Grand Elder's spire – outside.
The sky was still the same endless jade daylight, but every single person present felt like the world had tilted.
Krillin's knees buckled.
Gohan's eyes were the size of saucers.
The Namekians stood frozen, mouths open, antennae trembling.
Far across the planet, two auras collided like colliding galaxies.
One was golden, steady, monstrously deep, and growing deeper by the second.
The other Frieza's was flaring, flickering, shrinking, flaring again in panicked spikes.
Krillin finally found his voice, a cracked whisper.
"He's… toying with him."
Gohan nodded numbly. "Frieza can't even land a hit…"
Nail's arms hung limp at his sides.
He had spent his entire life as the strongest warrior Namek had ever produced.
Now he felt like an infant watching gods fight.
A thousand kilometers away, in Other World.
King Kai's planet.
Five dead warriors and one very stressed Kai stood in a semicircle, staring at empty air as though it were a live broadcast.
Yamcha's jaw was on the floor.
"He hasn't even gone Super Saiyan yet… and Frieza's already getting rag-dolled."
Tien's three eyes were wide. "That's not a fight. That's an execution with extra steps."
Piccolo folded his arms, smirk sharp enough to cut glass.
"Looks like the 'Emperor of the Universe' was just a big fish in a small pond."
Chiaotzu clapped tiny hands. "Vegeta's so cool now!"
Yamcha laughed, relief flooding his voice. "Honestly? Goku can stay home. Problem solved."
King Kai was sweating bullets.
His antennae twitched like they were trying to escape his head.
"You idiots have no idea what you're looking at," he muttered under his breath.
Piccolo caught it. "What's that supposed to mean?"
King Kai wiped his forehead.
"That aura Frieza's using right now? That's his first form. The one he uses to scare children and blow up planets for fun. He's got three more transformations; each one multiplies his power exponentially."
Dead silence.
Yamcha's face went white. "You're kidding."
"I wish I was." King Kai stared at the invisible battlefield. "Vegeta's strong; stronger than anything I've ever felt from a mortal. But if Frieza gets serious…"
He didn't finish.
He didn't need to.
Piccolo's smirk vanished.
Tien's fists clenched.
Even Chiaotzu stopped clapping.
On Namek, the golden star and the panicked purple comet continued their dance.
Every warrior watching, living or dead, came to the exact same realization at the exact same moment:
This wasn't the end.
This was the opening act.
And the curtain on the real nightmare hadn't even risen yet