Chapter 3: 3 the one

Qi Ming deduced that because the watch only scanned the severed head of the Diga statue, the data it collected was incomplete.

The Diga Ultraman he became was a defective version.

Not only could he not switch forms, his transformation could last only one and a half minutes.

He had planned to eliminate all three monsters here at once, but now he had to change tactics.

“Roar!” After being battered in the first round of combat, the three monsters’ morale surged when they saw the colored timer on Diga’s chest flashing, reigniting their killing instincts.

With time running short, Qi Ming charged toward the three monsters.

He swung his ice axe in a downward slash, thrust, then reversed the blade to slash the wrist—Meerba’s left claw nearly severed.

He dodged past Meerba’s shrieking pain and delivered a shoulder charge to Golza, knocking him back, then crossed his arms and drove his elbow into Golza’s chest, sending him flying aside.

The last one, Garula, became his target.

Garula roared and fired an orange heat ray from the horns on its head, blocking Diga’s advance.

Qi Ming rolled left to evade, then dropped to the ground, lining up his shot; he formed his hands into an “L” shape and unleashed a simplified version of the Zepellion Ray, striking Garula’s throat—the only spot not covered by its thick hide.

“Boom!” The Zepellion Ray pierced through the throat and out the back of the skull; Garula stiffened and collapsed heavily.

After firing that Zepellion Ray, Diga’s energy was nearly depleted—he could only maintain the form for another Shiji seconds.

But Qi Ming pressed forward instead of retreating, adopting the posture of a predator as he advanced toward Golza and Meerba.

“Roar…” Meerba trembled and retreated.

Golza, equally terrified, frantically dug into the earth with his limbs, trying to bury himself alive.

With Golza leading the retreat, Meerba spread its wings and fled skyward, heading for the horizon.

“They’re trying to escape—chase them!” Behind them, Seven, barely clinging to life, gasped out.

Qi Ming thought: Seven must know what it means when the colored timer on his chest turns red—so it seems the habit of Star Group pushing his men too hard during his captaincy was already showing…

“Unfortunately, that’s all for today. If I don’t let them die with dignity, they’ll force me to die with it.” Qi Ming placed the ice axe back on top of Seven’s head.

The next instant, Diga vanished, like a streak of ink washed away by water.

He reverted to Qi Ming.

Though he hadn’t annihilated all enemies, the immediate threat was lifted; Seven also deactivated his transformation.

“So this is what it feels like to fight giant monsters after transforming into fifty meters tall? More exhausting than running a full marathon…” Qi Ming propped himself up with one hand, breathing lightly.

Meanwhile, Garula’s body twitched several times before finally going still, dead.

A fine stream of blue light particles rose from its corpse and flowed into the button at the upper-right corner of Qi Ming’s watch.

A line of text appeared on the watch screen.

【Access / Transform】.

“Access means recording Garula’s genes like Diga did, so I can transform into it later?”

“But what does Transform mean? Seriously, can’t you just give me a manual?!”

In the end, Qi Ming hesitantly chose Transform.

Compared to Garula’s obvious weaknesses and lack of special abilities, he preferred to use this chance to explore the watch’s functions.

After selection, the watch trembled slightly, then switched to the main interface.

Star Ci : 3.

See Through: 1/5.

Qi Ming: “...”

No good. To understand these special terms, he needed a manual.

Qi Ming was confident: given time, he’d definitely figure out how the watch worked—men had a natural talent for tinkering with machines.

But before that, something more urgent needed attention.

Qi Ming tapped the button in the upper-left corner again, scanning the scattered fragments of stone statues across the ground.

He wanted to raise Diga’s integration from 30% to 100%, but failed.

“Cannot access multiple targets simultaneously.” The watch screen displayed the prompt.

The three statues had been shattered into pieces; now Diga’s hand lay atop another giant’s waist, blocking the watch’s scan.

To scan properly, the fragments would have to be reassembled—a massive undertaking.

“You’re… the Ultraman from just now?” A weak voice came from behind.

Qi Ming turned and saw Star Group, battered and bruised, leaning against a tree as he stared at him.

“It’s me, Captain Star Group.” Qi Ming walked over.

He introduced himself, saying he came from another Earth, and asked Seven if there was any way to send him back across dimensions.

“You want to go back?” Star Group’s gaze turned strange.

Qi Ming: “I don’t have a habit of staying out all night.”

On his way from the bookstore to Diga’s location, he had carefully recalled every detail from his life before the “crossing,” searching for what had gone wrong.

The news he’d seen before bed caught his attention—a blue luminous object had descended onto the Pacific Ocean, cutting off contact with deep-sea submersibles… Why did that sound so much like the [theone] from *Ultraman Neos*?

If he could cross into this world, couldn’t the monsters and demons of this world cross into his?

He had to return and find out.

Star Group fell silent for a moment: “Seven no longer exists. Look for yourself.”

He pulled out the Ultraman glasses, trying to force them on—but as if blocked by an invisible force, he couldn’t.

Qi Ming quickly shouted: “Stop! I know you’re in bad shape—don’t push yourself! Stop!”

Before he finished speaking, the Ultraman glasses on Star Group’s right hand burst into flames; Star Group collapsed violently, and Qi Ming rushed to catch him.

The failed forced transformation had destroyed the Ultraman glasses.

“No need to prove it this way—I didn’t even need to see this… Wait, maybe I can.”

With a try-it-out attitude, Qi Ming scanned the ruined Ultraman glasses with his watch.

Immediately, the watch’s movement lifted, the dial rotated, and a black silhouette of Seven appeared on the screen.

Ultraman Seven.

Integration: 45%.

Rating: B-class.

It actually worked!

Now he could transform into Seven too—B-class should be higher than C-class, right? Was it because the integration was higher?

He turned the dial left back to the main interface—the numbers had changed.

Star Ci : 3.

See Through: 2/5.

It had gone from 1 to 2—so does this line indicate the number of forms he can transform into?

Star Group suddenly asked: “Qi Ming, now that you possess immense power capable of changing the world, what do you intend to do with it?”

He was worried: Qi Ming had not undergone the slow, grueling process of growth; suddenly gaining such power might cause him to lose himself.

Qi Ming replied casually: “I’ll help others within my means.”

Though only twenty-one, Qi Ming was no ordinary college student—his past experiences in peril had given him confidence he could handle this power.

Star Group was stunned; his brow furrowed slightly, then relaxed. He said:

“As long as you search with sincerity, you’ll find your way home.”

“I’ll help too. For now, why not join Victory Team?”

“You need me. I need you.”

Thinking of the Victory Team roster he’d just read, Qi Ming looked uneasy.

Facing Star Group’s earnest gaze, he reluctantly said: “If it’s temporary work, I’ll give it a shot.”

He needed a place to stay and wanted to use TPC’s scientific resources to find a way back.

Star Group understood his meaning but said nothing more—he wanted to slowly cultivate Qi Ming’s sense of belonging.

“Captain! Captain! Are you…?” Shan Zhong and An Tian arrived.

Seeing Qi Ming, both were momentarily stunned.

The young man supporting the captain stood tall, his face like polished jade, his eyes like ink dots—like a celestial being.

This guy… looks incredibly good-looking!

“Who are you? How did you get here?” Shan Zhong recovered first—no outsiders should be in this combat zone.

Qi Ming, new here, followed the principle of saying less to avoid mistakes, hoping Star Group—who was more suited to explain—would speak up.

But Star Group merely waved his hand silently, signaling to stand down.

Qi Ming: “?”

Is this how you want me to join Victory Team? This will make me look suspicious.

This was Star Group’s second weakness as captain—he didn’t know how to use kind lies to ease tensions among his team.

In episode 14 of *Ultraman Leo*, the MAC team suffered repeated losses fighting a scorpion monster.

Star Group forbade two elite members who wanted to avenge their comrades from fighting, forcing them to train Feng Yuan in martial arts instead.

His behavior—favoring Feng Yuan during wartime just to help him regain face, treating government personnel like personal trainers—infuriated the two members.

They vented their anger on Feng Yuan, who knelt and begged, only to receive cold stares and curses in return.

Everyone says Leo is a tragic hero—but if Star Group had been more flexible, Feng Yuan wouldn’t have suffered so much…

Qi Ming had no choice but to speak: “I’m a tourist visiting ancient sites. I saw your fighter crash and thought I couldn’t ignore a hero protecting Earth—I pulled you from the cockpit and brought you to safety.”

An Tian shook his head: “You haven’t had professional training—you’re too reckless. Captain, how bad are your injuries?”

"I'm fine." But as Zhu Xingtuan took a step, he stumbled and nearly fell.

"Captain, your leg!" Shan Zhong glared at Qi Ming: "You brat, why are you showing off like this?"

Seeing his beloved captain so badly injured, he started speaking without thinking again.

Qi Ming: "?"

Does he think my rescue method was wrong and wants to blame me for Zhu Xingtuan’s disability?

Qi Ming smiled and retorted: "Why don’t you blame your mother for giving birth to you with defects?"

(End of Chapter)