Chapter 130 Backup Hideout

"Ouch, that hurts!"

The moment Ning Shuyin touched the edge of the vortex, she was torn apart by its energy. Her body felt as if it were being scraped by a sharp knife, and she couldn't help but cry out in pain.

Forcing their way in would likely result in them being trapped and dying here along with Caesar.

She carefully observed the movement of the vortex.

A minute passed.

Ten minutes passed...an hour passed.

She finally discovered that the vortex was not invincible. Its energy had a tiny intermittent period, with extremely brief breaks occurring approximately every fifteen minutes.

That was the only chance.

She adjusted her posture and calculated the time.

In the brief pause of the vortex's energy, she deftly slipped inside.

The powerful inertia propelled her directly in front of Caesar.

"It's you." He sensed the person who had arrived amidst the complex energy.

"I'll take you out."

She reached out and grabbed Caesar's wrist, preparing to activate the combat suit's thrusters to pull him out.

But the window of opportunity is far too short.

The moment she exerted her strength, the vortex began to spin again.

Ning Shuyin was instantly thrown by the enormous centrifugal force. She clung tightly to Caesar's neck and began to spin around him.

Why is it turning again? She was on the verge of tears.

The vortex energy struck her. Intense pain surged again, even more intense than before.

Ning Shuyin felt waves of pain washing over her, as if her bones were about to be shattered.

"Come to the middle, it doesn't hurt here." Caesar suddenly pulled her into the center of the vortex.

This is an area less than half a meter in diameter. It's like the eye of a typhoon.

The surrounding area was filled with raging, violent energy flows, but here it was calm and peaceful.

only……

This "safe zone" is far too small.

In order to avoid being affected by the surrounding energy waves, the two of them had to stick close together.

Ning Shuyin was nestled in Caesar's arms, her cheeks forced to be buried in his broad chest.

Her hand was still gripping his wrist.

His arms were firmly wrapped around her waist, holding her in front of him. His waist was pressed against her upper abdomen. His legs were pressed against her legs.

This is an absolutely safe haven. But it is also an ambiguous embrace.

Ning Shuyin wanted to try to create some distance. Even just one centimeter would be helpful.

But as soon as she managed to break free a little, Caesar pressed her back down hard.

"Don't move." Caesar's warning came from above her head. "If you don't want to feel pain, stay put."

Ning Shuyin dared not move again. She could only feel the steady heartbeat coming from her chest and quietly wait for the next gap in the vortex energy.

"Hey, little guy," Caesar said, "you just barged in like that? Aren't you afraid of dying?"

When he looked down, he could see her reddened earlobes and a small section of her snow-white neck.

He had been trapped here for days and nights, unable to move. His consciousness oscillated between lucidity and confusion, his body was already numb, and he almost thought this was his final resting place.

He had simply closed his eyes.

However, just as her consciousness was about to fade away, she appeared.

She suddenly descended from nothingness, like a goddess descending from the heavens, and took his hand.

"I'm scared," Ning Shuyin's muffled voice came from his arms, "but I can't ignore the safety of the alliance."

A hint of disappointment flickered in Caesar's eyes: "I thought you came to save my friend."

Fifteen minutes have passed, the countdown is over.

Ning Shuyin clearly sensed that the energy in the vortex had been interrupted.

“Now, come with me.” She gripped Caesar’s shoulders tightly and activated the thrusters of her combat suit.

This time, taking advantage of the powerful thrusters and the energy gaps, they successfully broke out of that deadly energy vortex.

But the effect of the particle in Caesar's hand did not disappear.

The vortex actually chased after the two of them.

"Lead the way quickly." Caesar grabbed Ning Shuyin's wrist and pulled her in front of him, using his back to block the surging energy waves behind him.

"Follow me!" She turned the thrusters and mobility aids to maximum, pulled Caesar along, and sped through the void.

The two were like they were playing a high-speed Pac-Man game.

Ning Shuyin led the way, skillfully maneuvering around unseen walls and corners from the navigator's perspective.

Caesar was behind her.

His tall figure completely enveloped Ning Shuyin.

The energy vortex behind him relentlessly pursued him, constantly escaping with energy waves.

Those energy waves, like whips, lashed out at them.

Each time the energy wave was about to hit Ning Shuyin, Caesar would subtly turn to the side and use his back or arm to block the attack.

The sound of the energy wave hitting the body was dull and terrifying.

Ning Shuyin could clearly feel that Caesar's body would tremble violently every time he was hit.

But he didn't utter a sound, not even a muffled groan.

Ning Shuyin glanced back and couldn't help but ask, "Can you still hold on?"

"Underestimating me?" Caesar raised an eyebrow, his face pale but his tone still nonchalant. "An attack of this magnitude wouldn't even tickle me. Mind your own business and don't lead me astray."

Ning Shuyin pursed her lips and didn't say anything more.

Having narrowly escaped a series of energy waves, Ning Shuyin finally found the exit of the space.

“Right here, hold on tight to me,” she said.

“Okay.” Caesar’s voice sounded a little weak, but he held her hand tightly.

Just as they were about to burst out of the exit, the energy vortex behind them had grown to more than ten times its previous size.

As if sensing its prey's attempt to escape, the vortex unleashed its most ferocious attack.

A beam of energy, several times thicker than before, shot directly into Ning Shuyin's back.

She couldn't dodge this attack.

However, the expected excruciating pain did not come.

At the last moment, Caesar suddenly pulled her into his arms and spun around.

He used his back to completely block the beam of light.

"puff!"

A mouthful of blood spurted from Caesar's mouth, turning into a cloud of mist in the void.

"Caesar!" Ning Shuyin exclaimed.

"It's alright, let's keep going." Caesar roared these words with his last breath.

The combat suit's battery has been depleted.

The vortex behind her was still closing in. She gritted her teeth, almost exhausting all her fighting strength, and pushed off the wall of the void.

Ning Shuyin felt as if her body had passed through an invisible membrane. At the same time, ripples spread through space around Caesar.

Everything before my eyes transformed from nothingness into reality.

Above me was a vast, empty starry sky, and beneath my feet was uneven, rugged earth.

The space behind him had completely disappeared. Caesar crashed heavily to her side.

They made it out successfully.

"Where are we?" Ning Shuyin asked.

The surrounding environment was clearly not the place where she and the fleet entered the Penrose Triangle.

This is an unfamiliar asteroid belt. The loose geological structure of the land beneath our feet is held in place by gravitational pull.

Countless fragments of rock floated slowly against the backdrop of the universe.

Caesar forced himself to sit up.

He still looked weak, but his bright blue eyes had regained their luster.

"This is the edge of the asteroid belt in the outer star system, one of my backup hiding places."

"How did we get here?" Ning Shuyin frowned in confusion. "Did you teleport me?"