Putting aside all distracting thoughts for the moment, Eve focused entirely on the battle in front of her. Lowering her stance, the energy armor surrounding her emitted a soft hum.
Russell beckoned to her with a casual wave, signaling she could attack whenever she liked.
Among this group of superheroes—counting even the shrinking heroine Rachel, who hadn't joined the fight yet but possessed somewhat interesting abilities—Atom Eve was one of the only two who truly caught Russell's attention.
And if he had to choose the one he most wanted to record as a template, it would also be Atom Eve.
Boom!
A pink blur instantly broke the sound barrier.
Eve's punch, wrapped in immense destructive power, hurtled toward Russell. As he sidestepped, the special alloy floor where he had just stood collapsed and shattered like foam.
"Energy projection, telepathy, molecular-level matter manipulation at the very least..." Russell's eyes gleamed as he weaved through her attacks. "She's basically a younger version of Dr. Manhattan."
He struck like a storm, his punch fast as lightning.
Eve's thick energy-shaped shield shattered under the force as if struck by a missile. Blasted back by the shockwave, she skidded across the floor, leaving black marks in her wake. Glowing energy burst from her hands as she stabilized midair, her eyes flaring with bright pink light.
Surrounded by a radiant pink atomic energy, the glow lit up her sharp and beautiful features, adding a fierce edge to her appearance.
Taking a deep breath, she spread her arms. Energy flowed like water, and her armor morphed into a heavy, imposing mech suit—tall, massive, and resembling a divine machine god forged of iron.
Russell's lips curled into a faint smile. That mech looked familiar.
"Is that the Flaxan Ultimate Mech?"
"That's right. If I don't thicken the energy armor, I'm afraid I won't survive your attacks," Eve shouted as she surged forward like a streak of pink lightning, her massive mechanical fist slamming toward Russell.
Russell didn't dodge. Instead, he met her punch with surgical precision, catching her armored fist in his palm—
Bang!
The shockwave of their impact rippled out, making the training ground tremble, though Russell stood perfectly still.
Crack!
Russell's fingers clenched like claws. The energy-formed mech fist instantly crumbled, cracking apart like weathered plastic under a hydraulic press.
Unwilling to yield, Eve spun mid-air, lashing a whip-like kick toward his waist.
Russell's reaction was instant. His left hand came down to block, while his right leg stepped back half a pace, neutralizing the force with fluid ease. Then, he seized the mech's leg and pivoted—hurling her through the air.
Boom!
A blur streaked across the room. Eve's mech form slammed violently into the reinforced steel wall, leaving a deep dent and embedding her form within it.
The entire training facility quaked. From the observation deck, the tremors underfoot felt like a mild earthquake.
"Whoa—Russell!" Mark jumped, involuntarily stepping forward, afraid his cousin had accidentally hurt Eve seriously.
Russell noticed his reaction and gave him a small, amused smile. His lips moved silently: Relax.
"Again!"
As the smoke and dust settled, Eve emerged with even fiercer determination in her eyes. Her palms shot forward, unleashing dozens of pink energy blasts that surrounded and closed in on Russell from all directions.
His figure suddenly blurred. At incredible speed, he weaved between the blasts like a shadowy phantom.
Each dodge was executed with pinpoint accuracy. His cloak fluttered violently in the wind, but not a single beam grazed him. In the midst of his evasive maneuvers, he closed the distance with overwhelming force and appeared right in front of Eve, towering over her.
Panting slightly but undeterred, Eve raised her hands high. Energy condensed into a massive pink energy blade. Rather than retreat, she leapt high and slashed downward at Russell.
The air split as the blade came crashing down.
Russell looked up, a faint calm smile in his eyes. He raised his right arm, gathered strength, and threw a punch at the descending blade—
BOOM!
The energy blade disintegrated the moment it touched his fist. Her heavy mech armor shattered next, exploding into countless pink light particles that rained down like glowing dust.
Russell's fist stopped just an inch from Eve's face. The fierce wind from his punch blew her hair back—but didn't harm her.
"I lost, Infinite," she said.
Stepping back two paces, Eve clutched her chest, trying to calm her pounding heart.
"Even the authentic Flaxan Ultimate Mech couldn't beat you. It's only natural that my knock-off couldn't either."
She wasn't too concerned about whether she would be selected for the Global Guardians.
In fact, she was grateful Russell had taken the time to spar with her while she was in a bad mood.
[Atom Eve Template Acquired]
"You've got real potential," Russell said with a soft smile.
Then, one by one, other superheroes stepped forward to be tested.
There was Shrapnel, blazingly fast. Livewire, a powerhouse of electricity. Gorilla Man, a beastly figure who transformed into a powerful mountain gorilla. Even Demigod, who bore Greek demi-god blood and was said to be immune to blades and bullets.
Each of these renowned heroes… fell at Russell's hands.
Not one of them could force him to get serious.
After battle after battle, Infinite Man remained calm and unbothered, not even short of breath—as if these fights hadn't even qualified as warm-ups.
With everyone defeated, the tests concluded. All eyes watched that unfathomable figure in the white cape as he left the training grounds.
The massive metal doors of the training arena slowly closed. In the observation hallway, the defeated superheroes gathered in silence, the air thick with unspoken emotion.
Shrapnel, who possessed supersonic speed and reflexes, rubbed his aching neck. "My speed… looked like an old lady waddling down the stairs compared to his."
Beside him, Brawn—a massive man who could lift a thousand-ton ship—looked despondent. "I punched him with everything I had, and he blocked it with one finger."
"One. Finger."
Brawn had always taken pride in his perfect physique and strength. Now he stood there, utterly crushed.
Then there was Demigod—the legendary hero who could take an intercontinental missile head-on without a scratch. He leaned silently against the wall, eyes unfocused, unconsciously rubbing the shallow dent left in his armor by Russell's punch.
He was still reeling from that defeat—a loss unlike any he'd experienced before.
Like the mythical Achilles, Demigod had thought himself different from the others, hoping at the very least he could push that young man to fight seriously and inject some suspense into the duel.
But even after going all out… he was effortlessly beaten. The kid had even apologized afterward for not controlling his strength and damaging Demigod's armor.
"I gotta hand it to Infinite Man," Shrapnel said. "If he led the Global Guardians, I'd be all for it. Too bad… he's apparently just a temporary combat examiner sent by the Global Defense Bureau."
"Speaking of the new team captain—the robot guy…" Brawn crossed his arms and looked around. "Any of you ever heard of him?"
"I used to think that as long as I made it into the Global Guardians, I wouldn't mind being led by someone like that… but now…" He paused. "It just feels kind of meaningless."
They had all been scrambling to join the new Global Guardians, dreaming of becoming legends themselves.
But Infinite Man… didn't seem to care about the Guardians at all.
.....
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