Three terrifying shockwaves collided, and the immense energy they unleashed blasted a vast area of the sea into a vacuum.
Then they smashed into a deep crater.
"Again!"
Vegeta shouted.
At the same time, he charged at Son Goku once more, taking the lead.
Son Goku was caught off guard for a moment before he could only retaliate.
Vegeta always attacked him first.
Even when they were working together against Wang Shen, Vegeta would still sneak in a punch or two against Son Goku.
"Dragon Fist!"
Son Goku was being pushed to his limit.
Brilliant golden energy appeared around his arm, forming the lifelike phantom of a golden dragon that coiled around him.
Son Goku threw a punch, and the golden dragon roared as it tore through space.
"I'll take this one!"
Wang Shen swung his fist at Son Goku, throwing a punch of his own.
"Infinite Collapse!"
An invisible divine aura swirled around Wang Shen's fist, seeming to conjure a ferocious beast that bared its fangs and roared.
Wang Shen had developed the technique based on the punches of a certain lucky guy who preferred to remain anonymous.
It contained his own strength and aura, which gathered around his fist without being released. The instant it struck an enemy, it burst forth with boundless force, shattering the enemy's entire body.
Boom!
The golden dragon and the ferocious beast annihilated each other, dissolving into scattered points of light.
Wang Shen's arm went numb, burning with pain. It trembled slightly.
"Karotis, fight me!"
Vegeta charged in again, his fist wrapped in golden flames as it came with a thunderous sonic boom.
Wang Shen's arm hadn't fully recovered yet, so he couldn't afford to trade full-powered blows again. He could only dodge for the time being.
He kept firing energy blasts at Vegeta.
Son Goku was in even worse shape.
He felt as if his entire arm had gone limp, as though a tiger were still tearing into it and gnawing at it. The pain was unbearable.
"Ah, Vegeta!"
Son Goku saw that Vegeta had been sent flying by Wang Shen once again, right over to him.
He looked up.
Wang Shen stood tall, his eyes bright and alert and a faint smile on his lips. His golden tail curled upward behind him.
Unparalleled in bearing!
Peerless in battle!
Vegeta stared intently at Wang Shen and gritted his teeth.
"Kakarot, are you ready yet?"
"I'm ready!"
"Let's go!"
Inside the villa on the deserted island.
"Those two have left?"
Lazuli asked curiously.
"They have."
Wang Shen nodded, wrapping his tail back around his waist.
"North Kai called an emergency halt. He said four members of the Hera Clan were attacking Galactic Patrol Headquarters, trying to rescue their leader, Bojack."
"Son Goku and Vegeta went to help."
Wang Shen looked up through the window at the starry night sky, where a brief, dazzling flash of light streaked past.
"Maybe I'm not the one who can give them the breakthrough they need."
After all, Wang Shen couldn't give them that true sense of urgency that came from hovering between life and death.
He was afraid he might hit them too hard and kill them.
When Gohan had first broken through to Super Saiyan 2, he'd nearly beaten Cell, who was just short of reaching Super Saiyan 2, into a helpless mess with a single punch.
And the gap between them was even greater.
Thinking of Son Goku and Vegeta heading into space, Wang Shen narrowed his eyes.
It was as if he could see that Rhombus Planet, that Giant Divine Tree.
And the gluttonous, devious angel who always wore a faint smile.
Wang Shen abruptly turned around and gripped Lazuli's shoulders, his expression resolute.
"Lazuli, you've never been to space, have you? I'll take you somewhere tomorrow."
"Where?"
Lazuli's beautiful face was covered in confusion.
"A place where a god lives."
"Heavenly Temple?"
"No. A god countless times more exalted than Kami. The most terrifying god in this universe!"
"Oh, and we'll bring Android 16, too!"
The vast, boundless universe stretched beneath a brilliant river of stars.
Massive celestial bodies were scattered like pieces on a chessboard, arranged in orderly patterns across the endless cosmos.
Suddenly, a silver ribbon of light streaked across the pitch-black universe.
It was the trail left behind by the Shuttle Cube as it flew through space faster than light.
Lazuli braced both hands against the Shuttle Cube's barrier, her cherry-red lips slightly parted as she stared, transfixed, at the boundless stars outside.
"So this is what the real universe is like! It's magnificent, and terrifying."
Seeing it for herself was nothing like merely hearing about it.
She had seen the universe in novels and on television countless times, but nothing compared to experiencing it firsthand. The impact was far more profound!
Even though she could easily destroy these planets with her power, facing the real universe made her feel as insignificant as a drop in the ocean.
Android 16 was also silently observing the universe, motionless, as if trying to engrave everything before him into his database.
After all, Dr. Gero had been a biotechnology expert, not an astronomer.
Wang Shen smiled as he walked over to Lazuli, pulled her away, and sat her down in the center of the Shuttle Cube.
Desserts and tea had been set out there.
"All right, you don't have to be so entranced. Once you've seen enough of the universe, it's really nothing special."
"This is my first time seeing it."
Lazuli rolled her eyes and retorted.
Then she changed the subject and asked:
"Wang Shen, you said the universe has an edge?"
"It does."
Wang Shen replied casually.
But before Lazuli could react, Wang Shen continued:
"Ordinary people can't find it. Even if the edge is right in front of you, it's hard to pinpoint exactly where it is."
"Huh?!"
Wang Shen smiled faintly.
"The universe is full of mysteries."
How would you know there was a terrifying being who looked like a child and could erase a universe at will, if I didn't tell you?
Even the infinite universe was just a toy to that being.
A short while later.
The Shuttle Cube passed through a hazy, almost invisible layer of light.
"All right, we're almost there."
Wang Shen stood and looked ahead.
A strangely shaped planet had appeared there.
A rhombus-shaped celestial body bearing a towering tree.
"This is the God of Destruction Realm, unknown even to the Supreme Kai of this universe! The most powerful god in the universe lives here."
And my teacher.
My cheat.
The God of Destruction Realm.
Inside one of the rooms in the great tree.
The devious angel Whis that someone had mentioned was having a video call with a ponytailed female angel.
"Lord Beerus is just too lazy. He hasn't woken up or done any work in thirty years."
Whis dabbed at the corner of his eye, complaining with a pitiful expression.
"Our Seventh Parallel Universe is about to become the second-lowest-ranked universe in terms of mortal level."
"Ah, Lord Champa gives me headaches, too."
Vados put a hand to her forehead and shook her head with a sigh, looking terribly troubled.
"Every time I make a weight-loss plan for him, he refuses to follow it and even scolds me."
"At this rate, he'll soon weigh more than Lord Rumsshi."
"You know, Lord Rumsshi is an elephant. Lord Champa used to be just a chubby, adorable little cat, but now he's turning into a fat pig."
Whis fell silent, grumbling inwardly.
His older sister was even better at playing the helpless victim than he was.
Lord Champa was only a little overweight. In both work and daily life, he still did whatever his sister told him.
Unlike Whis.
Lord Beerus was just too difficult to manage.
It seemed he would have to start preparing to find a more obedient and hardworking God of Destruction.
Hmm!
Whis suddenly sensed a familiar aura and smiled faintly.
At last, the person who made his life easier had returned!
"Wang Shen is back. Let's talk again next time, Sister."
As soon as he finished speaking, Whis immediately ended the video call.
Whis's decisiveness gave Vados a moment's pause. Then she smiled and put away the Angel Staff.
"Time to make Lord Champa a healthy meal."
It seemed Whis was planning to replace his God of Destruction.
Would Beerus's retirement make Lord Champa feel a little threatened and get him to listen to her for once?
Before you continue