The mountain wind was calm that morning. Mist weaved between the trees like gentle serpents, and dew clung to every blade of grass as if the forest held its breath.
At the peak, Sunmok sat on a large stone, back hunched, eyes half-closed. His fur shimmered faintly in the sun, golden-brown with streaks of pale white fire that flickered beneath the skin. Since that day he unleashed the White Flame, something within him had shifted. The monkeys below still feared and worshipped him, but they dared not meet his eyes for too long now.
He poked at a dried fruit with a stick. "Taste is gone," he muttered. "I liked these more when I was stupid."
"You're still stupid," came a snide voice from behind.
He didn't turn. He didn't have to. "Rika," he drawled, smiling. "You sound jealous. My flame's hotter than your attitude now."
The silver-furred monkeyess leapt down beside him, her tail flicking. She crossed her arms. "You're talking to yourself too much. That flame is messing with your head."
Sunmok leaned back, arms behind his head. "Or it's clearing it."
Below the peak, at the edge of the forest, blood still soaked the grass where the human cultivators once stood. What remained of their weapons was now part of Sunmok's growing collection — symbols of trespass, melted down and reshaped into crude wind chimes that now hung from the branches.
He narrowed his eyes.
That wasn't just a patrol. They were hunting something.
"Spirit cores," he murmured.
"Hmm?" Rika asked.
"They weren't just chasing beasts. They were after something specific." His tone shifted, sharp and serious now.
She tilted her head, confused. "You're thinking too much again."
He didn't respond. His gaze was fixed far away.
Across the mountains, in the floating Sky Pavilion of the Thousand Blossoms Sect, a woman sat beside a large jade mirror. She wore robes the color of spring leaves and held a brush dipped in spirit ink, her movements precise. The mirror shimmered with light.
"A monkey… with white flame?" she whispered.
She leaned forward, watching Sunmok's figure slowly fade from the mirror's surface. "Interesting. A beast that acts with restraint. That… thinks."
A shadow knelt behind her, its form obscured by shifting mist.
"Should we approach, Lady Asu?"
She tapped her brush twice. "Not yet. Observe. Let the dragons watch first. Then we'll move."
Far beneath the earth, in a network of crystal tunnels, a pair of golden eyes opened.
"White Flame?" a voice growled.
The dragon shifted its massive body, scales grinding like stone. "That old power… in the hands of a monkey? How quaint."
A dozen smaller shapes moved in the shadows behind him — not beasts, but people. Clad in silks, they bore dragon-shaped emblems across their chests.
One stepped forward. "Shall we investigate?"
The dragon's mouth curled into a smirk. "Yes. Send the girl. Let her play spy."
Back on the mountain, Sunmok stood, a breeze brushing through his fur. His gaze was distant, but sharp.
"Things are changing," he said to no one.
Then, louder: "Let them come."
A glint of white fire curled at his fingertips. His grin returned — cocky and wild.
"If they climb this mountain…" He raised his hand. The flame flared. "They better be ready to burn."
And so, the first true ripples began. From the moment Sunmok's flame lit the forest, the world had begun to move — dragons stirred, sects watched, and spies descended.
The monkey who once only chased fruits and females now stood on the edge of destiny.
And destiny was watching him back.