"Goku, you've gotten so tall!" Master Roshi exclaimed in amazement.
Scratching his head with a grin, Son Goku replied, "Yeah, I didn't even notice myself at first. I only realized it when Krillin started looking shorter."
"Say that again and I'm gonna get mad!" Krillin snapped.
"Hahaha! Hey, Bulma, why are your lips super red? Are you sick or something?"
"That's called lipstick," Bulma rolled her eyes, exasperated.
Clearly, even though Goku had grown taller, he hadn't changed a bit—still just as naïve as ever.
But…
Bulma blinked and stared. Suddenly, it hit her.
Now that Goku had grown up, he looked similar to—
No, not just similar—identical!
"Brother Lynx! Long time no see!" Goku greeted with a bright smile and gave a deep bow.
"Good luck. Show them what you've got," Lynx encouraged.
"I will! I'm gonna defend my title for sure!" Goku said with confidence.
"I won't lose to you this time, Goku!" Tien clenched his fist, just as fired up.
"Yeah, don't get cocky!," Yamcha added, "We all went through the same training. You better watch out!"
After greeting everyone, Goku and the others headed to the registration desk to sign up for the tournament preliminaries.
Watching them leave, Master Roshi sighed sentimentally. "They've all gotten so strong… I guess my era really is over."
Bulma joked. "Old man, your era ended ages ago. My sister could stomp you flat!"
Roshi shrugged. "Tights has Lynx supporting her. I mean, come on, how's that even fair?"
"Hah! At least you know."
Meanwhile, Tights was watching Goku and his friends walk off and turned to Lynx. "So… Goku's most probably gonna win this one too, right?"
"Most likely…" Lynx nodded.
He had already sensed Piccolo's ki nearby.
But disappointingly, Piccolo's power level was far beneath Goku's—even lower than Krillin's.
Lynx figured it was because Goku and the others had trained at the Lookout earlier than in the original timeline.
In contrast, Piccolo was still following the original timeline, training alone in seclusion, putting him at a serious disadvantage.
And perhaps because of this massive power gap, Kami chose not to possess a human this time to enter the tournament, unlike what he did in the original story.
Right now, Krillin, Tien, and even Yamcha all have enough strength to defeat Piccolo.
And unlike Goku, they wouldn't hesitate in a fight.
So for Kami, there was no longer any need to intervene personally.
Sensing all this, Lynx couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for Piccolo.
The once-feared Demon King, dreaming of revenge, was about to suffer a serious defeat.
But without the inevitable showdown between Piccolo and Goku, what highlight would this year's tournament even have?
Should I enter the tournament myself, just for fun?
Just then, a voice echoed in Lynx's mind.
Ding! Congratulations, host! You've triggered an Ultimate Choice mission!
Option 1:Personally enter the 23rd World Martial Arts Tournament and win.
Reward: +100,000 Power Level!
Option 2:Have contestant "Mark" win the tournament.
Reward: Kami's Magic!
Option 3:Do nothing.
Reward: +1 Time Point.
Lynx blinked, caught off guard by the system's sudden mission.
The rewards weren't amazing, but the timing was interesting.
He had only watched two out of the last three tournaments. Now, the system was finally giving him an active role in one.
Option 1? Nah. Even for 100,000 power, stepping onto the arena to bully weaker opponents wasn't Lynx's style.
Option 3? Too boring. The system was finally giving him a mission—how could he just sit it out?
But… Option 2?
Mark?
Who the heck is that?
As Lynx wondered, a sudden commotion broke out in the crowd nearby.
A group dressed in karate uniforms pushed their way toward the registration table.
Leading the pack was a long-haired young man.
"Hey! We're here to sign up!" the guy slammed a hand down on the table.
The clerk behind the desk immediately responded, "Of course! May I have your name, sir?"
"My name's Mark! Remember it well—I'm gonna be the world champion one day!"
Wait, that's him?
Now that he had a name, Lynx quickly checked Mark's power level.
Mark
Power Level:12
COUGH COUGH COUGH!!
Lynx nearly choked on his saliva.
He mentally groaned: Damn it, I knew the system was up to something! That reward looked way too good to be true, but turns out it's the hardest one!
Power level of 12?! And you want him to beat Goku and the others, who are over 500?!
Ridiculous.
But then again… for anyone else, this mission would seem impossible.
But for him?
He had plenty of tricks up his sleeve.
"System, I choose Option 2!"
Ding! Choice confirmed. Please complete the mission as soon as possible.
Rolling back his shoulders, Lynx turned to Tights and the others.
"You two head to the arena with Bulma. I'm going to take a little stroll."
"Eh? Where are you going?" asked Tights.
"Your Majesty, take me with you!" Hannah pouted.
Lynx waved his hand. "Nah, I'm just going to take a look. That's all. See ya!"
And with that, he vanished instantly using Instant Transmission.
Just like the 22nd tournament, the preliminaries were being held in elimination-ring format to determine the final top 8.
By now, Goku and his friends had changed into their martial arts uniforms, getting warmed up.
"Check it out!" Krillin beamed. "I had this custom-made while down on Earth—I knew Master Roshi wouldn't prepare anything for us!"
He proudly showed off his gi with the "Kame" symbol on it.
"Looks like we all had the same idea," Yamcha said as he and Goku also changed into their uniforms. They stretched and cracked their knuckles, confidence blazing in their eyes.
Thanks to their three years of training in the Heavenly Realm, every one of them had improved drastically.
After all, aside from Kami himself, there was another incredibly strong character in the Heavenly Realm.
Thanks to his influence, even Chiaotzu had grown far stronger compared to the original story.
"Hmm?"
Suddenly, Goku froze, eyes narrowing in alert.
Tien mirrored his expression, both sensing something.
"Goku… did you feel that?"
"Yeah, a really powerful ki —just passed us."
Krillin pointed at a cloaked man in the distance. "Was it him?"
"No... that ki was stronger than his," Goku replied. "Strange... It's gone now."
While Goku and the others searched for the mysterious source, Lynx crouched behind a nearby wall, hand covering his mouth.
Once he was sure they weren't still looking for him, he exhaled in relief.
"Whew... These guys are way too sharp when it comes to sensing ki. I almost blew my cover…"
He looked toward Goku and his friends.
"If nothing unexpected happens, the final round would have been a showdown between them."
Lynx chuckled.
"Too bad for them... Because this year's tournament champion… has already been pre-determined—by me."
"Let's go, Mark!"