Recaps

Han Su formed a small investigation team with Doctor and Black Tiger, then explored the Bureau’s training resources and learned about its mysterious sequences and Life Code. The chapter ended with him suspecting that Miss Ai was treating him differently and hiding evidence of their conversations.

• Doctor and Black Tiger agreed to investigate with Han Su, and Black Tiger explained why he trusted him.
• Doctor told Han Su that Mouse had died four days into his first mission for the Disaster Management Bureau.
• Han Su secured approval to assign Doctor and Black Tiger as his assistants and applied for training for them and himself.
• Han Su accessed the Bureau’s records and learned that investigators imitated and stole power from supernatural entities through mysterious sequences.
• Han Su discovered the restricted Life Code training entry, which Miss Ai quickly erased after revealing it was meant for experienced investigators.
• Han Su questioned Miss Ai about seeming especially kind to him, and she denied it while deleting parts of their chat history.

Han Su studied the Zero Sequence Spells and strengthened his knowledge of Mysterious Powers while Wei Lan visited his apartment to discuss her fading fate shadow and her Life Code. He told her he planned to rescue more children in two days and asked her to investigate the Crystal Skull organization.

• Han Su memorized the Zero Sequence Spells and spent several peaceful days training and studying at the base.
• Xu Ji returned to school and said he had stopped street racing because he would never find a car as impressive as the one that could shake its ass.
• Wei Lan visited Han Su's apartment with Xu Ji, explained that she distrusted communications networks, and showed him the still-bleeding wound on her cheek.
• Wei Lan told Han Su that the shadow affecting her fate in Ticheng was fading and her chance of advancing as Queen had risen above fifty percent.
• Wei Lan explained that everyone had a different Life Code, then asked when Han Su would rescue more children and whether she could help.
• Han Su said Wei Lan could not help with the operation planned in two days, but asked her to investigate the Crystal Skull organization and told her he had prepared for the rescue.

Han Su prepared to return to the Ancient Castle during Shimmering Descent and rescue the children, while a mysterious man emerged from a humanoid vessel in Qinggang City and turned his attention to the Crystal Skull. As the Mechanical Fragment reached zero, Han Su heard its ticking and prepared to face the old man again.

• Han Su finalized his plan to navigate the Ancient Castle and rescue the children, then waited for the Mechanical Fragment’s countdown to end.
• A pale, injured man emerged from a vessel, dressed in a white suit and given a Snakeskin Briefcase after staff helped him prepare.
• The man learned about Song Chushi, the Queen organization, and Zhang Chiguo’s suspicions, then denied causing the incident involving the Nail of the Dead Sea.
• The man ordered staff to retrieve the Crystal Skull files and declared he would deal with the group first.
• The Mechanical Fragment reached zero, and Han Su heard its ticking as he vowed to face the old man.

Han Su returned to the Ancient Castle and planned to steal the key from Ghost Princess on the ninth floor. He told the children how they could escape, then reached the ninth-floor corridor and spotted a candle flame.

• Han Su returned to the Ancient Castle alone and realized the Mechanical Fragment was connected to his trips into the past.
• Han Su spotted the key hanging from Ghost Princess and waited until night to make his move.
• Han Su knocked out Secretary Two's little brother, gave the other children directions to an escape route, and left the cellar door open.
• Han Su took Duke through a serving chute and crossed the castle using secret passages to avoid the monsters.
• Han Su reached the ninth floor and saw a candle flame in the gloomy corridor.

Han Su stole the Ghost Princess’s key and rescued Pot Lid Head while Black Cat Duke distracted the princess. He used a shadow spell to listen down the corridor and suspected the old geezer had returned.

• Han Su sneaked into the Ghost Princess’s room while she bathed in blood and stole the key from her dress.
• Black Cat Duke appeared in the doorway, drawing the Ghost Princess away from Han Su and starting a chase down the corridor.
• Han Su entered a nearby room and pulled Pot Lid Head off the Iron Hook that pierced his leg.
• Pot Lid Head bandaged his injured leg and followed Han Su without making a sound.
• Han Su used Spell Number 07 to sense activity in the shadows and heard someone thumping up the stairs before the footsteps stopped.

Han Su led Pot Lid Head through the castle’s secret passages, setting fires as a distraction and gathering three children to escape. As the Old Butler closed in, Han Su opened an EXIT door, but the chapter ended with the pursuer reaching the hallway.

• Han Su set fire to Ghost Princess’s clothes and led Pot Lid Head down a secret passage while spreading small fires through the castle.
• Han Su heard children inside the rotating conference room and found three who had made it from the cellar.
• Han Su used the key to summon an EXIT door and led the children and Pot Lid Head toward it.
• The Old Butler approached, and Han Su urged him to worry about the burning castle instead.

Han Su used the Ghost Princess’s screams and a burst of invisibility to escape the Ancient Castle with Pot Lid Head and another child, though the Old Butler burned his arm as they fled. They fell into the night as fires spread throughout the castle, while the Black Cat Duke watched their escape.

• Han Su led three children toward the exit while the Old Butler pursued them, but the Ghost Princess’s screams weakened the Butler’s clapping ability.
• As fires spread through the castle, Han Su used a spell to turn invisible with two children and reached the door before the Butler could stop them.
• The Old Butler’s vines seized one child, and Pot Lid Head shoved away another child approaching the exit to block a hidden vine attack.
• Han Su opened the door, grabbed Pot Lid Head and the other child, and leapt out of the Ancient Castle as the Old Butler hurled a fireball that burned Han Su’s arm.
• Fires and monster cries spread through the castle, while the Black Cat Duke watched Han Su’s escape from the stair railing.

After escaping the Ancient Castle, Han Su confirmed that two more kidnapped children had been rescued and discovered extensive burn scars that might give him a new Mysterious Power. He searched for news about the children and learned that Pot Lid Head had already been executed, raising the possibility that he had belonged to Group D7.

• Han Su checked the updated kidnapping reports and confirmed that two children had escaped the Ancient Castle, then found that the Mechanical Fragment’s countdown had reset to eight.
• Han Su discovered burn scars covering his right arm, shoulder, and chest, and wondered whether they could awaken a Mysterious Power.
• Han Su searched for the rescued children and found that Rong Qiyue’s family was investing in an archaeological excavation near an ancient ruin.
• Han Su learned that Pot Lid Head, whose real name was Chen Ji, had been executed for stabbing eight people to death.
• Han Su wondered why Chen Ji’s influential family had not intervened and suspected that Chen Ji might have been selected for Group D7.

Han Su considered whether to search for the Rong Family’s young master as he investigated the children connected to the Kidnapping Case. Wei Lan contacted him after discovering that she remembered a previous version of reality, and the chapter ended with them resolving to find the missing children and fight the Ancient Castle.

• Han Su wondered whether to look for the Rong Family’s young master after considering his suspicions about Pot Lid Head and Wei Lan’s identity.
• Wei Lan used Spiritual Penetration to appear through Han Su’s television and urgently asked whether he had just changed something.
• Wei Lan explained that she remembered the Kidnapping Case report listing twenty-five missing children, though everyone else now remembered only twenty-three.
• Han Su realized that Wei Lan could remember the world before it changed and told her he was used to facing the Ancient Castle’s power alone.
• Wei Lan noticed Han Su’s burn scars, and he asked whether she had felt an inexplicable connection to him before remembering the earlier timeline.
• Han Su promised to rescue every child he could, and Wei Lan agreed that they would find the children and fight the Ancient Castle.

Han Su reviewed his new investigator privileges and pressed Miss Ai for early access to the Life Code. She instead approved him for a dangerous B+-rank assignment, leaving him headed to Huayang District to investigate the “Two-bodied person” Incident.

• Wei Lan told Han Su that she could help investigate Rong Qiyue and D7, but Han Su would have to handle the Mechanical Fragment and decide whether to awaken the two people himself.
• Han Su dismissed Wei Lan’s projection and checked his investigator materials, learning that he had been approved for a Service Pistol and received new access to Bureau files.
• Han Su read Zhang Chiguo’s apology about Ms. Red Trench Coat and learned that investigators needed to justify their actions and write reports.
• Miss Ai told Han Su that he was a D-rank investigator and that A-rank status would grant access to the Life Code.
• Han Su pushed Miss Ai for early access to the Life Code, and she replaced his C-rank assignment with a specially approved B+-rank “Two-bodied person” Incident.
• Han Su accepted the mission and was directed to Huayang District in West City to investigate the infiltration phenomenon and eliminate its source.

Han Su investigated an infiltration incident in which unknown beings replaced people, while Doctor and Black Tiger traced the source to Haifang Factory. Miss Ai deployed the D7 Team to assist with the cleanup, leaving Han Su alarmed by the arrival of the hardened criminals.

• Han Su reviewed reports of people claiming their loved ones had become different, and learned that an operative had vanished while investigating the suspects.
• Doctor mapped the suspects’ movements to Haifang Factory and proposed investigating and containing the source there.
• Doctor and Black Tiger reached Haifang Factory before Han Su and confirmed that it was the source of severe contamination.
• Han Su requested containment and cleanup support, then offered to teach Doctor and Black Tiger additional Zero Sequence spells.
• Miss Ai approved the request and deployed the D7 Team, whose arrival made Han Su wary because they were hardened criminals.

Han Su coordinated the evacuation and containment operation after Doctor and Black Tiger traced the infiltration source to Haifang Factory. As the team prepared to enter, four dangerous prisoners arrived, including a bald man Han Su recognized immediately.

• Miss Ai evacuated the area with a crowd-evacuation bomb that drove people and animals away with a terrible stench.
• Executor Codename Mountain Crocodile arrived with nine containment teams, and Han Su ordered him to hold the perimeter.
• Doctor and Black Tiger reported that Haifang Factory likely hid smuggled relics in a storeroom behind the manager's office, where a prohibited item was causing the infiltration.
• Mountain Crocodile's team brought four shackled prisoners in an armored van, and Han Su recognized the bald man among them.

Han Su entered the Haifang Factory cordon with four notorious D7 Members to investigate an infiltration source. After learning that Ripper had accumulated a 350-year sentence despite repeatedly choosing reductions, Han Su reached the factory and ordered the D7 team forward; they raised their palms and commanded the hidden presence to appear in light.

• The little fatty told Han Su that Jackal, Sawtooth, Iron Hook, and Ripper were notorious D7 criminals, and explained how Ripper's sentence had grown from seventy to 350 years.
• Captain Mountain Crocodile warned Han Su to avoid contact with the D7 Members because their Mental Activity was unusually high.
• Han Su entered the cordoned-off area with Black Tiger and the D7 Members while the Doctor stayed outside to provide support.
• The team found infected Two-bodied people standing motionless outside the Haifang Factory, where Black Tiger said the infiltration source was inside the manager's office.
• After Han Su gave the signal, the four D7 Members crossed the safety line, raised their palms, and commanded the presence to appear in light.

Han Su entered Haifang Factory while the D7 Personnel attacked the Two-bodied people, whose influence they resisted through their unusually high Mental Activity. He reached the suspected storage room and opened it, entering with his baton ready.

• The D7 Personnel recited the Cipher Incantation, drawing the Two-bodied people’s attention and triggering a ferocious attack.
• Jackal and the other D7 Members brutally fought the Two-bodied people, while the Ripper used his shackles to pull one away from Han Su.
• Han Su told Black Tiger to stay outside and entered Haifang Factory after reciting Spell 01.
• The Ripper stopped a Two-bodied person from attacking Han Su, who then made his way to the manager’s office.
• Han Su crushed the lock on the concealed storage-room door, readied the baton from his Briefcase, and entered.

Han Su discovered that an oil painting of an ancient altar was letting its figures take over the bodies of people who watched it. When he tried to seal the painting, it unleashed overwhelming contamination, and Han Su was left struggling against the figures as they invaded his body and will.

• Han Su found a smuggled relic warehouse and saw two hollowed-out people staring at an oil painting whose figures were fading.
• Han Su realized the painting used observation to infiltrate reality, then knocked out the two people with his stun baton.
• Han Su cast Spell Number 06 to seal the painting, but the figures in it crowded around him and began contaminating him.
• Han Su attempted Spell Number 01 to withdraw from the contamination, but it failed and exhausted his Mental Power.
• Han Su briefly relived life in a Radiation Era containment facility as a black-robed figure nearly rewrote his will.
• Han Su used the Fishing Horn Spell to repel the figures, but his Mental Power drained again as they invaded his body more deeply.

Han Su uncovered the ancient origins of the painting’s invading consciousnesses, then used the fire scars from his escape from the Ancient Castle to drive them out. The figures retreated into the painting, weakened and furious.

• Han Su experienced the history of people who survived the Flare Era as bodiless consciousnesses and realized the painting’s figures were traces of those beings.
• Han Su connected their emergence to the Life Code, but recognized that his fragmented Mental Power and low Mental Activity left him vulnerable to the painting’s corruption.
• Han Su noticed that the invaders had avoided the burn scars on his right arm and chest, and focused his Mental Power on the scars without using the Fishing Horn.
• Han Su reignited the scars into flames and spread them across his body, burning away the figures that had invaded him.
• The remaining figures fell away into the painting as radiation remnants, leaving the painted forms faint and furious.

Han Su discovered that his Mental Activity had increased after the painting’s pollution was removed, but Jackal and Sawtooth ambushed him in the storeroom. After Han Su badly injured them, Iron Hook revealed a Banshee power, and the confrontation paused when Ripper arrived.

• Han Su realized his Mental Activity had risen by five percent and that his burn scar’s Mysterious Power had severed the painting’s pollution.
• Jackal attacked Han Su with a Steel Rebar, revealing that Number 12 had hired D7 to kill him.
• Sawtooth joined Jackal, but Han Su used Number 01 and his Cross Copper Scar to smash both attackers into a wall.
• Iron Hook entered, displayed Sequence Two: Banshee, and watched as Jackal and Sawtooth used a healing Spell to recover.
• Ripper entered the storeroom in chains, interrupting the fight and drawing everyone’s attention.

Han Su confronted three D7s inside the sealed Haifang Factory storage room and used his abilities to overpower Iron Hook. As Jackal and Sawtooth unleashed a Sea Beasts Cipher Incantation, Han Su threw Iron Hook’s crushed body at them.

• Mountain Crocodile told Doctor that an unknown barrier had cut off communications and control of the D7s inside the blockade, and warned that they had undergone taboo experiments involving the Bureau’s three major Sequences.
• Doctor decided the enforcement team should prepare to rescue Han Su, reasoning that Han Su’s connections and decision to leave Black Tiger behind meant he likely understood the danger.
• Jackal tried to recruit Pot Lid Head, while Iron Hook attacked Han Su; Han Su fired several shots, wounding the D7s and revealing that he wanted to fight them in the sealed room.
• Han Su used Giant’s Eye to strip away Iron Hook’s Banshee power, beat him, and asked who had contracted with him through a Spell.
• Jackal and Sawtooth chanted to summon a gray-green Sea Beasts power, and Han Su crushed Iron Hook’s head before hurling his body toward them.

Han Su fought Sawtooth, Iron Hook, and Jackal in the storeroom, using the Fishing Horn to unleash the Ghost Flame and defeat the transformed attackers. Jackal tried to escape, but Pot Lid Head intervened and began attacking him, leaving Han Su to wonder at his companion’s hobby.

• Sawtooth transformed after eating Iron Hook’s corpse, while Jackal used his Spell to revive Iron Hook as a Mechanical Ghost.
• Han Su struggled against Sawtooth and the Mechanical Ghost as their powers pushed his Mental Power to its limit.
• Han Su chanted the Fishing Horn and unleashed the Ghost Flame, burning the Mechanical Ghost and killing Sawtooth with his Cross Copper Scar.
• Jackal tried to flee, but Pot Lid Head stopped him and knocked him down.
• Pot Lid Head took the short knife Han Su kicked to him and attacked Jackal, explaining that it was a hobby.

Han Su provoked Pot Lid Head into revealing the monstrous power hidden inside him, then used the Mechanical Fragment in his Briefcase to disrupt him. The chapter left Pot Lid Head weakened and briefly lucid as Han Su greeted him like an old acquaintance.

• Han Su suspected Pot Lid Head had joined the mission to hunt the three D7s and tried to draw him out by naming his hobbies and past.
• Pot Lid Head attacked Han Su with startling speed and skill, nearly cutting his throat with a piece of Steel Rebar.
• Han Su used Giant's Eye, but Pot Lid Head exposed his grotesque scars and transformed, shattering his restraints as he lunged again.
• Han Su blocked Pot Lid Head with his Briefcase and let the Mechanical Fragment contaminate him, making Pot Lid Head falter and show confusion and lucidity.
• Han Su pulled the Briefcase away when Pot Lid Head's pupils contracted and told him, "Long time no see!"

Han Su explained the Kidnapping Case to Pot Lid Head and learned that D7 inmates were subjected to experiments, which Pot Lid Head had volunteered for. Pot Lid Head agreed to help Han Su investigate the attackers, and they staged their injuries as footsteps approached.

• Han Su told Pot Lid Head that he had rescued four children from the Kidnapping Case and that the Mechanical Fragment restored their memories.
• Pot Lid Head explained that he had been sentenced to D7 after killing someone and revealed that he had undergone seven of twenty-two experiments by choice.
• Pot Lid Head offered to help Han Su by taking leave from D7, and Han Su said he could not get him released.
• Pot Lid Head said D1 personnel had approached the attackers before their operation and had also tried to recruit him.
• Han Su told Pot Lid Head to feign interest in him and track down the D1 operative or someone higher in the chain.
• Han Su and Pot Lid Head cut themselves and staged their injuries as approaching footsteps sounded; Pot Lid Head asked how far their war had progressed, and Han Su said it had only just begun.

Han Su recovered the contaminated painting and exposed Pot Lid Head’s attack, but the Bureau’s response and Miss Ai’s evasive messages deepened his suspicions about the mission. Pot Lid Head was taken to a secret facility, where staff discovered that his injury had made him feel excitement and raised the alarm.

• Han Su picked up the miniature Crystal Skull and, when security arrived, urged them to keep Pot Lid Head alive so he could learn who ordered the attack.
• Han Su recovered the painting, reported the assault, and returned to the Disaster Management Bureau, where Cui Qiao told him not to ask about Uncle Zhang yet.
• Han Su submitted the mission report, received a C-class rating, and questioned Miss Ai about the attack and the contamination connected to the Life Code.
• Miss Ai told Han Su to keep quiet when he asked whether the painting’s contamination was linked to the Life Code.
• Staff at a secret underground facility examined Pot Lid Head and raised the alert after discovering that he felt excitement from his injury.

Han Su investigated the Memory Shards linked to the Life Code, tested the Crystal Pendant and Mechanical Fragment, and received a suspicious message from Black Rose. Her patient’s recording connected Mental Activity and the Life Code to the Wasteland Ancestors’ transformation of life, leaving Han Su alarmed by how closely it matched what he had discovered.

• Han Su suspected Miss Ai’s messages were being monitored and reviewed the Memory Shards, concluding that his Mental Activity was too low to fully enter them.
• Han Su returned to his apartment, tested the Crystal Pendant’s signal-blocking barrier, and found the Mechanical Fragment’s pointer had dropped to 7 with seven days left until the Shimmering Descent.
• Han Su tried to move the pointer back to 8 with Mental Power, but ran out of power before he could change it.
• Black Rose contacted Han Su about a patient’s claims concerning Mental Activity and Mysterious Power, then refused to meet him and sent a recording instead.
• Han Su listened as Black Rose’s patient said that reaching 70% spirit vitality would reveal the Life Code and the Wasteland Ancestors’ secrets, shocking Han Su.

Han Su learned that life span could make Mental Activity harder to increase, explaining why his progress had slowed as blinking added years to his Mental Amplitude. Black Rose then accidentally revealed suspicious knowledge of his identity before vanishing, leaving him questioning who she really was and whether the Life Code was now beyond his reach.

• Han Su listened to a recording in which Black Rose's patient described Mental Activity's 70% threshold and four groups with Mysterious Power, including the Secret School and Ancient Aristocrats.
• Han Su asked Black Rose why she had shared the recording, and she explained that crises, experience, knowledge, and philosophy could increase Mental Activity.
• Black Rose told Han Su that a longer life span made Mental Activity harder to raise because the mind accumulated over time.
• Han Su realized that blinking increased both his Mental Activity and his Mental Amplitude by adding ten years each time, slowing his progress.
• Black Rose accidentally called Han Su "Mr. Butcher," retracted the message, and dodged his questions by claiming she needed to feed her cat.
• Han Su doubted Black Rose's identity and wondered whether his growing Mental Amplitude had put the Life Code out of reach.

Han Su learned that the attack on the Nail of the Dead Sea may have involved a department inside the Disaster Management Bureau, while Cui Qiao warned him that Ripper had caused a violent riot in D7. The chapter left Han Su stunned by the scale of Ripper’s rampage and the danger surrounding him.

• Han Su went to Zhang Chiguo’s office, where Zhang said he had detained the department suspected of tampering with the Nail of the Dead Sea and warned Han to be careful.
• Cui Qiao revealed that the department had gone on strike and cautioned Han that his new role had already made him a target.
• Han asked Cui Qiao about Mental Activity, and she advised him to build a foundation, stay alive, and avoid rushing his training.
• Cui Qiao told Han that Ripper had escaped solitary confinement in D7 and caused a riot, injuring ten guards and terrifying the other prisoners.
• Han realized that Ripper’s rampage was likely connected to his efforts to investigate the attack on Han.