Knights of the Digital World

The two royal knights standing opposite him were like self-made business tycoons, equally wealthy, but even more adept at using every penny wisely.

In this way, how can a hothead be a match for a business tycoon?

"Let's finish him off. Seeing Belphemon act like this is a disgrace to the Seven Great Demon Lords."

As royal knights who protect the security of the online world, they have also fought against the seven demon kings. Although they are opponents, they also acknowledge each other's strength.

This is the pride of the ultimate entity, which is also the pinnacle of the digital world.

However, the Belphemon controlled by Kurata in front of him had no demeanor of a demon king at all. Instead, it looked disheveled and dejected, losing face as a top-tier ultimate form.

Gallantmon and Gyromon's two probing attacks had already revealed Belphemon's true strength.

Although its energy level is still at the top-tier ultimate level, its combat awareness and ability to use techniques are at most at the complete level. Or even less.

This level of skill was most likely achieved because Kurata received a portion of Belphemon's consciousness.

There's no need to be afraid of such an opponent; just take him down quickly!

"Odin's Breath!"

"Pure Land of Bliss!"

This time, the eight-legged horse-beast made the first move. He swung his right-hand holy shield, "Land of Mist," releasing a stream of extremely cold air.

The Belphemon, which had been burning from the scorching light arrows, was suddenly plunged into the freezing cold, shivering and cracking all over its skin.

Then, a halo of light appeared on Gallantmon's shield "Aegis," and burning Digi-Souls were injected into it, sending a thick beam of light straight toward Belphemon.

"No!!! I won't let it end like this!!!"

Kurata shouted in frustration, all the resentment, unwillingness, and fear in his heart surging forth. A layer of gray-black Digimon appeared on Belphemon's body, blocking Gallantmon's ultimate attack.

"what?"

Crimson Knightmon lowered its Holy Shield, staring in disbelief at the scene before it.

At this moment, Belphemon was shrouded in a layer of gray-black digital soul. Just looking at this layer of digital soul could stir up all the dark emotions in one's heart.

"Is this Kurata's digital soul? It's truly an evil force."

"Gallantmon, feel it, Belphemon seems to have changed."

Both Gallantmon and Gyromon felt a pang of fear. After this layer of Digimon appeared, Belphemon seemed to be undergoing some kind of change.

"Ring ring!"

The alarm clock clutched in Belphemon's arms vibrated. Belphemon shook its head uncomfortably, its entire body swelling up into a massive, muscular behemoth. Behind it, three pairs of bat wings unfurled, releasing energy that formed wisps of thin black mist. Within the mist, Belphemon's crimson eyes flickered, sending a chill down one's spine.

This is Belphemon - Rage Mode!

"Hahahaha! This is the true power of the Demon King!!!"

Kurata felt an even more surging power than before and couldn't help but burst into laughter.

This transformation wouldn't have been possible without the help of Kurata's previously unleashed Digital Soul. Now, Kurata's compatibility with Belphemon has greatly improved, and his control over this form has also increased significantly.

Even a naive young man who has been through a lot of harsh realities in society will eventually improve!

"You've gotten much stronger. You're barely getting a bit of the aura of the Seven Great Demon Kings. But it's still not enough! Eight-legged horse beast, go!"

Crimson Knightmon flicked its cape, raised its holy lance "Gram," and charged forward.

The eight-legged horse-mon was not stunned by Belphemon's transformation. It raised its holy shield "Mist Country" and sprayed out an extremely cold airflow once again to control Belphemon.

"Hmph, I'm not the same person I used to be. Midsummer Flower!"

Kurata roared, black flames bursting from the places where the chains bound his body, forcing back the charging Crimson Knightmon and colliding with the "Breath of Odin" released by the Eight-Legged Horsemon, which canceled each other out.

"The Royal Spear!"

Gallantmon leaped back a few steps, dodging the black flames, and charged at Belphemon once more.

"A Dark Gift!"

Belphemon extended its claws, wreathed in hellfire, and slashed down at Gallantmon's spear.

Kurata realized that the two opponents were definitely not nobodys; they were likely on par with the Seven Demon Kings. He figured he should focus on the battle, or he wouldn't even know how he died.

Therefore, Kurata became much quieter and focused on controlling Belphemon.

Kurata gradually absorbed some of Belphemon's combat-related experience, memories, and skills, and for a time, he was able to fight the two Royal Knights to a standstill.

"So strong... Damn it, I really want to join the battle too!"

He watched from afar, clenching his fists, looking very unwilling.

Emu shrank to the side, remaining silent. Originally, it was Daimon Masaru who was supposed to deal with Kurata, but because of him, the battle was prematurely triggered. Yamato Agumon S hadn't yet grown to a level sufficient to join the fight. In fact, he hadn't even reached the Perfect level yet, and could only watch from the sidelines.

Emu silently apologized to Dai in his heart, but he didn't regret his decision. The sooner Kurata was arrested, the more tragedies could be avoided. In comparison, Dai's growth could take its time.

"However, do Gallantmon and Gyromon really need to fight Belphemon for so long even when they team up? Is Belphemon that strong?"

As Emu looked at the stalemate on the battlefield, questions popped into his mind.

To be honest, Belphemon is very strong, but Belphemon controlled by Kurata is much weaker. In the original TV series, the main characters could defeat him even if they worked together.

And what about Gallantmon? It utterly crushed the main characters the moment it appeared. Even when Eight-Legged Horsemon came to their rescue, it was severely injured.

With such a ruthless person and the assistance of the eight-legged horse beast, how could he not be able to deal with a Belphemon controlled by Kurata?

So how did they win back then?

While Emu was filled with questions, Gallantmon finished another round of competition with Belphemon, and with a graceful backflip, landed next to Marmomon.

"How was it? Did you get the hang of it?"

The eight-legged horse-beast asked as it fired light arrows.

"Ah, the test is over. Although my strength has increased significantly after the transformation, and my combat experience seems to have improved a lot, I'm still not good enough. It seems like he doesn't have any hidden moves left. I can finish him off with the next move."

Crimson Knightmon answered calmly.

The sudden transformation of Belphemon had startled the two Royal Knights.

Belphemon is, after all, a Digimon at the pinnacle of the Digital World, just like them, so it's not an exaggeration to be extremely cautious.

Faced with such an opponent, Crimson Knightmon and his companions were unwilling to go all out before they could get a general idea of ​​the opponent's strengths and weaknesses.

Going all out may seem powerful, but it also means there's no room for maneuver. A stalemate is inevitable during an offensive.

If you don't understand your opponent's strengths and weaknesses and make a move carelessly, you might give them an opportunity to turn the tables and kill you.

Therefore, Gallantmon was willing to spend more effort to find out the details of the other party.

Of course, ordinary Ultimate-level monsters aren't worth Gallantmon being so careful about. Like in the TV series, when facing the main characters, Gallantmon just unleashed its full power right in their faces and still won.

Only a top-tier Ultimate-level monster like Belphemon, even if it performs poorly, requires Gallantmon to carefully test it.

This is the deterrent power of a top-tier ultimate form!

Chapter Nineteen, The Curtain Falls

Kurata was unaware that Crimson Knightmon had figured out his secrets and was preparing to end the battle.

Kurata was already immersed in an unprecedented pleasure.

He was captivated by the thrill of harnessing the power within his body and feeling his combat experience constantly improving.

His victory in the battle against the Crimson Knight was an evenly matched one, which was the best reward for him.

How long did it take him to go from being one-sidedly beaten to a 50/50 match? What does it mean to be a super genius? (Leans back tactically)

Kurata was incredibly excited. As he watched Crimson Knightmon charge forward once again with its Holy Lance "Gram," he, as always, raised his claw and slashed down.

"The Royal Spear!"

"A Dark Gift!"

The moment Kurata's claws clashed with Crimson Knightmon's Holy Lance, he sensed something was wrong.

In previous clashes, Kurata and Gallantmon were evenly matched, neither able to gain the upper hand. But this time, Gallantmon's power was several times greater than before!

Not only is the power increased, but the digital soul infused into Gallantmon has also increased nearly tenfold!

Kurata could feel the immense force, like Mount Tai pressing down, about to deflect his claws and strike him, and he screamed in terror.

At this moment, Kurata once again unleashed his digital spirit.

The digital soul is a manifestation of willpower. Therefore, one can judge a person's character by their digital soul.

In the face of life and death, humans often unleash unexpected potential.

Kurata had previously blocked Gallantmon's "Elysium" attack by relying on the burst of his DigiSoul.

However, having learned its lesson once, how could Crimson Knightmon possibly fall twice in the same place?

He had long been prepared for Kurata to unleash his Digital Soul.

Even human breakthroughs must adhere to basic principles. No matter how unexpected potential is unleashed, there must be untapped potential within you.

The digital soul depends on human consciousness. A firm belief and positive emotions can both provide power for the digital soul.

Conversely, negative emotions can also become a source of power for the Digital Soul. However, such power can easily lead to a person going berserk and turning evil.

In the original story, Dai was corrupted by Thomas's feigned betrayal and used Dark Digimon Soul, causing ShineGreymon to go berserk on the spot.

Unlike Dai, Kurata's digital soul has always relied on negative emotions such as fear, jealousy, greed, and anger as its source.

His partner Digimon, Belphemon, being one of the Seven Great Demon Lords, is also unaffected by the DigiSoul.

However, whether it's positive or negative emotions, he needs a process of accumulation.

No one can instantly be overflowing with negative energy or full of positive energy.

These are all accumulated from small things in daily life.

When it reaches a certain point, both positive and negative emotions will erupt.

Outbursts of positive emotions tend to be more gentle; most of the time, others will simply perceive that the person has experienced something happy and is simply smiling.

The outburst of negative emotions is much more intense, manifesting as crying, slamming tables, or suddenly erupting in rage and yelling. These are all external expressions of the outburst of negative emotions.

After such an outburst, people often enter a period of reflection, calmly contemplating life and remaining unaffected by emotions. As time goes by, various emotions gradually accumulate.

The outburst of digital soul is actually the outburst of emotions, whether actively or passively triggered.

Kurata's previous outburst had actually exhausted his long-accumulated negative emotions.