Chapter Seven: The Spark of War

“So, you want to leave the Warrior Command Headquarters?” Big Seven slammed both hands on the table, his gaze sharp and aggressive as it fixed on Seven 21 before him, his eyes burning with barely restrained anger.

Though Seven 21 had already made up his mind, facing the clan leader’s piercing stare still filled him with a faint fear. He took a small step back and lowered his head, saying quietly, “I want to fight on the front lines, not waste my time here.”

“Waste your time?” Big Seven sneered coldly at Seven 21. “The Warrior Command Headquarters is the most elite force in the entire Universe Defense Corps. We face only the strongest enemies. And you tell me you’re just wasting time here!?”

Seven 21 kept his head bowed, unwilling to argue. His stiff neck was the only sign of his stubborn resolve.

“Get out!” Big Seven suddenly slammed the table, waving his hand toward the exit. “Get off this starship immediately!”

A warrior of the Seven tribe standing nearby couldn’t help but intervene, “Clan Leader, shouldn’t we wait until the starship returns to the Land of Light—”

Big Seven turned his icy gaze sharply on the warrior, who shivered involuntarily and fell silent.

“I said, get him off this ship right now!”

“Yes!” The warrior straightened up instinctively.

His eyes flickered with sympathy and confusion as he looked at Seven 21. He couldn’t understand why Seven 21 would make such a choice—wanting to leave the Warrior Command Headquarters. What kind of courage did it take to make that decision?

The Warrior Command Headquarters was practically the Seven tribe’s sanctuary. For warriors of the Seven tribe, coming here was like returning home. There was no discomfort; all their comrades were of the same tribe, able to look out for one another.

Wasn’t that enough?

It wasn’t that it was impossible, but for Seven 21, this was not what he expected.

He had come to fear that his courage was slowly being eroded by long periods of idleness. He had grown lax in practicing combat techniques, and his mastery over light-energy skills no longer matched what it had been.

Although the Warrior Command Headquarters was like a home to the Seven tribe’s Ultramen, Seven 21 was still afraid.

Afraid that he would truly lose the fighting spirit that an Ultraman warrior should possess.

Seven 21 lowered his head. No one could see the determination in his eyes; no one could discern his thoughts.

He wanted to become a true Ultraman warrior, able to stand alone.

To that end, he craved battle, yearning to improve himself through constant clashes.

He was even willing to leave the Warrior Command Headquarters and defy the clan leader of the Seven tribe for it.

Led by a Seven tribe Ultraman, Seven 21 was brought to the exit. The young Ultraman glanced back at him with confusion.

“I don’t understand why you’re doing this, but if you’ve chosen this path, you should know how hard the road ahead will be.”

He pointed toward the distant, mysterious, and profound starry sky. “Go.”

Seven 21 nodded heavily. His gaze turned for one last look inside the starship before he leapt into the boundless cosmos.

As he watched, the massive starship gradually receded. Seven 21 felt lost and uncertain. For warriors of the Seven tribe, their kin were their strongest support. Leaving the Warrior Command Headquarters was tantamount to severing ties with the Seven tribe—at least as long as Big Seven was the clan leader, it was certain.

Yet he had made this decision and acted on it. Standing at a crossroads, no one could say whether this choice was right or wrong.

One last glance at the starship that had once held his passion and dreams.

Seven 21 looked up, but then froze mid-air, suspended in space, gripped by overwhelming fear.

Above the Warrior Command Headquarters starship, a dazzling white light gradually flared. Even from a distance, Seven 21 could sense the immense energy pulsating within that white glow.

That was—the Miracle Laser Cannon!

In that fleeting flash of white light, Seven 21 clearly saw the ships lying in ambush, attacking the Warrior Command Headquarters starship. His limbs turned icy cold.

The attackers were disc-shaped vessels. At four points around each disc were massive energy cannons. Their super-alloy hulls shimmered faintly in the white light. The blue paintwork was vivid, and the crimson words “Battle Star” emblazoned on them were striking.

Battle Star—the starship of the New Universe Defense Corps!

And those aboard were foes he had faced before—armed vessels of the Blue Clan’s Smashers!

At the command of the frenzied Blue Clan leader, Jeck Ultraman, all defensive systems on the ship had been removed, replaced by two additional Miracle Laser Cannons! This radical modification made the Battle Star utterly different from other starships of the Land of Light, adopting a unique disc shape.

A starship that completely abandoned defense, equipped instead with four Miracle Laser Cannons capable of piercing planets.

He would never forget.

There was no sound in the universe.

Silently, without warning, the Warrior Command Headquarters starship was cleaved in two by the Miracle Laser Cannons. The massive energy beams tore through the hull, metal molecularly disintegrated in an instant, and a dazzling, blinding white light exploded forth.

Seven 21 instinctively raised his hand to shield his eyes. When he lowered it, the unique Battle Star ship had already unleashed a terrifying four-shot barrage.

The power of the Miracle Laser Cannon defied description. Jeck Ultraman had once commanded the Battle Star to fire the Miracle Laser Cannon, shattering the Mogus planet outright!

Its terror was beyond measure, and a volley of four shots had utterly obliterated the Warrior Command Headquarters along with many of the finest Ultraman warriors aboard, reducing them to molecular fragments.

The Warrior Command Headquarters was completely erased!

Seven 21 stared in disbelief at the unfolding scene. He doubted his eyes. Although internal strife was severe among the tribes of the Land of Light, no faction had ever dared to openly tear apart the peace and resort to outright violence.

Let alone now, when the vast majority of the Seven tribe’s forces were wiped out in a single strike, erasing the peak military might of the Land of Light.

Had Jeck Ultraman truly gone mad!?

This would ignite a full-scale civil war within the Land of Light!

The only thought ringing in his mind was to rush immediately to the Land of Light and report this to the true leader, Father of Ultra!

(To be continued.)