Chapter Summaries

Batman accepted the power He Shenyan had given him and was sent to speak with the being behind the Empire's history. At the Immortal Bastion, Darius and Sion marched against three suspected rebel Legions, and the Blood Axe cavalry let them pass as the battle began.

• Batman chose the name Batman, questioned He Shenyan about the power and its price, and was sent to speak with It.
• Benn Farron told Darius that the Blood Axe, War Hounds, and Wailing Wind Legions had gathered outside the Immortal Bastion instead of reporting to Swain.
• Darius summoned Sion and proposed marching with the Trifarian Legion to strike the assembled forces while sparing their soldiers where possible.
• Sion led Darius and the Trifarian Legion out of the Immortal Bastion, and their advancing force unnerved the Blood Axe cavalry.
• The Blood Axe cavalry captain recognized that they could not defeat Sion and ordered his troops to move aside.

Sion led the Legion toward the Immortal Bastion, persuaded one Noxian force to surrender, and confronted soldiers whose generals had started a civil war. After Yaborn revealed his plan to betray Levi and Leopold for Swain, Sion arrived and killed him.

• Alex Daron recognized Sion and ordered the Drakehound cavalry to stand down, sparing Noxus a meaningless battle.
• Kronos told Swain that Sion’s charisma had persuaded the cavalry to surrender, while Swain vowed that Sion would help Noxus rise again.
• Sion ordered Darius to hold the undisciplined but orderly soldiers, then offered them surrender and blamed the civil war on their generals.
• Levi and Leopold learned they could no longer contact The Pale Lady, and Yaborn revealed that he had planned to surrender and use them as tokens of allegiance to Swain.
• Sion tore away the tent, confronted Yaborn, and killed him with a punch; Levi cheered his death.

He Shenyan watched Frank Castle investigate Wilson Fisk while considering him as a possible Primarch. Frank broke into Vanessa’s home to question her, discovered she seemed unaware of Fisk’s criminal identity, and faced an attack outside her door.

• He Shenyan observed New York’s crimes and secretly evaluated Frank Castle as a potential Primarch.
• Frank Castle tortured and killed one of Fisk’s drug dealers, then recorded his investigation and his determination to kill Fisk.
• Wilson Fisk learned Frank Castle was behind the killings and ordered his men to bring him Frank’s head within three days.
• Frank searched Vanessa’s home for evidence, confronted her after she emerged from the shower, and questioned her about Fisk.
• Frank shot at the front door and hallway, knocking down hidden attackers as he warned Vanessa that the show was beginning.

Frank Castle died fighting Kingpin after Kingpin killed Vanessa, and He Shenyan restored Frank’s soul for a meeting with Death. Frank refused to accept that he deserved Heaven, insisting that his killings had made him a monster.

• Kingpin returned to Vanessa’s apartment and found Frank Castle had killed the men sent to protect her and hold him back.
• Frank used Vanessa as leverage and demanded Kingpin reveal his criminal identity, but Kingpin ordered the snipers to kill her and then beat Frank to death.
• He Shenyan examined Kingpin’s motives, then snapped his fingers beside Frank’s corpse and summoned Frank’s soul.
• Frank met Death, admitted he killed for personal satisfaction, and rejected Death’s verdict that he was innocent and could enter Heaven.
• Frank pleaded with Death to send him to Hell because he could not face his wife and children with bloodstained hands.

He Shenyan revealed to Frank Castle that Heaven and Hell were realms of torment, then offered him a chance to burn them down. After Frank killed Kingpin, He Shenyan showed his rampage through Heaven to The Emperor, who wanted Frank made a Primarch, but He Shenyan insisted the assessment was not finished.

• He Shenyan told Frank Castle that Heaven and Hell were cruel realms where angels and demons tortured human souls, then asked whether Frank wanted to burn them to ash.
• Frank returned from the dead and killed Kingpin, tearing apart his legs before crushing him with a punch.
• He Shenyan contacted The Emperor and showed him Frank’s destructive potential, while The Emperor told him one of his sons had awakened from a grave injury.
• Frank entered Heaven in a dreamlike state and burned angels while sparing the human souls, tearing the wings from one angel as The Emperor watched with approval.
• The Emperor argued that Frank had proved himself worthy of becoming a Primarch, but He Shenyan said Frank’s assessment had only begun because he needed to confirm something about him.

Frank Castle faced the accumulated sins of humanity as the final part of He Shenyan’s test, while The Emperor questioned the mage’s methods. The chapter left Frank struggling to endure the visions, and Steve Rogers and Tony Stark reminiscing over drinks about He Shenyan and Tony’s daughter Morgan.

• Frank continued slaughtering Heaven’s angels, and Seraph offered to show him his family before luring him into a black beam with help from another angel.
• The Emperor condemned Heaven’s use of human sin, and He Shenyan explained that the White Tower Council’s members and knowledge extended across many worlds.
• Frank broke through a hazy curtain and witnessed humanity’s murders, wars, and atrocities, which overwhelmed him with the scale of human cruelty.
• He Shenyan explained that Frank’s test was to survive the sins without losing his consciousness or abandoning his place among humanity.
• Steve Rogers and Tony Stark drank together, with Steve admitting he missed He Shenyan and Tony complaining about raising Morgan Stark.

Steve left Stark Tower after drinking with Tony and reflected on the transformed New York and his decision to withdraw from power. Meanwhile, the sum of human sin trapped Frank Castle in a vision that tempted him to press a button promising to erase evil, then forced him to watch his own past.

• Steve drank with Tony, teased him, and left Stark Tower.
• Steve walked through a safer, transformed New York and recalled withdrawing from politics and traveling to China.
• Frank dug out his eyes to avoid seeing the atrocities, but the human sins still ensnared him and made him see a naked man holding a button.
• A disembodied voice urged Frank to press the button to wipe out evil and showed him the deaths of earlier avengers, but Frank refused to answer or press it.
• Frank found himself watching a television program about his life and fast-forwarded to the night he had forced Matt Murdock to choose whether to stop him from killing a crime boss.

Frank watched scenes from his past while trapped with a shadowy weapon that could not kill him, then proposed that it change hands. He Shenyan confirmed Frank had passed his test, and The Emperor planned to perform surgery on him after his ordeal ended.

• Frank watched footage of his past and reflected on how his family's deaths had driven him to keep fighting his war against criminals.
• Frank asked the shadow whether others had faced the same trial, and learned that he and the Shadow of Vengeance were the only two who had spoken with it.
• Frank suggested that the weapon change hands, and the shadow said it had been waiting for him to ask.
• He Shenyan told The Emperor that Frank had passed the test, despite not following the expected approach of destroying sin with the flames.
• The Emperor chose to keep watching Frank and asked He Shenyan to leave him a back door so he could perform surgery on Frank himself.
• He Shenyan gave The Emperor a black glass sphere and said he had added hatred to it.

On Christmas 2033, He Shenyan visited Steve Rogers and invited him out of retirement to serve in another world as the People’s Captain. Meanwhile, Frank Castle slaughtered the angels in Heaven and entered Hell, and the Emperor assigned Bruce Wayne, Frank, and the newly recruited Public Servant to roles in the Empire.

• He Shenyan visited Steve Rogers on Christmas, and the two discussed Steve’s work, his political convictions, and He Shenyan’s travels between worlds.
• He Shenyan invited Steve to come out of retirement and serve in a dangerous other world, and Steve asked him to explain the offer.
• Frank Castle massacred the angels in Heaven, freed the human souls, and burned the Soul Forge’s realm before entering Hell through a portal.
• Frank asked his voice inside his head for weapons, then fought demons in Hell with pistols that fired scarlet flame.
• The Emperor told He Shenyan he planned to assign Bruce Wayne to hunt Tzeentch Cultists, Frank Castle to deal with bureaucrats, and the Public Servant to meet a recently awakened son.

He Shenyan spent a sunny day with Ciri and Geralt at Kaer Morhen before traveling to Los Angeles, where he helped Gwen stop Deadhead. At Gwen’s home, they discussed their attraction to each other, leaving the reason for He Shenyan’s feelings unexplained.

• He Shenyan teased Ciri about growing up, offered her a sip of beer that turned out to be juice, and agreed to send her back after lunch the next day.
• Triss scolded He Shenyan for giving Ciri alcohol, then summoned Geralt to her room for a serious talk.
• In Los Angeles, Gwen chased Deadhead until He Shenyan crushed him with psychic tendrils and teleported with Gwen to a rooftop.
• Gwen revealed her codename was Ghost-Spider and invited He Shenyan to her home, where she said they had met before.
• He Shenyan and Gwen became intimate, and he admitted that he found her unusually attractive without knowing why.

Gwen explained that the Spider Totem had brought her to He Shenyan’s world, where she witnessed his battle with Leland Gaunt in Castle Rock and later touched his blood, triggering an inexplicable attraction between them. After He Shenyan recalled the catastrophe and his fight with the demon, Gwen said the Totem wanted to expand the ranks of Spider-Men, and they returned to the bedroom together.

• Gwen told He Shenyan that she had gained her powers from Silk, who was a villain in her universe, and that she had once traveled between worlds under the influence of the Spider Totem.
• Gwen recounted arriving in He Shenyan’s world and returning to Castle Rock after the town had been destroyed, where she saw him standing among the burning ruins.
• He Shenyan recalled binding Leland Gaunt, suffering a magical backlash, and using his own severed fingers and blood to summon a spell that let him restrain the demon.
• Gwen revealed that touching He Shenyan’s blood had caused the Spider Totem to create an attraction between them, which He Shenyan questioned because he was not a Spider-Man.
• Gwen climbed onto He Shenyan’s back and explained that the Totem wanted to expand the ranks of Spider-Men, and He Shenyan carried her toward the bedroom.

He Shenyan investigated his strange attraction to Gwen and learned that a powerful bodily influence, rather than magic, was involved. Meanwhile, Batman announced to Superman that he would unite the world in three days to stop wars and eventually aid suffering people across the multiverse.

• Officer Mavis persuaded the New York police chief to request outside support, while she and Gilmore discussed Francis’s vengeance after his family was killed.
• He Shenyan realized Gwen had lied about their blood creating a bond and asked The Emperor about the Spider Totem’s interest in him and their mutual attraction.
• The Emperor pointed out that He Shenyan’s attraction might stem from hormones affecting his body, then asked whether he still had room for love.
• Batman crippled two men in Gotham, then traveled to Metropolis and told Superman he intended to unite the world.
• Batman explained that he wanted to help people across many universes and informed Superman that he would end the world’s wars and internal conflicts in three days.

The Justice League watched footage of Batman fighting Joker and being revived by a mysterious man, then confronted the transformed Batman in Gotham. Batman rejected their assumptions and argued that superheroes had made the world worse, leaving the League to face his accusations.

• Cyborg showed the League footage of Joker taking hostages and fighting a gaunt Batman, who appeared to die before a mysterious man revived him.
• Superman and the others confronted Batman on a Gotham rooftop, and Batman denied being the Bruce Wayne or Batman they knew.
• Wonder Woman asked why Batman wanted to unite the world, and he replied that permanent peace would benefit everyone.
• Batman criticized Hal Jordan for failing to improve Coast City and accused superheroes of allowing crime and destruction to worsen.
• Batman blamed Superman's battles with Lex Luthor for Metropolis's destruction and argued that Lex would not have built his armor without Superman.

Batman defeated the Justice League members who confronted him and showed Superman the suffering of humanity across a burning galaxy, where an exhausted old man explained his hope for humanity’s survival. Batman insisted he would kill many but spare innocents, said the world still needed the heroes, and left his plans for unification unresolved as a mission awaited.

• Batman dismissed the Justice League’s accusations, took Hal Jordan’s ring, and defeated Hal, Cyborg, and Wonder Woman while Superman stood aside.
• Wonder Woman asked Batman’s real name and attacked him, but he knocked her unconscious; Batman then struck Superman and challenged him over his loss of resolve.
• Batman took Superman’s hand and brought him to an unfamiliar galaxy, where Clark met an old man who said he knew Batman and showed him humanity’s suffering.
• Clark wept after witnessing the galaxy’s devastation, and the old man said he would endure pain for millions of years if humanity could escape its doom.
• Batman told Barry that he would kill many but would not kill innocents, rejected Barry’s suggestion that the heroes should die, and said the world still needed them.
• Batman clarified that he intended unification rather than ruling the world himself, then said a mission awaited.

Gwen Stacy was transported from her universe to a world where Peter Parker and Tony Stark lived, while He Shenyan investigated the bronze statue that sent her there. Gwen rushed toward a new crisis, and He Shenyan realized his vacation had turned into more work.

• Gwen entered a hidden room in an underground bar, where a bronze statue flashed and transported her to another universe.
• Peter saw Gwen appear in the road and told Tony Stark about the strange sighting; Tony verified it on surveillance footage and began tracking her.
• Tony met Gwen and confirmed that she was from a parallel universe after scanning her face and checking her identity.
• A tremendous boom sounded, and Gwen put on her mask and swung toward the disturbance.
• He Shenyan examined a magical recreation of Gwen's arrival, discovered the statue had vanished, and decided to study it despite being on vacation.

He Shenyan arrived in New York, destroyed a ship and its attackers, and told Stark and the others he would go after Thanos. After meeting Carol Danvers in space, he attacked her for abandoning Earth and humanity.

• Tom watched the alien ship descend over New York while Stark, Gwen, Banner, Strange, and Wong confronted its attackers.
• He Shenyan appeared, crushed the Children of Thanos, and squeezed their spaceship into a metal ball.
• At Stark Tower, He Shenyan discussed his past with Strange and revealed that the Ancient One had been his teacher and that he had killed her.
• He Shenyan said he would kill Thanos and left after warning Strange not to provoke him.
• In space, He Shenyan questioned Carol Danvers about defending Earth and then dragged her into the shadows, accusing her of betraying her species.

He Shenyan confronted Thanos, exposed his belief that killing could solve the universe’s resource crisis, and sent him to Earth powerless to study. Thanos arrived disguised as an ordinary Texas farmer, intrigued by his new life.

• He Shenyan fought through Thanos’s ship and confronted him, while Thanos explained that bounty hunters and nations had put a price on He Shenyan’s head.
• Thanos admitted the Infinity Stones could not harm He Shenyan and described how Titan’s resource shortages had led to its destruction.
• He Shenyan created an illusion of a burning planet to challenge Thanos’s reasoning, then revealed that he had been lying about their supposed shared nature.
• Thanos argued that simply creating more resources would worsen inequality, and He Shenyan gave him books to study instead of killing him.
• He Shenyan stripped Thanos of his power and sent him to an unfamiliar planet, where Thanos found himself looking like a Texas farmer.
• He Shenyan wondered why aliens still sought revenge for Carol Danvers and returned to his old line of work.

Thanos found Mrs. Jackson murdered at the post office, received a warning from He Shenyan not to investigate, and was left pondering what to do. Meanwhile, Darius and Sion’s Noxian forces continued fighting Demacia on the Tobicya Plains, where Darius exposed and killed a cowardly noble scion.

• Thanos spoke with Jack about their families and agreed to travel into town with him in two days.
• Thanos found Mrs. Jackson dead in the post office, and the sheriff gave him his rejected loan letter.
• He Shenyan visited Thanos and warned him not to investigate Mrs. Jackson’s murder, saying the culprits would get what they deserved.
• He Shenyan reflected on his search for the missing bronze statue before returning his attention to the war in Valoran.
• Genova and the Noxian soldiers fought Demacian forces on the Tobicya Plains while Darius led from the front and Farron defeated a Demacian sergeant.
• Darius killed a fleeing Demacian noble scion, prompting the Noxians to mock the Demacians as the battle continued.

Darius anticipated that Sion’s arrival would soon end the war, while Aatrox continued preparing Shurima and monitoring a young girl. He Shenyan returned to Kronos with news that Roboute Guilliman had recovered, leaving Kronos overwhelmed with emotion.

• Sheep Spirit dismissed Wolf Spirit after he questioned her special treatment of a mage.
• Darius told Farron that Sion would join the campaign and that the war would soon be over.
• Aatrox praised a blacksmith’s sword, then ordered his soldiers to keep watching over a ten-year-old girl.
• He Shenyan reunited with Kronos and told him that Roboute Guilliman had recovered.
• Kronos stood dazed for several minutes, and the chapter described him as a stubborn stone who wept.

He Shenyan reunited with Kronos and told him the truth that moved the Astartes to tears, while Thanos armed himself to avenge Mrs. Jackson after identifying her killers. In Demacia, Malsenor learned that Noxian forces were about to reach the capital, and Mrs. Dubois hinted that their faction still had a way to resist.

• He Shenyan told Kronos the truth, and Kronos wept before changing the subject to his work in Noxus and its brutal military arena.
• He Shenyan described his strange vacation, including turning a former cosmic overlord into an Earthling and sending him to farm.
• Thanos bought weapons and ammunition from Buck Eugene, telling him he intended to kill Mrs. Jackson's murderers.
• Thanos assembled a firearm at home after discovering that three wealthy high school students had killed Mrs. Jackson to join a secret Brotherhood.
• Malsenor met Mrs. Dubois at a Demacian banquet and learned that Noxian forces would reach the capital by the next afternoon.
• Mrs. Dubois told Malsenor that their faction still had a way to resist the approaching Noxians.