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

[Skills: Thermal Breath, Painful Bite, Death Tentacle Arms]

[Description: A dragon-human type Digimon that has mutated due to long-term exposure to death data. It suffers from continuous data corruption and goes into a frenzy during battle.]

Chapter 130 Scavenger Gathering Place

Amidst the murky light of data, distorted Digimon burst forth.

Some of them were corrupted by the dark virus data, causing their original form to mutate and exhibit a pathological mutated state.

Cheng Yuan's pupils contracted slightly. The mutations of these tamers' Digimon far exceeded his imagination—some had grown extra limbs, some had ulcerated skin revealing purplish-black data streams, and some had completely dislocated body parts.

Compared to the native Digimon of the Underworld, these corrupted mutants appear even more ferocious and terrifying.

"Watch out! It's BlackBudoramon and Sanddramon!"

Wang Zheng's voice came from the smoke and dust. Several black, tattered-winged Bardora beasts were chasing them, each exuding a ferocious aura.

Even more alarming, several sand dunes suddenly rose up in the desert, and sand lizard beasts and sand dragon beasts burst out of the ground, their eyes flashing with a crazy red light.

【Sand Dragon Beast】

[Virus type, mineral type, soil type]

[Maturity Stage]

[Skills: Earth Thorns, Quicksand Abyss]

[Description: Composed mostly of sand grains, this is a mineral-type Digimon that inhabits deserts. It can blend into the sand to move and hunt, often teaming up with Sandlizardmon to defend against enemies. It excels at manipulating quicksand for hunting and dislikes damp environments.]

Sand Lizard Beast

[Virus Species, Reptilian Type, Earth Element]

[Growth Period]

[Skills: Sand Claw, Sandstorm]

[Description: A reptilian Digimon that primarily inhabits desert regions and lives in gregarious, mimicking human forms. By adjusting the volume of the sand that makes up its body, it can extend, retract, and transform its limbs and tail, making it extremely difficult to spot when blending into the desert and often mistaken for quicksand. It is cunning, skilled in ambush, and often fights in cooperation with Sanddramon.]

"Form ranks!" the lean man roared.

The mutated one-eyed dragon-beast charged out first, its rotting dragon claws tearing through the air and creating a foul-smelling wind pressure.

Other tamers' Digimon also joined the battle. Although they too were corrupted by darkness, their well-trained fighting instincts remained.

The battle instantly intensified. Explosive flashes of skill light rose and fell in the darkness, the roars of Digimon mingling with the commands of their tamers. The mutated Digimon launched a fierce attack, taking advantage of their numerical superiority, but the team led by the lean man, with their excellent teamwork, gradually regained their footing.

Fifteen minutes later, as the last Black Bardoramon fled with a mournful cry, the battlefield finally returned to calm.

Only then did the lean man learn that Wang Zheng and the others had sought refuge in a wild mine to avoid the Black Bardora Beast, but unexpectedly stumbled into the nest of the Sand Dragon Beast. It was truly a double misfortune.

They rescued several of their pursuers, who were carrying bulging leather bags on their backs.

Although every member of the lean, muscular team was injured, their faces beamed with the joy of victory.

After the group regrouped, the atmosphere became noticeably more relaxed. The men carrying leather bags were surrounded by their companions, and faint rustling sounds could be heard coming from inside the bags.

These people soon returned to their original route, and among them were several tall men whom Cheng Yuan had seen in the Black Bardora Beast's lair, who were carrying those huge leather bags on their backs.

Wang Zheng nodded to Guan Yan.

With these new members joining, the team moved forward even faster.

After walking for more than an hour, they finally emerged from the desert and found themselves in a dark, jumbled pile of rocks.

Like the desert, Cheng Yuan couldn't tell how wide these piles of stones were; he simply couldn't see the end of them for the time being.

But the stones in the pile were all strangely shaped and black in color, casting distorted shadows in the dim light, giving Cheng Yuan a sinister feeling that made him extremely uncomfortable.

However, upon seeing this place, the group of people all breathed a sigh of relief, their expressions showing a sense of peace.

The black mist in the sky churned, and blue lightning flashed frequently, occasionally striking the nearby ground and blasting out a crater.

Cheng Yuan and Guan Yan were startled by this, but the others were used to it.

"Quick! The tide is coming!" the lean man urged everyone. "The settlement is about to be sealed off. Don't get trapped outside."

Everyone and the Digimon rushed inside.

Cheng Yuan and Guan Yan exchanged a glance. Although they didn't know what was going to happen, they didn't dare to be negligent and stayed close by.

Led by these people, they traversed the intricate stone forest for a long time until finally, a tall, dark stone wall appeared before them.

These stone walls are made of huge stones, each several meters wide, stacked one by one, with metal supports on the inside. The stone walls are as high as thirty meters, comparable to the walls of the former Savage Valley outpost.

The city wall was covered with a dense array of sharp metal spikes to prevent climbing, and the data debris hanging on it consisted of the dried flesh and skeletons of some Digimon, making the wall look ferocious and menacing.

Directly in front of Cheng Yuan stood a massive, heavy metal gate, with several people and Digimon standing guard on the pavilions of the city walls on either side of the gate.

The guards, upon seeing the lean man return, immediately greeted him with excitement.

"Commander Feng is back!" the guards shouted excitedly.

The metal doors slid open with a rumble, and they were ushered inside.

Guan Yan had been traveling with the group and this was her first time entering the settlement. Although Cheng Yuan and she were unfamiliar faces, the guards only glanced at them and didn't ask anything. Instead, they surrounded the lean man and Wang Zheng and the others, excitedly discussing something. They even made the men carrying leather bags and their Digimon show themselves to them, eliciting gasps of surprise.

Inside were more than a dozen unconscious baby Digimon.

The Digimon meat from these baby Digimon doesn't contain as much dark and viral data as adult Digimon, so it has fewer side effects and less pollution, and the meat is of better quality, making it especially suitable for growing children in the community.

In addition, they also brought back several digital eggs.

"Great! With these digital eggs, the children can sign partnership agreements, and they have hope of surviving!"

"That's right, only by becoming a beast tamer can you have a chance to survive in this godforsaken place!"

"As expected of Commander Feng!"

As for where the Tyrannosaurus Rex came from, it naturally came from those dead animal trainers.

Cheng Yuan glanced around the entire settlement, and the scene before him surprised him.

It's more accurate to call it a village than a gathering place.

The entire settlement was surrounded by high stone walls. All the buildings in the village were constructed of stone, were mostly simple, and primarily square in shape.

The most eye-catching thing is a high platform in the middle. This platform is several times higher than the house, and unlike the stone house, it is made of metal. In the middle of the platform, there is a power generation device in operation. The material for generating electricity is those energy mineral crystals, because I saw someone at the bottom carrying energy mineral crystals in.

“That’s our power station.” Noticing Cheng Yuan’s gaze, Wang Zheng explained, “We rely on it to maintain our basic livelihood.”

Cheng Yuan was filled with astonishment and doubt. It seemed that even in a place like the Yellow Springs, technology existed.

Near the high platform was a hall larger than the ordinary stone houses, where the group lingered and whispered. Next to the high platform was a more spacious stone hall, where the lean man led several core members inside.

Cheng Yuan heard a heated argument coming from inside, and could vaguely make out that they were discussing how to distribute the Digimon meat and Digimon eggs they had just acquired.

"You two come here for a moment. There are some managers here who have some questions for you." The lean man, Commander Feng, poked his head out from the hall entrance and beckoned to Cheng Yuan and his companion.

Chapter 131 The Flower of Darkness

Cheng Yuan sat upright on the stone chair, his expression normal. But Guan Yan beside him seemed uneasy, her fingers constantly twisting the hem of her clothes.

She glanced at Cheng Yuan furtively, then quickly lowered her head again—the promised exit to the underworld hadn't been found, and she wondered what these strangers would do to them.

They sat in a conference room with a round stone table. Stone was the one thing this place had in abundance. In this world corrupted by darkness, stone was the most common and reliable material.

In the center sat an elderly man wearing reading glasses, flanked by Commander Feng, a pale-faced man with a sinister look, and several key members including Wang Zheng.

"Please have a seat, both of you. We are all from the Eastern Kingdom, and since you have ended up here, we will naturally do our best to help each other. However, this place is indeed quite different from the outside world. Could you please introduce yourselves first, and then I will tell you about this place?" The kind-faced old man sitting in the center of the hall said to the two of them.

Cheng Yuan noticed the old man's Digimon—a shrunken Sagemon with significantly less data, but its intelligent eyes were exceptionally bright, standing quietly behind him. This gave Cheng Yuan a new understanding of the old man's identity.

"My name is Qilin. I'm a high school student and a novice beast tamer. I was accidentally caught in a spatial rift during a battle." Cheng Yuan's eyes darted around as he continued, "And this is Guan Yan, a digital archaeology researcher."

The expressions of those present varied upon hearing this. Cheng Yuan secretly observed them; these people were likely once powerful figures who had dominated the world, or perhaps even members of a pioneering group who had been stranded here to protect humanity. The chilling aura emanating from them had not diminished even after years of being corrupted by the darkness of the Yellow Springs.

The old man nodded: "Now high school students can become beast tamers... Don't be afraid. Although there aren't many beast tamers who have fallen into the Yellow Springs region, there are still quite a few. Based on the experience of the pioneering team, we have also explored the Yellow Springs region. Its most prominent feature is its vastness and expansiveness. Our abilities are limited, and we haven't been able to explore very far over the years, but one thing is certain: we have spent many years here, but we have not found the way back to the real world."

The pale-faced man suddenly sneered, "Why say so much? Just tell them the rules. Here, it's either work or wait to die."

Commander Feng frowned and said, "Deputy Commander Zhou, don't interrupt Professor Zhao. They are still young, so be polite."

Professor Zhao waved his hand and continued speaking to Cheng Yuan and the other man: "I'm saying this only to save you from wasting energy on fantasies and doing useless work. Give up those thoughts as soon as possible and focus your energy on living. Only by living can you have hope, right?"

"Although it's cruel, Deputy Commander Zhou is right. Here, everyone has to contribute to survival. Although you are only novice beast tamers, as long as you are willing to work hard, the settlement will provide you with appropriate protection."

"Many of the tamers who have fallen to the underworld are as strong as professional tamers. Although they are corrupted by the darkness and viral data of the underworld, they can still fight with difficulty. Although your Digimon are still in the Rookie stage, even if you are not proficient in combat, as long as you work hard, you can still become good helpers in the settlement."

Cheng Yuan noticed a hint of disdain flash in Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou's eyes when the term "growth period" was mentioned. He secretly became wary; this pale-faced man was probably not easy to get along with.

"We will arrange for someone to show you around," Professor Zhao concluded. "Remember, in the Underworld, only unity ensures survival."

After leaving the hall, Wang Zheng volunteered to be their guide. He led Cheng Yuan and Guan Yan through the narrow stone path, explaining the layout of the settlement: the east area was the residential area, the west area was the training ground, the north area was the plantation, and the south area was the dangerous "quarantine zone".

“That’s where deeply corrupted Digimon are imprisoned,” Wang Zheng said solemnly. “Never go near it.”

As Cheng Yuan passed by the central square, he saw a group of children undergoing basic training under the guidance of an older animal trainer.

They are the second generation of tamers who have fallen into this situation, and they are using baby Digimon hatched from the Digi-eggs they just brought back.

These children have never seen the real world, nor have they ever seen blue skies and white clouds, but their faces are filled with the light of hope.

“These children are our future,” Wang Zheng said softly. “With each additional animal trainer, the community gains a greater chance of survival.”

As night fell, Cheng Yuan was placed in a simple stone house.

Inside, there was only a stone bed and a storage cabinet, but compared to the dangers outside, it was a rare sanctuary. The little dog beast curled up beside the bed, its condition having recovered considerably, returning to its peak growth-stage stats.

At this moment, he began to think about how to allocate skill points to the puppy beast to maximize its effectiveness in this situation.

How can I best utilize my 360 million yuan in wealth?

Cheng Yuan discovered that this Underworld region possessed pure and violent dark energy and data. Within this ecological domain, both the Puppymon and Gatomon would experience severe suppression and contamination.

Conversely, if a Digimon is inherently dark-type, it will thrive in its environment.

"If we let the puppymon evolve into BlackGatomon..." Cheng Yuan frowned, "can it turn back?"

Is there any way to make evolution reversible?

"Dark Seed!" At that moment, Cheng Yuan thought of that Dark Seed.

Although the Dark Seed was intercepted by the system when Mo attempted to possess him during the battle with the zombie Satan Beast, it has already transformed into his power under the system's absolute authority.

Although you might hear that devil's snickering when you use it, you can't care about that now.

"System, remove the Dark Seed blocking status."

[Ding! Dark Seed blocking has been lifted!]

Cheng Yuan spread his hands out flat, a seed of light appearing in his left hand and a seed of darkness condensing in his right. The two seeds shone brightly and slowly rotated in his palms.

Looking at this dark seed, I seemed to faintly hear tsk-tsk laughter in my mind, but when I listened carefully, I found that there was no sound at all, as if it were an illusion.

[Wealth value: 361 million]

[Puppy Beast (Degenerate State)]

[Growth Stage: Growth Period (Temporary Degeneration)]

[Attributes: Light 17188 / Holy 6560 / Dark 5220 / Fire 5000]

[Form Stats: Beast Type 280 / Dragon Type 190 / Angel Type 120 / Fallen Angel Type 100]

【Cheng Yuan Beast】

[Attributes: Light Seed: 335, Dark Seed: 810, Others: None]

"Let's take a gamble!"

He could also find the evolution requirements for the purchased BlackGatomon from the system's evolution tree records: [Darkness: 15+, Beast Form 100+]

"System, start allocating points!"

【Ding! 】

Wealth: 261 million (-100 million)

【Cheng Yuan Beast】

[Attributes: Light Seed: 335, Dark Seed: 10810, Others: None]

He increased his wealth points on the Dark Seed, and the faint tsk-tsk laughter in his mind suddenly stopped, as if it had been startled by something.