The Vanishing Cell

"Atatatata!"

Piccolo swung his hands, rapidly condensing golden energy waves that he fired toward Android 17.

The energy blasts rained down upon Android 17 like a downpour.

He was employing the Prince Tactics with quite a bit of finesse.

Android 17 dodged and weaved through the air, evading the explosions of the energy waves.

Seeing that the energy waves were unable to do anything to Android 17, Piccolo's mouth suddenly swelled. Reaching a breaking point, he abruptly opened his maw and unleashed a thick shockwave that whistled toward Android 17.

Caught off guard, Android 17 was instantly engulfed by the blast.

Before Piccolo could even show a hint of joy, a surge of air erupted from the center of the explosion, dispersing all the thick smoke.

It revealed Android 17, who had opened a protective barrier.

Android 17 looked down at Piccolo on the ground, a mocking smirk on his lips, and charged toward him with peerless momentum.

He slammed into him, sending him flying.

"Waaah!"

Piccolo spat out a mouthful of green fluid; his internal organs had been shifted by the impact.

Piccolo struggled to stand, panting heavily; it was clear he was no longer up to the task.

Android 17, however, stood proudly, the expression on his face growing increasingly confident.

"You are no match for me. My stamina and energy are infinite."

"Heh, then let's see about that!"

Piccolo possessed pride no less than Vegeta's, and he still refused to admit defeat.

He would not allow himself to be defeated by the same person twice.

With that, the two charged at each other simultaneously and collided once more.

Boom! Boom!

Their attacks were fierce, and the clear, sunny sky was suddenly filled with the rumble of thunder.

On a mountaintop.

Wang Shen and Android 18 were watching the battle, while Android 16 had gone off to fiddle with his birds again.

Wang Shen was left speechless.

Sooner or later, I'm sending you to Whis.

Watching the miserable state of the two combatants, Lazuli couldn't help but speak up:

"Honestly, 17 has already lost his head."

"It's incredible that Piccolo can actually fight on par with 17."

"Actually, if you knew the reason, you wouldn't find it so strange."

Wang Shen began to explain.

"Piccolo is a Namekian. As long as he assimilates or merges with his own kind, his strength will receive a qualitative leap!"

"Therefore, he can now be considered a Super Namekian!"

Hearing this, Lazuli opened her mouth wide, a look of sudden realization dawning on her.

Wang Shen smiled with satisfaction.

He then scanned the surrounding sea, his brows furrowing slightly as he whispered to himself:

"Strange, why haven't I sensed Cell's energy yet?"

According to the plot, Cell should have taken advantage of the battle between Android 17 and Piccolo to swoop in, absorb Android 17, and evolve into his perfect form.

17 and Piccolo were already both battered and exhausted.

He shouldn't have interfered with Cell's programming at all.

Why was there still no sign of Cell?

Bang!

Piccolo exhausted all the energy in his body to unleash a final Demon God Barrier, a massive, wide-range energy attack.

But in the end, it still failed to defeat Android 17.

He was ultimately defeated, struck down from the sky by an energy blast from Android 17, and fell powerlessly back to the ground.

"Piccolo!"

At this moment, Krillin and Tien Shinhan finally arrived, just in time to witness this scene.

Krillin rushed over and pulled out a Senzu Bean to feed to Piccolo.

Seeing this, Android 17 moved to intervene.

In the database provided by Dr. Gero, he knew of the existence of such things.

Android 17 shifted his feet, and a low voice rang out.

"Neo Tri-Beam!"

In an instant, a triangular frame of ki energy descended from the sky, causing Android 17's body to sink as he was pinned in place.

A moment later, just as Android 17 broke free and prepared to move again, another familiar attack followed in quick succession.

"Neo Tri-Beam!"

Android 17's body sank once more, locking him in place and rendering him unable to move.

He gritted his teeth and looked up.

It was Tien Shinhan, hovering in mid-air with his hands joined in a triangle, continuously firing the technique to suppress Android 17's movements.

"Neo Tri-Beam!"

"Neo Tri-Beam!"

"Neo Tri-Beam!"

Under the relentless barrage, Android 17 felt incredibly stifled; his body felt as if it were being crushed by the weight of an ocean, leaving him completely immobilized.

On the other side, Piccolo had already consumed a Senzu Bean, recovering his injuries and stamina as he stood back up.

Seeing this, Android 17 let out a low roar: "Damn it!"

Piccolo stared at the restrained Android 17, feeling an immense sense of relief.

Fortunately, his allies had arrived just in time.

Otherwise, he would have been the one to die.

Piccolo placed two fingers of his right hand against his forehead to gather energy, and a dense aura rapidly condensed between them.

As a purple light flickered on his fingertips, Piccolo thrust his right hand toward Android 17 and roared:

"Special Beam Cannon!"

A super-powerful energy beam, wreathed in a spiraling current, shot from his two fingers like a sharp arrow aimed at Android 17.

From this intense beam, a sense of mortal peril washed over Android 17's entire body.

The arrogant Android 17 finally felt fear; his pupils constricted, and he screamed in despair:

"No!!!"

Lazuli, standing on the mountaintop, also sensed that something was wrong. Her worry was written all over her face as she hurriedly called out:

"Wang Shen..."

"Don't worry, he will be fine."

Wang Shen remained calm and composed, moving in a flash to stand in front of Android 17.

Facing this lethal technique, Wang Shen simply extended one hand and blocked Piccolo's strongest killing move with ease!

"What!?"

Piccolo was dumbfounded, his pupils trembling.

Never before had anyone caught his Special Beam Cannon so effortlessly!

Ignoring Piccolo's shock, Wang Shen's expression turned grave as he scanned his surroundings.

Even with his Mind Sense Technique pushed to its limit, he still could not detect a trace of Cell's presence.

This abnormal situation left him feeling uneasy.

What could have happened that I am unaware of?

"Get out of the way! Let go of Android 17!"

With the crisis averted, Lazuli rushed into the air and kicked Tien Shinhan, who was still firing the Neo Tri-Beam, sending him plummeting down.

Supported by Lazuli, Android 17 struggled to his feet.

His face was deathly pale, his expression listless, and a trail of blood flowed from the corner of his mouth, staining his tattered clothes.

Although his stamina and energy were infinite, his injuries were very real.

Wang Shen took a Senzu Bean from his personal space and tossed it to Android 17.

"Here, eat this."

Wang Shen turned to look at the wary Piccolo, Krillin, and Tien Shinhan, saying indifferently:

"There is no need for this; I will not attack you."

However, Piccolo and the others dared not let their guard down in the slightest.

There was no helping it; the opponent was simply too strong.

He might say that, but they could not simply take him at his word.

"What exactly is your goal?"

"The same as yours: my target is Cell."

"Android 17 and the others aren't bad people; you could actually coexist peacefully."

At this moment, Android 17 had already consumed a Senzu Bean and walked over, saying coldly:

"Hmph, I have no interest in coexisting with them. If you've got the guts, let's go again—"

Wang Shen gave Android 17 a deep look, cutting off his next words.

"Son Goku is at the Heavenly Temple right now, isn't he? I have business with him."

The Heavenly Temple!

Clang!

The door to the Hyperbolic Time Chamber finally opened!

Son Goku looked up abruptly.

He saw Vegeta and Trunks walking out slowly, their blue battle suits tattered and ruined.

Yet, an expression of wild, unbridled arrogance had returned to Vegeta's face.

"Hahahaha, Kakarot, I have already surpassed the Super Saiyan!"