25. Earthlings Are the Invaders

"Disk Monster Nova, a red 'teru teru bozu' doll..."

"I recall it possesses hypnotic abilities and can exhale a red gas that drives biological entities into a frenzied, aggressive state."

"In melee, it wields scythes; at mid-range, it uses long whips; for long-range, it has eye lasers, and its tentacles are equipped with poisonous stingers."

"Since this is a 60% complete form, it should possess all the abilities mentioned above."

"Added to that is the fact that it is a monster, not an Ultraman, meaning there is no time limit... though if I transform into it, I’ll likely be chased and shot at by Saijo in her aircraft."

Qi Ming, who was off-duty again today, finished his dinner before the peak hours. As he walked down the corridor back to his room, his thoughts fluctuated.

Overall, the complete version of Nova was superior to the previous Tiga and Seven forms in many aspects, with various special abilities providing him with many more means to deal with different situations.

However, he remained somewhat unsatisfied; although it was a versatile tool, it lacked the ability to traverse time and space.

"It’s here, right on time." Another three days had passed. The dial of the Ultraman Any-Key rotated, and the main control interface changed.

Star Gift: 1.
Insight: 3/5.

One Star Gift every three days meant that without "other income," he could perform a "Star Gathering" at least once a month.

He hoped the next draw would yield something to his liking... he also wondered if the Any-Key lottery had a "pity mechanism," such as a guaranteed "A" or "S" rank after ten draws.

At this moment, it was sunset. Through the glass window in the corridor, Qi Ming watched the sun sink into the sea like molten gold.

Sea and sky merged into one, magnificent and brilliant, with golden light shimmering upon the waves—a truly breathtaking sight.

"The transition between day and night, the very moment of demons." The words of the old archaeology professor, Sima Hui, flashed through his mind.

Just then, Qi Ming suddenly felt a sense of "gloom" flash past behind him to the right.

He turned around with a start: "That place... I remember it being the office area for the staff officers."

Such an area where top-tier figures gathered was naturally heavily guarded. Just as Qi Ming intended to go in and check the situation, he was stopped by armed guards.

Qi Ming asked politely: "Did you happen to notice anything unusual just now? For instance, something strange slipping in?"

"No, everything is normal. Only Staff Officer Kiriyama has returned," the guards replied. Facing the refined and handsome Qi Ming, they were quite pleasant and even showed him the surveillance footage, which appeared perfectly normal.

Trusting his intuition, Qi Ming felt it wasn't that simple. Staff Officer Kiriyama was not only the former superior of Captain Moroboshi Dan, but also one of the few upright figures in the base who had looked after him, so he wanted to go inside and investigate personally.

The world was fraught with crisis, and the Kyrieloids remained at large; safety matters could not be taken lightly.

However, in a place like this, one absolutely could not enter without a pass or the approval of the officers inside, not even by relying on a familiar face.

"Then please help me contact Staff Officer Kiriyama," Qi Ming said. He had no grudge against the guards and did not want to make things difficult for them.

The guards nodded and brought out their walkie-talkies in front of him, but after a moment, they put them down: "The Staff Officer is not answering; perhaps he is busy."

Qi Ming’s ominous premonition deepened. He asked: "Then what if the captain of the GUTS team has an urgent matter to report to the Staff Officer in person?" He prepared to have Moroboshi Dan come over.

The guard replied: "New security regulations have been issued recently. If we let someone without a pass in, we will be severely punished by Minister Yin."

As he spoke, his gaze drifted involuntarily toward a man at the end of the corridor behind them, who had a stern expression and was walking in a hurry.

Qi Ming was shocked. He recognized this man!

In the *Seven OV* series, it was this Minister Yin of the Security Department whom Staff Officer He Zhi sent to assassinate Kiriyama, who had been trying to uncover the truth behind the "Omega Files."

So, it wasn't an external invasion, but an internal purge?

...

"Such a sacred moment should not be disturbed by outsiders."

Inside Staff Officer Kiriyama's office, a man dressed in grey robes, looking like a charlatan, hung up the inquiry call from the guards right in front of Kiriyama.

"Who are you? How did you get in!" Kiriyama was horrified.

He had just been attempting to decrypt the Omega Files when he suddenly noticed the lights go out and realized this man had appeared in the room out of nowhere.

The grey-robed man stood up: "I am a messenger of the gods; the human world is open to me."

The TPC security was simply unable to stop him.

"A messenger of the gods?" Kiriyama calmly opened the walkie-talkie under his desk.

He trusted that Minister of Security Yin Jiguo, who was responsible for the protection of the staff officers, would react and bring men to rush over.

The grey-robed man said: "I would like to ask you, Staff Officer Kiriyama, to represent the Earth and humanity here and pay your respects to the Kyrieloids."

"You are a Kyrieloid!" Captain Kiriyama’s pupils shrank. Without a second thought, he pulled out his sidearm and fired.

As expected of a captain who had led Moroboshi Dan and Furuhashi to the front lines countless times to deal with monsters and aliens, he was decisive.

But to his astonishment, the bullets passed right through the grey-robed man's body and struck the wall behind him.

He was a spiritual entity; conventional physical means were useless.

"Clearly, men cannot harm gods," the grey-robed man smiled. "Captain Kiriyama, if you do not pay your respects to the Kyrieloids, sacred flames will burn city after city to the ground."

Kiriyama retorted: "Is that a threat? Ultraman Seven, and that other Ultraman who recently appeared at the pyramid, are both on our side. I don't believe you will succeed."

The grey-robed man wore a playful smile: "If those two Ultramen knew the true face of you humans, would they still stand by your side?"

Kiriyama felt a tightness in his chest: "What are you talking about?"

The grey-robed man replied: "What I am talking about, Captain Kiriyama, you probably know much better than those people outside."

"For all these years, you have been meticulously fighting against aliens. This is not a battle between justice and evil, nor is it about defending your homeland."

"Because you humans are the greatest invaders; you are merely defending the fruits of your aggression."

Kiriyama's expression was icy; he said nothing.

The grey-robed man continued: "Actually, you are about to touch upon the whole truth, so I might as well make it clear."

"This place originally belonged to the homeland of the 'Nonmalt' civilization. To many ancient civilizations in the universe, this planet has always been called 'Nonmalt'."

"But your ancestors carried out acts of aggression, uprooting the Nonmalt civilization. In recent years, you even destroyed their last habitat in the ocean, exterminating them entirely."

"However, paper cannot wrap fire forever."

"Once the truth is leaked, not only will the Ultra warriors turn against you humans, but one after another, powerful beings from the universe will come to seek justice."

Upon hearing this, Captain Kiriyama's face remained unchanged, but his fists clenched involuntarily.

No wonder, no wonder all the documents regarding the Nonmalt were filed into the Omega Files.

No wonder Staff Officer He Zhi hinted that he should stop there and not probe any further.