I Pick Up Talents on the Interstellar Battlefield

Chapter 798 - 555: Sacrifice, Crisis Descends (Part 2)

This person was disguised excellently, blending in with the surrounding pill masters, expressing worry, and even whispering to those beside him, full of indignation towards the Xieshen Association. No one would have thought that this seemingly talented sixth-grade pill master was one of the masterminds behind this catastrophe.

In the VIP area, a group of elites also stood up one after another.

With such significant turmoil occurring on the Royal Star, they had to immediately return to their respective posts, deploy strategies to cope with the situation, stabilize the order of their subordinate forces, and minimize the impact of the chaos.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—

In an instant, the roaring of various flying devices’ engines echoed. Several powerful elites directly flew away, leaving the once bustling VIP area empty, with only numerous pill masters, Dan Tower guards, and some relatives of the newly advanced seventh-grade pill masters remaining to observe the situation.

"Brother, Qin Tian!"

Dongfang Mingyue quickly weaved through the crowd and ran to Dongfang Haoyue and Qin Tian, her brows full of worry.

This worry was half for the safety of the Dan Tower, and the other half from that nightmare—would Qin Tian step into that terrifying subspace again today?

If it were true, would it be because of her that Qin Tian would once again fall into danger?

Dongfang Mingyue’s heart tightened, subconsciously gripping Qin Tian’s sleeve.

"Don’t worry, this is the Royal Star, the Xieshen Association can’t cause much trouble here."

Dongfang Haoyue gently patted Mingyue’s shoulder, comforting her.

The Royal Star is not only the political center of the Empire but also gathers the top experts within the Empire’s range. Unless the Evil God itself descends, even if all members of the Xieshen Association combine, they can only be crushed mercilessly here.

Ultimately, the objective of the Xieshen Association remains the same as before: to stir up chaos, spread the fear of the Evil God, and expand the influence of the Xieshen Association.

This time, the casualties will not be as severe as on other planets, but the resulting negative impact will be far more serious.

"I’m worried about... Qin Tian." Dongfang Mingyue gripped the corner of Qin Tian’s clothes, softly saying.

"Worried about him?"

Dongfang Haoyue glanced at Qin Tian and said:

"Rest assured, anyone present might have an accident, except him. That kid is hiding a lot, you know~"

"You speak as though you know me well," Qin Tian cast a sidelong glance.

"Of course, I’m very accurate at judging people."

Dongfang Haoyue’s lips curled into a meaningful smile.

Upon hearing this, Qin Tian’s eyes flickered, suddenly recalling the first time he met Dongfang Haoyue.

It was just after he had left the battlefield of Alpha 7 Star, transiting through Alpha 1 Star to further his studies at the military academy, and in an ordinary store, he met Dongfang Haoyue and Zhuge Yu.

Dongfang Haoyue, whom he had never met before, actively asked to share a table and attempted to get closer to him.

At that time, he was very wary and was very resistant to Dongfang Haoyue’s approach, leaving immediately. But as he left the store, he used his super hearing to overhear the conversation between Dongfang Haoyue and Zhuge Yu.

From the conversation, Dongfang Haoyue directly labeled him as a talent worth recruiting and instructed Zhuge Yu to investigate him well and try to draw him in as much as possible.

One has to say, Dongfang Haoyue’s judgment was very accurate.

However, that was their first meeting; how on earth did Dongfang Haoyue discover him?

Could it be that he has the same special ability as Mingyue’s precognitive dreams?

While Qin Tian quietly speculated, in the crowd, Stuart maintained a worried look, but his eyes kept darting towards the direction of Dongfang Mingyue and Qin Tian, with a trace of venom and ferocity flashing in his gaze.

Dongfang Mingyue, you are mine, and only mine.

No one can take you away from me.

Rage, like lava, roiled madly in his heart. Suddenly, an inexplicable heat swept over his body, and Stuart felt as if his internal organs were being scorched by blazing flames, as if there was a wicked flame moving and rampaging through his meridians.

"Something’s wrong!"

His heart sank, the facade of worry freezing on his face, instinctively inspecting his body—yet before he could pinpoint the source, the flames erupted violently within him!

Boom!

Dense, malevolent black fire erupted from Stuart’s body, the black fire glimmering eerily with decay and the breath of destruction. In an instant, his skin and muscles rapidly dissolved and carbonized in the black fire, turning into wisps of black smoke and dispersing. In just a few breaths, only a skeleton glowing with a dark spiritual light remained, still wrapped in the black fire, quivering slightly in place.

The sudden change froze the air at the mountaintop.

But those present were not weaklings; they were pill masters and guards. As soon as the malevolent black fire appeared, they raised their spirit shields in high alert, quickly retreating and putting a safe distance between themselves and Stuart, their gazes full of vigilance and horror.

"No... don’t..."

The ghostly wails of a tortured soul pierced the black fire, echoing over the mountaintop, the voice hoarse and fragmented, filled with despair and confusion, sending shivers down one’s spine, and making the hair stand on end.

In the skull’s eye sockets, two blazing blue soul flames flickered intensely, reflecting extreme terror.

"I am your most loyal follower... for your great cause, I am willing to lurk, willing to sacrifice... why are you doing this to me?!"

The soul’s wails echoed over and over, only now did everyone wake up as if from a dream, struck with terror.

Stuart, this rising star in the pill world, a talented sixth-grade pill master, turned out to be a follower of the Evil God!

The pill masters’ faces turned pale, full of disbelief.

They had spent days and nights with Stuart, participating in the seventh-grade pill master ceremony together today, standing side by side under the platform, discussing the pill path and dreaming of the future.

Recalling those past scenes with him, the gentle smiles and humble consultations now transformed into a chilling sensation that pierced the heart, sending a shiver down everyone’s spine, instinctively scrutinizing those around them, fearing another "Stuart" might be hiding among them.

"It’s unbelievable that an Evil God follower has infiltrated the Dan Tower..." an elderly pill master muttered tremblingly, his tone full of regret and anger.

The Dan Tower is a sacred land of alchemy, always heavily guarded, with rigorous spiritual energy detection never slackening. Yet, Stuart managed to infiltrate as an Evil God follower, even rising to the core circle of the Dan Tower. How many conspiracies lurked behind this?

What panicked everyone more was that soon after Tower Master Xu Lin and a group of VIPs had left, Stuart suddenly underwent a drastic change.

"Could this be... a conspiracy by the Xieshen Association?" someone speculated in a low voice, unable to hide their panic, "They might have planned to act after the Tower Master left, to cause chaos among us, maybe other followers are still hiding in the dark!"

"That’s right! As soon as the Tower Master and the VIPs left, this happened here, it’s probably no coincidence!"

"Does that mean their target isn’t just the Dan Tower, but also us pill masters?"

Voices of discussion rose and fell, the pill masters’ emotions becoming increasingly restless and uneasy.

With the Tower Master and high-tier forces absent, and with a lurking Evil God follower just exposed beside them, no one knew if a new crisis would emerge the next second.

Many young pill masters turned pale, instinctively clustering together, while the Dan Tower guards quickly formed a circle, surrounding the group of pill masters protectively, vigilantly scanning the whole area.

Qin Tian and Dongfang Haoyue shielded Dongfang Mingyue behind them, their eyes calmly watching the skeleton engulfed in black fire.

He was already aware of Stuart’s identity and wasn’t too surprised at the moment. However, what really concerned him was the significance of the mutation in Stuart’s body.

Before arriving at Cangwu Mountain, he had used his extraordinary perception to scan the entire mountain range. Apart from those present, only the people who had hidden early on from the Judgement Court were left, with no trace of any Evil God followers.

But now, the change occurring on Stuart, could it be that...

Just as he pondered this, Stuart’s remaining skeletal structure and remnant soul were completely consumed by the evil fire.

Crackle, crackle

The ground suddenly rippled with fine spatial ripples, and a pitch-black Gate of Space appeared out of nowhere, its doors interwoven with a flow of dark purple evil mist and fine spatial cracks, with an unstable eerie glow at the edges, the interior an unfathomable chaotic darkness, as though it could devour all light, emitting a terrifying evil aura.

In an instant, everyone present felt as though their blood had frozen, with fear sprouting wildly in their hearts like weeds.

Thud, thud

Suddenly, from behind the door came several low, drum-like sounds.

Everyone’s gaze was filled with horror, watching the door and the figures slowly emerging from it.