New Kami Dende

Bogalun's massive body floated in midair, its red pupils looking down at the figures on the ground.

Son Gohan looked at Shenron and loudly spoke his wish in the ancient, powerful Namekian language.

"Please grant me a Dragon Radar—one capable of searching across the entire universe."

A red light flashed in Bogalun's eyes.

"Your wish has been granted."

A sophisticated Dragon Radar appeared out of thin air before Son Gohan.

He reached out and caught it. Its screen was a size larger than the original Earth version, displaying coordinate data and signal bands.

With a flip of his hand, the radar vanished from his palm and was already lying within his inner space.

Lazuli blinked, a trace of curiosity flashing through her blue eyes.

"Where did it go? Where did you put it?"

Son Gohan smiled and casually replied, "A sleight of hand."

With another turn of his palm, the Dragon Radar reappeared out of thin air.

With one more turn, it vanished again.

Lazuli stared at his hand repeatedly, but she couldn't make anything out.

Bogalun's voice rang out again, deep and imposing.

"State your second wish."

Son Gohan took more than a dozen Tree of Might fruits from his inner space.

The pale red fruits floated in the air in a neat row. He called out to Bogalun, "Please enhance these fruits—make them completely free of side effects, and give them beauty-enhancing effects after consumption, improving one's appearance and temperament."

Bogalun fell silent for a moment, seemingly finding the wish too simple.

A red light flashed.

"Your wish has been granted."

The dozen or so Tree of Might fruits trembled slightly in the air. A faint golden glow spread across their surfaces before they returned to normal.

They looked no different from before, but Son Gohan knew they had changed. He nodded in satisfaction and stored all the fruits back in his inner space.

"State your third wish."

Son Gohan turned to Dende and deliberately spoke in words Lazuli could understand. "Dende, please tell Shenron to remove the bomb devices inside the androids."

Dende did not quite understand what bomb devices he meant, but he still nodded. "Alright, I understand."

He turned to Bogalun and relayed the wish in Namekian. The red light in Bogalun's eyes flashed for the final time.

"Your wish has been granted. Farewell."

His enormous body transformed into seven streams of golden light that scattered toward every corner of Planet Namek.

Lazuli stood where she was, suddenly feeling as though something inside her body had disappeared.

Ever since the day she had been modified, she had known there was a bomb inside her. Dr. Gero had used it to control all the androids. She had never imagined that it would one day be gone.

Lazuli felt both body and mind grow lighter, and her favorable impression of Son Gohan soared. Naturally, this was exactly what Son Gohan intended. In her magnetic, mature voice, Lazuli asked him, "Why did you make that wish?"

Son Gohan slipped both hands into his pockets and answered casually.

"I couldn't bear to see you unhappy."

Lazuli turned her head away without saying anything.

Her short golden hair covered the side of her face, but her heart was already in turmoil.

Son Gohan said no more. He took out two Tree of Might fruits from his inner space and handed one to Lazuli.

"Eat this."

Lazuli accepted it and looked at the fruit in her hand, glowing faintly red.

She did not know what it was, but based on the trust that had just formed between them, she still placed it in her mouth.

The flesh melted the instant it entered her mouth.

A warm current of energy poured down her throat, spreading through her meridians and into every part of her body.

She closed her eyes and felt her skin becoming tighter and smoother, every cell being reshaped by a gentle yet powerful force.

The feeling was incredibly pleasant, like soaking in a hot spring.

A few seconds later, the energy settled.

Lazuli opened her eyes.

Dende, standing beside her, instinctively took a step back, his eyes widening into circles.

The woman before him was still Lazuli. Her already exquisite features had become pure and flawless, her figure graceful and shapely, while an icy yet alluring charm clung to her presence.

Even more outrageous was her battle power.

Android 18's combat power had never been low to begin with, but at this moment, her aura soared directly to the level of early Super Saiyan 2.

The infinite-energy reactor within her fused with the fruit's power, producing some kind of qualitative transformation.

Lazuli lowered her head and looked at her hands. She could sense the subtle changes in her body.

What woman did not care about her appearance? Lazuli felt delighted.

"Thank you." She raised her head to look at Son Gohan, her voice carrying a hint of softness. "You really treat me well. I've never had that before."

Son Gohan looked at her, and his eyes lit up.

The Lazuli before him truly possessed beauty capable of toppling nations. Her exquisitely delicate and lovely face, paired with that aloof temperament, made her features seem like a painting.

"It's nothing." He smiled. "This is also my first time treating a girl so well."

Seeing his somewhat goofy expression, Lazuli could not help but let out a soft laugh.

A smile blossomed on that cold face, like ice and snow melting for the first time.

Son Gohan turned around and handed the other Tree of Might fruit to Dende.

"Here, Dende. You should eat this too."

Dende accepted the fruit without hesitation and put it directly into his mouth. The instant the flesh dissolved, his body was enveloped in a faint golden glow.

His aura began to surge—from his previously unremarkable combat power, it skyrocketed all the way to one million.

Dende looked at his hands, feeling a strength he had never experienced before.

"Thank you, Gohan!" Dende was overjoyed.

"It's fine." Son Gohan patted his shoulder. "Let's go now. Hold onto my shoulder."

Dende extended his green hand and firmly held Son Gohan's left shoulder.

Seeing this, Lazuli also wanted to imitate the gesture, but before her hand could touch his shoulder, Son Gohan reached over and took her jade-like hand in his.

Her little hand was fair, tender, and smooth, and felt wonderful in his grasp.

Son Gohan's expression remained perfectly natural, but Lazuli's face flushed slightly. In the end, she did not resist.

Instant Transmission activated.

Whoosh—

The three figures flickered and vanished from Planet Namek.

The next instant, they stood on solid ground.

Kami's Lookout.

The high-altitude wind swept across the platform, while an endless sea of clouds stretched out in the distance. The entire temple floated in the sky, quiet and solemn.

Hearing the commotion, Mr. Popo walked out from deep within the temple.

A smile appeared on his dark face, and his round head gleamed.

"Hello, Gohan."

"Hello, Mr. Popo." Son Gohan nodded and stepped aside to reveal Dende.

"This is my good friend Dende. I want him to become Earth's new Guardian. Besides, you must get bored being alone in the temple. At least you'll have company."

Mr. Popo looked at Dende, and the smile on his face became even brighter. He could not have been happier with such an arrangement.

Son Gohan knew full well that Mr. Popo was far from as simple as he appeared.

In the original story, when young Trunks and young Goten transformed into Super Saiyans and caused trouble on the lookout, Mr. Popo had easily subdued the two Super Saiyan children.

With him accompanying Dende, Dende would be perfectly safe.

"I'll have to trouble you, Dende." Son Gohan turned around, his tone becoming serious. "Make Shenron's model as soon as possible, and use the greatest amount of magic power you can. There are still many people on Earth waiting to be revived."

"There's no need to be so polite." Dende waved his hand, his face full of determination. "Making Shenron's model will take some time, but don't worry. I'll do it as quickly as I can."

Son Gohan nodded and said no more.

"Farewell."

He took Lazuli's hand, erupted with energy, and leaped off the edge of Kami's Lookout.

Two streaks of light cut through the sky, flying toward Korin Tower.

At the top of Korin Tower.

Korin was sprawled on a soft cushion, asleep with his tail curled at his side. Son Gohan landed on the platform at the top of the tower, and the sound of his footsteps woke Korin. He lazily climbed to his feet, yawned, and squinted at the person before him.

"So it's Gohan." Korin stroked his whiskers with a paw. "It's been three years."

"Korin." Son Gohan nodded politely and got straight to the point. "How many Senzu Beans are there now? I've come to get some for the fighting at the front lines."

Korin slowly turned around, took a cloth bag from a wooden rack, fiddled with the opening using his claws, and counted them.

"There are only a little over twenty. Son Goku took some of the rest."

"A little over twenty will do."

Korin tossed over the cloth bag. Son Gohan caught it, weighed it in his hand, then stored it in his internal space.

Including the stock from before, there were now quite a few Senzu Beans stored in his body again.

He stood at the edge of the tower's summit, closed his eyes, and spread out his ki sensing. He could feel Son Goku, Vegeta, Piccolo, and Trunks—as well as a mixed, chaotic presence that had to be Cell.

Son Gohan frowned slightly.

Cell's ki was mixed with far too much—Son Goku's ki, Frieza's ki, Piccolo's ki, and even Krillin's ki.

The various presences were tangled together like a mess of thread, but their overall strength far surpassed what it had been before.

Something's wrong. Eighteen is clearly right beside me.

"What is it?" Lazuli noticed the change in his expression.

"Cell has gotten stronger." Son Gohan opened his eyes and looked at Lazuli. "Much stronger than expected. It's strange—he clearly didn't absorb you."

He fell silent for a moment, then suddenly erupted with ki.

A pure white aura shot into the sky. Korin hurriedly clutched his water jug, his tail puffing up like a furball.

"Let's go." A cold glint flashed through Son Gohan's eyes. "Let's pay him a visit."

Lazuli nodded. Two pillars of light shot up from the top of Korin Tower and sped toward the source of Cell's ki.