Chapter Summaries

Hoshimi Miyabi and Ithaqua fought two powerful Rek'Sai near the depths of Hollow Zero and defeated them with a coordinated attack. After the battle, Griseo was still missing, and an Ether ripple revealed a hidden figure.

• Hoshimi Miyabi and Ithaqua struggled against two Rek'Sai whose intelligence and hard shells made their attacks difficult to land.
• Hoshimi Miyabi used Frostfall to wound one Rek'Sai while Ithaqua struck the other with Erebos and an electric arc.
• Hoshimi Miyabi froze the ground to prevent both Rek'Sai from burrowing, then she and Ithaqua destroyed them from within.
• Ithaqua and Hoshimi Miyabi searched the area but could not find Griseo.
• An Ether ripple drained color from the surroundings and revealed a figure hiding in the shadows.

Hoshimi Miyabi and Ithaqua were caught in Remiel-Dan’s time domain, but Griseo and Sakura intervened and revealed their power. Remiel-Dan challenged Griseo’s claim to be a divine emissary, and Sakura entered her restored domain to fight.

• Remiel-Dan emerged from her time domain and recognized Hoshimi Miyabi’s Demon Blade and Ithaqua’s Erebos.
• A second Sakura ambushed Remiel-Dan, breaking her domain, while a golden formation transported Hoshimi Miyabi and Ithaqua away.
• Griseo took Erebos and released its sealed Ether Energy, while Sakura claimed the Demon Blade and identified herself as Setsuna.
• Griseo named Remiel-Dan and demanded that she hand over Taumiel so Griseo could settle the world’s Cause and Effect.
• Remiel-Dan rejected Griseo’s claim to be a divine emissary and restored her time domain, prompting Griseo and Sakura to prepare to fight.
• Sakura plunged into Remiel-Dan’s domain with the Demon Blade.

Griseo defeated Remiel Dan and learned that [Taumiel] had been sealed away, then heard Remiel Dan's account of Wanzhou and the Helios Institution's research. Griseo headed for the [Black Wall], and Remiel Dan followed her.

• Sakura broke Remiel Dan's time domain and wounded her, ending the fight when Remiel Dan surrendered.
• Remiel Dan said she had sealed [Taumiel] away before going to sleep, and Griseo asked Sakura to clear out the remaining hidden enemies.
• Griseo explained that more than a hundred years had passed and that Helios research had caused Hollow Zero to erupt and destroy New Eridu.
• Remiel Dan told Griseo that Wanzhou had returned with power from [Primus] and that the Helios Institution had used Remiel Dan as a template to create a human false god.
• Remiel Dan blamed Wanzhou's deception and Helios research for the Calamity that killed her friends, while Griseo connected the [Sun] to the Old Capital's fall.
• Griseo set off for the [Black Wall], and Remiel Dan hurried after her.

Griseo and Remiel Dan’s conversation about Griseo’s plans was interrupted by a powerful Ethereal awakening in Hollow Zero. They joined Sakura in fighting Gepetto, and the wounded monster fell from the sky as Sakura moved in to attack.

• Remiel Dan questioned Griseo about her connection to the First Lord, but Griseo said she planned to reclaim the scattered Authority and did not care about the world’s future.
• A powerful Ether surge and the roars of Ethereals interrupted them, so Griseo opened an Ether Rift and Remiel Dan followed her into Hollow Zero.
• Griseo and Remiel Dan found Sakura battling a swarm of Ethereals controlled by Gepetto, while a pillar of light began producing more of them.
• Gepetto’s crimson threads struck Remiel Dan, but Griseo raised a barrier and Sakura used Floral Flurry to sever the threads and attack the monster with pigments.
• After three minutes of damage, Gepetto convulsed and fell from the sky, and Sakura charged toward it with Demon Blade.

Sakura, Griseo, and Remiel Dan fought Gepetto near the Black Wall, working together to expose and destroy its core. Gepetto’s core exploded, leaving Remiel Dan to shield the others from the blast.

• Sakura severed Gepetto’s scarlet threads and armor with her strikes, then dodged its Ether beam and wounded it repeatedly.
• Griseo traced Gepetto’s Ether Core while Sakura and Remiel Dan defended her from its miniature Ether beams.
• Griseo’s domain of The Stars and Remiel Dan’s domain of time pinned Gepetto as Sakura pierced its core and beheaded it.
• Sakura retreated behind Griseo, who boosted Remiel Dan’s strength, and Remiel Dan shielded them with her transformed wings as Gepetto’s core exploded.
• People at Scott Outpost saw a mushroom cloud rising from the edge of Hollow Zero.

Remiel Dan and Griseo crossed the Black Wall and entered the Final Domain, where Griseo revealed her adult appearance before confronting the level-eight Ethereal Skana. The chapter ended as Skana attacked them with a boulder.

• Remiel Dan carried Griseo through the closing opening in the sky, escaping Gepetto's true body and its Ether attacks.
• Remiel Dan awoke in the Final Domain and saw its frozen Ether tides and powerful presences beyond the Black Wall.
• Griseo returned to her adult form and explained that the Black Wall had sealed her power, making her appear younger outside it.
• Skana, a level-eight Ethereal, confronted Griseo and warned that humans should not enter the Final Domain.
• Griseo challenged Skana, which hurled a massive boulder at her and Remiel Dan.

After Nineveh’s apparent defeat, Meflor learned that Hollow Zero’s ether activity had surged and that another powerful signal had appeared. Hoshimi Miyabi reported that she and Ithaqua had encountered new level-six Ethereals and been attacked by a mysterious faction, but she concealed Sakura and Griseo’s involvement while wondering why the Void Hunter weapons had been left behind.

• Observers at Coste Outpost confirmed that Nineveh’s ether reaction had fallen below the threshold, prompting celebrations despite the operation’s devastating casualties.
• A H.A.N.D. officer reported that ether activity in Hollow Zero had risen after Nineveh’s apparent elimination and that a new signal was approaching level six.
• Tsukishiro Yanagi told Meflor that Hoshimi Miyabi and Ithaqua had been found seriously injured, with Ithaqua in a coma.
• Hoshimi Miyabi told Meflor that two new level-six Ethereals had attacked them and that a mysterious faction had taken both Void Hunter weapons, leading her to suspect an intelligence leak.
• Miyabi privately recalled seeing Sakura during the escape and wondered why Griseo had left the weapons behind, especially since she could still sense the Demon Blade intact.

The TOPS leaders discussed their conflicts with Meflor, the Municipal Government, and the missing Whista Society team, while Black Branch warned them not to cross a line. Inside Hollow Zero's Black Wall, Griseo split a mountain-sized boulder with her Demon Blade.

• The four TOPS seats met and Black Branch questioned them about the Ravenlock Family's collusion with the Praise Society and Meflor's recent actions.
• The Sacred Rain Group representative admitted she had underestimated Meflor, while Edmund claimed Withered Peak Group had struck back by strengthening Nineveh before her battle with the Municipal Government.
• The Sacred Rain Group representative asked Edmund why the Whista Society team had not reported back and why records on two Level-six Ethereals had been accessed.
• The head of Black Branch warned the other three seats not to cross the line and left the meeting.
• Griseo sneezed inside Hollow Zero's Black Wall, then sliced an enormous boulder in two with her Demon Blade.

Kevin appeared to protect Remiel Dan from the shattered boulder, then stayed behind to face Skana while Griseo led Remiel Dan through the encirclement. Griseo and Remiel Dan reached a shifting glow after Su pinpointed their destination.

• Griseo shattered the boulder, and Kevin appeared to shield Remiel Dan from the flying fragments with an ice wall.
• Kevin recognized that Remiel Dan resembled someone he had lost, then agreed to face Skana while Griseo and Remiel Dan moved on.
• Skana charged Kevin and summoned three powerful Ethereals and a horde of lesser ones to surround the group.
• Griseo summoned Aponia and Su's Signets to clear a path through the Ethereals as Remiel Dan followed her.
• Su pinpointed their destination, and Griseo led Remiel Dan into a shifting glow.

Remiel Dan mistook Griseo’s hidden spaceship for a wall and explored the Ark while Griseo prepared to leave. Griseo learned that Aha would come for her, but the Ether Sea’s divine will warned that her companion might put the Ark at risk.

• Remiel Dan asked Griseo whether they had reached the Final Domain, and Griseo revealed that the apparent wall was the disguised entrance to her enormous spaceship, the Ark.
• Griseo copied technical documents and tested the Light Blade Vill-V had made for her.
• Aha’s message told Griseo to enjoy the world and paint while she waited for Aha to come get her.
• The Ether Sea’s divine will said the stargate would need at least three years to charge and warned Griseo that He was about to wake.
• The divine will advised Griseo to deal with her companion first if she wanted to keep the Ark.

Griseo caught Remiel Dan trying to activate the Ark’s armor and learned she wanted Soulsteel to modify Taumiel and hunt Wanzhou. Griseo refused to give her any immediately, but promised to test Soulsteel against the Azure Nether Sword and offered to treat Dan’s injuries aboard the Ark.

• Griseo found Remiel Dan in the Ark’s weapons storage room, trying to activate a replica of the Key of Blank armor.
• Griseo explained that the armor could not be powered in this world and warned herself against giving New Eridu technology that could destabilize the city.
• Remiel Dan asked Griseo for Soulsteel so she could modify Taumiel and improve her chances against Wanzhou, whose power was contained in the Void Hunter weapons.
• Griseo refused to give Dan Soulsteel before testing whether it could restrain the Azure Nether Sword at Yunkui Mountain, but promised to share any leftover material.
• Griseo invited Remiel Dan to the treatment room to see whether the Ark’s facilities could treat or suppress the damage caused by Taumiel.

Griseo and Mobius treated Remiel Dan in the Ark, using Ether Cores Kevin brought to supply the needed energy. Remiel Dan awoke after a successful operation feeling stronger, though the chapter did not reveal whether she was cured.

• Griseo brought Remiel Dan to the treatment room, where Mobius diagnosed severe damage caused by Taumiel and said the Ark lacked materials for a substantial treatment.
• Mobius began initial repairs in the medical pod, and Remiel Dan thanked her as she relaxed and fell asleep.
• Kevin arrived with Ether Cores after killing Skana, other monsters, and Gepetto, then gave the cores to Mobius.
• Griseo extracted pure Ether Energy from the cores while Mobius prepared the surgical instruments and treated Remiel Dan.
• Remiel Dan awoke after the operation feeling stronger and lighter as someone told her it had succeeded.

Remiel Dan recovered much of her strength after Mobius’s treatment, and Griseo recruited her to investigate the Seans and their Four Keys. Griseo framed the mission with a story about machines turning against humanity, while privately admitting that her suspicion arose because Seans had joined an ambush against her.

• Remiel Dan awoke healed and strong, learning that Mobius had repaired her with purified ether energy from several level-six and level-seven Ether Cores.
• Griseo gave Remiel Dan a document titled “Battlestar Galactica” and explained that the Seans had deployed four super AIs called the Four Keys in New Eridu.
• Remiel Dan agreed to help investigate whether the Seans were involved in the Old Capital’s fall, and Griseo said she would exterminate them if they were responsible.
• Griseo described a story about self-aware machines nearly destroying humanity, leading Remiel Dan to believe Griseo came from the Ancient Civilization and that the Ark was the Galactica.
• Griseo privately told Mobius that Seans had taken part in the ambush against her, and she had decided to investigate them because they had attacked first.

Griseo persuaded Remiel Dan to investigate the Seans and deliver a warning to Wanzhou about reclaiming her Authority. The two returned from beyond the Black Wall to the Hollow, where Griseo’s power and appearance diminished under the world’s limits.

• Griseo gave Remiel Dan reasons to suspect the Seans, including their hidden presence and the four super AIs called Keys, and Dan agreed to investigate them.
• Griseo told Dan that Wanzhou had split herself into three and asked her to deliver a message demanding the return of Griseo’s Authority.
• Griseo and Dan left the Ark and stored the copied files and materials before using the Wisdom Signet to return to the Black Wall boundary.
• Griseo used the Discipline and Decimation Signets to break through the Black Wall and lead Dan back into the Hollow.
• Griseo returned to her childlike form and weaker state, and Dan picked her up and flew toward the Hollow’s exit.

Cui Ji and the girls at [The Stars] Publishing House tried to summon Griseo by singing a song about being poor, drawing angry complaints from their neighbors instead. Griseo returned and learned about New Eridu’s recent developments, then gave Cui Ji a replica Frozen Hell katana to deliver secretly to Hoshimi Miyabi.

• Cui Ji led the girls in singing “Poor” to make Griseo return, but their neighbors threw stones through the windows and shouted at them.
• Cui Ji found Griseo in the office, where Griseo had just returned after two months away.
• Cui Ji told Griseo about the mayor’s speech, the city government’s new public-benefit policies, and the unrest involving TOPS and the Praise Society in Weifei Land.
• Griseo explained that her taking two Void Hunter weapons had contributed to the city government’s recruiting drive.
• Griseo gave Cui Ji a replica Spirit-Guarding Blade—Frozen Hell and instructed her to deliver it secretly to Hoshimi Miyabi.

A-Cheng, an unemployed graduate, accepted a supposedly lucrative job offer from Praise Society Company and was kidnapped with the other applicants. Sarah revealed that she ran the company and promised them wealth if they worked for her, then led them toward the factory to show them their future.

• After his mother scolded him for spending his days gaming, A-Cheng packed his things and went to look for work.
• At the station, A-Cheng met his college classmate A-Hao, who recruited him for a job at Praise Society Company.
• Juncai persuaded A-Cheng and the other applicants to board a bus, then lured them into an alley where armed men beat and robbed them.
• A-Cheng woke in a decrepit industrial park with the other kidnapped students and saw Juncai defer to Sarah, the company's manager.
• When one student demanded to go home, Sarah's men beat him, and Sarah fired a pistol to silence the group.
• Sarah promised the students cars, houses, and respect if they obeyed her, then led them toward the factory.

Sarah showed A-Cheng and the other college students the Praise Society’s scam operations, then pressured them to join and kept them captive. After A-Cheng’s failed escape, he was forced to work, join the group’s chants, and send his family a fake message saying he was safe.

• Sarah toured the college students through the Praise Society’s scam floors, including its fraud teams, technical staff, an abused captive, and livestreamers.
• At lunch, Sarah told the students they would work for the First Lord, but A-Cheng refused and tried to escape before Juncai kicked him down.
• The next morning, Sarah led the employees in forced chants praising the Progenitor and sent them to work.
• After twelve hours of labor, A-Cheng returned to a crowded, filthy dormitory, where Juncai used a gun to make the captives send reassuring messages to their families.
• As A-Cheng lay awake that night, he considered trying to rise through the Praise Society since he could not escape.

A-Cheng rose through the Praise Society, embraced its promises of belonging, and took part in a massacre before Sarah persuaded him to stay loyal. The next day, as the Society prepared to face the Obol Squad, a little girl emerged from a mech and challenged them.

• A-Cheng used his gaming skills and schemes to boost the Praise Society’s earnings, earning Sarah’s trust and a lavish birthday celebration.
• Sarah revealed the Society’s religious identity, brought A-Cheng to meet Bishop Mei Ruolake, and welcomed him as a saint devoted to the Progenitor.
• After rising through the ranks, A-Cheng volunteered for the Filth Breath Activation Experiment and pressed the button that unleashed Ethereal soldiers on a Defense Force unit.
• A-Cheng realized the experiment had been a slaughter, but Sarah comforted and pressured him to remain loyal to the Praise Society.
• The next morning, A-Cheng learned the Society would confront the Obol Squad, then watched a mech appear with a blue-braided girl who told them to return another time.

Syd and the Defense Force wiped out the Praise Society’s bait squad, while Sarah and Isolde prepared their hidden operation in the Lemnian Hollow. In Weifei Land, Griseo and Yixuan discovered the cult’s deeper reach and resolved to act against members who had harmed others.

• Syd, Orphie, Ghostfire, Soldier 11, and Trigger defeated the Praise Society squad, leaving A-Cheng as the sole survivor.
• Sarah told Bishop Merelaka that their bait squad had distracted the Defense Force from the cult’s true objective.
• Merelaka revealed herself as Isolde and promised Sarah a path to the Progenitor after she achieved her own goal.
• Yixuan and Griseo visited A-Cheng’s mother and learned he had been missing for over half a year.
• Griseo explained that the Praise Society’s apparent defeat was bait and asked whether Yunkui Mountain would punish cult members without sparing them out of sympathy for their families.
• Yixuan vowed that Yunkui Mountain would show A-Cheng no mercy if he had harmed others, while caring for his family.

Yixuan and Griseo discussed how to deal with Ye Shunguang’s dangerous Azure Nether Sword while enjoying a meal and a crosstalk performance. Griseo rejected destroying the sword as too risky and proposed modifying it instead.

• The Azure Nether Bird told Yixuan that the Defense Force had struck the Praise Society, its core members remained at large, Lemnian Filth Breath activity was rising, and Xiao Zhe had been detained by Lorenz.
• Griseo sensed that Wise was safe with Trigger and others, but detected something unusual about the aura of a purple-haired woman nearby; Yixuan pulled her into a teahouse for food and crosstalk.
• At Whatever Temple, Pulchra looked for Yixuan and learned from Pan Yinhu that Yixuan would not return for lunch, then eagerly anticipated the steamed dumplings he had prepared.
• Yixuan asked Griseo for a way to address the Azure Nether Sword’s danger, and Griseo offered to destroy it or modify it.
• Griseo explained that destroying the sword could cause a deadly backlash for Ye Shunguang, then placed Soulsteel before Yixuan as she proposed modifying the sword.