Preparations For Mission

John Smith passed a list of items to Feng Jun.

"Oh my god! BOK-recombiner, Farer IV Solvent, and 12 microchips‽ Do you know how expensive these things are?"

"I'm paying," replied John Smith plainly, instantly reminding Feng Jun that they were not on the same pay scale.

One hour later, he arrived at John Smith's workshop with three briefcases in hand. The first briefcase contained three ten-centimeter-long transparent tubes that were filled with an opaque white, sticky fluid. This was the BOK-recombiner.

The second briefcase contained a small vial of pale blue solution. This was the Farer IV Solvent. These two materials could only be made within an equipped laboratory and were extremely valuable. These two tiny vials had cost John Smith $120,000.

The third briefcase contained the 12 microchips. Each one was only about the size of a fingernail, and they were extremely thin. Upon closer observation, one would find that they were jam-packed with circuit lines. They were commonly used for small and complex gadgets, and the set of 12 cost $60,000.

John Smith immediately began working on the mask.

He started by opening holes on the thin plastic mask for his eyes, nose, and mouth. Then, he carved out 12 small holes on various locations of the mask for embedding the microchips in.

Before putting the microchips in, John Smith uploaded the data from a scan of his face to his computer. Using a library of over thousands of faces, he then spent two to three hours linking them up to a simple facial recognition and projection program on his computer.

When he was done, John Smith retrieved some laboratory apparatus and began to work at mixing the BOK-Recombiner and the Farer IV Solvent. After some time, he managed to produce a composite material that was neither white nor blue like its constituents, but instead, the color of flesh.

This was the key material for making the Smart Meta-Optical Mask. Not only did it possess some of the useful properties of the BOK-recombiner and the Farer IV Solvent, but it also had, most importantly, good conductivity.

John Smith proceeded to embed the microchips beneath the mask before pouring the flesh-colored mixture over it. After a few more finishing touches, he left it to set within a special freezer.

A short while later, John Smith opened the freezer and reached in to retrieve the mask. Apart from where the microchips were located, the mask was extremely smooth. On its thin surface, John Smith had installed an advanced crystal display that, upon being pressed, caused a spectrum of colors to appear on the spot.

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You have crafted [Smart Meta-Optical Mask], gaining 5,000 exp!

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[Smart Meta-Optical Mask] – Face Equipment

It allows the user to change the appearance of his face when worn, concealing his identity. Charge 5 minutes for 10 hours of usage.

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This mask had cost a whopping close to $200,000 to make.

John Smith picked up the mask and walked over to the mirror to test it out. A cool sensation enveloped his face when he put it on, and he pressed gently onto the micro-chip on the cheek area to activate it. The appearance of his face immediately transformed, and it continued to change into a different face with each press.

This was by no means an ordinary mask of disguise! It was a godly piece of equipment that allowed the user to change his appearance at will!

The [Smart Meta-Optical Mask] would only 'transform' into the faces of humans, as John Smith had only fed the program data of human faces. Apart from randomly changing, it was also able to store up to three different faces for the user to access and could revert to the last three faces used. It also had an additional function that allowed it to scan a target's face and transform it with a 70-80% accuracy.

After playing with the mask a bit more, John Smith removed it and headed back to headquarters to look for Gu Hui.

"You've created your mask?" asked Gu Hui.

John Smith smiled and put the mask on. As John Smith did not intend to reveal the mask's transformation capabilities just yet, he had prepared it to display the face of an ordinary-looking young man beforehand.

To Gu Hui, it simply looked like an extremely realistic mask. However, while Division 13 could already make such masks, none of them were as realistic as John Smith's. Furthermore, not only did it seem to be extremely portable, it was very easy to wear.

"Interested in selling the blueprints to us?"

John Smith faked a burst of laughter.

"It's just a simple mask, why would I need a blueprint to make it? You guys can make them too, right?"

'That's true,' thought Gu Hui to himself.

Inwardly, John Smith let out a breath of relief upon seeing Gu Hui give up the idea.

'I managed to fool him!'

"Then," continued John Smith, "can I join the operation?"

Gu Hui thought for a moment before nodding.

"The Hesla Intelligence Service has decided to join us for this operation. You will come along with your team."

John Smith had known that Hesla would agree to take action. It was the Germinal Organization, after all.

Suppressing the excitement in his heart, John Smith asked, "When do we depart?"

"There's no rush. It will take some time to arrange our forces, plus, we will both have to work on a proper strategy first. It'll most likely be half a month before deployment."

'Half a month,' thought John Smith. 'That will be enough time for me to finish up my equipment.'

…

Back in his workshop, John Smith wrote his goals down on paper.

One, to obtain even more rare blueprints.

Two, to purchase a vehicle for his team. As a logistics personnel, a vehicle equipped with all the maintenance and crafting tools he needed would be invaluable.

Three, to upgrade the [Fighter Suit].

"Ah, so much to do. One at a time, I guess."

John Smith shook his head.

The most important thing was still to raise his combat ability. There were a few ways to do this.

The first and most important way, in John Smith's opinion, would be to improve his defensive capabilities. After all, survival was key.

The second was to enhance his long-ranged offensive capabilities. For this, John Smith planned to enhance his Berserk Eagles. While John Smith did prefer fighting from a distance, the close-combat ability was still important on the battlefield, so he also planned to upgrade the Mecha Arm.

As for mobility, the Swallow Gliders that had been collecting dust in his inventory were finally going to see use. As the terrain around the Black Raven Valley Base was extremely rough, they might end up proving invaluable to have.

John Smith also decided to prepare a little something if the battle did not go their way, a little something explosive. After giving it quick thought, John Smith scribbled down another list of materials for Feng Jun to help him procure. The total cost of the items on the list costs around another $300,000.

Feng Jun found himself growing more and more exasperated at John Smith, but fortunately for him, the higher-ups had known before that Han Xiao would be a pain to deal with, so they had given him a raise. For the sake of his $25,000 monthly wage, plus insurance, he relented to act as John Smith's errand boy.

Feng Jun sighed as he looked up to the sky dramatically.

'With great power comes great responsibility, I guess.'

Feng Jun immediately got the items delivered to John Smith, prompting John Smith to sarcastically praise him for being an exemplary worker. He joked that he would shower him with a pennant, among other rewards, causing Feng Jun to roll his eyes. After teasing him, John Smith returned to his workroom to begin work on his equipment.

Having leveled up both [Basic Weaponry] and [Basic Mechanical Engineering], the effectiveness of John Smith's enhancement was now much higher than before. He took out the two Berserk Eagles and began to perform modifications on them, upgrading them with better materials and spare parts.

'My days of poverty are long gone; I'm a rich man now!'

With John Smith's proficiency in modifications, the process was completed in no time.

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Berserk Eagle (Enhanced)

Grade: Uncommon

Base Stats:

Damage: 74-87

Fire Rate: 1.5/s

Magazine Capacity: 8

Range: 50m

Power Output: 45

Prerequisite(s): Lv. 3 Precise Shot

Stat Bonus: +2 Dexterity

Length: 0.21m

Weight: 1.9kg

Additional Effect: Backfire – The recoil of this gun is extremely powerful, requiring 30 STR to overcome.

Additional Effect: High Impact – When attacking, 10% chance to deal bonus 15 damage if the target is within effective range.

Additional Effect: Dual-shot – This gun has been modified with the capability to fire up to 2 bullets per shot (20% damage penalty).

Tooltip: Come on, we all know what gun this is based on. Desert— cough.

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With John Smith's current skill levels, there was a 30-40% chance of upgrading a piece of common equipment to uncommon when performing enhancement. Although John Smith was now the proud owner of two uncommon guns, they came with the prerequisite of Lv. 3 Precise Shot. Even though this prerequisite did not prevent John Smith from wielding them, it would cause their effectiveness to be greatly diminished.

Shaking his head in exasperation, John Smith inputted some experience to raise Precise Shot to Lv. 3, which gave him an additional 3% Accuracy and 4% Critical Chance.

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As you have achieved Lv. 8 in Basic Shooting and Lv. 3 in Precise Shot, you may learn one of the following three advanced skills:

Sniping

Gunfighting

Suppression

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For the first time, John Smith found himself in a dilemma over which skill to pick.

Although shooting skills were essential to Cannon Masters, they were also important for Technicians. The three abilities displayed before John Smith represented different styles of combat.

As the Berserk Eagle was made for close-combat, Gunfighting would make for a logical choice. However, also needed to think further ahead.

At the end game, Technicians were strongest at long-ranged combat, so they rarely had use for risky, close-combat skills. Suppression would aid in sieging or holding forts, but it would only be effective with a partner to provide tactical support. In contrast to these two skills, Sniping was far better suited for solo action.

John Smith scratched his head as he thought about it.

'I'll have to work alone sooner or later anyway, plus I should keep myself far from danger, unlike a player who doesn't have to worry about his life. For me, sniping is the best option!'

In John Smith's previous life, the dazzling and breathtaking style of Gunfighting was a popular choice among players, and even professional Cannon Masters would learn it just for the cool factor.

However, as a pragmatist, John Smith could hardly give two hoots.

'Who cares about looking good during combat! It's not like I'm doing this to see the stream chat praise me.'

At this thought, the Great Technician John finally made his decision.

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You have learned an advanced skill:

Sniping (Lv. 1)

+4% Fatal Shot

+5% Shooting Range

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John Smith nodded in satisfaction. Done!

Next, John Smith crafted the Swallow Gliders, earning 1,500 experience in the process. He also modified them to give them the 'retractability' of the Retractable Knife. Indeed, the good thing about being able to learn knowledge was he could implement concepts and technology from his blueprints into other inventions.

With the added retractability, they could now be worn on the back like a parachute before deployment. Once activated, the two 1.2m long 'wings' would extend out to allow the user to freely glide in the air.

After the gliders, John Smith proceeded to work on his close combat gear. The Mecha Arm formed a set with the Mecha Leg, and their blueprints were obtainable through the same combination of talents. They were also necessary parts for creating an Exoframe. However, that would require advanced knowledge, and Han Xiao did not even have the necessary skills to craft a proper Mecha Leg yet. At best, he would be able to craft one that could travel long distances, but it would lack the mechanisms that allowed for nimble movements.

John Smith planned to upgrade the Mecha Arm by making it lighter and smaller. While making it smaller would cause it to lose some power, Han Xiao had something in mind to compensate for it.

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Do you wish to proceed with talent fusion?

(Lv. 3 Basic Weaponry + Lv. 2 Basic Assembly + Lv. 2 Basic Mechanics)

This fusion will cost you 15,000 experience.

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Fusion Success!

Congratulations, you have discovered [Air Motor]!

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"Wow, first try!"

John Smith rejoiced. This particular combination of talent could yield several different blueprints, and he had not expected to obtain it using so little experience.

The Air Motor converted compressed air into vibrational kinetic energy that, when harnessed as a weapon, could essentially bypass the armor of normal armor to cause direct damage.

John Smith spent a good half a day working on the Mecha Arm. He refitted it to slim it down but also lengthened it to cover the entire arm. He also reinforced its casing with platinum to cover up its internal mechanics, giving it a huge durability boost.

When he was done, the Mecha Arm looked vastly different from its crude form from before – it was now a shiny, silver metallic arm.

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Lightweight Mecha Arm (Left) – Motor-enhanced

Grade: Average (White)

Base Stats:

– Damage: 30-48

– Defense: 10-13

– Power Level: 33

– Durability: 470/470

Prerequisite(s): 24 STR

Bonus Stats: -2 Attack Speed

Length: 0.87m

Weight: 5.2kg

Additional Bonus: +7 STR

Additional Effect: Vibration – Every 15 seconds, your attacks inflict an additional 23-45 direct damage onto the target. (Ignores Defense)

Additional Effect: Increased Durability

Tooltip: Realistic looking.

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Although it was only an average ranked piece of equipment, John Smith's modifications had given it three useful additional effects.

So far, all the upgrades that John Smith had given his gear were nothing too fancy, but now, he was about to craft something special, something specialized for a Technician!

John Smith took a deep breath.

"Amitabha… God, please let me get that blueprint in one try. This fusion is just too expensive…"

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Do you wish to proceed with talent fusion?

(Lv. 2 Advanced Material Composition + Lv. 2 Basic Magnetism + Lv. 2 Basic Assembly)

This fusion will cost you 70,000 experience.