Super Saiyan

Li Lin flashed forward, appearing once again directly across from Son Goku.

Son Goku looked at the unscathed Li Lin, the corners of his mouth curling upward. "Heh, I knew that wouldn't hurt you."

"You're not bad yourself, but..." Li Lin smiled, rubbing his nose before saying calmly, "I'm going to get serious now."

Through the battle just now, he had gained a rough understanding of the combat techniques involved.

The situation from a moment ago would likely be difficult to replicate from here on out.

"Heh heh, I wouldn't have it any other way!"

Son Goku replied with a grin.

Neither of them had shown their true strength yet; it would have been a real shame if things had ended so soon.

"Haha, then let's fight!" Li Lin let out a hearty laugh and charged straight at Son Goku.

Seeing Li Lin suddenly attack, Son Goku was momentarily stunned. Li Lin was incredibly fast—far surpassing his previous speed by several times—and had reached him before he even had time to react.

"Bang!"

In that split second of distraction, Li Lin's fist slammed into his face, sending him flying backward.

He crashed heavily into the ground, dazed and disoriented, with blood streaming from his nose and mouth!

"Holy crap!"

"My goodness!"

"How did he strike? Why couldn't I see it clearly?"

The entire crowd was shocked. No one had expected Li Lin to be so fast and decisive; his movements were impossible to track.

"Hiss!"

Krillin gasped, sucking in a cold breath.

He hadn't seen the attack at all. He only knew that Li Lin had suddenly rushed in front of Goku, and then Goku had been sent flying.

"Ah, that hurts, that hurts..."

Son Goku clutched his face and slowly stood up, grimacing in pain.

If his base strength hadn't been slightly higher, his fate likely wouldn't have been any better than Vegeta's.

Even so, a strange sense of satisfaction welled up inside him.

"Ahahahaha!" Son Goku burst into laughter, blood still trickling from the corner of his mouth!

The onlookers stared at this scene with strange expressions.

Some even began to wonder if that last blow had knocked Goku silly.

"Heh." Li Lin seemed to be affected by the mood, letting out a soft chuckle himself.

"This is great, absolutely great!" Son Goku declared with heroic spirit. After wiping the blood from his mouth, he continued, "Next, I'm going all out!"

Li Lin smiled calmly and nodded. "Fine by me. Let me see what you're truly capable of!"

Suddenly, the winds shifted, and a magnificent aura erupted from within Son Goku's body.

Ripple-like shockwaves emerged beneath his feet, spreading outward in all directions.

"Haa!"

With a violent shout, Son Goku's eyes widened, and burning golden flames appeared within his pupils.

"ROAR!" Another sky-shaking cry tore through the air, causing the heavens to change color and fierce winds to howl.

A flash of intense light swept across the field. Golden energy enveloped his body, his hair stood on end, and it turned a brilliant gold.

His black pupils became a clear, piercing blue, and the muscles on his arms became even more sharply defined.

"So this is a Super Saiyan?" Li Lin observed him closely, speaking with indifference. "Truly extraordinary."

Although it wasn't his first time seeing it, this was his first time observing it from such close range.

Especially now that he could sense ki, he could clearly feel that Son Goku had undergone a qualitative transformation.

"Boom!"

Son Goku kicked off the ground, creating an instantaneous explosive sound.

He moved like a bolt of golden lightning, rushing toward Li Lin at extreme speed.

Yet, a faint smile remained on Li Lin's face, as if he didn't take Son Goku seriously at all.

"Swish, swish, swish!!!"

Son Goku's fists rained down like a torrential storm, striking at him in rapid succession.

Li Lin shook his head with a faint smile, seemingly having no intention of dodging.

Just as the fists were about to make contact, that same terrifying, overwhelming aura from before surged forth once again.

The white aura around his body suddenly turned violent, resembling a roaring white flame.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Fists rained down on every side of Li Lin's body, erupting in a series of thunderous sounds.

At this moment, Li Lin had mobilized every ounce of his strength.

Amidst the frenzied assault, his body merely swayed slightly, while his feet remained rooted to the spot!

Son Goku grew more shocked with every strike; although he knew there was a gap between him and Li Lin, he had never imagined it would be this immense.

"Boom!" "Boom-boom!" "Boom-boom!!!"

He swung his fists continuously, hammering away at Li Lin.

Yet no matter how hard he struck, he could not force his opponent to budge a single inch.

Li Lin maintained his calm and indifferent expression, as if no one were attacking him at all.

"So... so powerful!"

The onlookers were now completely dumbstruck.

They could no longer find the words to describe their current state of mind.

Krillin shook his head with a bitter smile; he had naively believed that once Goku transformed into a Super Saiyan, he would be able to contend with Li Lin, or perhaps even be his equal.

It seemed now that he was indeed as foolish as Piccolo had said.

The expressions on the others' faces were equally bitter; after all, they had been full of confidence just moments ago, only to be suddenly slapped in the face by reality.

At the same time, they glanced at Piccolo beside them, a hint of admiration appearing in their eyes.

"As expected of Piccolo, did he foresee even this situation?"

Tien Shinhan shook his head, admitting he was no match for such insight.

"It seems we were too shallow," Yamcha said, mocking himself.

Krillin lowered his head in shame; come to think of it, aside from Li Lin, Goku, and Vegeta, Piccolo was the strongest on Earth.

Looking back, he had once been a great boss himself, so he likely possessed unique insights when it came to combat.

"Ahem." Piccolo cleared his throat, holding a fist to his mouth.

He felt a bit embarrassed by the praise, a faint flush appearing on his green face.

In truth, he hadn't foreseen the current situation either.

He had previously judged that Goku still had a chance of winning.

Fortunately, he hadn't voiced that thought, otherwise, he would be just as shallow as the rest of them, unable to read the situation clearly.

Son Goku's assault continued, the sound of flesh hitting flesh echoing incessantly through the air.

This won't do. If I keep fighting like this, my stamina will give out first, Son Goku thought to himself.

He had put his full strength into every punch, and no one could sustain such an attack indefinitely.

After landing a punch to no effect, Son Goku decisively pulled back.

He raised both hands, and two beams of golden light erupted from his palms!