Luther spent the first few days just basking.
He found a secluded spot in the mountains, stripped down to his boxers, and let the Dragon Ball sun do its work. He wasn't taking any chances this time. He kept his Biological Field tight against his skin, acting as a high-tech spectral filter.
The results were interesting.
"This sun is… spicy," Luther noted, checking his own bio-readouts mentally.
The star orbiting this planet was younger and more volatile than the one in the Marvel Universe. It didn't just recharge him; it overcharged him. His cells were vibrating, practically buzzing with excess energy. It was like switching from regular unleaded to nitrous oxide.
"Okay," Luther said, pulling his shirt back on. "Batteries full. Time to upgrade the software."
Finding a teacher was the next logical step.
He considered Master Roshi, the famous Turtle Hermit. But Roshi was a hassle. The guy would want him to fetch a mermaid, or bring him dirty magazines, or wear a turtle shell for six months while delivering milk. Luther didn't have time for the Karate Kid routine.
So, he went to the competition.
Master Shen. The Crane Hermit.
Shen was a bad guy, sure. He was an assassin and a jerk. But he was also a mercenary. He didn't care about a "pure heart" or "inner peace." He cared about cold, hard cash.
Luther walked into the Crane School dojo, tossed a briefcase filled with Zeni (which he'd "acquired" from a bank vault at super-speed) onto the floor, and said, "Teach me Ki control. Skip the philosophy. Just the mechanics."
Shen looked at the money, then at Luther, and sneered. "You think you can buy the secrets of the Crane School, boy?"
"Yes," Luther said simply. "And if you teach me in the next hour, I'll double it."
Shen's eyes lit up. "Deal."
To a normal human, learning to harness Ki—the fundamental life force energy—takes decades of meditation and physical conditioning.
To a Kryptonian with a Super Brain? It was just another programming language.
Luther sat in the lotus position, eyes closed. Shen was droning on about "focusing the spirit," but Luther was analyzing the bio-feedback.
Ki isn't magic, Luther realized. It's bio-electricity amplified by willpower. It's the energy of the mitochondria synchronized with the nervous system.
He found the switch in his brain. And he flipped it.
BOOM.
It wasn't a sound; it was a sensation.
A floodgate opened in his chest. A torrent of power, hot and electric, rushed through his meridians. It was different from solar energy. Solar energy was fuel; Ki was the engine. Solar energy made him strong physically; Ki made his presence heavy.
The entire dojo shook. Dust fell from the rafters. The wooden floorboards groaned and splintered under Luther's knees.
"What… what is this?" Master Shen stumbled back, shielding his face.
He looked at Luther with wide, terrified eyes. He wasn't seeing a student anymore; he was seeing a monster. A pillar of white-hot Ki was rising from Luther's body, punching a hole through the spiritual atmosphere of the room. It was dense, suffocating, and absolutely massive.
"Incredible," Shen whispered, his hands trembling. "My brother… even Tao… they are nothing compared to this. You… you are a prodigy sent by the heavens!"
Luther opened his eyes. The white aura flared and then vanished, sucked back into his body with perfect control.
"Is that Ki?" Luther asked, looking at his hands.
He clenched his fist. The air popped.
It was intoxicating. Before, he was a tank. Now? He felt like he could catch a nuclear missile and eat it.
"My disciple!" Shen stepped forward, greedy desperation in his voice. "With your talent and my guidance, we will rule the world! We—"
"Yeah, about that," Luther interrupted, standing up.
He tossed a second bundle of cash onto the floor.
"Thanks for the tutorial. We're done here."
"Wait!" Shen reached out. "You can't just leave! You haven't learned the Dodon Ray! The Tri-Beam!"
"I'll figure it out," Luther said.
ZHOOM.
He vanished. No blurring, no wind-up. Just gone.
Shen stood alone in the empty dojo, staring at the money. He felt a mix of relief and crushing loss. He had just let the strongest being on Earth walk out the door.
High above the clouds, Luther was testing his new limits.
"This is ridiculous," he laughed, doing a barrel roll at Mach 50.
He tried to calculate his Power Level.
Before Ki? Maybe 150? He was holding back constantly, so it was hard to tell. He could lift a mountain, but he lacked the projection abilities of the Z-Fighters.
Now?
With Ki reinforcing his Kryptonian physiology?
"If I amplify my strength with Ki… I'm off the charts," Luther mused. "I'm basically running a cheat code."
But he wasn't done. He was a completionist.
"What else is on the loot table?"
He thought about the Senzu Beans. They were miraculous—healing any injury, restoring all stamina. But there was a problem. The "teleportation" method he used to get here was a meat grinder. It stripped him down to his atoms and rebuilt him.
If he tried to carry a bag of beans back to the Marvel Universe, they'd likely be atomized in the process. He couldn't take physical objects. He could only take knowledge and biological upgrades.
"So, I need an upgrade that sticks to my DNA," Luther reasoned.
He looked up, higher into the stratosphere.
"The Ultra Divine Water."
In the lore, Korin, the cat sage, guarded two waters. The first was fake—a trick to make you train harder. The second was real. It was a potent, magical toxin that would kill anyone weak, but if you survived, it unlocked every ounce of your latent potential.
It triggered a physiological evolution.
"For Goku, it unlocked the Oozaru power without the transformation," Luther thought. "It tapped into his Saiyan roots."
"What happens if I drink it? What is the Kryptonian equivalent of a Great Ape?"
His mind flashed to a jagged, gray monster with bone spurs and hate in its eyes.
Doomsday.
"If I can unlock the durability and adaptive evolution of Doomsday, without the mindlessness…" Luther grinned. "That's the endgame."
As for the poison? Please. He was currently a solar battery. If he could survive hard radiation and the vacuum of space, a little magical tummy-ache wasn't going to kill him.
Luther angled his flight path upward.
Korin Tower.
The white cat stood on the railing of his sanctuary, leaning on his wooden staff. His eyes were usually closed in a perpetual squint, but right now, they were wide open.
He felt it coming.
It wasn't a jet. It wasn't a storm. It was a pressure system made of intent.
Thump.
Luther landed softly on the platform. The wind didn't even ruffle his hair.
"Who are you?" Korin asked, his fur standing on end.
The cat had lived for hundreds of years. He had trained Master Roshi. He had seen demons and kings. But this? This boy felt… heavy. His life force was dense, like a neutron star wrapped in skin.
"Relax, Whiskers," Luther said, holding up his hands. "I come in peace."
"I doubt that," Korin growled low in his throat. "You possess a Ki that is… cold. Alien."
"I'm just a traveler," Luther smiled. "And a thirsty one."
"What do you want?"
"The Ultra Divine Water," Luther said. "And not the tap water you give the tourists. The real stuff."
Korin stiffened. "You know of it? Did Roshi tell you?"
"Let's just say I read the guide."
Korin shook his head. "You are a fool. That water is death. Fourteen martial arts masters have drunk it since I began guarding this tower. Fourteen have died in agonizing pain. It is a poison that destroys the body from the inside out."
"I have a pretty strong stomach," Luther countered.
Korin looked at him. He used his sage senses to scan the boy's soul. It wasn't pure—not like Goku's. It was calculated. Ambitious. But there was something else there, too. A biological resilience that defied logic.
"You are arrogant," Korin said. "But… maybe you are strong enough."
Luther raised an eyebrow. "Is that a yes?"
"I am merely a guardian. If you wish to throw your life away, I cannot stop you."
Korin turned and walked into the sanctuary. Luther followed.
It was sparse inside. Simple mats, a few jars. Korin walked over to a shelf and pulled down a dusty, ornate teapot with the kanji for "God" etched into the ceramic.
Luther let out a breath he didn't know he was holding.
Thank god, he thought. It's the Manga version.
If this had been the Anime filler arc, he would have had to trek through a magical ice labyrinth and fight his own shadow for three episodes. He didn't have the patience for filler.
Korin set the pot down. He produced a small cup.
"One sip is enough to kill an elephant," Korin warned. "Are you sure?"
"Pour it," Luther said.
Korin tipped the teapot. A dark, viscous liquid trickled out. It didn't look like water; it looked like liquid trouble.
"Here," Korin said, handing the cup to Luther. "Bottoms up."
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