Recaps

Li Congxin encountered Crossbones and his gang in the alley, then fought the Hydra enforcer after provoking him. The chapter ended with Li Congxin charging into battle and wondering what would happen if he killed Crossbones.

• Nalan Long praised Li Congxin’s talent and effort, while Nalan Bai discovered he had forgotten his music player and set out with Nalan Qing to return it.
• Li Congxin ran into the same gang of thugs in the alley and recognized Brock Rumlow as Crossbones when he appeared.
• Crossbones challenged Li Congxin, then struck first and knocked him back when Li Congxin was distracted by his claim about a twin brother.
• Li Congxin mocked Crossbones with a story about frying a nine-headed venomous snake, provoking him to charge.
• Li Congxin activated the A Man Should Better Himself BGM, met Crossbones head-on, and considered the consequences of killing him.

Li Congxin fought Crossbones in the alley but realized he still lagged behind the Hydra fighter in strength and technique. When Crossbones drew a knife and attacked, Nalan Qing arrived to help, leaving the fight unresolved.

• Li Congxin fought Crossbones and discovered that his hesitation and limited training left him at a disadvantage.
• Crossbones recognized Li Congxin's rapid improvement and grew increasingly alarmed by his talent.
• The two exchanged injuries until Crossbones abandoned his capture mission and decided to kill Li Congxin.
• Crossbones drew a short knife, but Li Congxin used his weighted gear to scatter iron sand and create an opening to escape.
• Nalan Qing knocked down the punks blocking the alley and rushed to strike Crossbones with his metal staff.

Li Congxin and Nalan Qing fought Crossbones in an alley, but Crossbones shot Nalan Qing and wounded Li Congxin. Li Congxin stabbed Crossbones and then killed him with the last bullet in the pistol, leaving Nalan Qing injured and himself wounded.

• Nalan Qing disarmed Crossbones with his staff, but Crossbones drew a pistol and shot Nalan Qing beneath the ribs.
• Li Congxin pulled Nalan Qing behind a dumpster, then attacked Crossbones with a sandbag and used a weighted arm to take a bullet while closing in.
• Li Congxin knocked Crossbones's gun aside and stabbed him in the lower abdomen with the knife Nalan Qing had disarmed.
• Crossbones punched Li Congxin away, but Li Congxin kicked the pistol from his hand and caught it.
• Crossbones showed Li Congxin the pistol's magazine, but Li Congxin fired the round already in the chamber and killed him.

Li Congxin arranged for Nalan Qing to be taken to the hospital after Crossbones wounded them, with help from the disguised Hawkeye. Nalan Qing needed a difficult emergency operation, so Li Congxin sought Dr. Stephen Strange’s phone number to make him operate.

• The system congratulated Li Congxin for killing Brock Rumlow but gave him only encouragement, and Li Congxin turned his attention to the wounded Nalan Qing.
• Nalan Bai explained that she and Nalan Qing had followed Li Congxin to deliver his portable music player, and the two helped carry her brother to their van.
• Hawkeye appeared and drove them to the best hospital in New York while concealing his identity.
• At the hospital, Christine told Li Congxin that Nalan Qing’s kidney injury required an operation only Dr. Stephen Strange could confidently perform.
• Li Congxin comforted Nalan Bai and asked Christine for Dr. Strange’s phone number so he could get him to operate.

Li Congxin persuaded Doctor Strange to perform surgeries for him and Nalan Qing in exchange for a VIP gym membership that saved time. After recovering, Li Congxin learned Old Pi’s secret martial arts and heard how Old Pi had arranged to make the shooting of Crossbones appear to be an attack by a still-at-large criminal.

• Li Congxin called Doctor Strange and offered him a time-saving VIP gym membership in exchange for working an extra shift and performing surgeries.
• Strange operated successfully on Li Congxin and Nalan Qing, and Old Pi thanked Li Congxin for arranging the surgery.
• After leaving the hospital, Li Congxin learned Twelve-Road Shaolin Tan Tui and Four Gates Staff Technique from Old Pi, mastering the staff technique in just over ten days.
• Old Pi told Li Congxin that the official account portrayed him and Nalan Qing as victims of an attack, with the shooter still at large.
• Old Pi explained that the attackers had targeted him and that evidence had been removed before police arrived.

Li Congxin joined Old Pi and Hope in Siberia to search for Captain America’s crash site, which Old Pi hoped contained equipment connected to the Tesseract. After nearly a month of searching, Li Congxin’s life detector finally picked up a signal.

• Old Pi explained that he wanted to find the plane that carried Captain America because it might have contained equipment for handling the Tesseract.
• Li Congxin, Old Pi, and Hope traveled to Siberia, where Old Pi managed equipment, Hope handled supplies, and Li Congxin searched the frozen wilderness.
• After nearly a month, Li Congxin complained about being sent out alone, but continued searching the final nearby area.
• Old Pi said they would return home after the search and resume in spring if necessary, since Steve would not emerge for more than ten years.
• The life detector sounded while Li Congxin was searching, and he followed its signal toward Captain America.

Li Congxin found an abandoned Hydra base containing five frozen Winter Soldiers, but a hidden guard opened fire and killed four of them. After the gunfire stopped, Li Congxin launched a metal rod at the attacker.

• Li Congxin used Old Pi's instructions to open the entrance to a heated, abandoned military fortress.
• Li Congxin discovered five people frozen in glass chambers and recognized the base as Hydra's Winter Soldiers' lair.
• Li Congxin found still-warm military rations and realized someone was guarding the base.
• A hidden attacker shot through the glass chambers and killed four Winter Soldiers before running out of bullets.
• Li Congxin sprang from behind the console, aimed toward the gunfire, and launched a metal rod at the attacker.

Li Congxin fought Bucky in Hydra’s underground base, but Bucky’s strength and combat experience overwhelmed him. As Bucky closed in, Li Congxin shrank the Ruyi staff and switched his BGM to Qing Xin Zhou, leaving its effect on Bucky unresolved.

• Li Congxin used the Pym Particle-powered Ruyi staff to surprise Bucky, but Bucky recovered and blocked Li Congxin’s heavy strike with his metal arm.
• Bucky seized the staff and attacked Li Congxin, who kicked away Bucky’s pistol before they fought at close range.
• Bucky endured Li Congxin’s kicks, struck him in the chest, and sent him crashing into the control console.
• Li Congxin realized he could not overpower Bucky with his current BGM and prepared another song as Bucky advanced.
• Li Congxin shrank the staff in Bucky’s grip and changed the music to Qing Xin Zhou, which could calm minds and affect everyone in range.

Li Congxin escaped Bucky by playing Qing Xin Zhou and captured a frozen Winter Soldier. After moving into Old Pi’s Manhattan villa, Li Congxin learned Old Pi had asked Alexander Pierce to investigate Crossbones, then received the captured Winter Soldier’s background file from Hope.

• Qing Xin Zhou triggered Bucky’s memory confusion, and Bucky fled without taking the pistol.
• Li Congxin recovered the pistol and placed the surviving bald Winter Soldier in a portable freezer.
• Old Pi explained that he had asked Alexander Pierce to investigate the killer who had attacked Li Congxin.
• Li Congxin reasoned that Pierce’s cautious Hydra faction would likely avoid trouble after Crossbones had been exposed.
• Hope brought files detailing the Winter Soldier’s background, and Li Congxin was shocked by what he read.

Yi Long awoke from his long captivity with his memories restored and his mind calmed by Li Congxin’s music. Old Pi persuaded him to remain under observation before returning home, and Yi Long agreed.

• Yi Long relived his life in a dream, including his capture and brainwashing by Hydra, and awoke feeling that he had overcome his trauma.
• Yi Long found himself restrained and questioned Li Congxin about who he was and what he wanted.
• Li Congxin explained that he had rescued Yi Long from Hydra and freed him after Yi Long promised not to attack.
• Yi Long offered to repay Li Congxin and said he wanted to go home, but Old Pi warned that Hydra’s brainwashing might still have lasting effects.
• Old Pi recommended that Yi Long stay under observation for a few months before returning to China, and Yi Long agreed.

Li Congxin trained with Yi Long, then visited Marcus for his birthday and met Mindy Macready, whose unexpected Impression Points made him realize her connection to Kick-Ass. Mindy suddenly attacked him with a butterfly knife.

• Li Congxin sparred with Yi Long, who corrected his fighting techniques while holding back.
• Yi Long said he needed to recover before returning home, and Li Congxin asked Old Pi about the music's effects and Yi Long's condition.
• Li Congxin headed to Marcus Williams's home for his birthday and met Mindy Macready.
• Mindy awarded Li Congxin 233 Impression Points, prompting him to connect her to Kick-Ass.
• Mindy drew a butterfly knife and lunged at Li Congxin's brow.

Li Congxin bested Mindy Macready’s attack, learned how she was connected to Marcus, and explained why Dave Lizewski’s ineptitude as Kick-Ass had made him famous. Old Pi then revealed that Li Congxin had taken over the headlines from Dave after a visit to the Stark household.

• Li Congxin disarmed Mindy Macready, returned her butterfly knife, and earned Impression Points by joking that she counted as both a child and a woman.
• At dinner, Li Congxin gave Marcus a Patek Philippe watch and learned that Marcus had raised Mindy after her father, Damon Macready, went to prison.
• Li Congxin continued training but sensed that he was approaching the limits of human ability, while Old Pi dismissed the prospect of quickly making a Super Soldier Serum from an inferior sample.
• Hope complained that Dave Lizewski’s viral Kick-Ass video and imitators dominated the news, and Li Congxin said Dave became famous because he was lousy.
• Old Pi explained that the public supported Kick-Ass because he challenged criminals without making the police seem unnecessary, then showed Li Congxin a newspaper headline about his visit to the Stark household.

Li Congxin learned that Tony Stark had funded the expansion of Doupo Cangqiong and sent him a cheeky thank-you, earning more Impression Points. He collected a mysterious inheritance from a bank and went looking for street punks, who fled when they recognized him.

• Hope explained that Tony Stark had invested 6.66 million to help publish Li Congxin’s novel across Europe after losing their bet.
• Li Congxin texted Tony, “Thanks, bro—666!” and received 66,666 Impression Points.
• Li Congxin claimed his parents’ bank inheritance, which contained a wrapped sunflower painting and a USB drive labeled “Freedom.”
• Li Congxin carried the painting through secluded alleys, hoping to attract criminals who might attack him.
• Morrison Gerard recognized Li Congxin and warned the other punks to run, but Li Congxin chased them and claimed the painting was Van Gogh’s Sunflowers.

Li Congxin beat up seven punks until they vowed to quit crime, then returned home to examine his inheritance. Old Pi identified the painting as a genuine Van Gogh Sunflowers worth potentially over $100 million, while Li Congxin remained unable to unlock the flash drive.

• Li Congxin chased down seven punks and repeatedly beat them until they agreed to rob him, then gave up when they begged him to stop.
• The punks said they would reform, and Li Congxin, hiding nearby, was disappointed that they intended to become good people.
• Li Congxin handed Hope the briefcase and tried to open the flash drive, but failed to guess its password after testing more than fifty possibilities.
• Old Pi examined the painting and identified it as Van Gogh's Sunflowers, citing a previous auction price of £22.5 million.
• Li Congxin realized he had been carrying a potentially $100 million painting while searching the streets for robbers.

Li Congxin and Hope watched a video his parents had left on a USB drive, revealing that they had hidden evidence of a gang’s crimes and urging him to contact Uncle Marcus. The message ended with his parents’ love and left Li Congxin determined to settle the grudge tied to his predecessor’s memories.

• Old Pi identified Li Congxin’s painting as one of Van Gogh’s Sunflowers, then cracked the password on the USB drive.
• Old Pi and Hope joined Li Congxin to watch the video his parents had left for him.
• Li Congxin’s father revealed that Uncle Sinclair had uncovered evidence of a gang’s crimes and hidden it before the gang could kill him.
• Li Congxin’s father told him to inform Uncle Marcus and began to explain where the evidence was hidden.
• Li Congxin’s parents said they loved him, and Li Congxin wiped away tears before resolving to settle his predecessor’s grudge.

Li Congxin prepared to retrieve evidence from a Manhattan warehouse, but Old Pi warned him that the site belonged to mafia boss Frank D'Amico and arranged backup. Hawkeye and Yi Long joined Li Congxin for the nighttime operation, leaving the three of them on their way to the warehouse.

• Li Congxin waited until late at night to sneak into a Manhattan supply warehouse and retrieve hidden evidence.
• Hawkeye visited Li Congxin and admitted he suspected Li Congxin had already recognized him.
• Old Pi introduced Yi Long and said he had called the two men to help Li Congxin.
• Old Pi warned that Frank D'Amico controlled the warehouse and had many armed men, so Li Congxin accepted Hawkeye and Yi Long's help.
• Li Congxin disguised himself, and Hawkeye drove him and Yi Long toward the warehouse.

Li Congxin, Hawkeye, and Yi Long went to rescue Damon Macready and Kick-Ass, only to discover Mindy at the warehouse and learn that her father had been captured. As Li Congxin’s group attacked Frank D’Amico’s men, a mysterious old man appeared before Damon and offered him power.

• Hawkeye told Li Congxin that his desire to fight crime was reason enough to help.
• Yi Long spotted someone hiding near the warehouse, and Li Congxin disarmed Mindy, who told him Damon had been kidnapped.
• Mindy explained that Damon and Kick-Ass had been captured after Kick-Ass brought a spy to their secret base, and Li Congxin led the group into the warehouse.
• Frank D’Amico’s men tied Kick-Ass and Damon to chairs and prepared to burn them during a livestream, while a mysterious old man asked Damon if he craved power.
• Li Congxin attacked the thugs with Ruyi Bang, and Hawkeye, Yi Long, and Mindy joined him in the fight.
• Li Congxin noticed that he gained Impression Points whenever his teammates killed the thugs, and he began forming a bold idea.

After Damon died in a supernatural blaze, Li Congxin formed the Heroes Alliance with Mindy, Hawkeye, and Yi Long as they headed to confront Frank D'Amico. They arrived to find Frank's headquarters engulfed in flames, while a flaming Batmobile-like car raced past them, leaving the attacker unknown.

• Damon was consumed by mysterious flames, and Mindy mourned her father's death before asking Li Congxin and the others to help her seek revenge.
• Li Congxin agreed to help Mindy, rejected Kick-Ass as a teammate, and led the group toward Frank D'Amico's headquarters with incriminating evidence.
• Li Congxin proposed an alliance, and Mindy, Hawkeye, and Yi Long agreed to join.
• Hawkeye asked what the organization would be called, and Li Congxin named it the Heroes Alliance.
• The group found Frank D'Amico's skyscraper burning, then watched a flaming Batmobile-like car speed out of the fire and race past them.

Li Congxin’s physical training reached the limits of human ability, and he demonstrated his mastery of the Four Gates Staff Technique with a cloth staff. As Nalan Long and Yi Long prepared to leave, Nalan Long revealed a possible way for Li Congxin to surpass those limits: qi.

• Li Congxin handed the evidence from the flash drive to Marcus and kept a backup, while Hawkeye questioned why he had not left the matter entirely to the police.
• Li Congxin’s training gains stalled; Old Pi recorded his extraordinary strength, speed, and combat ability as roughly equal to Black Widow’s.
• Li Congxin used a cloth staff to destroy four two-ton sandbags, impressing Yi Long and Nalan Long with his martial skill.
• Nalan Long said he would take A Qing and A Hong home, leave Xiao Bai to continue her studies, and ask Li Congxin to look after her.
• Yi Long said he planned to return home after Mr. Hank’s examination suggested his condition had been resolved.
• Nalan Long told Li Congxin that qi could let a martial artist unleash power beyond the human body’s limits.

Li Congxin weighed ways to gain power and decided to travel to the Himalayas to seek Kunlun or the Sanctum. He then joined the lively Heroes Alliance chat and stunned its members with a crude reply.

• Nalan Long and Yi Long told Li Congxin that qi was a rare martial art power, and that its practitioners were said to gather in Kunlun.
• Li Congxin rejected Hit-Girl’s request to join the Heroes Alliance chat and discussed learning hacking with Old Pi.
• After Nalan Long and Yi Long departed, Li Congxin sent Xiao Bai back to Nalan Martial Arts School with Hope and set off alone to consider how to break through his bottleneck.
• Li Congxin decided to travel to the Himalayas and seek either Kunlun or the Sanctum, then rejected Hit-Girl’s request again.
• Li Congxin saw Punisher, Daredevil, and Hawkeye chatting in the group and replied to Daredevil’s question as Black Mask, leaving the chat silent.

Li Congxin interrupted his plan to buy Daredevil’s friend’s struggling special-effects studio when Mindy called for help after Sheriff Marcus was killed. He found her and learned The Hand was behind the crimes, but Madame Gao attacked and left him badly injured as the USB drive was destroyed.

• Daredevil explained that his friend’s special-effects studio was failing, and Li Congxin offered to buy it.
• Mindy called Li Congxin for help, saying Marcus had been killed and she was being pursued, so Li Congxin headed to meet her and alerted the Heroes Alliance.
• Li Congxin found Mindy in a secluded park, where she gave him a USB drive containing evidence that The Hand was the real power behind Frank D'Amico.
• Madame Gao appeared and mocked Mindy for carrying the evidence with her.
• Madame Gao struck Li Congxin, sent him flying, and shattered the USB drive in their exchange.

Li Congxin and the Heroes Alliance defeated Madame Gao’s ninja ambush, but discovered that The Hand’s leaders had drawn them into a trap. As three of The Hand’s ancient Five Fingers confronted them, Li Congxin prepared to fight despite the overwhelming odds.

• Madame Gao revealed dozens of ninjas who had been waiting to ambush Li Congxin and Mindy, and he realized the attack was meant to lure out the Heroes Alliance.
• Li Congxin and Mindy fought the ninjas until Daredevil, Punisher, and Hawkeye arrived and helped kill them.
• Li Congxin warned the others that the apparent victory had left them in danger, and Madame Gao was joined by Murakami and Bakuto.
• Li Congxin recognized the three as core members of The Hand and braced himself as the Heroes Alliance faced the three powerful ancient members of the Five Fingers.

Li Congxin discovered that his new BGM granted him a poisonous compliment curse rather than help in the battle, then joined his allies against three of The Hand’s fingers. The heroes fought with growing coordination but suffered serious injuries and were close to losing their strength.

• Li Congxin learned that “Fung Wan 2” could activate a supreme skill in a life-or-death crisis, and it gave him the “Not Beneath Me” curse, which could weaken an opponent after the battle at the cost of 1,000,000 Impression Points.
• Li Congxin urged the group to fight, while Punisher chose Murakami and Daredevil chose Bakuto as their opponents.
• Li Congxin attacked Madame Gao and told Hawkeye to support the fighters from behind while Hit-Girl protected him.
• The three battles broke out as Hawkeye’s arrows interfered with the enemies and the heroes gradually improved their teamwork.
• Bakuto wounded Daredevil beneath the ribs, Murakami struck Punisher in the back of the heart, and the heroes’ injuries left them close to exhaustion.

Li Congxin struggled against Madame Gao and the other Hand fighters while the police approached. Old Pi arrived in an Ant-Man Suit and blinded Madame Gao with a sudden shrinking attack, leaving the fight unresolved.

• The Hand fighters intensified their attacks after hearing approaching police sirens, determined to finish the fight quickly.
• Madame Gao cut Li Congxin’s cloth staff and pressed him with her sword, but he summoned the Ruyi Bang and fought back.
• Madame Gao overpowered Li Congxin with a sword strike, injuring his hands and forcing him to retreat.
• Old Pi charged at Madame Gao in an Ant-Man Suit, shrank to evade her sword, and struck her in the face.
• Old Pi’s attack destroyed Madame Gao’s right eye, and Li Congxin realized the suit could be used as a devastating weapon.

Li Congxin and Old Pi helped drive Murakami, Bakuto, and Madame Gao from the battlefield, then avoided arrest with Police Chief Gordon’s intervention. On the way to the hospital, Old Pi asked who their enemies were, and Li Congxin said the three old men were all as powerful as he was.

• Li Congxin knocked Madame Gao through the restroom wall while flying ants let him rescue the wounded Punisher from Murakami.
• Murakami called off the fight, and Bakuto helped him and Madame Gao retreat as sirens approached.
• Officer Solomon’s police surrounded Li Congxin’s group, but Police Chief Gordon ordered Solomon to leave the injured heroes alone and claim credit for defeating the gangsters.
• Old Pi drove Li Congxin and the others to the hospital and explained that he had recognized trouble from a viral parkour video.
• Old Pi asked Li Congxin who their enemies were, and Li Congxin said the three old fellows were incredibly powerful and not one was below him.