Cell

The prince's battle armor snapped in the gale as he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with a savage grin. "Want to play knight in shining armor? Let this prince see if you're worthy!"

Super Saiyan Blue lightning crackled around him, and a suffocating pressure filled the air. Yet Tang Yangbing was completely oblivious to it. He was gazing into the eyes of the girl in his arms, her azure blue irises more brilliant than the purest sapphires. The setting sun gilded her long lashes, while her slightly parted lips resembled newly blooming cherry blossoms. The burning urban ruins in the distance and the swirling dust nearby had become mere embellishments to this breathtaking scene. "Compared to her two-dimensional image in my memories..." Tang Yangbing unconsciously raised a hand to stroke the tips of her hair, his voice low as though whispering to a lover, "she's a thousand times more captivating."

Android 18 suddenly rose onto her toes. Under Trunks's stunned gaze and Vegeta's furious roar, she gently pressed her forehead against Tang Yangbing's. Two utterly different energies began to flow and resonate between them. The Android's mechanical core and the cultivator's ki channels unexpectedly produced a wondrous resonance. Upon the shattered street, their embracing figures cast long shadows in the sunset glow, as though all the desolation of the apocalypse would melt away within this fleeting warmth.

A strange warmth surged into Tang Yangbing's heart without warning. It felt as if butterflies were fluttering inside his chest. He stared blankly at the silver-haired girl before him and suddenly realized—without even noticing it, he had fallen in love. The evening breeze brushed through the wild grass stubbornly growing amid the ruins, while the sunset stretched their overlapping shadows long. The air was filled with the mingled fragrance of gunpowder and violets. Two crimson clouds suddenly rose upon Android 18's fair cheeks, and her mechanical heart emitted an unusually rapid hum within her chest.

She instinctively clenched the torn hem of her clothes. The sensory circuits beneath her artificial skin sent waves of tingling through her body, and the unprecedentedly chaotic data left her somewhat at a loss. "Ding—" A crisp system notification sounded in Tang Yangbing's mind. "Congratulations, Host. You have completed a one-minute close embrace. The special check-in mission has been completed!" "Ding! Congratulations on obtaining a mysterious check-in gift pack! Open it immediately?" the mechanical voice asked again. Keep it for now. Tang Yangbing responded quickly in his mind. At this moment, all his attention was fixed on Android 18's faintly trembling eyelashes. How could he have the leisure to care about some gift pack?

Between their entwined gazes, specks of light danced in the sunset, while the chirping of mutated crickets echoed from the broken walls in the distance. At that tender moment, deep within a fir forest three hundred meters away, a dark green figure silently climbed to the crown of a dead tree. Cell's compound eyes contracted to pinpoints, his jointed fingers digging deeply into the bark. His carapace gleamed with an ominous oily sheen in the twilight.

He stared fixedly at the oblivious Tang Yangbing. A slimy whisper leaked from between his mouthparts. "Android 17... I've finally waited for this chance..." Cell's form had already undergone a startling transformation—his once rounded head had become sharply angular, the transparent thin wings on his back folded between jagged bone spurs, and the straw-like organ extending from his tailbone dripped corrosive slime. "As long as I absorb Android 17..." He greedily licked the remaining energy residue from his forelimbs. "Damn Time Patroller. If you hadn't interfered, I would have absorbed two perfect vessels at once!"

Just as Piccolo gathered a Special Beam Cannon in the distance, cicada-like membrane wings suddenly unfolded from Cell's back. "Whoosh—" The sound of tearing air ripped through the twilight as a dark green afterimage flashed across the battlefield, its barbed tail precisely coiling around the unconscious Android 17. Only then did Tang Yangbing turn his head in alarm. He saw Cell holding Android 17 high overhead, the carapace over his chest opening layer by layer like flower petals. "At last... I will achieve my perfect form!" Cell's crazed howl made the surrounding rubble roll and clatter, while the eerie green glow emitted by his absorption organ turned the entire ruin into a ghostly realm. Cell's claws suddenly tightened like iron pincers, his five fingers sinking deep into Android 17's neck.

Android 17's feet kicked helplessly through the air, his metal combat boots scraping chaotic marks across the sand. He desperately clawed at Cell's arm with both hands, his knuckles whitening from the force, yet he could not budge it in the slightest. "Damn it... who the hell are you?!" Android 17 forced out through clenched teeth, his voice hoarse from the pressure on his windpipe. His mechanical core spun wildly in his chest, emitting a buzzing vibration. Cell's spotted green face drew close to Android 17, cold light glinting in his compound eyes. "You don't need to know."

His low voice carried a chilling echo. "All you need to know is that I'm going to absorb you!" Piccolo, watching from afar, saw his pupils shrink sharply. The Namekian's unique senses made him instantly realize the severity of the situation. Cold sweat beaded on Tien Shinhan's forehead as all three of his eyes widened, and he instinctively assumed the opening stance of the Tri-Beam. Chiaotzu floated in midair, his small body trembling nonstop. At that moment, Cell's tail, covered in ring-like markings, rose as if it were alive. Its tip opened like a grotesque man-eating flower. Viscous digestive fluid dripped from its serrated edges, corroding wisps of green smoke into the sand.

Under everyone's horrified gazes, the opened tail sac suddenly covered Android 17's head. Accompanied by a teeth-grinding swallowing sound, it engulfed the struggling Android whole. "Android 17!" The color instantly drained from Android 18's previously icy beautiful face. She tore free from Tang Yangbing's arms, her golden hair streaming wildly as she charged forward. Her long legs kicked hard against a rock, turning her into a bolt of white lightning. Her knife-hand cleaved toward Cell's throat with a shriek that tore through the air. "Damn, that bastard actually interrupted my moment." Tang Yangbing clicked his tongue in annoyance, then narrowed his eyes as he studied the battlefield. "Huh? Is that Cell?

He actually appeared early... but why is he already in his second form?" He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. According to the original plot, Cell should have evolved into his second form only after absorbing Android 17. Yet this green monster clearly already possessed some carapace traits. The bone spurs protruding from his back gleamed metallically beneath the sunlight, and his body was a full size larger than his initial form. In the center of the battlefield, Android 18's offensive grew increasingly fierce. Her figure flickered rapidly around Cell, leaving a trail of afterimages every time she appeared.

Energy blasts containing destructive power shot out in rapid succession, exploding deep craters where Cell had been standing. The scorching shockwaves melted the surrounding rocks into lava-like masses. Yet Cell dodged every attack with effortless ease. At times, he tilted aside to evade her lethal knife-hand strikes; at others, he casually swatted away energy blasts. There was even a hint of mockery in his compound eyes. When Android 18 launched a high kick directly at his temple, he suddenly raised his carapace-covered arm to block it. The metallic clash made the onlookers' eardrums ache. "Too weak."

Cell shook his head contemptuously. His tail suddenly darted out like a venomous snake, winding around Android 18's ankle. "Very soon, you'll become part of me too..."

"Where did this monster come from? Android 18's attacks aren't doing anything at all!" Krillin's eyes widened, fine sweat beading across his forehead. Yamcha struggled to support himself as he said in a trembling voice, "How can it be this strong? I've never heard of anything like it, and... it's way too ugly!" Android 18 darted rapidly through the air, her golden hair whipping madly in the wind.

She fired several energy beams in succession, every strike carrying the force to tear through the air.