◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews.
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones. or 500 Collections
◇ You can read 40 chapter ahead on P@treon . if you're interested: patreon.com/Heroicverse
------------------------------------------------
Blocking Darian's path at this moment was a slender, green-skinned woman.
Aside from the wrong gender and physique, she was essentially a female Hulk, even the shade of green was similar.
[NPC: Gamora Zen Whoberi Ben Titan]
[Affection: 0]
[Evaluation: Thanos's daughter, the most dangerous woman in the Universe, skilled in lethal bird strikes, Star-Lord's lover, the woman who made Star-Lord bring about Avengers 4]
This person in front of him was actually Thanos's daughter.
Darian was a little surprised, and looking at the evaluation, this mini-Hulk had even gotten together with Quill.
So, Thanos, the big BOSS behind the scenes, became Quill's cheap father-in-law?
"Who is Hulk?"
Gamora's brow furrowed slightly when she heard Darian's words.
"Hulk is a timid, good-tempered little guy, and his color is as healthy as yours," Darian said casually.
Quill, who had been following Darian, chattering incessantly and demanding the magic be removed, suddenly became excited—no, he was truly excited—the moment he saw Gamora.
So Darian really hadn't lied to him!
Quill perked up again and said to Gamora, "Hello, madam, I am Peter Quill, everyone calls me Star-Lord, may I ask what you need from us?"
A meaningful smile appeared on Gamora's face: "It's like this, I've lost something very important, and I was hoping you could help me out."
"Oh? What is it? I'm an expert in this area."
Quill's eyes lit up, and he eagerly took a step closer.
"This item is…"
Mid-sentence, Gamora suddenly, without warning, raised her leg and delivered a lethal bird strike to Quill.
"Ow—!!"
Quill's entire face instantly turned a purplish-red, his hands clamped over his vital area, his legs twisted inward, and he crumpled to the ground, kneeling.
As expected of the woman known as the most dangerous in the Universe, her level of danger to males was practically nuclear-grade.
Immediately after, Gamora pulled out a uniquely shaped high-tech hilt, the blade instantly springing out and pressing directly against Quill's neck.
"Hand over the Cosmic Orb! Otherwise, I'll kill him!" Gamora snapped at Darian.
Darian chuckled: "He and I just met, what good will it do to threaten me with him?"
"Don't give me that! I know you're with him, hand over the Cosmic Orb, or I'll send him on his way right now!"
Gamora's brow furrowed tightly, and she pressed the blade down slightly, leaving a shallow red mark on Quill's skin.
"She's serious, countryman, we're all Earthlings, you can't just stand by and watch me die!" Quill's voice was terrified and distorted, his neck stiff, not daring to move.
Darian pulled out his Golden Desert Eagle and pointed it at Quill in front of Gamora.
"Good brother, just go in peace, I promise to avenge you. After you're gone, I'll properly inherit your legacy. If you have any pretty girlfriends, give me their contact information now, and I'll take good care of them."
"Are you even speaking human words?!"
Quill's eyes widened, so angry he almost couldn't breathe.
He turned to Gamora and shouted, "I know this guy's personality, he'll really kill both me and you, then inherit my legacy and girlfriend. Ah, no, I don't have a girlfriend, I'm still single. In short, why don't the two of us team up and fight him!"
Gamora: "..."
Are you Earthlings all crazy?
But she had been an interstellar assassin under Thanos for so many years, her perception of danger was extremely keen.
At this moment, Gamora could feel an almost solidified aura of danger from Darian, and the hand holding the gun was terrifyingly steady, with not a trace of hesitation or wavering in his eyes!
Clearly, this guy was truly capable of doing it!
Madman!
Gamora cursed inwardly, then made a snap decision, lifting her foot and kicking Quill towards Darian.
As Darian's vision was completely obscured by Quill, Gamora's figure erupted like a leopard, the longsword in her hand slicing through the air with a sharp whoosh, striking directly at Darian's gun-wielding right shoulder!
Clang!
The crisp clang of metal echoed in their ears.
The Golden Desert Eagle in Darian's hand had, at some point, transformed into an ancient-looking longsword, steadily parrying Gamora's swift thrust.
The recoil from the sword blade made Gamora's arm tingle slightly.
A hint of surprise flashed in her eyes; she clearly hadn't expected Darian to be able to switch weapons out of thin air, or to block the high-tech sword Thanos had specially commissioned for her.
One should know, this sword was crafted from a special alloy, usually cutting through ordinary metal like tofu.
What Gamora didn't know was that the sword in Darian's hand was one he had taken from Sif, and in terms of sharpness and durability, it was considered a top-tier weapon throughout the entire galaxy.
Missing her strike, Gamora didn't pause, instead swinging her sword up again, launching a fierce assault on Darian!
It must be said, her combat skills were indeed excellent.
Also using a sword, every move she made showed the ruthlessness honed through years of practical combat, clearly a notch above Darian's basic one-handed sword skills.
But Darian remained at ease; if skills weren't enough, numerical superiority would crush, easily blocking all of Gamora's attacks.
Seeing that conventional attacks were completely ineffective, Gamora's eyes sharpened. She feigned a thrust with her longsword, but her left leg suddenly swept upwards, using her signature move against Darian: the lethal bird strike!
Who knew Darian was already prepared, crossing his legs and clamping her ankle.
"Despicable scoundrel, trying to use such a dirty trick a second time? Take this!"
Darian snorted coldly, raising his longsword high and bringing it down on Gamora.
Gamora quickly parried with her sword, but unexpectedly, Darian's move was a feint, his left hand actually clenched into a fist and slammed into her chest!
Bang!
With a dull thud, Gamora flew backward, her back hitting the ground hard, causing her to feel a surge of qi and blood.
Quill finally recovered and, seeing this, sighed, thinking how cunning these people were, full of tricks even in battle. An honest and kind person like him was becoming increasingly rare in the Universe.
He approached Darian, patting his chest with lingering fear: "Countryman, I really owe it to you just now. Your acting was so realistic, you pretended you were really going to shoot me, which fooled that green-skinned girl, allowing me to escape."
Darian looked bewildered: "Huh? What acting?"
Quill: "???"
Just then, a furry figure descended from the sky, landing on Quill's head.
"Hahaha! Forty thousand Cosmic credits are mine!"
Darian raised an eyebrow, realizing this furry figure was actually a raccoon.
[NPC: Rocket]
[Codename: Rocket Raccoon]
[Affection: 0]
[Evaluation: Raccoon, Groot's partner, one of the smartest living beings in the Universe]
The Universe truly was full of wonders.
Even a raccoon could talk, and was even one of the smartest living beings in the Universe. He just wondered if Tony's intelligence would be superior when compared to this little creature?
If Tony won, he'd be smarter than a raccoon; if he lost, even a raccoon would be smarter than him.
Uh, it seemed Tony would lose either way.
At the same time, a tall figure slowly walked past Darian. It was a treeman with limbs and facial features, and a few tender leaves on his bark-like skin.
[NPC: Groot]
[Affection: 0]
[Evaluation: I am Groot, I am Groot, I am Groot, I am Groot.]
Darian was so confused he almost forgot how to write the name Groot.
Rocket, bouncing frantically on Quill's head, shouted loudly: "Groot, stop dawdling, quickly help me tie up this valuable guy, we're going to get rich!"
"I am Groot."
Groot extended his arms and immediately used Wood Release. Countless tiny branches instantly grew out, wrapping Quill like a mummy, leaving only his head exposed.
Evidently, they were all after Quill's bounty.
Quill was on the verge of tears.
Who had he provoked? Why was everyone coming after him?
Quill's eyes hardened. Are you all bullying me? It seems it's time to use my ultimate trump card!
"Countryman, save me—!!"
Quill's wail was heart-wrenching, even more tragic than if his own father had died.
"Alright, alright, stop wailing!"
Darian said with a look of disgust, casually waving his longsword, and the branches wrapped around Quill snapped, clattering to the ground.
Quill finally broke free, and the first thing he did was grab Rocket, who was still bouncing on his head, and threw him out.
Rocket agilely flipped in mid-air, landing on Groot's shoulder, waving his little paws angrily.
"You idiot, you almost made me fall!"
Only then did Quill truly see Rocket's appearance, and he exclaimed in surprise: "Wait, a talking raccoon?"
"What raccoon? What nonsense are you talking about?"
Rocket looked bewildered, completely unable to understand what Quill was saying.
Having wandered the galaxy for many years, Rocket had never seen his own kind, and had no idea that his species was called a raccoon on Earth. Only Darian and Quill, these two Earthlings, knew Rocket's species.
But he didn't pay too much attention to it. He pulled out the gun behind him, which was larger than himself, and watched Darian with wary eyes.
"Groot, be careful, the man next to that idiot is very dangerous."
"I am Groot."
"Don't worry about that idiot, his danger level is even lower than yours."
"I am Groot."
"Alright, alright, I get it, I shouldn't compare you to that idiot, it's an insult to you."
Rocket and Groot both focused their gaze on Darian, completely ignoring Quill.
Quill: "..."
Who's the idiot? They definitely aren't talking about me!
Darian chuckled, it seemed everyone had a very consistent first impression of Quill.
He watched the interaction between Rocket and Groot, marveling, "A raccoon and a treeman, if your nature-themed duo went to the U.S., you might even receive Celestial Dragon treatment."
You see, those animal welfare and environmental organizations in the U.S. are all quite fanatical.
If they saw a talking raccoon and a walking tree, they'd probably worship them like ancestors, and then… use them to amass wealth!
Groot spoke: "I am Groot."
Darian naturally replied: "Celestial Dragon means a person above others."
"I am Groot."
"I know you're a tree, it's pretty much the same meaning anyway."
Watching Darian and Groot converse effortlessly, Quill and Rocket beside them were stunned.
Quill's eyes widened: "Countryman, this treeman keeps saying the same thing, how can you hear so many layers of meaning?"
Darian explained: "He must be speaking some kind of language, it's just that you don't understand it."
His game language setting was for them to speak English, so Groot's language was naturally translated into English.
"That amazing?"
Quill immediately became interested and turned to Groot, asking, "What's your name?"
"I am Groot."
Quill immediately turned to Darian: "Countryman, what did he just say?"
"He said 'I am Groot'."
"I know, I'm asking what that means?"
Darian: "..."
Are you an idiot?
Darian's mouth twitched, and he said to Rocket and Groot: "You two take this idiot away, we'll split the bounty equally."
"Okay!"
Rocket agreed without hesitation. Darian's threat was too great; cooperation was naturally the best option.
Groot nodded: "I am Groot."
Quill: "..."
It's over, my teammate seems to have betrayed me.
He looked left and right, his gaze falling on Gamora, who had just gotten up from the ground.
"Uh, what about my suggestion from before? How about we team up?"
Gamora simply turned her face away, not even bothering to spare him a glance.
She'd rather die than be teammates with such an idiot!
Just then, blinding yellow beams of light suddenly descended from the sky, firmly enveloping everyone. They instantly felt their bodies lighten, and they floated uncontrollably into mid-air.
They looked up to see seven Nova Corps spacecraft hovering above them.
"Lay down your weapons. In the name of the Nova Corps, you are under arrest for endangering lives and destroying property."
An announcement blared from the spacecraft's loudspeaker. Clearly, the commotion they had caused had attracted the Nova Corps.
Faced with so many Nova Corps spacecraft, Rocket reluctantly dropped his weapon. As for Gamora, after she got up, she couldn't find where her weapon had gone, even though there was no cover anywhere around.
And Darian was even more empty-handed; aside from his bulging pants pocket, he had nothing, cleaner than a beggar.
"I'm a victim, I didn't do anything, I'm innocent!" Quill quickly shouted.
"Yes, I'm innocent too, I don't know who put this gun in my hand!" Rocket echoed.
"I am Groot."
Quill: "..."
Darian and Gamora, however, did not join in the shouting.
One could slip away at any time, fearless, while the other had her pride and couldn't bring herself to shout such a thing.
The Nova Corps was quite efficient, quickly taking them to a specialized isolation interrogation room to begin investigating their identities and backgrounds one by one.
The results were surprising. Most of them had various criminal records, especially Gamora, who was even more outrageous than Most Wanted criminal. Her accumulated prison sentences were enough for her to be locked up from the Stone Age to the Interstellar Age.
Only Darian's file was as clean as a blank sheet of paper, and his actions were mostly in self-defense, making him a law-abiding citizen compared to the others.
Finally, Quill and the others were sent to prison by the Nova Corps, while only Darian was released on the spot.
As they parted, the Nova Corps squad leader patted Darian's shoulder and said earnestly, "Young man, you need to be careful when choosing friends in the future. These are dangerous criminals, don't get mixed up with them again."
Darian sighed: "I really didn't expect Quill to be this kind of person. I misjudged him. Don't worry, I've always been at odds with evil, and I'll draw a clear line with him from now on!"
Quill: "..."
This guy is the main culprit, quickly arrest him!