[Steam City, Bridge of Gears and Brass]
Early in the morning, with the city's fog still lingering, Tendo and Vivian arrived at the underground parking garage of the Gear Tower.
A short while later, a motorcade drove out of the Gear Tower. They traveled on the concrete road, embedded with gear patterns, and left the bustling commercial district of Steam City.
As the last row of shops disappeared behind them, Vivian peered out through the iron bars. A colossal bridge, spanning a sea of steam clouds, slowly revealed its full form to her.
The bridge deck was pieced together with dark yellow brass plates, and twelve interlocking gigantic gears formed its skeletal structure. The enormous gears below turned slowly, emitting a heavy click-clack sound. This was the only path to the "Cloud Garden," where the Twelve Brass Council was located—the Bridge of Gears and Brass.
"Halt."
When the motorcade reached the "Gear Pass" of the bridge, two guards in steam-powered armor stopped them. The goggles beneath their helmets flashed red, as if they were wary of their arrival.
In response, Tendo's voice came from the back seat of the leading vehicle. "The Fifth Division is escorting suspect Vivian to the Brass Council for trial."
Hearing this, the two steam guards stepped forward to verify Tendo's documents. After confirming Tendo's identity, they insisted on inspecting every vehicle, eventually arriving at the prison van where Vivian was being held.
To cooperate with the inspection, the door of Vivian's prison van was opened. She stood behind the iron bars, her eyes downcast, the star-patterned shackles on her wrists glowing with a faint blue light. They were special restraints that could block a Star-Emissary's abilities.
Just as everyone assumed this was merely a routine procedure by the two steam guards, a sudden change occurred.
"Now!"
A roar, like a thunderclap, shattered the peaceful and serene morning.
The steam guard standing outside the vehicle, who was a full 2.2 meters tall, suddenly threw a punch. The brass gauntlet, with an exaggerated gust of white steam and wind, instantly sent two members of the Fifth Division flying.
The other guard, to the right, suddenly grabbed the shackles on Vivian's wrists while she watched in shock. In that instant, the metal surface of the shackles, which could seal a Star-Emissary's power, sparked with a strange fire!
Crack!
The shackles that sealed Vivian's star power shattered!
"Go!"
Before Vivian could react, the steam guard grabbed her and pulled her out, then started running. During this process, Vivian caught a glimpse of his face through his helmet's intentionally opened visor, seeing it was Chenkong.
Though everything happened in a flash, the members of the Fifth Division, after a brief moment of shock, all reacted.
The first to make a move was Tendo. He drew his Star Shatterer sword, which was at Perfect Rank 2, and the perfect star energy brought by his six-dimensional "All S+" attributes covered his sword like black "ink."
He swung his sword at the "guy" who was trying to escape with Vivian. The black sword energy sliced through the ground, cut a steam carriage in half, and aimed precisely for the small of Chenkong's back.
But just as the sword energy was about to hit Chenkong, Liu Ma suddenly leaped out from a distance.
"Not so fast!"
Liu Ma, who was wrapped in golden-yellow star energy, shone brightly in his brass mechanical armor. He lowered his stance and threw a powerful punch. The moment the golden fist collided with the black sword energy, a powerful shockwave was created. In an instant, the ground cracked, and three steam carriages were overturned. Debris from the ground flew everywhere. Some of the weaker, ordinary members of the Fifth Division were forced back.
Before the aftershock subsided, a figure walked out of the dust, expressionless, and stood before Liu Ma.
"You... have crossed the line."
Looking at Tendo, who was now right in front of him, Liu Ma instinctively clenched his fists, and a large amount of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. Even though he had broken through to Perfect Rank 2 and his strength had skyrocketed, he couldn't help but feel a little intimidated when facing this seemingly gentle but actually ruthless opponent.
Because now he understood many things.
Take the captain of the Fifth Division, "Ink," for example. In the past, Liu Ma couldn't understand why he, a person with "Dual Stars" and a Star-Core Awakening, couldn't last more than three moves against "Ink," a guy with a Mid-Rank 2 Awakening. But after a month of special training, he finally understood.
Star-Source could determine a Star-Emissary's strength, but for some people, it was their own power that made their Star-Source shine brightly. This was the case for Tendo Simei, who stood at the pinnacle of the stars as a child. It was also the case for the captain of the Fifth Division, Ink.
However, Tendo was a monster among monsters. He could hone all of his attributes to the extreme while still maintaining the efficient development of his Star-Source, leaving no room for others. Ink, on the other hand, devoted most of his energy to attribute development, with not much time to spare for his Star-Source.
The former was powerful in all aspects, so much so that it was impossible to even think about catching up; all that was left was despair. The latter, while far exceeding ordinary people, still had an obvious "weakness": his Star-Source, which had not reached perfection.
'Hey Liu Ma, the reason a Perfect Awakened Star-Emissary can suppress others is because their Star-Source is naturally stronger.'
'The other reason is because their Star-Energy is perfect after the Perfect Awakening.'
'Huh? What do you mean by that, sis?'
'What happens when you drop a single drop of ink into a cup of clean water?'
'Well, the whole cup of water turns black!'
Mid-sentence, Liu Ma's eyes widened.
'Ah! Sis, are you saying that when Perfect Star-Energy and imperfect Star-Energy meet, the other person's Star-Source will be affected?'
'Yeah, something like that. But, there are always special circumstances.'
'Special circumstances?'
'Simply put, if someone's attribute reaches Rank S, then even if their Star-Energy isn't perfect, they can make up for that weakness with their attribute difference alone.'
'Are there a lot of people with Rank S?'
'A lot?'Yu Qianxia scoffed.
'Do you think honing a single attribute to the extreme is easier than achieving a Perfect Star-Source Awakening? You should know that some things are set in stone from the moment you're born. That's talent.'
As this brief flashback ended, the Tendo in the scene raised his hand again, raising his sword above his head. Seeing this, a sharp glint flashed in Liu Ma's eyes.
Fifth Division Captain Ink! I, Liu Ma, am no longer the person I once was!
"Moo!"
Liu Ma roared, and the surging golden-yellow star energy around him gushed out like a tide, sweeping toward Tendo. He wanted to use this method to suppress the other party's Star-Energy, thereby suppressing their strength to a certain extent!
However, in the next second, he noticed the mocking look behind Tendo's black-rimmed glasses and the playful smile at the corner of his mouth.
Buzz!
Liu Ma's golden-yellow "perfect star energy" clashed with the swirling black star energy around Tendo, as if it had hit an invisible wall, and was fiercely repelled.
"Huh?"
Liu Ma froze, his eyes wide as saucers. "Wait, didn't you say you always had multiple attributes above Rank A?" he exclaimed. "Why didn't you say that you had at least one attribute developed to Rank S!"
In response, Tendo said calmly, "It's not that I didn't say anything, it's that you didn't notice. After all, the person next to you knew about all of this."
With that, Tendo swung his sword down, with Liu Ma watching in shock.
Slash!
Tendo's sword energy easily sliced through his steam armor and the mask on his face, cutting them both in half. This revealed Liu Ma's rugged face, which, despite its seemingly honest appearance, hid a cunning heart.
But just as Tendo raised his empty left hand, preparing to use the "Star-Energy Technique: Ink Coffin" to capture the now-distant Chenkong and Vivian, a voice suddenly came from behind him.
"Don't worry, Captain, I'm here to help!"
In the next second, a silvery-white bullet whizzed out from behind Tendo, aiming straight for his shoulder!
Tendo didn't hesitate, swinging his sword back and precisely slicing the bullet in half, which then fell to the ground. He looked at the bullet lying on the ground, cut in two, and then looked up.
The vice-captain of the Fifth Division, Yuchen, who had almost injured his own captain, said apologetically, "My apologies, Captain. For some reason, I missed."
Tendo: "..."
Although Yuchen's apology seemed sincere, everyone, including the dimensional viewers, knew that this squinty-eyed guy had done it on purpose! He wasn't even pretending anymore!
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