Sovereign of the Ashes

When Sein's forbidden-level Penetrating Eye spell pierced the planar barrier of White Sand World, and the two fortresses' main cannon beams also struck their marks, violent tremors were felt on this low-level plane that had remained quiet and undisturbed for tens of thousands of years.

They were not just the result of the three devastating impacts against the barrier, but also the White Sand World's cries of pain.

Countless mountains crumbled, sand dunes shifted violently, and even the sparse oceans surged with waves, mirroring the turbulent ripples in the sky.

This tremendous impact was what finally woke Tourmaline from her deep sleep inside the space fortress.

She was jolted awake, and her two arm ribbons coiled around her tightly in response.

Tourmaline blinked a few times, then stared out at the starry sky beyond the window for a long time.

It was only then that she remembered where she was and why she was here.

She hopped off Sein's large, soft bed and stretched with a lazy yawn.

Beside her bed sat a glass of energy boosting juice that Sein had considerately left there.

Perhaps it was because she was still growing, but Tourmaline's appetite was enormous. She could easily eat dozens of times more than Reina!

Luckily, Sein never had to feed her.

In her turtle shell, also known as her private little treasure vault, she had stashed away all kinds of good stuff.

The juice by her bed had been prepared by Sein using a special orange-red jujube fruit she had given him.

Sein had never seen that kind of jujube before. It was definitely not from Magus World, and the sheer amount of energy packed into it had left him stunned.

Lately, Sein had been struggling with a tight financial situation.

In truth, he was not actually short on money. If he had just asked Tourmaline for help, he could have solved most of his debt problems without needing to set his sights on White Sand World like this.

After downing the energy juice in one big gulp, Tourmaline's cheeks turned rosy as she let out a small burp.

She glanced out the window again and blinked. "Huh? They've already started fighting?"

"I hope I'm not too late!" she shouted, quickly wrapping herself in her green arm ribbons and dashing out of the room.

***

By the time Tourmaline emerged from the space fortress, Sein and the others had already exchanged blows several times with the Rank Four creatures of White Sand World.

The terrifying beams from the forbidden spell, along with the devastating main cannon blasts from the fortresses, had crushed the confidence of the native creatures.

The overwhelming firepower from the fortress, the concentrated magic bombardments from the mage formations, and the relentless assaults by the knight and enslaved creature legions threw the natives beyond the planar barrier into utter disarray.

Once the barrier finally shattered, the creatures of White Sand World came to the harsh realization that these invaders were not foes they could hold off easily.

Urged on by the guardian and shaken by the agonized screams of the Sandworm Queen, the disoriented native legions began to flee in panic, retreating back toward their homeplane.

Even though the planar barrier had been breached, White Sand World still retained some of its defensive mechanisms, which bought the retreating creatures a bit of time.

Even the White-Winged Bird King, who had been locked in fierce battle with Berecca, managed to escape her grasp.

Despite being battered by both Sein and Lorianne's magic, it retreated in a miserable state, fleeing back into White Sand World.

The vitality and defensive resilience of Rank Four creatures were truly remarkable—seeing even such a powerful being escape reinforced how calculating Sein had been during the Avatar Crisis, when he used the chaos to eliminate several gods in Faeloria.

Of course, the White-Winged Bird King's successful retreat was also due to its mastery over pure aero elemental law.

Had it been the bloated Sandworm Queen so far out there instead, Sein would not have let her get away, even if he had his eyes closed.

With both the Sandworm Queen and the White-Winged Bird King gone, no major resistance forces remained outside the White Sand World.

The countless remains and drifting debris in the surrounding void now told the story of the devastation that had just unfolded.

After muttering a few choice curses about the White-Winged Bird King only being good at running away, Sein turned his eyes toward the breach in the planar barrier.

At that moment, he was still in his flame demon form. His enormous size made the breach before him look almost tiny in comparison.

It was, in fact, the planar will of White Sand World working desperately to seal the breach.

For a low-level plane, this one was pretty good.

From the quick mobilization of its defensive forces at the start, to their measured response against the overwhelming attacks on the space fortresses, and finally their wise decision to retreat once the odds became clear—these were all commendable actions.

But given the sheer difference in strength, while the process might become more drawn-out, the outcome would remain the same.

Sein's Faceless Mask truly lived up to its reputation as a world-class secret treasure. Upon activating his lawful body, the mask expanded, transforming into an elemental mask.

A vivid elemental eye appeared just above the planar barrier of White Sand World.

It had a green pupil, a chilling grayish-white sclera, and was ringed with raging flames.

It was a direct manifestation of Sein's true power.

Billions of native creatures across White Sand World stared up at the sky in terror and disbelief.

Though infused with pyro elemental energy, the eye radiated an unsettling coldness.

It was the gaze of a god—the scrutiny of a divine eye!

"That White-Winged Bird King may have fled, but it was hit by Berecca's arrow and took a few of our destructive spells head-on. It should not be a threat anymore," Lorianne said, flying up beside Sein.

Sein raised his head from the breach in the planar barrier and nodded. "Order the legions to advance. Let's take this plane in one decisive strike."

At Lorianne's command, the enslaved creatures, who had been feasting on the corpses scattered across the void, ignored their hunger and surged forward again.

The three openings in the planar barrier became the main points of their assault.

Flying soul slaves and higher-ranking lifeforms naturally took the lead, rushing in first.

For the weaker slaves who could not survive long in a vacuum, the two space fortresses, having ceased their main cannon fire, extended glowing elemental bridges for the cannon fodder legions to run on.

This was another function of the Magus World space fortress.

When Tourmaline arrived at Sein's side, over a hundred thousand soul slaves had already made it past the barrier.

It seemed the earlier rout had left White Sand World unable to mount a proper counterattack just yet.

"Need help, Sein?" Tourmaline asked.