Chapter Summaries

Qu Jianlei left White Cloud Manor and used his Electromagnetic Movement Technique to launch a surprise attack on the Qingfeng Merchant Guild's Liaison Office, where he killed Supreme Arindell and another A-rank. As Qu Jianlei pursued the fleeing guild members, an unknown force descended in Coercive Pressure and challenged him.

• The City Guard delayed before surrounding White Cloud Manor, and the Patrol arrived to investigate Supreme Arindell's death.
• A William Family A-rank reported that Arindell had been killed by someone with the Electromagnetic Attribute, and Kentel realized the attacker had traveled from Jiuchuan Academy.
• Qu Jianlei raced to the Qingfeng Merchant Guild's Liaison Office and attacked Arindell before the guild could prepare.
• Qu Jianlei endured the guild members' counterattacks, struck Arindell with two Thunder Dragons, and beheaded him.
• Qu Jianlei killed another A-rank and pursued the fleeing guild members until a wave of Coercive Pressure descended and someone shouted at him.

Qu Jianlei killed Cohen and raided the Qingfeng Merchant Guild liaison office near Jiuchuan Academy, then escaped despite Liao Donglai's warnings. The Divine Script Research Association and its allies struggled to understand why their targets had begun fighting back, while the Research Society chose to preserve its cooperation for the manhunt.

• Qu Jianlei ignored Liao Donglai's warning, threatened him with Wood Attribute Exclusive Poison, and continued looting the bodies near Jiuchuan Academy.
• Qu Jianlei struck down a merchant guild member with Falling Thunder Art, revealed he had killed Cohen, and took supplies and an off-road vehicle before escaping with Electromagnetic Movement Technique.
• Liao Donglai told the Old Dean that Qu Jianlei had sensed his Mental Strength message, and the two worried about the danger posed by Qu Jianlei and his allies.
• The Divine Script Research Association and Qingfeng Merchant Guild were shocked by the recent deaths of two Supremes and debated what had emboldened their targets.
• The Research Society concluded that Qu Jianlei had killed Cohen before Arindell, then decided not to confront their allies because they needed their help in the manhunt.

The Divine Script Research Association decided to intensify its investigation of Panda after realizing Cohen had been its opponents’ main target, while Hawkstan sought help to avenge him. He learned that the Qingfeng Merchant Guild could not currently cooperate, and the chapter ended with him questioning whether it would send another Supreme at all.

• The Divine Script Research Association concluded that the killing of Arindell had been incidental and that the forceful attack on him signaled its opponents were getting serious.
• Hawkstan asked the Research Society for reinforcements, but it told him Supreme resources were scarce and suggested seeking local allies.
• Hawkstan proposed that the Qingfeng Merchant Guild join forces with him, but Emestina said the guild could not cooperate for now.
• Emestina revealed that Fobi planned to leave after the guild’s replacement Supreme arrived, since he feared being caught in the conflict.
• Hawkstan asked when the Qingfeng Merchant Guild’s Supreme would arrive, and Emestina gave a tentative estimate of fifteen days.
• Hawkstan questioned whether the guild would send anyone, given that it had already lost two Supremes.

Emestina refused Hawkstan’s plan to draw the Qingfeng Merchant Guild into a fight against Qu Jianlei, while Hawkstan sought allies to hunt the killer. The other major powers avoided committing their Supremes, and the military offered an investigation and limited protection but no Supreme-level support.

• Emestina told Hawkstan that the Qingfeng Merchant Guild might withdraw from the conflict and would keep its members, including Fobi, from leaving home.
• Hawkstan proposed taking two Metal Attribute Rank As into battle, but Emestina accused him of using guild members as bait and refused.
• Hawkstan contacted several major powers for help, but they gave excuses, offered only token support, or asked him to reveal Qu Jianlei’s background.
• Hawkstan sought help from the military, which agreed to investigate the Electromagnetic Rank A and provide limited protection without deploying Supremes.

Hawkstan and Ulysses plotted after the Qingfeng Merchant Guild rejected their offer to search together, and Fobi disappeared shortly after leaving. As the guild blamed the Divine Script Society and prepared to withdraw, Qu Jianlei quietly boarded a starship bound for Sky Hook.

• The Divine Script Society sent Ulysses to protect Hawkstan, and Ulysses agreed to stay hidden while Hawkstan led the search.
• Hawkstan and Ulysses met Emestina and Fobi by holographic call, but Emestina refused to search with them.
• Hawkstan proposed a plan to Ulysses, who approved after Hawkstan said he had investigated the people involved.
• Fobi departed alone despite Emestina's advice, then disappeared; the merchant guild began searching for him after his family raised the alarm.
• Emestina suspected Hawkstan and Ulysses were involved in Fobi's disappearance, and she and the newly arrived Supreme decided to return to Blade.
• Qu Jianlei waited for inspections to ease, then secretly boarded a starship bound for Sky Hook and noticed other stowaways.

Qu Jianlei stowed away on a starship with forty-eight other stowaways and tried to avoid drawing attention. After his lack of a Life Support Pod made the others suspicious, another Rank B intervened, and the dispute ended without a fight.

• Qu Jianlei discovered that the Cargo Hold contained forty-eight other stowaways divided among several groups, and he listened as their Snakeheads tried to keep them quiet.
• Qu Jianlei startled a woman who had come to relieve herself, silenced her before she could alert the crew, and moved to a new hiding place.
• Qu Jianlei heard Snakeheads discuss the stowaway crackdown and the rumor that he had caused Fobi, a Supreme on Fourth Star, to disappear.
• A Rank B Warrior questioned Qu Jianlei about his missing Life Support Pod, and Qu Jianlei revealed his Rank B aura and refused to explain further.
• The lone male stowaway offered to help watch Qu Jianlei, and the other Rank B gave up his complaint, ending the confrontation.

Qu Jianlei was exposed as a stowaway during an Anti-Smuggling Squad inspection and avoided letting the squad leader search his belongings. After another stowaway revealed a man and woman, the squad drew weapons, but a Supreme-level presence intervened before the confrontation could escalate.

• Qu Jianlei kept his distance from the quiet Rank B Warrior during the jump, and the stowaways arrived safely.
• An Anti-Smuggling Squad boarded the starship, and the troublesome Rank B revealed that Qu Jianlei was also a stowaway.
• Qu Jianlei dodged the squad leader's attempt to grab his backpack and warned that the leader had no right to touch his things.
• The squad leader agreed to escort Qu Jianlei to the ground and settle the matter later.
• The troublesome Rank B exposed a man and woman, and the squad leader aimed his Laser Pistol at them when they refused to surrender.
• A wave of Coercive Pressure made the squad leader realize a Supreme-level existence was aboard, and a voice asked who wanted to be the man's grandson's great-grandfather.

Qu Jianlei was drawn into a confrontation between a Supreme and the Anti-Smuggling Squad after his stowaway status was exposed. The Supreme explained that he had detained the squad and the other stowaways, then asked Qu Jianlei to explain why those passengers mattered.

• The Anti-Smuggling B-rank officer went upstairs to meet the Supreme, while the Supreme's grandson and great-granddaughter waited below with Qu Jianlei.
• The Anti-Smuggling Squad left the stowaways behind and departed as the starship began accelerating; the Supreme's grandson invited Qu Jianlei to meet his grandfather.
• The Supreme recognized that Qu Jianlei was stronger than B-rank and revealed that he was traveling under a false identity to avoid the Research Society and protect his two descendants.
• The Supreme explained that he had demanded an Anti-Smuggling B-rank stay with them because the squad profited from a gray stowaway business and might endanger the ship.
• The Supreme said he had detained the Anti-Smuggling Squad and refused to let them take the more than forty stowaways, then asked Qu Jianlei to explain their value to his grandson.

Qu Jianlei learned that Bai Jinhan’s past research on Hope Fourth Star’s Wood Attribute poison had drawn Infiltration to the starship, apparently in pursuit of Bai Jinhan’s Item-Storing Talismans. As the starship neared Tianrui Star, Qu Jianlei offered to gather outside information, but he could only receive it passively.

• Bai Jinhan explained that the starship would land at the Tianrui Anti-Smuggling Department’s base, and Qu Jianlei agreed to provide warnings and protect Bai Jinhan’s juniors.
• Xiao Hu offered to infiltrate the anti-smuggling control system, while Qu Jianlei told it to sneak in without taking control.
• As the starship approached Tianrui Star, Qu Jianlei warned Bai Jinhan that Infiltration might be coming for his Item-Storing Talismans.
• Bai Jinhan revealed that he had studied Wood Attribute poison on Hope Fourth Star, and Qu Jianlei realized his own history had influenced Bai Jinhan’s situation.
• Qu Jianlei said he could passively receive outside information, though he could not contact anyone beyond the starship.

Bai Jinhan and Qu Jianlei prepared to escape the Anti-Smuggling Department, but ground control kept their starship hovering in orbit. Bai Jinhan forced the pilot to land manually, while the department’s base debated how to stop the ship without provoking the Supreme aboard.

• Bai Jinhan agreed to lead the escape once the starship landed, and the four worked out rough combat plans without involving the other passengers.
• The starship continued hovering over Tianrui, and passengers repeatedly received vague assurances that the delay would end soon.
• Bai Jinhan ordered the pilot to disable autopilot and land immediately, threatening him with an Ice Blade until he agreed.
• The starship ignored the Signal Tower’s warning and began its descent toward the Anti-Smuggling Department’s base.
• The base’s Duty Chief rejected shooting the starship down, while staff considered freezing its manual controls through the central system despite the risk of exposing it.

Bai Jinhan and Qu Jianlei carried out their escape from the starship while the Anti-Smuggling Department launched warships to intercept them. Bai Jinhan attacked one warship as Qu Jianlei dodged capture nets and gunfire while carrying the Rank B man and the Escape Pod toward the ground.

• The Anti-Smuggling Department launched three warships and a transport ship, then fired warning shots to stop the starship from landing.
• Bai Jinhan, Qu Jianlei, the Rank B man, and the Rank C woman left through an emergency hatch, with the woman inside an Escape Pod and Qu Jianlei carrying the others.
• Bai Jinhan attacked a warship's power system while Qu Jianlei dodged a capture net and kept descending with the Rank B man and Escape Pod.
• The Anti-Smuggling Department ordered the warship to use Paralysis Bullets, and Qu Jianlei swerved through the machine-gun fire toward the ground.

Qu Jianlei, Bai Siwen, and Bai Siwen’s niece survived a fierce descent under fire from the Anti-Smuggling Team while Bai Jinhan attacked its warships. After they landed and fled into a thicket, a wave of Coercive Pressure announced that a Supreme had arrived to settle the matter.

• Bai Siwen dragged the Escape Pod as Qu Jianlei dodged fire, while the Anti-Smuggling Team targeted them with Paralysis Bullets and Bai Jinhan damaged two warships.
• Qu Jianlei fired an Autocannon at the approaching warships, accidentally striking a machine gun and triggering an explosion that spread anesthetic through the air.
• Qu Jianlei slowed their fall through a cloud layer, then landed with Bai Siwen and his niece in a thicket.
• Bai Siwen put away the Escape Pod and carried his sick niece away as he discussed how his Supreme grandfather could shield them from the consequences of illegal border crossing.
• Qu Jianlei asked whether Bai Jinhan could take responsibility if he attacked Anti-Smuggling Team members, and Bai Siwen explained that his grandfather would have to acknowledge the deed.
• A wave of Coercive Pressure descended, and an unseen speaker ordered uninvolved people to move aside while a Supreme handled business.

Qu Jianlei led Bai Siwen and his niece to an abandoned quarry, where they hid in a concealed chamber while he erased their tracks. Meanwhile, Bai Jinhan confronted Tianrui’s Guardian Supreme Qingtian over the Anti-Smuggling Department’s actions, then quietly asked whether Qingtian knew Cripple.

• Qu Jianlei used the rain to sense a route to an abandoned quarry as Bai Jinhan drew Qingtian away from the fleeing group.
• Qu Jianlei helped Bai Siwen and his niece hide in a secret chamber, then concealed the entrance and erased their tracks before vanishing into the rain.
• Bai Jinhan continued attacking the warships until Qingtian ordered him to stop and warned him not to cause further trouble.
• Bai Jinhan accused the Anti-Smuggling Department of inviting a Supreme to target him, but Qingtian demanded proof and threatened to turn against him for making baseless claims.
• Bai Jinhan reconsidered challenging Qingtian and asked him through Mental Strength whether he knew Cripple.

Bai Jinhan persuaded Qingtian to investigate the suspected plot against him and the Anti-Smuggling Department’s role in delaying his starship. Qingtian promised Tianrui Star’s government would stop pursuing Bai Jinhan’s earlier actions, but demanded evidence before he would uphold justice.

• Qingtian agreed Bai Jinhan’s feud with Cripple was credible, then questioned where Bai Jinhan had learned of the alleged plot.
• Bai Jinhan accused the Anti-Smuggling Department of involvement, and Qingtian said he would interfere if Bai Jinhan tried to kill another Supreme.
• Qingtian and Bai Jinhan descended to the ground as the ships landed, while the Anti-Smuggling Department detained the flight attendants and stowaways.
• Bai Jinhan questioned the Anti-Smuggling Department about the starship’s delay and the warships’ warning shots, but the department blamed a Duty Chief who had fled.
• Bai Jinhan pressed Qingtian to explain why the starship had been held in low orbit, and Qingtian promised Tianrui Star would no longer pursue Bai Jinhan’s previous actions while asking him to produce evidence.

Bai Jinhan obtained evidence of corruption in Tianrui Star’s Anti-Smuggling Department from Qu Jianlei and pressed Qingtian to act, despite pressure to spare the department’s reputation. Qu Jianlei retrieved his hidden sachet in Panshi, then learned that Tianrui’s crackdown on stowaways would last a year, leaving him uneasy about the consequences.

• Bai Jinhan left Qingtian after the Guardian Supreme demanded evidence, then contacted his old friends on Tianrui Star for help.
• Nelson picked up Bai Jinhan and arranged for Bai Siwen and his companion to join them, while Qu Jianlei confirmed over the Handheld Transceiver that his task was complete.
• Qu Jianlei gave Bai Jinhan evidence detailing years of stowaway cases handled by Tianrui’s Anti-Smuggling Department, and Bai Jinhan decided to pursue the matter despite Nelson’s request for restraint.
• Bai Jinhan and Nelson held a welcoming dinner, while Bai Siwen quietly messaged his niece about whether they should be wary of Nelson.
• Qu Jianlei traveled to Panshi City, retrieved the sachet he had buried, and learned that Qingtian and the authorities had arrested nearly all senior officials in Tianrui’s Anti-Smuggling Department.
• Qu Jianlei then heard that Tianrui would crack down harshly on stowaway activity for an initial period of one year, and he felt uneasy.

Qu Jianlei asked Bai Jinhan to help him leave Tianrui Star amid the Anti-Smuggling Department’s crackdown, and they departed together aboard a private starship for Tianbing. During the journey, Bai Jinhan discussed his research and friends who studied Pill Refining, and Qu Jianlei asked about the Celestial Hook Mystic Mansion.

• Qu Jianlei learned that Tianrui Star’s intensified inspections made it risky to use false identities or ask the Luo Family for help, so he contacted Bai Siwen and called in a favor from Bai Jinhan.
• Bai Jinhan agreed to help Qu Jianlei leave, but the backlash from his clash with the Anti-Smuggling Department prevented him from arranging an immediate departure.
• Three days later, Qu Jianlei, Bai Jinhan, and Bai Siwen boarded a private starship bound for Tianbing, the Central Star of the Skyhook Star Region.
• Bai Jinhan explained that Tianbing was a safer destination and invited Qu Jianlei to meet his friends there, but Qu Jianlei declined.
• Bai Jinhan mentioned friends who researched Pill Refining, and Qu Jianlei asked whether Bai Jinhan was interested in the Celestial Hook Mystic Mansion.

Qu Jianlei exchanged thoughts with Bai Jinhan about Original Ability Warriors and cultivation, then offered advice that prompted Bai Jinhan to reconsider his path toward Above Supreme. As the starship neared Tianbing Star, Bai Jinhan sought another conversation, but Qu Jianlei simply thanked him for his care.

• Qu Jianlei and Bai Jinhan discussed the Maiden Star Region, Divine Script, and theories about Original Ability Warriors.
• Qu Jianlei told Bai Jinhan that challenging Above Supreme required resolve and that cultivation should be suited to the individual.
• Bai Jinhan praised Qu Jianlei’s words and spent a day and night drinking with him.
• Bai Jinhan told Bai Siwen that Qu Jianlei’s insight deserved serious consideration and warned that he might be dangerous.
• After the jump ended, Qu Jianlei avoided Bai Jinhan, who eventually visited his room near Tianbing Star and found that Qu Jianlei only thanked him.

Qu Jianlei returned to Celestial Hook Star and met Yuanyuan to inspect a Qi Gathering Array and find a secluded place to use it. Yuanyuan brought him to Half-Star Island, where they prepared to begin.

• Qu Jianlei left Bai Jinhan and stowed away on a starship from Tianbing Star to Celestial Hook Star.
• After hearing about new stowaway inspections, Qu Jianlei asked Ford whether his identity could pass scrutiny, then told Yuanyuan he had returned.
• Qu Jianlei gave Yuanyuan the sachet containing the Qi Gathering Array, and she questioned whether the array was rudimentary.
• Yuanyuan arranged to use Half-Star Island at Lone Leaf Lake, and she and Qu Jianlei discussed how to handle possible identity inspections.
• Yuanyuan drove Qu Jianlei to Half-Star Island with Spirit Beast Meat, Ability Rice, and Energy Blocks, then told the elderly caretakers they could stop guarding the site.

Qu Jianlei upgraded Half-Star Island’s defenses, installed a Qi Gathering Array, and tested its energy costs with Yuanyuan. As they prepared to begin cultivation, an intruder climbed into the property, and Qu Jianlei asked Yuanyuan whether she could handle a murder.

• Yuanyuan brought Qu Jianlei into the kitchen, and he cooked for her, Old Kate, and Old Kate’s wife before the elderly couple left the next morning.
• Qu Jianlei spent nearly twelve days improving Half-Star Island’s defenses, while Yuanyuan bought the materials in Tianxin City.
• Qu Jianlei installed several layers of Defense Arrays and set up the Qi Gathering Array, which he and Yuanyuan tested for its cultivation effects and energy consumption.
• Qu Jianlei decided to exchange ten million worth of Energy Blocks, and he and Yuanyuan spent two days arranging the exchanges and transportation.
• After the pair rested and prepared to begin cultivating, an unknown visitor climbed over the gate and railing, prompting Qu Jianlei to ask Yuanyuan if she could handle a murder.

Qu Jianlei faced Yuanyuan’s grandmother and an unremarkable Supreme, who arrived to investigate their relationship. After probing Half-Star Island, the Supreme discovered that Qu Jianlei and Yuanyuan really were cultivating and regretted coming.

• Yuanyuan recognized the A-rank woman as her grandmother, who demanded to meet Qu Jianlei and accused him of living with Yuanyuan.
• Qu Jianlei appeared and challenged the grandmother’s confidence in the Supreme accompanying her, then suggested that the woman’s sand ability was not merely a Metal Attribute mutation.
• The Supreme revealed her aura and probed Half-Star Island’s Defense Array while Grandma sent her four other companions back to the shore.
• The Supreme sensed the Qi Gathering Array and told Grandma that Qu Jianlei and Yuanyuan really were cultivating.
• The Supreme said she should not have come to Celestial Hook Star.