Chapter Summaries

Tinwood accused the Lich Old Man of scheming against him and attacked, but the Lich Old Man retaliated with three powerful scythe strikes. Tinwood survived and revealed his true strength, leaving the Lich Old Man injured and facing a much more formidable opponent.

• Tinwood declared that the Lich Old Man had trapped him in the Space Item and prepared to kill him.
• The Lich Old Man summoned a black scythe and struck Tinwood three times, smashing him into a crater.
• The Lich Old Man questioned whether Tinwood was dead, then was hit by a purple Energy Missile fired from the crater.
• Tinwood rose from the crater, grew to five meters tall, and revealed his true strength as the injured Lich Old Man realized the fight would not be simple.

The Lich Old Man fought Tinwood, but Tinwood's strength overwhelmed his scythe and his attacks. The Lich Old Man used Soul Walk to evade him until Tinwood predicted where he would appear and blasted him into the ground.

• The Lich Old Man and Tinwood agreed to fight after Tinwood accused him of planning an ambush.
• The Lich Old Man attacked Tinwood three times with the Black Scythe, but Tinwood blocked each strike and injured his hand with the rebound.
• Tinwood extended his arms like flaming whips and broke the Black Scythe into three pieces.
• The Lich Old Man used Soul Walk to evade Tinwood's attacks and hoped to hold out until Pandora arrived.
• Tinwood anticipated where the Lich Old Man would reappear and struck him with a purple Energy Missile, leaving him severely injured.
• Tinwood explained that he could sense the energy behind Soul Walk and predict the Lich Old Man's movements.

The Lich Old Man summoned a deadly White Bone Spear and wounded Tinwood, but collapsed before he could finish him off. As Tinwood confronted him, the Lich Old Man claimed Pandora was supposed to help and kept calling for her, though she did not appear.

• The Lich Old Man formed a White Bone Spear from black mist and hurled it at Tinwood.
• The spear pierced Tinwood’s arms and trunk, but Tinwood cried out “Snow!” and forced the attack into a stalemate.
• The Lich Old Man collapsed from exhaustion, causing the spear to shatter and disappear.
• Tinwood mocked the Lich Old Man, who claimed Pandora was a powerful helper meant to fight alongside him.
• The Lich Old Man called for Pandora, but she did not respond, and Tinwood questioned whether she existed at all.

Pandora remained absorbed in her calculations while a Golden Retriever warned her about danger outside. In Eden Garden, Tinwood nearly killed the weakened Lich Old Man, but a six-armed skeleton arrived and saved him with a Bone Spear.

• Pandora ignored the alarms and focused on solving the improved Collective Magic Puppet mathematical model while the Golden Retriever anxiously tried to alert her.
• The Golden Retriever failed to get Pandora's attention and returned to barking at the door.
• Tinwood dismissed the Lich Old Man's warnings and prepared to kill him before he could recover.
• A Bone Spear flew in and pierced Tinwood's arm, breaking it off and pinning it to the ground.
• The Lich Old Man and Tinwood saw a silent, six-armed skeleton holding Bone Spears standing in the distance.

The Eight-Armed Skeleton disarmed Tinwood with a single blow, then approached him so slowly that Tinwood and the Lich Old Man could only watch in confusion. The chapter ended when the skeleton tripped on uneven ground and fell, leaving both witnesses convinced they could not believe what they had seen.

• The Eight-Armed Skeleton blew off Tinwood's arm, and the Lich Old Man mocked Tinwood while claiming the skeleton was his second helper.
• Tinwood regrew his arm and threatened to attack, but he retreated as the Eight-Armed Skeleton steadily approached him.
• The Eight-Armed Skeleton continued its slow advance while Tinwood backed away, baffling Tinwood and frustrating the Lich Old Man.
• The Eight-Armed Skeleton tripped on uneven ground and fell, stunning Tinwood and the Lich Old Man.

Eight-Armed Skeleton drained Lich Old Man’s strength and regained his golden-eyed power, then attacked Tinwood. Tinwood’s defenses failed, and Eight-Armed Skeleton repeatedly drove Bone Spears into him.

• Tinwood blasted Eight-Armed Skeleton with an Air Missile, sending him crashing near Lich Old Man.
• Eight-Armed Skeleton reached for Lich Old Man and drained away his recovered strength, leaving him collapsed.
• Eight-Armed Skeleton’s eye flames turned golden, and he hurled five Bone Spears into Tinwood, knocking him into a pit.
• Tinwood tried to block the returning Bone Spears with a cyan shield, but Eight-Armed Skeleton shattered it and struck him repeatedly.

The Eight-Armed Skeleton relentlessly beat Tinwood after rescuing the Lich Old Man, while Pandora worked in her study and missed the alarm. She arrived as Tinwood begged to surrender and concluded there was still time to act because he was alive.

• The Eight-Armed Skeleton used five Bone Spears to batter Tinwood while the Lich Old Man wondered how it had become so powerful.
• Pandora finished calculating the mathematical model for the Improved Collective Magic Puppet, then noticed the alarm and rushed outside.
• Pandora found the Lich Old Man drained, the Eight-Armed Skeleton attacking Tinwood, and Tinwood still alive in a pit.
• The Lich Old Man complained that Pandora had arrived late, while Tinwood seized the pause in the attack to shout that he surrendered.
• Pandora decided it was not too late to act because Tinwood had not been beaten to death.

Pandora killed Tinwood and sent Richard word through a Crystal Ball while he was securing Beryllium Ore in Leis City. Richard learned the incident was resolved and continued searching for Rhenium Ore.

• Pandora smashed Tinwood's trunk, and its emerald tree core rolled out.
• The Lich Old Man recognized that the Eight-Armed Skeleton had stolen bones from his Magic Puppets, but the skeleton gathered more bones and left.
• Pandora argued that she had missed helping the Lich Old Man because she had been finishing the Improved Collective Magic Puppet's mathematical model, then took Tinwood's core and messaged Richard.
• Richard paid Sai Meng four thousand gold coins to secure Beryllium Ore, leaving Rhenium Ore as his last goal in Leis City.
• Richard received Pandora's message, learned Tinwood's attempted escape had been resolved, and continued toward the mine exit with Qian Ning.

Richard met Garcia at Spider Web’s Leis City contact point and learned that Oscar wanted the Truth Society’s branch addresses in the Southern Free Federation. Oscar offered to fulfill three demands in exchange, and Richard was left weighing the tempting but potentially limited terms against the risks of giving up the information.

• Richard arrived at the Spider Web contact point and met Garcia, who said Oscar had requested the meeting.
• Garcia asked Richard to provide the Truth Society’s branch addresses in the Southern Free Federation.
• Richard hesitated because he knew only some of the addresses, feared exposing his infiltration, and wanted to protect his Nuclear Weapon project.
• Garcia conveyed Oscar’s offer to fulfill three demands unconditionally in exchange for the information.
• Richard considered the offer’s limitations without giving Garcia an answer.

Richard delayed giving Lord Oscar an answer while he continued gathering information, then detoured to Saint Louis City to assess the Soma Alliance’s influence. After seeing the city’s defenses and spotting a familiar figure, he was left wondering what had changed there.

• Richard told Garcia that he needed more time to gather and verify information before answering Lord Oscar.
• Garcia reported Richard’s response to Waterbird and left the disguised shop that night.
• Richard changed course to visit Saint Louis City after learning Tinwood had already rebelled and been defeated.
• Richard found Saint Louis City rebuilt and heavily guarded, and suspected the Soma Alliance was preparing to confront the Sika Kingdom.
• Richard spotted a familiar figure in the distance as he prepared to leave for Pompey.

A disguised girl followed Gao Wen · Nuowa · Telangke through Saint Louis City, only to realize he was leading her into a trap. Surrounded and out of escape routes, she prepared to fight back before an unseen person spoke to her from behind.

• The girl watched Gao Wen leave the former Pombo Family estate and followed him through the city.
• She noticed Gao Wen’s party was circling the city and gradually losing members, then fled into an alley as the group closed in.
• The girl raced over walls and rooftops toward the outskirts, but reinforcements surrounded her.
• A Magic Rune Spear narrowly missed the girl as she tried to escape from an abandoned courtyard.
• The girl retreated into a collapsing house to make a final stand, and someone behind her called her careless.

Richard rescued Annie Pombo from Gao Wen’s raid in Saint Louis City. In a secluded alley, Annie questioned her purpose in returning and remained unsure what she wanted to pursue.

• Annie Pombo was surrounded by Gao Wen’s soldiers, but Richard’s spell pulled her away before they could capture her.
• Gao Wen found only the ruins of Annie’s house, and Master Sino suspected she had accomplices and used a spell to escape.
• Richard and Annie landed in a secluded alley, where Annie recognized him and asked how he had found her.
• Richard explained that he had stopped in Saint Louis City on his way back from the Soma Alliance and had not tracked her.
• Annie told Richard she had returned to see what had become of her family, but she questioned whether rebuilding the Pombo Family had any meaning.

Richard discussed the possibility that the world was an illusion with Annie and urged her to grow stronger while seeking what she truly wanted. Annie gave him an unfamiliar radioactive ore acquired on the black market, and as Richard prepared to leave, a voice sounded behind him.

• Richard explained the Brain in a Vat theory and told Annie that his own pursuit was distinguishing truth from falsehood.
• Annie asked what Richard sought, and he described a fish curious about the world beyond its pond and basin.
• Richard advised Annie to keep improving herself rather than seek comfort or belonging.
• Annie gave Richard a new cyan-gray radioactive ore she had obtained from a black market, though she did not know its source.
• Annie left the alley, and a voice sounded behind Richard as he was about to leave.

Richard knocked out Master Sino after the wizard threatened to capture him and Annie, then returned to Pompeii Town and Eden Garden. He found Pandora and the Lich Old Man arguing over a Magic Puppet design and announced his return.

• Master Sino confronted Richard in an alley and threatened to capture him and interrogate him alongside Annie.
• Richard used his speed and strength to knock Master Sino unconscious, and a patrol of soldiers found him and carried him away.
• Master Sino woke after being forced to drink potion, surrounded by wizards, Magic-armored Knights, and city authorities including Gao Wen.
• Richard left Saint Louis City and returned to Pompeii Town two days later.
• Richard entered Eden Garden and found damage from recent spell attacks while Pandora and the Lich Old Man argued over a Magic Puppet design.
• Pandora welcomed Richard back with delight, while the Lich Old Man irritably turned his attention to him.

Richard confronted Tinwood after Pandora kept Tinwood's tree core locked in a metal container, and he gave it nutrient solution before demanding an explanation for Tinwood’s attempted escape. Tinwood admitted he had never intended to honor their contract and declared that his pride made him refuse to be a slave.

• Richard asked the Lich Old Man about Tinwood’s rebellion, then learned Pandora had kept Tinwood’s tree core locked in Little Bell’s metal food bowl.
• Pandora demonstrated that Tinwood’s roots kept trying to escape and explained that she sometimes broke them to stop him.
• Richard placed Tinwood’s tree core in a trough of nutrient solution, and its roots and branches quickly grew as they absorbed it.
• Richard told Tinwood that future supplies would depend on their conversation and asked why he had tried to escape before their contract expired.
• Tinwood said he had used the contract to gain time to recover his strength and had always planned to escape, then swore never to be a slave.

Richard rejected Tinwood's demands for better working conditions and threatened to have Pandora turn him into a pen holder unless he accepted Richard's terms. Tinwood was left in Pandora's grip, unable to decide whether to preserve his dignity or agree to serve Richard on harsh terms.

• Tinwood admitted he would not sincerely cooperate with Richard, so Richard ordered Pandora to dispose of him.
• As Pandora bent Tinwood toward breaking, Tinwood abandoned his bluff and agreed to all Richard's terms.
• Tinwood proposed work hours, days off, overtime compensation, and a share of the energy he absorbed, but Richard rejected every demand.
• Richard insisted Tinwood serve without regular days off and surrender nearly all the energy he absorbed, offering more only in exchange for extending the contract.
• Tinwood refused Richard's terms, so Richard handed him back to Pandora and told her to make him a pen holder.

Richard forced Tinwood to accept his demands and proposed a second contract lasting one hundred years to compensate for the damage caused by Tinwood's escape. He offered Tinwood a choice: restore the damaged space exactly as it was and work one additional year, or serve for roughly a century.

• Tinwood agreed to work according to Richard's demands when Pandora was about to snap him in two.
• Richard said Tinwood had to finish the six months remaining on their current contract before signing a second one.
• Tinwood protested when Richard proposed a hundred-year contract, arguing that the term was unreasonable.
• Richard listed the laboratory, nearby buildings, and ground damaged by Tinwood's escape and explained the risks of even minor changes.
• Richard gave Tinwood the choice of restoring the space exactly and working one more year, or compensating for the damage with roughly one hundred years of labor.

Richard persuaded Tinwood to accept a hundred-year contract by arguing over responsibility for the forest damage and offering to reduce the term for good work. Tinwood then revealed that he had nearly killed Lich Old Man during his escape, leaving Richard to question how Pandora and a mysterious skeleton had captured him.

• Tinwood demanded compensation from Richard for the damage to his forest, but Richard argued that the Truth Society was responsible and challenged Tinwood to provide evidence of ownership and loss.
• Pandora agreed to testify for Richard, and Tinwood could not produce evidence or witnesses to support his claim.
• Richard offered to shorten Tinwood's hundred-year contract for excellent work and threatened to turn him into a pen holder if he tried to escape again; Tinwood agreed to the contract.
• Richard said Tinwood would work under Lich Old Man's supervision while he handled other matters, but Tinwood revealed that he had nearly beaten Lich Old Man to death during his escape.
• Richard questioned how Tinwood had been captured and who the skeleton was, and Lich Old Man offered to explain.

Richard learned that the mysterious Eight-Armed Skeleton had rescued the Lich Old Man and severely wounded Tinwood, but found it difficult to communicate with the mute skeleton. Pandora trusted it based on her premonition, and Richard decided to keep it while seeking a way to communicate.

• The Lich Old Man told Richard that the Eight-Armed Skeleton had saved him and left Tinwood gravely wounded before Pandora intervened.
• Richard spotted the Eight-Armed Skeleton dismantling a Magic Puppet and suspected it had also made the mysterious marks on the Main Laboratory calendar.
• Richard tried to communicate with the Eight-Armed Skeleton, but the Lich Old Man explained that it could not speak and might be damaged if remade.
• Richard considered driving the skeleton away, but Pandora insisted it was good because of a premonition.
• Richard trusted Pandora's judgment and began considering how to solve the communication problem.

Richard suspected that the Eight-Armed Skeleton had used sleep as a clue to communicate, so he entered deep meditation and sent his consciousness back to observe it. A shadow rose from the sleeping skeleton and met his gaze, leaving him at the brink of a true encounter.

• The Eight-Armed Skeleton nodded at Richard, lay down among the bones, and appeared to fall asleep.
• Richard learned from the Lich Old Man and Pandora that they had never seen a skeleton sleep this way, then suspected its behavior was a hint about communication.
• Richard left the storage room and used deep meditation to separate his consciousness from his body.
• Richard's consciousness traveled back to the Eight-Armed Skeleton, where a blurry shadow rose from its body and looked at him.