[Light Curtain Bullet Comments]
Archbishop of Schicksal: "Ultimate lifeform? I remember the light curtain mentioned before that the bloodline in that Reimon also came from another ultimate lifeform, Alien Rayblood. In the Ultraman universe... is there more than just one ultimate lifeform?"
Although he wasn't entirely sure of the Little Golden Man's true strength, since he bore the title of an "Ultimate Lifeform," he definitely possessed immense power. At the very least, he was a being capable of doing whatever he pleased as he traversed the cosmos.
Youkai Sage: "What a dazzling little golden man. By the way, can this little golden man actually cross between universes? And he's actively looking for Noa's traces... He seems incredibly strong."
Director of the Land of Light Meat Processing Plant: "Hmph, there has never been a shortage of people coveting the Land of Light, but... no matter what, I won't let a single one of them succeed!"
Belial: "A member of the Absolutian race? I've heard their strength is unfathomable, but looking at this... it seems he has set his sights on the core of the Plasma Spark Tower that this great me claimed."
Inside the Space Prison, Belial, who was possessed by the Ultimate Lifeform Alien Rayblood, sneered.
That golden guy was definitely not simple; that much was obvious just from the fact that he could freely traverse universes.
"But... this really pisses me off!"
"Does he completely disregard this great me? Although Alien Empera is indeed exceptionally powerful—so much so that even Ken had to tap into his True Power just to fight him—but... but having fused with Alien Rayblood's power, this great me won't lose to that golden bastard!"
Recalling the Great Ultra War thirty thousand years ago, the memories were still fresh in Belial's mind. Even with him and the Father of Ultra fighting together, they were no match for Alien Empera. To Belial at the time, that crushing defeat was a profound and agonizing blow.
Father of Ultra: "Belial, haven't you given up on invading the Land of Light? Since the video has already shown the possibilities of the future to us, then... I will absolutely never let you succeed!"
[Light Curtain Video]
Inside the Meta Field, the trial Noa bestowed upon Zero and the others continued.
Although Cosmos and Zero had both switched to their new forms, Nexus had also evolved from his Anphans state to his Junis state.
Both sides were locked in a tense standoff.
Nexus's energy reserves were practically infinite inside this space. Under Noa's direct manipulation, he could fight on almost endlessly.
Conversely, the Meta Field actively drained the energy of any organism other than Nexus. From this perspective alone, the defeat of Zero and his allies seemed to be merely a matter of time.
"Without Dyna, is it still not enough?"
Nexus—no, it would be more accurate to say a wisp of Noa's consciousness—was exchanging blows with Zero and the others through Nexus's vision.
To manifest the 'Light of Miracle', Dyna's light was indispensable. Relying solely on Cosmos and Zero, even if they managed to fuse with one another, their combined strength would still fall short of defeating the Swarm King.
The Swarm King possessed astronomically potent vitality. If it couldn't be definitively killed in a single, decisive battle, its nature dictated that it would flee to another location, continuing to bring an endless tide of disaster to the universe.
If he wanted to eliminate the Swarm King, would he really have to wait until the gray mist was completely purged to deal with it himself?
Truthfully, because Aeons inherently possessed conceptual immortality, even though Noa was completely confident he could defeat the Swarm King in battle, figuring out exactly how to permanently dispose of it was a massive headache.
It couldn't be killed, nor could it be reasoned with. Even if Noa managed to forcibly extract its concept and scatter its divine soul into nothingness, it would still inevitably return tens of thousands of years later.
Right now, while the gray mist was still present, there was at least a method to forcefully banish it back to its original universe. But if the gray mist was completely cleared and the Swarm King hadn't been sent back yet... that would be a catastrophic problem.
In short, Noa only had one goal right now: eliminate these troublesome variables as quickly as possible.
Bang—! Bang—! Bang—!
Following Noa's shifting consciousness, Nexus's combat style grew significantly more ferocious.
Taking a wide step forward, Nexus aggressively lunged his upper body. Then, using his leading foot as a pivot and his waist as an axis, he whipped his other leg into a vicious roundhouse kick aimed straight at Zero's head.
If this had happened before his form change, the only thing Zero could have done against such an attack was cross his arms to protect his head and weather the blow.
But having already transformed into his Destruction form, Zero fought with escalating ferocity, completely abandoning all defense.
What did it mean to walk the Path of Destruction?
Although the power of the Aeon of Destruction was considered to be near the very bottom among the various Aeons, the truth remained: His Path's power was the absolute most compatible fit for Zero.
The lower the user's vitality dropped, the higher their attack and defense skyrocketed. Empowered by the massive cosmic energy of the Path of Destruction, Zero lightly retreated half a step and subtly tilted his shoulder.
Absorbing and mitigating the kinetic force of Nexus's strike, Zero simultaneously snapped out his left hand and caught Nexus by the ankle in a vise-like grip.
Following up instantly, he launched a fierce right cross, his fist blurring as it slammed solidly into Nexus's upper body.
Observing this from within, Noa—the true operator of the body—nodded slightly in approval. It seemed he acknowledged the potency of this newfound power.
Because of that staggering blow, Nexus lost his balance. Seizing the momentary opening, Rei's Gomora lunged forward and slammed Nexus directly into the ground.
Using its massive bulk, Gomora quickly pinned Nexus down, rendering the silver and red giant completely immobilized beneath its weight.
Seeing this perfect opportunity, Cosmos and Zero immediately pressed the advantage.
"Emerium Slash!"
"Prominence Ball!!"
The two concentrated beams of light flew true, striking dead-center against the Nexus Armed gauntlet on Nexus's right wrist.
Under the astonished gazes of everyone present, the Nexus Armed gauntlet sparked violently, emitting the loud crackling sound of a short-circuiting electronic device.
Amidst a flurry of flying sparks and arcs of lightning, the surrounding world rapidly began to revert to its original state.
The Meta Field dissolved into nothingness, and Nexus himself vanished right alongside the dissipating energy of Cosmos and Zero's attacks.
All that remained on the battlefield were Zero and Cosmos—their Color Timers flashing rhythmically—along with Rei and his Gomora.
However, even though the battle appeared to be over, Zero and Cosmos didn't revert from their empowered forms. Instead, they remained entirely vigilant, scanning their surroundings.
They couldn't afford to relax. From start to finish, the only genuine damage Nexus had sustained was from the two finishing moves they had just fired.
Furthermore, to avoid accidentally catching Gomora in the crossfire since it was actively pinning the enemy, Zero and Cosmos had intentionally held back a significant portion of their power output.
While they didn't know the exact defensive capabilities of the Nexus Armed, they absolutely did not believe that a few restrained attacks were enough to defeat a terrifyingly strong opponent like Nexus...
"Did... did we win?"
Aboard the Space Pendragon in the distance, Oki's trembling voice finally broke the stunned silence.
As a hardcore Ultraman fanatic and kaiju expert, the sheer shock Nexus had delivered to his system was beyond overwhelming.
He had never, in his entire life, seen such a ridiculously powerful Ultra Warrior. It felt as if his entire worldview had just been shattered and rebuilt.
Even the legendary Ultra Brothers, the most famous heroes known to humanity for their past activities on Earth, would likely pale in comparison to the sheer might of the Nexus they had just witnessed.
"I... I think so. But was Nexus's actual defense really that weak?" Kumano echoed from the side. Although he was equally astounded, he managed to maintain a sliver of rational composure.
Honestly, they should probably be counting their lucky stars that this was merely a trial. Otherwise... if they had to seriously fight an enemy of that caliber, the Pendragon would undoubtedly be torn to shreds. There was no suspense about it whatsoever!
Bzzzt—!!
Just as the crew was immersed in their shock and discussion, the colossal statue of Noa situated in the center of the canyon suddenly erupted with a blinding, radiant light...