Chapter Summaries

Jing Zhengtang and Feiwei arrived in Flame Capital to attend Qin Leyin's funeral, but Jing suspected Qin Leyin's death was part of a conspiracy. He planned to meet Gao Jin before getting involved, while fearing Qin Leyin might take his enemies down with him.

• Jing Zhengtang and Feiwei arrived in Flame Capital, passed the identity check, and paid an agent for guidance before leaving Chongsheng Station.
• The couple avoided the farewell-invitation registration desk and took Bus 11 toward Sheyang Street.
• Jing met Liu Yueyan on the bus and learned that his half-brother Jing Zhengfeng would marry next month.
• Jing and Feiwei registered at an inn, where Feiwei asked why they had ignored the people waiting to receive them.
• Jing explained that he suspected Qin Leyin was not dead and that the funeral might conceal a conspiracy, then planned to ask Gao Jin about the situation.

Cha Huan discussed Radiance’s reforms and Qin Leyin’s legacy with Faceless, who argued that White Night needed control of the Holy Sword Huiyao to protect the people from resurgent old powers. Faceless left urging Cha Huan to watch for a possible message at Qin Leyin’s funeral, while Cha Huan remained doubtful and mourned his friend.

• Wei Weiwei cursed the old bastard he believed was obstructing the National College Entrance Examination, and Cha Huan clarified the misunderstanding with Chen Liegu.
• Faceless visited Cha Huan and discussed the Immortal Seed Project, Radiance’s cooperation with the demon race, and Cha Huan’s decision to include Skyline people in the Imperial Academy’s administration.
• Faceless warned that old powers were returning and White Night was vulnerable to corruption, then argued that the Holy Sword Huiyao must be available to suppress those who exploited the people.
• Cha Huan rejected Faceless’s idea that Qin Leyin had left him a way to wield the holy sword, but Faceless asked him to watch for a clue at the funeral.
• Faceless left for Qin Leyin’s funeral, and Cha Huan stared at a photograph of himself with Qin Leyin before remarking that the wrong person had died.

Shi Wen and Dan Chixia guarded Qin Leyin’s funeral as powerful officials, old allies, and former rebels gathered at the Qin residence. Just as Cha Huan began the farewell speech, loud crashes erupted from inside Qin Leyin’s coffin.

• Dan Chixia warned Shi Wen that important guests might need special treatment, but Shi Wen insisted he would enforce the rules impartially.
• Dan Chixia urged Shi Wen to build connections now that Qin Leyin was dead, but Shi Wen dismissed his advice and stayed at the gate.
• Ling Jiangli and Cha Huan arrived together, and Cha Huan escorted the Grand Secretary inside while speaking familiarly with him.
• Xie Chenyuan and Admiral Lan Yan arrived at the funeral, prompting Shi Wen and Dan Chixia to wonder why Qin Leyin had invited so many powerful figures.
• The Empress asked Cha Huan to preside over the ceremony, and he began a speech honoring Qin Leyin.
• Crashes sounded from inside the coffin, and the lid jolted nearly off as the guests watched in terror.

At Qin Leyin’s funeral, a recording from his coffin reassured Radiance’s leaders that his reforms would endure and then invited them to burn away their ties to him. After the funeral, Le Yu revealed that he had survived in his original body and left with Qing Lan to seek the Well of Gods and Devils, ending with a photograph of them together.

• Qin Leyin’s recording exposed Ling Jiangli’s role in the Shuiyun Reform, warned about his siblings, and assured Lan Yan, Xie Chenyuan, and Faceless that they would remain loyal to Radiance.
• The recording revealed that Qin Leyin had hidden the means to create a second-generation Sword Master, leaving its identity and location unknown.
• Qin Leyin’s friends and allies threw torches onto his coffin, and Ming Shuiyun cast the final torch as the recording played its farewell.
• On a train, Le Yu told Qing Lan that he had used the system to create Unit 0 and had died in place of Qin Leyin, then discussed leaving to search for the Well of Gods and Devils.
• Le Yu comforted Qing Lan about aging and death, and they used his old phone to take a color photograph together.

The author reconsidered the planned bleak ending for Le Yu, decided he had not earned such a tragic fate, and ended the book while leaving the IF route as the start of Le Yu’s journey. A brief draft then showed Le Yu and Lu Lingyin facing a surrounding army as he reunited with Qing Lan in the rain.

• The author described feeling compassion for Le Yu and regretting the tragic future planned for him.
• The author concluded that Le Yu had no reason to accept such torment and chose to end the book with the final sentence from its first volume.
• The author presented a draft scene in which Le Yu and Lu Lingyin raced through rain while Yin Minghong, Shi Wen, Mu Qingmei, Faceless, and others surrounded them.
• Lin Xue pointed out Lan Yan to Qing Lan, and Le Yu and Qing Lan met eyes after ten years apart.
• Le Yu called Lu Lingyin his lawful wife, the mother of his daughter, and his only wife as Qing Lan watched in silence.