Chapter Summaries

After receiving [Divine Wings]' power, Sailesi fled with the Holy Remains while Wens pursued him. [Divine Wings] sacrificed himself in a massive explosion that destroyed Bianchi and badly damaged Wens, but an unfamiliar figure appeared in Sailesi's path as he escaped.

• Sailesi used the crystal-cluster wings to fly south with the Holy Remains while [Divine Wings] fell into the Blood Pool.
• Wens abandoned the fight and pursued Sailesi, while [Divine Wings] hurled his longsword at Wens to slow him down.
• Wens caught the longsword and began draining its life force, prompting [Divine Wings] to resolve to protect the Skeleton Alliance's secret at any cost.
• [Divine Wings] struck Wens with his shortsword, but Bianchi severed his spine with a greatsword.
• [Divine Wings] detonated his Psionic Energy, killing Bianchi and shattering Wens's body; the blast propelled Sailesi farther from the battlefield.
• An unfamiliar figure appeared in front of Sailesi as he fled.

Sailesi accepted Hall’s surrender and carried him toward the Skeleton Alliance, while the remaining skeleton troops struggled to hold together after their councilors’ apparent deaths. The battlefield was still in chaos, with Ginseng Rooster beginning to consider how he might use the crisis.

• Hall asked Sailesi to take him to the Skeleton Alliance, and Sailesi agreed while warning that he could not guarantee Hall’s admission.
• Sailesi put Hall to sleep with a crystal-cluster flower and flew toward the Skeleton Alliance across the sea.
• After [Divine Wings] self-detonated, the skeleton soldiers realized their leaders were dead or gone and their morale collapsed.
• Acting Warlord Colin tried to rally the soldiers, but their retreating crowd blocked his movement.
• [Western Sharpshooter] fired three shots to quiet the soldiers, and [Ginseng Rooster] used the moment to order them into ranks and threaten deserters.
• [Ginseng Rooster] considered how he might take advantage of the army’s crisis.

After surviving Divine Wings’ self-detonation, Wens decided to fight on rather than retreat, believing this was his last chance to escape the Demon Realm’s constraints. He faced an unfamiliar alchemical golem and discovered it was an empty, psionically powered machine, while three more golems appeared and seemed to strengthen the first with their attacks.

• Wens gathered his scattered flesh and blood, then weighed retreating against risking death in battle.
• Wens chose to continue fighting, reasoning that retreat would leave him slowly dying in the Demon Realm.
• A large alchemical golem formed before Wens and froze his blood shield with a blue beam.
• Wens charged the golem and tried to drain its life force, but found no pilot inside its empty body.
• Three distinct alchemical golems appeared, and Wens broke free from the first as their beams struck it.
• The first golem absorbed the attacks and glowed more powerfully, leaving Wens bewildered by the machines’ capabilities.

Wens fought Willow’s alchemical golems, identified how their hidden controller coordinated their attacks, and began turning the battle around. In Valhalla, Ed watched Willow struggle to control all ten golems as Wens’s strength and experience started to overwhelm them.

• Wens endured attacks from the golems, including hollow spikes that drained his blood, and retreated into the blood pool to recover.
• Wens realized that someone was controlling the golems and that only one or two could attack with full precision at a time, then attacked before the seventh golem appeared.
• In Willow’s room at the Shattered Castle, Ed watched Willow frantically control the golems while she fought Wens.
• Willow’s ten specialized golems initially challenged Wens, but he learned their capabilities and tested their strongest attacks while healing in the blood pool.
• Wens emerged from the pool and shifted to offense, gradually suppressing Willow’s golems as the battle continued.

Ed brought Noya into the battle to help Willow control her alchemical golems against Wens. Noya took over a golem and launched a reckless attack, leaving Wens baffled by its sudden change in strength and behavior.

• Ed realized Willow's preset golem programs made her newly advanced combat skills easy for Wens to read.
• Ed summoned Noya and asked her to help Willow control the alchemical golems, reassuring the frightened dragon soul that she had no food value to Seraphina.
• Willow gave Noya secondary access, and Ed threw Noya's spirit into the golem-control circuit array.
• Noya synchronized with an alchemical golem, adapted to its body, and spotted Wens fighting the other golems.
• Noya spun the golem into a metal cannonball and charged Wens, who wondered whether a bot golem had gained intelligence.

Wens split the alchemical golems apart and fought them down until Willow handed Noya control of them and joined the battle herself. Willow revealed that she was Yiwenni’s surviving child and vowed to kill Wens, who taunted her to self-destruct.

• Wens used his speed to separate the alchemical golems and destroy several of them, while Noya’s control helped the remaining golems hold him at bay.
• Ed warned Willow that Wens’s troll duke Lombardi was less than ten li away, and Willow gave Noya full control of the golems before teleporting to the battlefield.
• Willow blocked Wens’s blood-red greatsword and unleashed a barrage of spells, forcing Noya to move the golems away from him.
• Wens recognized Willow’s spellcasting style and learned that she was the lich Yiwenni, whom he had believed died in her self-destruction.
• Willow confirmed she was Yiwenni’s child and threatened to kill Wens, who challenged her to self-destruct as her mother had.

Willow’s lightning repeatedly struck Wens and disrupted his recovery, while Nuowa killed Lombardi and confronted the grand duke. Wens recognized Nuowa as the human sealing master, but insisted he would not be sealed.

• Willow completed her spell and struck Wens with a powerful bolt of lightning, knocking him out of the air.
• Wens fell into the blood pool and began regenerating, but Willow swept another prolonged lightning strike across the pool and damaged his recovery.
• Wens recovered at the bottom of the pool and emerged on a blood tornado to avoid another direct strike.
• Nuowa appeared holding Lombardi’s severed head and revealed that he had killed the troll duke.
• Nuowa identified himself as the human sealing master who had sealed Antos, Adelaide, and Hall, and Wens vowed that he would not be sealed.

Nuowa, Willow, Noya, and Liya regrouped after Liya decapitated Wens with a flashbang-assisted ambush, but Wens recovered in the blood lake. Nuowa concluded that they had to lure Wens away from the blood and proposed a plan called “fishing.”

• The young human mage blinded Wens with a staged summoning spell, allowing Liya to sneak up and sever his head.
• Wens fell into the blood pool and began recovering, so Nuowa ordered his general not to pursue him into the water.
• Willow and the others met Nuowa and Liya, and Willow explained that Wens had killed her family.
• Nuowa recognized that Sailesi’s self-detonation had created a deep blood lake that let Wens recover and made him almost invincible.
• Nuowa said they had to separate Wens from the blood lake and proposed luring him away with a plan called “fishing.”

Nuowa and the others used Vanessa's spine and Aeldra's Heart of the Amber Dragon to lure Wens into a trap inside his Blood Pool. Wens reached for the spine, but Nuowa slowed time and left him vulnerable to Willow's lightning.

• Nuowa revealed Vanessa's spine as bait and told Liya to throw it into the deepest part of the Blood Pool.
• Liya hurled the spine into the pool, triggering a massive impact that sent the blood surging upward and knocked Wens back.
• Wens recognized Vanessa's aura and reached for the spine despite realizing it was a trap.
• Nuowa used Aeldra's Heart of the Amber Dragon to slow time across the Blood Pool, preventing Wens from quickly summoning blood to replenish himself.
• Willow's lightning struck Wens again as he remained trapped below the suspended Blood Pool.

Wens was overwhelmed and killed by Nuowa, Liya, Willow, and Noya, but he revealed that his Authority could survive his death through a True Blood Covenant. Nuowa explained that Wens had deliberately violated the covenant at the last moment, transferring his abilities and Authorities to another vampire grand duke.

• Noya combined four alchemical golems to power a fifth, whose beam struck Wens after Willow's lightning attack.
• Liya severed Wens's hand, then cut off his remaining limbs and pinned him to the ground while Nuowa suppressed his blood.
• Willow killed Wens with lightning, and his body and the surrounding blood decayed without the usual phenomenon accompanying a High Tier's death.
• A red sphere emerged from Wens's charred body, and a True Blood Covenant declaration revealed that he had agreed to a three-day truce with another vampire grand duke.
• Nuowa explained that Wens deliberately violated the covenant as he died, causing the other party to receive all his abilities and Authorities.

Samuer met Hall, who sought to join him, and revealed that his goal was to kill every living being in the world, including himself. After Samuer walked away, Hall received the powers of Vitality and Drain and called a Mandatory Meeting.

• Hall approached Samuer and offered to serve him, describing his Fractal and Harvest abilities and the Devouring power he had gained from Rosalind’s True Blood.
• Samuer asked Hall to choose again after explaining that he intended to kill every living being and would eventually die himself.
• Hall said he thought the world was not so bad, so Samuer left him with the advice to struggle if he wanted to survive.
• Hall felt the powers of Vitality and Drain flow into him and realized that Wens had gone this far.
• Hall closed his eyes and whispered, “Mandatory Meeting.”

Hall divided his consciousness and Authority among his remaining selves, allowing Hall Number Four to return and Hall Number Five to become independent. Hall Numbers One, Two, and Three then transferred Wens’s power to Number Two and severed their connections, leaving Hall’s future to whichever version survived.

• Hall Number One called a meeting and reported Wens’s death, the legion’s growth, and the uncertain paths of the other Halls.
• Hall Numbers One, Two, and Three voted to let Hall Number Four return to the main body, and his blood mist divided among them.
• Hall Numbers One, Two, and Three agreed to sever Hall Number Five from the main consciousness, and Number Five left as an independent individual.
• Hall Number One proposed giving Wens’s power to Hall Number Two and severing the remaining Halls’ connections.
• Hall Numbers One and Three transferred their power to Number Two, then all three vanished as Hall’s shared consciousness space disappeared.

Samuer killed Hall Number One after Hall agreed to serve him, then suggested he would find someone else to take Hall’s place. Meanwhile, Hall Number Two celebrated completing his Authority by devouring the Blood Corpses, unaware that a tiny plant was growing at the nape of his neck.

• Hall Number One agreed to serve Samuer, who touched his brow and killed him after remarking on his resemblance to Vlad Țepeș.
• Samuer told Icarus that Hall Number One would catch up and that he would find someone willing to take his place.
• Hall Number Two inspected the decaying half-dragon body he had stolen from [Lion Hidden in the Eyes] and summoned a Blood Corpse.
• Hall Number Two drained the Blood Corpse’s life force, devoured its body, and reclaimed its remains, completing his Authority to a degree.
• Hall Number Two plunged into the gathered Blood Corpses and feasted as his body revived, while a tiny plant grew unnoticed at his neck.

Hall recovered after absorbing Wens’s Authority, while the aberrant plant on his neck revived and grew rapidly under Ed’s direction. It fused with Hall’s body and reduced him to a mindless, hunched creature that kept devouring Blood Corpses as the plant drained him.

• After Wens transferred his Authority to Hall before dying, Ed realized Hall had gained power that would make the Demon Realm battles harder.
• Ed detected the dormant aberrant plant reconnecting with the organization and released his suppression of its growth.
• As Hall absorbed the legion’s members, the plant broke its genetic locks, fed on the nourishment, and secretly drugged him with anesthetic and hallucinogenic substances.
• The plant spread roots throughout Hall’s body and grew thick enough to bend his back, while Hall failed to notice it and continued eating.
• Hall’s mind deteriorated until he could only repeat the act of devouring Blood Corpses, while his former consciousness dissipated and the plant continued draining him.

Ed drained the Blood Corpses and took the remaining True Blood and Authorities before Samuer’s roots reached the cavern. He then announced the completion of the first phase of the Calamity quest, granting server-wide rewards and extending the quest into a long-term campaign.

• The remaining vampire marquises fled after a root dragged one of them into the aberrant tree, which had consumed tens of thousands of Blood Corpses.
• Ed made the plant drain the trapped Blood Corpses and die, while his main body absorbed the life force, power, and Authorities of Hall, Rosalind, and Wens.
• Samuer found only drained corpses and a withered plant, drew a little death power, and returned his roots underground.
• Ed examined the two kinds of True Blood he had mastered and composed a live update announcing the Calamity quest rewards.
• The update granted all players new buffs and abilities and upgraded Calamity into a large-scale, long-term quest.

Ed realized Territory Secret Pacts would help him reach the transcendent tier, so he planned to expand the Theocracy by negotiating with the Great Labyrinth City and the Empire. After telling Nuowa to gather key allies in Valhalla and letting a mysterious plan unfold, Ed received a visitor he called [Ginseng Rooster].

• Ed concluded that collecting Territory Secret Pacts would let him spread his root network, grow stronger, and eventually break through to the transcendent tier.
• Ed planned to negotiate with the Great Labyrinth City for Territory Secret Pacts in exchange for military support, and considered discussing the Empire's future with Nuowa.
• Nuowa asked Ed whether he had obtained Wens's authority, and Ed told him to bring Willow, Noya, Liya, and himself to Valhalla.
• Ed directed Duma to prioritize the Blood Corpse army and avoid rushing the Skeleton Alliance's forces, since someone appeared to be preparing a major move.
• Ed welcomed a familiar visitor whom he addressed as [Ginseng Rooster].

After the battle’s High Tiers fell and Ed’s forces claimed victory, [Ginseng Rooster] saw a chance to exploit the Skeleton Alliance’s power vacuum. Colin refused the councilor position, so [Ginseng Rooster] killed himself to travel to Valhalla and set his sights on the Shattered Castle.

• [Ginseng Rooster] resurrected after Rosalind killed him, then returned to battle with Colin and survived the High Tier fighting.
• Ed’s update announced the Theocracy’s victory, while [Ginseng Rooster] noted that the Skeleton Alliance had lost nearly all its High Tier fighters.
• [Ginseng Rooster] asked Colin to become a councilor, but Colin declined, exhausted by his brief time as acting warlord.
• [Ginseng Rooster] slit his own throat, selected the Teleportation Tree in downtown Valhalla as his resurrection point, and asked Light Blue to arrange transport to the Shattered Castle.

Ed approved [Ginseng Rooster]'s plan to take command of the Skeleton Alliance's army and use it for a civil war, then sent him back to the battlefield. There, [Ginseng Rooster] spotted a skeleton carrying one of [Divine Wings]'s broken swords toward Warlord Grant and moved to seize the opportunity.

• Ed questioned whether [Ginseng Rooster] planned to attack the Theocracy after taking command of the Skeleton Alliance's army.
• [Ginseng Rooster] said he wanted to use the army for a sacred civil war and asked to borrow a fleet or teleportation spell to attack the councilors.
• Ed approved the plan, killed [Ginseng Rooster] in his office, and the Resurrection Tree immediately returned him to the battlefield.
• [Ginseng Rooster] announced the plan's approval to his team and noticed a skeleton carrying one of [Divine Wings]'s broken swords toward Warlord Grant.
• [Ginseng Rooster] alerted his allies to search for the other broken sword, then approached the sword-carrier with a three-edged spike in his hand.

[Ginseng Rooster] failed to seize the broken sword, then invoked Colin’s authority to summon the warlords to a meeting. Meanwhile, [Gill's Cuisine] found Palmer’s sword and claimed it, ending with an unexpected declaration.

• [Ginseng Rooster] approached the skeletal soldier carrying the broken sword, but Warlord Grant’s attention forced the soldier to escape to his side.
• Grant challenged [Ginseng Rooster]’s identity and ordered him back to his troops, but [Ginseng Rooster] asserted that Colin was his equal in rank.
• [Ginseng Rooster] announced Colin’s plan to hold a meeting at dusk and assured Grant that Colin could keep the front stable; Grant agreed to attend.
• [Ginseng Rooster] left to notify the other warlords and shared his improvised plan in the group chat.
• [Gill's Cuisine] climbed to the hillside, found Palmer’s sword embedded in rock, and touched its hilt.
• After [Gill's Cuisine] stood motionless with the sword, his companion urged him to hurry, and [Gill's Cuisine] replied, “Do not rush your emperor.”

After [Gill's Cuisine] and [Western Sharpshooter] secured the crystal-cluster sword, they headed toward Colin's territory and reported their success to [Ginseng Rooster]. Colin refused to attend the warlords' meeting, shaken by the battle's scale and by the deaths of powerful leaders.

• [Gill's Cuisine] touched the crystal-cluster sword and felt as if he had received the Mandate of Heaven, then let [Western Sharpshooter] try it.
• [Western Sharpshooter] recited presidential and French oaths after touching the sword, then revealed that an ancestor on his maternal grandmother's side had been French nobility.
• [Gill's Cuisine] and [Western Sharpshooter] traveled toward Colin's territory and told [Ginseng Rooster] through the local area network that they had secured the sword.
• [Ginseng Rooster] returned to Colin and announced that the warlords would meet at dusk, asking him to come along.
• Colin declined, believing he lacked the strength and experience to attend, and reflected on the million-strong enemy legion and the deaths of powerful fighters in the battle.