As Kyle emerged from the depths of the ice, Lucy, now revived, affectionately held his hand. The two made their way to the grassy area where the Mantis was stationed.
"Hello, Mistress," Vis, the mechanical being, and Pride, the misty spirit, both of them showing tact as they approached Lucy one after the other and spoke in a soft tone.
"Hello, hello, all's well. Taking care of Kyle, I presume, has been quite the task," Lucy nodded with a smile. After exchanging greetings with Vis and Pride, she couldn't help but display her lively nature as she playfully winked at Kyle. "It seems you've gathered quite the family since we last met."
Kyle chuckled silently, casting a glance at the solemn-faced Mantis, who seemed to have something on her mind.
"Isn't this Mantis?" Lucy approached Mantis and took her hand. "Thank you so much for your help back then. If it weren't for you, we might never have discovered the truth hidden on this planet."
"Lucy, it's wonderful to see you well," Mantis smiled sincerely as she spoke.
Lucy turned to Kyle and asked, "Kyle, you haven't been bullying Mantis, have you? Although she was under the control of Ego, she's actually very kind and innocent at heart. It was she who secretly revealed the truth to us and helped Howard escape."
"Of course not," Kyle replied calmly, speaking the truth. Although, he did let the Devourer Beast have a go at her once.
"Really?" Lucy looked at Mantis with a half-believing, half-doubtful expression, her face showing a hint of cuteness.
Mantis shook her head quickly and said urgently, "Alright, Miss Lucy, Mr. Kyle has been kind to me. Now, you both must leave here immediately!"
"What's happened?" Seeing Mantis's high level of tension, Kyle couldn't help but direct his puzzled gaze at Pride, who had stayed outside earlier.
"Master," Pride saluted quickly and reported, "Just before you entered the depths of the volcano, a powerful awakening energy swept over this entire planet."
"It's the awakening of the second celestial."
Taking over its unfinished words, Mantis said fearfully, "For over a decade, Master Ego has been secretly searching for his descendants lost in the outer cosmos, namely Quill. Now it seems Quill has awakened the power of the celestial hidden within him with his assistance."
"Is his plan about to be set in motion?" Kyle had heard Howard's analysis from start to finish and understood what this meant.
Mantis nodded, "Yes, as long as Master Ego, with the help of Quill's celestial power, can give birth to celestial seeds planted in thousands of life-bearing planets, the seeds will quickly take root and sprout, devouring all the resources on the planets!"
Lucy's face showed a look of shock at the news. She looked urgently at Kyle. "What should we do? Even Earth could have been planted with those so-called celestial seeds!"
"It's simple. We just have to make sure he doesn't get the chance to birth those seeds."
With the situation dire, Kyle remained calm, unlike the typical reaction. He looked towards the sky of the other planet, reflecting, "I never imagined that even after leaving Earth, I'd still have to fight to protect its safety."
Perhaps, this was the fate that came with the title of Symbol of Peace.
At this moment.
On the other side of the planet, beneath the surface of the Garden Palace.
Here lies a primitive cave, with the ground covered in glowing moss and tree roots interweaving to form walls. Although it was a closed underground environment, the air was fresh and clean, carrying a faint scent of flowers.
Wearing a silver uniform, Ego withdrew his hand from Quill's chest. Quill's body was emitting faint starlight, which quickly receded back to normal.
"Quill, how do you feel?" Ego looked at Quill with a face full of smiles, eyes filled with deep anticipation.
"I feel like I could kill Ronan with just a punch," Quill opened his eyes, clenched his fist, and then shrugged. "Just kidding. I feel like my physical attributes have been amplified several times over, and I seem to be able to manipulate the surrounding objects at will."
As Quill spoke, he waved his hand towards the tree roots, and with a burst of blue energy, some of the roots that made up the cave wall immediately began to move slightly, as if they were alive.
"This is the power of celestials!" Ego proudly raised his head, spreading his arms wide. "We celestials reign supreme over the universe and all its races. You're not yet familiar with this awakening power, but once you master it, you'll be able to create a planet under your control! Forget about mere Ronan; even lifeforms stronger than Ronan will be crushed to dust with a single punch!"
"Is that so?" Quill lowered his head, looking at his own hands, lost in thought.
"Alright, I have to attend to some matters first. You stay here for a while; I have something important to tell you later," Ego said impatiently, waving his hand before swiftly melding into the wall of roots, disappearing completely.
Feeling bored, Quill sat on the naturally woven root chair, playing with his newly awakened celestial abilities.
"Interesting. Not only can I manipulate the roots, but I feel like I can freely sense and control anything on this planet," Quill took a deep breath and began to experiment with probing the cave he was in. As his mind penetrated ten meters underground, he was startled.
There was a mysterious figure further down!
Quill thought for a moment, then mimicked Ego's earlier actions. With a wave of earthy movement, he sank into the ground, descending ten meters until he sat in the deepest part of the cave.
"Ow, Ow, Ow!" Quill got up from the ground, holding his buttocks in pain. As he looked ahead, he saw a human-looking male savage trapped in the depths of the underground cavern.
The savage's back was firmly against the wall, limbs and head entangled by roots. His emaciated body looked like dry wood, with thick black hair and beard that appeared wild and unkempt. Clearly, he had been trapped here for some time, his white clothes turning grayish-black.
The savage's head was tilted in unconsciousness, but what was even more surprising was that several roots had pierced his heart, seemingly sapping his blood as nourishment.
"Why do I feel like I've seen him somewhere before?" Quill looked at the savage's face, most of it obscured by hair, but the more he looked, the more familiar the figure seemed.
Curiosity getting the better of him, Quill couldn't help but approach. As he reached out to move the hair covering the savage's face, the savage suddenly woke up, trembling all over, emitting an angry growl as he opened his mouth, and the tough vines binding his body tightened to their limits.
Startled, Quill quickly stepped back, only to see the savage instinctively raise his hands, revealing three sharp, icy claws from each clenched fist!
"You're..." Quill's eyes widened as he finally saw the savage's face, a face he had seen in a dossier photo Kyle had shown him on a screen.
Wolverine... Logan!
(End of chapter)
You can read ahead up to 90 chapters on my patreon and I've also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/marvel6395