Chapter Summaries

After learning about Eighth Order advancement and the struggle for territory, Qiu Tu sent Guan Xiao to the front lines while factions watched the Northwest Area battle. Qiu Tu then appeared before the Pseudo-Human army, and all eighty thousand-plus soldiers knelt to him, leaving Shu Xia and his followers stunned.

• Qiu Tu reviewed the requirements for becoming an Eighth Order Peak expert and a Heavenly God, and he and Zhao Ji agreed she would claim the Northwest Area's remaining areas while he expanded abroad.
• Qiu Tu promised Guan Xiao a reward for completing her task, and she hurried to the front lines to demonstrate her new ability.
• The factions in the Heavenly God Trial watched the Northwest Area battle, while Tian Qi and Kabaneri commented on the conflict and Shu Xia prepared to rescue Man Huang.
• Shu Xia and his followers saw Qiu Tu rise above the battlefield and order the Pseudo-Humans to kneel before the true god.
• All eighty thousand-plus Pseudo-Humans knelt and bowed toward Qiu Tu, astonishing Shu Xia and Siyuan Pavilion's reinforcements.

Qiu Tu convinced Liu Fuping that he opposed La Riluo’s threat to New Realm City and persuaded her to contact Director Liu about Jia Wei’s testimony. Afterward, Tang Feifei told him Jia Shu’s punishment had been decided, though the process differed from what they expected.

• Qiu Tu explained to Liu Fuping how an evil god could threaten humanity and claimed he had contacted La Riluo to help find her, restoring Liu Fuping’s trust and raising her loyalty to 97.
• Qiu Tu admitted to himself that most of his explanation was false and that he had contacted La Riluo because he feared for his safety.
• Qiu Tu asked Liu Fuping to use Jia Wei’s testimony to arrange a conversation with Director Liu, and she agreed to contact him.
• Tang Feifei called Qiu Tu and said Jia Shu would be removed from office, struck from the Shelter registry, stripped of his citizenship, and expelled from New Realm City the next morning, though the process differed from their expectations.

Qiu Tu persuaded Liu Fuping to involve Tang Feifei and gather compromising information, then recruited Qin Shuman’s help while arranging an autopsy for Yin Caimei. The normal autopsy findings strengthened his suspicion that a Calamity Ability or Calamity Item had caused her death, leaving him to wonder which powerful person was responsible.

• Qiu Tu told Liu Fuping to draw Tang Feifei into investigating the case and to collect evidence that could be used as leverage against her.
• Liu Fuping accepted Qiu Tu’s plan, then left the conference room with a newfound confidence and invited him to her home that night.
• Qiu Tu called Qin Shuman and asked for her help; she agreed to meet him that evening.
• Qiu Tu returned to the investigators and led them to the autopsy after Chen Feng and Wang Xi confirmed the forensic doctor was ready.
• Forensic Doctor Qin completed Yin Caimei’s autopsy and reported no external injuries, internal damage, or signs of poisoning.
• Qiu Tu concluded that the ordinary autopsy findings made a Calamity Ability or Calamity Item a likely cause of Yin Caimei’s death, and wondered who had used one.

Jia Shu tested Qiu Tu by accusing him of leaking the spy list, but Qiu Tu recognized the bluff and denied the charge. After reading Jia Shu’s detailed theories about Qiu Tu’s actions, Qiu Tu suspected Jia Shu’s suspicion had been maxed out all along and headed to speak with Tang Feifei.

• Jia Shu accused Qiu Tu of working with the Security Department’s Reconnaissance Section and leaking the Investigation Department’s spy list, but Qiu Tu used the unchanged crisis countdown to recognize the accusation as a bluff.
• Qiu Tu angrily denied Jia Shu’s claims, and Jia Shu soothed him before sending him away without revealing who had made the accusation.
• After Qiu Tu left, Jia Shu reviewed his notebook of theories linking Qiu Tu to Fourth Master Qin’s escape, the spy list leak, and Qin Shuman, then said it was nearly time to cast the net.
• Qiu Tu saw that Jia Shu’s Suspicion had not changed and wondered if it had been maxed out from the beginning, leaving Jia Shu unable to believe him.
• Qiu Tu decided he could not delay any longer and went to Tang Feifei’s private office on the ninth floor to talk.

Qiu Tu returned with the Daredevil Team’s mission materials, secured approval for the team’s promotion, and received an official appointment as Action Deputy Director of the New Realm City Investigation Department. As his new position was confirmed, his Calamity Power began to surge, suggesting he was about to break through.

• Qiu Tu submitted the Cataclysmic Treasure and credited the Daredevil Team, winning the team’s renewed loyalty as his injuries were treated.
• Tang Feifei and the senior officials reviewed Qiu Tu’s thorough mission materials, while Senior Colonel Lin questioned whether the mission counted as a success.
• Tang Feifei threatened Senior Colonel Lin, who backed down, and the officials approved promotions for every Daredevil Team member.
• Qiu Tu recovered in his private room, where Tan Huimin visited him, and news of his survival and solo accomplishments spread through the Investigation Department.
• Tang Feifei brought Qiu Tu the state appointment naming him Action Deputy Director and granting him authority over frontline departments and the Political Department.
• Qiu Tu accepted the appointment and felt his Calamity Power surge as if a breakthrough were beginning.

Huang Shangzong rushed back to East City after learning that Qiu Tu claimed to have captured Dusk Night, while Old Tang also set out for East Industry State. At the Speaker Meeting, Qiu Tu revealed that he had joined forces with an Evil God to defeat Dusk Night, leaving the speakers awaiting his explanation.

• Huang Shangzong decided to return to New Realm City immediately to verify Qiu Tu's claim and called Old Rao and Old Pang on the way.
• Old Rao warned Huang Shangzong to remain calm after advancing to the Fifth Order, while Old Tang left for East Industry State because he was concerned about Qiu Tu.
• Old Pang told Huang Shangzong that Xue Er, Yan Yan, and Ai Li would accompany Consort Xi during the Sixth Shelter's upcoming visit, and Huang Shangzong agreed.
• Huang Shangzong returned to East City, summoned the deputy speakers, and convened a meeting with Qiu Tu about Dusk Night.
• Qiu Tu placed the Crystal Prison containing Dusk Night on the conference table, confirmed the captive's identity, and said he had defeated it by joining forces with an Evil God.

Qiu Tu used the Aurora Stone to win Yan Chen’s trust and secure a transfer to the Political Department with a promotion to First-level Investigator. Yan Chen then ordered him to find evidence that could destroy the powerful Qin Family within seven days.

• Yan Chen examined the Aurora Stone, accepted Qiu Tu’s account, and asked why Qiu Tu had exposed Qin Shuman despite the risks and her generous offer.
• Qiu Tu said he had acted out of ambition and wanted to rise beyond his position in the Administrative Office.
• Yan Chen transferred Qiu Tu to the Political Department and promoted him to First-level Investigator.
• Yan Chen ordered Qiu Tu to gather evidence sufficient to destroy the Qin Family within seven days.
• Qiu Tu was stunned by the assignment, knowing the Qin Family was a powerful clan with extensive criminal enterprises and armed forces.

Ai Li, Jiang Zhenpeng, and Lin Chuan reacted to the news that Qiu Tu was advancing to Fourth Order, while Qiu Tu revealed that Captain was advancing to become a Fourth-Order Calamity Descendant. After learning more about the Boundless Mind Sea Core Area, Qiu Tu began considering whether Zhao Ji’s nine regions could give him a way to build a powerful force.

• Ai Li learned that Qiu Tu’s office had produced a Law Projection and concluded that the Fourth-Order Calamity Descendant was likely Qiu Tu.
• Jiang Zhenpeng realized Qiu Tu’s advancement had removed one of his escape routes and made his political position more difficult.
• Lin Chuan ordered that the Investigation Department’s captured moles be left alive, while his adjutant privately worried that Lin Chuan was afraid of Qiu Tu.
• Qiu Tu explained that he had arranged for Captain to advance so he could reveal his own hidden strength, conceal his Calamity Path, and avoid outside responsibilities.
• The Yellow Charm mother and daughter told Qiu Tu that the Core Area housed powerful beings and that reaching Sixth Order likely required entering it.
• Qiu Tu wondered whether Zhao Ji’s nine regions could provide him with many Area Masters and help him increase his strength.

Qin Shuman explained that she could now switch freely between her own body and Qin Shuman’s soulless but living body, and she and Qiu Tu speculated that a change in the Non-Material World might have caused their unusual condition. After Qiu Tu gave her a list of Investigation Department spies in the Military Department, he assembled his allies and prepared a surprise round of arrests across New Realm City.

• Qin Shuman told Qiu Tu that her abandoned body had continued functioning and that she could now freely possess it again.
• Qin Shuman suspected that an event in the Non-Material World had caused their bodies to survive without souls, and Qiu Tu wondered whether it involved the god mentioned by the Suit Man.
• Qiu Tu gave Qin Shuman a detailed list of Investigation Department spies in the Military Department, delighting her and earning her reward.
• Qiu Tu returned home, where Shen Ling Shuang accused him of fooling around, and A Tai backed up his implausible story about helping a friend with household chores.
• Qiu Tu gathered his armed allies and revealed a plan to arrest Qian Dafu, several transport merchants, Vice President Tian, Third Master Qin, and Director Qin using his authorization documents.
• Fang Ming questioned whether they should arrest Director Qin without consulting higher-ups, but Qiu Tu told him to follow the plan and promised Director Qin would thank them.

Shen Ling Shuang explained how Evil God Avatars could be identified and defeated, and Qiu Tu assigned her, Guan Xiao, and Miao Xiaoxiao to investigate Deputy Director Wu’s family. On the way to the Political Department, Guan Xiao and Shen Ling Shuang traded barbed remarks over their relationship with Qiu Tu, leaving Shen Ling Shuang flustered but determined to compete.

• Shen Ling Shuang recalled Third Shelter’s methods for identifying and eliminating Evil God Avatars and explained them to Qiu Tu, Guan Xiao, and Miao Xiaoxiao.
• Qiu Tu ordered Guan Xiao to lead the investigation into whether Deputy Director Wu or a family member was an Evil God Avatar, with Miao Xiaoxiao assisting and Shen Ling Shuang learning from Guan Xiao.
• Guan Xiao and Shen Ling Shuang left Qiu Tu’s office together, while the staff outside admired Qiu Tu’s apparent luck with women.
• Inside the elevator, Shen Ling Shuang hinted that she lived with Qiu Tu, but Guan Xiao teased her about Qiu Tu’s interest in other women and how to keep his attention.
• Guan Xiao left at the Political Department’s ninth floor, and Shen Ling Shuang, embarrassed but refusing to give up, hurried after her.

Qiu Tu told Tang Feifei that Jia Shu, a Second Order Calamity Descendant, planned to assassinate him as part of an evil god’s infiltration of New Realm City. After Tang Feifei explained the vast power gap between Calamity Descendant ranks and revealed that she was Third Order, Qiu Tu ordered Liu Fuping to gather agents and prepare for arrests that night.

• Qiu Tu flattered Tang Feifei into hearing his request for help, then told her he had solved the 8.16 Pharmacy Robbery Case and uncovered the evil god’s infiltration.
• Qiu Tu explained that Wang Xi and Jia Shu were believers and that Jia Shu planned to assassinate him within two days.
• Tang Feifei explained that Second Order Calamity Descendants could withstand small-caliber gunfire and vastly outmatch First Order descendants, leaving Qiu Tu unable to defeat Jia Shu with his current strength.
• Qiu Tu realized his recent promotion had not made him Second Order and asked Tang Feifei about her rank; she revealed she was Third Order and described their enhanced abilities.
• Qiu Tu sent Liu Fuping to fetch Da Biao and Xiao Liu’s agents fully equipped, ordering them to return so they could begin making arrests that night.

Ilena discovered that Qiu Tu had suppressed her despite his apparent low realm, and she suspected his power had also restored some of her lost origin and loosened her bottleneck. As Qiu Tu brought her breakfast the next morning, a message from the Temple’s higher-ups arrived, and Ilena turned to look at him after reading it.

• Ilena tried to escape Qiu Tu’s embrace but found that he had suppressed her Garrison God King-level strength and uncovered her secrets.
• Qiu Tu overwhelmed Ilena at the Wine Pool, then carried her to her bedchamber after the night ended.
• Ilena woke and sensed that Qiu Tu’s power had restored a little of her lost origin and loosened her stagnant bottleneck.
• Ilena wondered whether Qiu Tu’s strength or unusual abilities explained his power and Qing E’s apparent breakthrough.
• Qiu Tu entered with porridge, and he and Ilena traded teasing remarks about the previous night.
• A golden message from the Temple’s higher-ups arrived, and Ilena looked at Qiu Tu after reading it.

Qiu Tu advanced to Sixth Order, gained authority over the nine areas under his control, and learned about the powers and dangers that came with his new rank. He set out with Zhao Ji to confront the Nine-Headed Lion and Jackal Hound, who discovered that Zhao Ji’s nine areas had vanished and were interrupted by Qiu Tu’s arrival.

• Qiu Tu’s advancement linked his nine areas, formed his Investiture of Heavenly Mandate, and raised him to Sixth Order Peak within his territory.
• Qiu Tu tested Zhao Ji with Order Space, backed down when his Crisis Intuition warned him, and agreed with her to attack the Nine-Headed Lion and Jackal Hound.
• Jackal Hound told the Nine-Headed Lion that Zhao Ji’s nine areas had been pried away, prompting the Nine-Headed Lion to leave for the Core Area to request reinforcements.
• Qiu Tu and Zhao Ji arrived outside the palace and called for the Nine-Headed Lion and Jackal Hound to come out and die.
• Jackal Hound walked out to face them after asking the Nine-Headed Lion to protect his three children, and Fox Face lay fallen at Qiu Tu’s feet.

Huang Shangzong learned that Qiu Tu and Tang Feifei had secretly captured La Riluo to obtain intelligence about Area Masters, then reported the deal and earned the Shelter’s approval. He discovered that the intelligence explained why Area Masters often died within a year, while Qiu Tu’s trap had exposed Ai Li to danger; the Speakers decided she had to be protected.

• Huang Shangzong asked Old Guo to explain why Old Pang had asked him to watch Qiu Tu.
• Old Guo explained that Qiu Tu and Tang Feifei had worked with a mysterious person to interrogate La Riluo, whose intelligence helped Tang Feifei become an Area Master.
• Old Guo said Qiu Tu and Tang Feifei reported the deal to Old Tang and Rao Shou, who approved the exchange after learning it could explain why many Area Masters died within a year.
• Huang Shangzong learned that Qiu Tu had initially impersonated the mysterious person and falsely claimed credit, leading Old Pang to view him as ambitious and untrustworthy.
• Huang Shangzong realized Qiu Tu had used La Riluo’s release as a trap for Ai Li, and Old Guo told him that the Speakers wanted Ai Li protected.
• Huang Shangzong snapped the armrest of his chair in anger.

Qiu Tu caught Tan Huimin recording their conversation, destroyed the recorder, and forced her to comply while arranging Zheng Tao’s release. After Zheng Tao was secretly arrested by the Security Department and the Moonlight Lake shares were redistributed, Qiu Tu helped Qin Shuman search for La Riluo, then went home and found Fang Tangtang waiting for him.

• Fang Tangtang invited Qiu Tu home by text, and he promised to return the following night.
• Qiu Tu approved Tan Huimin’s testimony and paperwork to secure Zheng Tao’s release, then discovered and smashed the recorder she had hidden.
• Tan Huimin left with the release documents, and Qiu Tu told her to wait beneath his desk the next morning.
• After Zheng Tao left the Investigation Department, Security Department agents arrested him under Dai Yukang’s warrant.
• The high-ranking figures agreed to divide Moonlight Lake’s benefits at a ratio of 3:2.5:2.5:2, raising the New Realm City Investigation Department’s share to thirty percent.
• Qiu Tu learned how Qin Shuman’s team used the Source Compass and Zheng Tao to search for La Riluo, then returned to the villa and found Fang Tangtang waiting in the study.

Qiu Tu found the New World Area Center in a stream, began refining it, and concealed it inside his body after realizing that the powerful factions seeking it could kill him. Back in the real world, he learned that an emergency meeting had been called after the Pioneering Plan failed and a Fifth-Order Evil God appeared.

• Qiu Tu inferred that the Area Center moved with the streams, found it in one, and secretly began refining it in a tree hollow.
• Qiu Tu briefly sensed the whole New World Area but exhausted his Mental Power, then realized that fully refining the Area Center would take a long time.
• Qiu Tu swallowed the Area Center to keep it from being stolen, and Crisis Intuition warned him not to reveal that he had become an Area Master.
• Qiu Tu returned to the real world and planned to keep his identity hidden while he continued refining the Area Center.
• Qiu Tu answered Tan Huimin's call and learned that a senior staff meeting had been called after the Pioneering Plan suffered a major failure and a Fifth-Order Evil God appeared.
• Qiu Tu suspected that the Boundless God Crystal tainted with Zhao Ji's aura had caused chaos at the Pioneering Base and prompted the emergency discussions.

Qiu Tu assessed the escalating power struggle between Consort Xi and Kou Xuan while waiting for Consort Xi to need his help. He then told Zhao Ji that the Mist Veil Society might investigate her, and she discovered that he had nearly finished inscribing the Sealing Jade’s Calamity Equation Set in just three days.

• Qiu Tu concluded that Kou Xuan’s secret edict undermined Consort Xi and King Kang’s Heir while preparing the way for a change in Sixth Shelter’s government.
• Consort Xi counterattacked by accusing Kou Xuan and the Kou Family of crimes and calling on provincial speakers to raise troops in King Kang’s name.
• Qiu Tu told Zhao Ji that Dusk Night had reported Yasha and Beauty Wind’s deaths to the Mist Veil Society, which might send an expert to investigate.
• Zhao Ji dismissed the possible investigators as insignificant, and Qiu Tu wondered whether she was among the top figures of the Boundless Mind Sea - Core Area.
• Zhao Ji examined Qiu Tu’s soul and found that he had inscribed about seventy percent of the Sealing Jade’s Calamity Equation Set in three days.
• Qiu Tu explained that he had followed Zhao Ji’s example and expected to finish the inscription the next day.

Qiu Tu spent a passionate farewell with Liu Fuping before she left for a new post in East Industry State, then headed to the Investigation Department to receive his promotion. His arrival was eagerly awaited amid confusion over his new secretary and the Organization Department’s visit.

• Liu Fuping told Qiu Tu she was transferring to a post in East Industry State and relayed Director Liu’s offer to repay Qiu Tu’s favor.
• Qiu Tu and Liu Fuping spent the night together, and she left the next afternoon for her new post.
• Qiu Tu considered using his two Cataclysm resources to cultivate A Tai and Eagle, with the subordinates earning the opportunity through merit or materials.
• Qiu Tu drove toward the Investigation Department, determined to improve his strength and receive his promotion.
• The 8.19 Investigation Team panicked because Qiu Tu had missed the Organization Department’s visit, while Tan Huimin waited at the office claiming to be his secretary.
• Song Qing quietly asked Cao Dabiao whether Tan Huimin might be one of Qiu Tu’s romantic debts.

Ai Li and Yan Yan left Qiu Tu’s villa after he stopped pursuing the bet, and Ai Li later called him to offer her compliance. Qiu Tu used the call to make Ai Li listen to him with Yan Yan, whose role in the night’s plan was revealed.

• Ai Li broke into the room and offered to take Yan Yan’s place, but Qiu Tu stopped and told Ai Li that she belonged to him from then on.
• Ai Li comforted Yan Yan, and the two left the villa; during the drive, Ai Li explained that she would honor the bet and believed Qiu Tu had a limit to what he would force.
• After returning to Yan Chen's Garden Villa, Yan Yan secretly touched a glowing mark on her lower abdomen, while Ai Li called Qiu Tu to apologize and offer her service.
• Qiu Tu ordered Ai Li not to hang up and made her listen to him having sex with Yan Yan, leaving Ai Li unable to sleep after the call ended.
• Qiu Tu praised Yan Yan’s plan to manipulate Ai Li, and Yan Yan revealed that she had designed the night’s scheme to win Ai Li over.

Su Wanqing came to East City to offer Qiu Tu the Kou Family’s cooperation and a shared path to governing Sixth Shelter. Qiu Tu postponed his decision, then ordered an investigation into her and suspected that the Kou Family contained a Mist Veil Society mole.

• Su Wanqing told Qiu Tu that the Kou Family wanted peace, would execute Consort Xi, and would keep King Kang's Heir as a figurehead ruler.
• Su Wanqing explained that the Kou Family proposed using a dead envoy as a pretext for Qiu Tu to send troops into Sixth Shelter and offered to send exotic beauties in advance.
• Qiu Tu weighed the Kou Family’s proposal against Consort Xi’s, considering the clan’s entrenched power and his own plans to advance through Sixth Shelter.
• Su Wanqing offered a dual No. 1 arrangement in which Qiu Tu could govern alongside Kou Xuan, then take sole control if needed.
• Qiu Tu told Su Wanqing he needed time to consider, then asked Tao Yaoyao to escort her out.
• Qiu Tu ordered an investigation into Su Wanqing and concluded that the Kou Family might contain Sixth Shelter’s Mist Veil Society mole.