The Heart Clone appeared in a shimmer of warmth, smiling down at the boy.
"Come on, little warrior," the clone said, offering his hand. "We'll start now. Slow and steady."
Rudra grasped the hand without hesitation and was led away toward a quieter corner of the garden, already asking a dozen questions.
Ankit turned back to his parents and Sanya.
This task was too crucial to delegate.
He would guide them personally—no clone, no substitute.
First came knowledge.
Seated in a loose circle beneath the tall banyan tree, Ankit spoke for hours, voice steady and clear. He detailed the complete cultivation system he had forged— from stage 1 to Stage 4's Nexus Unification. He explained the five substages of each stage, the dangers, the breakthroughs, the qualitative leaps that awaited.
His family listened in rapt silence, absorbing every word. Questions arose; Ankit answered each with patience and precision until understanding shone in their eyes.
Only then did the true guidance begin.
Ankit extended his divine sense, delicate threads of golden awareness linking to the minds of Kamal, Neelam, and Sanya. Gentle cocoon-like shields of spatial essence formed around each of them—translucent barriers that muted sound, blocked distraction, and concentrated ambient essence into a dense, nurturing flow.
Within those private sanctuaries, he guided them step by step.
Feel the root of your spine…
Sense the faint rivers of essence drifting in the air…
Draw them inward with breath and will…
Form the cyclone at the core…
As he guided, Ankit's perception pierced deeper.
For the first time since Substage 4, he consciously observed the souls of others.
He compared.
With a casual sweep of divine sense toward the distant surface world, he glimpsed ordinary humans—workers in cities, farmers in fields, children playing in streets. Their souls appeared as tiny beans, barely larger than a thumbnail. But different colours. Some have silver soul, some have green soul, some have crimson red, some have grey...
Then he returned his gaze to his family.
Kamal's soul: a fist-sized sphere of radiant silver.
Neelam's: same size but colour - a lustrous crimson, steady and warm.
Sanya's: same size but the colour - a radiant green, vibrant and quick.
Even Rudra, training nearby with the Heart Clone—his soul was a dull grey bean, yes, but noticeably larger and denser than any ordinary adult's.
Ankit's own soul, vast and unified, spread like a golden city of light across his Soul Abode—immeasurable, radiant, eternal.
Patterns emerged.
Size clearly reflected strength of body. His family's mortal training had nourished their souls far beyond normal limits, even without direct soul cultivation. Rudra, bathed in essence from birth, making his body strong, already surpassed common humanity.
And color…
His own: flawless golden.
His family: Silver, Crimson, Green
Rudra and distant mortals: Multiple colours but mostly Dull grey
Ankit compiled the observations silently, insight crystallizing.
The body strengthens the soul.
None of his family had yet practiced techniques that directly tempered soul—soul related work truly began only in Stage 4. Yet their souls stood head and shoulders above ordinary humans.
Conclusion: a stronger, more refined physical vessel naturally births and sustains a stronger soul.
As for color, Ankit remained uncertain. It would require further testing—later, when time allowed.
For now, he set the question aside and focused entirely on guidance, his divine sense a gentle, unwavering lighthouse as his parents and sister drew essence into their first cyclones.
Hours deepened into night.
At last, three steady vortices stabilized at the base of their spines, each anchoring a newly ignited Root Core.
Stage 1, Substage 1—Energy Root Activation—achieved.
Ankit withdrew the cocoon shields, the barriers dissolving like morning mist.
He regarded them with quiet pride. "Well done. Tell me—when you visualized the Root Core, how large did you manage to make it?"
He had instructed them clearly: imagine the core as vast as possible. A larger initial core granted greater capacity, faster circulation, and higher potential limits—advantages he himself will pioneer later. He can change his own core later because he is creator of this scripture but his family can't.
Kamal spoke first, rubbing the back of his neck with a wry smile.
"I tried to picture a planet, But I wasn't strong enough. It settled at the size of a car."
Sanya bounced slightly, excited. "I aimed for Jupiter! Massive. But… it ended up about the size of a big bus."
Neelam smiled serenely. "I visualized Earth itself. Mine formed the size of a large house."
Ankit listened, expression thoughtful. Even his refined divine sense could not yet peer directly to measure the cores—such precision demanded greater attainment. He filed their reports away for analysis.
Among themselves, the three began murmuring.
"Why is mine the smallest?" Kamal wondered aloud.
"And mine the largest?" Neelam asked softly.
Sanya tilted her head. "Is it… talent?"
Ankit stood, brushing grass from his robes.
"Exactly," he said simply. "The initial size of the Root Core is influenced heavily by talent. Higher talent allows greater initial scale. Rest now, consolidate, and continue cycling essence. You may resume other training as well."
He offered a warm nod. "I'll return soon."
Then he stepped away, vanishing into a fold of space.
Solitude enveloped him in his personal chamber moments later.