"Holy crap… that's Godzilla." That was Liu A'dou's only thought when he saw the towering beast standing in the middle of the city. Only Godzilla had that kind of size. Even Ultraman was usually just 40 to 50 meters tall. It took going full giant mode to reach this level. Only a true monster king could look that terrifying.
And honestly, Taowu really did resemble Godzilla—a tyrannosaurus-like form, except it was covered in massive violet crystals. On its head, shoulders, and tail, each of those crystals was as big as a shipping truck.
"Roooooaaaaar———!"
All of Tokyo trembled under that roar. Windows shattered everywhere. Pedestrians stood frozen, too shocked to even run. None of them had ever imagined a real-life kaiju would appear in their city like in the movies.
Seeing it with their own eyes was nothing like watching a film. Their minds went blank. No one knew how to react.
Liu A'dou thought, 'Even Superman might not be able to handle this thing.'
After Taowu appeared, it took its first step. Whatever had been beneath its feet—buildings, cars—was now just flattened wreckage, indistinguishable and crushed under pure weight.
A cloud of dust swept across the city like a sandstorm. More dangerous, though, was its tail. That thick, heavy tail was longer than its body. As it swayed, it whipped up a violent vortex. Anything it brushed against warped or shattered. Lighter objects were flung away completely by the gale.
Boom!
One foot slammed down. The ground shook. Countless people lost their balance and fell. That jolt finally snapped them out of their daze. They got up and ran.
Run!
Panic spread like wildfire. The crowd broke into a chaotic stampede. Taowu had shown its overwhelming power in just one step. That's why it had taken more than 1,000 cultivators using their astral projections to seal it away in the first place.
"Hahahahaha!" Zhao Gao laughed wildly as he looked down on the fleeing humans like ants. With Taowu, he could finally crush the descendants of Xu Fu.
"Looks like we need to contact the U.S. military stationed in Japan." Captain America glanced down at his shield. He thought, 'Good thing Hawkeye was off escorting a prisoner—otherwise he'd be dealing with this too.'
Ada Wong nodded. "But let the Japanese Self-Defense Forces move in first. We need to get a better understanding of the situation."
Cap agreed. Japan was part of the Axis in World War II—he had no love for them. No way the U.S. military was jumping into action without intel. Let the local troops take the first hit.
The U.S. military stationed in Japan felt the same. They needed more intel before acting.
While they waited, Taowu had already destroyed more roads and buildings. It was like a monster movie come to life. Liu A'dou didn't make a move. He just stood and watched, thinking, 'So this is what's inside the pagoda. But where the hell did this monster come from?'
The air force arrived quickly. The pilots circled overhead, sweating through their undershirts as they stared down at the colossal beast rampaging through the city. They'd only ever seen something like this in childhood tokusatsu shows.
"Target confirmed over Tokyo. Awaiting orders to engage."
The live feed reached headquarters. Everyone gasped. The size was insane. Even if it was a "good" monster, a few steps through the city center would cause more damage than the New York invasion.
What if attacking it made it mad? That could be catastrophic.
"Try to get its attention. Lure it out of Tokyo if possible."
"Roger that."
The F-2 fighter jets moved in front of Taowu, trying to draw its focus.
Taowu spotted the aircraft and seemed puzzled. Its eyes narrowed like it was trying to understand why such a stupid-looking bird would dare provoke it. With a terrifying reputation, Taowu's presence alone made all animals flee for 100 li around. Not even beasts or birds would approach.
And now this weird bird dared to challenge it? Death.
Taowu's head was crowned with sharp, sword-like violet crystals. A sudden flash of light shot from them, and the fighter jet was sliced clean in two.
Liu A'dou and Ada Wong both frowned at the same time. That was a spatial slash.
"Roar!" Having taken down the provocative bird-thing, Taowu let out a satisfied roar.
"Headquarters, Unit One has been destroyed! I repeat, Unit One is down! Requesting permission to engage!"
The officers at HQ looked grim. Any attack was bound to cause more destruction in an instant. But if they let this monster stay in Tokyo, they'd have to move the capital. "Engage. Open fire."
"Roger that."
Once the order came through, more F-2 fighter jets launched. Modeled after the F-16, the F-2 was the Japanese Self-Defense Forces' main fighter.
The battle began. Missiles streaked through the air toward Taowu's massive body.
Meanwhile, Logan had found the Yashida family. Though he'd killed the old man Yashida himself, he still felt responsible for the man's descendants. After all, they'd survived a nuclear blast together.
Shingen stood in the rubble that used to be his home, clutching his chest in pain. That mansion had been his father's life's work. "It's all your fault! Ever since you showed up, nothing good has happened to us!" he yelled at Logan.
Logan looked wronged. 'I didn't ask to come. Your father invited me.' "Now's not the time for this. We need to get out, now!"
"A real monster…" Yukio muttered, dazed, as she pulled Mariko backward, retreating fast.
They were dangerously close to Taowu's feet. With every step it took, the shockwaves hit hardest at ground level. It was like standing in the middle of a sandstorm. Dust stung their faces, and in seconds they were covered in grime. Even Yukio and Mariko didn't look beautiful anymore.
"Move!" Logan roared. This place was way too dangerous.
Once the jets started firing, Captain America joined the Japanese police to help evacuate civilians. That was all he could do for now.
But the missiles never even reached Taowu. The violet crystals around its body lit up, forming a barrier. Explosions went off midair before the missiles got close. The falling debris and flames landed in the crowd, making the situation even worse.
Taowu struck back hard. Dozens of spatial blades sliced across the sky, creating deadly traps. Fighter jets had to weave and dodge between the slashes. A single mistake meant being cut apart. Some pilots didn't even leave whole corpses behind.
"Headquarters, we need more backup—ahhhh!"
Boom!
Explosions lit up the sky, one after another. Bursts of fire bloomed like cruel fireworks, and each firework was a life snuffed out.
This was Taowu—the primordial beast of chaos. A power humanity couldn't stand against.
Liu A'dou stared in shock. 'How many monsters like this are out there that I don't know about? This thing's using space manipulation like it's nothing. Good thing it showed up in Japan and not somewhere else.'
"I think only Japanese high schoolers can save Tokyo now," he muttered.
Ada Wong was speechless at her husband's nonsense.
But it didn't matter. Superman was already on his way. As soon as he saw the news, he flew across the Pacific.
Even he froze when he got his first look at Taowu. 'How can something this terrifying exist on Earth?' Superman honestly wasn't sure if he could win this one.
It wasn't that Superman was weak—Taowu was just too strong. It had fought 1,000 cultivators who projected their astral forms in battle and held its own. In the end, it took all 1,000 of them sacrificing themselves to seal it away. In Taowu's eyes, Superman was just a minor rogue cultivator—nothing special.