Swallowing the Stars: Starting with the Battle of Geniuses

Chapter 30 Subjugation

"Oh?"

Despite it being his own suggestion, the gray-armored man looked surprised when he actually saw the person come out.

Following closely behind Hunzhen, Yamu took small steps forward.

Seeing that the leader and his deputy had already appeared, the team members hesitated for a moment, but then showed up together.

After all, they don't want the alliance to disintegrate for the time being.

The gray-armored man narrowed his eyes and said indifferently, "Hmph, this is quite something, there are more people watching the show than I expected."

Hunzhen smiled slightly, then used his teleportation ability to get closer and extended his hand: "Let me introduce you to Hunzhen, the (temporary) leader of the Treasure Hunting Alliance."

Upon hearing this, everyone in the Treasure Hunting Alliance wore strange expressions.

They knew that Hunzhen was referring to the leader of the "Treasure Hunting Alliance (temporary)," but to the other side, it must have sounded like he was implying that he was only the temporary leader of the "Treasure Hunting Alliance," subtly suggesting that "my leadership is only temporary, and if someone more capable comes along, he might become the leader."

The gray-armored man, not understanding the meaning, only sensed Hunzhen's genuine goodwill. He grasped Hunzhen's hand and smiled, "Morde, from the Trench Squad! Friend, it's a pleasure to meet you!"

A brief handshake, a fleeting touch.

Hunzhen's gaze swept over the corpses of the buffalo herd, and he said, "Mode, I'll be frank. You are the first humans we've seen since we entered this world a month ago (though in reality it's been less than ten days). Before this, besides us humans, there were only these creatures that we call 'Flame Beasts,' whose essence, regardless of their appearance, tends towards a fire-attribute energy structure."

"'Flame Beast'? That's certainly a fitting name."

He suddenly stroked his chin and nodded slightly. It seemed that this wasn't the first time they had clashed with the Flame Beast.

He chuckled and said, "Hunzhen, you've all been here for a month, while we've only been here a short time. We should be calling you seniors now."

He paused, staring intently at Hunzhen, and asked, "But... are we really the strange humans you've encountered over the past month? Our trench squad has been exploring, and in just one week we've encountered two different groups of people. And it seems they're clearly not from your Treasure Hunting Alliance, are they?"

"It's very simple."

Hunzhen saw Mord's doubt and spread his hands, saying, "As time goes by, more and more outsiders will discover ways to enter this secret realm. There's no doubt that the population density in the secret realm will increase significantly in the future, unlike before when we wouldn't see any outsiders for a month."

As Morde pondered Hunzhen's words, Hunzhen smiled slightly again: "It seems we don't share the same origin. Given that you possess restricted-level weapons, it's unlikely you were coerced into coming here. Therefore, the conclusion is simple: your trench squad volunteered to explore. Oh dear, our Treasure Hunting Alliance is in a much worse situation; we were coerced into coming here by a mercenary group."

Maud's eyes flickered.

Hunzhen's words seem to reveal his weak position, but in reality, the opposite is true.

This greatly misled Mord, making him mistakenly believe that the mercenary team behind Mord had sent many star-level beings into the secret realm a long time ago and successfully reunited to form an alliance.

"The number of competing forces will definitely increase in the future. So, I have a proposal, a proposal that can benefit both of us."

Hunzhen held up one finger and said, "How about you join us?"

Just as Morde was about to nod, he suddenly realized that Hunzhen hadn't said "unite" but "join".

Maud's gentle expression vanished instantly, his brows furrowing. "Why aren't you joining us? Right now, your Treasure Hunting Alliance might have a numerical advantage, but our Trench Squad will have a large contingent joining later, no less than yours. Besides—"

Before Mord could finish speaking, Hunzhen looked at Mord, who had just pulled out a laser gun, and said bluntly, "Besides, you have restricted-level technological weapons—right?"

"Heh, don't lie to me. Let's not even talk about how many suicide squad members your backers can send. After all, you weren't captured and forced to come in like us. You joined voluntarily with the support of an organization. Advance teams like yours usually have top-of-the-line equipment to establish a foothold."

Hunzhen chuckled, "Let me guess. You have a C3-level laser gun, and your subordinates probably have two or three C1-level weapons, with the rest likely holding B9-level ones. Besides, technological weapons consume a tremendous amount of energy, which is why you didn't use them during the battle, even at the cost of injury. So how many weapons will be sent as reinforcements? Let's say you have ten C3-level technological weapons, but—so what?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Hunzhen reached out to Morde.

Maud's pupils contracted as he realized that the trajectory of Hunzhen's hand seemed to align with the laser gun, and he reflexively pulled the trigger.

"Oops!"

Maud hadn't intended to fire, but Hunzhen's sudden attack caused him to instinctively overreact and pull the trigger before Maud could react.

call out!

The laser gun head expanded, and a laser beam with a diameter of over one meter, which had once directly pierced through a buffalo's head, burst forth instantly.

But it only shot towards the sky.

"It can kill a first-tier cosmic-level fire beast, but unfortunately, in your hands, it can't kill me."

He placed his hand under the laser gun, tilting it at a right angle, and said lightly.

The latest novel is first published here!

"you!?"

Maud was horrified.

I was so shocked that I thought Hunzhen was doomed that I didn't even notice how Hunzhen managed to do it.

"I clearly aimed correctly, at such close range... just how fast must his awareness and movements be?"

Before even making a move, Maud had already realized the chasm-like gap between them.

He quickly stopped his men from aiming their guns at Mord, took a deep breath, and looked at Hunzhen with a solemn expression, saying, "Hunzhen... no, leader! I think there's probably no one in this secret realm who can threaten you."

As he said this, Maud felt a pang of bitterness.

I thought that with my mastery of the realm and the aid of a restricted weapon, I would be invincible in the secret realm, or at least able to hold my own against anyone.

Unexpectedly, the dream was shattered just one week later.

This is a domain expert who is known as invincible in the entire star system!

One in ten thousand Eternal Stars might not even appear. Facing a cosmic-level powerhouse, one might need to be extremely cautious, but when facing an Eternal Star of the same level, one should be incredibly imposing!

What Maud didn't know was that a hot-tempered young man once thought the same thing.

"Maud, you're a smart man."

Hunzhen smiled and looked at Morde, patting him on the shoulder in approval.

(End of this chapter)