Recaps

Li Ming exhausted his biochemical soldiers to clear the fifth wave before switching control to Su Mu. Su Mu’s A-rank Little Drill Wind defeated the sixth wave and the final boss, clearing hard mode.

• Li Ming cleared the fifth wave at the cost of all twelve biochemical soldiers, and both he and Su Mu reached level five.
• Li Ming switched to Su Mu as twenty level-five goblins arrived, and Little Drill Wind killed them in under twenty seconds.
• Su Mu told Li Ming that he had raised an E-rank card to A-rank by giving it a name that matched its high compatibility.
• Little Drill Wind killed the six elite goblins accompanying the level-eight goblin lord, then defeated the lord and cleared hard mode.

Su Mu and Li Ming cleared the hard dungeon, and Su Mu prepared to enter nightmare alone after Li Ming refused to hold him back. Wang Hao mocked Su Mu outside the entrance, prompting Su Mu to recognize an opportunity to gain resources from the challenge Wang Hao had previously issued.

• Teachers and students saw that Su Mu and Li Ming had both reached level 5 after clearing the hard dungeon, while students debated how Su Mu had gained so much combat power.
• Su Mu urged Li Ming to join him in the nightmare dungeon, but Li Ming refused because he believed he would only slow Su Mu down.
• Su Mu accepted Li Ming's decision and headed for the nightmare dungeon entrance.
• Wang Hao emerged from the nightmare dungeon injured and mocked Su Mu for entering without Li Ming to carry him.
• Su Mu remembered Wang Hao's earlier formal dungeon challenge and saw Wang Hao's provocation as a chance to gain resources.

Su Mu provoked Wang Hao into raising their bet to a nightmare instance’s fifth wave, confident that Little Drill Wind could meet the challenge. Wang Hao accepted the wager, and Su Mu prepared to enter despite Li Ming’s concern.

• Wang Hao bragged that he had reached the fifth wave of the nightmare instance, hiding how badly the elite monster had beaten him.
• Su Mu called Wang Hao trash and challenged him to bet on surviving the first wave.
• Wang Hao refused the smaller bet and proposed that Su Mu had to reach the fifth wave to win.
• Su Mu assessed Little Drill Wind’s level-five stats and combat ability, while Li Ming warned him not to take the risk.
• Su Mu told Wang Hao he was on.

Su Mu accepted Wang Hao’s challenge to beat his nightmare dungeon result, wagering a random-quality soul skill book against Wang Hao’s book and using Li Ming’s A-rank cards as collateral. After setting the victory threshold at level 6 with over 50% experience, Su Mu entered the nightmare dungeon while students and school administrators watched.

• Su Mu proposed an E-rank soul skill book as the wager, and Li Ming offered an A-rank theme and core card as collateral for him.
• Wang Hao raised the stakes to a random-quality soul skill book, and Su Mu agreed.
• Su Mu specified that he had to reach level 6 with over 50% experience in the nightmare dungeon to win, and Wang Hao accepted the standard.
• Su Mu entered the nightmare dungeon as students predicted how far he would get.
• The director of instruction criticized Su Mu for recklessly accepting the bet, while a female teacher lamented that Wang Hao had pressured a fellow student.

Su Mu entered the nightmare dungeon despite the crowd’s doubts, while Zhao Jianguo chose not to intervene and Li Ming worried about him. Inside, Su Mu faced the dungeon’s first wave of ten heavily armed nightmare goblins at Lion Camel Ridge.

• Zhao Jianguo refused to interfere in Su Mu’s wager, saying Su Mu was not acting recklessly.
• Li Ming and Su Mu’s homeroom teacher watched the entrance anxiously as the battle inside made the curtain ripple.
• Wang Hao concluded that Su Mu must be stalling with terrain and predicted his defenses would eventually fail.
• Su Mu surveyed Lion Camel Ridge and learned that the nightmare dungeon had fifteen waves and a dangerous, mist-shrouded rift.
• Ten powerful, armored goblins emerged from the rift as the first wave.

Su Mu watched Little Drill Wind effortlessly defeat the first three waves of the nightmare dungeon, adapting his attacks to increasingly powerful goblins without being injured. As the fourth wave arrived, Su Mu wondered whether a more complete Journey to the West concept anchoring could give Little Drill Wind the memories and consciousness of a living being.

• Little Drill Wind killed ten level 8 goblin elites in the first wave by striking their weak points and avoiding their attacks.
• Ten stronger level 9 goblin elites emerged, and Little Drill Wind adjusted his blade work to disable them before finishing the fight even faster.
• The third wave paired ten melee goblins with five ranged throwers, but Little Drill Wind dodged their coordinated attacks and defeated them without a scratch.
• Su Mu reflected that Little Drill Wind's battle instincts seemed to come from the centuries of experience associated with his Journey to the West identity.
• The fourth wave arrived as Su Mu considered whether deeper concept anchoring could give Little Drill Wind a living being's consciousness and memories.

The fifth wave sent Little Drill Wind against a Goblin Warlord and nineteen level 10 elite goblins, whose strength and coordination overwhelmed him in a direct fight. After Little Drill Wind was wounded, he fled into Lion Camel Ridge to draw the horde apart and fight them one by one.

• The fifth wave emerged with nineteen level 10 elite goblins and a level 10 Goblin Warlord, whose stats surpassed the hard dungeon's final boss.
• The Goblin Warlord coordinated the goblins as they surrounded Little Drill Wind and cut off his escape routes.
• Little Drill Wind fought back but could not kill the tougher goblins in one strike, and an elite goblin slashed his back.
• Little Drill Wind ran into Lion Camel Ridge, drawing the goblins into a long line so he could separate them.

Su Mu and Little Drill Wind defeated the fifth wave of the Nightmare trial, raising both their levels to six, and Little Drill Wind turned toward the sixth wave. Outside the trial grounds, the crowd assumed Su Mu was stalling until the light screen rippled.

• Little Drill Wind killed the goblins one by one and then defeated the warlord, clearing the fifth wave despite his severe injuries.
• Su Mu leveled up from level 5 to level 6 and gained 10 Soul Power, while Little Drill Wind also reached level 6 and recovered his health and injuries.
• Little Drill Wind looked toward the mountain-pass rift as the sixth wave arrived.
• Outside the trial grounds, students speculated that Su Mu was hiding and stalling, while Wang Hao mocked him and Li Ming worried.
• The dark red light screen rippled, and someone shouted that Su Mu was coming out.

Ye Qingxue returned from the nightmare dungeon after reaching its fifteenth wave, then stayed to watch Su Mu’s bet against Wang Hao. The school administrators realized she had withdrawn voluntarily and believed she could clear the dungeon with more preparation.

• Ye Qingxue emerged from the dungeon at level seven, stunning the students who speculated that she had nearly cleared it.
• Ye Qingxue recalled retreating from the fifteenth-wave goblin because it outmatched her, though she believed she could defeat it after gaining strength and better cards.
• After hearing students mock Su Mu’s chances against Wang Hao, Ye Qingxue trusted Su Mu’s past record and stayed to see how far he would go.
• Wang Hao noticed Ye Qingxue waiting and hoped that beating Su Mu would prove himself worthy of her attention.
• The school administrators confirmed that Ye Qingxue reached wave fifteen and voluntarily withdrew rather than being forced out.

Su Mu cleared the sixth through ninth waves with Little Drill Wind, adapting his tactics to each group of goblins. The tenth wave began with fifteen level-eleven elites and a fast Goblin Assassin boss emerging from the rift.

• The teachers discussed Ye Qingxue’s fifteenth-wave performance and waited to see how long Su Mu would last.
• Teacher Zhou said Su Mu was unlikely to clear the first wave based on his cards, but trusted his judgment and urged the others to wait.
• Su Mu and Little Drill Wind cleared the sixth and seventh waves, defeating the goblins with direct attacks and fast strikes.
• Little Drill Wind used the mountain path to split the eighth wave, then maneuvered through the ninth wave to defeat its larger elite monsters.
• The tenth wave brought fifteen level-eleven goblin elites and a level-eleven Goblin Assassin whose speed and skills made it more dangerous than the earlier warlord.

Su Mu and Little Drill Wind cleared the tenth wave of the nightmare dungeon after Little Drill Wind killed the assassin boss at the cost of a severe shoulder wound. Su Mu withdrew rather than risk the next wave, then emerged before the waiting students, who stared at his calm appearance.

• Little Drill Wind charged into the elite goblins to draw their attention and repeatedly dodged the assassin’s attacks, but his health fell below half.
• Little Drill Wind let the assassin stab his shoulder, trapped its blade, and killed it with repeated strikes to its weak point.
• Little Drill Wind defeated the remaining goblins, and Su Mu received the notice that wave ten was complete.
• Su Mu decided Little Drill Wind was too injured to continue and exited the trial dungeon.
• Su Mu emerged from the nightmare dungeon, drawing the attention of the students gathered outside.

Su Mu proved that he had reached level six with 83% experience in the nightmare dungeon, winning his wager against Wang Hao. He claimed the random-quality soul skill book and left Wang Hao humiliated and resentful, while Ye Qingxue departed without speaking to him.

• The crowd saw Su Mu's level-six marker and wondered whether he had beaten Wang Hao in the nightmare dungeon.
• Su Mu revealed his experience panel, showing level six at 83%, and confirmed that he had met the wager's winning threshold.
• Wang Hao swallowed his objections in front of the watching crowd and handed Su Mu the random-quality soul skill book.
• Wang Hao left after silently threatening Su Mu, while Li Ming warned Su Mu that Wang Hao and his family might retaliate.
• Su Mu noticed Ye Qingxue passing along the edge of the crowd, but she did not look back.

Ye Qingxue recognized Su Mu’s strength after he cleared the tenth wave of the nightmare dungeon, while the school staff raised their assessment of him and decided to give him more attention. Su Mu left the trial grounds with Li Ming, who asked him about the skill book he had won.

• Ye Qingxue concluded that Su Mu had reached at least the tenth wave and left determined to defeat someone worthy.
• The teachers and administrators learned that Su Mu had cleared wave ten and voluntarily exited at wave eleven.
• Principal Zhao Jianguo ordered the school to prioritize Su Mu below Ye Qingxue but above the other students.
• Su Mu told Li Ming that luck had carried him through the dungeon, and Li Ming accepted his offer to join a future hard dungeon run.
• Li Ming asked whether Su Mu would roll the quality of his random-quality soul skill book.

Su Mu opened the random-quality soul skill book and obtained the S-grade time skill Years Like a Blade. While Li Ming and the onlookers dismissed it as nearly useless, Su Mu recognized that its drawbacks did not apply to him and that its time catalysis was exactly what he wanted.

• Li Ming urged Su Mu to open the soul skill book, and Su Mu infused it with mental power.
• The book produced a brilliant golden light, and Su Mu received an S-grade soul skill.
• Su Mu identified the skill as Years Like a Blade, prompting Li Ming and nearby students to call it impractical despite its rare time-type classification.
• Su Mu examined the skill's ability to accelerate living units by ten days and nonliving units by one year, at the cost of 1,000 momentum points.
• Su Mu considered the skill's usual drawbacks and realized they did not apply to him, leaving him eager to use its time catalysis.

After awakening an F-rank Journey to the West stone card, Su Mu realized that his Years Like a Blade skill could accelerate his spirit stone’s cultivation. At home, his aunt comforted him about the low rank and gave him a hundred thousand yuan to help build his dungeons.

• Li Ming tried to comfort Su Mu about his S-rank skill, while Su Mu realized Years Like a Blade could nourish his spirit stone and other young monsters.
• Su Mu and Li Ming parted ways, and Li Ming reminded Su Mu to meet him at the trial grounds the next morning.
• Su Mu climbed the stairs to his home in Peaceful Residence Garden and found his aunt preparing dinner.
• Su Mu told his aunt that his core card was an F-rank stone card with the special Journey to the West theme.
• Su Mu’s aunt reassured him and gave him a card containing a hundred thousand yuan for dungeon-building supplies.

Su Mu used the money his aunt gave him to buy a Mountain Patrol Command Flag for Little Drill Wind and a subsidized Forced Escape Scroll. He then told his aunt he planned to hunt monsters outside the city, leaving her concerned about how soon he intended to venture out.

• Su Mu's aunt gave him her savings and warned him to get her approval for large purchases and to consolidate his soul power through meditation.
• Su Mu searched the professional marketplace and bought an F-rank Mountain Patrol Command Flag for twenty thousand.
• Su Mu bought a D-rank Forced Escape Scroll for five thousand after the national subsidy and chose the West City Gate Professional Service Hall for pickup.
• With no more dungeon attempts available that day, Su Mu decided to hunt wilderness monsters to gain momentum points for his soul skill.
• Su Mu told his aunt he had spent seventy thousand and wanted to practice outside the city, and she questioned whether he was rushing into danger.

Su Mu traveled to the West City Gate to prepare for a trip into the wilds, buying supplies and a Mountain Patrol Command Flag Card. After embedding and empowering the flag in his dungeon, he saw Little Drill Wind break through to S-rank.

• Su Mu left home after telling his aunt he needed to gain levels and combat experience before the college entrance exam.
• Su Mu reached the West City Gate and collected the Mountain Patrol Command Flag Card from the Professional Service Hall.
• Su Mu bought a digital terrain map and wilderness supplies, then rented a meditation room to restore his Soul Power.
• Su Mu embedded the flag in his dungeon and designated it as Little Drill Wind's command flag for patrolling Lion Camel Ridge.
• Su Mu empowered the flag with Soul Power, and Little Drill Wind's rank rose to S.

Su Mu sensed Soul Power with extraordinary ease, gaining 150 points before nearing his limit, then spent most of his reserve reshaping Little Drill Wind into the mountain patroller he remembered. Little Drill Wind stood at Lion Camel Ridge with a sharper, more experienced appearance, while Su Mu had less than twenty Soul Power left.

• Little Drill Wind's level-six stats and Mountain Patrol Command Flag strengthened his combat abilities and made his mountain-patroller identity more tangible.
• Su Mu meditated and repeatedly gained 50 Soul Power, raising his total to 180 points.
• Su Mu entered Lion Camel Ridge and used Soul Power to darken Little Drill Wind's skin and reshape his face and watchful eyes.
• Su Mu refined Little Drill Wind's build, limbs, stance, and waist, spending 190 Soul Power in total.
• Su Mu finished sculpting Little Drill Wind into a lean, alert mountain patroller and had less than twenty Soul Power remaining.

Su Mu discovered that his Soul Power recovered to its full limit in minutes, then used it to transform Little Drill Wind into a level 6 SSS card. With the demon’s improvements reaching the current stage’s ceiling, Su Mu set out for the wilderness to gather what he needed to develop Lion Camel Ridge and eventually bring forth Sun Wukong.

• Su Mu found that his daily Soul Power recovery equaled his maximum Soul Power and took only a minute or two.
• Su Mu reshaped Little Drill Wind’s scales, limbs, armor, and saber, raising him to SSS rank with a combat index of 174492.
• Su Mu concluded that Little Drill Wind could not improve further without leveling up, better base materials, or expanding Lion Camel Ridge.
• After seeing that it was midnight, Su Mu left the meditation room and headed into the wilderness.
• Su Mu remembered that the Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven was his dungeon’s core and that Sun Wukong had yet to be born.

Su Mu chose the Land of Buried Bones as his first wilderness destination, hoping to gather skeletal materials for Lion Camel Ridge and create Lady White Bone. After accepting several collection tasks and a rare bounty for the Burial Corpse King’s core soul flame, he prepared to leave Rongcheng.

• Su Mu rested in the public hall until three in the morning, then checked the wilderness map and its level 20 zones.
• Su Mu selected the Land of Buried Bones because its skeletal monsters could provide materials for Lion Camel Ridge and Lady White Bone.
• Su Mu accepted several routine collection tasks for materials from the Land of Buried Bones.
• Su Mu accepted the million-coin task to obtain the Burial Corpse King’s core soul flame on nightmare difficulty.
• Su Mu collected his backpack and headed for the hall’s exit.

Su Mu left the city for the first time and examined the damaged wall and hostile wilderness beyond it. He appraised a level-ten Goblin Skirmisher and prepared to summon Little Drill Wind as he began hunting outside the city.

• Su Mu registered at the city gate, where a soldier warned him to stay within fifty kilometers and avoid nests marked in blood red.
• Su Mu passed through the barrier and saw cracks, old repairs, and darkened ground along the towering city wall.
• Su Mu surveyed the hostile landscape and used Appraisal on a nearby level-ten Goblin Skirmisher.
• Su Mu observed that goblins patrolled the outskirts individually, making wild hunting safer but slower than fighting in a nest.
• Su Mu prepared to summon Little Drill Wind and recalled that his level-six rank allowed only one creature to be summoned at a time.

Su Mu summoned Little Drill Wind into reality and had him hunt level 10 goblin skirmishers while Su Mu followed the path through the wilds. Little Drill Wind made the fights effortless, and Su Mu reached level 7 as the hunt continued.

• Su Mu summoned Little Drill Wind and saw that the summoned form was weakened to rank A but still far stronger than a level 10 goblin skirmisher.
• Su Mu sent Little Drill Wind to attack, and Little Drill Wind killed the first goblin skirmisher in seconds, earning Su Mu experience and four Momentum Points.
• Little Drill Wind hunted more skirmishers independently while Su Mu followed the path and shared Little Drill Wind's senses through their Soul Link.
• Little Drill Wind killed goblin skirmishers as Su Mu received experience and occasional material drops.
• Su Mu's experience bar filled, and he advanced from level 6 to level 7.

Su Mu and Little Drill Wind gained levels while killing goblins in the wilderness, and Su Mu gathered enough momentum to use Years Like a Blade on the Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven. The stone showed no visible change, but Su Mu calculated that steady monster farming could let him accelerate its age enough for Sun Wukong to be born within half a year.

• Su Mu and Little Drill Wind reached level seven after killing around forty goblins in less than twenty minutes.
• Su Mu filled his momentum reserve to one thousand and hid behind a rock to use Years Like a Blade.
• Su Mu spent the momentum to accelerate time for the Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven, but its stats and appearance remained unchanged.
• Su Mu estimated that he would need at least three to four thousand uses to mature the stone and planned to farm monsters to reach that goal.

Su Mu let Little Drill Wind hunt monsters as they traveled deeper into the wasteland, spending momentum points to catalyze the Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven and reaching level 9. By afternoon, they had traveled more than twenty kilometers toward the Land of Buried Bones, where undead monsters replaced most of the goblins.

• Little Drill Wind independently hunted goblins while Su Mu followed and gathered momentum points, using a thousand at a time to catalyze the Stone Left Over from Mending Heaven eight times.
• Su Mu and Little Drill Wind reached level 8, and Su Mu collected goblin materials and three low-rank equipment cards.
• Su Mu traveled deeper through the wasteland, where stronger goblins appeared before skeletal creatures and Rotting Corpses became more common.
• By the seventh hour, Su Mu and Little Drill Wind had reached level 9, and Su Mu inspected Little Drill Wind's combat attributes through their soul link.
• Su Mu continued toward the Land of Buried Bones, considering the strength and future potential of Little Drill Wind's SSS-rank card.

Su Mu reached level 10 after grinding monsters, revealing Little Drill Wind’s exceptional strength and renewing his determination to claim the Burial Corpse King’s Core Soul Flame. As Su Mu headed toward the Land of Buried Bones, he heard people attacking someone nearby and recognized a Forced Battle Scroll opening ahead.

• Su Mu led Little Drill Wind away from the lair and hunted monsters until Su Mu reached level 10.
• Su Mu checked Little Drill Wind’s level 10 stats and saw that his combat index exceeded the usual range for an SSS-rank core card.
• Su Mu considered the powerful Journey to the West figures and decided to pursue the quest for the Burial Corpse King’s Core Soul Flame to earn money for a soul skill book and help his aunt.
• Su Mu and Little Drill Wind heard people fighting nearby, and Su Mu hurried toward the instance while Little Drill Wind moved away from the voices.
• Su Mu saw a gray-white vortex open ahead and identified it as a Forced Battle Scroll.