A Fated Encounter: Goku and Krillin

The morning sun had yet to reach its full intensity, and dew still clung to the blades of grass lining the dirt road.

Bulma yawned while adjusting the navigation on her Dragon Radar, grumbling, "What a piece of junk signal, it keeps jumping all over the place... Hm? Is something coming up ahead?"

Lin Fan followed her gaze to see a small cloud of dust rising at the end of the road, accompanied by a rhythmic "thump-thump" sound that grew steadily louder.

The first thing to burst from the dust was a figure—a boy wearing an orange martial arts uniform with spiky hair and a furry tail trailing behind him. He was carrying a massive milk canister and running at an astonishing speed, his face split by an excessively bright grin.

"Whoa! It's a car!"

The boy's eyes lit up the moment he saw Bulma's vehicle, and he charged straight toward them without slowing down in the slightest.

"Idiot! Get out of the way!"

Bulma slammed on the horn in a panic.

Just as a collision seemed inevitable, the boy let out a cheerful shout and leaped with ease. He and the milk canister traced a perfect arc through the air, landing steadily in front of the car. He then curiously leaned toward the hood and sniffed it. "Oh~ what a strange smell!"

Bulma slammed on the brakes, her head nearly hitting the steering wheel. "You scared the life out of me! Where did you wild monkeys pop out from?"

"My name is Son Goku!"

The boy didn't seem to mind being called a wild monkey at all; he introduced himself with a radiant smile before his attention was immediately drawn to Bulma and Lin Fan inside the car. "Who are you guys? This box runs so fast!"

Lin Fan sat in the passenger seat, remaining silent.

His heart gave a heavy thud against his ribs.

Son Goku!

The living, breathing, young Son Goku!

Right before his eyes!

But what shook him even more was something else—in his perception, this seemingly harmless boy appeared to contain a small sun within his body.

That vast life energy and "ki," though seemingly in a peaceful, dormant state, possessed a total volume and intensity that was a hundred, no, a thousand times greater than his own as a first-level Qi Refining cultivator.

It was like comparing a stream to the vast ocean!

He could even faintly "see" that ki flowing like golden flames around Son Goku's body.

Is this... the power of a true warrior in this world?

Lin Fan felt a touch of bitterness, but more than that, he felt an indescribable thrill and realization—the path he had chosen would lead to a landscape of unimaginable breadth.

"Honestly, do you have any idea how close you came to getting hit?"

Bulma stood with her hands on her hips, though her anger faded quickly; after all, the boy didn't seem to have any malicious intent. "I'm Bulma, and this is Lin Fan. We're on a trip."

"A trip? Is it fun?"

Son Goku blinked, then as if remembering something, he turned back and shouted, "Krillin! Come look! There's a box that runs and people I've never seen before!"

Only then did another small figure come panting up from behind.

It was a bald little monk wearing the same orange martial arts uniform. He was shorter, and he complained as he ran, "Goku, you run too fast! I can't keep up... Huh? Miss Bulma?"

"Krillin?"

Bulma recognized him too. "It's you! How are you hanging out with this kid?"

"Goku and I are both training with Master Roshi!"

Krillin explained, looking curiously at the luxury car and then at Lin Fan, who sat quietly in the vehicle wearing simple cloth robes.

Lin Fan's gaze fell upon Krillin as well.

Although the "ki" inside this bald boy was far less scorching and vast than Son Goku's, it was dense and active, far exceeding that of an ordinary person, and it likewise exerted immense pressure on him.

One Son Goku, one Krillin... the baseline combat power of this world was truly terrifying.

"Training?"

Bulma raised an eyebrow. "With that perverted old man?"

"Master Mutian is very strong!"

Son Goku and Krillin retorted in unison.

After speaking, Son Goku leaned closer to the car, sniffing the air a few times. He suddenly stared at Lin Fan, a look of confusion crossing his face. "Hm... you..."

Lin Fan's heart tightened. Had he noticed something?

Son Goku scratched his head, seemingly trying to organize his thoughts. "You feel so weak, like you'd be knocked down in one hit... but..."

He tilted his head, his golden eyes filled with pure curiosity. "It's also a bit strange, like... there's something inside you slowly spinning? It's not quite the same as my ki or Krillin's."

Lin Fan sighed inwardly; the intuition of a Saiyan was truly terrifying.

The meager bit of first-level Qi Refining energy within him, which should have been negligible compared to the vast ki the others possessed, had been keenly sensed due to its unique "ordered" and "refined" nature.

He kept his expression calm and gave a slight smile without answering.

Bulma, however, became interested. "Oh? Lin Fan is quite mysterious! He knows... uh... some very ancient martial arts!"

She recalled the "Palm Thunder" from last night and the pills from earlier, feeling she had found a reasonable explanation.

"Ancient kung fu?"

Krillin also curiously sized up Lin Fan, "Is it even older than the Turtle School?"

"I don't know,"

Son Goku shook his head honestly, though his eyes remained full of inquiry as he looked at Lin Fan, "It sounds interesting! Do you want to have a spar and see?"

"Spar your head!"

Bulma knocked Son Goku on the head in annoyance (which he easily dodged), "We're in a hurry! By the way, do you guys know about the World Martial Arts Tournament?"

"Of course we do!"

Krillin answered eagerly, "Master Mutian said that once our training progresses a bit further, he'll take us to participate!"

"A martial arts tournament! I can fight a lot of strong people!"

Son Goku's eyes lit up instantly, terrifyingly bright, and he jumped up in excitement, "I'm definitely going to participate!"

After chatting for a few more moments, Son Goku remembered he still had milk to deliver, and Krillin had to hurry back to the temple.

After the two said their goodbyes, they vanished down the road again at superhuman speeds, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Bulma waved them off before sitting back in the car, "What a pair of over-energetic, super-powered brats... Alright, time for us to go too!"

The sports car roared back to life and continued forward.

Lin Fan leaned back against the seat, watching the scenery fly by outside the window, but his heart was far from as calm as he appeared.

The appearance of Son Goku and Krillin, the vast, ocean-like energy within their bodies, and Son Goku's keen intuition were all like a hammer, shattering his last shred of wishful thinking.

Trash with a power level of 5... In this world, that was a real and cruel designation.

But at the same time, an unprecedented desire began to burn in the depths of his heart.

Qi Refining Stage One... Foundation Establishment... Golden Core... Nascent Soul...

One day, he would use the immortal path forged by this Great Dao Source Scripture to see if he could stand shoulder to shoulder with, or even surpass, the pinnacle of "Qi" in this world!

The road ahead was still long, but he had already seen the mountain peak in the distance, and he could feel the small yet resilient seed of power within himself, quietly beginning to sprout.