Chapter Summaries

Gu Xi learned that the train could not find the academy, which had vanished in time and space. After chasing a strange figure into the forest, he found a Burial Ground containing a single powerful corpse and faced a choice that might affect his admission to the academy.

• Gu Xi asked a Skeleton where the train was going, and it told him the academy had vanished and the Train Conductor could not find it.
• Gu Xi questioned adult students in other carriages, but none knew where the academy was or how to reach it.
• Gu Xi spotted a figure in the forest, left the train on the Evil Coffin, and pursued it.
• The figure disappeared, leaving Gu Xi surrounded by trees with no visible path back to the train.
• Gu Xi found that the ground was a Burial Ground created by one powerful corpse and considered whether to awaken it or return to the train.

Gu Xi encountered a Black Robe Skeleton who explained how the vanished Mysterious Academy offered him a chance to learn Leadership. The academy’s former departments and teachers had been scattered, leaving Gu Xi to choose between limited paths to study its skills.

• Gu Xi used a Soul Shard at the Burial Ground, awakening a Giant Skeleton and a Black Robe Skeleton.
• The Black Robe Skeleton asked Gu Xi what he wanted to learn, and Gu Xi chose Leadership.
• The Black Robe Skeleton explained that Mysterious Academy had once taught Logistics, Leadership, Pathfinding, and Luck before a war blasted it into a gap between time and space.
• Gu Xi realized his admission ticket had brought him to a teacher suited to his wish to learn Leadership as a Necromancer.
• The Black Robe Skeleton warned Gu Xi that learning Leadership from it would prevent him from learning from its sworn enemy on the train, but offered a route to Logistics afterward.

Gu Xi insisted on learning Leadership, and the Black Robe Skeleton explained that the academy’s treasures had been stolen and fused together. It gave Gu Xi a task to collect ten Skull Flowers as another way to learn Leadership, leaving him to study a map of the dangerous mountain region.

• Gu Xi rejected the Black Robe Skeleton’s other lessons and demanded a guarantee that he could learn Leadership.
• The Black Robe Skeleton described the academy’s four departments and explained that their original treasures, including the Crocodile Department’s Leadership-granting sword, had been stolen and consumed.
• The Black Robe Skeleton showed Gu Xi a peculiar herb and told him to collect ten Skull Flowers from a fractured valley to learn Leadership.
• At Gu Xi’s request, a Temporary Task appeared, and he accepted the task to collect ten Skull Flowers for Basic Leadership.
• The Black Robe Skeleton gave Gu Xi a map, retreated underground, and reminded him to use Summoning when he returned.
• Gu Xi handed the map to the Evil Coffin to analyze its routes and prioritized completing the Leadership task.

After leaving the Burial Ground, Gu Xi was attacked by Skeleton Horses in Princess's Forest and deployed undead troops to protect himself. His scouts found no other signs of life, and he discovered a strange collection of stone statues on a nearby mountaintop, leaving him wondering why the horses had attacked.

• Gu Xi sensed movement in the previously silent forest, destroyed trees with White Bone Storm, and fought off a herd of Skeleton Horses.
• Gu Xi summoned the Steel City Gate and arranged for Grand Princess Anna to send Corpse Poison Flies, Gargoyles, and White Bone Locusts to guard and scout.
• Gu Xi ordered the Gargoyles and White Bone Locusts to treat anything moving as an enemy while leaving the trees undamaged.
• Gu Xi left the forest and found weathered Stone Statues of students and children, including a Little Cat statue, arranged on a mountaintop.
• Gu Xi compared the site with his map and learned from his scouts that the area had no other signs of life, leaving the Skeleton Horses' sudden attack unexplained.

Gu Xi left the mountain to continue his mission to learn Leadership, but a Rotten Snake Monster attacked him on the way. His White Bone Locusts killed and devoured it, gaining stronger new members.

• Gu Xi saw a mechanical castle flying overhead before it vanished, then decided to ignore the academy departments’ schemes unless they interfered with his mission.
• As Gu Xi left the mountain, a Rotten Snake Monster approached from behind, and he used White Bone Storm to protect himself and send his White Bone Locusts against it.
• The enemy turned many of the White Bone Locusts to stone, but Gu Xi used Corpse Explosion on their fallen bodies and drove the monster back.
• Gu Xi ordered his troops to attack without regard for losses, and the White Bone Locusts killed the Level 9 Rotten Snake Monster.
• The White Bone Locusts devoured the monster completely, and several new members emerged with sharper teeth and stronger attributes.

Gu Xi followed the Vanishing Wisdom catalyst through the Princess's Forest and found a colossal fallen tree surrounded by sleeping creatures. He used Summoning on the tree, which answered with a sluggish voice.

• Gu Xi left the mountain of petrified people and rode the Evil Coffin into the Princess's Forest, intent on reaching the valley and finding the Skull Flower.
• The Special Coin on Gu Xi's wrist heated up, and dried weeds flew from his backpack, leading him toward a possible Wisdom Tree.
• Gu Xi ordered the Evil Coffin to follow the weeds as long as they stayed near his route, then began to grow drowsy along the way.
• The Special Coin heated up again, and Gu Xi woke to find a huge moss-covered fallen tree surrounded by humans and animals with faint breaths.
• Gu Xi covered his nose against the suspected hypnotic powder and used Summoning on the tree, which told him to stop and move more slowly.

Gu Xi met Madam Sha, the academy’s librarian, inside a fragment of her memories and learned that she could improve his skills in exchange for three items from the mountains. He chose to have all his skills below level 4 upgraded at random, then left with the folded clues to find the items.

• A face grew from the fallen Wisdom Tree, and Gu Xi was drawn into a dream of the academy library.
• Madam Sha explained that the academy had vanished, and warned Gu Xi that reading any book in her memory would trap him until he finished them all.
• Madam Sha offered to raise one Class Skill to level 4 or randomly improve all of Gu Xi’s skills below level 4, including Passive Skills.
• Gu Xi chose the random upgrade, and Madam Sha gave him three folded sheets describing items to find in the mountains.
• Madam Sha warned Gu Xi not to read the sheets inside the dream, and Gu Xi said he would be cautious because he had been affected by mental abilities before.

Gu Xi reached the valley where the Skull Flowers grew and discovered a powerful undead armored figure carrying them. After the figure turned away, the Earthbound Weird Dragon attacked, provoking it into a battle.

• Gu Xi gave the Gargoyles descriptions of three quest items and ordered them to report any sightings.
• Gu Xi traveled to the Skull Flower valley and found it veiled in gray mist and the stench of decay.
• A massive red-armored undead emerged from the valley, and Gu Xi recognized the skulls hanging from its armor as Skull Flowers.
• The armored figure turned back toward the valley, but the Earthbound Weird Dragon attacked it with a stream of water.
• The armored figure retaliated with a Full Power Strike, which the Earthbound Weird Dragon's Water Flow Clone took head-on.

Gu Xi and the Earthbound Weird Dragon fought a powerful armor that reflected attacks and seemed almost impervious to damage. Gu Xi suspected the armor was not its true body and blocked its escape, but its axe strike showed the danger it posed to his forces.

• The armor's axe strike rebounded from the Earthbound Weird Dragon and dented the armor itself.
• Gu Xi tested the armor with Magic Arrows and White Bone Storm while the Earthbound Weird Dragon used Water Flow Dragon Breath, but the armor resisted or reflected their attacks.
• Gu Xi suspected the armor's true body was hidden in the valley and ordered the Gargoyles to fly back there.
• The armor tried to leave and pursue the Gargoyles, so Gu Xi moved the Steel City Gate in front of it to block its path.
• The armor struck at Gu Xi with an axe-light attack, which hit the Troop Stockade City Gate and shook it hard.

Gu Xi exploited the giant armor’s weak joints to send crows, rats, and insects inside, weakening it until the Earthbound Weird Dragon tore off its helmet. The helmet concealed semi-solidified Death Aura, which the Death Avatar began absorbing to grow internal organs, and Gu Xi prepared to harvest more as the armor fell.

• The Scarecrow Hunters sent crows through gaps in the giant armor’s joints, revealing that it was vulnerable from within.
• Gu Xi ordered the Undead Eye Musicians, White Bone Locusts, and Corpse Poison Flies to attack inside the armor, while forbidding the locusts from devouring everything.
• The Corpse Poison Flies weakened the armor, and the rats and locusts made it drop its Battle Axe and thrash around.
• The Earthbound Weird Dragon bound the armor and used Water Flow Dragon Breath to blast off its helmet, revealing semi-solidified Death Aura.
• Gu Xi released the copper-boned Death Avatar, which absorbed the Death Aura and began forming lungs beneath its ribs.
• The giant armor collapsed, and the Death Avatar tore off its breastplate to inhale more Death Aura as a voice sounded beside Gu Xi.

Gu Xi defeated the Death Intent Giant Armor, collected its remains and Skull Flowers, and explored the valley after the Gargoyles reported finding something. He discovered a Longsword beside a corpse-filled pool and wondered whether it was the sword mentioned by the Black Robe Skeleton.

• Gu Xi sent his undead to search the valley, then had the Ghost Squads collect the Death Intent Giant Armor's fragments while the undead devoured the remaining Death Aura.
• Gu Xi collected ten Skull Flowers for the mission and ordered the other skulls and materials sent to the Dock Warehouse for Kane to study.
• The Gargoyles returned and reported that valuable items lay deeper in the valley, so Gu Xi left the Ghost Squad behind and rode the Evil Coffin there.
• Gu Xi found a dark green pool and spotted a Longsword embedded behind it, which he suspected might be the sword the Black Robe Skeleton had mentioned.
• Gu Xi decided to pull out the Longsword and inspect it.

Gu Xi investigated a contaminated pool, was injured by the Darnathres Sword, and discovered a petrified mage beneath it. After the Death Avatar absorbed the pool’s power, Gu Xi ordered Zombies to dig up the sword and corpse and carry them to Aryadovi City.

• Gu Xi sent the Death Avatar into the pool, where it absorbed the dark green substance and grew stronger.
• When Gu Xi tried to pull out the Darnathres Sword, it severed his palm, which he had reattached in the Medical Tent.
• Gu Xi found the Death Avatar had cleared the pool and noticed the Darnathres Sword was embedded above a petrified male mage holding a short staff and a bell.
• Gu Xi concluded the sword had been suppressing the corpse and that the Death Intent Giant Armor may have served the mage.
• Gu Xi summoned Zombies led by Number 063 and ordered them to dig up the sword and corpse to bring back to Aryadovi City.

Gu Xi collected the quest item and nearby resources, then rode the Evil Coffin back toward Black Robe Skeleton. After reaching the burial site, he summoned Black Robe Skeleton, who began emerging from underground.

• Zombie Head 063 and the Zombies pried a huge stone slab from the ground and hauled it, along with the Longsword, back to Aryadovi City.
• Gu Xi sent Skeletons and the Ghost Squad into Princess's Forest to gather Death Aura herbs and other resources.
• Gu Xi ordered the Evil Coffin to move at top speed, but it flung him onto the Medical Tent crate and carried him on a rough, fast journey.
• After recovering near Black Robe Skeleton, Gu Xi rode the Evil Coffin at a manageable pace to the burial site.
• Gu Xi cast Summoning, and a massive arm emerged from underground as Black Robe Skeleton began to crawl out.

Gu Xi completed the Black Robe Skeleton’s task and learned Leadership, but he remained wary of the skill’s warning about choosing an irreversible path. He left to pursue the Death Edict, while the Black Robe Skeleton prepared to retrieve Professor Matt’s corpse and the Soul Control Bell.

• Gu Xi delivered ten Skull Flowers to the Black Robe Skeleton and refused to learn Leadership by pressing a skull against his forehead.
• The Black Robe Skeleton confirmed the completed task, and Gu Xi learned Leadership Level 1 and read its warning about an irreversible path choice.
• Gu Xi said he would stay away from the train and focus on learning Leadership’s branch skills before pursuing the Death Edict.
• The Black Robe Skeleton warned Gu Xi that the train’s occupant was his arch-enemy and pointed him toward the Bat Department to learn Pathfinding.
• After Gu Xi left, a Skeleton Behemoth arrived, and the Black Robe Skeleton ordered it to retrieve Professor Matt’s corpse and the Soul Control Bell.

Gu Xi traveled to a quiet forest to use his skill stones, preparing defenses and food before beginning. After Shaya brought him news from Aryadovi City, Gu Xi crushed a skill stone and was offered three Leadership skills, including Diplomacy.

• Gu Xi headed east to the mountain range’s outer edge and found a quiet forest after more than three hours of travel.
• Gu Xi set up a fire and three City Gates for protection, then received a roasted owl and water from Aryadovi City.
• Shaya joined Gu Xi and explained that Dimi had attacked Aryadovi City, Grand Princess Anna was overseeing the defense, and Luna was upgrading the Sword of Courage.
• Gu Xi brewed tea with Golden Cake and crushed a skill stone, which offered him Diplomacy, Curse of Death Intent, and Morale Balance.

Gu Xi chose Recruitment and secured Death Edict, completing his goal and deciding he could take the remaining tasks at his own pace. After Shaya went scouting, she returned with a winged skull that revealed someone was watching them.

• Gu Xi chose Recruitment from a set of Leadership skills, then selected Death Edict from the next set.
• A phantom Skeleton in a black robe blew a horn as Gu Xi gained Death Edict, and Gu Xi celebrated completing his goal.
• Gu Xi rested while Shaya went to scout and gather information.
• Shaya rushed back and showed Gu Xi a winged skull with bloodshot eyes, warning him that someone had their eyes on them.

Shaya cleared the surveillance around Gu Xi’s camp, then went to a hidden market to gather information about the vanished Mysterious Academy. She traded Soul Shards for the Witch’s offer to share what she knew, and the Witch prepared to begin with what everyone knew.

• Gu Xi crushed a Skeleton Head monitor and told an Undead Headman to leave, while Shaya brought him another identical monitor.
• Gu Xi decided to ignore the conflict around the Mysterious Academy as long as it did not interfere with his mission, and Shaya removed the remaining monitors.
• Shaya left camp to seek information and followed a hidden route through Princess's Forest to a bustling black-market alley.
• A Witch warned Shaya that the market’s goods were fake and that buying them could leave her trapped there.
• Shaya offered the Witch ineffective Soul Shards in exchange for information about the Mysterious Academy, and the Witch agreed to share what everyone knew.

Gu Xi learned more about Mysterious Academy from Shaya while traveling to complete his mission. He decided to learn the skills he needed and leave without getting involved in the Department Heads’ struggle for authority.

• Gu Xi woke after three hours of sleep, sent most of his Undead Army back to Aryadovi City, and set out with selected forces to complete the mission.
• Shaya caught up with Gu Xi and explained that the surrounding space was the original grounds of Mysterious Academy, whose professors and Department Heads had been protecting its students in different ways.
• Shaya told Gu Xi that his earlier ambush likely came from the Forbidden Forest Guardian’s moving inner world, and described other inner worlds that protected students.
• Shaya reported that the three remaining Department Heads sought to gather the academy’s scattered authority and rebuild it, making them wary of one another.
• Gu Xi decided to complete the mission, learn the skills, and leave without taking sides in the Department Heads’ conflict.

Gu Xi’s disappearance of the Death Intent Giant Armor and Soul Control Bell sparked a battle between the academy’s forces and the Black Robe Skeleton’s Skeleton Behemoth. After Madam Sha’s death caused his mission to fail, Gu Xi continued toward the mission item’s location, while the Black Robe Skeleton realized Gu Xi had taken the bell and sought a way to recover it.

• The Skeleton Behemoth found the pool empty and fled, drawing the academy’s forces toward it.
• The academy’s forces attacked the Skeleton Behemoth to seize the Soul Control Bell, triggering a battle across the mountains.
• Gu Xi sent Shaya to investigate the fighting, then learned that Madam Sha had died and his Vanishing Wisdom mission had failed.
• Gu Xi decided to continue to the location Madam Sha had specified in case he could still obtain the mission item.
• The Black Robe Skeleton learned the Soul Control Bell was gone, concluded Gu Xi had taken it, and wondered how to make him return it.

Gu Xi attacked Mad Willow Forest with ranged undead forces rather than risking a direct assault against the mad willows’ anti-undead branches. As his troops pushed into the grove and encountered an enormous mad willow, he also kept the Flame Rats from reaching his archers and considered how to counter small enemies in future battles.

• Gu Xi arrived at Mad Willow Forest, where he had planned to search for the Fire Rat King’s Fang, and decided instead to attack the grove.
• Gu Xi summoned the Troop Stockade City Gate and ordered his ranged and Magic Units to attack the mad willows from a safe distance.
• Gu Xi’s archers and spellcasters attacked the forest layer by layer while the mad willows’ stationary branches could not reach them.
• The Undead Eye Musicians’ Rotten Skin Rats clashed with the Flame Rats, so Gu Xi deployed Corpse Poison Flies, White Bone Locusts, crows, and backup Skeleton squads to protect his ranged troops.
• Gu Xi’s forces advanced into the inner forest, where an enormous mad willow appeared before him.