Chapter Summaries

Zhang Bo secretly received three Magic Items modified to open Teleportation Gates and prepared to smuggle them into Dhirim’s Castle Area for a coordinated assault. He returned to Dhirim as plans to expand the Town Area were being marked out, with the attack still set for that night.

• Zhang Bo met a Blue Star Human and collected his repaired Magic Crystal Ball, a Light Magic Item, and a Magic Item with Natural Aura, confirming that all three had been modified with Teleportation Gate magic.
• Zhang Bo entered a sparsely populated residential compound to conceal his movements and create an excuse for acquiring the Magic Items, then rested in an abandoned apartment.
• Zhang Bo planned to bring the three items into the Castle Area and use them to launch a surprise attack, while Zhang Caidong stirred up trouble and the Skeleton Legion attacked Dhirim at night.
• Zhang Bo returned to Dhirim and saw Manid and Human Soldiers marking out an expansion of the Town Area near the East City Gate.

Zhang Bo prepared to betray Dhirim with help from Green Leaf Group while concealing his intentions from its managers. He entered Shen Mu’s reception hall to report an urgent matter, leaving the plan undiscovered as Shen Mu studied a map of an expanded Dhirim.

• Zhang Bo decided the decisive battle would begin the following night, while Skeleton Soldiers and Wood Elf soldiers prepared to approach the Underground Tunnel and Teleportation Gate.
• Zhang Bo concluded that the High-Level Managers and Middle-Level Managers would remain loyal to Shen Mu, so he planned to keep them uninformed and stir things up without revealing his rebellion.
• A group of managers visited Zhang Bo after he returned to Dhirim, and he told them he had repaired his Magic Crystal Ball before leaving to meet Shen Mu.
• Zhang Bo presented two Backpacks containing precious magic items as his reason for requesting an urgent audience, and the Sacred Tree Knights escorted him inside.
• Zhang Bo entered the reception hall and found Shen Mu speaking with Manid over a map showing two new regions east and west of Dhirim.

Zhang Bo gave Shen Mu two special Magic Items that could strengthen the Tower of Light Torch and the Sacred White Oak Tree, then asked to study the Torch Tower’s power. Shen Mu granted him limited access to the Castle Area, while Zhang Bo secretly resolved to use what he learned in a planned attack with the Wood Elves.

• Zhang Bo presented Shen Mu with a broken white spear and a green branch, and the system confirmed that absorbing them would enhance the Tower of Light Torch and the Sacred White Oak Tree.
• Shen Mu praised Zhang Bo for giving up the Magic Items and asked what reward he wanted.
• Zhang Bo requested permission to visit the Torch Tower to study its Power of Light and improve his Spellcaster level.
• Shen Mu revealed that the Torch Tower also housed a group of Spiritual Realm mages, and Zhang Bo privately realized Dhirim had a powerful Mage Team.
• Shen Mu allowed Zhang Bo to enter the White Council Torch Tower for four hours each day, under escort and with no access to other parts of the Castle Area.

Shen Mu rewarded Zhang Bo with limited access to the Castle Area, unaware that Zhang Bo was scheming with Green Leaf Group against him. As Zhang Bo entered, he spotted a rare Magic Plant in Shen Mu’s castle courtyard and was stunned by the strength of Shen Mu’s holdings.

• Shen Mu trusted Zhang Bo and granted him permission to enter the Castle Area four times a day and spend up to four hours in the Tower of Light Torch.
• The Sacred Tree Knight escorted Zhang Bo past the Lake Rats Destroyers, whose mutual hostility with the knights caught Zhang Bo’s attention.
• At the Tower of Light Torch, Zhang Bo sensed powerful magic in the library and learned that the Mage Team was based there.
• Zhang Bo sensed a natural fluctuation, looked toward the Castle Main Building, and recognized a rare Magic Plant in the Castle Courtyard.

Zhang Bo toured Shen Mu’s Castle Area and was astonished by its magical resources, then met Jeremus and the mages in the Tower of Light Torch library. As they prepared to exchange magical knowledge, Zhang Bo began considering how he might recruit the human mages as his Followers.

• Zhang Bo was shocked by the Castle Area’s Mage Tower, Mage Team, and Magic Plants, while the Sacred Tree Knight reminded him to continue to the library.
• Zhang Bo considered how the Sacred Tree Knights and Lake Rats Destroyers might clash if Shen Mu were killed, then followed a Lake Rats Destroyer to meet Jeremus.
• Zhang Bo felt the Tower of Light Torch’s powerful Light Energy and discovered that the library’s Magic Scrolls and dense Magic Fluctuations might help him advance.
• Jeremus welcomed Zhang Bo to study and exchange magic knowledge with the ten young mages, and Zhang Bo offered to share his Divination Mage legacy.
• Zhang Bo began wishing he could form closer ties with the human mages and make them his Followers.

Zhang Bo met Jeremus and the Edengard Pious Ones in the Torch Tower and explained the eight mage schools from his Spiritual Realm inheritance. The group learned that they were Evocation Mages, while Jeremus sought to learn Zhang Bo’s spell knowledge and Zhang Bo considered making the mages his Followers.

• Jeremus welcomed Zhang Bo to sit with the Edengard Pious Ones and provided him with study supplies.
• Zhang Bo asked about their mage school, and Jeremus explained that they were ordinary apprentices studying to maintain the Torch Tower’s light against the Necromantic Rules.
• At Jeremus’s request, Zhang Bo described the mage schools and their specialties, including why Necromancy School mages became undead.
• The Edengard Pious Ones recognized their Sun Flame Ray as an Evocation spell, and Zhang Bo agreed that they were Evocation Mages.
• Jeremus asked Zhang Bo to explain his spells, hoping to gain Spiritual Realm knowledge, while Zhang Bo considered recruiting the Human Mages as Followers.

After spending four hours teaching Jeremus and the Edengard Pious Ones about Spiritual Realm magic, Zhang Bo left the Castle Area. He decided to delay the attack on Dhirim by two or three days so he could win the young Human Mages’ allegiance and use them to strengthen himself.

• Zhang Bo shared his knowledge of Spiritual Realm spells with Jeremus and the Edengard Pious Ones, who praised his teachings and hoped to study with him longer.
• When Zhang Bo’s four-hour library limit expired, he left the Castle Area after agreeing to return the next day.
• Zhang Bo decided to postpone the Grand Plan so he could form Soul Contracts with the Human Mages before they returned to the astral realm.
• At the Castle Area’s raised bridge, Zhang Bo observed Dhirim’s defenses and water supply and judged that the Skeleton Legion could not threaten the fortress directly.
• Zhang Bo headed for the safe house without stopping to eat, intending to find an excuse to delay the attack for several days.

Zhang Bo persuaded Zhang Song to delay the Grand Plan, claiming he needed time to convince Shen Mu to move the magic items into Dhirim’s Castle Area. After Zhang Bo revealed a magic plant there, the Wood Elves demanded to report it to their Great Elder, leaving Zhang Bo responsible for the plan while Zhang Song escorted them away.

• Zhang Song challenged Zhang Bo’s request to postpone the Grand Plan, and Zhang Bo said he wanted to persuade Shen Mu to move the magic items into the Castle Area.
• A Wood Elf questioned Zhang Bo after hearing him mention magic plants, and Zhang Bo described the plant and the strong Natural Aura he had sensed in Dhirim.
• Zhang Bo showed the Wood Elves his City Defense Layout Map and pointed out the magic plant in the castle’s central courtyard.
• The Wood Elves agreed that postponing the Grand Plan was acceptable and asked to report the discovery to their Great Elder.
• Zhang Song agreed to take the Wood Elves to the Wood Elf Village and report to General Manager Yang, while telling Zhang Bo to manage the plan and persuade Shen Mu to move the magic items.

Shen Mu learned that analyzing two magic items had doubled the Tower of White Torch of the Holy Light Council’s coverage and would accelerate the Sacred White Oak Tree’s growth. After Liu Na reported the tree’s benefits and her own progress with the Druid Legacy, Shen Mu told her to keep watch over it.

• The Mount & Blade System reported that the Tower of White Torch of the Holy Light Council would cover a radius of 2 kilometers and that the Sacred White Oak Tree would grow rapidly, drawing support from the Sacred Tree Knight Order.
• Shen Mu decided the expanded holy-light coverage would let Dhirim reclaim more farmland and considered using a terrain-modification orb to clear nearby ruined buildings.
• Shen Mu ate breakfast and received Liu Na, who reported that the Sacred White Oak Tree had gained more Power of Nature and could reach one meter in height within a week.
• Liu Na explained that the tree’s growing Natural Aura would improve water, strengthen Dhirim’s residents, and accelerate plant growth.
• Shen Mu told Liu Na to monitor the tree, and she left to care for it with a hundred Sacred Tree Rangers.

Shen Mu invested twenty Blue Star Humans as squad leaders, strengthening their Rule Power and faith in him. He then agreed to consider Zhang Bo’s request to become a Spiritual Realm Commander and build closer ties with the mages, though he had no suitable Spellcaster template to offer yet.

• Shen Mu transformed twenty Blue Star Humans into Swadian Recruits, granting them the status and Rule Power of Spiritual Realm Commanders.
• The newly invested humans celebrated their strength and grew from False Believers into Shallow Believers before leaving to join the leveling teams.
• Shen Mu asked Zhang Bo about his exchanges with the mages in the Torch Tower, and Zhang Bo said they had been fruitful.
• Zhang Bo asked to earn Shen Mu’s approval to form a closer bond with the Spiritual Realm mages as their commander and gain them as Followers.
• Shen Mu agreed to give Zhang Bo an opportunity, but privately recognized he lacked an appropriate Edengard Spellcaster template and would need to research how to obtain one.

Zhang Bo prepared to use his Magic Crystal Ball and growing rapport with the Human Mages to advance his plan to bring down Dhirim and secure new Soul Contracts. He arrived at the Torch Tower library and began teaching the mages about Spiritual Realm Magic Fluctuations.

• Zhang Bo arranged a five o'clock meal with Zhang Caidong to discuss something special, then returned to his Town House for his Magic Crystal Ball.
• Zhang Bo considered replacing his goblin Followers with Human Mages, whose Soul Contracts could give him human Magic Talent and help him gain power in the future.
• Zhang Bo ate lunch, rested, and entered the heavily guarded Castle Area on his way to the Torch Tower library.
• Jeremus and the Edengard Pious Ones enthusiastically welcomed Zhang Bo at the library.
• Zhang Bo showed the mages his Magic Crystal Ball and offered to explain the Spiritual Realm Magic Fluctuations it contained.

Zhang Bo taught the Edengard Pious Ones about Spiritual Realm magic and left his Magic Crystal Ball in their library. After testing the Castle Area’s rules by deliberately overstaying, he escaped punishment and decided not to risk being late again.

• Zhang Bo finished his four-hour lecture, earning the respect and gratitude of Jeremus and the Edengard Pious Ones.
• Jeremus urged Zhang Bo to leave before the Lake Rats Destroyers punished him for overstaying.
• Zhang Bo left his Magic Crystal Ball in the library, claiming the mages could examine it but warning them not to use it.
• The Lake Rats Destroyers allowed Zhang Bo to leave after confirming he had spent his time teaching, and he hurried through the gate into the Town Area.
• Zhang Bo realized the Castle Area’s guards would kill him if he violated its rules and abandoned his plan to deliberately delay again.

Yang Di grew anxious as Zhang Bo delayed the Grand Plan, so Zhang Song met with Zhang Bo to press for a timetable. Zhang Bo promised the plan would succeed by the fifth day after he persuaded Shen Mu to move the magical items into Dhirim's Castle Area.

• Yang Di told Zhang Song to urge Zhang Bo to finish planning while prioritizing security, since the Wood Elf troops and the Black Arrow Tower Seventh Dynasty were waiting for the signal.
• Zhang Song led ten Wood Elf archers to the safe house near Dhirim and signaled Zhang Bo to meet him.
• Zhang Bo admitted he had not yet persuaded Shen Mu to move both magical items into the Castle Area, and explained that he was waiting to secure the Human Mages as Spiritual Realm Followers.
• Zhang Bo outlined an excuse involving research with the Human Mages and a divination warning that would draw Shen Mu into the Castle Area for the Decapitation Operation.
• Zhang Bo promised the plan would succeed by the fifth day, and Zhang Song returned to Yang Di with the timetable.

Zhang Bo brought twenty Blue Star Humans to Shen Mu to receive appointments as Spiritual Realm Commanders, strengthening his influence over them as part of his plan to cause trouble in Dhirim. After the appointments, Shen Mu praised Zhang Bo, offered him the chance to contract with the Mage Team, and agreed to send two magic items to the library for his lessons.

• Zhang Bo led twenty Blue Star Human Middle-Level Managers to the Noble Residence and waited for Shen Mu's permission to enter.
• Shen Mu approved all twenty appointments, transforming the Blue Star Humans into Swadian Recruits and assigning them two hundred Swadian Peasants as followers.
• Shen Mu praised Zhang Bo for his work at the Torch Tower and said the Mage Team was willing to become his followers after spending more time with him.
• Zhang Bo asked Shen Mu to send two magic items to the library so he could explain their Magic Structure to the mages, and Shen Mu agreed.
• Zhang Bo left the Noble Residence, satisfied that his plan had succeeded, and prepared to increase the mages' favorability toward the Blue Star Humans.

Zhang Bo fabricated a warning that Diesel Company Remnants had infiltrated Dhirim as Spiritual Realm Commanders and used it to recruit the managers into an investigation. The High-Level Managers seized on the claim as a chance to target Middle-Level Managers who resisted their control.

• Zhang Bo went to the management cafeteria, where Zhang Caidong and the managers questioned why he had come.
• Zhang Bo claimed Shen Mu had privately told him that Diesel Company Remnants were hiding among Dhirim’s managers and grassroots workers.
• The managers panicked at the possibility of spies, then felt relieved when Zhang Bo said none were among the High-Level Managers.
• Zhang Bo claimed the remnants had become Spiritual Realm Commanders with their own Spiritual Realm Followers and asked the managers to investigate.
• The High-Level Managers decided to scrutinize Middle-Level Managers who refused to obey them, smiling coldly at the prospect.

Zhang Bo cultivated ties with the Human Mages while hoping to benefit from Dhirim’s eventual collapse and Shen Mu’s death. In Dhirim, High-Level Managers pressed Zhang Caidong to authorize executions of Middle-Level Managers they resented, and he agreed to consider a limited response.

• Zhang Bo returned to the library and encouraged the Human Mages to ask him questions about the magical items.
• Zhang Bo planned to use his connections with the Human Mages to pursue Dhirim’s inheritance and potentially become the Blue Star World’s representative, while maintaining his loyalty to General Manager Yang.
• High-Level Managers urged Zhang Caidong to use the discovery of Diesel Company Remnants as a pretext to execute Middle-Level Managers they suspected or disliked.
• Zhang Caidong questioned their motives and warned that executing Spiritual Realm Commanders could challenge Shen Mu’s authority.
• The High-Level Managers softened their demands, and Zhang Caidong said he would consider selecting a few disobedient Middle-Level Managers as examples.

Zhang Caidong stopped the High-Level Managers from carrying out their plan to execute Middle-Level Managers, then arranged to discuss the growing conflict and the Diesel Company Remnants with Zhang Bo. Zhang Bo arrived at night, and the chapter ended as he noticed the feast and barrel of malt liquor Zhang Caidong had prepared.

• Zhang Caidong agreed to review a short list of Middle-Level Managers proposed for execution, while the High-Level Managers left without forcing him to approve their plan outright.
• Zhang Caidong reflected that Zhang Bo had empowered the Middle-Level Managers and Sun Zhiru to avoid appearing to centralize too much authority, and he worried that killing dozens of Spiritual Realm Commanders would bring Shen Mu's anger.
• Zhang Caidong suspected that Shen Mu was using Zhang Bo's divination abilities to identify Diesel Company Remnants and decided to ask Zhang Bo about the wider strategy.
• Zhang Caidong ordered generous dinners and malt liquor from the cafeteria and waited for Zhang Bo at his town residence.
• Zhang Bo arrived, saw the food and malt liquor, and exclaimed that he had not expected Zhang Caidong to get a whole barrel.

Zhang Bo warned Zhang Caidong that the High-Level Managers were preparing to purge the Middle-Level Managers and that Diesel Company Remnants might exploit the conflict. Zhang Bo proposed letting a limited clash unfold to expose the remnants, leaving Zhang Caidong to decide whether the plan made sense.

• Zhang Bo told Zhang Caidong to let the High-Level Managers investigate the Middle-Level Managers and keep himself out of the purge.
• Zhang Caidong explained that the High-Level Managers wanted mass executions, while he was trying to restrain them with procedures and review lists.
• Zhang Bo learned that Zhang Caidong could still command the High-Level Managers and asked him to let them fight without interference.
• Zhang Bo revealed that Lord Shen Mu did not know how many Diesel Company Remnants remained and warned that the Diesel Company had once summoned an Abyss Rift.
• Zhang Caidong said Xue Zhigang had told him about the Abyss Rift, and Zhang Bo realized he did not know it had been summoned through the Magic Crystal Ball.
• Zhang Bo proposed igniting a small-scale conflict and watching for people who stirred it up, and Zhang Caidong agreed that such people might be Diesel Company Remnants.

Zhang Bo reassured Zhang Caidong while secretly steering him into the conflict between Dhirim’s High-Level Managers and Middle-Level Managers. After leaving Zhang Caidong, Zhang Bo met with dozens of Middle-Level Managers who feared they were being targeted as Diesel Company Remnants.

• Zhang Caidong recalled Zhang Bo’s adoption and asked whether trouble was coming, but Zhang Bo concealed his suspicions and urged him to keep his chief administrator position while staying out of the purge.
• Zhang Bo left Zhang Caidong, who returned to his room and fell asleep, then went to a gathering place where seventy or eighty Middle-Level Managers were waiting for him.
• Zhang Bo told the Middle-Level Managers that he trusted them more than the other managers, and they described how High-Level Managers had interrogated and accused them of being Diesel Company Remnants.
• The Middle-Level Managers asked Zhang Bo to defend them, fearing the High-Level Managers would use the purge to punish them and force them to confess.

Zhang Bo used suspicions of Diesel Company Remnants to deepen the divide between the Middle-Level Managers and High-Level Managers. The Middle-Level Managers left determined to investigate their rivals, bringing the factions closer to open conflict.

• Zhang Bo reflected on how he had engineered the dispute between the managers to repeat the divisions that had helped bring down the Diesel Company.
• The High-Level Managers had tried to use a list of suspected remnants to weaken Zhang Caidong’s influence, while Zhang Caidong controlled the Middle-Level Managers through Zhang Bo.
• Zhang Bo told the Middle-Level Managers to investigate whether they and their counterparts were Diesel Company Remnants, then claimed the High-Level Managers’ protégés were more suspect because many had once been Temporary Workers.
• The Middle-Level Managers accepted Zhang Bo’s accusation and angrily vowed to investigate their rivals, despite his warning to act secretly and avoid a clash.