Chapter Summaries

Xu Xiao awakened in Demacia as Anais, a seventeen-year-old mage imprisoned after his uncontrolled magic killed thirteen people. He studied the petricite shackles that drained his magic and sought advice from another captive, but the man dismissed his escape plans and fell silent.

• Xu Xiao absorbed Anais’s memories and realized he was imprisoned in a Demacian dungeon for causing a deadly magical explosion.
• Xu Xiao wondered where the monkey had reincarnated and decided to focus on understanding his new body’s magic.
• Xu Xiao sensed that his body absorbed magic particles but that the petricite shackles drained the magic as soon as it formed.
• Xu Xiao asked a fellow captive about petricite and proposed escaping together, but the man dismissed his chances and refused to answer further.
• Xu Xiao continued studying the shackles, convinced he could find a way to break free.

Luxanna secretly visited Sylas in the dungeon and sought his help controlling her increasingly unruly light magic. Xu Xiao listened in and suspected Luxanna was connected to Sylas's escape plan, while Sylas continued preparing for his own purposes.

• Luxanna slipped past the guards and went to visit Sylas in the depths of the dungeon.
• Xu Xiao noticed Luxanna's visit and used a magical pattern to sharpen his hearing and eavesdrop.
• Sylas greeted Luxanna with feigned excitement and asked whether her magic had been troubling her.
• Luxanna showed Sylas her glowing hands and explained that her magic was becoming harder to conceal.
• Sylas advised Luxanna to master her magic or channel it into Petricite, and she drained it into her shackles while he watched with satisfaction.

Xu Xiao learned that Sylas was using Lux to fill his Petricite shackles with magic and tried to arrange a mutual escape. Sylas refused to help unless Xu Xiao agreed to follow his orders, so Xu Xiao resolved to pursue his own escape plan.

• After Lux left the dungeon, Xu Xiao realized Sylas was using her to charge his Petricite shackles with magic.
• Xu Xiao asked Sylas how soon he could escape, and the other prisoners revealed by their reactions that they knew about Sylas's plan.
• Sylas silenced the prisoners and asked whether Xu Xiao wanted to join his escape effort.
• Xu Xiao offered to help Sylas or be taken along in exchange, but refused to follow Sylas's command after they escaped.
• Sylas rejected the deal, confident that Lux only needed to channel magic into his shackles once more.
• Xu Xiao decided to continue his own plan, estimating he could spread magical markings across all four limbs in about five days and break his shackles.

Lux resisted Tianna’s order to marry Prince Jarvan, while Tianna arranged for a mage to be executed. In prison, Xu Xiao developed Arcane Energy, broke free, and led the other mages out while leaving Sylas behind.

• Tianna told Lux that she had to become Prince Jarvan’s fiancée to serve the Crownguard Family, and Lux returned to her room upset.
• Tianna ordered her guard to execute a mage who had opposed her plans for Lux.
• Xu Xiao tested his will-infused elemental Arcane Energy, which the Petricite restraints could not absorb.
• Xu Xiao shattered his shackles and freed the other imprisoned mages, drawing Sylas’s attention.
• Xu Xiao led the freed mages out through a broken wall and left Sylas locked in his cell.

After escaping the Mageseeker dungeon with the other mages, Xu Xiao parted from them and returned to the Great City of Demacia to prepare for his journey. He entered the Delta Merchant Guild disguised as a farmer and used a pouch of gold to gain access to its second floor.

• Tianna learned that the Mageseeker dungeon's prisoners had escaped and went to interrogate Sylas, who had been left behind and was being tortured.
• Xu Xiao refused to lead the escaped mages farther, advised them to stay together, and watched them depart.
• Xu Xiao decided to return to Demacia for money, a map, and information before traveling farther.
• Xu Xiao hid his magic patterns, disguised himself as a farmer, and entered the Great City of Demacia.
• At the Delta Merchant Guild, Xu Xiao showed the clerk his gold pouch, and she led him upstairs.

Xu Xiao negotiated with Milra of the Delta Merchant Guild for supplies and an unregistered map of the continent, using fake gold to secure the deal. After the guild prepared his goods, Milra insisted that armed guards accompany him to collect the remaining payment, and Xu Xiao agreed.

• Xu Xiao posed as a wealthy gold prospector and asked Milra to sell him clothes, preserved food, weapons, lightweight armor, and a detailed continental map.
• Milra said the guild could provide the supplies but that selling a map to an unfamiliar customer required registration with the kingdom.
• Xu Xiao pretended to leave, and Milra offered to sell the map secretly for an extra fee of one hundred ounces of pure gold.
• Xu Xiao handed Milra his pouch of magically altered stones as a deposit and waited while she prepared his order.
• Milra presented the supplies and map, then had armored caravan guards appear to accompany Xu Xiao to collect the remaining payment.
• Xu Xiao accepted Milra's offer of an escort.

Xu Xiao traveled from the Great City of Demacia with the Delta Merchant Guild, but discovered that the caravan guards planned to rob him. After killing them and taking the original map, he chose to head for the Immortal Bastion in Noxus to search for traces of the monkey's reincarnation.

• Xu Xiao left the Great City of Demacia in the Delta Merchant Guild's carriage and suspected its armed guards had more than escorting him in mind.
• Near Edessa, Pidun confronted Xu Xiao and demanded the original map, then attacked him with an enchanted sword.
• Xu Xiao killed Pidun and the caravan guards with elemental magic, and recovered the map and some coins.
• Xu Xiao studied the map and decided to travel to the Immortal Bastion in Noxus to use its power and spells to help find the monkey.
• Xu Xiao buried the corpses and traces with earth magic before setting out for Noxian territory.

Katarina traveled to the Demacian border to create a diversion, but when she spied on Xu Xiao in the mountains, he mistook her killing intent for a threat and attacked. The chapter ended with Xu Xiao unleashing a 360-degree barrage of Arcane Fusion Missiles as Katarina tried to escape.

• Kelrak received orders to accept willing Demacian mage defectors and send the others back with food.
• Katarina arrived at Kelrak’s camp, confirmed she would enter Demacia to stir up trouble at the border, and rested after days of travel.
• Xu Xiao traveled through the mountains toward Noxus, avoiding Demacian patrols and expecting to reach the border the next day.
• Katarina spied on Xu Xiao, and he sensed her killing intent and counterattacked with wind blades and fireballs.
• Katarina used Shunpo and a space-magic dagger to evade Xu Xiao’s attacks, while he prepared a ring of blazing earthen spheres.
• Xu Xiao unleashed a 360-degree barrage of Arcane Fusion Missiles as Katarina attempted to flee.

Xu Xiao survived Katarina’s attack and captured her with an arcane chain after recognizing her as the Noxian assassin. Katarina feared she had failed her mission as Xu Xiao landed in front of her.

• Xu Xiao sensed that the person who had spied on him was alive and charging toward him.
• Katarina returned through the burning forest, enraged by Xu Xiao’s attack and determined to kill him.
• Katarina used Death Lotus to throw more than a hundred magic-breaking daggers at Xu Xiao.
• Xu Xiao blocked the daggers with an arcane shield and restrained Katarina with a lightning-clad chain.
• Katarina’s rune equipment shattered, and she fell to the muddy ground, bound and unable to act.

Xu Xiao tortured Katarina for information after mistaking her for an assassin sent by Noxus, but learned that she had mistaken him for a Demacian mage and attacked out of habit and wounded pride. The misunderstanding left Katarina furious and Xu Xiao realizing he had acted too quickly.

• Xu Xiao stopped Katarina from swallowing a poison tooth, searched her for hidden suicide tools, and demanded to know why she had come after him.
• When Katarina refused to answer, Xu Xiao tortured her with lightning and threatened to hand her over to a Demacian outpost.
• Katarina asked whether Xu Xiao was really on Demacia's side, and he told her he had killed Demacians while escaping their Great City.
• Xu Xiao realized Katarina might have mistaken him for someone else, and she explained that she had spied on him because she thought he was a Demacian mage.
• Katarina admitted she had attacked out of habit and returned after fleeing because she could not accept being blasted by a mage, leaving Xu Xiao to recognize the misunderstanding.

Xu Xiao subdued Katarina after she attacked him, then continued toward Noxus while pursuing his study of the world's magic and power. Katarina vowed revenge, and Xu Xiao remained focused on finding the monkey's reincarnation and changing the world's course.

• Xu Xiao freed Katarina, but when she attacked him, he restrained and lashed her with an arcane chain until she stopped resisting.
• Xu Xiao warned Katarina not to look at him with killing intent again, then left her behind.
• Katarina sobbed after Xu Xiao departed and vowed to take revenge on him.
• Xu Xiao continued traveling toward Noxus and reflected on how perfecting his magic runes required understanding the world's different power systems.
• Xu Xiao resolved to begin with Noxus while prioritizing the search for the monkey's reincarnation and the development of his own power.

Xu Xiao rescued a Noxian patrol from Demacian soldiers and reached a Noxian bridgehead, where he met the commander Evander. He revealed his overwhelming magical power and asked what reward Noxus could offer him.

• Xu Xiao killed the Demacian soldiers with two magic missiles and rescued Sigma Eret and his patrol.
• Sigma Eret welcomed Xu Xiao as a mage who had fled Demacia and led him toward the Noxian border.
• Commander Evander received Xu Xiao at a Noxian bridgehead and was impressed by the strain Xu Xiao's power put on his rune equipment.
• Xu Xiao assessed Evander's enhanced body and warned that alchemical drug residue would shorten his lifespan.
• Xu Xiao displayed his magic and asked whether Noxus could offer a reward worthy of his power.

Xu Xiao negotiated with Kelrak for a Noxian position that offered freedom and authority, then used a newly brewed alchemical potion to demonstrate his power. Kelrak drank it and collapsed as its effects began to take hold.

• Xu Xiao met Kelrak, commander of the Blood Shadow Legion, who praised his escape from Demacia and described how Noxus had aided the fleeing mages.
• Xu Xiao told Kelrak he wanted to join Noxus with substantial authority and freedom, and asked what price he would have to pay.
• Xu Xiao enclosed the reception room in an arcane barrier, leaving Kelrak conscious while the guards fell unconscious.
• Kelrak rejected Xu Xiao’s demand, insisting that Noxian authority had to be earned through service and sacrifice.
• Xu Xiao gave Kelrak a newly brewed alchemical potion that he said could grant power beyond that of an ordinary person.
• Kelrak drank the potion, waited for it to take effect, and fell to his knees as power surged through him.

Xu Xiao tested his alchemical potion on Kelrak, giving the Noxian general immense strength through magical runes he called Virtual Magic Runes. After demonstrating that he could suppress Kelrak’s power, Xu Xiao ordered him to spread the potions through Noxus and build an army, leaving Kelrak eager to obey.

• Xu Xiao observed Kelrak’s mutation after the first potion caused natural magic runes to grow on his body.
• Kelrak recovered and demonstrated his new strength by smashing the ground with his fist.
• Xu Xiao suppressed Kelrak’s runes, and Kelrak knelt and admitted that Noxus would eagerly seek the potion’s power.
• Xu Xiao explained that he called his own runes True Magic Runes and the potion-derived runes Virtual Magic Runes, which he could suppress in those he touched.
• Xu Xiao told Kelrak to distribute new potions to influential allies, build an army, and spread the news of this power throughout Noxus.

Swain, Darius, and LeBlanc met in the Immortal Bastion to discuss Kelrak’s victory and rumors that a powerful alchemical potion had transformed soldiers in the Blood Shadow Legion. They decided to recall the legion from the front for rest and recuperation, while the mage behind its strength remained a threat they could not assess.

• Noxians celebrated Kelrak’s victory over the Demacians and rumors that a special alchemical potion had created powerful soldiers.
• Swain convened Darius and LeBlanc to investigate how Kelrak’s Blood Shadow Legion had defeated a Demacian force despite being outnumbered.
• Darius said Kelrak had neither submitted an operational plan nor replied to inquiries after the victory.
• LeBlanc reported that a powerful mage in the Blood Shadow Legion had rooted out her spies and might have caused unrest in Demacia.
• Swain, Darius, and LeBlanc discussed the potion rumors and decided to recall the Blood Shadow Legion from the front for rest and recuperation.

Kelrak led the empowered Blood Shadow Legion toward Drekan, while Xu Xiao anticipated that Noxian leaders would try to probe them. Swain’s ravens were shot down by a super-soldier, and Swain decided to personally lead a team to investigate the legion and prevent a threat to Noxus.

• Kelrak heard the crowd praise the Blood Shadow Legion and its alchemical potion, and he privately considered rising beyond his current rank.
• Kelrak told Xu Xiao that the legion had reached Drekan, and Xu Xiao predicted that Noxian leaders would approach that night to sound him out.
• Swain sent his ravens to spy on the legion’s camp, but an archer with enhanced senses shot them down.
• Swain discussed the setback and the legion’s unexplained strength with Darius, then chose to lead the night’s operation himself.

Swain infiltrated the Blood Shadow Legion’s camp to meet the mysterious mage, but discovered that the guards had anticipated his arrival and possessed formidable power. Xu Xiao offered Swain the prospect of a Noxus Empire capable of conquering the world and tossed him a potion.

• The Trifarian infiltration squad escorted Swain into the Blood Shadow Legion’s camp, where powerful guards revealed they had been expecting him.
• Swain identified himself and ordered the squad to leave, telling them to warn Darius not to act rashly and to put the original plan on hold.
• A guard led Swain into the tent, where he met Xu Xiao and sensed the mage’s great power.
• Xu Xiao asked Swain if he wanted a Noxus Empire capable of conquering the world, claimed he could make it possible, and tossed him a potion.

Xu Xiao offered Swain and LeBlanc alchemical potions and a chance to cooperate in taking Noxus, but they challenged him after he revealed he knew their secrets. He overwhelmed their attacks, and Swain invoked Raum as Xu Xiao prepared to fight him.

• Xu Xiao offered Swain alchemical potions and proposed that they cooperate, promising to help Noxus confront threats including Mordekaiser.
• Xu Xiao revealed that LeBlanc had been spying on him, unsettling her with his knowledge of her and the undead threat.
• When Swain and LeBlanc threatened to fight rather than accept his proposal, Xu Xiao repelled their attacks with an Arcane shield and blasted LeBlanc's clone.
• Xu Xiao asked Swain whether he still planned to resist, and Swain summoned Raum's power, spreading crimson wings.
• Xu Xiao fired an Arcane Missile at Swain after deciding he would have to take control of Noxus by force.

Xu Xiao frightened Raum into retreating and restrained Swain, then offered him cooperation. After Swain accepted, Xu Xiao gave him a potion that restored his severed arm and leg, leaving the two ready to negotiate.

• Raum emerged from Swain’s body, but Xu Xiao struck him with Arcane Energy and scared him back into Swain.
• Xu Xiao bound Swain with arcane chains and offered him the choice of cooperating or dying.
• Swain acknowledged Xu Xiao’s greater strength and asked to cooperate, so Xu Xiao released him.
• Xu Xiao gave Swain an alchemical potion, which drew in magic and began regenerating his lost limbs.
• Swain cut open his arm wound as Xu Xiao instructed, and a new arm grew back covered in magic patterns.

Swain accepted Xu Xiao’s power and Noxus formally made him its Archmage, establishing the Arcane Warriors. After Noxian spies found a Sun Wukong in Ionia, Xu Xiao teleported there with an agent to investigate.

• Swain told Darius that Noxus needed Xu Xiao, showed him the power he had gained, and gave him an Arcane Potion, which Darius drank.
• The Trifarix recognized Xu Xiao as Archmage of Noxus and established the Arcane Warriors, whose strength came from Xu Xiao’s potions.
• Xu Xiao sent Noxian spies across Valoran to search for Sun Wukong, offering an Arcane Potion for a useful lead.
• A Noxian agent reported that the Wuji Sect in Ionia had taken in a Vastaya disciple named Sun Wukong.
• Xu Xiao decided to investigate and used the agent’s memories to teleport them both to Ionia.