Aftermath

In an instant, the shattered earth seemed to be gently stroked by some invisible hand. Countless cracks closed rapidly as if they had come alive, producing a faint rustling sound.

The scattered fragments of golden ore glimmered faintly, as though summoned. One by one, they rose into the air and accurately embedded themselves back into place, reforming the complete, gleaming mineral vein.

The violent residual energy in the air seemed to be washed clean by spring water, shedding its heat and chaos and turning into soft motes of light that quietly faded away.

The collapsed conical stone pillars also began to tremble from their bases, giving off a deep hum as they rose section by section from the ground again, piercing straight toward the dark red sky.

The fractured ground shifted as rubble rolled and rejoined. In the blink of an eye, it returned to a smooth black rock surface, polished like a mirror.

Even more miraculous, the stones that had been blasted into the air by the shockwave and had yet to hit the ground seemed to have their rewind buttons pressed. They flew back along their original trajectories and settled firmly into their former places without even stirring a trace of dust.

The entire process flowed as smoothly as water, taking less than three heartbeats.

In under three seconds, the entire God of Destruction Realm had been completely renewed—no scorch marks, no cracks. Everything was stable and orderly, quiet enough to be unsettling.

Only a faint trace of that "presence" left behind by the fierce collision still lingered in the air, vaguely proving that the battle capable of tearing apart stars had truly happened.

This was the power of an angel.

Destruction and rebirth, collapse and reconstruction—before them, they were merely games played with a turn of the hand, elegant and absolute.

Champa shook his head, then vigorously patted the dust off his ornate clothes, though there was barely any dust on them to begin with.

He spread his short legs and stopped in front of Qi Heng. He had to tilt his head slightly upward just to see Qi Heng's face clearly.

Twenty years seemed to have condensed into this single moment—the child he had picked up from the ruins back then, stubborn-eyed yet frail-bodied, now stood tall as a pine. He stood quietly, his aura as steady as a mountain, having become a powerhouse capable of repelling him, the God of Destruction of Universe 6, head-on.

"Qi Heng." Champa put away his usual impatient, food-obsessed manner. A rare seriousness appeared on his round, plump face, along with a trace of complicated emotion.

He licked his dry lips, his voice low. "There's something... I've never told you."

At those words, Qi Heng's swordlike brows rose almost imperceptibly. His deep gaze rested calmly on Champa as he waited for him to continue.

"Twenty years ago, that bastard Beerus from Universe 7, who does nothing but sleep, and I... made a bet." When Champa mentioned Beerus's name, he clenched his teeth and furrowed his short, thick brows. His voice brimmed with the unwillingness and competitiveness he had accumulated over the years; merely thinking of the other man made his blood boil.

"You don't need to know what we bet on. You only need to remember one thing—" He raised a thick, stubby finger, nearly poking Qi Heng in the chest, and said each word distinctly, "I want you to go to Universe 7. Find Beerus. Fight him. Fight him fairly and openly!"

"The heart of the wager," Vados added from the side in her gentle, pleasant voice, the crystal ball atop her staff glowing faintly, "is to make Lord Beerus concede wholeheartedly." She tilted her head slightly toward Qi Heng, a meaningful expectation in her violet eyes.

Qi Heng fell silent.

Beerus—the God of Destruction of Universe 7, widely acknowledged as the strongest among the twelve Gods of Destruction and one of the oldest beings among them.

This name had already been familiar to him before he crossed into this world. After arriving here, it had become an ultimate legend revered by all powerhouses.

And now, that legend had become a reality he had to face—perhaps even challenge?

All sorts of thoughts flashed through his mind, until only a clear, pure fighting spirit remained.

"I understand." He spoke calmly, yet his voice carried the steadfastness forged through countless trials.

Champa clearly had not expected him to agree so readily. He froze for a moment, blinking his small eyes. "You... you're not going to ask why? You're not going to ask why I have to send you?"

"There's no need." Qi Heng slowly shook his head, shifting his gaze away from Champa's face toward the illusory barrier of the universe on the distant horizon.

His gaze seemed to pierce through layer upon layer of space, seeing that purple figure sleeping in some unknown place.

"To fight without restraint against someone who bears the title of 'the strongest' is, to me, the most sufficient and most eagerly anticipated reason of all."

Champa stared blankly at his focused yet calm profile. There was no fear in those eyes, no self-interest—only the purest, most blazing desire for the pinnacle and for challenge.

After a moment of silence, Champa suddenly burst into booming laughter. "Hahahahaha! Good! Good boy! Well said! That's more like it! This is the candidate God of Destruction I chose! Bold enough, fierce enough!" Laughing, he walked up to Qi Heng, stretched out his thick hand, and slapped Qi Heng's shoulder with all his strength.

With a dull bang, Qi Heng did not move an inch, as steady as a boulder.

Instead, Champa felt as if he had struck a piece of ancient star-forged iron. The recoil numbed his palm and made the corner of his mouth twitch in pain, yet his smile only grew wider.

"Let's go!" Champa abruptly withdrew his hand, gave a grand wave, then turned and strode toward Vados with steps that did not quite match his build but were utterly resolute.

Every step landed on the newly restored black rock with a solid sound. All of his earlier dishevelment had vanished, and at this moment, he had once again become the proud God of Destruction of Universe 6.

"We leave now! For Universe 7! Let that bastard who does nothing but sleep and eat see just how formidable the power cultivated by Universe 6 truly is!" His voice echoed through the divine realm, carrying unquestionable resolve and blazing fighting spirit, as though he could already see the future battle that would span universes.