Aside from the Yautja (Predator) species, this was the first time William had ever asked another alien race about the value of his Healing Talismans.
Even though he had already raised the price once when trading with the Yautja, he had always felt that trading one Healing Talisman for ten energy crystals was a bad deal on his part.
So now, he was very eager to hear what Talos, the leader of the Skrulls, would estimate the talisman's worth to be.
Talos, still feeling the lingering effects of the Healing Talisman, lowered his head in thought for a few seconds before saying,
"Apologies, Mr. Devonshire, but I don't know yet whether this healing stone is effective against fatal injuries.
If it can repair a damaged heart within seconds, then a single Healing Talisman could easily be worth tens of thousands of star credits.
But if it only heals external wounds, then it would be worth no more than a few hundred credits.
While it is more compact and convenient than portable medical equipment, there are already many similar devices available on the market."
If Talos had been standing right next to William at that moment, and had seen the look on his face, he would have immediately feared for his life and regretted quoting such a low price.
William, who had been hoping to make a fortune selling Healing Talismans, now felt a mix of relief, frustration, and guilt.
Over the past six months of trading with the Yautja, he had made over 100,000 energy crystals in profit.
But from the battle reports sent by the Yautja warriors, the Healing Talismans were only effective for external wounds—they did nothing for damaged hearts, brains, or severed limbs.
Looking at it now, if not for the Yautja being isolated from the rest of the galaxy, stuck in a brutal civil war, and desperate for medical supplies,
there was no way he could have maintained a price of 10 energy crystals (1,000 star credits) per talisman.
The Yautja truly lived up to their reputation as wealthy warlords with their own energy crystal mines.
Desperate for victory, they no longer cared about price.
So even though William felt a little guilty about overcharging them, that guilt was quickly overshadowed by the thought:
"They're loaded, so why lower the price?"
Instead, William began thinking of ways to prolong their civil war, ensuring that the demand for Healing Talismans remained high.
Of course, he couldn't personally intervene in such an obvious manner.
If he wanted to play both sides, selling weapons to both factions, he had to be careful not to get caught,
or else both sides might turn their weapons on him instead.
And who better to handle shady, under-the-table deals than intergalactic pirates like the Ravagers?
As for why he wanted to find Yondu, there were two reasons.
First, because Yondu's reputation made him seem like someone who would do anything for money but still had a tiny shred of morality.
Of course, William wasn't naïve—he knew that Yondu's so-called morality wouldn't apply to him.
If given the chance, the Ravagers would 100% turn on him and rob him the moment their contract ended.
But if that happened… well, it was still uncertain who would be robbing whom.
Besides, William was very interested in Yondu's whistle-controlled Yaka arrow.
Not only did it look incredibly cool, but it was also a perfect weapon for clearing out large groups of enemies.
If he got the chance, William definitely wanted one for himself.
So, without hesitation, he ordered,
"Tell me how to contact Yondu Udonta and the Ravagers."
Talos hesitated.
William was insisting on hiring notorious space pirates—and Talos wanted to tell him that there was no need to find Yondu.
The Skrulls themselves could search for the Orb of Power.
But if they failed, and their whereabouts were exposed in the process, they would not only have the Kree hunting them down,
but also William himself.
After considering the risks, Talos replied,
"Apart from black market brokers, no one knows how to directly contact the Ravagers.
However, during our years on the run, we heard that the Ravagers often rest and refuel on Contraxia.
If you're looking for Yondu, you might find him there."
Satisfied with the answer, William flicked his hand, and two Kingsman memory-wiping needles, prepared by Sunday, floated into his grasp.
With a single thought, the needles shot forward, piercing into the necks of Talos and Nick Fury.
Feeling the sudden sting, both men reacted quickly, pulling out the needles almost instantly.
But it was already too late.
The memory-erasing serum had already entered their bloodstream, and within seconds, both men became drowsy, their bodies swaying from side to side.
Two combat robots stepped forward, catching Talos and Fury before they could collapse.
Then, as part of the memory reprogramming process, the robots repeatedly whispered in their ears:
"Forget the Orb of Power. You have never heard of the Orb of Power."
Within four to five seconds, Talos completely lost consciousness.
A combat robot carried him through the portal to the Yellowstone base.
Nick Fury, meanwhile, was carried through the portal to William's London estate.
A few moments later, the Skrull ship's pilots were brought to the control room by two combat robots, forced at gunpoint to fly the ship back to Mars.
Upon landing, the remaining combat robots transported the destroyed robots and the Skrull pilots through a portal to Yellowstone Base.
Once the ship was completely empty, William instantly teleported into the control room,
placing his hand on the holographic console, attempting to store the entire ship in his inventory space.
But after two failed attempts, he smirked.
"Ha, I knew someone would try to hide."
Closing his eyes, he expanded his telepathic perception, scanning the ship section by section.
It didn't take long before he found one last survivor—
A female Skrull, hidden inside a stasis pod.
With a single thought, William teleported to the pod's location.
After confirming the occupant, he placed his hand on the stasis pod.
Closing his eyes, he focused on Yellowstone Base, and in an instant, the entire stasis pod vanished,
reappearing securely inside the Yellowstone facility.
"Not bad."
Satisfied with how easily he could control and manipulate spatial energy, William grinned.
With a wave of his hand, the entire Skrull ship was stored inside his inventory.
Inside his ever-expanding storage space, the 100-meter-long, 20-meter-high ship looked tiny compared to the ever-growing 24-meter-per-day expansion of his dimensional storage.
After confirming that no life forms remained on the ship, William teleported it back to Mars.
Then, he teleported it again—this time, to his secret X-17 planetary base.
This underground facility, built within a solid rock mountain, had hundreds of meters of rock shielding—
ensuring that the Skrull ship's distress beacon would never send a signal off-world.
With everything settled, William returned home to London,
removed his space combat armor, adjusted his clothing, and casually walked upstairs.
Sweeping the area with his mental senses, he was surprised to find his mother, Abigail, Jessie, and Nissa…
all playing Mahjong.
Checking his watch, he realized it was already past 4 AM.
At that moment, he wondered—
"Bringing Mahjong into this house… was that a mistake?"
Would this mean he'd often end up sleeping alone from now on?
(End of Chapter)
[Get +20 Extra Chapters On — P@tr3on "Mutter"]
[Every 100 Power Stones = 1 Bonus Chapter Drop]
[Thanks for Reading!]