Now, only one Dragon Ball remained to complete the collection of all seven.
Everyone watched the Dragon Radar as they gradually approached the location of the final Dragon Ball.
"If I remember correctly, the last Dragon Ball should be in the hands of King Pilaf," Tang En thought to himself as he lay on the car, his mind wandering.
"Tang En, where will you go after collecting all seven Dragon Balls?" Bulma clasped her hands together, resting them by her cheek, her face slightly flushed as she asked.
"I need to find a place to train properly and become even stronger!" Tang En replied earnestly.
"Huh? Tang En wants to get stronger too? Then why not come train with me at Grandpa Turtle Hermit's place? I definitely want to spar with you again!" Goku laughed heartily, extending the invitation.
To be honest, while Turtle Hermit was indeed strong, Tang En didn't think the Turtle School's philosophy suited him very well.
Turtle Hermit had mentioned that Tang En's mindset wasn't pure, and his situation was different from Krillin's. But these were just external factors.
The most important thing was that Tang En wanted to break through the limits of an Earthling, to shatter the shackles of the human body.
Just like Saitama, he wanted to forge his own destined path.
To achieve that goal, relying solely on the Turtle School wouldn't be enough. After all, Krillin in the original story pretty much represented the peak an Earthling could reach under Turtle Hermit's training.
"I think I'll pass. I'd rather train at Bulma's place. It'll be a good chance to test my ideas. Goku, we can spar whenever you're free," Tang En said.
Wouldn't having a girlfriend be nice?
Besides, with such a huge estate and advanced technology at home, was there really a lack of training space?
"Really? That's great! I'll make sure to take good care of you!" Bulma was overjoyed, leaning against Tang En so enthusiastically that the speeding car tilted slightly.
Oolong, who was driving, dared not voice his anger and could only mutter under his breath, "Could you guys calm down a little? The car's about to flip!"
...
"King Pilaf, their car just passed checkpoint ten. They're getting closer," Mai reported from her perch on a tree, holding a walkie-talkie.
"Good. Proceed with the operation as planned!"
"Understood!"
"Ash, do you see the car?"
"Got it! Leave it to me!"
...
"Hey, Tang En, why are we going through all this trouble to find the Dragon Balls just to wish for strength? Can't we wish for something bigger?" Oolong grumbled as he drove.
Bulma immediately mocked him, "Oh, shut up! Don't butt in. What 'trouble'? You haven't done anything at all!"
Hearing this, Oolong slammed on the brakes, sending everyone lurching forward.
"Oolong! What kind of driving is that?!"
"Fine, you drive then! Since I don't do anything anyway, that should be okay, right?"
"Come on, Oolong. After we find the Dragon Balls, I'll give you 100,000 zeni as a reward," Tang En said, shaking his head.
"Eh? Really? That's awesome!"
Just as Oolong was about to start driving again, something unexpected happened!A rocket was coming straight at them from the front!
Boom—
The rocket exploded beside the car, the massive Energy wave flipping the vehicle over.
"Success!"
Ash shouted excitedly, then charged toward Tang En and the others in his robot, aiming straight for the Dragon Ball in the backpack.
"Cough... cough! What was that?" Bulma gasped, fortunately unharmed but choked by the dust.
"Goku, Tang En, the Dragon Ball is still in the car!"
Little Goku was still dazed, unsure of what had happened. He grabbed his Power Pole and glared at the thick smoke ahead.
"How despicable! Come out and fight me!"
On the other side, Tang En was also somewhat at a loss.
As the saying goes, one can be a thief for a thousand days, but one can't guard against theft for a thousand days.
Although Tang En had a Scouter, he had still been careless.
In the end, they had been ambushed by King Pilaf and his crew.
However, the main reason was that Tang En didn't see this comedic trio as any real threat.
Now, despite the suddenness of the situation, Tang En instinctively rushed forward.
Sure enough, he spotted Ash not far away, controlling the machine, while the latter was also moving quickly toward them.
But Tang En was closer and immediately found the backpack containing the Dragon Ball, tossing it to Oolong and Bulma, who were hiding to the side.
Why not give it to Goku? Mainly because Goku still had the Four-Star Ball on him.
Better safe than sorry—if some ridiculous mishap occurred, they wouldn't lose all the Dragon Balls at once, leaving room for recovery.
Just then, Ash arrived.
His triumphant expression turned bitter when he saw the Dragon Ball had already been moved.
Staring at the face of the person who had given him trouble before, Ash's steps slowed, and he began to hesitate.
"Mai, come down and help me! Those brats spotted me!" Ash's legs trembled as he spoke into the communicator.
Then he steeled himself: "This time, I have the mech King Pilaf gave me..."
"So you came after all. This time, knocking you out won't be enough!"
"Goku, go protect the Dragon Ball on Bulma. Leave this to me!" Tang En clenched his fists.
Once he captured these two, he would be close to collecting all the Dragon Balls.
And that meant his Cultivation journey could truly begin.
The thought stirred a flicker of excitement in Tang En, and his strikes grew fiercer.
"Dammit! These brats are tough! We're about to fail again, Ash. Prepare to retreat!" Mai, who had now approached, said to Ash.
Tang En surged forward, the sound of tearing wind in his wake.
In moments, he was in front of Ash. Planting his feet, he leaped and landed directly on the mech.
"Huh? Aah... Get off! Get off!" Ash twisted his body, frantically trying to shake Tang En off.
Nearby, Mai panicked and rushed to help Ash.
Without hesitation, Tang En smashed the glass with his fist, yanked Ash out, and took his communicator.
In the blink of an eye, Mai saw her partner defeated. Fear gripped her, and she stood frozen, her resolve crumbling.
As expected, the three of them just weren't cut out for this kind of thing...
Tang En swiftly defeated Mai in the same manner, then tied both of them up and left them under Oolong's watch.
"Tang En, who are they?" Bulma walked over, pointing at the two captives."They are underlings of King Pilaf, aiming to get the Dragon Balls to rule the world."
"Eh? What a tacky wish!"
Bulma clicked her tongue.
Tang En picked up the walkie-talkie and dialed King Pilaf.
He had some new ideas about the last Dragon Ball.
After all, following the original plan of attacking King Pilaf's castle might lead to unnecessary hardships.
The call connected, revealing a short, purple-faced figure wearing a round hat.
"Hello? Ash, have you gotten the Dragon Ball?"
"Yes, King Pilaf! Your grand wish is finally within reach!"
"Really? Eheheheheh. Ash, you've done well! King Pilaf won't forget to reward you two, hahaha... By the way, why does your voice sound strange? Are you feeling unwell?"
"Uh... well... haha, I'm just too excited!"
On the screen, Ash scratched his head sheepishly.
"Oh, King Pilaf, our mech was destroyed in the fight. Could you come pick us up? We're near the big rock at location ten..."
"Keheheh! Since you've accomplished such a great task, I suppose I can make an exception this time!"
King Pilaf danced with joy, disregarding everything else, eager to reach the Dragon Ball and fulfill his wish.
"King Pilaf, don't forget to bring the one-star ball~"
"Nonsense! Do you think I need reminding?"
...
"Tang En, I did everything you asked. What about that 200,000?"
Oolong reverted to his original form, rubbing his hands together expectantly.
This was the quick plan Tang En had come up with—full of holes, but enough to fool the so-called "King Pilaf."
As for the money... Tang En could only think one thing:
Totally worth it!