"Were you looking for me?"
Appearing silently behind Koromon, Renamon first revealed a faint smile, then asked in her usual cool, indifferent tone.
"Renamon?"
Startled by this sudden voice, Chen Ze immediately turned around, seeing Renamon standing there completely unharmed, as if nothing had happened at all.
"Where did you come from?"
Chen Ze frowned slightly. After a brief moment of surprise, he quickly sensed something unusual.
This was cyberspace—a world where everything could be detected and analyzed from a purely data-based perspective. "Appearing out of nowhere" simply didn't make logical sense.
In other words, the fact that Renamon could suddenly appear behind him without warning meant her hacking abilities were powerful enough to conceal all traces of data transmission.
But this was clearly impossible. Chen Ze himself was a top-tier hacker, currently in a state of actively scanning for data signals. It was inconceivable that he could've missed such a powerful data stream like Renamon's.
"I encountered someone annoying."
Seeming to sense Chen Ze's confusion, Renamon lightly offered an explanation.
"That person was a hacker—one whose skills are likely higher than yours."
Although Chen Ze was very tempted to ask, Is there really a hacker better than me in this era? I'm already far beyond this era's technological level, a hacker from the future, aren't I?
But considering Renamon had no reason to lie, and hackers were notorious for their mystery anyway, it wouldn't be surprising if there were indeed one or two extraordinarily gifted individuals out there.
Moreover, was the "hacker" Renamon mentioned truly just a simple "hacker"?
Chen Ze expressed quiet doubt.
After all, this was a world where Digimon and Homeostasis existed. Far too many mysterious unknowns lay hidden within it.
Forget a hacker more skilled than himself—if someday another hacker from the future suddenly appeared, Chen Ze wouldn't even be surprised.
"Since you don't want to talk about it, I won't ask."
Using his two long ears, Chen Ze decisively dismissed the virtual screens projected before him.
There was an unspoken rule among hackers: unless thoroughly vetted, never use programs of unknown origin. Doing so would only put oneself unknowingly into danger.
The same logic applied here. Chen Ze didn't want to obsess over this mysterious hacker Renamon mentioned. He had no intention of getting caught up in unknown dangers.
If that person really had contact with Renamon, he'd find out eventually—that was Chen Ze's intuition as a hacker.
"You're okay now, right?"
After a long silence, Chen Ze finally voiced his concern, somewhat indirectly.
"I'm fine now."
Although the faint curve at the corners of her lips remained unchanged, Renamon's expression visibly warmed a bit. She clearly enjoyed this feeling of being cared about.
Ever since leaving Primary Village, it had been a long time since Renamon experienced emotional connections with others.
On one hand, there was no need for it. In the Digital World, the unchanging rule was survival of the fittest, devouring others to evolve. Forming attachments with other Digimon would only create unnecessary weaknesses.
On the other hand, Renamon's own personality was proud and difficult to approach. Even after accidentally entering Chen Ze's personal computer, she had taken a long time testing him before gradually becoming familiar.
This could be seen clearly from Chen Ze's initial impression of her. At first, he hadn't welcomed this socially inept "intruder hacker" who constantly tinkered inside his computer.
Only with time had the two grown closer.
Then, after the unexpected incident, Renamon and Chen Ze's simple "online friends" relationship was suddenly elevated to "friends."
"So then—"
Just as Chen Ze was about to say something more, Renamon's expression suddenly shifted. Without warning, she scooped him up in his YukimiBotamon-like form and dashed backward.
BOOM!
In an instant, a massive explosion swept through the area where they'd just been standing.
"Woo-woo-woo!"
A booming noise like a gigantic jet roaring overhead, or perhaps a colossal bird screeching—
A flood of data, far surpassing the maximum capacity of Hikarigaoka's network, poured into this space from deep within the network's otherworldly depths.
Crackle—pop!
The chaotic electricity immediately shorted out devices connected to this part of the network, with this terrifying phenomenon rapidly spreading across the entire Hikarigaoka district.
"Woo-woo-woo!"
Through the chaos, a colorful parrot with massive wings and four powerful limbs briefly materialized amid streaks of electricity and rushing data currents within this empty cyberspace.
Although it was merely a fleeting shadow, the powerful data and force it contained were enough to strike fear into anyone who saw it.
"Parrotmon?!"
Chen Ze instantly recognized the intruder's identity—the Ultimate-level Digimon, Parrotmon.
In the first Digimon Adventure movie from his previous life, Parrotmon had descended into the human world as Homeostasis's emissary, perishing alongside that unnaturally powerful Greymon.
As a divine messenger, Parrotmon—much like the Angemon who appeared before—was a Holy-type Digimon, possessing potential far beyond ordinary Digimon.
The rings adorning Parrotmon's limbs clearly proved this. Especially notable were the two rings on its forelimbs: the legendary "Holy Rings."
Even Angemon, favored by the gods in its digivolution line, had evolved only a single Holy Ring.
In Chen Ze's memory, apart from Parrotmon being defeated by a mere Champion-level Greymon, all other Digimon with multiple Holy Rings were terrifying powerhouses who could effortlessly dominate their peers, even challenging Digimon far beyond their own stage.
Is it really this powerful?!
Until now, Chen Ze had always considered Parrotmon an embarrassment among Ultimates—a Digimon that couldn't even defeat a Champion-level opponent.
Only now, directly experiencing Parrotmon's overwhelming strength, did he realize how badly he'd underestimated this so-called "Ultimate disgrace."
Parrotmon's defeat at the hands of Kari's Greymon wasn't due to weakness. That Greymon had simply been a cheat-like anomaly. It didn't mean Parrotmon itself was weak.
In fact, any Digimon chosen as an emissary by Homeostasis undoubtedly ranked among the strongest even within the Ultimate level.
"To think such an ancient Digimon still exists in this world…"
Also shaken by the strength Parrotmon displayed, Renamon—who originated from the Digital World—was more concerned about Parrotmon's existence itself.
The Digital World wasn't static; from ancient times to now, countless generations of Digimon had risen and fallen.
Short lifespans, low intelligence, insufficient strength, evolution capped at certain stages…
Alongside successful evolution paths, there existed countless flawed evolutions, filled with crippling defects.
By Renamon's time, Ultimate-level Parrotmon had long been excluded from most Digimon evolution charts due to the extreme difficulty of its evolutionary path.
In other words, Parrotmon's presence confirmed Renamon's suspicions—this world's Digimon were still trapped in a primitive era.