"This is the same Arctiguana that Ben transformed into this morning," Gwen said, recognizing the blue reptilian form immediately.
Ben's excitement deflated like a punctured balloon. "Are you serious, Asher? That's the alien you picked? I thought you'd go for something more powerful than this guy."
He couldn't understand why Asher hadn't chosen Buzzshock or Heatblast instead. Why settle for Arctiguana?
"New hero? And only slightly better than that kid?"
Dr. Animo was indeed a scientist with a high IQ. From Ben's careless comment alone, he'd already analyzed Arctiguana's approximate combat capabilities.
If they were only talking about raw power, ignoring the ice-making abilities entirely, this transformation probably couldn't match Four Arms!
Besides, with countless mutant creatures at his disposal, Dr. Animo didn't particularly fear the four-armed powerhouse anyway.
"Hahaha! That brat Asher must be confused, or maybe his watch is malfunctioning! Look at him, turning into such a pathetic creature! This is going to be easier than I thought!" Dr. Animo's smug laughter echoed across the battlefield.
"His watch is quite interesting, though."
Clancy raised his eyebrows with predatory interest, greed flickering in his bloodshot eyes.
Vilgax listened to their conversation but said nothing.
He was clever, dangerously so. Right now, he needed these two as pawns, so he'd play along and pretend he didn't covet the Omnitrix. If he could create a situation where they destroyed each other? Even better.
Regardless...
"Asher, when did you unlock a new alien? I don't know how many transformations you can access. This is getting more troublesome by the day."
Inside his spaceship's command center, Vilgax stood tall and imposing. His muscular frame rivaled Four Arms in sheer mass, developed muscles rippling with explosive power like a fortress wall made flesh.
The sight radiated overwhelming menace.
But Arctiguana remained oblivious to everything happening outside.
The transformation was absorbing the system's reward.
After a single second, the reptilian alien slowly opened his awe-inspiring eyes. He glanced at Ben and Gwen beside him, his voice carrying an undertone of absolute confidence.
"Don't worry about me. Just watch."
"Asher, you, "
Before Ben could finish his sentence, the lightning core powering his armor depleted completely. The battle suit disengaged and retracted, leaving him standing in his normal clothes.
His expression turned mortified.
Great. Just perfect.
Now he'd lost his combat capability entirely, leaving only Arctiguana and Gwen! And Gwen could barely protect herself, let alone go on the offensive!
"Asher, should we retreat?" Gwen suggested carefully, knowing how protective the boys could be of their pride.
"You don't have confidence in me?" Arctiguana's voice carried an edge of amusement. "Step back. Let me handle this."
The Polar Manzardill showed absolutely no intention of retreating.
Gwen and Ben exchanged worried glances, anxiety written across their faces. But they didn't step back, instead choosing to stand beside Asher and fight together.
It wasn't that they lacked faith in him.
The problem was the combat effectiveness Arctiguana had demonstrated that morning. They couldn't describe it as weak, exactly... more like underwhelming.
"Rats! Kill them!"
Clancy could barely contain himself any longer. He waved his hand dramatically, screaming the command.
He wanted his precious creatures to tear this arrogant child apart!
Shriek! Shriek! Shriek!
A massive mutant rat instantly extended its powerful limbs and charged toward Arctiguana at breakneck speed. The size difference between them was staggering, absolutely comical.
Before the mutant rat, the small reptilian alien looked like nothing more than a blue rubber ball waiting to be crushed.
But Arctiguana stood perfectly calm, completely stationary. A slight chill emanated from his mouth, and he paid the charging behemoth no attention whatsoever.
The mutant rat was mere feet away now, ready to flatten him. The ground beneath Arctiguana's feet began trembling violently from the impact.
Dr. Animo's expression filled with anticipation. Clancy practically vibrated with excitement.
Only Vilgax remained skeptical.
Something about this didn't add up. The kid wasn't acting like someone about to be crushed. He acted like someone who'd already won.
"Ding! Congratulations to the host for successfully signing in!"
"Reward Obtained: Blue-Tier Reward, All ice techniques from Admiral Kuzan (Aokiji) from the One Piece universe!"
The system's rewards didn't merely grant new skills and abilities.
When the user's energy reserves proved insufficient to execute those devastating techniques, the system forcibly boosted their power to compensate!
For instance...
It directly amplified Arctiguana's ice generation several times over, perhaps even ten times stronger than before!
"Freezing time!"
Facing the charging mutant rat, Arctiguana could practically smell the sewer stench radiating from its matted fur.
He opened his mouth wide and exhaled an absolutely torrential blast of freezing air!
The cold wasn't merely intense, it was majestic, spreading far beyond anything he'd demonstrated before. The ground instantly froze wherever the icy breath touched, and the wave collided head-on with the mutant rat!
CRACK!
No matter how fast it moved.
No matter how ferocious it appeared.
The mutant rat stopped dead in its tracks before Arctiguana.
Transformed into a perfect ice sculpture, it gleamed brilliantly in the sunlight.
Beneath his feet, frost spread across the concrete like a frozen highway paving the way for the reptilian warrior.
"Hmph!"
Another sharp exhale.
The frigid air condensed around Arctiguana's open jaws, forming an impossibly sharp ice blade. Like a blue flash tearing through reality itself, the projectile shattered the frozen rat sculpture!
In an instant, countless ice crystals exploded outward like a kaleidoscope blooming in mid-air. The blade embedded itself in the ground beyond, completely pulverizing what remained of the mutant creature!
Instant kill!
Arctiguana smiled with quiet satisfaction.
The reward was definitely powerful enough.
"What?! Didn't you say this guy was weak? How did he one-shot the mutant rat?!" Clancy demanded, his mandibles clicking furiously in disbelief.
Dr. Animo's face flushed red with rage as realization dawned.
He pointed an accusatory finger at Ben. "I see now! That kid did this deliberately! He knew Asher's Arctiguana transformation was incredibly powerful, but he intentionally showed weakness to lure us into underestimating them! The scheming runs deep with these children!"
Ben looked utterly bewildered. I used a really powerful technique? Since when?
He stared at Arctiguana in complete disbelief.
The transformation had only been moderately strong this morning. Why was it suddenly so overwhelmingly powerful now?
Vilgax's expression remained impassive and calm, everything proceeding exactly as he'd expected.
Still, something stirred within his recovered body. A trace of battle hunger awakened! He genuinely wanted to fight this intriguing human child himself!
It wouldn't be much longer now.
"Enough talk! Come at me!" Arctiguana roared, his voice carrying absolute authority.
"You think you can defeat all of them?!"
This time, Clancy unleashed everything. He directed every mutant rat to charge Arctiguana simultaneously!
Swarms of mutant cockroaches joined the assault, launching a terrifying aerial attack on the reptilian alien from above!
For a brief moment, Arctiguana seemed genuinely endangered.
But he remained utterly calm.
When facing absolute power, what did numbers matter?