Chapter Summaries

Angel and Sanders discussed whether to introduce Dream Wilderness at the Tea Party, and Sanders explained why a limited opening would benefit Savage Cave. They agreed that letting a select group of influential witches experience it could prepare the way for a wider opening and give Savage Cave access to valuable information.

• Angel suggested testing Dream Wilderness on a small scale with trusted wizards and friends before opening it more widely.
• Sanders explained that only a small number of powerful, high-status witches would be allowed into Dream Wilderness during the Tea Party.
• Angel worried that unfamiliar witches could pose a danger, but Sanders argued that they could not threaten Dream Wilderness or learn where it was located.
• Sanders said that introducing Dream Wilderness to influential witches would spark discussion and make a future full opening easier.
• Sanders explained that holding the Tea Party in Dream Wilderness would let Savage Cave gain access to valuable information shared by prominent witches.

Angel agreed to a limited trial opening of the Dream Wilderness for the witches’ tea party and discussed the preparations with Sanders. They planned to settle the venue, access slots, and contingency measures, while Angel confirmed Jon’s body remained stable for now.

• Angel agreed with Sanders to use the witches’ tea party as a small-scale trial opening of the Dream Wilderness.
• Sanders outlined preparations for the tea party, including choosing a private, distinctive venue and deciding who would receive access slots.
• Angel and Sanders agreed that Rhein and the Tree Spirit should enter the Dream Wilderness beforehand, with Rhein needing evidence before approving the plan.
• Angel approved preparing contingency plans for possible disturbances, exploration, disputes, or confusion about the Dream Wilderness’s energy system.
• Angel asked Sanders about Jon’s health, and Sanders said Jon’s body remained stable in its three-state balance in the short term.

Sanders, Rhein, Angel, and the Tree Spirit searched the ruins for the hidden room but found no new clues beyond a knight's armor that only Angel might be able to decipher. They agreed Angel could try repairing magic patterns at Rhein's other ruins, then gathered in the study, where Rhein contacted Sky Mechanical City's city lords and Angel asked about the day's exchange meeting.

• Sanders and Rhein examined the ruins' three-dimensional map and searched with mental power but found no entrance to the hidden room.
• Rhein recalled that the gates of the ruins under his suppression had similar damaged magic patterns, though he believed the two sites were probably unrelated.
• Angel suggested that both ruins might have drifted in from the void and offered to repair the magic patterns at Rhein's ruins in case they revealed a map.
• The group gave up searching the map, leaving the knight's armor as the only unresolved clue and recognizing that Angel would need to decipher it.
• Rhein contacted Sky Mechanical City's two city lords from the basement study while Angel asked him about the day's exchange meeting.

At Crownstar Cathedral’s exchange meeting, Suolodar warned the prophecy wizards about a dangerous secret cult without naming the Budding, while Ivan demanded that speakers present only meaningful prophecies. Maya rose to speak as the silent meeting awaited an Observer’s address.

• Suolodar praised Dodolo’s composure, then described the attack on Lord Rosen and warned that a hidden cult threatened the Southern Region.
• The Observers had allowed Suolodar to speak about the cult at Rosen’s request, so he could reassure Sky Mechanical City’s citizens after Loser's Arrow.
• Several prophecy wizards presented vague future fragments, and Lapuye politely offered interpretations while the other Observers remained indifferent.
• Ivan rebuked a prophecy wizard for wasting everyone’s time and warned that another meaningless prophecy would get its speaker dismissed.
• As the hall fell silent and Lapuye looked toward the Observer seats, Maya stood up before an Observer could speak.

Maya revealed that her Doomscape prophecy included a group of figures, most of them Southern Region apprentices who had competed in the New Star Tournament. Their appearance led the gathered wizards to suspect a connection to Sky Mechanical City, and Oupulia promised to investigate and report back at the next meeting.

• Maya explained that she had concealed a scene from the Doomscape and showed a figure she had identified as Ye He of Winter Academy.
• Luchi noted that Ye He was not yet a member of the Frost Moon Alliance, prompting speculation that the Doomscape involved a world the Alliance was developing.
• Maya revealed more silhouettes, including Dong Liz and Falga, and a prophecy apprentice recognized Monica, Kairu, Porcelain Doll Xila, Romode, and other New Star Tournament contestants.
• The attendees suspected that the Doomscape was connected to the Southern Region and possibly Sky Mechanical City because all the identified figures were apprentices and tournament contestants.
• Oupulia promised to contact City Lord Rosen and report the findings at the next day's exchange meeting, while Maya listened for Sky Mechanical City's response.

At the prophecy exchange, Lapuye judged that the Doomscape might be connected to Sky Mechanical City and awaited its answer. He then warned that creatures from the Eternal Night Kingdom would expand into surrounding lands, forcing Western Mosa to prepare to relocate.

• Lapuye said the Doomscape's apprentice participants and their apparent lack of growth made its timing and location uncertain, though he suspected a link to Sky Mechanical City and the New Star Tournament.
• Maya noted Dexter's prophecy that a new safe zone would soon emerge in the Abyss and Hydra's warning of upheaval in the Guman Kingdom, which concerned her student White Bear.
• At the end of the exchange, Lapuye warned that dangerous beings in the Eternal Night Kingdom would grow stronger and rapidly expand into nearby regions.
• Lapuye told Western Mosa that the Abundance Kingdom lay in the path of their expansion and that he should prepare to relocate.

Lapuye warned that the Eternal Night Kingdom’s creatures could not be stopped without finding a way to overcome the Dome, though he saw no immediate threat to Savage Cave. He then shared a vague prophecy of hope and a turning point in the Southern Region, possibly connected to an upcoming great work.

• Lapuye said the Dome empowered the Eternal Night Kingdom’s creatures and that Western Mosa might have to relocate if its weakness could not be found.
• The young man in yellow asked whether Lord Phantom Demon knew how to defeat the Dome, and Maya explained that he had escaped Sleepless City before the Dome was complete.
• Maya asked about Savage Cave’s future, and Lapuye said he had not seen its fate but had not seen the creatures advancing toward the Pamiji Plateau in great numbers.
• Tuvalu asked whether they could still visit Peach Heart Theater near the Eternal Night Kingdom, and Lapuye said the area’s danger would likely neither worsen nor lessen.
• Lapuye described a vague vision of hope and a turning point in the Southern Region that might relate to the great work he had previously foretold.

Maya reported that the Nightmare Realm creatures threatened the surrounding kingdoms, and the group discussed whether destroying a Dome could stop their expansion. Angel then spoke privately with Dodolo about a prophecy before setting out with the Tree Spirit to inspect Rhein’s guarded ruin.

• Maya told the Tree Spirit, Rhein, Sanders, and Angel that Abundance Kingdom and Guman Kingdom faced erosion from Eternal Night Kingdom’s changes and that Western Mosa might relocate.
• The Tree Spirit asked whether a Dome could be destroyed, and Sanders said the best chance lay in confronting the high-ranking Nightmare Realm creatures behind it.
• Rhein suggested investigating the ruin where the creatures had gathered, and Sanders agreed to go there with Angel.
• Angel asked Maya to leave so he could speak privately with Dodolo, who revealed that he had seen a puzzling prophecy on Stargazing Day.
• After finishing the conversation, Angel met the Tree Spirit at Pamiji Plateau, and the Tree Spirit began guiding him to Rhein’s ruin.

Angel and Tree Spirit flew over the Falling Star Sea, where Tree Spirit recounted how Witch Maya had survived an assassination attempt after helping the Blood Demon Cult. They reached a small island surrounded by dense Nightmare Realm aura, where the ruins lay.

• Tree Spirit told Angel that Witch Maya had once lived by the Falling Star Sea and advanced in astrology by studying its reflection of the stars.
• Tree Spirit explained that the Blood Demon Cult had tried to kill Maya to conceal the secret of a legendary wizard's labyrinth, but he had saved her.
• Tree Spirit used Maya's story to warn Angel about the dangers of fame and imply that Dodolo should return to the safety of the Mirror World.
• Angel asked whether Maya had foreseen her attack, and Tree Spirit replied that perfect foresight would have made her more than legendary.
• Tree Spirit changed course over the vast lake and stopped above a small island shrouded in dense Nightmare Realm aura, where the ruins were located.

Angel arrived with Tree Spirit at the gravelly peninsula and sensed that the Nightmare Realm aura indicated a half-passage had formed inside the ruins. Tree Spirit restrained a White Bone Guard and took its staff to punish Duncan for neglecting his post, just as Duncan emerged and recognized him.

• Angel and Tree Spirit flew past the dense Nightmare Realm fog, and Angel suspected the half-passage inside the ruins had reached completion.
• Tree Spirit landed with Angel on the peninsula, where Angel detected an illusion barrier concealing the ruins.
• A White Bone Guard rose from the ground, warned Angel away, and attacked near him before Tree Spirit identified it as Duncan's summoned guard.
• Tree Spirit bound the White Bone Guard, took its necromantic staff, and explained that Duncan had been slacking off at a research institute.
• Angel told Tree Spirit that the ruins might contain a half-passage to the Nightmare Realm, and Tree Spirit connected it to Tuvalu's report about Nightmare Realm creatures bringing spatial magic materials.
• Duncan rushed out of the illusion barrier demanding to know who had taken his staff, then recognized Tree Spirit.

Angel and the Tree Spirit Lord met Duncan, who led them into the ruin and received his staff back. Angel then remembered Ku Doudou’s troubles and resolved to check on him later before entering the ruin with the Tree Spirit Lord.

• Duncan emerged from the illusory barrier and greeted the Tree Spirit Lord and Angel, then agreed to lead them into the ruin.
• Duncan explained the ruin’s recent situation as he guided them inside, and the Tree Spirit Lord returned his staff while warning that it would soon need replacing.
• Duncan left to guard the perimeter, and Angel remembered that Liana had told him Ku Doudou was dispirited and unable to cast a basic cantrip.
• The Tree Spirit Lord said Luo Keke was fixated on summoning a pig and that Ku Doudou had recently been going on missions to save money.
• Angel decided he should check on Ku Doudou later, and the Tree Spirit Lord led him toward the ruin’s entrance.

Angel joined Sanders at the western pavilion of the Ruins Star Pool, where they prepared to investigate the ruins and the Nightmare Realm creatures within them. After Rhein and the other wizards departed, Sanders began showing Angel the ruins and sent the Tree Spirit away as well.

• Angel entered the pavilion and met Sanders, Rhein, Feiluo, and Nis while keeping his identity concealed.
• Sanders asked Rhein to clear all three observation pavilions, and Rhein arranged for the guarding wizards to leave.
• Angel spotted Iron Armor Granny at a distant pavilion and learned from Sanders that she was using an avatar that could transform with her true body.
• Rhein warned Sanders and Angel to be cautious before leaving with Feiluo and Nis.
• Sanders told Angel he would show him the ruins and made the Tree Spirit leave the area.

Angel told Sanders that Dodolo had foreseen the Dream Wilderness and delivered an obscure warning about gears, fate, and staying true to one’s original intention. They realized the warning meant the Time Thief would soon come to steal Angel’s choice concerning the Dream Wilderness, leaving Angel to face that decision alone.

• Angel told Sanders that Dodolo had independently foreseen the Dream Wilderness and recognized its potential.
• Angel repeated Dodolo’s cryptic warning, and Sanders explained that gears could refer to the Wheel of Time.
• Sanders and Angel connected the Wheel of Time, choices, and the road of fate, leading Angel to identify the Time Thief.
• Sanders concluded that the Time Thief would likely come soon to steal Angel’s choice about the Dream Wilderness.
• Sanders encouraged Angel to stay true to his conviction, while accepting that Angel would have to make the choice alone.

Sanders showed Angel that every point in the Star Pool could serve as an entrance to the ruins, and revealed a dark passage that might lead to their core. He opened it so Angel could sense the emotions within, leaving Angel to interpret what lingered inside without entering.

• Sanders changed the subject and explained that the ruins had more than one entrance.
• Angel looked beneath the Star Pool's surface and saw the ruins' hidden original appearance.
• At the center of the Star Pool, Angel saw a seemingly endless dark passage that Sanders believed led to the ruins' core.
• Sanders told Angel that the missing Deep Sea Song wizards had entered the passage, though he did not know where it led.
• Sanders opened the passage and used a Mind Tether to ask Angel to sense the emotions lingering within the ruins.

Angel deciphered fragments of emotion in the ruin’s passage, including a recent call to “Shava,” while Sanders shut the passage after seeing a mysterious creature at its far end. The creature retreated into the darkness, leaving Sanders and Angel to consider what had approached.

• Angel sifted through damaged residual emotions and found the keywords “minister,” “descent,” and “repair.”
• Angel sensed a clear, recent emotion calling “Shava... my lord” and wondered whether a Nightmare Realm creature had emerged.
• Sanders closed the ruin’s passage while Angel was still deciphering emotions.
• At the observation pavilion, Angel told Sanders what he had sensed, and Sanders revealed that he had seen a pair of plain leather shoes at the boundary of light and darkness.
• Sanders said the creature had retreated into the dark and was likely the source of the emotion Angel sensed.

Angel and Sanders interpreted a strange emotional thread as “minister, descent, repair,” raising fears that a powerful Nightmare Realm minister had entered the ruins. After the guardians returned, Tree Spirit focused the group’s attention on what the minister might be trying to repair.

• Angel told Sanders that among the emotions he had sensed, one coherent thread contained the words “minister, descent, repair.”
• Sanders explained that a minister could be above Legendary in the Nightmare Realm, though descent into a half-plane might weaken them.
• Angel and Sanders considered whether the leather-shoed creature was a minister and discussed three known ministers: Mana, Glen, and Dim.
• Sanders called Rhein and the other guardians back from their investigation of the Star Pool.
• Tree Spirit reprimanded Sanders for opening the ruins without warning and asked what the minister was trying to repair.
• Sanders conjectured that the thing being repaired had originally existed within the ruins.

The group concluded that the Nightmare Realm creatures were gathering in the ruin to repair a spatial object, and Angel agreed to sense their emotions if they appeared. As Angel left, he received a possible omen about the ruin’s gate, but Rhein decided to investigate the dangerous passage before letting him approach it.

• The Tree Spirit suggested that Angel sense the emotions of any Nightmare Realm creatures appearing in the ruin, and Angel agreed.
• Angel asked whether the spatial magic materials the creatures carried were being used to repair an object, but no one knew what it was.
• Wallace watched Angel and inferred from Rhein’s concern that Angel had a significant identity.
• The Tree Spirit stayed behind to monitor the ruin and notify Angel, while Angel left with Sanders.
• Angel recalled an image of a door when he stepped onto the Star Pool and asked Rhein where the ruin’s gate was.
• Rhein agreed that Angel could investigate the gate later, after he checked the dangerous passage himself.

Angel and Sanders considered whether Angel’s vision at the Star Pool ruins came from his aura harmonizing with the ruins, and the Tree Spirit agreed the theory might explain a connection between the two sites. The Tree Spirit went to inform Rhein, while Angel chose to visit the Mirror World instead of returning to the ruins.

• Angel told Sanders that his vision of a door had felt like his spiritual intuition aligned with a consciousness.
• Sanders theorized that Angel’s long-term residence in the ruins had harmonized his aura with them, allowing him to sense a connection to the Star Pool ruins.
• The Tree Spirit agreed that Sanders’s theory seemed plausible and said he would tell Rhein, who might investigate the passage soon.
• Sanders returned to Puppet Hospital and told Angel to contact him if anything came up.
• Angel told Sanders that he was going to the Mirror World rather than returning to the ruins.

Angel returned to the Mirror World entrance and found Feng Man supervising merchants, treating ordinary people with cold contempt. When Feng Man refused entry to a refugee girl Angel had met before, Lofigue intervened and helped her enter, leaving Angel surprised to encounter another old acquaintance.

• Angel arrived at the Mirror World entrance as merchants prepared to enter, and Sanders headed toward Windmill Town.
• Feng Man emerged to supervise passage through the mirror and silently accepted Angel's presence because he sensed Angel was far stronger.
• Angel recognized Feng Man as one of the gifted people he had brought from the Old Earth Continent and reflected that Feng Man had grown more disdainful of ordinary humans.
• A refugee girl carrying goods asked Feng Man to wait, but he refused and told her to leave.
• Lofigue appeared, stopped Feng Man from opening the passage, and brought the girl onto the mirror with him.
• Angel recognized Lofigue as another of the gifted people who had entered Savage Cave with him.

Lofigue guided Feng Man and a refugee girl through a mirror passage into the wizarding world, where the girl hoped to find the supernatural being who had once saved her. Angel secretly examined her spiritual power and found that she likely lacked the talent to become a wizard.

• Lofigue lectured Feng Man about his killing intent, and Feng Man endured the advice because Lofigue was much stronger than he was.
• Feng Man opened the mirror passage, and the girl experienced the journey into the wizarding world for the first time.
• Lofigue learned that the girl longed to enter the wizarding world because she hoped to find the person who had saved her on a snowfield.
• Lofigue suggested that the girl visit Tree Spirit Hall to test whether she had talent, and she agreed to try.
• Angel examined the girl's spiritual power and concluded that she had not reached the threshold for becoming a talented one.