For those of you who don't wish to read the first volume and want to just skip to volume 2, here's a brief summary of what happens:

  Walter's infiltrated successfully as a Lord Arbiter, and in doing so, has secured the affection of a powerful Xollon in the form of Xalla. They go on a nice, totally not horrifyingly edritch date, where he's accidentally mistaken for a great war hero. His shannaigans with the Administrative side of the Trials continue with his meeting with Big Bob, an old friend of Arbiter W, and Rogue, Xalla's mentor. The three become fast friends.

  On the Aspirant side of things, Walter gets his first taste of the Trials in the form of a zombie hellscape, where he takes the time to familiarize himself with his new world. He's found a few individuals who stand out among the crowd, and uses his time in the first Trial to befriend them. This leads up to Walter teaming up with Jae-Hyun - a stereotypical Korean regressor - and his sister, Yoona, alongside Vadeem (mob enforcer) and Noel (an assassin). Together, those 5 form the Abyss Party to tackle the Second Trial.

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  Here, Walter is separated from Jae-Hyun, Noel, and Yoona as he finds himself trapped in a warped world filled with supernatural darkness. Worse, his system, Noe, seems to be going haywire, and he can't rely on her for long. Thankfully, Walter's still got his patented ability to bullshit his way through any situation! He creates a cult, tricks the locals into thinking he's a god, and finds out that the Origin Matrix (AKA the Trash Matrix) is out to get him for some reason. More hijinx ensue, Walter survives through some smart thinking and a lot of Luck.

  Volume 1 ends with the conclusion of the First Trial, and Volume 2 begins with the start of the Main Stage of the twisted Ascension Trials.