Pressing forward upon his perilous quest, Rostam entered a domain enveloped in absolute pitch blackness—a void so profound that neither sun, moon, nor stars were visible, as though the heavens themselves had lassoed the celestial lights into captivity. Giving Rakhsh free rein, the champion trusted the instincts of his noble steed to navigate the dark abyss until he suddenly emerged into the light, stumbling upon a silk-like paradise of lush green crops and flowing streams that seemed like a world reborn from old age into youth.
Soaked in sweat from the arduous journey, the elephant-bodied hero removed his tiger-skin coat (Babr-e Bayan) and iron helmet, spreading them beneath the sun to dry. He unbridled Rakhsh to let him graze freely upon the fresh fields, then lay upon the grassy earth to rest, falling asleep like a reclining lion. Soon, the keeper of the field arrived, enraged to find a champion's warhorse feeding on the unharvested crops. Running over, he struck Rostam's foot hard with a wooden staff and cursed him as a demon.
Rostam awoke from his slumber. Filled with silent wrath at the man's insolence, he sprang to his feet, seized both of the keeper's ears, and ripped them off at the root without uttering a single word. The keeper fled wailing, holding his severed, bloody ears, to Avlad, the chieftain and ruler of that region. Outraged, Avlad gathered his warriors and rode out to hunt down the strange intruder.
When Avlad confronted him, demanding his name and lineage, Rostam mounted Rakhsh, unsheathed his gleaming sword, and mockingly dubbed himself 'Cloud'—a cloud that rains down spears and severs the heads of chieftains. With boundlessly fierce force, Rostam charged into Avlad's ranks like a ravenous lion among a flock of sheep, cleaving multiple warriors with every stroke of his blade and trampling their leaders beneath Rakhsh's hooves.
As the host scattered into the mountain caves, Rostam unleashed his sixty-looped lasso, snared Avlad by the neck, pulled him from his saddle, and bound his arms securely. Rostam declared that if Avlad guided him truthfully to King Kay Kavus, the White Demon, Arzhang Div, Bid Div, and Pulad-Ghandi, he would bestow the crown of Mazandaran upon him; but if he lied, his life would be forfeit. Avlad marvelled at the hero's strength and cautioned him about the perilous roads, pitch-black caverns, rivers two leagues wide, 300,000 demon warriors, and 1,200 war-elephants. Rostam merely laughed, placing his faith in victorious God (Yazdan). Driving Avlad ahead, he rode day and night until reaching Mount Esparoz, where Kay Kavus had been blinded and imprisoned. As fires flared across Mazandaran in the dead of night, Rostam securely bound Avlad to a tree and hefted his ancestral mace, preparing to strike down Arzhang Div at first light.