Chapter 34: The White Tyrant’s Hunger

Western Tiger Basin – Inner Sanctum of the Whitefang Tiger Sect

Baifang Crag loomed through northern mists like the backbone of an ancient godbeast, its jagged peaks twisted into fang-like towers. Deep beneath the fortress, far below where mortal feet dared tread, the true heart of the Whitefang Tiger Sect beat with cold silence.

Here, Sect Master Bai Wuji stood alone before a massive gate forged from obsidian bone and soul-steel. Intricate glyphs pulsed faintly across its surface, like a breath held for centuries.

Only Bai Wuji knew what slumbered beyond.

Above, in the Hall of Smoke, elders whispered nervously of the lost Red Talons and the spies uncovered. Strategies were debated. Moves calculated.

But below, Bai Wuji faced a darker truth.

He pressed his palm to the gate. A single drop of blood fell from his thumb, activating the ancient seal.

With a hiss of collapsing air, the gate opened.

The chamber within yawned wide—a cavern lit by pale soul-fire and etched with runes carved by hands long dead. Chains of translucent essence wove through the stone, binding a massive, regal form crouched in shadow.

It lifted its head.

Two eyes opened—ancient, gleaming silver-gold with a vertical slit. A voice echoed in Bai Wuji's mind, wordless yet full of weight.

"You bring news."

Bai Wuji knelt—not in submission, but in solemn respect.

"Yes, White Tyrant. The recent missions failed. But the enemy revealed two forces… forces not of this world. Mind-walkers. Memory-binders."

A low growl rumbled from the creature's throat, rattling dust loose from the cavern ceiling. It stepped into the glow—fur white as snow over tempered steel, muscles coiled with an aura that bent the very qi around it.

This was Baixue, the Mythical White Tyrant—last of the Primordial Beastkin born under the Pale Moon Era. Bai Wuji's greatest weapon... and his deepest secret.

Baixue's cultivation pierced into the Heaven Tribulation Realm, yet it remained stalled—trapped at the Sixth Thunder. Without a catalyst, the White Tyrant's evolution would end in death.

"You still seek it," Baixue said softly.

Wuji nodded. "Beneath the Vermilion Kingdom lies a convergence of leylines—ancient remnants of an immortal vessel. The convergence can cleanse your fractured soul, unlock the next step."

Baixue's tail lashed with restless hunger.

"Then take it."

Wuji's expression darkened. "It is heavily sealed. The royal bloodline guards it fiercely. And their king hides more than he reveals. He wields strange minds—tacticians who bend shadows and rewrite memories. Even you could not penetrate his palace unnoticed."

Baixue's growl deepened.

"I do not fear kings."

Bai Wuji agreed, "but I do not wish the world to awaken to your existence before the time is right."

A heavy silence settled, broken by Baixue's cold voice:

"You promised me ascension."

"And I will keep that promise," Bai Wuji said steadily. "But first, we must unravel their defenses—strike not with fangs, but with rot, doubt, and patience."

Baixue stepped closer, eyes burning.

"Then feed my hunger. Let it drive you forward."

Wuji rose. "It already does."

As Baixue turned to fade back into shadow, Bai Wuji added, voice low and urgent:

"The Central Plain sects believe you dead—forgotten relic of a forgotten age, but they still watch us. You must evolve... 

Baixue's gaze flashed with primal rage.

"I will not die hidden beneath stone."

Wuji nodded gravely.

"And when the leyline seal breaks?"

"I will answer the call," Baixue promised, voice like thunder. "Then the world will know what it means when a beast no longer dreams—but awakens."

The gate began to close. Baixue's final growl echoed, a whisper in the still air.

"Let them fear snow where none should fall."

Above – War Hall, Baifang Crag

Returning to the council, Bai Wuji's expression was calm but unreadable.

Elder Qin spoke cautiously, "We lack the strength to challenge Vermilion's throne outright."

Wuji's eyes sharpened. "Then we do not challenge."

"Patience?" another asked.

"No," Bai Wuji said. "We bleed them slowly, layer by layer. Let Mei Xueyan weave her subtle wars. Let the king believe he is clever."

He turned to the crystal map shimmering behind them, leyline veins glowing faintly beneath Vermilion's heart.

"Until he unwittingly opens the gate for us."

Far below, in a chamber of soul-fire and silence, Baixue's eyes snapped open once more.