Above Madison Square Garden.
Frieza hovered in mid-air, looking down at the dense crowd of superheroes below, like watching a group of ants diligently moving their home.
Behind him, the Ginyu Force, consisting of Apocalypse, Erik, and others, stood motionless in their outrageously embarrassing poses.
"Oh my."
Frieza cleared his throat, his voice, carried by the air, clearly reaching everyone's ears and spreading across the globe through cameras.
"My dear people of Earth..."
Frieza performed an extremely gentlemanly ninety-degree bow in the air, one hand elegantly placed over his chest.
A signature, chilling smile was plastered on his face.
"Long time no see."
"Meeting again might be a bit rude." Frieza straightened up, his crimson eyes slightly narrowed.
"Just in case you natives of this backwater planet don't know my name, I'll reintroduce myself."
"I am Frieza."
"I am the Emperor of the Universe, Lord Frieza, who is about to rule you and own all the property on this planet."
"Heh heh heh..."
His triumphant laughter echoed over the ruins, making the fists of the superheroes below clench.
Especially the young man engulfed in flames—Johnny Storm, the Human Torch of the Fantastic Four.
It was like playing a ranked game, and the cheater on the opposite team was still taunting you in public chat. Who could stand that?
"Damn emperor!"
Johnny had a fiery temper. The flames on his body instantly surged, and the temperature rapidly increased, causing the surrounding air to distort from the heat.
"Johnny! Don't be impulsive!" Sue urgently shouted, but she was clearly a step too late.
"Die, you monster!"
Johnny roared, transforming into a dazzling miniature sun, entering a supernova burning state.
Boom!
He charged towards Frieza in mid-air, carrying a heat intense enough to melt steel, like a meteor flying against the current.
The power of this attack even caused a ripple in the surrounding space.
However, facing such a powerful attack, Frieza didn't even change his posture.
"Hmm?"
He tilted his head slightly, his eyes casually glancing at Johnny. That look was like a human at a picnic seeing a fly buzzing by. There was no fear, only a hint of annoyance at being disturbed.
"What are you looking at, you glowing little bug?"
Frieza's voice was soft, yet it instantly drowned out the roar of the flames.
The next second, a terrifying, suffocating pressure instantly enveloped Johnny's entire body.
Frieza slowly raised his right hand, extending his index finger, and a dazzling purple light gathered at its tip. Though small, that light seemed to contain the power to pierce stars.
"I'll kill you."
His tone was as gentle as if he were joking, but the killing intent within it was chillingly real.
"Johnny! Get out of the way!!!"
Sue on the ground let out a heart-wrenching scream, desperately conjuring an invisible force field with both hands to try and rescue him.
But it was too late.
Whoosh!
The purple death beam instantly shot out.
It was incredibly fast.
So fast that Johnny's brain didn't even have time to issue a dodge command before the purple light reached his forehead.
Just at this critical moment—
Rumble!
The previously clear sky instantly became covered in dark clouds, and a thick, colorful beam of light crashed down.
Accompanied by deafening thunder, a battle-axe wreathed in violent lightning spun through the air.
Clang!
The battle-axe accurately struck the side of the death beam. Although it couldn't completely block it, it forcefully altered the beam's trajectory.
Pfft!
The beam, originally aimed at his forehead, veered slightly and pierced Johnny's thigh.
"Ah!!!"
A scream echoed through the sky.
The flames on Johnny's body instantly extinguished, and he plummeted from high in the sky.
A charred, bloody hole, clear through, appeared on his thigh, gushing blood.
"Johnny!"
Ben quickly caught the falling Johnny.
Sue rushed forward, crying, looking at her brother's horrific wound, at a loss.
"Are you okay? Johnny! Hold on!"
"Let me."
The Ancient One quickly stepped forward, a green magic circle glowing in her hand, which she placed on the wound, temporarily stopping the terrifying blood flow.
High above.
Frieza did not press his advantage. He merely looked at the battle-axe flying back into Thor's hand, regrettably blowing at his fingertip where no smoke existed.
"Tsk, did I miss?"
"That damned Thor is so rude, always interfering when others are having fun."
Frieza shook his head, his gaze sweeping over the group of superheroes below who were facing him as a formidable enemy.
He watched the Ancient One healing, Thor with his new axe looking enraged, and the others looking as if they were facing a great foe.
This was Earth's last resort?
An all-star lineup?
"Oh ho ho ho..."
He laughed.
He laughed so hard he bent over backward, laughed so hard tears almost came to his eyes.
"Oh ho ho ho... how amusing."
Frieza wiped the corner of his eye, resuming his condescending posture.
He raised a finger and gently wiggled it.
"What Captain Marvel, what Stormbreaker, what Sorcerer Supreme..."
"Are you perhaps mistaken about something?"
"Do you think that with these many people, or a new axe, you can defeat me?"
"In front of me, all your struggles are utterly meaningless."
"To make your deaths clearer, and to make you feel deeper despair..."
Frieza raised a finger, and under everyone's gaze, especially at the cameras broadcasting live, he softly said, "I shall mercifully tell you my current power level."
At this moment, the whole world held its breath.
Although they didn't know how the unit of power level specifically translated, judging by the destructive power this monster displayed, it was definitely an astronomical figure.
Frieza's lips curved into an extremely conceited arc.
"Listen well, lower beings."
"My power level is—"
"530,000."
After a brief, deadly silence, there was endless trembling.
The Earthlings didn't understand the power system in Dragon Ball but seeing Frieza's expression of "you collapsed before I even exerted myself," a fear stemming from the depths of their souls began to spread.
"Heh heh heh heh..."
"Ho ho ho ho ho..."
That laughter spread across the entire Earth through the live broadcast signal.
In the corner of the stadium, the reporters who had been brought in to broadcast were all so scared their legs turned to jelly, some even unable to hold their cameras steady.
Viewers in front of their televisions shivered, the oppressive feeling was ten thousand times more terrifying than the Chitauri invasion.
[Ding! Extreme panic detected globally! Fear Points +1000!]
[Ding! Fear Points +2000!]
...
Frieza's heart bloomed with joy as he watched the numbers on the system panel furiously jump.
Yes! That's it!
All of you, be thoroughly afraid!
My third form depends on you guys!
However, not everyone was frightened.
On the ground.
Thor gripped Stormbreaker in his hand. He looked at the white demon laughing maniacally in the sky, then at Johnny lying on the ground, almost crippled and losing his life.
New and old grudges welled up in his heart.
The humiliation of Mjolnir being crushed, the anger of Earth being destroyed, and now that nauseating laughter.
"I don't understand what 530,000 power level means."
Lightning crackled around Thor, his eyes flashing with blue-white electricity, his voice deep like an angry thunderclap.
"I only know that you..."
"...should shut up!!!"
"Thor! Don't be impulsive! Stick to the plan!" Steve shouted.
But at this moment, Thor was beyond listening.
"For the glory of Asgard! Prepare to die, monster!"
Boom!
Thor suddenly took a few running steps, put power into his waist, and with all his divine strength, hurled Stormbreaker with all his might.
"Die!!!"
This divine weapon, forged with all the dwarf king's might, spun with destructive thunderous power, cleaving towards Frieza.
Thor himself followed closely behind, grabbing onto the wake generated by the axe, charging up like a cannonball.