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Vados turned to the Grand Minister.
"Grand Minister, may I ask what your intention is?"
The Grand Minister nodded.
"For the sake of fairness, it should indeed be handled this way."
"Of course, fighters from Universe 7 have the right to refuse separation," he added lightly. "But in that case, they will no longer be allowed to continue participating in the tournament."
Champa's face lit up with delight.
The other Gods of Destruction were even more ecstatic.
This was a major victory in their campaign against Universe 7.
Whether or not Universe 7 was actually as strong as Son Goku claimed, this move already dealt a heavy blow to Beerus and significantly lowered Universe 7's odds.
"Kid, does this Separation Technique really work the way Champa described?" Beerus asked quietly.
"Levos, you're smart. You must have a way to avoid this, right?" Supreme Kai Shin asked nervously.
"Sorry. I don't," Levos sighed.
The Yardrats trained secret arts centered on unifying the spirit to extreme levels, and forcibly separating Ki was just one application of those techniques.
Even if he wanted to learn a counter to the art now, there simply wasn't enough time.
Levos was annoyed too. He really had let Champa's scheme land cleanly.
Still, even if he, Piccolo, Puar, and Majin Buu had all increased their power through various fusions, absorptions, and assimilations…
Once separated, it wasn't like they'd suddenly become completely useless in battle.
"Heh heh, my advice is that Universe 7's fighters withdraw from the competition while they still can," Champa said with a sly grin.
Levos raised a brow. Withdraw? Not a chance.
So what if their strength was partially stripped?
They could always re-assimilate after the tournament.
With Universe 7's current lineup, they didn't even need their full, broken configuration to stomp through the Exhibition Match.
"I won't withdraw," Levos said calmly. "I'm willing to accept the separation."
Seeing how relaxed he looked, the hearts of Universe 7's fighters settled.
They each declared they'd also continue competing.
"Our universe's fighters are truly united," Whis praised.
"Whis, please don't lump this king together with the rest of them," Frieza immediately clarified.
The fact that Universe 7's fighters would rather be forcibly separated than give up their spots was something no other universe had expected.
Only Vados and Champa weren't surprised.
They flew over to Universe 7's viewing platform to begin the technique.
"Sister, why don't you let me handle the separation?" Whis stepped in front of Vados.
Vados blinked.
"No can do. I don't trust your technique."
Champa backed her up.
"Whis, you're Universe 7's Angel who can guarantee you won't go easy on them?"
"That's right. Since the Separation Technique was proposed by Universe 6, it'll only be fair if someone from Universe 6 performs it!"
"Vados, don't hold back. Completely expose Universe 7's despicable methods!"
The other Gods of Destruction shouted in agreement.
Whis, unfazed, didn't move aside.
Just as the atmosphere was about to freeze solid, Levos spoke up to defuse it.
"It's okay, Whis. Miss Vados and I have actually fought side by side we're old comrades. I trust her."
"Besides, Lord Champa only targeted us to protect his universe. Put that aside, and we're still friends."
Champa choked on his own outrage.
If you laid it out like that, Universe 6 was also being targeted by everyone else.
Even if he wanted to win, he didn't need to push things so far that it broke relations with Universe 7 and made the other universes profit from the fallout.
"Hmph!" Champa snorted, turning his nose up. "Vados, when you use the secret technique, make sure to keep them safe."
Vados' eyes curved into crescents.
"Oh my, Lord Champa worrying about someone else's well-being? That's not like you at all. Could it be… because you don't want to let down a 'friend'?"
Champa bared his teeth.
"I just don't want those annoying guys to take advantage of us!"
Beerus frowned. Was this really the same childish twin brother he knew? The one who used to stomp his feet and throw tantrums over snacks?
"Seems my worries were unnecessary," Whis murmured, stepping aside.
Seeing tension ease on both sides, Levos took a step forward.
"Let's start with me."
He was a little worried that the forced Separation Technique might somehow damage Puar's mind.
Puar didn't have much combat experience, but his temperament was solid. He was a reliable partner.
The merged form born from Rose Broly and Dark Kefla Kefrolly had terrifying physical potential. In terms of raw flesh strength alone, it already surpassed Levos' own body.
That kind of power, if displayed openly, would be utterly shocking anywhere.
If anything happened to Puar, Levos would have a major headache on his hands.
So he'd rather test the waters himself first.
His own situation was far more complicated than Puar's.
Not only did he gain a special Saiyan bloodline through technology, he'd also absorbed a whole bunch of fused Dark beings, including Gogeta (Super Saiyan Rosé).
On top of that, he had his Cell Max form layered over his base.
He wielded four evolution routes genetic, mechanical, magical, and divine.
And on top of all that, he had assimilated eight Cell juniors.
Stripping all that power out by force was anything but simple.
Besides, as long as Moro still existed, the day would eventually come when he had to face this forcible separation technique anyway.
Better to use this opportunity to look for a counter.
Clearing his thoughts, Levos looked at Vados.
"I'm ready. Please begin."
Vados made no fuss about it.
She simply extended her slender hand and tapped his chest with an open palm.
Time ticked by, second after second.
Her hand remained pressed against Levos' chest, completely still.
Seeing no visible change in Levos, Supreme Kai Shin finally let out a breath of relief.
"Looks like the Separation Technique doesn't work on Levos."
A moment later, Vados pulled her hand away with a faint smile.
"All done."
Levos blinked.
"That's it? I don't feel any different. My strength hasn't dropped, and the Cell juniors haven't popped out either…"
Before he finished speaking, he noticed everyone around him staring in horror at something behind his back.
A bad feeling crawled up inside him.
He didn't feel anything.
Levos slowly turned around.
"This is…"
Vados exhaled lightly.
"I think this much is quite enough. Any more and it would become meaningless and difficult for me to maintain."
Standing right in front of him… was Cell Max.
Levos finally understood he had really been split.
His base form was completely untouched. His strength hadn't changed at all.
But Cell Max had regressed by one stage and been pulled completely out of his body, becoming an empty shell without a soul.
Even so, the regressed Cell Max had hardly weakened at all in terms of raw power.
"Wait…"
Levos realized there was still a tight connection between himself and that shell.
It felt like an extension of his body something he could move at will.
He could even pull it back into his body and evolve it back into a complete Cell Max.
He couldn't make sense of it and turned to Vados for an explanation.
"Levos, you were originally an Earthling. So I preserved the parts modified through Earth technology, as well as your special Saiyan bloodline."
"As for Cell Max and the rest, fully dismantling everything would have been a hassle, so I kept him as a complete individual instead…"
Levos was stunned.
You could… do that?
For him, Vados' operation hadn't caused any real loss at all.
In fact, it was the perfect outcome.
He'd gained something incredible.
"Come to think of it, I haven't really had time to train myself, so…"
Levos immediately ordered Cell Max to lie down and start doing push-ups on the ground.
"Let's see what Cell Max's training limit looks like…"
The very next second
Woom!
A violent gale erupted from Universe 7's viewing platform.
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