John looked at the treasures handed over by the pirates. He noticed that valuable items in space were quite different from those on Earth; what was considered valuable to them was no longer just simple gold and jewels.
Many of the items were unfamiliar to John, so he had to ask the pirates for clarification.
He saw fist-sized, highly transparent gemstones (not diamonds); although these gems were valuable, their worth was relatively low in the universe.
In space, more valuable items were those that could only be found on specific planets. One green liquid vial caught John's attention first. Picking it up, he asked, "What is this?"
The pirate explained, "This is an extremely precious gene serum, highly sought after by wealthy individuals and noblewomen across the universe. Injecting it into the human body can slow down aging."
"This one is only a mid-level serum that can delay aging by 50 years; a high-level serum can do so for 100 years. I've heard there's an extremely rare super serum that can delay aging by 200 years, but we have never seen it."
John inquired, "How many of these anti-aging serums do you have?"
The pirate quickly produced two more vials and handed them to John, saying, "Sir, we were extremely lucky to have robbed a small cargo ship and found three mid-level serums inside."
John nodded; he had specifically asked Bulma for several storage capsules of various sizes to prevent himself from running out of space when acquiring good items in the universe.
After placing the three serums into a small storage capsule, John's gaze fell upon a jar of golden liquid.
"What is this?" John asked.
The pirate leader immediately replied, "Sir, this is a special honey produced by bees. Its greatest feature is that it enhances the physical condition of the consumer and is favored by martial artists across various planets."
"Sir, you are also a martial artist; you should try it! Once consumed, you'll understand its effects." The pirate leader flatteringly opened the honey jar and offered it to John.
As John took the jar filled with honey and was about to drink it, he suddenly noticed the eager expression on the pirate leader's face. An idea struck him, and he handed the honey back to the pirate leader, saying, "You try it first."
The pirate leader looked at the honey presented to him and at John's half-smiling expression. Gritting his teeth, he took a large gulp.
Before long, the effects of the honey kicked in; the pirate leader began to writhe in agony on the floor of the ship, clearly in great pain as he clawed at his body.
John turned to the other pirates nearby and asked, "What exactly does this honey do?"
One pirate trembled as he replied, "Sir, what our leader said is true; it can indeed enhance physical condition. However, this honey needs to be taken with other drugs that block nerve signal transmission."
"Because after consuming this honey, it accelerates cell division in the body which makes one extremely sensitive. The pain feels like being cut into pieces repeatedly; that's why our leader is reacting like this."
John became interested in the remaining honey; after all, Saiyans gain strength each time they recover from injuries. If he drank this jar of honey, wouldn't it be like continuously injuring and healing himself?
Thus, John gulped down all of the honey in one go.
His actions startled the remaining pirates who quickly backed away; they knew John's strength.
They feared that if John went berserk, he wouldn't simply roll around on the floor like their leader but might actually kill someone.
Unfortunately for John, after consuming it, he felt disappointed as his body only experienced a slight itch—nothing that required scratching. Clearly, this substance had very limited effects on him at his current level.
Once that itching sensation faded away completely, John lost interest in the remaining treasures. It was evident that while these items might be precious to ordinary people, they were like useless trinkets to him.
He haphazardly stuffed these items into storage capsules for later research by Bulma when he returned to Earth.
John then found a pirate who helped him update his star map before piloting his spaceship towards Namek.
Thus began his journey as he trained while traveling. Finally, after several months of travel, he arrived near Namek.
Looking at Namek surrounded by three suns outside its atmosphere made John marvel at the wonders of the Dragon Ball world. He estimated that three suns could coexist stably due to Porunga's influence; otherwise, just dealing with three-body problems could lead to Namek's destruction.
However, since John wasn't studying astronomy or physics, he didn't concern himself with Namek's three suns but instead maneuvered his spaceship down towards Namek's surface.
Stepping out of his spaceship and taking in Namek's atmosphere felt refreshing; its oxygen content was slightly higher than Earth's but not enough to be considered hyperoxic.
Aside from having slightly higher gravity than Earth, Namek was quite suitable for human habitation.
After shrinking his spaceship into capsule form and sensing Namekians' energy levels around him, John quickly detected a massive yet peaceful energy source directly eastward.
This energy felt tranquil and serene; if nothing unexpected occurred, this energy should belong to Namek's Grand Elder.
Without hesitation, John soared into the air towards the Grand Elder's location.
At this moment, sitting comfortably in his chair was the Grand Elder who seemed to sense something. He opened his eyes and spoke in an aged tone to Nail standing guard beside him: "Nail, please go outside and welcome our cosmic friend visiting Namek."
Nail was startled and asked: "A visitor? Is it an invader?"
The Grand Elder shook his head and replied: "No; I don't sense any killing intent from him. He should be a friend rather than an enemy. When he arrives, be polite and don't engage him."
"Understood, Grand Elder," Nail replied before stepping outside to look up at the sky.
Before long, John spotted Namek's uniquely styled buildings; the Grand Elder's residence was large enough to reflect his status.
Seeing a Namekian waiting outside to greet him prompted John to approach him and say: "Hello! I would like to meet your Grand Elder."