After snapping the "sacred" blade, Gran deactivated his initial stage of Ultra Instinct and returned to the side of Beerus and Whis. Nearby, Kibito and Shin remained frozen in shock.
Everyone stared at the two jagged halves of the sword lying in the grass. Silence hung heavy over the lake. A few moments passed, yet the broken metal remained still.
Shin and Kibito exchanged puzzled glances. Wasn't the ancestor supposed to be sealed inside? Why is nothing happening?
Seeing the lack of results, a vein throbbed on Beerus's forehead. "Old man!" he barked irritably. "I know you aren't dead. If you don't come out right now, I'll seal you away for another few million years, believe me!"
Immediately—Whoosh!!
A sudden gale whipped across the lakeshore. Gran smirked inwardly; the Old Kai was certainly a playful one. Unlike Gran, Shin and Kibito turned pale as they realised the legend was true.
In the next heartbeat, a wisp of smoke spiralled out from the broken shards, and the divine pressure in the area skyrocketed.
"He's here!" Shin cried, his heart racing. This was the ancestor even an Angel had praised. Finally, the legendary 15th Generation Supreme Kai was about to reveal his majestic—
Poof.
A hunched, shrivelled old man appeared. He was small, wrinkled, and wearing the traditional Supreme Kai robes. His tiny eyes were narrowed into slits, giving him an air of cunning that bordered on the lecherous.
CRASH—!
The mental image of a grand, scholarly ancestor shattered like glass in Shin and Kibito's minds. This was the pillar of wisdom? He looked like a dirty old man you'd find in a back alley!
The Old Kai ignored his "foolish" descendants and walked straight to Beerus, bowing deeply. "Greetings, Lord Beerus. Greetings, Mr Whis."
"Weren't you just playing dead? Why the change of heart?" Beerus asked, crossing his arms coldly.
The Old Kai remained silent, though he fumed inwardly. You seal me for tens of millions of years, and I can't even have a little tantrum? Deciding to be petty, he ignored Beerus entirely and fixed his gaze on young Gran.
"You old fossil, you're looking for a beating!" Beerus's temper flared as his temple throbbed. He reached out to teach the old man a lesson, but Whis caught his arm and shook his head.
Beerus calmed down instantly. He had come here specifically for the Old Kai's "God-Eye"—he needed a definitive verdict on Gran's potential.
The Ancestor's Verdict
"Greetings, Elder Supreme Kai," Gran said, offering a polite bow.
The Old Kai didn't answer. His eyes narrowed further until they were mere lines. Gran felt an uncomfortable sensation, as if an X-ray were scanning every cell of his body. For two full minutes, the world went quiet.
Suddenly, the Old Kai's mouth began to twitch. Sweat beaded on his brow, and the light in his eyes grew dangerously hot—like a man who had stumbled upon the greatest treasure in the universe.
"Hahahaha!!"
The old man burst into a fit of maniacal laughter, startling everyone. Beerus nearly clocked him, but Whis held him back again.
"Magnificent!" the Old Kai shouted, his gaze practically burning into Gran. "To think that on the day of my release, I would encounter such a monster of a child!"
He licked his lips, his "lecherous" reputation written all over his face. He hobbled forward on his frail legs, reached out, and hoisted the one-meter-tall Gran into the air, holding him at eye level.
"Not a single drop of power is leaking out... perfect energy control!" "Your spirit is tranquil, yet ethereal... your every movement is in harmony with the universe. This isn't just 'No-Self'; you've reached the State of No-Self!" "And your physical instinct... every reflex is imbued with your martial will. Second-stage physical instinct!" "But your dimension... that is the most terrifying part!!"
The Old Kai's voice trembled with awe. "A 9.5-year-old growth cycle, yet you possess the Peak King Kai dimension! What kind of freak are you?! Heavens... I don't think even Lord Beerus was this advanced at your age!"
Beerus ignored the slight at the end. He and Whis exchanged a satisfied look. The old man's eyes were as sharp as ever. Gran, meanwhile, was stunned. With a single look, the Old Kai had stripped him bare.
"Elder Supreme Kai... could you please put me down?" Gran asked. Being held like a toddler by a licking old man was beyond "creepy."
"Don't be in such a hurry, boy. Let me see what else you're hiding," the Old Kai muttered, leaning in closer.
VROOOM!
A massive energy sphere, a hundred meters in diameter, suddenly manifested in the sky above them. Gran held it aloft with one hand, his voice flat. "I really think it would be better if you put me down now."
The raw, overwhelming pressure nearly knocked the Old Kai over. He yelped and scrambled to set the boy down. Gran dissipated the sphere instantly.
Only now did the Old Kai notice Gran's attire—the Egyptian-inspired regalia of a God of Destruction. "L-Lord Beerus... is this the disciple you took three and a half years ago?"
"Hmph. What do you think? Not a bad candidate, right?" Beerus lifted his chin proudly. Whis sighed; the cat was taking credit again.
"So this is the Candidate for Destruction of our Universe 7! No wonder he has such a... spicy personality!" The Old Kai hopped with joy. He didn't mind the threat at all; in fact, he loved it. "I can't count on Lord Beerus's lazy hide, but with a talent like this as the successor, Universe 7 is going to soar!"
Beerus's fist tightened at the "lazy" comment. "The seal clearly didn't teach you silence. If you're looking for a beating, I'm happy to oblige!"
The Old Kai cleared his throat and turned serious. "Speak. You wouldn't have released me for no reason. What is it?" He glanced at Gran. It was obvious—he had been freed because of this child.
"This brat has wandered onto a 'crooked path,'" Beerus said, glaring at Gran. "He claims the road he's on is the correct one. I want your opinion."
The Old Kai sighed. He knew Beerus wouldn't do a favour for free. "Sealed for millions of years, and you only let me out when you need a consultant... fine. I'll take a look."
Gran stepped back about ten meters. He knew that in the Dragon Ball GT timeline, the Old Kai was the one who realised Goku's tail was the key to his latent power. If anyone could validate the path to Super Saiyan 4, it was him.
Gran took a deep breath, clenched his fists, and lowered his centre of gravity. He had mastered the trigger for the transformation over the last six months.
Emotions... focus... trigger the S-Cells in the spine!
BOOM—!
The sky darkened as golden light erupted from Gran's body. His hair flared into a brilliant gold, and a power level of 50 billion washed over the Sacred World of the Kai, making the very ground tremble.
"This... this power!" The Old Kai was taken aback by its raw scale. "It's immense. But the aura... It's so violent. Such rage will inevitably interfere with—"
He stopped mid-sentence. His eyes widened. "Wait! This isn't your natural power!"
His expression soured. "Your base strength isn't this high. This spike is artificial—it relies on anger to sustain itself. This is a wicked, temporary shortcut! It's a dead end!"
Beerus and Whis nodded. They had been saying the same thing. To them, the Super Saiyan form was a distraction from the divine path.
Gran felt a pang of anxiety. If the Old Kai rejected the form, Beerus would definitely forbid him from using it. The "God Dimension + SSJ4 + Perfected Ultra Instinct" combo would die before it even began.
"You heard him," Beerus said, sounding disappointed. "It's a dead end. There is no 'Ultimate State.' From now on, you'll stay on the proper path and forget this golden nonsense."
But as he said that, the Old Kai spoke up. "Wait. What's the Ultimate State?"
Whis explained Gran's theory: that beyond this golden form lay a state where the rage and stamina drain would vanish, becoming as natural as a base form.
The Old Kai went silent for ten minutes, deep in thought. He stared at Gran, who was still maintaining the Super Saiyan form. Suddenly, a spark of realisation lit up his wrinkled face.
"I've got it!" he shouted, slapping his thigh. Beerus jumped again, looking ready to punch him.
"What is it, Elder Kai?" Whis asked, his brow furrowed.
"Mr Whis, have you noticed? The boy can achieve this state because of a specific... factor in his blood!"
"A factor?" Beerus and Whis asked in unison.
"Yes! Think of it as a special type of cell," the Old Kai said excitedly. "The boy uses anger to trigger these cells, which is why the power feels so volatile. But... the more of these cells he has in his body, the more stable the power becomes. If these cells reach a critical mass—a 'terminal volume'—he might actually be able to transform into that 'Ultimate State' he mentioned!
BOOM—!
Gran's heart leapt. The Old Kai's vision was incredible. He was talking about S-Cells.
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