Chapter 2042: Bird Hunting

Shang Xia was able to track the rank seven bird emperor’s movements across the sea of stars by intercepting its aura. Naturally, the rank seven bird emperor could also sense that danger was drawing near from behind.

Shang Xia expected as much. In truth, the reason the Blizzard Piratess’ fleet had to chase all the way beyond the Chaotic Star Sea, deep into the void, was because the rank seven bird emperor had been trying to use the countless dangers lurking in the starry expanse to force Shang Xia to give up, thereby completely shaking off pursuit.

Yet Shang Xia clearly wasn’t going to give up easily. Initially, it was just to fulfill his promise to the Great Ape King. But as more and more content appeared clearly on the surface of the Crimson Soul Tablet, the reasons to hunt down the rank seven bird emperor continued to multiply.

When the rank seven bird emperor realized that merely plunging deeper into the void could not shake its pursuers, it began deliberately leading the Blizzard Piratess’ fleet toward danger.

The fleet’s encounters with Beast Warriors and Star Beast assaults were because the rank seven bird emperor led them into the range of attack.

It was only thanks to Yuan Qiuyuan, a rank six Grand Stargazer, guiding the fleet, that they managed to avoid even more perils along the way.

Otherwise, the Blizzard Piratess’ fleet would have been in an even worse state. Even the 10-odd medium Star Ships they still had left might not have survived.

After that, both sides engaged in a battle of wits across distances in the void. Unfortunately for the rank seven bird emperor, it failed to shake off the pursuing fleet.

In fact, if they hadn’t been concerned over excessive casualties among the Blizzard Pirates, getting Yuan Qiuyuan to avoid so many dangerous regions, Shang Xia and the others might have caught up a long time ago.

Even so, under such relentless pursuit, the rank seven bird emperor, despite its formidable body and extraordinary gifts, had already consumed a vast amount of energy in the endless void.

In such a situation, if it continued deeper out into the void, the rank seven bird emperor might be devoured by the increasingly perilous void even before Shang Xia’s group arrived.

Rather than keep fleeing and risk perishing to unknown dangers everywhere, it would be better to turn back and fight its hunters in a decisive battle. At least then, there was a chance of survival.

Of course, even though it had resolved to fight, the rank seven bird emperor would not simply rush straight into them.

As a beast emperor, its intelligence had long since awakened. Over hundreds of years of cultivation, its wisdom had only grown deeper. Naturally, it understood the principles of conserving strength and adapting to circumstances.

Having decided to fight, it first scattered its aura as widely as possible, ensuring that its pursuers could not easily pinpoint its exact position.

The reason it had not used the method earlier to shake pursuit was that the technique had a limited range.

Once outside that range, compared to its own grand and overwhelming aura, the scattered decoys were insignificant. They were basically tiny sparkling stars when the bright moon was nearby. But if the rank seven bird emperor itself remained in the area, it could confuse its pursuers’ judgment and even lay an ambush to strike them before they knew what had happened.

Indeed, events unfolded just as it had planned. On the Spirit Ark, though the Great Ape King could sense that the rank seven bird emperor was close, its scattered aura disrupted their ability to detect its presence.

In such a situation, the True Immortals on board turned their gaze to Shang Xia. To their shock, they noticed that Shang Xia also looked somewhat absentminded.

The others did not know what to do, but Chu Jia stepped forward and called out loudly, “HEY! Everyone’s waiting for you to decide what we should do now!”

Snapping back to reality, Shang Xia saw the strange looks on their faces, and a chuckle left his lips. “We’ll rush over. There is no change in plans.”

Turning to the Giant Ape King, he continued, “You will be the main combatant on our side. Everyone will give you their full support, but I will not act.”

Hearing his decision, every True Immortal on board, including the Giant Ape King, stared at Shang Xia in shock.

Chu Jia immediately protested, “That rank seven bird emperor even managed to escape from you! Even if all of us join forces, how are we supposed to stop it?”

The smile on Shang Xia’s face became a little more pronounced. “Do you think the bird emperor knows that an entire fleet is hunting it down?”

Those on board were stunned by the sudden realization. None of them were fools. With Shang Xia’s reminder, they instantly thought of many ways to deal with the rank seven bird emperor.

Of course, Chu Jia still grumbled with a slight sense of reluctance, “If we deal with the bird emperor... What are you going to do?”

Obviously, she was the only person present capable of speaking that way to Shang Xia.

Shang Xia chuckled, “I’ll cut off its route of retreat. At the same time, I want to see if those other bastards hiding in the dark will dare to jump out and cause trouble.”

...

In the twisted, perilous void, a large Star Ship was advancing at a steady but not very fast pace. Ahead lay a vast, multi-colored nebula spanning across their path.

Seemingly able to sense that the strange nebula concealed danger, as it drew closer, it slowed further and further.

At the same time, their Star Ship’s grand formation began operating at full power. A surging aura rose from within, seemingly meant to deter any threat hiding inside.

After making their preparations, the Star Ship resumed its original speed and sailed into the nebula.

The second they entered the cloud, a high-pitched screech echoed, causing the vast nebula that stretched thousands, or tens of thousands of miles started to churn like boiling water.

The Star Ship that could vaguely be seen from the outside disappeared instantly into the nebula. The next second, lightning and fire started to roll within as flashes of light that pierced through the dark void appeared from time to time.

Just as the lights within started to light up the strange celestial cloud, a dozen or so strangely shaped large and medium Star Ships appeared where the large Star Ship had entered earlier.