Chapter Summaries

Richard learned that the Great Exploration Project involved digging a passage through the entire planet, and he inferred that its launch led to a civilization-shattering disaster. Mr. Gao Ge said his theory was close but not quite right, then resumed the image as the project opened a stable Space Hole.

• Mr. Gao Ge explained that the Great Exploration Project’s well had been dug through the planet from pole to pole.
• Richard reasoned that the project must have unleashed a disaster powerful enough to change or destroy the Ancient Wizard Civilization.
• Mr. Gao Ge praised Richard’s foresight but said the truth differed from his guess and continued the image.
• The Blue Robe Man activated the project’s magic patterns and equipment before a crowd of spectators.
• Purple Light burst from the well and opened a stable Space Hole.

The Blue Robe Man’s attempt to enter the Space Hole was interrupted when a milky-white ball of light emerged and began devouring Singular City and everyone in it. Shana and her father tried to escape aboard a Floating City, but the expanding light swallowed the entire plane, leaving darkness.

• The Blue Robe Man announced that his journey through the Space Hole was only half a success, but a milky-white ball of light struck him and consumed part of his body.
• Shana rescued the injured Blue Robe Man as the light expanded, devouring the people in the plaza, the giant innkeeper, and the fleeing survivors.
• Shana’s spell-backlash injuries caused her to fall, but her father arrived aboard a Floating City and used its main cannon to halt the light’s expansion.
• Shana flew toward her father, but the light rapidly expanded again and devoured her and the Floating City.
• The milky-white light consumed the entire plane, then the scene went dark.

Gao Ge explained how the white light destroyed the Ancient Wizard Civilization and how fear of its return led the Truth Society to halt development and reshape Tesco Plane. Richard rejected Gao Ge’s offer to join the Society and demanded the location of a Space Jump Point, prompting Gao Ge to warn that Richard might not leave.

• Gao Ge told Richard that white light spread between planes, causing the Ancient Wizard Civilization to sever its Space Channels and isolate its surviving worlds.
• Gao Ge explained that the destruction of the First Plane convinced the Guardian Council that the white light was Divine Punishment triggered by continued development.
• Gao Ge described how the Guardian Council became the Truth Society and transformed Tesco Plane into a supposedly safe new starting point.
• Gao Ge invited Richard to join the Truth Society and take over as ruler, but Richard declined and said he wanted to see other planes.
• Richard revealed that Space Jump Points could still connect the planes and asked Gao Ge to give him the location of the point in Heaven.
• Gao Ge’s expression changed, and he warned Richard that he might not be able to leave.

Gao Ge explained that the Truth Society had placed Fate Gu on its chosen seeds as a safeguard, then activated it against Richard. When Richard proved immune because he was not a seed, Gao Ge transformed into a middle-aged man and attacked him in the palace.

• Gao Ge told Richard that the Truth Society’s Dark Seal had weakened extraordinary power worldwide while preserving selected people called seeds.
• Gao Ge revealed that the seeds and their descendants carried Fate Gu, a forbidden spell designed to kill them if activated.
• Gao Ge struck the floor with his cane and released scarlet light to activate Fate Gu against Richard, but Richard remained unharmed.
• Richard told Gao Ge that he was an ordinary person by blood and had obtained a seed’s abilities through other methods.
• Gao Ge declared that Richard’s methods resembled those of radical Ancient Wizard Civilization figures and said he would stop him.
• Gao Ge rejuvenated into a middle-aged man, shattered the table, and lunged at Richard.

Richard defeated Gao Ge by using Atushi Tamukurosuku’s power of eternity, but golden light from across the world began rebuilding Gao Ge. The chapter ended with Richard facing Gao Ge’s apparent return.

• Gao Ge transformed into a giant and crushed Richard’s duplicates with his immense power.
• Gao Ge declared that the Truth Society’s plan would continue and struck at Richard, who vanished and appeared behind him.
• Richard collided two enormous Energy Balls, turning the world gray and freezing Gao Ge in time.
• Richard tapped Gao Ge’s brow, and Gao Ge crumbled into dust and vanished.
• Golden light converged from across the world and began reforming Gao Ge’s giant body.

Richard repeatedly destroyed Gao Ge, but Gao Ge revived and grew stronger because he had fused with all of Heaven. After Gao Ge crushed Richard into the palace ruins, Richard emerged dragging something that left all ten of Gao Ge’s bodies trembling in despair.

• Richard repeatedly shattered Gao Ge with attacks, but golden light revived him each time and made him larger.
• Gao Ge revealed that he had fused with all of Heaven and could revive endlessly unless the entire plane was destroyed.
• Gao Ge struck Richard through his shield and buried him beneath the ruins of his former palace.
• Gao Ge created ten giant bodies and waited for Richard to emerge from the ruins.
• Richard walked out of the ruins dragging something like a dead dog, and all ten Gao Ge bodies panicked and fell into despair.

Richard defeated Gao Ge, exposed the hidden true body and the limits of his puppets, and learned that Gao Ge would bargain over anything except the Space Jump Point coordinates. When Gao Ge refused to discuss those coordinates, Richard killed him.

• Richard dragged Gao Ge's decrepit true body out of the ruins and explained how he had uncovered the truth behind the ten Giant Gao Ges and their puppets.
• Richard crushed the shell-shaped pendant Gao Ge had tried to use and revealed that Gao Ge's true body had been hidden in a secret chamber beneath the palace.
• Gao Ge dismissed his puppets and asked whether chance had led Richard to discover him, but Richard said he had found the secret chamber during their earlier negotiations.
• Gao Ge offered to help Richard in exchange for keeping the Space Jump Point coordinates secret and avoiding travel to other planes.
• Richard asked what they could still discuss, then snapped Gao Ge's neck when he refused to negotiate over the coordinates.

After killing Gao Ge, Richard searched Heaven for the Space Jump Point with help from Shalier, who surrendered and offered clues. Their search of the known suspicious locations failed, but Shalier revealed one last place beneath the Heavenly Kingdom Plateau.

• Richard found that Gao Ge's memories had been completely wiped and could not reveal the Space Jump Point's location.
• Richard encountered Shalier, who surrendered and pledged to serve him as his new god.
• Richard asked Shalier to prove his value by identifying places in Heaven that might conceal the Space Jump Point.
• Richard and Shalier searched dozens of suspicious locations over several days but found no Space Jump Point.
• Shalier revealed a final suspicious location beneath the Heavenly Kingdom Plateau, and Richard ordered him to take him there.

Richard exposed Shalier as Gao Ge’s divided-soul counterpart and the living Space Jump Point, then destroyed him to reveal the passage to another plane. Convinced that beauty required uncovering the world’s truth, Richard entered the Space Jump Point, leaving Heaven silent.

• Richard recognized the Giant Door as a trap and deduced that Shalier was Gao Ge and the living Space Jump Point.
• Shalier condemned Richard’s plan to endanger the world, while Richard admitted he was acting selfishly and accepted the role of villain.
• Richard froze Shalier in place and shattered his body, revealing the Space Jump Point where he had stood.
• Richard declared that he had to uncover whether the world was real or an illusion, then stepped through the Space Jump Point.

Richard explored a vast, decaying forest world and met Green Xi, the only person there, who healed withered trees and asked him to help care for the forest. After learning about a dangerous-looking mountain and receiving a Silver Leaf from her, Richard found a Space Jump Point there and left for another plane.

• Richard explored the forest for days and found its trees and plants increasingly withered, while the whole plane appeared almost empty of life.
• Green Xi restored a withered tree with her hands and told Richard she was the world's only person, tasked by her dead mother with caring for its forest.
• Green Xi pointed Richard toward a Black Small Mountain and gave him a Silver Leaf as a blessing, asking him to return and help her someday.
• Richard reached the mountain, activated a pale red Space Jump Point, and stepped through it to continue his journey.

Richard arrived in an autumn forest, killed a mutated wolf that was attacking a group of travelers, and met six wary companions, including an elderly Cat Person. After they mistook him for a powerful traveler from the East, he agreed to accompany them toward Dunma Valley and learn about dangerous places along the way.

• Richard arrived in a mountain forest and killed a mutated wolf that lunged at him.
• Richard noticed two human swordsmen and four beastfolk watching him warily beside the wolf’s corpse.
• The elderly Cat Person questioned Richard, and Richard said he came from the distant East.
• The group discussed Richard’s strength and decided to avoid making him an enemy.
• The Cat Person welcomed Richard to the region west of Airukum Forest and offered to show him dangerous places on the road to Dunma Valley.
• Richard agreed to travel with the group.

Richard traveled north with Husky’s group, learning about their world while keeping his strength and origins secret. As the group neared Dunma Valley, a large tiger attacked them, and they fought it together.

• Richard learned the names of Husky’s group and traveled with them while each side remained guarded and secretive.
• Husky pointed out dangerous areas along the route, which Richard explored before rejoining the group.
• After several days, the group discussed whether Dunma Valley’s Mountain Fortress would welcome them and continued north through colder, evergreen forests.
• Husky warned the group when a huge tiger sprang from the forest and attacked him.
• Husky dodged the tiger, and Tyson fought it with his Executioner Sword until Heitu, Lusi, Ellie, and Husky joined in and drove it back.

Richard killed Tiger when it threatened Paike, then left Husky’s group to investigate a suspected Space Jump Point near a forest where people disappeared. After Husky gave him a red bead as a parting gift, the group heard wolf howls from every direction, suggesting the Ghost Wolf King’s pack had caught up.

• Tiger charged at Paike, but Richard grabbed him, hurled him away, and killed him with a single slap.
• Husky and the others concluded that Richard was likely a Sword Saint and hoped he would travel with them to Dunma Valley.
• Richard sensed spatial fluctuations to the northwest, learned of a nearby forest where people disappeared, and announced he would leave to investigate.
• Husky gave Richard a pale red bead as a keepsake, and Richard departed toward the northwest.
• After Richard left, Husky warned the group that the Ghost Wolf King might return, and wolf howls erupted from every direction.

Richard discovered that a Silver Leaf and a Red Pearl formed a beacon that could alter a Space Jump Point and carry a message urging him to find its speaker. He turned back to seek more pearls from Husky, while Husky's group faced encirclement by hundreds of Ghost Wolves and Husky collapsed from his injuries.

• Richard activated a Space Jump Point, then stopped when Green Xi's Silver Leaf and Husky's Red Pearl were drawn together and formed a silver beacon.
• The beacon delivered a message directing Richard to find more beacons and reach the place where ancient civilization began.
• Richard found that the beacon changed the Space Jump Point's destination unpredictably, so he dispersed it and decided to return to ask Husky about more pearls.
• Several hundred Ghost Wolves surrounded Husky's group at a cave after the Ghost Wolf King gathered its pack to avenge its son.
• Husky told Paike, Heitu, Tyson, Lusi, and Ellie that he was too injured to escape, then closed his eyes as his voice faded.

Richard returned to the cave, healed the mortally wounded Husky, and learned that the remaining village pearls had been swallowed by ghost wolves. He destroyed the wolves, collected six pearls, and vanished, leaving Husky and the others wondering if they had seen the Sword God.

• Tyson prepared to lead the others out of the cave to avenge Husky, whom they believed dead.
• Richard arrived, discovered Husky was still breathing, healed his wounds, and revived him with a green liquid.
• Richard asked Husky about the pearls and learned the others were with the Swordsmanship Masters’ bodies, swallowed by ghost wolves.
• Richard walked among the ghost wolves and killed them all with an unknown force, then gathered six pearls.
• Richard bid Husky farewell and vanished; Husky and the others collapsed in awe as Husky called him the Sword God.

Richard followed the caller’s beacon into a plane of enormous plants and animals, where he discovered that a giant carried a crystal beacon inside its body. He prepared to test whether more giants held such crystals as a group charged toward him.

• Richard activated the Space Jump Point and sent five coated pearls through the Round Mirror, forming a stable path toward the caller.
• Richard arrived in a plane filled with gigantic vegetation and creatures, then spotted a hundred-meter-tall giant charging at him.
• Richard halted the giant with a gesture and extracted a crystal beacon from its chest, hearing the caller’s signal within it.
• Richard considered whether the crystals came from the giants or had been swallowed by them, but dozens of giants rushed toward him before he could investigate.
• Richard stepped toward the charging giants as terrifying energy gathered in his hand.

A Ninth Squad sent to investigate giants discovered that an unknown man had slaughtered a vast army threatening their city, including a Giant King. After watching the man disappear, the squad captain saluted him in gratitude for saving their city.

• The Ninth Squad rode into the region to assess the giant threat and, if possible, bring back a giant’s blood for analysis.
• A red-haired scout found a dead giant with only a small wound near its heart, and the squad discovered piles and vast stretches of giant corpses.
• The captain saw that some of the dead giants were nearly two hundred meters tall and realized the army could have destroyed their city.
• Using a monocular, the captain watched an ordinary-looking man kill the Giant King, retrieve something from near its heart, and disappear through a flash of gray light.
• The captain dismounted and saluted the man, silently thanking him for saving the city.

Richard followed a caller’s beacons across many planes until he reached Aotai, the Ancient Wizard Civilization’s native plane, where a ruined wilderness surrounded a towering mountain. At the summit, he found an elderly red-robed monk who silently opened a wooden box and took out a scroll.

• Richard found a black beacon inside a coconut, gathered the other beacons on the island, and used them to open a Space Jump Point.
• Richard traveled through many planes, using unusual objects such as lizard teeth, bones, fish scales, and feathers to activate beacons.
• Richard arrived in a desolate wilderness scarred by enormous ravines and craters, where the caller invited him to come closer.
• Richard followed the caller’s voice to a mountain over twenty-five thousand meters tall and found a fallen stele marked “Aotai... Third... Research Institute.”
• Richard climbed to the summit and met an elderly red-robed monk, who gestured for silence and took a scroll from a wooden box.

Richard waited seven days while Abel recited spells, then followed him beneath a mountain and discovered Otai's Brain, an ancient magical artifact built to compute anything. Abel explained that it had been tasked with finding the Ultimate Spell and began asking Richard about the essence of spells.

• Richard watched Abel recite spells from multiple scrolls for seven days without any apparent result.
• Abel introduced himself, led Richard down a deep staircase beneath a Stone Tower, and revealed the machinery inside the mountain.
• Abel identified the enormous device as Otai's Brain, a computational artifact created by the Ancient Wizard Civilization.
• Abel explained that Otai's Brain once processed data for wizard civilization but was later assigned to find the Ultimate Spell.
• Abel began explaining that they needed to understand spells first and asked Richard what he believed a spell's essence was.

Richard discussed his theory that incantations assisted spellcasting, but Abel argued that spells were contained within true incantations and demonstrated fireballs cast by reciting them alone. Abel’s second incantation produced a fireball that rapidly grew to more than ten meters across beside Otai's Brain.

• Richard explained that incantations helped Wizards cast spells and reduced errors, while incorrect incantations caused failure.
• Abel proposed that spells belonged to incantations and that commonly used spell incantations were only abbreviations of true ones.
• Richard questioned how an incantation could cast a spell without internal energy, and Abel explained his theory using the example of his old friend Bo Er.
• Abel recited a long incantation and produced a small fireball without any detectable energy fluctuation, shocking Richard.
• Abel recited a second long incantation, causing the fireball to expand to more than ten meters across near Otai's Brain.