Then—
*Not clear.*
The fox's lips curved slightly.
*Alright.*
She didn't elaborate.
Didn't need to.
Because her paw had already moved.
It slipped into her storage pouch and drew something out.
The banner.
Dark.
Quiet.
But no longer dormant.
It unfurled midair, hovering before her, its surface rippling faintly as if something beneath it breathed.
Her voice lowered.
"Come out."
The banner responded instantly.
A shape pulled free—thin, distorted—but clearer than before.
The ghost of the beast from the White Bone Tiger territory.
Its form flickered, but it held.
More stable now.
More aware.
The fox's gaze settled on it.
Sharp.
Direct.
"Location."
No greeting.
No delay.
"Bewitching Heart Fox."
A pause.
"Is she still within the Five Hollow…"
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"…or has she returned to White Bone territory?"
The ghost didn't resist.
Didn't struggle.
It couldn't.
Not anymore.
Its voice came low and faint, but clear enough.
"She left."
The fox didn't react outwardly, but her focus sharpened instantly.
"When?"
"After the auction."
A flicker passed through its form.
"She did not remain long."
The fox's tail shifted once behind her.
"Destination."
The ghost hesitated for the briefest moment, as if searching through fragmented memory.
Then—
"White Bone Tiger King's inner territory."
A pause.
"Deep region."
The words settled—cold and precise.
The fox watched the ghost for a moment longer.
Then her lips curved.
Faint.
Dangerous.
"Good."
Her voice was smooth.
"I expected as much."
The banner rippled once, and the ghost was pulled back in, vanishing without resistance.
Silence returned.
The fox stored it away, already moving, already adjusting.
Her trajectory shifted—not toward safety, but deeper into risk.
Toward territory.
Toward power.
Toward something waiting.
Her eyes gleamed faintly.
"Then we won't keep her waiting."
The sky didn't welcome them.
It noticed.
The moment the fox's wings unfurled—lightning snapping outward in sharp, violent arcs—the air itself seemed to recoil.
A crack split the sky.
She surged forward, a streak of blue-white tearing across the horizon as distance collapsed beneath her.
Mountains bent.
Clouds split.
The world blurred—
until it changed.
The forest below thickened.
Darker.
Older.
Trees twisted higher, their roots like bones clawing through the earth.
And beneath it all—
a presence.
Heavy.
Ancient.
Watching.
The fox slowed slightly, hovering above the territory.
"We're here."
Her voice remained calm, but precise.
Her gaze drifted downward, cutting through layers of forest, distance, and concealment.
"He's already aware."
A pause.
"Even if he hasn't moved yet."
Because something at the Golden Core stage didn't miss things like this.
Not in its own domain.
Little White remained still atop her head, but his golden eyes sharpened.
*Plan.*
The fox didn't hesitate.
"You draw him out."
Her tone remained flat.
Certain.
"Keep him occupied."
A small pause.
"I'll handle the fox."
No overlap.
No confusion.
A clean division.
Little White didn't respond.
Didn't need to.
Because the next moment—
the concealment shattered.
Like a veil torn away.
Their presence crashed into the world.
Not subtly.
Not gently.
It announced itself.
The forest below reacted instantly.
Beasts stirred in waves—fear, instinct, submission rippling outward.
The air grew heavy.
Now, they could be felt.
Little White moved.
His body expanded, stretching as scales shifted into place.
Not massive—
but enough.
Enough to matter.
The fox glanced at him once.
"Alright."
A brief pause.
"I'll be going."
No delay.
No wasted motion.
Her wings snapped once, lightning surging—
and she shot forward, cutting away from him, a streak of blue vanishing into the deeper forest.
Then—
he moved.
Little White raised his head slowly, deliberately.
The air around him distorted as thin arcs of blue lightning crawled across his scales, growing, intensifying, until the space itself trembled.
Then—
he roared.
A thunderous, lightning-infused roar tore outward, detonating through the sky, slamming into the forest below.
Trees bent.
Branches snapped.
The earth trembled.
It didn't stop.
It spread—far, wide.
A declaration.
A challenge.
A call.
And deep within the White Bone Tiger territory—
something answered.
The forest went still.
Completely.
Then—
it pushed back.
A presence rose, slow at first, then overwhelming.
Heavy.
Predatory.
Ancient.
Like something that had ruled this land long before intruders ever dared enter.
The ground cracked.
The air thickened.
And from the depths—
a pair of eyes opened.
Cold.
Massive.
Locked onto the sky.
On him.
The White Bone Tiger King had noticed.
And Little White—
was exactly where he needed to be.
The pressure didn't build.
It arrived.
Not gradually.
Not in waves.
All at once.
The forest floor beneath them cracked outward—thin fractures spreading like veins through the earth—as two killing intents collided in the open sky.
Above, Little White hovered.
Small in form.
Not in presence.
Lightning crawled lazily across his scales—quiet, controlled, almost restrained.
Below, the White Bone Tiger King stood in human form.
Pale robes, untouched by the chaos around him.
White hair drifting slightly in the rising pressure.
Green eyes locked upward.
Cold.
Measuring.
"…Peak Foundation Establishment."
His voice was calm.
Yet the air bent subtly around it.
"…With draconic blood."
A pause.
His gaze sharpened, just slightly.
"…You came to my territory."
The killing intent thickened.
"…and announced yourself."
A faint tilt of his head.
"…So tell me."
He stepped forward.
The ground sank beneath his foot without a sound.
"…is this a challenge?"
Silence answered him.
Not emptiness.
Deliberation.
Little White didn't speak.
Didn't posture.
Didn't explain.
His golden eyes simply met the tiger's—steady, unmoving.
And then—
his killing intent rose.
Not explosive.
Not chaotic.
Precise.
It slid outward like a blade being drawn slowly from its sheath, cutting into the space between them.
The trees bent lower.
The sky dimmed faintly.
This wasn't provocation.
It was confirmation.
The White Bone Tiger King's eyes narrowed.
"…I see."
A faint smile touched his lips.
Not warm.
Interested.
"Good."