Chapter 180: Recruit Family
Rocket and the previous Zane from the past were both orphans, and both used their tough exterior to protect themselves. Because they knew that even if they showed their vulnerable side to this cruel world, no one would sympathize or pity them. Instead, it would attract other predators, leaving nothing behind but scraps.
The difference was that the previous Zane lived in the relatively safe Earth, while Rocket lived in the dark universe where death could come at any moment. It's hard to imagine how Rocket survived in the beginning. Zane thought that if he were in Rocket's shoes, he probably wouldn't have made it to today. This showed just how resilient Rocket, this seemingly tough little raccoon, truly was, which was both admirable and heartbreaking.
Upon learning that Rocket and Groot had voluntarily boarded the Ark, Zane felt genuinely happy. One of Zane's original purposes for coming to Xandar was to take Rocket and Groot under his wing. Otherwise, why didn't Zane just head straight for the Power Stones?
And Rocket and Groot weren't positioned as pets in Zane's mind but rather as subordinates, or partners, or even family!
The previous Zane deeply understood Rocket's deepest desire now. He was looking for a home, a family! And Zane was willing to give this seemingly ferocious little raccoon a home!
As for Zane's current appearance, well, ahem...
Let's just call it a special welcoming ceremony for these two adorable creatures. Yes, it's a welcoming ceremony.
Don't agree? Come at me then!
Alright, ultimately, it was just Zane's twisted sense of humor acting up again.
As for what to do if the original members of the Guardians of the Galaxy couldn't be gathered, Zane just shrugged it off.
"Doesn't matter to me!"
Zane had long passed the stage of wanting to maintain the normal development of the original plot. Otherwise, Zane wouldn't have decisively slaughtered all those superheroes on Earth and then left just like that.
The scene shifted back to the Ark. The magnetic robots that had received orders not to harm Rocket and Groot paused only to confirm whether there were any other invaders on the Ark. Upon seeing that the source of the noise was Rocket and Groot, they simply turned back to their work.
"I am Groot," Groot asked bewilderedly behind Rocket.
"I don't know why these big idiots aren't bothering us, but let's get out of this place quickly. I don't want to stay here for another second," Rocket said, his mood complex, but summed up in just two words—regret.
He was regretting so much now!
Boss, if you're so awesome, why didn't you say so earlier?!
Why did you have to resort to robbery just to pay the landing fee back at the landing pad?
Boss, your act of pretending to be a pig to eat a tiger is a bit too much!
Damn it, this is a pure scam!
Usually, the only two types of people who can't afford the landing fee at the landing pad are refugees and newcomers exploring other civilizations in the universe.
Seeing how excited Zane and his team were, the experienced Rocket immediately classified them as the latter. That's why he dared to be so reckless, thinking they were just naive newcomers.
But as it turned out, experience can be deadly!
Seeing that the magnetic robots had no intention of arresting him and Groot, Rocket immediately made a gesture to Groot, indicating that they should quietly leave.
Then, a sneaky raccoon and a walking tree, under the watchful eyes of countless magnetic robots, ventured into the unknown territory of the Ark, hoping to find a way out.
Suddenly, Rocket was astonished to discover a terrifying fact ahead.
That was, the exterior of the Ark and the internal space didn't match at all. Just the space he was in now could fit five Ark-Type spaceships.
Rocket had been too nervous before to notice this issue, but now that he had relaxed a bit, he realized it.
What did this mean?
This meant that the owner of the Ark had mastered advanced spatial technology, expanding the space of this ship from the inside. And anyone who possessed this kind of spatial expansion technology was not someone Rocket could provoke.
Looking at the magnetic robots flying all over the sky, Rocket finally realized that he might have kicked a hornet's nest.
Now Rocket's only question was why the other side didn't just kill him directly.
Although Rocket was irritable, he also knew that he was just a genetically engineered little monster. In the face of powerful beings like Zane, thousands of copies of him could be synthesized anytime and anywhere, rendering him utterly useless.
His head was starting to hurt, and Rocket couldn't figure out this logic. He decided to stop thinking about it for now.
The most urgent thing now was to escape from this ghostly place.
But Rocket had no idea that his current dilemma was entirely due to the twisted sense of humor of a demigod.
And as Rocket, carrying the frustration, walked ahead, completely unaware of Groot behind him, Groot was dumbfoundedly stopping a magnetic robot carrying a weapon.
Then, under the gaze of that magnetic robot, he slowly took out a futuristic-looking gun from the box.
All the magnetic robots paused their actions again, looking at the confused Rocket who received the gun from Groot.
"I am Groot," Groot said happily, looking like a child eager for praise.
Under the gaze of all the magnetic robots, Rocket, with his furry body trembling from anger, shouted furiously.
"Groot!" he roared in frustration.
In the restaurant's private room, seeing the silly Groot and the deceived Rocket, Lorna couldn't help but burst into tears of laughter.
"These two are just too funny. It'll be so much fun to have them at home later!"
Zane was also laughing uncontrollably at these two adorable creatures.
Inside the Ark, accompanied by Rocket's roar, all the magnetic robots paused their actions again, dropping what they were doing and rushing towards Rocket, who was holding a gun.
Their orders were not to harm Rocket and Groot, but that didn't mean they could let them wield weapons and destroy the Ark.
However, Rocket didn't know the purpose of these magnetic robots was to retrieve the gun from him. He thought these big guys wanted to kill him.
Quickly grabbing the energy cannon in his hand, Rocket jumped onto Groot.
With Rocket's talent for handling terrifying weapons, he immediately felt familiar with the gun in his hand.
"Run, Groot, run!"
As Rocket sprayed out blue energy shots from the gun in his hand, the approaching magnetic robots were blown to bits, scattering metal particles all over the ground.
Although the next moment, these metal particles would automatically reassemble into intact robots, it effectively stopped their actions.
The gun in Rocket's hand was intended to be sent to the [King's Treasury], and so its power completely exceeded Rocket's imagination. It could directly blast into smithereens the previously seemingly indestructible big guys in his eyes.
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