Chapter Summaries

After the banquet attack, Han Su and Xu Ji left Lilac Mansion with Wei Lan’s belongings and the Mechanical Fragment, while the mansion’s owner waited for the suspected inheritor to return. The rosy-nosed investigator decided to discover what was in Wei Lan’s boxes despite the old man’s orders.

• Security guards entered Wei Lan’s dressing room after the banquet attack, and Wei Lan and her companions left Lilac Mansion without being searched.
• Han Su asked Xu Ji to pull over so Wei Lan could give him the Mechanical Fragment, but their driver reported that someone was following them.
• The owner of Lilac Mansion sent the rosy-nosed investigator and Ding Mao away, then waited alone, believing the inheritor had returned and that the Day of Divine Descent had begun.
• The rosy-nosed investigator suspected that Wei Lan’s boxes contained something important and decided to find out what was inside them.

Han Su, Xu Ji, and Wei Lan were forced off the road by mysterious pursuers seeking to inspect their car. Outside the city, Han Su summoned a supernatural threat against them, and the pursuers heard a truck horn in the fog as one man tried to escape.

• Han Su and Xu Ji ordered their driver to change course toward Haiyan Club while Wei Lan’s car followed, but three unknown vehicles pursued them.
• The pursuers hijacked the radio, cast a Spell that distorted the road, and forced Han Su’s and Wei Lan’s cars onto a route outside the city.
• The driver offered to stay behind with a pistol, but Han Su told him to keep driving and prepared to confront the pursuers himself.
• Han Su murmured a Spell and clenched his left fist as the pursuers closed in outside the city.
• Thick fog surrounded the pursuers’ car, a truck horn blared from the left, and one occupant jumped out in panic.

Han Su used the Ghost Truck to destroy the three cars pursuing him, then returned to the city with Xu Ji. After Wei Lan pledged to stand by him, rosy-nosed concealed the wreckage and realized the newcomer was more ruthless than he had expected.

• The Ghost Truck emerged from the fog and crushed the three cars and their occupants, killing the last survivor as he tried to cast a spell.
• Xu Ji saw the truck shaking its trailer as the fog cleared, while Han Su wondered whether summoning the Ghost Truck consumed his Mental Power.
• Rosy-nosed found the wreckage, tried to revive the corpses with the words “The dead shall return,” then buried the bodies and scrap metal beneath the ground.
• Han Su returned to the city and went to Wei Lan’s car to collect the makeup case she had lent him.
• Wei Lan took Han Su’s hand and promised to help him face even incomprehensible beings and gods, and Han Su agreed.

Han Su examined the Mechanical Fragment and discovered that its pointer appeared to count down to the next Shimmering Descent. He tried to use his Mental Power to change the countdown, but it was too weak, so he invoked the Fishing Horn’s Divine Decree and Mental Activation.

• Xu Ji drove Han Su home, then sent him his assistant fee after Han Su refused to discuss the night’s events.
• Han Su inspected the Mechanical Fragment and saw its pointer move as it absorbed his Mental Power and started ticking.
• Han Su concluded the fragment was tied to the kidnapping case and worried that letting Xu Ji touch it could endanger him.
• Han Su arranged with Miss Ai to collect a specially commissioned briefcase with hidden compartments the next morning.
• Han Su found the pointer had moved from between “6” and “5” to “5” overnight and suspected it showed the days until the next Shimmering Descent.
• Han Su tried to push the pointer forward with his Mental Power, then recited the Fishing Horn’s Divine Decree and Mental Activation.

Han Su tested the Mechanical Fragment and concluded that influencing its pointer required a vast, continuous supply of Mental Power. After becoming an investigator, he secured the Fragment in his new Briefcase and invited Doctor and Black Tiger to become his assistants, while making clear he intended to prevent either from inheriting his license if he died.

• Han Su used the Fishing Horn to pour Mental Power into the Mechanical Fragment, but his power ran out before its pointer could reach six.
• Han Su packed the Fragment in his old backpack, collected his new Briefcase and Investigator's license, and concealed the Fragment in the case's hidden compartment.
• Han Su declined Zhang Chiguo's dinner invitation, asked about license inheritance, and got approval to fire his inherited assistant.
• Han Su met Doctor and Black Tiger in the cafeteria and asked them to become his assistants, promising to share mission credit while warning that his license would be destroyed if he died.
• Doctor challenged Han Su's decision to remove inheritance rights, and Han Su pointed out that Doctor knew how he had earned his promotion.

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.