Great, we're doomed now!

Jianwu suddenly felt something heating up at his waist, and it became increasingly noticeable, even a little hot. Looking down, he realized it was the card pack he used to store monster cards.

"Why... fragments, could it be!"

Realizing the problem, Jianwu quickly looked up and saw a blue flash instantly fill his vision!

Jian Wu's pupils suddenly contracted, and his body tensed up instinctively, but before he could react, a powerful shockwave swept over him, knocking him violently to the ground.

"……Um?"

The expected pain didn't come. Jianwu was stunned for a moment, then, supporting himself on the ground, he looked up—

A dark giant suddenly appeared in front of him, crouching down. His outstretched hand was still crackling with electricity, while the light bullet from before had been deflected and exploded into a blue flame in the distance.

The giant's body lines are smooth and upright, and his eyes are calm and firm. Although he is a dark giant, he does not have a ferocious or violent feeling at all. Instead, he is calm and reserved.

Kengo stared blankly at the face that was both strange and familiar. Suddenly, Triga inside him murmured, his voice slightly dazed: "Ultraman Bayeri..."

"Hmm?" Ye Shou raised an eyebrow upon hearing the call, a hint of surprise flashing in his eyes.

He could tell at a glance that this suddenly appearing young man actually harbored the consciousness of another giant within him, but he never expected that he could call out his name!

Just then, he felt waves of dark energy surge behind him, and Ye Shou knew what was happening without even turning around:

Hitram stared intently at Jian Wu, a greedy glint in his eyes!

He clearly sensed that this human contained a large number of fragments of the Eternal Core!

"Grab him, all the fragments are on him!" Hitram shouted sharply, and flew towards Jian Wu first.

Dagon clenched his fists but did not make a move immediately. Carmilla hesitated for a moment, but her eyes quickly narrowed, and the dark golden whip formed again in her hand, aiming directly at Ye Shou!

'It's a bit troublesome to fight them while protecting one person.'

Ye Shou's thoughts raced, and with a thought, the color of his body suddenly changed. The dark aura that had been surrounding him dissipated and was replaced by a bright white light, and a pure and intense aura of light emerged.

"Varied--"

Hitram was blinded by the light and instinctively covered his eyes before being sent flying by an overwhelming force.

"How is that possible!"

"That is!"

Snapped!

Ye Shou grabbed Carmilla's light whip, and his figure was reshaped in the light, transforming into the giant of light in the shocked gaze of the trio.

Before they could react, Ye Shou turned and stepped in front of Jian Wu, throwing Carmilla's light whip. A barrage of light darts struck Hitram with lightning speed, knocking him off his feet again.

"The form of light?" Carmilla's pupils contracted slightly, her face full of astonishment.

She had always thought Ye Shou was a pure dark giant. Strictly speaking, she had never seen anyone of the same kind who possessed both attributes at the same time... She never expected that he could freely switch between light and darkness, and the purity of this [light] was far beyond her comprehension.

"Two opposing forces... How is this possible!"

"Don't just stand there, Carmilla!" Hitram said urgently. "If you want to see the men, wait until after the fight. I don't care how long you want to watch. Right now, the most important thing is the [Eternal Core]!"

"What do you mean by judging men!"

Carmilla glared at him fiercely: "I'm just a little surprised... Let's attack together!"

"it is good!"

Even Dagong became interested, probably because he had never encountered such a unique opponent as Ye Shou. As a warrior, it was hard not to be excited about the hunt.

"drink!"

Ye Shou also went all out, flicking his wrist to deflect Carmilla's light whip, his figure flashing past Hitram's flying blade as if teleporting, and his elbow slamming into Hitram's chest.

Hitram staggered back in pain, but Dagon's heavy punch was already upon him. Ye Shou dodged to the side and slashed the fighter's shoulder with a backhand chop. The powerful energy of light entered the fighter's shoulder, causing Dagon to slow down for a moment.

In the blink of an eye, Ye Shou blocked all three attacks with swift and precise movements, showing no signs of being at a disadvantage.

After several more rounds, he channeled the power of the ripples into the secret technique of Flowing Water Shattering Rocks, and the resulting gale force forcefully suppressed the three dark giants, including Carmilla. The trio grew increasingly alarmed as the fight progressed.

They had overestimated Ye Shou's strength as much as possible, but they still felt that he could only fight two at most, and it was impossible for him to stand firm against three opponents—otherwise, he shouldn't have retreated in the first place and could have just knocked the trio down.

However, Ye Shou's performance at this moment completely exceeded their expectations!

When he is outnumbered, he can unleash 200% of his power and hold his own against three opponents!

"You're hiding your strength?" Carmilla and Ye Shou pressed their wrists together. Faced with this question, Ye Shou only gave them a cold look.

"Hmm!" Carmilla felt a sudden sense of loss for no apparent reason.

Yes, they are enemies after all...

"open!"

Ye Shou straightened up, and the color and light on his body changed again, transforming into a clear super-powered form. He crossed his hands and gathered icy cold air.

"Freezing rays!"

A dazzling blue beam shot out from his palm, instantly enveloping the trio of dark figures.

The low temperature spread rapidly, and the three of them were temporarily sealed in thick ice in an instant... They could probably hold on for half a second?

But that's enough. Even a tenth of a second is enough for Ultraman to do a lot:

Having temporarily eliminated the immediate threat, Ye Shou turned to look at Jian Wu, who was still in a daze. He reached out and gently grabbed him, and an invisible mental force, like water flowing into a silver pool, firmly held him in his hand.

Jian Wu felt his body lighten, and then a large hand sealed him off. Immediately afterward, a feeling of weightlessness washed over him, and he and Ye Shouyi were lifted into the air, flying towards the distant dragon turtle, landing steadily on the monster's broad back.

At this moment, the ice covering the Dark Trio began to crumble—

In the instant amidst the shattering ice, Ye Shou raised his hand and placed it on the surface of the dragon turtle. A strange blue light emanated from between his five fingers, gently enveloping the enormous monster.

The dragon turtle let out a low groan, and its massive body shrank rapidly at a visible speed, eventually transforming into a streak of light that flew straight into Ye Shou's palm.

"Damn it... huh?"

After the trio cleared away the obstacles and looked again, it was as if a flashbang had exploded right in front of them; suddenly, their vision was stolen, and when they looked again, neither Ultraman nor the monster had been seen.

"Damn it, he got away again."

"Humph~"

"What, Dagon, do you have something to say?"

"Escape? I don't think you've gained any advantage from them at all. If the fight continues, it's still uncertain who will win."

"You... do you really think you have the upper hand?"

Hitram and Dagon started arguing again after a disagreement.

"You guys are really something... Sigh!"

Carmilla found the two of them noisy and stared blankly in the direction where Ye Shou had disappeared. Her thoughts drifted to the mysterious young man who carried a large number of fragments.

For some reason, I felt that person's aura was somewhat familiar, as if it were somewhere—

"A trigger? No, this is too unbelievable, but..."

Chapter 434: The Trial of the Ancient Gods (Paying Off Debts)

Carmilla's territory sits on a vast plain, where the humid monsoon winds blow year-round, giving this post-apocalyptic city a rare semblance of life. The lush greenery lining the streets contrasts harmoniously with the metallic buildings in the distance.

The temple built for her stands in the city center, constructed entirely of dark gold composite materials, giving it a solemn and dignified appearance.

At this moment, the temple was closed off, preventing anyone from entering or leaving. In her human form, Carmilla stood in the center of the hall, looking up at the fifteen-meter-tall statue in the center, her eyes slightly narrowed.

The statue replicates her giant form, with flowing golden ribbons hanging from her arms and back—it's clear the craftsman put a lot of effort into it, managing to carve that flowing feeling out of stone.

His eyes were closed, his expression solemn, and his right hand was raised high to hold an exquisite scale, as if he were judging all things in the world.

...She looks like a goddess of justice no matter how you look at it.

What a pity~

Carmilla shook her head slightly, feeling that this thing was completely different from her own temperament. It seemed that her "believers" were just worshipping a beautiful image that she had imagined, and did not understand the real her.

She never cared about these things before, but since meeting Ye Shou, she has begun to learn to appreciate human art.

Carmilla's fingertips traced the cold base, her eyes flashed, and she leaped up, landing lightly on the statue's raised arm before touching the scales' tray—

Call ~

The left tray of the scales slowly opened, revealing that it was not empty, but rather enveloped in a transparent static force field, with several core fragments emitting a faint red light quietly suspended within.

This is a spell similar to a barrier, originally developed by the Guardians to seal the [Eternal Core], but later Carmilla learned it.

After all, such spells are easy for energy beings to learn, not to mention that Carmilla is considered one of the most talented among the Titans.

—She sometimes seems a little slow-witted, but that's just her personality.

She carefully reached inside and took out a fragment. As soon as her fingertips touched it, she felt a surge of violent energy flow into her body.

"Well!"

Carmilla tried to guide the energy absorption, but after only ten seconds the fragments became increasingly hot, as if she were holding a red-hot iron. The heat spread from her fingertips. She could tolerate the slight pain, but the intense energy fluctuations gave her a bad feeling.

Carmilla quickly released her grip, gathering dark energy at her fingertips in the air to cast a spell and re-fix the fragments. Once the fragments had cooled, she placed them back into the still field, then used her telekinesis to lift the tray and restore the scales to their original state.

“Indeed powerful.” Carmilla murmured to herself, her brow furrowing slightly. “But…”

With her current strength, forcibly absorbing it wasn't impossible, but this energy harbored a strange restlessness. If she forcibly merged with it, her life form might undergo irreversible changes, and that unknown risk made her wary.

No woman is indifferent to her appearance, not even Ultraman.

The idea of ​​turning into an ugly monster in order to gain power is common in the universe. Carmilla has seen several examples of this and is extremely opposed to that kind of development. As long as she has a shred of rationality, she will not allow herself to grow tentacles or multiple heads.

The Eternal Core is an energy source that maintains the balance of the universe and is by no means an evil thing, but the corrosiveness of its fragments is stronger than many forces in the universe that are born from negative emotions.

This left Carmilla full of doubts, and what puzzled her even more was:

Why was Hitram able to access the power of the fragments without any hindrance?

"Could it be that I'm not qualified enough?" Once this thought arose, it lingered in her mind.

She recalled Ye Shou's ease in switching between light and darkness, and his composure under the "trigger" beam of light, and became increasingly suspicious that her own power system was incompatible with this energy.

But when he thought about how Hitram was also a pure dark giant, and far weaker than himself, yet he was able to use the fragments so easily... he felt that this guess was untenable.

It can't possibly be because of gender, right?

Just as she was caught in a dilemma, steady footsteps came from outside the temple, interrupting her thoughts.

Carmilla turned around and saw Dagon's tall figure appear at the temple entrance. His gaze swept over the central statue and then landed on Carmilla. He said in a deep voice, "The human we encountered today had a very strange aura."