Chapter Summaries

Luo Yan met Gu Liangcai and agreed to meet Hu Ziqiang, then tested the Phantom mecha at Lengguang Base. When an Upper-tier Giant Beast appeared, Luo Yan intercepted it as it tried to flee.

• Gu Liangcai told Luo Yan that Hu Ziqiang, a wealthy overseas businessman and former backer of Gao Jin, wanted an introduction, and Luo Yan agreed to meet him.
• Luo Yan examined Phantom and learned that its Shadow state made it untouchable but unable to attack, relying on precise timing to use effectively.
• Luo Yan piloted Phantom outside Lengguang Base and demonstrated its speed and agility during tactical maneuvers.
• Jambu Realm Space opened, and an Upper-tier Giant Beast called the Spider Ghoul fell into the wilderness.
• The Spider Ghoul tried to escape from Phantom, but Luo Yan accelerated and appeared in its path.

Luo Yan tested Phantom by defeating Spider Ghoul, then attended a banquet hosted by Gu Liangcai, where he discovered that Hu Ziqiang was a member of the Water Drop Plan. He realized Hu could lead him to important information about the organization.

• Luo Yan used Phantom's speed, prediction, and Shadow state to evade Spider Ghoul's attacks and behead it.
• Luo Yan reviewed Phantom's performance and learned that its exceptional mobility came with demanding controls.
• Feiyu told Luo Yan that Gu Liangcai wanted to meet that evening and that Minister Zhang would arrive in Langya City in three days.
• Gu Liangcai welcomed Luo Yan to a banquet and introduced him to Hu Ziqiang.
• Luo Yan examined Hu Ziqiang and discovered that he was a Tier 2 supernatural being and a member of the Water Drop Plan.

Luo Yan met Hu Ziqiang to discuss cooperation, learning that Hu worked for a secretive boss who might be behind the Water Drop Plan. Luo Yan agreed to start with medicinal materials as bait to uncover the forces behind him.

• Hu Ziqiang praised Luo Yan and proposed cooperation across several business fields, explaining that he managed the businesses for an unnamed boss.
• Luo Yan used Divine Treasure to probe Hu Ziqiang's thoughts but learned nothing about the boss, so he agreed to cooperate in order to investigate further.
• Hu Ziqiang praised Gu Liangcai for arranging the meeting and promised to increase investment in the White Deer Cult.
• Feiyu questioned Luo Yan's willingness to work with foreigners, and Luo Yan explained that cooperation would help him uncover Hu Ziqiang's boss.
• Luo Yan told Feiyu they would begin with medicinal materials as bait to draw out the forces behind Hu Ziqiang.

After a giant beast attack was repelled, Luo Yan learned that the Zhu Rong Department’s Zhang Yugu was coming to Langya City and agreed to meet him. Zhang Yugu then confirmed that Ying Zhengye and Hong Yue were supplying support for his plan to seize the Gou Mang Department’s trade-route network.

• Luo Yan, Feiyu, and Lin Fan watched reports of the slain giant beasts and discussed how the safer surface world affected Forbidden Land recruitment and trade earnings.
• Feiyu told Luo Yan that the Zhu Rong Department would arrive in Langya City, and Luo Yan agreed to attend Chief Zhang’s banquet with Feiyu and Lin Fan.
• Zhang Yugu arrived in Langya City with his trusted subordinates and settled into a hotel suite.
• Ying Zhengye told Zhang Yugu that he and Hong Yue were sending Mystic Mastery experts, mecha, and personnel to support him in exchange for shares of the Gou Mang Department’s trade-route network.
• Zhang Yugu told his subordinates that Ying Zhengye and Hong Yue had kept their promise and that their support was on its way.

Zhang Yugu and the Zhu Rong Department planned to provoke Luo Yan so they could pose as victims and justify attacking the Gou Mang Department. When Luo Yan arrived at the banquet, he recognized their deliberate insults and confronted them over Zhang Yugu’s absence.

• Zhang Yugu explained that the Zhu Rong Department would stage an insult to provoke the Gou Mang Department into striking first.
• Lin Miao, Xu Cheng, Shen Qianli, Liu Fei, and Elder Chen discussed the danger of provoking Luo Yan, whom they called Red Ghost.
• Luo Yan arrived at the Bale Hotel with Feiyu and Lin Fan, where the Zhu Rong Department had left out chairs and failed to welcome them.
• Lin Miao pretended the missing chairs were an oversight and said Zhang Yugu would arrive shortly.
• Luo Yan pointed out the deliberate slights and warned the Zhu Rong Department that they were provoking him.

Luo Yan saw through Zhang Yugu and the Zhu Rong Department’s attempt to provoke him into breaking the organization’s rules, but attacked Elder Chen anyway after the captain repeatedly insulted him. The hall erupted into battle, with Luo Yan driving Liu Fei back as he reached for Elder Chen.

• Elder Chen and Zhang Yugu taunted Luo Yan, hoping to provoke him into giving the Zhu Rong Department grounds to attack the Gou Mang Department.
• Luo Yan stopped Feiyu from responding and explained that the Zhu Rong Department had come to provoke him, then warned Elder Chen that he would kill him.
• Zhang Yugu lunged to stop Luo Yan, but Lin Fan struck his wrist while Feiyu attacked Shen Qianli.
• Elder Chen and Liu Fei moved to confront Luo Yan as Lin Miao and Xu Cheng retreated.
• Luo Yan unleashed Divine Sha and struck Liu Fei with Overlord Fist: Shattered Mountains and Rivers, sending him flying and reducing the nearby furnishings to dust.

Luo Yan killed Elder Chen after the Zhu Rong Department tried to provoke a conflict, leaving Zhang Yugu furious but unable to justify retaliation openly. On the way back, Luo Yan warned Lin Fan and Feiyu that Zhang Yugu would likely strike in secret and suspected he had a powerful backer.

• Luo Yan overwhelmed Elder Chen with his killing intent and crushed his neck before Zhang Yugu could stop him.
• Luo Yan justified the killing by saying Elder Chen had insulted a Branch Chief and violated the organization's dignity, leaving Zhang Yugu unable to challenge him.
• Zhang Yugu ordered Elder Chen given a proper burial and vowed to retaliate against Luo Yan in secret.
• Luo Yan warned Lin Fan and Feiyu to be cautious because the Zhu Rong Department would seek revenge.
• Luo Yan told Lin Fan and Feiyu that Zhang Yugu likely had someone backing him, since he would not otherwise have confidence in attacking the Gou Mang Department.

Luo Yan identified Cai Andao and his allies as the likely force backing Zhang Yugu, then moved to undermine Zhu Rong Department. After reviewing its surface operations, Luo Yan chose the vulnerable Golden Fire Camp as his first target.

• Feiyu deduced that Cai Andao, Ying Zhengye, and Hong Yue were likely supporting Zhang Yugu, and Luo Yan agreed that Zhang Yugu was being used against him.
• Luo Yan ordered Feiyu to investigate Zhu Rong Department and Lin Fan to use Kunlun Group’s connections to pressure Zhang Yugu.
• Langya City’s Security Department detained Zhang Yugu and his people during inspections of outsiders, forcing them to abandon their plans and leave the city.
• Feiyu brought Luo Yan information about Zhu Rong Department’s surface forces, including Golden Fire Camp, its labor trade, and weakened defenses after Chen Shu’s death.
• Luo Yan chose Golden Fire Camp as his first target because it was vulnerable and close to Yun Ya Highway.

Zhuo Hu cultivated the Sea Overturning Art on the Golden River and reached the Profound Comprehension First Layer before receiving Luo Yan’s order to attack Golden Fire Camp. As Water Tiger Camp set out, Golden Fire Camp’s leaders learned that Chen Shu was dead and that Wang Mozhi would temporarily take charge.

• Zhuo Hu cultivated on the Golden River, then told Hong Gu that he had advanced to the Profound Comprehension First Layer.
• Luo Yan ordered Zhuo Hu to take down Golden Fire Camp, and Zhuo Hu gathered his people to plan the mission.
• Zhuo Hu told Water Tiger Camp’s leaders that Golden Fire Camp belonged to Zhu Rong Department and that its Mystic Mastery cultivator had been killed by Luo Yan.
• Water Tiger Camp finalized its plan and sent a convoy, including three armored vehicle carriers, out of camp around three in the afternoon.
• Lin Miao introduced Wang Mozhi to Golden Fire Camp’s leaders and announced that Chen Shu was dead.
• Lin Miao appointed Wang Mozhi temporary head of Golden Fire Camp, with herself assisting him, and the gathered leaders accepted the decision.

Wang Mozhi told Golden Fire Camp’s officials to maintain their current management and prepare for a possible attack after Chen Shu’s death heightened tensions between the Zhu Rong and Gou Mang Departments. Two days later, Liu Donghai led a patrol through the wilderness and set out to hunt a poorly guarded merchant caravan.

• Wang Mozhi reassured the camp officials that he would not interfere with their management, then warned that the Gou Mang Department might attack Golden Fire Camp.
• Lin Miao worried that Wang Mozhi would not be fully committed and reflected on how the Red Ghost had killed Chen Shu.
• Two days later, Liu Donghai led a patrol and discussed whether Wang Kai’s faction might target his group now that Chen Shu was dead.
• Liu Donghai’s team spotted a poorly guarded merchant caravan, and he ordered them to go hunting.

Liu Donghai ambushed a merchant convoy and took its cargo, including a Giant Beast Core, back to the Golden Fire Camp. After a missile strike hit the camp, Wang Mozhi learned the attackers were from the Water Tiger Camp, who accused the Zhu Rong Department of stealing their goods.

• Liu Donghai's men raided a convoy and seized its cargo, including a Giant Beast Core.
• Liu Donghai brought the stolen goods to the Golden Fire Camp despite Yellow Hair's concerns about Wang Kai.
• Missiles struck the camp while Wang Mozhi and Lin Miao were in the main building, and Wang Mozhi shielded them from the blast.
• Wang Mozhi spotted an approaching convoy and called for the camp's Mech Masters to prepare to engage.
• Zhuo Hu identified himself as the Water Tiger Camp's leader and accused the Zhu Rong Department of stealing the convoy's goods.
• Wang Mozhi received pictures of Liu Donghai and proof that the tracked Giant Beast Core was in the camp, then ordered Liu Donghai to come see him.

Wang Mozhi tried to settle the dispute with Water Tiger Camp after discovering Liu Donghai had stolen its Giant Beast Core, but negotiations collapsed when Old Hei was shot. Zhuo Hu escaped the camp under cover from two mechs, while Wang Mozhi was forced back by a Mecha rifle shot.

• Wang Mozhi slapped Liu Donghai, then asked Lin Miao to summon reinforcements while he negotiated with Water Tiger Camp.
• Wang Mozhi admitted that Liu Donghai had taken the Giant Beast Core and had Lin Miao cut off Liu Donghai’s hand, but Zhuo Hu rejected the apology and demanded eight hundred laborers and one hundred million work points.
• A gunshot wounded Old Hei during the negotiations, and Zhuo Hu accused Golden Fire Camp of an ambush and led his men toward the gate.
• Wang Mozhi ordered his people to kill Zhuo Hu’s group, but two mechs attacked the camp and blasted the shooters’ buildings apart.
• Zhuo Hu fought Wang Mozhi with his Ghost-head Saber, then used the impact to retreat toward the gate as Wang Mozhi dodged a Mecha rifle bullet.

Shen Qianli led reinforcements toward Golden Fire Camp, but Lengguang Base’s mecha drills blocked their route as fighting broke out. Luo Yan admitted no responsibility to Zhang Yugu, then demanded Zhu Que Base in exchange for ending the conflict, leaving both sides prepared for battle.

• Shen Qianli recalled how Red Ghost’s killing of Chen Shu had derailed Zhu Rong Department’s plans and suspected Gou Mang Department had engineered Liu Donghai’s robbery to provoke a conflict.
• Lengguang Base sealed the road during mecha drills, delaying Shen Qianli’s convoy, while news arrived that a shooting at Golden Fire Camp had ended negotiations with Water Tiger Camp.
• Luo Yan and Feiyu discussed Zhu Hu’s plan to provoke Golden Fire Camp and the staged shooting that injured Old Hei.
• Zhang Yugu accused Luo Yan of orchestrating the crisis, but Luo Yan rejected his warning and compared it to Zhu Rong Department’s earlier schemes in Langya City.
• Luo Yan demanded Zhu Que Base in exchange for sparing Golden Fire Camp, and Zhang Yugu declared they would meet on the battlefield.

Water Tiger Camp launched a prepared assault on Golden Fire Camp, and its mecha fighters overwhelmed the defenders and forced the camp to surrender. Lin Miao and Wang Mozhi escaped, while Zhang Yugu appealed to Zhou Yucheng to make Gou Mang Department return the camp and compensate Zhu Rong Department.

• Water Tiger Camp bombarded Golden Fire Camp and sent its armored vehicles through cleared paths into the camp.
• Li Yu, Zhuo Hu, Old Hei, and Hong Gu fought Golden Fire Camp’s mecha, with Zhuo Hu tying down Wang Mozhi and Li Yu’s Ink City bringing heavy firepower to the battle.
• Hong Gu destroyed one of Golden Fire Camp’s mecha while Old Hei prevented Lin Miao from intervening.
• Lin Miao used Flash Bombs to help herself and Wang Mozhi escape, and Golden Fire Camp’s remaining leaders surrendered.
• Zhang Yugu accused Gou Mang Department of attacking Golden Fire Camp and, backed by Ying Zhengye and Hong Yue, demanded that Zhou Yucheng return the camp and provide compensation.

At Lengguang Base, Luo Yan sought political backing and personnel as tensions with the Zhu Rong Department escalated. After Hu Ziqiang assigned Xia Wu and promised mechs and support staff, Feiyu reported that Zhu Rong was mobilizing troops.

• Luo Yan asked Yu Qiushui and Li Chenyu to speak in his favor to Gao Yucheng, and both agreed to support him.
• Yu Qiushui and Li Chenyu ended their call after teasing and arguing with each other.
• Gu Liangcai and Hu Ziqiang offered to help Luo Yan, and Luo Yan requested manpower and people capable of operating mechs.
• Hu Ziqiang offered two mechs with their operators and support staff, then assigned his Mystic Mastery protector, Xia Wu, to Luo Yan.
• Feiyu told Luo Yan that the Zhu Rong Department was mobilizing its troops.

Boss Zhuo learned that the Zhu Rong Department was marching on Golden Fire Camp and prepared to defend it until support arrived. He armed the laborers and surrendered soldiers by offering them food and freedom, leaving the camp with more than a thousand recruits ready to fight.

• Hong Gu told Boss Zhuo that more than two thousand Zhu Rong Department soldiers and several mechs were headed for the camp, while Kun Alliance reinforcements would not arrive until morning.
• Boss Zhuo decided to resist the coming attack rather than surrender the camp without a fight.
• Boss Zhuo gathered the laborers and surrendered soldiers, offered meat to those willing to take up arms, and threatened to shoot anyone who refused.
• When a laborer begged to be released, Boss Zhuo shot him, then promised surviving recruits they could become soldiers or leave with their freedom.
• The laborers and surrendered soldiers armed themselves and collected food, and Boss Zhuo told Hong Gu that they now had more than a thousand fighters.

Shen Qianli and Wang Mozhi led the Zhu Rong Department’s attack on Golden Fire Camp, while Zhuo Hu organized the camp’s defenders. The first assault breached part of the wall, but the camp’s armored vehicles struck back and devastated the advancing Zhu Rong Army.

• Zhuo Hu spotted nearly two thousand Zhu Rong Department soldiers assembling near Golden Fire Camp.
• Shen Qianli reported to Zhang Yugu, who told him to capture the camp quickly and said Liu Fei would bring reinforcements the next morning.
• Shen Qianli met with Wang Mozhi, and the Zhu Rong Department launched an open attack that night.
• Zhuo Hu followed Lengguang Base’s instructions as Water Tiger Camp’s elites and laborers took up positions and opened fire.
• Hong Gu shot two Zhu Rong Department squad leaders as the attackers bombarded the wall and killed or buried laborers.
• The Zhu Rong soldiers rushed toward a breach, but Golden Fire Camp’s armored vehicles opened fire and inflicted heavy casualties.

Zhuo Hu led Golden Fire Camp’s forces against the Zhu Rong Army, while Li Yu and the other Mech Masters joined the fight. After the mechs clashed at close quarters, Li Yu destroyed an enemy mech with a single sword strike, but Hong Gu warned Old Hei of danger.

• Zhuo Hu directed Golden Fire Camp’s armored convoy to break through and bombard the Zhu Rong Department’s vanguard.
• When the Zhu Rong Army launched an all-out assault, Zhuo Hu handed command to an elite soldier and led Li Yu and the others into battle in their mechs.
• Li Yu used Ink City’s cannon to devastate the enemy, then intercepted missiles as Shen Qianli and the other Zhu Rong mechs attacked.
• Hong Gu damaged a light-blue enemy mech, while Wang Mozhi shielded it and attacked Hong Gu with a silver spear; Zhuo Hu and Old Hei intervened as the mechs closed to melee.
• Zhuo Hu took on Shen Qianli and Wang Mozhi, while Li Yu, Hong Gu, and Old Hei fought Lin Miao’s side; Li Yu destroyed the damaged light-blue mech with an Ultimate Skill.
• Hong Gu shouted a warning to Old Hei over the communications channel.

Li Yu and his allies gained the upper hand against Zhuo Hu, but Luo Yan arrived in the Divine General-class mecha “Phantom” and turned the battle. Shen Qianli refused to retreat despite Wang Mozhi’s warning, leaving the fight poised to continue.

• Wang Mozhi crippled Old Hei’s mecha, and Lin Miao nearly destroyed its Energy Core before Hong Gu’s shot forced her to evade.
• Li Yu shielded Hong Gu from Wang Mozhi’s thrown spear, suffering serious injuries as his mecha’s shield and arm were destroyed.
• Shen Qianli exploited Zhuo Hu’s opening and joined Wang Mozhi in pressing the attack, but a fast-approaching mecha appeared on the radar.
• Luo Yan arrived in “Phantom,” rescued Zhuo Hu, and drove Shen Qianli and Wang Mozhi onto the defensive with a powerful assault.
• Luo Yan revealed the five Divine Sha, and Wang Mozhi urged Shen Qianli to retreat, but Shen Qianli refused because Golden Fire Camp was almost within reach.

After Zhou Yucheng intervened to stop Luo Yan from attacking the retreating Zhu Rong Department forces, Luo Yan set the Kun Alliance Joint Army against Zhang Yugu’s territory while returning to Lengguang Base. The chapter ended with Zhang Yugu confronting Luo Yan over the attacks, and Luo Yan denying responsibility.

• Zhou Yucheng asked Luo Yan to spare Shen Qianli and Wang Mozhi, and Luo Yan let the Zhu Rong Department forces retreat.
• The Kun Alliance Joint Army arrived at Golden Fire Camp, where Luo Yan showed its leaders a route through Zhu Rong Department territory toward Zhu Que Base.
• Luo Yan told the Kun Alliance leaders that he was returning to Lengguang Base and left them to decide what to do next.
• Led by Chen Chaoyuan and Shi Tailai, the Joint Army attacked an armed group and then struck towns and camps controlled by the Zhu Rong Department.
• Luo Yan met Hu Ziqiang to establish a medicinal-materials partnership, then joined a video conference with Zhou Yucheng and Zhang Yugu.
• Zhang Yugu accused Luo Yan of directing attacks against the Zhu Rong Department, and Luo Yan denied knowing about them.