Chapter Summaries

Luo Jun asked Ling Yi to help him use the Ling Family’s Divine Smithing Furnace to forge the River-Sinking Stone Hammer, but Ling Yi explained that access was restricted and that forging the hammer would likely make it too heavy to use. Luo Jun was left unsure what to do with the weapon, which seemed practical only in the Wilderness for now.

• Luo Jun asked Ling Yi to help him borrow the Ling Family’s Divine Smithing Furnace to forge the River-Sinking Stone Hammer.
• Ling Yi explained that Ling Kai had tricked Luo Jun with the promise of access to the furnace, which only clan elites could use with the Clan Leader’s approval.
• Ling Yi said the hammer was made from ordinary River-Sinking Stone, a weak material that had little value beyond adjusting its weight.
• Ling Yi recounted how Ling Yao forged a Dragon King River-Sinking Stone sword into a Legendary Treasure Item, but it became so heavy that wielding it consumed enormous amounts of vital energy.
• Ling Yi warned Luo Jun that forging the hammer would make it impractically heavy, and Luo Jun concluded he might only be able to use it in the Wilderness for now.

Luo Jun learned about the River-Sinking Stone and waited for the Special Subjugation Squad to return, then collected his bounty and saw the team bring back the Ant Queen. With his house burned down, he moved his belongings to the guild dormitory and headed to the Commercial Street to rest before Gate Opening Day.

• Luo Jun put away his hammer and asked Ling Yi to apply for the Divine Smithing Furnace.
• Luo Jun collected his share of the bounty, while the guild delayed the double rewards until it confirmed the mission’s completion.
• Guan Tianshuang and Guan Hongyue led the Special Subjugation Squad into Lingyun City with the Ant Queen’s corpse, confirming that the ant nest had been eliminated.
• Luo Jun searched the charred ruins of his house, gathered what remained, and returned to his guild dormitory because the guild could not yet arrange new accommodations.
• Luo Jun left for the Commercial Street, deciding to rest instead of taking another mission.

Luo Jun returned to the dormitory, shared his tavern leftovers with his three new roommates, and learned about their training and the recent ant battle. The evening ended when Guan Hongyue arrived asking for Night.

• Luo Jun returned to the dormitory and found Zhu Da, Zhao Jian, and Xu Yiming waiting there.
• Zhu Da, Zhao Jian, and Xu Yiming ate Luo Jun’s leftovers and told him they were Ningdong Academy students training in the Wilderness.
• The roommates discussed their plans to return to the Main World and recounted fighting ants during the attack on Lingyun City.
• Zhao Jian and Xu Yiming told Luo Jun that the Frost Moon Troupe had destroyed the Ant Queen and that its triumphant parade had taken place that day.
• Guan Hongyue arrived at the dormitory and asked whether someone named Night was staying there.

After returning from the Wilderness, Luo Jun rejected Guan Hongyue’s invitation to join the Frost Moon Troupe and reunited with his Master by phone. He stayed on Lingyun Island to avoid attention from a Federation delegation investigating Gong Shiyue’s stolen treasure and resumed cultivating.

• Guan Hongyue invited Luo Jun to join the Frost Moon Troupe after learning he had killed a Cannon Ant and a Polluter, but he declined and kept her contact card.
• Luo Jun left the Wilderness and returned to the Five Star Hotel, where he called Old Yuan to report that he was safe.
• Old Yuan scolded Luo Jun for risking his life during the Ants Attack City incident and warned him not to cultivate the Foundation Establishment Realm.
• Old Yuan told Luo Jun that he was leaving for Xiluo and warned him to avoid Ningdong while the Federation investigated Gong Shiyue’s theft of a treasure from Hell Creek.
• Luo Jun agreed to stay on Lingyun Island until the Wilderness gate reopened, then sat down to cultivate.

Luo Jun returned to the Five Star Hotel, shared snacks with Boss Lady, Ya Ya, and Xue Song, and learned that Xue Song wanted to travel to the Wilderness with him and Xue Lan. While browsing the forums, Luo Jun read about a large treasure-hunt mission and saw speculation that Ling Yao was away on a mysterious Wilderness assignment; he ended the chapter realizing that he had become famous himself.

• Luo Jun brought Fish Floss Cake to Boss Lady and Ya Ya, then shared some with his neighbor Xue Song.
• Xue Song invited Luo Jun to accompany him and Xue Lan on their next trip to the Wilderness and began telling an embarrassing story about his sister.
• Xue Lan struck Xue Song with a pillow and kicked him into the opposite wall before dragging him back into their room.
• Luo Jun browsed a forum post about a hundred-person treasure hunt on a deserted island, where participants would compete for ten treasure chests over three days.
• Luo Jun read that Ling Yao was absent because the Ling Family's Clan Troops were handling a mysterious Wilderness discovery.
• Luo Jun found an old post about the crisis he had resolved in Lingyun City and realized he counted as a big shot now.

After Luo Jun failed to break through to the Body Refinement Realm Fifth Layer, a new Chaos Mission transported him to a platform with more than a dozen cultivators. The mission rules appeared as the platform descended toward a giant Chinese chessboard.

• Luo Jun read forum posts about Night and recognized Sun Xiaowei and Xuanyuan Wuji among the commenters.
• Luo Jun ate dinner, attempted a breakthrough, failed, and used the Regret Skill to cancel the event.
• Luo Jun received notice of a Chaos Mission, prepared his equipment, and vanished from his room when it began.
• Luo Jun arrived on a platform with more than a dozen cultivators, and Jin Fei recognized him as Night.
• Luo Jun refused Jin Fei's handshake, then watched the platform descend through mist toward a giant Chinese chessboard as the mission rules appeared.

The participants reviewed the Miracle Chess Game’s rules and debated which pieces best suited their abilities before the match began. Luo Jun chose a Pawn, leaving his role for the upcoming game settled.

• The participants saw the Red Side’s sixteen blood-red statues and learned they had thirty minutes to choose their Black Side pieces.
• The Old Man chose an Elephant, while Jin Fei urged everyone to discuss their abilities and select pieces strategically.
• Yu Qiudi explained why the Elephant suited people with low Protective Qi Strength and high Vital Energy consumption, then fell asleep.
• The participants debated which roles suited different factions, and several claimed the Rook, Knight, and Cannon.
• Jin Fei asked Luo Jun which piece he wanted, and Luo Jun stepped forward and picked up a Pawn.

Luo Jun chose the pawn piece for its strength bonus and joined the chessboard mission, where Qi Xingzi was isolated above the board as its general. The game began with the opposing cannon capturing Luo Jun’s central pawn.

• Luo Jun chose the pawn, surprising the others, while Jin Fei privately wondered at his apparent caution and insight.
• Qi Xingzi was selected as the general, and the contestants were teleported onto a vast chessboard for the mission.
• The contestants discovered that Qi Xingzi was trapped above the board and could not communicate with them.
• The opposing side opened with a central cannon, and Qi Xingzi moved Zong Zhiyong’s horse to protect Luo Jun.
• The opposing cannon crossed the river and captured Luo Jun’s central pawn.

Luo Jun fought an elven Old Man in a sealed arena after the chess match transported them into a battle. The Old Man trapped Luo Jun in a tracking tornado and prepared a Wind Blade attack while Luo Jun struggled to escape.

• Luo Jun dodged the Old Man’s Vital Energy Cannonball with the Dice of Heavenly Secrets and summoned Flame Turrets to attack.
• The Old Man blocked Luo Jun’s fireballs and punch with a shield, then attacked with Wind Blades that Luo Jun evaded using the dice.
• Luo Jun pierced the weakened shield with Hunter’s Sin, but the Old Man dodged the bullet with his wind-powered movement.
• The Old Man summoned a tracking tornado that caught Luo Jun, while Luo Jun deployed more Flame Turrets and an Entangling Turret to distract him.
• The Old Man destroyed one Flame Turret and aimed a gigantic Wind Blade at Luo Jun, who remained trapped in the tornado.

Luo Jun survived the Old Man’s Wind Blade, upgraded, and used his constructs and endurance to break the Old Man’s shield. He killed the Old Man with Crime Hunter just as the enemy tried to escape by transforming into wind, and the arena declared victory for the Black Side.

• Luo Jun used his Body Protecting Belt to survive the Wind Blade, then dodged a Vital Energy Cannonball and upgraded.
• Luo Jun drew Attribute Points and charged the weakened Old Man with his remaining constructs.
• Luo Jun used Flame and Entangling Turrets to close in and battered the Old Man’s Magic Shield while enduring Wind Blade wounds.
• The Old Man’s shield collapsed, but he elementalized to evade Luo Jun’s fatal punch.
• Luo Jun shot the Old Man with Crime Hunter, killing him as the weapon’s strike hit his elementalized body.
• The arena declared victory for the Black Side, and Luo Jun stored Crime Hunter and the Heaven Returning Mirror in his Hundred Treasure Box.

After Luo Jun defeated the Black Cannon without injury, the chess match continued and a Black Pawn lost to a Red Pawn. The surviving red piece was revealed as Fang Ru, a swordsman whose identical projections occupied all five Red Pawns.

• Luo Jun returned from the battle fully healed, with his Vital Energy at 100%, and the defeated Black Cannon crumbled.
• Qi Xingzi and Red Side advanced their pieces until a Red Pawn crossed the river and faced the Black Pawns.
• Qi Xingzi sent the glasses-wearing Black Pawn to capture the Red Pawn, but the Black Pawn lost despite having the initiative.
• The victorious Red Pawn revealed himself as an elegant swordsman, and the other four Red Pawns revealed identical True Bodies.
• A long-haired Black Pawn recognized the swordsman as Scholar Sword Fang Ru, a Famous Swords Tournament quarterfinalist.

The contestants learned that the Scholar's Sword had reached the Famous Swords Tournament's Top 8 before losing to Liu Moyean. Jin Fei defeated the enemy cannon, then revealed it had been a weakened projection of the great mage Storm Strom, and asked Luo Jun how he had beaten it without taking damage.

• The contestants discussed the Scholar's Sword's performance in last year's Famous Swords Tournament and worried about the strength of the other enemy pieces.
• Qi Xingzi moved Jin Fei's rook into the cannon's range at his request, and the enemy cannon challenged him to battle.
• After twelve minutes, Jin Fei emerged victorious, though he was injured and had spent much of his Vital Energy.
• Jin Fei revealed that the enemy cannon had been Storm Strom, a High Elf mage whose strength had greatly diminished after an accident.
• The Old Man explained Storm Strom's former power, and Jin Fei asked Luo Jun how he had avoided the mage's attacks without injury.

After Qi Xingzi moved Luo Jun into a duel against Scholar Sword Fang Ru, Luo Jun used the pawn’s strength bonus and a Siege Blade to fight him. The battle ran long because Luo Jun was cultivating inside an Earth Barrier while Fang Ru lay gravely injured outside it, and Luo Jun completed a Realm Breakthrough.

• The chessboard rules forbade the pieces from communicating with Qi Xingzi, leaving her to choose moves alone.
• Qi Xingzi moved Su Linna’s cannon behind Luo Jun, then advanced Luo Jun’s pawn to capture an opposing pawn and trigger a duel against Scholar Sword Fang Ru.
• Luo Jun received a Siege Blade and a 50% Strength Enhancement before charging Fang Ru.
• As the duel continued past ten minutes, the other chess pieces speculated that Luo Jun was stalling to recover a powerful skill or Treasure Tool.
• Inside the Arena, Fang Ru lay crippled outside Luo Jun’s Earth Barrier while Luo Jun meditated beside an Earth Construct.
• Luo Jun completed the Realm Breakthrough event and received 910 experience points.

After breaking through to Body Refinement Realm Fifth Layer, Luo Jun returned to the board and was immediately challenged by the Red Horse. He fought the charging monster but remained in danger as the battle continued.

• Luo Jun used the time after defeating the Scholar's Sword to break through to Body Refinement Realm Fifth Layer, then returned to the chessboard with full health and Vital Energy.
• The Red Horse captured Luo Jun and forced him into another Arena battle before he could recover.
• Luo Jun's Powerful Shot bounced off the monster's shield, and his attempt to dodge its charge failed.
• The monster hurled its spear, but Luo Jun caught it, braced himself against the Arena wall, and pulled the weapon free.
• Luo Jun threw the spear back through the monster's shield and drove it backward, surprising his opponent.

Luo Jun defeated the horse piece by breaking its shield, dodging its control skill, and impaling it with its own spear. After reaching Level 20, he returned to the chessboard and prepared to choose a new skill.

• Luo Jun battered the horse monster until its shield shattered, then dodged its radiant net using his final two dice attempts and an Intermediate Attribute Enhancement.
• Luo Jun knocked the monster's spear away, seized it, and wounded the monster's neck, earning 760 experience points and reaching Level 20.
• Luo Jun plunged the spear through the monster and pinned it to the ground, killing it and winning the match as the Black Side.
• Luo Jun described the red centaur-like opponent to the onlookers, who speculated that it might be a powerful Blood Hoof Centaur.
• Luo Jun opened the Dice of Heavenly Secrets System interface and chose to draw a new skill.

After Luo Jun gained the More Opportunities skill, the Red Commander defeated Su Linna despite having declined a chess-piece bonus. The commander’s statue revealed a powerful black Hunter III Type from the [Metropolis], leaving Luo Jun and the others facing a dangerous new enemy.

• Luo Jun checked his updated attributes and reflected on how far he had come since obtaining the system.
• Su Linna entered the Arena to face the opposing Old General after he declined to select a chess-piece bonus.
• A former student of Su Linna reassured the group that her strength and the cannon’s bonus would secure victory.
• The Red Commander quickly defeated Su Linna, shocking the watching chess pieces.
• The Red Commander’s statue cracked open to reveal a black Hunter III Type from the [Metropolis].

Luo Jun and the other players learned that the black Hunter III could absorb cultivators’ Vital Energy and mimic their abilities, then watched it face the buzz-cut man. The brief battle ended with the man’s defeat and revealed that the opposing war chariot was Liu Moyean, the champion of the Famous Swords Tournament.

• The buzz-cut man explained that Hunter III was a prototype designed to fight powerful Heart Refining Realm cultivators by absorbing their Gang Qi and simulating their abilities.
• Huai Xu reasoned that the hunter could use stolen abilities only while it had the corresponding Vital Energy, and the players worried about its large reserve.
• Luo Jun decided the hunter posed little threat to him because he was only in the Body Refinement Realm and had no Gang Qi.
• Red Side advanced War Chariot Two to capture the horse, and the buzz-cut man entered the arena to fight it.
• The battle ended within seconds with the buzz-cut man defeated, and the revealed opponent was Liu Moyean, disciple of Sword Saint Zuo Taixuan.

The Red Side healed Liu Moyean and maneuvered its pieces toward Luo Jun, while the Black Side tried to contain her and prepare its own fighters. The chapter ended as Liu Moyean captured Night and Luo Jun was pulled into the Arena to face her.

• Liu Moyean defeated Duan Feilan, but Duan Feilan severely injured her before falling.
• The Red Side used a Healing Spell to restore Liu Moyean's Vital Energy and health.
• Qi Xingzi advanced Huai Xu's elephant and positioned Chen Yan's cannon to restrain the enemy horse.
• The Red Side moved a pawn to expose its rook to Night, then used the rook to capture him.
• Liu Moyean and Luo Jun were pulled into the Arena together for their battle.

Huai Xu realized the opposing side was targeting their strongest attacking pieces to force a draw until the Chaos Mission’s time limit expired. In the arena, Luo Jun fought Liu Moyean and escaped her Ten Steps Killing Formation after an unexpected flaw appeared.

• Huai Xu explained that the enemy planned to eliminate their strongest attackers and stall until the time limit ran out.
• Liu Moyean charged Luo Jun with enhanced speed, and he dodged her opening attacks before setting up Flame and Entangling Turrets.
• Liu Moyean feinted, wounded Luo Jun’s arm with an enhanced close-range skill, and tried to retreat, but his vines trapped her.
• Luo Jun struck Liu Moyean with a powerful whip kick, injuring her and breaking her left arm, then pressed his attack with gunfire and explosives.
• Liu Moyean unleashed the Ten Steps Killing Formation after Luo Jun came within ten steps, but his successful dodge roll and a cough from the air revealed a flaw that he rushed toward.

Luo Jun defeated Liu Moyean and a demonic taoist in rapid succession, leaving Black Side poised to checkmate the Red General. Qi Xingzi’s move opened Black Side to a counterattack, and she then sent Yu Qiudi to face Liu Moyean instead of blocking the threat with an advisor.

• Luo Jun escaped Liu Moyean’s killing formation, counter-killed her, and won without losing any Vital Energy.
• Qi Xingzi advanced Pawn 5, and Luo Jun defeated the Red Side’s ghost-controlling elephant.
• Luo Jun defeated the advisor guarding the Red General, leaving Black Side one move from checkmate.
• The Red General used its extra move to evade, and Qi Xingzi advanced Advisor 6 instead of securing the central file.
• Liu Moyean captured Huai Xu’s elephant and defeated him, leaving Black Side exposed to her rook.
• Qi Xingzi moved Yu Qiudi’s elephant to capture the rook, sending Yu Qiudi into the Arena to fight Liu Moyean.