Crack… crack…
Right after the humanoid Eater was once again toyed with by Renamon and struck by another torrent of data, it suddenly stopped moving without warning.
"Did it work?"
Renamon quietly retreated again, watching the Eater closely from a distance, but an uneasy feeling rose in her heart.
BOOM!
Another massive flood of data crashed from above, violently striking the humanoid Eater.
But this time, Chen Ze's attack was no longer meaningless junk data; it was a fully coherent program with complexity comparable to the Eater's own.
Chen Ze had written this special program on the spot by analyzing the Eater's original source code, mixing it with the Purity Code and some of his own personal ideas.
The program shared a similar nature and logic chain with the Eater, yet due to the code Chen Ze had inserted, it possessed a certain degree of controllability.
Most importantly, because it originated from the Eater's own source, this special program was not disassembled like ordinary data. Instead, it seamlessly merged directly into the Eater's internal processes.
Like embedding a trojan into a computer—
Chen Ze's special program didn't alter the Eater's fundamental nature; rather, it layered external-access permissions onto the Eater's original structure, making it controllable via outside commands.
But precisely because of this intrusion, it seemed Chen Ze had unintentionally activated some hidden defense mechanism within the Eater, causing its humanoid form to twist uncontrollably.
Crack… crack…
The solitary eye at the Eater's chest repeatedly flickered open and closed.
Its mechanical tentacles spasmed and twisted chaotically, as if fighting Chen Ze's control. Their erratic movements evoked a profound, indescribable nausea.
Defying all logic, the grotesquely writhing tentacles—an uncanny blend of machine and organic—twisted in ways that shattered human sensibilities, trying desperately to expel the invading program.
It was an unspeakable horror, yet also an irregular beauty beyond human comprehension.
"This thing actually has a defense mechanism?"
Chen Ze stared wide-eyed, stunned by the unexpected development, realizing the situation might have spiraled beyond his control.
"But it doesn't matter. If it's a contest of computing power, then so be it—I refuse to believe I can't beat you!"
Gesturing to Renamon to retreat beyond the Eater's attack radius, Chen Ze prepared to launch a decisive final assault on this evidently artificial "defense mechanism."
Bzzt… bzzt…
First to collapse were Chen Ze's rented servers, unable to bear the immense data collision, instantly shutting down.
After all, those servers were merely rentals. Originally, Chen Ze intended them only as stepping stones, never imagining he'd use them in a battle of this magnitude.
Without the rented servers as a buffer, the next overload hit his personal computer.
Bzzt!
Even though Chen Ze had upgraded his home setup to server-level, it too was unable to withstand the data exchange, instantly freezing up.
Luckily, Chen Ze was no longer an ordinary human hacker.
With his DigiCore, he could maintain his presence within EDEN without external computing assistance, unlike normal hackers who would immediately disconnect.
However, forced to directly confront the Eater's counterattack, Chen Ze's DigiCore suffered tremendous stress, causing his Digital Avatar to distort into blurry, uncontrollable glitches.
The most obvious sign of this "glitching" was Chen Ze's iconic "Matrix"-style black coat, pants, and sunglasses beginning to collapse.
"Is that a Digimon?"
For a split second, the remaining hackers observing from afar vaguely glimpsed a small blue-white dinosaur.
Yet in the next moment, that small dinosaur vanished, replaced once more by Chen Ze's familiar "Matrix" disguise.
"There's no way this thing is human-made."
Glancing at Renamon—who'd quietly appeared behind him, clearly ready to yank him away at any moment—Chen Ze could only mutter this explanation softly.
"I have eyes, you know."
Hearing this, Renamon remained vigilant, but still spared the time to roll her eyes at Chen Ze—she was becoming more sharp-tongued by the day.
...
Meanwhile, deep within an inaccessible part of the network—a dimension opposite reality…
Crack… crack…
Some unknown existence seemed to detect Chen Ze's intrusion and alteration of the Eater's code, and immediately projected its consciousness across the dimensional divide.
This entity possessed no sense of self or defined purpose; its existence served only to devour everything it touched.
Whether data or matter, neither held meaning to it.
Emerging as data overflow from a higher dimension, its singular purpose was to assimilate everything in lower-dimensional space, much like a drop of ink spreading through water.
Crack!
At that moment, the Eater's half-opened singular eye snapped fully open.
An overwhelming "consciousness" beyond Chen Ze's and Renamon's comprehension instantly enveloped the entire digital space, glaring down at them through that mechanical, singular eye.
"Run!"
Acting instinctively, Renamon activated the pre-prepared UDL link, grabbing Chen Ze by the collar, intending to jump directly out of this Digital Space.
Yet to Renamon's horror, that fully opened eye—like Death itself glaring down upon them—did something entirely unexpected.
Crack… crack…
With only a slight rotation of its gaze, it froze every bit of data within this space, forcibly locking everyone—including all the hackers still watching—inside.
"I knew this wouldn't end simply."
Uncharacteristically baring her fangs, Renamon crouched defensively, her previous curiosity and elegance completely replaced by primal fear.
But despite the terror gripping her heart, Renamon never considered surrender. She was prepared to fight to the last breath.
"Don't be reckless!"
Even at this critical moment, Chen Ze, who also hadn't anticipated this scenario, managed to maintain his composure and quickly formulated a new strategy.
"We can still escape!"
In an instant, Chen Ze's DigiCore accelerated dramatically, revealing his form as Agumon (Variant), veins bulging visibly beneath his skin.
Fwoosh!
A searing white fireball condensed inside Agumon's mouth before erupting forth, entwined with chaotic data streams.
—Overload Impact!
Combining both data and physical properties, Chen Ze's unique "special fireball" crossed over ten meters in a blink, slamming directly into the Eater.
BOOM… Crack!
The sudden attack, seemingly weaker than Renamon's earlier relentless assaults, miraculously shattered the unknown entity's grip, breaking its temporary vessel—the Eater.
Bzzt… bzzt…
Daring not linger another moment, Agumon's body sparking with countless electric arcs, Chen Ze instantly activated a UDL link, dragging Renamon with him as they fled the now nearly destroyed Digital Space.
---
T/N: i think that monster is this one!
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