A colossal flame erupted from the huge circle of fire. Like a shockwave, the violent blaze burst with a "bang," tilting toward the large robot like a wave of pure heat. In that moment, the entire forest was illuminated by the inferno.
"I never expected... Ryan actually has such terrifying abilities." Max's face was etched with shock. Truthfully, he already knew what the Omnitrix was; his earlier surprise had just been an act. He had simply never imagined that a child who had just acquired the Omnitrix could make Heatblast so powerful! This wasn't just Heatblast—this was the Fire God!
Though Vilgax didn't comprehend the full extent of this new move's power, its visual impact was overwhelming. As the large robot's body was consumed by the intense flames, its entire alloy frame instantly melted, leaving only hot air and scattered sparks on the ground. Heatblast had brought the battle to a perfect end.
"Now, let's deal with this forest fire."
Heatblast lightly raised his palm and rotated it slightly. Surprisingly, the flames burning throughout the forest obeyed him, instantly drawing closer and condensing back into his body! What terrifying firepower!
Vilgax's ship!
In Vilgax's command hall, the viewscreen showing the destruction of the large robot flickered and went black. They realized the robot had been utterly annihilated.
Silence. A deathly silence fell over the hall.
"This kid just got the Omnitrix. How can he be so powerful?!" Vilgax's face turned ashen. He couldn't bear the humiliating thought that his talent for wielding the Omnitrix might not surpass that of this mere Earth child.
"Lord Vilgax, what should we do?"
Are we still sending robots?" Several mechanical hands trembled as they lowered their heads and asked.
"Continue!" Vilgax roared, his voice filled with unprecedented pressure. "Launch all the robots from the ship at once! Capture this human child for me! He must be useful!"
Vilgax felt a pang of jealousy toward another being for the first time.
Back at the campsite,
Back on Earth, Heatblast had just finished absorbing the lingering flames.
Beep... beep... beep...
The Omnitrix symbol on Heatblast's chest began to flash continuously with a peculiar sound. Then, a green light engulfed his entire body. When the light dissipated, Ryan stood before everyone again.
He covered his chest with his palm, his face filled with amazement as he relished the strange sensation of being Heatblast once more. The Omnitrix symbol on his wrist had changed from green to red.
Gwen and Ben were about to speak.
"Whatever you have to say, save it for later. It's not safe here!" Max looked up at the sky, then at the red Omnitrix, and spoke decisively.
"Grandpa's right." Ryan's expression also turned serious. He subconsciously took Gwen's hand, intending to lead her back to the campsite.
Gwen's face instantly flushed. Looking at the handsome Ryan, she shyly whispered, "I'll go by myself."
Ben just stared, stunned. Gwen had never spoken to him so gently!
"My apologies," Ryan said, quickly releasing Gwen's hand and looking apologetic. "I haven't quite come down from that state yet."
"It's fine," Gwen replied softly, her heart warming.
"All right, let's go. There's no time to chat here," Max joked with a smile. Seeing this, Ryan hurriedly followed Max back to the campsite.
A few minutes later, the four of them returned. Firewood had been piled up to form a bonfire. Grandpa Max went to the RV to get something while the three children sat around the bonfire.
Ben and Gwen both looked curiously at the high-tech watch on Ryan's wrist, the Omnitrix.
"This is the watch. When I flip the screen and press it, I can turn into an alien!" Ryan explained enthusiastically. This was his childhood dream, and today, it had truly come to life. He genuinely owned the Omnitrix!
As he spoke, he activated the Omnitrix, slowly rotating the dial. The images of aliens on the screen constantly switched.
"So these aliens can all be transformed into?" Gwen leaned closer, asking curiously.
"Yep, right now, I can transform into ten different alien heroes. The first one, the fiery one, is called Heatblast." As Ryan cycled through the tenth alien, he landed back on Heatblast.
"That's so cool! I wish you could lend me one to play with!" Ben's face was filled with envy.
"Ben, do you think you could deal with all those robots?" Gwen teased Ben again, though her admiration for Ryan was clear. She was like a little girl admiring a boy she liked.
"Ryan, thank you for helping me just now." Gwen added, her gratitude genuine. A different kind of feeling stirred within her heart for Ryan.