Sovereign of the Ashes

After Lorianne expressed her willingness to participate in the interplanar war, a smile graced the face of Grandmaster Feylis who was seated in the hall’s high seat.

The limitations of Lorianne’s Divine Tower of Verdant Spring were indeed a concern that needed to be addressed.

Grandmaster Feylis then spoke in a soothing tone, “Due to my commitments with the Pyro Secret Society on the battlefield of the Neisse Star Domain, I won’t be able to actively participate in this war. Nevertheless, the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame can contribute over a hundred thousand full-fledged mages and has amassed more than five million enslaved creatures for use as cannon fodder.”

She added, “These full-fledged mages from the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame will be under your partial command. The enslaved creatures will be divided into two groups and allocated to both the Divine Tower of Floating Flame and the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring for your respective use.”

Standing in front of Sein, Lorianne exhaled a sigh of relief at these words.

She and Bernice respectfully bowed to Feylis and gratefully said, “Thank you, Master!”

This upcoming interplanar war, slated for two years, would be Lorianne’s first experience leading a campaign in an interplanar war under the guidance of Grandmaster Verdant Flame, Gregory the Whispering Flame and Bernice the Floating Flame.

Grandmaster Verdant Flame’s decision to override the desire of the other party to join the Magus Alliance, in favor of complete occupation and invasion, spoke volumes about the complexity of the Viridian Venom Flame World.

Given its richness in resources, it undoubtedly ranked among the top-tier of the low-level planes.

“All right, let me share some details about the Viridian Venom Flame World,” Grandmaster Feylis announced.

“The world is vast, encompassing two continental plates separated not by oceans, but by seas of poisonous miasma and lava. Its pyro-type resources are abundant and valuable for exploitation, and the indigenous creatures will be an excellent source of enslaved cannon fodder.

“There is currently only one creature above Rank Four in that world, Anridar, the self-proclaimed Venom Flame Demon King. It’s a Rank Five being of notable strength, residing in the molten sea between the plates. In addition to the law of fire, Anridar also holds control over the rare law of venom...”

Grandmaster Verdant Flame’s detailed introduction primarily focused on Anridar the Venom Flame Demon King.

For mages like Sein and his peers, this information was not directly applicable as they were not anticipated to engage in combat with such a powerful adversary.

Their primary objective was to avoid areas of conflict involving creatures of Rank Four and above, rather than confronting them head-on.

However, Gregory, Bernice, and Lorianne listened intently as they were mages of Rank Four and above.

For Sein and the other apprentices and grand apprentices, gaining early exposure to the traits of extraplanar creatures of Rank Four and above was invaluable.

Although they had yet to comprehend the power of laws, this knowledge was something that most low-ranking mages rarely had access to.

The gathering, held on the top floor of the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame, spanned over half a month.

Throughout this period, the divine tower masters discussed broader aspects of troop deployment and strategy. These deliberations included not only the mobilization of space fortresses but also the strategic allocation of other large-scale war weaponry.

The Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, being a recent establishment, had yet to acquire its own space fortress.

Grandmaster Verdant Flame’s extensive resources played a key role in offsetting the limitations of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring. Her provision of an advanced space fortress, war airships, prism forts, and magic-powered puppets greatly enhanced the tower’s capabilities.

This act of support showed the importance of having the backing of a powerful faction.

Without the assistance of Grandmaster Verdant Flame and her other two seniors, Lorianne’s divine tower would have needed at least another one or two thousand years of development before being capable of initiating an interplanar invasion.

During this period, she still had to repay her substantial magicoin loan and fund her own research.

As a Rank Four mage, Lorianne would also need to undertake advanced quests from the Magus Alliance or participate in interplanar wars initiated by other divine towers or orders of the knights to supplement her income.

This reality served as a reminder that even experts of Rank Four or above had their own set of difficulties and were not exempt from the practical concerns of their positions.

***

As the gathering at the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame concluded, the apprentices from various towers departed back to their respective towers under the guidance of their mentors.

The preparation for the upcoming interplanar war was an urgent affair, with divine tower masters needing to make numerous arrangements.

Sein, traveling on a vast green leaf soaring through the sky, was too preoccupied to admire the beauty of the Magus World and its prosperous continent below.

His attention was focused on a crystal ball and a thick magic tome. They were gifts from Master Lorianne upon their departure from the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame.

The crystal ball contained the exclusive Verdant Flame knowledge, a unique module developed by Grandmaster Feylis.

Its contents were meticulously detailed, providing a comprehensive understanding from basic to advanced levels, complete with illustrations and spell models.

Sein surmised that the crystal ball was not crafted by Lorianne, as its style of explaining certain truths and knowledge differed from her usual approach.

The heavier magic tome was a collection of Grandmaster Feylis’ recent insights and experiences in the Verdant Flame magic, distributed to all apprentices and grand apprentices at the Divine Tower of Verdant Flame.

The knowledge in the tome was more elementary in nature, tailored for full-fledged mages ranging from Rank One to Rank Three.

Grandmaster Feylis possessed more profound and detailed Verdant Flame knowledge, but such essence was reserved for only those who excelled in the upcoming interplanar war.

For lower-ranking mages, impressing the grandmaster and gaining her recognition was a significant opportunity.

Sein, yet to grasp the basics of Verdant Flame magic, refrained from delving into the tome immediately.

Had he done so, he might have noticed a similarity in tone between the crystal ball’s content and the magic tome’s narrative.

“Your grandmaster is aware of your achievement in the Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War and the Planar Light you have received from the Summer Guardian. She holds you in high regard, so you must perform well in the upcoming interplanar war.”

That was what Lorianne had said when she handed over the crystal ball and magic tome to Sein earlier.