Digital Hackers' Memories

"Then give it a try!"

Taking a deep breath, Arkadimon's sudden outburst was certainly unexpected by Astarmon, but it did not back down because of it.

Da da da……

It still used the "Golden Salmon" for long-range strafe, but this time Astarmon was noticeably more cautious.

However, Arkadimon was no longer the same Arkadimon it had been before. Before Astarmon's Blazing Bullet could hit it, its body had already turned into several afterimages and disappeared from the opponent's sight.

【Oops! 】

Instinctively sensing something was wrong, Astarmon was about to turn its gun around when Arkadimon appeared above its head in a ghostly manner that didn't match its size.

Boom!

The loud noise was not the sound of Arkadimon colliding with Astarmon, but rather a prelude to Astarmon's proactive counterattack against Arkadimon.

"You think I'm only capable of ranged attacks?"

With a cold smile playing on his lips, Astaromon looked at Ryuji's surprised expression and slowly withdrew his kick.

Just as Arkadimon approached Astarmon, it forcefully kicked the latter back with a powerful kick.

This fierce fighting style was completely beyond Ryuji and Arkadimon's expectations.

They never expected that this Digimon wielding the "Golden Salmon" for long-range attacks would possess close-combat capabilities comparable to Matadormon.

"Before evolving into Astaromon, I had a record of being able to fight on par with WereGarurumon."

Astamon wasn't lying, because in pursuit of ultimate and comprehensive power, it had been consciously honing its combat skills since its IceDevimon era.

Ranged, melee, magic (programmed), martial arts, ...

During that period, if any aspect of Astarmon reached the ceiling of the Champion stage, it would not hesitate to turn to another field, thus developing its own "all-rounder" fighting style with no weaknesses.

It is precisely because of this that GlaDevimon was able to evolve into Astarmon, which is equally versatile and can surpass the Ultimate level in its Perfect form, with the help of the "Vulcanus Domain".

Therefore, rather than saying that "Golden Salmon" chose IceDevimon, it would be more accurate to say that IceDevimon completely conquered this demonized weapon with its immense power.

......................................................................................................

"Next, the battle has just begun!"

As if deliberately provoking Ryuji, Astarmon muttered in a low voice, mimicking the tone Ryuji had just used.

Silence!

The next second, Astarmon's legs kicked out like a whirlwind at the unsuspecting Arcadimon.

boom! boom! boom!

One strike, two strikes, three strikes...

The raging hellfire spread across Astaroth's legs, while its rapid and agile series of flying kicks stirred up a real storm.

—Be unconventional!

In less than a breath, Astarmon had gathered enough momentum to completely take control of the situation that was gradually spiraling out of control.

Digimon capable of evolving into Ultimate level, especially those capable of evolving into Majin-type Ultimate level, possess the power to make a desperate gamble and turn the tide at any time.

boom! boom! boom!

The ferocious series of kicks continued, and Arkadimon, who had been somewhat relaxed, became serious again.

Compared to Ryuji, who did not directly participate in the battle, Arkadimon, who was at the center of the vortex, understood Asta's terror better than anyone else.

The pressure emanating from Astaroth, and its ever-growing fighting spirit, fundamentally limited its desire to escape.

Each flying kick builds upon the power accumulated from the previous one, and each brief pause is preparation for an even better attack...

After repeated stacking, Astaroth's kicking technique actually gained enough power to shatter its own shell.

Along with the karmic fire that burns away sins and never ceases, Arkadimon sensed a deadly threat from Asta.

"howl!"

Therefore, Arkadimon, possessing excellent combat intelligence, risked having its arm broken by Astarmon's kick and grabbed the opponent's thigh with one hand.

In an instant, the claw-like fingers softened and transformed into endless red tentacles that wrapped around Astaroth's body.

Worse still, these tentacles were originally the organs that Arkadimon used to destroy and absorb enemy data, but they only turned into the shape of fingers after evolving.

Now, these fingers have reverted to their flexible, tentacle-like form, meaning they have once again become tools for the Arkadimon to feed on.

—Frozen tentacles!

Buzz!

Just like the data from the previous consumption of Matadormon.

Astamon could clearly sense that its body was being frozen and absorbed, and the hellfire that could burn anything was gradually extinguished because it had lost the control of its host.

It won't be long before Astarmon is completely devoured by Arkadimon, becoming nourishment for its evolution.

I really shouldn't have engaged in close combat with this monster.

Before Astaroth completely lost consciousness, this was the last thought that flashed through its mind.

"..."

Arkadimon showed no excitement whatsoever after defeating two powerful enemies in succession, just like a lamb to the slaughter.

Don't be discouraged when you're defeated, and don't be overly excited when you're victorious...

Arkadimon is like a machine that only knows how to kill; apart from its instincts of destruction and evolution, it does not show any additional emotions towards anything in the outside world.

"Eat it! We're going to settle accounts with Zaxom next."

Influenced by Arkadimon, Ryuji also felt no excitement at defeating the enemy.

In Ryuji's mind, Astarmon was just an unexpected factor that happened during his pursuit of Matadormon, and it wasn't worth investing too much emotion in him.

Hunting down the Digimon that have invaded the human world and eliminating the Zaxom members who have led things to this point—that's the only thing Ryuji wants to do right now.

squeak...

Unfortunately, before Arkadimon could respond to Ryuji's thoughts, the tightly closed rooftop door was slowly pushed open.

"You think you can just leave a mess behind and run away? You're way too confident in your abilities!"

Accompanied by a haughty taunt, a shadowy figure, almost humanoid in shape, slowly emerged from the darkness.

Chapter Fifty-Two: Fallen Hell Beast

"You think you can just leave a mess behind and run away? You're way too confident in your abilities!"

As if to prove his point, the figure hidden in the darkness, in Ryuji's shocked gaze, shattered the arm of Arkadimon that was wrapped around Astaromon with a single shot.

boom!

It's just a simple long-barreled shotgun, but the bullets it fires are just as powerful as any military-grade rocket launcher.

No, in a sense, that long-barreled shotgun, capable of piercing the Arkadi's shell and shattering its arms, was even more dangerous than a military-grade rocket launcher.

At the very least, Ryuji didn't believe that there were any individual weapons in the human world capable of harming Arkadimon.

"Let me introduce myself. I'm just a passing mask... cough cough, a passing Digimon."

It wasn't until the figure emerged from the darkness that Ryuji and Arkadimon were able to see each other's true forms.

It was a humanoid Digimon dressed in a tight black leather suit and Martin boots, whose height appeared to be similar to that of an ordinary person.

Judging from appearance alone, this Digimon seems not much different from a rebellious punk youth going through a rebellious phase.

With its blond hair, red eyes, and eerie raven-like mask, this Digimon exudes an ambiguous, both righteous and evil, appearance and demeanor.

However, this being, which might not even reach Arkadimon's calf, posed a threat several times stronger than that of Astarmon before.

Especially that violent, all-consuming dark power; even just standing quietly opposite it, Ryuji could feel a deep-seated fear.

Without a doubt, this is an Ultimate-level Digimon, and a terrifying Demon Lord-type Ultimate-level one at that.

"Alright! It seems that without Renamon, we can't even find anyone to pick up on the joke."

Looking up at Arkadimon and Ryuji Mishima on its shoulder, the unfamiliar Demon Lord-type Ultimate... or rather, Beelzemon awkwardly shrugged.

"Hey, I'm telling you, that guy is supposed to be the future Demon King, can't you at least give him some face?"

The third eye between his eyebrows suddenly opened, and Chen Ze, transformed into Beelzemon, pointed at the collapsed Astarmon while adapting to the power he had just gained.

Thanks to Beelzemon's timely appearance, Astarmon was saved before Arkadimon could drain him dry.

As for the reason for saving the other person?

If it appeared in MetalGreymon's form, Chen Ze might say that he was moved by Astarmon's previous attempt to save people.

But for the Fallen Hellbeast, who is both true and evil, he simply didn't want to see such a future opponent die such a miserable death, and that reason was enough.

"The Gluttonous Demon King?"

After a long silence, Arkadimon, who had been behaving like a wild beast, spoke for the first time.

"Why are you here?"

A solitary dark warrior, a ruthless glutton, a legendary demon king who rules over the dark realms...

Arkadimon would naturally recognize Beelzemon, because the "Seven Sins Tower," built upon its remaining data, is the residence of the Seven Demon Lords.

"Why can't I be here?"

Beelzemon acted as arrogant and cold as rumored, and when confronted with Arkadimon's questioning, Beelzemon simply smiled disdainfully.

"No, you are not the 'Gluttony Demon King,' you are just a Fallen Hell Beast."

As if realizing something, Arkadimon's deep, hoarse voice suddenly stopped, and its eyes shone with a brightness it had never shown before.

It seems that the appearance of Beelzemon made Arkadimon realize the danger. Originally, it thought that it only needed power to destroy the world, but it began to actively use its brain.

The evolution of Digimon is never just about increasing strength; the accumulation of wisdom and knowledge is also part of the evolution process.

But before that, for Arkadimon, who was born to pursue destruction, why would it need to resort to wisdom when it could solve the problem with power alone?

It wasn't until the appearance of Beelzemon that Arkadimon, realizing that power alone could no longer solve the problem, awakened its "dormant" brain and attempted to solve the problem in another way.

"You're not as brainless as you seem, are you?"

With a rather surprised blink of its three red eyes, Beelzemon did not show any surprise at Arkadimon's words.

Because he was indeed not the legendary "King of Gluttony," nor even a proper Fallen Hell Beast.

"Become nourishment for my evolution! Strange Beelzemon!"

Ignoring the sarcasm implied in Beelzemon's words, Arkadimon launched an attack on him after a brief moment of thought.

Silence!

Even faster than the previous attacks on Matadormon and Astarmon, Arkadimon appeared in front of Beelzemon in less than a thousandth of a second.

Immediately following was the sonic boom generated by the overlapping and impacting sound barriers behind Arkadimon.

Rumble…

A violent sonic boom swept across the entire rooftop, and the terrifying shockwave even blew away the nearby railings.

Despite the fierce winds blowing across its face, the Fallen Hell Beast calmly extended its twin pistols.

boom!boom!

Two gunshots rang out in quick succession, drowning out all the sonic booms and becoming the sole sound that dominated this distorted space.

Even Arkadimon, which was prepared, had to twist and dodge in the face of these two amazing bullets, showing no trace of its previous "fearlessness" in withstanding Astarmon's firepower.

After all, Asta is only a Perfect-level Demon, while Beelzemon is an Ultimate-level Demon Lord; the difference between the two is incomparable.

Furthermore, Beelzemon's dual pistols do not pursue the characteristic of "unlimited ammo." Each shot is a specially made magic bullet with the powerful attribute of annihilating all matter.

Despite Arkadimon's arrogance about its own power, it still chose a safer approach to approach Beelzemon, learning from past mistakes.

Like now...

Tear!

The rapidly extending, hardened arm grabbed and injured the Fallen Hell Beast's arm, causing the twin pistols in its hands to fall to the ground.

Taking advantage of this opportunity, Arkadi's other arm regenerated and extended at a speed visible to the naked eye, like an octopus spreading its tentacles and swallowing the Fallen Beast whole.

Caught off guard, even a powerful Fallen Hell Beast would suddenly find its vision going black before its body was tightly bound and enveloped by those tentacles.