Chapter 89: 86 Drew

After returning to the Victory Team command room, Qi Ming fell into thought.

“Qi Ming, are you troubled by something?” Hui Mei tried to gently probe his views on the Ultramen.

Qi Ming: “There are two little demons in my head arguing—one good, one evil.”

Shan Zhong laughed: “That’s a primary schooler’s analogy. What are they arguing about?”

Qi Ming: “The good demon says Counselor Inagaki doesn’t fully understand the situation, hasn’t caused major damage, and has intellectual deficits—he shouldn’t be held to high standards.”

“So there’s no need to send him to the morgue. Just mark his insurance card as overdue.”

Nishijo Nagi warned: “Don’t do anything reckless—he’s a powerful hardliner.”

Kishida added: “Besides, assaulting a counselor in broad daylight would cause terrible backlash. If you really can’t hold back, wait for a quiet night.”

Nishijo Nagi glared at him.

Has this guy been corrupted by Qi Ming?

Hui Mei: “Wait—was that the good demon talking? What about the evil one?”

Qi Ming: “The evil demon says beating him up is just emotional venting—it doesn’t suit my status and solves nothing.”

Counselor Inagaki holds his position because a network of like-minded interest groups supports him.

“If you truly want to solve this at the root, bring a machine gun to their next meeting and mow them all down.”

Hoshiboshi Dan nearly wet himself: “Calm down!”

Qi Ming: “But before that, there’s something more important to do.”

The ten points of Star Grace are full—it’s time for Star Gathering.

This time, he would use a “special” method to summon a “big one.”

…………………………

In Qi Ming’s dorm room.

He burned incense, bowed to the Buddhas, bathed, changed clothes, and lit three sticks of incense.

This was his method—“Praying to the Gods.”

In the past, he’d seen some gacha streamers play “Good Luck Comes” before pulling cards, seeking good omens.

Qi Ming had always been uncertain whether praying to gods actually worked.

If he believed—then if prayers truly worked, temple offerings should require connections and favors, never ordinary people.

If he didn’t believe—then why did so many powerful, well-connected elites pour fortunes into temples and kept deities enshrined at home, appearing deeply devout?

Even his revered “Teacher Gao” kept a mountain-supporting stone in his home.

But in this world, fused with countless Ultraman stories, he believed.

In Ultraman Taro, the Earth Store Bodhisattva helped Taro defeat the demon monster Enmago.

In Ultraman Ace, Guanyin Bodhisattva had also manifested.

Under Ultraman’s cosmology, gods and Buddhas truly existed.

It costs nothing—might as well believe a little.

The deity he prayed to this time was Tai Bai Jin Xing—the ancient name for the Morning Star.

After reciting his prayer, Qi Ming said he wasn’t fleeing duty—he wished to return to his parents’ side and fulfill his filial duty.

He also sought to exterminate demons, defend the Dao, eliminate The·One, and bring peace to humanity—begging the immortals for aid.

“May the immortals bless me—let the being I gather next possess the ability to break through space!”

“I hope it has overwhelming stats and a godlike mechanism—at least stronger than a million Basaku!”

“And if only the Star Grace cost for transformation were lower—don’t make it so expensive I can’t afford it.”

After finishing his requests, Qi Ming shouted: “Open!”

Star Gathering—activated!

The four buttons of the Ultraman Random Key simultaneously emitted green lasers, converging into a light screen.

Strangely, this time the screen showed no image.

Inside was pure darkness—empty, void.

Nothing—nothing at all.

“What’s going on?” Qi Ming sensed something was wrong.

The next moment, the light screen collapsed.

The Ultraman Random Key trembled as if malfunctioning, then went completely black.

“What happened!” Qi Ming was stunned—this had never occurred during his two previous Star Gatherings.

Three minutes later, the Ultraman Random Key rebooted. The main interface now read:

Star Grace: 0.

Amplification: 7/10.

The category count had risen from six to seven—so the Star Gathering had succeeded after all, though for some reason, no cutscene appeared.

Had some interference caused the visuals to vanish?

Qi Ming turned the dial, eager to see what he’d gathered.

Left—Ultraman Tiga.

Left again—Ultraman Seven.

Then Nova, Gaia, Golza, Melba.

One more turn—it returned to the main menu.

Qi Ming: “?”

Where was the seventh?

Where did the seventh being I gathered go?

It showed 7/10—so why are there still only six?

Qi Ming stubbornly tried for another half-hour, but no matter how he spun the dial, only the same six appeared.

Qi Ming was numb—this damn watch was stealing his ten Star Grace!

The last two times went smoothly—was this because of the prayer?

Night had fallen; it was time to sleep. With his rigid routine, Qi Ming forcibly suppressed his confusion and fell asleep in bitter frustration.

…………………………

At 3 a.m., a faint vibration came from Qi Ming’s right wrist—the Ultraman Random Key.

The screen lit up, displaying a sea-urchin-shaped silhouette.

If Qi Ming were awake, his shock would have reached level six.

Because it was Guriza, the Void Monster from Ultraman X—currently in its first form.

The Ultraman Random Key’s Star Gathering function had broken logic—it had somehow gathered this thing.

Guriza was, by nature, an unselectable void!

The next moment, the screen darkened again; Guriza’s silhouette vanished.

Though gathered into the Random Key, Guriza was fundamentally “nothing,” so under normal conditions, it remained invisible.

It had no energy, so its level couldn’t be calculated, and it required zero Star Grace to transform—because it was “nothing.”

But even with free transformation, it normally couldn’t be selected.

It had become a “bug,” a ghost wandering inside the Ultraman Random Key.

To transform into it, one would have to exploit the same kind of “bug”…

The next day, unaware of any of this, Qi Ming woke and tried again—still the same result.

Under normal conditions, Guriza was invisible.

“So my ten Star Grace are just gone?” His heart ached—his return home would be delayed again.

Worse, the only being he could now transform into was Melba.

“I hope nothing happens these next three days—just let me passively absorb energy and earn a little Star Grace,” Qi Ming prayed.

——————————

Happy New Year, readers—I’ve drawn Guriza!

Wishing you all a joyful Spring Festival and a year where all your wishes come true!

To the author still grinding out chapters during the holiday to stockpile for serialization—do you love me? (●ˇˇ●)

Requesting monthly votes—also reserving your February votes. My first month of serialization—I hope the monthly vote count is decent.

(End of Chapter)