I Just Want to Beat You Up!

Fornax Galaxy, Taiyou Star System, Sakaar.

This was a special planet in the universe. It could only be entered and exited through fixed, special passages, all of which were controlled by the planet’s master, Grandmaster.

In the universe, there were often unlucky individuals who, due to accidents or other reasons, were swept into the passages and dropped onto Sakaar. These unlucky individuals basically all became Grandmaster’s playthings in the end.

The weak were casually discarded on the planet to fend for themselves, while the strong were captured and made to participate in the Contest of Champions organized by Grandmaster, just like gladiators. Only powerful warriors who won the Contest of Champions could gain a certain degree of freedom on Sakaar.

As for escaping Sakaar, one had to leave through an established passage. However, all the passages were controlled by Grandmaster, and no one could leave without his permission.

As one of the oldest beings in the universe and a member of the Elders of the Universe, Grandmaster possessed tremendous strength and influence. Warriors who fell into his hands basically had no chance of escape.

Because the passages in and out were fixed, large numbers of wanderers roamed around the area near them every day, searching for any "trash" that fell out of the passages in exchange for what they needed to survive.

This scavenging life depended entirely on luck. If fortune favored them, they could earn enough money in one go to afford a year of luxurious living. But if their luck was bad, they might not even make back the money they spent on their fighter’s energy blocks.

However, valuable goods had to be fought over with others, and being beaten to death could only be considered their own fault. For the wanderers on the planet, living one more day counted as one more day. Who knew whether they might die unexpectedly tomorrow? As long as the difference in strength was not too great, they did not lack the courage to risk their lives.

But today was a good day to get rich. The passage in the sky suddenly shone with red light and sprayed a massive quantity of objects downward. From the looks of it, the total amount was as large as a castle, and silver light flickered across it, as if everything had been forged from metal.

The surrounding wanderers immediately surged toward the area beneath the passage, and fighter craft in the distance also rushed over. The strong ate meat while the weak drank soup. That was Sakaar’s rule.

After the metal rain stopped, the wanderers immediately pounced on the metal hill, trying to rummage through it for parts from warships or something similar. Whenever they found an intact metal component, they stuffed it into their clothes. Then the people nearby who coveted it would pounce, and a group of them would start fighting.

"Get lost!"

"I found this first!"

The wanderer who had gotten the component first waved the weapon in his hand, threatening everyone who approached. On Sakaar, human lives were worthless. Useful "trash" was what had value.

Everyone carefully weighed the risks against the rewards, and in the end, they backed away. After all, this trash had only just fallen, so there were certainly plenty of good things inside. Fighting to the death over a component whose exact value was unknown would only waste time and energy.

Soon, the wanderers made a new discovery.

"There’s something wrong with this metal!"

"It’s too hard. It’s practically better than the weapons in our hands!"

After the first person made the discovery, the others realized it too, and exclamations rang out one after another.

"This entire batch of trash is made of precious metal!"

"These robot battle armors can be worn directly. Aren’t they much better than the rags we’re wearing?"

"What are you waiting for? Grab them!"

With a whistle, all the wanderers went mad. They stuffed every metal object they saw into the ragged bags they carried, then ran for their lives once the bags were full.

When the major powers of Sakaar received the news, they immediately sent out warships to cordon off the area, occupying every position beneath the passage.

After driving away the wanderers, the major powers finally sat down together to discuss how they would divide the spoils.

The leaders of the major powers gathered aboard a luxurious warship. They had only just made their opening remarks and had not yet formally begun dividing the spoils when the spatial passage above them suddenly opened again. A figure was spat out of it and crashed into the metal hill with a boom, collapsing the entire mountain.

The enormous energy impact struck the ground and sent the entire trash mountain flying. The encirclement that the major powers had painstakingly formed was breached in an instant. The warships in the sky were blown about, and quite a few were blasted apart by flying metal fragments before plummeting from the sky.

Normal warships had energy shields, but because Sakaar was poor, its warships did not activate their shields when they were not engaged in battle. This accident had come too suddenly, and none of the warships had been prepared. They suffered heavy losses in an instant.

The wanderers on the outskirts, however, were delighted. They discovered that the pile of metal trash originally stacked beneath the spatial passage had been blown outside the encirclement, raining down over their heads.

What was there to hesitate about? The wanderers immediately began fighting over the items again. They ran as soon as they picked something up, afraid that the major powers would reclaim them.

"Hahaha…"

Aboard the luxurious warship, one of the many warriors in attendance was a drunken female warrior. She pointed at the battered groups of warships belonging to the various powers and burst out laughing.

"You can divide those metals among yourselves. The warrior who just fell belongs to me!"

"Dream on!" The other powers naturally refused to agree.

On Sakaar, the most valuable things were always powerful warriors who could participate in gladiatorial battles in the Contest of Champions. Providing Grandmaster with a powerful warrior represented more than just a monetary reward. It also meant gaining Grandmaster’s favor.

The drunken Valkyrie had gained her transcendent status on Sakaar by repeatedly providing Grandmaster with powerful warriors. She could freely enter and leave Grandmaster’s palace and even sneak over to steal his liquor without being punished.

Such treatment naturally made the other powers envious. They also wanted to win Grandmaster’s favor. But Valkyrie’s strength was not weak, and no one was her match in single combat. However, all of Sakaar’s major powers were here this time, so they naturally could not let Valkyrie take advantage of them.

"Then let’s rely on our own abilities!" Valkyrie tilted her head back and drained the liquor in her bottle. She casually tossed the bottle aside and staggered out.

The people from the other powers exchanged glances and decided to eliminate their strongest competitor first before considering how to capture that warrior. Anyone who came to Sakaar would certainly be unable to escape, so there was no need to rush.

A group of them signaled to their subordinates, who immediately surrounded Valkyrie.

"Valkyrie, as long as you promise to give up competing for this warrior, we’ll let you leave."

Valkyrie was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter, doubling over.

"That’s hilarious!"

"You think having more people makes a difference?"

"Or do you think I can’t fight just because I’m drunk?"

The leaders of the various powers surrounding her looked grim. They were all victors who had fought their way through the Contest of Champions. Who was afraid of whom?

"Teach this drunk cat a lesson first, then go capture the warrior who fell earlier."

Faced with the group of enemies rushing toward her, Valkyrie showed no fear. Instead, she became excited, drew her weapon, and began fighting.

On the ground, Zhan Liu climbed out of the crater, patted the dust off his body, and looked around to see where he was.

The spatial storm caused by the explosion of the Space Stone was truly extraordinary. Even though he was already at the ninety-something-layered heaven realm, he still felt dizzy and light-headed. The wounds carved into his body by the spatial cuts were also severe, and the power of the Space Stone remained inside them, hindering their recovery. He could not disperse it in a short time.

Zhan Liu looked up at the group of weaklings fighting overhead, then at the ragged vagrants in the distance who were shrinking back and afraid to approach. He looked farther still, toward the strange buildings and flying vehicles in the city, and decided to find someone to ask for directions and see whether he could find a way back to Earth.

As long as he had the coordinates, he could naturally fly back.

With one step, Zhan Liu entered the battle overhead. He reached out, grabbed the female warrior who was being besieged by the neck, accelerated, and vanished from everyone’s sight.

"Do you understand Chinese?" Zhan Liu casually asked as he lightly shook Valkyrie in his hand.

"Yes!" Valkyrie hurriedly nodded and answered in clear, standard Chinese. This terrifying man had appeared out of nowhere and swiftly abducted her. The entire process had been so fast that she had not even reacted.

The last time she had encountered such a terrifying existence had been when the Valkyrie Legion was destroyed.

Asgardians were born warriors, but they were not brainless fools. They still understood how to assess the situation. Faced with such a terrifying enemy, obediently listening was the correct choice.

"Hm?" Now it was Zhan Liu’s turn to be surprised. He had only asked casually and had already prepared to read her mind, yet he had actually encountered someone who understood Chinese. Could Chinese have become one of the universe’s official languages?

He glanced at Valkyrie and recognized her. The divine power permeating her body clearly marked her as an Asgardian warrior.

"Is this one of the Nine Realms? Asgard’s territory?" he asked casually.

"No. This is Sakaar, Grandmaster’s territory."

The moment Valkyrie heard his words, she realized that he had recognized her identity as an Asgardian warrior. She said bitterly, "I stopped being an Asgardian warrior a long time ago."

"Sakaar, huh…" Zhan Liu understood where he was. It seemed to be somewhat far from Earth. He would have to fly for a long time, or find a warship and use a spatial jump, which would be faster.

As for not knowing how to pilot a warship, it seemed that the warships in the Marvel universe were all operated in a foolproof manner. There was no need for professional training or a driver’s license. It was practically like driving a bumper car.

If necessary, he could just find a pilot. The little woman beside him seemed pretty good.

"Come on. Take me to Grandmaster, get me a spaceship, and then take me back to Earth." Zhan Liu released his grip, and then Valkyrie… fell from the sky.

Zhan Liu was used to every warrior being able to fly on Earth, and for a moment, he forgot that Asgardian warriors could not fly. In fact, not only could Asgardian warriors not fly, there were not many warriors in the universe who could. It could even be said that every warrior capable of flying freely was certainly powerful.

Fortunately, Zhan Liu was fast. He hurriedly reached out and caught Valkyrie again. Otherwise, the Valkyrie would have ended up covered in dust.

Valkyrie was full of resentment but did not dare express it. She could only roll her eyes at him, then point toward the tallest building in the center of the city and say, "That’s Grandmaster’s palace. His arena is below it. He’s usually there."

Holding Valkyrie, Zhan Liu took one step and arrived outside the palace. After all, an Asgardian Valkyrie’s physical constitution was excellent, so he did not need to worry that supersonic speed would kill her. But Valkyrie did not have Astral Energy protecting her body. Her body was fine, but the wind blew her hair into a completely new style, leaving it standing behind her head.

Grandmaster’s palace was extremely luxurious. The passageways and floor were decorated in alternating red and white, with an intense technological feel.

Grandmaster himself was seated on a golden chair in the hall. Behind him stood an old woman holding a weapon, her face sour as if someone owed her a huge sum of money. On both sides in front of the throne, two beautifully built women in formal dresses and elaborate high buns lay seductively at Grandmaster’s feet like pets.

A large group of guards and others around them were betting on something, amusing Grandmaster.

When Grandmaster saw Zhan Liu, a stranger, walk in carrying Valkyrie, and saw that Valkyrie looked displeased yet did not dare turn against him, he burst into laughter.

"Hahaha…"

"So even Valkyrie, the best hunter on Sakaar, has a day when she misses her mark!"

"Looks like Sakaar has welcomed a true powerhouse this time."

He rose from his chair, bent slightly, placed a hand over his chest, and bowed.

"Welcome, my friend."

"On Sakaar, as long as you’re strong enough, you can obtain anything. Money, beautiful women, and all sorts of rare treasures from across the universe."

"…As long as you can win the Contest of Champions."

He spread his arms and moved to embrace Zhan Liu, but what greeted him was a kick straight to the face.

"Get lost, you old corpse!"

"I need a spaceship and Earth’s coordinates."

"Once I have them, I’ll leave immediately. I don’t have time to play your gladiator games."

Grandmaster was kicked flying, smashing into a pile of liquor cabinets, game tables, and other objects before becoming embedded in the wall behind them. The guards were furious when they saw this and rushed forward, only to end up embedded in the wall alongside Grandmaster.

Zhan Liu had shown great restraint. Although everyone vomited blood, not one of them died.

"Oh, dear, oh, dear. You’re really too violent." Grandmaster twisted his body and pulled himself out of the wall. He then looked back at the human-shaped hole he had left behind and instructed, "It has a strong artistic quality. Later, cut out the human-shaped section and send it to the collection room."

As one of the oldest beings to exist since the dawn of the universe, Grandmaster was immune to physical attacks. Although Zhan Liu’s attacks were powerful, they still could not injure him.

"Tsk, tsk." Grandmaster smacked his lips and rubbed his chin, saying bitterly, "It seems there’s no one on Sakaar who can complete the Contest of Champions with you!"

He did not care in the slightest that Zhan Liu had attacked him. Grandmaster had lived as long as the universe itself. After so many years, what had he not seen? He had long since stopped caring about things like dignity. At present, he was only interested in entertaining games.

"Damn it!"

"Can’t you understand plain speech?"

"Who’s going to play your damned gladiator game?"

"Just hand over the warship and star map already. After I leave, you can play however you want. No one will bother you!"

Grandmaster lazily shook his head. "No. When you come to my place, you have to follow my rules. Otherwise, you won’t get what you want."

"Heh, what a coincidence. Wherever I go, I’ve always followed my own rules." Zhan Liu sneered, stepped forward, grabbed Grandmaster, and used Hulk’s signature hammer-throwing move to smash Grandmaster repeatedly into the ground.

But immunity to physical attacks was truly incredible. The entire hall was smashed to pieces, while Grandmaster was merely disheveled, without even shedding a drop of blood.

"Ow! Interesting. The old man’s physical strength isn’t bad!"

Only now did Zhan Liu become somewhat interested. He began carefully examining this character who had seemed almost like a clown in the movie.

"You want to hold the Contest of Champions, right?"

"Come on, let’s exchange a few moves."

Grandmaster shook his head repeatedly. "I like playing games, but I don’t like fighting personally."

"However, I’ve thought of who should be your opponent in this Contest of Champions."

"How about everyone on Sakaar attacking you alone?"

"Give me your orders. The person before us is the new target of the Contest of Champions. Everyone on Sakaar may participate. Whether it’s one-on-one or a group attack, poisoning or assassination, any method is allowed. The winner of the Contest of Champions can exchange for any wish from me."

Grandmaster’s face beamed like a flower, and he looked extremely pleased with himself.

"Humph!" Zhan Liu was extremely annoyed. He pressed Grandmaster down, mounted him, and drove a heavy punch straight into his old face.

"Damn it, I refuse to believe I can’t break through your defenses!"

This time, Zhan Liu was not playing around as he had before. He put all his strength into the punch, and with one blow, he blasted the entire palace apart. The guards rushing over from the surrounding area were vaporized in an instant. The old woman who wore a sour expression all day barely lasted a second before dying as well. Only Valkyrie had the sense to slip away the moment she was released, escaping the area of effect instead.

The power of this punch far exceeded Grandmaster’s expectations and stunned him completely. After witnessing Zhan Liu’s attack power, he realized that even if all of Sakaar’s strength were gathered together, it would still be unable to defeat Zhan Liu.

"Stop, stop, stop!"

"Don’t hit me anymore!"

"I concede!"

"You win this round of the Contest of Champions!"

He hurriedly shouted, trying to end the battle.

"Heh… Now you remember to concede? What took you so long?"

Zhan Liu gave a chilling smile and threw another heavy punch.

"Now this old man is annoyed by your face and just wants to beat you up!"

When the punch landed, the palace, which had already become a ruin, instantly turned into a huge crater. The only thing that did not change was Zhan Liu still sitting astride Grandmaster and continuing to hit him.

Warriors arriving from all over the planet fired the main cannons of their warships directly at Zhan Liu, but he completely ignored them. They could attack however they wanted, while he attacked however he wanted. If they fired one blast from a warship’s main cannon at him, he would hit Grandmaster ten times.

Although Grandmaster remained completely unharmed thanks to his immunity to physical attacks, the pain of those fists striking his head was real. Not losing blood did not mean he could not feel anything.

"Stop hitting me!"

"It hurts!"

"I’ll have them prepare a spaceship for you right away, the best spaceship. You can leave whenever you want."

Zhan Liu chuckled. "I’ll leave after I break through your defenses!"

Zhan Liu’s body had originally been covered in injuries caused by the explosion of the Space Stone. But after he activated all his Magnetic Field Force and punched Grandmaster several times, he discovered that the spatial energy entangled around his wounds showed slight signs of being worn away.

As expected, battle was the best way to heal injuries.

Although this one-sided beating could not be considered a proper battle, it was not easy to find a target with defenses strong enough in a place like this.

Zhan Liu threw another punch, expanding the huge crater beneath him tenfold.

Seeing that begging for mercy was useless, Grandmaster had no choice but to use other methods.

"I can see that the wounds on your body are entangled with spatial energy. That’s the power of the Space Stone, and it’s practically impossible to remove. But I’m proficient in spatial energy and can help you absorb the Space Stone’s power. How about we call a truce first?"

Grandmaster had a sharp eye and recognized the origin of Zhan Liu’s injuries at a glance. He offered a condition tailored to Zhan Liu’s desires. Any normal person would have agreed, but the problem was that Zhan Liu was not a normal person. What greeted him was still another heavy punch, even heavier than the last.

"No way!"

Zhan Liu drove the Magnetic Field Force within his body into frenzied motion, making this punch stronger and heavier. At the same time, he accelerated the absorption of the experience he had gained during Combination Synchronization Mode, allowing his realm to recover to its peak as quickly as possible.

"This old man’s injuries can be handled on their own. I don’t need you!"

"Then how about taking a look at my collection room? It contains rare treasures from across the universe. Many divine artifacts can help raise your combat strength to another level." Grandmaster began tempting Zhan Liu by offering to improve his combat strength, but what greeted him was still another even heavier punch.

"This old man’s combat strength comes from his own fists. All external objects are burdens!"

Zhan Liu had set his mind on this principle. No matter what Grandmaster said, he simply kept pounding him with all his strength.

Zhan Liu’s fists were too heavy. Before long, magma began bubbling up from Sakaar. If he continued, it would not be long before Sakaar exploded.

In the next instant, Zhan Liu’s fist suddenly struck empty air. Grandmaster had suddenly teleported away.

Grandmaster had survived from the creation of the universe until now. He had not relied solely on his ability to endure blows. His martial strength was actually extremely high; this kind of battle simply held no meaning for him.

Seeing that all his methods had failed to entice Zhan Liu, Grandmaster had no choice but to use the teleportation ability he had neglected for who knew how many billions of years, escaping from beneath Zhan Liu.

Grandmaster floated in midair without the slightest hint of embarrassment on his face, as if he had not just been beaten brutally. He raised a hand to cover his mouth and coughed, drawing Zhan Liu’s gaze toward him.

"Ahem!"

"Your spaceship and… holy crap!"

He had just begun to say a few words when Zhan Liu suddenly vanished from where he stood and charged toward him again. Terrified, Grandmaster hurriedly teleported once more, disappearing from sight.