Chapter 30: The Pact is Sealed, It is the White Tiger King's General Qi

The Heaven-Earth Covenant is established by the soul. Once formed, it is governed by the laws of heaven and earth; those who violate it shall be abandoned by the world and put to death.

Lang Jiuchuan’s proposal took the White Tiger completely by surprise. It scrutinized her for a long while, remaining silent. To casually suggest a contract as soul-shattering as the Heaven-Earth Covenant—how deep must this woman’s mind truly be?

Or perhaps not. Had she suffered some monstrous betrayal to be so guarded and defensive?

Lang Jiuchuan looked over and said, “Only by establishing this covenant can you and I possibly share a body. Otherwise, it will be a fight to the death.”

The White Tiger hesitated for a moment. “Very well, let us establish the covenant. However, I shall be the one to recite it.”

It did not trust her, and she felt the same.

“Fine, you recite it,” Lang Jiuchuan said, her expression betraying no hidden agenda.

It was too smooth.

The White Tiger felt as if it had fallen into a trap, though it could not pinpoint what was wrong. It knew of the Heaven-Earth Covenant; its spiritual consciousness was its soul, identical to the other’s divine soul. To establish it, one naturally had to bind that consciousness to the pact.

Just as Lang Jiuchuan had said, the White Tiger recited the vows while she wrote them down using the innate talisman brush in her hand. The White Tiger had initially raised an objection, but it fell silent upon realizing the brush was the Arbiter’s Pen.

The Arbiter’s Pen is the very embodiment of fairness.

“The Heavens above, witness to all spirits, I hereby declare this vow... those who violate this pact shall be put to death. Thus, this Heaven-Earth Covenant is established, reaching the nine heavens.” As the White Tiger recited, it watched the brush in Lang Jiuchuan’s hand writing in the air. With each stroke, their divine souls became imprinted upon the characters, transforming into golden light that vanished into the void—a sign that the contract was nearing completion.

When it finished, their names stood side by side. The human and the tiger exchanged a glance, each projecting a strand of soul-consciousness forward.

Violet-gold light erupted, and thunder roared. Many in the capital were startled by the clap of thunder; it was the second time thunder had occurred in the middle of winter. Was this a sign of impending disaster?

After the thunder faded, the two names vanished between heaven and earth. Both the human and the tiger felt an instant connection—the bond formed by the covenant.

It had actually gone this smoothly.

Jiang Che was astonished. Lang Jiuchuan had previously been willing to die or suffer mutual destruction rather than allow it to share her body, yet now, at the mere mention of a Heaven-Earth Covenant, she had agreed instantly.

Regardless, a turning point had arrived. Could it enter now?

“Woman, here I come.” Jiang Che rushed eagerly back toward Lang Jiuchuan’s spiritual platform.

Lang Jiuchuan lowered her eyes, a cryptic expression playing on her lips. A covenant established by a Lang Jiuchuan with an incomplete soul, she thought—heh.

She had prepared herself, but when Jiang Che entered and took root in her spiritual platform, she still instinctively braced for impact.

One body, two souls—whoever takes the lead is the master!

She intended to be the one in control, but Jiang Che had the same idea, leading to a struggle for dominance and fragmentation within the spiritual platform.

Lang Jiuchuan’s defenses were formidable. To secure a foothold, Jiang Che was forced to expend its powerful willpower to seize space. Neither would yield, and the result was a new round of life-or-death confrontation.

“The contract is already established, so let go!” Jiang Che gritted its teeth. “Do you want to get struck by lightning?”

Lang Jiuchuan replied, “Stay honestly in a corner and don’t try any tricks, or soul rejection will be inevitable.”

Jiang Che: “!”

This was truly the most aggrieved shared existence in history.

Fine. If one cannot tolerate the small, one spoils the great plan. It would establish its roots first, and settle the score with her later.

With that thought, it retreated to a corner and curled into a small ball. It settled in instantly and began spinning happily, failing to notice Lang Jiuchuan’s profound, knowing smile.

Such a foolish big cat. Once you take one step back, you will be forced back at every turn. The first lesson I shall teach you is the malice of the human heart.

Jiang Che did not understand the malice of the human heart, but it genuinely felt the benefits of entering this body. Having established a connection with Lang Jiuchuan, it could feel her fortune, and its own spiritual consciousness grew solid, as if nourished by a grand tonic.

Once it relaxed, it could not restrain itself. The willpower it held dispersed, causing the entire spiritual platform to glow with a pale golden light, which Lang Jiuchuan’s soul greedily absorbed.

They complemented each other.

Jiang Che had not lied about that. With the covenant established and the bond formed, they were like a cycle: its willpower nourished her, and her fortune bolstered it—a mutually beneficial relationship.

However, once fed and warm, one begins to harbor base desires; humans have this flaw, and so do tigers.

As soon as the tiger felt better, it wanted to pry into others' secrets.

Lang Jiuchuan snapped her eyes open, a flash of ruthlessness in her gaze. Her mental energy transformed into ice blades and struck at Jiang Che.

Jiang Che let out a yelp and leapt out, fuming. “What are you doing? Are you trying to break the contract?”

“Do you know the saying? Curiosity killed the cat. You, a cat, trying to probe my soul—do you wish to die?” Lang Jiuchuan said coldly.

Jiang Che’s eyes darted away, and it stammered, trying to defend itself: “That’s not it, it was all a misunderstanding.”

“We share a body, and that is all. I won’t mess with you, and don’t you dare cross my bottom line. Otherwise, breaking the contract won’t be difficult at all.”

Tsk, tsk, how arrogant.

Seeing her haughty demeanor, Jiang Che scratched its nose and said sheepishly, “Understood. What is with that aggressive talk, ‘messing with me’ and such?”

Lang Jiuchuan snorted, rubbed her fingertips together, and asked, “Is this your true form?”

Hmm?

Jiang Che looked down at itself. Its spiritual consciousness, which had previously been as ephemeral as white mist, could now fully manifest as a tiger, just as it had been before.

It was massive, with pure white fur, save for a tuft of golden hair on its forehead forming the character for “King.” When its golden tiger eyes stared at someone, they were filled with aggression and intimidation.

When silent, it truly looked majestic, possessing the imposing air of a king.

“How about it? Very majestic, right? I am the most fierce, grand, and powerful White Tiger in the entire Taibai Mountain. I am the king of tigers. Countless tigresses have been lost to my majesty, wanting to bear my cubs.” Jiang Che struck a particularly imposing and extraordinary pose.

Lang Jiuchuan looked at that thick, fluffy fur and asked, “Why are you called Jiang Che?”

Jiang Che replied, “Our White Tiger clan were divine beasts in ancient times and natural gods of war. My ancestors included the god of war, Jiang Zhan, who possessed immense divine power...”

“Pity you lack your ancestor’s grace, being nothing more than a spirit that lost its physical body and relies on sharing a host to survive.”

Jiang Che was mercilessly interrupted, its white fur standing on end in rage. Its tiger eyes widened, and a wave of murderous aura surged forth.

Lang Jiuchuan’s eyes brightened, her fingertips itching to move. But seeing the creature’s massive size, she frowned and said, “This room isn’t large, and you’re blocking my view. Shrink down; the size of a cat will do.”

“I am the White Tiger King! I will be a divine beast sooner or later, not a cat!”

Lang Jiuchuan walked over, swiftly plucked a bit of the soft white fur it had manifested, and said, “Alright, Little White.”

Jiang Che: “?”

Little White? Who?

No, she was stubbornly insisting on calling it a cat and giving it such a weak name. Could she actually think of it as a harmless little white cat that only knew how to wag its tail for its master?

How infuriating!

Just as Jiang Che was about to let out a roar, Lang Jiuchuan swiftly hooked it, causing it to vanish back into the spiritual platform.

“Don’t attract attention.”

No sooner had she spoken than a knock sounded at the door, and Jian Lan’s voice drifted in from outside: “Miss, the Second Mistress requests your presence.”