Chapter Summaries

Nesta, Azshara, and the Troll expedition captured seven lava-dwelling monsters after Azshara used the experimental Banshee's Wail to stop two of the largest creatures. The Trolls withdrew when they sensed two dangerous beasts waking far below, brought their spoils back to the tribe, and began studying them.

• Troll warriors and witch doctors wounded the giant monster with javelins, curses, and tree ballistae, then suspended it above the lava lake.
• A dozen Troll warriors cornered and captured the medium-sized monster while six others advanced across the restrained giant and kept it from attacking the crater rim.
• Two more giant monsters erupted from the lake, but Nesta supported Azshara as she unleashed Banshee's Wail and blasted them into the lava wall.
• Nesta, Rough Tusk, and Sharp Tusk sensed a dangerous presence waking in the depths and urged the Trolls to retreat with their seven captured monsters and fallen comrades.
• The Trolls hauled their spoils down the mountain with vines and moose, and the recovered Azshara rejoined Nesta during the return journey.
• The party reached the tribe without further losses, and the captured monsters were sent for targeted research.

Nesta and the council approved a plan to abolish scattered settlements and concentrate development and population at headquarters, while naming the Republic’s major cities. Discussion of graduation placements then led Nesta to consider how Trolls should inherit wealth when their production teams had no family-based inheritance customs.

• The Executive Government proposed abolishing small and medium-sized settlements to improve security, development efficiency, and resource use, and Nesta judged that prioritizing headquarters was prudent.
• After discussions with the People's Protection Council, the Rune Council approved the plan to relocate about fifteen thousand Trolls to headquarters and establish Inner North City as a new settlement in the northern pass.
• The council formally named the major settlements and cities, including Near East City, Central East City, Far East City, and the western and northern cities.
• The Executive Government raised the question of how to place the First Central School graduates after grassroots teams had filled most vacancies, and Nesta connected the issue to inheritance.
• Nesta considered how Trolls would divide team-owned and private wealth after death, since Troll society had no family relationships or father-to-son inheritance custom.

Nesta convened the Rune Council to debate inheritance, wealth concentration, and whether production teams should remain the Republic’s basic social units. The shamans approved a pilot program and flexible partner policies, while leaving the broader reforms contested and the vision of a fully superhuman society under consideration.

• Nesta explained that Troll inheritance customs remained vague and temporarily halted filling vacancies in production teams while postponing graduate assignments.
• Nesta presented his concerns to the Rune Council, where shamans debated whether production teams restricted individual freedom and could preserve wealth within closed groups.
• A proposal to test district-based self-governing communities with more than one thousand new graduates won broad approval, but plans to abolish production teams and redistribute wealth after death faced fierce opposition.
• Shamans debated fixed partner relationships as a possible social alternative to production teams, and Nesta tacitly approved gradually teaching flexible partner policies in schools.
• Supporters of high welfare argued that it could free Trolls to study and improve themselves, prompting Nesta to embrace the vision of achieving a fully superhuman society.
• The council agreed that inequality of status required caution and continued debating whether lifetime private ownership followed by public inheritance could prevent wealth disparities.

After the Republic finalized its pilot policies and relocated Trolls for new settlements, witch doctors made major discoveries while studying the Volcanic Salamanders’ black crystals. Nesta’s suspicions about electricity led researchers toward bioelectricity and new possibilities for Arcane Arts, leaving him imagining the Republic’s future.

• The four advanced witch doctors ended months of policy disputes, approved trial systems, and began moving more than one thousand graduates into designated community districts.
• The Executive Government dismantled outposts and relocated over sixteen thousand adult Trolls to build Inner North City and settle the central territory.
• Researchers found that black prismatic crystals could be formed from natural materials and determined that their source was a metal alloy concentrated in volcanic lava.
• Witch doctors separated the crystal-forming Arcane Art into stages for identifying, extracting, condensing, forming, and shaping metals, then used related rune patterns to locate ore deposits and extract gold.
• Nesta noticed reports of numbness during metal extraction and asked witch doctors to investigate whether the runes involved electricity and reactions resembling electrolysis.
• Researchers identified an interaction between stamina and electricity in Arcane Arts, and Nesta watched a current crackle at his fingertips as he imagined future applications.

The Witch Doctors studied Volcanic Salamanders as sources of metals and developed ways to lure and capture more of them. After realizing that capturing High Salamanders was vital to the Republic’s original population goal, Nesta and three advanced Witch Doctors resumed their analysis and considered using the Cave Wolf to exploit the High Salamanders’ territorial instincts.

• The Witch Doctors planned to use Totems to turn Volcanic Salamanders into specialized biological smelters, and Nesta allocated dozens of Mother Tree cultivation chambers for breeding research.
• The Witch Doctors analyzed Salamander waste and discovered new metals, chemical compounds, and clues that improved their understanding of metallurgy and rune arrays.
• The Witch Doctors identified nutrient-rich magma reactions and mating signals that could lure ordinary Salamanders, then proposed using hardened plant roots to capture them.
• The Witch Doctors returned their focus to capturing High Salamanders, and Nesta and three advanced Witch Doctors began analyzing signals from the two awakened individuals.
• Nesta learned that the two High Salamanders were about 130 meters long, lived far below the surface, and included one badly injured individual; he proposed testing whether territorial instincts could help lure them, possibly with the Cave Wolf.

The Republic developed a temporary prison for the Cave Wolf while its witch doctors worked on the project for years, and the nation advanced in education, agriculture, cities, and military research. The chapter ended with Freya asking Nesta whether she could enter his laboratory with a routine report.

• The witch doctors decided to build a mobile temporary cage for the Cave Wolf rather than move the Mother Tree or risk releasing the beast.
• The Republic’s thousand elf children completed gestation and began preparatory classes, while Nesta approved a second batch of Treeborn Embryos.
• Inner North City opened, chemical fertilizers increased crop yields, and the government arranged mineral extraction and trade with the Hornhoof People.
• The headquarters expanded its housing, banking, water, and sanitation systems as the community pilot program grew and military researchers tested new weapons.
• Nesta worked on a Volcanic Salamander organ in one laboratory partition and experimented with metals in another.
• Freya knocked and asked Nesta to let her in with the Warriors' Laboratory’s routine report.

Freya visited Nesta to celebrate becoming able to ovulate, and he confirmed her development before sending her to Azshara to have the reproductive cell preserved. Meanwhile, Gonzalo monitored Giant Tusk’s Frenzy training and concluded that meditation could help warriors strengthen their willpower and improve implant compatibility.

• Freya brought Nesta a report and proudly told him Azshara had said she could ovulate; Nesta confirmed it with an Arcane Art and instructed her to have the reproductive cell removed for preservation.
• Freya objected when Nesta treated her like a child, then left with Elisa after Nesta startled the beast and used a vine to pull Freya out of the room.
• Nesta opened Freya’s Warrior Advancement Training Plan Report and began reading it in his laboratory.
• Giant Tusk entered a Frenzy during training and attacked Gonzalo, who restrained him with vines and used Arcane Arts to calm him.
• Gonzalo examined Giant Tusk’s injuries and judged that he had endured level-five Frenzy, putting him near the theoretical level-six stage.
• Gonzalo explained that Valerie and Joelle’s Mental Power improved their implant compatibility, then told Giant Tusk to begin meditation training to strengthen his willpower.

Nesta considered how to keep witch doctors from accumulating unchecked political power, then met with Joelle and Valerie to discuss their possible futures and the Hornhoof People's growing tensions. Azshara challenged his assumptions and asked whether he still wanted to lead the Republic from the front.

• Nesta reviewed the training reports, considered how future witch doctors might threaten the Republic's balance of power, and discussed a compromise for Joelle and Valerie with the other Ascended.
• Nesta asked Valerie about her travels, and she warned that economic exploitation and hostility among the Hornhoof alliances could lead to war.
• Valerie proposed curbing the banks, reconciling the Hornhoof alliances, using their labor and market, and contacting northern peoples; Nesta praised her reasoning.
• Nesta asked Joelle and Valerie whether they would pursue research as witch doctors, but Valerie's uncertainty and Joelle's objections led him to send them away without revealing his proposed arrangement.
• Azshara advised Nesta that witch doctors might resist his plans and asked whether he still wanted to guide the Republic from the front.

Nesta reconsidered his leadership and focused on strengthening his own power after Azshara warned that his authority could fade if younger generations surpassed him. Meanwhile, the Republic’s preparations to capture High Salamanders advanced, but the first cage test failed when the Cave Wolf nearly broke free.

• Azshara warned Nesta that his reputation and influence might be undermined after he gave up power, and urged him to remain at the forefront through personal strength.
• Nesta set a goal to reach the next stage first, trained his willpower to gain control over his subconscious, and delegated more research authority to his assistants.
• Witch Doctors planted roughly ninety thousand controllable arcane plants in the southern volcanic highlands and built a spherical cage reinforced with metal nets for the High Salamander operation.
• Rough Tusk and several Witch Doctors escorted the cage south and awakened the Cave Wolf, prompting the High Salamanders to leave their nest and climb upward.
• The Cave Wolf’s struggles broke the cage’s wooden layers and alloy nets, but Rough Tusk’s team transformed it into a plant structure and injected medicine to subdue it; four moose died, and Rough Tusk ordered the cage returned for modifications.

The witch doctors and Rough Tusk developed a plant-animal chimera with a learning, self-aware main body and a powerful, mobile plant body. Nesta named it the War Ancient Tree and approved its growth and training, while the Republic planned to cultivate more for the campaign against the High Salamander.

• The witch doctors dismantled the prototype cage, shared their findings with research teams, and continued studying how to lure the High Salamander toward the surface.
• The witch doctors developed a plant with hydraulic joints and muscles, then used tissue from Rough Tusk’s half-tree form to create a plant-animal chimera.
• Nesta approved a method using Rough Tusk’s cell nucleus and an enucleated Troll egg cell, allowing Rough Tusk, Azshara, and Sharp Tusk to grow a self-aware chimera with a controllable, mobile body.
• Nesta inspected the small creature, named it the War Ancient Tree, and approved its growth near the Mother Tree along with education and training.
• Nesta considered the War Ancient Tree’s potential for combat and Totem inscription, then concluded that the Republic needed to cultivate more to capture the High Salamander.

Nesta reached Tier 3, fully Elvenized, and developed omnipotent cells that expanded his primary consciousness and improved his abilities. His rune research then enabled Trolls to operate a seed-making treehouse, opening new prospects for automated production as witch doctors also advanced their salamander research.

• Witch doctors continued cultivating War Ancient Trees from Rough Tusk's somatic cells because only one existed and independent reproduction was not yet practical.
• Nesta crossed the threshold to Tier 3 after years of developing his will, and his body evolved omnipotent cells that joined his primary consciousness while preserving his strength and regeneration.
• Nesta examined his changes, recorded his new physical and mental attributes, and resolved to continue integrating his consciousness while investigating brain-cell replacement through animal experiments first.
• Nesta discovered fundamental rune structures for converting physical energy into bioelectric signals and commands, and developed Totems that let warriors operate Arcane Arts constructs and plants.
• Nesta and trained warriors successfully used a seed-making treehouse to produce high-yield grain seeds, demonstrating that ordinary Trolls could operate automated production without spellcasters.
• Witch doctors used advances in brain science and electrical research to identify salamander brain regions and electricity-generating organs, improving the design and cultivation of their salamander research chambers.

Nesta inspected the witch doctors’ biological generator, then redirected research toward magnets and steam engines. After a combat exercise exposed the Republic’s lack of long-range firepower, he analyzed how Volcanic Salamanders launched Black Ridge Gold and discovered that their alloy projectiles retained Arcane Arts effects.

• The witch doctors demonstrated a salamander-based biological generator, but its power output was too limited to drive machinery and it required large amounts of feed.
• Nesta assigned research on magnets and generators to the witch doctors and sent the Mechanical Research Institute notes about using steam to produce power.
• Nesta watched a drill against a forty-meter salamander and worried that the Republic’s weapons lacked the range to counter High Salamanders.
• Nesta identified how Volcanic Salamanders compressed magma-derived gases to launch Black Ridge Gold and reduce resistance around the projectiles.
• Nesta found that the alloy projectiles retained an Arcane Arts effect, suggesting that metal could be enchanted.

Nesta and the witch doctors developed Totem-powered artillery using a composite Arcane Art that compressed ordinary air, then tested cannons and refined their shells. After establishing several gun and projectile designs, they began defining a rapid-fire gun series and a light-gun category.

• Nesta combined Volcanic Salamander and Wind Wolf spell structures to create an air-compressing Arcane Art with projectile and directional-blast modes.
• Nesta’s team converted the Arcane Art into Totems and built a cannon; its first test toppled the base, so the witch doctors strengthened the gun carriage and materials.
• The reinforced cannon fired a multi-ton shell roughly fifteen kilometers, but Nesta identified problems with speed, stability, and armor penetration.
• Repeated tests showed that Black Ridge Gold’s air-rending enchantment lasted less than five lamp-minutes, while researchers developed rifling, longer barrels, and specialized armor-piercing shells.
• The witch doctors finalized several cannon designs, including a portable 30mm rapid-fire gun and a tracked 60mm model, then began outlining the light-gun series.

Nesta and the witch doctors developed powerful cannons, built automated factories and expanded Totem tree technology, delaying the High Salamander operation as their preparations grew. After nearly three years of industrial and military development, Nesta decided the capture plan was finally ready, with the Republic fielding seventy Bombarder 1 cannons, more than three hundred Armorbreaker 1 cannons and 120 cannon-equipped War Ancient Trees.

• Nesta designed the Armorbreaker 1 multifunctional cannon and the Bombarder 1 full-power cannon, and the witch doctors planned to produce both along with other weapons for the High Salamander operation.
• The witch doctors built magma pipelines and automated factories using Totem trees to manufacture Black Ridge Gold ammunition and cannons, completing the industrial system after nearly three years of work.
• The Republic extended its preparations, training its legions, developing new battlefield tactics, and exploring Totem tree applications in power, agriculture, communications, armor and manufacturing.
• The witch doctors created Totem Engraver trees for warriors and monitoring trees for communications, while Totem-assisted machine tools improved precision and production across military and civilian industries.
• Nesta turned his attention south after further advances in Totem tree technology, and the Republic acquired seventy Bombarder 1 cannons, more than three hundred Armorbreaker 1 cannons and 120 War Ancient Trees equipped with 203mm cannons.

The Republic prepared new Arcane Arts plants to contain the High Salamanders while Furnesta’s proposal for cannon-armed ships prompted Nesta to advance naval technology. After inspecting Machista’s steam-engine research, Nesta urged the institute to prioritize a prototype gunship and demonstrated a possible turbine engine design.

• A scholar’s suggestion revived the failed plant-armor project, and the Republic sent nearly ten thousand cockpit-equipped Arcane Arts saplings south to help surround the Volcanic Range.
• Furnesta submitted a plan for cannon-armed ships, and the Rune Council approved the project while ordering him to build usable oar-and-sail gunships quickly.
• Nesta visited Machista’s Mechanical Research Institute and learned about its steam engines and Machista’s proposed explosive reciprocating engine.
• Nesta demonstrated a multi-stage turbine concept that excited Machista and the institute’s scholars, then directed them to focus first on ship propulsion and the prototype battleship.
• Nesta summoned Furnesta and ordered him to continue the oar-and-sail gunship plan while coordinating with Machista’s institute on ship engines.

The chapter covered the Republic’s management of the divided Hornhoof regimes and reviewed recent advances in witch doctor, warrior, and elf development. It left the Northern Plateau reforms underway, while the third batch of elf embryos remained in cultivation until they reached ten years of development.

• The Executive Government planned to turn Northern Plateau alliances into city-states with different political systems, and headquarters approved the plan and sent a reactor-weapon-equipped standing army north to enforce it.
• Researchers proposed raising isolated tribes from artificially synthesized embryos to study civilization, but the council shelved the project until the Republic had better conditions.
• Freya became the Republic’s fifth advanced witch doctor after overcoming a long delay caused by the difference between her innate life stage and professional advancement.
• Giant Tusk, Joelle Tusk, Valerie Tusk, Daba, Salajin, Quenna Tusk, and other warriors completed Elvenization, leading the council to plan larger-scale implant cultivation.
• The council rejected early birth for the third batch of elf embryos after research found that childhood outside cultivation chambers would reduce their aptitude and lengthen their development.

A breakthrough in listening-tree technology forced the External Exploration Department to scale back its relay network, while rising production and surplus goods pushed the Republic into an economic crisis. The Rune Council and Executive Government debated whether to preserve the citizens’ market system or shift toward publicly operated production and welfare.

• Joelle Tusk ordered the External Exploration Department to notify its agents and communications officers that they should return in batches to collect new equipment, as listening trees could monitor signals across a 2,000-kilometer radius.
• Totem technology and automated production lines reduced the need for labor and created unsold goods, driving the Republic into an economic winter.
• Impeachment letters against the Executive Government accumulated at the Rune Council, though the crisis did not prompt officials to resign or the People's Protection Council to intervene.
• Supporters of publicly owned factories argued that excess production should give way to learning and cultivation, while opponents warned that ending citizens’ independent production could make them dependent on concentrated power.
• Nesta recognized that both sides were acting from public-minded motives, leaving the government to consider whether to preserve the market or adopt fully welfare-based public operation.

Nesta listened as Republic officials debated economic policy, then approved principles balancing public guarantees, research, and private enterprise. Back in his office, he recognized a spell’s potential for an engine, assigned the project to Masista, reviewed the gunship’s progress, and summoned Freya.

• Nesta listened silently while a banking representative argued that private enterprises could encourage useful inventions and improve daily life.
• The conference adopted guiding principles and policies that guaranteed essential goods, prioritized education and research, supported private production, and sought new markets through trade.
• Nesta reviewed product concepts, experimented with a flame spell, and realized it could provide the basis for an internal combustion engine.
• Nesta instructed Masista to prepare a dedicated Engine Research Institute and develop research teams for marine, construction, and aerospace engines.
• Masista reported progress on the gunship and steam-powered verification vessel, and Nesta told him to proceed with safety precautions.
• Nesta sent Freya a message ordering her to come to his office.

Nesta persuaded Freya to intern with Macista’s team at Deepwater Harbor and study their engine research. The chapter explained the Republic’s routes toward Elvenization and implant cultivation, then ended with Giant Tusk reporting to a research institute for physical experiments.

• Nesta questioned Freya about her training, learned she had become a second-rank witch doctor, and assigned her to intern under Macista on engine research.
• Nesta reflected on his decision to follow the public child-rearing system and place his reproductive cells in anonymous hibernation chambers.
• The Republic’s witch doctors developed implant-based paths for spellcasters, warriors, and scholars, while its implant cultivation plan advanced to decorated recipients.
• The Republic planned to capture high-grade Volcanic Salamanders within six months to expand incubation capacity and accelerate Elvenization.
• Giant Tusk left his compound and followed an intern to the Institute of Brain and Nervous System Research after completing his body’s Elvenization.

Giant Tusk traveled to the Neural System and Brain Research Institute to undergo surgery for a living armor project, receiving new internal organs and learning how the armor would connect to his body. He left with a small, immature armor core that he could cultivate once his body assimilated the implants.

• Giant Tusk visited the Mother Tree with Intern Anesta and rode a commuter pod to the Neural System and Brain Research Institute.
• The witch doctors explained that the surgery would add energy-transfer and mental-control connections for external armor.
• Giant Tusk endured surgery to implant a neural plexus organ near his brain and spine, using his warrior meditation to suppress his body's rejection.
• The witch doctor warned Giant Tusk to return every three days for nutrients until his body accepted the implant.
• The witch doctor showed Giant Tusk a small living armor core with ports matching his new organs and said he could cultivate it after assimilation.