Sorry, I'm Late...

Cell watched the two run past him, a strange smile flickering at the corner of his mouth.

In an instant, he dashed forward, caught up to them, and blocked their path.

"You aren't taking Android 18 away; give it up!"

Cell said confidently.

Now that his power had been enhanced, he was in a great mood.

After speaking, he turned around, looked at his reflection in the seawater, and nodded slowly.

He seemed very satisfied with his current strength and appearance.

When he turned back around, Android 16 had already rushed forward, landing a massive fist directly on his face.

"Bang!"

Cell did not dodge, smiling as he took the punch.

However, his body did not sway in the slightest.

"Too weak, Android 16, your power is far too weak!"

Cell said, shaking his head.

At the same time, he raised one hand, a bright light flashed, and a Ki Blast sent Android 16 flying!

Because he was an android, Android 16 felt no pain.

However, half of his head had been blown off.

Android 18 hurriedly looked toward Android 16, but before she could go to check on him, Cell had already arrived before her.

"Come now, Android 18, you're next!"

Cell said evilly, slowly closing the distance as he spoke.

Android 18 quickly retreated two steps, covering her left chest with her right hand as she warned, "Don't come any closer, or I'll self-destruct!"

Clearly, her threat worked, and Cell stopped advancing.

However, he then smiled slightly, and Android 17's voice rang out from his mouth, "Android 18, hurry and come over. Merging feels amazing, there's no pain at all; let's go conquer this world together!"

Android 18 was not stupid; she knew this could not possibly be something Android 17 would say.

She retreated two more steps and shouted angrily, "Stop trying to trick me, I will never let you absorb me!"

Seeing his ruse exposed, Cell decided to stop pretending and revealed a ferocious expression, "Since that's the case, I'll just have to use force to absorb you!"

He did not care if Android 18 self-destructed, because self-destruction required time.

His current speed was beyond anything Android 18 could react to.

As long as he absorbed her before the self-destruction could trigger, it would be fine!

Standing high above, Li Lin observed everything, and seeing Android 18 in crisis, he prepared to descend and rescue her.

In truth, he could have gone down when Android 17 was being absorbed.

But he hadn't wanted to, because he intended to teach this guy who destroyed his house a lesson.

However, just as he prepared to strike, Tien Shinhan suddenly jumped out.

He folded his hands together, aimed the gap at Cell below, and roared, "Neo Tri-Beam!"

Cell had not expected this sudden interference.

Before he could react, a golden light descended upon his body.

"Ah!"

Cell let out a scream as he was driven deep into the ground.

"Damn it!" After an angry shout, he adjusted himself and flew upward at high speed.

"Haa, haa, haa!" After using the Tri-Beam, Tien Shinhan was panting heavily, sweat pouring from his body.

After all, this move consumed a massive amount of stamina and also drained his own life force!

However, the situation was urgent, and he could no longer worry about such things.

"Haa!"

With another explosive roar, the golden light flared once more.

As soon as Cell poked his head out, he was driven back into the ground again.

"You bastard!" Cell cursed through gritted teeth.

He tried desperately to fly upward, but while the power of Tien Shinhan's Tri-Beam wasn't immense, its suppression effect was incredibly strong.

Before he could fly up, his entire body would slide back down a bit more.

Repeating this over and over, he kept falling deeper into the pit!

"Run!"

Android 16 signaled to Android 18 ahead.

Android 18 regained her senses and hurriedly helped Android 16 up, preparing to flee the scene.

Although Cell was underground, he had inherited Piccolo's lineage, granting him exceptional hearing, and he faintly caught wind of Android 18's intent to escape.

He quickly channeled all his power, withstood a blast of energy, and soared out of the deep crater!

"Huff, huff, huff!" Tien Shinhan was severely exhausted. Seeing Cell break free, he gathered his focus once more and shouted, "Neo Tri-Beam!"

Cell had barely taken two steps after flying out of the crater before he was hammered back into the ground.

At that moment, Tien Shinhan was swaying unsteadily; finally unable to hold on any longer, he plummeted heavily from the sky!

Cell emerged from the pit again, and seeing that Android 18 had already fled, endless rage welled up in his heart. He raised his hand and roared, "Damn it, go to hell!"

"Tien Shinhan!"

The others on Earth cried out in terror.

Unfortunately, they were far too weak and dared not step forward to intervene.

Just at that critical moment, a figure suddenly descended upon the scene.

He grabbed Tien Shinhan's body, scooped up Piccolo from the sea, and vanished right before their eyes.

"What?!" Cell was taken aback.

The figure was none other than Son Goku, but Cell had no idea how the man had suddenly appeared before him, nor how he had vanished just as quickly.

Li Lin had originally intended to go down, but seeing Son Goku's incredible speed, he decided to wait a little longer.

At the same time, he calculated in his mind that Instant Transmission was truly useful; he had to get Son Goku to teach it to him when he had the chance!

"Bastards, then you can die instead!"

Seeing his prey snatched away right under his nose, Cell sought to vent his fury on Krillin and Yamcha.

"What do we do, Krillin? What do we do?"

Yamcha's face was full of fear; he certainly didn't want to die.

Krillin's mind had gone completely blank. Given the current situation, it seemed they could only wait for death!

However, the instant before Cell was about to strike, a massive aura blanketed the area.

Krillin's eyes suddenly widened, and his face lit up with joy as he said, "Li Lin! That's Li Lin's ki! Li Lin is here!"

Cell also sensed this astonishing aura and dared not strike.

Even though he had evolved into his second form, he still could not rival this power.

Cell understood that a wise man does not fight when the odds are against him; catching up to Android 18 was the priority now.

With that thought, he transformed into a streak of light and chased toward the horizon!

The moment Cell departed, Li Lin instantly appeared before the group.

Seeing Cell leave and Li Lin arrive, Krillin finally let out a sigh of relief, his voice choking up as he said, "Li Lin, you're finally here! If you hadn't come, we would have been killed by him!"

Li Lin surveyed the scene and put on a look of self-reproach, saying, "I'm sorry, I'm late!"

"I thought Piccolo would be more than enough to handle the Androids, so I was a bit slow in coming."

"Who knew that guy Cell would show up too? This was my oversight!"

Yamcha looked at Li Lin's pained expression, patted him on the shoulder, and said, "It's alright. If it weren't for you, the two of us would have been finished!"

"Yeah!" Li Lin nodded slowly.

The reason he hadn't appeared earlier was to stage a "hero saves the beauty" scenario in front of Android 18 to win her heart.

That had been a perfect opportunity, but who knew Tien Shinhan would intervene halfway and allow Android 18 to escape? It seemed he would have to wait for the next chance!

As for these people on Earth, as long as their lives weren't in immediate danger, he would just turn a blind eye.

For the sake of my happiness, everyone, please suffer a little; after all, these are the tribulations you are meant to endure.