Dragon Ball: I Became Cell in a Doomed Future

Chapter 326: The Full Metal Cell Max Game

Full Metal Cell Max's words were like a boulder crashing into a still lake, sending waves roaring in every direction.

"That sounds incredible!" Goku's eyes lit up. "If he can really let everyone live a good life, then maybe he isn't a bad guy after all?"

Chronoa also fell into thought, a trace of hesitation appearing on her face.

As the Supreme Kai of Time, her life's duty had always been to correct distorted history and maintain the stability of time itself.

If there really existed a powerful being who could eliminate chaos at its source and help the universe maintain peace...

"Perhaps... this is a path worth trying. A perfectly ordered universe would never again face the risk of falling into disorder."

"That's far too naive, Chronoa!"

Aeos cut off Chronoa's wandering thoughts.

"Can't you see it? Absolute order is absolute tyranny. If everything in the world is arranged by a cold machine, what meaning is left for life? That so-called utopia would be nothing more than a larger, grander prison. A twisted existence like this must be erased before it fully takes shape!"

"What's more, those are only his words. Who knows what deeper secrets he's hiding?"

"I don't trust this thing either."

Harts spoke coldly.

"What we pursue is freedom, the breaking of every chain, not escaping the shackles of the gods only to lock ourselves in someone else's cage."

Beside him, Fu's eyes glittered with excitement and fanatic fascination. He did not seem to care about freedom or order at all. He simply stared at Full Metal Cell Max with unrestrained interest.

"Magnificent... absolutely magnificent. This surpasses even the Universe Seed itself. A planet with self-awareness, one that has evolution as its supreme directive... its potential is immeasurable. The Demon Realm needs an existence like this."

On the Earth side, Bulma and Android 21 both frowned deeply. As top-tier scientists, they understood better than anyone the technological power hidden behind those words, and because they understood it, they feared it even more.

Piccolo remained silent, arms folded, his mind racing faster than ever before.

It was too perfect.

Full Metal Cell Max's logic was airtight. Its promises were endlessly alluring.

And because of that perfection, Piccolo's instincts screamed at him to be wary.

He could feel that it was false. Dangerous.

But he had no proof to tear apart its lies.

Cooler's betrayal was proof enough, at least to him.

Once again, all eyes gathered on Levos.

Out of everyone present, only he had the power to decide the fate of this planet and of Full Metal Cell Max.

Was Full Metal Cell Max an ally, or an enemy?

War or peace depended on a single sentence from Levos.

At the very least, Piccolo believed that every Earthling here would stand by Levos' side.

Even beings like the two Supreme Kai of Time and Vados would place enormous weight on his judgment.

Of course, accepting Full Metal Cell Max's proposal might usher in an unprecedented era of peace.

But rejecting it would mean a final war of uncertain outcome, one vast enough to engulf all of Universe 7.

The atmosphere instantly turned razor sharp.

Piccolo had already quietly transmitted a warning to all his allies, telling them to prepare for battle.

Levos' gaze rested on Full Metal Cell Max, calm as ever.

Under the attention of the entire crowd, he finally spoke.

"I do not care what you have said before, nor how grand your plans may be. I only care whether what you do next satisfies me."

"That is what will determine whether cooperation between us is possible."

"Please allow me to think carefully, Mr. Levos..."

At this moment, Full Metal Cell Max's core, the Big Gete Star master brain, had already completed its initial self-preservation.

It had transferred its most important core chip into this body, which could only be described as perfect, thus escaping the binding restraints aimed at the planet itself.

Even though the entire energy supply of Big Gete Star had already been firmly seized by Levos, this body's own power and abilities would remain unaffected. It would continue to exist as Full Metal Cell Max.

In other words, this body still possessed the traits of Moro, Merus, Fused Zamasu, Seven-Three, and the others. It could freely wield their abilities.

Otherwise, it would never have called itself perfect.

Yet what looked like a choice placed in its hands by Levos was only an illusion.

No one else here knew that, with Zeno on the scene, there was in truth only one path it could choose.

Full Metal Cell Max fell silent for a moment, as though carrying out some complex calculation.

Its gaze passed, seemingly by chance, over the pink fellow in the green T-shirt standing beside Vados.

"Everyone, I have made my decision."

Full Metal Cell Max's voice remained calm and cold.

"To demonstrate my sincerity, and to punish those criminals who disrupted the order of time, I have decided to host a special tournament."

That sudden declaration caught everyone off guard.

"A tournament?" Goku scratched his head. "What kind of tournament?"

Full Metal Cell Max's gaze settled on Fu and his group.

"The primary purpose of this game is to punish those criminals who tried to disrupt the order of time."

Fu's expression changed. Harts directly dropped into a battle stance.

"What are you planning to do to us?"

"There is no need to be nervous."

Full Metal Cell Max raised a finger.

"This is a fair competition. All of you will have a chance to obtain your freedom."

As soon as those words fell, the entire planet began to tremble violently.

The metallic ground rose and sank like waves, then split apart and reassembled.

When everything finally stilled, everyone stared in shock.

The entire planet had been divided into dozens of completely different combat zones.

Some zones had been transformed into volcanic regions, with magma surging and heat rolling through the air.

Some had become frozen worlds of glaciers, with biting winds and towering ice peaks.

There were also deserts, forests, deep seas, mountains, and all kinds of other terrain.

Each battlefield was enclosed within a transparent energy barrier, separated from the others, yet still connected.

"Environmental reconstruction complete. These regions will serve as your battlegrounds."

Full Metal Cell Max nodded in satisfaction.

"This competition shall be called the Full Metal Cell Max Game."

"All criminals who disrupted time must participate."

"And now, I will announce the rules."

"The rules are simple. Participants will draw lots and fight in one-on-one matches. Killing is forbidden, but defeating your opponent to the point that they can no longer continue fighting is permitted. The final victor of the game will earn the right to challenge me. If that challenger defeats me, they may leave this planet and return to their own timeline."

"And why should we take part in your game?" Harts asked coldly.

"Because you once forced others into exactly this kind of battle."

Full Metal Cell Max looked at him, a cold light flashing in its eyes.

"And more importantly... you have no other choice."

As soon as he finished speaking, an invisible force locked Harts, Fu, Cumber, and the others in place. None of them could move.

"On this planet, I am the highest rule. No one can defeat me."

Full Metal Cell Max spoke with flat certainty.

"Of course, the final battle against me does not necessarily have to take place on this planet's stage."

"Until then, if any of you wish to leave by force, you had best possess the strength to utterly overwhelm me."

Fu struggled twice, only to find he really could not break free from that force. In the end, he could only laugh helplessly.

"How interesting. Truly, truly interesting. In that case, I accept your game."

Harts exchanged a glance with Lagss, and the two had no choice but to nod in agreement as well.

"Very good."

Full Metal Cell Max gave a satisfied nod.

"In addition to Fu's group, Broly, Cooler, and Paragus must also participate."

A heavily wounded Paragus suddenly appeared before the crowd, evidently teleported here from some forgotten corner of the planet by Full Metal Cell Max.

But the injured Broly only had to glance at him before his eyes filled with naked killing intent.

"Kill! I'll kill you!"

The very next second, Broly lunged at Paragus.

Yet an invisible barrier instantly separated the two. No matter how furiously Broly attacked, he could not break through.

Paragus' face turned pale with terror.

"Broly, I really am your father! Your real father!"

That only made Broly angrier.

Full Metal Cell Max explained coldly, "Broly, his soul truly is your father's. His body was merely swapped by someone else."

As he spoke, Ginyu, still inside Paragus' body, was teleported to the opposite side of him.

"Captain Ginyu, please return your bodies to their rightful owners."

Looking at the enraged Broly, Ginyu was visibly shaken.

"As for the battle pairings, they will be determined by drawing lots."

Full Metal Cell Max paid no further attention to that side of the field.

With a wave of his hand, a giant electronic screen appeared in the sky, displaying the names of all participants.

"That looks fun. I want to join too!"

A delighted voice suddenly rang out.

Everyone turned to look and saw Monaka with one tiny hand raised high.

Vados instantly felt her world collapse, her expression turning miserable.

Levos immediately stepped forward.

"No, Monaka, you cannot join."

"After watching all these fights, I want to fight too!"

Vados' cheeks twitched.

"Mr. Monaka, this is not an ordinary game. It is very dangerous..."

She had been about to say there would be danger to his life, but according to the rules, killing was forbidden.

Still, how could the all-important Lord Zeno casually place himself in danger like this?

If the Grand Priest found out, she would definitely be punished again.

"It's fine! I'm very strong!" Monaka insisted. "I want to join!"

Full Metal Cell Max fell silent... and remained silent...

At last, he slowly nodded.

"If this contestant wishes to participate of his own will, I have no reason to refuse."

Levos had finally figured it out. Full Metal Cell Max had absolutely seen through Zeno's disguise.

Otherwise, he would never have abandoned his own principles so easily and agreed to such an unreasonable request.

After all, the stated purpose of this tournament was to punish criminals.

Levos sighed inwardly, finally understanding why Full Metal Cell Max had endured in silence for so long.

No wonder, despite possessing power comparable to his own, he had restrained himself from attacking the Earth warriors.

When peerless strength was paired with extreme calm and intelligence, an opponent like this became the most troublesome Levos had faced to date.

"Monaka," Levos said, still unwilling to give up on persuading him, "if you enter the tournament, you'll miss all the other matches happening at the same time."

"Miss the other matches? Can't they be held one at a time?"

"Of course not. Right, Lord Full Metal Cell Max?"

Levos asked with a smile.

Full Metal Cell Max paused, then said, "Er... Mr. Levos is correct..."

"Then... all right!"

Vados let out a huge sigh of relief and shot Levos a grateful look.

"Wait!"

Time Patrol Vegito suddenly raised a hand.

"I want in too! A tournament this interesting can't possibly leave me out!"

"Me too," said the Goku of this timeline. "A tournament with this many strong fighters is too rare. I haven't had nearly enough fighting yet."

Bejitaena was also eager.

"I'm joining too!"

Everyone looked to Levos, waiting for his answer.

Levos firmly shook his head.

"The purpose of this tournament is to punish those who disturbed time. There is no need for you to participate."

"But..." Goku still wanted to argue.

"And besides," Levos continued, "this planet absorbs the energy generated in battle. If you all fight, you will only make Full Metal Cell Max stronger."

That statement made everyone freeze.

Chronoa and Aeos exchanged a glance, concern flickering in both their eyes.

"Levos' concern makes sense," Aeos said seriously. "Whether Full Metal Cell Max and this planet are friend or foe, we cannot allow them to continue absorbing more energy. They must be restrained."

Chronoa hesitated only briefly before nodding.

"I agree with the idea of benefiting all mortals, but necessary precautions cannot be ignored..."

"Levos, didn't you create a barrier technique capable of sealing Ozotto? Can you set up a seal of that level over this planet?"

Levos fell silent.

That barrier had never been something he could create alone.

"Chronoa, a seal like that requires three separate time powers working together in order to create the strongest possible confinement," Aeos said, equally troubled.

Looking at the way both of them were hesitating, Chronoa's eyes narrowed suspiciously.

"Then what are you hesitating for? The three of us can just join forces right now. Levos, don't you also have time power inside you?"

Levos was speechless. Chronoa made it sound easy, but she had no idea what had really happened back then.

If they recreated the same seal used on Ozotto, then the secret he had been hiding would be exposed on the spot.

The existence of that new batch of Cell Juniors was already something that Bulma, 18, and the others were deeply curious about.

Was he supposed to just expose himself in front of everyone?

Aeos was just as unwilling. After all, she had specifically told Levos not to reveal the matter of her fusion with Chronoa.

And so the whole situation became painfully awkward.

In the end, for the sake of the bigger picture, and for the safety of all timelines, someone gave in.

"Little Chronoa, there is something I need to confess..."

Aeos finally told Chronoa the truth about what had happened when Ozotto was sealed.

Chronoa slowly raised her head and fixed her eyes on Levos.

"So in other words, back then, you absorbed the fused being created from me and Lady Aeos into your own body, and only then did you completely merge the three powers of time and seal Ozotto?"

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