Chapter Summaries

After three sleepless days copying forbidden books, Gu Xi rested and planned to train in a Lower World, where he could build his undead forces and practice new Summoning paths. He also realized he had neglected Death City for nearly a month and recalled Luna’s report about the Netherblue Knights.

• Gu Xi and his Death Wizards spent three days copying forbidden books, including four advancement paths for Summoning and several books for later study.
• Gu Xi learned that the guild let Level 5 players apply once a year to enter Lower Worlds, where Necromancers could gather corpses and build their undead armies.
• Gu Xi decided to focus on Lower World battles so he could strengthen his forces and practice creating Liches, Vampires, undead insects, and Abominations.
• Gu Xi realized he had not contacted Luna for nearly a month, after she reported that the Netherblue Temple had transformed weakened Ghost Soldiers into more than a thousand Level 8 Netherblue Knights.
• Gu Xi rejected Amirka’s wish to abandon his Crimson Knights and join the Netherblue Knights, then had Luna make the Netherblue Knights her Guard Unit.

After finishing his studies, Gu Xi fell asleep and left Luna to report on Aryadovi City’s recent developments. Luna reviewed the city’s integration and ongoing redesign, along with the growth of its tavern, market, and supply network, and noted Dimi’s rising power on Yellow Springs Road.

• Gu Xi asked Luna to organize news about Aryadovi City before he slept and prepared to leave for a new world the next day.
• Luna reviewed how she had connected the Main District and New District through the dock, Carriage Station, sewers, and Summoning Towers.
• Luna planned to reorganize the original district around administration and core forces, move Training Camps into specialized areas of the New District, and eventually create a separate Logistics District.
• The tavern reached Level 3 after its chefs moved to the Flesh Kitchen, and Shaya began visiting it to gather intelligence.
• Luna noted that the Carriage Station had moved into the city to anchor a Market District that received weekly supplies from Blood Sacrifice Ridge.
• Luna reported that Dimi had become a regional power on Yellow Springs Road and might cleanse what was attached to her ahead of schedule.

Gu Xi applied to enter a Level 4 Lower World and became interested in a mysterious world whose inhabitants seemed to change each time players entered. He agreed to take it on just as it was about to leave the guild’s capture range.

• Gu Xi woke after sleeping until the following night, then left his balcony and headed for the Teleportation Gate Plaza.
• Gu Xi told the gate official he was a new Level 7 player applying for a Lower World.
• The official explained that the available Level 4 world had appeared to be a Swarm world, a kobold world, and an advanced Goblin world to different players.
• The official said previous players had failed to gain worthwhile benefits, and no one had investigated the world in depth.
• Gu Xi grew curious and asked the official to send him into the strange world.

Gu Xi entered a desert world and used Mind Kill to reveal enemies hiding across the wasteland. He raised a Summoning Tower to make the battlefield his home field and prepare to prevent the enemies from escaping.

• Gu Xi arrived in a desert world and summoned two Death Avatars using virtual mana.
• He used the Death Avatars' black mist to survey the empty wasteland and realized the enemies were hiding from him.
• Gu Xi unleashed Mind Kill across a range of more than ten kilometers and ordered Death Avatar-Death God to watch for signs of death.
• Death Avatar-Death God detected the enemies as smoke and dust rose from the distant desert.
• Gu Xi summoned a Summoning Tower, intending to turn the battlefield into his home field and trap the enemies.

Gu Xi discovered that the desert and its attacking Swarms were an illusion, then used the Flame Light Six Paths Lamp to reveal that he was inside a vast underground cavern. He deployed the Steel City Gate and sent scouts toward the distant sound of water.

• Gu Xi noticed the brightly colored, disorganized Swarms looked suspicious and used Death Wizards to amplify his Wave of Death, making the Swarms vanish.
• Gu Xi tested the sand and found it unreal, then used the Flame Light Six Paths Lamp to become immune to illusions and reveal the cavern's darkness.
• Death Avatar-Bone Dragon flew upward and reported that a ceiling lay about two thousand meters above Gu Xi, confirming they were underground.
• Gu Xi put away the Summoning Tower, deployed the Steel City Gate, and sent the Ghost Squad and about 230 Gargoyles to scout toward the sound of water.

Gu Xi discovered that the seemingly ordinary stones attacking him were artificial golems built from cement, gems, and rebar. After destroying them, he found unusual Soul Crystals inside the larger golems and began to understand their purpose.

• The Gargoyles identified scattered stone-like objects as the enemies, and Gu Xi confirmed they were artificial creations with gems and rebar inside.
• Gu Xi guessed the stones were golems that the Gargoyles could detect because they were similar beings, and he ordered the Gargoyles and Ghost Squad to destroy them.
• The Ghost Squad gained new red-lit eyes, Mourning Staffs, and iron chains while the Summoning Tower extracted Soul Shards from the destroyed golems.
• A White Impermanence brought Gu Xi a larger, cracked stone golem, and Gu Xi found a mechanical body and a jelly-like Soul Crystal inside.
• Gu Xi examined more Soul Crystals containing images of creatures and environments, and he realized what the golems were used for.

Gu Xi broke the illusion in the Underground World, established a base, and learned that the vast chamber had only one exit, hidden underwater. He sent his underwater troops to scout the passage and guard its entrance.

• Gu Xi realized the apparent enemies were illusions and considered how he might turn defeated mechanical forces into Undead.
• Gu Xi changed the Steel City Gate into the Troop Stockade City Gate and chose the cleared chamber as his base.
• Gu Xi learned from the Gargoyles that the empty chamber covered over three thousand square kilometers and had only one possible passage out.
• Gu Xi followed the Gargoyles to a deep pool and discovered that the passage was underwater.
• Gu Xi opened the Waterway Fence, ordered the Seahorse Cavalry and Mermaids to scout ahead, and assigned the Floating Corpses to guard the pool.

The Seahorse Cavalry and Mermaids discovered caves filled with abandoned Stone Men underwater, and Gu Xi ordered Ghost Squad to retrieve them. As Gu Xi continued searching for the entrance to the next Underground World, the Mermaids reported another strange discovery in the emptied caves.

• The Seahorse Cavalry followed the Mermaids to a cave full of Stone Men and sent word to Gu Xi while guarding the entrance.
• The Mermaids found seven more caves containing Stone Men, and the Seahorse Cavalry stood guard outside them.
• Gu Xi arrived underwater, recognized that the Stone Men had been abandoned, and ordered Ghost Squad to transport them.
• Gu Xi continued toward the next Underground World while the Mermaids searched the caves for clues.
• The Mermaids caught up with Gu Xi and told him they had found something strange in the emptied caves.

Gu Xi discovered a complete set of Stone Man Building Blueprints and investigated research that produced simpler, cheaper Stone Men. A Building Designer suggested the world might lack what was needed to train high-level units, leaving Gu Xi to consider whether that shortage explained the designs.

• Gu Xi followed the Mermaid back to the cave, where Death Wizards revealed Building Blueprints for a Casting Factory and its advancement paths, including Diamond Men, Magnetic Golems, and Puppet Dragons.
• The Mermaid led Gu Xi to other caves, where he found research focused on producing more Stone Men with fewer materials and less energy, even if they were lower quality.
• Gu Xi returned to the underground space and asked Building Designers why anyone would simplify Stone Men instead of improving them.
• A Building Designer compared the research to the downgraded Crimson Knights that could result from the Crimson Temple lacking an armory.
• Gu Xi wondered whether the world lacked Training Camps for high-level units, forcing its inhabitants to cut corners.

Gu Xi ordered the Building Designers to copy the underwater Building Blueprints and arranged for library copyists to record the Stone Men's research. When strange Mechanical Puppets attacked, he fought them off and sent his Death Avatars through the surface to destroy the enemies waiting above.

• Gu Xi told the Building Designers to copy the Building Blueprints and asked the library copyists to transcribe the Stone Men's research.
• Gu Xi returned to the place where he had been stopped and sensed danger, so the Seahorse Cavalry and the wielder of Vanguard Power - Shattered Formation formed a guard around him.
• Mechanical Puppets leaped into the water and charged Gu Xi, but the Seahorse Cavalry knocked them back and Gu Xi killed many with Wave of Death.
• Seahorse Cavalry who went to scout the surface were shot down by tiny arrows, revealing more enemies above the water.
• Gu Xi entered a virtual state, restored his mana, and sent his Death Avatars through the surface.
• Death Avatar-Bone Dragon attacked with Dissolving Ray and Death Dragon Breath, sweeping away the enemies gathered outside the waterway.

Gu Xi tested his four Summoning advancement paths on the destroyed Mechanical Puppets. He chose the Book of Insect Gestation, and the corpses began transforming into metal insects.

• Death Avatar-Bone Dragon swept through the enemies while Death Avatar-Death God crushed others with skeletal arms from his Ghost Domain Battlefield.
• Gu Xi summoned the Summoning Tower and used Summoning to test which advancement paths could transform the corpses.
• The Life Box Book and Blood Banquet Book withdrew because the corpses lacked magic units and blood, leaving the Book of Insect Gestation and Book of Aberrant Understanding.
• Gu Xi chose a page in the Book of Insect Gestation, and the Mechanical Puppet corpses broke into metal strands that assembled into strange insects.

Gu Xi summoned 1,175 Machine Centipedes and used the Yellow Springs Dragon Robe Holder to turn three into captains who organized the rest as scouts. After learning that new, unusually sturdy undead had appeared in the city, Gu Xi heard his scouts fighting and realized he could advance aggressively through the Lower World.

• Gu Xi summoned 1,175 Level 8 Machine Centipedes from the bodies of Mechanical Dolls, and the Book of Insect Gestation gained experience.
• The Yellow Springs Dragon Robe Holder selected three Machine Centipedes and enlightened them into captains, who divided their companions into three groups.
• Gu Xi sent the Machine Centipedes out as scouts and set down the Steel City Gate.
• Gu Xi learned that new, sturdy Zombies and Skeletons had appeared in the city, and he planned to raise them in the Barracks before assigning them to training camps.
• When battle sounds came from the scouts, Gu Xi realized the Level 8 Machine Centipedes would naturally attack the Lower World's weaker enemies and considered sending his army forward to crush them.

Gu Xi fought off a swarm of Gargoyles with his spells, then converted their corpses into Paper Soldiers. As the distant battle between the Machine Centipedes seemed to end, he turned his attention toward it.

• A swarm of Gargoyles dived toward Gu Xi atop the Summoning Tower, and he attacked them with Magic Arrow and Bone Spike.
• Gu Xi sent the Death Avatar-Bone Dragon after the remaining Gargoyles and began summoning from their corpses.
• Gu Xi used the Book of Aberrant Understanding to summon 937 Paper Soldiers, which could fight and serve as materials for aberrant rituals.
• Gu Xi sensed that the Machine Centipedes' battle in the distance had ended and looked toward the battlefield.

Gu Xi transformed the green-skinned creatures into Giant Blood-sucking Bats, choosing aerial mounts over Vampire troops or laborers. He continued attacking the Underground World’s enemies and summoning their corpses into undead forces while reading between battles.

• Gu Xi found that the defeated green- and blue-skinned creatures could be transformed through the Blood Banquet Book into Vampires, Blood-sucking Bats, or Blood-sucking Laborers.
• Gu Xi chose the aerial option and summoned 1,133 Giant Blood-sucking Bats, which flew through the Steel City Gate.
• Gu Xi ordered the Machine Centipedes to search for more enemies and directed his forces to kill every enemy they encountered.
• As battle reports arrived, Gu Xi summoned the corpses into undead subordinates and read books between fights.
• When his undead forces grew too numerous, Gu Xi used the Yellow Springs Dragon Robe to enlighten Undead Headmen and lead them into battle.

Gu Xi discovered that someone had been monitoring him and used the Mind Nether Lamp to trace the watcher. He sent the wielder after the target while appointing Mido to defeat the enemies in the underground space and find the route onward.

• Gu Xi studied Undead Transformation and considered how it could preserve a corpse's level better than Summoning.
• The Mind Nether Lamp sensed someone watching Gu Xi, and its wielder shielded him after detecting an emotional fluctuation.
• Gu Xi used the wielder to activate the Mind Nether Lamp's Mind Flame perspective and saw a fading line of sight leading toward the waterway he had entered through.
• Gu Xi ordered the wielder to track that line, and it headed through the Steel City Gate toward the Troop Stockade City Gate, using Giant Blood-sucking Bats for faster travel.
• Gu Xi appointed Mido as the commanding hero and ordered him to kill the underground enemies, send their corpses beneath the Summoning Tower, and find the passage to the next space.

Gu Xi followed the Mind Nether Lamp’s bearer to a hidden presence beyond an impassable underground stone wall. After Mido confirmed that a space lay behind it, Gu Xi left him to watch for a way around the wall and report back.

• Gu Xi sensed the bearer’s location, gathered his personal guards, and hurried to the Troop Stockade City Gate.
• The bearer traced a thread of the enemy’s aura to a thick underground wall that the Bone Titan could barely pierce.
• Gu Xi ordered Corpse Worms to find a way through, but they began searching for a route around the wall instead.
• Gu Xi summoned Mido, who used his Pathfinding ability to confirm that the wall was an unbreakable cornerstone and that the Corpse Worms were seeking a way underground.
• Gu Xi left Mido with an owl and ordered him to notify Gu Xi as soon as the Corpse Worms found a passage to the space beyond the wall.

Gu Xi returned to the Steel City Gate, where Dali reported that his troops had cleared the underground space and discovered a Casting Factory and metal mines. Gu Xi assigned Dali to find the route onward, then summoned new troops from the corpses, leaving the rarest results to be determined by his selections.

• Gu Xi returned to the Steel City Gate and learned from Dali that scouts were mapping a complicated passage to the next underground space.
• Dali reported that his forces had cleared most enemies, found an abandoned Casting Factory and two Metal Mine veins, and gathered slag and dismantled materials.
• Gu Xi sent Dali to the front lines to find the correct route, promising to replenish his forces with summoned troops.
• Gu Xi checked that the Holder had not moved and prepared to summon from the corpses using the Cold Wind Staff and Yellow Springs Dragon Robe Holder.
• Gu Xi assigned spirits to become Vampires, Mechanical Dolls and Mechanical War Dolls to become Machine Centipedes, and Gargoyles to become Paper Soldiers, then rejected Stone Walls and noticed a rarer troop type before summoning.

Gu Xi summoned new undead, tested how the Yellow Springs Dragon Robe interacted with his equipment, and used the Fox Eye Ring to see through the robe’s Holder. He spotted strange Death Qi to the southeast and ordered the Ghost Squad to dig there.

• Gu Xi summoned Machine Centipedes, Paper Soldiers, Vampires, and Stone Minotaurs from the corpses, then sent Dali away with the Machine Centipedes and the collected materials.
• Dali left with the reinforcements, eager to build a force of nearly seven thousand troops.
• Gu Xi recorded his discoveries about Orange Equipment and used the Fox Eye Ring to see through the Yellow Springs Dragon Robe Holder.
• Gu Xi saw undead qi gather into an arm of steel under Dali’s command, then noticed unusual Death Qi to the southeast.
• Gu Xi ordered the Ghost Squad to move to the southeast and dig downward.

Gu Xi used Undead Transformation and Burial Dragon Vein on an abandoned ore vein, turning its lingering soul and rusted remains into a Ghost Dragon. The Ghost Dragon joined his party, while Gu Xi gained a rust-covered defensive effect.

• The Ghost Squad dug up the abandoned ore vein, and Gu Xi sensed a lingering soul above it.
• Gu Xi used Soul Whisper to contact the soul, then summoned 150 Death Wizards to prepare an Undead Transformation.
• Gu Xi ordered Death Avatar-Death God to strike the vein as the Yellow Springs Dragon Robe Holder activated Burial Dragon Vein.
• The soul merged with the gathered rusted iron and transformed into a Ghost Dragon.
• Gu Xi gained seven stacks of Rust Skin, and the level 13 Ghost Dragon joined his party.

Gu Xi questioned the Ghost Dragon about the ruined world and learned that its mineral veins had been stripped of their foundations centuries earlier. At the end, the Nether Soul Dragon uncovered an Earth Vein Core beneath a dead Stone Vein, and the Ghost Dragon revealed its significance.

• Gu Xi made the Ghost Dragon explain that the world's mineral vein foundations had been extracted six or seven hundred years earlier, leaving its creatures and resources diminished.
• The Ghost Dragon said it had counted 136 underground spaces before losing contact with other Earth Veins three hundred years ago, and identified the northwest Stone Vein as the space's main vein.
• Gu Xi examined the Stone Vein and found it beyond recovery, then prepared to leave for another underground space.
• The Nether Soul Dragon and Bone Armor Centipede sensed something at the Stone Vein's core location, where the Nether Soul Dragon uncovered an Earth Vein Core.
• The Ghost Dragon explained that Earth Vein Cores helped preserve ore and allowed mineral veins to level up, though it believed the remaining core should have been drained.