Beerus' Planet
BANG!
"Master? Didn't you say you've already fused Ultra Instinct into your base state?" Son Gohan stared at Whis, confused.
For the past three or four days, Gohan and Whis had been sparring nonstop. Other than eating and sleeping, it was nothing but combat.
And in all that time… Gohan hadn't even brushed the hem of Whis' robe once.
But just now, Whis seemed to lose focus for a split second.
And Gohan actually landed a hit.
That instant happened to coincide with the moment Kibito destroyed Blackwater Planet.
"Ahem… it's nothing," Whis coughed lightly, masking his embarrassment. "I was distracted. Again."
Whis had clearly sensed Blackwater Planet's destruction, but he didn't tell Gohan.
Normally, in a universe this vast, the loss of a single planet wouldn't even register to an angel.
Yet Blackwater Planet's annihilation stirred something in Whis an inexplicable resonance.
A familiar… and yet unfamiliar… presence.
"Heh," Whis thought as his body continued to evade on pure instinct, flowing around Gohan's attacks with effortless grace. "Those people… still won't stay quiet."
Gohan suddenly stopped, exhaling hard.
"I'm done. This is pointless. I can't touch you no matter how long we fight."
"Gohan," Whis asked calmly, "how old are you this year?"
"Fourteen." Gohan didn't understand why Whis was asking, but he answered out of habit.
"Then take a guess," Whis said, smiling. "How old am I?"
"How would I know?!" Gohan blurted. "That's impossible to guess!"
"To be honest," Whis said lightly, "even I can't remember my own age anymore."
He tilted his head.
"So tell me… what exactly are you getting discouraged about?"
Gohan froze.
Then he let out a slow breath, as if the tension in his chest finally cracked open.
"Yeah… I'm rushing." He nodded to himself. "You didn't integrate Ultra Instinct into your base overnight. Even if my talent is ridiculous, there's no way I'm mastering Ultra Instinct in a short time."
"Good." Whis' smile deepened. "So there's still hope for you."
Those three or four days of frustration hadn't been accidental.
Whis had been deliberately grinding down Gohan's impatience, forcing his restless mind to loosen its grip.
Only then did Whis begin explaining the core of Ultra Instinct.
"To learn Ultra Instinct, you need vast combat experience. You must understand movement, technique, and timing then refine all of it until it becomes instinct carved into the body."
Whis raised a finger.
"When that happens, your body will generate responses automatically. It will evade on its own. It will counter on its own. With the smallest motion and the least stamina, you'll achieve the greatest effect."
He paused.
"That… is the earliest form of Ultra Instinct."
Whis understood Gohan's potential. But he wasn't optimistic about Gohan learning it quickly.
Gohan was too young.
Even more abnormal was how fast his power had grown nothing like Goku, who'd climbed from weakness to strength step by step, bleeding and learning on the way up.
If anything, Whis had more faith in Goku, whose heart was simple and whose path had been honest.
"Master," Gohan asked, eyes bright, "what comes after that?"
"What comes next is mental cultivation." Whis' voice took on a rare weight. "My father summed it up in eight characters."
He spoke them slowly, each word like a bell:
'Stillness. Stability. Ease. Severance. Clarity. Awakening. Emptiness. Nothingness.'
Then he began to explain.
"First is Stillness forcing yourself to train until your mind becomes quiet. Establishing disciplined routines. Regular rest. A scientific rhythm."
"Second is Stability that rhythm becomes habit. No matter what happens, your cultivation does not stop."
"Third is Ease you begin to enjoy the path. You savor training itself, and that joy allows you to persist."
"Fourth is Severance more precisely, severing doubt from greed, anger, ignorance, arrogance, and suspicion. You begin to cultivate the ability to 'see the world with the mind.' Even without relying on eyes, ears, nose, tongue, body, or conscious thought, you can still fight."
Whis' gaze sharpened.
"It's like the body and mind momentarily 'stop' then regenerate. Stray thoughts are fine. Melt them away. Live in the mortal world, yet keep your heart outside of it."
"Cross that threshold… and you enter what some call the realm of the Living Dead."
Gohan felt his scalp prickle.
Whis continued.
"Fifth is Clarity the joy of a child receiving a beloved toy, pure and wholehearted. In the Living Dead state, the body's limits can be vastly strengthened by the mind's feedback. If you reach this while young, and you train for a long time, your reaction speed and overall capability can break through what mortals call 'impossible.' Your heart becomes firm and unshaken by external things."
"Sixth is Awakening you maintain that joy when you gain something… and still feel joy when you gain again. This is an exalted layer on top of the Living Dead state."
Whis' voice softened, almost reverent.
"Unity of heaven and man."
He looked at Gohan.
"When you reach the sixth stage Awakening you can integrate Ultra Instinct into your base state."
He smiled.
"That's where I am. Perfect Ultra Instinct."
Gohan blinked, like a kid hearing a fairy tale.
"Then… what about Emptiness and Nothingness?"
Whis shook his head.
"That is my father's realm. In the entire universe, aside from Dragon God Zalama and the Grand Zeno, only my father has likely reached those stages."
He exhaled.
"As for what changes occur in those two phases… even I don't know."
Gohan scratched the back of his head, embarrassed.
"I was aiming too high. I'm nowhere near that."
Whis nodded, then spoke in a tone both practical and sharp.
"Saiyans have vigorous life force. Your bodies burn through energy at an absurd rate training, fighting, even existing consumes far more than most races."
He lifted a hand, counting.
"Cultivation is three parts training, seven parts eating. You must have sufficient nutrition, matching expenditure, and appropriate training only then can you grow quickly."
"And your constitution gives you a major advantage."
Whis' eyes gleamed.
"Battle. Battle without hesitation. Battle without fear. You can accumulate experience at terrifying speed, toughen your body's impact resistance, strengthen your organs' shock tolerance."
"So yes reaching the earliest stage of Ultra Instinct is possible for you."
He paused, letting the truth land.
"But it will still take… a great deal of time."
Time.
Gohan's mind flashed to Zalama's warning.
His heart clenched.
"Time…" he murmured inwardly. "That's exactly what I don't have."
He looked up, eyes steady.
"Master. Is there a shortcut?"
"Shortcut?" Whis' expression turned contemplative.
Gohan waited, holding his breath.
"There is," Whis said at last. "But it's dangerous."
"Dangerous how?"
"A real risk of death."
"Death?" Gohan didn't flinch at all. "This universe has Dragon Balls. If I die, just revive me."
Whis shook his head.
"It isn't that simple. Whether it's Earth's Shenron or Namek's Porunga… their power cannot pierce that world."
His voice dropped.
"If you die there, the only way to revive you is with the Super Dragon Balls forged by Lord Zalama himself."
Gohan narrowed his eyes, then tested the waters carefully.
"Master… you're not telling me you can't even protect your own student, right?"
Whis laughed soft, amused, and slightly dangerous.
"Ohohoho… little one, still playing tricks."
He tapped his staff lightly.
"The Super Dragon Balls are spread across Universe Six and Universe Seven. Lord Beerus and Lord Champa do not get along."
Whis sighed as if he were doing something terribly troublesome.
"Fine. I'll put in some effort. But I won't promise anything."
He wasn't refusing.
He was making sure Gohan didn't become reckless.
Gohan grinned.
"Then I'm leaving my life in your hands. Say the word. Where do I go?"
Whis' expression hardened.
"Another world. A world that seeks to corrode the entire universe."
He enunciated the name like a verdict.
"The Demon Realm."
"The Demon Realm?" Gohan frowned, searching his memory. "I've heard of that. Earth has a Demon Realm too, doesn't it?"
Whis chuckled.
"Earth's 'Demon Realm' is only an entrance nothing more."
His eyes flashed cold.
"In the true depths of the Demon Realm… there exist beings not weaker than Lord Zeno."
Gohan's face went pale.
"Master… you're messing with me. Not weaker than Grand Zeno?!"
"Relax." Whis' tone remained calm. "The Demon Realm has multiple layers multiple dimensions. And that existence… wouldn't be bored enough to attack a child."
He placed his hand on Gohan's shoulder.
"Come. Use Instant Transmission. Quickly. Take us to Earth."
Whis' voice lowered, decisive.
"I will personally send you in."
Gohan swallowed, then forced himself to nod.
"Alright!"
The moment the word left his mouth
Both of them vanished.