Chapter 144 Capture

Continuous explosions echoed from the crash site. Huang Jian wrung his hands and breathed on them for warmth, his face filled with worry.

"That sounds like a fight. Who's he battling?" Huang Jian wondered. This was the middle of nowhere. Could Han Xiao be fighting aliens?

Just the thought of it made the world seem insane.

After waiting a while, the sounds suddenly stopped. Huang Jian's heart leaped into his throat. He'd heard of Han Xiao's impressive feats, but his opponent was an alien.

"If something happens to him, no one will give me orders. Should I keep waiting for him…?"

As he was agonizing over the decision, a figure flew up from the crash site and rapidly approached. It was Han Xiao, accompanied by the whistling wind. He landed beside the helicopter, his mechanical suit riddled with damage. Armor was cracked in several places, exposing the internal wiring, which crackled with sparks.

"Great, you're okay." Huang Jian breathed a sigh of relief, then noticed that Han Xiao was carrying an unfamiliar species with him—pale gold skin, widely spaced facial features, and mechanical shackles, crackling with electricity, binding his hands and feet. It was Kerk Lord, sporting a bruised face and stripped naked.

"A-a-a…" Huang Jian stuttered, pointing at Kerk Lord, too shocked to speak.

"Alien. It took quite a bit of effort to catch him."

Han Xiao grabbed Kerk Lord by the hair and shoved him into the cabin. The Godoran was filled with rage, but his mouth was gagged, and he could only flop around helplessly like a dead fish.

Huang Jian was dumbfounded. He knew Han Xiao was strong, but he hadn't realized he was *this* strong. He could even capture aliens. His worldview was completely shattered.

"Start the helicopter. We're close to the Rylan border. Their people will be here soon," Han Xiao said.

Huang Jian fumbled to start the engine, and the helicopter quickly flew away.

Aboard the helicopter, Han Xiao removed his mechanical suit and inspected the damage. It was down to about 20% armor. The Godoran investigator's equipment was advanced, but in the end, Han Xiao had unleashed a barrage of attacks, turning Kerk Lord into a delicate flower being ground into the dirt, unable to fight back and forced to passively endure the storm of blows.

He had destroyed the investigator's combat suit, confiscated the golden sphere, and ensured that Kerk Lord couldn't access any weapons. He had only left him with a translator, to facilitate persuasion… er, communication.

He had acquired the communicator, and it even came with a Godoran. The results were better than expected.

"I can squeeze a lot more out of him. I'll deal with him when we get back," Han Xiao thought, already formulating new plans.

Huang Jian was very curious about the alien. He kept turning around, asking, "Sir, does he bite?"

A dignified envoy of a high-level civilization, regarded as a savage beast by a native. Kerk Lord was furious, but with his hands and feet bound, he could only bang his head against the steel plating in protest.

"Probably not…" Han Xiao stroked his chin thoughtfully. "But judging by how fierce he looks, he might have a taste for it."

*Bang, bang*—Kerk Lord continued to smash his head against the steel plating.

Huang Jian asked curiously, "Can we eat him?"

Han Xiao pinched the Godoran's arm and tsked. "His skin is quite smooth, and his meat is firm. Are you interested?"

Huang Jian hesitated for a moment, then nodded. "I've never eaten an alien before."

*Bang, bang, bang!!*

The frequency of his head-banging increased.

Backward! Savage! Kerk Lord roared inwardly, a flicker of fear beginning to surface.

These natives wouldn't actually try to eat him, would they?

Huang Jian was excited and full of questions, wanting to know how Han Xiao knew the aliens were coming to Aquamarine, and why he was capturing them. Kerk Lord wanted to know the answers to these questions as well.

First, his ship had inexplicably malfunctioned, forcing a crash landing. Then, he encountered this armored warrior who claimed to be a welcoming envoy, only to suddenly ambush him and beat him black and blue, before tying him up like a hog.

Kerk Lord was infuriated when he thought about how the analysis module had assessed Aquamarine as low-risk. How long had it been since the database had been updated? If this was considered low-risk, then forget it!

"Who is he? Why did he capture me? How did he know I would crash here?" Kerk Lord was confused. Naturally, Han Xiao remained silent.

"Is it a male or a female?" Huang Jian asked curiously.

Han Xiao said impatiently, "Take a look for yourself."

Huang Jian stared intently for a while, surprised. "I thought aliens as burly as him would have… well, you know…"

*Thud!*

Unable to endure the humiliation, Kerk Lord simply used all his strength to smash his head against the steel plating, his movements clean and decisive, knocking himself unconscious.

…

A dozen minutes after the helicopter left, the Rylan forces finally arrived, locating the crashed ship in a state of shock, immediately sealing off the area.

"It's an alien ship!"

"Orders from above! It's the ship of our alien friends, the Godoran civilization! They're here specifically to help us investigate the espers!"

"The mountainside has been flattened. This wasn't a normal landing. The ship crashed! Check for survivors!"

"Report: no bodies found inside the ship. Signs of a struggle in the surrounding area!"

The Rylan troops collected clues and observed the battlefield, drawing preliminary conclusions.

"A total of two combatants. Both sides are Supers. One used unknown weaponry. The damage to these trees suggests they were melted by lasers. There are also signs of cutting, the breaks are smooth, and even the internal grain of the wood has been polished away. It's not an ordinary cold weapon. These combat traces contain a slightly elevated radiation index. This should be the Godoran."

"The other party used gunpowder weapons. The metallic composition of the casings is similar to ours, and there are some armor fragments in the ground. It should be a strong Aquamarine warrior. To identify the specific individual, we'll need to compare it against the database. Judging from the battlefield damage, this person's strength is definitely at the top of Aquamarine. There are a limited number of strong individuals within that range, so we should be able to confirm their identity soon."

"The final result of the battle appears to be that the Godoran was captured."

"Any other discoveries?"

At that moment, a researcher discovered that a piece of the ship's armor had been pried open, revealing its internal mechanisms. He peered in curiously, shining a flashlight around, and suddenly saw something unusual. "There seems to be a liquid inside the ship."

"Liquid?"

The crowd gathered around, shining their lights. A pool of thick, black liquid coated a pile of metal and wiring.

"What is this stuff?"

"Engine oil, maybe?" someone guessed uncertainly.

Just then, the officer suddenly said, "The higher-ups have ordered us to secretly transport the ship back to the country!"

The crash of the Godoran ship was a golden opportunity for the Aquamarine government. Rylan decided to study the ship's technology. Since their civilization was backward, they had to seize every opportunity for development. Only by taking risks could they hope to rise up and stage a comeback.

Of course, Rylan didn't dare offend the Godoran civilization, so they would notify them about the incident, but after a delay, either by playing dumb or pretending to actively search for the missing Godoran. They had plenty of excuses.

Rylan took the matter very seriously and resolved to issue a gag order to prevent any leaks. They would claim the ship for themselves.

As for the missing Godoran, Rylan decided to search for him in secret, without making any noise.

An engineering team arrived, dug out the ship, covered it with a light-blocking black cloth, and three transport helicopters were dispatched to carry the ship back to Rylan.