Deep within the hidden inheritance grounds of the Bai Clan, a faint hum of ancient arrays filled the cavern. The walls shimmered faintly with beast-taming runes, their glow dimming and brightening like the heartbeat of some slumbering giant.
Baizhen Yu stood in the center of a grand stone hall, his breathing steady, his eyes fixed on the egg before him. This was no ordinary beast egg—it was a treasure from the clan's ancient vault, sealed away in this hidden site for countless generations. White as polished jade, faint arcs of silvery lightning danced across its shell, carrying the scent of storm and destruction.
A thin smile crept across Baizhen Yu's lips.
"It's time."
He had already claimed the treasures from the first trial of this inheritance site. Among them was a special beast-taming array designed to ensure a perfect synchronization between tamer and beast at the moment of birth. For others, it was a rare technique—something that could take decades to master. But for Baizhen Yu, it was merely a tool to execute a much bolder plan.
Before the egg hatched, he sat cross-legged, summoning the essence of his Iron-Spine Serpent soul from his body. A fragment of his old cultivation, reborn through persistence and will, drifted out as a wisp of condensed golden spirit. With unshakable focus, he guided it forward—straight into the unhatched egg.
A faint cracking sound echoed through the chamber.
The lightning arcs intensified, the egg trembling violently. In the very moment life bloomed within, the newborn's spirit—pure, unshaped, and without self-awareness—was overtaken by the serpent soul. No struggle. No resistance. The possession was complete before the beast could even take its first breath of the world.
With a sharp crack, the shell shattered.
A serpent emerged—its scales pure white, shimmering under the glow of the array. Silver arcs of lightning slithered along its slender body, every movement accompanied by a faint rumble of distant thunder. Its eyes gleamed gold, and on its forehead was the faintest rise of a horn—a sign of its dragon lineage.
It was a White Thunder Serpent, a third-tier beast of the high-grade bloodline class—a lineage capable of growing to the peak of Core Formation naturally. But that was not its limit.
Baizhen Yu's gaze deepened.
If it wished to evolve further—to break the high-grade shackles and reach the top-grade bloodline realm of the Nascent Soul tier—it would need to become a Flood Dragon. And even among Flood Dragons, there was a great divide.
Some were born as Monarch-blooded creatures—powerful, but often scorned if they carried bloodline deficiencies. Those with flaws were called False Flood Dragons, their strength lacking the true authority of a Monarch. They might live their lives as servants or lesser lords within the Flood Dragon clans.
But… there were others. Those who clawed their way up from lesser forms, evolving step-by-step through countless battles, shedding their weaknesses through struggle. Such beings, even if they never reached true Monarch-level, were feared and respected by the entire Flood Dragon race.
"And you…" Baizhen Yu whispered, stroking the serpent's head, "...will be one of them."
This was no ordinary possession. The nascent soul fragment that now resided within the beast was ancient, honed by years of cultivation. Even though it was only a broken Nascent Soul, its presence would accelerate the serpent's growth immensely.
Under normal circumstances, a White Thunder Serpent might take years to reach the Demon Beast realm, but with this soul inside, it would take less than a week.
Baizhen Yu could already feel the difference. The serpent's breathing matched his own; its pulse of lightning was synchronized with the rhythm of his heart. They were no longer separate—tamer and beast had become one entity.
---
Not only had his beast gained a rebirth, but Baizhen Yu himself had undergone a breakthrough.
The inheritance site's rewards had restored his damaged spirit completely, allowing him to leap forward in cultivation. In just days, he had advanced to the 11th stage of Qi Condensation.
Yet he wasn't done.
From his pouch, he retrieved a Foundation Establishment Pill—a treasure most cultivators would guard jealously until the perfect moment. Baizhen Yu, however, knew a secret passed down among noble clans.
Breaking through to the 10th level required physical strength on par with Foundation Establishment.
The 11th required soul strength of the same level.
But the 12th…
The 12th required mana equal to that realm.
With a single decisive motion, he swallowed the pill. A torrent of spiritual energy erupted inside him, flooding his meridians. His dantian roared with the surge as his cultivation soared.
In moments, he stood at the 12th stage of Qi Condensation—a step that most cultivators in the mortal world would never even see in their lifetimes.
"Just one step away from the forbidden 13th layer," he murmured.
That step would wait. This time, he vowed, he would not rush. In his previous life, he had stopped here, never daring to push further. But in this life, with the White Thunder Serpent at his side, he would pierce the heavens themselves.
His path was no longer just his own—it was theirs.
---
The cavern dimmed as Baizhen Yu stored away the beast-taming array and treasures from the first trial. The White Thunder Serpent coiled loosely around his shoulders, its silver lightning casting flickering shadows across the stone walls.
Ahead of him loomed a towering gate, carved from black jade, its surface etched with patterns of ancient beasts locked in eternal combat. A faint pressure radiated from it—a warning to those unworthy to step through.
This was the second layer of the Bai Clan's Inheritance Trial.
Unlike the first, which was meant for late Qi Condensation cultivators, this one was designed for Foundation Establishment realm successors. The spiritual pressure alone was enough to crush an ordinary 10th-stage cultivator.
Baizhen Yu placed his palm against the gate.
The oppressive aura surged forward, probing his body, his soul, his very bloodline.
A lesser man would have stepped back.
But Baizhen Yu's lips curled into a cold smile.
"Foundation Establishment? I'm already standing on the peak of Qi Condensation. One more step… and I will break even your limits."
The White Thunder Serpent hissed softly, lightning crackling along its scales, as if answering his resolve.
With a low rumble, the black jade gate began to part.
A rush of ancient spiritual qi poured out, thick enough to taste on the tongue.
Baizhen Yu stepped forward without hesitation, vanishing into the darkness of the second trial.
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