Chapter 24: Bemstar, Mechanical Ace, The Great Iron Block, King Joe

A giant gift box appeared on the shop interface and began to burst open repeatedly. It shattered a total of 22 times, revealing various monster shards:

Two shards of the Great Space Monster Bemstar.
One shard of the Super Ancient Monster Golza.
One shard of the Super Ancient Vanguard Monster Zoiger.
One shard of the Space Robot King Joe.
One shard of the Ancient Monster Gomora.
Two shards of the Mechanical Ultraman Ace.
One shard of the Space Robot King Joe.
One shard of the Underground Monster Telesdon.
One shard of the Oil Monster Takkong.
One shard of the Giant Fish Monster Muruchi.
One shard of the Underground Monster Gudon.
One shard of the Space Monster Bemular.
One shard of the Mechanical Ultraman Ace.
One shard of the Earth Monster Gakuma.
One shard of the Interdimensional Superhuman Ace Killer.
One shard of the Space Robot Iron Rocks.
One shard of the Space Robot King Joe.
One shard of the Space Robot King Joe.
One shard of the Undersea Humanoid Ragon.
One shard of the Space Ninja Alien Baltan.
Two shards of the Space Robot Iron Rocks.
Two shards of the Space Robot King Joe.

Not bad! To have four instances of double shards dropping in a single drawing session is quite rare. The system shop has a probability of dropping more than one shard, but getting double is a lucky outcome.

Among these monsters, there was only one that Rhode valued above all others: the Great Space Monster Bemstar.

The Great Space Monster Bemstar, commonly known as "Bem-bird" or "Big Cute Bird," stands 46 meters tall and weighs 61,000 tons. Its melee combat abilities are sufficient to overwhelm Ultraman Jack. Bemstar’s head crest functions as a radar to identify enemies and can emit powerful yellow destructive light projectiles. As for its flight capabilities, by extending its arms horizontally, it can fly at Mach 5 within the atmosphere. It can travel freely through outer space, reaching the speed of light. Most uniquely, the pentagonal, mouth-like disc on its abdomen acts as its second mouth—its true way of feeding. It can generate a suction vortex that distorts space, swallowing various objects and converting them into energy. It frequently absorbs cosmic energy, gases, and radiation, and can even swallow individual Ultramen or other monsters.

This is the most formidable ability! Not only is its melee combat prowess impressive, but it can also release yellow lightning beams. It can survive in the vacuum of space, fly at superluminal speeds, and absorb various rays and radiant energy; it is a true jack-of-all-trades. Rhode coveted Bemstar's various abilities the most and decided that it would be his second target for monster enhancement. However, Rhode could only admire it for now as he could not synthesize it yet, but at least he had two shards in his possession.

Rhode shook his head and turned his attention to the most important mechanical monsters. Bemstar would come in time.

He had three shards of the Mechanical Ultraman Ace. The shard depicted an Ultraman Ace covered in various yellow iron rings, looking rather clumsy and foolish. It was likely the Ace robot created by the Yapool to test Ace Killer, which was destroyed less than a minute after appearing. This mechanical Ace possessed explosive defensive power—it endured several light-based attacks without being destroyed—and could use various light techniques of Ace. The problem, however, was that its movements were too sluggish, and its combat power paled in comparison to the other mechanical monsters. If it had been the Mechanical Ultra Brothers created by the Salome aliens, it would have been truly powerful. Unfortunately, no shards for any of the Mechanical Ultra Brothers appeared this time.

There was also an Ace Killer from the Ace TV series. While this unit was very strong in combat, it could not function as a spacecraft, and with only one shard available, Rhode skipped it entirely.

Next came the main event: the mechanical monsters from Ultraseven, which were perfectly suited for the current situation.

The first was the Space Robot Iron Rocks. Standing 67 meters tall and weighing 64,000 tons, it was a colossal behemoth, with tonnage and height on par with an Imperial-class Titan. It was originally a spacecraft from the home planet of the Kuron aliens that transformed into a robot.

The massive device on Iron Rocks' chest housed a quantum energy converter, which could absorb all forms of energy and convert it for its own use. It possessed a gravity isolation system that allowed it to generate anti-gravity, enabling it to fly freely in the air. Its "Tractor Beam," a red, electrical-like light fired from its hands, could capture and pull in opponents. Its mechanical strength far exceeded that of Ultraseven; it once restrained the Ultra and absorbed his energy, even suppressing him in close-quarters combat. Furthermore, it could fire a particle beam cannon powerful enough to destroy an entire city, and it absorbed all of Ultraseven's signature light techniques. Its combat power was incomparably fierce—it was both a battle machine and a spacecraft capable of superluminal space flight. Even an Emperor would be moved to tears by such capabilities; the human space travel technology he dreamed of lay right here. Rhode had drawn the Space Robot Iron Rocks twice, obtaining a total of three shards.

The other was King Joe, a star monster. Like Iron Rocks, it was a spacecraft-type robot. Standing 55 meters tall and weighing 48,000 tons, King Joe was a space combat machine from Planet Pedan. Its body was composed of a special metal alloy unique to Pedan, which was durable enough to withstand Ultraseven's two greatest special techniques without a scratch. Rhode felt that the technological content contained within King Joe's special metal alone would drive the members of the Adeptus Mechanicus insane.

King Joe's combat power went without saying; its melee strength could absolutely suppress Ultraseven, even reaching the point of performing the famous scene where it straddled the Ultra in the sea, beating him until he cried out, "No, no!"

In its flight mode, King Joe could split its body into four sections within seconds. This not only allowed for long-distance flight and survival in space but also served as a way to evade enemy attacks. This was highly practical; Rhode could easily deploy one of the four segments to serve as a spacecraft.

It was equipped with a Pedenium Rocket Launcher, which could replace its right arm with a cannon. This cannon was incredibly powerful, capable of creating massive explosions and firing shells in rapid succession; it could be used for long-range bombardment or as a melee weapon to strike opponents like a hammer. Its "Destructive Beam," fired from its eyes, consisted of two beams that combined into one to attack and destroy targets. In flight mode, it could fire yellow beams from all four components, or combine them for a more powerful blast capable of dealing heavy damage. Finally, the "Pedenium Shield" allowed King Joe to surround its body with an energy barrier, capable of blocking Ultraseven's Emerium Beam.