Tien remained casual under the trio's intense gazes. He lowered his arms and no longer held their limbs.
Absorbing his arms back into his body, Tien folded his hands and turned towards the warrior, Nam.
Nam had a questioning look on his face; he was asking why Tien had stopped him, when he was defending his village.
"Relax Nam; you have misunderstood my proposal."
Tien patiently explained a little more about his offer, so they don't blow this out of proportion.
"I want both King Chappa, and the people living here to follow me, which includes you and your village."
"My kingdom is an empty subcontinent; it has no citizens of its own. I want you guys to be it's first residents."
"That's why, there is no need to fight so desperately; your village is not at stake."
"In fact, if you follow me, your lives will get better with the free natural resources there."
Tien gently patted Nam's shoulders; this guy was malnourished and dehydrated, but he was full of courage.
Actually, Tien didn't plan on taking the villagers along at first; he just wanted Chappa. But Nam's desperate actions gave Tien an idea.
He had found a way to convince Chappa using Nam, so Chappa willingly becomes a minister.
From his observation, Chappa cared about two things in life. First was martial arts; Tien had already decided to help him with that.
The second were his people. If his people wanted Chappa to do something, chances are he will consider their opinion.
So, Tien used Nam's desperation to build a trap for Chappa. He will use Nam and the common citizen's desires, to force Chappa to submit.
He had made an offer which was impossible for Nam, or anyone else in his situation to refuse: he had promised everyone a better life.
Nam's thinking showed the attitude of people under Chappa; these men just wanted to live a good life, and Tien had promised to give them one.
Now these people had hope; it would be impossible for Chappa to refuse Tien any longer. If he does refuse, his people will revolt against him.
"Are you telling the truth, Master Tien?!"
Nam's face lit up with happiness, and Tien knew his plan had worked.
"Can we really follow you back to your kingdom?"
"I am very sorry; I didn't know you had such plans."
Nam immediately stopped fighting and fell to his knees; he apologized to Tien wholeheartedly. He realised Tien wanted to make their lives better; Nam was truly grateful.
After Tien's attractive promise, Chappa's students had also started backing away. Watching everyone slowly leave him, Chappa scratched his head in distress.
Before he could make a choice, his people had decided to follow Tien. He was in an awkward position; he can't say no to Tien anymore.
"Master Tien, I am sorry for misunderstanding your proposal before."
Chappa clasped his hands together and bowed.
"I am both a martial artist and a king; as a king, I can't refuse such a beneficial offer."
"I have decided; my people will follow you back to your kingdom, and I will be your minister."
Chappa agreed to follow Tien, but he still had something he wanted to do.
"But before that, please satisfy my curiosity about the power known as Ki."
"Master Yamcha has proven his strength, but our fight is still remaining."
"Please show me how strong you are, after actively using your ki."
Although Chappa had agreed to follow Tien and did acknowledge him as his superior, he still wanted to see the gap between their strengths.
This was pure curiosity of a martial artist and nothing more. Knowing about Chappa's nature, Tien wasn't surprised by his request.
These actions were within Tien's consideration. He can fully tame the prideful Chappa, if he gives him an even bigger shock than Yamcha.
Tien casually walked to the center of the temple hall and lowered his hands; he relaxed his muscles and openly stood in an unguarded posture.
"Want to see my strength, Chappa?"
Tien laughed cheerfully.
"Go ahead then, attack with all your might."
"And you too, Nam, you can attack me as well."
Tien wanted them to attack. But his unguarded body and his big smile made the duo hesitate.
Curiously, it was Nam who finally clenched his teeth and followed Tien's order. He ran forward and kicked Tien in the stomach.
With Nam taking the lead, Chappa stopped hesitating and ran behind Tien. He attacked Tien's knee, trying to make him fall.
Bang
Bang
Two hard impacts hit Tien, and the air vibrated from the force. The remaining strength of the attacks shook the stone temple.
But Tien who had taken the attacks directly was not injured. He was still standing, without even guarding himself.
His unharmed appearance greatly shook Chappa's confidence; he had attacked with 80% of his strength, and it did nothing.
Clenching his teeth tightly, Chappa's muscles bulged, and he rushed forward with a barrage of punches and kicks.
Nam followed behind closely and kept attacking Tien with all his strength, just like Tien had told him to.
The duo attacked relentlessly; loud booming noises echoed around the temple, while Tien stood there like an immovable mountain.
His invincible posture broke everyone's fighting spirits. Chappa's students had no will left to fight; Chappa himself was grey in the face.
Only Nam wasn't bothered by it. Strength was always his secondary goal; his primary motive was his village's survival.
If Tien was going to be their king, the stronger he was the better it was for them. The stronger Tien was, the happier Nam would be.
Bang
Bang
Chappa struck Tien two more times before he stopped and started panting from physical exhaustion.
Within this short time span, he had struck Tien a total of 500 times. He had connected every single hit, but it was of no use.
Without once touching him, Tien had exhausted Chappa and defeated him completely. Both his pride and his martial arts were crushed today.
Chappa fell to the ground, panting with exhaustion and disbelief. He scanned Tien and found no marks on his body, not even a hint of stress.
"What a beast."
Chappa chuckled bitterly while shaking his head.
"So this is Ki. Thank you for showing me just how much I have left to learn."
"I have realized my weakness, Master Tien. Please accept me as your disciple."
Chappa took a deep breath and kneeled before Tien. He had seen new heights of strength, and he wanted to reach them. Chappa had surrendered to Tien.
Tien grinned and powered down cheerfully. For a prideful man like Chappa, you must break his will thoroughly. Only then will he be your most loyal follower.
Tien's job was done, and Chappa was tamed. Without even realizing it, Chappa had stepped into his traps one by one and lost.
"You don't need to kneel. Get up; I accept you as a student."
Tien nodded calmly, pretending like he hadn't broken Chappa's pride on purpose.
"But before I teach you, as my minister you shall first help build my kingdom."
"After my Triclops Kingdom is established, you can learn about Ki."
King Chappa nodded and quickly got up. He assumed a thinking pose, and asked Tien for more information.
If he was going to build a brand new kingdom, he had to know everything about it, from it's geography to economics.
But after Tien explained where his kingdom would be built, and that nobody lived there, Chappa seemed to regret joining him a little.
Pulling his afro in distress, Chappa looked through the notes Bulma gave Tien, and thought of a possible solution out of their problem.
"Master Tien, our kingdom has nothing. We are dirt poor."
Chappa grabbed some dirt, emphasizing how poor they were.
"We only have a piece of land where nobody lives."
"To survive in a barren land like that, we have to buy survival resources."
"We need to live using those until we figure out how to live on our own."
"So first and foremost we need money. The more money, the better."
Chappa's first action as a minister had put Tien in a tough spot. He was homeless by choice; where was he supposed to find a ton of money from?
Was he going to use his superpowers to rob a bank? Did he have to do his old lover's job and become a wanted criminal for cash?
Tien rubbed his eyebrows with unhappiness, but soon his lips curled into a smile. He did know of a place that had tons of money for him to take.
He didn't know the exact coordinates, but Goku knew about it. Goku had visited that area before and had seen the piles of treasure lying there.
As long as Goku tells him about the general area, Tien can find that location and take all the hidden treasure for himself.
Advanced chapters ahead on patréon
www.patréon.com/ImagineMaker