Ultimate Cell

As this aura emerged, the Earth's entire atmosphere groaned under the unbearable strain.

Son Gohan paused, his head snapping toward the west. The golden aura he had been preparing to unleash vanished instantly, and his brows furrowed tightly.

Below, Goku, Piccolo, Vegeta, and the others braced themselves as if facing a mortal threat.

"This energy..." Cold sweat beaded on Goku's forehead as he stared fixedly in the direction of the aura. "It's identical to Cell's! But how could it possibly be this immense?!"

Piccolo's face turned a ghastly shade of green. "How is this possible!"

Just as the group stood in stunned uncertainty:

Whoosh!

A tall, burly figure broke through the clouds and landed heavily on the Lookout Plaza.

He wore green armor and sported an orange mohawk; his expression was blank, his eyes as cold and mechanical as a machine.

"Android 16?" Piccolo recognized the newcomer.

Android 16 ignored Piccolo. His calm, emotionless eyes swept across the plaza, and his voice sounded heavy. "It is the Cell from the future."

Rewind to a few minutes prior.

In the desolate rocky terrain, at the Cell Games Arena.

As the battered Time Machine bearing the "CC" logo crashed out of thin air, a powerful magnetic field instantly destroyed all the surrounding broadcast equipment.

Perfect Cell, who had been sitting cross-legged in the center of the ring, snapped his eyes open, a flicker of astonishment crossing his compound eyes.

He recognized that machine. Trunks had used that very thing to travel from the future to the present.

Hiss—

The hatch opened slowly.

A large foot covered in green spots stepped out.

When he saw the full appearance of the newcomer, Perfect Cell froze.

Standing before him was none other than another Perfect Cell!

But the newcomer did not seem to come in peace.

"Who are you?" Perfect Cell stood up, his expression darkening.

"I am you." The future Cell stepped out of the Time Machine, cracked his neck, and a cruel smirk curled his lips. "Only, I am a version of you that is more perfect than you."

"Arrogant fool!" Perfect Cell snorted coldly and vanished from his spot in an instant.

Bang!

Perfect Cell's full-power punch, a strike he took great pride in, slammed hard into the future Cell's chest.

However, the future Cell did not even sway.

"Too weak." A flash of boredom crossed the future Cell's eyes.

Snap.

The future Cell raised his hand casually and clamped it around Perfect Cell's throat, hoisting him into the air like a chick.

The power of the Perfect form that Perfect Cell prided himself on was utterly helpless before this counterpart; he didn't even have room to resist!

"Let go of me, you bastard!" Perfect Cell struggled frantically, fear finally surfacing in his eyes.

"I am the true, singular one—the ultimate perfection that controls all. Be a good boy and become the nutrients for my evolution."

The future Cell grinned hideously. His tail suddenly split open like flower petals, expanding into a massive, fleshy funnel that clamped over Perfect Cell's head.

Gulp!

In just one second.

The arrogant Perfect Cell of the main timeline was devoured, skin and bone alike.

Rumble!

With the consumption complete, the spots on the future Cell's body pulsed with a strange light, and the purple aura overflowing from his body distorted the space within a ten-meter radius.

Kami's Palace.

After hearing Android 16's account, the entire area fell into a deathly silence.

Son Gohan descended slowly from the air, his eyes becoming incredibly deep.

The plot had changed completely.

Because of his own sudden intervention, the laws of space-time had triggered a chain reaction, causing the Cell Games, which should have followed a set path, to derail entirely.

Android 16's eyes flashed with red light as his internal radar spun frantically, scanning the combat power of everyone present.

"There is no hope left for Earth." Android 16's cold voice sounded like the reading of a death sentence. "The gap between you and that monster is too great."

"Stop with the alarmist talk!" Vegeta gritted his teeth. "You're just puffing up the enemy and crushing our own morale!"

Android 16 turned his head to look at Vegeta, the red light in his mechanical eyes scanning him: "Vegeta, base combat power 500 million."

Vegeta froze, his face turning livid in an instant.

Android 16 did not pause, his gaze continuing to shift.

"Future Trunks, base combat power 500 million."

"Son Goku, base combat power 700 million."

"Piccolo, combat power 700 million."

"Son Gohan..." Android 16 looked at the young man behind Son Goku, "base combat power 1 billion."

Hearing this number, Vegeta's breath hitched sharply, and he stared fixedly at the boy who usually looked weak and easy to bully. The son of this low-level warrior actually had a base power twice his own!

Android 16's gaze shifted to the purple-haired boy behind Adult Gohan: "Young Trunks, base combat power 1.5 billion."

Crack.

The stone slab beneath Vegeta's feet was crushed to pieces. His pride as the Prince of Saiyans, which he held so dear, was being thoroughly rubbed into the dirt by these two brats at this very moment.

Finally, Android 16's gaze landed on Adult Gohan.

The red light scanned his one-armed body frantically.

Beep, beep, beep—!

The alarm inside Android 16's brain emitted a sharp, piercing sound.

"Energy level 40 billion? Who are you?" Android 16 frowned slightly. "There is no data on you in Earth's database. My scanner cannot read your identity, but after analysis and comparison, you should be the Son Gohan from the future, right?"

He looked at Adult Gohan, his tone remaining pessimistic: "But even with you, the result will not change. That New Cell's power has already exceeded the limits of calculation. No one is his match."

Son Gohan did not care about Android 16's power assessment.

He was far stronger than what appeared on the surface; whether he could win or not would only be known after they fought.

Adult Gohan looked straight into Android 16's eyes and asked the most crucial question: "What did the Time Machine that Cell arrived in look like? Was it exactly the same as the one Trunks has?"

Android 16 nodded: "The appearance is identical, with the Capsule Corporation's CC logo printed on the cabin. It is an old model that has been repaired many times."

Adult Gohan narrowed his eyes, his brain racing.

As a transmigrator who knew the plot, he understood exactly what this meant.

In one timeline, Cell had killed Trunks as he prepared to return to the past, stealing the Time Machine and regressing into an egg to travel back; at that time, Cell wasn't even in his first form.

But now, the one who walked out of the Time Machine was a Perfect Form right from the start!

This meant that this Cell most likely came from a desperate timeline where he had already won the Cell Games and slaughtered all the Z Fighters!

Because he was invincible in that space-time and felt bored, he used the Time Machine left behind by Trunks to start traveling through various parallel universes.

He was hunting down versions of himself from other timelines!

By devouring his counterparts, he was breaking the limits of his Perfect Form and seeking a path to become stronger.

If that were the case, then the number of timelines this Cell had destroyed was definitely more than one. The energy accumulated within his body had surely reached an unfathomable level.

"Traveling through the heavens to devour counterparts, an Ultimate Cell, huh..." Instead of fear, a wild, battle-hungry smile tugged at the corners of Adult Gohan's mouth. "Things are getting interesting."

Meanwhile.

On the other side of the Earth, at the Cell Games Arena.

Ultimate Cell hovered in mid-air, eyes closed, taking a deep breath of the air on Earth.

"A truly wonderful taste. The me of this space-time has developed quite well."

Following that, he slowly raised his right hand, pressed his index and middle fingers together, and placed them lightly against his forehead.

This was Son Goku's signature technique, Instant Transmission.

Future Cell's perception instantly covered the entire Earth, locking directly onto the clusters of powerful auras gathered at Kami's Palace.

He opened his eyes abruptly, a cruel light flickering in his scarlet pupils.

"Found you."