The Blue-Green Orb

The next day

The first rays of morning sunlight streamed through the window and fell across the bed. Ziye rubbed his eyes and slowly opened them.

"You're awake?"

Sun Wukong greeted him with a smile.

"Morning, Goku!"

Ziye stretched and greeted him casually, then sat up in bed. Glancing at Goku, who was already dressed and ready to go, he asked, "Goku, are you heading out?"

"Mm!"

Goku nodded seriously, then explained,

"I'm going out to look for food and get some training in."

"By the way, Ziye, didn't you say you were leaving today? I can take you out!"

At that, Ziye's expression dimmed. He had no idea how to get by in this world, and even if he left, he probably wouldn't amount to much. Besides, this world was so dangerous. For now, the only safe place was by Goku's side!

"What's wrong, Ziye?"

Seeing Ziye suddenly fall silent, Sun Wukong walked over with a puzzled look.

"To be honest, Goku, I'm an orphan. I don't have anywhere else to go."

Ziye lowered his head, his feelings complicated.

"I see. Then you can stay here for now. I've been living here alone ever since my grandpa passed away."

Seeing how pitiful Ziye looked, Goku's sympathy welled up. He said it casually.

"Really? Thanks, Goku!"

Ziye's eyes lit up. He grabbed Goku's little hand and spoke excitedly.

"But if you stay here, you'll have to help me hunt!"

"Hunt?"

At that, Ziye couldn't help freezing. Hunting ordinary animals was no problem, of course, but the monsters Goku faced every day made his scalp tingle just thinking about them!

"But, Goku, you know my body..."

"That's okay. I'll train you!"

Sun Wukong patted his chest and promised.

"Okay, then I'll leave it to you!" Ziye nodded.

Since there was no changing what had happened, he might as well make the best of it and stay here. He could gain some experience training with Goku in the early stages, then cling to his coattails later!

"In that case, let's go outside and spar first! I want to see how you handle yourself."

"Now? Us? But..."

Ziye couldn't help rolling his eyes. Wasn't he just going to get beaten up?

"Don't worry. I'll go easy on you!"

Hearing that, Ziye felt a little more at ease. He followed Goku outside, and the two stood facing each other.

"Okay."

"Ziye, you can attack me now!"

At Goku's words, Ziye froze. He'd barely ever gotten into a fight in his previous life, so being told to attack all of a sudden left him at a loss.

"Quit dawdling and hurry up!"

Seeing Ziye still standing there, stunned, Sun Wukong urged him on.

"In that case, here I come!"

With that, Ziye clenched his fist, ran up to Goku, and punched him squarely in the face.

"What are you doing?"

Goku felt nothing after taking the punch. He couldn't help rolling his eyes and asking.

"Uh..."

Seeing that, Ziye felt awkward. It was as if a flock of crows had flown over his head.

"Ziye, that's not how you fight."

Goku shook his head, looking disappointed, then gently patted Ziye.

Thud!

But to his surprise, the pat sent Ziye flying more than ten meters. He crashed into a boulder and passed out!

"Ziye, are you okay?"

Goku hurried over to check on him, only to find that Ziye was bleeding from the head. No matter how much Goku called to him, he wouldn't wake up.

"Uh-oh. I hit him too hard!"

Sun Wukong scratched his head and said awkwardly.

Three days later

"Ow, that hurts!"

Ziye rubbed his throbbing head and slowly opened his eyes. His body felt as if it were about to fall apart; every inch of him hurt!

"Ziye, you're awake?"

"That's great!"

"I'm sorry. I hit you too hard this time."

Sun Wukong came over, looking apologetic.

"It's okay. You can't be blamed."

"My body's just too weak!"

Ziye scratched his head, embarrassed.

"Rest for a bit. I'll go get you something to eat!"

Watching Goku bustle around, Ziye smiled faintly. Seeing the character he'd loved most as a kid in his previous life stirred complicated feelings in his heart.

After getting dressed, Ziye slowly walked outside. A faint breeze blew past, and his body shivered twice.

"My body really is weak."

Ziye shook his head with a bitter smile.

"Huh? What's that?"

Suddenly, a blue-green glow in the yard caught Ziye's attention. He approached it, curious.

Looking closely, he saw the strange number "+5" written inside the glowing orb. Curious, Ziye reached out and gently touched it.

"Ah!"

A warm current suddenly flowed into Ziye's body. The unexpected rush of comfort made him let out a groan.

The next moment, the blue-green orb vanished before Ziye's eyes. To his excitement, the pain in his body had disappeared, and many parts of him had changed subtly. He could feel boundless strength radiating from within him.

"Th-this... could this be my cheat?"

Ziye said, brimming with excitement.

"Hahahaha!"

"I knew it! How could a transmigrator like me not have a cheat?"

"What happened, Ziye? Why are you laughing all of a sudden?"

It seemed Ziye had been so loud that he'd interrupted Goku, who was cooking inside. Goku looked at him in confusion.

"Nothing."

Ziye waved his hand, then said,

"Goku, let's spar again!"

"Huh? I don't think that's a good idea. I'm afraid I might accidentally kill you this time."

Sun Wukong scratched his head and said awkwardly.

"Don't worry, Goku. I'm not as weak as you think this time!"

Ziye smiled confidently, then took up a fighting stance. Feeling the surging power inside him, he stamped his foot and charged at Goku!

Seeing Ziye rush at him, Goku didn't hold back either. He clenched his fist and charged forward.

Thud!

Their fists collided, and the air rang with a series of sharp cracks. Ziye's hand throbbed with pain, and his body staggered backward several steps before he finally managed to steady himself!

Whoosh!

Ziye rolled his wrist. He could tell that he was still a little weaker than Goku, but he was sure that the energy orb had made him significantly stronger!

"So you were holding back before! Now I'm going to get serious!"

At this stage, the protagonist's combat power was 6.

Goku's combat power was 10.