Chapter Summaries

Long Qi survived Joker’s attack after realizing the Time-Space Bubble still existed, while Joker fled and the Manipulation Threads’ Segmentation continued. Ronan identified the expanding Star Pellets as fragments of Aberration Genes that could revive in a High-Energy Environment, and said the group had brought many of them into the area.

• Long Qi realized Joker’s Flame Chainsaw had struck the place he should have occupied, because the Time-Space Bubble still separated them, and he caught the card as Joker passed through him.
• Joker accelerated again, shattered the Flame Chainsaw, and fled after Mountain Lord shielded Long Qi from its deadly fragments.
• The Time-Space Bubble’s scene connected with the real world, releasing toxic sludge and smoke that killed some Aberrant Species and drove others away.
• The Manipulation Threads’ Segmentation continued as the gray haze faded and colorful Star Pellets expanded to replace it.
• Long Qi asked what the Star Pellets were, and Ronan explained that they were fragments of Aberration Genes that could revive in a High-Energy Environment.
• Ronan told the group that they had brought the dense Star Pellets with them.

Long Qi realized that most of the Star Pellets came from the fleeing Joker, whose body contained a chaotic mixture of Aberration Gene fragments. Ronan turned the Joker’s trace in Formatted Space into a Character Card and sent it to Long Qi, leaving him to deliver it as a possible replacement for the Justice Cult’s Great Displacement.

• Long Qi recognized the Star Pellets as revived Aberration Gene fragments and found a few within his and Mountain Lord’s Form and Spirit Frameworks.
• Long Qi traced the overwhelming number of Star Pellets to the fleeing Joker, whose residual Segmentation Pattern was a mass of varied colors.
• Ronan explained that the Joker’s mixed Aberration Gene fragments could serve as a replacement for the Justice Cult’s Great Displacement.
• Ronan removed the Joker’s scratch mark from Formatted Space and shaped it into a dark Character Card bearing the Joker’s chaotic silhouette.
• Ronan told Long Qi to deliver the Character Card.

Long Qi delivered a card from Ronan to High Priest Lanier, then relayed Lanier’s thanks while Ronan taught the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram. Ronan began explaining the term “demon” just as someone grabbed Long Qi and asked to talk.

• Long Qi reached High Priest Lanier’s tent and handed him the card Ronan had sent, learning that Sacred Space prevented long-distance teleportation there.
• High Priest Lanier thanked Ronan and asked what he was doing; Long Qi said Ronan was teaching the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram.
• Long Qi messaged Ronan that the card had been delivered and that High Priest Lanier had expressed his thanks.
• Ronan explained the cultivation model behind the diagram and quoted Chang Yixuan, the Demon Subduing Great Lord.
• Ronan began discussing the meaning of “demon,” when someone silently put an arm around Long Qi’s neck and asked to talk.

Long Qi joined Tian Bang on the way back to Ronan’s lesson and listened as Ronan introduced four basic Configurations for the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram. Long Qi tried to copy one but was told his Machine Core could not support it, while Ronan left the students with a warning about distortion and the uncertain objectivity of Abyss Turbulence.

• Tian Bang seized Long Qi and persuaded him to let Tian Bang accompany him through the Wilderness, saying he needed a reason to go south.
• Long Qi and Tian Bang listened as Ronan explained that destruction, driving away, suppression, and subjugation were basic forms of demon-subduing.
• Ronan revealed four Configuration patterns, and Long Qi tried to replicate one using the method he had learned from the Eye of Knowing Configuration.
• The Standard Bearer warned Long Qi that his Machine Core could not support the Configuration and recommended Overclocking Fitting State.
• Bamboo Pole asked Ronan what distortion meant, and Ronan explained that contemplation began from the Self and that Abyss Turbulence might not have an objective source.

Ronan demonstrated how the curved structures in the Four Methods Diagram focused perception and distorted its targets, while the Deep Blue Walker cluster struggled to keep up. Tian Bang brought Long Qi along to join Liu Jia and Mountain Lord, who watched Ronan’s formation cleave through the sky above the Great Golden Triangle.

• Ronan identified the curved structures shared by the Four Methods Diagram’s Destroy, Expel, Forbid, and Enslave landscapes and showed how their Configurations spread from them.
• The Deep Blue Walker cluster experienced intense strain as Ronan’s Configuration continued expanding, while Long Qi wondered how it would perform against its intended target.
• Tian Bang dragged Long Qi toward a small flying shuttle and flew him to join Liu Jia and Mountain Lord.
• Liu Jia and Mountain Lord watched Ronan’s Formatted Space stir the air currents into a vast, birdlike formation as it crossed the Great Golden Triangle.

As Liu Jia rode with Mountain Lord toward the Deep Blue Walker swarm, he reflected on the Great Golden Triangle’s influence and judged that Mountain Lord had begun to waver from his role as a defender of the existing order. The chapter left Liu Jia suspecting Mountain Lord was trying to decide whether his recent choices had been foolish and whether he should remain involved.

• Liu Jia considered how the Great Golden Triangle and its trade network burdened An City while enriching political and commercial interests.
• Mountain Lord asked Liu Jia what the Deep Blue Walker swarm resembled, and Liu Jia compared it to a breakthrough aircraft formation preparing to strike.
• Mountain Lord asked whether Liu Jia would follow the swarm to the north bank of the Great River, and Liu Jia said he had no destination.
• Liu Jia recalled Mountain Lord’s participation in Ronan’s operation and concluded that it conflicted with his usual pursuit of power and profit.
• Liu Jia inferred that Mountain Lord had sought him out to reconsider whether he should stay at the gambling table or leave early.

Ronan taught the Burners about the Heaven-Man Landscape and demonstrated how its Control Method could make unclear phenomena recognizable and actionable. Mountain Lord used his assignment to grasp a component of the Wilderness, leaving Liu Jia to wonder how far he could reshape the Great Golden Triangle by pulling out more of its threads.

• Ronan explained how the four foundational landscapes served as mature paradigms for processing the Real World and refused to explain his card deck.
• Ronan described the Control Method’s basic steps and said it could turn psychological forces or external dangers into fantasy forms that could be restrained or used offensively.
• Ronan used Mountain Lord’s assignment as an advance demonstration and said the work could eventually provide a handle for solving the previous night’s trouble.
• Mountain Lord stared at an ominous bird and clenched his modified hand as he pulled at a special component within the Wilderness.
• Liu Jia sensed that Mountain Lord was tugging a thread from the Great Golden Triangle and wondered whether pulling more could let him knit a new pattern.

Yuan Wuwei stayed in his vehicle near the Great Golden Triangle as toxic spores spread and public attention surged around the live stream and the Deep Blue Walkers. Tu Ge returned and asked him to investigate the source of Long Qi’s retinal directives, but a call from Monroe interrupted them.

• Yuan Wuwei searched his vehicle for a gas mask while discussing the dangerous air and the live stream with Songkan.
• Yuan Wuwei noted that the live stream had exposed extraordinary events and pushed related topics up ZM’s trending list.
• Tu Ge returned to the vehicle, and Yuan Wuwei asked whether he would exploit someone’s absence to raid their place.
• Tu Ge said there was no weakness inside and that he would not help with cultivation experiments involving the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram.
• Tu Ge transferred satellite signal authority to the vehicle and told Yuan Wuwei to find firsthand information about the directives Long Qi received in the Live Stream Room.
• Monroe called Tu Ge, complained that his scalp was itching, and struggled with the poor signal.

Yuan Wuwei recognized Monroe and observed a video conference of powerful figures discussing the strange effects of the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram. The discussion turned toward contacting the people behind the experiment and clarifying the Category Three Pollutants, as another global figure joined the call.

• Yuan Wuwei recognized Monroe as the Ability User Association Headquarters' deputy secretary-general and realized he and Tu Ge belonged to the Li Wei Faction.
• Monroe connected a video conference with Tu Ge, Li Bozhou, Gao Wenfu, and a South Asian figure, while Yuan Wuwei hid from the camera.
• Monroe asked the group about a strange sensation caused by the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram, and Li Bozhou described it as feeling like someone tugging their hair.
• Gao Wenfu explained that the experiment was interacting with the Great Golden Triangle's ecology and might have increasingly complex effects that could spread outward.
• Li Bozhou urged Monroe to contact Mountain Lord or the person conducting the experiment, while the South Asian figure asked for the origins and criteria of Category Three Pollutants.
• A Black African man joined the video call, and Yuan Wuwei realized the affair was drawing influential figures from around the world.

During a video conference about the Wilderness, Yuan Wuwei grew alarmed that powerful Extraordinary Species might take action and endanger everyone nearby. He warned Songkan to stay in camp, then noticed Tu Ge watching him.

• Yuan Wuwei recognized Black Lion and Shakaer, then compared Shakaer's abilities with Tu Ge's control of air currents.
• Black Lion praised the fear the jungle's pollutants had inspired in its plants, while Shakaer rebuked him and they traded barbs.
• Yuan Wuwei observed that the conference lacked direction and wondered whether Monroe and others wanted to reach a consensus with Tu Ge before acting.
• Tu Ge advised Yuan Wuwei to keep watching, and Yuan Wuwei considered how devastating a clash among the Extraordinary Species could be.
• Yuan Wuwei messaged Songkan to stay in camp and go to Huai City with a team if necessary, then saw Tu Ge staring at him.

Yuan Wuwei realized Tu Ge’s changing demeanor was the source of his growing unease and monitored the live stream and conference for clues. As Ronan’s forces advanced toward Lake City, he suspected Gao Wenfu and other Extraordinary Species were considering intervening, and Songkan reported that Labi had arrived.

• Yuan Wuwei opened Raven’s Live Stream Room and checked discussion threads while Tu Ge watched the projection.
• Yuan Wuwei learned that Ronan and the Deep Blue Cluster had swept through eight locations and were advancing southwest toward Lake City.
• Yuan Wuwei concluded that Gao Wenfu’s position was under increasing pressure and that he might prefer to prevent a decisive outcome.
• Yuan Wuwei suspected Tu Ge’s worsening aura reflected opposition to—or caution about—a growing push to act quickly.
• Songkan messaged Yuan Wuwei that Labi had arrived.

Yuan Wuwei worried after Songkan stopped responding while the Extraordinary Species conference devolved into pointed exchanges. As Monroe tried to set an agenda, Tian Bang joined Liu Jia, bringing the conference close to the group traveling south with Ronan and the Deep Blue Cluster.

• Yuan Wuwei warned Songkan to get away from Joker at the project camp, but Songkan did not reply.
• Monroe brought Liu Jia into the video conference, where Liu Jia and Gao Wenfu traded barbs about unrest and the Deep Blue Cluster's movement south.
• Yuan Wuwei messaged Songkan and other camp acquaintances again, but no one answered, so he looked to Tu Ge for information.
• Monroe called for the Extraordinary Species to assess hidden changes in the Wilderness and prepare a framework for contingencies.
• Liu Jia brought Tian Bang into view, and the conference's participants were revealed to be close to the group traveling south with Ronan and the Deep Blue Cluster.

Yuan Wuwei tried to alert Ronan’s team that Joker had reached the underground camp while the Extraordinary Species debated the Gray Substance and its possible connection to the Abyss Zone Vortex Architect. The discussion turned toward what Ronan was weaving, but Tian Bang and Liu Jia were interrupted by something they noticed outside the rotorcraft.

• Yuan Wuwei sent repeated Live Stream Room Bullet Screens warning that Joker was at the camp and asking for help.
• Liu Jia compared Ronan’s work to knitting a sweater from threads drawn out of the Wilderness, and said it seemed to be taking shape.
• Liu Jia relayed that Mountain Lord’s AI described the Gray Substance as residue from handling an extremely high-risk element.
• Tian Bang suggested that the Gray Substance was degraded residue from the Abyss Zone Vortex Architect and questioned High Priest Lanier’s role in its spread.
• The Extraordinary Species challenged the theory and debated the pollutant’s origin, transmission, and purpose.
• Tian Bang asked what the Heavenly Human Demon Subduing Diagram would ultimately weave, but he and Liu Jia suddenly looked in different directions outside the rotorcraft.

Yuan Wuwei watched a strange beam rise from the direction of Huai City's underground engineering camp as Raven vanished during the chaos around the Deep Blue Cluster. After viewers panicked over her disappearance, Ink Plug restored the live feed and revealed the camp from above.

• Yuan Wuwei saw a thin beam shoot into the sky from the direction of Huai City's underground engineering camp, followed by a faint tremor.
• Mountain Lord asked where Raven was, and Tian Bang guessed that she had flown north toward the camp.
• Yuan Wuwei posted inflammatory Bullet Screen comments claiming the camp had exploded and Raven had gone to confront Joker, igniting panic in Raven's Live Stream Room and the Demon Eye Girl Demi-Plane.
• Viewers demanded that Long Qi explain Raven's disappearance, but the camera went black before returning to chaotic footage accompanied by the sound of beating wings.
• Ink Plug flew through the clouds and cleared the camera's view, revealing the engineering camp below.

Yuan Wuwei watched a live broadcast of the tunnel excavation camp, where the Justice Cult’s Great Displacement blocked clear images as the extraordinary figures gathered for a confrontation. The feed finally sharpened enough to reveal Joker, who noticed the camera and attacked it.

• Tu Ge explained that the Justice Cult’s Great Displacement had raised a Sacred Space, disrupting the live broadcast and preventing Yuan Wuwei from seeing Songkan clearly.
• Yuan Wuwei and the Extraordinary Species in the video conference speculated about Joker, Lanier, and the Character Card while Gao Wenfu observed that Ink’s movements around the interference seemed deliberate.
• The broadcast image suddenly sharpened, revealing Joker standing near the camp’s damaged equipment while the Deep Blue Walker Squad faced a threat nearby.
• Joker turned his head, vanished from the camera’s view, and then appeared close to the lens, startling Yuan Wuwei and viewers across the network.
• Joker called out, “What devils and monsters!” and a dim gray beam of dark light slashed toward the camera.

Ink’s chaotic flight revealed that the enormous shadow above the clouds was a physical metal structure rather than an illusion. The chapter ended with Yuan Wuwei recognizing it as an outer-space Space Battleship.

• Joker failed to strike Ink, and Ink escaped while observers debated whether the crow was fighting under altered conditions.
• Mountain Lord told the conference that the mission had changed, while Long Qi and the others discussed the stream and its increasingly clear footage.
• Six Ears noticed a new sound as vibrations shook the clouds above Ink.
• Ink’s camera revealed a massive metal structure with indicator lights, armor, autocannons, and a sealed belly hatch.
• Yuan Wuwei identified the structure as an outer-space Space Battleship.

A colossal Space Battleship appeared in the live stream, astonishing viewers and prompting speculation among the Extraordinary Species about why it had been deployed. As Ink reached the ship above the clouds, Joker caught up and landed on its hull, where Raven also appeared, leaving the camera focused on the pair.

• The Space Battleship's arrival overwhelmed the live stream and interrupted the video conference as its participants wondered who had mobilized it.
• Black Lion asked Liu Jia and Tian Bang about the ship, but neither knew why the military had sent it.
• Ink circled up the Space Battleship and broke through the clouds into the sunlight.
• Joker stepped through the air and landed on the ship's hull, drawing the viewers' attention.
• Ink dove from Joker and landed on Raven's shoulder, revealing that Raven was also aboard the ship.

Raven confronted Joker aboard the space battleship, while evidence of a brutal fight with Nick appeared at her feet. Lieutenant General Joseph then invoked an old agreement requiring nearby Extraordinary Species to join the operation against Nick, leaving them bound to help hunt him down.

• Joker stared through the battleship armor as viewers and Extraordinary Species wondered what was happening below and worried about Raven standing close to him.
• Ink's camera revealed a twitching severed hand beside Raven's boots, which broke into animated flesh and scattered like insects.
• The Extraordinary Species realized that Nick had apparently fought Raven and left behind the limb fragment, though they did not know when or where the encounter happened.
• Lieutenant General Joseph saluted from the command superstructure as the Extraordinary Species sensed an event that suggested an emergency call to action.
• Li Bozhou explained that an agreement required nearby Extraordinary Species to join the encirclement and suppression of Nick once the military or government announced his location.

Tian Bang explained the camp’s limited reports of fighting while the Extraordinary Species discussed Lieutenant General Joseph’s recruitment drive and the military’s growing support for Burners. Their conversation turned to Nick and Water Tank’s Life Link, leaving unresolved how anyone could eliminate them without interference from the force behind them.

• Tian Bang recited a military doggerel mocking Joseph, An Dongsheng, and Xiong Gu Mao, prompting Yuan Wuwei to reflect on military funding and the growing investment in Burners and Deep Blue Walkers.
• Monroe asked Tian Bang what had happened at the camp, and Tian Bang reported a brief suspected energy impact underground amid the fighting between Joker and High Priest Lanier.
• Tian Bang questioned whether the person ahead had received the Recruitment Order and would turn back, prompting the Extraordinary Species to debate whether Raven should be sent.
• Gao Wenfu, Shakaer, Li Bozhou, and Black Lion discussed the danger posed by Nick and Water Tank, whose Life Link let either survive as long as the other remained alive.
• The Extraordinary Species considered killing Nick and Water Tank simultaneously, but noted that one might be off Earth and that the force behind them could undermine the military’s resolve.

Black Lion questioned the military’s unexplained recruitment order and wondered whether Joseph and An Baizhan were coordinating with the mysterious person in Huai City. After the video conference, Black Lion pressed Tu Ge for news, but Tu Ge claimed he had received none and later stood alone by the river as Yuan Wuwei received another message.

• Black Lion challenged the recruitment order’s lack of a clear plan or stated pay and asked what roles Joseph, Labi, and Nick were playing.
• Li Bozhou recalled the Tide Surge Massacre Incident in Tea City, and Monroe said he would contact Joseph for an explanation.
• Black Lion, Li Bozhou, Shakaer, and Tu Ge left the video conference, while Yuan Wuwei remained puzzled by the livestream.
• Black Lion contacted Tu Ge and asked whether Joseph and An Baizhan had coordinated their actions, but Tu Ge said he had received no news.
• Black Lion ended the call, Tu Ge walked to high ground by the river, and Yuan Wuwei received another message.