Chapter Seventeen: Even Aliens Need to Eat!

After a half-hour drive, Xie Jing brought Sha Ji safely to the area surrounding the factory. From a distance, they could see the Victory Team's car parked nearby. Da Gu and Lina, holding instruments in their hands, were scanning around a large circular object.

Sha Ji was visibly excited, clutching the pendant at her chest tightly, her eyes fixed on the circular object.

"That must be your target, the signal transmitter?"

"Yes..." Sha Ji nodded and said, "It's my locator device. It allows my people to find my position, but I've lost it for a long time now."

Sitting in the car, Xie Jing shrugged indifferently. "As long as we've found it, that's all that matters. Is there a way to activate it?"

Sha Ji carefully cupped the pendant in her hands, her expression tense. "This is the 'key.' It needs to be powered by my own energy."

"That's simple. I'll go with you over there. You can directly summon your people, and the Victory Team will believe what I say."

"But..." Sha Ji lowered her head, twisting her body shyly. "I haven't eaten anything in a long time. I'm not sure if I have enough energy inside me to activate it."

...

Well, it seems even aliens can be shy and need to eat—something Xie Jing had never considered.

"Do you trust me?" Xie Jing asked Sha Ji.

"I trust you, Ultraman." Sha Ji looked at Xie Jing and answered with certainty.

Xie Jing smiled and took a turn ahead with the car. "In that case, let's have a meal first. The device will surely be sent to the TPC Far East Base later, and I'll drive you there!"

"Alright."

As the car moved along the road, Sha Ji stared unwaveringly at Xie Jing's face, making him quite uncomfortable.

"What, you've never seen such a handsome Ultraman?"

"You're the most unique Ultraman I've ever seen," Sha Ji replied, her words startling him. "And the least like an Ultraman."

"Why?" Xie Jing was intrigued.

Sha Ji looked straight ahead, as if recalling something. "I've seen warriors from the Land of Light on my planet before. They're tall, brave, speak with strict formality, and can't tolerate even the slightest darkness. Every Ultraman is the strongest warrior, the embodiment of justice, punishing evil throughout the universe. They never let any guilty being go."

"But you, you’re not like those Ultraman warriors. I sense a strong light from you, yet I've never seen you defeat any monsters."

Sha Ji continued, "There is one Ultraman named Diga, though, who is very much like the warriors from the Land of Light."

Xie Jing, simply too lazy to fight monsters himself, chuckled awkwardly. "Some Ultraman warriors prefer to guard Earth in the light, but I like to thwart all conspiracies against Earth from the shadows. It's just a difference in division of labor."

"I see," Sha Ji replied, expressionless and silent.

The two arrived at a Chinese restaurant, ordered food, and Xie Jing asked, "You must have been on Earth for a long time. Why did you come here?"

"Eighty-three decades ago, I arrived on Earth. Back then, this country wasn’t called Neon yet."

Sha Ji sat upright, eyes fixed on the table, unconsciously cradling her pendant.

"My planet is located in the Hulun star of the Maritu galaxy, a million light-years from Earth, with over three hundred million people."

"Our kind possesses powerful monster modification technology, as well as unique life forms called Machina."

"Is that the kind of monster you drew for me?"

"It’s not a monster! It’s a companion we live with!" Sha Ji was quite angry.

"Alright, sorry, I misspoke."

A dish was brought to the table, but neither touched their chopsticks. Sha Ji continued reminiscing.

"We have always loved peace, we're a peaceful race, but..."

Her voice suddenly grew low, and she kept her head down for a long time, saying nothing.

"One day, my parents were very tense. They gathered me and all the children of our tribe together and sent each of us off in spaceships.

At the time, I was young and didn't know what was happening. I only saw an enormous spaceship descend over our planet. Many beings came down from it, and lots of Machina were loaded onto the ship."

"Later, I learned they were gifts for the dark conspirator Autopus! Autopus was extremely frail, and Machina are incredibly tough creatures. They coveted Machina and chose to plunder them."

"Afterwards, I came alone to Earth and have lived here for over eight centuries, always waiting for my people to retrieve me. But... I lost my locator device."

Autopus again? Xie Jing realized he had an odd connection with this villain he’d never met. He’d never heard of him before, but since learning the name, he’d heard news about him several times.

Still, Xie Jing didn’t interrupt Sha Ji’s recollection, instead comforting her. "It's alright. After we eat, we'll go to the Far East Base and help you get home!"

"Thank you. In all my years on Earth, you’re the first person to help me selflessly." Sha Ji nodded slightly, grateful to Xie Jing.

Xie Jing laughed heartily, waved, and ordered Sha Ji a fruit juice, then asked the waiter to bring some rice.

He picked up a dish and placed it in Sha Ji’s bowl, then asked curiously, "How have you managed to live among humans all these years?"

Sha Ji put down her chopsticks and looked at Xie Jing as she spoke.

"My body is just a disguise to better live on Earth. Ordinary bullets can’t harm me, and Earth’s microbes don’t affect my body, so I don’t need to cook food like humans do."

"I also don’t need to live in communities like humans. As long as I replenish my energy regularly, I avoid most of their troubles."

"Humans are fascinating creatures. They’re greedy, competitive, possess a strong desire for ownership and knowledge, yet they’re also kind, passionate, capable of risking everything for others. On Earth, they’re the rulers, but sometimes, they’re less noble than a dog."

Xie Jing: "......"

Seeing Sha Ji had more to say, Xie Jing quickly placed another helping of food in her bowl.

"Alright, let’s just eat!"

"Okay."

Picking up her bowl, Sha Ji ate her meal in small, ladylike bites.

Meanwhile, Xie Jing took out his communicator and reported the situation to Jujian Hui.

Upon learning that Xie Jing would bring back an alien girl—the true owner of today’s discovered metal can—everyone was stunned.

At that moment, Da Gu spoke up.

"I told you, Senior Fujii isn’t just sitting back. He’s solved plenty of issues for us behind the scenes and leaves the spotlight to me."

Everyone nodded in agreement, unable to find fault with Da Gu’s words.

Fujii Yuta...

Could it be... he’s always quietly protecting Earth? Willingly acting as an anonymous guardian?