The Grand Minister's words brought instant relief to the Supreme Kais and Gods of Destruction of Universes 1, 5, 8, and 12. Their moods brightened immediately.
The feeling of skipping the elimination rounds and winning by default was simply too good!
Plus, they could now act as spectators and watch the drama unfold in the other universes. Was this a reward for their diligent management?
The deities of the four exempt universes turned toward the other eight, their eyes filled with blatant schadenfreude.
"We're saved..."
"Indeed. It's a good thing we took our work seriously."
It seemed that no matter where you were, the "overachievers" were always the boss's favorites.
At that moment, Rumsshi, the God of Destruction of Universe 10, asked cautiously, "If a universe is erased, what happens to us Gods of Destruction?"
The Grand Minister smiled. "There is no need to worry. Once a universe is erased, all its deities—except for the Angels—will vanish along with it."
The moment those words left his mouth, the Supreme Kais and Gods of Destruction of the remaining eight universes felt their souls leave their bodies.
"In other words, this Tournament of Power is a final chance for the eight 'failing' universes. Only the winner will be allowed to continue existing. After all, you were all scheduled for erasure anyway. Do you understand now?"
The gods were speechless. They were completely numb.
Suddenly, Champa spoke up. "Lord Grand Minister, the God of Destruction of Time is technically from Universe 7. Could we perhaps place some restrictions on him? If he participates, there's no point in even holding the tournament. Can he be barred?"
Beerus stared at Champa in disbelief. He hadn't expected his own brother to backstab him like this. Just as he was feeling comfortable sitting on his "throne of victory," the chair had been yanked out from under him.
The Grand Minister paused for a moment, then nodded. "I will notify the God of Destruction of Time. His power is indeed far too great for this competition. He will not be participating."
The gods who had been sweating over the fact that the God of Destruction of Time belonged to Universe 7 finally breathed a sigh of relief. Based on his title alone, he was clearly a terrifying existence. Managing space-time was far more difficult than managing a single universe.
Beerus, however, gritted his teeth as he glared at Champa. That damn fat cat actually dared to...
Meanwhile, Shin, the Supreme Kai, whispered to Whis, "Um, Whis-san, what exactly is our universe's Mortal Level?"
Whis checked his staff. "The average level of the mortal inhabitants of Universe 7? Hmm... Oh? It's 3.82? It's actually increased quite a bit. We've surpassed Lord Champa's Universe 6 and are now third from the bottom."
"This..."
"Curse it! It's all because of you! You still haven't even learned how to create planets properly..." Beerus growled, glaring at Shin.
Shin replied weakly, "But Lord Beerus, don't you spend most of your time sleeping?"
"Argh! Damn it! That miserable Champa backstabbed me!"
Whis shook his head. "Lord Beerus, there's no point in complaining. Lord Turles is simply too powerful. There was never any possibility of him being allowed to join this tournament. You should know that better than anyone."
The Grand Minister continued, "The venue for the tournament will be the World of Void. I will construct the arena there.
"Additionally, the event will be divided into two phases. The first phase will be an exhibition match between all the Gods of Destruction. Every one of you must participate. The second phase will be the match between the mortal contestants of the eight universes."
"The Gods' exhibition match is meant to serve as a demonstration for Grand Zeno. Remember, you must fight 'seriously.'"
"As for the timing... it shall begin in 5 Kics."
"5... 5 Kics?!"
Converted to Earth time, 5 Kics was only about 40 hours.
Finding ten suitable contestants in such a short amount of time felt incredibly rushed. After all, this was a matter of life and death for the entire universe. They couldn't just grab ten random people and call it a day.
Was there even enough time?
At that moment, the silent "Full Egg" Zeno spoke up. "Why? Is there a problem? I want to see an exciting match as soon as possible..."
As soon as he spoke, every god who had been about to protest fell silent instantly.
"No... no problem at all..."
The Big Boss wasn't the type to tolerate complaints.
"Good. Since there are no objections, it is settled."
The Grand Minister nodded. "Once you have gathered your contestants, assemble at any location within your respective universes. I will teleport you to the venue."
"By the way, do not be late. Anyone who is late will be considered to have forfeited the match. Please keep that in mind."
"One more thing: the use of weapons or drugs is strictly prohibited. Any team found using them will be disqualified immediately."
The gods nodded, their hearts heavy with worry.
"Very well, the time is up. I shall send you all back now. Please prepare yourselves well for the tournament."
With a wave of the Grand Minister's hand, all the deities and Angels vanished from Zeno's Palace and returned to their own universes.
Universe 7, Beerus' Planet.
"Dammit! How could this happen?" Beerus shouted, clenching his fists in frustration.
"Ho ho ho. Lord Beerus, shouldn't we focus on selecting our contestants first?" Whis said with a smile.
"Oh, right. The contestants. Hey, kid! What are you standing there for? Take us to Earth immediately! Most of our strongest warriors are there."
"And Turles' wife must participate this time. Otherwise, I really don't have any confidence in our chances..."
Beerus didn't realize yet that Goku and Vegeta had already reached new levels of power, so he placed all his hopes on Bulma. He knew exactly how powerful she had become.
Shin nodded reflexively and immediately used Instant Transmission to whisk Whis and Beerus away.
On the other side of the cosmos, Turles' long-lost System had finally returned.
And it had brought a surprise with it.
"Gyahahaha! Turles, greet your King!!"
Turles stared blankly at the prompt, feeling a bit bewildered. "King? What King? What, did you suddenly develop a 'King' complex too?"
"Tsk, no sense of drama. Whatever, I've brought someone interesting back for you this time."
Snap!
"What are you standing there for? Call him Boss!"
"Uh... Boss. Hello. I am the Strongest Clone System. Thanks to the Big Brother here looking out for me, I'll be working under you from now on..."
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