Chapter 345: 341 Toregia

The waters off Kuyaruyaru Island.

A burst of light emerged from the sea as Ultraman Orb flew out, holding the soaked Victory Feiyan-1, wearing red briefs.

What if the plane crashes?

Simple—have your teammate turn into an Ultraman and fly the fighter.

"Gagura, what do we do?" Orb looked toward Gagura in the cockpit.

"This area has intense electromagnetic interference—the problem likely lies here," Gagura said. "Let's return and inform Senior Qi Ming."

"Alright."

………………………………

"The Ultraman warrior… appeared here after all."

Meanwhile, deep within the waters off Kuyaruyaru Island, another world existed.

It was a magical realm, self-contained, with blue skies and white clouds, all the billions of tons of Pacific Ocean water sealed above.

At its center lay a small island like a paradise, surrounded by schools of fish, dotted with clusters of coconut trees.

Like a coastal island elsewhere, the grass beneath their feet was soft and damp, the air carrying the saltiness of the sea breeze.

In a monitoring room at the island's center, a girl watched the screen showing Orb departing with Victory Feiyan-1, her expression filled with nostalgia.

Her name was "Xiao." Though she looked human, she was not human—she was a citizen of Jiaxi, from Jiaxi Star.

Many years ago, a terrifying monster named 【Sheng Deluos】 attacked their home, Jiaxi Star.

Jiaxi Star was destroyed; survivors fled outward.

But 【Sheng Deluos】, determined to exterminate them, dispatched his subordinates to block their escape routes.

As the Jiaxi people faced total annihilation, a wormhole opened—and a black-clad Ultraman named "Toregia" appeared.

He repelled the enemy, protected the last surviving bloodline of Jiaxi Star, and granted his companion, a man named "Ren," the ability to solidify lifeforms into gems.

Ren, chosen by Ultraman Toregia, became the leader of the remaining Jiaxi people.

Then Ultraman Toregia advised the Jiaxi people to settle on Earth, saying, "This will surely be interesting."

Thus, the Jiaxi people came to Earth and established this hidden space, named "Blue Domain," living in total isolation from Earth's humans.

But recently, they detected a signal from space resembling Sheng Deluos—causing the Jiaxi people of Blue Domain to grow tense.

Simultaneously, descendants of the Earth-native race, the Marter, who claimed to have lived in the ocean for ages, approached them, proposing cooperation.

The cooperation's goal: grant the Jiaxi people the power of Agul Ultraman.

"Ren… can he truly become an Ultraman?" Girl 【Xiao】 left the monitoring room and turned toward the center of Blue Domain.

Today, the Marter had returned, meeting with the Jiaxi leader, "Ren."

"I have a bad feeling…" 【Xiao】 thought silently.

………………………………

【Ren】 appeared to be roughly twenty years old, like a young Earth man; the Marter emissary looked like a thirty-year-old adult woman.

The Marter emissary gazed at a nearby tank, where a faint blue glow shimmered within.

She nodded in satisfaction:

"Good. The ocean's power is steadily gathering here—the light of Agul will soon reappear."

"And this new Agul will be even stronger—strong enough to rival the new Gaia."

【Ren】 stared at the blue glow in the tank, equally yearning.

But after a moment's hesitation, he asked: "Why do the Marter want to cooperate with us?"

The Marter emissary replied bluntly: "Because we share a common enemy: humanity."

"They drove us from the land into the sea, then utterly destroyed our last refuge in the ocean."

"Once they learn you, aliens, dwell here in Blue Domain, they will exterminate you too—more cruelly than Sheng Deluos ever was."

"Only by wiping out humanity can the Marter and the Jiaxi people have a future."

【Ren】 considered it, then nodded: "Humanity is indeed selfish. If they learn of Blue Domain, they will bring disaster upon us."

"But… if you have the technology to harness oceanic power into Agul's light, why give it to me?"

This was what puzzled him most: why didn't the Marter themselves touch the Agul light and become Ultramen?

At this, the Marter emissary's expression darkened: "Are you certain you want to know?"

【Ren】 felt a pang inside: "Sorry—I shouldn't have asked so much."

This opportunity was perfect for him—if he could become Agul Ultraman, he could restore Jiaxi's glory on Earth!

………………………………

Meanwhile, TPC.

Upon returning to the offshore base, Shishimaru noticed something was wrong.

This Tenshō Queen—how did she suddenly change like this?

It's as if she's an entirely different person!

When he asked, Captain Senro and Li Hua Yu Yan remained silent; the Tenshō Queen, however, spoke casually: "I was always like this. This is the true form of the ruler of Ganong Star."

This only deepened Shishimaru's unease—he sought out Qi Ming for answers.

Qi Ming thought for a moment, then took Shishimaru to his quarters and explained everything.

Shishimaru reacted violently: "What? You erased the former Tenshō Queen's personality—you killed her!"

Qi Ming, prepared for this, replied: "It's the third time. She failed on Ganong, then kept making mistakes on Earth."

"She claims to protect peace, yet always aids the evil side—who can tolerate that?"

"If we don't act now, will we wait until she ruins another critical opportunity?" Shishimaru still couldn't accept it: "She's just naive—teach her properly. People grow over time…"

He spoke at length: yes, wrongdoing deserved punishment, but erasing her personality outright was too cruel—such a kind heart shouldn't be treated this way.

Qi Ming silently thought it was fortunate 【Kai】 and Gagura weren't present, and the other Ultramen were asleep—if they'd witnessed this, they might have erupted too.

Unlike those women chasing Kai, for Ultramen, "your intention matters."

If your motive is good, your ideals pure, no matter what mistakes you make or how much you hurt others, they'll understand, forgive, and give you another chance.

That is the noble spirit of the Ultramen.

But Qi Ming had his own words: "Captain, ideals are beautiful, reality is cruel. Don't you understand the world's current state?"

"If we don't act now, what if the Tenshō Queen next time again uses peace as a cover to aid evil? Will you accept it when monsters, under her protection, kill thousands?"

"You're not just an Ultraman from the Land of Light—you're now the commander of Victory Team on Earth. You must also be responsible for human lives."

At the mention of human lives, Shishimaru fell silent.

Qi Ming: "I originally planned to kill her outright. But for the Ganong people who revere the Tenshō Queen and the War God as spiritual totems, I preserved her body capable of becoming the War God—isn't that enough?"

This was Qi Ming's principle: he considered the interests of good people and avoided leaving messy situations.

He promised that once Kui and Balishib's armies were dead, he would help the Tenshō Queen transplant the Tree of Life back to Ganong.

Earth was already chaotic enough—he didn't want to lure more evil drawn to the Tree of Life here.

Then, the new Tenshō Queen would bravely use the War God's power to destroy enemies and protect Ganong, easing Earth's burden.

Shishimaru stared: "But isn't that the same as death?"

Imagine: if one day your loved one died, but their corpse was possessed by a wandering spirit, and they felt nothing for you—could you say they truly lived again?

Qi Ming: "There's a difference. The new Tenshō Queen will cooperate fully with me against invaders—no more hindering us."

Shishimaru: "This is a cold calculation… you still don't consider yourself an Ultraman?"

Qi Ming: "Of course not. I'll always be human."

He finally patted Shishimaru's shoulder, saying perfect solutions are rare—sometimes, sacrifices are necessary.

Qi Ming: "I believe that even the former War God, who died fighting to protect Ganong, would be relieved to see his successor now on the right path."

Shishimaru sighed: "Alright…"

Qi Ming: "Then remember to cover for me from now on, Captain."

Soon, Gagura and 【Kai】 returned to base and told Qi Ming of their experiences.

Qi Ming passed the intelligence to Counselor Quan Teng, who immediately dispatched teams to conduct large-scale patrols over the waters off Kuyaruyaru Island.

It was a massive operation.

Then, Qi Ming gave the coordinates obtained from Ji Liangze You to Hikari.

He hoped Hikari could go to Shinjuku and try reopening the wormhole that 【the·one】 had crossed—its other side might be his homeland.

Hikari: "I understand."

Soon, ten days passed. The Tree of Life grew smoothly to its full height of three hundred meters; the Tenshō Queen's injuries also improved significantly.

But her legs hadn't fully recovered. Shishimaru said this was normal—he himself had taken a long time to heal.

During this time, nothing happened—completely unlike the terrifying frequency of attacks when Qi Ming was away.

Not a single monster or alien appeared. Earth was perfectly peaceful.

"Maybe they know you've returned, Senior Qi Ming," Hui Mei speculated.

Xi Xi Tiao Ning: "Or they're secretly brewing a bigger conspiracy."

On Earth, the Ultraman Key absorbed energy from the Eternal Core, restoring its rate to one point every three days.

Star Ci Value reached 10 again—the new Star Gathering moment arrived.

Kai, Shishimaru, Xi Xi Tiao Ning, Hui Mei, and others gathered in Qi Ming's quarters to watch.

"Gagura, you do it," Qi Ming said to Gagura.

"Me?" Gagura feared mishaps, but Qi Ming reassured him: "It's just pressing a button."

Gagura: "Then… alright." He was actually eager, but maintained a cold, indifferent facade.

As Gao Si pressed the button, four buttons emitted lasers that formed a light screen.

Qi Ming watched the image on the screen, his eyes gradually brightening with surprise.

Hui Mei Star had summoned Blazer, and the Star Summoning activated by Gao Si was also profoundly linked to him.

Conclusion: This was likely the most extraordinary Star Summoning ever, and the first "A-Class" being summoned by it.

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I originally planned to take the day off, but considering the ancestral rules must not be broken, I'll still update at noon—just a little one.

Update at twelve—12:59 is still twelve.

Requesting monthly votes—think about my update schedule last month, guys; I really need a good rest.

(End of Chapter)