Sovereign of the Ashes

This time, Sein had truly met his match.

Those sent by the Divine Tower of Astral Sun to disrupt their operation were far from ordinary.

Both Adrian and Janice possessed unique and formidable strengths.

When Adrian and the others arrived at the scene, they were greeted by the sight of a massive crater in the hilly area on the southern side of the forest.

Strange gray flames clung to every corner of the battlefield.

At the center of one of the largest craters lay a massive greenish-blue python, over three hundred meters long, weakly coiled in on itself.

The python’s expression showed an almost human-like terror.

Anyone familiar with this creature would recognize it as the Baneful Green Python, one of Master Janice’s Rank Three summons.

This extraordinary creature was not native to the Magus Civilization. Only mages adept in both summoning arts and astrology could communicate with such beings from distant, unknown dimensions and forge a pact with them.

The python was quite severely injured.

A massive flaming fist mark was scorched into its body, precisely at the seventh inch of its length.

The fiery imprint bore a strong resemblance to the flaming palm print Adrian and Adolff had seen earlier in the forest.

The Baneful Green Python coughed up thick clots of blood, its battered state making it clear that it could no longer continue fighting for the time being.

Not far from the injured python, the most intense confrontation raged on.

A towering, flaming giant in the guise of a Flame Demon clashed fiercely with a massive pangolin that radiated golden brilliance.[1]

The Flame Demon Giant was, of course, Sein, while the golden pangolin was Janice’s other summon—the Golden Steelback Pangolin.

Janice was a peculiar mage. Her main summons were neither native to the Magus World nor from planes allied with the Magus Civilization.

Both the Baneful Green Python and the Golden Steelback Pangolin were exceedingly rare creatures, so much so that this was Sein’s first encounter with them.

He had no knowledge of their origin or the full extent of their abilities.

This was no doubt a disadvantage in a battle where understanding an opponent’s strengths was critical.

The rarity of Janice’s summons, coupled with her exceptional synergy with them, allowed her to hold her ground against Sein’s relentless assault.

Instead of being overwhelmed by Sein’s sudden attack, Janice managed to force a stalemate.

In battles between Rank Three combatants, the outcome was often decided swiftly—before the opponent could activate their energy shields.

If not, the confrontation would inevitably devolve into a prolonged war of attrition.

Every Rank Three creature possessed astonishing resilience. Exhausting a Rank Three being—especially a Rank Three grand mage from the Magus World—was not something that could be achieved in a short period of time.

At present, the Baneful Green Python had been forced to temporarily withdraw from the battle due to injuries.

Meanwhile, thanks to the Golden Steelback Pangolin’s exceptional defensive capabilities and Janice spamming buff spells on her summoned beast, she was just barely managing to hold her ground against Sein.

The pangolin’s metallic scales were constantly emitting golden light. It appeared that this was an otherworldly Rank Three lumen elemental creature.

In contrast, the Baneful Green Python’s source of power was hydro elemental energy. Its withdrawal was less about its inability to fight and more because Janice was unwilling to risk further injuries to her prized summon.

While Janice could temporarily fend off Sein’s attacks with her summons, the other Divine Tower of Astral Sun mages scattered throughout the forest were not so fortunate.

This was the Divine Tower of Dark Flame’s territory, and the Divine Tower of Astral Sun mages should have been prepared to pay the price for coming here to stir up trouble.

Under Janice’s command were thirteen Rank One and Rank Two mages, all of whom were as seriously injured as Flayman and the others.

Sein’s Ashen Flame had not fatally wounded them, but it had drained their elemental energy reserves and inflicted debilitating injuries.

Unlike Sein, whose constitution was comparable to that of a magic beast, these mages were fragile.

The pain they endured was a lesson they would remember for the rest of their lives.

BOOM!

Sein slammed his fist into the golden barrier of light protecting the Golden Steelback Pangolin.

Despite its size and robust build, even greater than that of the Baneful Green Python, the pangolin let out a sharp hiss of pain.

Sein’s powerful body tempering technique with the pyro elemental energy transformation he had gained after advancing to Rank Three had proven unexpectedly effective.

Sometimes, there was no need to consolidate the fruits of advancement in a laboratory—battle could serve just as well.

Sein had intended to swiftly eliminate the Divine Tower of Astral Sun mages in the southern part of the Petrified Forest, but the unfolding battle had dashed those plans.

Janice’s tenacity had exceeded his expectations.

This summoner with blonde hair, like Sein himself, was far from the ordinary Rank Three creatures Sein had encountered on interplanar battlefields.

Her seamless coordination with her summons offered Sein an entirely new perspective on battlefield dynamics.

With Janice’s various buff spells empowering the Golden Steelback Pangolin, the massive creature, in Sein’s estimation, had already achieved the minimum strength required to resist a demigod-level opponent.

Of course, part of the reason Sein had yet to decisively end the battle was his inability to go all-out.

Certain moves could not be unleashed freely in the Magus World, and measured strikes were often more challenging than outright lethal attacks.

While Sein was grappling with his inability to quickly subdue Janice and the other Divine Tower of Astral Sun mages in the southern part of the Petrified Forest, he failed to realize the psychological impact he was having on them.

Sein was currently fighting alone!

To him, this was nothing unusual. He had spent much of his time working solo, exploring the mysteries of truths in the isolation of his laboratory.

However, most mages in the Magus World usually fought behind a legion of knights, using their protection as a shield while casting spells freely.

Sein certainly had knight allies, with whom he worked seamlessly.

If Natalya or Reina had been present to assist him, Janice and her two summons would not have lasted long enough for Adrian and the others to arrive.

“STOP!”

Adrian’s commanding voice rang out, signaling his entry into the battle.

It was clear he could not stand idly by as Sein continued to overwhelm Janice.

The female mage was visibly struggling—her elemental shield was trembling, dissolving at a speed perceptible even to the naked eye.

The nearby Rank Two mages watched in terror as Sein, in his Flame Demon form, unleashed his devastating power through a knight-like close-quarters fighting style.

But Adrian, with his acute sensitivity to pyro elemental energy, saw what the others could not.

The true factor that put Janice at a disadvantage and caused her shield to falter was not Sein’s sheer physical strength but the strange gray flames on his body and hands.

What kind of flame is that?!

Adrian had spent centuries studying and collecting rare flames, yet he had never encountered anything like the one Sein wielded.

Two fiery orbs, glowing like mini red suns, materialized at Adrian’s side.

This newly arrived Rank Three grand mage was about to showcase the exceptional results of his pyro elemental research to Sein!

1. Please take note that there is a term change for ”Demon” and ”Devil”. For more information, please visit the footnote of Chapter 910. ☜