Chapter 49: 48 Eternal Core

Qi Ming and Abubass walked through the corpse-strewn abandoned factory, observing for any still-living Crow People as they exchanged words.

Abubass now acted like a subordinate escorting a high-ranking official on an inspection, walking on eggshells, not daring to breathe loudly.

It kept reminding itself that this terrifyingly powerful human beside it was not its enemy; there was no life-or-death struggle between them.

“In the universe, there is an unverifiable legend about this planet.”

“The legend says this planet is the ‘singularity’ of this universe.”

“A force, centered on what you call ‘Earth,’ created our universe.”

“That powerful force may still reside on Earth—if someone claims it, they will gain the power to destroy and reshape dimensions at will.”

After hearing this, Qi Ming fell into deep thought.

This description sounded too much like the Eternal Core from Ultraman Tregear.

This thing truly possesses dimensional-level power, but it’s extremely unstable; villains wield it effortlessly, while heroes face endless restrictions and side effects.

Wait!

As his thoughts surged, Qi Ming’s body suddenly trembled.

A startling yet highly plausible hypothesis formed in his mind.

He had once heard a claim—that the Eternal Core, after browsing Shizuma Hikaru’s memories, created the universe of Ultraman Tregear.

What if the Eternal Core had browsed the memories of a hardcore Ultra fan from a world like Ultraman: The Ultimate Battle, and used them to forge a universe…

Was this “melting pot” universe born exactly like that?

If the hypothesis were true, then the person whose memories the Eternal Core viewed must have had an extremely dark soul, leading to this world where “vermin run rampant.”

In the mountains: He Zhi, Tsuchibashi Yu, Aihara Ryu, Hirakawa… did that person have a necrophilia fetish?

Qi Ming: “So, all these alien races invading Earth are trying to seize the planet to easily find this ‘force to reboot the universe’?”

Abubass: “Not all races believe this. I heard there were once peaceful aliens passing through here—but the moment they greeted you, you annihilated them.”

He meant the incident where Tsuchibashi Yu ordered fire and wiped out the V99 fleet.

No wonder only hostile alien invaders come here—peaceful ones consider this place uncommunicative, a lawless frontier.

“Shhh…” At that moment, a roar came from afar; Qi Ming recognized it as the sound of Feiyan No. 2’s wings slicing through the air.

The Victory Team, delayed briefly by Counselor Kento, was finally arriving.

Abubass knew it was time to leave; before departing, he revealed a “great secret” to Qi Ming.

“I’m not the only one from Standel who came to Earth—another race has also sent agents here, with the same goal: recruiting soldiers.”

Qi Ming: “The ‘Redel,’ suited for activity under light, right? I know.”

Abubass: “!”

How did he know that?!

Qi Ming understood his thoughts: “As long as I’m alive, no alien can take Earthlings as slaves. But where is he?”

TPC had access to all surveillance cameras in Japan, yet there was no trace of Redel.

Abubass: “Six days ago, on a night, he clashed with me, drove me off, and hasn’t shown up since.”

Seeing that Qi Ming understood, he departed Earth in relief, no longer willing to chew on this hard bone guarded by Qi Ming, and prepared to bully the Crow People instead.

Watching his retreating figure, Qi Ming couldn’t help but smile strangely.

…………………………

“Is this hell? It’s terrifying.”

The Victory Team members, after disembarking from the plane, were stunned by the scene before them.

The abandoned factory had been reduced to rubble; the corpses of Crow People lay scattered everywhere, their deaths grotesque and horrifying.

“All dead…” Even Moroboshi was deeply shaken.

Emi: “Did Qi Ming do this?”

Yamaguchi: “Who else could have used such a cruel method?”

They didn’t know about Nova—they assumed Qi Ming alone had killed all the aliens.

In the past, no one would have believed a human could accomplish such a feat alone.

Entering a den teeming with cruel alien invaders and killing them all—was that even humanly possible?

But Qi Ming had repeatedly challenged impossibility over this period, raising their “mental threshold” until they grew numb and began accepting the impossible.

“Thud…” At that moment, footsteps echoed from ahead.

“Attention!” Nami Nishijo shouted. Yamaguchi and the others immediately assumed shooting stances.

“Don’t be tense—it’s over.” Qi Ming’s voice came forth.

He emerged, carrying five heavy-looking metal crates, one in each hand, walking with perfect steadiness.

“Qi Ming,” Emi holstered her weapon.

“Sorry for the delay—we’re late,” Moroboshi limped forward, leaning on his cane.

“No problem—it’s done.” Qi Ming unconsciously glanced at Nami Nishijo.

If the Victory Team had arrived on time to join the battle, Nami Nishijo would likely have fired on him without hesitation, even though he had become Nova.

Nami Nishijo: “What about the aliens?”

Qi Ming set down the crates: “Dead or fled. All the miniaturized people are inside—including the Umeda siblings you care about.”

He handed Kishida a miniaturization ray gun, instructing him to analyze it and find a way to restore these people.

In Ultraman Jack, Kishida always invented gadgets—he occupied the same role in this Victory Team as Horii.

“Alright,” Kishida accepted it instinctively, his eyes filled with awe.

This guy had single-handedly eliminated all the aliens that had plagued them for days—in such a short time.

“He’s practically a superhero,” Yamaguchi muttered under his breath, voicing his true thoughts.

“You handle the cleanup—I’m going to rest over there.”

Qi Ming told them to clear the battlefield while he slipped away, determined to figure out why he was missing a small amount of Star Ci .

Even the perpetually critical Yamaguchi wouldn’t accuse him of slacking off in this moment.

Qi Ming found a secluded spot, fiddled for a while, recalled his recent experiences, and reached a hypothesis.

“Could it be that the Ultraman Any Key can hold at most ten Star Ci , and stops increasing once full?”

Testing this hypothesis was simple.

Qi Ming checked his watch—it was exactly 8:30 p.m.

He had converted the life energy of the dead aliens into Star Ci three minutes ago, at 8:27 p.m.

If he performed “Star Gathering” now, and gained one more Star Ci only at 8:30 p.m. three days later, that would confirm the Any Key was at maximum capacity.

“Come on! I hope I draw a powerful being capable of time travel!”

Thinking this, Qi Ming pressed the button and initiated his second “Star Gathering.”

(End of Chapter)