That giant hand, large enough to cover an entire continental plate, slowly reached out to grab Frieza, who was hovering above the ruins of Asgard.
A massive shadow blanketed the sky.
"Since you are here, be my dinner."
Galactus's voice boomed like a great bell, causing the souls of all living beings in the Nine Realms to tremble.
At the very moment that finger, larger than a mountain peak, was about to touch Frieza.
"Presumptuous!!!"
A furious roar erupted from behind Frieza.
It was Thanos.
The newly appointed Demolition Office Director of the Frieza Force had eyes bloodshot with rage. The purple-gold aura surrounding his body surged like a volcanic eruption.
An insult!
This was a blatant humiliation for him as the head of security!
Lord Frieza had only just conquered this territory, the property deed wasn't even warm yet.
And now some hobo shows up wanting a free meal?
And he wants to eat Lord Frieza as a snack?
If word got out, how could Thanos ever show his face in the Universe again?
How could he manage those troublemakers in the Ginyu Force under his command?
"No matter who you are, showing disrespect to Lord Frieza is a provocation against me!"
Boom!
The ruins beneath Thanos's feet instantly shattered.
He turned into a purple meteor, charging resolutely toward the giant hand that blotted out the sun.
"Ginyu Force! All hands, attack!"
"Protect the boss's assets!"
At Thanos's command, Apocalypse, Erik, Hela, and Loki, though their legs were shaking with fear, under the influence of that soul-deep "corporate culture" (mostly for fear of Frieza's retaliation), were forced to steel themselves and charge.
"For the year-end bonus!!!" Apocalypse let out a roar, his body growing massive once again.
Although he still looked like a toy in front of Galactus, he still raised his fist and struck down.
Erik manipulated all the remaining metal in Asgard, turning it into countless iron dragons to try and bind Galactus's finger.
Hela summoned a sky full of Necroswords, firing them like a black rainstorm at the purple armor.
For a moment, energy beams of various colors, magic, and superpowers exploded on Galactus's palm like fireworks.
Boom... Boom...
As the dust cleared, the giant hand remained unmoved. Not even a scratch was left on its skin. It didn't even pause for a second.
"Hmm?"
Galactus's eyes, burning with the light of stars, glanced down slightly. It was like someone eating a meal only to find a few buzzing flies on the table.
"Noisy bugs."
Galactus's voice carried a sense of nonchalant indifference.
He didn't even bother to attack. Instead, a ripple of purple cosmic energy shimmered across his dark red armor.
Buzz—
An indescribable repulsive force instantly erupted with Galactus at the center.
That was the Power Cosmic! One of the fundamental forces that built the Universe!
"Ugh—"
Thanos, who was at the very front, bore the brunt of it.
His proud Titan body, combined with the Ki bestowed by Frieza, was like a fallen leaf in a gale before this power.
The purple-gold aura on his body was instantly shattered, and he coughed up a mouthful of blood. He was sent flying backward ten times faster than he had arrived. He smashed through several floating islands before becoming embedded in the trunk of the World Tree, his fate unknown.
Next were Apocalypse, Erik, Hela...
These powerhouses who reigned supreme in their respective fields, were like mosquitoes sprayed with insecticide, falling from the sky one by one. They were completely powerless to resist.
At this moment, Galactus was not hungry. He had just devoured an energy-rich planet in the Andromeda Galaxy and was currently brimming with energy and at his peak.
"Too weak."
Galactus ignored the ants. His finger continued downward, still targeting the small figure emitting an enticing aroma.
"You look delicious."
Facing this certain-death situation, Frieza, who had been hovering motionless, finally moved.
He didn't panic, nor did he run. He simply looked up, his crimson eyes meeting Galactus's massive ones.
"Oh my..."
"Are hobos these days all so impolite?"
"Not only do you break into a private residence and injure my security guard, now you want to eat the owner of the house too?"
Frieza tilted his head, a look of extreme disgust appearing on his face.
"Do you know that your current actions, under Cosmic Law..."
Frieza extended a finger and pointed at Galactus's massive helmet.
"...are classified as home invasion plus attempted murder?"
"That's punishable by death, you know."
Galactus paused.
In his long life, this was the first time he had heard his food try to explain the law to him before being eaten.
"Law?"
Galactus's voice rumbled with a hint of confusion.
"I am the balance of the Universe. I am the rules."
"Eating is the truth of the Universe."
"Truth, my foot." Frieza interrupted him.
"In my territory, I am the truth."
"No matter who you are, or how big you are, if you haven't paid your Property Management Fees and still dare to act wild here..."
Frieza slowly clenched his fist. "Then I'll just have to dismantle you and use you to pay off the debt."
"Arrogant food."
Galactus lost his patience. His massive fingers snapped shut, intending to crush this ignorant little thing.
However, at the moment his fingertips were about to touch Frieza—
Buzz!!!
An unprecedented, terrifying aura that made even the soul tremble, erupted from Frieza's petite body.
If Galactus's aura was a vast sea of stars, then this aura was a black hole capable of devouring that sea.
"This is..."
Galactus's finger came to an abrupt halt. For the first time, a trace of shock appeared in his usually calm eyes.
He saw the space around Frieza below begin to warp and collapse frantically.
A golden light of ultimate purity gushed out from his body.
The radiance was so intense it even outshone the glory of Asgard, illuminating the entire Nine Realms.
"Oh-ho-ho..."
That iconic laughter echoed within the golden light.
As the light faded, a figure shimmering with the luster of liquid gold appeared before Galactus.
Golden Frieza!
"With such a big guest arriving, if I didn't show some real skill, wouldn't it seem like I'm a poor host?"
Golden Frieza slowly looked up. He looked at Galactus as if he were looking at a moving mountain of gold.
"Hey, big guy."
Frieza extended a golden finger and beckoned. "That armor of yours looks like it has a high gold content."
"Dismantling it and selling it for scrap metal should be worth quite a bit, right?"
"Come."
Boom!!!
Frieza's figure vanished instantly.
In the next second, a golden fist slammed into Galactus's planet-sized chin.
Thud—
With this punch, the galaxies themselves seemed to turn upside down.