Sovereign of the Ashes

Blazing flames and violent elemental explosions lit up the sky above the basin.

Every surviving mage below stared in horror as Sein, fully transformed into his demon form, charged at the Rank Four tower master.

Endless fireballs and energy rays rained down, showcasing Sein’s exceptional magical talent and immense elemental reserves.

Compared to him, even the strongest mages on the field—including a few Rank Three grand mages—looked like amateurs.

On top of that, Sein’s spells carried traces of law power, something only demigod-level mages and above could wield.

All the remaining black mages quickly retreated to the edges of the battlefield. A few Rank Three stood rooted to the spot, captivated by what they were witnessing.

It was not every day that a battle of this level unfolded right in front of them.

The fact that Sein was going toe-to-toe with a Rank Four black mage as a demigod-level mage was enough to make his name spread like wildfire across the southern reaches of Blackhaven—whether he survived this fight or not.

Fighting the Tower Master of Bone was a challenge.

Sein knew he could not break through the man’s defenses easily, so he went all out from the start.

Chanting and activating his Demon Mask simultaneously, he launched dozens of Penetrating Eye spells in rapid succession.

Unlike his fight with Harnban, Sein kept the coverage of his spells small. Scattering the beams would only weaken their impact.

He needed every shot to land hard, so instead of quantity, he chose quality.

It was a shame he did not have time to prepare any forbidden spells.

In a head-on clash like this, it was impossible for him to do long incantations without a front line to buy him time.

Otherwise, his upgraded Penetrating Eye spell could have delivered some serious surprises.

While Sein was struggling to hold his ground, the Rank Four Tower Master of Bone was not exactly having an easy time either.

Sein’s Ashen Flame was making him feel uncomfortably “warm”.

When one of those Penetrating Eye beams finally pierced his outer elemental barrier, the old mage’s temper flared.

He was no longer amused; he was pissed.

Sein’s attacks barely did any real damage, it was only a graze at best.

But that was exactly why the tower master was furious.

It was not the pain that enraged him; it was the fact that a demigod-level mage had actually managed to hurt him at all.

It was a blow to his pride!

Out on the edge of the battlefield, the full-fledged black mages watching the fight probably had no idea their deaths were coming next.

There was no way the cruel and ruthless Tower Master of Bone would allow any witnesses to live and spread word of this.

A Rank Four tower master injured by a demigod-level mage?

That would ruin the fearsome image he had built over thousands of years. No one would take him seriously anymore.

Under the Tower Master of Bone’s control, the surrounding death energy began to form sinister white claws.

The death energy he harvested from the earlier massacre, along with what he had siphoned from the catacomb chasm, had turned the entire area into a battlefield that favored him.

Those claws easily matched the power of Sein’s Penetrating Eye spell—maybe even surpassed it!

Still, the Tower Master of Bone had not tried to kill Sein outright. He wanted to capture both Sein and Leena alive.

“I expected no less from a resource point that vile woman has managed for tens of thousands of years. We don’t even have a catacomb chasm this rich in the Black Tower of Bone’s territory,” the Tower Master of Bone marveled, eyes gleaming with greed as he fought Sein and glanced down below.

The reason he intervened was not just to capture Sein, Leena, and the other mages from the Black Tower of Cinderbones—but because the death energy in this catacomb chasm was far too rich to pass up.

Greed was the real cause of this war between them.

As a wave of bone claws surged toward them, Sein sighed and sent Leena a message via mental focus.

“When I give the signal, run. Get as far as you can. With this Silver Spider Ring, I don’t think I’m in any real danger of dying.”

Without waiting for a reply, Sein flapped his demonic wings and shot up into the air.

This time, he did more than just rely on his mask and magic rod. He pulled out two divine relics from his space ring.

The moment they appeared, the Tower Master of Bone froze. His greedy gaze shifted from the chasm below to the relics in Sein’s hands.

These unsuppressed relics contained overwhelming power of laws within them.

When that power was released by a mere mortal like Sein, his demonic claws began to sizzle, corroding under the strain.

A roar escaped his throat, filled with both fury and pain.

The Penetrating Eye spell blasted through the sky, far stronger than before, fueled by the volatile fusion of pyro and lumen elemental energies within the divine relics.

It tore straight through the Rank Four Tower Master of Bone’s elemental barrier, his magic robe, and the foggy gray domain behind him!

That kind of elemental power was far beyond anything a typical Rank Three or even most demigod-level mages could unleash.

As the blinding elemental light streaked across the dark sky, its light drew the attention of countless creatures across Blackhaven.

Even in the Western Archipelago, far to the south, many noticed the abnormal glow in the sky.

***

At Sea God Bay in the southeastern region of the Western Archipelago...

Tourmaline, dozing in the vast azure waters, cracked open her eyes with a drowsy blink.

Spotting the fading streak of light far off in the sky, the sleepiness in her gaze quickly gave way to a flicker of pleasant surprise.

Moving her massive body, she began swimming swiftly northward.

Far below, in the crystal palace, White Stella—midway through negotiations with a Rank Five sea creature—paused mid-sentence.

Her gaze shifted toward the direction Tourmaline had disappeared into.

***

The cost of forcibly unleashing a forbidden spell through two divine relics was not something an ordinary mage could endure.

Thanks to Sein’s monstrous constitution, he managed to withstand the elemental backlash.

The powerful Penetrating Eye spell tore through the Tower Master of Bone’s defenses, wounded him, and even shattered his elemental domain.

Sein had hoped Leena would take the chance to escape.

But Leena refused to abandon him—she was willing to lay down her life for him, just as he would for her.

In the end, both of them were captured by the Rank Four tower master.

Once the Tower Master of Bone had Sein in hand, he lost all interest in the catacomb chasm and flew straight back toward his tower.

He had gone in expecting to catch two potatoes, but ended up bagging two pumpkins instead.

The value of the divine relics in Sein’s possession was beyond what most people could even imagine.

The Tower Master of Bone was thrilled. He had a feeling this demigod-level mage was going to bring him more surprises than he ever expected.