Chapter Summaries

Xia Lin learned that he had been selected for a dangerous Ash Zone expedition despite his resistance, then Lord Yue forcibly chose him and five others to join her group. They were brought before Iron Rain Base leader Li Peipei.

• Xia Lin woke in Iron Rain Base and learned that the Shattered Ash Zone had opened four hundred days earlier, while Ash Zone Walkers faced a ninety-five percent mortality rate.
• The interviewer recited Xia Lin’s history, triggering memories that revealed his parents had died in the catastrophe and that his foreman had arranged for him to be conscripted.
• Xia Lin tried to refuse becoming an Ash Zone Walker, but Lord Yue entered and magically immobilized him before naming him as her first choice.
• Lord Yue selected five more people and led the six conscripts to the eighth floor, where Xia Lin recognized Li Peipei as Iron Rain Base’s strongest person and highest authority.

Xia Lin was forced by Li Peipei’s squad to enter an Ash Zone, where he became an Ash Zone Walker and discovered his SS-rank Unstable Mutation talent. After his talent mutated the effects controlling him, he secretly checked what had changed while the squad remained unaware.

• Rouyun planted a Flesh Bomb in each member of the unlucky crew while Li Peipei explained that her squad sought a target to improve her sequence ranking.
• Xia Lin learned that Li Peipei, An Yue, Rouyun, Zhang Wen, and Xie Xiaotian were powerful Ash Zone Walkers, and that An Yue controlled his movements.
• Li Peipei led the group down to the Iron Rain Base’s main Ash Zone entrance, where she opened a C-rank combat zone called Dark Cavern.
• Xia Lin received his Ash Zone Walker status and discovered his SS-rank talent, Unstable Mutation, along with the Forced Control and Flesh Bomb effects on him.
• Xia Lin found that he could move again, hid this from the squad, and checked his attribute panel as his talent finished mutating the effects.

Xia Lin entered a C-rank Ash Zone with all four attributes reduced to 1, but mutated effects made him difficult to notice and gave him unusual abilities. Li Peipei’s team began hunting the underground monsters, and the chapter ended as more Subterranean Humanoids approached.

• Xia Lin’s Forced Control and Flesh Bomb mutations became Dull Puppet and Supreme Heaven Blood Seed, leaving his attributes at 1.
• The Ash Zone issued a main quest to kill ten monsters, while Dull Puppet caused Li Peipei to overlook Xia Lin.
• An Yue Rouyun’s buffs mutated into effects that enhanced Xia Lin’s senses, reduced his presence and hostility, and let him strengthen and heal himself by consuming creatures.
• Li Peipei sensed approaching enemies, killed a lizard-like monster with her greatsword, and ordered the first cannon fodder to advance.
• A naked, eyeless humanoid attacked the cannon fodder, but Li Peipei beheaded it as more Subterranean Humanoids approached.

Li Peipei’s party fought through a Subterranean Humanoid settlement, using a sacrificed cannon fodder’s Flesh Bomb to defeat a level-five native class holder. As the party approached its destination and prepared for the final battle, Xia Lin secretly fed on the corpses they left behind.

• Xie Xiaotian charged into the Subterranean Humanoid settlement and slaughtered its inhabitants until Li Peipei ordered him to fall back from a level-five native class holder.
• Li Peipei threw a cannon fodder at the class holder while Rouyun detonated him with Flesh Bomb, and Zhang Wen shielded the party from the blast.
• Li Peipei cut off the wounded class holder’s head, and the surviving Subterranean Humanoids fled.
• Xia Lin found the cannon fodder’s remains, followed Li Peipei’s party, and fed on the class holder’s corpse.
• An Yue realized the party was missing a piece of cannon fodder, while Li Peipei sensed two powerful enemies ahead and ordered everyone to prepare for the final battle.

Li Peipei and her team fought two Nether Breath Hounds to claim the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence, while Xia Lin ambushed the support members An Yue and Rouyun. After killing them, Xia Lin confronted Xie Xiaotian as he charged at him.

• Li Peipei found the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence guarded by two level-five Nether Breath Hounds and attacked them with her Dragon Warrior skills.
• Zhang Wen, Xie Xiaotian, and two pieces of cannon fodder joined the fight while An Yue and Rouyun stayed back to provide support.
• An Yue and Rouyun realized one piece of cannon fodder was missing, and Xia Lin appeared behind them and killed Rouyun.
• Xia Lin tortured An Yue with a Lizard Hound's hind leg before smashing her head, then said he had gotten his revenge.
• Xie Xiaotian disengaged from the battle and charged at Xia Lin, who recognized that Xie Xiaotian had a crush on An Yue and ran to meet him.

Xia Lin used his burst of strength and the Nether Breath Hound to turn the fight against Xie Xiaotian, Zhang Wen, and Li Peipei’s squad. He emerged from the hound’s body with another bloodied figure as Li Peipei prepared to face him.

• Xia Lin charged Xie Xiaotian, grabbed him by the throat, and smashed him into the ground while using him to sweep toward Zhang Wen.
• Li Peipei struck at Xia Lin with Dragon Flash Dance, but he dodged one attack and used Xie Xiaotian’s body to absorb another, leaving himself badly wounded.
• Xia Lin reached Zhang Wen and forced her into the Nether Breath Hound’s mouth, then pushed her deeper inside its body.
• Li Peipei’s remaining Dragon Flash Dance strikes killed the other Nether Breath Hound, while three members of her squad were dead and Zhang Wen’s fate was unknown.
• Xia Lin emerged through the wounded hound’s side, dragging another bloodied figure behind him, and stood before Li Peipei.

Xia Lin tricked Li Peipei into choosing between Zhang Wen and the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence, then devoured the treasure and prepared to fight her. Li Peipei escaped by completing the Ash Zone’s main quest, warning that they would meet again at Iron Rain Base.

• Xia Lin threw the dying Zhang Wen toward Li Peipei, then rushed to seize the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence while Li Peipei hesitated.
• Li Peipei explained that the treasure could stabilize space and help protect humanity, but Xia Lin revealed his mutated body and rejected her appeal.
• Xia Lin swallowed the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence just before Li Peipei could use Dragon Flash Dance, then advanced on her.
• Li Peipei began a ten-second teleport after completing the Ash Zone’s main quest and warned Xia Lin that she would seek revenge at Iron Rain Base.
• Li Peipei vanished, leaving Xia Lin to realize that he would return to Iron Rain Base through the entrance he had used.

After completing the Hunt quest, Xia Lin returned to the Settlement Space and received a class reward from the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence. With Li Peipei waiting back at Iron Rain Base and no class offering the escape skill he needed, he chose the talent-customized Indeterminate Shadow and fell asleep as its transformation began.

• Xia Lin remembered the system notification from swallowing the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence and used the return command after completing the Hunt quest.
• Xia Lin entered the Settlement Space, received 100 Ash Zone Points, and gained a class choice from the Heaven-Gifted Source Essence.
• Xia Lin rejected the first six classes because they did not offer the escape skill he needed to survive Li Peipei.
• Xia Lin chose Indeterminate Shadow, the class customized to his talent and unaligned with the Six Pillars.
• The class change began as the Settlement Space filled with shifting lights, and Xia Lin fell asleep while strange energy entered his body.

After changing class to Indeterminate Shadow, Xia Lin received three F-rank skills that mutated into powerful abilities, including one that could permanently raise his attributes. He returned to reality, knowing he had to enter another Ash Zone within a month.

• Xia Lin inspected his new Indeterminate Shadow class and learned that Unstable Mutation had become an SSS-rank class talent, while Indeterminate Constant granted three protected skill slots.
• Xia Lin received Backstab, Light and Slow Footsteps, and Moisturize as three F-rank skills, then learned Moisturize and watched it mutate into Rapid Nourishment.
• Xia Lin learned Backstab, which mutated into a limit-breaking skill that permanently increased his attributes when he backstabbed his own faction, and he placed it in a constant slot.
• Xia Lin learned Light and Slow Footsteps, which mutated into A Thousand Li Apart at Parting, a teleportation skill that sent him 1,000 li from a target after he said goodbye and waved.
• Xia Lin chose to return after learning that only one hour would pass in reality and that he had to find another Ash Zone entrance within a month.

Xia Lin escaped Iron Rain Base after feeding Li Peipei a dose of Rapid Proliferation, which caused her to swell into a grotesquely huge figure. A thousand li away, he triggered Backstab against his own faction and gained three points in every attribute.

• Li Peipei emerged from the Ash Zone with Xia Lin and ordered the Iron Rain Base Walkers to capture him alive.
• Xia Lin shot Rapid Proliferation into Li Peipei's mouth, said goodbye, and escaped with A Thousand Li Apart at Parting.
• Li Peipei rapidly grew enormous and screamed as the people at the entrance watched in shock.
• Xia Lin appeared in an abandoned high-rise, exhausted from spending nine Spirit.
• Backstab activated because Xia Lin had sabotaged his faction, granting him three points in all attributes.

Xia Lin crossed the shattered wilderness toward Iron Rain Base and was picked up by a Clear Light Logistics truck crew. When the crew’s bounty-hunting intentions became clear, he attacked them first.

• Xia Lin surveyed Pearl City’s calamities and wondered whether Iron Rain Base had a powerful backer.
• Three days later, Xia Lin stopped a Clear Light Logistics truck and asked its crew for a ride.
• Li Qing and Wang Ye agreed to take Xia Lin toward Ancient Splendor Base while secretly treating him as a target.
• Xia Lin revealed that Iron Rain Base had placed a bounty on him and questioned whether killing the crew counted as betraying their faction.
• Xia Lin snapped the woman’s neck and sent Rapid Nourishment into Wang Ye and Li Qing.

Xia Lin used Rapid Nourishment to overwhelm Wang Ye and Li Qing, then killed them and headed toward Ancient Splendor Base. There, Li Peipei decided to pursue martial arts to overcome her obesity and insisted that Xia Lin be captured alive, while Gu Hua warned that his situation differed from Iron Rain Base.

• Xia Lin used Rapid Nourishment on Wang Ye and Li Qing; Wang Ye died from the strain, and Xia Lin questioned Li Qing before gunfire followed.
• Xia Lin received another Backstab attribute bonus for killing members of his own faction and learned that Li Peipei had offered 10,000 Ash Zone Points for him alive.
• At Ancient Splendor Base, Gu Hua asked whether Li Peipei could still dance, then suggested liposuction to restore her appearance.
• Li Peipei said she cared more about strength and planned to follow Martial King Lie's example by taking up martial arts.
• Li Peipei told Gu Hua she wanted Xia Lin alive, and Gu Hua replied that his circumstances differed from Iron Rain Base.

Xia Lin entered Ancient Splendor Base under a false identity and met Bai Guang, a Sequence with a grudge against Li Peipei. Bai Guang proposed they work together to kill her, revealing that he knew which Ash Zone she planned to enter and why she wanted Xia Lin alive.

• Xia Lin obtained identification from Ancient Splendor Base with a disguise and fake name.
• Li Peipei asked Gu Hua to use his Sequence authority to locate a martial arts-type Ash Zone, promising him a personal favor.
• Xia Lin ate at Ashes Bar, where Bai Guang approached him offering information about Xia Lin.
• Bai Guang revealed he was a level-five Ash Zone Walker and Sequence 73 who resented Li Peipei for sabotaging him before the Sequence Hegemony Battle.
• Bai Guang proposed killing Li Peipei and told Xia Lin that she planned to enter an Ash Zone to change her class to martial artist and wanted to capture him alive.

Xia Lin negotiated with Bai Guang for help obtaining a limit-breaking skill and learned more about Sequence privileges. When Li Peipei entered Fierce Martial City to seek the Three-Phase Martial Arts Hall’s teachings, Bai Guang used his own authority to follow her, and Xia Lin went with him.

• Bai Guang told Xia Lin about Martial King Lie and offered to help him kill Li Peipei in exchange for Xia Lin’s help becoming stronger; Xia Lin instead asked him to help obtain a similar limit-breaking skill.
• Xia Lin investigated Bai Guang through an information broker, concluded their partnership was likely genuine, and waited for Li Peipei to make her move.
• Li Peipei and Gu Hua entered an Ash Zone at the Ancient Splendor Base, with Gu Hua designating Fierce Martial City as their destination.
• Bai Guang used his Sequence 73 privilege to open a follow-up entrance to the same Ash Zone, and Xia Lin entered with him.
• Bai Guang explained that Sequence privileges could alter how Ash Zones worked, while Xia Lin resolved to gain enough strength to avoid being at others’ mercy.

Xia Lin entered the S-rank Ash Zone Fierce Martial City, received a quest to compete in three Savage Martial Arena matches, and learned he needed to kill a creature with an attribute above 10 to advance. After buying local currency, he sought out the city’s top martial arts schools as potential routes into the arena.

• Xia Lin arrived in a shabby studio apartment and read the Ash Zone briefing about Fierce Martial City and its martial arts arena.
• The Ash Zone issued Xia Lin a main quest to complete three Savage Martial Arena matches and an advancement quest to kill a creature with an attribute above 10.
• Xia Lin considered the cost of attributes and equipment, then spent 50 Ash Zone Points to obtain 500,000 credits.
• Xia Lin used his phone to search for martial arts schools and decided to target the city’s top-tier schools.
• Xia Lin watched a Savage Martial Arena broadcast in which a North Wind Martial Arts School fighter won mining rights for the North Wind Consortium, while his opponent died.

Bai Guang found Zhou Yan, a retired Three Aspects Gang member running the Three-Phase Martial Arts Hall, and asked him to teach the Blood Fiend Breathing Technique. Zhou Yan refused but offered to teach him another art if he survived a top-tier Savage Martial Arena match; Li Peipei arrived just as Bai Guang received the side quest.

• Bai Guang arrived at the Three-Phase Martial Arts Hall and was invited inside by its master, Zhou Yan.
• Bai Guang learned that Zhou Yan was a full member of the Three Aspects Gang and had once fought in top-tier Savage Martial Arena matches.
• Bai Guang asked Zhou Yan for the Blood Fiend Breathing Technique, but Zhou Yan refused to teach it to a registered member.
• Zhou Yan offered to teach Bai Guang one of his own techniques if Bai Guang fought in and survived a top-tier Savage Martial Arena match.
• Bai Guang received the side quest, and Li Peipei appeared at the hall's door.

Zhou Yan took Li Peipei’s million-unit fee and promised to teach her basic martial arts, while making access to a breathing technique depend on her becoming the Fierce Martial King. He explained the Six Pillars and their factions to Bai Guang, while Xia Lin planned to join multiple martial arts halls so he could betray them in the Savage Martial Arena.

• Bai Guang mocked Li Peipei, but she bowed to Zhou Yan and asked him for martial instruction and his true inheritance.
• Zhou Yan charged Li Peipei one million and set her the quest of claiming the Fierce Martial King title before he would teach her a breathing technique.
• After Li Peipei left, Zhou Yan admitted to Bai Guang that he had no intention of teaching her the Blood Fiend Breathing Technique and explained that she was tied to the Immortal God Clan and the Old Ruler.
• Zhou Yan described the Six Pillars and warned Bai Guang to be cautious around factions opposed to Superstar; Bai Guang connected the lesson to a message he had received from the Ash Zone System.
• Bai Guang asked Zhou Yan to help kill Li Peipei, but Zhou Yan rebuked him and refused.
• Xia Lin examined the many martial arts hall membership cards he had collected and considered which hall to represent in the Savage Martial Arena so he could backstab it.

Xia Lin joined the struggling North Wind Martial Arts School, hoping to enter the Savage Martial Arena as soon as possible. He left the school preparing to train, after clashing with its senior disciple Li Wenzhang, who threatened him and claimed the arena spot for himself.

• Xia Lin ruled out major martial arts schools and chose the North Wind Martial Arts School, whose only Savage Martial fighter had been crippled.
• Xia Lin impressed the school with a nine-point punch, then told its head instructor he wanted to enter the Savage Martial Arena soon.
• Li Wenzhang mocked Xia Lin, identified himself as the school's next Savage Martial fighter, and warned Xia Lin not to get in his way.
• Xia Lin told the instructor that he hated Li Wenzhang, then asked him to decide how to train.

Xia Lin joined the North Wind Martial Arts School and learned the requirements for entering the Savage Martial Arena. He followed Li Wenzhang into an alley to test his strength, where Li Wenzhang struck him with a heavy punch and prepared a soccer kick.

• Xia Lin paid twenty thousand credits to join the North Wind Martial Arts School, and Guo Yu explained that he needed ten points on the punch strength tester and mastery of the North Wind Fist to enter the Savage Martial Arena.
• Xia Lin waited outside the school until Li Wenzhang finished training and followed him into an alley in the old district.
• Li Wenzhang confronted Xia Lin, who said he wanted to see how Li Wenzhang slaughtered chickens.
• Li Wenzhang attacked Xia Lin with a North Wind Heavy Punch, sending him flying onto the pavement, then charged to follow up with a soccer kick.

Xia Lin used Rapid Nourishment to incapacitate Li Wenzhang, then killed him and gained attributes, completing his advancement to level 2. The next day, he returned to North Wind Martial Arts School to train and prepare for the Savage Martial Arena.

• Xia Lin recognized that Li Wenzhang outmatched him in attributes and fighting technique, so he used Rapid Nourishment to make Li Wenzhang weigh 1,000 kilograms and lose his balance.
• Xia Lin beat Li Wenzhang with punches and kicks, then killed him with a switchblade.
• Xia Lin gained three points in every attribute for severely backstabbing North Wind Martial Arts School, and completed his advancement mission to become a level 2 Ash Zone Walker.
• Xia Lin resolved to learn fighting techniques, improve his foundation, and pursue North Wind Martial Arts School's Savage Martial Arena slot before attempting the arena mission.
• The next day, Xia Lin attended training as instructor Guo Yu declared that fighting techniques were killing techniques.