Chapter 63: The Power of Gold

"I'll kill you!" Darum was blinded by rage, his fury so intense it made him forget the pain of his wounds, his fists clenched so tightly they crackled.

"Destroyed the super-ancient city thirty million years ago, and now you want to destroy humanity three thousand years from now?" Yue Longze sneered, amazed that he'd ever felt guilty before; looking back, it seemed absurd.

"Who are you, really?" Camilla pressed a hand to her abdomen, gripping the enraged Darum with her other hand, holding him in place with astonishing strength. Despite Darum being on the verge of rampaging, he couldn't move at all.

Camilla's eyes gazed coolly at Yue Longze, devoid of emotion. In terms of raw individual power, she was the strongest present. Yet, a moment of carelessness had allowed Yue Longze to exploit her weakness and counterattack fiercely. After all, Camilla hadn't fought a real battle in thirty million years; the sensations of combat were already unfamiliar to her.

"I come from another space-time." Yue Longze didn't mind revealing his origins, since today would end with one of them dead.

As he spoke, Yue Longze summoned the Congyun Sword, stepped in with ghostly footwork, and struck.

Seeing this, Camilla drew her Dark God Whip to resist, while Darum seized the opportunity to attack as well. But without Hitlar's coordinated teamwork, Darum's attacks, paired with Camilla, were far less effective.

Yue Longze used the ghost steps taught by Idada Idron to deftly dodge the attacks. Previously, when faced with joint assaults from Hitlar and Darum, even the ghost steps hadn't helped.

But now, the ghost steps were proving their worth.

"Another space-time..." Camilla fought on, her previously calm emotions reignited.

"Die!" Darum soared high into the air, gathering a massive energy sphere the color of molten lava. The ball radiated an aura of terror, like a volcanic eruption, threatening to merge with Darum's own fiery form.

His body convulsed, especially his chest heaving as he drew out every ounce of energy to forge this ultimate attack.

Yue Longze sparred with Camilla, all the while keeping an eye on Darum above.

Seeing that enormous, blazing sphere illuminating the ceiling, Yue Longze shook his head inwardly. An attack that looks so fierce but can't hit its target—what use is it?

Darum's assault was powerful, but lacked agility.

His own speed was more than enough to evade such an attack.

But in a moment's carelessness, Camilla's Dark God Whip suddenly transformed into a Dark God Sword. The razor-sharp tip stabbed directly into Yue Longze's chest, striking his core timer and sending sparks flying—he'd underestimated her.

The timer, fragile as glass, withstood the blow, remaining intact.

But the pain was overwhelming, indescribable.

So the timer was a vulnerable spot? In all his previous battles, Yue Longze's timer had never been struck, but now he understood: for Ultramen, the timer was a weakness, and being hit there brought excruciating agony.

Gritting his teeth against the pain, Yue Longze continued fighting Camilla. By now, Darum's ultimate attack was ready. The terrifying, fiery energy sphere rippled through space and hurtled toward Yue Longze with a thunderous roar.

Darum, utterly spent, dropped straight from the sky, crashing onto the pitch-black ground, cracking it in several places. He lay motionless, as if dead, but the dim light in his eyes showed he was still alive.

The energy sphere descended slowly, yet it radiated irresistible force. Yue Longze's scalp tingled at the immense energy it contained.

If he were struck, he'd be annihilated without question!

But at that speed, he could dodge.

As if sensing Yue Longze's intent, Camilla sneered coldly. The Dark God Sword reverted to the Dark God Whip, which she wielded at a strange angle. The whip, glowing faintly purple, wrapped around Yue Longze's body in an astonishing maneuver.

"Damn it..." Yue Longze hadn't expected Camilla to have this trick; his arms and legs were bound, and Camilla instantly retreated a great distance, launching a barrage of light-based attacks at him.

"Camilla, help me!" Yue Longze cried out inwardly.

"Useless fool!" The voice of the Camilla from his original space-time echoed in Yue Longze's mind.

"I'm about to die! And you're scolding me!"

Watching the terrifying energy sphere draw nearer, Yue Longze grew desperate, struggling fiercely—only to find the harder he fought, the tighter the Dark God Whip squeezed.

A golden light burst forth from Yue Longze, and golden patterns spread rapidly across the armor on his chest—a power he knew well.

Golden energy.

The timer on his chest flashed and sounded relentlessly, but Yue Longze felt his strength soar, the light in his eyes intensifying. It was just like the battles with the third generation of the Kirielode people.

"Can't you give Diga some dignity?" Camilla scolded harshly, though her stern voice betrayed obvious weakness.

"Thank you, Camilla!" Yue Longze's heart brimmed with gratitude. He let out a shout and broke free of the Dark God Whip, which snapped and fell to the ground in pieces.

Just as Darum's energy sphere was about to touch Yue Longze, he rolled clear, narrowly escaping the destructive blast.

It was a close call—the fierce, enormous sphere grazed past him.

Behind him, a massive explosion erupted, the shockwave hurling Yue Longze through the air. Even Camilla, standing at a distance, was caught by the blast.

Both were knocked flat on the mirror-smooth ground.

...

Yue Longze was the first to stand, brushing off imaginary dust from his body and slowly walking toward the still-prone Camilla.

He approached cautiously, alert, knowing he couldn't let his guard down against a super-ancient dark warrior from thirty million years ago.

When he was just three meters from Camilla, she sprang to her feet, her left hand firing a purple energy bullet. But Yue Longze, already prepared, dodged it with a leap and instantly widened the gap between them.

"Come die here with us," Camilla said calmly, gazing at Yue Longze as she stood up.

Yue Longze shook his head, replying, "No, having your companions with you is enough."

With the Congyun Sword in hand, he unleashed transparent energy waves like those in martial arts tales.

Camilla was momentarily stunned, then rushed at Yue Longze through the waves. Even when struck, she only grunted, relentlessly charging forward.

"Does she truly not care about her life..." Watching Camilla draw ever closer, Yue Longze was puzzled.