The tomb of Frost Ridge loomed like the heart of a long-forgotten mountain god, a cavern of ancient stone whose silence spoke of time unmeasured. The very walls pulsed faintly with sealed power, etched from floor to ceiling with fading murals of dragon and phoenix in celestial dance once radiant, now dulled by centuries of frost and stillness. Cold spiritual lanterns lined the edges of the chamber, casting a blue-white glow that seemed to warp the very air, illuminating every breath as mist.
Kai Shen stood at the chamber's center, a lone figure dwarfed by the cathedral-like space. His breath came shallow, each inhale weighed down by a pressure that clung to his chest like a second ribcage. The source of that suffocating force loomed before him, not as a beast of flesh but as presence an ancient storm of ice and divine rage given form. Xu Xie, the dragon, had not moved, yet his spiritual pressure crashed upon Kai like an avalanche of spears.
Fen Huang hovered beside him, her flames dimmed but defiant. Though small in form a phoenix no larger than a hawk her aura flared faintly, standing like a candle before a blizzard. Her feathers sparked with red-gold light, flickering in the cold like dying embers. Still, she bristled at the dragon's oppressive presence, wings slightly flared as if to shield Kai.
Kai's heart pounded, not from fear alone, but from the crushing certainty that death was one misstep away. Yet even under this weight, the Frost Fort's ancient oath wrapped around him like a fragile armor a thin thread tying his life to tradition and law.
He can't kill me, Kai thought, holding fast to the thought like a raft in freezing water. The Fort's oath protects me… It has to.
"You can't kill me," he said aloud, forcing steel into his voice. "The Fort's oath protects me."
Xu Xie's low chuckle rolled through the tomb like distant thunder, each word heavier than stone.
"Kill you?" he repeated, his tone amused and disdainful. "Foolish mortal. Why would I waste effort? I could trap you here for a year or a century. I'm immortal. What's time to me but mist?"
Kai's jaw tightened. "Then why haven't you? Why didn't you last time?"
The dragon's gaze narrowed, frost blooming along the floor in a spiderweb of cracks. His tone remained laced with mockery, but there was a shift a sliver of recognition.
"No lies, mortal. Last time, I lured you. You escaped with phoenix flames. This time, you came willingly, bearing no protection but arrogance. But… you're right. There's no thrill in dragging out your suffering. Back to the trial halls, then. Let's see how long your courage lasts in the dark, alone."
Kai stiffened, panic sparking, but before he could respond, Fen Huang flared.
"Old man, don't you dare!" she cried, wings bursting into fire for a heartbeat before dimming again. "He's not your enemy just a clueless fledgling!"
A heavy silence dropped over the tomb, deeper than before. Then came the sound of laughter not cold this time, but amused, as if something had shifted. The pressure lightened slightly. Kai inhaled deeply, drawing air into lungs that had been locked tight.
Did she get through to him?
"Oh, little Fen," Xu Xie said with a hint of nostalgia, "I see now why you bonded with this half-blood. You share his recklessness. His recklessness… and his temper."
"What's that supposed to mean?" Fen huffed, puffing up indignantly.
Xu Xie's amusement curdled. His voice turned sharp, laced with old pain. "You, who defied my decree. Who lingered among humans. Who walked beside the spawn of our enemies, risking the last ember of our lineage do you truly call yourself wise?"
Suddenly, the dragon materialized not as vague presence, but in full. A colossal white-scaled beast stepped into the lantern light, each movement cracking the ice beneath him. His scales gleamed like ivory wrapped in winter, his horns coiled with silver veins of spiritual energy. His eyes deep, ancient, merciless locked onto Kai's.
Kai's interface pulsed to life in his mind:Name: Xu XieRole: Ancient DragonRank: Unknown (Immortal-tier)Name: Fen HuangRole: Phoenix DescendantRank: Estimated Pattern Formation
"Kai Shen," Xu Xie said, voice low and probing, "do you know where you stand? What blood soaks this stone?"
Kai swallowed. "Only vaguely."
"I told him nothing!" Fen snapped, flapping her wings with frustration. "Leave him alone! He's just a chick!"
"Dear Feng," Xu Xie murmured, his spiritual energy reaching toward her like a tide, brushing her feathers with ghostly frost.
"Don't touch her!" Kai shouted suddenly, his fear forgotten, instinct blazing hotter than reason.
Xu Xie paused. His great head tilted, studying Kai with renewed interest. Even Fen seemed taken aback.
Did I just—? Kai thought, shocked by his own defiance.
"Curious," the dragon murmured. "Perhaps there's more to you than ash and failure. Your blood. Your sword. Your fire. They enraged me once, and I thought you came to kill her. But you're… weak. Yet full of surprises."
He drew closer, frost whispering along his breath. "Tell me how fares the Devourer technique?"
Kai winced at the mention, his body instinctively tensing. "Strange. Like it's… missing something. There's a catch, isn't there?"
Xu Xie snorted. "No catch. Bai Sai, its creator, defied Heaven and won true immortality. The technique is not flawed. It is a gift meant for those desperate enough to wield it. Odd, though… that a Shen heir would grasp it so naturally."
Kai's interface updated again:Technique: DevourerRank: UnknownEffect: Enhances cultivation (details unclear)Origin: Bai Sai
"Why are you here, Kai Shen?" Xu Xie asked, suddenly serious.
Kai hesitated, then answered simply. "They burned my cultivation. I should've died. I didn't."
Xu Xie's roar shook the ceiling, cracks forming overhead. "They burned it? The phoenix execution? And you survived?!"
"Heaven-blessed demon," Fen whispered, as if recalling something long past.
Xu Xie leaned in, frost seeping into Kai's bones. "Continue."
So Kai spoke. He told his tale, carefully but honestly, tracing the steps from his fall to his improbable survival, mirroring what he had once confided to So Yun. Fen's sharp gasps marked key moments. Xu Xie said nothing, but listened, his silence thunderous.
At last, Kai looked up. "Why haven't you killed me, oath or no? You don't seem the merciful type. So what do you want?"
Xu Xie's grin returned, slow and knowing. "A fair question. The truth? We can help each other. You swore no oaths after your burning, did you?"
"None," Kai replied, jaw tight.
"Good," Xu Xie said. "You are unbound. Neither Fort nor Shen clan owns your soul now. A rare thing Heaven-sent."
"Don't," Fen begged. "Not this again. Not your mad schemes "
"Silence, Feng." Xu Xie's voice cut through the air like a sword. "Kai, listen now. Listen well. Let me show you the truth behind Frost Ridge."
As his voice deepened, the murals on the tomb walls stirred. Color returned to stone. Flames and rivers and skies moved again. Kai saw visions not just with his eyes, but within his mind memories of a world alight with fire qi, where Xu Xie and a phoenix named Lin Shi ruled as guardians. But then came the invasion: three beast sects, representing tiger, phoenix, and dragon, descending in war, betrayal, and blood. Lin Shi fell. The fire died. Frost swallowed the land.
And among the invaders… Kai saw his father. Kao Shen. Sword in hand. Eyes ablaze.
"Lin Shi lives?" Kai breathed, unable to tear his eyes from the image of the phoenix queen reborn.
"Her heart remains," Xu Xie said. "The seed of her soul endures. She will return. And when she does… this world must burn anew. But first, the fire must be rekindled."
He turned to Kai. "You. Your flame. Your choice. Will you help me restore what was stolen?"
To be continued…