The Last Resort!

Midair.

Piccolo threw himself wholeheartedly into the battle, giving it everything he had, because there was now something in his heart he wanted to protect.

But unlike Son Goku, he did not have the Kaioken as his foundation.

So although he constantly changed tactics, he was still being forced back step by step.

Several parts of his body had already been wounded, purple blood visible all over him. He looked more battered than ever before.

"Tch, I thought you had some real skill?"

Vegeta had pushed his speed to the limit as well. He always dodged Piccolo's attacks at the last possible instant before mocking him.

Clearly, he believed the outcome of this battle had already been decided.

Piccolo, meanwhile, remained completely silent. Though he was at a disadvantage, his mind became even more focused.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

Explosions continuously rang out in the sky.

Amid the fierce clash, Vegeta seemed to finally spot an opening. His speed surged in that instant, and he grabbed Piccolo's fist with one hand while viciously slamming his other elbow into Piccolo's arm.

Crack!

Piccolo's arm snapped at the sound, and he staggered backward.

Holding Piccolo's severed arm in one hand, Vegeta sneered, "So this is a Namekian? Your bodies really are fragile!"

Piccolo covered his severed right arm with his remaining left arm as he slowly retreated, as though guarding against something.

Weighing the half-arm in his hand, Vegeta said, "Want your arm back? Then tell me about the Dragon Balls!"

Clearly, he was still very interested in the Dragon Balls.

In truth, he had originally intended to kill Piccolo outright, then go to Namek and uncover the secret of the Dragon Balls. He had not even planned to personally intervene at first.

But now that he had acted, he was no longer in a hurry to kill them.

After all, he was confident he could suppress everyone on this planet.

"Hmph, that thing..."

As Piccolo backed away, he said, "It was just used. You'll have to wait a while before it can be used again. I'm afraid you won't live long enough to see that day!"

There was a hint of mockery in his gaze as he spoke.

"What?"

Vegeta instinctively looked down at Raditz below.

With his quick mind, he immediately realized that the Dragon Balls had been used to revive Raditz.

And it was not difficult for him to infer that something capable of granting wishes would naturally have restrictions.

"Unfortunately, although you came all this way, the Dragon Balls can't be used right now."

By the time Piccolo finished speaking, he had already retreated several dozen meters.

Though Vegeta watched him continually pull away, he did not immediately give chase. Such a distance could be crossed in an instant for them.

He merely felt the nameless fire in his heart burn even hotter. He had personally taken action on this planet, only for them to tell him that the wish-granting artifact could not be used!

It filled him with an unprecedented rage!

He clenched the severed arm in his hand, crushing it until it twisted out of shape, purple fluid even dripping from it.

"Damn it!"

Vegeta crushed Piccolo's severed arm to pieces, then glared viciously in Piccolo's direction.

The killing intent he radiated at that moment was stronger than ever before.

But Piccolo merely curled his lips into a crooked smile in the distance, suddenly swinging his remaining hand.

Numerous invisible points of light instantly flickered into existence far away.

The next instant.

Countless golden ki blasts surrounded Vegeta, drifting down like snowflakes. They had clearly been set in place by Piccolo.

"What?"

Though Vegeta was furious beyond measure, he still noticed the change around him.

He immediately turned his gaze toward Piccolo in the distance.

Boom!

Piccolo offered no further words. He swiftly activated every point of light, drawing them all toward Vegeta as countless sparks exploded in an instant.

Terrifying explosions rang out one after another, and blazing fire swiftly engulfed everything.

"Haaah!"

A furious roar was mixed into the explosions.

Then, amid the raging flames, an immensely powerful shockwave erupted before spreading wildly in every direction.

Even Piccolo could feel the terror of that blast wave, and his body kept being forced backward.

Rumble!

The violent, raging blast wave shook heaven and earth. As it slammed into the city below, it forcibly pulverized the buildings themselves, then swept countless bricks and stones into the distance.

Its force had clearly surpassed every gale in existence.

Even Krillin and the others watching below had to support one another just to barely avoid being swept away by the blast wave.

As for the reporters who had been filming—

They had already been repeatedly pushed back by the wind earlier, but fortunately, the pilot was skilled and had managed to evade it several times.

But this time, the force was simply too great. They could no longer withstand it at all.

Even the helicopter's upper rotor blades were torn apart by the fierce wind.

"Ahhh!"

Terrified screams rang out again and again from inside the helicopter.

Everyone felt the fear of death, yet there was nothing they could do to save themselves.

After all, the current situation was even more terrifying than a natural disaster.

It was not as though they had not considered using parachutes, but with the wind outside, they would probably be torn apart the moment they jumped out!

Just as terror filled their hearts, the helicopter jolted once before stabilizing again.

Then, the helicopter began descending at an exceptionally steady pace.

Even after the overwhelming blast wave swept past, the helicopter did not shake in the slightest.

Inside the helicopter, everyone stared wide-eyed at one another, completely unable to understand what had happened.

Once the surrounding environment had become relatively stable—

Son Gohan slowly rose into the air. Looking through the shattered glass at the people inside, he said, "If you want to live, you'd better stay far away from here. Otherwise, no one can guarantee your safety."

As he spoke, he had already flown away from the helicopter.

The reporters inside the helicopter all widened their eyes, finding it utterly unbelievable. That child could fly too—and he had even saved them in that situation?

What on earth had happened to Earth today? Why did it feel like their entire worldview had been shattered into pieces?

They all stared blankly at the city in the distance, which had been completely destroyed.

For a moment, they did not know what to say.

High in the sky.

After the blast wave in the distance subsided, Vegeta reappeared with his limbs spread apart. His flame-like hair looked as though electricity had run through it, standing completely on end.

Seeing that his encircling energy blasts had been utterly useless, Piccolo felt even more alarmed.

Other than Special Beam Cannon, he had already used every technique he possessed. Yet even so, this was the first time he had seen his opponent look even slightly strained.

The gap between them was so vast that even he felt helpless.

And Special Beam Cannon required a long period of charging, making it completely unusable in the current situation.

He had run out of options!

"Damn it... Even after training hard for a year, I still can't defeat that guy?"

He felt a trace of sorrow in his heart, but even now, he had to pull himself together.

"Those little tricks almost hurt me!"

Vegeta clenched both fists again. The moment his words fell, he charged straight at Piccolo.

A streak of white light arrived in an instant, and a vicious punch smashed toward Piccolo.

Piccolo raised his only remaining hand to block it.

When the two forces collided, he was clearly at a disadvantage, his body even sinking downward slightly.

But he had at least managed to take the punch.

Vegeta's mouth curled crookedly, and his other fist slammed directly into Piccolo's head.

The terrifying force knocked Piccolo off balance, leaving a fist-shaped dent in his head!

At the same time—

A glint flashed through Piccolo's eyes. Fluid quickly seeped from his severed arm, and a new arm rapidly grew from the stump. It then stretched out and viciously jabbed Vegeta in the chest!