Recaps

After returning to National Defense University, Jiang Yan Hai applied to accelerate his studies and take on night-flight missions, hoping to make better use of his time. Principal Zheng consulted senior commanders, who approved his coursework but worried about his health and planned to ensure he rested.

• Jiang Yan Hai returned to National Defense University after greeting Wu Zhenjiang and decided to make up the classes he had missed.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Principal Zheng to let him audit courses in other departments and fly night missions while sleeping only four hours a day.
• Principal Zheng agreed to arrange an auditing ID and told Jiang Yan Hai he would give him an answer about the night flights at noon.
• Principal Zheng told senior commanders about Jiang Yan Hai's request, and they discussed his workload, recent combat achievements, and Li Ruo Bai's security.
• The commanders approved Jiang Yan Hai's accelerated coursework and planned to find him a chance to take a vacation.

Jiang Yan Hai worked on engine design by day and pushed the J10S Azure Dragon through intensive flight tests each night. After a week of extreme testing, Old Liu warned him about the cost to his health, but Jiang Yan Hai asked whether his flight data had been useful.

• Principal Zheng told Jiang Yan Hai that his application had been approved and that he should focus on finalizing the J10S Azure Dragon's data.
• Jiang Yan Hai studied the Phantom Engine's design, redrew it, and spent his free daytime hours working on engine design.
• Jiang Yan Hai flew the J10S Azure Dragon for hours each night, while Lu Xiaoran could only manage two hours of adversarial training and marveled at his discipline.
• Jiang Yan Hai had Er Dan scan the fighter's electronic systems and design for flaws, then used the analysis to target his test flights.
• Old Liu called Jiang Yan Hai after receiving the flight data and warned him not to damage his health by overworking.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Old Liu whether the data he had collected was useful.

Jiang Yan Hai asked Old Liu to let him study the internal designs of the J10, hoping to use them in his own fighter aircraft research. Old Liu agreed to grant him server access to the J10S Azure Dragon and J20 files, and Jiang Yan Hai chose to avoid viewing other designs until he had developed his own.

• Old Liu told Jiang Yan Hai that his flight data had helped bring the current design close to completion, with only another week or two of work expected.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Old Liu for access to the J10's internal circuits and electronic equipment designs so he could pursue fighter aircraft design after his engine research.
• Old Liu offered to show Jiang Yan Hai the overall blueprints, but Jiang Yan Hai said he only needed the internal designs.
• Old Liu agreed to authorize Jiang Yan Hai to view the J10S Azure Dragon and J20 data on a secure server.
• Jiang Yan Hai declined to view other designs, explaining that he wanted to finish his own design before using existing aircraft as references.

Jiang Yan Hai arranged to stop Azure Dragon’s test flights for now and set out to recruit Bei Chen Xiang for his information unit. At a temporary base, Shao Xiao Jia complained that Black Hawk had made him review porn.

• Old Liu agreed to help Jiang Yan Hai apply for equipment and told him Azure Dragon had gathered enough flight data for the time being.
• Jiang Yan Hai decided to travel to Jinhai City to recruit Bei Chen Xiang, a skilled former Hacker Alliance member who had failed a military background check.
• Hound reported that Black Hawk was adapting well to military life and that Shao Xiao Jia was teaching him formations and drills.
• Jiang Yan Hai arrived at the temporary base and found Shao Xiao Jia and Black Hawk working in a shabby office.
• Shao Xiao Jia complained to Jiang Yan Hai that Black Hawk had made him review porn while enhancing his skills.

Jiang Yan Hai discussed recruiting Shao Xiao Jia’s apprentice and revealed that he had identified Bei Chen Xiang through Pantheon. After describing Pantheon’s attack on an American military base, he left Shao Xiao Jia thrilled and Black Hawk uneasy about how dangerous their work was.

• Black Hawk proposed recruiting Shao Xiao Jia’s apprentice, and Shao Xiao Jia endorsed the idea, believing the group was the Strategic Deception Bureau.
• Jiang Yan Hai said they would go to Jin'gang City to find Bei Chen Xiang and explained that he had learned the hacker’s identity from Pantheon.
• Jiang Yan Hai claimed he had hacked Pantheon’s servers and stolen the information, astonishing Shao Xiao Jia and Black Hawk.
• Jiang Yan Hai described Pantheon obtaining submarine launch codes and attacking a Dane Military Company base with Cruise Missiles through the American military command network.
• Black Hawk regretted joining the group, while Shao Xiao Jia eagerly asked to take part in future operations, and Jiang Yan Hai agreed.

Jiang Yan Hai planned to reach Bei Chen Xiang by arranging for four people to be placed in neighboring prison cells, then recording an instrumental track to influence him. After finishing the backing track in Jin Gang City, Jiang Yan Hai received a call from Li Ruo Bai, who said she was in the city and wanted to meet.

• Jiang Yan Hai reviewed Bei Chen Xiang's file and told Hound to transfer four people into the same prison and put them in neighboring cells.
• Jiang Yan Hai introduced himself as fighter pilot Haidongqing, surprising Black Hawk and Shao Xiao Jia.
• Jiang Yan Hai ordered the group to go to Jin Gang City and record a song as part of his plan to approach Bei Chen Xiang.
• Jiang Yan Hai wrote out the score, had a professional studio produce an instrumental track, and left after Hound paid.
• Li Ruo Bai called Jiang Yan Hai and said she was in Jin Gang City and would come find him, leaving him looking toward Hound in surprise.

Jiang Yan Hai learned that Principal Zheng had put him on ten days of leave and arranged for Li Ruo Bai to know about his work. After Li Ruo Bai arrived, Jiang Yan Hai introduced her to Hound, Black Hawk, and Shao Xiao Jia before their mission to recruit Bei Chen Xiang.

• Jiang Yan Hai asked Hound why Li Ruo Bai knew where he was, and Hound said someone higher up had notified her.
• Principal Zheng ordered Jiang Yan Hai to take ten days of leave, explaining that classes were suspended and his flight-data task was complete.
• Jiang Yan Hai agreed to the leave and sent Li Ruo Bai his location while waiting with Hound, Black Hawk, and Shao Xiao Jia.
• Li Ruo Bai arrived in a Bentley and leaped into Jiang Yan Hai's arms, surprising Shao Xiao Jia.
• Jiang Yan Hai introduced Li Ruo Bai to Hound, Black Hawk, and Shao Xiao Jia, and Li Ruo Bai blushed and pinched him for not warning her.

Jiang Yan Hai brought Li Ruo Bai along to a lounge bar for a mission centered on Bei Chen Xiang, then took the stage to sing a song he had written. The chapter ended as he dedicated it to Li Ruo Bai and to people worn down by life in an unfamiliar city.

• Jiang Yan Hai introduced Li Ruo Bai to his teammates and invited her to accompany them on their mission.
• Jiang Yan Hai, Li Ruo Bai, and the team arrived at a lounge bar, where Shao Xiao Jia and Black Hawk waited while Hound monitored outside.
• Hound reported that Bei Chen Xiang had arrived, and Jiang Yan Hai waited until the target appeared absorbed in his thoughts.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Li Ruo Bai he would sing for her, then arranged with the bar owner to take the resident singer's place.
• Jiang Yan Hai addressed the bar and announced that his song was for Li Ruo Bai and for people struggling in an unfamiliar city.

Jiang Yan Hai sang “Old Boy” at the lounge bar, moving the audience and helping Black Hawk approach Bei Chen Xiang about his mission. He then returned to Li Ruo Bai, who treated the outing as a date, while Shao Xiao Jia watched them flirt.

• Jiang Yan Hai performed “Old Boy,” and the song left many listeners, including Bei Chen Xiang and Black Hawk, deeply moved.
• Black Hawk sat beside Bei Chen Xiang and began speaking with him while Jiang Yan Hai sang.
• Jiang Yan Hai declined requests for another song and returned to Li Ruo Bai, who praised his singing and asked him to sing love songs for her.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Li Ruo Bai that his mission was done, and the two continued their date while Black Hawk handled the conversation with Bei Chen Xiang.
• Shao Xiao Jia watched Li Ruo Bai feed Jiang Yan Hai and silently complained about being subjected to their affection.

Jiang Yan Hai wrapped up discussions with Black Hawk about recruiting skilled prisoners and began his vacation with Li Ruo Bai. Li Yun Feng asked them to pick up Li Ruo Bai’s cousin when she arrived in the capital and show her around.

• Jiang Yan Hai learned that Black Hawk had reached a good understanding with Bei Chen Xiang and left the negotiations in Black Hawk’s hands.
• Jiang Yan Hai assured Black Hawk that the four imprisoned hackers were reliable and discussed a plan to recruit them as specially hired personnel.
• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai returned to the capital and began their vacation.
• Li Yun Feng asked Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai to pick up Li Ruo Bai’s cousin when she arrived in two days and take her sightseeing.
• Jiang Yan Hai agreed to host Li Ruo Bai’s cousin on Li Yun Feng’s behalf.

Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai welcomed her cousin Su Ya Xuan back to China after agreeing to include her in their plans. The cousins reunited at the airport, and Su Ya Xuan announced that she intended to return to China after graduating from Cambridge.

• Li Yun Feng arranged for Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai to meet her returning cousin, and Jiang Yan Hai persuaded Li Ruo Bai to welcome her.
• Jiang Yan Hai learned that Su Ya Xuan was a high-achieving Cambridge student whose mother was a scientist who had returned to China.
• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai toured the Forbidden City together before going to Daxing Airport to meet Su Ya Xuan.
• Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan excitedly embraced, and Jiang Yan Hai helped with Su Ya Xuan's luggage before they introduced themselves.
• Su Ya Xuan joked that her heart remained in China and said she planned to return after graduating, though Li Ruo Bai pointed out that she still had four years left.

Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai took Su Ya Xuan to lunch, where she questioned him about his work and intentions toward her cousin. Su Ya Xuan apologized after upsetting Li Ruo Bai, and the couple reaffirmed their commitment to each other.

• Su Ya Xuan questioned Jiang Yan Hai about how he met Li Ruo Bai and what he did, and he said he flew planes.
• Su Ya Xuan probed whether Jiang Yan Hai knew about Li Ruo Bai's family situation, prompting Li Ruo Bai to warn her to stop.
• Su Ya Xuan explained that she had been testing Jiang Yan Hai because she worried he might be an unsuitable match, then apologized to him and Li Ruo Bai.
• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai arrived at a Peking Duck restaurant, where Su Ya Xuan left them alone in a private room.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Li Ruo Bai she did not need to apologize, and she smiled and vowed he would never escape her.

Su Ya Xuan tested Jiang Yan Hai during a meal and then kept fishing for information as they set off to visit the Great Wall. Jiang Yan Hai deflected her questions, while Li Ruo Bai defended him and let Su Ya Xuan continue probing.

• Su Ya Xuan used a restroom break to give Li Ruo Bai and Jiang Yan Hai time together and gauge how they treated her afterward.
• Su Ya Xuan decided to go sightseeing immediately, and Jiang Yan Hai handled her probing questions throughout their meal.
• After the meal, Li Ruo Bai called out Su Ya Xuan for repeatedly testing Jiang Yan Hai, but refused to tell her anything about him.
• Jiang Yan Hai drove the cousins toward the Great Wall, and Su Ya Xuan asked whether he and Li Ruo Bai had taken leave from school to pick her up.
• Jiang Yan Hai said Li Ruo Bai had to pick up her cousin and noted that Su Ya Xuan had not told her in advance that she was returning.

Jiang Yan Hai drove Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan to Badaling, where he impressed them and other tourists with his detailed knowledge of the Great Wall. The chapter ended with a history teacher praising his accuracy and a nearby guide deciding to let him keep explaining.

• Su Ya Xuan urged Jiang Yan Hai to spend time entertaining her, and he said he could take only a week off work.
• Li Ruo Bai changed the subject to Su Ya Xuan’s life in Britain after their playful exchange made Su Ya Xuan suspect they were flirting.
• Jiang Yan Hai took Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan to Badaling and explained the Great Wall’s history and military purposes.
• Other tourists gathered to listen to Jiang Yan Hai, and a history teacher confirmed that his explanation was accurate.
• A nearby guide abandoned his plan to criticize Jiang Yan Hai and decided that letting him explain would save effort while still earning money.

Jiang Yan Hai carried Li Ruo Bai down from Badaling while Su Ya Xuan struggled to keep up, and the three shared a meal before returning to Li Ruo Bai’s home. After Su Ya Xuan teased her about the unmade bedrooms, Li Ruo Bai explained that Jiang Yan Hai had respected her choice to wait before taking their relationship further.

• Jiang Yan Hai carried Li Ruo Bai down Badaling while Su Ya Xuan complained about being left to walk.
• Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan traded teasing remarks as they ate dinner and discussed where Su Ya Xuan would stay.
• Su Ya Xuan noticed that only the master bedroom had been made up and assumed Li Ruo Bai and Jiang Yan Hai had slept together.
• Li Ruo Bai told Su Ya Xuan that nothing had happened between them and that Jiang Yan Hai was willing to wait until she had made up her mind.

Jiang Yan Hai prepared snacks and an intricately carved fruit platter for Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan, delighting both sisters. Su Ya Xuan cut off contact with someone who had been pursuing Li Ruo Bai, then joined the others downstairs and questioned Jiang Yan Hai about his carving skills.

• Jiang Yan Hai made chicken strips, fries, sugared tomatoes, juice, and a fruit platter while Li Ruo Bai came downstairs to keep him company.
• Su Ya Xuan messaged someone that Li Ruo Bai already had a loving partner, told them not to contact her again, and deleted them as a friend.
• Li Ruo Bai delighted in Jiang Yan Hai's snacks and kissed him after he revealed the fruit platter as a gift.
• Su Ya Xuan came downstairs, admired the fruit animals, and asked how Jiang Yan Hai had learned to carve so skillfully.
• Jiang Yan Hai seriously explained that carving practiced the dexterity, eyesight, patience, and concentration needed to fly a plane.

Su Ya Xuan admired Jiang Yan Hai’s fruit carvings while Li Ruo Bai teased her and made clear she planned to marry him. The next morning, Li Ruo Bai startled Jiang Yan Hai during his workout, and he collapsed after looking up at her revealing outfit.

• Su Ya Xuan praised Jiang Yan Hai’s intricate fruit carvings and asked him to make her keepsakes, but Li Ruo Bai refused on his behalf.
• Li Ruo Bai warned Su Ya Xuan to tell anyone who contacted her that her earlier involvement with him had only been a joke, then quarreled with her over the carved fruit.
• That night, Li Ruo Bai chose to sleep beside Jiang Yan Hai rather than with Su Ya Xuan and listened to his heartbeat as they fell asleep.
• The next morning, Jiang Yan Hai prepared breakfast for Li Ruo Bai and exercised while the two sisters were still asleep.
• Li Ruo Bai came downstairs and joked about sitting on Jiang Yan Hai during his push-ups, but he looked up, lost his strength, and fell.

Jiang Yan Hai took Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan on a road trip south from the capital, giving Li Ruo Bai a rare chance to travel with him. Five days into the trip, an important call reached Jiang Yan Hai as they headed toward Zhumadian.

• Li Ruo Bai told Jiang Yan Hai she had wanted a road trip with him, and he agreed to spend the rest of his vacation traveling with her.
• Li Ruo Bai invited Su Ya Xuan along, and the three set off in a G65 with Jiang Yan Hai driving and Er Dan planning their sightseeing.
• Over five days, they traveled south at an easy pace, and Su Ya Xuan came to believe Jiang Yan Hai genuinely loved Li Ruo Bai rather than pursuing her family’s money.
• Li Ruo Bai suggested staying in Zhumadian that night, but Jiang Yan Hai received an important call and reported that they had just passed Luohe Service Area on the G4 Beijing-Hong Kong-Macao Expressway.

Jiang Yan Hai received an urgent military summons while driving Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan, then reached an expressway where a J10 had landed. After the pilot handed over the aircraft, Jiang Yan Hai took off down the expressway in the fighter jet.

• Jiang Yan Hai received orders to reach a point past the Zhumadian expressway exit within an hour and left Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan in the car.
• Jiang Yan Hai drove along the emergency lane through a traffic jam until police officers let him approach the roadblock.
• A J10 fighter jet landed on the expressway, leaving Su Ya Xuan stunned as Jiang Yan Hai drove toward it.
• Jiang Yan Hai said goodbye to Li Ruo Bai, then exchanged clothes with the pilot and put on an Anti-G Suit.
• Jiang Yan Hai climbed into the J10C, started it with Er Dan's help, and accelerated down the expressway.

Jiang Yan Hai left Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan under Sparrow’s protection and flew to Overlord Wolf Base for an emergency mission briefing. He was assigned to lead a squadron escorting a civilian airliner carrying special cargo from Africa, with orders to ensure it returned safely to their country.

• Jiang Yan Hai took off in a J10C and flew at supersonic speed toward Overlord Wolf Base, while Li Ruo Bai and Su Ya Xuan departed with their security escort, Sparrow.
• Sparrow told Li Ruo Bai that she would be responsible for her personal security and warned both women to keep the day’s events confidential.
• Jiang Yan Hai reached Overlord Wolf Base and learned that the mission was to escort a civilian airliner carrying special cargo from Africa through Mabu Country, where hostile forces might attack it.
• Jiang Yan Hai changed into his flight equipment and was named flight lead of the Ghost squadron, with Peregrine Falcon and Magpie as his wingmen.

Jiang Yan Hai led Peregrine Falcon and Magpie in three J20s to escort a civilian airliner returning from Africa, preparing to enter the other side's airspace. After spotting the target formation, Ghost Squad jettisoned its external fuel tanks and turned toward the assigned route.

• Jiang Yan Hai saw six stars painted beneath his J20's cockpit and recognized that the escort mission demanded a flawless performance.
• Jiang Yan Hai and the two pilots took off as Ghost Squad, rendezvoused with Eagle Eye and Blaze Squad, and descended into Area B3.
• Magpie asked Jiang Yan Hai about combat, and Jiang Yan Hai told him to trust their aircraft and their training.
• Jiang Yan Hai detected a KJ-2000, its two fighter escorts, and six more fighters in the target airspace.
• Eagle Eye ordered Ghost Squad to jettison its external fuel tanks and enter the other side's airspace, and Jiang Yan Hai led the turn toward the assigned route.

Jiang Yan Hai’s Ghost Squad carried out an ultra-low-altitude approach as eight F16s moved to intercept the civilian airliner. The opposing force prepared to attack Eagle Eye and ordered its fighters into close-range combat, leaving the confrontation on the verge of open hostilities.

• Eagle Eye detected eight approaching F16s while the primary target remained 100 kilometers away.
• Jiang Yan Hai ordered Peregrine Falcon and Magpie to descend to altitude 50 and approach the enemy at ultra-low altitude.
• Eagle Eye warned the F16s to leave the exercise airspace, and the opposing fighters claimed they were patrolling to stop a suspected terrorist hijacking.
• The secret-base commander ordered Hyena Squad to continue toward close-range combat and directed Hurricane 1 and Hurricane 2 to shoot down Eagle Eye.
• Hyena Squad acknowledged the order as both sides prepared for an imminent clash.

Jiang Yan Hai tailed two enemy stealth fighters as they approached the Eagle Eye Early Warning Aircraft, then shot them down after they launched missiles. The engagement continued as Peregrine Falcon and Magpie joined the main battlefield and fired missiles.

• Jiang Yan Hai detected two stealth fighters on radar and led Peregrine Falcon and Magpie through a valley to get behind them.
• Jiang Yan Hai warned Eagle Eye that the enemy fighters were approaching and sent Peregrine Falcon and Magpie to assist the nearby formation.
• The secret-base commander authorized Hurricane Squad to attack Eagle Eye, and the two fighters launched four air-to-air missiles.
• Jiang Yan Hai fired two short-range missiles at Hurricane 1 and Hurricane 2, destroying both fighters before their pilots could eject.
• Peregrine Falcon and Magpie appeared over the main battlefield and launched two medium-range missiles each.

Jiang Yan Hai, Ghost Squad, and the pilots guided by Eagle Eye destroyed the enemy fighters and protected the civilian airliner, while the opposing commander prepared a cover story about the battle. The airliner crossed the border safely and was diverted to Overlord Wolf Air Force Base as passengers learned they had been in danger.

• Peregrine Falcon, Magpie, and Jiang Yan Hai launched missiles that destroyed the enemy fighters, while Eagle Eye jammed missiles aimed at its aircraft.
• Eagle Eye ordered the surviving fighters to escort the airliner and told them to describe the battle as an aerial training exercise.
• At a secret base, the enemy commander ordered rescue helicopters to recover pilots and drafted a false report blaming terrorists in Mabu Country.
• Jiang Yan Hai and the other fighters returned home as the airliner crossed the border and was directed to land at Overlord Wolf Air Force Base.
• The captain told passengers that unrest in Mabu Country had put the plane in danger and that it would land at a secret Air Force Base.

Jiang Yan Hai and the pilots covered up the air battle as a heroic sacrifice by two American F22 pilots and a Mabu Country Air Force victory. The United States agreed to pay for the losses, and Jiang Yan Hai arranged for two hundred million dollars to be transferred to his side.

• After the airliner refueled at a Gobi Desert base and departed, Jiang Yan Hai and the other pilots landed and went to the combat analysis room.
• The briefing described the battle as terrorists using stolen F16s attacking a civilian airliner, with two American F22 pilots sacrificing themselves to protect its passengers.
• Jiang Yan Hai proposed that Mabu Country demand four hundred million dollars from the United States for two lost fighters, while offering to donate half toward rebuilding the base.
• The American commander obtained authorization and agreed to transfer the money, asking Mabu Country to keep the matter from escalating.
• Jiang Yan Hai told the communications soldier to provide an account for two hundred million dollars and thank the United States in the name of the Mabu Country Air Force.