Ultraman: It turns out this is the easy mode.

Choi Myeong's decision to bring up Miyuki's situation in front of Sanada Ryosuke wasn't due to low emotional intelligence or a lack of consideration for others' privacy or a desire to touch a raw nerve. On the contrary, it was a deliberate and carefully considered move. He had a clear plan: by openly discussing the matter in front of others, he hoped that those around him who knew the inside story would step forward and help persuade Miyuki. After all, with the help of the powerful Ultramen from the Land of Light who possessed advanced healing technology, Miyuki's family members, who were parasitized by Radam, might still have a chance to be saved. There was no need to start with an extreme, suicidal idea that would push her to the brink.

But the problem lies precisely with Miyuki… She's always been a bit stubborn, and once she gets into a mindset, nothing can sway her. In her unwavering belief, if her family members are completely controlled by evil parasites like Radam and commit heinous acts of murder and harming others, then they are no longer the loving, gentle, and kind relatives they once were.

Rather than letting them continue living with indelible sins, sinking deeper and deeper into the mire of evil, and ultimately becoming monsters that only know destruction and killing, it would be better to let them die the moment they are completely devoured by evil, before they have a chance to commit any more sins. This way, at least they can retain the last bit of dignity as "human beings," and they will no longer have to bear those bloody sins and never find peace for eternity.

This idea isn't absolutely right or wrong, but it exudes a heart-wrenching resolve and a deep-seated sorrow, which is quite...heartbreaking. In any case, Cui Ming dared not stop his psychological counseling for Mei Xue for the slightest. One psychological therapy session after another never stopped, even though the effect of each session was minimal. Mei Xue's attitude showed no signs of softening, and he had no intention of giving up.

After all, Miyuki was the person he cherished most, and he could never stand by and watch her be driven crazy by these negative thoughts.

In order to stop Miyuki from overthinking and being tormented by those extreme and painful thoughts, Choi Myung racked his brains and tried all sorts of methods. In the end, when all else failed, he had to resort to a somewhat extreme approach—frequently finding opportunities to "bo" with her.

This intense, intimate interaction allowed her to focus entirely on the present moment, temporarily clearing her mind of its chaotic thoughts and leaving her with no energy to dwell on those upsetting things. This wasn't some underhanded method; rather, it was the most direct and relatively effective approach Cui Ming could think of after trying countless methods. His goal was simple: to stop her from thinking about so many random things, to help her stabilize her emotions, and to prevent her from getting stuck in a rut.

Cui Ming truly had no other choice. He tried patiently reasoning with Mei Xue, breaking down the pros and cons and the possibility of salvaging the situation for her; he tried taking her to various scenic spots to relax, hoping the tranquility of nature could soothe her inner anxiety; he even tried having his friends take turns keeping her company, using laughter and joy to distract her. But these methods, which might be effective for ordinary people, had little effect on the stubborn Mei Xue. Only this method of completely immersing her in the present moment, rendering her unable to think about anything else, could temporarily alleviate her pain and bring a moment of relief to her face. So even knowing that this was not a long-term solution, Cui Ming could only grit his teeth and persist in doing so.

Miyuki was perfectly aware of Choi Myung's good intentions. She knew that everything he did was for her own good, because he was afraid that she would be overwhelmed by those heavy negative thoughts and fall into a complete breakdown.

So every time Cui Ming took the initiative to approach her and comfort her in this special way, she cooperated very well. Even though her heart was still heavy and she was burdened by worries that made it hard to breathe, she would try her best to suppress those negative emotions and respond positively to Cui Ming's gentleness, so as not to let his efforts be in vain and not to make him worry too much about her.

Then there is no more...

A strange and subtle stalemate gradually formed between them. Meixue knew perfectly well that her troubles about her family were like a ticking time bomb. Whenever she pondered them, whenever she got caught up in those extreme thoughts, Cui Ming would immediately sense the change in her emotions and rush over to "bo" with her, interrupting her thoughts in this extremely intimate way, making it impossible for her to continue her chaotic musings. Over time, this pattern became an unspoken understanding between them, yet it also carried an indescribable sense of oppression.

Meixue was also keenly aware that this approach was ultimately just a stopgap measure and couldn't solve the fundamental problem. To put it bluntly, it was treating the symptoms, not the root cause. Even if she could temporarily escape those painful thoughts, once she recovered, those worries and pain would still be there, perhaps even heavier and more intense due to the temporary suppression. She didn't want to rely on Cui Ming's comfort indefinitely, nor did she want to be trapped in this unsolvable emotional state forever.

"It's definitely better to resolve everything sooner rather than later..." Miyuki thought to herself, leaning against the window and watching the delicate petals fall outside. To break this deadlock and to finally resolve her inner turmoil, she had secretly asked Ultraman Hikari, known for his meticulousness and wisdom in the Land of Light, to help her find the cosmic coordinates of her family. In her view, only by finding them in person and confirming their current situation could she make a final decision—whether it was risking everything to rescue them from Radam's control or, if absolutely necessary, ending it all herself, it would be a hundred times better than this aimless torment.

She could only silently pray that Hikari could find the accurate coordinates quickly and stop this endless delay. Otherwise, if it dragged on for too long and something else happened, by the time things finally got clearer, her and Choi's child would be old enough to run errands... At that point, facing those parasitized family members with an innocent child would be much more complicated and difficult, regardless of the outcome, and would leave an indelible shadow on the child's heart.

More importantly, she also considered a problem even more troublesome than procrastination: if she successfully found her family, before she could even make up her mind on what to do, Cui Ming might face a "catastrophic disaster"—a joint attack from her three brothers who cherished her dearly. After all, her three brothers were always fiercely protective of their own, and from childhood to adulthood, they would come knocking on her door demanding an explanation for even the slightest grievance.

If they knew how much physical suffering they had endured during this time...
There's a high probability they'll blame everything on Cui Ming without even asking what happened, thinking that Cui Ming didn't take good care of her.
Of course, Miyuki knew very well that it was her brothers' hatred for her brother-in-law.
That will inevitably lead to another chaotic scene, which gives Miyuki a headache just thinking about it.

Cui Ming had no idea that Miyuki was secretly plotting to get the coordinates from Hikari and resolve her family's problems as soon as possible. At this moment, his mind was completely focused on how to completely calm down Sanada Ryosuke, this "time bomb." After all, this guy had a serious psychological obsession and was single-mindedly focused on the dangerous Ebloon cells. If he wasn't properly guided, he might cause a major disaster again someday. So Cui Ming didn't waste any more words with Sanada Ryosuke. He simply reached out and grabbed the other man by the back of his collar, half-dragging, half-carrying him out like a helpless chick. His goal was clear—to find Horii. Horii and Sanada Ryosuke were true friends of many years. They had worked side by side in the research field since university and later joined the same institution. They knew each other inside and out and had a very deep friendship. Cui Ming knew perfectly well that no matter what he, as an outsider, said, it wouldn't be as effective as his friend's face-to-face advice. At least Horii's intervention would allow Sanada Ryosuke to lower his guard and open up about the pent-up frustrations in his heart, instead of either confronting him directly or breaking down in tears, as he had with me.

Sanada Ryosuke, being dragged along by the back of his collar by Cui Ming, hadn't fully recovered from his emotional breakdown and the dazed state of the slap. His head was spinning, tears still clung to his cheeks, and his body was limp, completely at Cui Ming's mercy, unable to muster even the slightest strength to resist. It wasn't until Cui Ming threw him into Horii's laboratory with a "thud," the familiar pungent smell of disinfectant and chemical reagents filling his nostrils, and the soft hum of the instruments around him, that he regained some of his senses, blankly raising his head to survey his familiar surroundings.

Horii was squatting beside the lab bench, carefully fiddling with a newly developed anomaly detection device, a precision screwdriver in his hand, intently adjusting the parts. Hearing the noise from the doorway, he instinctively looked up and saw Cui Ming standing there, holding his friend by the back of the collar. The scene was incredibly eerie, and he was startled, almost dropping the screwdriver. He quickly put down his tools and rushed over: "Instructor Cui? What happened to you…" He stopped mid-sentence, noticing Sanada Ryosuke's red eyes, the undried tear tracks on his face, and his distraught appearance. His expression instantly changed, and his tone became urgent, "Ryosuke? What happened to you? Who bullied you? Was it Instructor Cui…?"

Before Hori could finish speaking, Cui Ming released Sanada Ryosuke's hand, walked straight to the metal chair next to him, and sat down casually, yet exuding an undeniable aura. He cut to the chase, saying in a calm tone, "Don't speculate. I didn't bully him. He just has some psychological issues. His obsession with 'being number one' is too deep; he's stuck in a rut. You should talk to him and help him through it." Then, in the simplest terms, he quickly explained to Hori Ryosuke Sanada's twisted thinking: "From a young age, I had to be number one; if I didn't, I felt my parents didn't love me, and nobody would love me."

Horii truly hadn't expected that his friend, who usually seemed so focused on research and so competitive to the point of being stubborn, harbored such deep grievances and such twisted obsessions. He stood there, stunned, momentarily at a loss—he was skilled in research, but had virtually no experience in psychological counseling. Horii scratched his short hair, his mind racing, trying to figure out how to effectively persuade his friend, to get him to open up without upsetting him. Just as he was frowning in worry, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he suddenly remembered a key figure—Sayaka, the goddess he and Sanada Ryosuke had both admired for so long.

"I've got it!" Horii exclaimed excitedly, slapping his thigh so hard he almost knocked over the reagent bottles next to him. He quickly pulled out his communicator from his waist, his fingers flying across the keys as he sent an urgent message to Sayaka, his tone urgent and pleading: "Sayaka, come to my lab right away! I need your help with something very important, it concerns my best friend's safety!" After sending the message, he finally breathed a sigh of relief, turned to the still-dazed Sanada Ryosuke, and forced a gentle smile: "Ryosuke, don't worry, Sayaka will come over later too. We'll both talk to you properly, you can tell us everything that's bothering you."

In truth, after being slapped squarely on the forehead by Choi, Sanada Ryosuke's stubbornness had dissipated considerably, and his previously muddled mind had cleared considerably, making him appear much more "clear-headed." However, perhaps because his emotions had been bottled up for so long, or perhaps because he had completely let down his guard in front of his closest friend, Horii, he couldn't hold back when Horii spoke with concern. He subconsciously poured out all the pent-up frustrations and grievances he had accumulated over the years.

“From a young age, I had to be number one… Whether it was exams, competitions, or research project evaluations, if I wasn’t number one, my parents wouldn’t smile at me, wouldn’t praise me, wouldn’t even look at me directly…” Sanada Ryosuke lowered his head, his shoulders trembling slightly, his voice hoarse as if it had been sanded, filled with undisguised grievance and despair, “If I don’t get number one, they won’t love me! In this world, no one will love me anymore! Everything I do will be meaningless!”

As soon as he finished speaking, Horii saw his friend's despairing expression and his heart pounded with anxiety, fearing that Sanada Ryosuke might do something rash. He took a big step forward, pounded his chest heavily, and shouted, "Ryosuke, don't think like that! We can love you! Sayaka and I can both love you! You're not alone!"

The moment those words were spoken, the laboratory, which had been filled with a somewhat oppressive atmosphere, fell into an eerie, deathly silence. Coincidentally, Sayaka just pushed open the door at that moment, and as soon as she stepped across the threshold, she clearly heard Horii's words. She froze, her feet stopping in her tracks, her beautiful eyes wide open, staring blankly at Horii, her gaze filled with shock, confusion, and a hint of something indescribably strange.

Holy crap!!! So you two are...!!!
Sanada Ryosuke, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on, jerked his head up, his face instantly turning ashen, his pupils shrinking to slits. He instinctively shrank back, almost falling to the ground. He felt a chill run down his lower back, a coldness shooting up his spine, even his anus tightening, and the hairs on his body standing on end.

"No, no, no! Horii, please don't! Please don't say such things!" Sanada Ryosuke waved his hands frantically, as if trying to drive away something terrifying. His voice trembled with extreme panic and resistance. "I don't need your love! I really don't! Take this love back! Please!"

"It's not that kind of love!!!" Horii was so flustered by their exaggerated reactions that he jumped up and down in a panic. His face turned as red as a ripe tomato, and he gestured wildly in the air, wishing he could tear his heart out to show them. "I mean the care between friends! It's friendship! It's the concern and love we, as friends, have for you! Not that kind of messy, romantic love you're thinking of! What kind of filthy things are you thinking?!"

Horii was almost in tears; his eyes were red. He had meant well, wanting to comfort his friend and let him know he wasn't alone and that someone cared about him. But he'd misspoke so badly, creating such a huge blunder. Looking at Sayaka's strange gaze and Sanada Ryosuke's terrified expression, as if he'd seen a ghost, Horii felt a chill run down his spine and wished he could disappear into the ground and never come out again.

Sayaka paused for a few seconds, finally realizing it was a misunderstanding. She sighed softly, walked over, and pulled Horii, who was still frantically spinning around, behind her. She shook her head vigorously at him, her eyes clearly saying, "Please don't say anything more." Then, she turned around, straightened her skirt, and looked at Sanada Ryosuke, who was still trembling with fear. Her voice was gentle and earnest, reassuringly saying, "Ryosuke, you really shouldn't think like that. Look at Horii. Someone like Horii, even though he has short legs, is so fat, always tells lame jokes, and sometimes messes up experiments—you could say he's full of flaws—even with all those flaws, we, his friends, still love him and care about him."

"?????" (End of this chapter)