Chapter Summaries

The Orcs and Abyssal Gnolls attacked Soren’s forces to seize the Flail of Ages component held by Milan, while coordinated cannon fire devastated the Orc charge. Yugin then ambushed Milan with a Bone Spear, and Soren vanished to save her as the blow came down.

• Yugin and the Gnoll Chieftain spotted Milan carrying the Artifact component they sought and ordered the attack.
• The Orc army charged the pirate forces along the Agate River, and the Warships’ coordinated cannon fire cut down the front ranks.
• A Legendary Psion relayed Soren’s orders directly to the Warship commanders, enabling continuous three-stage firing.
• Abyssal Gnolls emerged from the darkness and targeted Milan while Yugin hurled his Bone Spear at her.
• Soren vanished from his position as Yugin’s attack threatened Milan.

Soren used his newly enhanced Shadow Jump to save Milan from Yugin’s spear attack, then faced the War Shaman and the Heroic Spirit War Souls he summoned. When Yugin continued trying to kill Milan, Soren transformed into Slayer Form, whose mutation granted him Fear Aura and demanded he kill a Legendary enemy to avoid madness; he charged Yugin as the battle escalated.

• Soren teleported Milan out of the path of Yugin’s spear, then evaded a second attack from a Heroic Spirit War Soul summoned through the Bone Spear.
• Soren recognized that Yugin could call upon Orc ancestral Heroic Spirits, while Yugin continued advancing on Milan.
• Soren opened an Elemental Plane portal, summoning a Fire Elemental Elder and giant Air and Earth Elementals to protect Milan and confront the attackers.
• Soren’s Slayer Form mutated, boosting his attributes and granting Fear Aura and Instinct of Slaughter, while imposing a need to kill a Legendary enemy.
• Soren charged Yugin and clashed with his bone spear as Yugin summoned two more Heroic Spirit War Souls.

Soren fought [God Ascendant] Yugin and his Heroic Spirit War Souls while their allies battled the Abyssal Gnolls and other summoned foes. Soren killed a Heroic Spirit War Soul, triggering a cross-planar destruction of its statue and turning the conflict into a true God War.

• Soren entered Slayer form and fought Yugin and two Legendary Tier Heroic Spirit War Souls while his allies engaged the other enemies.
• Soren struck down one Heroic Spirit War Soul with a flurry of attacks and earned Slaughter Experience and Divine Rank.
• On the [Gray Waste], divine power destroyed the fallen Heroic Spirit's statue, and a figure holding a skull recognized the disturbance as a possible God War.
• Soren and Yugin clashed again as Soren tried to reach another Heroic Spirit War Soul, while Butterfly prepared to act.
• Yugin sensed that one of the Heroic Spirit War Souls had vanished, and the battle was recognized as a God War in which fallen spirits could truly die.

Soren used Greater Haste and Butterfly’s Psionic attacks to destroy Yugin’s summoned Heroic Spirit War Souls, gaining 9 points of Divine Rank. Yugin feared that the spirits had truly perished and stopped summoning them, leaving the battle’s advantage with Soren.

• Soren judged Yugin’s strength and chose to target the Heroic Spirit War Souls rather than fight him directly.
• Soren used Greater Haste to strike the spirits while Butterfly stunned them with Mind Blast.
• Soren killed two Heroic Spirit War Souls and gained 7 points of Divine Rank as their statues crumbled in the Gray Waste.
• Soren and Butterfly killed a third Heroic Spirit War Soul, bringing his Divine Rank gains to 9 points.
• Yugin sensed that the spirits had vanished rather than merely weakened, feared the cost to the Orcs, and dared not summon more.

After the Abyssal Gnolls retreated, Soren organized the evacuation of the commoners while keeping the crisis in Falling Leaf City unresolved. Milan revealed why Yugin had targeted her: she carried a component of the Flail of Ages, which Soren took into his custody.

• Yugin and the Abyssal Gnolls retreated after failing to break through Soren's defenses, and Soren chose not to pursue him.
• Soren ordered the commoners escorted to the ships and told Butterfly to protect them from pirates.
• Soren instructed the priests to return with food and weapons and prepare for the next evacuation.
• Soren questioned Milan about why the Orc had relentlessly targeted her, and she showed him a dark green flail entrusted to her by the Bishop.
• Soren identified the weapon as the Venom head of the Flail of Ages and took it from Milan, warning that the Gnoll King was likely searching for it.

The Half-Elf Church evacuated its believers from besieged Falling Leaf City while Soren arranged ships and supplies for their journey. As refugees reached Sand Fury Island and continued toward Port Nyanzaru, the city's nobles looked to a legendary druid for help against the Orcs.

• The priests returned to Falling Leaf City with abundant food, and more Commoners chose to leave as the siege continued.
• The Noble Council decided not to stop the Church's evacuation, and a Middle-aged Druid announced that Earth Walker might aid them after returning from a mission.
• Soren agreed to supply the Noble Council with food while his Church evacuated more than twenty thousand Commoners in three batches.
• George and his Elder Sister arrived with the refugees at Sand Fury Island, where they rested under the Law Enforcement Team's watch.
• Merchant ships from Shipwreck Bay transported the refugees toward Port Nyanzaru, and George heard about the city's prosperity and opportunities.

Soren monitored the Orcs as Yugin began building a fortress across the Agate River, while George and the other Half-Elf refugees arrived at Port Nyanzaru. George entered the city in awe after seeing its bustling harbor, grand temples, and a Wyvern flying overhead.

• Soren ordered Scarface to keep scouts watching the Orcs, while Yugin's forces began constructing a large fortress across the Agate River.
• Falling Leaf City's nobles worried that the Orc fortress would make reclaiming lost territory costly, though one elder believed it would delay an Orc attack until reinforcements arrived.
• George learned that the fleet had brought the refugees to Port Nyanzaru because Lord Soren's summons and a year's tax exemption made the trip profitable for the Chambers of Commerce.
• George and the refugees disembarked and were escorted into Port Nyanzaru, where they saw its clean streets, grand temples, and strict Half-Drow guards.
• A Wyvern flew from the city walls over the frightened refugees, and George entered Port Nyanzaru marveling at the city.

George and his family settled into Port Nyanzaru, where orderly rules and a system of Work Points offered newcomers a chance to earn food, housing, and land through labor. The chapter ended with George returning home after a grueling first day of work, hopeful that he could support his family and save for clothes for Elder Sister’s child.

• George and the other newcomers were registered, assigned crowded housing, and told they would need to work for better food and the chance to own a house or land.
• George learned that land could be earned through Work Points or Military Merit, and he considered using his strength as an advanced Warrior to gain Military Merit.
• George’s family settled into one house, and Elder Sister insisted on finding tailoring work rather than staying home.
• George took a job carrying timber and transported more than one hundred and twenty logs in his first day.
• George exchanged Work Points for food, kept one point, and returned to the courtyard planning to save for clothes for Elder Sister’s child.

George and his family adapted to their new life in Port Nyanzaru as he worked to improve their circumstances. After receiving an opportunity to enter the City Guard, he focused on passing the assessment and hoped to move his sister and nephew into a home of their own.

• George visited Old Peter’s celebration and learned that the skilled blacksmith had been hired by the Armory and given an independent courtyard.
• George worked to support his sister and nephew, bought household goods and clothes, and began saving toward a home of his own.
• Over the following week, George watched Port Nyanzaru expand and grew accustomed to its orderly, busy life.
• George’s strength as an Advanced Warrior caught attention, and he received an opportunity to undergo an assessment for the City Guard.
• George welcomed the sight of newly arrived Half-Elves and resolved to buy meat for his sister and prepare for the Guard assessment.

Soren evacuated his believers from Falling Leaf City as the Time of Troubles approached and discussed his inability to grant Divine Magic with the Psion. He decided he would not ascend as a False Deity and would hold a God-Conferring Ceremony only when he could become a True God.

• Soren refused Bishop Feewood's request to evacuate more believers and warned him that the Gods would soon descend into the mortal world.
• Soren sailed away from Falling Leaf City with more than twenty thousand believers and left the Church's management to the Psion—Butterfly.
• The Psion told Soren that the priests might lose faith if he continued to be unable to grant Divine Magic.
• Soren said the dimming stars and weakening prayers suggested that other priests were also losing Divine Magic as the Time of Troubles neared.
• Soren told the Psion he would hold a God-Conferring Ceremony only when he could become a True God, though he was not yet fully qualified.

Soren prepared to search for the legendary Treasure Island, seeking Divine Rank and Divinity from its Demigods and False Deities. He ordered his godhood ceremony to be discreet and his military parade to be grand, while the expedition was set to depart in three days.

• Soren told the Half-Elf first mate to prepare elite forces on Serpent Island to return to Port Nyanzaru and search for Treasure Island.
• The Half-Elf first mate recognized the legendary island’s immense wealth and wondered if Soren knew its location.
• Soren studied a nautical chart and recalled the dangerous route, including a strait guarded by a gigantic Octopus Monster.
• Soren considered Treasure Island a source of Divine Rank and Divinity that could strengthen him enough to approach deity-level power.
• The Psion reported that preparations for the God-Conferring Ceremony and military parade would take one or two months.
• Soren ordered the God-Conferring Ceremony to be held discreetly and the military parade grandly.

Soren prepared a conspicuous military review while keeping his planned ascension limited to the Half-Elf Portfolio, then sailed with his fleet into the Sunken Land. He found the route to Treasure Island and continued toward it.

• Soren set plans for a military review five days later, with invitations for powerful allies and a temple fund of three hundred thousand Gold Dalers for the Psion.
• Soren returned to Port Nyanzaru, where the city had expanded to accommodate more than twenty thousand newcomers and workers earned food through labor.
• Soren gained eight Legendary Degree from the Battle of Falling Leaf City, bringing his total to one hundred, and checked on Vivian and Goria's research.
• Soren led his fleet away from Port Nyanzaru and followed a remembered route through dangerous seas where the Goddess of the Sea's blessing could no longer repel mutated Sea Monsters.
• Soren reached a black strait in the Sunken Land and recognized it as the route to Treasure Island.

Yeenoghu sent reinforcements against Malignant’s forces after a gnoll commander failed him, while Clediana led her first battle as a newly awakened Radiant Nun. The clash continued near the River Styx, with Malignant watching through a Beholder Seer.

• Yeenoghu visited the silent remains of Bachar, the ancient Obyrith Demon whose body still affected the 422nd Layer.
• Yeenoghu killed a Gnoll Chieftain for failing to handle the enemy and ordered the Ghoul Legion and Gnoll Executioners to reinforce the border against Malignant’s army.
• Clediana crushed a gnoll Warrior and led the Succubus Legion in her first battle, hoping to earn Malignant’s favor by harming Yeenoghu.
• Malignant watched Clediana’s battle through her Beholder Seer, treating the conflict as a test of her newly created daughter.
• Clediana remembered drifting in the River Styx, whose waters had erased most of her memories.

Clediana began her rise as a Radiant Nun by defeating a gnoll scout and declaring her ambition to become an Abyssal Lord. Meanwhile, Soren killed a colossal octopus in the Black Strait and continued toward Treasure Island, where he expected to take the final step to godhood.

• Clediana recalled how the Succubus Queen Malignant favored succubi and resolved to prove herself worthy of power and freedom.
• Clediana used her charm to subdue a Gnoll Stalker, whipped it to death, and vowed to become a powerful Abyssal Lord.
• Soren stopped his fleet in the Black Strait and dove with his Mutated Killer Whale to confront the colossal octopus lurking there.
• Soren used Greater Haste to cut into the octopus's skull and kill it, then ordered the Mutated Killer Whale to devour the carcass.
• Soren returned to the warship and ordered the fleet onward toward Treasure Island, the final step before his apotheosis.

Soren surveyed Treasure Island, mapped its dangers, and planned a careful assault on an indigenous tribe near a gold-rich river. The next day, he landed with his Elite Pirates and sent Rogues ahead to scout before the attack.

• Soren identified Treasure Island's dangerous creatures and chose the indigenous people near a gold-bearing river as his target.
• Soren flew around the island, memorized its terrain, and drew a map marking hazards, tribal villages, and safe landing routes.
• Soren planned an assault that would minimize casualties while capturing prisoners to work the Gold Mine.
• The next day, Soren landed with more than two thousand Elite Pirates and ordered one unit to guard the ships.
• Soren sent the Rogues ahead to scout while the other pirates prepared for battle.

Soren led his Rogues through a dangerous jungle and discovered a Native tribe conducting blood sacrifices to a Chaotic Evil Evil God. As the ritual continued, Soren’s forces closed in on the tribe, preparing to strike.

• Soren’s party fought off Mutated Plants and continued through the jungle while scouting its dangerous terrain.
• A Native Warrior force investigated disturbances in the forest, and Soren’s Rogues ambushed and killed its leader and several Warriors.
• Soren ordered his party to keep moving toward the enemy’s heart as they approached a fortified village east of the river.
• The village’s Shaman Priest sacrificed captives and fierce beasts at an altar to empower an Evil God, then ordered Slaves sacrificed when the deity showed dissatisfaction.
• Soren’s forces surrounded the tribe as Soren sensed the blood-red spiritual radiance of a Chaotic Evil Evil God.

The Red Dragon Duchess met with a Greater Pleasure Fiend, who offered her a gift in exchange for better souls and her company. On Treasure Island, Soren attacked a Native ritual and killed the presiding Shaman as the tribe realized it was under assault.

• The Greater Pleasure Fiend confronted the Red Dragon Duchess and demanded better souls, mocking the corruption of her family.
• The Pleasure Fiend offered the Duchess a gift and used her seductive powers to draw her into an intimate encounter.
• Soren ordered his forces to kill the Native Warriors during a blood-sacrifice ritual on Treasure Island.
• Soren and his allies cleared the Arrow Towers and opened the gates for the pirate elite to enter.
• Soren used Shadow Jump and Greater Haste to reach the altar and stab the Native Shaman through the heart.
• The Natives awakened from their ritual as the sounds of battle reached them.

Soren and the Elite Pirates attacked the Native Warriors at the altar, where accumulated blood formed a powerful divine Avatar. Unable to hurt the Blood Giant effectively with physical attacks, Soren kept his distance and bombarded it with Melf's Minute Meteors, leaving the battle unresolved.

• Soren used Whirlwind Attack to kill the Native Warrior Shaman Priest and cut down nearby warriors as the Elite Pirates stormed the altar and Half-Elf archers took the high ground.
• The altar gathered the blood of the sacrifices and Soren's victims, forming a twisted Blood Cocoon that revealed itself as a divine Avatar.
• Soren's physical attacks barely harmed the creature, which regenerated, resisted his spells, and transformed into a Blood Giant capable of casting Divine Magic.
• The Blood Giant changed into a Tongbi Vajra and charged at Soren, who retreated and attacked with Empowered and Maximized Melf's Minute Meteors.
• Soren continued bombarding the Blood Giant with repeated rounds of Melf's Minute Meteors as its regeneration fell behind its accumulating damage.

Soren killed the Blood Giant’s Evil God and reached the standards of a deity, gaining Avatar Form and its powerful protections. Afterward, his consciousness traveled through the Astral Plane, where he saw the Material Plane, other worlds, and a dimly glowing divine kingdom calling to him.

• Soren destroyed the Evil God’s spirits and rejected its chaotic Divine Power rather than absorbing it.
• Soren gained Divinity, Divine Rank, and the Half-Elf Portfolio, then used Slaughter Experience to complete his Avatar Form conversion.
• Soren gained the Transcendence and Spell Immunity, Levels 1–3 Feats, and his updated attributes showed him as a Demigod.
• Soren’s consciousness crossed the Astral Plane and surveyed the Material Plane, other worlds, and the kingdoms of deities.
• Soren returned to his body and knew that the vision of the planes had been real.

After conquering a large native tribe on Treasure Island, Soren secured the settlement, assigned Scarface and Giant to guard and mine a nearby Gold Mine, and arranged to transport captives to Port Nyanzaru. He planned to keep gathering supplies and wealth before the coming Time of Troubles, while the Mutated Killer Whale would protect the sea route.

• Soren learned that his pirates had suffered seventy or eighty deaths and more than three hundred wounded, then ordered scouts to secure the area against a nearby tribe’s possible raid.
• Soren ordered dangerous Native Warriors sent to Port Nyanzaru or sold into slavery, while his men gathered gold and silver ornaments from the tribe.
• Scarface discovered a nearby Gold Mine, and Soren assigned him to organize its mining while Giant stayed to strengthen the garrison.
• Soren arranged for some captives to be escorted back, leaving about a thousand people to mine and defend the settlement.
• Soren planned for the Mutated Killer Whale to guard the route between Treasure Island and Port Nyanzaru and drive away other Ocean Behemoths.