Sovereign of the Ashes

It was clear that Gongsun Wudi had complete confidence in the Dawn Empire legions under her command.

She was equally certain that the defeated Rongyue Civilization would not stir up any further major trouble.

With only a few scattered pockets of resistance left in the Rongyue Star Domain, Gongsun Wudi led Sein and a group of prisoners straight back to the Dawn Empire.

As expected, the empire’s most elite legion was the Valiant Dragon Army Sein had seen earlier.

This unit answered directly to the Emperor, and its total strength was rumored to be only around one million.

The force deployed to the Rongyue Star Domain this time was just a small fraction of that number.

Even so, this contingent had been personally ordered by the Emperor and placed under his younger sister’s command.

Second only to the Valiant Dragon Army in combat strength was the Raging Tiger Army.

This legion had been personally built and was directly commanded by Gongsun Wudi.

In terms of numbers, the Raging Tiger Army surpassed the Valiant Dragon Army. It also served as the main force in the Dawn Empire’s offensive against Rongyue World.

It was not that the Dawn Empire lacked spatial teleportation technology. Rather, its development and frequency of use lagged far behind that of the Magus Civilization.

The gap between the two civilizations was clear.

Sein could tell that the Dawn Empire was also weaker than the Myriad Springs Worlds.

At the edge of the Rongyue Star Domain stood a cross-star-domain teleportation array built by the Dawn Empire.

On the way there, Sein noticed that ever since the guardian chose to surrender, resistance across the Rongyue Star Domain had dropped sharply.

Among those being taken to the Dawn Empire were not only the captured Earth Hound, but also the little butterfly Sein had seen earlier at the negotiation.

She had been sent as a representative of Rongyue World to formally submit their surrender and travel to the imperial capital to seek an audience with the Emperor.

Since the guardian could not leave its homeplane, Rongyue World had no choice but to appoint someone to speak in its place.

Sein suspected the little butterfly had been chosen because, out of all of them, she had the weakest will to resist the Dawn Empire.

She was simply too timid...

On the way back, Gongsun Wudi summoned Sein.

“Master Sein, being able to influence the planar will of an entire medium-sized world is no small feat. You deserve credit for your role in this war. Once we return to the capital of Dawn Empire, I’ll report this and make sure you receive the rewards you deserve,” she said.

Although she was a peak Rank Six being far stronger than him, the surprise in her tone was unmistakable.

Even with the war essentially over, there was still a trace of lingering tension between them.

“I was only able to suppress this world’s laws at its navel largely thanks to General Wudi and your forces drawing the natives’ attention elsewhere. Otherwise, working in such a sensitive area would’ve been impossible. It would’ve alerted their strongest beings immediately,” Sein replied humbly.

He had not expected the process of inscribing the array near the navel of the plane to go so smoothly either.

If anything, it only showed how stretched the Rongyue World forces had been—they could barely even guard the navel of their homeplane.

Sein paused, then added with a smile, “As for my rewards... I’ve already received plenty from you, General Wudi.”

The large stockpile of Rongyue World resources he now held had all been delivered by Gongsun Wudi not long ago.

Despite this being her first encounter with a mage of the Magus Civilization, she clearly understood the profession well enough to know exactly what would interest him most.

Gongsun Wudi fell silent for a moment. Then she reached behind the imperial chariot at her side and drew out a black war ax.

Her chariot was reserved exclusively for the princess herself.

In the entire Dawn Empire, only three people had the right to ride in one—the reigning emperor, his younger sister, and his son.

In terms of hierarchy, the Dawn Empire was far more rigid and structured than Magus World.

“I’ve heard that your magic rod was heavily damaged in this war,” Gongsun Wudi said.

She offered him the ax and continued, “This jet-black heavy ax is forged from rare materials infused with law power, including meteorite iron. It should be of some help in repairing your weapon.”

The ax had once belonged to the King of Mount Yue, a Rank Six creature of Rongyue World.

Its craftsmanship was crude, but the materials themselves were exceptional.

Even if it fell just short of a world-class secret treasure, it was not far off.

Of course, Sein had no intention of using a heavy ax. He would most likey melt it down and extract the refined metal essence within.

Sein accepted the valuable gift without hesitation.

“With the quality of this ax, it’s more than enough to repair my weapon,” he said.

“Not only that, the remaining materials should also be sufficient for further experiments. I can even reinforce the body of my battle angel,” he added with a smile.

The Dawn Empire’s powerhouses, including Gongsun Wudi, had clearly known about Fermera for some time—it had been impossible to hide her on the battlefield.

Gongsun Wudi was obviously interested in Fermera and other magitech creations, but she did not show it too openly.

After a brief glance at Sein’s face that was concealed behind the Faceless Mask, she said, “That’s at your discretion, Master Sein. Use the black ax as you see fit.”

***

They passed through the teleportation array the Dawn Empire had established on the outskirts of the Rongyue Star Domain.

From there, after crossing several medium-sized and small star domains under the empire’s control, Sein and his group finally arrived at the Dawn Empire’s home star domain.

Earlier, Sein had judged that the Dawn Empire’s overall strength was somewhat inferior to that of the Myriad Springs Worlds.

However, in terms of the number of planes it controlled, the Dawn Empire, committed to constant expansion, actually surpassed the more peace-oriented Myriad Springs Worlds.

Along the way, Sein also noticed just how popular Gongsun Wudi was.

Nearly every time they passed through a plane under the Dawn Empire’s rule, she was met with overwhelming enthusiasm from the local inhabitants.

Flowers rained down, and praise echoed from all directions.

Within the empire, she was not only known as the Invincible General, but also revered as the Martial Saint.

Amidst this wave of admiration, Sein, as an outsider, focused more on studying the finer details of this large-sized civilization.

He found that, much like the Gallant Federation, the Dawn Empire’s expansion relied heavily on a colonial model.

Almost every foreign plane under its control was populated by large numbers of Dawn Empire citizens, who had settled there and built stable lives without provoking major conflict with the planar will.

When they reached the outer edge of the large-sized plane where the Dawn Empire’s imperial capital was, another astonishing sight unfolded before him.

An enormous, towering dragon drifted into view beyond the plane itself.

It was not a living creature, but something closer to a vast construct of energy.

To some extent, it served as both a deterrent and a defensive barrier for the entire plane.

In a way, it resembled a planar barrier.

“This is the Dragon Qi of our Dawn Empire,” Gongsun Wudi said, gesturing toward the white dragon coiling below.

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