This villain is too popular.

Chapter 487 Stars No. 0 - The Doctor [4000 words]

[Unknown Seas, a New Ember Base]

The aircraft penetrated the concealed force field of the Ember Base, stirring up a circle of pale blue stellar energy ripples, and slowly landed on the take-off and landing platform.

The moment the hatch opened, a scent carrying the coldness of metal and the salty sea breeze rushed out. Mo Ying was the first to prick up her pointed ears and dart out, her short legs lightly stepping on the platform.

But when he saw the figure standing in the center of the platform, Mo Ying suddenly shrank back and obediently snuggled back into Jing Liuli's arms.

The person who appeared before everyone was none other than the long-absent leader of the Embers, the mastermind behind Project Stars—Doctor Dragon.

A silver-gray combat suit accentuated the doctor's tall and straight figure. A half-silver-white mechanical mask covered his face, obscuring the outline above his nose and revealing only his sharply defined jawline.

From a distance, he exuded an aura of composure and mystery.

"Doctor." Yunmeng stepped forward first, her tone more respectful than when she spoke to others, and the star beasts also quieted down their playful antics.

Little Gold nestled obediently at her feet, while the Spirit Fox perched on Caroline's shoulder, watching the Doctor warily yet unguardedly.

The doctor nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the crowd and the star beasts. A glint of light flashed in his eyes beneath the mechanical mask, and his voice, though faintly metallic, was exceptionally gentle.

"It's good that you're back. Have you told Tiandao and the others about Ennet's century-long contract with the 'Star Beast Royal Court'?"

Yunmeng shook her head, indicating that she hadn't said those things yet.

The doctor wasn't too surprised by this.

"It's alright, come with me first."

With Tiandao and the others looking thoughtful, the group followed the Doctor into the new Ember Base.

Tiandao frowned. He had seen this term in the base's old files, but he had never known the specific details. "What kind of contract is that?"

The newly built Ember Base retains the core layout of the old base.
The familiar mechanical patterns and star power devices were reassuring, but the key passages and defensive nodes had been reinforced and repaired, and a faint blue star power barrier flowed through the walls, clearly to deal with the impending crisis.

Led by the doctor, the group quickly arrived at a sealed conference room. The heavy alloy door closed, completely isolating them from outside noise.

Led by the doctor, Tendou and the others soon arrived at a conference room.

After everyone was seated, the doctor raised his hand, and a pale blue holographic projection appeared in his palm, showing a scene from fifty years ago.
A colossal, indescribable star beast, its body shrouded in dark purple star power, stood facing off against Enite, its aura chilling and icy.

Behind the human and the beast stood densely packed groups of star beasts and human star envoys, the tense atmosphere seemingly about to burst through the projection, clearly indicating that a great battle was about to break out.

"Fifty years ago, a great war broke out between the Star Beast race and the Association, resulting in heavy casualties on both sides. In the end, the first Star Beast leader made a pact with Aini."

"The Star Beast Clan relinquished part of its territory to assist the Association in stabilizing the Federation's order."

"The association has pledged to stop hunting and experimenting on star beasts and to protect their habitats."

"The contract is based on the core strengths of both parties and is valid for 50 years."

"Now that the contract is about to expire, neither Ennet nor the Star Beast Royal Court wants to continue signing it."

The doctor paused, a hint of seriousness creeping into his eyes.

"Wang Ting's thinking is very simple: they believe that they have an absolute advantage."

"Ennett, on the other hand, wanted to completely guarantee humanity's status, implement 'human supremacy,' and ensure the perpetuity of the 'New Human Federation,' so that the human race could truly establish itself among the stars."

After a moment of silence, the doctor spoke again.

"As someone who has long stood at the peak of Level 5 Legend, Ennet is recognized as the strongest in the New Human Federation. However, he has been stuck at this level for decades and has never been able to break through the barrier called 'God'."

"In his eyes, the core of a star beast is its star core."

"If he can control all the star beasts and devour enough legendary star beasts, it will not only protect humanity's position, but also help him break through that unattainable realm."

"No one doubts whether Ennet can do it, because not only humans, but even the Star Beasts themselves are very clear about this."

"Because sixty years ago, the Star Beast Royal Court had a large-scale conflict with humanity."

“Ennet personally took action and single-handedly killed three legendary star beasts that came to stop him, leaving no trace of their bodies. He shocked the entire race with his absolute strength.”

Jing Liuli held Mo Ying in her arms, her face filled with disbelief.

She knew the president was strong, but she didn't expect him to be this strong.

Ignoring Jing Liuli's shock, the doctor continued, "The fall of the Level 5 Legendary Star Beast completely shattered the Star Beast race's will to resist."

"It should be noted that there are still several legendary star beasts in the royal court, and if they join forces, they have a great chance of taking down the Grand Master."

"On the other hand, once this decision is made, several of them will definitely perish at the hands of the Grand Master."

"Therefore, out of fear of the Grand Master and a desire to save their lives, they ultimately chose to sign that fifty-year peace treaty with the Grand Master."

"But not only the president, but also the royal court is well aware that this contract is not a termination note, but only a pause note."

"After all, human lifespan is short."

"We've been holding back all these years, waiting for the right opportunity."

"Waiting for an opportunity?"

Jing Liuli held Mo Ying, her face full of confusion.

"Do they have a way to oppose the Grand Master?"

"Ah."

The doctor's voice deepened, and a sharp glint flashed in his dragon-shaped vertical pupils.

"Although the Grand Master is strong enough to be at the peak of the legendary level, when he killed three legendary star beasts, he was also severely injured by their death backlash, leaving him with old wounds that are difficult to cure."

"This injury is not just a simple physical injury, but also involves his foundation. It recurs every six months, and as he gets older and his obsession with breaking through to the divine realm deepens, the frequency of recurrence is increasing, and the injury is becoming more and more serious."

"The Star Beast Clan has been waiting, waiting for the moment when his old wounds completely erupt and his Star Source becomes disordered. This is their only chance of survival."

Just then, Mo Ying suddenly jumped out of Jing Liuli's arms, ran to the Doctor's feet, and rubbed her head against his ankle, as if she were being affectionate.

The professor bent down and gently brushed his fingertips across the top of Mo Ying's head, his movements unusually gentle compared to his usual composed research style.

Jing Liuli asked curiously, "Doctor, you seem to know a lot about star beasts, and they aren't afraid of you at all."

The room fell silent instantly upon hearing this, and Yunmeng looked at the doctor with a knowing look in her eyes.

She had followed the Doctor for many years, knowing only that his identity was mysterious, but never about his past. The Doctor was silent for a moment, then slowly removed the mechanical mask from his face. Beneath the mask, several pale silver lines extended from the bridge of his nose, spreading down his cheeks to his jawline, and his eyes were deep, dragon-shaped vertical pupils, gleaming faintly under the light.

"Because I am not purely human."

He spoke in a flat tone, as if he were talking about something trivial.

“I was once a Cataclysmic-level dragon-shaped intelligent machine beast named ‘Cangming’, and I was a member of the Royal Court.”

"A dragon-shaped intelligent space beast?!"

Everyone gasped in surprise, even the Heavenly Dao couldn't hide its astonishment.

Catastrophe-level intelligent machine beasts are rare enough, but to be able to abandon the power of a star core and transform into a human is unheard of.

Amidst the astonished gazes of the crowd, the doctor raised his hand, and a wisp of silvery-white star power appeared in his palm. The patterns of dragon scales could be vaguely seen within the star power, and his tone carried a hint of distant melancholy.

"You must be very curious about the original intention of Project Stars, and I can tell you the answer to that question right now."

"The so-called Project Stars was not created by me alone, but was a prototype that I planned with Ennet when I was still in the form of the Azure Sea."

Upon hearing this, everyone was shocked, even Yunmeng looked surprised, she had never imagined that the Doctor and Ennet had such a past.

"Back then, I was still a Cataclysmic-level dragon-shaped intelligent machine beast, and Ennet had just reached the threshold of the legendary level. We were both stuck at our own power bottlenecks and longed to find a way to break through."

The doctor's dragon-shaped vertical pupils flickered slightly, as if looking back at the time 50 years ago.

"We all agree that the star cores of star beasts and the star source of humans are of the same origin but are separated from each other. If we can break down this barrier and allow the two powers to merge and coexist, we might be able to step into the so-called 'realm of gods'."

"This is the original core of Project Stars, and the goal we are all pursuing."

"Since this plan had the support of the president, why were you later expelled from the association?"

The Heavenly Dao frowned and pressed for an answer, saying that such a shared pursuit should not have led to the current tense situation.

"Because some people don't want to see this plan succeed, and those who hope for Ennet's downfall are not just the Star Beast Royal Court."

The doctor shook his head slightly, with a hint of helplessness in his voice.

"The biggest difference between humans and star beasts is that humans are good at thinking, but sometimes thinking too much is not necessarily a good thing."

"In order to ensure the smooth progress of the plan, the president and I put on this show together."

"But both I and the president underestimated the difficulty of this plan."

"It wasn't until I used myself as a test subject that I finally figured out a suitable path."

Upon hearing this, Tiandao and the others all wore strange expressions.

Because in a sense, the Doctor himself was the first Child of the Stars to be born in the Star Project.

This also explains why only he was able to combine the power of the star core and the star source, and successfully create the special Children of the Stars.

At the same time, this information also explains the Grand Master's special attitude towards the Children of the Stars.

It should be noted that if it weren't for the Grand Master's intervention, these Children of the Stars would have been captured by the major powers within the New Federation and become experimental subjects in various ways when the Ember Base was destroyed.

It would never have been possible for them to hold such a special position.

The little star beast Moying seemed to understand, and gently tugged at the doctor's clothes, as if it felt sorry for his adventure back then.

Little Jin let out a low howl and rubbed its head against Yunmeng's palm. A faint flame-like star power emanated from its body, as if to show that it would fight alongside everyone.

The fox leaped to the center of the conference table, let out two low growls at Ennet's figure in the holographic projection, its eyes full of vigilance.

A shimmering bird landed on the professor's shoulder and gently pecked at his hair with its sharp beak, as if trying to soothe him.

"The plan is now entering a critical stage. Ennet's old injuries are about to reach the breaking point, and the chaos after the contract is broken will become the best cover for the Star Beast Royal Court to launch an attack."

The doctor put his mechanical mask back on, his tone regaining its composure.

At the same time, he also revealed the real reason why he had called everyone over.

"Tiandao, Caroline, the main reason I called you here today is to inform you of the Grand Master's decision, especially yours, Tiandao."

The doctor's gaze landed precisely on Tiandao, his expression unusually serious, and his calm aura became even more solemn. Even Tiandao felt a chill and subconsciously sat up straight.

In his memory, the doctor was always strategic, rational, and calm, always having a contingency plan for any crisis, and had never shown such a solemn expression before.

But at this moment, he sensed an emotion that shouldn't have been present in the doctor: uncertainty.

It was as if even the doctor himself couldn't guarantee the success of what he was about to say.

"The Grand Master knows that the Royal Court will not easily let go of this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and he also knows that in the current New Federation, only he can stop the attack from the legendary level."

"The main reason why he has never left the First Floating City, Star Trail Corridor, all these years is to use the infinite star trails in the Star Trail Corridor to suppress the injuries in his body and maintain his condition."

"But once he leaves the Star Corridor, it not only means that he will go all out, but it also means that he will place his hopes on others."

"Because the moment he completely steps out of the Star Corridor will be the moment the New Federation and the Star Beast Court completely tear off their disguise."

"The unique nature of the Star Beast Royal Court dictates that only Star Beasts can truly set foot in that region. What does that mean? I think you understand it very well, right?"

Upon hearing the doctor's words, Tiandao instantly understood.

Because in a sense, the so-called children of the stars can be seen as either humans or 'star beasts' with human characteristics.

In other words, these children of the stars are able to enter the 'Star Beast Royal Court,' which was originally only accessible to star beasts.

As for what the Doctor and the President wanted them to do, not only Tiandao, but also Caroline and the others instantly understood.

Thinking of this, Tiandao looked at the Doctor and asked, "So, how much time do we have left?"

"Three years."

The doctor spoke very calmly, as if he were talking about something trivial.

"Because the president told me that, given his current condition, he can only maintain harmony in the new federation for about three more years at most."

"And once this period is over, someone will need to take his place and lead the new Federation to draw a permanent pause between the Royal Court and the Royal Court."

"As for this person, both I and the General Manager believe that it is none other than you, Tiandao."

(End of this chapter)