After that, the high priest wanted to invite Fahab and Rowan to celebrate in the village temple. Fahab and Rowan agreed to join the celebration.
As the evening approached, someone knocked on Fahab's door. Fahab opened the door and saw Jameel, who had come to pick up Fahab and Rowan to ride on the horse-drawn carriage he had brought. Jameel also requested Fahab and Rowan to wear nice clothes for the celebration.
During the journey, Rowan noticed many villagers hanging lit and shining objects on the walls and ceiling of their homes. Rowan asked Fahab, "What's all this?" Fahab replied, "This is one way to ward off evil spirits from haunting the residents' homes, and it's also used to liven up the celebration." Rowan nodded.
During their journey, they crossed a dark road with no other lights except the lanterns on their horse-drawn carriage. In the darkness, Rowan and Fahab saw a dark figure with glowing red eyes and horn-like roots on its head. Fahab instructed Jameel to speed up, and Fahab recited a mantra that created a golden protective aura covering them during the journey.
Not only that, Fahab also recited a mantra that summoned sharp golden thorns that swiftly shot towards the giant figure. The thorns struck the figure's head, seemingly defeating it.
Upon reaching their destination, the grand temple, they disembarked from the carriage and approached the temple. Just before they reached the temple, they heard roars and loud thuds in the darkness. It was the black giant figure again, but this time it wasn't alone; a group of them had gathered. The high priest came out of the temple, raised his hands to the sky, and the atmosphere grew tenser. The high priest then struck the ground, creating a massive wave of gold that wiped out all the giant figures.
Rowan, initially filled with fear, turned to awe as he witnessed the power unleashed by the high priest. The high priest invited everyone to enter the temple to celebrate.
Inside the temple, Rowan saw everyone celebrating, some feasting, some playing, but one thing caught Rowan's attention: a magical duel taking place behind the temple. Two individuals were displaying astonishing magical feats that left Rowan in awe.
The ground shook and cracked as they dueled, truly impressive. In the end, the side on Rowan's right won the duel and received a reward of gold coins.
Fahab approached Rowan and said, "You want to see something amazing? Follow me!" Rowan followed Fahab to a place filled with stunning carvings. Inside, there was the high priest playing chess, and there were shelves filled with chess champion trophies, one of which had the name Tariq inscribed on it. The high priest was a chess champion in the village of Afauz.
Rowan challenged the high priest to a chess game, using his experience from university. The game began, with Rowan moving a chess piece forward, and the high priest responding. After minutes passed, the high priest emerged as the victor. The high priest was indeed the chess champion of Afauz.
Late at night, everyone returned to their homes, leaving only Jameel, the high priest, Fahab, and Rowan. The high priest asked Rowan about his adventures in another world called Zephyria, describing it as a complex and extraordinary world that combined mythological creatures from across the world. To enter it, one had to perform a ritual called Zamriel, involving various beliefs.
According to the high priest, in Zephyria, there was a colossal creature with a majestic voice, resembling a crocodile, named Bujang Senang. According to Sarawakian mythology, the Iban people believed that the legend of the giant crocodile 'Bujang Senang,' which terrorized the Batang Lupar River in Sarawak around the 1980s, originated from a man cursed to become a ferocious beast.
As per the old myths, the original crocodile transformation was that of an Iban hero named Simalungun. Simalungun's prowess during the "Mengayau" (headhunting) era was legendary, and many enemies fell to his hands. His invincibility was attributed to his supernatural immunity to weapon attacks.
Returning to the high priest's story, Bujang Senang gave him a ring he named the crocodile ring. Bujang Senang claimed that the ring could grant someone invincibility like Simalungun. Similar to the myth, it had the same vulnerability; it didn't work when submerged in river water.
Following the myth, Simalungun's enemies kidnapped his wife to force her to reveal his invincibility secret. When Simalungun confronted them to save his wife, she was killed by a spear immediately after being released, exposing his vulnerability in river water.
The ring also symbolized the "Maharaja Buaya" or king of all crocodiles.
The power granted by Bujang Senang in Zephyria also symbolized curses and vengeance on all creatures. The extent of its power was beyond the high priest's understanding, not limited to mythology alone. With the power of curses and a mystical realm full of invincibility, this ring could exponentially multiply a user's strength indefinitely, not just multiplication, but "squared" in mathematical terms, signifying an even greater increase. For instance, if an entity had a power of 2 and used the ring, it could double the strength, making it 2^2, resulting in a power of 4. The ring could exponentially increase the user's power to infinity or more during upgrades.
Rowan, listening to this, fell asleep and was awakened by the high priest, who mentioned he had kept the ring but never worn it, as he was also fearful of its overwhelming power.
After everything concluded, everyone went back to their respective places, while Fahab and Rowan spent the night in the temple.