Chapter Summaries

Leo negotiated with Hobbes to exchange his perfected Dark Eye cultivation method for dark-element spells and the Abyssal Fortress’s Dark Heart for Merlin. Hobbes returned with two powerful spellcasters, leaving the agreement undecided as they scrutinized Merlin and Leo.

• Leo offered Hobbes his self-developed Dark Eye cultivation method in exchange for second-level-and-higher dark-element spells for Merlin and instruction in the Dark Heart.
• Hobbes agreed that Merlin could choose spells after signing a contract forbidding him from sharing them, but said he needed to consult others about teaching him the Dark Heart.
• Leo explained that the Dark Heart strengthened dark-element spells, neutralized many dark-element attacks, and could fuse with Merlin’s future fourth-level dark spell.
• Merlin connected Leo’s account of ancient spell-and-Pandora-Demon-Energy fusion to his own Annihilation Flame.
• Hobbes returned with two powerful spellcasters, who silently examined Leo and Merlin.

Merlin entered the Abyssal Fortress’s Dark Labyrinth to cultivate the Dark Heart, while Great Mage Leo revealed he had an Awakening Stone to protect him from its illusions. Great Mage Hobbes and the other Seventh-level Spellcasters waited outside, warning that Merlin would be in grave danger if he did not return within seven days.

• Great Mage Geselo recognized Merlin as the Dark Spirit Domain’s newly emerged Six-Element Spellcaster, and Great Mage Leo confirmed Merlin’s status.
• Great Mage Hobbes agreed to Leo’s conditions and gave Merlin the Dark Heart cultivation method, which Merlin recorded with Matrix before signing a contract not to share it.
• Leo chose for Merlin to enter the Dark Labyrinth first, then explained that its illusions could help cultivate the Dark Heart but could leave Spellcasters lost without an Awakening Stone.
• Hobbes revealed the Abyssal Fortress had run out of Awakening Stones, but Leo produced one and gave it to Merlin.
• Hobbes opened the Dark Labyrinth’s stone door, and Merlin entered carrying the Awakening Stone as Leo and the Abyssal Fortress Spellcasters waited outside.

Merlin entered the Dark Labyrinth and learned how the Awakening Stone and its illusions prepared spellcasters to cultivate the Dark Heart. After repeated failures, he realized that breaking through the illusions required firm conviction, leaving him ready to test this insight.

• Merlin experienced a lifelike illusion of collapsing space and used the Awakening Stone to return to the real cave.
• Merlin consulted the Matrix and learned that the Dark Heart had three forms, each boosting fourth-level and higher dark spells by different amounts.
• Merlin discovered that cultivating the Dark Heart required mastering a mysterious rune and resisting the powerful illusions it created.
• Merlin used the Awakening Stone repeatedly while experiencing the Dark Labyrinth's illusions, but could not break through them by himself.
• Merlin realized that conviction, rather than magic power or spiritual power, might let him overcome the illusions.

Merlin broke the Dark Labyrinth’s first illusion tier by relying on his own conviction, then resisted a stronger illusion of familiar people on the fourth day. After spending five days and eight hours inside, he prepared to cultivate the Dark Heart but noticed skeletal remains nearby.

• Merlin realized the Awakening Stone was shrinking and resolved not to rely on it or the Matrix as his sole support.
• Merlin broke the first illusion by trusting in the power he had gained through his own efforts.
• Great Mage Hobbes explained that the Dark Labyrinth’s illusions strengthened across seven days and warned that Merlin might not emerge after the seventh day.
• On his fourth day inside, Merlin resisted illusions of Avril, Shirley, Old Wilson, Anson, Gute, and other familiar people.
• The Matrix told Merlin he had spent five days and eight hours in the labyrinth, and Merlin spotted several skeletal corpses as he prepared to cultivate the Dark Heart.

Merlin discovered that the Dark Labyrinth’s seventh day corresponded to forging the Third Dark Heart, then overcame the day’s powerful illusion and absorbed the heart. The Matrix said he was still on the seventh day, leaving Merlin to suspect he had never escaped the illusion at all.

• Merlin found old Morta writing explaining that the Dark Labyrinth’s first three days corresponded to the first Dark Heart, days four through six to the second, and the seventh day to the third.
• Merlin chose to face the seventh day, while Mage Hobbes and Mage Leo waited outside the Dark Labyrinth and feared for his safety.
• The seventh-day illusion showed Merlin his former life at Wilson Castle, but he repeatedly used the Awakening Stone and strengthened his resolve until he broke it.
• Merlin absorbed the Third Dark Heart, broke its illusions, and found that his dark-element affinity and dark spells had grown stronger.
• Merlin asked the Matrix how long he had been inside and was alarmed when it reported only seven days, prompting him to suspect he remained trapped in an illusion.

Merlin realized that his apparent progress through the Dark Labyrinth, including forming a Dark Heart, was an illusion shaped by his deepest desires. Unable to break free, he began using the illusion to cultivate conviction, while outside the labyrinth Great Mage Leo tried to enter and rescue him.

• Merlin tested his suspicions by wishing for an unclaimed ring, found one, and discarded it after recognizing the illusion had fulfilled his hidden desire.
• Merlin confirmed that the illusion could imitate his Spells, Pandora Demon Energy, and Dark Heart, then resolved to cultivate conviction within it to break free.
• Great Mage Hobbes told Great Mage Leo that Merlin had likely become lost and demanded that Leo honor his promise.
• Great Mage Leo headed for the Dark Labyrinth, but Great Mage Hobbes, Great Mage Geselo, and Great Mage Balin blocked him.
• Great Mage Leo unleashed his Dark Eye's illusion, causing the three Seventh-level Spellcasters to tremble.

Merlin broke free of the Dark Labyrinth’s final illusion after seven days, while Leo fought past Hobbes and the other Abyssal Fortress Spellcasters to reach him. Merlin emerged just as Hobbes was preparing to summon Great Mage Heigliman, leaving the confrontation poised to change.

• Leo broke through Hobbes and the other Seventh-level Spellcasters’ illusion resistance, then used the Dark Eye’s annihilation attack to make them retreat as he headed for the Dark Labyrinth.
• Merlin endured countless illusions, with Matrix repeatedly reminding him when he lost himself and helping him build powerful conviction.
• Matrix alerted Merlin that his scheduled time had ended, and Merlin realized he was still trapped in the Dark Labyrinth’s final illusion.
• Merlin broke the illusion with his conviction and heard Leo use the Dark Eye outside, so he hurried toward the labyrinth entrance to prevent a fight from escalating.
• Hobbes began inscribing communication runes to summon Great Mage Heigliman, but stopped when Merlin emerged and Leo called out to him.

Merlin emerged from the Dark Labyrinth after surviving its seventh-day illusion, then began cultivating the Third Dark Heart in a quiet room. He overcame its successive illusions, but the chapter ended as the mark on his chest began emitting cool spiritual energy.

• Merlin walked out of the Dark Labyrinth after seven days, and Great Mage Leo tested his resistance with the Dark Eye.
• Merlin told Great Mage Leo he had not yet cultivated the Dark Heart, but Great Mage Hobbes realized Merlin was ready to cultivate the Third Dark Heart.
• Great Mage Leo asked Great Mage Hobbes to provide Merlin with a quiet room, and Hobbes reminded Leo to keep his promise.
• Merlin inscribed the Third Dark Heart's mark on his chest and activated it, beginning the cultivation illusions.
• Merlin shattered the powerful illusions for half a day, then saw the mark on his chest emit cool spiritual energy.

After forming the Third Dark Heart, Merlin discovered that it greatly strengthened his dark Spells, then followed Great Mage Hobbes and the others to the Abyssal Fortress library to choose Spells. Great Mage Leo promised the rest of his Dark Eye cultivation method after Merlin made his selections, and the group arrived at the library.

• Merlin tested Dark Mist and Darklight Domain and found that his Third Dark Heart nearly doubled their power, making the enhanced Darklight Domain capable of affecting even some Fourth-level Spellcasters.
• Merlin asked Matrix how long he had cultivated and learned that he had formed the Dark Heart in nine hours.
• Great Mage Leo confirmed Merlin had formed the Dark Heart and showed Great Mage Hobbes, Great Mage Geselo, and Great Mage Balin half of his Dark Eye cultivation method.
• Great Mage Hobbes and the others praised Leo's method, and Leo said he would provide the rest after Merlin chose his Spells and they left Abyssal Fortress.
• Great Mage Hobbes led Merlin to the library, where Merlin could choose one dark-type Spell from each level, from the second through the Sixth-Level.

Merlin entered the Abyssal Fortress library to choose Spells and learned that his Dark Heart could resist even a Seventh-level Spellcaster’s dark magic. After three days, he selected three powerful illusion Spells and continued searching for a Fifth-Level and Sixth-Level Spell.

• Tesman’s illusion failed to trap Merlin because the Dark Heart dispelled it, and Leo’s Dark Eye forced Tesman to reveal himself.
• Hobbes identified Tesman as the library’s guardian, and Tesman allowed Merlin to enter and choose Spells.
• Tesman directed Merlin to the library’s final shelves, where the most unusual and powerful Spells were kept.
• Merlin chose the Second-Level Spell Dark Tide and the Third-Level Spell Dark Vortex, both of which could induce powerful illusions.
• After three days of searching, Merlin selected the Fourth-Level Spell Dark Nightmare and began looking for Fifth-Level and Sixth-Level Spells.

Merlin chose powerful Dark Spells, including Strangling Storm and Light of Annihilation, and left the Abyssal Fortress with Leo after collecting his spell booklets. Leo revealed that his genuine Dark Eye cultivation method carried a devastating cost, leaving the Abyssal Fortress with a dangerous bargain.

• Merlin selected Strangling Storm as his Fifth-Level Dark Spell and Light of Annihilation as his Sixth-Level Dark Spell.
• Tesman removed the Rune Formations from Merlin’s chosen spell booklets, and Merlin stored them in his ring.
• Leo asked Hobbes to escort him and Merlin out of the Abyssal Fortress before handing over the rest of the Dark Eye cultivation method.
• Outside the fortress, Leo gave Hobbes the remaining method, and Hobbes confirmed that Leo and Merlin could leave.
• Leo told Merlin that cultivating the Dark Eye with his method could sacrifice dozens or more Sixth-level Spellcasters before anyone succeeded.

Great Mage Hobbes discovered that Leo’s genuine Dark Eye cultivation method had an extremely low success rate and was likely fatal, while Leo returned to Dark Spirit Domain and reflected on his dead brother. After strengthening his understanding of his powers, Merlin decided to return to Floating City to confront Laisen and bring Lorinka back, setting out with Anliena’s help.

• Great Mage Hobbes realized Leo’s Dark Eye method was genuine but nearly impossible and deadly to cultivate, so he returned to Abyssal Fortress with Great Mage Geselo and Great Mage Balin to seek Great Mage Heigliman’s advice.
• Great Mage Leo told Merlin he had done all he could for him, then left Merlin alone as Merlin recalled Leo’s guilt over killing his brother Leidor.
• Merlin spent half a month familiarizing himself with his six spells and three types of Pandora Demon Energy, then resolved to confront Great Mage Laisen in Floating City and fulfill his promise to Lorinka.
• Anliena thanked Merlin for saving her in the Ancient Ruins, and Merlin asked for her family’s help finding Laisen in Floating City.
• Merlin and Anliena left Dark Spirit Domain through the Rune Formation.

Merlin and Anliena reached the Floating City to seek news of Laisen, while Merlin learned that the ancient ruins had become sealed and dangerous. Great Mage Samir had no information about Laisen, and as a red-robed mage ordered his alchemical monster to attack Merlin, Merlin prepared to retaliate.

• Merlin and Anliena arrived in the Floating City after a two-day journey, and Anliena told Merlin that monsters had overrun the ancient ruins and its passages had been sealed.
• Merlin led Anliena to Great Mage Samir's residence to ask about Laisen and found three Third-level Spellcasters pressuring Samir to reveal whether he had Pandora Demon Energy.
• Great Mage Samir told Merlin that he had no news of Laisen, who had disappeared after the ancient ruins.
• The red-robed mage questioned Merlin about Pandora Demon Energy and ordered his alchemical monster to attack after Merlin ignored him.
• Merlin raised his hand and pointed at the charging alchemical monster.

Merlin killed a red-robed Great Mage and two companions, then learned that Great Mage Samir did not know where Laisen was. As Merlin enlisted Anliena’s Delman Family to search the Floating City, Laisen appeared in a hidden courtyard and met Osum member Vis, whose mission threatened to involve him.

• Merlin trapped the red-robed Great Mage and his two companions in the Darklight Domain and burned them to ashes with Annihilation Flame.
• Great Mage Samir confirmed he did not know Laisen’s whereabouts, and Merlin asked him to report any leads.
• Merlin left with Anliena to use the Delman Family’s influence to find Laisen in the Floating City.
• Laisen met Osum’s formal member Vis in a hidden courtyard and learned he was expected to cooperate with Vis’s mission.
• Vis rebuked Laisen for asking what the mission was.

Great Mage Vis arrived in Floating City and announced that he would take Shien from the Wright Family by force. As the Spellcaster Families withdrew rather than risk confronting Osum, Anliena received a recall order and hurried Merlin back to the Delman Family.

• Great Mage Laisen told Great Mage Vis about the Wright Family and warned him that a Fourth-level Spellcaster could oppose him, but Vis insisted on taking Shien the next day.
• Great Mage Laisen decided to prepare to flee if Vis’s attack went badly, unwilling to risk his life for Osum’s mission.
• Great Mage Miu Xiu rejected sending the Delman Family to defend the Wright Family and ordered all family members in Floating City to return and stay inside.
• The Spellcaster Families withdrew from Floating City, leaving the city nearly deserted.
• Anliena received a rune summoning Delman Family members back and hurried Merlin toward the family grounds.

Merlin learned that Laisen was an outer member of Osum and planned to confront him at the Wright Family. The chapter left the Wright Family under attack as Vis unleashed his Wind-Element Pandora Demon Energy against Great Mage Moyi.

• Anliena told Merlin that Laisen was with Vis and would accompany him to the Wright Family the next day.
• Merlin decided to go to the Wright Family early and wait for Laisen.
• Vis and Laisen arrived at the Wright Family, where Vis demanded that Moyi release Shien and threatened to destroy the family.
• Moyi ordered the Wright Family Spellcasters to attack Vis, but Vis's Pandora Demon Energy shredded their Spells.
• Vis prepared to attack Moyi, while the watching Spellcasters feared the Wright Family could not survive the confrontation.

Osum’s Mage Vis attacked the Wright Family while the other factions held back, unwilling to risk provoking Osum. Mage Busen of the Silver Tower intervened but retreated when Vis attacked him, leaving Lai Te and the Wright Family in immediate danger.

• Great Mage Miu Xiu explained that the Wright Family had brought disaster on itself by trying to keep Shien from joining Osum, and refused to risk the Delman Family by intervening.
• Mage Vis unleashed his Wind-Element Pandora Demon Energy against Great Mage Moyi and the Wright Family, driven by resentment over Klais and his own stalled advancement.
• Great Mage Miu Xiu watched helplessly as Vis’s gale closed in on Lai Te, fearing that any intervention would draw Osum’s wrath onto the Delman Family.
• Mage Busen of the Silver Tower froze Vis’s gale with a fourth-level spell and warned him against further slaughter, but Vis attacked him instead.
• Mage Busen withdrew into the mist, and the Wright Family’s spellcasters were left believing no one would stop Vis.

Merlin confronted Laisen after using Darklight Domain to engulf the Spellcasters gathered at the Wright Family, but Vis broke the darkness and attacked him. The chapter ended with Merlin’s Annihilation Flame clashing against Vis’s Whirlwind.

• Anliena and Merlin watched Vis defeat Great Mage Moyi and devastate the Wright Family.
• Merlin cast Darklight Domain, trapping most of the gathered Spellcasters in illusions until Vis tore the darkness apart.
• Laisen recognized Merlin, who had escaped the Ancient Ruins, and hid behind Vis when Merlin demanded to settle their score.
• Vis attacked Merlin with ice and then a violent Whirlwind, while Merlin’s Guardian Monument protected him.
• Merlin unleashed Annihilation Flame, and its white fire collided with Vis’s Whirlwind.

Merlin defeated the Osum Spellcaster Vis by combining Annihilation Flame with Extreme Ice Finger, despite Vis's greater strength and Mental Power. After claiming Vis's ring, Merlin turned to Laisen to settle their score.

• Vis recognized Merlin's Annihilation Flame and tried to overpower him with his own Pandora Demon Energy.
• Merlin used Darklight Domain and Annihilation Flame, but Vis resisted the illusion and gained an advantage in the battle of attrition.
• Merlin revealed his fully cultivated Extreme Ice Finger and froze Vis while Vis's Pandora Demon Energy remained occupied by Annihilation Flame.
• Merlin shattered the ice encasing Vis, killing him and earning the awe of the watching Spellcasters.
• Merlin took Vis's ring and then faced Laisen, declaring that it was time to settle their score.

Merlin killed Laisen and left the Floating City with Anliena, while news of his strength reached Osum and prompted Blue Sparrow to plan to kill him. In the Floating City, Anliena's father Miu Xiu asked Merlin to let the Delman Family copy the Pandora Demon Energy method.

• Laisen offered the Pandora Demon Energy method to anyone who would stop Merlin, but no Spellcaster dared intervene.
• Merlin burned Laisen to death, took his ring and the beast-hide scroll, and left with Anliena.
• Blue Sparrow told Klais that Merlin, a Six-Element Spellcaster, had killed Vis, and said she would go to kill Merlin to protect Klais's standing in Osum.
• Klais decided to cultivate Osum's dangerous Magic Energy, while Blue Sparrow promised to return after killing Merlin.
• Miu Xiu told Merlin that the Delman Family would pay any price to copy the Pandora Demon Energy method from his scroll.