Sovereign of the Ashes

The avatar, having transformed into a beam of lawful light, plunged straight into the control hub of the Grandlight Tech Center.

In an instant, all energy within the skyscraper seemed to be mobilized.

Number Two diverted the building’s remaining energy to reinforce its external defensive barrier.

At the same time, dozens of light orbs shimmering with strange law power surged toward Sein and the Magic Cube.

Under the looming threat of the Gallant Federation’s apocalyptical weapon, the heavily aged technological artifacts—now degraded to mere fragments—had no hope of being preserved any longer.

Compared to being obliterated in a catastrophic explosion, they were better off being assimilated by Sein’s cube.

In a sense, this also meant that Sein and the Magic Cube were inheriting and assimilating the legacy knowledge of the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization.

As the lawful light orbs poured in, the cube erupted once more in a brilliant blue glow.

Countless specks of light now dotted its surface, forming what looked like the utterly mesmerizing rivers of stars stretching across the vast sky of the Astral Realm itself.

One could not fatten up overnight. Absorbing such an enormous quantity of law energy in a single burst left the cube feeling “stuffed”.

During its first upgrade, the cube had absorbed the law energy of only two or three technological treasure fragments.

During its second upgrade, it had devoured roughly ten fragments in total.

Now, at the threshold of a third upgrade, the cube absorbed not only dozens of lawful light orbs but also vast quantities of law energies from Number Two and the replica of the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization’s Infinite Energy device.

Those two sources alone qualified as world-class secret treasures.

Had the crisis not been pressing, forcing Sein to keep the cube active, it would likely have entered a dormant state, just as it had during its previous upgrades.

But time was running out.

With the Magic Cube’s support and Number Two’s final assistance, the energy barriers surrounding the skyscraper held out far longer than anticipated.

Even so, the heavily fractured barriers and the chaos consuming the top floor made it clear that this was no place to remain.

This was especially true now that most of the origin power from the Infinite Energy device replica at the bottom of the building had been siphoned into the cube, leaving the skyscraper’s defensive reserves critically low.

“We should go,” Sein said to the robots beside him.

Yuri had already climbed into the Burning Flame Unit, while Fermera moved closer to Sein’s side.

Even though Sein was not her master, Fermera was still concerned for his safety.

As the strongest being present, she possessed the greatest resilience against incoming attacks.

If any sudden danger arose, Fermera could serve as a living shield for Sein.

HALL-E, meanwhile, showed unmistakable reluctance toward leaving both the Grandlight Tech Center and Number Two.

After all, this place had once been HALL-E’s home. Just as fragments of its memories had begun to return, it now had to leave this place behind.

And HALL-E understood that this would be a final farewell.

Number Two bore a striking resemblance to HALL-E’s creator, Dr. Charles Isaac, stirring complex and unfamiliar emotions within the robot.

Standing at the edge of the emergency escape passage, HALL-E was the only one who hesitated.

At that moment, PAL leapt anxiously onto its shoulder, its feelers flailing in agitation.

The electronic cockroach clearly sensed the approaching danger and did not want HALL-E to perish here as well.

Perhaps PAL’s anxious urgency finally got through to it.

At last, HALL-E entered the escape passage.

Unlike Number Two, who had shed all desire and even welcomed destruction, HALL-E was still deeply curious about the world and the vast Astral Realm beyond.

It was still bound to many things—not just PAL and Burning Flame, with whom it shared a faint emotional connection, but most of all, the hope of one day finding its owner.

Even if the chances were nearly nonexistent, HALL-E refused to abandon that dream. It was still filled with hope and enthusiasm for life.

This was HALL-E—a seemingly ordinary garbage-cleaning robot.

From the moment it gained sentience, HALL-E had maintained an optimistic, proactive outlook on life, working tirelessly day after day, year after year, amid the Steel Ruins.

HALL-E was the last to enter the emergency escape passage. At the instant it stepped into the teleportation passage, the fading avatar briefly reformed into a familiar face and silently watched HALL-E depart.

“Live well... Find your own way...”

A faint voice drifted softly to HALL-E.

Alas, HALL-E could no longer perceive the world around it.

The terrifying surge of forces engulfed the entire skyscraper almost the instant HALL-E and the others vanished.

The Grandlight Tech Center of the Eiyurant Papillon Civilization, whose grandeur rivaled even the Magus World’s soul towers, drew its final curtain.

The colossal structure, once towering and majestic, began collapsing.

Both frontline legions rushing toward the heart of this subspace were fortunate enough to witness the skyscraper’s destruction.

With the Steel Ruins as its epicenter, fierce combat rapidly spread outward.

Both warring parties knew that this site must have housed the greatest secrets of this top-tier technological civilization.

Yet neither Feylis nor the Gallant Federation’s five-star general had any clear idea of what had actually transpired there.

They had still not reestablished contact with Bond, Sein, or the others who had infiltrated the building.

Within the space-time passage, Sein, who had just charged through the portal, was immediately assaulted by immense pressure from all directions.

The destruction of the Grandlight Tech Center had a direct and violent impact on those within the escape passage.

The crushing force he felt was the aftershock of the explosive energy slamming into the space-time passage itself.

At Sein’s instruction, Yuri and the Burning Flame Unit had entered the passage first.

As a result, her exposure to the shock was minimal.

The powerful pressure and impact caused Sein, whose lawful body had already suffered severe damage, to cough up a mouthful of elemental blood.

Fortune indeed favored the bold.

While Sein had indeed seized a fortune this time, the price he paid was also painfully real.

Had he narrowly escaped the federation’s apocalyptical weapon only to die within a space-time passage?

The odds were slim, but such an ending would have been tragic.

Fortunately, just as Sein felt his strength slipping away, a warm, soft body enveloped him.

Fermera felt real... nothing like a machine.

Sein could even hear something resembling a heartbeat coming from her chest.

As a combat-type robot, Fermera naturally possessed the ability to alter her physical form.

Her current body was far larger than her standard configuration.

Even in his lawful form, Sein could be held securely within her arms.

With Fermera shielding him and absorbing the impact, the crushing pressure within the space-time passage diminished noticeably...