Chapter Summaries

Dole organized Albis City’s new administrative and support departments while George visited the Glory Empire’s ninth-level wizard to report on Dole. The ancestor showed interest in Dole and his Hellhound, and George left after being dismissed.

• Dole assigned Vitas and the elemental wizards to draft Albis City’s resource, herb, and reward regulations, and announced plans to establish city departments and guilds.
• Dole adjourned the meeting and prepared to meet Aiton and visitors from the imperial capital.
• George, now overseeing military affairs, went to Tower Six to ask the Glory Family’s ancestor to intervene in his eldest brother’s efforts to approach Dole.
• George explained Dole’s achievements and the Hellhound to the ancestor, who said Dole could eventually reach the eighth level and expressed interest in the Hellhound.
• The ancestor dismissed George, who hurried out of the wizard tower.

An elderly man in the Wizard Tower decided Dole was worth befriending rather than recruiting, and warned others not to damage the connection. At George’s residence, Yuno revealed that the First Prince was moving to strip George of his military power, then pledged to help him reach the throne before revealing she had been speaking through an avatar.

• The elderly man praised George’s connections and decided to tell others not to ruin their relationship with Dole.
• George returned to his residence, where Yuno asked whether he had visited the Wizard Tower.
• George explained that he had appealed to their ancestor to stop the First Prince from making an issue of Dole.
• Yuno told George that the First Prince was persuading the Emperor to revoke George’s Imperial Guard authority and seeking to remove him as Minister of Military Affairs.
• Yuno credited George’s potion with giving her a chance to reach level seven and agreed to keep helping him until he became Emperor.
• Yuno dispersed into a puddle, revealing that she had been speaking through an avatar.

Dole received representatives of the Edward Family and other factions seeking to buy land in Albis City, then faced a demand to sell his Mystic Corpse Worm and Heavenly Frost Worm eggs. The chapter ended as Dole’s stormlike pressure filled the hall and forced Aiton back after the demand angered him.

• Edward Family elders discussed their failed attempt to recruit Yuno and their plan to maintain ties with both princes.
• Dole instructed his Wizards to finalize the city maps and route, then went to meet the visitors from the Edward Family and other factions.
• Aiton offered one gold coin per square meter for two plots, including land above a mineral vein, and Dole accepted after warning him about imperial law.
• Aiton introduced Hachiton, a Level Five Wizard and deputy commander of the Imperial Mage Corps, who demanded Dole sell his Mystic Corpse Worm and Heavenly Frost Worm eggs.
• Dole demanded to know which faction Hachiton represented, and his pressure forced Aiton to stagger back two steps.

Dole refused the Alexander Wizard Family’s demand for his Mystic Corpse Worms and Heavenly Frost Worms, despite the threat of conflict. Back in Babel Tower, he considered how the family’s other ancient insects—especially Void Worms—could help him travel through the void.

• A Level Five wizard named Rikdo invoked the Alexander Wizard Family after Dole’s aura forced him to his knees.
• Dole refused to sell Mystic Corpse Worms or Heavenly Frost Worms unless the family offered other Ancient Ten Great Strange Insects in exchange.
• Rikdo warned that the family would return for the insects, while Aiton urged Dole to reconsider and then fell silent after Dole reminded him of his authority as a wizard.
• Aiton left to handle the territory arrangements, and Dole returned to Babel Tower to consider the Alexander Family’s strength and the danger it posed.
• Dole decided that Void Worms could work with Babel Tower to let him cross the void, and he resolved to make money so he could obtain them.

Dole detected Dragon Bat and two other level-seven Magic Beasts gathering to attack Albis Mountain, and prepared to defend Storm Territory with Bal, Akso, and the Golden Corpse. As Akso headed north in the Li Fire Golden Tower, the opposing forces continued to size each other up without striking.

• Dole sensed Dragon Bat and learned that three level-seven Magic Beasts were preparing a two-pronged assault on Albis Mountain.
• Dole woke Bal and summoned the Golden Corpse, assigning Bal to face Dragon Bat while he and Akso would handle the other attackers.
• Akso launched the Li Fire Golden Tower toward Albis Mountain, prompting Earth Fortress’s tower masters to realize Dole was dealing with a crisis himself.
• Aiton watched the tower depart and hoped Dole would suffer a costly victory that might make him more willing to yield benefits.
• The attackers and defenders held their positions as the Li Fire Golden Tower headed north with less than a third of its energy restored.

Akso flew the Li Fire Golden Tower toward Albis Mountain as Dragon Bat and his allies prepared to confront the humans and break through Dole’s storm domain. Dragon Bat met Hellhound Bal inside the storm, and their battle began.

• Akso tested the Li Fire Golden Tower’s flight and headed toward Albis Mountain, aware that its power had greatly increased her strength.
• Dragon Bat ordered Pangolin to infiltrate the storm domain and Three-Headed Dragon Lizard to support him against the approaching visitor.
• Pangolin disappeared underground while Three-Headed Dragon Lizard moved toward the mountain and Dragon Bat entered the storm.
• Dragon Bat found Hellhound Bal in the storm and tried to persuade him to turn against Dole.
• Bal transformed into a towering monster and charged Dragon Bat, who answered with law powers and a roar before Bal attacked with hellfire.

Bal battled Dragon Bat in the storm domain while Pangolin approached Babel Tower underground and was confronted by Dole's Golden Corpse. Pangolin and Golden Corpse began fighting beneath Albis Mountain.

• Bal dodged Dragon Bat's hellfire, sonic cannon, and mental assault, then struck it with hellish power and sent it flying.
• Dragon Bat recovered and used its sound and mental powers to evade Bal as they fought through the storm domain.
• Pangolin found Babel Tower at the storm domain's clear central eye and realized it might be sustaining the storm.
• Golden Corpse confronted Pangolin underground, and Dole demanded that he leave Albis Mountain.
• Pangolin refused to leave and fought Golden Corpse, trading powerful blows beneath the earth.

The Three-Headed Dragon Lizard reached Albis Mountain and found the storm domain defended by Akso, while the pangolin and Golden Corpse fought to a stalemate underground. Akso prepared to fight Homdoka as the storm’s gathering lightning hinted at a larger attack to come.

• The pangolin and Golden Corpse traded blows underground, matching each other’s strength as their collision shook the surrounding region.
• Homdoka entered the storm, disrupted part of it, and sensed the Dragon Bat and Hellhound fighting in the sky and two earth-law users battling below.
• Akso appeared atop a red Wizard Tower, and Homdoka recognized her as an old human acquaintance.
• Akso assessed Dole’s storm domain and challenged Homdoka, who rose to meet her while watching the increasingly violent lightning overhead.
• Akso shrank her Wizard Tower and hung it at her waist, then said she wanted to test Homdoka’s strength in a fight.

Akso fought Homdoka by using the Wizard Tower to summon nine Vermilion Birds and unleash repeated Scorching Fire Rays. Homdoka’s turtle-shell defense withstood the attacks, and he charged toward her despite the damage.

• Akso’s fireball failed to stop Homdoka, so she summoned nine Vermilion Birds and formed them into an array.
• Homdoka rushed toward Akso, but she fired a powerful scarlet beam that forced him to dodge.
• Akso continued firing beams rapidly, and one struck Homdoka’s tail with Li Fire.
• Homdoka used a turtle-shell piece of equipment to block the following beams, though they scarred its surface.
• Homdoka charged at Akso while enduring the assault, and she continued her relentless attack.

Akso and Homdoka unleashed attacks that devastated a vast stretch of the Storm Domain, then both disappeared from the blast zone. As the surviving beasts fled and Dole began repairing the damage, the Golden Corpse stopped pursuing the retreating pangolin at Albis Mountain.

• Homdoka reached Akso and attacked with three powers, but Akso condensed her Li Fire into a white glow and ordered it to explode as she retreated.
• The collision created a colossal blast that tore open a fifty-kilometer stretch of the Storm Domain and sent both fighters flying in different directions.
• The Dragon Bat fled, and Bal followed after seeing it escape.
• Akso crashed through three mountain peaks, realized the Wizard Tower had little energy left, and found Dole repairing the damaged Storm Domain.
• The pangolin escaped the Golden Corpse by crossing the river to Albis Mountain, where the Golden Corpse stopped pursuing it.

Dole restored the storm domain after driving back the attackers and began planning a northern trade route protected by his power. Akso returned to Albis City, where the aftermath of the battle strengthened confidence in Albis Mountain and drew more settlers and investors.

• Dole maintained the storm domain and planned to build a trade road north of Du City, with towns along the route and his storm protecting it.
• Akso emerged from the mountains, confirmed her Wizard Tower was unharmed, and returned to Albis City to replenish it.
• Bal invited Akso to explore the mountains, but she refused so she could study her newly built Wizard Tower.
• After winter, Albis City and its surrounding farmland expanded as adventurers, commoners, and settlers arrived.
• Organizations and spies grew cautious after learning that Dole had driven back three high-level Level Seven attackers, while adventurers and families invested more confidently in Albis Mountain.

Albis City drew more settlers as Dole expanded its territory and deepened his understanding of the Storm Meditation Method. After the failed attack on Albis Mountain, Abi the Dragon Bat searched for allies and considered cooperating with a human enemy.

• News that Albis Mountain had repelled the North Plains Mountain Range spread, and settlers flocked to the growing territory.
• Dole repaired his storm domain, expanded its elemental scope to include ice and snow, and reflected on how a territory could strengthen a Wizard's meditation method.
• Abi returned to the cave to ask whether the ancestor would intervene, but the guard said an eighth-level force could not risk provoking a war.
• Abi urged Omudoka to gather more Magic Beasts for another attack, but Omudoka refused after the Sacred Turtle Shell was nearly shattered.
• Unable to find enough seventh-level allies, Abi considered cooperating with an invisible human who also wanted to bring down Dole.

The Alexander Family planned to pressure the Glory Wizard Alliance into exiling Dole’s Level 7 Hellhound so they could weaken him and pursue his ancient extraordinary insects. George decided to oppose the plan, while Emperor Yale considered Dole’s conquest of Albis Mountain and his third son’s role in it.

• A middle-aged Alexander Family member ordered his people to pressure Dole and obtain his Mystic Corpse Worm, while the young man considered using the Glory Empire to expel Dole’s Hellhound.
• In March, a messenger told George that the Alexander Family planned to seek the Hellhound’s exile through the Glory Wizard Alliance and Council of Elders.
• George resolved to attend the meeting and intervene, then ordered Yellow Oriole to keep watching the wizard families’ plans against Dole.
• George decided to meet the Minister of Internal Affairs to discuss the threat and expedite granting Albis Mountain its title.
• Emperor Yale studied a map of Albis Mountain and reflected on his third son’s abilities and Dole’s conquest of the territory.

Emperor Yale ordered the Ministry of Internal Affairs to redraw the map and prepare to ennoble Albis City, while Dole accelerated construction and development around the city. Aiton learned that the imperial decision could no longer be delayed and faced sharply increased land prices.

• Emperor Yale ordered officials to incorporate the Albis Mountain region into the empire’s maps and prepare Albis City’s ennoblement within a month.
• Dole oversaw road construction, resource sites, and supplies as the Rhine Family and other noble families supported development around Albis City.
• Aiton ordered his subordinates to buy as much land as possible in Area A, then learned that the City Lord’s Manor had tripled land prices.
• Dole raised land prices after receiving early news through wizard channels and considered how to promote the Super Vitality Potion without attracting dangerous powerhouses.

Dole summoned Aiton and Rikdo to discuss their families’ efforts to secure land in Albis City, while secretly planning to deny them the plots they wanted. Aiton and Rikdo arrived at the City Lord’s Manor with powerful guards, where Dole began by remarking on their families’ strength.

• Dole invited Aiton and a representative of the Alexander Family to the City Lord’s Manor, intending to suppress their families’ efforts to obtain land.
• Aiton considered the Edward Family’s plans to delay the Emperor Yale’s decision and secure territory along Albis City’s trade route, then went to meet Dole.
• Rikdo arrived at the manor, and he and Aiton discussed the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ coming survey and the need to delay the decision.
• Aiton and Rikdo entered Dole’s office with two level-six guards and a level-seven warrior, respectively.
• Dole offered them seats and observed that their families had brought formidable warriors.

Dole confronted Aiton over the Edward Family’s alleged obstruction of Albis City’s charter and ordered Rikdo and the Alexander Family’s forces expelled from his territory. Rikdo left the city in disgrace, while the expulsion stunned Albis City’s other powerful families and excited Akso, who hoped the Alexander Family would give the Wizard Tower a chance to fight.

• Aiton and Rikdo tried to explain their families’ investments in Albis City as Dole questioned the Edward Family’s efforts to block the city’s charter.
• Aiton denied the accusation, and Dole warned that he would bar the Edward Family from his city if he confirmed it after becoming a Level Eight alchemist.
• Dole ordered Rikdo and all Alexander Family forces to leave his territory, then crushed Rikdo and his guards with the force of Albis City’s collective will.
• Rikdo returned to his lodgings, recovered from Dole’s pressure, and hurriedly packed up and left Albis City.
• Albis City posted notices expelling the Alexander Family, shocking the city’s powerful families and factions.
• Akso was stunned by Dole’s defiance but looked forward to a possible confrontation with the Alexander Family.

The Imperial Household Department convoy arrived to assess Albis City’s new route and construction, while Dole remained focused on cultivating and left the visitors to his officials. The officials planned to proceed by procedure, and Dole’s meditation method had reached its final level, leaving his future progress to his own comprehension.

• The road into the Albis Mountains was completed, and the Aoun Family began quarrying stone as construction plans advanced.
• The Imperial Household Department’s convoy traveled toward Albis City, where its members observed the well-built road and heard merchants urge them to hurry.
• The middle-aged official and his companions debated whether to delay or handle their assignment quickly, then agreed to proceed according to procedure.
• Dole, unaware of events in the southern wilderness, sent guides to meet the Imperial Household Department’s visitors and stayed at the City Lord’s Manor.
• Dole focused on cultivation as the Storm Domain grew more tranquil, and his Child of Storm Meditation Method reached its final level.

Dole focused on cultivation while his expanding Storm Domain damaged Albis Mountain, and Leona faced harassment in the imperial capital. After discussing Dole’s success, Glaite suggested that he, Leona, Eugene, and Jielin leave the capital and travel north to visit him.

• Dole considered the difficulty of advancing to the seventh level, decided to secure Albis Mountain for now, and devoted himself to cultivation.
• Leona escaped a crowd of people mocking and harassing her in the imperial capital and joined Glaite, Eugene, Jielin, and their companions.
• The group discussed Dole’s rise to the sixth level and his expected marquisate, and Eugene proposed visiting him once they reached the fifth level.
• After learning Leona had encountered her harassers again, Eugene grew angry, while Glaite suggested leaving the capital and traveling north to Dole.
• Jielin objected to leaving the prosperous capital for the impoverished northwest.

Leona, Eugene, and Glaite considered leaving the imperial capital for the north, while Dole received officials from the Internal Affairs Office and briefed them on the new city and the Northwest Passage. After delegating their hospitality to subordinates, Dole returned to his other work as recruitment and construction preparations continued.

• Leona agreed that she, Eugene, and Glaite could go north to study and grow stronger, while Eugene wanted to beat up their rivals before leaving.
• Dole emerged from cultivation to receive Mitler, Aston, Yama, and their guards at the City Lord's Manor.
• Mitler praised Dole's conquest of Albis Mountain, and Dole offered the visitors detailed maps of the area.
• Dole told Mitler that the Northwest Passage would be built with help from a Level Six Wizard Tower and could open within half a year.
• Dole assigned subordinates to attend the Internal Affairs Office visitors and returned to his work as labor recruitment and the Wasen Fort garrison's arrival proceeded.

Dole continued studying magic while powerful figures from the empire responded to his rise and the situation around Albis City. Mavik traveled north to assess Dole, but the immense storm domain and the city’s wizard towers left him wary as he arrived nearby.

• Awei arrived from Wasen Fort with a legion, while Dole set aside the news and focused on comprehending magical laws at Albis Mountain.
• A middle-aged official in Du City learned that the Internal Affairs Office had reached Albis City and arranged to meet Dole, also notifying the Roderick City Lord's Manor.
• Mavik arrived at Rikdo's camp, promised to make Dole pay, and learned that Akso had recovered and fought against a seventh-level wizard from the North Plains Mountain Range.
• Rikdo left the wilderness with his people as Mavik continued toward Albis City to judge Dole's strength for himself.
• Mavik saw Albis Mountain's vast storm domain and the city's eight sixth-level wizard towers, including Akso's seven-floor crimson tower, and decided to observe for a few days.