Chapter Summaries

Kallen accepted Meliye’s proposal to manage his public image, then became 9th Army Group Commander after Pilger was removed and planned to trap the enemy garrisons in mobile warfare. Daina learned that the High Priest had considered arranging her marriage to Kallen before the Whip Bearer intervened, while Daan reflected on the High Priest’s betrayal of the God of Order.

• Kallen welcomed Meliye’s interview, agreed to review her proposal for managing his public image, and invited her to transfer to the district’s publicity department.
• Kallen identified the enemy garrison’s surrender offer as a delaying tactic and ordered Muli to negotiate while intelligence tracked the retreating forces.
• Daina interrupted Kallen and Neo’s planned sparring session with a summons from Daan, who removed Pilger from command and appointed Kallen 9th Army Group Commander.
• Kallen told the other legion commanders how he expected them to serve and laid out a plan to draw the enemy troops from their strongpoints and destroy them in mobile warfare.
• Daan told Daina that the High Priest had considered arranging her marriage to Kallen, but the Whip Bearer had stopped him; afterward, Daan and Suolfor discussed Kallen’s rising influence.
• Daan recalled Molindi’s accusation that the High Priest had betrayed the God of Order and admitted that they did not dare betray the High Priest.

Kallen and Neo fought a duel in which Kallen repeatedly outmaneuvered and restrained Neo, even bringing out a Magic Crystal Cannon. When Kallen finally let Neo unleash his strongest attack, Neo used a disguise to get close and win, leaving Kallen with one last lesson about combat.

• Kallen used rapid movement and illusion spells, then spread water power through the area to detect Neo and his doppelgangers.
• Kallen defended against Neo’s attacks with order fire and Chains of Order, then restrained him with formations, spell arts, and the Black Prison Castle’s Magic Crystal Cannon.
• Neo unleashed Proper-Burial, but Kallen stopped it with a giant hand summoned through a black opening.
• Neo shed his skin to leave behind a convincing puppet, slipped past Kallen’s perception, and placed a fingernail against his throat.
• Kallen admitted defeat, and Neo told him to think only of killing his opponent in a fight.

Kallen’s forces crushed the Allied breakout and cleared their front, prompting Daan to consider promoting him while the Divine Temple and the High Priest’s circle both took interest in him. In Rojia City, Rasma read news of Kallen’s rapid rise and worried about how powerful he might become before Rasma could get out.

• Neo spoke with Dali Wenluo about his family, his unusual tea, and Kallen’s growing strength, then skipped the military meeting and asked Dali to remove sand from his wounds.
• Kallen learned that the Allied Forces planned to break out under cover of a false surrender and ordered his forces to prepare an ambush, while arranging for Dali to help sow discord within the Life Order God Church.
• Kallen’s forces trapped the Allied troops at their supply base, blocked their teleportation arrays, and defeated their counterattacks; after the battle, Kallen accepted responsibility for the militia regiments’ delay and declared there would be no more fighting on his front.
• Daan and Suolfor praised the Ninth Army Group’s victory and discussed reorganizing it, while a Temple Elder revealed that Kallen was on the Divine Temple’s candidate list.
• The High Priest and Fudeng discussed Kallen’s success and his candidacy for the Divine Temple, and the High Priest suggested letting Kallen choose between them.
• Rasma read a newspaper report about Kallen’s victories and rapid promotions and feared Kallen might reach the High Priest’s position if Rasma stayed confined much longer.

Rasma told the unresponsive Dis that he would help suppress him after condensing a godhead fragment, unless Dis yielded to the Divine Temple to protect his grandson. Kallen traveled to meet Daan and was tested by Temple Elders over whether the Divine Temple or the High Priest should guide the Order, leaving the final Elder with an answer that placed the High Priest beneath the Temple.

• Rasma pushed Dis along the river, recalled his difficult childhood and his devotion to the Order God Church, and warned that at least ten Temple Elders would join him in suppressing Dis once he condensed a godhead fragment.
• Kallen discussed the coming command appointment with Neo, then traveled with Daina and Little Kangna to the Daan Knight Order’s camp.
• Daan praised Kallen’s command and offered to transfer him to the Knight Order, but Kallen refused because he believed the Whip of Order was where he belonged.
• A Temple Elder questioned Kallen about the Divine Temple, the Light of Order, and the High Priest, and Kallen said he would unconditionally defend the High Priest’s authority.
• After Daan read a report of Kallen’s answers, another Temple Elder questioned him directly; Kallen said the Divine Temple represented Order’s will and described the High Priest as its steward.

Kallen accepted command of the Ninth Army Group and chose a difficult, independent assignment on the flank at the Zuomaisi Mountain Range. Meanwhile, Fudeng concealed the Divine Temple’s questioning of Kallen from the High Priest, amused by how much Kallen reminded him of himself.

• Kallen reflected that neither the Divine Temple nor the High Priest’s faction would let him remain unchanged, and resolved to build an independent power base.
• At dinner, Daan introduced Kallen to the commanders of three regular regiments and assigned the Ninth Army Group to replace the troops at the stalled Zuomaisi Mountain Range front.
• Kallen told the commanders to report their supply needs and promised to have the Whip Bearer help expedite them.
• Aoji froze the Ice Pool to ease Fudeng’s Cold Poison, but warned him that his condition was worsening.
• Fudeng read the report of the Divine Temple’s questioning and recognized that Kallen had seen through Daan’s test.
• Fudeng removed the record of Kallen’s questioning before sending a copy to the Office Divine Temple, then privately compared Kallen to his younger self.

Kallen’s army prepared to attack the heavily fortified Zuomaisi Mountain Range while Rachael, an enemy commander who was infatuated with him, sent Ona to assassinate him with the Spear of Sin. The spear struck at Kallen, but a giant hand emerged from a black hole and caught it, leaving his fate unresolved.

• Lister and Old White enjoyed fish soup while confirming that the Whip Bearer had secured abundant supplies for the legion.
• Kallen decided not to rotate his troops yet, and Philomina reported that the enemy had fortified the Zuomaisi Mountain Range and its teleportation positioning station.
• Kallen reviewed the defenses with Neo, then went with Puer, Kevin, and Little Kangna to observe the area near camp; Kevin detected a hidden enemy squad.
• Rachael ordered Ona to use the Spear of Sin and sacrifice his remaining lifespan to kill Kallen, despite Qisang’s objections.
• Ona’s spear attack bypassed Kallen’s guards and defenses, but a huge fair hand reached through a black hole and caught the spear phantom.

Kallen survived the Spear of Sin assassin’s attack and traced its aura to Rachael, who had ordered the assassination. He captured her, concealed the capture from the army, and demanded the artifact spirit fused with her soul.

• Kallen countered the golden-armored warrior’s assault with Order fire, then used Little Kangna’s bone spike and the Chains of Order to withstand the warrior’s materialized Spear of Sin.
• The blast left Kallen wounded and Little Kangna seriously injured, but Kallen survived and extracted the Spear of Sin’s residual aura to trace its source.
• Kallen tracked Rachael as she fled, ignored Qisang, and caught her after she escaped toward a silver pterosaur.
• Rachael tried to pass herself off as Kallen’s admirer and threatened to use a spell scroll, but Kallen disarmed and bound her.
• Kallen told Reikar to report that the capture had failed, then demanded the artifact spirit fused with Rachael’s soul and said he would cut her away to obtain it.

Richard brought Philomina hot pot, while Eisen and Kaixi discussed their son and Neo joined them. After Kallen captured Rachael, a Lax faction Goddess Cleric carrying the Spear of Sin’s Artifact Spirit, he began an attempt to separate the spirit from her and revealed a power that made the Divine Artifact tremble.

• Richard brought hot pot ingredients to Philomina’s tent, and she ate while telling him that her appetite had been growing.
• Eisen, Kaixi, Lucy, and Neo talked about Richard, their relationships, and the girl he was close to as Richard left Philomina’s tent with the buckets.
• Kallen returned with Rachael, a Lax faction Goddess Cleric whose soul had fused with the Spear of Sin’s Artifact Spirit, and the camp discovered the enemy had deployed a Divine Artifact.
• Kallen, Kevin, and Puer began a Guidance Magic Formation to reach Rachael’s Soul Space and extract the Artifact Spirit, despite her warnings that the Spear would overwhelm them.
• The Spear of Sin manifested and threatened Kallen, but he summoned the Hunger Addiction Sculpture, whose presence overpowered the Divine Artifact and astonished Rachael.

Kallen purified the Spear of Sin by separating Rachael from its Artifact Spirit, then used Loya’s copper coin to suppress the spirit and make it obey him. With the Spear’s defenses mapped, Kallen proposed a surprise assault and chose Neo to lead it, telling him that the world had changed.

• Kallen and Puer removed Rachael from the Spear of Sin’s Artifact Spirit, and Rachael shattered while the spirit took control of her body.
• The Artifact Spirit broke free of its restraints, but Kallen placed Loya’s copper coin on Rachael and suppressed her consciousness, allowing the spirit to be controlled.
• Kallen ordered Rachael to resonate with the Spear of Sin, revealing its attack coordinates and its role in the enemy’s defenses.
• Kallen and Neo planned a rapid assault that would exploit the Spear’s temporary loss of effectiveness, and Kallen assigned Neo to command the elite force.
• Neo described the Mad Pope’s objections to the assignment, and Kallen told him to pass along the message, “The world has changed.”

Kallen prepared a costly general offensive while the Whip Bearer, Fudeng, attended peace talks and then traveled to inspect the Ninth Army Group. When Fudeng arrived, Kallen launched the attack as planned, leaving Fudeng to watch and tying the battle’s outcome to his own fate.

• Kallen decided to proceed with the general offensive despite learning that Fudeng would visit the Ninth Army Group, and Neo advised him to keep the plan from the three newly assigned legion commanders.
• At the negotiations, Fudeng rejected the Allied Forces’ demands for Order to withdraw and pay compensation, then left to inspect the front.
• Kallen welcomed Fudeng, who accused him of deception, but saw the assembled troops and assumed their formation was a display of respect.
• Kallen sent an attack order, and the legions advanced while Fudeng watched; Miguel realized the move could cause a political crisis.
• Fudeng warned Kallen that defeat would make him crawl back as a coachman, while victory would free him from the reins.

Kallen led Order’s forces through a costly assault on the Zuomaisi Mountain Range while Fudeng watched from beside him. Neo’s fresh cavalry force broke through the enemy’s core after the Spear of Sin failed to activate, turning the battle into an Order victory and leaving Fudeng calling Kallen the future of the Order God Church.

• Kallen reassured Fudeng that he trusted him to put Order’s cause above personal grievances, and Fudeng allowed him to continue commanding while explaining the battle.
• The Ninth Army Group attacked along four lines, and Kallen’s Whip of Order Legion used its superior equipment and Kevin’s battlefield intelligence to suppress enemy artillery.
• After hours of costly fighting, Neo led a rested assault force toward the enemy’s core while Puer and Mrs. Gandiro used Rachael to silence the Spear of Sin.
• The Lax God Church commander cleared a path for Neo’s force, expecting the Spear of Sin to destroy it, but the Divine Artifact remained silent as the cavalry charged into the defensive hub.
• Neo’s assault force destroyed the enemy’s command and logistics center, throwing the defenders into chaos and allowing Order’s forces to seize the advantage.
• Fudeng praised Kallen as the future of the Order God Church and gave him chilled water cooled with a scale from Aoji.

Kallen received Fudeng’s counsel and praise after the victory, then directed the army to secure the Spear of Sin as the enemy’s defenses collapsed. Back at the Office Divine Temple, Norton told Fudeng to prepare for ending the desert war by identifying an Orthodox Church to target in a new war, and asked him to pick one.

• Fudeng rejected Daan’s request to transfer Kallen, advised Kallen to preserve his clean background, and discussed a suitable post for him after the war.
• Little Kangna brought Kallen dragon scales, while Miguel concluded that Fudeng was grooming Kallen as his successor.
• Muli reported the enemy’s collapse and battlefield casualties, and Kallen ordered the Spear of Sin sealed and collected by specialists from the Knight Order.
• Fudeng congratulated Mobiten on Neo’s victory and urged him to resolve his relationship with his grandson.
• Norton told Fudeng to bring the Whip of Order Legion back after its next offensive and prepare a shortlist of candidates for a new war.
• Norton displayed banners representing the Allied Orthodox Order God Churches and told Fudeng to pick one.

Fudeng suspected the High Priest no longer trusted him, while Kallen’s forces secured the Zuomaisi Mountain Range and tended to their wounded. Headquarters then assigned Kallen’s Army Group as reserves for a new campaign, and Kallen realized they were being sent home to take credit for it.

• Fudeng recalled the High Priest’s past purges and concluded that his renewed scrutiny meant the High Priest had stopped trusting him.
• Richard ordered Lucy and Kaixi to return to their military posts despite their injured family members, and Kallen witnessed their departure.
• Kallen ended the pursuit in the Zuomaisi Mountain Range, organized garrison assignments, and ordered the physicians to spare no expense saving the wounded.
• Philomina reported that Dark had survived and that Puer expected Eisen to wake in a few days; Neo returned badly injured and admitted drinking enemy blood during battle.
• Daan told Kallen that his Army Group would serve as second-line reserves in a new campaign, and Kallen concluded that Headquarters intended to send them home while letting them share in the campaign’s credit.

Kallen told Meliye that the war was a civilizational struggle and urged people to cast aside illusions and prepare for battle, prompting Fudeng to suspect that Kallen shared a secret with the High Priest. Meanwhile, Richard stayed with his unconscious father as his family prepared to move on, and Eisen reacted when Richard mentioned their unfulfilled promise to visit the Pastry Shop, Memphis.

• Kallen comforted the dead clerics’ remains and told Meliye that he was proud of their sacrifice and saw the war as a clash between two civilizations.
• Meliye asked to quote Kallen’s words, and he ended his remarks with, “Cast aside illusions. Prepare for battle.”
• Fudeng read Kallen’s interview and suspected that Kallen and the High Priest shared a hidden secret, but he decided not to investigate.
• Richard ate with Kaixi and discussed the family’s wounded members and their upcoming departure from the battlefield.
• Dark told Richard he preferred prosthetics to Growth Fluid, while Philomina left Richard extra food.
• Richard spoke to his unconscious father, Eisen, and Eisen’s finger trembled when Richard mentioned taking him to the Pastry Shop, Memphis.

Richard visited the unconscious Mr. Eisen and revealed how much he valued the fatherly care he had received from Memphis; Mr. Eisen later woke and admitted he had been too embarrassed to open his eyes. Meanwhile, Neo used a battlefield’s blood to empower himself, the Mad Pope, and the Ancestor of the Bloodthirsty Otherworldly Demon, while Kallen watched and allowed the risky plan to continue.

• Richard sat beside Mr. Eisen, remembered how Memphis had become a caring father figure to him, and left to help Daina archive communications.
• Puer realized Richard had recognized Memphis and speculated that Richard might suspect his connection to Kallen; Mr. Eisen then woke and confessed that embarrassment had kept him from opening his eyes.
• Neo had Dali Wenluo bind him with a sapling and absorbed blood from a battlefield in the Zuomaisi Mountain Range, drawing a growing swarm of bats around himself.
• Kallen ordered nearby patrols to stay away and told Philomina to inform Dali Wenluo not to stop Neo, while the Ancestor of the Bloodthirsty Otherworldly Demon tried to take control of him.
• Neo summoned the Mad Pope’s phantom, which dissolved the Ancestor’s phantom as Neo absorbed its power, creating a balance that strengthened Neo and the Mad Pope while the Ancestor converted the battlefield’s blood.

Neo gained more power but still could not match Kallen, while Kallen reunited Eisen with Richard and led the Ninth Army Group through a successful campaign before speaking defiantly at peace negotiations. The chapter ended with Kallen’s faint smile at the Allied Forces’ outrage becoming a widely circulated image captioned “Contempt from Order.”

• Neo stopped absorbing the bats, then took veterinary stimulants after his power increased without bringing him close to surpassing Kallen.
• Kallen visited Eisen in the physicians’ camp and learned that Eisen had awakened when Richard called him Memphis but had pretended to remain asleep until morning.
• Eisen awoke the next morning, and Kallen discussed Richard’s future work and plans to expand their intelligence network.
• Kallen led the Ninth Army Group through a month-long offensive, shared combat assignments with his subordinates, and collected cultural relics before receiving orders to return home.
• Kallen accompanied Daan to peace negotiations and delivered a hard-line speech that angered the Allied Forces’ representatives.
• Kallen calmly faced the representatives’ threats, and newspapers widely printed his faint smile under the caption “Contempt from Order.”

The Whip of Order Legion withdrew from the front, and Kallen attended a farewell banquet where Fudeng publicly presented him as his successor. As the dignitaries accepted the implication, Kevin wondered whether the old guardians of Order would return with the gods and oppose the new Order.

• Dark and the Whip of Order Legion’s cavalrymen said farewell to their Undead Warhorses before leaving the front, while Dark showed Lucy his new prosthetics.
• Kallen toasted the commanders of the three Regular Regiments, then led the withdrawing legion through a teleportation gate to Ogleve Fortress.
• Kevin reflected on Ogurev and the possible return of the old Order deities before Dali Wenluo gathered the bald believers to salute Ogurev’s statue.
• Miguel welcomed Kallen to the banquet, and Kallen received congratulations from district chiefs and senior Whip of Order officials as he climbed to the top floor.
• Andilao hinted at his friendship with Kallen, prompting Kallen to suspect he might be offered Andilao’s post as Minister of the Discipline Inspection Department.
• Fudeng welcomed Kallen before the gathered dignitaries and called him his younger self, signaling his succession; the dignitaries voiced their approval while Fudeng privately dismissed them as fools.

Kallen was recognized as the Whip Bearer’s chosen successor, rallied the Whip of Order’s soldiers, and argued that the church must remain committed to its purpose. After Fudeng secretly tested him through the Ogurev Sculpture, the divine imprint recognized Kallen and Fudeng concluded that he was a Branch God of their faith.

• Fudeng presented Kallen to the church’s senior leaders as his political successor, and Kallen manifested his Dharma Body beside the Whip Bearer’s.
• The Whip of Order soldiers hailed Kallen as their Army Commander, then reserved the nearest seats at the feast for their fallen comrades.
• Kallen told the dignitaries that the church must not waver before the prospect of war against the gods, and Fudeng appointed him to lead the Discipline Inspection Department in York City District.
• Kallen proposed that the Allied Forces could be deterred by making the choice of a new war target seem arbitrary, then joined Kevin and the other soldiers in the square.
• After Kallen left, Fudeng had Punk use the Ogurev Sculpture to investigate him, but the divine imprint recognized Kallen, overwhelmed Punk, and prompted Fudeng to declare that Kallen was a Branch God of their faith.

Fudeng concluded that Kallen was a Divine Son seeking to become High Priest, though he mistook Kevin, the dog beside Kallen, for the god behind the situation. After consolidating his influence in the Whip of Order and visiting Order University, Kallen prepared for his appointment as Whip Bearer; meanwhile, reports of divine miracles prompted the High Priest to demand that Fudeng choose a church to attack.

• Fudeng inferred that Kallen was a Divine Son who wanted to escape the church’s control and become High Priest, unaware that Kevin was the god and that Kallen had concealed his identity because he was an Immoreles.
• Richard helped Philomina bid farewell to her Reconnaissance Battalion, while Kaixi accepted that her son Eisen was growing close to Philomina.
• Kallen directed Muli to recruit army personnel into his departments and purge the old Discipline Inspection Department staff, then attended classes at Order University amid a crowd of administrators and students.
• The High Priest rebuked church leaders for hesitating as reports spread that several churches had witnessed divine miracles, then demanded that Fudeng choose a church to attack.
• Fudeng presented the High Priest with a list of possible targets and suggested that Daina draw one at random.

The High Priest discussed the coming return of the gods with Fudeng and Daina, then confronted the presence of Tyranus within him. After killing himself to trace the influence, Norton saw Tyranus tortured on a cross and learned that the God of Order had sacrificed the gods who followed him.

• The High Priest praised Fudeng’s insight, spoke of preparing for the gods’ return, and told Daina to draw a bookmark at a public banquet.
• The High Priest and Fudeng discussed Kallen’s succession, his engagement, and the Divine Temple’s interest in him before the High Priest dismissed Fudeng and Daina.
• The High Priest confronted Norton, who resisted Tyranus’s attempt to persuade him to prepare for the God of Order’s return.
• The High Priest killed himself at Norton’s instruction, and Norton used three soul-type divine artifacts to peer into the darkness left behind.
• Norton saw Tyranus nailed to a cross and realized the God of Order had made the gods who followed Tyranus into sacrifices.
• As the vision vanished, the tortured Tyranus raised his head and roared, “Order!!!”