"You're asking for it!" Oxley's expression turned ice-cold as he unleashed his full power. With lightning speed, he aimed a vicious kick straight at Taurus's temple.
BOOM!
Taurus lowered his head and charged straight ahead, ramming into Oxley's powerful right leg. The sheer force of their collision sent a shockwave tearing through the battlefield, instantly reducing a nearby mountain to rubble. The ground beneath them caved in, forming a massive crater nearly a hundred meters wide.
"Heh! Is that all you've got?" Taurus grinned, stomping the ground so hard it cracked beneath his hooves. With explosive force, he launched himself forward, smashing into Oxley with unstoppable momentum. The impact sent Oxley flying through the air like a ragdoll.
Before Oxley could regain control, Taurus grabbed hold of his right leg and yanked him back with brute strength. With a wild roar, he slammed his head straight into Oxley's torso.
Oxley's face twisted in shock. He barely managed to grab onto Taurus's massive horns before they could pierce through his body. But the force behind the attack was overwhelming—blood dripped from the corners of his mouth, and despite his efforts, the tip of one horn still managed to stab into his side.
"Moo—! Die!" Oxley roared in fury, his mouth opening wide as he unleashed a powerful energy beam straight at Taurus's face.
BOOM!
At such close range, there was no way for Taurus to dodge. The blast struck him squarely on the head, sending him hurtling through the sky like a meteor. He crashed into another mountain, reducing it to dust before finally skidding to a stop.
"Moo—! You bastard! My cape—!" Taurus's furious bellow shook the battlefield. An even more terrifying aura erupted from his body, shattering the rubble that had buried him. His once-mighty appearance was now a mess—his beast-hide clothing was torn to shreds, and worst of all, his prized "cool and majestic" cape was completely ruined.
At this moment, Taurus's eyes turned blood-red with rage. He had officially entered berserk mode. That cape—aside from his little brother—was the most precious thing he owned. And now, it was in tatters. How could he not be furious?
Raising both hands high, he gathered a colossal energy sphere, its sheer size and power enough to obliterate everything in the area.
The Minotaur chief, watching from a nearby cliff, turned pale with fear. "Taurus! Stop! Do you want to destroy our entire village?! I declare this duel over! Taurus wins! Now stop! Stop!"
Taurus froze. "Huh? I won?" His rage abruptly disappeared as realization dawned on him. "So that means... Bella is mine? Wahaha!" The energy sphere in his hands slowly faded into nothing.
The chief, Oxley, and the other villagers all breathed a sigh of relief. No matter how foolish Taurus was, there was no denying that he was the strongest warrior on this planet.
However, the moment his eyes landed on his ruined cape, Taurus let out a heart-wrenching wail before turning to glare murderously at Oxley. "You bastard! If you don't compensate me with an even cooler, even more stylish cape, I swear I'll never let you go!"
Oxley hesitated. He had always been unwilling to accept Taurus's title as the strongest, but after today, he had to admit—it was well-earned. Had this not been just a duel, he might not have survived.
Still, he refused to back down. "It's just a damn cape! Fine, I'll get you one made from Soloro hide!"
Taurus's eyes immediately lit up. "You swear?! If you don't follow through, I'll beat you so bad your own mother won't recognize you!"
Soloro hide was one of the rarest and most valuable materials on the planet, both incredibly durable and stunningly beautiful.
---
Meanwhile, the fierce battle had not gone unnoticed.
From a nearby cliff, Goku and his group had been watching the duel unfold. The girls were left in complete awe, unable to believe the sheer intensity of the fight they had just witnessed.
"Goku, if you fought them, who would win?" Saeko and the others turned to him with curiosity.
Goku smirked. "You're really asking me that? Don't compare me to those idiots. I could beat them with just a single finger."
After spending more than six months training in the Hyperbolic Time Chamber, Goku's strength had long surpassed anything a mere twenty or thirty thousand power level could handle.
---
The girls all nodded in agreement. They had never seen Goku fully unleash his power, but in their eyes, he was an invincible force of nature. That belief had been cemented the first time they saw him fight.
Still, Goku was mildly surprised to learn that this planet had warriors with nearly 30,000 battle power. That was about the same level as Vegeta when he first came to Earth.
Back at the village, the Minotaur chief—Bella's grandfather—stood amidst the ruins of the battlefield, wiping the sweat from his brow. Deciding to avoid any further destruction, he quickly announced the second round of the competition.
"For the second challenge, we'll have a race! The goal is to reach Jamu River, ten miles away. Whoever gets there first wins!"
"A race? Now that sounds like fun!" Oxley grinned as he turned to his magnificent mount—a tall, muscular fire ox. He swung onto its back and rode in a confident circle before giving Taurus a smug look. "So… where's your mount?"
Taurus immediately turned to his strategist. "Hey! Go bring me my donkey!"
The strategist wiped his sweat nervously. "Boss… uh… a few days ago, you said it was too weak, so… we, uh, ate it."
"Huh? We did?" Taurus looked confused for a moment, then suddenly remembered. "Ohhh yeah! Damn thing got tired after ten meters, so I got pissed and ate it!"
"Hahaha! Who the hell rides a donkey as their mount?!" Oxley laughed. "And you ate it too? That's just—" He stopped himself before saying stupid. If there was one thing he knew, it was that you could insult Taurus in any way except calling him stupid, or else… things would get ugly.
Instead, he smirked and said, "So, I guess that means you don't have a mount?"
"Who says I don't?!" Taurus roared. "Strategist!"
"Yes!" Without hesitation, the strategist dropped onto all fours and lay flat on the ground. Taurus immediately swung a leg over him and sat down proudly. "Behold! This is my mighty steed—loyal, obedient, and fluent in cow language! Are you not amazed? Wahaha! Giddy up!"
With that, he smacked the strategist's rear with the flat of his massive cleaver.
"Ow! Boss, go easy on me! That hurts!" the strategist wailed.
"Damn it, shut up and run! If we lose, you'll be cleaning my latrine for life!" Taurus shouted, giving him another loud slap on the backside.
Tears streamed down the strategist's face. "Boss… I already do clean your latrine…"
The other minotaurs buried their faces in their hands, unable to comprehend how such a fool could be the strongest warrior in their village. They were utterly humiliated.
"This… this is your mount? Fine, whatever! Let's just start!" Oxley could barely hold back his laughter. But while he managed to stay composed, his men behind him were already roaring with laughter.
Even Bella's grandfather had made up his mind—there was no way he was marrying off his granddaughter to such a lunatic. His opinion of Oxley skyrocketed.
The chief drew a line in the dirt. "Both of you, stand at the starting line. On my mark… Go!"
"Hyaaah!" Oxley cracked his whip, and his fire ox let out a powerful "Moo—!" before dashing forward, disappearing in a cloud of dust.
"Shit! Strategist, faster!" Taurus urged.
"Ow—gahhh! Moo—!" The strategist ran on all fours as fast as he could… but he was no match for a fire ox.
"Dammit! We're falling behind! Faster!" Taurus slapped his back harder.
The strategist let out a miserable wail and collapsed onto the ground, his right butt cheek swelling instantly. "Boss! I—I can't keep going!"
"Useless! Get up! Switch places with me!" Taurus barked before slapping him one last time, then climbed off his back and got down on all fours himself. "Alright, your turn! Hurry up—we're falling behind!"
"Y-Yes, boss!" The strategist sprang to his feet, wiped away his tears, and immediately mounted Taurus's back. He then slapped his boss's rear. "Giddy up, boss! Charge!"
With a wild snort, Taurus bolted forward on all fours, his massive body tearing through the ground with shocking speed. Within moments, he was closing the gap between himself and Oxley.
Oxley, noticing Taurus rapidly gaining on him, was stunned. "What the hell—?! That idiot is fast! Dammit, I underestimated him!"
"Hyaaah! Yahh!"
He cracked his whip furiously, urging his fire ox to push even harder. The beast let out another powerful roar and kicked into an even higher gear, widening the gap once more.
"Boss, faster! We're catching up! Wait—no, he's pulling ahead again! Faster, boss, faster!" the strategist urged excitedly.
Seeing their lead slipping, he suddenly got a wild idea—he pulled out a dagger from his belt and stabbed it straight into Taurus's rear.
"Awooo—!"
Taurus let out a bloodcurdling howl and immediately tripped, tumbling forward and crashing face-first into the dirt, kicking up a massive cloud of dust.
"Ptoo! Ptoo!"
Spitting out a mouthful of sand, Taurus turned around with a bewildered look. "You little shit! I hit you with the flat side of my blade, and you stab me with a real dagger?! What the hell is wrong with your brain?! The pressure you put on me is unreal!"
"Boss, I was just trying to encourage you!" the strategist responded innocently.
"From now on, no stabbing me!" Taurus grumbled as he got back on all fours. Then, with a roar, he charged forward again, running even faster than before. With his insane durability, the wound on his rear barely slowed him down at all.
With Taurus's powerful sprint, the gap between him and Oxley rapidly shrank. In just a short time, he had completely overtaken Oxley…
--------------------------------------
Power Level… Critically Low!
Dear Z-Fighters (aka awesome readers),
Translating this Dragon Ball fanfic takes energy—and not the kind you get from eating senzu beans.
I need Power Stones to keep this translation going faster than Goku chasing a new form!
No Power Stones = me going Super Slacker instead of Super Saiyan.
Yes Power Stones = faster chapters, epic battles, and possibly Goku forgetting how to parent again!
So channel your inner Spirit Bomb and lend me your energy (a.k.a. Power Stones)!
Let's raise this translation's power level OVER 9000!!