Sovereign of the Ashes

This year’s Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War was not just a stage for two phenomenal initiates, but three!

The third, surprisingly, also hailed from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Academy!

This initiate was Grimm, a Quasi Mage who defended the Frozen Soul Lake, a large resource point in the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

Grimm had maintained a low profile since joining the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

Even though he had been part of the academy for a longer time than Sein, his presence was much less noticeable compared to Sein, who had briefly made his mark in the arena.

Grimm never fought at the arena, never drew any attention in classes, and remained virtually unknown to the instructors.

His discretion surpassed even that of Sein, making him a greater enigma within the academy!

Had it not been for the failure of two groups from the Divine Tower of Land Academy in their attacks on Frozen Soul Lake, Grimm’s rise as a phenomenal initiate might have gone unnoticed.

It was only after Gade personally directed a third assault on Frozen Soul Lake that Grimm’s extraordinary abilities came to light.

Among the top initiates Grimm had obliterated outside the Frozen Soul Lake with his cryo-pyro magic spell were the rare sonido-mecha initiate known as Silverse the “Mechanical Voice”, as well as Tyler the “Pyro Dragon” and Lucy the “Ice Maiden”.

Gade’s decision to confront Grimm at this large resource point, located at the southernmost edge of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s territory, was a direct result of these top initiates’ defeats.

Prior to this, Gade’s main focus had been on besieging Sein, following his success in capturing the majority of the weakly defended resource points in the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s territory.

Grimm’s emergence as an “obliterating force” was unforeseen.

His potent cryo-pyro dual elemental magic spell far surpassed the capabilities of ordinary initiates’ spells.

After a direct encounter with Grimm at the Frozen Soul Lake, Gade was forced to acknowledge that Grimm’s obliteration magic rivaled that of ranked magic spell, thus solidifying Grimm’s status as a phenomenal initiate!

As a result of this battle, Grimm’s reputation soared, propelling him from relative obscurity to widespread recognition within the academy.

The emergence of two phenomenal initiates significantly boosted the morale of the remaining initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring still in the trial space.

Led by Daniel and Anna, the initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring transitioned from a defensive to an offensive stance, launching counterattacks on resource points occupied by other divine towers.

The revelation about the emergence of three phenomenal initiates in this year’s regional academy war, with two from the weakest Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, circulated among the initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow, Radiant Thunder, and Cipher.

The presence of three phenomenal initiates, or specifically the fact that two were from the weakest Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, might have spurred initiates from the other three academies into action.

As the war neared its end, they increasingly engaged in aggressive maneuvers to seize and attack each other’s resource points.

The latter part of the war turned out to be even more intense and thrilling than the earlier stages.

After all, everyone’s attention was captivated by Sein and Gade, the two phenomenal initiates, before this.

As the war progressed, a large-scale conflict ensued among the initiates from each academy, truly reflecting the nature of the academy war, as well as the original intent of the divine towers in organizing this trial.

The Divine Tower of Land Academy, in particular, faced setbacks. They lost three top initiates at the Frozen Soul Lake Resource Point and dealt with the havoc wreaked by Sein in their territory.

Despite their overall strength, maintaining their dominant position became increasingly challenging as the end of the war approached.

This Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War was perhaps the most exhilarating trial in nearly a thousand years.

The Tower Master of Land Academy recalled that it had been almost five thousand years since the last time three phenomenal initiates emerged simultaneously in the same war.

“Heh, I suppose this regional academy war ends here. Continuing would only cause more harm to the kids,” the Tower Master of Land Academy remarked as he observed the escalating chaos below with a smile.

The chaotic warfare particularly favored solo warriors like Sein, who excelled in swift and powerful strikes.

At this point, Sein’s score had soared to a level almost unreachable by ordinary initiates. If the war continued, his final score would likely astonish everyone.

“Hehe, is the Tower Master of Land Academy worried that his millennia-long reign at the top of this regional academy war might be usurped?” the Tower Master of Cipher teased him with her ethereal voice, prompting chuckles from several other tower masters.

The Summer Guardian observed the unfolding events below with keen interest, already certain about who would emerge as the top individual in the regional academy war.

The Planar Light twirling around her fingertips seemed eager to merge with that person.

“No, the true purpose of hosting academy wars is to train and select exceptional initiates, reflecting the Magus Civilization’s intention in implementing this policy across various regions. If this war leads to excessive unwarranted killings or sows seeds of hatred among these young initiates, then the negative consequences will outweigh the intended benefits,” the Tower Master of Land Academy explained, shaking his head.

“You’re absolutely right,” the Summer Guardian agreed. “We should conclude this session of the regional academy war. I’ve spent quite some time here already and must head to the Western Archipelago soon.”

As Summer Guardian spoke, the other tower masters naturally showed their respect and agreement.

Yet, according to tradition, there was one final stage left in the regional academy war.

“At the end of every war, the top ten are summoned to a special space where a Rank One extraplanar creature is released as part of their final trial,” explained the Tower Master of Cipher.

“This trial forces them to work as a team. Normally, top ten initiates can handle a single Rank One creature. However, when phenomenal initiates are involved, we introduce an additional creature, considering their capacity to solo a Rank One creature. Now, with three phenomenal initiates participating this year, how many creatures should we introduce?” she asked.

The usually reserved Tower Master of Cipher was surprisingly vocal during this war.

“Let’s go with three creatures. Those kids must be exhausted. There’s no need to push them further,” the Tower Master of Radiant Thunder suggested.

The Tower Master of Cipher proposed, “Do any of you have special extraplanar creatures in your collections? Ideally, some rare ones would be perfect as an additional reward for the initiates. If not, I can provide two from the Void Star Domain’s...”

“I do!” the Tower Master of Verdant Spring interrupted before the Tower Master of Cipher could finish speaking, her face glowing with an unusual redness.