Chapter 17: The Tides Turn

Just as he positioned the eye slugger atop his head, a fierce impact surged from behind, staggering the gigantic body of Seven X.

Glancing back, Jin saw over a dozen Peginera screaming as they lunged straight toward him.

Peginera were not solitary entities; rather, they behaved more like a cohesive race.

One of the Peginera slammed its four limbs hard against the ground, its body brewing with raw power. Accompanied by a howling gust of wind, its massive form launched entirely into the air, charging fiercely at Seven X.

Seven X planted his right foot diagonally into the ground, gathering immense strength. As the Peginera closed in, his body suddenly vaulted upward, and the two colossal entities collided in mid-air in a fleeting instant.

Exploding with the power of his right arm, Seven X thrust a strike straight through the Peginera's chest.

Dark green points of light dissipated within the monster's carcass. With a slight flick of his hand, Seven X flung the corpse away, his form landing steadily on the ground and standing firm.

"Screech—!"

More Peginera individuals roared with fury, spraying green energy beams from their mouths locked onto Seven X. Countless beams crisscrossed everywhere, shearing surrounding buildings in half. The erupting flames and flying debris turned the area into a veritable purgatory, while panicked crowds fled desperately toward the distance.

Seven X crouched, forming a V-shaped defense with his hands to withstand the powerful energy fluctuations unleashed by the barrage of green beams.

Jin could feel the scorching energy explosions rippling from his wrists, but since he could still endure them, he paid them little mind.

With a sudden burst of effort, Seven X swept his arms outward, instantly shattering the incoming energy beams. Gathering photon energy rapidly around his body, he slammed his feet against the ground and shot straight up into the sky, spinning at high speed. Faintly, a powerful energy vortex formed in the air, centered around Seven X and carrying a massive gravitational pull that caused the dozen or so Peginera to hiss in fear.

At a certain moment, Seven X's spinning form swept toward the Peginera like a tornado. The energy collided with the monsters in a series of tremendous explosions, immediately followed by Seven X's formidable physical body crashing directly into them and sending them flying.

"Boom!"

The lead Peginera was knocked backward, crashing into several others behind it, and the group collapsed heavily to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Now's the chance!"

Jin's eyes brightened. Seizing the opportunity, Seven X raised his arms high, bringing his fingers together and pointing them at the energy indicator atop his head.

Instantly, a scorching beam of energy fired from the beam lamp, the organ located on his forehead.

A cyan energy beam surged forth, tearing through the air and roaring directly toward the dozen-plus Peginera.

The ray struck forward like a spear piercing the sky, accompanied by a continuous series of thunderous sonic booms!

"Boom!"

The sound of colliding energy resounded. In the sky behind the Peginera, endless green light clusters suddenly appeared. These clusters seemed endowed with consciousness as they converged entirely upon the Peginera. The majority of the green energy spheres projected into the monsters' bodies, while the remaining clusters gathered before them to form an energy barrier, firmly holding the Emerium Ray at bay.

Amidst a deafening crash, ripples spread continuously across the green energy barrier, and the lingering shockwave of the energy collision directly pulverized the surrounding buildings.

Behind the energy barrier, the dozen-plus Peginera—having completed their initial evolution through the influx of additional Peginera cells—erupted with green radiance from within their bodies. Accompanied by terrifying roars, the individual monsters fused together, merging from separate entities into a single, colossal, grotesque beast.

Its body appeared as though haphazardly and forcefully glued together from those individual parts, twisted and aberrant. The newborn Peginera stood twice as tall as Seven X, its roaring fueled by the surging energy exploding throughout its frame. With every stomp of its massive feet, the surrounding ground trembled violently.

"Thump!"

As a faint energy shockwave rippled outward, both the Emerium Ray and the green energy barrier dissipated, dissolving into pure energy that faded into the night sky.

A wave of physical exhaustion washed over him, causing Seven X to drop to one knee on the ground. Jin panted heavily, staring in astonishment at the gigantic, newly formed Peginera.

"Roar—!"

Standing imposingly between heaven and earth, the Peginera let out an excited shriek and spewed a stream of fluorescent green slime from its mouth.

Since the Peginera was now towering in height while Seven X was half-kneeling on the ground, the fluorescent green slime poured down like an overwhelming waterfall, drenching Seven X from head to toe and coating his entire body in the disgusting viscous fluid.

Jin was so furious his face turned green, and he shouted angrily in his mind. Seven X slammed his foot hard against the ground, his massive body spinning in place to fling the clinging green liquid away by sheer centrifugal force.

Spinning at high speed, Seven X's gigantic form soared back into the air—a technique remarkably similar to Ultraseven's iconic move, yet with a distinct variation.

While Ultraseven's body emitted destructive energy charges from all over while spinning in mid-air, Seven X's technique involved hurling the eye slugger from his head during the high-speed rotation.

At a precise moment, Seven X raised his arm and launched the eye slugger. It streaked across the sky like a shooting star, slamming viciously into the Peginera's body.

"Thump!"

To everyone's surprise, however, although the Peginera's body was pushed steadily backward by the immense force of the eye slugger, its arms clamped shut with brutal strength, trapping the blade tightly between them.

This was the very first time a monster had ever managed to catch the eye slugger.

Jin had never encountered such a situation before. His battles had always relied on instinctive combat, obliterating opponents with blinding speed.

Meeting a monster strong enough to catch the eye slugger bare-handed was an absolute first.

"Roar—!"

The Peginera roared and swung its arms outward violently, sending the eye slugger spinning backward toward Seven X.

"Clang!"

Seven X brought his hands together, accurately clamping the eye slugger between his palms. Yet, the immense momentum pushed his body backward, sliding him over a hundred meters before he finally staggered and managed to dissipate the kinetic force.

Before he could even steady himself, a thunderous roar echoed out as the Peginera spat a thick, glowing green energy beam straight at Seven X.

Jin's heart tightened instantly. Seven X thrust his hands out flat, and as his palms pushed forward, a barrier of light materialized before him, shielding his body fiercely.

"Boom! Boom! Boom!"

Thunderous energy impacts echoed directly in front of Seven X. Feeling the irresistible push of the energy bearing down on him, Jin felt a bitter taste in his mouth.

The tables had completely flipped in the most inexplicable way. Just moments ago, his own Emerium Ray had been blocked by a barrier formed of those mysterious green energy spheres.

Now, facing the Peginera's energy beam, it was his turn to hold the line and endure desperately.

"Boom!"

Amidst a dull, thunderous explosion of energy, Seven X's entire body was blown aloft, hurled backward into the distance.