Saiyan stowaways on the Ark

Just like studying vaccine plants directly is more direct than studying subjects.

But Tomat still didn't understand why this creature, which seemed to have no special characteristics other than being delicious, could have such an effect.

"It's a pity they're all ripe, but even with the protein structure damaged, we still have ways to study them. Don't forget, we're a pharmaceutical and medical company."

If you don't say it, people will indeed forget about it.

[Main Text] A Guide to Wandering in Rhodes Island: Chapter Thirty-Five: Old Acquaintances

The extra value of these monsters was not something Thomas needed to consider; he only cared whether the meat would be used for research or eaten later.

However, Kal'tsit's order to store it in the canteen warehouse already indicated that she would lift the ban on this meat, rather than treating it as if it were still alive.

Moreover, even if research is needed, any one of them would suffice.

After Tomat left the office, the other person seemed to deliberately avoid passing him, and came right after him to Kal'tsit.

"So this was something you expected?"

"Looking up at me," Kal'tsit asked without even looking up.

“How could that be? I was surprised too, okay?” Nian said with a hearty smile, chewing on a dried chili pepper, “But isn’t this quite interesting? You—or rather, Rhodes Island and him—get what you want, and my annual meeting can be held smoothly. Everyone’s happy, everyone’s happy.”

“Moreover, the meat from those things is more effective than the medicine you usually prescribe, and you don’t even have to worry about contaminating anything ‘forbidden’,” Nian added.

"If you only know the effects but not the principles, it shouldn't be used as medicine—so, do you have the ability to get infected people to eat those foods?"

As Kal'tsit asked the questions, she also organized a stack of documents bearing the mark of Rhine Lab.

"You underestimate me. I've seen plenty of 'ingredients' like this."

Nian licked her lips with a confident smile, as if it were her turn to shine with this special ingredient.

"Furthermore, please do not try to eliminate the smell by using 'extra spicy to mask the original flavor,' because I think even fewer people would be willing to eat it that way."

"Tsk, how did you guess?"

Meanwhile, Tomat was still sending a message to Nian, stating that he had resolved the issue of ingredients.

A day later, Tommat returned to the operator's cabin with Jie. He put down the communicator he had just used to send a message, looked at Jie who had barely sat down but seemed ready to go out again, and asked:

"What, something's up again? Aren't you going to take a break?"

"Sister Croissant and Hongyun went to tan the animal hides they brought back. They said they plan to sell them directly to people on the island who need them, or process them and then sell them to the outside world. So she asked me to familiarize myself with Rhodes Island's business rules. What about you, Brother Tommat?"

Tomat finally understood why Zi always looked so exhausted. He was a Saiyan, and he could often work without sleep without looking tired. But Zi was just a stronger Ursus man compared to a normal person. The result of studying and working hard from dawn till dusk was that Zi looked older than Tomat, both mentally and physically.

"I don't have anything to do, I'll probably just stay here."

He has already helped complete one item on the year's list, and of the other two optional items, apart from fireworks which he could help with, the other one seems to have little to do with him—he can't do dragon dances, and he doesn't know who can.

Thomas doesn't take on missions proactively, nor does he wander around Rhodes Island. The few times he goes out are only for meals and helping with moving to earn some extra hourly wages.

This also means that, apart from the numerous rumors surrounding him, not many people on the island actually recognize him when they meet, and he doesn't have many close friends who frequently visit each other. So, in his spare time, he simply stays in his cabin and doesn't go out.

He doesn't go looking for others to pass the time, nor does anyone come to him to exchange feelings.

That has always been the case.

Sitting cross-legged on the air mattress in the cabin, with hands pressing on the knees, head slightly lowered, eyes closed, and tail detached from the waist, it lay naturally on the mattress.

This wasn't some kind of resting with his eyes closed, because the rest he took during his hunting trips was enough to keep him energetic for about a week, provided he was well-fed.

What he's doing now is a form of spiritual practice that's better than nothing—"meditation training."

It can be used to adjust physical and mental state, balance breath, or train mental strength. However, this gentle training method is not very suitable for Saiyans, and it is not very effective in improving physical strength. At most, it can enhance control. But the reckless activities can easily cause destructive consequences, so this is the only benefit.

As for why he suddenly thought of doing this, it was simply because before he set off, Frostnova asked him, "What do you want to do?"

Thomas simply couldn't find any other way to achieve his expectations.

Let go of distracting thoughts. First, stabilize your breath, allowing it to flow throughout your body and become stable and abundant. Then, slowly spread it throughout your body, and while maintaining the same posture, gradually float up.

During this period, his aura was constantly rising. The reason it is described as "rising" rather than "expanding" is because his aura remained "gentle" throughout the process. Raising one's aura without affecting the surroundings or even arousing the instinctive fear of other creatures is not an easy thing.

Enhancing strength while minimizing presence—both can be achieved simultaneously.

Then, in this state, we conduct training against hypothetical adversaries.

This is not simply a matter of imagination and daydreaming, but rather, under the premise of possessing strong mental power, creating a corresponding situation in one's own mental space, and then dealing with and solving it—throughout the entire process, apart from not causing actual physical damage, the consumption of mental energy and vital energy is real.

This isn't the Saiyan training method, but we don't have a choice now—although we didn't have many choices in the past either.

"In the past, in order to keep a low profile, our normal combat strength has always been maintained at around 2700."

"His actual level has surpassed that of a typical mid-level warrior. If he doesn't suppress his aura, his normal level is around 6000. Considering his mastery of qi, his aura level should be over 10000 when using a qi blast."

"But right now we only have 1500."

At this moment, Tomat was carefully assessing his own strength.

Then, as if strolling through a museum, one carefully selects suitable adversaries from the corridors of one's own memory.

Even in a hypothetical battle, one must be careful in choosing an opponent, especially now that the main body's strength has been greatly reduced. If the main body's power is not strong enough, the projection in the mental world will not be able to exert its normal strength. In this case, being attacked by a powerful hypothetical enemy will cause mental damage similar to a backlash.

A weak spirit cannot unleash the full power of the physical body, and if the physical body's power is limited, the spiritual power will also be difficult to strengthen.

An opponent that is too strong cannot be simulated, while an opponent that is too weak will not even provide the slightest training benefit.

Cultivator?

The average combat power of the Cultivators is only 1200, and they are combat creatures with specialized physical abilities. Although they can fight against beings with higher combat power with their strength alone, their disadvantage in energy control still makes them weak beings who can be ordered around by others in the legion.

Even if the combat power is the same, the cultivator is always the one who loses.

Then I'll choose a "familiar" person who matches my current combat strength.

A person's silhouette gradually emerged before his eyes.

At first, it looked like a short child.

But as Tomat focused his mind, he gradually transformed into a long-haired man with exaggeratedly long hair.

Her long, jet-black hair reached her waist, but it was as sharp as hedgehog bristles.

His thick limbs had more defined muscles than Tomat's, and even though they wore the same combat suit, he looked much more imposing on him.

"Raditz... indeed, you are the opponent I know best at this level of combat power, and your skills are far more threatening than those of Saibamen."

The moment the other person's name was uttered, the entire illusory space transformed into a world consisting only of flat, white earth.

At the same time, Raditz's figure became incredibly clear.

"Heh, you bastard, what exactly do you want from me? You know I'm an elite warrior, so you're trying to curry favor with me?"

A gruff voice rang out, accompanied by a contemptuous look. This was the Raditz that Tomat had imagined.

"I'm here to beat you up, you good-for-nothing."

—The first strike as a greeting was a short uppercut aimed at the opponent's abdomen by Thomas.

The fists slammed into each other, producing a deafening clang like metal clashing and a gust of wind that whipped their hair around.

If the environment of this illusory space were as intense as that of the real world, the impact of the collision would have already shattered the ground beneath their feet.

But this creates the effect of "the fist being blocked in front of the abdomen by the palm".

Tomat's first strike missed and was blocked, while he was also restrained in return.

"Don't even think about running!"

"Who's trying to run away?"

Purple energy waves and white energy blasts were released from each other's free hands and collided with each other at point-blank range.

The explosion's light instantly engulfed the two, unleashing devastating energy in this space where heaven and earth no longer existed.

Two tiny black dots, minuscule compared to the blast wave, flew out from it, like dust being kicked up.

But this very dust, in the next second, flashed with light that enveloped them, and then collided in mid-air—the lingering explosion was instead dissipated by the impact of the collision of the "dust".

"The only time the feeling is truly real is when you are the imaginary enemy."

Despite their different physiques, Tomat and Raditz held hands and wrestled in the air.

"Don't be silly, I'm just an opponent you've imagined. You've never even had the chance to see me grow up like this."

At this moment, Raditz revealed his own existence in a single sentence—this was not "the creation possessing self-awareness," but rather the subconscious influence within Tomat himself.

"But it's not your fault. When you go out on missions, no matter how many fancy skills the natives have, they can't touch you. You kill them without even touching them. At most, you might throw a few more punches when fighting gods, demons, or big monsters. The battles you remember most are probably the daily training with me and Dad."

They were all their own thoughts, yet they used Raditz's body and voice to presume to interpret them.

"Yes, I didn't even have the chance to watch you grow up!!"

Tomat's aura suddenly expanded, overwhelming Raditz, who was wrestling with him, in terms of the size of the light.

The interlocked fingers gradually tightened around each other, turning into a one-sided bend.

"Because you're weak! You have no chance to become stronger! And you don't have the luck to become stronger!"

Raditz endured the excruciating pain of his fingers being broken, his veins bulging, while his mouth gaped open, and a dazzling light gradually emerged from his throat.

"Shut up!"

Tomat focused his consciousness and energy on his brow, and then, as if launching an energy blast, released an invisible shockwave—the "Energy Cannon."

It wasn't as powerful as a ki blast, but it was more convenient and stealthy. And at this distance, it was enough to make Raditz's hair swerve, causing the attack he was preparing to launch from his mouth to graz Tomat's ear.

Tomat pressed his hand down hard, causing Raditz to bend over with his movement, followed by a headbutt that slammed into Raditz's chin.

The solid impact momentarily stunned Raditz. Tomat, who then released his grip, swung his right fist without hesitation. In mid-air, where he had no leverage, he used a flying technique to stabilize his body and delivered a downward punch to Raditz's face, who had revealed an opening.

Like a meteor plummeting towards the ground of the imaginary space, Raditz adjusted his movements halfway down the path, abruptly halting just inches from the ground. He raised his head, his face bleeding from the corner of his mouth, and glared fiercely at the sky—no, at Tomat, who was standing right in front of him.

Tomat's pursuit was not over.

A blue aura swirled around his arm, and taking advantage of the downward momentum, he struck Raditz in the abdomen once more.

This time, however, it wasn't a fist that sent Raditz flying, but a spear-shaped blue energy blast that flew out of his hand.

Raditz flew an unknown distance, his armor shattering along the way, trying to break free from the energy's impact, but to no avail.

Ultimately, it was engulfed in the shockwave that erupted and scattered due to the loss of stability.

"...Even if they are 'more threatening than Cultivators,' it doesn't really mean much."