The Grand Elder's Gift

"You... can tell?"

Son Goku spoke with a slight tremor, not out of fear of being exposed as a transmigrator, but from a subconscious panic at seeing his common sense overturned.

"Vaguely," the Grand Elder extended his hand, his withered palm resting gently on Son Goku's forehead, "let me... see more clearly."

A warm force surged from his forehead, flowing through his entire body like a heated stream.

Son Goku felt his consciousness pulled into a strange space—

He "saw" it.

He saw Frieza's space fleet blotting out the sky, saw green flames consuming villages, saw the Namekians falling amidst their wails, saw the Grand Elder slowly closing his eyes in the stone house...

Then, the image shifted.

He saw himself transformed into a golden Super Saiyan, locked in a fierce battle with Frieza on a shattered planet. He saw Namek turning into cosmic dust amidst an explosion. He saw himself escaping in a spaceship, only to be caught in the aftermath of Namek's destruction...

"So that is how it is..."

The Grand Elder's voice pulled him back from the vision into reality.

Son Goku opened his eyes abruptly, finding himself kneeling on the ground, drenched in cold sweat.

"You... come from another 'possibility'," the Grand Elder's voice carried a hint of emotion, "Your soul carries the memories of another world. In that world... Namek was destroyed. And I... also died."

Nail stared from the side, eyes wide: "Grand Elder?! What are you saying?!"

"Frieza," Son Goku looked up, complex flames burning in his black eyes, "The galactic tyrant Frieza will lead his army to invade Namek to obtain eternal life. He will slaughter your people, seize the Dragon Balls... and in the end, even this planet will be destroyed."

The stone house fell into a deathly silence.

Nail's fists clenched until they creaked, flames of fury burning in his eyes: "That bastard... he would dare?!"

"He dares," Son Goku said in a low voice, "and it will be soon. Perhaps in a year, perhaps two. With Frieza's intelligence network, he will discover the secret of the Namekian Dragon Balls sooner or later. Besides, you have already captured one of his men, haven't you?!"

The Grand Elder fell silent.

He looked at Son Goku, his cloudy eyes seemingly seeing through everything: "So... you came here to become stronger. Strong enough... to stop all of this?"

"Yes," Son Goku clenched his fists, "I need power. I need the strength... to protect Earth, to protect Namek, to protect everyone who matters."

The Grand Elder watched him for a long time.

Then, he smiled. The smile was aged and kind, like a grandfather looking at his grandson:

"Child... your wish is pure. Not like a Saiyan's, but more like... a Namekian's."

He slowly raised his hands, his withered palms aimed at Son Goku:

"Let me... help you unlock your potential. In exchange..."

His voice turned solemn:

"In the future, when Namek faces catastrophe... I ask you to lend a helping hand."

Son Goku was stunned.

He looked into the Grand Elder's expectant eyes, an indescribable emotion surging in his heart.

"I promise you," he nodded solemnly, his voice low and firm, "I swear by the name of my grandfather, Son Gohan—as long as I live, I will not let Namek be destroyed!"

The Grand Elder smiled.

"Then... let us begin."

The Grand Elder's hands emitted a soft white light, enveloping Son Goku's entire body.

At that moment, Son Goku felt his consciousness expand infinitely, rising to an immeasurable height.

He "saw" every cell within his body—no, deeper than that.

"Your potential... is beyond imagination," the Grand Elder's voice echoed in the void, tinged with awe, "The Saiyan bloodline, a pure heart, and that 'power of memory' from another world... the fusion of the three has turned your body... into an unrefined divine weapon."

Son Goku felt the changes within.

At first, it was warmth, like soaking in a hot spring. Then, that warmth turned into a scorching heat—

"Ugh...!"

His Ki was growing wildly, like a burst dam, scouring his body.

No, it wasn't just "growing," it was "unlocking"! He felt invisible shackles within his body—the inherent limitations of the Saiyan bloodline, the barrier between his soul and body that hadn't fully merged after his transmigration—and now, under the Grand Elder's power, those shackles were being forcibly broken, layer by layer!

The process of activating potential was painful, no less so than drinking the Ultra Divine Water.

"Ughaaaaa—!"

Son Goku couldn't help but roar at the sky, pure white Ki erupting from his pores.

"Hold on!" The Grand Elder's voice carried unprecedented gravity, the white light from his hands intensifying, an unnatural flush appearing on his aged face, "Potential unlocking... is not about instilling power, but helping you shatter your shackles! The stronger your will, the more you can break!"

Son Goku closed his eyes, maintaining his focus amidst the excruciating pain.

He imagined—

The morning at Mount Paozu, the kind smile of Grandpa Son Gohan, and that bowl of steaming porridge.

On the beach of Kame House, sweat glistened on Krillin's bald head as the two of them were worked to the bone by Master Roshi.

On the tournament stage, the unwillingness and admiration in Tien Shinhan's three eyes, with the small figure of Chiaotzu standing before him.

And then...

Frieza sneered in the depths of space, destroying a planet with a flick of his finger.

Cell spread his perfect wings in the arena, announcing the start of the "Cell Games."

Majin Buu's pink, seemingly innocent figure that devoured everything...

"I want to become stronger..."

"Strong enough... to be unrivaled!"

"Strong enough... to protect everyone I want to protect!"

"BOOM--!!!"

A pure white aura erupted in an instant!

"This, this energy..." Nail was blown back five steps by the shockwave, his eyes filled with shock as his back slammed heavily against the stone wall. "It's actually... actually still rising?! Grand Elder! Can his body withstand this?!"

The Grand Elder's face had turned as pale as paper, a trace of blood even spilling from the corner of his mouth, yet his eyes were startlingly bright. He watched Son Goku, who was enveloped in a golden aura, as if gazing upon a masterpiece about to be born:

"He can... within his body... lies something even deeper..."

"Child!" The Grand Elder's voice boomed like a great bell, exploding in Son Goku's mind. "Hold on!"

"RUMBLE--!"

After holding on for a while longer, Son Goku felt his consciousness cast into a golden ocean.

It was an ocean of potential.

Boundless and bottomless.

If the potential unleashed by the Ultra Divine Water was like finding a path for a stream to join a great river, the Grand Elder's potential unlocking was like finding the river's outlet to the sea.

There are no more obstacles before me!

He murmured to himself in his heart.

The Grand Elder finally withdrew his hands, his entire body collapsing weakly against the stone bed, gasping like a broken bellows. Yet, the corners of his mouth curled into a smile of extreme gratification:

"Very good... very good..."

Son Goku slowly opened his eyes, looked down at his hands, and clenched his fists—

"SNAP!"

The air was compressed in his palms, emitting a crisp sonic boom as a visible white ring of air rippled outward from his fists!

This feeling...

He calculated in his heart.

In the original story, after Goku was revived from the brink of death on Namek, his base combat power rose from 90,000 to 3 million. But now... the Grand Elder helped me unlock my 'limit,' rather than simply pouring combat power into me.

My base combat power... has at least increased fivefold? No, perhaps even more. More importantly, my body can now withstand stronger transformations and higher multipliers of the Kaio-ken...

In other words, my upper limit has already far exceeded that of the Goku from the same period in the original story!

"Thank you, Grand Elder." Son Goku bowed deeply, his waist bent at a ninety-degree angle, his voice filled with heartfelt gratitude. "This kindness... I will never forget."

The Grand Elder waved his hand, his breath even weaker than before, like a candle in the wind. "No need to thank me... I only... helped you push open the door... the path... is one you walked yourself..."

He gasped for a moment, then said to Nail, "Go... bring all the Dragon Balls from the village..."

"Dragon Balls?" Nail was stunned, his three eyes filled with confusion. "Grand Elder, you want to—"

"Help him make a wish," the Grand Elder said, looking at Son Goku. "This child... is worthy of Namek's... friendship."