Chapter Summaries

Cheng Yu and the Azure Dragon Study Group helped Gonzales soldiers calm a riot in Mining City and guide civilians toward shelter. After a man attacked Wood, the group captured him and Dile forced him to agree to talk.

• Cheng Yu and the Azure Dragon Study Group joined Gonzales soldiers in holding back the rioting civilians, and a commander promised the city would protect and evacuate its people.
• Wood led the group into Mining City and reminded them to guide civilians to the underground fortress while maintaining order.
• A man from Gonzales lunged at Wood, but Dile, Cheng Yu, Tang Lan, and Ning Qing worked together to capture and bind him.
• Wood confronted the attacker, then let Dile question him.
• Dile used Ecstasy Itch Powder on the man, who finally agreed to reveal what he knew.

Dile’s group uncovered a plot to raid Mining City’s warehouses and were ordered to help defend them, while Jane justified the Mechanicus’s counterattack to the Star Sea Alliance. In Legion’s Home Universe, dozens of Commander Class Titans prepared to invade Gonzales’s Resource Zone once Infiltrator 0-8 disabled the Gonzales Network.

• Dile repeatedly questioned a captured scout until he revealed that an organization planned to exploit Patricia’s riots and steal Mining City’s warehouse resources.
• Wood reported the plot to Mining City’s Garrison Commander, who ordered the squad to keep it secret and escort the prisoner to guard the warehouses.
• Dile, Cheng Yu, and Bennett grew suspicious of the commander’s orders and privately warned one another to stay alert.
• Jane told callers that the Mechanicus’s counterattack against the Gonzales Co-Link was justified emotionally, rationally, and legally.
• Dozens of Commander Class Titans and Legion forces assembled in Legion’s Home Universe, awaiting Infiltrator 0-8’s shutdown of the Gonzales Network before seizing Gonzales’s Resource Zone within three hours.

The Legion isolated Gonzales and used its infiltrators to control what rival civilizations learned about the crisis. After preparing its forces, the Legion launched a coordinated strike that crippled Gonzales’s space-based military defenses.

• Gonzales lost contact with neighboring cities and other planets, while reporters and leaders across the Star Sea suspected a contest between giants.
• The Legion used Infiltrator 0-6 to replace enemy operatives, ensuring rival civilizations received only intelligence the Legion chose to reveal.
• Performer ordered the Legion’s forces to begin their operation after Infiltrator 0-8 completed the blockade and transmitted verified coordinates.
• Wormholes opened near Gonzales’s Space Military Ports, and garbled data altered their programs before restoring their appearance.
• The Legion destroyed the ports’ defensive systems before they could activate, crippling Gonzales’s space-based military forces.

Wood and the Azure Dragon Study Group reached the Warehouse, where they discovered that the Gonzales Commander had betrayed Patricia and was working with a powerful armed organization. As the Legion’s attack began, the Mechanicus arrived and claimed the area.

• Wood led the Azure Dragon Study Group and their captive Kiddo to the Warehouse, where the Commander and Gonzales soldiers opened fire on them.
• Dile tackled Wood aside, while Ning Qing and Bennett attacked the Commander and his soldiers; Dile redirected an incoming barrage through a wormhole.
• An armed young man and his Mechanical Soldiers emerged from the Warehouse, and the Commander admitted he had betrayed Gonzales out of resentment over being stranded there for thirty years.
• The young man’s Communicator lost its network, and Patricia’s Space Elevator and Starport exploded in the distance.
• A rift opened above the Warehouse, revealing a massive Starship and Mecha; a Mechanicus robot ordered all unauthorized personnel to leave or be eliminated.

The Legion launched a sudden assault on Patricia, crushing Gonzales forces and removing the system’s surrounding planets to seize their mineral resources. Wood returned to Mining City to protect civilians, while Wagner remained cut off on the Gonzales homeworld, unaware that the Legion’s target was resources rather than habitable planets.

• After a Gonzales commander fired at an Annihilator, the unit vaporized him and the Legion attacked the warehouse and Gonzales forces.
• Cheng Yu and the others escaped Mining City with Wood as Legion units overwhelmed the area and Patricia’s Space Elevator wreckage fell from the sky.
• The Legion emptied the warehouse, then Regulator 0-8 gathered the surrounding star systems and carried them away through wormholes.
• Wood returned to Mining City to help protect civilians, and the Azure Dragon Study Group followed him.
• On the Gonzales homeworld, Wagner struggled with the collapse of communications and feared an impending attack, while the Legion focused on taking resources.

The Mechanicus withdrew after plundering two-thirds of Gonzales's resource planets, leaving Wagner to seek compensation from Shatla. Meanwhile, Duke considered using a Star Sea Alliance conference to test intelligence about Balchik's missing Commander-in-Chief and draw the other Giants into a possible invasion.

• The Legion withdrew from Gonzales after deciding it had taken enough resources, and Gonzales's communications resumed.
• Wagner learned that two-thirds of Gonzales's resource planets were gone and decided Shatla should bear most of the losses.
• Jane received an invitation to a Star Sea Alliance conference called by Shatla and suspected it would target the Legion.
• Duke learned that Balchik's Commander-in-Chief was missing and weighed whether Shatla could seize Balchik.
• Duke decided to convene a Star Sea conference to assess the intelligence and persuade the other Giants to join an attack on Balchik.

Cheng Yu learned that the Star Sea Alliance’s shifting balance could give the Legion room to act, while he remained uncertain about his hidden thread. Jane attended the Star Sea Alliance Conference and took her assigned seat among the gathered ambassadors.

• Cheng Yu received Conductor’s intelligence about the conference, Balchik’s missing Warlord Alliance leader, and Shatla’s plans to divide Balchik, and considered how turmoil might benefit the Legion.
• Cheng Yu wondered what Big Shot meant by his hidden thread, and Bennett told him he might understand with time before Dile invited them to a feast.
• Jane received the conference invitation on Thousand Mechanisms Star and used the Alliance’s Transport Device to reach its headquarters.
• Jane introduced herself to Mark and other ambassadors, who approached her to build ties with the rising Mechanicus.
• The conference began, and an attendant guided Jane to her assigned seat after explaining that the six highest seats belonged to the Star Sea Council’s six strongest civilizations.
• Jane entered the room behind a metal door and sat in the chair on the open-air balcony.

Jane identified the six leaders at the Star Sea Alliance Conference as they discussed Balchik's representative, Fabian Nelson, and his threat to the other civilizations. Fabian warned them to remember how Balchik had risen to power.

• Jane recognized Duke Dalton, Sid Ackerman, Jenny Martha, Henry Brown, and two military officials among the six figures.
• Jenny revealed that Fabian Nelson had commanded Balchik forces during the invasion of her alliance and had served Balchik's leadership for twenty thousand years.
• Henry greeted Fabian, and the other military official was identified as Matthew Sawyer, Commander-in-Chief of Playa's Defense Command.
• Matthew challenged Fabian's right to represent Balchik and demanded to know where its Commander-in-Chief was.
• Fabian said Balchik's child Commander-in-Chief might wander into Playa and openly threatened Matthew.
• Matthew indicated that the other leaders shared his meaning, and Fabian urged them to recall how Balchik rose to power.

At the Star Sea Alliance assembly, Fabian admitted that Balchik had violated Alliance regulations by losing track of its Commander-in-Chief. The assembly then turned to the Mechanicus dispute with Shatla and a proposal for special treatment for Kashi Star.

• Fabian acknowledged Balchik’s fault after Matthew demanded an explanation for the missing Commander-in-Chief.
• Duke said the other five Council members would discuss how to handle Balchik’s violation.
• Jane objected to the ruling against the Mechanicus and argued that its actions against Gonzales Co-Link were legal under Alliance regulations.
• Duke agreed that the Mechanicus had acted within the regulations and said the matter would be discussed further.
• Duke presented a proposal to grant Kashi Star special treatment in its upcoming Qualification War and called for a vote.

After the Star Sea Alliance assembly ended, the Six Giants discussed a war game to seize territory from Balchik, while Jane was pleased that Infiltrator 0-8 had completed its seeding plan. The Giants agreed to begin the conflict in thirty days, and news of the impending war spread across the Star Sea Network.

• Jane was satisfied that Infiltrator 0-8 had planted seeds in every civilization and received an email from Ralph after the assembly.
• Fabian proposed a war game against Balchik, offering conquered territory as spoils if the Giants avoided deploying Limit-Breaking or True God combatants.
• Henry offered Vax Corporation weapons, while Matthew said Playa would provide technology and claim a share of the spoils.
• Sid committed Kabonebog Ascetics to the campaign, and Jenny secured his assurance that they would not actively preach.
• Jenny proposed beginning the war in thirty days, Duke agreed, and a Star Sea Network headline announced the coming conflict.

Ralph negotiated with Jane for the Mechanicus to return the resources taken from Gonzales and publicly credit Shatra with leniency, agreeing to pay five times the plundered resources. After Shatra delivered the first shipment, the Mechanicus issued its statement, prompting speculation across the Star Sea about the settlement and the coming campaign against Balchik.

• Ralph offered the Mechanicus twice the plundered resources in exchange for returning Gonzales’s property, then bargained over a public statement praising Shatra’s leniency.
• Jane demanded additional compensation for the damage to the Mechanicus’s reputation, and Ralph agreed to five times the plundered resources in total.
• Jane said the Mechanicus had already used about three quarters of Gonzales’s resources, so Ralph arranged to deliver Shatra’s compensation through Spatial Wormhole transport.
• After Ralph left, Jane’s emotional-module evolution triggered a warning in his processor, and he stopped thinking about organic culture.
• Ralph quickly sent the first shipment, and Jane published the Mechanicus’s statement on the Star Sea Network.
• Star Sea Network commenters debated the settlement and whether Balchik had any connection to the Mechanicus.

Belial discovered that one of his avatars had vanished without sending back its memories, and found a crack in the Abyssal Will’s loyalty shackles on his true spirit. Suspecting the missing avatar had revealed a way to weaken the Abyssal Will’s control, he created a new Sloth Demon Domain and reached across the Abyss to seize Mephitican as his vanguard commander.

• Belial awoke in the Sloth Demon Domain and swallowed the entire domain after deciding its demons had no value.
• Belial realized that one avatar had disappeared without transmitting any memories, though he could not determine why.
• Belial found an inconspicuous crack in the loyalty shackles the Abyssal Will had placed on his true spirit.
• Belial suspected the missing avatar had caused the crack, then formed a new Sloth Demon Domain and reached into the Abyss.
• Mephitican questioned Belial’s actions, and he chose her as his vanguard commander.

Shen Qing met Henry, who warned him that Mr. Gu had predicted a second Lost War. Shen Qing recalled how he had become a True God in Myriad Heavens, survived the Creator God's upheaval, and eventually emerged as a Limit-Breaker in the Star Sea.

• Shen Qing met Henry in Star Sea City, and Henry confirmed he had not come to ask about the Lost Kingdom.
• Henry told Shen Qing that Mr. Gu had predicted the Lost Kingdom would soon launch the second Lost War.
• Shen Qing recalled his return to Myriad Heavens, his rise to True God, and his failed rebellion against the Creator God.
• Shen Qing remembered how the Creator God scattered the Myriad Heavens worlds beyond the destruction tide and gave their inhabitants the mission to conquer the Lost Kingdom.
• Shen Qing recalled being cast out with Vax Corporation, encountering familiar worlds and people, and eventually settling in a civilization before becoming a Limit-Breaker.

Henry asked Shen Qing to cooperate with Vax Corporation against a looming second Lost War, proposing that Shen Qing assassinate Balchik's Commander-in-Chief to divide the alliance. Shen Qing agreed to wait for Henry's signal, while worrying that the plan could weaken the Star Sea before the Destruction Tide arrived.

• Shen Qing recalled Mr. Gu's warning about a Lost War and feared that the Lost Kingdom's barrier was failing.
• Henry argued that the Star Sea's factions could not survive the coming war if they kept fighting separately, then asked Shen Qing to kill Balchik's Commander-in-Chief.
• Henry described the factions' weaknesses and explained that the Commander-in-Chief's death would cause Balchik's warlords to turn against one another.
• Shen Qing questioned Vax Corporation's reach and warned that the Destruction Tide was more dangerous than it seemed.
• Shen Qing agreed to cooperate with Henry but said he would wait for a signal before attacking the Commander-in-Chief.
• After Henry vanished, Shen Qing reflected that the plan might let Vax Corporation dominate but could be necessary to survive the Destruction Tide.

As the five giants’ war against Balchik spread across the Star Sea, the Azure Dragon Study Group carried out a dangerous mission for Balchik’s auxiliary army. They successfully implanted a virus in a Pan Chabuko Alliance signal station and escaped into space.

• The Pan Chabuko Alliance and Shatra Civilization fought Balchik while Hunters joined the opposing sides as auxiliary troops.
• The Azure Dragon Study Group accepted a mission to implant a virus in a Pan Chabuko Alliance signal station.
• Cheng Yu, Dile, Tang Lan, Bennett, and Ning Qing fought off enemy Hunters and defended the program while it uploaded.
• After the virus was implanted, Cheng Yu launched the group into space, and Ning Qing produced a small spacecraft for their escape.

Dile and the others celebrated their mission aboard the spaceship, but news of Balchik’s surrender raised concerns about their rewards and Kashi Star’s safety. They decided to return home and consult Kashi Star’s elders about whether to request an early Qualification War.

• Dile celebrated with Ning Qing and Tang Lan as Bennett tuned the radio to reports that Balchik had surrendered in the A5547 Star Sector.
• Bennett reassured the group that their completed mission would still earn its rewards and said Balchik’s people might keep fighting for a long time.
• Cheng Yu learned that the Legion had completed thirty-five Gold Five-Star Annihilator 0-8 units and told Conductor to report major developments.
• Cheng Yu realized Kashi Star lay within Balchik’s sphere of influence, and Bennett warned that an advancing commander might destroy it.
• Bennett suggested requesting an early Qualification War to protect Kashi Star, and Dile decided they should return home and ask the elders.

Dile and the Azure Dragon Study Group learned that the Principal had used Fate-String Manipulation to keep Shatla's army from noticing Kashi Star, then left to report its movements. Meanwhile, Fabian gave orders to Balchik's warlords to delay the Pan Chabuko Alliance and Shatla, and turned to Quincy for help against Shatla's main force.

• Jimmy told Dile and the others that the Principal's Fate-String Manipulation had ensured Kashi Star's safety, but they still failed to meet him.
• Yog told Miss Puppet to prepare for her ascension to a holy spirit and declared that no one could reach a remote world without his permission.
• After Shatla's army passed Kashi Star without noticing it, Dile and the others reported its movements to Edward and hurried toward their mission's star sector.
• Fabian ordered Luo Le to hold the Pan Chabuko Alliance's main force in the A2361 Star Sector for one hundred days.
• Rachel told Fabian that her forces could hold Shatla's main force for no more than ten days, so Fabian asked Quincy for help.

Fabian gave Quincy half his forces and promised him twelve Spellbreakers so he could destroy Shatla's main force within three months. As Joyce led Shatla's fleet into Balchik territory, Quincy shadowed him until Joyce sent the Glorious Knights to break through, and Quincy prepared to counter them with Fabian's Dire Wolf Cavalry.

• Fabian agreed to give Quincy half his forces and twelve Spellbreakers, and said he was following the Commander-in-Chief's order not to surrender territory.
• Joyce, grieving Euphemia's death, accepted command of Shatla's expedition against Balchik and received news that Quincy was leading the opposing force.
• Joyce slowed his fleet and ordered the Omniscient Eye to monitor the area, then instructed his forces to strike unidentified ships entering firing range.
• Quincy watched Joyce's fleet from hiding and ordered his troops to shadow it until Joyce grew impatient.
• After fifteen days, Joyce ordered the Glorious Knight Corps to launch a Glorious Charge and clear a path ahead of the fleet.
• Quincy recognized the Glorious Knights and said Fabian's Dire Wolf Cavalry was suited to oppose them.

The Glorious Knights and the Dire Wolf Cavalry clashed in a brutal space battle, with Shatla’s elite mecha facing the Balchik pilots’ improvised machines and unpredictable tactics. Knight Unit 1 and the Dire Wolf Cavalry’s old commander destroyed each other, leaving the knights shaken while the cavalry continued fighting under a new leader.

• Glorious Knight 1 ordered the corps to launch a Glory Charge, while the skinny old man directed the Dire Wolf Cavalry to scatter and attack openings.
• The old man used a Spellbreaker to disrupt the knights’ demonic energy resonance, forcing Knight 1 to split the corps into squads of five.
• A Dire Wolf Cavalry crew split its giant mecha to evade a Glorious Knight’s lance, then used explosive attacks that destroyed several knights and cavalry units.
• The Dire Wolf Cavalry’s numbers and coordinated ambushes gradually wore down the Glorious Knights as Knight 1 cut through the opposing mecha.
• The skinny old man baited Knight 1 into striking his antique machine, climbed onto the knight’s head, and attacked its cockpit before both machines vanished in an explosion.
• A battered Knight Unit 1 remained unable to fight in space, while the Dire Wolf Cavalry quickly chose a new leader and continued battling.

The Azure Dragon Study Group received a mission from Balchik to plant a Meme Bomb among Shatla's frontline troops. After learning what the device was, Dile questioned how the team could protect themselves while carrying it into enemy territory.

• Cheng Yu and the Azure Dragon Study Group arrived at Balchik's frontline headquarters to meet with Major General Edward's forces.
• Julie, Quincy's adjutant, offered the group a small object and asked them to deliver it into the heart of Shatla's army.
• Dile refused to accept the mission without knowing what the object did and warned that he would not entrust his team's lives to Balchik.
• Julie revealed that the object was a Meme Bomb, a dangerous and unpredictable weapon capable of devastating Shatla's forces.
• Dile asked Julie how the team could ensure their safety while transporting the Meme Bomb.