Chapter Summaries

Rhine arrived with the Haiyin Family and defused the standoff over the investigation by vouching for Zhou Runan and the Xihong marquis's son. When alarms then detected abnormal Wind Element and Mental Strength fluctuations, Rhine sensed their source and recognized the feeling as strangely familiar.

• The Haiyin Family convoy arrived, and Rhine greeted her nephew Zhou Runan among Glory's students.
• After hearing about the investigation, Rhine vouched for Zhou Runan and the Xihong marquis's son, prompting Zizheng Supreme to withdraw.
• Rhine questioned whether the Water Element alarm could have been false, but another alarm reported abnormal Wind Element gathering.
• Rhine determined that none of the five Wind Attribute members of Glory's group had caused the disturbance, and Zizheng Supreme told the guards to listen to her.
• A Mental Strength alarm sounded, and Rhine sensed the disturbance's direction, then wondered why the feeling seemed familiar.

Rhine and Zizheng Supreme responded to alarms detecting abnormal Wind Element and Mental Strength fluctuations near the Mystic Mansion. Rhine recognized the hidden Supreme as Hongjingtian and decided she was willing to help him.

• Rhine gathered Zhou Runan and her people under her protection as alarms reported abnormal Wind Element convergence.
• Zizheng Supreme questioned Rhine about the warning, and she agreed to sense the situation with Mental Strength.
• Rhine's Mental Strength triggered another alarm, and Qu Jianlei sent her the message, "Price?"
• Rhine recognized the message as Hongjingtian's and recalled their earlier time together in space.
• Rhine decided that helping Hongjingtian was no big deal, since she trusted him and understood his interest in the Mystic Mansion.

Rhine and Ziheng devised a way to locate Hongjingtian's hidden force without letting its Wind Attribute user escape. The military encircled the area Rhine identified and began a full-scale bombardment.

• Rhine suggested using attribute-detection equipment to prevent the Wind Attribute enemy from fleeing, and Ziheng agreed to activate it.
• Rhine used the alarm and repeated perception searches to send Hongjingtian a signal, then received her mental message and identified a location about eleven kilometers away.
• Zizheng Supreme ordered the students to stay put while Ziheng activated the detection equipment and sent out eight elite teams to surround the target area.
• The military fired shells in scattered directions for half an hour, masking its movements as the convoys quietly encircled the target.
• Qu Jianlei and his companions recognized the military's coordinated plan, and the artillery barrage began concentrating on Rhine's designated area.

The military trapped and killed a Wind Attribute Supreme during a coordinated operation, then kept the area under bombardment while the students established a field camp. Rhine met Qu Jianlei outside the base and discussed the Supreme’s poisoned death as distant observers considered how the operation had drawn attention away from the Department of Anomalous Affairs and Baron.

• Ziheng confirmed the infiltrator was a Wind Attribute Supreme as the military encircled the area and unleashed coordinated fire.
• A Fire Attribute Supreme trapped the Wind Attribute Supreme, but found him brain-dead from poison targeting the mind; the military continued searching for other infiltrators.
• Ziheng ordered Glory Academy to build a field camp, while Rhine left to search for Hongjingtian.
• Rhine followed a mental message to meet Qu Jianlei, and they discussed the dead Supreme’s suicide and the possibility that it was meant to lower the military’s guard.
• More than a hundred kilometers away, a group discussed how the operation had diverted attention from the Department of Anomalous Affairs and Baron, and regretted yielding resources related to the Mystic Mansion.

Qu Jianlei persuaded Rhine to help his group enter the Mystic Mansion, and she brought them to the Glory Academy camp. After Zizheng Supreme identified the Son of Wind and discussed who had arranged the attack, Qu Jianlei learned that his companions suspected the Divine Script Society.

• Qu Jianlei told Rhine that his group wanted to make up for their losses in the Mystic Mansion and agreed to give her some of their gains in exchange for help getting inside.
• Rhine agreed to bring five A-rank-or-higher members of Qu Jianlei's group to the site, then drove them to the Glory Academy camp.
• Zizheng Supreme arrived, recognized Rhine's companions as her people, and told her that the Son of Wind was a wanted criminal from the Crab Star Region.
• Rhine argued that the Son of Wind had been forced to act as a scapegoat for powerful forces, and Zizheng agreed that those forces were likely cowards seeking the benefits without risk.
• Qu Jianlei overheard their conversation and realized that Old Lady Jia and Paranoid suspected the Divine Script Society had arranged the attack.

Rhine secured permission for Qu Jianlei and four companions to enter the Mystic Mansion under cultivation testing and the Haiyin Family’s account. Inside, Qu Jianlei discovered the Abode recognized him as a cultivator from Blue Star and offered him an inheritance trial, whose rules could expel the other entrants if he accepted.

• Zizheng agreed to let Rhine’s five companions undergo cultivation testing, with any successful entrants’ slots charged to the Haiyin Family, and told Rhine to enter alongside Glory Academy’s students.
• Rhine explained the conditions to Qu Jianlei and the others, and they agreed to proceed into the Mystic Mansion with the academy group the next morning.
• Upon entering the hall, Qu Jianlei heard a voice speaking Shenzhou Language and learned that the Abode had detected him as a Golden Core Realm cultivator without a passage token.
• The Abode offered Qu Jianlei an inheritance trial and promised rewards, but it struggled to locate them and refused to let him refine the Mystic Mansion outright.
• Qu Jianlei learned that accepting the trial would activate the Abode’s rules to expel non-trial participants, since the other unorthodox entrants could not trigger those rules themselves.

Qu Jianlei avoided starting the Mystic Mansion trial, gave Rhine the standard Qi Gathering Array as thanks, and returned to Tianfeng Star with his companions. After Fourth Boss proposed helping a group of disabled former subordinates through a repair business, Xiao Hu reported fighting in the Asteroid Belt and urged Qu Jianlei to use their hidden assets.

• Qu Jianlei persuaded the Mystic Mansion’s voice to let his group enter without taking the trial, and they left the Mystic Mansion after fifteen days.
• Qu Jianlei gave Rhine a storage device containing the standard Qi Gathering Array, leading her to connect the Hongjingtian Team with Ran Bingluan’s team.
• Qu Jianlei and his companions returned to their residence on Tianfeng Star, shared their spoils, and decided to stay there for further cultivation.
• Fourth Boss told Qu Jianlei he wanted to help seven struggling former subordinates, and they agreed to consider opening a repair factory that could also gather information.
• Xiao Hu told Qu Jianlei that fighting had broken out in the Asteroid Belt and that it was time to cash in their cards.

Qu Jianlei learned that several starships protected by his Protection Cards had been forced into battle, threatening the Hongjingtian Team’s reputation, and decided to intervene. After gathering his team and starships, he arrived at Lan Yun Market, where victims sought his help; he and his companions chose Three United Company as their first target.

• Big Head Butterfly told Qu Jianlei that one Revenge Card and at least three Protection Cards had been triggered, so Qu Jianlei decided he had to act.
• Qu Jianlei discussed the situation with Old Lady Jia and Paranoid, who agreed to go after those responsible; Hua Xiezhi also joined the mission, while Bentley and Xiao Qin stayed behind.
• Qu Jianlei replenished and maintained his starships at the Mineral Star, then took the 8384 Ship and the rest of his fleet to Lan Yun Market.
• Two groups whose starships had been forced into battle met Paranoid and asked Hongjingtian to deliver justice, reporting damage and other affected groups.
• Hua Xiezhi and Paranoid chose Three United Company as their first target because it belonged to the Sail Consortium’s camp and its actions seemed unlikely to be Baron’s trap.

Qu Jianlei brought the Hongjingtian Team to Three United Company's hub on Tears Star and launched a sudden attack to retaliate for the company forcing Protection Card buyers into battle. Three United Company's defenders scrambled to respond as the bombardment shook the underground facilities and its two Armed Merchant Ships prepared to fight.

• Qu Jianlei chose Tears Star as his target because it was Three United Company's hub, then hurried there aboard the 8384 Ship.
• Three United Company's people learned Hongjingtian might attack but could not tell where Qu Jianlei would strike, forcing them to divide their defenses.
• The 8384 Ship opened fire on the space monitors around Tears Star, and Qu Jianlei ordered uninvolved people to move to open ground.
• Black Mole Man refused to leave the hospital, but a subordinate challenged him over Three United Company's coercion of card buyers.
• Qu Jianlei's ships bombarded Three United Company's hub, shaking its underground rooms and disabling the anti-gravity system.
• Three United Company's two Armed Merchant Ships started up, and their crews boarded and took their positions within about two minutes.

Qu Jianlei’s forces overwhelmed Three United Company’s defenses on Tears Star, forced its surrender, and seized two Armed Merchant Ships along with cash, Energy Blocks, and an IOU. The Hongjingtian Team left quickly, while Three United’s survivors cursed them and realized they first had to repair their communications equipment to spread the news.

• Qu Jianlei’s starships destroyed the Signal Tower, disabled the fortresses, and bombarded Three United’s hospital and repair yard.
• Qu Jianlei detected two Armed Merchant Ships in an underground Ship Hangar, and 8384 Ship’s attack collapsed much of the hangar and sealed their escape route.
• After the fortresses signaled surrender, Qu Jianlei demanded unconditional surrender, five hundred million in banknotes, and the two Armed Merchant Ships.
• Three United Company offered eighty million in cash, seventy million in Energy Blocks, and an IOU for the remaining amount, and Qu Jianlei accepted before ordering two residential areas destroyed.
• Hua Xiezhi and Paranoid collected the Energy Blocks, and Qu Jianlei’s starships took the Armed Merchant Ships and departed Tears Star.
• Three United’s survivors complained about the seizure and destruction, then realized they needed to repair the Signal Tower and communications equipment before they could spread the word.

Qu Jianlei's group traveled to Gem Blue Star to attack Flying Eagle, while Qu Jianlei used his military pass and threats to drive away an intercepting warship. The chapter ended with the Hongjingtian Team arriving above Gem Blue and an opponent backing down after seeing their ships.

• Qu Jianlei's group left Tears Star with seven combat-capable starships and prepared their fleet for the journey to Gem Blue Star.
• An unidentified military warship intercepted the 8384 Ship, but Qu Jianlei threatened its crew until they withdrew and warned other military ships away from Gem Blue.
• The 8384 Ship disabled Gem Blue's satellites with a Magnetic Field Interference Bomb and announced that the Hongjingtian Team had come only for Flying Eagle.
• After a voice challenged the satellite attack, the rest of Qu Jianlei's fleet arrived, and another speaker claimed the challenger had drunk too much.

Qu Jianlei forced the Flying Eagle Group to answer for its actions against the Hongjingtian Team, demanding one Armed Merchant Ship and two hundred million in banknotes. Flying Eagle agreed to the terms in principle but sought time and a ship through an exchange, leaving the negotiations unresolved.

• Qu Jianlei rejected Flying Eagle's five-million compensation offer and demanded that it identify itself.
• Keynes of the Flying Eagle Group apologized and offered compensation, but Qu Jianlei demanded one Armed Merchant Ship and two hundred million in banknotes.
• Qu Jianlei gave Keynes half an hour to seek approval and warned that the Hongjingtian Team would attack if Flying Eagle refused.
• Big Head Butterfly located the faction that had offered five million, and Paranoid returned with the money.
• Flying Eagle headquarters accepted Qu Jianlei's price but said it could pay only part immediately and needed to arrange a starship exchange.
• Qu Jianlei refused to wait four days for a ship and told Flying Eagle to borrow one, warning that his patience was limited.

Qu Jianlei’s group secured an Armed Merchant Ship and borrowed Energy Blocks from Flying Eagle Group, while suspecting the negotiations were a stalling tactic. As they left Gem Blue Star, six enemy ships ambushed them, including at least two military-standard Aerospace Carriers, and Qu Jianlei ordered his outnumbered fleet to fight through.

• Qu Jianlei and Paranoid realized Flying Eagle Group might be stalling to lure them out, but chose to wait and see what it planned.
• Keynes arranged the loan of an Armed Merchant Ship and helped Flying Eagle Group borrow fifty million Energy Blocks, while it could only issue an IOU for the remaining amount.
• Qu Jianlei’s group loaded its ships and departed Gem Blue Star, with Paranoid and Hua Xiezhi operating the borrowed merchant ship.
• After the fleet traveled more than three million kilometers, alarms revealed six enemy starships lying in ambush, and Qu Jianlei ordered the Attack Ships to break through.
• Qu Jianlei’s fleet concentrated fire on one enemy ship, but Xiao Hu warned that the enemy had at least two military-standard Aerospace Carriers, while Big Head Butterfly identified a Fire Support Ship and an Escort Ship.

Qu Jianlei’s fleet fought a desperate battle against a force equipped with a Fire Support Ship and Digital Logic Warships. Xiao Hu launched a full-scale data intrusion, destroying many enemy Small Ships, while the enemy struggled to withstand its computational power.

• Paranoid identified the enemy’s two Digital Logic Warships, and Qu Jianlei’s fleet crippled one by targeting its power system, losing an Assault Ship in the exchange.
• The Fire Support Ship and the enemy’s Small Ships pressured Qu Jianlei’s outnumbered fleet, prompting Xiao Hu to warn that they needed a data intrusion to avoid catastrophic losses.
• Big Head Butterfly detected that the enemy Attack Ships were unmanned, and Qu Jianlei ordered Electromagnetic Interference Bombs and a full-scale intrusion.
• The enemy’s Digital Logic Warships detected the intrusion and ordered their fleet to strengthen its digital defenses and use its full computational power.
• Xiao Hu overwhelmed the enemy’s Small Ships, destroying more than ten as the enemy realized its computational power could not match Qu Jianlei’s.

Qu Jianlei's fleet struggled against a powerful enemy fleet that used electromagnetic attacks and concentrated fire to target 8384 Ship. The arrival of 3344 Ship turned the battle by letting Xiao Hu seize enemy weapons and focus fire on the enemy reinforcements, leaving the enemy Commander to realize Qu Jianlei intended to destroy the entire force.

• The enemy Commander ordered full-scale electromagnetic and logic attacks, supersaturation fire on 8384 Ship, and a shift from unmanned to manned Small Ships.
• Qu Jianlei's side lost another Small Ship and an Armed Merchant Ship, while the enemy mistook the comparatively intact merchant ship for a possible computational platform.
• Two enemy Armed Merchant Ships arrived as 3344 Ship and a Customs Enforcement Ship reached Qu Jianlei's fleet; the Unlucky Starship held back as Qu Jianlei had ordered.
• 3344 Ship's Xiao Hu copy launched a sudden data intrusion and took control of the Fire Support Ship, whose weapons turned on the enemy fleet and set an Aerospace Carrier ablaze.
• Qu Jianlei authorized Xiao Hu to take over enemy weapons and ordered concentrated attacks on the two newly arrived Armed Merchant Ships.
• The enemy Commander realized Qu Jianlei was trying to keep the entire enemy fleet from escaping.

Qu Jianlei’s fleet turned the ambush into a victory as Xiao Hu seized control of the enemy ships, though Baron resisted from a Small Ship and attacked 8384 Ship. The enemy fleet was annihilated, but scattered Escape Pods and lifeboats escaped pursuit.

• After an enemy Small Ship rammed Paranoid’s warship and self-destructed, Qu Jianlei ordered Xiao Hu to invade the remaining Armed Merchant Ships.
• Xiao Hu took over the enemy Aerospace Carrier and triggered the self-destruction of several manned Small Ships, then attacked the Escort Ships and Digital Logic Warship.
• Qu Jianlei ordered Xiao Hu to block the enemy’s escape, while the attackers’ ships and Small Ships were destroyed one by one.
• A Small Ship evaded precise attacks, and Qu Jianlei connected to its communications and recognized Baron’s voice before ordering the channel disconnected.
• Qu Jianlei realized Baron’s Mental Attribute was strengthening the ship’s Logic Fortress, so he let Xiao Hu focus on the Digital Logic Warship while Baron attacked 8384 Ship.
• Qu Jianlei’s fleet annihilated the enemy, but scattered Escape Pods and lifeboats remained beyond its ability to pursue.

Qu Jianlei’s battered fleet finished off the enemy force, and Paranoid killed Baron after the Small Ship pilot challenged them. The costly victory left Qu Jianlei facing extensive repairs and unanswered questions, including Cartel’s disappearance and a strange sealed compartment on the Escort Ship.

• Qu Jianlei ordered the fleet to concentrate fire on Baron’s Small Ship, which was destroyed, and Baron escaped into space.
• Paranoid fought Baron and killed him with the Golden Wheel, then reported that the other Above Supreme, Cartel, had disappeared.
• Xiao Hu searched for Cartel but could not find him, while the fleet captured more than thirty surviving crew members and assessed the damaged ships and recovered Small Ships.
• Paranoid discovered something unusual in a sealed compartment on the Escort Ship and called Qu Jianlei over to investigate.

Qu Jianlei’s group defeated the ambushing fleet, exposed Cartel hiding aboard the Escort Ship, and hurried to warn Old Lady and the others before the attack’s news spread. Prisoner interrogations revealed the fleet’s ties to the Department of Anomalous Affairs, Baron, and Harman, leaving Qu Jianlei wondering why Harman had thought Baron could defeat Hongjingtian.

• Qu Jianlei used Mental Attacks to force Cartel out of the sealed compartment, then left Paranoid to deal with him.
• Qu Jianlei ordered the battlefield wreckage gathered, then chose to notify Old Lady and the others instead of immediately pursuing Flying Eagle Group.
• Qu Jianlei, Hua Xiezhi, and Paranoid departed aboard the undamaged Unlucky Starship while other ships towed the wreckage and prisoners.
• Prisoners revealed that the Department of Anomalous Affairs had helped establish the fleet to capture Ran Bingluan and had lent it to Baron.
• Qu Jianlei learned that Baron’s interest stemmed from the Laifaier Family massacre case, while Harman had acted to pave the way for his talented grandson.
• Qu Jianlei understood Harman’s wish to protect his descendant but wondered why Harman had believed Baron would prevail over Hongjingtian.

Qu Jianlei learned how Baron arranged the fleet that attacked the Hongjingtian Team, then brought the Unlucky Starship to Tianfeng Star, where military-linked inspectors searched it. After discovering that Old Lady and the others had already left and that authorities were investigating special passes, Qu Jianlei decided not to land.

• Qu Jianlei learned that Baron had arranged two Flying Eagle Group ships for the attack, and he left the prisoners’ fate to Paranoid and Hua Xiezhi.
• Four days later, Qu Jianlei’s three ships approached Tianfeng Star, where an armed ship intercepted the Unlucky Starship and demanded an inspection.
• Hua Xiezhi warned the inspectors to stop questioning them, and the group searched the cargo hold but found no grounds to detain the ship.
• Qu Jianlei learned that Old Lady and the others had left Tianfeng Star and that a confidential order called for special passes to be investigated.
• Paranoid concluded that news of their battle had reached the authorities, and Qu Jianlei decided not to land on Tianfeng Star.

Qu Jianlei and his companions left Tianfeng Star after a military officer tried to requisition their Unlucky Starship, then pursued the Old Lady and the others to the Transit Star. They found Claire and Bentley overseeing renovations at a storefront, and Paranoid suspected the business was only a cover.

• Old Lady Jia and the others evacuated safely, and Qu Jianlei, Hua Xiezhi, and Paranoid headed for the Transit Star.
• A Rank C Warrior stopped the Unlucky Starship, inspected it, and tried to requisition it, but hurried away after learning what kind of ship it was.
• Xiao Hu reported that Big Head Butterfly had found the remaining Pioneer Terminal and that the Old Lady's group planned to travel to Sky Handle through Elf Home.
• Qu Jianlei brought his companions to the Transit Star and reasoned that the group had not left yet because Elf Home departures were infrequent and discreet.
• Big Head Butterfly detected movement from the Pioneer Terminal, and Qu Jianlei led the others to a storefront where Claire and Bentley were supervising renovations.
• Paranoid guessed that Claire and Bentley were using the storefront as a cover and would abandon the renovations partway through.