Chapter Summaries

Xia Nan killed the Bear Goblin and became a Level 1 Meteor Blade Hunt after gaining control over gravity. He found the badly injured Adeline alive and offered her a Healing Potion, while she reacted with astonishment to the Bear Goblin’s death.

• Xia Nan absorbed the Gravity Core’s ripples, advanced Gravity Solidification into Gravity Control, and unlocked the Meteor Blade Hunt profession.
• Xia Nan’s new profession strengthened his attributes and granted him the Tidal Shaping and Heart’s Sight feats and the Gravity Etching combat skill.
• Xia Nan confirmed the Bear Goblin was dead and ran to check on Adeline, who had survived its blow but was badly injured.
• Xia Nan gave Adeline a Healing Potion and told her the Bear Goblin was dead, leaving her staring at its corpse in astonishment.

Abi struggled through the Goblin attack, but Xia Nan rescued him after killing three Goblins with his newly mastered Gravity Control. Xia Nan continued clearing the village and demonstrated his power while protecting villagers, as a new Feat, Tidal Shaping, was introduced.

• Abi killed a Goblin but collapsed from exhaustion after fighting to protect the villagers.
• Three Goblins found Abi and were pinned to the ground by Xia Nan's Gravity Control before Xia Nan beheaded them.
• Xia Nan pulled Abi to safety and told him that Adeline and other villagers were in a cleared area.
• Xia Nan used Gravity Control to move quickly and lightly while clearing Goblins from nearly half the village.
• Xia Nan leaped into a ruined house, killed the Goblins threatening a family, and climbed onto the roof to search for more targets.
• The chapter introduced Xia Nan's Tidal Shaping Feat, which reduced falling damage, improved balance on unstable surfaces, and let him adjust push and pull effects.

Xia Nan arrived at Emerald Creek Village and used his new Professional abilities to destroy the Goblin horde and save the villagers. With the village cleared and the storm easing, he considered his new powers and the strange Gravity Core device that had appeared during the battle.

• The village chief rallied the villagers to hold back the Goblins until help arrived, but their line broke when a villager was injured.
• Xia Nan descended into the Goblin horde, crushed several enemies, and used [Heart's Sight], [Gravity Control], and his new Combat Skills to fight them.
• Xia Nan chose not to test combining his Combat Skills while villagers were nearby and instead focused on wiping out the remaining Goblins.
• Xia Nan and the others searched Emerald Creek Village and confirmed that no Goblins remained.
• Abi and Adeline were astonished by Xia Nan's strength, while Xia Nan recalled the strange Gravity Core and its unfamiliar technological details.

After the Goblins were defeated at Emerald Creek Village, Xia Nan reflected on the casualties and the loss of Berg while Adeline stood over the Bear Goblin’s body. Elsewhere, Cornell’s party finished clearing the Goblin lair, and Cornell explained to the Warrior why the Association sent inexperienced Adventurers to fight Goblins.

• Xia Nan returned with the last Goblin’s head as the villagers mourned their dead and tended to the wounded.
• Xia Nan watched Abi prepare Berg’s body for transport and saw Adeline standing silently before the Bear Goblin’s corpse.
• The Bagura Demon finished crushing Goblins before the spatial pull returned it to the Abyss, and Cornell’s party completed the battle.
• Cornell collected the Black-Robed Goblin, the altar, and the Elf’s body, but chose not to pay to resurrect Volga.
• The Warrior asked why the Association sent inexperienced Adventurers after Goblins, and Cornell said it was Hunting Day and there were plenty of Adventurers.

After Hunting Day, River Valley Town’s veteran adventurers stayed busy at the White Tit Tavern while newcomers arrived hoping to make their fortunes. Jimmy’s cousin brought him to the tavern and began teaching him which powerful adventurers to recognize, starting with the man known as the “Grey Sword.”

• River Valley Town quieted after Hunting Day as many adventurers headed for Thin Mist Forest and new recruits appeared around town.
• Jimmy’s cousin took him to the White Tit Tavern, boasting about his experience while worrying over the cost of their meal.
• Jimmy admired the tavern and imagined the adventuring life he was about to begin.
• Jimmy’s cousin froze when Jimmy looked toward a black-haired adventurer seated with two companions, then hurried him away from the table.
• Jimmy’s cousin warned him not to stare or speak carelessly and began explaining how to recognize important people, identifying the “Grey Sword” by his grey longsword.

Five days after returning to River Valley Town, Xia Nan reflected on his growing fame, the rewards from the Goblin battle, and his new Profession Level. He planned to repair and sell equipment, visit the Adventurers Association, and train his new abilities, especially [Gravity Control], whose difficulty left him wondering whether his Intelligence of 5 was holding him back.

• Xia Nan’s fame as the “Grey Sword” spread through River Valley Town after word got around that he had advanced during battle and killed a Bear Goblin alone.
• Chapton gifted Xia Nan a bottle of Rock Heart Stout, and Xia Nan secretly used [Gravity Control] to keep a slipping waitress from falling.
• Xia Nan reviewed his earnings of 756 Gold Coins, 3 Silver Coins, and 9 coppers, his new level 1 [Meteor Blade Hunt] Profession, and the possible uses of Alton’s [Fate Coin].
• Adeline asked Xia Nan what he planned to do next, and he said he would decide as he went while she reminded him to visit the Adventurers Association.
• Xia Nan planned to repair his damaged armor, ask “Rock Hammer” about the Hollow Bone Club, sell leftover stones, and train before taking another mission.
• Xia Nan noted that his [Gravity Control] proficiency had remained at 1 despite five days of practice and wondered if his Intelligence of 5 explained the difficulty.

Xia Nan visited Rock Hammer, where Barn chased off an adventurer trying to extort him with a false complaint and discovered that Xia Nan had become a Professional. Barn inspected Xia Nan’s battle-damaged armor and the Pale Bone Club taken from the Red-Maned Hobgoblin, then announced he had an idea for it.

• Xia Nan entered Rock Hammer and found a middle-aged adventurer demanding 100 gold from Barn over armor the shop had never sold.
• Barn recognized the complaint as a scam and scared the adventurer away with a deliberately halted punch; the fleeing man collided with Xia Nan and then ran off.
• Barn realized Xia Nan had become a Professional and inspected his damaged Chainmail Shirt, finding that an unknown force had corroded its links.
• Xia Nan replaced the Chainmail Shirt, while Barn repaired the mostly unaffected Studded Leather Armor lining and suggested using the Snake Scale as material for enchanted equipment.
• Xia Nan asked Barn to appraise the Pale Bone Club from the Red-Maned Hobgoblin, and Barn judged it likely came from an uncommon creature before declaring he had an idea.

Xia Nan discussed using a Bone Rod to upgrade his Snake Scale Arm Shield or make enchanted armor with Barn, then sold gemstones at Fairy Wind. He discovered a strange wooden figurine that revealed an ominous description on his Attribute Panel.

• Barn offered to test whether the Bone Rod was compatible with the Snake Scale and outlined options for using or selling it if they were incompatible.
• Xia Nan left the Snake Scale Arm Shield with Barn for testing and bought a Chainmail Shirt for fifty gold.
• At Fairy Wind, Xia Nan sold gemstones to Falilo for 115 gold and noticed a middle-aged Adventurer who had previously tried to extort Barn.
• Xia Nan was drawn to a crudely carved wooden figurine and inspected it closely.
• Xia Nan's Attribute Panel identified it as a Ram Deer Figurine and displayed a cryptic remark.

Xia Nan nearly succumbed to the strange influence of a Ram Deer Figurine in Fairy Wind, but the Attribute Panel helped him break free and he left without buying it. After reaching the Adventurers Association in River Valley Town, he asked Molly how to register for the Second Floor, prompting her to spring into action.

• Xia Nan studied the Ram Deer Figurine in Fairy Wind and nearly lost himself in its disturbing vision before the Attribute Panel brought him back to his senses.
• Xia Nan asked Falilo about the figurine, refused to buy it, and left the General Store while a middle-aged adventurer bought it instead.
• Xia Nan silently recited part of the figurine's mysterious note outside the shop, briefly felt an unseen gaze upon him, and stopped before the influence faded.
• Xia Nan reached the Adventurers Association and asked Molly whether he needed to register before going up to the Second Floor.
• Molly straightened eagerly when Xia Nan's question made her realize business had arrived.

Xia Nan learned that the Adventurers Association required a mission before he could access its second floor as a Professional, and Molly said the assignment would likely take him to Newm. On his way back to the tavern, he witnessed a desperate man impale himself on an adventurer’s sword, and noticed the man’s bundle had disappeared.

• Molly explained that the Association offered Professionals access to advancement resources without requiring ordinary members to sign contracts, but Xia Nan needed to complete a mission before visiting the second floor.
• Xia Nan agreed to return in five days, and Molly quietly told him that the mission would likely be in Newm.
• Xia Nan saw Lady Edwina confronting the middle-aged man who had tried to extort local shops, and a square-faced adventurer stepped forward to threaten him.
• The middle-aged man walked into the square-faced adventurer’s sword and died, causing the onlookers to scatter.
• Xia Nan left the scene and noticed that the dead man’s bundle had vanished.

After becoming a Professional, Xia Nan wondered how to raise his level and advance his unusual [Meteor Blade Hunt] class, so he planned to seek guidance in Newm. He left the tavern intending to complete an Association mission in five days and learn more about his path forward.

• Xia Nan spent the day wrapping up matters from his previous task, then ate with Abi and Adeline at White Tit Tavern as they discussed Abi's new armor and their plans as adventurers.
• Xia Nan asked Adeline about Newm because his Professional advancement quest would likely take him there, but she and Abi offered only limited information about the city.
• A mage and a human Warrior from the high-level team entered the tavern; Xia Nan sensed their strength and wondered whether they had reached Transcendent level.
• Xia Nan reflected on the Transcendent and Legendary ranks, then realized he still did not know how to raise his Profession Level or advance [Meteor Blade Hunt].
• Xia Nan decided to travel to Newm in five days to complete the Association mission, seek guidance on leveling his Profession, and gather information about class advancement.

Cornell discussed the costly aftermath of the Goblin Nest mission with the silent, heavily armored Warrior, including the dead elf’s resurrection and the strange equipment they had found. Five days later, Jimmy traveled toward Newm with his cousin and spotted Grey Sword at the courier station before his cousin warned him not to stare.

• Cornell complained that the mission’s reward would not cover the expenses and said he was arranging a resurrection in Newm for the dead elf.
• Cornell recalled the strange Goblin Priest and gravity-triggering device, then asked the Warrior to tell Master Yang Ci about them after returning.
• Cornell sought a temporary replacement for Volga and asked the Warrior whether he knew anyone suitable.
• Five days later, Jimmy and his cousin secured a place in a convoy leaving River Valley Town for Newm.
• Jimmy remembered his cousin taking a bloodstained bundle and a statue from a dead adventurer, then saw the convoy captain greet Grey Sword deferentially.
• Jimmy stared at Grey Sword’s rising and falling silver coin until his cousin slapped the back of his head and told him not to stare.

Xia Nan traveled from River Valley Town toward Newm for an Association mission, reflecting on his slow Gravity Control training, equipment plans, and growing reputation. At a roadside camp, Jimmy noticed his cousin increasingly zoning out and found himself seeing eerie beauty in a gray statue the cousin had shown him.

• Xia Nan trained [Gravity Control] during his five-day rest but gained only one point of proficiency.
• Barn told Xia Nan the Bone Rod could not be combined with the Snake Scale Arm Shield, so Xia Nan paid 500 gold for Barn to craft a separate defensive magic item.
• Xia Nan departed River Valley Town in a private carriage, carrying the mission destination of No. 32 Grey Tree Alley on Crowbeak Street in Newm.
• After seven days of travel, the convoy camped for the night, and Jimmy brought food to his older cousin, who had been staring blankly into the fire.
• Jimmy watched his cousin eat and recalled the gray statue, which now seemed to him to possess an eerie beauty.

Jimmy joined a caravan bound for Newm and became caught in a sudden night attack, where he was knocked unconscious. After the fighting ended, he found his cousin dead and took the wrapped statue from his chest, showing an eager fixation on it.

• Jimmy listened as the caravan travelers joked about Grey Sword and teased him about women, while his cousin remained absorbed in the wrapped statue.
• A Wooden Arrow killed a bearded traveler, and the caravan came under attack.
• Jimmy fled in confusion, was knocked unconscious by a mounted attacker, and heard the battle intensify before wolves appeared and the attackers began to retreat.
• Jimmy woke after the battle and discovered that the corpse he had tripped over was his cousin.
• Jimmy pushed aside his cousin's head, searched his chest, and took the bloodstained bundle containing the statue.

After arriving in Newm, Xia Nan planned to rest and gather information before beginning his mission the next day. While surveying the city, he recognized a fellow traveler working in a tailor shop just as several tattooed men entered it.

• Xia Nan reflected on how his enhanced balance and Agility made him vastly stronger than ordinary people, recalling how easily he had defeated the bandits who attacked the convoy.
• A newspaper boy tried to sell Xia Nan a paper, but a convoy guard chased him away before Xia Nan could buy one.
• The convoy reached Newm, and Xia Nan arranged for his share of the bandits’ spoils to be deposited with Boss Chapton at the White Tit Tavern.
• Xia Nan declined the convoy leader’s offer to take him back to River Valley Town and decided to find an inn before visiting his mission’s destination the next day.
• While walking through Newm, Xia Nan recognized a young fellow traveler limping around inside the Pigeon Feather Tailor Shop, then watched several tattooed men enter.

Jeff and Lilina’s new tailor shop was threatened by a gang and a customer trying to haggle, until Jeff’s old friend Xia Nan arrived and forced the gang to change its tune. The gang paid for fabric and made the middle-aged woman pay the full price she had tried to evade.

• A middle-aged woman pressured Lilina into giving her a discount and tried to leave with a bolt of green cloth.
• A bald leader from the Grey Badger Gang demanded two hundred sets of clothes in three days and threatened to smash the shop if Jeff failed.
• Jeff offered the gang leader money and hinted at his connection to Stubborn Donkey, but the leader remained wary.
• Xia Nan entered the shop, and the gang’s men made way for him; the leader recognized his influence and pretended he had come to support Jeff’s business.
• The gang members paid for fabric, and the leader ordered the middle-aged woman to pay the rest of what she owed.

Xia Nan drove the Grey Badger Gang away from Jeff’s tailor shop and accepted Jeff’s offer to stay at his home. Elsewhere, the gang’s bald leader was forced to stab a young Adventurer, then fled in terror, leaving a corpse with a strange wood carving as a newspaper-carrying figure approached.

• Xia Nan used [Gravity Control] to make the Grey Badger Gang lackeys leave Jeff’s shop and accepted Jeff’s invitation to stay with his family.
• Jeff introduced his daughter Lilina to Xia Nan, and she thanked him for saving her father.
• Jeff assured Xia Nan he could use his connections to stop the gang from targeting the tailor shop again.
• The bald leader warned his underlings to avoid Xia Nan and Jeff’s shop, then encountered a dazed young Adventurer carrying a bundle.
• The young Adventurer’s control over the bald leader made him stab the youth with his own dagger, after which the leader fled and the youth died beside a bundle containing a Grey-Black Wood Carving.
• A thin figure carrying a stack of newspapers walked past the corpse as night fell.

Xia Nan stayed with Jeff’s family in Newm and realized how his earlier rescue had preserved their happy life. At dinner, Jamie dropped a strange Ram Deer Figurine, and Xia Nan recognized that it was not the same carving he had seen before and demanded to know where it came from.

• Jeff brought Xia Nan to his townhouse, where Daisy welcomed him warmly and thanked him for saving Jeff.
• Xia Nan reflected that his past actions had spared Jeff’s family hardship and enjoyed Daisy’s cream mushroom soup as they discussed the approaching Moon Feast.
• Jamie returned from the academy, greeted Xia Nan, and hurried off to work on his school assignment.
• Jamie tripped and dropped a cloth bag, revealing a Ram Deer Figurine that made Xia Nan freeze.
• Xia Nan recognized that the figurine differed from the one he had seen at the Fairy Wind and asked Jamie where it came from.

Xia Nan investigated a wooden [Ram Deer Figurine] at Jamie’s home and suspected it was connected to the mysterious objects that had appeared in the forest. After demonstrating its potential danger, he watched Jeff take the figurine away and send his family to the Moon Goddess Church, while Jeff asked whether they would be safe.

• Xia Nan recognized that Jamie’s figurine was different from the one at Fairy Wind and warned him not to point it toward him.
• Jamie explained that the figurines had appeared without a known source in Newm City and had become popular among wealthy residents.
• Xia Nan connected their unexplained appearance to the strange buildings and objects he had encountered, then asked Jeff and Daisy about recent incidents near Newm City.
• Jamie and Jeff reported no strange effects from the figurine or Jamie’s tutor, so Xia Nan cautioned the family to avoid contact with it and demonstrated his concern by levitating a spoon.
• Jeff wrapped the figurine in his coat, told Daisy to take the children to the Moon Goddess Church, and hurried to return it to Jamie’s tutor at 35 Eagle Emblem Avenue.
• At the door, Jeff turned back and asked Xia Nan whether they would all be fine.

Little Snot brought home a strange statue taken from a dead Adventurer, while his sick sister Polly and their drunken father faced the hardships of the Lower City. At the Moon Goddess Church, Xia Nan and the others waited for purification, and Jeff returned after warning Jamie’s mentor about the statue, though the mentor had brushed off the concern.

• Little Snot brought home a statue from a dead Adventurer and planned to sell it at Griffin Department Store.
• Little Snot gave Polly a coarse nut cake and recalled how a sewage incident had killed their mother, sickened Polly, and driven their father to drink.
• Little Snot’s drunken father kicked in the door, berated him, and seized the statue.
• Xia Nan reassured Lilina at the Moon Goddess Church while she and the others waited for news about the statue’s influence.
• Jeff returned to the church and told Jamie that he had warned his mentor about the statue, but the mentor had dismissed the danger and told Jamie to finish his assignment.