Yu Zhou dismissed the Giga Battlenizer, spreading his arms wide. Dark energy converged from every direction, swirling toward him as he drew his hands back, then thrust them outward in an L-shaped stance.
"Dark Zeperion Ray!"
Twin beams of annihilating darkness erupted from his palms, roaring straight toward Cthulhu.
Cthulhu sneered, his crimson eyes flaring. "Heh… You can't defeat me."
A violet energy sphere ignited at his chest. The next instant, he unleashed it—an enormous ray surging forward to clash against Yu Zhou's attack.
The two beams collided in midair, sparks and shockwaves ripping through the temple.
Cthulhu's thoughts were calm, certain. Tiga cannot win. Even the petrification beam alone should be enough to reduce him to stone again.
Boom!
As expected, the violet ray devoured Yu Zhou's beam with ease and pressed onward, unstoppable.
Cthulhu frowned slightly. Something felt… off. "Strange. When we clashed before, he didn't crumble this easily."
Behind Yu Zhou, Camearra, Hudra, and Darramb cried out in alarm.
"Tiga, no!"
"Get out of the way!"
"Tiga!!"
But their energy was drained; they couldn't even move to help.
The beam struck.
BOOM—!
The purple light engulfed Yu Zhou completely. He roared in pain—
but not the brittle scream of someone turning to stone.
Cthulhu's eyes narrowed.
The beam wasn't piercing through him.
It was being absorbed.
"What… is this?"
Still, he didn't stop. He poured even more energy into the ray, the beam intensifying until it filled the entire chamber with blinding violet light.
Yu Zhou's body began to crystallize, starting from his chest—but before the petrification could spread, it dissolved into black energy and was swallowed into his form.
The cycle repeated again and again: his body turned to stone, only to melt the petrification and devour the darkness within it.
"Power… more power!"
Through the agony, Yu Zhou could feel his strength climbing, rising endlessly like a raging tide.
Cthulhu sensed it too. With a low growl, he cut off the beam.
"Tiga… you actually absorbed it," he said, wings spreading as he floated upward. The massive corridor easily accommodated his hulking form, a dark god hovering above the battlefield.
"You're not bad yourself," Yu Zhou panted. His chest rose and fell heavily, the constant devouring tearing at his body like fire and ice. The repeated stone-to-flesh transformation was a torment beyond words.
Seeing that Yu Zhou still stood, Camearra and the others finally exhaled in relief. If he had been petrified again, they would have risked everything against the Dark King.
Cthulhu's eyes flashed. "If I can't petrify you… then I'll destroy you completely."
Dark mist poured from his body, spreading like a tide to swallow everything.
Yu Zhou spread his arms, defiant. "Come on, then!"
The energy within him erupted, surging outward in waves. The devouring power intensified—pulling the mist, the shadows, and even the darkness pouring from Cthulhu's body into himself.
Cthulhu's gaze sharpened. "Let's see how much darkness your body can withstand before it bursts."
Black energy roared like a storm.
Yu Zhou only shouted back, "Darkness—bring it on! I'll take it all!"
The violent gale spun faster, dragging every wisp of dark power into his body, Cthulhu's own corrupted essence included.
The elder god's mouth curled into a sinister grin. "Foolish creature. You've already lost. My darkness isn't something you can simply absorb."
Yu Zhou ignored him. All around, the darkness of the temple itself began funnelling into his body, streams of shadow converging like rivers into the sea.
Darramb stared, shocked. "What is he doing?"
"He's… devouring it," Hudra murmured. "He's consuming the darkness itself."
"Tiga… please, don't let anything happen to you…" Camearra whispered under her breath, her hands clenched tight.
But the storm of darkness didn't spare them. The energy overflowed, flooding into their colour timers, restoring the depleted cores within their chests.
The crimson blinking lights turned bright blue again.
"Our energy's back!" Darramb exclaimed, summoning his red energy shield. "We can fight again!"
Hudra raised his energy crossbow, eyes locking on Cthulhu.
Then Camearra gasped. "Look—Tiga's colour timer!"
They turned.
The crystal at Yu Zhou's chest—his colour timer—was no longer blue.
It had turned a deep, brilliant violet.
"What… does that mean?" Hudra whispered.
"Could he be losing control?" Darramb muttered.
Cthulhu let out a deep, mocking laugh. "Hahaha! Yes, Tiga! Embrace the darkness completely!"
He flung out his hands, releasing three streaks of shadow that shot into the trio's timers.
Camearra, Hudra, and Darramb's eyes flashed red for an instant before dimming again. But deep inside their minds, the pull of darkness grew stronger—a whirlpool dragging their thoughts into endless night.
Yu Zhou's body trembled violently, the storm slowing, the flow of energy reaching its limit. Then he raised his head, a savage grin spreading across his face.
"That feels… incredible."
The last of the dark wind dissipated. He stood tall, his chest gem glowing an ominous violet. His power had reached its peak—darkness completely saturated.
Cthulhu hovered above, sneering. "Now, Tiga—will you submit? Bathed in darkness, you've severed your bond with the light forever."
"Submit?" Yu Zhou smirked, his tone low and dangerous. "You think you deserve to call yourself the Dark King?"
The words had barely left his mouth before his figure vanished.
In the next heartbeat, a silver fist wreathed in raging black lightning appeared before Cthulhu's eyes—
and smashed straight toward his face.