At that very moment, two streaks of seven-colored light descended from the sky above.
They were none other than Whis, Broly, and Cognac, returning from the World of Void.
"Lord Beerus, what just happened? Why did I sense a fragment of spacetime being shattered? And where is Gran? Where did he go?"
The moment he landed, Whis began firing off questions.
Seeing his attendant angel return, Beerus felt as if he had found his anchor again. He quickly recounted everything that had happened to Gran.
When Whis and Cognac heard that Gran's power had ultimately broken through into the Angel Realm, it was like a thunderclap exploding in their minds.
"My… my goodness!"
Cognac swallowed hard as he scanned the surroundings. "No wonder Lord Quitela was defeated. No wonder spacetime itself was torn apart… That kid actually reached the Angel Realm!"
"Gran…"
Whis clenched his staff tightly, the corners of his lips rising uncontrollably. That boy had truly exceeded every expectation.
But in the next instant, Beerus revealed that Gran had been sucked into the spacetime turbulence.
"What?!"
Whis's eyes widened. He immediately turned toward Vados.
Vados lowered her head.
Whis then looked at his elder sister Kusu, his gaze filled with silent reproach—as if questioning why they hadn't protected Gran.
Even the usually composed Kusu lowered her head, visibly guilty.
"You all…"
Whis tightened his grip on his staff.
"Father, Gran, he—"
Whis hurried over to the Grand Priest, but before he could finish—
"He has been taken by Chronoa. There's no need for concern. You may all disperse."
The Grand Priest glanced at the Time Ring in Beerus's hand and the single Supreme Kai earring on his ear, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
This cat… truly has some nerve.
In the end, he said nothing more. His figure transformed into a beam of light and vanished instantly.
Silence once again settled over the starry expanse of Universe 6.
Every deity present found their minds echoing with the Grand Priest's final words—
Taken by Chronoa?
Chronoa was the Supreme Kai of Time, a subordinate of the Time King, tasked with overseeing the history of all timelines.
Though her combat strength wasn't particularly remarkable, traversing time was as effortless to her as breathing.
And unlike others, whose manipulation of time was considered a grave crime, her actions were entirely legitimate.
"Right! How did I forget about Chronoa?"
The Old Supreme Kai and Chronoa were actually old acquaintances. Upon learning that Gran had been taken by her, his mood instantly soared from the depths of despair to the heights of relief.
"It seems that girl Chronoa has been watching this place for quite some time!"
Beerus himself hadn't noticed her presence at all.
But that made sense.
As the Supreme Kai of Time, Chronoa could remain hidden within the gaps between spacetime. If she hadn't directly entered this timeline, even angels would find it difficult to detect her existence.
"Since the Grand Priest said so, Gran will definitely return on his own eventually."
Beerus removed the Time Ring from his finger and the Supreme Kai earring from his ear, tossing them back to the Old Supreme Kai.
"Mm."
The Old Supreme Kai caught them and let out a long breath of relief.
"That's great!"
Champa and Fuwa also broke into excited grins.
Even the Gods of Destruction from other universes—such as Iwan of Universe 1, Sidra of Universe 9, Rumsshi of Universe 10, and Belmod of Universe 11—showed faint smiles upon hearing that Gran was safe.
Their reactions stemmed from the earlier battle among the candidate Gods of Destruction, where Gran had spared their candidates. Because of that, they held a certain degree of goodwill toward him.
However...
The remaining Gods of Destruction were far less pleased. Their expressions were gloomy.
Why was Universe 7 so lucky?!
It seemed the rise of Universe 7 was now unstoppable.
At that moment, the gods also recalled how the Grand Priest had casually erased Quitela with a single slap.
Logically speaking, Quitela's battle with Gran hadn't violated any command from Zeno.
So why had the Grand Priest still executed him?
Was it because their battle had damaged three universes?
But if so, why punish only Quitela?
The Gods of Destruction frowned deeply, their faces filled with confusion.
"This fight is over. There's nothing left to see—so all of you, get lost!"
Champa suddenly shouted at the surrounding gods.
"'Get lost'? Is that how you treat guests?" the female God of Destruction Heles said coldly.
"Sorry, but we've never considered you guests. So get lost."
Beerus crossed his arms, his gaze icy.
The moment Beerus spoke, the other Gods of Destruction, who had been about to respond, immediately fell silent.
With Beerus's recent breakthrough, if he were to go berserk, no one present could stop him.
Better not provoke him.
Without another word, the gods quickly had their attendant angels escort them away.
They needed to return and train immediately—otherwise, they wouldn't even catch a glimpse of Beerus's tail lights anymore.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
…
Ten streaks of rainbow light shot into the sky, leaving only Beerus, Champa, and the others behind.
"So… so strong! Gran actually reached the Angel Realm—he's unbelievably powerful!!"
Champa, no longer worried about Gran's safety, flew excitedly around the starry sky.
Beerus crossed his arms and raised his chin slightly, his expression smug.
"Hmph. Of course—look at whose candidate he is."
Champa flew up in front of him, sizing him up from head to toe before clicking his tongue.
"Your candidate has already surpassed you. And you're still bragging about it?"
"You!"
Beerus's chest rose and fell with irritation. Then his eyes shifted, and he sneered.
"So what if he surpassed me? Even if he surpasses Whis one day, he's still my candidate."
Those words triggered Champa's memory of the time he tried to "steal" Gran.
If he had succeeded back then, Gran would've been his candidate now!
"You bastard, Beerus!"
"Hahaha! Still mad?"
"I don't care! The candidate battle is already over. I want Gran to be the candidate God of Destruction for Universe 6 too!"
"You think that's up to you? You'd better ask whether Gran agrees."
"Hmph, I don't need his agreement! Wherever I go, I'll just declare it—unilaterally! Gran is also the candidate God of Destruction for Universe 6!"
Hearing Champa's shameless declaration once again, Beerus couldn't help but laugh.
But he didn't argue further.
Letting Gran serve as a candidate for both Universe 6 and Universe 7… wasn't such a bad idea.
After all—
That fat cat had just been willing to commit the grave crime of time manipulation for Gran's sake.
No matter what, Gran ought to show a little appreciation, shouldn't he?