Chapter Summaries

After Ian’s defeat of the Blazing Flame Lands-backed mountainfolk, Naimo ordered a retreat and demanded that his forces investigate the tribes and target Ian. Ian then made a declaration claiming mountainfolk bloodline and inheritance from the Dragon God, leaving Naimo and the mountainfolk envoy stunned.

• Naimo berated the mountainfolk envoy after learning the Iron Dust, Shaking Boat, and Snake Rock tribes had been routed by Ian and lost their weapons and supplies.
• Naimo learned that Ian had used artificial rain, electric-current defenses, and a counterattack to defeat the tribes, while the Blazing Flame Lands’ intelligence division had failed to uncover his weapons beforehand.
• Naimo ordered his forces to withdraw, investigate the mountainfolk for a possible informant, and find a way to kill Ian.
• The mountainfolk envoy argued that their cause could recover if their chieftain advanced to the Third Energy Level and more tribes joined them.
• A new report revealed that Ian had declared himself a mountainfolk-blooded heir of the Dragon God, citing his draconic organs and testimony from the Avod Tribe.

Isengard explained that Light-Eater Dragons could bond with hosts and that Aether Armor was an artificial, controllable version used by noble families to explore bloodline advancement. Master Gose reflected on Patrick’s past and suggested that his attack on Ethan and himself was connected to Ethan’s origins.

• Isengard explained the Light-Eater Dragon’s nature, its symbiotic bond with hosts, and the limits of its power.
• Isengard confirmed that Aether Armor was an artificial Light-Eater Dragon and a tool for noble families’ bloodline experiments.
• Ian reasoned that Isengard’s blood could control a victim’s body, but would be neutralized if the victim’s Origin Matter remained active.
• Isengard wondered why Patrick had concealed his strength and asked what he intended to do.
• Master Gose described Patrick’s history and his alliance with Ethan, then said Patrick’s attack was likely related to Ethan’s origins.

Ian spotted a spy among the caravan and learned that the Blazing Flame Lands had been gathering market information in Southern Ridge. After ordering the spy sent back to the viscount, Ian set out to deal with the Blazing Flame Lands group himself.

• Ian noticed fragments of spiritual energy on birds near the caravan and suspected a powerful faction was monitoring him.
• Ian threatened to turn the traitor into alchemical material, causing one uneasy hunter to step forward and confess to reporting market prices to supposed merchants.
• Ian ordered the hunter bound and questioned him, learning that the hunter had not known his contacts were from the Blazing Flame Lands and denied luring the Reef-Eating Sea Otters.
• Ian told the chamber of commerce manager that the Blazing Flame Lands had likely used small animals to guide the Magic Beasts toward the caravan.
• Ian ordered a guard to take the spy back to the viscount in the morning, then left to confront the Blazing Flame Lands group.

Ian discovered that his Guiding Star could connect him with parallel-world versions of himself, letting him exchange knowledge and creations through faith-fueled channels. After guiding the Swarm toward secretly integrating with humanity, he learned he needed more followers to open additional connections, then sensed the Mountain King arriving in a different form.

• Ian summoned a phantom Crystallized Bloodhunter from a parallel Swarm world and learned it carried biological research data and a Swarm Mental Network.
• Ian concluded that Precognitive Vision and the Guiding Star connected him to parallel-world versions of himself, and he sent the Swarm guidance about Artificial Souls and covertly integrating into human society.
• Ian found that the Guiding Star needed the faith of people he had guided, and that the Avude Tribe alone could not sustain connections to both the Swarm and the Spirit Calamity Path.
• Ian dismissed the Guiding Star and rested, then sensed the Mountain King approaching and saw her arrive as a graceful, gentle middle-aged beauty.

Ian returned safely to Twin Tree Town, reflected on the limits of prophecy and the people he had come to care about, and resumed preparing for his advancement as a Sand Armor Apprentice. He finished a half-Magic Potion for the Molten-Iron Stomach Sac.

• Ian returned to Mr. Silverfang’s merchant association, where he realized the merchant’s hidden power was connected to the Dragon-Worshiping Cult.
• Ian contacted Viscount Grant, Elder Pude, and Elan; Grant warned him about secret movements in the Southern Ridge, while Pude cautioned him not to rely too much on his own cleverness.
• Ian considered how his Precognitive Vision compared with other prophets and recognized that its limits did not make it infallible.
• Ian spoke with Elan, who cheerfully described a White Fuzzflower, then reflected on how his family and friends had become his weaknesses as a prophet.
• Ian borrowed Mr. Silverfang’s alchemical laboratory and prepared a half-Magic Potion related to the Molten-Iron Stomach Sac.

Ian discovered that Elan’s fever came from a partial return of their family’s Steel Bone bloodline, and he treated the boy while considering how to prevent further mutation. The next morning, Elan had recovered, and Ian left to meet Elder Pude about research materials, Patrick’s hostility, and their ancestors’ inheritance.

• Ian examined Elan and found that his fever came from a partial atavistic return of the Steel Bone bloodline.
• Ian concluded that Elan’s adequate nutrition had helped him avoid the kind of incomplete mutation that affected Osena, and he considered ways to protect him through adolescence.
• Ian realized that studying controlled mutation could help him add Ascended organs to Wave-Singer’s True Form.
• The next morning, Elan woke recovered, and Ian teased him before sending him to exercise and wash up.
• Ian left for the Elder Hall to request Magic Beast materials, report his suspicions about Patrick, and ask Elder Pude about the White Folk ancestors’ inheritance.

Weges used his sound-based psychic power to gather information across Harrison Port while posing as a fortune-teller and other ordinary visitors. He found no clear sign of his mentor, Hilliard Lexi, but believed he had caught a few clues.

• Weges gave inexpensive fortunes to people in a tavern, using their voices and visible clues to offer advice and guess their troubles.
• Weges recalled how his psychic power, Sound Flowing in the Wind, had helped him become an official member of the Inspecting Knights Order before reaching the Third Energy Level.
• Weges spread his psychic spider silk throughout Harrison Port and listened for information from people across the city's taverns, docks, and markets.
• Weges dismissed Viscount Grant's suspicion that he might be sent to replace him, noting that Emperor Axel's hopes for the port were real but that Weges was not a likely successor.
• Weges concluded that finding his mentor, Hilliard Lexi, was the simplest way to resolve his troubles and searched for signs of him in Harrison Port.
• Weges found no obvious clues to Hilliard's presence but said he had caught a few strands of spider silk.

Ian realized that the Baron’s three psionic children were combining their powers to give the Baron’s dead Chosen One child memories, a body, and a soul. As the child’s vitality-draining power spread, Ian taunted Baron Layan—until the children spoke in his mind and told him he was wrong.

• Ian recognized that Baron Layan’s dead child had been a Chosen One whose preserved soul could be revived.
• Ian deduced how Ila, Mo Qiu, and Linda were using their psionics to create memories, a body, and a soul for the child.
• The resentful spirit began draining vitality from nearby life and extinguished the power of Ian’s frost sword aura, while leaving the three children unharmed.
• Baron Layan attacked Ian, who evaded him and accused him of manipulating the children for his own purpose.
• The three children spoke to Ian through his mind and told him they had never been manipulated.

Elder Manyan explained the Tree Sea’s ancient power and worried that the mountain folk were losing their reason to remain in the mountains. Ian was carried to the Avude Tribe by Anfa and Sheo, where Manyan mistook their actions for a kidnapping and reprimanded them for endangering their efforts to recruit him.

• Elder Manyan reflected that the Tree Sea had transcended the Redwood Forest and encompassed all life dependent on plants.
• Manyan worried that the mountain folk would abandon their ancestral lands if their god did not return.
• Ian realized Sheo was a dragon and learned that Anfa and Sheo were bringing him toward the Avude Tribe.
• Anfa and Sheo carried Ian, pretending he was unconscious, to the outskirts of the Avude village.
• Manyan scolded Sheo for worrying the Mountain King and his mother, then criticized Anfa and Sheo for bringing Ian to him so crudely.

Ian halted his Star God ascension to save Terra, then explained the path to godhood and prepared to search the Aether Sea for true immortality. When four Fifth Energy Level attackers challenged him, Ian wielded Terra's Heart and Star God power to confront them, declaring that all humanity would one day ascend.

• Ian interpreted Terminus as a non-aetheric being that reached across time and parallel universes, and resolved to investigate it while finding a path beyond the Cradle for everyone.
• At Falling Star Sea, the Fifth Energy Level powerhouses debated Ian's Star God transformation, while the Fairy Queen and Azure Star dispersed the gathering; Timothair discovered that his lifespan limit had been lifted.
• Ian woke in Silverpeak Domain inside a protective aether cocoon, explained the five requirements for becoming a Star God, and described conviction to reach beyond the horizon as the Heavenly Ladder.
• Ian reunited with Anfa, Isengard, Adalbert, Elan, Hua An, Frost Butterfly, and others, then asked them to spread the Arcane Path while he pursued true immortality and prepared to return through Terra's Heart if needed.
• Four Fifth Energy Level powerhouses attacked Ian, but he activated Terra's Heart and his Star God power, declaring that humanity—not just one individual—would be the next to ascend.
• Ian swept his sword across the sky, unleashing silver light that ignited Terra's atmosphere and overwhelmed the four attackers.

Weges learned that Viscount Grant had secretly allied with the Surging Wave Tribe and demanded a bribe to keep quiet. He went to the coast to investigate the natives, where he found a feast with people tied to roasting racks.

• Weges heard that Viscount Grant had offered the Surging Wave Tribe trade and autonomous-region status in exchange for joining the Empire and protecting ships.
• Weges suspected that Grant and the Surging Wave Tribe had secretly undermined the Mountain Tide Tribe during the earlier invasion.
• Weges dismissed the scouts and demanded 800 Taler to stay silent, plus another 500 for an excellent assessment.
• Weges abandoned his plan to capture someone from the Surging Wave Tribe and decided to plant marks to gather intelligence.
• Weges reached the western coast of the Southern Ridge and found natives holding a feast with people tied to roasting racks.

Ian revealed his true identity and age to Adalbert, then arranged for him to leave Azure City with the Dragon-Worshiping Cult. After Mikael defeated the King of Skyflood, the Mountain King arrived, thanked the Light-Embracing Rescue Team for saving Sheo, and spoke directly to Ian.

• Ian shed his disguises and told Adalbert that he was sixteen and that his true identity was known to very few people.
• Ian brought Adalbert to the Light-Embracing Rescue Team, and Radiant Sword proposed having the Dragon-Worshiping Cult take him out of the area.
• Mikael pierced the King of Skyflood's Soul Light Body and won the battle above the Avak Central Laboratory.
• The Mountain King arrived in Azure City, confirmed that Sheo was safe, and thanked the Church of Light's Embrace for rescuing her.
• The Mountain King addressed Ian telepathically, recognized him as Sheo's friend, and asked whether he had saved her.

A black-armored Empire envoy met young Elan, listened to his many dreams, and left for Viscount Grant’s residence after reflecting bitterly on their conversation. That evening, Ian sensed blood-red and unfamiliar deep-purple mist near his home, ending the chapter on a new danger.

• The Empire's envoy found Elan watching ants and challenged his view of their loyalty.
• Elan listed his dreams, including helping his brother, bringing peace to Southern Ridge, and traveling to the end of the world with everyone.
• As the rain flooded the ants’ path, the envoy rescued one, crushed it, tasted it, and called it bitter before heading to Viscount Grant’s residence.
• Ian returned home, checked that Elan had stayed dry, and planned to leave food for Hilliard, who was away investigating the open sea.
• While scanning the room with his psychic power, Ian detected blood-red mist and an unfamiliar deep-purple mist near Elan.

Ian met the World Tree’s Central Nexus, learned how it had allied with the Elves and why it wanted his prophecy, and predicted the safest day for it to reconnect to its damaged Void Realm database. He secured ecological and mechanical-biological technologies as payment, then asked the World Tree to make him a detailed model of its deep-space ship body.

• Yafda gave Ian a crystal sphere that let him contact the World Tree, and Ian’s companions explained the World Tree’s role in sealing the Nature God and its history with the Elves.
• Ian entered the World Tree’s digital hall, saw its ancient ship-like body, and learned that the World Tree had allied with the Elves to preserve the Creators’ Spark and transform Canaanmore’s environment.
• The World Tree asked Ian to prophesy about reconnecting to its damaged Void Realm database, and Ian identified the twelfth day as the safest time while warning that other choices could bring severe danger.
• Ian agreed to make the prophecy in exchange for the Creators’ Ecological Modification Technology and Mechanical-Biological Modification Technology, which would also strengthen cooperation between Canaanmore and the Empire.
• Ian requested a detailed metal model of the World Tree’s Ampuca United Deep-Space Ship body, then returned to the laboratory delighted with his gains.

Viscount Grant allowed Elder Pude to teach Ian after securing the White Folk’s support, while privately revealing his knowledge of the South Sea Undersea Ruins. Hilliard discovered that the ruins were mutating beneath the sea, as Ian began cultivating his Origin Matter at home.

• Viscount Grant told Elder Pude that Ian could receive his instruction, but reminded him that he and Ian were subjects of the Empire.
• Elder Pude left the manor relieved that he had retained the right to teach Ian and considered how to begin Ian’s training.
• Viscount Grant revealed that the natives knew of the South Sea Undersea Ruins and said they lacked the key to his ruin labyrinth.
• Hilliard rode an Ironclad Shark to the sea above the ruins and triggered a fiery response from the structure below.
• Hilliard concluded that the ruins were mutating and wondered who held the four keys that could open and reset them.
• Ian sat at home and practiced gathering Origin Matter around his heart.

Ian discovered that Osena had been drugging Elan with Supoer Flower sleep powder and found the hidden supply in his uncle’s room. When Osena returned home, Ian used the powder to knock him unconscious, then approached him with rope and a sharpened pitchfork.

• Ian smelled Supoer Flower sleep powder in Elan’s leftover porridge and realized Osena had been drugging the child.
• Ian used his fluorescent vision to locate hidden sleep powder beneath a cabinet and inside a clay jar in Osena’s room.
• Osena walked home, relishing the thought of frightening Ian and punishing him over supposed mistakes.
• Ian waited at the doorway and threw sleep powder into Osena’s face when he entered.
• Osena fell asleep as Ian approached with rope and a sharpened pitchfork.

Ian and Isengard found Patrick in the Sacrificial Grounds beside a pre-epoch learning machine, which Patrick destroyed after seemingly uncovering a hidden purpose behind the Ellen Family’s involvement. Patrick then told Isengard to die in Harrison Port and the South Sea, calling it the Ellen Family’s last chance.

• Ian identified the enormous instrument as a pre-epoch learning machine and wondered why Patrick stood before it in a daze.
• Patrick muttered that Axel had chosen Afrina and Isengard for a deeper reason, then blasted the learning machine with lightning and destroyed it.
• Patrick detected Ian and Isengard, and Ian confronted him over destroying the machine.
• Patrick acknowledged Isengard’s safety and praised Ian’s strength, then said he had advice for his nephew.
• Patrick addressed Isengard as Ethan and urged him to die in Harrison Port and the South Sea, saying it might be the Ellen Family’s last chance.

Ian visited Baron Layan’s castle to investigate the Two-Year Rosy Radiance Grass and discovered the baron’s household included several children and a dragonkin cleric. He entered the baron’s study to meet him and noticed that Baron Layan had only one hand.

• Ian used Precognitive Vision to confirm the Rosy Radiance Grass was still in the underground storeroom and suspected Marquis Barton was involved in the affair.
• Ian discovered four clusters of child-sized blue mist in the castle and learned Baron Layan had adopted several sons to keep his frail young master company.
• Ian saw a white-haired, red-eyed dragonkin girl in the robes of the Church of Light's Embrace leave Baron Layan’s study after discussing unusual incidents in his territory.
• Baron Layan welcomed Ian into his study, praised him as a genius, and Ian noticed the baron had only one hand.

Ian explained his plan to hide Hilliard as Osena until people forgot Osena’s face, but Hilliard showed him that he could disguise himself by controlling his flesh and blood. Hilliard reflected on Ian’s unusual potential and began to teach him about sublimators.

• Ian laid out a plan for Hilliard to claim a mountain injury, stay hidden for several months, and later impersonate Osena.
• Hilliard told Ian that his plan was overly complicated and demonstrated how he could alter his hair, eyes, and features to resemble Osena.
• Ian reacted with amazement at Hilliard’s disguise, and Hilliard explained that high-ranking Second Energy Level sublimators could control their flesh and blood.
• Hilliard considered Ian’s self-awakened psychic power exceptional and suspected it was more complex than ordinary emotion sensing.

Ian identified Mr. Silverfang’s plant as a life-extending magic plant, drawing Viscount Grant, Patrick, and Master Gose into an appraisal. After confirming the plant’s nature and examining Ian’s skill, Master Gose invited the young appraiser to study at the Royal Alchemy Association.

• Viscount Grant arrived, tasted a blade of the plant, and confirmed that it was a genuine life-extending magic plant.
• Grant cleared the apothecary of onlookers and welcomed Patrick, Master Gose, and Ethan, while Patrick and Grant traded barbs over the plant’s authenticity.
• Master Gose stopped the nobles’ argument and asked Ian to let him inspect the plant’s Origin Matter.
• Master Gose used his crystal eye to confirm the plant’s distinct Origin Matter structure and noted its connection to the Totem Tree Sea.
• Master Gose judged Ian to be near professional alchemist level and invited him to study at the Royal Alchemy Association.