The Sacred Light was in hand. The Land of Light was saved.
This was a turning point, an absolute turning point.
Upon seeing the Father of Ultra successfully retrieve the Sacred Light in the video, the audience outside the light curtain erupted with excitement.
Although the Ultra Brothers were already very strong, much of the Land of Light's true military power had fallen before they even had a chance to leave their home world.
For example, there was Ultraman 80, the King of All-Rounders; there was Ultraman Max; and there were many other powerful Ultra Warriors who hadn't had much screen time.
Many of them possessed power that was in no way inferior to the Ultra Brothers, more than enough to become the backbone of the fight against the darkness and the Swarm.
Of course, it wasn't just about raw power. The Land of Light's various divine artifacts, high-tech weapons, and equipment were also innumerable.
It could be said that once the Land of Light was fully restored, the retreat of the Swarm was only a matter of time.
---o---
Light Curtain Comments—
Utaha Kasumigaoka: "Hah... it looks like things are finally coming to an end. Once the Land of Light fully recovers, any other factions hoping to stir up trouble in the chaos will have to stop their little games."
Yukino Yukinoshita: "Speaking of which, has Ultraman King been holding out all this time? His energy reserves are just absurd. And on top of that, he even has the spare capacity to help Noa repair the gray mist between dimensions?"
Detective Conan: "The legendary superman. The number of times he has personally intervened can be counted on one hand, but he is undoubtedly one of the most powerful beings in the Ultra dimension."
Ace Pilot of the Death Squad: "Ultraman King is the final shield of the Land of Light. I'm so envious. If Earth had an Ultraman of that level, monsters wouldn't even be a problem."
---o---
[In the light curtain, on the Planet Ultra in Nebula M78, Ultraman King gave a gratified nod upon sensing that the Father of Ultra had successfully retrieved the Sacred Light.
Once the Sacred Light reached the Land of Light, he could devote his full attention to helping Noa clear the collapsing edges of the dimensions.
However... just as Ultraman King was continuing to channel his energy into the planet, he sensed another aura.
In an instant, Ultraman King's brow furrowed tightly as he identified the source of that power. "The Absolutian race... Are they after the core of the Plasma Spark Tower?"
As a supreme being of the Ultra dimension, Ultraman King naturally knew about The Kingdom. He was aware of their current predicament and could understand their desire for another energy source.
However... The Kingdom's actions were clearly a desperate, all-or-nothing gamble for survival.
"Hah, is that Tartarus, the current leader of The Kingdom? Ken, in his current state, is no match for him."
"In that case... Zero, if you can hear my voice, go and intercept him for your father..."
A light emanated from the red crystal on Ultraman King's head, instantly crossing countless galaxies to reach the Color Timer on the chest of Zero, who was currently en route to Earth.
And at that very moment...
On the other side of the universe, the Father of Ultra was returning to the Land of Light at maximum speed.
But just as he left Alien Empera's dark star system, he was ambushed!
Absolute Destruction!
A golden bolt of lightning tore through the darkness, striking towards the defenseless Father of Ultra with overwhelming force.
To ensure a flawless victory, Tartarus had used his ultimate move from the very start.
"Not good!"
Seeing this, the horns on the Father of Ultra's head grew a size larger in an instant. He leaned back, managing to avoid a direct hit from the Absolute Destruction beam, which only grazed his chest.
Although the Father of Ultra was not sent flying by the timely reaction, he was still injured by Tartarus's Absolute Destruction, leaving a lightning-shaped scar across his chest.
What was worse, that emergency evasion had caused his old back injury to flare up. He instantly lost his core support and fell to his knees on a large floating asteroid, clutching his lower back.
"To think you couldn't be taken down in one hit. As expected of the Great Captain of the Space Garrison, the leader of the Land of Light."
A golden vortex materialized before the Father of Ultra, and Tartarus, his cloak fluttering, slowly stepped out.
The entire universe knew that the Father of Ultra's weak point was his back. Now that his old injury had resurfaced, he had completely lost his ability to fight.
"Hand over the core of the Plasma Spark Tower. If you do, I can spare your life, leader of the Ultra race... Father of Ultra."
Tartarus's objective from the very beginning had been the Sacred Light. Everything else, be it Earth or the Swarm, had nothing to do with him.
Looking at Tartarus before him, the Father of Ultra clutched his lower back and stood up. "A member of the Absolutian race? I never thought you would go to such lengths to obtain the Sacred Light!"
As fellow beings of light, the Absolutians were not as pure as the Ultras of the Land of Light, but among them were warriors who fought for cosmic peace and had made many contributions.
However... the actions of The Kingdom today were like a fall into darkness, completely devoid of any semblance of light.
Although he was shocked that the Father of Ultra could still stand, Tartarus was certain that he was at the end of his rope. He said, "If your race were facing the same crisis as ours, you would do the same as I am now."
As leaders, if they weren't enemies, he and the Father of Ultra would surely have much to talk about.
It was a pity that the destruction of The Kingdom was imminent. As the leader of the Absolutian race, he had to find a way to save his people, even if it meant using extreme measures.
And as a fellow leader, the Father of Ultra, if the Land of Light were to fall into the same situation as The Kingdom, would surely make the same choice.
Tartarus thought this in his heart, but the Father of Ultra shook his head resolutely. "No matter what disaster befalls us, the Ultra race will never harm others for its own benefit, nor will we act like robbers."
This much was true. Even if the Ultramen were at the end of their rope, they would most likely try to fight their way out of the predicament themselves rather than bring disaster upon other races.
History had proven this time and again. The Ultra race was fundamentally a race of good old boys, and the Land of Light itself was a utopia.
But Tartarus didn't believe the Father of Ultra's words. He retorted, "That's just your say. Your race hasn't been pushed to that point yet, so of course you wouldn't understand our situation."
"Hand over the Sacred Light now, or else... I can only grant you death here."
As Tartarus spoke, he began gathering energy in his hands even before he finished his sentence. Clearly... he had already guessed the Father of Ultra's answer.
However... before he could get a response, a blue spatial vortex appeared in the sky behind him.
A familiar voice echoed in Tartarus's ears: "Zero Kick!!"
---o---
Light Curtain Comments—
With the appearance of the Zero Kick, the audience outside the screen collectively breathed a sigh of relief.
The many villains across the infinite dimensions, however, looked upon the Tartarus in the video with pity.
This was the third time, wasn't it? The third time he had been interrupted at a critical moment.
Though villains often die from monologuing, Tartarus was actually quite efficient. He had only said a few words before preparing to strike the killing blow. If it were any other villain, they would have already started boasting about their grand ambitions.
Absolutian Tartarus: "Despicable! Utterly despicable!! Does the Ultra race of the Land of Light always like to sneak attack like this? And Ultraman King, why... why would Ultraman King know I was there!?"
He was losing his composure. He was really losing it. If it weren't for Ultraman King, if it weren't for Zero's Aegis of Palagye, he would have already succeeded.
Yukino Yukinoshita: "Weren't you also on the verge of succeeding because of a sneak attack? Even with his back injury, do you think you could have defeated him so quickly without one?"
Universal Emperor Belial: "Hmph, truly laughable. I thought you were so powerful, but in the end, you still had to rely on a sneak attack to succeed."
Detective Conan: "A pity that Tartarus calculated everything, but he still couldn't out-calculate Ultraman King. That old man is just ridiculously strong."
---o---
[In the light curtain, Zero's leg was wreathed in red flames, looking almost identical to the Leo Kick.
This was hardly any different from when Leo had saved him last time, except that the one delivering the kick had changed from Leo to Zero.
Raising a defensive barrier, Tartarus blocked the attack.
However, following the Zero Kick were two beam techniques from Dyna and Cosmos.
Under the combined force of all three, Tartarus's barrier was shattered, and the impact sent him flying, crashing to the ground.
"Damn it! It happened again! Why are there Ultramen here too!?"
Scrambling up from the ground, Tartarus hadn't suffered much damage, but to have the prize that was right at his fingertips snatched away time and time again... it was enough to make this Ultimate Lifeform lose his composure a little.
"Hmph, as long as you are doing evil, there will be an Ultra Warrior in every corner of the universe to bring you to justice!"
Zero wiped his nose and said smugly. He was lucky he had the Aegis of Palagye, otherwise he really wouldn't have made it in time to stop Tartarus.
However... this poor Ultimate Lifeform would never have guessed that it was Ultraman King who had tipped Zero off.
Although he had just emerged from the dark star system, this area was still considered Alien Empera's territory. Who the hell would know that Ultraman King had eyes even here?
Unlike the triggered Tartarus, the Father of Ultra saw his rescuers and nodded. "Zero."
Whether in terms of power or mentality, Zero had improved significantly since their last meeting. This brought the old Father of Ultra immense relief.
And when he saw Cosmos and Dyna behind Zero, he was even more pleased.
Youth was truly a wonderful thing. The power of these children was quite remarkable even on a cosmic scale.
"Great Captain, leave this to us. You take the Sacred Light back to the Land of Light. The old man is waiting for you there."
With Cosmos and Dyna protecting the Father of Ultra, Zero turned his gaze back to Tartarus.
Under normal circumstances, he was no match for Tartarus, but with the assistance of Dyna and Cosmos, it was a different story.
"This time, I won't let you get away, Absolutian!"
Pointing at Tartarus, Zero unhesitatingly entered his Destruction-Zero form.
Seeing this, Tartarus sneered. "Hmph, is it that form that you can't maintain for long again? So what if you have two more sidekicks!?"
Although he was a bit tilted mentally, Tartarus knew that as long as he stalled until Zero's form ended, he would still have a great chance of winning even against three Ultra Warriors at once.
He refused to believe that Zero's coordination with every Ultraman could be as seamless as his was with Leo.
However... before Tartarus could start stalling, Zero suddenly lowered the blades in his hands and reverted from his Destruction-Zero form.
Tartarus was completely stunned by this. Dyna and Cosmos were also a bit confused.
But Zero just smiled. "You're right. I really can't maintain that form for long. However..."
"There is someone who can maintain that state indefinitely."
As Zero spoke, a ray of light shot out from the Color Timer on his chest.
It then gradually materialized into a humanoid figure of the same size as Zero.
To everyone's surprise, Nexus, embodied by Stelle, appeared beside Zero.
Unlike a true merge, the Nexus embodied by Stelle could exist as a perfect replica of the main body.
And the moment she appeared, the color of Nexus's body changed, adding gray and gold to its original silver base.
"So this is an Ultraman's body. It's completely different from that little dark room inside Zero."
Though it was clearly the body of a male Ultraman, a female voice emerged. Stelle clenched her fists, feeling the power of Nexus.
Seeing a fourth Ultraman appear, Tartarus completely lost his composure. His mind was on the verge of collapse.
Who was Nexus? The rumored younger form of Ultraman Noa.
Although Tartarus's knowledge of Noa's power was lacking, the raw power emanating from Destruction-Nexus was enough to make him feel a sliver of pressure.
Add to that an Ultimate Zero with the Aegis of Palagye and a non-nerfed Space Corona Cosmos... even an Ultimate Lifeform couldn't handle that.
"Tartarus! If you want to seize the Sacred Light, you'll have to step over our dead bodies first!"
Ultraman Zero pointed at Tartarus, his spirit soaring, while Tartarus remained silent.
He couldn't win... This time, he really couldn't win. Unless that great lord awakened, or he brought the other few Ultimate Lifeforms with him, otherwise, there was almost no one in The Kingdom who could defeat the group before him.
"It seems... now is not the time."
After a long while, Tartarus seemed to use all his strength to say to Zero before him, "I'll let you go this time. However... The Kingdom will absolutely not let this matter rest. Next time... it won't be just me alone."
A golden vortex appeared behind him. Tartarus slowly retreated into it and vanished.
And Nexus also gradually disappeared, turning back into a ray of light and returning to Ultraman Zero's body.
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