wind Assault can only be used in a straight line. It cannot be used in the midst of a fight, but this is perfect for it. Han Sen surely can't outrun this." The beautiful man smiled.
The Viscount that had practiced Wind Assault was only ten meters behind Han Sen now. Those watching the livestream were excited that he had almost caught up with Han Sen, then shocked to see Han Sen increase his speed yet again. The Viscount that was using Wind Assault was only ten meters away from Han Sen, and he couldn't get any closer.
"What is this? Can he not catch up?" The people watching the stream dropped their glasses. They did not expect this could happen.
"A Baron can possess this sort of speed? That is very powerful!"
"This is so fake. A Viscount with Wind Assault cannot catch up with a Baron? There's a problem somewhere here." "There is! Normal Viscounts cannot dodge Wind Assault, so how can a Baron outrun it?"
"I will say it has something to do with his shoes. They must be some sort of treasure that imbues incredible speed upon its wearer."
"It must be. But even so, he is just a Baron. Even with a high tier treasure, he shouldn't be able to unlock its true power, right?
"Normally, a Baron cannot activate a superior treasure. The strength he would be given would be that of an ordinary Viscount, at best. But this is way too much. If so, I haven't the faintest clue where it might have come from."
Everyone was talking about this ravenously. The Moon God Festival had actually become an interesting affair.
"He is cheating! It is no wonder he has managed to achieve this level of speed. But it is useless to cheat before the absolute speed." The beautiful man felt embarrassed for the presumptuous mistake he had made. He sped up with the desire to stop Han Sen.
The cow head fellow followed after him. Those two Earls shot past the teams and even accelerated to a speed that surpassed the Viscount with Wind Assault. They were going straight for Han Sen.
"Sh*t! How many people has Queen managed to offend? Even the Earls are mad at me?" Han Sen thought Queen had offended a lot of people, and that was why others kept coming after him.
But actually, although she did not have many friends, she was an idol for all of the Rebate. She was a popular person when it came to socializing.
Han Sen wasn't overly concerned, though. He increased his speed, wanting first place more than anything. The rewards wouldn't be bad, and Han Sen figured he'd be needing it. That was why he was trying to claim it.
The elders said the reward was a Marquise xenogeneic armorset. That armorset would be incredibly powerful if it was activated. But even if it wasn't, it would still provide a great boon of defense for any wearer.
And on top of that, if he later had no use for the gear, he could just eat it for xenogeneic points. That prize would be valuable no matter how he decided to use it.
The beautiful man thought he could catch up with Han Sen easily, but after speeding up, Han Sen went even faster. There was nothing he could do to catch up.
"D*mn!" The beautiful man sped up again.
As his speed increased yet again, so too did Han Sen's. But the Earl was still unable to close the gap and get close enough to Han Sen.
"Cheating boy! I am going to get you." The beautiful man gritted his teeth and shone with a bright green light. A green light dragon enveloped his body and came whooshing forward towards Han Sen.
Han Sen increased his speed again, though. And he managed to lose the green light dragon. He was headed straight for Moon Palace. Everyone who was watching the stream had seen the green light dragon pursuing Han Sen, but Han Sen was still able to increase his speed and leave it in the dust.
The beautiful man was shocked. He could not believe what was happening, so he gave up on the prospect of chasing Han Sen. People stared at the livestream in dumbfounded silence for a moment. An Earl had used all his strength and still failed to catch a Baron.
"D*mn! What are those shoes? They are over-powered!" Someone complimented them.
Icebird Duke was shocked by what she was witnessing, and even Yisha was transfixed by the shoes.
If the shoes were a King class treasure, a Baron should not have been able to activate them. But adding to that, the shoes themselves didn't exactly seem to look like one, either.
All the Nobles were in shock, staring at the rabbit shoes Han Sen was wearing.
Han Sen was so fast, he arrived at the Moon Palace before everyone else. He went inside the gate and saw some strange moonlight from beyond. The moons were rising in the hall.
"I wonder how many moons he can raise in there." The people who watched the stream glanced away from their monitors and looked up to Narrow Moon. The moons that were rising could be seen just outside.