Chapter Summaries

Fu Qian learned from Yuan Shan that Apostles served as vessels for divine paths, even when the gods who once occupied them had died. He left understanding why Ariel’s divine descent had remained powerful and why only Apostles could reflect a path’s endpoint, while Yuan Shan regretted avoiding questions about higher orders.

• Fu Qian questioned Yuan Shan about how the Sun could descend through Ariel despite the Sun’s confirmed death.
• Yuan Shan explained that a god’s death did not erase its divine path, and that Apostles served as vessels for the corresponding True God.
• Fu Qian connected the explanation to the idea that gods represented concepts and compared the divine path to an empty position that still existed.
• Yuan Shan confirmed that Apostles reflected a path’s endpoint rather than its former occupant, whose will could otherwise affect the reflection.
• Fu Qian asked whether demigods could do the same, and Yuan Shan said only Apostles could reflect the endpoint.
• Yuan Shan admitted that she had avoided asking her teacher about higher orders and now wondered whether that had been a mistake.

Fu Qian questioned Yuan Shan about the divine envoy path and the ruler of Paradise, uncovering further mysteries about the Realm of Ultimate Bliss and the sun faith. Yuan Shan then invited Fu Qian to attend a social event with her.

• Yuan Shan explained the helpless, supporting role of divine envoys, and Fu Qian wondered how her own divine skin and current state fit within the system.
• Fu Qian asked whether Night Watcher history classes identified the ruler of Paradise, and Yuan Shan said the concept had many competing interpretations.
• Fu Qian connected Eckhart's arrival in the Realm of Ultimate Bliss to Your Excellency Stomach and considered investigating their relationship further.
• Yuan Shan complimented Fu Qian's formal outfit, asked whether Wen Li was still at the academy, and invited Fu Qian to a social event.

Fu Qian and Yuan Shan attended a charity banquet hosted by Shangjing’s new city official, Gan Zuoxun, where Yuan Shan’s presence quietly signaled political support. They spent the evening eating while the gathering’s influential guests watched them from a distance.

• Yuan Shan brought Fu Qian to the banquet, and he praised the food while spotting Gan Zuoxun among the guests.
• Fu Qian noticed Grantham Gulad attending without Taylor or Selena, while Yuan Shan explained that she had come only to enjoy the food and drinks.
• Yuan Shan’s appearance reassured observers that Grantham had made the right choice by showing goodwill toward Gan Zuoxun’s new administration.
• Fu Qian asked why the other guests had not approached Yuan Shan, and she said she had not gone out of her way to find them.

At a Shangjing banquet, Fu Qian stood openly beside Yuan Shan as she asserted her authority and explained why she had invited him. When Fu Qian recognized Chen Clan President Chen Ping and admitted he wanted to study the clan’s Qian Ji Jue, another guest, His Excellency Grantham, approached them.

• Yuan Shan told Fu Qian that no one would disturb her unless she sought them out, and Fu Qian reflected on the Night Watchers’ power and the fragile order they maintained.
• Fu Qian noticed an angry-looking man nearby and asked Yuan Shan who he was.
• Yuan Shan identified him as President Chen Ping, and Fu Qian recognized him as the Chen Clan leader whose family he had once targeted during a mission.
• Fu Qian admitted he was interested in the Chen Clan’s Qian Ji Jue, making Chen Ping visibly uneasy.
• Yuan Shan questioned why Fu Qian wanted the art, and Fu Qian explained that he was interested in studying its cultivation methods.
• His Excellency Grantham decided to approach Fu Qian and Yuan Shan.

At a banquet in Shangjing, Fu Qian and Yuan Shan spoke with Grantham about Selena’s absence and Taylor’s past troubles. Fu Qian’s praise of Jiang En drew attention to both prodigies, leaving their names poised to stir up a new wave of interest.

• Grantham approached Fu Qian and Yuan Shan, then explained that Selena had left to investigate leads related to what happened to Taylor.
• Yuan Shan watched Fu Qian’s reaction as she said she looked forward to hearing what Grantham discovered, and Grantham promised to keep her informed before leaving.
• Fu Qian tried Grantham’s recommended spicy pastry, while Yuan Shan declined it and accidentally knocked part of Fu Qian’s food tower out of shape.
• Fu Qian praised Taylor’s resilience and predicted that Jiang En would become extraordinary, while Yuan Shan questioned his confidence because Jiang En lacked luck.
• Fu Qian realized that his and Yuan Shan’s remarks could draw attention to Taylor and Jiang En, and that his praise might serve as an endorsement for Jiang En.

At a Shangjing gathering, Fu Qian recognized how Yuan Shan’s presence and Grantham’s greeting helped establish the Night Watchers’ understanding with Gulad and set boundaries around him. He arranged to observe the Chen Clan’s Qian Ji Jue and then asked about a young woman Yuan Shan identified as Gan Zuoxun’s daughter.

• Fu Qian considered how Grantham’s greeting made Gulad’s connection with the Night Watchers visible to the gathered guests.
• Yuan Shan’s presence alongside Fu Qian showed onlookers that they should leave him alone unless he bothered them first.
• Chen Ping approached Fu Qian and raised the subject of his interest in cultivation in front of Yuan Shan and the gathering.
• Fu Qian said he was interested in the Chen Clan’s Qian Ji Jue and asked to observe the family practicing it.
• Fu Qian pointed out a young woman, and Yuan Shan identified her as Gan Zuoxun’s daughter.

At the charity gala, Fu Qian gained the Chen Clan’s support by expressing interest in its ancestral secret art, intending to use the clan as a research sample. After parting from Yuan Shan, he discovered that a black eyeball in his pocket was resonating with another Eye of Consort Xing.

• Gan Baobao greeted Yuan Shan at the charity gala and followed her father’s instructions while speaking with the two guests.
• Fu Qian’s interest in the Chen Clan’s cultivation method gave the clan’s younger generation renewed confidence and improved its standing.
• Yuan Shan questioned Fu Qian about his plans, and he admitted that the Chen Clan would serve as an observation sample for research into cultivation, bloodlines, and divinity.
• Fu Qian decided to return to the Academy of Revelation immediately and declined Yuan Shan’s offer to arrange transportation.
• After Yuan Shan drove away, Fu Qian took a deformed black eyeball from his pocket and saw it tremble in resonance with a distant Eye of Consort Xing.

Fu Qian ignored Lady Nepheli’s repeated occult call and returned to his bookstore, where he found a strange book that led him to a hidden cellar door. He opened it and was met by a rush of age and decay, accepting the invitation into whatever lay beyond.

• Fu Qian ignored the resonating keepsake from Lady Nepheli as he walked through the night.
• Fu Qian entered his brightly lit bookstore and found an unfamiliar book open on the counter.
• Fu Qian read the book as its cheerful mood turned painful and sobbing sounded beneath the floor.
• Fu Qian discovered a hidden cellar entrance behind the stairs and recognized the door as an invitation connected to the unanswered call.
• Fu Qian opened the door, and the cellar’s dampness, rot, and age poured into the bookstore.

The narrator followed Xing Fei’s voice through a strange, lavish projection as Lord Rom’s power filled the space with blood and a baby’s cry. He entered a scarlet chamber where Lui waited beside a tortured woman whose face resembled Nepheli.

• The narrator stepped into the space beyond the door and heard a young woman’s sobbing turn into manic laughter.
• He recognized the ornate setting and recalled Lady Nepheli’s account of the resentful eyeballs left by a tortured Princess.
• The narrator saw an image of a spiderlike Higher Being resembling Rom, then recognized Lord Rom’s Blood Order as blood began raining from above.
• He suspected he had walked into a trap but continued toward the source of Xing Fei’s voice while avoiding the falling blood.
• A door opened onto a scarlet chamber, where Lui greeted the narrator beside a tortured woman who looked like Nepheli.

Fu Qian discovered that the tortured figure in the scene was Lady Nepheli and realized Lui and Lord Rom had entered the scene to confront him. As Lui urged him to worry about his own danger, Fu Qian told him to hurry while watching Nepheli.

• Fu Qian recognized Lady Nepheli in the suspended, mutilated figure and saw the surrounding wounds and buildings marked by her agony.
• Nepheli spoke in a familiar hoarse voice, and Lui praised Fu Qian before mentioning the King of Prison Break.
• Fu Qian inferred that Lui and Lord Rom were invited extras and questioned why Nepheli was being made to perform for him.
• Lui said Nepheli had never allowed anyone else into the scene and suggested her contact with Fu Qian had caused this punishment.
• Fu Qian considered whether Nepheli had been used by the Native Council, then told Lui to hurry while looking at her.

Fu Qian revealed that he had deliberately used the Eye of Consort Xing’s resonance to frame both Ariel and Nepheli, leaving her with almost no chance to clear her name. He had been waiting for Nepheli to appear because he wanted to ask her a new question.

• Nepheli questioned why Fu Qian was so sure the resonance was a trap, and he said he had invited her to trigger it.
• Fu Qian revealed his golden flame, confirming his connection to the King of Prison Break, and Nepheli realized he had orchestrated the situation.
• Fu Qian explained that his actions were meant to make both he and Ariel seem like puppets and to destroy Nepheli’s standing in the Native Council.
• Nepheli stopped condemning Fu Qian and asked whether he had been waiting for her for a reason.
• Fu Qian confirmed that he had a new question to ask her.

Fu Qian questioned Nepheli about Lord Rom’s condition and challenged her elaborate attempt to draw him in, then asked about Chen Xing’s demigod plan in Shangjing. Nepheli admitted she had designed the plan, though Deng Feizhou had carried it out.

• Fu Qian asked Nepheli whether Lord Rom was in bad shape, and she admitted he was not well.
• Fu Qian questioned Nepheli’s scheme and asked what would have happened if he had taken the book’s surface meaning literally; Nepheli revealed she had no physical injuries and said her only risk was failing to verify her theories.
• Nepheli asked whether Fu Qian was working with the Night Watchers, and he denied any involvement in their actions.
• Nepheli accepted that Fu Qian was seeking answers and invited him to ask his question.
• Fu Qian asked whether Nepheli had helped design Chen Xing’s plan to become a demigod in Shangjing, and she said she was its first author while Deng Feizhou handled implementation.

Fu Qian questioned Nepheli about the Chen Clan’s cultivation method and learned how she had found and stabilized the deranged Ariel. Nepheli explained that the Tyrant’s Gift had helped transform the strange stars inside him, leading to his unusual Second Order.

• Fu Qian asked Nepheli about the Chen Clan’s secret techniques, and she clarified that she had designed Chen Xing’s promotion plan while Deng Feizhou had carried it out.
• Nepheli asked whether Fu Qian had killed Deng Feizhou, and Fu Qian confirmed it before asking about when she had found Ariel.
• Nepheli recalled finding Ariel as a demigod in a Forbidden Zone, mentally mad and physically unstable enough to turn living things to ash.
• Nepheli said three stars of a higher rank than Ariel orbited inside his chest, and Fu Qian guessed that they were an inherent trait behind his advancement.
• Nepheli explained that she used the Tyrant’s Gift to calm Ariel and help the things inside him transform, then consulted Rom about the resulting unusual Second Order.

Fu Qian learned from Nepheli that the Chen Clan’s cultivation stagnation came from lacking the ancestor’s bloodline, not a flaw in its method. Nepheli said Blood of Thorns could partly make up for their lack of talent, though the results were twisted.

• Fu Qian asked whether Rom had helped Senior Ariel during the later stages of his ascension, and Nepheli said Rom had guided her to the Tyrant's Gift.
• Nepheli explained that the Chen Clan’s cultivation method was sound, but its members lacked the talent to make progress.
• Fu Qian proposed that the Chen Clan members might not descend from their powerful ancestor, and Nepheli confirmed that his bloodline had likely ended generations ago.
• Nepheli said the Chen Clan could use Blood of Thorns extracted from special corpses to compensate for their lack of talent, though the results could be twisted.

Fu Qian questioned Nepheli about Blood of Thorns, her experiments, and the apocalypse. Nepheli revealed that she had unleashed the miracle that caused an apocalypse nineteen years and three months earlier, then suggested that their apparent reality might be only the ashes left behind by it.

• Nepheli confirmed that she had left the final stage of the Blood of Thorns project to Deng Feizhou, and Fu Qian connected it to Chen Xing’s advancement.
• Nepheli explained that her Leaf Island experiments had tested suspicions she held before learning about Blood of Thorns, and she agreed Kanna Kisaragi’s situation might resemble Chen Xing’s.
• Fu Qian asked Nepheli what she knew about the apocalypse, and she gave its date as nineteen years and three months earlier, when she left the academy.
• Fu Qian described an apocalypse he had witnessed, involving dark flame and Mother of Gospel, and identified Nepheli as the one who had unleashed Meria’s Resurrection.
• Nepheli accepted that the real her had unleashed the miracle, then questioned whether either of them was real and suggested their world might be the ashes left behind by an apocalypse.

Fu Qian discussed the apocalypse and the academy’s past with Lady Nepheli, who then revealed that she wanted a golden flame of destructive will. She asked him to use it to destroy her own will.

• Nepheli told Fu Qian that he and other Warehouse administrators viewed the world differently from its inhabitants, and warned that the being he relied on might no longer be powerful.
• Fu Qian and Nepheli discussed the academy’s expedition into a Forbidden Zone and the earlier supernatural research institution discovered there.
• Nepheli praised Fu Qian for understanding the expedition’s significance, then said she had already shown enough sincerity and asked to make her request.
• Nepheli asked Fu Qian for a golden flame of destructive will, and he asked whose will she wanted destroyed.
• Nepheli pointed to herself and said she wanted her own will destroyed.

Fu Qian granted Nepheli’s request to receive Madness Fire, and she let the flames consume her projection while using a special method to slow her descent into madness. After returning to the night, Fu Qian found that the Eye of Consort Xing remained warm and continued on to the academy, where he found Liu Shuang and Wen Li already studying.

• Fu Qian offered Nepheli one chance to change her wish, but she insisted on receiving the blessing and said she had a method to slow her descent into madness.
• Fu Qian touched Nepheli’s forehead and bestowed the Golden Flames, which spread across her projection as she thanked him.
• Nepheli’s patterned dome appeared at Fu Qian’s feet, and the scene vanished, returning him to the night with the Eye of Consort Xing still warm.
• Fu Qian checked the time and continued to the academy, requisitioning a passenger’s seat along the way.
• At morning, Fu Qian reached his laboratory and found Liu Shuang and Wen Li awake and studying, with a Golden Candlestick nearby.

Fu Qian returned to the academy and visited Professor Lisha, where he found her with Ji Liushuang, Wen Li, and Lita working on something. The chapter ended with Lisha showing him a paper and asking what he thought they were doing.

• Fu Qian found that someone had replaced the solid-gold Golden Candlestick he had used and guessed that his lab assistant had arranged it.
• Fu Qian went to Professor Lisha’s quarters after noticing that no one had welcomed him or brought him tea.
• Lisha greeted Fu Qian warily, and he told her that his recent trip had brought him a lot despite not going exactly as planned.
• Fu Qian discovered Ji Liushuang, Wen Li, and Lita gathered with Lisha around a table covered in papers.
• Ji Liushuang went to prepare drinks, and Lisha handed Fu Qian a sheet of paper and asked what he thought they were doing.

Fu Qian discovered that Professor Lisha and the others were organizing Apocalypse instructors’ failed experiments for a vault proposed by Cas as compensation for the Spirit Ash Institute. He praised the idea and suggested opening the vault to the entire academy.

• Fu Qian read an anonymous file about a failed supernatural experiment and asked Professor Lisha who had collected it.
• Professor Lisha explained that Cas had arranged for the failed projects to be organized for the Spirit Ash Institute, not as teaching materials for Apocalypse.
• Fu Qian guessed the collection was meant to compensate the Spirit Ash Institute for the chandelier Apocalypse had accidentally broken.
• Professor Lisha explained that Cas wanted a vault preserving instructors’ failed experiments so they would be safe from contamination and remain useful for study.
• Fu Qian praised Cas’s plan and suggested making the vault available to the entire academy.

Fu Qian defended Dean Cas’s plan to open the Enlightenment archive room to the whole academy and praised Professor Lisha for recruiting a diverse team. He congratulated Lita on joining the Enlightenment, then prepared to leave to speak with Cas about putting the plan into effect.

• Professor Lisha explained Dean Cas’s plan, but Fu Qian argued that opening the archive would benefit the academy and inspire other institutes.
• Ji Liushuang praised Fu Qian, and Fu Qian praised Lisha for recruiting Wen Li, Lita, and a Sword Participation Institute student.
• Lisha revealed that Cas had invited Lita to join the Enlightenment and handle administrative work.
• Fu Qian congratulated Lita on becoming his colleague and started to leave while the others sorted the archive.
• When Lisha challenged him to stay and help, Fu Qian said he would speak with Cas to ensure the archive opened to the whole academy.