As Li Hua activated the Level 50 Demon King game cartridge, a Demon King wreathed in pitch-black, ominous aura flew out from the light screen, bringing with it an overwhelming pressure that crushed down like a mountain.
Li Hua tightly gripped the Level 50 Demon King cartridge in his hand, enduring the immense power overflowing from within it. Gritting his teeth, he inserted the cartridge into the Player Driver's slot and pulled the lever, starting the game.
"Gachan! Dual Up! Tadoru meguru RPG! Taddle Fantasy~!"
A voice that sounded half like singing and half like chanting echoed through the air.
The cartoon-styled Demon King transformed into armor that attached itself to Kamen Rider Brave's body. A black cloak fluttered without wind.
A dark red, mist-like energy appeared around Li Hua.
With a sweep of Li Hua's cloak, the mist trembled, seeming to disperse and withdraw. However, every HYDRA agent present felt their hearts sink heavily, as if burdened by a massive weight, and they involuntarily took several steps backward.
Seeing that the situation had exceeded expectations, the HYDRA agents all turned their gazes toward the team leader in charge of the operation.
What should they do next? Retreat immediately? Or attempt to attack Li Hua?
The leader of the HYDRA squad was also hesitant. After Li Hua used the game cartridge and Player Driver to transform, it was highly likely that this squad of agents was no longer capable of dealing with him.
Logically speaking, since they posed no threat to the target anymore, they should withdraw immediately to avoid unnecessary losses.
However, setting aside whether Li Hua would allow them to leave safely, the mission issued by HYDRA was not something that could simply be abandoned at will.
Mission failure, retreating without authorization— even if they escaped successfully, their fate upon returning would not be pleasant.
"Withdraw temporarily. Look for another opportunity to complete the mission."
Just as the squad leader was hesitating, an order suddenly came through the earpiece communication channel. He immediately made a decisive call and ordered his subordinates to retreat.
As the overall commander of the operation, Sitwell had done prior research on the power of Bugsters and had gathered relevant intelligence in advance.
Naturally, he knew about the Bugster virus outbreak at a U.S. military base. Despite deploying various advanced weapons and equipment, the military had been completely powerless against the monsters born from the Bugster virus and suffered repeated defeats.
Li Hua was clearly someone who used game cartridges and a Player Driver to fight Bugsters—meaning he possessed power capable of standing up to Bugster monsters.
Since Li Hua had successfully transformed using the game cartridge's power, this HYDRA squad clearly had absolutely no chance of capturing him.
The disparity in strength was simply too great. Forcing a battle would be nothing more than a mantis trying to stop a chariot—utterly meaningless.
Therefore, the moment Sitwell saw Li Hua transform, he immediately ordered the squad leader to retreat.
"I didn't expect this Li Hua to be able to remotely control the power of the game cartridge with his mind, directly absorbing it into his body.
How exactly is he able to control the Bugster virus within the cartridge so freely?" Sitwell was deeply puzzled.
HYDRA had been closely watching S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research on the game cartridges. Every experiment showed that the Bugster virus was absolutely not a power that could be easily controlled.
Sitwell's thoughts shifted slightly.
"It seems that the next capture operation must ensure that the target is not in the same space as the game cartridge."
Upon receiving the order, the HYDRA squad immediately moved to retreat.
However, now that they wanted to leave, Li Hua— or rather, the Demon King— would not agree.
Sensing the HYDRA agents' movements, the cartoon-styled eye armor of Brave suddenly lit up with a red glow.
The Demon King-armored Brave swept his cloak behind him. A mass of black-red smoke appeared, within which countless red points of light emerged.
They looked like pairs of eyes belonging to abyssal demons, or the greedy, brutal gazes of ferocious beasts that had locked onto their prey— deeply intimidating.
Moments later, the smoke dissipated. The HYDRA agents finally saw the source of those red lights.
They were eyes—belonging to Bugster minion monsters summoned by the Demon King's power.
Seeing these Bugsters appear out of thin air and surround them, the HYDRA squad opened fire without hesitation.
However, although these Bugsters were merely fodder units, they were still composed of the Bugster virus. Ordinary firearms and ammunition were incapable of harming them.
The Bugsters summoned by the Demon King advanced straight through the intense gunfire, easily overwhelming the elite HYDRA agents in front of them.
The Demon King-armored Brave watched as the HYDRA agents steadily collapsed under the assault of his summoned minions. The red glow in his eyes intensified.
The Bugster minions' attacks became even more ferocious. Before long, the entire HYDRA elite squad was completely wiped out, all lying on the ground, unable even to crawl.
The Demon King-armored Brave raised his hand, summoning the holy sword into his grip. Flames erupted along the blade, as if it possessed the terrifying power to incinerate everything.
Seeing the murderous Demon King advancing toward them, the HYDRA agents were filled with panic. They had already been beaten down by the summoned minions, and now even moving was difficult.
They could only watch helplessly as the ruthless Demon King approached, awaiting death.
Just as Brave, under the influence of the Demon King's power, was about to unleash a massacre, a ripple finally stirred within Li Hua's consciousness. His sword-swinging motion hesitated slightly.
At that moment, a beam of light shot in from the side, striking Brave's holy sword and forcibly stopping his movement.
"Li! You're being controlled by the overwhelming power of the Level 50 game cartridge. Wake up—now!"
It was Elena and Gwen, who had rushed to the scene via teleportation after receiving a notice from Dan Kuroto.
However, the Demon King-empowered Brave directly regarded Snipe and Lazer before him as enemies, swinging his sword at Gwen and Elena without hesitation.
"Li is Level 50 right now. We have to work together if we want to stop him!" Elena immediately opened fire to intercept Brave's overwhelming attack.
Gwen seized the opportunity, dashing toward Brave at extreme speed, swinging the blade of her bow from behind to strike him.
Yet when the Lazer's attack came within three inches of Brave's body, a dark red energy barrier appeared, blocking the strike completely. She couldn't reach Brave's true body at all.
At the same time, the Snipe's firepower was utterly outmatched by the Level 50 Demon King's strength. Elena couldn't hold on for long before being blasted away by flaming sword energy.
Brave then turned around and sent Gwen flying with a single slash.
"How the hell is he this strong?" Elena muttered through clenched teeth as she watched Brave dominate the battlefield.
After knocking back Gwen and Elena, Brave once again locked his gaze onto the nearby HYDRA agents—likely because Li Hua's subconscious harboured hostility toward those who had tried to kidnap him.
Thus, the Demon King-transformed Brave treated them as his top priority targets.
"Li, these guys may not be good people, but you absolutely can't kill them! You'll regret it!" Elena shouted anxiously upon seeing Brave clearly intent on slaughtering the agents.
"Don't forget— you're a doctor! Don't forget a doctor's duty!"
Hearing this, Brave's raised sword froze mid-air. The arm holding the blade trembled violently, as if an intense struggle were taking place.
"I… will… never… be controlled… by power!" Li Hua's voice came out in broken fragments.
Dark red smoke surged around Brave like evaporating steam.
Finally, Li Hua grabbed his cloak and shook it violently. The smoke dispersed, and the red glow in the armor's eyes faded, turning yellow instead.
Clearly, Li Hua had successfully brought the Level 50 Demon King cartridge's power under control.
(End of Chapter)