Sovereign of the Ashes

While the Viridian Venom Flame World no longer received waste, the engineers of Neisse Civilization had never forgotten about this low-level plane with a native Rank Five creature.

It was ten thousand years ago when the Neisse Civilization’s main army faced near annihilation at the hands of the Magus World that the forward-thinking engineers of the Neisse Civilization proposed establishing strategic resource points in the safer border star domains behind the Neisse Star Domain.

This initiative aimed to safeguard the fire seed of the Neisse Star Domain’s civilization and to amass enough mechas for a potential counteroffensive, should the circumstances shift for the Neisse Star Domain.

This strategic plan was swiftly put into action.

Given its longstanding friendly relations with the Neisse Star Domain, the Viridian Venom Flame World was chosen to house an army of mechas, secretly stored beneath its sea of molten lava!

Anridar the Venom Flame Demon King’s surrender to the Magus Civilization was never genuine, including its seemingly earnest application to join the Magus Alliance.

It was merely a facade, a deceptive move by a self-centered Rank Five creature willing to betray its homeplane for personal gain! Likewise, that did not mean that it was completely loyal to the Neisse Civilization.

Anridar had only agreed to the use of the Viridian Venom Flame World as a strategic resource point mainly because it knew how powerful the Neisse Civilization was.

If the Neisse Civilization of tens of thousands of years ago had wished, they could have easily killed it, even if it was the deity of a low-level plane like the Viridian Venom Flame World.

Regrettably, Anridar failed to recognize there were civilizations in the Astral Realm that were far more powerful than the Neisse Civilization due to its ignorance.

Had it been honest with the Magus Alliance about the stuff hidden beneath the lava sea, Feylis the Rank Six mage probably would not even have had the opportunity to invade this low-level plane in the first place.

Anridar had lost its last opportunity to prevent the invasion and it was too late to regret.

However, watching hundreds of thousands of mechas, each over ten meters tall, now being brought out by a conveyor belt at the bottom of the lava sea, a glint of excitement and malice sparkled in Anridar’s remaining eye.

Meanwhile, in the base at the bottom of the lava sea, several leaders from the Neisse Civilization began deliberating on their future.

“This is only a waste disposal plane, the number of mechas initially sent here alone is not enough. After the space fortresses of the Magus Civilization severed our communication link with our mother star domain, the reinforcements of mechas and other resource supplies never arrived as planned,” one of the creatures from the Neisse Civilization said.

“How many Ogham-Type units do we have?” another creature inquired.

“Only 150,000 Ogham-Type, the others are i-Type, about 2.3 million units.”

In the Neisse Civilization, mechas were named after their inventors.

The Ogham-Type unit was most commonly used in the Neisse Civilization’s military as it boasted a strength comparable to that of a Rank One creature.

The i-Type units were the Neisse Civilization’s term for all mechas with combat strength below Rank One.

Despite being a large civilization, it was challenging for Neisse Civilization to ensure all its armies were composed solely of powerful mechas with Rank One combat strength or higher.

These i-Type units were akin to their cannon fodder, just like the millions of enslaved creatures of the Magus World used in warfare.

However, the Neisse Civilization’s recent war efforts had strained its resources.

The i-Type units were initially designed for domestic purposes. It was their large size and durable outer shells that made them somewhat suitable for combat purposes.

“With our forces combined with the native creatures of this plane, we might just match the Magus Civilization Army that has invaded here. However, we must be cautious. Taking action would risk revealing the nearby planes that are acting as strategic resource points, just like the Viridian Venom Flame World. And now, with our connection to the main control center of the Neisse Plane severed, the responsibility of this decision rests solely on us,” a Neisse creature warned.

“Let’s do it. Even if we win only a battle, we’ll be able to honor the memory of the millions of fallen soldiers from Neisse Civilization,” one suggested.

“It’s time for revenge!” the others exclaimed.

“Ander, as our youngest and most innovative engineer, I hope you can lead a party out of here when the battle begins. Leave this star domain and lead our people to a safer star domain that is free from Magus Civilization’s influence and settle down there,” said one of the engineers, addressing the shortest among them.

“No! I’ll stay and fight too! Neisse Civilization hasn’t lost yet. We’ll counterattack, using other strategic points like the Viridian Venom Flame World as our base. I’ll lead our people back to the Neisse World!” Ander retorted, waving his fist.

The mention of “Neisse World” seemed to pack a punch, silencing the other leaders in the room in the control center of their base.

***

Time always went by quickly for those engrossed in experiments.

When the experiment yielded the expected result, the time devoted to it would be deemed well-spent and rewarding.

Conversely, a failed experiment would often lead to a tedious and frustrating experience, which mages would prefer to leave behind and forget.

Sein was rather fortunate. Although the crystal ball from Master Lorianne did not define the future course of Verdant Flame magic, it significantly broadened his perspective.

After intensive study and consulting the magic tomes he brought with him from the Magus World, Sein opted for an external forging and burning approach to temper his body with the verdant flame.

The process involved more than just simply burning his own body with verdant flames.

Despite being a Rank One mage with a more robust physique compared to a magic initiate, Sein’s body was still not resilient enough to endure the direct burn of verdant flame without the protection of a magic shield.

Sein’s torso and limbs were now adorned with many mysterious and intricate elemental patterns.

These were the fruits of his meticulous research that spanned over two years.

He had meticulously studied the intensity of verdant flame’s power and the optimal duration for each body tempering session.

After more than two years, Sein achieved significant progress in harnessing the verdant flame for body tempering.

His mastery had evolved beyond merely enhancing spell models. Now, he could command the formidable power of Verdant Flame with a mere gesture.

Although the elemental patterns on his body were somewhat unsightly, they were only essential at this stage.

Sein anticipated he would no longer need them once his constitution improved to a certain level, or perhaps he would be able to find a more aesthetic solution once he conducted further research when he returned to the Magus World.

Filled with elemental energy inside and outside his body, Sein felt an urge to engage in battle and test his newfound strength.

Surprisingly, his body was able to retain verdant flame energy more effectively than what he read in the crystal ball.

Despite only two years of research, Sein was able to use the Verdant Flame Body Tempering technique to the extent of a Rank Two mage that had elementalized their bodies.

“Could this have something to do with that Planar Light inside my body?” Sein could not help but speculate. As a logical spellcaster, he knew his body very well.

As Sein considered checking on Sev’s evolution progress over the last two years, a sudden rumbling sound and violent vibration shook him.

The space fortress seemed to have tilted.

“Huh? What’s happening outside?” Sein wondered, peering out of his laboratory.