One Month Later — Mumbai, Bharat
A month had passed since my awakening.
I now lived in Mumbai, the sleepless city where neon lights met ancient temples, and skyscrapers cast shadows over centuries of buried history.
Here, Awakened warriors walked like gods among men.Guilds ruled the streets.And mutated beasts lurked beneath the city's foundations.
I, Bhishma Mantri, once an accountant who died forgotten in a gray office, now lived a second life in a world of mana and myth.But unlike the others chasing fame or fortune, I chose to walk a quieter path — seeking answers in the past, not power in the present.
Even in this new life, I wasn't alone.
Aarav Deshmukh, my childhood friend, had awakened a Special Talent: Flame Resonance.Hot-headed, fearless, and always loud, he'd joined the Fire Guild in Mumbai, hunting beasts for bounties.
"You're seriously wasting your talent, Bhishma!" he grumbled one night. "People are leveling up, and you're meditating?"
"People chase strength," I said. "I'm chasing understanding."
"You can't kill a beast with understanding!"
"Maybe not," I smiled, "but understanding can kill gods."
Then there was Meera Reddy— a Sanskrit researcher and artifact specialist from Pune.She was quiet, brilliant, and endlessly curious.Where Aarav's fire burned bright, hers was the slow glow of a lamp — steady and illuminating.
We met at the Bharat National Museum, when I visited it out of curiosity.
That day changed everything.
It was supposed to be an ordinary visit.
I had gone to the museum hoping to study a few ancient scrolls — just a personal interest born from my previous life's love for history and Indian mythology.
But fate had other plans.
In a dimly lit corner of the museum's restricted section, hidden behind cracked glass, I saw it — a palm-leaf manuscript glowing faintly gold under the lights.
The plaque beneath read:
KUNDALINI YOGA — THE PATH OF THE SERPENT
Attributed to Lord Shiva.
I didn't know why, but I felt drawn to it — like something deep within me recognized it.When I reached out and brushed the glass, my A-Maya System came alive.
[Artifact Detected!]Name: Kundalini Yoga ManuscriptAge: 7,000+ yearsOrigin: Era of DevasSeal Type: DivineMemory Access: PartialProceed with synchronization?
My breath caught."Proceed."
Light swallowed my surroundings.
I stood upon a mountain that pierced the clouds.The wind burned with divine energy, and in the distance — He sat.
Shiva.
Eyes closed. Body wreathed in ash.Around Him coiled a serpent of pure light, rising through His spine toward infinity.
A voice echoed through my soul:
"The mortal body holds seven gates. Seven lights. Seven truths.When they open, man becomes divine."
The vision shattered.Darkness returned.
And then—
[You have comprehended: "Kundalini Yoga" — God-Rank Technique.]
System Update
[ ATTRIBUTE PANEL ]
Name: Bhishma Mantri
Level: 1
Race: Human
Talent Rank: Mystical
Talent Effect: View memory of artifacts (Past–Present–Future)
Strength: 13 (+1)
Agility: 12 (+1)
Mana: 5 (+2)
Mental Energy: 8 (+3)
Technique: Kundalini Yoga (God-Rank)
Chakras Unlocked: 0 / 7
[New Quest Unlocked!]"Awaken the Seven Chakras."Each chakra represents a gate of divine energy.Opening one will reshape your body, mind, and soul.
That discovery changed everything.
I spent days studying the teachings hidden in the manuscript's memory — learning the divine breathing methods and energy flows of Kundalini Yoga.
Soon, I found a quiet abandoned storage hall near the docks of Mumbai — where the sea met the city's forgotten ruins — and began my training there every night.
Inhale from the earth.Exhale through the spine.Let the energy flow upward.
At first, nothing happened.Then heat bloomed deep in my body.My breath grew heavy. My veins pulsed with light.
The ground beneath me began to tremble.A red glow erupted from the base of my spine, spreading upward like molten fire.
[System Alert!]Chakra Activation Detected: Muladhara (Root Chakra).
The heartbeat of the earth merged with mine.I could feel everything — soil, stone, and life itself vibrating in rhythm.
[Chakra Unlocked: Muladhara — Root of Existence]Effect: +5 Strength | +3 Endurance | Resistance to Fear and ParalysisAbility Unlocked:Titan's Stability — "Stand as the Earth itself."
I exhaled slowly as the energy stabilized.The accountant who once collapsed over a keyboard now stood firm as the earth itself.
When I returned to the museum the next day, Meera found me near the main archives.
"You look different," she said softly. "Stronger."
Before I could answer, a sharp voice cut in — Rudra Sen, son of the Sen family, heir to the Lightning Guild.
"Meditation won't save you, Mantri," he said, his electric aura faintly sparking. "The Beast Trials start next month. Let's see how far your yoga gets you then."
He walked away with his usual arrogance.Meera watched him go, frowning.
"Don't let him provoke you."
I smiled faintly. "He doesn't provoke me. He motivates me."
As she left, I turned toward the manuscript room once more.My reflection shimmered in the glass case, eyes faintly glowing red.
I was no longer Bhishma the accountant — the man who died unseen in an office.I was Bhishma Mantri, the first Mystic of Bharat.
"Let them chase glory," I whispered."I'll chase the forgotten truth."