Cultivation Ends, New System Mission

At the Lookout, Goku and Gohan sat by the entrance of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, boredly waiting for Vegeta and Piccolo to emerge.

Whenever Goku thought about his battle with Vegeta, his warlike Saiyan blood would boil, his heart restless with anticipation! He had originally thought he had reached a dead end and was strong enough, but after fighting his brother Raditz and then Vegeta, he realized it wasn't that the path ahead was gone—it was that there was no one left to walk it with him! Now, with him around, he could fight and become even stronger! (Piccolo: Are you even human? I'm going to beat you to death when I get out!)

The doors of the Hyperbolic Time Chamber slowly creaked open. Two figures gradually stepped out.

Goku looked at the pair, their clothes tattered but their energy vibrant. "Piccolo? You've actually become this strong? I don't think I could even beat you now!"

"What's that supposed to mean, Son? Are you looking down on me? Don't forget, before the Saiyans arrived, I was your greatest rival," Piccolo retorted, fuming.

"Ah, this... oops, I just didn't expect it! Sorry, Piccolo!" Goku said awkwardly.

"Hmph, why don't we spar? Even though your strength is a bit behind mine right now, I can go easy on you!" Piccolo said.

After a year of training—and being mercilessly beaten by Vegeta—Piccolo's combat power had risen slightly from the first ten days, reaching about 20,000. After all, breakthroughs required a solid foundation and overcoming bottlenecks. To make another major leap, he would need a stroke of luck.

Goku replied, "Sure, sure! Let me try it out and see what new techniques you've got."

Having survived a near-death battle, Goku's combat power had reached approximately 18,000. (In the original work, when he reached Namek, he unleashed a ten-fold Kaio-ken, and Ginyu measured his power at around 180,000. I won't get into the weeds of that here; while I respect the original, this is fan fiction after all!)

Vegeta remarked, "Go fight somewhere else. Don't wreck this place."

Hearing this, the two flew away from the Lookout, landing about ten kilometers to the west. Both let out a shout of "Haa!" and erupted with their full energy, rushing toward each other. They moved at high speeds, trading blows—fist against fist, knee against knee. It looked painful just to watch!

Since there was a slight gap in their combat power, Piccolo caught a lapse in Goku's offense. He slipped between Goku's fists, dodged a punch, and landed a heart-stopping elbow strike that sent Goku flying over ten meters away! The clouds in the sky were scattered by the terrifying shockwave. Goku rubbed his chest in pain, then vanished, reappearing in front of Piccolo at high speed. "Wow, you've become so strong! How did you train? Tell me!"

"Are we still fighting or what? Too much talk. I'll tell you when we're done," Piccolo said.

"Fighting! We're just getting started, why wouldn't we? I was just curious," Goku said.

Goku clenched his fists, one in front and one behind, bent his knees, and charged at Piccolo at high speed. Seeing this, Piccolo shouted, "Soul Strike!" An invisible ripple surged through the air, heading straight for Goku's mind. Goku didn't sense any energy, so he ignored it and kept charging. Suddenly, Goku's figure faltered; he clutched his head in agony and shouted, "It hurts! My head feels like it's going to explode..."

About five minutes later, Goku finally recovered. He asked Piccolo, "What kind of move was that? I've never seen you use it. Did you just learn it? I couldn't sense any energy at all, and then suddenly, my brain was in agony! Forget it, I'm done—what a strange technique!"

"Hey, hey, why are you quitting? We haven't decided a winner yet. Don't think I don't know you haven't used that special technique from your fight with Vegeta!" Piccolo said fiercely.

Goku replied, "I can't control that move well yet. My body was shattered last time, and it wasn't just from Vegeta—it was the backlash from the Kaio-ken! My body can't handle it! I came to the Lookout to train my physique so I can use the Kaio-ken better." With that, Goku dropped his fighting stance.

Piccolo also relaxed and explained, "I owe this move to Vegeta's hint. We Namekians have naturally strong spirits, but we don't know how to use them well. The Guardian of Earth has some strange abilities, but I only excel at combat. After listening to Vegeta, I trained my mental strength and developed this move. It's not actually that strong; if an enemy is fighting face-to-face and keeping their guard up with their energy, this move would be useless!"

"I see. No wonder I felt something strange but couldn't sense any energy, so I didn't pay it any mind!" Goku said.

"And yet you still haven't broken your bad habit of being careless! Luckily this was just a spar and I only used thirty percent of my power. If that were an enemy, you'd be dead!" Piccolo scolded.

"Haha, I've just never seen a move like that before!" Goku laughed sheepishly.

The two talked as they flew back toward the Lookout...

Vegeta said, "System, open personal interface."

Personal Interface
Name: Vegeta
Race: Saiyan
Combat Power: 200,000
Skills: Artificial Moon, ... (omitted)
Special Techniques: Killing Intent Fist Level 1 (increases combat power fivefold), ...
Super Saiyan: Not Awakened (S-Cells developed: 35%)

Vegeta had also hit a bottleneck. Aside from teaching him how to control his energy, Piccolo hadn't helped him increase his combat power much. After all, Piccolo posed no threat to him, so he couldn't break through the wall. But with departure imminent, he realized the gap between him and Frieza was still massive! Even though the Killing Intent Fist increased his power fivefold, his base was too low. Even with it, he'd only have a million in combat power—not even enough to match Frieza's second form, let alone his final 120 million!

Vegeta suddenly asked, "System, when will you issue a new mission?"

The System explained, "Missions are random. They will only be issued once the host triggers the necessary conditions!"

Goku and Piccolo returned.

"Hi, Vegeta!" Goku waved.

"Hmph, Kakarot. Your strength is far behind mine now. Train hard inside. If you fall too far behind, I'll consider finding a new whetstone!" Vegeta said dismissively.

Goku's eyes narrowed as he looked at the man who was shorter than him but several times stronger. After sensing him carefully, he realized that even with a ten-fold Kaio-ken, he couldn't beat him! Little did he know that Vegeta had similar trump cards; if Vegeta used the Killing Intent Fist, Goku would need a hundred-fold Kaio-ken to even stand a chance! But looking back at Dragon Ball history, Goku had never trained his body to that level!

"I will. I know. When I come out, we'll have a real fight!" Goku's warlike blood surged, his eyes filled with fighting spirit as he looked at Vegeta.

"Hmph, as long as you have the qualifications to stand against me!" Vegeta sneered.

Goku and Gohan headed toward the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. Piccolo channeled his magic, and his signature cape and turban instantly appeared on his body. He walked toward the Guardian of Earth...

Vegeta looked at Mr. Popo and asked, "Mr. Popo, weren't you going to teach me something?"

Popo replied expressionlessly, "Very well. Go back and prepare. I need to ready some things. Come back in three days."

Vegeta couldn't say anything and had to follow his instructions. After all, he couldn't beat him, and he still wanted to learn his techniques! Although Saiyans were brutal and warlike, they weren't stupid; they still feared those stronger than them! (What, fearless? Look at how King Vegeta knelt before Frieza.) The fate of the fearless was like Bardock's—fighting to the death only to be reduced to ashes (the movies are the movies; this follows the original canon)!

Vegeta looked at his tattered clothes and muttered to himself, "These rags are useless. If I hadn't been protecting them with my energy, they would have turned to dust by now! My Prince's combat suit is much better." With that, he flew toward Bulma's house.

West City.

Vegeta landed slowly and walked into the lab, seeing that the ship Bulma was modifying was almost finished. He walked up behind her. "Hey, Bulma!" Bulma was so startled that she reflexively swung a wrench at Vegeta. Vegeta caught it with one hand in an instant. "Hey, woman, have I been too lenient with you? How dare you hit me!"

"Let go! You're hurting me! Who told you to scare me? Don't you know you can scare people to death?" Bulma retorted, refusing to back down.

"Ding! System has issued a new mission!"

Just then, a mechanical voice rang out in his mind.

Option 1: Push Bulma down tonight. Reward: Breakthrough of the bottleneck period and an increase of 500,000 combat power!

Option 2: Just the tip, nothing more! Reward: The title "Worse Than a Beast"!

Option 3: Make Bulma offer herself voluntarily. Reward: Two doses of S-Cells booster!

System, can I choose two tasks? Pushing Bulma down and having her offer herself voluntarily don't seem to conflict, right? At worst, I'll go to Bulma's room and tease her until she can't help but offer herself. That should count as me pushing her down, too!

"Buzz, buzz, buzz... screech... This system has encountered a malfunction. This time, the host's choice is permitted, but in the future, such a butt! will not occur. The system requires repairs, estimated time: 3 months." The system's glitchy voice replied.

"Ding! Host has accepted tasks one and three. Rewards will be issued automatically upon completion and will not be affected by the repairs!" After this final sound, the system showed no further signs of activity.

Haha, broken machine... to think such a thing would happen. Doesn't this just make things easier for me? Although I don't know what this system actually is, one day I'll get to the bottom of it! Vegeta thought. The exchange with the system had taken only an instant.

Back to the matter at hand.

Bulma gazed at the man before her, his clothes in tatters, revealing glimpses of his powerful muscles beneath. Her blood pressure spiked, and a warm stream flowed from her nose... she was actually having a nosebleed!

Vegeta smirked wickedly, "What's wrong? Can't help yourself after seeing this Prince's powerful physique? I grant you permission to leave your door unlocked for me tonight. I shall come to favor you with my presence, haha!" Though it was teasing, it was also paving the way for his mission.

Upon hearing this, Bulma's face flushed red. She turned and headed toward the bathroom, shouting as she walked, "Don't be so narcissistic, you narcissist! I won't let you get your way..." Yet, in her heart, she couldn't erase the image of that hormone-filled figure.