Chapter Summaries

Lin Jin created a new body called Nox and challenged the Little Knight in Godhome, winning a close fight with his Mo Dao. He then noticed lifeblood vines and Lifeseeds spreading into Godhome and hurried back to the Flame Capital, realizing the trouble below had not ended.

• Lin Jin adopted the Nox form and trained with a Mo Dao, defeating warriors without using his divine power.
• Lin Jin found a statue of the Little Knight and challenged its imprint in the arena of the gods.
• The Little Knight used speed and close-range attacks to exploit the Mo Dao's weakness, but Lin Jin countered with blade-kicking techniques.
• Lin Jin knocked away the Little Knight's Bone Nail with his finishing strike and won the battle, though he recognized the victory was narrow.
• Lin Jin spotted lifeblood vines and Lifeseeds spreading into Godhome, changed back into his Sunfire God form, and prepared to return to the Temple.

Blue Horseshoe Crab awakened and set out to deal with the corrupted flesh it had shed long ago, while that fragment grew into a giant monster and destroyed Dellas Mine. Gron led the Flame Capital’s forces toward the threat without help from the sleeping Sunfire God, and the chapter ended as the troops rallied and opened fire.

• Blue Horseshoe Crab woke beneath Thunderfall Cliff, remembered the flesh fragment it had shed, and climbed toward the surface to deal with it.
• The shed fragment went on a final frenzy in Glass Mine, consumed the tunnels and miners, and emerged from the collapsed Dellas Mine as a towering mass of flesh.
• The Flame Capital mobilized its warships and elite fighters, but Isara reported that the Sunfire God was still asleep.
• Gron’s forces reached the monster, and he rallied the frightened soldiers by reminding them that Ashen City and their home lay behind them.
• The soldiers regained their resolve, and Gron ordered all forces to fire.

Gron and the Flame Capital’s forces failed to stop a regenerating mass of flesh that devoured energy and grew from every attack. Lin Jin arrived, drove the monster back toward the mine, and unleashed his new Ultimate Art, Explosive Combustion, leaving a mushroom cloud where the mine had stood.

• Gron, Mortas, Isara, and the Flame Walkers attacked the giant mass with cannons, poison, fire, and Soul Spells, but it regenerated and spread through the fleet.
• The mass devoured energy, grew larger, and overwhelmed the warships, while the Little Knight and the others struggled to protect the soldiers.
• Gron and Mortas admitted they could not hold out, and Isara continued praying as the monster prepared to sweep across the fleet.
• Lin Jin descended in a form of pure plasma flame, causing the mass to flee toward the mine.
• Lin Jin combined fire and combustible gas, then struck the mass with his Ultimate Art, Explosive Combustion, creating a mushroom cloud.

Lin Jin used his new ultimate art, Flashover, to destroy the flesh monster threatening the Flame Capital and received the surviving bugs’ worship. He ordered the fleet back to Ashen City, then returned to Godhome as Nox to continue training, while an ancient blue horseshoe crab watched and prepared a welcoming gift.

• Lin Jin explained how he combined preset spell formulas for Blazing Fire and Gas Ignition to create Flashover, then obliterated the regenerating flesh monster and devastated the Glass Mine.
• The surviving bugs praised Lin Jin as the Sunfire God, and he promised that the Flame Capital would stand as long as he lived.
• Mortas passed out after holding on until rescue arrived, while Gron and the warriors rejoiced that they had survived.
• Little Knight’s thoughts grew more active as he wondered about the light and his mission.
• An ancient blue horseshoe crab observed Lin Jin, restored the damaged ecosystem with lifeblood, and decided to prepare a welcoming gift for his new neighbor.
• Lin Jin ordered the fleet to return to Ashen City, promised to answer future calls, and went back to Godhome as Nox to train.

After the Sunfall Expedition unified the Flame Capital, Gron and Isara discussed how the clans were pursuing new ways to grow stronger rather than relying on the Sunfire God. The other clans had already begun their efforts, and Isara resolved that the Ashen Clan must join the competition.

• The Flame Capital rebuilt Lakeside Village and strengthened its defenses at the village, Smelting Plant, and Glass Mine after eradicating Lifeblood.
• Gron worried that he had been powerless during the crisis and told Isara that the Bugfolk needed to master greater power without relying on their Lord.
• Gron showed Isara a Gear Clan report describing plans for the Spiral Hub, a research facility powered by waterwheels at Thunderfall Cliff.
• Gron revealed that Mortas had begun learning combat techniques from the Needle Princess Order and that the Glow Clan was also pursuing martial training.
• Isara recognized that the clans were competing to earn the Sunfire God's attention and decided the Ashen Clan could not fall behind.

During the Flame Capital’s holiday, Quyin toured the Hunter Clan’s breeding grounds with a blue-clad Needle Princess, hoping to learn the order’s rare combat techniques. Enchanted by mysterious music, they entered the Mother of the Great Centipede’s nesting grounds and confronted a silk-wielding stranger whose fighting style revealed her as a Weaver from Pharloom.

• The clan chiefs declared a rare holiday after the Sunfall Expedition, and Mortas turned the Fungal Wastes’ lower level into breeding grounds and nurseries.
• Mortas arranged for the Needle Princess Order to share its combat techniques with the mantises in exchange for payment and hunting skills.
• Quyin escorted a blue-clad Needle Princess on a tour after she promised to teach him rare techniques.
• Mysterious music lulled Quyin and led him into the Mother of the Great Centipede’s nesting grounds until the Needle Princess broke its influence.
• The Needle Princess fought an unseen figure that wielded white silk, and Quyin saw that she had six eyes and six limbs.
• The stranger’s stance and techniques identified her as a Weaver from Pharloom.

The Weaver fought Needle Princess while trying to calm the Centipede Mother, then escaped when the beast interrupted their duel. Far below the Glass Mine, an ancient black substance began spreading toward the miners, ending the chapter with danger approaching unnoticed.

• The Weaver fought Needle Princess with her Spirit Thread techniques, and Needle Princess discovered how the threads formed a damaging barrier.
• Needle Princess exposed the Weaver's hidden threads with splintered wood and prepared to strike her eye, but the Centipede Mother burst into the battle and made her miss.
• The Weaver played music that calmed the Centipede Mother, who returned to her nest, while Needle Princess wondered where she had seen the Weaver before.
• Miners in the Glass Mine discussed the Gear Clan's need for ore and continued digging under improved working conditions.
• An ancient, ink-black substance seeped from the deep rock and silently spread beneath the miners, swallowing light and sound.

Haunted by recurring visions of Hallownest, the Little Knight entered Ashen City’s arena and fought relentlessly to escape them. Gron recognized the distress behind his fighting and challenged him, beginning a duel that later Recorders would call the Battle of Soul-Questioning.

• The Little Knight woke from a vision of a monstrous being emerging from the Void and remembered Hallownest.
• At the West Barracks arena, the Little Knight won bout after bout, using combat to push the recurring dream from his mind.
• Gron watched the Little Knight fight and recognized that he was venting rather than enjoying the battles.
• The Little Knight defeated a Brass Mantis in ten exchanges, leaving the arena without another challenger.
• Gron entered the arena, invited the Little Knight to fight through his troubles, and began a duel with him.

Little Knight discovered its will to live during a battle with Gron, who had pushed it to reveal its true heart. Meanwhile, the void sent a transformed creature out through the Forbidden Door to bring a distant guest to it.

• Little Knight used Boiling Breath to leap again in midair, but Gron continued to overpower it with relentless attacks.
• Gron questioned Little Knight’s purpose as he fought, prompting it to realize, “I want to live and witness more.”
• Little Knight stood its ground and met Gron’s spear, and Gron withdrew after completing his goal of drawing out its will.
• Black liquid seeped through the Forbidden Door, and a void-fused creature emerged, vowing to bring the distant guest to its master.
• A Shadow Crawler drank a drop of void liquid and transformed into a Giant Shadow Stalker as the void began to spread.

During the Sunrise Festival and Flamefire Celebration, Lin Jin enjoyed the Bugfolk’s worship and festivities while disguised as Nox. When a guard challenged him for lacking a Resident Pass, Lin Jin’s disguise became suspicious, and he prepared to fight without revealing his identity or harming anyone.

• The Bugfolk celebrated the first Sunrise Festival by offering fuel at the Sunfire Temple, where Lin Jin blessed the Flame Capital with a healing light.
• The four major clans held festival activities honoring their people and the soldiers of the Sunrise Expedition.
• Lin Jin explored the festivities as Nox, enjoying food and hearing the Bugfolk praise the Sunfire God.
• After Lin Jin casually conjured Soulfire, a guard demanded to see his Resident Pass, which Nox did not have.
• The guard attacked, and Lin Jin blocked and evaded his strikes before deciding to fight carefully to avoid exposing himself or causing serious harm.

Lin Jin, using the name Nox, escaped Ashen City’s guards with help from the tunnel-digging Mo Kui. Mo Kui recruited him into an arena betting scheme and pushed him into the Octagonal Arena, where Nox was about to fight.

• Lin Jin blinded the guards with an Illumination Spell and fled across the rooftops as Ashen City locked down and searched for him.
• A young voice lured Lin Jin toward a trapdoor, and he fell into a hidden tunnel beneath the city.
• The larva introduced themself as Mo Kui, an investor from the Wilderness, and offered to help Lin Jin evade the guards.
• Mo Kui proposed that they profit by having Nox fight in the arena while Mo Kui handled the betting and connections.
• Mo Kui led Nox through the secret passage to the West Barracks’ Octagonal Arena and shoved him inside.

Nox, known as Lin Jin, won three fights at the Octagonal Arena and faced its undefeated Ironblade Centipede King, defeating it with Ruinflame Slash. Celebrated as the arena’s new champion, he left the arena to return to his work while still wanted.

• Nox defeated the Swiftshadow Beetle and won three consecutive fights at the Octagonal Arena.
• The arena sounded its honor horn and sent out the undefeated Ironblade Centipede King to challenge him.
• Nox used Ruinflame Slash to split the beast’s armor and mortally wound it, then watched it collapse dead.
• The spectators hailed Nox as the Valiant Warrior and the arena’s new King.
• Lin Jin left the arena amid the cheers, intending to return to his real work.

Miners at Glass Mine accidentally opened a passage into a dangerous underground area, prompting the army to seal the mine and suspend the Gear Clan’s Spiral Hub project. After several squads vanished inside Scar Trail, the centurion prepared to lead an expedition himself, but a Gear Technician arrived with covered vehicles and offered assistance.

• During the Sunrise Festival, two miners discussed how far the mine might extend before Gear Clan excavation caused a new cavern to break open in the tunnel wall.
• A black-marked bug emerged from the darkness, knocked out the miners’ lantern, and retreated when the unfamiliar surroundings alarmed him.
• After the miners reported the discovery, Glass Mine was sealed, the Spiral Hub project was suspended, and the newly revealed area was named Scar Trail.
• When another squad disappeared without sending back information, the centurion chose to lead the next expedition himself.
• A Gear Technician arrived in the camp with several black-cloth-covered vehicles and said the Gear Clan chief had sent assistance.

The Centurion accepted the Gear Clan’s Explorer Type 001 for a final scouting mission into the deadly Scar Trail, hoping to reduce casualties. The machine proved effective against the tunnel predators as the party recovered records from earlier teams and pressed deeper into the mine.

• The Gear Clan technician unveiled the steel Explorer Type 001 and demonstrated that it could move and follow orders.
• The Centurion agreed to let the Explorer join his mission, requiring the technician to come along, and set out with eight soldiers.
• The party entered the dark Scar Trail with the Explorer leading and lighting their way.
• The Explorer survived an ambush by a fanged predator, allowing the Centurion and soldiers to kill it quietly.
• The party recovered records from the fallen scouts and learned that the tunnels contained a dangerous ecosystem of predators.
• As the Explorer continued resisting attacks, the Centurion wondered how it operated without a visible power source but kept the mission moving.

A surveying squad led by the Centurion became lost in Scar Trail and reached an ancient city built near the Sea of the Unlight. A bizarre creature slaughtered the squad, but Explorer Type 001 escaped with the Centurion’s information.

• The Centurion led his squad through Scar Trail as shifting terrain, relentless attacks, dwindling supplies, and illness trapped them underground.
• On the thirteenth day, the squad discovered the Ruins of the Ancient City, a settlement built less than fifty meters above the Sea of the Unlight.
• The Centurion’s squad found a sealed stone gate, where a strange voice recited a verse and a jester-like creature emerged from the darkness.
• The Centurion ordered the squad to flee, but the creature and other horrors killed the soldiers and fatally wounded him.
• The Centurion watched Explorer Type 001 escape through the ruins with the important information before he died.

After the Centurion and his soldiers died in the ruins above the Abyss, the Void raised their corpses and sent them toward Ashen City. In Ashen City, the Torch Council debated Lady Amelia’s warning, then sent Molga to report the threat to the Sunfire God.

• The Void turned the dead Centurion and his soldiers into puppets and led them onward from the ruins.
• Lady Amelia sent the Torch Council a warning that the Void had returned and urged it to reinforce the Smelting Plant.
• Torch Council members argued over whether to deploy troops immediately or first secure supplies and transport.
• Molga suggested asking the Sunfire God for guidance, and the other councilors persuaded him to carry their report.
• Molga entered the Sunfire Temple, sensed the Sunfire God’s presence, and began reporting the situation.

The Flame Capital sent its full force across Misty Lake to confront the Void at the Glass Mine. Gron led the assault as Isara and Mortas prepared for the threat, and the chapter ended with the Ashen Clan charging through Isara’s fire into the rising Void-corrupted dead.

• Lin Jin ordered the Flame Capital to commit its fifty thousand seasoned soldiers against the Void.
• Gron admitted the pressure of commanding the army, while Mortas rallied his warriors despite fearing the Void and sensing he might die.
• Isara prayed aboard the flagship and resolved to fulfill her duty as the fleet reached the Glass Mine.
• Gron ordered an immediate attack, and Void-corrupted corpses began crawling up from the mine.
• Isara unleashed fiery spells that tore through the undead, and Gron led the Ashen Clan in a charge through the flames.

Gron’s army struggled to contain endlessly reviving Void-corrupted corpses while the Gear Clan built defenses around the Glass Mine. As the battle settled into a costly stalemate, Void infection began turning soldiers against their comrades, and Mindloss Syndrome pushed the war further against the army.

• Gron ordered a retreat after soldiers could not stop the corpses from reviving, and the Gear Clan completed walls around the Glass Mine to hold them back.
• Gron visited the makeshift clinic and saw a wounded soldier suffering from a Void-tainted scratch that the priest could not heal.
• The army defended the fortress against successive waves of corpses and increasingly strange creatures emerging from the mine pits.
• After a soldier became overwhelmed by the Void and attacked his comrades, Isara communed with the Sunfire God, and the army named the condition Mindloss Syndrome.
• Mindloss Syndrome spread through the ranks, killing hundreds and turning other soldiers into Void puppets.

As the Void War exhausted the Flame Capital’s defenders, Gron learned that the Soulfire Phantom had entered the Glass Mine alone. The Little Knight continued toward the ancient ruins deep underground, leaving Gron’s forces unable to catch up and support him.

• The Bugfolk marked the new year while the war continued, and Gron maintained a defensive strategy as the corpses kept attacking.
• Gron reviewed reports of the Soulfire Phantom’s attacks and realized the Little Knight was heading deeper into the Glass Mine.
• Gron ordered soldiers to support the Little Knight, then learned that he had already reached the bottom of the mine and was likely on the Scar Trail.
• The Little Knight advanced alone through the devastated Glass Mine toward the ancient ruins, wielding both Soulfire and the Void within him.

Lin Jin searched for a way to stop the Void War but found no solution that would not cost him dearly. The Snail Shaman arrived with an audacious plan, and Lin Jin decided to take the gamble.

• Lin Jin reviewed his knowledge of the void and concluded that without the white flower from the Land of Tranquility, his limited Soulfire could not halt its spread.
• Lin Jin considered retreating from the Smelting Plant's territory but feared that abandoning it would weaken his followers' faith in him.
• The Snail Shaman entered the Sunfire Temple and claimed he had a way to counter the darkness.
• The Snail Shaman laid out a meticulous, extreme plan and declared himself one hundred percent confident in it.
• Lin Jin accepted the plan, deciding that he had no other choice but to try it.