Sovereign of the Ashes

Faced with Sein’s abrupt retreat—a move that lacked any semblance of honor—the Black-bellied Spider leader grew increasingly agitated in the temple.

It had already established contact with the Spider Goddess and was currently receiving a wisp of divine power to amplify its strength.

The Spider Goddess was generous, never withholding power from her followers. It was this generosity that enabled her to cultivate a loyal following within the Magus World.

However, influenced by the mages’ relentless pursuit of truth, many inhabitants of the Magus World—knights, magic beasts, demihumans, and sea races alike—dismissed the notion of gods.

To them, the so-called “gods” were merely lifeforms that had ascended to a higher level of existence.

The Black-bellied Spider leader, now empowered by divine energy, was connected to translucent energy bands, each shimmering with specks of white light that flowed seamlessly into various parts of its body and abdomen.

These energy bands were linked to the temple, seemingly serving as conduits for the power of faith.

As long as the spider leader remained connected to these energy bands within the temple, it could maintain its demigod-level strength indefinitely, drawing from a seemingly boundless energy reserve.

This was the Spider Goddess’ favor—a reward granted to her chosen leader in this faith-dominated region.

The power of faith was derived from the prayers and devotion of Baras City’s millions of inhabitants.

Sein had researched divine power in the past. In fact, the two female gorillas, whose divine power had long since been drained, were still in his laboratory.

Hence, when the Black-bellied Spider leader burst forth from the temple, still connected to the energy bands and brimming with divine power, Sein immediately understood what was going on.

Elevated to demigod-level strength and backed by an endless energy supply, the Black-bellied Spider leader was now an opponent far beyond Sein’s ability to confront alone.

Already exhausted from his earlier battle, with many of his magic artifacts still on cooldown, Sein knew that fighting such an opponent would be no different than committing suicide.

He also sensed that this Spider leader, now empowered by its goddess, was far stronger than the mother and daughter pair he had captured on the Wild Gorilla World battlefield.

This realization led to a troubling conclusion: the Spider Goddess was likely far more powerful than the Gorilla God from back then.

Such a tough opponent should be left to someone of Dark Flame’s caliber.

With that in mind, Sein turned and fled without hesitation despite still having some strength left.

“Stay right there, you cowardly mage!” the Black-bellied Spider leader shrieked in frustration.

Sein did not even bother to respond. He dodged two rounds of energy projectiles fired by the spider leader and continued his flight toward the outskirts of Baras City.

The Rank Three elderly demihuman emerged from the temple as well.

Unlike the Black-bellied Spider leader, its level of devotion appeared less fervent, resulting in a smaller share of divine blessing.

The energy bands connected to its body were only a third as numerous as those of the spider leader.

While the Black-bellied Spider leader excelled in close-quarters combat, the old demihuman’s abilities were far better suited for interception.

Empowered by the goddess’ blessing, the elderly demihuman no longer appeared frail. Its once stooped posture straightened, and a faint touch of youth returned to its features.

It was no surprise why these demihumans and dark creatures often chose to serve gods.

Without tangible benefits, mere promises would not suffice to garner loyalty.

The relationship between gods and their believers was one of mutual exchange.

Gods reaped the power of faith from their followers, while believers sought divine grace through fervent prayers.

For beings of Rank Four and above, many of their abilities were beyond the comprehension of lower-ranking lifeforms.

In the Magus World, demihumans typically lived only half as long as humans of the same rank.

For Rank Four beings and above, extending a lower-ranking being’s lifespan by a mere decade was relatively simple.

For creatures on the brink of death, even a single extra year would be enough to compel unwavering devotion, driving them to surrender their entire body and soul to these so-called gods.

Life, after all, was priceless.

The old demihuman employed a range of tactics to intercept Sein, including trapping him in cages and entangling him with twisting wooden vines.

While these efforts caused him some trouble, that was all they amounted to—trouble.

Sein’s decisive retreat had cost the two underground creatures their golden opportunity to trap him.

As he pressed on, it became clear that the two Rank Three creatures, despite their divine blessings, could not stray far from the temple.

If they ventured beyond a certain distance, the glowing energy bands connected to their bodies would come off.

While they could still retain some residual divine power, their combat effectiveness would be significantly diminished compared to just moments earlier.

By the time Sein reached the outskirts of Baras City, the pursuit from the Black-bellied Spider leader and the old demihuman had weakened considerably.

The light and heat radiating from Sein’s body illuminated nearly half of Baras City.

At the same time, it provided ample illumination for his crystal ball to capture every detail of the city, including the two Rank Three divine messengers connected to the energy bands.

The old demihuman’s disheveled and weathered face was also clearly recorded in the crystal ball.

With a soft grunt, Sein stowed the crystal ball and waved at the underground creatures behind him.

“I’m off for now. See you in about a month! I hope you’ll still be around by then. Pray that your so-called ‘gods’ can withstand the attacks from the divine towers and knightly orders in the Ylli Knight Alliance, including the Divine Tower of Dark Flame!” he called out with a smirk.

Then, with a mischievous glint in his eye, Sein added, “Oh, and by the way, your goddess is really hot. At least her upper body is to my taste.”

His words immediately sent the entire population of Baras City’s underground creatures into a frenzy.

Roars of outrage and cries of blasphemy echoed across the city!

But no matter how incensed they were, they were too feeble to fight him. They could only watch helplessly as Sein continued his retreat.

However, before Sein could escape too far, a spatial confinement force suddenly surrounded him.

Still in mid-flight, Sein’s body froze in place, unable to move a muscle!

“It’s that so?” A clear, cold female voice reverberated through the space around him.

The voice seemed to come from the massive stone statue at the heart of the city.

The once lifeless statue seemed to come alive. Though its body remained stone, its eyes gleamed with an eerie, chilling vitality.

Out of the corner of his immobilized eye, Sein caught the unnerving sight of the statue blinking.

The goddess’ voice and overwhelming pressure forced millions of underground creatures across Baras City to drop to their knees in reverence.

It was a sobering reminder: one should never be too cocky when treading on someone else’s turf.

Moments earlier, Sein had been brimming with confidence, even going so far as to mock the goddess brazenly. In the next moment, he experienced instant karma.

“Don’t tell me this evil god has already smuggled herself into the Magus World!” Sein’s thoughts raced.

Unfortunately, all he could do now was blink in shock.