As Piccolo blasted apart the referee's microphone, the arena fell into silence once more.
He slowly rose into the air, veins bulging across his green face.
Sweeping his gaze across the crowd, he roared furiously:
"You insects! How dare you look down on me—Demon King Piccolo!"
"Demon King Piccolo?"
Someone in the stands repeated the name—the one that once struck terror into the entire world.
Piccolo spread his arms wide and laughed loudly.
"That's right! I am the offspring of the Demon King Piccolo who once ruled this world and plunged it into fear!"
"Now, I will make you all live under my dominion of terror once again!"
He stared eagerly at the crowd.
He expected panic—
screaming, fleeing, trampling chaos.
He longed to hear their cries and sobs.
However…
After his grand declaration, the scene he imagined never came.
Instead, the spectator stands erupted into laughter.
"Hahahaha—!"
"He says he's Demon King Piccolo's descendant! That's hilarious!"
"You mean the Demon King who got beaten senseless by Mr. Goku in the king's castle, then chopped into pieces by Krillin?"
"What Demon King? He's been obsolete for ages! He even acts the part!"
Piccolo froze.
He stared in disbelief at the stands.
Not only were people not afraid—
some had even pulled out cameras and started taking pictures.
A blond man in a baseball cap shouted at him:
"Hey, Mr. Demon King! Your cape's torn—want me to lend you a jacket?"
The arena burst into laughter again.
Piccolo's face darkened to an even deeper green, veins throbbing wildly.
"You… you insects! How dare you—!"
At that moment, Krillin floated up into the air, facing him directly.
"Uh, Piccolo… times have changed."
"Let me tell you something."
"After your father was killed, someone invested in making a TV drama."
"It was about how he tried to rule the world—and how he was defeated."
"Most people here grew up watching that show."
"Fear of Demon King Piccolo disappeared a long time ago."
"Shut up!"
Humiliated beyond endurance, Piccolo gathered an energy sphere in his palms.
"I'll blow all of you away!"
Goku's eyes narrowed instantly. Energy flared in his palm as well, ready to counterattack.
But even at the sight of charging ki blasts, the crowd still showed no fear—
instead, they grew even more excited.
"Whoa! He's losing it!"
"This guy was beaten by Mr. Krillin in one combo, and he still wants to cause trouble?"
"Mr. Krillin, please punish this so-called descendant of Demon King Piccolo again!"
The referee somehow produced another microphone and shouted:
"Testing, testing—can you hear me?"
After confirming it worked, he announced with unmistakable showman flair:
"It seems this contestant claiming to be 'Demon King Piccolo' is unwilling to accept defeat and wishes to continue his performance!"
"Let us see how Mr. Krillin responds!"
Krillin hovered in midair and assumed his fighting stance again.
Battle intent shimmered in his eyes.
"Did you hear that, Piccolo?"
"The great Demon King Piccolo wouldn't lose to us and then turn his anger on ordinary people, would he?"
"If you can defeat us fairly, then sure—the world can still be ruled by you."
"But if you choose to attack civilians…"
"We'll all look down on you."
A trace of disdain appeared on Krillin's face.
Piccolo's veins twitched violently.
After a fierce internal struggle, the energy sphere in his hands slowly dissipated.
Seeing this, Krillin finally let out a breath of relief.
The ki in Goku's palm faded as well.
Piccolo suddenly raised his hand and pointed straight at Krillin.
"You and Son Goku—after the tournament, don't leave."
"I'll make both of you die by my hands."
Krillin blinked, then smiled slightly.
"Happy to oblige."
Goku, watching nearby, nodded calmly.
"If you want a fair fight, I'm in too."
The corner of Piccolo's mouth lifted faintly.
"Hmph. Then live a little longer."
"When the time comes, don't say I didn't warn you."
Watching Piccolo agree not to harm civilians, Shen felt waves stir in his heart.
"So even provocation works on him…"
"He really is completely different from the old Demon King Piccolo."
As Krillin and Piccolo left the arena, the referee announced once more:
"Next match—Yamcha versus Shen!"
Seeing Shen's frail appearance, Krillin laughed.
"Your luck's pretty good, Yamcha. You got an opponent like that."
Yamcha grinned.
"Hahaha, yeah. Guess I'm lucky."
With full confidence, Yamcha stepped onto the stage.
"Contestant Shen," he said smugly,
"I suggest you surrender. I might accidentally break those skinny arms and legs of yours."
Shen adjusted his glasses and laughed awkwardly.
"Haha… I know you're strong."
"But I'm sorry—I must give it my all."
Yamcha nodded and curled his finger.
"Then come at me."
"If you say so… I won't hold back."
Shen flailed forward with exaggerated movements.
His awkward posture made everyone laugh.
But just as Shen reached Yamcha—
he stumbled and fell.
By pure accident, his foot struck Yamcha square in the lower abdomen.
Yamcha instantly doubled over, staggering back several steps in agony.
His strained groans made the scene painfully embarrassing.
The referee quickly commentated:
"Oh my! Yamcha has been struck in the abdomen due to contestant Shen's accidental fall!"
"Shen's luck is incredible—truly astonishing!"
Shen hurriedly stood up, apologizing repeatedly.
"I-I'm so sorry! I'm really terrible—are you okay?"
Yamcha's face flushed crimson with humiliation.
"It's fine! Just a mistake!"
"Now I'm attacking for real!"
He lashed out with a powerful kick.
Shen shrieked in terror.
"Aaah! So scary!"
He instantly curled into a ball.
Yamcha's kick missed.
But in the moment Yamcha's leg passed over him—
Shen suddenly stood up.
BANG!
The back of Shen's head slammed squarely into Yamcha's groin.
Yamcha's eyes bulged violently.
Clutching his crotch, he collapsed to his knees with a howl of pain.
Because the blow struck a vital point, even the referee didn't bother counting.
The Turtle School group immediately turned their heads away, unable to bear the sight.
Goku watched in stunned admiration.
"…The Guardian really knows how to humiliate people."
"Using 'accidental' techniques like this hurts Yamcha's pride far more than a clean defeat ever could."
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