Sovereign of the Ashes

If Reebos had acted sooner, and ideally coordinated with the federal legions stationed outside his plane in advance, the Gallant Federation fleets would not have retreated so quickly.

It was not that they would have had a chance of victory.

At the very least, their defeat would not have come so swiftly.

The fact that Reebos and the federal fleets fought independently of each other also revealed the “small-minded mentality” shared by the vast majority of deities in Divine Descendants World.

Furthermore, due to the immense pressure on the frontlines and their repeated retreats, the federal fleets were no longer able to effectively make use of their vassal deities.

For instance, among the federal combat legions deployed to the Divine Descendants Star Domain, the highest-ranking officers were only two five-star generals.

While they could represent the Gallant Federation and ask Overgod Marduk to coordinate with them in battle, actually ordering him around was simply unrealistic.

At the very least, Marshal Schmain would have to appear in person for that to be possible.

With his peak Rank Seven strength, Marduk’s combat power far surpassed that of the Grand Apocalypse World’s overlord and Amalik, the cornerstone of the Zeak Empire!

Moreover, due to his vast repertoire of divine abilities and his possession of a treasure like the Ark, Marduk’s personal strength could arguably be considered the strongest within the Gallant Federation!

After all, the Tris Civilization’s strongest combat force was a Rank Eight fleet.

Similarly, the Rank Eight forces representing the Gallant Federation also relied primarily on fleets and various apocalyptical weapons.

Even when it came to giant mobile suits, the overlord-class mobile suits the Gallant Federation could currently manufacture were almost all at Rank Seven.

After all, it had not been that long since the Gallant Federation annihilated the Rosen Dynasty Civilization.

No matter how great a technological breakthrough the federation achieved, there were still limits.

The technology behind the overlord-class fleet, the Gallant Federation’s true specialty, was clearly far more advanced than its mobile suit technology.

Therefore, when considered as an individual combatant, it was entirely reasonable for the federation to regard Marduk as its strongest.

The Dawn Empire’s legions had already been fighting their way into the Divine Descendants Star Domain for some time now.

When the Boundary Rocks outside the Divine Descendants Star Domain were breached earlier, an overlord-level powerhouse from the Dawn Empire had personally intervened.

The demons of the Quatar Star Pirates had also been rampaging through the Divine Descendants Star Domain with increasing frequency, spreading chaos wherever they went.

And yet, Overgod Marduk, the supreme authority of this star domain, had still not personally stepped forward to retaliate.

Marduk had not fled. He remained within the Divine Descendants Star Domain—more specifically, within Divine Descendants World itself.

For some unknown reason, however, Marduk had never left Divine Descendants World.

It was almost as if he were standing aside, watching as the deities and legions under his command fought a lonely battle on their own.

Or perhaps he was waiting for something to be completed.

Whatever it was, it was clearly of utmost importance to him. It was also likely in a critical phase of transformation, so crucial that Marduk did not dare leave his homeplane.

As a result of his inaction, the outer defensive lines of the Divine Descendants Star Domain were collapsing far faster than the Gallant Federation had expected.

The federation had demanded that Marduk launch an immediate counterattack, but he remained unmoved.

This was yet another conflict between the Gallant Federation and its vassal deities.

In a Clash of Civilizations, conflicts like this could sometimes prove fatal.

***

As battles erupted across the various fronts of the Divine Descendants Star Domain, an incredibly fierce all-out war also broke out on the Gallant Federation’s main front.

It was no wonder the Gallant Federation could not control Divine Descendants World’s overgod. They were far too busy dealing with their own problems.

Even Marshal Schmain, who had led his overlord-class fleet to the frontlines, did little to ease the pressure on the Gallant Federation’s main battlefield.

The Magus Civilization’s offensive was simply too fierce. More importantly, they had brought in new allies!

The first to appear was a massive pitch-black portal in the Sivel Star Domain, on the eastern side of the Gallant Federation’s territory from the perspective of Magus World.

Intense overlord-level destructive energy radiated from the portal.

Tens of thousands of smaller portals began emerging one after another across the star domain.

In an instant, dense water vapor surged through the entire star domain, both inside and out.

Many unaware beings in the Sivel Star Domain were puzzled. Why had their planes suddenly begun experiencing prolonged rainfall? Why was the concentration of water vapor throughout their worlds rising?

The beings of the Gallant Federation would never associate such a phenomenon with a “divine miracle”.

Within the Gallant Federation’s home star domain, everyone believed in science.

The first to emerge from the massive pitch-black spring was an unimaginably colossal fish.

Her size exceeded the limits of ordinary imagination.

Even Rank Five and Rank Six beings in the Astral Realm would likely be shaken if they suddenly saw her with their own eyes.

Letting this giant fish emerge first was a way to “clear the path” through the teleportation channel.

If she could pass through, then the Illusion Spring and Destruction Spring that followed would have a much easier time crossing over.

Kun’s arrival in the Gallant Federation’s Sivel Star Domain caused many life planets in the area to dim almost instantly.

Her colossal body blocked out much of the light emitted by the surrounding stars.

The Gallant Federation also had numerous fleet legions stationed within the Sivel Star Domain.

At the same time, on the frontlines not far from this star domain, some legions of the Magus Civilization had already infiltrated the area.

As a result, the Gallant Federation’s response was swift.

Even though many Rank Five and Rank Six fleets knew they might not be a match for this terrifying giant fish, they still launched an immediate attack, attempting to drive her away.

However, the Gallant Federation’s concentrated barrage was little more than a tickle to the giant fish.

It likely failed to even pierce her hard scales or thick layer of blubber.

Only when the Gallant Federation deployed an apocalyptical weapon and targeted the fish’s tail did they finally manage to inflict real pain on her.

Enraged, the giant fish lashed out violently with her tail.

Not only were most of the Gallant Federation’s warships swept away like leaves in an autumn wind, but even several artificial life planets in the Sivel Star Domain were forcibly shifted from their original cosmic coordinates!

This giant fish was not naturally aggressive. After taking a beating, she merely swept the federal fleets away with a flick of her tail instead of charging in to devour and crush them.

Swaying her vast body, the giant fish moved closer to the teleportation spring.

Before the Gallant Federation’s overlord-class fleet could arrive in response, Illusion Spring successfully descended!

At the same time, after her arrival, the federation’s overlord-class fleet could only watch helplessly as Destruction Spring’s massive and terrifying true form slowly descended into this starry expanse, seated atop a pitch-black lotus throne.

“The Black Lotus of Destruction?!” A sharp-eyed federal marshal immediately pulled up information on the lotus throne beneath Destruction Spring from the central database.

The moment the black lotus appeared on the frontlines, war alarms blared throughout the entire Gallant Federation.

The threat level had just spiked by several tiers.

According to calculations from the Gallant Federation’s ultimate quantum computer, the federation’s overall chance of victory dropped by another two percent at that very moment!

The shockwaves caused by Destruction Spring’s arrival were so immense that the Gallant Federation almost overlooked the overlord who emerged shortly after him—a being resembling a cross between a bull and a dragon.

The Rank Eight Overlord, Qiuniu, had also arrived at the frontlines.

Tourmaline was swinging back and forth from Qiuniu’s beard.

In truth, whether the Gallant Federation recorded Qiuniu’s arrival or not made little difference, as Qiuniu had no intention of participating in this Clash of Civilizations.

He had merely come to take a look because his younger brothers had appeared on this civilizational battlefield.

Had it not been for Tourmaline’s tearful pleas, Qiuniu would not have come at all.

As it turned out, once Destruction Spring unleashed his destructive power and gradually descended upon this star domain, Qiuniu began to regret coming along.

He could almost sense that a golden age of destruction was about to arrive, and he did not like this kind of scene or atmosphere.

And now, a tide of destruction was about to sweep through the eastern star domain of the Gallant Federation.

***

In the distant Magus World, on the Knight Continent of the Western Archipelago...

A colossal bull, also sensing the surging power of destruction, raised its horns.

Coiled around those horns was a blood-red serpent—part snake, part dragon—which gazed into the depths of the sky with icy eyes.

Pitch-black destructive power brewed within their eyes.

As fellow resonators of the Destruction Law, they seemed to sense each other’s presence across the distant starry sky.

Mooooo!

A loud, resonant bellow echoed beyond the clouds of the Knight Continent.

The power of destruction reappeared in this starry sky!