Chapter 541: The Nets Exploded

Leng Pan smiled. "That should be enough until we return home."

"It is not, but I will collect the rest later."

A weapon struck the recovery chamber door, leaving a glowing mark across the metal.

Leng Pan looked toward it. "It seems our private time is over."

Lu Zhen took her hand and led her away from the entrance. "Stay behind me when the door opens."

She gave him a meaningful look. "Did you forget the promise you made less than a minute ago?"

"I asked you to stand behind me, not hide while I fight alone."

"Then you should stand beside me. It would save us from another argument."

Lu Zhen knew when his wife would not give in. He moved beside her as water and flames gathered around them.

The door broke inward.

Six alien soldiers entered in two rows. Unlike the technician they had captured, these aliens wore dark armor that covered their entire bodies. Their weapons released blue energy nets designed to restrain rather than kill.

Leng Pan raised a spinning water barrier.

The first two nets wrapped around it and became tangled. Lu Zhen sent flames through the water, turning the trapped energy against the soldiers.

The nets exploded.

Little Vine moved along the ceiling and dropped behind the aliens. Its tendrils wrapped around their legs while Leng Pan’s water struck their helmets with enough force to throw them against the walls.

One soldier cut through the vines and aimed at Lu Zhen’s injured back.

Leng Pan noticed and appeared between them.

She caught the weapon inside a sphere of water before forcing it upward. The energy beam struck the ceiling.

Lu Zhen’s gaze became cold as he sent a narrow line of fire through the soldier’s damaged helmet.

The alien collapsed.

He turned to Leng Pan and asked, "Were you injured?"

"No. I only protected my husband from someone who did not understand that attacking his back would make me angry."

Lu Zhen pulled her away from another energy net before replying, "I cannot decide whether I should thank you or remind you that you stepped in front of a weapon."

"You could thank me now and complain when we are alone."

"That might take a while."

"Then you should not waste the opportunity."

Lu Zhen gave her a helpless look before burning through the final alien’s armor. "Thank you, my love."

"You are welcome."

Little Vine searched the fallen soldiers and collected two weapons.

Leng Pan glanced at it. "Only take what we can understand. I do not want another device connecting to my space."

Little Vine dropped one of the weapons and kept the smaller one.

Lu Zhen looked at the discarded object. "How did it decide which one was safer?"

"It probably chose the one it liked."

"That is not reassuring."

They left the recovery chamber and followed the direct passage toward the energy section.

The security system attempted to seal several doors, but Little Vine entered the control panels and forced them open. Whenever soldiers blocked their path, Leng Pan and Lu Zhen combined their abilities to break through quickly.

As they reached the fourth level, Vanish’s voice came through the communicator. "We found the engine chamber, but there are three energy cores instead of one. The prisoner says destroying the wrong core could cause the vessel to fall."

Lu Zhen avoided an energy beam before replying, "Do not destroy any of them. Damage the control lines and force the ship to reduce its speed."

The prisoner spoke in the background. "That would only delay us. The vessel could repair the lines automatically."

"How much time would it give us?" Leng Pan asked.

"Perhaps twenty minutes."

"That is enough. Do it."

A few seconds later, the transport vessel shook.

The floor tilted beneath Leng Pan’s feet, but Lu Zhen caught her around the waist and pulled her against him.

Vanish’s voice returned. "The ship has stopped accelerating, but the security system sealed the engine chamber."

"Can you escape?" Lu Zhen asked.

"I could, but I would have to leave Sonny and the prisoner behind."

Sonny struck something on the other side of the communication before shouting, "Do not leave us. I am too young to die inside an alien engine."

Lu Zhen examined the map. "Remain inside and prevent the repairs. We will open the chamber after destroying the anchor."

The communicator went silent.

Leng Pan and Lu Zhen reached the primary energy level.

The corridor ahead was wider than the others and lined with alien soldiers. At the far end, a transparent wall revealed the damaged gate anchor suspended above a blue energy core.

Several mechanical arms were already rebuilding the shattered ring.

The alien prisoner had estimated that the repairs would take an hour.

He had been wrong.

More than half the gate anchor had already been restored.

An armored alien stood in front of it. Unlike the other soldiers, he did not wear a helmet, and a silver symbol had been carved across his forehead.

A translator above the door activated as he looked at Leng Pan. "The spatial host has arrived."

Leng Pan frowned. "Were you expecting me?"

"We detected your hidden world when the anchor connected to it. Your spatial ability is more valuable than the purification core."

Lu Zhen’s flames became hotter as the alien continued staring at his wife.

The alien commander noticed his reaction and smiled. "You cannot protect her. Once this vessel crosses the Passage, her body and ability will belong to us."

Lu Zhen stepped closer to Leng Pan and wrapped one arm around her waist. His voice remained calm, but the flames filling the corridor revealed his anger. "You have misunderstood something. My wife does not belong to anyone, and you will not live long enough to repeat that mistake."

Leng Pan looked at the alien commander and smiled. "My husband is already angry. If I were you, I would start running."

The alien soldiers raised their weapons.

Behind them, the repaired section of the gate anchor began rotating.

[Arrival at Primary Passage: seventeen minutes.]

A dark opening appeared inside the ring, revealing the alien world on the other side.