Afterimage Fist Shows Its Might

Goku's offense became tighter than before. There were no longer any obvious gaps between his punches; the transitions from one punch to the next had grown shorter, as if he had compressed multiple attacks into one continuous motion. Lin Chen kept retreating as he blocked, his feet moving rapidly across the wooden boards. The friction between his soles and the planks came in a dense rhythm, like raindrops striking a roof.

[ Ding! Endured an attack, picked up Strength Orbs ×6, Strength +18. ]

[ Ding! Endured an attack, picked up Speed Orbs ×4, Speed +12. ]

His arms began to heat up after taking repeated impacts, but there was no soreness—every block seemed to replenish his muscles with energy, making his defensive movements steadier than they had been at the start. When one of Goku's heavy punches slammed into his forearm, he was not pushed back as before. He dispersed the force while standing his ground, his shoulder only swaying slightly.

Goku noticed the change. "Your blocks are getting steadier."

Lin Chen did not answer. In the brief gap as Goku pulled back his fist, he stepped forward half a pace and threw a short right punch—its speed was not fast, but its angle was precise, striking Goku's blocking arm. Goku's arm was knocked slightly backward by the blow, and he had to take half a step back to steady himself.

"You're starting to attack proactively," Goku said.

Lin Chen withdrew his fist and readjusted his stance. He could feel more orbs drifting over from Goku. This time, he clearly saw their number—seven. Three of them were darker in color and brighter than the fragments from before.

[ Ding! Picked up Saiyan Bloodline Fragments ×3. Current Saiyan Bloodline Fusion Rate: 16%. ]

Goku lowered his center of gravity again, as though gathering strength. His feet were spread wider than before, and his knees bent more deeply. His posture resembled an animal ready to spring. He stepped forward, his right fist rising from low to high toward Lin Chen's jaw. Lin Chen twisted aside to evade the punch, but Goku turned as he retracted it, sweeping his left elbow across. The angle perfectly sealed off Lin Chen's route of escape. Lin Chen raised his palm before the point of the elbow, pressing his palm against its tip. The impact made his hand go numb, but the elbow failed to break through his defense and was stopped.

[ Ding! Endured an attack, picked up Saiyan Combat Instinct Fragments ×2. Saiyan Bloodline Fusion Rate: 20%. ]

Goku attacked continuously for about a minute. His methods kept changing, from straight frontal punches to sweeping kicks from the side, from low knee strikes to high elbow blows. As Lin Chen defended, he gradually adapted to this varied rhythm. His blocks began to change—rather than simply taking the attacks head-on with both arms, he subtly adjusted his body angle before contact to deflect the force of Goku's punches, like finding a rock in rushing water to brace against.

During one block, he realized that at the instant his arm met the other man's fist, his body had automatically made a slight sideways adjustment. The movement was quick and smooth, as if his body had already memorized how to take the same attack with less effort. He readjusted his stance, bringing his feet slightly closer together.

[ Ding! Afterimage Fist Proficiency increased. Current Afterimage Fist Comprehension: 47%. ]

Goku stopped after one attack, his chest rising and falling a little faster than before. "Your body keeps changing during battle."

Lin Chen moved the left arm he had just used to block. "Keep going."

Goku said nothing more. He pushed off with both legs, leaned forward, and crossed the distance between them in a single step. His right fist shot toward Lin Chen's face at extreme speed. When the fist drew close enough, Lin Chen performed a move completely different from anything he had used in the previous exchanges—his body left behind a blurry afterimage where he stood, while his real body had already moved roughly two steps to the side. Goku's fist passed through the afterimage without meeting any resistance. His arm carried forward with its momentum, shifting his center of gravity slightly.

After steadying himself, he turned to look at Lin Chen's new position. "You know the Afterimage Fist too?"

Lin Chen stood still. "I just learned it. I watched your friend's match earlier and roughly remembered the key movements."

Goku said, "You can learn it after watching it once?"

"More or less."

Goku fell silent for a moment, then raised his fists again. "Then I'll use something new too."

He stepped forward half a pace and extended his clenched right fist, knuckles facing forward. But this time, he did not throw it; he merely held it there. Lin Chen felt the air around Goku's body begin to change. The sensation was similar to when Kamehameha was gathering power, but the direction was different—as if a force were converging on him from every direction. Lin Chen could not determine its exact path with his eyes, but it was indeed moving, gathering.

The wooden boards beneath Lin Chen's feet gave off a faint tremor, as though something had passed beneath them. He glanced down, then raised his head again. The flow of that energy had already neared the edge of the space around Goku, yet he still could not observe its complete path.

Goku did not attack. He maintained that posture as though waiting for something.

After the flow of energy continued for a moment, it slowly weakened, gradually drawing back like a receding tide. Goku lowered his hand. "I'm still a little short of mastering it completely. If I use it now, it might miss."

He resumed his stance. "But that Afterimage Fist you used just now was really impressive." The two stepped toward each other again. Wood chips and dust briefly hung suspended in the air beneath their feet before falling back down. Someone in the stands stood up, then sat back down.