Chapter 63: The Heavens Cannot Bear Such Humiliation

I dreamily held the sapphire cone, bewildered, watching as a silvery light appeared before my eyes, unsure whether I should proceed with the transformation. In situations like these, whoever transforms first seizes the initiative.

The words I had spoken last time deeply resonated with Qiao Zhe. The Earth belongs to humanity, and it is up to humanity to protect it with their own hands. Only when humans have exhausted every effort and still cannot succeed, or when something unexpected occurs, is it time for Ultraman to intervene.

Though Qiao Zhe agreed with my perspective, that didn’t stop him from transforming before I did. Ever since he boarded the EX, he had been waiting for this very moment. Everything was under his control.

The light coalesced into the majestic body of the silver giant. Suspended in the windless zone, Jojo watched as Lightning One drew nearer. He raised his hand, and energy swiftly gathered before he flicked it outward!

Whoosh!

A ribbon of blue and white light wrapped around Lightning One. The gentle energy radiating from the rescue beam protected Kajio’s body, erasing all negative effects.

As the blue-white beam quickly retracted, Lightning One appeared in Jojo’s palm.

"Jojo..." Kajio looked up at the silver giant looming before him, suddenly understanding how Dahehara must have felt when he was saved.

Jojo looked down at Kajio and gave him a thumbs-up. “Your piloting skills are impressive!”

Kajio was taken aback by Jojo’s kindness. Regaining his composure, he replied with confidence and a hint of pride, “Of course! I’m not an idiot like Dahehara.”

His words were relayed over the team’s channel, reaching Dahehara’s ears and instantly making him crestfallen.

“Hey, Kajio! Don’t say bad things about me in front of Jojo!” Dahehara protested, dissatisfied. He secretly resolved that, once they returned, he would double his training—at the very least, he had to surpass Kitada.

When everyone’s skills are on par, whoever lags behind is the most embarrassed—and Dahehara was clearly that person now.

“Oh, really?” Kajio chuckled as he recalled something. “By the way, I heard your simulated flight records were just overtaken by I Dream.”

At that moment, Kajio noticed the celestial machine behind Jojo barreling toward them like a drill. His expression changed, and he shouted, “Behind you!”

Jojo had been keeping an eye on the situation all along. With Lightning One still in his grasp, he spun around and lashed out with a powerful roundhouse kick!

“Tor!”

Accompanied by a mighty Ultraman roar, the celestial machine was sent spinning through the sky.

Or perhaps it had already been spinning—almost as if its rotation was dissipating most of the force.

A sound reminiscent of a whale’s call echoed as blue energy lightning surged across the celestial machine’s body. It charged Jojo once again!

But it was far too slow. In the sky, Jojo’s home turf, he easily sidestepped, widening the gap between them.

After releasing Lightning One, Jojo turned his gaze toward the endlessly spinning celestial machine. Honestly, it looked just like a top.

At this moment, a black tornado erupted from the machine’s crown, attempting to generate a typhoon anew.

Jojo raised his arm and flicked out a blue-white beam, cracking it mercilessly across the celestial machine!

Snap!

A crisp sound rang out in the sky. The beam struck the machine, shattering its tornado and, just like whipping a top, sent it reeling in confusion.

Though the celestial machine was spinning, it shouldn’t have gotten dizzy. But this time, the force from the blue-white beam didn’t dissipate; it actually accelerated the rotation, throwing it off balance—since a spinning top is inherently unstable.

Jojo didn’t pause; he continued lashing out with the energy whip!

Snap! Snap! Snap!

The celestial machine was instantly paralyzed, battered senseless.

Hovering nearby, Lightning One’s Kajio watched Jojo’s technique, his mouth agape. “He’s really spinning it like a top.”

The EX drew up beside Lightning One. Watching the scene, I Dream felt a surge of nostalgia. He had played with spinning tops as a child, but never had the chance since growing up. Now, seeing this, he itched to join in—a monster spun like a top was an entirely different thrill.

Had he known this was possible, he would have transformed sooner.

But the celestial machine, unable to endure such humiliation, flipped itself over and halted its rotation, preparing to plummet straight toward the earth.

Jojo wouldn’t allow that. Dissipating the blue-white beam in his hand, he instantly appeared beside the machine.

Energy for slicing gathered in both palms, bursting forth in a brilliant white glow before plunging fiercely into the celestial machine’s body!

Its metallic shell offered no resistance as Jojo’s hands reached in, seizing the energy core.

A howl of pain escaped the machine, but the next instant, its voice died as its energy was drained, leaving it trembling uncontrollably.

Suspended high in the sky, Jojo absorbed the energy, holding the machine aloft. Power surged into his body, awakening the essence of the sky within him once more!

On the EX, I Dream gasped in shock. “He’s absorbing the energy of the sky?”

“That’s already the second time,” Peacekeeper replied, arriving nearby. Ti Cheng, unfazed, continued, “Last time, Jojo did the same thing to the volcanic machine.”

“I feel like something about Jojo changes every time he absorbs energy, but he never shows it outwardly.”

Ti Cheng distinctly remembered the red light that had radiated from Jojo’s body before.

“I see,” I Dream murmured, realization dawning. At the time, he and Fujimiya had been at odds and hadn’t noticed the volcanic machine’s fate.

Now he vaguely understood why Jojo was so proactive this time.

He watched Jojo absorbing energy, a thought forming in his mind. Could his own Gaia absorb energy the same way?

If he could absorb a monster’s energy during battle, the fight could last much longer.

‘The celestial machine purifies the air, the volcanic machine melts ice and snow, and there’s still one more machine…’

He had already set his sights on the deep green machine that had yet to appear.

If Jojo could absorb energy, why couldn’t he?

As the celestial machine’s energy core was drained, the crystal on Jojo’s forehead gleamed and gathered the energy within.

He had gained another new form.

The Violet Storm Form—while all other attributes remained unchanged, his speed was greatly enhanced, and he gained a purifying trait.

This purifying trait allowed Jojo’s rays to act as a healer, like Gaia’s “Hand of Healing.”

They could soothe emotions, cleanse the spirit, dispel negative influences—in essence, talk sense into monsters.

Of course, if faced with an enemy, he could “talk” until they were utterly incinerated.

In short, this purification had two facets.

With the celestial machine’s energy depleted, Jojo cast it aside into the air.

Energy gathered at his wrists, forming a cross and firing the Specium Ray!

The beam struck the machine, launching it skyward. In the next instant, the ray’s power spread throughout its body, erupting in a fiery explosion!

The celestial machine—destroyed!