Chapter 21: Heading to Fire Mountain

As Pu'er watched from the sidelines, he saw his young master Yamcha being defeated, and his heart ached as he rushed forward, calling out, "Young Master Yamcha!"

Yamcha, in pain, covered his mouth and glared at the triumphant little man who had just defeated him. "Just you wait, this isn't over yet."

With that, Yamcha and his follower, Pu'er, quickly fled into the distance.

Hiding behind a large rock, Pu'er anxiously asked, "Young Master Yamcha, what should we do now?"

Yamcha thought for a moment and replied, "Since I can't beat them, we'll follow them for now and look for an opportunity."

"From what happened last night, it seems like we're not the only ones after the Dragon Balls. There's another group hiding in the shadows. We just need to wait for them to clash, and then we can take advantage of the situation."

After saying this, Yamcha smiled triumphantly, although his teeth were a bit drafty.

John Doe had no intention of killing Yamcha, so he let them leave. He and Goku returned to the car and woke Bulma and Oolong.

Bulma rubbed her head, which hurt from the impact, and asked, "What happened? What just happened?"

John Doe briefly explained the recent events, but instead of blaming Yamcha for firing the RPG at her, Bulma scolded John Doe for not waking her up, causing her to miss the chance to meet her desert prince.

John Doe was speechless. He realized that girls were quite hypocritical, whether in his previous world or the Dragon Ball world.

After inspecting the car and finding it unusable, John Doe took out another Capsule Car and set off for Fire Mountain with the group.

Unbeknownst to them, Yamcha was also following in his car from a distance.

Soon, they arrived near Fire Mountain, and from afar, they saw a tall mountain engulfed in raging flames.

True to its name, Fire Mountain radiated such intense heat that John Doe and the others were soon drenched in sweat, their clothes soaking wet and then drying in the scorching heat.

Bulma took out the Dragon Radar, hoping the Dragon Ball wasn't inside Fire Mountain. But to her disappointment, the radar indicated that it was indeed within the fiery mountain.

Bulma turned to John Doe and asked, "What should we do now? Should we ask Goku to fly up with the Flying Nimbus and take a look?"

John Doe shook his head. "There's no need. The Dragon Ball must be in King Ox's castle. Even if Goku can fly up there with the Flying Nimbus, he won't be able to get in and will only get burned by the flames."

"To get the Dragon Ball, we must extinguish the fire on Fire Mountain," he added.

As John Doe and Bulma discussed how to put out the fire, Oolong, on the side, grew anxious and suggested, "Why don't we just leave? I have a feeling King Ox is nearby, watching us!"

Bulma, however, was unconcerned. "Why be afraid? We have Goku and John Doe with us. What's there to fear from King Ox?"

Just as Bulma finished speaking, an axe, swirling with a gust of wind, flew towards John Doe's group.

John Doe quickly pulled Bulma down, while Goku pulled Oolong to safety.

With a loud 'thud', the massive axe embedded itself in the wall behind them, sending chips of stone flying.

Bulma, seeing the huge axe above her head, was terrified. If John Doe hadn't pulled her down, her head would have been smashed by the axe.

John Doe looked in the direction the axe had come from and saw a large, dark figure slowly emerging from the dust and smoke.

He estimated the figure to be over four meters tall, and its massive body exuded immense pressure. Each step it took shook the ground, and it wore a suit of armor with a helmet adorned with bull horns.

"Die, you thieves who dare to steal my treasure!" King Ox roared as he charged forward, pulling the axe from the wall.

"King Ox, we're not here to spy on your treasures. We're only looking for a Dragon Ball," John Doe quickly explained.

"Dragon Ball? Anything in my castle is mine, and no one is allowed to lay eyes on it," King Ox declared, swinging his axe towards John Doe.

At that moment, Goku stepped forward, raising his Power Pole to strike King Ox.

King Ox had no choice but to change his attack, lifting his axe to block Goku's blow. He then recognized the Power Pole in Goku's hand, and his anger subsided.

Sheathing his axe, King Ox pointed at the Power Pole and asked Goku, "Where did you get that Power Pole?"

Goku hesitated for a moment before answering honestly, "My grandpa gave it to me."

"Your grandpa? What's his name?" King Ox inquired further.

"My grandpa's name is Son Gohan," Goku replied.

"Son Gohan? You're Son Gohan's grandson? That's wonderful! I was his junior, and we both studied martial arts under Master Wutian. He was the senior, and I was the junior," King Ox said excitedly.

"Huh? Master Wutian? Who's that?" Goku was surprised, not realizing that Master Roshi was Master Wutian.

John Doe, standing nearby, chimed in, "Goku, Master Wutian is Master Roshi."

"What?!" Goku exclaimed in shock, "So, the Master Roshi I met before is actually my grandpa's teacher?"

"You've met Master Wutian?!" King Ox was even more surprised.

Goku nodded and said, "Yes, Master Roshi gave me the Flying Nimbus."

"The Flying Nimbus? That's fantastic!" King Ox was overjoyed and clutched Goku's shoulder, saying, "Goku, can I ask you for a favor?"

Due to King Ox's connection with his grandpa, Goku readily agreed to his request. "Uncle King Ox, what do you need me to do?"

King Ox looked up at the blazing Fire Mountain and explained, "This place wasn't always called Fire Mountain. One day, flames suddenly erupted from beneath the mountain, engulfing the entire peak and my castle. I can't even return to my home. But Master Wutian has a Banana Fan. One fan creates wind, two fans extinguish fire, and three fans bring rain. With the Banana Fan, I can put out the fire on Fire Mountain and return to my castle. And you can get the Dragon Ball you seek."