Sovereign of the Ashes

Aside from what had been mentioned, Sein also noticed the peculiar red elemental chains the knights on the battlefield wore.

These chains, crafted by the witches, appeared to enhance the knights’ endurance, allowing them to fight for extended periods.

With a combat structure entirely reliant on witches, it was no surprise that they held absolute authority in the Northlands.

However, there was little concern that the knights would be marginalized; the witches had no interest in political struggles with them.

The Northlands lacked prestigious magic families due to the witches’ unique inheritance system, so the knight-led noble houses continued to occupy the highest ranks of the commoners’ society in the Northlands.

Moreover, witches faced natural challenges when it came to reproduction.

Those who fell in love and eventually built families often chose male knights of the Northlands as their partners.

After all, there were only very few male spellcasters in this region.

***

The fighting styles and historical traditions of the Northlands were a marvel to Sein, a traveler from the Viridescent Land.

Each region’s unique path of development had shaped a diverse and vibrant Magus World.

And yet, this was just one corner of the Magus World.

If one were to take in the entire Astral Realm—with its hundreds of millions of planes and countless civilizations—it would be an unfathomable spectacle of endless wonder.

Sein was merely a solitary seeker of the truth.

To personally explore the boundless expanse and brilliance of the Astral Realm—that was the ultimate aspiration of Magus World mages.

Putting everything else aside, even the fusion ability of the Edelweiss Spirits held an undeniable mystique in his eyes.

Two months later, Sein and his group had shifted their combat zone to a vast, empty snowfield.

By now, he had witnessed firsthand the sheer obstinacy of this world’s native creatures.

As a result, more than ten Edelweiss Spirits had become part of Sein’s growing specimen collection.

Capturing Edelweiss Spirits, especially alive, was no easy feat.

After their “host” lost the ability to fight, these little crystalline beings displayed their final act of defiance against the invaders by self-destructing.

Fortunately, the Edelweiss Spirits typically detonated only after separating from their hosts, leaving an incredibly brief window for Sein and the others to capture them.

Had they been capable of exploding while still inside their hosts, even Sein, a Rank Three grand mage, would have struggled to capture them.

These Edelweiss Spirits could fetch quite a good price within Merilyn’s Little Coven, with a live specimen valued at ten times the price of a dead one!

Sein had even used soul magic to interrogate his captives, seeking to understand why they only chose to self-destruct after leaving their hosts.

Their answer took him by surprise.

It turned out it was not a precondition for self-destruction, nor was it some inherent limitation.

Despite their unwavering resistance, these Edelweiss Spirits were inherently kind creatures—they simply did not wish to harm the creatures they had bonded with.

One of the key prerequisites for the Edelweiss Spirits’ fusion ability was earning the trust of their target.

Without a bond of friendship, these spirits could not simply invade another creature’s body and take control.

This “fusion” combat style was built on mutual cooperation and trust—an approach that resonated with the Magus World's long-standing emphasis on balance.

Sein never believed that wars were waged over the simplistic notions of good and evil.

At their core, wars were driven by profit.

If one were to take a subjective view, the native creatures of Viridian Venom Flame World and Wild Gorilla World could pretty much be labeled as evil, while the inhabitants of Edelweiss World and Verdant Leaf World—both of which Sein had visited—could be considered righteous and kind.

In reality, there was no such thing as absolute evil.

Wild Gorilla World was vast, home to hundreds of millions of native creatures.

Could every single one of them truly be evil?

Of course not!

The world was far more complex than such rigid classifications allowed. Even overlords could not act entirely as they pleased.

As a spellcaster devoted to the pursuit of truth, Sein often pondered matters that knights, who lived only to obey orders and grow stronger, would probably never question.

At times, he wondered—was he truly doing the right thing by participating in these interplanar wars?

If he had the resources and inspiration, he would gladly seclude himself in a laboratory, dedicating his entire life to research, never stepping outside until he reached the pinnacle of truth.

But was such a life even possible?

The shortage of resources forced Sein into one interplanar war after another, securing what he needed to further his training and progress.

And this was the reality for the entire Magus Civilization.

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Through the Magus Alliance system, the Magus World had grown into the behemoth it was today, continuously nourished by a steady influx of resources from neighboring planes and star domains.

Looking at the upper echelons of the Magus Civilization, one saw brilliance and grandeur.

Yet beneath its mighty foundation lay countless corpses and the silent tears of foreign plane creatures.

Sein never considered himself a good person.

People were inherently selfish, and his time as a black magic initiate had instilled in him an unshakable sense of egoism.

However, his years of study at the divine towers, Master Lorianne’s guidance, and the vast trove of knowledge he had recently acquired in Sky City had significantly reshaped his values and outlook on the world.

Sein would never become a saint, but he also refused to turn into a bloodthirsty, ruthless monster.

Deep down, he had to admit that he sympathized with these kind Edelweiss Spirits of Edelweiss World.

***

“Master Merilyn of the Northern Witches Council, who has spared that Rank Four Edelweiss Spirit in hopes of drawing the Edelweiss Spirits into the Magus Alliance, must also be interested in their unique ability,” Sein mused inside his tent.

By now, their legion had shifted locations once again.

Stationed at the foot of a snowy mountain, this division of the Magus World forces had been granted a one-week period for rest and recuperation.

Since the break was relatively short, no defensive magic towers had been constructed.

Instead, a ring of magic wards and alchemy fences lined the perimeter of the camp, alongside nearly ten thousand enslaved creatures huddled at the base of the mountain, shivering in the bitter cold.

Among them, only the cryo elemental creatures seemed unaffected.

For enslaved creatures of other attributes and races, getting used to the frigid environment of Edelweiss World was a great challenge.

After all, elite slaves of Rank One and above were a rarity.

It was not uncommon to see low-ranking cannon fodder units succumbing to frostbite or even freezing to death on this interplanar battlefield.

Hearing Sein’s remark, Veyle, who had just entered his tent, gave him a small smile of agreement.

Her presence here was not due to any improper relationship with Sein. She had simply been lured in by his offer.

After receiving another Rank One Edelweiss Spirit specimen, along with several rare biological materials from other foreign planes, the young witch did not hesitate to accept Sein’s request for a knowledge exchange session.