251

Chapter 251: Blockade, Ring-Planet Snake

Those fleets directly subordinate to Ronan the Accuser established a firepower blockade zone outside this Knowhere, built from the head of a Celestial.

The vanguard units of the Kree had already begun indiscriminately clearing out any aircraft attempting to leave Knowhere.

That previous bombardment made the Kree's stance clear.

Before the Power Stone was found, no one was allowed to leave!

Overbearing, barbaric, and aggressive!

But the problem was, the Kree fleet was ready for war, they had made up their minds. With the wreckage floating among the stars outside Knowhere, who would dare question them now? Inside Knowhere, flames burned fiercely.

As a result, in just a few minutes, the fire spread throughout the area.

Disoriented and bewildered aliens were everywhere. The Spaceport outside Knowhere had been destroyed by the Kree fleet's ray cannons. Flames ignited in the giant, asteroid-sized eye sockets of this ancient creature's skull.

It was as if this legendary creature had come back to life after countless ages of death, staring at the silent stars with a burning gaze.

Every channel in the city was broadcasting the Kree's declaration of war. They demanded that the people of Knowhere hand over the Power Stone.

The entire Knowhere was blockaded; no one could leave.

Those Pirate Mercenaries who usually associated closely with The Collector gathered in front of his residence, shouting for him to uphold justice.

It wasn't until a Kree landing craft docked in front of The Collector's Palace that these Pirate Mercenaries and Ravagers scattered.

The black landing craft hovered in front of The Collector Tivan's Palace. Under the watchful eyes of the various Space Pirates and Ravagers in Knowhere, two Kree Soldiers wearing battlegear and holding energy rifles disembarked from the landing craft.

"The Collector Tivan, by order of the great Ronan the Accuser, you are ordered to hand over the Power Stone before the star in Knowhere sets. Otherwise, Knowhere will be completely annihilated in the Milky Way Galaxy!"

The two Kree Soldiers issued the ultimatum to The Collector without any politeness!

"Ronan the Accuser, I met him thirty years ago. That Kree brat, he climbed into the position of Accuser..."

The Collector wore a scornful smile. "How presumptuous," he said. "Forget him, even your Supreme Intelligence and Thanos, who is behind Ronan, wouldn't dare speak to me like that!"

"Audacious! How dare you insult the great Lord Ronan the Accuser!" Hearing The Collector's contempt for the Accuser, the two Kree Soldiers immediately raised their energy rifles and were about to pull the trigger on him.

"Whoosh!"

From beneath The Collector's wide robe, a finger lightly pressed a button. Two lasers shot out from the gemstone decorations on the palace ceiling, directly piercing through the battlegear helmets of the two Kree Soldiers, passing through their bodies and leaving two coin-sized holes on the ground carpet.

"Damn it! This is the only carpet woven from Golden Fleece in the Universe!" Seeing the smoking carpet, The Collector was so distressed he almost jumped up and down.

The Cyborg Maid nearby quickly dragged the two Kree Soldiers' corpses aside to dispose of them. The so-called disposal was feeding them to a giant carnivorous plant that Tivan collected. It had purple skin, and its scarlet maw was full of sharp fangs. This thing was large enough to swallow two Kree corpses in one gulp, and the corrosive acid inside its body could easily corrode even the battlegear on them.

As for Tivan's reason for collecting this carnivorous plant, it was simple: it was the only purple variant of its species.

"I only just got the Orb not long ago. Why did the Kree find out so quickly!?" Tivan tapped his fingers on the transparent crystal coffin holding Star-Lord.

Inside the crystal coffin, Star-Lord, with a ball gag in his mouth, glared angrily at Tivan.

The Cyborg Maid, who was stuffing corpses into the carnivorous plant's maw nearby, trembled when she heard Tivan, almost sending her mechanical arm into the plant's mouth.

"Hmm?"

Tivan turned his head to look at the Cyborg Maid, a smirk playing on his lips. "You seem a little nervous!"

"You monster, go to hell!" As one of Tivan's collection items, the Cyborg Maid had long since had enough of this madman.

She raised her hands, and the palms of her modified silver mechanical hands clicked open two firing ports. Two thick energy cannons shot directly at Tivan.

Boom! Boom! Two energy cannons accurately struck Tivan, but they were blocked by the energy shield that shimmered from his magnificent long robe.

"A robe woven from the fibers of the sacred tree of the Kormisu people, its color dyed with the blood of two native Kormisu deities. It can withstand a direct hit from a starship cannon! The only one in the entire universe!"

Tivan spread his hands, a smile on his face, not forgetting to show off his collection items.

"You madman, you slaughtered a planet for this tattered robe!" The Cyborg Maid cursed at Tivan's atrocity.

Tivan blinked innocently. "Slaughtered a planet? That wasn't my idea. I just paid for it. As for how those Space Pirates and Ravagers got this thing, the process isn't important to me!"

Just as the Cyborg Maid was about to continue scolding Tivan for his brutality, he raised his hand.

"Looks like I need to replace my maid again. How about that centaur maid? Too bad, she's not a unicorn centaur, not a unique collection item in the universe. What a pity!"

Ding. While expressing regret, Tivan pressed a button in his hand.

With a loud bang, the metal collar around the Cyborg Maid's neck exploded directly, instantly blowing off her entire head.

Hiss hiss hiss hiss!

The Cyborg Maid collapsed on the ground, sparks constantly shooting out from her severed neck, her body twitching uncontrollably on the carpet.

Tivan pressed another button, and soon a robot walked in and disposed of the Cyborg Maid into the carnivorous plant's massive maw.

"Oh oh—the Kree warships, I'm so scared, let me see! What can I find to give our little Ronan a surprise!"

Tivan seemed to be dancing as he moved, selecting a suitable "gift" in his Collection Vault! He didn't actually care about these warlike guys. The pleas of the Space Pirates and Mercenaries gathered outside his door were meaningless to him.

Ordinary life was just currency or something like grains of sand to the Elders of the Universe, completely insignificant.

But how should he put it?

This was his territory after all.

If it were destroyed by these ants, The Collector would feel very annoyed.

Fortunately, for The Collector, who possessed everything, even without using overwhelming strength, he still had too many options.

For example, a bomb would be very suitable in this situation.

"This one is... I remember now, the Black Hole Bomb. It can suck all matter within three light-years into a black hole. I haven't finished mining this Knowhere yet! That won't do. The head of a Celestial is a rare collection item!"

"Sentient Robot, something explicitly forbidden by the Elder Council. Can't let them know I still have one in my collection."

"Space Locust, no, no, that would attract those perverts, the Celestials. I don't want to deal with them!"

"Ring-Planet Snake, my little obedient one, how about we go out and bite them, hehehe..."

Inside the crystal coffin, Star-Lord heard The Collector Tivan mumbling to himself. Many of the things Tivan mentioned, he had never even heard of, but just from the names, he could feel a tremendous threat and fear.

No, he couldn't let this madman discover the Quantum Channel. Star-Lord twisted his body frantically, trying to break free from the restraint, but it was clearly futile.

Knowhere was in complete chaos at this moment.

The Kree warships blockaded Knowhere, and all the spaceships docked in the harbour were bombarded. Who usually came to Knowhere, the largest black market in the Milky Way Galaxy? Space Pirates, Ravagers—they were all true desperadoes.

Facing the Kree army pressing down, after the initial panic, seeing that the Kree fleet remained motionless, these desperadoes turned their gaze towards the shops in the black market and the easy targets visible to the naked eye.

Energy lasers flew everywhere. Many desperadoes even piloted flying speeder bikes directly into the shops along the streets, wanting to loot and make a fortune while the chaos reigned.

The bosses who could open a black market in Knowhere were naturally not pushovers. And so, looking down from the sky, the entire Knowhere was filled with patches of fire, with roaring sounds everywhere like firecrackers.

Elder Mandel's shop had already lowered ship baffle level armor on all four sides, and even an energy shield shimmered outside. Dense, thick muzzles extended out like a hedgehog.

Seeing this situation, the pirates who only had energy rifles could only hold their noses and avoid this tough nut to crack.

Old Rhino sat inside the shop, watching the chaotic scene outside through surveillance equipment. There was no trace of worry on his face. He held a mahjong tile sized energy crystal stone in his hand, stroking it over and over again, as if stroking his Lover.

"I wonder if that kid Star-Lord can survive this chaos. If they all die, then this deposit..."

Two streets away from Elder Mandel's shop, at a street corner, a Card Soldier twisted off a Space Pirate's neck and picked up the energy gun in his hand.

Not far away, two Flying Skeletons with bone wings on their backs flapped their wings and flew low, dragging down two alien pirates who were trying to escape in a flying skiff in a panic. Their sharp claws directly pierced into their bodies. After fumbling for a long time, they pulled out a bloody, heart-like organ and shoved it into their mouths.

These Space Pirates who wanted to rob had clearly picked the wrong targets. "Another pauper!"

At the ruins of a shop blown down by an energy cannon, two walls barely formed a bunker. This Card Soldier returned to this temporary camp, threw the four or five energy guns in his hand onto the ground, nodded towards Hugh Veda, and walked to the side to stand alert.

At this open space in the ruins, energy guns, high-tech armor, and some high-tech parts were piled up almost like a small mountain.

Star-Lord had a breathing mask on his face at this time, holding two energy guns in his hands. He cautiously leaned against the wall, but his gaze involuntarily looked at those few humanoid skeletons with double wings on their backs.

He had roamed the Milky Way Galaxy for more than twenty years and had never seen a race like this. He even suspected that these skeletons were not living beings at all.

Were they some kind of mechanical body that looked like skeletons? But those skeleton demons were bloody, their claws sharp, and green flames burned in their eye sockets, as if reminding him that this was not some kind of mechanical body.

"How likely is it that the Kree warships will bombard Knowhere?" Hugh Veda looked at the chilling black steel warships in the sky and asked Star-Lord beside him.

Star-Lord shook his head. "The Collector Tivan has a great reputation throughout the Southern Galaxy. No one knows his background. If it were other Kree fleets, they probably wouldn't directly bombard Knowhere.

But it's Ronan who's here. He's a madman who believes in Kree racial supremacy. No one can guarantee what he will do."

"We need to leave. Damn it, I should have known we shouldn't have chosen this place for the deal. Which bastard told me Knowhere was the safest trading location!"

Hearing Star-Lord's complaint, Hugh Veda gave him a faint glance. "Don't worry, we have a method to get you out of here safely!"

Hugh Veda took out a gemstone polished like a button. A blue gleam flashed within the gemstone.

That was a condensation of the power of the Space Gem. The power sealed inside could take them away through space pull, and could also pull reinforcements from Earth.

"Power Stone! The Boss should be interested!" Hugh Veda listened to the Kree's ultimatum sounding on the big screen and silently crushed the gemstone in his hand.

Ronan, a Kree Noble, a member of the Kree Military High-level Staff, the "Supreme Accuser".

He was a pure Kree General, ferocious, cold-blooded, and would stop at nothing to perfectly execute orders.

He was a true "Kree Supremacist". In his eyes, the Kree were the most perfect race in the Universe. For the other civilizations in the Milky Way Galaxy, Ronan always played the role of a destroyer.

He was the Hand of War, the Vanguard of Destruction. Wherever he and his fleet went, flames that would never be extinguished would ignite, sweeping all existence into his war of conquest.

And Ronan's innate ability was not only in commanding fleets and conquering cities and seizing territory, he himself was also one of the best and most powerful Warriors in the Kree Empire.

His invincibility over the past nearly a thousand years had earned Ronan numerous rewards from the Kree's Supreme Intelligence. Several years ago, the Supreme Intelligence passed a resolution to integrate all of the Kree's advanced military technology, almost using the strength of the entire nation to forge a true divine weapon for Ronan.

That thing was called the Universal Weapon.

At this moment, it was held in Ronan's hand.

He was taller than most Kree, very robust, and wore metal armor like an ancient warrior.

But that armor was the Kree's most advanced defensive armor, specially shaped into this warrior-like image because of Ronan's preference.

His skin was blue, the indigo blue that Kree Nobles particularly admired, representing the most perfect bloodline.

His eyes were gray, representing his cold indifference.

He was like the physical incarnation of the Kree's ten thousand years of warring, iron-blooded will.

This was also his wish. He hoped to become an existence beyond a mere symbol. He hoped to lead the Kree towards the most glorious future.

At this moment, on the bridge of the black Kree fleet's flagship, the *Dark Aster*, the tall Accuser stood in front of the starship's observation window, holding his long-handled hammer-like Universal Weapon in his hand, looking down at the head-shaped Knowhere below the fleet.

He received information that the Power Stone had appeared in Knowhere and had fallen into the hands of The Collector Tivan.

And only the Power Stone could allow him to achieve his long-held wish. With the Power Stone, the Kree Legion would, under his leadership, reign over the entire galaxy, and even the entire universe.

For this, he directly brought his fleet from the front line, traversed a wormhole, and arrived at Knowhere.

"Your Excellency, Great Accuser, time is up. Knowhere has not responded, and the people we sent have lost contact!"

A Kree Soldier came up behind the Accuser and reported, kneeling on one knee.

Bang.

The metal warhammer in Ronan's hand lightly tapped the ground on the bridge of his flagship, the *Dark Aster*, emitting a metallic hum, like the sounding bell of destruction.

Ronan extended a finger. There were no emotional fluctuations in his gray eyes.

"Two rounds of ship cannon salvo. Send out landing craft. Retrieve the Orb!"

Ronan said softly.

Ronan's will was quickly implemented.

The black, heavy hulls of the Kree warships roared open, and heavy, four-sided cone-shaped ballistic missiles were sent into the launch tubes.

These weapons of destruction produced by the Kree would fall into Knowhere's atmosphere at extreme speed, then land on the ground with unparalleled kinetic energy, causing the first wave of earthquake-like attacks.

When they pierced beneath the crust into the mantle layer, the bombs placed inside would explode, blasting open the solid crust and causing violent activity in the mantle layer, thereby cleansing the entire Knowhere with burning lava.

Click, click, click.

As the heavy missiles on the warships were in position, outside those four-sided cone-shaped missiles, ring after ring of blue light rings were lit up, representing the launch entering the final stage.

Beep beep beep—

Just as the Kree warships' artillery fire was about to roar, a grayish, phantom-like giant snake quietly emerged from behind the Kree fleet.

This snake was so massive that its coiling body could wrap around the entire Knowhere once. It opened its massive mouth, and its serpent's maw swallowed a Kree warship in one gulp.

(end of chapter)