Recaps

Qu Jianlei’s group settled on the Nan Family’s abandoned mineral planet, where he built six Super Gathering Spirit Arrays and the team began cultivating. As Duo Gan learned the team’s techniques and Qu Jianlei improved his talisman-making, Sunset Glow recognized the remains of a creature killed by spatial power and warned that the newly connected world could bring a racial war.

• Qu Jianlei’s group landed on the mineral planet, and Nan Lio shut down its satellite surveillance while the team chose a large area and made an abandoned mine habitable.
• Qu Jianlei set up six Super Gathering Spirit Arrays, where Sunset Glow, Duo Gan, Yuanyuan, and You You began cultivating in different ways.
• Duo Gan asked Old Lady Jia about the arrays, then gradually increased her time inside them as she adapted to the spiritual energy.
• Qu Jianlei assigned Qinghu to guide Duo Gan, who quickly learned the essence of Instant Flash and discovered the team’s many other techniques and battle formations.
• Sunset Glow awakened after ten days of sleep and taught Qu Jianlei the basics of talisman crafting, helping him improve his talismans’ power and success rate.
• Sunset Glow examined Octopus Skin, identified its former owner as a powerful being likely killed by spatial power, and speculated that star beasts might signal a renewed connection with the Cultivation World.

Qu Jianlei and his team spent two months cultivating on the abandoned Mineral Star before the Nan Family delivered the promised magical artifact. After the delivery sparked a confrontation with military staff officer Vienna and Above Supreme Krupp, the team inspected the Ruler, which Sunset Glow claimed was fated for it.

• Qu Jianlei's team practiced spells and magical artifacts while Duo Gan improved her ability to stay in the Gathering Spirit Array.
• Nan Lio told Xiang Xue that the Nan Family's people had arrived with the magical artifact, and two Armed Merchant Ships landed on the Mineral Star.
• Vienna introduced himself and challenged Fourth Boss's refusal to discuss the Empire's future, while Krupp used Coercive Pressure against him.
• Nutrient Solution, Old Lady Jia, Duo Gan, Paranoid, and Sunset Glow revealed their auras, and Krupp withdrew after discovering the team's strength.
• Qu Jianlei and Paranoid inspected the Ruler, but Sunset Glow snatched it and claimed it was fated with it, prompting Qu Jianlei to reprimand it.

Sunset Glow claimed the disciplinary ruler as her magical artifact, revealing that her talent could awaken spirits and strengthen the ruler. After she settled into it, the team confronted Krupp over his attempt to pressure them, and he admitted the Nan Family had hired him.

• Sunset Glow explained that her Spirit Awakening talent let her grant the ruler new abilities, and she argued that it should belong to her.
• Qu Jianlei agreed to let Sunset Glow keep the ruler, and she revealed that she could refine it instantly and intended to avoid doing leadership work.
• The ruler’s pressure frightened Krupp, while Fourth Boss told him he could leave but would face consequences for offending Digital Phantom.
• Krupp admitted that the Nan Family had hired him to pressure the team after regretting its earlier decision to give up the magical artifact.
• Fourth Boss challenged Krupp over his confidence in confronting the team and asked how much the Nan Family had paid him.

Krupp tried to deny having Magical Artifacts, but Digital Phantom tested several weapons against him and forced him to surrender. Old Lady Jia then demanded compensation, ordering him to retrieve the Nan Family’s Treasure Stone and meet them in Kunhai in twenty days.

• Krupp insisted he had no Magical Artifacts as the Nan Family’s ships departed and Bentley challenged him to withstand an attack.
• Bentley struck Krupp with lightning, and Mu Guang’s Golden Flood Dragon Scissors barely broke through his defenses.
• A mountain-sized Great Seal chased Krupp after he tried to flee, and he surrendered before it crashed into the ground.
• Old Lady Jia collected the seal and confronted Krupp, who offered money instead of a Magical Artifact.
• Jia Shuiqing gave Krupp information about the Nan Family’s Treasure Stone and ordered him to retrieve it and meet Digital Phantom in Kunhai in twenty days.

Krupp sought a Voidstone for Digital Phantom, while Qu Jianlei’s team discussed the difficulty of copying the Black Colt Tower. After buying the stone from the Nan Family, Krupp delivered it to Old Lady Jia, who confronted him about owning a magical artifact.

• Krupp asked Old Lady Jia whether Digital Phantom would sell its method for operating magical artifacts, but she refused to reveal anything and told him to find his own way back to Kunhai.
• Sunset Glow recognized the material in the damaged Black Colt Tower as Voidstone and said it knew a place where more might be found.
• Qu Jianlei said he intended to replicate the Black Colt Tower, and Sunset Glow warned that forging a magical artifact involving the Time Rule would be extraordinarily difficult.
• Krupp traveled to Snow Cloud Peak and pressured the Nan Family for the stone, but Nan Wangyun’s question about his magical artifact forced him to pay two billion for it.
• Krupp delivered the stone to Old Lady Jia aboard the 1314 Ship, and she asked whether he had a magical artifact.

Krupp agreed to keep his dealings with Old Lady Jia's group confidential, and Qu Jianlei's team returned to Celestial Hook Star to rest, develop pills, and prepare for more experiments. After half a year, they decided to travel to the Core Circle for rare materials, while Yuanyuan had to abandon her plan to remain behind and cultivate alone.

• Old Lady Jia confronted Krupp about reading a storage device with his portable terminal, accepted his promise of compensation, and ordered him to keep their dealings secret.
• Qu Jianlei and his team returned to Celestial Hook Star by teleportation, where Duo Gan guessed their method came from the Divine Script System and Old Lady Jia warned her not to draw attention to it.
• Over the next half year, Qu Jianlei improved his talismans and refined Nourishing Spirit Pills, while Mending Spirit Pills remained difficult and cultivation-boosting pills proved challenging to develop.
• Zi Jiuxian began researching affordable medicines to raise Awakened One cultivation, and Old Lady Jia and Duo Gan offered support despite the vast calculations, costs, and shortage of rare materials.
• Qu Jianlei's team decided to go to the Core Circle for materials and experiments, rejecting Yuanyuan's request to stay behind alone because the team's fame made her vulnerable.

Qu Jianlei and the 1314 Ship finished testing spells on the Nan family's Mineral Star and traveled to Pan Rock Star to pursue a magical artifact deal. There, they rejected the military's offer of a long-term pass, settled into a Shui Corporation resort, and learned that someone from the Divine Script Society was desperately trying to contact Qu Jianlei.

• Yuanyuan agreed to slow her cultivation after Nutrient Solution advised her to stabilize her foundation, and the team dismantled their equipment before leaving Sky Hook Star.
• Hua Xiezhi rented the same Mineral Star testing area from its guards, then learned that the authorities had secretly investigated it; Qu Jianlei chose not to press their anonymous informant for their identity.
• The team completed its spell tests, left five million Energy Blocks as payment, and headed toward Pan Rock Star as security tightened across the Core Circle.
• Hua Xiezhi warned patrolling warships not to provoke the 1314 Ship, then refused a military offer of a long-term Core Circle pass after reaching Pan Rock Star.
• Shui Corporation arranged the team's landing and moved them into its resort, while Qu Jianlei refused a visit from the Shui family's Sect Master and said he only recognized Shui Xisheng.
• Shui Xisheng told Qu Jianlei that someone from the Divine Script Society had been trying to contact him and was nearly frantic with anxiety.

Qu Jianlei’s team learned why Galileo needed their help: the military had ordered him to conduct a dangerous Frontline mission, and his delay had left him scrambling to assemble a team. Qu Jianlei pushed for better compensation, leaving negotiations unresolved.

• Qu Jianlei told Shui Xisheng to ignore Galileo’s repeated requests for now and arrange travel permits and medicine-making materials.
• Sural contacted Shui Xisheng, and Qu Jianlei’s team said Galileo would need to bring a magical artifact before they would meet him.
• Galileo arrived with Sural and presented the Plantain Fan, then explained that the military had assigned him a Frontline reconnaissance and prisoner-capture mission.
• Galileo said the military wanted him to form his own team, and Xiang Xue and Qu Jianlei recognized how dangerous the assignment would be.
• Qu Jianlei argued that Galileo’s delay and need for a team meant the original terms and price could no longer stand.

Galileo paid nine billion in hardship compensation to secure the 1314 group’s cooperation with the military, and they traveled to an abandoned planet to prepare for a mission. After testing Fourth Boss’s newly refined Plantain Fan, they joined the military’s main force, where Bentley struck an Above Supreme who tried to assert authority over them.

• Galileo offered five billion in hardship compensation, and Xiang Xue bargained the amount up to nine billion before he completed the payment.
• The military assigned the group an abandoned planet for fifteen days of preparation, and they demanded guarantees that it had no surveillance equipment.
• Fourth Boss refined the Plantain Fan in two days, then sent Old Lady Jia flying into space when she asked him to test it on her.
• The 1314 group left the planet with two military officers and traveled to the military’s main force, passing several checkpoints with help from their escorts.
• An Above Supreme demanded identification from everyone aboard the 1314 Ship, and Hua Xiezhi challenged the inspection.
• Bentley struck the Above Supreme with a Thunder Dragon, while Mu Guang warned him that the group would not tolerate his attempt to intimidate them.

Qu Jianlei’s team followed two military guides to the Information Barrier Breach, where they planned to seize Federation Patrol Ships. Qu Jianlei sent the Ruler into the turbulent currents to trigger an Energy Storm, drawing Patrol Ships toward its edge.

• The Supreme backed down after Hua Xiezhi’s team threatened to report anyone who provoked them as killed in action.
• Two Wind Attribute B-ranks guided the team to the Frontline and arranged four Micro Starships after Qu Jianlei stored the 1314 Ship away.
• After five cramped days, the team reached the Federation defensive line and discussed whether capturing Patrol Ships could meet the mission objective.
• Qu Jianlei sent the Ruler into the turbulence, where it created disturbances that a Patrol Ship reported as a possible Energy Storm.
• A wide Energy Storm formed, and several Patrol Ships rushed to patrol its edge despite the danger.

Qu Jianlei and Digital Phantom used the Energy Storm to capture enemy Patrol Ships, then continued deeper into Federation territory while Xiao Hu infiltrated the monitoring network. They left the storm behind and encountered a civilian starship near the Frontline.

• Four Above Supremes captured two Patrol Ships during the Energy Storm, and Xiao Moshan negotiated with the Rank B Warriors about continuing the mission.
• Qu Jianlei ordered the team to press deeper behind enemy lines, while the two Rank B Warriors split off to return with the captured ships and prisoners.
• Qu Jianlei and the Ruler argued over how much spiritual energy Sunset Glow had used to create the storm.
• As the storm weakened, Sunset Glow helped Xiao Hu obscure monitoring footage, and Xiao Hu spent three days infiltrating several primary control systems.
• The two Micro Ships left the storm’s aftereffects and raced deeper into Federation territory without releasing their Attack Ship.
• A civilian starship painted as belonging to a Matchmaking Company approached, and Nutrient Solution activated the Invisibility Cloak while she and the others joked about its purpose.

Qu Jianlei’s team infiltrated enemy space, switched ships, and followed a route chosen with Xiao Hu to avoid detection. After capturing a Federation cargo ship for its maps and travel documents, they sent it back toward the front and passed an inspection using its credentials.

• Sunset Glow guided the exhausted team to an Energy Mass that it distorted so they could hide and switch from two Micro Ships to a Small Attack Ship.
• Qu Jianlei and Xiao Hu selected an infiltration route, and the team traveled more than fifty million kilometers without incident apart from an out-of-control supply ship.
• Qu Jianlei ordered the team to seize the supply ship, and Bentley and Xiao Moshan dealt with its crew while the others took its supplies, star map, registration certificate, and travel permit.
• Qu Jianlei ordered the captured ship to turn back toward the front, then spent five hours repairing it despite the incompatibility between Imperial and Federation parts.
• The team encountered an inspection three hours into the return trip, but the inspectors checked the ship’s permit and identification tags and let them pass.

Qu Jianlei’s group reached Kode Star after seizing two ships and passing inspections in the Federation. With no usable money or local transport, Qu Jianlei and Nutrient Solution tried to pay for jewelry with gold, but the shop asked for documentation.

• Qu Jianlei’s group destroyed and captured an Armed Merchant Ship and its Small Ship, then interrogated the survivors and learned about the Federation’s regional Self-Defense Forces.
• The group continued to Kode Star, passed inspections by an Armed Merchant Ship and city guards, and landed after Qu Jianlei used Mental Influence.
• Xiao Hu erased the group’s traces from the supply ship, and Xingbang Freight discovered the ship’s disappearance five days later.
• Qu Jianlei’s group left the starport, split into five groups, and searched for a way to obtain usable Federation currency.
• Qu Jianlei and Nutrient Solution selected jewelry worth more than five hundred thousand Federal Currency, then pretended Qu Jianlei had lost his Wristwatch and asked whether the store accepted gold.
• The sales clerk said the store could accept gold but asked for documentation, and Nutrient Solution challenged the requirement.

Qu Jianlei’s team tried to fund their stay on Kode Star without drawing attention, but their gold sales attracted a tail. The team decided to pull one job before leaving the planet, and split into four nearby groups to prepare.

• Qu Jianlei and Nutrient Solution exchanged three gold bricks for Federal Currency, then the team bought supplies, rented vehicles, and camped in the woods.
• After learning about Kode Star’s Black Market, Qu Jianlei assigned Hua Xiezhi to sell jewelry while the team discussed staying discreet as they pursued money and a Supreme.
• Xiao Hu connected to the Federation’s network, and Qu Jianlei’s group spent several days gathering local information and buying materials.
• Xiao Moshan and Xiao Qin were followed after selling five kilograms of gold, though Xiao Moshan shook off the tail at a shopping mall.
• Qu Jianlei decided the team would pull one job before leaving Kode Star, and they split into four parties that stayed within a kilometer of one another.

After Xiao Moshan's group fled an attempted gold deal, Qu Jianlei's team retaliated by killing and robbing those responsible, then moved to Yongxing Star to establish a secret camp. As Claire neared advancement, Qu Jianlei prepared an operation and, learning that Federation military and Self-Defense Force leaders would gather with numerous Supremes, decided to strike the assembly.

• Xiao Moshan, Xiao Qin, Yuanyuan, and Duo Gan fled when four A-ranks arrived to seize their gold, and the attackers took their vehicle and camp supplies.
• Duo Gan tracked the A-ranks, and Xiao Hu traced their Supreme; Qu Jianlei's group killed six A-ranks and a Supreme and looted their homes and businesses.
• Qu Jianlei's team traveled to Yongxing Star with Sunset Glow's help, built a secret camp beneath the sea, and recovered their spiritual energy.
• Xiao Hu found a suitable residence for the team, and more than ten days later Claire told Qu Jianlei she was ready to advance.
• Qu Jianlei sent the lower-ranked members back to the starship and prepared the operation after learning that military and Self-Defense Force leaders would gather with at least ten Supremes.
• Qu Jianlei and the others agreed to attack the welcoming assembly and embarrass the Federation.

Qu Jianlei was detained after gathering information about a military VIP’s arrival, then escaped when a prison riot erupted. As he fled, he learned the VIP’s convoy was traveling nearby and heard that the unrest was a plan to lure enemies out.

• Qu Jianlei and Nutrient Solution gathered rumors at a bar, and Self-Defense Force personnel arrested Qu Jianlei while Nutrient Solution escaped.
• Qu Jianlei was held in a city guard prison, where an A-rank prisoner secretly removed his restriction.
• Old Lady Jia created a light drizzle, then the prison lost power and chaos broke out amid gunfire and a false warning about nerve gas.
• Qu Jianlei fled the prison using Instant Flashes after Nutrient Solution told him the military headquarters’ starship had landed.
• A military convoy traveled toward the city as officials described the unrest as a plan to lure the snake from its hole, and an explosion erupted ahead.

Qu Jianlei’s team attacked the convoy after another force ambushed it, and the convoy’s defenders revealed an unexpected Above Supreme. The chapter ended as Qu Jianlei’s mental attack met the enemy’s powerful resistance and the enemy cast Imperial Decree: Ice Seal.

• Qu Jianlei ordered his team to follow their original plan and prepare the Battle Formation rather than wait for the attackers and convoy to weaken each other.
• The convoy’s defenders formed arrays and attacked the artillery position, but a Battle Formation unleashed an Above Supreme-level Meteor Fire Rain that pierced their shields.
• An aura from inside the convoy revealed an Above Supreme, surprising Qu Jianlei’s team and prompting Qu Jianlei to order a hard attack instead of attempting a live capture.
• Qu Jianlei launched a Mental Attack at the Above Supreme, but the enemy’s Mental Strength overwhelmed his expectations and the enemy cast Imperial Decree: Ice Seal.

Qu Jianlei’s team used Ice Seal, Fire Element enhancement, and Jia Shuiqing’s Dispel to counter an enemy Above Supreme, then Nutrient Solution rang the Soul Suppressing Bell and disrupted both enemy forces and the nearby attackers. As a second bell toll sounded, the battle remained an indiscriminate assault on everyone within range.

• Nutrient Solution strengthened the Fire Element, while an enemy Above Supreme ordered his Supremes to counterattack.
• Qu Jianlei signaled Jia Shuiqing, who used Dispel to break the enemy’s control over the Water Element and revealed another Above Supreme on their side.
• Nutrient Solution summoned the Soul Suppressing Bell, and its first toll disrupted the enemy’s mental strength, spells, and Three Powers Array.
• The bell’s attack also affected the nearby sneak-attack group, which realized Meteor Fire Rain had enveloped them too.
• The Soul Suppressing Bell rang a second time as everyone watched in shock.

Duo Gan and her teammates overwhelmed a Federation convoy, killed its Above Supreme, and escaped with captives and his corpse. Qu Jianlei planned to study the corpse because the Above Supreme’s unusually fast Ice Seal suggested it held a secret.

• Duo Gan maintained Meteor Fire Rain while Paranoid, Bentley, and Qu Jianlei attacked the disabled Above Supreme and killed him.
• Mu Guang looted the Above Supreme’s body as Old Lady Jia and Nutrient Solution helped the team slaughter the convoy; Big Head Butterfly erased the vehicle footage.
• Qu Jianlei called for prisoners, and the team vanished in the White Mist; the arriving warships found seven of eleven Supremes dead and four missing, including the Above Supreme’s corpse.
• Mu Guang questioned Qu Jianlei about bringing back the corpse, and Qu Jianlei said he wanted to study its secrets, especially its unusually fast Ice Seal.

Qu Jianlei and his team interrogated prisoners after capturing an Above Supreme who had mentioned an Imperial Decree, but their answers did not explain the strange power he had wielded. Examining the corpse, Qu Jianlei and the Ruler discovered signs of outside consciousness and suspected the man had been granted an investiture through the Incense Divinity Path.

• Qu Jianlei ordered the prisoners released and questioned them about the Above Supreme and the attack.
• A confidential staff officer said the deceased Above Supreme had once served in the military before being demoted to the Self-Defense Force, while an attacker revealed that Separatists had targeted him to record his actions.
• The Big Head Butterfly admitted it had erased the nearby instruments' data, so Qu Jianlei decided to analyze the corpse.
• Qu Jianlei and the Ruler found that the Above Supreme's fontanelle was abnormally set inward despite his strength.
• Qu Jianlei and the Ruler concluded that the man may have received outside consciousness through an investiture and identified the possibility as the Incense Divinity Path.

Qu Jianlei’s team learned that the Imperial Decree belonged to the Incense Divinity Path and considered the powerful force behind it while deciding where to recover and prepare. They traveled to the Valencia Star Region, found little evidence of strong religious influence there, and settled on an abandoned Mineral Star to mine its tailings.

• Qu Jianlei explained the Incense Divinity Path to the team, and the group discussed who might stand behind an Above Supreme.
• Bentley suggested capturing the Separatist Supreme, while Qinghu revealed that she had left a strand of spiritual sense on him; Qu Jianlei told her to choose whether to sever it.
• The team debated whether Claire should advance in the Federation or return to the Empire, and Qu Jianlei supported Old Lady Jia’s argument to stay in the Federation and recuperate.
• After two days of travel, Qu Jianlei’s team arrived in the Valencia Star Region and learned from captives that neither Valencia nor Jinyang had prominent religious sects.
• The team changed starships, leased more than a thousand square kilometers of tailings on an abandoned Mineral Star, and Qu Jianlei sent robots to begin mining.

After a year on the Mineral Star, Qu Jianlei's team trained, returned to the Federation, and began looking for a chance to break through the blockade. Their opportunity emerged when a retired Self-Defense Force veteran's wife was assaulted, leaving the team poised to act.

• Claire advanced to A-rank, and Tian Yin followed, breaking through from B-rank to A-rank.
• Qu Jianlei's team left the Mineral Star, trained their new techniques on an uninhabited planet, and decided to make a bold move in the Federation rather than sneak back into the Empire.
• Sunset Glow teleported the team to Teres, where they spent several days sightseeing and then watched the military's movements for an opportunity to seize a warship.
• When Teres's military remained inactive, Qu Jianlei agreed to wait five more days before making a move, but a chance arose on the third day.
• A bar owner's lover, a high-ranking military officer, had the retired veteran's wife assaulted; the veteran had previously served in combat and struggled with postwar psychological syndrome.

Qu Jianlei’s team fueled the conflict between the Federation military and the Self-Defense Force with attacks that escalated into open chaos on Teres. After Tony’s grandson was shot and a chance encounter stirred his separatist feelings, Tony resolved to act, while Nutrient Solution dismissed him as spineless.

• Qu Jianlei chose to target the military first, and his team carried out a string of attacks on personnel connected to the old veteran’s death.
• The military’s response and the killing of the old veteran’s closest comrade intensified the feud, which spread to unrelated soldiers and prompted a military Supreme to kill two Rank A fighters.
• Tony took his injured grandson to the hospital, believing the shooting was connected to his past support for the old veteran.
• Tony overheard a man challenge a woman’s fear of danger, reconsidered what he had trained for, and decided he had to act.
• Nutrient Solution complained to Qu Jianlei that Tony seemed hopeless and lacked backbone.

Qu Jianlei secretly met Tony to learn how he could help divert military warships and asked about the Above Supreme on Yongxing Star. Tony revealed that the Supreme’s cultivation path might not be a Human Race inheritance concealed by an “Imperial Decree.”

• The Big Head Butterfly reported that Tony had arranged to sell information about a military Above Supreme, and Qu Jianlei decided to meet him despite having no money to buy it.
• Qu Jianlei appeared at Tony’s home and asked what Above Supreme he wanted to target, but Tony refused to name one and insisted he only did business.
• Qu Jianlei asked how to transfer military warships to the Information Barrier Breach, and Tony said Frontline observation clearance could be issued through the Star Region Military District, though the number of ships was limited.
• Qu Jianlei brought up the Above Supreme on Yongxing Star, and Tony said the person had once served in the military and followed a cultivation path whose knowledge came from there.
• Tony told Qu Jianlei that the cultivation path might not be a Human Race inheritance and that an “Imperial Decree” was reportedly used to conceal such an inheritance.

Qu Jianlei questioned Tony about the nonhuman inheritance and learned that it granted Above Supremes powerful elemental control at the cost of severe backlash and uncertain lifespans. After dispatching Black Shadow to kill Hermann, Qu Jianlei connected the dead Above Supreme’s power to the idea of authority and began explaining Incense Divinity offices to Sunset Glow.

• Tony told Qu Jianlei that the nonhuman inheritance had a mortality rate above ninety percent, caused backlash, and gave its practitioners varying lifespans.
• Tony dropped his request to kill a Supreme and asked Qu Jianlei to kill Hermann instead, so Black Shadow vanished to carry out the task.
• Sunset Glow questioned Tony’s information and wondered how the Above Supreme had obtained a powerful method without hidden consequences.
• Qu Jianlei connected the Above Supreme’s Ice Seal power to authority and suspected the man had obtained authority over Ice Seal.
• Sunset Glow joined Qu Jianlei and pressed him to explain authority, so Qu Jianlei described Incense Divinity systems and divine offices such as the God of Wealth and the Door God.