"I'm Azhryx, the king of Vorthrael," Azhryx introduced himself, slowly rising from his throne.

His voice was laced with Soulforce, so even though he spoke softly, everyone present on the wall heard him clearly.

"Vorthrael?"

"Is that the name of the demon country!?"

The cultivators on the wall gasped in shock. Until now, demons had never initiated any conversation with humans. There had been no warning or explanation for their sudden invasion of human territory. This was the first time they had ever heard the name of the demon homeland.

"I know," Voltrex replied simply before asking, "why did you invade human territory?"

"We invaded?" Azhryx scoffed as if he were being falsely accused. "This war has nothing to do with you, King of the Hundred Sky Mountains. Our fight is against the Azure Sun Empire."

Voltrex's eyes narrowed as he asked in confusion, "Why are you attacking the empire?"

The smirk on Azhryx's face vanished, replaced by raw, unfiltered fury. "Thirty years ago, a human secretly ventured into Vorthrael. He captured my daughter and defiled her until she… until she bit her own tongue. That bastard was none other than Adam Solaris, the second prince of the Azure Sun Empire."

His revelation sent a wave of gasps across the Sentinel Line. Everyone present was aware of Prince Adam Solaris and his lecherous nature, but none had imagined that his depravity had reached even the demons. Even Voltrex raised an eyebrow in shock.

"When I demanded that bastard's head from Kharos, he outright refused, claiming that Adam had already been punished."

Taking a brief pause to regain his composure, Azhryx continued, "King of the Hundred Sky Mountains, Vorthrael bears no hatred toward you. We are here solely to destroy the empire that took my daughter's life. I assure you, once the empire is destroyed, we will withdraw and never attack the Hundred Sky Mountains."

For a moment, Voltrex said nothing. After several seconds of contemplation, he finally spoke. "So your reason for waging this war is your daughter. If what you say is true, then… how about I hand Prince Adam over to you? Will you cease the war against the empire?"

Another wave of gasps rippled through the human army—more precisely, the soldiers of the empire.

"D-did he just offer Prince Adam's life?"

"Can he really do that without the Emperor's permission? He doesn't even belong to the empire!"

"The Emperor has a soft spot for his son. He would never agree to such a trade."

The imperial soldiers murmured among themselves, shock written across their faces.

Azhryx was about to respond when a loud voice rang out from the wall.

"King Voltrex, you cannot trade Prince Adam's life without the Emperor's permission," a man with short brown hair, clad in knightly armor, said as he rose into the air towards Voltrex.

This middle-aged man was Rhaegar Ashford, Commander of the Royal Knights, also known as the Sword of the Empire. He was the only cultivator of the Azure Sun Empire who had reached the Eternal Sage Realm except the Imperial family.

"If I can stop this war by trading the life of a criminal, then I will do so without hesitation," Voltrex replied coldly. His eyes sharpened as his gaze locked onto Rhaegar. "You may try to stop me—if you have the strength to do so."

Rhaegar halted mid-air as a primal fear crawled down his spine, making his entire body shudder. He knew better than to provoke the strongest cultivator of the Western Continent. If Voltrex so desired, the Thunderbanes alone would be enough to conquer the entire Azure Sun Empire.

Clenching his fists, Rhaegar chose silence. Before returning to the capital, the Emperor had appointed him as his representative. He understood the weight of his words and feared offending Voltrex, lest the empire lose the Thunderbanes' support in the war.

Once Rhaegar retreated back to the wall, Voltrex continued, "You still haven't answered me, Azhryx."

"Your offer is tempting, King of the Hundred Sky Mountains," Azhryx said, the smirk returning to his face. "Bring me Adam, and I will cease the war."

"Hmm, very well," Voltrex replied. "I will hand Adam over to you. In return, take a Soul Oath that neither you nor anyone from Vorthrael will ever set foot in human territory. Naturally, Emperor Kharos and I will also swear never to invade demon lands."

Azhryx flinched ever so slightly at the offer. Clicking his tongue in annoyance, he muttered, "Don't push your luck, Voltrex. I've already given you enough face. Do not forget—my strength rivals yours. If you refuse to step aside, you will lose far more than just your life in this war."

"Hah… as expected. Demons are deceitful by nature," Voltrex sighed. "There is no point in continuing this conversation."

"I predicted the outcome of this pointless exchange," Stormir added, shaking his head.

A vein bulged on Azhryx's forehead as he shouted, "So be it! If that is your decision, don't regret it later!"

With that, he and the archdemons retreated toward their army, while Voltrex and Stormir returned to their positions atop the wall.

Upon reaching the Demi-God Realm, a portion of a cultivator's Soulforce began transforming into divine Soulforce. This faint divinity allowed them to perceive phenomena invisible to lower realms—such as cursed Soulforce and the loathing of the heavens toward those who had slaughtered the innocent. Though not as clearly as Taranis, Voltrex and Stormir could still sense the corruption tainting Azhryx's Soulforce. They had already suspected that Azhryx was merely using his daughter as an excuse to wage war against the Azure Sun Empire.

Demons who cultivated negative emotions and suffering could grow even stronger than the Banes if they breached the Sentinel Line and slaughtered millions of humans within the empire—the primary reason Voltrex refused to step back from the war.

The moment Azhryx returned to his army, his deep, commanding voice thundered across the battlefield.

"The Thunderbanes have chosen to support the Azure Sun Empire! Kill them all!"

The demons, who had been waiting for this order, roared in unison and charged terrifyingly toward the Sentinel Line.

"Defend the wall!" Stormir shouted, thrusting his hand forward.

With that single gesture, the platoons lined up behind him surged ahead, taking their respective positions on the open ground beyond the wall.

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