"That was Angel-level Ultra Instinct... Angel Realm power... and even the power to travel through time itself..."
"Can those really be abilities a mere Candidate God of Destruction could possess?"
"Damn it... that brat looks only a few hundred years old at most. How in the world did he achieve all this?"
Beerus, who had been silent until now, suddenly began muttering nonstop.
The words envy, jealousy, resentment might as well have been written across his face.
Another version of himself from another timeline had actually found such a terrifying successor.
He was insanely jealous.
And Beerus was not the only one.
Whis felt sour inside as well.
From what he had initially sensed, Gran only seemed to have just touched Angel-level Ultra Instinct and possessed Fourth-Tier bodily instinct.
But he had never imagined Gran had also comprehended temporal power.
And that still was not the most outrageous part.
The most outrageous part was—
Gran's strength had actually broken into the Angel Realm.
"No!!"
Beerus suddenly leapt to his feet, startling everyone present.
Whis blinked.
"Lord Beerus... what are you doing?"
Beerus rushed in front of Whis, grabbed both of his shoulders tightly, and shouted:
"Hurry up and find out where the Gran of our timeline is right now!!!!!"
His voice was full of urgency.
Clearly, he now fully believed Gran's identity.
"Lord Beerus... you mean...?"
Whis's eyes lit up.
Beerus said excitedly:
"Have you not seen that little monster's talent?! Then I'm taking the Gran of this timeline as my successor too!"
Parallel timelines rarely diverged too drastically in their core history.
Beerus knew that well.
Since another Beerus had managed to recruit such a monstrous candidate, then there was no reason the Gran of this timeline would be inferior.
So that's his plan...
Gran found it amusing.
Unfortunately...
Beerus's plan would most likely never succeed.
When Gran had first transmigrated into the Dragon Ball world, the original body had already been abandoned by Vegeta.
If nothing changed, then every Gran across every timeline had probably died the same way.
Meaning—
Among all timelines, only he remained.
"Don't rush, Lord Beerus. Let me search first."
Unaware of Gran's thoughts, Whis activated his staff and began searching Universe Seven for someone named Gran.
The God of Destruction's palace fell silent.
A short while later, Whis's expression changed subtly.
Beerus frowned.
"What's wrong?"
"Lord Beerus... the results I found are not very pleasant. Do you wish to hear them?"
"Stop wasting time and tell me!"
Beerus was growing impatient.
Whis glanced at Gran, then sighed.
"The Gran of our timeline died long ago."
"What?!"
Beerus's eyes widened in utter disbelief.
Gran merely shook his head slightly.
He had already expected that all other versions of himself met that fate.
Beside him, Bulma froze as well.
She had never imagined the Gran of this world had already died.
A sudden sadness welled up in her chest.
"How could a genius like that die so early?!"
Beerus shook his head wildly.
Then he suddenly thought of something and shouted:
"If he's dead, then revive him!"
Whis shook his head.
"That cannot be done."
"Why not?!"
"Because the Gran of this timeline died decades ago. He has long since reincarnated. I have no means to revive him now."
"That's impossible!!"
Beerus slumped instantly, looking utterly defeated.
Whis sighed helplessly.
"Lord Beerus... there is one more thing you should know."
"Gran was a Saiyan."
"What?!"
Beerus's eyes widened again.
He quickly turned to look at Gran.
Wrapped around Gran's waist was a tail—
The unmistakable mark of a Saiyan.
"I see now..."
Beerus finally understood why Whis had sighed earlier.
Even if the Gran of this timeline had survived childhood—
Years ago, Beerus had already ordered Frieza to wipe out the Saiyan race.
So in this timeline, Gran had been doomed no matter what.
Realizing that, Beerus sat back down heavily, looking as though his soul had left his body.
Gran had known from the beginning that Beerus's idea could never work, so he had no intention of saying anything.
Silence returned to the palace.
After a short while, once Beerus seemed to calm down somewhat, Gran finally spoke.
"My lords..."
The moment he opened his mouth, Beerus and Whis both turned toward him.
Bulma stared at him as well.
All three already knew why Gran had come.
Normally speaking, manipulating time was a grave crime.
As a God of Destruction, Beerus had the duty to erase such offenders.
But this person was Gran.
Gran was also the disciple of another Beerus and Whis from another timeline.
And because of that connection, even knowing the severity of his crime, they were still willing to hear him out.
Besides—
This precious treasure of a candidate...
How could Beerus bear to destroy him?
Especially when Gran's strength had already surpassed Beerus himself.
There was no way Beerus could make a move.
As Gran began to speak, everyone stared at him intently.
The atmosphere in the palace suddenly grew heavy.
"Lord Beerus. Whis."
"After becoming a Time Patrol officer, I discovered someone in another timeline attempting to carry out the Zero Mortals Plan."
At last, Gran revealed the true reason he had come.
"The Zero Mortals Plan?"
Beerus and Whis exchanged glances.
Both saw confusion in the other's eyes.
Judging from the name alone, it likely meant exterminating all mortals.
But was that really enough for Gran to commit the grave sin of interfering with time?
After all, evil forces appeared in the universe from time to time.
Many of them sought to destroy humanity entirely.
Yet according to the natural balance of the universe, such evil never lasted long.
Sooner or later, righteous warriors would rise and eliminate them.
"Lord Beerus, this Zero Mortals Plan is different."
As a Candidate God of Destruction himself, Gran could easily guess what they were thinking.
He narrowed his eyes.
"The one carrying it out... is a Candidate Supreme Kai."
"What?!"
Beerus was instantly horrified.
Whis's brows tightened sharply.
Even Bulma was shocked speechless.
"A Candidate Supreme Kai stands equal to a Candidate God of Destruction," Beerus said in disbelief.
"Their duty is to maintain the balance of the universe. Why would one do such a thing?"
Gran shook his head.
"That person's ideals have long since become twisted."
"He sees mortals as filthy... evil... violent... savage... ignorant..."
"He believes mortals deserve to be erased."
"He believes only gods should exist in this world."
"And that is why... he intends to carry out this plan."