Liu Shu waited patiently, her eyes closed as she took in her now massive domain. It had stretched so far that her roots were already closing into Solkara's and Feltera's orbits.
Solkara was the closest world to the Sun, while Feltera was the first planet beyond Nualis. The first was a scorched world. The rotational speed was swift, but the closeness to the Sun made it impossible for life to develop naturally. Naturally, being the keyword.
For now, though, it was barren.
Meanwhile, Feltera was a crystalline world. Outwardly, it had dense clouds, which pushed internal temperatures to such low levels that life could not develop. On the contrary, the core of the giant world was so hot that all the surface materials had crystallized from the contrasting temperatures.
A mix of coldness and heat intertwined, forming a spectacular sight of mirror-like mountains and molten seas of glass. Among all worlds, Feltera was the world with the densest and largest atmosphere.
As Liu Shu wondered when she would meet these two worlds and catch them within her domain, her senses detected a very faint signal. This time, she was not confused. After all, the sensations were imprinted in her mind after Altherion's fleet arrived.
Her gaze moved over quickly, and she noticed the scouting ship. 'Hm… So this is the ship they used for scouting? Analyze.
***
[Level 130 Starry Phantom Trail (Flawless-Level World-Grade)]
***
The item's specifications were dozens, each explaining some core functions of the Starry Phantom Trail ship. As she read, there were two that attracted her.
***
Effect 2: The Phantom Star Trail has a shield that can absorb 1.5 worth of
Effect 11: The shield's aura can conceal the ship from the prying eyes of any creature nearby as long as they don't have an S- Tier or above detection skill.
***
Liu Shu's lips arched coldly. 'Sadly for you, mine is a little bit higher. Only SSS Tier.'
1.5
It took around an hour for the other ships to enter her domain.
***
[Level 149 Starry Traveler Ship (Flawless-Level World-Grade)] x4
***
[Level 160 Starry Carrier Battleship (Flawed-Level Core-Grade)] x1
***
Liu Shu checked their specifications. "The Starry Traveler Ship has 2.5
Was it a lot? Certainly.
Was Liu Shu afraid of them? Not in the slightest.
"At their current speed, they will take around 11 days to arrive at Nualis. They are cautious, and their defenses are activated. I now have various options…"
The World Tree thought about what to do with these people, her eyes coldly calculating how to leave absolutely no escape route and let them become food for the cold and empty void of space.
Inside the Starry Carrier Battleship, Helgor tapped the armchair while humming a song. He was quite satisfied with their trip. "What about those
"Yes, Boss. They were just a small group with only one strong leader at Level 155. A single attack from our main cannon left it unable to resist the onslaught. We have placed them in their respective cages."
"Great job, Filar." Helgor nodded, satisfied. He had not expected such a windfall. "Astraelis' body parts sell quite well. If we manage to keep them alive until we return, we will gain extra. Make sure to feed them well and heal their wounds."
Filar nodded and walked away, eager to help.
As he walked back, Azuremist spoke up. Her tone was full of uncertainty. "Helgor, I feel uneasy again. This time, the feeling is stronger than ever."
The man frowned, his brown eyes looking over at the floating creature. "What's wrong? Are you sure that the feeling wasn't our encounter with those
Azuremist shook her head, looking out of the ship with a confused expression. "I feel as if… the void is watching me."
"The void?"
Helgor didn't dismiss her feelings. His group had been saved more than once because of Azuremist's occasional feelings. While they didn't pry on each other, Helgor was quite sure that Azuremist had some kind of precognition ability. 'Well, it is a guess at the end of the day. Honestly, the
Having reached Level 175, Helgor was neither naive nor blinded by benefits. Even then, his experience also told him that if he wanted to earn powerful opportunities, risk was nothing but a consequence. Opportunities didn't come without challenges!
Blackscale spoke at this moment, his face showing dissatisfaction. "Azuremist. You are getting more cowardly lately. We've given up our last two missions because of you. Now, you are whining again."
While he wasn't intelligent, he didn't hold back from speaking out. After all, intelligence aside, his battle sense was top-notch. Helgor also reacted to those words. "Hm… Blackscale is right. Aren't you relying too much on your powers? If we are constantly afraid, forget getting good opportunities. We might as well stay at home and barricade our doors."
Azuremist showed a conflicted expression. It was not like she wanted to tell them to retreat. Like the others, she wanted to hunt for treasures. However, this time around, the feeling of anxiety deep in her heart was clearer than ever.
Each time she looked outside, her whole body would tremble, as if countless eyes were observing them from the depths of space. It was honestly terrifying. "Helgor, just trust me this one time. I promise that I won't say anything for the next adventure. I can even stay back if you want. But this time, you must listen to me. We need to turn around."
Helgor shook his head. "No. I've already decided. We will continue, Azuremist. Retreating twice is a sign of vision; retreating a third time is a sign of cowardice. If we encounter trouble, we will use all our resources to face it. If we can't win, we will turn around and leave. Let's explore the worlds with life in this Solar System, and if there is an aura of a powerful individual, we can leave."
Azuremist could only compromise. To avoid her feelings, Azuremist turned around, wanting to go to her room to rest. When she did so, the feeling of impending doom became even stronger.
Her eyes moved toward her system page's
It was a simple skill that countless wished they had. It was thanks to this skill that Azuremist had survived for so long and reached the
But recently, she had started to become annoyed. The skill had reached Level MAX not long ago, so the new feelings made her even more cautious than before. The feeling was frustrating to the extreme. 'Why can't I deactivate it? When I am in a city, my Danger Sense constantly points toward strong people, even when they are not aware of my existence.'
With a sigh, she closed her eyes and decided to rest inside the cabin with the others. 'If something happens, I will at least be able to help.'
Helgor noticed the woman's struggles, but he didn't point them out. He was satisfied that Azuremist was trying to control herself. 'Such a remote place where even
Like that, nine days went by.
"Lord Helgor, our sensors detected a faint essence signal ahead of us."
Helgor blinked, confused. "A signal? What is it?"
"We are unaware. It felt like a spatial pulse. The signal was too faint to capture properly, though."
Azuremist's body was feeling as if she had eaten something rotten. Even as a non-solid entity, she wanted nothing more than to clutch her stomach and groan. Unable to bear it anymore, she shouted. "Helgor, turn around! We can't continue!"
Helgor's thoughtful expression collapsed, glaring at Azuremist. However, when he finally noticed her state, the words of scolding about to leave his mouth were strangled. "You… what happened?"
Everyone else noticed Azuremist's condition, and their expressions changed.
"That's certainly not normal."
"Did Lady Azuremist ever appear so scared?"
"Her reaction is comparable to that time we crossed paths with a Star Emperor."
Helgor pondered and shook his head. "Alright, turn around."
Blackscale complained. "Boss! We can't always be led by the nose by her!"
Azuremist, who was on edge, raised her voice angrily. "You stupid lizard! Can't you see that something is wrong!? If it weren't because of you, we would've turned around much earlier!"
As she scolded, the sensation inside her peaked, making her terror rise, and finally, it all dissipated. Helgor noticed that she regained peace and asked solemnly. "Azuremist, what are the conditions for your skill to deactivate?"
Azuremist's face was not calm, even when the anxiety had disappeared. "Either the threat left… or the threat is about to appear. After all, I can't fight with overly charged emotions…"
"Lord Helgor! Starry Phantom Trail has disappeared from our radars!"
"What!?" Helgor stood up, his face full of shock. "How can that be! Quickly expand our radar."
Everyone moved to check as quickly as they could. Soon, they noticed a signal. The woman reading the signal shouted. "Lord Helgor, the Starry Phantom Trail is asking for assistance!"
"Where is it?"
"Deep space!" Someone at the corner shouted. "I've sensed terrifying spatial energies right ahead! The Starry Phatnom Trail has been dragged into a subspace!"
Helgor's face turned ugly, and he shouted. "Quickly, fire [Spatial Anchoring Missiles]. We need to destroy the subspace and bring out whatever is hunting it!"
The Starry Carrier Battleship fired 10 missiles, and they streaked through space at incredible speeds. A moment later, they all landed in the area of the spatial anomaly.
BOOM!
A muted explosion spread out, the space distorting violently. Then, everyone lost their voices, their faces draining of blood.
In front of them, a gargantuan set of kilometric roots spread like a deep net. Each root was anchored to a spatial rift, covered with ominous blue-glowing veins. In the very middle, the Starry Phantom Trail was entangled in them, and the space around it was shattered.
Azuremist muttered, full of terror. "Ancestral Spirit… What have we encountered?"