Age 737.
Planet Vegeta.
The first light of dawn appeared, and golden sunlight spilled across the land.
The Saiyans, a warrior race, streamed out of their egg-shaped homes and resumed another day of training and fighting.
However,
a five-year-old boy remained completely unsupervised, doing whatever he pleased and showing no intention of training.
He flew up to a cliff, spread his arms, and welcomed the sunrise and the breeze with all his heart.
His tail swayed unconsciously behind him.
It was something he did every day.
"Hey, Karotis, slacking off here again!"
Behind him, Vegeta, who was also five, wore a red cape and sported a head of spiky, upright hair. His voice was childish yet haughty.
"If you don't raise your battle power soon, my father probably won't let you be my teammate anymore. He'll send you into exile on some remote planet instead."
Wang Shen didn't care in the slightest. With an utterly indifferent look, he said,
"This is called clearing my mind and body and communing with nature. It's training, too."
Karotis.
That was his Saiyan name.
As a true-blue transmigrator, Wang Shen had no intention of learning the Saiyans' traditional training method.
To put it in their own words:
Want to get stronger? First, take a beating!
So he'd been waiting all this time for an angel named Whis.
Five years.
He'd been eagerly waiting the whole time.
Whis was the true master who could help him grow stronger.
He'd transmigrated into such a dangerous world without a system to protect him.
Could he afford not to work hard and latch onto a powerful ally?
"Suit yourself. When you get shipped off, don't say I didn't warn you,"
Vegeta said arrogantly.
"According to my father, two incredibly esteemed guests are arriving on Planet Vegeta today."
"Karotis, you always seem to know a lot of things. Do you know who these two guests are?"
At that, Wang Shen, who had been resting with his eyes closed, immediately opened them. They shone brightly.
Age 737, Planet Vegeta, two distinguished guests.
The five-year wait is finally over. You're here at last!
"I just remembered I still have laundry to do at home. I've got to go."
"Oh, and Vegeta, whatever you do, don't go to the palace to see your father. You'll regret it."
Instead of answering Vegeta's question, he left him with that cryptic warning.
Then Wang Shen rushed off in a flurry, paying no heed to Vegeta's shouts behind him.
"Your favorite little chef from China is making his grand comeback!"
Vegeta stared blankly at Wang Shen's hurried retreating figure, then roared,
"Damn you, Karotis! How dare you ignore Prince Vegeta like that?"
"If you tell me not to go, then I'm definitely going!"
Much later,
at Dahl Square in front of King Vegeta's palace,
"Damn it, King Vegeta is so selfish!"
A purple, hairless cat dressed in pharaoh's robes grumbled angrily.
"He kept the most comfortable pillow in the universe for himself and gave me only the second-best one!"
He had shown a complete lack of respect for him, the God of Destruction.
"I hate Saiyans."
"So, Lord Beerus, are you going to destroy this planet?" Whis asked calmly.
They chatted casually, as if the survival of an entire planet and its people were of no consequence.
"The Saiyans on this planet seem to enjoy invading other planets."
Beerus replied dismissively, without a second thought,
"Let Frieza handle it."
"Whis, let's go. I don't want to stay on this wretched planet any longer."
"...Whis?"
Huh?
His attendant Whis still hadn't answered, so Beerus couldn't help turning to look.
He saw that
Whis had his eyes half-closed, sniffing at something with focus.
"Lord Beerus, do you smell something delicious?"
Hmm?
At the mention of food,
Beerus's interest soared. His eyes gleamed with delight as he sniffed eagerly, too.
"You're right, Whis. I smell it too. It's not far away, just up ahead."
There was no denying that a cat's nose was sharper than a person's.
Once he had the direction, Beerus immediately dashed toward it.
There, a little boy was running a roadside stall. A barbecue grill sat in front of him, and he was turning skewers of meat with one hand while holding a fan in the other.
The delicious aroma was coming from his stall.
Excellent. The little kitty finally took the bait.
Watching Beerus speed toward him from afar, Wang Shen let out a deep breath of relief.
He'd really been afraid he might miss this one and only opportunity.
He didn't want to be destroyed along with Planet Vegeta.
These were the two biggest powerhouses in the universe!
He had to seize this chance!
"Come on over and take a look! Fragrant, juicy, delicious grilled meat skewers!"
Wang Shen called out even more loudly and enthusiastically.
"Kid, are these skewers really as good as you say?"
Beerus pounced in front of Wang Shen like a tiger going after its prey, his eyes fixed on the skewers over the grill.
Up close, the aroma made his mouth water uncontrollably.
"Why not find out for yourself, sir?"
Wang Shen picked up a skewer and held it out to Beerus.
Dreams might be far away, but delicious food was right at hand.
Beerus couldn't hold back any longer. He snatched the skewer and wolfed down the whole thing in one bite.
In an instant, the savory, juicy meat sent his taste buds into overdrive, and an unprecedented rush of pleasure shot straight to his head!
"Wow!"
Beerus couldn't help exclaiming,
"Amazing! This is so delicious! Whis, you have to try it!"
"Mmm~ I'm trying it right now, Lord Beerus."
Whis picked up a skewer and savored it slowly.
Even in the face of such delicious food, he maintained his elegant, composed demeanor.
Yet his face, too, glowed with utter happiness.
"I've never tasted anything this delicious!"
So deeply moved was Whis that two glimmers of tears even appeared in the corners of his eyes.
"It's just plain meat, and yet you've made it taste this good."
"Thank you both for the praise."
Wang Shen smiled modestly.
"For the record, it's my own secret recipe!"
"Also, I can tell you two are kindred spirits. Everything at my stall is free to sample today."
Wang Shen waved a hand generously.
Whether he could change his fate depended on this moment!
"You said it! Then I won't hold back!"
At that, Beerus didn't hesitate for a second. He devoured the food in a flash.
He grabbed a whole bunch of skewers in both hands.
One bite left, one bite right—he ate mouthful after mouthful.
Whis, on the other hand, was far more polite.
"Thank you so much. You're very generous."
"It's no problem. The moment I saw you two, I felt some inexplicable sense of kinship, so it's no trouble to treat you to a few skewers."
Good. So far, everything was going smoothly.
Wang Shen smiled.
"Besides, it makes me happy that you like my cooking."
Whis studied Wang Shen's small frame and asked gently,
"You're so young. Why are you running a stall all by yourself?"
"I don't have much choice. Life's hard, so this Saiyan has to put on a show."
Wang Shen pursed his lips and replied with resignation,
"My parents died fighting for King Vegeta."
"That's truly awful,"
Whis said apologetically.
As if he hadn't just been talking about destroying Planet Vegeta.
"Refreshing! Satisfying! Delicious!"
Before long, Beerus had polished off every last skewer on the grill.
He rubbed his slightly swollen belly and let out a huge burp.
He looked thoroughly content.
Seeing this, Wang Shen handed him a bottle of water and said proudly,
"This is my homemade Happy Water, another of my secret recipes. It's my favorite drink."
"Oh!?"
"Give me some!"
Beerus took it eagerly and drained it in one go.
A uniquely refreshing sensation swept through him, as if he'd been transported to a cool, breezy world.
He felt invigorated!
Burp~
Beerus fixed Wang Shen with a burning gaze.
It was as if he'd just discovered a treasure!
Wang Shen knew what Beerus was thinking, but he still couldn't stop himself from getting goosebumps.
Did I overdo it? Was the food just too good?
Beerus finally made up his mind and suddenly asked,
"Kid, would you like to come with me and become my personal chef, the personal chef of the God of Destruction?"
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