32. The White Tiger Clan

"What a failure! Truly useless!" Yun Tianye sat on the edge of a magnificent, oversized bed. He was a tall man with sharp, elegant features, sword-like brows, and star-bright eyes. He wore a light, flowing robe that gave him an air of effortless grace.

He looked at the holographic device in his hand, first with surprise, then with an annoyed curse. He turned his head to look at the person lying on the bed, his brows furrowing deeply.

In his hand, he held a Nine-Branched Blood Lotus Fruit, intending to extract its juice to feed to Yun Han. Feeling irritable, he tossed the fruit aside; it struck a small, fluffy white creature sleeping in the corner.

"Awoo..." The small creature let out a soft cry. It lifted its head to look at Yun Tianye, then trotted over, leaped lightly onto the large bed, nudged the motionless figure with its head, and burrowed under his arm to continue sleeping.

Yun Tianye watched the white tiger, no larger than a cat, and clutched his chest in agony, unable to suppress his heartache.

"Tianye, what’s wrong?" Zhu Hongying, dressed in crimson, walked in from outside. Seeing his reaction, she took his hand, looking at him with deep concern.

"I’m fine, Hongying. Why are you here?" Yun Tianye offered a faint smile and subtly pulled his hand away from hers.

"With Yun Han in this state, how could I be at ease?" Zhu Hongying, a woman of exquisite and striking beauty, frowned, her expression clouded with worry.

"Since the Mainframe has matched Xiao Han with a bond-partner who has the potential to break through B-rank, why don't we bring her here? With the resources we can provide, we might be able to push her to A-rank, or even S-rank. If that happens, Xiao Han might be saved!" she urged.

The Yun and Zhu families were two of the four great divine clans of the Federation, top-tier noble houses. Zhu Hongying hailed from the Vermilion Bird clan, and Yun Tianye from the White Tiger clan. Yun Han was their son; the family totem of the Zhu clan was the divine Vermilion Bird, and the Yun clan’s was the divine White Tiger. The companion spirit Yun Han awakened was the divine White Tiger itself.

In truth, even among the four great families—Vermilion Bird, Azure Dragon, White Tiger, and Black Tortoise—not everyone could awaken a totem beast. Each generation saw at most two or three such individuals, which was why Yun Han had been chosen as one of the heirs to the Yun family.

A year ago, a wormhole crisis erupted in the Central Star Sector. A massive number of high-level exotic beasts appeared on the battlefield. Yun Han, then the commander of the Federation’s Sky Might Legion, held the front lines for three months. He resolved the crisis, but due to the excessive use of his abilities, he triggered a mental sea riot. After returning to the Seven-Star Sacred Mountain, they had invited the most skilled mental resonance doctors in the Federation, but to no avail. As his mental sea hovered on the brink of an uncontrollable collapse, his body initiated a self-preservation mechanism, sealing it off. However, his already injured ability-body was expelled, unable to return to his physical form. Without the nourishment of the host, his ability-body—the white tiger—had grown weaker day by day, eventually regressing into a cub.

"How is that possible? Hongying, we’ve meticulously nurtured so many candidates over the years, and none of them could open Yun Han’s mental sea. A low-bloodline girl from a trash planet—even if we forced her to S-rank, what would be the point?" Yun Tianye was an SSS-rank mental powerhouse with a noble bloodline; naturally, he looked down on Ning Xuan.

From birth, Yun Han had awakened his mental power, and by the age of one, he had awakened his companion white tiger. Since then, Yun Tianye had been selecting candidates for his son’s bond. The candidates couldn't have low bloodlines, their talent couldn't be lacking, and they were ideally from the four top clans. In short, only the most exceptional women were worthy of his son.

"But with Xiao Han’s mental sea sealed, his companion spirit won't last much longer. And that Ning Xuan... her compatibility with Xiao Han is so high..." Zhu Hongying still wanted to convince him to let Ning Xuan try.

"Hongying, stop. I’ve seen all of Ning Xuan’s files: an ordinary bloodline, awakened her mental power only a month ago, companion spirit unawakened. How could such poor talent save Yun Han?" Yun Tianye said impatiently. As Yun Han’s guardian, he had taken control of all his affairs.

"We’ve tried everything, and nothing has worked. We can’t just watch Yun Han fade away in his sleep, can we?" Zhu Hongying couldn't understand his hesitation. If they didn't know if it would work, they had to at least try.

"The saintess of the Azure Dragon clan, Hua Guguang, reached S-rank controller status three days ago. I intend to ask her to try," Yun Tianye revealed his plan. This was the very reason he was so eager to get rid of Ning Xuan. If he wanted to invite Hua Guguang, the Azure Dragon clan would certainly investigate Yun Han’s personal information. If they knew he was already matched by the Mainframe, they would never agree. But if Ning Xuan were dead, the so-called forced contract would naturally cease to exist.

"Yun Han once said he would never enter a bond with a woman from the divine clans!" Zhu Hongying’s brow twitched.

"The most important thing now is to preserve his life. Yun Han never imagined he would one day fall into such a dangerous position." Although Zhu Hongying was the bond-partner, in their relationship, Yun Tianye was the dominant one.

"Tianye, think it over again."

"Letting Hua Guguang try is fine. If she can open his mental sea and establish a mental link, the original unlinked contract will automatically terminate. But do not harm Ning Xuan. Yun Han has been in a coma for over half a year, and many are eyeing the Yun family in the shadows. If we are caught in a scandal, we will be in an even more passive position." Zhu Hongying knew Yun Tianye well; she was unaware that he had already sent assassins.

"What if the Hua family finds out about Ning Xuan’s existence and refuses to try?" Yun Tianye asked hesitantly.

"Yun Han’s overall combat strength is ranked in the top ten of the entire Federation. His bloodline, talent, and aptitude are all top-tier. Why would she refuse to try?"

"Actually, you know deep down. The Hua family doesn't care about whether Yun Han has a contract; they care about the *type* of contract! Hua Guguang already has seven bond-partners. She would only accept a common contract; she would never allow Yun Han to enjoy any special rights." Zhu Hongying’s words struck home, shattering Yun Tianye’s composure.

"Hongying, do you regret the mutual-bond contract we signed back then?" Yun Tianye asked coldly.

A mutual-bond contract meant the bond-partner gave up their dominant status and could not enter into contracts with anyone else.

Zhu Hongying looked at him in silence for a long time, then sighed. "We are discussing Yun Han’s problem."

"I know. Hua Guguang cannot sign a mutual-bond contract with Yun Han. I won't force it."

"Tianye, if Hua Guguang demands that Yun Han relinquish his status as the family heir and live in the Hua household like an ordinary bond-partner, would you agree to that as well?"