By the time Ryan piloted his mining aircraft back to the base, it was already 8 PM. After applying for energy replenishment and maintenance for the aircraft, Ryan stood by the large floor-to-ceiling window, feeling unusually calm.
Earning 8,900 dollars in a day was nothing special. He had seen big money. During missions with the security team, a day's income could reach 3,000 dollars, and capturing a low-level specimen of an zergsoid or star beast could bring in over 100,000 dollars.
He remembered the most dangerous mission, where the team brought back a half-destroyed jumping zergs. This was an F3-level mutated zergsoid warrior, worth over ten million credits, and he had earned two million from that mission alone.
Looking down at the brightly lit base buildings below, Ryan silently discarded the empty nutrient solution vial and took a shower.
The body in the mirror was well-proportioned but lacked the impactful eight-pack abs and V-line, especially the back muscles, which were completely untrained.
"It's time to start working out," Ryan muttered to himself. "Even if I become a citizen and can use various weapons, without a strong physique, I'll only be able to handle basic firearms, unable to pilot mechs or combat aircraft, and even the combat suit's effectiveness will be limited. I'll be nothing more than cannon fodder."
"To truly meet the warrior standard, muscle strength and muscle reflex flexibility must be above 12 points." The standard for adults was 10 points; for warriors, it was 12 points. Bioenergy was the product of muscle strength and muscle reflex flexibility.
Ryan's muscle strength was only 9.7, muscle reflex flexibility 9.3, and bioenergy 100 units. Compared to elites with over 1,000 bioenergy points and muscle strength and flexibility above 30, he was far behind. Even some of the better security personnel at the base surpassed him.
There were many ways to improve physical fitness. The slower method was daily exercise, reaching warrior standards within six months. The faster method was injections. The most common were the "Gene Enhancement Injection" and "Gene Activation Injection," costing a million credits per shot. Only the wealthy and financially free warriors could afford these.
Another method, developed by the Earth Space Force, involved using the pancreas of fierce beasts, zergsoids, or star beasts, combined with saliva, refined and ingested, producing gene enhancement effects lasting a whole day. During these 24 hours, the user's training effectiveness would increase tenfold or more.
Currently, this method hadn't been widely adopted in the military. Ryan's spirits lifted as he left his living quarters. This was the most suitable shortcut for him now. In his past life, he had often used this method to train his body.
Miners rarely encountered fierce beasts, zergsoids, or star beasts, but many planets had some fierce beasts. The base's security personnel often went hunting in their spare time, honing their combat skills and earning extra income.
Ryan had been a security officer at the base and was familiar with this. He even knew some security team members who liked to collect the corpses of fierce beasts and zergsoids as trophies.
As he walked out of the base building, he coincidentally ran into a group of people. There was Flock, the logistics team leader he had just met, his former rumored girlfriend Aeloria, and Jane, whom he had seen via video call.
There were also four men and three women, friends of Aeloria, and a tall, thin man with gold-rimmed glasses.
This man was Kolak, the tower liaison.
Ryan remembered Kolak well. Despite his refined appearance, he had a terrible reputation. He liked to drug girls, using chip interference and hypnotic drugs. Many women at the base had fallen victim to him. Eventually, he was kicked out of TerraCore Group and became a mercenary, but his nature didn't change, and he was eventually killed by someone.
Ryan noticed Kolak standing next to Jane, fawning over her.
"Ryan?!" Jane was the first to see him, exclaiming and drawing everyone's attention to Ryan, including Flock and Kolak. The two exchanged a subtle glance, Kolak adjusting his glasses with a hidden sharpness.
"Hey," Flock stepped forward, inviting, "Isn't this the base's lucky star of the day? So you're Aeloria's friend too. Come, join us for some singing!"
At this, Aeloria, Jane, and the others looked surprised. "You're the one who earned 27,000 dollars in a day?"
"No wonder you didn't show up for Aeloria's birthday. Found a rich mine, huh?"
"But… not showing up for a friend's birthday is a bit much."
"It's just money..." some of Aeloria's friends said, sounding a bit jealous.
As the main character of the gathering, Aeloria felt quite awkward. She had just introduced Flock to her friends, only to run into Ryan, her former rumored boyfriend. It was embarrassing. She had no choice but to invite him, "Ryan, we're all classmates. It's my birthday today. Can't you at least show me some respect?" she said, looking pitiful.
"Sorry, I have things to do. Enjoy yourselves." Ryan said, not stopping as he walked past the group.
Everyone was shocked.
They hadn't expected Ryan to be so blunt, completely ignoring Aeloria.
Aeloria's face twisted with anger.
Flock's expression darkened.
Kolak leaned in and whispered to Jane, "Huh, so disrespectful? What kind of friend is that?"
"…" Jane was speechless.
As Ryan walked past them, Jane realized that he and Aeloria were now truly from two different worlds. Everything had changed! She couldn't understand why Ryan had changed so much. Had he discovered something? Or had something happened?
Jane stared at Ryan's back, unable to answer. Kolak noticed this, a cold glint in his eyes as he watched Ryan disappear, his expression shifting in the light.
Flock had introduced Jane as Aeloria's best friend. Jane was indeed attractive, with a unique charm. From the moment they met, Kolak had set his sights on her.
Seeing his target's eyes full of another man… his mood soured.
A newly graduated rookie…