Chapter 44: The Unbreakable Alliance of Five

Although it was a coalition of five factions, their displayed demeanor during discussions was entirely different.

Abbas, the Muzhen star people, and the Kaiter star people, like the “Upper Three Constants,” held firm speaking rights.

The crow people, unable to giantize, and the Natan star people, with “clear self-awareness,” were absolute “Lower Two Constants.”

Yet this factory was ultimately the crow people’s domain, and their leader, though facing several giantizing aliens, showed no fear.

And the weak Natan star people…

As the famous movie line goes—“Everyone’s driving a Rolls-Royce, everyone’s driving a Mercedes, you drive a Mazda—you have no right to attend this meeting, go back and wait for notice!”

At this meeting, he could barely interject; no one cared about his feelings or opinions.

But after each side explained their demands, they realized there was no fundamental conflict.

The Muzhen star people wanted to kill Lucía and Zara; the Natan star people wanted to kill the Maya siblings.

Four people—kill them, it’s no loss, they’re just slaves anyway.

At this point, the crow people tactfully suggested that, to ensure stable cooperation, they should at least wait until after defeating the Victory Team before handing over Zara.

Though spoken with polite deference, everyone could hear the fear: they feared the Muzhen star people would kill Zara and then break the fragile alliance.

The Muzhen star people silently agreed; they too feared being isolated and captured by Abbas, unaware that Abbas only had combat strength at night.

Only the Kaiter star people’s demand could not be met, for he wished to exterminate all young humans.

This, of course, could not be allowed.

Abbas needed powerful warriors; the crow people wanted productive slaves.

If the able-bodied were wiped out, would they drag back a bunch of elderly, weak, and sick?

In the end, the Kaiter star people lowered their demand: killing only one-third of Earth’s population would suffice, and he would personally kill Qi Ming for revenge.

Thus, the five alien factions temporarily reached an agreement.

After the meeting, the crow people’s leader privately approached Abbas, saying that since they were partners, they should cooperate when dividing up Earth humans as slaves, avoiding conflict.

Partner… Do you lowly creatures even deserve that term?

Abbas sneered inwardly, outwardly pretending to agree.

His life tier, capable of giantization, was higher than the crow people’s; during his time on Earth, he had vaguely sensed something terrifying lurking on this planet—should he provoke it, even he might not escape unscathed.

Right now, he only wanted to capture some humans and return to fulfill his mission, not waste this trip.

At this moment, a thought struck him: these aliens were all powerful combatants—but with so many, even at night he couldn’t take them all.

Thus, with hidden agendas and old grudges, the several alien factions decided to attack humanity’s world tonight, eliminating their fighting strength.

…………………………

“What, you can’t sense him?”

Back in the command room, Lucía gestured wildly until Qi Ming understood her meaning.

Probably because Zara had been shrunk, Lucía could no longer sense him.

Shan Zhong looked disappointed: “Wasted a trip!”

Zhu Xingtuan scolded him sternly: “Saving a life isn’t a wasted trip!”

At that moment, the command room door opened, and Minister Yin, who had once tried to kill Tongshan, entered with four subordinates, radiating hostility.

Qi Ming greeted warmly: “Long time no see—still sore on the face?”

The rest of the Victory Team didn’t know about his feud with He Zhi’s faction; they looked bewildered. Minister Yin’s fierce aura faltered, his cold, rigid face twitching involuntarily.

He took a deep breath to calm himself, then stated his purpose.

“I hear the Victory Team has alien guests—don’t neglect them and damage our friendship with cosmic civilizations.”

He proposed transferring Lucía to the Security Department, where she would be properly treated.

Lucía shrank back; Minister Yin’s gaze made her uncomfortable, reminding her of the Muzhen star people.

The word “friendship” stirred Qi Ming’s thoughts—he suspected He Zhi planned to torture Lucía for star coordinates and bomb her home planet.

He replied coolly: “Lucía was just rescued by us from vicious aliens; she only feels safe with us. Look, we’re getting along fine.”

Minister Yin offered several more reasons, but Qi Ming easily dismissed them all.

This back-and-forth left everyone puzzled: why was Minister Yin, head of Security, so fixated on Lucía?

Qi Ming wondered too—if Lucía couldn’t sense Zara’s location and couldn’t find the crow people’s hideout, she was irrelevant to this mission; why not hand her over to Minister Yin?

Minister Yin finally dropped the pretense: “Hand over the alien to us for custody. This is Commander He Zhi’s order.”

Qi Ming remained unmoved, replying indifferently: “I won’t hand her over. That’s my decision.”

The atmosphere in the command room froze instantly.

Kishida and Shan Zhong were stunned; Minister Yin was always aloof, an extreme hawk, and He Zhi’s representative.

They normally avoided him entirely, let alone provoke him.

In their eyes, this man was even scarier than Vice-Commander Nishijo.

And now Qi Ming was clearly confronting him.

Zhu Xingtuan, unaware of the backstory, didn’t know what to say—he wondered why Qi Ming could antagonize everyone equally, alienating all.

Had the Ultraman power gone to his head? Was he no longer respecting ordinary humans? That wouldn’t do.

Minister Yin: “You…”

Qi Ming waved him off like shooing a fly: “Enough talk. You can leave now. Didn’t your right cheek get enough last time? Want to offer your left?”

Emi clearly saw the veins bulging on Minister Yin’s head.

In that moment, Shan Zhong and Kishida felt no resentment whatsoever.

What did it matter if he wasn’t respected as a senior? What did a beating matter? This man dared to insult Minister Yin—he was a true role model!

Even Nishijo, who cared only for the Mei Tian siblings and had no interest in this, looked at Qi Ming with newfound admiration.

Clearly, Qi Ming wasn’t a sycophant—he attacked everyone who crossed him, equally.

In the end, the memory of his last beating kept Minister Yin from direct conflict: “Next time, I’ll bring the official order.”

With that, he turned and left; the command room remained silent.

Even invoking Commander He Zhi hadn’t moved Qi Ming—did he not care about the consequences?

Kishida: “Qi Ming, from what you just said… you’ve clashed with Minister Yin before?”

Qi Ming: “Kicked him once, slapped him once.”

Shan Zhong gasped: “We never heard about this.”

Qi Ming: “He did something shameful—I caught him red-handed. He dares not speak of it.”

(End of Chapter)