Yugg—colossal in size, pale and flat like a monstrous white worm.
From the records Yu Zhou had studied, Yugg were said to be the vassals of Ythogtha, and their appearance matched exactly the writhing creatures now swarming the sea. Even worse, they could fire spines that altered the very genes of living things.
The black spikes launched earlier must have been those gene-altering projectiles.
"Look—the fish in the water!"
Masaki suddenly shouted. Everyone turned toward the shoals of fish stunned and floating by the waves.
One shark in particular had been pierced by one of those black spines.
"What's happening to it…?" Daigo's eyes widened as he watched.
Before their eyes, the shark's body warped grotesquely—its skin sprouting armour-like scales, its size ballooning monstrously. Two crude legs sprouted from its tail, and its eyes gleamed with a demonic crimson light.
"It mutated," Yu Zhou said flatly. A glowing arrow shot from his palm and pierced the transforming beast. "That shark's genes were rewritten by Yugg's spines."
The creature exploded before it could complete its transformation.
"Terrifying…" Asuka muttered. "Those white worms might not be strong themselves, but their ability to spawn new monsters—if left unchecked—could create endless horrors!"
Yu Zhou shook his head. "Doesn't matter. Whatever monsters they make… they're nothing to us."
SSSHHHHKKK!!!
The swarm of Yugg shrieked, unleashing a piercing, insect-like cry as they charged.
Yu Zhou gripped the Ultimate Light Pot and hurled himself into battle. With a single swing, he smashed one of the creatures flying.
Camearra lashed her long whip—every strike detonating a Yugg into fragments.
Hudra drew his bow, loosing arrow after arrow of violet light into the swarming mass.
Darramb, Daigo, and the others fired volley after volley of small-scale beams, blasting the Yugg out of the sky one after another.
But the Yugg weren't the only threat. From the sea, Ythogtha itself lunged into the fight.
Countless tendrils erupted from its massive head, lashing at the Ultras. The sky itself darkened under the writhing storm of limbs.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
Yu Zhou swung the Ultimate Light Pot wildly, batting Yugg aside—until Ythogtha's tendrils crashed down upon him. He raised the Pot to block, sparks flying as metal shrieked against the sheer force.
Even as the monstrous limbs slammed against him, Yu Zhou endured. And then—he pulled back.
He thrust the Pot outward, cutting away tendrils with sharp clangs of steel. At the same time, his arms swept backward—preparing the Zepelion Ray.
Ordinary light would never harm a creature this size. To face it, he needed what he had unleashed once before: the giant Zepelion Ray.
He pulled back five times, drawing energy. Brilliant particles gathered before his Colour Timer, glowing brighter and brighter. Then, his arms locked into an L-shape—
And he fired.
SHOOOM!!!
The heavens blazed as a torrent of light like a waterfall poured forth—Yu Zhou's giant Zepelion Ray.
Even his fellow Ultras froze.
"Predecessor Yu Zhou's light—it's…" Asuka stammered, unable to even find the words.
Daigo too was stunned, wishing desperately to summon the same strength—but his energy was already strained, and the Yugg swarmed ceaselessly around them.
"Oh my god, that ray!"
"This is a finisher move!"
"With this… even an evil god must die!"
"It's unstoppable!"
Across Earth, audiences gasped in shock. Few had ever witnessed such a devastating beam—it wasn't a ray; it was a divine flood of light.
Only Dack, the alien from Dais, watched calmly with his daughter. He'd seen it before—Yu Zhou had used this very power on his homeworld, annihilating swathes of monsters in a single stroke.
Elsewhere, on the coast, Kirino had come seeking Yu Zhou and the others to warn them of the evil god. But by the time he arrived, they had already departed.
Now, with his evolved psychic powers, he stood on the shore, perceiving the battle on the waves as clearly as if he were present.
"…As expected, the light within Yu Zhou is different from all others," she whispered.
"Do you know that boy too?"
A voice startled her. She turned—and saw a man in a black suit and hat, holding two leashes. Behind him, two fish-like monsters padded obediently, collars gleaming around their necks.
"Who are you?" Kirino demanded, then frowned, realization dawning. "…You're Charija."
"Oh? Didn't think I was so famous," the man chuckled, tipping his hat.
Clearing her throat, Kirino asked, "From what you just said—you know Yu Zhou?"
"Of course!" Charija grinned. "That kid's impressive."
Kirino studied him, piecing it together. Charija was a monster trader—he knew that much. But the idea that a monster dealer and an Ultraman could somehow be friends… it was something he couldn't quite grasp.
…
Meanwhile, Yu Zhou's radiant Zepelion Ray cut through the storm of tendrils, striking Ythogtha head-on.
ROOOOAAAAARRRR!!!
The abyssal god bellowed, its scream like a dragon's roar twisted into a nightmare.
Tendrils burst apart, severed and smoking. Sparks erupted across its monstrous head as though fireworks had been set off within its very skull.