The black-clad woman's low, urgent shout did nothing to disturb Andrew Han's calm gaze. His black-and-white eyes swept across the sky filled with petals, making a split-second judgment with lightning-fast reflexes.
Whoosh!
Shifting his center of gravity and reversing his life magnetic field, Andrew instantly retreated several hundred meters.
Each colored petal—some black as ink, some milky white, others dazzling in a riot of colors—was stunningly beautiful, almost overwhelming to the senses. Yet they all shared one trait: extreme sharpness, and incredible speed.
With their razor-sharp edges, these petals could easily slice through Void Rift-tier bodies and souls...
"Faster!"
"Even faster—don't let the petals touch you!" The black-clad woman's voice continued to echo.
Rather than petals, they were more like blades.
Countless colored petals, scattered and chaotic, filled every direction, almost shredding the misty world to pieces, leaving not a trace of living matter.
"Not enough."
"I'm still not fast enough." Andrew's thoughts spun like lightning, analyzing the petals' trajectories and predicting their paths.
He dodged one petal in passing, then evaded two or three more as swift as thunder. His situation seemed perilous, yet he remained wholly unscathed, constantly weaving and shifting.
It was as if he were a fish in water, moving with perfect ease.
Even if there were billions of petals, so what?
None could touch Andrew in the slightest. His movements were crisp and fluid, flashing and vanishing like a rabbit or a hawk, his dodges as smooth as flowing clouds and running water.
It's important to understand—
For ordinary or Fusion-tier lifeforms, shifting position requires exertion, relying on the environment—even in a vacuum, they need energy to glide quickly. But from the Starlight Tier onward, the world changes completely; life steps into the extraordinary.
Lifeforms above the Starlight Tier can channel power directly from within themselves.
Put simply, all force is mutual. Starting from the Starlight Tier, cultivation is about making these interactions happen within oneself—controlled and decided by the practitioner.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Andrew's figure flickered like light and dew, his afterimages scattered all around.
"Hmm, not bad."
The black-clad woman stood with hands behind her back in the distance, her cold expression softening slightly as a hint of approval crossed her face.
This was one of the Primeval Training projects, designed to test micro-scale flash movement and evasion.
As a Famous Master of the Primeval Gate, her gaze was extraordinarily keen—almost piercing through all things. Coupled with her probe-type Ultimate Trait, she could sense trends about to happen before they actually occurred.
"Weak at first, but adapting quickly."
"Looks like a promising seedling." The black-clad woman's gaze lingered on Andrew for a moment, then swept across the dome-shaped world, past billions of petals, and finally settled on Serena Huang.
Serena's graceful form shimmered faintly, dreamlike and ethereal.
The countless colored petals seemed impossible to dodge, yet they could not harm Serena at all.
Even more astonishing, the density of petals around Serena was almost countless times greater than Andrew's. The petals enveloped her completely, leaving not the slightest gap. An ordinary Void Rift peak would likely die in an instant here.
"Huh?"
The black-clad woman was genuinely moved. "She’s actually so relaxed and at ease?"
It should be noted that Andrew and Serena faced exactly the same challenge. The only difference was that Andrew was at Stellar Palace Tier, Serena at Void Rift Tier, so the petals' power, speed, and quantity varied somewhat.
"Truly terrifying."
The more she watched, the more grave the black-clad woman's expression became.
In the eyes of many Primevals, Andrew and Serena were considered equals. The black-clad woman had thought so too, but now she felt a surge of admiration: "Serena Huang is simply too sensitive. In terms of future potential, I personally prefer Serena."
Perhaps—
Serena might even have a chance to challenge the Eternal King tier!
With such acute natural talent, she might even be able to reshape and elevate her innate gifts!
"That would mean the Eternal Gate." The black-clad woman took a deep breath. "Primeval is the Genius extreme—no higher, no further; it’s the cosmic ceiling of talent. To go beyond, you must either reach Eternal King, or ascend to Heaven-Venerable."
Of course.
Whether the former or the latter, both are ranks famed throughout the cosmos—even the black-clad woman could only look up to them.
After a long, thoughtful observation, the black-clad woman waved her hand, halting the fall of petals and clearing the dome-shaped world. It was as if the space had been purified by a torrential rain.
With a gentle rustling, the petals vanished, leaving the entire space in silence.
In this crystal-clear scene, both Andrew and Serena regained their footing.
Huff—
As if breathing fresh air, Andrew let out a breath.
Standing in midair, legs braced, he turned to look to the other side. Serena was leisurely smoothing her hair, showing no sign of fatigue—so relaxed she seemed as if she had just stepped out of a bath. Andrew couldn't help but shake his head at the sight.
Just as expected...
At this stage, Serena was indeed far stronger than him...
But so what? Admitting this only made Andrew feel more calm and detached, like a mirror-smooth lake untouched by wind.
Competition is the driving force of progress.
No matter what others thought, Andrew always climbed step by step at his own pace, growing stronger bit by bit.
"Besides—"
"Serena is at Void Rift Tier."
Her genius tier is above his—no question. But if he wants to surpass Serena in pure power, Andrew will need to reach Void Rift Tier himself.
He gazed at Serena.
At the same time, Serena turned to study Andrew, a familiar smile on her face.
After these days of Primeval Training, the two had become genuine friends. Serena had grown even more relaxed, often overpowering Andrew by sheer strength—if sparring could serve as communication, why bother with words?
Immediately after—