They said they were enjoying their last vacation, but there was really nothing to enjoy.
The spaceship was not that big, and there was not much to do. At most, they could sit together and chat, discussing how many days they would rest after returning to Earth, and then how they would arrange their trips into space.
Ethan had already said that he would stay on Earth to train. Goku, on the other hand, decided that he would take Chi-Chi and Gohan to explore the universe, and Krillin and Piccolo would likely go with him.
In addition, Yamcha, Tien, and Chiaotzu might also go into space to look around. Perhaps Tien would become interested in his Three-Eyed People heritage.
"Ethan, are you still going to train?"
"Yeah!"
"That's incredible, you're already so strong!"
Krillin did not understand why Ethan was still training. Before, it had been understandable that he was single-mindedly focused on killing Frieza and avenging his comrades.
But now? Frieza had already been killed by his own hand.
Ethan felt a little awkward when he heard Krillin's question. If this were his usual style, he would have just spoiled everything completely, since his strength was enough and he was not afraid of the plot falling apart.
This time, that would not work. His strength had barely kept up with the plot, and the enemies ahead were getting stronger and stronger. If he casually spoiled things, who knew what would happen.
To put it simply, he did not have enough confidence, which was why Ethan did not blurt out future events like he used to.
"I just want to see where my limits are!"
This was not really a lie. The fundamental purpose of his missions in this world was to become stronger. Reaching his "limit" would basically mean completing his mission in this world, so this could be considered his ultimate goal.
"I also really want to see where my limits are."
Goku had the same thought. Whether there were enemies or not, he would never stop training.
"Bulma, for the spaceship you're preparing for me this time, remember to include a dedicated training room!"
"In that case, if you break the spaceship in space, I won't be able to help you!"
"I'll be very careful."
Adding a gravity chamber to the spaceship was not difficult. The only problem was making sure Goku did not overdo it. If he wrecked the whole spaceship, no one would be able to fix it for him.
"I suggest that when you're training in the spaceship, you avoid using external techniques like Ki blasts and focus instead on physical training and close combat methods."
Ethan looked at Goku and offered his suggestion.
"You should also think about how to control the excitement after transforming into a Super Saiyan, as well as the massive energy drain."
If Goku could complete his Super Saiyan Full Power training during the trip, it would undoubtedly be very helpful for the battles ahead.
However, Ethan felt that this was unlikely. Goku had only mastered Super Saiyan for a short time. Unlike Gohan, who became a Super Saiyan later while training under someone's guidance, Goku had to figure everything out on his own. Expecting him to master the Super Saiyan Full Power state within a year under those circumstances was simply too much.
"I really haven't thought about that, but it could be a direction to work toward!"
At that moment, Krillin seemed to think of something and curiously asked Ethan how he planned to train next. Since Ethan was thinking about Goku's training direction, Krillin assumed he must already know how he himself was going to improve. Otherwise, he should still be thinking about what direction to take next.
"Me?"
"Yeah, you must have a clear idea now, right?"
"I do have an idea, but whether it will work or not can only be determined after trying it!"
Ethan did not test it on the spaceship, and no one asked him to demonstrate it there. Still, everyone remembered it, and after the spaceship returned to Earth and they rested for a few days, they all went to Ethan's place, wanting to see what his next training direction would look like.
Ethan and Goku were undoubtedly the strongest among them. Looking at Ethan's training direction could also serve as a reference to see whether it might be useful for them.
"I'm afraid I'll disappoint you. My next training direction is related to my transformation ability."
"Oh, I see..."
After hearing that it was related to transformation, Krillin and Yamcha knew they could not really use it as a reference, so they and the others began making various preparations for their trip into space.
Tien and Chiaotzu decided not to go with Goku and the others, but to travel alone in a separate spaceship.
Yamcha originally wanted to set off with Puar, but after thinking it over, it really would be inconvenient without someone to watch out for them in the unfamiliar universe. In the end, the two of them traveled with Tien and Chiaotzu.
Goku's family, Krillin, and Piccolo, on the other hand, decided to go together, and their first destination would be Piccolo's homeland, Planet Namek.
In that case, only two spaceships would be needed. Besides, Dr. Brief had already built several spaceships, and during their previous trip he had even built an upgraded new one. The one they used before could also be used again after a little maintenance, so there was no need to worry about spaceship issues at all.
After returning to Earth and resting for half a month, the two groups left Earth at the same time. The spacious residence suddenly became deserted, leaving only Bulma's family, Ethan, Yoruichi, and Oolong.
There were many students in the dojo, and together with the instructors, it was lively every day, but those people would not casually enter the private area behind the dojo.
"Ah, it suddenly became so deserted!"
Bulma had already finished researching most of the technology she was interested in. Now that she had nothing left to study, she had nothing to do. On top of that, with her good friends off on alien adventures, she was left alone at home and suddenly felt very bored.
"If I had known it would be this boring, I might as well have gone on a space adventure with Goku and the others!"
Although there might be many dangers, with Goku around, she felt that she would not need to worry about her safety.
"Where's Ethan?"
She walked around with a drink and found Yoruichi lying on the grass sunbathing. Hearing Bulma's question, she did not get up and simply pointed in one direction.
Bulma followed Yoruichi's finger and saw that it was the artificial lake. There was no sign of Ethan anywhere.
"In the water!"
As if she knew what Bulma was about to ask, Yoruichi gave the answer before she could speak.
"What's he doing in the water?"
"Too much heat, cooling off in the lake."
"Too much heat?"
Bulma was wondering why Ethan had "too much heat" when a figure suddenly shot out of the artificial lake ahead and landed on the open ground by the shore not far away.
This figure had enormous purplish-black wings, and large curved horns on its head that looked like a huge crown. At the same time, a black tail with a hint of purple gently swayed behind it.
"This... this is..."
Bulma stared at the figure in front of her with wide eyes. She had seen Ethan's transformed appearance many times before, but was this figure really Ethan?
It had a taller and bulkier build, and a tail she had never seen before. Most importantly, the figure's bare arms were covered in black and purple scales, and its hands did not look human at all, but like sharp claws that seemed capable of tearing anything apart.
"Ethan?"
"Mhm!"
It was still Yoruichi who answered her. At that moment, the figure also turned around, allowing Bulma to clearly see its face. It was indeed Ethan.
Steam was rising from his body. Even though he had just leaped out of the artificial lake, there was not a single drop of water on him. Bulma suddenly understood what Yoruichi meant by "too much heat."
"How did he turn into this?"
Bulma remembered Ethan saying that he would continue training to improve his strength. Could Ethan transform further, just like Frieza?
"To increase the strength of my body."
This time, it was not Yoruichi who answered Bulma, but Ethan himself. His body was already slowly shrinking a little, and the dragon scales on his body and arms were gradually disappearing.
He discovered that after transforming into this state, his five senses became extremely sharp. Even Bulma's soft muttering did not escape his ears.
Moreover, his physical strength was astonishing. He estimated that if he continued, he could gain a hundredfold battle power increase comparable to Super Saiyan 2.
But he could not continue transforming any further. He was already on the verge of losing control. If he went any further, he was not sure he could maintain his sanity, and it would not be surprising if he did something reckless at that point, like casually bringing disaster to Earth in the Dragon Ball world.
Because of that, he did not pursue "Dragonization" too aggressively in order to maximize his battle power. Instead, he focused on gradually digesting the physical strength brought by "Dragonization" into the power he already possessed.
This was equivalent to turning the attributes boosted by the ability into base attributes. As Ethan absorbed the Black Dragon's power, the changes in his appearance after using the transformation would become smaller and smaller.
He attempted "excessive Dragonization" simply to test how much he could strengthen himself. Next, he would digest those boosts, and once they were mostly absorbed, he would further draw out the Black Dragon's power within himself for Dragonization.
This cycle would continue until he could no longer transform, which would mean the Black Dragon's power within him had been completely absorbed. At that point, he would no longer be able to transform, but his physical strength would become unbelievably powerful.
Although the increase in physical strength was only part of the overall increase in power, when physical strength increased, the energy contained within the body would also increase, since the body and Ki were interdependent.
The only thing Ethan was unsure about was whether this somewhat clever method would have any side effects. For example, although his battle power would increase, would his stamina decrease the way it did when he used the transformation?
Perhaps slowing down appropriately to give his body time to adapt, or increasing his control over his own power to avoid unnecessary energy waste, could prevent those problems.
In short, if everything went smoothly, he would be able to unleash astonishing battle power in his base form. This was the method Ethan had come up with to quickly increase his strength.
(To be continued.)
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◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 200 Power Stones.
◇ You can read the ahead chapter on Pat if you're interested: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves (Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)