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He was dressed in a white robe, with heavy eyeliner, and exuded a strange aura.
“Ah, my dear guests.” He smiled warmly at Gamora. “You’ve finally arrived, and you’ve brought… my little darling.”
His gaze fell greedily on the metal ball in Quill's hand.
Quill placed the Cosmic Orb on the table.
"The stuff is here. Where's the money?"
“Don’t rush, young man.” The collector waved his hand. A red-skinned girl with empty eyes, dressed in a maid’s outfit, stepped forward and scanned the spirit orb with a device.
“You have to inspect the goods before making payment.” The collector stood up and circled the spirit orb, as if admiring a work of art.
He reached out a finger and gently touched the surface of the spirit orb. The patterns on the orb lit up and slowly opened, revealing the stone inside that emitted a purple light.
An ancient and powerful force filled the entire room. The air itself became heavy.
“Oh my God…” the collector let out a satisfied sigh.
He waved his hand, and a vast starry sky was projected into the space behind him.
"Before the birth of the universe, there were six singularities." His voice was like reciting poetry. "After the Big Bang, the universe was born, and the remnants of these six singularities were forged into six concentrated energy bodies... the Infinity Stones."
He pointed to the purple stone: "This one is power. Possessing it allows you to easily destroy a planet. But most mortals simply cannot withstand its power; if they touch it, they will be torn to pieces."
On the projected screen, a colossal god, wielding a scepter, pressed the purple stone onto the surface of a planet. The next second, the entire planet blazed with purple light, then shattered into pieces.
Quill, Rocket, and Drax were all stunned. They knew this thing was valuable, but they never imagined it was a legendary weapon of destruction.
"I've had enough! I'll never be your slave again!"
Just then, Karina, the red-skinned maid beside the collector, suddenly let out a desperate scream. Her eyes turned bloodshot, and she lunged at the table, grabbing the purple power gem.
"No! Karina!" the collector cried out in terror.
Purple energy surged from Karina's hands into her body like a flood. Her skin began to crack, and she screamed in agony. The next second, a devastating purple shockwave erupted from her.
"boom--!"
The entire museum, along with its countless precious artifacts, vanished in the deafening roar.
In the instant of the explosion, Quill lunged forward and snatched back the Orb containing the gem. Gamora then pulled him along, and together with Rocket and Groot, they scrambled to safety from the rubble.
However, as soon as they rushed outside, they saw Drax standing in the middle of the square, roaring at the sky.
"Ronan! You coward! I'm here! Come and kill me!"
Gamora's expression changed drastically: "Drax! You idiot! What have you done?"
Drax turned around, his face filled with vengeful satisfaction: "I've brought him here! I'll avenge my wife and daughters with my own hands!"
Before the words were even finished, dark clouds gathered over the barren land.
Several menacing spaceships, resembling black blades, tore through the clouds and slowly descended. Leading them was Ronan the Accuser's flagship, the "Dark Star."
The hatch opened, and Ronan's tall figure appeared on the gangway, accompanied by a blue-skinned, semi-mechanical woman—Nebula.
Meanwhile, in a meteorite belt above the barren land, Chu Hang sat on a huge meteorite, watching everything that was happening below.
He used spatial powers to conceal his form and aura, just like an audience member sitting in a VIP box on the top floor of a theater.
“Interesting.” He looked at Ronan as he slowly descended and stroked his chin.
This Ronan is quite different from the one he saw in the movie.
Back in the 1990s, he threw Ronan into a spatial rift. The fact that the guy survived and even thrived suggests he had his own extraordinary adventures.
At this moment, the energy emanating from Ronan was more solid and darker than he remembered, carrying a deeper aura of death that did not belong to the Kree.
"Looks like he's been trained by Thanos," Chu Hang thought to himself.
He wasn't in a hurry to make a move. He wanted to see what kind of sparks would fly between this enhanced Ronan and this rabble.
On the ground, Drax roared as he charged toward Ronan.
Ronan didn't even look at him directly, just stood there with disdain.
Drax's powerful punch was easily caught by Ronan's palm.
“I don’t remember you at all.” Ronan’s voice was icy, and with a flick of his wrist, Drax’s arm cracked with a sharp sound.
Then, he kicked Drax in the chest, sending Drax flying like a rag doll, crashing into the wall, his fate unknown.
"Give me the Spirit Orb." Ronan's gaze shifted to Quill and Gamora, who were preparing to escape in their mining aircraft.
Nebula grinned maliciously and piloted her aircraft in pursuit.
A chaotic chase unfolds in the barren mines.
Ultimately, Quill's spacecraft was destroyed, and Gamora rushed out first, hovering in space. But Nebula pursued relentlessly, destroying her life support devices with a single shot.
Gamora's body quickly stiffened in the cold vacuum, and she lost consciousness.
The cosmic orb containing the Power Stone slipped from her hand and slowly fell towards the Dark Star below.
Ronan stood on the ship, outstretched his hand, ready to welcome his victory.
Upon seeing this, Chu Hang knew he couldn't wait any longer.
He stood up and dusted himself off.
"Warm-up is over, it's my turn to go on stage."
His figure disappeared from the meteorite.
The next second, he appeared between the Dark Star and the falling spirit orb, hovering calmly in the air.
Ronan's outstretched hand froze. He stared at the man who had suddenly appeared before him, his pupils contracting sharply.
That figure, that face...
Although many years have passed, the despair and fear of being thrown into the spatial rift instantly surged into my heart.
"It's you!" For the first time, Ronan's voice carried a hint of shock and a barely perceptible tremor.
Chu Hang ignored him. He simply stretched out his hand, and the cosmic orb that was about to fall into Ronan's hands was held up by an invisible hand and stopped steadily in front of him.
Chapter 115 The Law of Force
Ronan's body stiffened.
This face, this man, is the deepest fear he has experienced in the dead of night for decades.
Back then, in the spatial rift, he was torn apart by the endless void, every inch of his flesh being stripped away. Thanos pulled him out, bestowed upon him greater power, and taught him to wield the darkness.
He thought he was no longer the Kree who could be easily toyed with.
But now, this man is standing in front of him again.
He still maintained that nonchalant demeanor, as if his decades of struggle and growth meant nothing to him.
Fear, like a cold, venomous snake, crept up his spine. But the power and dignity bestowed upon him by Thanos forced him to suppress the urge to flee.
"Do you think things are still the same as they were back then? Do you think I'm still the same person I was back then?" Ronan's voice was a little dry. He forced himself to straighten his back, and the dark energy within him began to surge. Black mist swirled around his warhammer. "The universe has changed, and so have I! Hand over the Orb, and I might let you die a quick death!"
Chu Hang seemed to have heard something amusing, and the corners of his mouth lifted slightly.
He said only one word.
The next second, golden light exploded from his body.
It wasn't a warm light, but rather like a star exploding before him—violent, scorching, and carrying a destructive pressure. His hair stood on end, transforming into pure golden flames, and his eyes were like two burning suns.
[Binary star configuration].
A terrifying pressure instantly enveloped the entire fleet. On the bridge of the Dark Star, the alarm of the energy shield sounded shrilly. All the Kree officers felt as if a mountain was pressing down on their chests, making it difficult to even breathe. Many had already collapsed to the ground, trembling.
Ronan's face turned completely pale.
This power... Chu Hang's energy is purer and more terrifying than it was back then!
"Impossible..." His lips trembled, and the little confidence Thanos had given him was completely washed away in the face of this power.
Chu Hang didn't look at him, but casually raised his hand and waved it lightly at a frigate on the flank of Ronan's fleet.
[Space Cutting]
No sound, no explosion.
The Kree warship, several hundred meters long, looked as if it had been sliced cleanly in the middle by an invisible knife.
The cut is as smooth as a mirror, and can even reflect the light of the surrounding stars.
Two seconds later, the interior of the severed warship exploded with a deafening roar, and a massive fireball burst forth in the silent space, silently engulfing the wreckage.
With a wave of his hand, a warship vanished.
The bridge of the Dark Star was deathly silent. Everyone stared at the deathly firework, their hearts seemingly stopping.
Ronan's body began to tremble uncontrollably. His pride and joy were a joke in the face of this. He knew that if that swing had been aimed at the Dark Star, the outcome would have been the same.
"I'm somewhat interested in this." Chu Hang withdrew his hand, the golden light around him slowly fading, returning him to his normal appearance. He weighed the cosmic orb in his hand, looked at Ronan, and said calmly, "Now, take your fleet and get out of here. Don't make me say it a second time."
Ronan's face turned a deep purplish-red. Humiliation, anger, and an overwhelming sense of fear churned within him. But he knew he had no choice. To stay meant certain death.
"You'll regret this," he spat out through gritted teeth, invoking his last trump card. "This stone will ultimately belong to me, and to my great master!"
After saying that, he turned around abruptly and roared at the terrified crew members on the bridge: "Retreat! Everyone retreat!"
The Dark Star and the remaining ships, as if they had seen a ghost, frantically started their engines, tore through space, and disappeared via warp.
Chu Hang looked in the direction they disappeared and pursed his lips.
"They've even learned to call their parents."
He didn't chase after her. He turned around and looked into the distance. Gamora's body was stiff in the vacuum, her life force almost gone.
Chu Hang flashed and appeared beside her. A gentle golden energy enveloped her, pulling her back from the brink of death.
Then, carrying Gamora and the Orb, he vanished again.
The tarmac in the barren land was a mess.
"It's over, it's over, Gamora is dead, and the Orb has been stolen. We're doomed!" Rocket jumped up and down in the ruins, frantically pulling the fur off his face.
Quill stared blankly at the sky, clutching the tape recorder his mother had left him tightly in his hand.