Sovereign of the Ashes

By the time Sein and Eileen returned to the eastern zone three of the starport where the space fortress was docked, Lonas had just arrived as well.

Sein was not sure where the Rank Three grand mage had wandered off to, but judging by his satisfied expression, it was clear he had stumbled upon something worthwhile.

It was not just Sein and Lonas who had taken advantage of their time at the starport.

The more than two hundred mages registered under the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, sent to the public starport on official business, had also been granted a certain degree of autonomy during their stay.

However, most of these mages, generally only Rank One or Two, did not have the purchasing power of Sein and Lonas.

Some of the recently promoted full-fledged mages had never even left the Magus World before, making this “business trip” an exciting journey for them.

Once their tasks were completed, Sein and Lonas led the group of mages back to Viridescent Land.

At the starport, only about a dozen mages remained behind, tasked with overhauling and maintaining the space fortress and other war platforms.

As for security, the Magus World’s public starport had strict protocols in place, taking full responsibility for its defense.

It was rare—if not unheard of—for any foolish extraplanar creatures to dare cause trouble in the Magus World’s territory.

***

Upon returning to the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, Sein’s first priority was to report to his mentor.

Lorianne appeared to have just completed an experiment when Sein arrived, still clad in her white lab coat.

After delivering his report on the handover of the prism fort and the war airships, Sein presented Lorianne with a small portion of the Dissolved Fire Blood Vine and the Life Spring he had acquired at Kristy’s Auction House.

For a Rank Four powerhouse like Lorianne, such offerings were far from remarkable. Yet, it was the thought that counted.

“The Dissolved Fire Blood Vine is notoriously difficult to cultivate. I attempted to grow it myself when I was younger but failed. With this offering of yours, I can try again,” Lorianne remarked as she examined the vine.

“But this type of special plant requires a rich pyro elemental environment. The overall energy balance of my world laboratory is far from suitable, so the chances of success are slim,” she added.

Her eyes turned into crescents as her lips curled into a smile. It was clear she appreciated Sein’s gesture.

“As for the Life Spring... I can help you refine a few potions from it. But this portion you’ve brought me is far too little. Hand over everything you’ve got,” she said, extending her hand.

Suppressing the urge to roll his eyes, Sein obediently handed over the half of the Life Spring in his possession.

As for the remaining half, he had intended to gift it to the plant creatures of the Verdant Wilderness World.

“Looks like you managed to snag quite a few treasures at the public starport this time,” Lorianne remarked with a touch of amusement in her voice.

Then, with a slight smirk, she added, “Don’t get too used to relying on external forces or money. Back in my Rank Two days, I don’t think I was as rich as you.”

Lorianne was a busy person, and Sein had his own schedule packed with experiments.

Their conversation on the top floor of the divine tower was brief. After leaving the Life Spring with her and exchanging a few pleasantries, Sein excused himself and departed.

***

Life at the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring was a mix of humdrum routines and unexpected surprises.

For Sein, his routine revolved around the study and research, like most mages.

The surprises, however, lay in the moments of discovery—the joy of unraveling the mysteries of truths.

In the six months following his return, Sein settled into his usual rhythm. He spent his time conducting daily experiments, teaching within the tower, and carefully processing the treasures he had acquired from the auction.

With the Wild Star Domain War concluded, the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring had successfully established a permanent passageway to the Verdant Wilderness World.

Similar to the Verdant Leaf World, these two dendro elemental planes were now recognized as vassals of the divine tower.

Both the tower’s registered mages and traveling mages from other regions could now visit and explore these planes for a magicoin fee.

With the reputation of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring and its tower master being a Dendromancer, the connection between the tower and these dendro elemental planes felt natural.

Of course, the registered mages of the divine tower enjoyed significantly reduced fees when traveling to these dendro elemental planes—a benefit they received as official “staff members”.

The establishment of a permanent passageway between these two low-level dendro elemental planes also attracted a new wave of Dendromancers, who were hedge mages, to the Divine Tower of Spring Mages.

Sein’s Life Spring was sent to the Verdant Wilderness World through the interplanar passageway.

As for the other three treasures, Sein dealt with them one by one.

The Dissolved Fire Blood Vine was refined into Pyro-Tempering Potions. To match the potency of the vine, Sein had to gather a variety of complementary materials, a process that drained his resources further.

Fortunately, these secondary materials were far less expensive than the vine itself.

Among Sein’s companions, several practiced pyro elemental magic. Both Selina and Eileen received their shares.

Although Selina also practiced lumen elemental magic, there was no harm in enhancing her pyro elemental affinity.

Even Natalya, despite being a knight, received a vial of the potion. With her growing mastery over pyro elemental energy and the lessons she had gleaned from the recent interplanar war, her growth was visibly significant.

Sein did not forget Leena and the others in the Western Archipelago. Through the interplanar teleportation array, he sent three vials of the potion to the girls in Blackhaven.

Sanchez’s luck was terrible during the Sandstorm World War.

With the severe injuries it suffered during the Wild Gorilla World War, the demigod-level skeletal dragon needed to retreat to Death Valley and sleep for at least a few centuries to recuperate.

When Sein contacted Leena, Sanchez did not interrupt, leaving the two lovebirds to talk in private.

Leena was delighted to receive the three valuable potions Sein had sent her.

Blackhaven, unlike the more prosperous regions of the Magus World, lacked top-tier resources like the Dissolved Fire Blood Vine.

Even mid-grade materials, common in most divine towers, were a rarity in Blackhaven.

These potions, though sent to Leena, were also intended for Faye and Zorro.

Although Faye and Zorro were both Rank One mages, they also wielded pyro elemental magic, which was also a common specialization among Magus World alchemists.

This was the most Sein could do for his seniors.

“We probably won’t be visiting Divine Tower of Verdant Spring anytime soon. The black tower master seems to have noticed Faye and my absence last time and has buried us under a pile of tedious missions since our return,” Leena said through the magic screen.

“The other black tower mages don’t seem to suspect anything, though. Most of them usually keep to themselves and only interact with their own apprentices,” she added.

Sein nodded.

“Well, as long as the black tower master isn’t giving you two a hard time. It’s a busy period for everyone right now. There’s still a lot to work on—organizing and sorting through all the insights and gains from the war will take time.”

On the other side of the screen, Leena moved her lips as though she wanted to say something, but stopped herself and shook her head instead.

What she did not share with Sein was that upon her return from the Wild Star Domain War, the black tower master had summoned her personally.

For the first time, she had finally seen the true face of her “mentor.”

The Black Tower Master of Cinderbones was undoubtedly a formidable Rank Five black mage. Despite being a woman, her ruthlessness rivaled that of the most brutal figures who had participated in the Blackhaven War.

Whether consciously or not, the black tower master often seemed intent on probing into Leena and her friends’ connections with White Stella and her family.

Rather than respect, Leena felt more fear toward her new, nominal mentor.

No black mage could be considered truly benevolent, and the Black Tower Master of Cinderbones, who had lived for tens of thousands of years, was no exception.

The only silver lining was that the black tower master had not made things difficult for Leena.

In fact, she had even taught her an incredibly complex and profound umbra elemental spell.

Leena chose not to tell Sein about these developments, at least not right away.

She did not want to distract him.

She knew that even if Sein were aware of her situation, there was little he could do beyond feeling anxious.

Leena never wanted to burden him with worry. In her heart, she wished for Sein to live freely under the broad daylight, carefree and fully devoted to his magic studies and research.

If someone had to descend into the shadows, she would take that burden upon herself.

She was content to remain in the background, quietly supporting him from afar.