Chapter Summaries

Chen He investigated the Chen Family’s losses and used his memory-reading walnuts on Lu Li’s corpse, but learned nothing useful. He decided to go to the Overlord Council to question Chang Wei, You Wei, and Lai Fu, whose actions and ties to Lu Li seemed suspicious; the family faced a wait of 4,500 cosmic hours.

• Chen He questioned Chen Ding about the suspected trap at Beaconfire Wild Hall and heard how the dispute had unfolded.
• Chen Nuo named Chang Wei, You Wei, and Lai Fu as the three Chen Family members taken by an Overlord Army general, and described Chang Wei’s role in the earlier conflict.
• Chen He examined Lu Li’s corpse with his Epic-quality metal walnuts, but could not recover useful memories because Lu Li’s soul had dispersed.
• Chen He rejected Chen Li’s call to punish Beaconfire Wild Hall and said he would instead seek out the three Chen Family members at the Overlord Council.
• The Chen Family learned they would have to wait 4,500 cosmic hours to get their matter before the council.

With Lu Li missing for nine months, Pan Xiaoxiao urged Huaxia’s leaders to keep the order he built intact. Liu Wenjian then faced a choice between avoiding a costly fight with the Lu Family or going to war to divert pressure from the Lin Family, and resolved to fight.

• Ao Zhan and Lin Tianxia worried that Lu Li and Li Luo had not sent news for nearly nine months, while Pan Xiaoxiao reminded the meeting that Lu Li had promised to return safely.
• Pan Xiaoxiao urged the Players at the Yong City Central Shelter to focus on their work and preserve the new order until Lu Li returned.
• Liu Wenjian secretly met with Liu Liu and Liu Ba, confirmed that the Lu Family had stopped supplying them, and warned that retaliation might follow.
• Liu Wenjian laid out the choice between hiding the Liu Family’s deception to minimize losses or openly provoking a costly war with the Lu Family.
• Liu Liu urged Liu Wenjian to choose war to draw the Lu Family’s anger away from the Lin Family, and Liu Wenjian agreed to repay Lu Li’s kindness by fighting.

Liu Wenjian offered Liu Ruyan two places to hide for three months, insisting he had no interest in harming her. He asked her to sign an Oath Contract before explaining why returning her to the Wan Family could endanger them.

• Liu Wenjian entered the basement where Liu Ruyan was held and used the Control Glove to immobilize her.
• Liu Wenjian told Liu Ruyan he had no interest in her and released the Control Glove's effects after she blinked in agreement.
• Liu Wenjian offered Liu Ruyan the choice of staying in the Secret Realm, Guangguai Luli's Casino, or secretly going to the Lin Family Shelter in Yong City for at least three months.
• Liu Ruyan questioned why Liu Wenjian would not return her to the Wan Family, and Liu Wenjian said doing so might drag the Wan Family down.
• Liu Wenjian presented Liu Ruyan with a prewritten Oath Contract and said he would explain the situation if she signed it.

Liu Wenjian revealed the Liu and Lin Families’ scheme to Liu Ruyan and sent her to the Lin Family while preparing to draw the Lu Family’s retaliation onto himself. Meanwhile, Lu Li reached the end of the Path of Pain and sent Lu Zhongxian through the illusory doorway, where he lost contact with him.

• Liu Ruyan signed an Oath Contract, and Liu Wenjian explained the Families’ scheme and the Liu Family’s past training exercises.
• Liu Wenjian warned Liu Ruyan that the Lu Family might retaliate and planned to provoke them to buy time for the Lin Family.
• Liu Ruyan chose to go to the Lin Family, and Liu Wenjian said he was protecting her because she might be useful to Lu Li.
• Lu Li reached the illusory doorway at the end of the Path of Pain after navigating by touch with his black mist tentacles.
• Lu Li sent Lu Zhongxian through the doorway, lost contact with him, and then felt his Space Ring tremble.

The Living Nest sprang from Lu Li’s Space Ring, and an invisible force dragged him through the illusory doorway while the Dragon Egg protected the nest and began devouring demonic energy. Inside the doorway, Lu Li endured an assault on his memories, uncovered the strange entity behind it, and heard a familiar voice address it.

• The Living Nest burst from Lu Li’s Space Ring, and Lu Zhongxian urged him to activate the [Spirit Form Cloak] and [Holy Body].
• An invisible force pulled Lu Li through the illusory doorway, leaving the Living Nest behind as fleshy tendrils began to swallow it.
• The Dragon Egg emerged, halted the Living Nest’s consumption, and devoured the surrounding demonic energy until the flesh-and-blood ground began to wither.
• Lu Li learned from Lu Zhongxian that only a little over a second had passed for him during the five minutes Lu Li had waited outside.
• A mental assault forced Lu Li to relive painful memories, but the resurfacing memory of the Flame-Shelled Geoduck helped clear his mind.
• Lu Li confronted a blackish-green entity that questioned his identity, but a low voice from behind addressed it as an old friend.

Lu Li encountered Eternal Night, a black-mist god, speaking with the imprisoned Abhoth, who had once betrayed him. Eternal Night revealed that Lu Li had received authority and urged him to use Soul Devour on Abhoth, but Lu Li asked for an explanation instead, and Eternal Night began describing what a vessel was.

• Lu Li saw Eternal Night appear behind him and watched the black-mist giant confront Abhoth.
• Abhoth admitted that he had helped seal Eternal Night, claiming the other beings had forced him to join their plan.
• Eternal Night offered to free Abhoth, but Abhoth warned that the prison and his seven children could threaten Eternal Night’s projected vessel.
• Eternal Night told Lu Li to use Soul Devour on Abhoth, revealing that Lu Li had received authority.
• Lu Li asked Eternal Night who he was, and Eternal Night identified himself as a god called Eternal Night.
• Lu Li questioned why Eternal Night could not act himself and asked about vessels and Abhoth’s seven children, so Eternal Night began explaining vessels.

Eternal Night explained how gods used projections and revealed that Lu Li was a perfect container who could gain power by devouring Abhoth. Lu Li began devouring Abhoth before he could finish warning him that Eternal Night was lying.

• Eternal Night explained the two methods gods used to send projections into the mortal world and said Lu Li was a perfect container.
• Abhoth revealed that the Holy Lords were his seven children, while Eternal Night described Abhoth’s former power and said the children had weakened him.
• Eternal Night said Lu Li had beaten the seven demon gods because he could disguise him as a container of the sacred, and urged Lu Li to grow stronger.
• Lu Li questioned what he would gain and learned that Eternal Night could communicate with him after he devoured Abhoth.
• Eternal Night told Lu Li to devour Abhoth’s true body and promised to store its power for him; Abhoth warned that Eternal Night was lying.
• Lu Li activated [Soul Devour], and black threads pierced Abhoth, causing its body to rapidly shrivel.

After escaping Abhoth’s consciousness space, Lu Li reunited with Evelina, Xing Anlin, and the Burrowing Bee Queen at the Path of Pain’s midpoint. He began blasting the surrounding flesh, then raised a massive fireball threaded with lightning and wind toward the shrine.

• Eternal Night’s words preceded the collapse of the consciousness space, and Lu Li awoke beside Evelina at the midpoint of the Path of Pain.
• Evelina said she had waited more than six hundred cosmic hours, while Xing Anlin and the Burrowing Bee Queen revealed they had spent Lu Li’s thirty-five-day absence playing cards and joking around.
• Xing Anlin reported that Evelina had received the Demon Progenitor’s blessing and become a demon princess, though the group complained that the rest stop offered few other rewards.
• Lu Li drank a Greater Stamina Potion and bombarded the fleshy walls with fire and lightning, while Xing Anlin pulled Evelina behind him for cover.
• Lu Li gathered fire, lightning, and wind into a huge millstone-sized fireball and aimed it at the shrine.

Lu Li blasted through the shrine and entered a hidden chamber, where he used Soul Devour on the demon statue after Eternal Night told him to strengthen their connection. The ability succeeded and showed Lu Li images of the Ancient Basin’s seven entrances, including one heavily guarded by high-ranking demons.

• Evelina warned Lu Li as he fired a giant fireball at the shrine, but its demonic counterattack failed to hurt him and some of its energy was absorbed.
• Lu Li fired a second fireball that destroyed the shrine and opened a passage, then entered with the two Soul Guards as Evelina followed.
• Inside, Lu Li summoned the Black Mist Giant, and the demon statue retreated into the slime mold while warning that it could not be killed.
• Eternal Night told Lu Li to touch the demon statue and strengthen their connection, so Lu Li activated Soul Devour with his hand on its broken head.
• Lu Li’s Soul Devour revealed seven fixed images of the Ancient Basin’s entrances, and he saw high-ranking demons guarding the entrance associated with greed.

Lu Li learned that high-ranking demons had surrounded the Ancient Basin entrance and was told to use the Magic Conch to escape. Before he could leave, the seven demon gods noticed him, and Eternal Night disguised him in a monster-filled battlefield so he could gain Soul Points.

• Lu Li learned that high-ranking demons surrounded the entrance and that going outside would put him and Evelina in danger.
• Eternal Night said Lu Li could escape with the Magic Conch and that digesting Abhoth's consciousness would eventually strengthen him.
• Lu Li finished devouring Abhoth's projection, increasing his affinity with demonic energy.
• The seven demon gods noticed Lu Li, and Eternal Night told him to replenish his Soul Points before leaving.
• Eternal Night transformed the surroundings into a battlefield and fought the charging monsters while Lu Li prepared to seize Soul Points.

Lu Hemu argued with Lu Canglong over the Lu Family’s restraint and accused him of driving Lu Li’s uncle out of the family. After Lu Hemu left, the Zhou brothers and Lu elders discussed waiting out the Oath Contract before crushing the Lin Family and dividing Huaxia’s spoils, but an unexpected incident interrupted their plans.

• Lu Hemu demanded permission to attack the Liu Family, while Lu Canglong and Lu Dingkun warned that provoking trouble could endanger the Lu Family.
• Lu Hemu blamed Lu Canglong for the family’s decline and for expelling Lu Li’s third uncle, and Lu Canglong threw a teacup at him.
• Zhou Ping'er left the council hall to speak with Lu Hemu after he walked out without wiping the tea from his face.
• Zhou Muli redirected the meeting toward dividing the spoils after Huaxia’s destruction, and Lu Canglong questioned whether the plan was foolproof.
• Zhou Muzhi urged Lu Canglong to let Lu Hemu challenge the Liu Family, but Lu Canglong refused and chose to wait for the Oath Contract to expire.
• The Zhou brothers and Lu elders continued discussing the spoils until an unexpected accident occurred.

Chen He and Zhu Houcai waited eleven months on Overlord Star for their dispute to reach trial, each accusing the other of betraying the Chen family. The Court of Judgment found Zhu Houcai not guilty, leaving Chen He to suspect that a third party—or someone within his own family—had stolen the Chen family’s supplies and martial techniques.

• Chen He and Zhu Houcai traded insults while waiting for their appeal to be heard on Overlord Star.
• A Servo Skull informed them that their case would begin in two cosmic hours, and both men threatened each other before proceeding to the Court of Judgment.
• Chen He and Zhu Houcai presented their testimony, and the judge ruled that Zhu Houcai was not guilty.
• Chen He wondered whether a third party had stolen the Chen family’s treasury supplies and Scripture Repository techniques.

Chen He sought new witnesses in the case against the Chen family, but learned that the three disciples he hoped to question had died in battle. Murphy then revealed that You Wei had made extraordinary contributions to the Overlord Army, leaving Chen He stunned by the gap between You Wei’s reputation and his apparent standing in the family.

• Chen He asked the adjudicating judge to bring the three Chen family disciples who joined the Overlord Army before him, and offered a bribe to expedite the request.
• The adjudicating judge returned ten cosmic hours later and told Chen He that all three disciples had died in battle.
• The judge summoned Murphy to explain the recruits’ service, while Zhu Houcai tried to recuse himself and was blocked by the stone man.
• Murphy credited You Wei with helping Assault Squad 886 earn promotions and said You Wei had wiped out the Parasite Demon nest in Wailing Gorge.
• Murphy added that You Wei had slain most of the demons in the shattered rock region, leaving Chen He questioning how a supposedly below-average family member could be so powerful.

Chen He learned from Murphy that You Wei had fought the Parasite Demons with a Summoning Class ability, leading him to suspect You Wei was Lu Li in disguise. Murphy insisted You Wei had died in the explosion, but Zhu Houcai proposed tracing Lu Li through the planet where he had bought teleportation items.

• Chen He questioned Murphy about You Wei's role in the battle, and Murphy said You Wei had a Summoning Class Talent Ability.
• Murphy's account convinced Chen He that You Wei had been Lu Li in disguise and had used the Overlord Army to escape with the Chen Family's stolen techniques and wealth.
• Murphy said You Wei had perished in the explosion of three Holy Light Bombs, and he and Zhu Houcai argued that no resurrection or escape could explain his disappearance.
• Chen He accepted that Lu Li was probably dead and despaired over the Chen Family's unrecoverable losses.
• Zhu Houcai urged Chen He to investigate which planet Lu Li came from, since Lu Li had spent generously on teleportation items at his shop.

Chen He and Zhu Houcai traced Lu Li’s home planet to Earth and arrived with forces to plunder it, only to find the Zhou and Gao Families already there. As negotiations stalled and the Chen Family clashed with the Liu Family, Chen He learned that Lu Li had died and his stolen resources were lost, though Earth’s rankings still showed no replacements for his top positions.

• Chen He accepted Zhu Houcai’s offer to investigate Lu Li’s origins, and they agreed to locate the planet through reverse-tracking teleportation routes and divide its gains.
• Fifty-two cosmic hours later, Chen He and Zhu Houcai confirmed Earth’s coordinates and arrived with vanguard squads, where they encountered the Zhou brothers and Gao Family puppets.
• The Chen, Zhu, Zhou, and Gao factions failed to agree on how to divide Earth’s wealth, and the Chen Family retaliated against the Liu Family while the others held back.
• Chen He learned from the Lu Family that Lu Li had reached Lv.88 and led Earth’s rankings before disappearing eleven months earlier, confirming his death and the loss of the Chen Family’s stolen resources.
• Chen He remained confused because Lu Li’s top ranking positions were blank rather than reassigned, while the rankings began with second place.

With less than three days left before Lu Li's one-year deadline expired, four factions finalized their agreement to conquer Earth. At the Lu Family Manor, Zhou Ping'er calmed Lu Hemu by claiming Lu Li was dead, leaving him shocked and suspicious.

• The Chen Family and Beaconfire Wild Hall secured fifty-five percent of Earth's benefits, while the Zhou (Lu) Family and Gao Family took forty-five percent, and their leaders signed Oath Contracts to cooperate.
• The four factions prepared mid-tier forces to purge Earth and seize control once their deployment was ready.
• Lu Hemu tortured Wang Xuyan in the Lu Family Manor basement until Zhou Ping'er arrived and urged him to control his anger.
• Wang Xuyan taunted Lu Hemu and Zhou Ping'er by insisting Lu Li would return, then Lu Hemu freed her and she healed and dressed herself.
• Zhou Ping'er used her Talent Ability to calm Lu Hemu and claimed Lu Li was dead, prompting him to demand to know what she meant.

Zhou Ping'er told Lu Hemu that Lu Li was dead and brought him to see the corpse, where his excitement nearly led him to burn it. Zhu Houcai explained that the corpse still had a use as war approached, while Lu Hemu was left confused and chastened.

• Zhou Ping'er told Lu Hemu she had seen Lu Li's corpse and invited him and Wang Xuyan to come along.
• Lu Hemu and Wang Xuyan followed Zhou Ping'er to the council hall, where representatives from four factions had gathered around Lu Li's corpse in a Crystal Coffin.
• Lu Hemu confirmed Lu Li was dead, celebrated, and formed a Little Fireball to burn the corpse, but Lu Canglong slapped him and the flames caught his clothes instead.
• Lu Hemu argued with Lu Canglong until Zhou Muren calmed the room and Zhou Ping'er disrupted their minds.
• Zhu Houcai said Lu Li's corpse was still useful because war was approaching, and Lu Canglong told Lu Hemu to stay put and watch.

Lin Cheng and the Lin Family were startled by an invasion alarm while offering incense to the Flesh God Statue. Lu Qianhe and a level-100 Lu Family member arrived at the shelter with a Crystal Coffin, and Lin Qinyue realized their visit was more serious than she had assumed.

• Lin Cheng offered incense to the Flesh God Statue and wondered when Lu Li would return.
• An invasion alarm sounded, and Lin Cheng, Lin Shi, and other Lin Family members rushed to the shelter's perimeter.
• Lu Qianhe told the Lin Family that he had brought something important and demanded that someone in charge come out.
• Lin Qinyue mocked Lu Qianhe and ordered most of the Lin Family members to leave.
• A level-100 Lu Family member appeared with a group carrying a Crystal Coffin, and Lin Qinyue taunted them about holding a funeral.
• Lin Qinyue noticed that the plump Lu Family member responded to her taunts with mockery rather than anger.

Zhu Houcai brought a corpse he claimed was Lu Li’s to the Lin Family, but Lin Qinyue called it a fake and refused to show grief. Zhu Houcai left the corpse in a construction-waste pit, while Nikita and Alisa silently watched Lin Qinyue’s reaction.

• Lin Cheng arrived with armed Lin Family members as Nikita and Alisa joined Lin Qinyue, and Zhu Houcai revealed a corpse in a crystal coffin.
• Lin Qinyue kicked the corpse’s head into a debris pit and insisted the body was a fake, claiming she would recognize Lu Li even if he were burned to ashes.
• Zhu Houcai questioned Lin Qinyue’s certainty, but she challenged him to kill her and declared that the Lin Family would not fear the Lu Family even if Lu Li were dead.
• Zhu Houcai declined to attack Lin Qinyue because doing so would violate the contract, then prepared to leave without the corpse.
• Lu Hemu asked about the body, but Zhu Houcai ordered it left in the pit, telling Lu Hemu not to burn it and Plunder its Talent Abilities.

After the Lu Family left, Lin Qinyue forbade anyone from checking the corpse they had brought, insisting it was not Lu Li. That night, Xu Xiao secretly went to the debris pit to investigate, but an unseen attacker killed the mutated rats before she could reach them.

• Zhu Houcai persuaded Lu Hemu to leave with the Lu Family without taking or burning Lu Li's corpse.
• Lin Qinyue stopped Lin Ye and Lin Yu from examining the corpse and ordered another corpse thrown into the debris pit.
• Unable to sleep, Xu Xiao worried that the corpse might be Lu Li and decided to check it herself.
• Xu Xiao used an Invisibility Cloak to sneak into the debris pit and search for the corpse's missing head.
• As Xu Xiao approached the mutated rats near the corpse, several flashes killed them.