256: Chapter 252 Encountering Space Pirates Again

With those words, he let go, allowing the storage bracelet to fall.

Song Yang reached out and beckoned, and the bracelet floated gently into his palm.

His spiritual sense delved inside; thirty-six ores of varying sizes lay there quietly, rich in energy and of good quality.

He nodded, satisfied.

With a thought, the hundreds of blood-colored blood vines receded like a low tide, silently shrinking back into the rock walls and the ground as if they had never appeared.

"Thud!"

The three fell miserably to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

A-Shan wanted to lash out as soon as he hit the ground, but he was stopped by a fierce glare from Brother Dao.

He looked at his unharmed companions and finally fixed his gaze on the Blue Crystal Ores that still emitted an enticing glow, his eyes filled with trepidation.

They didn't dare say another word, nor did they even dare to pick up the weapons dropped on the ground.

Brother Dao helped up the still dazed Monkey, and the three scrambled away, rushing into the passage they had come from without looking back, their panicked footsteps quickly disappearing into the distance.

Deathly silence returned to the cave once more.

Song Yang's figure merged back into the darkness.

The bait was still there; the hunting ground remained.

He only needed to continue waiting for the next prey to arrive.

...

Three days passed in the blink of an eye.

Those few pieces of deep Blue Crystal Ore remained in place, emitting their unchanging, seductive light.

Song Yang waited patiently, showing no signs of anxiety.

Finally, a faint sound of voices drifted over.

"Master Jin, are you sure this is the way? I feel a bit creeped out," a young voice rang out.

"Shut up, Xiao Liu! If you're afraid of dying, then get lost!"

Another hoarse voice shouted in reprimand, "Damn it, it's just some sinister guy who plays with vines. They make him sound like a ghost. If you ask me, those 'Scar' guys from before were just too useless, that's why they got caught!"

"Shi Tou, pipe down!"

An old but energetic voice stopped the argument. "I know what kind of lot 'Scar' and his crew are. For someone to make them flee in such a pathetic state that they didn't even want their gear, the master of this cave is definitely no pushover."

Song Yang slowly opened his eyes in the darkness.

Interesting, his "reputation" had already spread.

Three figures appeared in the light and shadow at the cave entrance.

Leading them was a scrawny old man in a grey cloth jacket; he was the one called "Master Jin." He

was followed by a stout man with a face full of rough flesh; he was "Shi Tou."

The one peeking around at the back was "Xiao Liu."

Master Jin stopped in his tracks, his eyes fixed intently on the Blue Crystal Ores not far away.

"Do you see that?"

Master Jin's voice was kept extremely low. "Perfect quality Blue Crystal Ores, just left out in the open in a cave like this, and not even a single low-level Burrowing Rat has touched them. Does that seem normal to you?"

Hearing him say this, the arrogance on Shi Tou's face softened a bit as he muttered:

"Maybe they just fell off the rock wall..."

"Fell?"

Master Jin gave a cold laugh.

"We're taking a detour. We didn't come out this time to throw our lives away to that 'Blood Vine Guest'."

"Master Jin is wise!"

Xiao Liu turned around first, as if granted a great reprieve.

Although Shi Tou was unwilling, he also knew that Master Jin's experience had saved them more than once. He spat and followed, grumbling.

The footsteps of the three rang out again, but this time they were moving away, quickly disappearing into the darkness of another tunnel.

The suffocating silence returned to the cave once more.

Song Yang's figure slowly emerged from the shadows on the cave ceiling.

Now that his reputation had spread, no one would fall for the trap here anymore.

Song Yang took the Blue Crystal Ores he used as bait and prepared to leave.

This hunting ground, which he had operated for several days, had lost its value.

Returning to the surface, when he crawled out of a hidden rock crevice, the blinding daylight caused him to squint instinctively.

However, what caused his pupils to contract suddenly was not the sunlight.

The sky was no longer the sky he remembered.

Enormous steel dreadnoughts hovered beneath the clouds, casting shadows that blotted out the sun.

They were of various shapes: some like unsheathed swords, others like hideous beetles. Their hulls flickered with energy halos of different colors, bearing all kinds of emblems.

Overnight, this desolate planet had turned into a bustling marketplace.

Song Yang even saw several exceptionally large ships among them, painted with skulls and crossed bone-blades.

Those were the vessels of the Star Pirate Alliance, flamboyant and overbearing, making no attempt to hide their identity.

According to a rough estimate, just those few ships could carry tens of thousands of people.

On a nearby patch of open ground, a medium-sized landing craft had just touched down. The hatch opened, and a squad of fully armed Soldiers filed out.

Their combat armor was a uniform silver-grey, with a roaring wolf printed on the chest.

"Everyone, keep your eyes peeled!"

A one-eyed officer at the head of the squad roared in a rough voice, "Turn on all scanners! Don't miss any energy anomalies!

Headquarters has issued a direct order: we, 'Sirius,' must secure at least thirty percent of this mineral vein!"

"Boss, look at the sky,"

A young Soldier pointed at the sky, his face showing a bit of nervousness. "The Star Pirates scum are here too, along with people from 'Giant Rock Group' and 'Clover.' This situation looks like it'll be tough to crack."

The one-eyed officer spat on the ground and said disdainfully:

"Tough or not, we have to crack it! Wealth is found in danger. If you're afraid of death, go back to the mother ship and drink nutrient solution! So what if there are Star Pirates? If they dare to fire the first shot, you'll see if our 'Sirius' main cannon blasts them to smithereens!"

"Exactly!"

Another Soldier, who looked even more experienced, chimed in. He sneered while calibrating the energy gun in his hand.

"They're just a ragtag bunch. If a real fight breaks out, they'll be the first to run. On the other hand, we should be careful of those lunatics from Giant Rock Group."

Song Yang shifted his gaze away from them and looked further into the distance.

As far as the eye could see, he could spot forces from different factions in motion, clearly demarcated from one another. The atmosphere was tense, like a bundle of dynamite with its fuse lit, ready to explode at any moment.

The mountainous area where he was located was still a blank, unexplored zone for now due to its complex terrain.

But this peace was destined not to last.

However, just as he was deeply considering his next move, a piercing laugh came from overhead without warning.

Song Yang looked up.

Before him were five people hovering in mid-air.

Each wore worn-out but menacing power armor, painted with exaggerated skulls and flames—the signature style of the Star Pirate Alliance.

Leading them was a Bald, Stout Man with a hideous scar stretching from his brow to the corner of his mouth, which twisted as he smiled.

"Look, brothers, what have we found?"

His voice came through the helmet's loudspeaker, carrying a smugness like a cat catching a mouse.

"A lost little mouse."