Chapter Summaries

Chen Chuan used the crisis to purge suspected traitors from the Handling Bureau and learned that Wang Weiguang’s fighters belonged to the Gray Shell Agency. As the Municipal Council issued apologies and foreign representatives reconsidered their position, Prabhakar agreed to move his airship closer to White Bird District.

• Chen Chuan ordered the arrest of everyone Han Fu had contacted and identified Wang Weiguang’s companions as members of the Gray Shell Agency.
• Director Wei told Chen Chuan that Principal Yao advised him to secure whatever benefits he could during the Municipal Council’s likely negotiations.
• Chen Chuan replied to messages from his colleagues and classmates, then told Gao Ming to wait before following up on the Union and Linax Federation withdrawing their accusations.
• The Municipal Council and Central City’s media blamed the Crisis Affairs Center for the incident, while the Union debated whether to keep supporting the Council after Chen Chuan revealed himself as a Fighter.
• The Union asked Prabhakar to move closer to White Bird District, and he explained that inner restraints could matter more than armed force before agreeing to relocate his airship.

The Municipal Council delayed negotiations after learning that a Fighter from the Essence Refinement School was heading to Central City, while Qi Weizhao reconsidered how the Government Affairs Hall should deal with Chen Chuan. Chen Chuan told Qi what punishments he expected and continued preparing for the possibility of fighting an equal opponent.

• The Union representatives accepted Prabhakar's offer of support and urged the Municipal Council to resolve the dispute quickly.
• The Municipal Council postponed negotiations after hearing that the Essence Refinement School's Fighter was approaching Central City.
• Qi Weizhao told Qiao Yang that the Government Affairs Hall should align its interests with Fighters' and decided to contact Chen Chuan through a field screen.
• Chen Chuan told Qi that those directly involved in the attacks must be punished and that the Gray Shell Agency must be dismantled; Qi promised action and warned him about the Essence Refinement School and the Fusion Faction.
• Chen Chuan sensed that his post-breakthrough transformation was ongoing and resolved to keep training and gather more energy in case he faced an opponent of equal strength.

Chen Chuan checked on Yang Ling, confirmed his breakthrough as a fighter to the Purity Faction, and considered recruiting Xu Chan. He went out to cultivate at sea, while Dragon argued that a fighter could retaliate if deliberately provoked.

• Chen Chuan visited Yang Ling in the medical area, reminded her to practice the Breathing Method, and offered to introduce her to people close to her brother after her punishment.
• Chen Chuan privately told Chang Dong that he had broken through the limit and warned that Zhao Zhenye might be stronger than the faction had estimated.
• Chen Chuan raised the idea of bringing Xu Chan into the Purity Faction, and Chang Dong cautioned him that sponsoring an unassessed member carried serious risks.
• Chen Chuan took the Snow Monarch Blade and an airship out to sea to cultivate, prompting others to speculate that he was seeking the Linax Federation's fighter.
• Dragon rejected the claim that fighters must always restrain themselves, arguing that a fighter could act if someone deliberately provoked him.

Chen Chuan cultivated aboard an airship, drawing energy through a rift and consuming a creature from the Other Side World. Meanwhile, the Union pressured the Municipal Council over his apparent standoff with the Linax Federation, and Dragon chose to contact him directly as a fellow Fighter.

• Chen Chuan opened a rift in his cabin and revised Teacher Xue’s method to absorb energy from the Other Side World.
• Chen Chuan dragged a shadowy creature through the rift, tore it apart, and swallowed a crystalline lump that his mutated tissue craved.
• Chen Chuan resumed cultivating through the night while outsiders mistook the airship’s position for a challenge to the Linax Federation’s Fighter.
• The Union pressed the Municipal Council to resolve the situation, and Dragon’s party received a report about Chen Chuan at the checkpoint outside Central City.
• Dragon warned that sending Fighters to confront one another could worsen tensions and decided to contact Chen Chuan directly through an intermediary.

Chen Chuan met Long Xiang, a Fighter from the Essence Refinement School, to discuss the Municipal Council’s offer of compensation and a proposed bout to determine how much support Chen Chuan would receive. Long Xiang laid out the terms, leaving Chen Chuan to decide whether to accept the test.

• Chen Chuan closed the rift, returned to port, and received a meeting request from Long Xiang through Huang Wei Yi.
• Chen Chuan agreed to meet Long Xiang at Whitehall Checkpoint, while the Municipal Council watched his approach anxiously.
• Long Xiang explained that the Municipal Council wanted to make amends and offered cultivation resources as compensation.
• Long Xiang proposed a bout: a win would earn Chen Chuan three years of resources, while a loss would earn him one year in exchange for staying out of Council affairs unless his interests were harmed.

Chen Chuan and Long Xiang fought in the wasteland outside Central City while the major factions watched. After Chen Chuan sent Long Xiang flying with a single punch, Long Xiang revealed his Jiaolong God Appearance and prepared to continue the match.

• Chen Chuan agreed to fight Long Xiang, and they moved away from National Avenue to face each other in the wasteland.
• Chen Chuan’s Bio-Field proved more stable and expansive than Long Xiang’s, prompting Long Xiang to abandon the contest and charge at him.
• Chen Chuan struck Long Xiang in the face with a powerful punch that sent him flying hundreds of meters away.
• Chen Chuan chose not to pursue Long Xiang, who laughed from the dust cloud and explained that he followed the Variant Appearance path.
• Long Xiang transformed into a towering, horned form and warned Chen Chuan that he might lose control while using his Jiaolong God Appearance.

Chen Chuan overwhelmed Long Xiang in their spar despite Long Xiang’s escalating manifestations, leaving Long Xiang to concede and promise to urge the Municipal Council to honor its commitment. Chen Chuan walked away, while Long Xiang reflected on the dangerous assignment and planned to ask his school for extra allowance.

• Long Xiang manifested his River God Jiao Dragon form and attacked Chen Chuan, but Chen Chuan easily deflected his spiritual flame and overpowered him with a series of punches.
• Long Xiang was driven into a crater, but his injuries healed as scales and mutated tissue covered his body and his manifestation grew stronger.
• Chen Chuan struck Long Xiang through his guard and knocked him out of the crater, after which Long Xiang called for the fight to stop and returned to normal.
• Long Xiang admitted he had been carried away while fighting and acknowledged that Chen Chuan could have killed him in a true battle.
• Long Xiang promised to urge the Municipal Council to fulfill its promise, and Chen Chuan left after suggesting they spar again another time.
• Long Xiang watched Chen Chuan depart and decided to ask his school for an extra allowance after the near-fatal assignment.

After Chen Chuan defeated Long Xiang, the Municipal Council worried about its vulnerability and planned to cultivate another Active Consciousness Entity. Chen Chuan considered his future cultivation path while refusing to sign an agreement for the resources the council owed him.

• The Municipal Councilors argued over Long Xiang’s defeat and agreed to strengthen cooperation with the Union and cultivate a second Active Consciousness Entity.
• Chairman Quan asked Dragon whether he had used his full strength, and Dragon admitted that Chen Chuan had restrained him before he could bring out his power.
• Prabhakar told the Union liaison officer that Dragon had been unable to use his full strength and that another fight would likely end the same way.
• Chen Chuan reflected on the Variant Appearance and Aspect of the Gods before deciding that his path would be the Aspect of Man.
• Gao Ming told Chen Chuan that the Municipal Council had stored his compensation and offered three years of cultivation resources, but Chen Chuan said he would not sign an agreement.

After returning to Central City, Chen Chuan helped Director Wu plan the Handling Bureau’s leadership and received his appointment as acting minister of the Purity Faction’s Central City Branch. He chose to remain in Jibei Province to resolve its outstanding problems and began arranging the cultivation supplies needed for his new status as a Fighter.

• Chen Chuan contacted Director Wu, who said the bureau’s review had ended early and asked him to help fill vacancies; Chen Chuan recommended Captain Xu for promotion.
• Chang Dong summoned Chen Chuan to review a headquarters telegram appointing him acting minister of the Central City Branch and confirming his status as a participating member of the Purity Faction.
• Chen Chuan read headquarters’ warning that his presence could heighten tensions in Jibei Province and decided to stay until the local situation was resolved.
• Gao Yanjun advised Chen Chuan to arrange an appraisal of local high-energy ingredients for his cultivation, and he agreed to do so soon.

Chen Chuan arranged training guidance with Purity Faction Headquarters and invited Xu Chan to join the faction as his guide. Xu Chan accepted, and the chapter ended with Chen Chuan reflecting on the recent events after returning home.

• Chen Chuan reviewed a Fighter’s general ingredient list, asked Gao Yanjun to contact Headquarters about faction training knowledge, and received word that his guide, Mister Zhuan, would advise him.
• Chen Chuan told Chang Dong about his sparring match with an Essence Refinement School Fighter and asked him to archive the account.
• Chen Chuan invited Xu Chan to join the Purity Faction and become his guide, explaining the faction’s principles and the Handling Bureau’s need for trusted leadership.
• Xu Chan accepted Chen Chuan’s invitation, and they went to Zhao Cai Lake for dinner and a private conversation about the faction.
• Chen Chuan returned home, arranged the weapons he had seized in the Convergence Zone, and checked discussion about the Monster Airship he had shot down.

Chen Chuan reviewed the memories left by his mother, Yu Zhen, and investigated Origin Company after identifying a likely connection between her and the vanished Gao Yuling. He resolved to pursue the missing clues now that he had become a Fighter.

• Chen Chuan organized and examined all the memories in the Memory Potion, learning about Yu Zhen’s adventures, martial arts knowledge, and the dangers her parents had tried to hint at.
• Chen Chuan asked An Shield to retrieve Origin Company records, including information about its executives and relatives from twenty to thirty years earlier.
• Chen Chuan learned that Gao Yuling had disappeared with her security personnel more than ten years earlier, around the time his parents vanished.
• Chen Chuan examined an unverified photograph and concluded that the light-brown-haired girl was likely Gao Yuling, the woman who appeared in Yu Zhen’s memories.
• Chen Chuan considered whether Yu Zhen’s work protecting Gao Yuling, his parents’ disappearance, and his former body’s death were connected, but recognized that key information was missing.
• Chen Chuan suspected his parents’ trusted teacher could hold answers and decided to investigate the truth now that he had enough strength to protect himself.

Mr. Chi abandoned his plan to deal with Chen Chuan and began gathering information about him, while Chen Chuan made arrangements to protect his relatives and friends in Central City. He collected the Municipal Council’s compensation and supplies, but Gao Yanjun found that the stored ingredients had lost much of their effectiveness.

• Mr. Chi received instructions to set aside his original plan and gather information about Chen Chuan, so he arranged for people to investigate Chen Chuan’s hometown.
• Chen Chuan contacted Qiao Yang and learned he could secure citizen statuses for his relatives, classmates, and old friends.
• Chen Chuan and Gao Yanjun went to Wansheng Finance to collect his compensation and a month’s supply of ingredients and High-Energy Nutrients.
• Rui Shenggu led Chen Chuan and Gao Yanjun through Wansheng Finance’s biological security passage to the stored items.
• Gao Yanjun tested the supplies and found that the ingredients had been stored for at least five months and required an equivalent replacement batch.

Chen Chuan confronted the Municipal Council over substandard Fighter supplies, and the council hurriedly delivered a fresh batch that Gao Yanjun prepared for him. After eating, Chen Chuan considered his energy needs and fed a level-five Lost Object’s smoke to Zhao Ming and the Racoon Stone Tablet.

• Chen Chuan had Gao Ming tell the Municipal Council that its first ingredient batch was inadequate, prompting Chairman Quan to apologize and promise a replacement.
• The Municipal Council assembled and personally delivered a larger batch of fresh ingredients, which Gao Yanjun inspected and approved.
• Gao Yanjun prepared a small meal for Chen Chuan, who enjoyed it but judged its energy insufficient for his cultivation and serious fights.
• Chen Chuan decided the old ingredients could serve as an extra meal for Zhao Ming, and Gao Yanjun agreed to prepare his food daily.
• Chen Chuan opened a tiny Rift with the Snow Monarch Blade and let Zhao Ming and the Racoon Stone Tablet absorb smoke from a shell-shaped Lost Object.

Chen Chuan reunited with his team and friends, demonstrated his Fighter power, and secured citizenship places for them. He chose the difficult Aspect of Man cultivation path and planned to seek guidance through the Wuyi Head Institute and Xue Shou’s contacts.

• Chen Chuan confirmed to his friends that he had reached the Fourth Limit and explained the powers of Spiritual Fire and the Bio-Field.
• Chen Chuan used his Domain Field to give the elite Fighters at dinner a glimpse of higher-level power, then withdrew it and joined them for the meal.
• Chen Chuan told his friends that ten citizenship places were available for them, while Lu Fang might earn citizenship by reaching the Third Limit.
• Xue Shou met Chen Chuan after the others left and said he would remain in Central City while the Linax Federation delegation stayed.
• Chen Chuan chose the Aspect of Man path, and Xue Shou explained its difficulty and suggested applying to the Wuyi Head Institute for cultivation methods.

Xue Shou warned Chen Chuan about the binding agreement the National Fighter Council would ask him to sign and gave him information about the Aspect of the Gods. Chen Chuan returned to Wuyi Academy, where Vice-Principal Tan Weixing greeted him and revealed his frustration over Assistant Ling's death disrupting his work and the True Form Tree's progress.

• Xue Shou gave Chen Chuan a mental imprint containing information about the Aspect of the Gods and explained the Fighter agreement levels and their binding risks.
• Chen Chuan considered whether the Aspect of the Gods could help Red Dust recover her strength, then asked Principal Yao for instructions on returning to Wuyi Academy.
• Principal Yao sent Chen Chuan the procedure and a secret access code granting him permissions normally reserved for academy leadership.
• Chen Chuan returned to Wuyi Academy, where teachers and students stared at him and Red Dust welcomed him in the lobby.
• Chen Chuan met Vice-Principal Tan Weixing on the ninety-fourth floor and said he had authority from Principal Yao to handle academy matters.
• After Chen Chuan left, Tan Weixing complained that Assistant Ling's death had hindered academy business and the True Form Tree's progress.

Chen Chuan’s application to cultivate the Aspect of Man was approved, and he continued teaching his students while awaiting a response. He then met with the National Fighter Council, whose representatives began reviewing his political loyalties and presenting rules to constrain Fighters.

• Chen Chuan submitted an application to headquarters choosing the Aspect of Man as his cultivation path.
• Chen Chuan contacted Jiang Xin, Kong Yao, and Fan Cheng, checked their forms, and adjusted their breathing rhythms.
• The telegraph operator told Chen Chuan that headquarters had approved his application and would deliver it to Jibei Province.
• A team from the Da Shun National Fighter Council arrived in Weiguang District and summoned Chen Chuan to discuss confidential matters.
• Chen Chuan completed the Council’s questionnaire, and Can Miao presented him with an agreement describing constraints on Fighters.

Chen Chuan reviewed and signed an agreement governing National-Level Fighters, learning that his Infinite Defense Certificate exempted him from its restrictions when facing direct threats. The masked official explained that the ritual would enforce the agreement and respond to genuine danger, and Chen Chuan asked whether deception of his own perception could undermine it.

• Chen Chuan read the agreement’s restrictions and learned that he had been assigned restriction level five because of his government service and restraint.
• Can Miao confirmed that Chen Chuan’s Infinite Defense Certificate remained valid, and said he would likely receive a lifetime Grade A certificate for his wartime contributions.
• Chen Chuan declined to add special circumstances and signed the agreement on a ritual scroll, receiving a mental mark on his hands.
• Can Miao explained that the agreement needed to be renewed yearly and that violations could raise Chen Chuan’s restriction level.
• A masked person explained that the ritual would punish violations through Chen Chuan’s life energy but would not restrain him during genuine danger or an attempt to exploit the terms.
• Chen Chuan asked whether the agreement would still work if someone deceived his own perception.

Chen Chuan signed the Fifth Level Agreement after learning that its restrictions could be borne by his Second Self and that advancing through its levels brought powerful benefits. He chose to remain in Jibei Province, while the Municipal Council and a rival faction assessed the dangers his presence posed.

• A masked elder explained that the agreement's ritual could be suppressed by beings from the Other Side World, but doing so usually left traces, and revealed that advancing through agreement levels granted benefits.
• Chen Chuan told Can Miao that he intended to stay in Jibei Province, completed the meeting, and left Sawtooth Building.
• In his car, Chen Chuan tested the black mental mark and found that his Second Self could bear the ritual's restraint, though only for a limited time.
• The Municipal Council learned that Chen Chuan had signed the agreement and considered the remaining threats, including new government laws and the arrival of an Active Consciousness Entity Embryo.
• A faction leader watched footage of Chen Chuan fighting Long Xiang and decided that, because Chen Chuan belonged to the Purity Faction, he could not be allowed to remain in Jibei Province.

A Purity Faction leader discussed how to deal with Chen Chuan, considering a duel or luring him into the Convergence Zone, while a Rainbow Barrier forced him to interrupt their meeting. Back at home, Chen Chuan received the cultivation methods for three paths and studied their risks before choosing one.

• The burly middle-aged man and the woman discussed challenging Chen Chuan or drawing him into the Convergence Zone, but a Rainbow Barrier interrupted them.
• The burly middle-aged man recited from a book to pass through the Rainbow Barrier, then said he would speak with Zhao Zhenye about cooperating against the Purity Faction’s situation.
• Chen Chuan finished cultivating, fed Zhao Ming, and accepted a delivery from the National Delivery Company.
• Chen Chuan opened the crate and activated the Domain Field organism inside, which transmitted the cultivation methods before withering away.
• Chen Chuan studied the Human Aspect, Variant Appearance, and Aspect of the Gods methods and learned that changing paths would become impossible after he began cultivating.

Chen Chuan studied Human Aspect cultivation and learned that his body was still being modified, so he continued to wait while replenishing his energy. After receiving a challenge from Wave Pavilion master Feng He Shou, he decided to meet him and began making arrangements to leave.

• Chen Chuan read about Human Aspect cultivation, its risks, and the need for restraint while Mutated Tissue evolved.
• Several days later, Chen Chuan received a telegram from Meng Shu explaining that Feng He Shou had halted negotiations over Ferris Wheel Company's assets and wanted to spar with him.
• Chen Chuan requested information from An Shield and learned that Feng He Shou's challenge might be a pretext to negotiate Wave Pavilion's position amid changes in the outer seas.
• Chen Chuan decided to accept the challenge but planned to notify the Central City Government and Fighter Council before leaving.
• Yao Zhiyi called Chen Chuan, said Feng He Shou likely wanted a way out, and encouraged him to handle the matter; Chen Chuan revealed that one of Feng He Shou's disciples had died beneath his blade.