The morning air was crisp, carrying a faint scent of dew and dust from the streets Mohit walked through. He moved silently, aware of every small shift around him. Since the fight with Kiran and the unstable energy encounter, his senses felt sharper — more attuned to the subtle currents of spiritual power that lingered in the city.
The reverse cultivation defect still tugged at him, pulling some of his strength away whenever he pushed too hard. But Mohit had learned to work within the limits, stretching his energy gently, like testing the flow of a river without disturbing its course.
As he rounded a corner near the old marketplace, he sensed movement ahead. Not chaotic, not threatening… deliberate. Someone else awakened, that much was certain.
He slowed his pace, keeping to the shadows. A boy and a girl stood by the fountain, their auras faintly visible to him — a soft glow of energy hovering around them.
The boy noticed him first. "You're Mohit, right?" His voice carried surprise, tinged with curiosity. "I've been tracking you since the other day. You're… unusual."
Mohit nodded slightly, cautious. "I'm just… trying to understand this world."
The girl glanced at him, her expression calm yet sharp. "Most people don't notice the currents around them," she said. "But you do. That makes you… rare."
Mohit's heart skipped. Rare… not bad, not weak… he thought silently. "Are you… awakened too?"
"Yes," the boy replied. "I'm Arjun, and this is Meera. We've been observing spiritual disturbances in this city for a while. That place near the abandoned lot… we know about it."
Mohit's eyes narrowed. "You… know about the unstable zone?"
Arjun smiled faintly. "Of course. It's dangerous. But it's also an opportunity. Whoever masters it can change everything — if they survive, that is."
Mohit felt the pull of curiosity again. "I survived."
Meera smirked. "Barely. But that's exactly why we need someone like you. Someone cautious, observant… and capable of adaptation. You've been careful, but now you have to learn to act."
Mohit's mind raced. Allies meant support, yes, but they also meant exposure. The world of cultivation was unpredictable; alliances could turn deadly in a heartbeat. And yet… something in the way Arjun and Meera moved, their aura stability and subtle control, spoke to him. They weren't reckless — they were skilled.
"I… I'll consider it," Mohit said cautiously. "But I need to understand my own limits first."
Arjun nodded. "Fair. We're not asking you to jump blindly. Just… know that you're not alone."
The trio spent the next hour walking through quiet streets, testing each other's abilities subtly. Mohit observed carefully — Arjun's energy flowed like a steady stream, precise and controlled. Meera's energy was more like a flame, quick and responsive, able to shift in a moment's notice.
Mohit realized this was a chance to learn without immediate danger. To grow without pushing himself into exhaustion too soon.
As the sun climbed higher, Mohit felt the warmth inside him pulse in response to their presence. He could feel a faint resonance — not power exactly, but connection. Something he hadn't experienced before.
The first ally. Not a rival, not an enemy.
Someone to share the path with.
And yet, as they left the marketplace and vanished into the streets, Mohit felt the quiet tug of responsibility.
The world wasn't waiting for him to catch up. Awakenings were spreading. Dangers were coming. And his growth… had to keep pace.
Tonight, he would train harder. Not to fight Kiran. Not yet. Not to prove strength. But to prepare. To sharpen his connection with energy. To survive.
Because the first ally was only the beginning.
And in the currents of spiritual energy, beginnings often led to storms.