Chapter Summaries

Ronan realized that mental and material approaches could be balanced, using Raven’s Form-Spirit Blending as a model. He and Child tested the idea, leaving Ronan’s soul overwhelmed by Child’s perception as Child struck Ronan’s unconscious body.

• Ronan explained the differences between mental-oriented and material-oriented Self Formats and argued that each had a distinct role.
• Child asked why both approaches could not be taken into account, prompting Ronan to recognize Raven’s Form-Spirit Blending as a balanced Configuration.
• Cat’s Eye slapped Ronan’s back and found his body limp because he had accidentally pulled his soul out of it.
• Child described combining both approaches, and Ronan joined his Dark Heavy Chains with Child’s Mental Storm to extend perception across Frost River Reality.
• Ronan’s soul trembled under the influx of Child’s perception, while his Soul Power grew beyond his control.
• Child stepped forward and punched Ronan’s unconscious body in the chest as mercury-like light surged between them.

Child's punch sent Ronan crashing into a wall, then the Fair Knights Order's firing points unleashed a devastating barrage on the suite. Cat's Eye and Officer Xue survived, but Guo Ju was killed; the attack stopped after He Yueyin and Ronan's classmate intervened, while Ronan remained alive and unconscious.

• Child struck Ronan with a punch that hurled him into a wall, and Cat's Eye forced him down to protect him.
• The Fair Knights Order opened fire from two positions, ravaging the suite and killing Guo Ju while Officer Xue took cover in his Exoskeleton Armor.
• Child's radiance stopped the incoming bullets and other attacks, drawing most of the fire away from Cat's Eye and Officer Xue.
• Bamboo Pole reported that the Justice Cult had deployed more personnel around Frost River Reality, while He Yueyin said the three chief priests in Xia City had cut off communications.
• Cat's Eye confirmed that Ronan was still alive, and the firing stopped after He Yueyin took out one attacker and Ronan's classmate confronted the other.

He Yueyin’s team silenced the Fair Knights Order’s firing points and coordinated a rescue while Xue Weilun discovered that his son had entered the danger zone. Ronan awoke as Child moved toward the wrecked robots, drawing everyone’s attention.

• He Yueyin ordered Zhang Yingying to support Xue Weilun’s son and had Bamboo Pole mark and record enemy Thermal Weapon carriers while connecting Bai Xinyan to the operation.
• Bai Xinyan agreed to retrieve her patient, and He Yueyin arranged a call while the silenced firing points disrupted the Fair Knights Order’s plans.
• Xue Weilun saw that his injured officers had survived the barrage, then recognized Xue Lei’s voice on the communicator and angrily ordered him to leave.
• Ronan woke beside Cat’s Eye and said the remaining long-range Firing Points were withdrawing.
• Child walked toward the wrecked Multi-functional Robots, and Xue Weilun and the others watched him.

Child recovered the metal box containing the Human-Faced Spider’s materials and information, then confronted An Weng, a Justice Cult Secret Covenant High Priest, over the artifact and the Ability User Association. Child blocked An Weng’s Serpent’s Whisper, leaving the Association members unsettled and still questioning what Guo Ju had said about downloading.

• Child uncovered Huang Bingzhen and retrieved a metal box containing the Human-Faced Spider’s materials and information.
• An Weng addressed Child through Serpent’s Whisper, prompting He Yueyin to identify him as a Justice Cult Secret Covenant High Priest.
• Child rejected the Human-Faced Spider as a blasphemous toy and told An Weng that the artifact would not return to him.
• An Weng accused Child of cooperating with the Ability User Association, but Child said he only purged those who blasphemed against truth.
• Child disrupted the channels carrying information and blocked An Weng’s Serpent’s Whisper.
• Red Fox panicked, while Bamboo Pole asked Cat’s Eye what Guo Ju had said about downloading.

Ronan’s dismissive response to Red Fox’s concerns sparked a heated argument among the Association members over their risky involvement in the Justice Cult’s conflict. After apologizing, Ronan recognized they needed solid evidence and asked Child to give them the storage device.

• Cat's Eye asked Ronan whether the Human-Faced Spider research had aimed at mass production, but he said the subject had not come up with Child.
• Red Fox angrily accused Ronan of dragging the group into a dangerous, poorly coordinated operation and demanded an explanation, while Bamboo Pole tried to calm him.
• Ronan realized Red Fox had good reason to be upset and received private messages from He Yueyin and Zhang Yingying urging him to apologize and smooth things over.
• Ronan apologized to Red Fox and concluded that the group needed the storage device from Child as evidence of the Justice Cult’s internal conflict.
• Ronan asked Child to leave the storage device with them, shocking Cat's Eye, He Yueyin, Zhang Yingying, and Red Fox.

Ronan argued that the metal box’s internal structure could help prove the Justice Cult had researched Human-Faced Spiders, but Red Fox warned that pursuing the evidence could provoke a war. The chapter left Ronan’s belief in the case’s strength at odds with the political danger of confronting the Cult.

• Child gave Ronan the metal box after Ronan asked for it, alarming the others in the encrypted channel.
• Red Fox challenged Ronan’s claim that the box was conclusive proof, arguing that the available evidence could be dismissed or fabricated.
• Ronan drew the storage device’s internal structure and marked patterns he believed matched the Justice Cult’s techniques.
• Bamboo Pole confirmed that similar structures appeared in the Cult’s rituals, while Bai Xinyan warned that sensing the structure could strain Ronan’s body.
• Red Fox warned Ronan that investigating the Justice Cult’s internal affairs could turn the case into a bloody political conflict.

Bamboo Pole and Red Fox fled the Yulan Hotel as the Cult attacked, while Red Fox’s accusations about the Association left Ronan questioning its politics and the future of Grandfather’s Format Theory. As a hostile force stirred on the Mental Layer, Child declared that the ground beneath him belonged to truth and sent waves of light outward.

• Bamboo Pole identified a likely Sniper Cannon at the Yulan Hotel, and He Yueyin ordered the team to retreat to a rendezvous point.
• Bamboo Pole and Red Fox escaped an Electromagnetic Rifle ambush by triggering fire-safety barriers and descending the hotel’s glass exterior.
• Ronan reflected on Red Fox’s claims about political compromises, recalled Morun’s attack with Human-Faced Spiders, and grew disillusioned with the Association.
• Ronan sensed a malicious force gathering on the Mental Layer and looked to Child.
• Child declared the ground beneath him the domain of truth, and waves of light spread outward.

Baze arrived at the private room and used his body as a Human Weapon to wield the High Priest’s mental-layer power against Child’s Shield of Truth. The two forces collided as Baze challenged Child’s understanding of truth, and Child ordered him to leave.

• The Secular Side’s Serpent’s Whisper manifested in the room, and Cat’s Eye urged Ronan to retreat after He Yueyin sent the order.
• Baze entered and greeted Child, who recognized him as a former disciple who had chosen a more brutal path.
• Cat’s Eye identified Baze as the Fair Knights Order’s deputy commander, while He Yueyin warned that his true power came from more than his immense physical strength.
• Baze’s body lit with strange patterns as He Yueyin revealed that he was the Justice Cult’s Human Weapon, letting the High Priest wield mental-layer power through him.
• Baze advanced into Child’s radiance, and their powers merged into a warped gray layer as Baze declared that truth did not obey Child’s imagination and Child told him to get lost.

Child and Baze clashed as Ronan observed the hidden mechanics of their powers, but Serpent's Whisper spread its influence and injured Cat's Eye. As Cat's Eye led Ronan toward an escape route, they found Xue Weilun trying to rescue unconscious SWAT officers, and Ronan stopped her with a faint light beginning to glow around him.

• Child reflected Baze's charge with Truth Mirroring and sent him flying.
• Ronan analyzed how their powers interfered across the mental and material layers, recognizing his own unusual ability to observe them.
• Child left the room, but Serpent's Whisper spread and struck Cat's Eye with painful psychic backlash.
• Cat's Eye took Ronan through a breach in the wall while Xue Weilun dragged unconscious SWAT officers inside.
• Cat's Eye decided to help Xue Weilun rescue the officers, but Ronan grabbed her as a faint light began glowing around him.

Ronan used Soul Power to awaken seven unconscious special police officers at once, astonishing Cat's Eye and the others with his precise control. Bai Xinyan recognized Ronan's connection to the long-discarded Format Theory and concluded that he was close to destruction, leaving her wondering whether his potential would be wasted.

• Cat's Eye tried to stop Ronan from overusing his abilities, but the invisible chain restrained her and enraged her.
• Ronan manifested matching tetrahedron-and-sphere graphics on the seven unconscious special police officers and used them to rouse the officers.
• Xue Weilun and Cat's Eye watched the officers regain consciousness, while Zhang Yingying and the Association's professionals reacted with disbelief over Ronan's progress.
• Red Fox, Paper Cut, and Bamboo Pole discussed Ronan's graphics and wondered whether they were connected to Format Theory.
• Bai Xinyan linked Ronan's abilities to the Luo Family and Format Theory, then judged that he was near final destruction and might be too valuable to lose.

Bai Xinyan assessed Ronan’s condition as the group evacuated Frost River Reality while Child and Baze’s battle intensified. Huang Bingzhen was revealed to have become a Snake Nest, possibly allowing a high priest to observe them.

• Bai Xinyan examined Cat's Eye's Shared Perspective footage and concluded that Ronan’s inner glow helped protect his nervous system from Soul Power.
• He Yueyin ordered the people in the private room to rendezvous with Bai Xinyan and evacuate along the designated route, and Officer Xue relayed the route to his subordinates.
• Bamboo Pole urged the group to hurry because the Sniper Cannon at the Yulan Hotel was nearly calibrated, and the special police officers withdrew in an orderly fashion.
• Ronan left his Contemplation Graphics in place and blessed Xue Weilun as Child and Baze’s battle caused more destruction.
• Bai Xinyan recognized Ronan’s blessing as a disciplined technique related to Format Theory, then identified Huang Bingzhen as a Snake Nest who might be watched by a high priest.

An Weng and two other High Priests prepared a rooftop formation to attack Child, while An Weng argued that Child did not belong to the Truth Side and should be removed. The chapter ended as An Weng said the Gate of Truth was about to open, leaving the consequences of the planned attack uncertain.

• An Weng watched the commotion around Frost River Reality and used Snake Nest to scan those nearby, including a trench-coated woman and a young man empowered by Child's Truth Escape.
• The young man's spiritual power disrupted An Weng's Snake Nest scan, impressing An Weng with his Soul Power and discipline.
• High Priest Zheng Xiao warned An Weng that their hastily prepared formation gave them no more than a thirty percent chance of killing Child.
• An Weng questioned why they were targeting Child and declared that Child was an extreme-side Paranoid and executioner, not a member of the Truth Side.
• An Weng dismissed concerns about failure, saying their favorable circumstances made the attempt worthwhile and that the approaching Gate of Truth would occupy Child.

Zheng Xiao and An Chengli questioned An Weng about whether the Gate of Truth was real and why their plans involved Child. An Weng revealed the Balance of Truth and examined the troubled Serpent's Whisper in Frost River Reality, leaving the cause of its disruption uncertain.

• Zheng Xiao considered the rumors about the Gate of Truth and wondered whether An Weng's words hinted at a real upheaval.
• An Chengli questioned An Weng about a possible Holy Decree, the Gate's location and timing, and whether their conflict with Child was a pretext.
• An Weng explained that a plan relying on Child's cooperation would not be credible, quieting Zheng Xiao and An Chengli's doubts.
• An Weng summoned the Balance of Truth, whose White Scale Pan hung low and empty while the Black Scale Pan held the small, cloud-wreathed Serpent's Whisper.
• An Chengli suggested that Ability Users might be disrupting the serpent's gathering, and An Weng proposed that they look into it.

An Weng and the other high priests used the Heavenly Evolution Domain to identify Ronan as the source of interference in Serpent's Whisper and learned that Child had blessed him. An Weng appointed An Chengli as Inquisitor and ordered him to judge Ronan, leaving the church poised to act against the young man.

• An Weng, Zheng Xiao, and An Chengli activated the Heavenly Evolution Domain, joining their Magic Arrays to survey Frost River Reality.
• The domain identified a young man protected by armored special police as the focus of its analysis, and the high priests recognized a shared structure at his chest.
• An Weng identified the young man as Ronan, said his Soul Power and orderly methods disrupted Serpent's Whisper, and revealed that Child had blessed him.
• The high priests obtained Ronan's basic background through church informants, and An Weng remarked that he might have become a Saint candidate if the church had recruited him earlier.
• An Weng named An Chengli the Inquisitor and ordered him to deliver judgment against those who interfered in the church's internal affairs.

Ronan and the SWAT officers crossed the devastated amusement park while he reassured Mo Qiu and explained the danger to Xue Weilun. Bai Xinyan then questioned whether Ronan himself was safe and examined his neck, leaving the group moving along the evacuation route.

• Ronan called Mo Qiu, learned that police had blockaded Frost River Reality, and urged Mo Qiu and the others to leave the area.
• Ronan told Mo Qiu not to inform the family yet, while Xue Weilun warned him that his relatives might spread sensitive information.
• Xue Weilun asked about the Gestalt glyph, and Ronan explained that it could buffer interference on the Mental Layer as long as he remained standing.
• Bai Xinyan questioned whether Ronan would be safe, put an arm around him, and checked the sensation and pulse around his neck.

Bai Xinyan tested Ronan’s senses and physical condition after the Shield of Truth empowered him, finding no signs of damage. He Yueyin then asked Ronan to use his All-domain Perception and long-range strikes for the next stage of the operation.

• Zhang Yingying called out as Bai Xinyan examined Ronan in the association’s shared perspective, and Bai tested his pain, temperature, movement, and balance responses.
• Bai Xinyan explained that Ronan showed none of the usual symptoms of prolonged Shield of Truth empowerment.
• Ronan realized that Child’s Iron Fist of Love had strengthened his body’s foundations, allowing him to reshape his Configuration with Soul Power.
• He Yueyin apologized for having White Salt confirm Ronan’s condition and said his enhanced endurance would make the operation easier.
• Zhang Yingying excitedly offered to bring supplies, but He Yueyin clarified that she needed Ronan’s All-domain Perception and long-range strikes.

Ronan learned that the cult’s remaining gunmen and Sacrifice Knights were still at large in Frost River Reality, and He Yueyin asked him to locate them using his All-domain Perception. After Ronan reunited with Xue Lei and Zhang Yingying, Red Fox questioned whether the group should risk confronting the Secular Side for Child.

• Zhang Yingying teased He Yueyin about blurring the distinction between Ronan and a scout, but He Yueyin did not reply.
• Bamboo Pole showed the team a map of Frost River Reality and explained that five to seven cult gunmen guarded the exits alongside the Fair Knights Order’s Sacrifice Knights.
• Ronan learned that the Sacrifice Knights were each stronger than a C-rank Ability User and that Zhang Yingying’s White Rainbow could reach that level.
• Ronan praised Zhang Yingying’s sharper White Rainbow, upsetting her, then apologized as Xue Lei came over to thank him for helping his father.
• Xue Lei told Ronan that Senior Xiaolin had said they were from different worlds, and Bamboo Pole tried to resume his briefing.
• Red Fox asked why they would risk fighting the Secular Side for Child when they had routes to withdraw.

As the group discussed the trapped civilians and the Justice Cult’s plan to turn them into a Snake Nest, Red Fox condemned the rescue effort and called Ronan’s allies pig teammates. Ronan stayed silent and expanded his psychic perception until information from across Frost River Reality’s A Zone overwhelmed him.

• Bamboo Pole explained that nearly one hundred civilians remained trapped in A Zone and that the Justice Cult was using their fear and suffering to build a Snake Nest.
• Zhang Yingying asked Ronan to draw her another portrait, while Bai Xinyan also requested one.
• The group watched footage showing gunmen shooting civilians who tried to escape, making them powerful vessels for Serpent's Whisper and spreading panic among the other captives.
• Bamboo Pole praised Huang Bingzhen’s presence and Ronan’s Gestalt for suppressing the Snake Nest’s effects on him.
• Red Fox angrily blamed the rescue effort for endangering civilians, and Zhang Yingying confronted him.
• Ronan restrained himself from arguing and expanded his perception beyond Cat's Eye’s range, taking in a flood of details from A Zone.

Ronan used All-domain Perception to update the intelligence map of Frost River Reality, revealing more enemies than the old map showed and drawing attention from the team. Cat's Eye challenged how he detected an enemy beyond her own perception range, while Red Fox was left silenced.

• Ronan sorted the sensory information flooding his Mental Layer and sent Bamboo Pole information that prompted an updated map.
• Red Fox accused He Yueyin of covering for her Boss, and Zhang Yingying countered by bringing up Red Fox's past retreat from Lake City.
• He Yueyin redirected the team to Bamboo Pole's new map, which showed more than a dozen additional people, mostly enemies.
• Zhang Yingying praised Ronan's results, and Cat's Eye asked how he had detected an enemy near the edge of her Super-Distance Perception range.
• Red Fox questioned whether the newly marked enemy was real, but Cat's Eye and Zhang Yingying told him to shut up.

After Ronan identified a corpse as the reason the Sacrifice Knight had gone unnoticed, Red Fox rejected the explanation and grew increasingly furious with the team. He left the rendezvous point and headed toward Frost River Reality, intent on proving his point himself.

• Ronan explained that the Sacrifice Knight had escaped notice by disguising himself as a corpse, and Cat's Eye and Bamboo Pole confirmed that a body lay at the location he had identified.
• Red Fox mocked Ronan's reasoning and accused the others of blindly supporting him, then shook off Bamboo Pole and left the shopping mall to pursue the Sacrifice Knight.
• Bamboo Pole and Paper Cut failed to stop Red Fox, while He Yueyin and Zhang Yingying sent messages warning him against acting recklessly.
• Red Fox ignored the warnings, hurried toward Frost River Reality, and pushed upstream through the crowds evacuating the area.