Chapter Summaries

Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku prepared to leave Greed Island for the Dark Continent using the Teleport Lantern. They departed from Rimuru Castle as their companions promised to keep watch and gather when they returned.

• Gelman arrived at the dungeon hall, where Biscuit complained that Ging had not yet given her a Blue Planet, and Ging promised to make more.
• Gelman checked the time and asked Shizuku whether she had brought everything; Doon and List explained that they had added extra cards, including Dark Emerald.
• Menchi and the others wished Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku good luck, while Leol promised that at least two people would remain on duty at the castle.
• Gelman summoned the Teleport Lantern, and he, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku took the Messenger Imps' hands.
• Gelman activated the Teleport Lantern, transporting the four of them away from Rimuru Castle.

Doon and List’s tests confirmed that Greed Island’s cards could not connect the Six Continents to the Dark Continent, while Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku prepared to explore the Ancient Labyrinth City. The group entered the city, where Gelman began experiencing its strange pressure.

• Menchi and Buhara tried Spell Card: Magnetism and Spell Card: Accompany, but neither could reach Gelman or anyone else on the Dark Continent.
• Doon and List concluded that the cards could not transport people between the two regions, and Doon suggested that linking them with game consoles would require relay stations.
• Ging confirmed that their game console had failed to connect to the Six Continents, then used a Designation Camera to photograph the Ancient Labyrinth City.
• Ging distributed emergency card cases and assigned the group their roles before leading Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku toward the city.
• The four crossed beneath a stone archway and entered the Ancient Labyrinth City, where Gelman felt a strange sensation and received repeated pressure increases.

Ging led Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku through the Ancient Labyrinth City as they followed Don Freecss’s markings and planned to avoid unnecessary fights with the parasitized monsters. When a fast creature detected them, the group prepared to kill it quickly and escape before others could surround them.

• Biscuit and Ging discussed the danger of Greed Island and the deaths of the notorious murderer Ganshu and his companions.
• Ging guided the group through the stone pillars, where they found Sahelta markings and Don Freecss’s Mobius Ring engraving.
• Ging used En to detect a Magic Beast on their route and chose another path toward the central area.
• Gelman reviewed the Gold Silver Ingot’s parasitic reproduction and explained why the group intended to avoid battles while seeking the All-Curing Herb.
• Ging detected a fast monster approaching, and Gelman outlined a plan to defeat it within five seconds and evade the other monsters.

Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku hunted Gold Silver Ingot-parasitized Magic Beasts in the Ancient Labyrinth City by taking turns in pairs. After several fights and a lunch break, they continued their cautious search for the All-Curing Herb.

• Biscuit and Shizuku lured a giant caterpillar into a trap, and Gelman cut it down before its Gold Silver Ingot could fully mature.
• Ging identified the caterpillar as an Intimidating Silver-Gray Butterfly Larva and proposed that the group fight in alternating pairs.
• Biscuit warned Shizuku that traveling across the pillars would expose them to flying Magic Beasts, so the group continued along the ground and killed two more parasitized beasts.
• The group stopped for lunch, and Biscuit used Magical Beautician Miss Cookie to reduce Gelman's pressure to zero.
• After lunch, Ging used En to scout ahead as the four resumed their journey through the Ancient Labyrinth City.

Gelman and Shizuku burned the Shield Dragon’s parasitic spores and discussed the Restraint and Vow that kept Evil Tenderfoot from eating living things. Following the scent of the All-Curing Herb, the group reached a hidden dwelling Don Freecss had carved into a pillar and settled there for the night.

• Gelman burned the Parasitic Spores after they escaped the Shield Dragon’s body, and Shizuku warned him about the Nen Energy the flames consumed.
• Gelman learned that Shizuku’s Restraint and Vow came from seeing a starving family in Meteor City eat their child, and he encouraged her to keep her boundaries.
• Biscuit and Ging rejoined Gelman and Shizuku, and Ging identified the distant fragrance as the All-Curing Herb’s scent.
• Ging led the group toward the heart of the Ancient Labyrinth City and then searched for the dwelling Don Freecss had marked on the map.
• Ging found the hidden door beneath Don Freecss’s Mobius Ring, and the group entered the dwelling to use it as their shelter for the night.

Ging and Gelman rested in Don Freecss’s abandoned shelter on the Dark Continent, where Ging revealed that his true goal was the tower at the heart of the Ancient Labyrinth City. He told Gelman he intended to stay behind after they found the All-Curing Herb, offering to support future expeditions and asking Gelman to pass a message to Gon.

• Ging and Biscuit discussed the danger of encountering Don Freecss if he had become a monster, while Shizuku used Evil Tenderfoot to clean the shelter.
• The group set up the shelter, ate, and took turns keeping watch as Biscuit and Shizuku slept.
• Ging told Gelman that reaching the Dark Continent had thrilled him and that he wanted to investigate the mysterious tower in the Ancient Labyrinth City.
• Ging said he planned to stay on the Dark Continent after they found the All-Curing Herb, so he could explore and help Gelman’s future expeditions.
• Ging asked Gelman to tell Gon to find him on the Dark Continent if Gon wanted to see his good-for-nothing father.

Gelman and Ging encountered a Night Raid Shark that summoned a swarm of parasite-infected beasts to the Ancient Labyrinth City. As the group prepared to escape, Ging drew the monsters away with a powerful Nen Bullet.

• Gelman woke when Ging warned him that a Night Raid Shark was prowling outside their shelter.
• The Night Raid Shark returned despite Gelman and Ging maintaining Zetsu, then roared to summon reinforcements.
• Gelman woke Biscuit and Shizuku, and Shizuku stored their supplies and cards in Evil Tenderfoot.
• A swarm of beasts infected by Gold Bars surrounded the shelter, and Ging offered to draw them away while the others escaped.
• Ging opened the stone door, charged the monsters, and hurled a golden Nen Bullet to attract their attention.

Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku fought through successive waves of Gold Bar Parasitic Species in the Ancient Labyrinth City while Ging battled nearby. After Shizuku and Ging were healed with Breath of the Archangel, the group faced another seemingly endless wave beneath the Night Raid Shark.

• Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku broke through the second and third waves of monsters as the Night Raid Shark's roar drew more creatures toward them.
• Gelman killed a fast, lizard-like Gold Bar monster with a powerful Slash Wave after it wounded Shizuku.
• Biscuit used Breath of the Archangel to heal Shizuku, who recovered and rejoined the escape.
• Ging caught up with the group, and Biscuit discovered he was infected by a Gold Bar; Ging used Breath of the Archangel to remove the spores and heal himself.
• The Night Raid Shark flew above the group, roared, and summoned another wave of monsters from every direction.

After surviving a night of fighting Gold Bar Parasitic Species, Gelman rested at a safe point while Biscuit, Shizuku, and Ging took turns keeping watch. He woke refreshed, free of the Dark Crown, and stronger, but still far from reaching Legendary Grade.

• Gelman and the others reached a second safe point after escaping their pursuers and treated their injuries.
• Biscuit, Shizuku, and Ging insisted that Gelman rest because he was exhausted and the Dark Crown of Torment was affecting his mind.
• Gelman accepted Magical Beautician Miss Cookie's treatment and fell asleep while the others took watch.
• Gelman woke several hours later refreshed, and the Dark Crown had disappeared.
• Gelman's Physique and Aura had risen to 133 and 139, but he still could not sense the threshold for Legendary Grade.

Gelman and his companions rested at Don Freecss's Safe House before setting out toward the Core Area of the Ancient Labyrinth City. On the way, Gelman reassured Shizuku about her fear of death, and the group ended the chapter forcing a path through a dense mass of Gold Bar Parasitic Species.

• Gelman woke beside Shizuku and found Ging and Biscuit keeping watch while the others rested.
• After eating supplies prepared by Menchi, Buhara, and Shubika, Ging proposed reaching the Core Area that night because its boundary would keep the Night Raid Species and Gold Bar Parasitic Species out.
• Gelman, Shizuku, Biscuit, and Ging agreed to the plan, left Don Freecss's Safe House, and continued traveling while alternating between fighting and resting.
• Shizuku told Gelman she was afraid of death after surviving the Night Raid, and Gelman reassured her that facing and overcoming that fear would make her stronger.
• As night fell, the Gold Bar Parasitic Species grew denser and formed a moving wall, forcing the group to fight their way toward the Core Area.

Gelman summoned the Ominous Undead to draw away the Gold Bar Parasitic Species, allowing himself, Biscuit, and Shizuku to reach the edge of the core area. They waited near the Strange Reed Forest for Ging, while Gelman recovered his depleted Nen Energy.

• Gelman unleashed the Ominous Undead, which fought off the giant beasts while Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku slipped through the encirclement.
• The Night Raid Shark spotted the three, but Ging attacked it and dragged it down through the city, confirming he had caught the creature behind the night raids.
• Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku reached the edge of the core area and saw the Strange Reed Forest and the towering spire Ging wanted to reach.
• After the Ominous Undead vanished, Gelman sat down to recover his Nen Energy, and Shizuku summoned Hatsu Scented Girl to help him.

Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku entered the Core Zone, where the Fog Wall trapped them with the Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle. After learning that they had to kill it to end the rampage and escape, they prepared for battle as its bloodthirsty spores attacked.

• Ging returned after killing the Night Raid Shark, and the four entered the Strange Reed Forest to reach the Core Zone.
• Fog Walls rose around the Core Zone, trapping the group and separating the Ancient Labyrinth City into two worlds.
• Gelman used his Flamethrower to reveal a gigantic, flowering Gold Bar that Ging identified as the Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle.
• The Apostle released spores that devoured the Gold Bar Parasitic Species and swarmed toward the four Nen users.
• Gelman, Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku injected Shubika's Limit Recovery Potions and put on Stand Armor to prepare for battle.
• Gelman conjured Tachi: Senkage and let the katana draw strength from the flesh beneath his feet as the spores reached them.

Gelman and his companions severed the Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle’s root connections, triggering its second phase. After the Apostle’s blast forced Biscuit to use the Breath of the Archangel, Gelman drew its next Blood Red Light Pillar onto his Defense Barrier.

• Gelman used Tachi: Senkage’s Drawing Slash to cut the Bloodthirsty Spores in half, then severed a massive vine attacking him.
• The Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle descended, and Gelman climbed a root to cut its connection to the body while his companions severed other root connections.
• The Apostle roared and unleashed a blast that swept Gelman away before it changed into a flowerlike form with a gaping maw.
• The Apostle fired a Blood Red Light Pillar at Biscuit and Shizuku, and Biscuit used the Breath of the Archangel to heal.
• Gelman approached the Apostle, covered himself with a Defense Barrier using the Spiderweb Lasso, and let its next Blood Red Light Pillar strike him.

Gelman and his allies defeated the Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle after Shizuku disrupted its attack and Gelman landed a focused fatal slash. They harvested the All-Curing Herbs and prepared to investigate the distant tower.

• Gelman summoned the Ominous Undead to fight the Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle, while Ging struck its flower-petal head with a golden Nen Bullet before being knocked away.
• The Painful Bloodthirsty Apostle destroyed the Ominous Undead, but Shizuku used Evil Tenderfoot to divert and absorb its blood attack.
• Gelman broke through the rising pressure and split the Apostle’s head with a powerful Drawing Slash, then collapsed as Shizuku carried him to safety.
• Biscuit and Ging praised Gelman, who chose to recover naturally rather than use Breath of the Archangel, and he gained Rune: Blood Frenzy.
• Shizuku harvested All-Curing Herbs from the Apostle’s corpse while Ging photographed the scene and proposed that they visit the distant tower.

After the Gelman Squad reached the tower’s safe platform and rested, Gelman suffered a disturbing nightmare filled with strange visions. He woke near noon on September 27 to find his worried companions beside him, after they had been unable to wake him for hours.

• Ging inspected the tower and led the squad up its spiral staircase while he and Biscuit examined and photographed its interior.
• The potion’s exhaustion side effect forced the squad to hurry to the tower’s summit, where they ate dinner and went to sleep in the safe house.
• Shizuku fell asleep during dinner, and Gelman and Biscuit carried her to her sleeping bag before the others finished eating.
• Gelman dreamed of a Human-faced Pot, flying sheets of paper, a crest-carved door, a severed torso, and a blood-veined moon as the world around him collapsed.
• Biscuit, Shizuku, and Ging helped Gelman wake after he had slept unusually soundly and could not be roused; he came to at nearly noon on September 27.

Gelman woke from a nightmare about five symbols and realized his vision might warn that he would one day face a god. His thoughts triggered a huge lantern in the Ancient Labyrinth tower, revealing eleven linked Teleport Lanterns and leaving the group to investigate their purpose.

• Gelman woke after Biscuit and Shizuku called to him, then described dreaming of the Kakin Royal Family's Poison Pot, the Dark Sonata Score, the Gatekeeper's Great Door, a mass of flesh, and the Crimson Full Moon.
• Ging explained that dreams could use fragments of memory to deliver premonitions, leading Gelman to suspect he might someday have to fight a god.
• As Gelman silently pondered the word god, purple lines appeared on the tower floor and a huge lantern emerged.
• Gelman touched the lantern and saw seventeen radiant lanterns, including eleven special Teleport Lanterns connected by purple beams, as well as six dark lanterns.
• Gelman told Ging, Biscuit, and Shizuku that the Lantern of the Labyrinth connected to his Teleport Lanterns and could enable travel between them.
• Ging guessed the eleven lanterns were scattered along Lake Möbius and might relate to all the calamities, while Gelman suggested they could represent all the hopes and said they would need to test their unique properties.

The Gelman Squad discussed their next Dark Continent targets and agreed that Ging would remain in the Ancient Labyrinth while the others returned to Greed Island. Gelman proposed transforming Greed Island into a safer training ground that could identify and recruit promising Nen users, and Ging agreed to support the plan.

• Gelman recommended targeting Zobae the Undying Disease and Alchemy Plant Metallion for their value and usefulness.
• Ging told Biscuit, Shizuku, and Gelman that he would stay in the Ancient Labyrinth, and Biscuit agreed to respect his choice while taking All-Curing Herbs back to seek support from Chairman Netero.
• Ging asked Gelman to have Doon and List inspect his broken Game Console and entrusted him with responsibility for Greed Island.
• Gelman proposed dividing Greed Island into skill-based regions, protecting newcomers from red-name players, and recruiting exceptional players after a final trial.
• Ging backed Gelman's proposal and advised him to convince Doon first, while Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku left Ging supplies and cards for his stay.

Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku returned from the Ancient Labyrinth without Ging, leading Doon and the others to believe Ging had died. Biscuit and Gelman explained that Ging was alive and had chosen to remain in the labyrinth, while Doon was left embarrassed by his premature death notice.

• Ging watched Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku teleport away from the Ancient Labyrinth, then prepared to explore the tower himself.
• Gelman, Biscuit, and Shizuku returned to Greed Island shortly after midnight without Ging, and Doon told the others that Ging was dead.
• Shubika examined the survivors, while Doon and the others assumed Ging had sacrificed himself and mourned him.
• Biscuit told everyone that Ging was alive, and Gelman showed them Ging's video and the All-Curing Herb as proof.
• Leol, Ida, and Elena arrived believing Ging was dead, then learned what had happened and joined the others in chiding Doon for his mistaken notice.

Gelman accompanied Shizuku to replace her broken glasses, then went to Abengane to remove his Bad Gambler curse. He also faced a choice about whether to meet Ging or wait for Biscuit and the others, who planned to take an All-Curing Herb to Chairman Netero.

• Gelman found Shizuku struggling to navigate without her broken glasses and guided her to breakfast.
• Biscuit told Gelman that she, Menchi, and Buhara planned to take an All-Curing Herb to Chairman Netero and expected to return within a week.
• Gelman realized his Teleport Lantern would recharge in five days and planned to discuss whether to meet Ging or wait for Biscuit's group at the afternoon meeting.
• Gelman took Shizuku to List, who made her a replacement pair of glasses in half an hour.
• Shizuku followed Gelman to the Treatment Room, where Gelman asked Abengane to remove his Bad Gambler negative trait.

Gelman tested an All-Curing Herb on himself and confirmed it cured his Tetanus immediately. He left Shubika to continue researching the herbs before a meeting of everyone on Greed Island.

• Abengane removed Gelman's Kleptomania, and Gelman tested whether he could resist stealing from Shizuku before losing a dice roll to her.
• Gelman and Shizuku visited Shubika, who was researching the 77 All-Curing Herbs brought back by the Gelman Squad.
• Shubika recognized Gelman's Tetanus and warned him that testing the herb on himself was risky, but Gelman persuaded her to let him try it.
• Gelman drank Shubika's Vanilla Potion, and he and Shubika confirmed that his Tetanus had disappeared.
• Shubika urged Gelman to report any unusual symptoms, and he left with Shizuku ahead of the afternoon meeting on Greed Island.