A terrifying aura blanketed the sky.
Raditz's eyes widened, an unbelievable gleam flashing in them. "Are you Zangya's grandfather?"
The old man's face remained indifferent, hard as steel. "No. The child's grandfather died long ago. We are of the same clan. Mr. Raditz, please don't meddle in our affairs, or don't blame me for what happens next." A sharp light gleamed in his eyes. "Though you saved us before, if you interfere, you will die."
Raditz felt a powerful oppressive force wash over him. Goosebumps covered his body as a chill rose from the depths of his heart.
Neither Zangya nor this old man were simple beings.
"Can you tell me why? Zangya didn't possess such power when she was on Planet Tumat. Could it be that she's also a demon?"
"This is our business. You don't need to know."
The old man had no intention of revealing anything, curtly rejecting Raditz's inquiry. At the same time, seeing that Raditz seemed unwilling to let the matter drop, he prepared for battle.
"Are you using Zangya to achieve some ulterior ambition?" Raditz pressed urgently.
"Everything I do is for our clan!"
Suddenly, the old man became agitated, as if Raditz had touched upon some sensitive secret.
Following his outburst, Zangya clearly assessed the situation and launched a swift kick upward.
Raditz raised his hands, crossing them defensively to block Zangya's whip-like leg strike. The mid-air collision generated violent shockwaves.
BOOM!
The tremendous impact sent both fighters flying several meters backward. The air vortex at the collision point continued swirling and screaming, as if phantom fighters were still battling.
"Mr. Raditz, I didn't expect you to be much stronger than before."
"You surprised me as well. You had no power back then, yet now you can fight me on equal terms. It's unbelievable."
"This is all thanks to the Demon Star's power!" The old man spread his arms in a welcoming gesture. "The energy of the Demon Realm has given us tremendous opportunity, Mr. Raditz. You wouldn't understand."
Raditz sneered. "Judging by your tone, did you attract the Demon Realm here?"
"So what if I did? Then witness my ability!" The old man readily admitted his actions, quickly spreading his five fingers. Strange energy poured from his palm like a vast net enveloping the area.
Though his body appeared aged, his power was anything but weak. More importantly, he was wielding magic! That steady stream of power wove into a massive net that surrounded Raditz.
This guy truly intended to kill.
Raditz's expression hardened as he swung his hand backward. A blue shockwave blasted straight ahead, but when it touched the energy net, it bounced back. The glowing ki wave rebounded directly toward him, shocking Raditz.
"Damn it!" Raditz cursed, launching another shockwave to cancel it out.
Thunderous explosions continued as the aftermath rippled outward. The terrifying power spread across the landscape—mountains collapsed, vast clouds of dust filled the air, and stones rolled in all directions.
At the same time, Zangya attacked.
"HAH!"
She shouted, bringing down an iron fist crackling with energy from above. The chilling aura struck toward his head, making Raditz's feet feel cold and pressing against his heart, forcing him to retreat.
Seeing the powerful punch coming through the air, Raditz moved at high speed in a burst of acceleration, suddenly appearing behind Zangya to strike her back with his elbow.
Unexpectedly, Zangya halted her offensive mid-air, simultaneously turning to block Raditz's elbow with her arm!
What incredible reflexes!
The block itself wasn't the issue—the problem was that it threw off Raditz's center of gravity. At that moment, Zangya spun quickly, and with her flexible waist, twisted to an unbelievable angle to kick Raditz's body.
Her shocking kick, crackling with red energy, connected solidly.
Raditz flipped several times through the air before smashing into the ground, creating a massive crater thirty meters in diameter. Zangya pressed her advantage, firing two consecutive energy blasts. The cold, light-blue energy struck the surface, exploding in a towering mushroom cloud!
Vegeta was momentarily stunned. When he looked over, his eyes went wide.
He had seen Zangya before, but why had she become like this? What was happening?
As the thick, billowing smoke dispersed, a crater extending hundreds of meters appeared before everyone. In the scorched pit, Raditz lay on his back, covered in soot. His windbreaker had been blown to shreds, exposing his muscular frame and thick black hair to the air.
Covering Raditz's body was an energy restraint net, tightly bound by dark power and firmly pinning him to the ground.
The old man appeared beside Raditz at the perfect moment, looking down at him. "Mr. Raditz, how are you feeling? Have you given up?"
"I'll admit defeat, but before I die, can you tell me what connection you have with the Demon Realm? What's the story with your clan?"
"I suppose I can tell you—you're going to die anyway." Seeing Raditz so thoroughly defeated that he couldn't even stand, the old man's cold expression softened slightly. "I summoned the Demon Star. I did all this to save our people.
"Our clan was once an excellent civilization in the universe. We prospered for a long time, but we were repeatedly invaded and our civilization was destroyed. Our people gradually declined, became displaced, and had nowhere to live. Worse still, space pirates and villains from various planets bullied us mercilessly, treating us as slaves.
"After much reflection, we finally understood that only overwhelming force can truly save us! Therefore, we decided to create the ultimate warrior. Zangya is the last hope of our clan. She is the child born from the union of our clan's genius and the demons. Those beautiful, jewel-like eyes contain demonic traces."
Hearing this, Raditz felt a breath of terror, as if he had encountered an incredible conspiracy.
"So she's become your tool?"
"To revive our people, this is a necessary sacrifice! I also dedicated myself to the Demon Realm for this cause, which is how I obtained this magical power!" The old man's voice became sharp, like an old crow tearing its throat as it cawed.
Raditz looked at Zangya, whose eyes held murderous intent but also deep confusion, and felt a pang of sadness. This girl was also a tragic figure.
She had existed as a tool since birth, used by her "grandfather," with no freedom whatsoever.
"One last question—what exactly is the Demon Star?"
"The Demon Star is simply a product of condensed Demon Realm energy, like how a burning star generates light and heat to provide energy to surrounding planets. Thanks to the Demon Star, Zangya's fighting potential could be awakened, transforming her into a powerful warrior."
As the old man said this, his expression turned cold. "Enough talk, Mr. Raditz. I'm sorry, but you cannot interfere with my plans!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, sword-like magical power stabbed toward Raditz from his hand, cold light flashing!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Support me at [email protected]/goldengaruda and check out more chapter of this or more early access chapter of my other fanfic translation.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~