Turles floated in place, marveling at the malicious aura that surrounded him. He tilted his head upward, closing his eyes to savor something only he could sense.
"It was in front of me the entire time," Turles opened his eyes, staring up at the sky. "That feeling I was hopelessly chasing..." He shook his head, chuckling at his past self. "It's only now that I can finally see that path. The true pride of a Saiyan..."
Knox stopped listening, his jaw clenched. Though he looked composed on the outside, inside he was screaming.
'What is this bullshit?! I don't remember a thing about Turles having something like this!'
No, he couldn't waste time thinking about why it had happened, he simply needed to find a way to deal with it. Reflexively, he activated [Thought Acceleration] to give him more time to think.
The first thing he needed to do was assess just how screwed he really was. Did he need to run, or was this an enemy he could maybe defeat? To that end, he opened up his status screen.
[Knox Creed]
Age: 18
[Earthling Lv.4/10]
Power Level: 30,976
BOD-
"What are you gawking at?"
Knox whipped around instinctively, his fist flying toward Turles who was abruptly just there, inches behind him and leaning over his shoulder.
The punch connected solidly... but Turles' head was only nudged to the side.
His expression was calm, a faint smirk tuggling at the edges of his lips.
Turles turned his head back slowly, pushing against Knox's hand as if it wasn't there. His smile grew wider, his teeth bared in a predatory display.
"Good instincts."
Knox only had a heartbeat to process that before the world turned black.
When he came to, he was flying through the air uncontrollably, his body screaming at him signals that he was certain meant he'd been punched by a planet. It didn't hurt, thanks to his [Pain Suppression], but he was surprised he hadn't gained a level in-
Skill [Impact Resistance] has increased.
+1 BODY multiplier for increasing from F to E.
'Ah, there it is.'
Just as he thought this, his back slammed into trunk of the Tree of Might. Before he could even bounce off of it, Turles appeared in front of him in a blur, his knee smashing into Knox's stomach.
"Agkk-!" Spittle flew out of his mouth.
Wasting no time, Turles raised both his arms and slammed Knox's back with a brutal hammer strike. The force sent him careening toward the ground at harsh speeds.
Before Knox could even try and use flight, a barrage of purple Ki blasts rained down upon him, each one bursting against his body like miniature explosions. Volley after volley made it seem as if he was swallowed whole by a storm of energy.
Skill [Thermal Resistance] has increased.
+1 BODY multiplier for increasing from F to E.
He hit the ground in a desolate crater, leaving an imprint scorched into the Earth. Knox twitched, his body begged him to stay down.
"What's your name?"
Turles landed at the edge of the crater, his arms folded leisurely as he gazed down at Knox.
Knox clenched his fists, his fingers digging into the dirt beneath him. Slowly, he raised his head, glaring up at the Saiyan. "Knox... Creed..."
Turles chuckled. "Knox…" He nodded to himself. "A fine name for a warrior such as yourself."
Knox didn't respond, his breaths shallow and his glare unwavering.
"I have to thank you, Knox," There was a certain sinister lilt to his tone despite the sincerity. "The sheer malice of your energy was... indescribable. That evil in your heart was able to awaken the evil within my own. With this, I am finally invincible!"
'He's monologuing...' With that realization, Knox's hands clenched further into the ground.
Turles' gaze grew distant for a moment before snapping back to Knox with chilling intensity.
"But," The Saiyan took a step closer, his boots crunching against the ground. "As much as I'd love to welcome someone like you into my ranks, I have… personal obligations. Those men you killed-"
"Men? I killed one man," Knox cut him off.
Turles's smirk faltered, a flicker of doubt crossing his gaze. He reached up, tapping the side of his scouter absently. With a mechanical whir, the device scanned the battlefield, finally zeroing in on the Tree of Might.
He clicked a few buttons, reading off the numbers that appeared.
"Huh," Turning back, his expression was unreadable. "So, it's true. You've... only killed Cacao," Turles said, his voice losing its condescension.
Knox simply glared back, milking the tension of the situation for all the time he could. As long as he could stall, he could... there! In the distance, he spotted Marzette flitting back from around the tree.
He needed to keep Turles talking.
"Cacao?" He repeated the last thing he heard, hoping it was enough.
"Yes, Cacao. One of my strongest," Turles grinned, baring his teeth. "But I've just had a great idea. You're a perfect replacement for him in power and nature! Cast off your chains and you'd abandon whatever pitiful ties you have to Frieza... and join me. Together, we'll be the greatest force in the universe!"
But Knox was barely listening, sweat dripping from his temple as he focused. Jaw tight, he opened his mouth.
"Abandon Frieza?" He questioned through gritted teeth. "I don't have any ties to that piece of- SOLAR GRENADE!"
Right in the middle of his sentence, Knox closed his eyes and yanked his hand free from the dirt, releasing the pent-up energy he'd been charging the entire time Turles was yapping about evil or whatever.
The explosion collapsed inward, a focused blast creating a radiant flash that lit up the battlefield like a second sun.
Turles cursed loudly, staggering back as he raised both hands to shield his eyes. "Aargh! What is this trickery?!"
It was a technique Knox created based on the 'thousand little lights' that Marzette taught him to do. Since he couldn't properly figure out Solar Flare, this technique had the flaws of blinding the user if their eyes weren't closed and taking forever to charge.
Better than nothing, though.
Using every ounce of strength he had left, he took to the air, rocketing out of the crater like a bullet. He tore across the sky, the wind howling in his ears as he raced toward Marzette.
When he reached her, she flinched slightly, startled by both his sudden appearance and the sheer desperation etched into his face.
"Did… did you get the fruit?!" he barked, his voice laced with strain.
Marzette hesitated, holding up two small, orange lychee looking fruits cradled in her claws. "Y-Yes, but Knox, there's only two. I thought there'd-"
"No talk time, give now!" He snapped incomprehensibly, snatching one of the fruits from her hands.
"...What?" If Marzette could blink in confusion, she would. "Why are you in such a rush-"
"YOU COWARD!!"
There was a sudden deafening roar in the distance. Both of them turned their heads to see the shimmering silhouette of Turles zooming at them through the sky, his evil aura burning the air around him.
Knox gave her a quick, strained grin.
"Because of that!" he growled, motioning toward the berserk Saiyan. Without another word, Knox shoved the fruit into his mouth, biting down hard and chewing furiously. The rich, almost sickeningly sweet taste spread across his tongue, and he barely had time to process it before he swallowed.
The effect hit like a nuke.
[—Threshold Met—]
[Level Up!]
Level 4 → Level 5
All stats have been increased by +1.
[!] New Level Requirement: Kill a [31,250] Power Level enemy.
His muscles bulged, filling up with excess energy. For a second he nearly doubled over, teeth grinding to hold back the scream clawing up his throat. The high was intoxicating, the rush of pure adrenaline coursing through his veins.
Turles, still charging toward him, froze mid-air the moment he took that bite. That alone made Knox grin through the strain.
'System counts the fruit as a kill, huh? That's… morbid. Guess that what happens when you compress a planet's worth of life into one lychee. Bit disappointing it only gave one level, though. Maybe it's because this place is far smaller than Earth. Less life, weaker fruit...'
He rolled his shoulders, forcing the new power to settle, heat radiating off him like an engine.
Then he took another bite.
...Nothing happened. It seemed that after taking a single bite, the fruit simply becomes a fruit. Otherwise, his system would've at least given him the 'Threshold not Met' notification.
With that mystery solved, Knox tossed the remains of the fruit to Marzette, a cocky grin on his lips.
"Extract the seed outta that while I'm fighting."
Cracking his neck, he checked his power level within [Thought Acceleration], taking note at how much slower the world had become under his new power.
[Earthling Lv.5/10]
Power Level: 65,000
"...I should be able to eventually beat this guy."