Chapter Summaries

Zhao Xu reunited with Shen Nian and Shen Ze while investigating the Six Sisters’ kidnappings, and enlisted the Paladin’s help to raid their suspected Icefield Mountains base. As Zhao Xu prepared to reveal what he knew about the hideout, he ended by teasing Shen Ze about whether he was a sister-con.

• Shen Nian recognized Zhao Xu as the Wizard who had identified a valuable bronze mount for Shen Ze, and the siblings were astonished to learn he was Midsummer.
• Shen Ze explained that he and Shen Nian were investigating disappearances and suspected the Six Sisters had a secret base in the Icefield Mountains.
• Zhao Xu told the siblings about his rescue mission for Frey and Lady Ally and asked them to help, warning that the Alliance’s information network might be compromised.
• Zhao Xu drew a map in the ice and gave the Shen siblings instructions, relying on Shen Ze’s authority and the Divine Guard Knights’ resources.
• Shen Nian asked how Zhao Xu knew the Six Sisters’ hideout, and Zhao Xu recalled his past connection to the nest before asking Shen Ze if he was a sister-con.

Zhao Xu broke into the Six Sisters' mountain lair and fought through its guards, revealing the overwhelming strength he had gained from Field of Decay. He confronted a skilled woman inside while Zheng Xinyun traveled toward Starfall Town with Wang Ningwei, leaving their connection to the lair unresolved.

• Zhao Xu used Earth Vein Sense to locate the Six Sisters' lair and entered through a passage he carved through the cave wall with Wall-Piercing Spell.
• Zhao Xu knocked out the guard at the breach and charged through the tunnel, defeating successive groups of armed lackeys with his club.
• A black arrow struck Zhao Xu, but his Reflexive Dodge and Starfall Cloak prevented it from injuring him.
• Zhao Xu reached the cavern and faced a woman who resembled Zheng Xinyun, then ordered her to move.
• Zheng Xinyun traveled by carriage toward Starfall Town with Wang Ningwei, who estimated their journey would take at least a week.

Zhao Xu stormed the Six Sisters’ lair, defeated their reinforcements, and spared Lanaya, hiding her in an extradimensional space. He then faced the shadows deeper in the cave, while the forum announced that the first Level 8 player had appeared.

• Zhao Xu used enhanced speed and flight to charge the Half-Orc leader, then killed the attackers with a Fireball and his wooden club.
• Zhao Xu knocked Lanaya unconscious with Bigby's Striking Fist and recalled how they had once traveled together before he learned she belonged to the Six Sisters.
• Zhao Xu hid Lanaya in an extradimensional space with food and water, confirmed she was Evil, and told her to live well.
• Zhao Xu’s chaotic alignment shifted further as he entered the darkness to confront the other five members of the Six Sisters.
• The forum announced that the first Level 8 player had appeared and activated the Jump-Empty Clause.

Zhao Xu learned that the Six Sisters’ kidnapping was tied to their father Kuroze’s death and uncovered the location of their hidden treasure. After defeating Mata and arranging for the hostages to be rescued, he set off for the treasure beneath Frost Falls on Black Blood Peak.

• Zhao Xu reached Level 8 as the Godhead of Death Fragment awakened, and Lux explained that his killing and the fragment had accelerated his leveling.
• Zhao Xu questioned Mata about Frey and Lady Ally, then secretly used Discern Lies while she threatened them and blamed Tang De for breaking a promise.
• Zhao Xu realized that Kuroze was the Six Sisters’ father and that their kidnapping of Tang De’s wife and daughter was connected to their suspicions about his murder.
• Zhao Xu tried to question the dead fourth sister, but she had become a zombie, while Mata swallowed poison rather than reveal the Six Sisters’ secrets.
• Zhao Xu named the treasure’s location beneath Frost Falls on Black Blood Peak and told Mata that he had killed Kuroze.
• Zhao Xu prepared to summon the Divine Guard knights to rescue the hostages, then headed for the Six Sisters’ hidden treasure.

Zhao Xu and his companions entered a hidden treasure vault to rescue Frey and Lady Ally, then began looting its immense wealth. Antinoa revealed that the treasury belonged to the legendary Ducaro, who was about to arrive, and urged Zhao Xu to use some of the treasure to hire a Legendary Mage.

• Zhao Xu used Misty Step to enter a concealed vault with Vivian and Cerus, where they found the drugged and bound Frey and Lady Ally.
• Zhao Xu ordered his companions to pack the vault's treasures into Dimensional Pouches while they prepared to leave before the Six Sisters detected them.
• Zhao Xu and Vivian loaded gems, magical equipment, artworks, and antiques into their pouches, while Cerus reluctantly helped collect weapons.
• Antinoa appeared and warned Zhao Xu that the vault belonged to Ducaro, a legendary powerhouse who would arrive at any moment.
• Antinoa asked Zhao Xu whether he would spend part of the treasure to hire a Legendary Mage and promised he could still become the richest player.

Zhao Xu and his companions were transported to Antinoa’s lush Demiplane, where she offered him a chance to trade the stolen treasure for rare magical items. He bought two copies of each of six powerful manuals that granted inherent ability bonuses, despite already reaching the bonus limit for Intelligence.

• Zhao Xu agreed to buy the treasure, and Antinoa moved everyone and the loot from Ducaro’s vault to her Demiplane.
• Antinoa explained that she used the Demiplane to prepare spells and offered to teach Zhao Xu how to create one if he became Legendary.
• Cerus emptied its Dimensional Pouch and revealed more than ten Magic Weapons it had secretly kept.
• Antinoa invited Zhao Xu to use the treasure to purchase items from her collection, including six manuals that each granted a +5 inherent ability bonus.
• Zhao Xu decided to buy two copies of each manual, even though the Intelligence scroll would not benefit him.

Zhao Xu exchanged treasure with Antinoa for attribute manuals and equipment, including a Luxury Belt for Vivian. Antinoa gave him her Archmage Robe, whose identification revealed powerful defensive, spellcasting, and healing effects.

• Antinoa exchanged nearly two million gold pieces' worth of treasure for twelve attribute manuals and explained that she had paid off a loan she took to obtain Zhao Xu's earlier items.
• Zhao Xu decided to use most of the manuals himself and set aside one set for his future companions.
• Antinoa gave Vivian a Luxury Belt that granted a +6 Enhancement Bonus to all attributes, and Cerus was shocked when he tried to grab it.
• Zhao Xu asked Antinoa about equipment for his remaining slots, and she offered him the Archmage Robe she had been wearing.
• Zhao Xu identified the Archmage Robe and learned it granted an +8 armor bonus, a +5 resistance bonus, extra power against Spell Resistance, three spell-slot recalls, and at-will healing by expending spell slots.

Zhao Xu learned that players were amazed by Midsummer’s Level 8 advancement and explained some of his advantages to Nan Xiao Wei. A message from Wang Ningwei revealed that she had met Zheng Xinyun and wanted to share a theory about their world, leaving Zhao Xu listening to her call in the night.

• The forum announced that Midsummer had reached Level 8, while players discussed his position as president of a Mage Association and his coming rule over Starfall Town.
• Nan Xiao Wei showed Zhao Xu her classmates’ excited messages and asked how he had advanced so far and defeated over a hundred hostile adventurers.
• Zhao Xu told Nan Xiao Wei that he had more than ten Feats and over twenty pieces of magical equipment, then sent her to bed.
• Zhao Xu read Wang Ningwei’s messages saying she had been assigned as a Vice President in Starfall Town and had met the Cleric Yun'er, whose faith seemed unusual to her.
• Wang Ningwei asked to discuss her theory about the world by phone, and Zhao Xu called her.

Zhao Xu confirmed Wang Ningwei had discovered that Arthur was real and that Earth would be destroyed, then told her how everyone would transmigrate. He used the Prophecy of the Seven Archarchons to verify that its power reached Earth, and Wang Ningwei recognized that spreading it before the end of June could prove Arthur’s existence.

• Wang Ningwei called Zhao Xu and revealed that she had concluded Earth might be destroyed and that Arthur was a real world.
• Wang Ningwei explained that the magic system’s complexity and a slight time difference in the God of Death’s Demiplane had helped her and Acevishi confirm Arthur’s reality.
• Wang Ningwei said Os, the Mage Association president, had given her vague information about Earth’s possible destruction.
• Zhao Xu confirmed that everyone would transmigrate and that their player characters could be synchronized in Arthur.
• Zhao Xu recited the Prophecy of the Seven Archgods and confirmed that it stirred its intended targets even across the barriers between worlds.
• Wang Ningwei realized they could spread the prophecy before the transmigration to prove that Arthur existed.

After returning from the Six Sisters incident, Zhao Xu gained powerful attribute and spell-slot increases and developed a formidable set of combat buffs. When the white dragon Serus challenged him to a wagered wrestling match, Zhao Xu enlarged himself and slammed the dragon into the ground.

• Zhao Xu privately reflected on telling Wang Ningwei about the coming transmigration and the risks of revealing his prophecy.
• Antinoa helped Zhao Xu verify his identity with the Mage Association and choose a construction plan, while the Six Sisters incident was quietly brought to a close and Tang De granted him lordship over Starfall Town.
• After six days of reading Attribute Manuals, Zhao Xu gained 25 Attribute Values and increased his Intelligence, Wisdom, and other attributes, expanding his spell slots.
• Zhao Xu stacked several effects to raise his Caster Level, cast Field of Decay and other buffs, and greatly increased his Strength and attack bonus.
• Serus challenged Zhao Xu to a barehanded contest and wagered ten years of service, then transformed into its Huge white dragon form.
• Zhao Xu enlarged himself, effortlessly lifted Serus, and slammed the white dragon into the ground.

Zhao Xu arrived at Starfall Town, where Archbishop Sosi welcomed him and transferred a Mage Association mithral mine into his care. As Zhao Xu and his companions prepared to inspect it, the mine manager mentioned that strange things had happened there recently.

• After recovering from the blizzard, Zhao Xu's group reached Starfall Town, and Selrus signed a ten-year service contract with Antinoa.
• Archbishop Sosi welcomed Zhao Xu at the town gate, where Zhao Xu reunited with Wang Ningwei and met Zheng Xinyun.
• Sosi explained that players were working in the mines for their high wages and gave Zhao Xu the ownership documents for a Mage Association mine.
• Zhao Xu, Antinoa, Wang Ningwei, Zheng Xinyun, and Vivian prepared to descend into the mithral mine with its manager.
• When Zhao Xu asked whether anything strange had happened, the manager said that some unusual incidents had occurred in the mining area.

Zhao Xu inspected Mine Shaft No. 36 and learned that its mithral output had surged to about fifty thousand gold coins a month after he placed a Mithril Crystal beneath it. Antinoa revealed that the crystal was valuable material for divine artifacts, but Zhao Xu chose to leave it in place and keep the mine’s income as property.

• Supervisor Ted told Zhao Xu that strange things had been happening in the mining district, but Zhao Xu declined to investigate without a proper report.
• Zhao Xu and his companions descended into Mine Shaft No. 36, where Rice explained the mine’s workforce and production to them.
• Rice revealed that the mine’s monthly income had risen from less than two thousand gold coins to around fifty thousand after the Battle of Falling Star Lake.
• Antinoa told Zhao Xu that the Mithril Crystal beneath the mine was excellent material for crafting divine artifacts and offered to retrieve it.
• Zhao Xu refused to retrieve the crystal, deciding that the mine and its contract were valuable property even if his family could not keep them.

Zhao Xu established the Starfall Town Mage Association and confronted the town authorities when they asked him to stay out of local administration. He used a concealed Fear Spell to terrify them, leaving Mayor Lawrence and the others shaken as he demanded they recognize his qualifications.

• Zhao Xu and his companions toured Mines No. 36 and No. 48 before returning to the new base of the Starfall Town Mage Association.
• Mayor Lawrence gave Zhao Xu construction permits and related exemptions, and Zhao Xu teased Wang Ningwei about her dream of building a Mage Tower.
• Lawrence asked Zhao Xu to focus on the Association and refrain from interfering in Starfall Town's administration, while promising him his share of the tax revenue.
• Zhao Xu rejected the authorities' offer and told them that no one could take what belonged to him; Hook offered wealth, including real-world money, in exchange for a chance to negotiate.
• Zhao Xu concealed his spellcasting and cast Fear, leaving the town authorities and nearby players terrified and unable to act.
• Zhao Xu asked Mayor Lawrence whether the display had proven that he had the qualifications to change their minds.

A group of players discussed Zhao Xu’s unexplained use of Fear Spell and the strange backgrounds of the organization’s members. That night, a black-robed man confronted Zhao Xu at the well and demanded that he join their organization.

• A Druid player and a Half-Orc Barbarian player debated how Zhao Xu had frightened Starfall Town’s leaders without casting a visible spell.
• A black-robed companion left to investigate Zhao Xu, despite the Barbarian’s warning not to act recklessly.
• The Druid revealed that she belonged to the Madman Sect, which shared some of the organization’s ideals.
• The Barbarian wondered whether the black-robed man could succeed as he looked toward the sealed district being prepared for the Mage Association tower.
• Zhao Xu studied the reconstruction plans in his courtyard while the white dragon slept nearby.
• A black-robed man appeared beside the well and told Zhao Xu that he had come to deliver the organization’s Imperial Order and invite him to join.

Zhao Xu exposed a black-robed man as a vampire and used his knowledge of the creature’s weaknesses to withstand its attacks. He ended the fight by driving a wooden stake into the vampire’s chest, leaving it in suspended animation.

• The black-robed man praised his immortality and hinted that an organization had recruited him, while Zhao Xu recognized him as a vampire.
• The vampire changed into mist and recoiled from Zhao Xu’s holy symbol, revealing his pale face and fangs.
• The vampire summoned bats and transformed into a savage bat, but Zhao Xu dodged the attacks and his defenses stopped the vampire from biting him.
• The vampire tried to dominate Zhao Xu with a gaze attack, but Zhao Xu vanished and struck him with a wooden stake.
• The staked vampire fell into suspended animation.

Zhao Xu captured a vampire and explained its weaknesses before using threats of sunlight, running water, and other methods to force it to reveal information. The vampire’s ties to the Pale Dawn brought Zhao Xu to the attention of the mysterious organization, whose belief in Arthur’s impending destruction echoed a legend he had recently heard.

• Zhao Xu stopped Cerus from removing the stake in the vampire’s heart and explained how vampires healed, escaped as gas, and could be destroyed.
• Zhao Xu ordered Cerus to restrain the vampire and use sunlight, running water, and other threats to make it talk.
• Cerus tortured the vampire through the latter half of the night and learned that it had been created by a higher-ranking vampire.
• Zhao Xu explained that killing the vampire’s superior would destroy its descendants, while Cerus warned that the vampire belonged to the Pale Dawn.
• Zhao Xu recognized the Pale Dawn as a vast organization that believed Arthur would face the Final Doom and connected its beliefs to a legend Antinoa had mentioned.

Zhao Xu consolidated his new 8th-level abilities and studied how Shapechange could aid him before a scream led him to a murder at the inn. Finding bite marks on the victim, he suspected Pale Dawn had sent another vampire and secretly cast Detect Undead to search the crowd.

• Zhao Xu reviewed Metamagic Mastery and the Spell Guardian’s Extended Specific Magic ability as he settled into his new powers.
• Zhao Xu studied Shapechange and considered the forms and protections it could grant him.
• A scream woke Zhao Xu and his companions, who went downstairs and found a dead man and a grieving woman.
• Zhao Xu noticed puncture marks on the victim’s neck and suspected a vampire connected to Pale Dawn was still nearby.
• Zhao Xu secretly cast Detect Undead and scanned the gathered crowd for the killer.

Zhao Xu investigated a sudden death at the inn and realized that Beastkin, not a vampire, had attacked the victim. As Nulang proposed an unreliable way to identify the killer, Zhao Xu stepped forward, drawing the crowd’s attention.

• Zhao Xu found no Undead Creatures at the scene, while patrol guards and a coroner arrived to investigate the death.
• The coroner identified the wounds as rat bites, and the Half-Orc Barbarian Nulang explained that Beastkin could have caused them.
• Zhao Xu told Cerus that Beastkin attacks could spread lycanthropy and turn victims into contagious Beastkin.
• The victim’s wife woke and mourned her husband, while Vivian vowed to avenge him and her Holy Avenger flashed.
• Nulang suggested cutting everyone’s palms to find whoever healed quickly, and Zhao Xu walked onto the platform as the crowd watched.

Zhao Xu investigated a murder and used Speak with Dead to learn that the victim's wife had killed him. As Nulang tried to restrain Zhao Xu, the woman began transforming into a Beastkin, sending the crowd fleeing.

• Zhao Xu examined the corpse while Lux urged him to build a following and create an avatar of the God of Death to act through.
• Zhao Xu agreed to approach Zheng Xinyun through the avatar, then listened as Nulang explained that Beastkin attacks were usually random and hard to investigate.
• Zhao Xu secretly cast Speak with Dead and asked the corpse who had killed him; it answered that his wife had done it.
• The victim's wife denied the accusation, and Nulang grabbed Zhao Xu, but could not move him even after activating Rage.
• The wife began transforming, growing a rat-like head as the surrounding crowd recoiled in terror.

Zhao Xu exposed a Ratfolk and defeated an armed Ratfolk powerhouse with a Lesser Acid Orb, leaving the locals stunned by his strength. The butler then revealed that the Wizard was Midsummer, the lord of Starfall Town and president of the Mage Association.

• The dead man's wife transformed into a Feral Rat, and the crowd subdued her for questioning.
• An armed Ratfolk powerhouse arrived, knocked down the patrol captain, and wounded several fighters who tried to stop it.
• Zhao Xu told Vivian to bind the Ratfolk, then struck it down with two Lesser Acid Orbs.
• Red Maple Leaf explained that the spell ignored saves and resistance, while wondering how Zhao Xu had dealt enough damage to fell the powerful Ratfolk.
• The butler identified Zhao Xu as Midsummer, the lord of Starfall Town and president of the Mage Association.