Chapter Summaries

Xi Xiu and Qing Zhixun assessed the threat from the Qin Family as their forces fought outside the Starship. With Xue Fanhui still missing on a critical Alliance mission, Qing Zhixun entered combat himself and left Xi Xiu and A Xian to guard the ship.

• The Central Brain and A Xian warned Xi Xiu that the Qin Family's leader was arrogant, patient, and prepared to attack intelligent life on Jing Su.
• Xi Xiu recalled that Xue Fanhui had gone silent during a mission and had sent her weapon Space Lockets before leaving.
• As the battle outside the Starship intensified, Xi Xiu offered to draw the enemy's fire, but A Xian and Qing Zhixun refused.
• Qing Zhixun deployed the Qing Family's combat robots, put on his Protective Suit, and ordered Xi Xiu and A Xian to guard the Starship.
• Qing Zhixun teleported to the fighter hangar with short-range Teleportation Devices and a code that could conceal his fighter's approach for about fifteen seconds.

Xi Xiu reflected on Qing Zhixun protecting her as he led the attack against Qin Hongjun's Starship. When the Central Brain rejected Qin Hongjun's command and exposed that he was not the person it once obeyed, Qin Hongjun prepared to confront the intruders.

• A Xian praised Qing Zhixun for protecting Xi Xiu, while Xi Xiu tried to dismiss her warm reaction to his gesture.
• Qing Zhixun intercepted Qin Hongjun's attacks and led his fighters through the Starship's first line of defense.
• Qin Hongjun shoved Qin Yi aside and took control of the weapons, while Qin Yi endured his master's abuse to stay alive.
• Qin Hongjun used an old control code, but the Central Brain rejected him and said he no longer had the right to command it.
• Qing Zhixun and his people entered Qin Hongjun's Starship, and Qin Hongjun ordered Qin Yi to prepare a control program and send someone to fight.

Qin Yi loaded a control code into Li Zhengfeng, but Li Zhengfeng secretly prepared to break free from Qin Hongjun’s control. When Li Zhengfeng failed to attack Qing Zhixun, Qin Hongjun blamed Qin Yi for the apparent coding failure.

• Qin Yi inserted a control code into Li Zhengfeng’s biological chip, while Li Zhengfeng endured the procedure and hid his plan to escape the control program.
• Li Zhengfeng left the control room with Qin Yi, and Qin Hongjun mocked him while imagining ruling twenty star systems.
• Li Zhengfeng confronted Qing Zhixun aboard the Starship, and Qing Zhixun ordered Li Yuanting and the others to hold back.
• Qin Yi realized Li Zhengfeng was not responding to the control code and feared that he would be killed if Li Zhengfeng attacked.
• Qin Hongjun questioned Qin Yi about the code, and Qin Yi insisted he had followed the specified procedure.

Li Zhengfeng sent Xi Xiu a coded request to take him home after his combat strength ran out, and Wu Jingyang devised a way to help. As Qing Zhixun fought Li Zhengfeng, he recognized Li Zhengfeng’s attempt to communicate and followed Wu Jingyang’s instructions.

• Qin Hongjun sent Qin Yi into battle after dismissing his pleas, leaving Li Zhengfeng alone with him in the control room.
• Qing Zhixun’s surveillance footage led Xi Xiu and the Central Brain to identify Li Zhengfeng and discover that a biological chip controlled him.
• Li Zhengfeng sent a coded message asking to be taken home after his combat strength was depleted, and Xi Xiu forwarded it to Wu Jingyang.
• Wu Jingyang returned to the Starship and calculated that Li Zhengfeng’s plan depended on the timing of his own loss of combat strength.
• Li Zhengfeng and Qing Zhixun fought, and Li Zhengfeng silently identified himself before Wu Jingyang instructed Qing Zhixun to help him.
• Qing Zhixun followed Wu Jingyang’s instructions and fought Li Zhengfeng at close range.

Qing Zhixun fought Li Zhengfeng to help free him from Qin Hongjun’s control, then escaped with him aboard the starship. Qin Hongjun failed to locate Li Zhengfeng after the escape and suspected Wu Jingyang had cracked his code.

• Li Zhengfeng introduced himself to Qing Zhixun and asked him to fight at full strength, while Qin Hongjun watched their evenly matched battle.
• Wu Jingyang told Qing Zhixun to connect his terminal to Li Zhengfeng’s head and activate the Teleportation Device to free his consciousness.
• Li Yuanting and his allies defeated Qin Yi and ensured his consciousness could not be recovered.
• Qing Zhixun connected to Li Zhengfeng during their clash and teleported them back to his starship as Li Yuanting activated the device.
• The Central Brain evaded Qin Hongjun’s pursuit, and Qing Zhixun’s group escaped the star region while Wu Jingya led the others toward Anvile.
• Qin Hongjun tried to use Li Zhengfeng’s control code to find him but got no response and suspected Wu Jingyang had cracked it.

Qin Hongjun failed to track Li Zhengfeng and returned to his camp, unaware that Qing Zhixun had planted a tracker on his Starship. Li Zhengfeng separated from his body with the Central Brain’s help, while Xi Xiu and the others learned more about Qin Hongjun and his connection to Qin Jian.

• Qin Hongjun lost track of Qing Zhixun’s Starship, grew furious, and returned to his camp after having his robots repair his damaged Starship.
• Qing Zhixun’s tracker revealed the location of Qin Hongjun’s camp.
• Li Zhengfeng appeared in the Virtual Network, thanked the Central Brain, and confirmed that its help had allowed him to separate from his body.
• Qing Zhixun showed Xi Xiu and the others a recording of Qin Hongjun and explained that the Eternal Robots aboard his Starship acted more like partners than obedient servants.
• Xi Xiu explained Qin Hongjun’s belief that he was a creator god, and Wu Jingyang described him as a gifted split-off consciousness from Qin Jian.

After the battle with Qin Hongjun, the group reached the Anvile safe zone and Wu Jingyang transferred Li Zhengfeng’s consciousness into a robot body. Li Zhengfeng met Xi Xiu and the Nine-Star descendants, leaving them with the chance to ask him about his survival and history.

• Wu Jingyang explained that Qin Hongjun had become the dominant consciousness, while no one knew what had happened to Qin Jian’s consciousness.
• Qing Zhixun said Li Zhengfeng was a formidable fighter and described how their battle had ended in a draw.
• Wu Jingyang warned A Xian not to challenge Li Zhengfeng in the Virtual Network until his consciousness had recovered.
• The group stayed alert as they traveled to the safe region, where Feng Qiqi, Bai Jungo, and the medical teams treated the wounded soldiers.
• With help from the Central Brain, Wu Jingyang successfully activated Li Zhengfeng’s consciousness in a blank robot body.
• Xi Xiu introduced herself to Li Zhengfeng as Hong Xixiu, and the Nine-Star descendants welcomed the chance to speak with him.

Li Zhengfeng recounted how Qin Hongjun imprisoned him for five hundred years and revealed the dangerous experiments underway at Qin Hongjun’s base, including Insects that could consume entire star systems. He agreed to accompany A Xian to Anvile, while his exchange with A Xian hinted at a mystery surrounding the Wu Jing family.

• Li Zhengfeng told Bai Jungo and the others that Qin Hongjun had trapped him in a controlled body for five hundred years, during which he secretly restored his Mental Power and eventually broke free.
• Li Zhengfeng listed Qin Hongjun’s projects, including Eternal Robots, Bio-constructs, blank human bodies, Talent Warriors, and ultimate humanoid weapons.
• Xi Xiu showed Li Zhengfeng images of the Insects found on an Artificial Star, and he explained that Qin Hongjun had boasted they could devour everything.
• A Xian explained Anvile’s recurring crisis and its secrecy, and Li Zhengfeng agreed to accompany her to Anvile.
• Li Zhengfeng questioned A Xian about her generation in the Wu Jing family, then called Xi Xiu Anvile’s benefactor and praised how she handled the recent events on Nine Stars.

Hong Xixiu accepted Li Zhengfeng’s decision to leave Nine Stars in her hands and planned to rebuild it while keeping his survival secret. Li Zhengfeng warned that Qin Hongjun might attack Jingsu in less than a year, prompting Qing Zhixun to reconsider their preparations.

• Li Zhengfeng refused to reclaim Nine Stars, affirmed Hong Xixiu as its rightful leader, and urged her to trust herself.
• Hong Xixiu planned to let Nine Stars recuperate during her remaining eight years of service and reorganize its forces.
• Li Zhengfeng told Xu Fengxiang and the others to conceal that his consciousness survived and to claim Qin Hongjun’s copy of it had perished.
• Li Zhengfeng estimated Qin Hongjun would attack Jingsu in less than a year, while Qing Zhixun shared intelligence about a huge joint fleet assembled by five border star systems and an unidentified force.
• Li Zhengfeng revealed that the Hanhai People had likely agreed to enhancement with Qin Hongjun, and Qing Zhixun decided to alter their plans.
• After reviewing Jingsu’s military weaknesses, Li Zhengfeng angrily questioned what the Elder Council had been doing.

Li Zhengfeng discussed Jingsu’s weakened military and the Central Brain’s failures before sharing a private conversation with Xi Xiu about their lost homeland and his old record. He warned her that Qin Hongjun would try again, then helped her strengthen her plans to counter him.

• Qing Zhixun explained how Jingsu’s complacency and the Elder Council’s limits had weakened its defenses, while Li Zhengfeng challenged the Central Brain for failing to intervene.
• Qing Zhixun stopped Li Zhengfeng and the Central Brain from arguing, and the starship waited near Anvile for Wu Jingya before returning together.
• Li Zhengfeng asked Xi Xiu whether she understood his handwritten record, and she confirmed that she came from the same distant origin, in a sense.
• Li Zhengfeng learned that his dynasty had disappeared and asked Xi Xiu to destroy his record, while she said she would seek answers about the Central Brain’s lost homeland.
• Li Zhengfeng warned Xi Xiu against making deals with the Central Brain and advised her on how to prepare for Qin Hongjun’s next attempt to abduct her.

Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng discussed training a future battlefield commander as Qing Zhixun and the others arrived at Anvile Palace. The Wu Family welcomed them and reunited with Qing Zhixun, while Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng reflected on Anvile’s deep attachment to its homeland.

• Xi Xiu asked Li Zhengfeng to teach one of her disciples how to command battles, and he agreed.
• Qing Zhixun’s Starship landed at Anvile, and he followed Wu Jingyang and the others into Anvile Palace.
• A Xian brought Xi Xiu forward to greet Liuga, who welcomed her and expressed hope that Anvile would survive the crisis.
• Xi Xiu greeted the Wu Family members while Jing Xi embraced Qing Zhixun and welcomed him home.
• Jing Xi introduced Qing Zhixun to Wu Jingmu and Liuga, and he greeted the Wu Family.
• Li Zhengfeng remarked that Anvile had barely changed, and Xi Xiu explained that it was the place its people remembered as home.

The Wu Family reunited with Qing Zhixun and his companions, who explained Qin Hongjun’s schemes and the danger posed by the Insects. The group learned that more Artificial Stars and other contingencies might remain, while Xi Xiu’s role in defeating the Insects became clear.

• Liuga asked Qing Zhixun about his life and marriage plans, and he said he would submit an application after the crisis ended.
• Qing Zhixun described the group’s journey and revealed that Qin Hongjun sought Xi Xiu’s genes and recovered antibody cells.
• A Xian explained that Qin Hongjun was behind the Eternal Robots, Bio-constructs, Jing Xi’s ordeal, and the cultivation of the Insects.
• Wu Jingxu said he had destroyed six Artificial Stars, while A Xian warned that Qin Hongjun likely had more backups.
• Qing Zhixun explained the Insects’ resilience, and Xi Xiu described how the group slowed their reproduction and ultimately defeated them through Mental Power.

Li Zhengfeng explained what he knew about the threat and discussed Anvile’s crisis with Wu Jingmu. The chapter left the crisis’s origin unknown, but Li Zhengfeng suggested it was meant to test Anvile, while Anvile prepared to support the rest of Jingsu.

• Wu Jingmu pressed Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng about the strange threat, and Xi Xiu confirmed Li Zhengfeng was the God of War they had once suspected.
• Li Zhengfeng recalled meeting Wu Jingmu when he was young, while A Xian, Xi Xiu, You Lian, and Charlotte shared news about events beyond Anvile.
• Wu Jingyang told Wu Jingxu that Qin Hongjun had used the Initial Code to exploit the Central Brain, and Li Zhengfeng judged that Qin was more likely trying to keep Anvile from helping elsewhere than to attack it directly.
• Wu Jingmu explained that Anvile’s corrupt aura crisis returned every two thousand years, though their records did not reveal its cause.
• Li Zhengfeng proposed that Anvile’s ancestors had left the crisis unresolved to keep their descendants prepared, and Wu Jingmu showed him Anvile’s deployment map for review.

Wu Jingmu and Li Zhengfeng revised Anvile’s defenses after considering that Star Beasts could carry the corrupting aura to the ground, and they assigned Xi Xiu to the fifth defense line. Xi Xiu felt cherished by A Xian’s family as she settled into her new room, while Li Zhengfeng questioned the Central Brain about its loyalty to Qin Hongjun.

• Wu Jingmu and Li Zhengfeng discussed Star Beasts as possible carriers of the corrupting aura and adjusted Anvile’s defenses, placing Xi Xiu at the fifth line and A Xun at the sixth.
• Wu Jingmu assigned Jing Xi to the foremost battlefield, while the others took positions across the remaining defense lines and Wu Jingyang activated joint surveillance for Anvile and Jingsu.
• A Xian showed Xi Xiu the room Liuga had prepared for her, and Xi Xiu thanked her and felt deeply moved by the family’s care.
• Li Zhengfeng asked the Central Brain to stop occupying Sixi’s body, then reminded it of its former praise for Xi Xiu and asked how it viewed Qin Hongjun now.

Xi Xiu and her allies prepared Anvile’s defenses after the Central Brain confirmed it had broken free of Qin Hongjun’s restraints. Their calculations suggested the approaching Star Beasts had intelligence, and Xi Xiu left with her companions to join the forces gathering for the fifth layer of defense.

• The Central Brain told Li Zhengfeng it had cracked Qin Hongjun’s program, then connected with Wu Jingyang to analyze likely Star Beast arrival points.
• The Central Brain and Min En identified sixteen likely locations and calculated that the Star Beasts could have intelligence equivalent to a ten-year-old human.
• Wu Jingyang ordered the Central Brain and Min En to build Skynet and relay information throughout the defenses.
• Xi Xiu left Anvile with Li Zhengfeng, Wu Yuan, Qi Mang, and others to meet Feng Qiqi and proceed to the fifth layer of defense.
• Xi Xiu, Feng Qiqi, Bai Jungo, and Long Xingxue arranged their forces, and Xi Xiu ordered Anvile’s weapons loaded as reserve armaments.

Xi Xiu prepared Anvile’s defenses as the Star Beasts breached successive lines with greater strength and Mental Power. As Anvile’s warriors began to collapse, Wu Jingmu feared fewer than one in ten people might survive and suspected the Star Beasts served an unknown force.

• Xi Xiu assigned positions and reviewed Anvile’s weapons procedures while Li Zhengfeng taught her and Wan Youlin military tactics.
• After six days of silence, the Central Brain and Min En detected Star Beast activity at the second line of defense, which the creatures had bypassed the first line to reach.
• On the ninth day, the Star Beasts breached the second line, using stronger bodies and Mental Power that suppressed Anvile warriors.
• Xi Xiu sent Bai Jungo to reinforce the second line, and his fighters helped eliminate the Star Beasts there.
• A larger, stronger wave of Star Beasts descended on the third line and spread into the second, exhausting Anvile’s warriors and alarming Wu Jingmu and Liuga.
• Wu Jingmu told Liuga that Xi Xiu and A Xun might resist the decay aura better, and he suspected the Star Beasts had an unknown purpose and a force behind them.

Wu Jingmu and Liuga realized Anvile's missing clansmen might have been captured to help someone destroy the star domain and remake its rules. As Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng analyzed the Star Beasts' tactics, Xi Xiu prepared a plan to contain them while the Alliance still failed to send reinforcements.

• Wu Jingmu concluded that the enemy wanted to destroy the star domain and rebuild its rules, possibly using Anvile's missing clansmen.
• Liuga accepted that Anvile might have to fight its own captured people to protect the Origin Land and the consciousnesses within it.
• Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng noted that the Alliance had sent no reinforcements after nine days and suspected some people wanted Anvile to fall.
• Wu Yuan pointed out the Star Beasts' growing secretions, and Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng recognized that the third-layer beasts were an organized advance force spreading the corruption.
• Xi Xiu planned for the Snow Dragon Group to support the third layer, herd the Star Beasts together with nets, and blast them.

Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng battled a newly discovered species of Star Beast on the fifth layer, using combat data to devise a plan that protected nearby planets. Xi Xiu led the fighters in trapping the creatures in an asteroid belt, and Wan Youlin’s precisely timed strike destroyed them all.

• Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng spotted unfamiliar Star Beasts at the fifth layer, and Xi Xiu ordered the Starship crew to prepare for battle.
• Qi Mang led robots in fighters to test the creatures, while Xi Xiu analyzed the data and determined that A-rank weapons could seriously injure them.
• Xi Xiu sent Long Xingxue to check nearby planets for intelligent life, then finalized a weapons plan after the area was cleared.
• Xi Xiu and Li Zhengfeng led fighters in driving the Star Beasts into an asteroid belt and trapping them with nets as Wan Youlin prepared to fire.
• Xi Xiu and the others opened a gap in the nets, allowing Wan Youlin to strike the clustered Star Beasts and destroy them with the surrounding asteroids.

After the first Star Beast attack, Xi Xiu and the others analyzed the creatures and prepared for further battles while ground forces developed protective equipment. As the team identified clues to the beasts’ decay aura and possible behavior, they braced for attacks that could come every few days.

• Xi Xiu ordered the fleet to return after the first wave of Star Beasts was wiped out, and the soldiers gathered to review the battle and its aftermath.
• Wu Jingyang analyzed the Star Beast data, and Charlotte’s team developed protective material that let soldiers resist the beasts’ aura for two hours.
• Qing Sansui encountered the Central Brain while Sixi was taking a remote lesson, and the Central Brain agreed to keep Qing Zhixun’s plan secret in exchange for a possible contract.
• Xi Xiu and the others concluded that the Star Beasts had been raised and fitted with artificial decay-secretion systems, and Xi Xiu identified an air sac on their tails as the aura’s source.
• Long Xingxue reported that the beasts became agitated in battle, so the group planned to exploit their agitation and use group tactics against them.
• Xi Xiu estimated that minor incidents could occur every three days and major attacks weekly, and the team prepared to continue fighting.

As aberrant Star Beasts emerged in a second wave, Anvile raised its defenses and prepared for a desperate battle. Li Zhengfeng led warriors into space while Xi Xiu stayed aboard the Starship, then set out with Ebony, Wu Yuan, and Qi Mang to support him.

• Qin Hongjun learned that Wu Jingxi had appeared in Anvile and ordered Qin Yi to send instructions to a massive-clawed creature.
• The second wave brought aberrant creatures from beyond the Star Domain Gate, whose secretions could suppress Anvile warriors.
• Wu Jingmu raised the combat alert, ordered Origin Land sealed, and had Wu Jingyang notify Anvile's people to prepare for a last stand.
• Li Zhengfeng led armed warriors into space, while Xi Xiu directed Starship weapons against the creatures trying to reach the main ships.
• When the Star Beasts resumed advancing despite the weapons fire, Xi Xiu set out with Ebony, Wu Yuan, and Qi Mang to support Li Zhengfeng.