"W-What?!"
The alien attendants nearby were utterly stunned.
Lord Frieza had actually bowed to the guy standing before him.
Had he gone insane?
Frieza was the Emperor of the Universe!
"So you are Lord Gran?" Frieza bent slightly at the waist as he greeted him politely.
More than twenty years ago, Beerus had personally visited his palace and warned him never to lay another hand on the Saiyan race.
Back then, Frieza had been puzzled as to why Beerus would care about a bunch of Saiyans. But a year and a half ago, when Vegeta and Raditz invaded his headquarters, he finally learned the truth.
Beerus had taken in a Saiyan as a Candidate God of Destruction.
That was why Beerus had protected the Saiyans.
And now, seeing those unmistakable divine garments again, Frieza instantly understood the identity of the visitor before him.
Fortunately... fortunately, he hadn't offended him right from the start.
"So you really do know about me." Gran walked past Frieza and casually sat down upon the throne at the center of the palace.
Seeing the young Saiyan seated on his throne, Frieza narrowed his eyes slightly.
Yet unlike when facing Beerus, he wasn't particularly flustered.
After all, this so-called Candidate God of Destruction was still just a Saiyan.
"Replying to Lord Candidate God of Destruction, yes. I learned of your existence from Vegeta years ago," Frieza answered courteously.
Not "you, sir," but simply "you."
Gran found that amusing.
Just like in the anime, Frieza truly was this kind of person. He feared beings like Gods of Destruction, but if he believed someone weaker than himself, he would look down on them without hesitation.
"Judging from your tone, it sounds like you don't really think much of me."
Gran leaned back against the throne with a teasing smile.
"Is it because I'm a Saiyan?"
"I wouldn't dare."
Frieza bowed again, though an eerie glint flickered within his eyes.
Truthfully, he really didn't think much of Gran at all.
No matter what, the other party was still just a Saiyan. How powerful could he possibly be?
If Beerus hadn't been backing him, Frieza would have killed him the moment he sat on that throne.
"You wouldn't dare?"
Gran's smile never faded as he silently stared at Frieza from the throne.
Frieza also fell silent.
The palace became deathly quiet.
Time slowly passed.
Gran still showed no reaction, and the atmosphere only grew heavier. The aliens standing beside Frieza could no longer endure the suffocating tension; their bodies began trembling uncontrollably.
Even Frieza himself was growing irritated.
What exactly had Gran come here for?
Could it be revenge for the Saiyans?
But exterminating the Saiyans had been Beerus's order. Frieza had merely obeyed commands. He hadn't done anything wrong.
"Frieza."
At last, Gran broke the silence.
"Yes!"
Frieza bowed once more.
Gran smiled lightly.
"Do two push-ups for me."
"...Push-ups?"
Frieza's eyes widened instantly. He even dug at his ear as if he'd misheard.
"Lord Gran... could you repeat that?"
"I said, do two push-ups for me."
"..."
Frieza fell silent.
So he hadn't heard wrong after all.
His voice gradually turned cold.
"Lord Gran... do you understand what you're doing right now?"
"Of course I do."
Gran narrowed his eyes slightly from atop the throne.
"What? Are you planning to disobey my order?"
"...I wouldn't dare."
Frieza clenched his teeth so hard his molars nearly cracked.
At last, he understood.
This Saiyan had come here specifically to humiliate him using his status!
In truth, Gran wasn't trying to humiliate Frieza at all.
He simply wanted to confirm whether Frieza's talent was truly as monstrous as people claimed in his previous life—that he could surpass Son Goku after doing nothing more than a few push-ups.
After all, in the anime, Frieza had only trained for four months before reaching his Golden Form.
Yet Cooler had required eight entire years to achieve the same thing in reality.
"Lord Frieza, don't do it!"
The surrounding aliens desperately tried to stop him.
"How noisy."
Gran flicked a finger casually.
Purple light instantly engulfed every alien in the palace.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Like fireworks exploding before fading into dust, the aliens burst apart into countless purple specks of light.
Frieza's pupils shrank violently.
What kind of power was that?
"Go ahead."
Gran smiled faintly.
"I know you don't truly respect me as a Candidate God of Destruction. Once you're done, I'll give you a chance to challenge me."
He paused briefly before adding:
"And don't worry—I won't kill you. Honestly, I find you rather pleasing to the eye."
"Fine."
Frieza finally regained his composure, though cold killing intent flashed through his eyes.
This tiny Saiyan monkey actually dared to act so arrogantly before him.
Later, he'd make sure the fool paid for it.
Very soon, Frieza began doing push-ups directly on the palace floor.
And instead of merely two, he completed a full thousand in one go.
"There."
Frieza rose slowly to his feet and stared coldly at Gran.
"Lord Gran, please allow me to witness your strength."
Gran said nothing.
He simply watched Frieza in silence.
But after observing for a while, he realized Frieza hadn't changed at all. His aura remained roughly at the level of 530,000 battle power.
"That shouldn't be right. Wasn't Frieza supposed to surpass everyone after training for only four months? His talent should be terrifying."
Gran muttered inwardly.
Then he suddenly recalled certain details from the anime.
Right!
Before his resurrection, Frieza had spent years suffering torment in Heaven at the hands of those little angels.
Only after enduring all that did he return with such monstrous growth potential.
It was the soul!
His soul had grown stronger, allowing the dormant potential within his body to erupt once he revived.
It was similar to how Gran himself had somehow broken through to the Supreme Kai realm on a dimensional level back then.
Dimensions inherently included the soul.
That was why, after entering the virtual world and training for only half a year, his base battle power had already reached one billion.
"So that's the reason."
A gleam flashed through Gran's eyes.
Now it all made sense.
That explained why Frieza could achieve his Golden Form in only four months, while Cooler needed eight years.
"Lord Gran, let's move outside into space."
Frieza's voice rang out once more.
"I'd rather not have our battle destroy my headquarters."
He wanted to see exactly how this Saiyan monkey differed from Vegeta.
Gran instantly saw through his thoughts and smiled.
"Fine by me. Let's go."
Gran rose from the throne and walked out of the palace before ascending into the sky.
Frieza followed closely behind.
The two quickly flew beyond the planet.
The moment they entered outer space, surprise flashed through Frieza's heart.
Saiyans weren't supposed to survive in the vacuum of space.
Yet this Candidate God of Destruction was doing exactly that.
"Alright. Here should be fine."
After flying some distance, Gran finally stopped within a region of deep space.
Frieza's headquarters was already far behind them now. Around them floated only a few primitive planets.
A perfect place for a spar.