Chan raises his brother from the dead with a mere touch of his magic sword.

He walked through its deserted streets and entered the empty palace. Unbeknownst to Son, the kingdom had been devastated by squadrons of giant vultures, which ate everyone they could catch.  He sat down on a large buffalo-skin drum, causing it to emit a delicious fragrance. Smelling this, the vultures swooped down by the hundreds to devour the young man. Son’s magic sword killed almost all – tens of thousands – of the creatures, its touch dealing death to all who came too close. Only two vultures escaped, fleeing after they witnessed their fellows fall so easily.

Tired from all that work, Son sat down again on the drum.  But there was still no peace for him: He felt somebody pinch his buttocks! He got up and looked all around but saw nothing.  Sitting down once more, he felt it again – two fingers pinching his bottom.  He took his sword and neatly cut the skin that covered the drum.  To his surprise an extremely pretty princess emerged saying:  “My dear hero! You have saved my life, for the vultures would surely have hacked through this skin with their powerful beaks.  They are attracted by my scent, for I am the princess of the fragrant hair. I am the daughter of the king of this country, and my name is Neang Sak Kraup.  My father fled the country with many others when the vultures first came and started the killing.  Perhaps he too has died. They put me in this drum hoping to save me.  Now, you are my hero!  I love you, and I want to marry you.”

Son, the young hero, stayed with the princess in her palace for many days, doing nothing but loving her. Gradually, the city’s inhabitants returned and resumed their normal lives.  They all agreed that Son, the killer of the ten thousand vultures, should be proclaimed their king.  His coronation was celebrated simultaneously with his marriage to Neang Sak Kraup.

In some versions of the tale, there is one more trial for the lazy brothers.  A certain leprous king (who appears in many Cambodian tales) arrived unexpectedly at Son’s palace in the middle of the night.  He touched Son with his own sword, unwittingly killing him. Fortunately, Chan noticed at once that his sword had gone rusty. He traveled (forgetting his laziness for the sake of his brother) to Son’s palace, led by his unerring magical sword.  There he found his brother lying dead and the beautiful princess weeping nearby.