Cyborg Tao Pai Pai

Let's pull the timeline back to the previous match.

"Next match, Section Four: Chiaotzu versus Tao Pai Pai!"

At the referee's command, the contestant area, which had been as noisy as a vegetable market, fell silent as if a mute button had been pressed.

Every gaze—whether curious, contemptuous, or fearful—locked onto the temporary Reinforced Concrete Arena.

On one side of the ring, Chiaotzu hovered in midair, looking especially tiny.

His bright green Qing-dynasty official-style jacket fluttered slightly in the air currents, and his pale little face, dotted with two circles of blush, was taut.

The usually adorably vacant eyes were now filled with instinctive terror.

Cold sweat slid down his smooth forehead, dripped onto the floor, and shattered instantly.

Across from him stood a figure that seemed to have stepped out of the depths of a nightmare.

Tao Pai Pai.

Once his martial uncle.

Also the world's number one assassin, a name that once made the entire martial arts world tremble.

But now, he no longer looked purely human.

Beneath his iconic pink robe, there were no warm muscle lines—only cold alloy bones and complex hydraulic drive systems.

The left side of his face still bore a human appearance, with a chilling, sinister smile curling at the corner of his mouth—a well-maintained yet evil middle-aged man's face.

The right side, however, was completely covered by a cold, silver-gray metal faceplate.

A single electronic eye, glowing with a bloody red light, rotated silently in its sunken socket, emitting a faint "zzz" sound.

Like a precision scanner, it was dissecting its prey into a stream of data.

"Heh heh heh..."

Tao Pai Pai let out a low laugh, his voice like rough sandpaper scraping over rusty iron—harsh and spine-chilling.

"How nostalgic, this taste of fear. The air thick with the trembling of the weak... like a fine aperitif."

"Kid, you're that old bastard Crane Hermit's disciple, aren't you? Unlucky for you, running into me."

"You... you are..."

Chiaotzu's voice trembled. He could feel the ki radiating from the man.

It wasn't human ki. It was a cold, deathly stillness, a malice soaked in the lust to kill.

"Who I am doesn't matter. What matters is that you're about to become a pile of scrap."

Tao Pai Pai slowly raised his fully mechanical left hand, the metal knuckles letting out a crisp "click."

Around them, the audience and contestants began to murmur, their voices laced with unease.

"Hey, who's that half-robot guy? He looks vicious."

"You don't know him? That's Tao Pai Pai! Heard he was killed by Goku a few years ago. How'd he end up like this?"

"Oh god, that little guy looks so pitiful. This isn't even a fair fight."

Below the ring, Tien Shinhan's three eyes were locked onto Tao Pai Pai, his pupils contracting sharply.

That was killing intent. Pure, undiluted killing intent.

His hands gripped the barrier railing tightly, the iron pipe slowly bending under his monstrous strength.

"Chiaotzu! Forfeit now! That guy's not right!!"

"Do... Dodon Ray!"

Chiaotzu could no longer bear the suffocating pressure.

Survival instinct drove him to strike first.

He extended his index finger, instantly gathering all his ki at the tip.

A yellow energy beam, searing with heat, tore through the air and shot straight for Tao Pai Pai's heart.

This strike was as fast as lightning, carrying Chiaotzu's resolve to win.

But Tao Pai Pai didn't even move his feet.

He casually raised his unmodified right hand and flicked his index finger.

"Ting!"

A sound as crisp as striking fine porcelain.

The Dodon Ray—powerful enough to pierce rock and seem unstoppable to ordinary eyes—was deflected by a single finger!

The stray energy beam shot into the hall's ceiling, blasting down a shower of debris and dust, drawing gasps from the crowd.

"Too weak."

Tao Pai Pai shook his head, his electronic eye glinting with mockery.

"Has the Crane School fallen to such a low level?"

"This kind of limp attack isn't even enough to tickle me. This is what you call a qi blast?"

"Might as well be a kid's water pistol."

"Tien... Tien Shinhan..."

Chiaotzu stumbled back in terror. He tried to call out to his senior brother with telepathy, but fear had thrown his Mental Power into chaos.

He clenched his teeth, thrust both hands forward, palms aimed at Tao Pai Pai, and unleashed his psychic abilities at full force.

"Golden Binding Technique!!"

An invisible wave of mental energy enveloped Tao Pai Pai, attempting to lock him in place.

Chiaotzu's stomach heaved violently—this move drained him heavily.

"Oh? Psychic powers?"

Tao Pai Pai felt the constriction around his body and grinned even wider.

"Not bad. If it were the old me, I might've found this troublesome. But now..."

"Creeeak... groan..."

A grating, metallic screech echoed from within Tao Pai Pai's body, as if a monster engine were roaring inside him.

"Break... loose!!"

Tao Pai Pai wrenched himself free, and his mechanical left arm exploded with terrifying force.