Digimon: I really didn't want to be the Digimon Emperor!

The sun in the sky is unusually warm. I wonder if this sun is the same one as the sun in the real world? Are all the digital spaces also the same sun?

Is there an extraterrestrial universe in the digital space, or the digital world?

Cheng Yuan remembered that in the fourth season of the anime, the main characters were driven to the moon to escape. He wondered if the digital space and the lunar space here really existed.

He stepped on the grass and gravel, seemingly no different from the real world.

This pristine landscape and mild climate are simply tailor-made for picnics.

"Alright, now we'll split into four teams, each led by a temporary instructor, to familiarize yourselves with the surroundings," Xu Xin said. "Be careful not to stray from your team. If you do, no one can guarantee your safety, including your instructors. The wild beasts here love tender-skinned little snacks like you."

Meanwhile, outside the Savage Valley outpost in the real world, a strange figure is lurking in the shadows.

The tall, thin young man wearing a baseball cap, "Mo"—or rather, the demon beast disguised as a human—was staring intently at the heavily guarded building with his scarlet eyes.

“Found it…” He stretched out his pale finger and made a light swipe in the air.

Just now, he clearly sensed that the dark energy within the puppy beast's body suddenly stopped, as if it had been forcibly severed by something.

There is only one explanation for this abrupt disappearance—the puppy beast entered the digital space.

"It's like finding a needle in a haystack..." Devimon's lips twisted into a ferocious arc. The past few days of tracking and surveillance had not been in vain; he had finally located the entrance to the Digital World.

It waved its hand and unleashed a skill, and a faint black mist began to emanate from its body.

When the power of [Soul's Longing] was fully activated, the surrounding air began to distort and deform.

He walked straight through the gate, and the fully armed soldiers acted as if they didn't see him at all.

On the monitor screen in the control room, the image was slightly distorted, and all images related to it were directly rewritten, with no trace of it.

"Human technology..." Devimon chuckled dismissively, "is child's play."

It was like an invisible ghost, following the flow of people to the outside of a huge crack.

It also stepped in gracefully, its black trench coat fluttering in the data stream.

Chapter 39 Encounter Battle

The reason this digital space is called Savage Valley is because its entrance is located near the area where Savage Beasts roam, and is closest to Savage Valley. It is not that Savage Valley is the only area in the digital space.

Cheng Yuan surveyed the scenery before him. In the distance were rolling green mountains, while nearby were lush river valleys and forests, with a winding river shimmering in the sunlight.

According to the map, following this river downstream will lead you to the main habitat of the Savage Beast—the real Savage Valley.

"Class representative, what are you daydreaming about?" A voice interrupted his thoughts.

Cheng Yuan then noticed that he had been assigned to Wang Lin's team, along with seven classmates and physical education teacher Cao Jin.

Teacher Cao was nervously rubbing his hands, looking like a naive young man on his first date: "Instructor Wang, shall we take a walk around the neighborhood first? Get familiar with the area?"

"This area is surrounded like an iron barrel, what's the point? Do you really think we're here for a spring outing?" Wang Lin shook her head and said, "We're here to experience battle. Let's go, head into the jungle. There are very few wild Digimon around here."

The group headed into the jungle, and after walking for about half an hour, the surrounding scenery gradually became unfamiliar.

Wang Lin stopped and said, "From here on, Teacher Cao and I will follow you at a distance. Pay attention to what Team Leader Xu Xin told you. Don't be reckless and don't feed them."

The students knew that these two would definitely lag far behind, so they weren't too afraid.

They also saw that Wang Lin's Digimon was a Flying Insectmon patrolling and detecting in the sky. The Flying Insectmon's flight speed and detection capabilities were very reassuring.

The physical education teacher's Digimon, although only a Rookie-level Terriermon, is also jokingly called a "warrior-type Digimon." Moreover, it has been training for many years in the Rookie stage and, in addition to assisting in teaching, it also insists on training, making it one of the more powerful Rookie-level Digimon.

Teachers seem to prefer partnering with Terriermon, which may be related to Terriermon's cute appearance and serious, easygoing personality.

【Flying Insect Beast (also known as Spiked Beast)】

[Data-driven insect type]

[Maturity Stage]

[Skills: Insect Bomb, Horn Thrust, Finishing Spike]

[Introduction: A rare insect-type Digimon with a humanoid form. It possesses the hard exoskeleton and agile movements unique to insect-type Digimon. It excels as an assassin, using its intelligent movements and accurate judgment to snipe at the enemy's vitals. It is skilled at attacks that silence the enemy in one strike. It is very calm and intelligent, with a composed personality.]

【Terriermon (also known as Terriermon)】

[Data-Driven Beast Type]

[Growth Period]

[Skills: Small Tornado, Blazing Flame, Big Ear Strike]

[Introduction: With large eyes and long ears, it looks very cute and is often mistaken for a toy. However, it is actually a Digimon from a warrior race, capable of unleashing power far exceeding its appearance in battle.]

Wang Lin waved a device the size of a water glass in her hand: "This is a data collector. Your task today is for each of you to kill at least one Savage Beast and collect their data into this collector."

She shoved the data collector into the arms of the nearest girl.

The girl asked timidly, "Should we...just kill him directly?"

"Otherwise what?" Wang Lin rolled her eyes, leaving her speechless with that one sentence.

Cheng Yuan knew that the Digimon in this world did not automatically reincarnate as Digi-Eggs in the Founding Village after death, but truly died. Once their data was absorbed and their Digicores were shattered, there was no way to recover.

Humans have created a series of digital data processing systems and industries. For example, the data of Digimon after they are killed is collected in various ways and brought back to the data factory for analysis, screening, classification and compression. Finally, it is packaged and compressed into data growth packages or attribute cubes through different processes, which are then consumed and absorbed by other Digimon.

If a Digimon directly absorbs the data of a defeated Digimon, it is easy to absorb too much impurity, causing data disorder, which will affect its growth and future evolution. If it is not careful, it may even evolve into an inferior Digimon, such as Numemon or Poopmon, which can easily lead to the loss of all previous efforts.

Therefore, there is a general consensus in society that Digimon partners should consume growth data packages or attribute cubes, and rarely directly absorb data from other Digimon, unless the Digimon itself possesses extremely powerful data decomposition and absorption capabilities.

After putting down the data collector, professional animal trainer Wang Lin and physical education teacher Cao Jin tacitly stepped back fifty meters, handing the stage over entirely to the students.

Teacher Cao's big-eared beast nervously tugged at its long ears, while Wang Lin's flying beast had already taken off and was patrolling among the treetops.

What's next?

"Class representative, what do you suggest? We'll listen to you," someone suggested.

Over the past month, Cheng Yuan has gained considerable prestige through both his skills and his willingness to serve as a sparring partner. Now is the time for the class leaders to play their leading role.

Cheng Yuan counted the Digimon in the team: besides his own Puppymon, there were two Sandmon, Goremon, Gearmon, Candlemon, Palmon, and Floramon—a veritable reunion of the "starter five".

As for Kang Zhaodi and Zhao Lu, they probably went to other teams to become team leaders based on their abilities.

Cheng Yuan walked ahead, silently exploring the edge of the jungle and carving marks on the trees.

As you venture deeper into the jungle, the light gradually dims, and the dense canopy filters the sunlight into an eerie green. The tangled roots on the ground occasionally cause you to trip over something.

The puppy beast, with its speed advantage and keen senses, ran ahead as a scout.

"Woof! There's a Digimon ahead!" The puppymon suddenly stopped.

"Something's up!" Cheng Yuan performed a tactical roll and hid behind a tree, and the other students followed suit, instantly lying down in a group.

Cheng Yuan stood up, crept up to the puppy beast, hid behind the trunk of a large tree, and used the Digivice to scan the direction the puppy beast was facing.

"It's a monkey beast!" Cheng Yuan whispered to the Digivice, then sent the Pokédex information to everyone.

The Digivice now serves as a temporary team communicator for everyone.

"This mischievous monkey is larger than the average mischievous monkey," Cheng Yuan said based on his observations.

He had seen pictures of the Monkeybeast in the encyclopedia and knew about its fighting habits and characteristics, but seeing a real Monkeybeast in front of him was a completely different experience.

The mischievous monkey carried a slingshot almost as tall as itself on its back, and had light green fur all over its body, covered with a fur coat made of some unknown animal hide.

"Apemon is a social Digimon." A female student's voice came from the Digivice. Her name was Wenrou, and she was a good student academically. She was in charge of keeping the data collector. "Have you found any other companions of its?"

"Wang!"

"No, but... I saw a Savage Beast." Cheng Yuan licked his lips. A group of green-skinned humanoid Digimon were waving wooden sticks and chasing after the Mischievous Monkey Beast.

The wild beasts chattered and shouted, occasionally throwing fireballs. Logically, the mischievous monkey should have already leaped up a tree and escaped, but instead of running up the tree, it staggered along the jungle path. If you looked closely, you could see that it was carrying something in its arms.

“It’s protecting something…” Cheng Yuan suddenly realized.

Just then, a fireball struck the monkey beast in the back, and it screamed and fell to the ground.

The thing in its arms rolled out—it was a digital egg with a dull, stone-like color!

Chapter 40 The Best Universities

"Woof! There's an ambush over there!" the little beast warned Cheng Yuan in a low voice.

Cheng Yuan squinted and searched carefully, finally spotting an unnatural sway in the grass in the direction the monkey beast was heading.

"Good heavens, these green dwarfs can ambush people?" he muttered to himself.

If it weren't for the little dog's reminder, he wouldn't have noticed the wild beast that blended perfectly into the grass. These creatures' green skin was practically natural camouflage in the jungle.

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

The mischievous monkey suddenly turned around and fired a series of pebbles from its giant slingshot. The pebbles accurately hit the pursuing wild beasts, exploding into sparks of data on their bodies. One wild beast reacted extremely quickly, using a wooden stick to block the attack, but the sturdy stick was dented by the pebbles.

"This aim... is about the same as the aiming I used to have when I was a kid." Cheng Yuan counted the wild beasts chasing them. "Four are chasing, and one is crouching in the bushes behind a tree, making a total of five!"

Just as he was counting the enemies, the savage beast suddenly leaped out of the bushes, its wooden club whistling through the air as it smashed towards the monkey beast's head—[Goblin Raid]!

With a muffled thud, the mischievous monkey beast collapsed to the ground. The wild beasts behind it immediately launched [Goblin Assault], and a barrage of fireballs roared in, completely engulfing the mischievous monkey beast.

"Class representative, what should we say?" came the tense voices of the students from the Dinosaur machine.

Cheng Yuan quickly analyzed the situation: "This group of greenskins is hunting in a group. There are five of them so far, and two of them are already injured. However..." He looked around, "I suggest we don't make any rash moves. Who knows if there are any of their accomplices nearby? Everyone, pay attention to the situation, be vigilant about your surroundings, and avoid any wild beasts roaming around."

"Okay!" the students responded enthusiastically.

In their line of sight, the savage behind them unleashed a barrage of fireballs at the stubborn monkey beast, then, wielding a wooden club and with a fierce glint in his eyes, approached the beast step by step.

Just then, the severely injured monkey beast suddenly let out a shrill roar and used its last strength to launch the stone-like digital egg—directed right at where Cheng Yuan and the others were hiding!

Then came a series of sounds of hard objects hitting flesh.

The scene is bloody yet subtly tinged with the colors of data, creating a sci-fi feel amidst the gore.

"Holy crap!" Cheng Yuan watched in disbelief as the digital egg flew toward him, while the gazes of the wild beasts also turned toward the bushes.

It turns out that the mischievous monkey beast in the jungle was also very perceptive and had already discovered Cheng Yuan. At this moment, before it died, it flicked out that stone egg, which seemed to be a kind of entrustment.

To make matters worse, this "saintly" little dogmon suddenly rushed forward, jumped high into the air, and caught the Digi-Egg steadily!

Following the direction in which the stone egg was launched, the wild beast also discovered the white little dog beast hiding in the woods.

Now, six pairs of murderous eyes are fixed on them.

They all raised their big sticks and rushed towards this side.

The savage beasts let out piercing screams and charged forward, brandishing wooden clubs. Cheng Yuan turned and ran, shouting as he ran, "The wind's getting stronger! Get out of here!"

Cheng Yuan took off running, the little dog beast deployed its sacred barrier to cover the rear, and the two wild beasts rushed forward at high speed. At the same time, they heard three fireballs smashing into the barrier with a crackling sound.

The little dog-like beast followed closely behind, carrying the Digi-Egg in its mouth, and didn't forget to deploy a divine barrier to block the incoming fireball. The shockwave from the explosion made Cheng Yuan's back go numb; he had no doubt that without the barrier, his back would have been blown apart.

"Damn it, I've been found out," Cheng Yuan said to the Tyrannosaurus Rex.

"How to do?"

"Change to Plan B!"

A cacophony of questions came through the communicator: "What Plan B? We don't have a Plan B!"

"We have it now!" Cheng Yuan made a sharp turn, leading the Wildman Beast to the pre-arranged ambush point. "Listen up, everyone. The Wildman Beast isn't very strong; it just relies on its numbers. But we Digimon have more of it."

"Trust me, everyone, and ambush them!" Cheng Yuan said quickly, seizing the opportunity.

He continued, panting, "I'll be the bait, you guys lie in ambush. Remember our training coordination!"

"But……"

These students are all top students, and they have received systematic training this month. With the support and training at home and school, their Digimon have grown rapidly, and their basic qualities are far superior to those of wild Digimon that act on instinct.

But since it was their first time attempting to ambush a wild Digimon, hesitation and nervousness were inevitable.

Cheng Yuan gave them a strong dose of advice: "Professional beast tamers are right here. Mature flying insect beasts can wipe them out in the blink of an eye. With a big shot backing you up, what are you afraid of!"

Five Savage Beasts, who have a total of eight Digimon, are almost two against one. Moreover, the most dangerous decoy operation is entrusted to the most agile and fastest Digimon, who can kite the enemy. What are they afraid of?

The bait tactic was a tactical template they had devised long before setting off, with the group and the Digimon lying in ambush at the agreed-upon locations.

These words were like a shot in the arm, instantly giving the students confidence. The two pangolins had already dug traps underground, their bodies covered in hard earth-based armor; dozens of sharp ores floated above the head of the ore beast; the vines of the flower beast and the palm beast silently spread through the bushes; the gear beast's flying saw buzzed, and the candle beast had prepared flammable paraffin wax...

Holding the petrified Digimon egg, Cheng Yuan, propelled by the sacred barrier of the puppymon, sprinted towards everyone.

Cheng Yuan, clutching the digital egg, charged into the ambush, relentlessly pursued by the savage beasts. Just as the lead savage beast was about to catch up with him—