Master Roshi's Guidance

After leaving Kami's Lookout, Li Ming headed for West City, planning to ask Dr. Brief to help him make some equipment to assist his training.

Though he understood that haste made waste, time waited for no one. He was still at the level of an ordinary Saiyan, probably still quite a ways behind Vegeta.

Once these few years of breathing room were over, Goku would soar straight into the heavens. With tens of thousands of battle power, he would not even qualify as cannon fodder!

Earth was liable to explode every so often, and who knew whether he could keep up? If something went wrong, he would not even know how he died.

Even if he could be revived, what was the point of dying over and over again?

"Help!"

"Hm?"

Below him was what appeared to be a remote village. Bandits were normal in places like this, and Li Ming did not want to meddle. This world was simply too bizarre.

Prosperous places felt like the future world, while backward places still struggled over food and water. He was not Kami; he could not handle everything.

No, even Kami would not handle matters like these. He was only responsible for protecting Earth from destruction by evil forces.

The strong preyed on the weak. That was simply the law of the universe.

In the village, a little boy was dragging his younger sister as they fled. Honestly, a small town like this should have been very peaceful.

But King Piccolo's appearance half a year ago had completely shattered the peace of the entire world. It was not just places like this—large numbers of criminals had begun appearing even near some cities.

The distances between towns were vast, and relying on armed forces to suppress them was simply unrealistic.

Things had been better a few years ago. Martial arts had flourished, and nearly every town had dojos that protected the local people from bandits.

But after the previous World Martial Arts Tournament—the twenty-second one—when the host died and then mysteriously came back to life, followed by the King Piccolo incident, the King had been grateful and, in order not to affect Goku, suppressed the matter instead.

As a result, many people gradually began treating martial arts as a means of grandstanding, while dojos everywhere slowly withdrew from public view.

"Run! Don't worry about me!"

"Hehehe! Still trying to run, brat? I'll break your legs!"

The fat, muscular bandits were looting all across town. The little boy was seized by the throat and lifted into the air. He struggled desperately, but it was useless.

"Go catch that other little brat too! I'll show them what happens when they resist!"

"Hehe, yes, Boss."

How could children possibly outrun adults, especially when these bandits were physically stronger than ordinary people to begin with?

Very soon, the blond little girl was caught as well. All the townspeople were gathered together, while the lead bandit held a large saber. His body was nearly three meters tall, an intimidating sight.

Naturally, the townspeople did not dare resist. A young man and woman were pushed onto a raised platform, heads lowered in grief. Just then, the two captured children began struggling with all their might.

"Dad! Let my dad go!"

"You bastards! Let go of them! Cough!"

"So noisy!" A bandit swung a fist into the little boy's stomach, and the searing pain immediately forced him to his knees.

"Heh heh, now you know better, you little brat. Hm? What's with that look in your eyes? Damn it!"

The black-haired little boy glared viciously at him without the slightest trace of fear. That was not the expression the bandit wanted to see.

That expression even made him a little afraid.

"Die!"

His momentary panic made the bandit's face burn. Humiliated and enraged, he swung his blade down!

Clang!

At the critical moment, a black shadow blocked the bandit's blade. A burly figure stood there, looking down at the bandit with calm indifference.

"Trash." One hand gripped the saber while the other struck his abdomen in an instant. The bandit immediately retched and collapsed.

"Who the hell are you!? How dare you cause trouble, bastard!"

The lead bandit raised his saber and pointed it at Li Ming. More than a dozen bandits lifted their weapons—some held guns, others blades.

"Die!" At the bandit leader's signal, a bandit behind Li Ming suddenly attacked, rushing forward and slashing down with his blade!

"Watch out!" The black-haired little boy lying on the ground hurriedly cried out, while the townspeople nearby scattered in fear.

Yet Li Ming did not move at all. A blur flashed past, and the bandit was sent flying away.

"How is that possible!?" As the bandit leader stared wide-eyed in disbelief, Li Ming's figure vanished instantly. After several afterimages flashed by, all the bandits were knocked to the ground and could not rise.

There was no chance for them to threaten him with hostages. Even if they had taken hostages, Li Ming would not have stopped.

Li Ming looked at the still-dazed townspeople and even regretted coming to save them. Such a bunch of trash—they might as well have died!

"Strange... Why would I think something like that?"

The dangerous thought that flashed through his mind made Li Ming uncomfortable. After punching out the bandit leader, he turned and prepared to leave. This was not a good sign; he had to figure it out.

"Thank you, big brother!"

"Thank you."

Without turning back, Li Ming knew it was those two little brats. He casually waved a hand, leaving behind an afterimage as he vanished from the spot.

The siblings' parents were finally freed and came over to the children. Judging by their clothes, they were probably not from this town. The man wore a suit, while the woman wore a long dress. They were clearly from the city.

"Lapis, you did very well. Dad is proud of you."

As they soothed the children, this accident also served as a warning for them. If Li Ming had not appeared, the consequences would have been unimaginable.

"Mom, that big brother was amazing. I want to be that amazing too."

The woman was surprised at first, then smiled. "Hehe, our Lazuli has grown up. Of course you can. One day, you'll definitely be as amazing as that big brother."

"Mm!"

They gazed longingly in the direction where Li Ming had disappeared. Perhaps they never could have imagined that in the future, the siblings would be far stronger than Li Ming was now.

To arrive as quickly as possible, Li Ming chose to cross over a stretch of sea. Noticing the churning waves below, along with several distinct ki signatures, Kame House was clearly nearby.

"...I'll go take a look."

Honestly, Li Ming could never quite figure out that old man Master Roshi. He looked genuinely weak on the surface, yet the battle power he displayed every time was astonishing.

Thinking about it, the old man had lived for who knew how many years. Son Gohan had already grown old and frail, but he still looked the same. Supposedly, he had drunk from the Fountain of Youth.

Though it had probably expired...

No matter what, Master Roshi's martial arts realm was astonishing. He was on par with Mutaito in his day, possessing an endless array of techniques. Especially those trump cards he kept hidden away—they could completely allow the weak to defeat the strong.

"Oh? Do we have a guest? Master Roshi, we have a guest!"

Li Ming landed on a small island. A giant sea turtle lay before him, while Master Roshi reclined in a lounge chair with a magazine featuring beach beauties covering his face.

He suddenly felt he might have been overthinking things. This old man was probably just a pure pervert.

Smack!

"Hm? Oh?" Awakened by the turtle, Master Roshi let the magazine fall and lifted his sunglasses with a puzzled expression.

"You are?"

"Master Roshi, hello. I'm Li Ming, a disciple training under Kami."

"Ah! So it's you. I've heard Korin and Tien Shinhan mention you. So Goku and you were the reason I could be revived. I truly can't thank you enough."

He stood up and gave a slight bow. There was an indescribably profound bearing within his upright aura. That alone made Li Ming raise an eyebrow.

Sure enough, this old man was not simple.

"Master Roshi, dinner's ready." Blue-haired Launch came out through the door. Seeing Li Ming, she looked surprised. "Oh my! We have a guest? Oh, Master Roshi, I threw out all those magazines on the table."

"W-w-w-what!? Those were collector's editions!"

Master Roshi leaped three feet into the air and rushed into the house in a panic to save his collector's editions. Li Ming's eye twitched; he had clearly overestimated him.

Whoosh!

Several figures swam over from the distance. Tien Shinhan was at the front. In order to find his own path in martial arts, he had chosen to train under Master Roshi for a while.

Krillin and Yamcha were also still training here, preparing to deal with King Piccolo's resurrection three years later.

"Huh? It's you."

Tien Shinhan recognized Li Ming at a glance. As a half-blood of the Three-Eyed Clan and humans, Tien Shinhan truly had the greatest talent among them.

Among Earth-born warriors, he would later even train to the point of briefly suppressing Cell's first form. That was no small feat.

"Mm."

Out of appreciation, Li Ming nodded at him. Then, through Tien Shinhan's introduction, he met Krillin and Yamcha.

After everyone had eaten, Li Ming began asking Master Roshi about several things. Everyone understood ki differently. Mr. Popo taught methods of using ki by pointing directly to its essence.

Master Roshi, on the other hand, took a different path. Inheriting Mutaito's understanding of martial arts, he founded the Turtle School. He concealed ki within the body, appearing frail and weak on the outside, yet he was not to be underestimated.

At the very least, among all the Earthlings Li Ming had met, only Master Roshi displayed something akin to a transformation when he unleashed his ki, and the leap in his strength was tremendous.

"Thank you."

Master Roshi did not hold anything back, concisely explaining his understanding of martial arts to Li Ming.

For Li Ming, this experience was immensely useful. Master Roshi's willingness to tell him so generously made him deeply grateful. After sincerely thanking him, he set off once more.

"Krillin, Goku will have another opponent in the future."

"Master Roshi, are you saying that person is even stronger than Goku?"

Master Roshi said nothing. A dazzling gleam reflected off his sunglasses. Even Li Ming had not expected Master Roshi to perceive his strength without him noticing.

After learning to control ki from Mr. Popo, Li Ming had gained complete control over his power. Even a battle power detector could not possibly discover his true battle power!