Yarko and Gonan looked at each other. They then saw Grandpa Nurin, who was still sitting relaxed in front of Dompai. Yarko and Gonan seemed nervous and remained standing.

"Calm down, the Heavenly Army participants aren't as simple as you think. They are great warriors."

Grandpa Nurin said this to reassure Gonan and Yarko. Grandpa Nurin believed that the Heavenly Army participants would be able to pass this third test, although perhaps not all of them.

***

Blaaaamm!

The attack from the red-eyed man, the Demon Lord, struck hard. It was a long-range attack, but Aji quickly dodged it with movements he had practiced for a long time.

Aji's speed allowed him to easily dodge the swift attack from a distance. The attack even destroyed a large hill behind Aji. The battlefield became increasingly chaotic, and destruction spread everywhere. There was no grass left; everything was on fire, and the trees were charred by the explosions of the two great warriors.

"Thunderbolt Striker!" Lord Demon shouted with a grin, "No matter how hard you train, you will never be able to defeat me! Ha... ha... ha...!" Aji remembered Lord Demon's laugh vividly. It was the same smile he had when he faced himself and his two now-deceased comrades in the previous battle.

"Don't be arrogant, Shura!" Aji stood upright after jumping back, his fists clenched, and energy concentrated in his right hand. The name Shura was known only to a few. Those who knew Lord Demon by the name Shura were likely well-versed in Lord Demon's past or were close to him.

Energy concentrated in Aji's fist. Aji rotated his right hand, and a shadow-like energy followed his fist. It made a half-turn, and the attack was launched.

Woooooossshhhh!

The immense energy from all directions seemed to be drawn into a single point, directed toward the center of Aji's grip.

The gathered energy condensed, and Aji's fist became like a dazzling ball of the sun. Aji swung his fist, preparing to strike.

"HIIIIIAAAAAAA!"

Aji slammed his fist into the ground in front of him. An explosion thundered, as if the earth were about to shatter.

Blaaaaarrrr!

The ground beneath Aji's feet seemed to shatter into pieces. The ground itself seemed to be shaking violently. As the earth crackled and shattered, Aji shot toward the Demon Lord at a speed even faster than a fired arrow.

The Demon Lord was shocked by the massive shaking and blocked Aji's swift attack with a thick, circular barrier. Aji rotated his left hand, and a large ball of energy emerged from his forward palm, sending a surge of electricity around it.

The energy wave slammed into the Demon Lord, Shura's barrier. The clash continued: flashes, bolts, sparks, destruction. These were the words that could be used to describe the impact of the clash of two powerful energies.

Flashes flashed, sparks of energy shot out, destroying everything in their path.

Boom! Krataakk! Blaaarrr!

Everything was destroyed by the battle between Aji and Shura, or the Demon Lord. As the mist began to lift, leaving only a thin layer remaining, Aji saw Lord Demon Shura still smiling, his barrier only slightly cracked.

Aji advanced again; their distance was so close. Aji struck closed a fist imbued with electricity, and lightning bolts seemed to converge from the sky.

"Die, Shura!"

Aji leaped, accompanied by the shock of lightning that continued to radiate from his fist. This was the fight he had been waiting for for decades. This was why Aji had lived and survived; this was why he had to ensure his two friends could live in peace. And this was why he had traveled the difficult path, filled with training and sacrifice.

Aji flew from the recoil, heading towards the Demon Lord's cracking barrier. Aji's fist was firmly behind his head, ready to strike the Demon Lord. This was the point in his goal, the one he had focused his life on. To stop Shura until nothing remained.

Blaaarrrrr!

Aji slammed into the meter-thick energy barrier, his punch colliding and seemingly blocked by Shura's. Energy splashed violently across the area, producing a blazing light.

Aji continued to push his punch, absorbing more and more energy from the surroundings. The immense power gathered in Aji's fist was drawn in. He continued to press forward, slowly and swiftly, trying to destroy the barrier.

Praanngggg!

The thick barrier shattered, Aji's fist still blazing with anger and energy. His fist headed straight for Shura. "Die, Shura!" That was the essence of Aji's thoughts.

This was Aji's highest ideal: to stop Lord Demon until he was annihilated. That was the reason Aji survived. His fist approached the Demon Lord's body. The Demon Lord prepared himself and drew both hands to his chest, and when Aji's fist, filled with energy, was a meter from the Demon Lord's body, he was struck.

A shimmering light radiated from the Demon Lord's body. The Demon Lord's body shattered like a shard of light, seemingly splitting apart. Life emanated from each fragment, spreading in all directions.

The "Blood Supreme" was an artifact Aji recognized as one of the Heavenly Secrets. It was a dark power capable of absorbing the souls of every being it killed. The energy of beings killed by the Blood Supreme would be absorbed and become its power.

It was as if it were gathering energy from the souls of those it killed. The Demon Lord's fragments were numerous, each resembling a deformed head with a twisting tail.

The shards filled the sky in all directions. Their voices sounded like screams echoing in unison. Like the cries of thousands of people overlapping. It was unknown how many lives had fallen victim to the Demon Lord's greed. The souls seemed to have lost consciousness and were just crying restlessly. Aji looked around, everything filled with soul fragments wailing, crying, and whimpering.

Aji clenched his fists.

"Where are you, Shura? Show yourself!"

Aji stood ready and looked left and right. The groans of the soul fragments were deafening.

"Ha... ha... ha..., Lightning Striker! You will be the next soul to lose consciousness. I will take your life energy and rule the world!"

The Demon Lord's voice boomed throughout the entire area. More souls began to fly around Aji in every direction.

Aji immediately rotated his hands, and a red hologram appeared in front of him. It resembled a holographic web. Aji rotated it, pulling his hands together to spread it out. The web grew larger. Aji directed his energy net to expand, enveloping all the flying souls, trapping them within its web, which now filled his entire field of vision.

Aji tightened his web, narrowing it even further, and all the soul fragments struggled helplessly, until he narrowed it further until it was the size of a house. Aji shot toward the Demon Lord.

He unleashed his power. This must end here!