On the eighth year, Parashuram woke Rudra before dawn.
No words.
No warning.
He simply threw Rudra from the cliff.
The fall was endless.
Wind screamed past Rudra's ears as the mountain vanished above him. Rocks rushed upward with lethal certainty.
The system activated instantly.
—
[Terminal Threat Detected]
[Authority Override: Available]
[User Decision Required]
—
Rudra did not activate it.
He twisted midair, adjusting posture, spear angled downward. At the last second, he struck the cliff face, slowing descent just enough to survive the impact.
Bone cracked.
Organs screamed.
He lived.
Barely.
Rudra pushed himself up as blood ran down his chin.
The valley below was wrong.
Silent.
Dead.
A circle of scorched earth stretched for miles, and at its center stood something ancient.
Tall.
Twisted.
Wrapped in chains of broken mantras.
A being born of slaughter.
A Devourer.
Parashuram's voice echoed from nowhere.
"This thing has killed kings," he said calmly. "Gods once failed to destroy it."
Rudra exhaled.
"So," he replied, "this is graduation."
The system updated.
—
[Final Trial Initiated]
[Boons: Restricted]
[Victory Condition: Elimination]
—
The Devourer moved.
Reality bent as it charged.
Rudra met it head-on.
Steel rang against flesh harder than iron. Each strike sent shockwaves through the valley. Rudra adapted instantly—changing rhythm, altering reach, switching tactics mid-battle.
The creature learned too.
It began predicting him.
Rudra was hurled through stone, ribs shattering.
He rose again.
"This is not enough," he thought.
The system responded.
—
[Combat Insight Achieved]
[Partial Unseal Authorized]
—
Power returned—not wild, not explosive.
Precise.
Rudra's muscles responded perfectly. His mind sharpened to a blade-edge calm.
He stepped forward.
The Devourer hesitated.
Fear.
Rudra drove the spear through its core, twisting and ripping upward. The creature screamed as its chains shattered.
With one final thrust, Rudra ended it.
Silence fell.
The system finalized the record.
—
[Final Trial: Completed]
[War Merit: Exceptional]
[Boons: Fully Unsealed]
[Dharma Authority: Awakened]
—
Light did not explode.
It *settled*.
Parashuram appeared beside him.
For the first time, he bowed his head.
"You are no longer my student," the immortal warrior said. "You are my equal in war."
Rudra inclined his head in return.
"I will not dishonor this," he said.
Parashuram smiled grimly.
"You won't," he replied. "You will terrify them."
The mountain began to crumble behind them.
Training was over.
As Rudra turned toward the path leading back to civilization, the system delivered a final message.
—
[Next Phase: Return of the King]
[World Impact: Imminent]
Far away, in Aryavarta, the capital bells rang without being struck.
The crown prince was coming home.
-- chapter 8 ended --