"You've trained Broly well," the Grand Priest said as he appeared beside Ken, watching the fight below with an approving smile.
"Thank you." Ken bowed politely.
"However, that alone isn't nearly enough for him to become a true Space-Time God of Destruction." The Grand Priest shook his head. "Broly is only level 59 right now, correct? He hasn't even reached level 60."
"Yes." Ken hesitated briefly before nodding.
Merus and Bier stepped forward as well, but the Grand Priest asked them to leave the platform for a moment so he could speak with Ken alone. Both Angels bowed and withdrew without question.
"I've heard that an exceptionally powerful God of Destruction has appeared in another timeline," the Grand Priest continued. "He's probably stronger than Broly is now."
Ken immediately looked interested. "Seriously? What level is he?"
"By the system we use here, at least level 86."
Ken fell silent for a moment, unsure what to make of that number. "You're not talking about me, are you? I'm an Angel, not a God of Destruction."
"Of course not." The Grand Priest smiled. "I'm referring to a God of Destruction from another timeline."
"One of the Gods of Destruction from the twelve universes?"
"No. He's the God of Destruction of a newly born universe."
That answer caught Ken off guard, and the Grand Priest only made things stranger by adding that Ken should already be fairly familiar with the universe in question.
"What do you mean by that?"
"This new universe was modeled after Universe 7's GT timeline."
"GT?" Ken's surprise deepened. "That timeline didn't have a God of Destruction."
"Normally, no. Yet that particular timeline somehow produced one."
Ken considered that for a moment before looking back toward the arena. "So what are you trying to tell me? Broly doesn't stand a chance?"
"Whether Broly has a chance is something we can worry about later." The Grand Priest gave him an amused look. "The bigger problem is you. You're supposed to become a Space-Time Angel someday. It would be rather embarrassing if a Space-Time God of Destruction ended up stronger than you."
Ken had no immediate response to that.
"You've got a point. I can't even argue with it," he admitted. "Still, level 86... He's already the same level as me. That's impressive. Once I get a chance to travel through the timelines, I'll have to find him and see how strong he really is."
The Grand Priest said nothing more, and Ken returned his attention to the arena. Broly was still dominating the other Gods of Destruction, but after what he'd just heard, the sight wasn't quite as satisfying as it had been a moment ago.
Broly was already extraordinary by the standards of their own timeline, yet somewhere else there was a God of Destruction who had reached level 86. Ken couldn't help wondering how Broly would react if he learned that someone so far ahead of him already existed.
"I'll just have to train him harder and hope he can keep improving," Ken said with a sigh.
"Perhaps he'll suddenly grasp something and make a large leap in level," the Grand Priest replied, choosing not to discourage him.
Down in the arena, Broly continued to overwhelm the Gods of Destruction. Beerus and Quitela were the only two who could meaningfully keep up with him, and even with the others supporting them, the pair could do little more than hold off Broly's attacks.
Watching the battle brought another question to Ken's mind. "Grand Priest, is there also a Supreme Kai of Time?"
"That would be Chronoa," the Grand Priest replied. "Unfortunately, I've heard that she's gone missing, and no one has been able to find her."
Ken knew of Chronoa, but he hadn't heard anything about her disappearance. "She's missing?"
"Apparently, she was swept into a space-time rift. She hasn't been seen for quite some time."
Ken stared at him in disbelief. "Wait. The Supreme Kai of Time got swallowed by a space-time rift? How does that even happen?"
"It isn't as strange as it sounds," the Grand Priest replied. "Chronoa's strength is relatively limited, which left her vulnerable to something like that. Because of her disappearance, the Space-Time God of Destruction will probably want to choose a new Supreme Kai of Time before he retires."
"Do we have anyone suitable in our timeline?"
"Not at present."
"What about the other timelines?"
The Grand Priest folded his hands behind his back and looked toward the arena below. "I've heard that one particular timeline has produced a Supreme Kai who's developing remarkably well."
Ken shook his head. He had only asked out of curiosity and wasn't especially interested in who ended up becoming the next Supreme Kai of Time.
"His name is Belsai," the Grand Priest continued. "And he's a Saiyan."
That brought Ken's attention right back. "Another Saiyan? Then what about this candidate for Space-Time God of Destruction? Who is he? Don't tell me he's a Saiyan too."
"No."
"Then what is he?"
"I don't know the details yet. I haven't paid much attention to that timeline." The Grand Priest glanced at Ken. "I'm only telling you this because you need to keep training and raise your level as quickly as possible. Whatever you do, don't let that candidate surpass you."
Ken could only stare at him.
"Remember, Angels have always been stronger than Gods of Destruction." The Grand Priest stepped closer and gave Ken a reassuring pat on the shoulder.
"You're putting a lot of pressure on me," Ken complained. "I was actually thinking about taking it easy for a while."
"From the moment you sealed the little demoness inside your body, taking it easy stopped being an option."
That shut Ken up immediately, mostly because the Grand Priest was completely right.
The more Ken thought about it, the more exhausting his life seemed. He had transmigrated into the Dragon Ball world and somehow ended up working harder than ever. First he'd struggled to become an Angel; after succeeding, he'd started chasing higher levels. Now he'd risen to become an Angel second only to the Grand Priest, yet even that wasn't enough. There was always another level waiting above him.
Did he seriously have to reach level 100 before he could finally call it enough?
"Once I gain another few levels, I'll go meet this candidate Space-Time God of Destruction," Ken said, a grin slowly returning to his face. "As long as I'm still stronger than him, I might as well go beat him up properly before he catches up."
"That isn't a bad idea." The Grand Priest nodded thoughtfully before adding, "Although I imagine he's thinking much the same thing. He's probably training as hard as he can right now so he can surpass you first."
Ken's grin disappeared.
So much for taking it easy. Apparently, some ridiculously powerful God of Destruction had appeared out of nowhere, and now Ken had one more reason to keep training.
[End of chapter]
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