Soya's defeat in the projection.
"Let's go. This battle is over. There's nothing more to see!"
Whis waved the Angel Staff in his right hand, and the figures in the starry sky immediately vanished, reappearing in the Temple Plaza on Earth.
"You lost. By my usual standards, Earth should have been destroyed.
"But although you lost, you managed to excite me for once. So, in light of that, I'll let you off this time."
Beerus looked at Soya and spoke calmly.
Beerus had gained quite a lot from his trip to Earth.
Soya, Son Goku, and Vegeta, in particular—all three of them had enormous potential.
With a little training, their future growth would be limitless.
After all, Beerus was the God of Destruction of Universe 7. Destruction was his job, but—
"Universe 7 is one of the weakest among the many universes. If those three are properly trained, perhaps they'll be able to improve Universe 7's strength."
That was Beerus's true motivation.
And it was precisely because he had this in mind that he hadn't destroyed Earth.
"Thank you, Lord Beerus."
Soya and Son Goku glanced back before speaking to Beerus.
After all, for Soya and the others, this was the best possible outcome.
"Whis, let's head back!"
Beerus yawned as he spoke, then turned to Beerus beside him.
He really was a little sleepy.
Although Beerus had spent much of the battle holding back, that didn't stop him from feeling "tired."
"All right, Lord Beerus!"
Whis nodded, tapped the ground with the Angel Staff in his hand, and immediately shot off Earth as a beam of light.
"It's finally over!"
After seeing Beerus and Whis leave for good, Son Goku let out a huge sigh of relief.
"Soya, you're really strong. You were able to match Beerus, even though you still lost in the end."
Son Goku looked at Soya and spoke earnestly.
He could tell that Beerus hadn't gone all out, but compared with Son Goku himself, Soya had still done remarkably well.
Vegeta said nothing. He simply watched the direction Whis and Beerus had gone, lost in thought.
"I was badly injured in that fight, so I won't keep you company. I'm leaving."
After speaking, Soya waved his right hand and vanished in an instant.
Son Goku had wanted to keep Soya around for a good long chat, but now he had no choice but to abandon the idea.
"Vegeta, we—"
Son Goku looked at Vegeta and was about to speak, but before he could finish, Vegeta flashed away, transforming into a streak of light as he left.
Watching the directions the two had gone, Son Goku could only sigh helplessly.
Three months had passed since Beerus arrived.
During those three months, Earth had been peaceful, and no enemies had appeared.
Of course, visitors from space still showed up from time to time.
Whis was the most frequent visitor.
And whenever Whis came, he always went to see Vegeta and the others. Gradually, at some point, Vegeta disappeared from Earth. No one knew where he had gone—except Bulma, if anyone.
A month ago, Son Goku found Luo Fan in a valley. Since then, he hadn't left the valley, staying there the whole time.
It was no exaggeration to say that Earth was peaceful now.
In a sprawling mountain range about a hundred thousand kilometers from West City, two people were staying.
"Soya, you've been here for a month now. What exactly do you want?"
Soya had been cultivating in seclusion for three whole months. That day, he opened his eyes and glanced at Son Goku, who sat not far away. Frowning, he asked slowly.
Three months earlier, Beerus had badly injured him, and he had spent the following three months cultivating here.
His injuries had actually healed long ago. He'd spent most of that time increasing his strength.
After all, his battle with Beerus had taught him so much that even Soya needed three whole months to digest it all.
Although three months had passed, his strength had undergone a complete transformation.
Even Soya himself was astonished by it.
It was probably because of the system.
After all, he was different from Son Goku and the others. In theory, as long as he kept training, he could continue growing stronger.
And he also had the Saiyans' special physique.
That was why he could make such rapid progress.
As for Son Goku, he had arrived a month ago. He hadn't said a word since coming, nor had he disturbed Soya's training. He had simply sat there, waiting for Soya to wake up.
Now that Soya was awake and speaking to him, Son Goku perked up and immediately got to his feet.
"Soya, I want you to teach me how to transform into a Super Saiyan 4!"
Son Goku stated his purpose directly. That was simply his nature; he didn't like beating around the bush.
"Super Saiyan 4?"
Soya looked at Son Goku, surprised that he had chosen this path.
"That's right. I've decided to follow the same path as you—the Saiyan Atavism Path."
Son Goku looked at Soya.
"As far as I know, Vegeta has already gone with Whis to the God of Destruction Realm. With his guidance, transforming into a Super Saiyan God—and even surpassing that form—shouldn't be a problem.
"If Vegeta has chosen that path, why insist on taking the Super Saiyan 4 route?"
Soya looked at Son Goku, wanting to know what he was thinking.
"Because I know you must have made the right choice. This path might be difficult, but once you succeed, the power you gain will be beyond what ordinary people can imagine."
Son Goku spoke slowly.
He had chosen this path only after careful consideration.
It was rare for Son Goku to be so determined, especially when it came to such a crucial step in his training.
"Will you teach me how to transform into a Super Saiyan 4?"
Son Goku asked with determination.
"Are you really willing to take this path, even though there's no guarantee you'll succeed?"
Soya didn't refuse, but neither did he agree. Instead, he asked another question.
"I've already made up my mind."
Son Goku nodded.
"Since that's the case, I'll teach you."
Soya didn't refuse. In truth, he could understand why Son Goku had made this decision.