Dragon Ball: I Became Cell in a Doomed Future-Chapter 214 - 214: Champa Is Losing His Mind

"I'm telling the truth, Toppo." Goku's face was perfectly serious. "Out of all the fighters from Universe 7, I'm the weakest one."
Toppo's expression stayed cold.
"Even if that were true, so what? Our Pride Troopers have Jiren. His strength far surpasses mine. When the real tournament begins, you will witness his terror for yourselves."
"Really?" Goku's eyes widened in amazement.
"Do I look like someone who enjoys making pointless jokes?" Toppo's face was stern. "For your information, in terms of raw combat power, Jiren stands above even our God of Destruction, Lord Belmod."
"That guy Jiren is stronger than a God of Destruction?" Goku asked in disbelief.
"That's right. Unfortunately, Jiren has no interest in becoming a God of Destruction."
With that, Toppo stopped paying Goku any attention. He turned and flew back toward Universe 11's spectator stand.
"Lord Belmod, please forgive me for failing to defeat the enemy." Toppo dropped to one knee, head bowed low.
Belmod folded his hands behind his back.
"If you had gone all out from the beginning, you could have erased Universe 7's trump card completely."
Universe 11's Supreme Kai, Kai, spoke coolly.
"We created such a perfect opportunity for you to kill Son Goku, and you still failed to achieve the objective. Tell me, are you not ashamed before us?"
"Lords… I am willing to accept any punishment," Toppo said, bowing even lower.
Marcarita frowned.
"Making Toppo kill someone in front of Lord Zeno was going way too far, sweetie."
Belmod waved it off.
"Forget it. The outcome of this match is ultimately meaningless. I may not like how that Son Goku brags, but he does have some skill."
Kai smiled faintly.
"Beerus did not even put Son Goku on the official roster, and instead let him get spent here. That is quite arrogant of him."
Over on Universe 7's platform, Levos was carefully studying Goku.
"So, Goku, what feels different about Super Saiyan Four compared to your other forms?"
Goku's eyes lit up with genuine admiration.
"Levos, this transformation is insanely strong. As long as I keep my Ki compressed enough, I can maintain Super Saiyan Four the whole time."
For the other Super Saiyan forms, the moment Goku passed out or ran out of stamina, the transformation would be forcibly undone.
Especially leaky Super Saiyan Three. Its absurd energy drain had been a running joke among Dragon Ball fans for years.
Super Saiyan Four, however, fixed that flaw. Its sustain was incredible, a complete upgrade over the previous stages in every way.
"What about the strain on your body? What's the limit on the Kaio-ken multiplier?" Levos kept asking.
In the original manga, there had never been a canonical case of stacking Kaio-ken on top of a Super Saiyan form.
In the anime, though, Super Saiyan Blue Goku had used Kaio-ken times ten, even times twenty, more than once.
Of course, the price was disastrous side effects: chaotic Ki, a body on the verge of collapse.
"I am not sure," Goku admitted. "All I know is when I used Kaio-ken times ten just now, my whole body hurt so much I could barely stand it."
So ten times Kaio-ken had already pushed Super Saiyan Four Goku beyond the limit of what his body could withstand.
If Toppo had held out just a few seconds longer in that clash, the winner might have been very different.
On the highest royal viewing platform, Zeno was still excitedly mimicking Goku's pose.
"I will use mortal power to shatter everything! So cool."
Little Zeno still had not emotionally come down from that fight.
The Grand Minister smiled faintly and turned to address the crowd.
"Lord Zeno is extremely satisfied with this match."
He paused, then added calmly,
"As the victor, Son Goku of Universe 7, what sort of reward do you wish to receive?"
A reward?
Everyone was stunned for a moment.
"Damn it." Belmod's face twisted with regret. "If you had just done your job, Toppo, our Universe 11 would not be facing possible erasure right now."
The All-View Exhibition was only the prelude. After this came the real event, the Tournament of Power involving all the universes.
Even though Belmod was very confident in his own universe's lineup, deep down he still felt a heavy stone pressing on his chest.
Beerus instantly leaned toward Goku.
"Brat, this is your chance. Ask Lord Zeno to spare Universe 7 from erasure."
Shin also came to his senses.
"That is right. If you ask Lord Zeno to cancel the punishment for losing, then our Universe 7 will be safe."
Goku went quiet for a moment.
"I do not really want any reward. As long as I can keep fighting strong opponents, I am already satisfied."
Silence fell.
Had this guy been punched in the head one too many times?
He just threw away a chance to ask Lord Zeno for literally anything?
"Son Goku, I did not think there could be someone so ungrateful in the universe."
The eldest of the Trio of Danger, Bergamo, stepped forward to denounce him.
Everyone's attention shifted to the blue-furred wolf, waiting to hear what he would say next.
Bergamo lifted his chin.
"If I were you, I would ask Lord Zeno to rescind the decision to erase universes and restore peace to all of reality."
That line immediately won him the approval of most of the spectators.
From Universe 6, Frost stepped out as well.
"Son Goku, this is a rare chance for Universe 7 to atone for its sins."
"Otherwise, we will unite and remove your universe, the most evil of them all."
"You people from Universe 7 would not want to face the entire arena targeting you in the official tournament, would you?"
The fighters of Universe 7 all frowned.
One of them stood on the moral high ground and lectured. The other delivered a naked threat.
Together, they were trying to shove Universe 7 to the opposite side of every other universe.
They were even fanning the flames inside Universe 7 itself, trying to drive a wedge between the fighters.
Arms folded, Frieza narrowed his eyes.
"Even if a pile of trash huddles together, it cannot escape the fate of being swept away."
Levos glanced at him, slightly surprised.
He had not expected the great king to be immune to their rhetoric and instead voluntarily step up to attract hatred.
Piccolo and Puar were both Goku's old friends, and Buu only listened to what Levos said.
Taken together, Universe 7's fighters were a solid wall. They were not going to be split apart by a few cheap words.
"Son Goku," the Grand Minister asked meaningfully, "are you sure you do not wish to request the cancellation of the erasure penalty from Lord Zeno?"
Goku hesitated and looked at his companions.
"Goku, just follow your heart," Levos said.
"Goku, you are the one who staked your life on that fight," Piccolo added with a cold smile. "No one else has the right to decide for you."
"I do not need anyone's pity," Frieza snorted.
"Whatever you decide, I will support you, Goku," Puar said quietly.
He did not have the same confidence as the others, but he trusted their judgment completely.
Beerus' face was like stone, but he did not try to stop Goku again.
Goku turned back to the Grand Minister and shook his head firmly.
"If we cancel that, then I will never get to see the true power of all the other universes' fighters."
For a moment, the Grand Minister's expression held a trace of approval.
"In that case, the punishment for the losing universes will remain unchanged. I ask that you all fight with everything you have."
Beerus and Shin sighed at the same time.
Universe 7 really had become the nail stuck in everyone else's eye.
Belmod was the first to jump in.
"Grand Minister, aside from Universe 7, the other universes all field only five contestants. In my view, this is not very fair."
The other Gods of Destruction immediately picked up on his angle and began quietly coordinating.
"Beerus really is crafty, using this method to secure an extra substitute."
"Son Goku must be Universe 7's secret trump card."
"We have to lock him down and strip him of his qualification to fight."
The Grand Minister stayed silent, waiting for Belmod to finish.
"Grand Minister, I propose that Son Goku should not be allowed to participate in the rest of the All-View Exhibition."
"That is right."
"I agree."
"So do I."
As the chorus of support from the other gods grew louder, Champa was already on the verge of panic.
"You are all focusing on the wrong person. The one you need to limit is not that Son Goku guy… it is Levos!"
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