Sovereign of the Ashes

Despite standing on the back of the Green Spikefur King, Sein blended inconspicuously among the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s mages.

The intense year-long battle had made the massive hedgehog from the Verdant Wilderness World more cunning and agile.

The changes in Green Spikefur King’s personality could be attributed to the countless scars covering its body.

Lorianne was quite kind to this demigod-level creature that revered her.

If not for this “little hedgehog”, the Magus Civilization might never have initiated a war against the Wild Gorilla World.

Thanks to Lorianne’s precious plant-based potions, the Green Spikefur King’s wounds healed rapidly, further strengthening its devotion to her.

Despite the brutal clash unfolding ahead, the Green Spikefur King displayed no hint of regret or fear.

For Sein, the hedgehog’s nimbleness allowed him to stay mounted, avoiding the need to abandon his “vehicle” as the battle began.

He was only briefly separated from the Green Spikefur King upon entering the Wild Gorilla World battlefield due to the hedgehog’s aggressive charge.

Demigod-level powerhouses were definitely the pinnacle of strength in the microplane war.

Having begun to harness the power of laws, their every word and action could shape the fate of countless beings within their homeplane.

However, they were no longer that rare or elusive on the battlefield of the Wild Gorilla World.

In the areas controlled by the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring alone, no fewer than a hundred demigods had emerged!

Over sixty percent of these demigods were magic beast sovereigns led here by kings like Black Oblivion.

Across the Magus World, every large magic beast forest was virtually controlled by a demigod-level beast sovereign.

Within the territories of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, many such demigod-level beasts dwelled in the forests.

Due to the Magus World’s strict species protection laws, major divine towers and knightly orders held no jurisdiction over these “endangered” creatures.

Only Rank Four or higher magic beast kings had the authority to command these intelligent beings.

A magic beast king of Rank Four and above had yet to emerge in the magic beast forests of the Viridescent Land.

No, perhaps Tourmaline, the dragon turtle residing in the Jewel Sea, would rise as Viridescent Land’s first magic beast king, one day uniting all the magic beasts of the region.

For some reason, Sein had not seen Tourmaline since the onset of the war.

Even a few months earlier, during the all-out assault on the Flaming Sparrow Range, Tourmaline had been absent.

Sein had only spent a brief time with her before that battle.

Tourmaline had refrained from joining the fight at the Flaming Sparrow Range due to the scorching heat there, which clashed with her natural affinity for water.

However, the main reason for her absence was the intervention of Black Oblivion, Lorianne, and the powerful giant squid.

While Black Oblivion had leveraged Tourmaline to join the Wild Gorilla World battlefield, this did not mean the dark flood dragon was an irresponsible older brother.

Despite his seemingly impulsive nature, he cared for Tourmaline no less than White Stella and the others.

In fact, Black Oblivion had even assigned several other demigod-level magic beast sovereigns to Tourmaline as additional protection, although they were generally weaker than her.

Even with elemental and energy forces colliding on the battlefield, Sein managed to advance closer to the Wild Gorilla Army’s lines after ten sandglasses or so, aided by the massive army of magic beasts and cannon fodder as his shield.

The Wild Gorilla Army’s tactics had evolved considerably over the past few months.

With Sein’s “Long Range Perspective” ability and his Verdant Flame Eye Mask, Sein could discern parts of their steel defense line in detail.

The Magus World Army’s relentless magical assaults had left the steel fortifications dented and scratched up.

Corpses of Wild Gorillas and remains of their subspecies lay scattered along the defense line, discarded like tattered refuse.

The air was thick with the stench of blood, steam, explosions, and acrid acid, nearly transforming the battlefield into a “toxic zone”.

Although Sein’s constitution could withstand such an environment, many enslaved creatures, particularly the weakest among them, were less fortunate.

The good news was that these weak frontline cannon fodder rarely endured the battlefield’s harsh conditions for long.

The bad news was that most perished before getting close enough to fight with the Wild Gorilla Army, falling on bloody and muddy ground.

Sein had little concern for the attrition of the lowly enslaved creatures.

What truly captured his attention was the new combat tactics employed by the Wild Gorilla Army.

Not only did they fortify themselves behind a wall-like metal defense line, but Sein was also shocked to see a Wild Gorilla, roughly two meters tall, charging to the top of the metal wall.

Holding a metal box, the Wild Gorilla at the top of the barrier unleashed tiny beams of blue-violet energy, spewing from the box as it roared.

Compared to the energy beams used against Magus World’s space fortresses before, these smaller beams had a shorter range and reduced power—but they compensated with sheer number.

In the blink of an eye, three of the fastest enslaved dwarves charging forward were struck, and reduced to pools of mud.

White vapor rose from their remains, a sign of the heat energy in the beams from the metal boxes.

Almost immediately, the Wild Gorilla on the metal wall was overwhelmed by the relentless onslaught of the Magus World Army.

A barrage of black javelins, raining arrows, elemental spells, and innate magic from magic beasts swept over the steel line repeatedly.

In terms of numbers, the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Army, bolstered by millions of magic beasts, vastly outnumbered the Wild Gorilla Army.

The Wild Gorillas, a clan known for their bold offensives, had committed to a defensive stance behind their long metal front.

Clearly, the high and mighty Gorilla Gods recognized the formidable nature of their Magus opponents.

Although unwilling to admit it, their actions had betrayed their fear.

The Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Army rapidly closed in on the metal barriers held by the Wild Gorilla Army.

Observing the frontline’s situation, Sein quickly surmised that this advance would come at a high cost for the Magus forces.

The Wild Gorilla Clan’s strength was often linked to their sheer size and physicality—a fact Sein, having dissected dozens of these creatures, knew well.

Generally, Rank One Wild Gorillas stood three to four meters tall, with some reaching up to five meters.

Adult males below Rank One averaged around two and a half meters, while females, slightly shorter, still stood well over two meters.

The Wild Gorilla that had just rushed to the top of the metal barrier stood only two meters tall, suggesting it was either an underage or stunted individual.

Perhaps it was not even a Wild Gorilla but rather a subspecies of it.

The square metal box and the “strange equipment” adorning the creature’s body made it difficult for Sein to precisely identify its race with just a glimpse.

Aside from subtle physical traits, these subspecies in the Wild Gorilla World were not much different from the Wild Gorillas themselves in terms of height and physique.

This minor detail that Sein observed on the battlefield hinted at something significant: with specialized weaponry, even the lesser Wild Gorillas were capable of putting up a fiercer fight.

This addition of equipment effectively transformed even their weakest and cheapest cannon fodder troops, amplifying their fighting power considerably.

The scene on this lowest-tier battlefield made Sein wonder if similar enhancements might appear on the upper tiers, where elite forces clashed.

He glanced upward, where dense elemental clouds gathered over the heart of the battlefield, dimming even the brightest flashes of combat.

Sein couldn’t make out the specifics, nor did he dare venture into the high-altitude battlefield where demigod-level forces fought.

Like Sein, Green Spikefur King, the massive hedgehog, moved cautiously across the battlefield.

Although it advanced steadily toward the Wild Gorilla Army’s defense lines, it encountered minimal resistance.

This was largely because the Magus World troops were constantly positioned in front, shielding it from heavy firepower.