Knights of the Digital World

Even a golden-armored dragon like this was knocked unconscious and even severely injured. Just how powerful must the person who defeated it be?

Bancho-mon recalled the conjecture that Emu had previously proposed. Even though he had thought the conjecture was absurd before, he now had to re-examine its possibility—

These top-tier Ultimate Digimon represent the pinnacle of power in the Digital World. Aside from Yggdrasil, the God of the Digital World, who could surpass them?

The BeanBeasts were very efficient, and soon several BeanBeasts carried the Golden Armor Dragon Beast over.

Magnamon certainly didn't look well. Its eyes were closed, and although the golden Chrono Digizoid on its body still shone brightly, it couldn't hide the damage it sustained. Clearly, Magnamon had gone through a difficult battle.

What made Bancho and the others frown the most was that the aura on the Golden Armor Dragon Beast was slowly decreasing, and subtle data was dissipating.

This indicates that the Golden Armored Dragon Beast's injuries are too severe to be healed by its own body alone; in fact, its condition is worsening. If it doesn't receive timely treatment and is allowed to continue like this, it will die within a few days.

The rate of deterioration is inherently slow at first and then accelerates. In less than a day, the rate at which data dissipates from Magnamon will increase several times over; even the massive data volume of an Ultimate-level monster cannot withstand such depletion.

Fortunately, not long after the Golden Armored Dragon Beast was delivered, a Lotus Beast also arrived.

She glanced at the Golden Armored Dragon Beast's condition and knew how bad it was. She quickly raised her "Twin Serpent Staff" and released the white spiritual energy of "Giant Serpent Healing" to stabilize the Golden Armored Dragon Beast's injuries. At the same time, she said urgently:

"Lord Beanmon, he is seriously injured. I alone can only stabilize his condition. Please call my sisters as well. At least two more people are needed to heal him!"

Bancho DouDoumon wasted no time and immediately sent DouDoumon to notify the other Lotus Beasts to come.

Then, three more lotus beasts arrived. Together, they used the "Giant Serpent Healing" skill, and white spiritual energy with healing abilities surged, completely enveloping the golden-armored dragon beast.

After spending half a day, the first lotus beast to arrive finally looked exhausted and said to the leader, Bean Beast:

"My lord, his injuries are no longer a problem. The remaining injuries pose no threat to him; he will recover on his own after a few days of rest. My sister and I have exhausted too much energy, so if there is nothing else, we will take our leave."

The leader of the Beanmon said gently, "Thank you for your efforts. Go back and get some rest."

The lotus beasts smiled and then slowly departed. They seemed truly exhausted.

Bancho-Tottomon was well aware of this. For a Digimon with such exceptionally strong defenses like Magnamon to knock him unconscious, the force used couldn't be simply broken through its defenses. It must have been a power far exceeding Magnamon's defenses. Under such power, anything Magnamon might become was understandable.

"Then let's wait for the Golden Armored Dragon Beast to awaken. Perhaps he can tell us the truth."

The leader, DouDoumon, looked at his old friend and disciple and said in a deep voice.

Yongmeng and the others nodded and sat down on the ground, silently waiting for the golden-armored dragon beast to awaken.

Chapter Twelve, The Whole Story (Part 1)

Yongmeng and the others did not have to wait long before the Golden Armored Dragon Beast woke up.

He recognized BanchoPeamon and BanchoLeomon immediately, propped himself up with his hands, and whispered his thanks:

"BanchoMamemon, BanchoLeomon, did you save me? Thank you so much this time. I thought I was going to die."

"You're welcome. It wasn't me who saved you, but one of my Igamon. You can thank him in person later. However, Magnamon, we have some questions for you now, and we hope you can tell us the truth."

The leader of the Bean Beast clan, with a solemn expression, spoke slowly.

The golden-armored dragon was taken aback at first, then looked around and a look of realization dawned on its face:

“This isn’t Beangate Town. You all seem to be injured—” He glanced at the bandage on BanchoLeomon’s chest, “—So, you were attacked and forced to abandon Beangate Town and run away? Was it Barbamon?”

Seeing that Magnamon didn't hesitate at all and directly said Barbamon's name, Bancho-Mamemon frowned, turned to look at Emu, and then said:

“That’s right, he sent people to do it. Two more of his men have inexplicably appeared, and their strength is no less than mine or BanchoLeomon’s. Why such powerful individuals would join Barbamon’s ranks has been a question that has been troubling me. Magnamon, you seem to know something. Please tell us.”

“You saved my life, so naturally I won’t hide anything from you. Besides, the more people who know about these things, the better… We need more power.”

The golden-armored dragon sighed and began to recount everything he knew.

"The initial cause can be traced back to a deceased human—Akihiro Kurata. I don't need to elaborate on what he did, do I? Although last time, through their own efforts, humans managed to stop God from being prejudiced against them, God was still pondering. What exactly is humanity's view of Digimon? Can humans and Digimon coexist peacefully?"

"God told us that thinking alone is useless. We can also be misled by simply believing what others tell us. Therefore, God decided to go and see the human world for himself."

"God once used Daimon Hideaki's body to experience human emotions. He said these emotions were a special and powerful force. In addition, God needed a disguise to explore the human world. Therefore, God stripped away a part of his power and transformed into a human girl. She is God's incarnation, God's eyes in the human world, to see the truth of humans and Digimon."

"Wait a minute! Isn't this girl named Mikihara Noren? Did she go to the human world all by herself?"

Emu interrupted Magnamon's narration with a strange expression. This development is really starting to resemble the next generation. Could Yggdrasil have some kind of backup plan called "Mediator"?

"Mediator? I've never heard the gods mention one. I don't know if they exist," the golden-armored dragon said honestly and truthfully.

"But it's strange, how do you know Lord Norren's name? Besides us Royal Knights, no one else should know. You're a human child, who are you?"

The golden-armored dragon looked at Yongmeng with great confusion.

“Um… my name is Hosho Emu.”

As soon as Yongmeng uttered a name, the Golden Armored Dragon Beast immediately responded:

"Oh, you're the child from another world that the eight-legged horse-beast mentioned, right? He said you had prophetic abilities, and it seems he was right! No wonder you knew Lord Norren's name! So, God really left behind a contingency plan called 'Mediator'?"

Emu never imagined that the eight-legged horse beast had introduced him to the other royal knights and even revealed his fabricated "prophetic ability."

Seeing the eager look in Magnamon's eyes and the confused gazes of Bancho and the others, Emu could only awkwardly explain, "I can only say that because I come from another world, I know some special information... Actually, I have no idea what happened either... Anyway, Magnamon, please continue."

The Golden Armored Dragon Beast seemed somewhat disappointed that Emu was unwilling to demonstrate his amazing prophetic abilities.

However, he is a very orthodox Paladin-type Digimon. Compared to his powerful but eccentric colleagues, Magnamon is more in line with the public's definition of a Paladin.

Since Yongmeng didn't want to say more, the Golden Armored Dragon Beast wouldn't press the matter. He paused, then continued the previous topic:

"Lord Norren did not go to the human world alone. Because God was worried that Lord Norren would encounter danger, Heromon, Gallantmon, and Fragrantmon went with him."

"It was after Lord Norren and the others set off that Barba found the location of the god and wanted to see the god."

"And then? He broke in? That's impossible. Even if three royal knights left, you still have people, right? It's too shameful for Barbamon to break in."

"Emu asked. This was also a question that had been puzzling him. The information they had gathered so far was very similar to the plot of the next generation. Barbamon had most likely fused with Yggdrasil. But how exactly did Barbamon manage to break through the Royal Knights' blockade? Based on its strength displayed in Beangate Town, it didn't seem like the kind of powerful creature that could easily sweep through the Royal Knights."

Magnamon sighed, "We stopped him. Barbamon's strength... to be honest, it's just so-so. If Skullmon hadn't been careful enough, we almost killed him... After all, he's one of the Demon Lords of the Dark Territory. Killing him carelessly would cause turmoil in the Dark Territory, and might even affect other weaker Digimon. So, we didn't kill him."

The golden-armored dragon beast made a point of explaining.

When Emu and the others heard what Magnamon said, they almost burst out laughing. Barbamon's strength lay in its ability to bewitch people, but in terms of combat power, it was indeed among the bottom tier of top-tier Ultimate Digimon.

Emu suppressed a laugh and asked, "And then? Barbamon retreated?"

The golden-armored dragon shook its head, a wry smile on its face:

"No, he made a big fuss and attracted God's attention. He took the opportunity to request an audience with God, saying that he wanted to communicate with God about his views on the future of Digimon... God granted his request."

"Huh? You must be kidding, right? Barbamon is a Demon Lord! How can you just see him like that? Isn't He afraid something might happen?"

Emu was taken aback.

He had been pondering what trick Barbamon had used to get to the World Tree, never expecting that this person was actually put in by the World Tree itself!

You call yourself a Kami? Don't you understand such a simple principle as letting a wolf into your house?

Chapter Thirteen, The Whole Story (Part Two)

Emu couldn't understand Yggdrasil's actions at all, but Armored Dragon Beast remained expressionless, instead showing a hint of confusion:

"To the gods, a demon lord like Barbamon is nothing special. He can't even break through our defenses, so what's there to fear?"

"But didn't something still happen? And Barbamon must have gained a lot of benefits, otherwise the Barbamon army wouldn't be able to run rampant like this."

Even the lion cub, who had been silently observing, couldn't help but chime in with a comment.

Armored Dragon shook its head and said, "No one can predict what will happen in the future—oh, perhaps you can, Emu?—at least for us at that time, Barbamon was not a threat."

"As for why God met him... Admittedly, as a Holy Knight, I despise a demon lord like Barbamon. However, I must also admit that Barbamon is also a member of the Digimon family, a child of God."

"He made a request to see God and demonstrated his awareness, courage, and faith through his actions. So God will not hesitate to meet him. Because to God, good and bad are meaningless, all Digimon are his subjects and have the same rights."

The golden-armored dragon beast spoke solemnly.

Although the Royal Knights are jokingly called the "Traitorous Knights" for their tree-cutting skills, their status as Royal Knights stems not only from their own strength and the World Tree's appreciation, but also from their acceptance of the World Tree and their willingness to protect it.

Emu opened his mouth, unsure how to respond. Indeed, from his perspective, Barbamon was a demon lord, evil, and an existence that needed to be exterminated.

However, from the perspective of the gods, Barbamon is merely one of their people. As long as he does not harm the world, the gods will treat him equally.

BanchoLeomon nodded and said, "The World Tree is indeed such a being. After Hide and I expressed our beliefs, we were also received by Him. At least in terms of fairness, the World Tree is impeccable."

The leader, Beanmon, clapped his hands and said:

"We can talk about the World Tree later. Now, let's continue with what happened, Armored Dragon Beast."

Armored Dragon had no objection and continued, "We were all there at the time and heard Barbamon's ideas."

"He somehow found out what Kurata had done and vehemently declared that humans would be the greatest enemy of Digimon. Rather than waiting for humans to invade, the Digital World should take the initiative and strike first."

"However, at that time, God had already sent Lord Norn to investigate, and God would not make a decision rashly before receiving any information. Therefore, Barba's proposal was not approved by God."

"Then, Barbamon changed his tune. He argued that the invasion could wait, but the Digital World needed a revolution. The current Digital World was too fragmented, with Digimon of top-tier Ultimate level scattered everywhere, like a pile of loose sand, unable to unleash their true power."

"According to him, a centralized power should be established to gather all the top-tier Ultimate Digimon from various places. This would make it easier to either invade or defend against invasions."

"To be honest, God was tempted by this suggestion. He has always been worried about the harm that humans would cause to Digimon. This suggestion is indeed a very effective method."

"However, God was in a weakened state at that time because He had separated from Lord Norn. Moreover, God knew how bloody this process of consolidation would be. Many Digimon would pay for it with their lives. This made God hesitate."

"In the end, God decided to put the proposal on hold for the time being. Everything will be decided after Lord Norren brings back the results of his investigation."

The group listened quietly to Magnamon's explanation. Even though Magnamon only gave a general outline, Bancho and the others were somewhat moved. As fellow Digimon, they all had their own thoughts on the issue of race. They also had to admit that although Barbamon's proposal was bloody, it would be an effective method should they face a human invasion.

One can imagine that these words, spoken by Barbamon, would be ten times more tempting than those from Magnamon. However, Yggdrasil remained calm and rational, living up to its name of "Kami" (meaning "Kami").

"So, the World Tree rejected Barbamon's proposal?" Emu asked, somewhat surprised.

It seems that Barbamon's fusion with Yggdrasil is now a certainty. This can be confirmed by comparing the information obtained from Assaultmon with that from Magnamon.

Emu initially thought that Barbamon, like in the next-generation manga, persuaded Yggdrasil through persuasion to fuse with it and gain power. However, according to Magnamon, Yggdrasil remained calm and rational, and was not swayed. So how did Barbamon manage to fuse with it?

It couldn't be that Barbamon forcibly fused with Yggdrasil, could it?

With his strength, he wouldn't allow it!

However, when faced with Emu's question, Magnamon said with a bitter expression, "Yes, Barbamon forcibly fused with God!"

"In his hand was a very strange machine that emitted an eerie black light, which even we couldn't break through for a while. When the light faded, Barbamon had already merged with the god!"

"What?! Such a thing exists?! It can even be forcibly fused with a god?!"

The leader and the others were greatly surprised.

Only Emu frowned, rummaging through his memories to find the corresponding information. He guessed that the strange machine that Magnamon mentioned might be the DarknessLoader, capable of forcibly performing Digi-Xros (digital fusion)!

But that's something from the sixth part of the Combined Wars series, how could it appear in the world of the fifth part?

Yongmeng was also completely confused. Moreover, the information provided by the Golden Armored Dragon Beast was not very clear, and Yongmeng was not sure. Therefore, he did not say anything, but kept his doubts to himself.