Recaps

Han Shuo mastered Soul Tremor and began studying advanced Necromancy before meeting Gilbert and learning how the Soul Annihilation Mercenary Group had risen in Sun Radiance Valley. He gave Gilbert a Green Dragon’s Magic Beast Core, then visited the Dwarves to arrange custom weapons for the Lizardmen and Brettel City.

• Han Shuo mastered Soul Tremor and began researching the spells for summoning Bone Demons, Old Ghouls, and Mummy Lords.
• Gilbert visited Han Shuo and reported that Trunks had developed the Soul Annihilation Mercenary Group into Sun Radiance Valley’s fifth-largest power.
• Han Shuo gave Gilbert the Green Dragon’s Magic Beast Core, and Gilbert left to swallow it and evolve.
• Han Shuo visited the Dwarves, where Bennett and Calvin welcomed him.
• Han Shuo asked the Dwarves to forge weapons for the Lizardmen and Brettel City, and Calvin agreed to arrange the work.

Han Shuo strengthened three Evil Knights and sent them to serve Little Skeleton, who called him “Father” and revealed that he had gained his own consciousness and powers. Back in Brettel City, Han Shuo found it thriving and considered expanding its army by recruiting the Mountain People, subject to strict conditions.

• The three Evil Knights absorbed Han Shuo’s Natal Blood Essence, and he subdued them, marked them with Darkness Seals, and summoned Little Skeleton to take them.
• Little Skeleton called Han Shuo “Father,” explained that Han Shuo had created him and that he had developed a complete consciousness, then subdued the Evil Knights and took them to his territory in the Otherworld.
• Han Shuo returned to Brettel City and learned that its growing trade, population, and City Guard had helped it prosper while Dokes and Valklan defeated nearby bandit groups.
• Dick told Han Shuo that four Mountain People chiefs wanted to bring their followers into the army, and Han Shuo agreed if their units were broken up, their chiefs began as squad leaders, and the Mountain People served under his commanders.

Han Shuo strengthened Brettel City’s defenses and military forces before learning that Stone Men had attacked miners inside Lingluo Mountain. He went to investigate with Ademan and Delia, and entered the mine after sending a Yin Demon ahead to scout.

• Ademan and the four younger Mountain People chiefs agreed to Han Shuo’s demands, and more than eight thousand Mountain People joined Brettel City’s forces.
• Dokes organized and trained the Mountain People, while Valklan taught them to operate siege equipment; Han Shuo also approved Dokes’s plan to deepen the city’s moats.
• Ademan told Han Shuo that Stone Men had appeared in Lingluo Mountain’s mines and killed more than a dozen miners, so Han Shuo agreed to investigate with Ademan and Delia.
• Delia asked to accompany Han Shuo because her former subordinates still worked at Lingluo Mountain, and he gave her permission.
• At the mine entrance, Han Shuo sent a Yin Demon ahead to scout and told Ademan to wait outside before leading Delia and the others into the tunnel.

Han Shuo discovered that the Stone Men were the souls of dead miners using rocks to form bodies, then captured and subdued them. Following their directions, he found the Metal-Extreme Land, where rich Metal Essence filled a vast chamber.

• Han Shuo led Delia and the miners to the chamber where the Stone Men had appeared and summoned undead warriors to protect the group.
• Eight Stone Men formed from the surrounding rocks and attacked Han Shuo, who smashed their bodies apart with his fists.
• Han Shuo captured the Stone Men’s escaping souls and learned they had been miners who gained power in a strange place filled with a peculiar force.
• Han Shuo arranged for the Stone Men to mine ore for Delia’s group in exchange for living beyond the three caves, and Delia led the miners out.
• Han Shuo followed the Stone Men’s directions through a narrow cave and found the Metal-Extreme Land, filled with Metal Essence and rare ores.

Han Shuo discovered a Metal Element Treasure in the Metal-Extreme Land and arranged for the Stone Men to protect it while he gathered materials for the Golden Armored Corpse. Back in Brettel City, he learned from Dick that the Seven Grand Duchies had united and were preparing to move against the city, and he said he would prevent their armies from joining forces.

• Han Shuo found a golden pillar that he recognized as a Metal Element Treasure, left it untouched, and stationed eight souls to guard the Metal-Extreme Land.
• Han Shuo sealed the caves, told Delia and Ademan that the Stone Men would mine ore for them, and warned them not to enter the Stone Men's territory.
• Delia confessed that she wanted to become Han Shuo's woman, but Han Shuo put off answering and flew back to Brettel City.
• Han Shuo gave Jack a list of materials needed to refine the Golden Armored Corpse, then went to meet Dick at the Dark Curtain base.
• Dick told Han Shuo that the Seven Grand Duchies had ended their hostilities and were likely planning to attack Brettel City.
• Han Shuo told Dick that he had already planned how to keep the Seven Grand Duchies' allied army from uniting.

The Seven Grand Duchies gathered in Sagamil Valley to plan an attack on Brettel City, while Helen Tina struggled with the rumors and her doubts about their chances. Han Shuo infiltrated the meeting grounds and attacked Alec Ambridge, leaving him wounded and convinced Benedict Sackville was behind the attempt.

• The seven dukes argued over command, battle plans, and Brettel City's spoils, while Helen Tina felt isolated and doubted their ability to defeat Han Shuo.
• Helen Tina confided in Fire Phoenix that the rumors about her capture had ruined her standing, and admitted she sometimes wished Han Shuo had truly cared for her.
• Han Shuo overheard Helen Tina's conversation through a yin demon, then hid underground near the central tent and waited for the dukes to leave.
• After nightfall, Han Shuo traveled to Alec Ambridge's camp and attacked him from underground, but Alec used a female knight as a shield and survived with a wounded foot.
• Alec blamed Benedict Sackville for the attack, while Han Shuo withdrew after hearing the accusation and deciding his objective had been achieved.

Han Shuo discovered that the Seven Grand Duchies’ leaders were tied to rival churches and secretly killed officers to inflame their existing rivalries. Their alliance collapsed into mutual suspicion and nighttime assassinations, leaving Han Shuo unable to strike amid the chaos.

• Han Shuo found Zhankesi meeting with Nahum Betch and abandoned his plan to attack the Beasley grand duke.
• Bert Zili met Helen Tina to ask about Brian, then spoke with Woaofu, who urged him to support Brian because of the Skeleton Magic Staff.
• Han Shuo learned that Bert Zili served the Calamity Church and Nahum Betch likely served the Church of Light, then left both unharmed.
• Han Shuo killed six senior officers under Algie Kirans, four under Landy Alard, and three under Alec Ambridge, while Benedict Sackville's tent was burned in a separate attack.
• The attacked duchies blamed one another, and the grand dukes sent assassins through the camps as killings continued for three days.
• Han Shuo found the camps too chaotic to act and called the seven grand dukes a pack of mad dogs.

Han Shuo pursued Helen Tina to collect the 600,000 gold coins she owed him, but their confrontation was interrupted by a rebellion against her. The chapter ended with Helen Tina and the Fire Phoenix trapped by traitors, as Han Shuo stepped in to face them.

• The seven grand dukes' old grudges erupted into open fighting, and Helen Tina left Sagamil Valley to return to the Xilun Duchy.
• Han Shuo confronted Helen Tina at a hot spring and demanded repayment of her 600,000 gold coin debt; she eventually offered to pay to protect the Fire Phoenix.
• Han Shuo sensed people approaching and warned Helen Tina that her duchy was in danger.
• Feluodia arrived with soldiers and demanded Helen Tina surrender, while Aunt Tili trapped Helen Tina and the Fire Phoenix in a magic-sealing net.
• Feluodia revealed he planned to hand Helen Tina over to Grand Duke Benedict Sackville, and Han Shuo announced that he was there.

Han Shuo rescued Helen Tina and the Fire Phoenix from Feluodia and his traitorous forces, then defeated them with his undead army. After demanding repayment of her debt, Han Shuo heard Helen Tina propose marriage with the Xilun Duchy as her dowry.

• Feluodia ordered an Advanced Knight to attack Han Shuo, while his forces restrained Helen Tina and the Fire Phoenix and poisoned the Fire Phoenix with a Demon-Breaking Arrow.
• Han Shuo froze the knight and his horse with Purple Flame, then killed several guards and traitors with Earth Spikes.
• Han Shuo pretended to leave when Helen Tina rejected his offer, but she panicked and agreed to his help; he then summoned an undead legion against Feluodia and his men.
• Han Shuo revealed that he was Brian, the new city lord of Brettel City, and his undead creatures killed Feluodia and the rest of his forces.
• After freeing Helen Tina and demanding repayment, Han Shuo heard her offer to marry him and bring the Xilun Duchy as her dowry.

Han Shuo and Helen Tina negotiated a secret alliance and marriage that would help her secure the Xilun Duchy while advancing his ambitions. After defeating the rebels and healing the Fire Phoenix, Han Shuo agreed to help Helen Tina remove the threats to her rule, and she named Marquis Kekalu as the likely mastermind.

• Helen Tina proposed marrying Han Shuo to restore her standing and offered the Xilun Duchy as her dowry, while Han Shuo set conditions for keeping their relationship secret and preserving her rule.
• Han Shuo demanded Helen Tina's body as a condition, and she agreed only after he eliminated every hidden threat in the duchy.
• Han Shuo's undead army killed Feluodia and the other rebels, then he dismissed the undead and prepared to leave with Helen Tina.
• Han Shuo pulled the poisoned Demon-Breaking Arrow from the Fire Phoenix and drew the poison from her body, restoring her strength.
• Helen Tina identified Marquis Kekalu as the likely force behind Feluodia's rebellion, and Han Shuo offered to go to the Xilun Duchy and destroy the rebels.

Han Shuo returned with Helen to the Xilun Duchy and agreed to help her eliminate Marquis Kekalu, then forced a kiss on her before slipping away as her army approached Xijie City. Kekalu chose to open the gates and welcome Helen, unaware that Han Shuo was nearby and preparing to strike.

• Helen concealed Feluodia’s betrayal and told her followers that assassins had attacked them, then led her thirty thousand elite troops back toward the Xilun Duchy with Han Shuo following unseen.
• As Helen’s army neared Xijie City, Han Shuo proposed killing Kekalu and his heirs so Helen could seize control of the city, and Helen agreed that he should help carry out her plan.
• Han Shuo kissed Helen in the carriage, apologized with a cup of wine, then licked her neck and vanished in a wisp of gray mist before the army reached the city.
• Kekalu’s administrator and son Kexijia urged him to keep Helen’s forces outside Xijie City, but Kekalu argued that he lacked a reason to rebel and that open conflict would devastate the duchy.
• Kekalu ordered the gates opened and went out to welcome Helen, unaware that Han Shuo posed a deadly threat.

Helen welcomed Han Shuo to Xijie City and asked him to bring Kekalu to her so she could kill him herself. Han Shuo broke into Kekalu’s castle, stopped the plot against Helen, and began killing those responsible.

• Helen refused Kekalu’s banquet and told Han Shuo she wanted to kill Kekalu, who had murdered her birth mother.
• Han Shuo comforted Helen and promised to bring Kekalu to her, then left for the castle.
• Kekalu, Kexijia, and Administrator Moli plotted to lure Helen to Kexijia’s wedding and capture her for Benedict Sackville.
• Han Shuo cut through the castle’s reinforced floor, mangled Kexijia’s arm, and pinned Kekalu’s hand to a wall with the Demon-Slaying Edge.
• Han Shuo learned that Kekalu had no other eligible heirs and broke Administrator Moli’s neck.

Han Shuo killed Kexijia and secretly brought the unconscious Kekalu to Helen, who finally took revenge on her enemy. Afterward, Helen and Han Shuo washed off the blood together, and their growing intimacy left Helen wondering if he would become her man.

• Han Shuo killed Kexijia, told Kekalu that the rest of his family was dead, and knocked Kekalu unconscious with Soul Tremor.
• Han Shuo carried Kekalu through underground tunnels to Helen’s manor, where Helen asked whether Han Shuo was safe before confronting her captured enemy.
• Han Shuo left Helen alone with Kekalu and studied how to summon powerful undead creatures while she killed him.
• Helen emerged covered in blood, embraced Han Shuo as she wept, and explained that Fire Phoenix stayed away from crowds.
• Helen led Han Shuo to the bathing room to wash off the blood, and she gazed at him while wondering if he would become her man.

Han Shuo helped Helen plan to restore order in the Xilun Duchy and arrange trade with Brettel City after wiping out the Kekalu Family. He contacted Dark Curtain operatives in Xijie City, then returned to the Death Cemetery to collect the twelve Xuan Demons.

• Han Shuo and Helen agreed to arrange a secret exchange of Xilun warhorses for Lancelot Empire weapons and grain, while Helen prepared to seize control of Xijie City.
• Han Shuo warned Helen to protect herself and disguise the aftermath of the Kekalu Family massacre as an attack by assassins from the Nathan Duchy.
• Han Shuo crossed chaotic Xijie City and met Dark Curtain agents led by Delant, then sent a letter to Dick and warned the agents to keep their identities secret.
• Han Shuo traveled outside the city, used the Earth Armor Zombie to create a cavern, and teleported back to the Death Cemetery.
• Han Shuo expected the twelve Xuan Demons to have finished forming and planned to use them to observe events throughout Xijie City.

Han Shuo completed the creation of twelve Xuan Demons, brought the Water Armored Corpse out of Sun Radiance Valley, and met with Trunks to discuss the growing tensions there. He then collected weapons for the Lizardmen and traveled toward their territory, considering how his allies might form a powerful force in the Dark Forest.

• Han Shuo released his Yin Demon for the twelve newly formed Xuan Demons to devour, then learned how they could scout, possess people, and serve as powerful assistants.
• Han Shuo went to Sun Radiance Valley, retrieved the Water Armored Corpse from the Water-Extreme Land, marked him, and sent him with Little Skeleton to Death Paradise.
• Han Shuo met Trunks and learned that the other mercenary groups were wary of the Soul Annihilation Mercenary Group, while Trunks and Janet planned revenge against Florida, Butcher Gustav, and Bradley Pilon.
• Han Shuo offered to kill Butcher Gustav and Florida, but Trunks insisted on taking revenge himself; Han Shuo warned him that Gilbert remained away during his evolution.
• Han Shuo collected more than a thousand weapons from the dwarves and traveled toward the Lizardmen, reflecting on the forces he might unite in the Dark Forest.

Han Shuo arrived at the Lizardmen settlement and learned that the Dark Elf matriarch Adair was leading a force against them while fearing the Lizard Progenitor King Daxiaxi. After Han Shuo armed the Lizardmen and sent out his Xuan Demons, Adair ordered Xikang to find him, but Han Shuo broke free of Xikang’s trap and sent him fleeing.

• Han Shuo tunneled into the Lizardmen’s central cavern and learned from their leader that Adair had united the Dark Elves and was attacking them.
• Han Shuo gave the Lizardmen weapons and released twelve Xuan Demons to watch the caves and the Dark Elves.
• Adair discussed her fear of Daxiaxi with her ancient followers, then sent Xikang into the caves to find Han Shuo.
• Xikang used a blue crystal ball to map the cave passages and ensnared Han Shuo in a web of blue strands.
• Han Shuo cut through Xikang’s web with the Demon-Slaying Edge, and Xikang fled in fear.

Han Shuo drove Xikang from the Lizardmen’s caves, and Adair punished her failed elder before summoning Han Shuo to negotiate. Han Shuo admitted Daxiaxi had left and challenged Adair to decide how she wanted to test him.

• Han Shuo’s Bloodlight Myriad Blades Slash chased Xikang through the cave, killing young Dark Elves who tried to protect him before Lolth’s Divine Power let Xikang escape.
• Xikang reported his failure to Adair, who bound and nearly killed him before withdrawing her black light and sparing him.
• Adair ordered the Dark Elves out of the caves and called for Han Shuo to come talk.
• Han Shuo emerged from the cave as the Lizardman chief and his people gathered behind him.
• Han Shuo confirmed Daxiaxi had left, promised to help the Lizardmen resist enslavement, and invited Adair to test his strength.

Han Shuo used the Skeleton Magic Staff to make Dark Elf Matriarch Adair believe he was a high-ranking member of the Calamity Church, persuading her to leave the Lizardmen alone. Adair brought him to the Dark Elf territory and welcomed him with five attendants.

• Adair flirted with Han Shuo and challenged him to prove his strength before she noticed his Skeleton Magic Staff and assumed he belonged to the Calamity Church.
• Han Shuo claimed the Calamity Church protected the Lizardmen, and Adair agreed not to attack them and invited him to visit the Dark Elf territory.
• Han Shuo assured the Lizardman chief that the Dark Elves would leave his people alone, then departed with Adair.
• Adair questioned Han Shuo about his position as they traveled, while he avoided revealing that he knew nothing about the Calamity Church.
• Adair showed Han Shuo the Underground World's sights and led him into the Dark Elf forest, where she introduced him to her people and palace.
• Adair summoned five beautiful female Dark Elves and told them to take care of Han Shuo.

Han Shuo accepted Adair’s hospitality while his Xuan Demons gathered information, and Adair’s elders learned of his ties to the Calamity Church, the Lament of Darkness, and Gilbert. When Adair came upstairs, Han Shuo drained her power and killed her as the Dark Elf elders arrived to confront him.

• Adair arranged for five Dark Elf women to entertain Han Shuo while he secretly sent Xuan Demons to follow her and scout the territory.
• Adair questioned Xikang and a young Dark Elf about Han Shuo, learned that he had taken the Lament of Darkness and might be accompanied by Gilbert, and decided not to provoke him.
• After Han Shuo subdued the five women, Adair went upstairs and joined him.
• Han Shuo absorbed Adair’s power, causing her to age rapidly and die, while the Dark Elf elders rushed in after hearing her cries for help.
• Han Shuo dressed, told the elders Adair was dead, and threatened to kill them as well.

Han Shuo helped five Dark Elf women kill Adair and the elders who had seized power, then agreed to trade the Lament of Darkness for gold and arrange future commerce. The women prepared to take control of the Dark Elves, while Han Shuo left with a new trading alliance.

• Xikang tried to negotiate with Han Shuo, but five naked Dark Elf women rushed into the elders’ arms and stabbed them.
• Han Shuo killed an elder who survived the ambush, and Xialan asked why he had killed Adair after refusing to help them.
• Han Shuo explained that Adair had secretly put two poisonous spiders inside him, so he absorbed her strange power and killed her.
• Han Shuo agreed to give Xialan the Lament of Darkness in exchange for five hundred thousand gold coins and a promise to leave the Lizardmen alone.
• Xialan proposed long-term trade between the Underground World and the surface, and Han Shuo agreed.

Han Shuo discovered how to summon an Old Ghoul successfully by forging its contract while it was weakened in the spatial tunnel. Meanwhile, a blue bead transformed a praying Dark Elf girl, who vowed revenge on Brian.

• The Blue Bead gathered power from Adair and the dead elven elders, then entered a young Dark Elf girl praying in Lolth's temple and transformed her.
• The transformed girl recovered and swore to make Brian suffer and kill him.
• Han Shuo summoned an Old Ghoul, but it attacked him because the contract had not been properly established, so he sent it back to the Otherworld.
• Han Shuo studied his necromancy book and realized he needed to forge the contract while the Old Ghoul was weakened inside the spatial tunnel.
• Han Shuo summoned another Old Ghoul and formed the contract during its transit, successfully making it obey his commands.

Han Shuo arrived in Xijie City and found Helen had secured control of the Xilun Duchy after publicly proving her innocence and purging her political enemies. Helen rejected Benedict Sackville's renewed advances and admitted her growing feelings for Han Shuo, who visited her to discuss secret trade and asked her for a kiss.

• Han Shuo reached Xijie City and learned from Delant that Helen had taken control of the city and the Xilun Duchy.
• Brettel City's statement and an examination by respected women confirmed that Helen was still a virgin, winning back the citizens' trust.
• Helen used her restored standing to eliminate disloyal nobles, while Benedict Sackville sent her a love letter that she tore up.
• Helen told the Fire Phoenix that she no longer hated Han Shuo and believed he could give her what Benedict could not.
• Han Shuo arrived at Helen's residence to discuss secret transactions, and Helen sent the Fire Phoenix away so they could speak privately.
• Han Shuo agreed to give Helen more time before she shared his bed, but demanded a kiss; Helen kissed him after he teased that he would otherwise kiss her in front of the others.

Han Shuo arranged secret trade between the Xilun Duchy and Lancelot Empire merchants, then stayed two days with Helen before planning to leave and extend his influence over the Seven Grand Duchies. Helen warned him that National Preceptor Stassom, a long-lived Sword Saint secluded in Thorn Valley, would defend the duchies if they faced destruction.

• Helen introduced Fubin'en and the Lancelot Empire merchants to local merchants and ordered them to conduct their trade secretly under her protection.
• Han Shuo told Helen that the new trade route would let the Xilun Duchy bypass the Nathan Duchy, then decided to leave and seek chances to control other grand dukes.
• Helen asked Han Shuo to stay, and he agreed to spend two days with her while Fire Phoenix left them alone.
• Han Shuo and Helen secretly toured the Xilun Duchy, growing more intimate as they visited its scenic places.
• Helen warned Han Shuo that National Preceptor Stassom lived in seclusion in Thorn Valley and would aid the Seven Grand Duchies against a foreign invasion.

Han Shuo waited for a chance to possess Grand Duke Benedict Sackville, but an uncontrolled surge of lust led him to enter Benedict’s secret manor and sleep with Lady Dibit and Diya Li. The power within Han Shuo then erupted into a struggle in the Death Cemetery, while a young woman at a Spider Goddess Lolth altar suffered the backlash of her attempt to control him.

• Han Shuo reached Benedict Sackville’s residence and spent five days waiting for a safe opportunity to implant a Xuan Demon in the grand duke’s mind.
• Han Shuo followed Benedict to a secret manor and discovered that Marquis Dibit had sent Lady Dibit and Diya Li to serve him in exchange for a military post for their son and brother.
• Han Shuo’s lust surged as the power he had absorbed from Adair stirred, and he entered Benedict’s room under cover of Dark Mist.
• Han Shuo knocked Benedict unconscious and gave in to the lewd power with Lady Dibit and Diya Li before escaping to the Death Cemetery.
• Han Shuo fought the harmful power within him by unleashing the baleful energy of the Demon-Slaying Edge, eventually overcoming the forces inside his body.
• At a temple to Spider Goddess Lolth, a young woman spat blood and endured bloody welts after her attempt to imprison Han Shuo with divine power failed.

After recovering from his injuries in the Death Cemetery, Han Shuo read Emily’s letter about Lawrence’s worsening position and decided to return to Osen City to help him. He discussed Adair, the Spider Goddess Lolth, and the limits on divine power with Gilbert, then sent Gilbert to support Trunks in Sun Radiance Valley.

• Han Shuo recovered from his wounds and strengthened his body by meditating beneath a waterfall.
• Han Shuo found Emily’s hidden letter, learned Lawrence was threatened by the succession struggle in Osen City, and decided to help him.
• Han Shuo learned that Gilbert had reached the second rank of Super-tier Magical Beasts after absorbing the Green Dragon’s Magic Beast Core.
• Han Shuo told Gilbert that Adair’s power had caused a backlash and that he suspected Lolth had intervened; Gilbert said gods were constrained by the laws of their plane.
• Han Shuo sent Gilbert to Sun Radiance Valley to assist Trunks and asked him to contact his grandfather in Black Dragon City.
• Han Shuo entered the Teleportation Array to return to Osen City.