A month passed.
In northern Namek, a bare-chested figure sat by a lake, eyes closed in meditation.
Suddenly!
An evil presence appeared overhead.
The wind howled!
The atmosphere grew oppressively tense!
"Have they arrived?"
Louis opened his eyes.
He saw a huge spaceship hovering in the upper atmosphere.
Rumble—!
Another engine roared, and a second spaceship appeared in the atmosphere.
The Galactic Patrol emblem was emblazoned on the newly arrived ship.
"Have King Vegeta and the others arrived too?"
Louis looked up, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly.
How interesting!
The thought of a great battle between the Saiyans and the Frieza Force was thrilling!
Louis immediately returned to the Grand Elder.
Namek's atmosphere was oppressively tense. All the Namekians had gathered in the Grand Elder's village, sensing that a storm was about to break.
Seeing Louis, the Grand Elder breathed a sigh of relief. "Candidate God of Destruction, you're here!"
Louis nodded. "Gather all the Namekians together so they won't get caught up in the battle later."
"I've already had my people gather in this village."
"Good. With me here, you have nothing to worry about."
Louis rose into the air and hovered there, watching the two spaceships in the upper atmosphere.
The Frieza Force battleship's hatch opened.
Frieza flew out in his "baby" chair, radiating an icy aura.
"Come on. I'll see just how strong the Saiyans have become!"
"Yes, sir!"
The members of the Ginyu Force and the rest of the Frieza Force streamed out of the ship.
Frieza's forces had brought a total of two thousand troops this time.
The Saiyan ship's hatch opened.
"Frieza is right nearby. We mustn't let him get the Dragon Balls!"
King Vegeta flew at the front.
Bardock, Bibert, Theodore, and the other Saiyans followed close behind.
The Saiyans had deployed a total of fifteen hundred warriors this time, nearly the entire race.
The moment the two forces emerged from their ships, they spotted each other in the sky.
They were two kilometers apart!
"Oh-ho-ho!"
"King Vegeta, you actually dared to leave Galactic Patrol Headquarters with your people! Who gave you the nerve?"
Frieza flew down from his ship and spotted a group of Saiyans descending in the distance. King Vegeta was at their head.
Ginyu moved closer to Frieza and quietly asked, "King Frieza, should we destroy the Saiyans' ship?"
The Saiyans couldn't survive in space. Without their ship, they would be trapped on Namek.
Frieza kept his eyes on King Vegeta in the distance without turning his head. "If you destroy their ship, the Saiyans will destroy ours in turn. Don't rush. They're doomed anyway!"
Ginyu nodded. "Yes, sir."
"Frieza, you're on the brink of death, and you still dare to run your mouth!"
King Vegeta's voice rang out from across the sky as he led fifteen hundred Saiyans toward Frieza.
Frieza led several thousand aliens toward King Vegeta as well.
"Oh-ho-ho! Don't tell me you think a little improvement over the past few years means you can stand against me. Traitors, just wait—I'll slaughter you!"
"Traitors? We're no traitors. You've committed countless evils, and sooner or later someone would put a stop to you. We Saiyans are simply following the tide!"
The two sides traded words in the sky.
The battle hadn't even started, but their verbal clash had already made the atmosphere even more tense.
King Vegeta and the Saiyans finally reached the front of the Frieza Force.
The Saiyans gritted their teeth at the sight of the Emperor of the Universe who had once ruled over them.
The two forces faced each other, and battle was about to erupt!
"King Vegeta, tell me: why did you betray me? I want to know the real reason."
Frieza hovered in midair, coldly staring at King Vegeta across from him.
The real reason?
The Saiyans were puzzled by Frieza's question.
In truth, they didn't know why King Vegeta had made that decision back then, either.
They only knew that a distinguished guest had come to King Vegeta's palace, and then the palace had inexplicably exploded.
After that, King Vegeta announced that they would join the Galactic Patrol.
That decision was what had brought about the Saiyans' current transformation.
"The reason I betrayed you?"
King Vegeta smiled. "To be honest, someone you can't afford to offend ordered me to do it."
"If I hadn't, my entire race would have been killed!"
A commotion swept through both Frieza's camp and the Saiyan ranks.
Someone Frieza couldn't afford to offend?
Frieza was the Emperor of the Universe. Who could he possibly be afraid of?
"Was it him?"
At King Vegeta's words, Frieza immediately thought of the Saiyan who had infiltrated his headquarters five years ago.
Aside from that Candidate God of Destruction, he couldn't think of anyone else.
That didn't mean there was no one else in the universe he couldn't afford to offend. There was, in fact, the legendary Majin Buu.
And...
The true God of Destruction!!!
In reality, Beerus was the one who had ordered King Vegeta to do it, but Frieza would never have guessed that.
He was Beerus's agent. Why would Beerus order the Saiyans under his control to betray him?
"King Vegeta, who was that person you mentioned?" Frieza gritted his teeth.
"You've already guessed, haven't you?"
"So it really was that guy! He said he wouldn't get involved with the Saiyans, but he still helped you behind my back!"
Frieza flew into a rage. He shouldn't have trusted a word that Candidate God of Destruction had said.
"?"
King Vegeta was baffled. Was Frieza saying Beerus hadn't helped the Saiyans?
Why would Beerus help the Saiyans?
One thought Louis had helped the Saiyans; the other wondered why Beerus would help them. They were talking at cross purposes.
King Vegeta shook his head. "Frieza, even without that person's order, we Saiyans would have found a way to escape your control."
Frieza clenched his fists. "Why?"
Bardock stepped forward. "Frieza, you don't think we're completely in the dark, do you?"
"Bardock, the strongest Saiyan alive, with a battle power of 150,000."
Frieza stared intently at Bardock. "Impressive. It's hard to believe your race grew this strong in just over a decade."
"Tell me, what do you think I'm afraid of?"
Frieza wasn't in a hurry to attack. He wanted to know why these Saiyans were so eager to escape his control.
"Hahaha! Haven't you always feared that our race would produce the Legendary Super Saiyan?"
Bardock's eyes blazed with fighting spirit as he looked at Frieza and laughed.
A Super Saiyan?
The aliens in Frieza's forces didn't understand what that meant, but the Saiyans erupted into excited chatter.
"A Super Saiyan?"
"Is that legend true?"
"No wonder Frieza was afraid of us. Good thing King Vegeta made that decision in advance."
"Otherwise Frieza would have wiped us out eventually!"
"..."
Frieza fell silent. He hadn't expected those Saiyan monkeys to know that he had always feared the Super Saiyan!
But Bardock was right. Once Frieza had finished using the Saiyans, he would have wiped out their entire race.
The Saiyans had actually escaped disaster!
Louis hovered above the Grand Elder's village. Frieza and the Saiyans weren't far away, and he could see their standoff clearly.
"Kakarot and Vegeta still haven't arrived?"
Louis looked closely but couldn't see Vegeta or the others.
Could they arrive only after the Saiyans and the Frieza Force had finished fighting?
On the distant horizon.
The faces of both sides grew more wary.
The tension kept mounting.
They were poised to strike!!!!
"Hmph. Ginyu, attack! Since they dared to leave Galactic Patrol Headquarters, seize this chance and wipe them out!"
Frieza's voice blazed with fury!!
"Yes, sir!"
Ginyu turned into a streak of purple light and flew toward the Saiyans.
"Theodore, kill Ginyu!" King Vegeta waved his hand and issued the order.
"Yes, sir!"
Theodore flew out of the crowd and charged at Ginyu.
They clashed at incredible speed, shock waves whipping through the air and crashing to the ground in earth-shaking explosions.
The battle reached a fever pitch.
Both fighters kept getting wounded. Watching the fierce clash, Frieza frowned and tapped his Scouter.
"Beep, beep, beep!"
"Battle power: 110,000!"
"Battle power: 120,000!"
The battle power of 120,000 belonged to Ginyu, but Frieza hadn't expected the Saiyan named Theodore to have a battle power of 110,000.
Despite being weaker than Ginyu, he was still holding his own!
"Damn it!"
"Why have the Saiyans suddenly become so powerful?!"
"That damned Candidate God of Destruction! It has to be his doing!"
Frieza gritted his teeth, his mind in turmoil.
He blamed Louis for everything, but none of it had anything to do with Louis. Louis had never helped the Saiyans.
"Hahaha! So what if our battle power is lower? We're a warrior race. We only grow stronger the longer we fight!"
King Vegeta clenched his fists, exhilarated. "Just wait. Ginyu's finished!"
The sight was so exhilarating. Ginyu was the captain of the Ginyu Force, after all.
The Saiyans could actually stand against him!
The Saiyans were all fired up, their excitement surging.
The fight unfolded just as King Vegeta had predicted. Theodore grew more and more ferocious, soon overpowering Ginyu as his injuries worsened.
At the sight, Frieza's breathing quickened. He knew the Saiyans were a warrior race, but he hadn't expected them to be this formidable!
He tapped the Scouter.
"Beep, beep, beep!"
"Battle power: 125,000!"
"Battle power: 90,000!"
Frieza watched the readings, his chest heaving. "Damn it!!!!"
Ginyu's battle power had fallen to 90,000 from his constant injuries.
Theodore grew fiercer as the battle went on, and his battle power increased by another 15,000.
"King Vegeta, you've successfully made me angry..."
Frieza flew out of his "baby" pod, but before he could finish speaking—
Ginyu suddenly shouted, "Change!"
Frieza was overjoyed. Could Ginyu still turn the tables?
A white light appeared around Ginyu in the sky, quickly enveloping Theodore. It looked like Theodore was about to be hit.
"Die!"
Bardock had sensed something was wrong long ago. He gathered a blast of energy and fired it at Ginyu.
Rumble—!
Ginyu was struck. His body twisted in the scorching heat, and before he could even cry out, he melted in Bardock's blast.
"Damn it, you attacked him by surprise!"
Frieza was furious.
"Hmph, we've always been sworn enemies. Who cares if it's a sneak attack?!"
King Vegeta didn't waste words. He swept his hand through the air. "All of you, attack! This time, we'll wipe out the Frieza Force!"
At their Saiyan leader's command, the 1,500 figures behind King Vegeta burst into white auras and charged at the Frieza Force.
The two sides quickly clashed.
Rumble—!
Explosions rang out across Namek.
Gales howled, mountains collapsed, and riverbeds crumbled!
It was like the twilight of the gods. Namek was plunged into darkness and chaos.
Grand Elder's village.
The battlefield wasn't far from here, and the shock waves from the clashes between the Saiyans and the Frieza Force soon spread to the village.
"The great calamity foretold by the Grand Elder is here!"
"Good heavens, can mere mortals wield such power?"
"Our Namek is doomed!"
The Namekians were plunged into endless panic.
Just then—
A purple light blossomed overhead. The shock waves sweeping in from the distance vanished as soon as they touched it.
"What's going on?"
"Right, the Grand Elder said a powerful warrior would come to our aid. It must be that warrior!"
Frieza and King Vegeta's group hadn't noticed Louis protecting the Namekians.
Louis had broken through to the Divine Dimension several days ago, and his power had also transformed into Divine Power.
Mortals couldn't sense the existence of the divine, and devices made by mortals were no exception.
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