Chapter Summaries

As Sakurajima sank, Lu PingAn helped evacuate its refugees and learned that the Eastern Kingdom planned to resettle most of them in new cities in Siberia and the north. He accepted the plan as a way to give them work and a new home, and promised to save as many as he could.

• Lu PingAn watched Sakurajima sink and felt for the refugees fleeing their homeland.
• Lu PingAn refused to hear details about the Eastern Kingdom’s emergency escape plans, saying soldiers should prevent disaster rather than plan their own retreat.
• Lu PingAn worried about the millions of refugees who might overwhelm the Eastern Kingdom and worsen social conditions.
• The administrative secretary told Lu PingAn that most refugees would cross into Siberia and the northern regions to build new cities, while selected specialists could receive work visas to the interior.
• Lu PingAn accepted the resettlement plan and said he would try to save as many refugees as he could.

Lu PingAn considered the Eastern Kingdom’s evacuation plans after Sakurajima’s fall, then searched for the Kusanagi Sword and the missing imperial family. He found the imperial convoy’s dead, but Princess Yizi was still missing, and he set out to find her.

• The Eastern Kingdom shifted its fleet toward coastal rescue and evacuation, while refugees headed north and the government prepared inland relocation plans.
• Lu PingAn predicted that Sakurajima’s fall would threaten the Leighton Peninsula and considered how the Eastern Kingdom’s retreat could affect its allies.
• Lu PingAn searched for the Kusanagi Sword and investigated the missing imperial family after a marine squad’s final request for help.
• Lu PingAn found the imperial convoy buried with its occupants dead, several apparently killed so their brains could be taken for information.
• Lu PingAn learned that Princess Yizi was missing and had apparently clashed with the bodyguards before fleeing, so he went to search for her.

Lu PingAn investigated the Fishmen settling on Sakurajima and discovered that parasites and engineered diseases were driving them from the sea. He realized the Fishmen were dividing the island into territories and considered exploiting those divisions to keep Sakurajima from uniting.

• Lu PingAn avoided Fishman patrols and noticed that families were settling in cave dwellings across the island.
• Lu PingAn dissected a Fishman and, with Big Cat's help, found parasites and several diseases specifically targeting Fishmen and other amphibious species.
• Lu PingAn and Chris discussed the danger the invaders posed to humans and the risks of the Fishmen's biological weapons spreading through Earth's ecosystems.
• Lu PingAn concluded that the Fishmen had been forced onto land, where their need for food and resources would limit their expansion.
• Lu PingAn reconsidered the scattered Fishman territories and proposed keeping Sakurajima divided so its forces could not unite.

Lu PingAn infiltrated Sakurajima to collect specimens and intelligence, learning that the Poison Sea and the Octopus lords’ self-interest had weakened the invaders’ cohesion. After finding that powerful enemies were allowing him to move through their territories, he located Princess Yizi and her Fishmen husband.

• Lu PingAn gathered Fishmen specimens and learned that the invaders’ captives were being used as slaves to reproduce on land.
• Lu PingAn found a Coral Fortress and captured a Quasi Rule-level creature, then extracted intelligence from a Fishmen Lord.
• The Fishmen Lord revealed that the Poison Sea had isolated the Vanguard from its headquarters, leaving many lords resentful of orders to attack humanity.
• Lu PingAn concluded that the lords’ disloyalty and the invaders’ scattered territories would prevent a major assault on the continent in the short term.
• Lu PingAn crossed into powerful beings’ domains without being attacked and found Princess Yizi with her Fishmen husband.

Yizi’s betrayal of her country and family in exchange for youth left her transformed into an ill, mocked Fishman and trapped as entertainment for her husband. As Lu PingAn watched from the shadows, Yizi began performing the role of a furious Princess to keep herself alive.

• Yizi recalled seeking supernatural help to escape aging and becoming Eight-Clawed’s inside contact among more than thirty evil gods.
• Yizi gave the invaders defense maps and planar coordinates, helped imprison the original Defense Commander, and betrayed her brother and family.
• The Fishmen Lord told Yizi that he had fulfilled his promise by giving her a young body and marrying her, while the Fishmen mocked her transformation into an ugly, sick Half-Fishmen.
• Yizi realized her husband kept her alive because her humiliation amused him, so she shouted that she was a Princess and deserved respect.
• Lu PingAn laughed with the Fishmen from the shadows.

Lu PingAn found the Fishmen Lord tormenting the Princess and discovered four weak Kusanagi Sword replicas, then decided to attack the Fishmen with demonized viruses and parasites. He slipped into a train’s dining car and contaminated its flesh-filled meal, leaving the effects unknown.

• Lu PingAn and Chris watched the Fishmen Lord make the betrayed Princess perform for its amusement in the ruined Parliament.
• Lu PingAn found four Kusanagi Sword replicas and, with withdrawal orders pending, decided to kill the captives rather than attempt a rescue.
• Chris reminded Lu PingAn to use his Life-type abilities, and he demonized viruses and parasites taken from diseased Fishmen.
• Lu PingAn entered a train’s dining car, where the Fishmen prepared a meal of flesh, and secretly added the mutated organisms to it.

Lu PingAn used the demigods’ gifts to create dangerous mutated life forms for the invading Otherworld forces, accepting that his actions could turn the world against him. As he completed his weapon, the Book of Life announced that he had obtained a new Magical Pet.

• Lu PingAn decided to demonize the demigods’ gifts and combine them into viruses, parasites, and other threats powerful enough to attack the invaders.
• Big Cat warned Lu PingAn that his creations could make the land uninhabitable and cause the world to hate him, but Lu PingAn asked for help magnifying their harm.
• Lu PingAn explained that he would rather risk destroying the land than surrender it, and argued that raising the cost of war could drive the invaders away.
• Lu PingAn finished creating his destructive gift for the outsiders, and the Book of Life announced that he had obtained a new Magical Pet.

At a feast after Sakurajima fell, Princess Yizi and the Fishmen Lords ate human flesh until their hunger and strange transformations spiraled out of control. The chapter ended with Yizi confronting a human-faced version of herself that called her a traitor.

• The Fishmen Lords taunted Princess Yizi as she ate human flesh, and she greedily continued despite her tears.
• The lords discussed finding more victims and breeding Meatmen, while a demigod creature remained hungry after eating.
• The Fishmen Lords began consuming one another and developing bizarre body parts as their hunger intensified.
• Princess Yizi curled up in terror as the transformed lords fought around her.
• A human face crawled out of Princess Yizi's stomach, gripped her throat, and called her a traitor to the nation and humanity.

Lu PingAn observed Awakening Disease spread among the Fishmen, whose bodies grew new flesh and limbs while they remained unaware of the mutations. Princess Yizi alone rejected his blessing and recognized the horror, and Lu PingAn recorded the disease’s early symptoms as it spread across the island nation.

• Fishman Yizi saw her human self emerge from her body and fight to strangle her, while the other mutated Fishmen laughed at her.
• Lu PingAn identified Yizi as the sole person who had rejected his blessing and recorded the mutation as Awakening Disease.
• The afflicted Fishmen became hungry and aggressive, growing additional mouths and flesh as they demanded more food.
• Lu Mouren saved a Fishman who tried to kill Yizi and waited for the disease’s second stage.
• Lu PingAn recorded the disease’s symptoms and considered whether killing infected Fishmen could stop its spread.

Lu PingAn’s blessing ability mutated into the Parasitic Seed, a lifeform that infected its hosts and grew malicious duplicates inside them. As the disease spread and the Rule-level beings sensed something was wrong, the adult parasite’s replacement of a host exposed the infection and triggered its third stage.

• Lu PingAn’s Life Encyclopedia identified the Awakening Mother as a dangerous new Magical Pet, and he realized his accumulated blessing shares had transformed into a parasitic lifeform.
• The Parasitic Seeds activated inside the infected Fishmen, growing Another Mes that drew on their hosts’ bodies and power.
• A Fishmen Lord twisted off his own head, grew a smaller replacement, and smiled at Princess Yizi while Lu PingAn recorded the change.
• Lu PingAn observed that the parasites spread through infection, while the demigod and Rule-level beings resisted their effects longer.
• A mature duplicate helped another parasite replace its host, exposing the infection to the victims and beginning the third stage of Awakening Disease.

Lu PingAn’s observers assessed his rapid growth and the life-fusion ability behind his virus, while debating how dangerous and useful his creation was. When the first infected replacer was discovered and killed, the virus entered a new stage, leaving the observers alarmed by what Lu PingAn was doing.

• Lady Lin and the Eastern Kingdom’s demigods watched Lu PingAn closely and prepared to support him if he was besieged.
• The demigods recognized that Lu PingAn’s ability let him rapidly combine different species and produce research results by testing ideas immediately.
• The observers judged that his virus was dangerous but had limitations because it needed to be ingested and could be countered by killing infected hosts.
• A successful replacer was discovered, and panic spread as people killed infected hosts to stop transmission.
• The observers realized the virus had entered a more dangerous stage and questioned whether Lu PingAn had gone mad.

Lu PingAn’s virus triggered a spreading network of mutations that fused the Fishmen’s severed flesh into new creatures, but the demigod kept destroying them. Lu PingAn then made his own Tier 8 body the core of a growing Mother Goddess creature, while an unaffected version of him watched from a tree as the battle escalated.

• The Fishmen panicked over their mutations, and their demigod killed many of them while trying to suppress the outbreak.
• A Soul Network formed, allowing the Mother Goddess to fuse severed limbs and mutated Fishmen into new creatures that kept returning after being destroyed.
• Lu PingAn judged the creatures too weak to threaten the demigod and leaped into the corpses to make his Tier 8 body their core.
• The fused creature grew into a fiery, volcanic monster and fought the demigod on more equal terms.
• The Observers saw another Lu PingAn watching from a tree, apparently unchanged, as he claimed the loss had only cost him a month of work.

Lu PingAn’s Awakening Disease mutation created an immortal, explosive Black Legion that ravaged the Fishmen and tied down a demigod before he left the battlefield. The disease spread beyond the fight, becoming a lasting threat to the Octopus Race and slowing attacks on the Eastern Kingdom.

• Lu PingAn’s infected duplicate used his copied abilities to create a Black Fire legion that spread the Awakening Disease.
• The duplicate turned its endlessly reconstructing soldiers into bombs, while battlefield kills granted survivors experience and new powers.
• Lu PingAn considered erasing the disease’s mother body but chose to let the battle continue and left through the shadows.
• The Awakening Disease spread with fleeing members of the Black Legion and became a long-term plague for the Octopus Race.
• The disease’s spread hindered the Fishmen legions’ attacks on the Eastern Kingdom in the short term.

Lu PingAn wrote a disaster report on the Awakening Disease, which had spread through the Fishmen and could be unleashed as a devastating weapon. Two weeks after the failed campaign and Sakurajima’s fall, he remained aboard the fleet’s flagship and received Rule-level Kusanagi Sword replicas among his share of the spoils.

• Lu PingAn documented the disease’s symptoms, risks, and exceptional cases, including a demigod that became a pathogen and devastated the surrounding region.
• Lu PingAn added recommendations for infected people and warned that the disease could mutate and harm those who abused it.
• Lu PingAn reflected that his mutated counterpart had severely wounded a demigod, but higher-ups had banned using that tactic except in critical situations.
• Lu PingAn remained aboard the flagship while rescue crews searched the seas around fallen Sakurajima and the disease spread among the Fishmen.
• Lu PingAn received a large share of the spoils, including genuine Rule-level Kusanagi Sword replicas that the Courtyard could absorb.

After the Sakurajima Battle devastated the island nation, Lu PingAn learned that the Eastern Kingdom was preparing for a prolonged war through mass recruitment, military-industrial mobilization, and supernatural forces. Watching the island fall, he accepted that humanity’s survival would demand sacrifice.

• Lu PingAn considered the immense casualties of the Sakurajima Battle and doubted that international military cooperation would be effective.
• Major General Su told Lu PingAn that Wanjing was shifting the Eastern Kingdom to a wartime footing, including mass recruitment and a Five-Year Plan for military industry.
• Major General Su explained that the plan would make the military supernatural, deploy AI sapients with human rights, and establish two-year service requirements for Outland Visitors seeking honorary citizenship.
• Lu PingAn realized that the Eastern Kingdom expected war to become a long-term reality and was using the island’s loss to gain time for strategic preparation.
• Remembering a disaster victim’s plea to save the children, Lu PingAn called for the continuation of humanity and human civilization.

Lu PingAn brought the Third Fleet safely out of the war zone and wrote reports urging the Eastern Kingdom to prepare for a long conflict by modernizing its navy and investing in automated weapons. He predicted several years of strategic defense before a later offensive and considered investing in Rule-level Mechanical Awakeners.

• Lu PingAn withdrew the Third Fleet from the war zone and felt relieved that it had survived.
• Lu PingAn wrote reports on the battle, Awakening Disease, Ocean Disease, and the need to reorganize the fleet.
• Lu PingAn urged his superiors to mass-produce underwater vessels, Drones, and autonomous cruise missiles, and to support AI and Mechanical Awakeners.
• Lu PingAn predicted the oceanic defensive line could be breached within three years and recommended preparing for a long strategic defense before forcing the invaders back toward mainland Australia.
• Lu PingAn considered investing in War Machines and Rule-level Mechanical Awakeners, including Fang Wen.

Three years into the Sea Devils War, Lu PingAn returned to Earth with Cat Cat and Catherine and learned that the Eastern Kingdom was preparing a strategic counteroffensive. After hearing Ancient City’s deputy secretary-general make a pitch for the coming war, Lu PingAn agreed to meet with the office after catching up on recent events.

• Lu PingAn, Cat Cat, and Catherine heard a broadcast report that invasion-related deaths had fallen, and Catherine explained why official media’s upbeat reporting suggested the situation was improving.
• Jiang XinAn, deputy secretary-general of the Ancient City Office, met Lu PingAn and asked him to help secure naval contracts and a better place for Ancient City’s troops in the coming counterattack.
• Lu PingAn recalled leaving the military district after the Sakurajima Battle and spending the past two years exploring other worlds, establishing Woodlands, and building his faction.
• After Jiang XinAn said the First Fleet might retake the southern islands within three months, Lu PingAn agreed to visit the office soon but first planned to learn what had happened while he was away.

Lu PingAn reviewed corruption and operational problems at the Rebirth Merchant Group while catching up with Xia Qin about Ancient City's growing supernatural crises. The chapter left them resting together as they discussed the city's dangers and Xia Qin's new, more polished appearance.

• Lu PingAn returned from the Rebirth Merchant Group's headquarters and decided that corruption among its executives required a major purge, especially in accounting and agriculture.
• Lu PingAn recognized that the sprawling company depended on its managers and could not be closely controlled while he focused on military strength, city development, and their enemies.
• Xia Qin told Lu PingAn that Ancient City faced hundreds of Sea Devil cases, smuggling, child soldiers, and illegal supernatural incidents, while the Bureau of Anomalous Affairs struggled to keep up.
• Lu PingAn questioned Xia Qin's large increase in her Seal of Justice, and Xia Qin explained that several Rule-level threats had been causing trouble.
• Xia Qin explained that she had learned to dress up after rumors called her a tomboy, while Lu PingAn teased her about doing it because he had returned.

Ten years after gaining the Foundation of God, Lu PingAn had become a powerful but publicly retired figure who supported Ancient City with advanced anti-Fishmen robots. After spending the night with Xia Qin, he was called back to work when Catherine threatened to take time off, and he reflected on the allies who made his faction strong.

• Lu PingAn offered Xia Qin four hundred Fishmen Slayers for Ancient City's public security, and she stayed to share a drink with him.
• Lu PingAn and Xia Qin spent the night together while Cat Cat was away.
• Cat Cat told Lu PingAn that Catherine would disappear for at least two weeks if he did not return, so he got up and went to work.
• Lu PingAn considered how his faction depended on trustworthy allies and high-level combatants, then said the day would be a good one.

Lu PingAn returned to work and reviewed the demands and opportunities awaiting him, especially the upcoming Zhan Jiang Trading Fair and the war effort. He approved negotiations for a joint Ark warship bid and began preparing for a packed schedule of official duties.

• Catherine confronted Lu PingAn with the calls and paperwork that had piled up while he was away, then gave him two possible work schedules.
• Lu PingAn reviewed the Zhan Jiang Trading Fair plans and approved negotiations to partner with arms manufacturers on a joint warship bid.
• Lu PingAn prioritized the Ocean Seminar, where experts discussed plans to eliminate marine invasive lifeforms.
• Lu PingAn reviewed upcoming meetings and obligations, including a Defense Department meeting, an international joint mechanism, and a lecture at Gu City University.
• Lu PingAn began handling official business, embedding his forces into the Eastern Kingdom's system and its war effort.