Golden Cell

This aura was no longer the violent venting of before, but an extremely high-density, high-status crushing of energy. The purple lightning that had been coiling around his body instantly turned into a blinding dark red, and under the pull of this power, the surrounding space actually developed visible black cracks, as if it were glass.

"This is my prime, a new form that transcends perfection!"

Golden Cell hovered in mid-air, his arms slowly spreading wide. The light on his body grew brighter and brighter, and his original green carapace peeled away inch by inch like an energy cloak. Replacing it was an incredibly dazzling, pure gold hue.

The blinding golden light instantly swallowed the entire sky.

"I have crossed countless dimensions and devoured countless variants who claimed to be invincible. But none of them were as strong as I am. Bored and restless, I could only cultivate in solitude; I never expected to grasp a new path of evolution."

"For a moment, I actually felt a sense of bewilderment, finding the world even more insipid."

The golden light gradually receded.

A monster whose carapace was entirely pure gold, with a heart-stopping aura that seemed to originate from another dimension, appeared before everyone's eyes.

Golden Cell!

He looked down at Son Gohan from above, the contempt at the corners of his mouth undisguised: "Son Gohan, the game ends here."

"Seeing me in this state, you can die content."

Despair.

It was fucking despair all over again.

The sliver of hope that had just risen because Son Gohan was climbing steadily in battle and had even briefly suppressed Ultimate Cell was instantly crushed to dust by Golden Cell's unreasonable aura.

Everyone had been keeping their eyes on the battlefield.

Thud!

Piccolo's knees slammed heavily into the shattered ground, his hands digging desperately into the cracks in the earth. He didn't even have the strength to lift his head; that peerless sense of oppression drove him to the depths of despair.

Vegeta gritted his teeth so hard that blood spilled from the corners of his mouth. Facing such an enemy, he couldn't even summon the thought of transforming into a Super Saiyan, and could only lock his gaze onto the golden figure in the sky with a look bordering on hatred.

Goku supported himself with one hand, panting heavily. In those eyes that were always filled with the will to fight, a deep sense of powerlessness emerged at this very moment.

"This aura... it's beyond imagination..." Goku's voice was hoarse, and even speaking each word was an immense struggle.

Beep, beep, beep—!

"Energy units exceed the 'trillion' calculation model... recalibrating calculation model."

Android 16's cold voice echoed in everyone's ears, as if reading out the death sentence for the entire planet.

"Unit conversion complete. Entering 'quadrillion' level calculation."

"Golden Cell's combat power... 5 quadrillion."

5 quadrillion!

Once this number was uttered, the entire scene fell into a deathly silence once more.

Back at the Turtle Hermit House, the Z Fighters, who had been clenching their fists due to Son Gohan's powerful counterattack, were now collapsing yet again.

"You've got to be kidding me?!" Bulma exclaimed.

Krillin's legs went weak, and he slumped directly onto the wooden floor, staring blankly at the golden monster on the screen.

"Quadrillion... how could it be like this..." Yamcha laughed miserably, covering his face with his hands in pain, "It was already despair-inducing enough, and yet that wasn't even the guy's full strength. Damn it..."

Tien Shinhan clenched his fists so hard that his fingertips dug into his flesh and blood began to flow, yet he couldn't feel a shred of pain.

"Tien..." Chiaotzu whispered, looking at him.

The massive gap in strength left them unable to see any hope for victory.

Only Master Roshi put his sunglasses back on, saying nothing in the side room, silently tinkering with something in his hands.

The battlefield.

Golden Cell thoroughly enjoyed the expressions of despair on the ants below. He turned his head and looked at Son Gohan again, expecting to see the same fear and collapse on the young man's face.

However, he was disappointed.

Son Gohan hovered in place, and in those eyes filled with wildness, there was not a hint of fear.

Golden Cell couldn't help but ask in confusion: "Son Gohan, why are you not afraid?"

Upon hearing this, the corners of Son Gohan's mouth slowly curled into a cold, sharp arc. He was smiling.

"What are you smiling at?" Golden Cell frowned slightly; this reaction, which was outside his control, made him feel a flicker of displeasure.

Then, a scene that left everyone in disbelief occurred.

The green aura on Son Gohan's body, which had been like solid matter, began to recede rapidly. His bulging, explosive muscles shrank back bit by bit, and his wild, grass-green hair quickly lost its luster, returning to its ordinary black color.

He had actually voluntarily deactivated the Legendary Super Saiyan form and reverted to his base state!

"Big Brother Gohan?!" Young Trunks, who had just regained consciousness, shouted in alarm at the sight.

Golden Cell snorted coldly: "Heh, so you were scared stupid by me after all. What a pathetic guy."

"Pathetic?"

Son Gohan stretched his limbs, his joints popping with crisp, sharp cracks. He lifted his head, a dangerous, dark glint flickering within his black pupils.

"The pathetic one is you. If I didn't have an arrogant fool like you to serve as a sparring partner, I don't know how much longer I would have had to train to quickly cross that threshold."

Golden Cell's expression darkened. "What do you mean by that?"

"I'm complimenting you." Son Gohan stared straight into Cell's eyes, his tone laced with a hint of mockery. "I knew long ago that to defeat someone like you, my current combat power wouldn't be enough, even if I transformed into a Super Saiyan 3."

"As expected, your strength far exceeds my current limits, but to contain that ultimate, wild power beyond the Super Saiyan 3, the minimum threshold for base combat power is one hundred billion."

"Super Saiyan 3? Beyond Super Saiyan 3!"

Below, Vegeta suddenly jerked his head up, staring fixedly at the sky, terrified of missing a single word.

"I gave it my all in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, pushing myself to the brink of death countless times, yet my base combat power was stuck at the forty billion mark." Son Gohan clenched his right fist. "But to harness that power, that was still far from enough."

A wild, unrestrained smile tugged at the corners of Son Gohan's mouth.

"It was precisely because of the way you beat me down step by step that you forced my base limit up to this one-hundred-billion threshold."

"Did you think you were the hunter?" Son Gohan pointed sharply at Golden Cell. "You're nothing but a self-righteous insect!"

Golden Cell's face turned completely grim. He, the ultimate perfect being who spanned across multiple timelines, was actually being treated as a tool to increase someone's strength!

"Stop your empty boasting!" Golden Cell laughed in a rage. "I've never even heard of this 'beyond Super Saiyan 3'!"

"Don't think you can bluff me, brat! If you've got the guts, transform and show me!"

"Is that so?"

Son Gohan lowered his center of gravity, his right arm suddenly held horizontally across his chest.

"Then I'll let you witness the true power of a Saiyan!"

"Come out!!!"

Accompanied by a roar from Son Gohan that shattered the clouds, the atmosphere of the entire Earth was instantly cleared away.

ROAR—!

A primal, savage roar from an ancient Great Ape exploded deep within everyone's soul.

A golden, mountain-sized phantom of a Great Ape suddenly emerged behind Son Gohan. The giant beast's eyes were blood-red, and it pounded its chest, radiating a violent aura that made even the heavens and earth tremble.

"Merge... with me!!!"

Son Gohan gritted his teeth until they cracked, veins bulging on his forehead. He forcibly channeled that vast, primordial power, pouring it frantically into his own body.

Crack, crack, crack!

Son Gohan's body emitted the teeth-gritting sound of bones being reshaped.

BOOM!

A blinding red light erupted from within Son Gohan, instantly shattering the golden aura emitted by Golden Cell.

Within the red light, Son Gohan's physique underwent a heaven-shaking transformation.

Not only did his body expand to become as burly as a Legendary Super Saiyan, but his tangible energy also manifested a left arm.

Scarlet, wild fur covered his broad chest and arms. His wild, black hair cascaded over his shoulders like a waterfall. Eerie red eyeshadow appeared around his eye sockets, and those golden, slit pupils radiated a wildness that sought to conquer the heavens and the earth.

Super Saiyan 4!

A base combat power of one hundred billion, multiplied by the outrageous forty-thousand-fold increase of Super Saiyan 4!

Scorching red flames flowed slowly around his body like molten lava.

Beep, beep, beep!

Android 16's mechanical eyes flickered frantically, and even his voice carried a hint of unbelievable stuttering.

"Son Gohan's combat power... 4 quadrillion!"

Although it was a fraction lower than Golden Cell's 5 quadrillion, it was enough to stand toe-to-toe with him in terms of aura, completely tearing through that suffocating sense of despair.

In the distance, Goku watched the red figure in the sky, who looked like an ancient god of war, and his blood began to boil uncontrollably.

The arrogance on Golden Cell's face finally vanished. He looked at the Super Saiyan 4 before him, sensing an aura that existed on the same dimension as his own, and an irrepressible excitement erupted in his scarlet eyes.

"I underestimated you! Son Gohan!" Golden Cell laughed wantonly, his golden aura surging violently. "But the final winner will definitely be me!"

Son Gohan tilted his neck slightly, his golden slit pupils locking coldly onto Cell.

"You talk too much."

Whoosh!

Both figures vanished into thin air simultaneously.