Chapter 133: Growing Stronger Through Excessive Caution

Fists imbued with light energy hammered incessantly against Arachnea’s skull.

Blow after blow landed, shattering the beast’s red compound eyes and sending blue blood gushing out. Komon showed no signs of stopping, continuing to pummel the creature with a strange, "passionate" intensity.

"How dare you! How dare you slash at my neck! Damn you!"

Given Komon’s cowardly nature, the situation just moments ago had felt like stepping on the very edge of death. It had triggered a severe stress response. Whatever this monster was, if it wanted to kill him, he would kill it first!

Cursing inwardly, Komon kept his fists flying, pounding away at the creature's cranium. A sickening crunch echoed as cracks began to spiderweb across Arachnea’s insectoid head. More blue blood sprayed out, but Komon did not stop; he continued to attack the bleeding skull with relentless fury.

Qiao Zhe watched the scene with a calm expression. He had seen plenty of Showa-era horror films—things far more gruesome than this—so Komon’s display was nothing out of the ordinary to him.

Takatsuki and Shiori, however, reacted differently. They had been worried for Komon’s safety only moments ago, but now they stood watching with mouths slightly agape.

"So... so brutal," Shiori murmured, clutching Takatsuki’s arm. The sight of the creature’s head being pulverized made her feel nauseous.

Takatsuki felt similarly unsettled, not out of sympathy for the Space Beast, but because the imagery was simply too intense.

Himeya Jun, meanwhile, stared fixedly at Komon’s glowing fists. Recalling what Qiao Zhe had said earlier, he couldn't help but speculate. *Is this the power of light?*

Finally, having beaten Arachnea’s head into a pulp, Komon released the creature and stumbled backward to put some distance between them. As his adrenaline faded, a wave of weakness washed over him, as if his body had been completely hollowed out. His legs gave way, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.

Komon was currently converting his physical stamina into light energy; since his mastery of energy manipulation was still rudimentary, the consumption was immense. The light energy he had used was purely defensive, and because he could only focus it in his fists, its offensive efficiency was remarkably low. He had essentially relied on raw physical strength to smash the beast’s head.

Arachnea’s body continued to twitch, proving that even without a head, it was not yet dead.

Qiao Zhe approached Komon. "It seems you’ve overcome your fear of death."

Komon panted heavily, his lips pouting as he looked at Qiao Zhe. His expression was reminiscent of Ohtori Gen being chased by Moroboshi Dan’s jeep.

Himeya Jun walked over, looking at the convulsing Arachnea with a furrowed brow. "These monsters are incredibly difficult to kill. Even this wasn't enough to finish it."

Takatsuki, noticing that his handgun had cooled down, picked it up and walked over as well. He felt that the so-called training for this man named Komon was likely over. He aimed at Arachnea’s chest and pulled the trigger.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

The gunshots rang out continuously. The magazine was emptied, and every bullet tore into Arachnea’s chest, yet the creature still lived. Takatsuki’s face was filled with shock. He had been skeptical before, but now he was certain: this creature, this "Space Beast," was truly nearly impossible to kill.

Qiao Zhe turned his gaze toward Arachnea, thinking it was the perfect time to test Gold Experience Requiem. As he focused, a purple silhouette emerged from his body, though it did not move immediately.

Gold Experience Requiem looked down at Qiao Zhe and, seeing his questioning gaze, held out its palm.

"The Beetle Arrow is required."

The communication was brief and rare. People who were not Stand users could neither see nor hear Stands. However, everyone present—except for Takatsuki—was a Dunamist and possessed a certain degree of sensory awareness. Even without seeing the Stand, they felt something stir around Qiao Zhe.

Qiao Zhe retrieved the Beetle Arrow and placed it into Gold Experience Requiem’s hand, his expression thoughtful. It appeared that while the Stand’s physical form did not revert after removing the arrow, the "Requiem" state vanished. It had to be embedded with the arrow to regain that power.

As Gold Experience Requiem slotted the arrow into its forehead, purple flames instantly ignited around its body. The flames spread to Qiao Zhe, synchronizing with him.

Gold Experience Requiem raised a finger, and a beam of light shot toward Arachnea!

Qiao Zhe was stunned. *This is... the same light energy as mine!*

The beam struck the creature, and Arachnea’s entire body began to shrink, getting smaller and smaller until it was reduced to a single particle—much like an original Space Beast factor—before being disintegrated by the light energy on the spot.

The light energy Qiao Zhe possessed had the unique property of decomposing Space Beasts. The beam released by Gold Experience Requiem shared this effect. He was baffled as to how it had managed to utilize light energy. He only had a vague understanding of the shrinking effect; it looked like the creature was being reverted, but it clearly had other properties as well.

*That is just one of Requiem’s abilities,* he thought, before withdrawing his Stand.

Gold Experience Requiem vanished, but the Beetle Arrow remained. Qiao Zhe caught the arrow as it fell through the air, finally understanding how it worked. The fusion between the arrow and the Stand was not permanent. To enter the Requiem state again, he would have to re-embed it the next time he summoned his Stand.

This was undoubtedly a weakness. Qiao Zhe tested tossing the arrow away, focusing on recalling it without physical contact. The arrow vanished, returning to his interface inventory.

Being able to recall it to his inventory meant he didn't have to worry about it being stolen. In the Ultraman universe, there were aliens capable of light-speed travel and all sorts of bizarre abilities; one had to be cautious. Moreover, a Stand was, in the end, just a Stand. Even if it would never betray its master, Qiao Zhe never felt truly secure, as he lacked the power within his own body.

He was still just a human, and compared to other extraterrestrial beings, a human body was incredibly fragile. Even though he was on the verge of a complete evolution, he would still be an "Ultra infant" afterward. Being an Ultra infant meant that without the Light of the Sky to grow to giant size, he would stand only about ten meters tall.

Qiao Zhe felt that, given the environment of the Ultra universe, that was far too dangerous!

Arachnea had been eliminated, but Himeya and the others looked on, bewildered. They had no idea what that beam of light was. Only Komon had a theory—this must be an ability of Ultraman, right?

Thinking this, his heart burned with ambition, and his resentment toward Qiao Zhe vanished. *If I follow this "JoJo" training, I will surely be able to become just like him!*

It was fair to say Komon was overthinking it. Without Qiao Zhe piercing him with the Beetle Arrow, Komon would never awaken a Stand. And even if he did, there were vast differences between different Stands. Gold Experience Requiem, with the arrow embedded in its head, was practically invincible.

Qiao Zhe would certainly not let others awaken Stands easily. Even for someone like Gamu, he would have to consider it carefully, as a Stand could be passed down through one's lineage. Gamu was Ultraman Gaia and could surely withstand a Stand, but his parents were ordinary humans; they might be crushed to death by the mental pressure a Stand would bring.

Only once Qiao Zhe fully understood how to control the Beetle Arrow would he consider letting Gamu awaken a Stand—and it would have to be one that could not be passed down through bloodlines. Only then would Takayama Unai and Takayama Shigemi be safe.

As for what to use for his experiments? Well, there were always lab rats.