The air inside and outside the Stasis Prison seemed to freeze.
The Chaos sample had been suppressed once more by a blow into which Lin Ye had poured every ounce of his strength. Its maddening, corrosive whispers and boiling tides of energy slowly receded, leaving only a battered, crack-riddled cage and heart-stopping energy aftershocks lingering in the air. But everyone knew this suppression was temporary. Deep within the cage, that terrifying mass of dark red energy still writhed slowly, gathering strength, ready to erupt again at any moment.
More dangerous still were the gazes outside the prison, suddenly focused, razor-sharp, and ravenous!
Lin Ye knelt on one knee, his face pale and his breathing faint. The lightning flowing around him had dimmed to almost nothing. He was clearly at the end of his strength. That earth-shattering blow had all but drained him dry; even his [Origin Thunder Seal] had become somewhat insubstantial.
Queen Bee Aishana, the Shi'ar Academician Orlan, the Kree Accuser Talos, and those cold, white-robed "Observers" saw it all, plain as day!
Weakness! Unprecedented weakness!
An individual who controlled a cosmic-level thunder origin, who had just displayed terrifying suppressive power, had now fallen into an unprecedented trough of weakness!
To every faction coveting his power, this was nothing short of a heaven-sent opportunity!
"Now! Seize him!" Queen Bee Aishana reacted first, a blaze of utter greed flaring in her compound eyes as she shrieked her order! Behind her, the Elite Bee Guards became streaks of spectral green like hunting dogs unleashed, ignoring the Shi'ar and Kree soldiers still exchanging fire and charging straight toward the prison entrance! Their target was Lin Ye!
"Stop them! Protect the sample... and protect Lin Ye!" Academician Orlan of the Shi'ar roared almost simultaneously, though his "protection" clearly carried another meaning. The Shi'ar