Ah, damn it!
Android 18's strength was a bit higher than he had expected, and her sudden attack surprised him slightly. As a result, he overreacted, and this punch had no restraint whatsoever, landing squarely on Android 18's body.
As for the effect...
You could tell by the way Android 18 was clutching her stomach and staggering unsteadily.
Seeing Android 18 beaten so badly with one punch stunned both Android 17 and Android 16. Android 17's first reaction was that it was impossible. Dr. Gero had input a large amount of data into both him and Android 18, including the strength of people like Ethan and Goku, as well as their potential growth curves.
No matter how they calculated, their strength should not be able to threaten him and Android 18!
Unlike Android 17 and Android 18, Android 16 was created from scratch and had a rather advanced detection device installed within him. The moment Ethan made his move, he discovered Ethan's true strength.
Something is wrong. Ethan's power level is far too different from the data. Android 18 is not his opponent.
How is that possible?
Android 17 simply could not accept this.
Android 18 must have been too careless!
If we let her continue fighting Ethan, she might very well be killed!
Android 16 did not continue trying to make Android 17 understand how bad the situation was. He charged out directly, rushing toward Ethan at an incredibly high speed that did not match his physique, and swung his fist, which was larger than a human head, at Ethan.
Ethan was feeling a bit awkward. He had hit too hard just now and was not sure whether he should take advantage of the situation to finish off Android 18 directly, or pull back a bit, say a few meaningless words, and let Android 18 recover.
Fortunately, Android 16 appeared in time to help him out. Now he did not have to worry about Android 18's condition and could turn to deal with Android 16's attack, as if he had no time to bother with Android 18.
In reality, Ethan truly could not afford to be distracted by Android 18. Android 16's attack was very fierce. In this world influenced by him, the androids' strength far surpassed the original versions. The power displayed by the strongest android, Sixteen, shocked even Ethan.
Androids did not have energy, so their strength could not be judged by sensing it. However, once they started fighting, their strength could be seen from their attack speed and the force of their punches.
This guy... he's really strong!
Ethan had sparred with Goku frequently over the past few years, and he could accurately judge that Android 16's power level was roughly equivalent to a Super Saiyan with increased muscle mass, and he did not have to worry about his energy running out too quickly.
This level of strength could definitely beat up a regular Super Saiyan, comparable to Vegeta, who thrashed Second Form Cell in the original story. Besides himself and Goku, who could definitely defeat Android 16, only Yoruichi could fight him without being at a disadvantage.
As for the rest, Piccolo and Krillin would simply be throwing themselves away if they encountered this guy.
He blocked Android 16's heavy punch with his left hand. The powerful attack made Ethan's entire arm feel a bit numb. He retreated slightly to create some distance, but then Android 16's extended left hand fired out directly, hitting Ethan squarely in the chest.
Having landed consecutive attacks, Android 16 showed no intention of stopping. He lunged forward, reattached his fist, then naturally extended his hands to grab Ethan's upper arms, lifting Ethan directly.
Just as he was about to slam Ethan to the ground, Ethan kicked him in the face. Although Android 16 felt almost no pain, the powerful impact still made him lean back, and his hands unconsciously loosened their grip slightly.
This slight gap was enough for Ethan to break free from his opponent's restraint. He raised his hand and unleashed an energy blast right into Android 16's face!
While the two were locked in combat, Android 17 quickly came over to Android 18's side. After recovering for a while, Android 18, still clutching her stomach, stood up and looked toward the battlefield not far away.
"Are you okay?"
"I'm fine... Although I'm really annoyed with what Dr. Gero did, my current body is very strong. It's not that easy to injure me."
It was just that she had never been hit with this level of attack before, and it had caught her off guard for a moment.
"How is this guy so strong? He's completely different from the data Dr. Gero gave us!"
Android 18 was very frustrated. She had originally just wanted to vent some frustration. As for whether she could defeat Goku and Ethan, she did not particularly care.
That was Dr. Gero's goal, not theirs. It was just a game to pass the time before they had something else to do.
For many years, Dr. Gero had emphasized that they were the strongest beings on Earth, giving them a special sense of "superiority" deep down. They thought defeating Ethan would be a simple task. They had not expected to be humiliated by the person himself so quickly.
"It's not just Ethan. That guy Sixteen..."
Android 17 turned his head to look at Android 16 and Ethan's fight. Dr. Gero had clearly said that he was the android with the greatest power, but Android 16 seemed much stronger than him.
What exactly is going on?
Android 17 was not the only one who wanted to ask this question. Trunks also really wanted to ask it.
What exactly is going on?
Staring at the battle in the arena with wide eyes, Trunks was extremely shocked by the strength Ethan displayed. It was a power he had never seen before, incapacitating Android 18 with just one punch. Such a thing... he had never even dreamed of it.
Yet, such a powerful Ethan was locked in a "tough battle" with that Android 16. This Android 16, who had suddenly appeared, was actually so strong.
Is this world... going to become like my world too?
If it becomes like that, what was the meaning of me coming here? To witness firsthand how a world is destroyed by androids?
"Don't worry, Trunks!"
Compared to Trunks's obvious tension, Piccolo and Krillin were much more relaxed. They understood Ethan's strength better and knew how powerful he was.
"Right now, although Ethan is in a stalemate with the opponent, it looks like he still has strength left."
"Huh?" Trunks looked at Krillin beside him in surprise, unable to believe what Krillin said. "Is that right?"
"Pay attention to Ethan's energy. His energy has been very stable from the beginning until now, always staying at a consistent level. He only releases his energy at the moment of attack and defense... Being able to do this in such an intense battle proves that he still has a lot of strength left."
Piccolo's observation skills were even better than Krillin's. Especially since his goal had always been to surpass Ethan, his observation of Ethan far exceeded anyone else's.
So he was certain. Ethan had not used his full power yet. If he went all out, these few androids would be no match for him at all.
This was also what Piccolo found strange. What exactly did Ethan want to do? Why was he holding back against this group of androids?
Unlike Krillin and the others, Piccolo had not been "companions" with Ethan for long. Moreover, from the very beginning, he had considered Ethan a mortal enemy. Even now that their relationship was not as tense, he still saw Ethan as his goal to surpass.
He would not completely trust Ethan like Yamcha and the others did, ignoring those strange actions.
In Piccolo's eyes, many of Ethan's actions revealed a strangeness. He always felt that Ethan was hiding a huge secret. However, Ethan had never shown any "harmful" intentions, and instead had always encouraged everyone to work hard to improve their strength. So Piccolo also could not figure out what Ethan was trying to do.
He definitely did not know how troubled Ethan was at the moment.
He had a clear grasp of Android 16's strength. Of course, Android 16 was no match for him now. Otherwise, would his training over the past few years not have been for nothing?
One reason he had been fighting Android 16 for so long was actually to give those two idiots, Android 17 and 18, a chance to escape!
With the strength of these two androids, as long as he did not pursue them, coupled with their special characteristic of having no energy, they could definitely shake off Piccolo and the others' pursuit and successfully escape.
But these two guys just stood there foolishly, completely wasting the time Android 16 was buying for them.
Idiot teammates!
Feeling frustrated, the power he used in his hand suddenly increased. Black energy, like flames, wrapped around Ethan's fist, and then he slammed it heavily into Android 16's face, damaging part of Android 16's cheek and revealing the mechanical structure beneath the synthetic skin.
"Ah, Sixteen!"
Android 18 and Android 17, who had been watching the show from the side, finally reacted when they saw Android 16 get injured. However, they did not take the opportunity to escape as Ethan had hoped. Instead, they charged forward to provide support.
"..."
Ethan had the urge to cover his face. He had overlooked the fact that these androids were not actually evil and even cared deeply about their companions. In the original story, when Android 16 was severely injured by Cell and Android 18 herself could be absorbed by Cell at any moment, she still refused to abandon Android 16 and escape alone.
This time, Android 16 had stepped up for Android 18, so she was even less likely to run away by herself.
Android 17 might have had other thoughts, but after Android 18 charged in, he could only follow suit. Thus, the one-on-one battle suddenly turned into a free-for-all, and as Android 17 and Android 18 joined the fight, Piccolo and the others also took action!
Ethan and Android 16 seemed to be of similar strength. At this moment, with the other two androids suddenly joining in, Ethan might be in danger. Of course, everyone could not just watch Ethan get ganged up on, so they all charged forward together.
However, their strength truly was not much help. Tien, Yamcha, Krillin, and even Piccolo, who had originally intended to intercept the two androids halfway, could not stop them at all. Almost all of them were knocked down in just two or three moves.
Even Trunks transforming into a Super Saiyan was useless. He only lasted two more moves than Piccolo before being knocked unconscious by Android 17. Only Yoruichi was able to hold back Android 18, preventing her from ganging up on Ethan.
However, looking at her companions lying all over the ground, all unconscious, Yoruichi suddenly shouted at Ethan, "Hey, if you keep playing around, something serious is really going to happen!"
(To be continued.)