In Dragon Ball: A brutal beating of Frieza at the start

Page 217

“A place where hope might turn around.” Lin Ye stared intently ahead. The connection between the variable engine and the resonance signal was becoming clearer and clearer in his perception, like the only visible lighthouse in a dark storm.

Suddenly, the intense interference that had been like a leech disappeared, and the Judge's suffocating power seemed to be temporarily isolated from this extremely chaotic flow of time.

But before they could even catch their breath, a brand new, stronger, and more irresistible suction force suddenly came from directly in front of them!

"Oh no!" Trunks exclaimed in shock as he stared at the wildly fluctuating data on the control panel. "It's a time vortex! The signal source is right at the center of the time vortex!"

The spaceship (or rather, the energy jump device that encased them) went completely out of control, like a leaf caught in a tornado, relentlessly dragged by the powerful gravity, spinning at high speed as it plummeted toward the faint but exceptionally resolute light at the deepest part of the vortex.

"Hold on tight! Prepare to charge!" Lin Ye only had time to shout once.

The next moment, an indescribable violent tremor and blinding white light engulfed all perception.

……

After a brief period of weightlessness and chaos, there is the impact of crashing heavily onto the hard ground.

The four of them struggled to their feet and looked around.

They seemed to be inside an enormous, long-abandoned circular structure. The building's material was neither metal nor stone, cold to the touch, and shimmered with a dim metallic sheen. The massive walls and dome were covered with dried-up, incomprehensible energy circuits and patterns, telling tales of past glory and present desolation. Above them was a dim, simulated starry dome, but many of the "stars" had been permanently extinguished, leaving only scattered, dim points of light. The air was thick with the smell of dust and the deathly stillness of the afterlife.

It was eerily quiet here; you could even hear the sound of your own blood flowing.

"What the hell is this place?" Number 18 was the first to stand up, deftly flicking the dust off his combat suit. His blue optical eyes scanned the surroundings. "It doesn't resemble the architectural style of any known civilization. Ancient, and... dead."

Trunks' variable engine had partially recovered its functionality, and he carefully examined his surroundings: "Time flows extremely slowly here, almost to the point of stillness... as if it's frozen. Moreover, there's a strong information shielding property here, forming a natural barrier. No wonder the Inquisitor's interference disappeared." He raised his hand and pointed to the dark depths of the circular building, "That resonant signal came from the deepest part of this building."

Vegeta closed his eyes slightly, sensing the ki within his body, and frowned deeply: "The energy environment here is very strange. The speed at which ki recovers has become extremely slow, as if it is being suppressed by something."

Lin Ye didn't speak. He squatted down, his fingers gently touching the cold, complex energy patterns on the ground. The variable engine within his body automatically started running at high speed, attempting to analyze the extremely faint fragments of information remaining in the patterns.

[Analysis in progress... The patterns contain information about fundamental time laws... The technical style is approximately 71% similar to the observer system, but its expression is more... ancient and fundamental.]

[Database search... Highest match: Remains of an early testing ground or auxiliary facility suspected to be related to the "Time Core".]

"An early testing ground?" Lin Ye murmured to himself thoughtfully, "Could it be that the coordinates Silver Fox gave us point not only to the Observer's current testing site, but also to these forgotten ancient facilities related to the origin of the Time Core?"

at this time...

Click...click...click...

A faint but highly rhythmic mechanical sound came from the deep darkness of the circular corridor ahead, growing louder as it approached.

The sound was deep and slow, with the unique texture of metal friction, like a creation that had been dormant for countless years finally being awakened once again.

The four instantly entered battle mode. Without a word, Vegeta and Android 18 stepped forward in perfect unison, their ki gathering in their palms, and Android 18's arm energy circuits glowing faintly. Lin Ye and Trunks positioned themselves slightly back, one activating his Variable Engine and the other adopting a defensive stance, ready to provide support at any moment.

Click...click...

The sound is getting closer.

Finally, a figure slowly emerged from the shadows of the dimly lit corridor.

It was a surprisingly dilapidated robot. It only had an upper body; its lower body seemed to have been torn apart by some immense force, and it hovered and moved by a faintly flickering anti-gravity device beneath it. Its shell was covered with deep scratches, dents, and mottled rust left by the erosion of time, its design ancient yet sturdy. One optical eye was completely destroyed, leaving only a pitch-black hole, while the other emitted an extremely faint, flickering red light.

What is most striking is its remaining mechanical arm, which is holding a fist-sized polyhedral crystal that emits a soft, pure white light with an almost pious posture.

The source of that peculiar resonance signal clearly originates from this strange crystal.

The damaged robot moved to a distance of about ten meters from them and stopped. Its single red eye emitted a faint turning sound, scanning the four people who were waiting in ambush. Finally, the faint light fixed on Lin Ye.

A series of intermittent synthesized sounds, mixed with a lot of electrical noise and distortion, struggled to emerge from its body:

"Unknown time traveler detected...identification signal...error...cannot match any existing database..."

"Detected...Higher-time creation energy reaction...Source: Individual [Lin Ye]...Match rate...15%...Meets minimum access threshold..."

"Warning... Facility abandoned... State of emergency declared... By... Final directive... Protect the 'Foundation'... Await... The 'Returners'..."

"Inquire...?" The synthesized voice became even more disjointed, and the red light flashed rapidly a few times. "Are you... 'Returners'? Or... 'Observers'... minions?"

The robot's single red eye flickered faintly, its light seemingly containing both a deep vigilance and a barely perceptible, faint expectation that had transcended the vast expanse of time. The resonant fluctuations emanating from the crystal known as the "foundation" in its arm were subtly and continuously echoing the variable engine within Lin Ye's body.

Lin Ye was deeply shocked.

The Returner? Is it waiting for a specific person? This dilapidated ancient robot, this magnificent, desolate facility, and the "foundation" it protects at all costs... Behind all of this, there seems to be a huge secret about the Observer organization, about the Time Core, and even about the origin of its own variable engine.

He looked at the "foundation" that emitted an alluring yet mysterious white light, and then at the ancient machine guarding him that seemed ready to cease functioning completely at any moment.

The answer seems to lie hidden beneath this deathly silence, within reach.

Chapter 471 Ancient Echoes and the Mystery of the Foundation

The circular hall was so quiet you could hear the creaking of rusting metal. The broken robot's single eye glowed a faint red light, like a cigarette butt about to go out, yet it stared intently at Lin Ye. It clutched a white crystal in its arms, and broken wires were wrapped around the joints of its mechanical arm, sparking with every movement.

"Returners...or...or minions of the Observers?"

The synthesized sound was intermittent, bouncing around the hall with electrical noise. Lin Ye could clearly feel the variable engine inside his body getting hot, and he felt as if he were being pulled back and forth by an invisible thread connecting him and the crystal in the robot's arms. He didn't rush to act, nor did he offer any explanation... This old relic seemed to only follow rigid rules; acting recklessly would definitely be useless.

"Don't be impulsive." Lin Ye took half a step forward, raised his hand to stop Vegeta and Android 18 behind him, and tried to keep his voice steady. "We're not the Watchers; we're the ones being chased by them." He pointed to the top of his head, where the Judges he had just shaken off were still searching in the spacetime turbulence. "We came here following a signal and just happened to find this place. We've never heard of the 'Returners' you mentioned."

The robot's red light flashed faster, as if it were frantically searching for something. "A...signal? A foundation...resonance?" It clumsily tightened the crystal around itself, its robotic arm jerking before adjusting its position. "Authorization...authority verification...based on energy characteristics...the individual 'Lin Ye' partially matches the 'Returner Preparatory Sequence'...but the database is 70% corrupted, so we can't confirm..."

A preparatory sequence? Lin Ye's heart skipped a beat. His variable engine came from the "defector," could it be related to this so-called "returnee"?

"What are Returners?" Trunks couldn't help but interject, his hand discreetly resting on his waist... The Variable Engine had already begun scanning the robot and the crystal. "And what's this place for?"

“Too much data… only 30% of the core record library is usable.” The robot’s voice became even more rambling, as if it were about to run out of power. “Only… only fragments remain: This is the first phase of the ‘Nursery of Time,’ used to nurture… nurture the prototype of the Time Core… The Returners are… are the ones who sow the seeds, and also the ones who reap the harvest… to bring a new temporal order…”

The Nursery of Time! The embryonic form of the Time Core! Lin Ye and the others exchanged glances, all seeing the shock in each other's eyes... This place is actually one of the strongholds of the Observer's power?

"Then why did the Observer abandon this place?" Number 18 stepped forward, the blue light of his mechanical eye sweeping across the robot's core circuitry, his tone as calm as if he were troubleshooting. "What exactly is this broken rock you're guarding?"

The robot's red light dimmed for a moment, as if recalling something bad. "They...fought...split apart." It paused, a strange tone mixed in with the static of electricity, "'Original Commands' broke...one part was to 'watch and not move,' and the other part was to 'hold it in your hands and modify it'...the ones that were to be modified became the current Observers and moved to a new place...this place was broken, so it was thrown away."

"As for the cornerstone..." It slowly raised its mechanical arm, and the white crystal in its arms brightened slightly, its warm light reflecting off the scratched metal shell. "It is the core of the Time Nursery, the earliest stabilizer of the laws of time... and also a fragment of the key to the returnees. My last order was: guard it and wait for the right person to come."

"Stop talking nonsense!" Vegeta couldn't help but clench his fists, his knuckles turning white. "Can this broken rock help us fight the Watchers?" His energy hadn't recovered much yet. He had fought the Judges for half the night, and his hands were still a bit weak. He just wanted to find something that could turn the tide as soon as possible.

The robot turned to look at Vegeta, and the red light paused: "There is pure time-based power in the foundation... If you don't have the authority to use it, you'll die quickly. But if it recognizes you, you can temporarily borrow some power to stabilize your own timeline and also interfere with the things of lower-level observers."

Lin Ye stared at the crystal, the resonance of the variable engine growing stronger, as if urging him to take it quickly. "How can I make it recognize me?"

“Verify…verify.” The robot’s mechanical arm lowered slightly. “You have to touch it, connect to the deep consciousness, and read the time imprint. Warning: If the imprint is incorrect, or your consciousness is not strong enough, the foundation will reject you…the consequences will be severe.”

"I'll give it a try." Lin Ye didn't hesitate and took a step forward. This was not only an opportunity to deal with the Observer, but also a chance to figure out exactly how his variable engine worked.

"Lin Ye!" Trunks quickly grabbed him. "What if something goes wrong?"

"Don't worry, my system is from the same source as it, nothing will happen." Lin Ye patted his hand and continued walking forward. Vegeta and Android 18 followed on either side, the former staring at the robot's single eye, the latter scanning the surrounding corners with his mechanical eye, wondering if this old relic might suddenly attack. Trunks stood behind, his Variable Engine fully activated, watching the surrounding time flow, ready to act at the slightest sign of trouble.

The robot didn't stop him, but its red light followed Lin Ye's movements. Just as Lin Ye's hand was about to touch the crystal, the robot suddenly spoke, its synthesized voice carrying a slightly different tone: "May... the primordial light... guide you..."

The moment his fingertips touched the crystal, Lin Ye felt a warm current surge up his fingertips. Then, a massive amount of information rushed into his mind like a tidal wave... It wasn't pain, but an indescribable sense of openness, like standing in the universe watching stars be born and then die, with spacetime unfolding and folding before his eyes like a cloth.

Before he could react, some blurry images forced their way in:

First, there was a silhouette from behind, wearing armor somewhat similar to that of the Judge, but older and gold. The person stood in front of a control panel, rapidly pressing buttons, seemingly shouting something, though the voice was indistinct, but it sounded urgent.

Then came a low growl that pierced through the blaring alarms: "They must be sent away! They absolutely cannot let the control faction get their hands on them!"

Next came the touch... A warm crystal was tucked into a swaddle, the fabric soft and with a hint of milk.

Finally, a pair of cold, mechanical eyes watched through the spaceship's hatch as a small spaceship disappeared into the temporal turbulence. The gaze was devoid of warmth, as if completing a pre-programmed sequence.

"Ugh!" Lin Ye groaned, abruptly pulling his hand back and staggering two steps backward. Vegeta reacted quickly, grabbing his arm.

"How are you?" Number 18 immediately came over, his mechanical eyes scanning Lin Ye's face to see if he was injured.

Lin Ye was panting, his mind still buzzing, the images from earlier flashing before his eyes. "I saw something...like memories. About this foundation stone, and...my possible background." He looked up at the robot. "It seemed to recognize me, or rather, it recognized the person who sent me away."

The robot's red light stabilized, even brighter than before, as if it had breathed a sigh of relief. "The time imprint has been verified... it matches the part above 'Camilla the Seeder'. Welcome... Camilla's child. The Foundation recognizes you."

It slowly handed the crystal over; the robotic arm was still a little stuck, but the movements were steady. "Be careful when using it. It's a key, but also a shackle."

Lin Ye took a deep breath and reached out to take the crystal. The moment his fingertips touched it, the variable engine in his body suddenly hummed, like an engine that had been refueled. A pure power flowed into his body through the crystal, traveling through his blood vessels to every part of his body, and even the fatigue left from the fight with the Judge just now was relieved a little.

Just then, the variable engine suddenly popped up an alarm, a sharp notification sound exploding in Lin Ye's mind: [Warning! High-dimensional time lock detected! The Judge is breaking through the spacetime turbulence shield! Current location estimated to be locked in 3 minutes and 42 seconds!]

"Damn it! It won't leave you alone!" Vegeta cursed, raising his hand to try and gather some energy... but he only managed to raise it a little before it dissipated again; the energy he had just used was still too much.

Lin Ye gripped the crystal tightly in his hand, feeling a warm sensation on his fingertips, which actually calmed him down a bit. "System, analyze the energy of the foundation stone and find a way to counter the Judge's lock!"

[Analysis in progress... The foundational energy can construct a local time stasis field, temporarily blocking higher-dimensional exploration... It can also attempt to analyze the locking frequency of the Judges and interfere with them!]

"Alright!" Lin Ye looked up at the group, his eyes shining. "Get ready, this time we won't run away, we'll give them a surprise!"

Vegeta raised an eyebrow, still a little apprehensive, but his eyes were already blazing with fighting spirit: "We should have done this a long time ago! Let those guys know that Grandpa is not someone to be trifled with!"

Number 18 nodded, and the blue light in his mechanical eye shone even brighter: "I will keep an eye on the flow of time around me, and I will notify you immediately if there are any anomalies."

Trunks clenched his fist: "My variable engine can work with Lin Ye to interfere with the Judge's lock!"

The robot looked at them, its single red eye flashing, and suddenly spoke: "There are backup energy pods in the spacetime turbulence... that can recharge your equipment... I'll take you there."

Lin Ye paused for a moment, then nodded: "Thank you for your trouble."

The robot turned around, its robotic arm pointing to a passageway in the corner of the hall. The metal door at the entrance was rusted and almost falling off, with the words "Energy Zone" still faintly visible on it. "Go...go this way...hurry...the Judge is coming."

The group caught up with the robot, their steps quick. The cornerstone in Lin Ye's hand was still emitting a warm light, and the resonance of the variable engine was growing stronger. He could sense that a tough battle was about to begin... But this time, they were no longer the ones passively fleeing, but hunters holding trump cards, ready to counterattack.

The lights in the passageway flickered, water dripped from metal pipes overhead, and the faint whistling sound of turbulent time flow could be heard in the distance. Lin Ye gripped the foundation stone tightly, his mind focused on only one thought: This time, he must break free from the Observer's pursuit and find the true answer!

Chapter 472 Stasis Trap and Reverse Tracking

The dome of the abandoned facility swayed violently, the dusty simulated stars flickered, and even the air felt frozen, oppressive and suffocating. Trunks stared at the rapidly flashing red light on the variable engine, his hands trembling: "He's caught up! He's faster than the system calculated!"

Lin Ye gripped the foundation stone, the white light in his palm enveloping the blue-gold of the variable engine, a warm energy coursing through his arm and into his body. "Perfect, let's test this broken stone's power." He glanced at the group, speaking rapidly, "System, use the foundation stone to build a time-stasis field, covering the entire facility! Trunks, you calculate the parameters, make sure the energy doesn't run out!"

"Understood!" Trunks immediately connected his engine, and dense streams of data floated around them, while blue light flakes flashed incessantly in mid-air.

“Uncle Vegeta, Android 18,” Lin Ye then looked at the other two, “Once the domain is complete, the time turbulence outside will definitely become even more chaotic, and the Judge will most likely try to force his way in. You guys hold him off first and buy me some time!”

Vegeta scoffed, a burst of deep blue flames erupting from his body. Although his energy hadn't fully recovered, the ferocity in his eyes remained undiminished: "I've been waiting! Last time this bastard chased me like a stray dog; this time, I'll just tear his crappy armor to shreds!"

Number 18 didn't say much. His robotic arm clicked twice, deploying a high-frequency blade and revealing an energy cannon muzzle, coldly surveying the entrances to the hall: "I'll keep an eye on him. I'll attack as soon as he comes in."

Lin Ye closed his eyes, focusing on guiding the power of the foundation stone. That pure, time-based energy was remarkably obedient, flowing from his fingertips into the variable engine, then surging outwards like a thin veil spreading outwards.

Buzz

A low, resonant sound, as if emanating from the depths of time and space, emanated from Lin Ye. A layer of pale white ripples rapidly spread outwards, sweeping over Vegeta and the others, then enveloping the damaged robot, and in the blink of an eye, covering the entire circular hall.

Where the ripples passed, even the dust motes floating in the air seemed to freeze, and the lights appeared to slow down. The oppressive atmosphere outside suddenly lessened considerably, as if we had been transported to another dimension.