Volume One, Chapter 87: Segan, the Destroyer

“No.” The River Spirit shook her head and continued, “They’re selecting the victorious monster to use it as a weapon of war.”

Somewhere in the cosmos, a fly-like alien stood excitedly aboard his spaceship. Behind him, a giant screen broadcast live footage of Saigon’s battle on Earth.

“This time, the auction item is the God of Time and Space Destruction—Saigon!” he announced. “This monster is the ideal product for invading planets. Now, honored guests of the universe, let the bidding begin!”

Across the universe, nearly everyone watching the live stream began entering bids on their devices.

“Sixty thousand Nacrels!”

“One hundred thousand dollars!”

“Eighty million Ultra-coins!”

And so forth.

On Earth, the monster baby’s mother was no match for the God of Time and Space Destruction. She was defeated in less than two moves, left sprawled on the ground, barely clinging to life.

“Waaah, waaah!” The baby monster cried out in distress, tears streaming down his bloodshot eyes.

Meanwhile, the Babarlian gloated, his face full of smugness as he taunted, “Fight well, or your child will be devoured by Saigon.”

Yuxing could no longer bear to watch, and roared in anger, “You have no right to trample on life!”

The Babarlian sneered, turning to look at him. “Earthling, don’t be ungrateful. If you know what’s good for you, get lost.”

Yuxing remained silent, but the fury in his chest was nearly uncontrollable. He longed to kill this alien on the spot, but the beast essence was still in the enemy’s hands—he couldn’t act rashly.

Suddenly, Yuxing noticed a human not far from the two battling monsters. The man held a balloon, and his black-and-white shirt made him stand out in the sunlight.

What is he doing? Is he trying to get himself killed? Yuxing thought anxiously.

But in the next instant, his eyes nearly popped out of their sockets.

The mysterious man released his balloon, pushed his palm toward the sky, and shot forth a beam of dark light. The energy exploded midair, forming a mass of black thunderclouds. Countless diamond-shaped waves of energy shot out from the storm, pouring down on Saigon and the other monster like a torrential rain.

Boom… boom… boom… boom…

In an instant, the area beneath the storm was transformed into a nightmarish hell, rocked by relentless explosions.

Suddenly, a razor-sharp stinger emerged from the darkness, piercing straight through Saigon’s body and mercilessly extinguishing his life.

“What’s happening?!”

The Babarlian was dumbfounded, as were the countless other cosmic observers who’d been following the battle.

The God of Time and Space Destruction, Saigon, had been killed in a single blow!

As Saigon’s body collapsed, another savage-looking monster descended from the thunderstorm. Its entire body was crimson, its eyes fierce, and two blade-like horns protruded from its head, giving it a ferocious appearance.

“Who summoned that monster?” the Babarlian fumed. “The whole show’s been ruined by that bastard!”

Perhaps the monster heard his curses, for Garuberos swung its tail with a mighty sweep.

“Damn!” the Babarlian nearly wet himself. In a panic, he dropped the monster cub and teleported away.

He escaped, but Yuxing and the River Spirit were not so fortunate.

With a deafening crash, the monster’s tail swept through the stairwell, cleaving it in half.

As the building threatened to collapse, Yuxing hurriedly grabbed the monster baby, shielding it as he dove to the ground.

Only when the tremors stopped did he lift his head, trembling with lingering fear.

But what he saw was a new energy attack launched by the monstrous newcomer.

Yuxing instinctively curled up, holding the monster baby tightly to his chest.

Boom—

A blast thundered in his ears, accompanied by a surge of wind. Yuxing opened his eyes to see that the monster baby’s mother had shielded them, taking the blow herself.

But the new monster was already charging another attack.

“What will you do now?”

A familiar voice echoed in Yuxing’s mind.

He froze, then finally came to his senses, and asked in return, “Who are you?”

“I am Taiga Ultraman,” the voice replied.

“Taiga… Ultraman?” Yuxing was stunned, but then his eyes lit up. “You’re an Ultra Warrior?!”

In this era, Earth was rife with Ultra legends; of course he’d heard of them, though he’d never seen one with his own eyes.

“Yes, that’s right.” Taiga’s voice was bright and warm. “Yuxing, take that mother and child back to their homeland.”

“Send them back… Me?” Yuxing could hardly believe it. After all, he was only human—how could he possibly send monsters away?

“Of course!” Taiga replied with certainty. “Now, become one with me.”

In a flash, Yuxing found himself in a place filled with radiant light. Before him, an Ultra Warrior reached out a hand in friendship.

Yuxing grasped it instinctively, only to find a luminous bracelet on the warrior’s arm transforming into light and wrapping around his own wrist.

At the same time, a key-like device appeared before his eyes.

“Come, Yuxing, let’s defeat that monster together!”

Though he didn’t quite understand Taiga’s meaning, Yuxing followed his instructions and grasped the key.

Instantly, a brilliant light flared, forcing Yuxing to close his eyes.

When he opened them again, he realized he was now as tall as the monsters. Everything around him seemed to have shrunk, now easily within reach.

“Yuxing, since this is your first battle, let me show you how it’s done!” Taiga said.

Before Yuxing could react, Taiga was already controlling their shared body, standing tall.

The appearance of an Ultra Warrior caused a commotion among both humans and aliens.

The River Spirit, who had narrowly escaped death, burst into tears. “An Ultra Warrior from the Land of Light! We’re saved! We’re saved!”

Taiga walked to the side of the dying monster mother and gently placed her child upon her chest.

But Garuberos seized the moment to attack, launching energy blasts from its back.

Taiga wanted to dodge, but seeing the mother and child behind him, he gritted his teeth and forcefully raised a shield, preparing to take the hit.

Boom—

The energy blast exploded, hurling Taiga backward and smashing him into a building.

Fortunately, the mother and child were unharmed.

Just as Taiga breathed a sigh of relief, Garuberos charged, ramming him and sending him crashing through another building.

Seeing this, Kirisaki could no longer smile.

It was too familiar—this scene was exactly the same as before.

He had thought that leaving the Land of Light ahead of time would change the outcome.

Yet now, what was unfolding mirrored his previous life almost perfectly.

To repeat the same tragedy… Impossible!

A flash of madness glimmered in Tregear’s eyes as he turned and vanished.

Meanwhile, the battle between Taiga and Garuberos was reaching a fever pitch.

But Taiga, after all, was still a rookie—no match for Garuberos.

After taking a heavy blow, Taiga’s timer inevitably began to blink.

On Earth, his energy could only sustain him for three minutes of combat.

Even the mightiest Ultra Warrior must abide by local rules, Earth seemed to say.

Realizing the gap between himself and Garuberos, Taiga called out urgently, “Yuxing, quickly use the power of the light bracelet.”