Chapter Summaries

Gongshu Feng and Gongshu Jin discovered that the Military-Farming Manor was secretly murdering refugees and selling survivors, with the Bureau of Military Affairs implicated. As the brothers were attacked for witnessing the crimes, the Rebel Army suddenly stormed the manor, and Gongshu Feng lost consciousness.

• Gongshu Feng and Gongshu Jin saw the manor's men silently slaughtering refugees, including elderly people and children.
• Gongshu Feng confronted the sorcerer and accused him of violating Qi State law, but the sorcerer said royal law had long ceased to exist.
• The steward threatened the brothers after they refused to reveal their identities and admitted that Lord Wu Bairen profited most from selling the refugees.
• A servant stabbed Gongshu Feng, and armed men closed in on the brothers.
• The Rebel Army attacked the manor, led by a young woman carrying a dark-red flag, and Gongshu Feng collapsed unconscious.

Xia Fan watched the Mechanical Bureau demonstrate a third-generation Mechanical Beast whose bionic mechanisms let it move with remarkable agility. After Ning Wanjun demanded that Suzaku receive the modification, Xia Fan suggested that the new generation’s potential for Qi Awakening might explain why the machine performed beyond Thought Control’s predictions.

• Mo Yun showed Xia Fan the slimmer third-generation Mechanical Beast, which used a steel frame and removed unnecessary structural weight.
• The test machine ran, spun, fell, and sprang back up with humanlike agility, astonishing Xia Fan.
• Thought Control explained that neural control modules used the Tree Boat’s spiral tendrils as bionic mechanisms, allowing the pilot’s brainwaves to direct their movement.
• Thought Control noted that the live-machine test had reached ninety percent compatibility, exceeding her predicted seventy-four percent, and Xia Fan suggested that people’s accumulated changes could account for the difference.
• Ning Wanjun emerged from the cockpit and demanded that Suzaku receive the modification immediately, and Xia Fan agreed before suggesting that the new generation might differ from people of the past because of its potential for Qi Awakening.

Noah set sail for Yama Island with Jinxia’s First Division and elite sorcerers, while the people of Jinxia remained unaware of the coming war. At Phoenix Cry Bookstore, Shopkeeper Zhang and Zhang Yuan argued over the failing business until a mysterious book appeared in Zhang Yuan’s hands.

• Noah departed Jinxia’s eastern shore for Yama Island with the First Division and more than half of the Department of Military Affairs’ elite sorcerers, while Qian, Yan Qing, and Du Yelong stayed behind to watch Seven Stars.
• Jinxia’s residents went about their peaceful routines, and migrants enjoyed steady work and wages under the Affairs Bureau’s rules.
• Zhang Yuan urged Shopkeeper Zhang to close Phoenix Cry Bookstore, explaining that Golden Weekly and Academy textbooks had displaced the old books and that the shop had lost its printing business.
• Shopkeeper Zhang recalled refusing the Affairs Bureau’s supplier deal because it required a deposit and a share of the family bookstore.
• After someone slapped the bookstore’s signboard, Zhang Yuan went outside and returned alone with a book in his hand.

Shopkeeper Zhang discovered an anonymous handwritten vernacular tale and became engrossed in its unusual story of a woman who endured hardship and clashed with a powerful Prefect. He realized the book could become a huge hit if Phoenix Cry Bookstore printed it, potentially rivaling Golden Weekly.

• Zhang Yuan told Shopkeeper Zhang that someone had left a stack of handwritten pages by the bookstore door.
• Shopkeeper Zhang began reading the obscure vernacular tale, while Zhang Yuan dismissed the idea that its young female deliverer had written it.
• After nearly an hour, Shopkeeper Zhang described the tale’s compelling heroine, emotional detail, and provocative Prefect character.
• Zhang Yuan suggested the manuscript had been left for the bookstore to print.
• Shopkeeper Zhang concluded the tale could become wildly popular and might turn Phoenix Cry Bookstore’s fortunes around.

Shopkeeper Zhang decided to print the anonymous story Flowers Bloom despite its resemblance to rumors about Xia Fan, preparing to defend the bookstore by studying the Jinxia Code. The book became a sensation in Jinxia’s tea houses and drew readers to Phoenix Cry Bookstore.

• Shopkeeper Zhang printed the manuscript after Zhang Yuan warned that its Prefect resembled Xia Fan and could provoke the authorities.
• Shopkeeper Zhang sent Zhang Yuan to buy the Jinxia Code so he could prepare for possible legal trouble, and he named the book Flowers Bloom.
• Three days later, the Tea House Storytellers received Flowers Bloom from Phoenix Cry Bookstore.
• Within two days, tea house patrons across Jinxia demanded the story, and people began seeking out Phoenix Cry Bookstore.

Li Xing investigated the popular novel "Flowers Bloom" after suspecting it was a seditious attack on Xia Fan, then raided Phoenix Cry Bookstore to question Shopkeeper Zhang. The shopkeeper denied that the book was rebellious and described it as a love story.

• Huang Si told Li Xing that "Flowers Bloom" had become a sensation and depicted court officials resembling figures from the Affairs Bureau.
• Li Xing suspected enemy spies were using the book to smear Xia Fan and ordered Huang Si to investigate the bookstore after closing rather than seal it immediately.
• Shopkeeper Zhang celebrated the book's sales and explained how limited supplies and inflated resale prices had revived the bookstore's business.
• Li Xing and several officers entered Phoenix Cry Bookstore at night and identified themselves after Shopkeeper Zhang mistook them for robbers.
• Li Xing questioned Shopkeeper Zhang about who wrote and supplied the book, but the shopkeeper insisted it was only a love story.

Li Xing investigated who had delivered the anonymous manuscript Flowers Bloom to Phoenix Cry Bookstore and turned to the Heavenly Eye system for help. He received detailed aerial images of Peach Blossom Street, leaving him stunned by the system’s capabilities.

• Li Xing questioned Shopkeeper Zhang, who cited Jinxia law and denied knowing who wrote the manuscript.
• Zhang Yuan revealed that he had seen a girl under eighteen deliver the manuscript and head east along Peach Blossom Street.
• Li Xing ordered Huang Si to seek help from the master artificer at Fengyang Mountain Villa and request images of the street from several days earlier.
• Huang Si returned with detailed aerial pictures from the Heavenly Eye, and Li Xing was amazed by their precision.

Li Xing used the Heavenly Eye images to track the suspected book dropper to a residence in the DC District and raided it, only to discover the suspect was Xintao, a rising star in the Propaganda Department. He ordered the Police Department to withdraw and conceal the incident.

• Li Xing studied the Heavenly Eye images, identified the marked Qi Sense User as the book dropper, and traced her to a house in the DC District.
• Li Xing ordered Teams One, Two, and Three to surround the residential area and arrest the suspect.
• Li Xing led a squad into the target house and found Yu Shuangxue instead of the suspected infiltrator.
• Yu Shuangxue called Xintao out, and Li Xing recognized her as the girl in the images.
• Li Xing denied that Xintao could be a spy, apologized, and left with his men after hearing Yu Shuangxue scold and smack her.
• Li Xing told Huang Si to treat the raid as if it had never happened and ordered the Police Department to withdraw.

After the sequel to Flowers Bloom became popular, Gongshu Feng woke in Cricket Cave after several days unconscious and learned that his younger brother Gongshu Jin was safe. The woman caring for him explained that she had joined the rebels because the Bureau of Military Affairs had brutally killed her child, and asked how seeking justice for that death could be called rebellion.

• Copies of Flowers Bloom spread beyond Jinxia City as rumors about an unabridged version fueled its popularity.
• Gongshu Feng woke after three or four days unconscious and learned that Gongshu Jin was unharmed and out scouting.
• The woman tending Gongshu Feng told him he was in Cricket Cave, but she could not tell him where it was or how far it lay from Shenzhou.
• Gongshu Feng asked why the woman had rebelled, and she described how the Bureau of Military Affairs had killed her child.
• The woman told Gongshu Feng she wanted those responsible to die and asked whether demanding blood for blood was natural justice rather than rebellion.

Gongshu Feng recovered in the rebel army’s cave and learned that his Qi Sense User ability had been exposed. Their leader, Gongsun Fang, explained that Bureau of Military Affairs patrols had blocked the route east but promised to arrange a safe crossing into Liushen for nearly five hundred people.

• Gongshu Jin told Gongshu Feng that he had survived the spear attack with only a scratch and that the rebels had rescued them.
• Gongshu Feng realized the rebels knew he was a Qi Sense User and resolved to stay behind so Gongshu Jin could leave safely.
• Gongsun Fang visited the brothers and addressed them by their prepared false names, Wei Feng and Wei Jin.
• Gongsun Fang said the Bureau of Military Affairs and dozens of Zhuang settlements had formed an interception net near the Liushen border.
• Gongsun Fang promised to arrange a transfer for nearly five hundred people and send the brothers safely across the border once Gongshu Feng recovered.

Gongshu Feng learned that Gongsun Fang’s group had rescued him as part of their effort to guide refugees safely out of Liuzhou, while his brother Gongshu Jin chose to stay with them. As he recovered in their hidden camp, Gongshu Feng discovered how Jinxia City’s books were shaping the rebels’ studies and practices.

• Gongsun Fang explained that her group had been monitoring the refugees and attacked the armed household guards to protect them.
• Gongshu Feng learned that the rebels had repeatedly sought help from Jinxia City but had received no direct response, and Gongshu Jin suggested they stayed because of unresolved blood debts.
• Gongsun Fang asked Gongshu Feng to test magical artifacts once he could walk, and he agreed to try.
• As Gongshu Feng recovered, Gongshu Jin continued helping the rebels despite his brother’s attempts to persuade him to leave.
• Gongshu Feng read Jinxia City publications, including Golden Weekly and a medical booklet, and learned that the rebels used the books to guide their work and patient care.

After reading Jinxia’s books, Gongshu Feng began to understand why Gongsun Fang and the rebels had chosen to fight the authorities. Once he recovered, he was assigned to the Mechanism Workshop, where he met Old Hu and was asked to inspect a repaired artifact.

• Big Sister Ma told Gongshu Feng that Jinxia’s books had changed how people understood the world and offered to borrow him one.
• Gongshu Feng read Ideology and Politics through the night and concluded that its account of power and political change explained why the rebels believed their struggle could succeed.
• Over the next several days, Gongshu Feng read more books about Jinxia City and, by the fifth day, recovered enough to walk on his own.
• A soldier escorted Gongshu Feng to the Mechanism Workshop, where he saw damaged weapons and a Mechanical Beast among the scattered devices.
• Old Hu introduced himself as Lord Gongsun’s chief craftsman, asked whether Gongshu Feng was a Qi Sense User, and tossed him a Heavenly Spring Eye to check.

Gongshu Feng learned from Old Hu how the rebel army repaired salvaged magical artifacts and weapons, while growing curious about the Mechanical Beast and Old Hu’s craft. After a week in the camp, Gongshu Jin told him that the rebels were relocating and that he should go to Jinxia City.

• Old Hu showed Gongshu Feng the Heavenly Spring Eye and explained how he repaired magical artifacts, then invited him to help test them.
• Gongshu Feng inspected the damaged Mechanical Beast, and Old Hu said it was nearly impossible to repair without knowing how its magical artifacts worked.
• Gongshu Feng spent the next week helping Old Hu inspect repaired artifacts and watching him restore Air Rifles salvaged from the Ten-State War.
• Gongshu Feng noticed that people were leaving the recuperation area, and Sister Ma prepared to depart with a shovel.
• Gongshu Jin appeared during the day and told Gongshu Feng that the rebel army was relocating and he should go to Jinxia City.

Gongshu Jin chose to stay and help the rebels, while Gongshu Feng prepared to leave for Jinxia. Gongshu Jin joined Gongsun Fang as she prepared a major operation around Yellow Court Mountain to protect refugees and strike the aristocratic clans.

• Gongshu Feng learned that he would leave alone because Gongshu Jin intended to stay and help the rebels.
• Gongshu Jin explained that he had witnessed the local authorities’ role in atrocities against refugees and had used his Mechanism Art to aid the rebels and save two children.
• Gongshu Feng accepted that he could not persuade Gongshu Jin and left him with a question about what would happen next.
• Gongsun Fang welcomed Gongshu Jin as an official member and explained that the rebels would draw the aristocratic clans toward Yellow Court Mountain.
• Gongsun Fang planned to use the mountain terrain to defeat the pursuing forces and reduce the danger to refugees fleeing toward the border.

Gongshu Feng learned that the rebels planned to draw enemy forces toward Yellow Court Mountain while evacuating refugees across the border. At the mountain, Gongshu Jin and Gongsun Fang watched the approaching army, including Wu Myriad-Edge's Defense Army.

• Gongshu Feng reflected on Gongshu Jin's decision to choose his own future as he followed a guard out of Cricket Cave.
• Gongshu Feng learned that thousands of refugees and displaced locals had gathered, and that the rebels planned to use the enemy's approach to cover another relocation.
• The guard sent Gongshu Feng toward Shenzhou and returned to the mountain path to join the operation.
• Gongsun Fang and Gongshu Jin watched more than four thousand five hundred enemy troops gather near Yellow Court Mountain.
• Gongsun Fang identified Wu Myriad-Edge's Defense Army as the rebels' real opponent.

Gongsun Fang’s rebels unleashed a prepared mudslide on the encircling army at Yellow Court Mountain, plunging the enemy into chaos. As the surviving troops reeled from the disaster, the rebels charged from their tunnels to attack.

• Gongsun Fang waited until the enemy columns had entered the ambush zone, then sounded the horn to begin the attack.
• Gongshu Jin activated the mechanism that broke the dam, releasing the mountain lake’s water onto the slope.
• The rebels’ buried gunpowder triggered explosions that loosened the earth, and the water turned it into a devastating mudslide that swept through the enemy columns.
• The powerful clans and their retainers fled as the encirclement force collapsed into chaos, while some soldiers near the caves escaped the first impact.
• Gongsun Fang sounded another horn, and the rebel army charged from its tunnels to attack the surviving enemy troops.

Gongshu Jin and Gongsun Fang fought with the Rebel Army against government forces at Cricket Cave, but an enemy ambush behind them threatened to cut off their retreat. As Gongshu Jin prepared to destroy the passages, a Mechanical Beast emerged from the cave and turned the battle’s attention toward its entrance.

• Gongsun Fang led the Rebel Army’s assault, while Gongshu Jin used Mechanism Art bombs to disrupt government crossbowmen.
• Gongsun Fang fought a powerful officer believed to be Wu Bairen as Rebel Army reinforcements pressed the government troops.
• Gongshu Jin heard crossbow strings behind him, warned the fighters, and discovered about fifty enemy soldiers had seized the high ground outside Cricket Cave.
• A gray-clad man called the officer “little brother Wu,” revealing that Wu Bairen was one of two brothers, while Gongsun Fang ordered the contingency plan to be carried out.
• Gongshu Jin rushed toward the detonation mechanism as enemy crossbowmen took aim, but a bed crossbow bolt struck the government ranks from the cave.
• A bipedal Mechanical Beast emerged from Cricket Cave, drawing the government troops’ attention toward the entrance.

Gongsun Fang’s rebels turned the battle against Wu Bairen’s forces when Gongshu Feng arrived in a damaged Xuanwu Mechanical Beast. With the enemy defeated and captured, Gongshu Feng revealed that the machine had only been partly restored and had prevailed largely because it terrified the troops.

• Gongsun Fang recognized that Xuanwu was attacking the official troops, rallied the rebels, and charged Wu Bairen.
• Gongsun Fang let Wu Bairen knock away her weapon, then stabbed him through his Gen Technique armor with an iron spike as he grappled her.
• Gongshu Jin fired on the gray-clad soldiers, but their leader used Dui Technique to camouflage them and flee toward the cave.
• Gongshu Feng used Xuanwu’s fishing nets to block the cave entrance and capture the hidden soldiers, while the remaining troops surrendered.
• Gongshu Jin discovered that Gongshu Feng was piloting Xuanwu, and Gongshu Feng explained that only two of its four driving artifacts still worked.

After the rebels won a costly victory, Gongshu Feng warned them of the Bureau of Military Affairs’ coming response and chose to travel to Jinxia City. He parted from Gongshu Jin and Master Hu with a clearer purpose: to learn what made Jinxia a source of strength and how Mechanism Art could benefit everyone.

• Gongshu Feng warned Gongsun Fang that the Bureau of Military Affairs would send stronger forces into Xu State, and she said the rebels would move to a concealed refuge rather than attack towns.
• Gongshu Feng told Gongshu Jin he had repaid his debt to the rebels and would go to Jinxia City to investigate its influence and the purpose of Mechanism Art.
• Gongshu Feng explained that he had repaired the Xuanwu Mechanical Beast using principles from the Gewu chapters and told Gongshu Jin he had marked useful sections in the books.
• Gongshu Feng embraced Gongshu Jin and Master Hu, then left the rebels and set out for Cricket Cave with a guard escorting him toward Jinxia.
• Gongshu Feng recognized that he had changed during the past week and continued onward with a new goal.

Tsi Qing faced torture in prison, but the monk intervened and revealed he had planned an escape. The monk blasted a hole through the cell wall, leaving them a way out as the prison erupted into alarm.

• Three guards brought torture instruments into Tsi Qing's cell and prepared to torture him.
• The monk arrived, persuaded the guards to leave, and told Tsi Qing he would take him away that day.
• The monk explained that Seven Stars' main force had left for the eastern outskirts and that he had arranged for someone to meet them beyond the prison wall.
• The monk sawed through the torture bed, helped Tsi Qing stand, and prepared a powder charge in holes in the wall.
• The monk ignited the charge, blasted open the wall, and made a gap for them to escape through.