Interstellar Beast World: All My Husbands Are Powerful and Rich!-Chapter 40: Searching for someone

Jasper finished off the final pack of level five beasts with a single, decisive sweep of his tail. The motion was effortless, almost lazy, yet devastating in its precision.

The creatures barely had time to shriek before they collapsed, their massive bodies crumpling into the dirt. With astonishing ease, Jasper gathered the remains and laid them neatly at Rory’s feet, as if presenting trophies rather than fresh kills.

Rory moved among the fallen beasts with calm efficiency. One by one, she stored them away, her hands steady, her breathing even.

Adrenaline still sparked beneath her skin, lending a faint glow to her eyes, but her expression remained composed. Around them, the battlefield slowly grew quiet—no more roars, no more tremors, only the faint rustle of disturbed leaves and the distant cries of retreating creatures.

They lingered there for a while, speaking in low voices as the tension finally ebbed from the air. Nearly two hours passed before Gina’s squad finished hunting down the last stragglers. By then, Gina had long since exhausted her energy.

She lay sprawled across a sun-warmed rock, chest rising and falling rapidly as her mate stood guard nearby, watching the treeline with quiet vigilance.

When Gina finally lifted her head and looked around the clearing, her breath caught.

Carcasses were piled everywhere—small hills of fallen beasts scattered across the field. Their exposed cores glittered across the ground like precious gemstones spilled from a shattered vault. Gina let out a sharp whistle, then grabbed her mate by the collar and pulled him down into a fierce, celebratory kiss.

"We struck gold this time," she laughed, breathless and exhilarated. "An absolute jackpot."

Her gaze slid back toward Rory, awe softening her features.

"All thanks to Rory."

Privately, a shiver ran through her. If Rory’s Rank Nine mate hadn’t arrived when he did, that level eight beast would have frozen them all in place with sheer pressure alone. They wouldn’t have dared move, no matter how many lesser beasts were waiting to be hunted.

Snapping herself back into command mode, Gina barked quick orders for her team to process the bodies, then jogged over to Rory.

"I mean it," she said earnestly. "You saved us out there. Without you—and Jasper—we’d have gone home with nothing."

Rory rose to her feet and brushed dirt from her sleeves.

"Jasper may have handled the heavy lifting," she replied evenly, "but you and your mate fought smart. That’s the only reason we all walked away intact."

Gina waved her hands dismissively, grinning.

"Oh, come on. Even if we doubled our strength, that level eight beast would’ve turned us into paste. Your mate saved our hides, and you know it."

At the mention of the level eight beast, Rory froze.

Her eyes widened slightly as she turned to Jasper.

"Wait—what about that level eight? You didn’t kill it? What did it look like?"

At that rank, beasts underwent drastic mutations. A complete corpse—let alone its core—could fetch a staggering price on the open market. Rory had never seen one up close, and if Jasper still had it...

Jasper finished cleaning his claws before answering.

"I didn’t take it down," he said calmly. "When I arrived, it was already moving south. I didn’t pursue it. Finding you was the priority."

He straightened, meeting her gaze with quiet certainty.

"Once things settle here, I’ll head south and deal with it."

Typical Jasper. He spoke as if hunting a level eight beast were nothing more than an errand.

Far to the south of the forest, fate was already weaving another thread.

Mindy Lane stared in disbelief at the man standing before her. Filtered sunlight framed his tall figure, catching in hair that gleamed like molten gold. At his shoulders, faint traces of golden feathers shimmered subtly with each movement, radiating quiet authority.

She couldn’t stop herself.

"Mr. Ruan... I never imagined I’d run into you here," she said, awe creeping into her voice. "If not for you, that level eight beast would’ve swallowed me and my mate whole."

This was no ordinary hunter.

This was Sylas Ruan—the heir of the Suncrest Lineage from the Central Planet. A name that carried weight across the Empire. Mindy had seen him only once before, from afar, at a planetary summit, where he’d shone like the sun among lesser stars. Standing this close now, she struggled to keep her composure.

For someone like her—a female without a divine mate from the Beast God—getting anywhere near Central Planet nobility was nearly impossible. It was like trying to grasp sunlight: no matter how hard you reached, it slipped away.

Sylas hadn’t planned on acknowledging her. He’d come to this sector with a singular purpose—to find someone. He’d only crossed paths with the level eight beast by coincidence, a small, palm-sized creature that moved with terrifying speed and vanished almost instantly. Had he not recently regained peak level eight strength, even he might have lost it.

Still, when Mindy spoke his name, his gaze flicked toward her.

"You know me?" His voice was deep and measured, capable of silencing a crowd without effort.

Mindy flushed, startled that he’d answered her at all.

"I saw you once on the Central Planet," she said quickly. "I didn’t have the chance to speak then."

So that’s it, Sylas thought, jaw tightening. For a moment, he’d wondered if she somehow knew the female he was searching for.

He didn’t walk away. Instead, he asked,

"You live around here?"

"Yes," Mindy nodded eagerly. "In Veridan City for now. But I’ll be moving to the Central Planet soon."

Pride flickered in her smile. The Beast God had finally chosen her a suitor from the Central Planet—her escape from the dust and obscurity of Veridan City.

Sylas showed no reaction.

"Do you hunt in these forests often?"

"Of course," she replied lightly. "A female still has to grow stronger. I can’t rely on my mates for everything."

He barely registered her flirtation. His thoughts were elsewhere.

"I’m looking for someone," he said flatly. "A Rank Three female who can easily defeat level four beasts."

A vivid memory surfaced—Rory, fierce and unyielding, red-white lightning racing along her arm.

His voice softened without him realizing it. "She uses lightning. Red-white. It condenses into an axe. She takes their heads off in one strike."

Mindy blinked, unsettled. A female like that? Most women she knew fought cautiously, neatly. The image he painted was... terrifying.

"I’m sorry, Mr. Ruan," she said after a pause, shaking her head. "I don’t think I’ve met anyone like that."

Yet as she spoke, a flicker of memory tugged at her. That lightning—she had seen it once before.

She tilted her head, curiosity sparking.

"Mr. Ruan... the female you’re searching for—she uses lightning, right?"