Skyfire Avenue

This was the first time Lan Jue heard the aliens regarded in this way. Surprise lit up his face. His mother and father were wise, their thinking profound.

Luo Xianni went on. “Don’t look at me that way. I’m sure your father will discuss this with you when we’re almost done dealing with these monsters. The vital crystals have helped him to contend against the restrictions of universal protogenia, and I’m sure they’ll be of use to us as well.”

The two women opened his eyes, revealing a whole new realm of possibilities to him. Creating a new immortal realm would be wonderful for humanity, certainly. Whether or not it was possible, at least it was a valiant goal to strive towards. The first to benefit from it would be his father and mother!

The four Paragons continued to soar through space, with Angel shrinking into the distance. Getting their bearings out in space was not a problem for a technologically advanced species like theirs, so they need not worry about the distance between where they were and where they were going. Typically it would take five days to reach Europa from Angel.

However, the small group didn’t have to haul much of anything. What’s more they had the benefit of Luo Xianni’s tremendous power. It only took a few long-range interdimensional shifts to get them in the vicinity of their target.

“Aliens!” The Pharmacist cried out, her eyes narrowing. Instantaneously a thick and murderous aura surrounded her. As her righteous Slaughter Domain continued to improve, it was easier for her to call it to bear. Especially when her foes were the aliens, victims of her irreconcilable hatred.

Indeed, in the distance some dozen or so creatures had spotted them. They were quickly moving in to intercept.

When compared with the inconceivable scale of space, a single human meant nothing. This was true even compared to the bulky alien warriors. However when the shuttle aliens drew close they slowed, proving that the humans had been discovered. Powerful beings had a powerful presence, and this was true of the four Paragons even if they weren’t employing their Domains.

The Queen of Heaven’s light gave them pause, however. They felt its cleansing power even from a distance. Once they sensed something was amiss they reacted quickly, adjusting trajectory to try and swing around from behind. The aliens they came with had longer range attack capabilities, leaving them to flank the humans from behind.

It was a solid plan. But the humans they were unfortunate enough to come across were some of the strongest who ever lived.

There was a streak of white light that split the starry sky, like a bolt of cosmic lightning. Each of the here shuttle aliens caught within it were sliced into four equal parts. The other creatures that had been slower to approach turned without hesitation and fled.

Or, rather, they tried to. Unfortunately for them they were never given the opportunity.

A dazzling streak of blue came on the heels of the white beam. This time it was true lightning. Of course lightning didn’t exist in space, and it was so bright the solar system’s central star dimmed in the face of it. Lan Jue felt something surge into his body, instantly strengthening his abilities by some inexplicable power. The emulsion of electricity didn’t seem to drain him at all.

With Master of the Stars as his lineage, space was undoubtedly the best arena for Lan Jue to use his powers. Here the Emperor of the North Star was most frightening, for through the latent power of the cosmos he could empower his own attacks.

It was only the beginning. Fast as the speed of light the remaining aliens were painted cobalt blue before being vaporized. When Lan Jue returned to the others he held several vital crystals in his hands.

For him and the others these crystals held little practical purpose, but he couldn’t simply leave them lying about. For every crystal they pilfered the alien planets grew weaker. At the very least it was irritating for their enemy. And while they had no use for them, there were many who did.

It had taken them only a few short moments to put down the alien cluster. They had been no threat, but now they knew they were entering enemy territory.

As expected, their deaths had attracted attention. Already Lan Jue could see scores of alien coming toward them from the distance. Through his heightened senses he figured there was about a hundred of them, with no lack of stronger breeds.

The small team was in no hurry to leave, and hovered silently as their enemy drew near. Indeed they were here to scout, but if that was all they accomplished it was a waste of their talents.

A hundred or so aliens was not terribly exciting. They were led by a beast roughly three thousand meters long that looked like an enormous cockroach 1. A set of translucent purple wings fluttered from its back, and with each beat a hazy violet mist was expelled. Somehow it seemed to increase its speed, but more impressively the creatures it led were also hastened by it.

Lan Jue looked toward the Pharmacist and smirked. “Shall we?”

Her response was nonchalant. “Leave it to me. My Slaughter Domain isn’t suited against righteous humans. Against beasts such as these, however, it serves to great effect.”

A she spoke, the Harbinger Faerie stepped out of Qianlin’s protective Domain.

Right away her body stretched to great heights. Out here she didn’t need to worry about causing a planet harm. With her Reflection of Heaven and Earth powers released she rose over a thousand meters tall, and a sword of equal magnitude glittered in her hand. Dharma and astrum as one, she raced ahead to meet the mutant cockroach as it came.

Her foe felt the terror creep into it the moment her dharma appeared. Its wings disappeared behind a dark carapace as the monster curled into a protective ball. Meanwhile the aliens around it scattered in all directions, but only so that they might surrounded the Pharmacist.

Occisus and the Slaughter Domain fed each other, pouring through the Pharmacist and empowering her cultivation. She held nothing back, lashing out with the full might of her Domain!

The blast of white light lasted only for a moment. The cockroach was sliced in two as though it were made of tofu, leaving it only just enough time to cry out in pain. In the next instant countless thousands of white rays erupted from the Pharmacist like a white rose, spreading out in all directions.

Bloom of a Thousand Swords! The Pharmacist flooded the area with the full force of her mighty Domain.

The remaining aliens were shredded beneath the lily-white onslaught. Clearly the Pharmacist’s mastery of the godblade had improved greatly after her breakthrough.

With righteous purpose, justice was ruthless.

But just then something crossed Luo Xianni’s expression. Her right hand shot out and clawed the air. The vital crystals left in the wake of the massacre, the recently reverted Harbinger Faerie, and the others vanished in a flash of pink light.

Not a moment later the place where they had stood was flooded with violet light. Two figured appeared in the space they’d vacated.

It was the Violet Prince and Princess. The aura that came off of them in waves was more powerful than ever.

The Violet Prince openly scowled. “This aura… human.”

The Princess crinkled her nose prettily. “It is familiar. I believe that man is nearby.”

For a moment something crossed the Prince’s face. “You mean the one who evolved on the human planet?” The faintest echo of fear hid behind his eyes at the mention of Lan Jue. The presence of the Emperor of the North Star was strong and made him shiver.

The Violet Princess nodded her head. “This is his scent, I am not mistaken. I fixed his presence firmly in my memory the first time we met. I am determined to couple with that one. His genetics are the best I’ve encountered among the humans.”

The Violet Prince frowned, unconvinced. “But he is strong. The power he released during his evolution surpassed even Monarch. That might have been only a moment, but we don’t know how much of it he can command now. After all, were it not for that would I have abandoned our first line of defense so readily? Perhaps he used some special methods to achieve it, but I can sense that the human will cause it quite a lot of trouble. We should kill him the moment we get the chance.”

“No, you are wrong. We mustn’t kill him!” The Violet Princess was uncompromising. “His genes are different from all the others. I was not presence for his evolution, but from your description I know it is different – special. What he possesses must be of great use to us.”

The Prince’s expression was almost petulant. He was appearing more human by the day. “Perhaps. They must be trying to learn what they can about the place they call Europa. We should go as well and make sure they don’t learn too much.”

Haughtily, the Princess replied, “What does it matter what they discover? Do you think they have the ability to stop what’s in motion? I don’t think they have what it takes to do what is necessary.”

1. Gross.