Chapter Summaries

Li Ruo Bai told Jiang Yan Hai about a new chip material and said researchers could already meet Phantom’s ultimate performance specifications, though chip limitations were holding back an upgrade. The chapter ended with Jiang Yan Hai calling Professor Liu to discuss the matter.

• Li Ruo Bai described a new, malleable material with high electron mobility and said her institute was still improving its formula before mass production.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked whether the material could make new chips, and Li Ruo Bai explained that existing machines could use it but the material still needed more research.
• Li Ruo Bai told Jiang Yan Hai that researchers could meet Phantom’s ultimate performance specifications, but chip computing power remained the main obstacle to upgrading it.
• Li Ruo Bai said domestic scientific research had advanced rapidly, especially in materials science.
• Li Ruo Bai went downstairs to talk with Jiang Yan Hai’s mother, and Jiang Yan Hai called Professor Liu, who asked whether he had talked with her.

Jiang Yan Hai discussed Li Ruo Bai’s abilities and the growing difficulty of keeping Great Qin secret with Old Liu, then decided to report her for work there. He warned Li Ruo Bai that joining would draw her away from ordinary life, but she said she wanted to serve the country and become like him.

• Old Liu praised Li Ruo Bai’s research talent and told Jiang Yan Hai she had developed the new chip architecture herself.
• Jiang Yan Hai asked whether Li Ruo Bai could go to Great Qin, and Old Liu explained that its expanding workforce would make secrecy increasingly difficult to maintain.
• Jiang Yan Hai decided to submit a report and take Li Ruo Bai to Great Qin so their research could progress faster.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Li Ruo Bai that joining would mean giving up an ordinary life, and she affirmed that she wanted to work for the country like him.

Jiang Yan Hai agreed to bring Li Ruo Bai into the country’s chip research efforts and arranged for her to see Great Qin so she could understand the work. After informing their families, he took her toward the Military Airport, leaving their destination undisclosed.

• Jiang Yan Hai called the Old Commander and proposed that Li Ruo Bai join their work on chips and related technologies.
• The Old Commander approved the plan and agreed that Li Ruo Bai could accompany Jiang Yan Hai to Great Qin after their first transaction.
• Jiang Yan Hai told Li Ruo Bai and her mother that he and Li Ruo Bai would be away for several days on confidential work.
• Jiang Yan Hai called Li Yun Feng to let him know they would be away, and Li Ruo Bai accepted that she might no longer be able to live an ordinary life.
• Jiang Yan Hai bought supplies with Li Ruo Bai and, with Hound driving, headed to the Military Airport to board a transport plane.

Li Ruo Bai and Jiang Yan Hai flew to Base No. 9, discussing the new Yun-30 and her military rank along the way. Jiang Yan Hai explained that the supplies they bought were for an orphan he had rescued, and they continued toward the actual base by supply vehicle.

• Li Ruo Bai told Jiang Yan Hai that the Yun-30 was nearing production and described its capabilities and the avionics work her team had done.
• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai exchanged salutes, and Li Ruo Bai explained that she was a genuine major in a technical military role.
• Li Ruo Bai asked about the supplies, and Jiang Yan Hai said they were for an orphaned girl he had rescued.
• Li Ruo Bai slept during the flight, then she and Jiang Yan Hai arrived at Base No. 9 and continued toward the actual base by supply vehicle.
• Experts at the base continued assessing how they might eventually remove the Teleportation Gate from inside the mountain.

Jiang Yan Hai brought Li Ruo Bai to a secret base in the Qilian Mountains and revealed that it housed a Stargate connecting Earth to another civilized world. After crossing through it with her, they were greeted by He Zhi Jun at the Wolf Fang Special Operations Base.

• Li Ruo Bai realized that Jiang Yan Hai’s vehicle had entered a hidden military base inside the Qilian Mountains.
• Jiang Yan Hai explained that a mutated ore had led to the discovery of the Stargate.
• Jiang Yan Hai showed Li Ruo Bai the sixteen-meter Stargate and explained that it connected two civilized worlds.
• Jiang Yan Hai took Li Ruo Bai through the Stargate, where they encountered busy soldiers and greeted He Zhi Jun.

Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai arrived at the Wolf Fang Special Operations Base, where He Zhi Jun and Bai Zhipeng welcomed them and discussed the upcoming Operation Winter Chill. After settling into the newly built command center, Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai looked out over the growing military base and the surrounding new world.

• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai greeted He Zhi Jun and reunited with Bai Zhipeng at the base.
• He Zhi Jun told Jiang Yan Hai that Operation Winter Chill was scheduled for three days later, before a forecast cold wave froze the sea.
• Jiang Yan Hai learned that the operation would use submarines to destroy warships around the British Isles and protect the ice where Red Mad Wolf operated.
• He Zhi Jun took Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai through the snowy landscape to the new command center and showed them their suite.
• Jiang Yan Hai and Li Ruo Bai looked out from their room at the town walls, new roads, and expanding settlement.

Li Ruo Bai learned about the Great Qin world while Jiang Yan Hai returned to the command center to discuss next steps. After reviewing their satellite coverage and Red Mad Wolf breeding plans, Jiang Yan Hai said they could begin their operation.

• Li Ruo Bai asked whether the unfamiliar landscape was part of the universe, and Jiang Yan Hai explained that the world might be a parallel space called Great Qin.
• Jiang Yan Hai gave Li Ruo Bai a tablet containing information about Great Qin, then went to the command center.
• A major told Jiang Yan Hai that the global positioning and surveillance satellite network was operational and that no human settlements had been found beyond three locations.
• He Zhi Jun said they had established a captive breeding base for about fifty to a hundred Red Mad Wolves.
• Jiang Yan Hai said they could begin, and he told Bai Zhipeng that their country’s principles did not mean they would not fight back.

Jiang Yan Hai, He Zhi Jun, and Bai Zhipeng decided to destroy the walls of the mainland’s last two cities so the Red Mad Wolves would be driven toward the sea. He Zhi Jun ordered Operation Spring Thunder to begin, sending the Hou Yi the coordinates for an immediate attack.

• Jiang Yan Hai and Bai Zhipeng discussed the grim choice of killing people in the cities, and Bai Zhipeng said he was prepared to carry out the order.
• He Zhi Jun reported that the enemy fleets were drilling near the island and could break through the ice at any time.
• A major reported that only two mainland cities remained, with about 600,000 people, while roughly 2.5 million Red Mad Wolves remained.
• Jiang Yan Hai proposed destroying the cities’ walls to make the Red Mad Wolves cross the ocean, and He Zhi Jun and Bai Zhipeng agreed.
• He Zhi Jun ordered Operation Spring Thunder and directed the Hou Yi to attack the two cities’ walls using the supplied coordinates.

The Descendant carried out Operation Spring Thunder, launching missiles at the last two cities threatened by the Red Mad Wolves. The missiles struck Gaodu and Thorn, blasting through their walls as the attack began.

• The Descendant received orders to attack two targets and prepared its missiles using satellite data.
• The submarine launched four missiles, which climbed into the sky and turned toward Gaodu and Thorn.
• Guards Tom and another soldier spotted two incoming fireballs and sounded the alarm in Thorn.
• Two missiles struck beside and atop a city wall, unleashing explosions that destroyed a stretch of the wall.

Jiang Yan Hai’s forces destroyed the walls of two cities with cruise missiles, allowing the red mad wolves to overrun them. As the wolves flooded in, Jiang Yan Hai prepared his forces to advance and trap the survivors between his defensive lines and the sea.

• Two specially designed cruise missiles blasted enormous breaches in the walls of two cities surrounded by red mad wolves.
• The residents piled furniture and timber into the breaches, but the wolves charged in waves and broke through the makeshift barricades.
• Red mad wolves flooded both cities, overwhelming the defenders as more packs gathered nearby.
• Infrared reconnaissance satellites transmitted the invasions to Jiang Yan Hai and the others, who watched in silence before turning to their preparations.
• A major reported that four defensive lines, six temporary bases, and two advance units totaling five thousand personnel were in place to prevent the wolves from returning across the continent.
• Jiang Yan Hai accepted that his forces would advance after dawn and close the encirclement, leaving the red mad wolves only the sea or destruction as options.

Jiang Yan Hai and He Zhi Jun discussed how to eliminate the Red Mad Wolves and prevent them from breeding, despite having only 5,000 soldiers to cover the vast forest. Jiang Yan Hai proposed setting fires around the wolf packs if other measures failed, and He Zhi Jun ordered the front lines to prepare.

• A major reported that the Red Mad Wolves might disappear into the remaining wildlife if they escaped, making them impossible to track.
• Jiang Yan Hai and He Zhi Jun agreed that if they could not kill every wolf, they should eliminate the females and cubs to stop the pack from breeding.
• Jiang Yan Hai studied a map and saw that the wolves were concentrated in forests beyond farmland surrounding two coastal cities.
• Jiang Yan Hai suggested using incendiary bombs to set the forest on fire if necessary, and He Zhi Jun and Bai Zhipeng accepted the plan.
• He Zhi Jun ordered the front lines to prepare, while Red Mad Wolves continued searching through both cities as dawn approached.

The Red Mad Wolves overran two cities before fleets from the British Isles could intervene, while Jiang Yan Hai and the five-thousand-strong force continued advancing across the mainland. The British fleet prepared to defend against the wolves, unaware that an Attack Nuclear Submarine had targeted its ships.

• The fleets across the strait arrived too late to save the two cities, and their crews watched as the Red Mad Wolves overran the residents.
• Two days later, the Red Mad Wolves gathered along the coast, allowing Jiang Yan Hai and the others to advance past them along ancient roads.
• The five thousand troops used drones, satellite support, modern weapons, and Attack Nuclear Submarine support to monitor and hold off the wolf packs as they advanced.
• The British Isles learned that the mainland's people had been wiped out, and their commanders planned to break up winter ice to keep the wolves from reaching the islands.
• An Attack Nuclear Submarine targeted the British fleet, which included eighteen large warships, while its crew carried 128 Cruise Missiles and Anti-ship Missiles.
• The chapter explained that the submarine's missiles were retired domestic models, as Earth prepared to replace its missile systems with designs using Ivan's solid rocket engines.

A submarine destroyed the British Isles’ warships and fishing fleet, leaving the island vulnerable as Red Mad Wolves gathered near the frozen strait. Two days later, Jiang Yan Hai and the others learned the strait was close to freezing over completely while a three-day storm threatened boats pushed out onto the sea.

• The captain fired twenty torpedoes at the harbor’s large vessels, then launched four thermobaric missiles that set the wooden fishing-boat docks ablaze.
• The captain ordered the submarine to dive as people across the British Isles watched the destruction, and Red Mad Wolves howled at the firelight along the shore.
• The submarine and drones continued monitoring the Red Mad Wolves as they advanced across the growing sea ice, then stopped where open water blocked their path.
• Two days later, a major reported to Jiang Yan Hai and the others that sea ice had nearly joined across the strait and dozens of fishing boats had been pushed out toward a three-day storm.

After the Red Mad Wolves migrated across the frozen strait and overran the British Isles, He Zhi Jun’s troops and supply fleet prepared to reopen the route. Jiang Yan Hai proposed using two low-cost nuclear detonations to destroy the ice, leaving the group to consider his plan.

• Drones detected Red Mad Wolf packs crossing the frozen strait, and the first wave reached the island at night.
• Giant female wolves called the remaining packs forward, and the Red Mad Wolves migrated across the strait until the British Isles were completely overrun.
• He Zhi Jun ordered the rear troops to advance as an eleven-ship Nuclear Power supply fleet, including an icebreaker, arrived near the coast.
• A major estimated that keeping the strait clear would require three or four bombardments and around four hundred missiles.
• Jiang Yan Hai proposed placing two nuclear bombs on the ice to destroy it more cheaply than using Cruise Missiles.
• Jiang Yan Hai explained that nuclear warheads were inexpensive compared with the missiles and vehicles used to deliver them.

He Zhi Jun secured approval to transport nuclear warheads for use against the red mad wolves, but a report of a strange discovery near the collapsed Stargate at Penglai Peninsula disrupted Jiang Yan Hai’s plans. Uneasy about the creature preserved inside a huge amber-like crystal, Jiang Yan Hai decided to go investigate.

• He Zhi Jun obtained approval to send nuclear warheads, and a transport plane departed with two while frontline troops prepared the site and planned to withdraw ahead of the blast.
• An alarm announced that staff at Penglai Peninsula had reported a Level One incident, and He Zhi Jun explained that it involved a discovery requiring investigation.
• Jiang Yan Hai watched a video of a cave near the collapsed Stargate, where murals showed unfamiliar monsters and a large amber-like crystal contained a creature resembling one of them.
• Jiang Yan Hai volunteered to travel to Penglai Peninsula and ordered the site sealed while He Zhi Jun agreed to report the development.
• Jiang Yan Hai’s recent time at the base with Li Ruo Bai and Dai Yuan ended with Li Ruo Bai and Dai Yuan playing video games together.

Jiang Yan Hai investigated a newly discovered cave near the Star Gate collapse site on Penglai Peninsula, where Er Dan detected ore from the Star Gate’s construction materials. The cave also contained murals and a huge amber-like object holding a small monster, but Professor Zhou had only reached preliminary conclusions.

• Jiang Yan Hai left Li Ruo Bai and Dai Yuan at home and traveled to the temporary base on Penglai Peninsula.
• A major led Jiang Yan Hai through an excavated cave and explained that machinery had uncovered a sealed side passage.
• Er Dan detected ore from the Star Gate construction material sequence, and Jiang Yan Hai ordered it to be absorbed.
• Jiang Yan Hai entered the passage with soldiers and found murals and a huge amber-like object containing a monster.
• Professor Zhou told Jiang Yan Hai that the cave seemed to be between seven hundred and eleven hundred years old and that the object was unlikely to be natural amber.

Jiang Yan Hai learned that the crystal cave contained a second type of Star Gate energy, which raised his commander authority to major general and unlocked several upgraded systems. During his return to headquarters, Er Dan explained that the new systems could analyze materials, simulate objects and experiments, and manipulate Star Gates.

• Jiang Yan Hai confirmed with Professor Zhou that the crystal cave had no immediate dangers, though researchers could not tell whether its animal-like shapes contained actual organisms.
• Er Dan reported that absorbing the crystal yielded 822 points of Star Gate energy and raised Jiang Yan Hai’s authority by 2,000 points to major general.
• The Red Star Engine upgraded Jiang Yan Hai’s scanning and simulation systems and activated the Star Gate Analysis System, prompting him to hurry back to headquarters.
• Jiang Yan Hai boarded a transport plane and learned that the Data Analysis System could analyze scanned materials while the Illusion Simulation System could simulate objects, production lines, and experiments.
• Er Dan explained that the Star Gate Analysis System could manipulate Star Gates, including the Alpha 3 Type Invasive Star Gate, whose diameter could be increased by one meter for 50 points of special energy.

Jiang Yan Hai learned about Star Gate materials, construction costs, transmission limits, and cross-world inheritance from Er Dan. He arranged to analyze the Star Gate under the cover story that he had recently decrypted data from the Prophet’s opponents, and the scan began taking an hour.

• Jiang Yan Hai asked Er Dan how much energy it would take to change the Star Gate’s transmission method and learned it required 50,000 energy points.
• Er Dan explained that basic Star Gates could travel within a galaxy and that Star Gate materials existed across civilizations’ planetary systems.
• Jiang Yan Hai learned that mixed-blood children could travel between their parents’ worlds, but that cross-world couples had only a one-in-twenty chance of conceiving.
• Er Dan suggested Jiang Yan Hai claim he had decrypted information from the creators of the Mechanical Octopus to explain his Star Gate research.
• Jiang Yan Hai returned to the base and began analyzing the Star Gate, whose scan was expected to take an hour.

Jiang Yan Hai learned that the Star Gate contained coordinates for a rare symbiotic Star Gate leading to another world, which could provide the final material needed to build a basic Star Gate. He decided to prepare an explanation and instruments before expanding it, then contacted the highest Strategic Command Center.

• He Zhi Jun found Jiang Yan Hai studying the Star Gate, and Jiang Yan Hai told him he was comparing it with encrypted data and mural clues.
• Er Dan’s analysis identified the Star Gate as an Alpha 3 Type Invasive Star Gate with its connection chain severed and revealed coordinates for a symbiotic Star Gate.
• Er Dan explained that spending 500 energy points could expand a matching Star Gate to the symbiotic world, potentially providing the fifth type of Star Gate material ore.
• Jiang Yan Hai weighed the risks of an unknown civilization and the possible return of the Alpha-3 connection route, then decided to delay expansion until preparations were made.
• Er Dan offered to fabricate decipherable materials and instruments to support Jiang Yan Hai’s explanation, and Jiang Yan Hai returned to the command center, informed He Zhi Jun, and contacted the highest Strategic Command Center.

Jiang Yan Hai presented decrypted information about symbiotic Star Gates and urged the commanders to open one to the Great Qin world. The commanders adjourned to decide and promised him an answer within a day.

• Jiang Yan Hai told the commanders that Zakayev had protected a document containing information about Star Gates and a device that could activate Energy Ore.
• Jiang Yan Hai explained that the information described symbiotic Star Gates and suggested one connected to the world of the Mechanical Octopuses.
• Jiang Yan Hai said the device might help them access the Great Qin world, giving the Red Star nations another source of materials and technological advancement.
• After a two-hour meeting, Old Commander asked Jiang Yan Hai for his opinion, and Jiang Yan Hai urged them to proceed because people from the other world could not come through.
• The commanders confirmed that people from their side could travel through, then adjourned and said they would give Jiang Yan Hai a decision within one day.