"Deception is a part of war, old man. You've lost!"
Yu Zhou stared at the elder whose face now bore a dark, spreading mark, his tone carrying a mix of mockery and triumph.
But the old man didn't answer. Instead, his cloudy eyes glimmered with a sinister light. "Young man… today, you will witness what true darkness is."
The moment he finished speaking, his body dissolved into a mass of swirling black mist. The mist rose in a spiralling vortex, expanding rapidly until it towered over sixty meters high. Within seconds, the dense fog began to take shape—rolling, twisting—until it solidified into a colossal monster.
The creature stood with a massive, muscular frame and humanoid limbs, yet its skin was a murky green. From the back of its neck all the way down its draconic tail grew rows of razor-sharp spines, and from its back unfurled two enormous wings resembling those of a Western dragon, leathery and dark green.
But the most grotesque part was its head.
An octopus-like mass writhed where its face should be, and from beneath its chin dangled several tentacle-like appendages that twisted and coiled like living whiskers. However, instead of suckers, each tentacle was lined with barbed spikes capable of piercing through solid steel.
"Now," the monster growled, its voice both alien and eerily reminiscent of the elder's, "taste the power of darkness itself!"
With a thunderous roar, the creature took flight, black energy surging from all directions and converging around its body.
"So, this… is the true form of the King of Darkness," Yu Zhou murmured. Despite the danger, a spark of excitement flashed in his eyes.
Facing an ancient king of darkness—this was a first.
Without hesitation, Yu Zhou drew forth the Dark Sparklence, raising it high as a surge of dark light erupted from it. The relic's black-winged markings flared to life, siphoning a stream of dark energy straight from the monster's aura.
Chime…
A clear metallic ring echoed as a colossal figure materialized within a burst of rainbow-hued energy. Purple lightning danced across the air, tearing through the darkness.
White, luminous eyes. A cerulean timer on his chest. Three silver streaks running across his armour.
Dark Tiga had arrived—mysterious, imposing, and silent as ever.
"Cthulhu…" Yu Zhou whispered.
Yes—this creature was unmistakably similar to the legendary Old One, Cthulhu himself.
And considering how Gatanothor and his "brother" had already appeared, it wasn't too strange that Yu Zhou was now facing what could be their "father."
Whether father or kin didn't really matter. Either way, it was part of the same abyssal lineage of darkness.
The monster lashed out, its massive green tentacles slicing through the air in an attempt to ensnare Dark Tiga.
But Yu Zhou wouldn't be taken so easily. With a powerful leap, he shattered the ground beneath him and soared upward. His heel ignited with black flame as he dove, delivering a blazing kick straight toward the beast's chest.
Even so, the attack barely left a scratch. Only a few sparks scattered upon impact.
It was then Yu Zhou noticed—the creature's entire body was covered in green, scale-like armour, each plate as hard as the alloy armour worn by Etelgar.
That defence came at a cost, however. The creature's immense bulk and armoured hide made its movements sluggish—slow enough for Yu Zhou to exploit.
If only he could switch to his Sky Type form… this battle would be far more flexible.
Still, even in this form, Dark Tiga was no slouch.
Landing nimbly, Yu Zhou drove his fists into the monster's chest—thud, thud, thud! —three heavy blows that burst with sparks. The giant staggered slightly, but didn't fall.
Then, the tentacles from its chin lashed forward, coiling around Yu Zhou's arms.
"Damn it!"
Yu Zhou tried to pull free, but the monstrous appendages only tightened their grip. These weren't ordinary tentacles—they were infused with the King of Darkness's power. Soon, all four of his limbs were bound.
Black mist began to billow from the creature's body, enveloping Yu Zhou and exploding against his armour in bursts of energy.
"What…?" Yu Zhou's eyes widened. "Impossible!"
He was Dark Tiga—the being who once absorbed and thrived on dark energy. He had never been harmed by black mist before. Yet now, the dark power seared him, exploding against his body like fireworks.
Pain surged through him as his energy dropped.
The monster let out a ghastly, gloating laugh, releasing more black mist to crush his spirit.
But Yu Zhou only growled in defiance. "Then let me show you… how I devour darkness!"
With that, Dark Tiga's body released a powerful suction force, pulling all of the surrounding black mist into himself.
The mist exploded as it entered, tearing at his armour—but Yu Zhou endured, using the very darkness that hurt him to restore his own strength.
He could feel it—the explosion factor in this black mist was far denser than anything he had encountered before. But still, he absorbed it all.
When the last of the mist vanished, Yu Zhou's energy stabilized again.
Taking advantage of the monster's brief confusion, he shrank back into his human size, slipped free from the tentacles' grip, and then re-emerged several dozen meters away—once again transforming into the towering Dark Tiga.
The monster blinked in confusion, its tentacles drooping uselessly.
"Looking for me?"
Before the creature could react, Yu Zhou's silhouette blurred. He appeared behind it in an instant, voice cold as steel.
"You think you can tie me up again? Not a chance."
And with that, he charged once more into the battle of darkness.