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Chapter 11 – The Relic Beneath the Shrine
🌌 Midnight – The Shrine Floor
Ved couldn't sleep.
Not after what she said.
> "You're not the only one dreaming."
> "That stance… hasn't been seen in 500 years."
He sat in front of the ruined shrine.
Let the silence wrap around him.
But something beneath the floor… pulled at him.
He stood.
Stepped onto the cracked center tile.
And the air… shifted.
He didn't hear a voice.
Didn't feel wind.
But in the silence, there was movement—like memory crawling back from the grave.
He pressed his palm to the center tile.
The ground shuddered.
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🔓 The Hidden Chamber
A hidden staircase opened below the shrine.
Dust choked the air.
Cobwebs covered armor long turned to ash.
At the center: a small altar.
On it—a cube of obsidian, with swirling silver veins.
He touched it.
Nothing.
But then… something inside him responded.
Not power.
Not energy.
Something older.
Something that recognized this place.
And the cube pulsed once.
Then unraveled.
Unfolded into a sphere.
Inside it: a broken amulet and a whisper:
> "Those who stood last… sealed their truth in silence."
> "If you are one of them, then remember what they died to forget."
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⚔️ Vision – The Fall of Aryavart (Fragmented)
He stood in a battlefield.
Not as himself.
But as someone else.
Armored. Wounded. Holding the same amulet.
He saw the horizon torn by flame.
White-robed monks chanting.
Beasts of ash and bone screaming through the sky.
And among it—a child, holding a sword too large for him.
Not running.
Standing.
> "Don't close the gate yet," the child said.
> "There's still one more outside."
Ved gasped.
The vision faded.
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🌬️ Murim – A Monk With No Temple
Far away, a monk who no longer served any temple sat in silence.
He lit no fire. Wore no robe.
Only scars.
A messenger arrived. Bowed.
> "Master Jin, the relic has been touched."
The monk didn't react.
But his fingers tensed.
> "Then the dreams were true."
> "The heir walks."
The disciple asked, "What should we do?"
Master Jin looked east.
> "We watch."
> "If he survives what comes next, I will meet him."
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🐦 Morning – The Girl Returns
Ved sat with the amulet in his hand.
The girl returned.
Still silent.
Still fast.
But this time, she sat across from him.
> "You activated it."
He nodded.
> "Do you know what it means?"
> "No."
She stared at the amulet. Then at him.
> "Then let me tell you."
> "That was one of the seven relics left behind after Aryavart's fall."
> "Each one responds to blood memory—not bloodline."
Ved blinked. "You mean—"
> "You may not be a descendant. But your soul remembers what your mind has forgotten."
She stood.
> "You're going to need that."
> "Because others have started moving. Elders. Assassins. Seekers."
> "Not all of them want Aryavart to return."
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⚖️ Elsewhere – Council of the Hidden Sect
In a dark room where names weren't spoken…
A masked elder whispered:
> "If he finds the Gurukul, the balance will tilt."
Another replied, "Then we tilt it first."
> "Send someone."
> "No. Send two."
> "Let them test if he's truly the one… or just a shadow of something broken."
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