"Oh-ho-ho~"
Whis covered his mouth with a giggle. "Is Lord Beerus feeling a bit self-conscious?"
"Zip it!" Beerus snapped, sitting cross-legged back on the grass. He shifted his focus to the projection of young Broly.
A year had passed, and the little guy's strength had indeed grown. In terms of raw battle power, he was hovering around fifteen million. Having watched Gran's training footage throughout the year, Beerus understood why Broly's growth had been so explosive in the first six months but slowed down in the latter half.
Early on, Zangya had pushed him to the limit. But since no one had dared provoke him in the last six months, he hadn't lost control, leading to a much more stable—and slower—rate of growth.
"Are you watching Broly, Lord Beerus?" Whis asked.
"Yeah," Beerus nodded. "His power is as wild as ever, but with Gran's coaching, his combat technique has improved significantly."
"Quite true," Whis agreed, pausing for a moment before adding, "though it's a pity those skills only manifest while he's conscious."
Beerus sighed and went back to munching his chips. "Then we'll just have to wait for that massive battle royale nine years from now to end before we go hunting for the Super Dragon Balls."
Whis remained silent, his thoughts unreadable. After a quiet moment, Beerus broke the silence. "Whis, check in on Earth. Let's see how things are going there."
Compared to Broly, Beerus was actually more interested in Son Goku's development. His interest was partly due to Gran's influence; Goku's simple-minded nature reminded him of Gran, and people like that usually possessed incredible martial arts talent.
"As you wish." Whis knew exactly what Beerus wanted to see and pulled up a recording of Goku's year of training.
The screen showed Goku finding Master Roshi and training alongside Krillin for several months. Then came the World Martial Arts Tournament. The outcome remained unchanged: Master Roshi, disguised as Jackie Chun, took the championship. And, of course, Goku managed to eat through the entire prize fund.
Beerus watched with a blank expression. To him, these were just children playing in a sandbox; their power was insignificantly low. However, he could see the substance behind Master Roshi's martial arts—specifically the Turtle School creed: Work hard, study well, eat well, and sleep well.
"Whis, you were right. Earth really is a sacred land for martial arts," Beerus remarked seriously.
"Indeed. That old man's style has a very distinct 'heavenly' flavor to it," Whis noted. He knew Master Roshi's foundation could be traced back to Mr. Popo's teachings, passed down through Korin.
"He's also quite the teacher," Whis continued, looking at Goku. "This Kakarot guy... his power grows slowly, but thanks to that old man, his foundation is incredibly solid."
Beerus swallowed a mouthful of chips. "Plus, the martial talent of Gran's race is undeniably impressive."
The two continued their critique. By the end, Beerus reached a conclusion: Goku had built a rock-solid foundation without even stepping foot in the Heavenly Realm yet. Once he truly ascended, his growth would be astronomical. As for his current "weakness," neither Beerus nor Whis cared. In the world of martial arts, raw power was the easiest thing to cultivate. Goku's current slow pace was merely the "accumulation phase" before a massive breakthrough.
It seemed Gran was right—Earth was the perfect place for the boy.
As the projection continued, showing Goku's clash with the Red Ribbon Army, Beerus lost interest. He had Whis close the Earth feed and returned to watching Gran's daily routine.
Another year slipped by quietly. It was now Age 751. Two years had passed since Gran set out to master the Law of Destruction. Yet, for all his genius, Gran had yet to take that final step. His mastery remained stuck at the very threshold of the first stage of the Law.
"It's been two years! Is he still not there yet?" Beerus paced by the lake, his anxiety visible. With less than eight years until the candidate battle royale, he couldn't help but feel the pressure. "Whis, you said everything was going according to plan! Why hasn't he finished his training?" Beerus grabbed Whis by the shoulders.
"Lord Beerus, please, keep your hair on," Whis said, gently prying the cat-god's hands off. "We are talking about the Divine Law here. Didn't it take you over a decade to reach that level back in the day?"
Whis had a point. If the Divine Law were easy to master, everyone would be a God of Destruction. Even someone like Toppo from the anime or Vegeta from the manga didn't truly possess the "Law" level of Destruction initially—their power just mimicked the effect, much like Gran's had for the past two years.
"You're not saying Gran needs a decade too, are you?" Beerus recoiled, his face turning pale.
"What are you thinking? You know Gran's talent better than anyone. Can you really compare yourself to him?" Whis waved his staff, and a projection of Gran appeared in the sky. "By my estimation, it should take him five years to master the Law. By then, the Elder Kai should be in peak condition to unlock Gran's latent potential."
Whis laid out his plan calmly. Only two years had passed; everything was on track. But Beerus looked like he'd been struck by lightning.
"Five years?!" Beerus nearly cried. If unlocking Gran's potential took a long time too, would there be any time left for raw power training? Gran's strongest state was currently only at the first level of the Divine Realm—far from enough to compete in the wider multiverse.
"Don't worry, Lord Beerus. Why do you think I had him wear that weighted suit while destroying planets?" Whis smiled, having already factored this in.
"Can that really count as power training?" Beerus muttered.
"It can," Whis's tone shifted slightly. He pointed at the projection. "Actually, forget five years. It looks like he only needs two! He's doing it right now!"
Beerus froze. He looked up at the screen and saw Gran hovering before a yellow planet. Gran's state was bizarre—he was shrouded in a purple aura. No, it wasn't an aura; it was a collection of tiny, ribbon-like threads of violet light. They swirled around him like a silken cocoon. He was undergoing a metamorphosis.
"Ha... haha... HAHAHA!" Beerus's excited laughter echoed through the entire realm. "Whis! Do you see that? Those are the Threads of the Law of Destruction!"
Whis appeared calm on the surface, but his heart was racing. Once again, Gran had exceeded his expectations.
In a deep stretch of the North Galaxy, Gran stood before a yellow planet—a world whose civilization had veered off course, marked for erasure by Whis. Beside the handsome, muscular man in the bulky suit stood the pint-sized Saiyan, Broly.
"Gran, after you blow this one up, can we go eat?" Broly asked innocently.
"You little glutton," Gran chuckled. "Alright, just give me a second."
Gran felt strange. It was a sensation he couldn't quite put into words. Could it be? A sharp glint flashed in his eyes. There was only one way to find out. He closed his eyes, then snapped them open, leveling his palm at the planet.
"Hakai."
Hum—!
The power of Destruction surged within him, but it felt different. Before, it was like a crashing tidal wave; now, it was intricate, refined, and precise.
"This is it... I'm breaking through!"
For two years, he had been destroying planets for this exact moment. He stopped focusing on the planet and focused entirely on his own evolution.
Rumble—!
As he drew out more power, the violet aura wrapped around him until he resembled a glowing purple cocoon. Within that shell, his energy transformed from raw mist into distinct threads of light. With every new thread that formed, the space around the cocoon warped and distorted. It was a resonance between the Laws of the Universe and Gran himself.
The tremors grew more violent until the entire Seventh Universe began to shudder.
On Earth's lookout, Mr. Popo looked up. "The Law of Destruction? He's finally becoming a true candidate."
In the Galactic Prison, Merus glanced toward the source of the vibration. "My sister mentioned a battle royale is coming. Those other candidates are in for a bad time."
In the Land of the Kai, Shin shook the Elder Kai awake. "Ancestor! Look! Gran succeeded!"
On King Kai's planet, the North Kai collapsed in terror. "What is that candidate doing now? This power is horrifying!"
The commotion was so massive that every deity in the cosmos was watching. Suddenly, the space around Gran shook one last time as the final thread of the Law clicked into place.
The First Stage of the Law of Destruction—complete!
BOOM!
A pillar of violet light erupted from Gran, synchronizing his status as a candidate with the divine law. Broly, sensing the danger, had already scrambled away on his short legs. At that moment, the light around Gran expanded outward.
Vroom!
Wherever the light touched, the surrounding planetary debris and the target planet itself didn't explode—they simply dissolved into beautiful, shimmering stardust. There was no sound, no shockwave. It was the universe itself cleaning its own house. Efficient. Absolute.
"So this is the Law," Gran whispered, opening his eyes and staring at his hands. "The power is incredible." He looked around to see the void where the planet once was. "Hahaha! Finally!"
Two years of training had finally paid off. But then, a thought struck him. "Wait... where's Broly?"
Gran panicked. Had he accidentally erased the kid?
"Gran!" A tiny figure flew back from the distance, his face pale with fright.
"Where did you go? You scared the life out of me!" Gran grabbed Broly and started checking him for injuries.
"Are you stupid, Gran? If I hadn't run, you would've erased me!" Broly cried, nearly in tears.
"Oh, right." Gran realized Broly was fine and set him down, looking sheepish. "Sorry, I lost control for a second there." He rubbed Broly's head and added with a mischievous grin, "But don't worry. Even if I did erase you, I could just run back to Whis and have him fix you."
The Law of Destruction was a universal authority that could annihilate anything weaker than itself. However, unlike Grand Zeno's erasure, Whis's Temporal Do-over could still restore things—provided it was within the three-minute window. Otherwise, they'd need the Super Dragon Balls.
Broly stared at him, speechless. Is this guy for real?
"Hahaha!" Gran laughed at the boy's expression and scooped him up. "Today's a good day. Let's go have a feast!"
"What about the other planets, Gran? Are we still destroying them?"
"Forget that for now. I've broken through. We'll wait for another batch of substandard planets to pile up. For now..." Gran looked up toward the "sky," knowing Beerus and Whis were watching. He mouthed three words: See you on Earth.
Then, Gran and Broly vanished into the stars.
<><><><><><><><><><><>
Want more chapters? Support my Patreon/Razerizz