Ch 26: Interplanetary Planting Master

Escape

No matter how frantic Caron became, the Iris’s direction remained unchanged. He glanced at the endless sea of dark beasts outside and the ominous black portal in the sky, losing the nerve to suggest they go off on their own. Frustrated, Caron paced around the starship, glancing at the indifferent Lin Ji and the wary Han Rui, then angrily returned to his seat, deciding to bolt at the first sign of trouble.

Thanks to its powerful technology, the Iris soon reached Sector 36’s ruins. Fortunately, this area was uninhabited, and the number of dark beasts was not as dense as in the central region. Su He had been wondering how they would retrieve the energy stones. Sector 36’s long-abandoned tunnels were not suitable for mecha traversal, but going without a mecha would be suicidal. He looked at Lu Li, curious about his plan.

Lu Li turned, “What’s on your mind?”

Su He asked, “Are you going down to get the energy stones yourself?”

Lu Li nodded, adding, “It’s too dangerous below. You should stay on the Iris.”

Su He was speechless. He hadn’t even thought of going down with Lu Li, silently thinking to himself. In a moment, Lu Li extended his senses like a web, spreading in all directions and reaching deep into the dusty tunnels. He found the entrance to the underground world and traced it down to the hole Xiao Bai had dug, the same place where the hawk had initially found Su He. His senses penetrated the gravel, bypassing obstacles, providing him with a clear target.

“Target coordinates N23E45, fire,” Lu Li ordered.

A white ion beam pierced the surface, crudely and effectively blasting a path to the underground.

Su He was speechless.

Everyone watched as Lu Li led a team down from the starship, quickly retrieving the five boxes of energy stones Su He had hidden. Caron, peering out the window, muttered, “So it really was for the energy stones. Has the Federation fallen into such poverty?” But he quickly brightened up, hoping, “Now we can leave, right?” The commotion in the sky grew louder, and Caron’s eager eyes were fixed on Lu Li, waiting for the command to depart.

Lu Li secured the energy stones, glanced at the Broken Star map, and said sternly, “Proceed through Sector 45.”

The Iris moved again, still not in the direction Caron hoped for. He glared at Han Rui, “How many energy stones did you hide?”

Han Rui was silent.

Fifteen minutes later, a ramshackle starship joined them from a small settlement. Lin Ji immediately guessed the Iris’s intention, showing a hint of emotion. Accompanied by the continuous roar of high-energy particle cannons, the Iris resolutely traversed half of the Broken Star, gathering more starships in its wake and drawing more dark beasts.

Su He’s face grew pale, sweat dripping from his forehead. His mental tendrils kept extending, spreading the message that the Iris would lead the survivors to safety. It was not a pleasant task. Various emotions flowed through his mental tendrils into his mind. Under the enormous pressure of the beast tide sweeping the Broken Star, every emotion was magnified: fear, dread, hatred, despair, and the struggle to survive. These emotions gathered like streams, brewing a storm in his mental world.

“That’s enough,” Lu Li interrupted, pulling Su He into his arms. His hand rested on Su He’s forehead, feeling the cold sweat. “I’ll take you to rest,” Lu Li said softly. Su He shook his head, refusing. He couldn’t bear to stay alone at such a moment. Glancing outside, he saw over twenty starships trailing behind. Knowing this represented only a fraction of Broken Star’s population, Su He felt heavy-hearted.

Following his gaze, Lu Li said, “We’ve done our best. We can have a clear conscience.”

Shen Shen interrupted their conversation, “There’s not enough time. The King Beast might reappear.”

The grey clouds over Broken Star’s sky suddenly churned violently. The black portal stretched across half the sky, and five tentacles emerged, a giant eye peeking out, targeting the Iris.

“Reno!”

Lu Li shouted. Reno, who had been preparing, immediately rooted himself to the floor. The leaves on his head transformed into green light bands, layering over the twenty-odd starships. At the same time, all starships directed their weapons at the sweeping tentacles. As Su He’s command to “fire” transmitted, various beams of light ignited, exploding the dark beast’s tentacles, sending foul-smelling fragments and dark blood flying.

A painful howl echoed across the sky. This time, Lu Li reinforced Su He’s mental barrier immediately. The dark beasts in the portal were enraged, and half of the King Beast’s body squeezed out. Its tentacles flailed wildly, striking a small starship. Reno’s shield, essentially an energy barrier, couldn’t withstand the massive force. The unlucky starship was flung away, quickly surrounded by dark beasts.

No one dared to hold back. All starships fired desperately. The lone starship soon disintegrated, and its survivors, seemingly shouting something, jumped into the beast horde in their mechas. One by one, fireballs lit up the sky, mecha fragments scattering. The remaining starship survivors watched in silence, filled with a shared sorrow.

“Survive!” This was the final message from the fallen starship.

No one knew who would be next. Lu Li’s face was stern as he maximized the Iris’s power output. The starship strained under immense pressure, ascending. The King Beast’s eye swiveled, half its body swelling. Black rain sprayed down, Reno’s shield eroded into pockmarks, and another starship fell away.

“Energy is running low,” Shen Shen reported.

“Draw from the reserve energy stones,” Lu Li ordered without hesitation.

If they couldn’t leave Broken Star, opening the wormhole was out of the question. Reno’s form appeared over the Iris, green light flowing, rapidly filling the eroded gaps. The starship accelerated, breaking free of the atmosphere. The Iris raced to escape, while the King Beast rushed to emerge, each racing against time.

The blackness of space appeared in the Iris’s view. In the command room, everyone held their breath. The high-energy particle cannon roared, and the Iris, like a fish leaping out of the sea, finally broke through Broken Star’s atmosphere. Reno’s light bands flickered, the starships shielded by the tree’s protection following like droplets of water, breaking free.

The cheers hadn’t even started when the King Beast fully emerged from the portal. Its massive tentacles easily wrapped around a small starship, crushing it into a thin metal sheet in seconds.

“Activate the wormhole generator!” Lu Li shouted.

Amidst the flying electric arcs, a black vortex slowly formed in space. The wormhole, unstable due to insufficient energy, was torn by purple lightning in its center, like the gates of hell opening. Lu Li’s face was grave, “Go!”

The Iris plunged into the wormhole. As Su He glanced back one last time, he saw the King Beast’s enormous grey eye, filled with cold hatred and a complex emotion.

Why?

xxx

Thingyan: Why is this King Beast mad for? He’s the one going around killing others. Crazy 😒

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