"So you're saying… if I want to grind Vados into the ground, I still need hundreds of millions of years of training?" Ken sucked in a sharp breath.
Word is, Vados is already level 68.
Going by Amarella's math, if you don't put in a few hundred million years, you're not beating her.
Looks like my wish is basically impossible.
"Did Vados do something to you or what? You're really that set on grinding her into the ground?" Amarella rolled her eyes and glared at Ken, cheeks puffed with annoyance.
"To reach that goal, I need to train even harder." Ken didn't even respond to Amarella. His expression turned even more serious as he patted Merus on the shoulder. "By the way, Merus, what level are you? You still haven't told me."
That one hit Merus right in the heart.
"I told you a few days ago, didn't I? I'm level 50…" Merus answered, half laughing and half crying.
"I thought a few days passed, so maybe you'd leveled up again." Ken shook his head.
Merus didn't want to talk anymore.
Why is it every time I'm with you, it feels like you're the real angel?
And I'm the fake one.
Planet Namek.
"Ah… King Kai-sama said Earth's Shenron already finished granting that wish," Goku explained in a hurry. "So all the Namekians who died here earlier should be back now."
"Thank you, truly. I can sense it—my children have returned to life." Grand Elder Guru bowed deeply in gratitude to Goku and the others.
"No need, no need. If anything, we should be the ones thanking you." Goku laughed.
Guru said nothing more and immediately reached out through telepathy to Moori, far away.
"My life doesn't have much time left. From this day on, you are Planet Namek's Grand Elder," Guru said heavily.
"Yes, Grand Elder…" Moori's face tightened, sadness flickering in his eyes.
So the Grand Elder planned to go down with Planet Namek.
"I will guide our people toward the light," Moori said in a low voice.
"With those words, I can rest easy. Get ready—Porunga will soon send you all to a brand-new Namek. That will be your new home." Guru's voice came again.
"Understood, Grand Elder," Moori replied.
"Then… the final wish!" The Grand Elder drew a deep breath and looked up at Porunga. "Porunga, please transfer every Namekian except me to a planet suitable for our people to live on. Name that planet New Namek!"
"Wait, Porunga—when the Grand Elder says 'Namekians,' that doesn't include me," Piccolo said, shaking his head.
"Me neither. I'm staying to fight," Nail said grimly.
"And me—I can help too!" Dende clenched his teeth.
Porunga turned his gaze to the Grand Elder.
"Fine." The Grand Elder fell silent for a moment, then didn't object.
"Then so be it." Porunga nodded, divine power surging in his eyes again.
In an instant, every Namekian on the planet—except the Grand Elder and the few who stayed behind—was transferred to New Namek.
New Namek was almost identical to this world, perfectly suited for Moori and the others.
"Your wishes have been granted. Farewell!" Porunga spoke and began to depart.
"Hold on—what about my regeneration?" Vegeta snapped. "Is it still delayed?"
Porunga ignored Vegeta, turning into a streak of golden light that shot into space and flew toward New Namek.
The Grand Elder had already stepped down and handed his position to Moori.
So the seven Dragon Balls went with the new Grand Elder to New Namek.
The sky brightened again.
Vegeta: ????
Why is it still delayed?
My body hasn't changed at all.
Can it really be delayed this long?
"Hey, Grand Elder! How long is my regeneration supposed to be delayed?" Vegeta finally couldn't take it and turned to demand an answer.
"Well…" he didn't know how to answer.
There was no delay to begin with.
But I don't have it in me to crush you.
Poor guy.
The first time you came to Namek, you didn't get a single wish.
More than twenty years later, you came again… and still didn't get a single wish.
Maybe you shouldn't be called Vegeta. "Trageeta" fits you better.
The Grand Elder honestly felt a little sorry for him.
"Damn it! Is that dragon even reliable?" Vegeta grit his teeth and barked.
But the moment his words fell, he suddenly spotted Frieza on a distant hill.
Frieza was in his second form, standing there and staring coldly at everyone.
"Nice work. My dream of immortality just got crushed." Frieza's face stayed icy, murder filling his eyes. "I was going to destroy this planet myself, but I thought it through. Letting you die quickly out in space would be letting you off easy. Today, I'm tearing you apart one by one. None of you are getting away!"
With no hesitation, Frieza threw a hand up, and an invisible force slammed down over Goku and the others.
A massive explosion tore through the area.
In the next instant, Frieza appeared right in front of Nail.
Frieza thrust forward—his hand punched straight through Nail's body and burst out his back.
"You're first," Frieza snorted.
"Nail!" The Grand elder's eyes went wide.
Goku and the others barely had time to react.
By the time they did, Nail was already hit.
"Hey, Frieza! Your opponent is me!" Goku shouted.
Krillin was shaking like crazy.
Kale was even worse—she ducked behind Gohan.
Gohan clenched his teeth hard enough to grind them.
Vegeta squeezed his fists tight.
Damn it.
Why do I still feel no change at all?
"You bastard! Don't you hurt the Namekians!" Piccolo roared, about to charge in.
Guru grabbed Piccolo's shoulder and held him down.
"What are you doing? Let go of me!" Piccolo snapped, turning back.
"He's almost done for!" The Grand Elder shouted.
"No need to rush. Namekians are tough—he won't die that easily." he smiled.
Piccolo: …
Now you say that?
"The moment Ken restored my youth, I decided it. I'll merge with you and become part of you, giving you wisdom and special abilities." The Grand Elder looked at Piccolo with warmth—and a stubborn resolve.
Piccolo went quiet.
"Hurry. There's no time." he still wore that smile. "After you merge with me, merge with Nail right away. Your power will surpass Frieza's current form. Namekians are a peaceful people. I want you to let go of hatred… but I want us Namekians to be the ones who finish this devil with our own hands."
Piccolo: ????
Piccolo blinked, completely thrown.
Didn't you just say Namekians are peaceful?
You're telling me to let go of hatred, while also telling me to personally take out Frieza?
You're tying my head in knots.
"Put your hand on my chest!" the Grand Elder ordered immediately.
"Thanks, but I only want to be myself…" Piccolo clenched his jaw and shook his head.
Grand Elder: …
"You still don't get it? Stop being stubborn! You think you can beat Frieza like this? Nail is your proof." he sighed.
Nail: …
I'm basically dying here, and you're using me like that?
Stop turning me into the cautionary example.
"Let him go!" Goku exploded with anger and charged in, clashing with Frieza in a fierce exchange.
Frieza tossed Nail to the ground like trash.
"There's no time! What are you hesitating for?" the Grand Elder barked. "Don't worry—you're still you. I'm only giving you wisdom and power!"
"And you swear you're not lying?" Piccolo said heavily.
"Fine, fine. If you don't want to merge, then forget it… I just wanted to see a great Namekian born…" the Grand Elder shook his head.
Piccolo: …
"Alright. I'll try it. But if I don't notice any change, I'm kicking you out immediately!" Piccolo grit his teeth and made the hard call.
For a second, the Grand Elder didn't want to merge with this guy anymore.
But then he remembered Ken's plan to make Piccolo a Supreme Kai, and he forced himself forward.
"Hurry. Hand on my chest!" the Grand Elder pressed. "Do you want to watch your friends get killed one by one?"
Right then, Frieza whipped his tail and smacked Goku straight out of the air.
Goku stopped himself just before hitting the ground and rubbed his aching shoulder.
"Focus. Stop looking around," the Grand Elder said coldly.
Piccolo pulled his gaze back.
"Namekians will shine because of you." the Grand Elder gave a satisfied smile and suddenly shouted.
Light burst from the Grand Elder's body, blazing bright.
It surged along Piccolo's arm and poured into him.
In an instant, he completed the merge and became part of Piccolo.
Piccolo quietly checked the changes.
His energy really did rise—at least double.
That meant Piccolo's battle power was now at least 60,000.
A huge jump, but compared to Frieza's second form, the gap was still enormous.
What shocked Piccolo more was what flooded his mind—knowledge, piles of it, appearing out of nowhere.
His brain's processing speed…
How do you even describe it?
Before, it was like a dual-core processor. Now it was at least eight-core.
His reaction speed jumped too.
So this is what merging does.
The Grand Elder wasn't lying.
Ken wasn't lying either.
Before, Piccolo had thought merging meant sharing control of the body.
Looks like he worried for nothing.
Piccolo turned toward Nail.
Nail lay on the ground, twitching nonstop, on the verge of death.
Dende rushed up, about to heal him.
"Dende, don't." Nail gave a weak shake of his head.
Dende froze, confused. "But… if you don't get healed, you'll die!"
"If you heal me here, Frieza will notice. He'll erase you without hesitation," Nail said in a low voice.
"I'm not afraid!" Dende bit out.
"Piccolo, come here," Nail said, ignoring Dende and looking over.
Piccolo flew down and landed beside him, looking down.
"You know what I mean. If it's the Grand Elder's wish, then it's my wish too." Nail smiled, wearing the look of someone ready to die.
"I get it… you want me to merge with you." Piccolo drew a deep breath.
"Put your hand on my chest," Nail said, nodding slightly.
Piccolo paused and noticed the bloody hole in Nail's chest.
"You've got a hole there… is putting my hand on it really okay?" Piccolo asked.
"It's fine…" Nail clenched his teeth.
Piccolo slowly placed his hand.
Nail's face twisted hard from the pain.
Piccolo: …
"Doesn't hurt, right?" Piccolo asked.
Nail didn't want to answer that.
You tell me if it hurts.
"You have to beat Frieza! Avenge the Namekians who died—and came back to life!" Nail said heavily.
"The Grand Elder said… Namekians are a peaceful people," Piccolo shot back.
Nail: …
"Anyway… do what you want to do." Nail took a deep breath, and light blazed from him just like it had from the Grand Elder.
The light shot into Piccolo.
Piccolo froze—his body suddenly held an enormous amount of energy.
And it wasn't just ten times.
It was at least twenty times.
That meant Piccolo's battle power was now over 1,500,000.
Just merging with a warrior-type Namekian pushed him this far?
Unbelievable.
This power was terrifying.
"Namekian merging… the boost is that huge?" Merus watched, a little surprised.
"Yeah." Ken nodded.
"I still think… with this team, what they're challenging is basically hell-mode difficulty. If you compare it to a game, Goku-san and Vegeta-san are underleveled, they skipped the beginner village, jumped straight into the hell map, and ran into the final boss head-on…" Merus let out a helpless sigh.
"Merus, you're getting good at this. Your comparisons are getting sharper—you're actually blending games and reality now." Ken smiled.
"So what are you planning to do? Let them keep fighting Frieza?" Merus looked at Ken, puzzled.
Merus couldn't understand it. If this kept going, wasn't the ending just a wipe?
Why would Ken want that?
"Even though Goku-san has grasped a beginner-level Ultra Instinct, the gap is still too big," Merus said, shaking his head. "And even if Vegeta-san has also grasped the god of destruction technique, it's still just beginner-level…"
"But there's Kale." Ken smiled. "She's a Legendary Super Saiyan."
"Yes… but Kale is still young. If you calculate from their power levels, she's at most three million right now. Compared to Frieza's true strength, that difference isn't small," Merus analyzed. "And Goku-san's beginner Ultra Instinct is also around three million at best, and he can only hold it for a short time. As for Vegeta-san, he's even weaker—his destruction output can reach about three million, but his base power is still under fifty thousand."
Merus kept shaking his head, convinced that if they didn't intervene, Frieza would pick them off one by one.
"I don't agree. Saiyans only break their limits when they're pushed to the edge." Ken stated it plainly. "Just watch. Goku and the others will win. But they'll probably pay a brutal price."
"A brutal price? You're sure we shouldn't interfere?" Merus asked again.
"No need. For angels, real death is the soul disappearing." Ken chuckled. "If someone dies, worst case we take a trip to the Other World and haul them back. It's simple."
Merus: …
That logic is so clean I don't even know how to argue.
"And sometimes, death might even be growth for them," Ken added.
Merus had nothing to say.
Death is growth?
The way you say it, it really sounds like dying once makes you grow better.
But at least one thing is true.
For angels, only disappearing counts as true death.
The body dying doesn't.
"Alright. I'll go with you." Merus nodded with a small smile. "But if it really becomes a total wipe… wouldn't Frieza be the real tragedy?"
"Be more confident. Wipe or not, Frieza's going to be a tragedy." Ken laughed softly.
Merus: …
Poor Frieza. When did you ever offend Ken?
Right—about twenty years ago, Broly tore your son in half with his own hands.
Frieza… the most tragic 'emperor of the universe' in history really might be you.
Down below, the fight kept going.
"Kale, stay back. I'm going in!" Gohan said, about to charge.
"No, I can fight too. I'm coming with you!" Kale clenched her teeth.
Gohan didn't argue. He rushed in and threw a punch at Frieza.
Frieza tilted slightly, dodging the strike.
Then Frieza drove his knee up into Gohan's abdomen.
Gohan spat a mouthful of blood.
Kale started to surge forward, but after seeing how badly Gohan got hit, the courage she'd just scraped together got swept away by fear.
"S-So scary… too scary…" Kale trembled all over.
"This girl's got a bit of Gohan from a month ago in her," Ken said with a laugh.
Merus didn't answer.
The new God of Destruction I found has Legendary Super Saiyan blood… but she's timid.
At your current power, you could beat Frieza in this form.
So go.
You're the Legendary Super Saiyan.
If it were Broly, he'd already be in there swinging.
Merus felt a small sting of frustration.
But thinking it through, he relaxed.
Kale was a Legendary Super Saiyan, but she was still a girl; being timid wasn't strange.
And Gohan—half-breed, and a boy—had been a coward a month ago too, just like Ken said.
No big deal. A few more fights and her nerve would improve.
Frieza sneered and slapped Gohan across the face, swatting him down from the air.
Gohan slammed into the ground, baring his teeth from the pain.
"Gohan-nii!" Kale rushed over, worried. "Are you okay?"
"Hurts…" Gohan groaned as he forced himself up.
"So scary… that monster…" Kale shook even harder now.
"Hmph. This is only the beginning. The real show is still coming." Frieza's smile stayed cold.
"Hakai!"
Vegeta suddenly roared and flicked his hand, sending a sesame-seed speck of destruction energy screaming toward Frieza.
Frieza shifted slightly, watched it come, and slapped it away.
The destruction energy shot off and struck a faraway island.
The island vanished in an instant. Water surged in and waves rolled across the surface.
"I knew you liked cheap shots, Vegeta, so I stayed ready." Frieza sneered. "Don't rush, Vegeta. I'm saving you for last."
Vegeta's face went stiff, turning uglier by the second.
Then Vegeta whipped his head around at Piccolo and glared. "Where's my regeneration body? Why do I still feel no change at all?"
Piccolo didn't respond. He drifted toward Frieza.
Goku flew to Piccolo's side, ready to fight shoulder to shoulder.
"Goku, let me." Piccolo smiled.
"Piccolo, I can tell your energy jumped a lot… incredible. Getting that much power with a method like that." Goku nodded, impressed.
Piccolo said nothing.
"Who should I kill next? Feels like the headcount got smaller. Did that Namekian I killed just vanish?" Frieza muttered, suddenly noticing something off.
The instant those words left his mouth, a sharp sense of danger raced over his body from behind.
Frieza's face changed. He sprang upward without hesitation.
A spinning Kienzan tore in from afar, grazing Frieza and slicing off his tail.
Frieza howled in pain and snapped his head toward the attacker.
He saw a small bald man in an orange gi.
"That brat! Didn't I pierce him through and nearly kill him before? Who saved him?" Frieza ground his teeth. "Fine. If you won't play in order, I'll erase you first!"
"Kienzan!"
Krillin didn't hesitate—he threw four Kienzan in one go and whipped them toward Frieza.
Frieza's eyes widened as he dodged left, right, forward, back.
Krillin stuck out his tongue and pulled faces at him from a distance.
Frieza exploded with rage and chased after him.
Krillin turned and bolted.
But Frieza was faster. In an instant, he caught up, appeared right in front of Krillin, and cut off his path.
Krillin's blood ran cold.
"You're tough to kill, kid. And you dared cut off my tail!" Frieza snorted. "This time I'm ripping you to pieces so you'll never recover again!"
Krillin took a deep breath.
Perfect.
He's this close. If I use the Taiyoken, he can't dodge it.
Then I finish him with my Kienzan.
Ken said the Namek stage is mine to run.
"Taiyoken!"
Krillin snapped both hands up beside his face.
A blinding flash burst outward from his head and flooded the area.
Frieza got hit cleanly.
"Ah—my eyes!" Frieza cried out.
"Kienzan!" Krillin raised his right hand, and four Kienzan screamed toward Frieza.
Wahahaha!
It's time for me, Krillin, to save the whole universe!
From now on, call me the universe's savior!
Krillin laughed to himself, grinning so wide it nearly hit his ears.
The instant his eyes were struck, Frieza clearly sensed death closing in.
As the emperor of the universe, if he couldn't sense that much, it would be pathetic.
A barrier flickered around Frieza's body.
[End of chapter]
[100 Power Stones = Extra Chapter]
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