Piccolo was observing Raditz, while Raditz was thinking about something else, like whether he should try to contact Vegeta to ask about the situation and confirm whether what that person named Ethan said was true.
"But the scouter is completely broken, and the spaceship is still in their hands..."
He did not know that Vegeta, having just sensed the situation on Earth, was already heading there. He would be able to see Vegeta in just one year.
Piccolo observed from the air for a while and confirmed that this stranger also seemed to be allied with Goku and Ethan. Gritting his teeth in frustration, he turned to leave.
Just then, Ethan suddenly blocked Piccolo's path.
He took a stance, ready to fight at any moment. Although he knew the gap in power between them was huge, Piccolo would not simply wait to die.
"What? Do you want to get rid of me, the Great Demon King?"
"Demon King?"
Ethan looked at Piccolo. Compared to the original Great Demon Piccolo, whose appearance alone suggested he was not a good person, this newborn Piccolo had rather proper features. Standing there with a cold expression, he gave off the air of a righteous person.
"If I'm not mistaken, you've been hiding and training in very remote wilderness all these years, haven't you?"
When Piccolo arrived, he had revealed his true power to hurry over. Ethan could sense that his current strength was far superior to Raditz's.
Influenced by Ethan and the others, Piccolo had developed a broader perspective. Training alone to reach this level was not easy, which proved that Piccolo's natural talent was good. After all, he was a rare combat-type Namekian.
What a pity. If Piccolo could fuse with Kami again, his combat talent and power level would become even stronger.
"..."
Piccolo did not know what Ethan was thinking, but that remark made him feel very uncomfortable.
"Once I defeat you and Goku, I will return this world to the hands of the demon race..."
"Demon race?" Ethan shook his head. If he were facing the previous Piccolo, he definitely would not say these things. Although that one was a Namekian, his actions were no different from those of a demon.
A clone born from evil thoughts, having committed numerous wicked deeds, could indeed be called a demon.
The new Piccolo was different. In Ethan's view, he was just a young Namekian... Thinking about it carefully, was Piccolo even ten years old this year? He was still a child.
"You can't be called a demon. You are actually a Namekian." The Dragon Ball universe really does have a Demon Realm.
Piccolo was stunned. He had never expected Ethan to stop him just to say these things.
"What do you mean?"
"It means that while you're not an ordinary Earthling, you're completely different from the demon race. You're just an intelligent life form from another planet."
"You're saying I'm actually an alien?"
"Yes!"
"..."
Piccolo's face darkened as he kept looking Ethan over.
"Are you messing with me?"
"You think I'm lying to you? Is there any need for that?" Ethan raised a hand, stopping Piccolo from saying more. "There are quite a few aliens here, including Goku, me, and Yoruichi. None of us are Earthlings. Tien also has Three-Eyed People blood."
Piccolo was a little bewildered. What was this? Were there really so many aliens on Earth?
"As for Namek, if you're interested, you can come down and talk."
After speaking, Ethan landed back on the ground first without waiting for Piccolo's reaction.
Piccolo hovered there, hesitated for a moment, then clicked his tongue in annoyance. In the end, he followed Ethan down to the ground.
He was indeed very curious about his true origins. Although he was the newborn Great Demon Piccolo, he was completely different from the previous one. Even though he had inherited the memories and knowledge of the Great Demon Piccolo, his personality was entirely new, and he had not inherited that evil nature.
Perhaps this was due to the inherently kind nature of Namekians? Ethan remembered that it had been mentioned in the original story that Namekians were a kind and peace-loving race. Although they had decent fighting ability, they did not naturally enjoy fighting and killing. This also led to truly battle-skilled combat-type Namekians being extremely rare. At present, there was only one on the entire planet Namek.
Seeing Piccolo land as well, Krillin and the others did not pay much attention.
Yamcha had been an enemy at first. Tien had also been an enemy at first. Even the Raditz beside them was not exactly a friend even now.
So entertaining Piccolo was nothing to worry about.
After all, this was different from the original storyline. The Great Demon Piccolo had been eliminated by Ethan before he could do much evil. Krillin, Master Roshi, Chiaotzu, and the others had not died at the Great Demon Piccolo's hands, and the world had not fallen into crisis because of him. Therefore, Krillin and the others' hostility toward Piccolo was basically nonexistent.
Right there in the yard, Ethan poured Piccolo a glass of water and briefly introduced the Namekians. However, he did not mention the current situation of the Namekians, only that Namek had once suffered a great catastrophe. Perhaps it was during that time that Kami fled to Earth.
Then, Kami lost his memory due to an accident. After living on Earth for a while and being influenced by humans, he developed many evil thoughts. When he became Kami, he expelled those evil thoughts from his body, giving birth to the Great Demon Piccolo...
There was no need to mention what happened afterward. At this point, Piccolo already knew his true origins.
Kami, who was secretly observing from afar, also heard Ethan's explanation and gained a clearer understanding of his own origin.
"Speaking of Namek, Goku, you could ask King Kai. Isn't he a very high-ranking being? Maybe he knows the current situation of the Namekians."
"Oh? Wait a moment, I'll ask him."
Ethan had always been curious. Did Goku actually understand telepathy? Most of the time, he did not use this skill. When speaking to people from afar, he mostly did it through King Kai.
However, there were a few times in the original story when Goku directly initiated conversations with King Kai. The most typical example was when King Kai was telepathically connected with Kami, and Goku directly joined in.
Ethan observed for a while and came to the conclusion that Goku himself probably did not understand this skill. It was just that King Kai had such a good relationship with him that he had directly given him "permission," allowing Goku to contact him anytime, anywhere, and even actively join conversations King Kai was having with others.
"Is this protagonist halo?"
Ordinary people would not receive this kind of treatment. Even if they were strong, King Kai had not been seen giving this privilege to others. But then again, ordinary people would not bring a self-destructing Cell to King Kai's planet either.
Goku quickly got the answer from King Kai. After Namek underwent the great catastrophe, although the environment was severely damaged and the Namekians were nearly wiped out, a small number of them still survived and were currently working hard to rebuild their home.
After hearing the answer, Piccolo suddenly felt an urge to go and take a look, but he hid it well and did not show it.
"Why are you telling me all this?"
"I just think it's pretty sad for someone not to know where they come from."
"So... you pity me?"
Piccolo was a little agitated. The great reincarnation of the Great Demon Piccolo was being pitied by someone?
"Think whatever you want... But if you want to defeat me, you can't do it in your current state..." Ethan even pointed out a clear path for him. "If you want to truly become stronger, the best option is to fuse with Kami again."
"That's impossible!"
Piccolo stood up, did not look back, and flew straight into the air. In the blink of an eye, his figure was gone.
Ethan watched Piccolo disappear and shrugged indifferently.
In reality, he had no particular purpose in saying those things. He was simply bored.
He had always believed in balancing work and rest. Strict training every day would eventually become exhausting, so he would try his best to find some fun to pass the time.
Piccolo was good entertainment. He was very curious whether this newborn Piccolo, who was being pushed to the limit, would go and fuse with Kami.
After observing for so many years, Kami should have realized that the current Piccolo was not purely evil, and he himself was indeed old and somewhat powerless when it came to many things happening on Earth.
Furthermore, since neither Ethan nor Goku intended to inherit his position, perhaps he could consider a different direction?
By fusing with Piccolo, the evil within him would weaken further. If they gave priority to Piccolo's young body, he would not have to worry about aging. At the same time, Piccolo's combat talent was considerable, making him more useful than Kami himself in protecting Earth.
Although it was a good option, Kami was not in a hurry to make a decision. He could observe for a few more years before deciding. Besides, Piccolo would not readily agree to such a thing right now.
Watching Piccolo leave, everyone continued fiddling with the scouters for a while, while Ethan began thinking about what to do next.
The general direction was still to train hard, but he was gradually starting to feel unsure about how to continue.
High-gravity and extreme-temperature environments, both hot and cold, combined with weighted gear, seemed to be the only options available at the moment. This meant that further increases in strength could only be achieved through time and accumulation.
"Since Frieza doesn't know about the Dragon Balls, maybe we have plenty of time?"
After thinking it over, he suddenly felt that something was wrong. Ethan remembered the battles that would come one after another. If they could not gain the strength to defeat Frieza within a year, then when the Androids and Cell appeared a few years later, everyone here would face the fate of dying in battle.
"..."
Ethan covered his face. He had actually overlooked this. Even if they skipped Frieza, the villains who came after would not just stay hidden because he had not "pushed the plot" forward. Was his only option to research some kind of transformation technique to achieve a significant short-term increase in combat power?
Raising base combat power to several million was vastly different from raising it to over a hundred million. The former might still be possible within a year, but the latter...
"Plans really can't keep up with changes. I guess I should look into transformation techniques..."
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
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