Location: The Western Border – The Iron-Thunder Graveyard
Time: 02:00 Hours (Local Time)
The transition from the Northern tundra to the Western wastes was jarring. One moment, the air was a frozen solid; the next, it tasted of copper and ozone.
Aris sat atop Nox, who was prowling cautiously across a landscape that defied the laws of physics.
The Iron-Thunder Graveyard was not a flat plain. It was a canyon of magnetic anomalies.
Massive islands of rusted iron floated in the air, suspended by erratic magnetic fields. Lightning didn't strike from the sky down to the earth; it arced horizontally between these floating islands, creating a web of electricity that buzzed like a hive of angry hornets.
The ground below was a carpet of scrap metal. Ancient swords, shattered golems, and broken chariots from a thousand years of wars lay piled in heaps.
[Environmental Analysis: Zone of Eternal Conflict]
[Atmospheric Hazard: Magnetic Storms.]
[Effect: 'Metal-Bane'. Metal equipment degrades 10% faster. Compass/Navigation disabled.]
[Ambient Qi: Sharp. Breathing it causes micro-cuts in the lungs.]
"This place hates life," Aris muttered, pulling his Void-Walker's Mantle tighter. The cloak rippled, shedding the static charge that tried to cling to him.
Nox whined. The static was making his shadowy fur stand on end. Every time he took a step, a spark jumped from his paw to the rusted ground.
"I know," Aris soothed the beast. "It's loud. But Lin Chen is close."
The Camp of the Broken
They navigated through a labyrinth of floating rocks.
Finally, Aris spotted a flicker of formation light in the distance. It was tucked underneath a massive, overturned Titan Golem hull, using the scrap metal as a Faraday cage against the lightning.
It was the camp of the Black Jade Legion.
But it didn't look like an elite army camp. It looked like a hospital ward.
Aris rode Nox into the perimeter. The guards didn't challenge him. They barely looked up. They sat huddled by smokeless fires, clutching their weapons with white-knuckled grips. Their eyes were bloodshot, darting around frantically at every crack of thunder.
[Scan: Black Jade Guard #402]
[Status: Mental Fatigue (Critical).]
[Debuff: 'Aura of Slaughter' – Induces paranoia and aggression.]
"Master!"
Lin Chen emerged from the command tent. The Shadow-Knight looked ragged. His armor was dented, and the corrupt-copper skin of his face was drawn tight. Even Solstice, the Divine Sword on his back, seemed dimmer than usual.
"Report," Aris dismounted, his boots crunching on rusted gears.
"We are pinned down," Lin Chen said, his voice tight. "We located the Seal three days ago. It's in the center of the Sword-Barrow—a valley made of millions of discarded blades. But we cannot approach it."
"Why?" Aris asked. "Is the beast guarding it?"
"It's not guarding it," Lin Chen shook his head. "It's hunting us. But it doesn't attack directly. It... plays."
The Invisible predator
Lin Chen led Aris into the command tent. A map was spread out on a crate, but it was useless. The magnetic interference had scrambled the topographic lines.
"We brought 500 men," Lin Chen whispered. "We have 300 left."
"Two hundred casualties in three days?" Aris frowned. "Where are the bodies?"
"That's the thing, Master. There are no bodies."
Lin Chen pointed to a patrol route marked in red.
"Squad Alpha went out yesterday. Twelve men. Elite Core Formation warriors. We heard a sound... like metal shearing against metal. Then silence. When we investigated, we found their armor. Just the armor. Empty."
Aris narrowed his eyes. "Empty?"
"No blood. No bones. Just... dust. As if they had been cut so many times, so instantly, that they disintegrated."
Aris walked to the tent flap and looked out at the floating islands.
[Lore Check: The White Tiger (Baihu)]
[Attribute: Metal / Wind / War.]
[Concept: 'The Killing Blow'.]
[The White Tiger does not just kill; it governs the concept of 'Severance'. It can cut through space, distance, and even causality.]
"It's using Intent," Aris realized. "It's not physically attacking them. It's projecting 'Killing Intent' so sharp it physically manifests as invisible blades."
He looked at the trembling soldiers outside.
"That's why your men are terrified. They aren't fighting a monster. They are fighting the air itself."
The Reconnaissance
"I need to see this Sword-Barrow," Aris decided. "Alone."
"Master, it is suicide," Lin Chen warned. "The killing aura gets stronger the closer you get."
"My body is an anomaly," Aris said, adjusting his mask. "And I have a new shield."
He patted the hexagonal Seal of the North (the Black Tortoise rune) in his pocket. It felt cool and heavy.
"Stay here. Keep the men calm. If they panic and run, the Tiger will slaughter them like sheep. Predators love runners."
Aris left the tent. He signaled Nox to stay. This required stealth, and Nox was too big a target here.
Into the Storm
Aris moved through the canyon alone.
He used Ghost-Step, moving from shadow to shadow. The deeper he went into the Graveyard, the louder the "sound" became.
It wasn't an auditory sound. It was a psychic screeching. It felt like someone scraping a knife against the inside of his skull.
Kill. Cut. Sever. Bleed.
The thoughts weren't his, but they tried to intrude.
[Mental Defense: Active.]
[Abyssal Mind: Filtering hostile frequencies.]
"Get out of my head," Aris hissed, pushing the alien thoughts away.
He climbed a ridge of rusted iron.
Below him lay the Sword-Barrow.
It was a vast crater. Millions of swords—some rusty, some shining like new—were stuck point-down into the earth. They formed a forest of steel.
In the center of the crater sat a massive stone pedestal. On top of it pulsed a white light—the Key to the West.
But lying on the pedestal, cleaning its paws, was the Beast.
[Entity Identified]
[Name: Baihu (The White Tiger)]
[Rank: Divine Beast (God of War)]
[Level: ???]
[State: Awake / Bored.]
It wasn't as large as the Black Tortoise. It was maybe the size of a tank. Its fur was pure, snowy white, striped with black lightning patterns. Its eyes were pale gold, slit-pupiled, and radiated an intelligence that was sharp, cruel, and arrogant.
It wasn't a monster. It was a weapon given form.
The Test of Will
As Aris watched from the ridge, a kilometer away, the Tiger stopped cleaning its paw.
It didn't turn its head. It just... shifted its ear.
[Warning: Taking Aim.]
The Tiger flicked its tail.
SHING.
No projectile was fired. The Tiger didn't move from its spot.
But a kilometer away, the ridge Aris was crouching on was suddenly bisected.
A clean, diagonal cut appeared in the solid iron rock, passing inches from Aris's nose. The rock slid apart with a groan, the cut surface smooth as a mirror.
If Aris had been an inch forward, his head would have slid off with it.
The Tiger yawned. It looked directly at Aris's hiding spot.
"YOU... HAVE... NO... KILLING... INTENT," a voice cut into Aris's mind. It sounded like steel sliding out of a sheath. "YOU... ARE... BORING."
Aris stood up, revealing himself. The rock crumbled beneath him.
"I'm not here to entertain you," Aris projected back. "I'm here to recruit you."
The Tiger laughed. It was a chuffing, terrifying sound.
"RECRUIT? I AM WAR. I DO NOT SERVE. I CONSUME."
The Tiger stood up. It stretched, extending claws that looked like daggers made of diamond.
"THE TORTOISE IS A COWARD. HE HIDES IN HIS SHELL. BUT I?"
The Tiger took a step down from the pedestal.
"I REQUIRE TRIBUTE. NOT GOLD. NOT PRAYER."
The air in the crater suddenly sharpened. The millions of swords stuck in the ground began to vibrate, humming in sympathy with their master.
"SURVIVE... ONE... STRIKE," the Tiger purred. "AND I WILL LISTEN."
The Cliffhanger
The Tiger crouched low. The white fur along its spine stood up, crackling with black lightning. The ambient Qi in the entire canyon was sucked toward it, condensing into a single point on its claws.
[System Alert: Fatal Attack Incoming.]
[Attack Type: Conceptual Severance.]
[Dodge Probability: 0%.]
[Block Probability: 0%.]
Aris's pupils dilated. He realized this wasn't a physical attack. The Tiger was targeting the "concept" of Aris's existence. It was going to cut his timeline.
"System!" Aris shouted mentally. "Activate The Seal of the North!"
He reached into his pocket, grabbing the Black Tortoise Rune.
The Tiger lunged.
The world turned white.