Chapter 21: Rise, Section 5

Plane fusion—a term that requires no explanation to convey its meaning. Yet Hei Fa found it hard to imagine just how miraculous this was.
A plane encompasses its own universe, multiple layers of space, time, and various other elements. From a normal perspective, not to mention fusion, even mere contact seems impossible. Who knows what consequences would arise if two different planes came into contact?
“Hehe, that was a coincidence. I was just lucky enough to witness plane fusion. And this universe is the result of that fusion. If you search carefully, you’ll notice the differences here.”
“…” Hei Fa remained silent, but images of neutron stars, death stars, and those alien races flashed through his mind.
Perhaps this mysterious master was indeed right. The 31st Star Region was truly different from ordinary star regions—there were far too many anomalies here. Hei Fa had also reaped many benefits from it. He had once had doubts, but now they were explained.
“Very well. Then let’s talk about the reward. What can you offer us?” After a long silence, as the pirates grew anxious, Hei Fa suddenly spoke up.
“I can’t tell you that now,” the mysterious master’s expression changed. “I’ve seen enough of human greed. If you don’t bring me life crystals, I won’t let you even think about getting that reward.”
“Then forget it,” Hei Fa shrugged helplessly and turned toward the Emperor of Slaughter. “Please forgive us, but we can’t help with this.”
“You!?” The mysterious master was furious.
Hei Fa’s expression was far too pretentious. Claiming they couldn’t help when it was obvious they were forcing him into a corner—what else could they do? The truth was, given the population of the 31st Star Region, if Hei Fa left, it might take countless years before another intelligent species appeared.
Moreover, asking for help without even revealing what the reward was was indeed excessive. Only a fool would agree to such terms.
As Hei Fa neared the Emperor of Slaughter, the mysterious master gritted his teeth in anger. Finally, he nodded sharply.
“This time, the reward is self-generating energy crystals.”
“Hm?” Everyone was stunned. They had never heard of that term before…

“The self-regenerating energy crystals are a specialty of our Sicilian tribe, and they were also the main reason our tribe got drawn into that war. These crystals contain the natural energy of our Sicilian tribe and can regenerate indefinitely. As long as their total usage isn’t exceeded in one go, they will never run out. After being left for a while, they slowly absorb free energy from the surroundings and return to their original state.” Seeing the dark-haired man’s puzzled expression, the mysterious master explained slowly.

So powerful?

The dark-haired man was first shocked, then overjoyed. Wasn’t this so-called self-regenerating energy crystal the same as the perpetual motion energy core he had encountered before? It could operate forever as long as the limit wasn’t exceeded and would recover on its own. This was truly a masterpiece of divinity. On Earth in the past, the development of such cores was one of the most secret aspects of all technology—and it was also an essential core energy source for long-range warships!

Unbelievable! He never thought this mysterious master would possess such a precious item. If he could get hold of such a crystal, its value would be immense.

Yet, despite these thoughts, no trace of surprise appeared on the dark-haired man’s face. He simply stopped in his tracks, turned slowly, and once again fixed his gaze on the mysterious master.

“Just one energy crystal, and that’s why we have to do such dangerous things? You really underestimate us. I still refuse.”

Pfft!!

A chorus of splashing sounds filled the mech’s public channel. All the pirates laughed themselves sick.

After all, the leader was a leader—his tactics were ruthless. Now even they understood that those self-regenerating energy crystals were absolutely priceless. The dark-haired man realized he was being blackmailed.

“The boss is really tough… I’ll beat him to death!” Groans and off-key singing filled the air.

“Greedy bastard! I was right!!” The mysterious master flew into a rage, his tone becoming fierce.

“Listen well. The energy crystals I’m giving you aren’t just one! They’re five! And they’re all mother crystals—after being left for a while, they can split into daughter crystals!! Don’t be greedy!”

“That still won’t do.” The dark-haired man felt pleased inwardly, but his expression grew even darker. “This mission is too dangerous. For something as uncertain as this, expecting so many of my brothers to risk their lives for you? Forget it. If you want me to agree, the price has to be substantial!”

“You!” The mysterious master was furious at the dark-haired man’s tone.

Self-generated energy crystals… what precious things they are. Yet humans still aren’t satisfied. Just these five energy crystals are enough to power a giant fortress. Such value was considered extremely high even in my own realm in the past.
“Good!” It glared fiercely at the black-haired one. The mysterious master closed his eyes. “Then tell me, what do you want?”
Hearing this, the black-haired one finally smiled.
“It’s simple. I want this galaxy as my base. I also want you to provide me with the best environment. Of course, I can tell you now— the Blood Wolf faction I represent is different from the humans you’ve encountered before. Our destruction is aimed only at our enemies. Once these six planets become our base, all we can offer is protection and development. So you needn’t worry about environmental pollution.”
“Oh?” The mysterious master was taken aback.
The black-haired one’s demands seemed excessive, but for it, they were nothing. After all, the Sicilian race was naturally favored by nature; wherever they went, they turned it into the most beautiful place. So it didn’t care about such things at all. The problem was that once it obtained the life crystals, it would need to enter a long period of dormancy to process them. During that time, it would be extremely weak. If it gave these six planets to the black-haired one, wouldn’t it end up living alongside those greedy humans?
After thinking for a while, the mysterious master finally sighed.
“I can’t agree to that request. But we can find a compromise. Out of the six planets, I can give you five. As for the environment, you needn’t worry. But this planet we’re on now is off-limits. And you must promise me that after getting those five planets, you won’t try to approach here again.”
“Good! Deal!!” The black-haired one readily agreed.
With the deal struck, everything went smoothly. The mysterious master was also very pleased. With a gentle wave of his right hand, the scene before everyone changed again. They were now outside that cave— green trees, a vast starry sky. Everything was as beautiful as at the beginning.
Taking a deep breath, the black-haired one mounted his Killing Emperor.
“Have the higher-ups send landing ships to pick us up. Then set off immediately.”
“Understood!!” The pirates responded loudly.
The fleet moved swiftly. Soon, the black-haired one boarded his Storm Tyrant once more. Facing the huge screen, his expression turned solemn. His fingers flew across the control panel a few times, and the structure of the entire galaxy appeared clearly before him.

That mysterious master wasn’t lying; there indeed was a vortex in the vicinity. It wasn’t very far away—traveling at the speed of a warship, it would take about a day. But Black Hair was puzzled—why hadn’t he noticed this vortex before?
“Energy field scan complete. The vortex contains 7,631 types of energy. Of these, 346 are harmful to warships. If energy shields are activated, only 17 remain,” reported a pirate, staring at his screen.
“How long can we withstand the impact of these energies?” Black Hair asked directly.
“Ten minutes. With all shields activated, we can hold out for ten minutes. But among those 17 energies, one causes extreme damage to warships. Aside from Li Feng, no other warship can withstand it,” the pirate replied immediately.
Only ten minutes? Black Hair’s brows furrowed instantly.
He wasn’t some hot-headed youth. Though he had agreed to the mysterious master’s request, he still cared deeply about the safety of his subordinates. This scan was also part of his preparatory measures. Yet he still hadn’t expected that even with Li Feng’s powerful defense shields, they could only hold out for ten minutes.
After all, the so-called energy impact was equivalent to direct fire from warships. In this world, Li Feng’s defenses had never disappointed Black Hair. Even if the strongest warships in the interstellar fleet fired at it, Li Feng could definitely withstand it for much longer.
But in front of this vortex, everything failed.
Could they really complete the entire process—entering, searching, obtaining what they needed, and escaping—all within ten minutes?
Black Hair wasn’t sure.
As for the energy type mentioned in the scan report that caused extreme damage to warships, Black Hair was already certain it was the so-called “Ji element” mentioned by the mysterious master.
“Something that’s harmless to humans? That’s complete nonsense,” Black Hair growled through gritted teeth.
“Boss, what if we perform a short-distance anti-space jump? Directly to the center of the vortex?” Monkey asked tentatively.
With Li Feng’s current energy level, such a tactic was feasible. But the problem was that no one knew what lay at the center of the vortex. If they jumped recklessly and ended up inside something, it would be a disaster.
After some thought, Black Hair still felt this was the only solution. He had made up his mind.

“Order the other warships to approach, connect with Li Feng, and transfer energy. Activate the backup energy reservoir and have them bring me some energy storage modules from the other warships. I want Li Feng’s energy reserve to reach 300%. Thirty minutes later, Li Feng will enter transit alone. The other warships, stay on alert.”
Everything will be revealed in thirty minutes… The dark-haired man narrowed his eyes, thinking to himself.