Chapter Summaries

Ma Qiu struggled to keep up after Atlantis University introduced competitive assessments, and a year of intense studying made him realize he was unlikely to qualify to remain there. He concluded he needed to seek another way forward.

• Ma Qiu paid to have a photograph taken and admired the clear image when he collected it three days later.
• Atlantis University reformed its system, adding difficult assessments in which students had to rank above a set proportion of their peers.
• Ma Qiu studied day and night to avoid failing assessments and being warned or advised to withdraw.
• After a year of struggling to achieve only borderline results, Ma Qiu recognized that he had little chance of remaining at the university.
• Ma Qiu considered the opportunities that staying at Atlantis University could offer, but decided to seek another way because his results fell far short of the required rankings.

Ma Qiu spent the middle of his third year studying and working as a temporary assistant while noticing strange secrets at Atlantis University. After using his Copper Bell Pocket Watch to get ready, he left campus to pick someone up, stepping into the bustle of Atlantis City.

• Ma Qiu became a temporary assistant and learned about unsettling incidents at Atlantis University, including the disappearance of its Ninth Branch School.
• Ma Qiu kept his curiosity in check, balancing his studies, assistant duties, and occasional dinners with women.
• On June 7, Ma Qiu woke to his Copper Bell Pocket Watch and followed his schedule to get ready for an assigned pickup.
• Ma Qiu left Atlantis University and entered the busy streets of Atlantis City.

Ma Qiu reflected on Atlantis City's rapid growth before hiring a rickshaw to reach the East City Horse Station for a school assignment. He insisted the driver take Eighth Avenue, unaware of what awaited them on the route.

• Ma Qiu admired Atlantis City's growth and reminded himself that he was a proud student of Atlantis University.
• Ma Qiu reviewed the city's pollution problems and the rise of rickshaw drivers as carriage use declined.
• Ma Qiu hired a rickshaw driver to take him to the East City Horse Station and negotiated to pay by timed distance.
• Ma Qiu told the driver to take Eighth Avenue instead of Seventh Avenue because he believed Seventh Avenue was still under construction.
• The driver confirmed Ma Qiu's choice and set off at full speed while Ma Qiu planned how to complete his pickup.

Ma Qiu traveled through the crowded streets to East City Horse Station, where he waited for a new student arriving from Anka City. He greeted the golden-haired girl as she stepped off the carriage and welcomed her to Atlantis City.

• Ma Qiu learned that the Materials Exchange Conference had crowded Eighth Avenue with stalls and people, but insisted that the Rickshaw Driver keep going.
• The Rickshaw Driver charged Ma Qiu twelve Copper Coins for the delayed journey to East City Horse Station.
• Ma Qiu entered the horse station and waited for a carriage traveling from Anka City to Atlantis City.
• A golden-haired girl wearing an Atlantis University badge got off the carriage, and Ma Qiu greeted her as his junior.

Machu Philip escorted the newly admitted Donna Monica through Atlantis City and took her to the Materials Exchange Conference to buy supplies. In the crowded square, Tang Na grabbed both of Machu’s hands, leaving him stunned.

• Machu Philip introduced himself to Donna Monica, explained that he had been assigned to receive her, and learned she had arrived with almost no belongings.
• Machu advised Tang Na to save some of her money for university expenses and suggested shopping at the Materials Exchange Conference.
• Machu led Tang Na through Atlantis City, telling her stories about its landmarks and businesses along the way.
• At the crowded Materials Exchange Conference, Tang Na grabbed both of Machu’s hands so they would not get separated, and Machu froze at the touch.

Ma Qiu and Tang Na watched four men from Xia Ya confront stall owner Eric in Atlantis City over his arrest by the Judgment Tribunal. When the bald-headed man claimed the arrest was His Majesty’s order and threatened Eric, the confrontation appeared ready to turn violent.

• Ma Qiu took Tang Na through the Materials Exchange Conference and bought daily necessities with her.
• Tang Na spotted four burly men surrounding a clothing stall and pulled Ma Qiu over to watch.
• Eric told the men he had fled to Atlantis and questioned why they had tracked him from Xia Ya.
• The bald-headed man demanded that Eric return with them and revealed that Eric’s wife, Serena, had died after cooperating with the Judgment Tribunal.
• Eric refused to go with the men, and the bald-headed man claimed that arresting him was His Majesty’s order.

Ma Qiu and Tang Na witnessed a fight between Eric and four men from Xia Ya’s Judgment Tribunal, which a wizard from Atlantis University stopped. The wizard challenged the Tribunal’s authority to use extraordinary powers in Atlantis City and called for peace officers to handle the matter.

• An explosion during the fight blinded Ma Qiu, and Tang Na disappeared from his grasp before helping him back to his feet.
• Tang Na explained that she had jumped clear of the fight and identified the green-robed man as an Atlantis University wizard by his badge.
• The wizard demanded an explanation from Eric and the four gray-clad men, warning that their battle had endangered people in the street.
• The bald-headed man said the Tribunal was lawfully pursuing a fugitive, while the wizard objected to their use of extraordinary powers in Shalin.
• The bald-headed man accused the wizard of rebelling against the Emperor, but the wizard rejected the accusation and said peace officers should handle the matter.
• A hooked-nosed peace officer arrived with another group.

Magistrate Loom ordered the people involved in a public battle to come to the Magistrate Tribunal, but the Judgment Tribunal’s men resisted. The Sparx Magic-armored Knights subdued their leader, and his three companions surrendered.

• Lecturer Bo Wen explained the fight to Magistrate Loom and left after the stall owner confirmed his account.
• Magistrate Loom ordered Eric and the four men from the Judgment Tribunal to explain the battle at the Magistrate Tribunal.
• The Bald Head man refused to cooperate, so Magistrate Loom called on the Sparx Magic-armored Knights to handle him.
• The Sparx warriors overwhelmed and pinned the Bald Head man while his three companions surrendered.

Sheriff Loom used the Spell Monitoring Crystal Ball’s footage to gather evidence after Eric and the people who arrested him were taken to the Magistrate Tribunal. Tang Na worried that she could be sent back to Xia Ya, and Ma Qiu reassured her that Shalin protected residents and Atlantis University students; curious about the case, she persuaded him to visit the tribunal.

• Loom ordered a Sparx Race member to retrieve the Spell Monitoring Crystal Ball so its footage could be used as evidence against Eric and the others.
• Tang Na admitted to Ma Qiu that Eric’s arrest made her fear being sent back to Xia Ya.
• Ma Qiu explained that Shalin would protect her unless she committed an especially heinous crime, and that her university status offered further protection.
• Tang Na asked Ma Qiu to take her to the Magistrate Tribunal to learn how Eric and the four people who arrested him would be dealt with.
• Ma Qiu loaded their purchases onto a rickshaw, paid the driver to deliver them to Atlantis University, and set off with Tang Na.

Ma Qiu took Tang Na to the Magistrate Tribunal to watch a trial while Judge Adam Phil learned that the case carried political significance between Shalin and the Soma Alliance. His teacher urged him to apply Shalin’s law impartially and warned that others might try to influence him.

• Ma Qiu and Tang Na traveled by rickshaw to the Magistrate Tribunal, where Ma Qiu explained the courtroom and its officials.
• Adam Phil reviewed the case records and surveillance images before preparing to enter the courtroom.
• Adam’s silver-haired teacher stopped him and explained that the case involved Soma Alliance forces attempting to arrest people in Shalin.
• The teacher told Adam that similar arrests had previously strained relations with the Alliance and that this trial could signal a renewed breach of the understanding between them.
• Adam’s teacher instructed him to judge strictly according to Shalin’s law and said he and others had come to prevent outside influence.

Adam delivered a verdict fining Eric and ordering him to perform civic service, while Leonard and his companions were fined and ordered deported. Leonard rejected the judgment and attacked, but tribunal security officers swiftly subdued him with a burst of lightning that blinded him.

• Adam announced that Eric would perform six months of civic service and pay 150 silver coins, while Han Mi Dun, Dan Ni Si, Ka Er, and Leonard would pay 450 silver coins and be deported for five years.
• Eric accepted the verdict, but Leonard refused, insisting that he had been trying to apprehend Eric and could not leave Shalin without taking him along.
• Adam rejected Leonard's objections and warned him to cooperate with the judgment.
• Leonard shattered the table and challenged the tribunal, prompting four security officers to surround him as his three companions stayed put.
• A tribunal security officer struck Leonard with lightning, and the flash blinded him.

Deputy Arbiter Ke En intervened in Leonard’s trial, incapacitated the tribunal’s security personnel, and took Leonard and his companions away with Eric. Judge Adam challenged Ke En’s authority to leave Shalin, setting up a confrontation between the Judgment Tribunal and Lord Richard’s tribunal.

• Ke En arrived at the tribunal and explained that he had stopped the security officers from attacking Leonard.
• Ke En criticized Judge Adam’s authority, left a High-grade Crystal Coin on the judge’s desk, and ordered Leonard and his companions to take Eric and follow him.
• Ma Qiu suggested that he and Tang Na leave, but Tang Na insisted on staying to watch.
• As Ke En reached the entrance, Adam ordered him to stop and argued that Lord Richard’s authority over Shalin gave him the right to judge offenders.
• Adam accused Ke En of injuring tribunal personnel and warned that the offense could not be settled with money, causing Ke En to narrow his eyes.

Adam upheld Shalin law and ordered Ke En Antonio arrested, despite Ke En’s threats and Alliance status. Leian Bastin froze Ke En in a magical duel, but a sudden blue light forced Leian to dodge.

• Adam recognized the confrontation as a political test and sentenced Ke En under the Sha Lin Security Law, ordering his immediate imprisonment and a public trial.
• Ke En mocked Adam, invoked his Alliance rank and family, and started to leave with his subordinates and the people they had come to arrest.
• Adam broke his gavel and ordered Magistrate Tribunal Captain Leian Bastin to deal with Ke En.
• Ke En blocked Leian’s lightning staff with fire and attacked him with flames, while Leian countered with frost magic.
• Leian broke his Short Staff and engulfed Ke En in frost, freezing him in place.
• As Leian bent to pick up the broken staff, blue light surrounded him and he slid sharply aside.

Ke En overwhelmed Lei An with uncontrolled fire magic as the courtroom hall burned and spectators fled. Just as Ke En’s expanding fireball neared detonation, Tang Na dodged a blood-red beam that entered from outside and covered the hall in blood-colored energy.

• Ke En used Spell Substitute to escape Lei An’s ice attack, then unleashed purplish-red flames that forced Lei An back and set the hall ablaze.
• Tang Na pulled Ma Qiu out of the path of a stray flame, then persuaded him to watch the battle for another minute.
• Ke En dismissed Lei An’s objections about endangering civilians and intensified his attack while a huge purple fireball swelled beside them.
• Tang Na grabbed Ma Qiu and ran for the exit as Judge Adam and the white-haired Chief Judge remained in the burning hall.
• A blood-red beam flew into the hall from outside, and Tang Na hurled herself and Ma Qiu aside before the blast covered the hall in blood energy.

Molly arrived at the Magistrate Tribunal, where she killed Ke En, endorsed Judge Adam’s conduct, and arranged punishments for the remaining offenders. After leaving, she sensed someone nearby and flew to a Stone Tower, where a white-robed figure appeared.

• A blood-red beam shattered Ke En’s shield and pierced him as Molly entered the hall with her subordinates.
• Molly ordered Female Wizard Su to finish Ke En, and Su turned him to stone and shattered him.
• Molly praised Judge Adam, supported his promotion, and temporarily assigned Su to replace the injured Lei An as Magistrate Tribunal Captain.
• Judge Adam sentenced Leonard to three months of Labor Reform followed by deportation and a ten-year ban from Shalin.
• Molly left the tribunal, sensed someone nearby, and flew to a Stone Tower, where a figure in a white robe appeared.

Richard captured an Arbiter from Xia Ya while patrolling and discussed the Alliance’s growing pressure on Shalin with Molly. He left to study the prisoner, while Molly was instructed to watch the border and oversee the newly arrived student Nora.

• Richard told Molly that he had captured a Level 4 Arbiter from Xia Ya and planned to study his unusual spell source.
• Molly and Richard discussed the Alliance’s purge and military movements, and Richard said Shalin would answer further aggression and prepare for the worst if necessary.
• Richard asked Molly to watch the border, especially Reef Rock Fortress, and she agreed to conceal the Arbiter’s capture from the Alliance.
• Molly told Richard that Nora had arrived, had stayed to watch the Deputy Arbiter’s attack, and might have used a mental illusion spell on her male companion.
• Richard told Molly to warn Nora and assess her performance, and he departed with the bound Arbiter without leaving an energy fluctuation.
• Molly reflected that Richard had grown far beyond her, but his strength could help her reclaim the legitimate line of the Sika Royal Family.

After witnessing the Magistrate Tribunal battle, Ma Qiu struggled to sleep because he believed he had fallen for Donna. A hooded woman removed a spell from him and put him to sleep, while Donna prepared to leave her dormitory in disguise before abruptly cleaning off her makeup.

• Ma Qiu lay awake thinking about Donna and tried to explain away his memories of her rescuing him from the Wizard battle.
• A hooded woman entered Ma Qiu’s dormitory and told him Donna’s Mental Spell had made him fall in love with her.
• The woman cast a Gray Light spell that removed the effect and put Ma Qiu into a deep sleep; he wet himself as the woman left.
• Donna applied makeup to disguise herself, put on a black robe, and prepared to climb out her dormitory window.
• Donna sensed something near the door, abandoned her escape attempt, and quickly washed off her disguise.

Nora confronted Donna about using Mental Spells on a classmate and revealed that she knew Donna’s elaborate hidden identity. The chapter ended with Donna stunned as Nora called her Donna Monica, or Tina Sonia.

• Donna pretended to sleep when Nora entered her dormitory, but Nora piled blankets over her until Donna sat up and admitted the act.
• Nora took Donna to the rooftop and warned her that using Mental Spells on a classmate violated the rules.
• Nora revealed that she knew Donna had learned spells from a wandering wizard and was more powerful than her assumed identity suggested.
• Nora outlined Donna’s supposed identities and flight from the destruction of the Wheel of Light and her family’s political purge.
• Nora asked whether Donna was really Donna Monica or Tina Sonia, leaving Donna speechless with shock.

Nora explained that Atlantis University would protect Tang Na and overlook her past violations if she proved her ability and contributed to its research. Tang Na resolved to work hard and asked about the Poison Heart Queen, declaring that she intended to surpass her so she would no longer fear the Alliance.

• Tang Na asked Nora whether the university would expel her, and Nora said it had no intention of doing so.
• Nora explained that Tang Na would be protected if she demonstrated her talent, contributed to the university, and joined a research group.
• Tang Na understood that the university’s protection and leniency depended on her contributions and asked to begin working immediately.
• Nora offered to show Tang Na around the laboratory and help her settle in.
• Tang Na asked whether the Poison Heart Queen had come to Atlantis University and said she wanted to surpass the fugitive wizard.

Nora revealed to Tang Na that she was the Poison Heart Queen and far younger than Tang Na had assumed, then planned to take her around the laboratory before traveling east. Several days later, Soren received an increasingly forceful order from Xia Ya to send troops to Atlantis City and investigate the deaths and disappearance of members of the Judgment Tribunal, bringing the dispute with Shalin closer to open conflict.

• Nora told Tang Na that she had killed twenty-five people, including two Level 3 Wizards, after they tried to take her spellcasting item.
• Nora revealed that she was thirty-nine years old, not sixty or seventy, and Tang Na fell silent in shock.
• Nora took Tang Na down from the rooftop and said she would show her around the laboratory before traveling east.
• At Reef Rock Fortress, Soren listened as a subordinate read Xia Ya's eleventh order in three days concerning the Judgment Tribunal's casualties in Shalin.
• The order directed Soren to send elite troops to Atlantis City to retrieve Leonard, recover Ke En Dongni Ao's remains, and find Xi Ou Duo Ke, authorizing force against anyone who obstructed them.