When Ankit stepped onto the third floor of the Tower, the world changed again.
Gone were the molten fields and shadowy forests.
This time, he stood in a village—sunlight streaming gently through the clouds, birds chirping, children laughing in the distance. It was a perfect afternoon.
But it wasn't real.
He knew that the moment he looked down.
His clothes had changed. He was wearing a school uniform—blue-check shirt and grey pants, just like he used to wear at his government school in Rohtak.
His heart skipped.
He was standing on the road just outside his old neighborhood.
A bicycle lay against a neem tree.
A street dog barked lazily at nothing.
And there, across the dusty lane—
"Maa?" he whispered.
His mother was sweeping the front yard.
She looked… alive. As if nothing had changed.
As if she hadn't died in the hospital three years ago while he was still powerless.
[Floor 3 – Trial of Blood and Kin]
Type: Emotional Manifestation / Mental Trial
Objective: Choose – Cling to the past or accept the path forward
Secondary Objective: Resist Soul Reversion
Time Limit: 15 minutes
Failure Consequence: Soul Weapon Regression (−30%)
Reward: Bloodline Stability, Mental Fortitude, Stat Boost (Based on resistance)
Ankit stood frozen.
His talwar was gone from his hand.
He looked to the side—there was nothing on his back, no weapon, no aura.
Only his twelve-year-old self stared back at him in the window of the house.
"Maa!" he shouted, his legs moving on instinct.
He rushed across the road—but a man stepped in front of him.
Ankit stopped, startled.
It was himself.
Or rather, a future version—taller, colder, eyes like steel, wearing a tattered cloak soaked in blood. His hands were stained red. A jagged version of the talwar rested on his shoulder.
"Go back," the future Ankit said, voice flat. "You've already lost this."
[Manifestation Detected – Soul Projection vs True Self]
The system's voice was distant now. It didn't guide—it only observed.
Ankit's fists clenched. "Is this part of the test?"
"You know it is," the older version said. "You came here thinking you'd climb, win glory, get stronger. But in the Tower, strength demands sacrifice."
Ankit looked past him.
His mother was looking up now, smiling gently.
Calling his name.
His heart twisted.
"You're not real," he whispered. "She's… she's gone."
"But you could stay here," the older version said. "Forget the pain. Forget the Tower. Play with your friends. Eat maa's kachoris. Dream."
Ankit turned to look at his younger self now. The little boy was still smiling. Still untouched by loss, by weight.
But he wasn't that boy anymore.
He stepped forward.
His future self raised the talwar to block the way.
"You'll regret it," the phantom warned.
"I already do," Ankit said quietly. "But not climbing won't change that."
He raised his hand.
[Shadow Link: Activate]
His fingers twitched.
His true talwar materialized in his grasp with a ripple of shadow.
The echo of steel meeting steel cracked through the village.
The fight was brutal.
It wasn't a clash of technique, but ideology.
The older Ankit fought like a ghost—merciless, calculated. His strikes were filled with rage, the type born from betrayal and endless loss.
But the real Ankit fought with hope—with the desperate will to break free, to not be chained by the past.
Every time the shadow of his future slashed, Ankit dodged, parried, and countered.
Until—
CLANG!
He disarmed the phantom.
And then—he stepped back.
[Trial Progress: 95%]
Emotional Stability Detected
Bloodline Core Strengthening…
Decision Time Remaining: 60 seconds
The phantom panted, blade at his feet.
"You'll suffer," it whispered. "There's more pain ahead than you can survive."
Ankit looked to his mother one last time.
She was still there.
Still smiling.
But now her smile flickered—like an image from an old television, fading with static.
He stepped forward—
—and hugged her.
The moment their arms touched, her warmth vanished.
So did the world.
Darkness.
Then light.
And the voice of the system returned.
[Floor 3 Trial Complete]
Objective Achieved: Acceptance of Loss
Soul Weapon Sync Maintained
Shadow Link Strength: +5%
Bloodline Stability: Increased
Reward Unlocked – Passive Trait: Mindguard (Resistance to Illusions / Mental Influence)
Stat Increase:
– Intelligence: +2
– Endurance: +1
Ankit opened his eyes.
He stood again in the training chamber of the Tower.
His talwar hovered beside him, gleaming faintly—no longer just a blade, but a reflection of his heart.
In its reflection, he no longer saw a boy.
He saw a warrior becoming.
System Panel – Updated
Name: Ankit Kumar
Level: 3
Soul Weapon: Talwar of the Bound Echo – F+ (Evolving)
Bloodline: Awakened – Serpent Affinity (Purity 12%)
Proficiency:
– Swordsmanship: 22%
– Mana Sense: 7%
– Shadow Link: 25%
– Shadow Step: 8%
– New Passive: Mindguard – Stage 1
Stats:
– Strength: 7
– Agility: 8
– Intelligence: 8
– Endurance: 8
Companion Spirit: Dormant (Observing Progress)
Next Trial: Floor 4 – Beasthaven Coliseum
The Tower didn't wait.
It never did.
Before he could breathe, the floor shimmered—and he was lifted again.
Toward the next nightmare.
And the next chance to rise.
End of Chapter 6