The Ultramen saw the monster staggering away, heavily wounded by its own attack. Naturally, they gave chase. This was the best chance to end it once and for all.
The massive beast also knew it couldn't hold on much longer, and so it fled desperately toward the stars.
In no time, the pursuit left Earth's atmosphere and broke into space.
"So this… is the universe."For the first time, Yu Zhou—now in Tiga's body—looked upon the vast starry sky. Unlike the others, he had never truly stood in the vacuum before. He couldn't help but glance around in awe.
But the gap between the Ultramen and the fleeing monster was shrinking fast. Seizing the moment, Ultraseven removed the Eye Slugger from his head and hurled it like a blade toward the beast.
The others didn't waste the opening. They each fired their beams, not at the monster, but at the flying Eye Slugger. Instead of shattering, the weapon absorbed their energy—splitting into nearly twenty copies that swarmed the monster from every angle.
Like blades with wills of their own, the Sluggers carved deep wounds into the monster's body before merging back together and returning to Seven's head.
Immediately after, all the Ultramen unleashed their finishing rays together. A torrent of combined energy struck the creature, the proverbial final straw. The monster couldn't withstand it.
A dazzling explosion erupted—if sound could travel through space, the blast would have shaken the heavens themselves.
Down on Earth, people gazed upward. For a brief instant, the night sky lit up like midday before plunging back into darkness.
"We won!""It's over!""We're safe!"
Cheers erupted everywhere. No one was stupid enough to mistake it—the flash was proof the monster had been destroyed.
"Unlimited firepower really does feel amazing…" Yu Zhou, still glowing as Tiga, relished the fact that after unleashing so many beams, his chest timer remained bright green. He'd never felt this good.
He returned to Earth with the others, floating above the city, ready to breathe a sigh of relief—when a memory struck him.
Wait. In the movie, this wasn't the end. He remembered clearly: even after the giant monster was defeated, the runtime bar still had a long way left. And then…
Darkness began to rise. Purple-black mist seeped from the city streets, swirling into the sky.
"Here we go again…" Yu Zhou groaned. "Can't we just end for once?"
The fog merged, taking shape—a towering sorcerer draped in black robes like a grim reaper. Its hollow voice boomed across the night.
"We are endless. Again and again, we shall summon monsters to lock humanity in eternal despai—"
"Shut it! Beam!"
Before it could finish its monologue, Yu Zhou-as-Tiga fired a Zeperion Beam straight at its chest. Unfortunately, the attack vanished into the sorcerer's shadowy body without effect.
Daigo's Tiga, on the other hand, wasn't so reckless. He raised his voice, filled with conviction:"No matter how deep the darkness, the light within people's hearts will never fade!"
As he spoke, his body erupted in brilliance. His Zeperion Beam condensed into golden radiance—his form transforming into Shining Tiga.
"What the hell?!" Yu Zhou gawked. "One motivational speech and you unlock hacks?!"
But before he could complain further, his own body began to glow. Looking down, he saw golden light surging from within. And not just him—every Ultraman on the battlefield was shining.
"Collective hacks? Courtesy of Daigo?" Yu Zhou muttered, but raised his arms anyway, gathering his own golden Zeperion Beam.
Nine Shining Ultramen unleashed their ultimate rays in unison. Golden streams of power merged and rained upon the Dark Shadow Mage, scattering its purple fog like mist in the sun.
The sorcerer roared in defiance:"We will never—!"
But its voice was swallowed by the explosion as the golden light erased it completely.
Yu Zhou lowered his arm, his glow fading. "What a noob boss. Shows up, talks big, dies instantly. Classic feeding behavior."
On the ground, the people erupted in celebration. Humanity had survived once more.
As dawn broke, the Ultramen stood side by side at the shoreline. Then, one by one, they dissolved into motes of light, vanishing with the rising sun.
Later, at a café
"So, Yu Zhou-kun, you're also from another parallel world… like Mirai?" Daigo asked, phone in hand with a translation app. He was referring to Hibino Mirai—Ultraman Mebius—who had already returned to his own world.
"Yes," Yu Zhou nodded. To explain why there were two Tigas, he simply claimed to be from another universe. Daigo accepted it readily.
"No wonder you said there weren't just eight Ultra Warriors. Turns out, the ninth was you all along!" Daigo laughed in realization.
"Ha…" Yu Zhou grinned, flashing white teeth. In truth, he hadn't meant nine. He knew there were ten. The tenth being Ultraman Agul—Fujimiya Hiroya's alter ego. But in this world, Fujimiya hadn't awakened, so Agul never appeared.
"A pity," Yu Zhou thought. "I really wanted to meet Agul. The guy's legendary at looking cool… I could've learned a thing or two."
Daigo tilted his head. "But Yu Zhou-kun, why haven't you returned to your own world like Mirai?"
Yu Zhou sipped his coffee, rolling his eyes. "What, you want me gone already?"
"That's not it!" Daigo waved his hands quickly.
"Honestly? I don't know either. The space distortion that dragged me here hasn't reappeared yet."
As if summoned by his words, Yu Zhou suddenly felt a tug on his clothes. He turned to see the swirling distortion right behind him, half his shirt already being pulled in.
"Yu Zhou-kun!" Daigo reached to grab him.
Yu Zhou waved him off with his free hand, calmly sipping his coffee with the other. "Heh, speak of the devil. No need to hold on, Daigo."
Setting the cup down, he stood and gave Daigo a final wave. "Goodbye."
Daigo smiled faintly and waved back.
And with that, Yu Zhou stepped into the distortion and vanished from the café—leaving the other patrons staring in shock, coffee cups frozen halfway to their lips.