Chapter 198: Grandpa Pucha's Role

The recovery speed of Near-Death Rebirth was astonishingly fast. In the blink of an eye, Li Yu had completely healed. The Ship-breaking Blade in his hand extended layer by layer as he locked his gaze onto Anderson.

Anderson's pupils shrank. He had yet to fully process what was happening. This level of regeneration completely exceeded his comprehension, threatening to shatter his entire worldview.

'He was reduced to a bloody mist and mangled flesh, yet he still managed to recover? Is he even human?'

Squelch!

Without any suspense, the Ship-breaking Blade pierced straight through Anderson's chest. During the intense battle just moments ago, Anderson had exhausted a massive amount of stamina and unleashed his ultimate trump card. The searing ache in his muscles had not even begun to fade.

He was completely powerless to resist. Blood spilled from the corners of his mouth. He glared furiously, unable to utter a single word.

This had been Li Yu's objective all along. Knowing he had Near-Death Rebirth, he deliberately provoked his opponents, forcing them to exhaust vast amounts of energy to take him down.

Then, after triggering Near-Death Rebirth, he returned to his absolute peak condition, allowing him to effortlessly dispatch the four of them.

A burst of energy erupted from the blade, rapidly ravaging Anderson's internal organs. Although he appeared intact on the outside, his insides were already reduced to a mangled mess.

"Anderson!" the other three shouted in horror. They never expected that the man they had considered a sure thing would suddenly turn the tables and begin slaughtering them.

"Retreat!" As seasoned veterans, they quickly snapped back to reality and bolted away in three different directions.

They were simply no match for Li Yu anymore. Continuing the fight would only result in throwing away their lives for nothing.

"Running away?" Li Yu narrowed his eyes and raised a hand toward one of the fleeing figures. Various metal components rapidly assembled into the Mechanical Giant Bow. With a sharp twang, the Cursed Arrow shot out, directly pinning the target to the ground just a short distance away.

Thaer's agonized wails drifted through the air, prompting the remaining two to push their speed even faster.

Rumble—

The deep hum of an engine echoed from behind as the Blazing Light Starship took to the skies. As one of Opto-Electric Technology's premier weapon systems, the power of the Spear of Argos was naturally extraordinary.

An alloy panel beneath the cockpit of the Blazing Light Starship slid open, revealing a crimson laser crystal cylinder. Small mechanical arms fired precise laser beams to activate the crystal. Energy surged forth as the main cannon began to charge.

Following a series of complex trajectory calculations, it locked onto the fleeing Gula.

Barely a minute later, a blazing red light beam tore through the sky at a blistering pace. Knowing he could not dodge, Gula deployed the armor on his back, forming a thick shield in a desperate attempt to block the incoming strike.

However, it was completely futile. The massive energy beam engulfed Gula. His modified skin rapidly melted away, and his internal organs immediately began to fail. His vision was consumed by a blinding crimson glow as relentless warning alarms blared throughout his corporeal form.

Thorpe glanced back at the blinding beam of light, trembling with fear. But before he could even sigh in relief at having escaped, a familiar figure appeared out of thin air to block his path.

'It's him!'

A deep wave of despair washed over Thorpe. As a Wind Element Esper, his speed should have been unrivaled. However, the previous battle had drained far too much of his energy, making it impossible for him to push his speed to the limit.

"Do you have any idea who is backing Lord Pucha?!" Thorpe roared, putting up a brave front to hide his terror. Since Pucha, an A-Tier Lifeform, was currently suffering from what looked like senile dementia, Thorpe could only try to use a more powerful backing to intimidate Li Yu.

"You talk too much..." Li Yu muttered, completely unbothered. His blade flashed, and in less than a few exchanges, he effortlessly dispatched Thorpe.

On the other side of the battlefield, Tim was trembling with fear. Everything that had just transpired felt like an absurd fever dream—a constant, dizzying series of reversals.

It was only when Li Yu 'resurrected' and hacked Anderson to death that he finally snapped back to reality. Regardless of which side emerged victorious, things would not end well for him. His only chance was to slip away while no one was paying attention.

However, he was merely an ordinary member of the Blazing Eye Race. His armor had been stripped away earlier, and his physical body was inherently weak. Even pushing himself to his absolute limits, he only managed to run a few hundred meters.

A howling gale swept in from behind, pelting his body with a flurry of coarse sand as a massive shadow loomed over him.

Tim turned his head, collapsing onto his buttocks in sheer terror. The Blazing Light Starship hovered directly behind him, its Energy Cannon fully charged and locked onto him, ready to fire at a moment's notice.

"Don't shoot! I'm on your side! We're on the same side!" Tim shrieked in panic, terrified that a split-second delay would result in his head being blown clean off.

Claptrap's cold, metallic voice rang out. "I have already consulted the master. You have outlived your usefulness."

"What?!" Tim's pupils contracted violently, but the energy beam was already hurtling toward him.

Boom!

His upper body instantly vaporized. The lifeless remains of his lower half crumpled into the desert, quickly buried by the swirling sands kicked up by the Blazing Light Starship's thrusters.

Immediately after, the Blazing Light Starship ascended further into the sky, its Energy Cannons unleashing a relentless barrage. The small fleet of spaceships that had barely survived the shockwaves of the earlier battle now found themselves mercilessly gunned down by their pursuer.

Li Yu returned to the center of the battlefield. Grandpa Pucha stood exactly where he had been left, his brow heavily furrowed in deep thought. He remained completely perplexed by the riddle Li Yu had given him earlier.

Unable to wrap his mind around it, it was clear that unless Li Yu spoon-fed him the correct answer, he would never be able to solve it.

The explosive shockwaves from the recent battle had washed over the old man several times, yet he remained completely unscathed, his eyes still clouded with intense concentration.

Assembling an energy rifle in his hands, Li Yu took aim squarely at Grandpa Pucha's head and fired a shot.

However, something astonishing occurred.

Just as the energy blast was about to strike Grandpa Pucha, it seemed to hit an invisible barrier, forcefully dissipating into thin air.

"Autonomous bodily defense?" Li Yu muttered thoughtfully. An A-Tier Lifeform certainly lived up to its terrifying reputation. Even in a state of cognitive decline, he was not someone who could be casually killed.

Had it been an A-Tier Lifeform from a different evolutionary path—such as a genetically evolved A-Tier Lifeform—Li Yu feared he wouldn't even be able to breach their natural defenses.

But that didn't mean he was completely out of options. He could easily dump the old man in some remote patch of the starry sky or hurl him directly into a star.

In Grandpa Pucha's current state, passive defenses wouldn't save him from absolute destruction.

However... this was an A-Tier Lifeform after all. To dispose of him so carelessly would be to waste valuable resources.

"Consider yourself lucky, old man." Li Yu had the Blazing Light Starship drop a heavy cable, carefully looping it around the old man before hoisting him into the cabin.

"Master, several patrol fleets from the perimeter of Blazing Eye Star are approaching our location."

High up in the space orbit, a small squadron of warships descended into the lower atmosphere. The massive energy fluctuations from the recent battle had clearly attracted their attention.

"Identify yourselves! What just happened down there?!" they demanded, broadcasting the aggressive inquiry directly to the only vessel left at the scene—the Blazing Light Starship.

After a moment of thought, Li Yu initiated a direct communication link with them.

Aboard one of the approaching warships, the Commander wore a dark, serious expression. Traces of lingering fear flashed in his eyes. The sheer intensity of the recent battle's energy output had triggered the warning alarms on every patrol ship in orbit simultaneously.

Such an overwhelming energy reaction was dangerously close to an ultra-high threat classification.

Furthermore, the emissary from the Morgan Family had only recently arrived on the planet. How could he not be on high alert? He was absolutely terrified that something disastrous had occurred on his watch.

A holographic screen suddenly flared to life, projecting Li Yu's face onto the bridge. The Commander's expression hardened, ready to bark a harsh reprimand.

However, over Li Yu's shoulder, a terrifyingly familiar figure caught his eye. The man in the background had his brow deeply furrowed in clear displeasure, looking as if he couldn't even be bothered to glance at the camera.

'The emissary of the Morgan Family?!'

The Commander's face drained of color, his mind in a turmoil. Although he commanded a small fleet, there were countless fleets of this exact caliber scattered throughout the entire Star Glory Empire.

While he was indeed stationed here under the direct orders of the Morgan Family, a minor officer like him rarely had the privilege of interacting with their upper echelons.

"Are... are you alright, my lord? I detected massive energy fluctuations from this sector. Fearing for your safety, I rushed over to investigate," the Commander stammered, forcing a stiff, obsequious smile as he carefully explained his presence.

Unsurprisingly, Grandpa Pucha didn't offer a single word in response. He merely kept his head lowered, maintaining that deeply furrowed, thoroughly disgruntled expression.

"Ahem..." Li Yu coughed dryly, loudly signaling his own presence. "Although a minor incident occurred just now, His Excellency has already handled it."

"If there's nothing else, I suggest you refrain from disturbing His Excellency any further."

The Commander nodded frantically. "Understood, understood! We will depart immediately. If you require anything, please just give the word."

Li Yu paused for a moment before casually adding, "His Excellency is actually quite curious... why are there so many unauthorized individuals roaming around Blazing Eye Star?"

"Just a few moments ago, a gang of slave traders actually had the audacity to attack His Excellency's ship. If I recall correctly, this planet is supposed to be strictly off-limits, isn't it?"

Cold sweat began to pour down the Commander's face. Naturally, the planet was strictly off-limits. However, having been stationed here for seven long years with scarcely an official inspection, he had grown lax.

Over time, he had struck up illicit agreements with various underground factions, secretly smuggling individuals onto the planet to line his own pockets.

But who could have predicted that those wretched slave traders would be bold enough to assault the Morgan Family emissary's personal starship?!

'Wait a minute... didn't they have dozens of ships in their fleet earlier? Are they all completely wiped out?'

He deeply questioned where a random group of slave traders found such terrifying firepower, but the Commander swallowed his doubts, far too terrified to voice them aloud.

"This..." The Commander choked on his words. If he claimed ignorance, he was guilty of a dereliction of duty. If he admitted to smuggling them in, the consequences would be a thousand times worse.

"However..." Li Yu dragged out the word, offering a meaningful smile. "Although we lost a few escort ships, we did reap some unexpected rewards. Therefore, His Excellency is willing to overlook this little indiscretion."

"But moving forward, His Excellency absolutely does not want anyone else slipping onto this planet."

"Yes... of course! Please, assure His Excellency that it won't happen again!" the Commander stammered, nodding rapidly. If this incident was officially reported, he would be court-martialed and executed without a doubt.

Since the emissary had chosen to drop the matter, he was practically weeping tears of gratitude.

As the Commander cut the comms in profound relief, Li Yu smirked. He had perfectly plugged a loophole that the Morgan Family might have eventually noticed. Since the Commander was guilty of a dereliction of duty, there was zero chance he would proactively report today's incident.

Furthermore, this action would inadvertently make life a little easier for the oppressed tribesmen of the Blazing Eye Race. Truly, it was killing two birds with one stone.

'I am such a good person,' Li Yu thought, mentally giving himself a pat on the back.

Scanning the devastated desert battlefield, Li Yu shook his head. He had no idea when he would ever set foot on this barren planet again.

The Blazing Light Starship had eradicated nearly all of Pucha's reinforcements, but Li Yu couldn't be entirely sure if any stragglers had slipped through the net while he was busy getting pulverized earlier.

If anyone had managed to escape, the Morgan Family might catch wind of what truly happened here.

Still, lower-level staff members wouldn't possess much valuable intelligence. Even if the Morgan Family learned of an incident, it would take them ages to piece together an accurate investigation.

Moreover, given his strict warning to the orbital patrol, absolutely no one would be allowed off this planet anytime soon.

Meanwhile, aboard the small smuggling vessel, a suffocating silence had settled over the ship ever since Li Yu and Mo Duo departed. Hunter spent his days drowning in endless misery.

"Uncle Zeth, that weirdo wants to draw my blood again! And he keeps prying my mouth open!" Little Loli Keller cried, rushing over to Hunter with a tearful expression. Oddly enough, over the past few days, the two of them had grown incredibly close.

Perhaps it was simply because there was virtually no one else on this ship resembling a 'normal' person, but Hunter had genuinely developed an unlikely, cross-generational friendship with the little girl.

"My mouth is all stretched out! I'm going to be so ugly when I grow up," Keller wailed miserably.

Hunter let out an exasperated sigh as he watched Peyton casually strolling toward them. "Can't you give it a rest for a few days? She's just a child. What if you accidentally drain her dry?"

"Her latent constitution has already begun its initial awakening. If I actually wanted to drain her to death, it would take at least a full day and night of continuous extraction," Peyton replied, shaking his head. He then tilted his head, a spark of curiosity in his eyes.

"I can stop if you want. But first, you have to tell me why General Augustus refused the direct order to attack Gensokyo back then."

"That is one piece of history that many within the upper echelons of the Star Glory Empire are positively dying to know."

Hunter's mouth instantly snapped shut. Sensing his silence, Little Loli Keller began gnashing her teeth in sheer indignation. "Mommy was completely right!" she shouted in her high-pitched, childish voice. "Men are totally unreliable!"

Hunter's mouth twitched. He was completely speechless, but what could he possibly do?

The Esper Group led by Li Ping only answered to Li Yu. Their sole daily activity consisted of gazing longingly at the stars, waiting for their master's return. Since Hunter couldn't order them around, how was he supposed to keep a madman like Peyton in check?

With another fresh vial of blood ruthlessly extracted, Keller let out a dramatic huff, abandoning Hunter and stomping off to find her mother.

"Beep, beep, beep... Unknown incoming message," Claptrap's digital voice announced over the comms. Hunter frowned. Who on earth would be sending a message to a covert smuggling ship?

He hesitated for a moment. Peyton clearly couldn't care less, and Li Ping was busy with his daily routine of staring longingly into space waiting for Li Yu. Left with no other option, Hunter sighed and opened the message himself.

"Esteemed guest, we have just received an emergency broadcast. An unforeseen incident has occurred on Blazing Eye Star, and all return schedules have been indefinitely canceled. Please do not attempt to enter the space orbit under any circumstances. If you proceed and face consequences, you will be solely responsible."

Upon reading the message, Hunter's face instantly drained of color. The return schedule was canceled?!

How could something like this happen?

Panic welling up in his chest, he rapidly fired off several urgent inquiries, but received no reply. He then initiated a direct voice call, only to receive an automated notification stating that he had been completely blocked.

'Fuck!'

"Motherfucker, I knew an organization that asks for full payment upfront would be completely unreliable!" Hunter began cursing loudly in sheer frustration. Glancing around the bridge, a profound sense of helplessness washed over him. Damn it all! He didn't even have a single competent person to brainstorm with.

"Claptrap, can you still not get through to Li Yu? You have to relay this message to him immediately!"

They had been able to maintain steady communication with Li Yu initially, but about half a day ago, the signal from his Smart Terminal had completely vanished, leaving them with total radio silence.

Claptrap's mechanical voice chimed in. "The master's Smart Terminal signal came back online half an hour ago. However, according to the telemetry from my secondary subsystem, he is currently engaged in high-intensity combat and is temporarily unable to reply..."

"Beep, beep... The master has just responded. He states that... he is already aware of the situation. The message has been successfully relayed to him."

Back on the Blazing Light Starship, Li Yu rubbed his chin thoughtfully as he stared at the bold letters spelling "User Blocked" on his holographic screen. "Are they seriously trying to scam me out of my hard-earned cash?" he muttered darkly.