"What???"
"What's going on?! How did Vegeta turn into a Super Saiyan?!"
"Goku, didn't you say only Saiyans with good hearts could become Super Saiyans?"
Hearing this, Goku shook his head and said innocently, "I don't know either. That's just what I was told."
"How could someone as evil as Vegeta become a good person?!" Krillin shouted.
The others voiced their strong objections too.
Vegeta was surrounded by a golden aura. His golden hair stood even more upright than before, and his eyes glimmered with a faint green light.
"Heh heh heh. I really am a good person!"
"I blamed myself for being unable to surpass Kakarot. Then even Jiang Ling, who came along later, became a Super Saiyan!"
"I trained desperately, day and night. When I pushed myself to the point of madness, I became a Super Saiyan! Hahahahaha!"
"Do you understand now?!"
Vegeta's golden aura surged!
Fear filled 19's eyes. He tried to pull away the hand draining his energy, only to find that Vegeta had him in a firm grip!
Energy beyond his limits poured into his body in a wild torrent!
Boom!!!
He exploded!!
Android 19 couldn't withstand the overload of energy and burst apart!
Jiang Ling let out a sigh.
Just like in the original story, Vegeta had become a Super Saiyan.
Now there were three Super Saiyans in this world.
Behind them, Piccolo's eyes glittered.
He thought to himself,
"Damn Vegeta. He keeps getting stronger! How am I supposed to..."
While everyone was still marveling at what had happened,
Krillin noticed something strange.
"Hey, where'd that skinny Android go?"
"Right! Wasn't he just over there with Jiang Ling?"
Jiang Ling scratched his head and smiled. "I didn't notice him leave. He must've run off."
In truth, he knew Android 20 had escaped, but he hadn't stopped him.
Why?
Because he needed 17 and 18 to make their entrance.
"So what do we do now?"
Yamcha spread his hands. "The Androids have no ki, so we can't sense them..."
"Yeah, that's right!"
"Damn! He got away. Who knows how many more people he'll hurt!"
"We should ask Jiang Ling," Piccolo said gravely. "He probably knows more..."
As he spoke, he turned to look at Jiang Ling.
Everyone else looked his way too.
Jiang Ling cleared his throat.
"I do know more. The one who just escaped, Android 20, is Dr. Gero!"
"He turned himself into an Android to gain incomparable power and a much longer lifespan."
Krillin chimed in, "Well, that old man's ruthless. What next?"
Jiang Ling continued, "His lab should be in the North Capital."
After hearing that, Vegeta's eyes flashed. He immediately flew toward the North Capital.
His confidence was soaring.
He wanted to deal with the Androids before anyone else, prove his strength, and then defeat Kakarot!
The others shrugged helplessly.
Then they hurried after him.
Only Jiang Ling and Piccolo remained behind...
"Why aren't you going?" Piccolo asked.
"I'm in no hurry," Jiang Ling said with a smile. "What about you? Why aren't you following them?"
Piccolo shook his head.
"I thought that after three years of training, I'd become strong enough. I never imagined I'd still be so insignificant."
"So?"
"So I'm going to find Kami and do what we should've done."
Jiang Ling nodded. "You should've done it ages ago. You've put it off for far too long."
"Yeah. If not for this, it might've been a long time before I went. I'll be on my way."
With that, Piccolo flew off in another direction.
Jiang Ling watched him go.
The corners of his mouth lifted.
Piccolo and Kami were about to merge...
Now it was my turn to clear the board.
Temple of the Gods.
Kami and Mr. Popo stood at the edge of the platform, quietly watching everything happening below.
Piccolo soon flew over to them.
"You're here..."
"I'm here."
"You should've come sooner."
"But I waited until now."
The two Namekians who had grown up on Earth stood facing each other in silence.
One was old, the other young.
Mr. Popo seemed to sense what was about to happen. His expression grew tense.
"Kami..."
"Mr. Popo, thank you for taking care of me all these years."
"Kami..." Popo's voice trembled.
"Goodbye."
After speaking, Kami looked at Piccolo.
"Put your hand on my chest, and then we can merge."
Piccolo said gravely, "I'll be the dominant one. Can you accept that?"
Kami smiled. "Yes. My body is old, and I don't have many years left."
"I'll only give you my extensive knowledge and power. Your personality will remain in control."
"Good."
Piccolo placed his hand against Kami's chest.
"Then... let's begin!"
Boom!!!
A tremendous force erupted.
The wind howled in reverse.
Kami broke apart into tiny points of light and merged into Piccolo's body.
Piccolo's power multiplied several times over!
Everyone flying through the air—Goku, Vegeta, Jiang Ling, and the others—stopped as one and looked toward the Temple of the Gods.
"That's... Piccolo's ki."
"Whoa—why does he feel even stronger than the Super Saiyans?!"
Vegeta's face darkened. He didn't want to admit it, but he had to: this Namekian was stronger than him now!
Excitement showed on Goku's face.
Piccolo was so strong now that they could spar together in the future!
He wouldn't have to worry about running out of opponents!
Jiang Ling felt the energy and smiled faintly.
It was about what he'd expected!
Before long,
Vegeta reached the North Capital and began searching.
The others arrived soon after.
"We should search too. We can't just let that menace run free."
"Yeah."
"You go ahead. I'll catch up," Goku said with a smile.
The others didn't question him and immediately split up to search.
Gohan sensed something was wrong and looked at his father, Goku, in confusion.
"Dad, what's wrong?"
Goku smiled faintly. "Nothing. You go on ahead. I'll catch up."
"Okay."
Gohan followed the others.
Watching them disappear into the distance, Goku couldn't help sitting down on the ground, panting heavily.
He'd been forcing himself to keep them from noticing, just so they wouldn't worry.
That was just the kind of person he was. He didn't want anyone worrying about him.
Goku clutched his chest.
His face twisted in pain.
His hands trembling, he took a bottle of medicine from his waist.
He opened it and swallowed the medicine.
It was the medicine Trunks had brought him earlier. At home, Future Chi-Chi had insisted that he carry it with him at all times, just in case, so the tragedy wouldn't happen again.
And now, he needed it.
"Damn it, is the Heart Virus acting up?"
He'd been fine for the past few years, and Goku had thought he wouldn't come down with the Heart Virus. But now...
Jiang Ling flew over from behind and hurried to Goku's side when he saw him.
"Is the Heart Virus acting up?"
"Yeah..."
"Did you take your medicine?"
"I did. Good thing Future Chi-Chi insisted I carry it with me..."
Jiang Ling nodded. "Get some rest. I'll take care of the rest."
As he spoke, he brought out a bed.
He helped Goku lie down on it.
"I'm counting on you," Goku said, looking at Jiang Ling. "I'm worried about the others..."
"Yeah."
Before you continue