Chapter 756 Stranded

Chapter 756 Stranded

The bullets detonated on Khan, further burning his skin. Still, the [Blood Shield] endured the blows, protecting his organs and other vital parts. The rage in his aura also dispersed any trace of smoke that tried to rise from him or his surroundings, quickly clearing the area.

The bullets and Khan's aura had changed the ground beyond recognition. His spot and surroundings had turned into a vast, crackling crater full of expanding fissures. The surface seemed about to give in, but the ship had also suffered a fair share of damage.

Khan had aimed the spear at the hole dug by his first attack, but the spell had hit the intact canopy. That was still a decent achievement, but the team had lifted mana shields after the first exchange. The reinforced glass remained intact, but strands of destructive energy had leaked through the gap, damaging the main deck.

The outcome came in the shape of a fuming canopy. Most of the smoke was on the outside, caused by the spear's explosion. However, a part originated from the main deck, indicating consistent damage.

Khan had kept his right arm lifted while enduring the rifles' bullets, and a strand of mana quickly materialized between his thumb and forefinger. He was ready to continue his assault on the fuming ship, but the latter had different plans. He prepared his shot only to see the vehicle turning and flying farther into the sky.

The ship flew away, rising until it became nothing more than a dot in Baoway's azure atmosphere. Eventually, it disappeared, leaving only traces of its existence in the symphony. Khan couldn't confirm where it had gone, but the battle seemed over for now.

Khan stared at the sky, unsure of what to expect. He had landed close enough to the original HQ to sense that the second ship had vanished, too, but nothing else flew in his direction. Everyone had departed, leaving him alone with his pain.

'What are they planning?' Khan wondered.

It made sense for the second ship to leave the planet altogether. The lab had a blue plant and multiple Scalqa corpses. Those samples could provide enough data to finance a new mission. Also, the special bush might survive the trip if luck was on the Global Army's side.

'Wait,' Khan suddenly realized. 'Fergus might have lied to me about that.'

The general betrayal and discovery of the black device inside Fergus forced Khan to reconsider everything. All about the past months could be a lie. The lab could very well have something capable of keeping the blue plant alive, and the same went for the Scalqa corpses. Maybe Margaret already had everything she needed to attempt to create artificial organic mana cores.

Instead, things with the first ship were different. Clearly, taking out Khan was one of the envoy's main goals, but the latter probably didn't expect to suffer so much damage during the hunt. Temporarily giving up could be a wise choice, especially when the only means of returning home was at stake.

Moreover, the mission was incomplete. Khan was still alive, so those parties might send additional assassins to deal with him before the Thilku Empire noticed anything. Baoway's unique political environment probably protected him from missiles fired from orbit, but nothing could stop more enemies from landing and hunting him down.

Until now, Khan's mindset would have pushed him to focus on himself. The stronger he was, the higher his chances of survival against unknown threats would be. In theory, his current situation also required that since he was forced to wait for rescue parties, more assassins, or Empire's representatives.

However, Khan didn't survive the ploy on his own. He wasn't alive thanks to his strength, and his eyes slowly fell on the maimed corpse nearby. Khan owed his life to Zu-Gru, an unexpected ally who had sacrificed himself in a moment of need.

'Strength didn't save me,' Khan concluded. 'Allies did.'

Khan's eyes lit up as he glanced at Kru-Zi. His aura intensified as mana escaped his right palm, giving birth to a mass of energy that released an angry cry. The cloud spell appeared in the open, echoing the fury inside Khan's mind.

"[Kru-gru-xa]," Khan muttered, keeping the cloud down but wielding it in his grasp.

The cloud screamed, raging against Khan's restraint. It wanted to fly forward and unleash the anger caused by the recent events. Yet, Khan kept it still, burning his own fingers in the process.

The Scalqa had never seen the Cloud spell, but their primitive instincts warned them about its danger. That was no common attack. That mass of energy was a wild, raging beast created by a far scarier creature.

The charred ground continued to break under the joint pressure of Khan and the cloud. He even stepped forward, slowly approaching Kru-Zi. His bright eyes carried no mercy or affection. He was ready to wage a solitary war to obtain what he needed.

The Scalqa in Kru-Zi's team thought about lifting their rifles, but strength vanished from their thick arms. They knew nothing could stop Khan, and the slightest trace of hostility would release that purple-red monster in his hand.

Kru-Zi knew fear could lead to dumb and reckless decisions. He began to feel scared about what his companions could do, but those thoughts disappeared in the back of his mind. Truth be told, his battle experience had already told him what to do, and his hands opened to release the rifle.

The fall of the rifles attracted the alien crowd's attention, but Kru-Zi took things one step further. His knees also went to the ground as he lifted his palms to the sky. He offered himself to Khan, making a traditional gesture all the Scalqa recognized.

Kru-Zi's companions didn't hesitate to imitate him once they noticed the gesture. They kneeled to Khan, begging for mercy and more.

Khan inspected the group of Scalqa before glancing at his surroundings. The other factions and tribes were still standing, but his face said enough. Soon, everyone kneeled, lifting their hands to the sky.