Ch. 21..25: Interstellar_ Return of the Villain Chapter 21-25

Chapter 21: Spicy Travel

The incident on 27th Street in Icicle was a real wake-up call for the Alliance. The fact that this famous tourist spot was hiding a big human trafficking ring was mind-blowing. The internet lit up with reactions.

"My sister disappeared after visiting Icicle, and all we got was a vague response. It's clearly a cover-up! The authorities there were protecting the local gangs!"

"It's taken over a decade for the military to act? Something's off here. We need a full investigation of the patrol units!"

"Locals have always known to steer clear of 27th Street, especially girls. It's insane this is only now getting attention!"

"Word is the military stepped in because these traffickers kidnapped the young daughter of the Snowfall family's Ren clan."

The biggest piece of evidence spreading around was the city's surveillance footage from that day.

Seeing a massive blue electromagnetic cannon was jaw-dropping and made people dig even deeper for the truth.

This led to a flood of exposes from major influencers, showing solid evidence and local stories.

Orders came fast from Elden Prime: only designated officials were allowed to investigate and handle the matter, stopping anyone else from interfering. Still, when Zarek teamed up with Icicle's police force to catch the culprits, many key figures had already disappeared.

"Damn these parasites!" Zarek shouted, slamming his fist into the table in frustration after another failed raid.

The police chief, looking outside, muttered, "The stakes are too high. Someone will always be tempted by the profit."

The investigation revealed the shocking profits of human trafficking—just from Icicle alone, the monthly turnover was twenty million, not to mention other cities.

The elder of the Rymes family also warned Zarek to be careful; provoking these criminals could bring trouble for them too.

By the time Lyra boarded her spaceship, the findings of the 27th Street investigation were out.

For the sake of the public's sanity, the released photos were heavily censored, but the data was still terrifying.

Every month, nearly a hundred victims were taken—some for their looks, others for organ compatibility with certain buyers. They were either sold or killed.

In the spaceport, the official channel was broadcasting the news on the screen.

Hearing the boarding call, Lyra grabbed her backpack, noticing the buzz of conversations around her about the incident.

"Lyra!"

A sudden tap on Lyra's shoulder and an arm around her made her turn.

"Finally found you!" she heard someone say.

Lyra had to look up to see the girl's bright, smiling face. "Haven't you been following me this whole time?"

Zinnia didn't seem the least bit embarrassed. "Oh, traveling alone is such a drag! I begged my brother to change my ticket. Now we're sharing the same cabin!"

She waved her ticket around, chatting away without a hint of boredom. "At first, he was against it, but yesterday he suddenly agreed, saying it's safer to switch cabins to avoid any potential backlash. That's strange, right?"

Lyra had a pretty good idea why, but she kept quiet. She felt like she was being dragged along by Zinnia until they reached the cabin.

It hit her then just how unfriendly the current human height standards were. The luggage rack was too high, and the bed was too long!

"Haha, let me help you with your luggage."

The luxury cabin had just two beds. Sorren was supposed to board under a fake identity but had to cancel his ticket.

The room featured two beds with a folding table in the middle, a luggage rack above, and a service panel and water dispenser by the bed. It had a simple yet upscale design with white and beige tones.

After closing the door, Zinnia jumped on the bed a few times and started playing with the control panel by the bed. "This is my first time traveling alone. I heard the snacks on the Snowfall are legendary. Let's try some. My treat, don't be shy."

Soon, a service robot showed up. "Hello, customer. Snack Robot No. 2 at your service. Here are your selected items."

The white robot, adorned with a transparent blue snowflake pattern, had a distinctive look. His round belly was filled with the snacks Zinnia ordered. The robot even managed to smile and said, "Please rate No. 2's service."

After receiving a five-star rating, his round head spun happily. He thanked the two young ladies and left. The colorful packaging of the snacks piled up on the folding table in the aisle.

"I love spicy food," Zinnia said excitedly, opening a package labeled "extra spicy."

The spicy chips were really hot, making her sneeze.

Suddenly, intense coughing erupted from across the room, loud and rapid, mixed with heavy breathing.

"What's wrong?!" Zinnia was startled, dropping the spicy chips and rushing to help Lyra, who was red-faced and struggling.

Lyra's throat was itchy and irritated. She pointed at the air purification button while trying to control her breathing.

Zinnia quickly pressed it and tossed the spicy chips into the sealed trash bin. After a flurry of activity, she stood there, helpless, watching the sweaty Lyra.

"Um... sorry, I didn't know you had respiratory issues..." said Zinnia. It was so frightening; she almost felt like she had accidentally harmed someone.

Finally, Zinnia snapped out of it and poured a glass of water for Lyra. "Are you okay? I'll call a doctor right now." She moved to press the emergency button.

Lyra grabbed her hand. "It's okay, I've had these since I was very little. I just didn't expect these spicy chips to be that hot."

Lyra's hand was thin and cool to the touch.

Zinnia, who had always been as tough as a little lion, had never encountered someone her age so fragile. She could barely believe that someone could almost be choked to death by chili peppers. Guilt and a sudden wave of pity made her eyes tear up.

Lyra sighed and set down the water cup. "Do you have any more of those spicy chips in that kind of packaging? Let me see."

Comforting people wasn't her strong suit, so she decided to change the subject.

Luckily, Zinnia was easy to distract.

"Oh, here they are." Zinnia's mood bounced back quickly. "Were you so upset by being choked that you want to eat them to get back at them?"

Lyra was momentarily speechless at Zinnia's logic. "I want to check the ingredients."

She wasn't new to spicy food, but none had ever almost choked her to death. She needed to know what to avoid in the future.

"Westland Purple Chili."

"A new variety," she remarked, handing the package back to Zinnia. "You can either eat it outside or when I'm not around. Just make sure to purify the air afterward."

"Forget it, I'm almost traumatized now."

Lyra couldn't help but laugh. "It's a new variety. It'd be a shame not to try it."

Zinnia, agreeing with this perspective, jumped up. "I'll go eat it outside to avenge you!"

Just before leaving, she turned back and said, "My brother mentioned that the fugitives from 27th Street might try to cause us trouble. Don't go out alone, okay?"

Lyra was about to respond, but Zinnia had already vanished.

Less than ten minutes later, the spaceship suddenly shuddered, and red warning lights began flashing.

"Attention, passengers. The Snowfall has come under terrorist... Ah!"

The panicked voice of the crew member turned into a scream, leaving a mark of terror in everyone's hearts.

 

Chapter 22: Level-seven Peculiar

Masked men with weapons roamed the cabins. They checked each passenger while holding up a photo of a woman.

They kicked open doors, asking, "Have you seen this woman?"

Their mission was straightforward. As long as no one resisted, they left the passengers unharmed.

When they burst into Lyra’s cabin, she eyed their weapons but held back her urge to fight.

"Seen this person?" one asked, showing a bright, smiling photo of Zinnia.

"No," Lyra said, lowering her eyes, playing the scared passenger.

Given their numbers, she knew it was best to wait for a chance to escape.

"Out!" one man barked, motioning with his laser gun towards the hallway.

In the corridor, many passengers were already being herded towards the main hall, guns aimed at their heads.

Outside, the starry expanse should have been mesmerizing, but it was obscured by a ship with hidden markings, likely aiding the terrorists.

More masked men scoured the ship, all focused on finding Zinnia.

"Is everyone here?" one of them called out.

A group of three men and women huddled together in the main hall.

Lyra quickly recognized a short, fat woman with distinctive explosive curls.

She was one of those from 27th Street.

This woman had faked her death with her superpower and escaped.

Despite being wanted all over the Alliance, she had brazenly boarded the ship to stage a kidnapping.

The Rymes family had made plenty of enemies, and these criminals were taking their chance for revenge.

When the woman glanced over, Lyra crouched down like everyone else, hands over her head, hoping to avoid recognition.

Her small size made her look like a child, and someone kindly nudged her into a corner.

Soon, the captain and crew were also dragged in, some with bloodstains.

Lyra figured some crew members had been killed while resisting.

But Zinnia was nowhere to be seen.

The leader kicked a speaker on the stage and shouted into a microphone, "Zinnia Rymes, I’m counting to three. If you don’t come out, I’ll kill someone every minute."

They were confident, having clearly studied their target’s behavior.

A terrified flight attendant was at the front, screaming for help.

"Let me go! Help!" she cried.

The plump woman slapped her hard. "Shut up, you little vixen!"

The man started counting, "One, two," his snake-like eyes scanning the room, sending chills down everyone’s spines, "three!"

He drew his gun instantly.

"Wait!" a girl’s angry, reluctant voice rang out. "I’m here."

The vent cover was kicked down, and long legs appeared first. Several armed terrorists immediately surrounded her.

"Don’t touch me. I can walk myself!" she snapped.

Lyra discreetly lifted her head and spotted a few passengers showing clear signs of anxiety. They were likely undercover guards sent by Zarek to protect his sister.

Zinnia turned away, pretending to be angry, but she was really signaling the guards to keep the passengers safe.

"Haha, got you," the masked leader sneered, rushing forward and kicking the girl hard. "Damn you, you made me lose everything!"

He followed up with a brutal punch to her face. If Zinnia hadn’t been physically tough, her head might have been knocked clean off. Her cheek quickly swelled and bruised.

"Ugh!" She spat out a mouthful of blood and two teeth. Despite the pain, she didn’t provoke her captors further.

One of the guards tasked with protecting her shifted slightly, catching the sharp eye of the leader.

The leader grabbed Zinnia by her short hair. "Bring those people over here."

The plump woman started to move, but Zinnia interrupted.

"Aren’t you here to capture me? What else do you want?" She glared at them, breathing heavily.

"Capturing you is the main goal, but there are plenty of other goods here," the leader sneered. "I brought a ship specifically to stock up."

As if on cue, his men pounced on the crowd like wolves, pulling out women, children, and even attractive men to stand aside. Among them were two guards.

The group was completely scattered.

The traffickers continued their search for victims and quickly reached Lyra.

Upon seeing her, one of them shouted, "We’ve got a real gem here!"

Another trafficker laughed, "Selling her at auction would cover half a month’s work for us."

Hearing this, the leader’s eyes lit up. He released Zinnia and approached. "Let’s see what treasure you found."

Several men surrounded Lyra.

Zinnia panicked. "Don’t you dare touch her!"

The plump woman slapped her again. "Stay quiet!"

"Keep away from her! Come at me!" Zinnia, seemingly numb to the pain, began to struggle. At this moment, she received a steady, deep look from Lyra through the crowd.

Feeling a sudden sense of clarity, Zinnia calmed down.

The plump woman, seeing her subdued, leaned in to look at the so-called treasure. As soon as she saw Lyra’s face, she screamed, "Clive, watch out!"

In an instant, a blinding green light flared up, temporarily blinding the leader.

In the chaos, green energy tendrils whipped out like wild snakes, striking and destroying the traffickers’ weapons.

This was a good chance for fighting back.

As the traffickers fumbled to draw their guns, Zinnia’s undercover guards quickly drew their weapons and retaliated.

In the blink of an eye, eight traffickers were down.

Zinnia’s entire body suddenly gleamed with golden armor. She shook off her captors violently, knocking them out one by one with powerful punches.

Several level-three Peculiars among the passengers also rose up and fought back.

Lyra seized the momentum, severely injuring several nearby enemies. Just as she was about to continue, a red laser beam shot toward her.

Despite that she had formed a light shield, it was instantly pierced through.

They were too close!

Lyra instinctively raised her hand and grabbed the beam. The impact was brutal, but it slowed enough for her to dodge the fatal blow at the last moment.

A level-seven Peculiar, with the power of manipulating light.

Everyone, including Lyra, felt their hearts sink.

Zinnia, encased in her mecha, charged forward like a cannonball. But before she could get close, Clive’s laser pierced her shoulder armor, dimming the glow of her suit.

Lyra unleashed her superpower again, but Clive was ready. His laser came even faster, puncturing her shoulder just inches from her heart.

The gap in their levels was too vast.

The residual beam hit the ship’s wall, triggering a sharp alarm.

Clive, undeterred, fired off more lasers, causing several small explosions around the ship.

The fat woman’s face turned pale. "Clive, if you keep this up, the ship will explode! Our men are still on board!"

Clive finally stopped, glaring coldly at Lyra. "Stay put, or I’ll shoot straight through your heart."

The traffickers regained control.

Two undercover guards were dead, and the rest were captured.

The ’goods’ selected by the traffickers were moved to their ship. During the process, cries from women and children echoed, only to be abruptly silenced by Clive’s lasers.

A series of dull thuds followed, and the room fell quiet.

After the traffickers’ ship moved a safe distance away, it turned and fired a laser at the passenger ship, which exploded in a fiery blast.

Chapter 23: Wrong Hostage

The trafficker’s spaceship was like a moving prison, with cages and cells taking up most of the space. When Lyra and the others were shoved in, they saw a bunch of other "goods" already locked up.

"Bastards!"

Zinnia, bound by metal cuffs, was tossed into a cell with Lyra and a few others who had resisted. The cell was designed to suppress superpower particles.

"Zarek won’t let you get away with this!"

BANG!

Clive kicked her in the face, sneering, "I’m counting on him showing up. I want revenge for my fallen brothers!"

He then turned to his eager crew, "These two young women, keep your hands off. Our big payday depends on them. The rest? Just make sure you don’t kill them."

The gang erupted in eerie cheers.

"Thanks, boss!"

A fat woman with a cigarette leaned against the wall and scoffed, "A bunch of idiots thinking with their nuts."

Soon, cries of misery echoed from the nearby cells, including from women, men, and even kids.

Furious, Zinnia kicked the iron door repeatedly, "I’ll kill you all!"

The fat woman glanced at Lyra in the corner and warned, "Behave," before walking away.

"Bastards, scum..."

Zinnia cursed until she was exhausted. Tears streamed down her face as she listened to the screams and sobs, "It’s my fault they’re suffering..."

At that moment, Lyra, who had been calm, spoke softly, "Even if these people hadn’t run into this today, someday others will. These beasts are always there hunting and hurting people. It’s not your fault."

Zinnia knew that people suffered and lost their lives every day; she just hadn’t seen it up close before. "You’re right. These criminals are to blame."

The prison guard obviously trusted the special cell, so no one was guarding them now. They had all gone to the other cells for fun.

Time crawled by.

Suddenly, in the corner of the cell, a faint green light appeared on the back of Lyra. She seemed unconscious, leaning against the wall.

All the prisoners were startled, but they remained silent and still.

The cell had surveillance.

Generally speaking, Peculiars have two types of powers: superpower and psychokinesis. There’s no inherent link between the two. High superpower doesn’t mean high psychokinesis, and vice versa.

However, psychokinesis is crucial for Peculiars to manipulate superpower particles and activate their abilities.

If two Peculiars are at the same level, the one with higher psychokinesis can manipulate superpower particles more effectively and quickly.

This is common knowledge among Peculiars, but Zinnia’s guards were still shocked.

They knew this cell could even limit a psychokinesis level of 6000. The fact that Lyra could still manipulate superpower particles meant her psychokinesis was on par with a Master Peculiar.

What usually took ten minutes to heal took Lyra about three hours, and just internally—To avoid suspicion, she left visible wounds.

She then used the same method to heal the severe injuries of the others, a process that took another twenty hours. They hadn’t replenished any energy during this time.

Zinnia had calmed down, possibly becoming numb to the nearby screams. Suddenly, her watch vibrated.

She sat up quickly, her sparkling eyes signaling everyone—rescue had arrived.

The group immediately perked up.

However, Lyra remained uneasy. She was worried about the upcoming confrontation.

In the vast universe, military warships could only hide using cloaking devices. But even if they surrounded the trafficker’s spaceship, they couldn’t attack because of the hostages.

The military sent a signal to the enemy ship, "To those inside, surrender and release the hostages immediately!"

Clive, sitting in the pilot’s seat, initiated a communication request. Seeing the young officer’s holographic projection, he sneered and greeted him, "Dear Lieutenant Rymes, what a pleasure to see you here. I haven’t thanked you for taking such good care of my business and my man."

"You’re welcome," Zarek glared at him, his face stern. "So what do you want me to do?"

"What do I want?" Clive slammed a button beside him, and the spaceship immediately fired a shot at the military’s main ship. The soldiers displayed expressions of frustration because, due to the hostages, they couldn’t retaliate.

"All I want to destroy you!" Clive’s scruffy face twisted into a devilish grin as he ordered his men, "Go, bring me the people from the special cell!"

Realizing what was coming next, Zarek clenched his fist behind his back.

Lyra and Zinnia, along with the guards and four other resisting passengers, were dragged over and thrown in front of the holographic projection.

Clive grabbed Zinnia’s face, forcing her to look at the projection.

"See? She ended up in my hands," Clive said, patting Zinnia’s face with a disgusting grin.

Zarek couldn’t hold back anymore. "I’m warning you, don’t touch her!"

The once-strong young Zinnia was now barely breathing because of the beating, and that made Zarek both furious and helpless.

"Hahaha, want to save her? Come in alone!" Clive taunted.

Zarek’s people became anxious. They tried to calm him down, "Sir, stay calm!"

"Our first thing is to save the hostages!"

As they spoke, a scream came from the other side of the holographic projection.

Clive shot a guard right in front of them. "If you don’t come, I’ll kill one person every minute. If there aren’t enough here, there are plenty in the cells."

No one dared to stop Zarek anymore. Soon, he was piloting a fighter into the enemy ship alone.

Clive dragged Zinnia to ’greet’ him.

Lyra couldn’t hear anything in the cockpit, but she could feel the residual shocks of superpower clashes through the metal floor.

The guard next to her, who had just been shot by a laser, was barely breathing, with blood gushing out uncontrollably. That scene terrified the other passengers.

The fat woman kept a close eye on Lyra, afraid she might try something. In reality, however, Lyra behaved as obediently as a puppy.

Suddenly, an electromagnetic cannon hit the ship from the other side, causing the entire vessel to tilt.

"Enemy attack!" The fat woman rushed to the control panel. "Is it the military?"

"No!" The captain at the helm manipulated the controls and brought up a side image. His face changed dramatically upon seeing the emblem on the other ship. "It’s the three major forces from Voidstar No. 2!"

Voidstar No. 2 was their next destination.

At that moment, Blackheart’s large face appeared on the screen. "You’re surrounded. Either abandon the ship and scram, or get blown to pieces. Your choice."

The fat woman couldn’t understand why this group, usually only interested in profit, was suddenly attacking them.

"Blackheart, we have no quarrel with you!"

"Bullshit! You think I don’t know what happened to you on Snowfall? You’re being hunted by the military and trying to drag your troubles to Voidstar No. 2? You sick of living?" As he spoke, Snakehead and Caesara’s faces also appeared on the screen, the presence of three level 7 Peculiars making the fat woman’s heart sink.

Originally, Clive had made a lot of plans to leverage Voidstar’s special status against the military.

"We want to settle on Voidstar No. 2 and have prepared a big gift for you," the fat woman said, projecting images of Lyra and a bunch of women and children. "This cargo is worth at least a billion astrocredits."

To her surprise, the three leaders all burst out laughing.

"Merrell, do you even check who you capture? You dare to grab Sis Marv?"

Chapter 24: Running Free

"Sister Marvel" — if you’ve been around Voidstar lately, you’ve probably heard that name. She’s rumored to have incredible healing powers, making her a go-to for fugitives avoiding hospitals.

Merrell eyed the ’goods’ in her hand, trying to figure out which one was "Sis Marv."

"Stop looking. It’s me."

The young woman, bound by metal rings, stared her down. Her dark, icy eyes sent chills through her veins.

Snakehead’s voice crackled through the screen, "You’re going to release her or not?"

"Release her? Do you know she almost killed me?!" Merrell shouted, incredulous.

The answer was another round of shelling.

"You think I came here to talk?" Blackheart’s eyes were full of rage.

If "Sis Marv" got sold off, Blackheart’s cash flow would dry up.

He had flipped a table when he got the message.

The ship shook again. Clive, cleaning the training room below with Zarek, frowned and grabbed his intercom, yelling, "What’s going on?"

Merrell’s shaky voice replied, "Blackheart’s here, accusing us of kidnapping Sis Marv and he brought the military. They’re bombarding us."

"Sis Marv?" Clive was taken aback. Just then, Zarek swung a golden whip at him, and he dodged it quickly.

Distracted, Clive told Merrell, "Stall them, I’ll finish here and come up."

Then he suddenly remembering that Sis Marvel was just a healer. So he changed his idea.

"Let her go," said Clive.

"Let her go?!" Merrell’s shocked voice came over the intercom.

"Do as I say!"

"Then get Raj up here to protect me!" said Merrell.

"He’s busy here. If you screw this up, I’ll kill you myself!" Clive cursed and threw down the intercom, focusing on the bloodied guy in front of him.

Raj was helping him. He snuck in a few hits from time to time.

Victory was close to Clive.

In the cockpit, Merrell, sweating bullets, stared at the intercom. Then she looked at Lyra, who seemed to be smirking.

With Voidstar’s cannons outside and pressure from Clive, she gritted her teeth and said to Lyra, "Sis Marv, I’m sorry I didn’t recognize you. I’ll release you first and then make it up to you."

Lyra considered, then nodded. "Okay."

Merrell sighed in relief and unlocked the metal rings.

Lyra stood up, shaking her numb arms, and eyed the Merrell.

Merrell’s heart skipped a beat. The next second, a slender hand flashed before her eyes, and the cockpit ceiling flickered through the fingers.

With a soft sound, she was impaled on the lever next to the pilot’s seat.

She didn’t even have time to use her superpower.

Merrell twitched, blood pouring down the lever.

"Merrell!"

By the time the others realized what happened, they were furious, drawing their weapons and charging forward.

Lyra’s superpower flared to life. She cast green light bands that sliced through the air like flexible knives.

The slashing sounds created a terrifying melody.

Soon, the cockpit was littered with blood, leaving only the two pilots at their consoles and a few hostages.

Blood soaked the floor, slowly creeping toward the pale and huddled passengers, who looked ready to vomit from fear.

The two remaining traffickers were drenched in sweat, their necks encircled by dazzling green light blades.

"Cough, cough." Lyra was now weakened from not eating for a long time.

She approached them and said, "Shut the partitions between the cockpit, the prison, and the training room."

Her face, illuminated by the console’s glow, was as delicate as a doll’s but utterly chilling.

The two pilots didn’t dare hesitate and quickly complied.

Once she confirmed on the monitors that the partition doors were open, Lyra turned to the large screen and addressed Snakehead and the others, "Fire away, but aim carefully."

"Gasp... gasp..." Merrell, barely hanging on, glared at her. "You... you promised..."

Lyra responded nonchalantly, "Didn’t you say you’d make it up to me? Your lives should suffice." She glanced coldly at Merrell, words came out from her gritting teeth, "I hate being tied up more than anything."

Her body was already in bad shape, and these traffickers had even wounded her, causing excruciating pain.

’She’s a demon!’ Merrell had thought Clive was ruthless, but this young woman was even more brutal. The excitement caused the lever near her heart to burst, and with a spurt of blood, she breathed her last.

The sudden turn of events threw the traffickers into chaos.

Relentless shelling destroyed most of the ship.

Clive had just subdued Zarek, breaking his limbs but not yet finished tormenting him. Now he became furious. He grabbed the intercom and shouted, "Merrell! What’s going on? Didn’t I tell you to stall them?!"

After a burst of static, Lyra’s calm voice came through, "Merrell probably can’t reply to you anymore."

Clive was shocked. "Who are you?"

’Merrell was a level six, how could she be taken out so easily?... Wait...’ Clive suddenly recalled the dangerous figure in the cockpit, the one he had told Merrell to release.

"Are you Sis Marv?"

"Does it really matter now?"

Clive threw down the injured Zarek and ran to the training room door, finding it locked as expected.

The ship’s alarms blared continuously due to the attack.

"Voidstar scum!"

Clive gritted his teeth and pulled a lever on the training room wall.

A hidden door appeared in the floor, leading straight to the escape pod bay, where there were fighters and escape ships.

Half-conscious, Zarek struggled to open his eyes and issued a command to the warship, "Coordinate with Voidstar’s battleships and launch an attack."

Hearing this, Clive’s murderous intent flared. He unleashed a barrage of lasers at the siblings and then spoke menacingly into the intercom, "Sis Marv, I’ll remember this. We’ll meet again!"

"Heh, let’s hope there is a next time."

"Hmph."

Clive tossed the intercom and jumped into the hidden door. As soon as he left, the partition door opened.

Lyra quickly walked in and saw the siblings, barely recognizable as human forms, slumped in the corner. No wonder they belonged to a special superpower family—they were still breathing.

She placed a hand on each of them, beginning to heal them. Given the situation, she couldn’t use all her power, but she ensured they would survive.

Gradually, fighters and escape ships began departing from the vessel, engaging in fierce battles with the surrounding military warships and fighters.

One particularly powerful level-seven mecha, with its crimson laser beams, obliterated swathes of military fighters with a single shot.

It was Clive.

During the battle, he suddenly changed direction, aiming at the original ship. The mecha’s cannons gathered intense red light.

"That bastard!" Snakehead shouted.

The damaged ship couldn’t withstand such a powerful attack.

Snakehead quickly reacted, his superpower surging. The wrecked fighters floating around began to gather in front of the ship.

The crimson laser burst forth. Even without sound, the blinding light conveyed its deadly power to everyone.

The debris of the fighters didn’t last two seconds before being vaporized into dust.

The red beam pierced through the ship’s hull, illuminating the terrified faces of everyone inside.

Like exploding fireworks, Lyra’s psychokinesis surged in response—

Silvery metal fragments scattered like stars, blocking all the laser beams.

Chapter 25: Elastic Metal

People were surprised by Lyra’s impressive psychokinesis, and they were curious about the type of elastic metal that could withstand the combined attacks of a level-7 Peculiar and a mecha.

While the military rounded up the criminals, they also sent out ships to rescue the hostages.

Once she handed over the Rymes siblings safely, Lyra boarded Snakehead’s ship.

"You really scared us this time, Lyra," said Todd.

"You guys were too late," Lyra replied, coughing twice. She drank a glass of water and grabbed an energy biscuit from Todd. While chewing half of it, she asked, "Did you bring the stuff?"

Snakehead’s face lit up with joy, and he patted his chest. "It just passed the tests, and there are already many orders lined up for the next two years!"

Snakehead then brought over a box more than a meter long. He handled it with great care, his face jiggling with excitement. "This is a specially developed high-end piece. You’re the first to use it, so be careful not to damage it."

Todd didn’t even bother to mock his stingy boss. A high-end item costing nearly seventy million credits was unlikely to break unless used against high-level beasts.

"It took down a level-7 on its debut, plenty for you to show off," said Snakehead.

Lyra donned her spacesuit and opened the box, revealing a slender superpower-enhanced gun.

She stepped onto the lift platform, rising to the launch pad above the cockpit. The floor below closed, providing magnetic support to counteract the weightlessness, and the glass canopy in front opened.

Activating the electronic visor in her spacesuit, she surveyed the distant battlefield.

Everything was ready.

She braced against the launch pad’s railing, aiming the gun. Green superpower particles rapidly gathered at the muzzle. It has been amplified by the gun’s device, which boosted its power by three levels.

In the vast universe, the battlefield was insignificant, but that flash of light was dazzling.

ZAP—

The slender green beam shot across the battlefield like a comet, targeting a rampaging mecha. It pierced the cockpit in an instant.

In the cramped space, Clive stared dumbfounded at the blood pouring from the hole in his chest.

Blood gushed out.

The mecha’s red lights flashed, and it exploded silently in the space.

Lyra lowered the gun, a slow smile spreading across her face. "I’m stingy. I won’t give you a second chance."

Back in the cockpit, she casually tossed the long gun, eyeing Snakehead’s murderous glare. "Nice piece. Name your price."

"Not for sale!" Snakehead snatched it back, hugging it to his chest. After a pause, he smirked and said, "But we could trade it for your elastic metal."

Lyra snorted. "Forget it. I’m afraid you’d make a scene when you found how little that metal was worth."

"Tsk, tsk. I doubt that would ever happen," said Snakehead. Everyone knew that Lyra’s elastic metal was top-notch; they just couldn’t risk an outright conflict to take it.

"By the way, where’s Sorren?" Snakehead asked, clearly annoyed. "What’s that fool up to? He was supposed to take care of you, but he got tricked by a competitor instead."

People from Voidstar No. 2 had been kidnapped by those from Snowfall—this would be a major embarrassment if words got out.

"I left him on Snowfall, as punishment," Lyra replied.

"What? You’re not taking him to Planet Nagano? Who’s going to look after you?" Snakehead was getting anxious. ’Without someone to monitor this young woman, what if she takes off?’

Lyra, pretending not to know his intentions, walked toward the ship’s equipment bay in her spacesuit. Snakehead continued trying to persuade her as she nimbly climbed into the beetle-shaped fighter jet and urged the pilot to take off.

"Wait, I’m talking to you!" Snakehead clung to the fighter jet, not letting it leave. "Are you really going alone? What if you go off the grid..."

His words were too blunt. Realizing he had given himself away, he stared at Lyra with a hint of assertiveness.

"What can he do even if Iet him come?" Lyra glanced at him. "The dog I kept for years is now wagging to someone else. How can I be sure that he wouldn’t bite me someday?"

’So, she knew everything?’ Snakehead was puzzled. Was Sorren really that useless?

Ignoring his dumbfounded look, Lyra threw the pilot out and flew the fighter jet into the isolation chamber, gracefully departing.

"Damn, my fighter jet!" Snakehead slapped Todd. "Send someone to bring that jet back."

Now that Lyra was aware of everything, there was nothing for Snakehead to worry about anymore. As long as they could make money, he’d be fine with it.

Snakehead was easygoing; however, Blackheart might not be.

"She ran off on her own?!" The one-eyed Blackheart snapped the armrest off his chair and paced a few steps, glaring at Snakehead on the screen. "Why the hell didn’t you just capture her?"

"Why don’t you do it?" Snakehead, puffing on a cigar, looked relaxed. "She’s on the warship right now."

This shut Blackheart up. He thought for a moment. "How about we go to Snowfall and bring her back?"

He always felt uneasy about letting this young woman out of their sight.

Snakehead looked at him with disdain. "Come on, with your attitude, there’s no way she’d stay!"

Blackheart tried to take Lyra under control when she was still weak. Now that she was starting to rise into power, everybody knew Blackheart would do everything he could to stop Lyra from fleeing him.

"You’re the type who wants everything for yourself and can’t stand to see others do well," said Snakehead.

"Pfft! Who would want to share good stuff?" Blackheart retorted, sitting back down with a dark expression. "Just wait, when Sis Marv gets big, she’ll make us all suffer!"

Snakehead snorted, cutting off the communication. He believed that letting Lyra rise could be beneficial, as working with someone who only cared about profits would be easy.

On the other side, Blackheart grew more furious. He turned to the woman next to him and ordered, "Liliana, pick a few skilled people and go to Snowfall. Make sure to bring Sis Marv back, tied up if necessary."

Liliana looked up in surprise. "Daddy, if we anger her, she might not cooperate with us..."

Before she could finish, a slap landed on her face. Blackheart grabbed her hair, taming her like a kitten. "Don’t let me hear you plead for her again. She doesn’t want to cooperate? That’s not up to her!"

"Yes..." Liliana replied, trembling, her lips quivering.

Blackheart threw her aside with a sneer. ’What’s wrong with wanting everything for myself? Stupid Snakehead...’

Meanwhile, Lyra received a warm welcome upon boarding the warship.

"Thank goodness for Miss Shedd. Without you, Zinnia and Zarek might not have made it," Rowie said, leading her to see the siblings.

The ship had advanced medical equipment, and the siblings had changed clothes. If not for their pale faces, no one would know they were in critical condition not long ago.

Zinnia lay in the treatment pod, complaining loudly. "If I hadn’t reacted quickly and used the last bit of my superpower, we wouldn’t have held on until Lyra came to rescue us."

"Your superpower is truly remarkable," Lyra said. She had no doubt that, given time, Zinnia could punch through a spaceship.

Outside, the chaotic battle was nearly over. The gang leader was dead, and the lieutenants were captured. For Zarek, this was undoubtedly a significant achievement.