Chapter Summaries

Ian won the right to use a new laboratory after forging a top-tier elemental crystal, then took on a metal-purification project and delegated preliminary work on his project team's prototype. He entered Metatron's enormous dream through the Dream Abyss, where he opened his eyes in a blazing red world.

• Ian purified an elemental crystal to top-tier quality, impressing the Wizards and winning the new laboratory over Leo and Valentin.
• Ian explored the spacious laboratory with Xia, Finny, and Hayden, then discovered its equipment improved his alchemy speed and material quality.
• At a salon, Jonah offered Ian a long-term special-metal purification project, and Cameron acknowledged Ian's superiority at purification.
• Ian began refining the metals and assigned Hugo and the project team to improve a crude prototype for their foundational technology.
• Ian entered the Dream Abyss with White Fang and descended into Metatron's vast dream, arriving in a world of blazing red.

Ian entered Metatron’s dream and endured a disastrous attempt to climb a volcano, but he awakened Flame Rhythm and learned from Kieran that it could greatly strengthen his fire control and resource efficiency. After recovering, Ian found Farn waiting with alarming news: the Flame Demon had been destroyed.

• Ian entered Metatron’s dream as the young Firmament Tribe inheritor and failed to climb a volcano, then tried again and sensed the voice of fire before the dream ended.
• Ian gained the Second Ring skill Flame Rhythm and used a small fireball to demonstrate its enhanced power after leaving the Dream Abyss.
• Ian asked Kieran about Flame Rhythm, and Kieran explained its rarity and benefits before giving Ian a top-grade spiritual power restoration potion.
• Ian recovered in the Meditation Room, then emerged to find Farn reporting that the Flame Demon had been destroyed.

After learning the Academy was preparing for a decisive war, Ian chose to remain behind and continue his alchemy work. He returned to Veridian Forest, cleared the Emerald Shadow trials, and completed the Emerald Shadow Extraordinary Physique, upgrading his Four Symbols Sacred Body.

• Farn told Ian that the Crimson Eye's Flame Demon had been destroyed, and Ian learned the Academies were approaching a final war.
• Kieran warned his students that the decisive battle would begin within a month and said the Second Rings could be conscripted; Ian persuaded him to let him stay in the rear for his alchemy work.
• Ian left the Academy for Veridian Forest and cleared all fifty floors of the Illusion Tower trials.
• Ian entered the Flesh Furnace, studied the Emerald Shadow breakthrough method, and used the Vitality Spirit Spring and a blood and qi crystal to condense the physique.
• Ian completed the Emerald Shadow Extraordinary Physique and saw his Four Symbols Sacred Body rise to Top-tier Mid-grade quality.

Ian strengthened his physique, entered the Will Mountain trial, and returned to the Academy to train while searching for the condition to clear Metatron’s dream. Three years passed as war consumed the region, Ian advanced his work in the Alchemy Department, and he continued preparing for the dream’s volcanic summit.

• Ian discovered that his Four Symbols Sacred Body had fused with his Emerald Shadow Physique, increasing his recovery, burst power, and Elementalization duration.
• Ian reached the third level, Will Mountain, learned that its summit granted ownership of the secret realm, and climbed as high as the sixtieth step before leaving with resources.
• Ian returned to the Academy amid the Crimson Eye’s desperate counterattack, resumed his training, and asked Edith to find records about Metatron’s Flame Rhythm.
• Edith sent Ian an account of Metatron climbing a volcano, leading Ian to conclude that reaching its summit was the dream’s clearance condition.
• The war erupted as Elemental Mysteries’ leaders attacked the Crimson Eye stronghold, and Ian continued improving the Alchemy Department’s project while making another careful attempt at the dream.
• Three years passed as Ian continued his training and work in the Alchemy Department.

Three years later, Ian had risen to prominence in the Alchemy Department through relentless work and successful patents, while the war against Crimson Eye continued. As preparations for the final battle approached, Ian traded away Jonah’s position to Harvey in exchange for the resources he needed to advance to the middle stage of the Second Ring.

• Ulysses and Aston praised Ian’s achievements, including his accepted patents and reputation as one of the Alchemy Department’s leading beginner second-ring alchemists.
• Jonah began the salon meeting, and Ian defended Ulysses from Cameron’s mockery before Ulysses accepted a different assignment.
• The wizards discussed Crimson Eye’s weakening defenses and the coming final battle, which Ian saw as a chance to gather fire-affinity resources.
• Jonah told Ian and Harvey that he would advance to mid-stage second-ring alchemist and that someone would need to take over his position.
• Ian privately offered the position to Harvey in exchange for resources, then declined it so Harvey could take charge.
• Harvey promised to gather Ian’s needed resources, and Ian left the salon resolved to reach the middle stage of the Second Ring quickly.

Ian accelerated his alchemy project to meet a three-month deadline, borrowed Elemental Crystals from Derek, and advanced the Four Symbols Furnace to completion. After improving Flame Rhythm in Metaron’s dream, Ian found that dream-breaking Wizardry was beyond his current access and prepared for the coming ruling and advancement.

• Ian ordered Layton’s project team to finish its work within three months, offering triple pay, rewards, and extra help from the laboratory.
• Ian found his monthly Elemental Crystal quota exhausted, so he borrowed five grams from Derek and anticipated earning a merit medal for the project’s results.
• Ian used the crystals to accelerate the Four Symbols Furnace, then entered Metaron’s dream and raised Flame Rhythm proficiency to 180 before forcing his way out.
• Ian learned that Wizardry for breaking dreams was restricted to the library’s second floor, exchanged for the Flame Pillar spell, and continued preparing for advancement.
• Two months later, Ian’s Four Symbols Furnace reached 100% condensation, though the project remained unfinished.

Ian completed the Academy’s ore separation device, earning a War Merit, promotion to Senior Specialist, and a stronger partnership with the Iron Mountain Family. After gathering resources, he condensed the Four Symbols Wheel Veins and reached the mid-stage of the Second Ring.

• Ian helped Layton and Hugo finish the ore separation device, which produced materials at much higher purity than before.
• Ian demonstrated the device to Augusto, Anton Coleman, and Neil Carter, who approved the project after seeing it separate several ores cleanly.
• The Academy concluded Ian’s project, and the Iron Mountain Family upgraded him to a Level Three partner.
• At the departmental review, Darwin awarded Ian a War Merit and promoted him to Senior Specialist for the device’s verified improvements in ore separation.
• Ian received an increased monthly Elemental Crystal quota, gathered materials, and condensed the Four Symbols Wheel Veins.
• Ian broke through to the mid-stage of the Second Ring.

Ian advanced to the Mid Second Ring, assessed his strengthened abilities, and began seeking wind-element resources and approval for a new cultivation project. After the Academy rejected his proposal, Elena sent it to Simon, who summoned Ian.

• Ian reached the Mid Second Ring, gaining stronger mental power, a Four Symbols Wheel Veins network, greater elemental resistance, and the ability to automatically correct his Wizardry.
• Ian tested his new cultivation needs, found that maintaining basic cultivation now required six grams of Elemental Crystals monthly, and planned a trip to Wind Whisper Academy.
• Farn told Ian that the Iron Thorn had grown, and Derek reported that it could reach the Mid Second Ring within a few years and perhaps the Late Second Ring in decades.
• Ian visited Elena at Wind Whisper Academy, secured her offer of discounted wind-element resources, and proposed a new Meditation Room project using mental force frequency fields.
• The Academy rejected Ian's proposal after heated debate, but Elena forwarded it to Simon, who summoned Ian the next day.

Ian secured Simon’s approval for his Meditation Room project, improved his fire abilities in a dream, and raised the Four Symbols Furnace Chapter to Master Level. After advancing to the middle stage of the Second Circle, he reunited with Kieran’s students as they gathered to hear about the final war.

• Ian met Simon, who approved his Meditation Room project after Ian affirmed his confidence in improving the Academy’s technology.
• Simon told Ian that Crimson Eye’s Wizard Array would collapse soon, prompting Ian to plan to seek fire-element resources and knowledge there.
• Ian entered Metatron’s dream, raised Flame Rhythm to Proficiency, and found that the Furnace Chapter’s proficiency increased sharply afterward.
• Ian trained in seclusion for ten days and raised the Four Symbols Furnace Chapter to Master Level, gaining 2,000 talent points and fully integrating the furnace into his body.
• Ian joined Derek, Kilian, Flynn, and Cerys at the Castle, where they reacted to his advancement and welcomed him more warmly.
• Kieran arrived and gathered his students to warn them about the final war.

Ian joined the Four Symbols Academy’s force for the siege of Crimson Eye Wizard Academy, where the Winston Family plotted to kill him during the fighting. After days of attacks weakened Crimson Eye’s defensive array, it finally shattered, beginning the assault.

• Kieran assigned the three great warbands to the main siege and the five academies to blockades, placing Ian with the Four Symbols Academy’s eastern interception force.
• Cerys explained Crimson Eye’s defenses and warned Ian that its fire Wizards and underground lava rivers posed serious dangers.
• Ian traveled with the reinforcements to Crimson Eye and witnessed Dean Aaron’s attack damage the Academy’s defensive barrier.
• Jasper and Nash Winston recognized Ian as a threat to their faction and agreed to let hostile Wizards reach his position so he could be killed indirectly.
• Ian received a central defensive post near a magma river while the siege continued, and five days later Crimson Eye’s weakened Wizard Array shattered.

Ian intercepted fleeing Crimson Eye Wizards during the battle and gained a fortune in resources and valuable knowledge. Jasper and Nash of the Winston Family deliberately opened a gap to send a Mid Second Ring Wizard toward Ian, whose latest kill carried enough resources to nearly complete the first level of the Codex.

• Ian detected Ethan Lancaster and a First Ring Crimson Eye Wizard beneath the magma and killed them before taking their equipment and the Natural Concealment Method.
• Ian killed another fleeing Early Second Ring Wizard, then intercepted two more and took their Space Rings.
• Jasper and Nash opened a gap in the defensive line toward Ian, then Jasper allowed a Mid Second Ring Wizard through after Nash urged him to target Ian.
• Henry Ball recognized Ian and charged at him, but Ian’s flames disrupted Henry’s defensive Wizardry and killed him.
• Ian found Henry’s Space Ring stuffed with valuable resources and realized he had nearly enough to complete the first level of the Codex.

Ian recovered a hundred Elemental Crystals, helped the Academy capture several fleeing Crimson Eye Wizards, and reported that someone had let them escape. After the Crimson Wizard fell, Renard brought Ian into the Crimson Eye Academy, where the groups at its Library entrance were confronting each other.

• Ian found a hundred fire-aspected Elemental Crystals in a Wizard's storage bottle and realized they would help him complete the Four Symbols Furnace.
• Ian watched the battle between Three Rings Wizards and alerted the Storm Spear Warband when a mass of fleeing figures emerged underground.
• Renard identified the captured Wizard as Finn Donnelly, a deputy headmaster of the Crimson Eye, and discovered Ian had intercepted several other Second Ring Wizards.
• Ian told Renard that someone had apparently let the Wizards escape, and Renard promised to report it before inviting Ian to enter the Academy.
• The Crimson Wizard died, unleashing corrosive fiery rain and transforming the surrounding volcanic region; Ian and Renard proceeded toward the Crimson Eye Library.
• Renard offered Ian free access to choose knowledge from the Library, where they found two groups confronting each other at the entrance.

Ian fought Darian to decide which warband would enter the Library first and defeated him with overwhelming control of fire and mental power. The Flameheart Warband yielded the Library, and Ian entered with Renard’s group to search for knowledge.

• Renard and Liam disputed which warband had the right to explore the Library first, then agreed to settle the matter through a duel.
• Liam challenged Ian to fight Darian, reviving their old wager, and Ian accepted so the Storm Spear Warband could enter first.
• Darian unleashed a powerful fire shock wave, but Ian’s Smelting Hand swallowed it and overwhelmed Darian’s attacks.
• Ian struck Darian with Mental Power Impact and bound him in flames until Liam called the duel over.
• Darian admitted Ian deserved their old wager’s resources, and Liam conceded the Library to Renard’s group.
• Renard led Ian, Archer, and the others into the Library to search for its knowledge.

Ian broke into the Crimson Eye Library’s protected collection, gathered valuable Second Ring Wizardry and Alchemy knowledge, and discovered that the darkfire left by the Crimson Wizard could improve his Flame Rhythm. He reached the place where the Crimson Wizard had fallen and met a mysterious Late Second Ring Wizard named Jiabai Lawrence.

• Renard led Ian to the Library’s upper floors, where Ian broke the Wizard Array protecting the third-floor collection so the group could copy its knowledge.
• Ian found a hidden chamber in the Library containing Alchemy books, including knowledge about Alchemy Puppets, and thanked Renard for the chance to collect them.
• Renard urged Ian, whose strongest element was fire, to visit the place where the Crimson Wizard had fallen.
• Ian sensed that the darkfire around the Academy improved his Flame Rhythm, then collected resources from a hidden chamber and other places along his route to the Academy’s center.
• Ian reached the collapsed basin where darkfire still surged and learned from an approaching Wizard that traces of the Crimson Wizard’s fire essence remained there.
• The Wizard introduced himself to Ian as Jiabai Lawrence.

Ian met Jiabai Lawrence and learned that the Darkfire Pit held remnants of a Third Ring Wizard’s Darkfire Law Fragment. After the pit opened, Ian advanced far deeper into the flames than the other Second Ring Wizards, leaving Jiabai stunned as he began to comprehend the fire.

• Jiabai Lawrence introduced himself to Ian and explained that he and Quentin Sullivan had received the remaining White Stone Essence and trained under the Academy deans.
• Jiabai explained that the Crimson Wizard’s Darkfire Law Fragment had left its essence in the pit, where the gathered Wizards would soon be able to seek insight.
• Flameheart challenged Ian to fight, then settled for letting his Warband Wizards test him after Huo Yan pointed out Ian’s rank.
• Huo Yan and Flameheart opened the pit after its flames settled and warned the Wizards about the danger of Third Ring elemental corrosion.
• Ian entered the flames and walked well beyond the other Wizards, stopping deep in the dark crimson zone to sense the fire.
• Jiabai turned at the commotion and saw Ian among veteran Second Ring Wizards, seemingly unaffected by the flames.

Ian used the dark flames at Crimson Fire Pit to rapidly improve his Flame Rhythm while scavenging resources around Crimson Eye Wizard Academy. After defeating Alec in a one-hit challenge, he continued his routine until Flame Rhythm reached the Expert level half a month later.

• Ian endured the dark flames for hours, gaining proficiency in Flame Rhythm and drawing the attention of Huo Yan and Flameheart, who suspected he had comprehended it.
• Ian left the pit to recover and searched Crimson Eye Wizard Academy, collecting several hundred thousand resources before returning to the flames.
• Ian went deeper into the dark flames the next day, and Huo Yan became certain that Ian had comprehended Flame Rhythm.
• Darian pushed Alec to challenge Ian, and Ian accepted after Alec offered a fire-element resource as the prize.
• Ian formed the flames into a giant hand and knocked Alec unconscious with one strike, then confirmed to Gabriel that he had mastered Flame Rhythm.
• Over the next half month, Ian repeatedly trained in the flames and gathered resources until his Flame Rhythm reached the Expert level.

Ian advanced his Flame Rhythm to Expert Level and, during a resonance in the Crimson Fire Pit, mastered a rare form of Darkfire by absorbing fragments of its essence. Headmaster Aaron summoned him, and Ian left the pit with Gabriel to meet him.

• Gabriel grasped Flame Rhythm, but Ian's vastly greater fiery disturbance drew the Wizards' attention and revealed that Ian had entered resonance.
• Ian's Expert-Level Flame Rhythm let him read information in the flames, and his Darkfire Runes resonated with the Crimson Wizard's remains.
• With Principle Insight and Silver Star Sand, Ian absorbed Darkfire Law fragments and gained the ability to transform his mana into a special Darkfire.
• Huo Yan and Flameheart recognized Ian's talent, while Gabriel delivered Headmaster Aaron's summons and escorted Ian from the pit.
• Flameheart ordered his Wizards to help Ian if he ran into trouble, and Ian met Headmaster Aaron.

Ian learned that the Academy would prepare for a future Vein War by training elite Wizards, and he set a five-year goal of reaching Late Second Ring. After receiving Flame Wyvern blood and cultivating in Darkfire Pit, he secretly killed Nash Winston with Darkfire and returned to training.

• Aaron confirmed Ian had Morning Glow talent and praised his Flame Rhythm comprehension, while warning that several Gray Tower branches could fight over the elemental stone vein.
• Aaron announced the Elemental Child Program and told Ian he had five years to reach Late Second Ring to qualify as a Reserve Elemental Child.
• Aaron killed a Flame Wyvern in the lava lake and shared some of its blood with Ian and Gabriel.
• Ian cultivated in Darkfire Pit's black-red flame region, where Flame Rhythm advanced quickly as the Darkfire aura began to fade.
• Ian disguised himself, ambushed Nash Winston outside a Wizard Tower, and killed him with corrosive black flames.
• Ian returned to Darkfire Pit and resumed cultivating Flame Rhythm.

Ian continued mastering Darkfire, evaded the Winston Family’s attempt to detain him, and attended a resource exchange before the Darkfire Pit went out. He then ventured into a dangerous lava region and discovered a flame wyvern egg.

• Ian learned that Nash had died from Darkfire, and Jasper suspected Ian and tried to take him in for questioning.
• Ian refused to go without evidence, while Gabriel, Flameheart, and Huo Yan backed him and forced Jasper to withdraw.
• Cerys invited Ian to the Flameheart Warband’s exchange meeting, where he traded unwanted resources for materials and found a clue to a missing wizardry.
• After ten more days of cultivation, the Darkfire Pit’s flames vanished and Ian prepared to leave with the other wizards.
• Ian entered a deadly lava region beneath Flat-top Mountain and discovered an egg covered in glowing crimson patterns.

Ian returned to the Academy with a Flame Wyvern egg and blood essence, then used his connections and war record to secure a large wind-element resource site. Minister Darwin recognized Ian’s Flame Rhythm and alchemical skill, while the postwar assembly publicly commended him and awarded him substantial resources.

• Ian found a Flame Wyvern egg and blood essence in the hollow, then returned to the Academy after the war ended.
• Ian sought support from Academy contacts to obtain a wind-element resource territory, and Minister Darwin invited him to study alchemy each month after watching him forge a staff.
• At the postwar assembly, Aaron announced the Academy’s victory and awarded Ian one million contribution points and five war merits.
• Aaron praised Ian’s research, inventions, and battlefield achievements, then awarded him twenty units of Elemental Crystal, other resources, and a large Mid Second Ring wind-attributed resource site.
• Ian accepted the award, while Kieran showed pride and the Winston Family’s wizards looked on with hostility.