c22: The Wave of Evil Thoughts Has Transformed
"Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The Underworld shook with deafening explosions.
The half-formed body of Xie Nianbo battled with Vegeta in midair, but his unstable state left him open. Vegeta's blows hammered him relentlessly sharp kicks to the gut, elbows to the head, and a rain of Ki Blasts that tore apart the sky with crackling light.
Seeing Xie Nianbo barely able to resist, Vegeta smirked, his pride swelling. Hmph, just another weakling. I'll finish this in no time.
But from the side, Son Goku, who had been carefully watching the fight with his battle-honed instincts, suddenly shouted:
"Vegeta, don't let your guard down! His Ki still feels strange!"
"Tch, shut up, Kakarot!" Vegeta snapped back, his arms folded for a brief second in arrogance. "Just sit back and watch how a Saiyan prince finishes things!"
But as he turned back, Xie Nianbo's pudgy face twisted into a hideous grin. Dark mist poured from his body as several inky black voids ripped open beside him.
Out of those voids, distorted shadow-hands shot out like serpents, hammering toward Vegeta from every angle.
"Wha?!"
"Damn it! You're pulling this trick again?!" Vegeta cursed as he blocked with blinding speed. At first, he countered each incoming hand with blasts and punches, but the number kept multiplying.
"Bang! Bang!"
One shadow-hand slipped past his guard and slammed into his side. Another struck his back. Then a larger hand punched directly into his chest, sending him crashing through a jagged stone spire.
"Boom!" The rock shattered into rubble as dust and smoke billowed into the storm-ridden sky.
"Hehehehe!" Xie Nianbo clapped his stubby hands in glee, his voice echoing in the gloom. "Evil Thoughts Wave… Evil Thoughts Wave!"
Above, the sky of the Underworld darkened and brightened at once, lightning splitting the heavens as if the realm itself was rejecting the monster's power. The chaotic winds carried a dreadful aura that made even the Kaiōs tense.
When the dust cleared, Vegeta staggered to his feet, his battle armor cracked, the blue undersuit shredded. His lip curled in fury.
"Damn bastard… Not only did you manage to scratch me, but you ruined my armor! Bulma just made this suit for me!" His aura flared, golden sparks bursting outward as his Saiyan pride burned hotter than ever.
Xie Nianbo's face twisted, annoyed that Vegeta still stood strong. He thrust another hand into a forming black hole, preparing the same ambush technique.
Vegeta's eyes narrowed. "Hmph. Same cheap trick again? Don't underestimate me!"
His palm glowed with deadly light. "Take this! Final Flash Cannon!"
"BOOM!"
The beam tore through the black hole itself, ignoring its warped space, and slammed into Xie Nianbo's body. A massive explosion engulfed him, shredding half his grotesque form into pieces.
"Gululu…" A guttural, unnatural sound escaped as the remains of his body writhed. White lightning cracked down from the clouds, striking his regenerating flesh. The light wrapped around him like a cocoon, while shockwaves rippled outward, leveling the surrounding wastelands of the Underworld.
On King Kai's planet, the Kaiōs stared in disbelief at the scene broadcast to them.
"Vegeta did it!" North Kaiō cheered, raising his fists. "He blew that abomination apart!"
But the Grand Kai shook his head gravely. "No… focus your senses. His Ki hasn't vanished. In fact…"
South Kaiō's eyes widened. "Wh-what?! It's growing…! His power just spiked even higher!"
The battlefield grew eerily silent for a moment. Goku's face hardened, sweat dripping down his temple. Vegeta's scowl deepened as both Saiyans turned their gaze to the blinding cocoon of lightning where Xie Nianbo was beginning to take shape again.
Something far worse was about to emerge.
"This guy is a bit weird… Not only did your attack fail to eliminate him, Vegeta, but his Ki keeps rising. It feels darker, heavier… like he's feeding on the Underworld itself."
Son Goku spoke with rare seriousness as his gaze locked on the mutating Evil Thought Wave, whose body was convulsing, as if it were about to complete a terrifying transformation.
"Goku, stay sharp!" King Yemma's voice boomed across the realm, carrying an urgency rarely heard from him. "This monster is evolving into his second form! His strength will be nothing like before far more dangerous!"
"What?!" Goku and Vegeta froze for a split second, their pupils narrowing.
"Second form?!" Vegeta snarled, his pride shaken for an instant. "So that fat lump was just warming up?!"
"Fwoooosh!"
The air around them froze, as though time itself had slowed. A crushing, suffocating aura exploded outward, shaking the foundations of the Underworld. The storm-filled skies churned violently, thunder splitting the heavens as the earth below cracked apart.
Amidst the lightning and smoke, a figure about 1.8 meters tall began to emerge. His fat, almost comical form was gone replaced by a body of pure menace.
His skin was blood-red, steaming with dark Ki. From his head sprouted two long, curved black horns that pulsed with malevolent energy. On his shoulders and legs, a jagged lavender exoskeleton-like armor grew, clinging tightly like Frieza's second form, yet more sinister. A thick, barbed tail whipped the ground, carving deep scars into the stone.
The sheer force of his aura blasted the air away from his body, leaving a vacuum around him. The cute, childlike face had vanished, replaced with sharp cheekbones, ruthless eyes, and a twisted grin dripping with malice. His muscles bulged with eight clear-cut packs, veins glowing faintly purple with corrupted Ki.
"This… this is the real Evil Thought Wave," Goku muttered, his eyes narrowing. "His strength… it's way beyond before!"
Even Vegeta's face hardened, though his pride refused to let him show fear. "Tch… his power feels comparable to Majin Buu's… or even worse. Hmph, doesn't matter! I'll still crush him!"
The oppressive aura made the ground tremble nonstop, and even the Kaiōs watching from afar shuddered.
In a flash, Xie Nianbo's new form moved. His outline blurred, vanishing like Instant Transmission. Before either Saiyan could react, he appeared between them, fists cocked.
"BOOM!"
Both Goku and Vegeta were sent flying, smashing through massive stone pillars. Shockwaves shattered the terrain, and the Underworld itself groaned under the impact.
"This bastard dares…!" Vegeta roared, golden aura bursting as he powered forward in Super Saiyan form.
Xie Nianbo grinned wickedly, his tail lashing as he charged back, each step carving trenches into the ground. Their collision created a shockwave that split the sky like glass.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Fist met fist, knee met elbow, Ki blasts detonated midair. Vegeta gave everything, his Super Saiyan aura flaring like wildfire. At first, he managed to hold even, his strikes cracking against the monster's armor-like skin. But as the exchanges grew faster, the second form's power kept climbing, each blow heavier than the last.
"Damn it… his strength just keeps increasing!" Vegeta gritted his teeth, his breathing already uneven. The prolonged fight drained his stamina, his Super Saiyan form flickering at the edges.
Meanwhile, Evil Thought Wave laughed between blows, his wounds sealing almost instantly thanks to his regeneration. Each time Vegeta's blast tore into him, the ambient evil energy saturating the Underworld flowed back into his body, restoring him stronger than before.
"Vegeta!" Goku warned, sensing the imbalance. "He's absorbing the malice of this whole realm… it's fueling him! If we don't stop him now, he'll keep regenerating and getting stronger!"
But Xie Nianbo's blood-red eyes flashed with merciless glee as he hammered Vegeta back, the sky cracking like shattered glass from their titanic exchange.
The battle had only just begun and already the balance was shifting toward darkness.
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