Lance Wooler’s words had barely fallen when a pressure several times stronger than before enveloped the spaceship. From this alone, it was clear that the newcomer was someone beyond the Otherworldly Realm.
As the pressure intensified, the spaceship’s speed slowed down.
In no time, three figures appeared on the deck as if tearing through space. Leading them was an old man holding a skull-topped staff. He was thin, with sharp eyes and no detectable aura. The two behind him, a man and a woman, appeared to be in their sixties or seventies. Both were powerful; the man was at the fifth-rank Otherworldly Realm, and the old woman was in the early stages of the Otherworldly Realm.
Seeing these three, Lance Wooler’s expression grew serious. He couldn’t sense any aura from the leader, indicating that his cultivation was far superior.
“Daring to kill someone from the Black Domain Alliance, you have guts!” The old man with the staff glanced at everyone and spoke calmly.
“May I know your name? We are from the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce…” Lance Wooler took a deep breath and began.
“Shut up!” The old man with the staff interrupted sternly.
“There might have been some misunderstanding earlier…” Lance Wooler tried again.
Before he could finish, he was sent flying, crashing heavily to the ground and spitting out blood.
“Elder Lance!” everyone shouted.
“Is the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce so impressive?” the old man with the staff continued.
“Daring to kill someone from the Black Domain Alliance in this endless star domain, even if you are just a small fry from the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce, you won’t leave here alive today!”
“Tsk tsk, such arrogance,” Stout sneered at him. “If the president of the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce were here, do you think you’d still have a chance to speak? You really are…”
“Stout!” Opal interrupted, clearly worried that Stout would anger the old man further.
Fortunately, the old man with the staff didn’t seem inclined to argue with him. He glanced at Stout briefly before turning his gaze to White Feather. He had already assessed everyone’s cultivation and knew that White Feather was the strongest among them.
“Interesting to encounter a creature from a higher civilization here,” he said, eyes narrowing as he looked at White Feather. “I know you can understand me. I’ll give you a chance to become my mount and live.”
White Feather ignored him and looked at Billy, chirping a few times as if asking, “Should I kill him?”
“Unwilling?” The old man with the staff continued. “Even though you come from a higher civilization, your soul is damaged. You are not my match now.”
White Feather chirped again.
“Are you really going to push this?” Lance Wooler stepped forward once more. “Mr Billy and his companions are honored guests of the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce. If you harm them, you will be opposing us. You should know the consequences!”
“Ignorant!” scoffed another old man from their side. “Even if we kill all of you here, how will the Akabuchi Chamber of Commerce know it was us? And even if they did, what could they do? Even the Akabuchi Star Palace can’t deal with us; what can your Chamber of Commerce do?”
“You…” Lance Wooler took another deep breath and continued.
“Attack! Kill them all!” The old man with the staff waved his hand before Lance could finish.
As his words fell, an overwhelming aura burst from him, filling every corner of the spaceship. Casey and others shivered involuntarily.
“Understood!” The two behind him responded and charged forward.
“Opal, take Casey and fall back!” Billy ordered, rushing towards the fifth-rank Otherworldly Realm elder.
“You can’t handle him alone; I’ll join you!” Opal followed without hesitation. “Amber, take everyone to the stern!”
“Opal, Billy Boy, be careful!” Amber didn’t insist on following. She knew they had no chance against Otherworldly Realm experts and would only be burdensome.
Meanwhile, Lance Wooler exchanged a blow with the old woman, both retreating a hundred meters. Their strengths were evenly matched.
Billy clashed with the fifth-rank Otherworldly Realm elder and was immediately sent flying, his aura slightly chaotic. By pushing his bloodline power to its limits, Billy could elevate his cultivation to the ninth-rank late-stage of Holy Realm, just a step away from half-step Otherworldly Realm. At full strength, he could kill a second-rank Otherworldly Realm opponent and hold his own against a third-rank one. But against a fifth-rank Otherworldly Realm expert, he was outmatched. However, his defensive abilities had also grown; it was now unrealistic for a fifth-rank Otherworldly Realm to severely injure him.
“Billy Boy, are you okay?” Opal asked worriedly.
“I’m fine. Opal, step back and don’t intervene; he can’t hurt me for now,” Billy replied.
“Alright,” Opal agreed, knowing she would be of no help and could only wait for an opportunity.
As Billy fought, the old man with the staff turned to White Feather. “If you won’t be my mount, then give me your beast core!”
As he spoke, he pointed his staff at White Feather. Instantly, space twisted, and a sharp aura appeared before White Feather in an instant.
White Feather chirped defiantly and spat out a blast of air to counter it.
There was a muffled sound as White Feather was sent flying, crashing into the spaceship’s barrier with blood trickling from its beak. White Feather’s current strength could only match a late-stage Otherworldly Realm opponent but was still outclassed by this elder.
“Die!” As White Feather struggled to recover, the old man raised his staff again, twisting space once more.
“White Feather, don’t fight him head-on! Dodge!” Billy’s voice reached White Feather’s ears.
White Feather had intended to counterattack but dodged upon hearing Billy’s command, narrowly avoiding the elder’s strike.
“White Feather, leave him to me; go deal with that old woman,” Billy said as he rushed over.
White Feather hesitated but shook its head quickly. It could sense that this staff-wielding elder was far too strong for Billy.
Meanwhile, not far away, there was a loud crash as Opal was struck by the fifth-rank Holy Realm elder’s palm strike. She fell heavily to the ground, spitting out blood as her internal organs seemed to shift painfully. Her aura weakened instantly.
But it wasn’t over; the elder advanced again, sending a wave of energy towards Opal.
“White Feather, save Opal!” Billy shouted urgently.