Yu Zhou could only silently endure the scolding from Darramb and Hudra.
Although the two had treated him as the original Tiga at first, now that something had gone wrong, they refused to acknowledge him as the true Tiga.
Or rather, they had seen through his limits — he was nowhere near as strong as the real Tiga, not strong enough to protect Camilla.
With a sigh, Yu Zhou signalled Charija to bring out the time machine.
The sooner they found the real Tiga, the sooner they could save Camilla.
Charija quickly recalled Golza back into its capsule, then opened the suitcase and began calibrating the machine.
"We're still on the Volcano Star. Are you sure it's okay to travel back from here?"
The heat from the lava river surged toward Yu Zhou. He looked around the scorching red terrain, worry in his eyes.
If the destination coordinates weren't set properly and they arrived here thirty million years in the past, the planet might be completely uninhabitable.
"It's fine. I'll set the landing point on Earth. Trust me."
Charija waved a hand confidently, immersing himself in the adjustments.
"Alright…"
Yu Zhou nodded, then glanced around again.
This was only his second time coming to the Volcano Star — and for good reason.
There was nothing here worth staying for: just endless red, fire, volcanoes, and rivers of molten rock.
Apart from those strange creatures that looked like Fire Flame Shells from some game, Yu Zhou hadn't seen any other life forms.
(Well, aside from Golza.)
"Charija, is it ready yet?"
Time passed quickly. An hour later, Yu Zhou was tossing stones absentmindedly into a lava pool.
"Almost. Because we're going back thirty million years, it takes longer to synchronize," Charija muttered from behind the suitcase.
Having no choice, Yu Zhou sat down on the ground, tossing stone after stone into the molten pit.
Plop.
Gurgle.
Each rock sank into the lava, releasing a bubble that burst with a faint hiss.
One after another. Over and over.
Then suddenly —
A Fire Flame Shell leapt from the lava, and its small, fragile-looking body spewed a torrent of fire straight at Yu Zhou!
"What the hell!?"
Yu Zhou hadn't expected it to breathe fire. The blast hit him square on, engulfing him in flames.
"What happened?"
Charija turned at Yu Zhou's yell — and burst into uncontrollable laughter.
Yu Zhou's clothes were burned to ashes, his hair was gone, and even his eyebrows had vanished.
"Hahahahahahahaha—hic—haha!"
Charija's laughter echoed across the fiery wasteland.
Enraged, Yu Zhou quickly pulled a spare outfit from his spatial bracelet, threw it on, and slammed his fist down on the creature.
BOOM!
It was a punch full of fury. The ground cracked outward from the impact, spiderweb lines radiating from the Fire Flame Shell.
When the dust settled, only its red shell was visible.
"I don't think it's dead," Charija said, poking the shell.
Sure enough, a pair of tiny feet crept out from beneath it, followed by a pair of eyes that peeked up at Yu Zhou — and then retreated instantly back into the shell.
"That shell is ridiculously tough!"
Still fuming, Yu Zhou rummaged through his bracelet.
"Frying pan!"
CLANG!
He smacked the shell — and the pan shattered, pierced clean through by the creature's sharp spikes.
"Hammer!"
THUD!
No effect. The shell remained spotless, though the ground beneath cracked even deeper.
"Electric drill!"
The bit broke instantly.
"Chainsaw!"
The blade dulled against the shell.
"Boiling water!"
"Useless! It lives in lava — it can't be boiled!"
After emptying half his storage, Yu Zhou sat among the useless tools in defeat.
Then, he found a small pouch.
"Ah, Power Pills."
He had bought them on the Earth-like Star — they could temporarily multiply strength with no side effects.
Yu Zhou swallowed the whole bag at once.
POWER ××× MULTIPLIED!
BOOM!!!
He punched again — this time, cracks spread across the red shell.
CRACK!
The Fire Flame Shell's armour shattered into pieces.
"Golza! Go!"
Charija released Golza at just the right moment.
Seeing the now shell-less creature, Golza roared in delight and devoured it whole.
But then —
Yu Zhou felt the ground tremble.
He looked down at the cracked earth beneath him, his expression tightening.
"Oh no…"
A violent burst of lava shot upward from the fissures, consuming everything nearby in fire.
Fortunately, Charija had set the suitcase far enough away — otherwise, it would've been destroyed.
However, all the items Yu Zhou had thrown out earlier were swallowed by the molten flood.
"Damn it, my pills!"
He had taken out all his other capsules while searching for the Power Pills — and now they were gone.
"Those were premium Earth-like Star (Terra) products…"
Yu Zhou sighed. "Guess I'll just have to buy more later."
The Fire Flame Shell had appeared too suddenly — if not for his durable body, he might've been incinerated.
Still, his physique couldn't save his appearance: his hair and eyebrows were gone, leaving him a shiny bald head.
The contrast between his former handsome self and this new look was… drastic.
"Wait…"
He suddenly remembered he'd once bought hair growth pills. He rummaged through his bracelet again — only to find nothing.
"Oh, come on…" He stared at a pile of ashes on the ground. "Don't tell me they burned too!"
"Pffft—Hahahahaha! Maybe your hair's gone for good!" Charija cackled, barely able to breathe.
"Charija, stop laughing," Yu Zhou said grimly. "Is the time machine ready?"
"Almost. Give me a second."
Forcing back his laughter, Charija recalled Golza, then hurried to the suitcase to finish calibrating.
"Charija… I think we're out of time."
Yu Zhou's eyes shifted toward a volcano in front of them — lava was erupting like a giant wave.
"What?"
Charija looked up and froze. The molten wave was crashing straight toward them.
"We're gonna die!!"
He screamed, grabbed Yu Zhou by the arm, and slammed the switch on the time machine.
And with a flash of light — they vanished.