Sovereign of the Ashes

There was no need for Sein to be overly polite with his mentor.

Lorianne was slightly puzzled by his sudden request. But still, she turned around, reached into a hidden storage space in the laboratory, and took out a row of golden potions.

She picked out two from the eleven vials and handed them to Sein.

Seeing the confusion on his face, Lorianne explained, “You were the one who obtained the Golden Apple, so you should get an extra one. Your grandmaster agrees as well.”

Sein nodded, accepting the two golden vials without hesitation.

“The Golden Apple potion I developed not only provides immediate healing for Rank Fours but also improves their constitution. This effect also works on Rank Fives, though to a minimal degree,” Lorianne explained.

“For people like you, Gregory, and the others who have already undergone body tempering, there’s no need to wait until you’re injured to use it. You can take it as a training potion during your regular practice, and the results will be even better. If used solely for healing, the life force in the Golden Apple potion will be directed toward repairing the body, which weakens its ability to enhance constitution.”

She let out a sigh.

“It’s a pity... if the Golden Apple were eaten whole, its constitution-boosting effect might even work on a Rank Six powerhouse like your grandmaster.”

“If I were in critical condition, how much could the Golden Apple Potion heal me immediately?” Sein asked.

He needed to know the exact numbers in advance.

Lorianne furrowed her brow, pausing to think before replying, “Restoring you to about eighty percent of your health should be no problem. For someone like Gregory, a Rank Five mage, it should bring them back to about sixty percent. For your grandmaster, around thirty percent.”

A potion that could restore one-third of a Rank Six powerhouse’s health instantly was quite remarkable.

Clearly, Lorianne had added more than just Golden Apple. There had to be other high-grade ingredients mixed in.

Judging from the data, Feylis could almost fully recover by taking three of these potions in quick succession.

Of course, every living being had drug resistance. The more potions were taken, the weaker the effect became.

The exact numerical value of the potion’s effect was hard to calculate and depended on the extent of the injury at the time.

In truth, Lorianne had already done an outstanding job on the potions, despite blaming herself for not being able to unlock the Golden Apple’s full potential.

Most Rank Five apothecaries would never have put in the same level of dedication that Lorianne did.

With this experience, there was no doubt Lorianne would do even better next time!

After watching Sein carefully put away the two golden potions, Lorianne suddenly asked, “Are you going on a dangerous mission or something?”

Her question made him pause. He did not answer, but his silence spoke for him.

“Are you leaving the Magus Star Domain to venture deeper into the Astral Realm?” she pressed.

Lorianne’s intuition far surpassed that of Natalya and the other women.

Her judgment was just as sharp. As a Dendromancer, her innate talent was somewhat underutilized—perhaps she should have delved into occult arts or astrology instead.

Sein remained silent.

Lorianne let out a soft sigh and returned to the laboratory, bringing out another batch of potions.

Sein’s talent in potion-making was limited to mid and low-level brews.

The ones Lorianne produced were all top-grade. Among them, she pointed out several she had prepared especially for him.

They were potions shimmering with a dazzling, purple crystal-like glow.

These Amethyst Potions were crafted primarily with Aphid Honeydew gifted by the Rank Six Void Aphid King, supplemented with special ingredients she had acquired from the Grand Elven World.

Their restorative effects might not match the Golden Apple Potions, but they were still the finest healing items in Lorianne’s possession.

According to her, a single Amethyst Potion on the Magus Alliance market would easily sell for over a million magicoins!

That was the true value of knowledge.

Compared to the Amethyst Potions, what truly caught Sein’s attention were the five orange vials among the batch, each one marked with special effect labels.

These were five bottles of body-tempering potion Lorianne had specifically crafted for Sein.

Body tempering was not Lorianne’s specialty, so it was hard to imagine how much effort and time she had poured into creating these for him.

Sein had often brought surprises and gifts to Lorianne. This time, it was her turn to return the favor.

“I’ll return safely,” Sein said as he walked toward and hugged her.

Lorianne’s body stiffened for a moment before relaxing. She placed her hand on his back and gave it a gentle pat.

“Stay safe, always.”

***

After wrapping up his affairs, Sein followed Klopp’s instructions and headed to a designated starport outside Magus World to await further orders within the allotted timeframe.

In truth, he still had many responsibilities pulling at him—the growth of his divine tower, the future development of the planes under his control, oversight of his gray area businesses in Ashenreach, and the economic operations managed by the Goddess of Wealth...

He had also hoped to contact Leena, but had been unable to reach her ever since she retreated into seclusion.

At least he managed to get in touch with Faye and Zorro in distant Blackhaven and left them a batch of useful resources for their training.

There were simply too many matters for him to handle personally, and in the end, he could only trust the people he had put in place to see things through.

Fortunately, he would not be away for too long.

If everything went well, he could return within five hundred years.

Carrying a large stock of potions, energy crystals, and other experimental materials and equipment, Sein boarded a small spacecraft provided by the Magus Civilization and began his journey through the starry skies.

The craft was small, but well-equipped.

Despite its unremarkable gray exterior, it boasted exceptionally powerful long-range spatial jump capabilities.

When Sein left Magus World, there was no one to see him off.

Klopp simply left him a message, instructing him to follow a specific route to his destination.

His first stop was the Bexar Star Domain, located beyond the borders of the Magus Civilization’s territory.

This small star domain consisted of more than a dozen complete planes and maintained a secret alliance with the Magus Alliance.