Chapter 54: No, This Power Is Still Not Enough
The ground was instantly blasted into a massive crater, with Zaiko standing in the very center, disheveled.
"Damn it…" he growled, his roar causing the ground to tremble. A deafening sound echoed in the air.
A visibly powerful aura surged toward the sky, with Zaiko slowly rising at its center. His martial arts uniform was slightly torn, and his face bore numerous scratches. However, his aura hadn't weakened—instead, it had grown even stronger.
Zaiko wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his eyes bloodshot. "You bastard…"
His eyes were filled with hostility and murderous intent as he glared fiercely at Lin Qi, who hovered in mid-air. His expression grew increasingly ferocious.
In the distance, Lila, hiding behind a rock, was overcome with shock. Her eyes widened in disbelief, and cold sweat trickled down her face without her realizing it.
"...How is this possible... Zaiko is supposed to be the strongest!"
"I'll make you pay for angering me…" Zaiko clenched his fists. The dust beneath his feet swirled despite the absence of wind, and the fractured ground trembled.
"Haaaaaa!"
A streak of purple-black energy shot toward Lin Qi, and a wave of collision rippled outward.
Facing Zaiko's ferocious assault, Lin Qi remained calm and composed. "At least act like you're warming up!"
"Ugh!" Zaiko screamed in pain as Lin Qi landed a direct blow to his face, sending him flying once again.
As Zaiko was flung backward, he extended one hand toward Lin Qi, firing a ki blast.
"Tch…" Lin Qi scoffed disdainfully, returning fire with a ki ball of his own.
The two energies collided, triggering another earth-shaking explosion. Smoke and dust quickly filled the low-hanging air.
Zaiko, charging forward again, launched a barrage of punches and kicks at Lin Qi.
Lin Qi's speed was far superior. Watching Zaiko's attacks, Lin Qi furrowed his brows more tightly.
"Not enough?" Lin Qi looked at Zaiko, who was continuously being pushed back, with a hint of disappointment.
Could he really be trapped in this timeline?
Zaiko crashed to the ground, his hands scraping along the ground as he slid, clearing the rocky terrain and leaving a long trail behind.
Just as Lin Qi's disappointment deepened, Zaiko erupted with his energy once more. He shot toward Lin Qi and threw a punch.
"Whoosh!"
Before Zaiko could celebrate, he realized his punch had only struck Lin Qi's afterimage.
Lin Qi had already appeared some distance away, looking at Zaiko with a mocking expression. "How disappointing. Your strength is trash, and you call yourself the strongest in the universe?"
"Damn it…" Zaiko roared in anger, on the verge of losing his sanity.
But he couldn't fully unleash his power. His mother had warned him to hide his strength until he arrived on Earth.
"Still too weak!" Lin Qi lost patience. Was this really Zaiko's peak?
Why did it feel like Zaiko was holding back? Was he afraid of something?
Lin Qi quickly closed the distance, landing a punch so fast that Zaiko couldn't react in time.
"Bang!"
Before Zaiko could react, Lin Qi's fist struck his face again, sending him flying yet again.
Lin Qi pursued Zaiko relentlessly, raining down punches and kicks like a torrential storm.
"Ugh… ah…"
This was the first time Zaiko had been beaten so thoroughly. Not even his sparring matches with Ize had left him this battered!
Frustration boiled within Zaiko, unable to find an outlet. Seizing a brief opening in Lin Qi's punches, he threw a punch of his own.
The two fists collided, followed by a pained scream. Lila looked up anxiously at the sky, only to find that it was Zaiko who was screaming.
Zaiko's body was flung backward violently, and his arm, which had collided with Lin Qi's fist, twisted at an unnatural angle.
His entire arm was broken!
"Sigh…" Lin Qi sighed in disappointment. Would he really have to wait for the timeline where Zaiko went to Earth?
But even then, how much stronger could Zaiko become?
"Bang!"
Frustrated, Lin Qi launched another fierce attack. A single punch landed squarely on Zaiko's nose, breaking it.
"Ugh…" Zaiko groaned in pain, clutching his nose as blood trickled down.
"Bastard…" Zaiko's anger boiled over, while Lila's eyes were wide with rage.
"Who is that guy? How does he possess such terrifying power?"
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Zaiko fell into Lin Qi's one-sided onslaught. Each of Lin Qi's blows tore through the air, creating rippling shockwaves.
The ground trembled continuously as Lila clung desperately to the rock wall to stabilize herself.
The battle's outcome was already decided. Zaiko's defeat and eventual death were merely a matter of time.
Each of Lin Qi's attacks dealt Zaiko a heavy blow, shaking his very belief in himself.
"Zaiko, what are you doing? Unleash your full power already!" Lila yelled in frustration, watching Zaiko's repeated failures.
"Since Mother said so…" Zaiko took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his burning rage. He clenched his fists and roared.
"Haaaaaa!"
With Zaiko's roar, his power erupted continuously, creating ripples in the air.
"Complete Form!"
"Damn you… I'll show you what it means to be the true strongest in the universe!" Zaiko's muscles began to swell.
Accompanied by his low growl, his power soared. The overwhelming aura swept across the desolate land.
"Hyaaa!"
This burst of energy raised Zaiko's combat strength to terrifying levels. But only Lila felt fear.
Lin Qi watched indifferently, raising an eyebrow. He murmured, "Jumping from a level that could barely beat Super Saiyan 4 to one that completely surpasses it?"
Zaiko's figure vanished, reappearing abruptly in front of Lin Qi, delivering a punch.
But Lin Qi didn't even consider it a threat. With a calm expression, he lifted a foot.
Effortlessly dodging Zaiko's fierce punch, Lin Qi's foot swung toward Zaiko's abdomen.
"Bang!"
Zaiko's eyes bulged as blood spewed from his mouth. His body curled up like a shrimp.
The force of Lin Qi's kick distorted the entire space, shaking the planet violently.
The ground's rocks floated upward, defying gravity, while Lila was blown away.
In an instant, Zaiko plummeted from the sky. Lin Qi lost all interest in the fight.
"No, my strength alone isn't enough to fully distort the space…" Lin Qi hovered in mid-air, his brows furrowed tightly.