Chapter Summaries

Paimon fled from a dark cave in fear, but Mantis calmed her while Itto and Drax blundered inside and fell into a pit. As the group continued through the cave toward the summit, a mysterious cloaked figure appeared and welcomed the Guardians of the Galaxy and the outlanders.

• Paimon panicked at the cave entrance, and Mantis used her psychic power to calm her.
• Itto and Drax rushed into the darkness, fell into a pit, and pretended they had been checking it out.
• Lin Ze reassured Paimon that she had won the race and promised to make her a prize when they returned.
• The group traveled deeper through the cave, which opened into a larger space.
• A cloaked figure descended amid black mist and welcomed the Guardians of the Galaxy and the outlanders.

Lin Ze and his companions met Red Skull, the Guide to the Soul Stone, and learned that claiming it required a terrible price. Before Red Skull could explain what that price was, Lucy knocked him out and Lin Ze kicked him off the cliff.

• Quill, Itto, Rocket, Groot, and Klee puzzled over Groot’s joke about a rock man, while Lin Ze understood its dirty meaning.
• Red Skull revealed that he knew everyone who came seeking the Stone, and Gamora asked him where the Soul Stone was.
• Lin Ze recognized Red Skull as Johann Schmidt and falsely claimed that Steve Rogers had sent him a greeting, provoking Red Skull’s anger.
• Red Skull led the group to a cliffside platform and said they would have to face their fears and pay a price to obtain the Soul Stone.
• Lucy struck Red Skull with her bat while Lin Ze distracted him, and Lin Ze then kicked the unconscious Red Skull into the clouds.

Lin Ze bluffed his companions into believing Red Skull had been sent down to prepare the Soul Stone mechanism, then set off with Lucy while hiding his true plan. As the group activated the mountaintop mechanism, Paimon vanished and was found unconscious in the water with a small stone, while Lin Ze was nowhere to be seen.

• Star-Lord confronted Lin Ze and Lucy after they kicked Red Skull off the cliff, but Lin Ze confirmed that his attempted shortcut had failed.
• Lin Ze falsely claimed Red Skull had gone below to prepare the Soul Stone mechanism, persuading most of the group that the cliff was part of a trap.
• Lin Ze assigned everyone to activation points and told Paimon to count to one hundred while he and Lucy went down the mountain.
• Paimon grew anxious as she counted, and the mountain mechanism activated in a burst of light while Itto and the others waited nearby.
• The group discovered Paimon missing and rushed to the bottom of the cliff, where they found her unconscious in the water clutching a small stone and crying out for the absent Traveler.

Paimon searched for Lin Ze after he vanished, while his companions and Star-Lord’s group joined the search. The Wanderer brought Red Skull back, and Red Skull revealed that Lin Ze had traded his soul for the Soul Stone, leaving Paimon demanding that he return Lin Ze.

• Paimon repeatedly counted and searched for Lin Ze, then asked his companions whether they had seen him.
• The Wanderer, Cyno, Tighnari, Albedo, and the others set out to search for Lin Ze, while Lucy stayed behind with the children.
• The Wanderer returned with Red Skull and demanded to know where Lin Ze was.
• Red Skull said Lin Ze had traded his soul for the right to obtain the Soul Stone.
• Paimon threw the Soul Stone at Red Skull and grabbed his injured head, demanding that he give Lin Ze back.

After Lin Ze sacrificed himself to obtain the Soul Stone, Lucy told the grieving group to return to Earth and search for him, insisting that he had promised to come back. In New York, Tartaglia found Neuvillette standing alone in the rain and told him not to cry.

• Red Skull explained that obtaining the Soul Stone required sacrificing the person its wielder loved most, and that the sacrifice could not be reversed.
• Wanderer angrily demanded a way to undo the sacrifice, but Lucy picked up the Soul Stone and insisted that rules could be broken and Lin Ze would keep his promise.
• Lucy recalled that Lin Ze had told her to take everyone back to Earth if he died, and remembered photographing his fall before spotting traces of Captain America and Iron Man in the image.
• Lucy told Wanderer she could not explain more until they were sure and urged everyone to return to Earth to find the answer.
• In New York, Tartaglia approached Neuvillette, who stood alone in the rain, and told him, “Hydro Dragon, Hydro Dragon, don't cry!”

Tartaglia met Neuvillette in the rain, and they discussed the Traveler’s abnormal state and the danger it posed to their world. Neuvillette joined Tartaglia to meet the others, postponing judgment of the gods until they had dealt with the Traveler’s condition.

• Neuvillette explained that the Hydro Dragon had tasted the emotions gathered in the earth rather than cried, then dried Tartaglia and his clothes.
• Tartaglia and Neuvillette compared their concerns about the Traveler, whom they believed connected them to a world that was beginning to reject them.
• Tartaglia invited Neuvillette to meet the others and offered to share his umbrella, but Neuvillette stopped the rain instead.
• Neuvillette said he had the power to judge the gods but that the Traveler’s condition took priority.
• Tartaglia brought Neuvillette to the courtyard, where Neuvillette introduced himself to the gathered gods as Fontaine’s Chief Justice and greeted them as usurpers.

Neuvillette joined the Archons in protecting the Otherworldly Land and agreed to wait for the Traveler's return. On Earth, Tony received a photograph that suggested a way forward, while the Transmigration Management Bureau sent Lin Ze back through the Space-Time Gate after Lucy revealed he was not dead.

• Zhongli, Venti, Nahida, and Raiden Ei introduced themselves to Neuvillette, who declared that he would eventually judge the Usurping Gods but would protect the Otherworldly Land until the Traveler returned.
• Zhongli explained that the world's controller had grown bolder after the Traveler left, and the group decided to wait for a returning train.
• Paimon told Tony and the others that the Traveler was gone, and Lucy gave Tony a photograph she called a turning point before leaving on the Astral Express.
• Minister Wu and Director Ceros tried to revive Lin Ze, but Lucy stopped the medical team and had them put him back through the Space-Time Gate, restoring his account status.
• F.R.I.D.A.Y. analyzed the photograph and found evidence of either Howard Stark's Vibranium Shield or Tony's Mechanical Armor, and Tony asked Steve to support his conclusion.

The Avengers and their allies agreed that Tony would test time travel through the Quantum Tunnel, with the Guardians helping verify the destination. While the equipment was being prepared, Peter found Paimon deeply worried in Stark Tower.

• Star-Lord questioned the risks of time travel, but Tony insisted on testing the Quantum Tunnel himself and persuaded the others to accept his choice.
• Tony decided to travel back more than a few hours to Stark Tower, and the Guardians agreed to help verify the destination using the Traveler’s departure coordinates.
• Mantis woke Drax by making him remember being inside a space monster, and Neuvillette said Drax had likely passed through its brain.
• While the Quantum Tunnel was calibrated and Tony prepared, Peter found Paimon deeply worried in Stark Tower.

Peter took Paimon to Ned, hoping his magic could help find Aether sooner than the Avengers’ Quantum Tunnel plan. Ned’s spell opened a Portal, but it brought back a female version of Aether, leaving Peter and Ned stunned.

• Peter found Paimon upset about Aether’s sacrifice and suggested asking Ned whether magic could help find the Traveler.
• Peter and Paimon met Ned, who admitted he had taken a forbidden spellbook and Wong’s Sling Ring without permission.
• Paimon persuaded Ned to try the spell despite his worries that it might be dangerous.
• Ned cast the spell, opening a Portal as Paimon called for the Traveler.
• Aether emerged from the Portal, and Peter realized that Aether had turned into a girl.

Tony prepared to test the Quantum Tunnel while the Avengers and Guardians traded jokes about his time testing armor with Deadpool. Just as Banner was about to activate the tunnel, Lumine and Peter interrupted, and Lumine begged to join them in finding her brother.

• Tony stood ready on the platform as Banner prepared to activate the Quantum Tunnel, while Steve and the others watched.
• Tony clarified that he had spent a day testing Mark Armor suits with Deadpool, prompting arguments among the Guardians about Deadpool's appearance and Mantis's kiss.
• Steve asked about Paimon and the other children, and Tony learned that Paimon was on her way to the lab.
• Peter and Lumine rushed in and stopped Banner from starting the test.
• Lumine asked the group to take her with them to find her brother.

Tony let Lumine join the Quantum Tunnel test so she could look for her brother, and the pair arrived at Stark Tower. JARVIS detected two targets and demanded that they identify themselves, leaving Tony and Lumine facing an uncertain reception.

• Tony pretended Thor had forgotten to tell Paimon about the test and claimed he was getting married the day after tomorrow.
• Lumine introduced herself to Tony and asked to join the Quantum Tunnel test to find her brother.
• Strange and Wong learned how Ned, Peter, and Paimon had summoned Lumine, while Wong punished the troublemakers with lengthy handwritten assignments.
• Tony agreed to let Lumine wear Natasha's adjustable Lab Suit and join the test, while Paimon was left behind.
• The Quantum Tunnel sent Tony and Lumine outside Stark Tower instead of inside it, and JARVIS demanded that they identify themselves.

Tony and Lumine evaded JARVIS’s surveillance and set off to find Aether, avoiding Venti along the way. In the stairwell, Lumine warned that they had been spotted, and Tony found Qiqi hiding below them.

• Tony used a secret command to make JARVIS delete its surveillance data about him and Lumine.
• Tony stopped Lumine from entering the elevator when Venti approached, then led her away.
• Venti arrived at the elevator, hid the smell of liquor, and failed to notice Tony and Lumine nearby.
• Tony and Lumine took the stairs, where Lumine said they had been spotted.
• Tony saw Qiqi hiding two floors below and called her out.

Tony and Lumine traveled through time, where they encountered Qiqi, an elevator-bound Bennett and Venti, and a mysterious Time Variance Authority agent before returning to their own time. The trip succeeded, and Tony confirmed that they had found the Traveler.

• Tony learned that Qiqi had taken the stairs because Bennett and Venti were trapped in the elevator, and the two friends emerged after maintenance robots repaired it.
• Tony and Lumine escorted Qiqi to the elevator, then found Aether asleep in a bedroom.
• When Tony's time-travel countdown ended, a mysterious woman named "Lumine" remained behind and was confronted by a Time Variance Authority agent who arrested her for trespassing on branched timeline number 767.
• The woman stopped time, vanished after telling the agent to go to the second reset point, and left him bewildered before Aether woke and mistook him for Tony.
• Tony and "Lumine" returned to Natasha and Paimon, and Tony said their time-travel trip had worked.

Years later, Lin Ze recalled his disastrous cliff jump and the rescue that followed, only to discover that Lumine had arrived and believed he was her brother, Aether. As Paimon called for the Traveler, the others hurried to keep her from meeting Lumine.

• Lin Ze fell from the cliff, died, and endured a graphic death replay while the system prepared to extract him.
• Steve knocked Red Skull unconscious after Red Skull tried to attack Lin Ze's corpse.
• Lumine and Tony fed eggs to Lin Ze's body, and the failed extraction suddenly revived him while he was choking.
• Tony performed the Heimlich maneuver, and Lin Ze recovered and recognized Lumine as his little sister.
• Lumine asked Lin Ze whether her burnt eggs had tasted good, while Paimon called for the Traveler nearby.
• Everyone except Lin Ze realized they had to leave before Paimon and Lumine met.

Lin Ze returned from the past with Tony and Steve, after a colleague disguised as Lumine helped him and then departed through a Stone Gate. Back with Paimon, he apologized for leaving her, but his offer of curry only made her cry harder before she ate eight pots of it.

• Tony scolded Lin Ze for risking his life to obtain the Soul Stone, while Steve outfitted him for the return trip through time.
• Lin Ze recognized that the person posing as Lumine was a colleague from the Transmigration Management Bureau after she recited an employee handbook regulation.
• The colleague left through a Stone Gate, and Lin Ze failed to reach her before she vanished.
• Lin Ze, Tony, and Steve activated the Quantum Tunnel and returned, where Lin Ze accidentally knocked Tony off the platform.
• Paimon reunited with Lin Ze in tears, and he apologized and promised not to leave her again.
• Lin Ze offered Paimon curry to comfort her, but she cried that she never wanted curry again before polishing off eight enormous pots.

Lin Ze and the Avengers agreed to travel to Xandar with the Guardians of the Galaxy to secure the Power Stone and stop Thanos. They arrived to find the planet devastated, confirming that Thanos had already come.

• Lin Ze decided to make collecting the Power Stone on Xandar his next priority and told his companions about the plan.
• Natasha, Steve, and the others insisted that the Avengers would accompany Lin Ze rather than let him face danger alone.
• Tony and Star-Lord argued about the Guardians' reliability, while Rocket and Star-Lord bickered over food during the meeting.
• Gamora explained that the Guardians knew Xandar and that Star-Lord had delivered the Power Stone to the Nova Corps, helping persuade the group to work together.
• Lin Ze and his companions agreed to go to Xandar as a united team, but found the planet ravaged when they arrived.
• Gamora closed the eyes of a dead Nova Corps member and realized that Thanos had already come.

After witnessing Thanos’s devastation of Xandar, Lin Ze and the others returned to Earth to prepare for his arrival. Nick Fury and Tony rallied international support, while Lin Ze and Paimon set off for Asgard.

• F.R.I.D.A.Y. reported no survivors nearby, and Gamora explained that Thanos had destroyed her home and killed half its population.
• Star-Lord tried to comfort Gamora, but she punched him before Nebula helped calm her.
• Lin Ze urged everyone to return to Earth and strengthen their forces before Thanos arrived, while Star-Lord asked to bury the fallen Nova Corps members.
• Zhongli offered the Wangsheng Funeral Parlor’s services, and Guoba activated the Bifrost to bring the group back to Earth.
• Nick Fury took Tony’s evidence to the United Nations, and countries began preparing for a global military exercise as public news showed unusual international cooperation.
• Lin Ze told everyone that he and Paimon would be right back, then ordered Guoba to activate the Bifrost for Asgard.

Lin Ze and Paimon arrived in Asgard to visit Thor and discuss Thanos, then found Fischl and followed her to the Immernachtreich. Lin Ze opened the Castle gates with a long, bizarre password, while Fischl's odd behavior and Oz's absence remained unexplained.

• Heimdall welcomed Lin Ze and Paimon, revealed that he had learned about Thanos by watching and listening across Earth, and told them Odin was recovering with Yaoyao's help.
• Lin Ze and Paimon tried to find the Immernachtreich, and Fischl startled them by suddenly appearing beside the road.
• Fischl said Oz was cleaning at home, and Lin Ze stopped Paimon from mentioning Thanos before suggesting they talk inside the Castle.
• At the Castle gates, Fischl struggled to say the password, so Lin Ze recited a lengthy, nonsensical phrase until the gates opened.

Lin Ze, Paimon, and Fischl entered the Immernachtreich, where they encountered a Night Raven and a magical impersonation of Fischl. Thor recognized the impostor and hurled a chicken bone at her, but it hit Paimon instead.

• Arnold Who Longs to Be Asked for Directions proudly showed Fischl how thoroughly the robot vacuums had cleaned the Immernachtreich, and Fischl demanded that they clean it a hundred and seven times.
• Fischl tried to leave, then returned with Oz and found another Fischl standing with Lin Ze and Paimon.
• Paimon feared that Evernight Fischl had returned, but Lin Ze recognized the double as a magical projection.
• Fischl summoned Thor, who greeted Lin Ze and Paimon while eating a chicken leg and drinking wine.
• Thor recognized the impostor's familiar smile and flung a chicken bone through her forehead, but it landed on Paimon's head and left her covered in spit.

Lin Ze arranged to take Yaoyao, Fischl, and Oz from Asgard to Earth, where he planned to discuss whether Loki could hide them from Thanos. Meanwhile, Thanos ordered his children to retrieve the other Infinity Stones from Earth.

• Loki appeared disguised as Fischl, teased Thor, and delivered Frigga’s message that Odin wanted to see him.
• Lin Ze told Odin that he wanted to take Yaoyao to Earth and relocate Fischl’s Immernachtreich there, and Odin agreed to support his plans.
• Thor accidentally revealed that Thanos was coming for the Infinity Stones, and Odin reassured Lin Ze that Asgard could defend itself.
• Lin Ze, Paimon, and Thor prepared to leave Asgard and asked Loki whether his magic could conceal them from Thanos.
• Thanos decided to gather the Infinity Stones and ordered his children to find the stones on Earth and bring them to Titan.