Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• Chen Fan brings the Eternal Night Continent to its assigned position on the western flank, but finds no assembled human force. He suspects the patrol continents may be disguising a larger deployment, though Command Post No. 002 tells him only to wait.
• A passing Floating Cloud Continent alerts Chen Fan that its detection device has picked up a vast Strange Tide approaching. The enemy soon appears: a coordinated, fully equipped Eighth-Level Strange Entity force, including tens of thousands of Strange Dragons and powerful Ancient Strange Entities.
• Unable to flee in time, the Mortal Domain absorbs the first lightning assault with its Sky-Piercing Pillars. Chen Fan then orders an all-out opening strike, expending nearly all his strongest weapons and stockpiled Otherworld Kingdoms. The attack destroys tens of thousands of Strange Dragons, but the enemy’s giant entities shield the main force, which continues advancing.
• Chen activates the Mortal Domain’s contingency plan, “Lights of Ten Thousand Homes: At Lanterns’ End,” using accumulated popular will to illuminate and empower the continent. The Floating Cloud Continent returns to help, despite having escaped earlier.
• Jiu Wu uses a Calamity Token to trigger Ultimate Calamity: Blood Arena, pulling the enemy force and the Retirement Clan into a separate arena. Jiu Wu fights alone as the Retirement Clan’s sole representative, keeping the enemy occupied while nearby continents and command posts support his side.
• The Blood Arena God-King title gives Chen Fan a crucial advantage: supplied troops are multiplied tenfold, and resources spent in the arena will be refunded. While Jiu Wu stalls, Chen rapidly constructs temporary Level-70 Sky-Piercing Pillars, planning to send them into the arena and recover them afterward.
• The chapter ends with Jiu Wu still delaying the enemy and Chen preparing a large new arsenal, while the Blood Arena’s outcome—and the fate of the forces trapped inside—remains unresolved.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan moves from cautious uncertainty to decisive leadership when the attack begins. Though shocked to find his seventh-level continent facing a main-force enemy, he commits his reserves without hesitation and turns the calamity’s rules into a strategic opportunity.
• Jiu Wu demonstrates loyalty and resourcefulness by entering the arena alone and using his ability to revive after death to repeatedly escape the enemy king. He and the Revenant Clan’s king exchange taunts, then share a surprisingly candid conversation about death, their past, and Jiu Wu’s place among humans.
• The Revenant Clan’s king accepts that the arena has doomed his force and initially pursues Jiu Wu in hopes of killing a Dark Monarch. Eventually he stops chasing and reflects on his life, revealing respect for Jiu Wu and admiration for Jiu Wu’s older brother.
• The Floating Cloud Continent’s lord goes from warning Chen Fan to risking its own safety by returning to support the Mortal Domain.
• The Commander-in-Chief at Command Post No. 002 realizes the Mortal Domain has been left dangerously exposed and feels deep guilt. He rejects an incoming communication and focuses on getting reinforcements to Chen Fan.

Significant themes

• Loyalty across boundaries: Jiu Wu believes the Domain Lord will accept him because they are friends, regardless of their different races.
• Sacrifice and resolve: Chen Fan spends almost all of the Mortal Domain’s arsenal to blunt the attack, while Jiu Wu risks himself to buy time.
• Ingenuity under pressure: The Blood Arena’s rules transform a desperate defensive measure into a way to multiply and recover resources.
• Death and meaning: Jiu Wu and the enemy king reflect on mortality, legacy, and how a finite life can give existence meaning.
• Collective support: The lights fueled by popular will, along with the returning Floating Cloud Continent and other allies, show how the Mortal Domain’s survival depends on more than its own weapons.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• The Human Faction’s Eighth-Level Yellow Springs Continent arrives to reinforce Eternal Night Continent. Chen Fan reports that the immediate threat has passed, though another Strange Entity attack remains possible.
• Inside the Blood Arena, Jiu Wu faces an Eighth-Level Strange Entity Clan leader. The enemy reflects on how Chen Fan’s older brother once inspired the Clan by calling its members “friends,” and accepts that his own life is now repaid. Chen Fan’s overwhelming barrage—500,000 salvos of Level-70 Sky-Piercing Pillars—destroys him. Jiu Wu survives and returns to the Eternal Night Continent.
• The battle earns the Mortal Domain 502,978 merit points and makes it famous across the Human Faction. Chen Fan is dismayed: he had been trying to keep a low profile, but the Mortal Domain has defeated 30,000 Strange Horned Dragons and a fully equipped Eighth-Level squad with little support.
• Command Post No. 002 explains that the Mortal Domain’s relocation to the flank was an unauthorized mistake by Command Post 003, whose leader had wanted to protect Chen Fan. The command posts argue over responsibility and compensation. Command Post 003 ultimately sends the Mortal Domain three quadrillion Level-10 Eerie Stones.
• No sooner does Chen Fan receive that compensation than No. 002 proposes the “Peach-Stealing Operation”: the Mortal Domain will accompany three Eighth-Level Continents behind enemy lines, disguise themselves as Strange Entity Clan continents, seize cargo from four enemy continents, and destroy teleportation points. A Variable-Level Continent will provide fire support, and the mission is presented as a relatively safe round trip with a substantial merit reward.
• Chen Fan accepts after confirming the plan’s details. He also prepares for the worst, arranging Wraith King-level calamity cleansing and organizing 50,000 Level-70 pillars as an emergency escape measure.
• During the cleansing, Chen Fan encounters Lu Ming yet again. Later, Yellow Springs’ Lord Qiu Qi visits and talks warmly about his partner, daughter, and future plans. Chen Fan, alarmed by what he sees as a pile of death flags, tries to change the subject. Qiu Qi’s questions about the Mortal Domain’s core members’ families reveal that they are all bereaved or alone.
• Meanwhile, World-Cloud Continent realizes its team’s warning system may genuinely have detected danger earlier. Its lord wonders whether a Wraith King may really have been nearby during a previous incident.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shifts from wanting to avoid attention to accepting a dangerous mission because he believes he should help protect those who have supported him. He remains wary of relying entirely on others and prepares his own contingency plan.
• Jiu Wu completes his mission successfully and gains a deeper understanding of the enemy leader’s personal loyalty to Chen Fan’s brother.
• The Strange Entity leader dies without resisting, honoring the debt he believes he owes Chen Fan’s brother.
• Yellow Springs’ Lord Qiu Qi comes across as affectionate and hopeful about returning to his family, contrasting with the loss experienced by the Mortal Domain’s members.
• Command Posts 002 and 003 bicker over blame, authority, and compensation. Their attempts to manage the consequences highlight bureaucratic friction, even as they continue to rely on the Mortal Domain.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and friendship: The dead enemy’s recollection of Chen Fan’s brother shows how the idea of treating Clan members as friends inspired lasting devotion.
• Duty and reciprocity: Chen Fan accepts the operation partly because others have been watching over and protecting him.
• Preparedness amid uncertainty: Despite official assurances, Chen Fan trusts his own precautions and keeps powerful weapons in reserve.
• The human cost of war: Qiu Qi’s family devotion contrasts with the Mortal Domain members’ bereavement, while the enemy leader’s final reflections reveal emotional bonds on the opposing side as well.
• Irony and unwanted fame: Chen Fan’s efforts to stay unnoticed repeatedly backfire, turning the Mortal Domain into a celebrated battlefield power and drawing it into ever more consequential missions.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Eternal Night Continent travels with Yellow Springs Continent on a month-long detour toward the rear of the Strange Entity Frontline. Chen Fan uses the journey to reflect, record his recent exploits, and prepare for the next operation.
• A crimson notice reports that Wraith King Nine Souls has been killed by the Eternal Calamity Strange Entity Clan, reinforcing Chen Fan’s sense that the Boundary Battlefield is dangerous.
• Chen spends 120,000 merit points buying upgraded Ammunition, Speed, and Recovery Halos. He discovers much more powerful halos cost one million points, and learns Yellow Springs Continent ranks highly on the merit leaderboard.
• Long Qi explains how eighth-level continents operate in trusted partnerships and admits his former partner died. He offers to partner with Chen Fan in the future. Their coming mission is to disguise themselves as Strange Entity Clan forces and help destroy four enemy continents and a teleportation point. Chen is alarmed when Long Qi jokes that Mortal Domain will cover the retreat.
• The Research Pavilion reports two potential breakthroughs: locating Void Earthworm Strange Entities in the River of Space could let humans destroy the enemy’s long-distance troop transport, while bone from Soul Land may corrode Giant Wraiths. The latter needs further testing.
• Chen learns Jiu Wu has already met the requirements to advance the Retirement Clan to level seven, including gaining 12,000 merit points from the Blood Arena. Chen tells him to upgrade and not neglect his morning runs.
• After the failed surprise attack on the human flank, the Strange Entity commander concludes that Mortal Domain is becoming a major threat and may be humanity’s future king. He assigns one-armed Qi An to lead a campaign against it.
• Qi An proposes using five thousand Strange Dragons in a suicide attack to kill civilians on defended human continents, hoping the resulting guilt will make Chen act rashly. The commander authorizes the plan.
• Baobao and his Vermilion Bird companions return from hunting Strange Dragons, eager to see his little sister. Meanwhile, Chen and the White Tiger Clan girl discuss her sensing her scattered clansmen somewhere in the Boundary Battlefield.
• Eternal Night Continent enters the Fog Sea behind Yellow Springs Continent. Chen declines to take the lead just to earn a few extra merit points.
• When Baobao reaches the Mortal Domain’s former position, he finds it gone and is outside communication range. He panics at the thought of losing contact with home and his little sister, but then senses a familiar scent approaching.

Character developments

• Chen Fan remains cautious and reflective, balancing confidence in his growing power with anxiety about dangerous missions. He continues to manage both his continent and the Retirement Clan, and values preparation over small rewards.
• Long Qi comes across as sociable and teasing, but reveals the loss of his former partner and hints at a possible future partnership with Chen.
• Jiu Wu has quietly fulfilled the requirements for the Retirement Clan’s advancement, showing that his progress has been easier than Chen expected. Chen is mildly envious but pleased that their disguise will be stronger.
• Qi An moves from ignored, resentful subordinate to the commander of an extreme anti-Mortal Domain campaign. His determination is genuine, but his strategy relies on mass civilian casualties and manipulating Chen’s compassion.
• Baobao is shown as a fierce hunter who is also deeply attached to his little sister and the Mortal Domain. His return to find the continent gone exposes his vulnerability and isolation.

Significant themes

• Power and strategic importance: Mortal Domain is no longer merely promising; both human and enemy leaders see it as capable of affecting the whole war.
• War’s moral costs: Qi An’s plan treats civilians and Strange Dragons as expendable tools, contrasting sharply with Chen’s concern for emotional bonds and lives.
• Trust and partnership: Long Qi’s account of eighth-level alliances highlights how survival depends on coordination and personal trust.
• Preparation and adaptation: Research into the Void Earthworms and Giant Wraiths shows how scientific understanding may shift the balance more than brute force alone.
• Home and attachment: Baobao’s fear of losing the Mortal Domain and his sister echoes the enemy’s intention to exploit Chen’s emotional ties.

Character interactions

• Chen and Long Qi discuss the operation, their possible future partnership, and the danger of its retreat plan; Long Qi’s joking briefly frightens Chen.
• Chen consults the Research Pavilion team about ways to counter enemy transport and Giant Wraiths, then questions Jiu Wu about the Retirement Clan’s advancement.
• Qi An and the supreme commander negotiate responsibility for attacking Mortal Domain: the commander grants him authority while retaining the possibility of sharing credit.
• Chen and the White Tiger Clan girl discuss her sense that her people are nearby, raising questions about the fate of the White Tiger and Azure Dragon clans.
• Baobao’s reunion with the Mortal Domain is interrupted by its absence, ending the chapter on his anxious search for home.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• The fifthousand-Dragon attack is repelled. Five thousand commanderless Strange Dragons charge the Human front. Era Continent’s Core Energy Cannons, which need time to lock onto fast targets, shoot down many, but the Vermilion Birds arrive and rout the rest.
• Baobao reveals Star Lord Mao Ri’s power. He transforms into a colossal Vermilion Bird and unleashes “Myriad Suns Plunging into the Sea,” destroying the remaining Strange Dragons and burning away the surrounding strange tides.
• The Vermilion Birds reconnect with the Mortal Domain. Era Continent gives Baobao one of a hundred special Jade Pivot Screens that can contact the Mortal Domain. Its leader quietly claims the battle’s kills as Era Continent’s own to secure military funding for its energy-hungry cannons.
• Human command discusses its wider plans. Command Post No. 002 hopes the Vermilion Bird Clan will formally join the Human Faction, which would let it earn contribution points. The commanders also review Long Qi’s psychological evaluation and conclude that, despite trauma from his partner’s death, he is fit for duty.
• The Strange Entity command’s psychological-warfare plan fails. Qi An proposes another round of psychological warfare after the Dragons’ attack. The supreme commander rebukes him for wasting resources and orders him to devise a better plan. A report ironically calls the Dragons’ defeat a “flawless suicide.”
• Chen Fan visits Yellow Springs Continent. He and his companions travel there in the Nine-Five Dragon Chariot. The continent is a stark, heavily armed war machine, with Level 50 walls, tens of thousands of Core Energy Cannons, and almost no civilian life. Its residents live in underground quarters; Long Qi prefers visiting the greener, livelier Mortal Domain.
• The mission reaches the Strange Entity rear. As Eternal Night and Yellow Springs approach their destination, they meet two allied Strange Entity Clan continents. The four continents disguise themselves as Strange Entity forces and form a convoy, with the Mortal Domain protected in the middle.
• A separate team ambushes enemy transports. Elsewhere, a fog-shrouded Human force destroys two of four Strange Entity continents that divert toward suspicious fog. The surviving pair later joins the mission convoy.
• The chapter ends as the operation is about to begin. Long Qi tells Chen Fan that the four Continent Lords must meet to finalize their plans—and hints that their assigned partners are not ones he particularly likes, despite their useful capabilities.

Character developments

• Baobao/Star Lord Mao Ri demonstrates formidable power and enthusiasm for battle, but is embarrassed by his grand title and prefers “Baobao.” His memories still appear incomplete.
• Long Qi comes across as relaxed and sociable, yet capable and protective. He reassures Chen Fan, shows him around Yellow Springs, and emphasizes that the mission is under control.
• Chen Fan remains composed and curious, observing both the allies’ defenses and the differences between their continents. He is eager to learn but insists he will not act rashly.
• The Era Continent leader is welcoming toward Baobao but pragmatic about claiming battlefield credit to obtain resources.
• Qi An remains fixated on psychological warfare, while the Strange Entity supreme commander is more practical and concerned about conserving resources.
• Human command shows growing concern for the mental health of its leaders, especially Long Qi, and for securing the Vermilion Birds’ formal alliance.

Significant themes

• Power and its costs: The Vermilion Birds’ spectacular strength contrasts with the immense resources required to operate Era Continent’s cannons.
• War versus ordinary life: Yellow Springs is efficient but bleak; the Mortal Domain’s greenery and social life offer a striking contrast.
• Pragmatism and political incentives: Faction membership, military credit, and resource allocation shape decisions as much as loyalty does.
• Psychological resilience: Long Qi’s evaluation highlights the danger of trauma under constant pressure and the need to address it before missions.
• Deception and cooperation: The allied continents rely on disguise, careful positioning, and coordination to move through enemy territory.

Character interactions

• Baobao thanks Era Continent’s leader for helping him contact the Mortal Domain, while the leader privately turns the victory into a funding claim.
• Human commanders debate how and when to approach the Mortal Domain about faction membership, and discuss Long Qi’s recovery with concern.
• Chen Fan and Long Qi trade jokes and stories during their visit; their easy rapport deepens as Long Qi welcomes him to Yellow Springs.
• Chen Fan and Long Qi coordinate cautiously as the allied continents assemble, with Long Qi taking responsibility for meeting the other leaders and warning Chen that their partnership may be difficult.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan joins Long Qi, the Wind-Born Continent’s Xiaofeng, and the Water-Rising Continent’s Xiaoshui in a covert operation behind the Strange Entity front. The Mortal Domain’s role is camouflage; the other continents lead the attack, while Long Qi and Chen Fan cover the retreat.
• Using a newly developed illusion-building technology and the authority of a Doppelganger Wraith, the four continents pass checkpoints without being challenged. They learn the mission is to destroy the Strange Entity Clan’s Void Earthworm Empress, whose death would disable the transport network.
• The group chooses between two possible target locations. Zhou Fa draws the wrong coordinates, but the team proceeds to the more heavily defended site anyway, hoping it contains the Empress.
• While the Human Race launches a major advance at the front, the infiltrators attack the target island with overwhelming firepower. They badly damage it but fail to find the Empress. Xiaofeng and Xiaoshui escape separately; Chen Fan’s and Long Qi’s continents take different routes as the rearguard.
• The Strange Entity commander, Yun Du, recognizes the Mortal Domain and orders the front abandoned so the entire force can pursue and destroy it. Chen Fan’s group is quickly threatened by a massive encirclement.
• Chen Fan uses Otherworld Kingdoms to create space rifts around the Void Earthworms, temporarily blocking reinforcements. Long Qi then activates the Yellow Springs Continent’s one-use “Slaughter of Billions” technology, sacrificing its mobility to blast a vast opening through the encirclement. He orders Chen Fan to flee through the gap.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan is anxious but increasingly decisive. He questions the plan, assesses the danger, and uses his resources creatively once the escape becomes desperate. His concern for the mission and responsibility as a leader remain central.
• Long Qi keeps up his irreverent, boastful manner, but proves deeply capable and protective. He assumes the dangerous rearguard role and uses the Yellow Springs Continent’s powerful technology to save Chen Fan.
• Xiaofeng and Xiaoshui are introduced as blunt, confident continent lords. They lead the opening assault and withdraw after it, leaving the rearguard to Chen Fan and Long Qi.
• Zhou Fa is called in to make the coordinate choice because of his extraordinary luck, but this time his draw misses the true target.
• Yun Du shifts from routine command to uncompromising retaliation, willing to abandon the front and accept severe losses to eliminate the Mortal Domain. His one-armed subordinate is briefly moved by Yun Du’s rescue of him, then learns he lacks the authority to carry out the immense mobilization.

Significant themes

• Uncertainty in war: The operation accounts for many contingencies, yet the enemy’s willingness to abandon the front creates an unforeseen crisis.
• Sacrifice and protection: Long Qi’s rearguard stand and use of a one-time ability embody the promise that he will protect Chen Fan.
• Leadership under pressure: Chen Fan’s nerves coexist with practical judgment and a willingness to act.
• Escalation and consequences: A successful infiltration and damaging strike provoke a disproportionate response, turning the retreat into a fight for survival.
• Luck versus preparation: Zhou Fa’s reputation for luck cannot guarantee success; adaptability proves more important.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• As the Strange Tide closes around Yellow Springs and Eternal Night Continents, Long Qi stays behind to fire the Mortal World Heavy Cannon and give the others a chance to escape. Haunted by the earlier death of his partner, he believes he has finally accepted his own fate.
• Chen Fan unexpectedly turns Eternal Night Continent back toward Yellow Springs. Angler and the other mysterious elders use enormous fishing lines to tow Yellow Springs after it, allowing both continents to escape through the cannon-blasted opening.
• Chen Fan finds Long Qi wounded and apparently dying. The “blood” is actually crushed Cherry Tomato juice: Long Qi has staged the injury to tease him. The reunion is brief, however, as the Strange Tide continues its pursuit.
• The Wind-Born and Water-Rising Continents join them. Their rulers explain that the Strange Tide has grown to an extraordinary scale, and the group loses contact with Command Post No. 002. With the Human Faction far behind and no safe route home, Chen Fan decides to lead the four continents toward the Dragon Graveyard, a hidden Azure Dragon Clan forbidden land.
• For seven days, the continents flee through enemy territory, using their weapons and abilities to slow their pursuers. The Dragon Graveyard map offers no instructions for entering, but Chen Fan presses on.
• Meanwhile, Command Post No. 002 learns that the Human Faction’s offensive has succeeded, but the four continents are missing. The commander’s mentor angrily condemns him for sending them into danger; the commander nevertheless orders the advance to continue.
• Just as a second Strange Tide approaches from ahead, apparently trapping the fleeing group between two vast forces, Chen Fan raises the Dragon Family Map. The continents vanish, leaving the two tides to collide. His final words suggest the map has brought them to safety.

Character developments

• Long Qi confronts the grief and guilt surrounding his former partner’s death. Seeing Chen Fan risk himself to save him, he realizes his partner died because Long Qi had been too weak to save him. This insight brings him a measure of understanding. His later tomato-juice prank shows that he still uses humor to cope with danger.
• Chen Fan accepts responsibility for his companions despite being a seventh-level Domain Lord among more powerful leaders. He remains calm under pressure, devises the risky plan to reach the Dragon Graveyard, and ultimately activates the map at the brink of capture.
• Xiaoshui, the usually icy ruler of Water-Rising Continent, is revealed as an enthusiastic admirer of Chen Fan and the Mortal Domain. His brother Xiaofeng accompanies him largely out of loyalty.
• The Command Post No. 002 commander faces the human cost of his decisions. Though he appears shaken by the missing continents and his mentor’s rebuke, he chooses to continue the broader military advance.

Significant themes

• Strength, loyalty, and regret: Long Qi’s painful realization is that love and loyalty are not enough when one lacks the strength to protect someone.
• Partnership and refusing to abandon others: Chen Fan turns back for Long Qi, affirming that even a temporary partner is still a partner.
• Hope amid overwhelming odds: The chapter repeatedly presents apparent dead ends, while Chen Fan searches for the unlikely possibility that could turn disaster into escape.
• The cost of strategic ambition: The Human Faction’s successful advance contrasts sharply with the endangered continents left behind, raising questions about the price of military progress.
• Humor as a response to fear: Long Qi’s pranks and the rulers’ eccentricities provide comic relief without diminishing the danger.

Character interactions

• Chen Fan and Long Qi move from awkward temporary allies to partners who will not leave each other behind. Long Qi’s teasing request for a dance briefly masks his supposed death, and Chen Fan’s anger reveals his genuine concern.
• Long Qi and the elderly Anglers share a history of loss and duty; their intervention gives him a chance to understand what might have happened if he had been stronger.
• Xiaoshui’s reverence for Chen Fan surprises the group, while Xiaofeng’s exasperated devotion to his brother adds comic contrast.
• The Human Command Center’s commander and his mentor clash over the decision to deploy the Mortal Domain, exposing the tension between battlefield strategy and responsibility for individual lives.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan’s group enters the Dragon Graveyard, a hidden island filled with the skeletons of the Azure Dragon Clan. They discover that the Azure Dragon King’s skeleton has a missing bone and enormous footprints nearby.
• The footprints match Xuan Ba, a Black Tortoise. Stone diaries supplied by the Angler, Canghai Yue, reveal that the former Black Tortoise King took the bone to the Cursed Continent—now the Eternal Night Continent—and tried to preserve the Azure Dragon King’s soul.
• The bone was eventually buried in the Black Tortoise Plains and became part of Qi Yue, who had died and remained buried on Rugged Island. Chen Fan’s group exhumes Qi Yue and returns the bone to the Dragon Graveyard.
• The bone restores the Azure Dragon King’s skeleton. Qi Yue revives, discovers his identity, and offers to lead the Mortal Domain against the Strange Entity tides surrounding the Dragon Family.
• Qi Yue learns that centuries of history have passed since he last remembers the Mortal Domain. He reunites emotionally with Gongyang Yue, his lover.
• Qi Yue asks Chen Fan to let the Azure Dragon skeletons be made into war machines, arguing that the clan would rather fight the Strange Entity Clan than disappear without a trace. Chen Fan agrees, though he questions how the Dragon Graveyard can be reached or exited.
• Qi Yue explains that the graveyard lies within the River of Space and has no ordinary exit. The group must study the Black Tortoise diaries to learn how the former king escaped.
• Meanwhile, the Strange Entity commander and his subordinate Qi An face consequences after mobilizing enormous forces to trap the Mortal Domain, only for it to vanish. They consider implausible escape plans, including surrendering, but settle on trying to exploit Chen Fan’s attachment to his friends and relatives.

Character developments and interactions

• Qi Yue returns as the Azure Dragon King, retaining his old personality and memories only up to his final battle. His pride and confidence quickly give way to bewilderment when he learns how much the world has changed. He and Gongyang Yue share a tearful reunion.
• Chen Fan remains protective of his people and weighs the cost of war against the survival of the Azure Dragon legacy. He promises to do what he can to keep everyone safe, while recognizing he cannot guarantee that no one will die.
• Xuan Ba learns that his former king secretly tried to preserve the Azure Dragon line. His discovery also sparks speculation that Azure Dragon “Self-Severing” may have inspired Hades’s separation from Jiu Wu.
• Gongyang Yue is stunned to see Qi Yue alive and embraces him after a moment of disbelief.
• Crippled Monkey pushes back against Chen Fan’s impulse to protect everyone, warning that the coming war may bring irreversible losses.
• The Strange Entity commander and Qi An bicker over blame and survival. Their exchanges reveal the commander’s fear of Hades and Qi An’s frustration with his repeated plans to flee or surrender.

Significant themes

• Identity and rebirth: Qi Yue’s resurrection forces him to reconcile his former life with his newly revealed identity as Azure Dragon King.
• Legacy and sacrifice: The former Black Tortoise King’s attempt to preserve the Azure Dragon soul, and Qi Yue’s request to use the clan’s remains in war, frame survival as both inheritance and sacrifice.
• Love and reunion amid war: Qi Yue and Gongyang Yue’s reunion offers a moment of tenderness against a backdrop of escalating conflict.
• The limits of protection: Chen Fan wants to keep everyone safe, but his companions remind him that war cannot be controlled and loss may be unavoidable.
• Dark humor and desperation: The enemy officers’ increasingly absurd escape schemes contrast with the grave threat they face and expose the strain within the Strange Entity command.

Chapter summary

Key plot points and events

• Chen Fan and his companions are trapped in the Dragon Graveyard, sealed behind an apparently unbreakable heaven-and-earth barrier. Their best hope is to retrace how the former Black Tortoise King and White Tiger Clan Heiress entered and left.
• An inscription from the explorer Heaven and Earth—later known as Heaven’s Mandate—confirms that others have visited the Graveyard, but offers no way out. After seven fruitless days of searching, the group is abruptly expelled by the Graveyard itself.
• The expulsion leaves them near the edge of the Boundary Battlefield, far from Human Faction territory. Their return journey would take months, and a nearby Wraith King appears to threaten them.
• The supposed enemy turns out to be Chen Fan’s “big brother,” the Extinction Demon Emperor, a Wraith King who warmly welcomes the group to his island. Chen Fan insists he must return to fight for humanity, and his brother agrees to guide them toward a faster route home.
• During their visit, Chen Fan discovers White Tiger fur on Little Red, the Demon Emperor’s Hell Two-Headed Hound. This reveals that Little Red has been meeting a White Tiger. The Demon Emperor rushes to confront the White Tiger Clan, while Chen Fan sees the encounter as a chance to establish contact with them.
• The White Tiger Clan has captured Bai San, the King’s son, for secretly meeting Little Red. The King insists their relationship is dangerous and dishonorable, while Bai San defends Little Red and refuses to reveal her whereabouts.
• The Demon Emperor arrives with Chen Fan’s allies, including the Azure Dragon and Black Tortoise leaders. A confrontation begins between him and the White Tiger King, who accuses Little Red of corrupting his son. The group’s attempt at what some thought was a marriage proposal has become a potential fight.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan remains pragmatic and determined: he refuses the safety of his brother’s island because he feels obligated to fight in the war. He also seeks a cautious, exploratory relationship with the White Tiger Clan rather than demanding its allegiance.
• Xuan Ba and Qi Yue help uncover the Graveyard’s history and accompany Chen Fan onward. Their presence confirms that the ancient plan to preserve the Azure Dragon and Vermilion Bird bloodlines succeeded, though the full story remains unclear.
• The Extinction Demon Emperor reveals a softer, domestic side. He is affectionate toward Chen Fan, proud of his home, and eager to protect him. His anger over Little Red and Bai San’s relationship clashes with the White Tiger King’s own condemnation of it.
• Little Red and Bai San are absent from most of the chapter’s action, but their bond drives the final conflict. Bai San describes Little Red as kind and comforting, rejecting the White Tiger Clan’s view of her as merely a strange entity.
• The White Tiger King is shown as protective and fearful for his clan’s survival. He explains that the White Tigers were confined after an ancient secret operation went wrong, but his concern for clan honor and security makes him oppose his son’s relationship.
• The group’s interactions are frequently comic: Chen Fan’s companions struggle to accept that a Wraith King is his brother, praise Liu Ying’s terrible-looking noodles to be polite, and misunderstand the expedition as a marriage negotiation.

Significant themes

• Unexpected alliances and blurred boundaries: Chen Fan’s close relationship with a Wraith King challenges the assumption that humans and strange entities must be enemies.
• Duty versus safety: Chen Fan chooses the dangerous return to the warfront over the security offered by his brother.
• Prejudice, honor, and compassion: The White Tiger King judges Little Red by what she is, while Bai San values her kindness and character.
• History and hidden costs: The Dragon Graveyard and the White Tiger Clan’s confinement point to an ancient plan whose success came at a terrible price.
• Comedy amid danger: Abrupt reversals, awkward misunderstandings, and domestic humor contrast with the looming threat of war and clan conflict.

Plot points and events

• Chen Fan interrupts a standoff between the Extinction Demon Emperor and the White Tiger Clan’s King over Little Red and Bai San’s relationship. After confirming that both young warriors freely want to be together, the elders compare their bloodlines, ages, political loyalties, and status. Xuan Ba explains that Little Red is a friend of the Mortal Domain and that the Azure Dragon, Black Tortoise, and Vermilion Bird Kings all serve it. Satisfied, the White Tiger King approves the match.
• The White Tiger King confirms that his clan will formally enter the coming Dark Upheaval. Xuan Ba reveals that the Mortal Domain is the prophesied future Human King, potentially destined to become a tenth-level continent and deliver the decisive blow. Jiu Wu begins explaining the Mortal Domain’s history.
• Chen Fan records his anxiety about the Mortal Domain’s growing responsibilities. He then receives a huge reward for the recent operation: nearly eight million merit points. The Mortal Domain enters the Human Faction Merit Ranking at #998, making it the first seventh-level continent to appear there during the current upheaval. The Yellow Springs, Wind-Born, and Water-Rising Continents also climb the rankings.
• The Extinction Demon Emperor escorts the four allied continents home by borrowing routes from powerful beings he knows: a Whale, a Sky Toad, and others. These shortcuts reduce a journey that would have taken nine months to just twelve days.
• Before leaving, the Demon Emperor declines to join the war, citing his family, but promises to rescue Chen Fan if he is in danger. Chen Fan returns to the battlefield determined to confront Command Post 002 for having promised a safe round trip.
• Command Post 002 discusses compensating the Mortal Domain for the dangerous mission, which had been assigned as a “reward deployment.” Meanwhile, the Floating Cloud Continent’s lord speculates that the Mortal Domain led a spearhead operation that helped the Human Faction capture a defensive line.
• Chen Fan reunites with the Floating Cloud Continent’s lord and confirms the mission was dangerous enough that the Mortal Domain will not volunteer for another. The Human Faction then publicly announces the operation’s success, celebrating the four continents for forcing the Strange Entity Clan to abandon its frontline. Chen Fan privately contacts Command Post 003 to complain about the ordeal.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan is increasingly aware of the gap between the Mortal Domain’s growing influence and his ability to shoulder its responsibilities. Its success brings fame and allies, but he remains wary of danger and refuses to be drawn into another spearhead mission.
• The Extinction Demon Emperor shows paternal concern for Little Red, accepts her relationship with Bai San once he knows it is consensual, and uses his many powerful friendships to help Chen Fan’s group travel home. Despite his loyalty to Chen Fan, he draws a boundary at joining the war.
• The White Tiger King moves from hostility to practical negotiation, ultimately approving the couple and committing his clan to the coming conflict.
• Little Red and Bai San affirm their mutual feelings and are allowed to date freely.
• Long Qi and the other allies express loyalty to Chen Fan, with some already saying they would vote for him as Human Faction King. Chen Fan is uncomfortable with this political support and has no intention of pursuing the title.
• The Floating Cloud Continent’s lord admires the Mortal Domain’s rise but prefers the safety of flank duty. His reunion with Chen Fan confirms the Mortal Domain’s connection to major battlefield events.

Significant themes

• Responsibility and insecurity: Chen Fan’s influence grows faster than his confidence in his ability to lead.
• Power, friendship, and obligation: The Demon Emperor’s strength has earned him many allies, while the Mortal Domain’s expanding network creates both support and new responsibilities.
• Consent and family duty: The elders examine Little Red and Bai San’s relationship carefully, but accept it once they know the choice is mutual.
• Recognition and morale: The merit rankings and public battle report turn the Mortal Domain into a symbol of hope for the Human Faction.
• The cost of victory: Others celebrate the operation, while Chen Fan remembers its danger and rejects repeating it.

• Purpose and events: The author announces a September monthly-ticket raffle and asks readers to vote early in the month. There will be no bonus chapter tied to the tickets. Readers who vote between September 1 and September 7 are automatically entered to win one of 50 cases of Coca-Cola; the winners will be posted on September 10.
• Author’s effort and goal: Because the author narrowly missed a writing target in July, some readers did not receive their guaranteed August tickets. Determined not to repeat that, the author wrote about 10,000 Chinese characters a day for half of August and hopes to reach the top 20 in the early-month ticket rankings.
• Extra reward: The 20 readers with the most tickets cast by September 7 will each receive a case of cola, in addition to the raffle.
• Character development and interactions: There is no story or fictional character development. The author speaks directly and warmly to readers, expressing regret, gratitude, and playful enthusiasm, while encouraging them to support the book.
• Themes: The announcement emphasizes persistence, the pressure and difficulty of writing, reader-author reciprocity, and support for officially licensed publishing.

Chapter Summary: “Three Days Off”

Key plot points and events

• After the successful “Peach-Stealing Battle,” both Human Faction command centers reward the participating continents with 2,000 trillion eerie stones each. The Mortal Domain also receives an additional 2,000 trillion eerie stones, strategic building blueprints, a black-grade exotic treasure, and reimbursement for its operation expenses.
• Chen Fan and his allies part ways. Long Qi explains that he has been assigned a new partner and may not see Chen Fan again, making their farewell especially meaningful. Chen promises to invite everyone to his brother’s wedding after the war. The Wind-Rising brothers also say goodbye, expressing faith that the Mortal Domain will survive future crises.
• Chen invites Fu Yun, the Floating Cloud Continent Lord, to have their research teams share work on detecting anomalies and strange entities. Compensation resources arrive, officially concluding the operation.
• Ten days later, Chen declares a mandatory three-day vacation for the Mortal Domain. He relaxes aboard a Flying Boat with Crippled Monkey, imagining that after the war they might unite the scattered continents, build a safer world, and live peacefully. Crippled Monkey admits he hopes to find a wife someday; Chen promises him a grand wedding.
• The vacation spreads throughout the Mortal Domain and allied groups. Jiu Wu, Huang, Xiangyang, the former Ghost Emperors, Xuan Ba, the White Tiger Clan, and others lounge in floral shorts. Baobao returns from the front eager to report the Vermilion Birds’ progress, only to find everyone—and Chen—on holiday.
• Baobao reunites with Qi Yue, who is revealed as the former Azure Dragon Heavenly Lord. Their rivalry briefly flares into a challenge, but they postpone a full-strength fight because the simulation system cannot afford to recreate their claimed peak abilities. Baobao is instead sent to collect holiday clothes.
• Elsewhere, Liu Ying and the Extinction Demon Emperor enjoy their quiet island life and plan to play games together. The Gongyang Clan celebrates its family’s rising status, especially Gongyang Yue’s relationship with Qi Yue.
• The Strange Entity Clan, meanwhile, remains under pressure after losing three defensive lines. Qi An proposes a desperate plan: secretly release a demon imprisoned in a forbidden land, send it into Human territory, and use the chaos to reclaim the lost lines. Despite Yun Du’s concerns, he approves the plan. They name it the “Internal Wall Plan.”

Character developments

• Chen Fan shows gratitude for the rewards and recognizes the value of rest after prolonged danger. His relaxed plans reveal that he hopes not merely to win the war, but to reshape the world into a peaceful place.
• Crippled Monkey expresses deep loyalty to Chen, recalling how frightened Chen was at the start of their journey despite his outward calm. He also reveals a personal hope of finding a partner.
• Long Qi shows how much he values his friendship with Chen by insisting on a proper farewell. Their joking exchange preserves their warmth despite the uncertainty of war.
• Qi Yue and Baobao resume their old competitive relationship, but their boasts about their former power are played for comedy.
• Yun Du is cautious and uneasy about Qi An’s proposal, while Qi An is determined to take responsibility and prove his loyalty, even at enormous risk.

Significant themes

• War and uncertainty: Friendships may end in permanent goodbyes, and even peaceful moments are fragile.
• Rest as a necessity: Chen makes recuperation mandatory, emphasizing that resilience requires more than constant fighting.
• Hope beyond survival: Chen and Crippled Monkey imagine a united, safer world and lives with room for love and ordinary happiness.
• The absurdity and humanity of wartime life: Floral shorts, sunbathing, games, and family celebrations contrast with the ongoing conflict.
• Desperation and reckless strategy: The Strange Entity Clan’s plan to unleash a demon illustrates how mounting pressure can push leaders toward catastrophic risks.

Character interactions

• Chen and Long Qi share a heartfelt farewell softened by teasing; Chen also exchanges encouraging goodbyes with the Wind-Rising brothers.
• Chen and Crippled Monkey discuss peace, marriage, and their future, revealing both affection and trust.
• Fu Yun and Chen establish a cooperative relationship between their research teams.
• Qi Yue and Baobao trade threats and boasts, then settle their dispute humorously when a realistic simulation proves too expensive.
• The White Tiger Clan’s generational perspectives clash lightly over whether a vacation is appropriate during wartime.
• Yun Du and Qi An debate the demon-release proposal, with Qi An’s conviction ultimately persuading the more cautious commander.

Chapter Summary: “Internal Wall Plan”

Key plot points and events

• Qi An and Yun Du release a sealed demon. Qi An enters an unguarded cavern and finds a small, skeletal, red-skinned demon restrained by chains and formations. Hoping to use it to cause havoc inside the Human Faction, he takes it to the command post. The demon warns them not to release it, but Qi An proceeds.
• The Strange Entity Clan launches the “Internal Wall Plan.” Yun Du approves Qi An’s proposal, expecting the demon to attack humans and improve their battle record. The demon’s true strength is unknown to them.
• Chen Fan returns from vacation and collects rewards. He buys the Mortal Domain the Neon Halo, which repels enemies by spinning the continent, and the Invincibility Halo, which temporarily prevents it from being targeted. He also receives a black-grade Demon Child Bamboo Flute tied to the River of Time, huge Eerie Stone compensation, and an enormous stockpile of Popular Will.
• The front appears calm—until another Strange Tide arrives. Floating Cloud Continent spots the attack and flees, and Eternal Night Continent does likewise. This time, nearby Human Faction forces destroy most of the Strange Tide with Core Energy Cannons before the Mortal Domain needs to fight.
• The demon breaks free. A warning identifies it first as a high-risk creature, then as a high-threat creature. As it removes more chains, its danger rating rises to Level 90+, a class previously associated only with Hades. Its presence forces nearby continents to evacuate and prompts the redeployment of three Ninth-Level Continents.
• The demon departs without attacking. Xiaowen identifies it as a demon, and the Yellow Springs Wraith confirms that demons are Hell’s true masters: supposedly undying and without weaknesses. Chen Fan orders a retreat. After removing all its chains, the demon opens a spatial rift and vanishes, seemingly indifferent to both humans and Strange Entities.
• The plan backfires. Yun Du learns the released demon is Level 90+ and is furious with Qi An. He had wanted an “Internal Wall Plan,” not a catastrophe. Yun Du nevertheless speculates that the demon’s knowledge might help Hades reach Level 100, while Hades himself senses unease as he pursues the elusive Heavenly Punishment Continent.

Character developments and interactions

• Qi An is confident in the Strange Entity Clan’s reserves and committed to using the demon against humanity, but his confidence gives way to fear once its immense power becomes clear.
• Yun Du initially backs Qi An’s plan, then angrily holds him responsible when it produces an uncontrollable threat. His attempt to frame the outcome as potentially useful to Hades is largely strategic rationalization.
• Chen Fan remains pragmatic: he enjoys his holiday, makes careful use of Merit Points, and immediately withdraws when the demon proves beyond the Mortal Domain’s ability to fight.
• The demon is calm, self-assured, and apparently unconcerned with either faction. Its warning, effortless destruction of incoming attacks, and casual escape establish it as a force operating beyond ordinary conflicts.
• The Square-Faced Commander responds cautiously, coordinating evacuation and reinforcements while recognizing that even three Ninth-Level Continents may not be enough.
• Wang Kui reveals his resourcefulness—and opportunism—in preparing an expansive reimbursement claim, though the command post stops reviewing it after seeing the Mortal Domain’s enormous weapons expenditure.
• Floating Cloud Continent’s patrol leader is increasingly disillusioned with the supposedly safe flank and considers heading to the front line instead.

Significant themes

• Misjudging forces beyond one’s control: Qi An assumes he can direct the demon’s violence, but its power and motives lie outside his plans.
• The danger of escalation: A scheme intended to weaken the Human Faction instead introduces a Level 90+ being into the war.
• Pragmatism and survival: Chen Fan’s retreat contrasts with the Strange Entity Clan’s gamble; survival takes priority over pride or ambition.
• The scale of the conflict: The demon’s arrival exposes the limits of the Human Faction’s defenses and raises the possibility that the war’s balance could change dramatically.
• Cyclical history and uncertainty: The demon’s remark about history repeating itself, along with its unexplained return to the world, hints at a larger pattern beyond the current battle.

Plot points and events

• Qian Jue returns to Hell and finds his homeland completely deserted. He restores a courtyard’s formation, completes an old chess game, and vows that if its inhabitants were discarded after serving their purpose, the game would end.
• Chen Fan learns that the demon has returned and discovers evidence in the Hell Ruins: a Temple statue resembles Mr. Na. He suspects Mr. Na has some connection to the demons’ mysterious master, but concludes Mr. Na himself may know nothing about it.
• Chen Fan tests Mr. Na by asking how he chose his human appearance. Mr. Na says he copied features from a man he once saw calculating something in a field. The conversation suggests the true mastermind may have encountered Mr. Na before, but reveals no proof that Mr. Na is complicit.
• The demon attacks the Human Frontline with overwhelming power. Chen Fan, Jiu Wu, and Mr. Na rush there through a chain of teleportation formations. When they arrive, the demon recognizes Mr. Na’s likeness and kneels, believing him to be his lord—though he quickly realizes Mr. Na is an impostor.
• The demon, Qian Jue, agrees to talk and explains that a hidden master has been orchestrating wars between races as a chess game. Demons were tasked with wiping out each side after the conflict, making room for the next game. Qian Jue attacked the Human Race not from personal hatred, but to wreck the game after discovering Hell had been destroyed.
• Qian Jue reveals that Wan Gu’s fishing technique brought Chen Fan into this world, making him the “variable” the master has been trying to counter. The master created another variable—Jiu Wu, with an innate dark sacred physique—to balance the conflict.
• Qian Jue says the master can potentially be killed at Level 100, but reaching that power requires the master’s permission. Chen Fan proposes using the Genesis Heavenly Evolution Paper to advance the Eternal Night Continent and challenge this restriction, asking Qian Jue to join him.
• Qian Jue accepts the idea of overturning the chessboard. Chen Fan welcomes him to the Mortal Domain, promising a future without Kings. Crippled Monkey, Wang Kui, and the War Pavilion Members are waiting outside the courtyard.

Character developments and interactions

• Qian Jue shifts from a grieving, vengeful demon prepared to destroy the battlefield to a potential ally. His anger stems from the loss of Hell and his rejection of being used as a pawn.
• Chen Fan moves from investigating Mr. Na’s possible connection to the demon master to confronting the larger scheme. Though shaken by the idea that his struggles are part of someone else’s game, he chooses resistance and recruits Qian Jue.
• Mr. Na remains a trusted figure, though his appearance appears to have been modeled on the mysterious master. His innocent account offers no sign that he understands the connection.
• Jiu Wu faces Qian Jue’s terrifying aura while helping Chen Fan approach him. Qian Jue recognizes Jiu Wu’s dark sacred physique and sees him as another engineered variable.
• Yun Du and Qi An mistakenly believe the returning demon’s attack proves their plan to turn it against humanity has succeeded; their confidence collapses when Chen Fan’s group arrives and the demon kneels.

Significant themes

• Free will versus manipulation: The Human Race, Strange Entity Clan, demons, and even Chen Fan may have been pieces in a master’s staged conflicts.
• Resistance to being a pawn: Qian Jue and Chen Fan refuse to accept that their lives and losses exist only to serve someone else’s game.
• Grief and vengeance: Qian Jue’s destruction of the Human Frontline is driven chiefly by the devastation of his home.
• Hope through alliance: Chen Fan turns a seemingly impossible conflict into a shared gamble, suggesting that cooperation among former adversaries may offer a way to break the cycle.

Key plot points and events

• After Qian Jue’s dark-energy attack devastates the Strange Entity Clan’s forces, the Mortal Domain and Command Post No. 002 push forward, breaking the enemy’s fourth defensive line. The strange tide retreats to establish a fifth.
• Yun Du despairs over the war’s collapse and the prospect of Hades returning. Qi An proposes a third step in his Death of the Mortal Domain plans: “Burning the Boats”—activate the Strange Entity Clan’s secret reserves and launch an all-out assault.
• Qi An’s archival research reveals hints of hidden reserves and long-erased records. Yun Du knows the reserves are being saved for a future “Heaven Gate Fated War,” so he initially refuses to risk using them. He also worries about losing his command.
• Chen Fan meets Qian Jue in Hell with an unusual gathering of allied Kings. They share intelligence about Hades, That One, the demons, Hell, and the mysterious four clans said to be “keys.” Qian Jue agrees to help only in limited ways, saving his full strength for the eventual fight against That One.
• Chen Fan reviews the requirements for advancing the Mortal Domain and finds none easy. New battlefield rewards for resolving the demon crisis and contributing to the Strange Entity Clan’s collapse raise the Mortal Domain’s merit total to 13.503 million, making further advancement seem more attainable. He decides to seek another high-merit mission.
• Command Post No. 002 asks about Chen Fan’s relationship with the demon and considers which mission to offer the Mortal Domain.
• In a comic interlude, the Extinction Demon Emperor struggles to process that a demon knelt before his younger brother, then goes out with Liu Ying as usual.
• Qi An visits the Strange Entity Clan’s rear headquarters and uses a series of bribes and arguments to keep Yun Du in command. Once reassured that his position is safe, Yun Du finally agrees to Qi An’s “Burning the Boats” plan.

Character developments and interactions

• Yun Du shifts from exhausted resignation to a reluctant final gamble. He remains wary of the reserves’ importance and the danger of Hades’s return, but accepts Qi An’s plan once his command is protected.
• Qi An emerges as an ambitious, resourceful schemer. He believes catastrophe offers him a chance to make history, persuades Yun Du to act, and manipulates the rear command through bribery and calculated arguments.
• Chen Fan remains pragmatic: he rejects the idea that he personally “turned” Qian Jue, treating their alliance as a natural match of goals. He carefully gathers intelligence while concealing the larger plan and wrestling with the ticking clock.
• Qian Jue is candid about his limits and the danger of drawing That One’s attention. Though burdened by Hell’s ruined state and betrayal by his own people, he cooperates with Chen Fan and helps restore his old city.
• The allied Kings reveal both their shared history and their gaps in memory. Their banter—especially Xuan Ba’s teasing of Canghai Yue—adds levity amid the strategic crisis.
• The Extinction Demon Emperor is unsettled by his brother Chen Fan’s influence over a demon, but Liu Ying’s familiar warmth draws him back into their routine.

Significant themes

• Desperation and risk: Both sides face choices shaped by urgency—Qi An advocates a dangerous all-out assault, while Chen Fan considers high-risk missions to gain merit and advance quickly.
• Loyalty and ambition: Qi An insists he serves the Strange Entity Clan, yet his hunger for historical recognition complicates his loyalty; Yun Du’s survival and Qi An’s success become intertwined.
• Uncertainty and hidden histories: Erased records, lost memories, secret reserves, and the unknown return of That One make reliable planning difficult.
• Alliance through shared goals: Chen Fan’s view of Qian Jue as a teammate reflects a broader possibility of cooperation across former enemy lines.
• Comic relief amid crisis: The characters’ teasing and domestic interactions contrast with the looming threat of war and help humanize the conflict.

Chapter Summary

Plot points and events

• Chen Fan needs another 6.5 million merit points to advance the Mortal Domain to an eighth-level continent. Before assigning him a mission, the command post sends a Hundred Flowers Pavilion examiner to check whether the demon has possessed or altered him.
• The interview turns intrusive, especially when Lin Chong questions Chen Fan’s private life. Irritated, Chen Fan ends it. The command post then offers three missions: investigate signs of life in abandoned World 999, find the missing Green Edge, or persuade the Demon Clan to join the Human Faction.
• Chen Fan chooses World 999, judging it more practical than searching for Green Edge. He travels there with Lu Ming, the world’s sole surviving native.
• Meanwhile, the Nine-Headed Serpent Clan publicly joins the Strange Entity Faction. Yun Du and Qi An had meant only to obtain corpses for a new Strange Entity blueprint; by using Hades’s token, they accidentally exposed his hidden reserve and formally committed the clan to the faction. They rush to produce Nine-Headed Serpent Strange Entities, hoping success will spare them Hades’s anger.
• The human continents are briefly disheartened by the announcement, but the Azure Dragon, Black Tortoise, Angler, Vermilion Bird, and White Tiger Clans soon formally join the Human Faction. Their proclamations restore morale and earn Chen Fan’s Mortal Domain six million merit points, leaving him just 500,000 short of his goal.
• After fifteen days, Chen Fan reaches World 999. Its scarlet sky formation suppresses human buildings to one-tenth efficiency, while Strange Entities remain unaffected. He realizes the world is a Strange Entity staging ground.
• On an island protected by a barrier, Chen Fan finds the Nine-Headed Serpent Clan and its newly produced Strange Entity troops. The island’s Divine Descent Demon Formation is intended to trap and weaken intruders. Qian Jue is also suppressed, though only to thirty percent.
• Chen Fan declines to let Qian Jue fight and calls on Jiu Wu instead. Jiu Wu’s dramatic sword flourish proves to be only a signal: tens of thousands of Azure Dragons arrive as his corps, and he orders them to attack the Nine-Headed Serpents. The chapter ends as the assault begins.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan remains composed and pragmatic, but shows little patience for bureaucratic suspicion or invasive questions. He chooses missions by balancing reward, risk, and effort.
• Lu Ming accompanies Chen Fan to his ruined homeland and confirms how dangerous the world was when it fell.
• Yun Du and Qi An’s plan spirals into an unintended public commitment. Fear of Hades pushes them to make the most of the mistake, while their troops’ enthusiasm offers a possible upside.
• Long Qi trusts Chen Fan’s strategy despite others questioning why more Eternal Night races have not joined the Human Faction. His new ally, the Era Continent lord, openly supports the Mortal Domain—though Long Qi teases him about his former temptation to claim its military credit.
• Qian Jue questions whether Jiu Wu can handle the enemy. Jiu Wu responds by revealing that, as a king, he commands troops rather than relying on personal combat.

Significant themes

• Trust and scrutiny: The Hundred Flowers Pavilion’s concern about demonic influence clashes with Chen Fan’s irritation at being treated as suspect.
• Coalitions and morale: Formal alliances bring practical rewards, but also signal trust and strengthen faction-wide confidence.
• Unintended consequences: Yun Du’s attempt to exploit a hidden reserve exposes it and forces the Strange Entity leadership into an irreversible commitment.
• Strategy over brute force: The battlefield is shaped by formations, intelligence, and troop coordination—not merely individual strength.
• Home and loss: Lu Ming’s return to World 999 frames the abandoned world as both a hostile battlefield and the remains of his people’s past.

Key plot points and events

• Jiu Wu leads the newly revealed Azure Dragon Corps—tens of thousands of Level 70 dragons—in a devastating assault on the Nine-Headed Serpent stronghold in abandoned World 999. Their synchronized Dragon Clan Killing Moves obliterate most of the island’s defenders.
• The Nine-Headed Serpent King appears and ambushes Qian Jue, but his strongest attack fails. Qian Jue retaliates with nine enormous golden blade strikes, defeating the King while deliberately keeping him alive.
• Chen Fan reveals why: the Mortal Domain has already met its advancement requirements, and killing the last Serpent will allow the Retirement Clan to advance from a seventh- to an eighth-level Strange Entity Clan. Jiu Wu crushes the captured King, triggering a blood rain and a battlefield-wide proclamation that the Nine-Headed Serpent Clan has been exterminated.
• The news makes the Mortal Domain famous across the Boundary Battlefield and boosts human morale. Command Post leaders recognize its growing influence, while Strange Entity commanders Yun Du and Qi An realize that the Serpent Clan’s reserves and plans have fallen into human hands.
• Yun Du, disillusioned by repeated defeats, decides he wants to surrender. Before he can act, the Rear Headquarters arrives, removes him as commander, and appoints Qi An in his place.
• Qi An rejects Yun Du’s resignation from the struggle, insisting that they fight together. His sincerity revives Yun Du’s resolve. The two reconcile, then begin plotting an ambitious counterattack against the Mortal Domain.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan reveals himself as a calculating leader: he uses the battle to display the Azure Dragons’ power, strengthen cooperation with Qian Jue, and secure an advancement opportunity for the Retirement Clan.
• Jiu Wu takes pride in wielding the Azure Dragons’ techniques, then carries out the decisive act that enables his clan’s advancement.
• Qian Jue demonstrates overwhelming strength and a casual, almost detached attitude toward the Serpent King. His choice to spare the King is ultimately part of Chen Fan’s plan.
• Yun Du shifts from exhausted resignation and thoughts of surrender to renewed determination after Qi An’s heartfelt appeal.
• Qi An moves from subordinate to commander. Although he initially seemed eager to rescue Yun Du from despair, his promotion gives him authority—and he uses it to restore their partnership, promising to share responsibility and credit.
• The human commanders, allied continents, and other observers react to the extermination with admiration and renewed confidence; even the Strange Entity leadership feels the shock of the loss.

Significant themes

• Power and reputation: The Mortal Domain’s victory transforms it from a promising newcomer into a recognized force.
• Pragmatism and strategy: Chen Fan and Qian Jue carefully manage the battle’s outcomes to gain both military and political benefits.
• Defeat, despair, and renewed purpose: Yun Du’s crisis shows how repeated failures can break resolve, while Qi An’s loyalty brings it back.
• The cost of war and the desire for peace: Yun Du briefly questions the meaning of victory and conflict, but renewed ambition pulls him back into the struggle.
• Alliance and trust: Yun Du and Qi An’s relationship evolves from hierarchy and resentment toward mutual commitment—though their renewed unity now threatens the Mortal Domain.

Summary

• Plot and events: The chapter is a brief announcement that the monthly ticket raffle has one day remaining. Readers who still have tickets are urged to cast them. The author thanks supporters and asks for more monthly tickets, promising to continue writing 10,000 characters a day in return.
• Character developments: No narrative characters or plot arcs appear. The author’s playful “Boohoo...” conveys mock disappointment or a bid for sympathy.
• Character interactions: The author addresses readers directly, thanking them for their support and encouraging them to contribute tickets.
• Themes: The chapter centers on reader support, creator–audience reciprocity, and the ongoing effort required to produce regular work.

Chapter summary

• World 999 is cleared: After Yun Du regains his confidence, he sends Qi An to steady the troops while he prepares a plan. Meanwhile, Chen Fan’s forces finish wiping out the Nine-Headed Serpent Clan in Abandoned World 999. The victory earns the Eternal Night Continent an enormous reward: 10 million merit points for exterminating a Strange Entity clan, plus other contributions. Chen Fan’s ranking rises sharply.
• A major windfall: The team discovers more than sixty thousand rare Level-11 Hades Stones, worth roughly sixty quadrillion eerie stones in total. Jiu Wu recognizes them as a special creation of his elder brother, Hades, and identifies the cache as likely part of the Strange Entity faction’s hidden production network. Chen Fan decides to use the stones to expand the Azure Dragon Corps, while recognizing that the enemy may have many concealed forces and that the war is far from over.
• Promotion—and a missed deployment: The Eternal Night Continent returns to the Boundary Battlefield and is immediately promoted to level eight. Only then does a costly, one-way message arrive from Command Post No. 002: it needed the Mortal Domain for an urgent mission that only a seventh-level continent could undertake. Since the promotion is already complete, the command post assigns the nearest eligible continent instead: Floating Cloud Continent, led by Fu Yun.
• A spreading anomaly: Floating Cloud Continent is sent into an enormous, rapidly expanding bank of blood-red mist. Communications fail after it enters, and the continent’s detection structure, the Heavenly Eye, finds no immediate threat. The mission is to reach the anomaly at the mist’s center and destroy it—or at least send information out. Yun Du and Qi An observe the phenomenon from the Strange Entity side; Yun Du fears it may be a dangerous new variable, while Qi An initially sees a possible opportunity.
• Chen Fan finds a hidden threat: On the way home, Chen Fan encounters a gigantic Anomaly—around ten thousand meters tall, roughly level 82, and apparently stronger than most ordinary Anomalies. He recognizes it as a creature created by the Millennium Stone Coffin and controls it with the Stone Coffin Token. Its presence leads him to investigate the surrounding fog.
• The Anomalies are fleeing: Chen Fan discovers numerous Anomalies moving toward Human Faction territory. They appear less like an organized attack than a rout, as though they are escaping something terrifying behind them. His elder brother checks the surrounding Anomalies and finds no wider change, but Chen Fan suspects a powerful, possibly dormant force is driving the flight. Rather than continue straight home, he turns the Eternal Night Continent around to hunt down the source.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shifts from celebrating his victory and new resources to a cautious, proactive stance. He refuses to underestimate the Strange Entity faction and chooses to investigate a threat despite the risk.
• Jiu Wu identifies the Hades Stones and helps Chen Fan understand that the cache belonged to Hades’s hidden military preparations. Qi Yue responds dryly when Jiu Wu praises the Azure Dragons’ versatility.
• Lu Ming, recently released from house arrest, protests that the Mortal Domain did not trust him enough to let him witness the battle. Chen Fan placates him with praise, while Crippled Monkey claims the restriction was for Lu Ming’s protection.
• Fu Yun accepts his first black mission with apprehension but responds by placing Floating Cloud Continent on full wartime readiness. His unanswered messages to Chen Fan underscore their friendly connection and the suddenness of events.
• Yun Du and Qi An discuss whether the red fog could benefit the Strange Entity faction. Yun Du argues that any unpredictable phenomenon is dangerous to both sides, revealing a more measured strategic outlook than Qi An’s eagerness to exploit it.
• Qian Jue offers to kill the controlled giant Anomaly, but Chen Fan holds back and later asks whether Qian Jue could fight a Wraith King. Qian Jue admits they have never tested themselves against one.

Significant themes

• Victory brings both opportunity and danger: The clan’s destruction brings immense rewards, but the hidden Hades Stones and the red-fog crisis show that apparent victories can expose larger threats.
• Preparation and adaptability: Chen Fan converts resources into military strength, while both Human and Strange Entity commanders must respond to events that their plans cannot control.
• Uncertainty and vigilance: The characters repeatedly confront incomplete information—late orders, failed communications, unexplained fog, and Anomalies behaving unlike their known patterns.
• The cost of confronting the unknown: Chen Fan chooses to delay his return home to address a possible danger at its weakest point, accepting risk in hopes of preventing a greater catastrophe.

Key plot points and events

• Qian Jue explains that Boundary Battlefield “Anomalies” are not necessarily Hell’s ghosts: they are beings from many origins transformed by the mysterious lord. He recognizes Chen Fan’s elder brother, the Extinction Demon Emperor, as a famed Hell fighter whom the lord once personally selected and later converted into an Anomaly.
• The Eternal Night Continent is slowed by a cutting wind, but Chen Fan uses Wind-Eroded Stones to shield it from the force and keep moving.
• The group finds Green Edge undergoing a thunder tribulation beside a black cat. Green Edge survives the final strike and appears to have advanced from Level 90 toward Level 90+. He asks Chen Fan to keep the breakthrough secret and requests dumplings. Chen Fan deduces that the cat was probably the mysterious thief that once stole dumplings from his plate.
• Qian Jue says the emergence of additional Level 90+ humans—Green Edge and the Heavenly Punishment Continent—has upset the lord’s original design. Chen Fan argues that once someone breaks a perceived limit, others gain the conviction to do the same.
• Reports of the Mortal Domain’s victories reach its allies across the 1024 Heavens. Meanwhile, Floating Cloud Continent reaches the center of the red fog and finds a nine-petaled flower. The flower withers as the fog disperses; Hades later plucks one of its petals and receives battlefield intelligence.
• The Strange Entity commanders, Yun Du and Qi An, plan to ambush the Mortal Domain on its expected return route. They commit three veteran eighth-level clans and, secretly, three Level 90 ghosts from the King’s reserves, believing this force will guarantee victory.
• Green Edge returns and asks Qian Jue to accompany him to a place that supposedly requires two Level 90+ beings to open. Though Qian Jue doubts the place exists, Green Edge’s certainty persuades him. Qian Jue agrees, but says he can only bring Level 90-equivalent combat power and asks Chen Fan to keep their alliance and the existence of “That One” secret.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan shows practical resourcefulness with the Wind-Eroded Stones and increasingly recognizes that the Human Race has hidden strength. He treats Qian Jue as a dependable “big brother,” but is disappointed when Qian Jue leaves.
• Qian Jue reveals his knowledge of Hell, the lord, and the Boundary Battlefield’s limits. He is intrigued by Green Edge’s mysterious destination, but reminds Chen Fan that their relationship is an alliance, not a promise to serve as free muscle.
• Green Edge is revealed as an ancient, powerful human who has quietly pursued a breakthrough and is now seeking a mysterious place beyond Qian Jue’s known map. His reserved manner contrasts with his oddly specific fondness for dumplings.
• The black cat is implied to be the dumpling thief and the real reason Green Edge requested the food.
• Yun Du and Qi An move from confidence to cautious reinforcement: their repeated setbacks against the Mortal Domain have made them wary, though their expanded ambush still leaves them convinced they hold the advantage.

Significant themes

• Hidden reserves and escalating conflict: Both sides conceal powerful assets, making the coming battle a contest of preparation as much as strength.
• Breaking limits through conviction: Chen Fan’s explanation suggests that witnessing an unprecedented achievement can make others believe they, too, can surpass established boundaries.
• Trust, secrecy, and alliance: Characters cooperate while guarding crucial information, and Qian Jue insists on mutual partnership rather than dependence.
• Comedic relief amid danger: Dumplings and the cat’s appetite provide levity alongside tribulations, conspiracies, and looming warfare.

Key plot points and events

• During the fourteen days before returning to Human territory, Chen Fan upgrades the Eternal Night Continent’s City Wall from level 40 to level 80, spending 268.59 quadrillion eerie stones.
• The new level-80 effect, Primordial Wall, combines the City Wall’s defense with every continent-protecting formation on the continent. Green Edge tests it with a level-90-strength attack; the barrier withstands the blow without damage.
• With 100 quadrillion eerie stones in special funding, Jiu Wu builds the Azure Dragon Corps: 100,000 level-70 dragons and 1,000 level-80 dragons. Chen Fan considers this a promising start but far short of the million-strong force he wants.
• At a strategy meeting, Chen Fan warns that the Mortal Domain’s apparent wealth is already insufficient for its ambitions. He sets seven goals for the coming year, including advancing to a ninth-level continent, building a million-strong Azure Dragon Corps, upgrading structures to level 90, and amassing vast quantities of pillars, formations, and Hades stones.
• The leaders brainstorm ways to uncover Hades’s hidden reserves. Jiu Wu proposes interrogating a revived former aide and attempting to recruit other Strange Entities. Chen Fan permits surrender only in exchange for major contributions, promising freedom after the war.
• Before the meeting can continue, a large enemy force surrounds the Eternal Night Continent. Three level-90 Vile Ghosts lead the assault, alongside a vast tide that includes 100,000 strange dragons.
• Qian Jue orders the Vile Ghosts to “Kneel.” His authority overwhelms them, and they submit despite their collars and Tian Po’s threats. The Vile Ghosts then approach the Mortal Domain willingly.
• Tian Po’s Hades Token disappears—apparently stolen by the black cat, whose true speed far exceeds its recorded level. The enemy attacks, but the Primordial Wall activates and the Mortal Domain launches its defense.
• Green Edge enters the battle, rapidly killing high-ranking enemies, especially strange dragons, while Chen Fan asks him to capture Tian Po alive.
• Qian Jue questions the Vile Ghosts about Hell. They describe two rebellions after his departure, including an attempted assassination of the Demon led by the Extinction Demon Emperor. Chen Fan contacts his “big brother,” the Emperor, who has no memory of the rebellion, and realizes there is more to his brother’s past than he knew.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Fan remains ambitious and cautious: even major gains only make him more aware of what the Mortal Domain still lacks. He pushes his leaders to keep preparing rather than grow complacent.
• Jiu Wu moves beyond his usual “mascot” role by contributing several useful ideas. Chen Fan publicly accepts one, encouraging him.
• Green Edge admits that he was wrong to favor individual strength over the continent-building path after seeing the Primordial Wall. In battle, he acts from loyalty to humanity as a whole.
• Qian Jue demonstrates overwhelming prestige rather than force, subduing the Vile Ghosts with a single command. His alliance remains specifically with Chen Fan and the Mortal Domain, not humanity at large.
• The black cat displays startling, nearly invisible speed by stealing Tian Po’s token, hinting that its true abilities are concealed.
• Chen Fan and his brother discover a gap in the Emperor’s memories, raising questions about the latter’s past.

Significant themes

• Collective strength versus individual power: The continent’s layered defenses prove more formidable than even a level-90 individual attack.
• Preparation and ambition: Chen Fan treats resources and victories as foundations for a greater conflict, not reasons to relax.
• Reputation and authority: Qian Jue’s command succeeds because of the terror and history attached to his name.
• Hidden histories and uncertain loyalties: The Vile Ghosts’ account reveals forgotten events, while the Emperor’s missing memories complicate what Chen Fan thought he knew.