Chapter Summaries

Lu Cang studied the world’s professions and mage ranks before Iz trained him in two new spells and pushed him to master all eight spells. After an overnight practice session, Lu Cang brought every spell to maximum proficiency and saw that each could evolve, then launched an ice attack at Iz.

• Lu Cang read a guide to common knowledge at the library and learned that Iz was a rare level-five mage called a Magic Emperor.
• Iz taught Lu Cang Shadow Arrow and Earth Spike and challenged him to practice every spell until it reached maximum proficiency.
• Lu Cang attacked Iz with his spells while Iz corrected his techniques and explained how to use each element more effectively.
• Lu Cang practiced through the night and raised Lightning Strike Technique, Ice Cone Technique, Fireball Technique, Wind Blade Technique, Illumination Technique, Light Cross, Shadow Arrow, and Earth Spike Technique to LV: 100.
• Lu Cang saw evolution prompts for his nine max-level spells and immediately fired three ice shards at Iz.

After resting, Lu Cang went to the Promotion Hall with Izpalut and Kumiloni to advance to level-two mage. The ceremony official tested him and was shocked to learn he had become a level-one mage only three days earlier.

• Lu Cang slept instead of seeking a nighttime promotion and woke feeling settled in the new world.
• At breakfast, Kumiloni and Izpalut agreed to accompany Lu Cang to the Promotion Hall, while Chicheng set off to fight the dark wyvern with Obades.
• Lu Cang and his companions arrived at the Promotion Hall, where the crowd mistook Izpalut for someone about to become a level-six Magic Saint.
• Izpalut asked the ceremony official to prepare a level-two mage promotion for Lu Cang.
• Lu Cang placed his hand on the crystal ball, which glowed green, and the official was astonished to hear he had advanced to level-one mage three days earlier.

Eight-year-old Lu Cang began his Level 2 Promotion Ritual under Kumiloni’s supervision, drawing a crowd because of his rapid rise. His tests revealed astonishing mana and perfect sensitivity to every element, leaving the Promotion Hall stunned.

• Iz arranged for Kumiloni to oversee Lu Cang’s Promotion Ritual after the old officiant hesitated over his age.
• Lu Cang placed his hand on the mana crystal ball, which cracked and displayed a mana value of 10,000.
• Kumiloni tested Lu Cang’s elemental sensitivity, and he showed 100% sensitivity to every element tested.
• The Promotion Hall’s witnesses and Kumiloni reacted with shock as Lu Cang’s results marked him as an extraordinary magical prodigy.

Lu Cang’s Level 2 promotion test revealed that his magical talent matched Izpalut’s, while his spell mastery exceeded the normal limit. Iz explained that the test had detected Transcendent Magic, an undiscovered state beyond Level 100.

• The Promotion Hall’s records showed that Izpalut had recorded 10,000 magic and 100% affinity for every element as a Level 1 Mage, matching Lu Cang’s results.
• The examiners doubted Lu Cang could match Izpalut’s spell mastery because he had been a mage for only three days.
• Kumiloni began the final test, and Lu Cang cast seven Ice Spindles that ricocheted off a dummy and struck it hundreds of times.
• The testing array rated Lu Cang’s spell mastery as “Transcendent” instead of giving it a level.
• Iz explained that Transcendent Magic meant a spell had surpassed Level 100 and could evolve beyond its usual limit.

Lu Cang demonstrated eight Transcendent spells during his Mage Promotion Ritual, astonishing everyone present. After passing the battle test with proof that he had killed the Shadow Serpent, he became a Level 2 Mage.

• Lu Cang cast all eight of his spells at Transcendent rank, surpassing Izpalut's record of eight spells at the peak.
• Kumiloni confirmed that Lu Cang had awakened only three days earlier, while Lu Cang recalled that Izpalut had urged him to reveal his Transcendent Magic at the ritual.
• Lu Cang presented the Snake Eye as proof that he had fought and killed the Shadow Serpent, and the ritual accepted it.
• Kumiloni bore witness to Lu Cang's pursuit of the Source of Magic as auroras filled the sky.
• Lu Cang completed the Mage Promotion Ritual and became a Level 2 Mage.

After Lu Cang’s promotion ritual, Kumiloni treated him for Spiritual Pollution and explained why class awakening before age sixteen had been forbidden. She reassured him that she could remove the influence, but warned that the ritual’s attention on him had been unusually intense and asked what response he had received.

• Kumiloni treated Lu Cang in her suite, drawing dark, rootlike traces from his body after the promotion ritual.
• Lu Cang insisted on learning what the traces were, and Kumiloni identified them as Spiritual Pollution.
• Kumiloni explained that early awakenings drew intense attention during advancement rituals, which gradually eroded spirituality and drove people toward obsessive, inhuman behavior.
• Kumiloni described how a formerly kind, nine-year-old Mage later carried out a blood sacrifice that killed three billion people, prompting a ban on awakening before sixteen.
• Kumiloni said she could remove Lu Cang’s Spiritual Pollution but noted that the ritual’s attention on him exceeded her expectations, then asked what response he had received.

After reaching Level 2, Lu Cang discovered new Mage Masteries and the God-Tier: Multiple Casting talent, then found a prestigious visitor speaking with Iz. The visitor left after Iz refused to reconsider his course of action, and Iz introduced Lu Cang as his personal disciple.

• Lu Cang woke before dawn and found that reaching Level 2 had raised his mana and let his Transcendent Magic proficiency increase again.
• Lu Cang gained the Mage Masteries Transcendent One and Mana Source, along with the talent God-Tier: Multiple Casting, and tested casting several spells simultaneously.
• Lu Cang spent the morning studying at the library and noticed a lavish carriage outside the hotel on his way back.
• Lu Cang visited Iz and overheard a black-haired man urge him to reconsider, saying that the name Izpalut could make their opponents surrender and reduce casualties.
• Iz firmly refused, and after the man left, Iz introduced Lu Cang as his personal disciple.

Lu Cang met Fizer, the Mage Association president, who asked him to join and told Iz about an approaching war. After Iz refused to take part, he trained Lu Cang in several second-tier spells, which Lu Cang learned with extraordinary speed.

• Fizer invited Lu Cang to join the Mage Association, but Iz told him to decide for himself when he was older.
• Fizer explained that he had asked Iz to participate in an upcoming war, and Iz said he had refused because he would not get involved in the world's wars.
• Iz took Lu Cang to a rented training ground to practice second-tier spells.
• Lu Cang learned Stone Wall Technique and quickly mastered it without chanting.
• Lu Cang learned Vine Strike, Fountain Technique, and Wind Blast Technique with remarkable speed.

Lu Cang unleashed his full arsenal against Izpalut in a training battle, but Izpalut easily countered his spells until Lu Cang managed to cut his cheek. Izpalut accepted Lu Cang as a worthy opponent and raised the battle’s intensity, filling the training ground with Wind Blades.

• Izpalut told Lu Cang to attack him while he limited himself to level-two mana and first- and second-tier spells.
• Lu Cang used Godly Multiple Casting to launch every spell he knew, but Izpalut countered the barrage with Transcendent Magic.
• Lu Cang recast his spells as Izpalut advanced, yet Izpalut controlled matching spells well enough to suppress them despite casting fewer.
• Lu Cang used an instant Wind Blade from Silent Wind Swarm to cut Izpalut’s cheek.
• Izpalut praised Lu Cang as a powerful mage and worthy opponent, then filled the training ground with Wind Blades.

After losing his first sparring match with Izpalut, Lu Cang studied magic theory and trained with him, rapidly mastering new spells and Void Realm. Ten days after arriving in the world, Lu Cang found Iz and the others waiting for him downstairs.

• Kumiloni healed Lu Cang after his rough first battle with Izpalut, while Iz explained that Lu Cang had forced him to fight seriously.
• Lu Cang began reading his Ice Cone Technique book to understand magical theory instead of focusing only on learning spells.
• Lu Cang trained with Izpalut and brought six second-tier spells to Transcendence, developing new combinations and combat tactics.
• Over the next ten days, Lu Cang studied in the mornings and trained with Iz in the afternoons, while Chicheng repeatedly invited Iz on wyvern hunts.
• With Iz's guidance, Lu Cang transformed Void Magic into Void Realm, then found Iz and the others waiting for him in the hall the next morning.

Izpalut, Kumiloni, and Chicheng left Lu Cang behind to join a large expedition against a dangerous Tier 7 Dungeon during Harvest Moon. Lu Cang watched them depart and was left feeling alone in the unfamiliar world.

• Izpalut told Lu Cang that the party would leave on a long journey to challenge a Tier 7 Dungeon.
• Lu Cang urged Izpalut, Kumiloni, and Chicheng not to go, but Kumiloni explained that the large-scale raid was necessary to keep the dungeon’s monsters from threatening the world.
• Izpalut reassured Lu Cang that the party would return and encouraged him to explore a dungeon while they were away.
• Lu Cang held back his tears and asked Izpalut to return safely, while Chicheng also promised he would come back.
• Kumiloni, Izpalut, and Chicheng set out, leaving Lu Cang alone in the hall, staring after them.

After Iz and the others left to subjugate Tomb God Stele Valley, Lu Cang decided to explore a dungeon himself and recruited a small team for protection. He chose a request for Guishe Forest, and the group arrived at the ancient forest without incident.

• After spending a day lying in bed, Lu Cang read about the Tomb God Stele Valley expedition and decided to stop sitting idle and explore a dungeon.
• Lu Cang posted a protection request and hired Jidi, a healer, a defender skilled in Shared Damage, and a warrior who also worked as a gatherer.
• Lu Cang selected the Guishe Forest request from the Adventurer's Guild, and Xili reassured him that Iz and the others would return safely.
• On the carriage ride, Lu Cang learned that his teammates had joined because they considered traveling with someone strong safer than exploring alone.
• Lu Cang and his teammates reached the ancient, overgrown Guishe Forest after a short, uneventful journey.

Lu Cang led Gaiton, Jidi, and Zhou Er through Guishe Forest, using powerful magic to clear the fog and kill the snakes throughout their path. After Zhou Er collected valuable materials, the group encountered the Shadow Giant Snake King, a dungeon lord Lu Cang recognized.

• Lu Cang ordered Gaiton to take the lead, then dispelled the forest fog with Wind Roar and illuminated the area with Eternal Lamp.
• Lu Cang blasted the visible snakes with spells, and Zhou Er repaired and gathered their remains along with two Snake Mushrooms.
• Zhou Er reported a haul worth about 2 gold and 15 silver, and the group continued deeper into the forest.
• Lu Cang cautiously cleared leaves, checked for traps, and killed scattered monsters while the others followed.
• Lu Cang sensed Dark Element gathering ahead and spotted the Shadow Giant Snake King lurking among the trees.

Lu Cang defeated the evolved snake dungeon lord almost instantly with second-tier magic, then harvested its valuable Dark Crystal and completed the dungeon commission. After paying his party, he reflected on how profitable the run had been, while Jidi compared Lu Cang’s magic with that of an ordinary mage.

• The giant snake charged at Lu Cang, and Gaiton braced himself with defensive combat skills as Jidi warned that the snake was an evolved species.
• Lu Cang wounded the snake with Cutting Wind, pinned it with stone pillars, and killed it with a Flame Ball.
• Uncle Zhou Er harvested the snake and recovered a large Dark Crystal, which he estimated was worth 1 Gold Coin.
• Lu Cang’s party found no other valuable items and returned to the Adventurer’s Guild to turn in the commission.
• Lu Cang paid his party and kept 6 Gold Coins and 22 Silver Coins, while Jidi considered how Lu Cang’s magic compared with Desa’s.

Lu Cang accepted four commissions to hunt wanted boss monsters in the wild after the Tier 2 dungeon commission was taken, and recruited his three companions to help. As they traveled to the hunting grounds, he learned that dungeons had become more dangerous than his outdated book suggested.

• Lu Cang learned that the last Tier 2 dungeon commission had been taken and chose four wild-monster subjugation commissions instead.
• Zhou Er identified three commissions for Tier 2 bosses and one for a Tier 3 boss, and Lu Cang offered his companions 48% of the rewards while keeping the spoils.
• Jidi, Gaiton, and the collector uncle agreed to join Lu Cang in hunting the monsters.
• Lu Cang and his companions set out for Guishe Forest, where their round trip took less than two hours.
• Lu Cang asked his companions about the region and learned that dungeons had grown more dangerous over the past twenty years, with a 1% death rate for adventurers exploring dungeons at their own tier.

Lu Cang killed an Ironback Giant Lizard with one Pillar Charge to its weak belly, collected its valuable drops, and decided that hunting Lord monsters in the wild was profitable. He and his companions moved on to another target, a Plume-tailed Scorpion.

• Lu Cang charged toward the Ironback Giant Lizard on the Dragon Rhino and killed it with a Pillar Charge through its belly.
• Lu Cang cast three more Pillar Charges to make sure the lizard was dead, then sent Zhou Er to collect its spoils.
• Zhou Er harvested an Earth Crystal and an Earthgold Scale, and Lu Cang calculated that the hunt had made a net profit of 2 gold and 70 silver.
• Lu Cang practiced his Transcendent Magic on smaller monsters as the group traveled across the plain.
• The group spotted a Plume-tailed Scorpion, and Lu Cang told the others to prepare an antidote for him.

Lu Cang and his companions defeated the remaining Tier Two Lords with ease before facing the Tier Three [Hammer-tail Horned Bull]. Lu Cang stopped its charge with his Stone Wall and wounded it with Piercing Pillar and Curse Arrow, leaving the battle underway.

• Lu Cang killed a scorpion with spells, and Zhou Er collected gold, silver, and an earth crystal.
• Lu Cang defeated the nearby Tier Two Lord with two spells, then headed toward the final Tier Three Lord with his companions.
• The [Hammer-tail Horned Bull] noticed Lu Cang and charged, but his Stone Wall stopped its attack.
• Lu Cang impaled the [Hammer-tail Horned Bull]'s belly with Piercing Pillar and struck it with fifteen Curse Arrows.

Lu Cang easily killed a third-tier Lord-tier Hammer-tail Horned Bull and learned that its unusually large harvest might be tied to the start of Yakartikto’s month. As the sky began shifting like an unrolling painting, Jidi identified the phenomenon and Zhou Er wondered whether Yakartikto truly descended into the mortal world.

• Lu Cang weakened the Hammer-tail Horned Bull with Cursed Arrow and other spells, then killed it with an ice shard.
• Lu Cang considered how his victory over a third-tier Lord-tier Demonic Beast affected his confidence about entering third-tier dungeons.
• Zhou Er returned with 15 gold worth of spoils, far more than the usual yield, and she and Lu Cang discussed the unusually abundant Harvest Moon.
• Lu Cang and Zhou Er watched the sky stretch and drift westward as stars and the moon appeared in the east.
• Jidi named the celestial phenomenon Scroll: Stars Shift Sky Moves and explained that it occurred during Yakartikto’s month.
• Zhou Er said legends claimed Yakartikto might descend into the mortal world, though she had never seen a true god.

Lu Cang finished his commission in Rhein Town, paid his companions, and watched them offer silver coins to a god whose statue consumed them. After reflecting on his growing body and the combat styles of his allies, he wondered whether his own Transcendent Magic could demonstrate his principles well enough to aid his promotion.

• Zhou Er urged Lu Cang and the others to return before nightfall so they could pray to Yakartikto during the moon change, and Lu Cang agreed.
• Lu Cang returned to Rhein Town, split two gold coins among his companions, and earned thirty-one gold coins for himself.
• Gaiton, Jidi, and Zhou Er each offered a silver coin at a blank god statue, and Lu Cang saw the coins evaporate.
• Lu Cang bathed, noticed his body had grown stronger, and worried that his physical progress lagged behind his magic.
• Lu Cang recalled Chicheng's Living Body Form and Iz's advice about putting professional principles into practice, then wondered if his Transcendent Magic counted as an original achievement.

After learning that several parties in the Tier 7 dungeon expedition had been wiped out, Lu Cang prayed to Yakartikto for Izpalut and the others to return safely. At the Adventurer's Guild, he agreed to help with monster requests and learned that a Demonic Tide was drawing adventurers toward Rhein Town.

• Lu Cang read that several adventurer parties had been confirmed wiped out in the Tier 7 dungeon, but Legend was not among them.
• A cargo carriage dropped an idol of Yakartikto in the street, and Lu Cang offered a gold coin and prayed for Izpalut and the others' safety.
• Xili asked Lu Cang to help clear the many monster requests that had piled up while Iz and the others were away, and he agreed.
• Xili told Lu Cang that adventurers were heading to Rhein Town because a Demonic Tide was moving that way and offered generous rewards.