The howling wind seemed ready to rip the entire Capsule Corporation courtyard from the ground.
The enormous dragon coiled among the ink-dark clouds, its eyes like red lanterns coldly watching the ants below.
The pressure of a higher-dimensional being made even the air feel thick.
"State your wish..."
The dragon's voice was more than the vibration of sound waves; it was like thunder striking directly at the soul.
"Whatever your wish, I can grant it... but only one..."
Everyone in the courtyard held their breath.
Yamcha hid behind a pillar, swallowed, and whispered to Puar beside him.
"Hey, Puar, what do you think Krillin's going to wish for?"
"If it were me, I'd wish for enough money to last a lifetime, or... for every beautiful girl to fall in love with me!"
"That's all you can think of!"
Puar rolled her eyes, still holding the frying pan.
"Krillin's already the son-in-law of the world's richest woman. Does he even care about money?"
Nearby, Oolong's eyes shone as his mouth hung wide open, as if he were about to shout something inappropriate for children.
Before he could get out a single syllable, Master Roshi swiftly smacked him on the head with his staff.
"Idiot! Don't make trouble! This concerns the future of the Earth!"
Truth be told, Master Roshi was feeling nervous too.
He sneaked a glance at the group of gorgeous hostesses not far away and sighed to himself.
Sigh, if only I could wish for a pair of X-ray glasses...
Everyone's gaze focused on Krillin.
Krillin stood at the front, his suit flapping in the gale.
He raised his head. His eyes held no fear, only cool calculation.
As someone who had crossed over into this world, he understood its rules all too well.
Money?
Bulma's family had enough wealth to let him live extravagantly for ten lifetimes.
Immortality?
That was a sweet trap.
Never mind that it might lead to the birth of the Evil Dragons in the future. The mere trait of being "undying" would make martial artists lose their desire to strive for their limits.
In this world, only by repeatedly dancing on the brink of life and death could one reach a higher realm.
At least until he had the absolute power to beat Evil One-Star Dragon to a pulp, he wouldn't make that wish.
Right now, he had the "Saitama Template," and his strength and defense were steadily increasing.
But he had one fatal weakness: the environments in which he could survive.
Where would the battles of the future take place?
In the oxygenless skies above Namek, in the freezing vacuum of space, perhaps even on the surface of a star.
If the Earth were destroyed or a spaceship wrecked, even if he could punch Frieza to pieces, he would still suffocate and die like a frog with its mouth shut.
And in the original story, after Goku defeated Frieza, he nearly died that way on Namek.
He had to make up for this weakness!
"Shenron!"
Krillin drew a deep breath, sank his qi into his Dantian, and sent his voice through the storm until it rang clearly across the world.
"My wish is—to remove part of the 'Gene Lock' from everyone here and grant us the 'Absolute Survival Physique'!"
Krillin paused, his voice growing even more resolute.
"Let us survive in a perfect vacuum, like the most resilient beings in the universe!"
"We won't need to breathe, we'll be immune to cosmic radiation, and we'll be able to withstand extreme heat and absolute zero! Let our bodies become completely adapted to the vast sea of stars!"
The entire crowd fell silent.
Only the wind continued to howl.
Yamcha's mouth fell open, his jaw nearly hitting the ground.
"What do you mean? No need to breathe? What kind of wish is that? Is it to save on oxygen? Or does he just want to make it easier to catch fish underwater?"
Tien Shinhan blinked all three of his eyes. As a martial arts fanatic, he sensed there was something to it, but it still seemed unbelievable.
"Removing the Gene Lock... does he think the human body is limiting his growth?"
Even Bulma was stunned. She'd thought Krillin would wish for her to stay young and beautiful forever or something, but instead he'd chosen such a... hardcore and bizarre wish?
"Hey, Krillin!"
Bulma couldn't help calling out.
"Are we going on a space vacation?"
Shenron fell silent for a moment.
Its enormous red eyes seemed to flicker, as if it were parsing the underlying logic of the wish.
A few seconds later, Shenron spoke, its voice tinged with surprise.
"This wish... although it involves altering the fundamental genetic sequences of a species, it is within my power."
"This is easy."
As soon as the words fell, a blinding red light burst from Shenron's eyes.
Then a thick, warm column of golden light descended from the sky, instantly enveloping everyone in the courtyard—Krillin, Bulma, Goku, Chi-Chi, Master Roshi, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, Chiaotzu, and even Puar and Oolong.
"Ugh!"
Goku suddenly clutched his chest and let out a muffled groan.
"What a strange feeling! It's like countless ants are crawling around inside my bones!"
"Ow, ow, ow!" Master Roshi dropped his staff and stared at his hands in amazement.
His once-sagging skin, mottled with age spots, quickly regained its luster and elasticity in the golden light. The heavy sense of old age that had weighed on him for years was receding like the tide.
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