Chapter Summaries

Wharton cultivated in his new home near the academy, advancing his warrior and mage abilities while learning to refine pills. After finally producing Qi-Replenishing Elixirs, he added Saint-Domain Thunder Dragon blood and meat to his Foundation-Building Pills and successfully made eight pale golden pills.

• Wharton bought a house near the academy, gave Hiri money for expenses and servants, and began cultivating in its secret chamber.
• Over half a month, Wharton reached Peak Level Six Warrior and Peak Fifth-Level Mage, then began experimenting with pill refinement.
• Wharton endured repeated explosions before successfully refining Qi-Replenishing Elixirs and producing 278 pills in thirty batches.
• Wharton swallowed a Qi-Replenishing Elixir and advanced to the mid-stage Fifth-Level Mage realm after a week of absorbing fire and lightning elements.
• Wharton added Saint-Domain Thunder Dragon blood and meat to his Foundation-Building Pills and successfully refined eight pale golden pills.

Wharton tested his Foundation-Building Pill, refined more, and gave pills to Hiri and Little Gold before returning to O'Brien Warrior Academy. After finding his friends absent, he went to the back mountain and finally reunited with Kane and the others at the academy entrance.

• Wharton took a Foundation-Building Pill, endured intense pain, and broke through the peak of the Sixth-Level Warrior stage while feeling closer to magical elements.
• Wharton refined five more batches of pills, leaving him with thirty-one Foundation-Building Pills, then gave one to Hiri.
• Hiri took the pill, advanced from the peak of the Fifth-Level Warrior stage to the Sixth-Level Warrior stage, and appeared more than ten years younger.
• Wharton gave Little Gold a pill, which expelled some impurities, then left for O'Brien Warrior Academy after asking Hiri to care for it.
• Wharton found Dorm 2008 and the back mountain empty, then spotted Kane, Kate, and Bulen arriving at the academy and reunited with them.

Wharton reunited with Kane, Kateburen, and Bulen after they survived a magical beast uprising and searched the forest for him. He gave them Foundation-Building Pills that helped them break through, and the four brothers ended the chapter together in Crimson Flame City.

• Kane, Kateburen, and Bulen returned to the dormitory with Wharton and explained that they had missed him while searching the Magical Beast Forest.
• Kane described how the three had been conscripted to fight a magical beast uprising, then returned to the forest to search for Wharton and grew stronger through repeated battles.
• Wharton shared his own forest experiences and mentioned Little Gold, but kept the Saint-Domain Magic Crystal Core secret.
• After dinner, Wharton gave the others Foundation-Building Pills, and they each consumed one and achieved breakthroughs.
• Kane, Kate, and Bulen described their improved strength and abilities, and Wharton affirmed that they would always remain brothers.

Wharton gave Kane, Kate, and Bulen improved cultivation manuals and trained alongside them for two years, helping the group grow stronger. After reaching a bottleneck, he left for the Magical Beast Forest and Wushan Town to train and visit his father before the danger he foresaw arrived.

• Wharton shared revised manuals and cultivation techniques with Kane, Kate, and Bulen, warning them to keep the knowledge secret.
• Over the next two years, Little Gold and Wharton’s companions grew stronger, while Wharton advanced his magic, warrior strength, and physique.
• Wharton told Hiri he planned to train in the Magical Beast Forest and visit his father in Wushan Town.
• Wharton bid Kane and the others farewell and set out toward the Holy Alliance, planning to travel through the Magical Beast Mountain Range.

Linley brought Hogg a large haul of Magic Crystal Cores from the Magical Beast Mountain Range, hoping to ease the Baruch clan’s financial troubles. Hogg scolded him for risking his life, then saw the many scars covering Linley’s body.

• Linley presented Hogg with a bag of Magic Crystal Cores and said they could sell for around eighty thousand gold coins.
• Hogg was shocked by the haul and asked where Linley had obtained it.
• Linley admitted he had entered the Magical Beast Mountain Range to collect the cores.
• Hogg rebuked Linley for risking his life and reminded him that the clan depended on him.
• Hogg ordered Linley to remove his shirt and saw the severe scars covering his body.

After seeing Linley’s scars, Hogg treated him with unusual tenderness during his extended stay at home. As Linley prepared to return to the academy, Hogg reminded him of the clan’s humiliation and hoped to see their inherited warblade Massacre again before he died.

• Hogg saw Linley’s scars and, shaken by his son’s suffering, told him to rest.
• Linley stayed in Wushan Town for more than ten days, cultivating on Black Mountain while Hogg cared for him warmly.
• Linley wondered why Hogg’s behavior had changed, then told him he planned to return to the academy the next day.
• Hogg said the clan would depend on Linley and urged him not to forget their inherited treasure, the warblade Massacre.
• Linley promised to bring Massacre back within ten years, and Hogg accepted the promise.

Hogg set out to investigate Linda’s kidnapping and was gravely wounded after attempting to assassinate Duke Paderson. Wharton encountered him on the road, rescued him, revealed his identity, and began treating him in a cave near Wushan Town.

• Hogg asked Hillman to keep the gold from selling his Magic Crystal Cores and declared that he would investigate Linda’s kidnapping and avenge her.
• Wharton traveled through the Magical Beast Forest with Little Gold, reached the Holy Alliance a year later, and continued toward Wushan Town.
• Wharton heard a battle and found Hogg surrounded by Duke Paderson’s guards after Hogg had tried to assassinate the duke.
• Wharton ordered Little Gold to kill the guards, then recognized Hogg as his father and revealed his identity.
• Wharton treated Hogg’s wounds with a healing spell and a Qi-Replenishing Elixir in a cave near Wushan Town.

Wharton healed Hogg, helped him advance his cultivation, and told him about his years away before discussing the clues surrounding his mother's disappearance. Hogg and Wharton blamed the Bright Church and vowed to oppose it, while Hillman pledged his support.

• Wharton healed Hogg's injuries and guided him to become a Level Seven Warrior.
• After waking, Hogg heard Wharton's account of his experiences in the O'Brien Empire and learned about his strength and Little Gold.
• Hogg told Wharton about his mother's disappearance and the clues he had found, and Wharton suggested the Bright Church was involved.
• Wharton promised to make the Bright Church pay and said he could help Hogg awaken his Dragonblood bloodline.
• Wharton and Hogg returned to the Baruch clan estate, where Hogg told Hillman about his investigation and declared war on the church.
• Hillman pledged to stand by Hogg, and Hogg vowed to restore the Dragonblood Warriors' former glory.

Wharton concealed Hogg’s survival from the Bright Church, then searched the Magical Beast Forest for Linley. On his way back, he encountered Dixie battling members of the Dark Church.

• Wharton persuaded Hogg to return to the O'Brien Empire and let the world believe he had died, so the Bright Church would not grow suspicious.
• Wharton gave Hogg an earth-element manual and had Hillman and Nade take Foundation-Building Pills and train in the ancestral hall.
• Wharton searched the Magical Beast Forest for Linley but found no trace of him and turned back toward Wushan Town.
• Wharton and Little Gold spotted five black-clothed men surrounding Dixie, who had already killed two of them.
• Dixie refused the black-clothed men’s offer to join the Dark Church, while Wharton watched from a tree and admired his composure.

Wharton rescued Dixie from a group of men in black and helped him recover with a powerful pill. Before leaving the Magical Beast Mountain Range, Wharton revealed his strength and entrusted Dixie with manuals and another pill for his future sister-in-law.

• Dixie fought off several men in black but was overwhelmed until Wharton appeared and killed his attackers.
• Wharton told Dixie that Linley was his older brother and asked him to pass along a message without revealing it to anyone else.
• Wharton took the injured Dixie to a cave and gave him a pale golden pill, which greatly improved his strength and body by the next day.
• Dixie washed off the foul-smelling impurities from his body, and Wharton joked that they might become relatives someday.
• Wharton gave Dixie two secret manuals and another pill for his future sister-in-law, then said he was a Level Eight Warrior and a Level Seven Peak Mage in lightning and fire magic before departing.

Linley returned to Wushan Town with the Baruch family’s inherited warblade, reunited with Hogg and Wharton, and learned that the Bright Church had abducted and killed his mother. Hogg revealed his plans, and Wharton exposed Doehring Cowart, who appeared before the family.

• Linley returned to Wushan Town carrying Massacre and greeted Hillman, who warned him to keep the family’s affairs secret because Bright Church cavalry had arrived.
• Linley presented Massacre to Hogg in the ancestral hall and reunited with his younger brother Wharton.
• Linley told Hogg that he could transform into a Dragonblood Warrior, then greeted the Bright Church knights as his father requested.
• Hogg revealed that Claire had abducted Linley’s mother and offered her to the Bright Church to be killed, then told Linley his plans and asked him to announce his death.
• Wharton used Orchid Heart Grass and Thunder Dragon blood to trigger Hogg’s Dragonblood Transformation, distributed cultivation manuals and a Foundation-Building Pill, and gave Bebe a pill and manuals.
• Wharton summoned Doehring Cowart and assured him that he was family, revealing that he had recognized the Earth-Element Saint-Domain Mage from the events at Ernst Academy.

Wharton helped Hogg survive by arranging for him to continue cultivating in the Coiling Dragon Ring, then set out to build an alliance against the Bright Church. He and Kane reached Dark Holy City, nearing the Tiger-Striped Clan’s home.

• Wharton explained that Hogg’s soul could keep cultivating in the Coiling Dragon Ring and gave him manuals to help him leave it sooner.
• Linley announced Hogg’s death, while Wharton and Hogg secretly left Wushan Town for the O'Brien Empire; Wharton also left Linley pills and manuals to distribute.
• Wharton told Kane, Kate, and Bulen about his conflict with the Bright Church and his plan to unite the Ultimate Warrior Clans, and they agreed to help.
• Wharton left Little Gold to protect Hogg and traveled with Kane toward the Tiger-Striped Clan’s home in the Dark Alliance.
• Wharton and Kane arrived in Dark Holy City and continued toward Kane’s family town.

Kane, Kate, and Wharton reached the Bole clan estate and found the Dark Church attacking Kane and Kate’s family. Kane and Kate joined the fight, leaving Bishop Thunder suppressed and the Church warriors struggling to hold their ground.

• Kane, Kate, and Wharton found Three Mountains Town and the Bole clan estate eerily deserted, then hurried toward the rear courtyard after hearing violent impacts.
• Kane and Kate discovered their father and uncle surrounded by Dark Church warriors in the Ancestral Hall, with women and children behind them.
• Kane attacked Bishop Thunder from above while Kate pierced a Church warrior with his spear and wounded several others.
• Wharton stepped in to protect the family and treat the injured, while Kane fought Thunder and Kate battled the other Church warriors.
• Kane suppressed Thunder despite being a Peak Level Eight Warrior, and a Church warrior urged Thunder to retreat.

Kane, Kate, and Wharton killed the Dark Church attackers who had assaulted the Bole clan, including their bishop, Thunder. Kane reunited with his father, Bolei, but Wharton urged the clan to flee before the Dark Church learned what had happened.

• Thunder tried to send Vik to notify the Church, but Wharton killed Vik before he could escape.
• Kane and Wharton attacked Thunder while Kate and the others fought the remaining Dark Church personnel.
• Kate killed the last assassins and then speared Thunder through the head when he threatened them.
• Kane, Kate, and Wharton ended their transformations and went to Old Bole and the stunned Bole clan.
• Kane reunited with Bolei, and Wharton urged everyone to leave before the Dark Church received news of the attack.

Wharton helped Kane and Kate’s clan escape the Dark Church and led them to Klais City, where Jason Bolei’s family recovered. The Dark Church searched for the warriors who rescued the clan, while Wharton asked Jason why the Church had targeted them.

• Jason Bolei thanked Wharton for saving the Bole clan, and Wharton stored the clan’s ancestral tablets in his spatial ring.
• Wharton and Kane’s clans fled the Dark Holy City and reached Klais City after a month of travel.
• Afleck berated the Dark Church bishops for failing to capture Jason Bolei and Gibbs Bolei, and a Saint Domain elder identified their rescuers as Tiger-Striped and Dragonblood Warriors.
• The clans rested in the Rohault Empire, where Jason Bolei and Gibbs Bolei recovered from their injuries over half a month.
• Jason thanked Wharton at a hotel in Klais City, and Wharton asked why the Dark Church had attacked the Bole clan.

Wharton explained that the Dark Church and Bright Church hunted warriors with powerful bodies and people with pure souls to summon Fallen Angels and make sacrifices. After the Bole clan agreed to support him, Wharton planned to unite the four Ultimate Warrior clans in the O'Brien Empire.

• Jason recounted how the Dark Church surrounded his estate after learning that Gibbs had reached Level Seven.
• Wharton explained that churches summoned Fallen Angels using powerful bodies and sacrificed people with pure souls, and said the Bright Church had killed his mother for that purpose.
• Wharton said the churches had likely hunted Ultimate Warrior Clan members who reached Level Seven and taken their bodies.
• Kane condemned the churches and vowed to make them pay, while Jason asked Wharton what they should do.
• Wharton proposed making plans in the O'Brien Empire, where he intended to unite the four Ultimate Warrior clans.
• Gibbs and Jason pledged their support for Wharton.

Wharton proposed uniting the Ultimate Warrior Clans and revealed that he could help Jason and Gibbs awaken as Tiger-Striped Warriors. He gave the Bole family Foundation-Building Pills and helped the children refine them, leaving him exhausted.

• Wharton told Jason and Gibbs he could help them awaken as Tiger-Striped Warriors once they reached the imperial capital.
• Wharton explained that he had developed new cultivation manuals and wanted to unite the Ultimate Warrior Clans into a force capable of opposing the Churches.
• Jason agreed to support Wharton's plan on behalf of the Bole clan, and Wharton gave the family Foundation-Building Pills.
• Caro asked if he could become a Tiger-Striped Warrior, and Wharton promised to test his bloodline when he turned six and help activate it if needed.
• Wharton carefully helped Caro and Lisa refine their pills and widened their meridians with Dragonblood Battle Qi, exhausting himself.

Wharton discovered Lisa Bolei’s exceptional affinity for light-element magic and trained Jason and the others before they continued toward the O'Brien Empire. Meanwhile, Linley advanced in both magic and warrior cultivation during three months of seclusion, then emerged to meet a visitor he recognized from the Bright Church.

• Wharton found that Lisa Bolei had exceptional light-element aptitude and began personally teaching her a cultivation manual.
• Wharton gave Jason manuals to safeguard and guided the group in cultivation and battle techniques for more than ten days.
• After recovering, Wharton and the others resumed their journey to the O'Brien Empire.
• Linley received advanced magic books from Gilmor and Lampson, then secluded himself to cultivate and pursue his revenge against Clyde.
• Over three months, Linley reached Level Eight Warrior and Level Eight Mage while concealing his warrior advancement as Level Seven.
• A middle-aged visitor forced his way into Linley's residence, and Linley recognized him when he arrived in the reception hall.

Linley met Cesar, who was secretly the ancient Saint Domain expert Hisse, and traded a sculpture for the Blood Fusion Poison formula. Meanwhile, Wharton established a large estate outside the O'Brien Imperial Capital and began building up the Baruch clan’s followers.

• Cesar introduced himself to Linley, and Doehring Cowart warned that he had been a Saint Domain expert more than five thousand years earlier.
• Cesar asked Linley when he and Delia would marry, then commissioned a stone sculpture; Linley exchanged it for the Blood Fusion Poison formula.
• Linley continued training with Wharton’s secret manual while Bebe reached the peak of Level Eight.
• Wharton housed Jason and the others at the family residence, then bought a large estate outside the O'Brien Imperial Capital for his growing following.
• Hillman led Hogg and the Wushan Town families to the estate, where Hogg and Jason took charge of managing them.
• Wharton gave Jason and Gibbs tiger blood to awaken their Tiger-Striped Bloodline, then supplied the clan’s followers with Foundation-Building Pills and cultivation manuals.

Over six months, Wharton and the others advanced their training, while Lisa awakened her bloodline and gained both warrior and magical strength. At a ball, Wharton met Princess Nia O'Brien, felt instantly captivated by her, and later began a relationship with her.

• Hogg broke through the peak of Level Seven, while Wharton and the others made gains in their training; Wharton decided he would leave the capital after the Yulan Festival to gain experience and visit Linley.
• Lisa endured the pain of awakening her White Tiger Bloodline with Little Gold's blood and reached Level Two in both warrior training and magic before turning seven.
• Wharton unexpectedly met Princess Nia O'Brien at an academy student's evening party and was immediately captivated by her.
• Kate and the others teased Wharton when they noticed him staring at Nia, drawing the attention of the people around them.