Outside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Zhou Zilong changed into a blue tracksuit, as if preparing to face the challenges ahead.
"Guardian of Earth, could you take me to the afterlife? I'm planning to seek out King Kai for a new round of training." Zhou Zilong's voice was firm and resolute.
The Guardian of Earth nodded and smiled faintly. "I didn't expect you to know about King Kai. Very well, I'll take you there and see if you get lucky!"
The Guardian of Earth reached out and gently rested a hand on Zhou Zilong's shoulder. A gentle force enveloped them both, and the world around them blurred in an instant.
When everything came back into focus, they were inside a wooden building.
A huge wooden desk stood ahead of them. On the left were a telephone and a sign bearing the four large characters "King Yemma." A massive man with purplish-red skin sat behind the desk. He had a thick, bushy beard and wore a horned hat marked with the character "Yemma" in the center. At that moment, he was consulting a book.
The purplish-red-skinned man looked up. Seeing the Guardian of Earth and Zhou Zilong, he set down the book in his hands and asked, "Guardian of Earth, this young man hasn't died yet. Why did you bring him here?"
The Guardian of Earth replied, "Lord King Yemma, this young man says he wants to train with King Kai. He hopes you'll let him pass."
King Yemma looked at Zhou Zilong, curiosity flickering in his eyes. "You're so young, yet you've already achieved a decent level of cultivation. Why do you still want to seek out King Kai and train with him?"
Zhou Zilong took a deep breath before answering. "Lord King Yemma, who holds the power over life and death, you must know there are many evildoers in our universe. I have to become stronger so they won't be able to ravage my planet!"
King Yemma nodded approvingly. "Hmm, wanting to protect your planet is admirable. As for whether you'll get to meet King Kai, that's up to fate. Ogre, take him to Snake Way."
Ogre acknowledged the order, then took Zhou Zilong to Snake Way in a little red car. As they traveled along the winding road, Zhou Zilong leaned back in his seat and rested with his eyes closed. He knew the journey ahead would be long and arduous, so he needed to conserve his energy and prepare for the challenges to come.
After about an hour on the road, the car finally stopped. Before Zhou Zilong lay a winding, silver, snake-shaped path. This was Snake Way, the road to King Kai's Planet, stretching a full million kilometers.
Zhou Zilong jumped out of the car and did a few warm-up exercises before taking his place at the serpent's head. He drew a deep breath, then set off with determined strides.
After raising his power level to around eight thousand, Zhou Zilong began flying along Snake Way with the Flight Technique. His figure flashed forward like lightning, swift and agile.
At that moment, on King Kai's Planet, North Kai sensed Zhou Zilong's ki and muttered, "Hmm? That ki has quite a high battle power. I wonder why he's heading this way!"
Five hours later, Zhou Zilong finally saw the end of Snake Way: a modest-sized green planet. This was North Kai's home, King Kai's Planet!
He sped toward King Kai's Planet, his heart filled with anticipation. As he flew over it, a powerful force suddenly pulled him toward the planet!
Good thing my base battle power is high. I'm adapting to this tenfold gravity pretty quickly. Zhou Zilong steadied himself and descended toward King Kai's Planet.
Once he landed, he saw a blue-skinned man in unusual clothes and sunglasses walking over. This was North Kai, the very person Zhou Zilong had come to visit.
"Well, well, well! You're pretty impressive, adapting to the gravity of my planet so quickly!" North Kai said with a smile, a hint of admiration in his eyes.
"Thank you for the praise, King Kai. I've come to ask you to teach me how to train so I can face whatever unknown challenges may lie ahead." Zhou Zilong bowed respectfully.
North Kai nodded. "I can teach you how to train, but first you have to tell me a few jokes that'll make me laugh!"
To test whether North Kai was as easy to amuse as he'd been in the original story, Zhou Zilong casually opened with, "Someone cut off a horse's tail!"
At the joke, North Kai's expression turned strange. He covered his mouth as if afraid he might burst out laughing. Seeing this, Zhou Zilong was delighted to learn that North Kai was indeed easy to amuse.
So he pressed on with another joke. "A cat got chased by a mouse!"
This time, North Kai clamped a hand over his mouth even more firmly. His eyes were full of shock and disbelief, as if he were saying, How is that possible?
Seeing this, Zhou Zilong felt even more confident. "There's a corner of my house that's round and shiny. Turns out it's a toilet!"
As soon as he said it, North Kai couldn't help muttering to himself, "There's a corner of my house that's round and shiny. Turns out it's a toilet! There's a corner of my house that's round and shiny. Turns out it's a toilet!" His voice grew louder and louder until he finally collapsed to the ground, roaring with laughter.
"On a night so dark you couldn't see your hand in front of your face, a tadpole was sunbathing!" Seeing North Kai's reaction, Zhou Zilong told him another joke.
"Ha ha ha ha!" North Kai, who had already been laughing uproariously, laughed even harder.
Taking the opportunity, Zhou Zilong asked, "Most humorous Lord King Kai, did I pass the test?"
At last, North Kai recovered from his laughter. He adjusted his sunglasses and said to Zhou Zilong, "You've got a great sense of humor. You passed the test. Starting today, train with me until you're ready to leave!"
Before you continue