Shangri-La Project
The Shangri-La Project (シャングリラ計画 Shangurira Keikaku) is a dystopian plan devised by Chairman Wong and implemented with help from several of his co-conspirators in Digimon Beatbreak. Presented as a means of establishing an ideal world in which humanity is protected from Digimon and other threats, its true purpose is to allow Wong to literally control the entire world by using Albatusmon and the worldwide Sapotama network to detect and absorb abnormal e-Pulse.
Overview[edit]
The project is named after Shangri-La, the fictional utopia described in James Hilton's 1933 novel Lost Horizon. Ironically, despite its name, realization of the project leads to a full-blown dystopia rather than an utopia.
The completion of the project requires the power of an exceptionally powerful Digimon. Wong initially seeks to obtain the White Core, which contains Helios Boamon and the e-Pulse of Tenma Asuka. After the e-Pulse of Asuka and Tenma Tomoro is absorbed, Helios Boamon evolves into Albatusmon, giving Wong the power necessary to advance the project to its final stage.
While the highest-ranking Cleaner team under the World Union, the Five Stars, were supposedly assigned to assist in the implementation of the Shangri-La Project, in practice, out of Kanada Genjo, none of them actually bothered to help him do it (and in fact defected as soon as they saw it put into action).
Once all of the preparations are complete, Wong and his fellow co-conspirators place Albatusmon into the core of Apraxas, World Union's central server in the Mirror World, and control it. As Sapotama are ordinarily connected to Apraxas, Albatusmon can use this network to detect abnormal e-Pulse and absorb it along with the person linked to the affected Sapotama. Through this system, Wong supposedly intends to control every future emergence of a Digimon, thereby creating what he considers an ideal world free from the threat they represent; in actuality, he is full of delusions of godhood and seeks to use Albatusmon to cull not just people who could manifest a Digimon, but also anyone who even so thinks about acting against him.
Appearances[edit]
Anime[edit]
Digimon Beatbreak[edit]
The Shangri-La Project is first mentioned when the Five Stars assemble in Apraxas for a meeting with Chairman Wong. In response to the increasing number of Cold Heart cases and the rapid emergence of Digimon, Wong announces that the project is ready to be put into operation and orders the Five Stars to cooperate in its implementation.[1] In actuality, Kanada Genjo was the only star who was actively working for it and the others did not bother.
Klay Arslan later reveals that Wong became obsessed with recreating the extraordinary power he witnessed during the Kano Island incident. According to Klay, Wong subsequently used World Union's influence to promote e-Pulse technology and the widespread adoption of Sapotama, while concealing the truth about Digimon from the public.[2]
Wong and Kanada Genjo seek the White Core as a component required to complete the project. Kishiwada Kanchi delivers it to Wong after being appointed as the new Earth Element Star of the Five Stars.[3] The White Core is revealed to contain Helios Boamon and the e-Pulse of Tenma Asuka. After Asuka and Tenma Tomoro are used to bring about Helios Boamon's evolution into Albatusmon, Wong obtains the power needed to initiate the project's final stage.[4][5]
Albatusmon subsequently takes over of the core of Apraxas under the World Union's control. Afterwards, all Sapotamas that have not yet given birth to a Digimon receive a forced update that would allow Albatusmon to use its Apraxas' connection to the worldwide Sapotama network to detect and absorb abnormal e-Pulse from the people linked to the affected devices, Cold Hearting them instantly. This affects not just people who are about to give birth to a Digimon, but also people who even so slights him. Anyone who criticizes Wong find themselves Cold Hearted, although occasionally others got warnings and were advised to take a deep breath. Effectively, it was all a plan for Wong to essentially elevate himself into a world dictator and a god who could remotely cull and silence any potential or perceived opposition. As Digimon Owners are unaffected, Wong summons Rose Woodville to eradicate all remaining cleaners. Instead, she defects out of disgust, apparently having also been arranged for her fellow colleagues Kaito and Honoka to do the same off-screen.[5]
Wong then attempts to remove the entire Ministry of Civil Protection and use them as scapegoats by having Albatusmon Cold Heart everyone there, but Tenma Tasuku and Kagemori Miharu invented a spray that could disconnect a person from their Sapotamas, and thus preventing Albatusmon from draining their e-Pulses through it. After Kawarazaki refused to use the spray to let Tenma Tomoro save Asuka and was Cold Hearted as a result, Kutsuwada Maki relays his final assignment to Glowing Dawn: infiltrate Apraxas, stop the Shangri-La Project, and defeat Chairman Wong.[5]
However, before they could do so, the project was thwarted by Kanada Genjo, who after having Atratusmon in his hands as well, orders Asuka to free Albatusmon and instantly went to business revealing that he, Kishiwada Kanchi, Gokuwmon and Nishino Senka are actually a group of four co-conspiring Digimon in disguise; Wong has effectively made his own downfall by surrounding himself with saboteurs. Genjo then reveals his true identity as a rogue Sanzomon and gets rid of Chairman Wong by Cold Hearting him. [6]
Sanzomon later declares on-screen that she has hijacked Chairman Wong's Shangri-La Project to use Atratusmon and Albatusmon to endlessly drain the e-Pulses of humans and bestow it to Digimon in the vicinity. [7]
Additional information[edit]
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