Chapter 23: Agumon X

The figure of the Battle Hawk Agumon X leapt directly out of the black mist. At some point, an axe had appeared in its hand, and it swung it down at the Corona Beast in a single, decisive blow. The poor Corona Beast was slain instantly.

Not waiting for the shock to fade, Agumon X rushed toward another Digimon. Sistermon White hastily drove the metal ring on the opposite end of her trident into the ground, summoning a wave of protective energy.

Yet Agumon X’s axe cleaved straight through the protective wave, splitting it in two. In the next moment, the second Digimon was bisected from head to tail, dissolving into light and vanishing. Of the ten Digimon, two were already lost.

"I suggest you stop throwing those lesser explosive crystals. If you can’t kill Agumon X, he’ll just target you and wipe you out," one of the players advised, and as he spoke, his Digimon charged straight toward Agumon X.

Omegamon, who had opened his mouth to speak, now closed it again after hearing these words. He knew well enough that throwing more lesser explosive crystals would do little good now—except perhaps to draw Agumon X’s enmity onto their own Digimon.

Of course, at the final moment, they might try for a decisive blow with one more. After all, as long as Agumon X died, the issue of aggro would cease to matter.

But Agumon X was simply too powerful, and the axe in his hand was forged from Chrono Digizoid. Who could say why a mere Champion-level Digimon would possess a weapon made of such a rare material?

The last Digimon known to wield a weapon of Chrono Digizoid was the Ultimate-level Zudomon. Back then, with a single strike of his Thor’s Hammer, he shattered the defense of Metal Etemon, an Ultimate-level Digimon, only to be pierced through the chest by the golden claws of SaberLeomon.

Fortunately, the player’s Digimon had incorporated the Sword of Kabuterimon into his skills. Though not crafted from Chrono Digizoid, the sword was still a rare weapon, a first-kill drop from a boss. For now, it could hold its own, at least for a while.

The player glanced at Omegamon and asked, "Did you buy any lesser power crystals? Lesser agility crystals? Lesser intelligence crystals? Lesser stamina crystals?"

Omegamon remained silent but produced the four types of crystals. Each one could boost the corresponding stat of a Digimon for one minute.

As for how much they increased, that depended on the Digimon’s potential and the player’s luck. Theoretically, a lesser power crystal could add from one to a hundred points of strength. In practice, it rarely hit the extremes; typically, the increase fluctuated around several dozen points.

If you were lucky and your Digimon had high potential, you might get eighty or ninety points. With average potential and some luck, fifty or sixty. With poor luck and mediocre potential, perhaps twenty or thirty. The rest would fall somewhere between these benchmarks.

This time, the player’s luck was clearly excellent. And as for his Digimon’s potential? It was modeled on the player’s own data, so its ceiling was high. Out of a possible four hundred points from four crystals, the player didn’t quite max out, but still reached three hundred eighty points—an average of ninety-five points per crystal.

Thanks to this timely boost, his Digimon’s combat power soared, reaching a new high of two hundred sixty-three points. (Originally one hundred fifty-five, plus the ninety-five boost made two hundred fifty, but after fighting three bosses, some personal stats had increased by thirteen points.) Although there was still a gap with Agumon X’s three hundred points, it was no longer insurmountable.

Just as the player’s Digimon’s greatsword clashed with Agumon X’s axe, Agumon X’s mouth suddenly puffed. In the next instant, he unleashed a torrent of flames—his signature attack, Mini Explosion—engulfing the player’s Digimon in searing heat, turning its body red-hot.

At that moment, Omegamon spoke up. "It’s time. The aggro has finally shifted."

Hearing this, the other players swiftly commanded their Digimon to take down the remaining troublesome Agumon, then turned their assault on him.

Seven against five—four pairs fought one-on-one, while the remaining three ganged up on one target. Once one was defeated, four would attack the next together. In the end, seven against one—their victory was swift.

PS: I forgot to introduce Agumon X in the previous chapter, so I’ll add his description here.

Agumon X, a dinosaur-type vaccine species and Champion-level Digimon, possesses the special attack Mini Explosion. Having evolved from a reptilian into a dinosaur form, he shows particular aptitude for further developing into a powerful Greymon species, with distinctive blue stripes. His claws have been honed to be even deadlier, a sign of his intensified ferocity.

...

After dispatching their respective foes, the players again turned their attacks toward Agumon X.

Guilmon opened his jaws, unleashing a Fireball straight at Agumon X. At that moment, when Agumon X’s Mini Explosion struck the player’s Digimon and he was about to swing his axe, Guilmon’s attack landed squarely.

In that instant, Agumon X faltered, a half-beat slow. Seizing the opportunity, the player’s Digimon ignored the heat still radiating from his body and stabbed forward, piercing Agumon X straight through.

But Agumon X seemed almost unfazed. With a sharp slash of his claws, he swatted the Digimon aside.

After all, Agumon X was a boss. Although the player’s Digimon had managed a direct thrust through the chest, the damage wasn’t substantial.

Currently, Agumon X still had seventy percent of his health remaining. Ten percent had been lost to the earlier lesser explosive crystals, eleven percent to the desperate attacks held off by the player’s Digimon, and only nine percent was lost to the latest piercing strike.

By comparison, the player’s Digimon now had a temporary stamina value of two hundred forty-nine points, equivalent to two thousand four hundred ninety health. But now, only one thousand thirty remained. Once the lesser stamina crystal wore off, he’d be lucky to have a hundred left.

Seeing this, the player silently crushed a lesser life crystal, restoring his Digimon’s health...