Sovereign of the Ashes

The thirty-six Solar Eye beams, unleashed in six rounds, were the most formidable spell Sein had rapidly deployed while wearing his mask.

These Solar Eye beams were not exclusively aimed at Gade. Sein used them to halt his numerous pursuers.

Indeed, it was not just Gade chasing him.

The sheer number of initiatives on the hilly battlefield was enough to unsettle Sein.

Although not solely directed at Gade, the sheer power of Sein’s hastily cast magic still caused a layer of cold sweat to form on Gade’s bronze skin.

“A full-fledged mage?!” Gade’s initial disbelief swiftly turned to realization as he noticed the source of the golden beams appeared to be Sein’s mask.

This revelation momentarily halted his pursuit.

Despite his confidence in his own abilities, he was not so reckless as to confront a ranked magic spell with his body.

“HEART OF LAND!” With a roar, Gade drove the stone hammer into the ground, summoning geo elemental energy from all around him.

Sein was not the only one adept at casting spells rivaling a ranked magic spell!

Gade, a phenomenal initiate from the Divine of the Land Academy, had ventured even deeper into such powerful magic!

Not only did Gade exhibit traits akin to a full-fledged mage, but he had also developed “Heart of Land”, a powerful spell on par with a ranked magic spell, hence his nickname.

“Heart of Land” was not an offensive spell but rather defensive and functional.

As long as Gade stood on the ground, he could draw a continual stream of geo elemental energy.

Since the beginning of their conflict against the Divine Tower of Radiant Thunder, Gade had employed this spell.

However, only a handful of initiates recognized the continuous flow of geo elemental energy toward Gade was indeed the workings of a ranked magic spell.

As soon as Gade’s command echoed, a massive stone wall, ten meters high and over five meters thick, rose swiftly in front of him.

Several of Sein’s Solar Eye beams aimed at Gade were absorbed by the stone wall, while the remaining beams that penetrated struck Gade’s geo elemental armor.

The thick, yellow armor emitted an odor reminiscent of burnt glass upon impact.

Gade was propelled backward several meters, but despite being knocked back several meters, he avoided fatal injuries.

He coughed as he regained his footing.

Inspecting the armor on his chest, he found several deep punctures.

As Gade ran his hand over the area, blood seeped from the wound. This realization solidified his belief that what Sein had just unleashed was indeed a ranked magic spell.

“A ranked spell released by a magic artifact? Or is there another explanation...? According to my mentor, the Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War strictly forbids the divine towers from bestowing magic artifacts of Rank One and above upon initiates. Such an act is considered severe cheating, warranting expulsion from the trial space and serious repercussions for both the initiate and the responsible full-fledged mage,” Gade mumbled while touching his wound.

Gade, the final apprentice of an academy dean, was more familiar with these rules than most initiates.

It was not just him, but full-fledged mages from all divine towers were well aware of these rules.

Consequently, before the regional academy war, no full-fledged mages would risk their apprentice’s standings by giving them prohibited items.

The penalties imposed by the divine towers were severe enough to deter even the full-fledged mages.

However, it was important to note that magic artifacts crafted by initiates themselves were exempted from this restriction.

Sein, before entering the regional academy war, had meticulously studied the extensive rules, a task few initiates bothered with.

This included attending pre-war briefings at the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, where these matters were discussed.

This was precisely the reason Sein had refrained from bringing Sev or any other ranked magic artifacts that Master Morsidor had bequeathed to him.

He relied solely on his own intelligence and strength.

Had he breached any rules, Sein would likely have been expelled from the trial space within the first month of the war, rather than attracting such widespread attention.

The trial space, after all, was under the scrutiny of tower masters and academy deans, who had the authority to observe and supervise.

Sein’s continued presence, despite being shunned by initiates from both divine towers, indicated he had not violated any regulations.

This conundrum was precisely what occupied Gade’s thoughts.

“Could he have crafted that ranked magic artifact himself?” This notion flickered through Gade’s mind before he dismissed it with a shake of his head.

Although not an alchemist himself, Gade, as a skilled magic initiate, was well aware of the extensive knowledge that the supporting magic disciplines of alchemy, apothecary, array arts, and occult arts encompassed.

To put it bluntly, even accomplished full-fledged mages might not be able to create ranked magic artifacts, let alone an initiate...

This train of thought exposed Gade’s ego.

He pondered the rarity of true geniuses in the world.

Gade himself had partially tapped into the powers of a full-fledged mage despite being only an initiate, and had developed a powerful spell that rivaled the potency of a ranked magic spell.

Yet, he could not fathom others reaching similar heights of achievement.

In his perspective, no one could excel beyond his own capabilities!

Gade was unaware of Sein’s horrible past—his struggles in the Mystralora City in the underground world, his years of isolation in the Sand World, his monotonous daily routine at the divine tower academy, and the enormous resources he had invested in crafting a magic artifact.

Not many could truly understand the trials and tribulations of Sein’s journey as a spellcaster.

Perhaps the Summer Guardian outside the trial space had some inkling.

A being as mighty as the Summer Guardian had already picked up on hints about Sein and seen through his facade.

For a being like the Summer Guardian, mastering rare arts like astrology and prophecy in the Magus World, understanding Sein was not an extraordinary feat.

Deciphering and tracing events from just a few decades ago was well within her realm of expertise.