Eklavya stood still at the edge of the lake. Watching it in silence as the once crystal-clear water continued to darken, until it resembled a vast basin of congealed blood rather than a natural body of water.

  Its surface was thick with a crimson sheen that reflected the storm-lit sky in a grotesque parody of beauty.

  For a brief moment, a sense of unease crept into his thoughts. Yet the exhaustion gnawing at his depleted ki reserves reminded him that curiosity without preparation would only invite death, especially in a place like Pranahara Forest where even hesitation could be fatal.

  The thunder cracked above, echoing through the surrounding mountains like the growl of some ancient beast awakening from slumber. Eklavya exhaled slowly as he accepted that whatever mystery lay beneath the lake would have to wait.

  He lowered himself onto the wet ground near the shore, allowing the rain to soak into his clothes as he crossed his legs and straightened his posture.

  Closing his eyes, he turned inward, focusing entirely on restoring his exhausted core before confronting whatever aberration had turned an entire lake into a sea of blood.

  Ordinarily, even an experienced warrior would require an entire day—sometimes longer—to replenish a ki core drained to such an extreme. Especially after prolonged combat and continuous movement without rest.

  Yet Eklavya was never bound by ordinary standards.

  Deep within his sea of consciousness flowed primordial ki and primordial blood. Ancient forces that defied the conventional laws governing human cultivation, though he himself had only recently learned the true extent of their significance.

  It was Magha who had revealed this truth the previous night. Speaking with an unsettling calm as Eklavya fled through the forest, warning him that one day he might be forced to expend everything just to survive. And that knowledge might mean the difference between life and annihilation.

  Now, as rain hammered against his still body and thunder continued its relentless roar, Eklavya allowed his awareness to sink deeper. Passing beyond flesh and bone into the vast inner world that existed within him.

  The moment his consciousness crossed that threshold, the external world faded into nothingness.

  Within his sea of consciousness, Eklavya stood before the ancient dead tree. Its gnarled roots twisted through the blood-red pool beneath it like veins feeding some long-forgotten god. And for a fleeting moment, even he felt a trace of reverence.

  He knelt beside the pool and extended his hand, drawing forth a single drop of primordial blood. It shimmered faintly, radiating a pressure so profound it seemed capable of crushing the soul of a lesser being.

  Sitting beneath the dead tree, he began absorbing the blood slowly. Methodically. Allowing it to merge with his being rather than overwhelm it.

  As he did so, the world outside responded.

  Spiritual ki from the surrounding environment surged toward his physical body. Gathering like golden mist and coiling strands of luminous smoke, wrapping around him in dense layers before being drawn inward through every microscopic pore on his skin.

  The process was silent, yet violent in its own way. As if the heavens themselves were pouring energy into him, compelled by a force they could neither understand nor resist.

  Outside, the valley descended into a near-unnatural darkness. The storm clouds thickened until even daylight seemed extinguished, leaving the land beneath them cloaked in a dim, ashen gloom broken only by flashes of lightning.

  Thunder rolled endlessly through the mountains. Each strike reverberated through the stone pillars and jagged ridges that enclosed the valley.

  The lake before Eklavya’s unmoving body simmered ominously.

  The blood-red water, once disturbed by combat and death, now lay unnaturally still. Covered by a low-hanging crimson mist that drifted lazily across its surface as though the lake itself were breathing.

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  Rain struck the lake in heavy droplets. Yet instead of clearing the mist, it seemed to feed the oppressive atmosphere, deepening the sense that something beneath the surface was waiting.

  To any observer, it would have looked less like a natural phenomenon. And more like a ritual site abandoned by gods long dead.

  When Eklavya finally opened his eyes, a single raindrop sliding down his cheek was enough to pull him back into the physical world. He rose to his feet with renewed strength coursing through his veins.

  The refilling of his core had taken barely an hour. An absurdly short time by any known standard.

  He could feel the difference immediately. The emptiness was replaced by a steady, powerful flow of ki that responded effortlessly to his will.

  He turned his gaze toward the lake. Noting how the rain had begun dissolving the red mist, thinning it until patches of darker water showed through, though the color remained far from normal.

  The oppressive weight in the air had not lifted, however. The valley still felt wrong. As though the land itself were holding its breath.

  A low murmur echoed in his mind as Magha finally spoke again.

  ‘Let’s check it out.’

  Without hesitation, Eklavya stepped onto the surface of the lake. His ki supported him as he walked forward through the rain, each step sending faint ripples across the blood-tainted water.

  The mist parted slowly around him as he advanced toward the center. His eyes scanned the surface for any sign of the corpses he had left behind, yet none were visible, swallowed entirely by the dark depths below.

  Even knowing the bodies were there, hidden beneath the crimson surface, unsettled him. For the lake felt too still. Too complete. As though it had absorbed everything without leaving a trace.

  He came to a stop at the exact center and looked down. His reflection distorted by rain and blood.

  Magha’s voice cut sharply through his thoughts.

  ‘There is something wrong here.’

  Eklavya frowned slightly and replied in a low murmur.

  “It seems normal enough now. The mist is fading, the rain is washing the blood away—what exactly feels wrong to you?”

  Magha let out a soft, humorless smirk that echoed within Eklavya’s mind.

  ‘What you perceive with your eyes is not always the truth, Eklavya. Look beyond the surface and consider the structure of this place itself.’

  His voice took on a deliberate tone, guiding Eklavya’s attention outward.

  ‘This lake sits precisely at the center of the valley. And the valley itself is encircled by four perfectly aligned mountains, each one standing like a colossal pillar erected by design rather than nature.’

  ‘Along the valley’s perimeter rise nine rib-like stone spikes, evenly distributed in nine directions. While a single river descends from one mountain edge, feeds the lake, and vanishes into another mountain on the opposite side. Forming a closed cycle.’

  Eklavya’s expression darkened as realization crept in.

  He rose into the air, ascending through the rain until the entire valley lay exposed beneath him. Confirming every word Magha had spoken.

  From above, the formation was unmistakable. Too symmetrical and deliberate to be dismissed as coincidence.

  The lake at its center now appeared less like a natural feature. And more like the core of an immense formation.

  He descended slowly, landing once again upon the lake’s surface as he responded.

  ‘If this truly is a formation, then maintaining it would require an enormous amount of ki. Far beyond what a natural environment could sustain.’

  Magha’s amusement deepened.

  ‘Exactly. And now consider this—the very center of the formation is also the center of this lake. If you want answers, there is only one place left to look.’

  Understanding dawned in Eklavya’s eyes as he nodded once. He withdrew his ki from beneath his feet and allowed his body to sink into the blood-dark water below.

  The moment his feet touched solid rock at the lake’s bottom, the water around him began to rotate violently. Forming a rapidly expanding whirlpool centered precisely where he stood.

  He attempted to escape by channeling ki into flight. But the rotational force seized him instantly, dragging him downward with terrifying strength that ignored his resistance entirely.

  In seconds, the whirlpool consumed the entire lake. And Eklavya was pulled beneath the surface, the crimson water closing above him like a sealing coffin.

  He cloaked his body in ki to keep the water from crushing him and forced his eyes open. Yet the absence of air tightened around his chest, reminding him of a fundamental limitation he could not ignore.

  Because practitioner warriors were bound by breath. Panic threatened to rise as precious seconds slipped away in the suffocating depths.

  As his vision blurred and his lungs burned, Magha’s voice rang out with calm certainty. ‘Do not resist. Give me a single drop of your primordial blood, and I will handle the rest.’

  Trusting him completely, Eklavya nodded even as darkness crept at the edges of his sight. He closed his eyes and drew his consciousness inward once more.

  Plunging back into the depths of his sea of consciousness. As the lake swallowed his physical body whole.