With Slug's demise, the King's Bomb rapidly contracted, finally turning into a point of light and vanishing into the void.
Unlike ordinary energy attacks that cause massive explosions, the destruction wrought by the King's Bomb is through extreme crushing and grinding annihilation. Once the target is obliterated, all it takes is a single thought from Talot for it to shrink and dissipate instantly, leaving no trace behind.
Having dealt with Slug, Talot cancelled Kaio-ken and also released his humanoid Great Ape form.
Standing on the ravaged land, he murmured to himself, "With my current strength, if I want to improve it even further, I'll have to rely on some external force."
[This time when I return, I'll go retrieve the Ultra Divine Water.]
Just as he turned to leave, Talot suddenly felt something strange, causing him to stop in his tracks and frown slightly.
It's not over yet!
Things weren't unfolding as simply as he thought.
At the spot where Slug had been annihilated, a strange mass of black energy was slowly taking shape, hovering in mid-air. It seemed to have been born out of nothing and showed no signs of dispersing.
"This power… is it that mass of Negative Energy from within Slug's body? It didn't vanish along with Slug's death, and not even the erasing power of the King's Bomb could destroy it—remarkable indeed..." With a deeper understanding of Negative Energy, Talot muttered to himself.
His expression remained calm, but his mind grew increasingly heavy.
If this thing were left alone, it could lead to unexpected consequences.
But what method could be used to erase it?
Spirit Bomb?
An energy mass made of Positive Energy?
[Let's give it a try.] Just as the thought formed in his mind and Talot was about to act—
Suddenly…
[Get out of there, Talot! That Negative Energy has locked onto you!] The Grand Elder's voice exploded in Talot's mind.
The warning snapped Talot to attention. He saw that the mass of Negative Energy had seemingly come to life and was hurtling toward him at an incredible speed.
Talot's expression turned serious. He raised his hand and gathered energy, launching an attack at the incoming Negative Energy.
The anticipated massive explosion didn't happen. Instead, an unbelievable scene unfolded—Talot's energy was instantly devoured by the Negative Energy the moment it made contact.
Extreme darkness, so powerful that even light imbued with Positive Energy was absorbed and assimilated.
"What?!"
Such a turn of events caught Talot completely off guard.
While he was still in shock, the pitch-black Negative Energy was already upon him. Like a twisted demon cackling with a distorted "jeh jeh jeh jeh," it darted into the center of Talot's forehead at lightning speed before he could even react.
In just an instant, Talot's consciousness was invaded by a flood of negative elements. Dense dark energy burst out from his body, and black flames ignited all around him.
"Damn it!! You want to take over my body?! Not a chance!!" Realizing how bad the situation was, Talot roared loudly, summoning every ounce of his strength to resist.
Veins bulged across his body as Talot's face turned ferocious, and a bloodthirsty gleam flickered faintly in his eyes.
In the distance, Salari, Raditz, Bulma, the Grand Elder, Ragar, Nail, and all the Namekians present were caught completely off guard by what was happening.
"Brother Talot!" Salari and Bulma cried out in worry.
"Damn it, what's going on?!" Raditz asked the Grand Elder with a grave expression.
"This unexpected turn… it still happened. Negative Energy can't be annihilated that easily. After Slug's death, the Negative Energy within him won't dissipate immediately. It chose Talot as its next host… Perhaps, it was drawn by the evil hidden deep within the hearts of you Saiyans..." The Grand Elder spoke with a trembling voice.
These words startled Raditz and Salari.
There's evil deep within the hearts of Saiyans?
In the past, it was indeed understandable, but now, how could they possibly still have it?
Over the years, not just Talot, but all of them had changed. They were no longer the bloodthirsty Saiyans of old.
And Talot, of all people—how could he possibly harbor evil?
"That's impossible! I've always been by Brother Talot's side. I've never seen even a trace of evil power or thought in him." Salari protested.
Raditz nodded beside her. "That's right! In fact, Talot is the one who's been guiding us all toward the path of good. Without him, I wouldn't be who I am today."
Ragar and Nail agreed with the two, and the majority of the other Namekians were also well aware of Talot's character.
Only the Grand Elder let out a soft sigh. "You're all correct—Talot is indeed a Saiyan unlike any other! Because of him, your Saiyan race has undergone a complete transformation. But what I want to say is this: even someone like Talot cannot change the fact that, as a Saiyan, he carries that pure and innate evil unique to your kind. That power is currently beyond your reach, but if you continue to grow stronger in the future, you will understand that the 'evil' I speak of is not the same as what you understand as evil."
The Grand Elder's words were unclear, but they conveyed a truth.
Salari and Raditz were dumbfounded, and the other Namekians also showed expressions of surprise and disbelief.
Just then, Talot's roar rang out again, drawing everyone's attention back in that direction.
The situation had become even more severe. If Talot were to fall under the control of this Negative Energy, who could possibly stop him?
Even Slug, after being empowered by the Negative Energy, had become that powerful—and Talot was on a whole different level from Slug.
"What should we do now?! Brother Talot is in pain—someone think of something!" Faced with the situation, everyone was at a loss. As a normal human, Bulma—no matter how smart she was—could do nothing at this point.
Unless she could build a machine to extract the Negative Energy, but that was completely unrealistic right now.
There simply wasn't enough time, and on top of that, she still knew nothing about Negative Energy.
"Grand Elder, isn't there anything we can do?! If this keeps going…" Nail, moved by Bulma's words, stepped forward and asked again.
The current crisis was beyond their strength—there was nothing they could do but watch.
The Grand Elder shook his head slightly and spoke in a weary tone, "It's no use. Once someone is possessed by Negative Energy, the rest is up to them alone. Sigh… In the end, this entire disaster began because of me… If there were a sufficiently massive source of Positive Energy to neutralize it, perhaps the Negative Energy could be eliminated—but even if we combined all of our power, it wouldn't be enough."
The Grand Elder was filled with deep remorse.
If he hadn't initiated contact with Slug, Slug would never have learned of Namek's existence—he would never have come to Namek—and the situation would never have spiraled into this.
Slug may be dead, but the Negative Energy he left behind posed an even greater threat than he ever did while alive.
...….
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