Chapter 2 — "The Awakening of the Tiger Pulse"
Greyhaven's morning haze lingered in the alleyways, casting a pale gold over the streets. The city felt different to Mikael Grey. Everything looked sharper, clearer. Even the distant shouts of merchants seemed… slower, almost deliberate, as if the world itself had slowed to match his heartbeat.
He flexed his fingers and felt the residual energy from the phantom tiger. It throbbed like a drumbeat beneath his skin.
"What… was that?" he whispered, his voice low and uncertain.
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1. The Girl from the Alley
The girl from the alley ran alongside him. She clutched his sleeve, still shaking.
"I—I don't know your name!" she stammered.
"Mikael… Grey," he said automatically, surprised by how natural it felt. His name, his identity, felt like it had been waiting for him all along.
"I'm Lianhua," she said softly, bowing her head. Her eyes flicked to his chest, where the faint outline of the White Tiger Pulse shimmered beneath his skin.
Mikael froze. How could she see it?
Lianhua looked up, meeting his eyes with strange calmness. "I don't understand it… but I feel it. Something powerful… like a tiger's spirit. It's… familiar."
Mikael's chest tightened. There was something in her voice that stirred a memory he couldn't place. Yet it felt… right.
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2. The First Rival Appears
Before Mikael could ask more, a disturbance rippled through the street.
A tall, sharp-featured boy in noble clothes stepped forward. His eyes glinted with arrogance.
"Hmm… what do we have here?" the boy said, voice smooth, poisonous. "A street urchin who fancies himself a hero?"
Mikael's instincts screamed. The boy radiated a threat—a subtle pressure that made his skin crawl.
Lianhua stepped closer. "He's… dangerous. Be careful."
Mikael nodded. His body already remembered the lessons of the alley. The phantom tiger stirred inside him, ready to awaken again.
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3. The Tiger Pulse Test
The noble boy lunged, but Mikael's body moved first—faster than the eye could follow. His fist struck the boy's chest, sending him staggering back. Not hard enough to kill… but enough to leave a mark.
The boy's face twisted with disbelief. "Impossible…!"
Mikael felt his pulse—the Tiger Pulse—surge stronger. A warm, tingling aura enveloped his limbs. His senses sharpened. He could see the boy's heartbeat, predict his movements before he even thought of them.
It was exhilarating… and terrifying.
He realized, this was the beginning of his cultivation.
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4. A Mentor's Shadow
As the boy fled, a shadow detached itself from a nearby rooftop. An older man, cloaked and observing, disappeared before Mikael could react.
Mikael's senses tingled. The phantom tiger growled softly in his chest. This man was… not ordinary.
Lianhua noticed. "He's… watching us."
Mikael frowned. "Then we have enemies already. I don't even know what's happening…"
The tiger pulse throbbed stronger. He didn't know it yet, but the world was testing him. Every encounter, every threat, would awaken more of his latent power.
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5. The First Step of Cultivation
Mikael Grey realized he needed to understand what had happened in the alley.
He returned to his small home—if one could call it that. A tiny room stacked with scraps of herbs and old books. He touched the mortar and pestle. His hands tingled.
He closed his eyes. Focused. Breathed.
The tiger is inside me… I can feel it. Not just in my body… in my mind… my instincts…
Hours passed, yet Mikael barely noticed. He was consumed by the Tiger Pulse and the faint memories it brought—visions of swords, roaring beasts, battles against impossible odds, betrayal, and a vow of vengeance.
When he finally opened his eyes, he felt… different. Stronger. Sharper.
The first stage of his cultivation had begun.
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6. Destiny's Whisper
That night, as Greyhaven slept under a blanket of stars, Mikael Grey stood on the rooftop, looking at the moonlit city.
The phantom tiger appeared once more, eyes glowing like molten silver.
"Your path is long," it said. "Enemies, allies, gods… all will come. But you are the White Tiger. The world will bend before your roar. Begin."
Mikael clenched his fists. The warmth of the Tiger Pulse filled his body. He didn't fully understand the force inside him, or the dangers that awaited.
But one truth burned in his soul:
He would not fail. Not this time.
The journey of Mikael Grey—the future Great Tiger General—had officially begun.