In the vast expanse of the cosmos, the suffocating blackness began to recede, replaced by a silent, empty void.
The Swarm vibrated their elytra, roaming solitarily through the universe like lost butterflies, or perhaps, like a starving pack of wolves.
The starlight, faint and dim, seemed to seep through the gloom, a mixture of clear, bright, and bewitching violet. As far as the eye could see, in every direction, the field of vision was filled with a faint, pale crimson, with barely visible wisps of delicate golden threads—a distant and gentle tranquility.
No matter how many times one witnessed it, no matter how deep the terror of the Swarm was, the colors that adorned this starry canvas were always so mesmerizing, so captivating that one couldn't help but want to immerse themselves within it and never wake up...
And amidst that endless starry sky, countless other colors seemed to weave and interlace.
"Emerium Slash!!!"
A beam of brilliant emerald light erupted from the green crystal on Zero's forehead. A single, sweeping blast annihilated tens of thousands of bugs.
Having obtained his new weapon, Zero seemed to possess a near-infinite supply of energy, completely unconcerned about the weakening effect this universe had on him.
With the Aegis of Palagye, Zero's power had grown exponentially.
When he had fought the Swarm before, he could certainly win, but the energy consumption was far too high.
This was especially true when the bugs got close; the wing dust that fell from their elytra could sap his stamina.
Furthermore, due to the unique characteristics of the Swarm, the larger their numbers, the more powerful and complex their special individuals and collective abilities became.
"So, the only way to deal with these guys is to use beam techniques."
Zero rubbed his nose, then fired another cutting attack from his palm, obliterating a Sting-Wing that had tried to ambush him from behind.
"But still, this is ridiculous. By human time, it's been less than three short days since I arrived in this universe and went through Noa's trial, yet the Swarm has already grown to such a massive scale."
Zero looked up. The bugs, whose antennae were long enough to measure galaxies, were packed so densely that even someone without trypophobia would be horrified into developing it.
Compared to the Aeon of Propagation, this Swarm King's reproductive ability seemed to be no less inferior. After all, it was a creature that had inherited the power of the Path bestowed by Tayzzyronth itself; it could be considered the Aeon's direct offspring.
Of course, the environment it was born into was also a major factor.
Although the light curtain hadn't described it, in the galaxy where Tayzzyronth resided, thousands of civilizations were resisting the expansion of the Propagation.
The Swarm King, in contrast, had only encountered planets that were either pure resource worlds or populated by primitive civilizations that posed not even the slightest threat to it.
"Zero Cluster Beam!!!"
Forming an "L" shape with his arms, Zero fired a powerful, wide-ranging beam from his right arm. This was already the eleventh time he had used the Cluster Beam.
Adding in the Emerium Slash, Eye Slugger attacks, and Ultra Psychokinesis, even Stelle had lost count of how many skills Zero had unleashed.
"This is a real pain, Zero."
Watching Zero fight, Stelle couldn't help but let out a yawn.
Although an Ultraman could only maintain combat for three minutes on Earth, that restriction didn't apply in space.
Not to mention, Zero's fighting spirit was currently maxed out, and he was armed with a divine artifact like the Aegis of Palagye.
"Don't you have a skill that can just wipe this star system clean in one shot?"
With her hands on her hips, listening to the incessant buzzing of wings around Zero, Stelle complained in his mind.
At this rate, the fight would drag on forever. By the time she got back, the Trailblaze crew would have probably completed their entire original star-chart route.
"Wipe the star system clean in one shot? Are you kidding me!?"
Zero dodged a teeming tide of bugs, his face turning dark.
It was easy for her to talk. A feat of that magnitude was probably something only the old man could pull off.
Then again, if it were the old man, this so-called Emanator of Propagation would be nothing more than a pest he could crush with a casual swat.
Wait a second...
Gazing at the Ultimate Zero Sword formed from the Aegis of Palagye in his hand, Zero recalled the image of Noa.
Although he didn't know Noa's name or his great deeds, he understood one thing with absolute clarity.
Ultraman Noa was a powerful Ultra, no weaker than the old man. His god-like power was more than enough to effortlessly scour a galaxy.
"Scour the galaxy, huh."
Zero wiped the blade of the Ultimate Zero Sword. "Watch closely, Stelle. I'm about to scour this galaxy for you right now!"
As his words fell, Zero broke away from the surrounding Swarm and flew higher into the starry sky.
"Zero... don't tell me you're planning to?"
Ultraman Cosmos, in his Corona Mode, waved his hand and cleared away several waves of the Swarm army, then looked up toward Zero's ascending position.
The Aegis of Palagye on Zero's body seemed to gain a consciousness of its own, detaching itself from his form naturally.
It then reassembled on Zero's left arm, transforming into a weapon that resembled a bow.
"This Aegis of Palagye is a divine artifact that Noa poured his heart and soul into creating. If a warrior of his caliber had to expend such immense effort, its true power... is far greater than we can imagine, Stelle!"
His right hand pulled back a bowstring made of pure light, drawing the bow into the shape of a full moon.
"Ze... Zero, are you using your ultimate move to clear out minions?"
Feeling the power gestating at Zero's fingertips, Stelle spoke out in astonishment from within his consciousness.
Just like the arrows of Lan, the Aeon of the Hunt, this Palagye Bow might actually be able to scour the entire star system.
"Weren't you the one who told me to scour the galaxy?"
"In any case, this is a good opportunity to test this new equipment. Let's fight with all our strength!"
"HRAAAAGH—!!!"
Particles of blue energy continuously gathered on Zero's arm, then coalesced onto the arrowhead at the front of the Aegis of Palagye.
Then, the light condensed more and more, nearly draining all the energy from Zero's body, yet it still hadn't reached its critical point.
"Ultimate Luminous Arrow!!!"
BOOOOM!!!
A blue arrow of light soared through the star system. This single arrow, unleashed by the Aegis of Palagye, merely streaked past, and in its wake, billions of Swarm drones were incinerated, vanishing into tiny sparks in the starry sky.
And that... was just the aftershock of its energy.
The sky-blotting Swarm couldn't even get close before their bodies were pierced and disintegrated by the beam's energy along its path.
At the very rear center of the Swarm, the Swarm King, who had been commanding from behind, witnessed this unstoppable attack and was frozen in a state of utter shock.
Its biological instincts screamed at it that if this attack... were to land on its body, it would be crippled, if not killed outright.
Even the Aeon of Propagation itself could not possibly take such a blow without taking any action.
---o---
[Light Curtain Bullet Comments]
When the Ultimate Luminous Arrow appeared, the mouths of audiences across the infinite multiverse dropped wide open in disbelief.
The light curtain had said Zero's power had grown exponentially, and the viewers had originally thought it was just a figure of speech.
But looking at it now, the light curtain had been far too conservative.
As Leo's disciple, Zero's starting point was already incredibly high; even some of the classic, older Ultras were no match for him.
And after obtaining the Aegis of Palagye, Zero's strength was now downright terrifying. He had completely and utterly surpassed the Emanator of Propagation.
Absolutian Tartarus: "The Aegis of Palagye, a divine artifact Noa painstakingly created? How could this be..."
He was panicking... The Little Golden Man was starting to panic. As an Ultimate Lifeform, he had originally never even considered Zero a threat.
In his eyes, Zero was just some brat from the Land of Light with a bit of talent.
But when Zero obtained the Aegis of Palagye, Tartarus could no longer remain calm.
Even if he could still overpower or even defeat Zero now, it would no longer be the effortless task it was before.
"The Land of Light... just how many more terrifying beings is it hiding!?"
Bathed in the golden light of his Kingdom, Tartarus muttered to himself, his heart filled with a deep apprehension toward the Land of Light.
King of Heroes: "A truly praiseworthy, peerless divine weapon. If it were to appear in this King's treasury, it would surely make many other treasures lose their luster."
Wiping a star system clean in a single blow?
Gilgamesh glanced at the Sword of Rupture in his hand and suddenly felt it wasn't so special anymore. In the face of that level of power, even Ea's heaven-and-earth-sundering ability seemed so dim.
Charging at the Jeep: "As expected of my son! You have truly become the most powerful warrior in the Land of Light!"
Horned Alien Juggler: "A divine artifact created by Ultraman Noa. Isn't this way cooler than the Orb Ring?"
Ultraman Z: "Haruki!! Look, look! Master Zero was this powerful all along? He's so awesome!!"
Archbishop of Schicksal: "Is the Emanator, a creature of pure instinct, feeling fear? It seems that Zero's current self is now completely above it..."
At this moment, he was extremely curious about how strong Zero had truly become.
The light curtain had mentioned that the Aeon of the Hunt could, like Zero, wipe a star system clean in a single shot.
In other words, had Zero already reached the level of an Aeon from another world?
However, due to the lack of information, he couldn't be certain.
Judging by Zero's strained appearance, this attack had taken a heavy toll on him. And the video hadn't shown the aftermath for the Aeon of the Hunt after scouring a galaxy, nor had it specified the Aeon's status and strength among the other Aeons.
But one thing was certain: the current Zero... was now more than strong enough to defeat the Swarm King.
---o---
[Light Curtain Video]
Trillions of Swarm drones were obliterated from the star system, and the entire galaxy trembled with the shockwave.
Zero's Ultimate Luminous Arrow had originally been aimed directly at the Swarm King's position.
However, after traveling for dozens of light-years, its offensive power was gradually depleted by the billions of bugs that stood in its path.
By the time it reached the Swarm King, while it still possessed offensive capability, it was no longer able to injure the King's body.
"Huff... Huff..."
Expending all the power in his body in a single shot, Zero felt incredibly exhilarated, but it wasn't so pleasant for Stelle inside him.
"So... so tired. Now even I'm exhausted."
The power of the Stellaron was being continuously drawn by Zero, which had plunged the "Stellaron spirit," Stelle, into a state of fatigue.
After all, she also needed a little bit of the Stellaron's power to replenish herself, but now Zero had taken it all.
"You're done already? The real fight is just getting started!"
Flexing his wrist, the Aegis of Palagye reappeared on Zero's body. He pointed his sword at the Swarm King and spoke to Stelle within.
For Zero, the reckoning with the Swarm King was just beginning.
"Can you fire that last move one more time?"
Stelle clutched her dizzy head and opened her eyes to look at the distant Swarm King.
After blocking that fully charged Ultimate Luminous Arrow, the Swarm King was still in a slight daze.
If he charged it up again now, he should be able to finish it off easily.
But Zero shook his head with regret. "Probably not. I used up almost all the energy Noa gave me in one go. Relying on just the Stellaron to recover is a bit too slow."
"But, the remaining bugs are no longer a threat. We can just go straight for the Swarm King."
Zero floated in the starry sky. Before him was a dead, empty void. Thanks to the power of the Ultimate Luminous Arrow, he was now face-to-face with the Swarm King.
A murderous aura began to spread through the cosmos. Even across the vast distance, this killing intent crackled between Zero and the Swarm King.
Speaking of which, there was one more important thing Zero had yet to accomplish.
His father, Seven, along with Ultraman and Ultraman Jack, had been defeated by the Swarm King and had disappeared without a trace into the Swarm.
He didn't know if, in his absence, his uncles had managed to rescue his father and the others.
In any case, the battle with the Swarm King now was a settling of all scores, new and old.
"Stelle, can you still hold on? Help me enter my Destruction form. This guy is absolutely no match for me now!"
Zero said to the dozing Stelle inside him. In his Destruction form, all his stats would increase. Combined with the Aegis of Palagye, he couldn't even imagine how powerful he would become!
"Let's go together then. Best to make this quick!"
As Stelle's voice faded, a gray-white light once again enveloped Zero's entire body, transforming the colors of his form.
"Alright, let's go!!"
Zero became a streak of light, a long luminous tail trailing behind him as he charged toward the Swarm King's position.
—Destruction-Zero Cluster Beam!!!
While still in mid-air, Zero fired his beam without hesitation, attempting to break through the Swarm King's defenses first.
Because it was fused with the power of the Path of Destruction, the range and power of the Cluster Beam far surpassed that of Zero in his normal state.
The Swarm King vibrated its wings, raising its sharp insectoid claws in front of its body to barely block the attack.
Perhaps because Zero now posed a genuine threat, the Swarm King did not engage in a one-on-one duel with Zero using its massive body as it had before.
Instead, the Swarm King began to contort and compress its own body, eventually shrinking down into a giant insect roughly the same size as Zero.
"Not going to drag that huge body around anymore? Good... this will be more interesting!"
Zero shouted. The Ultimate Zero Sword in his hand extended infinitely, forming a massive blue blade of light, which he then brought down, slashing towards the Swarm King's body.
---o---