Chapter Summaries

Russell joined Baron Roman’s Knight Order on the Double River Trade Route, but the first Snow Ghost attacks ended before he could fight or earn Hail Beads. At the first Cold Spring Point, Baron Roman advised Russell to govern by letting his serfs farm in peace and waiting to collect taxes.

• The Knight Order entered the snowfield and set out to secure Cold Spring Point along the Double River Trade Route.
• Lord Sally spotted more than a hundred Snow Ghosts, and Roland led the vanguard and left wing to defeat them before Russell’s support formation could join the fighting.
• The Knight Order routed several more small Snow Ghost groups, then reached the first Cold Spring Point and made camp for the night.
• Baron Roman invited Russell and Roland to dinner, where Russell said he wanted Hail Beads to fund his ideas.
• Baron Roman urged Russell not to rush his plans and taught him that a lord should let the serfs farm in peace and wait to collect money.

Russell received blunt advice about managing his territory, then meditated and entered the Dark Dreamscape at Cold Spring Point. There, he assessed the gathered knights’ magic power and followed Sword Butterfly outside the camp.

• Baron Roman and Roland advised Russell to limit his subjects’ freedom and keep valuable goals such as Phantom Beasts under family control.
• Baron Roman urged Roland to build a close relationship with Grand Duke Kunsitan, while warning him not to repeat rumors about Old Earl Merlin and Princess Anxia.
• Russell returned to his tent, drank no milk tea, and meditated to strengthen his Battle Aura and prepare to become a Great Knight.
• Russell entered the Dark Dreamscape, saw the magic power of nearly three hundred knights, and identified the tiers of several Phantom Beast Knights.
• Russell ordered Sword Butterfly to lead him beyond Cold Spring Point, where he and Little Dream Dragon passed unseen by patrolling knights.

Russell and Little Dream Dragon encountered a band of Snow Ghosts in the Dark Dreamscape, where Little Dream Dragon swallowed the Riding Great Green Skin’s Hail Bead without a fight. Russell realized the dragon could forage for Hail Beads and potentially help the territory earn money; after the Dark Dreamscape ended, Russell woke at dawn and ate breakfast.

• Russell rode Little Dream Dragon across the snowy plains while the Sword Butterfly guided them through the Dark Dreamscape.
• Russell spotted eleven Snow Ghosts and a Ghost Beast horse, including a Riding Great Green Skin, and confirmed the group could not detect the Dark Dreamscape.
• Little Dream Dragon drew the Riding Great Green Skin and its horse’s blue-green glow into a Hail Bead and swallowed it.
• Russell urged Little Dream Dragon to eat the remaining Green Skins, but the dragon grew tired before doing so.
• Russell considered letting Little Dream Dragon forage for Hail Beads and selling the ones he collected, then the Dark Dreamscape collapsed.
• Russell woke near dawn at Cold Spring Point and ate the breakfast prepared by the Knight Retainer.

Russell fought Snow Ghosts alongside Eric and the Knight Retainers, and the Sword Butterfly Amber Bug’s burning mark guided his swordsmanship. The chapter ended with Russell gaining the upper hand in a one-on-one fight against a Snow Ghost called Green Skin.

• Eric led Russell and the Knight Retainers in repeated charges against Snow Ghosts, harvesting Hail Beads from their remains.
• The Sword Butterfly mark burned during battle, and Russell used an inspired sword stroke to shave the top of a Snow Ghost’s head.
• Russell realized the Sword Butterfly Amber Bug was being nourished by the battles on the snowfield.
• Russell asked Eric to let him face a charging Green Skin alone, while Eric and Kevin watched for danger.
• Russell parried Green Skin’s ice sword, pierced his neck, and began a graceful, forceful assault.

Russell fought Snow Demons with the Knight Order, rejected the idea of pursuing Malena, and explored the Dark Dreamscape before waking from a dream of her. The chapter left him starting another day at the Cold Spring Point camp.

• Russell killed a Green Skin with his swordsmanship, and his retainers praised him while he worried that his Battle Aura was still weak.
• Baron Roman’s Knight Order advanced to the next Cold Spring Point, where Roland reported their Snow Ghost kills and the loss of three Armored Knights.
• Russell rejected Roland’s suggestion that he pursue Malena, deciding he wanted a queen for his imagined kingdom rather than a mistress for Wuyou Snake Manor.
• Russell searched the Dark Dreamscape with Little Dream Dragon and the Sword Butterfly but found no Snow Ghost horde before returning to sleep.
• Russell dreamed of dancing with Malena, woke when the world shook, and began the day by asking Jack to bring breakfast and save him a place at the latrine.

Russell watched Lord Ross and the Phantom Beast Knights defeat five Snow Demons with coordinated attacks during the march across the icy wilderness. After the battle, Lord Ertlas recalled seeing a Snow Giant during the Battle of the Fall and admitted that he had fainted when it stomped down.

• Lord Ertlas told Russell that snow forests nurtured many Phantom Beasts, including Russell’s father’s Silver Winged Wind Fox.
• The Knight Order spotted Snow Demons, formed a defensive formation around Russell’s support unit, and Eric warned Russell to resist the draining effects of legion resonance.
• Lord Ross and the Phantom Beast Knights isolated and attacked the Snow Demons one at a time, defeating all five and crushing the surrounding Snow Ghosts.
• Russell examined the charred Snow Demon corpses and asked how large the Snow Giants were.
• Lord Ertlas said he had seen a Snow Giant during the Battle of the Fall, then recalled fainting when its foot stomped down.

Russell hunted Snow Demons and Snow Ghosts with the Knight Order, while learning more about the Ice Soul Beads and the creatures’ origins. At the Cold Spring Point, he reunited with his maternal uncle Meijie Monochoria and cousin Mel.

• Russell examined an Ice Crystal Weapon and an Ice Soul Bead, sensing Little Dream Dragon’s desire for the bead but returning it to Baron Roman’s Knight Retainer.
• The remains of a Snow Demon crumbled into blue particles and melted into the snow; Lord Ertlas explained that Snow Demons came from another world.
• Over the following days, Russell helped hunt Snow Demons and Snow Ghosts, collected more than forty Hail Beads, and rode out with Little Dream Dragon to expand the Dark Dreamscape.
• On July 14, Russell’s Knight Order reached the Cold Spring Point and met the Knight Order from Sancha River Mouth.
• Meijie Monochoria greeted Baron Roman, then welcomed Roland and Russell; Mel Monochoria also greeted his cousins.

Russell reunited with his close cousin Mel Monochoria at Cold Spring Point, where they discussed family, lordship, and a possible visit to Bluebird Castle. The nobles of the two territories gathered for a feast, and Meijie explained that Lord Medicarren had accompanied his wife to Gravel Territory.

• Russell and Mel reminisced, and Mel invited Russell to stay at Bluebird Castle, but Russell said he might visit after their grandfather returned.
• Russell reflected on his extended family, including his cousins Saisel, Saiswei, and Mel, and his grandfather Earl Fuqiang Merlin Monochoria.
• The nobles from both territories shared a feast in Baron Roman's command tent, where Lord Ertlas toasted Meijie for saving his life in battle.
• Lord Sally asked why Lord Medicarren was absent, and Meijie said he had escorted Meijie's wife to Gravel Territory.

After returning safely from the snowfield, Russell reunited with his family at Fluorite Castle and finally bathed and rested. The chapter ended with Baron Roman joking that the Fluorite Mushroom Family survived by keeping a low profile, while Russell regretted that he had not inherited that trait.

• The Knight Orders left Cold Spring Point and returned along the Double River Trade Route, reaching Great Wind Manor after three days.
• Baron Roman brought Roland and Russell to visit Old Madam Ingrid, who welcomed them and sent them on toward Fluorite Castle.
• Madam Meryl greeted Russell at the castle and insisted that he, Eric, and the others stay for dinner.
• Laura welcomed Roland and Russell, then asked Russell about the snowfield as they caught up.
• Russell bathed and joined his family for dinner, where Madam Meryl remarked on his hair and Baron Roman joked about the family's low-profile way of surviving.

Russell returned to Wuyou Snake Manor after the snowfield expedition, enjoyed a day of rest, and rewarded his servants. In the Dark Dreamscape, he discovered that its boundary had expanded and spent more Hail Beads feeding Little Dream Dragon before setting out to explore beyond it.

• Charles and the manor officials welcomed Russell and his party back, and Russell reflected on the Hail Beads and Gold Coins he had earned during the expedition.
• Russell spent the afternoon relaxing at the manor annex and praised Mrs. Brown's steamed buns and Mrs. Moore's pickled dried fish at dinner.
• Russell rewarded the kitchen staff and Butler Morris with copper coins for their work.
• After meditating and going to sleep, Russell entered the Dark Dreamscape and found that its boundary had expanded by two or three meters.
• Little Dream Dragon demanded Hail Beads, and Russell gave it three ordinary ones before asking Sword Butterfly to lead him beyond the Dark Dreamscape's boundary.

Russell discovered a dandelion nurturing a Spirit Worm in the Dark Dreamscape and used Little Dream Dragon’s dragonflame to stabilize it. The next morning, he found the matching flower along the Cinder Path and left the story with him happily naming it a gift for Kevin.

• Russell followed the manor’s roads through the Dark Dreamscape, mapping the Cinder Path and noticing a faint magical glow from a flower on an irrigation-channel embankment.
• Russell recognized that the flower was nurturing a Spirit Worm and promised Little Dream Dragon Hail Beads in exchange for nourishing it with dragonflame.
• Little Dream Dragon breathed dragonflame on the flower, causing its magical glow to stabilize and pulse brightly.
• Russell canceled his morning lesson and went with Kevin and Ram to search the embankment for the flower he had seen in the Dark Dreamscape.
• Russell found a larger-than-usual cluster of yellow dandelions with a familiar magical aura and told Kevin he was giving him the little yellow flower.

Russell discovered a second Spirit Worm, a Dandelion Bug, and arranged for the serfs to nurture and guard it while concealing Little Dream Dragon’s role. After the officials left, Russell criticized Mrs. Moore’s Edamame Sauce, and she reaffirmed her devotion to him while arguing with Barbara.

• Russell found a Dandelion Spirit Worm in the irrigation canal, and Charles and Eric credited the Shadowflame Dragon with guiding him to it.
• Russell ordered Red-nosed Rudy and the serf technicians to fertilize the Worm Grass and told John to organize guards for it.
• Russell returned to the manor and hoped to find more Spirit Worms while keeping Little Dream Dragon’s involvement secret behind the Shadowflame Dragon’s reputation.
• Russell sent Charles home with a bottle of wine after teasing him about drawing two salaries and indulging their friendship.
• Russell tasted Mrs. Moore’s Edamame Sauce and said it tasted worse than dog shit, prompting her to promise she would improve it.
• Mrs. Moore scolded Barbara for leaving to help Mrs. Brown, while Barbara privately preferred making pastries with Mrs. Brown.

On a rainy afternoon, Russell read the legend of Sigroft and the Lost Dragon, whose revenge destroyed a kingdom and left it frozen. The tale made him wonder whether a Vengeful Dragon could truly exist and strengthened his resolve to explore the Dragon Sleep Continent and the Snow Demons’ homeworld with Little Dream Dragon.

• Russell considered renovating the manor annex but worried about spending too much of his limited funds.
• Russell drank barley tea and thought about searching Curved Blade Mountain and Dagger Mountain for wild tea leaves.
• Russell read how Sigroft was betrayed by the queen, joined souls with a dragon, and took revenge by destroying her kingdom.
• Russell wondered whether Sigroft and the Lost Dragon had truly existed and whether a Vengeful Dragon could exist.
• Russell resolved to travel across the Dragon Sleep Continent with Little Dream Dragon and, if possible, visit the Snow Demons’ homeworld.

Russell investigated why mussels in his pond were dying and found that smaller mussels survived after their wounds healed, keeping his pearl-cultivation plan alive. Charles suggested trying gemstone fragments as pearl nuclei, and Russell left the chapter planning experiments with several possible materials.

• Ribs Jimmy reported that many mussels had died from infected wounds, and Russell examined the remaining live mussels to find their wounds healed around the inserted sand.
• Russell told Ribs Jimmy to clear the dead mussels and repeat the experiment with small mussels.
• Charles reported on the territory’s affairs, then suggested that gemstone fragments might work better than ordinary sand as pearl nuclei.
• Russell praised Charles and promised him merit if the idea succeeded.
• Russell considered testing gemstone fragments, clay pellets, metal, magical materials, Phantom Beast bone, and ground mussel shells as pearl nuclei.

Russell collected the Dandelion Spirit Worm after it hatched, bonded with it, and rewarded the serfs who guarded it. He gathered all seven of his Spirit Worms and rode to Fluorite Castle with Kevin.

• Russell woke after a vivid dream and began his day at the manor.
• Knight Retainer John told Russell that the Spirit Worm had been born, and Russell rode to the canal embankment to see it.
• Russell fed the Dandelion Spirit Worm Jade Powder and his blood, forming an Elf Contract that let him command it.
• Russell rewarded each member of the Insect Grass Guard Squad with ten copper coins for protecting the Spirit Worm.
• Russell packed his seven Spirit Worms into a Jade Box and rode with Kevin to Fluorite Castle, arriving in time for lunch.

Russell visited Roland to share news of his new Dandelion Bug and ask for Dandelion Magic Potion cultivation information. He brought seven Spirit Worms to gather with Luorui and Tess at Fluorite Castle, hoping the social interaction would help them evolve.

• Russell told Roland he had picked up a Dandelion Bug and asked for cultivation information about Dandelion Magic Potion.
• Roland marveled at Russell's growing collection of treasures and followed him to the sprite room.
• Tess and Luorui came out to greet Russell and his Spirit Worms.
• Old Butler Carter opened the sprite room, and Russell placed all seven Spirit Worms inside.
• Russell hoped the gathering would encourage the Spirit Worms to transform into sprites.

Russell visited the Clay Ore mine to gather clay for his plan to cultivate Magic Pearls, then realized its discarded clay slag might be useful for making bricks. He returned to Fluorite Castle, where his family came back from Great Wind Manor, leaving his idea to test the slag still ahead.

• Russell told Roland he wanted to cultivate Magic Pearls, but Roland dismissed the plan and urged him to give it up.
• Russell visited the Clay Ore mine and learned from its manager that Ross’s power replenished the mine’s clay deposits.
• Russell noticed the discarded clay slag and proposed firing it into building stones, then took some fresh clay back to Fluorite Castle.
• Russell greeted Laura and heard that Old Madam Ingrid enjoyed the reading glasses he had given her.
• Baron Roman invited Russell to drink Black Pearl wine, while Madam Meryl arranged mint heat-clearing soup for Laura.

Russell persuaded Baron Roman to let him try making bricks from clay slag and began organizing experiments at the pottery kiln. He also expanded his pearl-cultivation trials and recorded glass as a third invention to pursue, hoping the ventures would earn money and eventually repay the Fluorite Mushroom Family.

• Russell argued that townspeople needed affordable stone homes, and Baron Roman agreed to let him test whether clay slag could be fired into bricks.
• Russell dreamed that the Grand Duke rewarded his successful slag bricks by arranging his marriage to Princess Kunlaya, but Butler Carter woke him before he could ride the Shadowflame Dragon.
• Russell brought clay slag to the Pottery Kiln Factory and instructed Wai Maozi William to test different brick formulas, promising that his son could manage a new brick factory if they succeeded.
• Russell gave high-quality clay to Ribs Jimmy for river-mussel pearl experiments and promised to promote him to a territorial official if he produced pearls.
• Russell wrote down slag bricks, pearls, and glass as his three technical projects, intending to earn startup capital and repay the Fluorite Mushroom Family.

Russell resumed his knight training, heard reports on his manor’s plans, and learned that Cave Tunic was suffering a severe rat plague. He sent Knight Retainers to gather cats and planned to visit Cave Tunic himself.

• Russell resumed his morning sword training, while Eric practiced Battle Qi Sword Control with Kevin.
• Russell joked to Tom that his sword could cut through anything, including fate.
• Chief Scribe Charles reported plans to cultivate Dandelion Magic Potion and appoint John to lead the Insect Grass Guard Squad, and Russell approved both.
• Drulk and Katie reported that huge rats were overrunning Cave Tunic, eating food and biting serfs.
• Russell sent Knight Retainers to neighboring manors to gather cats and decided to inspect Cave Tunic himself.

Russell and his companions fought to contain the Rat Plague in Cave Tunic while assessing its damage and arranging aid for the serfs. After Eric suspected a rat king was directing the swarm toward the mushroom field in Wolf Head Cavern, Russell gathered everyone to plan its capture.

• Russell ordered Charles to obtain antidotal Magic Potions for the serfs bitten by rats and to manage the plague and the villagers’ recovery.
• Russell, Eric, and Kevin joined the defenders at Wolf Head Cavern and helped drive the rats back, leaving a mound of rat corpses.
• Eric questioned why the rats kept attacking Wolf Head Cavern, and he suggested that a rat king might be controlling the swarm.
• Russell concluded that a rat king might have gathered the rats from nearby caves and targeted the mushroom field in Wolf Head Cavern.
• Russell called a meeting and asked everyone to devise a plan to capture the rat king.