Sovereign of the Ashes

As Sein led Kigard toward Gongsun Wudi’s imperial chariot, Kigard kept stealing glances at him.

By now, he had recognized who Sein was.

Sein’s performance during the previous experiment, the fact that he commanded a Rank Six angel, and the existence of an elder with peak Rank Six strength behind him—all of these made it impossible for Kigard to treat him as an ordinary mage, even if Sein’s life level was technically lower than his own.

There was still some distance to cover before they reached the imperial chariot, and Kigard kept wondering how he should start a conversation.

In truth, Kigard was not the type to strike up conversations easily. He was used to working alone.

The only reason he was now going out of his way to build a relationship with a Magus Civilization powerhouse was that reality had left him no other option.

Sein was unaware of what the Rank Six otherworldly being beside him was thinking. His attention was not on Kigard at all. Instead, he was reflecting on the various issues he had encountered during the experiment earlier.

Transforming a giant war fortress into a war robot was an extremely novel concept and research direction, even across the entire Magus Civilization.

The fact that Sein had managed to make progress in this field was undoubtedly thanks to the world-class secret treasure in his possession—the Magic Cube.

However, looking deeper, Sein’s inspiration likely came from his early exposure to Nexon’s intelligent robots, such as Aetherend and Skyhold.

Aetherend, Skyhold, and the others all possessed the ability to change their forms.

Aetherend could take the form of a ferocious beast, while Skyhold could transform into a truck.

At present, these two represented the two major factions among the intelligent robots.

As for Fermera, she represented the third branch—the mechanical angels.

During the previous battle to break out of the Gallant Federation’s star domain, Sein had witnessed the second forms of Aetherend, Skyhold, and the others. He had even briefly piloted Sky Tyrant, a Rank Four intelligent robot.

If Skyhold and the others could transform, then there was no reason a war fortress could not do the same.

From a certain perspective, it was merely a matter of scaling up.

Moreover, a massive fortress designed purely for large-scale warfare was clearly far more powerful and destructive than a standard intelligent robot.

“That federal scientist, Michaelis Bell, truly was a sage in the field of technology,” Sein could not help remarking. “Thank goodness he’s dead.”

Sein’s sudden remark startled Kigard. He had not quite caught what Sein meant and asked, “Huh? What did you mean by that, Master Sein?”

Sein glanced at him, then shook his head.

“Nothing.”

On the way to the Dawn Empire’s central imperial chariot, Kigard kept looking for chances to get closer to Sein.

At first, Sein was rather cold toward him. After all, his mind was not on Kigard.

Sein had already dissected and studied several Rank Six creatures before, so having one standing right in front of him did not particularly interest him.

However, Kigard was a man of great wit. Having spent enough time around Magus Civilization powerhouses, he had gradually come to understand the personalities and interests of mages.

So, he took the opportunity to casually share some amusing stories from his years wandering through various star domains, along with the many strange and incredible creatures he had encountered.

Sein had also traveled through many star domain civilizations over the years. However, he was still young. In terms of experience and insight, he naturally could not compare to a Rank Six being like Kigard, who had long since made a name for himself.

This was also largely because Kigard had mastered spatial laws, which allowed him to travel more easily to distant star domains and explore dangerous regions of the Astral Realm governed by extremely unusual laws—places ordinary Rank Six beings could rarely reach.

For instance, when Kigard spoke about his exploration of a perilous zone known as the Vortex of Oblivion, Sein listened with great interest.

The fellow was probably not exaggerating either. The phenomena and law patterns he described gave Sein plenty to think about.

By the time they arrived outside Gongsun Wudi’s tent, Sein and Kigard had already warmed up to each other considerably.

Fermera maintained her icy demeanor the entire time. She lifted the curtain for Sein, and inside the tent, Gongsun Wudi was seated, apparently occupied with military affairs.

Gongsun Wudi’s demeanor was cold, but not in the same way as Sein’s.

Hers was austere and oppressive—the coldness of someone accustomed to command. Sein’s, by contrast, was rational and detached.

The subtle yet oppressive aura of a peak Rank Six being instantly silenced Kigard, who had only just started to relax.

What kind of people are they, exactly...?

The pressure Gongsun Wudi gave him was even greater than that of Sein’s grandmaster. It was also more oppressive than the two strongest demon kings under Gustavo’s command whom he had encountered before!

Although Kigard and Gongsun Wudi were both Rank Six, her overwhelming strength, combined with her status as a high-ranking commander, placed the two of them in entirely different worlds!

Kigard was merely a hired hand.

Gongsun Wudi, on the other hand, commanded the Raging Tiger Army and countless legions of the Dawn Empire.

Within the vast Dawn Empire, Princess Gongsun Wudi, as the Emperor’s younger sister, held the second-highest level of influence in the entire dynasty—even surpassing the Crown Prince.

Yet this formidable figure, who had conquered countless star domains and planes, seemed to soften her icy expression slightly when she saw Sein enter the tent first.

Unlike Kigard, who was intimidated by Gongsun Wudi’s presence, Sein greeted her quite casually after entering the tent.

After all, they were friends who had once trained and sparred together. There was no need to be so formal.

Sein greeted Gongsun Wudi like an old friend, and the two exchanged a few casual pleasantries. Gongsun Wudi then asked about the current state of the war in the Kales Star Domain.

Kigard followed Sein into the tent, but Gongsun Wudi merely glanced at him before turning her attention back to Sein.

After they chatted for a moment, Sein gestured toward Kigard behind him and introduced him.

“This is...um... a messenger from my Magus Civilization.” He paused briefly, as if searching for the right word.

“You know there is another force from the Magus Civilization operating around the Divine Descendants Star Domain, right? Once they begin cooperating with the Dawn Empire in battle, communication will mainly go through him,” Sein explained.

He truly did not know how else to describe Kigard. In the end, “messenger” seemed to fit best.

Gongsun Wudi immediately understood which force Sein was referring to.

The fact that they had not sent a Rank Six demon, but had instead dispatched someone like Kigard as a messenger, made one thing clear: their cooperation with the Quatar Star Pirates was not meant to be made public.

After introducing himself, Kigard immediately handed Gongsun Wudi the information that Carter Gustavo, the demon overlord, had entrusted to him.

Gongsun Wudi glanced through it, wrapped it in Dragon Qi, then summoned one of her generals and ordered him to deliver it to the Emperor.

With the official business settled, Sein casually asked about the next arrangements for their combat legions in the Kales Star Domain.

Gongsun Wudi raised her right hand and pointed to a three-dimensional star chart inside the tent. “Our primary offensive target will be here.”

A ring of meteoroids imbued with special laws appeared in Sein’s field of vision. They were known as the Boundary Rocks.

Through the relentless scouting efforts of the Dawn Empire, they had finally located a weak point in the outer defenses of the Divine Descendants Star Domain.

Gongsun Wudi then assigned corresponding tasks to the combat legions under Sein’s command.

After breaching the Boundary Rocks, Sein and his forces would be responsible for the subsequent conquest of two low-level planes.

“Only low-level planes?” Sein asked. “Given our strength, I think we are fully capable of joining the campaign against a medium-sized world.”

The richer the plane they attacked, the more resources they could secure.

No one would ever complain about having too much money.

“There are only four mid-tier worlds on the outskirts of the Divine Descendants Star Domain, and they are extremely scattered,” Gongsun Wudi replied.

“The medium-sized worlds in that direction have already been assigned to our Dawn Empire’s Valiant Dragon Army. The Emperor said we must demonstrate the might of the Dawn Empire in our opening battle.”

“I see.” Sein nodded.