Grand Elder's Private Audience

"What's wrong, Dende?"

Seeing Dende standing there in a daze, his expression shifting strangely, Son Gohan asked curiously.

At Son Gohan's question, Dende immediately snapped out of it. "Just now, Grand Elder spoke to me telepathically. He told me a few things..."

At that, everyone perked up their ears again.

"What did Grand Elder say?" Krillin asked.

"Grand Elder said he already knows what happened here. He told me to tell everyone that he has entrusted the authority over the Dragon Balls and the important task of restoring the Namekians to the Third Elder, Mulin. From now on, the Third Elder will be the new Grand Elder. The Dragon Balls won't turn to stone when Grand Elder dies, and Elder Mulin can upgrade them, too. Next time we make a wish, we'll be able to revive multiple people..."

When he finished, everyone was once again stunned.

Of course they were happy, but at the same time, they were overcome by a strange feeling.

It was because, even on the verge of death, Grand Elder was still thinking of them.

They owed him even more now.

"Also, Grand Elder said he'd like to meet Uncle Ron, who defeated Frieza, right now." Dende's next words startled Ron and surprised everyone else as well.

Grand Elder wanted to meet Ron alone?

Why?

Was it because Ron had defeated Frieza?

Or was there some other reason?

"He wants to see me?" Ron murmured. He thought for a moment, then smiled at Dende. "All right. Point me in the right direction and tell me roughly how far away he is. I can sense his ki and use Instant Transmission to get there."

"Instant Transmission?" Dende didn't know what it was or how powerful it might be, but he obediently raised a hand and pointed northwest across Planet Namek.

"Grand Elder is in that direction, on top of a mountain about fifteen thousand kilometers away..."

After he finished, Dende asked uncertainly, "Are you sure you don't need me to take you there?"

"No need. I've already sensed Grand Elder's ki."

Ron's ki sensing had actually been spread across the whole of Planet Namek all along. Now that Dende had pointed out the direction, he could pinpoint Grand Elder's ki.

To be honest, Grand Elder's ki was quite different from that of ordinary Namekians.

And Ron had already wondered whether that ki belonged to Grand Elder.

"Ron, take me with you. I'd like to meet the Grand Elder of Planet Namek and thank him in person." Son Goku spoke up suddenly, stopping Ron from using Instant Transmission right away.

At his words, Krillin and Gohan immediately voiced their agreement as well.

Piccolo spoke next. "Take me too. I have some questions I'd like to ask him before he dies."

Of everyone there, Piccolo was probably the one who most wanted to see Grand Elder.

In the original story, all the Namekians had been transported to Earth, where Piccolo met Grand Elder.

Ron's memory of that part was already rather hazy. After all, he'd traveled through time a second time, and so many years had passed...

But he was sure Piccolo had talked to Grand Elder about a lot of things. He'd probably asked about his origins and why he'd been sent to Earth in the first place...

"In that case, let's go together." Ron nodded without refusing.

Then he looked up at Porunga. "Now that we've decided, we'll summon you to make a wish next time. You can clock out and slack off for now."

"Clock out... and slack off???"

Ron's words left everyone dumbfounded.

Porunga, on the other hand, seemed to understand what slacking off meant. He raised a hand and made an "OK" sign.

"Until next time, amusing Saiyan."

As soon as he finished speaking, Porunga's entire body was enveloped in golden light.

A moment later, his enormous body disappeared. The golden light returned to the seven Dragon Balls, and as it faded, the Dragon Balls turned to stone.

It all happened so suddenly.

Even Dende was surprised.

"That's strange. Porunga actually left right away. Usually, he should only disappear after we Namekians use our language to confirm that we won't be making another wish..."

"Things don't always go by the book. Don't worry about it." Ron smiled mysteriously.

He knew exactly how that worked.

After Porunga disappeared, everyone let out a few sighs.

Most importantly, Planet Namek's Dragon Balls wouldn't scatter across the planet.

Then, with Ron leading the way using Instant Transmission, the whole group arrived at Grand Elder's residence. They brought the Dragon Balls along, of course, so they could be upgraded and Porunga summoned again later.

After experiencing the wonders of Instant Transmission, everyone was amazed and marveled at it.

Naturally, someone felt even more frustrated and resentful.

There was no doubt it was Vegeta.

He hadn't left on his own; he'd come here with the others.

Experiencing the incredible power of Instant Transmission had dealt another heavy blow to him.

He wondered why he hadn't been the one to come up with an ability like that.

If he could use that technique, how could things have ended up like this? He wouldn't have had to remain under Frieza's thumb for so many years.

His narrow way of thinking had limited his imagination. He'd never even considered that an ability like this could exist.

Just as he'd never imagined, once upon a time, that ki even existed.

A person's ki could be sensed, and they could precisely control their own ki, raising or lowering their strength to become as powerful as possible.

Just as everyone had settled down and was about to enter Grand Elder's residence, a voice sounded in all their minds.

It was Grand Elder, welcoming them and politely asking them to wait outside. He wanted Ron to come in alone first.

Even in this situation, Grand Elder insisted on seeing him first. Ron hadn't thought much of it at first, but now he couldn't help feeling curious.

What exactly did Grand Elder have in mind?

After exchanging glances with Son Goku, Piccolo, and the others, Ron answered, then stepped into the uniquely built house.

Everyone watched Ron go inside, then fell silent.

Dende was puzzled, too, but he trusted that Grand Elder had his reasons.

While they waited, he took the initiative and offered to heal Son Goku's injuries.

Son Goku was astonished. He hadn't known Namekians had this kind of ability.

Especially since Dende was still just a child, yet had such power.

He'd been badly injured, and if he hadn't kept his injuries in check and avoided too much strenuous movement, he would have collapsed long ago.

Now, with Dende's help, his injuries were fully healed, and his strength had increased tremendously.

There was no doubt about it: the Saiyan recovery boost from healing after a near-fatal injury had kicked in.

Even though this boost wasn't as impressive as the last one, his battle power still exceeded four million.

Poor Vegeta had only just made a breakthrough and was about to catch up to Son Goku, only to be left behind again in an instant.