Sovereign of the Ashes

These formidable undead and dark creatures possessed remarkable intelligence and judgment, thanks to their exceptionally high life levels.

In their own homeplanes or star domains, each of them was a renowned, top-tier powerhouse.

The malevolent aura and power they radiated commanded the respect of their subjects.

But now, summoned to this overlord-level battlefield by Rogge, a few of the undead creatures could not help but curse inwardly as they assessed the situation.

These creatures were not Rogge’s servants.

One of the core principles a summoner upheld when signing a contract with a summoned being was equality.

These flexible summoning rules allowed Rogge to bind far more formidable creatures from distant star domains.

The majority of the Rank Six or peak Rank Six creatures came from incredibly distant star domains that were not part of the Magus Alliance.

They were “partners” Rogge had encountered during his experiments with long-range cross-star domain channeling.

Yet no matter how lenient the contract laws were, once these creatures had crossed the boundaries to arrive here, they had no choice but to obey Rogge’s commands for a certain period of time.

That was the result of a successful summoning spell.

The presence of four overlord-level Amenkha Empire beings on the battlefield had many of these undead and dark creatures cursing Rogge under their breath.

Ugh, this fatso is awful! Who actually signs us up to fight these monsters?!

A few peak Rank Six beings who had once participated in the ambush against the Neisse Civilization’s overlord-level engineers instinctively touched the scars left on their bodies.

As a necromancer, Rogge made it a point to maintain good relations with his contracted creatures, occasionally granting them small favors.

That was why even the grumpiest of them could not mouth off to the one who fed them!

Rogge was anything but a friendly, easygoing plump mage. The truth was, he could be quite ruthless. It was the only way he could control these undead and dark creatures.

His laboratory was filled with countless lifelike specimens—no, not just lifelike... they were actually alive!

These specimens were formidable foes Rogge had faced over hundreds of thousands of years, as well as certain unruly undead beings he summoned...

Every contracted summoned being present had visited Rogge’s specimen collection room. It was a magic tower with an immense interior so vast it would take three days and three nights to fully explore!

The appearance of a dozen or so Rank Six or peak Rank Six summoned creatures lifted Roland’s spirits slightly.

Still, he was not entirely satisfied. He knew the true extent of this plump mage’s power, having collaborated countless times with him over the past hundred thousand years.

“Where are your overlord-level summons? Why not just bring them all out at once?” he pressed.

Rogge rolled his eyes at the Rank Seven knight again.

“The Evil Bone Emperor, Phantom Emperor, and Tainted Blood Lord aren’t part of the Magus Alliance. My control over them is extremely limited. I guarantee that once the teleportation array opens, even the slightest leak of the auras from those four Amenkha Empire overlords will be enough to make those three think twice about coming over!”

“If this looks like a sure win, they might even lend a hand. But if it seems like a losing battle? Forget it. They don’t even bother getting involved in our Clash of Civilizations with the Gallant Federation!” Rogge added, spittle flying.

Rogge had befriended quite a few overlords of his own rank from distant star domains over the years, but only three were willing to sign a contract with him.

Moreover, since they were all overlords, Rogge could not force them into an unfair contract against their will.

Even if they did agree, these overlord-level beings could easily nullify the contracts themselves!

Take the Evileye Tyrant Monarch as an example. It had rebelled against the Magus Alliance without suffering much consequence.

For true powerhouses, a law contract was nothing more than a piece of paper.

That was why the Magus Civilization had always used multiple approaches to bring overlords into the Magus Alliance.

In general, there were two ways to truly control such overlord-level summons.

The first was for Rogge to advance to Rank Eight. With the Eternal Soul trait of Rank Eight beings, he could manipulate the laws, forcing distant overlords to either expend several times the energy of their Overlord Soul to nullify the summoning or obediently reveal themselves.

The second possibility was that the overlord in question had signed a contract with Rogge before reaching Rank Six.

Because the laws of contract were so deeply intertwined, linking their fates to share both glory and misfortune, the overlord would willingly step into battle.

The White Jade Skeleton standing beside Rogge was essentially in the same situation.

She had been with Rogge since around Rank One, witnessing his growth over the years while he continuously enhanced her abilities.

Judging by how devoted they were to each other, it was clear that no danger could ever make them abandon one another.

As a knight, Roland had to admit he was impressed by the plump mage’s preference.

What concerned him more, however, was Rogge’s next move.

This plump mage might seem harmless, but he always had more tricks up his sleeve than anyone realized. No one ever knew where his true limits lay.

Roland continued to urge Rogge to pull out something else.

With a reluctant sigh, Rogge produced a gray ring that reeked of death.

As he raised it, a “chimera beast” slowly materialized before them. Its enormous body stretched tens of thousands of meters, constructed from dark-gray bones and rotting flesh.

“My Davis Mark II is not finished yet; it’s still only a prototype. If it gets damaged, how am I going to find the high-grade materials to fix it?” Rogge’s double chin quivered slightly as he whined.

The massive undead chimera beast resembled a mammoth. Its massive leg bones were even larger than a federal warship.

Furthermore, its aura far surpassed the combat units Rogge had summoned previously, already reaching the level of an overlord.

Still, this type of undead chimera beast was not the same as a true overlord.

Rogge truly was a genius. He had pushed the boundaries of necromancy and summoning, achieving phenomenal success with his undead chimera beasts.

An undead chimera beast with overlord-level combat power was not something anyone could just create.

Previously, only two people in Magus World had achieved this. Now, with Rogge included, there were three.