Recaps

Lucifer spent his remaining fragments to summon four heroes for the Alliance Zone, including the eight-star Alleria Windrunner, while Xiao Yu suspected the game company was favoring his opponent. Xiao Yu let the adventurers gather around his Old God Form as his health fell to one-fifth, then prepared to unleash his plan.

• Lucifer randomly summoned Kal Wildhammer, Baron Ximengsi, Aibote Falarui, and Alleria Windrunner for the Alliance Zone.
• Xiao Yu decided to stop holding back and transformed into Old God Form, exchanging attacks with the adventurers while waiting for more of them to gather.
• The four heroes bolstered the adventurers with protection, ranged damage, resurrection, healing, and tanking, allowing them to surround Xiao Yu in growing numbers.
• After ten minutes, two or three thousand adventurers had gathered around Xiao Yu, and his health had fallen to one-fifth as the crowd and streamers anticipated his defeat.
• As the adventurers urged each other to finish the fight, Xiao Yu smiled and prepared to make his move.

Xiao Yu used a combination of skills and a monster army to trap and crush thousands of adventurers, shocking viewers and the game’s GMs. As the GMs worried about public backlash, a black-robed man decided to exploit the incident by stirring up an outcry.

• Xiao Yu combined Simulated Black Hole, Hurricane Spell, Earthquake Spell, and Chaos Dragon Breath to suck thousands of adventurers and four heroes into the black hole.
• Xiao Yu hired an earth elemental army, which dug a pit beneath the black hole and ringed it with earth elementals.
• When the black hole vanished, Xiao Yu dropped onto the crowded adventurers in Old God Form, crushing many of them and horrifying viewers.
• Liu Wei, Huo Xian, and Ma Xiaoyun worried that the gruesome footage would provoke public backlash and threaten the game.
• A black-robed man laughed at Xiao Yu’s move and decided to fan the flames of public outrage.

Xiao Yu used the Horde’s overwhelming numbers, buffs, and Grom Hellscream to defeat Lucifer and win the match. After returning to his personal space, he learned that his victory had made him famous and found the forums erupting with attention.

• Xiao Yu spent his fragments on ten Horde buffs and summoned the nine-star hero Grom Hellscream.
• Xiao Yu issued a Declaration of Destruction against Lucifer as Horde adventurers overwhelmed him and killed his demon army.
• Grom Hellscream charged Lucifer, cleaved through his scythe, and struck his heart, causing Lucifer to explode and lose the match.
• Xiao Yu returned to the preparation space and confirmed the victory to Big Water Cunt and Leah Bloodmoon.
• Leah Bloodmoon told Xiao Yu she had decided to accept an advertising endorsement after learning the game company’s contract terms were not fully legally binding, and Xiao Yu supported her.
• Xiao Yu returned to his personal space, where his studio urged him to check the forums because he had become famous.

After Xiao Yu’s massacre of thousands of adventurers as Azathoth went viral, he saw the public debate over the game’s violent content and wondered how the company would respond. The company released the Sky World 1.31 patch, adding optional systems to obscure or transform bloody scenes.

• Xiao Yu watched a video of Azathoth crushing thousands of adventurers and felt both proud and uneasy about the spectacle.
• Xiao Yu read discussions praising Azathoth’s skill combination and debating whether the game was too violent.
• Xiao Yu found a widely circulated post condemning the game’s sexualized and bloody scenes, though commenters mostly mocked the complaint and asked what game it was.
• Xiao Yu checked the official website and found the Sky World 1.31 patch announcement, which introduced optional harmony features and paid packs to alter violent effects.

After the Evil Forces Competition group stage, Leah Bloodmoon and Big Water Cunt celebrated their new advertising deals while Xiao Yu considered endorsement offers of his own. An invitation from the game's official team summoned Xiao Yu and his teammates to a real-world meeting about the upcoming final.

• Xiao Yu confirmed that [The Immortals], [Purgatory Legion], [Light of Heavenly Punishment], and [Dragon Covenant] had advanced from the other groups.
• Leah Bloodmoon showed Xiao Yu her herbal tea commercial, in which she played a queen whose tea was stolen by adventurers.
• Big Water Cunt told Xiao Yu he had signed an endorsement deal for Stain Remover after their match went viral.
• Xiao Yu reviewed product endorsement offers and received an invitation from the game's official team to meet at the Marriott Hotel in S City on the 11th.

After spending six months indoors, Xiao Yu met his studio teammates in person and brought them to a meeting for the tournament’s four group-stage winners. At the Marriott Hotel, they encountered the Dynamic Angels and Angel greeted them before the meeting began.

• Xiao Yu left his apartment for the first time in six months, gathered Liu Yishui, Han Liya, Li Xiaomei, and Wang Gang, and headed to the Marriott Hotel.
• Xiao Yu told his teammates that the tournament organizers might control the matchups rather than leave them entirely to chance.
• At the hotel, Xiao Yu’s group spotted the Dynamic Angels and approached their lounge area.
• Angel recognized Leah Bloodmoon, praised her, and chatted with Xiao Yu and Liu Yishui about their in-game identities.
• Angel signed Li Xiaomei’s notebook, then returned to the Dynamic Angels while Han Liya and Li Xiaomei praised her; Xiao Yu led his group over to the tables.

Xiao Yu met members of Dragon Covenant and exchanged a dramatic challenge with Naiser, whom he considered his main rival in the tournament. The contestants’ meeting began with Liu Wei introducing Zhang Haian as the tournament’s bookmaker, leaving Xiao Yu wondering why the bookmaker had come to meet them.

• Angel told Anya that Xiao Yu’s calmness made him a concern, while Keleiqi, Isabella, and Odina discussed how they wanted to face the tournament opponents.
• Xiao Yu’s group met Rod and the other Dragon Covenant players, and they discussed the Dynamic Angels and Naiser as the strongest threats in the tournament.
• Naiser approached Xiao Yu, praised his match, and declared that he was destined to defeat him; Xiao Yu replied with his own theatrical challenge.
• Liu Wei welcomed the contestants and introduced Zhang Haian as a professional gambling expert and the bookmaker for the Demon King Tournament.

Zhang Haian and Liu Wei tried to arrange the competition results in advance, but Naiser rejected their public offer and the teams left without an agreement. Liu Wei then privately offered Xiao Yu twenty million and favorable match conditions if he defeated Naiser and later let the Light of Heavenly Punishment win, leaving Xiao Yu torn over whether to accept.

• Zhang Haian proposed that the competitors agree on a winner so he could set betting odds, while Liu Wei said the company wanted to control the competition's pace.
• Liu Wei offered to divide the prize money among the other teams if they let the Light of Heavenly Punishment take the championship, and the Dragon Covenant agreed.
• Naiser refused the arrangement and insisted he would win, while Angel, Xiao Yu, and the Dragon Covenant each argued that their own side could prevail.
• Zhang Haian and Liu Wei left after the teams failed to agree, and Xiao Yu and the Dragon Covenant ate together before Liu Wei summoned Xiao Yu and Rod privately.
• Liu Wei offered Xiao Yu twenty million and map advantages if he defeated Naiser and then let the Light of Heavenly Punishment win, and Xiao Yu remained undecided.

Xiao Yu agreed to a paid arrangement to lose to the Dragon Covenant, while secretly planning to betray the deal and win the tournament. After returning home to prepare, he followed Merlin to meet an unknown person and arrived in a vast space with a familiar-looking backdrop.

• Liu Wei learned that Naiser had agreed to the arrangement, and Zhang Haian proposed the matchups and outcomes for the tournament.
• Xiao Yu agreed to receive ten million for losing to the Dragon Covenant, but privately planned to defeat them and reach the final.
• Xiao Yu warned Liu Wei not to cheat him, then told Big Water Cunt and Leah Bloodmoon to prepare and follow his orders.
• Xiao Yu returned home and entered the game, where Merlin invited him to meet someone in a temporary virtual space.
• Merlin led Xiao Yu from the Little Black Room into a vast space, where Xiao Yu recognized the familiar-looking backdrop.

Xiao Yu met the black-robed leader of the Council of Sages, who offered to make him the expansion’s final boss in exchange for three future favors. Xiao Yu refused, returned to prepare for the competition, and the man planned to wait until Xiao Yu lost before recruiting him.

• The black-robed man told Xiao Yu that the game company might betray their deal and leave him without compensation.
• The black-robed man offered to help Xiao Yu become the expansion’s final boss in exchange for three favors, but Xiao Yu refused because he did not trust him.
• The black-robed man gave Xiao Yu his number and said they would meet again, then told Merlin to bring Abbas to him.
• The black-robed man explained that he expected a losing contestant to seek his help, since only one competitor could win.
• Xiao Yu returned to his virtual space, wondered if the black-robed man was Shen Yuan, and decided to focus on preparing for the competition.

The Evil Forces Competition semifinals began with Dragon Covenant facing The Immortals on the Eternal Battlefield, a map built for five bosses per side. Xiao Yu realized the setup favored Dragon Covenant, but entered the match confident that his plan could overcome the odds.

• The commentators discussed the teams’ strengths and identified Azathoth as the key threat in the Dragon Covenant match.
• Sirod and Azathoth exchanged confident introductions before Sirod let the system generate the map.
• The system created the Eternal Battlefield, where each team could field up to five bosses and had to destroy the enemy core to win.
• Xiao Yu recognized that the five-boss format favored Dragon Covenant, but decided he could still win with his tactic.
• Xiao Yu confirmed that Big Water Cunt and Leah Bloodmoon were ready, and the team prepared to begin.

Xiao Yu led The Immortals into a five-boss battle against the Dragon Covenant and split his forces across the three lanes. After learning how devastating the enemy towers were, he relied on successive elemental armies to wear down the defenders and began looking for an opening to attack.

• Xiao Yu selected Ragnaros, Leah Bloodmoon, Big Water Cunt, Sgelari, and Azathoth as The Immortals' bosses and chose their four unit types.
• After arriving at the Eternal Battlefield, Xiao Yu assigned Big Water Cunt and Sgelari to the bottom lane, Leah Bloodmoon and Ragnaros to the top, and took the middle lane himself.
• Xiao Yu tested the enemy tower's range and discovered that its tracking fireball dealt more than a million damage, so he pulled back.
• Xiao Yu checked the enemy lineup and saw Sirod facing him in the middle lane while the two armies fought between their towers.
• As successive elemental armies entered the battle, Xiao Yu waited for the third force to arrive and then made his move.

Xiao Yu fought and killed Sirod, then destroyed the enemy defense tower, but Sirod respawned and stayed under cover, leaving the middle lane at a stalemate. Xiao Yu sent his allies to defend the lanes and decided to enter the forest with Big Water Cunt to kill jungle monsters.

• Xiao Yu fought Sirod in the air while the elemental army fought the dragonkin army below.
• Xiao Yu used Chaos Nova, Gravity Shackles, and his Old God Form to defeat and kill Sirod.
• Xiao Yu destroyed the enemy defense tower with repeated Earthquake Spells before Sirod returned from respawning.
• Sirod stayed under cover and the middle lane stalled as Xiao Yu's troops were repeatedly wiped out.
• Xiao Yu told Leah Bloodmoon to bring Ragnaros to guard the middle lane and sent Big Water Cunt to join him in the forest while Sgelari held the bottom lane.

Xiao Yu searched the forest for useful map elements, discovered the powerful Ancient Creation, and then forced Dr. Boom and the Goblin Expedition to serve him. With goblin siege rocket vehicles now available, he planned to push down the middle lane while two enemy players were missing from their lanes.

• Xiao Yu used the Magic Mirror of True Knowledge to locate the Ancient Creation, a level 60, 9-skull boss, and found that it controlled the forest animals with its will.
• Xiao Yu fought the Ancient Creation but realized he could not defeat it in time, so he froze its tentacles and escaped as a Raven of Chaos.
• Xiao Yu found Dr. Boom and the goblins repairing a spaceship, rejected their request to fetch energy crystals, and demanded that they serve him or die.
• Xiao Yu destroyed the goblins’ Destroyer Robot 4000, prompting Dr. Boom to surrender and the Goblin Expedition to join him.
• Leah Bloodmoon reported that two enemy players had left their lanes, and Xiao Yu decided to use the goblin siege rocket vehicle to push down the middle lane.

Sirod’s dragons launched a desperate counterattack against the rocket launchers, using Little Dingdang’s dragon-language Time Stop to freeze the battlefield. Xiao Yu remained mentally alert and sensed that the Power of Chaos could free him, but he waited to see what the two dragons behind Little Dingdang would do.

• Sirod called Dumas the Elder and Little Dingdang back to defend the tower after their errands produced no useful reinforcements.
• After two rocket launchers battered the tower, Sirod led Little Dingdang and Dumas the Elder in a charge against the enemy bosses.
• Little Dingdang cast the bronze dragon forbidden spell Time Stop, freezing everyone and everything on the battlefield.
• Xiao Yu discovered that the Power of Chaos kept circulating and could let him break free, but he stayed still to watch the dragons behind Little Dingdang.

Xiao Yu broke free of the bronze dragon’s Time Stop and killed Little Dingdang, while the dragons’ ultimate spells wiped out much of Xiao Yu’s army and destroyed his rocket cart. Dumas and Sirod retreated after killing Sgelari, leaving Xiao Yu to consider another siege weapon as both sides faced a difficult next round.

• Dumas the Elder cast Doomsday Judgment, while Sirod used Death from Above against the frozen army, rocket cart, and bosses.
• Xiao Yu broke free of Little Dingdang’s Time Stop and charged the bronze dragon as the spells detonated across the battlefield.
• Sirod attacked the pinned Sgelari and killed him, while Ragnaros rose to fight Sirod despite his wounds.
• Xiao Yu shattered Little Dingdang’s Time Prison, transformed into his Old God Form, and bit the bronze dragon’s neck in two.
• Sirod drove Ragnaros back and retreated beneath the defensive tower with Dumas the Elder, who had killed Sgelari.
• Xiao Yu found that his army and rocket cart had been destroyed and wondered whether he had another siege weapon.

Xiao Yu pushed the elemental army through the Dragon Covenant's defenses, killing Dumas the Elder and Sirod and advancing to the camp's high ground despite his supposed agreement to lose. The chapter ended with the final battle erupting at the camp's core while Liu Wei discovered that something had gone wrong in match room two as well.

• Xiao Yu's elemental army destroyed the enemy rocket siege vehicle, and he killed Dumas the Elder after switching to Old God Form.
• Xiao Yu summoned earth elementals and chaos creatures to demolish the defensive tower, then killed Sirod during their fight.
• Sirod warned the others to return to the middle lane, while viewers celebrated or worried over their bets and Liu Wei switched to match room two after receiving an urgent message.
• Xiao Yu's forces overwhelmed the remaining defenders and pushed onto the high ground, forcing Beatrice and Aolanduer to retreat.
• Big Water Cunt and Leah Bloodmoon joined Xiao Yu as the final battle broke out in the Dragon Covenant's camp.

After the Dragon Covenant wiped out Xiao Yu’s elemental army and killed him, Xiao Yu claimed he had thrown the fight. The Dragon Covenant then chose to hunt an Ancient Creation instead of pushing, and Xiao Yu sent his team to advance in every lane while he prepared a plan.

• Xiao Yu led four Elemental Gates to summon an army, but the dragons countered with forbidden magic and devastated the elementals and bosses.
• Dumas the Elder killed Leah Bloodmoon, Beatrice killed Big Water Cunt, and Aolanduer killed Sgelari as the dragons overwhelmed the team.
• The five dragons defeated Xiao Yu and threw him into a black hole; after he returned, he learned Ragnaros had also fallen.
• Xiao Yu messaged Sirod, claiming he had deliberately thrown the fight, while Little Dingdang warned that it could be a trap.
• Aolanduer proposed killing an Ancient Creation, and Xiao Yu used the Magic Mirror of True Knowledge to watch the dragons attack it.
• Xiao Yu ordered Big Water Cunt to take the bottom lane, Leah Bloodmoon and Sgelari to take the middle, and Ragnaros to take the top while he went to carry out his plan.

Xiao Yu ambushed the Dragon Covenant, killed all five dragons, and led an army of Eternal Jungle beasts to destroy their base and win the match. Back in the preparation space, he learned that his next opponent was Naiser, Lord of Purgatory, and was surprised that Naiser had won.

• Xiao Yu arrived at the canyon in Raven of Chaos form and waited while the five dragons fought the nearly defeated Ancient Creation.
• Xiao Yu used Ragnaros's self-destruction and Elemental Storm to kill the Ancient Creation, Beatrice, and Aolanduer.
• Xiao Yu transformed into a chaos dragon and killed Sirod, Dumas the Elder, and Little Dingdang, wiping out the Dragon Covenant.
• Xiao Yu led an army of Eternal Jungle beasts to the Dragon Covenant's base, where they destroyed its core despite the dragons respawning.
• The host announced that Xiao Yu would face Naiser, Lord of Purgatory, next, and Xiao Yu was startled to hear that Naiser had won.

Xiao Yu learned that Naiser had won the other semifinal and faced him in a televised meeting before their final, scheduled for three days later. The night before the match, armed men abducted Xiao Yu and brought him to a warehouse where Liu Wei and Zhang Haian confronted him.

• Xiao Yu was surprised to learn Naiser had defeated the Dynamic Angels and would face him in the final.
• Xiao Yu and Naiser met on the livestream, exchanged warnings and battle declarations, and vanished before the final was set for three days later.
• Xiao Yu grew increasingly anxious when Zhang Haian and Liu Wei did not contact him in the days before the final.
• The night before the match, a hooded figure entered Xiao Yu’s home, threatened him with a gun, and dragged him into a car.
• Xiao Yu was taken to a warehouse, where he saw Liu Wei, Zhang Haian, and three men in black waiting for him.

Xiao Yu was about to be killed by Zhang Haian after refusing to cooperate, but a masked gunman rescued him and took him to a hidden base. There, Xiao Yu recognized his rescuers as Merlin and prepared to learn why they had saved him.

• Liu Wei beat Xiao Yu, and Zhang Haian threatened to shoot him for betraying the group.
• Xiao Yu offered to fight Naiser and hand over the prize money, but Zhang Haian rejected his proposal and ordered a henchman to kill him.
• An unseen sniper shot the henchman, then helped kill the remaining men in the warehouse.
• A masked man took Xiao Yu to a car, where he revealed himself as Merlin and said they would talk at his secret base.
• Merlin brought Xiao Yu to a concealed residence filled with gaming pods and offered to answer his questions.

Shen Yuan told Xiao Yu that he had co-created Sky World with Li Mingfei, but was forced out after opposing plans to monetize character templates. He asked Xiao Yu to help unlock the game’s original fully realistic design, and Xiao Yu agreed.

• Xiao Yu asked the old man who he was, and Shen Yuan revealed that he was Sky World's developer.
• Shen Yuan described how he and Li Mingfei had created Sky World to be fair, realistic, and open to players choosing any role.
• Shen Yuan said Li Mingfei and the investors forced him out after he opposed selling character templates for profit.
• Shen Yuan rejected the claim that he alone had wanted to add Cthulhu Mythos elements and said the game company had also lied about its competition maps being random.
• Shen Yuan explained that the game’s realistic features were still present but blocked by the system, and asked Xiao Yu to help restore them.
• Xiao Yu agreed to help Shen Yuan, partly because of their conflict with the game company and partly because the idea appealed to him.

Xiao Yu prepared for the Evil Forces Competition final after recovering from Liu Wei and Zhang Haian’s attempt to kill him, then entered a survival-focused deathmatch against Naiser on the Land of Origins. He chose stealthy and durable forces to survive the map’s dangerous Ancient Creations.

• Xiao Yu recalled Shen Yuan’s plan to use a hidden game backdoor and agreed to follow his orders when the time came.
• Xiao Yu entered the final match’s preparation space and met Naiser on the platform as the two bosses arrived.
• Xiao Yu and Naiser agreed to let the system generate their map, which turned out to be the Land of Origins, filled with powerful Ancient Creations.
• Xiao Yu chose flying wind elementals, invisible ice wraiths, burrowing earth walkers, Ragnaros, and Agnes for his army.
• Xiao Yu and his army were transported into the Land of Origins to begin the final match.

Azathoth sent his elemental army to hide and flew alone through the void to face Naiser, whose Nephalem Valor could grow by killing monsters. He found Naiser at 345 stacks after Naiser slaughtered his own demons and defeated an Ancient Creation, leaving Azathoth to charge in before Naiser could grow stronger.

• Azathoth ordered his army to scatter and survive, sent Ragnaros to hide in the remains of a sun, and flew alone toward Naiser.
• The commentators explained that Naiser gained unlimited Nephalem Valor stacks by killing monsters, and that Azathoth's army could feed the buff.
• Xiao Yu bet his two million savings on Naiser and flew toward him, sensing his location across the void.
• Xiao Yu found Naiser fighting a giant lobster-like Ancient Creation amid the corpses of Naiser's demons and demon lords.
• Naiser severed the Ancient Creation's neck, bringing his Nephalem Valor to 345 stacks, and Xiao Yu charged forward.

Xiao Yu faced Naiser alone and used rapidly cast elemental spells to keep the heavily buffed warrior at a distance. After Naiser broke through his defenses, Xiao Yu trapped him in a pull of gravity, and Naiser began a furious chain of slashes.

• Naiser challenged Xiao Yu to bring out his army, but Xiao Yu said he would handle Naiser alone.
• Xiao Yu repeatedly cast Ice Prison and Stone Wall to delay Naiser's charge, while Naiser melted the ice with Purgatory Fire and smashed through the stone.
• Naiser used Cleave with the Dark Ripper, triggering Dimensional Rend and destroying more than a dozen stone walls.
• Xiao Yu cast Gravity Trap, drawing floating stone fragments toward Naiser.
• Naiser mistook the incoming debris for an attack and used Infinite Chain Slash to strike rapidly around himself.