Arc 1Chen Nan’s Escape and Reckoning

Chen Nan escaped the Orphanage, investigated the Wang family’s trafficking and corruption, and sent evidence to the Prefecture Office while preparing to become a Transcendent. After his mysterious AI System began draining his energy, he hid in an unfinished apartment and used glucose to help it activate.

  • Chen Nan survived punishment in the Orphanage by secretly healing with the ancient tree and using Rats to gather food, explore, and dig an escape tunnel.
  • After the Preparatory Academy assessors dismissed him and favored Tie Dan, Chen Nan escaped to Wu City and began investigating Director Wang and the Orphanage.
  • Chen Nan built a network of animal helpers, uncovered allegations of trafficking, and rented a room where he could study the city and plan his next moves.
  • Chen Nan discovered that Wang Yifu had ordered Wang Yide to hunt him down, then stole files from Secretary Huang’s safe and recruited Butterfly Loves Flowers to gather evidence at Immortal Realm.
  • Chen Nan planted surveillance devices at Renxin Maternity Hospital and recorded the Wang siblings discussing their crimes and plans to stop him.
  • Chen Nan sent evidence of the Wang siblings’ crimes and the Prefecture Office’s corruption, demanding arrests within three days while refusing the office’s offer of protection.
  • After the Wang siblings and the Prefecture Office began searching for him, Chen Nan hid in an unfinished apartment and realized his AI System was draining his energy.
  • Chen Nan bought glucose injections, returned to his hiding place, and drank an ampoule as the AI System began loading into his neural electromagnetic field.
Chapters 1–25 Vol. 1 Read

Ch. 1This Transmigration Was a Bit Miserable

After an electromagnetic bike explosion killed Little Wang, he awoke in the body of a starving child named Chen Nan in an unfamiliar world. At an orphanage in Wu City, he was blamed for damaging an ancient tree and locked in a filthy storeroom without food.

  • Little Wang bought experimental AI glasses, then his electromagnetic bike exploded as he left the store, killing him in the blast.
  • Little Wang woke in a child's body, discovered his new name was Chen Nan, and realized he had transmigrated after being struck by lightning.
  • Little Black Ox told Chen Nan that they lived in an orphanage in Wu City and showed him the lightning-split ancient tree.
  • The orphanage director blamed Chen Nan for damaging the valuable tree and ordered Tie Dan and Ye Gou to take him away without dinner.
  • Tie Dan and Ye Gou locked Chen Nan in a damp, pitch-black storeroom, where he faced his miserable new circumstances.

Ch. 2Skeletons and Rats

Chen Nan was locked in a dark room with skeletons and, injured and starving, feared he would die before his punishment ended. After Little Black Ox brought him food, Chen Nan discovered he could connect with Rats, who returned with more food.

  • Chen Nan found skeletons in the room, hurt his shoulder on spikes hidden in the door, and sank into despair as hunger and cold weakened him.
  • Little Black Ox secretly passed Chen Nan half a flatbread and promised to bring him food, while Chen Nan asked him to find water.
  • Alone in the room, Chen Nan sensed that he could communicate with the Rats and calm himself enough to connect with them.
  • Chen Nan called several Rats to his side, and they later returned with two flatbreads and four pieces of smoked meat.

Ch. 3Rich Rely on Technology, Poor Rely on Mutation?

Chen Nan survived seven days in the storeroom by rationing food and water and practicing his ability to communicate with rats, while wondering whether his power came from transmigration or mutation. After the orphanage staff released him, Director Wang ordered supplies for what appeared to be another punishment, leaving Chen Nan bracing for what came next.

  • Chen Nan controlled his hunger, fed most of his stolen food to the rats, and had them bring him a waterskin.
  • Chen Nan spent the next several days eating and drinking sparingly while practicing until he could communicate with rats at will.
  • On the seventh day, Tie Dan and Ye Gou found Chen Nan alive and carried him out of the storeroom.
  • Tie Dan hid Chen Nan when the prefecture secretary inspected the orphanage and scolded Director Wang over the lightning-damaged Merit Tree.
  • After the inspectors left, Director Wang ordered thin porridge, a whip, rope, and salt water for Chen Nan.

Ch. 4Little Whip Dipped in Cold Water

After Chen Nan is beaten and left for dead, an ancient tree heals his internal injuries and gives him food, revealing his life-based power. He begins planning an escape from the Orphanage by using Rats to scout for a way out.

  • Chen Nan bites Ye Gou’s finger while pretending to regain consciousness, and Ye Gou kicks him before Director Wang orders him hung from a tree.
  • Director Wang and the Orphanage staff take turns whipping Chen Nan until he loses consciousness.
  • When Chen Nan wakes at night, the ancient tree supports him and uses glowing leaves to heal his internal injuries and give him liquid to drink.
  • Chen Nan has Rats bring him dried meat and tells the tree to leave his visible wounds untreated so he will still look badly injured.
  • Chen Nan rules out climbing the wall and decides to use the Rats to learn the Orphanage’s layout and search for an escape route, possibly through the sewers.

Ch. 5A Frail Life Like Duckweed

Chen Nan overheard men secretly delivering living creatures to the orphanage, then learned Director Wang had postponed an inspection and planned to hire an Immortal to repair the damaged tree. Back in his room, Chen Nan heard about his old goals and the Preparatory Academy, leaving him determined to learn more about the world beyond the orphanage.

  • Chen Nan overheard four men bring writhing sacks into the orphanage dormitories and discuss the goods, then heard them dismiss him as injured and leave.
  • Director Wang learned that the prefecture secretary had delayed the inspection and planned to invite an Immortal to restore the tree, so he had Chen Nan taken down and returned to his room.
  • Little Black Ox brought Chen Nan water and food, then told him that five more young orphans had arrived.
  • Little Black Ox reminded Chen Nan that he had vowed to enter the Preparatory Academy and find his real mother.
  • Chen Nan learned that the Preparatory Academy was a route to becoming an Immortal and decided he needed to leave the orphanage to learn more about the world.

Ch. 6Wolf Beneath the Sheepskin?

Chen Nan learned about the Preparatory Academy’s recruitment process and used his mental link with the Rats to investigate the Orphanage and prepare escape options. After returning to class, a disturbing physiology lesson deepened his suspicion that the Orphanage was not what it appeared to be and that its students might be prevented from leaving.

  • Chen Nan interrogated Little Black Ox and learned about the Orphanage’s subjects, the Preparatory Academy’s September 12th recruitment visit, and its history of selecting no students.
  • Chen Nan saw through the Rat’s spiritual world that the Orphanage’s sewers were sealed against escape, then ordered the Rats to scout outside, dig concealed burrows, and steal food for him.
  • After three days of sick leave, Chen Nan returned to class and found the physiology lesson unusually explicit, while the other students treated it as routine.
  • Chen Nan suspected the Orphanage might be preventing students from leaving and feared that its influence could block his chances of entering the Preparatory Academy.

Ch. 7Two-Pronged Preparations

Chen Nan trained his rat-controlling ability while weighing escape from the orphanage against waiting for the Preparatory Academy assessment. By September, he had learned the orphanage’s secrets and prepared a hidden tunnel, but he still planned to try the assessment before fleeing.

  • Chen Nan chose to investigate the Preparatory Academy assessment while secretly preparing to escape, and asked Little Black Ox about his friends.
  • Chen Nan used rats to gather food and information, then spent fifteen days learning to control them and surveying the orphanage.
  • Chen Nan discovered Director Wang’s hidden treasury and learned that the director had many secrets, but decided not to expose himself yet.
  • Chen Nan kept a low profile, played instruments remembered by his body, and safely passed a month.
  • In September, Chen Nan inspected the nearly finished escape tunnel beneath the orphanage’s northern wall, while keeping the assessment as a possible alternative.

Ch. 8Esteemed Personage Has Arrived!

Chen Nan watched Li Yu heal the orphanage’s lightning-split ancient tree and began longing for extraordinary power, while suspecting Tie Dan would be chosen in the Preparatory Academy’s assessment. Director Wang secretly bribed Li Yu and Xun Xin with Mana Crystals, valuables, and money in exchange for help with his eldest nephew.

  • Chen Nan assigned the rats new tasks, and ten days later the orphanage learned that two Preparatory Academy assessors would arrive.
  • Li Yu and Xun Xin arrived at the orphanage, and Chen Nan sensed his mind resisting their imposing presence as they glanced at him.
  • Li Yu healed the ancient tree with green light, astonishing the onlookers and stirring Chen Nan’s desire for power.
  • Tie Dan taunted Chen Nan about his ambitions, and Chen Nan suspected Tie Dan would be selected for this year’s assessment.
  • Director Wang presented Li Yu and Xun Xin with two boxes of Mana Crystals, an ancient zither, a painting by Du Changming, and two ten-million-yuan cards, asking them to help his eldest nephew.

Ch. 9Society Is Very Simple...

Li Yu and Xun Xin accepted Director Wang’s bribe to place his nephew Tie Dan in the Preparatory Academy, then took the gold and jewelry Chen Nan offered without helping him. Chen Nan returned to the dormitory resolved to leave the Orphanage the next day, though his future remained uncertain.

  • Director Wang gave Li Yu and Xun Xin a gold card and asked them to help his nephew Tie Dan enter the Preparatory Academy.
  • Li Yu and Xun Xin recognized Director Wang’s plan to secure his family’s influence and discussed the advantages Tie Dan would gain from admission.
  • Li Yu and Xun Xin discovered Chen Nan’s Rat spying on them, and Chen Nan visited their residence to ask for admission to the Preparatory Academy or help escaping the Orphanage.
  • Chen Nan gave Li Yu and Xun Xin his gold and jewelry, but they kept it and warned him not to send his Rats near them again.
  • Li Yu and Xun Xin dismissed Chen Nan’s chances and discussed how little power he had, while Chen Nan returned to the dormitory feeling deceived and decided to leave the next day.
  • Chen Nan heard Little Black Ox talking in his sleep and promised to give him a good life if he became an Immortal before falling asleep.

Ch. 10"Strength" Assessment

Chen Nan watched Tie Dan pass the assessment and get accepted into the Preparatory Academy, then continued preparing his secret escape from the Orphanage. After confirming his plans with Little Black Ox, Chen Nan slipped out through a tunnel at night and set off toward Wu City.

  • Xun Xin assessed Chen Nan and said there was hope, while Li Yu and Xun Xin declared Tie Dan qualified for the Preparatory Academy.
  • Tie Dan taunted Chen Nan, and Chen Nan told Little Black Ox to help verify the children's arrival dates before hiding the notes beneath his bed.
  • Chen Nan warned Little Black Ox to pretend to know nothing, then waited until the Orphanage was asleep before leaving with the Rat.
  • Chen Nan crawled through the tunnel, collected the money he had hidden with the Rats, and headed along the overgrown path toward Wu City.

Ch. 11The Road to Freedom Was Strewn with Thorns

After escaping the orphanage, Chen Nan reached Wu City, ate breakfast, and considered how to stay alive while planning to kill Director Wang. He hid most of his money in a rat burrow and began scouting the city for stray dogs to recruit as helpers.

  • Chen Nan crossed the wilderness and reached the outskirts of Wu City, avoiding the highway so no one would recognize or return him to the orphanage.
  • He paid for breakfast at a roadside stall and ate before thinking through the dangers posed by Director Wang, Li Yu, and Xun Xin.
  • Chen Nan decided to remain hidden, learn about the orphanage's organization, and eventually use small animals to poison and kill Director Wang.
  • He summoned rats in an alley and had them hide about five thousand yuan, keeping a little over two hundred yuan with him.
  • Chen Nan began exploring Wu City and searching for stray dogs to recruit as helpers while learning the surrounding streets.

Ch. 12A Fortuitous Encounter at an Internet Café

Chen Nan cleaned himself up, used a rented ID to get online, and searched for information about the Wu City Orphanage and Director Wang. He learned that Wang Yifu had powerful relatives and left the internet café planning to investigate how he could become an Immortal.

  • Chen Nan linked seven stray dogs to his mind, bought clean clothes, and bathed before looking for an internet café.
  • At Seven Degrees Space, Chen Nan rented an ID from the attendant and let a girl show him how to open a browser.
  • Chen Nan had Da Huang follow the girl briefly, then searched the web for information about the Wu City Orphanage.
  • Chen Nan found reports alleging wrongdoing at the orphanage and learned that Director Wang was Wang Yifu, whose siblings were influential figures in Wu City.
  • Chen Nan decided to search for a way to join the Immortals, but his internet time ran out, so he left to buy lunch and food for his dogs.

Ch. 13The Great Recluse

Chen Nan tried to hide from those pursuing him by blending in with elementary school students, finding a room near a school and buying a phone. He won a landlady’s sympathy with a fabricated story about his family and secured her agreement to rent him a room.

  • Chen Nan decided to disguise himself as an elementary school student and live near a school to avoid drawing attention.
  • Chen Nan obtained a used school uniform from a clothing workshop after a schoolgirl directed him there.
  • Chen Nan found a room for rent near Taiping Elementary School, withdrew money he had hidden with the rats, and bought a phone with a temporary SIM card.
  • Chen Nan met the landlady and claimed his stepmother mistreated him, showing her his thin body and whip marks to support his story.
  • The landlady agreed to let Chen Nan stay and take his money after he insisted that his father should pay for his room.

Ch. 14Transcendent's Shackles

Chen Nan settled into a cheap rented room and researched Kabudan, learning how Transcendents ruled the world and were forbidden to abuse their powers among ordinary people. He realized that becoming a Transcendent would prevent him from using his abilities to kill Wang Yifu and his siblings, leaving him searching for a way to survive their threat.

  • Chen Nan persuaded the landlady not to move in, rented the apartment’s single room for three months, and bought basic supplies.
  • Chen Nan connected to the apartment’s wireless network and researched Kabudan’s continents, peoples, and history.
  • Chen Nan learned that Transcendents had surpassed Nature Masters and that strict rules limited their use of power in ordinary society.
  • Chen Nan recognized that using his animal-controlling ability to kill Wang Yifu and his siblings could bring severe punishment.
  • Chen Nan concluded that he needed to become a Transcendent for protection, but feared Wang Yifu and his siblings would kill him before he could rise to power.

Ch. 15Cliff Dancer

Chen Nan decided to use the law against Wang Yifu and the orphanage, but knew he needed someone with power to wield it. After researching a target, he bought covert surveillance equipment and supplies, then frightened a bully at the orphanage into retreating.

  • Chen Nan concluded that the law could expose Wang Yifu and the orphanage, and resolved to act as a small fulcrum in a struggle over power and profit.
  • Chen Nan researched a target on Wu City's government website, then went out after school to scout an electronics shop.
  • Chen Nan negotiated with the Little Xia Computer shopkeeper and bought ten sets of miniature cameras and listening devices using money from Rat.
  • Chen Nan bought a small electric cooker, instant noodles, eggs, ham, fruit, and other supplies before returning to the orphanage.
  • A tall boy tried to claim Chen Nan's room and take his belongings, but Chen Nan's glare terrified him into fleeing in fear.

Ch. 16"Double-Sided" Operation

Chen Nan prepared to infiltrate the city government while Wang Yifu and Wang Yide launched a citywide hunt to kill him. After Chen Nan followed a government secretary to his residential compound, he learned that the man was Secretary Huang, who showed kindness to Da Huang.

  • Chen Nan set up ten listening devices and planned to visit the city government, while Little Black Ox survived interrogation at the Orphanage by claiming ignorance.
  • Wang Yifu recognized Chen Nan as a threat and told Wang Yide to find and kill him, prompting a citywide search and surveillance effort.
  • Chen Nan fainted after eating, briefly saw strange colors and patterns, then dismissed the experiences and went to sleep.
  • Chen Nan disguised himself, traveled to the city government with Da Huang, and waited until he spotted a well-dressed middle-aged man leaving.
  • Chen Nan sent Da Huang to follow the man to the Jiahao residential compound, where the man stopped a guard from driving the dog away.
  • The guard addressed the man as Secretary Huang and identified him as a Prefecture Office secretary before he left in the elevator.

Ch. 17Secretary Huang Stalked the Cicada, Da Huang Lurked Behind

Chen Nan used Da Huang to infiltrate Secretary Huang’s home and steal two files that could implicate the Wu City Prefecture Office, while avoiding people searching for him. After returning home, Chen Nan fainted again and found blood flowing from his nose, leaving him afraid that his body might be seriously ill.

  • Chen Nan trained Da Huang through their spiritual connection and sent him to become an undercover presence in Secretary Huang’s home.
  • Da Huang helped Chen Nan confirm that the information he needed was in Secretary Huang’s safe, while Chen Nan tracked suspicious people searching for him.
  • Chen Nan entered Jiahao Residential Community at night, used his powers and gray sparrows to evade surveillance, and slipped into Secretary Huang’s home with Da Huang’s help.
  • Chen Nan opened the safe using memories from Da Huang, selected two files, and left the community without being caught.
  • After returning home and eating, Chen Nan fainted again, woke with a nosebleed, and feared he might have a serious illness such as leukemia.

Ch. 18A Brush with Death

Chen Nan escaped a search party hunting him and went to Immortal Realm, where he met Butterfly Loves Flowers, a former Orphanage child. After telling her he planned to expose the club’s crimes, he persuaded her to help collect evidence, and she agreed.

  • Chen Nan used six stray dogs to distract the armed men searching his residential complex and escaped by blending in with students.
  • After Ghost Head realized Chen Nan had slipped away, Chen Nan collected money from Rat and took a taxi toward Immortal Realm.
  • Butterfly Loves Flowers joined Chen Nan in the taxi, recognized him as an escaped child from the Orphanage, and pulled him out before they reached the club.
  • Chen Nan told Butterfly Loves Flowers he intended to bring Immortal Realm’s leaders to justice and asked her to gather evidence of their crimes.
  • Butterfly Loves Flowers doubted that they could defeat the powerful organization but agreed to help Chen Nan collect evidence.

Ch. 19Weakness Is the Original Sin

Chen Nan recruited Butterfly Loves Flowers to gather evidence against the criminal organization by smuggling surveillance devices into its meeting place. After she left, he used Rats to place hidden cameras and bugging devices throughout Renxin Maternity Hospital, collapsing from the strain as he finished.

  • Chen Nan gave Butterfly Loves Flowers a bugging device and asked her to collect evidence of the organization’s crimes, but she explained that strict inspections kept her from bringing it inside.
  • Chen Nan hid the bugging and surveillance devices inside several layered condoms, and Butterfly Loves Flowers swallowed them so she could carry them into the club and plant them during cleaning.
  • Chen Nan and Butterfly Loves Flowers exchanged phone numbers and discussed the club’s cameras, and she vowed to complete the mission unless she died.
  • After Butterfly Loves Flowers left, Chen Nan deleted her call record and went alone to Renxin Maternity Hospital to investigate his suspicions.
  • Chen Nan used Rats to map the hospital and plant cameras and bugging devices in places including Wang Yuane’s director’s office, then suffered a nosebleed and collapsed from exhaustion.

Ch. 20Do What You Can, Leave the Rest to Fate

After suffering another episode of weakness, Chen Nan recovered, reviewed recordings, and hid overnight in a public restroom while deciding how to evade his pursuers. He rented a private room near Renxin Maternity Hospital, enlisted nearby dogs to watch the area, stocked up on food, and settled in to wait for his plan to unfold.

  • Chen Nan stopped his nosebleed, ate sweet soup and noodles at a shop, and listened to two recordings on the proprietress's laptop.
  • Chen Nan left the shop and slept in a locked stall in the women's restroom until he could leave the next morning.
  • Butterfly Loves Flowers called Chen Nan to say that everything had been arranged, and Chen Nan decided it was time to draw in the net.
  • Chen Nan rented a private room near Renxin Maternity Hospital and mentally recruited nearby dogs to report anything suspicious.
  • Chen Nan stocked the room with food, decided not to leave, and waited for his plan to unfold.

Ch. 21Misfortunes Never Come Singly

Chen Nan monitored Wang Yide’s hideout and confirmed the Wang family’s involvement in child trafficking, while Wang Yide arranged criminal deals and worried about his family’s “great tree.” The chapter ended with Wang Yide deciding to visit Third Sister the next day.

  • Chen Nan trained in his rented apartment, investigated missing-person records, and confirmed that children were being trafficked to the Orphanage.
  • Chen Nan’s surveillance camera captured Wang Yide ordering his men to search rental advertisements for him.
  • Wang Yide accepted a batch of trafficked children from Big Grey Wolf and had them taken away.
  • Wang Yide completed a drug deal with respectable-looking businessmen and grew agitated after Big Grey Wolf mentioned a “tree.”
  • Wang Yide smashed his wineglass and decided to visit Third Sister the next day.

Ch. 22Three Siblings Reunite

Chen Nan prepared to use evidence against the Wu City Prefecture Office and monitored Renxin Maternity Hospital, where he overheard the Wang siblings plotting to find and kill him. Wang Yifu planned to publicize Chen Nan as a missing child and interfere with his attempt to enter the Preparatory Academy.

  • Chen Nan rejected Secretary Huang as a target, planned to gather evidence against the Wu City Prefecture Office, and decided to rent a computer.
  • Chen Nan rented a laptop from his landlord and used his surveillance software to monitor Renxin Maternity Hospital.
  • Chen Nan watched Wang Yifu, Wang Yide, and Wang Yuane meet in the director's office and discuss their fear of him.
  • Wang Yifu said Chen Nan would likely seek entry to the Preparatory Academy and become a Transcendent, so they needed to stop him.
  • Wang Yifu ordered Wang Yide to search private rentals and spread missing-person notices claiming traffickers had taken Chen Nan from the Orphanage.

Ch. 23Prefecture Office Hotline

Chen Nan recorded the Wang siblings discussing their criminal businesses and their plans against him, then called Wu City's Prefecture Office to expose the official's corruption and demand that he bring down the Wang Clan. The Prefecture Office identified Chen Nan and threatened to locate him, but Chen Nan warned that any attempt would release his evidence.

  • Wang Yuane told Wang Yifu about the maternity hospital's business of sending unwanted newborns and premature babies to the Orphanage for profit.
  • Chen Nan reviewed and backed up recordings of the Wang siblings planning against him, then prepared to make a crucial call.
  • Chen Nan called the Prefecture Office Hotline and warned the Prefecture Office that the call carried serious consequences.
  • After the Prefecture Office hung up, he called Chen Nan back, and Chen Nan verified his identity by video before accusing him of accepting bribes.
  • Chen Nan demanded that the Prefecture Office use the law to eradicate the Wang Clan in exchange for keeping the corruption evidence secret.
  • The Prefecture Office recognized Chen Nan and said he could locate him, but Chen Nan warned that the evidence would spread online if he tried.

Ch. 24Conservation of Energy

Chen Nan forced the Prefecture Office to accept evidence against the Wang siblings and gave it three days to arrest them, then fled to an unfinished apartment as he tried to stay safe. While preparing to hide, he realized his fainting spells might come from the AI System consuming his energy during startup.

  • The Prefecture Office offered to protect Chen Nan, but he refused and demanded a secure way to send his evidence.
  • Chen Nan sent evidence against the Wang siblings and recordings of the Prefecture Office’s corruption, then gave the office three days to arrest the siblings and their subordinates.
  • Chen Nan realized his current home was unsafe and planned to hide in an unfinished apartment while the Wang siblings searched for private rentals.
  • After fainting, Chen Nan saw the AI System’s display and heard warnings that his body had adapted to dangerous radiation and that the system lacked energy.
  • Chen Nan deduced that the AI System’s startup might be consuming his glucose, causing his fainting spells.
  • Chen Nan used sparrows to open an unfinished apartment’s door and hid inside with food, water, and his charged phone.

Ch. 25A Gift from Earth

After evading a search at his residence, Chen Nan reasoned that his AI System came from his smart glasses on Earth and needed more energy to operate. He bought concentrated glucose and began drinking it when the System started loading into his neural electromagnetic field.

  • Chen Nan watched the landlord and a stranger leave, while the Wang siblings and the Prefecture Office learned he was missing from his residence.
  • Chen Nan concluded that the AI System had originated from his smart glasses and that its failed startups had drained his energy.
  • Chen Nan reasoned that glucose might keep the AI System running longer and decided to buy glucose injections at a nearby pharmacy.
  • Chen Nan used his dogs to scout, rigged his apartment door, and bought twenty boxes of 50% glucose injections.
  • After returning and eating, Chen Nan waited for the AI System to activate, then drank an ampoule as it began loading into his neural electromagnetic field.
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