Chapter Summaries

Su Mo used the lightning and his Gravity Battle Armor to overcome Mist Mountain’s trials and reached the Boundary River, where he saw the Mythic World Cauldron. As he prepared to approach it, he discovered that Adam, the World Core, was already there.

• Su Mo flew through the Lightning Strike Zone and Illusion Mist Zone, using lightning strikes to replenish his armor’s energy.
• Su Mo endured five times gravity and passed the No-Fly Zone with the armor’s propulsion module.
• Su Mo appraised the World Cauldron and learned about its Mythic grade, abilities, and strict control conditions.
• Su Mo advanced to the summit, where the Boundary River disabled his armor and gave him ground to stand on.
• Su Mo spotted Adam’s projection near the World Cauldron and realized Adam had been working there.

Su Mo reached the World Cauldron at the summit of Mist Mountain and reunited with Adam, who explained how the Boundary River and the Giant Mountain Star Region worked. After Su Mo claimed the cauldron, the Game Panel offered him a choice between taking it and becoming bound to the star region or giving it up and leaving the game with others.

• Su Mo encountered Adam at the Boundary River, and Adam realized he had reached it after mistaking him for a hallucination.
• Adam explained that blocking the game's inspection had badly damaged his origin and that the World Stones represented the worlds of the Giant Mountain Star Region.
• Su Mo told Adam about the Myriad Paths Competition, and Adam explained how its terrains related to the star region's forbidden regions and warned him against crossing the Boundary River.
• Adam guided Su Mo through the Boundary River to the World Cauldron, where Su Mo touched a World Stone and the cauldron flew into his manual.
• The Game Panel offered Su Mo the choice to take away the World Cauldron and become bound to the Giant Mountain Star Region or give it up and leave the game with at least ten creatures of his race.

Su Mo chose to take the World Cauldron rather than abandon it for a chance to return to Earth. After its power nourished the Wasteland and restored life, resources, and infrastructure, Su Mo received the cauldron and named the world Tian Yuan World.

• Su Mo decided that returning to Earth with only ten people was not worth abandoning humanity in the Wasteland, and chose to take the World Cauldron.
• Adam vanished, and the World Cauldron released golden light that illuminated the New Continent and healed injuries.
• Green light revived plants, while purple light replenished minerals, gas, and Energy Stone deposits across the Wasteland.
• Orange light repaired old buildings, roads, and a bridge in Qinggang City.
• Adam explained that the lights came from the remaining Source Power of worlds in the Giant Mountain Star Region, which nourished the Wasteland while preserving those worlds.
• The World Cauldron shrank into Su Mo's hand, and Su Mo named the world Tian Yuan World.

After the first Myriad Paths Competition ended, Su Mo learned that the game would impose a 5000% Punishment Disaster and discovered he was in the damaged World Cauldron space. He reviewed three disaster options and ruled out the predetermined meteor and alien deployment disasters, leaving the Sea Splitting Earthquake as the only viable choice.

• The game announced the competition's rewards, new-player deployment, and a 5000% Punishment Disaster before teleporting Su Mo.
• Su Mo found himself in the World Cauldron space and saw a sand table depicting the Wasteland and Tian Yuan Territory.
• The game revealed that Su Mo could use Disaster Authority and World Blessing, then presented three possible Punishment Disasters.
• Su Mo judged the Celestial Fire Meteor disaster too unpredictable and the deployment of one billion Extraterrestrial Alien Race members too dangerous.
• Su Mo decided that the Sea Splitting Earthquake was the only disaster he could choose.

Su Mo explained the Giant Mountain Star Region’s surviving worlds and revealed that the dungeons explored by earlier players were real planets whose Source Power had been drained by the game. He left the administrators with news that only ten worlds remained, while the fate of players in the hostile worlds—and the people in the last Small World—remained unresolved.

• Su Mo ordered Tian Yuan Territory to incorporate Qinggang City’s western suburbs within fifteen days and prepare for the coming Punishment Disaster.
• Su Mo told Su Deben, Lü Kuan, and the other administrators that dungeon spaces were other planets in the Giant Mountain Star Region, and that repeated visits consumed their Source Power.
• Su Mo showed that Future Ruins had prospered after his departure, while Candlelight World had lost nearly all its humans and Deep Sea World was developing along a technology-like path.
• Su Mo named the five remaining Medium Worlds—Frozen Soil, Flame Hell, Thunder Pool, Boundless Sea, and Dead Zone—and said they could not support ordinary human life.
• Su Mo said players who had settled in those hostile worlds had likely perished, then began to discuss the people still living in the remaining Small World.

After warning the major territories about the coming Punishment Disaster, Su Mo learned that Tian Yuan had supplies for only forty-one days and still faced a gap before the Spring Planting harvest. He visited Hunter Tiger in Pingtan to celebrate Tian Yuan’s planned settlement in the western suburbs, where he learned that Hope Town had expanded dramatically.

• Su Mo and Su Deben discussed the fate of later players who entered already-dead worlds and agreed to wait for the truth to emerge.
• Su Mo warned the Dragon Flag Territory, the Northern Border, and the Golden Giant Eagle about the Punishment Disaster and urged them to prepare for spring planting and keep citizens inside protected areas.
• Su Mo learned that Tian Yuan’s supplies would last only forty-one days and worried about surviving until the spring harvest.
• Hunter Tiger welcomed Su Mo in Pingtan and excitedly tested the Storage Module hidden in Su Mo’s gift.
• Su Mo toured the renovated western suburbs with Hunter Tiger, and Aldrich told them Hope Town had grown several times larger than its former village.

Su Mo met with Hunter Tiger and Aldrich in Qinggang City’s Western Suburbs and laid out plans to rebuild the district and manage its markets. Hunter Tiger and Aldrich agreed to support Tian Yuan’s plans as Su Mo prepared to move people into the area.

• Su Mo recognized that Hunter Tiger had deliberately softened his former fearsome image and was seeking praise while showing loyalty to the alliance.
• Su Mo, Hunter Tiger, and Aldrich surveyed the thriving Secondary Market near the restored Fifth Ring Bridge, and Su Mo praised their work.
• Su Mo explained that the alliance’s Primary Market would serve members while the Secondary Market would circulate goods and stabilize prices; Aldrich supported the arrangement.
• Su Mo announced that people would move into the Western Suburbs and proposed repairing buildings by securing their foundations and exteriors before residents renovated the interiors.
• Su Mo assured Hunter Tiger and Aldrich that Tian Yuan engineers would repair underground public facilities, while local shelters supplied workers to transport materials.
• Su Mo outlined further plans to restore surface facilities, improve functional departments, and build defenses and disaster-response facilities.

Su Mo toured Pingtan, the giant city, and Tian Yuan Territory, seeing how the alliance’s growth had transformed its shelters, economy, and people. As Tian Yuan prepared to expand into Qinggang City and recruit six new allies, Tang En found that even Qinggang Shelter’s leaders were considering joining it.

• Hunter Tiger and Aldrich showed Su Mo how Pingtan and the giant city had improved with supplies from Tian Yuan Territory’s factories.
• Kevin described how Horsens Shelter’s people had embraced aboveground construction and joined Tian Yuan’s work and trade opportunities.
• Su Mo reflected on Tian Yuan’s rapid growth and prepared to bring the alliance’s influence into Qinggang City.
• Tang En grew angry when he learned that Tian Yuan would recruit six new allies, drawing interest from South Suburbs managers who had rejected Qinggang’s development plans.
• Tang En suggested that Qinggang Shelter join Tian Yuan, and the meeting room fell silent as its leaders considered the idea.

News spread that the Tian Yuan Alliance planned to control Qinggang’s Western Suburbs, prompting shelters across the city to compete for the alliance’s limited membership spots. Qinggang Shelter’s managers discussed joining while Tang En left in disgust, unaware that the Outer City’s wanderers had been quietly leaving.

• Aldrich spread word of the Tian Yuan Alliance’s planned expansion, and Hunter Tiger confirmed it, stirring shelters across Qinggang into a scramble for six membership spots.
• Qinggang Shelter’s managers debated whether to join the alliance and decided to make Su Mo approach them first, believing Qinggang’s status would draw him in.
• Tang En left the meeting as the managers continued discussing joining Tian Yuan, convinced that Qinggang’s arrogance would bring it trouble.
• Tang En noticed the Outer City had grown quieter and learned from guards and wanderers that many residents had left to seek work, food, or access to cleared underground pipes.
• Tang En gave several wanderers New Coins, accepted their familiar scramble as reassurance, and dismissed their departures as an insignificant reduction in Qinggang’s expenses.

After the Myriad Paths Competition, Su Mo discovered that his Survival Points had surged, giving him a major cache of points and Module production materials. He then attended Hope Town’s celebration, where he learned that Wasteland Bone Village’s population had grown to 43,000, and ordered the town to welcome the newcomers lavishly.

• Su Mo checked his Survival Points and found that his Construction, Technology, Item, and Special points had risen sharply after the main event and finals.
• Su Mo opened a full-value Item Survival Points reward, gaining 9,170 points and Level One through Level Four Module production materials.
• Su Mo prepared for Hope Town’s celebration with Su Chan and headed to the surface as the festivities began.
• Qiao Yuansheng told Su Mo that Wasteland Bone Village’s population had grown from 11,000 to 43,000 in less than a hundred days, with many newcomers coming from Qinggang Shelter.
• Su Mo ordered Qiao Yuansheng to double the food ingredients and spare no expense, hoping to welcome the newcomers and retain their labor force.

Tian Yuan celebrated Hope Village’s expansion into a town as wanderers and neighboring administrators gathered to congratulate Su Mo. The festivities ended with Qinggang Minister Sid realizing that Tian Yuan had become Qinggang’s new power while his own shelter remained divided.

• Wasteland Bear reassured the frightened newcomers as they watched Tian Yuan’s fireworks and admired the village’s abundant food, supplies, and benefits.
• Su Mo greeted tens of thousands of visitors, while Qiao Yuansheng agreed with Wasteland Bear to help Wasteland Bone Village develop into a town.
• Sid arrived privately to congratulate Tian Yuan, and Qiao Yuansheng accepted his gift without pressing him about Qinggang’s divided factions.
• Hunter Tiger arrived dressed in fine clothes, warmly greeted Su Mo, and sent Sid away so he could speak with his brother.
• Sid saw forty or fifty administrators from the southern suburbs arrive with gifts to seek cooperation and recognized that Tian Yuan had taken Qinggang’s former position of power.

After meeting the shelter managers, Su Mo’s guests stayed at the Central Grand Hotel and discovered the Tian Yuan Alliance’s individual membership system. Buden considered using its recommendation votes to bring Bent Horn Shelter into the alliance, but the other managers rushed to register for level-nine memberships first.

• Buden and other shelter managers arrived at the Central Grand Hotel, where they were impressed by Hope Town’s construction and the hotel’s affordable rooms.
• A waiter showed Buden to room 412 and left him a card explaining the Tian Yuan Alliance membership system.
• Buden learned that level-nine members could recommend shelters for priority inspections and calculated that thirty memberships might help Bent Horn Shelter join the alliance.
• After seeing that reaching level nine required spending five thousand copper coins per year, Buden weighed the cost against the potential benefits.
• Managers crowded the corridor and hurried downstairs to register for level-nine memberships, and Buden joined the line at the counter.

Su Mo visited Dragon Rise Village on the day the Punishment Disaster was announced to see how Module Technology was progressing. Lü Kuan showed him the factory’s new production lines, which could make ordinary Level One Modules and opened the way to broader manufacturing.

• The Tian Yuan Alliance issued 147 Level Nine Membership Cards, harvesting resources for its development plans.
• A week after the main event, the Punishment Disaster caused the greatest disruption in coastal settlements and territories whose infrastructure extended beyond their protected range.
• Su Mo went to Dragon Rise Village early, where he saw its rapid industrial growth and learned that heavier factory emissions had followed a surge in orders.
• After a sanitation worker said the pollution smelled like civilization, Su Mo headed to the Module Factory and considered using Module Technology to address emissions.
• Lü Kuan showed Su Mo machines assembled from Level One Modules and explained that the factory could produce ordinary modules, starting with Storage Modules.

Su Mo oversaw preparations for the Module Factory and the western suburbs as the Punishment Disaster began, while Qinggang Shelter worried that the Tian Yuan Alliance no longer needed its help. Meanwhile, the fully loaded Red Spider Merchant Group lost its way near Qinggang City and came under a serious threat.

• Lü Kuan demonstrated the Module Production Line, and Su Mo arranged security while setting a target to begin stable production after the disaster.
• The Punishment Disaster was announced, and Su Mo focused on repairing the western suburbs, restoring sewage lines, and planning major construction.
• Qinggang Shelter’s administrators questioned whether the Tian Yuan Alliance would still cooperate, as the Alliance rebuilt the western suburbs faster than expected and Qinggang’s supply routes remained cut off.
• Sean led the Red Spider Merchant Group, carrying a large cargo load, through unfamiliar wilderness toward Qinggang City despite repeated delays and attacks.
• Three warning flares signaled a threat capable of endangering the merchant group’s war chariots, leaving Sean and Luke facing an unknown enemy.

The Tian Yuan Rescue Team captured a Red Spider Merchant Group patrol, but the group’s reinforcements met them with confidence and superior equipment. After the rescue team’s distress signal brought more forces into the area, the Red Spider guards discovered that their communications and sensors had been jammed, leaving them facing an unexpectedly formidable enemy.

• Tian Da Dong’s Search and Rescue Team 11 captured eight strangers and withdrew to a defensive position when their reinforcements approached.
• Tian Da Dong ordered the squad to send an emergency signal after powerful interference cut off its communications.
• Luke led Red Spider Merchant Group guards toward the signal source, convinced they could defeat the rescue team as they had previous Marauders.
• A guard triggered a land mine, and Glasses detected two more matching signal sources, suggesting the enemy was a disciplined force.
• Glasses’s communications and sensors went dead under counter-jamming, and he warned the guards to get the boss because they had encountered a much stronger opponent.

Luke and the Red Spider Merchant Group’s guards came under a massive, coordinated attack from an unknown force in the Dense Forest. The attackers revealed themselves as Tian Yuan’s Rescue Team, and Luke identified his group as returning merchants who had visited Administrator Su Mo six months earlier.

• Glasses detected a six-kilometer-wide jamming signal, while Luke’s group was struck by waves of Rocket Propelled Grenades in the Dense Forest.
• Luke fled toward the Red Spider Merchant Group’s camp, but most of his guards disappeared amid the bombardment and chaos.
• Two guards followed a voice claiming the area was safe, but an electrified net disabled them as armed figures emerged from the forest.
• The attackers threatened Luke with the captured guards and said they were Tian Yuan’s Rescue Team, responding to the Red Spider group’s signal probing and provocation.
• Luke asked whether they were connected to Tian Yuan Shelter, removed his helmet, and identified himself and his group as returning merchants who had met Administrator Su Mo six months earlier.

Sean’s Red Spider Merchant Group came under attack from Tian Yuan Shelter’s Search and Rescue Team, then discovered Luke had not betrayed them and the clash was a case of mistaken identity. After seeing how much Tian Yuan had changed, Sean agreed to sell future goods at a steep discount as the merchant group resumed its journey under escort.

• Sean ordered the Red Spider Merchant Group’s guards to regroup and prepare to negotiate after two rocket-propelled grenade salvos devastated their camp.
• Sean and Joseph saw Luke approaching with Tian Yuan’s warriors and feared he had betrayed them, until Joseph recognized the group’s emblem as a recolored version of Tian Yuan Shelter’s lotus symbol.
• Luke confirmed that the attackers were from Tian Yuan Shelter, and Tian Da Dong asked Sean to shut down the signal interference so they could contact their lord.
• Sean restored communications and spoke with the lord, then realized Tian Yuan had grown into a formidable power since the merchant group’s visit eight months earlier.
• Feng Tianmin reassured Sean that the attack had been a false alarm, and Sean offered to sell future goods at eighty percent of their original price.

Sean and the Red Spider Merchant Group returned to Tian Yuan Shelter after eight months away and were astonished by its Warning Wall, Outpost Base, and rapid growth. Seeing Tian Yuan as a potential powerful backer, Sean arrived in formal attire and learned that its population had surpassed one hundred thousand.

• Sean marveled at the enormous Warning Wall and prepared to impress Tian Yuan's leaders with his inherited Foundation formal wear and Corporations contribution badge.
• Feng Tianmin welcomed the Red Spider Merchant Group through the Warning Wall, and Sean saw that the old temporary camp had become a busy military stronghold.
• Mole People at the Outpost Base recognized the Foundation emblem on the war chariots and hurried to alert their administrators about the trading opportunity.
• Feng Tianmin brought Sean to the reception room and told him Tian Yuan Territory had grown from just over ten thousand people to more than one hundred thousand.

Sean reunited with Su Mo and offered the Red Spider Merchant Group’s cargo at a steep discount, while explaining the Foundation’s supply crisis after the world’s transmission left its headquarters and trade network fragmented. Su Mo reviewed the cargo list and eagerly sought rare resources and regional specialties that could strengthen Tian Yuan Territory’s foundation.

• Su Mo welcomed Sean to Tian Yuan Territory and thanked the Red Spider Merchant Group for its previous trade.
• Sean offered Tian Yuan Territory all needed goods at seventy-five percent of their listed price.
• Sean explained that the Foundation’s headquarters and merchant network had been scattered, leaving production stalled for lack of raw materials.
• Sean showed Su Mo an eighty-nine-page cargo list that included six hundred and fifty Fuel Rods and many regional specialties.
• Su Mo praised the rare resources and asked Sean to sell the specialties to Tian Yuan Territory.

Su Mo considered Sean’s proposal for a Deep Cooperation Agreement with the Red Spider Merchant Group and took Sean and his companions on a tour of Tian Yuan Territory’s new specialty. As they traveled through its planned buildings and thriving farmland, a powerful earthquake struck, but the vehicle continued safely along the road.

• Su Mo decided that Tian Yuan Territory did not need the Red Spider Merchant Group’s food and energy machines and considered selling them to the Mole People shelters.
• Sean proposed a Deep Cooperation Agreement that would give Su Mo influence over the Red Spider Merchant Group’s prices, supplies, and customers, and Su Mo agreed to consider it if the group could handle Tian Yuan Territory’s new specialty.
• Su Mo brought Sean, Joseph, and Luke through the territory in energy-powered vehicles, where Sean and Joseph noticed its prebuilt facilities and flourishing farmland.
• Sean and Joseph praised the territory’s planning and its residents’ hopeful outlook as they passed Hope Town.
• An earthquake violently shook the road and nearby buildings, frightening Sean, Joseph, and Luke, but the driver continued without the ground splitting open.