"You… you are?"
At this moment, feeling the immense power emanating from Rhode, Gohan looked at him with uncontrollable excitement, his voice trembling as he spoke.
"Hmph!"
After experiencing the immense power of becoming a Super Saiyan, Rhode immediately dispelled his transformed state. Following that, he suppressed the excitement that had risen in his heart.
Having successfully transformed into a Super Saiyan and broken through his limits, he figured his normal state training would also make rapid progress again. Although he had only just succeeded in transforming, given his previous foundation and formidable comprehension ability, he would probably reach the level of Super Saiyan Full Power after a period of stable training.
He just didn't know if he could stack Great Ape power on top of Super Saiyan Full Power after perfectly controlling the Super Saiyan's energy. If he could…!
As various thoughts flashed through his mind, a look of joy involuntarily crossed Rhode's face. Then, his gaze fell upon the young, one-armed Gohan before him.
"I am Rhode. If you're asking about our relationship…"
Rhode paused, pondered for a moment, then looked at Gohan with a hint of affection.
"I held Goku when he was a child. I have a very good relationship with your maternal grandfather, Ox-King. And your mother—I watched her grow up."
Although the Goku and Chi-Chi in his main world were still children, having lived on Earth for several years, it wasn't wrong to say he had watched them grow up.
"Ah?"
Upon hearing Rhode's words, Gohan's face first showed shock and surprise, but then a look of confusion quickly appeared. If Mr. Rhode was truly so familiar with his parents, shouldn't he have at least some memory of him?
"Don't be confused. What I said is the truth. However, the Goku, Chi-Chi, and Ox-King I'm familiar with are not from this world. I come from a different parallel world. Hmm—the concept of a parallel world should be very easy for you to understand."
Facing the uncertainty on Gohan's face, Rhode patiently explained.
Gohan's ideal had always been to become a scholar; he never liked fighting, even from a young age. When Goku in this world died of illness, Gohan was only a few years old. In the years that followed, no one properly guided him in training, and because the Androids were causing destruction everywhere, he barely had any time to train properly.
Furthermore, while Gohan's potential was strong, his talent for training still lagged behind Goku and Vegeta. Therefore, even with the pressure of the Androids pushing him to grow stronger—even managing to transform into a Super Saiyan—there was still a considerable gap between his strength and that of the Gohan from the changed timeline.
Rhode could clearly sense the young Gohan's power before him, estimating his combat strength to be just over ten million normally, and around six to seven hundred million after transforming into a Super Saiyan. Such power was decent, but far from enough to deal with the Androids. Still, considering the boy had journeyed alone, there was no need to be too harsh—he had done his best.
"I understand, Mr. Rhode."
Hearing Rhode explain his origins, the young Gohan nodded seriously. Then, he looked at Rhode with a solemn expression and bowed respectfully. After raising his head, his expression turned serious and earnest, with a hint of purpose and anticipation in his voice.
"Mr. Rhode, may I trouble you to guide me in my training?"
After experiencing so much, Gohan already understood what was most important. Although he could ask Rhode to deal with the Androids, he did not do so. He understood that—not to mention Mr. Rhode was just a passerby—if a similar threat like the Androids appeared again in the future, who would he ask for help then?
Only by mastering power himself could he protect the people and things he cared about. Ultimately, the future of Earth still had to be protected by his own hands.
"Not bad."
Seeing that Gohan did not ask him to deal with the Androids, Rhode nodded approvingly. Indeed, the young Gohan who had experienced so much was more mature and resolute—unlike during the Cell Games, when even with Goku's verbal instruction and encouragement, the boy still lacked confidence in himself.
Boom!
Boom!
Just as Rhode was thinking of pulling Gohan aside to train for a while, Android 17 and Android 18—who had been blown away by Rhode's earlier burst of power—actually returned, running back toward them.
"Hm?"
Looking at the two approaching figures, Rhode's expression turned deeply confused. He couldn't help but inwardly complain: Are you two really that eager to get beaten?
"Android 17, let's team up and take that guy down first."
Landing not far from Rhode and Gohan, Android 18's face no longer held its previous playful amusement. Her cold, emotionless eyes were now filled with killing intent.
In the past, the reason she hadn't killed Gohan was merely to find some fun in her boring life of destruction. Testing Rhode earlier had been for the same reason.
However, when Rhode's power erupted and he transformed into a Super Saiyan, the two immediately realized the threat he posed. Although they were Androids, they possessed their own consciousness and did not want to die. Faced with the danger that had appeared, they naturally had to deal with it immediately.
In their opinion, although the power Rhode had unleashed earlier was strong, it wasn't much stronger than their own. Thus, by teaming up, using their full power, and leveraging the advantage of infinite energy, they could definitely eliminate this potential threat.
Hearing their words, Rhode was speechless.
But thinking about it carefully, their reasoning wasn't entirely incomprehensible.
First, these two had been running rampant on Earth and had never encountered a truly evenly matched opponent. As a result, they didn't truly believe that an opponent existed on Earth whom they couldn't defeat even when teaming up at full strength.
Second, when the two had been swept away earlier, Rhode had only shown a premonition of power and had not truly transformed into a Super Saiyan. Perhaps this was the reason that gave them the illusion that they could defeat him.
Bang!
The two pushed off the ground with their legs—one from the left, one from the right—and immediately charged toward Rhode.
Thump!
Seeing the Androids make their move, Gohan immediately transformed into a Super Saiyan, ready to meet the enemy.
However, a figure was faster than him. Needless to say, it was naturally Rhode. He had long been annoyed by these two evil Androids. Now that he saw them insisting on coming for a beating, Rhode naturally had to fulfill their wish.
Whoosh!
As his power moved with his will, Great Ape Power instantly erupted. Rhode, moving later but arriving first, appeared behind Android 18. Unleashing immense power, he directly kicked her right leg.
Rhode still clearly remembered Android 18's words about wanting to torment him—even planning to cripple his right leg. Therefore, at this moment, Rhode wanted to return the favor.
Crack!
A crisp sound of bone breaking rang out, followed immediately by Android 18's scream.
"What?!"
In just an instant of exchange, Android 18 had suffered severe injuries.
Such a scene not only made Android 17—also an Android—feel his scalp tingle, but Gohan, who had transformed into a Super Saiyan and was about to try pinning down one of them, also froze in place, his expression filled with shock.