The Mountains Shattered

"What?!"

Gohan's pupils contracted sharply, and his mind went blank.

But that wasn't all. The real shock came moments later.

Before he could fully dodge, Jiang Che suddenly thrust out his hand, fingers held together like a blade.

Facing the roaring energy fist, he didn't take it seriously at all. He merely gave it a light slap, as if shooing away an annoying fly.

"Thud!!"

In that instant, an irresistible force surged from Jiang Che's hand into Gohan's fist.

Gohan felt his strength swallowed by a flood, and his entire arm was knocked off course.

The force was monstrously strong. He felt as if he'd just collided head-on with an ancient monster.

He lost his balance completely. His feet couldn't find purchase, and he staggered back five or six steps.

Each step left a huge crater in the ground, cracks spreading and bursting out beneath his feet.

But before Gohan could steady himself, Goten's attack arrived.

He darted out from Jiang Che's left side like a phantom, his right hand held in a fist. A dazzling golden ball of energy gleamed in his palm as he thrust it toward Jiang Che's ribs.

The angle was vicious, the speed too great for the naked eye to follow, and the timing impeccable—he struck precisely after Jiang Che had repelled Gohan, while Jiang Che's strength had ebbed and he hadn't yet gathered his next burst of power.

Goten's eyes were full of malice, and a smug smile tugged at his lips.

He was certain Jiang Che wouldn't be able to dodge this one.

The wind roared in Jiang Che's ears. The next second, another dark figure burst out from the shadow behind him.

It was Goten again.

His gaze was vacant now, and a chilling smile curled his lips. It didn't look like his own smile at all—the will of Great Ape Baby had completely invaded his soul.

He clasped his hands above his head, interlocking his fingers as his knuckles cracked.

His fists became a pair of hammers. With a fierce rush of wind, he swung them down toward the back of Jiang Che's head!

The blow was like the arrival of the apocalypse. Even the air seemed ready to split apart.

The ground beneath Jiang Che's feet cracked open, and gravel shot in every direction like bullets. Even the air around them warped under the pressure.

Honestly, if that blow had landed squarely, forget a human body—even a mountain would have shattered into dust on the spot.

But Jiang Che seemed to have anticipated it.

He didn't turn around. He merely shifted his body slightly and shot out his right arm like lightning—so fast that not even an afterimage remained.

"Smack!" He caught Goten by the wrist with perfect precision.

In that instant, the full force of Goten's frenzied downward strike stopped dead, like a flood crashing into an iron wall. He couldn't move at all.

"What?!"

The smug, savage expression on Goten's face froze completely, leaving only shock.

He stared at Jiang Che's hand. It looked slender, yet could crush a person's bones.

He desperately tried to wrench his hand free, but it was as if he'd been caught in a vise. Struggling was useless.

Oppressive force bore down on him, and the air fell so still it felt frozen.

Cold sweat beaded on Goten's forehead, and even his breathing grew labored.

He had never faced such a terrifying opponent. He knew deep down that this was someone he could never stand against.

"Is that all you've got?"

Jiang Che slowly turned around, unhurried. Every movement carried an indescribable air of authority.

He stared at Goten, his eyes like burning flames, as if he could see straight through the shadows in Goten's heart where Baby had taken control.

His lips curled into a faint, mocking smile. "That power of yours... really isn't much to look at. Whether it's the Saiyans or that thing behind you, you're all the same."

Before he could finish, Jiang Che swung his right arm with tremendous force, like a crashing wave striking the shore!

He hurled Goten away as if he were a rag doll.

Goten traced an arc through the air, flying toward a distant mountain like a cannonball!

"Boom!"

He slammed into the mountain, which burst apart like an eggshell.

Goten's body was driven into the mountainside. Huge slabs of rock collapsed, and stones rained down, triggering a small landslide as dust choked the sky.

Jiang Che simply dusted off his hands, his expression calm, as if he really had done no more than swat away an annoying fly.

He didn't even glance at the shattered mountain. Instead, he turned his head and looked toward the distant, mountain-sized Great Ape Baby.

Great Ape Baby crouched amid the charred ruins, his body covered in dark golden fur and his muscles bulging to their limits.

His pair of blood-red, beastlike eyes fixed on Jiang Che, gleaming with cold light.

He rose to his feet. The ground sank with every step, and rocks tumbled down, his presence carrying an inexplicable force of intimidation.

Jiang Che floated in midair with his arms crossed, a hint of contempt on his lips. He didn't take the enormous creature seriously at all. "Is that all you can do? Control a few Saiyans and sneak up on people from the shadows? You've tried every low-down trick there is, and you still dare to face me head-on?"

"You..."

Great Ape Baby's gaze immediately turned cold. Blood glinted in his pupils, and his voice rumbled like thunder rolling through the clouds. "Are you looking to die?"

"Looking to die?" Jiang Che chuckled, his voice cold as ice. "I'd say you parasites are the pitiful ones."

He floated in the air like a king looking down on all creation, his gaze full of scorn.

The wind tousled his clothes, but his eyes held only calm and sharpness.

He spoke again. His voice wasn't loud, but every word cut like a knife. "The Saiyans wiped out the Tuffles, and all you can do is pull this kind of humiliating stunt. You either possess people or steal their bodies. You don't even dare show your true face. You want revenge? You're relying on cheap tricks like these? Honestly, you're pretty pathetic."

Each word struck Baby's heart like a nail, leaving him gasping and shaking with rage.

Great Ape Baby roared, his voice shaking the heavens as if it could tear the world apart.

His muscles tensed, and his dark golden fur stood on end. A burst of black aura suddenly erupted from within him, sweeping outward with bone-deep hatred and despair.

The air seemed weighed down by black fog, growing so heavy it was suffocating.

Even the sunlight dimmed. In an instant, the sky looked like the end of the world.

"What do you know!" Baby's voice had turned hoarse and distorted, as if he were gritting his teeth. "The Saiyans are brutal! They destroyed our Tuffle homeworld, slaughtered our people, and wiped out our civilization. They even turned our entire planet into their plaything! I'm just taking revenge now—I'll make them know what it feels like to be trampled underfoot! I'll make every last one of them kneel and beg for mercy!"

In his fury, Baby's aura blazed hotter and hotter, black smoke churning until it nearly covered the sky.

He stared at Jiang Che, his eyes filled with a madness that wanted to tear him apart. His body looked ready to charge at any moment.