Chapter Summaries

Wuling examined his enhanced stats and the system shop while Abu explained missions, points, and the mystery of Wuling’s sealed spiritual power. After washing up and heading to class, Wuling was greeted by someone behind him.

• Wuling opened his system panel and saw that his attributes had risen far above ordinary levels.
• Abu explained that missions appeared passively and that system points could buy items, while most shop goods remained locked behind clearance requirements.
• When Wuling asked about his seal, Abu said he could not explain it until Wuling reached a higher clearance level.
• Wuling washed up, noticed his changed appearance and eight-pack abs, then joined Calcharo and Lingyang for breakfast before heading to class alone.
• Abu told Wuling that only he could see him, and someone called out to Wuling with a good morning.

Wuling ran into Xigelika and Danya on his way to class, then found that his enhanced mental abilities made lessons effortless. At lunchtime, he noticed Cartethyia staring at him, and she hurriedly looked away when he caught her.

• Wuling explained away his apparent conversation with Abu when Xigelika found him sweating and talking to himself.
• Danya caught up with Xigelika, recognized Wuling from their earlier meetings, and walked with them to the classroom building.
• Wuling attended Cantarella's math class with unusual focus, quickly understanding and remembering the lesson while noticing what his classmates were doing.
• At lunch, Wuling caught Cartethyia staring at him, and she blushed and pretended to tidy her desk.

Cartethyia nervously asked Wuling why he seemed different, and they went to the cafeteria together. Wuling tried an overly sweet orange juice guobaorou, and Xigelika asked if she could have the leftovers.

• Abu told Wuling that Cartethyia had sneaked twelve looks at him that morning, while Cartethyia fretted that he would think she was a pervert.
• Cartethyia told Wuling that he seemed different, but she could not explain what had changed; Wuling suspected his strengthened constitution and spirit were the cause.
• Wuling invited Cartethyia to the cafeteria, where he tried orange juice guobaorou and found it far too sweet to finish.
• Xigelika and Danya joined Wuling and Cartethyia, and Xigelika asked Wuling if she could have his leftover guobaorou.

Wuling shared lunch with Cartethyia, Xigelika, and Danya before returning to the dorm for a nap. As he slept, Abu urged him to live an ordinary life, and a strange crack-shaped mark briefly appeared on Wuling’s hand.

• Danya calmly ate the orange-juice guobaorou, and Wuling introduced Cartethyia to Xigelika and Danya.
• Xigelika chatted with the group about school and club recruitment while Cartethyia quietly listened and occasionally glanced at Wuling.
• Wuling and Cartethyia returned to the dorm, where Calcharo and Lingyang arrived after getting lost on the way back.
• Wuling settled down for a nap as Calcharo browsed the campus forum and Lingyang rested with his headphones on.
• Abu emerged from Wuling’s hand, told him he no longer needed to be a savior, and returned inside.
• A black, crack-shaped pattern briefly appeared on the back of Wuling’s hand and vanished.

Wuling woke from another strange dream about the Rover, but quickly forgot what he had dreamed. After sleeping through class and heading to his part-time job, he found a young capybara at the café that seemed drawn to him.

• Wuling woke from a dream about the Rover and joked to Calcharo and Lingyang that a system had improved his physique.
• Wuling asked Abu about his dream, then forgot its contents while walking to class.
• Wuling fell asleep during class, and Cartethyia let him rest until school ended.
• Wuling went to his part-time job and found a young capybara beside him in the café.
• Chisaki arrived, and Wuling picked up the capybara to keep it safe.

Wuling and Chisaki met Auntie Bo’s baby capybara, Bozai, and learned about his distinctive latte-art belly pattern. After Bozai warmed to Chisaki, they carried him to his bed in the storeroom, then accepted desserts from Auntie Bo as thanks.

• Auntie Bo recognized Bozai and told Wuling and Chisaki that she and her husband had named all their capybaras Bozai.
• Auntie Bo showed them the latte-art pattern on the baby capybara’s belly and explained that Bozai was shy around strangers.
• Chisaki gently touched Bozai, and Auntie Bo passed him into Chisaki’s arms when he stayed calm and relaxed.
• Auntie Bo asked Wuling and Chisaki to put Bozai in his storeroom bed, and they settled him there before returning to the shop.
• Auntie Bo thanked them and treated them to desserts, so Wuling chose passion fruit tiramisu and Chisaki chose chocolate cheesecake pudding.

Wuling and Chisaki enjoyed a quiet break before finishing their café shift, and Wuling learned to make coffee during the rush. Near closing, Aimisi arrived to visit him and the kittens, praised his latte, and teased him about his relationship with Chisaki.

• Auntie Bo gave Wuling and Chisaki desserts, and they talked about Chisaki's fondness for animals and how Bozai trusted her.
• After their break, Wuling helped make coffee by following the café's preparation chart and handled the busy shift with Chisaki.
• Aimisi arrived near closing with shopping bags, hugged Chisaki, and asked Wuling to make her a hot latte with three spoonfuls of sugar.
• Wuling quickly prepared a latte that Aimisi praised as better than drinks from other cafés.
• Aimisi told Wuling she had asked Chisaki whether he had been bullying her, and Wuling protested while Aimisi agreed that she did doubt his character.

Aimisi jokingly played emperor while Wuling indulged her at the café, and Auntie Bo gave her a box of milk cakes before the siblings and Chisaki left for the night. Aimisi eagerly led them toward the kittens with cat food and treats.

• Aimisi teased Wuling at work by declaring herself emperor and ordering him to massage her shoulders.
• Wuling indulged Aimisi with a gentle shoulder massage until Auntie Bo told her to let him finish cleaning up.
• Wuling and Chisaki finished tidying the café, and Auntie Bo gave Aimisi a box of milk cakes to take home.
• The three left the café, and Aimisi hurried ahead with cat food and treats, eager to feed the kittens.

Wuling, Chisaki, and Aimisi found the kittens and their injured mother cat in a secluded alley after bringing food. Once Chisaki calmed the wary mother, she invited Aimisi to approach and pet her.

• Aimisi admitted she did not know the way to the kittens, so Wuling and Chisaki led her to the alley.
• The three followed Wuling's directions through the dark alley and found the kittens beneath a cardboard box.
• The mother cat hissed at Aimisi, but relaxed when she recognized Wuling and Chisaki.
• Chisaki gently stroked the mother cat and reassured her that they had brought food and meant no harm.
• Chisaki made room for Aimisi, who crouched beside the nest and cautiously reached out to pet the mother cat.

Aimisi, Chisaki, and Wuling settled a new bed and food for the alley cats, and Aimisi earned the mother cat’s trust. They left before curfew after promising to meet again the next night to feed the cats.

• Aimisi gently petted the mother cat, who relaxed and accepted her touch.
• Wuling, Chisaki, and Aimisi set up a bed, towel, food, and warm water for the mother cat and her three kittens.
• The three watched the cats together and shared milk cakes before Wuling reminded them that curfew was approaching.
• Aimisi reluctantly agreed to leave after Wuling refused to let her stay for two more minutes.
• Aimisi and Wuling made a promise to meet the next night to feed the cats, then parted ways at the dormitory fork.

Wuling explored the silent island in the strange dreamlike shallows and found a pristine white piano that seemed tied to a melody he had heard before. After he left, the piano’s butterfly ornament transformed into a veiled woman who watched the place where he had vanished.

• Wuling found that Abu and the system panel could not reach the shallows, so he walked toward the island alone.
• Wuling discovered a white grand piano at the island’s center, though the figure he remembered seeing there was absent.
• A sudden pain showed Wuling fragmented images, leaving him with the sense that two people had once sat together at the piano.
• Wuling pressed a piano key, but it made no sound, and he wondered whether playing it required special conditions.
• Wuling’s vision blurred, and he allowed himself to leave the shallows.
• The butterfly ornament flew from the piano and transformed into a short blue-haired woman with a veil, who watched where Wuling had disappeared.

Wuling struggled to shake off fragments of a strange dream before colliding with Camellya on campus and offering to make it up to her. They exchanged WeChat contacts and agreed to eat together on Saturday, but Wuling realized he was nearly late for class.

• Wuling told Calcharo and Lingyang that his distraction came from a heavy dream, though images of the shallows kept returning to him.
• Walking to class, Wuling became absorbed in thoughts of the dream and collided with Camellya, who fell onto the campus road.
• Wuling helped Camellya up, returned her belongings, and learned that she was a dance-program senior who claimed intuition had told her he was a junior.
• Wuling and Camellya exchanged WeChat contacts and agreed to meet at the snack street on Saturday, with each insisting on treating the other.
• Camellya warned Wuling that only three minutes remained before his eight o’clock class, and he hurriedly reacted to the news.

Wuling discovered that Abu had gained a Growth System that let him nurture a mysterious blue butterfly. He released her in class, where she landed on his fingertip, invisible to everyone else.

• Wuling raced up the stairs and narrowly dodged a long-haired figure, who privately judged his reflexes and athletic ability impressive.
• Wuling reached class just before the bell and later wondered why Abu had been absent since morning.
• Abu appeared and introduced the Growth System, explaining that gifts and play could raise a creature's growth and affection.
• Wuling opened the system and saw a pale blue butterfly whose affection for him was already maxed out, while Abu gave an unconvincing explanation.
• After Abu assured Wuling that other people would not see the butterfly, Wuling released her, and she landed on his fingertip.

Wuling named his newly bonded nurturing spirit Shorekeeper Butterfly and learned that gifts and physical interaction could raise her nurturing level. Abu fled when Wuling asked about his dream, leaving its secret unresolved.

• Wuling named the blue butterfly Shorekeeper Butterfly, and she responded with a gentle mental resonance.
• Abu explained that Wuling could raise her nurturing level by feeding her, spending time with her, or giving her gifts.
• Wuling asked Abu about his dream, but Abu dodged the question and returned to Wuling’s hand.
• Wuling offered Shorekeeper Butterfly a pencil, which vanished into her and raised her nurturing level from one to two.
• Wuling gently rubbed Shorekeeper Butterfly’s wings, raising her nurturing level from two to three.

Wuling searched for a laid-back club and stumbled into the Star Society, where its president, Nabomo, tricked him into joining to keep the club from being disbanded. After she begged him to stay until the next inspection and promised to agree to anything he asked, Wuling saw an opportunity to take advantage of her offer.

• Wuling refused invitations from several clubs because their schedules were too demanding, while the Shorekeeper Butterfly helped muffle the noise around him.
• Wuling found a twin-tailed senior asleep at a booth and watched as she woke up and introduced herself as Nabomo, president of the Star Society.
• Nabomo pressed Wuling's thumbprint onto a membership form before he could agree to join.
• Nabomo claimed that anyone who stopped at the booth was fated to join and refused Wuling's request to leave.
• Nabomo begged Wuling to stay until the next inspection so the Star Society would not fall below twenty members, promising to agree to anything he asked.
• Wuling decided to make use of Nabomo's promise.

Wuling joined Nabomo's Star Society after learning that it had almost no obligations and only one rule: members could not write its president as a villain. He left for the dorm, puzzled by his sudden urge to smack Nabomo, and learned that his afternoon classes had been canceled.

• Nabomo explained that the Star Society had no regular activities or duties and only forbade members from portraying its president as a villain in a novel.
• Wuling agreed to the rule, joined the Star Society, and exchanged WeChat contacts with Nabomo, bringing its membership back to twenty and saving it from deregistration.
• Nabomo thanked Wuling and offered to help him with school problems before he left.
• Wuling felt a strange urge to smack Nabomo and wondered whether they had been connected in a past life.
• Wuling returned to the dorm and confirmed that Calcharo had joined the gaming club and Lingyang had chosen the martial lion dance troupe.
• Wuling learned that his two afternoon classes had been canceled, giving him the rest of the day off.

Wuling entered an abandoned classroom while looking for Aimisi and listened to a gray-haired girl play the violin. After he said he could hear sadness beneath the cheerful music, she thanked him, leaving their brief encounter unresolved.

• Wuling followed the sound of a violin into an abandoned classroom and found a gray-haired girl playing alone.
• The girl finished playing, noticed Wuling, and startled at finding him there.
• Wuling explained he was looking for Aimisi, and the girl told him the music department was in the neighboring building.
• As Wuling started to leave, the girl asked what he thought of her playing.
• Wuling said the music sounded as if its player was unhappy, and the girl quietly thanked him.

Wuling met Aimisi and Chisaki after school, bought them red bean dorayaki, and began looking for a healthy restaurant for an upcoming meal with Senior Camellya. The three of them continued down the shopping street to scout places before heading to work.

• Aimisi complained that Wuling had gone to the wrong classroom, then asked him to make it up to her with red bean dorayaki.
• Wuling and Aimisi met Chisaki at the arts department building, and Aimisi linked arms with her.
• The three of them went to a nearby stall and bought warm red bean dorayaki.
• Wuling considered the stall as a possible place to take Senior Camellya out to eat on Saturday.
• Aimisi suggested that they look for healthy restaurants along the way, and she led Chisaki down the street as Wuling followed.

Wuling, Aimisi, and Chisaki chose a restaurant for lunch with their friends the next day before heading to their shift at Bozai Coffee. After Auntie Bo recommended dishes and they discussed dietary preferences, Wuling made Aimisi her usual cappuccino and reflected on his future.

• Wuling, Aimisi, and Chisaki settled on Kuainiang Restaurant for lunch after class and planned to invite their roommates, including Calcharo, Lingyang, and Jinhsi.
• The three arrived at Bozai Coffee just before their shift, where Auntie Bo praised Kuainiang Restaurant and recommended its sweet and sour pork, ribs, casserole, vegetables, and mixed stew.
• Aimisi said she would ask Jinhsi about her food preferences, while Chisaki told Wuling she could only handle mildly spicy food.
• Auntie Bo said the shop would be quiet on Thursday and asked Wuling to make Aimisi her usual cappuccino with three spoonfuls of sugar.
• Wuling made Aimisi a cappuccino, and she praised his coffee-making skills as he considered his ambitions and the possibility of a more relaxed life.

Wuling’s mind game with Abu ended when Cartethyia tripped and fell into his arms after class. He discovered she had sprained both ankles, and the chapter ended with him asking permission to carry her to the infirmary.

• Wuling caught Abu cheating at their mental card game and threatened to stop buying him food.
• After class, Cartethyia tripped on a schoolbag strap and fell into Wuling’s arms.
• Wuling noticed Cartethyia’s ankle was twisted, and Abu’s system assigned him a task to take her to the infirmary.
• Cartethyia tried to walk, felt pain in both ankles, and leaned on Wuling for support.
• Wuling asked Cartethyia if he could carry her.