Sovereign of the Ashes

The effects of the Golden Apple Potion were undeniably potent!

It was no wonder this top-tier treasure of the Magus Alliance was coveted even by Rank Six beings.

The Golden Apple proved its worth through tangible healing power.

As Lorianne had once said, the potion also carried hidden benefits for Rank Four mages like him who were taking it for the first time.

But at this critical moment, Sein had no time to wonder what enhancements the Golden Apple Potion might be weaving into his body.

Feeling his vitality surge back and his strength return to peak condition, he immediately plunged back into the fray.

“On a battlefield like this, a potion of this caliber is practically a second chance at life,” Sein murmured to himself.

Back in the Pyreling World War, he had consumed a purple potion Lorianne had brewed from the honeydew of the Void Aphid King. Potent as that was, it still fell one or two tiers short of the Golden Apple.

He had two vials of Golden Apple Potion in his possession. Now, only one remained.

The road back from the Gallant Federation’s territory to the Magus Civilization-controlled space would be filled with countless perils.

That last potion had to be saved for the moment when his life truly hung by a thread.

***

When Sein rejoined the fight, he did not recklessly throw himself against the Gallant Federation’s fleet.

Instead, he steered his path toward other high-intelligence robots engaged in battle nearby.

On a battlefield dominated by high-tier units, lone wolf tactics offered little chance of survival. And this was no frontline with retreat routes to fall back on.

Time was still of the essence for Sein and the others. Their top priority was to break through and escape as quickly as possible.

They did not even have the luxury of regrouping their legion or counting casualties.

A few Rank Four and higher-tier robots were scattered not far from his position.

Being at the heart of Nexon’s robot legion and blessed with remarkable flight speed, Sein cut swiftly across multiple battlefields dominated by high-tier robots, coordinating with Yuri as they fought their way forward.

At one point, he even caught sight of Vibron, the Rank Five robot.

Vibron had also taken damage from the earlier blast.

Luckily, it had been far enough away. In the end, only the metal component on its back had cracked—making it one of the luckier advanced intelligent robots.

Unlike ordinary creatures of flesh and blood, these robots could not simply consume a potion and recover like Sein.

Repairs for them were far more complicated. They typically had to return to a factory and undergo full restoration with the help of advanced technology.

Guided by Vibron, Sein finally reunited with Titanfang.

Titanfang was in a state of extreme turmoil.

The collapse of Nexon, the destruction of the BHR678 Space Station, and the uncertain fate of Skyhold and countless others had driven the Rank Six robot—once a staunch advocate of joining the Magus Alliance—into a vortex of hatred, rage, and near self-destructive despair.

For a fleeting moment, it even regretted ever making contact with the Magus Civilization.

But the destruction of its homeworld, the loss of comrades, and the death of its father left it consumed by one burning thought: Why had it not rebelled against the Gallant Federation sooner?

It had suffered enough days of enslavement and oppression.

Titanfang had equipped the silver-black torso armor it had received from its father back at the BHR678 Space Station.

With its system pushed to the limit, Titanfang’s transformed form towered nearly a thousand meters tall, matching the size of a mid-tier federal warship.

The particle emitter in its chest cavity spat out relentless streams of energy fire.

Meanwhile, its right arm had reshaped into a colossal silver-black blade that cleaved a nearby federal warship clean in half.

Tens of thousands of drones swarmed in from every direction, unleashing a storm of fine energy beams that rattled harmlessly against Titanfang’s body.

Their attacks were far too weak. While effective against lower-tier lifeforms, they could not even scratch the plating of a Rank Six intelligent robot.

Ironically, Titanfang’s frame had been forged from the Gallant Federation’s most advanced specialty alloy. The same material was also used in the hulls of certain elite federal fleets.

Production of it was scarce across the entire federation, making Titanfang’s resilience all the more remarkable.

Sein’s arrival finally tempered Titanfang’s frenzy, slightly slowing its rampage.

The fallen were gone, but as leader, Titanfang still had to consider the living members of its kind.

The intelligent robot population barely numbered over a million. The recent explosion, combined with the battles of late, had already claimed countless.

Only by leading the survivors to break out could there be hope for a resurgence.

On top of that, Sein had the Magic Cube from the BHR678 Space Station with him.

According to Dr. Bell, the cube’s properties meant that as long as robots continued to be manufactured, the intelligent robots could awaken new members.

“We must break out immediately! The blinding white beam and the ongoing battle have thrown our formation into chaos and destroyed many robots, but they’ve also revealed massive gaps in the federal fleet’s deployment! Let’s get out of here before the Gallant Federation’s reinforcements regroup and arrive. Titanfang, you lead the charge!” Sein called out.

Among the Rank Four and above entities on the battlefield, many were badly wounded, including Sein and Vibron.

Only Titanfang remained unscathed by the white beam.

This was not because its defenses were superior enough to render such an attack ineffective. It was purely a matter of positioning.

Earlier, Titanfang had pushed forward too aggressively. As the vanguard of Nexon’s intelligent robots, its place on the very front lines ironically spared it from the full brunt of the assault on the planet.

Now that they needed to break out of the enemy’s encirclement, having a powerful figure lead the charge would greatly improve their chances of survival.

Besides, with Titanfang at the front, other intelligent robots and scattered legions across the battlefield would instinctively converge toward it, pulling their fragmented strength into a single, united force.

The fury and resentment in Titanfang’s heart gradually gave way to reason.

After tearing through a massive swarm of drone ships with a single claw strike, it charged toward the rendezvous point agreed upon with Sein and the others.

Sein immediately followed close behind.

Under their lead, more and more Nexon intelligent robots that were still alive and able to fight rallied to them.