Chapter Summaries

He Ao interrogated Li Weisi and used Super Memory to uncover the breadth of corruption and secret cooperation within Lynn’s Cabinet and Ilan City’s government. The chapter ended with Li Weisi realizing He Ao had identified the supernatural agreement binding him.

• He Ao frightened Li Weisi into silence, then asked the FBI agents to leave them alone in the car.
• He Ao marked Li Weisi with Super Memory and learned that a supernatural agreement prevented him from openly naming his collaborators.
• He Ao discovered that officials across the Cabinet had secretly aided consortiums, while only the Ministry of Finance director had remained truly loyal to Lynn.
• He Ao gathered names of cooperating city council members and officials from the Municipal Government and district governments by reading Li Weisi’s thoughts.
• He Ao asked whether Li Weisi had established a supernatural connection with his collaborators, and Li Weisi’s pupils contracted.

He Ao learned how Li Weisi used the God of Order’s blessing to create supernatural confidentiality contracts and extracted details about the conspiracy against him. He left Li Weisi in custody, called Ilan City’s remaining Cabinet members to a meeting, and Inie arrived in southern Ningweisi District to investigate Yellow Pine Street.

• He Ao learned that Li Weisi’s Judge ability, altered through a ritual invoking the God of Order, let him form supernatural confidentiality contracts.
• Li Weisi admitted that he had stirred unrest, bribed officers, organized demonstrations, and supplied Kepesi Mining with intelligence, while denying direct involvement with the mercenaries who attacked He Ao.
• Li Weisi warned He Ao that the powerful forces behind the conspiracy would defeat and kill him, but He Ao left him in custody and advised him against seeking bail.
• He Ao summoned the Cabinet members still in Ilan City, including Vice Mayor Lant, to a meeting and excluded General Scott.
• Inie traveled by taxi to Yellow Pine Street in southern Ningweisi District, hoping to find something worth reporting.

Inie followed a netizen to 72 Yellow Pine Street, where she learned that the eleven-year-old Jielin worked at a factory and had photographed a Police Floating Fighter near a crash site. Jielin brought her to his home to retrieve photos that no other reporters had, and the chapter ended as he found them.

• Inie reached Ives Space System Foundry on Yellow Pine Street and met Jielin, who said he had photographed the mayor’s possible subordinates piloting a Police Floating Fighter.
• Jielin led Inie away from the factory and told her he worked there because his small size helped him get specialized jobs, despite being only eleven.
• Jielin showed Inie the crash site, where City Defense Army personnel were dismantling charred metal and reporters were already taking pictures.
• Jielin brought Inie to his home, gave his ill mother medicine and hot water, and searched through a pile of old electronics for the photos.
• Jielin announced that he had found something as Inie noticed a flyer bearing the words “Health Care Rules” and a portrait labeled “Doctor Lynn.”

Inie examined the photographs Jielin had taken during the attack on Mayor Lynn and realized the mayor had drawn the missiles away from the Mecha Squad to protect the residential buildings below. The images showed the Floating Fighter escaping the missiles by flying close over the rooftops, and Inie stopped on that moment.

• Jielin showed Inie his repaired Men Shu CTX-50 camera, which he had bought for six Federal currency at a waste disposal station.
• Inie spoke with Zhao Jia, who explained that illness, debt, and her husband’s death had left Jielin caring for her in their poor home.
• Jielin handed Inie the camera and showed her the photographs he had taken during the attack on Mayor Lynn.
• Inie studied the images and inferred that Mayor Lynn had used the Floating Fighter as bait to draw missiles away from the Mecha Squad and the residential buildings.
• Inie followed the photographs as the missiles pursued the Floating Fighter and stopped when it skimmed over rooftops before pulling sharply upward.

Inie acquired Jielin’s photos of the mayor’s missile battle and prepared to report the story, while Jielin showed her the hardships of life in his neighborhood. The chapter left Inie receiving a call about a well-paid part-time job as she stood on the street with Jielin.

• Inie praised Jielin’s photos of the mayor defending the neighborhood and accepted the Storage Chip after Zhao Jia and Jielin agreed she could pay for the photos later.
• Jielin escorted Inie through the rain and explained that his mother’s tumor could be treated with surgery, but they could not afford it.
• Jielin described how the Prisoner Gang controlled the neighborhood and issued residents proof of fixed addresses for factory work.
• Jielin told Inie that Kewis Doctor distributed health flyers signed by Doctor Lynn, and Inie suggested Doctor Lynn might be the current mayor, Lynn.
• Inie reached the street with Jielin and answered a call from her roommate Liss, who offered her a part-time job paying seventy-five Federal currency a day.

Inie sold Jielin’s exclusive photos of the mayor’s assassination attempt to her boss, while He Ao arrested Li Weisi’s allies and prepared to overhaul Ilan City’s police force. The chapter ended with Jielin asking Zhao Jia whether life might improve if the kind Doctor Lynn were mayor.

• Inie learned Liss had taken a risky, well-paid job near White Jasmine Palace, then gave Jielin 20 Federal currency before leaving in a taxi.
• Tucker told He Ao that police had detained Li Weisi’s march organizers, though one suspected gang leader had escaped; He Ao ordered a wanted notice.
• He Ao gave Tucker a list of Municipal Police Department personnel tied to Ives and appointed him the department’s director while retaining his role in the Mayor’s Guard.
• Inie negotiated an exclusive license for Jielin’s assassination-attempt photos, secured her boss’s agreement to pay, and headed back to work.
• Jielin showed Zhao Jia a flyer for Doctor Lynn and asked whether life might improve if Lynn were their mayor.

He Ao prepared to deliver a speech as the conglomerates blocked major media broadcasts and a hired protest gathered outside the Mayor’s Residence. He arranged alternate ways to reach the public and covert protection for the protesters, then headed to meet the cabinet ministers.

• A bearded man and the Bald Man discussed how they had paid and pressured a crowd to protest against Lynn, while learning that Li Weisi had been arrested.
• He Ao reassured Lant that he trusted him and said he had reached an agreement with General Kewei the previous night.
• The Golden-Haired Chief of Staff told He Ao that major conglomerate-owned media outlets had refused to broadcast his speech, so he arranged local broadcasts, an official website livestream, and targeted online ads.
• He Ao and Tucker identified a hired protest group outside the Mayor’s Residence, including people who appeared to have been coerced, and He Ao ordered plainclothes protection and evacuation routes.
• The Chief of Staff told He Ao that the cabinet ministers were waiting, and he headed to the Cabinet Meeting Room.

He Ao summoned Ilan City's cabinet as members speculated about Mayor Lynn's fate, maneuvered for future positions, and learned that the Minister of Internal Affairs had fled. Before opening the meeting, He Ao presented anonymous reports accusing Minister of Finance Loser and Energy Director Vittel of corruption, leaving the cabinet to face the evidence.

• Cabinet members gathered and speculated that Mayor Lynn might have been assassinated, while the Mustached Man and Wide Fat Man discussed alliances and potential cabinet reshuffles.
• The Mustached Man offered to help the Wide Fat Man become Education Director in exchange for support, while revealing that the Minister of Internal Affairs had fled Ilan City.
• The Chief of Staff gave He Ao anonymous reports accusing Loser of colluding with the Nold Corporation and Vittel of taking a bribe from Kepesi Mining.
• He Ao asked the Chief of Staff to send the reports to Tucker and investigate their source through the Federal Bureau of Investigation and Li Weisi's subordinates.
• He Ao entered the Cabinet Meeting Room, noted the Minister of Internal Affairs's and City Defense Director Scott's empty seats, and projected the reports for the cabinet.

He Ao exposed corruption at a cabinet meeting and dismissed every official except Finance Minister Loser, Energy Director Vittel, and Vice Mayor Lant. As he prepared to address Ilan City about his assassination attempt and the city’s problems, he received word that an Ives Space System mercenary group was approaching the wilderness outside the South Gate.

• He Ao confronted Finance Minister Loser and Energy Director Vittel with evidence of misconduct, while Vittel’s companions revealed suspicious details about his dealings.
• He Ao ordered everyone except Loser, Vittel, and Lant to leave office, and declared that their First Vice Ministers would temporarily take over.
• The Education Minister protested that He Ao had effectively dissolved the cabinet, but He Ao invoked the mayor’s executive authority and ended the meeting.
• He Ao reassured Loser that the city needed him and praised Vittel’s work, while Lant agreed to manage opposition from the council’s conservatives.
• He Ao prepared a livestreamed address in the Mayor’s Office, then received Kewei’s warning that an Ives Space System mercenary group was approaching outside the South Gate.
• He Ao acknowledged the warning and began his address to the people of Ilan City about the assassination attempt and the city.

Liss was trapped in an anti-mayor march when the Mayor began a citywide speech defending labor and medical reforms after an assassination attempt. The speech ended with a call for people to unite against corporations, leaving Li Weisi shaken and convinced the Mayor had gone mad.

• Liss realized that the part-time job had placed her in an anti-mayor march, and the organizers’ guards prevented her from leaving or retrieving her confiscated bracelet.
• The Mayor's speech appeared on screens and bracelets across Ilan City, drawing the attention of residents, including Jielin and Zhao Jia.
• The Mayor explained that the Employee Protection Act and Medical Insurance Act were meant to protect workers and ensure access to healthcare, and described how corporations had profited while abandoning sick and injured employees.
• The Mayor said the assassination attempt and attacks on his reforms would not stop him, and urged Ilan City's people to unite against the corporations.
• After the speech, Li Weisi struggled to light a cigarette and told an FBI agent, “He's gone mad.”

Kewei ordered Ilan City's defenses to prepare for the approaching Ives Space System Mercenary Group while the Gaunt Man moved to disrupt Mayor Lynn's speech. Liss accepted his paid assignment to wave a protest flag, but instead used the microphones to expose the conglomerates' lies, prompting the Gaunt Man to order an attack.

• After learning the mercenary group was approaching and someone had contacted it from outside the city, Kewei ordered a direct warning and activated Level One combat readiness.
• The Gaunt Man received orders to advance the plan and recruited parade participants to stage a charge against the Mayor's Guard.
• When a teenage boy objected, the Gaunt Man's men sedated him and intimidated the crowd into silence.
• Liss agreed to rush the screen with a “Lynn Step Down” flag in exchange for payment, then fought through the jasmine flowers to reach the walkway before it.
• Instead of waving the flag, Liss dropped it and shouted through the hidden speakers that the crowd had been deceived by the conglomerates.
• The Gaunt Man's smile vanished, and he ordered his people to act.

A coordinated attack on the Mayor's Residence threw the parade into chaos, but He Ao killed the attacker threatening Liss with a jasmine petal. The Gaunt Man infiltrated the residence and took the Mustached Man hostage, who offered to help him reach Lynn.

• The Gaunt Man used a crystal Weather Ball to summon wind and rain while attackers and gunfire caused panic, and Tucker ordered his teams to protect paraders, evacuate the crowd, and defend the residence.
• Liss retreated toward the giant screen as the bald Brawny Man attacked her, while the Mayor's Guard fought to contain the assault.
• He Ao sent Sena to escort the office staff to a Safehouse but stayed behind; he opened a window and launched a jasmine petal that pierced and killed the Brawny Man before he could strike Liss.
• Tucker reached Liss after the attack and checked that she was safe; she noticed a familiar wooden window where the white light had come from.
• The Gaunt Man entered the Cabinet Meeting Room through a broken window and held the Mustached Man at knifepoint, asking whether Lynn was still in the Mayor's Office.
• The Mustached Man offered to guide the Gaunt Man to Lynn, arguing that they could benefit if the mayor were replaced.

Christos watched Mayor Lynn’s speech and resolved to help Ilan City resist the conglomerates, while strengthening security around Lynn’s daughter and seeking Viktor’s advice. Meanwhile, the Gaunt Man reached Lynn’s office expecting to find it empty, only to discover Lynn waiting behind his desk.

• Christos watched Mayor Lynn’s speech and concluded that Lynn was rallying citizens directly against the conglomerates.
• Christos ordered his staff to finish their work that night, increase security at Dawn University for Lynn’s daughter, and contact Viktor for advice.
• The Gaunt Man and the Mustached Man crossed White Jasmine Palace’s sparsely guarded corridor toward the Mayor’s Office.
• The Gaunt Man pushed open the office door and found Lynn waiting behind his desk, inviting him to sit.

Li Weisi was released on bail and agreed to meet with Nord’s representatives, while He Ao faced an assassination team in Mayor Lynn’s office. He Ao killed the attackers, recovered a Crystal Ball, and ended the storm as the rain stopped over Ilan City.

• Li Weisi received a bail permit, was fitted with a positioning ankle bracelet, and left the Federal Bureau of Investigation Building with his lawyer.
• Li Weisi agreed to meet the gentleman from Nord and activated the bracelet on his wrist before getting into a black sedan.
• The Gaunt Man questioned Mayor Lynn’s apparent confidence while He Ao asked about corporate ties to Ilan’s gangs.
• The Gaunt Man killed the Mustached Man after he urged the assassins to attack He Ao.
• The Gaunt Man and the Wide Fat Man attacked He Ao, who killed them both with a dagger.
• He Ao picked up a Crystal Ball from the Gaunt Man’s clothes and commanded the storm to disperse, stopping the rain.

After Lynn foiled an assassination and protected the crowd, Tucker questioned Liss as a witness and learned the Gaunt Man had hired her. Liss realized Lynn had likely saved her, reunited with Inie by phone, and watched sunlight break through the clouds.

• Tucker reflected on how Lynn had anticipated the corporate plot, deployed the Mayor's Guard to protect civilians, and kept the remaining guards away from the assassin.
• Tucker asked Liss to serve as a witness, and she identified the Gaunt Man as the person who had paid her; Tucker told her the assassin was dead and she could keep the money.
• Liss explained that her parents' mining-related illnesses had left her family struggling, and Tucker told her that Lynn had arranged the response that saved everyone.
• Liss recognized the glowing window behind the speech as the place where the petal-like radiance had come from and suspected Lynn had saved her.
• Inie called Liss to check that she had survived the attack, and Liss joked about becoming a news headline and offered her friend an interview.
• Tucker watched the lit window as sunlight broke through the clouds over the Jasmine Flower Sea.

Jielin reassured his mother Zhao Jia that their life would improve, while Li Weisi was lured to a fast-food restaurant and murdered. He Ao investigated the corporations’ alliance and the Prisoner Gang, then learned that the Minister of Internal Affairs had returned.

• Jielin told Zhao Jia he could not quit the night shift because its extra pay helped buy her medicine, and he asked whether life would get better.
• Li Weisi arrived at Old Vic Fast Food to meet a contact, but Suspenders Man poisoned him through the restaurant’s odors and stabbed him to death.
• He Ao concluded that Ilan City’s corporations were cooperating against his reforms and reviewed intelligence about the Prisoner Gang’s sudden rise in southern Ningweisi District.
• He Ao suspected the Prisoner Gang was connected to the corporations and the Main Mission, and considered investigating its territory in person.
• The Chief of Staff called He Ao to report that the Minister of Internal Affairs had arrived at the airport.

He Ao learned that Li Weisi had been killed after accepting bail, but Li Weisi had arranged to send him a trove of evidence against the corporations after his death. He Ao sent the files to Tucker and ordered him to pursue the former cabinet members and investigate Li Weisi’s residences, while Tucker explained to Sena that Li Weisi had trusted He Ao despite their hostility.

• He Ao told the Chief of Staff to make the returning Minister of Internal Affairs travel to the Mayor’s Residence without a police escort.
• He Ao received an anonymous email containing Li Weisi’s evidence and realized Li Weisi had prepared it to be delivered after his death.
• Tucker informed He Ao that Li Weisi had died in the Ningweisi District, and He Ao told Tucker that Li Weisi had sent him the files.
• He Ao forwarded the files to Tucker and ordered him to act on the former cabinet members’ cases and investigate Li Weisi’s residences.
• Tucker explained to Sena that Li Weisi had anticipated being killed and had used a timed check-in to send the evidence, then assigned Sena a task.

Inie finished a news story at her exploitative newspaper job, then read Mayor Lynn’s speech and discovered the White Jasmine Palace website was exposing consortium influence over Ilan City’s council. As access to the revelations was blocked and videos disappeared, she recognized an online war underway and prepared to publish her own story.

• Inie submitted her news copy to the Boss, then read the official transcript of Mayor Lynn’s speech while thinking of Liss and the people of the Low-Rise Building District.
• Inie explored the White Jasmine Palace website and found bill summaries detailing how medical and other consortiums had influenced City Council votes through donations.
• Inie saw the official website blocked by browsers and watched a popular video naming councilors tied to the Medical Security Act vanish, then found a repost on another app.
• Inie received the Boss’s praise and a promise of full-time employment after sending him an exclusive photo authorization contract.
• Inie turned her attention to the news copy awaiting publication, ready to report from the silent internet battlefield.

A White Shirt and Cigar Man discussed Lynn’s public exposure of corruption and his push to force the City Council to approve reforms. Meanwhile, a Gaunt Man returned to White Jasmine Palace hoping to regain influence, but Sena arrested him on corruption charges.

• The White Shirt complained that Lynn’s revelations had angered voters and threatened councilors’ reelection, while the Cigar Man explained that Lynn was using public pressure to advance his bills.
• The Cigar Man received a notification about footage from the previous night’s assassination attempt on Lynn.
• The Gaunt Man planned to persuade Lynn to forgive him and restore him to office, while privately considering how to handle his dismissed Cabinet allies and corporate contacts.
• The Gaunt Man discovered that corporations had blocked access to the White Jasmine Palace Official Website and saw the setback as a chance to offer Lynn support.
• Sena met the Gaunt Man outside White Jasmine Palace, showed him an arrest warrant for bribery and abuse of power, and handcuffed him.

Seth and Christos prepared Dawn City's Anti-Consortium Monopoly Law while discussing Winter City's experiment and the clues K had left behind. In Ilan City, He Ao coordinated defenses and learned that an Ives Space System Mercenary Group had stopped outside the South Gate.

• Seth reviewed Winter City's municipal data with Christos and praised Ilo's careful management of United Industries.
• Christos showed Seth the Anti-Consortium Monopoly Law and planned to publicize it before dawn.
• He Ao ordered GG screens for Ilan City and told the Golden-Haired Chief of Staff to arrange a large shipment from Dawn City.
• Scott told He Ao that the missile launchers had been concealed and that an Ives Space System Mercenary Group was approaching Ilan City.
• He Ao told Scott to protect the North Gate and arranged to inspect North City's troops the morning after tomorrow.
• General Kewei messaged He Ao that the Ives Space System Mercenary Group had stopped at the boundary of the safe zone outside the South Gate.