The Long-Lived One was in even worse condition than before.
His leaves had yellowed, his branches drooped listlessly, and dozens of wounds crisscrossed his body. Though they were slowly healing on their own, the process was noticeably slower than before.
After escaping Kara Star, the Long-Lived One had endured the star's baptism and two interceptions by the Twin Stars, suffering injuries on three separate occasions. His recovery had been astonishing each time, but the expenditure had been equally enormous!
Rapidly repairing his limbs required all kinds of elements and materials, along with vast amounts of energy. The Water of Life was also essential for promoting his evolution and accelerating his recovery.
Since bursting out of the star, the Long-Lived One had scarcely stopped fighting, evolving, or repairing himself for even a moment. The supplies stockpiled inside him had been heavily depleted, and the precious Water of Life was almost gone.
Combined with the enormous quantities of fuel spent propelling his massive body, even his core energy reserves were approaching the red alert threshold!
Not even the Mechanical Insects could defy the law of conservation of matter and create something from nothing. The Long-Lived One was now utterly drained. Without resupply, he would soon be unable to hold on even if the Twin Stars did nothing.
Fortunately, the Twin Stars Fleet still needed some time to arrive, finally giving the Long-Lived One a precious opportunity to rest and recover.
Once the Long-Lived One had been received, the warships on Nie Yun's side began closing in around him.
Dozens of thick branches then extended from all over the Long-Lived One's body, plunging straight into circular ports opened atop the ships.
"Glug, glug..." Small bulges swelled along the branches as they greedily sucked up vast quantities of nutrients and fuel like drinking straws.