The ancient stone tablet

Perched atop the Temple in the small Tribe called Aram, a vulture with three irises in each eye looked down at the bustling tribe below. Its eyes shone with intelligence, yet they were also clouded with confusion, as if it couldn't remember something important.

"How long has it been?" the vulture wondered. "I remember being split from my main consciousness, but not much else. I used to govern over countless worlds with myriad inhabitants, some as vast as this temple, others as small as pebbles on the ground. My mind wasn't always so muddled, but ever since that event in the past, I've felt this burning sensation. It's even worse now that I'm interlinked with the karma of these tribespeople. It's fascinating how they've managed to survive in this shattered realm with such shallow intelligence. If it weren't for their wise ancestor, I might have perished by now. I must repay this debt. I gave them the Void Eye, which may seem insignificant, but it will help them thrive in this realm. If they can hold on to it that is"

The vulture took to flight with reminiscence and looked down on the small tribe. He saw many creatures like them in the past, but he quite couldn't put a hold on those memories, everything was elusive and hazy. The tribesmen shuffled around with a sense of urgency, their eyes filled with both panic and excitement. It was a strange sight to behold. Some of the tribe members were unable to withstand the overwhelming void energy and collapsed into nothingness, while others were filled with newfound energy and wisdom. Some fortunate children eagerly tested the limits of their new bodies, while old playmates crumbled to the ground and dissolved into nothingness beside them. This world was truly devastating. If you're alive then all is good, if not then that's good too. The Vulture saw some old folks that turned young and some that grew old in a matter of seconds, everyone took the void energy differently. The Vulture enjoyed all the emotions that it could feel but it also felt quite distant because he never felt this sensation before. It unnoticed flew over the tribe and decided to venture into the deepest parts of it. You need to know your territory after all.

He regained some knowledge of the past and also had new knowledge trough the karmic luck. Karmic luck was a powerful force, but not one that could be easily controlled or wielded. If anyone knew that the vulture had inherited the entirety of this continent's history and potential through karma, they would tremble with fear. It felt like as long as it willed it, it would happen, an unimaginable sense of power. But it felt hollow, he can only gain it for real with time. For that the inhabitants of this fragment needed to gain enlightenment so that he could gain it through them. The Vulture wasn't too concerned about the tribe, and he will definitely not become some void god for them. At most he would help them here and there so that their account will be settled in the future. For now, the vulture would explore its newfound territory, learning and growing with each passing moment.

--

Not far from the tribe a middle-aged man stood on an endless desolate plane, there were little to no plants or vegetation to speak of. His eyes shined with wisdom and his body was filled with vitality. If it weren't for the mark on his head and his ash grey skin that had scales hidden beneath you could confuse him with a regular human.

"Incredible, my body feels like newly born." He mused quietly under his breath. "The turbulent void energy doesn't feel as violent as before. The only thing that I couldn't figure out till now is the black mark, it never appeared in any texts about void divinities. I hope that the void god will stay with us and wont leave. Some old records stated that if their mind is born from villainous thoughts, he will sacrifice the whole population to himself or enslave them."

That was the old barbaric priest from the altar that was also the head of this small tribe. In many nether human tribes on this continent the head priest was also the head of the tribe. He was one of the lucky once that could withhold the pressure of the void energy. Although his body was old, his mind was sharp like a sword, unwilling and unbending. The priest only survived though his will power. The vulture really admired his mindset because he felt related to this mindset.

His name was Khan, he was a fairly respected leader on this continent because of his eccentric personality. No one would mess with him if there was no way around, he would often put his life on the line to get his revenge. It was simply not worth to kick a sleeping tiger, a sleeping tiger was still a tiger after all.

Khan had a head full of black hair with some silver shining through from time to time as the wind howled. There aren't many options for survival for nether humans, they would either eat void crystals that could keep them alive for some time, eat wild beast meat or the god forsaken plants that were rarely found. Void crystals appear in places that are rich of distorted space, they are very dangerous, and most organisms would directly explode after eating them. There are some other options to survive but they are truly inhuman and despised from most of the tribes on this fragment.

Khan looked at his body with delight as his hands formed into fists and back. Suddenly, his hand transformed into a fierce black claw. This was an innate ability of the nether humans that powerful tribesmen could acquire after facing many perils. Nether humans mostly died through void crystal explosions, and it was rare for them to die of old age. This proved further how talented Khan was with void energy.

He walked through the planes as looked shocked towards the horizon where a vulture was flying happily in the air. What baffled him the most was that he didn't know this kind of creature. Khan looked through all his memories but couldn't find any wild beast with matching characteristics.

The strange bird flew in circles as if it was searching for something. Khan sat down and looked into the distance. When the celestial bodies on the horizon started to set down, a dark curtain started to shroud the continent. Khan sat there for a long time until the bird suddenly stopped not far away. Normal tribesmen wouldn't hesitate to attack this strange creature to eat its meat, but Khan was experienced. This kind of bird wouldn't survive here normally.

"I think it's time. I wonder what it will do," Khan thought. As Khan sat there watching the vulture, he had no idea that what he was about to witness would confirm his suspicions and change everything. Suddenly, the space around the anormal bird started to shake. Mighty space winds started to roar, and the continent started to tremble. Khan stood up in shock. He had his suspicions, but he never thought they would become true.

The ground under the vulture started to deform like wax, and solid stone became like mud, flowing out of the ground to form a huge hill. This naturally didn't go unnoticed by the rest of the tribe. Heads started to poke out of their small stone buildings in confusion and interest. A little girl came out to look for the cause of this phenomena. Some were as daring as the child and some had to rest from all the occurrences that happened.

More and more tribesman started to appear in the parameter, not daring to rashly rush out. Like this one person after another started to appear behind Khan.

"My fellow tribesman, sit down! Don't come near this hill until I say it, the lord is here!" Khan shouted in a cold tone. At first the tribesman didn't really care much, but they knew Khan who would hold a personal vendetta for the smallest things. When the first sentence wasn't enough, that second shocked them to the core, they quietly sat down in a lotus position behind him.

Not only the new arrivals even Khan sat there with shining eyes. He didn't think that he could see their lord again.

Slowly but continuously the hill started to take the shape of a stone tablet, it had rusty corners and numerous holes and scratches covering its surface. The runes engraved on it were barely legible, but they seemed to hold a kind of ancient knowledge that was long forgotten. The Tablet rushed out of the ground as if it wanted to pierce the night sky. It had a gruesome appearance, as if it had been through centuries of wear and tear. Some of the holes on the tablet seemed to have been caused by some kind of sharp object, while others were smaller and more irregular, as if something had been gnawing at it. The tablet emitted a strange energy that made the hairs on the back of Khan's neck stand on end. He knew that this was no ordinary artifact and that it held secrets that could change the fate of their tribe or even their entire continent forever. If good or bad? No one knew.

--

Seven fragment rotations later, Khan nervously searched trough ancient text in the temple and got more anxious as time went by. Some of the old texts stated that there are things called Void god treasure but there was nothing alike.

"I really can't figure out what is going on in the mind of the lord." Khan spoke under his breath. At first, he was suspicious but now the vulture was deeply engraved in his heart as their lord. Suddenly the dark room he was in that only had candles as light source turned bright as door swung open. A small girl jumped in and brought with her the light of the outside. "Grandpa, how long do you want to hide here? Its not good for your health to burry yourself in those old texts!" The bright girl smilingly said as she entered. "You even went to the other tribes to ask for their texts. This was the daring child that came to look at the tablet. Over the course of the days many smaller tribes moved to Aram to watch the stone tablets. "Little girl, can't you see that your grandpa is still young and kicking?" the middle-aged man said as a smile slowly formed. If other tribe members saw him like that, they would be shocked, this always serious face would never show such an appearance before them. "Grandpa, look at you, you grew winkles again from all the worries." Maja said as they walked out of the temple.

"Little Maja you speak some truths, I can't find any ancient records of this tablet, I should probably not worry about it too much, the lords' ways are not easily discovered." Khan said as he patted the little girl's head. "But still, I need to find a way to decipher the meaning of these holes on the tablet. They seem too precise to be just natural formations." Khan added as he looked back at the tablet with a puzzled expression.

As he examined the tablet more closely, he noticed that some of the holes seemed to be connected in a pattern. It was as if someone had intentionally carved them out to form a message. Khan's curiosity was piqued, and he became determined to unravel the mystery of the tablet.

Despite the warnings of his fellow tribesmen, Khan spent countless hours studying the tablet and trying to decipher its message. The more he looked at it, the more he became convinced that there was a hidden meaning behind the holes. It was as if the tablet was trying to tell him something, something important.

Hours turned into days, and days turned into weeks, but Khan refused to give up. He became increasingly obsessed with the tablet, neglecting his duties as the head priest and ignoring the pleas of his remaining friends.

Finally, one day, after months of intense study, Khan had a breakthrough. He realized that the holes on the tablet were actually part of a formation, leading to a heritage. With this newfound knowledge, khan became determined again and sat before the stone tablet with a serious expression.

One day little Maja couldn't stand it anymore and also sat besides him to stare at the tablet.

When the tablet appeared first it gave of a gruesome aura of desolation, keeping away most of the people. Some of the weaker people couldn't stand it and collapsed after taking a glimpse of the stone. Some of them even started to doubt khan. They thought that he became crazy while trying to understand the ways of divinity.

This all stopped when Maja's body had a reaction, khan and Maja both had bloodshot eyes but when she awakened endless void energy exploded from her body. It was her surprisingly that regained consciousness first. Her body gave off a small tremble when she looked to the other members. As Maja regained consciousness and looked around, she realized that the other tribe members were staring at her in shock and awe. She noticed that her body felt different, as if something inside her had changed. And then it hit her - she had discovered a powerful body cultivation formula hidden within the tablet.

"There's no treasure, but I found something even more valuable," Maja said, her voice filled with excitement. "This tablet contains a body cultivation formula, one that can help us all become stronger and more powerful!"

The other tribe members were sceptical at first, but as Maja began to explain the formula and its benefits, their interest was piqued. Khan snapped out of his trance and listened intently, his eyes wide with wonder. He realized that Maja had stumbled upon something truly remarkable.

Over the next few weeks, some neighbouring tribes moved here permanently and integrated into the tribe. They worked together to decipher the rest of the formula and begin practicing the cultivation techniques. At first, progress was slow, but as they continued to practice, they felt their bodies becoming stronger and more resilient.

Thanks to Maja's discovery, the tribe was able to elevate their strength and become a force to be not messed with. They no longer feared attacks from bigger tribes or wild beasts, and they were able to thrive in their harsh environment.

Khan couldn't help but feel a sense of pride as he watched his people grow stronger and more resilient. At first, he was confused because he had a completely different enlightenment than Maja but decided keep it secret for now. He realized that the tablet had been a gift from the lord, one that had led to the discovery of something truly valuable. And with Maja's help, he had been able to unlock one of its secrets and share them with his tribe. Far away perching on the temple a vulture looked at all the spectacle with interest.