Gran had already pondered the issue of ki while in that mysterious world. Initially, he didn't know how to sense ki, let alone use it.
But in truth, sensing and using ki wasn't that difficult. During that month-long great escape, he had pushed every ounce of his power to its absolute limit. It was in that desperate state that he finally mastered every shred of strength within him.
In Whis's words, "ki" is the root of power, and Gran had already achieved absolute control over his ki. However, when it came to calming his ki, he was at a loss.
"A good memory. It is indeed the 'state of mind' I mentioned before," Whis nodded and continued, "In simple terms, 'state of mind' refers to a person's inner self. By not being influenced by emotions or disturbed by the outside world, by unifying your inner and outer self, you can calm your mind. Only then will your ki become calm, and you will no longer be affected by your wild power!"
Hearing this, Gran subconsciously blurted out, "Does it mean being as quiet as the sky and as fast as lightning?"
This was a phrase spoken by the attendant of Earth's Guardian, Mr Popo. But the moment the words left his mouth...
BOOM!
Whis looked as if he had been struck by lightning, his entire body trembling.
"Where... where did you hear that phrase?" Whis stared intently at Gran.
"Huh?"
Gran was startled by Whis's reaction. Is there a problem with that phrase? Or is there a problem with Mr Popo?
"I... I read it in the Saiyan history books."
"The Saiyan history books again?" Whis fell silent, his thoughts unreadable. After more than ten minutes, he finally spoke again.
"The true meaning of that phrase is: your mind must be as calm as the sky, and your movements must be as swift as lightning!" Whis looked at the child beside him. "This encompasses two stages: the state of mind and the body's instincts. Combined, they form a state called Ultra Instinct. This is something I was planning to teach you later. I didn't expect you to already know of it!"
"I don't know anything about it. I just read it in a history book," the little Gran said, feigning ignorance while blinking his big, round eyes.
So, what Mr Popo taught Goku was the mental state for Ultra Instinct. No wonder Goku was able to enter that state during the Tournament of Power later on. It all adds up. In that case, Mr Popo must have a significant background. Who is he, really?
"..." The corner of Whis's mouth twitched. "Fine, if you don't know, you don't know."
"The state of mind is divided into two stages. The first stage is 'Wàngwǒ' (Selflessness), which means forgetting who you are, where you are, what you want to do... forgetting everything!"
"The second stage is 'Wúwǒ' (No-Self). This means acting without intention, following the natural flow, shedding the weaknesses of human nature, and entrusting the battle entirely to your body's instincts!"
"Let's begin. Sit by the lake and meditate. As you meditate, you must constantly remember the word 'Selflessness'. Once you have grasped its meaning, you will have reached the first stage. At your current level, achieving the first stage would be a remarkable feat."
Whis turned and went back to lounging on his beach chair.
Gran scratched his head. Can I achieve the first stage of mental fortitude just by meditating? Is it that simple?
It was a good thing Whis couldn't read Gran's thoughts, or he would have rolled his eyes at him. Many Gods of Destruction couldn't even reach the second stage, and he thought it was simple?
Gran approached the lake, sat down cross-legged, and closed his eyes.
I need to remember the word 'Selflessness'? It doesn't seem that hard. Gran quickly entered a meditative state.
Whis also closed his eyes on his beach chair, no longer paying attention to Gran. If he were guiding an ordinary person, the first step would be to master their power, the second to train their strength, the third to learn combat techniques, and so on.
But Gran was different. His martial arts talent was extraordinary, and his training needed to be tailored to his abilities. For Gran, training his strength had to be pushed back. At his age, he was better suited for training his state of mind. One could only imagine what a six or seven-year-old child who could comprehend and successfully achieve the first stage of mental fortitude would be capable of in the future. He would definitely be able to achieve the state of Ultra Instinct!
Whis recalled that it had taken Beerus two years to master the first stage of mental fortitude and ten years to master the second. To completely master his body's instincts and achieve a flawed state of Ultra Instinct took him over a hundred years.
Whis speculated that with Gran's talent, he probably wouldn't need two years to reach the first stage.
Time passed, day by day. During this period, aside from his three daily meals, Gran spent all his time meditating by the lake. As long as Whis was well-fed and watered, he didn't disturb the little one.
The God of Destruction's world became very quiet. After a month, Whis's expression suddenly turned grave. From his observations, the wild ki around Gran had begun to calm down.
In the second month, Whis's expression turned to one of sheer horror. He discovered that the wild ki around Gran had completely calmed down. This meant that Gran's state of mind had reached the first stage!
"Has this kid gone mad? He mastered the first stage, the State of Selflessness, in just two months. What kind of talent is this?!" Whis was both excited and shocked. He stood at a distance, not daring to get any closer, for fear that the slightest movement would disturb Gran.
"Wait! He hasn't woken up. He's still training. Could it be..." Whis's breathing grew more rapid.
From that day on, Gran remained in a meditative state. He didn't eat or drink. If it weren't for Whis sustaining his life force, Gran would have starved to death long ago.
Another month passed. Gran had been training his mind for a total of three months, yet he showed no signs of waking. Whis knew Gran was attempting to master the second stage. This kid's talent is just monstrous! He grew more and more expectant for the day Gran would awaken.
Six months passed...
A year passed...
Voom!!!
An ethereal aura erupted from Gran's body!
"How is this possible?! It's only been a year, and he's already mastered the second stage of mental fortitude?!" Whis's usual elegance and composure had vanished completely, replaced by a face full of shock. A year ago, he had been emotionally rocked by Gran's dimensional issue; now, he was once again stunned by Gran!
Whoosh!!!
A silver radiance appeared around the seven-year-old Gran. With him at the centre, the ethereal aura spread at an astonishing speed.
It reached the God of Destruction's palace!
It reached the place where Beerus slept!
Beerus's eyes snapped open.
As the God of Destruction awakened, Universe 7 trembled. Gods from all corners of the universe seemed to sense something.
North Kai's Planet.
"Oh, my goodness! Didn't that lord go to sleep not long ago? Why is he awake again?!" A short, stout being paced back and forth on the grass, his face etched with worry.
World of the Supreme Kais.
"What is this feeling? Could it be that Majin Buu has awakened?" A short man with a mohawk-like hairstyle looked terrified. He quickly left the world of the Supreme Kais with Kibito.
Throughout Universe 7, any god aware of the God of Destruction's existence was thrown into a panic.
And at that moment, in the God of Destruction's world...
"The aura of Ultra Instinct? It's not Whis's. Who has come to my world?!" Beerus rose from his slumber, his eyes cold and deep. To meet his gaze was to feel as if one's soul would be sucked into an endless abyss.
"Is it another God of Destruction? No, besides me, no other God of Destruction can use Ultra Instinct! Hmm, the aura is so weak. Who is it?!"
Beerus's eyes instantly became extremely dangerous. A dense, purple light erupted from his body, destroying all the time-bomb alarm clocks in its path.
BOOM—!
A large hole was blasted in the ceiling of his sleeping chamber. Beerus shot into the air, and from his vantage point, he immediately spotted two figures by the lake.
"Even Lord Beerus was disturbed?" Whis, by the lake, also saw the skinny figure in the sky. He waved his staff, and a silver light enveloped the meditating Gran.
The next second!
BOOM—!
A purple beam of energy descended from the sky, instantly obliterating the entire lake!
Whis had known this would happen. It was a good thing he had put up a protective barrier around Gran beforehand. Seeing the lake destroyed, he used his temporal ability to restore it to its original state.
"Whis, who is this child? Why is he here?" Beerus strode toward them, his gaze fixed on Gran.
Whis said gently, "Lord Beerus, his name is Gran. He is a Saiyan. I brought him here."
"A Saiyan? Weren't the Saiyans supposed to have been eliminated by Frieza? Did Frieza disobey my orders?" A thick, purple aura instantly erupted from Beerus, causing space itself to collapse where it touched the air.
"I wouldn't know about Frieza."
"Hmm? What's going on with this child's dimensional level?" Beerus's killing intent suddenly vanished, his expression changing.
"Ohohoho~ It seems Lord Beerus has noticed."
"The peak of the Kai plane... at his age, how is that possible?" Beerus's eyes widened, his face a mask of disbelief.
It was no wonder Beerus was so shocked. In this universe, apart from the offspring of two divine beings being born as a natural god, the only other way to reach such a level was through training. Of course, perhaps the Super Dragon Balls could do it, but no one had ever tried. If relying on training, it would take at least a million years to reach the Kai plane. But now... that kid looked to be only seven, yet he had reached the peak of the Kai plane?!
"Wait, that ethereal aura from just now came from this kid!!" Beerus's eyes widened again.
"That's right. He was the one who produced it. His state of mind has already reached the second stage," Whis said, quite satisfied with Beerus's expression. After all, he had been shocked by Gran many times himself.
"..." Beerus swallowed hard. For a moment, he was at a loss for words. That was the second stage, the "State of Selfless." Among all the Gods of Destruction, besides himself, the others could at best only touch upon the "State of Selfless." To truly achieve it required one-in-a-million talent; no amount of time would suffice otherwise.
Beerus shifted his gaze. "Whis... did you teach him?"
"I did," Whis replied with a proud nod.
Beerus: "..."
What do you have to be proud of?!
"Why would you teach a Saiyan these things? What happened while I was asleep?"
"It was like this..." Whis didn't hide anything and recounted the events of the past year.
Beerus listened quietly, his shock growing with every word. It had taken him a full year to master his own power completely, yet this child had achieved that level in just one month! Of course, the most shocking things were Gran's peak Kai-level dimension and his second-stage state of mind.
"Lord Beerus, what do you think of him?" Whis chuckled, covering his mouth.
"His talent is terrifying, and his origins are terrifying!!" Beerus gave his assessment.
Gran's talent was visibly terrifying; that much was obvious. But his origins were a mystery. As far as Beerus knew, the Saiyans were just a bunch of wild monkeys who only knew how to fight. Not only were they extremely weak, but they also had violent tempers. How could such a race produce a genius like Gran?
"He also knew we liked delicious food. That's not strange, as we have left many legends in the universe. But he also knows about Lord Zeno!" Beerus stroked his chin, looking at Gran on the grass with a grave expression. "Could it be that the Saiyan race really does have history books?"
"Perhaps the Saiyan race really does have history books!" Whis said, then fell into thought.
"?" Beerus was taken aback. What did Whis mean by that? Did the Saiyan race have some significant background? "That can't be right. When I became a God of Destruction, I had never even heard of the Saiyan race. I only learned of their existence because of Frieza!" Beerus muttered to himself.
But Whis remained silent, his brows furrowed tightly, as if he remembered something but wasn't certain.
Over on Gran's side, for some reason, he felt that his own talent and comprehension were a bit too strong. He hadn't found the "State of Selflessness" difficult at all, just like when he had mastered his power a year ago. It didn't take him long to master it completely. According to Whis, just reaching the first stage at his current level was a remarkable feat. But he felt that the second stage didn't seem that hard either. So, he had tried to comprehend and train in the second stage.
And it turned out, it really wasn't that hard!
Gran opened his eyes. The silver light around him flared, and his hair took on a faint silver hue. At this moment, he felt an unprecedented calm.
"Is this the State of Selfless?" Gran looked down at his small hands and murmured to himself.
Suddenly, a purple sphere of energy shot toward him from behind!
Gran's expression didn't change. He tilted his body slightly, as if using his body's instincts, and effortlessly dodged the sneak attack.
Crack!
The lake in front of him was instantly destroyed, dissipating into motes of light.
"That was... Destruction. Could it be..." The silver light around Gran vanished instantly, and he spun around in terror.
As he thought! The person behind him was Beerus!
Wait, according to the timeline, he should still be asleep. Why did he suddenly wake up?
Gran, still unaware of the commotion he had caused, tensed his body, fearing Beerus would destroy him on the spot.
Beerus and Whis exchanged a look.
It's not the true "State of Selfless."
This was their shared thought. From their observation, Gran's hair had been a light silver. Furthermore, when Beerus had attacked him, although Gran seemed to have dodged it with his body's instincts, a closer look revealed that he still possessed subjective consciousness. He had not yet shed the weaknesses of human nature and had not completely entrusted the battle to his body's instincts.
In other words, Gran had not yet reached the true "State of Selfless." At most, it could be considered a "Semi-State of Selfless."
Even so, Gran's talent was still terrifyingly immense! Even Beerus had to admit that he couldn't compare.
Beerus's eyes grew more and more fervent. This kid... is a monster!
Whis noticed the look in Beerus's eyes, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. He seemed to know what Beerus was about to do.
"Hey, your name is Gran, right?" Beerus walked toward him.
"Gr-greetings, Lord Beerus!" Gran bowed, trying his best to appear calm.
"Don't be nervous."
"..." The corner of Gran's mouth twitched. He was facing the Strongest God of Destruction; there was no way he could relax!
"I hear you're a Saiyan. Let me ask you, how did you survive Frieza?"
See, how can you ask that and expect me not to be nervous? Gran's heart began to pound wildly.
That damned King Vegeta! If you find the best pillow in the universe, give it to him! Why did you have to provoke him?
Gran had no special abilities from his reincarnation. If Beerus wanted to destroy him, he had no way to defend himself.
But... he still had his life-saving cooking skills. Thinking of this, he relaxed a little.
"Lord Beerus, Frieza himself spared me and Prince Vegeta..." Gran answered truthfully.
"So that boy Vegeta is also alive. I see." Beerus glanced at Whis, who nodded as if to confirm it. In that case, Gran's origins were now clear.
"Lord Beerus, I know that the king of our Saiyan race offended you. I can make a lot of delicious food, could you please..." Gran said, afraid Beerus would destroy him on the spot. But before he could finish...
Beerus's voice cut in. "Your talent is impressive. Are you interested in becoming the next candidate for God of Destruction of Universe 7?"