The valley was silent.
Silent in a way that carried weight, like the heavens themselves had turned their gaze away. Where once rivers had flowed and disciples of the clan had trained, only ashes and broken bones remained. The stench of charred flesh hung heavy in the air, mixing with the copper tang of blood.
Ratan, still but a child, sat amidst the ruin. His tiny frame was smeared with soot, his eyes blank as if he had seen eternity itself. Around him, the ground pulsed faintly with a lingering heat—residue from the flames that had erupted uncontrollably from his solar plexus chakra.
Elder Vairaj staggered through the wreckage, his robes torn, his arm dripping with blood. He stared at the child not with anger, nor even sorrow, but with awe.
> *"Such destruction… born of a boy who cannot yet even speak in full sentences. What have the heavens sent us?"*
He knelt beside the child, but dared not touch him. The golden mark that had briefly glowed on Ratan's chest still flickered faintly, like a dying ember struggling against the night. Every time it pulsed, the air wavered with heat, warping the very fabric of the valley.
"Elder! Elder!" voices cried out. Survivors of the valley stumbled forward. Their faces were pale, their eyes filled with both relief and terror.
"He… he destroyed them…" a disciple whispered, pointing at the blackened corpses of the Obsidian assassins. "He burned them all to nothing! Not even their shadows remain!"
Another disciple fell to his knees. "But at what cost? Look around you! The valley is gone! The river has turned to smoke!"
The murmurs spread. Some looked upon the boy with reverence, others with barely concealed fear.
One elder spat blood and said hoarsely, "This child is not a blessing. He is a curse. The heavens do not grant such power without reason. Our clan will be dragged into calamity!"
The words spread like poison. In the eyes of many, the boy who had saved them now seemed like the very embodiment of destruction.
But Elder Vairaj's gaze never wavered. He touched his bleeding chest and muttered, "If calamity must come, then I shall shoulder it. This child… he is no curse. He is our Sovereign Flame."
As if in answer, Ratan's blank eyes flickered. For a heartbeat, a strange light swirled in his gaze—golden flames interwoven with something deeper, something ancient. The serpent's whisper echoed faintly in the minds of those nearby, though none could understand its words.
The survivors froze. Some fell back in terror, clutching their ears. Others bowed instinctively, their knees trembling as if before a deity.
Suddenly—
The sky above cracked.
A thunderous rumble shook the heavens, and from the horizon, a streak of silver light shot across the clouds. The cultivators looked up, shielding their eyes. A lone figure clad in silver robes descended slowly, his presence like that of a mountain pressing upon every soul.
"It seems," the figure's cold voice carried across the ruins, "the rumors were true. The Sovereign's successor has awakened."
Gasps rang out. "Seven Star Hall!" someone shouted in horror.
The silver-robed emissary's eyes landed directly upon Ratan. His lips curved into a faint smile. "Such destructive power… sealed within an infant? How amusing. Clan of the Burning Valley, from this day forth, your fate belongs to my sect."
His aura descended like a tide, suffocating the already wounded survivors. Several fell to their knees, coughing blood under the sheer weight of his presence.
Elder Vairaj stood firm, though his entire body shook. He whispered to Ratan, "Child… do not awaken now. Not yet…"
But Ratan's golden eyes widened. For the first time, he raised his tiny hand, reaching toward the silver-robed figure. A spark of fire ignited at his fingertips.
The emissary's smirk widened. "Oh? The cub bares its fangs?"
The spark grew, turning into a small but blinding flame. The ground beneath the child cracked as the flame swelled unnaturally, pulsing with unstable power.
Elder Vairaj's eyes widened in horror.
"Not here… not now! If he unleashes that fire, the valley will truly vanish from existence!"
And then—
The flame roared, brighter than the sun, consuming the child's small hand in golden fire.
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⚡ **Cliffhanger Suspense Ending:**
The chapter ends with Ratan about to unleash another devastating burst of his unstable Solar Fire against the emissary of Seven Star Hall — risking the total annihilation of the valley itself.
The **next chapter (13: Elder Vairaj's Oath)** must answer whether Elder Vairaj can stop Ratan, or if the child will truly burn everything again.
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