Volume 1, Chapter 130: Ribut

With her unique abilities, detecting this was a trivial matter.

However, from the moment Barreler appeared, he had been radiating an aura of malice and the scent of blood. She had originally intended to simply extract his memories and hand him over to Dark Star for processing. Yet, after reading Barreler's memories, she changed her mind. Within them, she had glimpsed three men of unfathomable power and, with them, the hope of saving this universe. That man, Tregear, could surely shatter Dark Star!

What angered her, however, was that Barreler wouldn't reveal a single word about him, nor would he tell her how to contact Tregear.

Intercepted by Vogt, Barreler instinctively frowned and said expressionlessly, "The Master is dead."

"What? Dead!" Vogt's eyes widened in disbelief. "How is that possible? A being as powerful as him—can he truly die?"

*Yes, is the Master truly dead?* Barreler asked himself the same question in his heart. But was the dissipation of his power not the ultimate proof? His strength had been bestowed by Tregear, and it vanished with Tregear’s passing. Everything was perfectly logical.

"What about the other two?" Vogt asked urgently. "The ones called Ultraman King and Legend?" Since Tregear was gone, she had no choice but to pin her hopes on the other two.

But the moment those names left her lips, Barreler’s expression turned grim. His voice grew bone-chilling, filled with intense killing intent: "Get out!"

Perhaps startled by the sudden eruption of his aura, Vogt stood frozen, at a loss for what to do. But in the next second, she tilted her nose up, slapped Barreler across the face, knocked him to the ground, and then stepped on his chest, looking down at him from above. "You’ve really lost your mind, telling me to get out!"

"Then I will leave." Barreler forcibly shoved aside the foot pressing on his chest and, with a vacant expression, flew toward the high sky.

Vogt turned her head away in a fit of pique, ignoring him. Yet, the corner of her eye couldn't help but track him as he flew further and further away, her heart filled with a mix of anger and panic. She was angry at his stubbornness, but panicked because if Barreler flew beyond a certain range, he would be detected by Dark Star and immediately executed.

Seeing that Barreler was about to cross the red line, Vogt could no longer hold back. She stomped her foot, leaving a massive crater in the ground, and shot toward him at incredible speed. In the blink of an eye, she caught up, grabbed his calf, and swung him violently downward.

*Whoosh—*

Barreler plummeted like a meteor, smashing into the ground and creating a deep pit. Vogt landed right behind him, stood before him, and looked into his lifeless eyes. "You can kill yourself if you want, but don't drag the people on this planet down with you!"

The slaves on Occasi were refugees she had painstakingly hidden by deceiving the Dark Star mainframe. If Barreler’s momentary madness caused Dark Star to discover these life forms that should not exist, they would be executed without mercy.

"What does that have to do with me?" Barreler remained expressionless, his eyes devoid of any pity for the innocent. If this woman hadn't forced him to stay, he would have left long ago... to search for his lost brothers, Garm and Magna. In this world, apart from Tregear, those two brothers-in-arms were the only ones he cared about.

"You!" Vogt was furious, pointing a finger at his nose, yet she was powerless against him. After all, she couldn't let him actually die. If he died, how could she find those two powerful beings? How could she save the lives on this planet and reverse the fate of the entire universe, now controlled by Dark Star’s machines?

*No, I cannot let him do something so foolish!*

Having made up her mind, Vogt ignored his protests, grabbed him by the collar, lifted him into the air, and sped off in another direction.

...

At the same time, on another Earth, the battle between Diavolo and Trigger had reached a fever pitch. Trigger had used the power of the Eternity Core once more. And that was precisely Diavolo’s goal.

"This power truly belongs to The Kingdom." Seeing the violent energy overflowing from Trigger, Diavolo sneered. No longer hiding his true strength, he erupted with power, leaped forward, and clamped Trigger in a death grip.

Tartarus, who had followed, was displeased by Diavolo’s unauthorized actions, but he still hurriedly gestured to open the Narak space. After all, this power rightfully belonged to The Kingdom. Tregear’s eyes burned with desire, but restrained by Tartarus’s presence, he suppressed the urge to seize the power for himself. It was only a fragment, after all—hardly worth taking such a major risk.

Streams of power belonging to the Eternity Core were forcibly stripped from Trigger and flowed into the Narak space above. Trigger let out a painful roar, but the backlash of the Core, combined with Diavolo’s terrifying strength, left him with no energy to break free.

*Whoosh—*

Just then, a light disc descended from the sky. Caught off guard, Diavolo was struck directly, and he instinctively loosened his grip, shoving Trigger away.

"Who's there!"

Diavolo looked up in a rage, only to see a red ball of light descending to the ground. A second later, the red light vanished, revealing the figure of an Ultra Warrior. He stood tall with a resolute gaze, a bracelet inlaid with a blue crystal adorning his left wrist. As he landed, he called out firmly, "I am Ribut, of the Galaxy Rescue Force! I have come to assist—the Eternity Core!"

"A new Ultraman!" The members of GUTS-Select were stunned. More importantly, this Ultraman seemed to be one of the good guys!

"So it’s you, Ribut." The moment Diavolo identified the newcomer, his tension turned to disdain. "In that case, let’s have some fun."

"My thoughts exactly!" Ribut shouted, a flash of light appearing in his hand as a long, blue spear materialized.

"Heh!" Diavolo chuckled coldly and unleashed his Diabolic Star Punch once again. A massive fist-shaped shadow surged toward him. Ribut, not daring to be careless, hurriedly summoned an interception shield to block it.

*Boom—*

The fist slammed into the shield with a thunderous roar. Though the shield held, the impact sent Ribut sliding back dozens of meters, a testament to the sheer power of the blow.

But for Diavolo, the sight was soul-shattering and infuriating. Taking advantage of the opening, Ribut hurried toward Trigger, intending to pull him up so they could face the enemy together. But before his hand could even reach him, Trigger—having reached his physical limit—dissipated into a faint cloud of light.