In the raging waters of the river, a child's body drifted along, its clothes torn open at the chest. From time to time it struck against submerged rocks or briefly floated up to the surface. Amazingly, its heart was still beating… Fortunately, at his age his body was tough enough that the bleeding had already stopped. But how long this went on, no one knew…
Thump!
Suddenly opening his eyes, Kai saw nothing but complete darkness before him. Getting up with a sharp throbbing pain in his head, he began to look around. No matter where he turned, there was only darkness—under his feet, above him, everywhere. He couldn't understand at all what had happened to him…
Did I die? — That was the first thought that came to Kai.
Feeling his chest, he realized that there was only smooth skin there. Rubbing it, he understood that there was no wound anymore!
"Hmm, that's really strange… I clearly remember falling into the river covered in blood." Kai began to panic a little, but quickly pulled himself together and continued to look around.
Suddenly he saw a faint glow in the distance… He couldn't explain to himself what exactly it was. It was as if there was light, and at the same time it was dark. Cautiously, Kai started walking toward the object, slowly moving his feet.
A few minutes later he reached the source of the glow and saw a strange sphere in front of him. It seemed to be made of some kind of dark material. Kai had never seen anything like it… It didn't look like stone, or glass, or even metal. When he looked at the sphere, he felt as though it were swallowing his soul and body. His head immediately started spinning, and he understood less and less what was happening…
At that moment, under the influence of a strange urge, he reached out his hand, his fingers trembling as they drew closer to the sphere. The feeling lured him in like a drug! His consciousness struggled against it, as he realized that something bizarre was happening. Kai tried to resist, yet at the same time his hand kept slowly moving forward.
A touch…
Boom! — A tremendous roar sounded, as if a heavenly bell had been struck! Kai felt as though a melody unlike anything in existence began to pour into his soul!
It sounded as if someone were playing on strings woven from all that exists. Some sounds were like the chirping of birds, others felt like epic explosions, a third kind brought him bliss, like the bubbling of a hot spring. He felt such a range of sensations that he had never even heard of before!
From this, Kai's head felt like it was splitting open. It was as if his mind wasn't capable of comprehending everything that was happening. He felt as though red-hot needles were being driven into his brain. His heart clenched painfully and lost its rhythm, and his stomach hurt so much it was unbearable! From all of this he immediately collapsed to his knees!
Suddenly, throughout the entire space, the sounds seemed to merge and resounded as a single roar. Kai could not explain what he felt at that moment. This epic sound had no words, yet he clearly understood its meaning… It was as if the information was imprinting itself directly onto his soul and heart, as if that meaning was flowing through his entire body!
> "The Intangibility of Time and Space is the first law. Elusive and incomprehensible, it seems to have existed before all things and will remain after all things."
> "The Causelessness of Luck is the second law. The causes and effects of the Universe's manifestations cannot be grasped, as though everything is decided by the throw of a die with infinitely many faces, giving rise to the most incredible patterns."
> "The Eternity of Will is the third law. Will belongs to all that lives and all that does not. It is like an immaterial essence that sets all the laws of existence into motion."
> "Life and Death are the fourth law. They are the fruit of the supreme triad of laws: time-space, luck, and will. Luck and the will to develop within infinite time give birth to entities and then lead them into nonexistence."
> "The Law of Flesh is the fifth law. Everything begins with flesh—flesh living and nonliving, flesh material and spiritual; even the manifestations of nature possess flesh."
> "The Law of Energy is the sixth law. The development and activity of all things give birth to myriads of forms of energy, their combinations and types."
> "The Law of Spirit is the seventh law. Given enough time, everything acquires its own spirit and its own consciousness, which are the manifestation of the highest form of being."
Breathing heavily and trying to bring his mind back into order, he wiped away his sweat and thought about what he had just heard. These words shook his mind to its core. In a daze, he began to repeat the laws and reason them out aloud.
"The Law of Time and Space… Everything in our world is subject to the flow of time…"
"The Law of the Causelessness of Luck… It's true, luck has saved me from beatings many times. But because of bad luck, my orphanage has now been destroyed…"
"The Law of the Eternity of Will. Only the strong can survive in this world, and to reach the top you need an iron will that helps you overcome all obstacles—even ones like what I had to go through today."
"The Law of Life and Death… Heh, I really have seen it so many times in nature: how the death of an animal becomes fertilizer for plants, and the plants become food for people… Even the lives of my brothers and sisters turned into death in an instant…" Kai sighed heavily.
"And next we had…"
"The Law of Flesh… Everything has flesh, even the nonliving?" Kai said doubtfully.
This part he didn't understand… But he resolved to firmly remember every law he had heard. He felt that they were something incredibly important!
Kai didn't even notice how his very way of thinking had subtly changed. It was as if these laws had become one with him, gifting his mind a fragment of their wisdom…
"The Law of Energy? Hmm, is that the energy that the masters in the legends can sense? I need to understand it too if I want to become strong. Then I'll destroy those bastards who killed my loved ones. Even if death replaces life, that doesn't mean I should forget those scum."
"And last was… the Law of Spirit… Is that like my thoughts? When I think, is that the Law of Spirit at work?"
"Time and Space, Luck, Will, Life and Death, Flesh, Energy, and Spirit! I must never forget this, no matter what happens!" Kai said firmly.
In that instant, there was a bright flash, completely blinding Kai!
He began to cough violently, spitting out water. Slowly he opened his eyes… To his immense shock and unease, he realized he was lying on a rock by the riverbank. His chest was torn open, and it hurt even to move.