Chapter 70: The Passage Falls
The remaining Digimon were covered in countless wounds, huddled at the entrance to the Digital Sanctuary, their eyes heavy with dread as they watched the army of Digimon relentlessly advancing upon them.
Thump, thump!
The pounding footsteps of those Digimon echoed in the hearts of Zhao Jie and the others, making them instinctively hold their breath.
“Go now, there’s still time to leave. If you don’t, we really won’t be able to help you any longer.”
Brother Lin’s face was pale as he seized this brief moment to glance at Zhao Jie by his side, once again urging him.
“Kid, just go. You have boundless potential; there’s no need to gamble your life here.”
“Yes, yes, hurry and leave. We all appreciate your kindness, but leaving now isn’t shameful.”
“Greymon has already reached its limit. If you won’t think for yourself, at least consider your Digimon partner, right?”
“…”
Everyone spoke over one another, trying to persuade Zhao Jie. None of them could bear to see such a promising youth die alongside them.
Standing guard here was their task and their responsibility.
But the young man before them was simply too young—young enough that, given time, his Digimon partner would surely reach super-evolution, promising a brilliant future ahead.
If a talent like him were to perish here, it would be a loss for the entire Digital community of Huaguo.
Some sanctuaries had never truly been peaceful; they needed more support from Digimon Tamers.
“Greymon!”
Zhao Jie took a deep breath and looked at his exhausted Greymon.
Their hearts in sync, Greymon slowly retreated, devolving back into Agumon, stumbling as it returned to the group.
“Everyone, take care.”
Standing at the exit of the sanctuary, Zhao Jie swept his gaze across the remaining faces, finally bowing to them.
“Haha, go on, go on.”
“Brothers, our battle begins now. Hold out until reinforcements arrive!”
Brother Lin, Old Xiao, and the others waved to Zhao Jie, then threw themselves back into the fray.
Swoosh!
The passage opened once more. Zhao Jie gave the group one last look, then led Agumon out. Just as they said, staying in the sanctuary wouldn’t help anymore.
After emerging from the passage, Zhao Jie found himself in the cold, deserted base.
The students and most of the non-Digital staff had already evacuated, leaving only him and Agumon in the empty facility.
“Let’s go.”
He glanced back at the passage, then set out with Agumon. Ordinarily, he’d never be able to leave the base so easily.
But now, with everyone gone, nothing stood in their way.
Clang!
Just as they reached the exit, the base gates swung open. Several large trucks appeared before Zhao Jie and Agumon.
Digimon leapt down from the trucks, and seeing this, Zhao Jie’s heart leapt—reinforcements had finally arrived.
Digimon Tamers jumped from the vehicles, leading their Digimon swiftly toward the sanctuary entrance.
“You must be Zhao Jie. What’s the situation inside?”
The leader was a middle-aged man with a crew cut, dressed in military uniform, his posture rigid and upright. As the other Tamers hurried to the sanctuary, he approached Zhao Jie.
He was from the military, and more people were on their way. Before coming, he’d reviewed the personnel list for the sanctuary; only the champion from the recent Rookie Cup in Shashi, Zhao Jie, was this young.
“It’s bad. We’ve lost many people. When I left, everyone was trapped at the sanctuary’s exit.”
Zhao Jie quickly reported what he knew.
This officer, Lieutenant Luo Shuang, grew darker in expression as he listened.
A beast tide—in the small sanctuary here in Wuling City, a beast tide had erupted. If it weren’t for the Digimon Tamers desperately holding the line…
If these Digimon broke into the human world, things would become dire.
Boom!
As they spoke, a loud crash erupted at the sanctuary entrance. Zhao Jie instinctively turned to see a Monkeemon struggling out of the passage.
“Destroy it!”
Luo Shuang spotted the Monkeemon emerging from the portal.
Buzz…
Several Digimon had already reached the mature stage, but before they could act, the Monkeemon had crawled out.
“Roar!”
Monkeemon beat its chest in excitement, its savage eyes locking onto Zhao Jie.
It recognized that damned Agumon!
Thump, thump.
Boom!
After only a few steps, Monkeemon was tackled by a Garurumon, then a Betamon pierced its arm through Monkeemon’s skull.
Swoosh!
One Digimon after another emerged from the passage.
Though the new Tamers and Digimon were formidable, faced with the endless stream of Digimon, all they could do was eliminate the intruders.
The sanctuary passage was clearly lost.
“Hurry, retake the passage!”
Luo Shuang called out to the Tamers, picking up his military radio.
“Order the troops to build the third defensive line. The sanctuary entrance has been lost; we are constructing the second defensive line at the forward base.”
“All right, leave this to us. You can go now, but remember not to reveal what happened here.”
Luo Shuang spoke to Zhao Jie before hastily departing.
He wasn’t a Digimon Tamer, but he needed to oversee everything. Now that Digimon had entered the human world through the sanctuary, containing them was his responsibility.
Zhao Jie was left standing alone, staring blankly at the sanctuary entrance.
The Digimon were battling fiercely—was this any different from what happened inside?
If Digimon could emerge from the sanctuary, it likely meant Old Xiao and the others were already dead.
“Go on, kid.”
“Hurry and leave, we’ll take care of things here.”
The voices of Old Xiao and the others echoed in his mind. Though they’d fought together for less than an hour, each face flashed vividly before his eyes.
“You succeeded. You held out until reinforcements arrived.”
Looking at the entire base and the constant influx of support from outside, Zhao Jie murmured softly to himself.