Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 421: Soul Tower

After returning to the riverbank, Sein resumed his journey northward with Tourmaline.

Tourmaline was even hardly aware of Sein’s two-day absence. It felt as though Sein had already returned literally in the blink of an eye.

On top of that, Sein had brought it some new trinkets from the Marmett Union Alliance.

Looking into Tourmaline’s big eyes, Sein said, “I heard that some exceptionally gifted creatures in the Magus World can assume human or other forms even at Rank Two or Three. Can you do that too, Tourmaline...?”

Tourmaline shook its large head and replied, “Not yet, but my Third Sister and Fourth Brother can. I suppose I’ll need to wait until I’m an adult before I can do that.”

“Besides, I have no problems with this body of mine. Why would I need to take on another form?” Tourmaline looked at Sein curiously.

Sein could only smile awkwardly in response to Tourmaline’s question and dropped the subject altogether.

Tourmaline’s attention, meanwhile, turned to the gifts Sein had brought it—a cluster of red and blue elemental balloons.

They were nothing really special, yet Tourmaline seemed to cherish them.

***

Following their departure from Dimos Seaport, Sein gave himself another assignment as he traveled north with Tourmaline.

He dedicated a portion of each day to studying umbra, necromancy, and summoning spells, as well as reading the books he had acquired on these topics.

The process of Verdant Flame Body Tempering required intermittent breaks and the ranked spells that Sein had mastered could not be studied in depth under the current simplistic conditions.

Conversely, the necromancy books Sein purchased in Dimos Seaport were mostly of a lower grade.

With the exception of the black book titled “The Compatibility Between Necromancy and Summoning Magic”, which remained beyond Sein’s current understanding, he was able to quickly absorb the rest of the materials.

Since most of the knowledge and spells were suitable for magic initiates, Sein, as a Rank One mage, found them very easy to comprehend.

***

As Sein and Tourmaline journeyed north through the territory of the Marmett Union Alliance, Lady Bev, the leader of the alliance and one of the most authoritative figures in the Magus World, returned to the Magus World.

Chummey, the heart of the Marmett Union Alliance, was the epicenter of advanced magitech.

Hundreds of divine towers surrounding Chummey City soared into the sky, each towering over five thousand meters. These towers stood as powerful symbols of the alliance’s formidable strength and deep heritage.

Among these, the most impressive was the soul tower to the north of the city, standing over ten thousand meters tall.

Soul towers were monumental structures that only mages of Rank Seven and above could construct.

These towers wielded the power to influence and direct the future development of the Magus World.

Upon returning to her soul tower, Lady Bev first addressed the backlog of Marmett Union Alliance’s official matters that had accumulated during her absence.

Some documents with crucial decisions required her unique magical seal.

This responsibility highlighted why leading one of the top forces in the Magus World often led to distractions that could impede one’s pursuit of truths.

Bev had not set foot in her laboratory since returning to the Magus World.

Aside from taking care of the matters in Marmett Union Alliance, she needed to check on Steel City and then address some issues in the Western Archipelago...

While reviewing paperwork, Bev noticed a document announcing the arrival of Tourmaline the dragon turtle, at the Marmett Union Alliance.

However, there was no mention of Sein’s name on the document.

The attention given to Tourmaline was not due to its relatively modest demigod-level strength but rather its notable family background and its father’s prominent position in the Magus World.

A look of nostalgia appeared on Bev’s face upon seeing the name “Tourmaline”, though it was unclear what memories or thoughts this evoked in the peak Seven soul overmage.

Bev remained motionless for a long while, lost in thought.

It was only when the golden sunlight reached the top floor of the soul tower, where she was seated, that Bev snapped back to reality with a rueful sigh.

She temporarily set aside the document with the mention of Tourmaline and continued going through the rest.

After a considerable amount of time, most of the documents on her desk had been marked or rejected by Bev.

With a snap of her fingers, the soul overmage summoned a swirling light screen equipped with interspatial communication before her.

“Inform Lafitte that the funding for the Soul Tower of Death is secured. The construction will commence as soon as Rogge returns from the Neisse Star Domain!” Bev said to the figures within the elemental vortex.

Her order was promptly executed.

Shortly after, a white-robed old man within the light screen voiced his concern.

“Master Rogge had repeatedly objected to the Soul Tower of Death’s construction in the past. What if this time, he...”

“If he has a problem with this when he returns, have him come to me directly!” Bev interrupted in a tone that brooked no argument.

“I’ve yet to encounter a Rank Eight soul overmage who hasn’t established a soul tower,” she added.

Bev’s words visibly uplifted the spirits of those within the elemental vortex.

Not only had she alleviated all the pressure stemming from Rogge’s reluctance, but the news that another Rank Eight soul overmage would soon emerge within the Marmett Union Alliance also buoyed them.

The mention of “another” indicated that the alliance already had an existing Rank Eight overmage.

Although Rogge was still a peak Rank Seven soul overmage, just like Bev, she had determined from his performance during the Neisse Star Domain war that he possessed the potential to ascend to Rank Eight.

Apart from offering numerous benefits to the Marmett Union Alliance, establishing a soul tower would also greatly aid Rogge in breaking through to Rank Eight.

She saw no reason for Rogge to refuse this again.

The man had refused to build the soul tower several times in the past because he disliked the managerial responsibilities that came with it and preferred to devote his energy exclusively to studying necromancy.

Furthermore, the Divine Tower of Death he had previously established within the Mamet Alliance had not fared well in terms of development and operation.

If not for his reputation as the best necromancer in the Magus World, the Divine Tower of Death might have suffered negative revenue.

Having resolved her immediate tasks, Bev set off toward Steel City to the north.