On the production line, the disguised Taichi frowned slightly, contemplating an escape plan.
After his darkening, he had developed the habit of planning before acting, always leaving himself a way out.
He wasn't completely unprepared for the possible appearance of the Royal Knights, or even more terrifying disasters.
At present, he had three paths to choose from.
The First Path: Abandon the steel ruins and, under the protection of the Chrome Digizoid, to prevent the Royal Knights from using large-scale attacks, quietly escape to the surface.
This path had the highest feasibility.
But Taichi would have to abandon all the foundations he had built and start over from scratch.
Furthermore, the path to hegemony a second time would face the relentless, fight to the death pursuit of the Royal Knights, increasing the difficulty countless times over.
This was the inferior strategy.
The Second Path: Contact Koshiro through the Crest's power and have him transmit a signal mimicking an Yggdrasil Sapling.
Upon receiving a direct provocation from one of its own kind, Yggdrasil would absolutely not sit idly by and would definitely dispatch the Royal Knights to eliminate it.
Compared to the threat of an Yggdrasil Sapling, Taichi's actions in the Digital World would become insignificant.
The downside was that Koshiro's safety could not be guaranteed.
Although he possessed various miraculous abilities similar to Yggdrasil and could conceal his coordinates to some extent, who knew how many trump cards the Royal Knights had?
Dealing with a Koshiro whose power barely reached the Mega level would be as easy as slicing melons and chopping vegetables for them.
This method had its merits but could only be considered a middling plan.
The Third Path: When in doubt, ask the boss!
In the Darkening Chat Group:
[True Love Is Agumon: @Dark Group Owner, Boss, my situation has changed! It's extremely critical! Seeking guidance!]
[Dark Group Owner: ??? Trouble again? Hasn't Kurai been helping you all this time?]
At this moment,
Hattori, lying on Island 777 of the Thousand Stars Archipelago, sunbathing,
jolted violently.
Ever since Taichi discovered the steel ruins, Hattori had been closely following the situation in the Digital World.
He watched as Taichi weaved an astonishing plan, turning clouds and rain with a flip of his hand.
Hattori felt deeply gratified.
Among all the group members, Taichi was the one who had grown the fastest.
However, just as the plan was about to be finalized, with all the results ready to be reaped, a major problem had actually arisen again!
This gave Hattori a real headache.
[True Love Is Agumon: Boss, now's not the time for chatting. I'll show you the current situation, you'll understand once you see it.]
[True Love Is Agumon has uploaded a video file.]
Hattori, after what felt like a long time, opened the video file and couldn't help but suck in a sharp breath.
[Dark Group Owner: The guys you've pissed off this time... their origins are a bit too big, aren't they?]
In the video, through remote data surveillance, Taichi faithfully presented the appearances of the Thirteen Royal Knights.
Thirteen sacred and powerful beings, each with different forms and imposing statures.
Their bodies covered in Digizoids, their overwhelming aura unmistakable.
With just one glance, Hattori felt a shocking, sharp edge, as if it could pierce through the screen and stab into his eyes.
[Dark Group Owner: The Royal Knights are the pinnacle of the Digital World's pyramid. Each one possesses planet-level strength. Placed in the real world, any single one could easily destroy a nation. All together... even the world would tremble before them.]
[The Dead-Last Jinchuriki: Doesn't that make them even more powerful than a Hokage?! Agumon, you're really something else.]
[True Love Is Agumon: …] Taichi felt a wave of embarrassment in his heart.
It was true, he had only thought of asking the Group Owner because he was truly out of options.
'My fault, my fault. Once this crisis is over, I must properly send the Group Owner a red packet.'
'Hmm...'
;Lilithmon, one of the Seven Great Demon Lords, should satisfy the Group Owner, right?'
[Dark Group Owner: No more joking. Let me ask Kurai, she should be able to think of a way.]
Parallel World.
The main Hattori, lounging at home, shouted into the air: "Kurai! Taichi's in trouble again!"
Swish…
Space twisted, and a loli dressed in a pure white dress slowly appeared before Hattori.
These past seven days, not only had Taichi's world undergone earth-shaking changes, Kurai's database had also grown at an extremely rapid pace.
The badge programs she created had her learning program engraved in their core.
Which meant, Koshiro, Hikari, and Taichi were now her hands and eyes, constantly transmitting the Digital World's emotional and data power back to her host.
"Any way to deal with opponents of the Thirteen Royal Knights' level?" Hattori didn't beat around the bush, getting straight to the point.
"Drip. Based on analysis, there are 192 methods. The one with the highest success rate is 67.12%."
'Whoa, that many?'
Hattori's shoulders trembled, feeling slightly surprised inwardly.
But then again, she was Kurai.
As a perfect Yggdrasil Sapling, the knowledge and power she possessed were completely incomparable to a half-baked version like Koshiro's. She might not be able to confront a Royal Knight-level existence head-on yet. But just for escaping, Kurai could come up with over a hundred methods.
'State the one with the highest success rate directly.'
"Drip. Generating statement."
Data flickered in Kurai's eyes.
After a brief pause, she explained in a cold, mechanical voice.
"Yggdrasil is the absolute god of the Digital World. At this stage, only three organizations can threaten it."
"Homeostasis, the Seven Great Demon Lords, and the Apocalymon."
"Homeostasis is currently being infiltrated by Hikari, presenting an opportunity to alter its programming. This is the first leverage point."
"The whereabouts of the Seven Great Demon Lords are uncertain, but they are certainly recorded in Homeostasis's archives. Hikari has an opportunity to obtain their coordinates. This is the second leverage point."
"Apocalymon has been lying low for a long time. The source of this Digital Rift was originally triggered by it. It only needs a catalyst to emerge and stir up trouble. This is the third leverage point."
"If these three are combined..."
Kurai, expressionless, proposed an incredibly bold concept.
"In the name of Homeostasis, publicly announce the coordinates of the 'Seven Great Demon Lords' to the entire Digital World, incite the 'desire' of Apocalymon, and ignite a Digital Civil Strife!"
As Kurai's words fell, the very space seemed to drop a few degrees, becoming icy cold.
She paid it no mind, continuing her analysis.
"Yggdrasil might be able to ignore any single one of the Demon Lords, Homeostasis, or Apocalymon. With the Royal Knights under its command, it indeed has that confidence."
"However…"
"When the threats from all three of them accumulate and erupt simultaneously, even the supreme Yggdrasil of the Digital World would not dare to take it lightly and must recall the Royal Knights for defense."
"And a time of chaos... isn't that precisely the situation your friend hopes to see the most?"
Kurai said plainly.
Hattori took a deep breath and nodded stiffly.
Kurai's suggestion was the optimal solution derived from precise calculations.
But for the Digital World...
Her casually spoken words would trigger a cataclysmic change even more terrifying, more bloody, and more destructive than the one 7,600 years ago!