Chapter Summaries

Qin Chuan moved the explosive ice block away from the underground cavern, where its blast wiped out forces on the icefield. After surviving the shockwave, the players heard the Lord of Frost announce that it would break free and attack them, prompting them to prepare for a fight.

• With the flames nearing detonation, Qin Chuan lifted the ice block and carried it through Mirror's Teleportation Gate to a location five kilometers south of the opening.
• Song Ling and the others raised their defenses as the explosion's shockwave shook the underground cavern and shattered Song Ling's barrier.
• The blast destroyed the Radiant Glory Guild players who had gathered on the icefield and also wiped out the returning Church troops and Beastfolk soldiers.
• Qin Chuan warned the group that the Lord of Frost might still fight them, and the Lord of Frost declared that Ragnaros's flame power was gone and it would regain its freedom.
• Season Star and Song Ling urged the group to kill the Lord of Frost, while Tiga Lingyu suggested that Song Ling become the Lord of Frost instead.

Qin Chuan led the group toward Lord of Frost’s hidden lair, planning for Song Ling to inherit its ice power. Lord of Frost summoned Ice Elemental Creatures and two Legend-grade Ice Giants, but Qin Chuan swiftly destroyed the giants, leaving Lord of Frost terrified of his Shadow Power.

• Qin Chuan found a hidden passage and explained that Song Ling, whose talent was tied to ice, should take Lord of Frost’s power instead of completing her rescue quest.
• Lord of Frost summoned Ice Elemental Creatures to attack the group, and Qin Chuan cleared a path while Season Star blasted open the marked ice wall.
• The group crossed into a space where black Shadow Power mingled with the cold, and Lord of Frost sent two level-eighty Legend-grade Ice Giants against them.
• Qin Chuan battered the Ice Giants with Shadow Prison Kill, then finished them with another barrage of skills.
• Lord of Frost sensed Shadow Power from Qin Chuan and feared that its defeat was now inevitable.

Lord of Frost panicked after discovering that Qin Chuan wielded Shadow Power, while Qin Chuan and his party advanced through the sealed area after defeating two Legend-grade Ice Giants. Qin Chuan called out Lord of Frost’s weakness, leaving the confrontation poised to continue.

• Lord of Frost realized Qin Chuan had mastered Shadow Power and worried that his weakened, sealed state left him unable to survive the approaching threat.
• Qin Chuan and the Apex Guild members gained levels from defeating two Legend-grade Ice Giants, and guildmates reacted to their rapid progress in chat.
• Qin Chuan collected the bosses’ drops, distributed attribute points, and led the party through a blasted passage toward Lord of Frost.
• Qin Chuan challenged Lord of Frost to reveal his Legend-grade underlings, and Lord of Frost claimed that letting the party advance was part of his plan.
• Qin Chuan argued that Lord of Frost’s failure to attack exposed his weakness, reasoning that Shadow Power had likely eroded him while he remained sealed.

Qin Chuan and his companions blasted and navigated through Lord of Frost’s underground defenses until they reached a vast chamber and discovered where the sealed being was hidden. The chapter left them facing Lord of Frost’s half-body inside the stone platform, while a chained mass of cold air remained above it.

• Qin Chuan led the group through the ice walls, using his Void-Piercing Eye to find the passages while Lord of Frost’s Ice Elementals offered little resistance.
• Evergreen and Season Star teased the silent Lord of Frost, and Season Star explained that her Spatial Folding skill let her carry enough materials to craft thousands of grenades.
• The group discussed Qin Chuan’s rapid growth as Season Star repeatedly blasted through the increasingly sturdy ice walls.
• Qin Chuan stopped the group when they reached a vast underground chamber containing a high stone platform and a chained mass of cold air.
• Season Star suspected Lord of Frost was sealed inside the platform, and Qin Chuan looked through the stone to find Lord of Frost’s incomplete ice body within.

Qin Chuan and Song Ling entered the platform to confront the Lord of Frost, whose remnant body was bound by Shadow Power. The Lord tried to possess them, but Qin Chuan revealed that their apparent bodies were decoys and trapped the icy mist in shadows.

• Season Star wanted to destroy the platform, but Tiga Lingyu and Night Cherry Tangle persuaded her to assess the danger first.
• Qin Chuan saw that Shadow Power had bound the Lord of Frost and ordered Song Ling to enter with him while Mirror prepared an escape route for the others.
• The Shadow Dragon told Qin Chuan that the Shadow Power nearby was accelerating its advancement.
• Qin Chuan and Song Ling broke through the platform's stone door and reached the Lord of Frost's remnant body without encountering resistance.
• The Lord of Frost sent icy mist to possess Qin Chuan and Song Ling, but their bodies became shadows as decoys appeared beside them.
• Qin Chuan explained that he had used Shadow Veil after exploiting a moment when Shadow Power disrupted the Lord of Frost's mind.

Qin Chuan and Song Ling worked with a mysterious shadow-affiliated man to defeat the Lord of Frost and claim its Origin Essence. The man revealed that the essence had split into three crystals, and Qin Chuan declared that the three of them would each take one.

• Qin Chuan entered the platform with Song Ling, and the mysterious man used black chains to help trap the Lord of Frost in Qin Chuan’s Shadow Veil.
• The Lord of Frost tried to self-destruct, but the mysterious man suppressed it and transformed its remnant body into golden cold air.
• The mysterious man warned Qin Chuan that Song Ling could not safely absorb the Origin Essence yet, then criticized Qin Chuan’s unfair split with Death Bringer.
• The mysterious man explained that the Lord of Frost’s Origin Essence had divided into three portions, which he formed into three crystals.
• Qin Chuan raised his own and Song Ling’s hands to make the vote two to one, deciding that each of the three people would take a crystal.

After the Lord of Frost’s death, Qin Chuan sent Song Ling and the others to safety before following the mysterious man through the Black Gate. The Far North Icefield collapsed, ruining the Beast God Cult and Church forces’ plans, and Rakshasa Madblood approached Sanzaburo with a proposal based on Qin Chuan’s absence.

• Qin Chuan gave Song Ling a golden Ice Origin Shard and ordered her to complete its long quest chain while the sealing space began to collapse.
• Song Ling returned to Season Star, Mirror, and Night Cherry Tangle, and they used Mirror’s Teleportation Gate to escape to Beli City.
• The mysterious man led Qin Chuan to a Black Gate, where chains dragged him inside before the gate vanished.
• The Far North Icefield transformed in a massive collapse, swallowing the approaching forces and sending nearby players to the Respawn Point.
• Radiant Glory Guild players discovered their quests were invalid, and Sanzaburo lamented the losses from their failed operation.
• Rakshasa Madblood told Sanzaburo that the Apex people had returned to Beli City without Night Roaming God and hinted that it meant an opportunity.

Rakshasa Madblood persuaded Radiant Glory Guild to use a Guild Challenge Contract against Apex while Night Roaming God was away. The challenge was announced to all players, and Apex gathered in Beli City as the ten-minute countdown began.

• Rakshasa Madblood explained to Sanzaburo that Night Roaming God remained on the Far North Icefield and proposed challenging Apex with a Guild Challenge Contract.
• After Rakshasa One-Slash warned him not to oppose Apex, Rakshasa Madblood offered the contract to Sanzaburo, who contacted Yamashita Gun God for approval.
• Yamashita Gun God approved the challenge and set a twenty-million budget, and Sanzaburo bought the contract from Rakshasa Madblood.
• Radiant Glory Guild recruited reserve members and secretly initiated a challenge against Apex, triggering a ten-minute countdown and a system-wide announcement.
• Players flooded the forums with speculation about the challenge, while Apex members gathered in Beli City to discuss their response.

With Night Roaming God absent, Apex prepared to defend against Radiant Glory Guild’s sudden war declaration. Night Cherry Tangle retrieved the dragon egg Night Roaming God had left with Idith, who said it was about to hatch.

• Dawn and the other Apex members discussed how to defend the guild, while Night Cherry Tangle revealed that Night Roaming God had instructed him to visit Idith if trouble arose.
• Night Cherry Tangle went to the Black Market tavern and called for Idith, who had him brought upstairs.
• Idith demanded proof of Night Cherry Tangle’s identity, and he identified the item Night Roaming God had left as a dragon egg.
• Night Cherry Tangle urged Idith to hand over the egg before the guild war began, and she agreed to take him to it because it was about to hatch.
• Song Ling asked for ice-element materials to cast her large-scale spell, and Tiga Lingyu took her to buy them while the other members prepared for battle.

With Qin Chuan absent, Apex prepared to fight Radiant Glory in Beli City while Night Cherry Tangle went with Idith to claim the dragon egg and Dragonkin Contract. After learning the gift might let him raise a powerful Flame Dragon, Night Cherry Tangle resolved to accept it and prove himself as Apex's vice president.

• Apex chose southern Beli City as the guild battle location, and Season Star planned to use the Destroyer while the others exploited their knowledge of the city.
• Idith led Night Cherry Tangle through an underground passage to an old shop and explained that Swand had left the dragon egg and its hatching materials for him.
• Night Cherry Tangle saw the blazing dragon egg and learned that he needed the Dragonkin Contract to subdue the dragon after it hatched.
• Idith guessed that Night Cherry Tangle's Radiant Knight class could unlock Dragon Knight and help the Flame Dragon mutate beyond its bloodline limits.
• Night Cherry Tangle remembered doubting his worth as vice president, then resolved to take the dragon egg and live up to Qin Chuan's expectations.

As the guild war between Radiant Glory Guild and Apex began, Apex prepared to fight despite Night Roaming God’s absence and Night Cherry Tangle’s unexplained failure to appear. Season Star split Apex into teams to attack from several positions, and Yamashita Gun God sent Radiant Glory Guild’s five hundred players charging.

• Night Cherry Tangle accepted the dragon egg and picked up the Dragonkin Contract while players and rival guilds gathered in Beli City for the war.
• Dragon Soaring World threatened to hunt Radiant Glory Guild members, Tiga Lingyu offered rewards for killing them, and Rakshasa One-Slash praised Rakshasa Madblood’s role in starting the conflict.
• The guild war began, and onlookers saw Radiant Glory Guild field five hundred players while Apex sent only a dozen or so, with Night Cherry Tangle missing.
• Season Star divided Apex into teams and assigned them to the Black Market, the city, and a positional fight outside the city.
• Yamashita Gun God mocked Apex’s split forces and ordered Radiant Glory Guild to charge.

Season Star and Apex used the Destroyer to devastate Radiant Glory Guild, while Apex’s scattered teams also picked off enemies across the city. Yamashita Gun God deployed the defensive Guardian to restrain the Destroyer, but Tiga Lingyu’s arrival left Radiant Glory Guild nearing defeat with no Apex casualties.

• Yamashita Gun God sent teams to hunt Apex’s scattered members and ordered the main force to attack the Destroyer.
• Season Star fired the Destroyer’s cannons at Radiant Glory Guild’s attackers, while Double Seventh and the others bombed players approaching its legs.
• Yamashita Gun God learned that Apex’s other teams were defeating Radiant Glory Guild across the city and ordered the Guardian activated.
• The Guardian blocked the Destroyer’s full cannon barrage as Radiant Glory Guild players swarmed its legs.
• Tiga Lingyu, Mirror, and their allies arrived and wiped out nearly a hundred Radiant Glory Guild players, bringing the score to 0:457 with no Apex casualties.

Dawn, Oblivion, and Yada Yada harassed Radiant Glory Guild across the Black Market while Apex’s main force fought a costly battle against Guardian and the guild’s troops. As Apex’s advantage faded and spectators predicted defeat, a flash of teleportation signaled that someone had joined the guild battle.

• Dawn, Oblivion, and Yada Yada used stealth and shared enemy coordinates to scatter Radiant Glory Guild’s regiment in the Black Market.
• Sword Master in the Snow, Star of Heaven, and Senior Brother En-En hid inside a house, and Star of Heaven sent Suicide Robots after the Radiant Glory Guild players.
• Yamashita Gun God heard from Sanzaburo that Apex’s ammunition and Destroyer’s energy were running low, and he ordered the guild to intensify its attack.
• Song Ling froze Radiant Glory Guild’s charging force with Endless Freeze, allowing Season Star to damage Guardian and push the score to 0:2271.
• Tiga Lingyu and Ultimate Is Fun attacked the Radiant Glory Guild’s Respawn Point before the counterattack forced them to retreat.
• As the battle reached a stalemate and spectators doubted Apex could win without Night Roaming God, a flash of teleportation light marked a new arrival.

Night Cherry Tangle returned to the guild war riding the Flame Dragon Igneel, revealing that he had become a Dragon Knight. He began slaughtering Radiant Glory Guild players at their Respawn Point, while Season Star asked him to join the fight against the Guardian next.

• Onlookers mistook Night Cherry Tangle's arrival for Night Roaming God's return, then recognized him as Apex's vice president.
• Night Cherry Tangle arrived riding the crimson Flame Dragon Igneel, stunning the watching guild presidents and Apex members.
• Night Cherry Tangle revealed that he had the Dragon Knight class and shared Igneel's powerful level-one attributes with his teammates.
• Night Cherry Tangle flew Igneel over Radiant Glory Guild's players and killed them with Flame Dragon Breath and Rain of Fire, blocking their Respawn Point.
• Season Star asked Night Cherry Tangle to finish killing the Radiant Glory Guild players and then help take down the Guardian.

Night Cherry Tangle and the Flame Dragon helped Season Star destroy Radiant Glory Guild’s Guardian, securing Apex’s victory and Radiant Glory Guild’s forced disbandment. Qin Chuan received notice of the win while trapped in darkness, where a mysterious voice told him to find his way out.

• Yamashita Gun God and Sanzaburo blamed Rakshasa One-Slash and Rakshasa Madblood for leading them into the guild war.
• Night Cherry Tangle’s Flame Dragon wiped out Radiant Glory Guild players at their Respawn Point, pushing the score to 0:5177.
• Night Cherry Tangle and Season Star attacked the Guardian together, with the Flame Dragon breaking its shield and melting its arm while the Destroyer damaged its armor.
• Season Star and Night Cherry Tangle agreed to block the Respawn Point and hunt down the remaining Radiant Glory Guild players.
• Apex won the guild war, while Radiant Glory Guild was disbanded and Yamashita Gun God’s character was deleted.
• Qin Chuan received notice of Apex’s victory, then heard the mysterious person tell him to find a way out of the darkness.

Qin Chuan entered a pitch-black Shadow Power trial where sight and ordinary perception failed, then followed the mysterious person's advice to sense his surroundings. After absorbing knowledge from the statue-like figures and greatly strengthening his perception, he discovered the mysterious person was a woman.

• The mysterious person warned Qin Chuan that he would remain trapped until death if he could not find a way out, while Qin Chuan joked with her about turning on the lights.
• Qin Chuan closed his eyes and used his Shadow Assassin senses to perceive dozens of immense figures resembling the damaged statues from the Darkmoon Mountains.
• Qin Chuan realized that walking toward the figures did not bring him closer and suspected the trial was distorting his perception and time.
• Qin Chuan focused on the figures' shadows and received a series of insights, including that Dark Hunting made enemies fall into fear and that shadows persisted as long as light remained.
• After the final figure vanished, Qin Chuan sensed the mysterious person and used his perception to see beneath her cloak, discovering she was a woman.
• The mysterious person reacted sharply when she realized Qin Chuan was looking at her.

Qin Chuan escaped the dark chamber and explored the ruined Night Lady's Temple, where he learned about Night Lady and found a relic that upgraded his Shadow Veil to Holy Domain. The mysterious figure announced that the temple's trial was about to begin.

• Qin Chuan found the exit beneath his feet, broke through the glass-like dome, and used his shadow to avoid the blade traps below.
• The mysterious figure identified the ruins as Night Lady's Temple and said Night Lady had fallen asleep and her voice had vanished from the world.
• Qin Chuan questioned why the mysterious figure remained active while the Shadow Gods were dormant, and she answered that it was part of the plan.
• Qin Chuan examined the temple's paintings and learned that Night Lady had fought gods from other worlds, Abyssal Demon Gods, and other creatures.
• Qin Chuan found a Night Crystal on the bookshelves and used it to advance Shadow Veil to Holy Domain.
• The mysterious figure told Qin Chuan to prepare because the trial in the temple was about to begin.

Qin Chuan entered a trial set in Beli City and freed Alesha from execution by bringing on nightfall, after which she slaughtered the crowd. Alesha blamed the Church for burning people as heretics, and Qin Chuan suspected she might be the Night Lady.

• Qin Chuan fell through the temple floor and landed in a deserted medieval-style city where translucent figures gathered for an execution.
• Qin Chuan watched Church members whip Alesha and prepare to burn her, then used a Shadow Flying Dagger to cut down the torch.
• Alesha asked Qin Chuan whether night had fallen, so he activated Shadow Veil and plunged the city into darkness.
• Alesha broke free and killed the crowd with black ribbons before thanking Qin Chuan and naming the city as Beli City.
• Alesha said the Church had been burning people it judged to be heretics, and Qin Chuan wondered whether she was the Night Lady.

Qin Chuan joined Alesha in a trial vision set in Beli City thousands of years before the game's timeline and learned that the Church hunted people connected to shadows. Outside the city, he met children afflicted with the Black Death and discovered that Alesha was infected by a strange power unlike Shadow Power or the Night Lady's.

• Qin Chuan called himself Shadow, and Alesha warned him not to mention shadows on Church territory because the Church had burned suspected heretics after an alleged Divine Oracle.
• Alesha led Qin Chuan through the sewers and out of Beli City, where he realized the vision took place at least five thousand years before the game's timeline.
• Alesha brought Qin Chuan to a group of orphaned children whose skin bore marks of the Black Death, and Qin Chuan gave them food.
• The children thanked Qin Chuan by calling him Uncle, and Alesha sent them to eat while she spoke with him.
• Alesha showed Qin Chuan the spreading Black Death on her arm, and he sensed a strange power that was neither Shadow Power nor the Night Lady's.
• When Alesha asked whether the marks looked ugly, Qin Chuan bluntly agreed, and she felt better that he had not offered her pity.

Qin Chuan and Alesha fought off Black Monsters, and Qin Chuan discovered that Shadow Power could destroy them completely. Alesha asked him to teach her, but he admitted he did not know how to master the power; afterward, he waited to learn what Night Lady wanted to tell him.

• Alesha explained that Black Death victims became grotesque monsters and that fire was the only known way to destroy them completely.
• Black Monsters attacked the valley, so Alesha sent Leon and the other children to hide and prepared to fight using the Black Death's power.
• Qin Chuan killed the monsters with a flying knife, and Shadow Power erased them so they could not revive.
• Alesha asked Qin Chuan to accept her as his disciple, but he said he did not know how to teach her Shadow Power.
• Alesha buried the corpses, brought the children back, and offered to keep watch while Qin Chuan considered the trial and awaited Night Lady's message.