Recaps

Lanchi and Sid left Qinsidun City after saying goodbye to Xia Ya and the others. As they traveled north across the snowfield, Sid tracked Lanchi’s favorability and joked that she might need to read his mind to discover what he was thinking.

• Viscount Levin Kinston and Xia Ya saw Lanchi and Sid off at the city gates, and Xia Ya embraced Lanchi before they parted.
• Lanchi reassured Xia Ya that he and Sid could find their way north with the help of a snowfield map.
• Cat Boss decided that Sid was too dangerous to be a suitable romantic partner for Lanchi.
• Sid recorded the favorability Lanchi had lost and told him to keep raising it, though she would not explain what high favorability would achieve.
• Sid asked whether anyone could use Mind Reading magic, then warned Lanchi that another woman might punish him for his unspoken thoughts.

Lanchi and Sid raced toward Banderra City on a sleigh while discussing the dangers of the Northern Border and Sid’s unwillingness to let Lanchi go. Sid admitted she would let a former Saintess leave, leaving Cat Boss to wonder whether Lanchi’s escape plans might take an unexpected turn.

• Lanchi and Sid raced through the snow toward Banderra City, while Cat Boss clung to Lanchi and begged them to slow down.
• Lanchi explained that exposing a major scandal in the Northern Border could earn them considerable imperial recognition, while Sid doubted the advance investigation team could handle an eighth-tier threat.
• Sid promised to protect Lanchi but said she would not easily let him leave her service; Lanchi asked what would happen if he wanted to retire.
• Cat Boss asked whether Sid would let her former Saintess leave, and Sid said she would let her go and allow her to live as she wished.
• Cat Boss suspected Lanchi might still fake his death to escape, but wondered whether Sid’s answer could change how that plan unfolded.

Lanchi and Sid reached Banderra City in the Northern Border Province, where they prepared to enter a heavily guarded city amid signs of an approaching conflict. Lanchi revealed that he was a Sealer, and the pair set off toward the city.

• Lanchi and Sid stopped outside Banderra City after finding no trace of the missing investigation team along their route.
• Lanchi warned Sid to be ready to protect him as they approached the tightly guarded city, which he believed concealed a major Imperial conspiracy.
• Sid asked about Lanchi’s combat class, and Lanchi told her that he was a Sealer.
• Lanchi reassured Sid that his sealing arts were warm and blazing and intended for love and peace.
• As military music filled the snowy air, Lanchi and Sid began walking toward Banderra City.

Lanchi and Sid discovered that Banderra City had been transformed into a corpse-filled Eclipse Demon Realm and tried to escape. Askesang intercepted them and sealed the space around them, leaving them face-to-face above the city.

• Lanchi and Sid entered Banderra City, where they saw only Imperial Army patrols and Nirvana Branch clergy on the upper level.
• Sid sensed that the city held no living people besides the Nirvana Priests and carried Lanchi into the sky to escape.
• Lanchi saw the city’s hidden devastation: an Eclipse Demon Realm filled with corpses and undead beneath a veil of illusion.
• Askesang appeared on a spire and trapped Lanchi and Sid inside a distorted barrier.

In Banderra City, Lanchi and Sigrid confronted Nirvana Bishop Askesang, who had turned the city into a massacre site and trapped them in a spatial lockdown. Sigrid revealed herself and attacked Askesang, beginning a battle that left him intent on killing both her and Lanchi.

• Askesang questioned Lanchi and Sigrid about whether the Imperial Great Sage Isis or the Duke Berenhard family had sent them.
• Askesang threatened to deal with Sigrid first, prompting her to abandon her frightened disguise and strike him with a powerful blow.
• Sigrid pursued Askesang through the collapsing city, but he recovered behind a magical barrier and recognized her as a Ba Tian Sect leader.
• Askesang mistook Lanchi for Sigrid's new successor, the Ba Tian Holy Son, and decided to kill them both before nightfall.

Sigrid fought Askesang in Banderra City while protecting Lanchi, but a mysterious Black Robed Man intervened and turned the battle against her. The Black Robed Man summoned an Abyssal Black Worm, leaving Sigrid trapped between two powerful enemies.

• Sigrid used Life Link and a Nian Qi Puppet to protect Lanchi and carry him away from the battle.
• Sigrid gained the upper hand against the injured Askesang and drove him back with a powerful punch.
• The Black Robed Man appeared, rescued Askesang with a magical chain, and struck Sigrid into Banderra City's lower level.
• The Black Robed Man summoned an Abyssal Black Worm, whose gravitational suppression made Sigrid stagger.
• Askesang and the Black Robed Man watched Sigrid as she faced them amid the ruins.

Sigrid struggled against Askesang and the Black Robed Man while Lanchi watched from the ruins, realizing she needed help. Lanchi prepared to intervene with the Silverlight Puppet and Cat Boss as he focused on the Abyssal Black Worm.

• The Black Robed Man and Askesang coordinated their attacks, driving Sigrid into a desperate fight while she avoided killing the Abyssal Black Worm.
• Sigrid tried to strike Askesang, but the Black Robed Man trapped her with chains and Askesang’s magic sent her crashing to the ground.
• Askesang taunted Sigrid about Lanchi and urged her to abandon him, but she remained determined to protect the Holy Son.
• Lanchi asked the Silverlight Puppet to protect him and take him elsewhere, and she agreed to follow his request.
• Lanchi instructed Cat Boss to prepare to help him cast spells and avoid using the Imitation Stone Slab - Wind, then watched the Abyssal Black Worm.

Lanchi arrived at Banderra City’s battlefield and used his Nuclear Fusion Wolf to seal the Abyssal Black Worm, freeing Sigrid from its restraint. He faced Askesang and the Black Robed Man as the balance of the battle shifted.

• Sigrid fought Askesang and the Black Robed Man while drawing them away from the Abyssal Black Worm, but she was badly wounded and trapped by the Black Robed Man’s chains.
• Askesang prepared a killing spell as Sigrid ignited her remaining vitality for a final struggle.
• Lanchi arrived beside the Abyssal Black Worm with Cat Boss and summoned his Orange Epic Nuclear Fusion Wolf.
• The Nuclear Fusion Wolf struck the Abyssal Black Worm, sealed it into a Magic Card, and swallowed it for ten seconds.
• With the Abyssal Black Worm’s pressure gone, Sigrid was freed, and Lanchi proudly displayed his sealing art to Askesang and the Black Robed Man.

Lanchi used the Nuclear Fusion Wolf to seal the Black Robed Man’s Abyssal Black Worm and escape with the gravely wounded Sigrid. The wolf detonated its swallowed Magic Cards in a blast that engulfed the Northern Snowy Plains and changed the fate of the Protos Empire and the world.

• Lanchi sealed the Abyssal Black Worm inside the Nuclear Fusion Wolf, giving Sigrid an opening to strike and grievously wound the Black Robed Man.
• Lanchi fed the wolf hundreds of Tier 6 and Tier 7 purple Magic Cards as Sigrid flew toward him.
• Askesang unleashed a costly Sealing Magic that left Sigrid near death, and Lanchi caught her as she fell.
• Lanchi carried Sigrid away and vowed to reclaim Askesang’s Primordial Slab, while the Black Robed Man pursued them.
• The Nuclear Fusion Wolf detonated, unleashing a blinding explosion that devastated the Northern Snowy Plains and engulfed Banderra City.

Marquis Heliti'er and Somerset Marquis discussed the battle in the north of the Protos Empire and the vampires’ plans to reclaim their land. At the devastated Banderra City, Askesang and the Black Robed Man survived the explosion but failed to capture Sigrid, and Askesang vowed to keep Ba Tian Holy Son from escaping the northern blockade zone.

• Marquis Heliti'er told Somerset Marquis that the battle in the north involved Askesang, Sigrid, and possibly the Apostle, and ended amid flames resembling a Tier 8 Great Destruction spell.
• Marquis Heliti'er assured Somerset Marquis that Duke Lasha'er would protect the vampires’ plans to reclaim their land from interference by the Northern Continent.
• A demon imprisoned in the lowest level of the Eternal Prison sensed the northern explosion, then closed his eyes again.
• At the ruins of Banderra City, Askesang and the Black Robed Man emerged badly wounded after surviving the explosion and chose not to pursue Ba Tian Holy Son.
• The Black Robed Man departed after reminding Askesang to fulfill his promise in one month, while Askesang vowed to keep Ba Tian Holy Son inside the empire’s northern blockade zone.

After being unconscious for three days, Sigrid woke on the road south with Lanchi and Cat Boss. Lanchi explained that sealing magic had prevented her injuries from healing, and they continued toward Helrom despite the dangers ahead.

• Sigrid woke in the snow sled after three days unconscious and thanked Cat Boss for caring for her.
• Lanchi told Sigrid that Askesang's Sealing Art had locked her condition and prevented her from recovering.
• Lanchi said Askesang and the Black Robed Man were likely too injured to pursue them for now, though Nirvana's territory left them isolated.
• Lanchi declared that he and Sigrid would keep heading south toward Helrom, while warning that he would flee or abandon her if necessary.
• Sigrid told Lanchi, smiling, not to speak that way to other women because they might react worse than she would.

Hughberlian and three Tier Six clergymen infiltrated Milford Territory in the Protos Empire with Earl Milford’s help. After entering the city, they reached his residence, where Hughberlian prepared to discuss the dangerous mission ahead.

• Hughberlian disguised herself as a merchant heiress and brought an executioner, a priest, and a Holy Knight through the border checkpoint.
• Earl Nelson Milford arrived at the city gate and identified Hughberlian and her companions as his guests.
• Hughberlian and the clergymen followed Earl Milford’s carriage into the city and reflected on the dangers of their mission.
• Earl Milford brought the four guests to his residence and dismissed the attendants before meeting with them privately.
• Hughberlian thanked Earl Milford for supporting the church and said she was willing to trust him.

Hughberlian received a new identity as Earl Milford’s illegitimate niece, Milian Milford, and prepared to travel to Helrom with his daughter, Mishura. She expected to face the Nirvana Branch’s forces in Milford Territory, but learned that the Nirvana Holy Son and the province’s main forces had already departed, leaving her unexpectedly safe.

• Earl Milford arranged for Hughberlian to assume the identity of Milian Milford and transfer to the Protos Royal Magic Academy in Helrom.
• Earl Milford asked Hughberlian to protect his daughter Mishura if she could not return to the Northwest Province.
• Earl Milford warned Hughberlian about the Nirvana Knight Order and encouraged her to relax while she adjusted to life in Milford Territory.
• Hughberlian vowed to avoid drawing the Nirvana Holy Son’s attention, believing the Northwest Province was still dangerous.
• Earl Milford explained that the Nirvana Holy Son had taken the province’s main forces north two days earlier, and Hughberlian realized she could safely enjoy her stay.

Hughberlian learned that the Nirvana Holy Son had been sent north, giving her time to rest at Earl Milford’s home before traveling to Helrom. She met Mishura, who welcomed her in her own stern way, and Hughberlian ended the chapter looking forward to finding Lanqi again.

• Earl Milford told Hughberlian that the Nirvana Holy Son had gone to the far north and offered to plan a route to Helrom that avoided him.
• Hughberlian met Mishura, who gave her gifts, explained the Milford family’s rules, and promised to help if anyone bullied her.
• Hughberlian asked Mishura whether she had heard of Luo Qi, and Mishura offered to help search for him in Helrom.
• Mishura assumed Luo Qi was Hughberlian’s romantic interest and decided she would inspect him on her behalf.
• Hughberlian felt reassured by the warmth she had found in the Milford household and looked forward to meeting Lanqi again.

Lanchi and the injured Sigrid rested at an inn in Dandelun City while Cat Boss went out for supplies. As they discussed the dangers ahead and Lanchi’s limits against powerful enemies, he said he would use Inviting God if the Nirvana Holy Son found them.

• Sigrid woke in the inn as Lanchi sat nearby reading, and he told her Cat Boss had gone to buy groceries.
• Lanchi let Sigrid rest and explained that the Nuclear Fusion Wolf needed more than ten days to recover from its self-destruction.
• Sigrid asked whether Lanchi could defeat a Tier 6 opponent, and he said he could handle Tier 5 but not Tier 6.
• When Sigrid asked what he would do if the Nirvana Holy Son found them, Lanchi said he would have to use Inviting God.

Cat Boss returned to the inn with groceries and cooked lunch for Sigrid while Lanchi waited and read. As they prepared to leave the city-state and cross the mountains before dark, Sigrid planned to drive and let Lanchi rest, but she lost respect for his scholarly appearance when she saw the simple map book he had been reading.

• Cat Boss entered the inn with floating grocery bags and returned to the room where Sigrid slept and Lanchi read.
• Cat Boss prepared lunch, then woke Sigrid and brought her several dishes.
• Sigrid hugged Cat Boss and ate while Lanchi said they needed to leave in an hour and cross the mountains before dark.
• Sigrid told Lanchi to rest and planned to drive on the return journey.
• Sigrid saw that Lanchi had been reading A Map of the Snowy Region Even a Three-Year-Old Could Understand and felt his scholarly image falter.

Lanchi prepared to lead Sid and Cat Boss through Box Mountain Province despite the Nirvana Branch’s overwhelming forces and the dangers of the route to Helrom. He reassured Cat Boss that he had a plan, then changed their disguises before they set out.

• Lanchi warned Cat Boss to stay close as they traveled toward Snowfield Province, where they could not yet contact its lords by long-distance magic.
• Cat Boss explained that the Nirvana Branch’s main force and the Imperial Army were positioned in Box Mountain Province, making passage to Helrom extremely dangerous.
• Sid said she had recovered less power than she had during the journey north and was relying on Lanchi as her Holy Son.
• Lanchi assured Cat Boss that he had a way to get Sid through Box Mountain Province and said the Nirvana Holy Son should not be allowed to block the route for other citizens.
• Lanchi gave Sid a Transformation Art: Human card, and she disguised herself as a brown-haired, green-eyed girl while he adopted a black-haired, green-eyed appearance.

Anielo tortured an inn receptionist for information and led the Nirvana Branch toward Sigrid and Lanchi, while the fugitives fought off pursuers on the snowy plain. After killing a Nirvana High Priest and nearing Snowfield Province, Lanchi and Sid encountered an oppressive surge of icy magic.

• Anielo questioned an inn receptionist about a young man and woman, then transformed her into a grotesque mass and left the inn as his high priests dealt with the scene.
• Anielo told his followers that Sigrid and the Ba Tian Holy Son were criminals who had fled south, and he continued tracking them toward the snowy region.
• Sid and Lanchi killed a Nirvana High Priest who had caught up with them, though Sid's injuries worsened during the fight.
• Sid asked Lanchi about his Sealing Magics, and he explained that their great power came with risks.
• Lanchi estimated that they were only a few dozen kilometers from Snowfield Province, but the dawn sky darkened as icy magic surrounded them.

Anielo trapped Lanchi and Sigrid on the snowy field and revealed his role in the Ba Tian Saintess’s death, leaving Sigrid furious and asking Lanchi how he would punish him. Lanchi instead said he would convert Anielo with his love.

• Sigrid pulled Lanchi aside to evade Anielo’s Sealing Magic, but Anielo trapped them inside a magical cage.
• Anielo revealed himself as the Nirvana Holy Son and used barriers and gray rifts to block Sigrid and Lanchi from escaping.
• Anielo taunted Sigrid by describing the Ba Tian Saintess’s suffering and boasting that he planned to capture and humiliate Sigrid.
• Sigrid quietly asked Lanchi whether he could subject Anielo to the most extreme punishment.
• Lanchi said he would convert Anielo with his love, and Sid trusted that her Holy Son would find a way to punish him.

Anielo attacked Lanchi and Sigrid with a sealing spell, but a sudden gale shattered his magic and revealed High Priest Loren at the center of the storm. Anielo recognized Loren and was overcome with terror, unable to understand how he had been disguised as the Ba Tian Holy Son.

• Anielo tried to turn Lanchi and Sigrid against each other by suggesting Lanchi could kill Sigrid and become a Cardinal Bishop.
• Lanchi told Anielo he had no desire to become a Cardinal Bishop and challenged him to reach Snowfield Province before sunrise.
• Anielo summoned a Magic Storm and sent a rain of sealing magic down on Lanchi and Sigrid.
• Sigrid trusted Lanchi as the attack closed in, while Lanchi gave her an apologetic smile.
• A powerful gale shattered Anielo's Sealing Magic and revealed High Priest Loren as the figure controlling the wind.
• Anielo recognized Loren and panicked, wondering how he had impersonated the Ba Tian Holy Son.

Lanchi defeated Anielo by revealing the apparent power of the Primordial Slab - Wind, then let him flee toward Snowfield Province. Sid and Cat Boss realized Lanchi had used an imitation slab to impersonate Loren, and Sid promised to hear his explanation.

• Lanchi unleashed Tier 7 wind magic and the Primordial Slab - Wind's power, overwhelming Anielo and driving him to flee.
• Lanchi watched Anielo disappear, then noted that Anielo would head for Snowfield Province's Communication Terminal, which Lanchi could keep him from reaching.
• Sid realized that Lanchi's magic had displayed the effects of the Primordial Slab - Wind, but told him she still trusted him and would listen to his explanation.
• Cat Boss asked why its Roar of the Storm Dragon had gained the slab's effects, and Lanchi confirmed that the Imitation Stone Slab - Wind had enabled it.
• Sid pieced together that Lanchi had used the imitation slab to impersonate Loren and asked whether he could forge a Primordial Slab.

Lanchi explained his connection to Loren and discussed Sid’s Primordial Slab before contacting Snowfield Province to arrange a trap for Anielo. The chapter left Anielo headed toward a city prepared to capture him.

• Lanchi showed Sid the Imitation Stone Slab - Wind, and told her he was both a student and friend of Loren and had never formally joined a church faction.
• Sid offered to let Lanchi observe her Primordial Slab - Foundation, but became annoyed when he failed to ask convincingly; they set aside the discussion because their crisis was not over.
• Lanchi used a Super Long-Distance Communication Magic card to contact Viscount Levin Kinston in Snowfield Province.
• Lanchi described Anielo as a mentally unstable Ghost Party member using forged credentials and warned Kinston not to give him access to the city’s Communication Terminal.
• Viscount Kinston agreed to prepare a trap to capture Anielo, while Sid realized Lanchi planned to toy with him again.

Anielo reached Boen City and sought access to its Communication Terminal so he could report that High Priest Loren had appeared within the Empire. When the connection succeeded, a familiar voice answered, leaving Anielo terrified.

• Anielo entered Boen City using his Empire military credentials and went to the Nirvana Knight Order temple.
• Anielo demanded to meet the governor, and the senior priest escorted him to the Governor's Residence.
• Viscount Qin Shton, the acting governor, agreed to let Anielo use Snowfield Province's Communication Terminal after Anielo said High Priest Loren had arrived.
• Anielo inserted the Imperial Army's special Encrypted Communication Program and established the connection alone in the governor's office.
• Anielo heard a gentle, familiar voice answer instead of an officer from the Defense Ministry and recoiled in fear.

Anielo was trapped in the Governor’s Office by layered anti-magic defenses and poison gas, then attacked by the province’s elite combat force. Led by Viscount Qin Shton, Lanchi’s Honor Guard overwhelmed him, leaving him badly hurt and disoriented.

• Anielo realized the voice on the communication line belonged to someone he had just met, then discovered the Governor’s Office was a trap.
• The Military Anti-Magic Barrier and City Defense Barrier activated as poisonous gas filled the office, weakening Anielo and suppressing his mana.
• Viscount Qin Shton led the province’s elite forces into the office, where masked Tier 5 warriors began attacking Anielo.
• Anielo tried to fight back with mana and gray flames, but the Honor Guard restrained him with ice spikes, a chain anchor, and coordinated attacks.
• A heavy warrior struck the back of Anielo’s head, and another drove a punch into his stomach.

Anielo was captured and immobilized by the Demon King Army's Guard Squad after causing trouble in the Governor's Residence, but he insisted he was the Nirvana Holy Son and tried to warn the Snowfield nobles about Loren. The voice guiding Viscount Qin Shton through the receiver was revealed as Lanchi, who arrived with Sid and confronted Anielo.

• The provincial elites pinned Anielo down and drove Tier 6 Magic Sealing Nails into his limbs, leaving him numb and unable to resist.
• Anielo threatened Viscount Qin Shton with the power of the Rebirth Church and the Imperial Military Tribunal, but Qin Shton and the elites mocked him.
• Anielo realized the Governor's Residence was behaving strangely and suspected the people there were being controlled through the receiver.
• The voice on the receiver directed Qin Shton to move Anielo in front of the office sofa and addressed him by name.
• Lanchi and Sid entered the Governor's Office, and Anielo recognized Lanchi as the man who had once briefly saved him.