"Just a kick?"

"He must've been a low ranking warrior."

"Yeah..."

"But why would a low ranking warrior risk angering an SS ranked warrior?"

"How the fck would I know that?"

"Damn... Our leader is strong."

Arnold's hearing had improved by a lot ever since ascending to a cosmic being. The system might not have given him much details about the aftereffects of the evolution he had had but Arnold was slowly exploring his new self. Even after shutting down the challenger who rose to defeat him, there were still a few people who had their doubts on his 'capabilities'. But he couldn't be bothered anymore. When they'll face off against the lizardmen, they'll know exactly where they stood in terms of power and dedication to the task. 

In the early stages, when dungeons had become a part of daily lives of the people, most of the people only became warriors because it paid well as well as they gained immense fame even by clearing a C ranked dungeon. In the eyes of general populous they were heroes! But when the time changed and more and more people started dying or disappearing inside the dungeons, a lot of warriors just up and resigned. They were no heroes. 

They were just a greedy bunch of cowards who only wanted to have their cake and eat it too. And when they couldn't do that anymore, they simply stopped being a 'hero'. Even those who stayed weren't much different. 

But after the dungeon break happened in Florida, everything changed. The government and syndicate realised they could no longer allow warriors to quit on their own accord. Thus everyone who had quit their job as warriors, were called back. Well... More like they were forced to come back... And the terms for their 'freedom' was decided. 

Anyone who wished to retire early had to clear 10 dungeons that were at least two ranks above the rank of their own. Since the S and SS ranked warriors couldn't overcome these conditions, there were special conditions for them. They had to help clearing 5 S ranked dungeons. Once done, you were free to do as you pleased. 

However, no one could overcome these absurd condition, hence no one could leave. These caused an outbrust of emotions between the warriors. Their nation might be in the need for help, but that didn't mean they were going to needlessly sacrifice themselves to regain their freedom. 

They went to the masses, hoping to persuade them to join hands with them and pressure the then government to change the laws. But no one helped them. The people had willingly surrendered much of their freedom for security. Moreover, these were the 'heroes' who had abandoned them. Why would they help those who had betrayed them? 

The warriors hopelessly fought against the Elite families and were defeated. It was a short yet lively battle. The warriors who still denied coperation, were banished into the wastelands. While the rest reluctantly became the syndicate's slaves. 

Those were hard times but the condition of most of them had improved a lot later. Most of the restrictions were lifted as well and soon... They became arrogant once again. The syndicate however tried to put them on a leash but as Arnold saw with his own eyes, it didn't help much at all. 

But he'd make sure that they get back on the right path. They don't have another choice. If they don't listen to his commands, they'd perish in the swamps. Something Arnold was a bit bothered about. 

He didn't mind losing incapable assholes every now and then, but losing them would put strain on the others. In the end, it'll be bad for him and his allies. Moreover, most of his summons were pretty much useless in the swamps. Apart from Talos, Natasha, Alice, Cerberus and Bad-Breath, most of them were pretty much useless because of their weight. Dread, Asterios, and Duke wouldn't be able to move freely around the swamps and in the end won't be able to do much. However, Arnold also had a secret weapon- Scylla. 

With Scylla's help, he'd be able to launch an aerial assault on the lizardmen if he needed to. He had also prepared hundreds of elemental grenades specifically for that purpose. But he hoped he wouldn't need to use them. After all, the swamp was a precious resource for his personal use... Call it an EXP farm, if you want. Also, he had already planned to save the swamps for another special purpose. You can say, the swamp was a personal project for him. One he deliberately wanted to make his own. 

This swamp had been occupied by Devon and his forces for a long time. Obviously there was reason why Devon decided to camp here of all places and Arnold wanted to discover that reason and if possible, use it for his own advantage. He needed anything and everything he could get his hands upon. He couldn't afford to take the gods lightly. 

Also, he wanted to test his strength after ascending and what better place for it than the deadly swamp and it's monsters. Just thinking about all the monster materials he would gain after killing the swamp dwellers made his skin crawl, but in a good way. 

'I'm such a sadist...'

He thought and gave the order to everyone to enter into vehicles, and if they didn't couldn't then they were supposed to line up in front of the giant travel portal he had just called forth.

Everyone's mouth fell open. They had heard about teleportation ability but this was on a different scale! The portal Arnold had just made was bigger than the 777 tower. Arnold could hear a few gulping noises. Everyone apart from Nina and Nicole, who had already seen the wonders of the travel portal, were shocked. Just when they thought they have a grasp over Arnold's strength and abilities, he'd pull another trick from his bag. The few who had doubts about Arnold's strength bit their lips while those who supported him couldn't contain their happiness within themselves. 

(Author's note: Just so you know how big the portal was, LA based 777 tower is about 221 meters tall.) 

"This power... ITS OVER 9000!" One of the supporters yelled with joy.

(Author's note: get this reference please...) 

"Tsk, another weeb." The man next to him spat out in disgust. 

"Ah, I see. You're not a man of culture. You poor normie." The first guy said and walked into the portal with his head held high, "Just so you know, the other guy with over 9000 power is not to be taken lightly either. But I guess you know what your strength is."