"On behalf of all of DreamVault, I would like to thank you for all your contributions to the lore of Dragon Ball World"
...
...
...
I stared at the glowing white humanoid that sat in front of me―a Dreamweaver, apparently― with a blank expression.
Strange words reverberated in my mind with a voice that didn't feel real, close but also far from my imagination.
'Am I dead?'
I felt like I was barely grasping at the edges of a half-forgotten dream, floating in an endless, surreal expanse.
My mind was uncharacteristically slow, conscious effort needed to even try and understand what was going on.
'But my afterlife shouldn't this dull'
There were no angels or demons to speak of, which was a little disappointing given much near perfect church attendance.
The Dreamweaver pulsed―an ethereal intuition convincing me it was amused.
"I apologize, this is simply standard procedure," it said with a smile―or at least I think it was smiling. "But that's beside the point" it said with authority. "Your work has caught the attention of some senior executives at DreamVault," it said smoothly. "As a reward, we'd like to offer you a full lifetime in a Dragon Ball Dream World," it continued, its voice trailing dramatically.
I blinked.
"What?"
"Ah! I forgot the human mind is different, my apologies," The Dreamweaver said, it's glow shimmering with a kind of gentle condescension.
A sensation like ice water struck me with great intensity, from the top of my head to the soles of my feet, my eyes widening immediately while a masculine moan escaped me.
"I'll break it down for you," the Dreamweaver said hurriedly. "I create and moderate Dream Worlds where humans like you can live out your fantasies. These beings called the High Rulers get a kick out of watching it all unfold, feeding on the entertainment your antics provide"
Huh?
Although my thoughts flowed faster, the Dreamweaver's words seemed just as incomprehensible. High Rulers? Dream Worlds? And what did any of this have to do with Dragon Ball?
"And now," it continued, "you've earned the chance to live in your very own Dragon Ball Dream World"
...
...
...
'I think I'll just play along'
Most dreams didn't make a ton of sense anyway and I could always try to figure all this out later.
"You said I get to live a lifetime in the world of Dragon Ball, right? I don't think I can turn that down," I said slowly.
The Dreamweaver practically lit up. "Wonderful! You'll live inside the Dragon Ball Dream World, and if you die, you'll simply wake up back in the Real World. Otherwise, you can live there until you die naturally."
How is this even supposed to work? I somehow get to experience decades upon decades of life in a fictional universe and then just snap back to reality when I die? Is the human brain even capable of such a thing?
What a funky dream.
The Dreamweaver snickered, detecting my cynicism but persisted anyway.
"I know you humans have a lot of theories about how DreamVault operates so I'll just clear you're doubt now, you're not getting a system"
I smiled faintly, amused at the notion that all of the fanfictions on Webnovel about Dragon Ball transmigrations were somehow linked to DreamVault.
Now I know this guy is full of it and my mind was definitely playing tricks on me.
"Systems were a prototype that an intern suggested but we phased them out now, for the Dragon Ball Dream World, you get a single Super Dragon Ball Wish"
A single Super Dragon Ball? How interesting.
A slight revision I had made to the lore was that only a single Dragon Ball was needed to make a wish, the orb turning to stone on activation. However, the size and number of Dragon Balls dictated the level and scale a wish was effective on.
A Super Dragon Ball was a super massive planetary orb, meaning that a wish with one peaked at planetary scale, wishes like moving a planet from one part of the universe to another and creating a new planet from scratch only possible with them.
But that's not at all what I would wish for.
Every time a wish was made in the canon series, there was always some kind of plot contrivance that made it inconsequential in the grand scheme. This was because even a single intelligent wish could empower one to completely conquer the universe.
"Can I ask some questions first?" I said cautiously.
"Go for it," it said softly.
"Will I transmigrate as a human?"
"If you want to"
"What Planet will I transmigrate onto?"
"Earth"
"At what time?"
"Age 749"
That was at the beginning of the original Dragon Ball story, when the Red Ribbon Army was still running around.
Interesting.
'Well I've already run this calculation before'
"I wish for my Body, Ki and Potential to be permanently set to the state of a hypothetical Ultra Fusion between Beerus, Broly, Buu, Baby and Janemba while returning my current appearance traits"
In my assessment, the most effective wishes were ones that influenced the chemistry and biochemistry of an individual or a material. In other contexts, trying to change the organic makeup of a thing was so energy intensive it was unbelievable but with borderline magic, such a feat was ridiculously efficient.
The Dreamweaver chuckled, amused.
"That's permissible, with you're wish granted, you're free to enter the Dream World"
"Cool"
The Dreamweaver chuckled again, shortly followed by a blinding light that exploded around me, heat engulfing my body.
---
'IT WAS REAL!!!'
I floated upside down in the air above Mount Paozu, taking in the world spread out beneath me.
I saw the bright green forests, the winding rivers, the tranquil mist hanging in the air—it was all too vivid, too real. I could feel the air against my skin, the pull of gravity, the faint hum of ethereal energy coursing through the land itself.
This couldn't be a dream.
I flipped back upright and took a deep breath of the crisp, clean air.
Everything about me felt different, heightened. My body, my senses—they were operating at a level far beyond anything human.
'There's just no way!!!'
I stretched my fingers, watching my skin ripple like water. My index finger casually elongated like elastic, wrapping around my wrist before snapping back into place.
I was speechless.
The sheer absurdity of it all hit me like a freight train.
I was in Dragon Ball World.
'So... what now?'
I exhaled softly, trying to slow my spinning mind.
A strange a terrifying epiphany struck me―as a Majin, I no longer had a heart as my body was solely composed of Goo, a versatile monocellular substance that could mimic any other kind of organic material.
This was relevant because as stress accumulated in me, my body uniformly grew tighter and tighter, so compressed that it felt like I was being squeezed which only madder matters worse.
'Breathe'
I desperately tried to calm down―one of the reasons why Majins were so dumb and carefree was because their biology was suited to it, a Majin with an intelligent mind was either driven insane or killed because they provoked stronger power, the former usually leading to the latter.
'Breathe!!!'
I felt like I was suffocating, forcibly clearing my mind and expelling air from my lungs, breathing in and out like a madman. Funnily enough, it eventually worked, my body slowly loosening up.
'I'm not going to fight it'
I levitated slowly to the ground, keeping my head clear as I watched water flow down the stream.
'My wish was kind of short-sighted'
It was a wish designed to give me the highest combat odds, not at all accounting for my actual quality of life. An Ultra Fusion was an ancient long-forgetting Metamoran Fusion technique between five fighters, the resulting power level being a sum put to the power of five.
Moreover, the body of the Ultra Fusion retained all the genetic buffs and special abilities of the individual fighters, creating a truly monstrous creation.
'If I train a little, my Power Level will absolutely explode'
But the blunt truth was that I had never trained before―I was a nerdy teenager who spent time lore-building and theory crafting Dragon Ball.
'I guess everyone starts from somewhere'
I closed my eyes, discerning that the outside world was almost too much for me to handle.
Instantaneously, I slipped into a state of meditation, my mind suddenly cognizant of the deep pool of energy laying dormant inside me.
It was honestly accidental but I triggered my Ki Sense, an ethereal supernatural map of my surroundings illuminated in my mind, like a fire within a cave, burning more and more wood.
I purposely silenced my thoughts, just continuing in this strange state I had found myself.
Again on accident, warmth began to flow from the core of my body, slowly circulating through my arms and legs, gradually getting faster. The heat began to increase, the temperature of my environment climbing higher and higher but it didn't hurt―it was the opposite.
I was energized, my body before which was weary and distraught suddenly brought to a place of peace and equilibrium.
'I just might have gone crazy'
It was too accurate and too connected to be fake but it was too incomprehensible to be real.
'I should just be grateful that I was chosen'
That was the only response that soothed my Ki which strangely resonated with my emotions, expanding and contracting slightly with every breath I took.
'I suppose on paper, I am a Super Genius so learning Ki on accident is plausible'
Fusions and Ultra Fusions especially, widely experienced extreme ease utilizing and manipulating Ki. This was technically because the willpower of a fusion was equal to the sum of it's parts while the willpower needed to manipulate Ki was constant.
So technically, it was five times easier for me to manipulate Ki―or at least, in theory.
'Let my try something'