Chapter Summaries

After losing their parents, Cole feared his bond with Big Brother had weakened and supported a dangerous plan to escape his brother’s shadow. Meanwhile, Viscount Gask confirmed that a young girl reacted to a white pearl, bringing his hope of entering the Saint Domain closer.

• Cole reflected that their parents had been the remaining bond between him and Big Brother, and feared what would happen without them.
• Strange traveling merchants crossed Locke Territory, carrying white beads and visiting its villages.
• Gask, fearing old age and death, joined four allied brothers in the Temple of Light’s scheme and involved Cole to protect them from Grand Duke Locke.
• A steward brought Gask a middle-aged man and a little girl in his study.
• Gask tested a white pearl near the girl and watched it glow and warm, then grow cold and dark when moved away.
• Gask repeatedly confirmed the pearl’s reaction and imagined becoming a Saint Domain expert.

Gask discovered a girl whose pure soul could be used in a sacrifice to reach the Saint Domain, but he decided to keep her hidden while he sought more potential sacrifices. Nitrang received only part of the promised reward and accidentally collided with Gask as he tried to leave the manor.

• Gask sent Nitrang to Butler Lauren for his reward, then considered betraying the Frost Snow Empire and sacrificing the girl to advance.
• Gask decided not to reveal the girl to Lord Cole and concluded that he needed to find at least two more sacrifices.
• Butler Lauren gave Nitrang a bag containing far less than the promised one hundred thousand gold coins, and Nitrang concealed his anger.
• Nitrang crashed into Gask at the manor exit, spilling the coins, then dropped to his knees and begged Gask to spare his life.

Gask killed Nitrang after he tried to flee, then took the bundle and went to meet Nitrang’s chamber of commerce outside the City Lord’s Manor. The merchants recognized Gask and knelt before him, fearing Nitrang’s death would bring trouble upon them.

• Gask struck Nitrang through the back with a cyan fist mark, killing him, and took the bundle from the floor.
• Gask ordered Butler Lauren to bring Nitrang’s corpse and accompanied him to meet the merchants waiting outside the manor.
• The merchants discussed the search for a woman whose bead could glow and heat up, and Jian mentioned that someone in Locke Territory was searching too.
• The chamber of commerce members saw Nitrang’s corpse and recognized Gask as he approached.
• The elder knelt and greeted Gask, and the other merchants followed, worried that Nitrang’s death would implicate them.

Gask paid the merchants their promised reward, then revealed that Butler Lauren had cheated Nitrang and explained why he had killed him. Gask spared Lauren’s life but dismissed him as his butler.

• Gask ordered Butler Lauren to give the merchants a Purple Gold Card worth one hundred thousand gold coins, using money Lauren had taken from Nitrang’s reward.
• Gask showed the merchants the twenty thousand gold coins in Nitrang’s money bag and let them realize that Lauren had withheld most of the reward.
• Gask revealed that Nitrang had struck him after discovering the fraud, causing the merchants to understand why Gask had killed him.
• Gask told Butler Lauren that he would spare his life but dismissed him from his position as butler.
• Butler Lauren pleaded with Gask for another chance as Gask walked toward the City Lord's Manor.

Butler Lauren was cast out by Lord Gask and taken away by the merchants, while Gask ordered Lyle to bring Lauren and his accomplices back dead. Locke emerged from seclusion with a new understanding of souls and sensed that Cole’s cheerful greeting concealed panic, fear, and worry.

• Lord Gask shut the estate gates on Butler Lauren, and the merchants took Lauren away to seek justice for President Nitrang.
• Gask told Lyle to claim that twenty thousand gold coins had vanished with Lauren and ordered the guards to bring Lauren and his accomplices back dead.
• Locke emerged from seclusion after using sorrow to sense other emotions in souls, and he found his soul perception exceeded his rudimentary Spiritual Sense.
• A guard mistakenly said he would report Locke’s emergence to Cole, then fell to his knees in fear when another guard corrected him.
• Cole greeted Locke happily, but Locke sensed panic, fear, and worry in Cole’s soul.

Locke noticed that Cole’s emotions toward him concealed fear and relief, then withdrew into seclusion while Cole expanded his search for sacrifices. In the Frost Snow Empire, Ceres investigated Locke and was surprised that Locke could sense his Spiritual Sense.

• Locke realized Cole’s negative emotions were connected to him and told Cole he would remain in seclusion for a long time.
• After Locke closed the cultivation chamber, Cole resolved to find additional sacrifices and mobilized more people across Locke Territory to search for those with pure souls.
• Ceres watched Locke from the Frost Snow Empire’s imperial capital and wondered why the talented Grand Duke was gathering sacrifices.
• Locke sensed a God-level Expert’s Spiritual Sense, identified Ceres, and explained that his state of oneness with heaven and earth let him detect the deity’s aura.

Ceres warned Locke that Locke Territory was searching for Souls of Purity for the Temple of Light, and Locke realized Cole was responsible. Locke summoned Cole to the training room as Cole considered how to continue the search.

• Ceres asked Locke whether he intended to pledge allegiance to the Temple of Light, and Locke said he despised it.
• Ceres told Locke that his territory was searching for sacrifices for the Temple of Light, prompting Locke to connect the search to Cole’s fear of him.
• Locke thanked Ceres and promised to handle the matter, then summoned Cole to the training room.
• Cole reviewed a report showing that Locke Territory had yielded no Souls of Purity in ten years and considered whether to wait for new children or search other nobles’ lands.
• Cole decided that reaching the Saint Domain was the only way to truly claim what he had, while searching beyond Locke Territory risked disaster.

Locke confronted Cole over his dealings in Locke Territory, removed him from power, and had his son take over. Locke’s forces arrested Cross and Marik, while Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl fled with their families to the Temple of Light.

• Locke told Cole that Ceres had questioned whether he had rebelled and demanded to know what he had done in Locke Territory.
• Cole blamed Cross, Marik, Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl, claiming they had threatened him and forced him to help them monopolize the territory’s economy.
• Locke ordered Cole’s son to take over Locke Territory and confined Cole to his residence in Locke City.
• Locke’s forces arrested Cross and Marik, while Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl abandoned their lands and escaped to the Temple of Light.
• Gask cursed Cole for betraying them, and Dahl reminded him that they had escaped because Locke had not personally pursued them.

Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl discussed their dwindling chances of finding a Soul of Purity in the Temple of Light’s territory. Gask concealed that he already possessed one and persuaded the others to target Frost Snow Empire nobles bringing offerings to the grand cathedral.

• Berkeley and Dahl lamented that they had never found a Soul of Purity and could no longer search safely after fleeing Locke Territory.
• Gask felt fortunate that he had kept a Soul of Purity secret, believing it could help him reach Saint level and gain an endless lifespan.
• Gask decided not to reveal his secret to Berkeley and Dahl, fearing they might take the Soul of Purity from him.
• Gask told Berkeley and Dahl that anyone seeking a sacrificial ritual had to bring an offering to the grand cathedral, where the Light Pope resided.
• Gask proposed ambushing Frost Snow Empire nobles who came to sacrifice their offerings, and Berkeley and Dahl agreed that it was their best chance to advance to Saint level.

Locke dealt with Gask and the others’ escape, warned Lem to pursue strength rather than follow his father’s path, and put Cole into pleasant dreams. After decades of training, Locke continued advancing his mastery of Mist Illusion, demonstrating its growing power through a sword dance.

• Lem reported that Gask and two others had fled to the Temple of Light’s sphere of influence after Cross and Marik were captured.
• Locke offered Lem titles based on his future strength and warned him not to follow his father’s crooked path.
• Cole revealed his lingering regret, and Locke used his soul power to make him sleep and dream of happiness.
• Locke spent decades training, reaching eighty percent comprehension of Mist Illusion, thirty percent of Water Element, and twenty percent of Ice Sharpness.
• Locke danced with a mist sword, using Mist Illusion to shroud himself in an unnervingly still fog.

Locke advanced his understanding of the Profound Mystery of Illusionary Fog and began fusing it with the Law Profundity of Ice Sharpness. His cultivation was interrupted when Ceres revealed that the Temple of Light had gained a new Saint Domain expert and threatened war against the Frost Snow Empire.

• Locke entered a state of enlightenment while practicing his sword, then meditated to restore his depleted Soul Power and study his new insights.
• After recovering, Locke found the point of compatibility between the Profound Mystery of Illusionary Fog and the Law Profundity of Ice Sharpness and began trying to fuse them.
• Locke woke Cole and forced him to kneel while addressing him as His Majesty Ceres, who was watching them.
• Locke assured Ceres that he had expelled people connected to the Temple of Light and promised to confine Cole, who had been involved in an earlier incident.
• Ceres told Locke that a viscount who had defected from Locke Territory had advanced to the Saint Domain through a Temple of Light ritual and appeared ready to attack the Frost Snow Empire.
• Ceres said he wanted to prevent the war because the Frost Snow Empire had no new Saint Domain expert to oppose the invasion.

Locke traveled to the Temple of Light to kill Gask, who had become a Saint-level Expert through the Light Pope’s sacrificial ritual. He created dense fog around the grand cathedral to conceal his next move, while Cole stayed behind to protect Locke Territory if Locke failed to return.

• Locke concluded that the Soul of Purity Gask’s group used for the ritual had belonged to him and promised Ceres that the coming battle would not happen.
• Locke told Cole to remain at the City Lord’s Manor, watch the Temple of Light, and evacuate everyone if news spread that Locke had fallen.
• Locke concealed himself in clouds and traveled from the Frost Snow Empire to the grand cathedral at the heart of the Temple of Light.
• Locke gathered moisture into the surrounding clouds until they grew dark and produced lightning, light rain, and dense fog over the grand cathedral.

Locke used his soul abilities to infiltrate Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl’s dreams and kill them without alerting the Light Pope. Ceres later told Locke that the deaths had spread panic and reduced the Temple of Light’s collected Faith Power.

• Locke spread his Soul Power through the mist covering the cathedral and found Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl.
• Locke drew the three men into dreams by stirring their fear and froze their souls with the icy attack they dreaded.
• Locke killed Gask, Berkeley, and Dahl without the Light Pope noticing, then gained further insight into the soul.
• Ceres told Locke that nobles had died overnight, rumors of demons had spread, and the Temple of Light’s Faith Power would fall by at least thirty percent.

Ceres questioned Locke about how he had killed Gask beneath the Light Pope’s watch, while describing the Temple of Light’s efforts to reassure its shaken members. Locke claimed he had attacked from the clouds above the cathedral, but Ceres remained unconvinced.

• Over the month since Gask’s death, the Light Pope repeatedly used his Divine Domain to reassure Temple of Light members whose faith in their safety had been shaken.
• Ceres told Locke about the Temple of Light’s troubles and asked how Locke had killed Gask without being detected by the Light Pope’s Spiritual Sense or Divine Domain.
• Locke said he had stayed in the clouds above the cathedral and killed Gask and two others with a Soul Attack before the Light Pope searched the cathedral.
• Ceres believed Locke had not concealed anything, but doubted that he could have escaped the Light Pope’s Spiritual Sense from the sky.

Locke cultivated the Profound Mystery of Ice Sharpness and worked to fuse it with Illusionary Fog while Ceres considered recruiting him for Lord Philo’s ranks. On the Vakanda Plane, fear over Gask’s murder continued to restrain the Frost Snow Empire’s nobles.

• Ceres judged Locke’s soul attainments exceptional and considered bringing him to the Water Element God Plane to join Lord Philo’s ranks.
• Locke resumed cultivation, focusing on Ice Sharpness and its fusion with Illusionary Fog despite setbacks from his incomplete comprehension.
• Locke reasoned that fusing incomplete Profound Mysteries could reveal points of compatibility more easily, though new insights could temporarily reduce fusion progress.
• Decades passed while Locke cultivated, and the nobles of the Temple of Light and the Frost Snow Empire remained troubled by Gask’s assassination.
• The Frost Snow Empire’s nobles stopped searching for Souls of Purity and avoided sacrificial rituals because the Pope had never caught Gask’s killer.

Locke reached major completion in the Profound Mystery of Illusionary Fog, triggering the Law of Heaven and Earth and beginning his ascension to godhood. Ceres and the Light Pope sensed the breakthrough, and the Light Pope set out to meet Locke and preserve the Temple of Light’s foothold in the Vakanda Plane.

• The nobles avoided seeking sacrifices at the Temple of Light because they feared Ceres would target them after Gask’s death, while the Frost Snow Empire’s nobles sponsored academy students in hopes of producing a new Saint-level Expert.
• Ceres considered sacrifice-born Saint-level Experts inferior to those who advanced through their own comprehension, and he hoped the Frost Snow Empire would produce another naturally advanced expert.
• Locke grasped the final trace of the Profound Mystery of Illusionary Fog and completed his comprehension, prompting the Law of Heaven and Earth to descend upon Locke Territory.
• Ceres recognized Locke as the one becoming a god and laughed in delight.
• The Light Pope sensed the descent, worried that Ceres might use Locke against the Temple of Light, and flew to meet Locke after deciding to demonstrate his strength.

Locke became a Low-grade Water God, splitting his soul and using his mastery of Soul Power to absorb exceptionally strong divine power. He left the Law of Heaven and Earth’s descent with a newly formed Water Element Divine Clone merged back into his true body.

• The Law of Heaven and Earth descended, and Locke split his soul, sending half into the blue godhead to become a god outside his body.
• Locke connected through his godhead to the Elemental Plane and drilled his soul down ten meters into the divine power ocean.
• Locke absorbed divine power with the Law of Heaven and Earth’s help, forming his Water Element Divine Clone and a blue robe.
• The Law of Heaven and Earth withdrew after tempering Locke’s soul, and his divine power absorption slowed sharply.
• Locke merged his blue-haired Water Element Divine Clone into his true body.

After ascending to the Divine Domain, Locke found his soul weakened but his affinity with Water Law Profundities greatly enhanced. The Light Pope came to assess him, and Locke used the Pope’s disrespectful scrutiny as an opening to provoke a confrontation.

• Locke discovered that splitting his soul to become a god outside his body had left him too weak for prolonged cultivation, though his understanding and fusion of Water Law Profundities advanced faster.
• Locke sensed the Light Pope approaching to congratulate him and suspected the Pope wanted to assess his condition.
• Ceres noticed Locke’s Divine Clone heading to meet the Light Pope but chose not to interfere.
• Locke reached the Temple of Light and introduced himself as Grand Duke Locke of the Frost Snow Empire.
• After the Light Pope scrutinized him, Locke accused him of disrespect and prepared to test his strength against him.

Locke fought the Light Pope, who used his Divine Domain and a holy sword to test the newly ascended god. Their first weapon clash ended evenly, leaving the Light Pope shocked by Locke’s divine power.

• The Light Pope claimed his hundred-thousand-year experience made him stronger than Locke and unleashed his Divine Domain.
• Locke released his own Divine Domain, countered the Light Pope’s binding force, and dismissed his attack as a forbidden spell rather than a true use of the Laws.
• Locke shattered the Light Pope’s golden sword with his water-element longsword and charged at him.
• The Light Pope blocked Locke’s strike with a golden spear, but their clash ended evenly despite the Pope’s greater reserves of divine power.
• The Light Pope stared at Locke in surprise and jealousy, questioning the strength of his divine power.

Locke fought the Light Pope and learned that their comparable divine power and mastery of laws did not account for the Pope’s superior divine artifacts. After the Light Pope pierced Locke’s Divine Clone, Locke healed and recognized that he had underestimated the advantage of the Pope’s weapons and armor.

• The Light Pope used his divine domain and laws to trap Locke, but Locke broke the effect with his own divine power and the Profound Mystery of Illusionary Fog.
• Locke countered with a torrent of sword phantoms, but the Light Pope reinforced his spear and forced it through Locke’s sword.
• The Light Pope’s spear pierced Locke’s left chest, and Locke restored his Divine Clone by spending a large amount of divine power.
• Locke realized that the Light Pope’s weapon had shattered his water-essence sword because it was a divine artifact.
• The Light Pope revealed that Rising Sun was a high-grade offensive divine artifact and said he also wore high-grade defensive armor.
• Locke admitted that he had overlooked divine artifacts and recognized that his sudden confidence had been misplaced.