A month had passed since the crushing defeat of the demons under the might of the Thunderbanes. Strangely, the demons had ceased all attacks since then. Not a single demon had been sighted near the Sentinel Lines. Some soldiers of the Empire's army and disciples of the Thunderbanes Sect had begun speculating that the demons had been scared off—that they would not attack again, that the war was finally over. But the higher-ups knew better. If demons were so easily frightened, they would never have dared to invade human territory in the first place.

"Father, to whom did that voice of 'retreat' belong?" Taranis asked, sitting beside his father after a sparring session with swords.

"You mean the voice that forced the demons to halt their attack one month ago?" Voltrex asked.

Taranis nodded, and Voltrex continued, his eyes narrowing. "It belonged to the king of the demons—Azhryx, the Harbinger of Calamity. Like me, he is at the First High-Tier Realm, the sixth level of the Demon Sovereign Realm. However, demons at the same major realm are usually two levels stronger than humans. That means he is comparable to a human at the eighth level of the Demi-God Realm."

"Th-that means he's in the same realm as you," Taranis said, his eyes widening in disbelief at the thought that someone as strong as his father existed. "So… can he defeat you?"

Voltrex looked at his confused son and smirked. Patting his head, he replied, "No. I will win."

Voltrex's gaze shifted toward the distant lands beyond the vast plains on the other side of the Sentinel Line, and he murmured,

"Prepare yourself. They will be coming tonight. And this time, their strength and numbers mustn't be underestimated."

Taranis flinched—not at the words, but at the one who spoke them. Voltrex was the strongest cultivator of the Western Continent, a man who had faced calamities without so much as blinking. If even he spoke with such caution… then whatever lurked beyond the Sentinel Line was no longer a threat to be repelled—it was a catastrophe waiting to descend.

Before Taranis could ask another question, Voltrex had already vanished from his side, likely gone to prepare for the coming battle.

---

Time passed swiftly as news of the demons' return spread like wildfire across the walls. Humans began making preparations for the impending war, the previous calm fading from their faces and being replaced by rigid expressions of fear and worry.

"Have you prepared your mind to kill demons this time?" Nathan asked Taranis. He stood before him with all his subordinates already lined up. "You won't have the luxury of dazing around like last time."

"I'm prepared," Taranis replied, his eyes holding not a trace of hesitation.

"Alright then—" Nathan stopped mid-sentence as a terrifying wave of corrupted Soulforce erupted from the distant lands beyond the Sentinel Lines.

In an instant, all Low-Tier cultivators collapsed to the ground, barely conscious and gasping for air. Early Awakened Sages were forced to their knees, and even a True Sage like Nathan had to envelop himself in his Soulforce to withstand the horrifying pressure.

Nathan's eyes widened as a chill ran through his entire body. He murmured,

"Th-the Demon Sovereign… A-Azhryx is coming…"

The wave of corrupted Soulforce had no effect on Taranis. He had been born with divinity—the purest and most powerful form of Soulforce, the natural antithesis of corruption.

Before the oppressive wave could further shatter humanity's will, Voltrex, standing at the center of the Sentinel Line, released his own Soulforce in response.

The two Soulforces collided, forcing the corrupted tide to halt before it could cross the Sentinel Line.

The pressure vanished. Humans steadied themselves, gritted their teeth, and rose back to their feet.

After a moment, demons began emerging from the distant lands, more violent and more terrifying than ever before. Their numbers had nearly doubled compared to a month ago. And their strength? Each squad, numbering in the thousands, was led by a Demon Lord, and there were a hundred such squads.

Although the demons had never displayed such overwhelming numbers before, Voltrex had long been aware of this terrifying force through countless investigations and decades of torturing captured demons over the past thirty years. He knew the demons had been concealing their true army, saving it for the inevitable clash against the Thunderbanes.

The platoons Voltrex had prepared were meant precisely for an army of this scale. Each platoon leader stood at the True Sage Realm, capable of rivaling a Demon Lord.

Within the vast demonic army, at its very center, a throne floated in the air. Upon it sat a demon, lounging lazily with his cheek resting against his fist.

The demon possessed long black hair, with obsidian-like dual horns emerging from his temples. His crimson demonic eyes were fixed on Voltrex standing atop the Sentinel Line, while a terrifying smirk stretched across his face, revealing jagged fangs gleaming with malice.

He was the source from which the corruptive Soulforce emanated—the same pressure that had forced countless human cultivators to their knees.

No words were needed to identify him, even though he had never been seen before. The only cultivator capable of forcing Voltrex himself to release his Soulforce was none other than the king of the demon army—Azhryx, the Harbinger of Calamity.

Behind him hovered ten demonic figures, each more imposing than the last. Unlike the demons below, their bodies were clad in proper armor, each chest bearing an emblem of a snarling demonic face.

"Th-they are the ten Archdemons of the Demon Sovereign's army," Nathan murmured, his eyes wide with disbelief.

His words sent a wave of shivers through the subordinates standing behind him.

Until now, only one or two of these Archdemons had ever appeared on the battlefield, and each time they did, the Azure Sun Empire lost hundreds of soldiers before the Thunderbanes intervened.

And now—all ten had appeared at once.

Another unsettling difference lay in the demeanor of the lower demons. For the past thirty years, without warning or command, the demons had always charged straight toward the wall with a single goal—to breach the Sentinel Line. But this time, none rushed forward.

They advanced in straight lines like disciplined, veteran soldiers, each step perfectly synchronized.

When they reached the halfway point, Azhryx casually raised one arm, halting the entire army in place.

Only his throne, and the ten Archdemons behind him, continued moving forward, drawing closer to the Sentinel Line.

From the human side, Voltrex and Stormir stepped forth, their bodies defying gravity as they flew toward the Demon King.

The leaders of both sides halted when the distance between them narrowed to barely a hundred meters.

It was a sight to behold, one that sent shivers of awe, excitement, and dread through every cultivator present, demon and human alike. For it was not every day that the strongest beings of the Western Continent stood face to face like this.

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