Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 1821: Operation Retaliation

The power of the Amenkha Empire far exceeded the expectations of both the Magus Civilization and the Gallant Federation.

No wonder the Magus Civilization felt it had to subdue the Gallant Federation before it could even consider facing the ever-growing might of the Amenkha Empire.

As for the cooperation between the Amenkha Empire and the Gallant Federation, both sides kept it tightly under wraps, leaving the Magus Civilization in the dark.

In reality, however, these two top-tier civilizations had agreed on very few specifics.

The Amenkha Empire’s arrival this time was nothing more than retaliation against the Magus Civilization.

The idea of using a twenty-five-million-strong legion to conquer the Magus Civilization outright was simply preposterous.

Their goal was to only slow the Magus Civilization’s offensive against the Gallant Federation, or at least stall its advance.

In the Grand Cosmic World, Amenkha forces had already clashed with the Magus Civilization’s garrison legions.

Driving those legions out of the region was the objective of the Amenkha Empire’s high command.

The Tenth Pharaoh’s mission was to coordinate with the Gallant Federation’s forces, keeping the Magus Civilization’s main forces occupied.

She did not aim to annihilate anyone; her task was to constantly divert the attention of the Magus Civilization’s high command.

With her powerful and self-important demeanor, the Tenth Pharaoh refused the suggestion to have other Pharaohs accompany her.

In the end, she requested only two overlord-level monster kings. That made three overlords in total—more than enough to give the Magus Civilization a serious challenge, right?

Still, neither the Grand Cosmic World nor the Tenth Pharaoh’s forces represented the Amenkha Empire’s real trump cards for striking back at the Magus Civilization.

One was too far from the Magus Civilization’s homeworld; the other took too long to produce results.

What could deliver an immediate, devastating blow was the assassination squad personally led by the Fifth and Seventh Pharaohs!

They had already landed on the frontlines of the conflict between the Magus Civilization and the Gallant Federation, waiting for the perfect moment to strike!

However, in the Tenth Pharaoh’s opinion, the most reliable move would be to recall the Third Pharaoh from the Luminara Civilization battlefield.

With him leading the charge personally, no hostile overlord could possibly stand in their way.

It was said that the current leader of the Magus Civilization was only a mage at the peak of Rank Seven. Eliminating her could plunge the civilization into a leadership vacuum.

Alas, the laws of the universe did not bend to the will of the Amenkha Empire.

The ongoing threat from the Luminara Civilization kept the Third Pharaoh occupied.

If the Amenkha Empire were to deploy its full main force and launch a surprise attack on the Magus Civilization, only to have the Luminara Civilization raid their home world, it would be catastrophic.

The First Pharaoh was still in the final, critical stage of his breakthrough, and risking their home world’s safety was out of the question.

Leaving only the Second and Fourth Pharaohs behind would not be enough.

After repeated deliberations, a decision was made. The Third Pharaoh would not be sent to the Magus Civilization front. Instead, he would go to the Grand Cosmic World battlefield.

There were already significant Magus Civilization legions stationed there. With the Third Pharaoh personally in command, crushing them would be no problem.

In fact, his presence would maximize the gains from victory.

As for the risk of something happening on the Amenkha Empire’s home world, the Grand Cosmic World was close enough that the Third Pharaoh could be recalled in time if needed.

There was no such thing as a flawless plan, but the Amenkha Empire had done everything possible to make this one as perfect as it could be. They were determined to make this otherworldly civilization that had wronged them pay!

It had been over a thousand years since the Magus Civilization eliminated the Amenkha Empire’s Eighth Pharaoh.

For the Amenkha Empire to finally respond after so long spoke volumes of the immense distance separating these two top-tier civilizations.

On top of that, they only managed to teleport this batch of combat legion here by relying on the Gallant Federation to cover the majority of the energy costs.

One could only imagine the resources required for a full-scale expedition involving the entire civilization.

More and more monsters poured into the Morpheus Asteroid Belt. With each wave, it became increasingly difficult for the sealing runes to conceal the aura of these dark forces.

The Tenth Pharaoh had no intention of reinforcing the seals. Now that her forces were here, she no longer had to worry about being detected by the Magus Civilization.

One of the Rank Seven Monster Kings had already made it halfway through the teleportation gate.

Unlike the Pharaohs of the Amenkha Empire, these monster kings had not mastered self-sealing techniques, so their long-distance teleportation was nowhere near as smooth as the Tenth Pharaoh’s.

The Tenth Pharaoh absent-mindedly pressed her sharp, gray nail to her full lips as she stared out at the starry sky, wondering who would strike first.

Could it be Aforgomon?

***

Aforgomon was the Seventh Pharaoh of the Amenkha Empire.

As a staunch hawk within his civilization, he had always advocated for retaliation against the Magus Civilization.

His rank suggested that he was more powerful than the Eighth Pharaoh, whom the Magus Civilization had already eliminated.

An overlord’s raw strength tore through the surrounding space.

The Seventh Pharaoh was following coordinates provided by the Gallant Federation, moving toward a Rank Eight Magus Civilization entity who had already been severely wounded by the federation’s ultimate apocalyptical weapon.

Aforgomon’s attitude toward the federation’s Infinity Light had shifted from earlier contempt to serious concern.

He realized that if he were to take a direct hit from it, he knew he would likely be crippled—or dead.

The elemental tides left by the Infinity Light at its target still lingered, slowing his descent.

His arrival would be slightly delayed, and his coordinates might deviate.

But none of that mattered. The Seventh Pharaoh had already roughly pinpointed his target: the federation’s rear star domain, Evedal.

Nergal, the Rank Eight black mage who had just been struck by the Infinity Light, clutched his chest with his bony, gaunt hand, gasping for breath.

The overwhelming force of the attack had reduced the right side of his magic robe to tatters.

According to the Gallant Federation’s threat index, the Magus Civilization powerhouse they most despised—and the one they most wanted dead—was not the civilization’s leader, Bev, nor the peerless Divine King of Titans, Odin, who fought on the frontlines.

It was Nergal who had wreaked havoc across the federation’s rear for centuries!

A single Rank Four black mage could already unleash unimaginable destruction in a rear star domain, let alone a Rank Eight!

On top of that, Nergal was the pioneer of Magus World’s Death Plague magic!

Over the past several hundred thousand years, the number of lifeforms and sentient races wiped out reached into the trillions.

He was a ruthless, bloodthirsty powerhouse—so feared that even devils and demons bowed before him.

Even the Pharaohs of the Amenkha Empire, known for their brutality, might not measure up to Nergal, the undisputed strongest black mage in Magus World.

Panting and clutching his chest, he muttered to himself, “Damn... thank the stars my old bones reacted fast, and that I’ve got some skill with spatial magic. Otherwise... I’d be dead already. I’m definitely not as tough as a geo elemental.”

Though still alive, Nergal was badly wounded and needed to return to Magus World immediately to recover for an extended period within his soul tower in Blackhaven.

Just as he was preparing to leave, he suddenly sensed something that made him furrow his brow.

He could not help but look up toward a distant star domain.