Suddenly, Quill's other hand was pulled up. It turned out to be Gamora—she was trying to share part of the energy burden with her own body.
The very next second, Gamora's hand was grabbed again—this time by Drax.
"Oh shit."
"What are you looking at me for?"
"Do you want me to hold your disgusting little hand too?"
"I'm so small, I won't be useful. Please spare me…"
"Fuck, I lost."
Rocket, who claimed he was completely unwilling, still joined the group of his own accord.
Several people cried out in pain almost immediately. Even so, the effect was remarkable: the purple energy of the Power Stone miraculously melted the fragments of the frozen battleship fortress the moment it touched them.
However, while this disaster was being countered, another disaster was unfolding at the same time.
Under normal circumstances, it should have been absolutely impossible for their bodies to endure it.
But Blaine knew that although Quill was an Earthling, his background was far from ordinary. Quill's biological father was a self-aware planet who called himself a Celestial.
One could imagine what kind of body someone who could claim to be a Celestial would possess. As the offspring of such a being, Quill's physical structure was naturally abnormal. Being able to barely withstand the Power Stone was, in a sense, just barely reasonable.
Still, in Blaine's view, the energy of the Power Stone was unimaginably vast. Using Quill's body as a medium merely stimulated the Stone's power—it was complete nonsense to think it could actually be controlled.
As a result, while the Power Stone's energy dissolved the fragments continuously falling from the sky, it also spilled outward in all directions.
Without Quill realizing it, several nearby buildings exploded one after another. Worse still, the affected area continued to expand. If this wasn't stopped, then even if all the fragments were eliminated, more than half of Xandar would still be devastated by the Power Stone's energy.
Perhaps Quill had meant well and wanted to do everything he could to help Xandar, but he had gravely underestimated the Power Stone's power.
As everyone scrambled in chaos, Blaine unconsciously held his breath, his gaze locked on the depths of the purple radiance.
For a fleeting moment, Blaine even considered using his Copy Eyes to analyze the magical composition of the Power Stone. But such an unrealistic idea was something to think about at most.
Suddenly, a hint of green entered Blaine's field of vision. Then more green followed—more and more—showing signs of suppressing the purple brilliance of the Power Stone.
Before long, the green completely enveloped the purple. At the same time, the bodies of Quill, Rocket, Drax, and Gamora were all wrapped within it.
Without needing to think, Blaine understood what was happening. Needless to say, the green belonged to Groot, who had been watching from the sidelines.
Seeing his companions risking their lives to protect Xandar despite being in unbearable pain, how could Groot stay out of it? Since they were willing to gamble with their lives, Groot would do the same.
Groot pushed his strength to its limit, causing his limbs to grow wildly. Thick vines rapidly spread out, wrapping Quill and the others in layer after layer, inside and out. This significantly weakened the Power Stone's energy.
The massive sphere formed by the green vines continued to expand. Each time the Power Stone eroded part of it, Groot grew more to compensate, unexpectedly maintaining a fragile balance with the Stone's power.
However, as a being of wood, Groot was still bound by the laws of natural growth. Violating those laws meant paying a price—and that price could very well be his life.
Three minutes later, everything returned to normal.
Those three minutes were nothing more than an instant to Blaine, but to Quill and Groot, they felt like an entire century.
At last, no more purple light leaked from the massive green sphere. The fragments in the sky stopped falling, and Groot's body withered almost instantly.
Layers of dead branches collapsed to the ground, revealing the bodies of Quill, Rocket, Gamora, and Drax inside. All of them had already lost consciousness.
Blaine looked over carefully. Deep within the dead branches and leaves, an extremely faint green light flickered like a candle in the wind, blinking weakly, as if it might go out at any moment.
The source of the glow was a single branch. Blaine guessed it might be Groot's incarnation—or perhaps Groot's child. Either way, Groot's original body was finished.
Leaving them there, Blaine once again entered the female president's command hall.
No matter the outcome, Blaine had completed the mission according to her requirements. Although the Power Stone was still in Quill's possession, absolute authority remained in the hands of the female president.
Whether the Stone would be handed over or not was ultimately up to the employer. If a mission couldn't be completed as agreed, Blaine would simply take the Power Stone and leave, ignoring the employer's opinion entirely.
Once a mission was completed, the employer was required to distribute the bounty to Blaine within the specified time. This was an unchanging rule Blaine had followed throughout his career.
"Mission accomplished," he said calmly.
"According to the agreement, I can take the Power Stone."
Across from him, the female president's expression darkened, as if Blaine had done something unforgivable.
"No!"
"The Power Stone can't be given to you—"
"Oh?" Blaine interrupted.
"You're backing out?"
His tone grew noticeably colder.
At first, Blaine thought the female president might try to fabricate some excuse or deceive him with empty words.
He hadn't expected her to be so direct—trying to play the part of a freeloading white wolf right in front of him. This was a blatant attempt to disregard him entirely.
"How much do you think your planet can withstand me?" Blaine asked quietly.
"Or are you afraid that your fears will become reality?"
Blaine lifted his head sharply, releasing an invisible pressure from within. The instruments throughout the command hall crackled violently before failing all at once.
"I know you're strong," the female president said, her legs trembling as she hastily braced herself against a nearby pillar.
"But you also know the energy of the Power Stone."
"It shouldn't belong to any one person."
"What exactly do you want?" she continued, forcing herself to speak.
"I advise you to think carefully before acting."
"I doubt you want to know what happens to those who break the rules."
The female president spoke as if she were standing on moral high ground, but inwardly, she was full of resentment toward Blaine.
She hated that he had left so many fragments behind after defeating Ronan, nearly destroying Xandar in the process. She blamed him for acting without regard for the consequences—rigid, careless, and unwilling to clean up the trouble he left behind.
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