52: Chapter 52 Harvest

The clamor receded, but the cold wind remained.

Within the ruined Jinglin Garden, only Su Wu and Xiao Bai were left.

Without the gaze of outsiders, the violent and terrifying aura on Xiao Bai's body began to rapidly fade.

"Hoo... hoo..."

Its massive body, like a deflating balloon, shrank rapidly amidst a burst of silver-white light.

The grayish-black scales transformed back into snow-white, soft fur, the Dragon horns on its head retracted into its body, and the eerie third eye on its forehead slowly closed, leaving behind a faint golden mark.

In the blink of an eye, it turned back into that palm-sized, harmless, fluffy white mini-cat.

"Oh... This seat is exhausted..."

Xiao Bai slumped onto the snow, its limbs weak, gasping for breath. Forcing an Awakening and releasing a Divine Ability across ranks just now had almost drained all the power in its body.

It lifted its small head, glanced at the surrounding ruins, and then looked at Su Wu, whose body was covered in bloodstains.

Its two furry ears immediately drooped, and its tail was tucked between its hind legs.

With a "swish" sound.

Xiao Bai used all four limbs to scramble up Su Wu's trouser leg, eventually perching familiarly on Su Wu's shoulder, using its tender little tongue to gently lick the bloodstains on Su Wu's cheek.

"Big Brother..."

Xiao Bai's voice was no longer that sophisticated "This seat" from before; instead, it had become soft and waxy, like a child who had made a huge mistake, its tone filled with trepidation and unease.

"Did I... cause a huge disaster?"

Although its memories were still incomplete, it knew that the pillar of light it had emitted had brought endless trouble. That warship, those assassins, and even the beast tide besieging the city outside were all here because of it.

Su Wu tilted his head slightly.

"Silly girl."

Su Wu's voice was very soft, yet it carried a sense of security strong enough to withstand all the wind and snow in the world.

"How could you have caused trouble? If you hadn't blocked that strike this time, your big brother would have lost his life right here."

Hearing this, Xiao Bai's originally dim, large blue eyes instantly lit up, becoming watery. The tail behind it couldn't help but wag cheerfully from side to side twice.

But soon, it thought of something, and its tail drooped again.

"But..."

"Pop!"

Before Xiao Bai could finish its sentence, Su Wu had already curled his index finger and unceremoniously flicked Xiao Bai's forehead with a crisp thud.

"Ouch!" Xiao Bai clutched its head, looking at Su Wu aggrievedly.

"But my foot, don't think so much."

Su Wu put his hands back into his pockets and, facing the swirling snow, took large strides toward Villa No. 186.

---

---

Villa No. 186.

The gale, mixed with the unceasing snowflakes, lashed against the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Outside the main gate, Su Yu was pacing back and forth like an ant on a hot pan.

Even though he knew his father was very strong, the world-shaking commotion coming from the direction of Jinglin Garden just now still made his heart jump in fear.

"Beep—"

The sound of the gate's access permission unlocking rang out.

Su Yu jerked his head up. When he saw Su Wu with his hands in his pockets and that familiar white fur ball perched on his shoulder, his nerves, which had been stretched to the limit, finally relaxed completely. His eyes instantly reddened, welling up with tears.

"Dad! Xiao Bai!"

Su Yu hurried forward in three steps and two, his gaze urgently scanning Su Wu up and down.

Although Su Wu had changed into a spare set of clothes, the residual scent of blood and his disordered aura still couldn't escape Su Yu's perception.

Only after confirming that his father hadn't sustained any irreversible, fatal injuries did his hanging heart finally drop back into place.

"Alright, you're a grown man, stop crying," Su Wu laughed and rubbed his son's hair, his tone relaxed. "Come on, let's go inside and eat. After that fight, my stomach is flat from hunger."

The two people and one beast returned to the warm villa.

After a hearty late-night snack, life seemed to return to its usual tranquility. However, after experiencing tonight's excitement, Su Yu's gaze had become even more resolute.

Without a word, he cleared the dishes and dove straight into the Cultivation room.

He knew deep down that with his current strength, in front of truly Peak powerhouses, he could only be someone to be protected. He wanted to become stronger—strong enough to fight side-by-side with his father!

...

Second-floor balcony.

Su Wu did not go to rest but sat alone in a rattan chair, braving the cold wind. On the coffee table in front of him lay nine space rings of various designs, all emitting a faint shimmer.

This was the most bountiful reward from slaying the nine great Star Lords tonight.

"Let me see just how rich the noble families of Mars really are."

A smile curled at the corner of Su Wu's mouth as he sent his Divine Thought inside.

“Hiss... this space, it's at least a hundred cubic meters, right?”

Su Wu was somewhat surprised. As expected of Family heads of major families, the capacity of these nine space rings far exceeded the one he had "borrowed" from the Treasure Pavilion manager earlier.

The resources inside the rings were piled up like mountains, too many to count.

But Su Wu, whose vision had long been spoiled by the System, didn't care for those ordinary low-level potions and federal credits at all.

He quickly filtered through the vast sea of items, eventually picking out only some top-grade Medicinal Pills and high-level nutrient solutions that only those at the Star Lord level could use, as well as several memory crystals recording Martial Skills.

Among them, what caught Su Wu's attention the most was a dark-gold Jade Slip from Li Yuan's ring.

“Yuan Escape?”

Su Wu read the information within the Jade Slip, a light flashing in his eyes.

This was an extremely profound spatial escape technique. When Cultivated to the limit, it could even achieve ultra-long-distance teleportation.

"This movement technique is definitely top-grade. What a pity..." Su Wu couldn't help but sneer, "Li Yuan, that old dog, died too quickly. He didn't even have time to use such a life-saving divine skill, and now it's fallen into my hands."

Besides the resources, the main highlight was naturally those ancient martial divine weapons.

With a wave of Su Wu's hand, eight weapons emitting an ancient and desolate aura hovered in mid-air; the Lu Family head's spear had already been snapped during the battle.

A crimson long saber, a square seal, and six other first-rank ancient martial weapons.

Su Wu's gaze fell upon that bronze square seal, a look of wonder flashing in his eyes.

He clearly remembered that he had split this thing open with a single saber strike during the breakout, but now, the cracks on the surface of this square seal were actually slowly wriggling and healing!

"It can actually automatically absorb heaven and earth essence for self-repair?"

Su Wu nodded in satisfaction.

He picked out the Yuan Escape Secret Manual and one of the wind-attribute first-rank ancient martial long sabers separately, intending to give them both to Su Yu tomorrow.

The night was deep, and all was silent.

But Su Wu did not return to his room to sleep. He remained sitting on the balcony, pouring himself a cup of hot tea, his gaze deep as he looked toward the firmament of the Yanjing Base.

He knew that tonight's events were not truly over.

The pillar of light from the Star Beast Awakening, the fall of the nine great Star Lords, the High Priest of the Star Demon Cult... with this series of earth-shattering events, it was impossible for the Federation to play deaf and dumb. Although Luo Ting was the principal of Beijing Martial Arts University, he could not represent the entire Federation.

The one who truly held the power of life and death over the Solar System... should be arriving soon.