Chapter Summaries

After suppressing the Sin Demon and fusing with Razor Sunflower, Sabel awoke with increased strength and passed the researchers’ tests of his memories and control. He then drew on Razor Sunflower’s power, revealing that he could sense its consciousness.

• Sabel awoke the day after his body returned to normal and discovered that his strength and control had increased.
• Sabel recognized that he had fused with Razor Sunflower and reassured the researchers that his thoughts and body were under control.
• Tulas accompanied Colairs and six researchers as they examined Sabel and tested his memories and mental state.
• Sabel entered the sealing space in his consciousness, sensed Razor Sunflower bound and afraid, and summoned its power.
• Sabel’s aura overwhelmed the researchers and revealed a gap between his strength and Tulas’s; he told Colairs he could sense Razor Sunflower’s consciousness.

Sabel learned that Razor Sunflower could tempt him when he released his power, while Angel and the researchers planned his training and continued studying the Sin Hunter system. Alan returned from Paladova with evidence that Irene entered Wasteland City and never came out, leaving Angel asking what the place was.

• Sabel told Colairs that Razor Sunflower's voice urged him to release more power, and Angel theorized the Sin Demon was using Sabel's consciousness to think.
• Frod assigned Tulas to help Sabel adapt to his increased strength, and Tulas protested that he would become Sabel's punching bag.
• Researchers began examining Sabel and giving him psychological therapy before attempting another Sin Demon fusion.
• Angel and Sanders continued studying how to build a new power system for the Dream Wilderness, while Angel returned to reality.
• Alan told Angel that Irene bought Sea Night Dew in Paladova, then entered Wasteland City and never returned.

Alan told Angel that Irene had disappeared after entering Wasteland City, and Shali recalled an old case there in which more than twenty members of a religious group vanished overnight. The group’s name, the Budding, prompted Angel to realize he needed to confirm something.

• Alan explained that Irene had vanished after entering Wasteland City and asked Angel to investigate for lingering traces of energy.
• Alan said a vagrant had claimed to see Irene heading toward the parish, though he was unsure whether the man had been lying.
• Shali recalled seeing a reward notice about more than twenty members of the Budding disappearing from Wasteland City’s parish several years earlier.
• Angel reacted to the name of the Budding and said he needed to confirm something.

A middle-aged woman prayed to the Sprout God and maintained a ruined church in Wasteland City, where she discovered the young man Angel waiting for her. Angel asked to speak with her, leaving his purpose unknown.

• The woman performed a sacrificial prayer in a basement, while a black-suited young man watched and recognized the Sprout carving as something real.
• The woman crossed the polluted river into Wasteland City and lamented the ruined world and abandoned religious district.
• The woman cleaned the Sprout carving on a Rain Pattern Stone at the church, following the bishop’s instructions from five years earlier.
• Angel appeared behind the woman in the church, introduced himself, and asked to question her.

Angel questioned Kazhona about the Sprout Church and learned that Irene had seen the Rain Pattern Stone’s patterns. He destroyed the stone and killed Kazhona, leaving her in an illusion that she had gone to the divine kingdom.

• Angel asked Kazhona about the Sprout Church’s history, and she said its missing believers had been taken to the Sprout God’s divine kingdom.
• Angel questioned Kazhona about the Rain Pattern Stone, and she recalled that a richly dressed woman had visited after it was submerged in water.
• Angel conjured an illusion of Irene, and Kazhona identified her as the woman who had seen the stone’s patterns.
• Angel smashed the Rain Pattern Stone and banished some of its dust into the void.
• Angel told Kazhona that the destroyed stone freed her from her duty, then killed her while she imagined reaching the divine kingdom.

After erasing Kazhona's corpse, Angel met Gloria, Shali, and Alan outside the parish and revealed that Alan's sister Irene might still be alive in the Boundless Path, a perilous stage of planar fusion. He warned Alan not to ask about or investigate where she had gone, and told him to cultivate until he was strong enough to enter the Boundless Path.

• Angel banished Kazhona's corpse into the void and left the parish.
• Gloria and Shali arrived in Shali's flying teapot, and Alan asked Angel for news about Irene.
• Angel explained that Irene had entered the Boundless Path, where survival was nearly impossible for anyone below the legendary level.
• Angel told Alan he could not reveal where Irene had gone and warned him not to ask, speculate, or investigate.
• Angel advised Alan to cultivate and wait until he was strong enough to step onto the Boundless Path.

Angel told Gloria that Irene had vanished into a place far more dangerous than the Boundless Path, then revealed to Sanders and Gloria that her disappearance involved an unowned, out-of-order mysterious item. He said the Order Guild likely knew where it was, leaving Sanders to recognize the danger of the revelation.

• Alan chose to remain in Paladova to search for traces of Irene, and Angel left him behind.
• Angel told Gloria that the place Irene had gone was far more dangerous than the Boundless Path, but postponed explaining where it was until they returned.
• Angel brought Gloria to Gravity Garden and told Sanders about Alan, Irene's disappearance, and the mysterious item connected to it.
• Angel said the item was unowned and that the Order Guild likely knew where it was.
• Sanders realized Angel meant an out-of-order mysterious item.

Angel explained that Irene’s disappearance was caused by the Budding, an unsolvable out-of-control mysterious object, and traced her exposure to a prayer spread by its believers. Gloria learned that Irene had been drawn into the Budding’s disorder after seeing and reciting the prayer, leaving her fate tied to the object’s nightmare.

• Sanders and Angel discussed how completely out-of-control mysterious objects could exist everywhere and intrude when their conditions were met.
• Angel gave Gloria his notebook, and she learned about the danger of out-of-control objects and the legendary mysterious hunters who investigated them.
• Angel explained that Frost had classified the Budding as an unsolvable out-of-control object that had annihilated a miracle.
• Angel revealed that Budding believers had spread to the Southern Region and caused both the Paladova parish disappearances and Irene’s disappearance.
• Angel explained that Irene saw the Budding’s prayer recorded on the Rain Pattern Stone at Sprout Church and recited it, drawing her into the Budding’s rhythm of disorder.

Angel, Sanders, and Gloria discussed how to contain knowledge of the Budding and agreed to investigate whether its believers remained in the Southern Region before informing anyone. Angel then checked on Toby’s progress and watched its training with Gloria, which was interrupted by a burst of chaotic energy from Mechanical City.

• Sanders and Gloria agreed that knowledge of the Budding should remain secret, while Angel warned that its believers might already be in the Southern Region.
• Sanders suggested that Angel ask Maya or Dodolo to use prophecy to search for the Budding’s believers, and Gloria said she would keep Alan under control when he returned.
• Angel and Gloria discussed Toby’s emotional progress, and Gloria worried that it would soon have to confront the seal suppressing its Extreme Grudge Intent.
• Toby complained that Shali coveted its Snow-Kissed Feather, so Angel warned Shali not to pursue the spatial item.
• Gloria resumed training Toby, but she and Angel noticed a burst of dispersed elemental energy from Mechanical City and guessed that apprentices had been fighting.

Angel learned that Azaz had lost to Xiliu after refusing to use demonic power, while Qili and Jiebo’s tournament matches had both ended in chaos. After Qili and Jiebo flooded Fragrant Plaza in a fight, Angel considered intervening, but Sanders arrived to tell him that Kant had come.

• Azaz told Gloria and Angel that he had lost his match against Xiliu because he had avoided using demonic power.
• Angel learned that Qili had defeated Kafolian, Jiebo had forfeited his match against Su Yatutai, and Qili had also skipped her match.
• Azaz reported that Qili and Jiebo had fought in Fragrant Plaza, which was now flooded and sealed off by the enforcement team.
• Angel saw the flooded plaza and suspected Sky Mechanical City had taken Qili and Jiebo into custody.
• Angel prepared to contact Antonio, but Sanders appeared and told him that Kant had arrived.

Kant arrived at Sanders's manor with his disciple Qili transformed into a black cat after her fight with Jiebo flooded Fragrant Plaza. He explained the damage and House of Lilith's risk of alienating the alchemy circle, hoping Angel could help mediate.

• Kant arrived at Sanders's manor in disarray, carrying Luna and Qili as black cats on his eyebrows.
• Kant pressured Qili into changing back from a cat, revealing her identity as the Netherfire Witch and his disciple.
• Kant told Sanders and the others that Qili and Jiebo had fought at Fragrant Plaza, causing extensive damage, and that he had taken Qili away from the law enforcement squad.
• Qili blamed Jiebo for most of the damage, while Kant told her to focus on compensation instead of arguing over responsibility.
• Kant explained that he feared House of Lilith would lose the alchemy circle's cooperation and hoped Angel's standing in the Research Institute could help mediate.

Angel met Witch Sang Ye, who arrived at Kant’s manor and offered to trade him an illusion-school auxiliary tool once used by the Deceitful Grand Wizard Spivey. The chapter ended with Angel asking her to show him the tool before he considered the trade.

• Angel agreed to visit the Research Institute to assess Kant’s request, without promising to help.
• Witch Sang Ye arrived alone, greeted the others, and flirted with Angel before taking her seat.
• Kant began to raise the question of dividing responsibility, but Sang Ye said she had come to speak with Angel instead.
• Sang Ye explained that she had found an alchemical tool in Spivey’s abandoned laboratory and offered it in exchange for Ocean Rhythm.
• Angel asked Sang Ye to show him the tool before he decided whether to trade.

Sang Ye offered Angel the illusionary tool Heart House in a trade, and Sanders explained its standing and limitations compared with Ocean Rhythm. Sang Ye described how Heart House helped users confront inner demons, then asked Angel whether he would accept the deal.

• Sang Ye showed Angel a small wooden-cottage model and identified it as Heart House, a tool discovered in an abandoned laboratory once used by Spivey.
• Sanders and Sang Ye debated Heart House’s auxiliary power and how its narrower appeal to Mind Illusion practitioners compared with Ocean Rhythm’s broader usefulness to ocean wizards.
• Sang Ye explained that Heart House magnified mental aberrations so users could confront and defeat their inner demons, making it especially valuable to Mind Illusion wizards.
• Sang Ye argued that Heart House suited Angel better than Ocean Rhythm and asked whether he was willing to trade.

Angel refused Sang Ye’s offer to trade her Heart House for Ocean Rhythm, but agreed to let them experience each other’s items before deciding. He escaped the Heart House illusion early, then secretly took two items from his bracelet while Sang Ye remained immersed in Ocean Rhythm.

• Angel refused to trade Ocean Rhythm, explaining that the Heart House would be of little use to him, while Sang Ye, Kant, and Sanders urged him to reconsider.
• Angel suspected Sanders had another reason for encouraging the trade, then asked Sang Ye to let them experience the Heart House and Ocean Rhythm before making a decision.
• Angel and Sang Ye signed a contract and entered each other’s items, with Sang Ye immersed in Ocean Rhythm and Angel transported to the Heart House.
• Angel saw a shadow inside the Heart House, resisted entering the cabin, and escaped the illusion by distorting light and space.
• Angel returned to the hall and found Sang Ye still experiencing Ocean Rhythm, then took a geometric lock and a mysterious conch from his bracelet.

Angel secretly used the Dream Conch to bring Heart House into Dream Wilderness while Sang Ye experienced Ocean Rhythm, then refused her offer to trade. Sang Ye remained eager to acquire Ocean Rhythm, but the exchange ended without agreement.

• Kant sensed a strange energy from the hall and wondered whether Angel had done something with Heart House, while Sanders reassured him that Angel would honor their contract.
• Angel reasoned that Dream Wilderness could reproduce Heart House's properties, then used the Dream Conch and Geometric Lock to secretly bring Heart House into it while Sang Ye was absorbed in Ocean Rhythm.
• Sang Ye emerged impressed by Ocean Rhythm's power and recognized its potential value to Deep Sea Song, strengthening her desire to trade for it.
• Sang Ye asked why Angel had spent so little time in Heart House, and Angel claimed it offered him little because he lacked madness or powerful inner demons.
• Sang Ye emphasized Heart House's value to the illusion school and asked to complete the trade, but Angel refused, saying his focus was goldstone studies rather than Mind Illusion.

Angel refused to trade for Heart House, then learned that Qili and Jiebo’s clash had enraged the fragrance alchemists at Ashilia Academy. He asked Antonio to contain the growing backlash, which had not yet spread beyond the fragrance department.

• Kant regretted that Angel had refused Heart House and said he had hoped Qili could try it, prompting him to urge her to face her obsessions.
• Angel suggested Qili might experience a Heart House soon, and Kant guessed that Angel planned to refine one himself.
• Angel mentioned Kimberly while discussing Black Castle, and Kant fell silent, so Sanders ended their conversation and Angel left to contact Antonio in person.
• Antonio advised Angel to visit Ashilia Academy, where he saw fragrance alchemists debating whether to blacklist Qili, Jiebo, and their wizard organizations.
• Angel asked Antonio to prevent the anger from spreading beyond the fragrance department, and Antonio agreed.

Angel entered the Heart House in the Dream Wilderness to test whether it could affect Toby, but found it had recreated his childhood room at Pat Manor. The Heart House revealed his concern about Shava and a red-clad version of himself, then Angel left without speaking with that manifestation.

• Angel activated the Heart House and followed its winding path through an illusion that gradually took shape.
• The Heart House transformed into the second-floor corridor of Pat Manor and recreated Angel's old room, which appeared empty.
• Angel noticed that the mirror beside his bed reflected darkness and the aura of the Nightmare Realm.
• A red-clad version of Angel appeared and warned him that the being beyond the mirror might sense him.
• Angel recognized the mirror as connected to Shava, chose not to face the presence within it, and left without chatting with the red-clad Angel.

Angel reflected on the Heart House’s dangers and potential, then entrusted it to Frod to study its use in preparing demon hunters. After watching Sabel defeat Tulas, Angel left the Dream Wilderness and wondered how Kant’s negotiations with Sang Ye had gone.

• Angel realized that the Heart House could reveal buried worries and might help Toby, but he decided to study it further before letting Toby enter.
• Frod let Rabu calculate Knight Sabel’s monitoring data, then went to meet Angel.
• Frod reported that Sabel’s condition was stable but warned that other candidates might lack the psychological endurance to control Sin Demons.
• Angel explained the Heart House to Frod and entrusted it to him for experiments with the Sin Demon Hunting Training Camp.
• Angel reviewed the Sin Demon research data, watched Sabel beat Tulas, and left the Dream Wilderness.
• Angel wondered about Kant and Qili’s negotiations with Sang Ye at Fragrant Plaza.

Angel and Gloria traveled through a thunderstorm to the Infinite Battle Tower for the New Star Tournament finals, sharing a conversation about Gloria’s childhood and discussing Alan’s search for his sister. At the tower, Angel encountered the competitor Onassis in the judges’ passage and recalled Onassis’s words about the Cloudvine Flower.

• Angel and Gloria flew toward the Infinite Battle Tower as Gloria recalled how rain on an umbrella had comforted her as a child and described her father’s accidental death.
• Gloria told Angel that Alan had returned from Paladova without finding clues about the Sprout Church, and Angel suggested she might eventually tell Alan a limited amount about the Budding.
• Angel and Gloria arrived at the Infinite Battle Tower and went their separate ways, with Angel taking the judges’ passage.
• Angel found Onassis waiting near the competitors’ backstage area and told him he still looked forward to hearing the Cloudvine Flower bloom beneath the distant stars.

Angel spoke with Onassis about the Island Theory after Onassis revealed that a precognitive dream had led him to ask about it. Angel realized the dream pointed toward Jon and decided to strengthen the protections around him before reaching the judging room, where the Water-Pattern Witch warned him away from the judges' argument.

• Onassis stopped Angel and asked whether he believed Bidegolas's Island Theory, which held that humanity was unique among the races of the endless worlds.
• Angel said he would not question the theory without evidence and asked why Onassis had brought it up.
• Onassis hinted that a precognitive dream had driven him to seek an answer, but Angel said he could not provide one and urged him to search the wider world for evidence.
• Angel realized Onassis's dream had been accurate and decided that Jon's protections needed to be strengthened against prophecy wizards.
• Angel reached the judging room, but the Water-Pattern Witch warned him that the resident judges were arguing inside and suggested he get some air outside.