The Villain Is Too Popular

'Fushan, I should have told you many times: the responsibility of a Star Envoy is to protect, to create, not to destroy.'

'Because destruction is always easy, but protection and creation are incredibly difficult.'

'The reason humanity has stood at the pinnacle of the world for so long has never relied on powerful violence, but on wisdom and civilization.'

'So-called violence is merely a derivation of wisdom, the armament of civilization.'

'You can now rely on the powerful force granted by your Star Source to indulge in your violence and inflict fear and despair upon ordinary people who lack a Star Source.'

'But have you ever considered this: if, in the future, someone appears who is even stronger, more violent, and more destructive than you, how will you face them?'

The white-haired old man lightly tapped the ground with his bamboo sword. The old wooden floor of the dojo gleamed faintly. Twelve-year-old Fushan knelt on a meditation cushion, his fists clenched on his knees, clearly unconvinced by the white-haired old man's words.

'I'll just make sure such a person can't appear, won't I?'

Hearing this, the white-haired old man shook his head in disappointment.

'Fushan, such a person will definitely appear, because each of our achievements is built upon the shoulders of our predecessors.'

'If no one had helped you isolate those powerful Star Beasts beforehand and kept you safe, you wouldn't have lived to see the day you encountered that Star Source.'

'If no one had helped you understand the principles of the Star Source early on, you wouldn't have mastered this power so quickly.'

'Fushan, you think your current success is entirely the result of your own hard work, step by step, completely unrelated to others.'

'But in reality, that's only because your eyes can only see the vast sky above your head, but not the countless hands supporting the ground beneath your feet.'

'Fushan, from the moment you were able to be born into this world alive, you had already accepted the gifts of civilization.'

'Because without the tomorrow created for you by countless predecessors with their wisdom and lives, there would be no today for you, Fushan.'

'And since you have accepted this gift, you are also obligated to use your own wisdom and life to secure their tomorrow for the countless people of the future.'

'But Fushan, in your eyes right now, I see no wisdom befitting a human; what I see... is merely endless savagery and destruction, like a beast.'

'So, go, Fushan. Now, immediately, at once, get out of my dojo.'

'Master, you... will regret this.'

'Regret? I think I will only regret my present kindness in the future, and never regret driving you away.'

'Because I clearly had the power to strangle the devil in its cradle, but out of kindness... I chose to actively give up that opportunity.'

'So, go, Fushan, before I change my mind, because if you stay here any longer, I will personally kill you.'

Years later, Fushan, with one foot already stepping into the door of Level 2, returned to the dojo he had left as a child. His purpose for coming this time was clear: he wanted to prove he was right.

In the glow of flames, Fushan looked at his master, who was now barely clinging to life, on the verge of death. His voice was cold as he said, 'Master, I told you you'd regret it.'

However, Fushan's master was completely unmoved. He gazed at Fushan now, speaking the same words he had used when he drove Fushan out of the dojo years ago.

'Cough, cough, r-regret? Fushan, I stand by what I said: I will never regret driving you away; I only regret not killing you sooner.'

'Remember my words, Fushan. How you treat others today, others will treat you the same way someday.'

'Because those who worship violence will, one day... also die by violence.'

Hearing these words, the enraged Fushan immediately stomped hard on his master's chest and aimed the palm of his right hand at his master's head.

Bang!

When the scorching magma completely engulfed the old man's head, Fushan turned and walked out of the dojo, which was now filled with scorched earth and thick smoke.

'Die by violence? Then won't it be fine as long as I nip all threats in the bud...'

With that, Fushan turned his back on the constantly burning and collapsing dojo and disappeared into the mountains.

As Fushan's fleeting memories came to an end, the anime's scene returned to reality.

Looking at the Black Azure flying from Tendo's fingertips, Fushan suddenly understood the words his master had spoken all those years ago. At the same time, he realized how incredibly wrong his actions had been throughout those years. Yes, he, Fushan, had indeed killed many geniuses and eliminated many potential dangers. But he couldn't kill all the geniuses in this world, nor could he eliminate all dangers. Furthermore, by excessively pursuing violence, he had completely forgotten human wisdom and creativity, leading to a long period of stagnation in his strength.

If he hadn't left the dojo then, choosing instead to follow his master's teachings...

If he hadn't betrayed the Association, but chosen to abide by its rules...

Then the outcome now might have been completely different.

Boom!

As Tendo's Black Azure blossomed in Fushan's vision, his head began to rapidly dissipate into ashes amidst a flash of black light. In his dying moments, his peripheral vision caught Tendo, who stood overlooking him with a cold expression, and a sudden realization dawned in his heart.

'Master, you were right. Those who worship violence will, one day, also die by violence.'

'Because, abandoned by their era and civilization, they are destined to find no place for themselves in the future.'

"Fushan!"

Seeing Fushan definitively die at Tendo's hands, the distant 'Claude' let out an unprecedented roar. Although as a Dark Star Envoy, Claude's own moral standards weren't high, and he had committed numerous heinous acts, making him a true villain, being unconventional didn't mean Claude was entirely devoid of human emotion.

As a typical Automaton type, the creation of each of Claude's automaton robots required not only highly sophisticated electronic components but also metal materials of extremely high strength. And Claude's identity as a Dark Star Envoy meant he couldn't openly acquire these materials. This is where Fushan, with his magma abilities, became crucial. He could use his own abilities, along with Claude's metal formulas, to help him forge suitable metal materials for constructing automaton robots.

Over time, although both were renegades wanted by the Association and cast aside by society, their friendship grew stronger. Otherwise, Claude wouldn't have sacrificed one of his automaton robots back then to buy Fushan precious time to escape. Therefore, upon witnessing his one and only friend die at Tendo's hands, Claude's typical Automaton rationality vanished completely in that moment!

"Mechanical Shrine: Overdrive Armament!"

'Overdrive' meant to surpass limits. It referred to Automaton types sacrificing the lifespan of their automaton machines to gain more powerful strength in a short period. Depending on the Automaton type's different power levels and the potential upper limit of their own automaton machines, the enhancements and manifestations they gained after activating Overdrive also differed completely.

In the anime's scene, when Claude's main body shouted "Overdrive Armament," the automaton robot on the beach suddenly disintegrated into thousands of precise parts amidst a burst of electric sparks. Upon appearing, these parts immediately acted like bees receiving a command, transforming into a furious swarm of metal, flying into the palm tree grove beside Fluorescent Beach.

After cutting down palm trees at their midpoints, they appeared directly before Claude's main body deep within the grove. Claude's main body was seen sitting on a specialized wheelchair. Numerous data cables and electrical wires extended from the wheelchair's backrest, precisely plugging into the interfaces on Claude's back and the back of his head.

At the same time, the returning precision parts began to reassemble around the 'wheelchair' beneath Claude as a core, forming a brand new construct. Soon, a five-meter-tall automaton mecha, covered in metal, dramatically appeared before the dimensional viewers.

Looking at this cool mecha and Claude seated in its cockpit, the dimensional viewers spared no praise for its unique technological aesthetic.

'Damn, I knew there was a reason why this guy, who looks like he's about to die any second, is an Automaton type. Turns out he can pilot a mecha!'

'Flesh is weak, mechanize and ascend! Join the glorious evolution!'

'Seriously, dude, he's just a villain, why make him so cool?!'

Under the curious gaze of the dimensional viewers, Claude, now in 'Overdrive Armament,' crashed through the surrounding trees and arrived before Tendo on Fluorescent Beach with an absolutely dominant, head-on charge.

Gazing at the technologically advanced humanoid mecha before him, Tendo's eyes didn't even register Claude in the cockpit. What he saw was only the cool and imposing humanoid mecha beneath Claude. Although he had seen Claude's mecha when he read the original work, seeing it in the anime and seeing it in reality were two completely different visual impacts.

The hot steam erupting from the mecha's hydraulic joints, the blue electrical arcs emanating from its characteristic chest reactor, coupled with the metallic skin constantly reflecting unique light in the sun—all of this perfectly showcased the unique technological aesthetics of machinery. It was a shame Tendo himself wasn't an Automaton type. Otherwise, he would definitely drag Claude out of the cockpit and pilot this five-meter-tall steel monster himself.

Originally, Claude was a more functional support character in Deep Blue Metropolis's four-person Dark Star Envoy group. His optical camouflage and data transfer, which had certain teleportation functions, gave him many excellent support abilities that others found hard to match. However, outstanding support abilities didn't mean Claude's own combat power was lacking. On the contrary, among all current Star Envoy types, while Automaton types' combat capabilities might not be T0 level, they definitely belonged to the T1 tier, making them a very standard combat type.

Therefore, with Claude now 'bursting forth' at any cost, his frontal combat capability had actually completely surpassed Fushan, who had previously been at the forefront of their charges. And this was the first time in a long while that Tendo felt the thrill of battle.

"Finally... a bit interesting."

Looking at the mechanical iron fist, propelled by its jet engines, charging fiercely towards him, Tendo's cerulean pupils glowed with excitement. He didn't dodge or evade; he simply swung his own fist to meet it!

Boom!

The instant the two fists collided, electrical sparks erupted from Claude's mecha joints, and the overheated mecha emitted a large amount of white steam, clearly having sustained an impact far beyond its structural limits. At the same time, a visible circular airwave exploded at the center of their colliding fists, causing the sand around them to ripple like it had been struck by an invisible giant hammer, sending up a large amount of grit.

After this punch, Claude's five-meter-tall mecha actually stumbled backward five or six meters before barely coming to a halt. As for Tendo... although the sand beneath him had directly sunken into a half-meter pit after that punch, with several fountain-like columns of fluorescent sand shooting skyward around him, he himself hadn't retreated a single step in this exchange!

Who won and who lost was clear at a glance.

"You really are much more interesting than that fire-breathing waste..."

Tendo said, twisting his slightly sore shoulder with lingering satisfaction. Then he extended his hand, beckoning with a finger towards Claude, who had already readjusted himself not far away, and smiled, "...Come, let me see what your limits are."

Hearing this, Claude, inside the mecha's cockpit, remained silent for a moment before immediately starting the mecha's engine and charging towards Tendo once again.

Looking at the incredibly arrogant Tendo in the screen, and the exaggerated visual effects from his initial clash with Claude, the dimensional viewers' blood was ignited, but at the same time, an unanswerable question arose in their minds.

That was: Tendo was clearly just a Specialized-type Star Envoy. Yet, why, from the beginning of the Deep Blue Metropolis arc until now, had Tendo displayed terrifying close-combat abilities far surpassing typical 'Enhancement-type' and 'Transformation-type' Star Envoys?

Did the Star Source, Vector Control, also come with body-strengthening effects? Or rather, was it not the Star Source that was strong, but Tendo himself?

Just as the dimensional viewers were puzzled by this question and filled with curiosity, the anime's scene briefly switched again. And this time, what appeared before their eyes was a scene from the Embers Base a while ago, showing Tendo training in the 'Gravity Chamber'...