Taro noticed Hathaway's gaze, and with a small use of telepathy, he easily caught the thoughts hidden within that look. He nodded slightly, transmitting his voice into Hathaway's mind with his psychic power: "I may not fear Frieza, but I also don't want to face him this early…"
"Heh…" Tam glanced again at the news about the so-called World Martial Arts Tournament and found it utterly ridiculous. The world's number one? The world's number one? With someone like his father living on Earth, who else would dare claim that title? Besides his old man, who could possibly call themselves the world's strongest?
Flipping through a few more pages, he was about to close the laptop when a particular link caught his eye. "Huh?" Curious, he clicked on it—
"Former chairman of Kuanto Entertainment, and CEO Kenny's father, Mr. Siflo, has released an announcement stating that he is organizing this grand martial arts event, the World Martial Arts Tournament, inspired by a mysterious martial artist known as Muten Master, whom he has admired since childhood. He hopes to encourage modern people to take up martial arts and strengthen themselves… It is said that this 'Muten Master' appears in some folk legends, having once saved the world from a 'demon'… However, the authenticity of the so-called 'demon' that nearly destroyed humanity remains highly questionable. Whether this great hero, the 'Muten Master,' actually existed is still up for debate…"
"Muten Master?" Tam muttered under his breath while scrolling down to read the comments:
"Muten Master? Never heard of him!" — User294953
"What a load of crap! Muten Master? Come on, what era do you think this is?" — Mickey
"A martial arts tournament? Martial artists? I wonder if they can even beat boxing champion Gleeson?" — Gleeson's Disciple
"I think my grandpa told me a story about this 'Muten Master' before, but… sounds way too fake. How could that be real?" — A Little Sheep
After scrolling through a page or two, Tam found that almost no one believed in the existence of this so-called Muten Master or the idea that, many years ago, demons had nearly destroyed the world.
What kind of demon could withstand tanks and fighter jets? It was pure nonsense!
Clicking on a few other related links, most of them questioned whether the former head of Kuanto Entertainment was suffering from dementia for treating a legend as reality. Some side news reports mentioned that Mr. Siflo had already left the city, handing over the organization of the World Martial Arts Tournament entirely to his son and a team of assistants. Meanwhile, he had gone off alone in search of this so-called Muten Master.
"Dad, this Muten Master… that wouldn't be you, would it?"
Tam frowned as he turned the laptop around for Tam to see. On the screen was a digitally edited image where the tournament organizer, old man Siflo, had been Photoshopped to have angelic wings. Next to him, the words Muten Master were written in a graffiti-style font, accompanied by a large question mark and a laughing emoji.
Taro casually lifted his hand, pulling the laptop toward himself with telekinesis. After glancing at it briefly, he chuckled and set it aside, paying it no mind.
"Huh? What is it?" Ninn came bounding over, snatching up the laptop Tam had just put down. After reading for a moment, she excitedly climbed onto Tam's lap and asked, "Grandpa, are you the Muten Master?"
Hathaway got up, laughing. "It's him. He told me about it before."
Lavinia also stood up, a handbag hanging from her arm. Frowning slightly but smiling, she turned to her mother-in-law and asked, "Mom, what's this about a Muten Master?"
Hathaway whispered to her daughter-in-law, and as Lavinia listened, she gasped in hushed disbelief.
"So, Grandpa, did you really defeat demons? What did those demons look like?" Ninn asked eagerly.
Taro lifted her off his lap, poked her forehead, and scolded, "You used to be so quiet as a child—how did you turn into such a wild one as you grew up?" Then, after a brief pause, he added, "To be precise, they were called 'the Demon Clan'…"
It was getting late. Tam stood up as well, following his family out the door while curiously asking, "So you're saying there really was an apocalyptic disaster in the past? And you stopped it, Dad?"
From behind, Ninn leaped onto Tam's back, cheering, "Wow! Saving the world!"
Hathaway and Lavinia followed along, saying, "Be careful!" and "Mind your manners!"
Meanwhile, the phoenix, perched on the sofa, twisted its neck in protest—had they all forgotten about it? Left with no choice, it flapped its little wings and hurried to catch up!
Laughing and chatting, the family headed up to the rooftop.
---
Arriving at the rooftop, they stepped out of the elevator onto what looked like a vast, open grass-covered plaza. Not far away, beneath a transparent canopy, was a sizable swimming pool. Nearby, two helicopters—one black and one white—sat quietly on standby. But with Tam here, there was, of course, no need for helicopters.
"Grandpa, I don't want to just 'whoosh' over there in an instant. Can we fly on Little Red's back instead? It's been so long since I last flew on Red!" Ninn suggested.
"You'll have to ask your parents and your grandma," Taro replied.
Hearing this, the phoenix felt utterly wronged—shouldn't they be asking for its opinion first?
Ninn turned to look at the two women. Her grandmother, Hathaway, was the first to agree. "Ask your mom."
Ninn then looked at Lavinia, who, under the "sincere" gaze of her stepdaughter, could only sigh in resignation. "Fine, do as you like."
"Hey hey." Ninn squinted her eyes and grinned. She rolled up the sleeves of her fitted long-sleeve shirt under her sleeveless leather jacket, grabbed the tiny phoenix like a sparrow, and exuberantly tossed it into the air. "Ash, get bigger!"
The phoenix had no choice. Its master, Taro, ignored its pitiful gaze, so it could only resign itself to using its barely mastered transformation technique. With a gust of wind, it expanded, turning into a massive red bird resembling a roc.
Under Taro's gentle telekinetic shield, the group landed steadily on the phoenix's broad and stable back.
"Let's go! Take off!" Ninn, acting as the navigator, gave the command.
The phoenix spread its wings and let out a piercing cry. A powerful wind erupted as it soared into the sky, but the thin layer of ki protecting the passengers ensured they only felt a pleasant breeze rather than the raging winds. Lying on the edge of the phoenix's back, Ninn peered down at the tiny roads of the city below, eyes gleaming with excitement.
With the phoenix's speed, they quickly left West City behind, sweeping over towns and cities in the blink of an eye.
With a loud whoosh, the red bird soared over the ocean, heading straight for an island.
Before long, the island's silhouette appeared on the horizon, a familiar sight to them.
"Grandpa, there's someone there!" Ninn, who had been peeking over the bird's edge from time to time, suddenly called out.
Tam shifted over and followed his daughter's pointing finger. Sure enough, not far from the island, a boat was drifting in circles on the sea, and there seemed to be a figure lying motionless on the deck.
Tam frowned. He knew that his father had set up magical barriers around their island, making it impossible for outsiders to approach.
Could it be…?
Suddenly, he recalled the news he had read earlier: 'Former Kuanto Entertainment chairman, Mr. Siflo, has embarked on a journey alone in search of the legendary Muten Master.'
Could he really have made it this far?