As it turned out, the instant Young Goku, transformed into a Great Ape, swung his fist, Zhou Zilong rushed forward and held back the much larger fist with a single finger.
It looked like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, and everyone thought Zhou Zilong would surely be overwhelmed. But unexpectedly, Zhou Zilong was the chariot, and Great Ape Young Goku was the mantis.
No matter how hard Great Ape Young Goku pushed, he couldn't move Zhou Zilong in the slightest.
Without thinking twice, Young Goku immediately swung another punch at Zhou Zilong.
Zhou Zilong promptly punched back.
Boom!
The sound came from Young Goku's side again. The moment their fists met, Great Ape Young Goku was struck by a fist far stronger than his own and sent flying backward into a building. The building couldn't withstand the impact and collapsed with that familiar rumble.
"Roar!" Great Ape Young Goku got back up and let out several furious roars, clearly unwilling to accept defeat.
Without another thought, Great Ape Young Goku charged straight at Zhou Zilong.
But in the blink of an eye, Zhou Zilong was already behind Young Goku, leaping high into the air.
Does he plan to break Goku's tail with his bare hands? No matter how strong he is, surely that's impossible. I tried just now, and that tail's like steel. It probably can't be broken! Watching the scene, Yamcha began to speculate.
"If it's Zilong, I'm sure he can do it," Bulma said confidently.
"Let's hope so. Puar, get ready. If Zhou Zilong can't break the tail, transform into a pair of scissors and cut it while Goku's fighting him," Yamcha said, preparing a backup plan.
Puar nodded to show he understood.
On the battlefield, a blue, sword-shaped energy began to gather along Zhou Zilong's left hand, extending upward from his wrist.
Once it had extended about twenty centimeters beyond his fingers, Zhou Zilong dropped down and brought his hand down sharply toward Young Goku's tail.
Great Ape Young Goku sensed the danger and instinctively tried to dodge. But the moment he moved, Zhou Zilong had already swung his hand, and the blade of energy struck his tail without hesitation.
In an instant, Young Goku's enormous Great Ape tail was severed, and Great Ape Young Goku felt the strength in his body gradually draining away.
"That power is incredible. Just how did he train to become so strong?" Watching Zhou Zilong's unfathomable strength, Yamcha couldn't help wanting to attain it himself.
"Wonderful! I knew Zilong could do it!" Bulma cheered.
"Sure, sure. Your Zilong is the best. In your eyes, he can do anything, can't he?" Iris teased.
"Of course!" Bulma replied proudly.
Meanwhile, Great Ape Young Goku, still out of his mind, rapidly shrank before their eyes, returning to his usual innocent, adorable form.
After landing, Zhou Zilong produced a set of clothes, almost identical to what Young Goku had been wearing, as if by magic, and draped them over him to keep him warm (though Goku had no idea what being cold even meant).
"Could you be my master and teach me martial arts?" Yamcha immediately approached Zhou Zilong and asked earnestly.
"I'm not suited to be your master, and I'm not planning to take on any students right now. You could ask my master, Master Roshi, to teach you," Zhou Zilong declined.
"I'm not suited to be your master, and I'm not planning to take on any students right now!" Zhou Zilong refused again.
"I see. I was too presumptuous," Yamcha replied, a little disappointed.
"I'd recommend asking my master, Master Roshi, to take you on. I'm sure he'd be the best person to guide you," Zhou Zilong said.
"Okay, I understand. Thank you for the suggestion." Yamcha bowed as he spoke.
"By the way, Zilong, how did you know that Goku's tail was the weakness of his Great Ape form?" Iris asked curiously as Zhou Zilong came over to Bulma.
"Because Goku and I are both from another planet. He and I belong to the same race from outer space. We're Saiyans. Great Ape Transformation is a special ability of our race, and it comes from a particular kind of energy called Blutz Waves.
"The moon reflects sunlight, and the reflected light produces a kind of energy called Blutz Waves. During a full moon, the Blutz Waves can exceed eighteen million hertz. When Saiyans receive these Blutz Waves through their eyes, they react with our tails and cause us to transform into Great Apes!" Zhou Zilong explained to everyone.
After explaining, Zhou Zilong also revealed the tail wrapped around his waist.
Everyone except Bulma looked shocked by what Zhou Zilong had said.
"Wait, you went out to look at the full moon just now too. Why didn't you turn into a Great Ape like Goku?" Iris asked in confusion.
"My Saiyan bloodline is naturally unusual. After looking at the full moon, I can control whether or not I undergo Great Ape Transformation," Zhou Zilong explained with a faint smile.
After chatting for a while, everyone gradually fell asleep.
After resting for about five hours, everyone woke up. Just like in the original story, Young Goku was unsteady on his feet for a while after waking. Once he had regained his balance, he felt around himself, wondering what had happened to his tail.
Everyone quickly made up a story to cover for him. Without thinking too much about it, Young Goku immediately stumbled toward the collapsed building to look for his Power Pole.
"Zilong, I'm heading off now!" Young Goku said when he returned with his Power Pole.
"Goku, are you going to train under my master?" Zhou Zilong asked, catching on.
"Yeah. After going out this time, I realized the world is huge, and there are even more strong people than I imagined. I still have a lot of training to do. I'm going to train with Grandpa Turtle so I can get even stronger!" Young Goku nodded.
"You're right. I had the same realization when I went out to gain experience after training. I'm really looking forward to fighting you again once you've gotten stronger!" Zhou Zilong said, holding out his fist toward Young Goku.
"Me too. I'm still a long way behind you, but I can't wait to fight you again after I get stronger!" Young Goku replied after bumping fists with him.
Before you continue