Chapter 118: Wings of the Reckoning

The war council gathered beneath the sanctuary's open sky, starlight glinting off maps etched with leyline currents, divine choke points, and celestial strongholds. The Ember of Liberation now hovered over the table, radiating a faint flame that pulsed in time with Chen's heartbeat—alive, intelligent, and watching.

"This is where we hit next," Sarina said, sliding a sigil-marked disk across the crystal surface. "The Chained Vaults—where the Flame Court imprisons rogue deities and sealed artifacts. Some of them could turn the tide."

Mei frowned. "And it's surrounded by three bastion rings, all warded by ancient will."

"Which is why we won't attack directly," Chen said, voice sharp with clarity. "We break the bonds of the Vaults from within."

Lanmei leaned forward. "You mean to infiltrate again? So soon?"

Ye Yue met Chen's gaze. "You're changing the tempo, aren't you? No more waiting. No more reacting."

Chen nodded slowly. "They're scrambling, disoriented. But that won't last. We need to tear out their leverage while they're still unsure which way is up."

Elsewhere—The Divine Courts Begin to Respond

In the Court of Bronze Skies, strategists convened in spiraling towers of thought-glass. One warned, "He moves like the wind before a storm—unpredictable, but always toward disruption."

In the Flame Court's inner sanctum, Matriarch Kaelis stood still before the shattered Dominion Spire's reflection. "The ember lives," she murmured. "And it is choosing."

A flare of fury crossed her eyes. "Seal the Vaults. Triple the Oathguard. Prepare the Purging Choir."

Back in the Skylands

Chen's team moved swiftly.

Illusions spun by Sarina cloaked their transport in ghostlight. Mei's threads rewove leyline flow to cloak their divine signatures. Ye Yue traced sigils of shadow across their bodies, muting the flare of their soulflames.

They soared through the upper layers of the sky realm like whispers between clouds—until the Chained Vaults loomed in the distance. Cyclopean chains hung suspended across a circular fortress hovering above an abyss of divine storms. Lightning danced beneath. Above, sentry-lights swirled in holy patterns.

"This is it," Chen said softly. His eyes glowed with Soulflame, and from his back, wings of coalesced light unfurled—the Ember's gift, awakened.

"Time to break another lock."