To everyone's surprise, as soon as the words left Tivan's mouth, the purple-skinned woman named Karina shouted, "I refuse to be your slave any longer!"
A bad premonition struck Star-Lord and the others from a distance.
Syd's eyes narrowed slightly, but he did not stop Karina from her actions.
Realizing something, Tivan's heart raced, and he shouted, "No!"
In the next moment, Karina's gaze locked onto the Power Stone, and without hesitation, she reached out with her right hand and grasped it firmly.
Instantly, a violent reaction occurred, as if water met hot oil!
The purple energy from the Power Stone surged out, splattering violently like small missiles being fired.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
A series of explosions erupted, with energy from the Power Stone blasting open display cases and creating large craters on the floor.
"Ugh…"
Tivan, Rocket Raccoon, and the others scrambled to avoid the explosions.
Star-Lord, while ducking, instinctively looked to see how the enigmatic figure was handling the catastrophic scene.
To his astonishment, the figure in white simply raised a hand, and a red light appeared, forming a barrier in front of him.
The splashing purple energy seemed to dissipate upon hitting the red barrier, like water hitting a water curtain, with minimal effect.
Star-Lord's jaw dropped in disbelief. "Oh my God…"
Before he could think more about it, Karina, still holding the Power Stone, was suffering the effects. The energy from the stone, already destructive, was overwhelming her.
She was just an ordinary human, and the energy was starting to corrode her skin and body.
"Ah!"
Karina screamed as the purple energy filled her body, causing cracks and ruptures to appear…
With a final scream, a terrifying explosion erupted, massive purple energy surging out and spreading.
The surrounding area was obliterated, and the building itself exploded!
Groot and Rocket Raccoon sprinted frantically, while Star-Lord and Gamora huddled in a corner, shivering.
Amid the destruction and the eruption of the Power Stone's energy, as everyone thought they were in a desperate flight for survival, one figure remained floating amidst the purple energy explosion.
Syd, using his Chaos Magic shield, protected himself from the Power Stone's energy.
Though the Power Stone's energy was fierce and powerful, it wasn't a full-force explosion. With his Chaos Magic at level four and various enhancements, the explosion posed no real threat to him.
It felt like a breeze to him. Just before the explosion reached the black stone's cabinet, Syd floated over and wrapped the stone in Chaos Magic, safely placing it into his backpack.
Once he completed this task, the explosions began to subside.
From a distance, Tivan lay on the ground, injured but not critically. Groot and Rocket Raccoon had managed to escape.
At this moment, a voice came through.
"You…"
Star-Lord and Gamora, cautiously peeking from their corner, were stunned by the scene before them.
Amidst the wreckage, a figure in white floated in the air, completely unharmed, not even a speck of dust on their clothing.
This meant that, whether it was Tivan or Star-Lord and Gamora, it was clear that the mysterious figure had withstood the blast?
Star-Lord was dumbfounded. "The terrifying explosion caused by the gem was blocked?"
"Is this guy even human?"
The scene fell into stunned silence, with no one speaking.
Then, footsteps approached from outside.
It was Rocket Raccoon and Groot, who, seeing that their escape route was blocked, rushed back in.
They crashed into the room and saw Star-Lord and the others in shock, and the figure floating unblemished amid the destruction.
"Am I seeing things?" Rocket Raccoon rubbed his furry eyes.
Could it be that the explosion didn't actually happen? How could the figure be unharmed?
As Rocket Raccoon and Groot gaped in disbelief, the figure finally moved.
Syd floated slowly above the Orb of Power, extending his right hand.
The red light of Chaos Magic appeared.
The purple-glowing Power Stone was enveloped in light and began to rise gently.
Syd extended his hand as if to grasp the Power Stone.
Seeing this, Gamora and the others were instantly alarmed.
"What are you trying to do?" Gamora exclaimed.
Star-Lord was shocked. "Hey, hey, hey, are you out of your mind?"
Rocket Raccoon's fur bristled with fear.
"Put it down!" Tivan shouted urgently.
At this moment, they were incredulous, wondering if the mysterious figure had lost his mind.
Didn't he see the terrifying scene just moments ago? The place was reduced to ruins in an instant, and Karina, who tried to grasp the stone, was turned to ashes!
The danger of the gem was evident. Did he not see that?
They were in disbelief.
Even Rocket Raccoon, who had previously thought Tivan was exaggerating, now almost believed the tale of the gem's danger.
It was indeed a perilous object!
At this point, Rocket Raccoon wanted to get as far away as possible!
They could almost see the scene where the mysterious figure would be engulfed by the energy of the purple gem and explode into ashes.
As they feared and struggled to react, Syd remained calm and had already grasped the Power Stone.
Instantly, the Power Stone emitted a rich purple glow, with terrifying energy surging forth.
The purple light spread across his body!
"It's over…"
Rocket Raccoon and the others muttered in dread.
As they began to flee, the sight before them left them stunned.
The purple glow surrounding Syd began to rapidly contract and absorb into his body.
They even noticed something different.
While Karina had developed cracks and energy stains on her body when she tried to hold the gem, as if unable to withstand the stone's energy, Syd remained completely unaffected!
What was happening?
What was this situation?
Star-Lord and the others were left in a state of shock.
(End of Chapter)