Chapter 177

"Hmm?" Qi Ming wore a gentle smile as he looked at Emi.

This made Emi's heart skip a beat: "It's nothing, you get some good rest, I'll pour you some water."

Member Qi Ming chose to hide his secret; he must have his own reasons.

Before he recovers his health, it's better to maintain a "tacit" understanding.

Soon, Dr. Yao, Staff Officer Kiriyama, Lucia and Zara, and Maya—the fiancée of Soldier Shan Zhong whom Qi Ming had saved from the Alien Metron—all came to visit Qi Ming.

Staff Officer Quan Teng, Staff Officer He Zhi, and that Staff Officer Inagaki, although too busy to get away, also sent flower baskets and fruit.

Even Minister Yin of the Security Department sent a gift, because Staff Officer He Zhi had instructed—"Although you have had some unpleasantness, you are, after all, comrades-in-arms protecting the Earth together; you should take this opportunity to improve your relationship."

He felt this made a lot of sense, so he personally selected a large watermelon and had his subordinates send it to Qi Ming.

The more eccentric one was Ai Ran Cheng.

Knowing that Qi Ming, who had originally helped him devise strategies and bridge connections, was hospitalized, he rushed over from the Kaburaya Islands and performed several magic tricks in the ward to try to amuse him and help him relax.

Xiang Tenggong also came.

Elusive as ever, he snuck into the ward at midnight, watched the sleeping Qi Ming for a few moments, checked Qi Ming's medical report, and only then nodded and left, relieved.

Two days later, the ninth day of the Gleeza incident, Qi Ming's Star-Gifted points reached 3.

This morning, the calm was broken; a monster appeared in the city—or to be precise, a Super Beast.

Its emerald-green body was covered in brownish-yellow spikes, making one think of a cactus at first glance.

That's right, this is the Cactus Super Beast 【Sabotander】!

The Yapool had left the front line, and without its remote micro-management, the Super Beast it left behind became a monster that only knew how to rampage with brute force, becoming the first "warrior" to jump out after the Gleeza incident.

"Shoo, shoo, shoo." The thick spikes on Sabotander's body shot out like missiles, instantly blowing up a row of nearby buildings.

Such casualties simultaneously alarmed the TPC and the Defense Force; they launched a joint strike, attacking Sabotander.

Even though his body was severely unwell, in order not to miss out on Star-Gifted points, Qi Ming had Moroboshi Dan drive him to the scene.

"Does this monster have any weaknesses?" Moroboshi Dan asked.

"None, but its strength is very average; the Deputy Captain and Soldier Shan Zhong should be able to eliminate it," Qi Ming replied in a weak voice.

Just then, the Victory Feiyan No. 2, piloted by Soldier Shan Zhong and Saijo Nagi, nimbly dodged Sabotander's dense needle net and circled to its rear.

The Victory Feiyan No. 1, piloted by Kishida, and a large number of Defense Force tanks seized the opportunity to intersperse into the battlefield; they fired together, causing Sabotander to stiffen.

"Now!" Soldier Shan Zhong decisively pulled the trigger, and the Victory Feiyan No. 2's Texas Beam blasted onto Sabotander.

Sabotander's body stiffened, and it fell heavily, moving no more.

Moroboshi Dan: "Very good, humanity has relied on its own strength to eliminate the monster!"

The light spots condensing the Super Beast's life energy did not appear, and Qi Ming reminded him: "It's not dead yet."

The next moment, blue mist surged, and Sabotander vanished from the spot.

Moroboshi Dan: "What's going on?"

Qi Ming rubbed his temples: "It escaped. Next, it will disguise itself as an ordinary cactus to lurk in the city, devouring life to become stronger, and then try to destroy the Earth again."

This is the content of the twelfth episode of "Ace," "The Cactus is Hell's Red Flower."

Moroboshi Dan: "What else? Where will it escape to?"

No one answered.

Moroboshi Dan looked back, only to see the pale-faced Qi Ming had already closed his eyes and collapsed in the back row.

Although his physical functions were recovering quickly, it was difficult for him to maintain long-term consciousness regarding his mental state; overexerting his brain easily led to fainting.

To recover to a normal level, it would probably take another week.

Moroboshi Dan had no choice; he took out his PDI communicator: "Maintain vigilance, find this cactus!"

But the Super Beast had destroyed the surveillance cameras in the surrounding area while wrecking the city; trying to find a tiny cactus in a big city with manpower was too difficult.

Night fell, and at a night market in Tokyo, a middle-aged man setting up a stall to sell cacti was calling out:

"Welcome, everyone passing by, don't miss out! Cacti imported directly from the original regions of Mexico, Brazil, and Argentina!"

"Come, take a look at this, Golden Sand White Sandalwood, Queen of the Night, Sea King, Red Peony—all top-tier cacti!"

His chubby son, a primary school student named Songben Songben Sanlang, whispered: "Dad, don't lie to people; these are clearly artificially cultivated cacti."

Songben Songben Sanlang's father kept a straight face: "Shh, bragging is necessary for business; remember that well."

Songben Songben Sanlang curled his lip. He looked down and lifted a pot of cacti: "Look quickly, a red cactus!"

Seeing this, his father was stunned for a moment.

Among the goods I set out, do I have this kind of cactus? I don't remember clearly.

But he didn't take it to heart and continued calling out, while the child named Songben Songben Sanlang held it in his hands and watched.

At this moment, a flying insect flapped its wings and landed on the cactus flower to rest.

The next moment, the red flower atop the cactus closed, devouring the insect.

Clearly, this was the disguise of the Super Beast Sabotander; it was constantly devouring life to become stronger.

This made Songben Songben Sanlang's eyes widen in surprise; a cactus that eats things, how cool.

He immediately said: "Dad, give this to me."

Songben Songben Sanlang's father scolded: "Idiot, how can I give this to you? This is merchandise for sale."

"No choice, here, 50 yuan." Songben Songben Sanlang took a coin out of his pocket.

His father said: "Idiot, this costs 200 yuan!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the father became a bit unconfident again—what was the price of this thing anyway?

However, since his son wanted it, there was no need to quibble over these things; he accepted the coin and let him have the cactus.

The next day, Songben Songben Sanlang brought the cactus to school, happily showing it off in front of his classmates.

When the classmates saw the red flower on top of the cactus devour a beetle, gasps of amazement followed one after another.

Even the teacher was alarmed: "This cactus is actually an insectivorous plant."

Seeing himself become the focus of the crowd, Songben Songben Sanlang looked proud: "I want to name it after myself; let's call it the Songben Songben Sanlang Cactus."

Outside the crowd, a child named Mingfu watched this scene, feeling somewhat unhappy.

Just a moment ago, he had taken out his monster toy and become the focus of his classmates.

But when Songben Songben Sanlang took out the cactus, all his thunder was stolen.

"Hmph, what's so great about a cactus? It's not the cactus monster from the news yesterday."

"This kind of ordinary cactus is sold everywhere; my monster is the truly powerful one."

Mingfu couldn't help but want to compete with Songben Songben Sanlang.

Songben Songben Sanlang mocked: "Your monster is just a toy; it can't move. My cactus is alive!"

Mingfu: "Then you wait, I'll find a living monster right away and show you how powerful it is!"

(End of chapter)