c10 Lin Hao takes action
"Ahem!"
Vegeta, who had been smashed hard into the rocky ground by Cell's strike, was forced out of his Super Saiyan form back into his base state. Blood spurted from his mouth as his body convulsed, and he finally collapsed unconscious.
Vegeta had been utterly overwhelmed in just a single exchange. It was undeniable now Cell's strength had already surpassed his so-called Ascended Super Saiyan state.
"Hiss!"
Too terrifying!
The eyes of Krillin in the distance, and Piccolo and Trunks close by, shrank with horror. Their bodies trembled uncontrollably as they watched Vegeta fall so helplessly.
"Damn it! You monster, you actually…"
"Aaah!"
Seeing his father crushed, Trunks roared in anger, his aura exploding. His body instantly transformed into a Super Saiyan, golden flames burning around him like a blazing storm.
But unlike Vegeta, Trunks's power did not seem as refined. His aura carried that heavy sluggishness of the second-grade form he had been secretly training in. Though it magnified his raw muscle power, his speed and energy control were clearly inferior to Vegeta's perfected transformation.
Charging at Cell, Trunks threw rapid punches, every strike shaking the air. He mixed in bursts of ki blasts, each exploding like small suns across the battlefield. Yet no matter how fierce he attacked, Cell's body was barely scratched. With a single devastating counter, Cell smashed through Trunks's defenses and pummeled him back into his base form. Trunks collapsed, unconscious, beside his fallen father.
The proud father and son utterly crushed in only a few minutes!
"Damn it! Vegeta and Trunks are both down… even all of us together can't compare to Cell's power!"
Krillin's face twisted in despair as he backed away.
"What should we do?! Everyone who stood a chance has already been defeated! And Goku… he's still recovering from his heart virus, who knows when he'll awaken!"
Everyone present turned pale as their gazes fell upon Cell, who radiated suffocating killing intent.
"Oh? Since none of you dare make a move, I'll just erase you myself!"
Cell smirked proudly at the trembling warriors. Raising his right hand, a swirling ball of ki rapidly expanded in his palm. Just as he was about to hurl it at Piccolo and the others, Piccolo suddenly lunged forward.
"Boom!"
Though Piccolo knew full well he could not match Cell's power, his eyes held not a shred of fear as he launched a storm of energy blasts at the monster.
Seeing Piccolo's courage, Krillin, Yamcha, Tien Shinhan, and young Son Gohan roared and ignited their own ki, rushing into battle. One after another, they hurled themselves into the fray alongside Piccolo, bombarding Cell with desperate attacks.
But against the five of them, Cell looked almost bored. He slipped through their strikes with contemptuous ease, counterattacking with casual blows. Within moments, all five were sent crashing into the earth and stone, coughing blood, their bodies broken and twitching.
"I'm so disappointed… not even a decent warm-up. Then perish, all of you!"
Cell sneered, raising his arm once more. His ki condensed into a blazing qigong cannon aimed straight at their battered bodies.
"Uh-huh!"
"Zzzzhhh!"
"Not good!"
"Looks like I still have to make a move after all."
In that instant, a streak of light flashed across the battlefield. Lin Hao appeared, his palm casually deflecting Cell's deadly blast into the distant mountains, where it exploded with earth-shaking force. Standing tall, Lin Hao regarded Cell with a calm, almost playful expression.
"Well, it's Lin Hao!"
"Yes! If anyone can stop him, it's Lin Hao! He's strong enough he might actually defeat Cell!"
"Our Earth… might be saved now!"
Piccolo and the others, though barely able to stand, lit up with fragile hope as they fixed their eyes on the newcomer.
"Hm? Who are you supposed to be? Another Earthling?" Cell narrowed his eyes, scrutinizing Lin Hao curiously.
"Me? You still don't get it?"
With a faint smirk, Lin Hao let the Saiyan tail coiled around his waist unfurl and sway slowly in the air, radiating menace.
Cell saw Lin Hao's tail swaying slowly around his waist. His eyes widened in genuine surprise.
"You… you're a Saiyan too?! Impossible! Weren't Kakarot and Vegeta supposed to be the only survivors? Trunks came from the future with that machine, but you… don't tell me you're another one?"
Lin Hao's gaze was calm. "That's not important. What matters is this, I'll fight you next. Once I finish you off, I can finally get some proper sleep."
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[Cell]
Combat Power: About equal to the peak of Super Saiyan (≈1 billion). (This is the stage just after his imperfect absorption, not his later Lightning-Enhanced Semi-Perfect form, so his ki is stabilized around that level.)
Bloodline Composition: Saiyan, Namekian, Human, and Frieza Clan created through Dr. Gero's genetic engineering.
Techniques Inherited: Kamehameha, Solar Flare, Special Beam Cannon, Ki Sense, Ki Barrage, Regeneration, etc.
Introduction: Cell is the bio-android designed as Dr. Gero's ultimate project. Micro-drones gathered the DNA of Earth's greatest fighters and villains, preserving combat memory through cell programming. From this, Cell was grown into an embryo, designed to become the perfect lifeform.
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Lin Hao skimmed over the system's analysis and sneered. "So, barely one billion? For all that boasting, your strength is lower than I expected. With my current body, I don't even need to rely on the Super Saiyan line. A simple Kaiōken would be enough to erase you."
Losing all interest, he turned his back on Cell and instead called out: "Piccolo."
From his pack, Lin Hao produced several Senzu Beans and tossed them over.
Piccolo caught them, blinking in shock. "These are… Senzu Beans? But how the hell do you have them, Lin Hao?"
"You don't need to know. Just eat them, heal, and stay back. Leave this fight to me."
Piccolo saw Lin Hao's determined eyes and stopped pressing. He divided the beans, tossing some to Krillin before eating one himself, then flew toward Vegeta and Trunks's battered forms to feed them as well.
Cell's face darkened. The arrogance of this new Saiyan the way he dismissed him entirely—ignited his fury. "You dare ignore me…?"
Lin Hao's tone was flat, almost lazy. "Come on then, Cell. I'll finish you quickly, and then it's back to my nap."
"Aaah!"
A white-hot aura erupted from Lin Hao's body, blasting dust and rubble outward. The ground cracked beneath his feet.
Cell narrowed his eyes, assessing the energy. "Your ki… impressive. Stronger than Vegeta's, that much is certain. But you're still nowhere near strong enough to defeat me."
"That confidence won't last long." Lin Hao smirked, raising one hand and crooking a finger. "Try me."
"Arrogant brat!" Cell snarled, his body blurring forward in a rush of speed.
But before his strike could land, Lin Hao's figure vanished.
"So fast!" Cell's instincts screamed, whipping around
Boom!
A crushing fist smashed into his side, sending shockwaves across the battlefield. Lin Hao didn't let up. He pummeled Cell with a storm of precise punches, each one exploding with ki. Finally, he charged a blazing ki orb in his left palm and slammed it down onto Cell's head.
"Boom!"
The blast sent Cell careening into the ground, detonating in a cloud of fire and smoke that engulfed the crater.
"Awesome! Lin Hao actually knocked Cell down!"
Krillin's face lit up with hope as he staggered to his feet.
"Uncle Lin Hao is amazing!" Gohan shouted, his small fists clenched in joy.
"As expected from someone even stronger than Goku," Yamcha added, eyes wide. "He crushed Cell in just a few moves!"
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