Space itself was screaming.
The vibration wasn't traveling through the air; it was the very fabric of the dimension groaning under unbearable strain.
As the head of that Celestial judge drifted off into the void, the dark, silent starfield suddenly lit up with rows of blinding lights, bright as stars.
VWOOM—! VWOOM—! VWOOM—!
With a series of ripping sounds, colossal figures emerged from the ripples of hyperspace.
One, two, five… ten in total.
Ten giants in heavy armor of different colors and designs, each one large enough to block out entire star clusters.
They abruptly filled the orbital space around Xandar.
Each stood over two thousand feet tall, radiating ancient, weathered cosmic energy.
This was the Celestials' combat formation.
Exterminator, Explorer, Collector, Analyzer…
Beings that existed only in myths, feared even by Odin himself.
And now, all ten had assembled—for one mortal.
"Warning."
The lead Celestial, clad in dark gold armor and wielding a planet-shattering war hammer, spoke in a booming electronic voice.
"Anomaly code: Frieza."
"Threat level: elevated again."
"Verdict: uncontainable, unjudgeable."
Its cold electronic eyes locked onto Frieza, floating in mid-space.
No emotion. Only absolute intent to execute.
"Executing final directive: Format."
"Erase target star system and all life within thirty thousand light-years to prevent viral spread."
BOOM!!!
The death sentence echoed across Xandar.
Billions of inhabitants froze in sheer terror.
Erase the star system?
Thirty thousand light-years?
This wasn't just murder—this was scattering their ashes across the cosmos.
[Ding! Extreme despair detected! Fear value +100 billion!]
[Ding! Fear value +100 billion!]
…
Listening to the system pings going wild, Frieza didn't get angry.
Instead, he calmly straightened his slightly rumpled collar.
"Well, well…"
He looked up, crimson eyes sweeping over the towering metal giants that blotted out the sky.
A deeply disdainful smile—almost pitying—curled his lips.
"Erase my assets?"
"And scatter my backyard?"
Frieza slowly raised one finger and wagged it.
"You tin cans think just because you're big, your words carry weight?"
"If that's how it is…"
He tilted his head, a cruel grin spreading.
"Then this king will have to teach you some manners."
"Execute!" The Exterminator ignored the taunt completely.
All ten Celestials raised their arms in perfect sync.
VWOOM————!!!
Ten beams of cosmic energy—different colors, all equally apocalyptic—gathered in their palms.
The intensity warped space itself, spawning miniature black holes around them.
"Boring."
Facing a combined strike that could vaporize a star system, Frieza simply muttered two words.
He leaned forward slightly.
Mad arrogance burned in those crimson eyes.
"I'm not singling anyone out."
"I'm saying every single one of you here…"
"Is trash!"
BOOM!!!
Before the words finished echoing, Frieza vanished!
So fast that even the Time Stone couldn't track him.
The next instant, he appeared right in front of the green-armored Explorer.
"You first!"
With a cold shout, Frieza drove a pristine white fist—backed by 120 million in combat power—straight into the Explorer's faceplate.
CRUNCH————!!!
A muffled boom that could shatter planets.
The Explorer's massive head snapped back. The giant staggered as if hit by a lightspeed freight train.
"Hm?"
Frieza frowned.
Not broken?
That punch would've taken the judge's head clean off.
But this green tin can only had a dent in its faceplate?
"Upgraded armor?"
"So the grunts and the brass don't wear the same grade, huh?"
Before he could finish the thought—
WHOOSH!
A gigantic metal palm came slamming down like it was swatting a fly, tearing space apart with sheer pressure.
The Exterminator!
"Get lost!"
Frieza fired a point-blank ki blast.
BOOM!
The purple energy sphere exploded against the palm.
It only stalled the attack for a split second.
Then a red cosmic beam streaked in from the side—the Collector!
"Tch!"
Frieza twisted away at the last moment.
Where the beam grazed, space burned open into a permanent black void.
"Annoying…"
Floating in the vacuum, Frieza eyed the ten colossal figures surrounding him.
His expression finally turned ugly.
These things weren't just tough.
Their teamwork was flawless.
Energy blasts, physical strikes, spatial lockdowns…
One seamless chain after another. No breathing room.
BAM!
Frieza kicked one charging Celestial away, but two more instantly filled the gap.
"Damn it!"
"Why are these tin cans sticking to me like glue?!"
Frieza dodged a massive hammer blow, looking a little disheveled.
With his current power, they couldn't really hurt him—not yet.
But…
A fight where he could only chip paint and scratch their boots?
That was an insult to a universal emperor's dignity!
"Huff…"
After several minutes of high-intensity evasion and counterattacks, Frieza paused on a chunk of asteroid debris, breathing slightly harder.
He glanced at his once-spotless white skin, now dusted with cosmic grit.
Rage built like wildfire in those crimson eyes.
"Unforgivable."
"Absolutely unforgivable!"
Frieza clenched his fists, nails digging into his palms.
"This king is destined to rule the multiverse!"
"How dare a bunch of obsolete machines running outdated code hold me up?!"
"If my base form can't crack your turtle shells…"
Frieza slowly lifted his head.
A vicious, utterly insane smile spread across his refined, icy face.
"Then let me show you…"
"What real despair looks like!"
VWOOM——————!!!
A terrifying aura that shook the entire star system began surging inside him.
Golden light erupted from his pores, his eyes, every cell in his body!
"I was saving this form for someone worthier."
"But since you're all so eager to visit the scrapyard…"
"I'll oblige!"
"Transform!!!"