Chapter Summaries

Gao De discovered that the damaged dial was an extraordinary navigation component made from rare materials, but his Identify spell revealed only fragments of its nature. Researching its craftsmanship at the official library, he traced its techniques to the Craft Integration Period and found a lead in a book about its Legendary Alchemists.

• Gao De examined the dial and found hidden Astral Energy concealed within its damaged casing.
• Gao De used Identify on the dial, learning that it was a damaged core component of a larger Mystic Item with navigation abilities and a connection to the Astral Plane.
• Gao De used his Glory Academy Badge to enter the official library and searched records on ancient craftsmanship and Mystic Items.
• Gao De matched the dial’s crystal cutting and metalwork to techniques from different historical eras, then found a record of the Craft Integration Period that explained their combination.
• Gao De located Biographies of Legendary Alchemists and found a clue about the three prominent alchemists of the Craft Integration Period.

Gao De learned that the battered dial might be connected to Lottie’s mysterious Ultimate Creation, but found no further clues in the library. He traveled by airship to Mithril City, where he saw the Silver Highland, Silver Dragon Birds, and the city’s mountain-built defenses.

• Gao De matched the dial’s materials and craftsmanship to Lottie’s works and considered whether it was part of her unknown Ultimate Creation.
• Gao De searched books and records for more information about Lottie’s creation but found no substantive clues.
• Gao De left the City of Glory aboard the Skylark and traveled toward Liuge County.
• The Skylark passed the Silver Highland, where Gao De and the passengers saw several Silver Dragon Birds flying among the cliffs.
• The Skylark landed in Mithril City, and Gao De disembarked to explore the city.

Liu Ying Crown, a gifted but dangerously powerful light-element mage confined to the castle, learned that Gao De had arrived in Mithril City as a prospective teammate. After hearing that roads were restricted for Dragon Bird Formation Training, she disguised herself and secretly slipped out to explore beyond the main castle.

• Marcus told Liu Ying that Gao De had arrived in Mithril City with eleven Academy Badges and was expected to take the team's Substitute Slot.
• Liu Ying asked to see Gao De's magic combat, but Marcus reminded her that her uncontrolled power could injure her or others.
• Marcus mentioned the Dragon Bird Formation Training and road restrictions, prompting Liu Ying to prepare to leave.
• Liu Ying put on her Light-Concealing Robe and the Breath of the Holy Shield, then used Disguise Art to alter her appearance.
• Liu Ying quietly slipped out of her room, while Marcus watched from the shadows and let her go.

Gao De traveled to Liuge Academy for his final Academy Challenge, seeing Silver Dragon Birds train along the way and learning that a Holy Empire team was watching the match. The challenge against Academy Defender Xiao Lun began in the Silver Wing Nest, where Xiao Lun took a defensive stance as Gao De prepared to attack.

• Gao De took a carriage to Liuge Academy by way of Eagle Beak Cliff and watched Silver Dragon Birds drill and young birds being fed.
• Gao De arrived at Liuge Academy’s Silver Wing Nest, where he observed the arena’s chaotic mountain winds and their advantage for local mages.
• Gao De noticed a group from the Holy Empire in the stands and learned they had come to prepare for the Matchless Magic Combat Tournament.
• Xiao Lun arrived as Liuge Academy’s third-stage Academy Defender, and the Academy Steward began the challenge between him and Gao De.
• Xiao Lun used [Flight Spell] to hold position and wait for Gao De’s attack, while Gao De prepared to test his defense.

Gao De defeated Xiao Lun in Liuge Academy’s challenge, earning the twelfth Academy Badge and a place on the Plantagenet Dynasty’s team for the Matchless Magic Combat Tournament. He settled into an inn in Mithril City and planned to spend the next few months preparing for the tournament and gathering materials for Third Circle spells.

• Xiao Lun used the arena’s turbulent currents to launch a wind-blade counterattack, but Gao De controlled the currents with Boeing’s Qi Control and evaded the attack.
• Xiao Lun’s concealed Shadow Toxin failed to affect Gao De, whose Intermediate Amber Physique detected the poison and whose Protection Energy: Poison blocked it.
• Gao De battered Xiao Lun with Fireballs until Xiao Lun’s Guard Badge activated, ending the challenge with Gao De’s victory.
• The Academy Steward awarded Gao De Liuge Academy’s badge and confirmed he had gathered all twelve badges for the Plantagenet Dynasty’s representative team.
• Gao De returned to Mithril City, rented a quiet room at the Silver Feather Inn, and set out to explore the city and buy spell-elixir ingredients.

Gao De visited the Obsidian Antique Merchants Guild’s Antique Gambling event and watched a girl expose several exhibits as fakes. When Morton challenged her over the Starlight Pendant, she identified flaws in it and claimed the genuine pendant was at her house.

• Gao De entered the Obsidian Merchants Guild’s annual Antique Gambling event and examined three expensive spell and knowledge antiques.
• A girl warned Gao De that the three antiques were fake, then explained the details she claimed exposed their flaws.
• The girl admitted to Gao De that she had invented her explanations to bluff the guild, and Morton arrived to confront her.
• Morton challenged the girl to inspect the guild’s Starlight Pendant, which he said had been authenticated by three top appraisers.
• The girl declared the pendant fake and pointed out that it lacked features associated with Mage Lia’s original; she told Gao De the genuine pendant was at her house.

Gao De and a seemingly ordinary girl exposed the Obsidian Merchants Guild’s fake Starlight Pendant, forcing Morton to suspend the event and offer refunds. As they left, Gao De foresaw an approaching disaster and spotted a disguised mage from the Holy Empire Mage Corps in the crowd.

• The girl told Gao De that the genuine Starlight Pendant was in her home, and Morton’s silence confirmed the guild’s centerpiece was fake.
• Morton apologized to the girl, suspended the Antique Gambling event, and offered refunds to guests who had bought exhibits.
• Gao De left the guild with the girl and thanked her for warning him about the antiques.
• Gao De experienced a vision of a bleak, dangerous landscape and urgently told the girl to leave the area.
• Gao De recognized a hooded figure in the crowd as a mage from the Holy Empire Mage Corps.

A dark-purple presence took control of a Holy Empire mage and sent Gao De and Liu Ying through a spatial rift into a plane without magic. Mei Qiang watched the silvery-white light vanish from the Plantagenet Dynasty’s territory, while Liu Ying woke in the desolate wasteland and found Gao De unconscious nearby.

• The Holy Empire mage’s eyes flashed dark purple as a spatial spell opened beneath Gao De and Liu Ying, pulling them into a rift despite Liu Ying’s pendant.
• Bystanders saw only lifelike illusions of Gao De and Liu Ying parting, while the controlled mage regained himself and hurried away through Mithril City.
• In Iron City, Mei Qiang saw a silvery-white point disappear from the Plantagenet Dynasty’s territory on the Three-dimensional Map.
• A fleeting silver-white light appeared in the Purple Jade Flower at the northern edge of the Nolan Continent before Mei Qiang dismissed it and resumed watching the map.
• Liu Ying woke in a gray-black wasteland of bone powder, found that her mana and pendant no longer worked, and spotted Gao De still unconscious nearby.

Gao De awakened in the magic-less Silent Desolate Soul Domain, where soul-eroding Withered Soul Energy threatened to kill him within three days. After learning Liu Ying had accidentally dragged him there while fleeing pursuers, he discovered his Adaptive ability was rapidly strengthening him against the plane’s dangers.

• Liu Ying woke Gao De by poking him with a bone, and he learned that falling asleep in his weakened state could be fatal.
• Liu Ying explained that the plane suppressed magic and Mystic Items, and warned that Withered Soul Wind and Withered Soul Energy could damage their souls.
• Gao De recognized Liu Ying as the disguised girl he had encountered before, and she admitted they had been pulled into the plane by a seventh-circle Spatial Rift: Conduction aimed at her.
• Liu Ying said her Breath of the Holy Shield could not block the spatial spell, and estimated that Gao De had no more than three days before his soul withered.
• Gao De’s Adaptive ability rapidly increased his soul resilience and Magic-less Adaptation as his body began adjusting to the plane.

Gao De and Liu Ying learned about the Silent Desolate Soul Domain and headed for a ruined Stone Tower, hoping to find shelter and clues to escape. They reached the tower, where Gao De prepared to enter first.

• Liu Ying explained that the exiled necromancer Mordecai Bone Pact may have escaped the Silent Desolate Soul Domain from a Stone Tower.
• Liu Ying described the plane's Withered Soul Servants and Withered Soul Mites, and she and Gao De decided to seek shelter in a tower.
• Gao De caught Liu Ying when she stumbled, but she reflexively avoided his touch and apologized.
• Liu Ying revealed that she was captain of the Plantagenet Dynasty Representative Team and had gone to the Obsidian Merchants Guild after seeing Gao De there.
• Gao De and Liu Ying reached a ruined Stone Tower, and Gao De offered to enter first.

Gao De and Liu Ying sheltered from the Withered Soul Wind in the first Stone Tower, then set out for another tower after the storm passed. They killed three Withered Soul Servants ambushing them at the second tower, but Liu Ying was left with a severe wound on her wrist.

• Gao De searched the first Stone Tower with Liu Ying, found no clues, and took a sturdy bone fragment to use as a weapon.
• Liu Ying recognized the signs of the approaching Withered Soul Wind, and Gao De agreed to shelter with her until the storm passed.
• After the wind subsided, Gao De's [Adaptive] abilities improved, and he and Liu Ying traveled through bone ash toward the southwest Stone Tower.
• Three Withered Soul Servants burst from the second tower's doorway, and Gao De killed the first two while Liu Ying fought the third.
• Gao De killed the last Withered Soul Servant, then noticed that Liu Ying had a deep claw wound on her left wrist.

Gao De treated Liu Ying’s poisoned wrist with his healing blood, discovering that her Sacred Radiance burned him while his body adapted to it. Liu Ying revealed that her light had kept her from ever touching anyone, and she quietly responded to Gao De’s first gentle head pat.

• Liu Ying’s wrist wound began spreading corpse poison, but a flash of golden light purified it while she continued to bleed heavily.
• Gao De grabbed Liu Ying’s wrist to stop the bleeding, endured the scorching Sacred Radiance, and pressed his healing blood to her wound.
• Gao De’s blood helped the wound clot and heal as his resistance to radiance damage rapidly increased.
• Liu Ying explained that her light burned anyone who touched her and had prevented her from experiencing physical contact since childhood.
• Gao De gently patted Liu Ying’s head, then pulled his hand away in alarm; Liu Ying watched it with confusion and apparent longing.

Gao De and Liu Ying found Soul Essence Fragments that could counter soul erosion and discovered a map pointing toward a Central Tower in the Silent Desolate Soul Domain. Before they could set out, Gao De realized Liu Ying was severely dehydrated and that both of them lacked food and water.

• Liu Ying sensed a warm presence in a Withered Soul Servant corpse, and Gao De found a Soul Essence Fragment inside it.
• Gao De searched the other corpses, found two more fragments, and gave all three to Liu Ying to ease her soul erosion.
• Gao De and Liu Ying entered a Stone Tower, where Gao De uncovered a map showing the Silent Desolate Soul Domain's regions and the locations of its Stone Towers.
• Gao De identified a network of towers leading to a Central Tower and proposed that they investigate it.
• Gao De noticed Liu Ying's cracked lips and realized that neither of them had food or water, leaving her weakened state urgently dangerous.

Gao De gave Liu Ying his blood to ease her dehydration and the pain from Withered Soul corruption, then fought off three Withered Soul Servants while protecting her. Afterward, he held her wrist to continue building resistance to her Radiance Energy as they resumed their journey toward the Central Tower.

• Gao De had Liu Ying drink his blood, which relieved her thirst and eased some of her soul pain.
• Gao De and Liu Ying traveled toward the Central Tower, avoiding several groups of Withered Soul Servants.
• Gao De accidentally crushed a bone fragment, drawing three Withered Soul Servants toward them.
• Gao De killed all three attackers with a bone shard while keeping Liu Ying behind him.
• Gao De checked that Liu Ying was unharmed, then held her wrist to build resistance to her Radiance Energy as they continued onward.

Gao De and Liu Ying reached the central Stone Tower and discovered ancient Soul Runes and research notes left by Mordecai, which might reveal how to escape the Silent Desolate Soul Domain. Liu Ying then revealed that time passed there six and a half times faster than in the Mage Plane, suggesting they might still make the Matchless Magic Combat Tournament.

• Gao De collected Soul Essence Fragments from the Withered Soul Servants and guided Liu Ying through more Withered Soul Winds and wandering servants toward the central Stone Tower.
• Gao De cautiously opened the central Stone Tower, where he and Liu Ying found ancient Soul Runes that Liu Ying recognized as Mordecai's work.
• Gao De studied the runes and deduced that they gathered and controlled Soul Energy, then found shallow ancient writing that he believed contained Mordecai's research notes.
• Liu Ying said she could not read the ancient writing, and Gao De explained that he hoped to decipher it after his Magic-less Adaptation improved enough to let him use magic.
• Gao De feared they would miss the Matchless Magic Combat Tournament, but Liu Ying revealed that time in the Silent Desolate Soul Domain passed six and a half times faster than in the Mage Plane.

Gao De rested in the Stone Tower, and his Magic-less Adaptation advanced enough for him to cast [Create Water+]. He gave Liu Ying honey water and began waiting for his mana to recover further so he could read the Soul Runes and seek a way out.

• Gao De realized he had twenty-six months to escape before the tournament and learned that Liu Ying was eighteen, leaving them time to meet its age limit if they escaped soon enough.
• Gao De succumbed to exhaustion and slept while Liu Ying watched over him in the Stone Tower.
• After waking, Gao De found that [Adaptive] had increased his Magic-less Adaptation to 78.9%, allowing him to move a small amount of mana and cast a cantrip.
• Gao De used [Create Water+] to fill his leather bag with honey water, then shared it with Liu Ying to ease their hunger and thirst.
• Gao De told Liu Ying that further mana recovery might let him cast [Comprehend Languages] and read the ancient writing, then took her hand again.

Gao De deciphered Mordecai’s research records and uncovered the complete method he developed to escape Silent Desolate Soul Domain. After explaining how the Withered Soul Wind could be harnessed to break the Plane Barrier, Gao De told Liu Ying he had good news and bad news to share.

• Gao De held Liu Ying’s hand as Sacred Radiance Energy burned him, then let go when he needed time to recover.
• Gao De cast [Comprehend Languages+] and translated Mordecai’s records on discovering Soul Essence in Withered Soul Servants.
• Gao De explained how Mordecai developed Soul Runes and Guiding Array 21.0 to gather the Withered Soul Wind into a force capable of striking the Plane Barrier.
• Gao De and Liu Ying examined Mordecai’s map and learned that peak Withered Soul Wind weakened the Plane Barrier at predictable intervals.
• Gao De finished explaining Mordecai’s escape plan and asked Liu Ying whether she wanted to hear the good news or the bad news first.

Gao De and Liu Ying discussed how to escape the Silent Desolate Soul Domain, and Liu Ying recognized his battered antique as the Journey Dial, a component of Master Lottie's legendary Plane Wanderer Device. The dial could sense weak points in Plane Barriers, but Gao De would need to attune it first.

• Gao De explained that he could reproduce Mordecai's fourth-order Guiding Array 21.0 within two years, but they still lacked a way to locate the weak point in the Plane Barrier.
• Liu Ying pointed out the battered dial in the Stone Tower, and Gao De realized it was the unusual antique he had bought in the City of Glory.
• Liu Ying identified the dial as the Journey Dial, a core component of Master Lottie's Plane Wanderer Device, and recounted how Lottie had hidden its components after the curio transformed during the Astral Tide.
• Liu Ying explained that the Journey Dial's Astral Positioning Crystal could still sense weak points in Plane Barriers, even in a Magic-less Plane.
• Gao De picked up the damaged dial, and Liu Ying told him that he had to attune it before he could sense plane resonance through it.

Gao De attuned the damaged Journey Dial with a Soul Essence Fragment and discovered it could guide him toward the Mage Plane and weaker points in the Plane Barrier. Meanwhile, Grand Duke Wang Mian traced Liu Ying’s disappearance to her meeting with Gao De and identified a suspicious figure as likely connected to the Holy Empire’s Mage Representative Team.

• Liu Ying explained the Journey Dial’s attunement requirements, and Gao De used a Soul Essence Fragment to awaken the dial and bind it to his soul.
• Gao De sensed the Journey Dial could point toward the Mage Plane and indicate directions where the Plane Barrier was weaker, giving him a possible way out of the Silent Desolate Soul Domain.
• Grand Duke Wang Mian used a Light-Tracing Crystal Ball to watch Liu Ying’s last meeting with Gao De and learned that Gao De was also missing.
• Grand Duke Wang Mian replayed the scene and spotted a hooded figure secretly watching Liu Ying, then ordered information on the Holy Empire’s Mage Representative Team.
• Grand Duke Wang Mian matched the figure’s bearing to a mage in the team’s files and recognized the suspected connection.

Grand Duke Wang Mian determined that illusion magic had concealed Liu Ying’s disappearance, while her Soul-Binding Rune Box showed that she was alive but beyond the Mage Plane. He ordered a continent-wide search and covert investigations, while far away Gao De finished gathering Soul Essence Fragments and headed back toward the Central Tower.

• Grand Duke Wang Mian explained how Imperial illusion magic had created a false scene of Liu Ying, and Marcus realized she had disappeared.
• Wang Mian checked Liu Ying’s Soul-Binding Rune Box and found that her life and soul were stable but her location could no longer be sensed, leading him to conclude she was outside the Mage Plane.
• Wang Mian refused Marcus’s request to seize the Imperial Mage Representative Team, citing the lack of proof and the danger of provoking war.
• Wang Mian ordered the Crown Family to devote its resources to finding Liu Ying, offered five hundred thousand Plantagenet Coins for accurate information, and directed covert surveillance of Imperial mages and coordination with the royal family.
• In the Silent Desolate Soul Domain, Gao De killed more than a dozen Withered Soul Servants with his empowered broken-bone sword and collected their Soul Essence Fragments.
• Gao De decided he had gathered enough materials and headed back toward the Central Tower.