Chapter Summaries

Shen Heng and the Two-Horned Lizard failed repeatedly to use the cave’s statue to teleport away, even after reducing the number of Calamity Beasts in the prayer. With a fifth-tier Black Rat approaching, Shen Heng sent Qin Yu and the Two-Horned Lizard to leave while he stayed behind to try again.

• Shen Heng suggested that the failed prayer might mean the teleportation cost exceeded their offerings or was based on their original tiers.
• The Two-Horned Lizard proposed removing names from the prayer list, and the group tried again with fewer Calamity Beasts, but the prayer still failed.
• A lookout warned Shen Heng that the approaching fifth-tier Black Rat had covered about half the distance to the cave.
• Shen Heng ordered Qin Yu to take the Two-Horned Lizard and Stone back while he stayed behind to make another attempt.
• Qin Yu helped conceal Shen Heng, then left the cave with the Two-Horned Lizard.

Shen Heng prayed in the temple for a way to escape Black Stone Valley, and a strange light suggested his request had worked. Black Spine concluded that Shen Heng and the others had completed their prayer and were likely hiding in the forest, leaving the Black Rats unsure how to stop them.

• Shen Heng tried several versions of a prayer to escape, then prayed about the night, the forest, and being followed.
• A Calamity Beasts' character appeared briefly in the cave after Shen Heng finished praying.
• Black Spine and Lame Claw learned that blood whips had been used in the fight and realized the fugitives had killed their kin with them.
• Lame Claw proposed searching the forest, but Black Spine argued that the fugitives had already evaded their watch and would not be found by a sweep.
• Black Spine said the fugitives had probably completed their prayer and obtained what they needed to escape.

Shen Heng revealed that his prayer had made gateways out of Black Stone Valley appear randomly at night, leaving the group to find a way to locate one and reach it. As they watched from high ground, a gateway appeared nearby, giving them a promising first clue.

• The Two-Horned Lizard, Stone, and Qin Yu learned that Shen Heng’s prayer had succeeded but that they still needed to find an exit.
• Shen Heng explained that gateways appeared randomly throughout Black Stone Valley at night, and the group planned to watch from high ground for signs of one.
• Shen Heng led the group to find the surviving Calamity Beasts, replenish their strength, and choose high ground near the enclosure.
• From a hill, Shen Heng considered how Feixu might believe him dead, while Stone spotted a faint glimmer among the trees.
• Shen Heng recognized the glimmer as a sign of a nearby gateway and realized it had appeared close to them.

Shen Heng and the others debated whether the light in the woods marked a randomly appearing portal or a trap, and whether they should approach it. As they waited, an unknown figure rushed toward the light and vanished, leaving Two-Horned Lizard wondering if it had escaped.

• Stone, Two-Horned Lizard, and Shen Heng considered whether the illuminated trees marked the portal created by their wish.
• Shen Heng warned that the portal’s appearance so close to them seemed suspicious, and Two-Horned Lizard agreed to wait rather than scout ahead himself.
• The trees began trembling and crashing as an unknown figure moved through the forest toward the light.
• The figure vanished near the illuminated area, and Two-Horned Lizard wondered whether it had escaped.

Shen Heng’s group decided the humans near the distant light had escaped and set out for the portal, with the Two-Horned Lizard signaling the remaining Calamity Beasts to join them. As the group ran through the forest, the trees attacked with growing force, and Shen Heng wondered whether their movement had awakened the hidden threat faster.

• Shen Heng concluded that the humans near the light had most likely escaped and ordered his group to move quickly while staying together.
• The Two-Horned Lizard signaled the waiting Calamity Beasts by throwing a branch-covered boulder into the air.
• Several Calamity Beasts left their hiding places and ran toward the light as the trees around them began to move.
• Shen Heng and the Two-Horned Lizard ran with the others while branches and vines attacked them from multiple directions.
• A vast shadow descended as eerie voices called them bad children, and Shen Heng noticed the branches were attacking more strongly than before.

Shen Heng detected a Black Rat ambush near the portal and led the group toward it, then turned back when he realized they could not reach the exit in time. As Black Spine decided to capture them, Shen Heng ordered the Two-Horned Lizard to warn the other Calamity Beasts to flee in different directions.

• Shen Heng sensed an ambush nearby, and Qin Yu, Night Spirit Liya, and the others followed him toward the portal despite their doubts.
• Black Spine watched the group approach and decided to capture them.
• Shen Heng ordered Qin Yu, Stone, and the Two-Horned Lizard to turn back when they were close to the portal.
• Shen Heng told the Two-Horned Lizard that a Fifth Tier Black Rat was lying in ambush and that they could not reach the portal before it attacked.
• Shen Heng asked the Two-Horned Lizard to warn nearby Calamity Beasts to run in other directions, and it shouted the warning.

Shen Heng, Stone, and Two-Horned Lizard fled through the attacking branches as a Fifth Tier Black Rat pursued them. They realized concealment would leave them trapped in place, while splitting up raised its own risks.

• Two-Horned Lizard warned the others about a Fifth Tier Black Rat lying in ambush, and Shadow Cat chose to move forward rather than retreat.
• Black Spine noticed the fleeing figures and decided to pursue the group with the most movement.
• Two-Horned Lizard saw a Calamity Beast plummet toward the portal and realized it had lost its gamble when the Black Rat pursued them.
• Shen Heng explained that Stone could conceal their tracks only if they stayed still, which would let the Black Rat search their hiding place.
• Two-Horned Lizard suggested splitting up, then worried Shen Heng would pair the humans together and leave it with Stone.

Shen Heng led his team through the forest while a Fifth Tier Black Rat pursued them, and they deliberately awakened the surrounding trees to hinder it. As Black Spine closed in, Qin Yu briefly concealed the group from its perception, leaving the enraged forest between them and their pursuer.

• Shen Heng continued fleeing with the Two-Horned Lizard, Stone, and Qin Yu while searching for a way to evade Black Spine.
• Black Spine realized the team was trying to awaken the forest with explosions, but decided to keep pursuing Shen Heng.
• Shen Heng ordered everyone to fire Origin Power at the trees, making the awakened forest more violent and slowing Black Spine.
• Black Spine remained unharmed and steadily closed the distance as the trees surged toward it.
• Shen Heng called on Qin Yu, who used her shadow ability to briefly hide the group from Black Spine and the surrounding trees.
• Black Spine spotted them again, just as the forest's branches grew even more frenzied.

Shen Heng, Qin Yu, and the Two-Horned Lizard fled from the pursuing fifth-tier Black Rat while relying on awakened trees to slow it down. As the branches grew increasingly dangerous, Shen Heng and the Two-Horned Lizard prepared to take turns disrupting the pursuer, and the Two-Horned Lizard launched a mental attack.

• The Two-Horned Lizard warned Shen Heng that the Black Rat was closing in, while Qin Yu said the branches might not grow strong enough in time.
• A guide offered to stay behind and hold off the Black Rat, but Shen Heng promised to get everyone out.
• Shen Heng asked how much the Two-Horned Lizard's mental attacks could affect the Black Rat, then said he would take turns countering it.
• The Two-Horned Lizard questioned whether they could escape once the branches reached the fifth tier, and Shen Heng said this was their only remaining option.
• As attacks and frenzied branches surrounded them, the Two-Horned Lizard fired a mental spike at the Black Rat.

Shen Heng, Stone, Qin Yu, and Two-Horned Lizard fled Black Spine through the woods as Two-Horned Lizard’s mental attacks and Shen Heng’s strange ability repeatedly slowed their pursuer. When the branches reached the fifth tier and the chase reached its breaking point, Black Spine was caught by the woods’ rising shadows.

• Two-Horned Lizard realized Black Spine had been pretending to succumb to its mental attacks while conserving its strength.
• Shen Heng struck Black Spine with a visible distortion that froze it long enough for the fugitives to gain distance.
• Black Spine adapted to the attacks and recovered faster, while the surging branches reached the fifth tier and assaulted both sides.
• Shen Heng, Stone, and Qin Yu pressed on through the branches as Two-Horned Lizard used another mental attack to halt Black Spine for much longer.
• Black Spine watched the fleeing group as black shadows rose like tentacles and coiled around it.

Shen Heng and his companions escaped the forest’s attacks and hid on a mountainside while black rats searched for them. Shen Heng suspected that the fifth-tier black rat had used prayer to fix the exit portal’s location.

• The Two-Horned Lizard, Shen Heng, Qin Yu, and Stone survived the trees’ attack and remained hidden as the forest grew quiet.
• A black rat flew over searching for them, then later returned with several others that spread out across the sky.
• Shen Heng led the group away from their hiding place before dawn and stopped on a mountainside among taller peaks.
• The Two-Horned Lizard asked why the fifth-tier black rat had appeared near the portal, and Shen Heng proposed that it had fixed the portal’s location through prayer.

Shen Heng and the remaining Calamity Beasts struggled to find a way past the Black Rats guarding their escape route, and he decided they had to gamble again. Meanwhile, Black Spine received a carved stone slab bearing a message about the outside world and Calamity Beasts, though its meaning remained unclear.

• Stone asked why the Black Rats had not come directly to capture them, and Shen Heng reasoned that they had only been given a general location.
• Two-Horned Lizard explained that the Black Rats had left the portal in place to lure them toward a fifth-tier guard, leaving Shen Heng and the others with few escape options.
• Two-Horned Lizard suggested climbing the cliffs, but Shen Heng rejected the plan because the branches and patrolling Black Rats blocked the route.
• Shen Heng decided that the group would have to gamble one more time.
• A third-tier Black Rat reported finding a carved stone slab and handed it to Black Spine.
• Black Spine read fragments of the slab mentioning the outside world, Calamity Beasts, and something false.

Shen Heng emerged from a disorienting vision and realized the Black Rats’ history might have been altered, while the Two-Horned Lizard led the remaining outsiders in trying to escape. The next day, Shen Heng explained that prayer had fixed the exit portal’s location but not changed its nighttime opening.

• Black Spine questioned whether he had truly directed the previous uprising as he read the stone tablet’s final line.
• Shen Heng returned to the procession and noticed a Rock-Backed Beast watching him before asking the Shadow Wolf something.
• The Two-Horned Lizard, Black Jade Lion, and Steel-Mane Bear discussed their failed escape and concluded that the Black Rats had used prayer to fix the portal’s location.
• The Two-Horned Lizard promised to act the next day, though the chapter did not reveal his plan.
• Qin Yu, Shen Heng, and Night Spirit Liya discussed how the portal only appeared at night, and Shen Heng explained that prayer had fixed its location while leaving its timing unchanged.

Shen Heng realized the forest itself watched and attacked them at night, resembling a childhood tale about an Evil Spirit in the Forest, and suspected the Ruins Realm was turning stories from different groups into reality. The chapter ended with Moya finding a stone slab and the Coiling Mountain Beast waking in confusion when its friend called to it.

• Shen Heng told Qin Yu and Night Spirit Liya that the forest’s trees observed them at night before attacking, calling them “bad children” who should go home.
• Night Spirit Liya recognized the forest’s behavior as resembling a tale used to frighten Night Spirit children into coming home before dark.
• Shen Heng theorized that stories associated with Calamity Beasts, the Night Spirit Clan, and humans had been twisted into realities in the Ruins Realm.
• Night Spirit Liya urged them to prepare to deal with the Black Rats, while Shen Heng worried he had overlooked something.
• A Black Rat brought Moya a stone slab, and Moya stiffened as it read the slab.
• The Coiling Mountain Beast woke after its friend repeatedly called to it and said it felt muddled from sleeping.

Shen Heng and three companions met in the mine to compare what they remembered about their past and how they became Calamity Beasts. Their discussion ended with Shadow Wolf saying he was called Stone and thought he was not human.

• Shen Heng met Gray Stone Snake, who remembered her name as Qin Yu and her ability to conceal presences.
• Another companion arrived, followed by Rock-Backed Beast, whom Shen Heng recognized as Lord Shen Heng.
• Shen Heng explained that he remembered being human in a cluster of spaces and searching for a way out, while Qin Yu recalled little beyond entering the mine.
• Rock-Backed Beast admitted it had forgotten its identity but remembered being tasked with contacting other Calamity Beasts, including Black Jade Lion and Steel-Mane Bear.
• Shadow Wolf introduced himself as Stone and said he thought he was not human, startling the others.

Shen Heng and the others questioned Shadow Wolf about his missing memories, then studied a guarded portal surrounded by Black Rats. With stealth and luring tactics unlikely to work, Shen Heng proposed trying to start another riot.

• Two-Horned Lizard questioned why Shadow Wolf was traveling with them and suggested killing him, but Shen Heng said they should work together until they escaped.
• Shadow Wolf recalled resting in the sun, meeting Shen Heng amid corpses and fire, and Han Ling protecting him.
• At night, the group watched dozens of Black Rats guarding a glowing portal in a clearing and discussed how the area had changed.
• Qin Yu said she could conceal their tracks only briefly, while Shen Heng explained that luring the Black Rats away would not leave them facing a manageable number.
• Shen Heng tentatively proposed starting another riot to get past the Black Rats.

Shen Heng proposed sparking another riot in Black Stone Valley by showing the Calamity Beasts that they could escape now that the Black Rats had lost many powerful fighters. The group considered how to organize it under close supervision, and Shen Heng began outlining a plan.

• Shen Heng asked whether the others had noticed the Calamity Beasts acting more disrespectfully toward the Black Rats, and Qin Yu and Two-Horned Lizard agreed they had.
• Shen Heng explained that the Black Rats had lost too many high-tier Calamity Beasts to control the others, making a new riot more likely to succeed.
• Two-Horned Lizard recognized that the Calamity Beasts could escape if Black Stone Valley fell into chaos and asked Shen Heng how he knew so much; Shen Heng attributed his analysis to lingering instincts.
• Qin Yu questioned how they could organize a riot while the Black Rats supervised them and forbade talking in the mine, and Shen Heng said the less-fearful Calamity Beasts might join once they saw a chance to escape.
• Stone indicated that Two-Horned Lizard should lead the effort again, but Two-Horned Lizard warned that few helpers remained and the plan would take time.
• Shen Heng considered the problem and began proposing a plan.

Hidden Leopard listened to Calamity Beasts discuss whether captives had escaped and considered joining a possible escape attempt. As it followed the group toward the mine, a fellow approached it, while Black Rat Feixu learned that the captives had broken into chaos.

• Hidden Leopard overheard Calamity Beasts whisper that Shadow Stone and two others might have escaped, then noticed more beasts discussing escape plans that night.
• Hidden Leopard followed a group toward the mine and heard them debate whether the missing captives had escaped and how they might flee.
• The beasts lowered their voices before revealing the escape route, and one of them approached Hidden Leopard as the group scattered.
• Black Rat Feixu reviewed the valley's food use, casualties, and captured Calamity Beasts while worrying about how many they had caught.
• A panicked Tier 3 Black Rat rushed into the stone building and warned Feixu and the other Black Rats that the captives had broken into chaos.

Shadow Wolf fled with the escaping Calamity Beasts, who fought their way through the Black Rats and rallied others toward the valley entrance. The Black Rats realized that a mass revolt was underway, but they did not know how it had begun or whether it had been organized.

• Shadow Wolf followed the Calamity Beasts as they escaped the mines and chased down a Black Rat to prevent it from reporting their location.
• Over a hundred Calamity Beasts fought a group of Black Rats, killing them and devouring their corpses before moving on.
• The Calamity Beasts reached the mountain gap and urged the fighting beasts there to charge toward freedom.
• A fourth-tier Black Rat saw the arriving Calamity Beasts chanting that they would never be slaves.
• A Black Rat reported that even more Calamity Beasts were heading toward the valley entrance, and the Black Rats questioned how the revolt had started without warning.

The Black Rats debated how to respond to the mass escape, while Feixu urged them to check the valley entrance before moving their forces. In the woods, Two-Horned Lizard prepared to lead the Calamity Beasts toward the portal, then reacted with bewilderment when Black Jade Lion called him by his old name.

• The Black Rats argued over whether to send reinforcements to the valley entrance, fearing both an escape and a revolt in the enclosure.
• Feixu warned that moving the enclosure guards could trigger another uprising and suggested checking how many Calamity Beasts had gone to the entrance.
• The Black Rats praised Feixu's plan and began dispatching forces to investigate and reinforce different locations.
• After night fell, Black Jade Lion told Two-Horned Lizard that the Black Rats guarding the enclosure had not withdrawn.
• Two-Horned Lizard told Black Jade Lion and Steel-Mane Bear to split up and head for the portal, then asked them not to call him Two-Horned Lizard.
• Black Jade Lion questioned the request, and Two-Horned Lizard stared at him in bewilderment.