As the dust had settled and the soldiers' threat was overcome, Raijin attempted to depart from Isshin's body, but much to his surprise, he was not able. He sensed a feeling of constraint weighing upon him, and confusion reverberated through his being.
"What is this? Why can't I get away?" Raijin bellowed, his deep voice resonating within the insides of the necklace. He searched his surroundings, quickly realizing – he was imprisoned in the Equilibrium Necklace, a creation of the sage to imprison all seven dragons.
Panic grasped Raijin's celestial body as he was beset with the horror of his condition. Initially, he suspected ruse on the side of the sage, an ambush carefully set so as to ensnare him. However, with deeper deliberation regarding circumstances, he was no longer able to sustain the assumption. Isshin had retrieved the necklace due to pure happenstance, over which Raijin had no degree of influence.
Now trapped in this mystical prison, Raijin had no choice but to wait for the waking of Isshin. The boy alone held the key to his release, and Raijin needed answers. The isolation of his captivity was broken only by the distant muffled sounds of the world beyond, as Raijin's frustration grew minute by minute, his desire to know the source and intent of the necklace burning like a hurricane within him.
Later on, Isshin wakes up and does not recall what had happened and has no idea that Raijin had taken over his body, When he gets up he can hear a voice in his mind "Why are you wearing the Equilibrium Necklace?" Isshin gets confused and panicked "what?!".
Raijin decided to go into his human form while possessing Isshin's body. Which made him just appear as an illusion that only Isshin could see. Isshin shocked, queries Raijin 'Who are you?!
', Raijin somewhat angry responds "That's my question, how did you trap me here? "Isshin was confused and didn't know what to tell him. Raijin sighs in realization that Isshin had no idea about what was happening at all since he was a child. So Raijin decides to summarize what happened. "Listen, your whole village and your family are dead, they were attacked by those 2 dead soldiers over there, whereas you were about to die, I saved you" Isshin had nowhere to go and was totally shocked. "What do I do now?" Raijin says "You have to become strong enough to kill the one that killed your family" Raijin doesn't care about Isshin's life at all but he can't help himself and must use what Isshin does because he is trapped in Isshin's necklace and can't get out.
"I don't know how to become strong…" Isshin says.
"Do not worry, I will help you so stop thinking about the past and worry about the future. I will teach you what life is all about"
When Isshin awoke from sleep, his head was a blank, his consciousness lost in the fog of doubt. But with his new awakening, there was a surprising companion – a voice, sharp and clear, resounded within his mind.
"Why do you have the Equilibrium Necklace?" The voice resonated, the feeling of urgency palpable. Isshin's eyes grew wide with amazement, his heart pounding with a sense of fear and confusion. "What?!" he stuttered, his voice trembling with uncertainty.
Within the confines of his own mind, Raijin, even though bound by the necklace, assumed a ghostly form that only Isshin could see. His ghostly form drifted before the bewildered boy, a formless giant even though he did not have a physical body. Isshin's voice trembled as he was no longer able to suppress his curiosity. "Who are you?!" he shouted furiously, glaring intensely at the evasive specter.
Raijin, although initially angry, realized the extent of Isshin's ignorance amidst the events that were transpiring. He exhaled a defeated breath, his tone milder as he decided to disclose the truth. "That's my question, how did you trap me here?"
Isshin was confused and did not know how to respond. Raijin, with a note of frustration, continued to describe what had transpired. "Listen, your whole village and your family perished, they were attacked by these two soldiers here," Raijin gestured towards the bodies before them, "when you were about to die, I rescued you."
Isshin's world had come crashing down around him, and the weight of his sorrow was crushing on his shoulders. He was adrift, with no purpose, no direction. "What do I do now?" he said to himself, so quietly no one heard.
Raijin reluctantly accepted that he was eternally tied to Isshin's fate. Sighing, he addressed the dejected boy. "You need to become stronger, to avenge your family and village, to confront the person who murdered them."
Isshin's eyes remained fixed on the ground, his thoughts filled with sorrow and uncertainty. "But I don't know how to be strong," he admitted, his voice a trembling whisper.
In return, Raijin provided a spectral hand of guidance, his voice with a new determination. "Don't worry. I will lead you. We will create a path to power together. Forget the past, Isshin, for I will show you what life is truly about."
Amidst the smoldering ashes of his now-burned village, Isshin trailed Raijin. The slain soldiers lay before him, dreary reminders of the vicious truth he now faced. With fear tickling his heart, he went to scour what remained of the village for anything that had survived the fire.
His search yielded a thin but necessary find – food that had survived the flames. Raijin, not being able to venture too far from Isshin, urged him on. "Scavenge what you can, Isshin," he told him. "We'll need these provisions for the journey to come."
Isshin obeyed, his unease clear as he walked towards the dead soldiers' bodies. Death was a strange and abhorrent thing to the young boy, who had never seen its like before. Despite his hesitation, Raijin's presence pushed him on.
Complaining, Isshin checked the equipment of the soldiers. Their armor, ill-fitting his lean body, was useless. But at Raijin's insistence, he attempted to drag one of their swords behind him. The struggle was a strain, and his gait was slow as he returned to their makeshift camp.
While at work, Isshin's mind ran wild with thoughts, and he found himself unable to contain his scorching inquiry. "Mister, who is the opponent that I must defeat?" he inquired, his voice laced with a blend of curiosity and terror.
Raijin, now in mentor mode, decided to give a preview of the monumental task ahead. "Call me sensei," he began, "since I will be instructing you from now on. The fact is… the person you have to defeat is the most powerful person in existence itself, The Sage."
Isshin's eyes widened in shock. The scale of the task that faced him overwhelmed him as he asked the inevitable follow-up question. "Will I ever be able to beat him within a few years?"
Raijin's answer was a sobering reality check. "You might never defeat him, and even if you do, it will take you billions of years," he admitted, his tone heavy with gravitas.
Isshin's confidence wavered briefly, replaced by desperation. "But I am quite strong myself," he told himself, "I am a realm behind the sage, so if I can reach this point, you can too."
Raijin acted quickly to divert Isshin's focus. "Strength is not all about realms. There are a lot of other variables," he told him. "Cultivation is the path to strength, and I will take you there."
On Raijin's instruction, Isshin began learning the Pose of Liberation, eyes shut as he concentrated. A world of particles and energy revealed itself to him even in obscurity. "There are four particles surrounding your normal surroundings at all times," Raijin's voice resonated within Isshin's mind. "They are Oxygen, Nitrogen, Carbon dioxide, and Manaxide. Try gathering the mana particles."
Isshin was led by Raijin, stretching out his hands in the proper locations. He began to pull in mana, a task which quickly became draining for his body. Raijin's encouragement pushed him forward, prodding him to distribute the energy evenly throughout his body.
Pain increased more, pouring like a flood through Isshin's life as he struggled to learn this new skill. Raijin understanding the significance of Isshin's growth placed a guiding hand on his back.
With Raijin's assistance, Isshin suffered through the pain, mana coursing through his body, giving rise to fresh vigor. Isshin was left weakened and puzzled by the experience, not understanding what had transpired. "Did I become stronger now?" he inquired.
Raijin's answer was balanced with reality. "You didn't do much, because you didn't train in the first place," he admitted. But Raijin's explanations were not yet over. He began to open up the intricate world of cultivation to Isshin.
"There are nine Realms for common mortals who live in this world today," Raijin began, his voice having a pedantic tone. "Body Refinement Realm, Golden Core Realm, Nascent Soul Realm, Inner Soul Realm, Spirit Master Realm, Grandmaster Realm, Emperor Realm, Apostle Realm, and Constellation Realm."
He paused, giving the facts a moment to penetrate, knowing what was coming his way was replete with trouble. "And it continues beyond that, past your understanding, after you're off of this planet," Raijin concluded, pointing to the magnitude of that which was more. Rather than despair, Isshin's eyes lit up with renewed resolve. He had embarked on a journey that promised strength, purpose, and the secrets of cultivation. "Let's go train. There is no time to waste," Raijin declared, his voice full of mission.