Chapter Summaries

Cassandra presented the School Alliance’s conquest policies and argued that expansion was necessary for wizard civilization’s survival, using examples of civilizations destroyed by threats they could not resist. As she outlined a cautious conquest plan, Ron noticed suspicious coordination among some of her questioners and remained alert to Professor Uter’s warning.

• Ron observed that Abyss-corroded members of the Observation Station reacted with sick excitement as Cassandra approached the podium.
• Cassandra announced mandatory conscription, parallel merit evaluations, unified resource distribution, and a system for managing conquered intelligent life, while assigning roles to Wizards unable to fight or conduct advanced research.
• Edgar Black challenged Cassandra’s expansion policy, and she compared wizard civilization’s slow growth with the faster development of other civilizations.
• Mentor Fular questioned the cost of conquest, and Cassandra cited deaths from Abyss exploration, experiments, and illness to argue that conquest could acquire lifesaving technologies.
• Cassandra argued that diplomacy could fail against hostile civilizations and portrayed conquest as self-defense and integration, though Ron noticed surveillance and armed guards in her images.
• After Professor Uter signaled Ron to think for himself, Cassandra presented a plan requiring an estimated success probability above eighty percent and casualties below thirty percent.

Cassandra defended the Conquest Faction’s strategy, then publicly appointed Ron Ralph to the Nova Project and presented him with the Eye of Time, making him appear aligned with her cause. After the ceremony, she invited him to a private dinner with Eve and Mentor Uter, leaving Ron wary and unable to refuse.

• Associate Professor Chester Black challenged Cassandra to explain how conquest could protect the School Alliance from stronger civilizations, and she argued that standing still made defeat inevitable.
• Cassandra summoned Ron Ralph and praised his advancement, research, and combat record before appointing him temporary second seat of the Nova Project.
• Cassandra gave Ron the Eye of Time and associate-professor-level access, while Ron recognized that the public honors tied him to the Conquest Faction.
• Ron accepted the appointment without explicitly endorsing conquest, and the Memory Statues recorded the ceremony as a historic moment.
• After the attendees left, Cassandra invited Ron to dinner at her residence with Eve and Mentor Uter, and he agreed despite his suspicions.

Ron learned from Mrs. Allen that Whispers of the Star Eater could replace its practitioners’ souls and that Cassandra had chosen him partly because their shared Meditation Method might balance that danger. After Mrs. Allen advised him to preserve his independence, Ron attended Cassandra’s private dinner with Eve and Professor Uter.

• Ron sealed away the Eye of Time and contacted Mrs. Allen, who warned him that Cassandra’s honors and appointment were meant to draw him into her influence.
• Mrs. Allen revealed that Whispers of the Star Eater could let the Devourer replace a practitioner’s soul, and that Cassandra was nearing this danger.
• Mrs. Allen admitted she had taught Ron the Meditation Method partly to create a balancing connection with Cassandra, then advised him to accept her favors while avoiding her direct instruction.
• Mrs. Allen told Ron to attend Cassandra’s dinner but maintain distance, and promised to explain more about the rules of favors after the banquet.
• Ron traveled by levitating carriage to Starlight Courtyard, where Cassandra welcomed him to a private dinner with Eve and Professor Uter.

Cassandra introduced Ron to the predatory structure of the myriad worlds, defended the conquest and consumption of weaker civilizations, and outlined a gradual reform of the School Alliance. The dinner ended with Eve taking soul-refined medicine to stabilize her illness, leaving Ron to confront the cost of Cassandra’s devotion to her daughter.

• Cassandra served dishes made from the remains of the treants, the intelligent Mind Fish, and the Scholar Race, presenting their consumption as the strong’s right to use the weak.
• Ron questioned whether absorbing other civilizations would turn the conquerors into monsters and make them lose their identities, unsettling Cassandra and prompting Professor Uter to reconsider their development model.
• Cassandra explained the history and structure of the Seventh Quadrant and other quadrants, then described a three-year transition period for her reforms and urged Ron to keep an open mind about conquest projects.
• Cassandra told Ron that she had chosen to treat him normally as a Treasure Grade genius, while hinting that she knew he had learned about the high-level meeting where his future had been discussed.
• Cassandra ordered Eve to take three bottles of medicine, and Professor Uter revealed to Ron that each dose contained souls forcibly refined through the King of Absurdity’s technology.
• Ron watched Eve suffer through the medicine as Cassandra justified sacrificing lower creatures to save her daughter, leaving him troubled by her twisted morality.

Cassandra gave Ron substantial resources and research privileges while explaining her ruthless worldview, and Ron reflected on the price of accepting her support. The next morning, Mrs. Allen revealed that Cassandra may have engineered their mentor-student relationship, leaving Ron more determined to gain the power to control his own fate.

• Cassandra gave Ron three hundred Magic Stones, otherworldly technical materials, and permission to conduct independent research at the Abyss Observatory.
• Ron meditated, strengthened his connection with the Scholar Star, and felt its influence improve his learning ability.
• Mrs. Allen told Ron that Cassandra had influenced her to teach him Whispers of the Star Eater and that their relationship might have been part of Cassandra's design.
• Mrs. Allen offered to sever their Grace link after Ron reached Dark Sun Rank, and Ron accepted her honesty while resolving to seek enough power to escape manipulation.

Ron received detailed Enchanting Studies instruction from Frederick, then used what he learned to complete a stable dagger enchantment and advance to Enchanter. His new class unlocked the Blessing of the Creator, and he began planning how to apply his abilities to Ink and an Activated Magic Sword.

• Ron noticed Frederick's fatigue, a fresh wound, and a fading suppressive rune, but Frederick gave him extensive theoretical and practical instruction in Enchanting Studies.
• Ron combined Frederick's lessons with his knowledge and used repeated attempts to create a stable Sharpness Enhancement on a dagger.
• Ron advanced to Skilled Enchanting, gained the Guidance trait, and changed class to Enchanter.
• Ron gained class synergy effects and the Blessing of the Creator, which could aid in creating extraordinary items with multiple traits.
• Ron considered enchanting Ink with rune abilities and planned to develop an Activated Magic Sword while pursuing advancement in his other professions.

After changing class to Enchanter, Ron used his new abilities to create a powerful, adaptive projectile and planned to investigate Ancient Alchemists and the Abyss. As he fell asleep, the King of Illusions drew him into Fairy Land, explained the Blessing of the Creator, and warned him about ancient entities sensitive to changes in reality.

• Ron used Material Perception and the Blessing of the Creator to enchant a scatter pellet with a three-layer system that combined energy amplification, mental disruption, and guided attacks.
• Ron tested the projectile, which adjusted its trajectory and produced an attack nearly twice as powerful as before, then planned to seek suitable materials and research Ancient Alchemists, astrology, and the Abyss.
• As Ron prepared to sleep, an invisible force pulled his consciousness into Fairy Land, where the King of Illusions identified him as a Tri-Phase practitioner.
• The King of Illusions explained that Ron’s mastery of Potions, alchemy, and Enchanting Studies had awakened the Creator’s blessing, a reward for reaching a certain level of achievement in creation.
• The King of Illusions warned Ron that ancient entities were highly sensitive to fundamental changes in reality and showed him visions of beings capable of distorting reality and collapsing observers’ minds.

Ron learned from the King of Illusions that Abnormality Catchers monitored outsiders and civilizations that threatened universal order, and he received guidance on becoming an Ancient Alchemist and pursuing Consciousness Archive research safely. The King warned that ancient beings might restart the era, leaving Ron to prepare for the possibility that his memories and abilities could help shape civilization’s fate.

• The King of Illusions told Ron that Abnormality Catchers erased civilizations that violated universal rules, while the Creator’s Blessing temporarily concealed Ron’s status as an outsider.
• The King outlined four requirements for becoming an Ancient Alchemist: expert skill in three crafts, creation of conscious artificial life, mastery of a lost technique, and recognition from an ancient alchemist’s historical projection.
• Ron explained his plan to combine Consciousness Archive technology with a Mobile Simulation Battle Device, and the King described how the Dreamweaving Civilization collapsed after abandoning reality for virtual worlds.
• Ron proposed safeguards for virtual research, and the King offered to pass him concealed knowledge about Consciousness Weaving that he would need to present as his own discovery.
• The King revealed that ancient Court of Truth beings supported Cassandra’s expansionist actions and considered restarting an era if Wizard civilization’s direction failed.
• Ron awoke in his sleep pod, realizing he had been drawn into a higher-dimensional struggle and would need to build power and abilities that might survive a restart.

Ron saw Cassandra’s conquests turn the Crystal Spire School toward plunder, then underwent a dangerous Contamination resistance test to enter the library’s forbidden area. He earned a high Level IV rating and reached a living, blood-veined door.

• Ron noticed conquest images and discussions spreading through the School, as apprentices and researchers grew eager to join the campaigns.
• Ron observed that Cassandra’s public displays had rapidly changed the School’s academic culture and created both opportunity and danger for him.
• A crystal construct scanned Ron at the library entrance, detected his associate professor authorization, and directed him to a Contamination resistance assessment.
• Ron identified the test’s crystal ball as containing the mental remnant of an Abyssal Creature and passed both stages of its assault without losing control.
• The construct rated Ron’s Contamination resistance Level IV, granting him access to most forbidden-area materials.
• A previously hidden living door appeared, and its blood vessels pulsed as Ron approached.

Ron studied advanced wizardry and forbidden histories in the restricted knowledge area, weighing the requirements and dangers of three advancement paths. He left with a clearer development plan and a warning to rest for 72 hours before returning.

• Ron entered the living library, where its shelves arranged books according to his thoughts and its systems monitored his mental state.
• Ron read Isaac Mendelssohn’s advancement requirements for Potion Professors, Alchemy Masters, and Rune Experts, then considered how his skills and projects might meet them.
• Ron studied Vasi Gould’s accounts of the Ancient Alchemists’ experiments and reflected on the moral costs of pursuing power and knowledge.
• Ron endured mental strain and disturbing visions while reading, but found that his previous encounter with the King of Illusions had strengthened his resilience.
• Ron stopped reading as his mental fatigue approached a dangerous level, left the restricted area, and was advised to rest for 72 hours before returning.

Ron met with his former mentors after Cassandra reassigned them to the Sand Sea School, where they would have safer conditions to continue their work. He learned that Solon had to guard the Abyss leakage point for ten years, then returned to his workshop and planned his next research steps.

• Hayek told Ron that Cassandra had summoned the peripheral school heads and arranged for the former Black Fog School members to join the Sand Sea School in the Land of Quicksand.
• Ron met Hayek, Yuni, Magnus, and Holt at Vortex Tavern, helped Holt control his newly advanced magic power, and confirmed that he had influenced their favorable reassignment.
• The group discussed the dangers of the conquest plan and learned that Solon would remain in the Black Mist Forest for ten years to watch over the Abyss leakage point.
• Hayek, Yuni, Magnus, and Holt received new roles at the Sand Sea School, while Ron prepared to continue on the dangerous path of the conquest plan.
• Ron returned to his workshop, found Dail still undergoing Transformation and Ailan organizing records, and reviewed plans to meet Eve and collect Franka's bloodline samples.

Ron studied the advancement requirements for Potion Professor, Alchemy Master, and Rune Expert, developing ideas to combine the three fields and use Ink’s growth as inspiration for a self-sustaining device. After analyzing a Memory Crystal’s account of an expedition destroyed by a flesh forest’s illusions, he ended the night with new research insights and plans to meet Eve the next day.

• Ron reviewed the Potion Professor requirements and planned to adapt Mrs. Allen’s Dew of the Mind formula, while considering Liz and Herman as future students.
• Ron designed a self-sustaining alchemical device and drew inspiration from Ink’s ability to grow by consuming materials, then considered using Ink in a life reconstruction experiment.
• Ron explored Flesh Runes and Starlight Runes, then sketched a unified system combining potions, alchemy, and Enchanting Studies.
• Ron used Historical Research on a Memory Crystal and witnessed an expedition team succumb to a flesh forest’s emotional influence and kill one another.
• Ron recorded the forest’s mental attack as a possible basis for psychological resistance training, then packed away his research and went to rest before meeting Eve.

Ron visited Eve and found her Magic Devour symptoms improving as their exchange of Grace continued. After analyzing Franka’s blood, he warned that the Strain Keeper bloodline contained hidden mechanisms that could trigger invasive assimilation, then Cassandra arrived while the three discussed the danger.

• Ron observed Eve’s improved health and watched her demonstrate Mental Layered Control, a technique she had developed while coping with Magic Devour.
• Franka told Ron and Eve that the conquest war had prompted special conscription orders for Carrier Strain Families to provide blood samples and support research into war weapons.
• Ron collected a larger blood sample from a frightened Franka and detected Abyssal factors arranged within her bloodline.
• Ron revealed that the Strain Keeper bloodline contained at least seventeen artificial code segments and could be triggered to assimilate other bloodlines; Eve was shocked, while Franka reacted with uneasy recognition.
• Cassandra appeared in the reception room, leaving Eve tense and Franka trembling on her knees, and remarked that she had witnessed the exchange of Grace.

Ron discussed artificial bloodline modulation and the Strain Keeper bloodline with Cassandra, who shared experimental data and warned him about dangers in the Abyss. Later, Ron attempted to deepen his connection with the Scholar Star, whose light became a silver mirror.

• Ron explained his theories on artificial bloodline resonance and ancestral memory, impressing Cassandra with his research.
• Cassandra gave Ron experimental data from other worlds, described the Abyss-influenced Strain Keeper bloodline, and explained that advanced bloodline modulation led toward Life Alchemy.
• Cassandra warned Ron that ancient Abyssal beings had taken an interest in him and said she would soon leave the Main World on another expedition.
• Cassandra analyzed Ron's rare bloodline and advised him to consider substitute bloodlines, while Eve remained shaken and Franka collapsed in fear.
• Ron prepared to advance his astrology with Ailan's help and drank a specially made Resonance Potion.
• Ron reached toward the Scholar Star in meditation, recited the proper greeting to a Higher-Dimensional Being, and saw the star become a silver mirror.

Ron endured Scholar Star’s memories of cruel alchemical experiments, gaining the Heart of Seeking Truth and advancing his astrology. He began developing Starlight Runes and sensed that Dail would complete her Transformation within two weeks, then prepared to return to the Abyss Observatory.

• Ron observed Scholar Star’s memories of Alexander Jin, Lance Hewitt, Elena Moonlight, Aegis Lakru, Damian Pucci, and Victor Asmodeus, analyzing their alchemical techniques despite the suffering they caused.
• Scholar Star recognized Ron as a new Observer, lit, and granted him the Heart of Seeking Truth; its resonance with Hermit Star brought the Constellation of Wisdom’s activation progress to 66%.
• Ron advanced to Proficient astrology and gained Prophecy Star, which let him sense future possibilities and predict that Dail’s Transformation would be complete within two weeks.
• Ron used his new insights to conceive Hermit Star and Scholar Star runes that could temporarily enhance perception, intuition, learning, and comprehension.
• Ailan noticed Ron’s changed Mental Fluctuation, and Ron returned to his workshop to prepare for the return to the Abyss Observatory.

After completing the Scholar Star meditation, Ron postponed the dangerous Astrologer job-change Ritual and raised the price of his advanced courses, which attracted far more students than expected. He returned to Abyss Observatory to find his colleagues treating him as a distant superior, just as someone arrived to greet him.

• Ron decided to consult Professor Uter before attempting the star-gazing Ritual and focused on consolidating his skills first.
• Ron changed his courses to monthly advanced sessions at triple the price, and enrollment quickly exceeded 150 students, prompting staff to arrange a larger lecture hall.
• Evan reported that Ron’s course had reached 227 enrollments and that lecturers from other academies had sent invitations to collaborate.
• Ron flew to Abyss Observatory, where Supervisor Wayne and Deputy Supervisor Zeli treated him with wary formality because of his new status and research authority.
• A hearty voice called Ron a big shot as he arrived at the Observation Station.

Ron settled into his new independent laboratory, discussed his Activated Magic Sword research with Professor Uter, and received advice to combine his research projects. He planned to perform the Astrologer’s star-gazing Ritual at the Observation Station on the third day of the following week, then turned his consciousness toward the Abyss to awaken something he had neglected.

• Miller Black and his explorers eagerly approached Ron for information about planar expeditions, and Ron told them that Morning Star Rank teleportation technology might soon create opportunities for them.
• Ron entered his new laboratory in Area C, Seventh Floor, and found it equipped with advanced research equipment, including a consciousness tomography device.
• Professor Uter discussed Ron’s Activated Magic Sword design, offered him access to abandoned Master Swords, and suggested using the sword as a shared experimental platform for his other research.
• Ron asked Professor Uter for advice about the Astrologer’s star-gazing Ritual, and they agreed to conduct it at the Observation Station on the third day of the following week with protective barriers in place.
• After Professor Uter’s projection vanished, Ron sat in his rune meditation chair and extended his consciousness toward the Abyss to awaken something he had neglected.

Ron explored the Sea of No Light through the Surrogate Puppet, learning that it could survive and feed on the Abyss’s creatures before an awakened Apostle’s power forced him to sever their connection. The ancient Eye of the Abyss, Nari, then found the puppet and carried it off as a curiosity.

• Ron reconnected with the Surrogate Puppet in the Fifth Layer and discovered that it could draw energy from the Sea of No Light.
• Ron fought predatory tentacle plants on an island, destroyed their core, and absorbed their remains to increase the puppet’s charge.
• Ron encountered Brain Jellyfish and used the puppet’s devouring ability to drain three of them.
• Ron sensed danger, fled from a vast whirlpool, and identified the awakening of an Apostle before the vortex pulled the puppet toward it.
• Ron severed his mental link and used the Pocket Watch to clear the psychic contamination caused by the Apostle.
• Nari spat out the Surrogate Puppet, examined it, and wrapped it in a cyst to take back to her lair.

Nari struggled to control the chaos eroding her mind and feared losing the coming Position-Swap War because she could not cultivate subordinates. After Chaye threatened to withdraw his protection, a mysterious wooden puppet in Nari’s Treasure Vault began producing an unprecedented orderly response from Abyssal energy.

• Nari placed the Surrogate Puppet in her Treasure Vault, but a wave of soul-deep pain struck her as her chaotic nature fought against order.
• Nari contacted Chaye for help, and he berated her for failing to cultivate subordinates and warned that he would not protect her in the next Position-Swap War.
• Nari recalled failed attempts to transform Wizards into subordinates, including experiments that killed them, destroyed their minds, or let one escape.
• Abyssal energy gathered around the Surrogate Puppet in orderly spirals, and its gentle glow calmed Nari and gave her hope.

Ron set up his mobile workshop at the Observation Station and planned his cultivation and breakthrough to Monday-Level, while monitoring the wooden puppet through a faint spirit connection. In the Abyss, Nari mistook the puppet’s calming effect for the feedback of a successful child and began caring for it as her baby.

• Ron preserved a faint connection to the Surrogate Puppet after cleansing his consciousness, then toured Area C with Sarah and learned about its strict safety procedures.
• Ron unpacked his mobile workshop, connected its defensive systems to the Observation Station, and prepared Franka’s blood sample for analysis.
• Ron meditated on Whispers of the Star Eater, assessed his progress toward Monday-Level, and set himself a one-year goal to advance.
• Ron sensed that the wooden puppet was absorbing energy and undergoing a feeding process as the Apostle deepened her contact with it.
• Nari discovered that the wooden puppet absorbed and transformed her Abyssal energy, giving her a calming sense of Grace.
• Nari treated the wooden puppet as her long-awaited child, rearranged her Treasure Vault, and prepared food and a nest for it.