Chapter Summaries

Murphy discovered that Lord Aurora was an Old God hiding from Lord Payen and negotiated for the unicorn to sire offspring in exchange for keeping his identity secret. A server announcement ended the Battle of Blackflame Pass, opened the second phase of the Dark Tide after fifteen days of preparation, and named new rewards, factions, and Hall of Fame inductees.

• Murphy used a detection spell on Lord Aurora and learned that the unicorn was one of the world's Old Symbols, hiding its identity because it feared Lord Payen might imprison it again.
• Lord Aurora asked Murphy to keep his secret and offered ten offspring; Murphy used Lord Payen's blood crystal to bargain for thirty, including offspring with demon-hunting steeds.
• Murphy promised Little Ashina that one of the unicorn-blooded foals would be hers, and she flew off excitedly to find a suitable mare.
• The system announced that the first phase, the Battle of Blackflame Pass, had ended with an Excellent result and began settlement of player rewards, new unlocks, and the second phase's preparation period.
• The announcement set the Battle of Shadow Valley to begin in fifteen days, tasked players with delaying the Jackalman army for at least twenty days, and appointed Uncle Qin the Doorman as overall commander.
• A second announcement inducted fifteen players and the Silvermoon's Pride and Big Bird Go Round and Round guilds into the Hall of Fame, granting them titles, rewards, and new benefits.

Players celebrated the third Hall of Fame selection and opened their war chests while the dev team announced a Lunar New Year event and new game helmets. Murphy learned that Astral wolves were coming after him, then turned the threat into an idea for the event.

• Players questioned Qing Dynasty Veteran’s Hall of Fame selection until Bang Ge’s battlefield statistics and accounts of his command at Blackflame Pass proved his merit.
• Players opened their war chests, with Meow Brother receiving consumables, Terra Nova finding a Salamander molten sword, and Miss Peachy finding a Power Hammer.
• The dev team announced Lunar New Year activities and said it would distribute a thousand helmets to waiting reserve players.
• Mannis told Murphy that Silver Wolf Hellsong and her mate were rallying wolves to punish him for sending an evil god into the Astral Realm.
• Murphy asked Triss about the threat and proposed elite Nian beasts from the Astral Realm as enemies for the Lunar New Year event.

Moonlit Mad Wolf and his group received game helmets and chose to enter the game as gnolls, where Hogg welcomed them as divine warriors sent by the Creator. The new players formed the Graywolf Army and prepared to join Hogg’s quest to seek the roots of gnoll civilization.

• Moonlit Mad Wolf urged his group to choose gnolls so they could explore the Dark Mountains and join Hogg’s legendary quest chain.
• Wolf received a game helmet, and twenty-one members of the group discovered that they had received helmets too.
• Twenty-one gnoll players appeared in the Blackeye clan’s hut, fought the guards, and drew Hogg and Bobok Blackeye to the scene.
• Hogg told the players that they were divine warriors and invited them to help find the source of gnoll civilization.
• Moonlit Mad Wolf and the other players chose the name Graywolf Army and accepted weapons and armor from Bobok.

Hogg organized the growing gnoll faction around exploration, conquest, and the promise of power while preparing undead forces for the Wise Wolf. He learned that Nanaak Blackeye was pregnant and followed her to meet her lover, Hugerson, who was about to become a Chosen of the Lord of the Hunt.

• Hogg sent Bobok to lead twenty-one gnoll players on quests to tame direwolves, learn to fight, and recruit warriors from nearby clans.
• Bobok outfitted the players and promised ranks based on how many opponents they defeated, then led them out to conquer and recruit.
• Hogg told Ripper to train the ancient gnolls, and Ripper argued that victories and chances to gain power would attract more players.
• Lameclaw reported that Nanaak Blackeye was pregnant and had secretly left to meet someone, prompting Hogg to ride after her.
• Nanaak met Hugerson in a secluded valley, where he revealed that he would soon become a Chosen of the Lord of the Hunt.

Hugerson and Nanak shared a farewell before Hogg pulled Hugerson’s consciousness into the King of the Gnolls’ mental space. Fierce revealed himself as Hugerson’s ancestor, condemned the enhancements that had damaged him, and threatened Nanak and her unborn twins to force Hugerson to face him.

• Nanak comforted Hugerson as he prepared to leave, sensing that he was heading toward a dangerous choice driven by revenge.
• Hogg approached the couple and warned Hugerson that the corrupted Wolfblood Holy Sword would attract Nord hunters.
• Hugerson attacked Hogg, but Hogg touched his wrist and drew both their consciousnesses into Fierce’s mental space.
• Fierce identified Hugerson as his grandson and blamed Botana’s voodoo enhancements for damaging Hugerson’s body and mind.
• Fierce ordered Hogg to seize Nanak and threatened to kill her and the unborn twins unless Hugerson earned his favor.
• Hugerson charged Fierce to protect his family, but Fierce easily kicked him back and told him to stop fighting and explain his plans.

Hugserson met its ancestor, the King of Bonechewers, Lord Fiercefang, who explained the danger of the Hunting Lord and assigned it a role in delaying the god’s birth while supporting Hogg’s mission. Back in the material world, Hugserson helped the exhausted Hogg, who promised to care for Nanak and Hugserson’s children if it did not return.

• Lord Fiercefang told Hugserson that Botana had tried to use it and explained that the Hunting Lord must not be born before Hogg’s journey could secure the gnolls’ future.
• Fiercefang ordered Hugserson to become the Hunting Lord’s Chosen, purge Botana’s voodoo through its power, and delay the god’s birth while supporting Hogg and the Godslayers.
• Hugserson agreed to follow the plan but maintained its hatred of Murphy and its intention to avenge Botana.
• Fiercefang warned Hugserson that a future choice would determine the mission’s success and urged it to live for itself.
• Hugserson returned to its body and caught Hogg before he collapsed, while Nanak watched in surprise.
• Hogg told Hugserson to trust Murphy when the crucial choice came and promised to raise Hugserson’s children with Nanak if Hugserson did not return.

Hugsen accepted the Huntmaster’s blessing but resisted being remade, while the Bonechewer King showed him visions of the gnolls’ glorious past and urged him to help restore their people. Hugsen emerged ready to march on Transia, as Hogg’s growing army departed Blackeye territory with Popok and Nanak.

• Hugsen returned to Moss Valley with the Rending Claw Clan’s holy relic, Corrosive Wounds, and asked Lord Manson for Hunt’s Chosen warriors to fight Transia.
• Lord Manson agreed to bring Hugsen’s request to Chieftain Amot and secretly ordered an investigation into where Hugsen had gone.
• Hugsen entered the Huntmaster’s blood pool with Deathclaw, and the Bonechewer King’s power helped him withstand the attempt to overwrite his mind.
• The Bonechewer King showed Hugsen visions of gnolls guarding the Creator’s works and urged him to help his people reclaim their former glory.
• Hugsen endured the blessing, shared its burden with Deathclaw, and ordered the priests to prepare an army to march on Transia in the Huntmaster’s name.
• Hogg left Blackeye territory with an army assembled by gnoll players, while Popok escorted his injured sister Nanak and boasted of the future he would build for the clan.

As gnoll players gathered under Moonlit Mad Wolf, they built tribes and began a campaign to conquer the Dark Mountains on the Wise Wolf’s journey to the Broken Fang lands. Mad Wolf planned to expand the Azure Wolf Army through coordinated raids and prepare for a possible war against the Broken Fang tribe.

• Furry Immortal livestreamed the Azure Wolf Army’s march and explained how gnoll players could conquer followers, form tribes, and choose development paths.
• Furry Immortal described the gnoll player community, its tribal leaders, and the exclusive “Journey to Find Our Roots” quest.
• After the livestream, Furry Immortal met Moonlit Mad Wolf, who planned to split the 108 minor tribes into three groups to conquer seventeen small tribes.
• Mad Wolf aimed to grow the warband before confronting the 4,000-member Sandfang tribe and eventually the Broken Fang tribe, despite Furry Immortal’s doubts about their numbers.
• Mad Wolf argued that player information-sharing and coordinated command could let gnoll tribes overcome larger forces, and told Furry Immortal to recruit experienced faction-war strategists.
• Mad Wolf declared the Azure Wolf Army would unite the gnolls as the Whip of Chaos, and Furry Immortal enthusiastically joined his call to scourge the world.

Murphy prepared Transia’s defenses against the gnolls while news that the Wolfblood Holy Sword had fallen threatened to draw Nordtov into the war. In the real world, Sister Cement told Mrs. Shui she had less than twenty days to live, but Mrs. Shui returned with a gaming helmet so Cement could enter the other world before she died.

• Murphy reviewed the tunnel and mine defenses planned for Barren Mountain with Lord Oufger and asked him to press King Louis to support the war effort.
• Master Yuri told Murphy and Lord Oufger that the Wolfblood Holy Sword had been corrupted and that Winter Wolf forces would come to destroy it.
• Murphy welcomed the news, expecting the fallen relic to force Nordtov to intervene against the gnolls.
• Sister Cement told Mrs. Shui that her body was failing and that she expected to die within twenty days, but she believed she would continue her journey in another world.
• Mrs. Shui returned to Sister Cement’s hospital room with a gaming helmet and invited her to enter the other world as a new player.

Sister Cement entered True Otherworld as a special case and learned that Murphy and Triss were vampires in Transia, not the Observers. With her body dying within twenty days, she was invited to explore the Golden Age technology and join Murphy’s Midnight Children, with her true career as a player set to begin after her death.

• Madam Shui forced Sister Cement to wear her custom helmet, which sent her past a mental safeguard and directly into the game’s opening sequence.
• Sister Cement selected the Blood Eagle Clan vampire template and entered the game without clothes, where Murphy and Triss explained that she was a special case and her real body had no more than twenty days left.
• Sister Cement realized Murphy and Triss were the Observers, but Murphy clarified that the Observers existed and that their technology had enabled the connection between worlds.
• Triss warned Sister Cement that her projection was made from Triss’s blood and that she could hear Sister Cement’s thoughts, while Murphy urged her to cooperate as a liaison for Blue Star.
• Sister Cement examined a biopod capable of diagnosing illnesses and synthesizing medicine, then recognized that her possible return to life could attract dangerous attention.
• Murphy welcomed Sister Cement, also called Cement Heart, to the Midnight Children and gave her twenty days to explore the Creator’s ruin before she would be resurrected in Scarlet Castle as an outsider.

Murphy and Triss discussed using Cement Heart’s expertise to secure powerful allies, while Sister Cement worried that the vampires might misuse a prototype. At the field hospital, Major Ron awoke, mourned Dunn, and confronted Fraser over the Pioneer Legion’s use of psychic plagues, then resolved to return to the Pioneer Fortress and demand answers from Marshal Loren.

• Triss warned Murphy that Cement Heart might make a remarkable discovery, and Murphy explained that her expertise could help win allies for Transia.
• Murphy and Triss shut down the elevator for privacy while Sister Cement failed to open it and worried that the vampires would use a dangerous prototype.
• Major Ron woke in the field hospital and learned that Dunn had died at Blackflame Pass while Ron had lost his left leg to amputation.
• Fraser and the other commanders comforted Ron, but Ron revealed that the gnolls’ psychic plagues matched weapons used by the Pioneer Legion in Xico City.
• Ron accused the Tower of Rings and the psychics of betraying their country, then demanded that Fraser help him return to the Pioneer Fortress to confront Marshal Loren.

Major Ron rushed to confront Marshal Loren over the plague that killed his men, forcing the Pioneer Legion’s secret compromise with the Tower of Rings into the open. Loren had Ron and his adjutant arrested, then admitted to General Soros that the old deal had returned to haunt them and vowed to make those responsible pay.

• Major Ron asked Loyalty Bro to fit him with a prosthetic leg and arrange passage to the Ancestral Forest so he could reach the Pioneer Fortress.
• Loyalty Bro fitted Ron with a prosthetic, and Ron’s captain chose to accompany him to the fortress despite the risks.
• Ron and his captain confronted Marshal Loren, accusing him of using the same plague as the gnolls and demanding justice for the dead at Position Eight.
• Ron resigned his commission by throwing his insignia onto Loren’s desk, then warned that the Pioneer Legion would watch Loren’s response; Loren ordered both men arrested.
• General Soros picked up Ron’s insignia, and Loren confessed that the Tower of Rings had supplied the plague before vowing to make those responsible pay.

Colonel Fraser learned that Ron and George “Iron Hand” Robinson had been imprisoned for allegedly plotting a rebellion, then returned to the Shadowvale front after Mirian explained Ron’s strategy and urged him to trust his brother. Meanwhile, the Silvermoon Company decided to explore the Blackflame Pass position, where its members hoped to find relics and prepare for the Silver Trial.

• Colonel Fraser received word that Ron and George “Iron Hand” Robinson had been stripped of their posts and jailed, and Marshal Loren ordered him back to the Shadowvale front.
• Mirian told Fraser that Ron had deliberately forced Marshal Loren to address the scandal and had trusted Fraser to manage the consequences.
• Fraser thanked Mirian and left to return to the front, while Mirian resumed her administrative work and noted Boss Huo and Boss Cat-and-Rabbit’s contributions to Transia.
• Little Ashina proposed that the Silvermoon Company explore Blackflame Pass after the tainted psychic energy there had weakened.
• Pomegranate warned the group about dangers beneath the position, while Orchid revealed she had unlocked her fourth ancestral power and planned to attempt the Silver Trial.
• Madam Water agreed to lead an expedition to Blackflame Pass, and Little Ashina went to recruit more people for the search.

The explorers returned to Blackflame Pass to search its ruined encampments and recover Lord Heather's relic, where they found undead warriors and fought Dark Lord’s infected gnolls. Orchid stayed behind to hold off the creatures and begin her Silver trial, with a certain Yuan providing covering fire.

• The Silvermoon Company’s planned midnight departure was delayed after Madam Judy’s drinking contest left the tavern in chaos, and the group set out for Blackflame Pass the next morning.
• At Blackflame Pass, Loyalty Brother warned that the ruins beneath the rear encampments might still contain undead, and Giant Shark’s team found thousands of undead warriors in an underground cavern.
• Little Ashina called the explorers to Encampment Eight, where infected gnolls were attacking near Lord Heather’s relic, and the players rushed to join the battle.
• Loyalty Brother repaired the walker, Pink Pear drove it through the infected, and Nightstalker Bat Puppet’s rocket helped the Silvermoon Company retreat.
• Orchid awakened her ancestral frost powers and stayed behind to begin her Silver trial, ordering a certain Yuan to help the others retrieve Lord Heather’s relic.
• Orchid invoked her Winter Essence Incarnation and declared that the time to ascend to Silver had come, while a certain Yuan prepared to cover her with gunfire.

Murphy led an assault on Dark Lord Chosen hiding beneath Blackflame Pass, but discovered that some had already escaped. Meanwhile, Orchid completed her Silver Trial at Outpost Eight and was found unconscious inside a layer of ice.

• Murphy issued a quest for players to reach Blackflame Pass and hunt the Dark Lord's servants, then traveled there with Vilanser, Bonnie, and vampire guards.
• Murphy tracked the Dark Chosen into the tunnels and helped destroy the group with Omega's purifying light, but found footprints showing that others had gone farther underground.
• Vilanser attempted to divine the escapees' direction and warned Murphy that the Dark Lord might establish a cult to target him.
• Murphy learned that the first outsider had reached Silver rank and discovered that the achiever was a woman who had completed her Silver Trial.
• Catbro and Sister Pomegranate found Yuan protecting the unconscious, ice-covered Orchid among the frozen Infectors at Outpost Eight, and concluded that she had advanced to Silver rank.

Orchid celebrated becoming the first Silver-tier player, then returned to Blackflame Pass and tested her powerful combat exoskeleton against a Darkness's Chosen. The players discovered that absorbing a Darkness Core granted a dangerous explosive skill, leaving them with a possible new weapon and a serious risk.

• Orchid logged back in after her advancement reset and received the server-wide announcement that she had reached Silver, raising the level cap to 30 and unlocking advanced classes and skills.
• Orchid checked her new Silver Body attributes and talents, then shared a meal with Yuan before they headed back to Blackflame Pass.
• Orchid equipped the King of Bone-Biting's combat exoskeleton and used it with a chainsword and shield to help defeat a Darkness's Chosen.
• Dog Egg absorbed the creature's Darkness Core and gained Dark Form, but using the skill caused him to lose control and explode, leaving a massive crater.
• Meow Brother retrieved the unchanged Darkness Core and suggested it might be an upgraded version of Last Stand Pact's power boost.

Murphy learned that Dark Cores could unleash the Lord of Darkness’s divine power when used by his heroes, and he arranged for Triss to turn them into dangerous victory wine. Meanwhile, Shani received a report of a possible Dragonflame Lina and an unknown deity’s chosen one in Borneo City, forcing her and Lord Panying to change their route.

• Villanthe explained that Dark Cores vanished when Murphy’s Omega power purified the Dark Chosen, but could cause destructive bursts when the heroes used them.
• Villanthe divined that most Dark Chosen remained in the tunnels at Blackflame Pass, while some had fled toward the ratmen, and agreed to help Murphy’s heroes track them down.
• Murphy told Triss to let Cement try to repair the dismantled biopod and proposed using Dark Cores to enhance the heroes’ victory wine.
• Triss agreed to experiment with the Dark Cores and make the heroes’ victory wine into powerful suicide weapons against the gnolls.
• Shani received a report that a psychic possibly identified as Dragonflame Lina and a mysterious woman had appeared in Borneo City, so she and Lord Panying planned to visit there first.

In Bernier City, Chuchute and the badly injured psionicist Lena prepared to travel east toward Callem while hiding from those tracking them. When Thorn Assassins ambushed them, Lena fought them off, and Chuchute chose an escape route through Transia aboard a ship carrying displaced serfs.

• Chuchute watched Bernier City's busy trade while Lena checked her lessons and discussed their journey east to Callem.
• Lena explained that Triss in Transia might help Chuchute with the divine power protecting her, while Chuchute said she had chosen to avoid the Land of Origins because it could expose her to danger.
• Room service arrived at their door, but Lena stopped Chuchute and attacked the Thorn Assassins outside with dragon's breath.
• Lena drove back the vampires and retreated with Chuchute toward the window as the building caught fire.
• Chuchute chose to jump into the market, steal clothes, and board a ship carrying serfs to Transia; Lena agreed, despite fearing they would have to cross the Dark Mountains during the Black Calamity.

Shani and Payin pursued Lina to recruit her and discussed Oksana’s corrupted memories and the danger of the Warp. Shani’s attempt to persuade Lina failed, so Payin appeared, and Lina agreed before he could punish her with his cursed eyes.

• Shani told Payin that Lina had escaped aboard a slave ship bound for Transia, and Payin insisted on joining the pursuit.
• Shani reported that Oksana had visited the Eden District ruins to recover erased memories, succumbed to Warp influence, and arranged her own death; Payin ordered her to avoid the ruins and keep the matter secret.
• Payin gave Shani Source’s power signature and the Heart of Thorns, ordering her to destroy Source’s hideouts and visit Murphy for cleansing after each attack.
• Shani boarded the slave ship and urged Lina to go to Transia and meet Murphy, but Lina refused and declared she would rather die than deal with him.
• Payin appeared before Lina in a crimson glow, and Lina immediately agreed to join rather than face his cursed eyes again.

Murphy received Lina and her apprentice as a gift from Venerable Lord Payn, who had sealed them in coffins, and learned Lina was near death after being judged for five sins. Murphy chose to turn Lina into his progeny, while Femis planned to spread otherworldly entertainment through Transia and demonstrated a new psionic technique.

• Farm serfs arriving in Rapidflow Fortress were processed at the port and sent to quarantine before being assigned work and settlements.
• The port authority forwarded two sealed coffins and a letter from Grand Duchess Shani to Crimson Castle, and Murphy hurried back to investigate.
• Triss explained that the coffins held Lina and her apprentice, and that Venerable Lord Payn had instructed Murphy to recruit Lina directly.
• Femis opened Lina's coffin, and Triss revealed Lina was dying after Payn used Sinful Judgment on her; Murphy decided to make her his progeny.
• Femis announced plans to distribute otherworldly works through a Computation Orb network and accepted responsibility for showing films to troops.
• Femis demonstrated her Crimson Wrecking Ball technique, and Murphy asked her to teach it to him.