Chapter Summaries

Li Xingkong and Guapilong reached Half City, a major gateway built on a rogue planet embedded in the rule-warping World Wall. After arranging for the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds to be modified, they set out to enjoy the city while they waited.

• Li Xingkong and Guapilong observed the World Wall and learned that its conflicting physical rules made it dangerous to cross, though secret routes and major trade channels connected the regions on either side.
• Guapilong identified Half City as the main gateway for trade between the Kingdom of Fixed Light and the Axiom Arc and explained that their spaceship needed modifications before crossing.
• Guapilong used his Deep River Dragon Clan connections to secure travel authorization and guide the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds to a landing pad.
• Guapilong handed the spaceship over for a week of modifications, then led Li Xingkong into Half City.
• Guapilong drove away the sightseeing solicitors by declaring Li Xingkong a guest of the Deep River Dragon Clan, then began planning their meals and sightseeing.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong met Copper Coin Dragon, Guapilong’s old friend, who arranged a three-day tour of Half City before they had to leave for the Axiom Arc. Copper Coin Dragon explained that a new Era of Change was approaching, leaving Li Xingkong troubled by the Axiom Arc’s harsh system of survival.

• Copper Coin Dragon confronted Guapilong for forgetting to visit him, then introduced himself to Li Xingkong as Guapilong’s best buddy and a powerful local contact.
• Copper Coin Dragon arranged a three-day itinerary and warned that Li Xingkong and Guapilong had to leave soon or their ship modifications would be wasted.
• Copper Coin Dragon explained that the Kilometer Arc’s physical laws changed every five thousand years, forcing civilizations to rebuild and compete for a place in the Eternal Star Systems.
• Copper Coin Dragon said the Axiom Arc regarded those who failed to survive the changes as unworthy, and treated its citizens like gods above ordinary people.
• Li Xingkong realized the Era of Change was about to begin and felt powerless after hearing the Axiom Arc described from a different perspective.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong visited the Deep River Dragon Clan’s pacing area to experience the World Wall’s shifting rules. Li Xingkong stepped inside and discovered that fundamental constants, including the speed-of-light threshold and pi, had changed, while Guapilong remained at the entrance.

• Copper Coin Dragon warned that the Period of Change was advancing and joked that Guapilong would be caught in it.
• Copper Coin Dragon hosted Li Xingkong and Guapilong for a meal of Half City’s unusual foods, leaving Guapilong clutching his stomach.
• Guapilong chose to enter the World Wall rather than observe its singularities, and Copper Coin Dragon took them to the Deep River Dragon Clan’s pacing area.
• A man charged into the World Wall without a rope and burst apart after traveling several hundred meters, frightening Guapilong into staying at the entrance.
• Li Xingkong stepped into the pacing area and sensed the rules shift; his bracelet confirmed that the speed-of-light threshold and pi had changed.

Li Xingkong entered the pacing zone and discovered that its changing rules altered the foundations of his cultivation, so he derived a general solution while walking deeper into the World Wall. He adapted to the ruleless zone and continued beyond the crowd’s reach as Guapilong waited behind with Copper Coin Dragon.

• Li Xingkong stopped after his first step to calculate how the pacing zone’s changing rules affected his body and cultivation.
• Li Xingkong derived a rudimentary general solution and used the system’s cultivation methods to test its compatibility.
• Li Xingkong found that his Magic Power, Hexagrams, and Divine Sense remained unaffected, then walked faster and farther into the World Wall.
• Guapilong warned Li Xingkong, but Li Xingkong continued beyond the crowd’s sight and turned in place to verify his calculations.
• Copper Coin Dragon reassured Guapilong that Li Xingkong could handle the zone, but Guapilong refused to leave and asked Copper Coin Dragon to bring him food.

Li Xingkong returned from the World Wall after three days of exploration, having learned to adapt to changing physical laws and preserve his combat strength. He joined Guapilong and Copper Coin Dragon aboard their modified spaceship, and they began their journey toward the designated World Wall passage.

• Li Xingkong explored deeper into the World Wall, adapted to its changing rules, and realized he could counter rule weapons.
• Li Xingkong returned to the starting point through a spatial gate and learned that three days had passed.
• Guapilong and Copper Coin Dragon welcomed Li Xingkong back and said their spaceship was ready to depart.
• Li Xingkong noticed Guapilong had spent the three days worrying about him and had missed the World Wall’s attractions.
• Guapilong piloted the supplied spaceship out, and Li Xingkong learned they had to cross through Half City’s central hole and the designated passage opened by the Kingdom of Fixed Light and the Axiom Arc.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong entered the World Wall passage after receiving warnings about its shifting rules and dangerous interior. Their ship emerged beneath unfamiliar stars, and Li Xingkong identified the route by following a beam of light.

• The Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds joined a long queue at the checkpoint and underwent a scan and registration.
• Two inspectors warned Guapilong and Li Xingkong to follow the light, stay still if they encountered an unclear fork, return to the road if they strayed, and avoid contact with anything they met.
• Li Xingkong studied the World Wall documents and a guide to its attractions while the ship passed through the ring of light.
• The ship emerged in an unfamiliar region of space, where Guapilong could not find a route.
• Li Xingkong spotted a beam of light, compared their position with the star chart, and told Guapilong to follow it.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong followed a guiding beam through the World Wall and found the hidden mirror emitting it. After Guapilong painted the mirror, Li Xingkong transformed the ship into light and sped off to test his cultivation while giving Guapilong a chance to see the sights.

• Li Xingkong used his Divine Sense to examine the shifting physical rules beyond the guiding beam as the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds followed it.
• Li Xingkong and Guapilong found an artificial mirror that emitted the beam, though Guapilong's camera could only capture a ball of light.
• Guapilong used a painting device to create a lifelike picture of the mirror.
• Li Xingkong asked Guapilong about missing the sights of Half City, then decided they should make up for it by exploring.
• Li Xingkong enveloped the ship in Divine Sense, transformed it into light, and sped into the World Wall to test his cultivation.

Li Xingkong brought Guapilong to the Sea of New Light, where they explored its golden expanse and Li Xingkong read fragments of information carried by its light. After half a day, they prepared to leave the wonder behind.

• Li Xingkong flew with Guapilong and their spaceship directly to the Sea of New Light, bypassing the established roads.
• Li Xingkong checked that he and Guapilong were unharmed, then pushed Guapilong through the spaceship’s observation window so he could drift toward the sea.
• Guapilong marveled at the view and learned to move freely through space with Li Xingkong’s help.
• Li Xingkong entered the sea and examined the information in its light, seeing fragments of stars, planets, and civilizations.
• After spending half a day exploring, Li Xingkong and Guapilong prepared to leave the Sea of New Light.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong encountered a merchant ship after returning to the World Wall’s road, then discovered a mysterious second beam of light. Li Xingkong identified the true route and prepared to investigate where the false light came from.

• Li Xingkong brought the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds back onto the road, where Guapilong recovered from seeing the world through Divine Sense.
• The pair encountered a wary merchant ship, which warned them to leave the flight path, and Guapilong steered their ship onward as it followed behind.
• Li Xingkong sensed an anomaly and stopped the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds, while the merchant ship halted and prepared for danger.
• A second beam of light appeared, and its influence made Guapilong mistake it for the original road.
• Li Xingkong pointed out the real route and asked Guapilong whether he wanted to investigate the mysterious light, and Guapilong agreed despite his nerves.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong crossed a fork in the World Wall, helping a mercenary ship onto the correct path before heading toward a strange light. They emerged in a vivid anime-like magical world, where Li Xingkong sensed a civilization that should not have existed inside the World Wall.

• Li Xingkong used a giant hand of Divine Sense to pull a merchant ship onto the correct path, then gave its crew some goods.
• The mercenaries realized Li Xingkong had spared them and speculated that he came from the Kingdom of Fixed Light.
• Guapilong piloted the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds toward the light as the surroundings grew brighter and stranger.
• The ship passed through a space and plunged downward into a complete anime-like world.
• Li Xingkong swept his Divine Sense across the land and found buildings, humanlike beings, vegetation, villages, and towns.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong arrived in a strange forest, saved Rose and Lily from a squad of beastmen, and went with the sisters to Proli Town. A boy carrying a greatsword appeared at the attack site and wondered whether the plot had changed.

• Li Xingkong and Guapilong explored the forest and headed toward a nearby village.
• Li Xingkong and Guapilong answered Rose and Lily's cries for help as beastmen chased them.
• Li Xingkong used a powerful gust of wind to blow the beastmen away and save the sisters.
• Rose introduced herself and Lily, then invited Li Xingkong and Guapilong to Proli Town.
• Guapilong followed Lily along the road, sampling wild plants as they traveled.
• A boy with a greatsword arrived at the attack site and wondered if the plot had changed.

Li Xingkong and Guapilong arrived in Preli Town, where they met village chief Harold and Rose’s grandfather. Li Xingkong built a crystal palace on vacant land at the edge of town, leaving the villagers stunned by his power.

• Li Xingkong and Guapilong entered Preli Town with Rose, drawing attention from the villagers and village chief Harold.
• Harold offered the travelers lodging after Rose explained that Li Xingkong had saved her from orcs.
• Li Xingkong declined to stay in someone’s house and asked Rose to show them vacant land.
• Li Xingkong cast a spell that raised rocks and trees and formed a fully furnished crystal palace at the edge of town.
• Li Xingkong opened the palace gates and told Guapilong to choose a room.

Li Xingkong studied the world’s Crests with Old Byrne and learned of the ancient race and its rumored prophet. A blond boy who claimed Li Xingkong was not supposed to exist appeared to be connected to the prophecy, but a red-cloaked woman suddenly arrived and reached him.

• Li Xingkong questioned Old Byrne about Crests and learned that they let people borrow divine authority through marked patterns.
• A blond boy with a greatsword accused Li Xingkong of not belonging in the world and tried to attack him, but Li Xingkong restrained him with Divine Sense.
• Old Byrne explained that descendants of the ancients could awaken their bloodline and that an ancient prophet was rumored to be alive; the boy reacted strongly to the mention of the prophet.
• Li Xingkong prepared to examine the boy’s memories, but a flame struck the castle and a red-cloaked woman broke through the roof.
• Li Xingkong blocked the flame and tried to stop the woman, but she flipped past him and landed in front of the boy.

Li Xingkong stopped Ajieta from attacking him and discovered that the world repeatedly rewound whenever Lanluote killed himself. After the rewind left them in the castle, he questioned Ajieta about the cycles and the ending she was trying to protect.

• Ajieta attacked Li Xingkong, but he caught her blade and held her back.
• Lanluote killed himself, triggering the world to collapse and rewind while Li Xingkong protected Guapilong.
• Li Xingkong stopped Ajieta and Lanluote from being carried away by the rewind, and the world resumed with them in the castle.
• Ajieta said she was named Ajieta and admitted the world had restarted many times, though she could not remember how often.
• Ajieta explained that Li Xingkong’s arrival had disrupted the best outcome they had found, and Li Xingkong asked her to describe that ending.

Ajieta explained the Poison of Corruption, the world's repeating cycle, and the ancient seal to Li Xingkong, who discovered that the corruption he sensed seemed weaker than expected. He questioned why the Poison of Corruption affected the world if the goddess and her creation were separate.

• Ajieta told Li Xingkong that she was a branch of the Ancient Dragon's source and explained that the Poison of Corruption had driven the goddess into sleep and tainted the Chaos Dragon.
• Ajieta revealed that Rose and the Black Dragon's dragon source were needed to create a Black Dragon who could absorb the poison, while Lanluote was fated to defeat the Black Dragon and restart the world.
• Li Xingkong questioned why they did not seek a cure, and Ajieta said the ancients had failed because the poison was too powerful to study safely.
• Ajieta brought Li Xingkong, Guapilong, and Lanluote to a basin where an ancient gemstone seal, made through the sacrifice of an entire race, blocked the entrance to the Poison of Corruption.
• Li Xingkong touched the escaping corruption with his Divine Sense, resisted its chaotic will, and realized it seemed like a filtered version of the real poison.
• Li Xingkong wondered why the world was affected by the Poison of Corruption if the goddess and her creation were separate.

Li Xingkong tried to rescue Ajieta and the people in her world, then discovered that the world was a dream belonging to the goddess. He returned to the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds and wondered whether this had been his first meeting with Ajieta.

• Li Xingkong concluded that the goddess was connected to the world and decided to investigate what lay behind the sealed door.
• Guapilong urged Li Xingkong to take Rose and the others away, while Ajieta refused to abandon the sleeping goddess.
• Li Xingkong sent Guapilong, Rose, and the others into his carried space, then set off to leave the world and asked Ajieta to watch over Lanluote.
• Li Xingkong entered gray mist and saw the villagers fading away, while Rose and Haidelin remained clear-minded and Old Byrne repeated the word “emblem.”
• Li Xingkong realized he had not moved, returned to the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds, and understood that the world had been the goddess’s dream.

Li Xingkong found the sleeping goddess whose dream contained an entire world, but refused to wake her until he could save the people inside it. He returned to the dream and found Ajieta and Lanluote in danger as the Black Dragon fought the Golden Dragon.

• Li Xingkong found a damaged spaceship near the Heavenly Palace Above the Clouds and discovered a sleeping, silver-skinned woman in its life-support pod.
• Li Xingkong repaired the pod but decided not to wake the woman, fearing her dream world and its inhabitants would disappear.
• Li Xingkong and Guapilong entered the dream world, where a gigantic golden figure battled a massive black creature.
• Li Xingkong healed the badly wounded Ajieta and learned the Black Dragon had transformed early after the prophet was taken away.
• Ajieta explained that she and Geraint had once fought beside the Black Dragon, and that her power now sustained the seal instead of helping her defeat him.

Li Xingkong subdued the dragons and explained that the Poison of Corruption came from the sleeping goddess’s pain. He opened the seal and began absorbing the poison, while Ajieta and the others reunited with memories of their old adventuring party.

• Li Xingkong froze the dragons, removed the Poison of Corruption from Black Dragon, and subdued his black flames.
• Black Dragon challenged Li Xingkong and insisted he would not give up the power that had made him a dragon.
• Li Xingkong explained that the Poison of Corruption was the sleeping goddess’s accumulated pain and negative emotions.
• Ajieta withdrew her power and broke the seal, releasing a flood of black sludge that Li Xingkong drew into his hand.
• As Li Xingkong absorbed the poison over the following days, Ajieta, Black Dragon, and the others caught up on what had happened to their old companions.

Li Xingkong cleared the corruption from behind the door and found a room containing records of the goddess’s civilization and the world’s origin. After he told Ajieta that their world was the goddess’s dream, she struggled to accept that it might vanish when the goddess woke.

• Li Xingkong absorbed the corruption at the doorway, refined its poison into spiritual power, and entered the room beyond it.
• Li Xingkong read diary entries revealing that the goddess’s civilization had been destroyed as the World Wall formed and that she had entered hibernation.
• Ajieta entered the room and asked where the corruption had come from, and Li Xingkong told her their world existed in the goddess’s dream.
• Ajieta became dejected at the thought that their world was unreal, but Li Xingkong argued that their lived experiences still counted as real.
• Ajieta remained pessimistic, fearing that the dream world would return to nothingness if the goddess woke.

Li Xingkong tried to find a way to rescue Ajieta and the other dream inhabitants, but discovered that their existence was bound to the dream world. The system explained that escaping those bonds required a method called Scooping the Moon from the Water, a key to advancing to the Nascent Soul stage.

• Li Xingkong used a Soul-Guiding Banner on Ajieta, but it had no effect on her.
• Li Xingkong transformed Ajieta into tachyons and compared her informational state with his own, discovering that her body depended on the dream world.
• The system appeared and identified Li Xingkong’s challenge as Scooping the Moon from the Water.
• The system explained that Scooping the Moon from the Water was the Cocoon-Breaking Tribulation, which let cultivators break free of their universe’s rules and enter the multiverse.