Chapter Summaries

Master Broken Blade and Hundred-Forged Steed copied inscriptions from Cold Night to forge Meow Brother a spirit-energy replica of Necessary Evil, which he named Scorpio and delivered to Murphy. Murphy brought it to Triss, who agreed to animate the sword after he persuaded her with the promise of profit and wine.

• Master Broken Blade and Hundred-Forged Steed studied Cold Night, copied its inscriptions, and decided to test them on Meow Brother's unfinished weapon design.
• The two blacksmiths used ebony stone and several failed attempts to forge a spirit-energy sword with bloodthirsty and anti-magic effects.
• Meow Brother collected the completed replica, which Master Broken Blade and Hundred-Forged Steed named Scorpio, and advanced his hidden quest by taking it to Murphy.
• Murphy recognized the weapon's potential and carried it to Triss to restore its missing functions.
• Triss identified the copied inscriptions and agreed to use an alchemical formula to animate Scorpio after Murphy offered her a profitable service opportunity and fine wine.

Murphy inspected the otherworldly firearms designed by Loyalty Bro and learned that Countess Sharon had helped adapt the production line. Loyalty Bro revealed a powerful shoulder-fired weapon, the “Iron Fist of Transia,” as the chapter ended.

• Murphy planned the next phase of the main quest around developing Transia and preparing its defenses before the Black Calamity.
• Countess Sharon told Murphy that Loyalty Bro had designed otherworldly firearms and explained the limits of their ammunition production.
• Sharon declined to manage the arms factory while she returned to Westco, and Murphy considered appointing Loyalty Bro instead.
• Murphy and Sharon joined Adele, Maxim, and Loyalty Bro at a shooting range to inspect the sample weapons.
• Adele demonstrated that gold-burner ammunition hit harder than ordinary pointed bullets, but Sharon and Loyalty Bro showed her enhanced rounds that pierced multiple trees.
• Loyalty Bro presented his shoulder-fired weapon and named it the “Iron Fist of Transia.”

Loyalist demonstrated Transia’s crude Iron Fist and other modern weapons, convincing Murphy that professional players could help build a domestic arms industry. Murphy appointed Loyalist to establish Transia’s First National Arms Factory, then approved three additional players to join the effort, signaling cautious cooperation with the organization behind them.

• Loyalist test-fired the Iron Fist and showed Maxim and Adele an anti-personnel mine, while Sharon explained how burning gold could enhance otherworldly weapons.
• Murphy decided to use Loyalist and Sharon’s expertise to develop Transia’s weapons production, and Sharon described the potential and limits of mechanical firearms in a world of psychic powers.
• Murphy appointed Loyalist to establish Transia’s First National Arms Factory, giving him start-up funds, authority to recruit workers, and a three-month production goal.
• Loyalist unlocked the factory quest and a server-first achievement, then asked administrator Alpha to recruit trusted professionals to help him.
• Alpha agreed to approve Loyalist’s proposed assistants, and Murphy approved Border Town Wanderer, Great Master Ziwei, and Microcosm Obsessive, hoping to preserve a mutual understanding with their organization.

As hundreds of roleplayers and other newcomers prepared to enter Transia, forum members discussed quests, military ambitions, and a fan-made film. Loyal Brother briefed his team on using the game to build a foothold and investigate Alpha, then ordered them to suppress the film's sudden spread online.

• Forum members reported that Taipal's invitations had drawn hundreds of applicants from roleplay groups, with more communities showing interest in joining Transia.
• Players discussed collecting a debt from Hogg and the Bloodclaw Clan, while Banzai Happy Stick chose to pursue the winged cavalry trials instead.
• Medical Insurance Warrior Saien shared his fan-made CG film, and forum members praised it and offered support.
• Loyal Brother told Jiewei Chike and Ziwei Daxiansheng to disguise themselves in Transia and help establish a weapons factory and semi-automatic firearm production line.
• Loyal Brother declined to bring Lumina Sunscar home, saying that doing so could put her at risk.
• After a worker reported that Saien's gameplay clip was spreading online, Loyal Brother ordered the team to suppress its popularity and said the public was not ready to learn the truth.

Medical Insurance War God Big Saien’s fan film about True Otherworld went viral before the video site removed it for lacking developer authorization. After players warned him against recruiting unsuitable newcomers, they organized a publicity and trading platform, leaving Lord Murphy surprised and asking whether they would accept the development team’s control of its operations.

• Medical Insurance War God Big Saien’s CG film, assembled from gameplay recordings, climbed into the video site’s top ten within four hours as viewers praised its scenes of the gnoll assault and Lord Murphy’s warriors.
• The video site removed Big Saien’s film because it promoted an unreleased game without authorization, so he began sharing a group number with interested viewers and considered reposting an edited version.
• Meow King, Banzai Happy Stick, and Lumina Sunscar warned Big Saien that indiscriminate recruiting could bring disruptive players who might harm non-respawning NPCs, and advised him to approach established gaming communities instead.
• Ashina Sword Saint, Touching Your Poverty, and other players proposed creating a player-run publicity and trading platform, and they formed the Crimson Fort Publicity Department group with Alpha invited.
• After learning about the plan, Lord Murphy was astonished by the players’ initiative and told them the development team would want responsibility for operating and maintaining any connected third-party platform.

Great Saien’s video inspired wealthy players to fund a new platform, while Murphy and Triss discussed the danger that the Riptide Knight Order’s Holy Light faith could manifest as a divine power. Murphy chose to support the faith and prepare the new players for Operation “Hundred Days of Construction” ahead of the Black Calamity.

• Little Ashina, Mo Ni Qiong, Meow Brother, Madam Shui, and Loyal Brother organized eight figures in funding and began planning the new platform.
• Alpha encouraged Great Saien to make more videos for the platform, and Murphy let the players manage their new project without interfering.
• Murphy watched Triss enjoy Great Saien’s film, sent it to Governor Mirian, and considered recruiting artists to improve Transia’s cultural life.
• Triss warned Murphy that the Riptide Knight Order’s prayers to the Holy Light could create a divine projection in subspace and grow into a powerful faith.
• Murphy decided to endorse the Holy Light and asked Triss to help its projection appear, while they prepared to welcome the next batch of players.
• Murphy announced Operation “Hundred Days of Construction” to strengthen Transia before the Black Calamity and prepare for the coming war.

YouNiJiang entered True Otherworld to find his father and joined 140 new players in the Midnight Chamber. Murphy announced a hundred-day construction campaign for Transia, and YouNiJiang's search ended with veterans spotting his father and warning him that his son had arrived.

• YouNiJiang put on his game helmet, entered True Otherworld, and met Legendary Hero and other players in the Midnight Chamber.
• Murphy and Grand Duchess Triss appeared before the players, and Murphy announced a shift from warfare to rebuilding Transia.
• Taipal read the updated quest, which set a hundred-day deadline to grow Transia's population, establish settlements, and pursue advanced objectives.
• Veteran players discussed competing to manage the new player strongholds, while YouNiJiang searched the crowd for his father.
• Bulldozer Man Attack spotted YouNiJiang and messaged Full-Risk Semi-Trailer that his son had come looking for him.

The players prepared a debt-collecting expedition against the Bloodclaw Clan while Ouni Jiang reunited with his father, Full-Coverage Semi, and joined the trip. Meanwhile, Murphy planned a black market to sell the players rare gear and manuals, and Triss contributed an old grimoire for him to divide into saleable pieces.

• Huo Zheng Ting Hao gathered the four secretary girls, while Honorary Knight Taipal rallied the Riptide Knights and announced their mission to confront the Bloodclaw Clan over stolen spoils.
• Ouni Jiang was recognized by his father, Full-Coverage Semi, who agreed to take him along to collect the debt and gave him a psionic pouch of gear.
• Full-Coverage Semi introduced Ouni Jiang to his four female guards, prompting Ouni Jiang to suspect his mother's concerns about his father were justified.
• Murphy explained to Triss that he planned to establish a sewer black market where players could buy rare equipment, items, and manuals.
• Triss gave Murphy her old psionics grimoire, and he tore it into pieces so he could sell its chapters separately.

Full Coverage Semi-Trailer led a player force toward Smugglers' Forest to collect the loot Hogg had taken, while Murphy revealed that Hogg had stolen it on his orders to guide the heroes into new territory. Hogg welcomed the arriving players as reinforcements against a growing skeleton threat, and Murphy prepared for the Bloodfear Clan’s return to Transia.

• Full Coverage Semi-Trailer, Mud Truck, and Shovel Bro gathered more than two hundred players and opened a portal to Smugglers' Forest for the debt-collection expedition.
• Miss Femis learned that Murphy had ordered Hogg to take the heroes' spoils so they would expand their activities beyond Scarlet Castle, and Murphy asked her to oversee Sharon's journey and Rapidsburg's construction.
• Murphy told Miss Femis that the Bloodfear Clan was returning to Transia after two centuries away.
• Hogg learned that a growing force of skeletons was threatening his clan's territory, while his cubs struggled to learn Transian and his warriors were stretched thin.
• Hogg welcomed the arriving humans and vampires as reinforcements, ordering his clan to load the goods he had set aside onto carts.

The players gathered at the Bloodclaw Clan’s outpost to confront gnolls accused of stealing from them, but learned that Hogg wanted to pay tribute and settle in the Smuggler’s Forest under Transia’s protection. Dorothy presented the players with a vote that would decide whether to negotiate with the clan or attack it.

• More than two hundred players surrounded the abandoned tax station and held the captured gnolls while waiting for their chieftain.
• Touch My Poor Thing spotted Hogg’s party approaching with carts of goods, and the players prepared to check whether the clan had returned everything.
• Border Town Wanderer warned three newly arrived operatives to blend in and gather information as they surveyed the camp.
• Dorothy announced that Hogg wanted to pay tribute to Scarlet Castle in return for permission to settle in the Smuggler’s Forest.
• The players received a story-choice quest to negotiate for the clan’s submission or ambush Hogg, with the final decision to be made by a vote.

The players agreed to accept the Bloodclaw Clan and negotiated with Hog, who paid their promised rewards before asking them to clear a skeleton army from Smuggler's Forest. Niu Niu suspected the undead were connected to the players’ earlier massacre, and Shovel Bro urged the veterans to pursue the quest while bargaining for better terms.

• The 214 players voted, with 189 agreeing to accept the Bloodclaw Clan and negotiate, while Murphy marked the 25 dissenters for close monitoring.
• Hog arrived at the abandoned tollhouse, delivered hyena mounts and a share of the spoils, and earned the player representatives’ approval.
• Hog revealed that skeletons from near the Filthy Swamp had attacked his clan and asked the players to clear them from Smuggler's Forest.
• Niu Niu recognized Plantagenet cavalry badges among the bones and suspected the skeletons had risen from bodies the players left behind after an earlier ambush.
• Shovel Bro dismissed the idea that the ambush alone explained the vast skeleton army and proposed taking Hog’s quest while negotiating for more rewards.

Murphy advised Hogg on how to recruit players by offering rewards in tiers alongside recognition, and Hogg established a mercenary reputation system for the Bloodclaw clan. The players in Smuggler's Wood learned about the bounty rewards and prepared to take on the work, including the prospect of earning a direwolf.

• Murphy told Hogg to gather information about the Filthy Swamp and find a safe route to the Dark Mountains within half a month in exchange for advice.
• Murphy explained that Hogg should earn the players' trust with staged rewards and respect, saving rare prizes such as trained hyenas and direwolves for major contributions.
• Hogg's attendant Nash delivered a price list to Mud Truck, offering players increasingly valuable Bloodclaw rewards for completing bounties and a direwolf for defeating the Skeleton Legion.
• Mud Truck shared the rewards with nearby players, who discussed the new reputation system and the value of earning a hyena pup or direwolf.

Players received hyena mounts as rewards, while investigators discovered that the skeleton army in Smuggler's Woods consisted of soldiers dead for more than five hundred years. After the student group was surrounded at the skeletons' base, players and Murphy and Triss rushed to respond, with Triss suspecting the same force behind the Plague Rat King was responsible.

• Hogg handed out hyena mounts to players, and veteran players showed off their new rewards while teasing the newcomers.
• Ou Ni Jiang and Niu Niu set out with All-Risk Semi-Truck to investigate the skeletons, while Little Rich Bro gave his hyena to A Pink Pear and offered him a driving job.
• Little Weiming, Lumina, and Orchid investigated the skeletons and found a corroded insignia identifying them as soldiers from the Boris Vanguard, an army from more than five hundred years earlier.
• Cheche called Lumina for help after the student group was surrounded by Black Iron-tier skeleton soldiers, psions, and knights at the army's base.
• Lumina and other players headed toward the battle, while Murphy spoke with Triss, who suspected the force behind the Plague Rat King was also responsible for the skeleton army.

Students returning to the Smuggler's Woods were ambushed by an elite skeleton army, but they fought their way to its abandoned camp and recovered clues. Murphy and Triss captured the fleeing death wizard and seized its Command Scepter, then Murphy questioned it about the Filthy Swamp and the Source.

• Car and the other students stumbled into a concealed area and were surrounded by an organized army of elite skeleton soldiers.
• Niu Niu identified the skeletons as Goldenrod veterans, while A-Cha spotted their guarded camp and Alive and Well recognized it as the army's command center.
• Rich Bro and the reinforcements helped the students break through the encirclement, and the students raided the camp, finding coins, weapons, and a handbook of necromancy before the commander escaped.
• Ge Bao called for the Beast Squad to keep searching the Smuggler's Woods as the skeleton army closed in.
• A mysterious death wizard carrying the Command Scepter rode toward the Filthy Swamp, but Murphy and Triss trapped and captured it.
• Murphy took the Command Scepter and questioned the death wizard about its plans in Transia and its connection to the Source.

Murphy captured a lich controlling the undead in Smugglers' Grove and learned that Bonechewer gnolls were active in the Filthy Swamp, though the lich refused to explain their purpose. Triss took him to the Blood Vulture Corridor, where Adele recognized him as her Uncle Bella.

• Triss identified the culprit as a lich, unlocked his undead command baton, and ordered the skeleton army to withdraw.
• Murphy questioned the lich, who said Bonechewer gnolls had awakened him three years earlier and were seeking something in the Filthy Swamp ahead of a coming fifth Black Calamity.
• Murphy ordered the lich to map the gnolls' territory and make 1,000 skeleton horses in exchange for eventual freedom, while Triss agreed to keep him under control.
• The lich refused to explain his past, and Murphy sent him with Triss to Crimson Castle before planning to gather intelligence through Hogg and the gnolls.
• At the Blood Vulture Corridor, Adele recognized the lich as her Uncle Bella and cried out in anguish.

Murphy learned that gnoll warlocks were searching Filthy Swamp for the Bone-Biting King's lost treasure and planned to challenge the legendary Ninki Nanka guarding the forbidden zone. Bela offered to help Adele organize a mission to recover the liches’ soul boxes, and Murphy put her in charge before questioning him about Twilight.

• Murphy left the players in Smuggler's Forest with Hogg, who took command of the elite skeleton army and offered the skeletal warhorse as a reward for the hero who killed the most skeletons.
• Adele told Murphy that the lich Bela was her Uncle Bela and revealed that her Aunt Bernice had also been resurrected and controlled by the gnoll warlocks.
• Bela explained that the warlocks were searching Filthy Swamp for the Bone-Biting King's lost treasure and planned to enter the forbidden zone, where Ninki Nanka lurked.
• Bela proposed using the warlocks’ distraction to recover the soul boxes controlling him, Bernice, and forty-three other undead, promising their loyalty if they were freed.
• Murphy tasked Adele with planning and leading the mission, then asked Bela to tell him everything he knew about Twilight.

Murphy learned from Lich Bella that Dusk had built vast undead forces in the Filthy Swamp and hidden another army beneath Xike City, prompting him to call in reinforcements. Adele organized the Shadow Intelligence Bureau’s preparations for a dangerous mission and opened a warrior-selection quest to players.

• Murphy questioned Lich Bella about Dusk, and Bella revealed that Dusk’s followers had taught the gnoll warlocks necromancy and helped them conceal an immense undead army in the Filthy Swamp.
• Bella warned Murphy that Dusk had also hidden an army beneath Xike City, and Murphy contacted Knight Varland and young Countess Sharon to alert them.
• Adele gathered Dorothy and Dana at the Blood Rat Gang’s hideout and ordered them to prepare the Shadow Intelligence Bureau for operations in southern Transia.
• Adele rejected Dorothy and Dana’s suggestion to bring former colleagues into the organization, and she told them to focus on preparing and choosing warriors.
• Adele issued players a quest to compete for twelve places as her warriors, and Border City Wanderer decided to apply with Master Ziwei and their companions.

Knight Varland trained new Winged Cavalry recruits while Countess Sharon learned that the undead beneath Xike City were gathering under a hidden master’s control. Sharon decided to return to the ruins with Varland to search for her people and recover the Winged Cavalry’s plans, equipped with new anti-plague gear.

• Knight Varland drilled the recruits, and Madam Sanny advised training Murphy’s fast-learning warriors separately and considering them for a raiding cavalry unit.
• Banzai and the other player recruits complained about the harsh training and planned to reach Xike City before pursuing the Blood Vulture Arsenal treasure.
• Countess Sharon told Varland that a captured gnoll warlock had revealed the undead beneath Xike City were gathering, and that a Command Rod might control them.
• Varland urged Sharon to return to Scarlet Castle, but Sharon insisted on going to Xike City to see whether her parents and people could be saved and to recover the Winged Cavalry blueprints.
• Loyal Brother showed Varland gas masks and other equipment for exploring the plague-ridden ruins, while Sharon vowed to rebuild the Winged Cavalry and eventually confront the Pioneer Legion.

Happy Stick and Meow Brother led a team into Westcoast City to retrieve gold from its underground bank vault, unaware that undead forces lurked beneath the ruins. They opened the vault and found its treasure, but a gold-robed guardian attacked them as they began loading it.

• Happy Stick and Meow Brother met at the outskirts of Westcoast City, where Yan Sang described the safe route and warned them about the plague zones and dangers inside.
• Happy Stick and Meow Brother led their teams through the ruined city to the bank, while Yan Sang and Qu Brother stayed outside to provide support.
• Happy Stick used the Westcoast family key to open the undamaged underground vault, and the group discovered its untouched gold bars.
• As the team loaded the gold, Little Hand heard someone approach, and a gold-robed figure with a skull-shaped hammer attacked them alongside a swarm of vengeful spirits.

Yansang and Old Qu rescued the survivors of the failed bank treasure hunt, while Brother Bang recruited Meow Brother for a new search for a Blood Eagle armory. At the ruined Westco castle, Sharon reunited with her undead parents, who warned her to leave Transia before the Fifth Black Calamity destroyed it.

• Yansang and Old Qu flew into the undead swarm around Bank Street and used a one-use psionic flash to help rescue Meow Brother, Xiao Shou, and the other survivors.
• Brother Bang and Meow Brother reported that a powerful Deathguard guarded the bank's gold, then agreed to search for a northern Blood Eagle armory and split its supplies.
• Varland told Sharon that the recruits had triggered an undead uprising, but Sharon said they would return to training in three days.
• Sharon entered her father's study and found Bourne Sanders Westco-Mayer, now an undead knight, seated on a throne made from soldiers' remains.
• Countess Westco appeared as a spirit and warned Sharon that she and Bourne were becoming consumed by a curse and that Sharon should leave Transia before the Fifth Black Calamity.