The Two Paths of Power

The chatter inside the grand stone hall cut off instantly as a man with sharp, gray hair walked into the room. He didn't utter a single word, but with every step his heavy boots took against the floor, a suffocating aura radiated from his body. The invisible pressure slammed down onto the room like a falling block of stone, making the air feel thick, cold, and incredibly hard to breathe.

The youths began whispering nervously among themselves, their voices shaking under the weight of the man's presence.

“Look at his pressure... he’s a Caster. A true 2nd Rank Mage,” one whispered from the front.

In the exact center of the hall sat a massive stone table holding a crystal orb that swirled with a faint, mystical energy. Ten to fifteen youths waited in uneven, tense lines before it. Looking around, Rudra quickly realized that almost everyone there was well over the age of twenty—adults who had spent decades conditioning their bodies, taking their final shot at a future. Only Rudra and three other teenagers stood out at the very back of the line. Yet, every single person present had earned their place, having unlocked their Seven Chakra Gates through years of brutal training

.

The gray-haired man stood tall by the table and scanned the young crowd with piercing eyes. “Hello, everyone. I am Brake, an Earth-Level Mage. Today, you will take the Awakening Test. Before we begin, I want to clarify exactly what cultivation means.”

He paused, letting his sharp gaze drill into the anxious candidates. “When all seven of your internal Chakras are unlocked, your elemental power reaches a new state called Awakening. This is where your true cultivation journey begins.”

Brake gestured toward the swirling stone orb. “This is the Life Crystal. It holds the pure power of raw life energy. Your test is simple: you just need to touch it and transfer your internal elemental energy inside. The stone will read your potential and awaken your elemental power into one of two different cores: an Astra or a Mantra.”

He raised a stern, calloused hand, his voice echoing off the ancient walls. “The Astra is a permanent weapon. If you manifest an Astra, you begin the journey of a Knight warrior. There are three paths a Knight can take from here: Attacker Knights, whose Astras manifest as offensive weapons like swords, spears, maces, or axes; Tank Knights, who perfectly balance defense and attack with massive shields and heavy blades; and Assassin Knights, who manifest dual daggers or spiked ropes.”

“The Mantra,” Brake continued, his eyes narrowing slightly, “is for Mages. When a Mantra awakens, a unique Wisdom Mark appears permanently on your forehead. Mages gain absolute control over their element, and they are extremely rare.”

With the rules established, the test began immediately. The older youths stepped up to the table first.

The first boy walked forward, his fingers trembling with nerves as he reached out and touched the smooth surface of the crystal. Instantly, a bright, golden light flared out from the stone. The boy's internal Chakra points ignited with a sudden, violent surge of energy, causing his feet to leave the ground entirely as he floated in mid-air. The elemental power inside his body condensed rapidly, forming a solid Astra Core. With a sharp crack of frost, a physical sword and a heavy shield made of pure, jagged ice materialized tightly in his grip.

Brake smiled faintly, giving a short, approving nod. "An Ice Astra. Good."

Next, a young girl stepped up to the stone table. The moment her palms pressed against the surface, the crystal glowed with a brilliant, blinding radiance that lit up every dark corner of the grand stone hall. Her affinity was Light. As the energy swirled around her, a glowing, intricate crest burned itself permanently into the skin of her forehead—the rare Light Element Mantra.

“It’s a miracle!” Brake exclaimed, his eyes widening in genuine shock as the heavy pressure around his body wavered. “A Light Element Mantra is exceptionally rare and powerful. Train well, girl, and you will become a great Mage.”

The third teenager, another young girl, stepped forward next. Her affinity was Wind. When her hands touched the smooth stone, the crystal hummed with high-frequency vibrations, sending a howling gust of wind cutting through the entire room. A pair of permanent, razor-sharp Wind Blades formed tightly around her forearms as her chosen Astra weapon.

Finally, the entire hall went completely quiet. The atmosphere turned heavy, and all eyes landed on the back of the line. It was Rudra’s turn.

He stood up, clenching his fists until his knuckles turned bloodless and white. He walked down the center aisle toward the stone table, his heart thudding violently against his ribs with every step. He stopped before the table, took a shallow breath, and placed his palms flat against the surface of the crystal.

Instantly, the crystal orb shuddered. A terrifying, pitch-black energy violently blasted outward from the stone, expanding through the room like a physical wave.

The warm light from the high windows and the burning torches vanished instantly, swallowed by total darkness. The entire grand hall was plunged into a pitch-black void. People shrieked in absolute panic, scrambling blindly in the dark as a crushing weight descended upon their shoulders.

Slowly, the dark energy began to recede, pulling back toward the center of the room to reveal Rudra floating high above the stone floor. He was a literal storm of raw, unbridled power. His dual elements—searing, roaring crimson Fire and violent, crackling purple Lightning—swirled around his body like twin dragons fighting fiercely for dominance. And in his right hand, gripped with intense force, he held a long, heavy, pitch-black spear that seemed to actively swallow the very air around it.

Brake and the remaining students stood frozen to the spot, utterly stunned, their breaths catching in their throats as they stared up at the impossible sight.

What kind of twisted energy is this? Brake thought, a cold sweat breaking out across his neck as his knees trembled slightly under the boy's passive aura. The room remained dead silent, the heavy, dark pressure radiating off Rudra making it physically difficult for anyone else to stand upright.

Sensing the growing panic and confusion in the room, Brake quickly cleared his dry throat, desperate to avoid any unnecessary trouble or attention from the royal capital.

“He possesses two elements," Brake announced loudly to the room, his voice strained. "It is rare, but the awakening test always looks different when twin elements collide. However... history shows that people born with two elements never possess the capacity to cross the 4th rank warrior level. Best of luck to you, boy.”

Rudra didn't argue or shout. He offered a quiet, respectful nod, letting the fire, lightning, and the black spear recede back into his body as his boots touched the solid ground again.

Brake quickly gathered his things, his booming voice echoing one last time through the hall. “In three months, the Elite Academy Joint Examination will be held. All of you, be ready for that. Let's see if, at least this time, anyone from a village can actually force their way into the 15 Elite Academies.”

With a sudden wave of his sleeve, Brake's earth aura flared, and he vanished entirely from the hall, leaving the youths in a state of absolute shock.

That night, the village was dead quiet, shrouded in a peaceful silence. Rudra sat silently on a wooden chair in his small, dimly lit room, gazing out the small window at the pale full moon hanging in the sky. He could feel it—an unusual, turbulent rhythm shifting violently deep inside his chest.

Closing his eyes, he pulled his legs up onto the wooden seat, crossing them and entering a deep state of meditation to see exactly what had changed within his body.

In the vast, dark expanse of his internal Soul Sea, the scenery was utterly chaotic. A mysterious, corrupt black ooze was bubbling up from the deepest depths of his consciousness. Right in the center of the void, his newly awakened black spear stood driven deep into the floor. As he watched in astonishment, the black fluid and the spear began slowly drawing together, merging into one single, heavy entity that sent violent ripples crashing across his entire soul

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A sharp, heavy knock at the front door downstairs suddenly shattered Rudra's intense focus, tearing his mind violently back to the physical world. His eyes snapped open in the dark, his breathing shallow and rapid.

Downstairs, Grandpa Wan pulled the heavy wooden door open, completely surprised to find two powerful persons stands there.

“Oh, Village Chief Deva and Lord Luna... what brings the two of you here at this hour? Please, come inside,” Grandpa Wan welcomed, stepping aside and gesturing them into the main hall.

The group gathered tightly in the center of the house, the atmosphere turning incredibly tense.

“I heard that your grandson successfully awakened his Astra today,” Chief Deva said, his eyes narrowed, sharp and calculating in the dim lamplight. “I also heard that his awakening was... remarkably unique. We are here to take a brief look at him ourselves. How is he faring?”

“He is currently meditating up in his room,” Grandpa Wan replied, his face turning entirely serious as he led the way toward the creaking wooden stairs. “I will take you up to see him.”

The three men quietly pushed open the door to Rudra's bedroom. The boy was sitting perfectly still on the floor, lost deep in his trance—but the moment the lantern light hit his body, everyone froze in absolute horror.

Something was horribly, terrifyingly wrong. From the very center of Rudra's bare chest, right along the rough, jagged edges of his five-year-old scar, a thick web of dark, unnatural veins was creeping outward across his skin. The black lines pulsed with a faint, corrupted light, spreading down his arms and climbing up his neck like a live parasite, turning his entire nervous system pitch-black.

Deep within his locked soul sea, something ancient and terrible was beginning to open its eyes.

To Be Continued

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