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

"Well done, BlackGatomon!"

Hearing Cheng Yuan's shouts from not far away, Wang Zheng muttered incredulously, "That's... Qilin's Digimon?"

He clearly remembered that Qilin's Digimon was a white puppy, so how did it suddenly turn into a black cat? And it even evolved to the Champion stage!

What shocked him even more was the black cat's proficiency with dark powers!

In all his years in the Underworld, he had never seen anyone control dark energy so precisely—the corrupted Digimon always used dark power with rage and chaos, but the dark power this black cat wielded was remarkably stable.

......

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Eight Shadow Orbs, like precision-guided missiles, struck four Sand Lizard Beasts in succession. These dark energy orbs were not only incredibly fast, but upon impact, they also unleashed a highly corrosive black mist, rapidly disintegrating the opponent's data structure.

"Well done!" A tamer gave Cheng Yuan a thumbs up. His Digimon—a mutated Mantismon—was panting heavily; it had almost been hit by Sand Lizardmon's [Sandstorm].

Cheng Yuan nodded, but his gaze involuntarily drifted into the distance—where the battle between the two enormous creatures had reached its climax.

"boom--"

The Zombie Tyrannomon slammed its mutilated body into the original Jawed Beast, and the shockwave generated by [Bone Armor Charge] leveled the surrounding sand dunes.

Zombiemon, clinging to its last vestige of obsession, launched a frenzied attack, pushing the original Jawmon back into the desert.

The original Jawed Beast was forced to retreat repeatedly by this reckless fighting style, its drills spinning wildly on its carapace, but it could not shake off its opponent's entanglement.

The Zombie Tyrannosaurus has lost its mind and fights only on instinct and obsession. The two giant beasts fight their way to the edge of the desert.

Zombiemon's left arm had already been severed by the original Jawmon's Triple Destruction Drill, but it seemed to feel no pain, its only remaining thick red right claw fiercely clawing at its opponent's face.

[Desperate Bone Claw]!

Three blood-red bone fingers gripped the face of the original Jawed Beast tightly, with one of the fingers digging deep into its eye, causing digital blood to gush out like a fountain.

The original Jawed Beast let out a deafening roar, and all the drills on its carapace were pointed at the chest of the Zombiemon.

"The situation is bad..." Wang Zheng appeared beside Cheng Yuan at some point, his face grave. "Commander Feng, he..."

Wang Zheng whispered, "SkullGreymon is the form that Cyclopsmon evolved using 'Despair Spirit'. Once it evolves, the Digimon's consciousness will be gradually devoured by madness... Cyclopsmon may never come back."

Cheng Yuan was shocked. He then understood why everyone looked at the battlefield with such heavy eyes—it was not a simple Digimon evolution, but the final sacrifice of a Digimon that a trainer had partnered with for many years.

"Commander Feng used to be the commander of the Second Reclamation Regiment in the Imperial Capital," Wang Zheng continued, his voice slightly choked. "His partner was originally a Master Giratina. After being stranded in the Underworld, due to injuries and pollution from long-term battles, it degenerated and mutated into a mature Cyclops... At the same time, because of his years of wandering in the Underworld, Commander Feng mastered a spiritual power called Despair. This power, guided by the Digivice modified by Dr. Zhao, can allow Cyclops to evolve into the Zombiemon before us. I heard that Commander Feng only used this power once before!"

Cheng Yuan was surprised.

He recalled the first time he met Commander Feng, the weariness and resilience hidden deep in the eyes of that lean man.

He can understand digital spirits such as light, courage, knowledge, and even darkness, but can an emotion like "despair" be cultivated into a digital spirit? What kind of despair must one experience for the seed of despair to grow to this point?

"boom--"

A deafening explosion interrupted Wang Zheng's words.

To everyone's horror, the spine of the zombie tyrannosaurus suddenly split open, and a strangely shaped organic missile slowly rose into the air.

Zero cruise missile!

"Get down!" Wang Zheng grabbed Cheng Yuan and pressed him down on the sand.

The missile emitted a long trail of flame and directly struck the original Jawed Beast. The Zombiemon used its broken body to hold onto the original Jawed Beast tightly, ensuring that the attack would hit its target.

A blinding white light engulfed the entire field of vision. Even from hundreds of meters away, the shockwave still sent everyone flying. When the light dissipated, only a giant crater nearly a hundred meters in diameter remained at the edge of the desert; the figures of the two colossal beasts had vanished.

“It’s over…” someone murmured.

But no one cheered in the gathering place. The animal trainers stood up silently, brushed the sand off their clothes, their eyes filled with complex emotions. The children were held in the arms of adults, some already sobbing softly.

Looking at the still-smoking giant crater in the distance, Cheng Yuan suddenly understood what the tamer's resolve was—to protect those important to him, even if he had to become a demon, he would remember his mission.

BlackGatomon had somehow returned to his feet and gently rubbed against his trouser leg.

Cheng Yuan was about to bend down and pick it up when the little guy jumped up and landed directly on Cheng Yuan's shoulder.

"Commander Feng... must be very sad," Wang Zheng said in a low voice.

Cheng Yuan didn't speak, and walked towards the outside of the stone wall of the gathering place. He saw a lonely figure slowly walking towards the center of the explosion on the distant sand dunes.

That's Commander Feng.

His back was hunched so badly that he looked ten years older, but he still walked forward with determination, clutching the old Dinosaur machine tightly in his hand.

"Why don't you go and take a look?" Cheng Yuan suggested.

Wang Zheng: "Okay, I'll go protect him. BlackGarurumon, let's go."

Cheng Yuan hesitated, wanting to say that the man was a person with a desperate spirit, and that he needed to keep a close eye on him to prevent him from doing anything foolish.

Then, it's time to address another issue.

He turned to look at the black cat on his shoulder, meeting its golden eyes.

"BlackGatomon, have you been corrupted by dark forces?"

Cheng Yuan felt that his partner's personality had changed after evolving into Gatomon.

"You think too much."

Why are you so cold to me?

"That's how it should be."

"You're not that little cutie anymore..."

BlackGatomon brandished its small, gleaming claws: "If you say 'cute' again, don't blame me for being impolite."

Chapter 134 Route

The atmosphere at the gathering place was both somber and fortunate.

People were overjoyed to have held onto their settlement, yet saddened by the sacrifice of Commander Feng's one-eyed beast.

Cheng Yuan stood outside the hall, watching the small groups of scavengers talking in hushed tones, their faces filled with complex emotions.

Commander Feng walked alone into the depths of the desert, his figure appearing exceptionally lonely.

The other managers had already regrouped in the hall, and Cheng Yuan knew this was the best time to gather intelligence. He touched the Black Gatomon on his shoulder; the little guy haughtily turned its head away, but its tail quietly wrapped around his arm.

"Let's go in," Cheng Yuan said to Guan Yan behind him. The female researcher had been looking at him with suspicion and uncertainty since earlier, clearly shocked by his sudden display of mature combat power.

Inside the hall, Professor Zhao was wiping his reading glasses, his eyes behind the lenses revealing weariness. Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou stood beside the stone table, his fingers unconsciously tapping the surface, producing a dull thud.

"The giant beast that Brother Qilin just saw is the Protojasmon, the overlord of this desert." Professor Zhao put on his glasses, his voice hoarse but steady. "In the Land of the Dead, every area is occupied by a Perfect-level Digimon lord. We have already identified at least three."

Cheng Yuan's pupils contracted slightly: "Complete forms are rarely seen in the real world, yet there are so many here?"

“Of course they’re different.” Deputy Commander Zhou sneered, his fingers ceasing their tapping. “This is the sealed land of the Digital World, not the real world outside that has only been integrated for less than twenty years.”

His gaze swept over the Black Gatomon on Cheng Yuan's shoulder, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes: "This attack removed the threat of the original Jawmon overlord of the desert, but it did cost us Commander Feng's combat strength. Fortunately, these overlords generally only guard a few fixed locations and don't move easily, so they're not a big threat to us. If Wang Zheng hadn't done something stupid and stolen an important item from the desert Digimon's nest, we wouldn't have suffered such a large-scale attack. Otherwise, we would have had to seek refuge in another settlement."

Cheng Yuan astutely picked up on the key information: "Judging from what Deputy Commander Zhou said, there are other gathering places in the Huangquan region?"

“There are always seven or eight places.” Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou walked to the wall and ran his finger along the rough stone wall. “It’s a mixed community of people from major Eastern countries, Japan, Borneo, and even small Southeast Asian countries. Most of them are lost souls from Eastern countries.”

Professor Zhao continued, his voice heavy: "The resources for survival in the Yellow Springs region are extremely scarce. Apart from a few dark plants that are barely edible, everything else is highly poisonous. Even more terrifying is that if we stay here for a long time, our bodies will gradually become 'data-driven'..."

“So here, everyone must prove their worth.” Deputy Commander Zhou’s voice suddenly turned cold. “Otherwise, they will have to leave the settlement and fend for themselves.”

Cheng Yuan felt the Black Gatomon on his shoulder tense up. He gently stroked its jet-black fur and continued, "This place is called the Underworld Region. Could it be related to the legendary Netherworld? Is there a way to restore a Digimon's dark mutation to its original state? Most importantly, I don't want to stay here. I want to return to the real world. Professor Zhao and Vice Commander Zhou, if you have any useful information, please share it with me."

A brief silence fell over the hall.

"Go back? If there really were a way back, would we still be stuck here, living this precarious life every day? You know, the people here are all professional animal trainers in the real world, the best of the best. And the children born here, they've never seen the sky, the ocean, or the green trees. Do you think we don't want to go back? Our relatives and friends are all out there. Do you know where Commander Feng's spirit of despair came from? It was born after years of searching for a way out without success." Professor Zhao shook his head and sighed.

"As for what exactly this place is, and whether it is related to the 'underworld,' we have some guesses. This should be a special digital space formed by the aggregation of all data related to death and hell in the Eastern world of the real world. That's why it is so vast and the dark energy is so chaotic and dense."

"This could be something that transcends ultra-large digital spaces."

“There’s another theory,” Professor Zhao pushed up his glasses, “that this place might be part of the greatest digital threat to humanity—the ‘Dark Zone’.”

Cheng Yuan's eyes lit up: "If that's the case, can we find the passage to the outpost?"

"Ha, you know a lot at such a young age." Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou turned around, his eyes sharp. "We've thought about that too. But none of the teams that went to find the outpost have returned."

"Once you're here, is there really no hope of getting out? I still can't quite believe it," Cheng Yuan said unwillingly. In the real world, he still had his family and his dream of becoming an animal tamer; he absolutely couldn't give up.

At this moment, Guan Yan, who had been silent all along, suddenly spoke up: "Actually..."

"Shut up!" Deputy Regiment Commander Zhou interrupted sharply, "How many more times are you going to tell your absurd story about the ruins?"

Cheng Yuan looked at Guan Yan and found her face as pale as paper, her lips trembling slightly. At her feet, the adorable beast rubbed nervously against her trouser leg.

"Gentlemen, I've never heard of this before. May I hear it?" Cheng Yuan's words were gentle, yet they conveyed an undeniable attitude.

At Cheng Yuan's insistence, Guan Yan finally had the opportunity to recount her experience. Her voice was soft, yet carried an undeniable firmness: "I really didn't lie. That place..."

……

As she described her experiences, a bizarre route gradually took shape in Cheng Yuan's mind: a dilapidated palace in a towering mountain → down the mountain → a cliff → a strange stone bridge a hundred meters high and a few meters wide → desert → a boulder field.

Following the woman's memory backwards, the route involves crossing this black desert, traversing a bizarre stone bridge hundreds of meters high across a precipice, climbing a towering mountain, finding a dilapidated palace on the mountain, and finally discovering the passage...

After a long while, Cheng Yuan stood alone at the entrance of the hall, gazing at the dark horizon of the desert. Black Gatomon stood quietly on his shoulder, its golden eyes gleaming with contemplation.

"Qilin..." Guan Yan followed, her voice trembling, "Do you believe me?"

After being rejected countless times, a layer of despair had clouded her eyes.

Cheng Yuan didn't answer immediately. This woman's memory was indeed too bizarre—high mountains, cliffs, stone bridges, deserts, and finally, a belt of giant rocks. How did she survive such a treacherous route?

"I haven't made up my mind yet," Cheng Yuan finally said, his gaze still fixed on the distance. "But I have to give it a try."

At the edge of the desert, there is only darkness that devours everything.

Chapter 135 Upgrading the Arc Light Machine

Inside the stone house, Cheng Yuan sat cross-legged on the ground, staring at the Black Dilu Beast on his shoulder.

"Do you remember things from the past?" Cheng Yuan asked, "Like the lobster feast we had together?"

BlackGatomon elegantly licked its paw: "Silly question, of course I remember."

"Do you still remember where you liked me to touch you the most?"

A flicker of emotion crossed BlackGatomon's golden eyes, before it regained its haughty demeanor: "Hmph, who would remember such a trivial matter?" Its black rear end and tail swayed slightly.

Cheng Yuan sighed. Ever since evolving into BlackGatomon, it was like a completely different person—no, a completely different beast. The clingy little cutie from before had now become a cold and aloof queen, and had even become arrogant.

"Could it be that different evolutionary paths led to the split of the beast's personality?" Cheng Yuan muttered to himself.

BlackGatomon's ears twitched: "What did you say?"

"It's nothing," Cheng Yuan quickly changed the subject. "I was thinking about the Digimon of the tamers here, the dark energy on them... chaotic, evil..."

He looked at Wang Zheng and BlackGarurumon in the small square outside and scanned them using the system's [Digital Scan]:

[Wealth Points -100]

BlackGarurumon (Mutant)

[Virus Type - Monster Type - Dark Theme]

[Maturity Stage]

[Status: The digital core has been corrupted by chaotic dark energy, resulting in mutation and weakening]

[Solution: Clearing the dark contamination from the digital core will gradually restore functionality]

This reminded him of three months ago, when the Gearmon of the Security Bureau were infected by the Dark Gear, and Puppymon used holy and dark power to help the Gearmon repair their Digicores.

"Do you remember three months ago, when the Dark Gear virus was rampant, and we were at the Sheriff's Office helping the Gear Beasts clean up the Dark Gears?"

“Of course I remember,” BlackGatomon said, turning its head without any hesitation.

"Perhaps this kind of pollution can be treated using that method...?"

"Hmm, we can give it a try." BlackGatomon yawned.

Just as Cheng Yuan was about to ask further questions, footsteps suddenly came from outside the door.

"Little Qilin, is it convenient for us to chat?" Professor Zhao's voice came from outside the door.

Cheng Yuan quickly got up and opened the door.