Chapter Summaries

Luo Ning arranged for Anthony to recruit free citizens from other territories to settle in Wubei Territory, offering him a commission and protection if the work cost him his position. He then finalized generous land and tax incentives with Wilson, Serin, and the others, leaving Anthony ready to promote the policies.

• Luo Ning asked Anthony to attract free citizens to Wubei Territory, and Anthony warned that other nobles might restrict their subjects from leaving.
• Luo Ning offered Anthony three Silver Coin for every ten settlers he brought and promised him a job and land if the Viper Slave Exchange dismissed him.
• Anthony agreed to help while keeping his position at the Viper Slave Exchange, and he and Luo Ning signed a Cooperation Agreement.
• Luo Ning gathered Wilson, Serin, and the others to finalize settlement policies, including five mu of land for each newcomer and reduced taxes for the first five years.
• Anthony judged that people would seek refuge in Wubei Territory under the new policies, while Luo Ning saw population growth as the territory's main need.

After Swamp Town’s population registration completed a territory achievement, Luo Ning arranged its administration and returned to Mountain Forest Town by way of several villages. Back at the castle, he reunited with Aileen and learned that Elrond had gone to help Haen’s wife give birth, so he set out to visit them.

• Wilson registered Swamp Town’s residents, triggering the Conquer Cities and Seize Territory achievement and revealing a new goal to own two cities.
• Luo Ning left Swamp Town with Joffrey, leaving Jenny, Rognar, Krami, and other officials and guards to oversee its security and administration.
• Luo Ning and Joffrey stopped at Black Soil Village, then visited Gray Soil Village, Purple Fruit Village, and Green Bamboo Village as Luo Ning inspected land and spring plowing.
• After seven days of travel, Luo Ning returned to Mountain Forest Town, where Black Tiger and Aileen welcomed him and he gave Aileen books and a necklace.
• Aileen told Luo Ning that Elrond had gone to help Haen’s wife, whose condition was poor after giving birth, and Luo Ning decided to visit them.

Luo Ning visited Haen’s family after Elrond helped Haen’s wife deliver a baby, then introduced new fertility and hygiene policies for Wubei Territory. Back at the castle, he reviewed Elrond’s spell scrolls and decided to raise Elrond’s strength.

• Elrond used the Invigorate Spell and Healing Spell to help Haen’s wife safely give birth, and Luo Ning named the newborn boy Garen.
• Luo Ning left Haen’s family three gold coins and told Gallon to inform Wilson that residents should separate their homes from animal enclosures as housing improved.
• After learning that Mountain Forest Town had welcomed six newborns in a month, Luo Ning established labor protections for pregnant women and rewards for families with safely delivered babies.
• Elrond delivered fifty Healing Spell Scrolls, and Luo Ning kept twenty for Wubei Territory while ordering the other thirty sold.
• Luo Ning praised Elrond’s contributions and announced that he had decided to raise Elrond’s strength.

Luo Ning advanced Elrond to Chief Mage, hoping to eventually help him cure Rulans’s Soul Devouring Surge. Elrond gained new spells and knowledge of Herbology and Magic Potion, and Luo Ning assigned him to develop medicine for Wubei Territory.

• Luo Ning spent 1,200 Energy Essence to advance Elrond to Chief Mage and considered how to balance future investments between Elrond and Rydal.
• Elrond described his new spells, including Purification Spell, which Luo Ning hoped might help Rulans despite its likely limited effect on Soul Devouring Surge.
• Elrond revealed that he had awakened knowledge of Herbology and Magic Potion, including ways to make potions and treat ordinary ailments.
• Luo Ning told Elrond to focus on Herbology and Magic Potion, raised his daily wage, and provided 100 gold coins in research funding.
• Elrond asked to recruit two assistants, and Luo Ning approved while allowing him to teach trustworthy people basic Herbology.
• Elrond said he would teach Aileen about Magic Potion, and Luo Ning suggested Jenny could assist when needed.

Luo Ning inspected workshops across Wubei Territory, guiding improvements to a treadle loom, porcelain kilns, and an ironmaking furnace while arranging production and cultivation plans. In March, after spring plowing advanced under Wilson’s supervision, Knight Rognar arrived to see Luo Ning, possibly with the grain shipment.

• Luo Ning inspected Darn’s unfinished treadle loom, identified needed improvements, and set the goal of having it operating by the Silkworm Cocoon harvest.
• Luo Ning expanded Ironwood Equipment production plans and asked William’s workers to investigate making ironwood arrows for growing troops.
• Luo Ning rewarded Jim’s workshop after it fired white porcelain, assigned further experiments, and considered moving the potters to Gray Soil Village.
• Luo Ning determined that Callus’s blast furnace needed larger bellows to produce enough heat to melt iron and asked him to arrange their construction.
• Luo Ning reviewed territorial development, while Wilson supervised spring plowing across several towns; in March, Gallon reported that Knight Rognar had come to see him.

Rognar reported that Resen had been sentenced to hang after denying ties between the Skull Society and the Purple Lightning Family, while Philiton died by suicide in court. Luo Ning assigned Rognar new trade and migration tasks, and the chapter left him preparing to travel again.

• Rognar told Luo Ning that he had transported 300,000 jin of grain from Lingchuan City to Swamp Town.
• Rognar reported that Resen admitted seizing Mountain Forest Town's resources and contacting the Skull Society but denied its connection to the Purple Lightning Family; Philiton recanted his testimony and died by suicide in court.
• Rognar told Luo Ning that Resen was sentenced to hang on April fifth and that Galil was accused of framing a noble.
• Luo Ning gave Rognar Healing Spell Scrolls to sell and ordered him to have Pierson buy 50,000 jin of Iron Ore for transport to Gray Soil Village.
• Luo Ning ordered Rognar to take grain and a caravan to Mountain Forest Town and bring 560 commoners recruited by Anthony from Cona.

Luo Ning oversaw Wubei Territory’s farming, land-reclamation, and sericulture work as the territory remained peaceful. The chapter ended when Tom reported that Rydal had been injured during a clearing mission, leaving Luo Ning to ask what had happened.

• Luo Ning drove villages to reclaim farmland by offering rewards and imposing penalties for poor results.
• Luo Ning inspected the mulberry field with Horn and instructed him on caring for the seedlings and preparing for silkworm farming.
• Luo Ning planned to bring Lia and her apprentices to Purple Fruit Village and move loom-making there.
• Luo Ning continued teaching Horn about silkworm farming as they returned to the village.
• Tom arrived in a panic and told Luo Ning that Rydal had been injured.
• Luo Ning asked Tom what had happened.

Rydal and four Beginner Knights reached a strange valley by the sea, where they found human skeletons and a cave filled with chaotic elemental energy. As they hid outside the cave, they heard people inside discussing Nebralar and a patrol.

• Rydal led Tom, George, Walton, and Dandy north through the forest toward the sea.
• The group reached a gloomy valley and Rydal sensed chaotic elemental energy and faint violet light within it.
• Rydal and the knights found scattered human skeletons and rusted weapons at the bottom of the valley.
• Tom spotted a cave, and Rydal led the group toward it despite the danger.
• The knights saw footprints and heard people inside the cave talking about Nebralar and their patrol, so Rydal ordered them to hide behind a boulder.

Rydal and his companions encountered people in a strange valley whose bodies could not be killed by ordinary attacks, and Rydal was badly wounded escaping them. After hearing Tom’s report, Luo Ning rode to Black Soil Town to assess Rydal’s condition and investigate the threat.

• Rydal attacked three men who had discovered his group, but they kept fighting after he pierced their bodies, and Explosive Flame Slash reduced Obi to dust.
• Rydal led Tom and the others in a retreat while the valley’s survivors pursued them, and he fought for three miles before the pursuers withdrew.
• Tom told Luo Ning that Rydal’s wounds would not heal, and his pierced arm had begun to rot during their ten-day journey back.
• Luo Ning ordered Horn to fetch Macken and Bablin, then took Tom with him to Black Soil Town.

Luo Ning examined Rydal’s persistent arm injury and learned it had been caused by a strange Battle Qi that sealed the wounded flesh. He planned an expedition to the Mysterious Valley after Rydal recovered and his own strength increased, while Elrond arrived in Black Soil Town to assess the injury.

• Luo Ning removed Rydal’s bandages and found that a healing spell had no effect on the festering wound in his left arm.
• Rydal explained that a Silver Knight’s special Battle Qi had turned the flesh around the wound into a substance that his own Battle Qi could not penetrate, while his chest wound had healed.
• Rydal suspected that a powerful figure lived in the cave, but Luo Ning stopped his exhausted analysis and arranged for him to rest and receive care.
• Luo Ning ordered extra northern patrols and decided to investigate the Mysterious Valley after Rydal recovered and he had gained enough strength.
• Elrond rode into Black Soil Town at midnight with George, Jenny, and Krami to visit Rydal and meet Luo Ning.

Elrond used a Purification Spell to remove the strange energy from Rydal's wound and treated it with healing magic and medicine. After learning more about the creatures in the northern valley, Luo Ning decided to lead an expedition to clear it and agreed to let Krami join.

• Elrond's Purification Spell dispelled the strange energy in Rydal's wound, allowing his Battle Qi to flow and easing his pain.
• Elrond removed the rotten flesh from Rydal's wound, then used Healing Spells and Potent Growth Powder to help it heal.
• Luo Ning ordered everyone present to keep the northern valley's creatures secret, then heard Rydal's account of them.
• Luo Ning announced that he would lead a team to clear the valley after Macken arrived and Rydal recovered, and initially excluded Krami.
• Krami asked to join the operation, argued that she was willing to fight for Luo Ning, and he agreed to let her go.

Luo Ning reached Silver Knight rank and prepared an expedition against the dangerous monsters in Strange Valley. After rallying Wubei Territory’s fighters and entrusting the territory to those staying behind, he led the force north.

• While waiting for April twenty-first, Luo Ning trained with Macken and Rydal, but struggled against their battle skills and combat experience.
• On April twenty-first, Luo Ning spent all 184 Attribute Points and advanced to Level 5 Silver Knight.
• With little time before the expedition, Luo Ning began learning new battle skills and spells as he traveled preparations forward.
• Luo Ning gathered his fighters before Black Soil Town’s fortress, gave a speech about protecting Wubei Territory, and rallied them to fight for their home.
• Luo Ning told Wilson, Chahar, and the others to manage the territory while the expedition was away, then ordered the force to set out.

Luo Ning led his group back to Strange Valley, prepared with enhanced support and a stock of Spell Scrolls, and surveyed the ruined battlefield and surrounding terrain. After considering the valley’s cave and finding no patrols nearby, he ordered his forces to hide and observe.

• Rydal led Luo Ning and the others to the site of his earlier battle, where the destruction showed the group how dangerous the operation would be.
• Luo Ning strengthened Rydal and Elrond with Energy Essence, then distributed Spell Scrolls and supplies to the party before they continued toward Strange Valley.
• The group climbed a mountain peak and saw the sea, prompting Luo Ning to consider finding a suitable harbor site for Wubei Territory’s future trade.
• Luo Ning’s party descended toward the valley floor, passing human and animal bones, and found no one patrolling nearby.
• Luo Ning ordered Macken and Joffrey to watch the rear with Tom and four others, while the rest hid and observed the cave.

Luo Ning and his group watched the cave for three days before deciding to smoke out its inhabitants, whom he suspected feared sunlight. After gathering firewood, they prepared to attack the cave entrance.

• Luo Ning and his group watched the cave patrols and learned that its twelve guards only came out at night.
• Rydal and the others estimated that the patrol was led by a Bronze Rank Knight and included two Advanced Knights.
• Luo Ning decided to smoke the cave’s inhabitants out rather than risk entering their territory.
• Luo Ning assigned everyone to gather dry firewood and planned to burn it at the cave entrance the next afternoon.
• Luo Ning stored extra firewood in his Spatial Ring, then declared that it was time to attack.

Luo Ning and his companions filled a cave with smoke, provoking a powerful beast roar and an explosive blast of frost. Five powerful figures emerged and fought off the group’s opening attacks, and the white-haired woman then tried to entice Luo Ning and his companions to submit to her.

• Luo Ning and Jenny used fire, water, and wind magic to send thick smoke into the cave, while the knights fed more firewood into the entrance.
• A series of deep roars shook the mountain, and a blast of cold air and violent wind scattered the firewood and froze the cave entrance.
• Luo Ning ordered everyone to retreat, then his group attacked five figures rushing out of the cave; the clash between them was evenly matched.
• Eight gray-clad people emerged from the cave, and Luo Ning noticed that no Demon Beast had appeared.
• A burly knight recognized Rydal as the man whose arm he had pierced, while the white-haired woman invited Luo Ning and the others to submit to her.

Luo Ning’s forces fought Natalia’s patrol in Strange Valley, where he discovered that supernatural power could destroy their strange bodies. Natalia and Nebralar called on their master for dark power, and the battle continued with Luo Ning’s side holding the advantage in most clashes but struggling against an Advanced Knight.

• Natalia refused to submit to Luo Ning and ordered her knights to kill the intruders, while Luo Ning’s forces engaged them according to their battle plan.
• Luo Ning crushed Utan with Instant Ignition after discovering that supernatural power injected into his body caused it to fracture and turn to powder.
• Natalia broke free of Elrond’s Light Binding Spell with dark power and charged at him, but Rydal intercepted her.
• Luo Ning trapped Nebralar with Wind Tentacles, and Macken tore off one of Nebralar’s legs with a Rock Serpent before Luo Ning took over the fight.
• Macken left Nebralar to Luo Ning and charged to help Krami and Bablin, who were struggling against an Advanced Knight.

Luo Ning killed Nebralar and watched Natalia’s fight turn against her, but she summoned a creature from the cave with the Black Horn. A colossal dragon emerged, leaving Luo Ning and the others facing a terrifying new threat.

• Luo Ning killed Nebralar, earning the “King of Slaughter” achievement and its rewards.
• Macken freed Krami and Bablin, and they joined Horn, Jenny, and the others in defeating the patrol soldiers.
• Rydal, Macken, and Elrond overwhelmed Natalia, who blew the Black Horn to summon help from the cave.
• A sea of flames erupted as a massive creature emerged from the cave, and Luo Ning recognized it as a dragon.

Natalia commanded Carlos the dragon to attack Luo Ning and his companions, but their coordinated spells let Luo Ning kill her with a Fire Dragon Swallows Heaven scroll. Carlos escaped its enslavement and tried to fly away, but Luo Ning had himself thrown onto the dragon’s back.

• Natalia mounted Carlos and ordered the dragon to burn Luo Ning’s group, while Elrond, Macken, Rydal, and Luo Ning helped create a safe area against its breath.
• Luo Ning sent most of the group toward a cave and coordinated binding spells that briefly restrained Carlos’s right Wing.
• Luo Ning’s Fire Dragon Swallows Heaven scroll overwhelmed Carlos’s breath and engulfed Natalia, killing her and completing Luo Ning’s King of Slaughter achievement.
• Carlos, freed from Natalia’s control, tried to flee, and Luo Ning had Rydal and Macken throw him onto its back with Elrond’s help.
• Carlos turned and saw Luo Ning land on its back.

Luo Ning bound himself to the weakened dragon Carlos and tried to force it to submit, attacking it as it flew high above Wubei Territory and plunged into the sea. After Carlos surfaced exhausted, Luo Ning struck its head with a series of Explosion Spells, sending it crashing toward the beach.

• Luo Ning used a Wind Tentacles Scroll to bind himself to Carlos as the dragon tried to throw him from its back.
• Carlos flew high into the sky, but Luo Ning renewed his bindings and stabbed between its scales with a dagger and the Flowing Flame Sword.
• Carlos dived into the sea with Luo Ning, then surfaced after its strength began to fail.
• Luo Ning hit Carlos with four Explosion Spells, leaving the exhausted dragon dazed and falling toward the beach.

Luo Ning defeated Carlos and persuaded the dragon to submit, then bound him with a Master-Servant Contract. The contract freed Carlos from Natalia’s strange energy, and Luo Ning asked who Natalia and her subordinates were.

• Luo Ning beat the exhausted Carlos until the dragon nodded and submitted.
• Luo Ning offered Carlos freedom and a chance to explore the world, then used a Contract Scroll to bind him.
• The contract linked Luo Ning and Carlos, allowing them to communicate mentally and see Carlos’s level progress.
• The contract expelled the strange energy Natalia had used to torment Carlos and control him with a horn.
• Luo Ning asked Carlos who Natalia and her subordinates were.