Chapter Summaries

Long Na recovered her strength by eating Owl’s cooking, then agreed to trade her tail for more food before leaving to defend Dragonbone City from the Lion-Ant-Bees. Owl and Sa went with her, while Old Zhou modified Silver Edge to make its attacks unpredictable and Owl asked him for a suitable weapon.

• Owl offered Long Na more food in exchange for using her tail to cook, and she pulled it off herself after agreeing.
• Long Na ate the Highland Bull King Mountain, thanked Owl, and announced she was leaving to protect Dragonbone City from the Lion-Ant-Bees.
• Owl and Sa decided to accompany Long Na, while Trevor and Jin Dong stayed behind.
• Old Zhou modified Sa’s Silver Edge so its attacks combined random frequencies and elements, warning her that its power could fluctuate.
• Owl asked Old Zhou for a weapon, but Old Zhou refused to give him the reserved Gatling gun and told him to use the Yearblade Moon-Sword Staff.
• Long Na warned Old Zhou that Owl would die in close combat against the powerful monsters, while sensing that Old Zhou was stronger than any creature she had encountered.

Old Zhou equipped Owl, Sa, Long Na, Trevor, and Jin Dong with Annihilator Series armor and powerful weapons to prepare them to fight the Lion-Ant-Bees. The group set out for Dragonbone City, which Long Na feared might already have been destroyed, while Owl put away the Void Mushroom Market.

• Old Zhou relented and opened his chest of Annihilator Series armor, giving Sa the Eagle Eye suit, Owl the Phantom suit, and Long Na the Dragon Ascension suit.
• Old Zhou gave Trevor the Mountain Ape armor and Jin Dong the Xingtian Armor, then warned Trevor about Mountain Ape’s limits and showed Jin Dong its dangerous axe blades.
• Old Zhou distributed matching weapons: a Ship-Destroying Cannon for Sa, Owl Head and Night Owl for Owl, the Dragon Soul Spear for Long Na, an Electromagnetic Meteor Hammer for Trevor, and Blood Axe for Jin Dong.
• Old Zhou warned the group that their armor had to evolve faster than the Lion-Ant-Bees, and Long Na vowed to kill them all.
• Owl led the group toward Dragonbone City, Trevor and Jin Dong joined them, and Owl put away the Void Mushroom Market.

Long Na and the others reached the ruins of Dragonbone City, where they encountered the murderous Di Shikun. Sa repeatedly shot him whenever he revived until he finally left, and Silver Edge nearly ran out of energy.

• Long Na and the others raced through the forest, with Long Na killing an ambushing Monster Bear using the Dragon Soul Spear.
• The group reached Dragonbone City’s ruins, and Long Na mourned the devastation and vowed to kill the Lion-Ant-Bees.
• Owl suggested they eat and grow stronger before fighting, while Trevor and Jin Dong bickered over the food.
• The group discovered Di Shikun, and Owl killed him after Long Na said he had saved her.
• Di Shikun revived repeatedly, but Sa kept shooting him until he gave up and walked away.
• Sa revealed that Silver Edge was nearly out of energy, leaving Owl stunned by her relentless attack.

Owl and his companions chose to hunt for the Lion-Ant-Bees’ nest, following clues that pointed from Moreya Town and Dax Town toward War God Mountain. After agreeing on the route, they paused to prepare food outside Dragonbone City, where Long Na found that the surrounding wildlife had been wiped out.

• Long Na, Owl, Trevor, Jin Dong, and Sa agreed that Owl would be captain and Sa would be vice-captain.
• Owl proposed finding the Lion-Ant-Bees’ nest and using Sa’s Ship-Destroying Cannon against it, with Owl scouting ahead while invisible.
• Jin Dong shared a map showing that Dax Town had also been attacked, and Long Na connected the towns’ locations to War God Mountain.
• Owl decided the group would investigate Moreya Town, then Dax Town, and finally War God Mountain if they found no other leads.
• Long Na returned from scouting and reported that the creatures around Dragonbone City had been wiped out, while Owl prepared the Great Emperor Bird for their journey.

Owl and his companions ate wind-roasted Great Emperor Bird meat, traveled toward Moreya Town, and discovered strange coal-eating monsters in the Blackstone Mining Area. After investigating their deep mine, Owl found a dead monster whose injuries suggested a powerful creature had fought off the Lion-Ant-Bees.

• Owl shared the Great Emperor Bird meat, which gave him and Sa the ability to fly with wind, and Chen Danian gave the group supplies before they departed.
• Owl, Sa, Long Na, Trevor, and Jin Dong traveled through a silent forest, finding no living creatures and spending several days reading books extracted from Jin Dong's and Long Na's memories.
• Owl spotted unfamiliar creatures at the Blackstone Mining Area, where the monsters ate coal and disappeared into the mine tunnels.
• Owl turned invisible and followed the monsters deep underground, finding that the passage continued beyond the mined area and contained no coal.
• Owl discovered a monster corpse with its head crushed by a single punch and suspected that a powerful creature had killed the invading Lion-Ant-Bees.

Owl fought Yu Hai’s regenerating coal Werewolf inside the Blackstone Mine while Sa and the others moved to help. Yu Hai recognized the arriving fighters as Infinite City players and came out of the mine, as the team considered drawing him away from the dangerous coal dust.

• Yu Hai detected Owl in the mine and ordered Black Wolf, a coal Werewolf summoned with the Soul Binder, to attack him.
• Black Wolf struck Owl, but Owl cut off Black Wolf’s arms before its tail knocked him into the wall.
• Sa and Long Na headed into the mine while Jin Dong and Trevor stayed outside, and Sa killed the Coal Ghosts at the entrance with the Silver Edge.
• Yu Hai recognized the attackers as Infinite City players and decided to kill them before fleeing, blaming Zhang Shouzhong for his past betrayal.
• Long Na suggested using flames or luring Black Wolf outside, but Jin Dong warned that open flames could explode the coal dust in the mine.
• Sa’s Silver Edge pierced Black Wolf’s head, and Yu Hai emerged from the mine as the coal dust drew toward him.

Yu Hai attacked Owl and the hunters with his coal-based summons, but Owl killed the Carbon-Gold Wolf before Long Na and Sa intervened. Yu Hai released the Coal-Eating Dragon, which killed him and asked Jin Dong and Trevor to help it escape, frightened of Owl and Sa.

• Yu Hai attacked Owl with a coal dragon and Coal-Fly Bombs, and the Carbon-Gold Wolf bit off Owl's arm.
• Owl entered a slowed-time state and killed the Carbon-Gold Wolf with his dagger.
• Long Na fought Black Wolf while Sa reattached Owl's arm, and Yu Hai summoned the Coal-Eating Dragon.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon swallowed Yu Hai and Black Wolf, then broke out of the cave as Long Na, Sa, and Owl remained nearby.
• Jin Dong and Trevor approached the dragon, which said it did not eat people and asked them to help it escape because Owl and Sa terrified it.

Hawkins investigated the powerful identity behind Sa and concealed his discoveries, while the Coal-Eating Dragon feared the forces protecting Owl and Sa but agreed to join them after Trevor persuaded it. Jin Dong checked on the unconscious Owl and spoke with Long Na, then realized his own fear had exposed him as the weakest of their group.

• Hawkins sensed a powerful woman with many alternate identities behind Sa, wrote down clues including the Coal-Eating Dragon and Long Na, and concealed the past while proposing a contest to find one another.
• Trevor and Jin Dong struggled to drag the Coal-Eating Dragon, which warned them that Owl and Sa were protected by terrifying powers and could not safely be approached or left.
• Trevor persuaded the Coal-Eating Dragon that joining Owl and Sa could earn it protection and rewards, and it agreed to become one of them for the time being.
• Jin Dong learned from Sa that Owl was unconscious from overworking his brain and would recover with rest.
• Long Na told Jin Dong that the Coal-Eating Dragon had frightened her, and Jin Dong recognized that he had also been afraid and might be the weakest member of their team.

As Owl remained unconscious, Sa led the group against Lion-Ant-Bees while Trevor, Long Na, and Jin Dong fought them off. The Coal-Eating Dragon sensed a stronger enemy lurking nearby, and Jin Dong faced an invisible attacker as the battle continued.

• Trevor persuaded the Coal-Eating Dragon with stories of their past, but the dragon sensed a powerful enemy approaching and warned the others.
• Long Na spotted Lion-Ant-Bees on the right, Jin Dong spotted more on the left, and Trevor noticed a large group as Sa ordered everyone to attack.
• Trevor crushed a group of Lion-Ant-Bees with his Meteor Hammer while the Coal-Eating Dragon warned that a stronger creature was hiding nearby.
• Long Na transformed, used wind to evade the Twin-Blade Lion-Ant-Bee, and killed it with a spear strike that blasted its head apart.
• Jin Dong killed dozens of Lion-Ant-Bees with his axes before an invisible attacker appeared and struck at him.

After waking with heightened senses and an evolved Red Thread, Owl uncovered that Little Gecko was spying on him and Sa for the Myriad Beasts Alliance and its elusive Gecko True Person. Hawkins and Mother began investigating the alliance, while the Gecko True Person’s countless, disconnected alternate identities made finding him uncertain.

• Hawkins suspected that many observers were seeking Owl and Sa’s secrets and fortuitous opportunities, then decided to play for high stakes.
• Owl woke during the battle, noticed his sharpened senses, and used them to find and kill an invisible Lion-Ant-Bee attacking Jin Dong.
• Owl caught Little Gecko and used his evolved Red Thread to learn that he was a clone sent to spy on Owl and Sa for the Myriad Beasts Alliance.
• Owl killed Little Gecko and suspected that the Great Eating Sutra had attracted the watchers’ attention.
• Hawkins asked Mother to investigate the Myriad Beasts Alliance, whose origins and hostility toward humans raised concerns.
• Mother found that the ancient alliance was led by twelve zodiac animals, while Hawkins searched in vain for the cautious Gecko True Person among his alternate identities.

Owl and his allies faced a hidden Lion-Ant-Bee that could travel between leaves, and Owl realized there might be many more concealed throughout the forest. With Trevor injured and the group trapped, the Coal-Eating Dragon began blasting the surrounding trees with fireballs.

• Owl returned to Long Na, Jin Dong, and the Coal-Eating Dragon after killing the Lion-Ant-Bees around the battlefield.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon warned that a powerful Lion-Ant-Bee remained nearby, and the group forced it out by attacking the forest.
• Owl realized the Lion-Ant-Bee used leaves to move at high speed and ambush its targets, while it avoided attacking him and Sa.
• Trevor was wounded when a second Lion-Ant-Bee struck him, and Owl warned that more enemies might be hidden across the forest.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon said it could handle the threat and unleashed fireballs at the surrounding trees.

Trevor was gravely injured after the Coal-Eating Dragon's attack, while Hawkins confronted Daoist Cui and learned about the factions pursuing the fortuitous opportunity and the cultivation world's widespread use of alternate identities. Hawkins left Daoist Cui choosing to forge a favorable connection, with the larger conflict and the source of the opportunity still unresolved.

• The Coal-Eating Dragon burned the Lion-Ant-Bees away, and Jin Dong called for help when he found Trevor bleeding from a severe chest wound.
• Owl treated Trevor with Golden Wound Medicine, and the Coal-Eating Dragon carried the group away from the battlefield.
• Daoist Cui examined a cracked jade figurine resembling Trevor and wondered whether the Lion-Ant-Bees or another enemy had exposed his incarnation.
• Hawkins appeared before Daoist Cui, who identified the Venom God Cult as the faction behind the Lion-Ant-Bees and chose a favorable connection over claiming the opportunity.
• Daoist Cui named the major factions pursuing the opportunity and explained how alternate identities had become widespread among cultivators.
• Daoist Cui described the cultivation world's many alternate-identity practices, and Hawkins listened before asking whether Daoist Cui might be one himself.

Owl and his companions recovered in the Void Mushroom Market, where the Coal-Eating Dragon discovered that the dragon meat Owl cooked was irresistible. After they discussed the dangers ahead, Owl worried that the journey to War God Mountain would grow even more perilous.

• Owl brought Trevor and the others into the Void Mushroom Market, where Old Zhou healed Trevor with a red potion.
• Owl cooked Thousand-Layer Dragon Meat from Long Na’s tail, and the Coal-Eating Dragon realized it had eaten dragon meat as a child.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon resisted trying the dish until the others offered valuable rewards, then ate every piece and regretted losing the offers.
• Owl and his companions discussed the Lion-Ant-Bees’ intelligence and the growing dangers on the road to War God Mountain.

Owl's group flew toward War God Mountain to confront the Lion-Ant-Bees, but disciples of the Venom God Cult ambushed them with a swarm of locusts. Long Na attacked the swarm and had her wings badly chewed, leaving her plummeting from the sky.

• Owl spotted a flying creature in the clouds, warned the others, and failed to locate it again.
• Three Venom God Cult disciples revealed their plan to force Owl's group out of the sky, and Grasshopper Star-Soul released a huge swarm of locusts near a ruined town.
• Trevor heard the swarm approaching, and Jin Dong noted that ordinary locusts could not survive at such altitude.
• Long Na leaped from the Coal-Eating Dragon's back and attacked the swarm with her spear, but the locusts chewed her wings to shreds.
• Long Na fell from the swarm, and the Coal-Eating Dragon questioned whether she had really been a city lord.

The Coal-Eating Dragon carried Trevor, Jin Dong, Long Na, and Owl above a massive locust swarm, then brought them to the strange boundary known as the end of the world. As they discussed the Baisen Cult, Grasshopper Man and two insect allies caught up and attacked, sending Trevor flying away from the dragon.

• The Coal-Eating Dragon burned locusts as Trevor, Jin Dong, and Long Na fought them, while Owl and a streak of silver light joined the battle without turning the tide.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon flew above ten thousand meters until the locust swarm dwindled, then announced that they had reached the end of the world.
• The Coal-Eating Dragon explained that the world’s strange boundary might be connected to the Baisen Cult, whose member had once caused the dragon to be teleported into the World Hole.
• Owl warned that enemies were approaching, and Grasshopper Man, Mantis Man, and a third insect surrounded the Coal-Eating Dragon.
• Trevor taunted Grasshopper Man, who slammed his head into Trevor’s abdomen and sent him flying away from the dragon.

Owl killed Grasshopper Man while rescuing Trevor, prompting Tang Dachun and Chan Xiaodou to retreat and report to Ant-Man. As Ant-Man recruited Flower Eater and Evil Tail for a new mission, he worried that he might be the Venom God Cult’s only genuine follower.

• Grasshopper Man knocked Owl away from Trevor, but Owl used Overclocking to kill him and then caught Trevor before he hit the ground.
• Tang Dachun and Chan Xiaodou fled after Grasshopper Man died, and Long Na and Jin Dong learned from Owl why the fight had ended.
• Tang Dachun and Chan Xiaodou reported to Ant-Man, who ordered them to find Grasshopper Star-Soul’s body and assigned the mission to someone else.
• Ant-Man recruited Flower Eater and Evil Tail to pressure the airborne group, agreeing to their demands for a breeding formula and an Emperor Insect Egg in exchange for missions.
• Flower Eater and Evil Tail introduced themselves and separately insisted that they were not avatars before discussing their mission.

Flower Eater and Evil Tail attacked Owl and his companions in the sky, using red mist and vines to force them down and separate Owl from the group. After Owl revealed an unusual burst of speed while killing a Venom Serpent, Flower Eater grew more convinced that Owl possessed a valuable opportunity and prepared to probe him further.

• Laughing Man and Straight-Haired Woman watched the attack and speculated about Owl's possible toy and Flower Eater's identity.
• Flower Eater's red mist and vines dragged Owl into the mist, and Sa followed him while the Coal-Eating Dragon's group lost track of them.
• Owl escaped the vines by using shrinking gas, then reunited with Sa and began flying toward the top of the mist.
• A Venom Serpent ambushed Owl, but he entered the Overclock State and killed it before it could bite him.
• Flower Eater decided to keep testing Owl for signs of an opportunity, while Evil Tail said he wanted Magus's Emperor Insect Eggs instead.

Owl and Sa fled Flower Eater’s vine attack while Laughing Man and Void Heaven investigated their strange abilities and were killed by an unknown assailant. Sa located Flower Eater and Evil Tail, then fired the Ship-Destroying Cannon, leaving the outcome of the blast unresolved.

• Laughing Man and Void Heaven suspected Owl and Sa were powerful cultivators’ alternate identities after sensing Owl’s time-based power.
• An unknown attacker transported Laughing Man and Void Heaven elsewhere and killed their bodies with falling beams of light, though their true bodies survived.
• Owl grew exhausted from repeatedly using Overclocking while Sa searched for the person controlling the vines.
• Flower Eater launched a barrage of red beams, forcing Owl to use Overclocking again to evade them.
• Sa found Flower Eater and Evil Tail, drew the Ship-Destroying Cannon, and fired a beam that erupted into a vast sphere of light.

Owl recovered from using his overclock ability and proposed that the group travel overland while keeping some armor abilities hidden from the Lion-Ant-Bees. After a dangerous encounter with a mutant Lion-Ant-Bee, the group agreed to rest before setting out, while Owl and Sa reaffirmed their determination to continue.

• Sa told Owl that Jin Dong and the others had been fighting Lion-Ant-Bees while he recovered, and Owl reflected that avoiding combat would leave their armor unable to evolve.
• Owl and Sa discussed traveling overland and using hidden abilities to disrupt the enemy's plans.
• Jin Dong, Trevor, Long Na, and the Coal-Eating Dragon returned after a mutant Lion-Ant-Bee with human heads nearly killed them, and Trevor described being unable to attack a pleading child's head.
• Owl explained his and Sa's plan to the group, and they agreed to leave the next day after resting and to keep some abilities secret.
• Owl cooked for everyone, then went with Sa to a cliff, where they spoke about their slim chances and kissed.

Owl’s group was caught in a Spatial Annihilation Array and scattered into separate Grand Venom God Pools, where Magus monitored them for their hidden abilities. As masked contenders attacked him over the chance to claim their fortunes, Magus fought Cat Face and gained the upper hand with reinforcements.

• Owl warned the group that the unnaturally silent forest might conceal a trap, and a Spatial Annihilation Array suddenly tore through the area.
• Owl rescued Trevor from the distortions, but Trevor, Owl, Sa, Long Na, and the Coal-Eating Dragon were separated and pulled into the array.
• Magus used rings to watch each captive in a different Grand Venom God Pool, intending to take their trump cards and fortunes.
• Cat Face and her masked companions attacked Magus, but his green armor withstood their strikes and he revealed strength beyond his Lion-Ant-Bees.
• Magus summoned Tang Dachun, Chan Xiaodou, and dozens of Lion-Ant-Bees to aid him, then punched Cat Face and flattened her face.