The life-gene cultivation system is indeed one of the Four Great Cultivation Systems—a grand, upright path to the stars—but within it, there are countless methods. Martial Arts just happens to fall under the life-gene category.
From Starlight Tier onward, the focus shifts to traits and profundities.
After reaching Stellar Palace Tier, life-gene cultivators prioritize Power Traits above all.
Yet this diverges sharply from the core concept of Martial Arts, creating a fundamental split. Andrew Han is destined to choose: either continue along the mainstream life-gene path, or pursue pure Chinese Martial Arts.
Martial Arts!
In Andrew Han's heart!
Above Starlight Tier Martial Arts, there ought to exist Stellar Palace Tier Martial Arts, Void Rift Tier Martial Arts, and even higher realms of Martial Arts. After all, Martial Arts itself holds infinite possibility!
"Main-cultivate Soul, secondary Martial Arts."
At this moment, Andrew Han's conviction is unwavering.
No matter what others say, no matter how established the frameworks are, he must give his all and try at least once, or he would regret it forever. His greatest fortune—and source of peace—is having the foundation to attempt this... If the path breaks midway, he can switch to the mainstream; if he reaches a dead end, he can reference life-gene methods similar to Martial Arts; if disaster strikes, he can start over, relying on his soul and will as his strongest anchor.
Even if the body decays, the soul endures!
This is the fundamental reason Andrew Han is qualified to keep advancing Martial Arts!
In truth, if not for this, given Andrew Han's cautious nature—always steady, always methodical—he would almost never have settled on this idea. After all, continuing to push Martial Arts does carry some unnecessary risk and does not fully match the expected benefit.
Yet—
Andrew Han has already satisfied his basic needs.
What he now seeks is not only the vastness of the universe, nor just the splendor of the starry sky, but above all, the freedom his heart yearns for.
Here and now, the manor is suffused with a tranquil atmosphere. The air carries a faint fragrance, ripples gently, and now and then, streams of light flash by, making the twin stars on either side blaze even whiter.
Whoosh, whoosh (～ o ～)~zZ
A gentle breeze stirs, and the air feels almost lazily relaxed.
Though light and warmth stream in, the manor's internal climate controls keep the temperature at a refreshing forty-plus degrees.
In an instant—buzz, buzz!
Two beams of light shot through the air, sweeping away all dust, piercing directly into the shallow-red void.
It was as if the birth of a Starry Sky Fiend had opened its eyes—Andrew Han's surging emotions spilled out, causing his gaze to leak forth, its brilliance replacing the manor's usual lazy atmosphere, even startling Victor Wu, the steward who had been quietly stationed at the gate these days: "What has happened to His Highness Andrew Han?"
Victor Wu felt confused, concerned, and worried.
But survival was most important.
If he disturbed Andrew Han's cultivation, he might be held responsible—perhaps even angering a true powerhouse.
"I can't approach His Highness Andrew Han." Victor Wu had an excellent memory and recalled clearly: "That powerhouse specifically warned me not to interfere with His Highness Andrew Han's cultivation... Standing on tiptoe and watching from afar is the wisest choice."
Thus, as a peak Void Rift cultivator, Victor Wu stood a kilometer away at the manor gate, quietly watching the green-robed Andrew Han meditating in midair.
He felt truly awkward in his role as steward, Victor Wu thought to himself.
The manor was utterly silent.
A gentle breeze stirred, and filtered light warmed the surroundings.
Andrew Han's gaze pierced the void, brushing past the twin streams of light from the two Primordial-tier Geniuses as they passed, then vanished into the shallow-red emptiness—like an insignificant meteor streaking across the vast starry sky, unnoticed by anyone.
He lowered his head and rubbed his brow.
Whenever he felt lost or confused, he would quiet his mind and think things through—even if he couldn't find an answer, it was still better than acting on impulse.
Andrew Han mused inwardly, "I have Fifth-Order Creation Light Martial Arts at Starlight Tier, one Profound-grade 'Silent Chaos Seal,' plus three foundational Power Traits."
"Starlight-tier Soul, Fifth-Order Creation Light, more than four thousand Consciousness Star-Maps. The Soul Crystal-Diamond continues to generate new star-maps... No matter how I look at it, I should focus on cultivating Soul. Besides, expanding Martial Arts isn't something that can be accomplished overnight."
At this thought—
A faint ripple of gold-red light shimmered in his eyes.
Soul power began to circulate, triggering a brief, area-wide eruption.
In less than a heartbeat, golden-red starlight flooded his eyes, and the whirling star-maps howled around his body. Andrew Han unleashed his Soul Star-Maps in a test burst, nearly shaking the entire manor; the ranks of Soul power tore through the space, dust swirling like a boiling cauldron, a mixed eruption of tsunami and volcano painting the surroundings in gold and red.