Yang Ying listened as Master Pang Qian recounted the history of Agon piece by piece. Finally, all the cause and effect across the Four States of the Python seemed connected: "Did the Nian Neng Temple ever pursue them?"

Master Pang Qian shook his head. "No. If they had, Agon wouldn't have brought Ulysses to Mand Island. The Nian Neng Temple Elder Council didn't believe that Agon and his wife, Catherine, posed a threat to the human world."

"As expected of the Nian Neng Temple." Yang Ying walked to the porthole and glanced outside. They were rapidly closing in on Agon's location. Yang Ying paused, then asked, "If not the Nian Neng Temple, what force in the human world could possibly hunt down a peak master?"

"The outcome was a result of many coincidences. As for the specific process, I'm not entirely clear myself," Master Pang Qian replied. "At the time, the matter had a massive impact; the military, intelligence agents, private militias, even civilians—heaven knows how many people were involved in that pursuit."

"If Agon had been alone, he could naturally roam freely; no number of ordinary troops could stop him. However, he had his wife and child with him. Catherine was only a High Knight, equivalent to a Senior Nian Neng Practitioner, plus an infant. These factors prevented Agon from acting at full capacity."

Pausing thoughtfully, Master Pang Qian continued, "To put it into perspective, the more powerful the technique, the greater the burden on the body. Techniques like Suo Di (Ground Shrinking), the most common and practical movement skill, is absolutely unusable while holding a baby. The child’s body is too fragile; the inertial stress caused by Suo Di would be enough to shatter an infant into pieces."

"I see." An image sprang to Yang Ying’s mind: a towering ape-man holding a crying infant, accompanied by a blind woman, struggling desperately under the encirclement of tanks, aircraft, and robots.

If he couldn't use high-level skills, the attacks from the military indeed posed a significant, even fatal, threat to a peak master.

At that moment, the light screen flickered twice. Yang Ying’s heart tightened, and he immediately zoomed in on the image. At the edge of the screen, two bright spots appeared, rapidly approaching Agon from a distance. Magnifying the spots, he saw two gorgeously menacing fighter jets.

"It’s those two, Helas and company!" Master Merlin’s voice echoed in Yang Ying’s ear.

Yang Ying turned. Master Merlin had already opened the aft cargo bay door, revealing four fighters parked inside—evidently, everyone’s respective craft.

Master Merlin took the lead, climbing into a deep-blue fighter, while Master Pang Qian and the other two boarded their own machines.

"Commander Yang Ying, stay in the passenger cabin and wait for our news," Master Merlin transmitted directly into Yang Ying's mind.

Without waiting for a reply, a surge of psychic energy slammed the aft door shut with a whoosh.

From the light screen, Yang Ying watched the ship’s large outer cargo door swing open! The four fighters blasted out in succession. After the jets departed, the ship sharply reversed course and flew away into the distance, clearly avoiding collateral damage.

Yang Ying paced twice in the cabin, feeling restless. He was fundamentally unsatisfied just watching the light screen. He thought, Staying in the cabin is safe, but now that the final act is upon us, how can I miss the grand stage?

Yang Ying stopped pacing, pressed a control on his wrist device, and an invisible special-type Ghost fighter immediately materialized, maneuvering close to the main vessel. This was his personal craft, pre-positioned around Paradise City.

The Ghost fighter was close by; in mere breaths, it was beside the main ship.

Yang Ying directly opened the hatch. A powerful suction pulled him forward. He didn't resist, allowing himself to be drawn into the vacuum of space. After sealing the hatch, he sent a mental message to the Nian Neng Practitioner in the cockpit, explaining his intentions.

Settling into the Ghost fighter, Yang Ying immediately activated stealth mode and sped toward Agon's location.

According to information relayed by the observer, the Nian Neng Temple vessel arrived slightly sooner due to its closer proximity to Agon.

By the time Yang Ying reached the battlefield, Agon had already taken Ulysses into his cockpit. Helas and Balomon were still about ten seconds away.

"Commander Yang Ying, what are you doing here? This area is dangerous—not suitable for anyone below the Master level," Master Merlin’s voice entered Yang Ying’s mind.

Even while cloaked, Master Merlin had sensed Yang Ying's arrival.

"Master, I just wanted to observe and see if I can assist. My fighter has stealth capability; self-preservation should be manageable," Yang Ying responded.

"Stealth is indeed a useful ability, but you are mistaken if you think it guarantees safety. You are too green to involve yourself in a contest between peak masters. Participating now will only distract us into protecting you. Leave at once," Master Merlin objected without hesitation.

"I agree, Commander Yang Ying. Your combat strength won't influence the situation at all. Please leave quickly," Agon’s mental projection cut in. Yang Ying gripped the control stick tightly. Even Agon said so. Was his combat power truly negligible in the eyes of a peak master?

"Go! Go now!" Master Merlin urged repeatedly. "If you delay, you might not be able to leave."

"Fine!" Yang Ying ground his teeth, tilting the stick to fly back. If he stayed and caused trouble for Master Merlin and the others, it would be disastrous.

At that moment, a surge of defiance washed over Yang Ying. Despite having killed three ape-men masters during the Jupiter Campaign, his strength still wasn't recognized by these veterans. In a clash of peak masters, was he truly relegated to being a mere spectator?

"I must become stronger. I must become a Master!" Yang Ying vowed to himself.

A massive rain of energy beams shot toward the direction of Master Merlin and Agon. Yang Ying had just cleared the main attack zone. Judging by the density, there were at least several thousand beams.

Helas and Balomon had arrived.

Suddenly, Agon’s earth-yellow fighter charged forward, violently expanding its force-field wall to envelop Helas’s jet, successfully separating Helas and Balomon.

"While I keep Helas tied up, you all leave. Their target is me; Balomon alone won't dare pursue you," Agon stated via telepathy.

"Why? Are you staying behind alone?" Master Merlin questioned.

"Heh. To survive a nuclear explosion unscathed? Impossible. My body is completely shattered; I’m merely clinging to life and won't last long. Helas will defeat me soon. If you stay, you face attacks from two peak masters," Agon countered. "Don't waste the time I've bought you. Hurry and go!"

"I can't believe I just said almost the exact same thing to Commander Yang Ying, and now it’s my turn," Master Merlin scoffed bitterly. "Very well, I won't let your sacrifice be in vain. But Ulysses?"

"What more is there to say? I have my reasons. Go! Go now!" Agon urged, echoing Master Merlin's plea to Yang Ying moments before.

"We go!" Master Merlin roared mentally.

"But..." Master Pang Qian still hesitated.

"This is my command as the leader. Don't let Agon’s sacrifice be meaningless!" Master Merlin stressed.

"Yes," Pang Qian finally agreed.

The Nian Neng Temple fighters neatly turned, disengaging from the melee, and true to Agon's prediction, Balomon did not give chase.

As for Yang Ying, he naturally followed them back.

In the asteroid belt, Nab watched the monitor showing Helas's fighter destroying Agon's craft inside the force-field boundary. Agon, escaping with Ulysses, was subsequently killed by hundreds of beams. The unconscious Ulysses was then retrieved by Helas. Nab slammed his fist onto the armrest, the air around him turning chillingly cold.

"Helas truly is ruthless. Using a nuclear warhead ruined my plan. Despite the risk of being caught in the blast himself, he did it."

Nab had miscalculated two things in this operation: first, that only Helas would arrive, when Balomon was also present; second, Helas's final move of using a nuclear bomb with Ulysses as bait to lure Agon into the trap.

If only the first error had occurred, they might have heavily wounded both Helas and Balomon. But with the second development, Agon, blinded by paternal instinct, rushed into the snare. Helas and Balomon, meanwhile, suffered only minor injuries and retreated safely.

Nab's reconnaissance methods were far too crude compared to Yang Ying’s observation. The optical screen was filled only with debris and garbage; Agon’s exact location was untraceable. Thus, Nab naturally assumed Agon was dead, as no entity in the solar system had ever survived the epicenter of a nuclear detonation.

"Let’s go. We'll head to Secret Base Number Two and plan our next steps," Nab commanded his subordinates, switching off the optical screen.

Soon, the cloaked vessel in the asteroid belt silently turned and slipped deeper into the wreckage field.

On the way, Apollo noticed Nab’s dreadful expression and carefully poured him another cup of Naha liquid, tentatively asking, "Grandfather, the things you told me earlier were too vague. I’d like to hear more about Grandpa Agon’s past."

Nab shot him an irritated glance, the look in his eyes making Apollo flinch. He had never seen Nab wear such an expression; the burning anger deep within his eyes seemed capable of incinerating him.

Nab withdrew his gaze and nodded. "Agon was my friend for decades. Now that he is dead, it is my duty to pass on his legacy. I hope these stories remain preserved in your memory long after I am gone."

Sorry, I am utterly exhausted today, and writing has been exceptionally tiring. Chapter Two will likely be very late again.

For more novels, visit storyread.net.