[176] The Beginning of the Journey

Upon hearing Kujo Jotaro's words, Kazuya was slightly taken aback.

Indeed.

It was Kazuya who truly understood Dio, having encountered him not just once. He knew what kind of person Dio truly was.

He was a genius.

Certainly, he was a genius, but he was also an incredibly wicked person—irritable, impulsive, and malevolent. One could say that all the qualities of a villain were present in him.

However, merely possessing these traits was not enough to be the savior of evil.

He was also a quick learner. In order to obtain the Joestar family fortune, he had meticulously planned for a considerable amount of time. Graduating at the top of his law school class, following his plan might have genuinely allowed him to gain control of the entire Joestar fortune.

Later, after becoming a vampire—

His goal changed immediately.

From becoming a wealthy and powerful individual, it transformed into becoming the emperor of evil.

And quickly, he learned the essence of being a vampire, mastering the powers that came with it. Whether it was the ability to split the air or the freezing vaporization technique, Dio excelled at all of them.

Later on—

He slept under the Atlantic Ocean for nearly a century!

Even he couldn't have slept continuously for a hundred years, but during this time, a hundred years of solitude did not lead to a breakdown of his soul. Instead, it made him even more resolute!

He became more maturely evil!

Afterward, he gained Stand abilities...

His Stand possessed immense power and precision, arguably one of the top Stands among all. However, he was not satisfied. Like a hundred years before, he continued to experiment with the limits of his Stand abilities.

In the quest for greater strength, he provided himself more opportunities to advance his Stand!

Consequently—

During one of these experiments to push the limits of his Stand, he accidentally stopped time!

And even so, he did not stop his own progress.

Why didn't he leave Egypt? Why did he stay in Egypt?

Because—

He found a way to further enhance his ability to stop time, a way to give himself eternal peace—a way to ascend to heaven!

Of course, this attempt failed.

He was defeated by Kujo Jotaro and thoroughly...

But—in a certain parallel world, in a game called "Eyes of Heaven," he successfully ascended to heaven. He gained a new ability—reality manipulation!

However, just like in this world.

In the manga world, Dio's attempt to teach Kujo Jotaro his Stand ability to stop time failed.

In the game "Eyes of Heaven," Kujo Jotaro learned Dio's ability to manipulate reality.

So, he failed once again and faced death.

All these instances illustrated one thing...

Dio was a genius, but he never stopped striving for more. He always pushed himself further and further!

One could only say that he was destined to reach the peak wherever he went.

After all, Dio climbed up from the slums, step by step, from the very bottom to the very top.

Although it didn't change his inherently evil nature, it couldn't be denied that he was fated for success, regardless of the circumstances.

That's why so many people liked this character's tenacity.

He didn't succeed because of external factors, not because he had an extraordinary father or because some exceptional person helped him. He succeeded on his own, climbing up from the lowest point by himself!

Even if such a person appeared in real life, countless people would probably want to kill him.

People like Kazuya.

After all... a simple evil person wasn't scary. What was frightening was an evil person who worked harder than anyone, improved more than anyone, and had good luck...

That made it a bit challenging.

If not for his arrogant attitude... he could almost be described as invincible.

Meanwhile, Kujo Jotaro continued to use his ability to stop time without encountering Dio yet...

It was somewhat unfair.

"Alright, let's discuss these things on the way. Right now, let's go to Hong Kong! Then we'll head to India and finally to Egypt!"

"Ah, that's right..." Kujo Jotaro nodded. "This time... we'll conclude everything."

...

On the plane to Egypt—

"Hmm... where is he?" The old man, who controlling his Stand Tower of Gray, made it dance on the plane continuously, his expression somewhat grim.

"Where's Joseph? Why can't I see him?"

...

"Huff—I've been spotted! I definitely felt a sensation of being seen by Dio just now—" Kazuya took off his hat and said to Kujo Jotaro nearby.

"Ah."

"Be careful. Although we didn't take a plane to Egypt but to Hong Kong instead, we might still be discovered. The Stand user called Tower of Gray could change his appearance at any moment!"

"It's okay. Mr. Joseph." On the other side, sitting in another seat, Kakyoin Noriaki said, "I've already sent my Stand into the cockpit. If something happens, I'll be the first to notice and block that Stand. After that, we'll follow the plan and pretend not to know about him until the old man comes out. Then we'll defeat the real body."

"Yeah... that's the plan, but we still need to be careful..."

...

Egypt—

"What did that old man Joseph notice? Why didn't he take a plane to come here..."

Dio said, "Who's in Hong Kong?"

"Polnareff, Polnareff is there!" the old woman known as Enya the hag said, clasping her hands together.

"Let him block Joseph and the others for a while. Let Tower of Gray quickly catch up."

"I understand, Lord Dio."

...

Like this—

Kazuya and other safely arrived in Hong Kong.

"Oh, oh, this time we didn't crash. That's really lucky," Kazuya laughed, "Well... in that case, let's go eat something..."

"Ah, sure." Abdul nodded, "If nothing unexpected happens..."

"That's right... if nothing unexpected happens..." Kakyoin Noriaki also nodded, "Next is Polnareff, right?"

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