"How was it, Gus? Are your injuries serious?"
Watching the disheveled figure in the distance, Hua Zhen pressed a finger to his temple and sent the message. What had just happened had truly scared the hell out of him.
"Don't worry, Your Highness... Huff, huff... I took several attacks head-on, but it's nothing serious..."
Hearing Gus say that, Hua Zhen felt somewhat relieved. Flapping his wings and banking aside to evade several attacks, he put on a smile and said, "Not bad, kid. I never expected you to pull off something like that—destroying more than a dozen small warships in one go. Honestly, I'm impressed~"
"Please don't joke, Your Highness..." Gus smiled bitterly inside. "I'd originally planned to break down those Energy Attacks and then reassemble them, but the calculations turned out to be terrifyingly complex. If I hadn't been delayed by that, I wouldn't have ended up like this~"
"That's still pretty impressive. Didn't you divert quite a few attacks at the crucial moment?" Ignoring the horrified looks around him, Hua Zhen moved both hands in succession, controlling the Dark Sacred Silver Dagger as it cleaved a warship in two.
"Your Highness can protect A Lie while fighting at the same time. Compared to you, what I did is hardly worth mentioning..." Gus said with admiration.
Hua Zhen halted, his expression turning solemn. "Old Stick gave me limited resources back in the Heavenly Palace—only enough for me to upgrade my Gene Engine... But don't worry, Gus. Once we get our hands on the ancient civilization's technology, I'll personally help you improve!"
"..." Gus froze for a moment, but soon his heart surged like a mirror-still lake rippling with wave after wave. Joy and delight welled up in him, but what he felt even more was gratitude. "Your Highness..."
Hua