Engagement

Although Piccolo was astonished by Frieza's power, he was not afraid. As he looked at Frieza, his fighting spirit surged.

Frieza launched the first attack, his tail suddenly extending as it stabbed toward Piccolo. Piccolo sidestepped out of the way, then rushed forward to appear before Frieza and threw a punch. Frieza raised a hand to block it, and Piccolo immediately pulled back and continued his assault. The two continuously exchanged blows, the shockwaves from their clash spreading through the sky in all directions.

Mountains began to collapse, and the earth cracked apart, spreading outward in a spherical pattern centered on the two of them. Inside the house, Nail and the others hurriedly moved to another location with Bulma.

Piccolo gradually fell into a disadvantage. Though he narrowed the gap between them with skill, the disparity was simply too great. Moreover, Piccolo's technique was still somewhat inferior to Ye Bai's, not enough to erase the difference between them.

As Piccolo kept attacking, Frieza took a few hits, but they were insignificant. Yet even a slight graze left Piccolo injured. As time passed, their battle remained fierce, but with his stamina waning, Piccolo took one of Frieza's punches head-on and was sent flying, only stopping after smashing through a small mountain.

Piccolo rushed out, panting as he stared at Frieza in the distant sky. Frieza looked completely unharmed, merely standing there with his arms folded as he watched him. Realizing he was no match for him, Piccolo returned to the others and said, "Goku, it's up to you. I don't have enough stamina left."

"Oh? You can't keep going already? Changing fighters?" Frieza said, utterly unconcerned by Piccolo's actions.

"Hehe, it's finally my turn. Watching just now really made my hands itch," Goku said eagerly after loosening up.

Goku slowly rose into the air and came before Frieza. The moment their eyes met, Frieza actually felt a sense of threat from the man before him, along with an indescribable sense of destiny.

In an instant, as though they had an unspoken understanding, the two exchanged a punch. Shockwaves spread in every direction. Frieza stared at the man before him in surprise—his strength had actually been slightly greater than Frieza's just now. Seeing Frieza freeze for an instant, Goku seized the opportunity and launched a fierce barrage, his fists raining down and catching Frieza off guard. When Frieza recovered, he instantly flared his aura, intending to force Goku back.

Goku instantly grabbed Frieza by the wrist and yanked him back, punching him in the temple once more. He then pulled him back with force and drove a knee into Frieza's abdomen before releasing him. Bringing both hands together, he swung with all his strength at the back of Frieza's neck, sending him crashing toward the ground.

Boom!

The ground was shattered once more by the tremendous force. Chunks of rock floated into the air before crashing back down heavily, burying Frieza underground.

Yet Goku could feel that Frieza's aura had not weakened at all. Somewhat puzzled, he muttered, "Why? Why hasn't his aura changed?"

Pushing aside the rocks pressing down on him, Frieza wiped the purple blood from the corner of his mouth. He looked at Goku in the sky and said furiously, "You actually made me hurt a little just now. Damn it. Hehehe, it seems I need to get a little serious. I suppose you don't know that I can transform a second time, do you?"

"I'll let you taste fear. I'll show you just how insignificant your power is. Next, I'll teach you what true despair means."

"You may not know this, but each time I transform, my power multiplies several times over. And I've still saved two more transformations for the likes of you."

With that, Frieza folded his arms and bent forward, his entire body trembling from exertion. White backward-curving horns emerged from his back, and his body swelled once again. His face began to change, his mouth protruding forward while the back of his head expanded. His black horns turned into small white horns slanting backward, while an even larger pair of white horns grew behind them. Overall, he looked more like a white alien creature.

Seeing that things were going badly, Vegeta turned and flew toward the Grand Elder and the others. He needed to find out how they had become so powerful. If possible, it might give him a better chance of survival as well.

After reaching the Grand Elder's location, Vegeta hurriedly asked how he could become stronger. Only after much pleading and persuasion did the Grand Elder agree to unlock his potential.

After having his potential unlocked, Vegeta felt that his battle power had increased by around tenfold. He charged back toward the battlefield and, upon arriving before the newly transformed Frieza, spoke those words.

"Frieza, your next opponent is me—Super Vegeta!"

Not only Frieza, but Goku and the others were stunned as well. Brother, are you kidding? You weren't even as strong as Piccolo. Were you here to die?

His battle power had risen too drastically in an instant, causing his confidence to swell beyond measure. Vegeta charged at Frieza, but before he could even touch him, Frieza sent him flying with a powerful slap toward the distant mountains.

Boom!

The entire mountain collapsed. Goku's mouth twitched as he watched, while everyone else wore bewildered expressions. Frieza had thought Vegeta had truly become stronger, but he had not expected him to be so fragile.

"What a disgusting monkey. He has the same revolting personality as his dead father," Frieza said with disgust.

"Let's continue our earlier battle. This is the first time I've encountered someone as powerful as you. But why do I feel like you look somewhat familiar?" Frieza then turned to Goku and said.

Looking at that familiar face, Frieza seemed to remember. Back on Planet Vegeta, the Saiyan who had led the resistance against him had looked exactly like the man before him.

"Oh~ So that Saiyan who led them back then was your father? You really do look exactly alike. Unfortunately, your father was reduced to ashes by my energy blast back then. I never expected you to meet the same fate. I'll give you the same death as your father. Hohohoho~" Frieza could not help laughing happily after saying that, feeling that he was truly merciful.

Hearing those words, Goku inexplicably felt anger rise within him. He charged directly at Frieza, throwing punch after punch at him, but because of the vast difference in power, Frieza instead struck him in the face with his tail and kicked him flying.

Goku burst out of the shattered mountain and calmed down. He launched another attack against Frieza. Frieza swatted away an energy blast, but in the blink of an eye, Goku was already in front of him, kicking out only for Frieza to block it with one hand.

A red glow erupted around Goku's body as he threw another punch. Frieza had just raised his hand to block when he discovered that his opponent's speed had suddenly increased. After taking the blow to the head, he was instantly swallowed by a torrential barrage of attacks.

Frieza snapped out of the assault and unleashed an even more powerful aura, forcing Goku back. Frieza looked at Goku, breathing slightly. That barrage really had rattled him. The Namekian from before had been the same. Their attacks differed from those of every enemy he had fought in the past. That suffocating, storm-like pressure made even him feel deeply uncomfortable.

"Oh? Are you preparing to use your final transformation, Frieza?" Goku stopped attacking and turned sideways to look at Frieza as he asked.

"Hehehe, you damned monkey. You are the first person to push me this far, and the first enemy to see this form of mine. You should feel honored. But next, I will let you experience true despair!" With that, Frieza curled up slightly, cracks beginning to appear all over his body. Purple light shone from within them.

As the light grew brighter and brighter, the aura radiating from Frieza triggered an explosion. Billowing smoke and dust spread outward, gradually revealing a figure that looked less imposing than his previous towering form, even somewhat shorter.

As the dust dispersed, Frieza's figure revealed his original appearance. His body was porcelain white, while his shoulders and the top of his head were covered in dark purple, glass-like armor. A pentagonal piece of the same dark purple armor sat at the center of his chest, and two tear-trough-like lines ran from beneath his eyes down to his jaw. He stood with his arms folded, coldly watching Goku.