Year 744 of the Ai Era, August.
Earth.
Western Capital.
Two months had passed since the last time the Tree-Cutting Space upgraded.
At this moment, in the small pavilion in the backyard of Jiang Nan's house.
"It's been a while since we last met, Mr. Jiang Nan's aura is becoming more and more subtle."
Whis, the angel of the Seventh Universe, took a sip of tea, his gaze fixed on Jiang Nan, his eyes flashing with a look of surprise.
If during their last meeting, Whis could still sense Jiang Nan's aura, then this time, he only managed to find Jiang Nan's home by memory.
It can be imagined that even a being as powerful as an angel could no longer sense Jiang Nan's aura.
"It's nothing special, nothing special."
Jiang Nan chuckled lightly, "I just happened to learn a technique for concealing my aura. Nothing major."
"Impressive."
Whis chuckled lightly.
"Did you come this time, Mr. Whis, because you need more delicacies?"
Jiang Nan looked curiously at Whis. The last batch of delicacies he gave Whis should have been enough for him and Beerus to last for two years. It shouldn't be gone so quickly, right?
"No, Lord Beerus has been sleeping all the time recently, not waking up once, so there's still plenty of food."
Whis shook his head.
"Then..."
Jiang Nan's eyes flickered, and he guessed what it was about.
The Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony was approaching. If Jiang Nan didn't exist, or if Whis wasn't interested in this exchange meeting, he wouldn't be here.
But...
Jiang Nan was in the Seventh Universe, and he was so powerful, it piqued Whis' interest.
"I came this time to discuss something with Mr. Jiang Nan."
Whis hesitated for a moment, then said softly.
"Go ahead, tell me."
Seeing Whis' expression, Jiang Nan was basically certain of what it was about.
"There will be a Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony soon. I see that you're very powerful. How about representing the Seventh Universe in the competition?"
Whis' eyes burned with intense eagerness as he asked.
As expected.
Jiang Nan's eyes flickered, and he replied, "I'm afraid that won't be possible."
He shook his head. Seeing that Whis didn't seem confused, he continued, "I'll be honest, years ago, I already agreed to be the Destroyer Candidate of the Sixth Universe!"
"I know."
Whis remained calm, smiling, "My sister, Bardock, and I have already discussed this."
"Huh?"
Hearing Whis' words, Jiang Nan was taken aback, and looked at him in surprise.
"The Sixth Universe and the Seventh Universe are brother universes. When participating in such a universal exchange meeting, we are actually united against a common enemy."
Whis explained, "Therefore, even though you're the Destroyer Candidate of the Sixth Universe, you can also be the Destroyer Candidate of the Seventh Universe at the same time! There is no conflict at all in name."
"Of course, this is only at the level of Destroyer Candidate. After all, there are very few talented people. It's not uncommon for several universes to compete for one candidate, let alone two."
As he spoke, he looked deeply at Jiang Nan, implying, "The Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony this time, the powerful Destroyers from the later universes will also be present."
Hearing these deeply meaningful words, Jiang Nan couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
The meaning behind them, honestly, any intelligent person would be able to understand.
"Mr. Whis means... if I perform exceptionally well at this Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony. I might be chosen by the Destroyers of the powerful universes, inviting me to become their universe's Destroyer Candidate?!"
Jiang Nan asked.
"Yes, that's right!"
Whis smiled and nodded, "So, which universe you temporarily become a Destroyer Candidate for won't have any impact."
Hearing this, Jiang Nan immediately understood.
So, this qualification ceremony is like a showcase of the potential of Destroyer Candidates from each universe, and they are all vying for them?
Thinking about it, Jiang Nan couldn't help but laugh in disbelief.
If that's the case, then showing off wouldn't be much fun.
"Are there any other universe's Destroyer Candidates who have reached the Destroyer-level combat strength?"
Jiang Nan asked curiously.
If the Destroyer Candidates from the later universes don't participate, Jiang Nan wouldn't even be that interested in participating in this Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony.
After all, his current strength, when at full power, is already beyond all the Destroyers of the first twelve universes.
Fishing in a small pond wouldn't be any fun at all.
So, why bother participating?
"They will definitely participate."
Whis replied, "Let me tell you, starting from the Thirteenth Universe, each universe has a Destroyer Candidate, and each Destroyer Candidate has the combat strength of a Destroyer level!"
"Really?"
Hearing Whis' words, Jiang Nan's eyes lit up, "How strong are they exactly? Are there any particularly powerful Destroyer Candidates?"
"There are!"
Whis nodded seriously, his eyes showing a trace of recollection. After a moment, he spoke, "To my knowledge, the strongest Destroyer Candidate is the eighteenth universe's Soma Candidate!"
"How does he compare to Lord Beerus' strength?"
Jiang Nan's eyes lit up and he asked.
"They're not far off!"
Whis replied, "If we compare Lord Beerus' battle power to the so-called battle power in the language of mortals, among the Destroyers, Lord Beerus can be considered 10, while the Eighteenth Universe's Destroyer Candidate Soma is at least 9.9!"
10...
9.9?!
Hearing these numbers, Jiang Nan's eyes flickered. He remembered that the official setting in the original work also stated that Beerus' battle power was too high, and after simplification, it could be considered as 10.
"Interesting."
A slight smile curled Jiang Nan's lips. Suddenly, he became very interested in this universal Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony.
After all, Whis' information might be outdated. It's unknown how many years ago he heard that information.
Back then, the Eighteenth Universe's Destroyer Candidate Soma was already very close in strength to Beerus, or perhaps on the same level.
All these years, Beerus has been too lazy, so his progress has been minimal. But that doesn't mean others haven't made progress in all this time.
In other words, at the upcoming Destroyer Candidate Qualification Ceremony, the Eighteenth Universe's Destroyer Candidate Soma might very likely have surpassed Beerus and become a powerful being with peak Destroyer-level combat strength.
"Lord Beerus is too lazy. This time, let you take him to the qualification ceremony. Maybe it'll make him understand that no matter how good your talent is, if you don't work hard, you're just standing still!"
Whis sighed softly, "Once upon a time, the ambitious Lord Beerus was also a super rookie I had my eyes on! It's a pity, really, such a pity!"