Chapter Summaries

Rex's squad collected energy fragments from an abandoned node, but the fungal threads among the murloc corpses assembled into a charging monster. Su Ran struck its tentacles with Arcane Explosion as Rex's squad fought to stop it.

• Rex warned his squad away from the fungal threads as they passed dozens of dead Deep-Dweller Murlocs.
• Rex ordered the squad to collect energy fragments while Su Ran sensed the node's energy and noticed an uneasy presence.
• Su Ran spotted the murloc corpses moving as fungal threads joined them into a towering monster.
• Rex braced behind his shield as the monster charged, while Alina, Karl, and Xiaoguang attacked it.
• Su Ran cast Arcane Explosion at the monster's tentacle bases.

Su Ran and his teammates destroyed Corpse Mountain, but Rex was gravely wounded in the blast. As they retreated to the rift entrance, they learned other teams had also suffered attacks, and a massive explosion from the depths shook the rift and sent a destructive wave of flame energy toward them.

• Su Ran identified a likely core beneath Corpse Mountain’s center and directed Rex to attack it while he unleashed a powerful Arcane Explosion.
• Rex and Su Ran destroyed Corpse Mountain, but the blast left Rex unconscious and gravely wounded.
• Xiaoguang stabilized Rex, and the group abandoned their exploration and retreated toward the rift entrance.
• Su Ran’s team encountered other injured groups and learned that mycelium-controlled puppets, insects, and monster aggregations had attacked them.
• At the entrance, the commander-in-chief reported that the fungal mat was more active than expected and called for reinforcements or a retreat.
• A deafening crash shook the rift, and a violent wave of destructive flame energy swept toward the gathered teams.

After the rift core was destroyed, Su Ran and the other awakened survivors returned to the Iron Cross Guild camp, where Rex received medical care. Su Ran opened his Silver Chest, gaining coins, a Skill Upgrade Book, and a rare Mycelial Robe that he equipped.

• The rift settlement awarded Su Ran 190 experience, raising him to Lv.4 and increasing [Arcane Explosion] and [Mage Armor] to Lv.2.
• Su Ran stored his Silver Chest and returned to the camp with the other survivors as the rift collapsed; Rex was taken unconscious to the medical station.
• Su Ran checked on Rex, learned that his condition had stabilized, then ate and went to his private meditation area.
• Su Ran opened the Silver Chest and found fifteen silver coins and a Beginner Skill Upgrade Book that could raise a skill below Lv.4 by two levels.
• Su Ran opened the chest again, found fifteen more silver coins and a rare Mycelial Robe, then replaced his old robe with it.

After the Otherworldly Rift threat was eliminated, Su Ran reunited with the recovering Rex and attended an announcement by Iron Cross vice guild leader Amos. Amos offered temporary team members who had fought at Linhai Town a path to full membership, and Su Ran chose to pursue it.

• Su Ran found Rex conscious and recovering, and Rex praised him for helping defeat the rift threat.
• Rex led Su Ran, Alina, Karl, and Xiaoguang to the central square to hear an announcement from vice guild leader Amos.
• Amos thanked the fighters and announced that eligible temporary team members could become full Iron Cross Guild members after a one-month assessment, without taking the regular entrance examination.
• Amos described the benefits and obligations of guild membership and allowed anyone unwilling to meet the requirements to withdraw.
• Su Ran and his companions decided to stay and try to pass the assessment.

Su Ran began the Iron Cross Guild’s probation and received a dungeon pass requiring him to complete trials in Blackstone Tower. He entered the tower and faced three guardian golems, while his Knowledge Insight revealed clues about the hall’s runes and a possible route onward.

• The Iron Cross Guild registered Su Ran and the other recruits as prospective members and explained their one-month probation missions.
• Su Ran received a pass for Blackstone Tower, where he had to pass combat and spell tests and collect three pieces of ancient magical knowledge within 72 hours.
• Su Ran prepared his equipment and reviewed his Knowledge Insight skill while Rex stayed behind to recover from his injuries.
• Su Ran entered Blackstone Tower and encountered three level-five guardian golems that advanced toward him.
• Su Ran inspected the hall and used Knowledge Insight to identify a possible energy array and trace the ceiling’s energy flow to a recess at the back.

Su Ran defeated the three Blackstone Guardian Golems by disrupting the runic array that powered their regeneration, earning an Ancient Golem Construction Schematic fragment. Before climbing higher in the Blackstone Tower, he used a Beginner Skill Upgrade Book to raise Knowledge Insight from Lv.3 to Lv.5, then began ascending as glowing runes scanned him.

• Su Ran found that the floor runes supplied energy to the golems and disrupted a converging rune node to weaken them.
• Su Ran destroyed all three golems with concentrated attacks while their energy supply was unstable.
• A spiral staircase descended, and Su Ran claimed an Ancient Golem Construction Schematic fragment from a stone platform.
• Su Ran used the Beginner Skill Upgrade Book to raise Knowledge Insight from Lv.3 to Lv.5.
• Su Ran climbed the staircase as pale-blue runes appeared on the walls and seemed to scan or verify him.

Su Ran passed the second-floor spell-shaping test and claimed a record of arcane energy practice. He entered the third floor, where he had to decipher thirty ancient Dragon Language runes using incomplete reference texts.

• Su Ran read the second-floor instructions and entered the Court of Spells.
• Su Ran constructed and maintained the Arcane Shield, Mage Hand, and Elemental Mimicry flame models, passing the test.
• Su Ran collected a crystal book about basic arcane energy shaping and found the staircase to the third floor.
• Su Ran entered the Ancient Language Corridor and discovered three incomplete Dragon Language reference texts and thirty core runes to decipher.

Su Ran deciphered all thirty core Dragon Language runes and passed the Blackstone Tower trial, earning 108 experience points and a Silver Chest. After returning to the Iron Cross Guild and recovering from severe mental exhaustion, he woke the next day and checked the chest in his Personal Space.

• Su Ran used [Knowledge Insight] and the dictionary fragments to decipher thirty Dragon Language runes, exhausting his mental power along the way.
• Su Ran passed the Ancient Language Corridor test with a 100% contribution assessment and received 108 experience points and a Silver Chest.
• Su Ran returned to the wilderness outside [Blackstone Tower], then made his way to the Iron Cross Guild's temporary dormitory.
• Su Ran set up a warning spell, collapsed into bed, and slept through the night.
• Su Ran woke the next day with his mana restored and his mental power about seventy percent recovered, then turned his attention to the Silver Chest in his Personal Space.

Su Ran opened the Blackstone Tower silver treasure chest and found rare materials and a Draconic Spellcasting skill book. After learning the skill, he successfully strengthened an Energy Missile, leaving him with a way to increase his spell power.

• Su Ran opened the silver chest and obtained a Pure Sapphire and a Puppet Core (Fine).
• Su Ran opened the chest again and found another Pure Sapphire and a Draconic Spellcasting Skill Book (Rare).
• Su Ran met the book's requirements and used it to learn [Draconic Spellcasting (Beginner)].
• Su Ran tried embedding Draconic Runes into [Energy Missile], failing twice before making the rune resonate with the spell.
• Su Ran fired the enhanced Energy Missile and saw it strike the protected wall with visibly greater force.

Su Ran submitted all three knowledge records from the Blackstone Tower trial and earned an excellent evaluation for completing his first probationary task. The clerk offered him a War Instance Pass for a large-scale city defense battle, and Su Ran considered joining the next matchmaking round.

• Su Ran submitted the Golem Construction Diagram, Arcane Shaping insights, and Dragon Language Runes Basic Interpretation Report at the Iron Cross Guild headquarters.
• The clerk verified Su Ran's records, credited his contribution points, and confirmed that he had completed his first probationary task with an excellent evaluation.
• Su Ran asked about obtaining another Blackstone Tower pass, but the clerk explained that the guild had no passes in stock and that repeat entries were restricted.
• The clerk offered Su Ran a War Instance Pass for a City Wall Defense Battle, where a team of fifty would face at least six waves of Demon Beasts.
• Su Ran examined the pass and weighed the chance to gain battlefield experience and contribution points.