Sovereign of the Ashes

Tourmaline’s ribbons had merely been a brief distraction for Sein; his primary focus remained on analyzing devil bloodlines.

The more he delved into the subject, the more he realized how ignorant he truly was.

Each day, he discovered something new.

With the demon and devil legions bound to leave Sandstorm World soon, Sein cherished every second of this fleeting opportunity to learn more about them.

Not only was he conducting research on the Inferno War Devil with whom he had signed a short-term agreement, but he had also enlisted the help of his mother-in-law, who was still recovering, to hire several other devils and even demons of varying species.

The life levels of these new test subjects were comparatively lower, ranging from Rank One to Rank Two.

After all, the war earnings from Sandstorm World had not yet been completely distributed, and Sein had yet to receive payment from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

The expenses for hiring these devils and demons came entirely out of his own pocket.

While he had accumulated a fair share of resources, he had to manage them carefully.

The mixed army of devils and demons that had supported Sandstorm World were no amateurs, and fooling them was nearly impossible.

These rough-looking devils firmly held their ground, refusing to budge on their fees.

True to their reputation as guards of the Arriba Chamber of Commerce, they were tough negotiators, making it nearly impossible for Sein to secure any favorable terms.

Researching devils was part of his effort to decode the mysteries of bloodlines, but studying demons was purely driven by his own insatiable curiosity and desire for further exploration.

In the Magus World, devils and demons were infamous, yet specimens of them were exceedingly rare.

If Sein missed this opportunity, who knew when he would encounter another?

To meet the exorbitant collaboration fees demanded by several cunning demons, Sein had no choice but to borrow money from Leena.

Tourmaline, on the other hand, exhibited patience and stillness only when she was asleep.

After realizing that Sein had confined himself to his laboratory for ten straight days without emerging, the restless dragon turtle left his magic tower and wandered off to explore on her own.

Perhaps due to her recent advancement, Tourmaline was brimming with energy and showed no signs of fatigue or drowsiness.

She spent her days wandering around the main fortress base, occasionally sneaking outside the plane.

In between experiments, Sein could not help but feel a pang of envy when he thought about Tourmaline’s abilities and freedom.

Although certain ranked creatures—and even some below Rank One with unique constitutions—could survive and engage in basic combat within the Astral Realm, the exploration of its boundless expanse was primarily a privilege of Rank Four creatures or higher.

There was a good reason for this—both the Magus Civilization and other world civilizations often encountered “wandering gods” who happened to pass through their star domains during their journeys.

Technological civilizations were exceptions though.

Advanced warships and spaceships enabled many low-level technological civilizations to explore the stars like Rank Four creatures—so long as they could regularly replenish their energy sources.

Weaker stray races and wandering creatures could also navigate the Astral Realm using these vessels.

However, for such beings, the Astral Realm remained fraught with peril.

An encounter with a powerful Astral Beast or an unforeseen cosmic danger could easily spell their doom.

For creatures below Rank Four, venturing into unfamiliar star domains was nothing short of gambling with their lives.

Even for those above Rank Four, the Astral Realm was still teeming with mysterious and dangerous zones that were challenging, if not impossible, for them to explore.

These beings’ elevated strength and life levels granted them only far greater adaptability than their lower-ranked counterparts.

***

After three long months at the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s main base, Sein finally reunited with Lorianne, whom he had not seen for over half a year.

Unlike Sia and the others, whose injuries had largely healed by now, Lorianne still appeared pale and alarmingly frail.

While high-level lifeforms boasted remarkable resilience and resistance to damage compared to their lower-ranked counterparts, the severity of injuries sustained by Rank Four and above creatures was far beyond what lesser beings could comprehend.

Lorianne bore grievous wounds, particularly on her chest and calves. Her focus had temporarily dropped a level and the mana in her body now flowed chaotically.

Wounds inflicted by Rank Four and above Gorilla Gods healed significantly slower than typical injuries due to the lingering effects of foreign law power, festering in the wounds like maggots stubbornly clinging to the affected area.

The decline in Lorianne’s focus level was the direct result of overexertion during her prior battles.

This kind of focus backlash was a temporary affliction, but for it to manifest in a Rank Four mage, it was clear that Lorianne had pushed herself to the brink, willing to sacrifice her life.

Sein himself had experienced the painful aftermath of overusing focus in the past, and he knew firsthand how torturous it could be for a mage, especially one with a frail constitution.

Even for someone like him, who had undergone body tempering, the backlash caused splitting headaches.

For someone like Lorianne, who had not undergone such a procedure, the torment would be worse.

During their meeting, Lorianne’s face was pale, due to her focus backlash.

While her external wounds were severe, it was the internal consequences of her overexertion that were truly debilitating.

Sein briefly glanced at the injuries on her calves. As her apprentice, he urged her to focus on recuperation, knowing she would need some time to recover.

The battle for the Wild Gorilla Star Domain no longer directly involved the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

While the tower gained immense wealth from the conquest of Sandstorm World, the cost was steep.

The deaths of nearly four thousand mages had left the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring deeply scarred, forcing it into a period of recovery that would likely last several centuries.

Such staggering losses undoubtedly shifted the perspective of many divine tower mages toward interplanar wars.

It was anticipated that upon returning to the Magus World, many would choose to transition to academy mage instead.

Even Selina had expressed her intent to take the path of an academy mage.

In addition to meeting Sein and catching up with her apprentice’s condition, Lorianne also convened with several other surviving Rank Three grand mages of her tower.

Her reappearance at the fortress brought a subtle yet noticeable lift to the overall atmosphere among the remaining mages.

Though the heavy losses would take centuries to recover, the war’s massive wealth had secured a promising future for their divine tower.

The surviving mages were now among the best in their ranks. They would no doubt serve as the foundation for the tower’s future growth and prosperity.

This included Selina, who had matured significantly through her wartime experiences.

Even if she were to transition to the life of an academy mage in the future, she would carry with her a solid foundation and valuable battlefield experience.

Besides, the “academy mage” path was not necessarily permanent.

Perhaps she might decide to rejoin the battlefield once again in the future.