Book 18 (Vishamashila) contains another legend told by Naravahanadatta to an assembly of

hermits in the ashram of a sage, Kashyapa. According to the legend, Indra and other devas
told Shiva that the slain asuras were reborn as mlechchhas. Shiva then ordered his attendant,
Malyavat, to be born in Ujjain as the prince of the Avanti kingdom and kill the mlechchhas.
The deity appeared to the Avanti king Mahendraditya in a dream, telling him that a son
would be born to his queen Saumyadarshana. He asked the king to name the child
Vikramaditya, and told him that the prince would be known as "Vishamashila" because of his
hostility to enemies. Malyavat was born as Vikramaditya; when the prince grew up,
Mahendraditya retired to Varanasi. Vikramaditya began a campaign to conquer a number of
kingdoms and subdued vetalas, rakshasas and other demons. His general, Vikramashakti,
conquered the Dakshinapatha in the south; Madhyadesa in the central region; Surashtra in the
west, and the country east of the Ganges; Vikramashakti also made the northern kingdom of
Kashmira a tributary state of Vikramaditya. Virasena, the king of Sinhala, gave his daughter
Madanalekha to Vikramaditya in marriage. The emperor also married three other women
(Gunavati, Chandravati and Madanasundari) and Kalingasena, the princess of Kalinga.[17][18]

The Brihatkathamanjari contains similar legends, with some variations; Vikramaditya's

general Vikramashakti defeated a number of mlechchhas, including Kambojas, Yavanas,
Hunas, Barbaras, Tusharas and Persians. In Brihatkathamanjari and Kathasaritsagara,
Malyavat is later born as Gunadhya (the author of Brihatkatha, on which these books are
based).[19]