🔥 Excellent. Now we advance to **Chapter 13 – Snake Spirit Master Appears**, directly linked to **Chapter 12 (Clan Conflict)**.
This chapter will cover:
* Aftermath of the Bhaskar raid: **death, grief, funeral rites**, and Ratan's first true brush with mortality.
* The **villagers' unease** grows—his earth barrier saved children, yet whispers of "curse" multiply.
* On the third night after the battle, when Ratan wanders near the river to mourn, a mysterious **Snake Spirit Master** appears.
* The master is an enigmatic cultivator cloaked in serpentine energy, long-forgotten by the world.
* He recognizes the **serpent aura coiling in Ratan's Root Chakra** and declares: *"From this night forward, you are my disciple."*
* Mahadev initially resists but later accepts, knowing his son's fate is beyond village life.
* Ratan gains his **first true teacher** and begins stepping into the cultivation path consciously.
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# **Chapter 13 – Snake Spirit Master Appears**
The village of Prithvi Gaon was silent in mourning. Smoke curled from funeral pyres, rising into the pale sky. The cries of grieving families echoed across the fields, each wail carving itself into Ratan's young heart.
He stood with the children he had saved, watching as the bodies of fallen farmers—men who had once laughed, argued, and drank barley wine—were consumed by flame. Ash drifted on the wind, carrying whispers of lives ended too soon.
Ratan's fists clenched. His Root Chakra pulsed heavily, as though mourning with him. Each beat echoed against the earth, resonating with loss.
"They died because they were weak," one villager muttered bitterly. His eyes slid toward Ratan. "And he lived because he is cursed."
Another hushed him, but the words had already struck like a blade.
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### **The Weight of Death**
That night, Ratan sat alone outside his hut, knees pulled tight against his chest. His mother tried to coax him inside, but he only shook his head.
"I don't understand," he whispered. "I saved them. Why do they still fear me?"
Mahadev crouched beside him. His voice was low, gruff. "Because fear is easier than gratitude. Remember this, Ratan—men fear what they cannot control."
The boy nodded faintly but did not answer. His eyes remained fixed on the stars, though even they seemed pale and distant.
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### **The River's Call**
On the third night after the raid, Ratan wandered to the river that wound like a silver serpent through the valley. The moonlight shimmered on its surface, cold and serene.
He crouched by the bank, dipping his hands into the water. "Am I curse… or blessing?" he whispered to his reflection. The water rippled, distorting his face into something unrecognizable.
And then—he felt it.
A presence.
The Snake Spirit within him stirred violently, coiling with agitation. *He comes.*
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### **The Master Appears**
From the shadows of the trees, a figure emerged. Tall, cloaked in flowing robes of deep green, the stranger's very presence radiated authority. Around him slithered an aura of serpentine energy, faintly luminous in the night. His eyes glowed like molten gold, sharp and ancient.
Ratan stumbled back, heart pounding. "Who… who are you?"
The man's voice was low, yet it carried like thunder across the still river.
"I am one who walked the path of serpents long before you drew breath. The villagers call me cursed. The clans call me forgotten. But to the earth and sky, I am simply… **the Snake Spirit Master.**"
The serpent coiled within Ratan's Root Chakra hissed in reverence. *It is him… the one who first bound me.*
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### **Recognition**
The master's gaze fell upon Ratan, piercing straight into his soul. "So. It is true. The Serpent chose a vessel after all. A boy born under the starless night, carrying the earth's pulse within his blood."
Ratan's lips trembled. "Why… me?"
The master smiled faintly, though there was no warmth in it. "Why does the storm choose where to strike? Why does the river carve valleys through stone? Destiny is not given, child. It is endured. And you… have endured."
He extended a hand. "From this night forward, you are mine. Disciple of the Serpent Path."
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### **Mahadev's Defiance**
The brush behind them rustled. Mahadev emerged, axe in hand, his eyes blazing with suspicion.
"You will not take my son," he growled.
The master did not flinch. "He is already taken. The serpent within him is beyond your reach. Train him as a farmer, and he will break. Train him as a warrior, and he will outgrow you before his youth ends. Only with me can he survive what comes."
Mahadev's grip tightened on the axe. For a moment, silence stretched like a blade.
Then Ratan whispered, "Father… he's right. I feel it. The earth, the serpent—it won't stop calling."
Mahadev's shoulders slumped slightly. His eyes softened as he looked at his son. Finally, he lowered the axe. "If you are to take him… then know this: if harm comes to him by your hand, I will follow you to the ends of the earth."
The master inclined his head, as though honoring the vow. "Fair."
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### **The Disciple's First Step**
That night, beneath the moon's silver gaze, the Snake Spirit Master performed the disciple's rite. He drew a circle in the soil with a serpent-carved staff, filling it with symbols that glowed faintly with earth energy.
"Step inside," he commanded.
Ratan obeyed. The instant his bare feet touched the circle, the Root Chakra within him pulsed violently. Energy surged upward, coiling like a serpent through his spine. His vision blurred, his breath caught, but he did not collapse.
The master's golden eyes narrowed approvingly. "Good. You have endured. From this night, you are no longer merely a boy of Prithvi Gaon. You are the first disciple of the Serpent Path reborn."
Ratan's small frame trembled, but his heart surged with a fire he had never felt before. For the first time, he had a teacher. A path.
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### **The Snake Spirit's Approval**
As Ratan staggered home, the Snake Spirit whispered in his ear.
"He is old. Dangerous. But he knows our path. With him, you will grow. With him, you may awaken all Seven Chakras. Remember, child—the path ahead is suffering, but suffering is the soil of strength."
Ratan whispered back, "Then let me suffer."
The serpent coiled warmly around his spirit.
"And one day, the heavens will suffer you."
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## **Chapter Highlights**
1. **Aftermath of Raid:** Grief, funeral rites, and villagers' unease toward Ratan.
2. **Introduction of Snake Spirit Master:** A mysterious cultivator appears by the river, cloaked in serpentine aura.
3. **Recognition of Destiny:** Declares Ratan chosen by the Serpent Spirit.
4. **Mahadev's Resistance:** Fiercely defends his son, but reluctantly accepts the path.
5. **Disciple's Rite:** Ratan endures the circle of earth and serpent, officially becoming disciple.
6. **Foreshadowing:** The true Serpent Path begins—the first step toward awakening all Seven Chakras.
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