Chapter Summaries

Jiang Yan Hai infiltrated surveillance systems and NASA-linked satellites, gaining access to civilian satellite communications while monitoring the dormant Super Virus and the Stealth Bomb virus. After moving to Chu Ying’s hotel, he discovered that someone armed with a pistol was watching her room.

• Jiang Yan Hai scanned the area, infiltrated nearby private surveillance cameras, and continued searching for Ma Yun Fei.
• Jiang Yan Hai used botnets to access NASA’s servers and found the dormant Super Virus and the Stealth Bomb virus still operating in the United States.
• Jiang Yan Hai took control of a civilian communications satellite and connected his phone to satellite communications.
• Jiang Yan Hai checked out of his hotel, booked a room across from Chu Ying, and received a warning from Er Dan about someone with a pistol outside her room.
• Jiang Yan Hai entered his room and concluded that Chu Ying had been targeted by someone who was not one of her bodyguards.

Jiang Yan Hai spotted a highly trained bald man while waiting for Chu Ying’s court verdict, then saved her from a car attack and shot at the killers. The attackers remained inside the stopped SUV as Jiang Yan Hai faced them with his pistol.

• Jiang Yan Hai monitored Chu Ying and her watcher while preparing for her final court verdict.
• Er Dan detected a heavily trained European man with a barcode tattoo, and Jiang Yan Hai ordered surveillance to track him and Ma Yun Fei.
• Chu Ying left the courthouse and dismissed her two bodyguards, saying the Chu Family’s era had ended.
• A black SUV driven by Chu Ying’s hotel neighbor sped toward her, but Jiang Yan Hai pulled her out of its path.
• Several attackers emerged from the SUV, and Jiang Yan Hai shot two of them before wounding another who fired from a window.

Jiang Yan Hai rescued Chu Ying from an assassination attempt and escaped with her while Er Dan managed surveillance and the vehicles. After telling Chu Ying that he had promised her father to keep her safe, he took her away in a Toyota, leaving her wondering whether he had teammates.

• Jiang Yan Hai killed Chu Ying's two bodyguards when one of them raised a hand, then drove her away as military police and police cars pursued them.
• Jiang Yan Hai evaded the police and learned from Er Dan that Mr. Sha was likely at the Golden Triangle Special Zone prison.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Chu Ying he had promised her father to protect her and took her to his hotel room to retrieve her belongings.
• Jiang Yan Hai had Chu Ying change into an androgynous outfit, then left the hotel with her without checking out.
• Jiang Yan Hai drove Chu Ying to a Toyota that opened automatically, and Er Dan started the car as Chu Ying wondered whether Jiang Yan Hai had teammates.

Jiang Yan Hai arranged for Chu Ying to receive new documents and resettle in China under the name Chu Yingying. After bringing her supplies and documents at the rundown villa, he asked whether she was willing to leave, and Chu Ying challenged him about his intentions.

• Jiang Yan Hai took Chu Ying to the rundown villa, gave her food and water, and photographed her before calling Gao Gang.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Gao Gang about Chu Ying’s connection to Lu Yun Fei and arranged for her to get documents to live in China.
• Gao Gang agreed to help, and Jiang Yan Hai chose the name Chu Yingying and planned to take her to the border that night.
• Fang Xinwu brought Jiang Yan Hai a waist bag containing Chu Ying’s official documents.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Chu Ying whether she was willing to live in China, and she said she had little choice and teased him about whether he was a bad man.

Jiang Yan Hai gave Chu Ying new identification and helped her escape across the border, where Gao Gang took her in. On his return to the Golden Triangle Special Zone, he learned that Mr. Sha had been assassinated in prison and began tracking the Barcode Killer.

• Jiang Yan Hai gave Chu Ying a complete set of new documents and told her she could choose her own future, while warning her that Lu Yun Fei had a family and they could never be together.
• Chu Ying burned her old documents and left with Jiang Yan Hai, heading north toward the border.
• At the border, Chu Ying asked Jiang Yan Hai his name, hugged him goodbye, and crossed safely to meet Gao Gang.
• Jiang Yan Hai returned to the Golden Triangle Special Zone and learned from Fang Xinwu that Mr. Sha and thirty-six others had been killed in prison by a professional assassin.
• Jiang Yan Hai warned Fang Xinwu to stay safe and asked Er Dan to find the Barcode Killer's last known location.

Jiang Yan Hai learned that Mr. Sha had been killed and began investigating Ma Yun Fei, whose ties to a powerful organization made the killing more suspicious. He discovered Ma Yun Fei was negotiating to take control of the Golden Triangle with outside backing, and learned the organization wanted information about a woman named Mei.

• Jiang Yan Hai concluded that the bald man had killed Mr. Sha and wondered why the killers had targeted him.
• Jiang Yan Hai returned to the Golden Triangle Special Zone, left Chu Yingying's car behind, and went to watch Ma Yun Fei.
• Jiang Yan Hai followed Ma Yun Fei and two men, hacked their phones, and listened to Ma Yun Fei speak with Mr. Locke.
• Ma Yun Fei offered sixty percent of his profits to Mr. Locke's organization and asked for weapons support to seize control of the Golden Triangle.
• Mr. Locke said arms manager Krain could contact Ma Yun Fei and asked him to investigate a Chinese woman named Mei on Lipe Island in Thailand.

Jiang Yan Hai tracked Ma Yun Fei’s contact Locke and learned that Ma Yun Fei planned to take over the Golden Triangle drug trade with outside support. He then traveled in disguise to Lipe Island to investigate Mei, who Krain appeared to be targeting.

• Jiang Yan Hai photographed Locke and sent his image and information to China after Locke left his meeting with Ma Yun Fei.
• Director Qiao and Fan Tian Lei assessed Locke as a low-level contact and decided to leave Ma Yun Fei’s plans alone unless they threatened China.
• Jiang Yan Hai received no reply from China and chose to continue acting on his own.
• Jiang Yan Hai learned that Krain intended to deal with Mei and arranged to travel from Chiang Mai to Phuket.
• Jiang Yan Hai used satellite imagery to locate Lipe Island and obtain a photo of Mei, then disguised himself and hired a speedboat to reach the island.

Jiang Yan Hai arrived on Koh Lipe to investigate Mei and Krain, but unexpectedly encountered Arthur, who was also heading to the island. As suspicious people gathered around them, Jiang Yan Hai watched from the sidelines and saw a man beating the blonde woman aboard a yacht.

• Jiang Yan Hai noticed armed men on boats near Koh Lipe and suspected they had been sent by Krain.
• Jiang Yan Hai recognized Arthur on another boat, but Arthur did not recognize him in disguise.
• Mei welcomed Jiang Yan Hai to the island and arranged a cabin for him, while Arthur stayed in a separate cabin.
• Jiang Yan Hai detected satellite network communications near Arthur's cabin and spotted armed people on a yacht.
• A blonde woman with bruises asked island residents for first-aid medicine and went to see Mei, while Arthur watched her with binoculars.
• That night, Jiang Yan Hai watched from his window as a man beat the blonde woman on the yacht.

Jiang Yan Hai secretly approached Arthur after Arthur disposed of a man and brought a blonde woman back to his house. The two former acquaintances recognized each other on a secluded beach, and Jiang Yan Hai explained that he was tracking a possible assassin organization connected to the Barcode Killer.

• Mei and Arthur took boats to the yacht, and Arthur later sent it out to sea, where it exploded.
• Mei brought a blonde woman to Arthur's house, and Arthur asked Mei whether the nearby tourist had heard what happened.
• Jiang Yan Hai quietly left his room and lured Arthur to a secluded beach for a private conversation.
• Jiang Yan Hai revealed that he was the man who had stopped Arthur from faking his death in Buenos Aires, and Arthur recognized him.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked about Krain and explained that he was tracking an organization possibly connected to the Barcode Killer.
• Arthur warned Jiang Yan Hai that the Barcode Killer's organization was dangerous, and Jiang Yan Hai said they could not defeat him.

Arthur explained the Syndicate’s origins, its former intelligence agents, and its genetically modified Barcode Killers to Jiang Yan Hai. Jiang Yan Hai asked whether the Syndicate was behind a mysterious organization seeking a powerful ore, but Arthur ruled it out, leaving the ore organization unidentified.

• Arthur told Jiang Yan Hai that the Syndicate had recruited former intelligence agents, many of whom had been targeted after the CIA’s Operation Stone was exposed.
• Arthur explained that the Barcode Killers belonged to another Syndicate branch and had undergone genetic modification and childhood training.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked Arthur about the organization behind Krain and the powerful ore discovered in southern Africa around 1998.
• Arthur recognized the ore but said he had only heard that a small-time arms dealer had tried to buy it and that the CIA later dealt with him.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked whether the Syndicate could have been behind the ore deal, and Arthur said the organization’s focus on assassination made that unlikely.

Jiang Yan Hai learned that the Mechanist Association was investigating Mei and grooming Krain as an outside operative, while Krain sought to eliminate his competitors in the arms trade. After discussing Arthur’s past and the Association’s methods, Jiang Yan Hai left to continue his investigation.

• Jiang Yan Hai asked Arthur about a dark-web network, and Arthur gave him its address while promising to sponsor his registration later.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Arthur that the organization was investigating Mei and recruiting Krain to help him unify the global arms market.
• Arthur explained that Krain had been his fellow child soldier and might be targeting him because he had escaped without taking Krain along.
• Arthur described the Mechanist Association and its practice of making murders appear accidental, drawing on research by insurance companies.
• Jiang Yan Hai concluded that Krain wanted Arthur’s methods to disguise his competitors’ deaths and that a woman had tried to manipulate Arthur into helping.
• Arthur said he had already rescued the woman, and Jiang Yan Hai left through the seawater after telling him to return to her.

Jiang Yan Hai examined the intelligence site's layered security and decided to help Arthur covertly, then returned to Phuket and told Fan Tian Lei and Director Qiao what he had learned about Arthur and the assassin organizations. He left further details unexplained as he began briefing them on the Syndicate.

• Jiang Yan Hai used the Electronic Warfare Program to inspect the intelligence site's redirects and concluded that breaking into its servers would be difficult and unlikely to reveal much.
• He decided to help Arthur from the shadows, then spent another day on the island and arranged how they would stay in contact before leaving.
• After returning to Phuket, Jiang Yan Hai called Fan Tian Lei and spoke with him and Director Qiao about the Syndicate and the Mechanist Association.
• Jiang Yan Hai explained that Arthur, whom he had met during training in South America, was a Mechanist and had told him about the Syndicate.

Jiang Yan Hai secured intelligence support from Director Qiao and Fan Tian Lei and requested files on Krain’s competitors in the arms trade. After reviewing the files, he realized Krain was preparing to enter the lucrative black-market arms business.

• Director Qiao and Fan Tian Lei reviewed intelligence on the Syndicate and the Mechanist Association, and Fan Tian Lei questioned whether Arthur could be trusted.
• Jiang Yan Hai vouched for Arthur and asked Fan Tian Lei for information on Krain’s competitors, saying he would provide intelligence support without appearing directly.
• Fan Tian Lei agreed to send the files through a special channel, and Jiang Yan Hai accessed them from an encrypted server.
• Jiang Yan Hai read files on Krill, Cook, and Max Adams, three arms dealers who competed in the black market.
• Jiang Yan Hai concluded that Krain planned to enter the arms trade, where established markets were difficult to break into.

Jiang Yan Hai planned to kill Krill in the Malaysian prison by exploiting a coming supply delivery and the prison officer responsible for it. After gathering information and preparing his approach, he left the officer’s hospitalized wife unharmed but exposed to a calculated risk.

• Jiang Yan Hai studied Krill’s prison records and habits, then decided he could arrange Krill’s death as an apparent accident.
• Jiang Yan Hai traveled to Penang and learned that the prison’s next supply delivery was due in two days.
• Jiang Yan Hai investigated the officer overseeing the delivery and found that the officer’s wife was hospitalized.
• Jiang Yan Hai hacked local communications and hospital surveillance, scanned the wife, and left after planning to use her in his scheme.

Jiang Yan Hai set a plan in motion to draw Handuya away from a police supply transport by staging a medical emergency for Handuya’s wife and manipulating their communications. The nearest officer assigned to replace Handuya was the one Jiang Yan Hai had planted in the system.

• Jiang Yan Hai found Handuya’s wife’s medical records and tricked Handuya into replying to a fake carrier promotion so Er Dan could intercept his messages.
• While Arthur and Gina continued their plan on Lipe Island, Jiang Yan Hai injected a drug into Handuya’s wife’s IV, triggering the hospital’s emergency response.
• Jiang Yan Hai intercepted the hospital’s call to Handuya, then had Er Dan imitate the nurse and notify him that his wife was critically ill.
• Jiang Yan Hai changed into a police uniform and left for the target location as Er Dan intercepted Handuya’s radio traffic and relayed his request for a replacement officer.
• Police headquarters approved a replacement and named the nearest eligible officer; Er Dan confirmed that the officer’s name and call sign matched the identity Jiang Yan Hai had planted.

Jiang Yan Hai sabotaged a water shipment intended for Krill, then met Arthur in Penang and supplied him with equipment and intelligence for infiltrating the prison where Krill was held. Arthur learned Jiang Yan Hai had anticipated his request and proposed that he become his assistant.

• Jiang Yan Hai secretly poured a concentrated drug into the freshwater tank bound for the ship carrying supplies to Krill.
• Arthur called Jiang Yan Hai from Penang and told him Krain had ordered him to kill Krill, who was being held in a Malaysian prison.
• Jiang Yan Hai delivered the contaminated water tank to the docks and completed the supply handover under Handuya's name.
• Jiang Yan Hai met Arthur at a rundown inn and gave him shark repellent, explosives, a pill, and detailed information about Krill and the prison.
• Jiang Yan Hai suggested Arthur pose as a wanted criminal to get sent to Krill's prison, and Arthur offered him a job as his assistant.

Jiang Yan Hai prepared Arthur to carry out a prison assassination, then left for Sydney to pursue the final target. By the time he reached the city, he had hacked the municipal building’s surveillance systems and obtained its blueprints.

• Arthur reviewed Jiang Yan Hai’s detailed prison information and agreed to use his plan and the prepared drug.
• Jiang Yan Hai gave Arthur a temporary tattoo, adjusted his disguise, and handed him the prepared identification materials.
• Jiang Yan Hai left Arthur, disposed of his police and doctor disguises, returned his motorcycle, and booked a flight to Sydney.
• After arriving in Sydney, Jiang Yan Hai checked Er Dan’s progress and infiltrated the city’s communications servers.
• Jiang Yan Hai hacked the municipal building’s archives and surveillance systems, obtaining its structural plans and control of its cameras.

Jiang Yan Hai took control of Max Adams's fortress security system and watched Arthur escape prison after saving Krill, only for Arthur to find that Krill was still alive and his handlers were demanding results. Jiang Yan Hai left Arthur to face the situation and went sightseeing in Sydney.

• Jiang Yan Hai discovered a hidden backdoor in Max Adams's security system and gained control of the fortress and submarine base.
• Jiang Yan Hai monitored Arthur's prison infiltration, and Arthur spent three days blending in before saving Krill from an attempted attack.
• Arthur escaped by blasting a hole in the prison wall and jumping from the cliff into the sea.
• The fishing boat crew found Arthur waiting aboard, and Arthur demanded to speak with Krain while explaining that Krill might die within two hours.
• Krain gave Arthur two hours to prove Krill would die before allowing him to speak with Gina, and Arthur wondered why he trusted Jiang Yan Hai so much.
• Jiang Yan Hai stopped watching Arthur and went to see the Sydney Opera House.

Jiang Yan Hai observed life in Sydney while Arthur called on him to help kill Cook. With Jiang’s surveillance records and guidance, Arthur carried out a poolside attack that swept Cook out with the collapsing glass, then escaped.

• Jiang Yan Hai explored Sydney and studied local customs and daily life.
• Arthur learned that Krill had died, and Krain arranged a video call between Arthur and Gina.
• Arthur called Jiang Yan Hai for help killing Cook, but Jiang said Arthur could handle it himself and offered Cook’s routine and building plans.
• Arthur copied an apartment key, prepared an explosive compound, and entered the building while Cook was swimming.
• Arthur shattered the pool’s glass bottom, and the escaping water swept Cook out of the pool.
• Arthur restored the apartment and escaped while Jiang Yan Hai watched the incident through the cameras.

Jiang Yan Hai helped Arthur reach Max and eliminate Krain, then met Arthur in Phnom Penh to register on an intelligence-trading website. Arthur warned Jiang Yan Hai that the people behind his mission were ruthless before they parted.

• Jiang Yan Hai gave Arthur information about Krain and disabled Max's security system so Arthur could approach Max.
• Arthur entered Max's safe house, held him at gunpoint, and secured his cooperation against Krain.
• Arthur told Jiang Yan Hai that Krain was dead and that he might have to disappear to avoid trouble from the Syndicate.
• Arthur vouched for Jiang Yan Hai on an intelligence-trading website, and Jiang Yan Hai funded his account through a European game payment.
• Arthur warned Jiang Yan Hai that his enemies would do anything, then left.