In a remote, cold area of the planet, only the sounds of the waves and the glacial ice could be heard. However, this was the place where a great battle would soon unfold.
"Lower your Ki. According to the information I obtained, the area surrounding Doctor Wheelo's lair has energy-sensitive detectors. If you're not careful, they'll sense you," said Bulma, floating above a layer of clouds.
Goku and Lazuli! Only the two of them had decided to accompany Bulma. The young Saiyan still remembered being left out of a couple of interesting adventures, and now he wanted to satisfy his desire to fight.
Especially since it was school vacation time. At first, Chi-Chi had wanted to come with him. How could she miss the opportunity to strengthen her bond with Goku? However, her teacher, Uranium Baba, had called her.
There was something about making her first trip to the Underworld. The old witch didn't share many details, but it seemed important for a witch like her. Eager to become stronger and stand by Goku's side, Chi-Chi agreed to travel with her teacher.
Lapis was the least belligerent of the young people in the group. He preferred caring for animals to confronting the 'Mad Doctor who plays with nature,' as he called him. Since his twin sister, Lazuli, was going to participate, he hoped she would teach that man a lesson.
Yamcha? He felt he needed to improve before attacking others. It wasn't that he didn't want to; he had a violent streak, not for nothing was the wolf his spirit animal.
Like Bulma and the rest, however, he had found his style and wanted to refine it. He didn't want to remain solely in his wolf-like mimicry, but rather, he planned to delve into the core of everything: his own energy.
He wanted to explore his talents further, such as his ability to easily control his Ki outside his body and its ability to penetrate enemies' defenses, store itself in their bodies, and explode.
He devoted himself to studying Ki, especially his own. He could not use the approach of Son Gohan and Bulma because he was not an academic, but he trusted his own intuition, honed by years of a difficult life.
Everyone has their own strengths, and it's good to take advantage of them to become stronger because he didn't want everything to boil down to relying on a couple of individuals with colorful hairstyles.
Bulma strongly encouraged this mentality. She loved seeing her teammates keep that spark alive, so she did something uncommon: she provided psychological and emotional support to those around her.
She didn't want Yamcha or the others to develop psychological problems. Even though they were martial artists, they were still mortal and had emotions. This kind of support was necessary. Their minds needed training as well as their bodies.
As someone with empathic abilities, Bulma could understand the emotional state of others. Her support went beyond material or physical healing to include spiritual support.
For this reason, Krillin was undoubtedly the one who surprised her the most. This boy decided to explore the mental aspects of Ki! Not psychic power, but the part of Ki related to the mind, spirit, and soul.
Krillin knew that his physical talent could never compare to that of the others. Despite being older than Goku, his short stature had completely stagnated.
Goku also grew slowly, but that was due to his unique biology because he was a Saiyan, not a human. Krillin, however, simply stopped growing.
Since he couldn't make the most of his body, he decided to go the other way. Having grown up in a Buddhist temple, he was familiar with the concept of the spirit, which he began to explore.
Bulma was interested in this because it reminded her of Krillin's signature attack, the Kienzan. It was said to be able to cut through enemies that surpassed Krillin in strength, although its effectiveness was clearly limited.
Was this attack related to the spiritual side of Ki? After all, the power of the mind, faith, and determination, though somewhat ethereal and formless, undoubtedly affects Ki.
Did the desire of the weak to hurt the strong give the Kienzan its incredible edge? Goku had already proven that he could infuse his attacks with emotion, so why couldn't Krillin or someone else do the same?
Krillin decided to explore this possibility, though he wouldn't neglect his physical training because a certain blue-haired girl had promised to research a medicine that would help him grow.
Just five centimeters, so it wouldn't be too sudden or noticeable. Bulma had a hunch that what she found in Doctor Wheelo's lair would help her with that project and many others.
Although there was data on the lair's computers, it was clear that the most critical information was stored separately from any external connection.
"It's okay," said Goku, lowering his energy levels. After all, he was sitting on his Nimbus cloud, so he didn't need to fly.
"How are we going to get closer?" asked Lazuli, who also concealed her ki, reducing it to the same level. However, doing so caused her balance to falter slightly because flying required the continuous emission of ki.
Bulma floated behind Lazuli, grabbed her waist, and helped her keep her body in the air. The blonde blushed a little at this intimate approach, while the other smiled.
Although they had been in their relationship for some time, they were still shy around each other. Of course, they were very confident with each other and had crossed the 'line' a long time ago. However, things were still 'fresh' for them.
"It'll be easy. Doctor Kochin's ship is about to dock, so we can follow him then. That way, we can explore the interior of the lair. Even though I already have his map, there are uncharted areas.
I want to keep it secret for as long as possible because I don't want to damage what I'm looking for," Bulma explained, justifying their decision not to use Ki attacks.
"Don't forget about Piccolo!" Goku shouted, his tail wagging with anticipation. He was eager to face the Demon King himself because Bulma had done so long ago, which made him jealous.
"I still think it's risky to let someone like that go free," Lazuli commented, though she was a bit embarrassed by Bulma's hug. This caused her partner to roll her eyes.
"Don't worry! I am confident in my strength, but I am aware of the potential problems. I promise you, everything will be fine. Sometimes, red flags can't withstand a powerful force," Bulma declared boastfully. But these words truly came from the bottom of her heart.
At her current level, even if she were 1,000 percent less cautious, few problems could concern her. Such was the security that came with having great strength.
...
The group waited patiently, and it didn't take long. Dr. Kochin's ship approached a large block of ice that split in two, revealing an entrance.
Without speaking, the trio knew it was time to act. They descended at high speed, trying not to emit too much energy.
Dr. Kochin was unaware of their infiltration. He was impatient, feeling as if he were trapped in a rice cooker. Once he was able to exit the ship, the scientist took the sealed object in his arms and walked directly to the area where the seal would be broken.
However, on the way, the pot kept shaking. This confused the scientist, who thought perhaps Demon King Piccolo was eager to be released. He proceeded to say a few words to calm him down.
"Please wait a moment. The place we are going to has the best energy blockers in the facility, so your release will be safe there," said Dr. Kochin in a 'kind' tone. Deep down, however, he was full of malice.
What he didn't know was that thoughts influence Ki. Even though it was sealed, the crack in the seal and the fact that the old man was holding the rice cooker allowed the demon to sense the malice in the Ki.
It wasn't Bulma's empathic ability, but Demon King Piccolo was certainly familiar with evil thoughts and Ki. There was a reason he chose Doctor Wheelo!
Although weak, Doctor Kochin's energy was so dark that even Piccolo thought he was facing another demon in human disguise. This man had probably killed more sentient beings than he had!
As cautious as he was, he didn't trust these so-called human scientists, especially now that he could sense the old man's obvious lie.
Piccolo hated being helpless, but he had to take a risk now. He didn't know what they had in store for him. However, he had ruled Earth with his immense strength, so he was confident he could escape any trap they set for him unscathed.
Didn't the humans of his time say, 'Tricks are no match for absolute strength'? He possessed that strength! However, he became overconfident and was viciously trapped in a seal by a human.
While Piccolo ignored the fact that he wasn't as powerful as he thought, Doctor Kochin noticed that the constant shaking of the rice cooker had stopped. He quickened his pace until he reached the designated area.
It was a room whose walls were covered with a strange material. There was a large screen hanging on one of the walls that soon lit up and revealed a shocking image:
A gigantic brain! It appeared to be submerged in a constantly bubbling liquid, and electrodes were attached to its flesh to pick up the subtle electrical signals it emitted.
"Dr. Kochin! It seems our friend is about to be released." Using these signals, Dr. Wheelo could operate various equipment, including visual and auditory processors, as well as a voice synthesizer that replicated his voice from before his death.
Dr. Wheelo had lost track of time. If not for an accurate record of time passing, he wouldn't have noticed the years passing. However, he was a meticulous scientist and continued to create and research even in this state.
"Yes, and he seems anxious," commented Dr. Kochin, feeling the rice cooker shake.
He placed the object on a table in the middle of the room, then reached out his hand toward the paper talisman stamped on it. Slowly, he shifted his focus away from the seal. He would have liked to do it quickly, but for some reason, he could only do it at this speed.
When the talisman was removed from the rice cooker, the lid exploded and flew off, hitting Dr. Kochin on the forehead. He groaned in pain; it hurt enough to make him bleed.
Black smoke soon began to emerge from the container. A powerful but ominous presence attempted to spread throughout the base, but the special material in the walls prevented it from doing so.
Meanwhile, Bulma was comfortably stealing data from Dr. Wheelo's private server room when she looked into the distance. A new source of emotions had appeared and was being picked up by her.
"Ah, how I love my empathic abilities! No one expects me to sense their emotions so accurately." Bulma congratulated herself. But at that moment, she knew she had to act. She decided to call Goku and Lazuli to tell them the news:
Demon King Piccolo had been freed!
The black smoke condensed into the figure of an ancient legend—a horror story that parents told their children if they didn't fall asleep—a person relegated to rumors and stories told by old people:
Demon King Piccolo! His green skin was wrinkled and withered, but his eyes shone with power and malice. His purple clothing gave him an imperial air.
The kanji for "demon" on his chest indicated his true nature. Although he appeared aged, his tall figure was imposing, and his movements were fluid.
"How comfortable it feels to stretch." Demon King Piccolo cracked his neck, twisted his body, and stretched his arms, producing crackling noises.
"Now...what surprises do you have for me?" the creature asked, looking at the screen projected by the brain that was currently Doctor Wheelo.
Piccolo wanted to experience the tricks of these so-called scientists.