Marvel: The other side of the double-passing door is Devouring the Stars

Chapter 449 A violent explosion!
"Due north, five kilometers away," Thor reported finally. "The last one is near the military base; they're probably trying to sabotage the weapons depot!"

"Split up!" Rowan ordered. "Hong, you go northwest. Thor, you go due north. I'll go southeast. Remember, try to capture them alive; we need to get more information from them!"

“Understood!” Hong and Thor replied in unison.

The three took off simultaneously, each heading towards their respective targets. After they departed, the ground rescue captain shouted into the communicator: "The three masters have locked onto their targets and are moving separately! All units, pay attention and coordinate with the masters' actions!"

Rowan flew southeast at top speed. The twelve-kilometer distance took him less than a minute. Soon, he saw his target—Qinglan City's main energy center.

This is a large-scale nuclear fusion power plant that provides energy to the entire city of Qinglan. If it were destroyed, not only would the entire city be plunged into darkness, but the explosion of the nuclear fusion reactor would also cause a massive catastrophe.

The power plant was already on fire, and the outer protective facilities were completely destroyed. Two Kara men were outside the main control room, trying to force their way through the protective door.

"Stop!" Rowan descended from the sky, the laws of storm transforming into two chains that attacked the two Kara simultaneously.

The two Kara reacted quickly, immediately scattering to avoid the attack. As they dodged, they activated their cloaking devices, attempting to disappear again.

But Rowan was prepared. His mental energy was firmly locked onto the two of them, and even though they were invisible, they were still clearly visible to him.

"Storm Domain!" Rowan unleashed his domain, engulfing a space within a one-kilometer radius in a storm.

In this realm, Rowan reigned supreme. The two Kara immediately felt an immense pressure; their speed was drastically restricted, making it as difficult as moving through a viscous liquid.

"Damn it, this Earthling is too strong!" one of the Kara people exclaimed in horror.

“According to the plan, we’ll escape separately,” the other calmly directed. “He’s only one person; there’s no way he can catch both of us at the same time.”

The two immediately fled in opposite directions. This was a clever strategy, and under normal circumstances, it would indeed allow one of them to escape.

But they underestimated Rowan.

"Who said I can only handle one?" Rowan sneered.

He waved his right hand, and a storm chain chased after the Kara on his right. At the same time, he raised his left hand, and another storm chain chased after the Kara on his left. This was an advanced technique of controlling two targets simultaneously, requiring extremely strong mental power and mastery of the laws.

The two chains moved with incredible speed, catching up with their target in an instant. The two Kara were caught almost simultaneously, letting out terrified screams.

"How is this possible?!" They stared at Rowan in disbelief.

Rowan didn't answer, but simply tightened both chains simultaneously, pulling the two Kara men back in front of him. They were slammed to the ground, their equipment shattered.

"Tell me honestly, how many people were in this operation?" Rowan asked condescendingly.

The two Kara men looked at each other, neither of them speaking.

"Not going to talk?" Rowan intensified the pressure of the storm, and the two Kara immediately felt their bones creaking, as if they would be crushed at any moment.

"I'll talk! I'll talk!" one of them finally couldn't take it anymore. "There are seven of us this time, not five!"

"Seven?" Rowan frowned. "Where are the other two?"

“I don’t know,” the Kara man said painfully. “Our mission was to split up and each carry out our own sabotage objectives. I really don’t know where the others are!”

Rowan carefully observed the other person's expression and judged that he was probably not lying.

Just then, Hong's voice came through the communicator: "Luo Wen, I've taken care of one here. That guy poisoned the water treatment plant, but luckily I arrived in time and used the power of laws to purify the water."

“Very good,” Rowan replied. “I’ve caught two. They say there are seven attackers in total, not five.”

"What? There are two more?" Hong's voice turned serious.

“We must find them as soon as possible,” Rowan said.

At that moment, Thor also reported via communicator: "My target here has been killed. That guy detonated the armory, causing a massive explosion. I tried to capture him alive, but he'd rather commit suicide than surrender."

“Understood,” Rowan said. “There are still two Kara people missing, and we must…”

Before he could finish speaking, a piercing alarm suddenly came from the communicator.

"Emergency!" General Wang Hu's voice rang out urgently, "Qinglan Central Hospital has been attacked! There are over three thousand wounded and medical staff inside, and the situation is extremely critical!"

"A hospital?" Rowan's expression changed drastically. "That's where the most wounded were concentrated in this attack!"

“That’s right,” Wang Hu’s voice was filled with despair, “The attackers were clever; they knew we would send the wounded to the hospital, so they deliberately waited until now to strike. The hospital is now half destroyed, and the death toll is still rising!”

"Damn it!" Rowan cursed, "These beasts!"

“I’ll be there right away,” Hong’s voice came through.

“I’m going too,” Thor said.

“No,” Rowan stopped them, “there’s still one Kara missing. You need to continue the search. I’ll handle things at the hospital!”

After saying that, Rowan used the power of the storm to fix the two prisoners to the ground, ensuring they could not escape, and then immediately flew towards the city center hospital.

The city center hospital was about five kilometers from the energy center, and Rowan arrived in just thirty seconds by flying at full speed. The scene before him enraged him.

The hospital's main building had completely collapsed, burying countless wounded beneath the rubble. Surviving medical staff were desperately trying to save lives, but with little success. Even more terrifying, a Kara man dressed in black combat gear stood atop the ruins, his energy cannon aimed at the few remaining buildings of the hospital.

"Stop!" Rowan roared, and a thick spear of storm descended from the sky, aimed directly at the Kara man.

The Kara reacted swiftly, dodging the attack in a flash. The Storm Spear struck the ruins, blasting a deep crater.

“It’s you troublemakers again,” the Kara man said coldly. “But it doesn’t matter, my mission is complete. The people in this hospital will pay the price for the humans who invaded the Kara system!”

"What invasion?" Rowan roared. "We've never invaded the Kara system!"

"Stop pretending!" the Kara roared angrily. "Three years ago, your Earth probe entered our star system and stole our star map data! That was a serious violation of our sovereignty!" Rowan was stunned. He remembered that such an incident had indeed occurred. Three years ago, the Earth Federation launched a deep-space probe to explore the universe. That probe may have inadvertently entered the Kara star system and collected some data.

However, that was merely scientific exploration, not an act of aggression. The Kara civilization, however, saw it as a harbinger of invasion and thus decided to strike first.

“It’s a misunderstanding,” Rowan tried to explain. “It was just a scientific probe; we meant no harm.”

“I don’t want to hear your explanation,” the Kara interrupted him. “From the moment your probes entered our galaxy, war was inevitable.”

After saying that, he suddenly detonated the device on his body.

"No!" Rowan shouted, immediately deploying the Storm Shield in an attempt to contain the explosion to a minimum.

boom!
A violent explosion erupted on the ruins, but under Rowan's full control, the power of the explosion was confined to a relatively small area and did not affect the surrounding buildings.

"Damn it," Rowan said, watching the explosion, his heart filled with anger and helplessness. "Another self-destruction. These guys have no fear of death."

Just then, Hong's voice came through the communicator: "Rowan, I've found the last one! He's in the city hall, sabotaging the communications facilities!"

“I’ll be right there!” Rowan said.

But just as he was about to set off, he suddenly sensed a powerful energy fluctuation coming from the direction of the city government. It was the aura of a peak stellar-level being, far surpassing any of the Kara people they had encountered before.

"This is bad!" Rowan's expression changed drastically. "Hong is in danger!"

He immediately flew at full speed towards the city government. En route, he shouted through the communicator, "Hong! Retreat! That enemy is far stronger than you anticipated!"

But only static could be heard from the communicator, clearly indicating that Hong's communications had been jammed.

Rowan's heart leaped into his throat. The city government was ten kilometers from the hospital, a journey that would take over forty seconds even at full speed. In those forty seconds, Hong was alone against a formidable enemy at the peak of the stellar level, a situation of extreme danger.

“Hold on, Hong,” Rowan prayed silently, “I’ll be there soon!”

He pushed his speed to the limit, transforming into a white streak that pierced the night sky, speeding towards the city government.

Three minutes ago.

Hong flew towards the city government building at an extremely fast speed. In his mental perception, the energy fluctuations of the Kara were very obvious, and it was wreaking havoc in the communications center on the top floor of the building.

"We must stop him as soon as possible," Hong thought to himself. "If the communication system is completely destroyed, the entire Qinglan City will be cut off from the outside world, and the rescue work will be severely affected."

The city government building is a landmark of Qinglan City, standing eighty stories high, with the city's most important communications hub located on the top floor. As Hong landed on the roof, he immediately saw the Kara people destroying the equipment.

This Kara man was completely different from the ones they had encountered before. He was tall, over two meters high, with bulging muscles and deep blue skin with golden markings. Most striking were his eyes, which shone with a scarlet light, filled with violence and murderous intent.

“Peak of the Stellar level,” Hong instantly assessed his opponent’s strength, his heart sinking. “This opponent is much stronger than I expected.”

But he did not back down. As a strong person, even when facing an enemy stronger than himself, he could not retreat. More importantly, if he retreated, more people in the city would lose their lives.

"Stop!" Hong shouted, as golden power of law flowed across his body, forming a magnificent set of golden armor.

The Kara man stopped what he was doing and slowly turned around. When he saw Hong, a cruel smile appeared on his face.

“Another Earthling has come to his death,” his voice was low and hoarse, as if it came from the depths of his throat, “but you are stronger than those ants before, at least reaching the sixth level of the stellar level. But unfortunately, in front of me, you are still just an ant.”

"Enough with the nonsense," Hong said, adopting a fighting stance. "State your names."

"I am Sakaar, the vice-captain of the Seventh Reconnaissance Team of Kara," the Kara man said proudly. "Peak of the ninth tier of the Stellar level, just one step away from breaking through to the Cosmic level. Today, I will show you the power of a true strongman!"

Before he finished speaking, Sakar's figure suddenly disappeared and reappeared in front of Hong the next second, punching Hong in the face.

"So fast!" Hong was surprised, but reacted quickly and immediately dodged to the side.

The force of the punch grazed his cheek, leaving a white vacuum trail in the air. Hong felt a sharp pain on his cheek, the sensation of being cut by the force of the punch.

"The mere force of his punches could injure me," Hong thought, becoming even more wary. "This enemy's strength is indeed above mine."

But Hong did not panic. He quickly counterattacked, his golden power of law condensing into a long sword, which he slashed at Sakar's waist.

Sakar sneered and raised his hand to block. The golden longsword struck his arm, making a metallic clanging sound, but only leaving a shallow white mark.

"What?!" Hong exclaimed in shock, "His body is as hard as top-grade alloy!"

“Earthling, your attacks are too weak,” Sakaar mocked. “Let me teach you what a real attack is.”

Blue flames suddenly erupted from his hands, a manifestation of the unique energy of the Kara people. The flames contained terrifying destructive power, and the temperature was so high that even the surrounding air was distorted.

"Kara Arcane - Heavenly Fire Palm!" Sakaar clapped his hands together, and countless fiery palm prints surged forth.

Hong immediately unleashed his Golden Domain, a golden barrier forming in front of him. A fiery palm print slammed into the barrier, unleashing a violent explosion.

Boom boom boom!
The continuous explosions shook the entire rooftop. Although Hong's golden barrier blocked most of the attacks, several fiery palm prints still pierced through the defense and struck his body.

"Ugh!" Hong grunted, taking a few steps back. Several charred marks appeared on his armor; although he wasn't seriously injured, it proved the power of the attack.

"Not bad, you managed to withstand thirty percent of my power in an attack," Sakaar said approvingly. "It seems there are still some decent martial artists on Earth. However, I'll be serious from now on."

His aura suddenly surged, the blue flames burned even brighter, and he seemed to transform into a god of fire. A powerful pressure spread outwards, causing the equipment on the rooftop to crack under its force.

Hong's expression was grave. He knew the battle to come would be even more difficult. But just then, he suddenly sensed many signs of life downstairs.

"Oh no!" Hong exclaimed in alarm. "There are still many staff members and evacuees inside the city hall!"

(End of this chapter)