Shenron transformed into seven streaks of flowing light that scattered to every corner of the Earth, leaving only the father and son duo, Axis and Kratos, standing in deep contemplation upon the glaciers of the North Pole.
Axis felt somewhat exasperated. This dragon certainly fled quickly.
But never mind that; the capabilities of Earth's Shenron were somewhat lackluster. The wish Axis truly desired was something this dragon was fundamentally unable to grant.
"Father," Kratos broke the silence, having keenly perceived the solemnity in his father's expression. "What the Dragon said at the end... the erasure power of 'Lord Zeno'? And that 'Dragon God Zalama'... What kind of entities are they? To be able to easily erase or create a universe?" There was a slight tremor in Kratos's voice.
Such strength was something he could not comprehend at all. The Dark King of the past, at his height, could destroy Humanity as a whole.
Yet, that Dark King had brought pressure upon humanity that was unimaginable, forcing Grandfather to take his place upon the Golden Throne. Had it not been for Father's furious counterattack at the very end, he, his father, Sanguinius, and Uncle Magnus would have been trapped on the Domain of Life of the Webway for ten full millennia.
Now, to hear that there were powerful deities capable of creating universes and erasing them with a mere wave of a hand, this was a level of power he dared not even imagine.
"Kratos, this universe we are in, and even the countless parallel universes we know of, possess a vastness and potential threat far exceeding our homeworld," Axis explained. "From what I know, that Grand Zeno is a supreme existence standing above everything. With a single thought, he can return a universe and all living beings within it to nothingness.
"As for 'Dragon God Zalama,' he is the progenitor god who created the miraculous artifacts known as the 'Super Dragon Balls,' and his power is unfathomable."
It was a pity. When Master Toriyama passed away, he had not been able to complete the lore of Dragon Ball Super.
This entity known as Zalama, claimed to be the strongest deity, never made an official appearance. However, since the Super Dragon Balls were the true core of the Dragon Ball multiverse, he was undoubtedly the true God of Creation.
Axis had harbored suspicions before, but now, after the confirmation from Earth's Shenron, he could determine with certainty that the creator of this world was indeed the Dragon God Zalama.
"Father, do you desire to possess the power to create Dragon Balls? Do you know how to obtain that Super Dragon Balls?" Kratos looked at his father and asked.
"Before long, an opportunity will present itself," Axis replied. "If you successfully travel to the God of Destruction's planet for training, you must pay attention to one thing.
"If a God of Destruction arrives who looks similar to Beerus but is significantly more obese, that will be the opportunity I have been waiting for."
According to Axis's estimation, the God of Destruction, Beerus, would likely request his participation in the martial arts tournament held between the two Gods of Destruction. Currently, the combat power of the two protagonists of the Dragon Ball world had already reached the levels seen in the arcs following the Tournament of Power.
The power boost from two near-death resurrections was no joke. Although Son Goku had not yet mastered Ultra Instinct and Vegeta had not transformed into Super Saiyan Blue Evolved, both had obtained the Super Saiyan 4 form.
"I understand, Father. I want to ask one thing: if you were able to go to the God of Destruction's planet train, would you go?" Kratos looked at Axis and asked.
"If Goku can persuade the Angel Whis, I am naturally willing," Axis answered almost without thinking.
It was no joke; the only ones who could train and teach the usage of Energy of Destruction were the Angels. The Gods of Destruction did not even have the authority to select candidates; the Angels were the true speakers of this universe.
Although they superficially played the role of attendants, they were the true heavyweights in power. The God of Destruction was merely a hired worker.
The strength of an Angel was terrifyingly robust.
A God of Destruction was absolutely no match for an Angel; the gap between the two was akin to the difference between a base Saiyan and a Super Saiyan God. These Angels were deities that stood above the universe itself.
If he could go to the God of Destruction's planet, it would naturally be the best opportunity to learn Energy of Destruction.
If not, during the time Kratos was away training, Axis planned to use his newly acquired ability to shuttle through parallel universes to search for the Evil Third Eye of the Demon World or to retrieve some quality items from the movie timelines.
In one of the movies, the planet descended upon by Frieza's brother, Metal Cooler, possessed an incredibly high level of technology. Even the ordinary grunt robots, if placed in the Warhammer world, were existences that could instant-kill an Imperator-class Titan.
That was not even mentioning the mass-produced Metal Coolers themselves, each of whom was at the peak of the first stage of Super Saiyan power.
They also possessed extremely potent self-repair capabilities. Axis could hardly imagine the combat power of an army composed of such entities.
He estimated the Primarchs would have to retire on the spot and go into elderly care. Coming to the Dragon Ball world, Axis could unceremoniously say that he could now do whatever he pleased.
"I hope Mister Son Goku can successfully persuade the Angel Whis," Kratos said.
"Don't think about that for now. You have already transformed into Super Saiyan 4, reaching a limit in terms of raw physical strength," Axis said. "And after comprehending Ki, your combat power is already sufficient to serve as a sparring partner for me. During this period, I will drill you thoroughly to help you master the power of Ultra Instinct."
"Yes, Father!"
Over the next few days, Axis began to instruct his son. Every day, he took him to the wastelands for sparring and guidance. Kratos had to control his power.
For instance, if one punch could shatter a planet, he had to focus that entire force onto a single point to pulverize only a single stone, reducing that stone to an atomic state.
He had to achieve microscopic control over his power, destroying only exactly what intended to be destroyed, without harming a fraction of the surrounding environment.
This was mastery of power down to the finest detail. Axis was training his son, but he was also tempering himself.
Several days later, Son Goku flew to their side, a look of excitement and happiness plastered across his face.
…
Ten Minutes prior.
The Angel Whis had arrived on Earth once again to transport a large quantity of Earth's gourmet food specially prepared by Bulma.
At the same time, Son Goku and Vegeta requested Whis to take them to the God of Destruction's planet for a new round of training.
Regarding this request, Whis agreed without a second thought; after all, these two were the candidates for the God of Destruction he was nurturing.
"Um, Lord Whis," Goku asked, "Regarding the Super Saiyans you met before, Kratos and Axis, can we bring them along to the God of Destruction's planet to train?"
Vegeta furrowed his brows upon hearing this. Did Kakarot not pass his words through his brain before speaking? Angel Whis was teaching them, not for amusement, but because he was training apprentice Gods of Destruction.
"Hmm. I only accept lives born in this universe as my disciples," Whis said. "Although that Saiyan named Axis went to another world and lived there for a long time, he is still a life form from Universe 7.
"If he is willing, I can naturally offer him some guidance. As for his son, Kratos... if you can prepare a bit more delicious food for me, it is not out of the question."
Cultivating new apprentice Gods of Destruction was a responsibility of the Angels, but the Grand Priest had never mandated how many candidates had to be trained.
It all depended on their mood. Furthermore, Angels had significant latitude and freedom in their actions; it was practically tantamount to doing whatever they pleased, as long as they were happy.
Moreover, he was quite interested in the Saiyans named Axis and Kratos and wanted to learn a bit about affairs regarding the other universe.
"I'll give Bulma a call right now to have her prepare some more food; it will be sent over very shortly," Vegeta said.
It was fine if the father and son Axis and Kratos came along; Vegeta could take the opportunity to gauge Axis's limits and learn from him how to perform that transformation.
"That's fantastic, Lord Whis! I'll go call Axis and Kratos right now." Goku nodded excitedly at Whis and immediately flew toward the father and son.
…
"That's the situation. Axis, Kratos, come with me! Lord Whis has already agreed to guide both of you," Goku said.
"It truly is a trouble for you, Goku. Well then, let us depart!" Axis nodded happily.
Training with the Angel Whis would save them from many detours. Without Whis's guidance, relying solely on his own divine power to elevate Kratos to Super Saiyan God or Super Saiyan Blue would take decades or even centuries.
Yet, Whis could elevate two ordinary Saiyans to the level of Super Saiyan God in just a few months; the difference in efficiency was clear.
Most importantly, there was Energy of Destruction, that was what Axis desired most.
Soon, Axis and Kratos followed Goku and flew before the Angel Whis.
Whis nodded to the two of them, then gently waved his staff. A burst of white light enveloped the group.
In just twenty minutes, Whis transported them to the God of Destruction's planet using a method of travel ten thousand times faster than light.
The volume of the God of Destruction's planet was not particularly large, roughly equivalent to a moon, but Axis was shocked by the energy and divine power it contained.
The Goddess of Life, Aisha, back at his home, had reached the level of a Supreme Kai, but the divine power on the Domain of Life compared to the core of a Destroyer's world was like a witch doctor comparing himself to a wizard.
"We have arrived. Lord Beerus is sleeping, so if there is nothing important, let us not disturb him," Whis instructed. "Vegeta, Son Goku, put on the special training suits I made for you first. Kratos, you too.
"The training task for the three of you today is very simple: run one hundred laps around the God of Destruction's planet, then do one hundred thousand push-ups, sit-ups, squats, and pull-ups."
Upon hearing this, Vegeta and Son Goku nodded and immediately began changing into the special training suits Whis had prepared for them.
Kratos, however, was somewhat speechless. Running 100 laps around the planet? Doing 100,000 push-ups, pull-ups, and squats? was this really useful?
"Do as Lord Whis implies," Axis said. "This planet possesses ample divine power. While attempting these exercises, you can absorb this divine power to the greatest extent, thereby breaking through your current limitations. Do it."
Ordinary physical exercises depended entirely on where and at what intensity they were performed.
If Axis was not mistaken, the training suits provided by Angel Whis, once worn, would suppress Kratos's physical constitution to the extreme. Under such circumstances, even simple training tasks would exhaust his stamina and Ki energy completely. This was the most beneficial cultivation method for a Saiyan.
On the God of Destruction's planet, conditions were completely different from anywhere else.
Here, by squeezing his physical capabilities to the absolute limit, a Saiyan's body would automatically absorb some of the planet's divine power, thus better achieving divine transformation.
Angel Whis glanced at Axis with satisfaction. These exercises seemed ordinary, but they all held deep significance.
What he truly wanted was for Goku and Vegeta to absorb the divine power here and evolve their bodies to the level of gods, rather than merely using the divine ki to master some transformation.
In Whis's view, whether it was Super Saiyan Red or Super Saiyan Blue, they were merely erroneous methods of transformation. The true goal was to enhance the body itself.
Just like Lord Beerus, there was no need for transformations. To increase power, one simply increased it. Why engage in flashy, colorful changes?
"Lord Whis, then what training will Axis do? Is he the same as us?" Son Goku looked at Axis and asked.
"Mister Axis is a bit more perfect than all of you. He has already walked the path you are currently on, so I will take him for deeper level of training," Whis said.
The current Goku and Vegeta were only conducting basic training. Only when they truly metamorphosed into gods could they begin to accept the Angel's training methods in the truest sense and master their own divine power.
Axis clearly did not need to do these basic exercises because he had already mastered the power of a divine body.
He was, in himself, a god.
"So amazing, Axis is already ahead of us? Since that's the case, I can't fall behind. Axis, you keep it up! I will catch up very quickly," Goku said.
Axis nodded.
"Well then, you all do your best. I will take Axis away for now." Whis smiled and took Axis directly to the other side of the planet for individual instruction.
After the Angel Whis left, Vegeta, Son Goku, and Kratos began their daily training.
Arriving at a secluded spot, Whis looked at Axis and spoke. "Mister Axis, before the real training begins, I wish to point out some issues with you."
"Please guide me freely, Lord Whis. All these years I have been fumbling through training on my own, without any reference points to reach my current state. I borrowed from many sources and researched many things myself," Axis said.
"Then I will speak frankly. First, you must integrate your transformation powers. You have many transformations: Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan 2, Super Saiyan 3, Legendary Super Saiyan, Super Saiyan 4, Super Saiyan God, and your fusion transformation.
"These powers seem to be enhancements, but they are originally your powers to begin with. Why can you only unleash them through transformation?
"You possess them inherently. What you need to do now is to integrate all those flashy transformations and retain only your original form. In your primal, original state, you should be able to exert your strongest power. If you can achieve this, your strength will ascend to the next level," Whis explained.
Saiyans were indeed a formidable race, and the transformation skills innate to their biology were very useful.
However, this was merely squeezing out their own potential. Though it appeared magnificent, it was actually just a flashy gimmick that changed hair color and exploded with relative energy on the body's surface.
It seemed as if the S-Cells in the body amplified the power, but it was just energy enhancement.
With Axis's current strength, even if he boosted it ten thousand times, a God of Destruction would only need to increase their power by ten percent to suppress him.
Axis nodded upon hearing this.
What the Angel Whis said was actually something he had thought of himself. Over the years, he had wanted to correct his own issues, but the transformation ability was inherent to the Super Saiyan bloodline and sometimes not so easily forgotten.
"First, you must understand clearly: I am not asking you to forget these abilities, but to integrate them together.
"That four-colored transformation of yours was a very good attempt, but what you need to do now is strip away those magnificent special effects. Retain the most primitive state. Try it, Axis! The road you have walked is much longer than Goku and the others.
"You have already reached the level of a true god, so teaching you is relatively simple. Son Goku, Vegeta, and your son Kratos still have a long road to travel," Whis said.
"I understand, Lord Whis."
"Good luck! I will be watching from the side. If there is anything you do not understand, you can ask me, and I will assist you. By the way, you can also chat with me about the other universe. Are there any delicacies over there?" Whis asked.
Regarding the Warhammer universe... one could discuss the Warp, the Four Chaos Gods, Ork Boyz, or the Tyranids. But if one were to speak of delicacies...
Did grox meat in a can or Corpse Starch count? Or perhaps the flavorless nutrient fluids?