All members of the Sky Squad had assembled, joining the defensive divisions at the main gates of Prisma. Reinforcements from the martial alliance were arriving from across the five continents, though the vast majority was traveling by land and sea rather than through municipal teleportation arrays. The spatial stations lacked the bandwidth to process such massive troop numbers simultaneously.

Consequently, the bulk of the alliance forces mobilized using heavy carriages and mounted divisions, converging on Prisma in massive formation.

The capital's standing defense garrisons were already at full deployment, while units originating from outside the Orpris continent rode day and night toward a single objective: the city of Prisma.

Inside the inner sanctuary, continental advisors and regional sovereigns held continuous war councils, refining their tactical deployments.

Every leader understood that the outcome of this global war would reshape civilization for centuries to come. Civilian populations across the Orpris continent were evacuated to isolated refuges far from the capital. Though gripped by fear, the citizens complied orderly with the emergency evacuation protocols issued by Dasatama and the council.

Throughout Prisma and surrounding provincial towns, families abandoned their homes and property, seeking shelter in designated safe zones.

The threat of Lord Demon Shura could no longer be managed through conventional military measures. Human civilization had faced this exact extinction event twenty years ago, and the names of the Three Legends echoed once more among the refugees—the three saints who had shielded humanity from the dark invasion of the past.

Yet the Three Legends were gone, presumed dead by the world. Today, the martial alliance had to stand united, relying on their collective strength rather than praying for legendary heroes to save them.

Orthodox cultivators forged an unprecedented, cohesive front to repel the Demon Lord's dark army.

Praying for victory, the civilian refugees took shelter in the hinterlands, hoping the united martial alliance could overcome Shura's forces once and for all.

Meanwhile, in a remote sector, the intelligence operative Aaman was investigating the exact coordinates Aji had provided. He had traveled to the specific coordinates exhibiting the densest concentration of dark magic—a location mapped out through Gayatri's extraordinary sensory domain.

Aaman suspected the location served as Lord Demon Shura's private sanctuary: a secluded, uncharted island situated off the coast of the Orpris continent. Island Inka was an isolated landmass completely avoided by merchant fleets and orthodox cultivators alike.

Operating on untouched terrain, Aaman monitored the movements of dark operatives guarding a subterranean facility. Recognizing the risk, he refrained from making a direct move, observing quietly from the shadows until the primary force began to mobilize.

Aaman was forced to pull back even further when a suffocating, bloodthirsty aura radiated from the center of the dark formation. It was a terrifying, monstrous pressure—the unmistakable intent of a supreme predator. Activating his stealth domain, Aaman retreated several kilometers, maintaining his surveillance behind a specialized concealment barrier.

The barrier spellwork was a technique taught to him by Aji, incorporating elements of spatial concealment derived from the Second World. Though Aaman's mastery was far from absolute, he could deploy the array at long range to erase his physical presence and aura footprint.

Through his elevated vantage point, Aaman identified the central figure of the dark army. The dark magic emanating from the individual was so dense that surrounding dark cultists dropped to one knee as he passed. It was the sovereign of the dark path himself: Lord Demon Shura.

Under Aaman's watchful eye, Shura and his primary force vanished through a massive, wide-mouth spatial portal. Once the entire legion stepped through, the spatial conduit collapsed, leaving Island Inka completely silent. Sensing that the dark magic had dissipated from the area, Aaman verified that the main force had departed.

Activating his communication ring, Aaman transmitted a direct update to Aji, reporting that Shura and his primary guard had mobilized via spatial teleportation.

Aji replied promptly, advising Aaman to fall back and rejoin the alliance forces since the target area was clear and the invasion was imminent. Yet Aaman hesitated; he wanted to inspect the abandoned facility on Island Inka before departing.

Aji cautioned him to exercise extreme vigilance, warning that dark units could return without notice. Acknowledging the warning, Aaman cautiously approached the subterranean entrance where the dark army had been stationed.

It was a vast cavern shrouded in a cold, unnatural chill.

Stepping inside, Aaman felt the lingering stench of dark magic hanging heavy in the damp air. Maintaining his absolute stealth domain, he moved with the fluid silence of a peak assassin.

He pressed deeper into the complex, intent on uncovering any secrets Shura had kept hidden during his two decades of hibernation.

Though the cavern entrance appeared narrow from the outside, the interior expanded into a sprawling subterranean complex resembling a subterranean palace. Strange, archaic runes were carved along the stone walls, catching Aaman's attention as he navigated the passageways.

Reaching a side corridor, he discovered a row of iron holding cells. Suspended within the cages were decayed human skeletons—perhaps dark cultists executed for insubordination, or captured orthodox cultivators taken during past clashes.

As Aaman ventured deeper into the central chamber, his assassin instincts flared, prompting him to scale the stone pillar and take cover along the high ceiling rafters. A squad of dark operatives remained posted below.

Why are there still guards stationed here after the main force departed? Aaman wondered.

The dark operatives appeared relaxed, sitting in small circles across the stone floor. Roughly ten guards remained on duty. They were clearly guarding something specific. But what could be so vital that Shura left a rear guard behind on the eve of a global invasion?

Scanning the floor, Aaman noticed two heavily fortified iron doors positioned behind the guards.

Determined to uncover the truth, Aaman refined his high-tier stealth domain and slipped through the upper ceiling rafters. Because the cavern ceiling was irregular, the upper wall above the iron doors remained unsealed. Gliding silently across stone ledges, Aaman bypassed the guards and dropped into the secluded chamber beyond.

The moment he landed, an overpowering stench of decay hit his senses. Aaman nearly gagged, covering his nose as he took in the horrific sight before him.

The vast chamber was filled with thousands of stacked human corpses.

Inspecting the remains through the dim light, Aaman recognized the tattered robes of orthodox cultivators representing various martial academies, alongside the formal armor of continental defense troops.

These were the missing martial artists who had vanished mysteriously over the past two decades—kidnapped and executed by Shura's operatives. Examining the corpses further, Aaman noted that their internal cores had been completely drained of aura prior to death.

It matched the lore Aji had shared: these cultivators had been used as living sacrifices to feed Lord Demon Shura's synthesis with the Blood Supreme.

Through the Blood Supreme, the Demon Lord achieved an immortal physical vessel. This immortality did not render him invulnerable to death; rather, it granted him an absolute, instantaneous regeneration rate that repaired physical damage the moment it occurred.

Thus, despite synthesizing the Blood Supreme, Shura remained a mortal entity who could be permanently slain under the right conditions. His "immortal body" was merely the result of peak cellular repair fueled by the harvested aura of thousands of victims.

The Blood Supreme artifact functioned as an absolute conduit, allowing Shura to assimilate the raw energy of others without undergoing tedious core purification rituals.

Ordinarily, absorbing raw, unrefined aura directly into one's vessel caused severe internal damage, as a cultivator's spiritual pathways could not digest unneutralized foreign energy. Master-tier artifacts were required to refine foreign energy into usable aura.

The Blood Supreme eliminated that limitation, accelerating Shura's core cultivation exponentially. By devouring the life force of thousands of cultivators, he had cultivated parameters capable of threatening the entire realm.

Aji's insights regarding the Blood Supreme provided the key to understanding Shura's absolute power—and how to dismantle it.

Yet a troubling question lingered in Aaman's mind: Can Lord Demon Shura truly be defeated?

Aaman placed his faith in Aji—the living incarnation of the Thunder Striker. He trusted that Aji possessed the unique parameters required to lock blades with Shura, while the unified martial alliance engaged the dark legions. Aji had kept his personal mandate secret from the high council: he would handle the Demon Lord himself, leaving the alliance to focus on the dark army.

Aji... I believe in you, Aaman thought silently, turning his gaze toward the second fortified door.