The Enigmatic Mr. Popo

"Lin Chen, if you are looking to improve your strength, I might have a way to help you."

Just as Lin Chen was feeling troubled, a voice suddenly rang out from the side.

Lin Chen turned his head to look, only to find it was the Lookout speaking.

"Lookout? You can help me?"

"To be precise, it is not me, but Mr. Popo," the Lookout said with a smile.

"Mr. Popo?"

Lin Chen turned his head to look at Mr. Popo, who was standing to the side with an almost expressionless face.

Could he really help him?

Mr. Popo's coin-like eyes remained calm, and he gazed at him with a harmless expression: "Since the Lookout has said so, Popo is willing to guide you."

"How do you intend to guide me, Mr. Popo? By the way, I don't have much time."

Lin Chen did not refuse immediately. Although on the surface he truly couldn't see how Mr. Popo, with his mere few hundred battle power, could teach him anything, he knew that Mr. Popo was definitely not that simple. Perhaps he really did have something to teach him.

"Popo roughly knows your strength. Conventional methods won't be of much help to you, so Popo intends to guide you in something else. As for the time issue, shall Popo take you to a place? Lookout, is that alright?"

Mr. Popo turned back to ask the Lookout.

The Lookout nodded and said, "Mr. Popo, are you going to take him there? Very well, then you may take Mr. Lin Chen."

"Very well."

On the other side, Broly also apologized to Lin Chen: "I'm sorry, Brother Lynx, I can't help you this time."

"It's fine, Broly. You are a good kid; combat really doesn't suit you."

Lin Chen didn't know if it was a blessing or a curse that a combat genius had turned out this way, but at least for Broly, this kind of life was what he wanted most.

Following that, Lin Chen followed Mr. Popo deep into the Lookout.

He followed behind Mr. Popo, bypassing several corridors, walking step by step toward the bottom of the temple.

By this time, Lin Chen already knew where Mr. Popo intended to take him.

"Is Mr. Popo taking me to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber?"

"You know of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber?" Mr. Popo asked, turning his head, his face still as calm as an ancient well.

"Yes, actually I have one myself; it is currently on Planet Vegeta."

Lin Chen's Hyperbolic Time Chamber was currently placed on Planet Vegeta, serving as a place for those young Saiyans with potential to train.

The gravity inside the Hyperbolic Time Chamber was nothing compared to Planet Vegeta, but the vast, empty space inside was a great test of one's mental fortitude, making it perfect for training the willpower of those young Saiyans.

Hearing that Lin Chen actually possessed a Hyperbolic Time Chamber, a trace of surprise finally appeared on Mr. Popo's face, but he merely opened his mouth slightly, said nothing more, and continued to lead the way.

Finally, after taking a long detour, the two arrived at the very bottom of the temple, in front of a large golden door.

"We have arrived." Mr. Popo pushed open the door. "Since you know about the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Popo will not explain further. One year in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber is one day outside. We shall train here; that shouldn't delay your schedule, right?"

"Not at all, not at all." Lin Chen walked in with a smile.

Soon, a vast, white space filled with sweltering heat, low air pressure, and ten times the gravity appeared before them.

Without wasting time, Lin Chen soon began his training under Mr. Popo's guidance.

It was only then that he understood the meaning of the Lookout's words.

What Mr. Popo wanted to teach Lin Chen was the control of ki.

"Mr. Lin Chen, although you possess powerful strength now, your application of this power is quite poor. If you were to unleash your full power right now, wouldn't it be very easy for you to destroy a planet?" Mr. Popo asked.

"That's correct." Lin Chen nodded.

This was also the reason why he only sparred with Hanasia on Planet Vegeta; that planet had already been reinforced by him using Shenron.

If it weren't for Planet Vegeta, and they were on any other planet, if Lin Chen and Hanasia were to fight with no holds barred, they might accidentally blow the planet to pieces.

"This is because you cannot yet control your power with ease. A true master, even with the power to destroy the heavens and the earth, can ensure that their power does not endanger others," Mr. Popo said.

Lin Chen nodded, deeply agreeing.

He remembered that in the Dragon Ball Super storyline, the God of Destruction Beerus had once fought on Earth.

With Beerus's power—a top-tier powerhouse who could destroy a planet with a snap of his fingers—he had fought on Earth for quite a while without causing the slightest bit of damage to the planet.

In fact, as the story of the Dragon Ball world reached its later stages, some people thought the power system had collapsed, not realizing that these top-tier experts had basically reached the point where they could control their power with ease.

The scenes from the early story where they would tear the earth apart or pierce through planets at every turn were things these experts could now avoid.

Mr. Popo continued: "Popo has heard from Broly that your training methods have always focused on strength and the physical body. This is indeed very useful for short-term improvements in strength, but to become stronger, strength and the physical body alone are far from enough."

"Therefore, for the time being, Popo will teach you how to control ki. You must listen carefully."

"Mm-hmm." Lin Chen nodded.

It was only after hearing those words that he realized why he had felt like he hit a bottleneck in the past.

It turned out that his control over ki could not keep up with his body and his strength.

It was as if Lin Chen had a powerful weapon in his hands, but his body couldn't keep up with the weapon, leaving him unable to wield it with ease.

If he hadn't listened to Mr. Popo today, he likely would never have realized where his true problem lay.

Just for those few words alone, this trip into the Hyperbolic Time Chamber with Mr. Popo had already been worth it.

But what surprised Lin Chen even more was that, immediately afterward, Mr. Popo asked Lin Chen to transform into a Super Saiyan and then spar with him in that state.

"Mr. Popo, are you sure? If I land this punch, you might die..." Lin Chen couldn't help but ask.

"You can try. Popo is actually very strong," Mr. Popo replied.

Hearing this, Lin Chen recalled that in the original Dragon Ball story, Mr. Popo did indeed have experience sparring with a Super Saiyan—even if it was just a child, it was still a Super Saiyan.

Thinking of this, Lin Chen smiled slightly: "Alright, Mr. Popo, here I come!"

Whoosh!

The next moment, Lin Chen's figure appeared directly in front of Mr. Popo, his right fist smashing toward Popo's face.

Out of caution, Lin Chen had only used fifty percent of his strength for this punch, though he had pushed his speed to the absolute limit.

Yet, strangely, Mr. Popo tilted his neck and dodged the seemingly lethal blow with ease.

"What?" Lin Chen was instantly shocked.