A choice for Earth

"An immortal?"

Bulma froze, then lunged toward Korin with an amused smile, wanting to pet the big white cat.

But Korin had no intention of letting her. He was about to leap away when an aura suddenly enveloped him, leaving him unable to move.

Korin looked at Lin Chen, who stood watching from a distance with his arms folded, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.

"Fat kitty, are you an immortal?"

Bulma stroked Korin's fur, then pinched his chubby cheeks.

"Lin Chen, you lied! He's just a cat, isn't he?"

At that moment, Lin Chen withdrew the aura holding Korin in place.

Korin immediately sprang back to life, gasping for breath as he cried, "I'm an immortal! Not a cat!"

"Oh! He really can talk!"

"All right, Bulma. I have something to discuss with him."

Lin Chen walked up to Korin, his dangerous aura making the cat's fur stand on end.

"Y-you're an alien, aren't you? How did you know about this place?" Korin asked in bewilderment.

"Not only do I know about this place, I also know you have Senzu Beans. Hand them over," Lin Chen said.

Until the Healing Device was finished, the Senzu Beans from Korin Tower would have to do.

Using them this way was a little wasteful, but compared to being erased by the system, a little waste hardly mattered.

"No! I don't know where you came from. I can't give you the Senzu Beans-"

Before Korin could finish, Lin Chen waved a hand, and a large fish unlike any found on Earth suddenly appeared before him.

"This is a fish from Planet Vegeta. Give me the Senzu Beans, and I have another hundred for you."

"Meow! They're yours!"

The instant Lin Chen finished speaking, Korin changed his tune.

No cat could resist the temptation of fish, not even an immortal.

"Korin, grow more from now on. I can bring you fish from all over the universe!"

After taking every Senzu Bean Korin had stored and leaving only the seeds, Lin Chen took Bulma and flew higher once again.

Kami's Lookout was just above them.

Easily passing through the barrier around Kami's Lookout, Lin Chen landed gently on it with Bulma.

The little girl was thrilled, but she soon received a fright.

Not far away, the green-skinned Kami and the black-skinned Mr. Popo were already waiting.

Lin Chen glanced at the two of them.

Kami, who was actually a Namekian, looked uneasy, but Mr. Popo beside him remained expressionless.

"Welcome, honored visitor from another planet," Kami greeted him.

"Hello, Kami. My name is Lin Chen," Lin Chen said, greeting them both.

Bulma looked astonished at his words. "Lin Chen, are they gods?"

"He is Kami. I am Mr. Popo, his attendant," Mr. Popo said.

"That's right. He's the god. A little disappointed?" Lin Chen asked.

"Yeah." Bulma nodded, feeling her fantasies about mythology shatter.

"Mr. Lin Chen, what brings you here today?" Kami asked cautiously.

Lin Chen said, "I wanted to ask whether you could summon Shenron for me directly."

"Summoning Shenron requires gathering the seven Dragon Balls, but even I have no way of knowing where they are," Kami murmured.

Bulma listened with curiosity. "Lin Chen, what are Dragon Balls?"

"They're magical orbs that can grant wishes..."

After a brief explanation, Lin Chen said, "Since you can't summon Shenron, forget it. My main reason for coming was to show Miss Bulma here around and pick up some Senzu Beans along the way."

Kami paused, then said, "In that case, would you like me to give you a tour?"

"No need. We've been out long enough. It's time to go back."

"Huh? Lin Chen, I still want to look around."

"All right, Bulma. Dr. Brief and the others must be getting anxious by now."

Lin Chen took Bulma's hand and was about to leave using Instant Transmission, but Kami stepped forward and asked, "Mr. Lin Chen! I'd like to know-don't you have any plans for Earth?"

"Plans?" Lin Chen turned his head.

"With your strength, conquering Earth should be effortless, shouldn't it? Yet all you've done is make a few deals with mortals. I don't understand."

"You don't understand..." Lin Chen smiled faintly. With his current strength, conquering Earth would indeed be effortless, but why would he do it?

"Ding! Host detected to be uncertain about how to handle Earth. Activating strongest choice."

"Choice one: Unify Earth and turn it into a Saiyan colony. Reward: The Grand Elder of Planet Namek's potential-unlocking ability!"

"Choice two: Destroy Earth, reducing it to dust in the universe. Reward: Technique: Ki Sickle."

"Choice three: Maintain the status quo and allow the Dragon Ball storyline to unfold smoothly on Earth. Reward: Increase battle power by 100,000!"

Lin Chen was a little surprised by the strongest choice that had suddenly activated in his mind.

The system is trying to stir up trouble.

Of the three choices, the third offered a reward that barely mattered.

The first two, on the other hand, would either give Lin Chen the ability to complete his current mission immediately or let him learn a formidable technique.

Whichever way he looked at it, both were better deals than the third choice.

But Lin Chen chose the third option without much hesitation.

System, I choose option three!

As someone who had transmigrated, Lin Chen's greatest advantage was his familiarity with the plot. Recklessly changing it would work against him.

Besides, Earth was home to many characters he liked.

"Ding! Host's choice confirmed. Reward issued!"

In the next instant, Lin Chen's body quietly grew a little stronger.

Lin Chen turned back and smiled at Kami. "Maybe it's because I like this planet, and the people on it!"

Kami looked stunned by his answer, while Mr. Popo remained expressionless.

After meeting Kami, Lin Chen took Bulma back to West City.

Over the next few days, Dr. Brief and Bulma began working on reproducing the Healing Device.

Lin Chen also returned to Planet Vegeta once, delivering three large vats full of Senzu Beans for King Vegeta and the others to use. He also brought the 50x Gravity Room to Earth for Dr. Brief and the others to study for the time being.

Everything proceeded in an orderly fashion.

Then, one day, Lin Chen arrived at a place called Mount Paozu.

He hovered in the air, gazing down.

Ever since choosing to leave Earth as it was, Lin Chen had been thinking about Son Goku.

He wanted to come and see how the protagonist of Dragon Ball was living now.

Although Planet Vegeta had not been destroyed, before entering his slumber, Lin Chen had instructed Bardock to send Son Goku to Earth.

As a result, Son Goku had still arrived on Earth at the same point in time as he had in the story.

Watching Kid Goku practice his punches, looking just as young as he remembered, Lin Chen was filled with emotion.

Just as in the original story, the Goku before him had a battle power of only ten.

Although he lived alone, he had no shortage of food or clothing.

Even so, he continued to hone his abilities.

Throughout the entire Dragon Ball story, only Goku truly deserved to be called a martial arts fanatic.

It was precisely this tireless dedication that had allowed Kid Goku to rise from a low-class Saiyan warrior to one of the strongest fighters in the entire universe in the original story.

Though Lin Chen's own bloodline was superior, he seemed to fall far short in diligence.

There were still so many dangers awaiting him.

In the near future, there was Frieza, whose whereabouts were unknown and whose very survival was uncertain. Further ahead, there was Beerus, the God of Destruction, who would awaken in a few decades.

How many challenges lay ahead?

So I can't keep slacking off either!