Half-Finished Modification Overwhelms All, Gang Qi Breaks the Game, Divine Essence Leaves Its Mark

Android 17 flashed forward and appeared before Goku. Without any superfluous moves, he threw a straightforward punch. The force of his fist carried faint black mist and fine silver-white currents, moving so fast that it left a pale afterimage in the air.

Goku's pupils contracted slightly, and he instinctively raised an arm to block.

Bang—

A dull impact exploded. Goku's feet plowed two deep trenches through the beach, and he slid back over ten meters before steadying himself. His arm had gone numb, and inwardly, he was shocked. This android looked slender, yet his strength was even greater than No. 9's in Berserk Mode. Moreover, there was a strange dissipating force around his fist. Nearly twenty percent of the qi he had condensed over his body had been silently dispersed.

"Interesting!"

Rather than being afraid, Goku's fighting spirit surged even higher. He kicked off the ground, turning into a streak of blue light as he charged forward. Fissioned, highly condensed qi wrapped around his fist as he unleashed inch-by-inch force, aiming straight for Android 17's face. Android 17 neither dodged nor retreated, instead meeting him with a punch of his own.

The clang of metal rang out in rapid succession as the two figures collided at high speed in midair. Every exchange of fists detonated a circular shockwave. Goku grew faster and faster, his fist shadows layering over one another, yet Android 17 remained evenly matched throughout. Streams of data flashed rapidly through his pupils, analyzing Goku's movements with absolute clarity.

"Move analysis complete. Preliminary replication of the qi fission mechanism successful."

As Android 17's mechanical voice fell silent, his punching style abruptly changed. He had actually begun imitating Goku's method of generating force at close range. Pale silver qi condensed around his fist. Though it was not as refined as Goku's fissioned qi, it possessed thirty percent of its essence. Their fists collided, and Goku felt the force in his opponent's punch suddenly grow much heavier, forcing him back half a step.

"You can even copy qi fission?" Goku's eyes widened, then he grinned. "Then I'll use something you can't learn!"

He abruptly pulled back, bringing his hands together swiftly at his waist. Deep-blue qi compressed layer upon layer, shrinking continuously until it finally condensed into a speck of light no larger than a fingertip. This was the second-level fission he had recently developed. Its degree of compression far surpassed anything before, and its power was even more terrifying.

"Kamehameha: Second-Level Fission!"

The tiny point of light shot through the air at extreme speed, tearing apart the atmosphere along its path with a piercing boom.

Android 17's expression changed slightly as the core in his chest abruptly lit up with intertwined silver and violet radiance. An energy shield instantly spread out before him. The point of light struck the shield and remained silent for half a second before erupting with a thunderous blast. Terrifying qi surged in every direction, sending Android 17 flying backward with the shockwave. Cracks covered the shield over his chest, and several gaps had exploded open in his outer shell. Yet before Goku could press his advantage, wisps of black mist seeped out from those gaps, and the damaged shell began healing at a visible rate.

"His self-healing ability is even stronger than No. 9's." Goku frowned. The opponent could not only replicate moves and dissipate qi, but his regeneration was superior as well. He was practically a fully upgraded version of No. 9.

On the other side, Krillin and Yamcha were also having an extremely difficult time fighting Android 18 together.

Android 18 moved as nimbly as a phantom, flicking pale-violet energy bullets from her fingertips without pause. Each one carried the chilling qi unique to demons. When the bullets struck the reefs, they not only blasted deep craters into them, but the surrounding rock was corroded by black mist and crumbled into fine powder.

"Destructo Disc: Three-Star Strangle!"

Krillin flung out three qi blades, forming a triangular formation that sealed off Android 18's escape routes. Yet her figure swayed, and she slipped through the gaps between the blades at an extremely tricky angle. The energy bullets at her fingertips shot directly toward Krillin's face.

"Watch out!"

Yamcha flashed forward, several afterimages appearing at once in front of Krillin. His layered fist force smashed the energy bullets apart head-on. Yet the chilling qi traveled through his fists and into his meridians. He gave a muffled groan, feeling his arm go numb as even the circulation of his qi became sluggish.

"Wolf Fang Fist: Heart-Piercing Form!"

Suppressing his discomfort, Yamcha lunged forward, concentrating all his fist force into a single point as he thrust at Android 18's chest core. Android 18 twisted aside to evade, her arm transforming into a blade that slashed diagonally downward along the path of his punch. With a hiss, a wound deep enough to expose bone opened across Yamcha's shoulder. Black mist spread through the injury, actually hindering it from healing.

"This one is far more troublesome than No. 9!" Krillin supported the retreating Yamcha, his fingertip qi spinning rapidly as it continuously cut down incoming energy bullets. "There's something evil in her qi. Once it touches you, you're in trouble!"

The three soon gathered together, forming a defensive formation back-to-back. Android 17 and Android 18 slowly closed in, their auras steady and showing no sign of fatigue. An android's perpetual-motion core was naturally better suited for prolonged battles than flesh and blood.

Inside the underground laboratory beneath the wasteland, Dr. Gero stared at the data rapidly flashing across the screen, trembling with excitement.

"Good! Excellent! We have the complete data for qi-core fission! And the adaptation results for the divine essence dissipation trait are even better than expected!" He abruptly turned his gaze toward Qi Tian's figure in the corner of the screen. "Why hasn't he made his move yet? Hurry! Use all your power and let me see the ultimate secret of divine essence!"

He immediately issued an order. "Activate Demonic Energy Overload Mode. Force Qi Tian to reveal his trump card!"

On the battlefield, the chest cores of Android 17 and Android 18 erupted with dazzling silver-violet light at the same time. Black mist and electric currents intertwined around them, and their auras swelled again. A visible energy field formed around their bodies; ordinary qi would be dissipated by more than half the moment it approached.

"Demonic Energy Overload activated."

Android 17 struck first. His speed was nearly twice what it had been before, and he appeared before Goku and the others in an instant. Both fists shot out together, carrying sharp shrieks that tore through the air. Android 18 circled to the flank, condensing a slender energy blade at her fingertips and thrusting it toward an opening in their defense.

"Together!"

Goku shouted, driving his second-level fissioned qi to its limit as he met Android 17 head-on. Krillin and Yamcha held the two sides, desperately keeping Android 18 occupied.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A relentless series of collisions rang out. Sand and stones sprayed across the beach, which was soon riddled with craters. Goku felt as if every punch landed on cotton. Most of his force was dissipated by the opponent's energy field, while the remainder was offset by rapid regeneration. Unable to gain ground after a prolonged assault, the qi within him drained sharply, and his breathing gradually became ragged.

Krillin and Yamcha were in even greater danger. The black mist on Yamcha's shoulder had yet to be dispelled, already slowing his movements. Krillin's Destructo Discs could not break through the energy field, their power greatly reduced, so he could only barely hold on through agile movement.

"We can't keep this up!" Krillin shouted through gritted teeth. "Goku, do you have any way to finish this in one go?"

Goku clenched his jaw. The qi core in his dantian spun madly, compressing inward without stop. He wanted to attempt third-level fission, but the qi core was shaking violently. One mistake, and the backlash would injure him instead.

"Just a little more... hold them off for another ten seconds!"

At that moment, Android 17 seized the opening while Goku was gathering power. He suddenly surged forward and drove a fist viciously into Goku's chest.

Pfft—

Goku spat out a mouthful of blood and flew backward, crashing heavily into a reef as broken stones scattered everywhere. The impact shook the qi core in his dantian so severely that it nearly collapsed.

"Goku!"

Krillin and Yamcha were thrown into panic, and openings instantly appeared in their defense. Android 18 seized the chance, sending two energy blades flying simultaneously. They struck both men in the shoulders. The two groaned and fell, black mist rapidly spreading through their wounds until they nearly lacked even the strength to raise their arms.

Android 17 slowly walked toward the fallen Goku, gathering a silver-violet sphere of energy in his palm. There was not a trace of emotion in his cold eyes.

"Target elimination commencing."

The energy sphere slowly descended, its terrifying pressure enveloping the area until even the surrounding sand and stones began to melt. Goku braced himself against the ground and tried to rise, but the qi within his body was in chaos, leaving him unable to muster any strength for the moment.

At the critical instant, a black-and-gold figure silently stepped in front of him.

Qi Tian raised a hand, and pale golden astral qi spread outward. An astral qi domain three feet thick instantly took shape. As the silver-violet energy sphere entered the domain, its speed slowed drastically and its power was stripped away layer by layer. In the end, it completely dissipated less than an inch from Qi Tian's palm, without raising even a ripple.

"That's enough."

Qi Tian's voice was calm, but the instant his words fell, two black-gold chains materialized out of thin air, piercing straight through Android 17 and Android 18's energy fields and locking tightly onto the cores in their chests.

They were Divine Essence Bind.

Compared to the chains used against Android 9, these Divine Essence Chains were thinner now, yet far more condensed. They easily pierced through the energy-dissipation fields and firmly restrained the core circuits.

Android 17 and Android 18 froze in place at the same time. The energy around them surged wildly, yet they could no longer mobilize even a fraction of it. The Divine Essence Chains at their cores clung to them like parasites, not only sealing their energy but completely locking down their self-repair modules as well.

"Th-this is impossible!" Dr. Gero abruptly rose to his feet in the laboratory, staring fixedly at the screen. "What happened to the energy-dissipation fields? Why couldn't they stop those chains?!"

Qi Tian slightly raised a finger.

The two black-gold chains suddenly tightened, and golden astral energy flowed into them.

Crack—

Two crisp sounds rang out almost simultaneously. Android 17 and Android 18's cores were completely crushed, the red light in their eyes swiftly fading as their bodies collapsed limply to the ground. The black mist and electric currents over their surfaces rapidly dispersed, leaving them utterly still.

From the moment he acted to the moment it ended, only two breaths had passed.

Goku braced himself against the ground and stood up, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. Looking at the android wreckage on the ground, he sounded somewhat unwilling to accept it. "I was just about to unleash the third level of fission..."

Krillin and Yamcha also struggled into sitting positions, watching the black mist on their shoulders rapidly fade away—when Qi Tian had acted just now, a thread of astral energy had followed their wounds and dispersed the demon clan's sinister force.

"These two androids were more than a level stronger than Android 9," Yamcha said gravely. "If they had been complete models, we probably wouldn't have been able to take even a single move."

Master Roshi walked over and used his staff to pry open the wreckage's outer shell, revealing core components covered in demonic patterns. His brows were tightly furrowed. "Dr. Gero has analyzed some of the properties of Divine Essence and incorporated them into the androids, allowing them to dissipate ordinary energy attacks. At this rate, sooner or later, he'll create androids completely immune to energy attacks."

Qi Tian crouched down, his fingertips brushing over the fine remnants of Divine Essence on the core as his gaze darkened slightly.

These Divine Essence particles had indeed originated from his own power. Using the data collected from Android 9, Dr. Gero had actually reverse-engineered a small part of it. Though it was only the crudest application, it was enough to prove that the other side's research speed far exceeded expectations.

"He has obtained more of our data," Qi Tian said. "The next ones to appear will be the complete versions of Android 17 and Android 18."

In the desert laboratory, Dr. Gero was not enraged at all. Instead, he stared at the footage of Divine Essence Bind and the astral energy field on the screen, his eyes filled with fervor.

"Divine Essence restraint... astral energy force dispersal... So that's it. So this is the secret of god-tier power!" He hammered frantically at the console. "With this data, the complete models' compatibility can increase by thirty percent! Demon clan genes, Divine Essence particles, and perpetual-motion cores—perfect ultimate warriors!"

He turned to look at the two sealed incubation chambers deeper inside, where the figures within had become increasingly distinct.

"Give me one more month... In one month, I'll have you descend upon the world."

Within a demon cave deep in the mountains, Piccolo sensed that the battle on Turtle Hermit Island had ended. Qi Tian's aura remained as steady as a mountain. He clenched his fists until his knuckles turned white, while the demonic flames around him surged even more violently.

"Divine Essence... astral energy..." Piccolo muttered, a vicious glint flashing through his crimson eyes. "Do you think you're the only one with special power? The demon clan's secret arts are far more than that."

He closed his eyes. The black mist deep within the cave grew denser, while faint blood-red patterns appeared across the rock walls.

Atop the cliff, Qi Tian raised his eyes toward the depths of the cosmos.

Those two Saiyan auras had drawn closer still. Even across the distant starry sky, their violent, oppressive presence could be clearly felt.

There were still six months and ten days until they reached Earth.

He withdrew his gaze and looked toward the three people meditating and recovering on the beach. Though they had lost this battle, they had fought with honor. Under the extreme pressure, all three of their energy cores showed faint signs of another breakthrough.

"Our training can no longer be limited to Turtle Hermit Island," Qi Tian said slowly. "The tempering of gravity and ocean waves is no longer enough. We need more extreme environments."

Goku's eyes snapped open, filled with anticipation. "Where are we going?"

"The heart of a volcano and deep-sea trenches," Qi Tian replied calmly. "Only extreme heat and pressure can force the energy cores to their limits, allowing both the body and energy to rise to another level."

The night wind swept across the island with a salty, damp scent, and the lights in the wooden house remained lit through the night.

One increasingly dangerous crisis followed another, and no one dared to relax in the slightest. Everyone knew that Dr. Gero's complete androids, the lurking Piccolo, and the Saiyans in the distant starry sky were all closing in on Earth.

Only by constantly growing stronger could they stand firm in the coming storm.