It was nothing more than the Collector explaining to everyone the origins, process, and functions of the Infinity Stones. Then his servant girl, oppressed for far too long, seized the Power Stone and tried to turn things around and sing her own song of rebellion. But everyone knows—can an ordinary person just pick up the Power Stone with their bare hands? Obviously not. In the very next second, there was a massive explosion.
Not only was the Collector's residence blasted upside down, even the planet itself shook several times. No joke—Infinity Stones, especially the Power Stone. When the energy of a tenth-level star core overflows in an instant, even blowing up a planet wouldn't be an exaggeration.
Taking advantage of the explosion, Blaine also used the chaos to pocket a few things. For example, several pieces of metal made from special materials, as well as cold weapons unique to alien civilizations.
In addition, Blaine even discovered several star cores with purity reaching level five, along with countless other valuable items.
It was just a pity that anything related to money was useless to Blaine—if he took it, it was no different from scrap. This had driven Blaine crazy countless times. Even though he comforted himself every time by thinking it through, whenever it actually happened, he still couldn't help wanting to curse his luck.
At least these materials were useful. They didn't need to be exchanged for cash; they could be directly used to upgrade weapons and equipment. That was enough to slightly comfort his wounded heart.
After the explosion, several space battleships entered the range of Blaine's Hawkeye vision.
All of this was within Blaine's expectations. These warships were no exception. Blaine knew exactly what was coming next. Not only had he anticipated the Power Stone's explosion, he could also foresee what would follow.
For instance, these battleships belonged to Ronan and they reached here because of the brainless brute, Drax. Because of his hatred for Ronan, this guy had actually come up with the idea of exposing his own position to lure Ronan out.
Unfortunately, it was the Collector who paid the price. Perhaps just a second ago, he thought he had struck gold, believing there might be yet another priceless treasure in his collection.
But who, besides Blaine, could have expected that one moment of joy would be followed by total annihilation the next?
Years—no, countless years—of collection, all destroyed just like that. If Blaine could have taken it all away and made use of it, he would have stuffed everything into the Hunter's space without hesitation.
Before anyone else could recover from the explosion, Drax was already standing before the landed battleships, gripping two short daggers and glaring furiously at the open hatch.
Sure enough, that familiar face—one he had never forgotten—appeared in Blaine's Hawkeye vision.
"I really have to say, there's a path to heaven you refuse to take, and no road to hell you insist on walking."
"That's Ronan, isn't it?"
"You only have yourself to blame for setting your sights on the Power Stone."
A cold light flashed in Blaine's eyes. The tiger already had prey in its mouth—it seemed blood would be spilled today.
As for the Power Stone, Blaine was determined to get it. Whether Ronan or even Thanos showed up in person, no one was taking it away today. Unless they got past Blaine first.
In the distance, Drax charged forward with daggers in hand, shouting about revenge and vengeance. Yet judging by Ronan's expression, he didn't seem to take him seriously at all.
He probably didn't even know who Drax was.
Blaine estimated that within a minute, Ronan would knock Drax away with his hammer and then continue walking in this direction, clearly confident that the Cosmic Orb was here.
"Who are you?!"
Just two steps away, a man in a black robe and hood stood in Ronan's path. After breaking out of prison, Blaine had already switched back to his original Hunter suit. That prison uniform was simply too ugly.
Hearing Ronan's questioning tone, Blaine's killing intent intensified. This wasn't a real question—it was more like telling a stray dog to get out of the way. Ronan had nearly raised his hammer already.
"You should leave. That thing doesn't belong to you."
Quill and Rocket might still be nearby, and Blaine didn't want to reveal his full strength unless absolutely necessary.
Boom…
Who would have thought Ronan would be so ruthless—without a word, he hurled his hammer straight at Blaine.
"You asked for it!"
Blaine murmured softly. In an instant, he slipped out of the attack's range, and the chill in his eyes deepened further.
Suddenly, a multicolored pentagonal magic circle flared into existence in the sky, with Ronan trapped squarely beneath it. The temperature in the surrounding space began to rise steadily, driven by the effects of the Meteor Flame Array.
Not only Ronan himself, but the fleet and soldiers he had brought were all enveloped within it. Since the planet wasn't very large to begin with, it looked as though the entire world had been covered by the magic circle.
If Blaine didn't act, it was fine. But once he did, it would be decisive, leaving no loose ends. For Blaine, there was no need to worry about tactics like capturing the leader first.
The moment the magic circle appeared, Ronan panicked. He had likely never witnessed anything like this in his life. The heat waves scorched his skin before even touching him, filling him with a premonition of death. With this move, Blaine clearly intended to kill.
"Hmph. I can only blame you for choosing the wrong master."
"Then die together with him."
Blaine spoke coldly, his expression blank, as he looked at the terrified soldiers and warships in the distance.
Blaine didn't care whether killing Ronan would alter the future—what came after was irrelevant.
Zz…
…
A flaming meteor nearly thirty meters in diameter, trailing a long tail of fire, smashed viciously toward Ronan. Trapped within the magic circle, he had nowhere to escape. At the same time, countless blazing meteors rained down upon his fleet.
However, just as the meteor was about to strike Ronan, a brilliant flash of light erupted.
Boom—
Whoosh—
Two rockets streaked in, their firepower clearly nothing to scoff at.
The rockets struck the flaming meteor dead-on, blasting it apart in an instant.
"Hm?"
Adjusting his Hawkeye vision, Blaine realized that another warship had appeared at some point. Its design looked somewhat similar to Rocket's. Perhaps he hadn't noticed it earlier while using his copied eyes, but now it had already rushed straight into the fray, showing no sign of stopping.
"Nebula?"
Through his enhanced vision, Blaine recognized the newcomer.
Whoosh, whoosh—
Nebula didn't hesitate at all. Whatever her goal was, she immediately provided suppressive fire, indiscriminately bombarding both Blaine's and Ronan's positions.
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