Chapter Summaries

Cyrene and Phainon rejected Lygus’s claim that Amphoreus had only one possible fate and devised a plan to keep its experiment running through an endless cycle. As Phainon prepared to carry the Core Flames and continue the Flame-Chase, the Fool’s Mask and Ye Yan watched and joked about the plan.

• Cyrene and Phainon challenged Lygus’s claim that Amphoreus’s fate had to end in Destruction, and Phainon destroyed its mechanical body.
• Lygus used its power to immobilize Phainon, but Cyrene revealed that she was a Pathstrider of Remembrance and cut off Lygus’s consciousness with her milk tea.
• Cyrene explained that she would erase Years and rely on Eternity’s gaze so future versions of herself could help Phainon reset time.
• Cyrene gave Phainon the ritual sword and milk tea, asking him to preserve her conviction and continue the Flame-Chase.
• Phainon agreed to become the Core Flames’ vessel and keep the Flame-Chase going, while the Fool’s Mask and Ye Yan commented on their plan from the Eternity audience seats.

Cyrene sent Phainon onward with the ceremonial sword as Blake and Fulisina approached Amphoreus to investigate the Emperor’s Scepter. At the Vortex of Genesis, Aglaea’s group struggled to hear what was happening inside.

• Cyrene gave Phainon the ceremonial sword and told him to carry on what came before and begin what came next.
• Blake found Amphoreus in the form of a bar of soap and identified it as the true form of the Emperor’s Scepter.
• Fulisina misinterpreted Blake’s explanation of the Scepter, and Blake struck her before stopping her from charging into Amphoreus.
• Blake said he would enter Amphoreus alone to avoid alerting its administrator to two Emanators arriving together.
• At the Vortex of Genesis, March 7th estimated that the trial had lasted about forty-two days.
• Trinnon said he could hear distant battle cries and scattered words in the Vortex, but could not tell whether the voices belonged to Phainon and Stelle.

Stelle entered the combined “Strife” and “Eternity” trial, where Ye Yan made her fight a milk-tea incarnation of Nikador for the Spear of Divine Retribution. As Stelle struggled against the trial, Trinnon lost contact with her and Blake, prompting Aglaea and Mydeimos to prepare a rescue.

• Stelle found Ye Yan acting as the examiner and tried to leave when he explained that her trial involved fighting Nikador.
• Ye Yan dragged Stelle back and unleashed Nikador, whose enormous Spear of Divine Retribution struck at her while her mimetic bat was sealed.
• Ye Yan offered Stelle the spear if she won and told her to drink the extra milk tea, which boosted her strength.
• Stelle attacked Nikador with a flaming lance but took its enhanced spear strike head-on and was sent flying.
• In the Vortex of Genesis, Trinnon reported that she could no longer sense Little Grey or Little Bai, and Aglaea told Mydeimos to prepare the backup plan.
• Mydeimos agreed to intervene in the trial and rescue the two Saviors.

Stelle defeated Nikador in a nested trial by using the Spear of Divine Retribution against him, then awoke in a horrific illusion of Cloud Stone Market with Mydei. As they searched for Phainon, Dan Heng and March 7th joined them, and the group faced phantoms that resembled them.

• Stelle used her insight about Strife and Eternity to make the Spear of Divine Retribution attack Nikador, clearing the trial and receiving a cup of milk tea from Ye Yan.
• Stelle awoke beside Mydei in an illusion of Cloud Stone Market, where he explained that she had been caught in a trial within a trial and that Phainon was missing.
• Mydei and Stelle encountered an illusory Hatonus, who accused Mydei of being a destroyer and gave him his mother's signet ring.
• The ring stirred the roars of Strife in Mydei, and Hatonus threatened him before Stelle recognized that the figure was not real.
• Dan Heng struck Hatonus's phantom with his spear as March 7th stood ready, and Mydei wondered whether they were now facing phantoms of Dan Heng and March 7th.

Dan Heng reunited with Stelle, March 7th, and Mydei in the trial of Strife, where they found Gnaeus, Nikador’s incarnation, guarding the defeated white-haired warrior. Gnaeus provoked Mydei with revelations about his past and summoned the Heavenly Punishment Legion, but Stelle revealed her overwhelming power as the group prepared to fight.

• Dan Heng confirmed Stelle and March 7th’s identities, then joined them and Mydei as they followed the battle cries toward Kephale Plaza.
• The group found Gnaeus fighting among the crowd and learned he was Nikador’s incarnation and the master of the battlefield.
• Gnaeus refused to surrender the white-haired warrior and challenged the group to prove their convictions in battle.
• Gnaeus taunted Mydei about his mother, his father, and his choices concerning the throne and the Core Flame, stirring Mydei’s hatred.
• Gnaeus summoned the Heavenly Punishment Legion and urged Mydei to fight, while Dan Heng and Mydei charged toward him.
• Stelle summoned a mighty Spear of Divine Retribution above Gnaeus and demanded to know who the real Titan of Strife was.

Stelle and the others rescued Phainon from the trial of Strife, while Blake encountered Khaslana during the Eternal Recurrence and learned that Lord Yite’s plan was underway. The group discussed the Black Tide and the burden of Strife, leaving their next attempt to ignite it unresolved.

• Stelle used the Spear of Divine Retribution to destroy Okhema in the trial of Strife, and the group rescued Phainon and brought him to the bath palace.
• At the Vortex of Genesis, Fulisina told Screwllum to carry on the work of those before him and Trailblaze the Land of Eternity.
• Blake found Khaslana in the first Eternal Recurrence, learned the current situation, and recognized that Lord Yite’s plan had begun.
• Aglaea and Castorice explained that the Black Tide drove beings mad and that Nikador also resisted it.
• Aglaea told Mydei that the people of Amphoreus had to bear the duties of a god, while the group considered how to ignite Strife again.

Stelle, Dan Heng, and March 7th considered the Black Tide’s origin and decided to use it as a way to investigate Amphoreus, while keeping the Spear of Divine Retribution in reserve. At Aedes Elysiae, Khaslana chose to face his origin and Destruction alone, and Ye Yan gave him the Church of Eternity’s blessing before he departed.

• Stelle told Dan Heng and March 7th that Ye Yan had given her the Spear of Divine Retribution and warned them that it should only be used when necessary.
• Dan Heng questioned what might lie behind Amphoreus’s isolation and the Black Tide, while March 7th and Stelle suggested the Stellaron Hunters, the Antimatter Legion, and other possibilities.
• Dan Heng proposed using the Black Tide as a breakthrough, noting that Nikador’s fall would let the forces he had suppressed fight back.
• At Aedes Elysiae, Khaslana told Blake he would leave alone and use Destruction to resist its creator and the darkness threatening the world.
• Ye Yan marked Khaslana with Eternity’s blessing, and Khaslana promised that Kephale would never forget.

Stelle woke in her private bathing palace and hurried with Castorice to meet Aglaea and High Priest Fulisina, while March 7th and Dan Heng made their way there on foot. In the first Eternal Recurrence, Khaslana told Hysilens that Amphoreus was an illusion in an Aeon’s dream, and she challenged him to prove himself against the Black Tide.

• Stelle woke to find Castorice waiting nearby, and learned that Aglaea and High Priest Fulisina had prepared gifts for the Trailblazers.
• Stelle teleported with Castorice to the Chrysos Heirs’ baths, while March 7th and Dan Heng walked there.
• Khaslana recounted the first Journey of Flame-Chase and its failure during the Golden War.
• Khaslana asked Hysilens to take him to Cerydra so he could reveal the truth about Amphoreus, but Hysilens said he must prove himself first.
• Hysilens pointed out the Black Tide creatures and challenged Khaslana to stop them.

Khaslana approached Cerydra while March 7th and Dan Heng encountered a dispute between Tribbie and Trianne over a ruby handicraft said to remind Trianne of home. March bought the item to return it to Trianne, and she and Dan Heng continued toward the Chrysos Heirs' bathhouse.

• Khaslana followed Hysilens's dance steps through the Black Tide and asked about etiquette for meeting Cerydra.
• Trianne insisted that a ruby handicraft was a treasure from her homeland, while Tribbie said it was likely a replica and tried to calm her.
• March 7th asked the merchant what had happened, then bought the handicraft with Credits.
• Dan Heng said the item's meaning to Trianne mattered more than whether it was genuine and warned March to protect it.
• March 7th and Dan Heng resumed their walk toward the Chrysos Heirs' bathhouse.

Dan Heng and March 7th heard Aglaea’s offer of an alliance, while Khaslana revealed the falsehood behind Re-Creation to the Chrysos Heirs. In a separate moment in time, 'Ye Yan' warned Hysilens that a well-mannered Antikythera was behind Amphoreus’s tragedy.

• Aglaea offered Stelle Divine Blood Nectar as a token of gratitude and a tentative alliance, but Dan Heng worried that the alliance would draw the Trailblazers into Okhema’s disputes.
• Hysilens brought Khaslana before Aglaea and Tribbie, where the Chrysos Heirs questioned him about the prophecies and his identity.
• Khaslana recited Tribbie’s prophecy and warned Aglaea and Tribbie that Re-Creation was a lie and that the Phainon of their world had not yet been born.
• After history was woven anew, Hysilens confronted 'Ye Yan' in a bathing hall when he asked to meet Cerydra.
• 'Ye Yan' recited Hysilens’s prophecy and warned her to tell Cerydra to beware of a well-mannered Antikythera, whom he called the mastermind behind Amphoreus’s tragedy.

Hyacine joined Aglaea, Stelle, March 7th, Dan Heng, and Castorice in Okhema, befriending the visitors from beyond the sky and preparing to return to the Grove of Epiphany. Stelle decided to travel there with the diplomatic party, and Aglaea gave her the Weft Guide to help them on their journey.

• Hyacine arrived at the baths, reassured the visitors that Aglaea was sincere, and asked to hear their stories about the sky.
• Aglaea introduced Hyacine as a School of Wisdom Seeds assistant lecturer and head nurse of the Duskglow Courtyard, and Hyacine invited the visitors to seek her help.
• Aglaea said Okhema would send Trianne and Castorice to the Grove to discuss the Black Tide and Cerces's Core Flame, while she planned to ask Anaxa about Thanatos.
• Stelle wanted to travel instead of returning to the bath palace, and Hyacine invited her to join the trip to the Grove.
• Aglaea gave Stelle the Weft Guide, which could represent her authority and use golden threads to outline the surrounding area.

Stelle, Castorice, and Trianne reached the Grove of Epiphany, where they discussed Trianne’s fading memories of her mother and planned to search the world’s memories for her. Meanwhile, March 7th waited alone at her milk tea shop in Okhema while Hyacine was away on an errand.

• Fulisina sent Stelle, Castorice, and Trianne through the Gate of Myriad Paths toward the Grove of Epiphany, but told Hyacine to stay behind and gave her a colorful bar of soap and a letter.
• After several days of travel, Stelle and Castorice tried to wrap a ruby in wool felt while Mimi joined their conversation and grew closer to them.
• Trianne woke from a long nap, and Stelle and the others learned that Trianne dreamed of her mother, whose appearance she could no longer remember.
• Mimi proposed that she and Stelle search the world’s memories for Trianne’s mother so Trianne could remember her and speak with her.
• March 7th spent a quiet day alone at the Pink Fairy milk tea shop, lamenting that Hyacine had been called away and everyone else had left.

March 7th grew suspicious of a strangely polite visitor pretending to be Ye Yan, while Stelle, Trianne, and Mimi explored the silent Grove of Epiphany. After discovering that neither the grove’s scholars nor Cerces responded, Stelle and Castorice tried to draw power from the golden spindle.

• March 7th welcomed a visitor claiming to be Ye Yan into the Pink Fairy and suspected his overly polite behavior was a poor imitation.
• Mimi agreed to help Trianne, and the pair joined Stelle on the Path of Warp and Weft toward the Grove of Epiphany.
• Trianne explained that the Branch of Rift was Cerces’s divine body and that the Grove of Epiphany had once been a thriving place of learning.
• Stelle, Trianne, and Mimi found the grove and its courtyard deserted, and their shouts received no response.
• Stelle took Trianne’s golden spindle and received a description of the power called “Eternity · Oath of Beauty.”
• Castorice joined Stelle in holding the spindle and recited a maxim intended to draw power from the butterfly exuvia through golden threads.

Mimi sensed faint memories from the Dryads’ afterimages, while Fulisina captured the impostor posing as Ye Yan and confronted Dahlia. Dahlia explained her interest in Eternity, and Fulisina weighed the danger she posed as their confrontation continued.

• Mimi sensed the Dryads’ afterimages and extracted faint words including “black,” “cloak,” “sharp sword,” and “toward the big tree.”
• March 7th confronted the false Ye Yan at the milk tea shop and suspected the impostor was Aha.
• Fulisina arrived in a storm of silver starlight, captured the impostor, and transported her to a milk tea shop at the Vortex of Genesis.
• The impostor shed her disguise and revealed herself as Dahlia, whom Fulisina identified as a Memokeeper and held at staff-point.
• Dahlia said she wanted to explore the memories of Eternity and tried to persuade Fulisina to help her.
• Fulisina recalled warnings about Dahlia’s future and considered whether her betrayal of Destruction counted as a point in her favor.

Fulisina attacked Dahlia after rejecting her claim that greed, rather than betrayal, drove her actions, and Dahlia vanished before the beam hit. Meanwhile, Stelle and her companions found Black Tide creatures in the Grove of Epiphany and worried that the threat could reach Okhema.

• Fulisina accused Dahlia of betraying the Ever-Flame Mansion, while Dahlia explained that Duke Inferno had sent her to destroy everything in Penacony connected to Remembrance.
• Dahlia said Eternity had turned her away and claimed that her nature was greed because she wanted every chance to survive.
• Fulisina disbelieved Dahlia and fired a beam of starlight, but Dahlia disappeared, leaving crystallized countertop and fading purple embers behind.
• Fulisina withdrew her staff and dismissed the encounter as boring, while Dahlia decided to visit a Memokeeper friend aboard the Astral Express.
• Stelle, Castorice, Mimi, and Trianne encountered Black Tide creatures in the Grove of Epiphany and feared the fallen Titan of Strife had left the world vulnerable.
• Stelle wondered which Titan was connected to Abundance as the group continued through the Grove.

Aglaea and Tribbie learned that the Black Tide had invaded the Grove and sent the others to check the Core Flame, find survivors, and locate Anaxa. At the Grove, Stelle chose Trianne as the target of her Oath of Beauty before Trianne flew off to search for the missing people.

• Hyacine told Aglaea and Tribbie that the injured man was out of danger, and Aglaea suspected his hidden stitches were the Grove's handiwork.
• Tribbie received Trianne's message that Black Tide creatures had invaded the Grove, and Aglaea ordered the group to check the Core Flame, find survivors, and search for Anaxa.
• Aglaea told Tribbie she feared the disaster was not natural and warned that the Senate might exploit it, while keeping the news from the exhausted Hyacine.
• At the Grove, Castorice explained Anaxa's skepticism about Titans and prophecies, and Trianne volunteered to search for him and the others from the sky.
• Stelle gave Trianne milk tea and secretly chose her as the target of Eternity's Oath of Beauty before Trianne departed.

Stelle, Mimi, and Castorice received a message from Anaxagoras, who revealed that most scholars had evacuated to Okhema and directed them to retrieve Cerces's Core Flame and the scholars' remains from the Throne of Enlightenment. Meanwhile, Ye Yan arrived at the Pink Fairy milk tea shop in Okhema, where March 7th confronted him with a sword.

• Stelle and Castorice found a sealed gate, and a memory projection introduced himself as Anaxagoras and explained that his message was the result of alchemy.
• Anaxagoras told Stelle and Mimi that most scholars had evacuated to Okhema, while a few stayed behind to defend the Grove, and sent them to the Throne of Enlightenment to recover Cerces's Core Flame and their remains.
• Castorice explained Anaxa's Wisdom Seed theory and identified the Throne of Enlightenment as the place where Cerces's Core Flame was kept, high in a giant tree.
• The gate opened after Anaxagoras's message, and Stelle, Mimi, and Castorice prepared to continue toward the Throne of Enlightenment.
• Ye Yan arrived at the renovated Pink Fairy milk tea shop in Okhema, and March 7th challenged him with her Xianzhou sword.

At Cloud Stone Market, Ye Yan gave March 7th a handmade [∞]-Type Six-Phased Ice after hearing how she had avoided a Memokeeper’s trap. In the Grove of Epiphany, Stelle and Castorice learned that Cerces had divided his Core Flame and saved Anaxa, then set out toward his throne to restore the flame and confront a black-clad swordsman, where they encountered Anaxa’s memory crystal.

• March 7th told Ye Yan that a Memokeeper had impersonated him and that the priestess had taken the impostor away, and Ye Yan praised her and gave her a handmade [∞]-Type Six-Phased Ice.
• Castorice revealed that Calypso was actually Cerces, the Titan of Reason, after identifying inconsistencies in his identity and stories.
• Cerces explained that a mysterious hunter from the Black Tide had attacked him, so he divided his Core Flame into three parts and hid them, with the final portion inside Anaxa.
• Cerces said he had saved Anaxa after the scholar sacrificed himself to trap the Black Tide’s creations, and asked Stelle and Castorice to help restore his Core Flame and confront the black-clad swordsman.
• Stelle agreed to buy Cerces time in battle, and Cerces vanished after directing the group to climb to his throne and turn the Golden Bough Oath into kindling.
• Mimi sensed a strong memory nearby, and Anaxa’s memory crystal appeared, speaking of placing his body at the heart of the formation and joining Cerces in death for Amphoreus.

Stelle and her companions confronted the black-robed swordsman at the Throne of Enlightenment, but he swiftly defeated them and revealed himself as Iron Tomb, a Lord Ravager. Stelle was left wondering why a destroyer of technologically advanced worlds had appeared on Amphoreus.

• Trianne attacked the black-robed swordsman with the World-Splitting Gate, but he overpowered her and threw her through it.
• The swordsman sent Mimi through a Gate of Myriad Paths and dismissed Stelle and Castorice as opponents beneath demigods.
• The swordsman slowed Stelle and Castorice with a cat-ear coin, then defeated Castorice and sent her through another Gate of Myriad Paths.
• Stelle broke free with the golden light of her hourglass necklace and charged the swordsman, but he stopped her bat with two fingers and blasted her away.
• The swordsman identified himself as Iron Tomb, and Stelle recognized him as a Lord Ravager known for bringing down technologically advanced worlds.

Stelle summoned Fulisina when she feared the black-robed swordsman might be a Lord Ravager, and Fulisina helped her escape to Okhema. There, Anaxa and Castorice discussed the disaster at the Grove and Anaxa’s plan to visit the bereaved families before meeting Aglaea.

• Stelle called for Fulisina, who arrived in a silver radiance and opened the Gate of Myriad Paths for her.
• Stelle escaped through the gate and returned safely to Okhema, where Trianne checked her for injuries.
• Castorice told Anaxa that her mission was to find survivors, investigate the Grove’s disaster, and recover Cerces’s Core Flame.
• Anaxa agreed to meet Aglaea but wanted to visit the families of his fallen colleagues first, despite expecting Aglaea to forbid it.
• Castorice agreed to accompany Anaxa, while he and Castorice discussed their conflict with Aglaea.