The fierce battle on the wasteland had completely transformed the terrain for several kilometers around.
After assimilating Kami, Piccolo's strength had undergone a qualitative leap. Each swing of his fists kicked up waves of air powerful enough to topple mountains and overturn seas, and he was actually fighting Android 17 to a standstill. However, the android's almost cheating "infinite energy" was ultimately an immovable boulder. As time passed, the sweat and wounds on Piccolo's body grew more and more numerous, and his movements began to show a trace of sluggishness.
Bang!
The instant Piccolo clashed head-on with 17 in a heavy punch and his body fell briefly rigid, Android 18, who had been watching from the side, flashed a sharp gleam through her cold blue eyes. She wasted no words. Her body drew out a fierce afterimage, and a tricky whip kick slammed viciously into Piccolo's ribs.
"Ughhh!!"
With the muffled crack of breaking bones, Piccolo was sent crashing into a pile of rubble like a kite with its string cut.
"Despicable bastards... two against one." Krillin gritted his teeth as he watched from afar, his whole body trembling uncontrollably.
At that desperate moment, another ripple of space-time tore open in the sky, and the time machine engraved with the word "HOPE" descended with an earsplitting roar. Trunks, with his pale purple hair, pushed open the hatch. Seeing the badly injured Piccolo, his eyes filled with fury and self-reproach—he had still arrived too late.
"Hmph. What an ugly sight, Piccolo."
A cold, arrogant sneer came from above.
Vegeta slowly landed in the center of the battlefield. His black hair stood upright in the raging wind, veins bulged on his forehead, and his entire body exuded a brutal aura that made it impossible to look straight at him. After the hellish