Chapter Summaries

Lu Xiao and Calamity helped Niu Ben cheat on the first trial by changing the names on the other Minotaurs’ answer tablets. The results named Niu Ben first through eighth, while Lu Xiao and Calamity placed ninth and tenth, and an elder fixed his attention on Niu Ben.

• Lu Xiao refused to guess what the Minotaur elders would ask in the next trial and planned to wait for the results before Calamity used his ability to help Niu Ben.
• As the exam ended, Calamity subtly resonated with the earth and changed the name field on every tablet except their own to Niu Ben.
• Niu Ben worried he had failed, but Calamity assured him he would rank in the top ten.
• The next morning, Lu Xiao found Niu Ben listed in the first eight places, with Er Niu ninth and Niu San tenth.
• A Minotaur elder searched the crowd, spotted Niu Ben, and stared at him with a dark expression.

Lu Xiao learned that Calamity had secretly restrained the other candidates, allowing Niu Ben to become chief without a second trial. The elders then revealed that Lu Xiao had answered only one question correctly, leaving him stunned.

• A Minotaur elder brought Niu Ben, Lu Xiao, and Calamity before the elders, where Elder Niu Gong praised Niu Ben for supposedly bribing the other candidates.
• Calamity told Lu Xiao that he had used earth to restrain the other candidates so they could not interfere with Niu Ben becoming chief.
• The elders announced that Niu Ben had become the new chief and would not need to take part in a second round of the trial.
• Elder Niu Gong told Lu Xiao that he had answered only one of the five questions correctly and had left the last blank.
• Calamity gloated that Lu Xiao should have compared answers with him.

Lu Xiao and Calamity discovered that they had badly misjudged the Minotaurs’ elementary math questions, while Niu Ben became the tribe’s new chieftain. Back at their quarters, Lu Xiao admitted he needed to retake elementary school math, leaving Calamity baffled.

• Niu Gong called out Niu San for getting every question wrong, and Lu Xiao challenged the results.
• Lu Xiao examined the answer tablets and realized he had made mistakes on the second and third questions.
• Niu Gong assigned Lu Xiao and Calamity as guards to the newly appointed chieftain, Niu Ben.
• The elders announced Niu Ben as the Minotaur Tribe’s new chieftain, and the tribespeople celebrated him.
• Back at their quarters, Lu Xiao told Calamity he needed to retake elementary school math, and Calamity wondered if he had been possessed.

Antie endured the painful fusion of two incompatible authorities while Futiya guarded him at their Wilderness settlement. Ge'en suspected Antie was weakened and tried to conceal his interest in Futiya, but she rejected the murky water he offered.

• Antie told Futiya to call him Icarus and to report anything important rather than offer comfort while he fused authorities.
• Futiya guarded the entrance to Antie's underground hideout, which had been left by a Hell Worm and taken over by Wanderers.
• Ge'en approached and tried to look inside, but Futiya blocked him and warned him not to disturb the resting leader.
• Ge'en saw Antie's pained expression and suspected he was weakened, then offered Futiya a waterskin while pretending he had brought it for Antie.
• Futiya sniffed the foul, murky water and refused to take it inside to Antie.

Yi Hao and Ruiqi prepared to announce the Succubus Clan’s relationship with the Holy City at a press conference, while Yi Hao warned her that otherworld visitors would exploit Hell’s powers for their own survival. He left Ruiqi with a reminder that Lu Xiao’s goodness was not meant for her and that only those who stood beside them counted as their own.

• Futiya tossed aside a waterskin while continuing to serve as Antie’s guard, and Antie remained hidden after faking her death.
• Yi Hao and Ruiqi appeared before more than a hundred King-level information brokers, drawing attention for their fine clothing.
• Yi Hao warned Ruiqi that publicizing the alliance with the Holy City could prompt covert attacks on the Succubus Clan.
• Ruiqi reminded Yi Hao that the Allied Army had already targeted her clan, and Yi Hao said Lu Xiao’s arrangements had kept the previous crisis from causing losses.
• Yi Hao told Ruiqi that Otherworld Visitors would abandon the Holy City or Succubus Clan once they had no further use for them.
• When Ruiqi asked whether Lu Xiao was a good person, Yi Hao said he could be, but not for her, and that only those who stood beside them were truly their own.

Yi Hao warned Ruiqi that the factions defeated by the Holy City would turn their revenge on the Succubus Clan, leaving it dependent on the Holy City for protection. After explaining that Antie had already prepared the Settlement for evacuation and survival, Yi Hao turned his attention to the information brokers below.

• Yi Hao reminded Ruiqi that the factions had originally targeted the Outsiders and would now seek revenge on the Succubus Clan after their defeat.
• Ruiqi realized Yi Hao had left her clan no choice but to join the Holy City’s camp and accused him of being ruthless.
• Yi Hao promised the Holy City would supply resources and reinforcements if the Succubus Clan stood with them.
• Ruiqi recalled that Antie had concentrated resources on elite fighters and dispersed ordinary clan members, leaving the Settlement nearly empty.
• Yi Hao privately credited Antie’s preparations, then turned toward the information brokers and declared he would show them the wisdom of the Human Race.

Yi Hao used a press conference in Hell to honor the assassinated Antie and accuse unnamed enemies of obstructing the Holy City's reforms. He announced that His Majesty had approved a deadly response, leaving the intelligence brokers expecting another war.

• Yi Hao addressed the gathered intelligence brokers and observed three minutes of silence with Ruiqi for Antie.
• Yi Hao described Antie as His Majesty’s envoy to reform the Succubus Clan and claimed his assassination was meant to stop shared prosperity.
• Yi Hao announced that he had investigated the assassination and reported his findings to His Majesty.
• Yi Hao declared that those obstructing salvation must die, prompting an uproar as the brokers anticipated a war of extermination.

Yi Hao held a limited free question session for the information brokers, while Amilia secretly guided them toward probing his limits. Yi Hao explained the Holy City’s alliance with the Succubus Clan and its pilot program, but refused to discuss the clan’s role in the recent chaotic battle, leaving the brokers to confer again.

• Yi Hao offered to answer a limited number of questions for free, and the information brokers discussed how to test his limits.
• Amilia followed Yi Hao’s instructions and advised the brokers to begin with an inconsequential question before gradually probing further.
• The brokers chose Amilia to represent them, and he asked about the Holy City’s relationship with the Succubus Clan, why it had been selected for the pilot program, and its role in the recent chaotic battle.
• Yi Hao said the Succubus Clan was an ally chosen because it had room to grow, but refused to reveal its role in the battle and said the answer was irrelevant.
• The information brokers began another round of discussion about Yi Hao’s limits.

Two deity-level information brokers suspected Amilia had joined the Holy City and asked him to arrange their own entry, fearing Ding Dan would punish brokers who profited from both sides after unifying Hell. Amilia denied joining and refused to help, while the two claimed to have evidence that they had deliberately kept secret.

• Two deity-level information brokers confronted Amilia about whether he had joined the Holy City, citing the material of his clothes as evidence of a connection to the High Priest.
• Amilia admitted the High Priest had given him the clothes as payment for information but denied that it proved he had taken sides.
• The two brokers revealed they wanted Amilia to help them join the Holy City, fearing Ding Dan would target them once Hell was unified.
• Amilia said he had no reason to help them, pointing to their past rivalry and mistreatment of him.
• The brokers offered to pay Amilia resources and warned that their hidden evidence of his connection had not spread because they had kept it from becoming public.

Amilia met with two powerful information-broker deities who offered him half their accumulated wealth to help them seize control of the Holy City's intelligence network. He rejected their plan and warned them that the Holy City would not let them undermine it from within.

• Amilia pretended that life in the Holy City was miserable and waited for the two deities to make an offer.
• The Nightmare Demon and Wind Elf deities offered Amilia fifty percent of their information-trading wealth.
• Amilia asked whether they could pay him in water, but the deities said they could not provide enough quickly.
• The Nightmare Demon revealed that they wanted a monopoly over the Holy City's intelligence channels.
• The Wind Elf argued that they could take over the channels through the independent brokers, but Amilia rejected the idea and warned them about the Holy City's leaders.

Amilia and the King-level information brokers asked Yi Hao who assassinated Antie. Yi Hao argued that a nightmare demon’s dream ability was the only way to kill Antie and his guard Futiya without a struggle, and his accusation left the nightmare demon deity isolated and furious.

• Amilia declined to join the two deities in pursuing resources, then agreed to ask the group’s second question.
• Amilia asked Yi Hao who had assassinated Antie.
• Yi Hao explained that Antie and Futiya, a powerful succubus guard, had both been killed in a single blow without signs of battle.
• Yi Hao argued that the killer must have used an ability to incapacitate victims unknowingly and pointed toward the nightmare demon deity.
• Yi Hao denied directly accusing the nightmare demon deity, but claimed a nightmare demon could have drawn Antie into a dreamscape; the wind elf deity stepped away, and the nightmare demon deity grew furious.

Yi Hao accused the Nightmare Demon Clan and the Wind Elf Group of carrying out Antie and Futiya’s assassination, stirring suspicion between Slian and Sestie. Meanwhile, Lu Xiao learned that the Elders’ Council had dismissed the examinees whose papers Calamity altered, and decided to investigate.

• Yi Hao proposed that the Nightmare Demon leader controlled the victims’ dreams while a speed-skilled deity carried out the murders, then pointed suspicion at Sestie.
• Slian and Sestie recognized that Yi Hao was blaming their peoples and exchanged a solemn glance.
• Amilia privately enjoyed seeing his rival businessmen Slian and Sestie caught up in the accusations.
• Calamity told Lu Xiao that the Elders’ Council had thrown out the examinees whose papers he had altered without hearing their explanations.
• Lu Xiao suspected the elders had another reason for dismissing the examinees and decided to visit the Elders’ Council.

Lu Xiao and Calamity met Elder Niu Bo, who explained that the Minotaur Tribe deliberately appeared ignorant to survive and that Niu Ben's rise to chief had been arranged. Niu Bo revealed that Hell was nearing a final battle in which the victor would inherit the power and authority of the being whose corpse formed the land.

• Lu Xiao and Calamity visited Elder Niu Bo, who identified them as Otherworld Visitors responsible for destroying the Flame Demon Clan and said he meant them no harm.
• Niu Bo admitted that Niu Ben's test was a formality and that the elders' interviews would have secured his position as chief regardless.
• Niu Bo explained that the Minotaur Tribe cultivated a reputation for ignorance so other races would underestimate them and leave them in peace.
• Lu Xiao questioned why Niu Bo trusted an outsider with the truth, and Niu Bo said Lu Xiao's arrival had given him a chance to step into the spotlight.
• Niu Bo revealed that Hell was one vast battlefield and that its final victor would inherit the power and authority of the fallen being whose body formed the land.

Niu Bo told Lu Xiao that the Great Lord held the corrupted Tyrant Authority and that the final battle’s prize was a different, dangerous Authority. Lu Xiao agreed to ally with Niu Bo’s tribe, then left with Calamity for the Holy City to check on Ding Dan.

• Niu Bo revealed that the Great Lord’s Authority was the corrupted Tyrant Authority, which was driving him toward madness, and warned that the final prize was something else.
• Niu Bo asked Lu Xiao and Calamity to join forces with his tribe so it could earn a ticket to the final battle, offering his tribe’s resources and fighters in return for the victor’s power.
• Calamity rejected the Authority, warning that it could carry a dead god’s madness or consciousness, and Lu Xiao agreed to work with Niu Bo without promising victory.
• Niu Bo proposed moving his tribe to Lu Xiao’s world if they lost, and Lu Xiao accepted the plan while privately considering how difficult it might be for them to leave.
• Lu Xiao and Calamity left the Minotaur Tribe and headed to the Holy City to see what was happening with Ding Dan.

Lu Xiao and Calamity discussed their involvement in Hell’s dangerous conflict, while Yi Hao offered the Nightmare Demon and Wind Elf deities positions leading the Holy City’s intelligence organization. The two deities heard his proposal and were invited to meet His Majesty to discuss their compensation.

• Calamity questioned why Lu Xiao was entering Hell’s conflict, and Lu Xiao explained that they were already caught in the chess player’s game and could not simply withdraw.
• Calamity offered to ask his new Lord for help after their work in Hell was finished, and Lu Xiao privately felt guilty about the Present World’s connection to Calamity’s home planet being destroyed.
• At Gentleman's Paradise, Yi Hao met with Nightmare Demon deity Slian and Wind Elf deity Sestie after his press conference had helped establish Antie’s death.
• Yi Hao told Slian and Sestie that he wanted them to join the Holy City and command its new intelligence organization.
• Yi Hao invited both deities to return with him and discuss their compensation with His Majesty.

Yi Hao arranged for two deities to accompany him to the Holy City, while Antie risked his life fusing the authorities of water and fire. As Antie reached the critical stage, Ge'en tried to persuade Futiya to help him kill and consume Chief Icarus.

• Yi Hao secured the two deities' agreement to go to the Holy City, and Amilia realized they would fall under Ding Dan's power there.
• Antie endured the painful fusion of the water and fire authorities using his understanding of how the elements were connected.
• Futiya guarded the entrance while Antie underwent the dangerous fusion.
• Ge'en proposed that he and Futiya consume the weakened Chief Icarus and claim his divinity or authority.
• Futiya spat at Ge'en, who declared that he loved her and offered her all of Icarus's divinity.

Futiya used her charm to turn the Wanderers against Ge'en while she tried to buy Antie time. Ge'en killed them all and declared himself the strongest, as Futiya watched, exhausted.

• Futiya concealed her disgust and used her Succubus charm to enthrall the Wanderers.
• Futiya persuaded the weaker Wanderers to gouge out their eyes, then turned them against Ge'en by saying she would belong to the strongest.
• Ge'en resisted her influence and fought off the Wanderers, killing many with his brute strength.
• Futiya stayed back to protect Antie and struggled to maintain her charm as the battle wore on.
• Ge'en killed the last Wanderer, turned to Futiya, and claimed he had proved himself the strongest.

Antie emerged from the cave after Futiya exhausted herself fighting Ge'en, then killed Ge'en by manipulating the fluids in his body until they froze. To reward Futiya for protecting him, Antie restored her skin to an even better condition than it had been in her girlhood.

• Futiya, weakened and near defeat, saw Antie emerge from the cave surrounded by white smoke.
• Antie thanked Futiya for her efforts and intimidated Ge'en, who tried in vain to beg for mercy.
• Antie explained that he heated the fluids inside Ge'en's body, then turned them into ice, freezing Ge'en into a statue.
• Antie told Futiya he would reward her for protecting him, and her skin became soft and youthful.
• Futiya examined her reflection in Antie's water curtain and saw that her skin looked better than it had in her girlhood.

Lu Xiao and Calamity arrived in the Holy City and learned from its newly appointed Minister of Internal Affairs, Kirk, why salt was piled throughout the city. The chapter left Lu Xiao suspecting that the High Priest planned to build the Holy City’s buildings from salt bricks.

• Antie healed Futiya, ordered her to count the remaining Wanderers, and watched her leave as his face twitched and madness showed in his eyes.
• Lu Xiao and Calamity found that the Holy City’s warehouses had been demolished and replaced by piles of salt.
• Kirk greeted Lu Xiao, explained that His Majesty had made him Minister of Internal Affairs, and praised Lu Xiao.
• Lu Xiao asked Kirk about the salt, and Kirk said the High Priest had ordered it kept and might use it to build the Holy City’s buildings.

Lu Xiao visited Ding Dan and realized that he was deliberately becoming a Tyrant to understand the Chess Players, despite knowing the cost. Ding Dan explained that their “vegetable farmer” was dead, leaving the story with the force that had nurtured them gone.

• Lu Xiao questioned Kirk about Ding Dan’s mood, then decided to keep a closer watch on him.
• Kirk announced Lu Xiao’s arrival, and Lu Xiao and Calamity flew to Ding Dan’s bedchamber.
• Lu Xiao borrowed Confusion and had Calamity try to restrain Ding Dan, but Ding Dan remained hovering above the fallen throne.
• Ding Dan said Confusion could not change his resolve: he had chosen to become a Tyrant to understand the Chess Players.
• Ding Dan compared their growth to seedlings needing a farmer’s care, then said their vegetable farmer was dead.