[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn":3,"chapter-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-16":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Ultraman Arbitrary Key: Dawn",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2261233,4413,"Chapter 16: 15 I Pursue Perfection, Yet Embrace the Status Quo","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-16",16,"\u003Cp>After searching for the Zuluks for two hours with no result, the group returned to the oceanic base.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the command room, Nami Nishijo once again reported the full details of this incident.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When mentioning how Seven had allowed the monster to kill people today, Nami Nishijo asked Shirogane: “Can the Light Warrior truly be trusted to stand with humanity?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming, sitting nearby, said:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Absolutely not. Treat him as an enemy.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I propose that the next time Ultraman appears, we unleash full firepower on him and show Ultraman what happens when he doesn’t treat humans like his own parents.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nami Nishijo’s words reminded him of a scene from *Ultraman Orb*—after the rampaging Dark Orb smashed a plane, the WIT Team immediately erased all of Orb’s past deeds of transforming and battling monsters to protect millions of city dwellers, and when both Orb and Japton appeared, they prioritized firing at Orb.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nami Nishijo glared coldly at Qi Ming; in her eyes, he was a “shameless” individual.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>We haven’t even settled the account for how your reckless actions worsened the disaster!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane’s face darkened: “Don’t jump to conclusions. Observe for a while longer. Qi Ming, come with me!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yamada and Kishida exchanged smug smiles, assuming the captain was about to severely punish Qi Ming for disobeying orders and acting recklessly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After returning to the hidden room, Shirogane demanded: “Why didn’t you save those five people?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming sat down in a chair with complete indifference:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Just a few societal rejects dead. What’s the big deal?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“What they did deserves death. The neighbors were almost ready to pop champagne in celebration.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane said gravely: “People can change. Have you never considered they might repent?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“These five nearly killed Xiao Xue. Repent? Wait—Captain, you’re not one of those anti-death-penalty types, are you? We’re on different paths. Looks like we should part ways.” Qi Ming sat up straight.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This struck Shirogane’s weakest point. His tone immediately softened, and he asked Qi Ming to sit down and speak calmly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“No. Those who commit evil must be punished—but punishment should be left to the law.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t you care about how the public views you—or Ultraman—because of your indifference to those five?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “I didn’t kill those five. And does the public only see that I didn’t stop the monster from killing a few scum, but not see that I drove off the monster and saved an entire village?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“If all humans on this Earth are this kind of trash, I can’t serve them. Find someone else.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming was fiercely independent; Shirogane could not possibly “reform his thinking.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing Shirogane repeat the same old arguments, Qi Ming cut him off:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Enough. Drop this topic. Let’s talk about something serious.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He told Shirogane that, from top management down to frontline operatives, most of TPC were extreme danger-prone individuals.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>For the long-term future of Earth and human society, the collective needed a blood purge.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The two top strategists in the leadership, in the original series, had both directly targeted the human hosts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Given Tsuchibashi’s personality, he’d likely seize any opportunity to scheme.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A gentleman avoids standing beneath a crumbling wall. This environment is dangerous for Qi Ming.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He must not only fight external invaders but also guard against internal betrayal.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If the leadership could be replaced with capable people like Director Sawaki, Captain Osaki, or Commander Ishitsu, his burden would lighten considerably.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Qi Ming arrived, some strategists’ orders had made Shirogane’s life miserable, but after thinking, he found no suitable replacements.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I think Guqiao is decent,” he finally recalled his former teammate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “Guqiao? He’s no good.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In *Ultraman Seven OV*, He Zhi turned evil because, during a battle against alien invaders, most of his teammates died. When He Zhi wanted to pursue the fleeing alien fleet, Guqiao refused.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He said: “We’re not at war. As long as we protect the people we love from harm, isn’t that enough?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zhi held up the helmet worn by his deceased lover:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Idiotic. Either die or live. Defeat or be defeated—that’s the only true war against those aliens!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“When they return with overwhelming force, we’ll have no defense at all!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Guqiao remained firm: “Enough! The battle is over! No more lives need to be sacrificed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zhi’s eyes burned with rage: “You… such a cowardly decision will cause even more deaths! I misjudged you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Although He Zhi committed many vile acts after his corruption, Qi Ming fully supported his stance in this moment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Guqiao would never be used. In this perilous world, such gentle, compassionate dove-like thinking was bound to fail.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing no one else viable, Qi Ming sighed inwardly and decided to accept the status quo.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Carrying out a decapitation strike on He Zhi and Tsuchibashi would be useless—they each had their own factions, representing entrenched ideologies.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A full purge was even less appropriate; he might have to return at any moment. These people may have flawed thinking, but at least they were doing something.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What if he left and handed TPC, paralyzed, to face this unpredictable world? He couldn’t do that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Consider it a drastic medicine for a critical illness: let the extreme hawkish faction face the encircling enemies head-on.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “We’ll just have to be careful.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane nodded: “Correct.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming’s gaze turned cold: “I hope those strategists are careful not to pry into my affairs. If they really dig up something, I’ll have no choice but to ‘handle them urgently.’”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane: “?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shouldn’t it be you who’s careful, hiding your uniqueness, avoiding detection?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Alright, that’s enough for today. Captain, keep an eye out for talent in management.” Qi Ming picked up his tablet and began gathering intelligence to better understand this world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>*The World’s 100 Unsolved Mysteries: The Annual Halloween Mass Disappearance of Children*—is that witch from *Tiga* still at large?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>*Frequent Minor Earthquakes in Region T7-B Force Tunnel Construction to Halt*—probably some subterranean monster causing trouble.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane didn’t leave. He said flight training could wait, but Qi Ming must get along with the other team members—how else could they cooperate?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “It depends on whether the others are friendly and reasonable. Look, I get along fine with Emi.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Shirogane: “What about Yamada and Kishida? Tensions will build up if ignored.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Qi Ming: “The fastest way to resolve conflict is to intensify it. I’ve got it under control. Don’t worry.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of Chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1063,"2026-06-19T16:40:33.318Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","f2306d9ef5b8de496fbf42c3ad6a100b567c9d5fbad17f823c42d660bd87e1d9","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-17","ultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-chapter-15",547,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fultraman-arbitrary-key-dawn-cover.jpg"]