Chapter Summaries

Tony Stark took a potential test and chose a technology-focused path combined with magic, then negotiated a long-term contract with Ian for access to advanced knowledge. Ian told Tony that Hydra had arranged his parents’ deaths and advised him to use resurrection or time travel to bring them back without changing the past.

• Hulk left the training room and called Tony through a portal to take his potential test.
• Ian explained how the test worked, and Tony learned that his talents strongly favored technology.
• Tony chose a technology-focused path combined with magic and signed a contract requiring him to share invention data with Ian for twenty-five thousand years.
• Ian told Tony that Hydra and Bucky were responsible for his parents’ deaths, and Tony vowed to kill Bucky.
• Ian said Tony could not kill Bucky because of Steve and suggested resurrecting his parents or bringing them to the present from just before their deaths.

Ian tested Fury, Coulson, and Maria Hill, then recruited Fury for a dangerous intelligence mission in a timeline inhabited by Multiverse-level entities. Fury accepted the plan to be reincarnated with protective magic and a Divine Artifact, while Ian promised to preserve his memories in case he died.

• Ian tested Fury, Coulson, and Maria Hill and identified Fury's exceptional Luck as a talent that helped him survive danger.
• Ian asked Fury to infiltrate a timeline with Multiverse-level entities, warning that the mission could be fatal even for someone like him.
• Ian proposed reincarnating Fury with the Eye of Fortune and a [Synthesizer] that could create what he needed, including Tier 10 battle armor.
• Fury agreed to the mission, and Ian explained that he would be born away from Earth and that the Synthesizer would erase his soul if a Tier 11 entity captured him.
• Ian told Fury that the Phoenix Project would preserve his memories and transfer them into a clone if his soul died.

Ian began training Fury, Maria Hill, and Coulson for their roles in the Empire’s plans. Fury prepared for a secret mission, Maria began training to command fleets, and Coulson was tasked with leading S.H.I.E.L.D. as the Great Convergence approached.

• Fury accepted the Phoenix Project’s form of resurrection and asked Ian how he could send intelligence securely; Ian explained how his Speed Force clones transmitted information through the Blank Domain.
• Ian bought Tier 11 knowledge from the Akashic Records by selling a large amount of the Empire’s knowledge, after discovering he could not afford the cheapest option otherwise.
• Ian identified Maria Hill’s Psychic and starship-command talents and planned to train her to command millions of combat spaceships, while admitting the Empire’s commander training program had limitations.
• Ian told Coulson that his leadership talent made him the choice to replace Fury as S.H.I.E.L.D.’s director, and explained that S.H.I.E.L.D. would expand across the universe as the Great Convergence neared.
• Ian started training the three agents: Fury studied in virtual reality, Maria learned military and space-warfare subjects, and Coulson began leadership training in a simulated universe where he had to extend S.H.I.E.L.D.’s influence across the Milky Way Galaxy.

Maria Hill completed Ian’s fleet-command training with top marks, then received a massive spacecraft fleet. Ian summoned Sam Wilson for training and discovered that his talent was Beast Taming, allowing him to control all beasts.

• Maria Hill defeated a fleet four times larger than hers and earned an [S]-rank evaluation, the highest score recorded for the test.
• Maria scored [S-] in combat against powerful individuals after a spirit summoner nearly broke through her mental defenses.
• Ian told Maria she had met the minimum training requirement, confirmed Fury was alive, and transferred access to a fleet of more than ten million spacecraft.
• Morgana teased Ian about Maria, but Ian dismissed the subject and summoned Sam Wilson for his training.
• Ian tested Sam and found that, after receiving Grace, Sam had gained the ability to control all beasts.

Ian developed the Beast Tamer's Path and trained Sam to fuse with contracted beasts, then Death Lady unexpectedly summoned Ian to meet her. The chapter ended with Ian calmly asking what she wanted from him.

• Ian and Morgana decided to train Sam as a Beast Tamer, using his Soul Dimension to develop a new path for storing and fusing with contracted beasts.
• Ian's experiments showed that living creatures could not enter the Soul Dimension directly, so contracted beasts had to convert their bodies into a spiritual state.
• Sam passed a simulation by fusing with a beast and briefly reaching Tier 7, then agreed to train his physical body and report abnormalities in his Beast Taming world.
• Ian moved Beidou into his Soul Dimension and discussed the lack of news from Ajak and Olivia with Morgana.
• Death Lady teleported Ian into a dark room, and Ian identified her before politely asking how he could serve her.

Death Lady asked Ian to kill Deadpool across as many timelines as possible, offering him control of the Authority of Death and her mentorship. Ian refused to accept without learning her true motive, and after she sent him away, he concluded that she had spared him because he amused her and resolved to gain power that could threaten her.

• Death Lady revealed that she knew Ian had caused countless deaths through the Speedster Plan and asked him to eliminate Deadpool across timelines.
• Ian refused, suspecting that killing Deadpool would bring consequences he could not foresee, but Death Lady offered him the Authority of Death and her mentorship.
• Ian agreed to her offer only if she explained her real reason for wanting Deadpool dead.
• Death Lady transformed into her skull-faced form, threatened that she could kill Ian without consequences, and then vanished him.
• Ian used a soul-nourishing potion and told Morgana he believed Death Lady had spared him because she found him useful and entertaining.
• Ian decided that he and Morgana needed enough power to threaten Death Lady so she would have to consider the consequences of killing them.

Ian and Morgana discussed ways to increase his strength, including making Soul Potions with Soul Stones and raiding weak timelines to obtain them. Ian then explained his theory that Death Lady was targeting immortal beings like Deadpool and Wolverine because the Cosmic Will might be giving them a chance to become unique powers capable of helping in the coming war.

• Morgana urged Ian to reclaim the Floating City, build Ea and Chains of Heaven, and raise his power, but Ian explained the risks and delays involved.
• Ian and Morgana considered using Soul Stones to strengthen Ian's soul, while ruling out robbing the TVA or contacting the speedster clone.
• Ian proposed paying others to plunder Soul Stones from weak timelines and destroy those timelines afterward.
• Ian suggested Death Lady was concerned that immortals like Deadpool and Wolverine disrupted the Law of Death, and that the Cosmic Will might be giving them a chance to become powerful unique beings.

Ian managed Kaecilius’s secret contact with Mephisto while overseeing the Avengers, his clones, and Wakanda’s rapid technological progress. After Ian and Morgana noticed Arishem had gone silent, urgent messages arrived from Ra and the Time Force.

• Ian reviewed the Avengers’ public-relations work and his clones’ military training, then learned Loki wanted him to forge a staff and Thor would be ready to face Hela within six months to a year.
• Morgana told Ian that Wakanda had built an eighth-generation Black Panther Suit and a Quantum Time Force Field, and that Shuri showed talent comparable to the Young Saints; Ian had Morgana correct flaws in the experiment’s plans.
• Kaecilius told Ian that Mephisto had offered him his family’s souls and recruited him to rebel, so Ian resurrected Kaecilius’s family and gave him a token for scheduled visits.
• After Kaecilius warned that Mephisto was probing his mind, Ian sent him a Mental Origin Rune to conceal or alter his memories, while Morgana cautioned that Kaecilius might be playing both sides.
• Ian and Morgana discussed Arishem’s silence and the lack of contact with the Eternals, then Ian received urgent messages from Ra and the Time Force.

After Celestials accidentally breached the timeline’s defenses and entered a dangerous Tier 3 dimension, Ian organized a defense and rescue mission. As his forces prepared for battle, Ian wondered what would become of his Empire if he died.

• Ra told Ian that a group of Celestials had broken through the timeline barrier and entered a dimension with at least two Demon God Kings.
• Ian convened the Council, where its members discussed their ability to fight the Kings and agreed to try to rescue the Celestials.
• Ian assigned Stark, Banner, Sam, Natasha, and Wong to infiltrate the dimension and find the Celestials, while Clint would scout and Steve and Agent Maria would remain on standby.
• Ian told Agent Coulson to activate the Last Stand Plan if the Council fell, transporting their universe away from its coordinates to escape danger.
• Ian stationed Clint in a tower in the Blank Realm, then prepared for battle and reflected with Morgana on the future of his Empire if he died.

Jean Augustus Claude led an expedition to invade a Tier 8 plane, but negotiations with its Planar Will failed and the tower’s descent met strong resistance. After a new spell weakened the suppression at a steep energy cost, the crew detected nearby life far closer than expected, suggesting the plane’s civilization had spatial powers.

• Jean Augustus Claude recalled his past and reprimanded apprentice Andrew Schwartz for carrying food outside the cafeteria.
• Jean Augustus Claude learned that negotiations with the Planar Will had failed and ordered the tower to begin its descent into the plane.
• Jean Augustus Claude activated the new Law Resonance spell, which reduced the Planar Will’s suppression but drained the tower’s energy to 73%.
• Jean Augustus Claude’s crew detected signs of life five kilometers away instead of the expected 120 kilometers, and he ordered them to deploy Wizard’s Eye.

Claude’s expedition discovered a magical world inhabited by the blue-skinned Saxix Empire and attempted to negotiate with its army. When Lieutenant General Corsil Grandax refused to surrender or cooperate, Claude prepared to resolve the encounter by force.

• Claude assessed the world’s harsh conditions, detected magic, and ordered long-range monitoring after the blue-skinned inhabitants destroyed most of the Wizard’s Eyes.
• Claude’s commanders recommended activating a Time-Space Locking Shield and debated whether to deploy golems or the Knight Legion; Claude chose the Knight Legion.
• Claude broadcast a surrender demand and offered the Saxix Empire an exclusive year-long chance to exchange knowledge and resources.
• Corsil Grandax rejected Claude’s offer and demanded that the expedition leave, so Claude declared that they would settle the conflict by strength.

Claude’s forces defeated the Stirex and captured several for study, uncovering how their complex bodies let them cast magic despite fragile souls. The discovery suggested that integrating the Stirex system with arcane magic could make Claude a tower master.

• Claude observed the battle, ordered the spellcaster legions to use War Spells, and the Knight Legion defeated Lieutenant General Glandax’s forces, killing most of the Stirex and capturing several.
• Claude began examining a Stirex warrior and spellcaster, but the warrior’s Soul Dimension collapsed when the witch searched his mind.
• Claude’s scans revealed that Stirex bodies contained elaborate magical organs and systems that circulated and stored mana.
• The witch found that Stirex used martial-arts movements, incantations, or precise bodily control as spell models, compensating for their limited souls.
• Claude asked whether Stirex magic could help him become a tower master, and the witch said Mind-Body Dual Casting could transform Arcanists’ abilities and make his advancement nearly certain.

The rulers of three empires debated how the invaders had defeated their forces, and the scholar Kroll warned that the Arcane Empire could overwhelm their world. Kroll left to surrender, setting safeguards so the rulers could tell whether the Arcanist had kept his word or controlled him.

• Emperor Karak, Empress Selasi, and President Verek watched Lieutenant General Glandax's defeat and discussed how the invaders' runes had strengthened their spells.
• Verek summoned Kroll, who criticized the rulers for ignoring his warnings about civilizations beyond the stars.
• Kroll argued that the Arcane Empire could interfere with the World Will and that further invaders would follow once their world had been discovered.
• Kroll advised Verek and the other rulers to surrender, warning that they could not win against an interstellar civilization.
• Kroll revealed that he was already on his way to surrender and said his life card would reveal whether the Arcanist had betrayed him.
• Kroll promised to demand that the Arcanist not use him to sway the world and warned the rulers not to trust him if he appeared to do so.

After Kroll surrendered, the rulers of the Three Great Empires refused to give up and planned to unite their forces against Jean Claude, with General Luke Dragon Fist as their proposed commander. Jean Claude met Kroll and offered him a path to become a specially recruited Arcanist, leaving Kroll weighing the cost of serving the Empire.

• Verek declared war on Emperor Karak after Karak accused the Korak Empire of betrayal, and Empress Selasi stopped their argument before they agreed not to surrender.
• Empress Selasi proposed gathering the armies of the Three Great Empires and every kingdom, and the rulers voted overwhelmingly to appoint General Luke Dragon Fist as commander.
• Jean Claude met Kroll after confirming his surrender was genuine, and Kroll asked not to be used against his people.
• Jean Claude offered Kroll several possible futures and explained that his research talent qualified him for special recruitment as an Arcanist.
• Jean Claude told Kroll that special recruitment required an oath of loyalty and that the conquered plane’s research findings would belong to the Empire.

Claude promised Kroll a path to become an Arcanist and eventually buy back the plane, then conquered the Korak, Mage, and Saxix Empires. The surviving rulers gathered with General Dragon Fist, who revealed that a Dragon’s heart might solve their people’s weakness to soul magic.

• Claude offered Kroll the chance to become an Arcanist and later repurchase the plane, and they signed a Bloodline Contract after the witch warned that a Soul Contract could harm him.
• Claude gave Kroll a crystal ball to learn the Arcane Empire’s language, culture, and history, then said he would take him to the test in a month or two.
• Claude’s Knight and Golem Legions defeated the Korak Empire in one day, conquered the Mage Empire in two days, and advanced on the Saxix Empire.
• President Verek and some nobles escaped the Korak Empire’s defeat, while Empress Selasi fled after a Tier 8 Golem overcame her.
• Dragon Fist led Selasi, Karak, and the former Saxix emperor’s people to a huge stone and explained their ancestors’ vulnerability to the souls of Dragons and giants.
• Dragon Fist revealed that the stone was a Dragon’s heart and the key to saving the plane.

General Luke revealed that the Dragon Fist Family had restored the power of dragons by sacrificing warriors, then sent Karak, Verek, and Selasi to challenge Claude. Claude battled the three empowered former rulers, overwhelming Selasi and leaving her preparing to use the last resort General Luke had given her.

• General Luke explained the Dragon Fist Family's descent from the Dragon Slayer Royal Family and admitted that activating the Dragon Heart required the blood and energy of powerful warriors and mages.
• General Luke gave Karak, Verek, and Selasi scrolls and left as soldiers' blood flowed toward the Dragon Heart.
• Claude detected the rulers' energy, learned from the witch that their Dragon Soul power strengthened their souls, and teleported to confront them before the Law Resonance spell failed.
• Selasi empowered Karak and Verek and attacked Claude, but he countered her magic while his ancestral spirits fought the two emperors.
• Claude redirected Selasi's meteor spell back at her, then used Anti-Magic to nullify her spatial spells.
• Selasi realized her attacks could not overcome Claude and prepared to use the final gamble from General Luke's book.

Jean-Claude defeated Selasi and completed the conquest of the plane, then arranged to study and sell its knowledge while planning how to use his military merits. He later heard that Louis Sosa was struggling in a war against forces from several planes and offered to connect him with potential buyers for his slave soldiers.

• Karak and Verek's Dragon Souls strengthened Selasi, and the Planar Will raised her to Tier 9.
• Jean-Claude amplified his magic with his Arcane Spark and Aether Core, then imprisoned Selasi with the World Imprisonment Spell.
• Jean-Claude ordered the Knight Legion to suppress rebellions and the Golems to build an Astral Gate to the Empire.
• Jean-Claude reviewed the plane's resources and knowledge, studied its history and religion, and submitted a report offering its knowledge for sale after he finished studying it.
• Jean-Claude received compensation and military merits, and the witch recommended upgrading his laboratory to improve his chances of completing his Arcane Body.
• Louis Sosa told Jean-Claude that he was fighting a two-against-one war after seven Empires called in reinforcements, and Jean-Claude offered to connect him with possible buyers for his cannon fodder.

Fatima Fattash took charge of Koya Urilanu’s operation after death energy corrupted his soul and Soulfire. She proposed a dangerous procedure to remove the corruption and restore his Soulfire, but the team still had to address his injured soul.

• Doctor Ferrell told Fatima that Koya Urilanu’s soul and Soulfire had been corrupted by death energy during a failed experiment.
• Fatima demanded and received Director Sharma’s authorization to take over the operation, then teleported to Room 834B.
• Fatima presented the director’s order and had the hospital’s Tower Spirit remove Doctor Foster from the operating room.
• Fatima assessed Koya’s condition and proposed separating his soul from his Soulfire, cutting away the corrupted portion, and using part of his soul to restore the missing Soulfire.
• The doctors warned that Fatima’s plan carried a high risk of death, memory loss, and loss of Koya’s abilities as an Arcanist.
• A soul healer pointed out that even if the plan repaired Koya’s Soulfire, his injured soul would still need treatment.

Dr. Fattash led a dangerous soul surgery to remove Ulilanu’s corruption and rebuild his shattered soul. The operation restored his soul and reconnected it to his body, though its 98% compatibility fell short of Fatima’s own standards.

• Fatima ordered Dr. Carlson and the surgical team to remove the corrupted soul energy and rebuild Ulilanu’s soul, despite Dr. Foster’s objections.
• Fatima isolated the Soulfire, cut away its corruption, and helped Dr. Carlson’s team clear the remaining death energy before time ran out.
• When the final piece of death energy resisted, Fatima had Dr. Carlson awaken Ulilanu’s consciousness so he could help drive it out, then put him back to sleep.
• Fatima removed the isolation and used the Soulfire and Soul Energy from the hospital’s Aether Cores to restore Ulilanu’s soul while preserving his memories and former level.
• Fatima reconnected Ulilanu’s soul to his body after learning their compatibility was 98%, then left his postoperative care to the team.

Fatima attended a meeting where Director Sharma dismissed Doctor Foster after an investigation into her misconduct and malpractice. Fatima returned to her office and told Mary Lehman that she was still waiting for the Divination Department’s answer about her expedition.

• Doctor Clarence brought Fatima to a departmental meeting about her surgery.
• Director Sharma announced that Doctor Foster had been dismissed and her healer’s license suspended after the Medical Security Department investigated her violations.
• Doctor Foster attacked Fatima, but the hospital’s security system restrained her with Anti-Magic chains.
• Director Sharma apologized to Fatima and promised compensation from the government and the hospital.
• Fatima called Mary Lehman, who urged her to be less forgiving and asked about the expedition.
• Fatima told Mary that she was waiting for the Divination Department to respond before the weekend.