51. The Ultimate of the Molecular Beast

Meanwhile, in the Demon Lord's castle of a parallel world,
Daemon suddenly stood up.
He had been watching this battle all along through the Digimemory he bestowed upon Datamon. Frankly speaking, Datamon had performed to the absolute best of his ability.
Had Taichi not obtained the power of Armor Digivolution, Datamon might have genuinely defeated him.
However, there are no "ifs" in this world. Seeing RustTyrannomon defeated, Daemon had no choice but to initiate Plan B.

——————————

Datamon managed to escape RustTyrannomon's control room just before being absorbed, thus narrowly cheating death.
Yet, after absorbing RustTyrannomon, the heart suddenly generated an unimaginably powerful gravitational pull.
Datamon cried out in alarm, "Oh no! Due to the sudden absorption of massive energy, the balance of the dark power within the heart has been broken!"
The surrounding ruins, rubble, and the stray energy lingering from the battle were all siphoned into the heart, which had transformed into a black hole.
Following that, the gravitational pull expanded even further. Fortunately, Taichi reacted quickly enough to break free from the suction.
Datamon, however, was not so fortunate. Desperate to avoid being absorbed, he clung for dear life to a load-bearing pillar.
Even the pillar, nonetheless, was on the verge of being sucked into the black hole.
Just as Datamon felt utterly hopeless, the two Digimemories suddenly radiated Daemon's power, creating a dark barrier around Datamon that isolated him from the suction.
"It seems it is time for the final Jogress Digivolution," Daemon's voice echoed from within the Digimemories.
Datamon was momentarily stunned; even with his superior intellect, he could not comprehend the meaning behind those words.
"Right now, the black heart is stocked with endless dark energy, along with the data of a Mega-level Digimon," Daemon muttered to himself. "I am truly looking forward to it. Using it as material, even you should be able to evolve into a fairly powerful Digimon."
"With such a colossal amount of energy... my consciousness will be shattered to pieces!" Datamon immediately shook his head frantically.
"I don't care," Daemon replied indifferently.
"What! Could it be that you had this plan from the very beginning?! You've been using me all along!"
Daemon spoke calmly, "Do not lump me in with someone as vile as yourself. I used you, sending you to eliminate the Tamer, but I also bestowed power upon you."
"I gave you a chance, but you proved utterly useless!"
"Since that is the case, your life might as well serve as the price for disappointing me."
"No, spare me! You cannot do this! My genius brain cannot simply vanish from this world!"

Daemon was naturally unmoved by Datamon's pleas. Urged on by his will, the two Digimemories went into operation once again.
One aimed at Datamon, while the other targeted the gigantic heart.
"Jogress Digivolution!"
Pulled by the Digimemories, Datamon screamed in a breakdown, "NO!"
At this juncture, shouting "no" was utterly futile.
Datamon collided with the black hole. Although the black hole was not a Digimon with a defined level, the energy contained within it was incomparable to what a single Datamon could handle. At that moment, guided by Daemon's energy manipulation, the two Digimemories poured directly into Datamon's body, finally harmonizing the two forces and initiating the evolution.
Daemon watched as Datamon's form gradually shifted, a flicker of anticipation rising in his heart.
Within the Digimemories, he had infused the power belonging to a Demon Lord.
Catalyzed by this power, Datamon might just...

At this moment, Zeromaru also arrived at Taichi's side, his body flickering constantly between gold and blue.
Zeromaru still had some stamina to spare, but the energy of the Destiny Digi-Egg had been heavily depleted in this battle.
First came the high-intensity combat at full power, followed by the beam struggle against the black cables spanning the entire continent, and finally, absorbing the energy of all seven Crests to unleash a beyond-limit white plasma breath.
Even the Destiny Digi-Egg could not sustain such excessive consumption.
If anything, the fact that Zeromaru still retained any stamina at all defied all reason.
In three minutes at most, Zeromaru would revert from his Golden Form back to a Veedramon.
Taichi stared intently at Datamon, whose form was steadily transforming. Even though the evolution was not yet complete, he could already foresee that an enemy far more formidable than RustTyrannomon was about to be born from it!
After all, RustTyrannomon had only been able to go toe-to-toe with Zeromaru thanks to the power supplied by the black cables, yet those cables were merely a fraction of that heart's power.
"Zero," Taichi gave the order, and Zeromaru understood instantly.
"V-Arrow Arrow!"
To ensure its complete annihilation, Zeromaru poured every last ounce of his remaining three-minute energy reserve into this single strike.
Accompanied by a golden ray that painted half the sky in brilliant hues, the figures of Datamon and the heart vanished entirely.
Gazimon asked, "Did it work?"
Taichi shook his head. "If you have to ask that question, then it definitely didn't."
Before Taichi could teach Gazimon about the concept of death flags, a massive flock of bird-like Digimon, featuring bat wings and spherical bodies with a single eye planted squarely in the center, suddenly flooded the sky.
PicoDevimon.
These PicoDevimon appeared out of nowhere, forming a pitch-black blanket that blotted out the heavens.
In the blink of an eye, they coalesced, transforming into a gigantic Digimon under the watchful eyes of Taichi and the others.
This Digimon possessed a pair of tattered, blood-red wings, with a single eye growing out of each of its hands. As it slowly took shape, its originally pristine white body suddenly became stained with pitch black.
The giant eye in the center of its body also dyed itself a deep crimson. It raised its head and let out a tremendous roar, and in an instant, the entire File Island trembled violently.
This was the Mega-level entity Datamon had evolved into.
Virus Attribute, Demon Lord Type.
Much like Daemon, it was once a High Angel-type Digimon, only to fall into the Dark Area and become one of the Demon Lord-type Digimon.
Deathtramon.
Taichi had to raise his arm to shield himself and Gazimon from Deathtramon's overwhelming tidal wave of energy. "That Datamon... to think he could evolve into a Mega of this caliber..."
Zeromaru echoed, "I suppose we must look at him in a new light."
Gazimon looked bewildered, puzzled to the core. "Why on earth can the two of you remain so calm and composed?!"
At this point, Zeromaru had already reverted to Veedramon, whereas Deathtramon had just completed its evolution and was at the peak of its power. No matter how one looked at it, there was simply no chance of winning.
So why, why could these two idiots still smile with such absolute confidence?!
"Isn't that obvious? We're both still standing, and we still have the strength to throw a punch. If that's the case, what is there to be afraid of!"
The Crest of Courage ignited, blazing with an unprecedentedly brilliant light, embraced and amplified by the surrounding Crests.
It was precisely in such a desperate situation, teetering on the edge of certain death, that the true value of courage shone brightest.
"Zero!"
"Ooh!"
Taichi and Zeromaru stood shoulder to shoulder. The fighting spirit in their eyes never flickered; instead, it burned hotter and fiercer than ever.
"You're twenty thousand years too early to defeat us!"