Eighty thousand!
This numerical value had already far exceeded his imagination. As the peerless genius with the noblest bloodline of the Saiyan race, he himself was only at 18,000—not even a quarter of his opponent's strength!
Even within the ranks of the galactic overlord Frieza, this would secure a solid second place. Only the top executive, the captain of the Ginyu Force—Ginyu himself—was higher than this.
Why was this happening? Is this really Earth?!
"Hey, Vegeta," Nappa was terrified to the limit, stammering as he asked, "W-what do we do now?"
"Shut up!"
Vegeta roared fiercely, ripping off his scouter and crushing it into fragments. He glared at Krillin, his teeth gnashing. "Impossible. This is absolutely impossible. It has to be a lie! Ah, I see—you short winter melon, you did this on purpose! You prepared a faulty scouter to mislead me, didn't you!"
"You're mental," Krillin said, speechless. He rolled his eyes, looking pained at the scouter shards on the ground. "Honestly, I'm going to get a lecture from Bulma when I go back. If I'd known you were this kind of person, I wouldn't have lent it to you."
"Stop pretending!" Vegeta shouted in fury. "When I have this kid kneeling and begging for mercy, let's see if you can still stay this calm!"
Before the words had even fully left his mouth, his figure vanished from the spot!
Swoosh!
In the next instant, Vegeta appeared behind Shane as if teleporting, his right fist encased in destructive energy, aiming directly for the center of Shane's back!
"Die!"
Snap!
A slender, powerful index finger caught the punch with effortless grace.
"What?!" Vegeta's pupils shrank. Shane hadn't even turned his head; he had blocked the strike by simply raising a single finger?!
"Hey, Saiyan. If you want to pull off a sneak attack, you need to be faster. You'll never succeed at such a sluggish pace," Shane's chuckling voice drifted over.
"Stop putting on airs!"
Vegeta was momentarily stunned, then exploded in rage. He charged his right fist again and lashed out with a lightning-fast left, putting every ounce of strength into reaching his maximum speed.
Pop! Pop! Pop!
He moved so fast that sonic booms echoed through the air. Shane, however, moved as if he were taking a leisurely stroll, shifting casually left and right. Occasionally, he even stopped to let out a lazy yawn. Yet, every single time, he evaded the attacks with perfect timing.
In a flash, several minutes passed. The onlookers were dazed by the sheer speed of the exchange.
"Hah... hah... hah..."
Vegeta had thrown over a thousand punches. He was drenched in sweat and gasping for air, yet he had achieved nothing—every strike hit thin air! He hadn't managed to touch a single thread of this detestable guy's clothing, let alone his body!
"Dammit! DAMMIT!!!" Vegeta screamed at the sky in frustration.
His opponent wasn't even using his true skill; he was acting exactly like an adult playing with a child. For someone as arrogant as Vegeta, this kind of humiliation was the most unbearable thing in the world!
Shua!
Vegeta's aura surged violently, turning into a golden pillar of light that shot into the heavens. "How dare you look down on me! Fight me seriously, you bastard!"
BOOM!!!
He flew backward to create distance, concentrating all his accumulated energy into his palms to form a blinding purple energy wave.
"GALICK GUN!!!"
This was the strongest move he could muster, possessing enough power to destroy a large planet in a single hit!
"Not good!" In the distance, Krillin, who had been watching with interest, suddenly panicked. He shouted a warning: "Big Brother Shane, get serious! You have to stop this one!"
Otherwise, Earth was in grave danger!
"I know."
Shane remained standing in place, his eyes narrowing slightly. He raised his right hand, and black-and-red sparks of electricity flickered at his fingertips. Initially, the lightning was as thin as a hair, but in an instant, it swelled into a violent storm coiling around his palm.
"I'll respond to you with this."
ROAR!
The Galick Gun arrived, over five metres in diameter. Sand and stone vaporized instantly in its wake as it charged toward Shane with world-ending momentum.
At the critical moment—
Hum!
Shane flicked his finger. The black-and-red lightning roared forth like a living creature, condensing in mid-air into a snarling, clawed Black-Red Dragon!
This was what he could achieve after a year of training! He could now freely blend "Chi" and Haki to unleash double the power. He could release his vast, almost limitless Haki from his body just like Chi! And like Chi, he could form it into various shapes of energy waves to cause terrifying physical destruction!
Since Armament Haki could be projected like Ryuo... Conqueror's Haki could be, too!
"CONQUEROR'S BLACK DRAGON WAVE!"
CRASH!
The moment the two energies collided, heaven and earth shook! A blinding light erupted, forcing everyone to shut their eyes. The shockwave blew the group back; Yamcha even lost his footing and nearly tumbled over.
"What happened? Did he stop it?" Krillin asked hesitantly, shielding his face from the sand and squinting through a crack in his fingers.
"Don't be silly, Krillin." Goku was amused and chuckled nearby. "Just 'stop' it? You're underestimating Big Brother Shane. Those two energy waves aren't even in the same league. The wave that Saiyan fired will be crushed the moment they touch!"
Eh? Krillin ignored the stinging pain, moved his arm, and widened his eyes.
Sure enough, it was exactly as Goku said. The dragon made of black-red lightning took less than a second to literally split the Galick Gun down the middle! The purple energy wave shattered like fragile glass, and the Black Dragon didn't lose its momentum, roaring as it lunged toward Vegeta!
"IMPOSSIBLE!!!"
Vegeta was struck with horror. With no way to evade, he could only cross his arms in defense. The moment the dragon hit, he spat out a large amount of blood and was sent flying like a cannonball. He smashed through over a dozen sand dunes before cratering deep into the ground.
His body was now embedded at the bottom of the pit, lying in the exact same pose as Nappa had earlier.
"He's not moving." Yamcha flew up and looked from a distance, immediately breaking into a gloating laugh. "That face-down pose is too funny! Pfft-hahaha~! Honestly, the gap is just too huge. Once Big Brother Shane got even slightly serious, the fight was over immediately."
Over? How could it end like this?!
"Cough... hack..."
At the bottom of the crater, Vegeta struggled to prop himself up. Kneeling on one leg, he wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. The rage in his eyes was gradually being replaced by jealousy and resentment.
It was true... this guy's power level really was 80,000!
He couldn't lie to himself anymore. He had only taken one hit, and his physical condition was already catastrophic. In his base form, there was no way he could win. He had to transform into a Great Ape to multiply his power tenfold!
But it was currently high noon. He didn't have the skill to stall until nightfall for the moon to rise—besides, the full moon was still several days away, if he remembered correctly!
"I have no choice but to use that method..."
Vegeta's gaze was dark. Doing so would consume a massive amount of stamina and leave him extremely vulnerable before the transformation was complete. It was like putting himself in mortal danger. But he was out of options. This was the only path left!
A technique known only to a tiny fraction of Saiyans...
Vegeta suddenly raised both arms, condensing a blinding sphere of energy in his palms, and hurled it high into the sky!
"ARTIFICIAL MOON!"
Hum!
The energy sphere hovered high above, suddenly expanding into a massive full moon!
"What is he doing?!" Goku looked up, confused.
"It looks like a moon..." Krillin scratched his head, then his face went pale an instant later. "Wait. Saiyan... moon... don't tell me..."
"Hahaha! Your reaction is so slow! You only just realized?!" Vegeta laughed maniacally. His pupils shrank into tiny red dots, and his body began to swell violently!
"ROAR!!!"
Accompanied by a world-shaking howl, Vegeta's body grew rapidly, fur sprouting everywhere. In an instant, he transformed into a terrifying Great Ape, twenty metres tall!
BOOM!
The Great Ape took a step forward, splitting the earth and sending wind howling. The sheer pressure made everyone catch their breath!
"How about it? This is the ultimate form of the Saiyan race! As a Great Ape, my power level multiplies by ten! Which means my power level is now exactly 180,000! One hundred and eighty thousand!"
It was more than double that kid's! The Great Ape sneered. "Shane! Kakarot! How do you feel now? You must regret cutting off your tails and losing this power forever! Too bad—it's too late!"
"Feelings?"
Shane admired the Great Ape's physique, thought for a moment, and nodded seriously. "Actually, I do have one. The quality of that battle suit is really impressive. I like it."
His body had enlarged so many times, yet the suit hadn't torn. It was a shame he couldn't take it back with him; otherwise, he'd really want a set to save himself the trouble of his clothes exploding every time he got into a brawl.
"..."
On the other side, Goku went stiff, frozen in place. Saiyans... can turn into Great Apes? Power multiplied by ten... under a full moon... the Grandpa who was stepped on by a monster... and the World Martial Arts Tournament stage that was destroyed...
"I'm so sorry, Grandpa," Goku said, clutching his forehead and gritting his teeth. "So everyone knew all along. That monster... it was always me..."
"You can't blame yourself for that! Now isn't the time for guilt, Goku!" Seeing this, Krillin shouted urgently. "Focus! That guy is incredibly strong now. Big Brother Shane can't hold him off alone! You have to pull yourself together; we need to team up to beat him!"
This actually worked. Goku snapped out of his complex thoughts and turned his head toward Krillin with a strange look. "Eh? Can't hold him off?"
"Isn't it obvious?!" Krillin shouted, fist clenched. "Wake up, Goku! The tables have turned! That guy's power level is a hundred thousand higher than Big Brother Shane's right now!"
"Uh, what are you talking about, Krillin?" Goku looked even more confused, scratching his head. "Big Brother Shane hasn't even been serious yet. I certainly can't handle a Great Ape, but for him... it's still not that difficult."
Huh? Krillin, Yamcha, and the others were stunned. What did that mean? When Shane powered up earlier, hadn't he already unleashed his full Conqueror's Haki?
Could it be... that wasn't Shane's limit?!!
In the very next second, Shane's faint sigh rang out:
"You really are a lot of trouble, Vegeta. I've always thought my true form was a bit ugly, so I didn't plan on showing it..."
But things being as they were, there was no other choice.
"Kami-e: Life Return—Muscle Bound Form," release!
BOOM!!!
In an instant, a violent shockwave erupted from beneath his feet. Shane's body began to swell at a visible rate... frantically!
Crack! Crack!
His bones popped and his muscles knotted, veins snaking across his entire body like angry dragons!
"URGHAAAAA—!!!"
With a world-shaking low growl, Shane's body shot up—taller, taller, and taller! Two metres, five, ten, fifteen... finally, it settled at—
Twenty-five metres!
THUD!!!
When his feet slammed into the ground, the entire desert shook as if struck by an earthquake, splitting into countless web-like chasms!
Hiss... Krillin, Yamcha, and Tien all gasped, their eyes wide and their throats dry. Their breathing even stopped. At this moment, Shane couldn't be described as human anymore. He was a total... Super Giant!
His body stood like a mountain, his muscles cast like iron, every line containing explosive power. And on the surface of his skin, countless black-and-red bolts of lightning coiled around him like serpents! Even his breathing sounded like a roaring storm!
"Hey, hey, hey... you're joking, right? This... this is Big Brother Shane's... true form?" Krillin's voice was trembling.
The pressure! Absolute pressure!
If Vegeta's Great Ape form made them feel danger as it approached... then Shane, simply standing there with his back to them, was like an ultimate cosmic lifeform looking down upon the world. It made their skin crawl and their instincts scream at them to bow down in worship!
"Vegeta."
Shane slowly lowered his head and finally spoke. He looked down at the Great Ape—who was significantly shorter than him and standing there slack-jawed—and a smile curved his lips. The smile was meant to be casual and warm, but in this form, it looked terrifyingly monstrous, enough to make one's whole body shake.
"This is what I got in exchange for hellish, non-stop training on King Kai's planet, pushing my body to the absolute limit. Now... do you still think a tenfold increase in power is something to be proud of?"
"You... you... stop talking big!!!"
Vegeta's Great Ape form snapped out of its shock and roared at the sky, but as he looked at the monster two heads taller than himself, a trace of terror had crept into his voice.
What was going on?! Even if the guy could transform without a tail, he should have turned into a Great Ape too! What kind of form was this??
He had planned to boast about how only those of royal blood like himself could maintain absolute consciousness while transformed. And yet... the opponent had simply turned into an even more terrifying giant???
"You're just a little taller and bigger than me!!" Vegeta gnashed his teeth and roared, forcing himself to stay calm. "But power levels don't lie! My power level is 180,000! How are you going to win?!"
"Is that so?" Shane said expressionlessly. "Still so proud. Come then—I won't move. Give it your best shot."
"DIE!!!"
Vegeta was enraged. His Great Ape body lunged forward, and a massive fist wrapped in destructive energy slammed into Shane!
THUD!
The desert exploded, and the air wailed! Vegeta's Great Ape fist slammed into Shane's chest, but it produced a dull, metallic thud.
CRACK!
Then, a sharp snapping sound rang out.
"WAAAAAGH!!!"
Vegeta's shrill scream echoed through the clouds. He clutched his arm, trembling, looking in disbelief at his right fist. The entire thick arm of the Great Ape was now twisted at a grotesque angle, jagged white bone piercing through the fur as blood sprayed like a fountain!
That punch... he had broken his own arm!