Chapter Summaries

Ian discovered Madison had bought World War II military rations for the Angels, then watched her use time magic to restore the food before a scarlet magic circle appeared over Metropolis. After stealing Michael's feathers for Raven, Ian encountered Darkseid holding a gravely injured Superman above the factory.

• Ian found Madison overseeing the delivery of World War II rations and tried to stop her from feeding the ancient food to the Angels.
• Madison used what Ian identified as time magic to restore the zombie meat and cans, while Ian imagined ways to profit from her ability.
• A huge scarlet magic circle appeared over Metropolis, and Ian recognized it as connected to Trigon before heading to Michael's livestream room.
• Ian plucked flight feathers from Michael's wings and told Madison to feed the restored meat to him as punishment.
• Ian flew out of the factory toward Raven, but Darkseid appeared overhead holding a gravely injured Superman by the neck.

Ian was hurled into Earth’s core by Darkseid but recovered and transformed into a Galactus-like cosmic being to protect the planet. The chapter ended with Ian confronting Darkseid and Trigon inside a dark dimension of his own making.

• Darkseid struck Ian down with the Omega Effect, sending him crashing into Earth’s core while holding the badly injured Clark.
• Ian recovered in the planet’s core, realized he could not use his most destructive attacks on Earth, and began searching for a way to draw Darkseid elsewhere.
• Trigon seized control of Raven’s summoning circle and began descending into the mortal world with more power than before.
• Clark blamed Trigon for destroying Apokolips, prompting Darkseid to attack him with Omega Beams that threatened to hit Earth.
• Ian’s darkness engulfed Darkseid and Trigon, drew them into a separate dimension, and swallowed the Omega Beams.
• Ian appeared in a Galactus-like form and declared that the best way to protect Earth was to swallow it.

Ian Kent used his Galactus incarnation to absorb Darkseid and Trigon’s attacks inside the Dark Dimension while loudly declaring himself the God of Light and Earth’s protector. Outside the dimension, Superman and Batman discovered that Ian’s speech was broadcasting on every playback device in the world.

• Ian Kent transformed into a colossal Galactus incarnation, confronted Darkseid and Trigon, and absorbed Darkseid’s Omega Beams.
• Trigon tried to ambush Darkseid, but Darkseid blocked him and argued that they should focus on their shared enemy.
• Darkseid and Trigon formed a temporary alliance and attacked Ian, whose power absorbed their energy and magic as experience.
• Ian proclaimed himself the God of Light, delivered an elaborate speech about protecting Earth, and urged the villains to keep attacking him.
• Superman watched Ian’s speech on a damaged television, and Batman explained that Ian had taken over every playback device worldwide.

As Ian’s global livestream of his battle with Darkseid and Trigon left the Justice League unable to join the fight, the heroes bickered, investigated the projection, and learned Ian was faking his apparent defeat to promote a betting pool. Batman planned to profit by becoming the house, while Golden Superman arrived near Earth and heard Ian begging the world to pray for him.

• Superman asked Batman why he had not stopped Ian’s global livestream, and Batman revealed that Ian’s alien technology had wrecked the Batcave and left it playing a fruit-milk commercial on a loop.
• Aquaman and Cyborg joked about food and fishing while Batman scanned the Dark Dimension projection, and Wonder Woman arrived carrying the unconscious Raven.
• Batman warned Aquaman away from a display screen before it exploded, then Wonder Woman embarrassed Batman by recalling Ian’s novel claiming he had planted a camera and tracker inside the Joker.
• Superman noticed Ian appeared to be in trouble, but Batman showed that Ian had messaged Madison and was using the livestream to promote a betting pool.
• Batman declared that Ian would make every bettor lose, then called Alfred to arrange for Bruce Wayne to run betting rooms at three Las Vegas casinos.
• Golden Superman reached the edge of the solar system, heard Ian begging people to pray for him, and felt the body he had transformed into twitch.

Ian exploited Earth’s screens and his staged suffering to harvest faith while Darkseid and Trigon attacked him, but Golden Superman’s control of Dark Tiga awakened the body’s buried light. Ian’s class-change mission completed and unlocked Lord of Radiance, leaving the transformation of Dark Tiga and the battle’s outcome unresolved.

• Golden Superman moved Dark Tiga into Earth’s orbit and saw Ian’s broadcast drawing faith from people around the world, while the heroes below pursued their own distractions.
• Ian continued pretending to suffer as Darkseid and Trigon attacked him, gaining power and experience until Trigon stopped fighting and Darkseid pressed his assault alone.
• Dark Tiga began absorbing the prayers and faith meant for Ian, and Golden Superman discovered that the body’s original consciousness had awakened in response to Ian’s calls for light.
• Ian noticed his supply of faith had dwindled, blamed an unknown thief, and then complained that Darkseid and Trigon’s energy made him feel as if he had eaten worms.
• Ian received a mission-completion prompt that unlocked the new class Lord of Radiance.

Ian successfully changed class to Lord of Radiance and discovered that Tiga and Golden Superman were inside his body, explaining how the class-change mission had been completed. After studying his new forms and their overwhelming abilities, he looked toward Darkseid and Trigon, eager to test them.

• Ian received the Lord of Radiance class, gained new attributes, and acquired the Throne of Chaos talent skill.
• Ian sensed Tiga and Golden Superman inside him and realized their arrival had helped fulfill his hidden class-change mission.
• Ian reviewed Throne of Chaos, which let him gain experience through good or evil deeds and switch between light, dark, and radiant ash forms.
• Ian learned that the Radiant Ash form could burn divine power to freeze time and alter or negate local causality.
• Ian returned his attention to Darkseid and Trigon, who were still waiting for his Galactus state to end.

Ian drew on the faith of Earth’s people and transformed into a golden giant to unleash a powerful light-infused punch at Darkseid. The attack overwhelmed Darkseid and destroyed him, while the system rewarded Ian with a massive amount of experience.

• Ian prepared to use his new Light Form as Darkseid gathered the Omega Effect for another attack.
• Ian addressed Earth’s viewers, presenting his awakening as the result of their prayers and encouraging them to lend him their light.
• People across Earth rallied behind Ian, and he secretly moved Earth inside his body to prevent Tiga and Golden Superman from intercepting their faith.
• The faith reached Ian, raising his Lord of Radiant Blaze level, though the system awarded him Ember of Darkness experience instead of Radiant experience.
• Ian shifted into Light Form and struck Darkseid with the Earth Together Fist, whose radiance overwhelmed Darkseid’s defenses and annihilated him.

Ian annihilated Darkseid’s avatar and absorbed his power, gaining levels and expanding his Galactus form, while Darkseid unexpectedly re-formed in the void after receiving an unknown memory. Trigon recognized Ian as a monster capable of devouring every powerful being, and the chapter left him terrified of Ian’s limitless growth.

• Ian’s golden light completely consumed Darkseid’s body, and Darkseid’s consciousness vanished before later flickering back to life in an empty darkness.
• A stream of memory reached Darkseid, and his confusion gave way to renewed ambition as his spirit and power began to reform.
• Ian gained levels and attributes from absorbing Darkseid, though his system failed to capture Darkseid’s soul as a Pal.
• Ian questioned why his Lord of Radiant Ash profession had not rewarded him for defeating Darkseid, then continued leveling as Darkseid’s remaining experience flowed in.
• Ian’s improved attributes caused his Galactus form to grow larger, while Trigon watched in horror and concluded that Ian could eventually devour every powerful being.

As Ian pretended to be gravely weakened after defeating Trigon, viewers mistook his performance for noble sacrifice and flooded him with cheers, donations, and faith. Clark and Lois saw through the act, while Lois struggled to write the flattering news story her editor demanded and turned to Ian’s deskmate Madison for help.

• Trigon recognized Ian’s ability to absorb the energy of all things and feared him as a dangerous being from another universe.
• Ian’s livestream censored Trigon’s words, leading viewers to praise the God of Light and send him donations and Power of Faith.
• Ian pretended that fighting Trigon had drained his strength, alarming viewers while Clark and the Justice League recognized his performance as an act.
• Lois watched Ian’s dramatic display at the Daily Planet as Perry White ordered reporters to publish an overwhelmingly positive story about him.
• Unable to write praise about her son, Lois asked Supercat for help, and the cat called Madison, Ian’s deskmate.

Ian used a staged display of sacrifice to deceive the public while Alioth devoured Trigon in the Dark Dimension. After swallowing the demon god, Alioth began to evolve, alarming Ian, who had meant to keep Trigon’s power as reserve food.

• Ian pretended to be gravely weakened and appealed to Earth as his family, drawing a surge of faith while Trigon angrily exposed his deception.
• Trigon begged Ian for mercy and called for Lucifer to intervene, but Hell gave no response.
• Ian summoned Alioth to consume Trigon’s power, and the livestream portrayed the devourer as a holy creature sacrificing itself for Earth.
• Trigon attacked Alioth with magic and curses, but Alioth absorbed them and swallowed Trigon along with the surrounding dimensional space.
• Alioth began evolving and grew two human-like legs, while Ian panicked and demanded that it spit out his reserve food.

Ian devoured Trigon’s remaining essence, concealed the real battle with fabricated livestream footage, and turned the aftermath into a staged heroic sacrifice that won him a surge of faith and power. Just as viewers believed he had died, Batman appeared to kill him on camera, while Bruce Wayne watched in stunned confusion and Oliver Queen demanded his money back.

• Ian interrupted Alioth’s evolution to steal and devour Trigon’s energy core, gaining experience and a locked Chaos Authority talent fragment.
• Ian used the Black Box and Mimicry to broadcast a fabricated battle in which he sealed Trigon, then staged his own collapse and delivered a prophecy about a successor.
• Earth’s viewers mourned Ian and poured faith into him, raising his power and Lord of Radiant Blaze to level fourteen.
• After the livestream went dark, Ian appeared to revive, but a gloved hand pierced his chest and he named Batman before collapsing.
• Batman appeared on camera, declared that Earth did not allow an existence that awesome, and the livestream cut off.
• Bruce Wayne watched the scene in disbelief while Oliver Queen shouted over encrypted communications, demanding that Bruce return his money.

Bruce Wayne discovered that Ian Kent had staged a global betting spectacle, taken each participant’s stake in physical gold, and left behind an anti-gambling notice. Ian remained in his Dark Dimension, where Golden Superman and Tiga were still sealed inside him.

• Bruce Wayne denied Green Arrow’s accusations, but Oliver threatened to take him to court and expose him on the Superhero Popularity Center.
• Bruce ordered Alfred to cut Oliver Queen’s internet connections before Oliver could post about the betting scandal.
• Bruce checked the betting accounts, then found that Ian had taken an equivalent value of gold from his and other wealthy participants’ private vaults.
• Bruce watched Madison Montgomery use a magical device and a wager roster to collect gold from Prince Salman’s vault, then leave an anti-gambling notice.
• Bruce failed to find Ian on Earth and realized he had stayed in his Dark Dimension with Golden Superman and Tiga sealed inside him.

After Ian returned Earth to space, his misaligned placement sent it into a dangerous orbit, and Clark stayed behind to push it back while Ian fled to Demon Manor. Ian then examined his captured Golden Superman and Ultraman Tiga in his Extra Dimension, where Tiga collapsed after absorbing the dimension’s poisonous light.

• Ian released Earth from his Dark Dimension, noticed it was too far from the sun and moon, and fled when Clark appeared.
• Clark used his Bio-field to push Earth back toward its proper orbit while Ian evaded pursuit and sneaked into Demon Manor.
• Ian checked on Golden Superman and Ultraman Tiga in his Extra Dimension, where both had been weakened and separated.
• Tiga tried to absorb light to regain his strength, but the light poisoned him and left him twitching and foaming at the mouth.

Golden Superman and Tiga discovered that their abilities were restricted by a predatory system that charged for legal energy use, and Tiga collapsed after absorbing light without permission. Wolverine arrived as a Law Enforcement Bureau officer, revived Tiga by arranging a loan, and left him facing an enormous debt.

• Golden Superman examined his Terminal Watch and found that his own powers were locked behind costly skill purchases and licenses.
• Golden Superman concluded that Tiga had been poisoned for absorbing light illegally and found that an ambulance would cost far more than either of them could afford.
• Wolverine arrived, identified himself as a Law Enforcement Bureau officer, and scanned Tiga to arrange an emergency medical loan.
• Tiga paid 3,000 Energy Coins for legal photosynthesis, recovered from the poisoning, and saw that Wolverine's loan had saddled him with an immense debt.

Wolverine took Golden Superman and Tiga to Ian’s labor camp, where Ian assigned them different jobs: Golden Superman was sent to learn farming, while Tiga was connected to the Land of Divine Concealment to purify its despair into hope. Ian then arranged a subscription-based Mini Ultraman safety commercial and went back to sleep, leaving Damian Wayne, Jonathan, and Jordan tied up in a ruined church.

• Golden Superman discovered he owed over five billion Energy Coins, and Wolverine explained the debt as compensation for stealing light that belonged to Ian.
• Wolverine transported Golden Superman and Tiga through the bizarre city to a farm, where Clock Head assigned Golden Superman to learn planting and hinted that Ian had further plans for him.
• Clock Head led Tiga to a Golden Throne, where Tiga began converting the Land of Divine Concealment’s despair into hope, returning some light to the land and keeping a portion for himself.
• Ian told Madison to produce a commercial for a monthly $199.99 Mini Ultraman Spark Lens subscription, pitching it as protection for children in dangerous situations.
• Ian fell asleep without remembering Damian, Jonathan, and Jordan, who remained tied up overnight in the ruins of St. Caesar Church.

After the crisis ended, Bruce discovered Ian had launched a massive Spark Lens advertising campaign and recognized his talent for business. In Hell, Trigon awakened, learned Ian had devoured his avatar, and swore revenge while Ian slept unaware.

• Clark and Bruce agreed to leave Jonathan, Jordan, and Damian tied up in the church ruins overnight so they would learn from their mistakes.
• Batman sent the Justice League members back to their posts and rejected Clark’s request to talk, saying they would discuss Ian at the next League meeting.
• Bruce found Ian’s Spark Lens advertisement spreading across television and online platforms, including Wayne Enterprises channels, and concluded Ian had invested heavily to profit from it.
• Trigon awakened in Hell and discovered that Ian had devoured and erased his Earthly avatar.
• Trigon swore to cross dimensions, torment Ian, and destroy everything he cherished, while Ian slept peacefully.

Trigon ordered his followers to investigate Ian Kent, while Darkseid secretly corrupted Raven’s Soul Gem in the Batcave. Batman remained unaware of the intrusion as he dealt with Green Arrow’s public accusations against him.

• Trigon manifested through his followers’ ritual and ordered them to uncover Ian’s identity, weaknesses, and attachments in exchange for Abyssal Power.
• Batman kept Lex Luthor, Injustice Superman, and the unconscious Raven under surveillance in the Batcave’s Medical Monitoring Room.
• Darkseid’s projection suppressed the room’s alarms and secretly infused Raven’s Soul Gem with dark energy before vanishing without detection.
• Green Arrow published a fabricated accusation that Batman had betrayed Ian and his allies for money, prompting a flood of hostile comments online.
• Batman tried to contact Oliver Queen and cut off Queen Manor’s internet, but Oliver continued posting, leaving Bruce frustrated and unaware of Darkseid’s intrusion.

Darkseid recovered from his defeat by recreating Apokolips and raising a new army of Parademons, while Lady Death revealed that his resurrection served a greater cycle. Darkseid agreed to fulfill his assigned role, but remained intent on killing Ian Kent and pursuing his conquest.

• Darkseid used a new reality-altering power to recreate a projection of Apokolips and produce a fresh legion of Parademons.
• Lady Death appeared and told Darkseid that his resurrection and his role in the coming cycle were necessary.
• Darkseid questioned why Lady Death had revived him despite her apparent connection to Ian Kent and Clark Kent.
• Lady Death warned that a force more terrifying than the Endless would come for Darkseid if he broke their agreement.
• Darkseid accepted the task and reaffirmed that Ian Kent would meet his destined death.

While Ian slept through the night, Jordan, Jonathan, and Damian escaped their magical restraints and wandered Metropolis together. Their search for a way home led them to an apparently discarded angel statue that seemed to move when they looked away.

• Ian slept in Demon Manor and dreamed of running an interstellar crab business while unseen forces stirred around him.
• Jonathan reminded Jordan that Kryptonians could overcome Kryptonite suppression, and Jordan gradually broke free of his magical ropes.
• Jordan freed Jonathan and Damian, then agreed to carry Damian only after Damian offered to pay him generously.
• The three boys searched roadside furniture for a seat for Damian, bickering as they walked through Metropolis.
• They found a finely carved angel statue outside a villa, and it appeared to raise its head when they looked away.

Jordan, Jonathan, and Damian encountered a Weeping Angel statue that moved whenever they looked away, and Constantine arrived too late to stop it from taking the three boys. Superman descended in fury as Constantine faced the statue alone.

• Jordan, Jonathan, and Damian inspected the angel statue and joked about stealing or selling it while Jordan grew interested in taking it home.
• Jordan saw a guilty woman hiding inside the villa, and Damian decided the homeowner must be a thief who had stolen the statue.
• The boys realized the statue had moved close behind them, and Constantine rushed over and warned them not to move.
• The statue attacked while the boys looked toward Constantine, and Jonathan, Jordan, and Damian vanished.
• Constantine sensed a terrifying presence as Superman descended from the sky in fury.