The first time he clashed with Harry, Ego realized he had still underestimated him. Even without entering that terrifying, out-of-control state, Harry's strength was not something to look down on. The shock was so great that Ego almost thought Harry had discovered his true intentions and was about to make a move against him, giving him an instinctive urge to flee. Fortunately, he held himself back, but after that, he no longer dared to make even the slightest move, which was how Star-Lord's spaceship managed to remain intact.
Harry placed a hand on Ego's shoulder and said meaningfully, "Mr. Ego, the child has grown up. He has his own judgment now. I imagine you would also be willing to see Star-Lord go save his adoptive father, wouldn't you?"
Ego gave an awkward laugh. How could he possibly dare refuse? He forced a smile and said, "Of course. Although Yondu isn't a good man, he still did Peter a favor. Naturally, I wouldn't support Peter going to save him!"
Harry nodded, then ignored the fury burning in Ego's heart and turned his gaze to Star-Lord. "Let's go. I've heard Yondu's name before. He's a Ravager with principles, and he truly treated you well. You should save him."
Star-Lord said, "???"
"What do you mean, he treated me well? Harry, you've got it wrong, right? Ever since I betrayed him, he's wanted to kill me every second of every day!"
Harry did not answer. Instead, he opened a portal directly to the spaceship where Yondu was being held. Before leaving, however, Harry thought of something interesting and smiled at Star-Lord. "Star-Lord, do you want to stay on Ego's Planet and spend some quality time with your biological father? With me there, Yondu will be saved very quickly. You don't need to worry too much."
He wanted to see exactly what kind of place Yondu held in Star-Lord's heart. He also wanted to see whether Ego would act early if Star-Lord stayed on Ego's Planet. No matter which possibility unfolded, after several years of growth, Harry was confident that with his current strength, he could protect the Guardians of the Galaxy and keep them from dying at Ego's hands.
What surprised Harry was that, despite all of Star-Lord's earlier complaints about Yondu, he still chose to follow him and save Yondu personally. "No, I'm going with you. I'm going to save that guy Yondu, then mock him right to his face!"
Fine, fine. So this father and son were both tsunderes, huh? They clearly cared about each other, but neither of them ever said it out loud. Why bother making things so difficult?
Harry shook his head and stepped through the portal first. Soon, the Guardians of the Galaxy left, leaving Ego alone. After the portal closed, Ego could no longer suppress the rage in his heart and roared, "Damn you, Harry Potter!"
All of Ego's Planet shook violently. Several mountains at the edge of the horizon collapsed, and dust spread through the atmosphere of Ego's Planet.
In a remote stretch of deep space, the Ravager ship drifted like an old space whale. Compared with other ships, the Ravager vessel was older and far more battered, yet this very ship could still support the Ravagers on long-distance voyages and even survive dozens of consecutive jumps safely. All of this proved that beneath its shabby exterior, the Ravager ship still possessed performance specifications no worse than those of an ordinary combat vessel.
Today, the ship's outward appearance had not changed at all, but inside, everything had been turned upside down. The ship's leader, Yondu, had been captured by the Ravagers who had long been dissatisfied with him. They had successfully overthrown Yondu's foolish rule.
The moment Yondu was locked inside the energy cage, piercing laughter erupted throughout the cabin. The mutinous Ravagers crowded around the cage like scavengers that had smelled blood.
"Look at our boss!" Taserface grabbed the energy bars of the cage and shook them. Purple arcs of electricity leapt across Yondu's pale face, burning his skin. "The great Yondu, the man whose word used to be law, can't even command his own arrow now!"
Amid the laughter, someone flung out a chain, wrapped it around Yondu's neck, and yanked hard until his forehead slammed into the cage and split open. Seeing this, the crowd laughed even louder.
At that moment, Kraglin was curled up in a corner, his nails digging deep into his palms. He watched helplessly as Yondu and the subordinates still loyal to him were persecuted, but because of his own lack of ability, he did not dare move, much less go forward and help them. All he could do now was wait, wait for Star-Lord to arrive. Only then would there be a chance to save Yondu.
In front of Kraglin, the traitors who had once followed Yondu through life and death had all changed. A cybernetically armed Torglud was dismantling the Yaka Arrow transmitter, completely eliminating Yondu's last chance to resist. A female Ravager named Maya tore Yondu's treasured star charts into pieces and threw them into the air, letting the scraps fall like snow onto Yondu's bloodstained shoulders.
The most glaring sight was a newcomer named Vic, who was carving his own name into Yondu's former chair with a dagger. Wood chips flew as he turned toward the cage and flashed a chilling smile. "Starting today, this ship belongs to the true masters of the Ravagers."
The laughter rang out again, mixed with the clatter of chains, unbearably harsh. As the loser, Yondu gave no reaction at all. He only stared blankly ahead, letting blood drip down from his forehead.
After a while, once the traitors left out of boredom, Yondu curled up in the corner of the energy cage. Drops of blood from his forehead slid along his cheek and into his collar, while the salty, metallic taste spread over his tongue. He stared at the control fin Taserface had casually thrown onto the floor. Its metallic edge gleamed coldly beneath the red emergency lights, and he suddenly remembered the awe in the eyes of the old Ravagers when he first wore it.
Now those looks had long since turned into the twisted mockery on the traitors' faces.
"I should've cut off those bastards' heads a long time ago," he cursed inwardly, his nails digging deep into his palm. But the anger was soon crushed under something heavier. Was it the bitterness of failure, or regret over his own softness?
He remembered the greed that had flashed in Taserface's eyes when he refused to hand Peter over to Ego. He remembered the jealous looks those subordinates gave Star-Lord's back every time they divided the loot. So the seeds of betrayal had been planted long ago, in his indulgence toward Star-Lord.
The sound of something heavy being dragged came from outside the cage. Yondu's body instinctively tensed, but when he saw it was Kraglin, he relaxed. That small Ravager who was always following behind him was secretly stuffing a note into the cage, his eyes filled with guilt and unease.
"Don't be stupid," Yondu warned in a low voice, his voice rough as sandpaper. "They'll kill you."
But Kraglin stubbornly shook his head and pushed the note into his fingers.
In the darkness, Yondu rubbed the bloodstained note between his fingers, and his thoughts drifted to Peter. That stubborn brat was probably still angry over being "abandoned" by him, right? Would he really come to save him?
No, he shouldn't come. Even if he had now become Harry Potter's Lender, he still would not be a match for thousands of Ravagers. If he came now, those traitors would tear him apart! He should just stay safe and keep being a Guardian of the Galaxy. He should not get tangled up with a failure like Yondu again.
Yondu suddenly laughed. The sound was especially abrupt in the empty cabin. If this was his ending, at least Peter was still alive, still charging recklessly through the universe with that shameless, fearless attitude Yondu had taught him.
That was the best possible outcome. As for himself, after being abandoned by the Ravagers, there was no escaping death.
Just as Yondu quietly waited for death to descend, he suddenly froze. In front of him, scattered sparks slowly splashed through the air, and in the blink of an eye, they became a golden portal. Immediately afterward, several familiar figures walked out of the portal. The person in front was the powerful figure whose identity had spread throughout the universe, Harry Potter. Behind him were none other than the Guardians of the Galaxy, led by Star-Lord.
Star-Lord had really come to save him!
"Well, well, if it isn't old Blue Popsicle." Star-Lord curled his lip in a cold smile, though his fingers trembled as he reached for the gun at his waist. "What happened? You get captured while role-playing? Decided to switch careers and become the saddest prisoner in galactic history?"
Looking at Yondu's miserable state, Star-Lord could no longer suppress the killing intent in his heart. He was going to kill those traitors. They had actually tortured Yondu into this condition!
Yondu first revealed a relieved smile. As the person who knew Star-Lord best, how could he not know what Star-Lord was truly thinking? Star-Lord still cared about him as a father, even if he had never been a competent one.
After observing the lineup in front of him, Yondu instantly understood that there was no need for him to worry anymore. With the Sorcerer Supreme, Harry Potter, here, how could Taserface and his gang of thugs possibly be a match for them?
Still, to make absolutely sure, Yondu asked, "Heh, the kid really has grown up. Never thought I'd see the day I'd be saved by you. But are you really a match for those damn traitors? You know there are thousands of them!"
Star-Lord shut down the energy cage and released Yondu, then said confidently, "So what? Harry's here. Forget a few thousand Ravagers, even tens of thousands wouldn't be a match for him! Come on, let's deal with them as fast as possible."
Although Yondu did not entirely trust this unreliable kid Star-Lord, he did have great confidence in Harry Potter, whose name was renowned throughout the universe. So, after Rocket Raccoon helped him reinstall the signal transmitter and repair the Yaka Arrow, the group headed straight for the Ravager ship's cockpit.
At that moment, the traitors also discovered Harry and the others. At the same time, they recognized Harry among the group. The instant they saw Harry, many of the traitors were terrified. Some of the more cowardly ones even shouted in panic, "Oh no, that's Harry Potter! How could we possibly be a match for Harry Potter? Run! Everyone, run! Only then do we have a chance to survive!"
As soon as he finished speaking, there was a bang, and the Ravager's head burst apart.
Taserface lowered the still-smoking blaster in his hand, looked around, and roared, "Damn coward! There are only a few of them, and we have several thousand people. We've also completely taken control of this ship's defense systems. Harry Potter is only strong in the rumors. Look at him. He's still flesh and blood. There's nothing special about him. Rumors are just rumors. He definitely isn't as powerful as they say! Maybe we can kill Harry Potter and step on his reputation to become famous throughout the universe. By then, endless wealth and glory will be waiting for us!"
At that moment, a Ravager suddenly pointed at the surveillance panel and stammered, "B-Boss, look. Harry Potter seems to be looking at you!"
Taserface froze, then turned toward the surveillance panel. On the screen, a handsome young man happened to pass by, and that man seemed to be looking straight through the surveillance camera and the data lines behind it, directly meeting his eyes.
It had to be said that Taserface was frightened. Although he did not know how Harry Potter had done it, that alone was enough to prove Harry Potter was definitely no ordinary man. Combined with the rumors spreading through the universe, Harry Potter might truly be that powerful.
Even so, Taserface maintained a calm appearance. He might look stupid, but as someone who had become the leader of so many vicious Ravagers, he was also a smart man. How could he not know that a great reputation was rarely empty?
The reason he had spoken that way was merely to trick these shrewd subordinates into mustering the courage to fight Harry Potter instead of fleeing immediately. If their morale collapsed, they would never have any chance against Harry Potter. But if he could fool them into fighting Harry Potter, then maybe he, Taserface, could take advantage of the chaos and escape in a lifeboat!
So Taserface turned back to the Ravagers and roared, "It's just some simple hacking trick, nothing worth mentioning! This proves Harry Potter is only an ordinary Earthling. Come on, let's grab our blasters and blow Harry Potter's damn head off! Glory belongs to us!"
The remaining Ravagers looked at one another. In the end, greed overcame reason, and they all roared, "Kill Harry Potter! Glory belongs to us!"
Under Taserface's orders, the Ravagers surged out in a flood, advancing toward Harry's group from every passageway.
Harry withdrew his gaze from the camera, and the observational runes in his eyes hid themselves once more. He said to the others, "They're coming. The traitors."
Although Star-Lord had acted very arrogant, he was still nervous when facing thousands of armed Ravagers. When he heard that the Ravagers were about to arrive, he looked at Harry expectantly and said, "Haha, Harry, then we'll be counting on you next!"
Harry shook his head and refused. "No. Unless absolutely necessary, I won't make a move. The next step is for you to defeat all the Ravagers yourselves."
Star-Lord said, "???"
"There's no way we can beat them!" Star-Lord became anxious.
"No. With your current strength, you should be able to defeat these Ravagers. Previously, you seemed to rely too much on technology and subconsciously gave up using the magic I lent you, so you have been completely unable to display your true level as Lenders. So from now on, stop using blasters and other firearms. Attack with magic. These Ravagers definitely won't be your match!"
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