In Dragon Ball: A brutal beating of Frieza at the start

Page 124

Tien Shinhan's roar nearly shattered the communicator: "Lin Ye! The East City Energy Tower has been gnawed on! That monster is alive, like a moving pile of rotten flesh; bullets disappear as soon as they hit it—damn it! It split! One became three!"

Lin Ye grabbed his combat uniform and pulled it on, bumping into team member Xiao Li, who was running down the corridor carrying an energy gun. Xiao Li's helmet was cracked, and his face was covered in black slime: "Captain! The third zone's defensive wall has been melted through! That slime can corrode titanium alloy. Uncle Wang charged in, armored vehicle and all, to blow one up..."

"Have the medical team prepare the regeneration pod." Lin Ye's voice was as cold as ice. He suddenly stopped, his combat suit zipper only halfway up. "Xiao Li, where's Number 18?"

"Sister No. 18 is inspecting energy lines in the southwest region..."

Lin Ye turned and ran, his speed leaving afterimages in the corridor: "Notify Number 18 to leave the Southwest District immediately, there's a trap!"

Inside the command center, Yin Cha's cigarette butt had burned down to the filter. On the screen in front of him, three red dots were expanding at a speed of two kilometers per minute, rapidly dissolving buildings in their path into a black, viscous liquid, like sugar cubes doused with strong acid. "Just tested the plasma cannon; it's like a bonus on them, the energy readings actually went up." He pulled up the arsenal list, his finger hovering over the "Stardust Cannon" button. "This thing can wipe out half a city, should we use it?"

"It can't be used." Lin Ye rushed into the command center, grabbed the energy blade from the table, the scratches on the scabbard particularly glaring under the light—they were left from the last battle with the Dark Cluster "Observer," whose claws could tear apart the super-blue energy shield. "The Energy-Devouring Worms survive by devouring energy, and the Stardust Cannon's energy will make them split even faster." He stared at the red dot trajectory on the screen, suddenly frowning, "They're circling the southwest area, deliberately avoiding position 18."

"A diversionary tactic?" Tien Shinhan's communication came through again, accompanied by the sound of an explosion in the background. "I trapped one with my Four Body Fist technique, but their slime can penetrate my Ki Blast! Krillin has already led the residents to the underground bunker!"

Lin Ye burst out of the command center, the ejection hatch closing behind him. As he passed through the atmosphere, the intense heat scorched his combat suit, but the air currents repelled it, leaving charred marks. On the ground, the eastern commercial district had become a black swamp, three energy-devouring worms writhing along the streets like melting asphalt. Eye-like growths constantly bulged on their surfaces as they rotated and scanned their surroundings. Once they detected an energy source (whether it was a streetlamp or a cell phone), they sprayed out a dark green acid, corroding it into energy particles which they absorbed into their bodies.

Even more terrifying is the black fungal carpet, growing from the slime of worms, spreading at a speed of three meters per second. Wherever it passes, concrete turns to powder, metal becomes rust, and even the microorganisms in the soil are decomposed into energy. A little girl's rag doll fell onto the fungal carpet and was instantly swallowed up, leaving only a wisp of smoke.

"Found it." Lin Ye abruptly stopped in mid-air, his super blue aura suddenly erupting, golden light piercing through the thick smoke. His figure left afterimages in place, and the next second he appeared in front of the easternmost worm. This worm had just swallowed the signal tower, its body swelled to ten meters tall, and its surface eyes all turned towards Lin Ye, shooting out red detection beams.

“Only physical attacks are effective.” Lin Ye dodged the beam of light, his right hand gathering super blue energy into the energy blade, making the blade resemble molten gold. He suddenly disappeared, reappearing above the worm’s head, the energy blade slashing down with a sharp whistling sound that tore through the air—there was no explosion, only a dull tearing sound, the worm’s body was cut in half, green fluid splattering like a torrential rain.

But the bodily fluids did not disappear when they fell to the ground; each drop transformed into a tiny worm the size of a little finger, crawling toward the nearest residential area faster than the mother.

"As expected, it can split into multiple parts." Lin Ye landed, his toes pushing off the ground, and the shockwave sent the surrounding micro-worms flying. He looked up at the other two worms, which had stopped moving and were beginning to merge—the fleshy, tumor-like bodies stuck together, their eyes merging into huge compound eyes, and even spitting out half of a tank cannon barrel that had been swallowed, with corrosive liquid dripping from it.

"They've merged?" Lin Ye gripped the energy blade, super blue flames swirling around him in a vortex. "That saves some trouble."

The combined worm reached a height of twenty meters, resembling a moving mountain of flesh. Its compound eyes locked onto Lin Ye, and it suddenly unleashed a barrage of dense acid, leaving trails of white smoke in the air. Suddenly, the ground beneath Lin Ye's feet cracked open, and a tiny worm emerged from the ground, lunging at his ankle—it was the clone that had been missed earlier.

"Quick reaction." Lin Ye leaped into the air, flipping as he slashed at the micro-worms on the ground with his energy blade, while simultaneously kicking a gas blast at the acid barrage above him with his right foot. The gas blast exploded the moment it touched the acid, the shockwave shattering the acid into droplets. These droplets landed on the ground, still causing the fungal carpet to expand rapidly.

"We can't let the acid hit the ground." Lin Ye landed, suddenly remembering Number 18's infinite energy—if he got wet from this acid, the consequences would be unimaginable. He took a deep breath, raising his super blue energy to 80%, and the golden flames suddenly became viscous like liquid. "System, calculate the location of the worm's core."

[The energy concentration point was detected in the chest cavity, which is surrounded by three layers of muscle and has a hardness equivalent to tungsten carbide alloy.]

"That's enough." Lin Ye's figure suddenly blurred, a sign of the pseudo-Freedom Ultimate—his body began to autonomously judge attack and defense. He dodged the worm's sweeping giant arm, grabbed the giant arm's skin with his left hand, and used the recoil to rush towards the worm's chest cavity. His right hand gathered all the power into the energy blade, piercing out like a golden drill.

"Pfft!" The energy blade pierced the worm's body, green fluid spurting from the blade and splashing onto Lin Ye's combat suit, making a sizzling, corrosive sound. The worm let out a piercing shriek, its massive arms flailing wildly, trying to shake him off. Lin Ye gritted his teeth, channeling his super-blue energy into the energy blade, causing the patterns on the hilt to glow red—this was his "Explosive Energy Mode," specially developed to deal with the Dark Star Cluster, capable of triggering micro-explosions inside the weapon to enhance its penetrating power.

"Break!" Lin Ye swiftly drew his energy blade, simultaneously condensing a gas blast in his left hand and slamming it into the worm's wound. The gas blast exploded internally, without a flash of light, only an invisible shockwave spreading from the worm's body. Its body disintegrated inch by inch, like a balloon being blown up.

Just then, Lin Ye's communicator crackled to life with Number 18's voice, slightly breathless but calm: "Lin Ye, we've found the black crystal in the Southwest District, on the third basement level of the energy tower. I've already crushed it."

Lin Ye looked up at the southwest area, where wisps of smoke were rising. He suddenly smiled—Number 18's perception far surpassed that of ordinary people; she must have noticed the abnormal energy fluctuations in the southwest area long ago and deliberately stayed there to wait for the right opportunity.

The worms' bodies were still disintegrating, but the micro-worms suddenly seemed to have their souls ripped away, stopping in place before turning into black ash. The fungal carpet's expansion also ceased, and its edges began to dry and crack.

When Lin Ye landed, the left arm of his combat suit had been corroded with a large hole, and there were several burns on the exposed skin. He walked to a patch of fungal carpet, ground it with his toe, and a faint energy fluctuation emanated from the ashes—the same energy frequency as the Dark Star Cluster ship.

"System, record this energy frequency and add it to the alert database." Lin Ye deactivated his Super Blue state, his black hair sticking to his sweat-dampened forehead. "Notify the medical team to go to the third district to rescue Uncle Wang, and also... tally the casualties."

Inside the command center, Tien Shinhan was applying regeneration gel to the wound on his arm. Although his Four-Body Fist clones had held off the worms, the corrosion of the clones had also affected his main body, causing his left arm to swell and turn red as if burned. "The three energy towers in the east of the city are all destroyed. It will take three months to rebuild them." He watched as the red area on the holographic map turned gray. "Fortunately, Android 18 destroyed the signal source in time, otherwise these monsters could have reproduced."

Number 18 entered the command center, clutching a fragment of a black crystal, which was still emitting faint black smoke. "The crystal is hidden in the core of the energy tower, guarded by five miniature worms. It shouldn't be difficult to deal with." She tossed the fragment to Yincha. "Analyze its composition and see if we can locate the Dark Cluster."

Yin Cha caught the fragment and put it into the analyzer: "Probably not. This thing's energy signal is unstable. It'll probably disappear completely in half an hour." He looked up at Lin Ye, "Captain, the Dark Star Cluster came with great force this time. Will they send even stronger weapons next time?"

Lin Ye walked to the window, gazing at the gradually dying embers of the fires on Earth. In the distance, the city silhouettes loomed faintly in the night, ravaged yet still illuminated by flickering lights—the homes of the survivors. "Their target is me," Lin Ye said, tapping his fingers lightly on the windowsill. "The Energy-Devouring Worms were just a test; the real meal is yet to come."

He recalled the red light beneath the black-robed man's mask, and the stone tablet of the Zero Realm Ruins—seven years ago, when he was cultivating in the Zero Realm Ruins, he had seen similar dark energy. The old angel guarding the ruins told him that it was the "Power of Nothingness" that existed since the beginning of the universe, feeding on all energy.

“Zero Boundary… Dark Star Cluster…” Lin Ye muttered to himself, “What exactly are they trying to do?”

On the other side of the universe, the Dark Cluster spaceship floated at the edge of the wormhole. In the main control room, the twelve holographic screens had been repaired and were no longer displaying Lin Ye's battle footage, but rather real-time footage of Earth—Lin Ye's figure gazing out from the command center window was magnified and clearly visible.

The man in black slammed his fist on the control panel, cracking the alloy surface with spiderweb-like patterns. "Can't even handle three energy-devouring worms, trash!" His voice was filled with suppressed rage, and his pupils flashed red light beneath his mask. "Tall, skinny guy, adjust the parameters for the 'Dark Matter Bomb'."

The tall, thin man's fingers trembled slightly: "Sir, once the dark matter bomb detonates, it will affect the entire solar system, and Beerus will definitely notice..."

“That’s exactly what I want him to notice.” The man in black robes suddenly sneered, turning to walk towards the porthole, where purple energy flickered in the rotating wormhole outside. “The more Beerus cares about Lin Ye, the more he will be restrained. By the time he realizes it, the ‘Star-Eating Ritual’ will have already begun.”

He pulled up an encrypted file named "Zero Boundary Revival Project," with an attached image—a planet enveloped in black energy, its surface faintly displaying light at the same frequency as Lin Yeqi's.

"Lin Ye, your 'Star Core Qi' will be the key to awakening the Zero Realm." The man in black robes whispered to Lin Ye on the screen, as if making a vow, "I will let you see with your own eyes that the Earth you protect and the companions you care about will become the nourishment for the revival of the Zero Realm."

The spaceship slowly entered the wormhole, leaving behind a string of encrypted signals, and crossed the boundary of the seventh universe, heading towards a more distant, unknown star field. There, more Dark Cluster fleets awaited orders.

On Earth, the first rays of sunlight crossed the horizon and shone into the command center window. Lin Ye was asleep, lying on the map, his right hand still gripping the energy blade, his fingers unconsciously tracing the map—marked with the coordinates of possible attacks from the dark star cluster, densely packed like an invisible net.

Sunlight fell on the scar on his chest, a mark left from his battle with the Watcher, shaped like a shattered star. But under the sunlight, the edges of the scar seemed to shimmer with a faint gold—a testament to the Saiyan's indomitable fighting spirit and unwavering resolve to protect.

The battle is not over yet; it has only just begun. But as long as Lin Ye and his companions stand here, the light of Earth will never be extinguished.

Chapter 291: Earth Crisis Erupts

Office buildings in the east of the city collapsed like paper boxes under the claws, concrete fragments hitting the ground and kicking up dust. Tien Shinhan's forehead veins bulged, his hands clasped together, motionless, as three energy waves blasted in a triangular pattern onto the scaled monster's back, the resulting energy ripples flipping cars upside down on both sides of the street.

"Drink tea! There are still civilians in the alley on the left who haven't been evacuated!" He shouted until his voice was hoarse. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw three monsters crawling into the residential building through a crack in the wall. "I'll cover you, go and bring them out!"

Yin Cha spun rapidly in mid-air, the thrusters on his boots spewing pale blue flames, and fired a burst of bullets from his pulse rifle: "You damn well better aim! You almost singed my hair!" He accurately shot a monster in the eye, and taking advantage of the monster's momentary tilt of its head back in pain, he flipped over the courtyard wall. There was an old lady on the third floor holding her cat and refusing to leave; it was practically a death sentence!

The pulse beam left only white marks on the monster's scales. The beast shook its head, its blood-red eyes fixed on Yin Cha in the air. Suddenly, it opened its mouth full of fangs and spat out a viscous green liquid.

Holy crap! The tea drinker suddenly shot upwards, the liquid grazing the sole of its boot before landing on the ground, sizzling and smoking, instantly eroding a huge crater in the asphalt. This thing even has ranged attacks? When did it unlock this new skill?!

Stop showing off! Tien Shinhan's four clones simultaneously appeared around the monster, their four hands pressing down on its back. "Get up!"

With a cracking sound of bones breaking, the three-meter-tall monster was lifted high above his head. Tien Shinhan took the opportunity to condense a ki blast: "Look carefully, this is what you call aiming!"

A blinding white light engulfed the monster's form, and the shockwave sent dust billowing across half the street. Yincha, carrying the old lady, landed in the safe zone. As soon as he shoved her into the armored vehicle, he grumbled, "Couldn't you stop stealing the spotlight with that stupid clone of yours? If you'd been half a second slower, this girl in my arms would be roast suckling pig!"

It's better than you fighting for ages and still not breaking through the defense. Tien Shinhan wiped the dust off his face, then suddenly realized something was wrong. Wait, the scales on that other creature seemed much harder than before.

Before the words were even finished, seven or eight identical monsters suddenly rushed out from the street corner. The leader had a black stripe on its forehead and its claws gleamed with a metallic sheen. They didn't attack immediately, but instead spread out in a fan shape, clearly in a tactical encirclement posture.

Damn, it even has an evolution feature? Yincha switched his rifle to burst fire mode. When will the defense team's reinforcements arrive? My energy is almost depleted!

The communicator was broken. Tien Shinhan assumed a fighting stance, cold sweat trickling down his spine. The ki blast he fired earlier had been too loud and might have damaged the signal tower.

Just then, a golden beam of light crashed down from the clouds, the shockwave from its impact sending all the attacking monsters flying. Lin Ye hovered in mid-air, his golden hair fluttering in the smoke, his black combat suit stained with blood.

"You two, get back to the back." His voice still carried lingering anger. His gaze swept over the mess on the ground, and he ordered the civilians to retreat to the underground bunkers. "Leave this to me."

Lin Ye? What brings you here? Yin Cha's eyes lit up, then he frowned. These monsters were really strange. Kill one and two more would appear, like an endless swarm of cockroaches.

Lin Ye didn't answer, and his figure suddenly disappeared from the spot. The next second, the monster with the pattern on its forehead was grabbed by the neck and lifted up. Golden energy flowed in his palm, burning the monster and causing it to roar in pain.

"Tell me, who sent you?" Lin Ye's fingers slowly tightened, his knuckles turning white from the force.

The monster made a gurgling sound from its throat, then suddenly arched its body, its scales standing on end like a hedgehog about to explode. Lin Ye's eyes narrowed, and he flung it high into the air, simultaneously crossing his arms in front of him to block.

A violent explosion burst into a green mushroom cloud in the sky, and the shockwave sent nearby monsters sprawling about. Lin Ye landed on a pile of ruins, watching the monsters shake their heads and straighten up again, his brows furrowing in worry.

See? Tien Shinhan ran over, panting, with a blood-soaked bandage wrapped around his arm. This thing can self-destruct, and after it explodes, the others seem even more ferocious.

Lin Ye suddenly pointed to the northwest: "The energy reaction over there is strange, don't you guys think so?"

Looking in the direction he pointed, all he could see was billowing black smoke: nothing but explosions, what could be wrong?

Lin Ye's gaze swept across the battlefield as he observed the monsters' movements. Suddenly, he raised his voice, "All the monsters are shrinking towards the city center! They're deliberately compressing our defensive range!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the ground suddenly trembled violently, and a huge creature twice the size of an ordinary monster emerged from the ground, carrying half a subway car on its back, its scarlet eyes scanning the surroundings.

"Damn it, there's even a Boss level one?" Yin Cha cursed, then suddenly shouted into his headset, "Defense Team Three! Immediately lead the civilians to evacuate through Evacuation Route Three! Hurry!"

Lin Ye had already charged forward, his fist carrying a golden shockwave as it slammed into the giant monster's knee. With a crisp crack, the monster staggered and knelt on one knee, the subway car sliding off its back and crashing to the ground with a piercing metallic scraping sound.

The joints beneath the scales are their weak points! Lin Ye's voice echoed across the battlefield: "Concentrate your attacks on the joints!"

His figure moved swiftly among the monster's limbs, each punch landing precisely on the joints. The giant monster roared deafeningly, flailing its thick arms wildly, but couldn't even touch the hem of Lin Ye's clothes.

Now that's what you call a fight! Watching this, Yin Cha got his blood pumping, hoisted his pulse rifle, and aimed it at the monster's elbow. "Men! Give this bastard a good beating!"

The defense team members seemed to have found their backbone, and their previously scattered firepower instantly became concentrated. Although ordinary bullets were still largely ineffective, the energy weapons, when hitting joints, at least left burn marks.

Taking advantage of the situation, Tien Shinhan unleashed an even larger Ki Blast: Lin Ye! Left Hind Leg!

Lin Ye instantly understood, flipping over and leaping to the outside of the monster's left hind leg, slamming his elbow into the side of its knee joint. The monster, in pain, jerked its foot up, exposing its opening to Tien Shinhan.

The dazzling energy wave struck its target precisely, and accompanied by a heart-wrenching scream, the giant monster crashed to the ground, crushing an entire row of shops next to it.

"Great!" Just as Yin Cha was about to cheer, her expression suddenly changed. Oh no! It was about to self-destruct!

Lin Ye had already retreated to a safe distance. Watching the massive body begin to swell, his expression turned serious: Everyone, retreat one hundred meters!

The explosion was far more violent than any of the previous ones; the shockwave even overturned armored vehicles in the distance. When the smoke cleared, only a large crater, tens of meters in diameter, remained, its edges still hissing with green smoke.

"Shouldn't it be quieter now?" Yin Cha rubbed her ears, which were throbbing from the vibration, and suddenly noticed that Lin Ye's expression was off. "What's wrong?"

Lin Ye stared intently at the center of the pit: "Look there."

Everyone looked in the direction he pointed and saw that the green smoke at the bottom of the pit was gathering and gradually forming small vortexes, with new monster prototypes wriggling in each vortex.

"Is this never going to end?" a young team member couldn't help but curse, his hand gripping the gun trembling. "What the hell is this thing?!"

Lin Ye suddenly closed his eyes, and the energy around him began to fluctuate violently. The golden aura of a Super Saiyan grew stronger and stronger, almost solidifying: their energy source was in the northwest!

To the northwest lies… Tien Shinhan suddenly remembered something, his expression changing drastically—it’s the Energy Core Station! That’s where the Earth Defense Force’s largest energy reserve is located!

No wonder they're shrinking towards the city center. Lin Ye suddenly opened his eyes, his golden pupils flashing with anger. They weren't trying to destroy the city at all; they wanted to absorb the energy from the energy core station!

He suddenly soared into the sky, his golden figure tracing an arc in the air: Tien Shinhan, you and your men guard all the evacuation routes! Yin Cha, contact headquarters immediately and have them blow up the energy core station!

Blow it up? Yin Cha was stunned. That was our most important energy reserve.

"Are we leaving them to feed these monsters?" Lin Ye's voice was firm and unwavering. "Three minutes! If I don't get there in time, immediately activate the self-destruct sequence!"

But you...

Stop talking nonsense! Lin Ye has already disappeared into the clouds, leaving only his voice echoing in the air. Trust me!

Yin Cha stared in the direction he had disappeared, gritted her teeth, and shouted into her earpiece: "Headquarters! This is Yin Cha! Immediately prepare to activate the self-destruct program for the energy core station! Repeat, prepare to activate the self-destruct program!"

Tien Shinhan patted him on the shoulder: "Don't worry, that guy has never let us down." He turned to his teammates and shouted, "Listen up, everyone! We need to buy ourselves three minutes! Even if we have to use our bodies to block them, we have to stop these monsters!"

On the battlefield in the east of the city, the surviving defenders regrouped, forming a makeshift defensive line with their wrecked armored vehicles. On the distant horizon, more scaly monsters were surging in, flooding the streets like a tide.

Lin Ye's speed had already broken the sound barrier; all he could hear was the whistling wind. He could clearly sense the increasingly powerful energy fluctuations ahead, mixed with the malevolent aura unique to monsters.

Suddenly, three monsters leaped out of the clouds, forming a triangular formation to block his path. Lin Ye's eyes turned cold; without slowing down, his golden fist pierced directly through the chest of the leader. In the instant before it exploded, he had already grabbed the necks of the other two and slammed them together.

After two muffled thuds, Lin Ye's figure appeared above the energy core station. The silver-white building was now surrounded by layers of monsters, and the energy shield on the outer wall was flashing red, clearly on the verge of collapse.

Finally made it. Lin Ye breathed a sigh of relief and was about to go down when he noticed a researcher in a white lab coat standing inside the shield, pointing a laser gun at the control panel. Behind him stood a medium-sized monster with black markings on its forehead.