Sovereign of the Ashes

Not long after Venerable Weiwu issued his orders, Venerable Jinyan returned with troubling news.

They could not reach Venerable Yunqi.

Just like Venerable Tianyang and Venerable Muge, Venerable Yunqi was fighting on a battlefield sealed by a mysterious force that made communication with Myriad Manifestations World impossible.

Previously, Venerable Tianyang had fought Gongsun Wuji and the others without regard for his own survival. Their violent clash shattered the space-time barrier set up by the Empress of Blades, allowing Venerable Weiwu to sense them and send aid.

But what was happening this time?

Upon hearing Venerable Jinyan’s report, Venerable Weiwu stood motionless for a long moment.

For the first time in his life, he felt a trace of regret for provoking an enemy as powerful as the Magus Civilization.

However, the thought vanished almost as soon as it appeared.

For the leader of an entire civilization, changing major policies on a whim was one of the greatest taboos.

It would not only weaken his authority but also make Myriad Manifestations World’s previous sacrifices meaningless.

Yet the situation had changed.

Six Insectoid overlords had returned to the Magus Civilization.

Unless Myriad Manifestations World committed every remaining overlord to the war, sending more reinforcements to the Gallant Federation would amount to little more than throwing more lives into a hopeless struggle.

On top of that, the Empress of Blades was powerful enough to rival Venerable Weiwu himself.

Under such circumstances, what purpose was there in continuing the war?

Even before the Insectoids and Myriad Manifestations World intervened, the Gallant Federation had already been unable to defeat the Magus Civilization.

Now that both forces had entered the battlefield, they had merely brought the two sides closer to equal strength. The Gallant Federation still had no real path to victory!

Worse still, the Divine Descendants Star Domain had clearly fallen.

Even if Myriad Manifestations World sent reinforcements now, reversing the tide of defeat would be nearly impossible.

“One wrong step leads to another,” Venerable Weiwu murmured as he faintly sensed a thread of destiny.

He let out a quiet sigh.

Venerable Jinyan remained silent.

As Venerable Weiwu’s aide, he could sense the turmoil within him.

After a long pause, Venerable Weiwu finally spoke.

“Tell Venerable Haiyun and the others to suspend their deployment for now. If the Gallant Federation protests, let them. Myriad Manifestations World has already sent three overlords into this war. We have fulfilled our obligations under the agreement.”

His gaze drifted toward the distant sea of clouds.

“I also want to know what is happening on Venerable Yunqi’s battlefield. The answer will determine whether we send any more troops to the Gallant Federation. Continue investigating. Report back as soon as you learn anything.”

“Yes,” Venerable Jinyan replied, bowing his head.

***

The battlefield of Planet Teyran...

This was the overlord-level battlefield where Venerable Yunqi had last been located before all contact with him was lost.

It was also the place the Gallant Federation had once targeted with its ultimate apocalyptic weapon, the Infinity Light.

At the center of Planet Teyran was an enormous, pitch-black hole.

The Infinity Light had released power beyond the natural limits of the Astral Realm, piercing straight through the massive mechanical planet!

Countless fragments of metal and debris drifted through the surrounding starry sky.

Even now, chaotic battles continued to rage across the region.

The wreckage scattered throughout this overlord battlefield was not limited to ruined federal warships and mobile suits.

There were also the corpses of countless creatures that had never existed anywhere within the federation’s star domain.

The remains of the Yao Clan were the most numerous.

Next came the bodies of countless monkeys whose flesh still carried faint traces of destructive power.

Mixed among them were the remains of crimson mosquitoes.

Venerable Yunqi—the very person Venerable Weiwu had been so concerned about—was indeed still on this battlefield.

However, he remained near its outer edge.

His sharp sense of danger, along with a considerable amount of luck, had kept him from rushing straight into the center of the overlord melee when he first arrived.

That was the main reason he had survived this long!

Several Rank Eight overlords were clashing on this battlefield. Caught among them, Venerable Yunqi, who had only recently reached Rank Seven, seemed completely out of place—and badly outmatched!

The forces currently locked in battle were Wukong, the Great Monkey of Destruction; Li Qingshan, the Great Sage of Demonic Heaven; the Gallant Federation’s Rank Eight war fleet; and an enormous swarm of mosquitoes that had appeared out of nowhere!

Before arriving, Venerable Yunqi had at least a rough understanding of the first three forces.

Unfortunately, he had badly underestimated the Great Monkey of Destruction.

He had never imagined that Wukong could take a direct hit from the Gallant Federation’s Infinity Light and still remain so energetic!

He had also misjudged Li Qingshan, the Great Sage of Demonic Heaven.

The law power wielded by this Rank Eight overlord was unlike anything Venerable Yunqi had ever encountered!

Crimson overlord power filled the surrounding starry sky.

At times, Li Qingshan even seized control of parts of the Gallant Federation’s Rank Eight Conqueror-class Titan fleet. Whenever that happened, the entire formation became unresponsive, severely disrupting the fleet’s combat rhythm.

While the overwhelming strength of Wukong and Li Qingshan had taught Venerable Yunqi a lesson in direct confrontation, the Blood Mosquito army’s sudden arrival had shown him just how vicious and terrifying a well-timed ambush could be!

The Great Monkey of Destruction had already suffered grievous injuries after taking a direct hit from the Gallant Federation’s Infinity Light.

The fact that he had remained standing afterward had already exceeded everyone’s expectations.

Yet even after the Blood Mosquito army ambushed him and inflicted further injuries, the Great Monkey of Destruction still refused to fall!

He could still fight!

Dense puncture wounds riddled his left shoulder. Through the mangled flesh, his exposed bones and blood vessels could be seen vibrating faintly.

Even more horrifying was the gaping wound running through his chest. It stood out starkly even amid the chaos of this overlord-level battlefield.

What in the world was keeping him on his feet?

Venerable Yunqi could not understand it.

Opposing the Great Monkey of Destruction was an immense swarm of mosquitoes.

This was yet another strange existence whose true nature Venerable Yunqi could not fathom.

A vast Blood Mosquito army swept across the surrounding star domain.

When gathered together, the swarm formed a terrifying overlord that clearly radiated a Rank Eight aura.

This was the first time Venerable Yunqi had ever encountered an overlord capable of freely shifting between a single body and an entire swarm.

He had always considered himself well-traveled and knowledgeable, having witnessed countless wonders and rare powerhouses throughout the Astral Realm.

Only after arriving on the Magus Civilization’s battlefield did he realize how little he truly knew!

Venerable Yunqi became so absorbed in watching the Rank Eight battle that he nearly overlooked the dangers lurking around him.

After all, a melee involving this many Rank Eight beings was something one might not witness even once in a hundred thousand years!

Although the battlefield around him was extremely dangerous, Venerable Yunqi could not help feeling that the journey had been worthwhile.

Take the Great Monkey of Destruction, for example. He was clearly on the verge of death, yet Venerable Yunqi still could not understand how he remained standing.

With one foot planted firmly on the Rank Eight Black Lotus of Destruction, the great monkey gripped an enormous golden staff in both hands.

His armor and cloak had long since been reduced to tatters, yet he continued swinging the staff with wild ferocity, smashing it again and again into the Blood Mosquito swarm before him!

“DIE, YOU PESKY CREATURES!”

A world-shaking roar erupted from the heart of the battlefield.

Wave after wave of overlord power swept across the battlefield, sending metal wreckage and federal satellites tumbling wildly through space.

“......”

BOOM!

BOOM!

BOOM!

The violent shockwaves showed no sign of stopping.

Before the Great Monkey of Destruction, the Mosquito Overlord had only just managed to gather its body together.

Yet the golden staff came crashing down again.

And again.

Each strike tore straight through it, blasting the newly formed body apart into a vast cloud of blood mist!

Countless Blood Mosquitoes exploded in an instant, reduced to the most basic particles of flesh and blood.

At the heart of every strike, fragments of shattered space-time and countless manifestations of law power appeared.

The successive shockwaves were so powerful that even Venerable Yunqi was forced back several steps.

He did not stop until his back hit a solid energy barrier. It was a containment field deployed by the Gallant Federation, originally meant to surround and wipe out the monkeys and bull demons on this battlefield.

According to the Gallant Federation’s original plan, reinforcements were already on their way, including overlord-class fleets and mobile suits that had been painstakingly redirected from other battlefields.

But judging by the current situation...

All Venerable Yunqi could see were the countless afterimages of an enormous golden staff sweeping across the starry sky, hammering the same spot without pause!

It was utterly brutal.