The Battle Begins

"One month? That's plenty of time."

Jiang Che raised his arm and glanced at the timer on his wrist.

He'd picked up the habit in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber. He timed things down to the millisecond; it was practically etched into his bones.

He grinned, baring his white teeth, battle lust burning in his eyes.

He looked like he was waiting for a feast he'd been preparing for a long time.

Honestly, he didn't have the slightest objection to this mission.

If anything, he'd been itching to find out just how much strength two years of grueling training had given him.

Baby?

He was nothing but a whetstone.

Jiang Che drew a deep breath, then his body shuddered violently. A vast aura erupted from him, blasting the surrounding clouds to pieces.

Golden flames danced around him, like the undying fire embroidered on his martial arts uniform.

Jiang Che lowered his stance, drew both fists back to his waist, and kicked off into the void—BOOM!

A visible ripple burst through the air.

He shot downward like a meteor, hurtling toward the ground.

The wind shrieked in his ears as he tore through the thick clouds, splitting them open. Sunlight streamed through the gap, and the glow shimmered in the air, scattering into every color of the rainbow.

Jiang Che fixed his gaze on the city below. Baby's evil aura grew clearer by the second.

It was like a beacon of smoke in the night, stirring the blood in his veins.

He was here.

Just then, an incredibly powerful surge of energy burst from the distant horizon.

It was as if an invisible giant hand had torn the clear sky to shreds.

The air grew so oppressive it was hard to breathe. Even the distant clouds churned, sending out ripples of energy in every direction.

Jiang Che whipped his head around, moving as fast as lightning.

His gaze was sharp as a blade, piercing the haze several kilometers away to lock onto the source.

His pupils contracted, and his brow furrowed. The sense of foreboding in his heart grew stronger.

It was Vegeta's energy!

That aura was fierce and familiar, brimming with the Saiyan's stubbornness and strength.

But something seemed wrong. It was chaotic, no longer as pure as before.

Jiang Che's heart skipped a beat.

He could feel anger and struggle mixed into it.

The next second, Gohan and Goten's auras burst forth as well.

Two dazzling flames shot into the sky, lighting up the gloomy heavens.

Jiang Che's expression changed. Something was wrong.

A strange, evil aura was mixed into their energy—cold and clammy, like an invisible serpent coiled around it.

It was exactly like the foreign aura he'd sensed moments ago: corrupt and domineering, as if it could devour all light.

"Has it already begun?"

Jiang Che lowered his voice, speaking urgently, as if to himself—or as if making up his mind.

Resolve flashed in his eyes. He didn't hesitate again. In a blur, he vanished, and the ground beneath his feet exploded into a crater, stones flying in every direction.

Jiang Che tore through the air like a streak of light, racing ahead at high speed.

The trees along his path were swept away by the shockwaves. The gale whipped up dust and sent it spiraling into chaos.

The battle in the valley had already reached its peak.

The place had once been deathly still, but now it was battered beyond recognition by the surging energy.

The charred earth was riddled with bottomless cracks. Rocks had been pulverized, and the air reeked of smoke.

Vegeta was on one knee, his body trembling slightly. Blood trickled from the corner of his mouth, only to sizzle away on the hot mud.

His Battle Suit was almost completely in tatters. Bruises covered the skin beneath the tears, and the armor on his left shoulder had been shattered, revealing mottled streaks of blood.

He panted heavily, his chest heaving as sweat and dust dripped to the ground.

But his eyes remained fixed on the two figures before him, burning with anger and unwillingness to give in.

Gohan and Goten stood side by side in front of him, twisted black currents coiling around them. A thick haze seemed to envelop their entire bodies.

The air warped around them. Even the light seemed to be sucked away, casting strange shadows.

Their state was utterly bizarre.

A faint red glow shone in their eyes, and their pupils glimmered with a sinister light, as if darkness had swallowed their souls.

Their auras were saturated with evil, icy and bone-chilling, making one's skin crawl.

A stiff smile hung on their lips, twisted and uncanny, like possessed puppets mocking the world.

"Gohan! Goten!" Vegeta roared through gritted teeth. His voice was hoarse, yet it rang out like thunder.

He struggled to stand, his knees scraping against the ground with a harsh sound. His muscles tensed as if they might tear through his skin. "Wake up!"

"It's no use, Vegeta," Gohan said slowly, but his voice had become completely unfamiliar—low and hoarse, with a metallic chill.

It didn't sound like Gohan at all.

"I've been chosen by Lord Baby. It's an honor for us to become vessels for the Tuffles." A red gleam flashed in his eyes. His smile deepened, and a sickly reverence crept across his face.

"That's right," Goten chimed in, his voice filled with a strange excitement. It sounded like a child laughing at play, but the laughter sent a chill down one's spine.

He tilted his head and spread his hands, as if welcoming some invisible gift. "Brother, you should join us too. Lord Baby will grant you greater power and make you strong. Come on, stop resisting. Feel the glory you can't escape."

"Bastard!"

Vegeta roared, his voice exploding through the valley and sending loose stones tumbling.

He rose to his feet, trembling. His legs were unsteady, but his will was as unyielding as stone. He clenched his fists until his knuckles cracked.

Suddenly, golden flames erupted around his body, shining like the sun and instantly driving back the surrounding darkness.

His aura surged and danced, accompanied by thunder and lightning as it wrapped around his limbs and torso.

Super Saiyan 2!

Lightning crackled around him, blue arcs writhing like serpents and striking the air and ground.

The earth couldn't withstand it. It split apart violently, cracks spreading like a spiderweb as stones flew through the air.

Vegeta's hair stood straight up, and golden light shone across his resolute face. Fury blazed in his eyes, as if he would burn down the entire valley along with every trace of evil.

Whatever was lurking in that darkness, I'll smash it to pieces with my own hands!

And then—I'll take you back!

Vegeta's roar exploded through the valley, carrying ironclad resolve and barely restrained fury.

The ground beneath him shattered. Stones rose into the air, and his figure vanished in a flash, like lightning splitting the void.

The next instant, the air compressed with a resounding boom.

Vegeta appeared in front of Gohan, his fist wrapped in a fierce white aura as it slammed toward Gohan's face like a meteor.

The wind from his punch howled, kicking up the dust into a vortex.

But Gohan reacted faster than he'd expected.

Just as the fist was about to touch the tip of his nose, Gohan's weightless body slipped to the side. The punch brushed past his hair, lifting a few strands.

Then Gohan swept his right leg into Vegeta's side with enough force to unleash a visible shockwave.

Thud! A dull impact rang out.

Vegeta was kicked away, his body tracing a violent arc through the air before crashing into a massive blue-green boulder as tall as a person.

Stones sprayed like rain, and dust billowed, obscuring most of the sky.