Chapter Summaries

Summary of “Now One-Eyed”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Esmeralda visits Lan Qingyou to have her damaged Magic Eye removed, since it is nearly unusable.
• She also brings a newly created Witch advancement potion and implicitly asks Lan Qingyou to supervise her transformation in case it fails or causes her to lose her sanity or humanity.
• Lan Qingyou removes Esmeralda’s ruined eye. Esmeralda immediately pours an Ultimate Life Potion over the wound, healing it completely, though she is left with a frightening empty socket.
• Esmeralda covers the socket with a prepared eyepatch, adopting a pirate-like appearance.
• She reveals that her advancement potion combines Witch and Demon elements, with a Vampire Evolution Item serving as the “third-party” component.
• As Esmeralda prepares to drink the potion, Lan Qingyou worries that the transformation could turn her into a destructive monster and damage the shelter. She suggests moving somewhere safer before the evolution begins.

Character Developments

• Esmeralda demonstrates determination, preparation, and ruthlessness by calmly removing her own eye before attempting a dangerous evolution. She is willing to risk losing her humanity in pursuit of greater power and possibly hopes the evolution will restore her eye.
• Lan Qingyou acts as both healer and potential guardian. She understands that Esmeralda trusts her to stop her if the transformation goes wrong, but she remains practical and concerned about protecting her shelter.
• Esmeralda’s potion represents a possible transition from witch toward a hybrid form incorporating Vampire and Demon traits.

Significant Themes

• Transformation and sacrifice: Esmeralda sacrifices her damaged eye as a necessary step toward evolution.
• Power versus humanity: The potion may grant new abilities but could also cost Esmeralda her sanity or human identity.
• Trust and responsibility: Esmeralda relies on Lan Qingyou to monitor and possibly eliminate her if she becomes dangerous.
• Balance between magical and physical power: The combination of Witch, Vampire, and Demon elements suggests an attempt to merge different evolutionary paths.

Character Interactions

• Lan Qingyou recognizes Esmeralda’s unspoken request for supervision, showing how well she understands her.
• She treats Esmeralda’s wound and uses a Purification Flower to clean the blood, while Esmeralda uses the Life Potion to complete the healing.
• Their conversation mixes serious danger with humor: Lan Qingyou teases Esmeralda about her eyepatch and pirate appearance, while Esmeralda explains the potion’s green color.
• Just before Esmeralda drinks the potion, Lan Qingyou’s practical concern about property damage interrupts the tense moment, highlighting their familiar and somewhat comedic relationship.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Esmeralda and Lan Qingyou relocate to an abandoned quarry so Esmeralda can safely test her racial advancement potion without endangering others.
• Esmeralda drinks ten milliliters of the potion, while Lan Qingyou prepares large-scale Gravity Magic to restrain or seal her if the transformation goes wrong.
• The advancement occurs quietly, without pain, a visible transformation, or any dramatic magical effect.
• Esmeralda’s race changes from Witch to Calamity Witch, confirming the potion’s success.
• Her former talent, Lucky Divination, transforms into Planetary Radiance, Celestial Observation.
• The new talent allows Esmeralda to draw upon the tidal power of celestial bodies and deliberately trigger disasters such as Mana Turbulences and Mana Tides. Her divination accuracy remains perfect, but she now requires celestial bodies rather than ordinary tools like a crystal ball.
• Her damaged eye does not regenerate despite the racial advancement.
• Lan Qingyou begins considering whether improving her own race might be the key to advancing her talents.
• Lan Qingyou questions which racial component—Witch, Vampire, or Demon—dominates Esmeralda’s composite advancement potion, suggesting that the potion’s racial “inclination” may affect its results.

Character Developments

• Esmeralda demonstrates courage and scientific curiosity by willingly testing an uncertain potion, despite the possibility of becoming a monster or dying. After advancing, she gains an extraordinarily powerful calamity-based talent but remains pragmatic about her unrepaired eye.
• Lan Qingyou initially prepares to control Esmeralda if necessary, showing caution and responsibility. After witnessing the successful transformation, she becomes impressed—and faintly envious—of Esmeralda’s new power. The result also gives her a new research direction: evolving her race to improve her talents.

Significant Themes

• Risk and experimentation: Esmeralda accepts personal danger to test the potion she created, emphasizing the costs and rewards of magical research.
• Power through transformation: Advancement changes not only Esmeralda’s race but also the nature and scale of her abilities.
• Calamity as power: Esmeralda’s new talent turns natural magical disasters into tools she can intentionally unleash, making her a potential humanoid catastrophe.
• Limits of evolution: Despite gaining a higher racial form, Esmeralda’s lost eye remains unrepaired, showing that advancement cannot reverse every injury.
• Scientific analysis and uncertainty: The characters focus on potion composition, success conditions, and racial influence, treating magical evolution as something to be studied systematically.

Character Interactions

• Esmeralda and Lan Qingyou exchange dark jokes about killing and burying Esmeralda, reflecting their comfort and trust despite the danger.
• Lan Qingyou watches Esmeralda closely during the test and is prepared to restrain her, but relaxes once the transformation succeeds.
• Lan Qingyou praises Esmeralda’s advancement while expressing rare envy toward her powerful new talent.
• Their discussion shifts from celebrating the transformation to analyzing the potion’s racial composition, setting up further investigation into how composite potions produce evolutionary results.

Chapter Summary: “I’ll Trade You with a Magic Eye”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Esmeralda explains to Lan Qingyou that the new potion made through the Magic Eye requires the Witch Potion to be used at roughly twice the amount of the other two ingredients—a general two-to-one-to-one ratio.
• She warns Lan Qingyou that this ratio is only a reference because the potion was created through the Magic Eye’s special ability. Lan Qingyou will need to conduct her own alchemical research to reproduce it.
• Lan Qingyou confirms that she intends to study the potion during her planned seclusion. Her goal is to develop it through alchemy, which is her specialty.
• Lan Qingyou proposes taking Esmeralda’s nearly ruined Magic Eye in exchange for another Magic Eye. She hopes to discover a method for restoring damaged Magic Eyes.
• Esmeralda initially offers the damaged eye freely, since she already possesses a new one, but Lan Qingyou insists that a fair exchange is necessary.
• Lan Qingyou reveals her main reason for the exchange: she wants to test whether witches can use Magic Eyes taken from other witches without suffering rejection or dangerous incompatibility.
• Esmeralda agrees enthusiastically to become the test subject. The experiment could reveal whether witches can safely combine Magic Eyes with different magical outputs.
• The two return to High Tower Shelter and enter Lan Qingyou’s enormous warehouse, which contains countless Magic Items, potions, experimental creations, and dangerous Magic Puppets.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou is shown to be ambitious, methodical, and deeply interested in magical research. She immediately begins planning how to reproduce Esmeralda’s potion through alchemy and sees the Magic Eye exchange as an opportunity for major scientific discovery.
• Esmeralda demonstrates generosity and open-mindedness. Although the damaged Magic Eye was once hers, she no longer values it after receiving a replacement and willingly allows Lan Qingyou to study it. She is also willing to risk being an experimental subject.
• Their relationship develops into one based on mutual trust and intellectual cooperation. Both are willing to share valuable magical resources for the benefit of witches as a whole.

Significant Themes

• Scientific experimentation and innovation: The chapter emphasizes developing new potions and testing unknown magical principles rather than relying solely on established methods.
• The advancement of witches as a race: Restoring damaged Magic Eyes could benefit witches broadly, while allowing witches to reuse the eyes of the dead could make valuable abilities available instead of leaving them unused.
• Trust and cooperation: Lan Qingyou and Esmeralda exchange knowledge and resources despite the risks involved.
• The value of dangerous knowledge: The potential dangers of combining Magic Eyes are acknowledged, but the characters accept calculated risks to expand their understanding.
• Life, death, and preservation: The discussion of Magic Eyes from deceased witches highlights how their abilities might continue to serve others even after their owners are gone.

Character Interactions

• Esmeralda gives Lan Qingyou practical guidance about the potion’s ingredients while cautioning her not to treat the ratio as exact.
• Lan Qingyou openly admits her intention to research the potion, establishing a respectful rivalry and shared scholarly interest.
• Lan Qingyou offers Esmeralda another Magic Eye in exchange for the damaged one, but Esmeralda declines the need for compensation.
• Lan Qingyou insists on an exchange and explains the experimental purpose behind it, persuading Esmeralda to participate.
• Their conversation ends with both witches traveling together to the High Tower Shelter, where Esmeralda reacts with astonishment to the vast and hazardous collection in Lan Qingyou’s warehouse.

Chapter Summary: “Replacing the Magic Eye”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou brings Esmeralda to a warehouse containing a small memorial altar lined with bottles of preserved Magic Eyes.
• The altar commemorates deceased witches, and Lan explains that she will only offer Esmeralda Magic Eyes preserved in pairs. Single surviving eyes will remain untouched so the dead can still be honored.
• Esmeralda chooses one Magic Eye and undergoes a transplant performed by Lan Qingyou, assisted by two medically skilled Black Witches.
• The operation succeeds. Esmeralda remains conscious throughout, using paralysis magic to block her senses and even commenting on the procedure as though operating on herself.
• Lan insists that Esmeralda remain under observation for three hours, during which Esmeralda tests her new eye and eats while waiting.
• Because the Magic Eye is severely depleted—containing only about five percent of the Magic Power of a normal eye—Lan develops a special nutrient solution designed not only to preserve it but gradually restore its power.
• Lan’s initial calculations suggest the eye will recover by only about one percent per month, provided the solution is replaced daily. Though dissatisfied with the slow rate, she decides to begin testing the formula and improve it later.

Character Developments

• Esmeralda demonstrates respect for the dead by refusing to take a lone surviving Magic Eye. Her willingness to undergo surgery while conscious highlights her courage, control, and familiarity with dangerous procedures.
• She also shows a practical, relaxed attitude, accepting the three-hour observation period partly because it includes a free meal and gives her time to experiment with her new ability.
• Lan Qingyou appears compassionate and respectful toward the deceased, but her scientific curiosity is equally strong. Although she presents the restoration project as a noble effort, she privately recognizes that personal interest motivates her as well.
• The two Black Witches are enthusiastic about observing the operation, treating the rare procedure as an invaluable learning opportunity.

Significant Themes

• Respect for the dead: Magic Eyes retain a connection to their former owners, making memorial altars spiritually meaningful rather than merely symbolic.
• Science and morality: The chapter balances medical experimentation with ethical boundaries, particularly the decision not to remove the final eye from a deceased witch’s remains.
• Practicality versus sentiment: Esmeralda and Lan both acknowledge emotional and spiritual concerns, but they approach them with pragmatic reasoning.
• Curiosity and self-interest: Even noble actions can be driven partly by personal ambition or scientific fascination.
• Restoration and preservation: Lan’s attempt to revive the depleted Magic Eye introduces the challenge of repairing something nearly beyond use.

Character Interactions

• Lan initially mocks Esmeralda’s laughter, but Esmeralda does not take offense, reflecting their familiar and teasing relationship.
• Lan explains the memorial altar and its rules, while Esmeralda quickly accepts the ethical reasoning behind leaving paired eyes untouched.
• During the transplant, Lan leads the procedure with help from the Black Witches, while Esmeralda remains awake and offers technical comments.
• Afterward, Lan urges Esmeralda to stay for observation, revealing her caution and medical responsibility. Esmeralda agrees once she understands the intended duration.
• Their cooperation combines trust, professional rivalry, scientific interest, and mutual irreverence.

Chapter Summary: “Human Favors Are Easy Enough to Repay”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Three hours after the Magic Eye transplant, Lan Qingyou checks on Esmeralda while they eat. Esmeralda reports that the replacement eyes feel completely natural and cause no discomfort.
• Esmeralda considers whether the same transplantation method might eventually be used on the Magic Eyes she possesses, though only after proper mourning rites.
• The chapter explains the difference between the Black and Red Witches’ funerary practices. Black Witches are more difficult to recover because of their reckless, combat-oriented nature, while Red Witches usually operate in teams, allowing their bodies to be retrieved and resurrected through portals. This accounts for the relatively low number of permanent deaths among them.
• Esmeralda returns to her sanctuary, while Lan Qingyou reflects on the success of the transplant. Although the experiment relieved some pressure, Lan still has many larger responsibilities.
• Inspired by Esmeralda’s transformation, Lan Qingyou prepares to research a Race Advancement Potion for herself. She becomes confident that the method can work because Esmeralda’s advancement proves that the underlying approach is viable.
• Lan asks the group chat members to sell her Evolution Items. The others are confused because Esmeralda, whom they know as a Witch, has apparently advanced into a new race.
• Esmeralda shares edited screenshots of her status, revealing her new race, Calamity Witch, and the powerful talents Planetary Radiance and Celestial Observation. The revelations shock the entire group.
• She then reveals that the transformation was achieved through a Race Advancement Potion. However, the item description states that only its creator can use it, disappointing the others and implying that advancement requires the user to be a powerful alchemist.
• Vivian, the High Priestess, realizes that Lan needs Evolution Items to create the potion. In repayment for Lan’s previous help, Vivian immediately offers ten thousand tubes of energy liquid made from Young Jormungandr blood.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou gains confidence in her alchemical research. The successful eye transplant serves as proof that her theories are workable, and she shifts her attention toward creating her own Race Advancement Potion.
• Esmeralda is fully satisfied with her new eyes and becomes the source of the group’s major revelation. Her transformation into a Calamity Witch establishes her as an even more extraordinary and powerful figure.
• Vivian demonstrates gratitude and generosity by offering a massive quantity of rare resources without hesitation.
• The group members move from curiosity and excitement to shock and disappointment as they learn about the potion’s limitations.

Significant Themes

• Scientific and magical experimentation: Success comes from testing an unconventional method and recognizing that a viable path matters more than the obstacles along it.
• Advancement through innovation: Lan’s research suggests that racial evolution is not necessarily fixed; it may be achieved through sufficiently advanced alchemy.
• The cost and limits of power: Esmeralda’s transformation inspires envy and excitement, but the potion’s creator-only restriction makes advancement extremely difficult for others.
• Gratitude and repayment: Vivian’s donation reinforces the chapter’s title, showing that personal favors can create valuable alliances and be repaid through practical support.
• Death, mourning, and resurrection: The discussion of Witch funerals emphasizes the different cultures and survival mechanisms of the Black and Red Witches.

Important Character Interactions

• Lan questions Esmeralda about the transplant and reassures her that she should report any future complications.
• Esmeralda’s status reveal causes the group chat to erupt with questions about her new race and talents.
• Death reacts especially strongly, demanding to know how the transformation was achieved and offering to pay a high price.
• Vivian connects Lan’s request for Evolution Items to the Race Advancement Potion and responds by donating ten thousand tubes of energy liquid, directly supporting Lan’s next experiment.

Chapter Summary: Making [Race Advancement Potion]

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou offers an exchange: one drop of Star Dragon King blood for three Evolution Items. The offer immediately attracts the various races, since Star Dragon King blood is a far superior crafting material to Young Jormungandr blood.
• She theorizes that the Young Jormungandrs may possess Jormungandr’s remains. Their transformation from ancient humans into Young Jormungandrs likely resulted from properly using or absorbing Jormungandr’s body after witnessing its ascension.
• Lan Qingyou also recalls rumors about the Star Dragon King’s body and decides to investigate both mysteries herself, since Helen has not yet found useful information.
• The races rapidly send her their Evolution Items, providing nearly one hundred thousand materials, which she combines with her existing Demon Potions.
• Lan Qingyou begins researching how different Evolution Items interact. She considers whether the Race Advancement Potion is universal or whether its dominant ingredient determines the resulting advanced race:
  • Witch ingredients might produce a Calamity Witch.
  • Demon ingredients might produce a Calamity Demon.
  • Other combinations could potentially create advanced vampires, elves, and other races.
• She organizes combinations of three, four, and five Evolution Items while accounting for compatibility and the need to preprocess certain materials.
• Her first major experiment uses Esmeralda’s successful ratio formula, but Lan Qingyou attempts to recreate it through systematic alchemical brewing rather than Esmeralda’s Fusion ability.
• After a month of experimentation, she produces her first successful batch. Using meteorite cauldrons instead of crude ceramic vats, she refines one cauldron into fifty-three vials of Race Advancement Potion.
• Unlike Esmeralda’s individually fused potions, Lan Qingyou’s brewed potions are produced in batches and possess success rates, suggesting they can be tested and reproduced more systematically.

Character Development

• Lan Qingyou becomes increasingly analytical and methodical. Rather than relying on intuition or special abilities, she approaches potion-making like a researcher, recording combinations, reactions, risks, and ingredient quality in detailed notebooks.
• Her ambition expands beyond merely reproducing an existing potion. She seeks to discover the principles governing racial evolution and determine whether different races can achieve unique advanced forms.
• She also demonstrates greater independence by choosing to investigate the bodies of Jormungandr and the Star Dragon King herself instead of relying entirely on Helen’s incomplete investigation.
• Esmeralda’s previous success remains important, as her formula provides the foundation for Lan Qingyou’s experiments. However, Lan Qingyou’s brewing method represents a more reproducible and potentially scalable approach.

Significant Themes

• Scientific experimentation and discovery: Lan Qingyou treats alchemy as a process of controlled experimentation, documentation, and repeated testing.
• Evolution and transformation: The chapter explores how creatures change into higher life forms, whether through bloodlines, magical materials, worship, or the use of a powerful being’s remains.
• Power hierarchy and resource exchange: Star Dragon King blood is treated as an exceptionally valuable resource, reflecting the importance of biological rank and superior crafting materials.
• Knowledge versus speculation: Lan Qingyou forms bold theories about Jormungandr’s body and the nature of racial evolution but recognizes that these ideas must eventually be verified.
• Mass production and reproducibility: The contrast between Esmeralda’s Fusion-produced potions and Lan Qingyou’s brewed batches highlights the shift from unique experimentation toward reliable production.

Character Interactions

• Lan Qingyou negotiates with the various races through the group chat, offering Star Dragon King blood in return for their Evolution Items.
• The races eagerly cooperate, sending her large quantities of materials because they value the blood more than the items they surrender.
• Lan Qingyou’s earlier discussion with Esmeralda influences her current research, particularly her interest in which ingredient has “dominance” in a potion formula.
• Helen remains involved indirectly through her earlier assignment to investigate the Star Dragon King’s body, though her lack of findings prompts Lan Qingyou to take personal responsibility for the investigation.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou successfully creates a Race Advancement Potion, though its success rate is only 0.1%. Unlike Esmeralda’s potion, which can directly advance a target if the fusion succeeds, Lan Qingyou’s version relies almost entirely on chance.
• Because Lan Qingyou is effectively immortal and unconcerned with time or material costs, she accepts the low odds and plans to mass-produce the potion until one succeeds.
• She drinks the first potion herself. It tastes like diluted bitter melon juice, leading her to brew and consume the potions repeatedly while working.
• To reduce the tedium, Lan Qingyou assigns basic brewing tasks to her Industrial Magic Puppets and begins considering more advanced formulas using four or five Evolution Items. She believes greater difficulty may bring greater rewards, based on her self-invented “Power of I-Think-So” theory.
• Lan Qingyou then turns her attention to obtaining Gross’s blood, believing it could serve as an exceptionally powerful alchemical ingredient. Since she possesses two lumps of Gross’s flesh, she decides to extract “bloody water” from them.
• She summons Gu Xiaobei, who cuts the flesh into pieces and soaks them to extract the liquid. Lan Qingyou also brings in Vivian, a True Ancestor vampire, to collect and purify the blood.
• Vivian immediately points out that the process is unnecessarily complicated. Using her blood-control ability, she effortlessly condenses a bead of blood at her fingertip.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou is shown to be relentlessly optimistic, patient, and willing to rely on absurdly low probabilities. Her immense lifespan makes repeated experimentation seem trivial to her.
• She remains highly ambitious as an alchemist, already considering harder and more powerful potion formulas despite having only just completed the three-item version.
• Lan Qingyou also displays a practical but eccentric management style, delegating repetitive work to magical constructs and recruiting others as specialized labor.
• Gu Xiaobei is portrayed as competent and somewhat exasperated by Lan Qingyou’s bizarre assignments. Although she finds the “professional” extraction process ridiculous, she agrees because the promised blood may help her overcome her inability to advance without alchemy.
• Vivian is characterized as confident, powerful, and efficient. Her status as a True Ancestor gives her natural authority over blood, and she immediately replaces the cumbersome procedure with a simple magical solution.

Significant Themes

• Probability versus persistence: Lan Qingyou treats even a 0.1% success rate as an acceptable challenge, emphasizing that persistence and unlimited resources can overcome poor odds.
• Innovation and experimentation: The chapter highlights Lan Qingyou’s willingness to test increasingly complex methods and pursue unlikely breakthroughs.
• Magic versus unnecessary inconvenience: The title reflects the contrast between elaborate practical procedures and the effortless solutions available through powerful magic.
• Alchemy as resource exploitation: Rare materials, blood, body parts, and Evolution Items are treated as tools for advancement, underscoring the experimental and sometimes absurd nature of the world’s alchemy.
• Advancement and inequality: Gu Xiaobei and Vivian both struggle with advancement restrictions because they are not alchemists, while Lan Qingyou’s discoveries may provide them with new opportunities.

Character Interactions

• Lan Qingyou privately compares her potion with Esmeralda’s superior version, motivating her to keep experimenting.
• She relies on Gu Xiaobei for the physical extraction of blood and promises her two drops as compensation.
• Gu Xiaobei and Vivian are brought together as unwilling assistants, with Gu Xiaobei handling the extraction and Vivian expected to control the resulting blood.
• Vivian’s final intervention humorously exposes how excessive Lan Qingyou’s plan was: what required soaking, cutting, and magical collection can be achieved instantly through blood manipulation.

Chapter Summary: “Something Suddenly Came to Mind”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Vivian demonstrates precise control over her blood-manipulation ability by extracting nearly all of Gross’s remaining blood from his meat and body parts. She condenses it into a ping-pong-ball-sized sphere, which Lan Qingyou identifies as Gross’s Blood.
• Lan Qingyou estimates that the sphere contains roughly thirty to forty milliliters—around seven or eight hundred drops—enough to make a large number of potions.
• Vivian provocatively claims that, because Hajibe—Gu Xiaobei—did not contribute, she should receive Gu Xiaobei’s share of the blood.
• Gu Xiaobei retaliates by tackling Vivian. The two engage in a childish but intense physical wrestling match, refusing to use magic or special abilities.
• Lan Qingyou interrupts them by removing gravity, causing both women to float apart. She then reveals that she has thought of another place where Vivian’s blood-extraction ability might be useful.
• Lan Qingyou opens a Portal and brings Vivian and Gu Xiaobei to a dimly lit city resembling a modern Blue Star metropolis.
• Upon their arrival, air-raid sirens sound. A squad of Demon Race members from the Punishment Squad approaches Lan Qingyou.
• The squad captain recognizes her as Lord Lan Qingyou, Patriarch of the Black Witch and explains that the alarm automatically activates whenever anyone who is not a Demon enters the city.
• Lan Qingyou realizes the security system was likely added by Victoria after her previous surprise attack, but she regards it as ineffective and mostly symbolic.
• The chapter ends with Vivian and Gu Xiaobei realizing that they are in Demon Race territory, possibly the Sallek Family’s domain mentioned earlier by Esmeralda.

Character Developments

• Vivian displays remarkable refinement in her blood manipulation. Her years of imprisonment gave her time to study and master her abilities, allowing her to perform a delicate task far beyond Marshall’s previous level of control.
• Gu Xiaobei remains competitive, hot-tempered, and playful. Although she knows Vivian is joking, she reacts dramatically, reinforcing their long-standing habit of bickering.
• Lan Qingyou continues to act as the practical leader of the group. She recognizes the greater potential of Vivian’s ability and immediately devises a plan to exploit it.
• The chapter emphasizes that Vivian and Gu Xiaobei, despite being over a century old, retain a youthful and mischievous relationship.

Significant Themes

• Mastery through time and confinement: Vivian’s imprisonment, while restrictive, allowed her to develop extraordinary precision with her powers.
• Playful rivalry and enduring relationships: Vivian and Gu Xiaobei’s quarrel shows that long-lived characters can preserve humor, familiarity, and emotional spontaneity over centuries.
• Resourcefulness and strategic thinking: Lan Qingyou sees practical value in Vivian’s ability and quickly turns a small discovery into a larger opportunity.
• Security versus true protection: The Demon city’s warning system represents an attempt to defend against intruders, but Lan Qingyou considers it little more than psychological reassurance.

Character Interactions

• Vivian deliberately provokes Gu Xiaobei by claiming her share of Gross’s Blood.
• Gu Xiaobei responds with mock fury, and the two wrestle without magic, suggesting deep familiarity beneath their insults.
• Lan Qingyou observes their fight with amusement before intervening.
• After separating them, Lan Qingyou recruits both women for an unexplained mission, leading them into Demon territory.
• The Demon captain treats Lan Qingyou with formal recognition, while the women react with surprise upon learning that they have entered a restricted Demon city.

Summary of “Victoria Understood”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou unexpectedly brings Vivian and Gu Xiaobei to the Sallek Family’s territory, though neither initially understands why.
• They are escorted to an ornate palace-like building and introduced to Victoria, the Sallek Family’s Demon Patriarch.
• Gu Xiaobei observes that many Demons in the city are obese and suspects their diet is responsible. She notices that the city’s desserts contain traces of the same strange substance associated with Gross meat.
• The narration confirms that the desserts contain Gross Cell Fragments. These fragments provide energy and, through Victoria’s special formula, allow her to control numerous underlings.
• Victoria is alarmed by the witches’ arrival because Lan Qingyou and her people can use portals to enter the Sallek territory at will. Still traumatized by the witches’ previous visit, Victoria has installed an alarm mainly to psychologically prepare herself.
• Lan Qingyou explains that she has come to return the Gross Fragments Victoria previously provided. She dumps hundreds or even thousands of pounds of processed, snow-white fragments before her.
• Lan Qingyou then asks for the remaining fragments in Victoria’s possession. Vivian realizes that she has been brought along to extract Gross’s blood from those fragments.
• Victoria reluctantly agrees, believing she will not lose anything because she mainly needs Gross’s cells and can reclaim the material Lan Qingyou has already processed.
• Vivian extracts the valuable blood from the new batch, transforming the rainbow-colored fragments into white, depleted pieces.
• Watching the process, Victoria finally understands Lan Qingyou’s plan and realizes why Vivian said they needed to “charge more.”

Character Developments

• Vivian demonstrates mastery over her extraction abilities, efficiently separating Gross’s blood from the fragments. Her remark about charging more reveals her growing confidence and practical awareness of the value of her skill.
• Gu Xiaobei uses her culinary sensitivity and observational talent to identify the contamination in the city’s desserts. Her suspicions correctly reveal the connection between the Demons’ diet and Gross Cell Fragments.
• Lan Qingyou appears calculating and opportunistic. She brings Vivian specifically to process Victoria’s remaining fragments, turning the exchange into a profitable arrangement.
• Victoria is shown as powerful but deeply intimidated by the Black Witches. Her fear and resignation lead her to cooperate, and her alchemical knowledge allows her to quickly understand the extraction process once she witnesses it.

Significant Themes

• Power and intimidation: Although Victoria is the local ruler, she feels helpless against the witches’ ability to appear and disappear through portals.
• Resource exploitation and trade: The Gross Fragments are treated as valuable materials whose different components can be exchanged, refined, and monetized.
• Observation and expertise: Gu Xiaobei’s knowledge of food and Vivian’s extraction ability allow the group to uncover and exploit the Demons’ dependence on Gross-derived substances.
• Understanding through experience: Victoria cannot initially determine Lan Qingyou’s motives, but witnessing Vivian’s technique immediately clarifies the transaction.

Character Interactions

• Vivian and Gu Xiaobei begin confused but follow Lan Qingyou into Victoria’s territory.
• Gu Xiaobei explains her suspicions about the desserts to Vivian, establishing the connection between the city’s food and Gross Fragments.
• Victoria confronts Lan Qingyou about returning to her territory with powerful companions.
• Lan Qingyou offers processed fragments in exchange for Victoria’s remaining supply.
• Vivian openly suggests increasing their price, unintentionally making Victoria suspect that the witches are profiting from the exchange.
• Victoria watches Vivian’s extraction process and finally understands both the transformation of the fragments and the reason for the proposed higher charge.

Chapter Summary: “Take It, You Deserve It”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Vivian extracts Gross Blood from the Gross Fragments in Victoria’s possession. Victoria is shocked by how much highly concentrated, valuable blood can be obtained from the fragments and regrets never recognizing their worth.
• Although Victoria is the Demon Queen and head of her clan, she is pressured into repeatedly handing over fragments while Vivian extracts the blood. Lan Qingyou and Vivian’s efficient teamwork eventually develops into a smooth rhythm.
• Lan Qingyou collects over 2,500 milliliters of Gross Blood, filling multiple bottles, though she is disappointed when Victoria’s supply runs out before the current bottle is full.
• Victoria has secretly considered keeping some fragments for herself, but Vivian’s speed leaves her with nothing. Seeing Victoria’s distress, Lan Qingyou gives her approximately 30 milliliters of Gross Blood, saying it is what she deserves.
• After securing the blood for research, Lan Qingyou asks how Victoria obtained the Gross Fragments. Victoria explains that she found them by the sea shortly after Lan Qingyou first appeared on television after creating the Talent Potion.
• Victoria’s recollection ends with her appearing strangely entranced and nostalgic while describing the discovery.

Character Developments

• Victoria: Reveals jealousy, frustration, and regret over failing to recognize the value of her own possessions. Despite her pride and status, she submits to the extraction process and is deeply moved when Lan Qingyou gives her a share.
• Lan Qingyou: Demonstrates both ruthless practicality and unexpected generosity. She eagerly gathers the blood for research but still recognizes Victoria’s claim to part of it. Her curiosity about the fragments’ origin also hints at growing concern over their connection to larger supernatural events.
• Vivian: Displays impressive efficiency and technical skill in extracting the blood, quickly taking control of the process. Her behavior reinforces the witches’ reputation for rarely returning anything once they acquire it.
• Gu Xiaobei: Focuses less on the research value of the blood and more on its culinary potential, imagining dishes and possible ways it might help her advance in rank.

Significant Themes

• Envy and missed opportunities: Victoria realizes she possessed an extraordinary resource for years without understanding or exploiting it.
• Power and coercion: Despite Victoria’s authority, Lan Qingyou and Vivian effectively command her, showing how expertise and immediate usefulness can override social rank.
• Possession and generosity: The witches’ tendency to keep what they obtain contrasts with Lan Qingyou’s decision to return a portion to Victoria.
• The value hidden within the grotesque: The Gross Fragments, despite their disturbing nature, contain extremely potent material that can serve scientific, magical, and culinary purposes.
• Mystery and foreshadowing: The fragments’ unexplained appearance by the sea suggests a larger connection to Gross, Jormungandr, the Star Dragon King, and the phenomenon of “ascension.”

Character Interactions

• Vivian and Victoria develop an almost mechanical working partnership, with Vivian extracting blood and Victoria supplying fragments.
• Lan Qingyou and Vivian pressure Victoria to continue despite her irritation, creating a humorous reversal in which the normally authoritative Demon Queen is treated like an assistant.
• Lan Qingyou’s gift softens the tension between her and Victoria, leaving Victoria grateful and emotionally overwhelmed.
• Lan Qingyou’s questioning shifts the scene from resource gathering to investigation, while Victoria’s unusual, dreamlike response raises further questions about what she experienced when she found the fragments.

Chapter Summary: “This Isn’t Right!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Victoria explains the origin of the magical fragments. She originally discovered one enormous, intact fragment washed ashore years ago, mistaking it for a dead fish before realizing it contained abundant Magic Power and had not corroded.
• Because the fragment was likely carried by the sea, its exact original location is unknown, making further investigation difficult.
• Lan Qingyou questions Victoria about the Land of Abandonment and the legend that the Star Dragon King’s corpse lies beneath it.
• Victoria reveals that similar stone tablets have been discovered elsewhere. The witch Sherlock Claude recently found another one at his new base and sent it to Victoria after learning she possessed a matching tablet.
• Lan Qingyou confirms through the Magic Eye that the tablet is several centuries old and genuinely supports Victoria’s claims. She takes the tablet and fragments before leaving through a Portal with Vivian and Gu Xiaobei.
• Gu Xiaobei casually takes several pieces of Gross’s meat as compensation for her involvement.
• Victoria is relieved when they leave, but then realizes that the bottle of Gross’s blood she received feels less like recovered property and more like charity. She angrily complains but ultimately accepts that the amount is useful for her alchemical research.
• Back with Lan Qingyou, the group divides the recovered blood. Gu Xiaobei receives five drops, while Vivian receives a much larger share because her blood-manipulation ability was essential to the operation.
• Lan Qingyou returns to the Alchemy Workshop to continue her experiments.

Character Developments

• Victoria is shown to be knowledgeable about alchemy and the fragments but insecure and resentful when dealing with stronger supernatural figures. She wants the visitors gone and privately views the blood they return as something she should have owned already.
• Lan Qingyou becomes more skeptical and investigative, noticing that Victoria had withheld information. She nevertheless judges the evidence fairly and concludes that Victoria is probably too incompetent to deceive her effectively.
• Vivian proves highly valuable through her blood-manipulation abilities and is rewarded generously.
• Gu Xiaobei remains relaxed and opportunistic, contributing little to the investigation but taking her agreed compensation—and extra meat—without hesitation.
• Sherlock Claude is introduced indirectly as another researcher who has found a matching tablet, expanding the mystery surrounding the fragments and the Land of Abandonment.

Significant Themes

• Hidden origins and ancient mysteries: The fragments and matching tablets suggest a larger, unresolved connection possibly involving the Star Dragon King and the Land of Abandonment.
• Knowledge versus uncertainty: Even with ancient evidence, the characters cannot determine where the original fragment came from because the sea may have moved it.
• Power imbalance and resentment: Victoria’s frustration reflects her inferior position relative to Lan Qingyou and the others, despite technically owning the recovered material.
• Fairness and compensation: The group divides the spoils according to contribution, while Victoria humorously struggles with the feeling that she has been rewarded with something that was already hers.
• Alchemy and experimentation: The recovered blood and fragments are treated primarily as valuable research materials, driving Lan Qingyou and Victoria’s continued investigations.

Character Interactions

• Victoria reluctantly answers Lan Qingyou’s questions, while Lan Qingyou presses her for information and catches her withholding details.
• Lan Qingyou evaluates Victoria’s personality harshly, considering her incapable of sophisticated deception.
• Vivian and Gu Xiaobei follow Lan Qingyou out without further involvement, with Gu Xiaobei silently taking additional meat.
• Victoria’s private reaction after their departure contrasts with her outward compliance.
• Lan Qingyou rewards Gu Xiaobei and Vivian according to their contributions before returning to work, reinforcing her leadership and control over the group’s resources.

Chapter Summary: Making the “Four-in-One Potion”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After entering the Alchemy Workshop, Lan Qingyou studies the Gross Blood she recently obtained.
• She determines that Gross Blood contains roughly five times more energy than Star Dragon King Blood, although its energy is fundamentally different from the magic power of the Karim Continent.
• Unsure how best to use such a powerful material, Lan lists her possible projects, including race advancement potions, high-tier magic items, and alchemy arrays.
• She prioritizes improving the previously developed “Three-in-One” Race Advancement Potion, aiming to create a “Four-in-One” and eventually a “Five-in-One” version.
• Because Gross’s raw energy is too powerful to control, Lan decides to dilute the blood two hundred times and use crushed Gross cell fragments rather than intact cells.
• She also adds her own blood to ensure the potion will be compatible with her body and to balance the overwhelming power of Gross’s materials.
• The process severely drains her physically, leaving her pale and dependent on blood-replenishing food and vitality pills.
• After repeated experiments and formula adjustments, Lan produces what appears to be the final batch of the Four-in-One Potion.
• She discovers that the potion must be filtered while still hot. If it cools, its effects weaken and its failure rate rises sharply.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou demonstrates her analytical and experimental nature, carefully measuring the energy contained in different blood types and developing a controlled method for using Gross Blood.
• Her curiosity and ambition drive her to pursue increasingly powerful potion formulas, despite the physical risks.
• She also shows growing caution: rather than using Gross Blood at full strength, she dilutes it and begins with crushed cell fragments to avoid creating an uncontrollable or dangerous potion.
• Her willingness to use large amounts of her own blood emphasizes both her determination and the limitations of her personal resources compared with higher-grade materials.
• Gu Xiaobei supports Lan indirectly by preparing blood-replenishing meals, while Lan relies on her own vitality pills to endure the experiments.

Significant Themes

• Scientific experimentation and controlled progress: Lan advances through repeated trials, careful calculations, and gradual refinement rather than reckless use of powerful materials.
• Power and control: Gross Blood’s immense energy is valuable but dangerous, forcing Lan to find a balance between potency and manageability.
• Personal sacrifice: Lan’s physical exhaustion and blood loss reveal the cost of pursuing breakthroughs.
• Resource inequality: Her own blood is vastly inferior to the blood and cells of powerful beings, showing the gap between ordinary high-grade materials and substances connected to Star Beasts.
• Curiosity versus caution: Lan’s intense desire to explore new possibilities is tempered by practical safeguards and incremental testing.

Character Interactions

• Lan’s main interaction is with the materials and alchemical process itself, treating Gross Blood almost like a powerful experimental subject.
• Gu Xiaobei’s preparation of restorative food provides practical support for Lan’s work, though it only barely offsets the blood she loses.
• Lan’s earlier research into Victoria’s use of crushed Gross Cell Fragments influences her decision to adopt a similarly cautious approach.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou successfully creates a new advancement potion and bottles it while still hot, preserving its effectiveness through heat-preserving magic arrays.
• Her Crimson Magic Eye identifies the potion as Starry Sky-level, superior to the earlier World-Class version. It has a 0.1% chance of advancing an Advanced Long-lived Species to a higher state.
• The potion is entirely unprecedented, but the appraisal notes that Lan Qingyou receives no special reward because the former World Will— which would have favored her—no longer exists. A new World Will, formed from the Human and Dragon worlds, has not yet emerged and would likely not favor her anyway.
• Frustrated that she has created a potion beyond her own current advancement level, Lan Qingyou decides to stop dwelling on it and leaves the workshop.
• She travels to the Perching Giant Tree, which has regrown to nearly its former enormous size and now supports numerous Flying Magic Beasts and tree houses built by Black Witches.
• Lan Qingyou checks on the Dragon Nest and its eggs. Despite the World Will’s blessing, the eggs are hatching extremely slowly.
• Many Black Witches eagerly monitor the eggs, hoping to one day use the Dragons as Familiars and experience riding them. Lan Qingyou is skeptical, noting that most witches choose Familiars strategically to complement their Magic Eyes and magic.
• The chapter ends by suggesting that the Dragons’ hatching may be connected to the eventual formation of the new World Will.

Character Development

• Lan Qingyou demonstrates exceptional alchemical skill by producing a potion of a higher rank than intended. Her reaction shifts from satisfaction to irritation when she realizes she cannot yet benefit from it herself.
• She shows emotional self-control by deliberately abandoning her frustration instead of allowing envy or anger to consume her.
• Her thoughts reveal growing awareness of the changing cosmic order: the old World Will is gone, and the new one may have an entirely different relationship with her.
• Her attitude toward the Dragon Eggs remains detached. She is not personally eager for them to hatch, though she recognizes their broader importance.

Significant Themes

• Progress beyond one’s own limits: Lan Qingyou creates something more powerful than she can currently use, emphasizing the gap between talent and personal advancement.
• Loss and change: The disappearance of the former World Will marks the end of an old era and removes the divine recognition Lan Qingyou once enjoyed.
• Patience and delayed development: Both Lan Qingyou’s advancement and the Dragon Eggs’ hatching are proceeding slowly, suggesting that major transformations require time.
• Power, usefulness, and companionship: The Black Witches view Dragons as desirable Familiars, while the chapter contrasts their enthusiasm with Lan Qingyou’s practical and detached perspective.
• World-building and cosmic transition: The Dragon Eggs may play a role in the birth of the new World Will, linking personal events to the restructuring of the entire world.

Character Interactions

• Lan Qingyou interacts indirectly with the appraisal system through her Crimson Magic Eye, which reveals the potion’s rank, origin, and lost potential reward.
• She has no direct dialogue with the Black Witches in the chapter, but her observations contrast their excitement over Dragon Familiars with her lack of interest.
• Her relationship with the former World Will is explored through her reflections: it once favored her because of their familiarity, whereas the future combined World Will will likely treat her as a stranger.

Chapter Summary: I’m Starting to Doubt My Magic Eyes

Plot and events

Lan Qingyou prepares to relocate the Star Dragon King’s enormous body into the Dragon Nest beneath the Perching Giant Tree. She believes the dragon hatchlings must be protected and recognizes that reviving the Dragon Clan could elevate the Black Witches even further among the long-lived races. While considering the Star Dragon King’s original decision to shelter its eggs beneath its body, she wonders whether the act had a deeper purpose beyond simple protection.
Using Zero-Gravity Magic, Lan gathers the scattered dragon eggs and enlarges the nesting area. She then uses her supposed “Patriarch’s authority” to move the surrounding shelters, creating barely enough room for the Star Dragon King’s body. The relocation attracts numerous curious Black Witches, including officers and administrators, who gather to watch despite not knowing what she intends to do.
Finally, Lan takes out her Herb Bag and tips it over the Dragon Nest. The Star Dragon King’s massive body falls out with a thunderous impact, sending dust across the area and leaving the watching witches stunned. The chapter ends with them insisting that their magic eyes have not deceived them, even though they struggle to believe what they saw.

Character developments

• Lan Qingyou demonstrates initiative, power, and strategic thinking. She takes responsibility for the dragons’ safety and closely analyzes the Star Dragon King’s past behavior for clues. Her willingness to reorganize the entire area shows both her authority and her determination to revive or preserve the Dragon Clan.
• The Black Witches remain highly curious and cooperative. Their eagerness to observe Lan’s actions highlights their trust in her judgment, as well as their tendency to treat major events as communal entertainment.
• Bei Adoris shows caution by wondering whether the gathered witches should evacuate before Lan performs her next action.
• Diana, the Steward, displays confidence in Lan, reasoning that if the Patriarch has not issued a warning, the situation must not be dangerous.
• The Star Dragon King remains absent as an active character, but its earlier actions continue to influence Lan’s decisions and speculation.

Character interactions

The officers and witches discuss Lan’s unusual preparations, debating why she has cleared the Dragon Nest after previously warning them not to disturb it. Bei Adoris raises safety concerns, while Diana dismisses them because Lan has given no warning. Their banter emphasizes their familiarity with one another and their mixture of respect, confusion, and amusement toward Lan’s unpredictable methods.

Significant themes

• Protection and preservation: Lan’s actions center on safeguarding the dragon eggs and possibly rebuilding the Dragon Clan.
• The limits of understanding: Even powerful figures like Lan do not fully understand the Star Dragon King’s intentions or the possible consequences of Time Magic.
• Trust in authority: The Black Witches willingly cooperate because they trust Lan, even when they cannot understand her plans.
• Curiosity and spectacle: The witches’ fascination turns a potentially momentous event into a communal spectacle, reinforcing the story’s humorous tone.
• Awe and disbelief: The final reveal emphasizes how extraordinary the Star Dragon King’s body is, leaving the witnesses questioning reality rather than their own vision.

Chapter Summary: “Deploying the Star Dragon King’s Body”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou reveals an enormous golden Dragon body beneath the Perching Giant Tree. Its size is immense—even coiled, it is thicker than the tree’s massive trunk, and if extended, it could nearly encircle Eureka.
• The Dragon possesses golden wings near its neck, giving it a resemblance to the “Soaring Serpent” of Eastern mythology.
• Diana, acting as spokesperson for the witches, asks Lan Qingyou whether the creature is truly a Dragon.
• Lan Qingyou dramatically confirms that it is the Star Dragon King’s body, shocking everyone present. The witches’ fear and reverence are intensified because their evolution was connected to the Star Dragon King’s blood.
• Diana and others immediately recognize the corpse as priceless alchemical and crafting material. Its scales, claws, horns, whiskers, and other parts could all be used to create powerful Magic Items.
• Anticipating that people may attempt to steal or harvest the body, Lan Qingyou places a purple trigger magic array over it. Anyone touching the corpse is struck by lightning that attacks the soul directly.
• Although some witches initially plan to try stealing materials later, several are punished by the array and abandon the idea after experiencing the severe pain of a soul attack.
• Most observers assume Lan Qingyou has a hidden motive for bringing out the Star Dragon King’s body rather than believing it was placed there simply to incubate the Dragon Eggs.
• Lan Qingyou’s actual plan has two purposes: to incubate the collected Dragon Eggs and to determine whether the body can help give birth to a new World Will, which would become the planet’s ultimate protective barrier.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou demonstrates her usual playful confidence and strategic nature. She enjoys teasing the witches with the revelation but has already anticipated their greed and protected the Dragon body.
• Diana acts responsibly as the steward and representative of the group, but her reaction also reveals her strong awareness of the corpse’s enormous value as magical material.
• The Black Witches shift from curiosity and admiration to fear and reverence once they learn the Dragon’s identity. Their shared connection to the Star Dragon King’s blood makes the revelation especially powerful.
• The Magic Array Research Association members show caution and expertise by recognizing Lan Qingyou’s protective spell immediately, while others’ greed leads them to test the array and suffer its consequences.

Significant Themes

• Power and reverence: The Star Dragon King’s remains carry immense authority because of its connection to the witches’ evolution.
• Greed versus restraint: The witches covet the corpse’s valuable materials, but Lan Qingyou’s trap demonstrates the danger of treating powerful relics as ordinary resources.
• Strategic planning: Lan Qingyou’s actions reflect her tendency to pursue multiple goals simultaneously, using the Dragon body for both immediate incubation and a larger planetary objective.
• Protection and survival: The possible creation of a new World Will highlights the importance of strengthening the world’s defenses against future threats.
• Myth becoming reality: The witches’ comparison to legendary Dragons and Soaring Serpents emphasizes the awe created when mythical beings or concepts appear in tangible form.

Character Interactions

• An Eastern witch compares the body to a Soaring Serpent, prompting confusion among the Western witches and a brief discussion of Eastern mythology.
• Diana formally questions Lan Qingyou on behalf of the group, allowing Lan Qingyou to reveal the Dragon’s true identity.
• Lan Qingyou’s warning and protective magic directly challenge the witches’ attempts to obtain parts of the corpse.
• The witches’ shared reaction—fear, reverence, and greed—reveals how deeply the Star Dragon King’s legacy affects their relationships with both Lan Qingyou and the Dragon’s remains.

Chapter Summary: “You Might Not Believe This…”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Lan Qingyou finishes creating the “Four-in-One” and resolves the immediate crisis at the Dragon Nest.
• She places the Star Dragon King’s body over the Dragon Egg, hoping it will nurture or protect the egg, though she is uncertain whether the method will work.
• After dismissing the onlookers, Lan Qingyou plans to return to High Tower Shelter and finally rest after more than a month of exhausting work.
• She postpones creating the “Five-in-One” because the Star-Rank result of the Four-in-One has made her frustrated: she can see its potential but cannot consume it herself.
• Instead, she begins planning the creation of World-Class Race Advancement Potions. She intends to select five compatible Evolution Items and brew them gradually.
• Lan Qingyou reviews her discoveries about Magic Power wavelengths:
  • Races with similar wavelengths combine more easily.
  • Tree Elf Evolution Items are especially valuable as binders or neutralizers because they can connect materials with widely different wavelengths.
  • Had Esmeralda used a Tree Elf item instead of a Vampire item, her Magic Eye might not have suffered such severe damage.
• She chooses several promising racial Evolution Items and considers purifying additional materials before beginning the next potion.
• While bathing, Lan Qingyou receives an urgent private message from Vivian. Vivian reports that massive outbreaks have occurred across multiple regions, beginning with the sudden appearance of many Kesuya around Storm Island and Karim Continent.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou remains resourceful and experimental, but the chapter emphasizes her physical and mental exhaustion. Despite possessing the powerful [Expulsion] ability, she recognizes that she cannot replace the World Will or solve every crisis alone.
• She becomes more cautious and methodical in her potion-making, using research into Magic Power compatibility rather than rushing into the next experiment.
• Her irritation toward the potions reflects the burden of her abilities: even when she dislikes the process, she continues because the resulting attributes are too valuable to ignore.
• Vivian, normally playful and composed despite her cute appearance, appears unusually excited and urgent. Her reaction implies that the Kesuya outbreak may be a major development, though not necessarily an entirely negative one.
• Esmeralda is referenced as an example of the risks of using poorly compatible Evolution Items.

Significant Themes

• Limits of individual power: Lan Qingyou’s abilities are formidable, but she remains only one component of a larger system and cannot substitute for the World Will.
• Experimentation and scientific deduction: Success depends on understanding compatibility, wavelengths, and the properties of different races rather than relying solely on strength.
• Preparation versus urgency: Lan Qingyou now has enough time to prepare carefully, contrasting with the desperate conditions that shaped the Four-in-One.
• The cost of power: Advancement brings exhaustion, discomfort, and difficult sacrifices, even when the results are beneficial.
• Uncertainty and looming danger: The unexplained Kesuya outbreaks introduce a new threat or potentially transformative event.

Character Interactions

• Lan Qingyou briefly interacts with the crowd at the Dragon Nest, dismissing them after settling the situation.
• She mentally reflects on Esmeralda’s previous potion and the damage to her Magic Eye, using it to improve her own methods.
• Lan Qingyou exchanges private messages with Vivian. She responds calmly and skeptically to Vivian’s excited warning, while Vivian attempts to explain the sudden Kesuya appearances around Storm Island and Karim Continent.
• The chapter ends on this revelation, setting up the next major crisis.

Chapter Summary: “The Counterfeit Outbreak”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Vivian informs Lan Qingyou that numerous pieces of Kesuya—eyes, tentacles, fingers, skin, and other body parts—have appeared across different regions of the continent.
• These fragments contaminate surrounding areas, creating bizarre zones. Appraisal Glasses identify every fragment simply as “Kesuya.”
• At first, the manor’s members assume these are merely counterfeit manifestations or fragments attached to other monsters. Since similar incidents had occurred before, they are not immediately alarmed.
• As reports multiply, the group realizes the outbreak is widespread. They decide to exploit it by hunting the affected monsters for the exceptionally valuable materials left behind after their deaths.
• Before they can begin, people who appraised or directly witnessed Kesuya’s fragments start suffering mental attacks. Some become violently aggressive, while others lose their minds entirely.
• Lan Qingyou explains that Kesuya’s fragments likely survived after Alisa destroyed Kesuya’s main body and Lan removed the Fantasy Tree that served as her core. Because the fragments were not recovered, they may have been scattered by animals, consumed by creatures, or collected by people, allowing Kesuya’s soul clones to spread.
• She identifies the victims’ madness as the result of Kesuya’s mental influence overwhelming their weak minds.
• Vivian invites Lan Qingyou to join the hunt, but Lan declines because she already possesses enough high-grade materials and does not want to waste time traveling between outbreak sites.
• The conversation then shifts to Eureka’s location. Vivian clarifies that she is asking where the Flying City has traveled, not merely where Lan is staying. Eureka is nearing the Karim Continent after months of slow flight from Storm Island.

Character Developments

• Lan Qingyou demonstrates calm foresight and strong analytical ability. Rather than being surprised by the outbreak, she recognizes it as a predictable consequence of Kesuya’s scattered remains.
• Lan also shows confidence in her current resources: she considers the outbreak materials unnecessary for herself and willingly leaves them to the manor’s other members.
• Vivian acts as the manor’s messenger and organizer, reporting the crisis, inviting Lan to participate, and respecting her decision not to join.
• The manor’s members reveal a practical, opportunistic attitude: even while facing a dangerous supernatural outbreak, they initially focus on gathering rare materials and using the situation for combat training.

Significant Themes

• The consequences of incomplete destruction: Destroying Kesuya’s core did not eliminate every fragment of her existence, allowing the threat to survive and spread.
• Contamination and proliferation: The fragments can travel through animals, monsters, people, or experimentation, transforming a localized danger into a continent-wide outbreak.
• Knowledge versus ignorance: Those who identify or observe the fragments become vulnerable to mental attacks, suggesting that recognizing the threat can itself be dangerous.
• Pragmatism amid danger: The manor’s members treat a terrifying crisis as both a threat and an opportunity to obtain valuable resources.
• Power and perspective: Lan’s immunity to the temptation of the materials reflects her superior resources and detached position compared with the others.

Important Character Interactions

• Vivian initially expects Lan to doubt the claim that “many Kesuya” have appeared, then explains the outbreak and the group’s response.
• Vivian reports the sudden wave of insanity and seeks Lan’s interpretation because the phenomenon differs from previous Kesuya incidents.
• Lan explains the outbreak’s likely origin and reassures Vivian that the madness is caused by Kesuya’s mental attacks.
• Vivian encourages Lan to join the hunt, but Lan politely refuses; Vivian accepts the decision while privately benefiting from Lan’s absence.
• Their final exchange clears up a misunderstanding about Eureka’s location and reveals that the Flying City is approaching the Karim Continent.

Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• The group’s journey from Storm Island toward the Karim Continent is nearing its end, though Vivian reflects on how vast the distance has been.
• Vivian tells Lan Qingyou about the villa meeting’s decision to prioritize investigating Kesuya Parts on Storm Island while supporting the exploration team on the Karim Continent after the Flying City arrives.
• Vivian raises the problem of people driven insane by the large-scale Kesuya outbreak. Many have recently evolved into Long-lived Species, making possible conflicts especially dangerous.
• Lan Qingyou explains that the best treatment is to place the affected people in shelters containing Dormitories, whose calming effects can gradually alleviate Mental Pollution.
• Vivian worries that there are too few usable shelters. Many were abandoned, damaged, or moved into the Black Witches’ Flying City, which is inaccessible to most people.
• Lan Qingyou proposes repairing or reproducing the Dormitory function rather than repairing entire shelters. She points out that the group previously managed to recreate the Magic Desk through Cards, suggesting they may be able to duplicate a Dormitory’s effects.
• Vivian realizes this could provide a practical way to treat the widespread madness, even if the reproduced Dormitory only retains part of its original effectiveness.

Character Developments

• Vivian demonstrates responsibility and strategic concern by considering both the Karim Continent expedition and the social consequences of the Kesuya outbreak. She is initially frustrated by the lack of resources but regains her earlier creativity and determination after Lan Qingyou’s suggestion.
• Vivian also shows insecurity beneath her leadership role, privately insisting that her failure to think of reproducing the Dormitory was not caused by years of imprisonment or a loss of ambition.
• Lan Qingyou proves knowledgeable about shelters, Dormitories, and the World Will. She offers practical solutions and challenges Vivian to think beyond seemingly impossible limitations.
• Lan Qingyou also feels mildly excluded after learning that the previous meeting took place without her, though she acknowledges that she had asked not to be disturbed.

Significant Themes

• Innovation under pressure: The characters must adapt old discoveries—especially the Cards and Magic Desk—to solve new crises.
• Human limitations versus the World Will: Vivian initially believes shelter systems are controlled entirely by forces beyond mortal influence, but Lan Qingyou encourages her to seek a workaround.
• Leadership and responsibility: Vivian must manage both exploration priorities and the psychological crisis caused by Kesuya.
• Saving face and self-doubt: Vivian’s internal monologue humorously reveals her reluctance to admit that imprisonment and prolonged hardship may have diminished her initiative.
• Collective survival: The chapter emphasizes cooperation among organizations and the need to provide shelter and treatment for newly evolved Long-lived Species.

Character Interactions

• Vivian briefs Lan Qingyou on the villa meeting and the strategic division between Storm Island and the Karim Continent.
• Vivian consults Lan Qingyou about handling the mentally unstable survivors, and Lan Qingyou responds with an established treatment method involving Dormitories.
• Their discussion shifts from immediate crisis management to technological and magical innovation, with Lan Qingyou inspiring Vivian to consider reproducing Dormitory functions through Cards.
• The exchange highlights their complementary roles: Vivian identifies large-scale problems and coordinates responses, while Lan Qingyou supplies knowledge and unconventional practical solutions.

Chapter Summary: “There Really Was Something to It”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Vivian reflects on Lan Qingyou’s criticism that she is a homebody. She realizes the observation is accurate: she has always preferred staying indoors, first in her family mansion on Blue Star, then in her shelter and castle after transmigrating.
• Vivian recalls how she originally joined Tarot Villa’s research into the Magic Desk reluctantly, despite having little interest in academic work. Over time, she became invested in the project, which eventually led to the creation of the Card System.
• Lan Qingyou suggests bringing Wheel of Fortune Esmeralda into the new research project. She reasons that Esmeralda still retains some authority connected to the World Will, despite her former connection having supposedly been severed.
• Vivian agrees and creates a group chat with Esmeralda and The Magician David. She explains Lan Qingyou’s theory to them.
• David immediately becomes enthusiastic and begins analyzing the possibilities, recalling how he once studied abandoned Magic Desks belonging to deceased survivors so he would not risk damaging his own.
• The research into old Magic Desks led to the development of the original Cards. Their functions were initially limited, but the group gradually added storage, forums, maps, and illustrated guides.
• The Cards given to Lan Qingyou when she joined Tarot Villa were already an improved “2.0” version. They only became an official, widely distributed system after David founded the Adventurer Guild.
• Esmeralda confirms that she does retain a small amount of authority from the World Will. Although limited, it is particularly useful for research involving shelters.

Character Developments

• Vivian: Acknowledges her deeply introverted nature and shows how her reluctance can give way to genuine enthusiasm once she becomes involved in a project. She also demonstrates trust in Lan Qingyou by accepting her reasoning and involving the others.
• Lan Qingyou: Shows strong insight into the relationship between Esmeralda and the World Will. She acts as the strategist behind the proposed research and recognizes how Esmeralda’s residual authority could be valuable.
• Esmeralda: Her past connection to the World Will continues to have practical consequences. Though her authority is weak, she remains uniquely suited to certain shelter-related research.
• David: Displays his characteristic curiosity and experimental drive. His desire to improve the Magic Desk previously motivated the creation of the Cards, and he quickly becomes energized by the new research opportunity.

Significant Themes

• The value of collaboration: Major technological advances, including the Card System, arise from combining the talents and knowledge of several individuals.
• Hidden remnants of power: Esmeralda’s residual authority illustrates how past relationships and abilities can remain useful even after an official connection has ended.
• Innovation through necessity: David’s early research was motivated by practical problems, such as limited storage and difficulty gathering materials, showing how survival needs inspire invention.
• Personal growth through involvement: Vivian’s transition from reluctant participant to interested researcher highlights how unfamiliar responsibilities can become meaningful.
• The evolution of technology: The Cards develop gradually from incomplete experiments into a sophisticated and widely used system.

Character Interactions

• Vivian and Lan Qingyou discuss the potential value of Esmeralda’s involvement, with Lan Qingyou providing the central insight and Vivian accepting it.
• Vivian then reconnects Esmeralda and David through a group chat, recreating the original research partnership that produced the Cards.
• David responds with immediate intellectual excitement, while Esmeralda recognizes that Lan Qingyou’s theory is correct.
• The interactions emphasize the trio’s established working dynamic: Vivian organizes and communicates, David drives experimentation, and Esmeralda contributes unique World Will-related authority.

Chapter Summary: “Shelter Issues”

• Shelter preparation background: Esmeralda explains that her work with the Will of Karim World originally focused on preparing essential supplies and, most importantly, shelters for the enormous number of Transmigrators. The initial shelters were based largely on designs copied from online survival and shelter-building videos. Because of her role in their preparation, she has extensive knowledge and authority regarding shelter construction.
• Mass production and resource limitations: Even with access to vast planetary resources and the ability to use gold and silver through the World Will, Esmeralda could not simply purchase everything needed for tens of billions of people. For example, only about one hundred million of the more than twenty billion “Magic Desks” were externally purchased; the rest had to be produced through large-scale methods. Shelters were handled similarly, with standardized “copy-and-paste” designs being the most practical solution.
• Plan to investigate shelters: The group—Esmeralda as the Wheel of Fortune, David as the Magician, and Vivian as the High Priestess—decides to find an abandoned shelter for study rather than risk damaging an occupied one. They agree to first formulate research plans using Esmeralda’s knowledge. This investigation is important because calming the many deranged people in the streets is considered a higher priority than eliminating Kesuya’s clones.
• Division of responsibilities: Vivian volunteers to record and organize the information, while David takes charge of developing the research plans. This mirrors their earlier division of labor during their investigation of the Card System.
• How shelter upgrades work: Esmeralda reveals that the World Will does not simply create upgraded facilities from nothing. Instead, the materials placed into a shelter contain Magic Power, and the upgrade process converts that Magic Power into the desired structures or improvements. Since even ordinary grass on the Karim Continent contains Magic Power, different facilities require different materials and quantities. The group identifies this system as a kind of benefit granted to novice Transmigrators, though Vivian bitterly remarks that she would rather not have been transmigrated at all.
• Facilities and blueprints: The shelters’ basic facilities—such as warehouses, balconies, and fireplaces—are largely based on familiar Blue Star buildings because Esmeralda supplied their blueprints. However, the World Will adds special attributes to them, particularly to profession-oriented facilities such as alchemy laboratories and blacksmith workshops.
• Professional specialization: David realizes that his Demon Human Workshop is an example of a special facility. Unlike alchemy laboratories or Orff’s mechanical factory, it is designed around his own Profession and has specialized tools suited to his abilities. Esmeralda suspects that shelter facilities are determined by each Transmigrator’s Profession, interests, and hobbies, although she admits she did not know this beforehand because the World Will kept the information secret.
• Role of the Magic Desk: Esmeralda adds that the World Will can monitor a Transmigrator’s profession and preferences through the Magic Desk, provided the shelter contains specialized equipment or facilities strongly associated with that profession.

Character Development and Interactions

• Esmeralda demonstrates her expertise and responsibility as the primary authority on shelters, while also admitting the limits of what even she knows about the World Will’s systems.
• David takes an organized, analytical leadership role by requesting plans and coordinating the investigation.
• Vivian remains practical and skeptical, handling documentation while openly expressing resentment toward forced transmigration.
• Their conversation is cooperative but informal, with Vivian teasing Esmeralda about her incomplete knowledge and David steering the discussion back toward the research.

Major Themes

• The challenges of managing survival on an unimaginably large scale.
• The tension between industrial standardization and individualized, profession-based development.
• The World Will’s hidden influence and control over Transmigrators.
• Knowledge-sharing and cooperation as necessary tools for survival.
• The distinction between apparent “gifts” and systems that force people to participate in dangerous circumstances.