Chapter Summaries

Bai Xiaowen suspected the Black Wind Bandit Group was being directed by someone and took Li Shuyi to investigate its Cliffside Mine camp. They entered the camp under cover of darkness, intending to find a way to reach the mine cavern and capture the bandit leader.

• Bai Xiaowen explained that the Black Wind Bandit Group's unusual raids suggested someone might be directing it, though Jobb's memories had revealed no answer.
• Bai Xiaowen changed his illusion appearance to a hooded wizard's robe, and he and Li Shuyi traveled through the impoverished territory to Cliffside Mine.
• Bai Xiaowen used Insight on the guards and found that the Black Wind Bandit Group had Level 4 to Level 6 members and might have even stronger fighters inside the mine cavern.
• Bai Xiaowen rejected Li Shuyi's suggestion to kill the horses and planned to wait for an opening to sneak in rather than launch a frontal assault.
• After nightfall, Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi climbed over the camp's wooden fence while the bandits rested and a patrol and sentries remained on duty.

Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi infiltrated the Cliffside Mine Cavern to attack Ian, leader of the Black Wind Bandit Group, and learned that the bandits were holding a hostage. They began an ambush on Ian and his guards, while Ian tried to negotiate and revealed that he had a contract with Redleaf Lord Maki.

• Bai Xiaowen poisoned the bandits’ warhorses, then he and Li Shuyi slipped into the mine cavern under cover of night.
• They overheard Kitz and Herman discussing a hostage held in the northern mine pit, activating the A Tier side mission to rescue her.
• Bai Xiaowen decided to attack Ian before rescuing the hostage, and he and Li Shuyi found Ian asleep beside two Elite guards in the main mine pit.
• Bai Xiaowen coated the Shadow Assassin’s weapon and Li Shuyi’s sword with Potent Life Toxin, then launched an ambush on one of the guards.
• Ian awakened and joined the fight, blocking Li Shuyi’s attack as Bai Xiaowen wounded the targeted guard with a gunshot.
• Ian tried to negotiate, revealing that he had attacked the White Stone Silver Mine under a contract with Redleaf Lord Maki, but Bai Xiaowen continued the assault.

Bai Xiaowen fought bandit boss Ian and his guards in the mine, using his summons and Li Shuyi to bring down the elite bandits while Ian tried to hold them off. As more bandits arrived, Bai Xiaowen revealed his power with Orochi Nagi, and the chapter ended as he unleashed the flames a second time against Ian’s diehard followers.

• Ian blew a bone whistle and used Holy Hammer Strike, while his Devout Aura protected the nearby elite bandits.
• Bai Xiaowen used Intimidation to separate an injured elite bandit from Ian’s protection, and Li Shuyi and the summons poisoned and killed him.
• Ian used Prayer to break free of fear and charged to protect his remaining guard, but Rageclaw and the Skeleton Mage kept him from reaching the fight.
• Bai Xiaowen killed the injured guard and intimidated the servants and hesitant bandits by claiming to be Lord Dio acting for the Empire.
• Ian’s trusted followers rallied the arriving bandits, and Bai Xiaowen burned the front ranks with Orochi Nagi.
• Several diehard bandits charged again despite their injuries, and Bai Xiaowen unleashed Orochi Nagi a second time.

Bai Xiaowen defeated the bandits at Cliffside Mine Cavern and killed their Boss Tier leader, Ian. Ian died after asking Bai Xiaowen to guide the Blackwind Bandits toward justice.

• Bai Xiaowen used two Orochi Nagi attacks to burn and scatter the bandits, while Ian failed to stop them from fleeing.
• Li Shuyi and the others killed Ian’s final Elite Tier guard as Ian stunned Bai Xiaowen and charged to intervene.
• Bai Xiaowen dispelled the stun, interrupted Ian’s charge, and joined the team in surrounding him.
• The team wore down Ian’s heavy defenses, and Li Shuyi’s Demonfire Dance burst inflicted 42 damage through his shield.
• Ian asked Bai Xiaowen to guide the Blackwind Bandits onto a just path, then died and left a Golden Treasure Chest.

After killing Ian, Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi rescued the hostage from a suspended cage in the mine. The hostage, apprentice knight Bonita, joined them as they headed out to confront the fleeing bandits, and Bai Xiaowen received confirmation that the rescue quest was complete without seeing a reward.

• Bai Xiaowen collected the treasure chests with Li Shuyi and hurried to the northern mining pit to rescue the hostage before recruiting any bandits.
• Bai Xiaowen found the hostage locked in a cage hanging from the cavern ceiling and lowered it with a winch.
• The blue-haired girl, Bonita, stumbled out of the cage, and Li Shuyi caught her after the Shadow Assassin let go of her hand.
• Bonita told Li Shuyi that she was an apprentice knight of the Holy Light Church who had been captured after investigating the bandits while returning from a letter-delivery task.
• Bai Xiaowen led his summoned creatures toward the cave exit while Li Shuyi supported Bonita, and Bai Xiaowen received a notice that the Rescue side quest was complete.

Bai Xiaowen recruited Bonita after demanding she repay him by fighting alongside his forces, then confronted the fleeing bandits at their camp and offered them a chance to join his private guards. After demonstrating his control over the camp with Intimidation and a staged display of overwhelming power, he received the first bandit’s oath of loyalty.

• Bai Xiaowen pressed Bonita for compensation, and she agreed to fight alongside him until she had saved his life; the Spirit Realm Rules accepted her into his territory as an Elite Tier Level 4 Divine Grace Knight.
• Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi left the mine and found the bandit camp in chaos, with fleeing bandits struggling over horses that had suddenly collapsed with diarrhea.
• Bai Xiaowen declared himself Baron Dio Skalboom, announced Ian’s death, and offered gold to bandits who surrendered and joined his private guards.
• When a bandit tried to escape over the fence, Bai Xiaowen used Intimidation to freeze the camp and secretly used the Shadow Assassin to make his gunshot appear lethal.
• Harvey rushed forward, knelt before Bai Xiaowen, and swore loyalty to him.

Bai Xiaowen recruited the surrendered bandits, suppressed a loyalist who attacked him, and forced the gang to identify Ian’s remaining accomplices. He organized the survivors into groups and made Harvey his steward.

• Harvey and several bandits, including Elite Tier bandit Kitz, swore loyalty to Bai Xiaowen and received rewards.
• A burly bandit named Boris attacked Bai Xiaowen, who struck him with Dark Swipe before Rageclaw disarmed and subdued him.
• Kitz killed Boris to prove his loyalty, and Bai Xiaowen ordered the bandits to identify Ian’s accomplices.
• The bandits accused one another, and Bai Xiaowen selected three heavily accused men and had them executed.
• Bai Xiaowen counted 101 surrendered bandits and servants and ordered them to form groups of five.
• After learning Harvey had handled appraisals and valuations, Bai Xiaowen appointed him steward.

Bai Xiaowen reorganized the captured bandits into squads under strict collective-punishment rules, then looted the mine and turned them into the White Stone Town Guard. He ordered Kitz to lead them in hauling the mine’s supplies back to town, while the completed army quest awaited the conferral of knighthoods.

• Bai Xiaowen spared Harvey, ordered him to record the bandits’ five-man groups, and made each group collectively responsible for betrayal while splitting its members among five squads.
• Bai Xiaowen appointed Kitz captain of the first squad and sent the bandits to dismantle the stockade and search the mine, recovering goods while his gold dwindled to forty-seven coins and his forces rose to 102.
• The Spirit Realm Rules informed Bai Xiaowen that his army quest requirements were met and clarified that qualifying soldiers could be granted knighthoods; Li Shuyi suggested knighting a bandit, but Bai Xiaowen declined to hurry.
• Bai Xiaowen reprimanded Kitz for scattering the stockade timber and ordered him to transport all the supplies to White Stone Town.
• Kitz rallied the bandits to carry the timber and supplies down the mountain, while Bai Xiaowen approved of his loyalty and leadership.

After returning to White Stone Town, Bai Xiaowen secured the residents’ support and discovered that Ian had been a Holy Light knight investigating the Necrotic Plague. Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi accepted a Heroic Tier quest to uncover its source and obtained several valuable items, including a Plague Detector, a gold necklace, and a temporary team-building item.

• Bai Xiaowen welcomed the former Black Wind Bandits into the White Stone Town Construction Corps and promised homes and food to the residents who joined his rebuilding effort.
• The residents flocked to apply for wooden houses and work, while Bai Xiaowen’s Lord Panel showed increased population, supplies, public support, and habitability.
• Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi read Ian’s log and learned that he had been a Holy Light knight investigating the Necrotic Plague under the code name Black Edge.
• The Spirit Realm issued the Heroic Tier side quest Truth of the Plague, and Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi accepted it.
• Bai Xiaowen drew the Plague Detector but could not recharge it without faith in the Holy Light, while Li Shuyi drew the Arbiter’s Resolve necklace and Bai Xiaowen equipped it.
• Bai Xiaowen drew the Broken Oath, a temporary team-building item that could let two Awakened explore a Spirit Realm plane together.

After raiding the Black Wind Bandit Group, Bai Xiaowen learned that Dr. Makihara’s soul had retained its consciousness inside the Black Soul Stone and negotiated to make him a research assistant. The chapter ended with Bai Xiaowen giving Dr. Makihara a Zombie body, which he immediately began examining as a research specimen.

• Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi divided the raid’s spoils, including a Temporary Team-Building Item and two pieces of Gold Equipment, while Bai Xiaowen considered how to use the captured bandits.
• Banshee Delifa revealed that Dr. Makihara’s complete, self-aware soul had been absorbed by the Black Soul Stone, and Bai Xiaowen explained the stone’s function to Li Shuyi.
• Dr. Makihara asked Bai Xiaowen for a chance to research the Necrotic Plague, and they agreed that Makihara would follow Bai Xiaowen’s orders, limited to three each month.
• Bai Xiaowen spent 50 Soul Essence to unlock a Standard Template Zombie and had it merge with Dr. Makihara’s soul.
• The Zombie took on Dr. Makihara’s appearance, and the newly named Zombie Doctor marveled at his undead body’s mobility and potential for research.

Bai Xiaowen established a team to investigate the Necrotic Plague in White Stone Town, using the Plague Detector and Bonita’s faith to activate it. The team prepared to trace the attack sites recorded in Ian’s Log.

• Bai Xiaowen asked Zombie Doctor to examine the Plague Detector, and Zombie Doctor identified its components and the need for pure, light-aligned mental energy.
• Bai Xiaowen summoned Bonita and learned about the church’s secret Black Edge Arbiter knights.
• Bonita prayed for ten minutes and charged the Plague Detector, which displayed one available use.
• Bai Xiaowen declared the White Stone Town Necrotic Plague Investigation Team established, counting himself, Li Shuyi, Zombie Doctor, and Bonita.
• Bai Xiaowen marked Ian’s attack locations on a map in the order listed in Ian’s Log.

Bai Xiaowen swept three bandit dens and inspected the captives for Necrotic Plague spreaders. He caught and subdued W-07, then used a Heart-Confounding Talisman to control him and began examining his memories.

• Bai Xiaowen ordered Zombie Doctor to research the Necrotic Plague and assigned two guard squads to remain in White Stone Town while he took three others to raid bandit dens.
• Bai Xiaowen captured the bandits from all three dens and had Bonita use a Plague Detector to inspect them.
• A disguised spreader revealed himself, crushed Bonita's monocle, and attacked her before Li Shuyi, Bai Xiaowen, and the guards subdued him.
• Bai Xiaowen revealed that the destroyed monocle was a fake and used a Heart-Confounding Talisman to control Plague Spreader W-07.
• Bai Xiaowen spent Psionic Points to activate Telepathy and examine W-07's memory fragments.

Bai Xiaowen spent two days absorbing White Stone Town’s bandit groups, then revealed that W-07’s memories pointed to a much larger Necrotic Plague threat. He explained that the plague was a race-targeting viral war controlled by an entity called the Overlord, and that W-07 was the seventh Spreader assigned to the original White Stone Fief.

• Bai Xiaowen expanded White Stone Town’s guard force with captured bandits and townsfolk, then distributed half the plundered gold among the bandits.
• Bai Xiaowen led his enlarged force to absorb the bandit groups across White Stone Town, killing leaders who resisted and clearing more than ten groups in two days.
• Li Shuyi questioned why Bai Xiaowen had spent two days on bandits when their time in the Kane Plane was limited, while Bonita praised the town’s rescue.
• Bai Xiaowen said he had searched W-07’s memories and discovered that their situation was worse than expected.
• Bai Xiaowen explained that the Necrotic Plague was a viral war controlled by the Overlord, apparently targeting Humans, and that W-07 was the seventh Spreader in the original White Stone Fief.

Bai Xiaowen led 327 guards from White Stone Town into Redleaf Fief after learning that the Necrotic Plague spreaders had infiltrated the territory. He infiltrated Redleaf City and opened its gate, but his advance stalled when Terror Knight Commander Jericho counterattacked and began raising fallen soldiers as undead.

• Bai Xiaowen gathered 327 former bandits and civilians, then marched toward Redleaf Fief despite Bonita’s warning that entering another lord’s territory could count as an invasion.
• Bai Xiaowen’s forces silently killed three undead sentries outside Redleaf City, confirming that its guards had been corrupted by the Undead Plague.
• Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi climbed into Redleaf City, killed the gate guards, and opened the fortress gate for Kitz and the approaching bandits.
• Bai Xiaowen’s troops fought through the city streets and advanced toward the Lord’s Manor, but met fierce resistance at the central square.
• Jericho led a charge that killed several bandits, raised one as an undead soldier, and inflicted Fear on Bai Xiaowen’s summoned creatures.

Bai Xiaowen led the bandits in an assault on the Lord's Manor after three powerful Bosses appeared on the battlefield. They cornered Lich Ebizel inside, where Li Shuyi began attacking him.

• Lord Maki revealed himself as a Level 5 Hero Class wizard, while the black-robed mastermind Ebizel appeared as a Level 6 Lich Boss and covered the battlefield in Withering Mist.
• Bai Xiaowen recognized that the three Bosses and Undead Legion overwhelmed the bandits, then ordered everyone to charge into the Lord's Manor and fight rather than surrender.
• Bai Xiaowen used a Binding Talisman to hold Jericho in place while the bandits rushed past him and out of the Withering Mist.
• Bai Xiaowen targeted Ebizel, and his Fear Status and the Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldiers' Shield Bash drove the Lich into the manor hall.
• Li Shuyi charged into the hall and interrupted Ebizel's dark-energy attack before building up her attack speed and activating Demonfire Dance.

Bai Xiaowen’s forces fought to defeat Lich Ebizer and Terror Knight Commander Jericho while Lord Maki supported the undead from the West Tower. After Li Shuyi killed Ebizer, Bai Xiaowen charged the tower alone and began a close-range duel with Maki, who revealed that he had accepted undeath in pursuit of knowledge.

• Li Shuyi used Demonfire Dance to rapidly weaken Lich Ebizer, while Bai Xiaowen used bandits to exhaust Ebizer’s Frostguard and prevent him from trapping her with Ice Burst.
• Terror Knight Commander Jericho smashed through the Lord’s Manor and joined the fight, but Bai Xiaowen’s Skeleton Sword-and-Shield Soldiers slowed his charge as Rageclaw’s Howl rallied the bandits.
• Li Shuyi killed Lich Ebizer and took the Golden Treasure Chest, then joined the fight against Jericho, whose Flesh Whirlwind killed nearly ten bandits and triggered Blood Enslavement.
• After Lord Maki’s lightning killed the Shadow Assassin, Bai Xiaowen left Rageclaw with Li Shuyi and charged the West Tower, using Orochi Nagi to destroy the Soulkin blocking his path.
• Bai Xiaowen used Swooping Flight to enter the tower through a second-floor window and reached Maki on the third-floor balcony, where they exchanged ranged attacks as undead guards approached.
• Maki told Bai Xiaowen that he had accepted becoming a Lich to gain endless time for the pursuit of knowledge.

Bai Xiaowen overwhelmed Lord Maki in close combat and blocked the Undead Guards while trying to keep the battle at the manor from collapsing. With the bandits faltering against Jericho, Li Shuyi activated Zhao Yun’s Mark and turned the fight against the Terror Knight Commander.

• Bai Xiaowen grappled Lord Maki off the balcony, battered him with close-range attacks, and used his Bronze Man Token to block the Undead Guards from reaching them.
• Bai Xiaowen sent Kitz a message claiming Maki would fall within a minute, boosting the bandits’ morale as they fought Jericho.
• Bai Xiaowen told Li Shuyi to use her one-time trump card, and she activated Zhao Yun’s Mark, gaining powerful combat techniques for 30 seconds.
• Li Shuyi used Jericho’s momentum to knock him off his mount, then launched him into the air and began a sustained sword combo.
• Li Shuyi ordered the bandits back and finished her combo, dealing 57 damage and severing one of Jericho’s arms.

Li Shuyi defeated Jericho while Bai Xiaowen and the bandits killed Maki, allowing them to seize Redleaf City and uncover the Necrotic Plague research lab beneath it. The discovery completed the first stage of the plague quest, and Bai Xiaowen tasked Zombie Doctor with developing an antidote while preserving the lab’s research.

• Li Shuyi crippled Jericho with Zhao Yun’s Mark, while Bai Xiaowen ordered the bandits to charge toward the West Tower and confront Maki.
• Bai Xiaowen interrupted Maki’s spell with Intimidation and kicked him into Rageclaw and the bandits, who killed him during Suppression.
• Bai Xiaowen’s forces routed the undead, took control of Redleaf City, and chose to occupy it despite the Empire’s warning.
• Bai Xiaowen used a Heart-Confounding Talisman on an undead servant, learned of the underground lab, and discovered its plague research records beneath the ruined manor.
• The lab’s discovery completed the first stage of the Heroic Tier quest, and Bai Xiaowen learned he must visit Archbishop Arlo or Prince Nicholas at Blackrock Fortress.
• Bai Xiaowen ordered Zombie Doctor to develop a plague antidote within five days and forbade him from experimenting on healthy humans without permission.

Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi opened the treasure chests of the Undead Legion leaders and acquired powerful loot, including an unbound Gold sword for Li Shuyi. They also uncovered Lich Ebizer’s plan to spread the Necrotic Plague across Redleaf Fief, and the chapter left the threat of the mysterious Overlord’s undead forces looming.

• Bai Xiaowen opened Lord Maki’s chest, received a Fief Decree for Redleaf Fief, and drew a Four-Star Equipment Enhancement Card while Li Shuyi drew the Gold [Redleaf Lord's Glory Sword].
• Bai Xiaowen pointed out that the sword had no binding restriction, then assigned it to Li Shuyi, who planned to dual-wield it with her [Refined Thrust Sword].
• Bai Xiaowen opened Lich Ebizer’s chest; the team received a B battle rating, with Li Shuyi contributing more damage than Bai Xiaowen for the first time in a Boss battle.
• Bai Xiaowen examined the guaranteed [Necrotic Plague Plan] and learned that residents throughout Redleaf Fief carried the virus and could become undead controlled by the mysterious Overlord.

Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi looted the defeated commanders, then began pacifying Redleaf City and rewarding the bandits. Two days after Bai Xiaowen revealed the Necrotic Plague and sought test subjects, a warning whistle sounded from the city walls.

• Li Shuyi drew the Withering Mist Scroll, and Bai Xiaowen drew the Whispering Grimoire from Lich Ebizer's chest.
• Bai Xiaowen and Li Shuyi opened Jericho's chest, obtaining Jericho's Log, the Broken Oath, Cry of the Dead, and Knight's Bracer.
• Bai Xiaowen knighted Kitz, promised more knighthoods for meritorious bandits, and distributed some of Redleaf City's wealth among them.
• Bai Xiaowen posted a notice explaining the Necrotic Plague and asking infected residents to volunteer for experiments, which frightened the populace and sparked unrest.
• Bai Xiaowen's bandit guard arrested looters and arsonists, while Zombie Doctor gathered plague samples from criminals and volunteers.
• Two days later, a bone warning whistle sounded as the bandit guard patrolled Redleaf City's walls.