Chapter Summaries

Lin Yuan and the others began awakening the East Pole Island Lord, but the Crawlers remotely interfered with the formation. Steward Liu sacrificed himself and his Authority to protect it, and the East Pole Island Lord awakened.

• Lin Yuan began the awakening formation, which slowly transferred the White Emperor's body into the East Pole Island Lord.
• Lin Yuan recognized that the formation resembled the Crawlers' techniques, and Steward Liu admitted he had obtained it from them.
• The Crawlers remotely tampered with the formation, halting the transfer.
• Steward Liu revealed he had given up his S-rank power to accommodate the Sacrifice Authority, then used it to dispel the interference and accelerate the formation.
• The White Emperor's body disappeared, and the East Pole Island Lord opened his eyes.

The East Pole Island Lord awakened, revived Steward Liu using the Seabed Lotus Life, and swiftly dealt with the Crawlers. He told Lin Yuan he could return to the Endless Sea ahead of the East Pole Sea, but the Four Pole Seas’ eventual return depended on how quickly Lin Yuan’s batch of players progressed through the main quest.

• The East Pole Island Lord used the Seabed Lotus Life to make a new body and retrieved Steward Liu’s soul from the Nether River, resurrecting him.
• The East Pole Island Lord sent Wuwei and Chi Yu to care for Steward Liu, then left to deal with Sin of the Fallen.
• Lin Yuan reflected on his growth and the time that had passed in the Endless Sea while waiting for Steward Liu to recover.
• The East Pole Island Lord told Lin Yuan that the Crawlers had been dealt with and offered to send him back to the Endless Sea ahead of the East Pole Sea.
• After Lin Yuan asked why the Four Pole Seas had not returned, the East Pole Island Lord explained that their return depended on how quickly Lin Yuan’s batch of players progressed through the main quest.

The East Pole Island Lord explained the game's later stages to Lin Yuan and arranged to send him back to the Endless Sea the next day. Lin Yuan declined to transfer Bai Ling's ownership to the Island Lord, then realized the Sunken Ones' resurrection might connect to Senior Moge's mind-uploading research.

• The East Pole Island Lord told Lin Yuan that the third stage concerned space, the fourth concerned time, and the fifth concerned history, and that each stage would eliminate players who failed to meet its requirements.
• The East Pole Island Lord promised to help Lin Yuan return to the Endless Sea and asked him to come back in a day for the journey.
• Lin Yuan asked the East Pole Island Lord to free Bai Ling, but declined when he learned she would then be bound to the East Pole Sea.
• The East Pole Island Lord advised Lin Yuan to prepare a vessel for Bai Ling and explained that Wuwei, Chi Yu, and the Sunken One soldiers had gained soul-transfer resurrection through experiments by the Grand Dean of the Artisan Academy.
• Lin Yuan connected the resurrection method to Senior Moge's mind-uploading research and wondered whether Moge could truly die when his golem was destroyed.

Lin Yuan discovered that the Divine Artisan Core contained Moge and the personalities of generations of loyal Artisan Academy artisans, who could awaken when supplied with Transcendent Energy. Moge warned that revealing them would invite a Crawler invasion, leaving Lin Yuan with a powerful resource to develop carefully.

• Lin Yuan injected fifty points of A-rank energy into the Divine Artisan Core, activating the Divine Artisan System and awakening Moge.
• Moge explained that his full personality required far more energy, but that many other Intelligent Entities were also dormant in the core.
• Moge revealed that he had used Personality Extraction Technology to preserve himself and the Artisan Academy’s capable, loyal artisans before a traitorous junior apprentice helped the Crawlers destroy the Academy.
• Lin Yuan realized the core could restore generations of artisans and provide technology to strengthen humanity, while Moge confirmed that pure Transcendent Energy could awaken them.
• Moge warned that bringing the artisans together would provoke a massive Crawler invasion and said they needed a Crawler-free stretch of sea where they could develop safely.

Lin Yuan helped Moge settle the Artisan Academy’s revival in the secluded East Pole Sea, then prepared to leave East Pole Island. The chapter ended with the East Pole Island Lord warning Lin Yuan that his journey would overturn everything he knew.

• Lin Yuan told Moge that the East Pole Sea had been cleared of Crawlers and was difficult for outsiders to enter, convincing him it was a safe place to rebuild the Artisan Academy.
• Moge asked Lin Yuan to leave the Academy’s Intelligence Core in the East Pole Sea, and Lin Yuan agreed after learning its removal would improve the Divine Artisan Forge’s efficiency.
• Lin Yuan had Little Black make Moge a golem body and introduced him to the East Pole Island Lord, who worked with Moge to plan the Academy’s development.
• At the harbor, Wuwei, Chi Yu, Steward Liu, and Moge thanked Lin Yuan and said farewell as he prepared to leave East Pole Island.
• The East Pole Island Lord asked Lin Yuan if he was ready and warned him that the journey ahead would overturn everything he knew.

The East Pole Island Lord sent Lin Yuan and Lilia beneath the Abyssal Sea to reveal the truth of the world. Lin Yuan discovered a living Star Sea below it and recognized three distant planets as the moons he had seen from the sea’s surface.

• The East Pole Island Lord enclosed the Phantom Lin Yuan in light and sent it away, while he and the Moge Golem discussed Lin Yuan’s resistance to pollution and the urgency of the final game.
• Steward Liu told Wuwei and Chi Yu that they were not ready to learn the truth of the world and remarked that few stars could be seen above the Endless Sea.
• The East Pole Island Lord’s light carried Lin Yuan and Lilia through the sea layers and past the spatial distortions at the bottom of the Abyssal Sea.
• Lin Yuan and Lilia entered the Star Sea, where Lin Yuan saw planets with life and traces of civilizations, while Lilia mistook the place for the sky.
• Lin Yuan spotted three enormous planets in the distance and recognized them as the three moons he had seen from the sea’s surface and during Nether River summons.

Lin Yuan traveled through space beneath the Abyssal Sea, passed the three moons housing the Nether River, and returned safely to the Endless Sea. He reflected on the world’s structure and prepared to visit a nearby island to learn what had happened during his absence.

• Lin Yuan recognized that the Star Sea was genuine space and realized the three moons contained the Nether River and summoned him for the Nether River Monarch's Certification.
• The light carried Lin Yuan past the moons and through temporal mist before bringing him down onto the Endless Sea as a phantom wooden sailing ship.
• Lin Yuan confirmed through his system panel that he had returned to the game area and concluded that the world was a Klein Bottle warped by spatial distortion.
• Lin Yuan wondered whether the temporal mist formed a one-way passage and reconsidered his past journey into the East Pole Sea and the strange seawater after Paradise collapsed.
• Lin Yuan decided to approach a nearby island and ask for news, wondering how everyone had fared during the nearly year-long absence.

After returning to the game, Lin Yuan learned that players across the Endless Sea were focused on instances and sought news at a Sea Service Island in the Trumpet Sea. He read recent newspapers to catch up on events and asked the bartender about the repeatedly mentioned Final Instance Tournament.

• Lin Yuan found that his friends were all inside instances and steered the Phantom Lin Yuan to a nearby island to ask about the current situation.
• Lin Yuan discovered the island was a mobile Sea Service Island built from ships near a newly opened medium-sized instance.
• Lin Yuan bought a drink and learned from the bartender that players had become the Endless Sea’s most active force by pursuing instances.
• Lin Yuan asked for recent newspapers from the Press Club and read about player competition, eleven Supernovas, and the lack of recent major Crawler activity.
• Lin Yuan asked the bartender what the Final Instance Tournament mentioned in the papers was.

Lin Yuan learned that a competitive Final Instance Tournament was expected to appear in an inner ring region after the Free Growth Stage, and decided to leave the Trumpet Sea and visit the Consortium. After hearing the bartender mention a beauty named Rose in the Avengers Fleet, Lin Yuan reacted with surprise.

• The bartender explained that the research institute expected a super Instance called the Final Instance to appear when the Free Growth Stage ended, drawing top Players into a tournament.
• Lin Yuan read about the Endless Sea’s regions and concluded that he should head to an inner ring region before the tournament appeared.
• Lin Yuan decided to sell his East Pole Sea gains at the Consortium and try to buy an A-rank Transcendent Core.
• Patrons argued over which team would win a nearby race Instance, and the bartender described the Avengers Fleet’s four near-Seed-level Players and its famous beauty.
• The bartender said the woman was named Rose, and Lin Yuan froze and asked him to repeat her name.

Lin Yuan learned that Rose and the Avengers Fleet faced a difficult instance battle, then went to the underwater Silver Artisan Academy to see if his Academy Controller could let him join. The controller detected Silver Three Artisan Academy and offered to connect.

• Lin Yuan recognized Rock Bear, Crazy Tiger, and Howling Wolf as old allies and learned the Avengers Fleet was outnumbered by three allied Seed Ship Crews.
• The bartender said the underwater instance would last another three or four days and that the Avengers Fleet sought a treasure tied to advancement.
• After learning the instance was an Artisan Academy, Lin Yuan decided to go there and help Rose and the others if possible.
• Curious drinkers followed Lin Yuan in a diving-modified ship and watched him approach the instance entrance aboard the Phantom Lin Yuan.
• Lin Yuan activated the Bronze Thirteen Academy Controller, which detected Silver Three Artisan Academy and asked whether to connect.

Lin Yuan entered Silver Three Artisan Academy and began sweeping through it after the controller ran out of energy. Meanwhile, Rose, Rock Bear, Crazy Tiger, and Howling Wolf hid from Three Zero Three’s Players, who had attacked them with lethal intent.

• Lin Yuan used the Bronze Thirteen Academy controller to open Silver Three Artisan Academy’s gates and entered the Instance.
• Lin Yuan cleared the puppets at the entrance, but the controller ran out of energy while marking Players on the campus map.
• Lin Yuan set aside the search for energy and decided to sweep through the Academy to find the other Players.
• Rose returned to the Avengers Fleet’s hiding place in the gymnasium basement and warned Rock Bear, Crazy Tiger, and Howling Wolf that Three Zero Three was searching for them.
• Rose and the others discussed how Three Zero Three had pursued them to the Trumpet Sea after they defeated one of its Seed-level Players, and had now tried to kill them.

The Avengers Fleet fled deeper into the underground labyrinth as 303’s Seed-level Players tracked them down. Witch Doctor, Shadow King, and Axe Demon cornered them, while repeated earthquakes above hinted that something major was happening outside.

• Rose led the injured Crazy Tiger, Rock Bear, and Howling Wolf deeper into the labyrinth to escape 303’s detection.
• Another earthquake shook the labyrinth, and Rock Bear recalled meeting Rose at the Artisan Academy, where they had also met Lilia and Zero God.
• Witch Doctor, Shadow King, Axe Demon, and their subordinates found the Avengers Fleet and mocked their faith in Zero God.
• Axe Demon revealed that the other Players in the Instance had already gone ahead, and Witch Doctor ordered Shadow King to investigate the increasingly powerful earthquakes.

Lin Yuan arrived in time to save Rose and the Avengers Fleet from Witch Doctor, Shadow King, and Axe Demon. He effortlessly defeated the three attackers, and Witch Doctor realized Lin Yuan was the king of One One Four Paradise.

• Witch Doctor ordered Shadow King and Axe Demon to kill Rose and the others, while the Avengers Fleet prepared to fight despite expecting to lose.
• Lin Yuan cut a passage through the walls with a sword of light and rushed into the room, where Rose and the others recognized him as Zero God.
• Axe Demon struck Lin Yuan from behind, but Lin Yuan endured the blow and confronted the three players for killing others.
• Witch Doctor, Shadow King, and Axe Demon attacked together, but Lin Yuan's sword of light cut through all their attacks.
• Witch Doctor tried to escape under cover of black mist, but Lin Yuan sliced through the mist and beheaded all three attackers.
• As he died, Witch Doctor understood that Lin Yuan was the king of One One Four Paradise.

Lin Yuan and his companions defeated Three Zero Three’s leaders and learned that the Paradise’s Seed-level Players had secretly joined the Diving Club, an organization tied to the Crawlers. Lin Yuan realized the Club’s members had changed in the Endless Sea and could no longer be easily detected, leaving the human camp vulnerable to hidden threats.

• Lin Yuan confirmed that Witch Doctor and his two companions were dead, then helped Rose and the others capture the remaining members of Three Zero Three.
• Lin Yuan recounted how he escaped Paradise and reached the group with the help of the controller and Bai Ling.
• Howling Wolf reported that the three Seed-level Players from Three Zero Three belonged to the Diving Club, despite refusing to join the major organizations.
• Howling Wolf explained that Three Zero Three’s leaders had launched a killing spree because investigations were closing in on their Paradise.
• Lin Yuan said neither his ability nor Lilia’s senses detected Crawlers among the Diving Club members, suggesting they had changed after entering the Endless Sea.

Lin Yuan learned that the Diving Club was searching the Silver Academy’s hidden labyrinths, and he agreed to explore them while pushing to clear the instance quickly. After casually killing a hidden boss and leaving its loot behind, he clarified that although he was not S-rank, he had never said he could not defeat one.

• Lin Yuan said he would alert Research Institute 3154 and the major organizations about the Diving Club after they escaped, then urged the group to clear the instance quickly.
• Howling Wolf explained that the Diving Club was searching the Artisan Academy labyrinths for something, though the hidden bosses guarding them were not required to clear the instance.
• Lin Yuan suspected they might be seeking the Divine Artisan Core, but agreed to explore the hidden areas in case they wanted something else.
• Rock Bear asked about the hidden boss, and Lin Yuan revealed he had mistaken the puppet dressed as a PE teacher for a regular mob and killed it in passing.
• Lin Yuan left the boss’s valuable materials behind because he had no room, prompting Crazy Tiger to ask whether he had reached S-rank.
• Lin Yuan denied being S-rank but pointed out that he had not said he could not defeat one.

Lin Yuan and the Avengers Fleet swept through Silver Academy’s hidden areas, where he discovered that the Diving Club’s target had been replaced with a fake Divine Artisan Core. He left considering whether counterfeit relics could help upgrade his Energy Collector and planning to ask Moge about them.

• Lin Yuan easily defeated the hidden-area bosses across Silver Academy while Rose and the others explained that the instance was considered difficult and that the Consortium monopolized much of the high-rank potion supply.
• After clearing the Academy, Lin Yuan gathered two A-rank Transcendent Cores, including one from the boss beneath the classroom building.
• Lin Yuan found a Fake Divine Artisan Core at the center of the classroom building’s hidden labyrinth and realized Moge had planted it to deceive the Crawlers.
• Lin Yuan asked Little Black how relics could be forged, but Little Black could not explain Moge’s technique.
• Lin Yuan wondered whether fake relics could upgrade the Energy Collector and decided he could ask Moge about them when the East Pole Sea returned.

Lin Yuan and the Avengers Fleet emerged from the Silver Three Artisan Academy Instance after a swift, catastrophic run in which no other ships survived. He parted ways with Rose and the others, reached the prosperous Golden Sea, and wondered why Research Institute 3154 had not replied.

• The drinkers outside the Instance watched Lin Yuan's Phantom Lin Yuan and the Avengers Fleet's four ships emerge as the Instance sank, leaving no other ships behind.
• Lin Yuan and Rose parted ways after agreeing to meet at the Instance Tournament, and Lin Yuan set course for the Golden Sea.
• During the voyage, Lin Yuan received congratulations from his contacts, declined Wind-Ear's interview, and asked him not to publicize his return.
• Lin Yuan noted that Research Institute 3154 had not replied, though Wind-Ear had said Old Three was safe and had gone to the Institute's secret territory.
• Lin Yuan reached the Golden Sea and saw its busy shipping lanes, large service stations, malls, casinos, and markets.

Lin Yuan and Lilia arrived at prosperous Golden Island and headed to the Consortium's headquarters. Lin Yuan claimed VIP status to a local woman, who revealed she was a level-nine VIP and challenged him to name his own rank.

• Lin Yuan reached Golden Island after more than half a day of travel and marveled at its futuristic buildings and bustling streets.
• Lilia called the island an interesting toy because its residents were weak and depended on a few powerful people for protection, prompting Lin Yuan to reflect on humanity's vulnerability.
• Lin Yuan entered the Consortium's headquarters and rode the escalator past locals and Players who exchanged insults but avoided fighting under the island's strict laws.
• Lin Yuan and Lilia continued toward the VIP floors with a middle-aged woman who warned him that only VIPs could enter.
• Lin Yuan said he was a VIP, and the woman announced that she was a level-nine VIP, just one rank below VIC.

Lin Yuan visited the Consortium, where its manager welcomed him as a real VIP and brought him to a restricted negotiation room. The manager explained why he was leaving Instance exploration to focus on headquarters, and Lin Yuan prepared to discuss their business.

• Auntie Zhang explained the Consortium's VIP levels to Lin Yuan, who guessed he was a level-one VIP.
• The manager warmly greeted Lin Yuan as Zero God and escorted him to a restricted negotiation room, surprising Auntie Zhang.
• The manager told Lin Yuan that VIP rankings were for ordinary customers and that the Consortium's higher-ups already knew Lin Yuan's reputation and had arranged to meet him.
• The manager explained that he planned to focus on negotiations at headquarters rather than Instance exploration because he was better suited to office work.
• Lin Yuan accepted the manager's choice, and they arrived in a private room to begin discussing business.

Lin Yuan negotiated with the Consortium manager to trade his East Pole Sea loot for supplies that would strengthen him, while reserving four Relics for exchanges with other Relics. The Consortium valued his goods at eight million Shell Coins, which he chose to spend on supplies, and he was delighted by the abundance of cheap A-rank Transcendent Cores.

• Lin Yuan gave the manager a list of East Pole Sea loot, including Gem-Cured Meat and large quantities of Transcendent Equipment, and the manager assessed its value and quality.
• The manager was astonished to find four Relics on the list, and Lin Yuan said he would trade them only for other Relics, prioritizing quantity over quality.
• Lin Yuan kept the Fake Divine Artisan Core off the list to conceal it from the Crawlers and left behind goods he considered less useful on the Endless Sea.
• The manager estimated the listed goods, excluding the Relics, at eight million Shell Coins and said the Consortium was offering a favorable price to build a long-term relationship.
• Lin Yuan declined payment in Shell Coins and chose to exchange the value for supplies, then found a wide selection of inexpensive A-rank Transcendent Cores in the Consortium’s handbook.