American TV series: Start with the little Sheldon's wool

Chapter 736 Arena

After paying a considerable toll, Mike and his two companions were warmly invited into the planet by the guards of Sakaar.

They also thoughtfully provided a spacecraft berthing service.

Of course, Mike doesn't need this berthing service.

Amidst the astonished gazes of his guards, he stored the giant spaceship inside his crystal ball. After declining their offers of further services, he led Scarlet Witch and Nebula onto the main street of Sakaar.

Compared to the relatively peaceful Xandar, Saka, located in the most chaotic region of the universe, has just as many inhabitants.

Meanwhile, the high-tech public infrastructure on the main streets is not much different from that of Xandar.

It must be said that the Grandmaster's ability in construction is indeed very strong.

"Where do we go next? Should we go straight to cause trouble for the Grandmaster?" Nebula had come to Sakaar several times with Thanos before.

She simply couldn't bring herself to like the false prosperity built upon the blood and sweat of the common people here.

She didn't have the opportunity before, but now that she's working for a good boss, she feels she can do something for this place.

“No, there’s no need for that. Let’s go straight there.” Mike pointed to the huge projection screen on the street.

The screen above is displaying a scrolling advertisement for the latest arena tournament.

Among them, Thor, with his short, neat hair, and the Hulk, with his bloated body and ferocious face, each occupied half of the space.

"Is that Thor? Boss, you really do have precognitive abilities." Nebula flattered.

Of course, a large part of it was genuine.

She had previously heard Mike say that he could find his friend Thor on Sakaar, but she thought he was just making things up and that his real purpose was probably to use this as an excuse to cause trouble for the Grandmaster.

Thor really was there, and he looked quite imposing.

“NO~” Mike shook his head with a strange expression.

"You don't admit that you have the ability to foresee the future?" Nebula pressed.

"No~" Mike suppressed a laugh, moved Nebula's finger to a different position, and said, "Actually, the one on the left is Thor."

"What?" Nebula exclaimed in surprise, looking at Thor, who was clearly much "thinner" on the left, and said, "Then he's in for a lot of trouble this time."

……

As it turned out, Thor was in trouble. With the arrival of the Day of Glades, his brother, on whom he had placed his hopes, failed to come to his rescue.

"Was that skinny guy your brother? Not to be nosy, but he didn't seem like the type to keep his promises." The Thing, Kog, slipped into Thor's cell and offered words of advice. "Right now, the thing you need to do most is find a good weapon. That will make your death in the arena a little more dignified..."

While his brother didn't arrive, Thor, with his generous nature, had become good friends with the other prospective gladiators in the cell over the past week.

At the same time, he has become immune to Kog, the stone man who looks simple-minded but is actually a chatterbox.

Of course, the other party was right about one thing: no matter what, find a suitable weapon first.

In that case, even if Loki doesn't come to his rescue in the end, Thor is confident that he can win the gladiatorial match and walk out on his own.

Yes, the rule of the Grandmaster Arena is that the victorious gladiator will ultimately gain freedom.

"I need a hammer," Thor, having figured it out, said, revealing his need.

"Great, Thor. You're finally back to normal. Leave the weapons to me..." The stone man Kog thumped his chest with joy when Thor finally spoke.

Then, putting his arm around Thor, he walked towards the armory in the prison area, saying, "By the way, Thor. Instead of an impractical weapon like a hammer, I suggest you choose a flail. That thing is not only incredibly powerful, but it also has a wider attack range..."

Thor, on the other hand, had long since developed a resistance to Kog calling him "King of Thunder".

Upon arriving at the armory, amidst a pile of oddly shaped axes, halberds, hooks, forks, and meteor hammers, he resolutely chose a huge short-handled hammer.

"Boss Kogg, won't this cause problems for King Lei?"

"Yeah, he looks even more depressed than after his last haircut."

"..."

After Thor finished choosing his weapon, he quietly went to a corner and squatted down, following the group of henchmen who were hanging out with Korg the Thing. They couldn't help but chirp softly.

This can be considered as expressing one's concern.

“Go on, King Lei is a real man. He was so depressed after getting a haircut last time, but he recovered in just two days. I believe he can get through this one too…” The stone man, Kog, paused for a moment, then continued, “Of course, two days is still too long. King Lei would be better off in a good mood before going to the arena. That way, he can at least accept death in a good mood.”

"As expected of Boss Koger, he still knows how to care about people..."

"If I were Lei Wang, knowing how much Boss Kogg cares about me, I would definitely be moved to tears..."

……

Whether they were genuinely foolish or truly moved, a group of prospective gladiators actually started flattering the stone man, Kog.

"Keep it low-key, keep it low-key, just keep it to yourselves. Don't let the Thunder King hear and get distracted, he needs peace and quiet right now," the Stone Man Kog humbly told his underlings.

But with his deep, resonant voice, it was impossible for Thor not to hear it.

Hearing that a group of people didn't have high hopes for him, Thor clenched his fists again.

My heart also became extremely irritable.

"Thor, the Grandmaster wants to see you!"

Just then, two guards from the detention cell came in and took Thor out of the cell.

Then, just like when he first arrived, his hands were magnetically locked to the chair.

Then they were taken upstairs, where they met the Grandmaster and Loki, who was mixed in with the crowd in the room.

Furthermore, the Sakaar Arena was not a man-made structure, but rather the skull of an ancient giant.

This skull, as large as a mountain, was embedded deep in the chaotic garbage plains of Sakaar, and was later valued by a grandmaster and transformed into a gladiatorial arena.

It has two floors, with the upper floor being the viewing area and the lower floor consisting of a circular detention room and a dueling area in the center.

The overall design is somewhat similar to the ancient Roman Colosseum.

The giant's gaping maw, leading to eternal darkness, became the entrance to the arena, while his jagged teeth formed natural arches and the base for the general viewing area.

Further up, the huge cavities of the skull's eye sockets and nasal cavity have been transformed into luxury private rooms and giant projection screens.

The room where the grandmaster was located was one of the two luxury private rooms, and it was the best viewing spot.

As for Loki, ever since he used sweet talk to get close to the Grandmaster, he's practically untouchable on Sakaar.

He was welcomed and feared wherever he went, and his vanity was greatly satisfied during this period. He was having so much fun that he forgot about the people waiting for him to save them.

Seeing Thor being led into the private room, he immediately lowered his head guiltily, not daring to make any eye contact with the other person.

Thor shook his head in disappointment and didn't say anything more.

"See those spectators outside? They're all here for the arena's reputation. And for you too..." The Grandmaster stood before Thor, looking down at him, and said, "So, to ensure you deliver a spectacular match, I need to teach you a lesson beforehand..."

The master beckoned to Topaz, who was standing nearby, and then a device resembling a stun gun with a metal ball at one end was handed to him.
"Victory or death!"

"This is the core rule I established when I created the arena. Draws are not accepted here, and the consequences of defeat are..."

The Grandmaster, acting as a temporary guide, approached the gaunt man chained to Thor, holding something that resembled a toy. The man looked as if he had endured inhuman torture; he was emaciated and devoid of any spirit, his bulging eyes filled with terror and a desperate yearning for life.

"No, don't kill me, please spare me..."

As the grandmaster approached, the gaunt man looked as if he had seen a demon and cried out in fear for mercy.

After realizing it wasn't working, the man immediately turned to Thor and the others in the room and shouted, "Please save me, I don't want to die... Help me..."

His mad appearance was enough to prove that he really didn't want to die.

Thor only noticed someone in the chair next to him after the other person spoke. After all, the man was indeed too thin; sitting in the large chair, he was hard to spot without careful observation.

Thor was then shocked by the survival instinct on the other person's face.

As for the other visitors in the room, they all looked on with amusement, some even with smiles on their faces.

Clearly, they were used to this kind of scene.

Of course, this does not include Loki.

Seemingly sensing something, he was frowning as he observed his brother Thor and the skinny man beside him.

Then, as the master pressed the metal ball of the "stun gun" in his hand against the skinny man's chest, the skinny man's body went limp and he collapsed into the chair, then vomited to the ground.

Yes, it flowed onto the ground in a large puddle, like jelly.

"Oh~My~Gay~~"

Having witnessed the torture up close, Thor's shock turned to terror, and he immediately took over the screams from the skinny man.

Those in the room who were waiting to see a good show then burst into a huge roar of laughter.

"Ugh, that's disgusting!"

The master who caused all this disdainfully avoided the "jelly" on the ground, threw the "stun baton" back to Topaz, and commanded, "Quickly get someone to clean this up; it's utterly disgusting."

Then, he leaned close to Thor and said, "Victory or death! Remember that?"

……

Even after being taken back to his cell, Thor's mind was still reeling from the gaunt man's gruesome death.

"I must survive!"

It was only at this moment that Thor gained a clear understanding of the cruelty of the gladiatorial arena.

At the same time, they understood why the Stone Man Kog and other prospective gladiators were so eager to escape from here.

Meanwhile, in the upstairs viewing area, Loki, the god of mischief who was only thinking about having fun, also realized that everyone in this box was a "devil".

Compared to their cruelty, my little schemes and tricks were utterly insignificant.

There's a saying that goes something like this: even bad people hope their friends are good people.

So, feeling extremely insecure, Loki seized an opportunity and secretly fled.

On one hand, he really didn't want to stay here, and on the other hand, after witnessing the skinny man's torture, he suddenly realized that he wanted to see if there was still a chance to get Thor out.

Despite his tendency to cause trouble for his brother, they are still brothers.

This made it impossible for Loki to just stand by and watch the other person die.

"Where are you going? The match is about to start." Just as Loki tiptoed to the door, the Grandmaster's voice suddenly rang in his ears.

"Um... I'd like to go outside and see if there's a better viewing spot." Startled, Loki quickly came up with a plausible excuse for his actions.

"Is that so? Then you don't need to waste your energy. This is the best viewing area. If you still think it's not enough, you can come over to me." The Grandmaster had a harmless smile on his face.

But perhaps it was a psychological issue, after witnessing the other party's cruelty, even though the Grandmaster's expression was gentle, Loki only felt a chill down his spine as if a cold wind was blowing.

And it seemed that her own little thoughts had been seen through by the other person's eyes.

"Th-thank you~" Loki, not daring to make any more rash moves, could only accept the Grandmaster's kindness with a forced smile for the sake of his life.

Go to the other person's side.

……

"I never imagined that Grandmaster Gao Tianzun could be so cruel..." Nebula, sitting in the other luxurious private room, spoke up in displeasure.

The two luxury private rooms are only a few dozen meters apart and are not completely enclosed. If you look closely, you can barely see what's happening on the other side.

It was thanks to Mike's wealth and unwillingness to compromise that Nebula had the opportunity to secretly observe the Grandmaster's true face.

"When do you plan to save your friend?" Having witnessed the Grandmaster's cruelty, Nebula was even more worried about the safety of Mike's Thor friend.

“Anytime is fine, but before that, he needs to learn his lesson,” Mike replied, squinting as he enjoyed the Scarlet Witch’s attentive massage.

Mike isn't a full-time babysitter; he can't always pay for Thor's recklessness.

Therefore, we should take this opportunity to help the other party grow.

As the gladiatorial match drew near, deafening electronic rock music filled the dimly lit arena.

With its rough style and pale, giant skeleton, it has a bit of a death rock vibe.

Below, in the parallel stands, spectators from all corners of the universe were instantly swept up in a collective frenzy upon hearing the music.

Among them were alien nobles with multicolored skin, mechanical lifeforms made entirely of metal, and many more gamblers dressed in rags, looking like trash.

They were shoulder to shoulder, their shouts, yells, and curses blending together.

From a distance, the chaotic scene looked like hell.

At this moment, Nebula, who was in the luxurious private room above, couldn't help but give her boss a thumbs up for his foresight once again.

Although it cost a lot more money, it was all worth it.

The frenzy below continued; under the direction of massive death rock music, the already frenzied crowd acted as if performing a grand religious ceremony.

Then, as the holographic projection above the arena was activated, countless dazzling electronic fireworks exploded above the stands, pushing the atmosphere to another peak.

Those electronic fireworks weren't real "fireworks," but rather gladiators' odds, battle records, and close-up shots.

As the gamblers placed their bets in turn, the air seemed to be filled with a pungent odor that was a mixture of sweat, a sweet, fishy smell, and a mixture of cheap fuel and stimulants.

This is the most primal desire and violence, the flavor that condenses after being evaporated.

"Ladies and gentlemen! You cosmic trash! Welcome to the Battle of the Champions!"

In the midst of the intense atmosphere, a punk-style alien with a large head walked to the center of the arena, holding a microphone.

His appearance undoubtedly attracted the attention of countless viewers.

Everyone realized that the bloody and violent gladiatorial match was about to begin.

……

(End of this chapter)