Crisis Averted

"Why?" Lola asked blankly.

"You still haven't figured out something this simple?" Reke shook his head in disappointment.

Fifth and Four Ears both jolted. Fifth was beginning to understand what Reke meant.

The others looked at Reke in confusion, unsure what he meant.

"I have to leave eventually. I can't be your babysitter forever," Reke said bluntly.

Pat and the others were embarrassed. They should have understood such a simple thing, but they had lost their heads this time.

They really had lost sight of who was in charge. Reke had always been helping them, while their help had barely mattered to him.

"Boss, Reke is right. And the kids need to grow, too. Since they're confident they can handle this, we should trust them as much as possible." Four Ears patted Pat's shoulder and tried to reassure him.

After giving them time to take that in, he continued, "Besides, those two have worked hard on this for so long. If Reke steps in now, what was all their effort for?"

"And Reke isn't obligated to help us. We can't rely on him for everything."

Pat and the others suddenly saw things clearly. Pat nodded and said, "You're right, Fifth. I'll go apologize to Reke now, and tell him we used the Gravity Chamber without permission."

With that, Pat strode toward Reke's home.

The others watched their boss go, then followed. They had all used the Gravity Chamber, so if Reke was going to punish anyone, they would face it together.

Reke sipped his drink and stared, speechless, at the group kneeling before him.

"Damn it, what's wrong with you people? Didn't I tell you I hate it when people kneel to me? Get up, all of you!" Reke set down his drink and covered his forehead, looking utterly exasperated.

"Uh..."

Could Pat and the others say they were used to it? No. He knew that would probably earn them another scolding, so he could only lament that aliens had different customs from them.

They obediently got to their feet. Then Pat nervously told Reke that they had used the Gravity Chamber without permission.

He lowered his head, waiting for Reke to punish him.

"That's all? I know. You can go." Reke waved them away.

He followed the delicious smell to the dining table and dug in.

Pat and the others had no choice but to leave. Outside, they sensed Bellis and the others' battle.

"Boss, the victory banquet," Lola reminded him.

Pat slapped his forehead and ushered everyone away.

Bellis and Lan Xin's clothes were in tatters. They had run into the same problem Reke had.

Their combat strength was clearly no worse than their opponent's, yet they couldn't break through its defenses.

By now, neither of them had any of the confidence they'd started with.

"Sidekick, do you have any special moves? If this keeps up, we might not make it out alive," Bellis said, clutching her broken left arm.

"I can try, but I'm worried it won't give us the time," Lan Xin replied with a bitter smile.

If their opponent could fly, they wouldn't have lasted this long.

"How much time do you need?"

"This move's still just an idea. I haven't tested it, so I can't say for sure." Lan Xin sounded unsure and didn't dare make any promises.

"We don't have time. I can hold it off for three minutes. I'm leaving our lives in your hands." Seeing Lan Xin hesitate, Bellis gave him no chance to argue. Purple light shimmered over her body as she activated her Talent Skill.

Forced into action, Lan Xin knew Bellis was risking everything. He stopped hesitating and raised his crossed hands above his head.

"Crackle—"

Orange energy gathered.

It churned in his palms. Sweat beaded on Lan Xin's forehead as he focused entirely on his hands, losing all awareness of his surroundings.

"Crack, crack—"

An orange energy wave crackled in his palms, tiny arcs of electricity dancing across it.

"Sidekick, are you done yet?"

A punch from the Rock Monster sent Bellis crumpling to the ground, coughing blood. Unable to move, she shouted with the last of her strength.

Lan Xin didn't dare delay. Unsure whether he'd succeeded, he locked onto the Rock Monster with his energy and fired the wave.

"Whoosh!"

The Rock Monster opened its jaws and fired a mass of red energy at the wave.

"Crackle, crackle—"

The red and orange energies collided and locked in a stalemate.

Neither gave an inch.

Lan Xin felt as if every ounce of energy had been drained from his body. He couldn't summon even a trace more, but he didn't dare give up.

If he did, all their efforts would be for nothing.

Lan Xin's sky-blue eyes lit up. Streams of energy poured from his pupils, empowering his energy wave.

The orange energy overwhelmed the red and slowly pushed toward the Rock Monster.

"Boom!"

The energy wave exploded inside the Rock Monster's mouth, blowing its entire head apart. Its body collapsed to the ground.

Bellis and Lan Xin smiled with delight. After Lan Xin flew over to her, Bellis asked in confusion,

"What happened just now? I could tell you'd run out of energy. How did you suddenly manage to keep going?"

Lan Xin rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. "I just found out that my eyes can store energy—up to half the energy in my body."

"Sidekick, you didn't let me down. Let's go back." Bellis struggled to stand.

Lan Xin hurried to her and caught her as she started to fall.

Bellis tried to push him away, but she was out of strength. After struggling twice, she gave up and leaned against him.

Pat and the others were waiting beneath the building for Bellis and Lan Xin to return in triumph. They spotted the two from a distance.

They hurried over and scolded them. "You're both hurt this badly, and you still came here? You should've gone straight to the hospital!"

Without waiting for them to protest or struggle, the group hoisted them up and carried them to the hospital, forgetting all about the victory banquet they'd prepared.

"Lan Xin, I'll bring your mother over in a little while."

When Lan Xin tried to speak, Lola cut him off.

"Oh, and Reke's back."

At Lola's words, Lan Xin smiled happily.

He had always felt respect and gratitude toward Reke. Thanks to him, Lan Xin hadn't lost his mother and was now living a life he'd never dared imagine before. He was content.

He closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

"Poor kid." Pat slowed their flight.

"Thanks for all your hard work."

"Boss, it was nothing." Bellis hadn't fallen asleep. She was still buzzing with excitement. If she hadn't been exhausted, she would have flown all the way around Panxi City to show everyone how impressive she was.

Pat knew Bellis better than anyone and gave her the news she'd most want to hear.

"Get some rest and heal up. The country knows what you've done. Once you've recovered, they'll hold a special commendation ceremony for the two of you."

"Really?" Bellis's eyes lit up, and she couldn't keep the grin off her lopsided mouth.

"Really. Be serious. Do you want the whole country to see you looking like this?"

"Heh!"