the last chapter, we saw an unknown man hanging Sai upside down, while Jai was acting strangely, almost as if he wasn't fully conscious.
---
"Sai: Oyy Zixu! What are you doing, man? Get me down from here!"
Sai's voice carried both irritation and a hint of unease as he struggled mid-air.
"Zixu: Wait… I'm trying something."
"Hurry up!" Sai snapped impatiently.
At that moment, Jai slowly regained consciousness. His eyes were half-open, his expression confused, as if he had just woken from a deep trance.
"Jai: What… happened here?"
Before anyone could answer him, the sound of footsteps echoed from the stairs.
Thak… thak… thak…
Each step was slow, deliberate… and heavy. The air itself seemed to grow denser with every step.
"So… you're not going to listen, huh…"
The voice was calm, yet carried an unsettling authority.
"Fine. Come here."
Suddenly, the stick in Sai's hand trembled… and in the next instant, it flew out of his grip and landed effortlessly in the unknown man's hand.
THUD!
Sai crashed onto the ground.
"Seriously? Couldn't you do that more gently?" Sai groaned, getting up and rubbing his back. "You could've at least let me down properly."
When he turned around…
The man was already standing right behind them.
No one had seen him move.
"Who are you?" Sai asked, locking eyes with him.
"I am… Zai Ron."
The name lingered in the air.
Zixu's eyes widened. "You're… that bounty hunter?"
"Correct," Ron replied calmly.
The next second—
He vanished.
And reappeared right behind Zixu.
A precise strike.
Zixu's legs gave out instantly, and he collapsed.
"Jai: Wind Blade!"
Jai reacted immediately, launching a sharp air slash toward Ron.
But Ron simply spun his stick once…
And the attack dispersed like it never existed.
"That won't be enough," Ron said in a bored tone. "Try something better."
"Metal Blade."
Sai's tone turned serious.
A metallic blade formed in his hand, gleaming under the dim light. He charged straight at Ron.
Clash.
But again—
No effect.
"Oyy, even your power isn't doing anything…" Zixu muttered while stepping back. "I'm just a normal guy… we should get out of here!"
"Wait."
Sai's gaze had shifted elsewhere.
"Did you notice that? There… those two avatars."
Everyone turned to look.
Two shadowy figures stood still, completely motionless.
"They're not doing anything… but every time he attacks, their ears glow…"
"Then we should attack them first!" Zixu said quickly.
Ron chuckled softly.
"If I were you… I wouldn't make that mistake."
The fight resumed.
Jai gathered all his strength and launched his new attack—
"Steel Wing!"
A powerful strike shot forward.
But right before it hit—
Sai stepped in.
Impact.
A heavy collision echoed through the room.
"Sai!" Jai shouted in shock.
Ron frowned slightly. "Why did you step in?"
Sai steadied himself.
"Who said we came here to kill you?"
Zixu stared in disbelief. "You just took that attack… head-on…"
Sai gave a faint smile. "The moment it touched me… I turned into steel too. Steel cuts steel."
Ron observed them carefully now.
"If you're not here to kill me…" he said slowly, "…then why are you here?"
"We were hungry," Jai answered plainly. "Came looking for food. But I guess we're full now… from getting beaten up."
A brief silence followed.
"I've been hiding here for four days," Ron finally said. "I'm tracking a group. Their leader has a bounty of 70 million."
"We're looking for them too," Sai replied immediately.
"Don't," Ron said, his tone turning serious. "They have a legendary avatar. I've fought them… and they're far stronger than you think."
Sai's heartbeat accelerated.
"That… can't be my father…"
The conversation shifted.
"I have a pendant too," Sai said quietly. "It glowed once… but nothing happened after that."
Ron's eyes sharpened with interest.
"Let's try something."
"What?"
"Hold your pendant… and repeat after me—
Sarve Vivam… Sarva Vivam."
Sai hesitated for a moment… then slowly took the pendant in his hand.
"Sarve Vivam… Sarva Vivam…"
Suddenly—
The pendant began to glow.
The air grew heavy.
Objects around them started trembling, as if pulled by an unseen force.
"What is happening?!" Zixu panicked.
The pendant lifted into the air.
A thin crack appeared on its surface.
"Madhav… stop!" Sai shouted desperately.
Ron raised his voice, "Do you know why this is happening?"
"If I knew, would I ask you?!" Sai snapped back.
"Grab it! And repeat the mantra again!"
Sai struggled forward and caught the pendant.
"What was the mantra again…?"
Everyone stared at him.
"…Right."
"Sarve Vivam… Sarva Vivam!"
This time—
A dark aura burst out of the pendant.
Thick. Heavy. Almost alive.
Then suddenly—
Everything went silent.
Sai took a deep breath.
"What… was that?"
"I don't know," Ron admitted. "That's the first time I've seen something like this."
Sai slowly wore the pendant again.
His face looked calm…
But inside, a storm of questions had begun.
"Maybe not today… but someday… we'll all be together again…"
---
But the story didn't end there.
That dark aura…
It hadn't disappeared.
It drifted silently through the air…
As if it knew exactly where to go.
Slowly… it descended into the basement of the hotel…
And slipped inside an old, locked cupboard.
---
On one side, Sai and his friends were chasing the Phantom Troupe.
On the other…
They had unknowingly awakened something else.
---
The basement was silent.
Dark.
But inside that cupboard…
Something moved.
As if…
It was waiting.
---
End:
If you were in Sai's place…
would you open that cupboard… or walk away without looking?
And one more thing—
do you think Madhav is still inside Sai… or has something else taken its place?
Drop your theory in the comments.
In Next chapter you might get shout out.