"Zod?"
Luke, sitting in a VIP room, froze, not expecting the Kryptonian general to find his way into the gladiatorial arena.
It seems that leaving the familiar environment and coming to a strange place would really cause considerable pressure on some people.
He had only been in the main city for a short time, and Zod was already impatient. It wasn't really a General-like thing to do.
"Just the thing to draw Grandmaster out."
Luke wanted to show up, but then he thought --
With such a powerful natural warrior like a Kryptonian, the Elder of the Universe on Sakaar would surely be happy and would try his best to get him.
His lifted body sat back down on the sofa.
Looking relaxed and laid back, he picked up an alien fruit and dropped it into his mouth.
"Kryptonian vs Beta Ray Thor ... It's a rare show."
Luke looked at the centre of the arena, where the two tall figures were facing each other. His eyes couldn't help revealing a trace of anticipation.
One was an alien warrior who had been transformed through bio-engineering, could lift Mjolnir, and defeat Thor.
The other was a Kryptonian, who was born in the leadership class, had a General genetic template, and subdued Superman.
A battle between such strong men was far more interesting than the previous one-sided massacre.
Compared with Zod, the Kronan warriors were just appetisers.
"Where did this guy come from?"
"Did he buy a ticket?"
"Horse Face! Smashed him with your hammer!"
"Fight! Fight!"
"..."
No one hated dramatic and unexpected twists.
Because it added intrigue to a mediocre story.
It could also give a legendary quality to the life of a mediocre person.
The story of a warrior who never lost from start to finish and ended up dying of old age.
That, obviously, wasn't as touching as dying at the hands of another warrior, draining the last drop of blood.
As the champion of the gladiatorial arena, Beta Ray Bill's victory over the Kronan warriors had no suspense.
By the time the audience had recovered from the bloody carnage, and the visual impact had dissipated, they found it boring.
Therefore, Zod's unexpected entrance ignited their enthusiasm instead.
Thunderous applause and cheers erupted. It swept over the Kryptonian General and overwhelmed him.
Zod had a confused look on his face. He didn't understand what these people were shouting about.
'Is it a celebration?'
Hundreds of thousands of spectators packed in the stadium shouted in unison.
A bright spotlight instantly struck Zod's body.
The host, whose words had abruptly stopped earlier, also used a rousing tone to hype up the mood at the Grandmaster's command.
"Can't they be quiet?"
Zod frowned at the noisy, shrill sounds and looked over at Beta Ray Bill.
He had learned the common language from the scrappers, but it was still a bit awkward.
"You stepped into a cage where there is no freedom."
Beta Ray Bill looked at the Kryptonian General, who broke into the arena with pitying eyes.
He could see that the other party was a powerful man.
This conclusion could be drawn from either the violent aura or the powerful body.
'But what can he do?'
As an Elder of the Universe, the Grandmaster had countless slave catchers and a huge fleet of space pirates under his command.
Even the strongest warrior needed to eat, drink and rest and simply couldn't outlast the sheer number of enemies.
This was how Beta Ray Bill was captured alive and brought down to the gladiatorial arena of Sakaar.
He fought back, but the Grandmaster used his people to threaten him.
Beta Ray Bill had no choice but to submit at the feet of the Elder of the Universe.
"A bunch of weak, ridiculous creatures who amuse themselves by watching you fight other creatures?"
Zod looked around the ring, and his face sank.
The Kryptonian General reacted. The crowd applauded and shouted like crazy.
They only wanted to see him and Beta Ray Bill tearing at each other like two wild animals.
"Are you so willing to accept your fate? To become a killing machine without dignity?"
There was anger in Zod's tone.
Although he wasn't the one confined in a cage and spent his days killing people...
The Kryptonian General, however, was emotionally disgusted and repulsed by such behaviour.
"You think I haven't tried to resist?"
Beta Ray Bill bitterly smiled.
He was a good man who detested killing and fighting, but he became a butcher in the gladiatorial arena.
"Coward!"
Zod coldly grunted.
The tough natured Kryptonian General was simply unwilling to listen to Beta Ray Bill's explanations.
From his point of view, all the misfortunes in the world were caused by people's own lack of ability.
The law of the jungle, where the stronger prevailed, was deeply ingrained in his genes and blood.
"Who is the owner of the arena?"
Zod asked.
Beta Ray Bill hesitated for a few seconds. His throat rolled, and he was about to say 'the Grandmaster.'
Needle-like currents struck his neck, sending a sharp stab of pain through his body.
"Tear him up! Bill!"
The Grandmaster's indifferent voice echoed through the audience over the speakers.
Zod glanced at the stands in the distance. His feet kicked up and shook the ground.
Like an arrow, the tall figure sprang out and headed for the Grandmaster's VIP room.
Beta Ray Bill had no choice but to follow the orders of the Elder of the Universe and swung his golden war hammer at his opponent.
The atmosphere exploded with a loud, ear-splitting "Boom!"
Sensing the danger in mid-air, Zod could only stop his sudden advance.
He turned around and opened his palm.
Bang!
The golden-coloured round war hammer collided with the Kryptonian's torso, sending out a violent wave of air that was visible to the naked eye.
The explosive sound blast shook the audience in the front row, right out of their seats.
The ground collapsed into potholes of different sizes as if it had been bombarded by gunfire.
"Is that all?"
Zod's body shook but soon stabilised.
He stomped through the atmosphere, his pitch-black cloak lifting and fluttering.
With amazing power, he approached Beta Ray Bill.
The whole space was distorted by the blow to the head as if the sky was falling.
Beta Ray Bill's eyes were horrified, but it was too late to dodge, so he raised his hands to block it.
Crack!
The hardened body that had been bioengineered wasn't enough to stand up to Zod.
Beta Ray Bill's arms shattered, and his whole body was tossed away like a broken kite, crashing into the solid wall of the arena.
"Wonderful!"
"Now, this is a real game!"
"Horse Face is down!"
"..."
The earlier incident of the audience being caught in the flurry of battle didn't dissuade these people.
Instead, they were even more excited and thrilled. They couldn't help but cheer for Zod's great strength.
"You can't stop me!"
Zod landed on the ground. With his head held high, he looked towards Beta Ray Bill, whose body was embedded in the wall.