Chapter 174: From Bone-Crunching Combat to True Several Thousand Hands
"Momo—Momo—"
At Franklin's shout, Momo's vacant eyes slowly regained focus. Staring at the chaotic black energy swirling outside the faint golden barrier, confusion filled her gaze.
"Franklin… what in the world happened?"
"I'm not completely sure myself. What we need right now is calm. Check on Lala. With that much noise, how could she not react at all?"
Still dazed, Momo finally remembered Lala beside her. Seeing her peaceful sleeping face cleared her head a little.
"Big sis… big sis… Lala!!"
With Momo's frantic shaking, Lala slowly opened her sleepy eyes.
"Momo? What's wrong?"
As Lala sat up, Peke—already attached to her hair—instantly transformed back into Lala Deviluke's white bodysuit.
"He's here."
"Who's here?"
The moment Franklin spoke, Momo tensed. Lala remained confused for a few seconds—
But her instincts kicked in. She immediately turned toward the golden barrier.
In the very next moment, a black version of Franklin slammed himself against the outside of the barrier, his face pressed hard against it.
"Found you!"
He punched the barrier. It shattered instantly. Franklin raised his guard, but the overwhelming force sent him flying.
The two girls barely had time to react before the Franklin beside them turned into the black Franklin instead.
"Who are you?!"
Both girls tensed, but the black Franklin didn't spare them a glance. His gaze was fixed on the deep crater far below them.
"Kid, it's not too late to change your mind. Once you die, there's no second chance."
Deep underground, Franklin let out a slow breath. Feeling the power of that punch, he cracked his neck, his aura sharpening like a blade.
"I already told you— I refuse!"
Spiritual energy surged under his feet. Franklin vanished. The crater collapsed behind him as he reappeared before the black figure, driving a straight punch at his face.
The black Franklin tilted his head slightly, completely ignoring the sharp killing intent.
"Too slow—"
He didn't even finish before faint lightning burst from Franklin's hand. Thunder crackled outward, directly striking the black Franklin.
Franklin expected it to stun him— but instead, the black Franklin smirked.
"I said it already. You're too weak. Chidori."
The lightning attacking him reversed instantly, controlled by the black copy. A storm of crackling electricity surged into his palm, and the Chidori lunged straight for Franklin's heart.
Ready to dodge, Franklin found his arm pinned. Without hesitation he shouted, forcefully channeling spiritual energy into his S-Cells.
At the same time, his lightning talent erupted— the Chidori dissipated. Franklin's whip-kick flashed out first, slamming into the black Franklin. Though blocked, the force hurled him away.
Franklin transformed into a Super Saiyan in an instant, lightning tearing around him as he charged forward.
His aura blasted outward violently. The two girls were thrown back. Franklin vanished from sight.
"Kame… hame… ha—!"
In a burst of smoke, a black-blue beam erupted. As the winds tore across the wasteland, the girls finally saw the devastation around them.
From their home outward for an unfathomable distance, everything had been carved out into a massive rising crater. Cainan City no longer existed— only a gigantic hemispherical pit remained.
Not far away, Franklin—who had taken the Kamehameha with his bare face—finally saw the extent of the destruction. Shock flooded him.
He exhaled lightly and placed a hand before him. The beam split around his fingers, sparing him entirely.
Channeling energy into his eyes, he activated the True Sight. His gaze locked onto the black Franklin in the distance—identical status panel and all.
Anger filled Franklin's expression.
"The warm-up is over. Get ready to die."
"Well said. Let's settle this."
The Kamehameha dissolved instantly. The black Franklin's aura erupted skyward, faint black light wrapping around his golden flames.
The two rushed each other. Their fists collided. Air exploded outward in a massive shockwave.
Punches hammered vital points—eyes, temples, throat, even below the belt.
Franklin had expected a straightforward brawl, but his opponent's ruthlessness caught him off guard. Forced to defend frantically, he was quickly pushed back.
"That's our difference—no hesitation. Mercy and limits? You're outdated."
Franklin gritted his teeth. Catching the chance, he swept aside a low kick aimed at his groin and countered with a whip-kick, knocking the black copy away.
Slamming his palms together, he summoned energy— the ground surged.
Three massive wood dragons erupted, crashing toward the black Franklin as Franklin followed closely behind.
"Calling in backup? Let's see whose is stronger! Sage Art: True Several Thousand Hands — Top Transcendent Buddha!"
Franklin froze.
Before he could react, the ground convulsed. A colossal thousand-armed Buddha erupted upward. Compared to it, Franklin was like an ant.
His three wood dragons—huge on their own—were shredded like tiny worms.
"Looks like your little snakes aren't very useful. Ready for the storm?"
Seeing the black Franklin grinning wickedly atop the giant Buddha, Franklin felt himself go numb.
"How is your spiritual energy endless?!"
"You want answers? Take this first!"
Thousands of Buddha hands stretched simultaneously toward Franklin.
He braced himself with pure physical toughness. His JOJO-style barrage erupted at full force.
But against thousands of gigantic hands with durability equal to his own, Franklin was like the Monkey King pinned under Five-Finger Mountain—utterly crushed.
He was driven deep into the earth. The Buddha hands continued pounding the ground, the wind roaring, clouds scattering.
"Sage Art: Deep Forest Emergence!"
Instantly, massive wooden vines shot upward, clashing with the falling hands. Countless vines surged like tidal waves, binding and climbing.
In seconds, the giant Buddha was swallowed completely, wrapped so tightly it couldn't move.
Meanwhile, deep underground, Franklin bled from multiple wounds, his spiritual energy down to barely a third.
But he hesitated not at all.
His divine sense erupted outward. It clashed with another consciousness—found its target.
Franklin's palms came together.
"Sage Art: Wood Vine Seal!"
The vast, raging vines trembled violently—then surged toward the black Franklin suspended in mid-air, wrapping and crushing from all directions.