Chapter Summaries

Richard prepared for an upcoming move by suspending Tinwood’s void-energy absorption and warning it not to cause trouble while he was unable to watch over it. He discovered that the Lich Old Man had been working through the night to prepare for whatever danger Richard faced, and the old man offered to help from behind the scenes.

• Richard asked Tinwood to pause absorbing energy from the void while he moved its Space Item, and Tinwood agreed.
• Richard warned Tinwood that it would have an opportunity to cause trouble during the move but would bear the consequences.
• Richard found the Lich Old Man working through the night on a tall skeleton with help from an Eight-Armed Skeleton.
• The Lich Old Man explained that Richard’s unusually busy behavior had made him suspect trouble, so he had started preparing Magic Puppets to help.
• The Lich Old Man offered to assist Richard from behind the scenes and complained that Richard should not expect him to fight directly every time.

Richard left Eden Garden for Delan to face a dangerous battle, while Pandora stayed behind and wondered how she could use her studies to help him. As noon arrived, the time for battle came.

• Richard refused Pandora's request to join him and told her to watch the Longevity Ancient Tree Species Tin Wood.
• Pandora wondered whether she needed to apply her mathematical knowledge to help Richard.
• Richard departed Blue Lake Manor, while Jia Lie worried that he might never return and prayed for his safety.
• Night passed, the sun rose, and noon arrived as the time for battle.

Richard began his battle with Long Mei Er by fleeing south and attacking from long range with Micro Spell Tracking Missiles. He watched from fifteen thousand meters away and launched improved missiles, one of which shattered into fragments near Long Mei Er.

• Long Mei Er told Richard to make the first move, and Richard flew south to put distance between them.
• Long Mei Er mistook Richard’s sudden departure for a retreat until five Micro Spell Tracking Missiles approached from the south.
• Long Mei Er deflected the five missiles’ explosions without injury and judged their power too weak to threaten him.
• Richard used the Gaze of the Eye to observe Long Mei Er from fifteen thousand meters away, then launched several improved Micro Spell Tracking Missiles.
• Long Mei Er spotted a lone incoming missile, but it shattered into hundreds of fragments before he could destroy it.

Richard used a staged thermobaric blast to force Long Mei Er to defend himself, then struck him with Morris's Light of Purification, but Long Mei Er survived both attacks. Long Mei Er tracked Richard toward the sun and spotted him from eight thousand meters away, then sped toward him.

• Long Mei Er sensed changes in the air as Richard's first two Micro Spell Tracking Missiles filled the area with explosive materials.
• Richard's third missile ignited the prepared zone in a massive thermobaric blast, but Long Mei Er emerged unharmed behind an Earth-Yellow Energy Membrane.
• Richard's Morris's Light of Purification struck Long Mei Er after the fire helped Richard locate him, but the beam failed to break through his defense.
• Long Mei Er judged the beam's duration insufficient, then flew toward the sun to search for Richard.
• Long Mei Er spotted Richard eight thousand meters away and surged forward through the clouds.

Richard faced Long Mei Er in midair, struggling to withstand his deadly Gold Light weapons with Void Spells. As repeated evasions damaged Richard’s body, he activated the Gloves of Extinction and unleashed Death Finger at Long Mei Er.

• Richard stopped fleeing and faced Long Mei Er, who formed a Golden Shuttle from Gold Light and hurled it at him.
• Richard evaded the Golden Shuttle with a Void Spell, reappearing injured, then attacked Long Mei Er with four energy chains that Long Mei Er dodged and destroyed.
• Long Mei Er fired a returning light dagger, forcing Richard to evade it twice as his body sustained further damage.
• Richard realized he could not keep evading indefinitely and put on the Gloves of Extinction.
• Richard activated the Spell Chip and fired Death Finger at Long Mei Er.

Richard fought Long Mei Er, but neither the Death Finger attack nor the Gloves of Extinction managed to injure him. As Long Mei Er launched a crushing attack within a dark domain, Richard unleashed all the Wandering Energy Elements in his spell source and risked everything.

• Long Mei Er survived Richard’s Death Finger attack and charged at him, protected by his restored Energy Membrane.
• Richard fully activated the Gloves of Extinction, which shattered in a burst of Gold Light, but Long Mei Er emerged unharmed.
• Long Mei Er praised Richard’s attacks and said he would force him to awaken by applying more pressure.
• Long Mei Er formed a dark domain filled with storm clouds and lightning, then struck at Richard with overwhelming power.
• Richard felt his body freeze under Long Mei Er’s pressure and released all the Wandering Energy Elements in his spell source.

Richard used the Void Transfer Spell to survive Long Mei Er’s lethal attack, but the spell’s void-energy erosion left him badly weakened. He donned the Black Spirit King Mask and overwhelmed Long Mei Er with repeated Gloves of Extinction attacks, then confirmed Long Mei Er was dead—just as the latter’s heart flew back.

• Long Mei Er struck Richard in the chest, destroying his organs, but Richard escaped with the Void Transfer Spell and reappeared more than two hundred meters away.
• Richard explained that the Void Transfer Spell had healed his wounds but contaminated his body with void energy, while Long Mei Er pressed the attack.
• Richard put on the Black Spirit King Mask, suppressed the void energy, and repeatedly attacked Long Mei Er with pairs of Gloves of Extinction.
• Long Mei Er tore out his heart, wrapped it in his golden robe, and hurled it beyond the Gold Light as Richard continued attacking.
• Richard stopped when the Gold Light faded, sensed no life in Long Mei Er’s wounded body, and then saw the heart wrapped in the golden robe fly back.

Richard failed to kill Long Mei Er, but proved strong enough to earn his freedom and the third Book of the Void. Long Mei Er invited him to Pompey in three days, promising that the place would reveal the truth about the world and offer vast resources.

• Long Mei Er revived from his remaining heart and explained that divine protection and a specially strengthened body made him nearly impossible to kill.
• Long Mei Er acknowledged Richard's strength, agreed not to force him onto another path, and granted him freedom.
• Long Mei Er said he was curious about Richard's identity but would not investigate his past, believing Richard could rise within the Truth Society.
• Long Mei Er gave Richard the third Book of the Void and reminded him of his promise to show him a place that would explain the world.
• Long Mei Er named Pompey as their destination, arranged to take Richard there in three days, and flew away.

After returning to Blue Lake Manor, Richard weighed whether to flee before Long Mei Er could expose his false identity or remain in the Southern Free Federation and continue his nuclear weapons research. He made his decision, but the chapter did not reveal what he chose.

• Jia Lie welcomed Richard's return and privately celebrated that he could keep his position as butler.
• Jia Lie reviewed the manor's accounts and resolved to learn more characters so he could become a more capable and educated butler.
• Richard judged that Long Mei Er suspected his identity and could overpower him, making it dangerous to stay.
• Richard considered fleeing before Long Mei Er took him to Pompey, but leaving would disrupt his nuclear weapons research and deprive him of a chance to learn about the world.
• Richard weighed the risks and rewards of staying against the safer but disruptive option of leaving, then made his decision.

Richard visited Pompeii with Long Mei Er and learned how the Truth Society had built and organized its town on the active Vesuvius Dak Volcano. They reached the crater, where Long Mei Er was about to show him the volcano’s most important feature.

• Richard arrived in Pompeii and learned from Long Mei Er that the Truth Society had tamed Vesuvius Dak Volcano.
• Long Mei Er guided Richard through Pompeii Town, where Richard saw its uniform, dark stone buildings.
• Long Mei Er explained that volcanic ash had blackened the sturdy buildings, which could withstand attacks from a One-Ring Spell.
• Richard asked about the silver-white Metal Towers, and Long Mei Er described them as energy-transmitting nodes.
• Long Mei Er showed Richard the metal channels that carried energy to the nodes and led him to the crater, where Richard looked on in surprise.

Richard inspected Pompey’s energy core with Long Mei Er and saw it malfunction, exposing flaws in its Star Structure. He proposed replacing the direct connections with a hierarchical, branching network of nodes.

• Long Mei Er showed Richard Pompey’s energy core and described how it supplied power throughout the city.
• The core suddenly released black smoke and a surge of chaotic energy, and Long Mei Er contained the storm.
• Three Wizards arrived and entered the damaged platform to repair it after Long Mei Er ordered them to act quickly.
• Long Mei Er explained that the unstable core frequently caused problems across Pompey’s energy nodes.
• Richard suggested connecting the core to levels of branching nodes, and Long Mei Er listened after clarifying that Richard did not mean a single channel linking every node.

Richard proposed replacing Pompey’s energy network with a resilient web of connections, and Long Mei Er approved the idea. Long Mei Er then revealed that the organization was changing the world’s energy system to prevent the extraordinary power from the stars from destroying the world.

• Richard explained that a tree-shaped network and a backup energy core could reduce strain and limit the effects of failures, while Long Mei Er pointed out the increased risk and cost of node failures.
• Richard proposed connecting nodes along multiple routes to form a web that could reroute energy around failures, and Long Mei Er agreed to attempt the modifications.
• Long Mei Er praised Richard’s insight, promised his work could earn him Divine Favor, and said Richard’s expertise seemed unusually familiar with the problem.
• Richard asked why the organization was investing in Pompey’s energy system, and Long Mei Er said the work concerned the truth of the world.
• Long Mei Er told Richard that extraordinary power came from the stars and would ultimately destroy the world, and that the organization sought safer power from deep within the earth.

Long Mei Er explained the Truth Society’s plan to use a Spell Black Curtain and the planet’s inner energy to transform the Wizard World, leaving Richard to question the True God’s motives and the truth behind the ancient civilization’s fall. After agreeing to settle in Pompeii, Richard received a map and advice on choosing a long-term residence.

• Long Mei Er told Richard that the Truth Society planned to block stellar energy with a Spell Black Curtain and make magic patterns central to a new world powered by the planet’s core.
• Richard considered whether the True God was real, what it might have to do with the Ancient Wizard Civilization, and whether the Truth Society’s account concealed its true purpose.
• Richard decided he still needed to complete his Nuclear Weapons research and manufacturing plan rather than rely on Long Mei Er’s explanation.
• Long Mei Er welcomed Richard to Pompeii and offered him a residence there, which Richard accepted.
• The next day, Wizard Inogaowa brought Richard a map of available buildings and advised him to inspect their locations before choosing a residence.
• After Wizard Inogaowa left, Richard studied the map with a peculiar idea in mind.

Richard explored beneath Pompeii Town in his consciousness form to find a residence suited for secretly excavating a passage to the volcano’s energy core. He chose Stone Building No. 1248 and set out to move in.

• Richard left his body at night and surveyed Pompeii Town from above, noting the consciousness forms of Wizards at different levels.
• Richard searched underground for a stable, concealed location where he could dig toward the volcano without disturbing nearby nodes or encountering toxic ores.
• Richard found a suitable site beneath an unoccupied three-story Stone Tower and returned to the surface.
• The next day, Richard confirmed his choice of Stone Building No. 1248 to Inogova, who explained its benefits and the rule requiring him to return to Pompeii at least once a year.
• After Inogova left, Richard tidied the temporary residence and walked toward his chosen Stone Building.

Richard excavated a tunnel beneath Pompeii Town to prepare a volcanic energy conversion point for a new Nuclear Material Purification Assembly Line. After restarting Tinwood’s energy absorption, he considered using it to stabilize energy sent into Eden Garden, but grew suspicious of Tinwood’s motives.

• Richard dug a passage west beneath Stone Building No. 1248 and used his blueprint to confirm a site near the volcano’s heart for an energy conversion point.
• Richard planned to pair a new Nuclear Material Purification Assembly Line with the existing line in Eden Garden to increase Weapon-Grade Enriched Uranium production.
• Richard ended Tinwood’s break and restarted its energy absorption through the Energy Controller.
• Richard told Tinwood he had found a powerful external energy source and planned to build equipment outside.
• Tinwood suggested routing the converted energy into Eden Garden and offered to stabilize it in exchange for shortening its contract by half a month.
• Richard suspected Tinwood wanted the Space Item kept open so it could escape.

Pandora completed a blueprint she believed would help Richard and went to recruit the Lich Old Man to build it. She left him fuming after criticizing his new eight-legged skeleton design as weak.

• Tinwood tried to persuade Richard to accept his proposal, but Richard left to consider it.
• Pandora finished calculating the numbers for a blueprint she had been designing to help Richard.
• Pandora rushed to find the Lich Old Man and woke him while he was resting after modifying a Magic Puppet.
• The Lich Old Man showed Pandora his fast eight-legged skeleton, but Pandora kicked it apart and mocked its combat power.

Pandora showed the Lich Old Man her mathematically precise design for a Collective Magic Puppet and explained how its independent elements could fight together and replace damaged parts. When he dismissed it as a Stitched Monster and tried to go to sleep instead of building it, Pandora disturbed his rest again.

• The Lich Old Man challenged Pandora's criticism of his Magic Puppets and asked to see her design.
• Pandora showed him her blueprint and explained that precise calculations made it different from his rough drawing.
• Pandora described the Collective Magic Puppet, whose independent elements could fight alone, cooperate, and replace damaged parts.
• The Lich Old Man insisted the design was a Stitched Monster and refused to build it before resting.
• After the Lich Old Man fell asleep, the world began to sway, and he opened his eyes to find Pandora staring at him.

Pandora forced the Lich Old Man to help build her Collective Magic Puppet, and they tested how multiple skeletons could combine. The Lich Old Man realized the design could theoretically join infinitely many skeletons and recalled a legendary Ancient Wizard Civilization super lifeform called Fu Tu.

• Pandora refused to let the Lich Old Man sleep until he agreed to help make the Collective Magic Puppet, and she defeated him when he challenged her to fight.
• The Lich Old Man agreed to help, then recruited Pandora and the Eight-Armed Skeleton to dismantle the Magic Puppets for bones.
• Pandora, the Lich Old Man, and the Eight-Armed Skeleton dismantled more than a dozen Magic Puppets and began assembling small, flexible skeletons from their bones.
• The Lich Old Man joined several small skeletons together, creating a tall but clumsy skeleton whose strength had not yet improved.
• Pandora told the Lich Old Man that her design could theoretically combine infinitely many skeletons, prompting him to recall the legendary super lifeform Fu Tu.

The Lich Old Man described the Ancient Wizard Civilization’s Fu Tu and began planning how to improve Pandora’s Collective Magic Puppet. The Eight-Armed Skeleton reacted strangely to the description, then sat apart tapping its bones while Pandora wondered if it was homesick.

• The Lich Old Man explained that a Fu Tu was a powerful, flying weapon made of many units that could destroy a Floating City.
• Pandora teased the Lich Old Man by comparing their strength, and he insisted he could defeat her if he fought seriously.
• The Lich Old Man asked the Eight-Armed Skeleton how to begin building the Collective Magic Puppet and noticed its eye flames changing color.
• The Eight-Armed Skeleton walked away, sat against a house, and tapped a bone against its leg in a steady rhythm.
• Pandora suggested the Eight-Armed Skeleton might be homesick, while the Lich Old Man dismissed the idea that it had been a Fu Tu.
• The Lich Old Man proposed adding a main support to Pandora’s puppet, and Pandora went to calculate the measurements as he worked nearby.

Richard activated a geothermal power generator inside Vesuvius Dak Volcano and connected it to Eden Garden’s Energy System, with Tinwood stabilizing the fluctuating power. He then found Pandora and the Lich Old Man building a secret Magic Puppet, which the Lich Old Man indicated would take three units of time.

• Richard started the geothermal generator and carried its wires through the Space Suitcase into Eden Garden.
• Richard connected the wires to the Energy Controller in Laboratory No. 3 and confirmed Tinwood could stabilize the Energy System.
• Richard pulled the lever, and Tinwood used Purple Light to steady the system’s energy fluctuations.
• Richard instructed Tinwood to report problems through a signal button and left the room.
• Richard saw Pandora and the Lich Old Man making a secret Magic Puppet, and the Lich Old Man held up three fingers when Richard asked how long it would take.