Several months passed, during which time Shivaay endured countless episodes of waking up and immediately fainting due to excruciating pain.
"Okay, our procedure is successful, but alas, we don't have time for more experiments.
The special forces of the Peacock Empire are en route; burn the laboratory and prepare to vacate," said one of the men in white coats.
After a short while, a war aircraft appeared just above the laboratory. Several men in black uniforms jumped down from it with swords on their back, clearly highly trained forces.
"Commander, the location is clear—no one is here except a lifeless, burnt boy's body, identity unknown... hold on, he is alive but barely breathing," reported a soldier wearing a black uniform to their commander.
"Commander, perhaps our intelligence got leaked somehow, and they've escaped," another soldier informed their leader.
"Today doesn't seem to be our lucky day, I guess. So, what do we do with this half-burned-dead boy? Let's take him to our outpost," the commander decided.
Eventually, Shivaay regained consciousness. He slowly opened his eyes, overwhelmed by pain. His surroundings were sterile and white, unmistakably a hospital room. He was wrapped with bandages over his entire body.
The door swung open, and a man in a military uniform entered. He pulled a chair close to Shivaay's bed and sat down. The uniform bore the emblem of the Peacock Empire, which shared its southern border with the Vulture Empire, with vast oceans to the north and the Crow and Kite Empires to the east and west, respectively.
Shivaay felt bewildered about how he ended up here. His last memory was of being operated on by men in white coats.
"Child, we know you are from the Vulture Empire. We rescued you during a mission near the border. You were blessed by a high-level god before, but now your root meridian is missing. We can only help you if you agree to help us. Afterward, we'll send you home," the military officer stated firmly.
Devastated by the loss of his root meridian, Shivaay contemplated how he would survive in this harsh world.
Nevertheless, he agreed, realizing he had no other option in this foreign empire.
The officer continued, "If you share everything with us, we will arrange for your return home."
Shivaay recounted his experiences with tears in his eyes, from the old man to the people in black cloaks and the people in white coats.
A week passed, and Shivaay's physical condition improved with the aid of painkillers. He was still wrapped in white bandages, and a nurse occasionally came to change them. He contemplated running away but soon abandoned the idea, considering the heavily guarded individuals outside and his weak body.
The military officer returned with colleagues and doctors. "I'm afraid we can't send you home," he said. "The Vulture Empire has disowned you, claiming that you fled to the Peacock Empire with your family, making you their enemy."
"What will happen to me now?" Shivaay inquired.
"We have a proposal for you," the officer replied. "Although you've lost your root meridian, you still harbor high-god energy deep within your cells. We're offering you the opportunity to become a test subject for our artificial root implant—a genetically modified procedure."
"Why entrust such an important military experiment to an outsider like me?" Shivaay questioned. "Aren't there any volunteers from your empire?"
"Indeed, there are, but none of them have been blessed by a high-level god. Those who have received such blessings are invaluable assets to the empire."
Realizing that this might be his only chance to gain power, Shivaay agreed. He understood that without his root meridian, he would struggle to survive, let alone seek revenge. His plan was to accept this experiment, gain power, and then escape or die trying.
"Okay, I'll do it," he said, and the officers handed him a normal contract to sign ,they can't use the chakra binding contract as he doesn't have chakra power anymore .They left, and Shivaay found himself alone with the document.
"Sir, what if he tries to escape after the experiment? The contract is just a piece of paper," one of the officers asked his senior officer.
"I know," replied the senior officer, "which is why we'll also use the ancient god crystal. He won't survive this, but at least we'll obtain the experimental data." The officers chuckled and left the hospital corridor, leaving Shivaay unaware of the hidden agenda surrounding him.
Soon, the day arrived, and in an underground laboratory, a boy lay on an operating table. It was Shivaay, and he was in a deep slumber.
"Artificial root implanted, start applying ancient god crystal energy in the meridians," a voice commanded.
"Beep, beep, beep," the machine emitted sounds.
"What's happening?" someone exclaimed.
"His god cells are reacting with the ancient crystal…stop it…stop it… it's going to explode."
"Run, run, get out of here," everyone rushed out of the laboratory.
The laboratory erupted into pieces, causing tremors that extended for over a kilometer. No one survived the explosion, not even the officers.
The God crystal reduced to dust and slowly swept into Shivaay's root meridian.
Far away in a palace, a person in military uniform could be seen watching all the commotion that happened through camera.
"Go, and bring back the God Crystal. It's too important for us" he ordered one of his men. He was unaware that the god crystal already entered Shivaay's root meridian as all the cameras were destroyed in the blast.
Amidst the debris, a young boy lay unconscious, miraculously unharmed by the colossal blast. Shivaay was having a dream about a gigantic man meditating on an ice glacier. Shivaay's height only reached the man's toes.
Despite the freezing cold, the man wore nothing but animal skin as if it were a prized trophy. His body was covered in ashes, surrounded by thousands of human and animal skulls. The man had long, distinctive hair with a crescent moon ornament, a third eye on his forehead, and a large black snake coiled around his neck.
Shivaay was awestruck, having never encountered such an immense and unique being in his life. The man exuded a powerful aura of death, and Shivaay felt frozen in fear. It was as if a single step toward the man would mean his demise. Suddenly, the man opened his eyes and smiled at Shivaay, emanating a sense of tranquility, as though he knew everything, and no secret in the universe could be concealed from him. A name appeared in Shivaay's mind—Lord Shiva, the God of Destruction, one of the three supreme gods.
Terrified, Shivaay abruptly awoke from the dream.
Taking in his surroundings, Shivaay found himself in a small house. He noticed a young girl approaching him with a cloth.
"Ah, you woke up," she exclaimed. "I'm sorry I didn't notice sooner. How are you feeling? Are you hurt anywhere?"
It was apparent that she had been taking care of him, but Shivaay was puzzled about why he was there.
"Sorry for not introducing myself earlier. I'm Aisha," she said with an innocent smile, even though she appeared much younger than Shivaay, who was already seven years old.
"I'm Shivaay. I appreciate your help and care. But can you please tell me where I am?"
"You're in Black rose village under the territory of the great kingdom of Florania. My grandfather found you in the river while he was fishing with his friends. You were injured, so he brought you home," she explained sincerely, still wearing a warm smile.
Shivaay considered what might have happened during the operation. There might have been an accident during the procedure, and he ended up in a vassal kingdom of the Peacock Empire.
Thankfully, he had survived, but now he needed to find his way to his aunt, as his mother had instructed.
"Aisha, I've made it home. Could you give me a glass of water?" an old man entered the room. Upon seeing the injured boy, he exclaimed, "You've awakened, my child. Are you feeling better?"
"Thank you, sir. I'm doing well now, and I'm grateful to you for saving my life," Shivaay replied, bowing respectfully.
"You don't need to thank me. I had to do it. But how did you end up in the river?" the old man inquired.
"I came from a small village to the south of here. Bandits attacked and destroyed our village, leaving me as the sole survivor. With nowhere else to go, I jumped into the river. I don't remember anything after that," Shivaay fabricated his story, feeling disheartened.
Aisha became saddened by his tale, tears welled up in her eyes. "Grandpa, please let him stay. He doesn't have anyone."
"Certainly, my princess," Grandpa agreed.
"You can stay here as long as you need."
"Yay! Can I call you big brother?" Aisha asked excitedly.
"It depends. Can I call you little sis?"
Shivaay responded with a smile, seeing in her the family he had lost.
"Yes!" Aisha happily agreed. "Big brother, did you fight the bandits in your village? Are you powerful? Which school did you learn to fight from?" She bombarded him with questions one after another.
Shivaay shook his head slowly. "I got injured while fleeing, and my root meridian was damaged. I can't fight anymore," he lied, feeling disheartened and clenching his fist tight.