Chapter Summaries

Lu Feng gave Laila his inherited pistol and tried to return to a peaceful life, but learned that someone was targeting his brother. When Lu Ling was abducted, a monstrous creature hidden inside Ji Jue’s motorcycle attacked her captors, leaving Lu Feng to arrive at a scene of carnage.

• Lu Feng refused Laila’s offer to rejoin her group and handed her his pistol, but took it back after she warned that someone was investigating his brother.
• Lu Ling was seized at a farmer’s market by men pretending to be relatives, fought free, and escaped on Ji Jue’s motorcycle.
• The abductors cornered Lu Ling in an alley, beat her unconscious, and put her in their van.
• The motorcycle transformed into a fierce mechanical creature and savagely attacked the three abductors as they tried to carry Lu Ling away.
• Lu Feng arrived to find the men mutilated and the creature fawning beside his sister, hoping for a chicken leg.

After Lu Feng rescued Lu Ling from attackers, Ji Jue discovered the men had been targeting his family and found evidence of their crimes on their phones. Lu Feng killed one attacker, and Ji Jue took the other two to a seaside cliff, where they were left dangling above the water as he and Lu Feng watched.

• Lu Feng brought Lu Ling home after the calf-horse fought off the men who had tried to abduct her.
• Ji Jue left work and joined Lu Feng, who showed him the captured attackers tied up in the family vehicle.
• Ji Jue searched the attackers’ phones, uncovered evidence of their abuse and trafficking, and realized they had been targeting him and his family.
• Lu Feng shot one of the attackers, but Ji Jue stopped him from shooting another and drove the survivors to a seaside cliff.
• Ji Jue made the two surviving attackers jump, leaving them hanging from a pine tree over the cliff while he and Lu Feng watched and bet on how long they would last.

Lu Feng and Ji Jue armed themselves at Laila’s hidden armory, where Ji Jue found a seemingly unusable military assault rifle and prepared to examine it with his probe. After learning that Qi Qin’s men had captured Ji Jue and were taking him to the Office, the pair set off armed and ready to fight.

• Lu Feng brought Ji Jue to Laila’s Security Company to borrow guns, and Laila angrily gave them access to her hidden armory.
• Ji Jue sensed a powerful resonance from a Mammoth Type II Anchor Assault Rifle and borrowed it despite Laila’s warning that it was scrapped.
• Lu Feng and Ji Jue loaded up on weapons and ammunition, while Laila predicted Lu Feng would never give up guns.
• A phone call revealed that Qi Qin’s men had captured Ji Jue and planned to take him to the Office for their boss.
• Lu Feng checked their weapons, and he and Ji Jue sped toward the city, eager to confront Qi Qin’s men.

Jiang Jin prepared to hand Ji Jue over to his contacts, but Ji Jue and Lu Feng launched a violent attack on his office. The fight left Ming Yan advancing through Lu Feng’s gunfire, until Ji Jue announced that the plan was complete and Lu Feng dropped into a prone position.

• Jiang Jin learned that Ji Jue had been captured and arranged to transfer him to his contacts while telling Bai Yi to watch for trouble.
• Ji Jue’s van crashed through Jiang Jin’s office, killing Qi Qin, and Ji Jue announced that the Autobots had arrived.
• Lu Feng opened fire on Jiang Jin’s men and used Stun Grenades and a shotgun to hold back Ming Yan, whose body had become metal armor.
• Bai Yi summoned a Shadow Beast, but the Little Lamb transformed and attacked it, tearing into the creature with its Dragon Blood body.
• Ming Yan formed a shield and pushed toward Lu Feng, who lowered his shotgun and dropped into a prone position after Ji Jue said the plan was complete.

Ji Jue and Lu Feng defeated Jiang Jin’s men, but Yu Hanguang arrived and attacked them before Wen Wen’s hidden protection stopped his thunder. Wen Wen confronted Yu Hanguang over his presence in Beishan.

• Ji Jue used the Mammoth II Assault Rifle to kill Lu Feng and Ming Yan, while Bai Yi fled with Jiang Jin before the Shadow Beast stopped at a stranger’s boundary.
• Ji Jue recovered the weapon’s Spiritual Substance, and Lu Feng returned with Jiang Jin after Bai Yi escaped.
• Ji Jue taunted Jiang Jin and shot his limbs as he crawled toward the door, while Lu Feng joined in and prepared to shoot him in the head.
• Yu Hanguang arrived in a burst of lightning, caught Lu Feng’s bullet, and unleashed thunder at Ji Jue and Lu Feng.
• A crystal Stasis Zone stopped Yu Hanguang’s attack, and Wen Wen appeared to confront him about interfering in her Beishan jurisdiction.

The author reflected on the struggles and rewards of writing full-time as Above the Mandate of Heaven prepared to go on sale. The author invited readers to board the Doomsday Train and hoped they would enjoy the journey.

• The editor told the author that the book would go on sale at midnight.
• The author recalled writing difficulties and how old updates preserved memories of the past.
• The author reflected that writing brought happiness and helped support the author's family and care for Bai Ze and Duo Duo.
• The author resolved to keep writing even when inspiration was scarce.
• The author announced the launch of Above the Mandate of Heaven and invited readers to board the Doomsday Train.

Ji Jue helped Wen Wen expose Jiang Jin’s gang and force Yu Hanguang to retreat, but his confrontation with Yu left him in danger. Wen Wen claimed Ji Jue as her informant and promised to protect him, then took An Ran away to celebrate.

• Yu Hanguang tried to shield Jiang Jin by calling him an informant, but Ji Jue shot Jiang Jin and claimed to be an informant himself.
• Wen Wen presented evidence against Yu Hanguang, who refrained from attacking because she was there and Ji Jue held Jiang Jin’s phone.
• Wen Wen offered Yu Hanguang the captured Bai Yi, and Yu killed Bai Yi with invisible flames before leaving.
• Wen Wen warned Yu Hanguang not to harm Ji Jue, then told Ji Jue to report to North Mountain District as her informant.
• Wen Wen left with An Ran to celebrate, then learned Tong Hua had taught him a line to say and threatened to cancel her bonus.

Yu Hanguang tried to target Ji Jue through the Security Bureau, but Ye Xian stopped him with a warning that caused his Matrix to violently malfunction. Ji Jue apologized to Ye Xian for involving her in the conflict, and she then questioned him about the remarkable devices he had made.

• Yu Hanguang decided to use a report and planted suspicions to bring the Security Bureau down on Ji Jue.
• Ye Xian called Yu Hanguang and made his Matrix malfunction, leaving him terrified and unable to move.
• Ji Jue apologized to Ye Xian for the trouble caused by his actions, and she told him she had expected complications when she recruited him.
• Professor Ye inspected Ji Jue's work and asked about the repair tool bearing the Supreme Goodness Emblem.
• Professor Ye eagerly asked Ji Jue about the Animated Motorcycle that had confronted a Shadow Beast and suppressed it.

Professor Ye determined that Ji Jue had accidentally created a harmless, chicken-loving Abomination from precious Dragon Blood and warned him that other artisans might target him if they learned what he had done. She recognized that Ji Jue was a favored Chosen One facing a difficult path, then took him to class.

• Professor Ye examined Little Cow and Horse’s bizarre stunts and identified it as an abnormal Abomination fused with a Masterwork.
• Ji Jue admitted he had created it while terrified of dying and thinking about Lu Ma’s boiled chicken.
• Professor Ye explained that Ji Jue had wasted precious Dragon Blood on a useless creation and warned him to hide its origins to avoid a bounty on his head.
• Professor Ye reflected that Ji Jue was favored by Embers but would face severe trials if he failed to live up to that favor.
• Professor Ye told Ji Jue that a life of accomplishment awaited him and led him toward the furnace for class.

Ji Jue struggled through Professor Ye’s brutal training before receiving a day off and heading to the North Mountain District Security Bureau. An Ran led him into the bureau, where Tong Hua prepared to film his arrival, and the chapter ended as screams greeted them from the lobby.

• Ji Jue endured practical lessons analyzing the Mouth of the Ancient One and learned that unfamiliar alchemical items could conceal deadly dangers.
• Ye Chun gave Ji Jue a day off while Professor Ye went out, and Ji Jue set off for the Security Bureau with Little Cow and Horse.
• Ji Jue met An Ran outside a shopping mall and followed him to the North Mountain District Security Bureau’s private floor.
• An Ran explained that Wen Wen had chosen a lively place to improve Ji Jue’s mood and guided him toward the lobby.
• Tong Hua began recording, eager to capture Ji Jue performing his famous lines, just as screams rang out from the lobby.

Ji Jue arrived at the Security Bureau's North Mountain District office, where Tong Hua's attempt to use Aether Eye on him frightened her, and Lao Zhang sensed a terrifying mass of pain and despair attached to him. Wen Wen gave Ji Jue the remains of two Chosen Ones he had killed and arranged for Lao Zhang to train him in self-defense and Spiritual Substance enhancement, though Wen Wen threatened to take over the lesson herself.

• Tong Hua used Aether Eye as Ji Jue arrived and was overwhelmed by a horrifying vision, then screamed and fled to Wen Wen for help.
• Lao Zhang welcomed Ji Jue and sensed a vast, disturbing presence of pain and despair entwined with him.
• Wen Wen brought Tong Hua back to apologize, then gave Ji Jue two boxes containing the remains of Ming Yan and Bai Yi as spoils from his previous fight.
• Wen Wen told Ji Jue that Lao Zhang would teach him self-defense and Spiritual Substance enhancement, but threatened to train him herself after he misunderstood her meaning.

Lao Zhang taught Ji Jue the basics of using Spirit Essence for offense and defense, and Ji Jue quickly applied Embers techniques to strengthen his hand. The lesson ended with Lao Zhang preparing to teach him combat and advising that an Embers Chosen One’s best response to an enemy was to run.

• Wen Jie did not spar with Ji Jue, so Ji Jue faced Lao Zhang instead.
• Lao Zhang demonstrated his Vortex abilities and taught Ji Jue how to use Spirit Essence to reinforce his body and defend against blows.
• Lao Zhang explained that Embers Spirit Essence could adjust and control material properties, prompting Ji Jue to strengthen the back of his hand with Waste Ruins.
• Lao Zhang tested Ji Jue’s reinforced hand with a metal stick and warned him to practice for no more than five minutes a day.
• Lao Zhang ended the first lesson early and told Ji Jue that an Embers Chosen One’s most effective measure in combat was to run.

Lao Zhang trained Ji Jue to survive ambushes by running, using a gun, and fighting back, then gave him an intensive massage that restored his battered body. Ji Jue left considering how to earn more money and agreed to try one final practical combat simulation.

• Lao Zhang warned Ji Jue that low-rank Embers Chosen Ones were poor at combat and should flee when ambushed, then taught him to draw his gun and run while using his abilities.
• Lao Zhang repeatedly beat Ji Jue during the training exercise as Tong Hua, Wen Wen, and An Ran listened from outside.
• Lao Zhang reset and massaged Ji Jue's body, easing his bruises, stiffness, and exhaustion, and gave him a business card for Zhang's Massage.
• Ji Jue worried about his growing debts and considered taking side work from Laila.
• Lao Zhang invited Ji Jue to try one last practical combat simulation, and Ji Jue accepted.

Ji Jue passed Lao Zhang’s second defense class by using a hidden final bullet, then celebrated with Wen Wen and drank until he passed out. The next morning, Ye Chun found him eating breakfast and warned that trouble was already at the door.

• Lao Zhang launched a surprise attack during Ji Jue’s training, and Ji Jue used the completed White Deer Emblem to retreat and fire back.
• Ji Jue tossed aside his modified Guardian and used its fifteenth bullet to strike Lao Zhang in the temple, passing the class.
• Lao Zhang praised Ji Jue’s aptitude to Wen Wen and said he could challenge her with more effort.
• Wen Wen took Ji Jue out to celebrate, and he passed out after drinking heavily.
• Ji Jue woke up hungover, went to a noodle stall for breakfast, and heard Ye Chun warn that trouble was near.

Ji Jue accompanied Ye Chun to the Workshop, where they faced Kong Qingyan and her student Lou Feng. After Professor Ye provoked Kong Qingyan, Lou Feng challenged Ji Jue to demonstrate the gap between them, leaving Ji Jue angry at being singled out.

• Ye Chun told Ji Jue that the Workshop was involved in the trouble, and they drove there together.
• Ji Jue met Lou Feng, who mistook him for a member of a prominent Ji clan before learning he was a local from Yacheng.
• Kong Qingyan praised Ji Jue, but Professor Ye insulted Lou Feng and challenged Kong Qingyan to compete herself.
• Kong Qingyan rose in anger, but Lou Feng stepped forward and asked to test himself against Ji Jue.
• Ji Jue resented being picked on as the weaker target.

Ji Jue fought Lou Feng in a Chosen Ones’ duel after Lou Feng opened with a sneak attack, and used his Little Cow and Horse to catch him off guard. Lou Feng then unleashed a gravity technique, leaving Ji Jue struggling against its pull.

• Ji Jue reluctantly agreed to fight Lou Feng after Professor Ye said the duel could proceed under the supervision of two masters.
• Lou Feng attacked Ji Jue without warning with a hidden Spirit Essence weapon, but Ji Jue dodged using what he had learned in training.
• Ji Jue fired at Lou Feng, who blocked the shots with a layered Spirit Essence shield and continued attacking while Ji Jue evaded.
• Ji Jue tricked Lou Feng into turning around by warning him about an attack behind him, and Little Cow and Horse ran over Lou Feng’s face before his necklace blasted it away.
• Kong Qingyan urged Lou Feng to stop dawdling, and he used Celestial Origin to exert a powerful gravitational pull on Ji Jue.

Ji Jue transformed Little Cow and Horse into a steel beast and gained the upper hand over Lou Feng, but Lou Feng used Time Sand to recover his spirit essence and conjured Dragon Scale Armor. Cornered at the arena wall, Ji Jue summoned a dung truck to charge at him.

• Lou Feng's White Deer emblem briefly faltered, but his attack damaged Little Cow and Horse while he taunted Ji Jue.
• At Ye Xian's urging, Ji Jue poured his Spiritual Substance into Little Cow and Horse, transforming it into a steel beast with Waste Ruins blessings and Shadow Transformation.
• Ji Jue exploited the limits of Lou Feng's repulsion field, broke his shield, and fired a shot that shattered a ring and bruised Lou Feng's hand.
• Lou Feng refused to surrender, crushed a Time Sand bead to replenish his spirit essence, and formed the Lou Clan Secret Tradition, Dragon Scale Armor.
• Lou Feng charged Ji Jue with blazing jet blades, but Ji Jue backed against the wall and summoned a dung truck that smashed through it toward Lou Feng.

Ji Jue defeated Lou Feng by blasting him with a manure truck, forcing Kong Qingyan to surrender before Professor Ye restored the factory and erased the witnesses’ memories. Back at the Workshop, Professor Ye revealed she intended to make Kong Qingyan pay for the offense, and Ji Jue warned her that killing a master would cause serious trouble.

• Ji Jue used Zenigame’s Water Cannon through a manure truck to soak Lou Feng, who flew into a rage and charged at him.
• Kong Qingyan froze the scene, pulled Lou Feng back, and declared their surrender before leaving with him.
• Professor Ye restored the factory, erased the onlookers’ memories, and returned the surroundings to normal.
• Ji Jue realized Professor Ye had likely arranged for the conveniently parked sewage truck to be there.
• Professor Ye told Ji Jue she planned to make Kong Qingyan pay for provoking her, and Ji Jue cautioned that a master’s unexplained death would cause a huge mess.

Professor Ye identified Kong Qingyan’s visit as an attempt to assess her and the Workshop, then demonstrated her Disintegration Art while teaching Ji Jue how to analyze the Mouth of the Ancient One. She offered to teach him the technique and sent him to retrieve a matrix called [Non-Aggression] from a Rift World outside Yacheng.

• Professor Ye told Ji Jue that Kong Qingyan had come to assess her and the Workshop, not merely to settle a personal rivalry.
• After a call from Chen Xingzhou, Professor Ye asked Ji Jue how much he had analyzed the Mouth of the Ancient One and corrected his notes.
• Professor Ye unfolded the Mouth of the Ancient One’s structure, explained its components, and used Disintegration Art to remove its redundant parts while preserving its core function.
• Ji Jue eagerly accepted Professor Ye’s offer to teach him Disintegration Art.
• Professor Ye asked Ji Jue to retrieve a matrix named [Non-Aggression] from an emerging Rift World outside Yacheng.

Professor Ye arranged for Ji Jue to enter a collapsing Rift World in search of a Feigong Matrix and equipped him with a Devil-Crafted Ball. Ji Jue joined Ye Xian’s workshop as her apprentice, officially naming his ability Deus Ex Machina, while Ye Xian was reminded of becoming a student herself.

• Professor Ye explained the Rift World’s dangers and the chance that it contained Mercury’s Workshop and a Feigong Matrix, and Ji Jue chose to go despite being afraid.
• Ye Xian gave Ji Jue the Devil-Crafted Ball as an assistant that could help him enter workshops and return him to safety if necessary.
• Professor Ye contacted Wen Wen, who arranged for Ji Jue to report to the North Mountain District branch and travel with another Chosen One.
• Ye Xian presented Ji Jue with a Taiyi Ring workshop registration form that bound him to Tide Sound Workshop as her apprentice.
• Ji Jue accepted the name Deus Ex Machina for his ability, signed the form, and called Ye Xian his teacher.
• Ye Xian remembered entering her own teacher’s Workshop and wondered whether she had ever regretted what followed.