One month later.
The sky over the God of Destruction Realm was still as bright as ever.
Looking up, countless stars still hung straight overhead.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Wang Shen stood tall in the middle of a forest, his posture upright and his eyes slightly closed. A golden haze swirled around him, mysterious and unfathomable.
A waterfall roared nearby, sending sprays of water into the air.
He had stood perfectly still here, calming his mind and steadying his breath, for three whole days.
Lazuli had wanted to bring Wang Shen some food, but Whis stopped her.
Then, at a certain moment—
Wang Shen felt a sudden impulse and snapped his eyes open. His golden irises shone with dazzling light.
Hah!
Wang Shen let out a furious shout, and golden energy burst forth, blazing around him.
A lock of his formerly upright golden hair fell over his forehead. His gaze sharpened, his eyes cold as lightning.
Blue-white arcs of electricity crackled across his body, filling the air with a piercing hiss.
Super Saiyan 2!
His aura was no longer calm and peaceful. It was like a vast ocean whipped into towering waves by a raging storm.
Far away, atop the giant tree, Whis glanced over and smiled.
"It's finally beginning."
Wang Shen's expression was solemn. He still showed no sign of letting up.
Clenching both fists, he tensed every muscle in his body and drew a deep breath.
"Raaaaaah..."
Wang Shen's face twisted into a grimace.
He roared again and again, shouting with all his might. Even Lazuli could hear him.
With every long, drawn-out roar, Wang Shen's terrifying aura erupted anew, his surging energy reaching the heavens!
If his aura had been like an ocean before, now it was as vast as the sky!
"Raaaaaah!"
Wang Shen kept roaring as his aura continued to rise without end. Every ounce of energy in his body was being drawn out, as though it had no limit.
At that moment, even Lazuli, who couldn't sense auras, could feel Wang Shen's frightening power.
"What terrifying strength!"
The forest was about to be destroyed by the waves of energy radiating from Wang Shen.
"Oh my, you can't go destroying it."
Whis reached out, and an Angel Staff suddenly appeared in his hand. He pointed it from afar.
A gentle light shone from the staff, enveloping the forest. The trees and waterfall, which had been on the verge of collapsing, immediately settled down.
At the same time, the energy spilling from Wang Shen's body was firmly contained within him.
At that moment—
Wang Shen felt a sudden flash of inspiration and jerked his head up.
In his deep golden eyes, a Golden Great Ape seemed to roar and bellow at the sky!
"Argh!"
Wang Shen's rapidly rising aura abruptly stopped. A burst of golden light enveloped his entire body.
Brilliant golden radiance blazed across the heavens and earth.
Boom!
Wrapped in golden light, Wang Shen shot skyward!
When the golden light faded, Wang Shen's figure was once again visible to everyone.
His once-upright golden hair now reached his waist. His eyebrows had vanished, his brow had lowered, and his pupils had enlarged. He looked cold and merciless, with a fierce expression!
Golden lightning crackled around him as if it would shatter space. His imposing aura was overwhelming!
Super Saiyan 3!
(For now, he'll use Son Goku's form as a placeholder.)
Wang Shen clenched his fist, feeling the terrifying power in his body and the aura bursting uncontrollably from him. He frowned slightly.
His stamina and energy weren't draining as badly as he'd expected, but compared with the Full Power state he was used to, this form was still far too wasteful.
At his absolute limit, he could maintain this form and fight for only three days and nights.
That might sound like a long time, but Wang Shen could fight in Full Power for months on end.
Even in Super Saiyan 2, he could hold out for at least three months!
"Even with a tail and all the groundwork I've laid, this is all I can manage?"
"Just as I thought, this is the wrong direction for evolution. It can only be used for a sudden burst in the middle of a fight."
What true powerhouse didn't stay in their strongest state, ready to face an unexpected attack at any moment?
"Wow, not only is your aura terrifying, but you look so handsome now, Wang Shen."
Lazuli flew up in front of him, a faint blush appearing on her fair cheeks.
"Right? I think so too."
Wang Shen ran a hand down his waist-length golden hair, showing it off.
He no longer looked dissatisfied at all.
After all, being handsome was a lifelong matter.
Whis studied Wang Shen's new form closely and immediately saw its serious flaw.
Its aura was certainly intimidating, but only to ordinary opponents.
He offered a reminder.
"This form is an incomplete transformation. Although it multiplies your strength several hundred times, in a sense, your original Full Power state is still the most perfect. It's the form you should focus on exploring."
Wang Shen nodded and gave him a mysterious smile.
"That's fine. There's an even more perfect form I haven't reached yet."
Whis raised an eyebrow, seeming quite interested.
He, too, wanted to see how far this peculiar Saiyan transformation could go.
It would help him in his study of mortals.
"Are you setting off for the Demon Realm now?"
At that, Wang Shen first looked deeply at Lazuli, then nodded firmly.
He had been preparing for a long time.
Now that he had broken through to a new form, he could hardly contain his eagerness to fight.
Whis studied Wang Shen and Lazuli, weighing their respective strengths.
After a long moment of thought, Whis spoke.
"With your current strength, going to the Demon Realm would probably be a pointless exercise. You'd only be wasting your time."
Wang Shen and Lazuli exchanged glances, then turned to Whis with puzzled expressions.
Whis smiled faintly and suddenly swung the Angel Staff. A dazzling light burst from it.
In an instant, the three of them were surrounded by a field of stars.
The light faded, transforming into twelve spheres circling them.
Wang Shen and Lazuli studied the twelve mysterious spheres with curiosity.
Each seemed to contain a boundless starry sky—a miniature version of a universe, shrunk countless times over.
Seeing them, Wang Shen had already guessed where Whis intended to send him.
Whis explained.
"As you can see, these twelve spheres represent the Twelve Universes, and the one we're currently in is Universe 7."
"Everything has an opposite, and things come in pairs. The same is true of the universes."
"Among the twelve universes, every two are twin universes, and the things within them are nearly identical."
"Universe 6 is the twin universe of our Universe 7. The universes whose numbers add up to thirteen form a pair."
As he spoke, Whis tapped Universe 6 with his staff.
Universe 6 instantly grew larger, while all the others disappeared.
"So Universe 6 has powerful Saiyans as well. I should warn you that Universe 6 is more advanced than our Universe 7. It may have powerful fighters who don't exist in our universe."
"My suggestion is that Wang Shen go to Universe 6 to seek out a fight, while Lazuli trains under my guidance for a while before heading to the Demon Realm to gain experience."
"Huh!?"
Wang Shen and Lazuli both looked shocked and astonished.
Lazuli had never realized that there were universes beyond their own—and that it was possible to travel between them!
Wang Shen, on the other hand, was a little surprised.
He'd planned to visit Universe 6 someday, but he hadn't expected to go so soon!
Before you continue