Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 206: Hero

The use of undead creatures at the forefront of the battle was a tactic Sein had observed before in the Divine Tower of Shadow’s territory.

However, during those encounters, he had seen only a few hundred initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow attacking resource points at most.

The scale of the current confrontation, with thousands of initiates amassed, was reminiscent of the battle he had witnessed between the Divine Tower of Land Academy and Divine Tower of Radiant Thunder in the eastern hills.

Although the current number at Windhowl Cliff was about half that of the tens of thousands at the eastern hills, the initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow summoned thousands of ghastly undead and dark creatures.

Many initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, unaccustomed to such warfare, found the atmosphere daunting.

Sein, however, seasoned and hardened by his experiences, was unfazed by the forces from the Divine Tower of Shadow that had surrounded the Windhowl Cliff.

He was already identifying weak zones in the enemy’s formation, eyeing an opportunity to amass points.

Daniel seemed less composed outwardly compared to Sein, but he was not overly fearful.

He trailed behind Sein silently, observing his every move intently.

Daniel was keen on understanding Sein’s next move and particularly curious about how Sein had amassed such a high score in such a short time.

Sein remained indifferent to Daniel’s silent observations. After surveying the fierce battle outside Windhowl Cliff for a little while, he maneuvered his metal disk toward the battlefield’s rear flank.

At this moment near Windhowl Cliff, the initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring were engaged in a fierce battle with thousands of undead and dark summons.

Those creatures were resilient and quite formidable, but most importantly, they offered no points upon defeat. Engaging them would be a foolish risk.

Sein's objective was clear as he navigated toward the battlefield’s flank, situated between the Divine Tower of Shadow’s forces and their summons.

His trajectory, angled toward the diagonal rear, indicated his targets were the initiates at the back of the formation, chanting in groups and casting spells.

This maneuver almost caused Daniel, the Quasi Mage accompanying Sein, to lose his balance in mid-air.

Daniel knew all too well that the rear of the battlefield was the stronghold of the Divine Tower of Shadow’s forces.

However, understanding this and acting on it were two different matters.

The Divine Tower of Shadow was ranked third in overall strength among the five major divine towers, significantly surpassing the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring at the bottom and the Divine Tower of Cipher, which was second-to-last.

Even without the undead and dark creatures, the spellcasting prowess of the initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow still surpassed the average level of those from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

Notably, the Divine Tower of Shadow also had a slightly higher number of initiates. Even though the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring was defending its own territory and could potentially muster more support, the immediate priority was to repel the Divine Tower of Shadow’s aggressive advance.

Daniel’s approach of waiting until their own side’s numbers slightly exceeded those of the enemy before launching a counterattack was indeed conservative.

It was a strategy influenced by the academy deans rather than his own inclination.

However, Sein was not one to hold back.

His conspicuous golden light made him the focal point upon entering the battlefield.

When he charged toward the Divine Tower of Shadow’s camp, the battlefield erupted into a frenzy of excitement!

Was this the allure of being the top contender in the regional academy war?

Was this the phenomenal initiate from our Divine Tower of Verdant Spring?

At that moment, there were about three to four thousand initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring at Windhowl Cliff, a number comparable to those from the Divine Tower of Shadow.

Their disadvantage stemmed partly from the difficulty in combating the numerous undead and dark creatures and partly from a traditionally defensive mindset and strategy adopted by the senior initiates and Quasi Mages.

This conservative approach had hindered them from actively engaging the enemy.

In such scenarios, a leader like Sein, acting as a beacon, became crucial.

His bold charge could inspire immense confidence among his fellow initiates.

Despite the clear disparity in strength, the resolve of an unwavering leader can overshadow doubts amid the chaos and fervor of battle.

It became a matter of rallying to the charge.

In the midst of such a heated conflict, no one would prefer to remain passive, except perhaps for those with masochistic tendencies.

The initiates from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring had been oppressed for too long. They yearned for a hero to lead them to victory.

Sein’s silent but decisive strike, accompanied by the golden pillar of light, evoked different psychological impacts on the two opposing sides.

In fact, many initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow were already familiar with Sein, who stood out amidst the golden light.

Nearly a year had elapsed since the start of the regional academy war, and Sein had already made a significant impact in the Divine Tower of Shadow, leaving behind various legends among its initiates.

Klump the “Necromancer” and Wallace the “Shadow Star”, both long-standing top initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow, were reputed to be at least on par with Daniel from the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, if not stronger.

Yet, both of them had fallen to Sein, rumored to have been defeated in a single strike.

Informed initiates from the Divine Tower of Shadow had also heard about Sein’s disruptions in the Divine Tower of Radiant Thunder and Land Academy areas.

Descriptions of Sein’s appearance and a summary of his capabilities began to circulate among them.

Several Quasi Mages from the Divine Tower of Shadow had put out an exorbitant bounty on Sein, aiming to eliminate him once and for all.

However, this bounty had only served to enhance Sein’s notoriety without posing any real threat to him so far.

Intermediate and junior initiates, tempted by the reward and Sein’s score, were hardly a match for him.

As for the senior initiates and Quasi Mages... their awareness of Sein’s formidable strength deterred them from pursuing actions likely to end in their demise.