Chapter Summaries

With the Bronze Skull Beast pursuing them, Lin Zhaoran stayed behind so the soldiers could escape through the portal, but they discovered two nearly sixth-tier Calamity Beasts fighting on the other side. As the group’s options seemed to vanish, a black-haired figure emerged from the portal.

• Qin Yu realized that crossing the portal would not shake the Bronze Skull Beast, which could catch up soon afterward.
• Lin Zhaoran ordered the soldiers to pass through portals quickly and stop only after crossing two spaces.
• Lin Zhaoran told Qin Yu and Yu Yanhui to escape without her, planning to delay the pursuing Bronze Skull Beast.
• Soldiers returned from the portal and reported that two Calamity Beasts close to the sixth tier were fighting beyond it.
• A black-haired figure walked out of the portal and looked over the gathered soldiers.

Shen Heng reassured Lin Zhaoran’s unit that Origin Prohibition did not affect him and sent the soldiers through the portal before confronting the Sixth Tier Bronze Skull Beast. He planned to feign weakness and strike by surprise, but the first clash sent him plunging toward the trees.

• Shen Heng told Lin Zhaoran and the soldiers to cross the portal while he dealt with the approaching beast alone.
• Shen Heng explained that Origin Prohibition could not distort his Origin Power, then told Lin Zhaoran’s unit there were no Calamity Beasts nearby for nearly twenty kilometers.
• A soldier reported that two Calamity Beasts had been fighting in the next space, and Shen Heng said he had already dealt with one of them.
• Lin Zhaoran ordered the soldiers through the portal, and Shen Heng flew off to face the Sixth Tier Bronze Skull Beast.
• Shen Heng considered feigning weakness and launching a sneak attack, but the Bronze Skull Beast struck his saber and drove him down toward the trees.

Captain Shen faced the Bronze Skull Beast while the others watched from the boundary, and the beast repeatedly struck him without managing to kill him. The Bronze Skull Beast still did not know how to leave the space, and the battle continued as Captain Shen kept flying back toward it.

• The Bronze Skull Beast marveled that Captain Shen had survived its blow despite his Origin Power being affected.
• Captain Shen spoke of sacrifice and asked the Bronze Skull Beast how to leave the space, but it refused to tell him.
• Captain Shen raised his saber and asked the Bronze Skull Beast to attack, while the beast privately admitted it also had no way out.
• The Bronze Skull Beast attacked without holding back as Yu Yanhui and Lin Zhaoran watched from the boundary and chose to trust Captain Shen.
• The Bronze Skull Beast repeatedly sent Captain Shen flying, but he continued coming back, leaving the beast frustrated by how difficult he was to kill.

Shen Heng repeatedly fought the Bronze Skull Beast, hiding how much damage he had taken while preparing a sudden burst of power. He finally cut through the beast’s forelimb, leaving the battle unresolved.

• The Bronze Skull Beast repeatedly struck Shen Heng and sent him crashing into the mountainside, but he kept returning to fight.
• Shen Heng concealed the extent of his injuries while his armor, inscriptions, and body absorbed much of the force.
• The Bronze Skull Beast grew impatient and gathered more origin power in its claw as it continued attacking.
• Shen Heng changed how he drove his origin power and suddenly surged past the beast’s claw toward its face.
• Shen Heng redirected his blade and cleaved through the Bronze Skull Beast’s forelimb, severing it and sending blood raining down.

Shen Heng pursued the Bronze Skull Beast and continued attacking despite the Origin Prohibition, while the beast realized the warping power left by Lord Jörmungandr did not affect him. Their fight became a stalemate, and the Bronze Skull Beast finally asked Shen Heng to let it leave.

• The Bronze Skull Beast fled from Shen Heng, hoping he would undergo Distortion before it had to fight him.
• Shen Heng caught up and repeatedly wounded the Bronze Skull Beast with his blade as it questioned why the warping power had not affected him.
• The Bronze Skull Beast realized Shen Heng could use Origin Power without restraint and poured more of its own Origin Power into resisting him.
• At the boundary, Yu Yanhui, Lin Zhaoran, and Qin Yu watched the fight and confirmed that Shen Heng was unaffected by the Origin Prohibition.
• After trading blows through the mountain forest, the Bronze Skull Beast admitted defeat and asked Shen Heng to let it leave.

Shen Heng considered whether to leave the wounded Bronze Skull Beast alone, knowing it might threaten others trapped in the space. He told the beast he would keep trying to kill it until he was sure he could not do so before its Distortion, then would leave; the two resumed fighting as people across the mountain forest looked toward the clash.

• The Bronze Skull Beast feared its unstable Origin Power would drive it into Distortion, while Shen Heng weighed the risks of fighting it or letting it go.
• Shen Heng told the Bronze Skull Beast that he would attack while it resisted and suppressed its Origin Power, and that he would leave if he could not kill it before Distortion.
• The Bronze Skull Beast erupted in anger and launched itself into battle again.
• Shen Heng pursued the beast, and the two exchanged violent blows above the mountain forest as figures below looked toward them.

Azure Scale Beast fled as the battle between the human and Lord Bronze Skull Beast approached, but Bronze Skull Beast pursued and killed it. Driven toward losing control, Bronze Skull Beast attacked the human, who used a sound wave to stun it and struck it down with a long saber.

• Shadow Wolf told Azure Scale Beast that Calamity Beasts were fighting, and the two watched a powerful battle draw nearer.
• Azure Scale Beast fled when it realized the battle was coming its way, but the fighting’s shock waves followed it.
• Lord Bronze Skull Beast seized Azure Scale Beast, wounded it, and tore it apart before continuing after the human.
• Bronze Skull Beast sensed its body and Origin Power slipping out of control, then charged the human in a final attack.
• The human used a sound wave to stun Bronze Skull Beast and cut it down with a long saber.

Shen Heng defeated the Bronze Skull Beast and obtained a sixth tier Origin Crystal, then weighed whether to delay advancing so he could use it to evolve his ability. He considered the beast’s clues about the World Tree, Jörmungandr, distortion, and order as possible ways out of the Ruins Realm, but still did not know how to identify them.

• Shen Heng descended to the Bronze Skull Beast’s corpse and caught the sixth tier Origin Crystal that flew to him.
• Shen Heng considered saving the crystal for ability evolution, but weighed that against the risk of remaining too weak and the uncertainty of when synchronization would occur.
• Shen Heng put away the Bronze Skull Beast’s corpse and recalled its words about the World Tree, Chairman Jörmungandr, distortion, order, and possible ways out.
• Shen Heng reasoned that the World Tree might be hostile to the Calamity Beasts and that the places of greatest distortion or order could offer a way out.
• Shen Heng realized he still could not tell whether the spaces’ environments revealed differences in distortion and order, but he had finally found clues.

Shen Heng returned after killing the Bronze Skull Beast and shared what he had learned about finding a way out. Lin Zhaoran agreed to move her group to a nearby city, while Qin Yu asked to travel with Shen Heng.

• As the group worried about Shen Heng's absence, Qin Yu offered to search for him while Lin Zhaoran continued evacuating the others.
• Shen Heng returned with the Bronze Skull Beast's Sixth Tier Origin Crystal, and Yu Yanhui and Lin Zhaoran questioned him about the kill.
• Yu Yanhui recounted the group's recent troubles, and Shen Heng learned that Qin Yu had joined them only a few days earlier while searching for a way out.
• Shen Heng shared information about the exit and told Lin Zhaoran to move her group to a nearby city, where they could gather other warriors.
• Shen Heng said he would deal with the Fifth Tier Calamity Beasts in the current space, and Qin Yu asked to travel with him.

Shen Heng and Qin Yu set out to search for a way out, leaving Lin Zhaoran and Yu Yanhui to help the other soldiers. That night, Shen Heng shared Origin Crystals with Qin Yu and asked what she thought about the clues to escaping.

• Qin Yu chose to accompany Shen Heng despite his warning that the Origin Prohibition would make traveling difficult for her.
• Shen Heng left Lin Zhaoran and Yu Yanhui behind and asked them to help any soldiers they could find while he searched for a way out.
• Yu Yanhui worried that gathering everyone across so many worlds could take a long time, and Lin Zhaoran said they could only proceed one step at a time.
• At camp that night, Shen Heng gave Qin Yu four mid-Fourth Tier Origin Crystals as her share of the day's kills.
• Shen Heng asked Qin Yu whether the extreme points of distortion and order were likely to be extremely strong or extremely weak, and she judged they were probably extremely strong.

Shen Heng and Qin Yu discussed how to find the way out of the palace by locating the extremes of distortion and order. Qin Yu revealed she could sense distortion, and she suspected the portal to the most extreme place moved between spaces.

• Qin Yu argued that an exit might be near where the World Tree was imprisoned, while Shen Heng proposed searching first for the strongest distortion and order.
• Shen Heng reasoned that the strongest extreme should be where the World Tree was imprisoned, making it more efficient to search than the many possible places where distortion and order were weakest.
• Shen Heng asked whether Qin Yu had been searching for an exit since she was teleported in, and she said she had followed changes in distortion between spaces.
• Qin Yu explained that she could sense distortion and that it varied by location and over time within each space.
• Qin Yu suggested that the portal to the most extreme place was not fixed and might move between several spaces.

Shen Heng and Qin Yu searched the spaces for a way out, and Shen Heng devised a faster method based on Qin Yu’s ability to sense spatial distortion. Qin Yu and Liya discussed the unknown dangers near the World Tree sapling, leaving Qin Yu uncertain about what they might face.

• Shen Heng asked Qin Yu how soon they might find the space with the most extreme distortion, and she estimated it would take a few to a dozen spaces.
• Shen Heng proposed measuring the distortion in each connected space and exploring only the one with the greatest distortion, to save time for the other warriors.
• Shen Heng and Qin Yu ate Calamity Beast meat and settled down to cultivate.
• Qin Yu spoke with Liya, who admitted she did not know what was happening around the World Tree sapling or whether Calamity Beasts had entered its territory before.
• Liya said the sapling might help them, but began to explain why the area might still be unsafe.

Qin Yu learned from Sister Liya that there were three possible ways to escape the distorted spaces: calculate distortion, gain the power to sense it, or find a portal by chance. Elsewhere, Han Ling’s group struggled to find an exit, until Lü Wenrui touched a tree that suddenly warped beneath his hand.

• Qin Yu decided that finding their destination was more important than searching the spaces for other warriors, since most survivors had already gathered into groups.
• Sister Liya explained that Captain might eventually calculate distortion to locate the exit, or grow strong enough to sense it; a randomly appearing portal offered another chance, though entering one alone could be dangerous.
• Han Ling’s group, led by Zhou Xuan and Lü Wenrui among others, admitted they had spent nearly two months searching without finding a way out.
• Zhou Xuan joked that Lü Wenrui’s bad luck might be preventing them from escaping, and Lü Wenrui angrily defended himself.
• Han Ling worried that their search strategy was failing and wished Shen Heng were with them.
• Lü Wenrui reached for a tree trunk, which warped suddenly and made him lose his balance.

A portal appeared and transported Lü Wenrui to an unknown place, while Han Ling and the others debated whether to follow him. Lü Wenrui eventually returned unharmed and said he had found a huge building on the other side.

• A portal appeared where Lü Wenrui was standing and sent him through before the others could react.
• Huang Jun urged Wang Hu and Han Ling to follow Lü Wenrui, but Han Ling decided they should wait and let him return if he encountered danger.
• As Lü Wenrui failed to return for a while, the group worried that he had encountered a powerful Calamity Beast or that the portal only worked one way.
• Lü Wenrui emerged from the portal unharmed, explaining that he had taken time to look around.
• Lü Wenrui told the group that he had found a very large building on the other side.

Lü Wenrui led the group through a portal to a strange grassland, where they found a white palace that slowed their Origin Power. Unsure whether his luck had brought them to danger, Han Ling decided they should approach the palace as their best chance of finding a way out.

• Lü Wenrui returned and urged the group to follow him to a strange building, but Wang Hu went through the portal with him first to check for danger.
• Wang Hu and Lü Wenrui came back unharmed and confirmed that a building stood beyond the portal, so Han Ling led everyone through.
• Han Ling and the others emerged on a vast grassland and saw a white palace with a pillar of light rising from it.
• Han Ling noticed that the place made their Origin Power circulate more sluggishly, while Lü Wenrui boasted that his ability had found it.
• Huang Jun worried that Lü Wenrui's bad luck might have brought them to their deaths, and the group considered whether to leave or approach the palace.
• Han Ling chose to head toward the palace, judging it their best prospect for finding a way out.

Shen Heng and Qin Yu explored another distorted space and discussed how distortion was increasing, while Shen Heng noticed a connection between distortion and his Configuration. Elsewhere, Calamity Beasts condemned Stone for helping humans and called for its execution, then asked Lord Ironback Beast to decide its fate.

• Shen Heng and Qin Yu assessed the distortion in the ninth space and decided to follow its boundary back, checking for new portals before returning to a previously explored space.
• Qin Yu explained that the spaces' distortion differed only slightly and varied within each space, while Shen Heng sensed his Configuration exerting greater control over his Origin Power.
• Shen Heng suddenly stopped in midair after considering the relationship between distortion and his Configuration.
• A gathering of Calamity Beasts berated the wounded Stone for helping humans and debated what to do with it.
• The Calamity Beasts declared Stone a human and demanded that it be killed, then asked Lord Ironback Beast for his judgment.

The Two-Horned Lizard questioned Stone after the Calamity Beasts brought the injured Stone-Armored Beast back for judgment. Stone explained that he had joined the humans because otherwise he would have died, and the Two-Horned Lizard asked whether he would stay with the Calamity Beasts from then on.

• The Ironback Beast overruled a suggestion to deal with Stone themselves and ordered the Calamity Beasts to take him to the Two-Horned Lizard.
• The Two-Horned Lizard heard the Split-Claw Beast recount Stone's repeated interference with their hunting parties and asked Stone to explain himself.
• The Split-Claw Beast kicked Stone for staying silent, but the Two-Horned Lizard stopped him and insisted that their companion not be treated that way.
• The Two-Horned Lizard asked the Calamity Beasts why Stone would join the humans when they themselves would not trust them.
• Stone said he had joined the humans because he would otherwise have died, and the Two-Horned Lizard asked him to remain with the Calamity Beasts.

Two-Horned Lizard defended Stone-Armored Beast against the other Calamity Beasts, arguing that Stone had been loyal to the humans it joined. Faced with their food shortage, Two-Horned Lizard promised to spend more time hunting, and Ironback Beast and the others offered to take over.

• Split-Claw Beast and several other Calamity Beasts argued that Stone-Armored Beast should be killed for betraying them and obstructing their hunts.
• Two-Horned Lizard explained that Stone had done nothing wrong from the humans’ perspective because it had served them after joining them.
• Ironback Beast raised the group’s food shortage as a reason not to keep Stone-Armored Beast.
• Two-Horned Lizard promised to hunt for longer each day and bring back a Calamity Beast, while Ironback Beast and the others offered to handle the hunting themselves.

The Two-Horned Lizard tried to spare the Stone-Armored Beast, which insisted that it be killed, and chose to give it time to recover instead. As the Ironback Beast reflected on the Two-Horned Lizard’s care for low-tier Calamity Beasts, humans attacked and began twisting its body; the Two-Horned Lizard shouted a warning as the Ironback Beast lost consciousness.

• The Two-Horned Lizard reassured the Stone-Armored Beast and promised the other Calamity Beasts would accept it, but the Stone-Armored Beast asked to be killed.
• The Two-Horned Lizard asked why, and the Stone-Armored Beast said it was tired of running back and forth.
• The Two-Horned Lizard ordered the Calamity Beasts to confine the Stone-Armored Beast for a few days, saying they would kill it only if it still wanted to die afterward.
• The Ironback Beast reminded the Two-Horned Lizard of its belief that every life was precious, and the Two-Horned Lizard affirmed that belief before walking away.
• The Ironback Beast began to lose control of its body as humans attacked, and it heard the Two-Horned Lizard shout, "Humans?!" before closing its eyes.

Shen Heng pursued the Two-Horned Lizard across the Gobi, overwhelming it despite its mental attacks. The Two-Horned Lizard begged for its life and offered to serve him, while Shen Heng wondered how a Calamity Beast with such high standing had learned so much nonsense.

• The Two-Horned Lizard fled from Shen Heng and was shocked that its mental attacks barely affected him.
• The Two-Horned Lizard tried to bargain and reason with Shen Heng, but he kept attacking as it ran.
• After Shen Heng brought it down, the Two-Horned Lizard begged for its life and offered to help him.
• The Two-Horned Lizard promised to carry supplies, fight other Calamity Beasts, and answer questions about the Ruins Realm.
• Shen Heng listened and wondered how the Two-Horned Lizard had earned such devotion among the other Calamity Beasts.