Chapter Summaries

After the black starfields were cleared and their findings sent to the Alliance, Xi Xiu reviewed records on the Xing, Yun, and Qin Families while preparing to return to Anvile. She and the robots discovered that the Central Brain had repeatedly controlled Sixi, and Xi Xiu decided to watch for it across the Star Net.

• Qing Zhixun and the other warriors cleared the black starfield around Fox Tail, while warriors at Jing Su's other bases cleared the fields around theirs and submitted their findings to the Alliance.
• Chu Zekuan and Wu Jingya organized the collected information, and Wu Jingya sent Xi Xiu her investigation into the Xing Family and the Yun Family.
• Xi Xiu studied the family records in her dormitory as she waited for approval to take leave and return to Anvile with A Xian.
• Wu Yuan and Qi Mang questioned Sixi and learned that she had lost control of her program more than fifty times since it was restored.
• Xi Xiu explained that Aunt Lan had once given her Genetic Information to the Central Brain and told the robots to watch other machines for signs of its activity.
• Xi Xiu decided they would wait for the Central Brain to appear so they could catch it and ask what it wanted.

Xi Xiu planned to speak with the Central Brain to learn about her homeland, humanity’s past, and the fate of the people left behind. Meanwhile, A Xian told Qing Zhixun about Xi Xiu’s painful childhood, and he resolved to protect her and support her future.

• Xi Xiu told Qi Mang and Wu Yuan that the Central Brain’s interest in her could let her ask it questions without making it break its rules.
• Xi Xiu suspected that the Jingsu Alliance’s humans came from her Blue Planet and that the Central Brain might have originated there, so she resolved to seek answers from it.
• A Xian told Qing Zhixun that Xi Xiu had escaped the laboratory before age five with Wei Lanshan and had survived by remembering happier times.
• Qing Zhixun planned to strengthen Xi Xiu’s file protections and ensure her listed father could not cause her trouble.
• A Xian told Qing Zhixun that Xi Xiu dreamed of becoming a nutritionist or opening an ingredient shop after retiring, and he said he would help her shine.

A Xian helped Qing Zhixun gather information and support for Xi Xiu, while Qing Zhixun agreed to return to Anvile and assist Xi Xiu and Wei Lanshan with their plan. Xi Xiu then decided to lure out the Central Brain by holding a barbecue near the camp.

• A Xian reviewed Qing Family information about Ye Zhenwei and discussed the Alliance's plans for her future with Qing Zhixun.
• Qing Zhixun agreed to return to Anvile and support Xi Xiu and Wei Lanshan's plan to lure in the enemy.
• Qing Zhixun told A Xian that he had gathered edible aromatic plants for Xi Xiu, and A Xian shared Xi Xiu's daily activities with him.
• A Xian returned to the dormitory and told Xi Xiu that Qing Zhixun had agreed to adjust their vacation time.
• Xi Xiu and A Xian planned a barbecue near the camp to attract the Central Brain and verify Xi Xiu's information.

Xi Xiu prepared six questions to probe the Central Brain, while Sixi recorded her conversations for it. Long Xingxue and Feng Qiqi then shared evidence linking a suspicious machine to Li Zhengfeng, and Xi Xiu argued that the machine might not be the real Li Zhengfeng.

• Xi Xiu and A Xian drafted and refined six interconnected questions for the Central Brain.
• Xi Xiu chatted with A Xian about recent events and new flavors, while Sixi recorded their words for the Central Brain.
• Long Xingxue and Feng Qiqi sent Xi Xiu files about suspicious activity across the Alliance and a machine whose methods resembled Li Zhengfeng's.
• Xi Xiu cautioned Long Xingxue that the machine might be a clone or decoy, since the real Li Zhengfeng would not leave such obvious traces.

Long Xingxue and Xi Xiu investigated signs that the Qin Family had collected the consciousnesses of warriors from Li Zhengfeng’s era, while Xi Xiu planned how to present the evidence to the Elder Council and defend Nine Stars. With no clues to the warriors’ whereabouts, they could only prepare for the possibility of war.

• Long Xingxue identified suspicious patterns in the information about Li Zhengfeng and assigned Ming Weiman to analyze five hundred years of mercenary postings.
• Xi Xiu and Bai Jungo investigated retired warriors’ former homes and found that many had shown unusual behavior before their deaths.
• Xi Xiu told A Xian that Nine Stars would send the Xing and Yun Family files to the Elder Council first, then submit the remaining evidence about the warriors.
• Xi Xiu said Nine Stars would publish all remaining evidence on the Star Net if the Elder Council failed to act and allowed attacks on Nine Stars to continue.
• Ming Weiman’s data showed that at least two thousand warriors from Li Zhengfeng’s era might be involved, but Xi Xiu had no leads on where they had gathered.

Xi Xiu and A Xian took several robots to a forest gathering, where Xi Xiu’s cooking awakened the mysterious presence inside Sixi. After Xi Xiu said her hometown was an unrecorded planet she could no longer find, the presence took control of Sixi again.

• Xi Xiu and A Xian brought Ebony, Wu Yuan, and Qi Mang through the Teleportation Device to a forest, where Qing Zhixun and Lu Zong'an joined them.
• Xi Xiu prepared barbecue seasonings while Sixi watched and asked to learn how to make them.
• Sixi, controlled by the mysterious presence, asked Xi Xiu about the special beans and offered to reveal their location in exchange for tasting the snow beef.
• Xi Xiu told Sixi that she had learned to prepare food in her hometown and that she no longer knew how to return to its unrecorded planet.
• Sixi lost control again as another program seized her place.

Xi Xiu spoke privately with the Central Brain and learned that the way back to her homeland could no longer be found. She questioned it about Qin Jian and the recent events in the Alliance, but the Central Brain fell silent before confirming who was responsible.

• The Central Brain revealed that it had secretly tracked Xi Xiu because her Mental Power resembled Li Zhengfeng's and carried traces of the past.
• Sixi told Xi Xiu it did not know a way back, and Xi Xiu accepted that her homeland could no longer be reached.
• Xi Xiu comforted herself with help from A Xian and Ebony, then told Sixi she had realized it was the Central Brain and invited it to talk.
• Xi Xiu asked whether the Central Brain remembered Qin Jian, and it said he was the only one who ultimately arrived and could be considered a living human.
• The Central Brain explained that Xi Xiu's ship carried embryos and living cells, and that Qin Jian had survived by every possible means.
• Xi Xiu asked whether Qin Jian was behind the recent events in the Alliance, and the Central Brain fell silent.

Xi Xiu and Qing Zhixun confronted the Central Brain about its connection to Qin Jian and its role in the Jingsu Alliance’s crises. The Central Brain confirmed Qin Jian was its creator, explained some of its actions, and left Xi Xiu with further questions about the abandoned robot bodies.

• The Central Brain confirmed most of the data Xi Xiu had gathered but withheld detailed information about Qin Jian, saying they could investigate his files themselves.
• The Central Brain agreed to help control Li Zhengfeng’s machine if he appeared, and Xi Xiu asked about a sentence in the clone files.
• Xi Xiu showed the Central Brain images of the sealed underwater and Underground Cities, and Qing Zhixun identified Qin Jian as its creator.
• The Central Brain said its rules prevented it from acting against Qin Jian, while Qing Zhixun and Xi Xiu challenged its loyalty and accused Qin Jian of atrocities.
• The Central Brain said it had given Wei Lanshan information through Xi He and revealed that the Xing and Yun Families were subordinate branches of the Qin Family, then gave Xi Xiu a data packet.
• Xi Xiu asked how abandoned robot bodies had fallen into the other side’s hands.

Xi Xiu and Qing Zhixun uncovered evidence that Alliance insiders had helped the Qin Family steal discarded robots and conceal the crime. The Central Brain gave Xi Xiu investigative leads and warned her about Qin Jian, leaving her to promise she would kill him if she met him on the battlefield.

• Ming Weiman's evidence showed that discarded robots had been secretly taken for five hundred years, with Alliance officials forging records and covering up the thefts.
• Xi Xiu concluded that several great families, including members of the Boyuan Family, had fallen under the Qin Family's influence, and Qing Zhixun questioned why the Central Brain had not warned the Elder Council.
• The Central Brain told Xi Xiu to investigate people named Qin Jian or with names pronounced the same way, as well as Alliance members whose Mental Power had risen rapidly, and warned her not to underestimate the five star systems across from Nine Stars.
• Xi Xiu learned that the Central Brain wanted to spend time with her, and the two sealed their agreement with a high-five or pinky swear.
• The Central Brain warned Xi Xiu that Qin Jian was ruthless and urged her to kill him completely if she encountered him; Xi Xiu promised she would try.

Xi Xiu reached an agreement with the Central Brain, which also decided to forgive Wei Lanshan once she completed her remaining task. After the reconciliation, the Central Brain teased Qing Zhixun for being jealous of Xi Xiu.

• Xi Xiu agreed to help the Central Brain while keeping their deal secret.
• A Xian questioned Qing Zhixun about Xi Xiu's behavior toward him, and he denied knowing why she acted differently around him.
• Xi Xiu explained how she had realized Sixi was the Central Brain hiding in a robot.
• The Central Brain forgave Wei Lanshan but required her to investigate the Black Zone experiments and rescue the children before her punishment ended.
• A Xian defended Xi Xiu, and the Central Brain teased Qing Zhixun for smelling like lemons when he asked whether their issues were settled.

Xi Xiu discussed the Central Brain’s warning about Qin Jian and organized a joint investigation with the Qing Family. The search would span centuries and many star systems, while Xi Xiu and A Xian prepared to leave for Anvile in a few months.

• The Central Brain gave Xi Xiu a code to contact it through the Virtual Network, then returned to its planet and revisited memories of its past.
• Sixi recovered after the Central Brain released control, and Xi Xiu reassured her that its visits would be brief.
• Xi Xiu told A Xian, Qing Zhixun, and Lu Zong'an what she could about the Central Brain’s warning, then explained that she and the Central Brain shared an interest in peace.
• Xi Xiu ordered Feng Qiqi and Ming Da to search for Qin Jian and names pronounced the same way across centuries of records.
• Qing Zhixun agreed that the Qing Family would investigate Qin Jian and people whose Mental Power had suddenly surged, then send encrypted findings to Xi Xiu’s group.

Xi Xiu reviewed information from the Central Brain and learned why it could not provide Qin Jian’s personal file, while uncovering records that could help track Li Zhengfeng and investigate the Alliance’s great families. She concluded that Qin Family members had drawn powerful allies with promises of immortality, leaving the investigation with new leads and the threat of a trap.

• Xi Xiu assigned Qing Sansui and Qi Mang to screen Jingsu’s enormous historical data archives for clues.
• Qing Zhixun explained that AI Brains had programming restrictions and described the mysterious origins and differing priorities of Jingsu’s Central Brain and Anvile’s Central Brain.
• Xi Xiu found six recorded locations tied to fluctuations from Li Zhengfeng’s consciousness and shared the data with Qing Zhixun for further investigation.
• Xi Xiu and Qing Zhixun discussed evidence that people across the Alliance might have helped Qin Family members obtain advanced weapons, warships, and information.
• Xi Xiu reasoned that the Qin Family had enticed its allies with power, wealth, fame, and promises of immortality that concealed serious costs.

A Xian and Qing Zhixun planned to finish their investigations and return to Anvile before its crisis, while Bai Yinglong and Feng Yueci traced several departed grandmasters to a suspicious disappearance in a Teleportation Channel. Their talks with Gu Jinyan ended with him pledging to return to the battlefield if war broke out.

• A Xian worried about the approaching crisis on Anvile, and Qing Zhixun assured her the front lines could hold while they prepared to leave Nine Stars' work to Feng Qiqi, Bai Jungo, Xu Da, and others.
• Feng Yueci and Bai Yinglong used Gu Jinyan's help to learn that the remaining grandmasters had left Jingsu aboard unmarked Starships and vanished inside a Teleportation Channel.
• Gu Jinyan recognized the same fluctuation associated with Ye Zhenwei's disappearance and recalled that Yue Qila, Zhang Jixing, and the soldiers aboard their Starship had later been found with no memory of what happened.
• Gu Jinyan discussed Nine Stars' strength and Hong Xixiu's leadership with Feng Yueci and Bai Yinglong, while worrying about Yue Qila's future and Ye Zhenwei's influence.
• Gu Jinyan declared that he would return to the battlefield if war erupted, refusing to let anyone trample Jingsu grandmasters' pride.

Bai Yinglong and Feng Yueci shared the clues they had uncovered about suspicious Alliance grandmasters with Xi Xiu and A Xian. After studying the grandmasters’ abusive videos, Xi Xiu noticed their behavior differed from their usual manner and suspected their consciousness had been controlled.

• Bai Yinglong and Feng Yueci left Gu Jinyan’s residence and reaffirmed their faith that Nine Stars would overcome the crisis.
• Bai Yinglong and Feng Yueci told Xi Xiu and A Xian that about six Alliance grandmasters had acted suspiciously and that Yue Qila and Zhang Jixing were under observation.
• Xi Xiu reviewed the grandmasters’ videos and movements while A Xian reacted with disgust to their insults against Nine Stars.
• Xi Xiu compared one grandmaster’s abusive video with his public speeches and found differences in his expressions, habits, and phrasing.
• Xi Xiu told A Xian that the grandmasters’ consciousness might have been controlled, though she did not know whether they had joined the enemy willingly or been forced.

Xi Xiu and A Xian discussed why powerful Alliance figures might have helped the programs attack Nine Stars, suspecting they had sought greater Mental Power or immortality despite the cost. Xi Xiu then told A Xian that she and the Central Brain came from the same planet, and A Xian promised to accompany her to learn what had happened there once Jing Su was peaceful.

• Xi Xiu and A Xian considered whether the people who attacked Nine Stars had acted willingly for profit or immortality, and agreed to treat them as willing participants until they could verify the truth.
• Xi Xiu suggested that the suspects might have increased their Mental Power beyond what their bodies could endure, and A Xian recognized this as a likely reason they sought another path.
• A Xian said the Central Brain's records could reveal whether the suspects' Mental Power had increased, while Qing Zhixun used the Qing Family's channels to investigate.
• Xi Xiu told A Xian that the Central Brain had asked when she was born and how old she was when she died, confirming that they came from the same planet.
• A Xian worried about what the revelation meant for Xi Xiu, then promised to accompany her to seek answers after Jing Su became peaceful.

Xi Xiu traced Feng Yueci’s account of a traveler who had criticized the Central Brain and found that the man had a suspiciously sparse history and an unrecorded birth. His trail led toward the barren region between the Barren Sea and Tianwei, where Xi Xiu suspected the Qin family might have hidden a secret base.

• Xi Xiu told Feng Yueci that some masters showed abnormalities, and Feng Yueci recalled meeting a traveler who had claimed the Central Brain was riddled with flaws.
• Feng Yueci sent Xi Xiu his Starship records, and she used Wei Lanshan’s access privileges to identify the traveler seated beside him.
• Xi Xiu and A Xian examined the traveler’s manner and appearance, and Xi Xiu noticed that he seemed unlike genetically modified Jingsu humans.
• Xi Xiu found that the traveler had no birth record and had spent five years on Fox Tail Star before heading to the border between the Barren Sea and Tianwei, where he vanished.
• Xi Xiu considered whether the Qin family’s secret base might be hidden in that vast, barren region and decided the scholars linked to the traveler could still be useful leads.

Xi Xiu connected the clones, Central Brain loopholes, Bio-constructs, and other threats to the Qin Family, and planned to gather evidence for Nine Stars to present to the Elder Council. News from Tianwei showed Ye Zhenwei had awakened but was estranged from her parents after learning the truth about her birth, leaving her future uncertain.

• Xi Xiu built a model linking the Alliance’s strange events to Qin Jian and the Qin Family, and said Long Xingxue, Ming Weiman, and Nine Stars needed more evidence to negotiate with the Elder Council.
• Xi Xiu suspected the Qin Family had sent cloned replacements across the Alliance and proposed searching the Central Brain for people with the same face.
• A Xian shared Wu Jingyang’s report that Wei Lanshan had awakened Ye Zhenwei and the other soldiers, who appeared healthy and unchanged.
• Xi Xiu and A Xian watched a video of Ye Zhenwei rejecting Tang Yongyu and Ye Yunhan after learning her birth and talent had been engineered.
• Xi Xiu worried that without guidance, Ye Zhenwei might take a dangerous path or turn against the Alliance.

Xi Xiu and A Xian discussed Ye Zhenwei’s condition and her possible assignment to the Barren Sea, while worrying about Tang Yongyu exposing Xi Xiu’s past. In Tianwei, Wei Lanshan confronted Tang Yongyu and later examined Ye Zhenwei, whose unusually calm behavior left Wei Lanshan uneasy.

• Xi Xiu and A Xian discussed Ye Zhenwei’s possible border assignment, whether the Alliance would provide a counselor, and the risk that Tang Yongyu might reveal Xi Xiu’s background.
• Xi Xiu told A Xian that she would leave for the depths of the starry sea if the Alliance rejected her, and said the Central Brain had promised to balance Wei Lanshan’s merits and faults if she saved the children.
• Tang Yongyu confronted Wei Lanshan in Tianwei and threatened to expose her and Xi Xiu, but Wei Lanshan said the Central Brain had already been informed and left.
• Ye Yunhan applied to the Elder Council for a counselor to help Ye Zhenwei and planned to confront Tang Yongyu after her situation was resolved.
• Duan Shaoguang examined Ye Zhenwei as Wei Lanshan watched and worried that Ye Zhenwei had returned far too calm.

Wei Lanshan examined Ye Zhenwei and found that her body was failing under the strain of her Mental Power, while Ye Zhenwei accused Wei Lanshan of withholding treatment. Wei Lanshan left to report the danger to Xu Jiusong, whose review showed Ye Zhenwei could die if she continued using her power extensively.

• Wei Lanshan and Duan Shaoguang found Ye Zhenwei's physical indicators were abnormal, especially her brain activity, and Wei Lanshan warned her not to use Mental Power on a large scale.
• Ye Zhenwei accused Wei Lanshan of causing her condition and demanded to know how Wei Lanshan would save Xi Xiu, but Wei Lanshan denied responsibility and left.
• Wei Lanshan went to Xu Jiusong's office and gave him Ye Zhenwei's physical report.
• Xu Jiusong reviewed the report and saw that Ye Zhenwei's body could explode if she continued using Mental Power on a large scale.

Wei Lanshan and Xu Jiusong discussed Ye Zhenwei’s worsening condition, her suspiciously calm reaction, and the Alliance’s preparations for an approaching war. Wei Lanshan also revealed that she had investigated the Tang Family and suspected Tang Mushishi was hiding his true strength.

• Xu Jiusong learned Ye Zhenwei’s body was in terrible condition, and Wei Lanshan warned that her abrupt change in behavior and apparent confidence in a cure seemed suspicious.
• Xu Jiusong agreed to arrange for someone to monitor Ye Zhenwei when she went to the Barren Sea border garrison.
• Wei Lanshan explained that she would remain in Tianwei to research medicine for experimental subjects, though the children would face immense pain and the work had only a fifty-fifty chance of success.
• Xu Jiusong and Wei Lanshan discussed the Alliance’s looming war, unresolved divisions in the Elder Council, and an investigation into the enemy’s weapons supply.
• Wei Lanshan told Xu Jiusong she had contacted the Tang Family on Jinghui Star and found that Tang Mushishi’s strength differed from what the public believed.