Chapter Summaries

Junot arrived at Black Fortress hoping to reunite with his family, but first encountered his grandson Caesar and learned that he needed Roland’s forgiveness. When Junot finally met Roland, Roland sensed Junot’s Legendary strength and a connection to the Immortal Blazing Phoenix, while the phoenix Annie demanded to eat the fire dragon bonded to Caesar.

• Junot entered Black Fortress with Monk, but Dylan Fikernando warned Caesar that Junot had abandoned his family and drove Caesar away from him.
• Junot admitted to himself that he had failed Caesar as a grandfather, and Monk escorted him to Roland after comforting him.
• Roland punished Monk with thirty strokes for secretly contacting Junot, then received Junot with formal politeness.
• Roland sensed that Junot had reached the Legendary realm and asked Cassius whether he could identify Junot’s connection to the Immortal Blazing Phoenix.
• Annie urged Junot to let her eat the fire dragon within Caesar, but Junot refused and promised to catch her three dragons instead.

Roland confronted Junot over his wish to see Gweniel and ultimately accepted Junot’s offer to bring the Solomon Family into his service. After Junot left, Roland celebrated his growing strength while considering precautions against the Hidden Valley Clan.

• Junot asked Roland when Gweniel would arrive, but Roland refused to let him see her and rebuked him for interfering in family matters.
• Junot offered to lead the Solomon Family out of the Terra Kingdom and support Roland in exchange for a chance to see Gweniel.
• Roland asked Junot to pledge loyalty, and Junot agreed to become the guardian of Roland’s throne for Gweniel’s sake.
• Junot asked to teach Caesar, Ares, and Eve, and Roland agreed if the children wished while warning him not to disturb Gweniel if she refused to meet him.
• After Junot left, Roland considered the gains from the Solomon Family and Hidden Valley Clan and resolved to prepare contingencies against the latter.

Gweniel arrived at Double Gate Island after decades apart from Roland and reunited with him as his mother. She met Roland’s wife and children, then rejected Junot and asked Roland to take her to her lodgings.

• Jarvis told Gweniel stories about Roland’s suffering and rise to power as their fleet approached Double Gate Island.
• Roland personally welcomed Gweniel at the harbor, where she rushed into his arms and they acknowledged each other as mother and son.
• Roland introduced Gweniel to Elizabeth and their children, Caesar, Ares, and Eve, and Gweniel gave the children gifts.
• Junot approached Gweniel, but she apologized for their past relationship and told him not to disturb their lives.
• Gweniel asked Roland to show her where she would be staying, leaving Junot alone and overwhelmed with sorrow.

After Junot left Double Gate Island, Roland completed his breakthrough to Level 18 Saint Domain Mage. Nuwa warned that reaching Legendary rank would remain extremely difficult without a Perfect Meditation Method, leaving Roland determined to find one.

• Salit and Sanita asked Roland to support the Hidden Valley Clan’s smuggling plans, and he promised to answer within three months.
• Roland persuaded Junot to stop pursuing Gweniel for now, accepted Junot’s Undying as protectors, and watched him return to the continent.
• Roland cultivated in Olivia Mage Tower and broke through to Level 18 Saint Domain Mage with Nuwa’s assistance.
• Nuwa estimated Roland would need ten years and eight months to reach the Mental Power threshold for Legendary rank, but gave him only a 2.3 percent chance of success without a Perfect Meditation Method.
• Roland learned Nuwa’s attempts to create a human Perfect Meditation Method had stalled, so he resolved to seek an existing method instead.

Roland began developing the Sea of Hope after discovering a safe passage through Thunder Island, and his forces found rich resources along the route. The route led to a super-giant island, but Dylan Fikernando’s report revealed that at least three Legendary lightning magical beasts guarded it.

• Felicia reported that a narrow passage through Thunder Island and a low-lightning sea route beyond it could be crossed safely, so Roland ordered Dylan Fikernando and Felicia to investigate further.
• Over the next half month, Dylan Fikernando and Felicia mapped an 1,800-li route to a super-giant island and discovered abundant rare resources along the way.
• O'Neal reported that three Dark Angel Brigades had transported six four-sail magic warships and thirty three-sail warships through Thunder Island to Gourd Island.
• Dylan Fikernando told Roland that a Level 20 Legendary Thunder Dragon had attacked him near the super-giant island and that he had sensed two more Legendary auras there.

Roland led a heavily armed expedition into the Sea of Hope, insisting on joining it despite his officers’ concerns and appointing Edwin to secure their retreat. In private, he asked Junot why his strength had grown so quickly, and Junot began revealing a secret from his childhood involving the Immortal Blazing Phoenix.

• Roland entered the Sea of Hope with Junot, Felicia, and a large force after discovering a safe passage through its deadly storms.
• O'Neal proposed establishing a forward base, but Roland ordered Edwin to lead a thousand mages and secure the exploration team's retreat while Roland continued onward.
• Junot followed Roland to the captain's cabin, where they discussed Junot giving up his title and seeking to reconcile with Gweniel.
• Roland asked Junot about his rapid growth in strength, and Junot began recounting what happened when he was ten and encountered the Immortal Blazing Phoenix.

Roland learned that Junot’s rapid rise to Legendary strength came from sharing a Nirvana Rebirth with Annie, an Immortal Blazing Phoenix who remained at Top Saint Domain. After Annie agreed to protect Roland in exchange for potions, the fleet reached a vast Thunderflare Stone island mine, and O'Neal led the expedition teams into the lightning-filled sea.

• Junot revealed that Annie’s Nirvana Rebirth had strengthened him, while Cassius and Annie clashed before Junot pulled her back into his body.
• Annie explained that Junot had absorbed too much of her energy during her rebirth and offered to protect Roland if he let her eat Cassius.
• Roland refused to sacrifice Cassius and offered Annie monthly Top Saint Domain potions to help her reach Legendary.
• Annie accepted Roland’s offer and promised him protection, while Roland considered the value and risks of connecting with the Immortal Blazing Phoenix clan.
• After five days of travel, the fleet reached an island rich in Thunderflare Stone, and Roland ordered O'Neal to begin the expedition.
• O'Neal divided the Saint Domain experts and their forces into ten heavily shielded groups, then led his team into the lightning-filled sea.

Roland sent ten groups through the passage into the Sea of Hope to mine Thunderstone, but over a hundred Thunder Beasts attacked them. After Roland and his top experts defeated the beasts, the group withdrew with a valuable haul, leaving Roland eager to exploit the Sea of Hope’s resources.

• O'Neal and the other Saint Domain experts protected the ten groups as they crossed the stormy sea and reached Thunderstone Island, where the workers mined rich deposits.
• Junot warned Roland that Thunder Beasts were approaching, and more than a hundred beasts attacked O'Neal’s groups with powerful lightning spells.
• Roland unleashed his dark domain, then Dylan Fikernando, Felicia, Ella, and the other top experts helped defeat the Thunder Beasts, though a few escaped badly injured.
• Roland ordered the ten groups to withdraw, and O'Neal reported that they had gathered 8,600 jin of raw Thunderstone and slain 93 Thunder Beasts.
• Roland celebrated the expedition’s valuable spoils and looked forward to using the Sea of Hope’s resources to grow his territory.

Roland's expedition gathered valuable thunder resources before reaching a volcano filled with rare fire treasures. As Cassius and Annie nearly fought over the riches, Felicia revealed that a powerful Lava Spirit guarded the island.

• Roland developed the Thunderstone Island mine, collected thunderstones and Thunder Beast remains worth over seventy million gold coins, and sent the haul back to Thunder Island.
• The expedition defeated Saint Domain Thunder Beasts and gathered Thunder Marrow and Lightning Vines as it traveled deeper into the Sea of Hope.
• Roland spotted a volcanic island rich in fire essence, flame flowers, flame coral, Blazing Flame Fruits, and Hearts of Flame.
• Cassius and Annie raced toward the volcano's treasures and began fighting until Dylan Fikernando and Roland stopped them.
• Felicia warned the expedition that a Half-step Legendary Lava Spirit guarded the volcano behind a Legendary-grade Fire Element Barrier.

Roland approved Felicia’s plan to freeze the volcano and kill the Lava Spirit, sending the expedition across the lightning-ravaged Sea of Hope. The force reached Volcano Island and broke through its barrier, where the awakened Lava Spirit rose from the crater to face them.

• Ella proposed that the Ice Winter Mage Regiment freeze the volcano so the Lava Spirit would lose access to its power, and Felicia offered to escort the regiment across the dangerous sea.
• Roland agreed to Felicia’s all-out plan, and the expedition prepared three magic warships carrying the Ice Winter Mage Regiment and sea demon priests.
• Felicia used the sea and the water mages’ Mana to shield the ships from relentless lightning and guide them safely to Volcano Island.
• Dylan Fikernando and Junot broke open the island’s Legendary-level Fire Element barrier, allowing the ships to enter.
• The Lava Spirit awakened and rose from the volcano as a towering Lava Giant, glaring at the intruders.

Dylan Fikernando and his allies attacked Hypnos to seize the treasures in his volcano, using Ella’s Ice Winter Mage Regiment to cut him off from its power. After Hypnos was overwhelmed and his protective barrier fell, he surrendered to avoid being killed.

• Hypnos threatened the intruders, but backed down when he saw Dylan Fikernando, Junot, and their powerful forces.
• Dylan Fikernando demanded Hypnos’s treasure in exchange for leaving, and Hypnos refused, starting the battle.
• Ella and more than three thousand Ice Element priests and mages froze the volcano, weakening Hypnos as Dylan Fikernando and the others attacked.
• Hypnos removed Volcano Island’s protective barrier, unleashing lightning that devastated the island’s resources.
• Dylan Fikernando and the experts shattered Hypnos’s lava body, and Hypnos surrendered when Dylan threatened to kill him.

After defeating Hypnos, Roland weighed the Lava Spirit’s value against the danger of leaving him uncontrolled and secured his submission with a promise of future advancement. Hypnos handed over a vast hoard of Fire Element treasures and agreed to supply more each year, while Roland arranged a Legendary-grade Law Contract Scroll to bind his loyalty.

• Dylan Fikernando brought the defeated Hypnos to Roland, while Annie and Cassius argued over whether they could devour him.
• Hypnos offered to cultivate magical volcanoes, persuading Roland that his ability could bring the territory valuable resources and places to cultivate.
• Roland ordered Alredo to fetch a Legendary-grade Law Contract Scroll after Dylan Fikernando and Junot explained they could not control Hypnos for long with their own restrictions.
• Hypnos returned with a hoard of Fire Element treasures worth an estimated three hundred million gold coins, which Roland stored in his Spatial Ring.
• Roland rejected Hypnos’s offer to provide another treasure hoard in thirty years and demanded annual deliveries worth at least one-tenth of the hoard, promising to help Hypnos advance to Legendary if he complied.

Roland reached the island and sent a team to locate its three Legendary Thunder Beasts, but the Thunder Dragon Casper attacked before they could depart. With Ella’s ice magic slowing Casper, Dylan Fikernando and Junot struck him together and left him gravely wounded.

• After waiting for Alredo to return and securing Hypnos with a Law Contract Scroll, Roland led the exploration team toward the island and abandoned further resource gathering.
• Roland ordered Dylan Fikernando, Junot, Felicia, Alredo, Minos, Kaylon, and Reese to investigate the island while he stayed with the fleet, protected by the Fire Dragon King Zarick’s scale.
• A massive construct awakened in a ruined palace and sensed the humans approaching.
• Casper flew into the passage and challenged Dylan Fikernando, prompting Roland to order the mages to attack.
• Ella and the Ice Winter Mage Regiment blanketed the battlefield with frost, slowing Casper so Dylan Fikernando and Junot could wound him severely.

Roland’s expedition faced Casper and Eric, two allied Legendary Thunder Beasts, until a Legendary War Puppet intervened and helped defeat Casper. The War Puppet then turned its expectant gaze toward Roland as his group cautiously surrounded it.

• Casper summoned Eric, and the two Thunder Beasts agreed to attack Roland’s retreating fleet together.
• As Casper and Eric’s lightning assault trapped the fleet, a Legendary War Puppet arrived and struck Casper.
• Eric abandoned Casper and fled into the sea after the War Puppet overwhelmed the Thunder Dragon.
• Roland ordered his allies to help the War Puppet kill Casper while staying alert for a possible attack from it.
• Dylan Fikernando, Junot, the Mage Corps, and the War Puppet killed Casper, then cautiously surrounded the excited puppet.

Roland learned that Puvela was a Level 20 Legendary War Puppet created by the vanished Allison Kingdom, and he offered to help it seek revenge against the beastkin. Puvela grew suspicious of Roland’s claims and questioned his identity, leaving their negotiations tense but with the barrier removed.

• Roland learned from Nuwa that the Allison Kingdom had once been a powerful human kingdom before the Beastkin Empire destroyed it.
• Puvela offered Roland high-level puppetcraft knowledge in exchange for help returning to the Allison Kingdom, then revealed that the kingdom had created it and was its mother.
• Roland told Puvela the kingdom had been destroyed thousands of years ago, prompting Puvela to grieve and vow to kill every beastkin.
• Roland offered to help Puvela avenge the Allison Kingdom, but Puvela doubted his titles and questioned whether he was a puppet controlled by other races.
• Roland ordered Ella to remove the barrier, and he discovered that Puvela’s body was covered in valuable star iron.

Roland won Puvela’s loyalty by promising to destroy the Beastkin Empire, gaining a Level 20 Legendary War Puppet and the Allison Kingdom’s puppetcraft knowledge. Puvela then recounted how a resource expedition into the Sea of Hope ended in disaster, leaving him stranded on the island with the Thunder Beasts.

• Roland lied about his noble origins and heroic past to earn Puvela’s trust, then invited him to help destroy the Beastkin Empire.
• Puvela rejected Roland’s offer to restore the Allison Kingdom but pledged his loyalty in exchange for the destruction of the Beastkin Empire.
• Roland welcomed Puvela, and the territory’s leaders celebrated gaining a powerful ally.
• Puvela explained that the Allison Kingdom had sent him with three princes and several hundred noble descendants into the Sea of Hope to gather resources during its war with the tiger race.
• Sea God Race forces drove the expedition deeper into the Sea of Hope, where Thunder Beasts destroyed the floating city and left Puvela severely injured.
• After recovering, Puvela remained bound to the ruined floating city by its limited energy supply, and Casper and Eric eventually took control of the island.

Roland and his companions learned more about Puvela and the mysterious sea passage before following him to the ruins of Sky City, the Allison Kingdom’s greatest floating city. Puvela revealed that the city had lost its ability to fly or fight, but its remains still promised enormous value.

• Artur asked why Puvela had not removed the Star Core and carried it away, and Roland assigned him to copy all 188 advanced materials textbooks.
• Dylan Fikernando asked Puvela about the sea passage, and Puvela said it had appeared only a few hundred years earlier after he sensed a human who never entered the island.
• Roland asked Puvela to show them the floating city, and more than a hundred people followed the group toward the island’s center.
• Puvela led Roland and the others through the lightning to a cave, where they discovered the ruined floating city called Sky City.
• Puvela explained that Sky City had once been powered by a Star Core and armed with powerful shields and Elemental Towers, but it could no longer fly or fight.

Roland agreed to help Puvela repair the damaged Sky City, though finding the experts and resources without exposing it would take time. Puvela then pledged loyalty to Roland and gave him the Allison Kingdom’s cultivation methods, floating-city blueprints, and War Puppet knowledge, leaving Roland’s kingdom with a vast increase in its foundations.

• Roland learned that repairing the Sky City required three master-level specialists, dozens of Transcendental Level professionals, and hundreds of millions of gold coins’ worth of rare resources.
• Roland promised to help Puvela repair the Sky City but said he needed time to avoid exposing it to rival powers.
• Puvela brought out three Perfect Cultivation Methods, floating-city construction techniques and blueprints, and a complete set of War Puppet knowledge.
• Roland admitted that his kingdom lacked Perfect Cultivation Methods and grandmaster-level Support Professions, then asked whether Puvela would still swear loyalty to him.
• After Roland reaffirmed his resolve to destroy the Beastkin Empire, Puvela gave him the treasures and asked to serve as the army’s vanguard against the Orcs.

Roland obtained the Primordial Fire God Meditation Method and learned the construction methods and costs for twelve types of floating cities. He left determined to help Puvela restore the ruined Sky City, while recognizing that building even a basic floating city was beyond his territory’s current abilities.

• Roland acquired the fire-element Primordial Fire God Meditation Method, while O'Neal received the earth- and water-element Perfect Breathing Techniques to keep for Mage Olivia.
• Felicia and Ella showed Roland books on floating city construction and golem studies, and Nuwa recorded the floating city designs.
• Nuwa revealed that the twelve designs were divided among Guardian, Conqueror, and Swiftwalker series, with the largest Conqueror III requiring enormous resources and powerful energy cores.
• Roland judged the ruined Sky City to be a top-tier Conqueror-class floating city and resolved to help Puvela restore it.
• Roland inspected the basic floating city designs and found that their expense, long construction times, and need for Grandmaster specialists made them impractical for his territory.

Roland explored puppet studies and learned that top-tier puppets were too costly to pursue, but Ella proposed using Thunderstone to make affordable Boulder Golems. The chapter ended with Roland ordering Ella to oversee research and production of the new Thunderstone-based design.

• Roland examined three Legendary War Puppets and found their costs and crafting requirements beyond his reach.
• Puvela recommended mid-level puppets and introduced the Boulder Golem as a versatile battlefield unit.
• Nuwa calculated that a Boulder Golem made with scarce obsidian would cost about 2.45 million gold coins, so Roland rejected the idea as too expensive.
• Ella proposed replacing obsidian with abundant Thunderstone, and Puvela agreed that the material could work.
• Nuwa calculated that Thunderstone-based Boulder Golems would cost about 120,000 gold coins each when the territory's supply was used.
• Roland ordered Ella to lead the research and development of Thunderstone-based Boulder Golems.