Sovereign of the Ashes

The results of the experiment were quite satisfactory.

By vivisecting the three adventurers, Sein deduced that the deities of this world had endowed their followers with skills directly imprinted on specific areas of their brains.

The brain was one of the most mysterious and crucial organs in intelligent beings.

Even the mages of the Magus World had not mastered fully utilizing their brain, highlighting the complexity within.

These mages cultivate mental focus and draw on extensive knowledge, primarily using their brains.

From an unbiased perspective, those otherworldly gods following the faith system had their unique strengths.

It was no surprise then that the Rank Four and higher mages of the Magus World vied for the honor of owning a specimen from these divine beings.

The three adventurers were too weak. Each possessed three skills, which appeared to correlate with their constitution and brain development.

Learning a new skill meant an existing one would be overwritten and forgotten.

Furthermore, Sein’s vivisection revealed that these adventurers possessed extremely primitive cultivation techniques.

In the bodies of that warrior and ranger, Sein detected a faint trace of energy particles, known in Faeloria as “qi” or “primordial force”.

In this special world, dominated by deities, only those who worshiped them could access true power in Faeloria.

Self-cultivation held little value here.

The cultivation techniques of the low-ranking warrior and ranger were inferior even to the weakest battle qi techniques of the Magus World.

Given the substantial concentration of elemental energies in this large-sized world, it should not have developed this way.

Sein speculated that the deities of this world might be deliberately suppressing the lower-ranking beings from evolving and ascending to higher realms.

After all, Faeloria was home to hundreds of deities.

Given the number of deities in this world and the absence of contact or conflict with foreign planes thus far, the emergence of new deities would undoubtedly disrupt the existing order.

Unless there was continuous outward expansion like that of the Magus Civilization, it was indeed best for this world to maintain its current state.

This highlights one of the issues with the faith system.

The high and mighty deities required an endless stream of followers, so they often engaged in manipulative policies to maintain their dominion, continually elevating their divine status.

Many of these so-called deities actually reached their current position through bluffing and empty promises.

In contrast, the Magus Civilization did not curtail the advancement of its lower-ranking knights or mages.

Rather, those of Rank Four and higher sought to foster as many powerful individuals as possible under their command.

This enabled them to form mighty combat legions for their civilization, allowing them to conquer and plunder from world to world.

The strength of Magus Civilization mages derived from their profound understanding of truth.

As for knights, their source of power came from within themselves.

Neither group depended on the faith or worship of believers.

***

After dealing with the three lower-grade specimens, Sein turned his attention to the two higher-grade ones.

He approached them with a measure of hesitation, knowing they possessed a trace of divine power within them.

Though minimal, it did not change the fact that it was the power of a deity.

Sein was worried that his actions might draw the attention of the god behind them.

According to the memories of several native creatures, the deities of this world rarely descended upon the mortal world.

Even the tales of god-slayers and fallen gods dated back thousands or tens of thousands of years and were now regarded merely as myths and legends by the lower beings.

“Spider Queen mentioned this world is tightly sealed by its law barrier. Could it be that the deities are somehow restricted, unable to freely manifest their true forms on this continent?” Sein pondered, stroking his chin.

In the Magus World, knights and mages of Rank Four or higher also rarely demonstrated their full powers on their homeplane.

This restraint was due to the regulations imposed by the divine towers, knightly orders, and guardians.

After all, the frequent manifestation and interventions by lifeforms above Rank Four could destabilize the balance of their homeplane.

It appeared that similar constraints were likely in place in Faeloria.

Moreover, if a deity of Rank Four or higher casually displayed power to followers of Rank One or lower, it would diminish the perceived value of their kind.

Sein preferred to believe that his fortune was not so rotten.

Of course, a significant motivator for his decision to proceed was his insatiable thirst for knowledge after vivisecting three native specimens.

He felt as though he had only lifted a corner of the veil of truth, not yet fully uncovering it.

This partial revelation was maddening for Sein, like an itch he could not scratch.

Compelled by this urge, he once again picked up his scalpels and resolutely sliced deeper into the mystery of truth.

The cultivation technique of this templar is indeed more advanced than the other two... Is this what they call a divine blessing?

Hmm... this integration of divine power with flesh and blood is something I’ve never seen before. It’s different from how the Gorilla Gods in the Wild Gorilla World utilize their divine power. It appears to be somewhat more sophisticated.

“I expected no less from a large-sized plane...” Sein chuckled in satisfaction.

Hmm, the brain development and mental focus level of this gray-robed man are clearly inferior to those of Magus World mages at the same rank. Let’s look at the memory fragments in his soul...

“As expected of a Rank One Elementalist empowered by divine power... He knows only three offensive spells... Bone Spear Rush, Summon Skeleton, and Deadly Cage....? Additionally, he’s mastered nine other basic spells,” Sein murmured.

“Compared to Magus World mages, with their extensive array of elemental spells and techniques, these spellcasters from Faeloria wouldn’t even qualify as initiates in our ranks,” he remarked, shaking his head.

The elemental spells wielded by Magus World mages bore a distinct personal style because they were self-developed.

In contrast, the Elementalists of Faeloria employed divine arts and spells that were widely shared—thousands had used the same spells for millennia!

Take this gray-robed elder, for instance: he could only choose three out of about a dozen Rank One spells available to him through the Church of Bones.

With no room for innovation or development, the lower-ranking beings of this world could roughly gauge his strength and allegiance simply by observing his spellcasting during combat.

This was why, when Sein conjured his Ashen Flame, manifesting it externally as a firebird, the native creatures looked both confused and perplexed—they could not figure out Sein’s background.

Sein’s elemental firebird was not derived from advanced magic knowledge; it was among the spell models that Eileen had researched long ago.

Sein had not devoted much effort to mastering it.

Given his current expertise, manifesting his magic power in any form was a straightforward task.

This was precisely why Sein regarded the spellcasters of this world with such disdain.

After all, true mastery of elemental power could only be achieved through one’s own effort.

With their current method of acquiring power in this world, the native creatures would never surpass their deities in their lifetimes.

They were nothing once they were separated from their deities.

This was likely a development model deliberately created by the deities of this world.

It remained unclear whether the lesser beings of this world had ever contemplated developing their own sources of power or forging their own paths in cultivation.