The ground shuddered as Ahan slid back, boots carving twin grooves into the dust-layered stone. Zade didn't give him breathing room—he darted forward instantly, heel pivoting, hip lowering, fist cutting through the air like a hammer swung by a lunatic god.
Ahan crossed his forearms, absorbing the impact.
The shockwave cracked the tiles beneath him.
"Your guard is better than I expected," Zade murmured, voice almost gentle—contrasting completely with the savage hooks he sent next.
Ahan ducked under a spinning elbow strike, feeling the air shear past his cheek. He rose with a straight punch aimed at Zade's ribs, but Zade leaned back at an unnatural angle, spine bending like it wasn't bound by mortal limitations.
Then—Zade's knee shot up.
Ahan blocked, but the blow still numbed half his arm.
Damn… he's reading everything.
Zade smiled faintly. "You hesitate. People who hesitate die in Shambhala."
He grabbed Ahan's wrist with sharp, viper-fast precision, twisting, pulling, trying to unbalance him. Ahan pivoted with it, turning his stumble into a slide, whipping his leg around to kick at Zade's supporting ankle.
Zade hopped lightly over it—then stomped down.
Ahan rolled just in time. The floor dented where his skull would've been.
A few meters away, Abhi and Cairo crashed through a broken pillar, dust exploding outward.
Cairo wiped stone fragments off his shoulder like it was lint. "Dual blades boy. Your form is clean… too clean."
Abhi spun one blade in his hand, settling into stance.
"That supposed to be an insult?"
"No," Cairo said. "It means I'm bored."
He lunged.
His fist aimed at Abhi's jaw in a blur. Abhi ducked, slashing upward—but Cairo twisted mid-stride, flipping over the blade sweep with effortless grace, landing behind Abhi and throwing a knee toward his spine.
Abhi barely rolled away.
Cairo followed, relentless. His movements were sharp, economical, fast—almost surgical. Every strike was angled to break something: a rib, a knee, a wrist.
Abhi blocked a hammerfist with both blades crossed, but Cairo simply shifted weight and kicked him in the ribs, sending him skidding across the ground.
Abhi coughed, rising again with a smirk.
"Okay… that hurt. Finally."
Cairo tilted his head. "Good. Don't die too fast."
And on the far side—Aryan vs Hiro rattled the battlefield like thunder.
Hiro's fist met Aryan's forearm, the collision ringing like metal on metal. Aryan countered with a palm strike toward Hiro's chin, but Hiro slipped past, grabbed Aryan's wrist, and flung him in a perfect shoulder throw.
Aryan flipped mid-air and landed on his feet.
Hiro cracked his knuckles lazily. "Nice recovery."
"Didn't think you cared about technique," Aryan shot back.
"I don't," Hiro said. "I care about winning."
He vanished.
Aryan's instincts screamed—he raised his guard just as Hiro reappeared with a spinning backfist that tore the air apart. Aryan blocked, but the force sent him sliding backwards. Hiro's follow-up came immediately—a knee aimed straight for Aryan's solar plexus.
Aryan redirected the incoming knee using his forearm, stepping in and smashing an elbow toward Hiro's neck. Hiro caught it with a smirk.
"Predictable."
He headbutted Aryan.
The sound was sickening.
Aryan staggered back, vision blurring for a moment. Hiro advanced slowly, shoulders loose, relaxed, like a man strolling into a brawl he already knew the ending of.
"You three have grown," Hiro said. "But you're still nowhere near—"
Aryan interrupted him with a sudden burst forward, tackling Hiro through a stone barricade.
Dust clouded the air.
"Finish your sentence," Aryan growled.
Hiro grinned, blood trickling down his forehead.
"I will. After I break your legs."
He leapt.
Back at the center—Ahan regained distance, breathing hard. Zade walked toward him calmly, knuckles lightly tapping together in rhythm.
"Why do you still hold back?" Zade asked. "Your eyes… they're still searching for openings instead of taking them."
Ahan tightened his stance. "Because I don't need to rush."
"You will," Zade whispered.
He extended two fingers.
A thin black shimmer crawled over them—the first sign of shard-energy, quiet but deadly.
Ahan's eyes widened.
You're using that already…?
Zade smiled warmly, almost fondly.
"Let me show you why hand-to-hand isn't enough."
He flicked his fingers.
Ahan barely moved in time. The attack was invisible, but the stone wall behind him exploded as though something pierced it.
Ahan exhaled, expression sharpening.
Zade lifted his hand again. "Now… hurry up and evolve."
Ahan lowered himself into stance—no fear now, only clarity forming behind his gaze.
Just a little more…
Not yet.
Not until the others push too.
Across the field, Cairo's aura darkened. Hiro's began to pulse.
All three generals were preparing to escalate.
Ahan tightened his fist.
Then—
A crack echoed.
All three generals released their shard energy at once. The black aura flooded the battlefield like a rising tide.
The trio looked at each other instinctively.
Abhi smirked.
Aryan cracked his neck.
Ahan exhaled.
Showtime.
The chapter ends here—right at the brink of the generals' power unveiling, before the artifact activation phase begins