Chapter Summaries

Zhou Qing and his companions descended through the Abyss Ruins toward the Fourth Layer, where they learned Riko might soon obtain a White Whistle. They were left facing questions about what that meant and how she would acquire it.

• Romantina asked whether Zhou Qing would remain unmarried if she died, and he said he would remarry, prompting her to call him a scumbag.
• Zhou Qing asked Odin to send the group to the Third Layer, and Odin flirted with Dugu Bo before activating the Elevator Platform.
• Zhou Qing led Romantina and Dugu Bo from the Third Layer down to the Fourth Layer and arrived at the Steel Base.
• Saundin recognized the group and said Riko and Rabbit Girl were still on the Fourth Layer, adding that Riko might soon obtain a White Whistle.
• Zhou Qing explained that a White Whistle was a personal key to the next level, obtained through someone’s willing sacrifice.

Zhou Qing and Romantina arrived at the Fourth Layer, where they met Prometheus, Saundin’s daughter, and reunited with Riko and Rabbit Girl. After learning more about the group and Riko’s determination to guide them, Zhou Qing agreed to take her along as they explored the deeper layers.

• Zhou Qing, Romantina, and Dugu Bo met Riko, Rabbit Girl, and Prometheus at the Steel Base.
• Prometheus introduced herself as Saundin’s daughter, welcomed the visitors, assigned them rooms, and cooked Bird Horse meat for them.
• Romantina warned Riko that Saundin had befriended Prometheus as part of an experiment, but Riko and Rabbit Girl explained why they stayed close to her.
• Zhou Qing told Riko that Abel was safe and teaching students, then asked her about the deeper layers and the dangers of ascending.
• Rabbit Girl suspected Zhou Qing would leave them behind, and Riko insisted on joining as their guide until Zhou Qing promised not to exclude her.

Zhou Qing explained the world beyond Abyss Town to Prometheus, then proposed that harmonizing one’s bodily qi field with the Abyss Ruins’ environment could let someone pass through the Gates without a White Whistle. He left the group considering his theory as they planned their route to the Fifth Layer.

• Zhou Qing, Romantina, and Dugu Bo told Prometheus about Douluo Continent, its martial souls, Soul Masters, empires, and social struggles.
• Prometheus said she hoped to adventure in the world above with her friends and her father, while Zhou Qing worried about her purity and Saundin’s intentions.
• Riko and Rabbit Girl explained that they would focus on finding Riko’s mother and Rabbit Girl’s friend Namiki before exploring Douluo Continent.
• When Riko asked about reaching the Fifth Layer without sacrificing someone to make a White Whistle, Zhou Qing outlined his theory that the Gates admitted people whose qi fields harmonized with the environment.
• Rabbit Girl compared qi-field harmony to symbiotic relationships in nature, and Zhou Qing confirmed that her interpretation was close to his theory.

Zhou Qing explained that balancing his Aura Field with the Abyss Ruins could let him resist the Ascension Curse, and the group considered testing whether they could pass through the Gate without a White Whistle. Mithras joined their planned expedition, though taking her along could bring them into conflict with Saundin.

• Rabbit Girl asked why Zhou Qing and his companions were unaffected by the Ascension Curse, and Zhou Qing explained how to adjust an Aura Field to match the Abyss Ruins.
• Riko reasoned that balancing Aura Fields might let them pass through the Gate without a White Whistle, but Zhou Qing said the idea still needed testing.
• Zhou Qing reassured Riko that he would not leave her behind and promised they would take her on the expedition.
• Mithras asked to join the adventure, and Riko urged Zhou Qing to bring her along.
• Zhou Qing considered the risk of angering Saundin, but Mithras insisted her father would approve because he wanted her to find companions.
• Romantina remarked that Saundin was good at fooling children.

Mithras rejected Riko and Zhou Qing’s claims and ran to confront Saundin, while Zhou Qing and Romantina tested who could pass through the Gate. Zhou Qing discovered the Gate did not reject him, and vibrations then came from the Steel Base’s perimeter.

• Mithras insisted Saundin would never lie and ran out of the kitchen, with Riko chasing after her.
• Zhou Qing asked Dugu Bo to watch over Riko and Mithras while he, Romantina, and Rabbit Girl went to the Gate.
• Rabbit Girl explained how White Whistles let their holders pass through the Gate and could strengthen Fallen Ones with special music.
• Zhou Qing reasoned that White Whistle music might make a Fallen One’s Soul Power circulate more efficiently.
• Zhou Qing put his hand through the Gate without resistance, and Romantina playfully tested the Star Map as vibrations came from the Steel Base’s perimeter.

Riko brought Mithras to Saundin’s laboratory, hoping to help her escape his experiments, while Mithras believed her father had finally accepted Riko as her companion. Inside, they discovered a pit full of grotesque, failed Fallen Ones, leaving Riko sickened and Mithras bewildered.

• Riko recalled that Saundin had turned adventurers into memoryless experimental puppets and resolved to save Mithras from him.
• Mithras asked a masked guard for permission to visit Saundin’s laboratory, and the guard let them enter.
• Mithras took the guard’s response as proof that Saundin had acknowledged Riko and eagerly led her inside.
• Riko and Mithras climbed a spiraling passage, where the Ascension Curse caused Riko pain.
• At the upper walkway, Riko saw countless grotesque Fallen Ones below and vomited, drawing them toward the dripping mess.

Saundin continued his experiments on imprisoned Fallen Ones, using electricity to force them toward human forms and killing several in the process. Mithras confronted him, and Saundin told her to stop treating Fallen Ones—and him—as people.

• Saundin ordered workers to seize asymmetrical Fallen Ones with mechanical claws and electrocute them while Riko tried to stop him.
• Several Fallen Ones died, and the survivors mourned them as Riko pleaded with Saundin to recognize their humanity.
• Dugu Bo watched from concealment and judged Saundin's experiments more cruel than his own past methods.
• Three Fallen Ones began regaining human forms under the electricity, but Saundin increased the current until they went limp.
• Saundin explained that he planned to use the transformed Fallen Ones as expendable material when ascending through the Fourth Layer.
• Mithras asked why Saundin was doing this, and he told her that a qualified Explorer must stop treating Fallen Ones as people.

Saundin revealed that he had found Misius as an infant on the Fifth Layer and raised her as part of his experiments, hoping to shape her into a sacrifice that could help him endure the Ascension Curse. Misius still chose to trust him, while Riko fled, and Saundin decided to focus on cultivating expendable material instead of pursuing the Artificial White Whistle experiment.

• Saundin told Misius he was not her father and explained that he had brought her from the Fifth Layer as an infant without protecting her during the ascent.
• Riko condemned Saundin for his experiments and comforted Misius, while Saundin reflected on how he had shaped Misius’s environment and tested her loyalties.
• Misius hugged Saundin and continued to regard him as her father, believing she could persuade him to stop experimenting and explore with her companions.
• Saundin told Riko she would not get a White Whistle, and Riko ran out of the cave.
• Saundin stopped Misius from following Riko, judged her unsuitable as expendable material, and resolved to cultivate sacrifices while postponing the Artificial White Whistle experiment.

Dugu Bo followed Riko while Saundin took Prometheus to a facility and began preparing her as the key to his experiment. Dugu Bo tried to reach Prometheus, but Riko’s Ascension Curse left him unable to fly without endangering her.

• Dugu Bo left his Nine-Section Jade Serpent to guard Prometheus, then followed Riko.
• Saundin told Prometheus she would be the key to his experiment and brought her to a steel structure.
• Saundin restrained Prometheus and his helmet-wearing subordinates as part of the experiment, while the Nine-Section Jade Serpent attacked him and was captured.
• Dugu Bo saw Saundin place Prometheus in the device and tried to rush to her, but Riko’s Ascension Curse caused her to convulse and bleed when he flew.
• Riko urged Dugu Bo to save Prometheus, but he had to evade Saundin’s armed personnel on the ground because flying could kill her.

Saundin prepared to use Misius to steal the flames and explained his plan to force the Abyss People to evolve, while Zhou Qing challenged his treatment of others. Romantina's spiritual attacks failed to incapacitate Saundin, who revealed that his Soul Guidance Device could explode and destroy everything nearby.

• Saundin connected a Soul Guidance Device to Misius's spine to control her body and help steal the flames.
• Zhou Qing and Rabbit Girl confronted Saundin through the Spiritual Group Chat as he described his plan to evolve the Abyss People and recreate the myth of Prometheus.
• Zhou Qing criticized Saundin for controlling Misius's life, but Saundin insisted that sacrifice was necessary for his plan.
• Zhou Qing ordered Romantina to attack Saundin with spiritual skills, but a device inside Saundin's brain absorbed the attacks and kept him conscious.
• Saundin revealed that his Mother Sphere could explode with enough force to level everything within ten kilometers, while Child Spheres in combat personnel could destroy a steel building.

Trapped in the Steel Base, Zhou Qing concluded that breaking out by force or escaping as qi was too dangerous. Riko tried to persuade Misius to reject Saundin, but Misius chose her father, and Romantina's attack on the steel gate failed.

• Zhou Qing considered escape methods but decided the Steel Base was too sturdy to break and that dispersing into qi might send him through the Gates to the Fifth Layer.
• Riko asked Misius to tell Saundin no, hoping Misius's choice would make him delay using her as experimental material.
• Misius told Riko that she could not refuse her father, Saundin, and that she had to meet his expectations.
• Saundin restarted the switch, and Romantina became furious at his deception of Misius.
• Romantina used her Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Martial Soul and attacked the steel gate with Na Liu's help, but even her Extreme Ice, Armament Haki Aura, and Stacked Wave Force left it unmarked.

Zhou Qing and Romantina tried to stop Saundin from sacrificing Mithras, but Zhou Qing’s Mind-Sense Qi Field failed against the combat personnel controlled by Child Spheres. With the Drop Tower nearly charged, Zhou Qing began a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with Romantina, awakening both their martial souls to a golden second form.

• Romantina grew agitated over Mithras being deceived into giving up her life, while Zhou Qing urged her to stay calm.
• Zhou Qing unleashed his Mind-Sense Qi Field, but the combat personnel remained conscious because Child Spheres let Saundin control their bodies.
• Zhou Qing realized the combat personnel were puppets and, with the Drop Tower nearly charged, took Romantina’s hand to begin a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.
• Zhou Qing used the Innate Internal Scripture Chart to drive Romantina’s Extraordinary Organs Origin Scripture, while Rabbit Girl was told to cling to their fused body.
• Zhou Qing’s Blood Circulation System Martial Soul and Romantina’s Brain Martial Soul completed their second Golden Awakening, transforming her martial soul into the Nervous System.

Zhou Qing and Romantina fused into Divine Land, who escaped the Steel Base with Rabbit Girl and joined Dugu Bo and Riko. After healing Riko and cutting down the combatants, Divine Land hurled his Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Battle Axe at Saundin.

• Zhou Qing's Blood Circulation System Martial Soul helped Romantina's Brain Martial Soul evolve into a Nervous System Martial Soul, and the two fused into Divine Land.
• Divine Land pulled out the Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Torso Bone and combined it with his Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Martial Soul to form a battle axe.
• Divine Land used ice to widen a gap in the Steel Base, then carried Rabbit Girl out to Dugu Bo and Riko.
• Divine Land's Primordial Energy healed Riko, and he cut down the combatants around them with his battle axe.
• Saundin fired a scorching shockwave at the incoming battle axe, but the spinning weapon continued toward the back of his neck.

Zhou Qing and Romantina stopped Saundin’s experiment and rescued Mithras, though removing the devices embedded in her head and spine required careful treatment. Mithras still believed her father could be persuaded to abandon his dangerous experiments, while Dugu Bo urged Zhou Qing to kill him.

• Zhou Qing’s Ice Jade Emperor Scorpion Battle Axe broke through Saundin’s Cremation Cannon, severed his hands, and froze him before he could finish the experiment.
• Zhou Qing and Romantina ended their Martial Soul fusion and took Qi Recovery Pills to restore their Soul Power; Romantina teased Zhou Qing, while Dugu Bo asked about their fusion skill.
• Zhou Qing, Romantina, Dugu Bo, and Riko approached the Drop Tower, and Dugu Bo cut the restraints binding Mithras.
• Zhou Qing discovered that fine needles in Mithras’s helmet and tubes along her spine made it dangerous to remove her equipment without precise examination.
• Mithras thanked the group for sparing Saundin and said she would try to persuade him to stop his experiments, while Dugu Bo signaled Zhou Qing to kill him.

Zhou Qing and his companions tried to stop Saundin from operating the Drop Tower, but Saundin escaped the ice and unleashed a sound attack that disrupted their bodies and Soul Power. The lift shot upward, exposing everyone to the Fourth Layer’s Ascension Curse, and Mithras and the helmeted personnel began transforming into Fallen Ones.

• Zhou Qing refused Dugu Bo’s offer to deal with Saundin, then noticed the Drop Tower’s gears were still moving.
• Romantina’s Extreme Ice and Dugu Bo’s attacks failed to stop the gears, and Saundin explained that his armor used vibrations to melt the ice.
• Saundin broke free and released sound waves that disrupted the group’s Qi and Blood and Soul Power; Riko shielded Mithras before fainting.
• The lift launched upward, and the helmeted personnel disintegrated while Mithras’s body began transforming under the Ascension Curse.

Saundin survived his experiment by merging with the White Whistle and evolving, while Mithras became a White Whistle under the Fourth Layer’s curse. After Riko used it to transform Rabbit Girl, Rabbit Girl and Dugu Bo attacked Saundin as he fled into the sky.

• Saundin used Mithras and the others to amplify the Fourth Layer’s Ascension Curse, burned away his body, and completed his evolution through the White Whistle embedded in his chest.
• Mithras told Saundin she wanted to reconcile with Riko and explore with her friends before the curse consumed her body, leaving behind a White Whistle.
• Riko woke with Mithras’s White Whistle in her hands and blew into it during the platform’s descent, transforming Rabbit Girl and greatly increasing her power.
• Rabbit Girl kicked Saundin off the platform, and he grew metallic wings and flew into the sky.
• Rabbit Girl pursued Saundin, and Dugu Bo joined her to confront him.

Zhou Qing, Riko, Romantina, Dugu Bo, and Rabbitna defeated Saundin by displacing his Dragon Head White Whistle and disrupting his Soul Power circulation. As Saundin burned away, he made peace with death and asked Rabbitna to care for Riko’s White Whistle, while Dugu Bo reflected on the burden of eternal life.

• Zhou Qing carried Riko and Romantina down from the platform, and Riko played the White Whistle to empower Rabbitna.
• Saundin attacked Rabbitna with steel feathers and an energy cannon, but she spun through the blast and struck his Dragon Head White Whistle.
• Dugu Bo poisoned Saundin from behind, breaking his Soul Power pathways and sending him crashing to the ground.
• Rabbitna sat beside the dying Saundin, who recalled their explorations, asked her to care for Riko’s White Whistle, and then burned to ashes.
• Dugu Bo reflected that eternal life could make people suffer through endless loss and partings.

After Saundin’s death, Zhou Qing discovered the Dragon Pattern White Phoenix Feather and gave it to Riko, whom it recognized and empowered with flight and new abilities. Riko and the others tested its powers before continuing their journey.

• Rabbit Girl and Romantina comforted Riko until she recovered and urged the group to continue.
• Zhou Qing found a silver-white feather with a flowing dragon pattern among Saundin’s remains and gave it to Riko, explaining that it was tied to Mithras’s dream.
• The Dragon Pattern White Phoenix Feather absorbed Riko’s Soul Power, pierced into her back, and formed a long, silver-white wing that let her Soul Power circulate on its own.
• Riko flew with the feather, which Zhou Qing suspected might function like an External Soul Bone, but landed when her Soul Power ran out.
• At Zhou Qing’s request, Riko tested the feather and found that it could slash through the metal platform and scatter into sharp, dagger-like feathers.

Zhou Qing and the others regrouped after Riko absorbed the Dragon Pattern White Phoenix Feather, discussing how it affected her cultivation and discovering that Dugu Bo’s Nine-Section Jade Serpent had been destroyed. A new Saundin II appeared and explained that a Spiritual Link Soul Guidance Device had preserved a backup of Saundin’s memories, leaving the group to face a continuation of his will.

• Riko concealed the Dragon Pattern White Phoenix Feather inside her back, and Zhou Qing gave her a Qi Recovery Pill as Dugu Bo remarked on how easily the feather had bonded with her.
• Zhou Qing, Riko, Rabbit Girl, and Romantina washed up, and Zhou Qing advised Riko to study her breathing while using the feather to learn how to circulate Soul Power.
• Riko told Zhou Qing that Dugu Bo had gone looking for something on Saundin, and Dugu Bo returned upset that his Nine-Section Jade Serpent had turned to ash.
• A combatant freed himself from the Extreme Ice, put on a helmet matching Saundin’s, and introduced himself as Saundin II.
• Saundin II explained that a Spiritual Link Soul Guidance Device had transferred Saundin’s backed-up memories into a subsidiary unit, preserving a continuation of his will.

Zhou Qing learned that the Abyss Ruins’ Seventh Layer held a teleportation device and prepared to enter the Gate with his companions. Before they departed, Saundin II wondered whether the Abyss People explored downward because the outside world was cruel and the darkness offered its own warmth.

• Zhou Qing asked Saundin II about his Spiritual Link Soul Guidance Devices and learned they had been obtained on the Sixth Layer.
• Zhou Qing reflected that his and Romantina’s Martial Souls had evolved into Gold Grade nervous and circulatory systems after their fusion.
• Saundin II led Riko, Rabbit Girl, Dugu Bo, and Romantina through the Gate, while Zhou Qing asked about the Abyss Ruins’ teleportation arrays.
• Saundin II told Zhou Qing that a round-trip teleportation core had been taken by a Soul Master about two hundred years earlier and was likely on the Seventh Layer.
• Saundin II questioned whether Abyss People explored downward because they sought warmth in the darkness rather than facing the cruelty of the outside world.