The pain had not yet faded.
Siddharth stood at the mouth of the cave in the Forbidden Valley, his breath steady but heavy. Every nerve in his body still burned from the violent breakthrough.
Sadhak Rank 2.
That single step had been forced through sheer will.
Kaushik's voice echoed softly.
"Your foundation is unstable. Advancing further now would risk collapse."
Siddharth nodded.
"I know."
He turned back.
Arjun and Shraddha were standing behind him, expressions filled with worry.
"You're leaving already?" Arjun asked.
"You just broke through last night," Shraddha added. "You don't even have time to stabilize."
Siddharth's eyes were calm unnervingly so.
"There is no more time."
He looked toward the distant direction of Ayodhya Gurukul.
"Kartik will not wait. Neither will I."
By noon, Siddharth crossed the massive stone gates of the Gurukul.
The moment he stepped inside, a subtle ripple spread.
Students paused mid-step.
Some frowned.
Some sneered.
Some whispered.
"He's back."
"That's Siddharth from the expert class."
"The one who challenged Kartik."
The air grew tense.
Word spread faster than wildfire.
Within an hour, the Martial Stage was surrounded.
A suffocating pressure descended.
Kartik walked forward, hands behind his back, arrogance etched into every step.
Sadhak Rank 4.
The difference in cultivation was obvious.
He stopped ten meters from Siddharth and laughed softly.
"So you didn't run."
Siddharth met his gaze without flinching.
"I don't flee from the dead."
Kartik's smile faded.
An elder appeared on the martial stage, his voice echoing.
"This duel is voluntary. Life and death are decided by strength alone."
Kartik stepped forward.
"You still have a chance to kneel," he said mockingly.
"Become my servant. I might let you live."
Siddharth removed his outer robe slowly.
His aura surged.
Not overwhelming
But dense.
Compressed.
Sharp.
Sadhak Rank 2.
A murmur swept through the crowd.
"Impossible…"
"He just broke through!"
"How can his aura be so solid?!"
Siddharth raised his eyes.
"You wanted a lesson," he said calmly.
"Come."
The elder raised his hand.
"Begin."
The moment his hand dropped
The ground cracked.
Siddharth vanished.
The instant Siddharth disappeared
Kartik moved.
A shockwave erupted beneath his feet as he stomped forward, prana exploding outward in a violent surge. The martial stage trembled under the pressure of a Sadhak Rank 4 cultivator unleashing his full might.
"Too slow!" Kartik roared, his palm slicing through the air.
A crescent of condensed prana tore forward like a blade.
The crowd gasped.
"That's a killing move!" "He's not holding back at all!"
But the strike never landed.
Siddharth's figure flickered.
His body twisted at an impossible angle, feet brushing the ground lightly as if carried by the wind itself.
Garuda Wings.
The Rishi-rank mobility art activated instinctively.
To the onlookers, Siddharth didn't dodge
He glided.
The prana blade smashed into the stage behind him, carving a deep trench into the stone.
Silence followed.
Kartik's eyes narrowed.
"So you do have something interesting."
Kartik stepped forward again, this time faster, his fists blazing with crimson prana.
"Let's see how long your tricks last!"
He struck.
Once.
Twice.
Three times.
Each punch carried crushing force, heavy enough to shatter bones.
Siddharth met him head-on.
His stance was grounded, stable every inch of his body aligned perfectly.
Bajrang Fist.
His fist shot forward.
Boom!
The collision of fists released a thunderous blast that rippled through the stage. Wind roared outward, forcing weaker disciples to stagger back.
The elder overseeing the duel narrowed his eyes.
"A Rishi-rank fist art… mastered to an astonishing degree."
Kartik slid backward half a step.
Just one.
But that was enough.
His expression shifted shock flashing through his eyes before being buried under fury.
"You're only Sadhak Rank 2!" he snarled.
"How can you block me?!"
Siddharth exhaled slowly.
"Because strength isn't decided by rank alone."
Kartik's aura flared violently.
Veins bulged along his arms as his bloodline power surged.
A faint, ancient pattern glowed across his skin.
"The Yadav family doesn't lose to nobodies," he said coldly.
"I'll crush you properly."
He vanished.
Appearing above Siddharth, Kartik brought his heel down like a falling mountain.
The air screamed.
Siddharth's eyes sharpened.
Time slowed.
He shifted half a step to the side, one hand rising.
Another Bajrang Fist—but this time, compressed to a single point.
CRACK!
Kartik's heel was deflected mid-air, his balance broken.
Before he could recover
Siddharth was already there.
A fist hovered a finger's breadth from Kartik's chest.
The entire arena froze.
One breath.
Two.
Then Siddharth withdrew his hand and stepped back.
The crowd erupted.
"He could've hit him!" "That was a clean opening!" "Why didn't he attack?!"
Kartik landed, breathing hard, staring at Siddharth with disbelief and rage intertwined.
"You're mocking me," he said hoarsely.
Siddharth shook his head.
"No."
He raised his fists again.
"I'm giving you a chance to fight seriously."
The wind howled across the martial stage.
Bloodlust thickened the air.
From the VIP stands, several elders leaned forward.
This duel
Had already surpassed expectations.
And it was only the beginning.