The ten divine souls imprisoned within the stone pillars instantly regained their freedom. One by one, the stone pillars, shining with an uncanny luster, exploded, sending shards flying everywhere.
"Brother!" Hei Bing exclaimed with delight. His spirit floated out, reaching Hei Can’s side in the blink of an eye.
Hei Can looked up, first offering a word of thanks to Ji Changkong, before turning to ask Hei Bing what exactly had transpired.
"Grandmother!" Shang Bingjie softly breathed, enveloping the soul of Elder Madam Shang with tendrils of chilling energy. The Elder Madam, whose spirit had been frail, immediately felt a surge of vitality.
The Shang family’s cultivation secrets were rather unique; Shang Bingjie and her grandmother cultivated the same profound essence of power. Because their powers shared the same origin, Shang Bingjie’s vital energy could nourish the Elder Madam’s soul, allowing her to recover a portion of her spiritual strength.
With Shang Bingjie’s assistance, the Elder Madam’s severely depleted soul slowly began to mend. However, she seemed somewhat hesitant to look at Ji Changkong, remaining close to Shang Bingwa with an air of shame.
The bald figures from Vajra Mountain also appeared deeply contemplative. After this perilous and unsuccessful venture, these masters of Vajra Mountain seemed to have reached a sudden realization, recognizing the devastating calamities that greed could invite.
Under the influence of the Primordial Poison, Gu Yue swiftly arrived beside Ji Changkong. Gu Yue remained composed and unruffled, showing not a hint of unease, and offered a slight smile. "Changkong, you’ve arrived precisely on time."
"Grandfather, what is going on?" Ji Changkong gestured towards the alien beings who resembled 'Giant Crocodiles.'
"Those extraterrestrials inhabit this sea of meteorites. After we escaped that living planet, we clashed with the forces of the Black Heaven Altar and the Vastness Sect. We fled all the way here, never imagining that such beings lived within this meteorite ocean," Gu Yue frowned, quickly outlining the situation.
It turned out that Gu Yue, Elder Madam Shang, and their entourage had come seeking refuge while evading the pursuit of the Black Heaven Altar and the Vastness Sect. Upon spotting the meteorite sea, they plunged right into it, intending to use its intricate maze to shake off their pursuers.
Unfortunately, after inadvertently landing on this colossal meteorite, they discovered that these aliens actually lived here. Elder Madam Shang and the others wished to depart, but the aliens were unwilling, immediately launching an attack.
These extraterrestrials were all fully corporeal. Although they did not cultivate the Way of the Celestial Master, they possessed their own peculiar forms of power. As pure spirit entities, they were quickly subdued and imprisoned under the siege of the aliens.
When the forces of the Vastness Sect and the Black Heaven Altar caught up and tried to retreat upon seeing the aliens, they suffered the same fate, all becoming prisoners.
Once they had them confined, the aliens immediately began preparations for a ritual sacrifice, intending to use their divine souls to worship and offer tribute to some malevolent deity, thereby scattering their souls completely.
While Gu Yue was recounting this, Shang Bingjie had already learned the rough outline of events from a Shang family expert. Hei Can and Tuolei’s group also received the details from Hei Bing.
During this process, those aliens resembling 'Giant Crocodiles' did not immediately swarm and attack. Instead, they gathered together, chattering amongst themselves about something.
Upon magnificent, towering structures, numerous aliens produced strange and bizarre weapons. These weapons looked like some kind of jade, shimmering with various colors and covered in tiny perforations. Some were rod-shaped, others square, and some round—their purposes unknown.
The aliens gazed down from above with fierce and cold eyes. Especially when looking towards Ji Changkong, their gazes glinted with biting malice, as if they wished to obliterate him instantly.
Ji Changkong’s expression darkened as he swept his gaze over the aliens. He perceived that although their life signatures differed from humans, they too harbored immense power within their bodies.
Their power felt somewhat bizarre, as if storms were raging wildly and violently within them. Despite the differing manifestations of their power, they generated an equally terrifying destructive force. Just by silently sensing it, he knew that the strong among these aliens were no less potent than the Nine Palace Celestial Masters from the Solar Starfield or the Meteorite Sea Starfield.
Within the weapons they held resided another surge of peculiar energy—complex and inscrutable, unlike any energy form he recognized, yet it still contained astonishing energetic fluctuations.
His expression suddenly turned grave. Ji Changkong warned the Primordial Poison and Shang Bingwa beside him, "Be careful, these aliens are not easy to deal with."
"Mmm," the Primordial Poison nodded slightly and murmured, "The souls of these aliens aren't particularly profound, but the energy within their bodies is vast. Like the Dark Star race, they don't seem to focus primarily on soul cultivation; they appear to emphasize the tempering and forging of the physical body."
Ji Changkong had also observed that while the aliens’ souls were not weak, they lacked complex refinement. Their soul strength seemed to be a natural byproduct of their powerful physical forms, not something achieved through step-by-step tempering.
This meant that although their souls were strong, their understanding of soul power was likely far inferior to that of the Nine Palace Celestial Masters from the various Life Stars.
As Ji Changkong, the Primordial Poison, and Shang Bingjie quietly discussed the anomalies of the aliens’ bodies, the leaders among them, stationed atop the grand structures, seemed to finally reach a decision. A five-meter-tall alien with a tail seven or eight meters long suddenly extended a claw-like arm, pointed at Ji Changkong and his group, and roared.
The aliens on the strange buildings simultaneously descended from the sky. Brilliant beams of light suddenly shot across the heavens, resembling condensed moonlight—cold and razor-sharp. These beams erupted from the weapons in their hands, blasting downwards.
As the cold white rays descended, immense power radiated outward. Where the white light struck the stone below, it left behind small holes, fathomless in depth.
Ji Changkong startled and urgently shouted, "Be careful!"
Those cold white beams possessed terrifying penetrating power. One beam impacted the meteorite and actually bored clean through the massive chunk of rock!
Ji Changkong’s soul was exceptionally keen, and the Tai Xu Secret Record was profoundly esoteric. In an instant, he noticed that the thousand-zhang thick meteorite was riddled with small holes.
Meteorites in the outer heavens are often hundreds of times more solid than the earth on the various Life Stars; this meteorite was clearly exceptionally durable. A single cold white ray capable of piercing a thousand-zhang thick, solid meteorite—this level of power was astonishing.
It was analogous to the Soul Light Ji Changkong projected with his soul. Though seemingly slight, its power was tremendous due to its high condensation.
The light emitted from the aliens' weapons operated on the same principle: the energy was highly focused, propagating through the air without dispersing even slightly, like an unyielding steel needle—terrifyingly effective.
A Nine Palace Celestial Master from the Vastness Sect was struck by two white beams; his spirit shattered instantly, his mark of life completely pulverized, leaving no possibility of rebirth.
Ji Changkong was even more alarmed: this white light not only demonstrated terrifying penetration against matter but also possessed such lethal efficacy against souls. If these aliens clashed with the Nine Palace Celestial Masters of the Solar Starfield and the Meteorite Sea Starfield, wouldn't they win simply by wielding these peculiar weapons?
His expression subtly shifting, Ji Changkong made a mental command, and a five-colored light curtain materialized above their heads.
Five-colored light radiated from his palm, converging within the screen, refining the energy of the five-colored barrier until it shone with vibrant, exquisite colors.
Crack, crack! Clap, clap, clap!
Beams of cold white light rained down, impacting the five-colored barrier. Each strike left an impression on the screen, causing wisps of light smoke to rise from the top of the barrier.
"Impressive!" Ji Changkong muttered inwardly. The five-colored curtain he projected was condensed from the immense power within his body, refined a thousandfold. This energy also incorporated the changes derived from the fusion of the Five Elements of Heaven and Earth, granting it a defense comparable to the hardest diamond.
Yet, under the barrage of white light, the five-colored barrier was emitting tendrils of smoke. Every point struck by a white beam acquired a small dot, roughly the thickness of a finger.
In mere moments, under the continuous impact of the white beams, Ji Changkong’s five-colored barrier began to buckle. The refined energy concentrated within it was consumed by more than half almost instantly, suggesting it would soon be depleted entirely.
Elder Madam Shang, the bald monks of Vajra Mountain, and some Nine Palace Celestial Masters from the Azure Sea Continent quickly sought shelter within the barrier. On the other side, Tuolei’s group from the Meteorite Sea Starfield, after a few seconds of hesitation, also filed one by one toward the area enveloped by the five-colored light screen.
Those who remained outside were swiftly executed under the cold white light of the beams. On the side of the Vastness Sect, three individuals had their souls shattered by the white light.
After descending from their strange structures, the aliens advanced step by step toward Ji Changkong’s position, wielding the weapons that fired the white light.
Clap, clap! Clap, clap, clap!
The continuous impacts of white light on the five-colored barrier—a barrier refined tenfold by Ji Changkong’s immense power—began to show signs of fracturing.
"This is bad!" Ji Changkong thought, his face changing slightly.
He was only one person, but there were hundreds of these aliens, each aided by a peculiar weapon. If the five-colored barrier broke, everyone inside would be peppered like a hornet’s nest.
"Go!" Ji Changkong roared, suddenly exerting his power, and shouted, "Break!"
In the void behind him, a luminous aperture suddenly manifested, flickering with brilliant light, leading to some unknown destination.
Shang Bingjie and the others, without a word, wisely filed one after another into the opening. Those from the Xuanyuan Valley, having experienced this before, entered without needing instruction.
Tuolei, Hei Can, and the others from the Meteorite Sea Starfield, having used this method to enter previously, were adept at the process. They quickly convinced their bewildered companions to enter the light hole as well.
In a flash, everyone beside him vanished one by one, until only he remained.
At that precise moment, starlight suddenly erupted from Ji Changkong’s eyes, converging upon the light aperture, sealing it shut in an instant.
Hiss, hiss!
A faint sound of air burning emanated from the light hole. The vast Star Sea Map abruptly condensed into a white dot and vanished from his mind.
He remained behind alone!
Clap, clap! Clap, clap, clap!
The five-colored barrier finally shattered completely. It dissolved like torn, colored rags, breaking into pieces and dissipating into dim light before even hitting the ground.
Ji Changkong snorted coldly and weaved through the beams of white light with a speed like lightning.
He swung his Dragon’s Radiance Saber; a blade light dozens of meters long shot out, instantly overpowering the white beams and slicing through the bodies of over a dozen aliens.
With the souls of seven wicked dragons now residing within the Dragon’s Radiance Saber, its power had multiplied several times. As the blade light surged outward, the surrounding aliens who rushed to attack were all dismembered, spraying blood everywhere.
Without the burden of protecting others, he struck without reservation, slaughtering these aliens. In just a few minutes, he reduced them to rivers of blood, making them howl in agony.
Although the aliens' weapons were formidable, a divine weapon like the Dragon’s Radiance Saber was even more terrifying. Especially imbued with Ji Changkong’s power, the saber acted like a voracious beast devouring everything, ruthlessly cutting down alien after alien in its path.
The aliens' weapons were potent, and the white light's penetration was indeed formidable. However, precisely because the light was so condensed, each beam was only as thick as a finger, covering a small area.
No matter how powerful the white light was, if it failed to strike Ji Changkong, it was useless.
The aliens' speed was also a disadvantage; their movement lagged far behind Ji Changkong, even slower than an average Eight Trigrams Celestial Master. Facing Ji Changkong’s onslaught, these aliens couldn't even manage to flee.
In a short while, another hundred aliens were slaughtered; Ji Changkong showed no mercy.
These aliens fundamentally did not regard humans as an equal, advanced race, treating them like cattle to be slaughtered for sacrifice. They were clearly brutal and inhumane. They were not the Dark Star race; showing mercy to these creatures was unnecessary. Only by striking fear into their hearts could one truly compel their submission.
Another alien fell into a pool of blood. The remaining aliens, clutching their sharp implements, converged from all directions, but they could not affect Ji Changkong in the slightest. Under the relentless sweep of the Dragon’s Radiance Saber, they all met a gruesome end.
Wielding the Dragon’s Radiance Saber, Ji Changkong seemed to enter a wondrous state of slaughter, subtly merging with the dragon souls within the weapon. He felt the tyrannical killing intent of the dragon souls and expressed those impulses through his actions.
The dragon soul of the Heavenly Thunder Dragon inherently possessed an overwhelming, tyrannical, and murderous aura. Merged with the essence of the seven wicked dragons, the dragon soul within the Dragon’s Radiance Saber became even more savage. The malevolent aura surging out from the saber was enough to paralyze the faint-hearted with terror.
Soon, on the strange buildings, no more aliens were seen descending.
The aliens who had been standing atop the structures had all hidden themselves at some unknown point. The circular platforms protruding from the buildings had all retracted.
By the time Ji Changkong had finished killing all the aliens nearby, not a single alien was visible on the surfaces of the buildings.
"Hmph!" Ji Changkong surveyed the surroundings, his eyes chilling, and scoffed, "Think you can hide?"
The blade light on the Dragon’s Radiance Saber intensified. With a thought, the saber streaked out, sending beams of light slashing down upon the buildings. The ferocious impact of the energy struck the structures, causing them to sway precariously and emitting sounds of violent explosions.
"Get out here!" he roared, sending a blade light resembling a long dragon descending from the sky, like a meteor from beyond the heavens, slamming directly into a rhombus-shaped building five hundred zhang high.
Crack! Crack! Crack, crack, crack!
Under the savage onslaught of the blade light, that massive rhombus-shaped structure split cleanly in two down the middle.
The aliens inside the building revealed expressions of absolute terror. Many, caught near the center of the structure, were sliced in half as well, spraying blood.
Boom, boom! Boom, boom, boom!
The five-hundred-zhang tall rhombus building finally began to collapse under the force of that single, ferocious strike. The aliens inside panicked, leaping out in disorder and falling to the ground below.
These aliens were genuinely terrified. Upon landing, they immediately knelt before Ji Changkong, their faces pale with fear, bowing their heads and muttering continuously, as if worshipping a demon god.
"Hmm?" Ji Changkong paused, frowning as he watched the aliens kneeling before him, their faces etched with terror.
He did not strike immediately. Ji Changkong held the Dragon’s Radiance Saber, observing them for a moment. From their behavior, he knew they had been thoroughly terrified by his display of force.
"All of you, get out here!" Ji Changkong roared again, pointing the Dragon’s Radiance Saber towards several other imposing structures nearby.
He knew that even though the aliens were hiding inside, they certainly had a way to observe him.
As expected, following his loud command, the hidden aliens, seemingly realizing that staying inside was still not safe, emerged one by one with miserable expressions, reluctantly leaving the still-standing buildings. They all knelt down obediently, not daring to move.
They were all subdued.
"Hmph!" Ji Changkong’s expression was cold. Looking down at the aliens, many of whom towered several heads above him, he slowly ascended, rising ten meters off the ground so he could look down upon them from a commanding height. "Does anyone here speak?" Ji Changkong demanded.
The aliens exchanged bewildered glances, staring blankly at him, clearly not understanding his words.
Frowning, Ji Changkong fixed his gaze on one of the aliens with a strong soul presence and abruptly projected a spiritual signal, intending to communicate directly soul-to-soul.
That alien suddenly erupted in panic, clutching his head and shouting wildly, then scrambled away from Ji Changkong in fear.
Still no success. Ji Changkong looked annoyed. Although the aliens’ souls were not weak, their understanding of soul power was extremely deficient. They were worse off than the Dark Star race; they couldn't even manage the simplest form of soul communication.
Their life forms differed from humans, and their energy seemed entirely devoted to the weapons in their hands, never applied to soul refinement. Consequently, their comprehension of the soul remained in a rudimentary stage.
There was no recourse; communication was impossible. How should Ji Changkong deal with these aliens? His face grew grim, his patience wearing thin.
These aliens were not inherently weak; otherwise, they wouldn't have managed to imprison Elder Madam Shang and the others one by one. Moreover, their weapons were terrifying, capable of inflicting horrible damage upon both soul and body.
Even the physical bodies of these aliens were comparable to those of the average Eight Trigrams or Nine Palace Celestial Masters. But unfortunately for them, they had encountered Ji Changkong’s Dragon’s Radiance Saber. Against the saber’s sharpness, their bodies were simply inadequate; they were torn apart piece by piece.
Without the means to communicate, he couldn't ascertain their origins. They clearly viewed themselves as a superior race, leaving Ji Changkong hesitant about how to handle them.
Truth be told, while they had imprisoned his grandfather, they hadn't done him any irreversible harm. As for the members of the Vastness Sect and the Black Heaven Altar, Ji Changkong cared little whether they lived or died.
Although this race was brutal and bloodthirsty, clearly not benevolent, Ji Changkong found himself unable to carry out the extermination of an entire species.
Especially since this race held no deep-seated feud with him, there was no need to commit such an inhumane act. Yet, he was intensely curious about them—curious why they lived here, curious about their identity, and curious about the weapons in their hands.
The few alien leaders below seemed to sense Ji Changkong’s growing impatience. Several of them looked terrified. One of them began repeatedly bowing and crawled toward the collapsed rhombus-shaped building, frantically digging through the pile of stones.
Ji Changkong watched with suspicion, unsure of what he was searching for. He stared coldly, thinking that if the alien made any hostile move, he would annihilate him.
The alien, face contorted with fear and clearly unwilling to provoke Ji Changkong, swept his massive tail through the stones. He burrowed into the rubble like a pangolin, burying his head to continue searching among the stones.
After a moment, the alien beamed with unconcealed delight. He presented a roughly circular piece of iron-stone to Ji Changkong. This oval stone was crisscrossed with fine lines forming complex, obscure patterns. When the triangular weapon in the alien's hand touched the stone, the stone emitted a pleasant sound.
"What is this thing?" Ji Changkong grunted.
"What is this thing, what is this thing, what is this thing," the sound echoed repeatedly from the somewhat round iron-stone. After a while, the sound gradually turned into a hum. The sound continued to change, and after a period of transformation, a strange noise suddenly emanated from the oval iron-stone. Judging by the tone, it seemed to be the language of these aliens.
The alien holding the oval iron-stone suddenly became overjoyed and spoke a lengthy string of gibberish to the roughly circular stone.
The strange sound began to transform, and after a burst of harsh static, awkward words issued from the stone: "This is the Sound Bowl Stone Spirit. It can transform sound; through it, we can know what you are saying."
"Oh?" Ji Changkong breathed out softly, staring intently at the Sound Bowl Stone Spirit for a moment, then listening carefully for a while longer. He finally confirmed that this so-called Sound Bowl Stone Spirit could translate his words into the aliens' own language, and conversely, translate the aliens' language into words he could understand.
"Where did you get this Sound Bowl Stone Spirit? Also, what race are you, why do you live here? Why did you try to use my friend for a sacrifice?" A barrage of questions came from Ji Changkong's mouth, rushing into the Sound Bowl Stone Spirit.
After speaking this string of inquiries, Ji Changkong paused, then snorted coldly, continuing, "If you dare spout nonsense, I will slaughter every single member of your clan!"
When the strange alien language emerged from the Sound Bowl Stone Spirit, the aliens who heard the threat flinched in terror, immediately kowtowing and using their alien tongue to beg for mercy.
"We purchased this Sound Bowl Stone Spirit from the Sky Craft Clan. A long time ago, several members of the Sky Craft Clan visited us. We exchanged our local Purple Gold Cold Iron for this Sound Bowl Stone Spirit from them."
"We are the Great Croc Clan, and we have always lived on these meteorites. We worship the Ancient Croc God and conduct soul sacrifice rituals every year."
"We didn't know those people were Your Excellency's friends. It was unintentional. We beg for Your Excellency's forgiveness and mercy, spare us!" The leader of the Great Croc Clan kowtowed repeatedly like a chick pecking grain, his massive head buried in the ground. His long tail trembled ceaselessly.
Sky Craft Clan? Great Croc Clan?
Ji Changkong was momentarily stunned. He had indeed heard of the Sky Craft Clan. They were said to be a peculiar race in the Endless Star Domain, exceptionally skilled at forging divine weapons and formidable artifacts. Besides crafting divine arms, the Sky Craft Clan could also forge all sorts of wondrous devices with special functions.
For instance, the Soul-Gathering Disc in Dick's hand was rumored to be created by the Sky Craft Clan. This Sound Bowl Stone Spirit, capable of translating the languages of various races, was indeed as marvelous and intriguing as the Soul-Gathering Disc, truly bearing the hallmark of the Sky Craft Clan's artistry.
They call themselves the Great Croc Clan? They did indeed look somewhat like crocodiles, and these Great Croc Clansmen worshipped a Croc God?
A thought flickered in his mind. Ji Changkong suddenly realized that the Croc God worshipped by these Great Croc Clansmen was likely an ancient behemoth crocodile that existed before the Great Cataclysm. It was rumored that this ancient giant crocodile enjoyed lying dormant within meteorites before the Cataclysm, devouring all living things as the meteorites drifted.
Sometimes, even passing comets would become food for that ancient crocodile.
After communicating with the Four Sacred Beasts, he knew a great deal about the era before the Great Cataclysm. That ancient crocodile was one of the oldest life forms, savagely cruel, a terrifying entity that ran rampant before the Cataclysm, much like the Wicked Dragon.
These creatures calling themselves the Great Croc Clan worshipped the Ancient Croc God as their deity—could they have encountered that ancient behemoth?
Thinking this, Ji Changkong couldn't help but press further: "Have you seen the Croc God you worship? Why do you know of the Croc God's existence?"
"Never seen him." Through the Sound Bowl Stone Spirit, the leader of the Great Croc Clan shook his head repeatedly, his expression vacant. "But we are all subjects of the Croc God; the Croc God is our ancestor. It has been passed down through generations, our ancestors told us that the Croc God will one day come here, accept us, and allow us to return to the Croc God's embrace."
Return to the embrace of the Ancient Giant Crocodile?
Ji Changkong's expression shifted slightly. He thought: Could that ancient giant crocodile have survived the Great Cataclysm as well? If that ancient crocodile was indeed the ancestor of these Great Croc Clansmen, hadn't he caused immense trouble by killing so many of them?
"Don't kill us, please, don't kill us, we can offer you precious ores," the Great Croc Clan leader pleaded again as he sensed the fluctuating moods in Ji Changkong's expression, shivering internally and immediately prostrating himself once more, begging desperately.
"Ores?" Ji Changkong scoffed. "What kind of ore can save your lives?"
"Many precious ores, collected by our Great Croc Clan over hundreds of years. This meteorite cluster is always moving; we have traveled to many places, places untouched by other life forms, and we have gathered many valuable ores; we can offer them to you." The leader of the Great Croc Clan begged incessantly.
"Bring them out and let me see," Ji Changkong commanded with a stern face.
The leader of the Great Croc Clan slowly raised his head and yelled something in his alien tongue towards some of the other Great Croc Clansmen behind him. Seeing this, the other clansmen looked extremely anxious and fearful. One by one, they flew away toward the distance.
These Great Croc Clansmen were agile on the meteorites. They leaped from this large rock to smaller ones, using a series of small meteorites, and several clansmen swiftly moved away toward the deeper parts of the meteorite field, seemingly going to fetch the treasures.
Ji Changkong narrowed his eyes, coldly watching the kneeling Great Croc Clansmen below. He hadn't actually intended to wipe out this entire race; exterminating a species would mean one less life form in the Endless Star Domain. He was incapable of such a brutal act.
Especially since the Great Croc Clansmen held no deep-seated feud with him.
Ji Changkong simply stood there, waiting in the gloom, awaiting the return of the Great Croc Clansmen, wanting to see what these 'gems' the Great Croc Clansmen spoke of truly were.
Rumble! Rumble! Rrrrrrumble!
A colossal roar echoed from afar. Suddenly, a dark iron vessel, dozens of meters long, emerged from between the scattered meteorites. The ship wasn't huge, but it gleamed with a dark luster. The iron ship had many slots, and within those slots rested peculiar stones that sparkled, emitting an icy flame.
It seemed driven by these stones that this iron vessel smashed its way through, shattering meteorites as large as mountains. Rushing forward with such reckless abandon, it quickly arrived above this massive meteorite.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The iron ship hovered motionlessly above the Great Croc Clan's meteorite. Three burly figures clad in dark gold armor, their faces also covered by dark gold masks, appeared on the black vessel.
With chilling eyes, they surveyed the scene below and immediately locked onto Ji Changkong.
"Human, where do you hail from?" one of the figures wearing a dark gold mask projected a sharp voice.
The Great Croc Clansmen who had left earlier stealthily reappeared from the distant meteorites. The leader, kneeling before Ji Changkong, beckoned the others.
"Your Excellency, you must seek justice for us! They killed many of our kin!" The Great Croc Clan leader, who had just been desperately begging Ji Changkong for mercy, immediately knelt before the three figures in dark gold armor, pointing at Ji Changkong: "Your Excellency, you must kill him! His appearance has greatly reduced the number of our miners, affecting Your Lordship's revenue!"
Ji Changkong's face darkened as he looked at the kneeling Great Croc Clan leader, then glanced at the figures hiding on the smaller meteorites. He finally understood that these creatures hadn't gone to collect gems, but to call for reinforcements.
The three figures in dark gold armor exuded an aura of cold malevolence. Their addressing Ji Changkong as "human" clearly indicated they were not of the same race as him. Beneath their dark gold masks, their eyes were also dark gold, with a faint, icy light emanating from their pupils.
Their life force was far greater than that of the Great Croc Clansmen, and more importantly, they were masters of the profound mysteries of the soul!
With a slight covert probe, he sensed that the souls of these three newcomers were extremely complex, forming a bizarre defensive energy that even managed to evade his own soul exploration.
Not to be trifled with! With just a brief sensing, Ji Changkong perceived a formidable presence radiating from these three newcomers.
Feeling them out carefully, he vaguely suspected that these three might be even harder to deal with than Dick. Judging by the chilling, cold aura enveloping them, these three were certainly ruthless individuals who must have slain numerous beings, otherwise their aura wouldn't be so corrupted.
"I come from the Solar Star Domain. I stumbled into this place accidentally, I—"
"The Solar Star Domain?" Before Ji Changkong could finish, one of the figures turned back to his companion. "Have you heard of it?"
Behind him, another slightly thinner alien's eyes darted around as he spoke slowly: "A remote star domain, a place where beings who haven't cultivated to the Ten Directions Heaven Realm gather. It's very far from our homeworld. The living stars in that domain are nearly all extinguished; it holds little value for us. It's not far from destruction."
"If all the living stars are about to vanish, it truly holds no value. No wonder I haven't received orders to conquer it," the first figure nodded, sweeping a cold gaze over Ji Changkong. "This is the mining territory of my Zakk Clan. The Great Croc Clansmen mine the ores for us, the Zakk Clan. You killed Great Croc Clansmen, causing heavy losses to my miners and affecting our production schedule. We must kill you."
"Kill me?" Ji Changkong let out a cold laugh. "Do you possess that ability?"
"Shanlu, go and kill him." The Zakk Clan member glanced at Ji Changkong with cold, venomous eyes and casually instructed one of his companions.
The other Zakk Clan member, who hadn't spoken yet, swept his snake-like, cold eyes over Ji Changkong, and his soul suddenly moved.
Instantly, the meteorites surrounding them, each the size of a small mountain, began to move according to the shift in his soul. More than ten massive meteorites descended with the force of wind and thunder, hurtling down to crash upon Ji Changkong.
Simultaneously, near Ji Changkong, space warped, forming spatial fissures that became razor-sharp spatial blades, violently cleaving toward Ji Changkong's head.
A soul stirring, meteorites flying, space tearing into blades—what kind of power was this?
Ji Changkong's face changed drastically. The terror of the Zakk Clan far exceeded his initial estimation. Their application of soul power was clearly far more profound than that of ordinary Heavenly Masters. They could directly manipulate objects with soul power and tear open the void to condense spatial blades.
This was something even a peak expert in the Nine Palaces Heaven Realm, exerting the full extent of their physical strength, could not achieve.
The Zakk Clan must be a high-tier race in the Endless Star Domain, a life form with superior intelligence, akin to races like the Dark Star Clan.
Without a second thought, Ji Changkong used extreme speed to evade. Before the meteorites could crash down, he instantly shifted aside and swung his Dragon Radiance Saber, using pure saber light to influence the pursuing spatial blades.
Brilliant saber light erupted from the Dragon Radiance Saber. Under the influence of the saber light's immense energy, the chasing spatial blades were deflected, preventing them from completely encircling and slaying Ji Changkong.
With a fierce roar, killing intent surging in his heart, Ji Changkong pointed the Dragon Radiance Saber, and a blood-red saber light, tens of meters long and three meters wide, suddenly shot skyward, aimed directly at the iron vessel.
Clang!
A deafening sound of clashing metal echoed from the iron vessel. Under the heavy impact, the vessel burst forth with dazzling dark light and then merely shuddered with a "rumble" for a moment before settling down.
Ji Changkong could tell that the iron vessel was not only inherently solid but the surface struck by his blow instantaneously released a powerful energy fluctuation.
It was precisely the presence of this powerful energy fluctuation that canceled out the saber light attached to the Dragon Radiance Saber. Consequently, by the time the saber light struck the iron vessel, its power had been significantly diminished.
"This is the 'Dark Star Traveler' manufactured by the Sky Craft Clan. It can travel directly through the sea of stars and can even resist the destructive forces found in star domains. Why would it be susceptible to the attack of a Nine Palaces Heaven Master?" A Zakk Clan member aboard the iron vessel sneered contemptuously, his eyes filled with disdain.
Dark Star Traveler?
Ji Changkong was momentarily stunned, and a sudden, intense wave of desire flooded his heart. His eyes greedily swept over the iron vessel named 'Dark Star Traveler.' He thought how wonderful it would be if he could seize this Dark Star Traveler.
In the vast Star Domain, some alien races were inherently incapable of traveling through the sea of stars. Even if these aliens were immensely powerful and possessed supreme intelligence, they could not adapt to certain ancient forces present in the boundless star fields.
Some forces might not be lethal to humans, but they often proved fatal to certain alien races.
The Sky Craft Clan, as the supreme artisans of the Endless Star Domain, specialized in creating wondrous artifacts that allowed higher races to undertake long journeys across the boundless star fields. These marvels were called 'Travelers.'
The Travelers were divided into three tiers: Dark Star, Light Star, and Heavenly Star. Each Traveler was an object of immeasurable value, extremely rare, and only the most powerful high-tier races possessed the wealth to own a Sky Craft Clan 'Traveler.'