Aaman sprinted across the terrain at maximum velocity. Reaching Prisma on foot would be an arduous, time-consuming journey due to the immense distance, yet delivering his discovery to Aji was a matter of extreme urgency. Aji, above all others, would comprehend the tactical weight of this revelation and determine the exact strategy needed for the coming war.

Having escaped Lord Demon Shura’s subterranean sanctuary on Island Inka, Aaman recognized that physically traveling back to the capital would consume precious hours. Aji is the only one who can handle intelligence of this magnitude.

Deciding on an immediate course of action, Aaman activated his communication ring, channeling his internal aura into the artifact to transmit a high-priority message. He needed Aji to review his findings without delay so he could coordinate a response with the Sky Squad, military defense command, and Commander Dasatama simultaneously. Aji held a unique, deeply respected standing with both Commander Yarko and the God of War, Dasatama.

The message condensed into a spiritual signal and shot through the atmospheric channels toward Aji. Its contents were alarming: Aaman detailed the discovery of two dormant figures sealed inside hidden sarcophagi within the dark army's abandoned stronghold—two figures whose features matched Saint Ganada and Saint Yonan of the Three Legends.

It sounded impossible, yet Aaman’s extensive experience as a veteran intelligence officer left no room for error. He recognized their faces beyond a shadow of a doubt. Having transmitted the signal, Aaman pushed forward, intending to rendezvous with the defensive divisions stationed along the continental border.

Suddenly, a violent spatial distortion rippled through the air thirty meters ahead of his path.

Aaman skidded to an immediate halt, his eyes fixated on the space ahead. A wide-mouth dimensional portal opened before him. Has the dark army returned? Refining his stealth domain, Aaman leaped into the high canopy of an ancient tree, concealing his aura among the thick foliage.

The portal's surface swirled with radiant energy as a solitary figure stepped out onto the physical plane. Scanning the individual, Aaman’s eyes widened in surprise—it was Aji.

Aji remained a walking enigma, shrouded in unsearchable depth. Though he appeared as a young man, he commanded internal parameters that suggested decades of peak cultivation. Ever since their initial meeting, when Aji had casually claimed to be the Thunder Striker—one of the legendary Three Legends—Aaman had harbored a subtle, growing suspicion.

Though the claim had seemed like a playful boast at the time, Aaman had sensed absolute sincerity in the youth's eyes. Aji had subsequently requested that Aaman keep his true identity as the Thunder Striker an absolute secret. Aji’s demonstrated capabilities backed every word: he had single-handedly dismantled a corrupt martial academy in a single afternoon and commanded parameters that defied all conventional measurement.

Furthermore, Aji had personally instructed Aaman in advanced assassin techniques, guiding him to undergo Warrior Jiro’s hellish conditioning before facilitating his final parameter absorption with the celestial artifact, Heart Dragon.

Through Aji’s guidance, Aaman had achieved a realm of martial refinement he had once thought unattainable. Today, Aji’s power amazed him once more: the youth had constructed a long-range spatial portal from Prisma directly to his exact coordinates, pinpointing his physical location across vast continental distances with absolute precision.

Constructing a high-density bullet portal required supreme mastery over spatial magic—a complex discipline mastered by only a handful of grandmasters across the entire realm.

Aji held an unshakeable position of authority with both the martial alliance high council and Commander Yarko. To Aaman, the youth represented the single greatest pillar of hope for human civilization—a divine emissary dispatched to shield humanity from Lord Demon Shura.

In that moment, Aaman accepted the truth with absolute certainty: the youth standing before him was indeed the living incarnation of the legendary Thunder Striker. That realization solved the horrifying puzzle of the twin sarcophagi. Lord Demon Shura had somehow captured and converted the vessels of Saint Ganada and Saint Yonan into dormant thralls, yet he had failed to control the Thunder Striker.

The legendary Thunder Striker stood right before him in the form of a young warrior. Whatever mysterious circumstances had bound his soul to this youthful vessel, Aaman trusted Aji implicitly.

"Step down, Aaman," Aji's calm voice echoed up toward the branches. "We are out of time."

Aaman dropped lightly from the high bough, landing smoothly on the stone path before Aji.

"Tell me the full details," Aji requested, his expression turning solemn. "Are you certain those sarcophagi contained two of the Three Legends?"

Aaman nodded, detailing everything he had uncovered inside the subterranean chambers of Island Inka—the untouched, isolated landmass Aji had instructed him to investigate. He described the horrific chamber housing thousands of drained cultivator corpses, followed by his discovery of the twin upright sarcophagi containing the dormant, reanimated vessels of Saint Ganada and Saint Yonan.

Aji listened intently, his eyes narrowing as he processed the report. So that is Shura’s ultimate ace. The Demon Lord’s supreme confidence in achieving global conquest was rooted in the reanimated strength of the ancient masters. It explained why Shura had deployed his standing legions with such absolute arrogance. Aji knew he had to accelerate his own strategy.

Motioning for Aaman to step closer, Aji unsealed another spatial portal before them. "We are returning to Prisma immediately."

SWOOSH!

The spatial portal enveloped both figures, and they vanished from the forest floor.

Meanwhile, in the war room of the Sky Squad headquarters in Prisma, a high-level strategy session was underway, organized under the joint authority of the martial council and military defense command. Should the dark army launch an immediate assault before global reinforcements completed their overland march, the vanguard’s mandate was clear: hold the gates of Prisma at all costs and buy precious time for continental troops to arrive.

The Sky Squad was assigned to defend the city’s vulnerable flanks, while the central military defense divisions held the main fortress gates. Recognizing that Shura’s legions would likely direct their heaviest kinetic assault against the primary gateway, the defense troops prepared to absorb the initial wave alongside Prisma’s elite garrison.

Flanking the main entrance, the martial alliance and the Sky Squad would engage incoming thrusts from the outer perimeters. It was set to be a brutal war of attrition where every life was on the line, forcing every academy, kingdom, and independent sect to stand shoulder-to-shoulder against the abyss.

Bound by a single purpose—preserving human civilization and eradicating evil—the righteous sects stood fully united, leaving behind decades of political infighting and greed.

They recognized that if they allowed division to fracture their ranks now, the dark army would systematically wipe them out one by one.

The time had come to integrate every martial discipline—military defense divisions, academy grandmasters, continental sovereigns, independent sects, and royal guard regiments—into a single, unyielding front.

The Sky Squad gathered around the strategy table, joined by Aaman. Reporting directly to the team, Aaman revealed that while the dark army had not yet completed its total deployment, roughly eighty percent of its standing force had already materialized. That translated to approximately eight hundred thousand dark operatives assembled at the southern tip of the Orpris continent, preparing for an all-out assault on Prisma.

The Sky Squad members gasped at the staggering figure. Aaman cross-referenced defense intelligence data, explaining that Shura had deliberately targeted the Orpris continent to crush the heart of human resistance. Prisma stood as the most fortified capital across the five landmasses.

If Prisma fell, the morale of the remaining four continents would crumble, paving the way for the dark army to subjugate the entire realm with minimal resistance. Thus, the defense of Prisma was the single most critical battle of the war.

Furthermore, the dark army possessed a specialized corps of spatial masters capable of maintaining wide-mouth teleportation gateways, allowing them to relocate massive legions across continents in a single breath—a strategic mobility advantage that gave Shura's forces immense tactical flexibility.

Though the Demon Lord commanded overwhelming numbers and spatial superiority, the righteous alliance carried an unyielding resolve to protect their homes, families, and future from the dark army's terror.

"We have taken an oath as members of the Sky Squad," Barsha declared, her voice ringing clear and authoritative as squad leader. "We offer our lives to defend this world. Today, this war will serve as the absolute proof that the Sky Squad stands as the shield for every soul across the five continents. We fight to the final breath!"

Her words ignited a fierce determination in her teammates, who nodded in unanimous agreement. Their shared trials had forged an unbreakable bond—from the defense of Dompai to the battle at the Golden Crane Academy and the clash in the Tulisma Forest. They operated as a single, cohesive family dedicated to upholding justice across the realm.

Their rigorous conditioning had bound their destinies together. None harbored any regret, even if the coming clash demanded their ultimate sacrifice. They desired only to defend the realm, knowing the name of the Sky Squad would be etched into history for generations to come.

As the briefing concluded, the squad members dismissed themselves to calibrate their armaments. Aaman bowed respectfully and departed to deliver his formal intelligence report to Commander Yarko. Soon, only Aji and Barsha remained in the council room.

"I need a moment with you, Barsha," Aji said softly.

Barsha paused, catching herself off-guard. It was unusual for Aji to request a private conversation with her.

"What is it, Aji?" she asked, stepping back toward the table.

Aji looked at her, his expression unusually grave. "I have a secret I must share with you, Barsha. It is a matter of critical importance that concerns the fate of us all."

Barsha felt a subtle wave of nervousness as she met his intense gaze. Aji began laying bare a hidden truth, revealing a secret so profound that the color drained from Barsha's face as she listened.

By the time Aji finished speaking, Barsha was trembling uncontrollably. The reality of the impending battle—and the specific directives Aji instructed her to execute—sounded almost incomprehensible. It felt as though he were delivering his final farewell.