"That's Knowhere, Collector Tivan's territory…"
At the same time, Nebula, who had piloted the spaceship out of the asteroid shower's attack range, looked back and clearly saw the strange asteroid's full appearance.
Her tone carried a hint of surprise.
"What do you mean?" Mike, who was sitting in the boss's chair and rocking, noticed the hidden meaning in Nebula's words and prompted her.
"As far as I know, Collector Tivan of Knowhere, is Grandmaster's brother, who controls Sakaar…" Nebula explained, "As brothers, they should have a communication channel. We might be able to go directly to Sakaar through the Collector."
"Even if not, we might also be able to 'borrow' a quality spaceship from the Collector."
As Thanos' adopted daughter, Nebula knew many secrets of the universe.
This included the fact that The Collector and Grandmaster were brothers.
Such things were not known by ordinary cosmic marauders.
Of course, the relationship between The Collector and Grandmaster was actually different from what Nebula knew.
Although they were brothers, The Collector had once severely betrayed Grandmaster for his collection endeavors.
He even threatened Grandmaster's life.
Therefore, their relationship was actually not good; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say it was "mortal enemies."
Of course, the hatred between the two brothers was not widely publicized by either of them, remaining highly confidential. Even Thanos probably didn't know the inside story.
Thus, it was not surprising that Nebula misunderstood.
And the small spaceship Mike and the two others were in, although protected by Mike's magic net, had already endured several waves of asteroid bombardment before that.
The external hull was severely damaged, making long-distance interstellar travel difficult.
Nebula's suggestion to go to Knowhere was not superfluous.
"Collector Tivan, should have many good things in his collection. Then let's go take a look." Mike pondered for a moment and agreed to Nebula's suggestion.
Things worth collecting by The Collector often had their unique aspects, which would be very helpful for Mike to enhance his power.
And as the purplish-red energy wave disappeared, Nebula once again adjusted the spaceship's course, heading towards Knowhere.
It was at this moment that a massive spatial wormhole suddenly appeared above Knowhere. Subsequently, a huge black spaceship, accompanied by dozens of smaller ships, landed on the asteroid.
"Dark Aster, that's Ronan the Accuser's fleet…" Nebula's face showed hesitation as she said, "Their presence at Knowhere at this time must be under Thanos' command."
Ronan the Accuser was the leader of the Kree marauders. Due to his atrocious conduct, he had many conflicts with the Nova Corps of Xandar.
The two sides had experienced many interstellar wars, both suffering heavy losses.
Unbeknownst to them, they had become sworn enemies.
To retaliate against Xandar and the Nova Corps, Ronan had proactively sought out Thanos many years ago, becoming his subordinate in an attempt to gain the power to destroy Xandar.
As Thanos' adopted daughter, Nebula also knew many secrets.
For example, after joining Thanos' forces, Ronan's first mission was to investigate the situation on Earth.
It could be said that Thanos' cosmic population cleansing plan had already shown signs a long time ago.
Then, Ronan, who was tasked to go to Earth, happened to encounter Captain Marvel, who was traveling in outer space, outside Earth.
Subsequently, the fledgling Captain Marvel used her body, capable of traversing the void, to shatter Ronan's fleet.
As for Ronan himself, he was chased by Captain Marvel and fled across the universe for a long time afterward.
Of course, although Ronan seemed quite disheveled when chased by Captain Marvel, Nebula, who had seen him up close, knew that his strength was not weak at all.
Within Thanos' forces, only Thanos himself could suppress him.
Even the Black Order were a notch below Ronan.
Nebula, as a unique being, couldn't even defeat the Black Order, let alone Ronan.
Therefore, her fear was understandable.
"Are you scared?" Mike noticed Nebula slowing down the spaceship and asked.
"Ronan has Thanos' backing. To reduce unnecessary trouble, we might wait for his fleet to leave Knowhere before going there," Nebula replied, her body trembling slightly from stiffness.
Perhaps she was not only afraid of Ronan but also of Thanos behind him.
Habits formed over centuries might not be so easy to change.
"I don't even care about Thanos; why should Ronan make me avoid him?" Mike said discontentedly, "Don't worry, since you've joined my team, I will guarantee your safety."
Although Thanos' plan was grand, in Mike's view, he was a "coward."
Otherwise, why would Thanos wait until Ancient One and Odin died before daring to go to Earth?
Even after discovering Mike's equally formidable strength, he would only continuously evade.
Therefore, in summary, Mike did not need to avoid them; instead, Thanos and Ronan needed to avoid his sharpness.
"I understand." Looking at Mike's nonchalant and overbearing statement, Nebula finally remembered that he had a record of directly repelling Thanos.
Although he usually seemed lazy, he unexpectedly provided a sense of security at critical moments.
Nebula, sighing inwardly, pulled herself together again and piloted the spaceship closer to Knowhere.
However, the small spaceship, having suffered heavy damage, suddenly emitted a thick black smoke from its rear, and its speed became even slower than before.
Indeed, for long-distance interstellar travel, a high-performance spaceship was essential.
Just as the small spaceship was crawling along, Ronan, with his marauder legion, had intercepted Star-Lord and his group halfway.
Saying halfway wasn't quite accurate, as Star-Lord, Gamora, and others, who had walked quickly, had almost reached their spaceship.
As for Drax the Destroyer, who was left far behind, he was surrounded by Kree marauders.
"Was it you who sent me the location signal?" Ronan, feeling that the situation was under control, looked at the burly Drax with interest.
His strong build and simple-minded appearance indeed had the potential to do foolish things.
After all, the location of Knowhere was constantly changing; if no one sent a signal, Ronan would not have found it.
Furthermore, Ronan's mission from Thanos this time was to find the Orb.
He was just very unlucky; by the time he arrived at the unnamed planet, the Orb had already been taken by Star-Lord.
He had already prepared to go back and face Thanos' accusations, but now the situation had taken a turn.
Logically speaking, he should even thank Drax.
"Ronan the Accuser, you and Thanos destroyed my home and my people. Now I will kill you, and then go avenge myself on Thanos!!!" Meeting his enemy, Drax flexed his muscles, his eyes red, and he roared as he charged at Ronan.
"Oh? I've destroyed so many planets, I really don't remember where your home was—" Facing the enraged Drax, Ronan looked relaxed, even having time to pick his ear.
"It was Xandar! You bastard!!! Remember that!!!" Drax screamed, leaping up, his fists wildly smashing towards Ronan's face.
Then he was sent flying into a nearby yellow chemical pool by Ronan, who wielded a long-handled hammer, in just a few moves. After a few struggles, there was no more movement from him.
It was an extremely anticlimactic display.
As wild as his charge was, his defeat was just as miserable.
On the other side, Star-Lord and the others, who had reached their spaceship, finally understood why Ronan the Accuser had arrived so coincidentally.
They also learned about the hatred between Drax and Ronan.
However, while Drax's eagerness for revenge was understandable, his act of exposing everyone's whereabouts was not so easy to accept.
"The Orb cannot fall into Thanos' hands…" Gamora, knowing Ronan's cooperation with Thanos, her expression turned grim.
Although she was Thanos' adopted daughter, she actually did not agree with his insane plan.
To relieve the burden on the universe meant eliminating half of all living beings in the cosmos.
The number would be in the billions.
Gamora didn't consider herself a good person, but she couldn't bear to see so many innocent lives perish.
Before, she had no choice; now, she didn't want to continue aiding evil.
The way to resist was to prevent Thanos from obtaining the Power Stone within the Orb.
"Agreed." Star-Lord didn't know the connection between the Orb and Thanos, but as a fellow marauder, he knew that Knowhere was very dangerous now and they needed to evacuate quickly.
Rocket Raccoon, as a bounty hunter, had an even sharper sense of danger.
So, with a glance, the three decided to abandon the self-inflicted Drax and quickly escape from Knowhere.
Subsequently, taking advantage of the lull after Ronan's battle, the three quietly entered the spaceship.
"Hiss… hiss…"
With a loud jet sound and flames, Star-Lord and his crew's spaceship finally successfully lifted off.
Because they didn't have much money, Star-Lord's private spaceship was also a small one, and its appearance wasn't as good as Mike's.
"We're saved!" As the spaceship entered space, Star-Lord, the pilot, cheered excitedly.
Then his smile froze on his face. After all, although Drax the Destroyer hadn't been with them for long, he was still somewhat considered a companion.
Abandoning him and running away like this was a bit disloyal.
Next to him, Gamora and Rocket Raccoon also looked rather grim.
"Xandar, to ensure Thanos cannot obtain the Power Stone, I propose entrusting the Orb to the Nova Corps there." To ease the tension, Gamora began planning the Orb's destination.
As a good-aligned faction with powerful defenses, the Xandar Nova Corps fully met the requirements for protecting the Power Stone.
"Uh, excuse me, you mentioned Thanos, why does he want the Power Stone?" As a lower-tier Ravager, Star-Lord didn't have many sources of information.
Moreover, the Orb was worth four billion, such a large sum made Star-Lord a bit reluctant to part with it.
"It's a long story, let's just say this. If Thanos gets the Power Stone, many, many people will die..." Gamora briefly revealed Thanos's insane plan to Star-Lord.
Star-Lord listened, dumbfounded.
How could there be such an evil person in the universe?
Drax's hatred for him was not without reason.
"I understand, our next step is to go to Xandar." Star-Lord might be a bit greedy for small gains, but deep down, he was undoubtedly a good person.
As for whether the Nova Corps could protect the Power Stone, neither Star-Lord nor Gamora doubted it.
After all, before coming to Knowhere, both of them had just experienced Xandar's defensive capabilities.
Although the prison there still needed improvement, the capabilities of the Nova Corps guards were commendable.
"Um, I wanted to ask, has anyone seen Groot?" Just as Star-Lord and Gamora decided to pilot the spaceship to Xandar, Rocket Raccoon, who had been silent, suddenly spoke.
His face showed an anxious expression.
As bounty hunter partners, Rocket Raccoon and Groot, the tree-man, had a very close relationship, almost to the point of relying on each other for survival.
So, for Rocket Raccoon, "stranger" Drax could be abandoned, but "family" Groot could not.
"You mean that big tree-man? Wasn't he always following us?" Star-Lord asked in surprise.
With Groot's physique, it was hard not to notice him.
Star-Lord remembered that Groot was still by their side when everyone boarded the spaceship.
"No, Groot must have been left behind on Knowhere because of his slow movements. I'm going back for him!" The small spaceship's interior had limited space, it couldn't hide the tall tree-man Groot.
Since he wasn't here now, he was clearly left on Knowhere.
Soon, Star-Lord and Gamora also realized this.
"No, we must deal with the Power Stone first. Groot is just a tree, maybe no one will notice it..." Compared to half the life in the universe, Gamora clearly chose to abandon Groot.
After a moment of thought, Star-Lord also stood behind Gamora with a complicated expression, showing his stance.
Half the life in the universe, that was indeed terrifying.
Star-Lord expressed that he was truly frightened by Thanos's insane plan.
"Alright, if you're not going, I'll go myself. Open the hatch, I'm going down—" Rocket Raccoon clutched the stolen high-tech weapon, ready to fight to the death at any moment.
Then, the small spaceship carrying Star-Lord and the others was violently attacked, flipping over and throwing the three, including the Raccoon, off balance.
After the spaceship stabilized slightly, the three went to the cockpit and saw on the screen that Ronan's fleet had surrounded them.
"Looks like you won't be getting off for a while!" Star-Lord sat back in the pilot's seat and said seriously, "Hold on tight, we're going to break through!!!"
Meanwhile, by the chemical pool on Knowhere, Groot, the tree-man, used his tall stature to pull the unconscious Drax out of the pool.
A tree-man's mind was simple; since Drax was a "companion," he shouldn't be abandoned.
So, when Star-Lord and the others boarded the spaceship, Groot chose to stay behind.
Fortunately, Ronan's ultimate goal was to obtain the Orb, and upon seeing Star-Lord and the others escape with the Orb, he immediately led his subordinates in pursuit.
As for Groot, the tree-man, he was just a tree, and no one cared about him.
Groot, who had pulled out Drax, laid the Destroyer flat on the ground and called out a few times without any effect.
So, after some thought, Groot extended a finger, made it longer, and then unhesitatingly pierced Drax's chest.
"Ugh—!!! I..."
Stimulated, Drax suddenly spat out a lot of viscous yellow liquid, then sat up clutching his chest, "I'm not dead, where is Ronan??"
"G-r-u-t..." Groot replied.
Seeing his companion wake up, a happy smile appeared on his stiff, treelike face.
"Sorry, I don't understand what you're saying." Drax shook his head guilelessly.
However, he had received the other party's goodwill.
Then Drax had time to reflect on his previous actions; exposing everyone's location seemed to have indeed let down Star-Lord and the others.
He couldn't implicate other innocent people just because he had valid reasons for revenge.
Realizing that Star-Lord and the others were probably also dragged into danger because of him, Drax stood up and said to the tree-man, "Now we must find a spaceship to help Star-Lord and them."
"Groot—" Groot, the tree-man, nodded in agreement... Meanwhile, Mike and his two companions, traveling at a snail's pace in space, saw a large amount of artillery fire flashing above Knowhere from afar.
The battle was clearly very intense.
However, it was also very brief; soon, all the artillery fire in the sky disappeared.
Then the massive Dark Aster spaceship, leading its fleet, vanished into the circular wormhole space.
"We really need a better spaceship," Mike suddenly sighed.
Without a good spaceship in space, he couldn't even catch up to watch the excitement.
Of course, Mike could also fly directly closer to watch the show.
But again, who would want to endure the harsh environment of space and eat space dust when they could comfortably stay in a spaceship?
At this moment, amidst a pile of wreckage above Knowhere, Star-Lord sat dejectedly in his spaceship, which had half its hull destroyed.
The Orb was stolen, and his spaceship was also destroyed, which was a huge blow to Star-Lord.
"Star-Lord, pull yourself together, we have to find a way to save her..." Beside him, Rocket Raccoon, looking equally miserable, looked at Gamora, whose body was gradually freezing outside the spaceship, and reminded Star-Lord.
Their brief interaction made Rocket Raccoon dislike Gamora's "selfish" personality, but they had, after all, gone through hardships together.
Therefore, Rocket Raccoon couldn't stand by and watch her die in pain.
Star-Lord was roused from his depression and chose to send a distress signal to his adoptive father, Yondu.
Then, he resolutely put on an oxygen mask, jumped out of the spaceship, and "swam" towards Gamora, who was exposed in space.
Upon reaching Gamora, Star-Lord immediately took off his mask and put it on her.
Then he let his own body begin to frost over.
If he could, Star-Lord really wanted to apologize to his adoptive father in person for his "betrayal." But unfortunately, the oxygen-deprived and low-temperature outer space environment quickly made him lose consciousness.
Five minutes passed, and just as Star-Lord was about to turn into a frost sculpture, a small spaceship, spewing black smoke, slowly approached and stopped in front of him.
"That's Gamora, I never thought she'd have a day like this..." Inside the small spaceship, Nebula looked at the scene before her with a very complicated expression.
Five minutes had passed, and Gamora, wearing the oxygen mask, had already woken from her coma. Seeing Star-Lord, who had turned into a frost person beside her, she quickly understood what had happened.
Therefore, seeing a spaceship approaching, she was now clutching Star-Lord with one hand and frantically waving with the other.
She seemed to be calling for help, looking very disheveled.
"What do you say, should we save them?" Mike, understanding the tragic relationship between the sisters, left the decision to Nebula.
"Save..." Nebula spoke instinctively, then realized her attitude was a bit too gentle, so she gritted her teeth and added, "Gamora can't die this easily; she has to pay back every debt she owes me."
At this point, Nebula glanced at her own body's mechanical organs, and her eyes instantly turned gloomy.
This time, her hatred didn't even need to be acted.
It was genuine emotion.
"Understood." Seeing Nebula's conflicting expression, Mike gave a knowing smile.
Then he conjured magic whips with both hands and pulled the two drifting in space into the spaceship.
Logically, spaceships are usually designed with recovery bays for collecting outer space resources and also for personnel transport.
The operation is very simple and quick.
Unfortunately, Mike's small spaceship did not have this function.
Of course, Mike had magic, which could achieve the same effect.
The only difference was the comfort level.
Then came two thuds, "thump, thump," as Gamora and Star-Lord, now inside the spaceship, were slammed heavily onto the spaceship floor as gravity was restored.
"Cough!" Gamora almost coughed up blood from the heavy impact.
However, considering that Star-Lord was still in danger, she removed her mask and immediately pressed her face against his chest.
She seemed to be listening for a heartbeat.