Chapter 52: Just Saying
Dim streetlights cast a hazy, faint glow, illuminating the deserted streets. The piercing cry of a cat shattered the silent night sky, and the pedestrians on the street grew even more sparse, even in the relatively bustling commercial district.
The red-and-silver armor glided silently over the night sky of Gotham.
"All systems of the new battlesuit are operating normally. Energy efficiency has significantly improved," Pal reported in his ear.
"Excellent. What about the bracelet's scanning and positioning?"
"Marked on your display, sir."
A map of Gotham popped up in a corner of Orin Vale's vision, clearly pinpointing a coordinate within the city's blocks.
"Do we have a match for the energy frequency?" Orin Vale asked.
"Yes, sir."
As Pal spoke, a waveform recorded by the battlesuit was called up on the display and compared with the currently monitored energy wave. When superimposed, they matched perfectly.
"Based on monitoring of previous battle records, this should be a type of magical frequency energy. It bears similarities to the magic of the demonic spirits we have fought several times in the past."
"Hoh, I was wondering who it was. Turns out it's those little cuties."
Orin Vale had a pretty good impression of these demonic spirits. So far, they had provided him with a lot of Experience, both individually and in groups. Seeing these demonic spirits felt as familiar as cutting down dozens or hundreds of slimes in the early stages of some games.
Flying in the direction of the locator, Orin Vale entered the sewers. He had his armor slow down and maintain a hover, cautiously making his way deeper into Gotham's intricate sewer system.
"The spatial fluctuation reaction is getting stronger," Pal said, marking a new reading on the display. "It's some kind of spatial magic that manipulates phase, seemingly carving out a temporary magical space within the existing reality. It's invisible because its phase is different from reality."
Orin Vale understood. "Just like the 'Meta-Field' of my predecessors."
The Ultraman Race was not without similar techniques, so Orin Vale was familiar with the concept.
"The principle is somewhat similar," Pal said. "Scan data indicates this space was not formed today; it has likely been here for a while."
"Then why didn't we notice it before?"
"Previously, the Hyperspace Bracelet's energy was too low. Its scanning range and precision were insufficient to discover this anomaly."
Orin Vale had a revelation. It was because he had leveled up these past few days, which in turn raised his equipment level. The enhanced functions were what allowed him to discover this hidden trick.
When it came to spatial technology, Great God Noah was the expert; Orin Vale was not skilled in it. But it didn't matter, he had the bracelet.
The Land of Light had thousands of black technology wonders, and the research and development of various bracelets was definitely a major focus. For example, the famous "Bracelet Transmitter," Senior Jack, was even mocked by his own lead actor as being "a total wash-up without his bracelet." The funniest part was an episode where his bracelet was hacked by an alien, and Ultraman ended up fighting his own unmanned bracelet one-on-one and still couldn't win. That was just plain embarrassing.
After that, the title of "Bracelet Rack" was pretty much set in stone. Of course, Orin Vale only dared to think this to himself. If he met the big shot in the Land of Light, he would still have to respectfully call him senior. Calling him a bracelet rack was just a joke; he knew that a big shot from the Security Patrol could easily take down a junior Ultraman like himself with a single punch.
The Hyperspace Bracelet activated. A ripple soon appeared in the seemingly empty space within the underground tunnel.
The Magical Sub-space was thrown into disarray. Seizing the opportunity, Orin Vale raised his hand. With the bracelet's assistance, his light energy was converted to a spatial attribute and continuously poured into that faint spatial rift.
At first, the space resisted. The rift was narrow, tight, and offered immense resistance.
But as the old saying goes.
The resistance lasts only for a moment.
After moving back and forth a bit, it will naturally widen.
Sure enough, after being forcefully injected with immense light, the rift finally warped irresistibly and was stretched open.
When he visually estimated it was big enough, Orin Vale stopped his output.
He straightened up and squeezed in.
The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit followed behind the Owl Demonic Spirit. They passed through the dark palace and arrived at the deepest part of the magical space.
The darkness was suddenly illuminated, creating a sacred and solemn atmosphere. Statues and paintings hung on both sides of the long, narrow stone corridor. The play of light and shadow created an exceptionally dignified effect.
The light source came from surrounding braziers, which seemed to envelop the space in a golden halo. The solemn stone pillars and murals flickered with a dark gleam in the firelight, adding a touch of mystery. The ancient altar was engraved with ancient symbols that no one living could recognize, some of them evil and complex—marks whose meanings were enough to drive a person mad.
"Arghhhh!"
The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit let out a sharp cry, its whole body convulsing. The flickering, dim firelight cast its distorted shadow on the wall, the constantly shifting image resembling some twisted monster.
The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit knelt on one knee, and after catching its breath, it looked at its own hands in disbelief.
"Ooh, such great power!" It looked up at the Owl Demonic Spirit beside it with an excited expression. "This power, could it be..."
"That's right."
The Owl Demonic Spirit's eyes also held an unconcealable excitement.
"That Lord's power has already appeared in the Current Reality," it said. "It's just that he cannot yet move directly in the Current Reality. He can only briefly interfere with reality through our magical domain. Or, as just now, grant us power far greater than before."
"I feel like That Lord doesn't even need to act personally anymore. I'm so strong right now, even I'm scared of myself!" The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit was still reveling in its newfound power. "I feel that very soon, I'll be able to avenge Brother Yousake! If I were to face that Ultraman now, I'd just need to go up there with a slide tackle..."
"Forget the slide tackle. Wake up."
The Owl Demonic Spirit ruthlessly threw cold water on it.
"Think about that giant's form, the way he throws a punch, and that world-ending light. Now size yourself up. What do you think?"
The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit indeed calmed down upon hearing this. It carefully sensed its enhanced magic power and then compared it with the image of the giant's previous attack in its mind...
"If I went in with a slide tackle, I'd probably die," it said calmly.
"That's more like it." The Owl Demonic Spirit nodded. "So our policy remains unchanged. We'll avoid a direct confrontation for now. No matter what, we must first find a way to let That Lord descend. That Lord said that Batman is an excellent sacrifice among humans. With him, the advent ritual's progress should be accelerated."
"Fine."
The Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit nodded, then put on a hateful expression and sighed to the heavens.
"Brother Yousake, if you can still hear me, please send that abominable Ultraman to me! Your brother will definitely avenge you..."
Boom!
The words had barely left its mouth when a loud explosion was heard. Both of them whipped their heads around to see that a wall on one side of the great hall had been blasted open from the outside by energy. A red-and-silver battlesuit was walking out through the dust, the crystal on its chest refracting a path of azure light through the dusty curtain.
Both demonic spirits were stunned for a moment.
Half a second later, the Poison Scorpion Demonic Spirit spoke weakly.
"Actually... I was just saying..."
(end of chapter)