Recaps

After five years in the City of Steel, Saine arranged modifications for his Space Fortresses and helped Milena purchase a Wind God series fortress. He then traveled alone to Kapeiqi to negotiate the two more advanced fortresses that would form the core of his planned fortress cluster.

• Saine shared his fusion fortress designs and demonstrated Mechanical Fusion Arcana, winning the City of Steel mechanics’ interest in his project.
• Babbage recommended a Wind God series fortress to Milena, who agreed to introduce other Kings of Devil Beasts to the City of Steel.
• Saine left the City of Steel after arranging a modification project expected to take at least thirty years, while Milena returned to the Forest of Magical Beasts before heading back to the front lines.
• Saine arrived in Kapeiqi and began negotiating for two costly, highly coordinated Space Fortresses to serve as the main trunks of his future fortress cluster.

Saine went to Sky City to commission a core Space Fortress from Master Walton, but learned that the earliest available appointment was more than five thousand years away. As he prepared to leave, a crimson Law of Light sensed his Magic Cube and offered the busy Level-6 Magician a job.

• Saine discussed his fortress-cluster plans with Master Bote Niu, who recommended Master Walton and provided a letter of introduction.
• Saine visited Walton's Heavy Industry Laboratory in Sky City and asked to commission a Space Fortress.
• Walton's assistant told Saine that the earliest appointment available to him was five thousand six hundred and seventy-one years away.
• As Saine prepared to leave, a crimson Law of Light noticed the Magic Cube and called out to the Level-6 Magician in Walton's laboratory, offering to introduce him to a job.

Saine met Master Walton in Sky City to discuss designing a core hub fortress that could control an entire fortress cluster. Walton agreed to take the project for one hundred million Magic Coins, with delivery no earlier than three hundred years, and asked to keep Saine’s Magic Cube temporarily.

• The Source of Fire recognized Saine’s Magic Cube, which it and the Light of Wisdom had once helped upgrade into a World-Class Secret Treasure.
• Saine met Master Walton and described his plans for modifying fortresses in the City of Steel and Kapeiqi.
• Walton discussed the technical challenges with Saine and agreed that the core hub fortress concept had strong potential.
• Saine showed Walton and Xina his Magic Cube, and Walton identified it as a medium-high-grade World-Class Secret Treasure.
• Walton drafted a Magic Contract for the project, and Saine signed it after agreeing to pay one hundred million Magic Coins.
• Walton asked Saine to leave the Magic Cube with him temporarily.

Saine commissioned a customized Central Fortress from Master Walton in Sky City and helped design it while his Magic Cube was studied and strengthened by the Source of Fire. After nearly twenty years, Saine left Sky City, ready to return if further matters arose.

• Saine agreed to let Master Walton study the Magic Cube and revealed that it stored nearly a hundred thousand Mechanical Angels and about four million mechanical troops.
• Saine signed a contract for a customized Central Fortress, leaving 120 million Magic Coins and joining the design work in Sky City.
• Master Walton brought the Magic Cube to the Source of Fire, where it showed affection rather than trying to devour it.
• The Source of Fire covered the Magic Cube with Metal Source of Fire, helping it grow, and remarked on Saine's connection to the inheritor of the Faceless Mask.
• Saine spent nearly twenty years discussing the fortress's requirements and preliminary designs before leaving Sky City.

After returning to the Land of Ashes, Saine heard from Meili about its rapid growth and the new Knights' Halls and Devil Beast populations settling there. He received Life Potions from Luluenman and learned how much his mentor had supported Meili and the Ash Holy Tower while he was away.

• Meili told Saine that Knight Nova and Knight Verna were building their Knights' Halls, while Ulysses had begun founding the Mad Lion Knights' Hall with Saine's financial help.
• Meili reported that Devil Beast populations had migrated to the Land of Ashes, and that Knight Nova had brought Force Dragons and other Sub-Dragon creatures from the Bairen Empire.
• Saine agreed to open the Underground World to Knight Nova's creatures and proposed spreading them across the territory to balance other migrating populations.
• Meili told Saine that Plant Element Magicians from the Azure Source Holy Tower, including Jessica, had helped create forests, while Knight Verna had brought Sea Demon Beasts and sought to expand the waterways.
• Saine opened a package from Luluenman and found twelve powerful Life Potions, then gave one to Meili.
• Meili told Saine that Luluenman had helped her reach Level Four, supplied Longevity Potions to others, and regularly supported and treated Ash Holy Tower Magicians.

Catherine had spent decades at Ash Holy Tower, steadily advancing as a Level-1 Magician while avoiding comparisons and social gatherings. When she returned to her residence, she found a bouquet of Crystal Roses from someone she recognized and disliked.

• Catherine had advanced to Level 1 seventy years earlier and was now a hundred and ten years old, nearing the middle of the rank.
• She taught at Holy Tower Academy and continued studying the Magic Book she had received after the Regional Holy Tower Academy War.
• Catherine noted that Ximake had reached the peak of Level 1 and Sophie had reached the late Level-1 realm, but she did not compare herself with them.
• Catherine returned to her residence on the seventy-seventh floor, preferring solitary experiments to social events.
• Catherine found Crystal Roses at her door and recognized who had sent them, reacting with displeasure.

Catherine reflected on her past, her career, and her decision to focus on magic rather than romance as she entered her Ash Holy Tower residence. She found a mysterious masked man already inside.

• Catherine recalled fulfilling her contracts with Sun Holy Tower, the Bairen Empire, and the Imperial Public Magic Academy before joining Ash Holy Tower.
• Catherine suspected that the Magic Book and past preferential treatment had been connected to someone who had taken an interest in her, though she no longer cared whether the rumor was true.
• Catherine resolved to finish her contract with Ash Holy Tower before exploring the Wizard World and its Alien Worlds, while remaining aware that war could send her to the front lines.
• Catherine rejected the Crystal Rose from Balado, suspecting his interest in forming a family with her was tied to his renowned Magic Family.
• Catherine picked up the Crystal Rose, entered her residence, and found a mysterious masked man inside.

Saine confronted Catherine in her Ash Holy Tower residence and declared her his first disciple, frightening her with his power before offering three gifts. After she recovered, Catherine willingly accepted him as her mentor.

• Catherine attacked Saine with Green Flame Missiles, but his Magic Robe resisted them effortlessly.
• Saine trapped Catherine in his elemental domain of flames before she could escape and introduced himself as the master of Ash Holy Tower and her mentor.
• Saine gave Catherine an Azure Fire Element crystal, a magic mask, and a segment of a Mechanical Arm as Apprentice Gifts.
• Saine asked whether Catherine was willing to become his disciple, and Catherine agreed.

Catherine accepted Saine as her mentor and began training as his disciple in the Ash Holy Tower. After months of sparse, intensive lessons, she settled into the Tower Master Area and used feathers from Saine’s owl companion to make Magic Quills for an assigned project.

• Saine accepted Catherine as his disciple, gave her access to parts of the Ash Holy Tower, and told her to meet Aijieli the next day.
• Catherine moved into Saine’s residence after learning he might spend months or years in his laboratory, and Saine taught her in overwhelming bursts every three months.
• Catherine explored the Tower Master Area and encountered its residents, including an owl she suspected was a powerful magical beast.
• Catherine collected the owl’s shed feathers and made them into Magic Quills, partly completing Saine’s Magic Conductor assignment.
• Saine asked Catherine where the feathers had come from the last time he emerged from his laboratory.

Saine taught Catherine, who showed little aptitude for mechanics but excelled in Azure Fire Magic and alchemy, and prepared her for the Azure Flame Body Tempering Experiment. He also learned from Luluenman that new Immortal Domain forces, including the Reincarnation Underworld faction, were heading to the Wizard Civilization battlefield.

• Saine realized Catherine had little interest or talent in mechanics but praised her candor and progress in Azure Fire Magic and alchemy.
• Catherine chose to keep teaching at the Holy Tower Academy, and Saine told her he would soon begin her Azure Flame Body Tempering Experiment.
• Saine told Catherine about the powerful members of the Azure Blaze Sect, including its Level-6 Peak founder.
• Luluenman celebrated Saine's new disciple and prepared potions for Catherine while mentioning that Gagaru would soon return to the Wizard World to recover from injuries.
• Luluenman told Saine that the Immortal Domain's Exposition Sect Army and Reincarnation Underworld faction were expected to arrive at the battlefield.

The Exposition Sect prepared to join the war in Wizard Civilization, with Guang Chengzi leading its assembled forces. At Jade Void Palace, Nezha and the other leaders learned of the Witch Clan’s coming intervention and discussed the formidable armies of the Reincarnation Underworld.

• Nearly two hundred years after the Wote Huaien Star Region talks, the Exposition Sect assembled its army, with a third of its Vanguard Legion already at the Cosmos Great World Star Region border battlefield.
• The Exposition Sect’s senior figures gathered at Jade Void Palace before deployment, where Guang Chengzi stood as the expedition’s leader.
• Nezha arrived as the assembled cultivators discussed wartime cooperation and the Witch Clan’s unexpected decision to fight on Wizard Civilization’s side.
• The cultivators noted that the Blood Sea Asura Race had not joined the war, despite its closer ties to Wizard Civilization.
• The discussion turned to the Witch Clan’s growth and the Reincarnation Underworld’s powerful legions of ghost cultivators and the dead.

The Exposition Sect members gathered outside the Jade Void Palace discussed the Witch Clan’s planned expedition and Shuo Fang Immortal Emperor’s rare meteorite, which could become an Innate Spiritual Treasure. Their conversation ended when Yuanshi Tianzun emerged from the palace.

• The Exposition Sect Sages discussed how the Witch Clan governed the Reincarnation Underworld and planned to send forces to the Wizard Civilization Battlefield.
• Shuo Fang Immortal Emperor showed off a meteorite-type creature he had captured and said he could refine it into a low-grade Innate Spiritual Treasure.
• Nezha listened to Shuo Fang Immortal Emperor’s story, drawing the attention of the gathered Exposition Sect disciples.
• The Jade Void Palace doors opened, White Crane Disciple emerged, and Yuanshi Tianzun’s aura appeared.
• Nezha and the other Exposition Sect disciples respectfully welcomed Yuanshi Tianzun.

Yuanshi Tianzun instructed the Exposition Sect Saints before they set out for the Wizard Civilization Battlefield, then hurried to Eight Sceneries Palace after receiving urgent news from Sage Laozi. Nezha kept his connection to the Martial Arts Remnants secret and decided to help Locke and the Wizard World again.

• Yuanshi Tianzun warned his disciples to cooperate with the Intercept Sect and Human Sect, remain wary of the Buddhism Sect, and take care on the battlefield.
• Yuanshi Tianzun considered Shuo Fang Immortal Emperor's new artifact, Yang Jian's strength, and Nezha's abilities and connections.
• Nezha recalled the woman of the Martial Arts Remnants and considered telling Yuanshi Tianzun about her.
• Sage Laozi sent Yuanshi Tianzun an urgent message, and Yuanshi Tianzun left for Eight Sceneries Palace.
• Nezha decided to help Locke and the Wizard World again, reasoning that he had freed the Martial Arts Remnants and that they owed him a great debt.

Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun discovered that Duan Ning was the reincarnation of Master Tongtian’s younger sister and had inherited the Three Heavens’ forms through her divine ability. Yuanshi Tianzun recognized Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao and acknowledged his past wrongs, while Duan Ning remained unaware of any past-life memories.

• Yuanshi Tianzun arrived at the Eight Sceneries Palace and learned that Duan Ning believed her Brother was the person he had been searching for.
• Laozi asked Duan Ning to show Yuanshi Tianzun her divine ability, and she used One Qi Transforms into Three Purities to become three women.
• Duan Ning’s three incarnations identified themselves as Yunxiao, Qiongxiao, and Bixiao, startling Yuanshi Tianzun.
• Yuanshi Tianzun recognized the Three Heavens and recalled that he had helped kill them during the Investiture of the Gods Tribulation.
• Laozi and Yuanshi Tianzun reflected on reincarnation and karma, and Yuanshi Tianzun admitted that he had wronged the Three Heavens.

Yuanshi Tianzun decided to send Duan Ning to the Wizard Civilization Battlefield to find her brother, despite Sage Laozi warning that interference could worsen the Immortal Domain’s fate. Duan Ning set off with her master’s blessing and Xuandu’s supplies, while the Witch Clan prepared its own expedition.

• Laozi said Master Tongtian had likely gone to the Wizard Civilization Battlefield as a Rogue Cultivator and warned Yuanshi Tianzun against interfering with his Karma.
• Yuanshi Tianzun asked Duan Ning to seek out her brother without revealing his reincarnated identity, and promised to remake equipment for her.
• Laozi allowed Duan Ning to leave Eight Sceneries Palace after she affirmed that she wanted to go, and she performed three bows of discipleship to him.
• Xuandu promised to prepare pills for Duan Ning and advised her to seek help from the Shu Mountain Sword Sect or Heaven One Palace if she encountered trouble.
• The Witch Clan completed preparations for its expedition, with Zhong Kui chosen to represent it, and Ancestral Witch Houtu received him before he departed.

Houtu prepared the Witch Clan and its ghost cultivator forces to join the Wizard Civilization Battlefield, placing Zhong Kui in charge of the expedition. As the army prepared to depart, Zhong Kui entrusted the Punishment Department to Lu Zhiddao and looked forward to his first journey beyond the Immortal Domain Civilization.

• Houtu addressed the Witch Clan powerhouses and urged them to shoulder the clan’s future resurgence.
• The chapter described how the Witch Clan had welcomed talented ghost cultivators, including Zhong Kui, Ox-Head, and Horse-Face, through essence-blood inheritance.
• Houtu displayed the Book of Life and Death and the Judge’s Pen, while keeping their deeper connection to the Reincarnation Underworld’s power undisclosed.
• Houtu arranged for the Witch Clan and its ghost cultivator troops to train on the Wizard Civilization’s main battlefield.
• Zhong Kui asked Lu Zhiddao to look after the Punishment Department while he was away, and Lu wished him victory in the expedition.
• Zhong Kui prepared to leave with the Witch Clan army, eager to travel to the Wizard World for the first time.

Saine celebrated his ten-thousandth birthday with his family and close companions after years of laboratory work, while preparations for his World-Class Secret Treasure projects neared completion. The gathering ended with Saine revealing a possible way to preserve Serena and Irene’s souls, though not to extend their lives.

• Saine left his laboratory and was surprised by a family birthday celebration that had been delayed for years.
• Tourmaline gave Saine a kiss as her special gift, while Jessica and Mel joined the private gathering at the Ash Holy Tower.
• Saine reviewed the near-completion of the Staff of Ashes preparations, the delivery of six modified fortresses, and construction of Sky City’s Central Fortress.
• Saine noted that Xiao Qi’s vitality had improved after Tourmaline shared Immortal Domain delicacies, while Serena and Irene remained near the end of their lives despite recovering some Life Source Power.
• Saine told Serena and Irene that his mechanical research had uncovered a possible way to preserve their souls, then revealed the glowing Magic Cube.

At Saine’s birthday banquet, he discussed the uncertain possibility of preserving Serena and Irene’s souls and agreed to help Red Scales prepare for her Level 4 breakthrough. As the guests drank Immortal Domain Spirit Wine, Saine questioned Mel about bloodline inheritance, unaware that the wine he had sampled might have unusual effects.

• Saine admitted he could not guarantee that the Magic Cube could preserve Serena and Irene’s souls, but promised to try when the time came.
• Red Scales revealed that she had reached the peak demigod realm without attempting a Level 4 breakthrough, and Saine told her to meet him in the Body Tempering Laboratory after the banquet.
• Tourmaline served Fine Fruit Brew from the Immortal Domain, and Red Scales drank Meili, Jessica, and Lina under the table while Tourmaline fell asleep after sampling a jug.
• Saine found that the Spirit Wine was nutrient-rich and beneficial to powerful creatures, then asked Mel about Bloodline Arcana for reproducing offspring.
• Mel explained inheritance secrets from the Dragon Vein Warlock Family, and Saine noticed that her gaze toward him had changed after he drank wine that might have been taken from Mo Yan.

At Saine’s birthday banquet, Jessica’s Desire Fire Power erupted after she drank powerful Immortal Domain Spirit Wine, plunging the hall into chaos. Lina escorted Catherine away while Saine, Mel, and Jessica were caught up in the spreading Lustfire Law.

• Saine carried the aroused Jessica to Mel, then asked both women about Life Science principles and discussed obtaining the Dragon Vein Warlock Family’s knowledge through proper channels.
• Jessica redirected the conversation toward Saine and Mel experimenting together, but Saine rejected the suggestion and said he would speak with the Dragon Vein Warlock Family himself.
• Jessica drank Mel’s special Immortal Domain Spirit Wine, and her Lustfire Law erupted across the banquet hall.
• Jessica pounced on Saine, Mel moved in behind him, and the Lustfire Law spread through the other women as the birthday banquet descended into chaos.
• Lina escorted Catherine out of the hall and told her to return to her quarters and forget what had happened.

After the chaotic birthday banquet, Saine learned that Lina was pregnant with their first child and promised to raise the child with her. The banquet ended, the hall was cleaned, and Tourmaline woke up wondering where everyone had gone.

• After regaining his clarity, Saine blamed Jessica for the banquet’s chaos while Tourmaline slept peacefully nearby.
• Lina told Saine that she was pregnant, and he sensed a faint glow of life in her abdomen.
• Saine found no signs of pregnancy in the other women and wondered whether his and Lina’s shared Level Five life state and luck had made conception possible.
• Saine and Lina said they would love their child and raise them into an outstanding magician.
• Fumila summoned Female Angel Robots to clean the hall, and Tourmaline woke up after her nose’s elemental bubble burst and asked where everyone was.

After Lina’s pregnancy kept Saine worried, Luluenman returned to care for her and reassured him that Mei Kaili posed no danger. Red Scales successfully advanced to level four, and Saine left for Sky City to continue his research while Luluenman watched over Lina.

• Saine examined Red Scales and helped her prepare to advance to level four, which she successfully achieved after an attempt lasting about fifty years.
• As Lina’s pregnancy continued beyond thirty years without the child being born, Saine worried that Mei Kaili’s soul might be affecting her.
• Luluenman returned to the Wizard World and reassured Saine that Mei Kaili would not harm the child, while delaying her own attempt to advance to level five until after Lina gave birth.
• Luluenman urged Saine to pursue his Truth experiments, noting that Sky City had completed the final testing procedure for his Central Fortress.
• Saine agreed to go to Sky City to begin work on his Combined Fortress and Supergiant Metal Fortress Robot experiments, leaving Lina in Luluenman’s care.

Saine received his custom Central Core Fortress from Master Walton and learned how it could combine with six other Space Fortresses into a powerful coordinated battle group. Outside the Wizard World, Saine began the first integration experiment, bringing the seven fortresses together into an immense cone-shaped collective.

• Master Walton explained that Saine's Central Core Fortress could transform to coordinate with six other fortresses and carried vast energy reserves and a World-Extinguishing Impact Light weapon.
• Saine thanked Master Walton and his team, and Walton urged him to help end the war against the Galente Federation.
• Saine flew the Central Fortress out of the Wizard World to test the Combined Fortress, accompanied by registered Magicians from Ash Holy Tower and volunteer alchemists from Sky City.
• Saine used the Magic Cube's law power to draw the other six Space Fortresses toward the Central Fortress.
• The seven fortresses warped and transformed as they converged into a cone-shaped collective beyond the Wizard World.

Saine tested the fusion of seven Space Fortresses into a massive Combined Fortress beyond the Wizard World, while the disturbance drew the attention of the Guardian of Summer. The Guardian of Summer arrived to shield the world and tell Saine to move his experiment farther away.

• Saine's enormous experimental fortress disturbed the atmosphere and seas over the Wizard World's southwestern region.
• The Guardians of Spring and Summer sensed the disturbance, and the Guardian of Summer asked to handle Saine while the Guardian of Spring reminded her to protect the migratory birds and the homeland.
• The seven Space Fortresses merged successfully, and Saine used the Magic Cube to control most of the Combined Fortress.
• The Guardian of Summer raised a crimson elemental barrier around herself and warned Saine that large-scale experiments so close to the plane were not permitted.

Saine moved the Combined Fortress away from the Wizard World and began its Second Stage transformation, confident the first stage had succeeded. The Magic Cube unleashed its full power and Metal Source of Fire, raising the fortress into a towering Metal Giant.

• The Guardian of Summer warned Saine that large-scale experiments had to be conducted away from the Wizard World, and Saine moved the Combined Fortress farther into space.
• The Guardian of Summer praised Saine's Combined Fortress experiment and Magic Cube as he prepared the next stage.
• Saine dismissed the masters' concerns about skipping the planned first-stage tests and assured them that the experiment remained under control.
• Saine unleashed the Magic Cube's full power, and silver-white Metal Source of Fire spread across the Combined Fortress.
• The Combined Fortress transformed from a pyramid into a towering Metal Giant, astonishing onlookers and the Guardian of Summer.

Saine tested the second-stage transformation of his seven-fortress Combined Fortress Robot, finding that he could control it better than expected. He bought the abandoned Yi Crystal Demiplane from the Ebarute Empire so he could begin testing the robot’s weapons.

• Saine controlled the Combined Fortress Robot as it rose in the starry void, and he reflected that its power still could not match Dominator-class Beings such as Marduk, the Blade Empress, and Fempton.
• Saine and the magicians tested the robot for nearly half a year, maintaining control above 70 even in its least stable state, and planned to continue testing for ten years.
• Saine asked who owned a deserted Demiplane so he could test the robot’s weapons, and Kapeiqi magicians identified it as the Ebarute Empire’s Yi Crystal Demiplane.
• Saine offered five million Magic Coins for the Demiplane, and Kapeiqi agreed to help negotiate the purchase.
• Saine flew to the desolate Yi Crystal Demiplane and activated the Combined Fortress’s firepower tests, relying on its energy systems and the Magic Cube’s Source Law Power to sustain it.