Chapter Summaries

Wang Jixuan's remnant soul took over Mu Liang's body after dying in a failed heavenly tribulation, then escaped the noose with a weak Li Fire Curse. As rescuers carried him away, he pretended to be unconscious and studied Mu Liang's memories in this unfamiliar, catastrophe-stricken world.

• Wang Jixuan recalled his solitary cultivation life and resolved to pursue immortality again after reincarnating into Mu Liang's body.
• Wang Jixuan realized Mu Liang had hanged himself and used the Li Fire Curse to burn through the bedsheet rope, surviving the attempt.
• Wang Jixuan sensed that the new world held little spiritual energy and began reviewing Mu Liang's memories to learn its language and writing.
• A rescue team broke into the room and found Wang Jixuan alive, noting his neck marks and the scorched rope.
• Wang Jixuan pretended to be unconscious as the rescuers placed him on a stretcher and took him to the medical room.

Wang Jixuan learned how Mu Liang’s life in Fortress 76 had driven him to despair, then woke in the medical room and faced a predatory doctor who threatened him with forced brain surgery. After knocking her unconscious and taking her credentials and quota card, he decided to find food and avenge Mu Liang for the coworkers who had taken his Food Quota.

• Wang Jixuan reviewed Mu Liang’s memories and learned about the Blade Beast invasion, Fortress 76’s quota system, and Mu Liang’s worsening malnutrition and depression.
• A female doctor questioned Wang Jixuan about his attempted suicide and touched him suggestively while explaining that self-destructive patients could be sent for brain tissue removal.
• The doctor offered to keep Wang Jixuan from the operation in exchange for sexual favors, but Wang Jixuan struck her with an iron box and knocked her unconscious.
• Wang Jixuan searched the doctor’s white coat and took her Level 13 Class C Pass, Quota Card, and Level 4 Ordinary Citizen ID.
• Wang Jixuan decided to find food and avenge Mu Liang by confronting the coworkers who had taken his Food Quota.

Wang Jixuan negotiated with Doctor Wei Na for a medical certificate that would spare him an invasive procedure, then followed her to her clinic. There, armed men ambushed Wei Na and ordered Wang Jixuan inside, leaving him trapped with them.

• Wang Jixuan revived Wei Na and persuaded her to issue a certificate while agreeing that neither would report the other.
• Wei Na led Wang Jixuan through the corridor toward her main medical office, where she tried to flirt with him again.
• At the clinic door, Wang Jixuan sensed people inside as a gunman pressed a pistol to Wei Na's forehead.
• Brother Hua dragged Wei Na into the clinic and beat her, then ordered his men to bring Wang Jixuan inside as well.
• Wang Jixuan entered the clinic while considering how to subdue the men, and they shut the door behind him.

Wang Jixuan rescued Wei Na from Brother Hua and the Black Fire Gang, who had been forcing her to harvest organs, and secured Mu Liang’s certificate. After Wang Jixuan left to recover, Wei Na raised the alarm and shot the unconscious Brother Hua.

• Brother Hua beat Wei Na and demanded that she perform illegal organ-removal surgery while Wang Jixuan watched.
• Wei Na revealed that the Black Fire Gang wanted her to remove organs from homeless people, and Wang Jixuan used the Great Vajra Spell to punch Brother Hua across the infirmary.
• Wang Jixuan dislocated his left arm but seized Brother Hua’s handgun, making the two gang members flee, and Wei Na completed Mu Liang’s certificate.
• Wei Na warned Wang Jixuan that the gang might seek revenge and told him to leave the gun behind; he returned to his room and began recovering his depleted Power of Soul.
• Wei Na activated the alarm, approached the unconscious Brother Hua, and emptied the handgun’s magazine into him.

Wang Jixuan recounted the fight with the Black Fire Gang to Captain Zhou Zhengde, who arranged a safer residence and coached him on what to say in his testimony. After learning that the gang would likely retaliate and that officials might be compromised, Wang Jixuan moved into a new room but remained wary when someone knocked.

• Zhou Zhengde questioned Wang Jixuan about the incident at Wei Na’s clinic and asked him to give an account that would protect both himself and Wei Na.
• Wang Jixuan learned that the dead gang member was the Black Fire Gang boss’s brother and that the gang planned to retaliate against him and Wei Na.
• Zhou Zhengde offered Wang Jixuan a temporary safe residence, and Wang Jixuan accepted.
• Wang Jixuan reflected on the fortress’s divisions and suspected that officials in the Middle City might be colluding with the Black Fire Gang.
• After packing his belongings, Wang Jixuan moved to Room 72 and cautiously prepared for another visitor when knocking sounded at his door.

Wang Jixuan suspected Lou Zhuang had betrayed him and attacked the thugs who confronted them, only to discover that Rotten Fish had been ordered by the Black Fire Gang to capture him. He used an incantation to boost his speed and fled, leaving the gang chasing after him.

• Lou Zhuang visited Wang Jixuan and offered to treat him to food, but acted suspiciously when Wang Jixuan asked whether Rotten Fish had approached him.
• Wang Jixuan followed Lou Zhuang toward the cafeteria and suggested they join other victims to retaliate against the thugs.
• Two thugs confronted Wang Jixuan, and he dodged one man's shove, struck both men, and kicked Lou Zhuang after Lou Zhuang admitted they had forced him to lead Wang there.
• Rotten Fish and a crowd of thugs blocked Wang Jixuan's escape and revealed that the Black Fire Gang had ordered them to cripple and capture him.
• Wang Jixuan invoked a speed-enhancing incantation and sprinted past the thugs, prompting Rotten Fish to order his men to chase him.

After Wang Jixuan fought off Rotten Fish and his men, Captain Zhou Zhengde warned him that the Black Fire Gang would retaliate because of Doctor Wei Na and Brother Hua’s death. Wang Jixuan moved into a safe house and began cultivating so he could defend himself.

• Wang Jixuan was arrested with Rotten Fish and the other thugs after their fight, and Zhou Zhengde brought him into the Security Office as a victim.
• Zhou Zhengde agreed not to report Wang Jixuan’s use of a sharpened metal tube and told him the Black Fire Gang planned retaliation over Brother Hua’s death.
• Zhou Zhengde offered Wang Jixuan a safe house and an alarm, but Wang Jixuan declined detention and accepted the temporary refuge.
• Wang Jixuan settled into the safe house, hid its broken camera, and began meditating to cultivate toward the Qi Refining Realm.

After entering the Qi Refining Realm, Wang Jixuan planned to strike first against the Black Fire Gang but went out to obtain food because his supplies and Food Quota were running low. Two gang members found him at a vending machine, and his attempt to fight back with the Divine Movement Spell and a qi-coated knife ended as one of them fired.

• Wang Jixuan entered the Qi Refining Realm and decided to deal with the Black Fire Gang, while considering talismans and other ways to defend himself.
• Wang Jixuan found his food cabinet empty and went to an emergency vending machine to buy food and Nutrient Solution.
• Two muscular men in green tracksuits recognized Wang Jixuan as Mu Liang and drew a pistol.
• Wang Jixuan threw bags of food at the attackers and dodged gunfire behind the vending machine, whose alloy body stopped the bullets.
• Wang Jixuan used the Divine Movement Spell to charge out and threw a qi-coated folding knife as one attacker swung his gun toward him.

Wang Jixuan escaped the Security Team after killing two Black Fire Gang attackers and headed toward the Lower City, where he confronted Lan Yuzai’s gang. He incapacitated Lan Yuzai’s underlings and ended the chapter with Lan Yuzai surrendering at gunpoint.

• Wang Jixuan retrieved food and a handgun, evaded the cameras, and left the area as Zhou Zhengde ordered a search for him.
• Wang Jixuan decided to go to the Lower City and destroy the Black Fire Gang, recalling that his plan to get there began with eating fish.
• Lan Yuzai ordered his thugs to keep searching for Mu Liang and gather supplies to trade in the Lower City.
• Wang Jixuan attacked Lan Yuzai’s gang with energy-guided Nut Caps, striking Lan Yuzai’s underlings in the throat and making them collapse.
• Wang Jixuan pressed Captain Zhou’s alarm and aimed his handgun at Lan Yuzai, who dropped his machete and surrendered.

Zhou Zhengde investigated Mu Liang’s fight with the Black Fire Gang and suspected he was a Psionicist, while Mu Liang led Lan Yuzai down an abandoned fire escape toward the Lower City. As Lan Yuzai questioned Mu Liang’s abilities, they spotted a group of captives and punks approaching below.

• Zhou Zhengde questioned Wei Na about Mu Liang, then reviewed evidence that Mu Liang had defeated Black Fire Gang gunmen and subdued Rotten Fish’s gang.
• Wei Na assessed the injuries and questioned whether Mu Liang was a Psionicist, while Zhou Zhengde vowed to find him and confront the Black Fire Gang’s boss in three days.
• Wang Jixuan forced Lan Yuzai to carry stolen food and supplies as they descended an abandoned fire escape toward the Lower City.
• Lan Yuzai asked Wang Jixuan how he had struck the gang members with nuts, and Wang Jixuan sensed people approaching below.
• Wang Jixuan and Lan Yuzai saw three punks escorting a tied-up man and woman, and a light from below fell on Lan Yuzai’s face.

Wang Jixuan killed three thugs who were abusing a captured couple, then followed Lan Yuzai into the Lower City. The chapter ended as seven or eight figures sprang up beside the entrance to Floor 46.

• Lan Yuzai explained that gangs captured people as “piglets” and described how he had become a gang leader who squeezed blood bags.
• Wang Jixuan refused Lan Yuzai’s offer to pay tribute for instruction in his Flick Finger technique and continued down the fire escape with him.
• Wang Jixuan killed three thugs with sharpened pencils when he found them assaulting a captured man and woman, allowing the couple to escape.
• Lan Yuzai warned Wang Jixuan to hide his gun in the Lower City, and Wang Jixuan kept him close as they approached Floor 46.
• Wang Jixuan and Lan Yuzai entered a graffiti-covered area that smelled of burning plastic, where seven or eight figures suddenly leaped up.

Wang Jixuan and Lan Yuzai entered the Lower City, passed through the City of Joy’s guarded territory, and searched its general stores for supplies to make talismans. Wang Jixuan found spiritual remnants in Blade Beast remains and blood, but the chapter left him needing to borrow money from Lan Yuzai to buy them.

• Lan Yuzai asked Wang Jixuan to carry his emergency food and said he wanted to follow him and learn skills.
• Wang Jixuan and Lan Yuzai entered a destitute district, then reached the City of Joy’s territory, where Lan Yuzai bribed the guards with food and cigarettes.
• Lan Yuzai told the guards that he wanted to buy a gun and confirmed that Big Mouth Hua had been killed, while Wang Jixuan passed as his little brother.
• Wang Jixuan ordered Lan Yuzai to take him to a general store, where he searched for paper and supplies for making talismans.
• Wang Jixuan discovered scavenged Blade Beast exoskeleton and deactivated Blade Beast blood that still held spiritual power.
• Wang Jixuan asked Lan Yuzai to lend him currency so he could buy the Blade Beast remains and blood.

Wang Jixuan prepared talismans in a City of Joy hotel while considering how to confront the Black Fire Gang. When an explosion and gunfire erupted outside, he left the hotel to investigate the clash between the Black Fire Gang and Captain Zhou.

• Lan Yuzai paid for Wang Jixuan's purchases with his belongings, then led him to a cheap hotel where they rented one room.
• Wang Jixuan made talisman paper and Spiritual Fluid from Blade Beast Blood, then produced twenty-four talismans while training his inner breath.
• Lan Yuzai warned Wang Jixuan that the Black Fire Gang had many members, snipers, bombs, and powerful backing, but Wang Jixuan continued preparing for a confrontation.
• An explosion struck the street outside the hotel, shattering the window and injuring Lan Yuzai with flying glass.
• Wang Jixuan treated Lan Yuzai's wounds with a Blood Stopping Talisman as gunfire continued outside.
• After hearing someone announce that Captain Zhou had come to negotiate with the Black Fire Gang, Wang Jixuan attached Divine Movement Talismans to his legs and jumped from the third-floor window.

Wang Jixuan rescued Zhou Zhengde from a Black Fire Gang ambush and swiftly wiped out the attackers, leaving Zhou and the survivors stunned by his abilities. Zhou’s wound was stabilized, and the immediate threat had fallen silent.

• Zhou Zhengde realized the Black Fire Gang had trapped his convoy in an L-shaped crossfire, while Lin Tao reported that their signal was jammed.
• Wang Jixuan appeared beside Zhou Zhengde, treated his wound with a Blood Stopping Talisman, and promised to repay his debt.
• Wang Jixuan killed the six gunmen behind the truck and tossed their weapons to Zhou Zhengde’s group so they could suppress the enemy fire.
• Wang Jixuan moved around the truck and attacked the Black Fire Gang’s building, silencing its gunmen in less than half a minute.
• Zhou Zhengde checked the building with a mirror, saw the attackers were dead, and found his wound had stopped bleeding.

Wang Jixuan agreed to help Zhou Zhengde against the Black Fire Gang, but a sniper ambushed their meeting and killed Lin Tao. Wang Jixuan used talismans and a truck door as a shield to charge toward the sniper, then took a powerful hit to his left shoulder.

• Zhou Zhengde explained that the Black Fire Gang was connected to the 13th Biological Research Institute, which he had exposed for human experimentation, and Wang Jixuan agreed to help him only against the gang.
• A sniper killed Lin Tao and fired on the arriving Silver Party motorcycles, throwing the reinforcements into chaos.
• Zhou Zhengde identified the sniper as Night Hawk and tried to locate him while the Silver Party members took cover.
• Wang Jixuan enhanced himself with talismans, broke into the truck, tore off its door, and used it as a shield to rush toward the sniper.
• A sniper bullet struck the truck door and Wang Jixuan's left shoulder, knocking his body backward.

Wang Jixuan was trapped under Night Hawk’s sniper fire and confronted the memories of his failed heavenly tribulation before regaining his resolve. He unleashed the Demon Star Annihilation Art, reached Night Hawk’s rooftop position, and attacked him with talismans.

• Wang Jixuan was wounded while trying to approach Night Hawk, and Zhou Zhengde warned him to stay under cover as the sniper targeted their vehicle.
• Lan Yuzai spotted Night Hawk’s muzzle flash and used bundled flashlights to reveal his position, but a bullet severed his left arm.
• Wang Jixuan recalled his Sect Leader’s warning that he had not faced failure or learned to live as a person, then steadied his Dao heart with the Calm Mind Incantation.
• Wang Jixuan used the Demon Star Annihilation Art to dodge Night Hawk’s shots and charge toward the sniper’s rooftop.
• Lan Yuzai swept the flashlights toward the rooftop while Zhou Zhengde fired at Night Hawk, cracking his bulletproof glass.
• Wang Jixuan reached Night Hawk, slapped eight or nine talismans onto his forehead, and clenched his fist to make them explode.

Wang Jixuan woke in the treatment center after the City of Joy ambush and learned that Zhou Zhengde’s faction had arranged a future purge of the Black Fire Gang. As Zhou planned a reward for his mysterious rescuer, Wang resolved to act on his ambitions, only to find Wei Na preparing to tend to him.

• Wang Jixuan assessed the damage from using a demonic technique and pretended to remain asleep when Zhou Zhengde arrived.
• Ban Wenying told Wei Na and Zhou Zhengde that a coalition and the Fortress Cleanup Unit would purge the Black Fire Gang in about two months, and that Zhou would be on paid leave.
• Zhou Zhengde described Wang Jixuan’s extraordinary speed and strength, reflected on reforming thugs, and discussed the injured Lan Yuzai and Rotten Fish with Wei Na.
• Zhou Zhengde decided to reward Wang with firearm access and a logistics group leader title, while planning to demand the Black Fire Gang’s BOSS die.
• Wang Jixuan resolved not to repeat his past mistake of focusing only on cultivation, then heard Wei Na approaching to wash and examine him.

While recovering in the medical center, Wang Jixuan planned to destroy the Black Fire Gang and slipped away before the 13th Biological Research Institute could reach him. He left Zhou Zhengde and Wei Na healing talismans and Lan Yuzai a Finger Flicking Divine Skill training method, then entered the Black Fire Gang’s territory in disguise.

• Wang Jixuan resolved to return to the Lower City, eliminate the Black Fire Gang, and gather materials while he continued recovering and learning about the world.
• Wei Na arrived at the medical center and found the 13th Biological Research Institute trying to gain access while Lan Yuzai had awakened.
• Zhou Zhengde told Wei Na that Wang Jixuan had disappeared and read her the note explaining his plans and the gifts he had left behind.
• Zhou Zhengde and Wei Na drank the talisman ashes mixed into rice soup, while Lan Yuzai discovered that the Finger Flicking Divine Skill required exercises he could not perform with his amputated arms.
• About twenty-eight hours later, Wang Jixuan entered a bar in the Black Fire Gang’s territory and ordered Biluochun tea.

Wang Jixuan entered a Black Fire Gang tavern to negotiate with its BOSS, but the gang recognized him as the wanted man who had killed Night Hawk and attacked. After defeating the tavern’s guards, he used a blood-drawn talisman on Gu Wending to force the information he needed.

• Gu Wending worried that the Black Fire Gang’s growing involvement with Upper City interests would threaten his hoped-for retirement.
• Wang Jixuan ordered Biluochun tea and told Gu Wending he had come on behalf of a Middle City Security Captain to negotiate with the gang’s BOSS.
• A man on the second floor identified Wang Jixuan as Mu Liang, the technician wanted for killing Night Hawk, and Gu Wending reached for the pistol beneath the counter.
• Wang Jixuan used golden talismans to deflect the guards’ bullets, then took down the attackers with thrown darts.
• When Gu Wending refused to share information, Wang Jixuan drew a blood-red talisman and pressed it to his forehead with the Soul-Capturing technique.

After interrogating Gu Wending’s soul, Wang Jixuan infiltrated the Black Fire Gang’s dispatch center to reach its third-in-command, Wen Heisen, who might know the gang boss’s location. The chapter ended as Wen Heisen recognized Wang Jixuan and prepared to attack, prompting Wang Jixuan to kick into the elevator first.

• Wang Jixuan tortured Gu Wending’s captured soul until it revealed details about the Black Fire Gang’s leaders, weapons, and operations, including that Wen Heisen might know where the boss was.
• Wang Jixuan slipped back into the City of Rebirth and targeted Wen Heisen at the gang’s dispatch center while nearby fighting drew some guards away.
• Wang Jixuan entered the spire through a ventilation duct, disguised himself in a green tracksuit, and approached the elevator using a mop and bucket as cover.
• The elevator doors opened to reveal Wen Heisen and two armed enforcers, and Wen Heisen’s aura swelled as he recognized Wang Jixuan.
• Wang Jixuan kicked into the elevator before Wen Heisen could attack.