The cooking smoke over Mount Paozu had barely begun to rise when the sky was torn open.
It was not one of those dark-purple demonic rifts from the Demon Realm, but an extraordinarily orderly spatial gate, its edges shimmering with pale-blue particles. The frame was carved with cuneiform script from the era of the Primordial God Clan, every stroke flickering on and off at an extremely slow rhythm. Ji Ming stepped out of the Gravity Chamber, Crimson-Gold Ultra Instinct flames automatically igniting over his body—not out of hostility, but because the gate itself was disturbing the laws of time. He could feel the airflow around them becoming uneven. The pine forest north of the training ground swayed at a different speed from the one to the south. Even the twig Broly was using to draw circles while crouched on the stone steps stuttered for the briefest instant.
Chronoa emerged from the spatial gate. She wore the standard white robes of the Time Patrol, with a golden hourglass-shaped insignia pinned to her collar, and carried a light staff slightly shorter than Whis's scepter. Three patrol officers in matching attire followed behind her, each carrying a silver-white restraint case. Sai Gao came last—his hands were held before him by a faint blue restraining membrane, yet he did not walk like a prisoner. He looked more like a soldier who did not know which side he belonged on.
Broly sprang up from the steps, green flames bursting over his body for an instant. He stepped forward and shielded Tabu and Prano, a deep, muffled growl like a beast's warning rumbling from his throat. Tabu reached out and pressed a hand against his arm, quietly telling him they were allies. Only then did Broly barely rein in the green flames, though his body remained