The Fourth Stage of Astral Aura Bone Tempering, Everyone Grows Stronger; Demonic Machines Secretly Forge a Killing Move

That night, after they returned to Turtle Hermit Island, the sound of the tides mingled with the evening breeze and swept across the beach, yet the island remained far from quiet.

The lights in the wooden house's front room stayed on deep into the night. Master Roshi stood before a sea chart, leaning on his cane as his fingertip passed over two marked locations—a desert and a mountain wilderness. His expression was grave. "Piccolo and Dr. Gero have joined forces. That means demonic power combined with human technology. The consequences could be disastrous. There won't be any more tentative skirmishes in the days ahead."

Qi Tian sat nearby, rubbing his finger along the rim of his cup. Black-and-gold divine essence flickered faintly at his fingertips. "Android 8 was only a prototype. Dr. Gero has the complete combat data now. The next batch of androids will incorporate more demonic genes, and they'll only be stronger. We don't have much time."

"Then we'll train! We'll train until we can smash every problem with one punch!" Goku clenched his fist, his eyes blazing. His struggle against Android 8 that day hadn't discouraged him at all. If anything, it had only stoked his competitive spirit.

At dawn the next day, their new training regimen officially began.

Master Roshi brought out every body-tempering method from the Turtle School's teachings. Combined with the divine essence breathing technique Qi Tian taught them, they formed a dual training system: "tempering the muscles and bones outside, condensing an energy core within." Bulma, meanwhile, upgraded the gravity suits to a maximum of six times Earth's gravity and added an energy pulse function that stimulated acupoints during training to accelerate the flow of blood and energy.

On the beach, four figures darted and weaved among the waves beneath five times Earth's gravity.

Goku charged at the front, every punch accompanied by a sharp whistling sound. He no longer fixated on brute-force clashes. Instead, he imitated Qi Tian, concentrating his ki into his fists and putting power into each movement. Even under five times Earth's gravity, he moved as swiftly as the wind. His fists struck the sea, blasting up walls of water several dozen feet high.

"Condense your ki into your bones. Gather your strength in your marrow."

Qi Tian's voice came from nearby as he strolled beside them. Every so often, he lightly tapped a fingertip, sending a wisp of black-and-gold energy into someone's meridians to guide their ki deep into their bones.

"If your strength only rests in your skin and meridians, it's ultimately insubstantial. Only when it reaches your bones and marrow can you control it at will and unleash several times your usual power."

Krillin gritted his teeth, the veins on his forehead bulging. Five times Earth's gravity pressed down until his bones creaked, but after he followed Qi Tian's method and guided his ki into his bones, it didn't become any harder. Instead, his muscles and bones seemed to burn, and each exertion felt heavier and steadier than before.

"So that's how it works... When the ki enters your bones, it's like your body is wrapped in inner armor!"

Yamcha, meanwhile, focused on refining his footwork. Under five times Earth's gravity, his Wolf Fang Fist had slowed, but its power had grown more concentrated. His fists no longer filled the sky with afterimages. Each strike went straight for a vital point, and his compressed gusts of force had become far more penetrating. He even grasped the trick of using an opponent's force against them: by punching with the recoil of the waves, he increased his power by a full thirty percent.

They spent the day tempering their bodies under gravity and painstakingly guiding their ki into their bones. At night, they honed their control over their senses and their energy.

Qi Tian released fine streams of black-and-gold energy, transforming them into countless tiny arrows of ki that attacked the three from every direction. With their eyes closed, they had to sense the attacks through their energy alone, dodging and counterattacking. At first, they were in a sorry state, often struck by the arrows and left numb all over. Half a month later, they could move freely through the barrage and even catch the arrows precisely, then send them flying back.

This relentless training, day and night, yielded results that felt like a complete rebirth.

Two months later, on the rocky shore of Turtle Hermit Island.

Goku stood bare-chested, his muscles smooth and powerful, brimming with explosive strength. He planted himself amid the waves and slowly brought his hands together. Pale blue ki compressed inward, finally condensing into a fist-sized orb as deep in color as the ocean.

"Core-Condensing Kamehameha!"

The orb shot from his hands and flew into the depths of the sea. After a few seconds of silence, the water abruptly bulged, then exploded with a roar. A wall of water soared dozens of meters into the sky, and the waves crashed against the shore. Even the cliffs in the distance trembled faintly.

"It's more than three times as powerful as before!" Goku exclaimed, waving his fist excitedly.

Not far away, Krillin pressed his palms together. Ki spun rapidly at his fingertips, forming a palm-sized, disc-shaped blade, its edge thin as a cicada's wing. As it spun at high speed, it let out a piercing whine.

"Destructo Disc!"

The disc shot from his hands and easily sliced through several thick pillars of rock. The cuts were smooth as mirrors, and the blade kept going, flying hundreds of meters before finally sinking into the sea.

Yamcha stood atop a crag. His figure suddenly blurred, and several afterimages appeared at once. Each one unleashed a move from the Wolf Fang Fist, their punches interweaving into a net that sealed off the entire space ahead.

"Afterimage Wolf Fang Fist!"

The force of his punches dissipated, and fragments of rock pattered to the ground. His footwork and fists had become one, making it impossible to tell what was real and what was an illusion. Both the attack's power and range far surpassed what they had been before.

The three of them were nearly twice as strong in their base forms as they had been during the battle in town. Even if they faced Android 8 again, they could reliably overpower him together without Qi Tian's help.

Atop the cliff, black-and-gold energy flowed slowly around Qi Tian, while a faint golden aura shimmered over his skin.

[Ping! The host has continuously deduced the Divine-tier Body Tempering Art, triggering a cultivation sign-in.]

[Sign in?]

The system notification sounded. Qi Tian silently confirmed.

[Ping! Sign-in complete. Rewards distributed.]

[1. Permanent combat power +1,800. Current base combat power: 19,000.]

[2. Divine-tier Body Tempering Art, fourth stage perfected: Vital energy transformed into astral aura. Astral aura protects the body, disperses thirty percent of incoming force, and greatly improves the body's ability to heal itself.]

[3. Divine Essence Bind: Condenses divine essence into chains that restrain an enemy's energy and ki. Duration depends on the difference in combat power between both sides.]

A warm current swept through his body, and his muscles, bones, and flesh crackled sharply. Black-and-gold divine essence fully merged with his vital energy, and the golden aura around his body grew ever more solid. Qi Tian could clearly feel every inch of his body breathing and strengthening itself. Even if he was injured, he could heal at incredible speed.

He raised a hand and clenched it. An invisible force of divine essence gathered in his palm, forming a chain as the air twisted faintly around it. Once Divine Essence Bind took hold, an ordinary fighter would have their energy core locked and lose their combat ability in an instant.

"The fourth stage is perfected..." Qi Tian murmured, his gaze turning west.

Over the past two months, Piccolo's energy had remained dormant, yet grown ever deeper and more sinister. Clearly, he too was making rapid progress. The energy fluctuations from the laboratory beneath the desert had grown increasingly violent. Dr. Gero's research was progressing even faster than expected.

And deep in space, the two Saiyan auras were already unmistakable. Brutal and powerful, they carried an oppressive force that seemed to threaten the destruction of everything, steadily drawing closer.

Only seven months remained before they reached Earth.

"Seven months... That's enough."

Qi Tian's gaze was calm. His Divine-tier Body Tempering Art could still advance, and Goku and the others still had plenty of room to grow. The decisive battle had yet to come. Every bit of progress they made now would give them a better chance of surviving later.

At the same time, a thousand miles away, deep in a mountain cavern.

Black miasma churned in the depths of the cave, and solidified into black frost that coated the rock walls. Piccolo floated at its center, demonic markings covering his body. His crimson eyes were shut, and his entire being radiated a chilling, unsettling aura.

After two months in seclusion, Dr. Gero's biological modification technology had fully awakened Piccolo's demonic potential. His demonic body had grown several times stronger, and his regenerative abilities had become terrifying. More importantly, he had mastered a secret demonic art—Demonic Essence Armor.

Piccolo's eyes snapped open, and crimson light cut through the darkness. The black miasma around him drew inward, forming a dark purple suit of energy armor over his body. Its intricate patterns radiated menace. Beneath the armor, his defensive power soared; ordinary energy attacks could not break through it.

"Qi Tian..."

Piccolo spoke the name softly, his voice filled with bone-chilling hatred.

He could sense that the energy around Turtle Hermit Island had grown stronger, especially Qi Tian's. Even from a thousand miles away, that steady, weighty pressure made him wary. But he was no longer as powerless as before. With Demonic Essence Armor and his demonic techniques, he was confident he could face Qi Tian head-on.

"Wait a little longer... Once I've fully mastered Demonic Essence Surge, I'll head to Turtle Hermit Island."

Piccolo closed his eyes, and the black miasma began to churn again. The pressure in the cave grew heavier.

The laboratory beneath the desert was filled with a very different kind of fervor.

Dr. Gero stood before a massive array of incubation pods, gazing at five new androids arranged in a row. His aged face was flushed with feverish excitement.

"Five mass-produced Android 9 units, all infused with demonic genes and martial arts data!"

He struck the control panel excitedly. The liquid in the incubation pods slowly drained away. All five androids opened their eyes at once. Their pupils were crimson, their movements perfectly synchronized, and their energy was focused and uniform.

Compared with Android 8, Android 9 had done away with redundant heavy armor, greatly improving its speed and agility. Each unit also contained move-copying and self-repair modules. Its individual combat power was slightly lower than Android 8's, but the five could fight together in a battle formation, making them far more formidable than Android 8 fighting alone.

"Give the order. Android 9 Squad deploys immediately. The target is Turtle Hermit Island." Dr. Gero's voice was sinister. "Collect the combat data of every powerful fighter, no matter the cost. Especially that Qi Tian. I want data from him fighting at full strength!"

He turned to look at the two incubation pods sealed away at the far end of the laboratory. They were numbered 17 and 18.

"Once Android 9 brings back the final data, you two will be the ultimate masterpieces I present to the world..."

Dr. Gero let out a cackling laugh. It echoed through the cold laboratory, steeped in madness and obsession.

Back on Turtle Hermit Island, no one knew that a siege was already on its way.

Under the setting sun, Goku was pestering Krillin to test out a new move he had just developed, and the two were trading blows evenly. Nearby, Yamcha adjusted his breathing and reviewed the flaws in his recent moves. Bulma sat on the beach, calibrating a new Scouter as data raced across its screen.

Everything seemed peaceful and orderly.

Only Qi Tian, standing at the edge of the cliff, suddenly looked up toward the western horizon.

His black-and-gold divine essence stirred faintly. Five powerful mechanical energy signatures, each carrying the aura of the demonic clan, were racing across the sea straight toward Turtle Hermit Island.

They had come sooner than expected.

Qi Tian slowly rose to his feet, his black robe snapping in the evening breeze.

"They're here."

He uttered the words softly, and the evening wind carried his voice to the beach.

The sounds of sparring stopped abruptly. Goku, Krillin, and Yamcha all looked up toward the western horizon. There was no panic in their eyes, only the spark of battle readiness.

After two months of hard training, this was the perfect chance to test their progress.

Master Roshi rose slowly, his pipe between his teeth. He looked toward the place where the sea met the sky, and a sharp glint flashed through his cloudy eyes.

A storm was brewing, and the wind had filled the tower.

This siege of Turtle Hermit Island would be the perfect test for the young fighters.

Five dark purple figures soon appeared at the edge of the horizon.

The battle was about to begin.