《Chronicles Of Zaria - Book 1: Dawn Of Akaal》


 Chapter 1: The day of the Birth

    Chapter 1 : The day of the Birth


    In the remote northeastern corner of the Raktdhara kingdom there was a small province called Purvottar having several small towns. On a hill outside a town called Laghu a shepherd was tending to his herd of sheep when suddenly he heard someone shouting from afar.


    ¡°Uncle Parse! Uncle Parse!....¡±


    The shepherd turned around and saw someone running towards him and waving hands while calling his name aloud. It was a boy of around twelve years of age. The shepherd hurriedly gathered all the sheep and went to the boy.


    ¡°Hira my boy, Is it time?¡± he asked in a worried tone.


    Hira shook his head and said with a coy smile, ¡°Uncle Parse! I see you can¡¯t wait to see your child come out in this world. You probably won¡¯t even take me out-of-town anymore after today. Sigh..¡±


    ¡°You and your glib tongue!¡± the shepherd took out a copper coin and tossed it to the boy.


    The boy immediately pocketed the coin and said with pleasure while waving both his hands merrily, ¡°Uncle Parse is the best! Oh yeah, Grandmother told me that it will most probably happen within next three hours. You should hurry. I¡¯ll tend to the herd.¡±


    When he heard this the shepherd grew even more anxious and hurried to his way home.


    The whole journey to home was filled with worry and anxiety for the shepherd. He kept remembering their first child who passed away soon after being born for unknown reasons. No medicine saint even in the nearby towns could diagnose the problem as his child kept sweating profusely and his body was unable to hold water, in the end he succumbed to internal injuries. His wife was devastated and depressed for a long time.


    After that they were never blessed with another child. Slowly, but surely their family was getting torn apart day after day. Until one day, three years later, they heard about an old wandering hermit who appeared in a nearby town. The hermit appeared in several neighboring towns all of a sudden and performed many miraculous feats, cured many incurable diseases and helped people get rid of past karma. His reputation spread like wildfire but not anyone could seek his wisdom.


    According to rumors he did not appear before those who sought him, he only appeared before those who were sought by fate itself.


    The shepherd and his wife decided to visit the hermit as they wanted some kind of closure and thought maybe the hermit could guide them through.


    The hermit was staying in the adjoining forest which most townspeople avoided as there were many ferocious beasts residing in it. Those who wanted to meet the hermit and try their luck had to hire professional huntsmen which had become a booming business in the towns around the forest thanks to the hermit. The couple led a very humble life and hence did not possess such means so they decided to venture into the forest by themselves. They decided that if it became dangerous they would immediately return. Even though it seemed that their family was falling apart deep down they cared a lot about each other and did not wish to see any harm befall the other.


    They entered the forest at day break as it gets more dangerous at night. As they went deeper in the forest they encountered several beasts but surprisingly those beasts did not attack them. It rather felt like the beasts were specifically ordered not to do so.


    ¡°What is going on here?¡± The shepherd asked his wife.


    ¡°I think the rumors are true. Only the fated ones can come here.¡±


    This was the only explanation she could think of. The shepherd also seemed to agree with her. It had started to get dark but they kept on going deeper.This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it


    After a while they came across a pond. The water in the pond was crystal clear, it reflected the starry sky and looked like the stars were floating in front of them. It was magnificent to say the least. While they were dazed a sound rang.


    Dringg¡­.


    It was a very melodious sound. They looked in the direction from which it came. There was an old man with long white hair and a long white beard playing an instrument which looked like a sitar. He adorned white clothes which were devoid of even a single speck of dust even though he was sitting on the ground with his eyes closed. He looked otherworldly.


    Dringgg¡­


    The old man kept playing for another fifteen breaths of time. The couple didn''t say a word during the whole time. It felt like it would be sacrilege to do so. At this point the old man opened his eyes. His eyes gave others a feeling of profundity that could not be described with words. He slowly stood up and turned his back to the couple and said in a very low tone.


    ¡°I see that you believe that your child has passed on from this world. Do not be disillusioned by the mundane. The time for your child was not ripe to be. Dip in this pond for the next three full moons and cast away all your previous resentments.¡±


    As he spoke these words, he started moving away deeper in the forest. The couple could see his figure fading in the darkness. When they could no longer see him, a lingering voice echoed, "But be warned if what you desire comes true than a catastrophe will ensue and the price it will take is not something you can shoulder. At that time you will have to make a choice.¡±


    The couple finally came to their senses and looked at each other. They did not utter a single word for a long time even after the hermit was gone but after taking in what had just happened they could see determination in each other¡¯s eyes.


    They did what the hermit had said and the morning following the third full moon they discovered they were blessed by the heavens again as the wife realized she was pregnant. They were both overjoyed by this. However, they realized that their child was going to be born with some special destiny which will bring forth a catastrophe. Still they were determined to give birth to the child no matter the consequences and so they decided to keep what the hermit had said a secret for the rest of their lives. The hermit also never appeared again after that night at the pond.


    Finally it was the day when the child was going to be born!


    In another part of the world


    Naagkul is the capital and the most prosperous city of Raktdhara kingdom. It is said that there used to be five rivers that flowed throughout the Raktdhara kingdom in the ancient time. The water in the rivers was red as blood thus the name Raktdhara (Blood River) came to be. It is believed that a serpent was born from these five rivers and the blood which flowed through its veins had the same source as the rivers. Some others say the rivers came from the serpent itself and thus regarded the serpent as their deity. People of Naagkul worship this deity as  ¡®Akaal Naag¡¯ which literally meant serpent of eternity. They believe that the serpent still resides under the land of Naagkul and protects it eternally. It is also said that the royal lineage of Raktdhara kingdom is the descendant of the serpent itself.


    In the centre of the city, stood the majestic royal palace which pierced the skies itself. The outer structure of the palace looked like as if a coiled giant nine headed serpent was protecting it, looking in every direction, watching over everything in the city.


    In the centre of the palace was the main hall. The walls of the hall looked like an open mouth of a serpent in the middle of which stood a throne made of snake hide. A man was sitting on the throne. He looked majestic.


    ¡°Your Highness! The ancestral temple keeps trembling. I am afraid something major is going to happen soon. We will have to make a blood sacrifice or else I believe a disaster will befall upon the city.¡±


    A wizened old man standing in front of the throne said.


    The King nodded and said, ¡°My blood keeps throbbing. Something ominous is about to happen. I leave the preparations to the hall of elders. I think..¡± at this point the King hesitated for a brief moment before continuing, ¡°I think Akaal Naag is restless for some reason.¡±


    The old man was stupefied when he heard this, ¡°Does this mean the immortals will soon emerge!¡± He said with a trembling voice.


    The king also seem to be pondering the same thing, ¡°I hope it''s not the case,¡± after thinking for a moment he continued, ¡°Elder relay my orders, prepare for evacuation at any moment. Close the city gates. Lead the citizens to bunkers and order all royals to gather at the ancestral temple.¡±


    The old man wore a stiff expression when he heard this. He did not think the situation was so bad. He immediately bid his farewell and arranged the things the king demanded.


    Soon the whole palace went in an uproar.

 Chapter 2: A cry that pierced the sky

    Chapter 2 : A cry that pierced the sky


    The shepherd was immersed in his thoughts when he saw the town in the distance. He shook all the thoughts and sped up. He soon arrived at the town gate. There were people all over the streets as they were coming back from their respective work . At this point, the sky was starting to get overcast.


    ¡°It¡¯s going to pour down heavily it seems.¡± someone in the crowd said.


    ¡°I wonder if I have enough firewood for the night.¡±


    ¡°Though it¡¯s strange. We generally don¡¯t have rainy days in this season.¡±


    The shepherd looked at the sky momentarily then hurried to his home while hearing all kinds of talks around town. He came across a small thatched hut and entered it. There was an elderly woman sitting next to the bed on which his wife was laying. His wife looked anxious.


    ¡°Daiji, is everything alright?¡± The shepherd asked the elderly woman.


    The elderly woman had a stern visage as she said, ¡±Everything is fine. It¡¯s just that the child seem to be oddly vigorous. Her blood pressure is high but she seems fine otherwise. It¡¯s strange¡±


    The shepherd looked towards his wife. She looked at him gently as well and said, ¡±It¡¯s going to be alright.¡±


    The shepherd seemed to sense something from her words and exhaled in relief. Though he remained vigilant as he thought of the hermit¡¯s words.


    Time flew by slowly. The weather was taking a turn for the worst. Everyone in the town hurried home. Soon the streets were empty. A storm was brewing.


    Whoosh¡­. Whoosh¡­.


    Strong winds started blowing. Curtains were fluttering unceasingly. It got dark real soon.


    ----


    Just outside the town gate someone looked at the sky and said, ¡°What in the heavens is going on? Ishtar - Venus -  is shining upon this town. Ishtar disappears in the underworld for eight days then return in the eastern sky as the Lord of the Dawn. But why is the sky acting so ominous.¡±


    It was a tall middle-aged looking man with a handsome face. He wore a cinnamon colored priest garb and had a sacred thread tied diagonally to his torso. He was very muscular and was holding a nine feet long bamboo stick. After some consideration he entered the town and found an empty barn. He sat there cross-legged in a meditative posture and started chanting a mantra.


    The shepherd was looking outside the window when he heard a painful scream from behind.


    ¡°Aarghhhh¡­¡­!¡±


    He could not see his wife behind the curtains but knew the delivery was complicated. He waited with a bated breath.


    Finally the screams stopped. He rushed in and saw the elderly woman holding the baby. His footsteps stopped he kept looking at the baby. His throat felt dry and his mind went blank for a moment after which he was overjoyed and started moving again. However, at this point his gaze shifted to the elderly woman he felt something was amiss. Even his wife seemed extremely anxious and kept staring at the baby while holding her breath.


    ¡°He is not crying.¡±


    The elderly woman muttered in a very low voice and looked pitifully at the child.


    How...How can this be!


    The shepherd lost all strength in his legs and fell on his knees. His head stooped down. Tears starting welling up in his eyes unceasingly and kept falling down. His heart shattered. He could not even look at his wife at this point. What would be the point anyway.


    Half an hour ago. In Naagkul Palace


    The whole capital was on high alert. Royal guards led group after group of people in underground bunkers within the capital itself. People were told that there might be a possible invasion from the Western Marusthal Ganrajya. At first people did not take the warning seriously as their kingdom and the western desert republic often had skirmishes but there had never been a full-scale invasion from the west so they thought of it as a hoax. But the royal guards starting making announcements in public centres to gather people.


    ¡°Those who choose not to leave can stay but the royal palace will not be held accountable for any subsequent consequences.¡±


    This statement made people realize the gravity of the situation and almost all of the city soon joined the evacuation process. Although some ¡®bravehearts¡¯ still lingered around the city to create chaos but were soon subdued by the guards.


    While this was going on in the city, in the royal palace, in a hidden chamber there were a dozen or so people who were standing in front of the king with serious expressions. They were all members of the royal family.


    ¡°Your Highness! Are we really going to do the blood sacrifice.¡± asked a middle-aged man. He was the son of the current king¡¯s first uncle and was the chief of the military staff.


    ¡°Ripunjay, you possess the purest bloodline just like me. Do you not feel the changes?¡± asked the king instead of replying directly. Though he knew the answer but still wanted to hear it personally.


    ¡°Your Highness! I keep feeling like my whole body is burning and my bloodline keeps throbbing.¡± Ripunjay replied earnestly.


    ¡°Your Highness! Does this signify something?¡± asked Ripunjay as he did not know the mysteries of his bloodline. Only the king himself was imparted with this knowledge at the day of his ascension by the hall of elders.Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    The king looked at all the people present. He exhaled heavily before speaking, ¡°Akaal Naag is restless. He will revive soon. Our bloodline is the only thing that can calm it down. Our ancestors were the guardians tasked with protecting the seal which binds Akaal Naag and puts it in eternal slumber. Something has happened to the seal and the serpent is waking up. Our blood has the power to reinforce the seal.¡±


    When the people present heard this they were dumbfounded for a moment.


    Our ancestors were guardians!


    Isn¡¯t Akaal Naag our guardian deity?


    What in the heavens is going on!


    All sort of thoughts started coming to their minds. After all, they worshipped Akaal Naag as their guardian deity. They could not accept the fact that they were the serpent¡¯s natural nemesis. At this point someone said aloud.


    ¡°Then why have we been worshipping Akaal Naag for generations. Are we not its descendants?¡±


    This was what everyone present wanted to know too. They looked at the king as if desperately waiting for the answer.


    The king felt very conflicted at that moment but continued regardless, ¡°The seal works only when Akaal Naag is offered prayers of worship. It feels itself to be above everything and everyone and has the natural instincts of a ruler. It massacred everywhere it went when it first got sentience thus incurring wrath of our ancestor who sealed it after a bloody battle,¡± the king paused for a moment before saying, ¡°Our ancestor put a blood seal on it and thus his blood was necessary to reinforce the seal if it ever managed to recover its strength again. So our ancestor established this city to offer the serpent prayers for generations to come and left some of his descendants as guardians of the seal after which he left. It is our sole mission and our duty to restrict this bloodthirsty entity to ever wreak havoc on this land again.¡±


    No one knew what to think of anymore. They just stared at each other. Suddenly the ground started shaking. People were unable to find proper footing.


    ¡°This is bad!¡± The king was aghast. Everybody was shaken and started panicking.


    The king shouted, ¡°Everyone come with me immediately!¡±


    He ordered while running towards the altar in the middle of the chamber.


    The altar was in the shape of a coiling serpent which was biting its own tail and there were eighteen vines protruding out from all over the altar which were stuck in the serpents body.


    ¡°Everyone fill the vines with your blood. Hurry!¡± the king commanded everyone as he stepped forward and put his hands on the thickest vine there was. The vine wrapped itself around his arms and pierced through his veins and started sucking his blood.


    When others saw this they were terrified. No one stepped forward. The king turned his head and was taken aback when he saw this.


    ¡°What are you people waiting for! If Akaal Naag revives no one will be able to live anyway. Do you think he will spare those who kept it on a leash for thousands of years. So what if you lost a little bit of blood!¡±


    Everyone was shaken inside and immediately stepped forward.


    But suddenly the earth stopped shaking!


    ¡°Huhh..¡±


    Everything quieted down.


    One could hear sounds of breathing distinctly.


    No one talked.


    Suddenly.


    BOOOOM¡­.


    With a huge bang the earth beneath the capital started cracking. The palace walls crumbled to dust. The nine headed serpent which housed the palace came back to life. Surprisingly the majestic palace itself was the serpent¡¯s body. All the royals could feel the whole ground beat.


    Thump¡­


    Thump¡­


    It was a heartbeat!


    The king¡¯s face became deathly pale. He shouted again, ¡°Everybody listen to me! It is still very weak and cannot stay awake for a long time. We might still make it. Pour your blood in the vines quickly!¡±


    The king bellowed at his fellow clansmen.


    Ripunjay was the first one to move and grabbed a vine. Soon all the royals did the same.


    The serpent was a thousand metres long. It opened its eyes one by one on each of its heads. They were dark green and gave people a gloomy feeling.


    Hissss¡­.


    The serpent hissed once and rose up in the sky. Its body kept coming out of the ground. Suddenly it looked in the northeast and dragged its gigantic body in that direction. Its huge body was extremely fast as it left fissures in the ground and razed everything in its path.


    The king was surprised at this turn of events. However, he felt a little relieved and told the others, ¡°Keep pouring your blood. I don¡¯t know why it went away instead of stopping us but this is our chance. Once the seal is reinforced its soul will be dragged back into the altar! And then It will have no choice but to come guard its soul again.¡±


    ----


    In the distance people of some cities reported sighting of a massive moving mountain. They were baffled by the rumours. The serpent looked like a moving mountain as it sped along.


    Soon it appeared in the northeastern province. Suddenly it stopped and hissed.


    Hisss¡­.


    Its green eyes glowed with an ominous glint.


    The shepherd was still kneeling on the ground. The storm had completely covered the sky and it was raining heavily.


    The priest was still in the barn chanting mantras. He suddenly stopped chanting and opened his eyes abruptly and looked in the sky.


    A light column pierced through the storm from the sky and entered a small hut. After that, the priest heard a shrill cry from the hut.


    This cry felt like it rang through the heavens itself!


    Time itself stopped for a moment and the world around lost all colour before returning to normal.


    Everybody in the town felt their souls tremble!


    They looked out of there houses in the direction of the hut. They did not know what was happening but the cry made their souls shake!


    They were scared!


    The priest was astonished and stood up suddenly.


    In the distance the serpent also saw the light column and heard the cry.


    The cry made it terrified after which its gloomy green eyes exuded murderous intent and it sped in the direction of the cry.


    In the hut, the shepherd felt his soul shake and looked at the baby unblinkingly who had started crying.


    His wife and the elderly woman both were shaken by the cry too.


    The baby kept crying. Its cry made the storm disappear slowly.


    Soon sunlight pierced through the sky.

 Chapter 3: You must remember the name

    Chapter 3: You must remember the name


    The shepherd took the baby in his arms and lifted him in the air as he laughed uproariously.


    ¡°This is my child! Good child!¡±


    He looked at his wife who was also smiling as tears kept rolling down her cheeks.


    She said, ¡°He is Zaria.¡±


    ¡°Zaria! Good name!¡± The shepherd nodded happily.


    Zaria!


    The storm had completely dissipated by now and it became bright outside. Everyone in the town came out of their houses and gathered around the hut.


    They looked intensely towards the small hut.


    They had just witnessed an out of the world phenomenon which they could not make any sense of. First, there was this incomparably heavy off-season rainstorm which looked like it could uproot the whole town. Then, they heard a cry of a child and they felt there souls tremble. They thought of it as something divine and had the urge to prostrate themselves. They felt amazed, suspicious, curious and also fearful.


    The priest had also come out of the barn by this time and was looking at the hut. He was wondering about the phenomenon too and had a certain inkling but could not put his finger on what exactly.


    Has the wheel of fate started moving again.


    He was suspicious but could not confirm his theory.


    However, at this point he felt an extreme blood lust coming from outside the town. Suddenly his body palpitated rapidly. Time seemed to slow down. He turned his head in the direction of the extreme bloodlust.


    What he saw made his mind reel uncontrollably.


    He saw a massive mountain heading extremely fast towards the town. As he narrowed his eyes he was shocked beyond words..


    No it¡¯s not a mountain. It¡¯s...it¡¯s a gigantic serpent!


    When his thoughts get to this point, he felt like thunder has struck his mind as he remembered a name.


    Akaal..Akaal Naag!


    How can it be! Why has it revived!


    No! It is still very weak...


    Suddenly he came to a realization and turned his head towards the hut.


    Could it be...the child¡­


    He no longer thought any further and moved like a flash.


    Whoosh..


    The next moment he was already inside the hut.


    He saw a man laughing merrily as he was lifting a new-born child in the air and two women beside a bed.


    The shepherd¡¯s wife noticed the priest first and was startled as she did not realise someone entering their home.


    ¡°Gurudev¡±


    She slightly lifted her body and put her palms together and bowed slightly as she greeted the priest who came in their home without anyone noticing him.


    When they heard her, the other two looked surprised and turned to see the priest as well but they also greeted the priest in the same way.


    ¡°Gurudev¡±


    The priest raised one of his hands to greet them and looked meaningfully at the child. Then he blessed the child in a voice which reverberated throughout the room.


    ¡°Svasti te c¨¡ntarik?ebhya? p¨¡rthivebhya? ca putraka


    divyebhya? caiva bh¨±tebhyas tath¨¡ toyacar¨¡? ca ye


    ?iv¨¡s te santu panth¨¡no m¨¡ ca te paripanthina?


    ¨¡gat¨¡? ca tath¨¡ putra bhavantv adrohacetasa?¡±


    (May the creatures of sky, earth, and heaven, and those that live in the water, protect you, little boy. May your roads be auspicious, and nothing stand in your path; and let those who encounter you, son, have minds without malice.)Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    The shepherd and his wife bowed again to the priest. They could tell the priest was no ordinary priest through his bearings. They felt very grateful that their child was blessed by such an eminent priest.


    ¡°Gurudev, we are eternally grateful for your blessings. Please let us be at your service in our humble dwelling.¡± The shepherd offered the priest.


    The priest was very conflicted at this moment. After all, he was the harbinger of bad fortune at this moment for them.


    Though, no matter how conflicted he was, his eyes remained absolutely still like water without slightest of ripples.


    He looked at the couple and then at the old woman. When the woman looked into his eyes, her eyes lost lustre as if there was a haze surrounding them. Her senses went blank and she sat there like a statue.


    The priest then said to the couple emotionlessly, ¡°Your child has brought forth great fate along with him in this world. But he will soon bring a catastrophe upon this land too.¡±


    He did not wait for the couple¡¯s reaction and continued, ¡°You have two choices now. First, let me deliver this child¡¯s soul to the underworld so that he may never reincarnate again. If you do that you may avert the catastrophe.¡±


    He paused for a brief moment at this point.


    ¡°Or let me take this child away with me so that he could live past today. But if you choose to do so you will, in all likelihood, perish along with all the people in this town. You should know that these people will resent you even in death and you have to bear their resentment for all of eternity.¡±


    In reality, the priest did not need to give them a choice. He was more than capable enough to take the child away. But he could not do so. Only his parents had the right to make a decision regarding this. He knew if he took the child forcefully, he would sow bad karma and that would surely impede the child in the future even if he took him away right now.


    And so he could only wait for the two to come to a decision of their own.


    He was not sure though.


    What they had to choose was not easy at all.


    On one hand they would be plagued by self guilt of filicide for rest of their lives.


    On the other hand was eternal damnation!


    The priest knew it was a hard decision but when he looked at the couple he was slightly surprised.


    He was surprised because he could see no anxiety or hesitation in their eyes. Their appeared to be no dilemma in their minds. They were unnaturally calm. In fact, they seemed to be relieved somehow.


    The priest could not understand this. Even if they made their decision they should at least have some second thoughts about this situation.


    At this point the shepherd kneeled on the ground and said humbly, ¡°Gurudev, it will be our greatest wish come true if you could save our child.¡±


    The shepherd¡¯s wife also struggled out of her bed and kneeled alongside her husband. It was apparent that both of them were of the same will.


    The priest suddenly felt admiration and lamentation in his heart at the same time. He admired their devotion and love for their child but lamented their fate. He thought to himself.


    These people do not deserve eternal damnation even if the whole world deserved it. Fate is indeed cruel and beyond one¡¯s comprehension no matter how profound one¡¯s knowledge gets.


    He let out a long sigh inwardly as he thought about it.


    At this point, the sky became dark all of a sudden and a voice rang throughout the town.


    ¡°Bring me the child or perish.¡±


    Everyone in the town was stupefied. They were scared out of their wits as the voice resonated in their heads.


    When they turned to look in the sky they saw a gigantic serpent which rose in the air and covered the firmament. It had nine heads and nine pairs of gloomy green eyes. It looked extremely frightening!


    They had just overcome a storm and now suddenly a huge serpent was there, looking down at their town with gloomy green eyes.


    They thought it was doomsday!


    ¡°Have we angered the heavens! Why is this happening?¡±


    ¡°Are we all going to die?¡±


    Everyone in the crowd started shouting while trembling unceasingly. Nobody could keep their calm any longer. Children started to wail loudly. Soon it became a raucous.


    Someone in the crowd stepped forward and prostrated in front of the serpent and said, ¡°Oh great one! Have mercy!¡±


    When people heard him they also imitated the person and kneeled


    ¡°Have mercy!¡±


    ¡°Have mercy, Oh great one!¡±


    Everybody started clamouring. They did not know what was happening. They just wanted to live.


    The serpent scanned through the crowd with its gloomy eyes after which his voice echoed in everyone¡¯s head again.


    ¡°Bring me the child or die.¡±


    Everyone was trembling. They were scared and confused.


    Whose child did the serpent want?


    Suddenly someone remembered the baby cry from earlier.


    ¡°Maybe it is talking about the cry earlier.¡±


    When others heard this they also remembered and looked at the hut again. Some of them even had cold faces.


    In the hut, the shepherd and his wife also heard everything and so did the priest. The couple became deathly pale. The shepherd hurriedly handed the child over to the priest and looked at his wife.


    She was calm but tears kept flowing from her eyes which were fixed on the baby in the priest¡¯s hands. She stood up and walked to the baby. She gently kissed the baby on the forehead and tied a plain red ribbon on the baby¡¯s hand.


    ¡°His name is Zaria.¡± she said to the priest in a very loving voice without lifting her head.


    ¡°You must remember the name.¡±


    The priest looked at the woman and nodded lightly. After which he became a blur and vanished. The couple was startled but soon felt relieved.


    Now they had faith that their child was going to be alright.


    The shepherd came to his wife, hugged her and said with determination, ¡°Let us go outside.¡±


    The wife kept crying in his embrace for a few moments. Then she wiped her tears and nodded firmly. Both of them walked outside hand in hand.


    The priest was already very far but could still hear screams from afar. He did not know what was happening but he could take a sound guess. He didn''t look back and kept putting distance from the town. He knew that the serpent was still very weak and will be sealed again very soon but despite that he remained cautious and kept running for three days and three nights.


    He stopped at the dawn of the fourth day. He scanned the area around and found no traces of pursuit. He found a brook in the forest he was in and relaxed his nerves slightly.


    Finally, he looked at the baby in his arms. The baby also opened its tiny eyes and looked at the priest.


    Zaria!


    ¡°I will remember the name.¡± the priest muttered to himself.


    He stood up and started moving again.


    Twelve years passed in the blink of an eye!

 Chapter 4: Bastard

    Chapter 4: Bastard


    The vast lands of this world were divided into seven geographical areas.


    In the West was the massive arid desert, in the North were the frigid mountains, in the East extended the fertile plains, in the South the marshy lands. Then there was the Southeastern subcontinent, the Eastern-Western frontier lands and the Central plateaus.


    The Raktdhara kingdom and the Western Marusthal Ganrajya both were situated in the Eastern-Western frontier lands. The confluence of the desert and the fertile plains.


    In the cold northern mountains, there was a mountain calledVidyagrah,home of knowledge, which pierced through the clouds.


    On the top of the mountain there was a large pavilion beside a waterfall overlooking a beautiful scenery of endless rolling mountains.


    There was an old priest facing a dozen or so young priests. He was preaching to them.


    ¡°The self you believe that you are is nothing but an illusion. The universe that you perceive and inhabit is but a mere thought. The golden egg preceded everything there is. It thought of a world and so it came to be. It took the form of an all-pervasive consciousness, a universal will. Then it thought of life so it created the primeval waters. The waters incubated a seed. The universal consciousness then blessed this seed. The seed germinated for a year and gave birth to the first being. The being inhaled and the Gods, the Devas and the heavens were formed. The being exhaled and the Asuras, the Demons and the hell were created. The inhalation and the exhalation completes one cycle after which the cycle repeats itself. In each cycle the cosmos are created anew, thrives to the peak, gets destroyed at the end. Existence is but a passing moment...¡±


    The priest was uttering each word slowly and distinctly. Suddenly a young priest raised his hand.


    The old priest was interrupted and looked at the young priest. He was around twelve years of age and had a very average looking face. He had long black hair tied with a plain red ribbon.


    After seeing who it was, the priest frowned a little. But regained his calm almost instantly.


    He spoke in a very unhurried manner, ¡°What is it young Zaria? Is there something that you don¡¯t understand?¡±


    The other young priests also looked at him and started whispering among themselves.


    ¡°It¡¯s the bastard again!¡±


    ¡°Does he think that everyone here has enough free time to listen to his ramblings!¡±


    ¡°If not for the sake of giving respect to the third head priest, he wouldn¡¯t even be allowed in the sanctuary much less a grade three class.¡±


    ¡°Shhh..keep your voice low. Haven¡¯t you heard the rumours. He is most likely third head priest¡¯s¡­¡±


    All sorts of insults and gossips started, aiming at the young priest. But the young priest looked unaffected as if what all was being said had nothing to do with him.


    The old priest shifted his gaze over the others abruptly and everybody became silent.


    At this moment, the young priest stood up in a very casual manner.


    ¡°Gurudev, you said existence is but a passing moment. Then what is the purpose of it in the first place?¡± asked the young priest earnestly.


    The priest thought for a brief moment then replied in a very calm and serene voice, ¡°The purpose is not what is important here. What is important to know is that the existence itself is a fact. We have to accept it one way or the other. Finding its purpose is not something that will change this very fact.¡±Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there.


    All the young priests nodded. Even as they looked down on the other young priest, in the end they appreciated the question he had asked.


    They found the reply given by their teacher enlightening too.


    But the young priest was seemingly not convinced by the answer given by the old priest to his question and asked further, ¡°Gurudev, what is the difference between living and dying, existence and non-existence if there is no purpose to it?¡±


    As the young priest continued his inquisition, even the old priest felt a little annoyed.


    Though he had mastered control over his emotions and not many things could stir his heart and mind, he was not impervious to such thoughts. As such, he felt a little displeased but controlled his emotions nonetheless.


    ¡°Young one, it appears to me that you are unconvinced by the answer given to you. I do not blame you, though. Every person has their own ability to comprehend things. Some people understand things differently than others. While some understand things slower than others. I cannot comment on which type your cognition falls in but I would recommend that you try a little harder. You may find something useful that way.¡± the priest said neither too slow nor too fast.


    ¡°Pu..HAHAHA¡­¡±


    Everyone burst into laughter all of a sudden.


    One had to say the priest was a master of his words. Anyone would be hard pressed not to realise what his words meant. He was simply telling him that he was dim-witted.


    Nobody could restrain their laughter after hearing such words.


    ¡°That bastard really cracks me up!¡±


    ¡°Even teacher had to eloquently tell him the truth.¡±


    ¡°What a joker!¡±


    They kept whispering in a not so low voice while laughing their lungs out.


    ¡°Quiet down,¡± the old priest ordered, though he did not sound very strict.


    The young priest sighed inwardly. It was unclear whether he was ashamed or simply disappointed. He eventually sat down amidst all the raucous.


    The laughter subsided in due course.


    ¡°Alright everyone, I have something to inform you all about,¡± the priest said.


    Everyone was focussed again when they heard the old priest.


    ¡°The annual reshuffling examination will be held in three months from now. This time it will be held for both scholarly and martial divisions at the same time. You can appear for both if you want but I would suggest to focus on just one as there will be a reward for those who rank in top ten in any of the divisions. Additionally, there will be a chance for those who perform well but were unable to be ranked at the top for some reason. They may attract attention from the twelve head priests and may receive tutelage from them personally for a month. As for those in the top twenty from both scholarly and martial divisions combined, they will be accepted as a true shishya of one of the head priests. This is a rare opportunity for you. Don¡¯t waste it.¡±


    When the young priests heard this they just couldn¡¯t sit still from excitement.


    ¡°Is this for real? A true shishya of a head priest!¡±


    ¡°This is my chance to shine!¡±


    ¡°Stop dreaming! Do you think you can compete with those in grade two, much less the grade one elites!¡±


    ¡°Ah! I forgot about them! Still, if anyone is to get tutelage from then for even a month, the benefits would be boundless!¡±


    All kinds of conversations started. These young priests were extremely enthusiastic and determined when they heard of such an opportunity.


    Only the young priest who had raised his hand didn''t reveal any change of expression. He couldn''t be bothered about the news any less. He just kept pondering about his earlier query.


    ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough for today. Go back and start making your preparations for the test. Dismissed.¡±


    The priest sent them back. Everyone descended from the mountain. They kept discussing their plans for the examination among themselves along the way.


    The young priest descended alone. Nobody talked to him. He was used to it, though. He didn''t mind it anyway.


    As soon as he reached the foot of the mountain he heard someone in the distance.


    ¡°Hey! Isn''t it that Bastard!¡±


    Everybody around stopped talking to each other and turned around. When they saw who the person was, they shut their mouths. They appeared to be rather scared of that person.


    However, the young priest didn''t stop his footsteps and acted as if he had heard nothing.


    The one who had just shouted felt incensed when he saw that and bellowed with rage, ¡°You dare ignore me! You bastard!¡±


    The others around were amused at this sudden turn of events. They were happy to see a good show.


    ¡°He ignored senior Utkal. He really doesn''t know what''s good for him.¡±


    ¡°He simply wants to get humiliated. How interesting.¡±


    ¡°I heard this bastard is really close to princess Ruya and senior Utkal is infatuated by her. This idiot is in for it this time.¡±


    ¡°Though, I feel a little pity for him.¡±


    The crowd was rather boisterous.


    When he heard the crowd on how close this bastard was to princess Ruya he became even more livid!


    He made a grabbing motion in the air with one hand and pulled with another hand. A bow and arrow materialized in his hand. It looked both ethereal and exquisite. He released the arrow straight at the young priest.


    The crowd was astonished!


    They didn''t think that the senior will go that far.


    Did he want to really kill him!

 Chapter 5: The Princess and The Coward

    Chapter 5: The Princess and The Coward


    Everyone was taken aback but nobody came to stop him or even warn the young priest.


    The arrow whistled through the air and headed straight for Zaria¡¯s head. It was unstoppable as it left after images in the void.


    Zaria kept walking forward, unconcerned about the commotion behind. He had already sensed the blood lust coming from behind.


    He also knew he was in mortal danger but he was calm nonetheless and didn¡¯t even try to dodge or defend.


    The arrow was just a meter away now.


    Everyone in the crowd held their breaths as they were bewildered by his actions.


    Does he want to die that bad! Why isn¡¯t he trying to even defend himself!


    Now they thought he was dead for sure. Even though they ridiculed him often themselves and disdained him all the same but no one thought that this supposed ¡®bastard¡¯ would meet his maker so soon and in a manner like this. It was just too pitiful.


    Generally speaking, it was prohibited to kill fellow members in the Sanctuary and was considered a capital offense. But everyone knew that this time it would not be the case. As the offender was none other than a true shishya of the second head priest. His position was even higher than most of the teachers in the Sanctuary. He was an elite among elites. All true shishyas were given the best of the resources and were nurtured as the young leaders of the Sanctuary. As such, they would not be implicated even if they committed a few offenses as long as it doesn¡¯t affect the Sanctuary itself.


    The arrow was now only three palm length away from him. Many observers in the crowd let out a sigh in their hearts. Some even turned their heads as they couldn¡¯t bear to watch any longer.


    Senior Utkal had a smirk on his face as he watched Zaria walking away without any sort of guard. In his view that bastard had resigned himself to his fate and couldn¡¯t think straight anymore.


    But as he was feeling quite accomplished about himself, suddenly he could see a flash of light appear from the corner of his eyes which headed straight for Zaria.


    No, it was not headed towards him. It was headed towards the arrow which was only a palm length away from the back of Zaria¡¯s head. But even so the speed of that flash of light was several times greater than the arrow which senior Utkal had shot.


    The flash of light reached the arrow in a blink of an eye and collided with it.


    BOOM¡­.. BOOM¡­..


    Fissures appeared on the ground as rocks shattered with an enormous blast of energy. It was accompanied by a huge dust cloud which spread in every direction because of the massive force of the blast.


    Cough¡­.! Cough¡­.!


    Everything was covered with dust. The crowd didn¡¯t see what happened as everything occurred so fast that their eyes just couldn¡¯t keep track of it.


    ¡°Is he dead?¡±


    ¡°Of course he is dead! Do you think he can survive such an attack. Hell! Do you think YOU can survive this attack?¡±


    The crowd kept speculating about the young priest¡¯s death as they couldn¡¯t see his body under the cover of dust.


    Soon, the dust started to settle and a silhouette appeared before their eyes. He was coughing unceasingly as his face was completely covered with dust and his clothes were torn from several places. However, he was absolutely fine otherwise. The silhouette was of course Zaria and he was completely unharmed!Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.


    ¡°Heavens! He is still alive!¡±


    ¡°How can this be?¡±


    ¡°Don¡¯t tell me its a ghost!¡±


    The crowd couldn¡¯t believe their eyes. Although, they were quite some distance apart from it they could still feel the immense energy of the blast to their very bones. It was enough to turn anyone of them to ashes.It was utterly inconceivable to them how that bastard could come unscathed out of it.


    While they were bewildered by this, senior Utkal had his veins pop out with rage. Even if those around didn''t know what had happened he clearly knew.


    He clearly saw the flash of light strike his arrow and as they collided with each other, both the arrow and the light deflected to either sides of Zaria, completely missing him and struck a bunch of rocks in the distance.


    Someone dared to intervene in his business!


    He was infuriated beyond words!


    ¡°Who dares meddle in my matter! Come out and show yourself!¡±


    While senior Utkal was shouting, Zaria tidied his appearance a bit. After that, he lifted his head and gazed into the distance. A smile was plastered on his face the whole time. He spoke up in a raised voice, ¡°I thought you wouldn¡¯t show up. If you acted any less sooner I might really have died, you know.¡±


    The crowd was utterly confused at this point.


    What happened?


    Did someone else save him?


    Who would go against senior Utkal for him?


    ¡°It is a capital crime to raise arms against fellow members of Sanctuary without official permission and consent from both parties. Does the rules of the Sanctuary not apply to Second Head Priest¡¯s students? I am rather curious.¡±


    A melodious and sweet voice rang from the distance.


    A silhouette appeared in everyone''s line of sight. It was a girl of around thirteen years of age. She had brown long flowing hair casually draped over one of her shoulders. She was tall but had a rather petite figure. She looked exquisite in her red brocade dress which had lotus patterns all over.


    Every individual in the crowd was mesmerized by what they were seeing. For a moment they forgot to breathe.


    ¡°Its..its the princess!¡±


    Someone who was able to break free first muttered. All the others came back to their senses when they heard him.


    ¡°Princess Ruya!¡±


    ¡°Did she save him?¡±


    ¡°Who else could it be!¡±


    ¡°It seems that bas¡­, he would be safe now.¡±


    From the crowd¡¯s reaction it was easy to see that they were quite fearful of this Princess. But they were envious of Zaria too. The mere fact that the Princess shielded him against Senior Utkal was a testimony in itself to their intimacy in their point of view.


    If even they could read between the lines how could Senior Utkal not!


    He was boiling with jealousy so much that his face turned red. He wanted to kill that bastard even more now. How could he not! This was not how it was supposed to be!


    She belongs to me but why does she care about that bastard so much!


    He was visibly unreconciled with the situation at hand but suppressed his anger for the time being and approached the Princess with an amiable smile.


    ¡°Ruya, I see you came out of isolation. Your strength has progressed yet again. My heartfelt congratulations to you.¡±


    He simply ignored the previous commotion that he had caused and struck a casual conversation. He even addressed her quite informally so as to show others that they were on very close terms.


    But the Princess didn''t show him much courtesy and was rather displeased by him addressing her so casually.


    ¡°Senior, I am but a junior and I hope you address me as one in the future. Also, I suggest you provide a reasonable explanation for your actions, otherwise I would be forced to lodge for a disciplinary action against you,¡± she spoke blandly.


    Senior Utkal was frustrated by her attitude but didn''t show it. He smiled and said, ¡°It was only a little spar. I just wanted to test how much he has learned after entering the grade three class. I just wanted to give him some pointers as his senior.¡±


    When those around heard him, they involuntarily rolled their eyes. They were speechless at how this Senior of theirs could spout such gibberish with a straight face.


    Princess Ruya also knew that what he said was complete nonsense but she could not say that to him as she was not a concerned party. She could only look towards Zaria for him to make a protest.


    Not only her, everyone including Senior Utkal shifted their gaze towards him.


    Zaria only looked towards Princess Ruya with a smile and didn''t say anything.


    The crowd sneered at him. They knew Zaria was not pursuing the matter any further.


    Senior Utkal mocked him in his heart.


    What a coward!


    I just don''t know what the Princess see in this coward.


    The Princess also let out a long sigh inwardly.


    Her figure moved and she appeared beside Zaria. She grabbed his hand and both of their bodies flickered and they disappeared.


    Senior Utkal¡¯s face turned extremely ugly when he saw her grabbing his hand and raised his voice as he said, ¡°I hope you remember the arrangement between our families!¡±


    Humph..!


    A cold snort echoed from the distance.


    The crowd looked scared when they saw his face and quickly left the scene too. They didn''t want to stay near a volcano which could erupt at any moment.


    Soon only Senior Utkal was left.


    He muttered in a cold voice, ¡°Sooner or later you will be mine. At that time we will see who would save that little Bastard!¡±


    His figure flickered and he was gone too.

 Chapter 6: The Memory

    Chapter 6: The Memory


    Princess Ruya dragged Zaria from one mountain to other. She was extremely fast. In Fact, she was so fast that Zaria started feeling dizzy. But, in spite of that, he forced himself to stay awake. The wind brushed past his face at incredible speed that his face started to feel numb but he kept his eyes open.


    He wanted to savour each moment of this. He kept staring at her back as she dragged him along.


    He lost track of time.


    Soon, he was lost in thought.


    He started thinking about the time when they were little. At that time, she used to be a cry baby. He was the one who protected her back then when she was bullied by their fellow students. He was the one who started calling her ''Princess¡¯ because she used to throw tantrums just like a real Princess. Others even made fun of her by calling her Princess Crybaby.


    But then, certain rumours about him and Third Head Priest started circulating and others started keeping their distance from him. Even Princess Ruya''s father, a high elder in the Sanctuary, told her strictly to stay away from him.


    People didn''t say anything explicitly at first, as they were afraid of the Third Head Priest. But soon, others of his age started messing with him when no one was around. He often went back home with bruises at several places. In the beginning, he resisted those assaults with his full strength and often others were much more badly hurt than him. Because of this, he never really complained about it, even if those back at home asked about it. He just gave some sort of excuse and simply brushed it off. But the situation changed soon.


    On one particular day, he got into a fight with a group of students. They broke one of his legs but the leader of the group got one of his ear bitten off by little Zaria. When he went home limply, he said that he slipped while playing and thus broke his leg even though he was in extreme pain. The Third Head Priest was away from home on official work and only her wife stayed. Coincidentally, she was also the Tenth Head Priest. Her name was Janki.


    Apparently, their marriage was decided by their families when they were kids. Even after years of marriage, they never had any kids. But one day several years ago, the Third Head Priest brought a newborn child with him on his way back from work in another region. He told Janki that he picked the child from a town where a natural disaster had hit. She didn''t doubt her husband and cared for the child dearly too. But once the rumours spread, she too started having doubts. She tried to inquire about the matter from her husband but he never gave her any more details than what he had told when he first brought the child to their home. As time went on, she started to have different feelings towards the child but she tried her best to suppress those feelings.


    So, when Zaria came with a broken leg, she didn''t really care much about it. But, on the following day, the student who had his ear bitten off by Zaria brought along his parents. It just so happened that he was one of the sons of Second Head Priest. Unfortunately, the Third Head Priest was not at home and the Second Head Priest took advantage of the fact and came heavily on Janki.


    Even though they belonged to the same power group, there was intense internal competition and hidden power struggles.


    The Second Head Priest was always at odds with the Third Head Priest as he was just above him in position and felt somewhat threatened. So, he would naturally not let such an opportunity go when the one involved was his own child. He demanded an explanation from her and started insulting the Third Head Priest and also brought up Zaria''s ¡®dubious¡¯ background. Janki knew what the Second Head Priest''s intentions were. She knew he wanted to humiliate her husband so as to spill dirt on his character. She knew it all! But still, as if being possessed by the devil, she gave vent to all of her own frustrations on Zaria.


    She ordered Zaria to go to the banishing cliff and stand there on one leg for seven days and nights without food and water to reflect upon his mistakes, without listening to his explanation whatsoever. Even the Second Head Priest was taken aback by her cruelty. His son, who had one ear to show now, felt a chill down his spine when he thought about it as he knew best about the leg injury he himself had inflicted upon Zaria, add to that the bone chilling cold of banishing cliff. He found his scalp go numb from the mere thought of such a punishment, though he was delighted inside nonetheless.If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    Zaria had always held Janki in the highest regard. To him, she was the only person that would come to his mind when he closed his eyes and thought about mother. Even though he knew from the start that he was only a foster child. He could never think of doing anything that would hurt his foster parents let alone going against their wishes.


    He worshipped them!


    And so without a second¡¯s delay, he knelt on the ground with his head touching the ground beneath Janki''s feet and setoff limply towards the banishing cliff without any hesitation.


    When she saw his struggling figure go away as he forced himself forward on one leg, dragging the other, she felt her chest tighten. She found it painful to even breathe and her throat started to hurt. But she didn''t say anything, just watched him fade away in the distance.


    This news had already spread to every corner of the Sanctuary by the next morning. Rather, it would be best to say that the Second Head Priest made sure that everyone had heard it by the next day. Although, most of them were indifferent about it. Only Princess Ruya tried to sneak out and check upon Zaria several times but was caught by her father every time, who then put her under house arrest. Even though she had distanced herself from Zaria, it was not because she had listened to her father. Rather she did it for Zaria¡¯s sake as she knew she would only bring more trouble to him. But when she heard what had happened to him this time, she almost cried herself to death. For the first time in her life she cursed herself for being so useless!


    Three days went by without much happening. However, on the fourth day, terrible rains started which didn''t let up for the next three days. At this point, even some elders started worrying as Zaria was still on the banishing cliff. The cold there was already bone chilling but during the terrible rains one could only imagine what it would feel like to a kid who was not even a decade old. It was not that they were worried for Zaria per se. But they knew that if something happened to the boy, the Third Head Priest would certainly flip over the entire Sanctuary upside down, given his temper, and at that point only the Head Priest himself would be able to placate his anger. And if the Head Priest was forced to get involved in this mess, a whole other storm would follow as he would investigate the matter down to the very last person. And so, those people who were involved directly or those who had their younger generation involved in it felt a little panicked. They went as far as to send request letters to the Tenth Head Priest to rescind her command and call back the boy. However, to their surprise, she had gone in isolated training on the very day she had sent Zaria away for his punishment. She probably didn¡¯t even know about the terrible rainstorm.


    Soon the seventh day arrived. The rain had let up by then. Almost every person present in the Sanctuary anxiously waited for something but nothing happened. The night passed by quietly.


    On the eighth day, people were unable to hold themselves still any longer. By the time evening arrived, there was still no sign of Zaria. Some of the elders gathered in front of the Tenth Head Priest''s isolated chambers. Surprisingly, even the Second Head Priest had come. As he was at a senior position than her, only he had the right to call her out of her training.


    When she came out and heard about the events, she went in a daze for a long while. She could not really think straight. When she had given him his punishment she realised very well that it was cruel but somehow she convinced herself that he would not be able to withstand it all the way and would most probably give up after a day or two, after which he would come back home. She thought that she would feel some sort of pleasure in his inability to fulfil her command. This was when she realised her emotions were in disarray and so she went under isolation to settle her emotions.


    But, when she was called out, she realised that she was wrong. She finally remembered all those years when she watched him grow up. She had a sudden realisation!


    When had that child ever disobeyed her?


    Never!


    Her body shook violently as if her soul had left her body. Her face turned white and lost all colour. She rushed towards the cliff without thinking anything else. Those gathered around, including the Second Head Priest followed closely behind.


    They soon arrived on the cliff. What they saw there made their hearts freeze. They felt there bodies shiver slightly unbeknownst to them.


    There was a single boy, with his back towards the crowd. He was standing there in snow on one leg,motionlessly, with the other leg hanging loosely. He was covered entirely with frozen raindrops. He looked like an ice sculpture. His hair had turned white as they reflected the light from the setting sun.


    Janki stood still in her place as she stared at his back blankly. Her heart was pounding like it would burst out at any moment. She gathered some courage and slowly circled him around. She was petrified by what she saw.


    Zaria stood there frozen with the same smile on his face that he always had.


    It''s just that, his eyes had lost all focus and there was no sign of breathing!

 ?Chapter 7: Trials of Strength

    Chapter 7: Trials of Strength


    Janki almost had her heart pop out. Her eyes were quivering nonstop. But she calmed her nerves abruptly, lifted Zaria in her arms gently and rushed towards Mt. Chikitsalaya, home of medicine, at the fastest speed possible.


    Others, that followed her earlier, didn''t go this time. They just sighed in their hearts and wished to avoid the following turmoil.


    Janki brought the frozen Zaria to the infirmary and put him before an old man who was tending to a garden full of herbs. The old medicinal saint looked at him and had a stern visage. He checked his pulse through his wrist and exhaled slightly in relief.


    Fortunately, Zaria was not dead. Merely, his vitals went in cold hibernation. However, it could not be determined how long it would take for the cold energy to completely be released from his body.


    Janki stayed by Zaria¡¯s side for the next four weeks. On one particular day, Zaria¡¯s hand, which Janki was caressing gently, shook slightly. Janki, almost instantly, sat straight like an arrow with her gaze fixed at his face. She was deeply troubled at that moment as she didn''t know how to face this little boy. What would she say to him? She could not think of anything. She just felt agonised! Zaria, with great difficulty focussed his pupils and saw her face. He didn''t know what had happened and his memory was hazy. He just noticed her expression and gathered all his strength to ask in a barely discernible voice.


    ¡°Mother, why do you look so sad? Did..did I do something wrong again?¡±


    After which he lost his focus again and went unconscious. The last thing he felt was something wet fall on his hand which felt very warm.


    When Zaria finally came to, a year had already passed. When he walked out, he realised everything had changed around him!


    He got to know about what had happened shortly after.


    While he had been in comatose, the Third Head Priest had already returned. When he came to know about the events that had occurred, he was enraged beyond everyone¡¯s imagination. Everyone thought that he would admonish the Tenth Head Priest, his wife. However, surprisingly, he just had a small talk with her privately, nobody knew what they talked about but after that he directly went to the Second Head Priest and issued him a challenge to death.


    This turn of events scared those in the Sanctuary out of their wits. They knew very well that if those two fought to death, at least half of the Sanctuary would be destroyed in the aftermath. On top of that, as both of them placed just below the Head Priest himself, they were the pillars of strength on which the Sanctuary relied to maintain their status as the dominant force in the whole Northern Mountains. If they lost any one of them, their overall strength would get greatly diminished. From wherever one saw, the whole situation was a significant loss for the Sanctuary. Thus, the Head Priest had to come out himself to assuage the Third Head Priest''s temper. Everyone took a breath of relief after that as they thought the matter would not take a turn for the worse. However, contrary to their expectations, the Head Priest was even angrier than the Third Head Priest! He ordered a thorough investigation of the matter and promised to deal harshly towards the offenders


    Surprisingly, numerous cases flushed out and many elders and their children were caught in the net. Even Princess Ruya¡¯s father was included. It was interesting to see that all of them were affiliated to the Second Head Priest in one way or the other. However, no one mentioned him explicitly. This distinctly exposed the undercurrents of power in the Sanctuary. All the elders were, indeed, dealt with quite harshly. Their resources were cut by more than half for an indefinite time and some of the more serious offenders were directly demoted. The Second Head Priest disowned his son, who had broken Zaria¡¯s legs, to show his solidarity with the investigation. He had many heirs and true shishyas, who were quite extraordinary, so it didn''t really affect him, anyway. The investigation could not involve him further after that.


    These were all very drastic events that affected everyone in the Sanctuary on some level. But to Zaria, this was not the most important thing. It was another piece of information that made the ground under his feet collapse.


    The Third Head Priest never went back home after that. He settled on a different peak. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!


    His foster parents had separated!


    He felt like thunder had struck his head.


    Remorse! Guilt! Helplessness!


    His whole world had turned upside down while he just laid there and he blamed himself for everything.


    If only I had not resisted!


    If only I wasn¡¯t here!


    This was the only thought that filled his head.


    He made a vow that from then on he would never do anything that could possibly worry or hurt those dear to him.


    ----


    Princess Ruya stopped after some time. Zaria was still looking at her blankly, lost in thought.


    She gave him a side glance and put her flowing hair behind her ear with a finger. She looked mesmerizing like a blooming flower. She inhaled lightly as her chest heaved.


    ¡°Why did you not retaliate? You could have dodged that strike on your own at the very least.¡±


    Her voice rang in Zaria¡¯s ear which woke him up from his stupor. He looked at her and chuckled.


    ¡°With this leg of mine? You must be joking!¡±


    He pointed at his left leg as he said this in a lighthearted tone.


    Princess Ruya¡¯s eyes quivered as she, abruptly, turned her gaze away from him.


    ¡°Does..does it still hurt?¡± She asked meekly.


    Zaria found her reaction to be incredibly adorable and felt warm inside. There weren''t many people in this world that cared about him like this. He shook his head and said, ¡°No it doesn''t. I was just teasing you. I knew you were there so I just didn''t feel any danger at all. If that makes any sense.¡±


    Princess Ruya¡¯s earlobes turned red like an apple when she heard this and she swiftly turned her back to him not wanting to show him her expression.


    He was startled at her reaction.


    She said, ¡°It''s alright. I am capable of protecting you now, anyways. So, if you ever run into trouble just tell me.¡±


    Zaria laughed wryly at this. He sighed in his heart. The Princess who used to cry behind his back all the time was offering him her protection now. He laughed at the irony. It was not like he was too prideful and couldn''t accept such a thing. He knew he had lost precious time while his injury healed. Princess Ruya had already been accepted as a true shishya by Janki when he was in comatose. Janki prohibited her from meeting him until she grew her strength sufficiently. She also accepted it and devoted herself to training. While he recuperated in the meantime, the disparity between them grew wider and wider. Soon, she broke out of her cocoon and dazzled everyone with her strength and beauty alike. She now belonged to a completely different world than him where everyone looked up to her and admired her. He, on the other hand, immersed himself in school of philosophy and thought. As he was determined to not stand out and cause further troubles for those around him, he never really focussed on his strength. This was also the reason why he was in a grade three class which was the lowest grade among all of them.


    However at this point, he could only accept the things as they stood.


    ¡°I appreciate your kindness. But you don''t have to worry about me that much. I will be fine.¡±


    He said passively, ¡°Mother...the Tenth Head Priest will be bothered if you were to keep associating with me any longer. I will go back from here on my own. You should also hurry back.¡±


    After saying this, he turned around to leave. He had not taken even two steps when he heard from behind.


    ¡°My family has decided to betroth me to the one who would stand on the summit of Mt. Yodhha, next year in the Trials of Strength.¡±


    Zaria turned around swiftly, but she was already gone. He stood there motionlessly.


    What...what did she just say?


    Will she be betrothed to someone else?


    Trials of Strength?


    Am I destined to lose all those I care about?


    All sorts of thoughts spun in his head. After a while a light shone in his eyes.


    No...I can''t accept this! Anything but this!


    Trials of Strength!


    He raised his head and looked in the distance.


    I still have one year. One year!


    He turned again and left with determination in his eyes.


    He came back to his living area. Only two people lived there. He didn''t go to his own quarters instead went elsewhere.


    There was a handsome looking middle-aged priest sitting cross-legged under a banyan tree in the courtyard with his eyes closed. When he heard the footsteps he slightly raised his eyebrows and said with his eyes closed, ¡°You need something from this old man?¡±


    Zaria put his palms together and bowed slightly before speaking, ¡°Father, your son wants to participate in the Trials of Strength next year. I wish to seek your guidance.¡±


    When the priest heard this, he half-opened his eyes before closing them again. He smiled strangely as he thought.


    Finally! It¡¯s about time!

 Chapter 8: Journey Begins

    Chapter 8: Journey Begins


    ¡°Father, please guide me!¡± Zaria said again.


    The priest opened his eyes and looked at him sternly before saying, ¡°The Trials of Strength is held every ten years to seek out the most talented and extraordinary young generation from all of the Sanctuary. Those who have the right to participate in it are the elites among elites. They have poured their blood and sweat in their training each and every day for several years now without stopping. Do you think you can compete with them with your meagre strength. In one year what do you hope to achieve? Besides it''s not the end line, rather it''s the starting line. The winners of the trial have a heavy responsibility of representing the Sanctuary in the General Meeting of the Northern Mountains. The whole Sanctuary would depend on them in the future. They have to continuously raise their strengths for that purpose. Can you shoulder this responsibility to the very end?¡±


    He spoke with a very stern voice. His gaze pierced through Zaria¡¯s heart as if it was able to tell apart slightest of hesitation on his part.


    Zaria stood there for a while pondering before saying resolutely, ¡°Father, your son doesn''t know whether he will be able to shoulder this responsibility or be able to have the right to do so in the first place. But, Ruya will be betrothed to someone else if he doesn''t. This he cannot bear. If what it takes to keep those dear to me close by is to shoulder the heavens itself, your son is willing to bear it, let alone a trial or a meet.¡±


    The priest was extremely satisfied by this response. He nodded and said, ¡°Alright, I will teach you. But first, you have to prove yourself worthy. You have to place among the top ten in the coming reshuffling examination in both scholarly and martial divisions on your own devices. If you can''t even do this then forget about Trials of Strength for good.¡±


    As he said to this point, he waved his hand and a gentle breeze carried Zaria outside without waiting for his response and shut the door.


    Zaria looked at the door for a while then he turned around and left resolutely.


    ---


    Somewhere in the Sanctuary stood a huge building. There was a signboard on it which readGranth Bhawan,Hall of Scriptures. There was an old man watching over the entrance.


    Zaria arrived there and raised his head to look at the huge structure. He took a deep breath and moved forward.


    The old man at the entrance glanced at him briefly. Although he stayed at the building most of the time, he still knew who Zaria was. He had heard a few rumours over the years too. He asked him blandly without looking at him, ¡°What is the purpose of your visit?¡±


    Zaria bowed his head slightly and greeted the old man politely, ¡°Gurudev, if it¡¯s possible, I wish to borrow all the scriptures related to martial theories.¡±


    The old man was slightly surprised by his demeanor. Generally, students didn¡¯t behave so politely towards him, considering his job as a ¡®watchman¡¯. He thought to himself.


    They say he is a good for nothing and a disgrace to the Sanctuary. Well, I guess nowadays humbleness is considered disgraceful, sigh.


    ¡°It¡¯s not that it is impossible, but you should know that there are, at least, a few hundred of them. Besides, the basic martial theory is almost same in all the scriptures, not just here but everywhere in this world, with some variations when you go deeper in its scholarly aspects. So, there is basically no merit in studying all of them and wasting your time.¡±


    He paused here and looked at Zaria¡¯s eyes which looked pure and without any deceit and malice. For some reason, the old man was quite impressed by this young boy. He suddenly thought of something and continued, ¡° Well, If you want to compare them to pick the best one, I have another option for you, only if you are interested, of course.¡±The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.


    The old man smiled at this point and waited for Zaria¡¯s answer.


    Zaria, indeed, wanted to compare all the theories and select the best suited for him and for his comprehension. He did not want to pick a random starting line for his future journey and make changes as he went along just like everybody else. It was as the old man had said, most of the martial theories were the same, as the beginning process was same for even those peerless experts who wrote those scriptures all through the history. It was only when they had sufficient level of strength that they started facing difficulties in their progress and had to make changes in their own understanding which worked best for them and so, for beginners, it was all the same no matter which theory they picked. Zaria knew about this, but he believed that by comparing all of them, he would be able to pick the one which would be able to take him the farthest along his martial path. But the old man¡¯s words did indeed pique his curiosity.


    ¡°In that case, I will have to give my thanks to senior in advance for his advice.¡± he replied.


    The old man started to like him more and more. He smiled slightly and said, ¡°Although most of the theories are similar, there have been some which take a different approach from the very beginning. As we have no idea who created them, we don¡¯t know whether they are good or bad unless someone tried them. But no one really takes that risk. There are two reasons for that. First, one would not have a precedent from which they could draw upon any sort of inspiration and motivation from. Without a clear goal or an example, it is hard not to deviate from your path. Second, these theories are difficult to comprehend and implement, inherently. It is understandable too, if they were better and easier than the whole world would be practicing one of them and not the current standard ones,¡± he paused for a while before continuing, ¡°The other option I told you earlier is precisely that. Our Sanctuary has one of those variant theory scripture. It has been here for as long as our Sanctuary¡¯s history goes. Many young ones have tried it over the years. But, they couldn¡¯t go very far. They even turned out to be less than your average joe, and so, most of them abandoned the theory midway. Thus, if you want to compare theories, take one of the standard ones and the variant one. This way, you may save time and might have a better understanding, who knows.¡±


    Zaria was already invested in this idea. He immediately replied with pressed hands, ¡°This junior will have to trouble you again then, senior. For the standard one, I would like to leave that decision to senior as well, if it is not too much trouble.¡±


    The old man was gratified to hear this and nodded slightly. He closed his eyes again and made some magical hand seals with one hand and, abruptly, put it on the wall of the building on which a palm indent was carved. A brilliant light shone under his palm and the whole building shook with rumbling sounds. Its massive gate opened.


    ¡°Go inside. You can only study the scriptures inside their respective halls. Remember, you have one week for each book.¡±


    He tossed something towards Zaria after speaking. Zaria caught it instinctively. There were two miniature bamboo scrolls with numbers on them.


    The old man said, ¡°They are the keys. Put them in the fire corresponding to their hall numbers. Once you enter a scripture hall you will only be able to exit after one week. Use that time well. Now go!¡±


    Zaria bowed his head again, took a deep breath and entered the huge building. The old man removed his hand from the wall and, again with rumbling sounds, the door closed. The old man sat crossed legged and mused.


    I wonder if we will have anAntar Shuraafter a thousand years.


    ----


    Inside the Bhawan, Zaria looked around the building curiously. It was his first time here. He should have been here years ago but he had given up on martial training and didn''t feel a need to, either.


    Now, he had to!


    He looked around and saw magnificent carvings of majestic elephants on both of the sidewalls which seemed like they were holding the whole structure with their trunks. The ceiling was so high that cloudy mist was blocking it from sight. There was a spiralling flight of stairs which extended endlessly to the top. The golden balustrade was carved with intricate designs of eagles in different postures. Some were depicted flying over the clouds while some perched on branches of trees. Lamps illuminated the hall with golden lights which accentuated the overall ambience. It was breathtaking!


    Zaria started ascending the stairs. There were several hundred rooms along the stairs with at least a dozen on each level. Each had a number plate along with a symbol. The symbols depicted the type of scripture. There were several types of scriptures - Rituals, chants, body tempering guides, history, elixir concoction, healing manuals, martial theories and all kinds of other scriptures. Zaria came in front of one of the rooms which had the similar symbol and number as on one of the two keys. It was the standard theory one. He tossed the bamboo key in the small fire altar which burned in front of the room. The key sizzled and emitted crackling sounds after which the flame burst violently and enshrouded the room¡¯s door. The door opened slowly and the fire also withdrew to the altar.


    Zaria felt a little nervous and excited at the same time.


    My martial journey begins from this day.


    If I am doing it anyway, I might as well do it wholeheartedly.


    He raised his foot and entered the room resolutely!

 Chapter 9: Shura

    Chapter 9: Shura


    After he entered the room, Zaria found himself in a very spacious hall. There was nothing there. It was absolutely empty anddark except for a small fire lantern which was placed in the centre of the hall. A small window on the ceiling lit the area around the lantern with moonlight. Zaria inched towards the centre and crouched after reaching the lantern to have a better look. On closer inspection, Zaria found that there were some markings on it. Merely, they were barely discernible. He didn''t know what to do. Where was the scripture? Did the lantern mean anything?


    He was utterly confused. He stood up and looked around again. After making several rounds around he came with nothing. At this point, he felt rather dejected. He leaned against a wall while pondering about his situation. Suddenly, he felt something on the wall. It was dark so he couldn''t see anything. He stretched out his hand and touched the wall to feel it. He found out that there were carvings on the wall!


    He followed along the carvings on the wall and came to a certain location. There was a depression in the wall at that location. He thought for some time whilepacing back and forth in the room. Suddenly, he looked towards the lantern and realised something. He walked towards the lantern and picked it up. When he lifted it off the ground, the opening in the ceiling also closed itself. It was pitch black now. Zaria felt quite upset at this. He muttered, ¡°Do they really have to make it this difficult. Sigh, I should have asked the senior about some more details if I knew it was going to be this bothersome.¡±


    He carefully traced his steps back to the location with depression, following the carvings on the wall. He exhaled slightly and tried to push the lantern into the depression.


    His eyes lit up. It was a perfect fit!


    Suddenly, the lantern fired up. It looked dazzling. The lantern rotated once and stopped. The whole room had become bright now. There was still nothing there. But on the walls there were shadows. They were words, to be precise. The whole room was filled with words. Zaria understood now. They were the shadows from the carvings on the lantern which were projected on the walls.


    He smiled wryly, ¡°They sure made it hard. Do they like puzzles that much.¡±


    Though, after a second thought, he found this process to be quite useful. This way only those with certain amount of aptitude and luck will be able to learn the scriptures. It was a good way to filter in a reasonable amount of talent. After all, these scriptures are priceless and not anyone should be able to access them. When he thought to this point, he felt even more motivated.


    A new spark ignited in his heart.


    ----


    Somewhere in the Sanctuary, in a room filled with flickering earthen lamps, a bald middle-aged priest was reading something. At some distance from him, a young girl was sitting cross-legged. Her eyes were shut, she was meditating wholeheartedly. Red as blood gossamer like thick, dense fog covered her completely. Still, one could make out her extraordinary bearings which was enough to make one¡¯s heart pound.


    The bald priest closed his book slowly, glanced at the young lady and sighed.


    ¡°Saya, why don¡¯t you go out and relax for some time. There is still time before the trials. It is not good for your training to get cooped up and meditate all day. A healthy mind needs rest as much as it needs meditation.¡±


    The girl didn''t give a response and kept meditating . The bald priest smiled wryly and gave up. However, he remembered something at that point and said, ¡°The annual reshuffling exams are coming soon. You should come with me to watch. Perhaps it may help give you some insights to overcome your current impediment.¡±Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings.


    The girl¡¯s eyebrows twitched slightly after hearing this but she just stayed quite like before. The bald priestly laughed and shook his head. This girl was clearly only interested in events like this.


    ----


    Zaria was absorbing the information which was scattered all over the walls. He understood many things.


    ¡°The theory of martial training is based on the premise of understanding the principles of energy formation, flow and transformation. Everything that exists in the cosmos is formed of one form of energy or the other. The purpose of martial practice is to achieve a symbiosis of body with this energy. The higher the degree of this symbiosis the greater the martial prowess.


    One has to start this process by first locating the energy centres in our bodies. These energy centres are calledChakras. There are seven major Chakras in a human body.


    Mooladhara -The Root Chakra - at the base of the spine


    Svadhishthana -The Sacral Chakra - just below the navel


    Manipura -The Solar Plexus Chakra - stomach area, above the navel


    Anahata -The Heart Chakra - centre of the chest


    Vishuddha- The Throat Chakra - base of the throat


    Ajna -The Third Eye Chakra - just above the area between the eyes


    Sahasrara -The Crown Chakra - top of the head


    Each Chakra has its own distinct energy fluctuation and projects its own unique hue. From the Crown Chakra to the Root Chakra the colours of the rainbow are emitted, namely, Violet, Indigo, Blue, Green, Yellow, Orange, Red. With the Root Chakra being red and the Crown Chakra being violet.


    One has to start by opening the Mooladhara Chakra. It is the root of the body. By doing certain breathing exercises this Chakra can be opened. It is said that by opening this Chakra, one officially sheds the mundane and reaches a higher state of consciousness. It brings forth the hidden potential of a fleshly body and connects the soul to the earth.¡± He muttered under his breath.


    There was also a detailed breathing technique given for accumulating the earth¡¯s energy. Zaria put it to practice to just get a feel for it. However, he was shaken to the core once he tried it. He felt his whole body become weightless and strange vibrations of energy filling his insides like gushing spring of water. He had never felt like that before. He felt truly powerful!


    Zaria¡¯s emotions were quite agitated at this point. He, finally, realised that in his own narrow perception he always had a lesser opinion of martial training than scholarly attainment. He now had to admit that both of them were equally important in the understanding of one¡¯s inner self.


    He had somewhat forgotten his primary reason for being here and was thoroughly entranced by this wonderful and new experience as he felt his horizons broaden.


    He calculated in his mind and found that it has been three days since he had entered the room. He sighed as he understood now that he was really like an insignificant insect in front of aShura, a martial warrior. He was reminded of all the days in the years he had given up on training his strength as time was truly precious for martial strength to grow. It required years of disciplined meditation and understanding to accumulate enough energy to be able to have visible gains. This was because for each Chakra there were ten stages of accumulation and each stage represented the percentage of Chakra opening. if a shura had opened ten percent of his Mooladhara Chakra he would be considered a stage one shura in that Chakra. Most martial warriors go up to only stage three or stage four of Mooladhara Chakra as the amount of accumulated energy required for each consecutive stage increases. This was the reason that only a few young people with highest potential are given most of the resources and others only get a pittance. This might seem cruel but it was also not without reason. The resources were limited. They had to nurture the best to the peak.


    Zaria felt a little downcast as he thought up to this point but immediately shook his head and looked even more determined.


    I have a late starting point but this doesn''t mean anything. The path to martial training is to achieve a state of oneness with a higher consciousness. My path is my own. My path is long. It doesn''t matter when I start as long as I keep moving forward.


    He kept meditating and practicing the breathing technique. He was trying to better his own understanding and formulate his own path as he lost track of time.


    Time ticked away slowly and without him noticing a faint mist with red hue started congealing around his body!

 Chapter 10: Eyes

    Chapter 10: Eyes


    Seven days passed just like that.


    Zaria was still lost in his meditation when he suddenly felt a short jerk in his body. He was bewildered as he opened his eyes and found out that he was already outside the room. The small fire altar was still burning mildly just like at the beginning.


    He took a deep breath to compose his nerves, stood up and moved onwards.


    The flight of stairs felt endless. It gave him a surreal feeling.


    As he kept ascending the stairs, he thought about what he had studied in the past week. He also wondered about the variant theory with a slight anticipation.


    Were there really other approaches worth considering? He thought to himself. He knew too little. He wanted to know more. He was inquisitive by nature, anyway.


    Eventually he arrived at his destination. It was just like the previous room with a tightly shut door and a small fire altar. He tossed the remaining key into the altar and just like before the key sizzled, the fire burst out shrouding the door which then opened slowly. He entered the room unhurriedly.


    After entering the room he looked around and was a little surprised. There was no lantern, no moonlight, no carvings on the wall. It was just an empty room with a small table at the end upon which laid a shabby looking book. A thick layer of dust had settled on it like a forgotten memory. A flickering oil lamp shone a dim light upon it and a bowl full of oil beside it, perhaps to refill the lamp.


    ¡°I guess it¡¯s really unwanted.¡± as there were no tricks and puzzles this time it was evident that this particular scripture was not valued in the least. It was just like a historical artefact bereft of any real use. For some inexplicable reason, Zaria felt a bit sad for it.


    He reached the table, sat down and lifted the book. He blew away the dust by gently blowing at it. The book itself felt like it had gone through endless passage of time. Its pages were withered and had a pale yellowish tint to them.


    Zaria started reading the book. Time ticked away slowly.


    When he was halfway through, he frowned. This scripture really was different. The theory it encapsulated was in a direct contrast to the previous one.


    According to this scripture, the purpose of martial training is to embrace nothingness by giving up natural energy. To be an individual entity not dependant on this natural energy.


    This was a completely different approach as opposed to the symbiotic relationship between a trainer and energy he had studied just before.


    When Zaria tried to contemplate it, he seemed to grasp something but couldn''t hold onto it. He felt like this scripture contained more of a philosophy than a theory. He understood now why no one tries to bother with variant theories. They are unnatural, to put it mildly, and cannot be depended upon without any precedents completely. And they were difficult to comprehend inherently.


    However, Zaria didn''t feel the same. He found some merit in it and felt it was worth considering. But, almost instantly, he gave up the idea. Not because he was against it or anything like that, merely, he cannot take a wild risk like this in his situation. He already had a near impossible goal. To rely on a gamble like this was something he couldn''t do. So he made his decision to follow what he had already learnt, in the end. He even gave up on reading the scripture to the end and decided to utilise his remaining time in the room to start his meditation and breathing practice he had learnt earlier. Time was a luxury right now for him, after all!Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    However, as he was standing up, he accidentally hit his knee to the table and the oil lamp spilled some of its oil on the book.


    Zaria was startled and hurriedly tried to wipe the oil off of the book. But just as he was about to do that, the book absorbed the oil and new words surfaced on it.


    Zaria was astounded for a moment and stared as those new words surfaced slowly with a blank look. However, he soon recollected himself and furrowed his brows.


    Was there something else to the book other than the theory? He contemplated for a while and looked at the bowl full of oil.


    His eyes twinkled.


    Could it...could it be that this was also a trick like earlier?


    He hesitated for a moment before a determined look could be seen in his eyes. He carefully started applying the oil to the book.


    One page at a time.


    Soon he had applied it to the whole book as new words kept on surfacing, blending in with the existing words.


    Eventually, It became a completely different scripture!


    It was a hidden scripture!


    Zaria got extremely enthusiastic for obvious reasons. He muttered under his breath, ¡°Why would someone go this far for a useless scripture?¡±


    He temporarily put aside the idea of practicing and started reading the ''scripture¡¯ again.


    This time around he didn''t give up midway, though. Even more so, his eyes went wide as he kept reading further.


    Now, he was completely absorbed in this new information like he had entered in another realm altogether.


    Time kept ticking away.


    After a long time had passed, he closed the book and exhaled. He felt exhausted as he let his body fall down on his back with his arms spread wide. His hair disheveled but he had a thin smile on his face.


    I understand now!


    I cannot believe such a treasure has remained undiscovered all this time.


    Zaria had a feeling that he was enlightened in that moment. He simply immersed himself in that sensation.


    He didn''t do anything for the rest of the day and just lazed around, lying on the floor with his eyes closed.


    From the next day onwards, he sat cross-legged and forgot about everything else and meditated with unparalleled focus.


    ----


    Two weeks had passed since Zaria entered the Hall of Scriptures. The Sanctuary was especially quiet. Each person was busy preparing for something. Some of the young shuras were preparing for the annual reshuffling examination, especially those who were in grade two and grade three. They couldn''t let this opportunity slip by. Generally, one had to take gradual steps in order to become a true shishya of one of the Twelve Head Priests. From provisional class to grade three, grade three to grade two, then grade two to grade one. After all that came a chance for becoming a true shishya. However, this time even a grade three shura had a chance to become one. Well, in theory, at least. They knew that those in grade one were not just for show. They were all incredibly strong. But even a chance to train under a Head Priest for one month meant a smooth sailing afterwards for many. So they were determined nonetheless.


    Some others were focussed wholeheartedly for the Trials of Strength. They were mostly true shishyas and some grade one shuras who had practiced hard for this day. To them, the trials meant long-lasting prestige and fame. The annual reshuffling examination was like a child''s errand to them. However, they still had to keep an eye on the proceedings as some shuras will rise after the exam and will probably compete with them in the near future as equals. At their level they had learnt to never underestimate their opponents.


    There were also some who had their sights set beyond all this. The only thing that mattered to them was the General Meeting of the Northern Mountains. These were the true prodigies of the Sanctuary. They were rarely in the Sanctuary itself as they roamed the whole continent. They had to experience various things and find their path as they strive to reach the pinnacle. No one expect them to give a thought to such mundane affairs of the Sanctuary, anyways.


    ----


    The massive gate of the Hall of Scriptures opened with a rumbling sound.


    The old man who guarded the entrance was still there. He raised his head and looked at the door as a young boy came out of it. He had disheveled hair. There was some dust on his robes. He looked a little exhausted even.


    Zaria¡¯s pupils shrank and he found it difficult to keep his eyes open as bright sunlight bombarded them. Gradually, he adjusted to it. He turned towards the old man, smiled and bowed his head slightly with his hands pressed against each other.


    ¡°Gurudev, I will always remember your kindness.¡± He said earnestly and walked away.


    The old man was baffled as he saw his fading back, ¡°Those eyes. His eyes have changed.¡±


    As Zaria disappeared in the distance, the old man also closed his eyes as the corners of his mouth curved up in a meaningful smile.

 Chapter 11: Back to the Basics

    Chapter 11: Back to the Basics


    After leaving the hall Zaria took a stroll around the Sanctuary. He treaded the magnificent mountains, swam in lakes with crystal clear waters, listened to koels sing, basked in sunlight, enjoyed the nature.


    He was tranquil in that moment.


    By this time, evening had arrived with the sun setting like a hot iron ball drowning in the sea of fire.


    Zaria¡¯s eyes were emitting a strange ash gray light. If someone was present to see them, they would be captivated just by looking at them.


    He breathed in the air and slowly exhaled.


    ¡°I see it now. There is energy in everything. In trees, in rivers, in birds, in sunlight, in the air we breathe. The sounds animals make also have energy. The ground we walk also has energy. That book contained the method to open one''s eyes. Not the eyes with which we see but the ones with which we can feel. Every type of energy has a form which differs from the other. No two types of energies are same but at the same time they are all but the same. The world is a complex machine with each part necessary to make it work. Each element has its natural counter. The essence of the world was described in a single phrase - No one thing is absolute. Only this is absolute!¡±


    Zaria was extremely shaken by these words when he had read them. He felt enormous admiration for the predecessor who had written that scripture.


    He found it hard to imagine the kind of person who could transform such mysteries of the world in such simple words. It was beyond his ability to picture the life and experiences of a shura who had, after all his life going after strength and striving for the apex, concluded that there was no apex!


    What must had it felt like to realise after reaching the zenith that the world is upside down and there is no zenith in the first place!


    As his understanding became more deep and more profound, his surroundings also started changing magically.


    Gossamers like streaks of energy started attracting towards him like vapours from burning incense.


    Meanwhile, Zaria kept breathing in and out as he felt all kinds of energies gather around him. He took them in and tried to understand their nature.


    A red mist gradually gathered around him as all the energies rotated slowly in a spiralling motion.


    He kept inhaling the mist. He completely lost track of time.


    The mist slowly started to flow into him and gather in his Mooladhara Chakra.


    It formed a vortex like formation and started spinning with slightly increased velocity everytime Zaria inhaled the red mist.


    He focussed his consciousness on that vortex in his Mooladhara Chakra and directed all the energies towards it.


    He could feel his body become just a bit stronger after every revolution of the vortex. It was not a significant increase but if it kept on revolving for a hundred, a thousand or tens of thousands of time, then these small changes would add up to a tremendous amount.


    He couldn''t even make a guess how strong his body would become at the end of it all. He just knew that he was becoming more powerful with every passing breath and soon he would most likely cross the threshold of human capacity for strength!


    He was thrilled! But he didn''t lose focus and kept on absorbing the energies while understanding their nature.


    The vortex in his Mooladhara Chakra kept spinning. The mist which had gathered around his body grew thicker as well which, in turn, was inhaled by him. The vortex inside also grew larger and larger. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.


    Days and nights kept passing by. Zaria kept repeating the breathing process.


    After a very long period of time had passed, the vortex stopped growing larger but the process was not over yet.


    The energy in the vortex started getting denser as it crazily spun and absorbed the surrounding red mist. The red mist, at this point, started shrinking and became increasingly thin like a hazy veil of red cotton tendrils.


    -----


    One month flew by.


    Zaria was still sitting on the same spot. A couple of koels were perched over his shoulder. Some weeds had found there way to his knees. His hair also became a bit longer.


    However, his face had become more refined.


    He was not a handsome boy and was rather average looking before. But now he looked quite elegant and charming.


    He slowly opened his eyes. The birds chirped and flew away.


    He stretched his neck and stood up. He looked a bit leaner but his eyes exuded confidence and power!


    He stretched his body and crackling sounds emerged from his stiff bones. He took a deep breath. He felt alive. He examined his body with a cursory glance.


    ¡°I guess I have opened my Mooladhar Chakra. I wonder which stage I am at.¡±


    He felt powerful, indeed, but he didn¡¯t know how powerful he actually was. Perhaps he was only at stage one of Mooladhar Chakra or maybe he had bypassed it in one fell swoop to achieve a higher stage of opening. He could not be sure.


    He did not think any further about it. He knew he would eventually come to know, anyway. What he needed to focus on was to keep getting stronger to stand at the summit of Mt. Yoddha. He was sure of one thing that he still lacked plenty to achieve that.


    He looked at the place where he was sitting just earlier with reminiscing eyes. This place had forever taken a special place in his heart. He smiled thinly and then left resolutely.


    ----


    The whole Sanctuary was enveloped in excitement and nervousness. Only six weeks were left until the annual reshuffling examination. Everyone was busy fine tuning their mindsets and upgrading their knowledge and equipment alike.


    Only those in the provisional classes were unaffected by all the commotion.


    Provisional class was the most basic and rudimentary one. Its purpose was to expose those in the youngest age group of the Sanctuary to the basic principles of martial training along with their academic studies in general.


    Just a few years ago, Zaria used to attend this class too. He had a lot of bad memories associated with it. Though, he met the Princess for the first time there too.


    Zaria went back to the mountain peak where his provisional class used to be held. As all the grades¡¯ classes were suspended until the annual reshuffling examination. Only provisional classes were being held.


    He had a particular reason to come back here. He needed to learn combat skills.


    The provisional class students hadn¡¯t opened their Mooladhar Chakra, but still they are given a basic training of combat to let them get used to it at an early age. It included hand to hand combat, evasion techniques, countering skills, and other self-defense maneuvers. Zaria had already studied them. What he wanted to learn were the principles of energy utilization in actual combat. He had given it up before as he thought of it as unnecessary. Now, however, was different. Not only was he interested in learning it, he was capable of applying it too with his own energy.


    Lost in his thoughts, he arrived only some distance away from the place. A class was being held as usual.


    Zaria patiently observed as dozen or so students were learning self defense techniques from a young man. He looked like someone in his twenties. Zaria raked through his memories and recognized him. His name was Vasu. Zaria was not in his class but he had seen him sometimes. He also heard that he was quite an eccentric character. He liked to fiddle with theories and sometimes taught his students his own versions of them. This had put him in troubles with his seniors a number of times. Zaria didn¡¯t have any prior impression of him though. He was indifferent about it.


    The young man instructed the students from time to time. Sometimes he corrected a student''s posture while sometimes he demonstrated himself. At first Zaria didn''t notice anything out of the ordinary. It seemed just like a routine class of self defense but suddenly a flash of recognition came to his mind. Now he started paying attention to what he was doing.


    He was startled by what he found. The young man was instructing the students in a very unusual way. He taught one thing to one student and another to other in the same situation.


    When Zaria tried to comprehend the reasoning behind his action his eyes started twinkling.


    That young man was instructing each student according to their respective body structure and weight!


    What he taught them was like a customised training regime for each individual and it was working like a wonder.


    Zaria even thought why wasn''t he in his class during his time.


    At this point the class ended. Vasu dismissed the class and was arranging his things to retire himself for the day too. He suddenly felt something and squinted his eyes to look in the distance. He saw a young boy coming towards him. He frowned slightly.


    Zaria came up to him and greeted with his head bowed a little and hands pressed together. He said.


    ¡°Master, would you be interested in teaching me.¡±


    He had made up his mind. He would learn martial combat from him!

 Chapter 12: Brothers

    Chapter 12: Brothers


    Vasu was baffled by Zaria¡¯s question.


    He furrowed his brows and tried to figure this young boy out who was standing in front of him.


    Suddenly his eyes glowed with recognition as he seemed to have remembered him.


    He abruptly blurted out, ¡°The banishing cliff boy with the broken leg!¡±


    Zaria got startled at such a response. He had not seen this reaction for some years now. He realised that this man was not one to think before he speaks. He didn''t get offended by it, though. He was quite used to such reactions. But before he realised, his title changed to what it is now. It was just that people were afraid of the Third Head Priest that they avoided calling him names on his face.


    He just smiled helplessly as he lowered his gaze slightly.


    When Vasu saw his expression he realised how rude he had been with those words. He explained in a hurry, ¡°Oh no! I didn''t mean anything bad or something by it. You shouldn''t feel ashamed about it.¡±


    Zaria just gawked at him! He sure was a strange one. Why would he feel ashamed? He wasn''t the one with the rude words coming out of his mouth at the drop of a hat!


    Vasu''s face became a little red as he spoke with a little embarrassment, ¡°Actually, I...I am not good at remembering names. So I just associate other''s faces with something. It''s easier for me that way.¡±


    Zaria was a little amused by his display at this moment. Although he wasn''t offended by his words or something, he still felt a little uneasy inside. Now, however, he found him quite honest and frank. At Least, he was better than those who slandered others behind their backs. And besides, he was his senior, he didn''t need to mind his feelings that much. Zaria suddenly had a completely different impression of him.


    Zaria opened his mouth to say something. But before he could say something, Vasu interrupted, ¡°Deal!¡±


    Zaria closed his mind and gave Vasu a confused look.


    Vasu continued, ¡°Oh! You asked me to teach you, right. I''ll teach you.¡±


    ¡°Wait, what do you want me to teach you?¡±


    ¡°I haven''t asked you your name, silly me! My name is Vasu. What''s yours?¡±


    ¡°And you don''t have to call me Master or anything. Just call me Senior Vasu or simply senior or just Vasu is fine too.¡±


    ----


    Zaria just stood there with his jaw dropped.


    This man simply loved to talk!


    He kept going on and on without letting up.


    Zaria didn''t even have the opportunity to cut his tirade short.


    ¡°Oh! Why aren''t you saying something?¡±


    ¡°Someone will think that I am talking to myself.¡±


    ¡°You know how bad that will look!¡±


    Zaria was again rendered speechless. But he didn''t let that opportunity go and immediately budded in, ¡°Senior, My name is Zaria and I have just opened my Mooladhara Chakra and I ask for your guidance to teach me how to make use of it in martial combat.¡±


    He told everything in one sentence, afraid to miss this golden chance before this senior of his went off with his words on his own again.


    Surprisingly, Vasu didn''t speak and actually pondered for a while. He asked, ¡°You are in grade three, right?¡±


    ¡°Indeed¡± Zaria didn''t need to hide it, anyway.Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road.


    ¡°Then why don''t you ask your Gurus there. They are much more qualified than I am.¡± Vasu asked.


    Zaria replied without hesitation, ¡°I have never attended any energy based martial class in my life. The grade three and above classes are suspended until the annual reshuffling examination. Besides¡­¡± he paused here momentarily before speaking again, ¡°The Gurus may not take me seriously.¡±


    There was no sign of complaint or grudge in his voice. He simply stated the truth as it were.


    As airheaded as he seemed, Vasu realised the undertones of his statement. He was no outsider so he knew a fair amount of things about ''the banishing cliff boy with the broken leg¡¯. The fact that this young boy didn''t show a slight bit of grievance, somehow, touched him deeply.


    He thought as to whether he would be able to stay as indifferent as this boy in such a situation.


    He couldn''t say for sure.


    He suddenly smiled warmly at Zaria.


    Zaria was bewildered by his smile. He couldn''t find a reason to smile in what he had said earlier. He didn''t say anything, though. He just shook his head and thought he couldn''t get in the head of someone as strange as this man.


    Vasu suddenly said, ¡°Alright I will help you. But you don''t have to consider me as your Master. It would make me feel like those old codgers. Just think of it as me giving you pointers.¡±


    Zaria got extremely excited when he heard this. Truthfully, he had not expected that he would agree at all. He was, after all, only a stranger. Furthermore, there was no merit in getting involved with ''the banishing cliff boy with broken leg¡¯. He initially wanted to meet someone who had taught him before or someone who he might know. That way he might be able to work out a way to convince them to train him. But after he saw this young man, he couldn''t help himself and harden his heart to ask for his help. It just felt right. And thus he shamelessly came over.


    But who would have guessed that Vasu would agree so easily.


    Zaria had his mood brighten after that. He unintentionally eased his nerves a bit and said, ¡°I will do as senior has asked.¡±


    ¡°Alright then, let''s go to my place. It''s better there as no one will bother us.¡± Vasu said as he put his hand on Zaria''s shoulder.


    ¡°I don''t mind.¡± Zaria replied.


    Then Vasu packed his things and led Zaria to his home.


    Zaria followed eagerly. He really hadn¡¯t thought for it to go this smoothly. He was itching to learn all sorts of things since he had opened his Mooladhara Chakra. He was extremely excited!


    However, as he followed, he was not able to see the glitter in Vasu''s eyes and his mischievous smile.


    -----


    After travelling for a while, they finally reached Vasu''s home. He lived in a very ordinary looking house. However, there was a huge courtyard in the middle.


    Outside the front door, Zaria looked a little hesitant. It has been a very very long time since the last time he entered someone else''s house. And thus he was quite nervous. He hadn''t had this kind of feeling for a long while. Though, he was feeling somewhat happy too.


    Vasu could sense his unusual behaviour from the side. He smiled and said, ¡°It''s alright. I have two younger brothers living with me too. They are both in grade three like you. Though, in a different batch. I hope you become good friends with them.¡±


    He tried to lessen his nervousness. But Zaria got even more nervous now!


    Friends!


    He had almost forgotten the term!


    He started to regret his decision even before starting.


    No! I have to do this! What do I have to lose anyway.


    However, as he thought about the Princess, he cast away all the nervousness and entered the door.


    Vasu followed closely behind.


    But just as they entered, a wooden khadau came crashing down at them.


    Zaria was startled and ducked instinctively.


    The slipper hit Vasu, who was following behind, directly on his face. It left a deep red mark too as it fell.


    A voice rang out angrily, ¡°You damn old bum! I am done with you! Your theory is useless! It almost killed both of us. You better pay us what you promised or we will tell Senior Guru Of your experiments!¡±


    Two silhouettes emerged as they stomped the ground angrily while glaring at Vasu with deathly gazes. Their hair was a mess and smoke was coming out of their skin which was like charcoal. It looked like they had just come back from a burning purgatory.


    Vasu glanced at them and then at Zaria before looking at them again. He looked a little embarrassed.


    ¡°Alright! Alright! I''ll give you what you want. Just don''t rat on me.¡± he said in a jiffy.


    ¡°Who would believe you! Just pay up right now or else we don''t have anything to talk about anymore.¡±


    ¡°Don''t you believe your elder brother! If I say I will pay you that means I will pay you.¡±


    ¡°No we don''t believe you! You stinky old bum!¡±


    ----


    Zaria just stood there not knowing what to do. When suddenly the other one, who was with the one who kept arguing with Vasu, noticed him.


    He blurted out, ¡°Oh! The boy who offended senior Utkal.¡±


    The other one also looked at Zaria when he heard his brother and stopped arguing with Vasu and said, ¡°It¡¯s him! The zero energy third grader.¡±


    Zaria just laughed wryly.


    Zero energy third grader? That is new.


    Are these two like this strange senior too?


    What have I gotten myself into?


    He suddenly felt a huge headache coming his way.