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Despite his deceptive appearance, Zeno is an all-powerful being who rules over the 12 universes of Dragon Ball. Zeno strikes fear into the Gods of Destruction and counts the Grand Priest and the angels among his subordinates, as he is capable of erasing multiple universes from existence in an instant. So, even though there are hardly any scenes in which the Omni-King displays his powers, making it difficult to gauge the full extent of his strength, he is widely considered the most powerful character in the Dragon Ball franchise.
Consequently, given that Dragon Ball is one of the fan-favorite series where powerscaling is off the charts, it seems that there aren’t many anime characters capable of defeating Goku, let alone Zeno. However, some of the strongest characters in anime have divine powers that go beyond any understanding and have the ability to beat Zeno or at least face him in a fierce battle of cosmic proportions.
Arceus
Pokémon
While it may be hard to believe for anime fans unfamiliar with the Pokémon franchise, it possesses a rich cosmology, and among all its legendary creatures, Arceus holds the supreme position. According to the franchise’s mythology, Arceus is the creator of the universe, including Pokémon such as Dialga, Palkia, and Giratina, who represent time, space, and antimatter, respectively. In addition to Arceus possessing superior combat capabilities, adapting to any opponent by changing its type, it was confirmed in Pokémon Legends: Arceus that the physical form seen interacting with humans is merely an avatar.
The Arceus that appears in the Pokémon anime represents only a small fraction of its true power, which makes it difficult to fully grasp the magnitude of its abilities as a deity of infinite cosmic reach. However, even in this diminished form, Arceus was said to be capable of destroying the world, as seen in the movie Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life.
Arceus stands at the pinnacle of the Pokémon franchise, which is consistently confirmed to encompass infinite parallel universes, placing it on a multidimensional scale. This gives the Pokémon god an advantage over Zeno from Dragon Ball, as the concepts of death or erasure from existence do not apply to it. Furthermore, Arceus possesses unbound strength, speed, and capacity to alter reality, whereas the Omni-King is not particularly a fighter.
Super Majin Rymus
Dragon Ball Daima
While Zeno reigned as the indisputably strongest being throughout Dragon Ball Super, capable of erasing anything with a snap of his fingers, it was revealed that he isn’t the universe’s supreme authority. In Episode 10 of Dragon Ball Daima, Super Majin Rymus was described as the one who created the known multiverse to allow the Demon Realm to expand. Although little is known about Rymus’s abilities or current whereabouts, the fact that he created the original 18 universes from a space void suggests that Zeno acts merely as a destroyer, a kind of god of destruction on a bigger scale.
If Zeno’s sole function is to oversee elements within an existing framework to ensure balance, this places him below Rymus because creating something of such magnitude from scratch involves more complex concepts and demands more fundamental logic, as well as a greater energy output, than the simple act of erasing it. Moreover, although the two bear a certain physical resemblance, Rymus projects a maturity far superior to Zeno’s (who comes across as quite childish), giving him the edge in terms of experience should a hypothetical confrontation occur.
They could also be opposing concepts, like yin and yang, that harbor the same power. Or perhaps Rymus passed the torch to Zeno or just designed him as another cog in the system. However, it’s been confirmed that Rymus transcends everything seen so far, and yet he was only mentioned once, which hints he could hold even greater powers but preferred to remain a passive observer, making a fight with Zeno highly unlikely. Even so, were it to happen, it would surely be an unprecedented dimensional battle no Dragon Ball fan would want to miss.
Rimuru Tempest
That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime
If we’re talking about Rimuru Tempest up until the last season of That Time I Got Reincarnated as a Slime, there’s not much debate about Zeno’s ability to win in a flash, but his light novel counterpart is a whole other story. What makes Rimuru a formidable opponent is his adaptability, which gives him a great chance to analyze and counter Zeno before he can erase him from existence.
Zeno’s lack of judgment and strategic thinking leaves him vulnerable to Rimuru, who not only has a superior intellect but also has extensive combat experience and continuously evolves through battles. At the end of TenSura‘s novel, Rimuru becomes a transcendent god who goes beyond the laws of space-time and creation, holding enough energy to span multidimensional universes thousands of times over. Also, Rimuru is immune to attacks and can devour anything with his ability, so he could gain a skill to counter Zeno’s instantaneous annihilation.
Kami Tenchi
Tenchi Muyo!
In the Tenchi Muyo series, there are three supreme goddesses called the “Choushin,” who are all-knowing and all-powerful and who manage an infinitely interconnected multiverse with the intention of creating a being that would surpass them. In Tenchi Muyo’s third OVA, Tenchi Masaki, after being killed, overcomes death and awakens to immense power within an elevated state of existence that lies beyond the comprehension of even the hyper-dimensional goddess.
His awakening affected entire dimensions, as evidenced when the universe shook at the impact of his power. He becomes a life form capable of transcending space and altering reality itself. Unbound by time, he can repeat it infinitely without issue; and given that he stands above the Choushin, whose multiversal powers rival those of Zeno, Kami Tenchi is directly superior to Dragon Ball Super‘s Omni-King. Also demonstrated by how Kami Tenchi manifested within Tenchi’s mind, indicating a consciousness that extends beyond conventional limits, unlike Zeno, who is unaware of everything occurring across the universes.
Kami Tenchi can withstand destruction on a cosmic scale, as his true form resides in a super-dimensional space and manifests as the projection of a white figure. Consequently, Zeno can’t actually erase him even if he tried. Furthermore, Kami Tenchi can move through time to reunite with his other versions, thereby avoiding any harm, as seen when Tenchi was in the process of awakening and his future self came to his aid.
Featherine Augustus Aurora
Umineko: When They Cry
Although somewhat less well-known than other strong anime characters, Featherine Augustus Aurora is one of the most powerful entities in all fiction. She appears as an ancient witch in Umineko: When They Cry and is linked to the Higurashi anime, where she manifests through an avatar named Eua. What makes her so powerful is her nature as a creator, since she can oversee the Umineko and Higurashi franchises and control their narratives, as if she were the author herself. This grants her the ability to script events entirely at will; any command she writes is directed at the universe itself.
Featherine has been seen manifesting in various forms, unconstrained by spacetime, dimensions, or existence. This type of “meta-manipulation” ability implies that she is omnipotent on an outerverse scale. She is capable of visualizing every universe in which she emerges victorious, but she can also rewrite causality to avoid any unfavorable setting or even halt the story itself given her absolute resistance to anything.
While she can already withstand events like the destruction of a universe as a witch, as she operates from a position of total perception, not even Zeno’s instant erasure ability would be effective. Few characters in history could face Featherine, and she is directly compared to supreme beings such as Marvel’s The One-Above-All and H.P. Lovecraft’s Azathoth.
