IMUC-CHAPTER 185 THE GRANDMASTER’S CHOICE

Outside the Interstellar Dueling Arena,

Dozens of Guardian Spaceships hovered in the sky. On the ground of the plaza below, squads of heavily armed extraterrestrial guards, with high-tech equipment, encircled the arena in three concentric circles.

"Be cautious; the escapees include Blade and a two-headed monstrous snake, they are all powerful lifeforms capable of taking on hundreds."

"After the target appears, deploy electric paralysis nets to capture them!"

The Deputy Guardian Commander picked up a communicator and issued stern orders. The guards held their breath, not daring to exhale as they remained on high alert, fully focused.

Standing at the rear of the guard formation, 'Slaughter', his eyes gleaming with cold light, spoke in a low voice. "There's also a man named 'Kyle,' the mastermind behind this underground prison riot. When you see him, there's no need to capture him; shoot him on sight."

"Yes!" The Deputy Commander nodded solemnly, about to transmit this command via the communicator.

However, at that very moment, the ground they were standing on began to tremble violently. Amid the guards' cries of surprise, cracks erupted in the ground of the plaza.

*Roar!*

Accompanied by a sharp, hoarse beastly roar, rubble and dust were sent swirling into the air as a massive, dark figure burst through the wall of the underground tunnel, wildly and uncontrollably rearing up its two heads.

"The double-headed monster has appeared! Prepare yourselves!"

The Deputy Commander raised his right hand, and the guards' attention focused on the massive shadow not far away. But what happened next left them collectively dumbfounded.

The massive black shadow, at the center of the dust storm, roared loudly, then abruptly lost its strength and fell backward, crashing to the ground with a tremendous impact.

"What's going on?"

The guards stood with mouths agape in confusion.

As the dust that had obscured their vision gradually settled, it became apparent that the lifeless upper body of the monstrous two-headed snake lay on the ground. Its snake-like body had been sliced open from the inside to the outside with precision, nearly severed in two. Blood gushed out like a spring from the gaping wound.

Their gazes then shifted upward, and the guards were shocked to see a silver-haired young man standing atop the severed head of the two-headed snake. He was covered in blood, his torn clothes revealing the superhuman physique.

He slowly straightened his back, his cold eyes glaring downward with a dominating and menacing aura, as though he were a demon god.

"My goodness, he killed the two-headed monster!"

The guards collectively gasped.

"Wait, look inside the underground tunnel…"

Prompted by the guard's fearful reminder, they turned their attention to the section of the outer wall that had collapsed due to the two-headed snake's impact. There lay the mutilated body of the scythe-wielding alien, his chest riddled with bloody holes, sprawled across a pile of rubble in a gruesome manner.

"The Championship hasn't even started yet, and three of the top four contenders have been killed by the intruder?!"

Recalling the tentacled child who had died at the beginning of the underground prison riot, the guards felt their scalps tingling. They stared at Kyle, who stood tall with a straight back, and a chill ran down their spines. Instinctively, they took a step back.

Anyone capable of killing three monstrous lifeforms without a doubt ranked among the most fearsome of monsters.

However, no one knew that this was precisely the moment when Kyle was at his weakest. His Super Soldier Ability had temporarily lapsed, and the continued combat had drained his energy to the point where now even a common lifeform could push him over.

Life is like a play, and success relies on acting!

With "stubbornly holding on" as his motto, Kyle struggled to maintain his balance with visible effort. He surveyed his surroundings with an emotionless expression, intimidating the guards and Spaceships in the vicinity with his sheer presence.

For a moment, silence fell over the Interstellar Arena's plaza. No guard dared to launch an attack against Kyle.

"What are you waiting for? Go get him! Are you all afraid of one man?" 'Slaughter', unable to contain his fear any longer, clenched his teeth and shouted as he continued to back away, both his body and soul trembling with fear.

Upon hearing this voice, Kyle raised his gaze, peering through layers of extraterrestrial guards until his eyes landed on 'Slaughter', who stood twenty meters away. His face carried a hint of understanding, and he said, "Oh, so it's you."

'Slaughter"s face turned pale in an instant. He couldn't act against the man before him; it was his weakness. He needed to resort to the means of others.

"As the chief commander, I order you all to open fire on him," 'Slaughter' growled.

The guards finally realized the situation, gripping their laser firearms and aiming them at Kyle in the center of the encirclement.

"Vis, hasn't my remotely controlled Spaceship here yet?" Kyle asked in a low voice.

"Sorry, it seems like our Spaceship is detained in a sealed underground location and can't break through to get here," Vis replied swiftly.

"I see. Then we'll have to… force our way through," Kyle took a deep breath, a Lifeform Card secretly held between his two fingers.

Both Kyle and the guards were preparing to take action when suddenly, a small Spaceship approached the plaza from the direction of the central building. It was adorned with vibrant and cool-colored paint, and its disc-shaped body cast a large shadow over the area as it blocked out the sun.

The many Guardian Spaceships hovering in the sky not only showed no intention of blocking its path but also actively made way, allowing it enough space to fly and lowering their altitude as if they were afraid of stealing the limelight from the small Spaceship.

"It's the Grandmaster, the Grandmaster is here," Someone exclaimed, and all the guards turned to look at the small Spaceship with reverence.

The small Spaceship floated high in the sky, and the Grandmaster himself had no intention of appearing in person. Instead, he dispatched over a dozen drones that combined to project his three-dimensional holographic image.

The colossal holographic image of the Grandmaster looked down at Kyle, who stared back at him with calm eyes.

"Grandmaster, this man infiltrated the underground prison and killed three of the top four challengers!" 'Slaughter' exclaimed loudly.

"I know," the Grandmaster chuckled, and, looking at Kyle, he applauded, saying, "Intruder, if you were any other lifeform, you would have died already. But you're quite powerful, and that's what interests me. So, I'll give you two choices."

"What choices?" Kyle asked calmly.

The Grandmaster extended two fingers. "One, you can oppose me, and immediately face the planet-wide pursuit of the Guardians. Two, you can replace those fallen challengers and participate in the Championship Match in two days. I'll give you ten seconds…"

Kyle interrupted him, "I choose the second option!"

Regardless of the circumstances, as long as he could buy himself two days to recover his physical condition, he would have a much better chance whether he chose to fight or flee.

"You're a clever lifeform. I have high hopes for you. I hope that two days from now, you'll bring me some surprises on the dueling field," The Grandmaster laughed heartily and his holographic image disappeared.

Kyle smiled calmly, knowing that the crisis had temporarily subsided.

The guards in the plaza breathed a sigh of relief, but 'Slaughter', who was symbiotically attached to the chief guardian, had a very unpleasant and greenish expression.

Afterward, the guards escorted Kyle to a secluded single-person room within the central building. Despite being equipped with layers of security measures like laser doors and spatial corridors, they also fitted him with two Shock Devices.

However, the single-person room had its own bathing area, lounge, and even a high-tech fitness area. It was far more luxurious than the hotel environment he had been in before.

This transformation was something even Kyle had not anticipated.

(End of this chapter)

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