Chapter Summaries

Fu Qian considered whether the Mal Brothers had resurrected and theorized that the academy grounds possessed a subtle force that enabled the Snow Trees and the ark’s arrival. He then answered Choker’s urgent call and learned that the transformed Ji Yin had been ambushed by someone other than the Siren and needed help.

• Fu Qian suspected Malfo and Malka had recovered from being crushed and might have secretly left the academy after resurrecting.
• Fu Qian examined the Snow Tree and concluded that a subtle force tied to the academy grounds might explain its unusual properties and why the ark could not be moved elsewhere.
• Fu Qian responded to Choker’s urgent call of faith and saw that Ji Yin’s skin had turned green and tree-like.
• Choker asked Ji Yin if the Siren had ambushed him, but Ji Yin said someone else had attacked him and begged her to save him.

Ji Yin sought the Tooth Choker hermit's help to remove the spreading Tumor Flower Blooms, but the growth had already moved through his bones and become part of him. After Ji Yin pleaded to the King of Prison Break, Fu Qian used his authority to target the growth, leaving its fate unresolved.

• Ji Yin urged the Tooth Choker hermit to cut into his left side and remove the source of his condition.
• The Tooth Choker hermit tore open Ji Yin's flesh and snapped out a jade-green piece of bone, but Ji Yin said the growth had already moved elsewhere.
• Ji Yin explained that Tumor Flower Blooms could move and become part of him, making it impossible for him to remove it himself.
• The Tooth Choker hermit urged Ji Yin to seek help from the one they worshipped, and Ji Yin's plea reached Fu Qian.
• Fu Qian examined Ji Yin, opened Eyes of Calamity across his body, and detonated an orange eye after locating a distinct spot.

Fu Qian’s blessing stopped the affliction destroying Brother Ji Yin, though it left him unable to move and numb in parts of his body. As Tooth Choker treated him, Ji Yin explained that the Benevolent Virtue Society had infected their target and ambushed his group.

• Fu Qian’s calamity crushed the animated greenery inside Brother Ji Yin and halted its damage, but Ji Yin collapsed with severe injuries.
• Tooth Choker examined Ji Yin, stopped his bleeding, and promised to find Laurie while asking what had happened.
• Ji Yin explained that his group had pursued a Siren target who escaped with a Supernatural Item, only for them to find him transformed into a dying monster.
• Ji Yin said a rare poison targeting Transcendents had infected him and identified the Benevolent Virtue Society as the culprits.
• Ji Yin explained that the Society despised Transcendent humans but considered its own members avenging guardians who punished sinners with poison.

Fu Qian considered the strange motive behind the poison attack, while Ji Yin and Tooth Choker renewed their devotion to the King of Prison Break. Later, Fu Qian took Su Gao to the Midnight Diner, where Sunny recognized them as they arrived.

• Fu Qian compared the poisoning method to Delanlai's earlier attempt to destroy the poachers and suspected the culprit might be connected to the Benevolent Virtue Society.
• Ji Yin explained Tumor Flower Blooms to Tooth Choker, who reminded him that he had survived through the grace of the King of Prison Break.
• Fu Qian ended his connection with Ji Yin, reflected on his inability to reach the people in Bookstore World, and drank milk before returning to the laboratory.
• Fu Qian invited Su Gao to dinner, and she agreed after complimenting his outfit.
• Fu Qian took Su Gao to the Midnight Diner, where the dragon girl Sunny recognized them and stiffened.

Fu Qian and Su Gao visited the restaurant where Sunny worked, and Su Gao examined Sunny’s unusual nature and compared it with Old Man Henry’s. The chapter left Fu Qian asking Sunny to divide Su Gao’s fish after showing her his Clear Dream ring.

• Su Gao tried the restaurant’s dishes while Fu Qian praised them and joked about Professor Lanaia’s visits.
• Fu Qian asked Su Gao what she sensed about Sunny, and she said Sunny seemed incomplete, had a will of her own, and wielded unusually great power for her rank.
• Fu Qian asked Su Gao to compare Sunny with Chief Yuan’s cat, and Su Gao sensed a similar strangeness despite a large difference in rank.
• Fu Qian called Sunny over, asked her to split Su Gao’s fish into two portions, and showed her the Clear Dream ring on his finger.

Fu Qian used Clear Dream to test whether Sunny, an Oathbound of the Dragon King, could enter the Mind World and how she would behave there. Su Gao reported that Sunny followed her into the sea but remained detached and unaffected, leaving Fu Qian to conclude that Sunny was not a puppet and that the experiment had also provided control groups for Su Gao.

• Fu Qian asked Sunny to cut the fish, then brought her and Su Gao into Clear Dream to test how an Oathbound would fare in the Mind World.
• Fu Qian persuaded Sunny to follow Su Gao through the diner door, and both women disappeared into the dream while he returned to the waking diner.
• Su Gao woke first, and Sunny soon came to and resumed fixing the fish she had cut poorly.
• Fu Qian privately asked Su Gao what happened, and she said Sunny had followed her into the sea but drifted in a daze behind a barrier.
• Fu Qian concluded that Sunny could enter the Mind World but remained detached from it, and that she did not seem to be a puppet of a Higher Being.

Revolver reflected on nearly three years of writing and explained the creative goals behind the book, including its power fantasy, Cthulhu-esque setting, protagonist, and episodic structure. He acknowledged that his choices had hindered the book’s reach and promised to promote it and encourage reader interaction.

• Revolver thanked readers for supporting him and described how he began writing despite having an ordinary job and a science-and-engineering background.
• Revolver explained that he aimed to make an enjoyable power fantasy about turning the impossible into the possible, and described why the Cthulhu-esque setting and a determined protagonist suited that goal.
• Revolver said episodic arcs fit the setting because self-contained stories could gradually reveal a complex world and its mysteries.
• Revolver recounted how censorship forced several title changes, then shared that his outline and setting totaled about 60,000 words and his notes nearly 600,000.
• Revolver explained the changing progress percentages and admitted that his reluctance to promote the book, along with other choices, had hurt its performance and frustrated readers.
• Revolver pledged to use some of the book’s earnings for promotion, pursue Qidian’s Level 4 achievement, and encourage readers to like and share thoughtful comments.

Fu Qian welcomed Old Man Stos and his companions to the Academy, where they prepared to investigate the danger there. Stos thanked Fu Qian on Logan’s behalf, surprising Aiko, who appeared not to know what had happened.

• Fu Qian thanked Sunny for the fish while she continued serving customers with Su Gao and him nearby.
• Old Man Stos arrived at the laboratory with Li Weixuan, Yuan Fang, and Aiko.
• Stos said the Review Council had sent him because the Academy’s dangers might exceed what the current team could handle.
• Fu Qian welcomed Stos and agreed that more high-ranking supernatural beings might be needed at the Academy.
• Stos said they would begin investigating immediately and thanked Fu Qian on Logan’s behalf, leaving Aiko stunned.
• Fu Qian accepted Stos’s thanks and said he was sorry he could not do more.

Fu Qian joined Stos and Su Gao’s expedition, while A Kai reported that his research had uncovered no successful miracles involving ships, leaves, or the apocalypse. A Kai then volunteered to experience the suspected miracle firsthand, leaving Stos to decide whether to let him take the risk.

• Stos confirmed Logan was nearly recovered and assembled a team of high-rank Transcendents, appointing Fu Qian to represent the Academy.
• Stos left Li Weixuan and Yuan Fang in charge outside and set a three-day limit for the expedition.
• A Kai arrived exhausted and reported that he had found no miracle research related to ships or leaves.
• A Kai said the Institute of Curses had many cautious studies of the apocalypse, but he knew of no successful attempts.
• A Kai volunteered to experience the suspected miracle firsthand and offered to use protective measures and try to undo it.

Stos approved Professor A Kai joining the expedition, and the team went to the Institute of Curses to open the way to the ark. After Su Gao struck the hidden passage, Stos prepared to board first.

• Li Weixuan recommended Professor A Kai, and Stos allowed him to join the team with a warning to put his safety first.
• Fu Qian confirmed he was prepared and had hidden his weapons and identifying items in the Warehouse.
• Fu Qian asked Li Weixuan to watch over the laboratory while the team departed with Stos.
• Stos led the group underground at the Institute of Curses, where Su Gao confirmed the mark she had made.
• Su Gao struck the void with her sword, setting off a chain of tremors that opened the way.
• Stos told the team to get ready and strode forward to board first.

Fu Qian and the Night Watchers boarded the ark again and found themselves among the Feathers and Fish. He proposed that the changing light and feather colors reflected the visitors’ increasing synchronization with the ship, leaving the group to consider how to test his theory.

• Fu Qian boarded the ark after Stos and Aiko and found Feathers and Fish at the entrance instead of the private cabin he had seen before.
• Su Gao confirmed that the scene matched her earlier observations, while Stos assessed the creatures as transformed ordinary people.
• Aiko questioned why the feathers looked dimmer, and Fu Qian pointed out that the ark was darker than it had been when he and Su Gao left.
• Fu Qian proposed that the visitors had changed through the ark’s erosion and synchronization, making the ship’s surroundings appear brighter to them.
• Professor A Kai asked whether the light was really getting brighter and whether the others could see it.

Professor Fu’s theory that the ark’s growing brightness reflected the team’s synchronization with it was confirmed, suggesting their time was limited. When A Kai attempted a ritual to slow the effects, it drew the Feathers and Fish into an attack, and a searing ray annihilated the attackers.

• Professor A Kai estimated that the ark’s brightness was like the sun at five in the morning, confirming that the team’s synchronization was advancing.
• His Excellency Stos accepted Professor Fu’s theory and asked A Kai whether he could slow the effects on himself.
• A Kai began a ritual with a black spike, ghostly green flame, and colorful props.
• The Feathers and Fish noticed the disturbance and charged toward the investigation team.
• A searing ray struck the attackers and reduced them to ash.

The group descended through the Ark’s second level toward Marco while the strange light affecting them continued to intensify. They found Marco alive and hostile, and Lord Stos prepared to calm it and attempt communication.

• Lord Stos stopped incinerating the Feather and Fish after A Kai confirmed his protective spell was complete.
• Lord Stos led the group down a level to find the newborn creature they had encountered earlier.
• Su Gao guided them past the amber-bound bodies and toward the room where Marco was staying.
• Aiko, Lord Stos, Su Gao, and Fu Qian each reported that their vision was brightening, while Aiko appeared to suspect Fu Qian had noticed the effect earlier.
• Lord Stos directed Aiko to calm the feather-covered, mollusk-like Marco so they could try to communicate with it.

Aiko subdued the unstable young Marco, and Stos questioned him about what he had seen. Young Marco repeatedly said “They’re there,” but his death caused no disturbance, so Stos decided they would keep searching for the two people or end the operation.

• Aiko approached young Marco and immobilized him with her ability after he slashed at her.
• Stos questioned young Marco, who managed to say, “They’re there,” and then repeated the same words.
• Stos ordered Aiko to execute young Marco, and she killed him with a light tap to his head.
• Fu Qian and Stos sensed no disturbance after young Marco died, just as with the Feathers and Fish.
• Stos said they would continue exploring to find the two people, but terminate the operation if they could not.

Fu Qian advised Lord Stos to search the level above for the two people mentioned by Marco, beginning with the suspicious amber pods. Stos split the group, taking Fu Qian and Su Gao upstairs while A Kai and Aiko stayed behind to investigate the wheat field.

• Fu Qian considered whether the missing two people could be Malfo and Malka or agents sent by Nepheli, and warned that the latter possibility could be hostile.
• Stos asked Fu Qian for his recommendation, and Fu Qian proposed starting with the level above and using a process of elimination.
• Stos burned one amber-colored wheat stalk but found nothing inside, then regretted not clearing the pods as they went.
• Stos split the group, taking Fu Qian and Su Gao upstairs while assigning A Kai to study the area with Aiko guarding him.
• Stos warned Aiko not to let anyone touch the wheat stalks before the group returned, then led the others toward the vessel.

Fu Qian and Su Gao guarded Lord Stos as he burned through the ark’s feathers and amber, while they searched for the hidden malice threatening A Kai and Aiko below. Fu Qian examined the glowing algae and felt the ship’s sea-like influence seep into him, then turned as Su Gao struck at something unseen.

• Lord Stos charged through the feathers, burning the amber, the hidden Feathers and Fish, and parts of the ark as its resistance grew.
• Fu Qian and Su Gao suspected the ship was reacting angrily to the damage, but they found no sign of the hidden malice they were seeking.
• Worried about A Kai and Aiko below, Fu Qian left his post to examine the blue algae while Su Gao kept watch.
• Fu Qian touched the algae and felt the underground ship seem to float on the sea as a marine concept seeped into him.
• A clear ring sounded behind Fu Qian, and he turned to find Su Gao holding her sword after striking at something unseen.

Fu Qian and Su Gao lured out an attacker and identified the Mal Brothers as their likely enemies, while Old Man Stos discovered that they could evade a Second Order Transcendent’s senses. As the group tried to return to Aiko and the others, the passage below vanished into a churning void, and Fu Qian warned that the ship itself might also be hostile.

• Fu Qian used himself as bait, and Su Gao intercepted a stealthy attacker before it could strike him.
• Fu Qian warned Old Man Stos that there were two attackers, and Stos exposed a bone-like spike hidden in a pillar.
• Old Man Stos concluded that the attackers could move through the space without hiding in the amber and ordered everyone to regroup with Aiko and the others.
• The wooden stairway slammed shut, and Su Gao sensed water as the group found only a churning void below the boards.
• Fu Qian suggested that the ship, angered by their actions, might be responsible for trapping them.

Fu Qian, Su Gao, and Sir Stos remained trapped aboard the hostile ship, cut off from Aiko and the others. Stos chose to keep damaging the ship while Su Gao guarded Fu Qian, and she thwarted another ambush aimed at him.

• Sir Stos agreed that the ship possessed a powerful will and confirmed that it was stronger than he was.
• Su Gao said she could not open a passage out, while Fu Qian and Stos each revealed they had methods that could destroy the place.
• Stos decided to attack the remaining people sealed in amber and told Su Gao to keep Fu Qian safe.
• Su Gao guarded Fu Qian as Stos resumed setting the ship ablaze.
• When attackers ambushed Fu Qian again, Su Gao blocked their weapons and struck an unseen assailant.

Fu Qian and Su Gao drew the Mal Brothers into another trap, but the hidden attackers escaped Stos’s strike and remained aboard the ship. As Fu Qian considered how they might be using the vessel, ropes erupted from the ship’s gaps and the sky suddenly brightened.

• Su Gao wounded one of the Mal Brothers and returned to her post when Stos arrived to take over.
• Stos unleashed a blazing attack into the void, but neither he nor Su Gao could locate the Mal Brothers afterward.
• Fu Qian warned Stos that the brothers might still be trapped aboard the ship and could know its hidden passages better than the Night Watchers.
• Ropes emerged from every visible gap and pointed toward Fu Qian, Su Gao, and Stos as the light around them rapidly intensified.

Fu Qian and Su Gao found a way through the distorted ship by using physical contact to sharpen Su Gao’s perception, then descended to the third deck. There, they discovered a spinning scythe cutting down the amber cocoons.

• Fu Qian and Su Gao confirmed that the ship’s distortion had not changed, while Lord Stos prepared to intensify the pressure.
• Fu Qian grabbed a rope and then Su Gao’s hand to strengthen her connection to the ship, and Su Gao sensed a way through the floor.
• Su Gao cut through the floorboard and opened a passage to the deck below, while Fu Qian tore off his rope-entangled hand.
• Lord Stos led Fu Qian and Su Gao to the third deck, where A Kai warned them about a rusted scythe cutting down the amber cocoons.