The Xuanyuan Clan's main hall stood tall and solemn beneath the afternoon sun, its stone pillars carved with ancient dragons and ancestral runes. Once, this hall had been the heart of a family that stood at the very peak of the continent.
Now, it was a shadow of its former glory.
At the head of the hall sat Xuanyuan Bei.
Father of Xuanyuan Hao.
Father of Xuanyuan Han.
Younger brother of Xuanyuan Wudi.
His expression was stern, his presence heavy. The aura of a seasoned cultivator pressed outward subtly, enough to remind everyone in the hall who ruled this branch of the family.
Before him knelt two battered figures.
Xuanyuan Han.
Xuanyuan Chen.
Their limbs were splinted crudely, faces pale with lingering pain and humiliation. The once-arrogant gleam in Xuanyuan Han's eyes had been replaced with simmering resentment.
Xuanyuan Bei's gaze darkened.
"Explain."
Xuanyuan Han clenched his fists. Rage steadied his voice.
"Father, Xuanyuan Zhen has gone mad. He attacked us without reason. He crippled our limbs and showed no respect for clan hierarchy. He is rebellious to the family and vicious to his own relatives. Such a person should be crippled and cast out!"
Murmurs rippled through the hall.
Several elders exchanged glances.
Xuanyuan Han had always been troublesome. With Xuanyuan Hao backing him—especially now that Hao had joined the Heavenly Dao Sect—his arrogance had only grown. The clan basked in Hao's glory. The Xuanyuan name, once declining, had begun to shine again because of him.
The Heavenly Dao Sect.
One of the great powers of the continent.
For a clan that had once stood at the summit before falling into mediocrity, Xuanyuan Hao was more than a prodigy.
He was hope.
He was resurgence.
And Xuanyuan Han used that hope like a weapon.
Xuanyuan Bei's fingers tapped slowly against the armrest of his chair.
"Xuanyuan Zhen…" he muttered.
That name had long faded from conversation.
Once a child of promise. Once the son of Xuanyuan Wudi—the most fearsome figure of their generation.
But after his crippling incident, after years of silence and isolation, he had become an embarrassment.
Forgotten.
Or conveniently ignored.
Xuanyuan Chen bowed his head lower. "Patriarch, we merely went to question him. He attacked us viciously. If this spreads, what will the clan look like?"
Another wave of murmurs.
One elder with narrow eyes spoke up. "Rebellious behavior cannot be tolerated. No matter whose son he is."
A second elder frowned. "But he is Xuanyuan Wudi's son. We must be cautious."
At the mention of Xuanyuan Wudi, the atmosphere shifted slightly.
Even absent, that name carried weight.
Wudi had once been the pillar of their generation. His strength, his dominance—many elders had relied on him during the clan's hardest years. Though he was no longer present, his influence lingered like an unextinguished flame.
Xuanyuan Han seized the moment.
"Uncle may have been strong, but Xuanyuan Zhen is not him! He is unstable and dangerous. If he cannot respect the clan, he should be crippled to prevent future disaster!"
The word crippled echoed heavily in the hall.
Some elders nodded.
Others remained silent.
Crippling a direct blood descendant was no small matter. Especially one tied to Xuanyuan Wudi's lineage.
Xuanyuan Bei finally spoke.
"If what you say is true… then discipline is necessary."
His voice was calm, but beneath it lay calculation.
If Xuanyuan Zhen truly possessed strength again, that would complicate matters. If he remained weak but bold, that was dangerous in another way.
An elder near the side stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Before judgment is passed, perhaps we should summon him to explain."
Xuanyuan Han's jaw tightened.
He did not want explanation.
He wanted punishment.
He wanted Xuanyuan Zhen broken permanently.
Just as he opened his mouth to press further—
A clan guard rushed into the hall, bowing hastily.
"Reporting to the Patriarch and elders—"
His voice trembled.
"Xuanyuan Zhen has arrived."
The hall fell silent.
Several elders straightened in their seats.
Xuanyuan Bei's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Arrived?" he asked.
The guard swallowed.
"He… he is carrying a Rank 1 Iron Scaled Tiger on his back."
A ripple of shock spread through the hall.
An Iron Scaled Tiger?
Alone?
Xuanyuan Han's face drained of color.
Impossible.
The heavy doors of the main hall creaked open.
Footsteps echoed.
Slow.
Steady.
Deliberate.
And as the figure in torn white robes stepped into the hall—massive tiger corpse draped across his shoulders, golden and purple aura faintly swirling around him—the atmosphere changed.
Forgotten?
No longer.
Xuanyuan Zhen had come.