Chapter 564: Enlightened

Atop a freezing mountain lost in time was a white tiger cub, sniffling as he buried himself in snow. He was downcast as he raised his head to see his brothers and sisters soaring through the cosmos, uncontested.

He saw them and buried himself deeper in the snow. He was ashamed to be seen, but, a gentle hand-picked pat the snow from his body.

'What is wrong, Little Li? Is something wrong? Is this world not fit to your liking? Do you want Mother to terraform it?' Chun's gentle voice sounded.

'N-no, it is perfect, Mother. Please, do not worry about me.' The little Lixus of the time shook his tiny head.

Chun picked up Lixus from the snow and with his feet dangling still, she pouted, asking him, 'Is mother so untrustworthy that you cannot tell me about your worries?'

'No, no, of course not… it is just…do you promise you will not laugh?'

Chun puffed her chest forth with a cheeky smile, 'Of course, this mother of yours has not told anyone's secret to anyone outside our Family before.'

At the start of time, none of the Ancestors or Chun knew of the Origin Race and Ling-Cho… so she was saying the truth. Though this story would reach the Origin Race a hundred thousand years later… but Lixus didn't know that… and decided to speak his mind to his mother.

'I don't feel Why am I the only one without any defining feature? Phena has her Scorching Words, Prima can transform into the Living Purple Lightning, and Older Sisters Fae and Rith have the Light and Dark at their beck and call. While I… I don't have anything… it's not fair!' Lixus' envy churned in his heart.

Everyone had something while he did not. He could call upon the frost, but even they could do that and more. Of the four children, he was the only one without his own Gift from their mother, but Chun simply kissed her sulking son's forehead and placed him on her lap.

'Oh, you foolish child.' Brushing his hair with her fingers, Chun laughed.

'Mother, you liar, you said you wouldn't laugh at me.' Lixus tried running away but Chun hugged him to stay.

'Now, now, do not be angry. I laugh because you think you are not special like your siblings.'

'It is because I am not! Unlike them you got nothing, you love them more than you love me… tell me Mother, I was born from the Western Chaos, wasn't? I wasn't born from your flesh and blood like the others!' Lixus sobbed at the thought.

Chun didn't get angry at her son's outburst, she was understanding and caring, only caressing his soft fur with warmth, 'Silly little Li, your siblings' gift had been earned from their heart's desire. You only need to want something for it to come true, my son.'

'Really?'

'Of course, your sister Phena resonated with words thus her flames' strength lies in her call; Older Brother Prima can become lightning through his desire to be untouchable; your Eldest Sisters Fae and Rith simply wish to take a walk that you can all follow; thus, their every step creates a path for you to take with them.'

Chun turned Lixus to her, and touched her forehead with hers, 'Follow your heart my son and you will not be lost, why not tell mother what is it that you want?'

'I want to…'

"…a Guardian." Lixus snapped out of his trip down memory lane. He thought that his existence was about to be erased, but as he regained himself, he was reminded of his path. 

Lixus looked up as he growled and saw the man that brought him to a sorry sight. Lixus felt ashamed, his pride crushed to bits. But that didn't matter to the true sin of the man named Wang Ling. This man, dare lay his hands on his sister, hurting her.

With all that, Lixus summoned every bit of his heart blood. It seeped into his white fur staining it red. Lixus' breathing gathered to ease the pain and as blood escaped his mouth, Lixus' entire being turned crimson like the Goddess of Beast's form when she faced Bai Xue. 

What was Lixus' desire? Simple, it was to protect his siblings and act as the spear of his mother. He would destroy everything on his path, and turn the whole Universe upside down to hunt those that dare.

His gift resonated with his rage, his blood boiled, and then, an ephemeral glow of red extended from his claws. 

The Ancestral White Tiger unleashed the primordial force that led to the freezing of the Universe in the first war against the Origin Race. Wang Ling's skin was cut just as it grazed him.

The All-Father did not react, he only allowed the wound to heal naturally. With uninterested eyes, Wang Ling sported a mysterious smile, "…you can't win anymore." He said, but Lixus did not stop.

"Shut up!"

His eyes bled but that only empowered him some more.

Slash!

His fur was now like sharp swords even when they flowed like silk.

With an enraged Ancestor by his foot, Wang Ling silently at him, his expression passive. His mind was in a state of absolute tranquility in the midst of the chaos that surrounded him. His eyes shone ever brighter, "Stop, I have gotten what I need. There is no longer a need to fight. Doing this is going to be nothing but a waste."

Only a growl was given as a response. 

A flurry of blows shoot towards Wang Ling, and every single one of them missing by only a few millimeters. It was at this time that… Wang Ling noticed what Lixus was doing. 

'So that's how it is.' 

With his rage-filled eyes, Lixus smirked as nigh invisible strands of crimson fur had been set up around Wang Ling. 

Fwu! 

Hundreds of furs shot towards Wang Ling and pierced his flesh.

A primal scream echoed as Lixus turned the space around Wang Ling into a dome of ice with the only opening being to small for Wang Ling to take.

Space itself was frozen, Wang Ling can't just leave as he like.

There was no place for him to escape to.

Lixus moved his claws and the remaining strands all joined to create a giant spear.

And with a single command, it rushed towards Wang Ling!

"NO!" Naor shouted, alarmed by what he saw. 

The strands of hair had pierced Wang Ling's flesh, now that they became one, the only thing it could not do would be to fail! Wang Ling knew this, and the onlookers as well.

And there was no window for Wang Ling to take.

"It's over." Bai Xue from her space said.

"What? Then, Xue'er, please, go and save Ling'er!" Xiao Fei'er pleaded to Bai Xue.

"BROTHER!" Wang Yue was just about to come running to her brother, when Bai Xue's tail wrapped around her ankle, "Unhand me, Sister-in-Law! You said Older isn't fit to fight yet and he's about to be seriously hurt, if not die. I… I can't have that happen again."

"Settle down, you'll only hurt yourself trying to break free from this space. Besides, what gave you the idea that Wang Ling will lose? He got enlightened just now…"

As those words were told, a black blaze devoured the ice creating a tower around him. 

"I already allowed you to hit me once as penance." The tower receded to his palms and then Wang Ling clapped, "Incinerate."

And through it one action alone, Wang Ling rendered space itself creating a path leading to Hell. A rift the 30 meters opened; it was utter darkness but it was searing.

If that, was it, then, it would be useless, but beyond the rift, the darkness quaked and what happened next had Lixus return to sanity.

His eyes widened from shock because from beyond the giant rift, a red-eye looked him down. Fer's giant eye looked at him like a mere bug and then Wang Ling's voice echoed, "Do you give up?"

Lixus… the Ancestor of the White Tigers failed to give an answer.

He was intimidated.