The Wise and the Foolish

Tien Shinhan once again unleashed his signature technique.

It was a move that had never existed in the Crane School before. Tien had created it himself, and it would shine brilliantly in future battles against powerful foes.

"Solar Flare!!" A sudden burst of blinding light instantly engulfed the entire Martial Arts Tournament arena.

Not only Zhang Wutian on the ring but the spectators below were caught in it too. The glare stung their eyes so badly that they couldn't open them.

"What is this? Damn it!!" With his hands raised in front of his face, Son Goku had been dazzled too and had no choice but to shut his eyes. Only after the stinging sensation faded and his vision gradually returned could he cautiously open them and see what was happening in the ring.

But the scene on the ring was completely different from what Son Goku had imagined. He had expected Zhang Wutian to lose his sight and take a beating without resistance. Instead, Zhang Wutian had punched Tien Shinhan in the stomach as Tien charged in, while Tien's face showed a mixture of pain and disbelief.

Clutching his stomach, Tien trembled all over with pain as he stammered, "How did you see through my technique?"

"I didn't see through it." Zhang Wutian was still standing there with his eyes closed. "Even without sight, I can sense your every move. It's an advanced application of ki."

Noticing that Son Wukong on the sidelines didn't seem affected either, Son Goku furrowed his brow.

"So there's a way to do that by controlling your ki?"

Son Goku closed his eyes and tried to do the same, but he couldn't figure out how. Instead, his attention wandered.

At that moment, the situation on the ring was rapidly turning against Tien.

"I know you have another deadly technique, so there's no need to use it. Let's finish this."

For the first time in the fight, Zhang Wutian took the initiative. But just as he was about to strike Tien, his movement suddenly faltered.

That brief pause gave Tien an opening. Until then, he hadn't been able to make out Zhang Wutian's movements at all, but now he finally caught his trajectory and hurriedly raised his arms to block.

Zhang Wutian abruptly stopped, leapt back, and glanced toward Master Shen and Chiaotzu below the ring. He clicked his tongue.

"I forgot about that. So it's psychic powers? What a nuisance."

Then he clenched both fists and unleashed all the ki within him in a single burst.

"Get out of my way!!"

The ring began to crack, and a faint glow surrounded Zhang Wutian. It was the result of ki spilling out of his body and reacting with the air.

"My... my psychic powers aren't working!" Chiaotzu said in dismay, realizing his powers had suddenly been repelled.

"This match shouldn't be tainted by anything else. Let's finish this!!"

Moving faster than ever before, Zhang Wutian charged forward. Tien had heard Zhang Wutian say "Let's finish this" and had put everything he had into his defense, but Zhang Wutian's heavy punch still left him no room to resist.

The punch broke through Tien's guard, shattered his arm, and sent him flying off the ring. He slammed headfirst into the wall beside the boundary.

"Z-Zhang Wutian is the winner!!" After a stunned pause, the announcer in sunglasses shouted the declaration.

The audience erupted into wild cheers, thrilled to have witnessed such a high-quality fight.

Zhang Wutian walked over to Tien, who was lying sprawled on the ground, and gave him a Senzu Bean.

"What did you give me? This is incredible!" Tien had thought he would probably be left crippled, and he had been utterly devastated. Now he had recovered in an instant, and he stared at Zhang Wutian in astonishment.

With three eyes staring at him, Zhang Wutian shifted awkwardly before saying, "It's a panacea called a Senzu Bean. And here's some good news: go to Karin Sacred Land. Once you've climbed Korin Tower, the immortal there will tell you how to grow stronger."

"Karin Sacred Land? Why are you telling me this?"

"Because I believe you can get even stronger. Let's fight again next time!"

As he spoke, Zhang Wutian reached out and pulled Tien to his feet.

Zhang Wutian was completely different from anyone Tien had ever met before. Tien felt as though everything he believed had been shaken to its core.

With his mind in turmoil, Tien approached Master Shen and Chiaotzu, looking dazed. In a low voice, he asked, "Chiaotzu, tell me, did you use your psychic powers on Zhang Wutian earlier?"

Chiaotzu shrank back and nodded under Tien's stern gaze.

"Why did you interfere in my fight? Even if I couldn't beat him, as a martial artist, I wanted to face him fairly."

"I told Chiaotzu to do it," Master Shen snapped, angrily cutting him off. "What good is fighting fairly? If you lose, you get nothing! Winning is what matters!"

"But there's no point in fighting like that!"

"Are you questioning my orders, you disobedient brat?!" Master Shen shrieked, spittle spraying across Tien's face.

"N-no, I wouldn't dare..." Without Master Roshi standing up for him, Tien still didn't have the resolve to defy his master. Even so, a seed of rebellion had been planted in his heart.

After defeating Tien, Zhang Wutian stepped down from the ring, and Son Wukong immediately came over.

"You won! That was amazing!"

"This Tien Shinhan never trained in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, so beating him was easy. It was practically like bullying him."

"Picking on the weak must be fun. You've given me quite a show." As the two spoke, Son Goku approached and said arrogantly, "So you're Zhang Wutian. You've got a little strength, I'll give you that. I hope you can make the fight entertaining for me."

"You're too arrogant, Son Goku." Looking at the prince in front of him, Zhang Wutian fought back the urge to call him Vegeta. "You have other opponents to deal with before me, don't you?"

"You mean this little girl? Heh..." Son Goku laughed dismissively before saying, "I hope that strange medicine of yours can save your life."

"I won't need a Senzu Bean. I'll beat you!" Son Wukong clenched her fist, her fighting spirit soaring.

"Heh..." Son Goku sneered again.

Whatever storm was brewing below the ring, the second match began.

King Chappa versus Pamput.

"I forfeit," King Chappa said calmly.

"Oh? You seem to know what I'm capable of." Pamput, the young Muay Thai champion, laughed smugly.

"Foolish young man. You can't even see how powerful those people are. Just wait—you'll meet a miserable end." King Chappa had won a Martial Arts Tournament in the past. Though he couldn't match Zhang Wutian and the others in strength, his experience as a seasoned martial artist had given him a decent eye for these things. He could roughly judge the difference between his own strength and theirs, and he knew he wouldn't even have a chance to strike. So he had decisively chosen to forfeit.

Pamput, however, didn't see it that way. He thought King Chappa had lost his nerve and fighting spirit.

Pamput believed Zhang Wutian's fight with Tien had been nothing but silly tricks.

Even he, the world champion, couldn't move in a way that made him disappear and reappear out of nowhere. The strange glow around Zhang Wutian was even more ridiculous! It had to be some kind of sleight of hand. And Tien's Four Witches Technique, which was as unscientific as sorcery, only strengthened Pamput's conviction.

"To think a former Martial Arts Tournament champion would be scared off by cheap tricks like those. He's fallen pretty far."

Thinking that, Pamput shot his semifinal opponent, Zhang Wutian, a contemptuous glance before stepping down from the ring.

"From now on, the world belongs to me, Pamput!"

Then the third match began.

"Don't start blubbering on the ring, little girl."

"Who's blubbering? You midget."

Son Goku pursed his lips. He decided to go all out from the start and teach this little girl a lesson. She had a tail like his and might even be one of his own kind.