c24 — Li Xu's Decision
"Take him down, all of you!" Qiu Yi barked at the soldiers standing behind him, his voice sharp with frustration.
"Yes, Lord Qiu Yi!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The moment they launched forward, a thunderous series of impacts echoed across the barren planet surface.
In a blink, the soldiers were tossed into the air like rag dolls their armor dented, limbs twisted.
Each hit had landed with surgical precision, severing their life force. One by one, they crashed into the rocky ground, dead before they could understand what hit them.
"H-How is that possible?"
Qiu Yi's pupils dilated in shock. He hadn't even seen Li Xu move.
He had dismissed the first death as a fluke. But this... this was systematic slaughter.
"You should fight me yourself," Li Xu said coldly, his expression unreadable.
"Beep beep! Combat power still reading at 1,200... This detector's useless!"
Qiu Yi snarled and ripped the scouter off his face, hurling it onto the ground where it shattered.
"Come at him with me!" Qiu Yi shouted at the remaining few soldiers, his voice cracking from a mix of fear and rage.
Fwoosh! Fwoosh! Fwoosh!
They lunged at Li Xu all at once, ki auras flaring chaotically as they launched energy blasts and punches.
"I warned you,"
Li Xu muttered, almost disappointed.
His form shimmered and blurred using a high-speed movement technique reminiscent of Goku's Afterimage Fist and shot through their ranks like a meteor through paper.
When he reappeared, dust trailed behind him.
The last few soldiers stood frozen mid-strike until a passing gust of wind nudged them, and they dropped to the ground lifelessly.
"I don't know how you're hiding your power,"
Qiu Yi growled, stepping forward with clenched fists,
"But it doesn't matter. I have a combat power of 18,000. I'll end this myself."
Rather than anger, Qiu Yi wore a cold, proud smile overconfident, like Dodoria or Zarbon had been before facing unexpected strength.
Li Xu didn't even flinch.
Instead, he gave Qiu Yi a flat, disinterested look the kind Vegeta often gave weaker foes.
The villain always talks too much before dying, he thought.
It was a mistake so many in the Frieza Force made.
Qiu Yi bristled at the disrespect in Li Xu's gaze.
"Die!"
With a roar, Qiu Yi extended his palm forward, rapid-firing a flurry of ki blasts in classic Frieza Force fashion.
Dozens of purple energy spheres blasted through the air, hammering the rocky landscape and engulfing Li Xu's position in a sea of explosions.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
A wall of fire and smoke rose into the sky, and Qiu Yi threw back his head, laughing like many cocky mid-tier villains before him.
"Ha ha ha! Reduced to atoms!" he shouted triumphantly.
"You talk too much."
Qiu Yi froze.
That voice calm and steady came from directly behind him.
He whirled around.
Li Xu stood unscathed, barely a scuff on his armor. Not a hair out of place.
"How... how is this possible?" Qiu Yi stammered, his face twisting in horror.
"I can send you to join your men,"
Li Xu said, his tone icy.
Bang!
In an instant, he vanished from sight again and then reappeared right in front of Qiu Yi.
His punch slammed into Qiu Yi's gut like a cannonball, doubling him over.
The air wheezed from Qiu Yi's lungs, his eyes bulging, stomach convulsing as bitter fluid rose to his throat.
"How... how are you this strong?"
Qiu Yi choked out, trembling.
"You're just weak,"
Li Xu replied bluntly, brushing dust from his sleeve like it was nothing.
He quickly realized that although Qiu Yi's scouter reported a combat strength of 18,000, his actual power output was closer to 15,000. Compared to his own current level of 20,000, fighting Qiu Yi felt effortless, almost like toying with a child.
And this was still without using the power of the Laws of Force. If Li Xu fully activated that hidden strength, the gap would widen even further, utterly overwhelming Qiu Yi.
"Hateful!"
Qiu Yi roared in rage, losing all composure, and charged Li Xu with reckless fury.
However, blinded by anger, his battle efficiency dropped even lower. His wild attacks flailed uselessly, unable to even graze Li Xu's body, who sidestepped effortlessly without even needing to counter.
"I'm done wasting time."
Li Xu suddenly drove his knee viciously into Qiu Yi's gut.
Qiu Yi bent forward instantly, his spine curling like a shrimp under the brutal impact.
Bang!
He crumpled to the ground, coughing blood, barely clinging to life.
"D-Don't kill me... If you do, King Frieza will never forgive you!"
The terror of death finally cooled Qiu Yi's rage, replacing it with desperate fear.
He pleaded for his life, trying to invoke Frieza's dreaded name for protection.
"Don't worry,"
Li Xu said coldly, energy swirling in his hand,
"I'll send Frieza to join you someday too."
He casually threw an energy ball a small, concentrated orb similar to the ki blasts Vegeta used against weaker enemies at Qiu Yi's broken body.
Boom!
Qiu Yi was completely annihilated, leaving behind only scorched rock.
Hum!
At this moment, Bulma floated down from Li Xu's chest as the miniaturization shield deactivated.
With a soft click, her body rapidly returned to normal size.
"Li Xu, you're amazing! You finished them off so easily!"
Bulma cheered with shining eyes, her voice full of admiration and an obvious hint of pride.
"Uh…"
Li Xu scratched his head awkwardly.
He had expected Bulma to be a little afraid after witnessing real battle and death, but her enthusiastic reaction surprised him.
"Li Xu, what should we do next? Should we leave now?" Bulma asked, tilting her head.
Li Xu thought for a moment and said,
"Since we've already clashed with Frieza's forces, we might as well prepare to face him. Let him know I'm not someone to be taken lightly."
"What are you planning exactly?" Bulma asked curiously.
"We wait here for now. See if you can salvage parts from these Universe spaceships and upgrade ours,"
Li Xu said, gesturing toward the wreckage of Qiu Yi's fleet.
"Li Xu… are you sure you can beat Frieza?"
Bulma asked, her face now tinged with concern.
"I'm no match for Frieza… yet,"
Li Xu admitted, shaking his head honestly.
"Then why stay here and wait for him?!"
Bulma nearly shrieked, shocked by his recklessness.
"In Frieza's eyes, I'm just a small fry right now. He won't come himself.
At most, he'll send stronger underlings. If they're weak, I'll beat them.
If they're too strong, we'll make a tactical retreat and leave him a nasty surprise."
Li Xu grinned confidently, his strategy clear.
"Well, in that case, I'll do my best to upgrade the spaceship's engines.
That way, if we have to run, we can run faster!"
Bulma nodded seriously, already pulling out her tools.
"You don't have much faith in me, huh?"
Li Xu teased, rolling his eyes.
"I'm just being careful!"
Bulma winked mischievously, then hurried over to inspect the salvaged ships.
Meanwhile, Li Xu sat down cross-legged, beginning to cultivate seriously.
He needed to raise his strength even further before the next wave of enemies arrived.
---
Planet Frieza #79.
In a vast, majestic throne room, Frieza lounged lazily, swirling red wine in a crystal goblet.
At his side stood Zarbon and Dodoria, waiting silently for orders.
"King Frieza!"
A trembling soldier rushed into the hall, nearly tripping over his own feet.
Frieza's expression darkened.
He hated being interrupted.
A single glance from him caused the soldier to break out in cold sweat.
"Speak,"
Frieza said coldly, his voice dangerously calm.
"King Frieza, Lord Qiu Yi's life signal… has disappeared,"
the soldier stammered, nearly collapsing from fear.
"Someone dares oppose me?"
Frieza's tone dropped several degrees, the goblet in his hand cracking loudly.
The bright red wine trickled down his fingers like fresh blood.
"I-I'm not sure, sire. Before his death, Lord Qiu Yi reported discovering an advanced capsule technology he intended to seize... but he was killed instead."
"Oh? How strong was the opponent?"
Frieza asked, curiosity flashing through his narrowed eyes.
"T-Their recorded combat power was… 1,200…"
"What?!"
Frieza's face twisted in genuine surprise.
---