That arm—the texture, the skin color, the shape, the structure of its fingers… Slinn, who had once seen King Cold's true form with his own eyes, could never mistake it! Even if that arm had been reduced to ashes, he would still recognize it!
It was Frieza's arm!!
Who? Who could have severed one of Frieza's arms?! Slinn found it incomprehensible. Could it be that Frieza had been injured during the planetary explosion, losing his arm in the process? He couldn't think of a better explanation. As for the 1.5 million power signature they had previously detected overlapping with Frieza's energy reading of over 100 million… Come on, anyone capable of basic arithmetic would know there was no way that lifeform had anything to do with Frieza losing an arm.
It had to be that Frieza was caught off guard and got injured when the planet exploded.
But that wasn't the point!
"Frieza's arm…" A fire of excitement and madness burned in Slinn's eyes. He clenched the shoulder of a nearby alien researcher so tightly that he nearly crushed it. In a deep yet slightly trembling voice, he commanded, "No matter the difficulties! No matter the challenges! Extract every last secret from this arm! Completely! Thoroughly! Every single one!"
He paused for a moment, recalling a wandering scientist he had encountered and recruited under his command about a decade ago. Then he added, "Bring Gaia here. He must be involved in this research as well! Classify this project as the highest level of secrecy! Prioritize it above all others! This is now the top priority! I want results in the shortest possible time!"
"Anyone who contributes will be rewarded with a first-class planet," Slinn said, regaining his composure with a smile.
---
"It's that bastard Gaia!" Slinn struggled to maintain his calm, his teeth clenched in anger, his eyes filled with resentment and fury. "I treated him well, yet he always harbored thoughts of betrayal! While conducting research for me, he was secretly conducting another project of his own! He tampered with the final research results!"
His rage was so intense that his body trembled. Staring at his own hands, Slinn roared, "He implanted something inside me… something that prevents me from killing him! And I can't even leave this planet!! Damn it! How dare he?! How dare he?!! This is unforgivable!!!"
Fueled by fury, Slinn—whose body now bore an uncanny resemblance to Frieza's—erupted with overwhelming power! A storm burst forth from his body, scattering the dark clouds in the sky!
Energy blasts even shot out from his body!
Taro frowned. This guy seemed to have lost control due to that so-called Gaia. Raising his hand, Taro's vast, divine ki and immense spiritual power enveloped Slinn, who was far larger and more muscular than himself. In an instant, he subdued—or rather, suppressed—Slinn. Every energy wave that had been unleashed failed to break through the barrier formed by Taro's single hand. No matter how violent the storm, it dissipated like a gentle breeze.
At the same time, Taro attempted to use his spiritual power to peer into the mind of this cosmic merchant, who had used biotechnology to remodel himself into a Frieza-like being… But he failed.
"A power level of ten million… As expected, even I can't forcibly read the memories of someone unwilling." Taro understood this and wasn't surprised.
The spiritual realm of high-energy lifeforms wasn't so easily invaded.
And Taro's Muken didn't have the ability to enhance his mental probing. If he exerted his full power, he might be able to glimpse into Slinn's mind, but the result would likely be the complete collapse of Slinn's consciousness—like a Category 5 hurricane sweeping through, leaving nothing behind.
Even so, Taro had a hunch.
"Gaia? …Hmph…"
He chuckled to himself. He had a fairly good guess as to who this so-called stray scientist might be.
Meanwhile, as Slinn regained his composure, his fear of Taro grew exponentially. He was, after all, no true warrior. Even though he now possessed energy exceeding ten million, he still retained the mindset of a merchant who once gazed up in awe at Frieza. That was why he had reacted with such overwhelming shock when he witnessed the power of Taro's palm strike earlier.
If he had been like Frieza—if he had possessed the mentality of a true warrior—he wouldn't have panicked so easily even with the same power level.
Yet, ironically, it was this instinctive fear that had temporarily saved his life.
Had he possessed the arrogance of a warrior like Frieza, he might have underestimated Taro and attacked him out of pride—only to be struck down in an instant, before Taro even had the chance to grow impatient.
"Let's go. You're coming with me."
Taro grabbed Slinn with one hand. His fingers, like five divine iron pillars, clamped down on Slinn, rendering him completely unable to resist. Despite the simplicity of the action, it made Slinn feel utterly powerless. His heart filled with both humiliation and terror.
He had lived long enough to recognize the feeling of impending death.
This was exactly it.
A chill crawled up his spine. It was as if an icy phantom loomed behind him, its cold breath whispering against the back of his neck, waiting for the perfect moment to pierce through his skull and claim his life.
"Where to?" That was all Slinn asked.
"Of course, to that so-called Gaia,'" Taro said calmly, already half-closing his eyes. This made Slinn even more confused. He looked up at the empty sky—aside from the piercing cold wind, there was no equipment, nothing. Was this person really planning to locate that bastard Gaia from here? Was he not joking?
Whoosh! In the sky, two figures, one large and one small, vanished into thin air, disappearing into the wind.
---
Elsewhere, in an underground research facility even more dilapidated and crude than the one Slinn had been in before...
"You actually found me?!" A creature, resembling a rat, jumped up in shock upon seeing the two figures appear in his lab, especially when he saw Slinn, the tall figure standing next to Taro. He was horrified.
"Gaia!!!!" Slinn's eyes were nearly shooting fire. He grinned viciously, grinding his teeth and clenching his fists. "How dare you betray me?!" But even though he was angry, Slinn knew there was nothing he could do to him. Gaia had tampered with his artificial body, implanting a microchip that made him incapable of...
"Huh?" Slinn suddenly felt a jolt in his heart. He realized that he wasn't experiencing the same situation he had when he had been unable to move after feeling murderous intent toward Gaia. That is to say...
I can kill him now?! Slin kept his furious and twisted expression, remaining still.
"Dammit! You actually found me!" The "Gaia" on the opposite side seemed to be panicking, jumping up and down. But as a mere civilian, with no strength to speak of, he seemed to have reached the end of his rope. He shouted angrily at Slin, "It's all because of you! You destroyed this planet! You wiped out all the ships! Now I'm stuck in this godforsaken place! It's all your fault! You bastard!!"
"It was you who betrayed me first!" Slin sneered coldly.
Meanwhile, Taro stood there calmly, observing the "rat" in the corner, angrily shouting at them. Compared to when they had parted ways, the rat's appearance had changed somewhat, though it was unclear whether it was due to his long lifespan or some technological means, but he was still alive and healthy.
At that moment, Slin raised his hand, releasing a scorching energy wave towards the "Gaia", or rather the rat. Boom! The explosion of fire erupted! Slin trembled in excitement, his expression twisted as he laughed wildly, "Finally dead!! Finally dead!! Those who betray me must die!!"
"I am the strongest! Even Frieza will—" Slinn's mental state seemed to be deteriorating due to the microchip the rat had planted inside him, interfering with his brainwaves. After personally killing the rat, his thoughts became oddly clear, and he turned around, seemingly ready to shout a few more things to Taro...
But as soon as he turned, the words "Frieza will" hadn't even left his mouth before a single finger lightly touched his forehead.
The ghost behind him exhaled a cold breath, speaking in a chilling, ethereal voice, "Die..."
A blood hole pierced through Slinn's forehead, traveling to the back of his head. The force that erupted from Taro's fingertip started at the point of contact with Slinn's forehead and ended at the back of his head, eliminating all of Slinn's life force without making a sound.
It was as if Taro had just tapped Slin's forehead, and Slinn's skull was pierced effortlessly, as if nothing more than a gentle breeze.
Taro slightly curled his finger and flicked it. Slin's tall and strong body collapsed helplessly backwards with a loud crash.
Taro then slapped his hand against the ground! Boom! The ground below shattered under the force of his slap, and with his telekinetic control, the floating debris moved aside, revealing something hidden beneath the earth... a biological pod large enough to fit a person.
Hiss...
The rat woke up inside the biological pod, and the first thing he saw was an old, somewhat familiar face. He blinked his eyes, and the old face rapidly changed before his eyes, transforming into a much younger version of itself, a face that seemed even more familiar.
"You... Taro?" The rat stumbled out of the biological pod, looking at Taro, who had restored his true appearance, incredulously.