Chapter 36: Planet Dadoria

The month-long journey seemed to pass in the blink of an eye.

Surrounded by the vast darkness of space, stars twinkled with a captivating pale white light, clear and crystalline, like tiny diamonds scattered on a black canvas, exuding a flawless, serene beauty. A particular glimmer caught attention in the deep, tranquil expanse of space, revealing the seven spherical spacecraft as they drew closer.

In the grand scale of the universe, the distances between stars are immensely vast, spanning countless light-years. Thanks to advanced cosmic technology, travel in the world of Dragon Ball is much more convenient, allowing crossings of several star sectors in just days or months.

Far beyond several star sectors from Planet Vegeta, a dusky-colored planet orbited a yellow dwarf star at the center of its stellar system.

...

On Planet Dadoria, in a dried-up riverbed:

With a series of piercing roars, several glowing red spheres broke through the clouds and plummeted to the ground. The thunderous impact sent clouds of dust billowing into the sky, obscuring the sun. The dust, lacking moisture, lingered long in the air, forming thick, heavy haze.

Soon after, seven figures emerged from the depths of a circular impact crater.

Rida floated up first, covering his mouth to ward off the pervasive dust in the air. The intense heat of the sun penetrated the thin atmosphere, scorching the skin with a searing sensation. Gasping for air, Rida was choked by the dry, hot breeze, soon coughing violently.

Xavier, Celine, and the others also ascended into midair, surveying the sparse shrubbery and vegetation, which bore a striking resemblance to the wastelands of Planet Vegeta.

"Planet Dadoria is a terrestrial rock planet, predominantly a desert due to its chronic lack of water supply, making it an uncomfortably harsh place to inhabit," a gentle voice explained.

Having done her homework before arrival, Atasya was somewhat displeased with the environment. The hot, high-pressure, and dry conditions were particularly harsh on a girl's skin.

"Right," agreed Celine and Jelin, nodding in response.

After a brief observation that revealed no signs of life, Shakda spoke with a grave tone: "It's hard to imagine this as a planet near mid-level status, given such harsh conditions."

"Nature is about survival of the fittest, the harsher the environment, the tougher the creatures it breeds," Xavier remarked with a nearly imperceptible smile as he squinted his eyes and then pressed a button on his energy detector. The device beeped, displaying information about Planet Dadoria.

"Southeast, 170 kilometers, power level 920!"

"Direct south, 56 kilometers, power level 568!"

...

"Direct south, 167 kilometers, power level 869!"

Everyone activated their energy detectors, but they were soon overwhelmed by a flood of data. The small screens flashed green with numerous readings, effectively taking over the display.

"Damn, this is ridiculous!" Shakda exclaimed, stunned by the sheer volume of data.

This was their first encounter with such a scenario. They had to manually adjust the detectors to filter out lower energy readings to make the data manageable.

Even so, apart from Xavier and Celine, the others were still bewildered by the complexity of the information. After filtering, the screen still showed numerous readings, often grouped together, indicating clusters of energy sources—dozens at the least!

"This... they live in groups!" Jelin's voice trembled, losing her usual composure. Even for battle-hardened Saiyans, facing overwhelming odds could be daunting.

"The lifeforms on Planet Dadoria are primitive tribal species living in communal groups. Angering one could provoke the wrath of the entire tribe," Shakda added, his expression grave.

Although only a few of the numerous readings posed a real threat, the sheer number was intimidating. They could imagine the difficulty of fighting evenly matched opponents while simultaneously dealing with attacks from dozens of slightly weaker ones—an unnervingly tough scenario.

"They are organized into tribes, which likely means they have inter-tribal conflicts. That at least gives us an opportunity," Atasya analyzed, furrowing her brow. The situation was complex with too little information to form a complete picture.

"Heh, discussing this now is pointless. Let's split up and eliminate those isolated natives first," Xavier decided after a moment of thought, organizing the team into groups.

"I, Celine, and Shakda have the strongest power levels; we'll operate separately. Belit and Rida, being the weakest, will team up with Atasya and Jelin. Everyone, be cautious in your actions. Avoid provoking the powerful natives in groups. After eliminating the isolated natives, we'll regroup here."

"Understood!"

"Got it, Captain!"

"Let's move out..."

The members of Xavier's squad responded energetically. Belit and Atasya, having the lowest power levels, teamed up, while Rida and Jelin, slightly stronger, formed another pair. Xavier, Celine, and Shakda, each strong enough to operate independently, each took on solo missions.

With targets set, the five groups dispersed in different directions, moving swiftly across the landscape.

After everyone had departed, Xavier paused to close his eyes and sense the energies of Planet Dadoria. He then flew towards the most intense energy signature.

Under the scorching sun, the arid landscape was bleak. Sparse signs of life clung to the dry soil where only a few withered bushes swayed.

Xavier flew rapidly, his body emitting a soft yellow glow, leaving behind a trail of light as translucent as jade. He was drawing near his target.

As the sensed energies became clearer, Xavier realized, "Hmm? There’s a strong one ahead—no, more than one!"

Adjusting his course, he headed straight towards the source of the strong energies.

Approaching his destination, Xavier noticed he had flown beyond the desert's edge where sparse vegetation became visible, and signs of water sources appeared in the distance.

Dozens of strong energy signatures lay ahead, each close to a power level of 1000.

"978, 945, 984..." Xavier's lips curled into a slight smile, his expression relaxed. Although these power levels were hardly appetizing for him, they indeed represented the pinnacle of what Planet Dadoria had to offer.

"Let's start with you then!"

In a blur of motion, Xavier appeared above the sources of energy.

Below him was a small primitive tribe. The natives looked like half-evolved apemen, with sharp fangs that glinted menacingly and bodies covered in greenish fur. They wore rough animal skins around their waists, indicating a rudimentary sense of civilization.

When the natives noticed the figure suddenly appearing above them, they emitted "gurgling" sounds from their mouths—sounds that seemed part language and part bestial roar.