Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 687: Battling Beyond Rank

As the demigod-level entity fled its homeplane, only a few of the powerhouses on the battlefield continued to track its movements.

This general disinterest stemmed from the knowledge that the Rank Four Tower Master of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring was just beyond the plane.

The recent burst of verdant light was likely the work of Lorianne.

Facing a Rank Four entity, the demigod-level Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly was inevitably ensnared in the trap set for it.

As for the fate of the other Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly, one could only wish it luck.

BOOM!

When Sein looked up, the demigod-level Deep Sea Giant Eel had already reached the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Royal City, smashing a huge hole in the northwest corner of its massive wall.

The demigod-level Deep Sea Giant Eel was over 1,300 meters long—even longer than Tourmaline if stretched out.

However, when Tourmaline crouched, she resembled an immense mountain or island, towering over observers.

By contrast, the much slimmer Deep Sea Giant Eel seemed several sizes smaller than Tourmaline when coiled up.

Despite its smaller size, the giant eel was still massive to the native inhabitants of Verdant Leaf World.

With a mere flick of its tail, the giant eel created a large crater in the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Royal City with its sheer strength.

This particular demigod-level giant eel was known to be the most temperamental of the three Sea Kings.

The eel twisted its enormous body, squeezing itself into the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Royal City, its arrival heralding a disaster for the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Clan.

As the Royal City suffered widespread destruction, it lay vulnerable to the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Army.

While Sein was tempted to venture directly into the Royal City, a transmission from Natalya diverted him and Yuri to the southwest corner of the battlefield.

There, Rank Two Knight Reina was battling a Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly.

Given the scarcity of Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonflies in the Verdant Leaf World, it was not easy to find one to battle.

Her aggressive tactics earlier must have drawn the attention of a Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly directly to her.

Since Reina had not yet called for assistance from the other knights and mages, none dared intervene with her “prey”.

In the Astral Realm, battling enemies of a rank higher was challenging for many lifeforms, but such confrontations were not unusual for creatures from the Magus World.

As a civilization at the pinnacle of evolution, the Magus World’s sophisticated system ensured that its natives were inherently stronger than those of equivalent ranks from other lesser worlds.

Hence, it was no surprise that Rank Two beings from the Magus World could overpower smaller, lesser Rank Three creatures from other microplanes.

Moreover, within the Order of the Steel Fist, Reina held the distinguished record of defeating a Rank Three Sky Knight.

Natalya had specifically summoned Sein to support her best friend.

Reina’s combat style was direct and unrestrained.

Wielding an octagonal hammer, far larger than a Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly, she swung it with ferocious intensity.

The ground was riddled with potholes—some from Reina’s hammer strikes, others from the sheer force of her stomping.

In terms of physical size, Sein had never witnessed a human bigger than Reina.

In her, he also discovered a glimpse of perfect evolution.

His body tempering experiments had always revealed new insights with Reina. It was unfortunate that since the conclusion of their last session, he had struggled to persuade her to return to his laboratory.

Sein once brought Reina to the doorstep of his laboratory, but she recoiled in fear and refused to enter, nearly leading to a confrontation.

Despite her reluctance to participate in Sein’s experiments, they maintained a strong friendship.

In fact, their bond was stronger than with Gould or any others, as he never judged her.

His genuine admiration was something Reina could sense from his sincere gaze.

If Sein’s experiments did not require frequent fasting, Reina might have been more cooperative.

While not fearful of injury or death, Reina had only one fear—hunger.

Sein speculated that this intense aversion to hunger might be linked to her bloodline or genetic traits.

According to Natalya, Reina’s parents were also notably large-sized Sky Knights.

Unfortunately, they had not participated in the Verdant Leaf World War as they were still in the Thunderfall World.

Had they been available, Reina could have easily enlisted two more Sky Knights for the conflict.

The confrontation between Reina and the Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly held little suspense.

Despite being a rank lower than her opponent, Reina dominated with her overwhelming strength and size, wielding her massive hammer throughout the fight.

The Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Clan tended to utilize their powers in a primitive and crude manner.

Almost all members harnessed dendro elemental energy, which was notably more susceptible to pyro elemental energy.

Reina’s battle qi embodied the attributes of soil and metal.

The fusion of these two distinct qi types offered a clear advantage over the simplistic dendro elemental energy.

The weapon of the Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly was an arm blade, seamlessly integrated with its limb.

Metallurgy in this world appeared underdeveloped, as many insect creatures incorporated parts of their carapace into their weaponry.

Sein observed the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly swinging its arm blade multiple times, striking Reina’s shoulder blades, belly, and arms.

Aside from a minor cut in the belly area, the other hits merely sparked against her armor.

Reina’s shoulders, arms, and other protected regions were well-armored. However, her protruding belly was exposed in the air. The thick layer of fat in there served as her best defense.

The Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly exerted its full strength but managed only to break Reina’s skin.

Given Reina’s formidable fat layer, the small arm blade was insufficient to inflict a fatal blow!

Upon reaching the battlefield’s edge, Sein sighed in amazement. “The Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly’s strength lies in speed and agility—qualities that Reina lacks. Yet on this battlefield, Reina managed to suppress it.”

His sigh was prompted not only by the scene before him but also by the presence of tens of thousands of minotaurlings and centaurs with drawn bows.

With such a crowd gathered in the area, leaving only a vacant space in the center for Reina and the Rank Three Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly to engage in a “fair duel”, how could the dragonfly possibly match Reina?

Deprived of room to maneuver or dodge, every hit from Reina resulted in a significant crater. It was only a matter of time before she could eventually land a hit on the dragonfly.

In terms of stamina, the slender Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly was clearly no match for Reina, whose hidden energy reserves were profoundly substantial.