Volume One, Chapter 125: Dark Teligar

The sudden change in Ultraman Tiga’s form undoubtedly drew everyone's attention.

Golden beams burst forth along his dark body. These lights swirled and danced in the air, eventually coalescing into a figure resembling Tiga himself, manifesting before the astonished crowd.

“Two… two Tigas?” Ketsumei on the ground blinked in surprise.

Beside her, Akito’s eyes widened, equally baffled.

The newly appeared Tiga seemed somewhat weakened, as if he had just escaped from a bottomless swamp—his chest heaving heavily, gasping for breath.

Witnessing this scene, Toregia’s eyes stirred with intense emotion.

Just a moment ago, he had assumed Tiga would choose either darkness or light as his primary power.

Whichever path chosen, the other force would be completely suppressed.

But to his astonishment, Tiga had split his power entirely in two!

No one understood the implications better than Toregia.

For there was a living example in the universe: Ultraman Rejedo.

Rejedo divided his power into two parts; though he was once as formidable as Noah, the two separate beings that emerged were only star-level in strength.

Though they could recombine, their weakness was clear.

If one were secretly eliminated, Rejedo would never see the light of day again.

Of course, comparing Tiga to Rejedo might be an exaggeration.

Yet from this day forward, Tiga’s energy, talent, potential, and even soul would be drastically diminished.

One could say he would never again surpass the star-level in his lifetime.

“What a fool,” Toregia murmured, shaking his head in disbelief at Tiga’s reckless decision.

If it were him, he would rather die than take such a crippling risk.

“Why?” Toregia could not resist sending a thought directly into Tiga’s mind. “Is it worth it?”

A voice, ethereal and faint as smoke, echoed within his consciousness. Tiga paused briefly, uncertain of the voice’s owner, then smiled softly and replied, “Because… I want everyone to smile!”

His tone and gaze were imbued with a resolve and faith that ordinary people could scarcely comprehend.

“Smile?” Toregia’s expression faltered.

This was the first time he had ever heard anyone set such a ridiculous goal.

He did not understand—and thus, he was curious.

Because in Tiga’s eyes, he saw no pretense.

Unlike those from the Land of Light, who always claimed to embody brightness yet constantly engaged in hypocrisy.

“Hmph!” At the thought of the Land of Light, Toregia’s nose involuntarily emitted a snort.

He had truly had enough of them.

Sensing a sudden surge of energy nearby, Tartaros glanced sideways and coldly commanded, “Do not act rashly without my orders.”

Well, well!

Toregia’s eyes narrowed sharply, his anger rising.

Honestly, if he were not currently under someone else’s control, he would have no qualms about giving Tartaros a couple of slaps to teach him a lesson.

But alas, he could neither do so nor had the power.

Because his life was now in Tartaros’s hands.

At that moment, Diabolo, who had been silent all along, spoke with disdain and contempt toward Toregia: “You? Once a legendary warrior?”

Toregia said nothing, merely casting a cold glance at Diabolo.

He was no fool; why waste time arguing with a dog?

But ignoring Diabolo only fueled the latter’s displeasure.

Diabolo’s temperament matched his imposing physique—tall, burly, and hot-tempered.

So, Toregia’s disregard made him instinctively believe he was being looked down upon.

Naturally, Toregia had no interest in conversing with such a brute; after that glance, he focused all his attention back on Tiga.

“You bastard!” Diabolo roared in anger, preparing to confront Toregia, but was stopped by Tartaros: “Don’t forget our objective. Behave yourself!”

“Hmph!”

Since Tartaros had already offered him a way out, Diabolo begrudgingly held his tongue, snorting coldly before turning away.

Meanwhile, Tiga had already engaged in combat with Dark Tiga.

The two appeared evenly matched, locked in a stalemate with neither able to gain the upper hand.

Then, the Dark Trio intervened.

Having waited thirty million years for this moment, Karumira fumed upon seeing the sudden emergence of a light version of Tiga.

“So you’re the culprit!” she snarled.

In her eyes, Tiga’s betrayal must have been caused by this extra Tiga.

And indeed, reality confirmed her suspicions.

With two Tigas present, Karumira naturally assumed the dark one was her former lover.

As for Gengo… he was dead.

“Attack!” Karumira commanded.

Hitram charged forward to grapple with Tiga, while Dagon approached Dark Tiga with a complex expression, extending his hand.

As the mightiest dark warrior thirty million years ago, Dark Tiga’s place in his heart was unshakable.

Yet Dark Tiga coldly brushed aside his hand, showing no gratitude.

Not only that, Dark Tiga seized the moment when Hitram’s back was exposed to launch an assault.

“Ah! What are you doing?!” Dagon cried out in shock.

“What’s going on?” Karumira was dumbfounded.

Hitram was flung far by Dark Tiga, rolling several times before standing dazed and muttering, “Did he go berserk?”

As if to confirm this, Dark Tiga unleashed a wave of dark energy that swept across the battlefield.

Boom—

In the ensuing explosion, Tiga and the Dark Trio were all blasted away, crashing heavily to the ground.

“…” Toregia seemed to sense something, his eyes narrowing slowly as he murmured, “It seems that part of the power lacks a dominant consciousness.”

If that was the case… Toregia suddenly stepped forward, red light flashing in his eyes, and a terrifying magnetic field instantly enveloped Dark Tiga.

“You!” Karumira spun around sharply, staring at the suddenly appearing Toregia with shock.

But as she sensed the immense power he unleashed, a chill ran down her spine. She shouted urgently, “Release my Tiga!”

Before she finished, her long whip sliced through the air toward Toregia.

Yet before the whip could reach him, a golden light forcefully repelled it from afar.