''Haaah....hah... wow, I can't believe I survived that fall. I was fortunate that the talus was deeper. Now let's get out of the place first. I don't have much strength to swim here the whole night.''
I got out of the talus and lit up a bonfire.
''It's so warm. I need to change my clothes; otherwise, I will catch hyperthermia.''
I took off my clothes and put them near the fire to dry. Sitting naked near the fire made me a little embarrassed at first, but I got used to it. I relaxed my body by reclining on the stone behind me, gazing at the stars above me.
''Wow. the sky from here really is beautiful.''
'I can see the stars clearly illuminating brightly in the night sky which helped me relax all my fatigue.'
''Grrrrr''
My stargazing was interrupted by my stomachs grumbling/complaining about missing a meal.
''Man, I am starving. I need something to eat.''
I looked for something in my bag to eat. Since my bag is waterproof, its inside was arid.
''If I remember correctly, I put some cup noodles in it before leaving, hope I remember it will.''
I started searching for the cup noodles in all the bag sections.
''Yes, I finally found it .'' It was hiding in the deepest part of the bag.
''Now, to cook the cup noodles, I will use the warm water that I stored in the thermos beforehand.''
I ate cup noodles while strategizing my future actions. While I was strategizing, I remembered something I saw while falling.
''Where did I put my torch?''
''Ah, there it is.''
I used the flashlight of the torch and turned it towards the waterfall.
''Hmm, just as is suspected, there is a passage there.''
With the help of a flashlight, I discovered a hidden passage behind the waterfall.
''I feel that this passage will lead me to the temple just like in movies.''
''I think the clothes have dried up till now by the bonfire's heat.''
I checked the clothes first and then wore the dried clothes.
''Now I am ready to explore the passage.''
I put the bag on the shoulder and left.
After avoiding the waterfall, I entered the passage. It's an entirely standard passage, a little flooded at the bottom because of the waterfall's water flowing in it.
Walking straight in the passage, I came across a diversion.
''Which one to choose, the left one or the right one?''
''Let's go, right. but first, I must make this junction.''
I marked the junction with a cross mark with a pebble near my feet and went in the right direction.
After a few minutes of walking and I came back to starting point. I chose the left this time and started walking, but it was a dead end.
I went back to the starting point. I was pondering about what to do. Both ways are Nothing but fake; I must find the natural way. Looking for a possible hidden way started checking for any hollow space in the walls.
Nothing, I couldn't find any hollow space in the walls at the diversion. Then I went to the left one and did the same there, but no luck. There was no hidden passage there also. I returned to the starting point, and I observed every little sound made in the surrounding.
Soon I found my answer; I heard the flow of water rapidly coming from the right way. At first, I thought it was of waterfalls sound, but then I understood that this sound was more intense than it was supposed to be.
I walked the right way and found the spot where the sound was most intense. I started digging into the wall with the sharp stones around me. The passage opened after working very hard, and I walked into the newly discovered route.
Walking in the passage for 12 minutes straight, I finally saw the light coming from the exit, and I ran towards it to see what was beyond that light. As soon as I passed it, an extraordinary scenery lay in front of me.
''Wow, this scenery is straight out of a novel. But I can't see very well because of all the mist here.''
The mist was too thick for me to see anything beyond 25 cm.
''It's 4.23 AM. I should camp here and wait for the mist to clear out a little.''
I set up a camp near the exit. Soon my eyes became heavier, and drowsiness struck me.
''It's natural for my body to exhaust. I will sleep and start the exploration after sunrise.''
I lit up a campfire near me; it would protect me from any wild animals and help me keep warm. I closed my eyes and slept near the fire, using my hand as a pillow.
''YAWNN''
I yawned and stretched my body.
''Ouch.'' My body is aching everywhere, and it still needs more time to function normally.
''Now that the sun has risen, the must is little less than before. I can see up to 5 meters without a problem.''
''Let's survey the surroundings and see if we find something interesting. After that, I will have some cup noodles for breakfast.''
I started surveying the surroundings near the camp but didn't find anything useful there.
''Nothing there is Nothing but strange rock formation. let's go ahead; I might find something useful there.''
I went to the area where the mist was thick and found a staircase that led somewhere up on the mountain. I marked the location and went back to the camp.
''l shall prepare my meal and go up fast.''
After breakfast, I packed everything in my bag and left the camp. I started climbing the stairs that led to the summit.
Fifteen minutes later, I was exhausted, but the stairs didn't end; they were still going up; there was no end to them.
''How long will it take to reach the summit? I think I am currently on the 1034th stair. I shall take a small break and start climbing the stairs again.''
After taking five breaks while climbing the stairs, I finally reached the summit.
''Finally, I made it. That was intense climbing I have ever done in my life. I think there were approx 10000 stairs, more or less, and I stopped counting after 3000.''
''But it doesn't matter; the fog is still there. what a bummer.''
Just after I let out those words, I heard it. The same voice before the fall and during the tiger incident.
''O descendant of the chosen ones. You, who is the descendant of the one chosen by the time itself. You have done well to make this far.''
''Who's there? Where are you?'' I asked.
''I am the guardian of time and space. The time has already told me that the sole descendent of the chosen one, determined by fate, will come to my temple.
''Your temple! that means you are the one who was prayed by the people 5000 years ago?
'That means I reached the ancient temple after all. But where is it I can't see it because of the mist dammit.'
''The wings of the white bird will guide your way. You must come with wisdom and strength combined; only then the door will open.''
His voice subsided, leaving so many questions in my mind.
''What white bird? And which door I can't see anything because of this stupid mist.'' I shouted as loud as I could.
''IT IS ALL AS THE TIME HAS SHOWN''
The strong wind flew and cleared the mist. The temple and the ruins left by the ancient civilization are visible clearly.
''Beautiful, never thought I would see it here, at the top of the summit; now that the sunlight is visible, it's looking more beautiful.''