Sovereign of the Ashes

In the Peydor Star System, the main theater of the Magus Civilization’s war.

Strictly speaking, this area had already fallen outside the scope of the main battlefield. It was now a logistics and transit zone firmly under the Magus Civilization’s control.

This galaxy had once been an important hub for the Gallant Federation’s mineral extraction and plant resource processing. Now, however, rows of magic towers had replaced the federation’s once-bustling heavy industrial plants.

Dilapidated ruins could be seen scattered throughout many corners of the galaxy.

In fact, many of those ruins and factories could still function.

The machinery and technological creations produced by the Gallant Federation were of quite high quality.

War and slaughter were not the only objectives of conquest. After the Gallant Federation was conquered, the Magus Civilization would inevitably develop its resources and even directly utilize the advanced technological capabilities it had acquired.

However, these ruins and heavy factories would certainly not be put to use at this stage.

Only after the Gallant Federation was thoroughly conquered and its power fully subjugated would these dust-covered technological creations have a chance to be reactivated.

The Heart of Greeny Base.

This was a forward base established by the Magus Civilization in the Peydor Galaxy, where dozens of law-wielding dendromancers from the Magus Civilization had gathered.

Not far from this galaxy, the Magus Civilization was currently locked in combat with the Gallant Federation.

There, the Magus Civilization’s main forces consisted of the Titan World legions, the Magus Civilization’s knight and mage legions, and the redeployed cannon-fodder legions of the Magus Alliance.

At every moment, massive casualties were occurring throughout that star domain.

Those falling in battle were not only low-tier creatures, but also numerous law-wielding powerhouses.

It was said that even an undead overlord from the Magus Alliance had been repelled on this battlefield and forced to retreat to the Undead World to recuperate.

The Divine King of Titans was the alliance overlord who had recently answered the mobilization order, leading his elite Titan legions to this battlefield.

Looking at the overall situation of the Clash of Civilizations, ever since the Dragon Clan of the Immortal Realm joined the war, the Magus Civilization’s advance against the Gallant Federation had become increasingly rapid and urgent!

Perhaps the high-ranking officials of the Magus Civilization were worried that reinforcements from the Immortal Realm might steal too much of the spotlight and claim too many of the war spoils that should have belonged to the Magus Civilization.

Or perhaps the Magus World leadership simply believed that, with reinforcements now in place, they should seize the momentum and defeat the Gallant Federation as quickly as possible.

The frequent, fast-paced nature of the war caused casualties on both sides to rise sharply.

Even with vast numbers of alliance legions, and even the alliance’s foreign gods, serving as cannon fodder, casualties among the Magus Civilization’s own knight and mage legions remained high.

The Heart of Greenery Base had been specifically constructed by the Magus Civilization as both a recovery facility and a research center for healing potions. Dozens of law-wielding dendromancers had been gathered there.

Its purpose was to ease the pressure on the powerhouses fighting at the frontlines, while continuously producing large quantities of various potions to support the legions in battle.

On the Phantom Sea Star Battlefield alone, which was relatively close to the Peydor Galaxy, more than two hundred law-wielding powerhouses from the Magus Civilization were locked in fierce combat against the Gallant Federation’s legions.

Needless to say, the situation was even more intense at the Motra Wormhole Zone.

As the main theater where Odin, the Divine King of Titans, had personally rushed over to take command, the Magus Civilization had already deployed more than a thousand law-wielding powerhouses there!

The total number of legions involved reached into the hundreds of billions!

At the Heart of Greenery Base, nearly a hundred law-wielding powerhouses from the Magus Civilization, all withdrawn from various battlefields, were currently recuperating.

Among them, seventy percent were knights and mages from Magus World, twenty percent were Titan deities, and only about ten percent were alliance gods with immense potential and influential connections.

Without sufficient connections, one would not even be qualified to recuperate at the Heart of Greenery Base.

As for those alliance gods who had already suffered severe injuries yet remained on the frontlines, dying in battle for the Magus Civilization was considered their most glorious fate.

Lorianne was currently at the Heart of Greenery Base.

She had been transferred here not long ago, forcing her to part ways with the others from the Verdant Flame Faction for the time being.

Such was the nature of the Clash of Civilizations. Law-wielding beings were nothing more than cogs in the vast war machine of the Magus Civilization.

With Feylis’ power and status, she could have kept Lorianne by her side and under her protection, though only barely.

However, after consulting Lorianne herself, this late-stage Rank Four mage chose to accept the assignment and head to the frontlines, where the fighting seemed even more intense.

Lorianne had also been steadily growing stronger in recent years.

Mages could elevate their life realms and power levels through experimental research and the pursuit of truth. To many beings of the Astral Realm, and even to many members of the Magus Alliance, this was nothing short of astonishing.

Even powerhouses from friendly alliance planes, who were close with the mages of Magus World, would sometimes ask in disbelief, “How exactly did you manage to increase your strength?”

Those alliance creatures and gods simply did not understand spellcasters.

This was also one of the reasons why mages had become increasingly exclusive within the Magus Civilization, while knights had become more mainstream and were better suited for interacting with beings from allied planes.

Inside the laboratory, Lorianne was mixing a potion before her.

Lately, she had been making concentrated potions. Once she finished this one and poured it into the large alchemy vat in the laboratory, it would quickly be diluted and divided into hundreds of healing potions suitable for demigod-level users.

The tedious experiment left Lorianne mechanically stirring the test tube in her hand.

This was exactly how she had built up her late-stage Rank Four strength over time.

Although she rarely participated in battles herself, Lorianne’s rate of improvement was no slower than that of her senior, Bernice.

The Magus Civilization had poured vast resources into this Clash of Civilizations. Many rare materials that Lorianne had previously had no access to, as well as high-end resources that had been difficult to purchase in bulk, were now being delivered to her as if they cost nothing.

Of course, the finished potions would not be hers. They had to be swiftly distributed to battlefields across the frontlines.

Even so, the very process of crafting these precious potions was enough to bring Lorianne immense benefits.

Once this Clash of Civilizations ended, it would not be easy to “freeload” on the Magus Alliance’s resources again.

For certain beings from the warring civilizations, this was both the worst of times and the best of times.

The defeated would fall into obscurity and perish, while the victors would ascend to even greater heights.

Having already reached the late stage of Rank Four, Lorianne had recently begun attempting to break through to the peak of Rank Four.

After setting the concentrated potion she had just crafted onto a rack, Lorianne did not immediately begin the next one. Instead, she gazed at the starry sky beyond the magic tower and let out a sigh.

“I wonder how Sein is doing right now. Did he receive the new potions I sent him?” she wondered aloud.

“Master said Sein is currently on the battlefield of Divine Descendants World. That place is separated from here by more than half of the Gallant Federation. It’s a shame I couldn’t send more things along with that letter last time.”

Regret filled Lorianne’s face.

After a long while, she seemed to remember something. A soft chuckle escaped her lips.

“That guy has escaped danger so many times before. This time shouldn’t be any different. I need to break through to the peak of Rank Four as soon as possible. I can’t keep letting my own apprentice outshine me!” Lorianne said, her resolve strengthening.

Over the past few years at the Heart of Greenery Base, people had constantly tried to introduce new apprentices to Lorianne. After all, as the Clash of Civilizations progressed, more and more promising young talents continued to emerge.

To meet the demands of the frontlines, most of the dendromancers stationed at this base were Rank Four mages, and each of them worked with a group of assistants or apprentices.

Only Lorianne had always worked alone.

She was not used to having an assistant by her side, and for the time being, she did not want any other apprentices either.

To Lorianne, having Sein as her apprentice was already enough. She had no extra energy to mentor anyone else.

Of course, whenever Lorianne explained herself to others, she would usually say that her recent experiments had reached a critical stage, leaving her no room for distractions.

Many Magus Civilization powerhouses could also tell that Lorianne was already on the verge of breaking through to the peak of Rank Four, so they did not press the matter further.

After one last glance at the starry sky outside the magic tower, Lorianne lowered her head and resumed her experiment.

At that very moment, a brilliant shooting star streaked past her tower window.