Fire Mountain

[Ding! Check-in reward issued: Combat Power +100, Points +50!]

The motorcycle bounced wildly across the wasteland. Chen He kept his eyes closed, yet even from dozens of meters away, he could sense the poverty reeking off the jet car behind them.

Those two fools, Yamcha and Puar, still hadn't given up.

All along the way, those desert bandits kept finding new ways to court death. One moment, they pretended to be injured passersby; the next, they buried explosives in the road. Their most outrageous attempt was having that blue cat, Puar, transform into a stunning beauty to seduce Chen He. Chen He kicked him away, nearly knocking the breath out of him.

Sitting in the motorcycle's back seat, Chen He was growing irritated from the scorching heat.

They had not even reached Fire Mountain, yet the asphalt beneath them was already smoking. He had noticed Yamcha and Puar's shabby tracker long ago, but he could not be bothered to remove it. Before absolute strength, any petty trick was nothing but a waste of time.

And the farther north they went, the less moisture there was in the air, replaced by a scorching sensation that seemed to set their lungs ablaze.

"It's so hot! Is this place about to catch fire?" Bulma fanned herself frantically while tugging her collar wide open. Her fair skin had been baked pink by the sun.

After rounding a mountain pass, a gigantic Fire Mountain stood directly across the road. Tongues of flame shot dozens of meters into the air, dyeing half the sky a dark crimson.

The Dragon Radar beeped urgently in Bulma's hand, its needle firmly fixed on the mountaintop.

"The Dragon Ball is up there!" Looking at the blazing mountain, Bulma wailed in despair. "How are we supposed to get up there? We'll be roasted before we even reach the entrance!"

"I'll do it!"

Goku slapped the Flying Nimbus and shot into the sky with a shout.

But these were no ordinary mountain flames. They were poisonous underground fires that had accumulated for ten years. Goku had only flown halfway up when a blast of heat and black smoke came surging toward him.

"Ahh! My butt! My butt's on fire!"

Goku screamed as he tumbled from the sky like a fireball, the tip of his tail still smoking. The moment he landed, he plunged into the stinking roadside ditch with a splash. Only after bubbling underwater for a while did he dare stick his head out again, his normally bright eyes reddened by the smoke.

"Who dares trespass on my territory?!"

The ground began to shake violently. A giant carrying a huge axe and wearing an iron helmet with ox horns blocked their path like a small mountain. Before Ox-King could swing his axe down, his gaze fell upon the Power Pole on Goku's back, and he froze.

"That's... Senior Brother Son Gohan's treasure?"

After an awkward confrontation, Ox-King's murderous aura vanished completely, replaced by a deeply troubled expression. "Ah, my dear nephew! It's not that I won't give you the Dragon Ball. This fire has been burning for ten years, and my castle and treasures are all trapped inside. If you can borrow the Bansho Fan from my master, Master Roshi, and put out the fire, you can take the Dragon Ball. I'll even give my daughter Chi-Chi to you in marriage!"

[Ding! Side quest unlocked: Extinguish the Fire Mountain flames. Reward: Points +500!]

"Hey, Old Ox, no need to go that far."

Chen He got off the motorcycle and dusted himself off. Then he turned toward a large boulder behind them and sneered. "You've been eavesdropping long enough. Haven't you heard enough yet? Yamcha, come out."

Yamcha, hiding behind the rock, went stiff all over. Covered in dust, he emerged with Puar.

"Haha, just passing by. Really, we were just passing by." Yamcha wiped away sweat as he gave an awkward laugh.

Chen He ignored his nonsense and pointed north. "That old fool Master Roshi threw the fan away long ago. Yamcha, bring your jet car over. I know where the old man tossed the Bansho Fan."

Since the Dragon Radar showed that the Dragon Ball was on the mountaintop, Chen He had no interest in waiting around for the plot to inch forward.

Half a day later, at the northern ice mountains.

"C-Cold... I'm freezing..." Bulma shivered, wrapped in a military overcoat.

Braving the icy wind, Chen He squeezed into an extremely concealed crack in the ice. Amid a pile of frozen rat bones and scattered rocks, he pulled out a dusty, battered fan that looked like an oversized flyswatter.

When they hurried back to Fire Mountain, Goku snatched the fan and swung it fiercely at the mountaintop!

"Whoosh—!"

Not only did the fire fail to go out, but the powerful gust made it burn even fiercer. Lava even began to flow down the mountain path.

"I told you this thing was junk!" Oolong ran around in circles with his head covered. "We're going to be roasted into braised pig heads!"

Chen He stared at the endlessly spewing mountain, his brows tightly furrowed.

In the original story, Master Roshi's Kamehameha had extinguished the fire, but it had also blasted the entire mountain and castle into ruins. They would have to dig through the crater like archaeologists just to find one Dragon Ball. It was far too troublesome.

"The fire won't go out because the earth's energy hasn't been sealed off."

Chen He looked at Goku. "Go find the eggshell of a fire-swallowing bird at the northern crater. That thing can withstand extreme heat. Yamcha, take your cat and find some wild honey."

"Huh? What do we need those for?" Yamcha stared blankly.

Chen He's gaze turned cold as he cracked his knuckles. "Do you want a beating, or do you want to work?"

"We'll find them! Right away!" Yamcha immediately grabbed Puar and ran off.

Half an hour later, Chen He ground the eggshell into powder, mixed it with wild honey, and made a pot of thick paste so sticky it stretched into strands.

With a leap, he shot forward like lightning, charging through temperatures of several hundred degrees to the fiercest-burning fissure halfway up the mountain. He wrapped his hands in ki and swiftly plastered the entire pot of paste tightly over the crack.

"Goku, now! Fan it!"

Goku swung the Bansho Fan with all his strength. This time, without the underground fire energy continuously feeding the flames, the hurricane swept through. The sea of fire gave a shrill hiss and rapidly went out for real.

As the black smoke dispersed, the castle atop the mountain was blackened by soot, yet miraculously intact.

"That's amazing! The fire's out!" Chi-Chi ran over with a red face and shyly tugged at Goku's sleeve.

Ox-King laughed heartily and patted the back of Goku's head. "Good kid! I'm leaving Chi-Chi to you from now on! You two can get married someday!"

"Married? What's marriage? Can you eat it?" Goku scratched his head blankly.

Bulma had long since stopped watching the show. Lifting her skirt, she rushed into the ruins, then let out a scream half a minute later. "Found it! The fifth one!"

Chen He leaned against a cooled rock and glanced at the status panel.

[Ding! Fire Mountain node repaired successfully. Points gained: +500!]

[Current Points: 1000]

Chen He let out a long breath. "I have enough points to exchange for the Afterimage Fist now!"

[Afterimage Fist: 1000 Points (Exchange Available)]

"Exchange for the Afterimage Fist!" Previously, he had combat power but did not know any techniques. Now that he had the Afterimage Fist, he finally had an offensive move!

He glanced at Yamcha, who had been hiding nearby from the very beginning and watching their every move. "Heh, he won't amount to much!"

Next, it was time to find another Dragon Ball!