Arc 39The Rainbow and Ian’s Death

Fu Qian uncovered the Masked Man’s scheme, contained the force behind the color-shifting world, and returned to Shangjing. There he faced Weilong’s investigation into Ian’s death and trapped him in a dream until he agreed to seek the real culprit.

  • Fu Qian abandoned the team investigating the contamination, pursued Henry and Adele through the red world, and discovered that the mission’s source was tied to a well beneath the facility.
  • Fu Qian killed Stella and confronted the Masked Man, exposing his alliance with the Convict and learning that he had gathered bodies to plug the well.
  • The Masked Man transformed and attacked Fu Qian, but Fu Qian summoned a frog-like creature, fed it Henry, and completed the containment of No. 1-105.
  • The Warehouse explained how the Rainbow of Yao Bian had distorted reality, and Fu Qian received his rewards before returning to Wen Li and deciding to investigate the Rainbow.
  • Fu Qian met Yuan Shan, learned of her alarm at his knowledge of the Rainbow’s title, and agreed to visit the Night Watchers’ Northern Headquarters before heading to the Academy.
  • Fu Qian returned to Shangjing, where Lanaia told him that Ian’s death had intensified tensions between Spirit Ash, Apocalypse, and the academy, then kept him at her residence while the academy prepared to question him.
  • Weilong, a Spirit Ash demigod, confronted Fu Qian over Ian’s death and recreated Ian’s laboratory to probe his memories, but Fu Qian denied the accusations and resisted Weilong’s supernatural influence.
  • Fu Qian killed Ian when Weilong summoned him, then trapped Weilong in Clear Dream and required him to identify the real culprit behind Ian’s death and Fu Qian’s framing before he could leave.
Chapters 960–984 Vol. 10 Read

Ch. 960The Prismatic Realm (23)

Fu Qian joined Red Dragon, Qing, and Ms. Star in the underground facility, where they reunited with Masked and headed for the suspected source of the corruption. As they reached the lowest level of Section Three, gunshots sounded nearby.

  • Fu Qian gave Red Dragon Oliver's pass, and the group used it to enter the elevator.
  • Masked met the group outside the elevator and explained that his code was a way to check whether arrivals had been corrupted.
  • Qing chose the lowest level of Section Three as their destination because the suspected source of the corruption was stored there.
  • Masked asked how Qing had learned the location, and Fu Qian said Michelle had welcomed him; Masked recognized her as his superior.
  • Masked led Fu Qian, Red Dragon, Qing, and Ms. Star through the facility to the lowest level of Section Three, where gunshots rang out nearby.

Ch. 961The Prism (Part 24)

The team reunited with an injured Brother Death Row, who warned them that an armed group guarded the facility. He revealed that he had come to steal or destroy the Prism, but the team still had to figure out how to get inside.

  • Red Dragon encountered gunfire around a corner, then Brother Death Row rushed over and urged the team to retreat.
  • The six regrouped in an office, where Brother Death Row treated his gunshot wound and gave Red Dragon a weapon and ammunition.
  • Brother Death Row explained that his role was a corporate spy sent to find the Prism and take or destroy it.
  • Brother Death Row said his partner had told him about the mission and that he had taken the partner's gun.
  • The Masked Man asked how the team could enter the facility guarded by the armed group.

Ch. 962How to get in?

The group debated how to get past the heavily armed team guarding their objective, and Fu Qian proposed waiting for the world to turn red. Before they could prepare, the colors shifted and a contaminated zombie attacked, leaving them trapped beside the source of the contamination.

  • Death Row, Red Dragon, Ms. Star, and Qing discussed the enemy team's firepower and the difficulty of luring them away from their position.
  • Death Row suggested finding another way in, while Qing argued that the team might be spread thin after Death Row's earlier attack.
  • Fu Qian judged a direct assault hopeless and proposed waiting until the world turned red, when the enemy might be easier to handle.
  • Red Dragon, Qing, and the Masked One supported Fu Qian's plan, and the Masked One began explaining that they might have to wait a while.
  • The tabletop turned red, fluorescent contamination surged across it, and a zombie appeared and attacked the group.
  • The Masked One shot the zombie and the others disabled its knees, realizing the red state had arrived far sooner than expected and that they were beside the contamination source.

Ch. 963A Prism of Color (Twenty-Six)

Fu Qian left Mask’s team and followed a trail of bodies to the surface, then returned to the research building to search for Oliver. Finding him gone, Fu Qian suspected the dead researcher was Oliver and that the two versions of the red world belonged to different timelines.

  • Lady concluded the researcher had probably been shot by someone seeking his access credentials, and warned the team that the contamination was spreading.
  • Mask led the team toward the corridor, but Fu Qian claimed he had psychological trauma and deserted them.
  • Fu Qian found a poisoned cleanup team’s trail, followed it through an elevator, and used it to reach the surface.
  • Fu Qian returned to the research building and found Oliver missing from the lab where he had found Henry.
  • Fu Qian recognized the dead researcher as possibly Oliver and concluded that the two red-world incidents might be in different timelines.

Ch. 964Prismatic (Twenty-Seven)

Fu Qian suspected the search for the source of the colors had been misdirected and went looking for Paul, bringing Henry along. At the movie theater, he found Adele barricaded inside a screening room as a marked crowd closed in.

  • Fu Qian freed Henry from the safe and realized the cat stayed in the same place through the shifting colors.
  • Fu Qian concluded the Masked Ones might be investigating a false target and decided to question Paul about his dream.
  • Fu Qian found Paul's home empty and guessed Paul might have gone to the movie theater to look for Henry.
  • Fu Qian fought through a crowd of people covered in glowing markings and unlocked a screening-room door blocked by junk.
  • Fu Qian spotted Adele inside the screening room and showed her Henry as the crowd approached.

Ch. 965A Prism of Color (28)

Fu Qian rescued Henry and found Adele in the theater with Paul and Angelo dead. Adele told him about a medicine Paul had given her and his advice to hide somewhere dark, prompting Fu Qian to realize he might know how to stay hidden.

  • Fu Qian led the audience away, got Henry to Adele, and reinforced the barricade between them.
  • Fu Qian found Paul and Angelo dead in the theater and questioned Adele about what had happened.
  • Adele explained that Paul had suddenly attacked Angelo, then both men went mad and stopped moving.
  • Adele told Fu Qian that Paul had given her medicine to resist contamination and advised her to hide somewhere dark after the disaster began.
  • As Adele described hiding from the others, Fu Qian realized he might know how to make people unable to find him.

Ch. 966Prism (Twenty-Nine)

Fu Qian tested whether hiding inside another living being could shield him from the colors and restore his supernatural power. After the plan worked, he headed for Sheldon’s office and began using his powers on Sergei, though the colors were already draining his strength again.

  • Fu Qian lured a spectator through the door, disabled him, and cut open his body to make a hiding place.
  • Fu Qian crawled inside the spectator and waited until his supernatural power returned.
  • Fu Qian asked Adele where Angelo’s supervisor Sheldon kept his office, and Adele pointed him toward it.
  • Fu Qian blasted through the wall and office door, where he encountered Sergei, who tried to bite him.
  • As the colors drained his power, Fu Qian stretched his hand into a strand of flesh and fed it into Sergei’s mouth.

Ch. 967Iridescence (30)

Fu Qian took over Sergei’s corpse and used it to reach Adele and Henry, where he discovered that Henry possessed a supernatural nature and received a new task. He decided to take Henry to the abyss, suspecting a powerful force was behind the crisis.

  • Fu Qian spread his body throughout Sergei’s corpse, took control of it, and left the office.
  • Fu Qian killed the walking corpses in the corridor with Air Bullets and entered the screening room.
  • Fu Qian found Adele unresponsive and pulled Henry from her arms.
  • Fu Qian perceived Henry’s eyes as blood-red and received the task to sink the source of color into the abyss.
  • Fu Qian picked up Henry and decided they would travel to the abyss together.

Ch. 968Prism (Thirty-One)

Fu Qian returned to the Third District’s lowest level, where Prism had spread and his teammate Stella had become contaminated. After learning that Mask had killed Qing and the others had fled, Fu Qian discovered Stella was a Demigod and killed her when she answered.

  • Fu Qian suspected the mission’s reference to the abyss was meant to lure his teammates toward Prism, then returned to the research building’s lowest level.
  • Fu Qian found the floor covered in Prism and shoots, dodged gunfire, and subdued the shooter, Ms. Star.
  • Fu Qian learned Ms. Star’s real name was Stella and that Mask had gone mad, killed Qing, and driven Death Row and Red Dragon to flee.
  • Stella realized Fu Qian was not Death Watcher and reached for his eyes, but Fu Qian interrupted her and asked her rank.
  • Stella answered that she was a Demigod, and Fu Qian killed her with an Air Bullet.

Ch. 969Prism (Thirty-Two)

Fu Qian entered the lowest level of the Third District and found the Masked Man feeding corpses into the fluorescent tree growing from a well. He confronted the man about the team’s deaths and began piecing together why the Masked Man had turned on his teammates, ending with a clue about how the mission had been completed.

  • Fu Qian confirmed that Stella’s death caused no transformation, then followed the team’s trail to the lowest level of the Third District.
  • Fu Qian blasted through the antler-like growths and found the Masked Man feeding corpses into a glowing tree above a well-like opening.
  • The Masked Man recognized Fu Qian as the Death Watcher, and Fu Qian revealed that he was T-233 and had encountered Stella.
  • Fu Qian inferred that the Masked Man had killed Lady Qing first and described how the failed mission and contamination had led to conflict among the team.
  • Fu Qian questioned the Masked Man’s extreme response and concluded that he had figured out how the mission was completed.

Ch. 970Prism (Thirty-Three)

Fu Qian returned to the abyss with Henry and confronted the Mask, who tried to force him to reveal what he had found. A vengeful death row inmate arrived and was killed by Fu Qian, leaving the Mask stunned by Fu Qian’s apparent supernatural power.

  • The Mask reasoned that Fu Qian had returned for the source of color and threatened to throw him into the abyss at gunpoint.
  • The Mask claimed his biological weapon could make Fu Qian reveal what he had found outside.
  • A blood-soaked death row inmate appeared and accused the Mask of planning the murders.
  • The death row inmate turned his gun toward Fu Qian, who blew apart his head and chest with a finger attack.
  • The Mask dropped his gun in disbelief, and Fu Qian explained that he had suspected the inmate was acting to lure him into a trap.

Ch. 971Prism (Thirty-Four)

Fu Qian exposed the Mask and the Convict’s secret partnership and guessed that the Mask had received a special mission identifying him as the story’s protagonist. After the red force surged into the Mask, he declared that he was still waiting for his reward, while Fu Qian revealed he was waiting for the same thing.

  • Fu Qian explained how the Mask and the Convict had manipulated the team, and the Mask admitted they had cooperated from the start.
  • Fu Qian deduced that the Mask had promised the Convict a drug that could preserve his clarity under severe contamination, and the Mask showed him a bottle of golden liquid.
  • Fu Qian guessed that the Mask had gone berserk after receiving information that made him believe he was the story’s protagonist and the others were obstacles.
  • Henry cried out and struggled as the red force surged toward him, but it passed over him and entered the Mask.
  • The Mask said he still believed he was the protagonist and was waiting for his reward, and Fu Qian said he was waiting for it too.

Ch. 972Prism (35)

Fu Qian fought Masked Brother while investigating why his supposed predecessors had appeared and what power was behind them. When the Well erupted, he realized the being empowering Masked Brother was trying to sneak its influence past the Abyss, and he began to see how its plan could threaten his nearly depleted Sanity Value.

  • Masked Brother transformed into a demigod, and Fu Qian questioned him about the missions, learning that he did one every month.
  • Masked Brother attacked Fu Qian with a barrage of light spears while taunting him about his restricted abilities.
  • The Well churned violently, hurling the tree and severed limbs from within it.
  • Fu Qian reasoned that the five teammates were traces of predecessors empowered by a hostile being, which was trying to drain his Sanity Value rather than simply kill him.
  • Fu Qian suspected that Masked Brother had tried to placate the Abyss so the hostile being could seep some of its power into the area.

Ch. 973Prismatic (End)

Fu Qian confronted the Mask, uncovered how a hidden power had manipulated former Warehouse administrators, and drew out the being controlling the Mask. He completed his mission by containing No. 1-105, but the Mask’s identity remained unknown.

  • Fu Qian concluded that a higher being had used former administrators as puppets to mislead the Warehouse and exploit its staff.
  • The Mask confirmed that his task was to gather flesh and blood to plug the well in exchange for partially lifting his power seal.
  • The Mask revealed that his next task was to kill Fu Qian, and attacked while wrapped in radiant light.
  • Fu Qian used Law Remnants and False God Incarnation to disrupt the Mask and asked him to name the last item he had contained.
  • A voice silenced the Mask as the being possessing him appeared, causing the laboratory to collapse into chaos.
  • Fu Qian summoned a frog-like creature from the red mist, fed it the cat, and completed the containment of No. 1-105.

Ch. 974Stella's Old Shadow

Fu Qian learned that the Rainbow of Yao Bian had tried to impose an orderly world on the Abyss and was defeated when he killed Stella's Old Shadow. He examined the Color Wheel and received the Glorious Tyrant form, then wondered if it would make him grow like T-233.

  • The Warehouse explained that the Rainbow of Yao Bian had created a color-shifting world to distort reality and take control of the Abyss, but Fu Qian's actions had ruined its plan.
  • Fu Qian received Sanity Value, the Glorious Tyrant form, and the Miniature Universe Aberrant Colors as rewards for killing Stella's Old Shadow.
  • Fu Qian concluded that the Rainbow of Yao Bian had deliberately misled him and connected it to the deaths of several Warehouse predecessors.
  • Fu Qian found the Color Wheel in the Warehouse and saw that the shifting sphere began to jumble his understanding of color.
  • Fu Qian inspected Glorious Tyrant and learned that it would enlarge his body and distort nearby forms of existence.

Ch. 975The Universe's Aberrant Colors

Fu Qian tested his new Glorious Tyrant skill in the Warehouse and received a lantern that could summon a random cosmic deity phantom. After leaving, he returned to Wen Li, who saw his shredded clothes and asked whether he wanted a mask.

  • Fu Qian activated the Glorious Tyrant skill, grew larger, and tore his clothes, while the Warehouse showed no reaction.
  • Fu Qian examined the Miniature Universe Aberrant Colors lantern and learned that striking it three times would project a random cosmic deity phantom.
  • Fu Qian tried to strike the lantern but found an invisible restriction prevented him from using it in the Warehouse.
  • Fu Qian decided to investigate the Rainbow of Yao Bian and received a notice that his Warehouse work was complete.
  • Fu Qian put on the Emissary Mask and returned to Wen Li, who asked if he was heading out on another mission.
  • Fu Qian declined Wen Li's offer to prepare a mask and showed her his torn trousers.

Ch. 976The Most Direct Probe

Fu Qian tested whether invoking the Rainbow of Yao Bian would draw a response, then went to the Night Watcher headquarters and caught Selena spying on Yuan Shan’s meeting with the Gulad clan. Yuan Shan let the incident go and praised Fu Qian for behaving himself.

  • Fu Qian got new clothes and told Wen Li to make a name for herself in Shangjing, but offered to go out in her place when she hesitated.
  • Fu Qian invoked the Rainbow of Yao Bian and, when nothing happened, concluded that it had gone into hiding after the long night.
  • Xiao Mingyue told Fu Qian that Yuan Shan was busy and asked him to wait, but he sensed something outside the room and caught a gray supernatural construct spying through the wall.
  • Yuan Shan arrived with Grantham, Selena, and Taylor, and identified Selena as the one who had used the construct to spy on her meeting with the Gulad clan.
  • Selena apologized and explained that she had sensed an ancient presence and wondered whether it was connected to the progenitor, so Yuan Shan dismissed the incident and sent the group away.
  • Yuan Shan relaxed after they left, sat down, and told Fu Qian that he had been very well-behaved lately.

Ch. 977An Unexpected Answer

Fu Qian asked Yuan Shan about the title Rainbow of Yao Bian, but her reaction revealed it was a closely guarded secret known to the Night Watchers. After Yuan Shan arranged to take him to the Northern Headquarters once things settled down, Fu Qian headed to his bookstore and found Taylor waiting outside.

  • Yuan Shan explained that Selena had been curious about Blood Clan Progenitor Annalise's past, and Fu Qian refused to share the details he had shown her.
  • Fu Qian asked Yuan Shan to explain the title Rainbow of Yao Bian, and she reacted with alarm when he revealed he knew its name.
  • Yuan Shan questioned how Fu Qian knew the title and warned him to keep it secret, then told him to come with her to the Night Watchers' Northern Headquarters once things settled down.
  • Fu Qian agreed to visit the headquarters but decided to move up his planned trip to the academy, and Yuan Shan personally escorted him out of the base.
  • Fu Qian went to his bookstore and found Taylor waiting outside; Taylor rushed over to speak with him, so Fu Qian invited him inside.

Ch. 978Eating the Popcorn

Taylor visited Fu Qian to apologize, thank him, and convey Gulad’s decision to let him keep the Abyss Notebook in exchange for keeping the blood race’s secrets confidential. As Taylor left, a tearful woman mistook him for a victim of the corpse-picker, and Fu Qian watched the awkward encounter with amusement.

  • Taylor apologized to Fu Qian and thanked him for helping his family during the events in Shangjing.
  • Taylor admitted Grantham had sent him and told Fu Qian that Gulad gave him the Abyss Notebook, asking him to keep the blood race’s secrets confidential.
  • Fu Qian accepted Gulad’s gesture and asked Taylor to give Grantham his regards.
  • A tearful woman rushed up to Taylor outside the bookstore, but he insisted he did not know her and evaded her attempt to take his hand.
  • Taylor explained that Darnetta had been responsible for the attacks and protested that he had never been intimate with a human woman.
  • Fu Qian told Taylor that intimacy was fine as long as he remembered to use garlic.

Ch. 979The Scholar Returns

Fu Qian returned to the Academy after traveling from his shop, meeting two Night Watchers along the way and arranging to face Lanaia in public. Lanaia confronted him over the trouble his supposed death had caused, but showed little hostility.

  • Fu Qian closed his shop and set off for the Academy, traveling by aircraft toward Shangjing.
  • Fu Qian reunited with Xiao Zhi and Uncle Mo, reassured them, and blamed Chief Yuan for the turbulence in Shangjing.
  • Fu Qian reached the city at night, restored his real appearance, and headed toward the Academy after dinner.
  • Professor Lanaia found Fu Qian in a crowded area and complained about the trouble he had caused.
  • Fu Qian apologized to Lanaia, who offered to treat him another time.

Ch. 980Family Matters on the Way

Lanaia brought Fu Qian back to her place and explained the fallout from his killing Ian, as Spirit Ash pushed to prove Ian’s innocence and the academy prepared to judge Fu Qian. Before leaving him to wait, she told him Ji Liushuang had helped investigate the party but was away on Leaf Island because of trouble at home.

  • Lanaia told Fu Qian that Ian’s death had caused conflict between Spirit Ash, Apocalypse, and the academy, and that Cas had fought someone.
  • Lanaia explained that security footage could identify Fu Qian as Ian’s killer, while Spirit Ash insisted Ian was innocent and the Night Watchers had issued a warning.
  • Lanaia brought Fu Qian to her residence and told him to stay put until the academy settled the matter.
  • Lanaia explained that Apocalypse was celebrating Ian’s death and that Ji Liushuang had helped assess the partygoers’ mental states.
  • Lanaia told Fu Qian that Ji Liushuang had gone to Leaf Island and had not returned because something had come up at home.

Ch. 981The Weeping Mask

Fu Qian rested under Lanaia’s watch while awaiting questioning, then met a powerful visitor from the Spirit Ash Institute who recognized him as the Revelation Institute’s first new demigod. The visitor was surprised that Fu Qian did not know who they were.

  • Lanaia told Fu Qian that Ji Liushuang had not returned from Leaf Island because of family matters, then welcomed him back.
  • Lanaia stayed at her residence to keep Fu Qian under house arrest and said the academy would question him by nightfall.
  • Fu Qian offered to buy Lanaia a drink afterward and joked that he would charge it to his research budget.
  • Fu Qian spoke to an apparently empty space by the window, and a withered, masked being appeared and discussed the vacant building nearby.
  • The being identified Fu Qian as the Revelation Institute’s first new demigod, and Fu Qian asked who they were.
  • The visitor reacted with surprise when Fu Qian admitted he did not know their identity.

Ch. 982Void of Origin Source

Weilong, a Spirit Ash demigod, confronted Fu Qian over Ian’s death and used his Void of Origin Source to isolate them and recreate Ian’s laboratory. He demanded Fu Qian confess to killing Ian and framing someone else, but Fu Qian denied it.

  • Weilong introduced himself as a Spirit Ash demigod and explained that understanding the mind made Mythical Form easier to endure.
  • Weilong revealed he had come because of Ian and said he wanted to uncover the truth rather than let Spirit Ash take the blame.
  • Weilong used Void of Origin Source to cut Fu Qian off from the outside world, leaving Lanaia unable to notice their exchange.
  • Weilong transformed their surroundings into a recreation of Ian’s laboratory and synchronized their wills to sharpen Fu Qian’s memories.
  • Weilong accused Fu Qian of killing Ian and framing someone else, but Fu Qian denied the charge.

Ch. 983You Know Your Crime?

Fu Qian endured Weilong’s sorrow-inducing mental power and confronted Ian, whom Weilong summoned into the unstable mental space. He accused Ian of public indecency, leaving Weilong and Ian stunned by the direction of the confrontation.

  • Fu Qian denied Weilong’s theories about his mental abilities, and the surroundings remained unchanged.
  • Weilong’s crying mask cracked and warped, revealing his nonhuman face and filling Fu Qian with overwhelming sorrow.
  • Weilong summoned Ian, a half-step demigod from the Spirit Ash Institute, into the room.
  • Fu Qian resisted the sorrow and destructive images provoked by Ian’s gaze, then asked Ian if he knew his crime.
  • Fu Qian accused Ian of public indecency and asked whether he had checked the laws before participating in the group event.

Ch. 984Help

Fu Qian defeated Professor Ian and trapped Weilong in his Clear Dream, forcing him to reconsider who had framed Fu Qian and killed Ian. Weilong emerged convinced he had found the answer and left to verify it, while Fu Qian looked forward to learning who the real culprit was.

  • Professor Ian crumbled into ash after Fu Qian killed him, and Fu Qian felt remorse without trying to justify his actions.
  • Weilong accused Fu Qian of hiding his strength and killing Ian to conceal his secrets, then threatened to settle the matter.
  • Fu Qian activated Clear Dream and trapped Weilong, setting the dream’s exit condition as identifying the real culprit behind Ian’s death and Fu Qian’s framing.
  • After struggling against the dream, Weilong emerged and said he understood what had happened, then left to confirm a few things.
  • Fu Qian returned to the window and wondered who Weilong would discover was the real culprit.
Arc 39 of 113