"Faora, what're the odds for this fight?"
Luke, sitting in the front row, took his eyes off the confrontation between Zod and Ronan.
"Odds?"
The Kryptonian commander glanced around and found a lot of people sneaking around in the audience, moving back and forth in various positions.
They should be employees from the casinos, looking around for customers.
As we all know, any competitive tournament would inevitably give birth to the gambling industry.
Even if it was in Knowhere, there's no exception.
Moreover, the publicity leading up to the battle was sufficiently loud and full of hype.
A resource planet at stake, Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire and the Captain of the Shi'ar Guards ...
Too many topics to discuss, attracting countless viewers.
Besides, in the duel between Ronan, the Accuser and the Gladiator, the Captain of the Shi'ar Guard...
If the odds were balanced, and there was nothing exciting...
The fierce collision between the warlord of the Kree Empire and a passer-by dark horse who appeared out of nowhere was even more interesting.
Although most of the audience thought there was no suspense, and Ronan had a good chance of winning ...
However, there were always a group of experienced gamblers who were greedy for the amazing odds and ready to make a single blowout bet.
In the arena, the confrontation between the two men hadn't yet started.
Instead, the audience was buzzing with enthusiasm.
"Is this really necessary?"
Faora hesitated.
It's not that she didn't believe in her superior's strength.
Instead, gambling was illegal and considered a bad practice among Kryptonian values.
Especially if Zod knew, the consequences would be horrifying.
"It's just a recreational pastime, don't take it too seriously."
Luke waved his hand and comforted the Kryptonian commander.
"Besides, could you have rebuilt Krypton with your bare hands? Even with the resources provided by the Grandmaster, for the prosperity of a civilisation and a race, it's an insignificant thing."
Faora looked torn but eventually got up in silence.
...
...
"You shouldn't have come."
Ronan, the Accuser, tightened his grip on his long-handled war hammer and looked towards Zod, not far away.
He thought the other party would find a place to hide instead of showing up on time.
After all, in the galaxy...
Everyone knew Ronan's fierce name.
"Kryptonians won't turn down a challenge, let alone run away."
The Kryptonian General grimaced. His metallic armour vibrated like a lava volcano ready to erupt.
"Very well, I'll bestow upon you the highest glory -- death by the war hammer of the Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire."
A hint of appreciation passed through Ronan's eyes.
The Kree Empire was the top-ranked military empire in the galaxy.
The Kree were also known for their belligerence and ferocity.
They could slaughter all life on a planet without changing their expressions while at the same time respecting those who would fight for their faith.
Without further nonsense, Zod's pitch-black cloak flared high as his tall body took a violent step forward.
Bang!
Invisible waves of air tumbled and roared, spreading in all directions.
Space seemed to stagnate, and the Kryptonian General's every move seemed to slow down.
This was actually a visual illusion.
Zod was extremely fast, transforming into an unstoppable black shadow.
When the crowd was caught off guard, he rushed towards Ronan with unparalleled momentum.
For the Kryptonian General, a battle was always a matter of killing and slaughter.
There was no point in preaching battle ethics.
It would be foolish to announce before striking!
"Heh."
Ronan, the Accuser, spat out a sneer and swung his long-handled war hammer straight into the air.
The air flow was squeezed into streaks of white wisps, and rumbling bursts of sound spread across the vast gladiatorial arena.
Wherever the war hammer passed, it was as if space caved in, releasing a wave of destruction.
There was no hint of fear in Zod's eyes, let alone any intention of avoiding him.
His right hand was clenched into a fist, his muscles tensed up, and his heavy strength condensed into it.
In the next moment, the divine weapon given by the Supreme Intelligence collided with the Kryptonian's iron fist.
Bang!
There was a loud bang.
The solid arena shook a few times as if there was an earthquake.
The ground beneath their feet instantly cracked open like an ever-expanding spider's web.
The surging air billowed, setting off a wave of dust like a dragon soaring into the air.
The deafening, dull sound irritated the fragile eardrums of all the spectators in the gladiatorial arena.
"Is that all?"
Receiving the force of the impact, Zod took a few steps back, withdrew his fist and let out a taunt.
'That long-handled war hammer is indeed indestructible.'
'It's a bit of a shame that it landed in Ronan's hands.'
The Kryptonian General's eyes were solemn as his feet launched into his opponent once again.
The ground crumbled and furrowed.
In the space of a few breaths, the two figures exchanged blows with each other hundreds of times.
The terrifying wave of sound rippled out in rings, visible to the naked eye.
Faced with such a fierce attack, Ronan couldn't help but feel a suffocating sense of pressure.
Zod's combat sense was too good, dodging the shockwave fired by the war hammer at exactly the right time, every time.
It made his Universal Weapon useless.
Moreover, the Kryptonian's iron fist was powerful.
Had it not been for the war hammer's energy shield, Ronan the Accuser would have been caught in danger several times, welcoming the bitter fruit of defeat.
"You're a tenacious fighter. It's just a shame you ran into me!"
The Supreme Accuser of the Kerry Empire roared, his war hammer releasing heavy pressure from his hands.
The air seemed to grow thicker as Zod felt a powerful force field around him.
It was as if he was stuck in a swamp-like a towering mountain was pressing on top of his head.
This was one of the abilities that the divine weapon, forged by the Supreme Intelligence, possessed.
Manipulate gravity, absorb energy, create force fields, emit shock waves ...
The Supreme Intelligence of the Kree Empire named the war hammer 'Universal Weapon'. It was worthy of its name.
Capturing the rare opportunity, Ronan the Accuser went on the offensive.
His hands clenched, his hammer raised.
With a terrifying force, it slammed directly into Zod's chest.
The metal armour from Krypton crumbled apart with a few cracks and then fell to pieces.
Before Zod could react, he was sent flying into the air.
He felt a sharp pain in his body, and his eyes were glazed over as if he had been hit head-on by a battleship.
In a groggy daze, Zod quickly slammed down.
There was another loud bang.
The ground shook.
The solid alloy wall of the arena was almost broken through, revealing a deep, human-shaped dent.
"Embrace death!"
Ronan rose into the air like a predatory falcon and swooped down on the fallen Zod.
The black armour that covered the surface of the torso buzzed and vibrated, emitting a shrill sound.
The hissing air currents twisted like a swarm of snakes, framing the Accuser of the Kree Empire like a god or a demon.
Boom!
The fierce energy, like a detonated explosive, unleashed a terrifying wave of destruction.
Faora, who was sitting in the front row, was so distraught that she couldn't help but stand up.
She never expected that General Zod would slip up and give Ronan a chance to catch him in an extremely dangerous situation.
"Faora, you underestimate the will of a Kryptonian General."
Luke was as calm and steady as a mountain.
Zod was at least strong enough to go a few rounds with him, not so weak that he would lose to Ronan the Accuser, who relied on his weapon's abilities.
There was silence in the arena. People in the audience stood up and poked their heads out, trying to see the situation.
The battle was like a roller coaster ride, with ups and downs. Ronan the Accuser, who was favoured by the public, was caught in a passive position at the beginning.
Zod became a dark horse, revealing his skills.
When the scales of victory tipped in favour of the Kryptonian General, the Supreme Accuser of the Kree Empire struck a surprising blow.
The smoke slowly dispersed, revealing a vague figure.
"Cough cough ..."
Zod, who was smashed into the alloy wall, opened his palm. In a flash, he was tightly gripping the war hammer.
The violent energy cut through the Kryptonian's hard-as-steel skin like a knife.
The wound was so deep that they could almost see the white of his bones.
Drip drip drip!
Scarlet blood spurted onto Zod's face, giving him a particularly grim look.
Despite the loss of his right arm, the Kryptonian General was able to deflect a fierce blow from Ronan the Accuser.
Crack! Crack!
Zod gritted his teeth and moved the war hammer away with great force.
His eyes were full of anger, steely and unyielding.
"It's my turn."
He coldly spat out the words.