The moment the second pulse faded—
The Golden Core cultivator moved.
He stepped forward—
And plunged straight into the Shattered Tempest Expanse.
Violent winds tore at his robes, snapping the fabric like war banners in a battlefield gale. Lightning struck his protective barrier in jagged, blinding bursts. Spiritual turbulence battered him from every direction, chaotic qi currents colliding violently in the surrounding air.
But he did not slow down.
His spiritual sense expanded to its absolute limit, sweeping wildly through the storm like an unseen tide.
He had felt it.
That draconic surge.
Ancient. Sovereign. Rare beyond measure.
Yet just as suddenly as it had appeared—
It vanished.
Completely.
His brows furrowed deeply.
Impossible.
Bloodline fluctuations of that magnitude could not simply disappear without leaving a trace.
He scanned again.
Nothing.
Only howling wind.
Only rampant lightning.
Only fractured qi streams clashing endlessly in violent disorder.
His thoughts churned rapidly.
Did it retreat deeper into the Expanse?
Is it using its concealment ability?
Or… did I misjudge it entirely?
No.
He had not imagined it.
His lips curved faintly, a trace of intrigue replacing his initial suspicion.
"Interesting…"
He slowed, hovering within the storm, his presence steady despite the violent forces surrounding him. This time, he searched with greater precision, no longer sweeping wildly—but probing carefully, patiently.
—
Deep within the eye of chaos—
The lizard remained perfectly still.
Invisible.
Curled atop the fox's head once more, his small body coiled like dormant thunder waiting to strike.
His eyes were closed.
His invisibility cloaked them both flawlessly, blending them into the storm's natural distortions.
The difference now—
Was the pressure.
Even while concealed, faint waves of compressed energy rolled outward from his body. Yet they did not clash against the surrounding turbulence. Instead, they blended seamlessly into the Expanse's violent currents.
It did not stand out.
It synchronized.
The fox did not move.
Did not breathe loudly.
Did not dare shift even a fraction of an inch.
She could feel it clearly.
He was not merely growing stronger.
He was changing.
Inwardly, the lizard spoke.
"Fuse the gene."
A brief pause.
Then—
[Storm Dragon Gene Detected.]
[Fusion Target: Host Core Genetic Structure.]
[Warning: Fusion Process Irreversible.]
[High Probability of Structural Reconstruction.]
He did not hesitate.
"Confirm."
A single, steady beat of silence.
[Fusion Confirmed.]
And instantly—
His consciousness sank.
Not unconscious.
Not asleep.
Drifting.
As though he were being pulled downward into an endless ocean of thunder.
Inside his body—
The newly acquired Storm Dragon gene ignited.
It did not remain dormant or passive within him.
It expanded.
Threads of ancient draconic code unraveled, intertwining with and rewriting his existing biological structure. His meridians widened, stretching beyond their former limits, then reinforced themselves with newfound resilience.
His scales shifted subtly, becoming denser beneath their smooth, white sheen.
Wind no longer simply obeyed him—
It recognized him.
Lightning no longer needed to be summoned—
It gathered instinctively in his presence.
The process was not explosive like before.
It was surgical.
Precise.
Methodical.
Bone by bone.
Cell by cell.
Drop of blood by drop of blood.
Outside—
The Golden Core cultivator narrowed his eyes.
The earlier fluctuation had disappeared entirely.
Yet something about the storm now felt… heavier.
More cohesive.
As if the chaos itself had found a center—a quiet axis around which it now revolved.
He swept his spiritual sense again.
Still nothing.
For the first time, irritation flickered across his features.
Inside the hidden eye—
The fox suddenly felt the atmospheric pressure increase.
Not violently.
But undeniably.
The rotating wall of wind surrounding their sanctuary tightened slightly, its chaotic spirals becoming more structured.
More deliberate.
More controlled.
She swallowed softly.
"…What are you becoming?"
The lizard did not respond.
His consciousness drifted deeper—
Into thunder.
Into wind.
Into something ancient that had once ruled the heavens.
And the fusion continued.
The storm did not weaken.
It endured.
Days blurred into weeks.
Weeks melted into something heavier—timeless.
Fifty-two days passed.
Nearly two full months since they had entered the Shattered Tempest Expanse.
—
The fox had not moved from her chosen position.
Patient.
Still.
Trusting the chaos to conceal them.
Curled atop her head, the lizard finally stirred.
Slowly—
His golden eyes opened.
Not dim.
Not recovering.
Perfect.
Clear.
Fully restored.
His vision returned sharper than before, capable of piercing even the dense spiritual distortions saturating the Expanse.
His horns were no longer pale.
They were black now—obsidian-dark, smooth, and curving slightly backward with quiet elegance.
The once-golden accents along his tail had deepened as well, threaded with faint streaks of storm-gray.
Only the white scales covering his body remained unchanged.
Pristine.
Untainted.
The fox felt the movement instantly.
A small smile tugged at her lips.
"So… you finally wake up."
The lizard glanced down at her.
He could see perfectly.
Every strand of fur.
Every subtle ripple of spiritual current flowing around her form.
My eyes… have fully recovered.
He asked calmly,
"How long?"
The fox did not miss a beat.
"Oh, about two hundred years. I assumed you were dead."
She chuckled softly.
"Relax. It's only been two months."
Her tone shifted, faintly sharper now.
"That bastard is probably still outside."
She tilted her head slightly.
"Your eyes must have recovered a while ago, right?"
But the lizard was no longer listening.
Internally, he spoke.
"What is my cultivation level?"
The System responded immediately.
[Current Realm: Foundation Establishment — Peak.]
A brief pause.
[To Break Through to Golden Core Stage: 500,000 Evolution Points Required.]
No reaction.
No frustration.
Only silence.
He had expected as much.
Golden Core would not come easily.
Not for him.
Without another word, he released the invisibility.
The distortion shimmered faintly—
And both he and the fox became visible once more.
The fox blinked.
"Oh?"
The lizard leapt lightly from her head, landing soundlessly upon the ground.
She stared at him openly now.
"…You got a makeover."
His presence had changed entirely.
He was no longer compact.
No longer suppressed.
No longer conserving strength.
His body expanded instantly—
Muscles and scales extending outward as he stopped restraining himself.
The ground trembled faintly as he reached his full size.
Sixty inches tall from paw to horn tip.
One hundred twenty-five inches long from maw to tail.
Wings unfurled—
Stretching nearly one hundred thirty inches wide.
Lightning traced faint, crackling lines along the edges of those wings before fading into silence.
The fox's eyes widened slightly.
"Little White… you've grown."
There was admiration in her tone.
And calculation.
Peak Foundation Establishment.
Storm Dragon gene fully fused.
Vision completely restored.
Inside this storm—
He was in his element.
Her lips curved upward.
"Well."
She leapt lightly onto his back, landing between his wings with effortless balance.
"I suppose I'll be the one riding from now on."
A faint smirk tugged at her lips.
Peak Foundation Establishment…
Inside the Shattered Tempest Expanse…
Against a single Golden Core cultivator…
Our survival is practically guaranteed now.
The lizard rolled his shoulders slowly, adjusting to her weight.
Then he spoke.
"I'm very hungry."
He licked his maw slowly.
Not playful.
Not casual.
Predatory.
The fox laughed.
"I'll take that as confirmation."
Outside—
Somewhere within the raging storm—
A Golden Core cultivator continued to wait.
Unaware that what he had been hunting for the past two months…
Had just finished evolving.