"New Era?"
Inside the VIP room, a deep, hoarse voice suddenly broke the brief silence.
From the shadows in the corner, the Griffin-masked man, who had remained silent since his first attempt to purchase Tiandao, slowly stood up.
He looked directly at the Doctor and said, "Doctor, you seem to have forgotten to explain a very crucial question just now."
The Griffin-masked man leaned on his cane, his left mechanical prosthetic leg tapping out a rhythmic sound on the ground as he walked heavily towards the holographic projection in the center.
As he stopped in front of Tiandao's 3D image, he suddenly reached out and passed his hand through the projection.
"The question is, is this so-called perfect creation you speak of, truly controllable?"
"After all, I don't believe a powerful Star Envoy would willingly become a tool for others to achieve their dreams, do you?"
The Griffin-masked man's hand suddenly tightened.
Instantly, Tiandao's 3D image in the holographic projection shattered like a bubble before everyone's eyes.
As if the Doctor's so-called perfect creation, the so-called new era,
was merely an impractical fantasy of his.
After all, the Griffin-masked man himself was a powerful Star Envoy.
Thus, he understood very well what Star Envoys truly thought.
Not to mention a peerless genius like Tiandao, whose future was clearly limitless.
And geniuses are always proud.
They might be exploited, or restrained, but they could absolutely never be confined in a 'cage,' to be observed or driven by others.
Facing the Griffin-masked man's doubts, the Doctor seemed to have anticipated it, looking at him with a very meaningful expression.
"Distinguished guest, it seems you've misunderstood something."
"Oh?"
The Griffin-masked man looked at the Doctor curiously, seemingly not understanding what he had misunderstood.
"I said from the very beginning, Tiandao is our designated leader."
"Control?" The Doctor shook his head, "We never thought about controlling Tiandao; he just needs to be himself."
"Even if such a decision could lead to our destruction, should that situation truly arise, we still believe he will lead the nascent Ember to a new height, and in a brand-new way, fulfill the dreams of us old-timers."
The Doctor's reply was unexpected by the Griffin-masked man.
He looked at the other person seriously for a long time, finally sighing.
"I see. It seems you guys have thought everything through and are willing to bear the worst possible outcome."
"In that case, I have no more questions."
The Griffin-masked man sat back down, waiting for the Doctor to continue introducing the specific details of the Stars Project.
After all, they were willing to risk being hunted by the 'Star Envoy Association' to come to Ember today precisely because they saw immense value in the Stars Project.
While Tiandao, this Child of the Stars, was indeed powerful,
it was difficult to say whether Tiandao's power was due to the Stars Project or his own inherent abilities.
Therefore, more than these things, they were curious about how the other Children of the Stars performed.
Not to mention reaching the same level as Tiandao.
Even if they were only a tenth as powerful as Tiandao,
then this plan would undoubtedly be a success and possess extremely high investment value.
The Doctor clearly knew this, so he pressed the control panel in front of him, bringing up information about another Child of the Stars.
On the screen, a brown-haired, red-eyed girl was locked in combat with three Star Beasts.
The blood-red longsword in her hand was like a living thing, greedily sucking the blood of her enemies.
Although her combat wasn't as aesthetically pleasing as Tiandao's,
for an eleven-year-old child to simultaneously take on three Star Beasts, this achievement was undoubtedly equally astonishing.
"'Child of the Stars' Sequence 002, Chen Xing, Natural Type - Bloodflame Beast, Star Core compatibility 99%."
"And like Tiandao, she has not yet acquired any Star Source."
Unlike the lengthy introduction to Tiandao earlier,
the Doctor simply gave everyone a quick glance at Chen Xing's information before moving on to other Children of the Stars.
"'Child of the Stars' Sequence 003, Jing Liuli, Trait Type - Mirror Flower Butterfly, Star Core compatibility 92%."
"'Child of the Stars' Sequence 004, Caroline, Technomech Type - Heavenly Feline Spirit, Star Core compatibility 90%."
"'Child of the Stars' Sequence 005…"
"'Child of the Stars' Sequence 036, Chen Kong, Trait Type - Black Star, Star Core compatibility unknown."
Every time the Doctor introduced a Child of the Stars, he would include a clip of their combat footage.
However, when introducing Chen Kong last, everyone noticed that he not only lacked combat footage,
but his data was also extremely brief.
Looking at Chen Kong's meager data, the lady wearing a canary mask curiously asked, "Doctor, why is the information for this last Child of the Stars so sparse, and why is their Star Core compatibility marked as unknown?"
The Doctor thought for a moment and gave an ambiguous answer.
"That's because we cannot confirm whether he truly completed the Star Core surgery."
"Ah?"
The canary-masked lady looked at the Doctor in surprise; after all, according to the information she received from Ember upon her arrival,
the so-called Star Core surgery was no exaggeration to call a near-death experience.
Since Chen Kong was alive, it implied his Star Core surgery should have been successful.
How could there still be an uncertain Child of the Stars?
Or perhaps this child was special, which is why the Doctor deliberately did not list his complete information?
Everyone present was sharp.
Although the Doctor hadn't provided much information about Chen Kong,
they still committed the name to memory.
And looked forward to his performance later.
After all, the so-called final assessment was about to begin.
At that time, whether Chen Kong was truly an anomaly among the Children of the Stars whose surgical status couldn't be confirmed, as the Doctor said,
or a secret weapon deliberately hidden by Ember, it would all be revealed in the final assessment.
After all, battle reports can lie, but battle lines cannot.
What Chen Kong's true situation was, actual combat would prove everything.
"Alright everyone, the venue for the final assessment has been arranged. Please follow me."
Hearing the Doctor's words, everyone stood up and followed him to a certain part of the base.
Meanwhile, a cold, robotic female voice suddenly echoed from the training ground's broadcast system.
"The final assessment is about to begin. All trainees, please proceed to the central assessment hall."
As the broadcast ended, a metal gate leading underground slowly opened.
Looking at the deep, dark underground passage that seemed capable of swallowing everything,
Chen Kong's heart instantly tightened, and he shivered involuntarily.
He was clearly very afraid of this so-called final assessment.
"Nervous?"
Just then, a warm hand suddenly rested on his shoulder.
Chen Kong turned his head and realized Tiandao had appeared beside him at some point.
"Remember, when you feel you've reached a dead end, ask yourself why you've managed to survive until now."
Having said that, Tiandao turned back and shouted to Caroline, who was not far away, "Let's go, Caroline."
"Mm."
Tiandao led the way, taking Caroline past everyone and being the first to enter the deep underground passage.
Seeing this, Chen Xing snorted coldly and also walked in.
The others, seeing this, immediately followed in their footsteps.
Chen Kong watched Tiandao's receding back, Tiandao's recent words echoing in his mind.
'Why… why have I been able to survive until now?'
For now, Chen Kong didn't know the answer to this question.
However, he had a feeling that perhaps this final assessment could bring him the answer to that question.
With that thought, Chen Kong no longer hesitated and followed the crowd into the underground passage…
(End of Chapter)
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