Chapter Summaries

Qin Chuan and Alesha defended the valley from repeated attacks by Black Monsters as Alesha’s Black Death worsened. During the second night’s battle, Shadow Power began entering Alesha, while Qin Chuan confronted a powerful new Black Monster and wondered about the creatures’ origins.

• Qin Chuan killed successive waves of Black Monsters through the night while Alesha resolved to become his student so she could protect the others.
• After dawn, Alesha thanked Qin Chuan, and he stayed in the valley rather than risk leaving her unguarded while the Church searched for them.
• When dusk came, Alesha warned Qin Chuan to free her if she lost control, and he agreed as they prepared for another attack.
• Qin Chuan killed the returning Black Monsters while Alesha buried them, and he sensed black mist from their bodies entering her as Shadow Power chose her.
• Qin Chuan protected Alesha from the Black Death’s influence and faced a giant bull-like Black Monster whose many faces attacked his mind.
• Qin Chuan resisted the creature’s mental assault and questioned where the Black Monsters came from and whether they had existed before.

Qin Chuan and Alesha used the burning ox monster to draw out and kill waves of Black Monsters through the night, while Qin Chuan considered the hidden history of Beli City and the threat surrounding Shadow Power. At dawn, Alesha’s Black Death flared up, and Qin Chuan transferred Shadow Power to her as she endured the painful struggle to suppress the infection.

• Qin Chuan killed the ox-shaped monster, and Alesha burned its corpse to attract nearby monsters despite her concern that the fire would bring too many.
• Qin Chuan and Alesha fought off successive waves of Black Monsters, with Qin Chuan using Shadow Flying Daggers and Corrosive Rain to kill nearly a thousand.
• Qin Chuan reflected that Beli City’s history may have been deliberately buried and that Night Lady’s message could concern a hidden past.
• As dawn came, the Black Monsters vanished into the darkness, and Alesha’s infected arm began hurting as Shadow Power clashed with the Black Death.
• Qin Chuan transferred his Shadow Power into Alesha, strengthening the force suppressing the infection, while Alesha chose to endure the pain rather than give up her chance at a cure.

Qin Chuan helped Alesha resist the Black Death and promised to hold off the Church while she escaped with Leon and the other children. After defeating the Church soldiers, he stayed behind to explore Beli City, while Alesha finally led the children onward at night, hoping to meet him again.

• Shadow Power and the Black Death reached a truce, and Alesha regained a little feeling in her arm as the affected area shrank.
• Alesha warned Qin Chuan that the Church might attack and asked him to take Leon and the children away; Qin Chuan insisted that he would stay behind while she led them out.
• When Church soldiers arrived, Qin Chuan told Alesha to follow their plan and leave with the children, then faced the soldiers alone.
• The priest demanded to know where Alesha and the infected children were, and Qin Chuan defeated the Church force after learning they intended to burn them as heretics.
• Qin Chuan used the shadow hidden in Alesha to remain connected to her and stayed behind to explore Beli City.
• Alesha and the children waited for Qin Chuan outside the valley, but as night fell and monsters howled, she led them toward the next safe point.

Qin Chuan entered Beli City from ten thousand years ago and discovered that its defenses had been weakened while the Church’s leadership and forces were infected with the Black Death. He concluded that the Gods had somehow failed to detect the bishop’s infection, leaving him to investigate what was happening.

• Qin Chuan learned from the militiamen that nobles and officers had sent soldiers away from Beli City to guard estates outside its walls.
• Qin Chuan entered the city and headed for the church after sensing a faint trace of the Black Death in the central district.
• Qin Chuan saw the infected bishop address a crowd of praying civilians and sensed that the bishop’s infection was worse than Alesha’s.
• Qin Chuan discovered that the priests and Templar Knights beside the bishop were also infected with the Black Death.
• Qin Chuan inferred that the Church had tried to burn infected civilians partly to hide its own condition, and that the Gods had not detected the bishop’s infection.

Qin Chuan discovered that the bishop was spreading Black Death and planned to turn Beli City’s believers into Black Monsters. After the bishop betrayed the Gods and unleashed the monsters, a divine statue emerged from the church to fight them, but the monsters’ black blood began weakening it.

• Qin Chuan sensed Black Monsters infiltrating Beli City while the bishop secretly spread Black Death among the gathered believers.
• The bishop revealed his betrayal, condemned the Gods, and transformed the believers into Black Monsters before ordering them to kill everyone in the city.
• A radiant divine statue emerged from the church and attacked the bishop and the monsters, while Qin Chuan watched and considered how to obtain its Divinity Power.
• The bishop remained calm as more monsters joined the battle, and Qin Chuan suspected he had another plan.
• The monsters’ exploding bodies splattered black blood over the statue, and its radiant glow began to dim.

Qin Chuan watched the bishop summon a colossal deity, which crippled the Divine Statue before vanishing. After the bishop transformed into a powerful Legend-grade boss, Qin Chuan ambushed and killed him, then destroyed the statue and trapped the Black Monsters.

• Qin Chuan waited as the Divine Statue fought off the Black Monsters, expecting the bishop to reveal another trump card.
• The bishop chanted and summoned a colossal divine phantom, whose presence weakened the statue and caused it to lose an arm and a leg.
• The phantom focused on the bishop, transforming him into a huge, powerful monster before dispersing.
• Qin Chuan struck the transformed bishop with a throwing knife and arrows, then finished him with more knives.
• Qin Chuan used a Void Sphere to imprison the statue and nearby Black Monsters, then shattered the statue and left its white light floating in the air.

Qin Chuan defeated the bishop and idol, purified the bishop’s remains into Void Essence, and found himself bound as the story entered its second phase. He watched Alesha rebuild Beli City and found a sect, which survived a Church siege after its attackers abruptly withdrew.

• Qin Chuan absorbed the idol’s Divinity Shard, wiped out the nearby Black Monsters, and used Shadow Power to purify the bishop’s flesh into Void Essence.
• An invisible force sealed Qin Chuan’s Shadow Stealth and Shadow Leap as the scene accelerated into the story’s second phase.
• Alesha arrived in Beli City with Leon and other wanderers, then led the settlement’s recovery and healed Black Death Infected with Shadow Power.
• Alesha established a sect in the name of the night, attracting followers as Beli City’s reputation spread.
• The Church forces besieged Beli City, but they suddenly withdrew before defeating Alesha and her followers.

Qin Chuan watched Alesha establish a sect in Beli City and lead its people through years of escalating conflict. After the Black Death erupted among the allied forces and infected soldiers turned into Black Monsters, the continent entered the Dark Age.

• Qin Chuan observed Alesha's followers generating Faith Power and suspected the Churches had withdrawn because the Black Death was spreading and rebellions were breaking out elsewhere.
• Over two years, Alesha rose to become a pontiff while refugees brought news of wars, Church defections, and military priests helping newly converted kingdoms conquer their neighbors.
• Alesha and Beli City's residents fortified the city, trained soldiers, and stockpiled supplies as the expanding conflict threatened to reach them.
• When war reached Beli City, Alesha shared Shadow Power with her followers, and seven of them became leaders who helped hold the city's defenses.
• After more than a year, the enemy retreated when an allied army killed the rebellious kingdom's king, but the Black Death then turned infected soldiers into Black Monsters and swept across the continent.

Qin Chuan watched Alesha become the Night Lady and lead thousands of followers away from Beli City to escape an allied force of Churches. Once he could move again, he tracked her Shadow Power to the sea and realized she had crossed it with her people.

• After the Black Monsters destroyed the allied army, Alesha and her seven followers defended Beli City during the Dark Age, and her growing faith brought her close to Demigodhood.
• The people began calling Alesha the Night Lady as she used Shadow Power to protect them from the monsters and gained more believers.
• More than a dozen Churches surrounded Beli City, so Alesha told its people she planned to leave and settle somewhere undisturbed.
• Over eight thousand believers followed Alesha, who enveloped the land in endless night and vanished with them before the Church army entered the empty city.
• Qin Chuan discovered he could move, sensed Alesha's location across the sea, and realized she had taken her followers overseas.

Qin Chuan found Alesha’s hidden message revealing that she was waiting on the Eternal Night Continent and speculated that concealed Shadow Gods had helped guide her there. As Night Lady’s trial ended, he found himself in space and realized the Eternal Night Continent occupied the permanently dark side of Apocalypse World.

• Qin Chuan found a Shadow Power-infused stone containing Alesha’s message that she was waiting for him on the Eternal Night Continent.
• Qin Chuan reasoned that Alesha and her eight thousand followers had reached the continent by an unknown route and wondered whether Shadow Gods were concealing it while waiting for an opportunity.
• Qin Chuan’s connection to Alesha faded as the trial ended, and he found himself in space facing a planet.
• Qin Chuan recognized the planet as Apocalypse World and identified its permanently dark half as the location of the Eternal Night Continent.

Qin Chuan learned that reaching Eternal Night Continent required traveling through the moon, then returned from Night Lady’s trial after three hours outside. He discovered that Scripps had advanced into a Level 70 Legend-grade Shadow Demon Dragon.

• Qin Chuan observed that the moon caused Apocalypse World’s day-night cycle and reasoned that he would need to reach the moon before entering Eternal Night World through the barrier around the Dark Side World.
• Qin Chuan returned to the present and learned from the mysterious person that the trial had taken three hours.
• Qin Chuan checked on his mount and discovered that Shadow Dragon had become the Level 70 Legend-grade Shadow Demon Dragon Scripps.
• Scripps celebrated its advancement, and Qin Chuan summoned it, admiring its immense power.

Qin Chuan learned that government-backed elite soldiers with S- and A-Tier talents were applying to join Apex Guild, and he ordered Night Cherry Tangle to recruit them. After Season Star obtained an Epic-grade Shadow Labyrinth Map, Qin Chuan organized a guild party to explore the Shadow Maze, hoping his Shadow Power might reveal something new there.

• Night Cherry Tangle told Qin Chuan that many players, including several S-Tier talent holders, had applied to join Apex Guild, and he recognized some applicants as members of Yan Country’s National Team.
• Qin Chuan suspected the authorities had received information about Apocalypse and instructed Night Cherry Tangle to recruit applicants with S- and A-Tier talents.
• Season Star showed Qin Chuan an Epic-grade Shadow Labyrinth Map, and Qin Chuan decided to gather in Beli City and explore the Shadow Maze.
• Qin Chuan invited guild members to join the expedition, and Mirror, Sword Master in the Snow, Dawn, Oblivion, and Tiga Lingyu responded.

Qin Chuan assembled the guild members in Beli City for their expedition into the Shadow Maze and reflected on his shop’s success and the coming Apocalypse Descent. After the full group gathered, they prepared to set off, with Song Ling newly strengthened by her gains in the Far North Icefield.

• Qin Chuan teleported to Beli City and checked his shop, which earned substantial income from ointments and equipment sales.
• Season Star, Dawn, Mirror, Sword Master in the Snow, Tiga Lingyu, Evergreen, Ultimate Is Fun, Oblivion, and Song Ling gathered at Qin Chuan’s shop for the Shadow Maze expedition.
• Dawn and Oblivion jokingly tried to become Qin Chuan’s godson, while Sword Master in the Snow searched for a uniform he thought Qin Chuan had mentioned.
• Tiga Lingyu asked Qin Chuan for a dragon egg, and he agreed to sell her one first if he obtained another.
• Song Ling thanked Qin Chuan for taking her to the Far North Icefield and showed signs of increased strength after absorbing part of the Lord of Frost’s Origin Essence.
• Season Star confirmed that everyone had arrived, and Qin Chuan led the group toward the Shadow Maze.

Qin Chuan and the Apex guild opened the Shadow Maze and fought through its monsters, while Qin Chuan sensed a connection between the maze and Shadow Power. The chapter ended when panicked NPCs appeared, warning that the cult leader had gone mad, and Qin Chuan recognized them as Hand of the Dead.

• Qin Chuan's group defeated the level forty Dark Gold Tier Boss, collected its key, and opened the Shadow Maze.
• Tiga Lingyu led the group through the maze while Evergreen buffed her and Sword Master in the Snow, and Qin Chuan sensed Shadow Power calling to him from deeper within.
• Song Ling's ice attack instantly killed a mist monster, revealing that her damage had tripled after absorbing Ice Origin.
• Song Ling froze a gigantic mist Boss, and the guild defeated it in under ten seconds before sorting its loot.
• A group of panicked NPCs ran into the party's path, warning that the cult leader had gone mad, and Qin Chuan recognized them as Hand of the Dead.

Qin Chuan and his party discovered that the Hand of the Dead had triggered a trap in the Shadow Maze, where a strange mist transformed cultists into monsters. They reached the labyrinth’s depths and found the cult leader turned into a level 70 Legend-grade BOSS, leaving Qin Chuan to investigate what had happened.

• Qin Chuan warned Season Star and the others to stay alert after hearing that the Hand of the Dead’s cult leader had gone mad and that the maze was a trap.
• Song Ling froze the rampaging cultists, but black-and-white mist seeped through the ice, consumed them, and formed humanoid monsters.
• Qin Chuan suspected the white streaks in the mist came from the God of Light, then led the party deeper into the maze as the monsters attacked and appeared to revive.
• Qin Chuan’s party reached the labyrinth’s depths and found the Hand of the Dead’s cult leader transformed into a grotesque level 70 Legend-grade BOSS.
• Qin Chuan told the others to find a safe place while he approached the BOSS to assess it and investigate the trap.

Qin Chuan bypassed the crazed Hand of the Dead Leader and entered the underground passages, where he confirmed that the God of Light had laid a trap. After his shadow was struck by light-attributed power, a mocking voice addressed him from the correct passage.

• Qin Chuan checked that Season Star and the others were safe, then used Shadow Stealth to circle around the Hand of the Dead Leader.
• Qin Chuan found a passage behind the BOSS and suspected the leader had become its guardian after triggering a trap while seeking a divine artifact.
• Qin Chuan sneaked past the BOSS and descended underground, where he felt that something had detected him despite his Shadow Stealth.
• Qin Chuan used Fate of Darkness to identify the second passage from the left as the route to follow, then sent his shadow ahead.
• An unseen attacker struck Qin Chuan's shadow with light-attributed power, and a voice from the passage mocked him as an insect hiding in the shadows.

Qin Chuan killed the creature guarding the underground passage, triggering a Twin-Winged Angel’s self-destruction, then escaped the blast after defeating a Legendary Tier BOSS. The passage collapsed, but Tiga Lingyu suspected something valuable remained underground, and Qin Chuan’s group prepared to investigate.

• Qin Chuan ignored the enemy’s taunts, entered the passage, and killed a dwarf holding an oil lamp with Corrosive Rain.
• The oil lamp summoned a Twin-Winged Angel, which unleashed a devastating self-destruction attack as Qin Chuan retreated.
• Qin Chuan defeated the Hand of the Dead Leader while fleeing the spreading shockwave and collected its loot and attribute points.
• Season Star and the others debated whether to help Qin Chuan, then saw him rush back and warned them to stay hidden before the shockwave hit.
• After the blast collapsed the passage, Tiga Lingyu pointed out that something important must be hidden underground, and Qin Chuan’s group considered exploring further.

Qin Chuan summoned his Legend-grade Shadow Demon Dragon to clear the collapsed underground passage, while Apex prepared to challenge Revival Battle Group, the new guild formed by Radiant Glory Guild’s former members. The dragon opened a path through the rubble with a single breath, and the group was ready to continue underground.

• Qin Chuan rejected the others’ suggestions and summoned his Shadow Demon Dragon to dig through the collapsed tunnel.
• Qin Chuan learned from Tiga Lingyu that Radiant Glory Guild’s players had joined Revival Battle Group under their former leader, Sanzaburo.
• Qin Chuan agreed to challenge Revival Battle Group and told Apex members to buy Guild Challenge Letters, promising reimbursement.
• Qin Chuan ordered the Shadow Demon Dragon to clear the rubble carefully, and its Dragon Breath turned the rocks to ash and opened a passage over thirty meters long.

Qin Chuan and his companions found the damaged Divine Artifact Moment of Utmost Darkness in an underground chamber and returned to Beli City with it. A new Fate Branch appeared, and an unknown voice encouraged Qin Chuan to forge a new path before Dragon Soaring World contacted him about a Guild Challenge Letter.

• Qin Chuan used Fate of Darkness and the Shadow Demon Dragon to guide the group through the underground passage to a protected chamber.
• Qin Chuan found a broken dagger in an old chest and recognized it as the damaged Divine Artifact Moment of Utmost Darkness.
• Qin Chuan took the dagger after his companions agreed, and Fate of Darkness announced that a new Fate Branch had emerged.
• As Qin Chuan left through Mirror's Teleportation Gate, an unknown voice called him a successor and wished him success in forging a new path.
• Back in Beli City, Qin Chuan distributed Legend-grade equipment from the Hand of the Dead Leader, and Dragon Soaring World messaged him about a Guild Challenge Letter.

Qin Chuan obtained a Guild Challenge Letter from Dragon Soaring World and prepared Apex for a guild war, bringing in fifteen elite new members. After completing the exchange, he revealed that Apex would challenge the rebuilt Radiant Glory Guild rather than Rakshasa Hall.

• Qin Chuan agreed to pay Dragon Soaring World two million for the Guild Challenge Letter and arranged to meet him in Beli City.
• Qin Chuan announced the coming guild war, and Apex members eagerly discussed their confidence and possible tactics.
• Qin Chuan approved Night Cherry Tangle's fifteen A-Tier or S-Tier recruits joining Apex before the war.
• Season Star and Tiga Lingyu welcomed the newcomers with jokes, and Qin Chuan told everyone to prepare for the guild war.
• Dragon Soaring World delivered the Guild Challenge Letter, and Qin Chuan told him Apex would fight the rebuilt Radiant Glory Guild.