Chapter Summaries

Shen Xing strengthened his Shadow Dragon forces and explored for Rain God Statues with Xia Wanyin and Leina. The chapter ended with news that the Tree Spirit Guards had grown and Gorehowl had reached level 16.

• Shen Xing inspected the newly hatched Shadow Dragon, calculated its potential damage bonuses, and embedded two Dark Gems in the dragon nest.
• Shen Xing ordered Onyxia to investigate who had hired a Jiangcheng delivery worker to attack him and to train the territory’s Shadow Dragons.
• Shen Xing absorbed Soul Stones before joining Xia Wanyin and Leina to find five Rain God Statues, collecting eight Rain and Dew Pearls, seven Treant Guardian Seeds, and forty-five Tree Spirit Warrior Seeds.
• Shen Xing trained his mental power by lifting a stone pillar until he was exhausted, then slept outside the Land of Mist.
• Shen Xing returned to his territory the next morning and learned that the Tree Spirit Guards had grown and Gorehowl had reached level 16.

Shen Xing strengthened Gorehowl and his territory’s defenses before Yu Feifei visited to collect her cat and give him a mechanical puppet. The chapter ended with Shen Xing examining the unstable but powerful gift after Yu Feifei went home.

• Shen Xing evolved Gorehowl to Boss One Star, unlocking Plunder and Blade of Blood Fury.
• Shen Xing gained ten evolution slots, evolved Nimue with a Boss Rank Soul, and inspected six newly grown Tree Spirit Guards.
• Yu Feifei returned to collect Duoduo, paid Shen Xing with two Greater Soul Stones, and noticed that he seemed stronger.
• Yu Feifei gave Shen Xing a mechanical puppet capable of Tier Two strength and warned that it could explode if heavily damaged.
• Yu Feifei left with Duoduo, and Shen Xing looked over the mechanical puppet.

Shen Xing finished gathering Rain God event rewards and strengthening his territory before the Lotus Pond secret realm opened. He reviewed its rules and the forum debate, then left the challenge ahead unresolved.

• Shen Xing used the mechanical puppet Yu Feifei had brought him, but put it away after it repeatedly malfunctioned.
• Shen Xing, Xia Wanyin, and their companions searched the plains for Rain God Statues until the event ended, collecting about fifteen Rain and Dew Pearls and nearly 120 Tree Spirit seeds.
• Shen Xing faced stronger mist monsters, including armies of rotting corpses, but his arrow towers, Demon Flame Turrets, and skeleton archers destroyed them before they reached the territory.
• On the fifteenth day, the Lotus Pond secret realm opened, and Shen Xing read its rules: lords could bring up to five troops, compete through progressively harder levels, and earn rewards for their best cleared level.
• Shen Xing checked the official forum and found lords debating the event and whether he could compete against powerful, long-established players.

Shen Xing prepared for the Lotus Pond Secret Realm, received the advancement materials and supplies he had been waiting for, and sent the key items to his territory. He began upgrading the Great Bonfire and summoned Hellscream and Leina, hoping to strengthen his forces before entering the realm.

• Shen Xing discussed the Lotus Pond Secret Realm with Qin Lang and Xu Jiayi, who hoped they might meet inside and reach the second floor.
• Shen Xing exchanged messages with Xia Wanyin and Yu Feifei, then resolved to pursue the epic gem on the fifth floor despite his territory’s limited high-tier forces.
• A delivery from the Anomaly Handling Bureau brought Shen Xing war chariot materials, Black Moon Knight Scrolls, black spirit wood, and advancement materials for Leina, Hellscream, and Black Arrow.
• Shen Xing teleported the advancement materials, black spirit wood, and nearly ten sets of war chariot materials before reaching his limit.
• Shen Xing used the black spirit wood to start upgrading the Great Bonfire to level five, a process expected to take more than two days.
• Shen Xing called Hellscream and Leina to meet him at the territory’s center.

Shen Xing advised Hellscream about his stalled power-control training and gave him and Leina materials to advance to Tier Three. He inspected the territory’s expanding farmland and reorganized outer district, where the Shadow Dragon force had grown to three.

• Hellscream told Shen Xing that he had reached a new barrier in controlling his power, and Shen Xing suggested he try again after advancing to Tier Three.
• Shen Xing gave Hellscream the [Ancestor's Fang] and Leina the [Advanced Flame Mage Handbook], and both heroes began their breakthroughs.
• Shen Xing inspected the southern fields, where Monday reported that six mu had been planted with Moonlight Wheat and the first harvest was expected in about half a month.
• Shen Xing toured the outer district and reviewed how he had grouped the territory’s facilities and troop nests.
• Shen Xing observed that the territory’s military strength had increased, with three Shadow Dragons now present.

Leina Yenait broke through to Tier Three, gained Expert Rank Fire Element Mastery, and advanced to Boss Two Star. Shen Xing then checked on Hellscream, who appeared to be creating his own combat skill, an unusual feat for someone still at Tier Two.

• Leina Yenait broke through to Tier Three, raising her level cap and learning Expert Rank Fire Element Mastery.
• Shen Xing welcomed Leina and used Life-Sacrifice Evolution to advance her to Boss Two Star.
• Shen Xing chose Leina, Onyxia, Hellscream, Fordring, and Xiao Hei for the Lotus Pond secret realm.
• Shen Xing found Hellscream practicing a repeated, empty-handed strike that cracked the ground around him.
• Fordring told Shen Xing that Hellscream was creating his own combat skill, a feat rarely achieved even by powerful higher-tier fighters.

Hellscream broke through to Tier Three and created the powerful exclusive skill Split the Sky, leaving Shen Xing impressed by his growth. After Hellscream agreed to get used to his new strength before joining Shen Xing in the secret realm, Fordring asked him to explain how he had created the skill.

• Shen Xing learned that Hellscream was trying to create a unique combat skill during his breakthrough, while Fordring warned that Hellscream might fail if his foundation was insufficient.
• Hellscream's repeated swings drew thunder and lightning from the misty sky, and he struck back against the bolt with a surge of force.
• Hellscream successfully reached Tier Three, gaining the Power Control ability Condense into One and the defense-piercing skill Split the Sky.
• Shen Xing inspected Hellscream's new abilities and attributes, then asked how he had managed to create his own combat skill.
• Hellscream said he had combined his combat insights with a new way of exerting force, though he could not explain how he overcame the technical difficulties.
• Shen Xing told Hellscream to get used to his new strength before joining him in the secret realm, and Fordring asked Hellscream for pointers on creating combat skills.

As the Lotus Pond Secret Realm was about to open, Lachlan, Zhang Yu, and Shen Xing prepared their forces and discussed their goals. At midnight, a system notification appeared before every lord as the secret realm opened.

• Lachlan ordered his team to cooperate, target a top-ten finish, and stop Shen Xing from reaching the next floor; he also explained the value of Rain and Dew Essence and warned Sloth to stay focused.
• Zhang Yu promised to seek Rain and Dew Essence for Elder Wang, then discussed the formidable Tier Two contenders Shen Xing would face.
• Shen Xing gathered Leina, the dragon woman, Fordring, Hellscream, and Xiao Hei, explained the secret realm rules, and received their agreement to follow his orders.
• At midnight, a grand system notification appeared before every lord.

Shen Xing and his commanders entered the Lotus Pond secret realm and searched its vast lotus leaves for Water Spirits, discovering that the creatures hid inside droplets. When other lords fought over a Water Spirit, Shen Xing chose to keep his group together and proceed cautiously.

• Shen Xing entered the Lotus Pond secret realm with his five commanders and was matched with Tier Two lords from around the world.
• Shen Xing ordered his group to search the lotus leaves in formation, and Leina vaporized several droplets without finding anything.
• Shen Xing and the other lords saw a Middle Eastern lord battling Water Spirits after discovering them inside a droplet.
• Several lords attacked the Middle Eastern lord to seize the Water Spirits, triggering a fierce fight among their powerful troops.
• Shen Xing judged that the secret realm contained many strong opponents and decided not to split up his group as they continued searching.

Shen Xing’s party defeated two groups of Water Elementals while advancing across the lotus leaves, with Leina’s firepower and Onyxia’s finishing move quickly killing their Demonized Water Elemental leaders. They collected valuable growth items and continued onward, hoping to find more Growth Water Droplets.

• Shen Xing examined a group of thirty Elite Water Elementals led by a Tier Three Boss Rank Demonized Water Elemental.
• Fordring shielded the party from the Water Elementals’ first attack, and Leina’s Fireball Spell evaporated the Elite monsters and badly injured their leader.
• Onyxia used Deadline Execution to kill the Demonized Water Elemental, and Shen Xing collected a Growth Water Droplet, a Rain and Dew Pearl, and a gold War Ancient Tree Seed.
• Shen Xing recognized the Growth Water Droplet’s ability to accelerate a plant’s growth by fifty years and urged the party to seek more.
• The party defeated a second group using the same tactics, collected Rain and Dew Pearls and seeds, and continued leaping across the lotus leaves.

Shen Xing rose to fourth place while hunting Water Spirits in the Lotus Pond and rejected Emma’s offer to ally with him. With less than four minutes left on the first floor, three teams surrounded him and attacked after admitting someone had hired them to eliminate him.

• Shen Xing’s team killed five Water Spirits, earning loot as he climbed to third place on the leaderboard.
• Emma approached Shen Xing to propose an alliance, but he refused, and she left after the red-haired mage intimidated her.
• Shen Xing’s team killed eight more Water Spirits, and he reached fourth place with 14 points as the first floor neared its end.
• Three teams surrounded Shen Xing, and one lord said someone had paid them to eliminate him.
• The three lords ordered their troops to attack Shen Xing as nearby lords watched.

Shen Xing advanced to the second level of the Lotus Pond Secret Realm after Onyxia wiped out three attacking lords, then discovered that Qin Lang had advanced too. He headed toward Qin Lang’s position and encountered a Water Spirit along the way.

• Shen Xing ordered Onyxia to cover the lotus leaf in darkness, where she killed the three lords and their troops in a single sweep.
• Shen Xing failed to find another Water Spirit before the first level ended, but ranked fourth and confirmed his entry to the second level.
• Shen Xing arrived in the second-level Lotus Pond Secret Realm, where all attributes and movement speed were reduced by 10%.
• Shen Xing learned that Qin Lang had ranked seventy-second, and Qin Lang told him how he had barely advanced by using his Sacrifice Knight class and Sacrifice Pact skill.
• Shen Xing contacted Xu Jiayi, then told Qin Lang to wait while he traveled toward him.
• Shen Xing spotted Qin Lang a few kilometers away and encountered a Water Spirit while hurrying to meet him.

Shen Xing defeated a powerful Demonized Water Elemental, gained valuable loot, and lent Hellscream and Xiao Hei to Qin Lang so they could hunt Water Spirits and climb the rankings together. Shen Xing advanced with his remaining troops while Qin Lang moved out with the borrowed generals, and the chapter ended as Qin Lang reached another lotus leaf where a water droplet began spinning.

• Leina and Fordring helped Shen Xing defeat a Demonized Water Elemental, and Shen Xing collected a hundred-year Growth Water Droplet, a Rain and Dew Pearl, and a gold War Ancient Tree Seed.
• Shen Xing reached Qin Lang and offered to lend him Hellscream and Xiao Hei so they could advance through the rankings together.
• Qin Lang agreed to the plan and promised Shen Xing the lion's share of the loot from the Water Spirits he defeated.
• Shen Xing's remaining troops quickly defeated another Water Spirit, raising his score to two points and placing him in the top fifty.
• Qin Lang rode the Foul Gas Hippopotamus with Hellscream, Xiao Hei, and his two halfling troops, then reached the seventh lotus leaf as its water droplet began spinning.

Shen Xing and Qin Lang’s parties cleared Water Spirits on the second layer at remarkable speed, with Hellscream and Leina’s power helping both climb into the top ten. As the second layer neared its end, Shen Xing and Qin Lang were positioned to advance, while Qin Lang celebrated his success and looked ahead to meeting Xu Jiayi.

• Hellscream shielded himself with Xiao Hei’s support and devastated a water elemental army with a Flame Tornado, leaving the boss barely alive for Qin Lang’s halfling assassin to finish.
• Hellscream and Xiao Hei helped Qin Lang’s party clear another Water Spirit, and Qin Lang cheered at how easy it was to be carried by a powerhouse.
• Shen Xing and Qin Lang continued defeating Water Spirits, rising to third and fifth on the second-layer leaderboard as other lords discussed Shen Xing’s strength.
• Shen Xing counted the resources from fourteen Water Spirits, while Qin Lang celebrated making the top ten and annoyed Xu Jiayi with repeated messages.
• With five minutes left on the second layer, Shen Xing and Qin Lang were set to advance to the third layer.

Qin Lang survived an assassination and a coordinated attack when Hellscream and Xiao Hei protected him and Hellscream wiped out the attackers. Shen Xing’s team finished the second-level challenge in third place and entered the third level, where all attributes and movement speed were reduced.

• A concealed assassin attacked Qin Lang, but Xiao Hei blocked the dagger and Hellscream killed her.
• Several lords and their troops surrounded Qin Lang, while Shen Xing declined Onyxia’s offer to help.
• A death knight restrained the attackers with chains, and Hellscream’s clones defeated them in under ten seconds.
• The second-level challenge ended with Shen Xing ranked third, and he confirmed entry to the next level.
• Shen Xing and his team arrived on the third level, where the rankings showed Xu Zhendong first, Lyle Gibson second, and Hōjō Sachiko third, all with zero points.

Shen Xing and his friends reunited in the Lotus Pond secret realm as they faced the third floor’s stronger water elementals. After Qin Lang sacrificed a troop to escape, Shen Xing defeated a demonized water elemental and the group gathered on a large lotus leaf.

• Shen Xing found Qin Lang, Xu Jiayi, Xia Wanyin, and Lachlan Downton among the rankings, then arranged to meet his friends and team up with Xia Wanyin.
• Shen Xing saw the other lords forming groups as he and his friends moved toward one another across the Lotus Pond.
• A demonized water elemental and its army blocked Qin Lang, so he empowered a halfling assassin to cover his escape before fleeing on his inflatable hippopotamus.
• Shen Xing had Fordring tank the enemies while Leina and Onyxia attacked, then collected the defeated demonized water elemental’s loot.
• Qin Lang reached the group’s lotus leaf and clung to Hellscream, complaining that he felt unsafe without the orc beside him.

Shen Xing reunited with Xu Jiayi and learned that she had become a Sister of Condemnation, then introduced her and Qin Lang to Xia Wanyin before they began planning how to hunt Water Spirits. The group discovered that Xia Wanyin could sense every Water Spirit within five kilometers, and Shen Xing asked how many were nearby.

• Xu Jiayi arrived with Bayonetta and Xiao Xiao, and she explained that a powerful nun had recruited her into the Condemnation Nun Order as a Sister of Condemnation.
• Xu Jiayi said that Xiao Xiao had fused with the Heart of Gold and Stone, awakened powerful skills, and advanced to Tier Three.
• Xia Wanyin arrived, and Shen Xing introduced her to Xu Jiayi and Qin Lang as a friend who had helped him in the Land of Mist.
• Shen Xing proposed dividing the group's fighters so they could hunt Water Spirits, but Qin Lang and Xu Jiayi objected because the plan would hurt Shen Xing's ranking chances.
• Xia Wanyin said she could sense all Water Spirits within five kilometers, and Shen Xing asked how many were nearby.

Shen Xing, Xia Wanyin, Xu Jiayi, and Qin Lang used Xia Wanyin’s ability to locate Water Elemental bosses and quickly climbed the third-floor rankings. Lachlan held first place with help from his followers, while the four Heavenly Star Nation lords occupied second through fifth as the challenge neared its end.

• Shen Xing’s group agreed to travel together, let their troops weaken the bosses, and take turns delivering the final blows.
• Lachlan gathered more than twenty lords and ordered them to find bosses and leave the kills to him; he planned to sabotage Shen Xing near the end of the challenge.
• Xia Wanyin guided Shen Xing’s group to hidden Water Elemental bosses, and Leina’s attack wiped out the elite enemies so Qin Lang could claim the first kill and collect the loot.
• The group continued defeating bosses every twenty or thirty seconds, with Xu Jiayi and the others taking turns finishing them.
• With twenty minutes left, Xia Wanyin, Shen Xing, Xu Jiayi, and Qin Lang ranked second through fifth, while Lachlan remained first with 21 points.

Shen Xing and his companions continued farming Water Spirits and rose high on the leaderboard, while Lachlan organized a coalition to stop them. With five minutes left on the third floor, more than twenty lords surrounded the group, and Shen Xing calmly assessed the attackers.

• Shen Xing proposed saving the team's spoils for a final division, and Xia Wanyin, Qin Lang, and Xu Jiayi agreed.
• The four resumed farming, drawing attention from other lords who noticed their unusually fast progress.
• Lachlan decided to recruit top-ranked lords and offer them money to prevent Shen Xing's team from advancing.
• As the third floor neared its end, the four scores passed twenty and a crowd of lords closed in around them.
• Leina intercepted an incoming fireball, and more than twenty lords with their troops sealed off the lotus leaves around Shen Xing's group.

Lachlan led a group of lords and powerful troops to attack Shen Xing, but Shen Xing’s dragon-like authority forced the half-dragons to kneel. Lachlan then sent Sloth forward, whose strange power began incapacitating Shen Xing’s companions as the surrounding lords rushed to attack.

• Lachlan confronted Shen Xing with half-dragons and other powerful troops, while Shen Xing and Qin Lang mocked him and the lords who backed him.
• Lachlan urged the gathered lords to attack, but they held back until he sent his own troops charging at Shen Xing.
• Shen Xing’s vertical pupils and command made the half-dragons kneel, and they ignored Lachlan’s orders to rise.
• Lachlan sent Sloth after Shen Xing, and Sloth’s negative energy caused troops on Shen Xing’s side to faint or collapse.
• The watching lords saw Shen Xing’s companions weakening and surged forward to attack.