Recaps

Bai Jun and Boothill helped Guinaifen leave her autograph session and later discussed Boothill’s destroyed homeworld and his wish for Guinaifen to have freedom. Guinaifen joined them in the courtyard, then opened up to Bai Jun about questioning the purpose of her singing after witnessing war and suffering.

• Bai Jun returned to Boothill after Tingyun collected his debt and left tooth marks on him, and Boothill teased him about his relationship with the fox lady.
• Boothill invited Guinaifen to walk around town, but Helen refused; Helen used the emergency passage to get Guinaifen past the crowd of fans, and the group returned to the villa amid paparazzi and fans.
• Boothill told Bai Jun about Aeragan-Epharshel, the company's destruction of his home, and his daughter’s death, then asked Bai Jun to speak to Guinaifen about her freedom and dreams.
• Guinaifen surprised Boothill and Bai Jun in the courtyard, removed her halo, and explained how it helped Halovians maintain direction and synesthesia while flying.
• Guinaifen described Penacony and said she preferred the Xianzhou’s vivid, warm reality to dreams; Bai Jun agreed that people had to live in reality.
• Guinaifen told Bai Jun that she had left the music world to visit war-torn regions after she could not answer whether singing offered comfort or glossed over suffering.

Guinaifen shared how her injury and her brother’s protectiveness had challenged her ideals, but Bai Jun encouraged her to keep following her path. As the concert tour neared its end, Boothill arranged for Bai Jun to take Guinaifen shopping in the Exalting Sanctum, and the two set off together.

• Guinaifen explained that a bullet had irreversibly damaged her throat and that she now relied on Harmony to sing, while her brother had rejected her dangerous ideals.
• Bai Jun encouraged Guinaifen to keep pursuing her path, and she regained her confidence and returned to Helen with renewed energy.
• As the tour approached its final day, Guinaifen asked to join Bai Jun and Boothill for drinks, while Boothill secretly planned to give her and Bai Jun time together.
• Boothill diverted their Starskiff to the Exalting Sanctum and urged Bai Jun to take Guinaifen shopping while he kept Helen and the others occupied.
• Bai Jun offered Guinaifen his hand and invited her to enjoy the streets freely, and she accepted before they hurried into the city together.

Boothill blocked the Starskiff route so Guinaifen could enjoy time away from her guards, and Bai Jun took her on a disguised outing through the Exalting Sanctum. Their evening together grew increasingly intimate before Guinaifen was flustered by Bai Jun’s sincere praise of her outlook on life.

• Boothill lit a cigar on the Starskiff sea steps and threatened anyone who crossed his temporary blockade with a bullet.
• Bai Jun led Guinaifen through quiet alleys to a secluded garden, where she disguised herself so they could explore without being recognized.
• Bai Jun took Guinaifen through a crowded shopping street, where she eagerly ate his Qiongshi Bird Skewer despite her planned sugar allowance.
• Bai Jun spotted Qing Que winning prizes at a game stall and hurried Guinaifen away before she could notice him.
• At the Synwood Pavilion, Guinaifen said she did not desire eternal life, and Bai Jun praised her reverence for life, leaving her embarrassed by his gentle attention.

Guinaifen and Bai Jun escaped a crowd after she was recognized at Synwood Pavilion, then explored Exalting Sanctum’s shopping street together. Guinaifen bought matching accessories and pulled Bai Jun toward a rock concert, leaving him reluctantly following her lead.

• Bai Jun caught Guinaifen when she stumbled, and she became flustered by the moment.
• Guinaifen comforted an injured child by wiping her nosebleed and singing to her, but onlookers recognized her as a star.
• Bai Jun carried Guinaifen away from the growing crowd, and they continued their outing through Exalting Sanctum.
• Guinaifen persuaded Bai Jun to buy a pair of matching accessories called A Match Made in Heaven and gave him one half.
• Guinaifen heard a rock band playing nearby and dragged Bai Jun over to watch despite his protests.

Bai Jun let Guinaifen perform an impromptu rock concert in the Exalting Sanctum, then carried her away from the crowd so she could enjoy a rare moment of freedom. The next morning, he left Boothill dangling over the villa’s swimming pool after punishing him for assigning Bai Jun an unwanted role.

• Guinaifen joined a street rock performance, revealed her identity, and drew a huge crowd with her guitar playing and singing.
• Bai Jun carried Guinaifen away from her fans, and she laughed about how much fun she had before they returned to the villa.
• Helen welcomed Guinaifen back with worried fussing, while Boothill told Bai Jun how he had kept Helen occupied and showed off scratches on his face.
• Bai Jun confronted Boothill for assigning him a role without asking, and Boothill tried to distract him with a bottle of wine before Bai Jun left him hanging upside down above the swimming pool.
• At four in the morning, Bai Jun released the jammed pulley and stopped Boothill just above the pool water.

After Guinaifen’s concert tour ended, she kissed Bai Jun goodbye and left him with her bouquet, while Boothill departed on his own mission. The next morning, Bai Jun prepared to travel to Herta Space Station and brought the flowers to Jing Yuan, whom he found exhausted from days of work.

• Bai Jun, Boothill, and Guinaifen shared breakfast and spent the day together before Guinaifen received a mild reprimand from the concert delegation.
• Guinaifen performed at the tour’s closing ceremony, while Boothill waited alone at Starskiff Haven for the wrap-up to finish.
• Boothill gave Bai Jun a Hunt brooch and left for his spaceship, hoping they would meet again.
• Guinaifen kissed Bai Jun’s cheek, gave him her bouquet, and rushed away after telling him to smile more.
• Bai Jun prepared to visit Herta Space Station and brought Guinaifen’s bouquet to Jing Yuan, who said he had been working for four or five days without sleep.

Bai Jun prepared to leave the Luofu for Herta Space Station after discussing his mission with Jing Yuan and obtaining an external Synesthesia Beacon. At the station, Asta asked the exhausted Arlan to welcome Herta’s arriving guest, leaving him unsure whether he was suited to the task.

• Jing Yuan told Bai Jun to leave the quiet Dragon Masters alone for now and agreed to look after Bai Jun’s flowers.
• Bai Jun visited the Artisanship Commission, where Gongshu Liang gave him an unmodified external Synesthesia Beacon for communicating on Herta Space Station.
• Tingyun caught Bai Jun applying for interstellar travel, complained that he had planned to leave without telling her, and made him promise to return soon.
• Arlan continued working through his demanding Security Department duties and went to the Master Control Zone after a researcher urged him to rest.
• Asta stopped Arlan from sorting Herta’s manuscripts and gave him a keycard, asking him to welcome Herta’s guest while she handled other business.

Bai Jun arrived at Herta Space Station and followed Peppy into the sealed Seclusion Zone, where a Fragmentum ambush forced him to fight. After Bai Jun destroyed the creatures and the calyx, Arlan found Peppy alive and reunited with his pet amid the wreckage.

• Asta asked Arlan to welcome Ms. Herta's guest, but he mistakenly approached a different visitor and learned that Bai Jun had followed Peppy toward the Seclusion Zone.
• Bai Jun followed Peppy through the transit passage, believing the dog had been sent to receive him.
• Peppy revealed itself as a Fragmentum creature and led Bai Jun into an ambush of monsters emerging from an ink-black calyx.
• Bai Jun used Heavenly Fire to destroy the Fragmentum creatures and the calyx, devastating the Seclusion Zone hall.
• Arlan and the Security Department staff reached the battlefield, and Arlan found Peppy alive in a sheltered corner and gathered it into his arms.

After Bai Jun saved Peppy from Fragmentum monsters, he met Herta and impressed her with his curiosity about her puppet. Herta recognized that he was an ordinary human carrying an unusual trace of Yaoshi’s power, leaving Bai Jun hopeful that she might help him extend his short lifespan.

• Asta apologized to Bai Jun after Peppy wandered into the Seclusion Zone, and Arlan thanked him for rescuing the dog.
• Bai Jun described encountering a Fragmentum creature that looked exactly like Peppy, prompting Asta to send Arlan to collect samples for Herta.
• Asta showed Bai Jun around the station, but he stopped to examine Herta’s puppet and excitedly questioned it.
• Herta appeared through the puppet, refused to teach Bai Jun her technology, then discovered that he was an ordinary human rather than a Xianzhou native.
• Herta told Asta to bring Bai Jun to her office after his unusual condition piqued her interest, and Bai Jun began hoping she could help him live longer.

Bai Jun reflected on why he had fled the Zhuming and dreamed of the battlefield where he was rescued as a child. After waking at Herta Space Station, he joined Arlan for breakfast and headed with him toward the Storage Zone, where an unexplained meeting awaited.

• Bai Jun wondered whether Huai Yan had sent him to Herta Space Station to help him find an answer about forming bonds with short-lived people.
• Asta brought Bai Jun to Herta, who collected his blood and hair for research before Arlan reported that the Fragmentum in the Seclusion Zone had disappeared.
• Herta eagerly invited Bai Jun to stay overnight so she could study him after learning the Fragmentum was gone.
• Bai Jun dreamed of lying gravely wounded on a battlefield until a Xianzhou general authorized medicine that saved his life.
• Arlan greeted Bai Jun the next morning, and Bai Jun asked him to use their names rather than formal titles.
• After breakfast, Bai Jun followed Arlan through the Storage Zone toward a room that made Arlan visibly nervous.

Bai Jun learned that Abundance energy had left him with at most fourteen years to live, and Herta recruited him to test the Simulated Universe by promising it might lead to a cure. As the test ran, the data feed suddenly accelerated and an Aeon appeared on Herta’s console.

• Bai Jun sensed a strange power stir within him near the cowering Stellaron, while Herta questioned him about how he had eliminated the Fragmentum.
• Herta caught Bai Jun examining her puppet and struck him with a hammer, sending him flying into Arlan as he rushed to help.
• Herta gave Bai Jun his examination results, explaining that Abundance energy had drained his vitality and that he might have no more than fourteen years to live.
• Herta invited Bai Jun to test the Simulated Universe, claiming that gaining Yaoshi’s attention could help cure him, and Bai Jun agreed.
• Herta sent Bai Jun into a simulation of the Luofu’s Exalting Sanctum, where Abominations of Abundance attacked him.
• After the test produced no Aeon data for a while, the feed suddenly sped up and an Aeon appeared on Herta’s console.

After Yaoshi appeared in the Simulated Universe and Nanook nearly killed him, Bai Jun resolved to regain the strength to protect those he cherished. Back on the space station, he sensed an unseen observer and then collided with a silver-haired woman carrying documents.

• Yaoshi appeared before Bai Jun in the Simulated Universe, but Nanook interrupted and threatened to kill him before Herta disconnected the simulation.
• Bai Jun returned to reality shaken and resolved to fight so he could protect the people he cherished.
• Arlan helped Bai Jun clear away the Abundance vines, while Herta apologized and tried unsuccessfully to recover the corrupted simulation data.
• Bai Jun asked Arlan for the location of a nearby star and later sensed someone watching him on the space station.
• Bai Jun collided with a young silver-haired woman, knocking her and the documents she carried to the floor.

Bai Jun traveled from the space station to a nearby sun and discovered that Favor of the Sun could raise his strength beyond Emanator level, though it made him dangerously arrogant. He returned to the station and began considering how to control the ability, while questioning its connection to the Flint Emperor within his soul.

• Bai Jun met Samuel, a new Supply Zone researcher, and introduced himself before leaving with Arlan to board a starship.
• Arlan set the starship's flight path and gave Bai Jun an administrator ID card for his journey toward a nearby star.
• Bai Jun left the starship to approach the sun, where Favor of the Sun awakened and transformed his body as the Flint Emperor's flames changed within his soul.
• Bai Jun tested his newfound power by destroying a third of a barren planet, then returned to the space station with his clothes ruined.
• Arlan lent Bai Jun a jacket and took him to the cafeteria, where Bai Jun reflected on Favor of the Sun's effects and wondered why it altered the Flint Emperor.

Bai Jun rejected the fate described in his medical report and grew closer to Ms. Samuel, while his good deeds earned him the researchers’ appreciation. Herta then ordered him to meet Ruan Mei at the Railway Platform, where he waited as the station prepared a modest welcome for her and Screwllum.

• Bai Jun accepted Ms. Samuel’s return of his medical report, tore it up, and said he would fight any fate that threatened his life.
• Bai Jun agreed to let Ms. Samuel guide him around the station, and he told her that life’s meaning was to live until tomorrow.
• Bai Jun spent the following days undergoing Herta’s tests, basking in sunlight, helping people, and earning the researchers’ gratitude and morality points.
• Herta told Bai Jun that Ruan Mei and Screwllum had arrived to discuss the Simulated Universe and ordered him to meet Ruan Mei at the platform.
• Bai Jun waited near the Railway Platform as researchers discussed canceling the planned welcome ceremony at Ruan Mei’s request.

Herta and Ruan Mei argued over whether Bai Jun should be handed over for Ruan Mei’s research, while Screwllum also expressed interest in him. Herta refused to give him up, revealing how attached she had become to her “precious experimental specimen.”

• Ruan Mei asked Herta to let Bai Jun assist with her research into the unknowable aspects of life.
• Herta refused, saying she would share Bai Jun’s data but would not let Ruan Mei take or harm him.
• Ruan Mei asked whether Herta had claimed Bai Jun as her own or developed feelings for him, leaving Herta unable to answer.
• Screwllum offered to take Bai Jun instead, but Herta and Ruan Mei both rejected the idea.

Bai Jun agreed to serve as Ruan Mei’s assistant for half a month in exchange for her help treating his body, but her use of truth-serum pastries and the intimate morning aftermath left him flustered. He then crushed Arlan in another sparring session, while the chapter ended with him challenging the Security Department members to fight.

• Ruan Mei offered Bai Jun a half-month assistant position with flexible hours and her help treating his body, and Bai Jun accepted.
• Ruan Mei tricked Bai Jun into eating a pastry containing truth serum, then had him help with her experiments late into the night.
• Bai Jun woke to find Ruan Mei asleep against his chest and crying in her sleep, then fled the room when Arlan knocked.
• Arlan heard Ruan Mei’s voice and saw a mark on Bai Jun’s collarbone, misunderstood the situation, and hurried away in embarrassment.
• Bai Jun overwhelmed Arlan during their morning sparring session, then challenged the watching Security Department members to fight.

Bai Jun recovered from sparring and spoke with Herta and Screwllum about his condition, while Ruan Mei’s research and repairs to the Simulated Universe remained stalled. Days later, he chatted with a girl he knew on the space station and realized she recognized the online hacker Silver Hacker, though he did not suspect she was connected to that identity.

• Bai Jun knocked Allen Walker and Eludick unconscious with a wooden training sword, then ended the sparring session and visited Herta’s office.
• Herta checked Bai Jun for injuries, learned about Ruan Mei’s truth serum, and told him the Simulated Universe repairs and his treatment would take more time.
• Screwllum explained that the Astral Express would soon visit the space station, and Herta praised Bai Jun privately for striving against his circumstances.
• Over the next three days, Herta and Screwllum failed to restart the Simulated Universe, while Ruan Mei’s research into Bai Jun’s condition made no progress.
• Bai Jun spoke with a girl in the cafeteria, teased her with a compliment, and told her stories about his life and online acquaintance Silver Hacker.
• The girl recognized the name Silver Hacker and nervously concealed that she knew the hacker, while Bai Jun assumed she had merely heard of her.

Liuying fled after Bai Jun gently combed her hair, unsettled by the feelings growing inside her and the pain of an approaching event. Bai Jun then discovered Heavenly Fire’s true form in a training-room accident that wrecked part of the space station, and Herta confronted him over the damage.

• Liuying suggested that the skilled hacker might be a lonely girl, then blushed as Bai Jun combed her hair and hurried away without finishing her meal.
• Bai Jun worried that he had upset Liuying and went to the training room to test the limits of the Sacred Judgment of Heavenly Fire.
• Bai Jun joined the twin pistols into a sword, awakened Heavenly Fire’s true form, and accidentally blasted the training room and nearby passageways.
• Bai Jun apologized after Herta angrily confronted him about the destruction and the damage to the Simulated Universe equipment, while Asta tried to calm her.

After Bai Jun injured himself wielding the Sacred Judgment of Heavenly Fire, Herta treated him and warned him not to test the repaired Simulated Universe until they understood his unusual constitution. Ruan Mei’s research led her to suspect Bai Jun’s blood and abilities reflected a new form of life, but Bai Jun interrupted her before she could finish her conclusion.

• Asta and Arlan defended Bai Jun, but Screwllum drew Herta’s attention to his badly burned left arm, and Herta took him to her office for treatment.
• Herta healed Bai Jun with diluted sap from the great tree of Abundance, gave him research notes to deliver to Ruan Mei, and warned him that testing the Simulated Universe could attract another Aeon’s attention.
• Screwllum apologized for intervening and told Herta that emotions were worth understanding, but she brushed him off and asked him to help repair the Simulated Universe.
• Ruan Mei studied Bai Jun’s blood and reasoned that its ability to absorb powers from multiple Paths might point to a connection with an Aeon and a previously unseen form of life.
• Bai Jun visited Ruan Mei, gave her Herta’s Simulated Universe notes, and found her room strewn with research papers as she asked him to carry her to a bath.

Bai Jun learned that a Giant True Sting threatened the space station and met Samuel, who took him to a quiet storeroom and asked whether he would reject her if she lied and hurt people. His promise to stop her from hurting herself left Samuel facing the truth that he cared for her despite her deception.

• Ruan Mei spent the night with Bai Jun, and he woke beside her before leaving to find out why the space station was under alert.
• Arlan told Bai Jun that a Giant True Sting had appeared near the station and that personnel could not leave while security prepared for a possible attack.
• Samuel invited Bai Jun to her favorite quiet place in a spare-parts storeroom and released fireflies from a bottle.
• Samuel asked what Bai Jun would do if she lied or hurt someone, and he said he would stop her from hurting herself.
• When Samuel asked if he would hate or blame her, Bai Jun said the fireflies shone brightly because they knew their fate.

The Astral Express crew arrived at the space station, where Welt was unsettled by returning memories and a researcher’s description of Bai Jun. After spotting a silver-haired figure near the elevator, Welt was left wondering whether his suspicions about the familiar stranger were correct.

• Asta’s guests were allowed to dock, and March 7th, Dan Heng, Welt, Himeko, and Pom-Pom prepared to disembark.
• Welt admitted he was distracted by fragments of the past, and Pom-Pom encouraged him to explore the station with March 7th and Dan Heng.
• Himeko took Herta’s relic to the Master Control Zone while March 7th, Dan Heng, and Welt went to buy supplies in the Base Zone.
• March 7th overheard Wen Shiling discussing her admiration for Bai Jun, including his twin black-and-white flame pistols.
• Welt reacted uneasily to Wen Shiling’s description and then spotted a silver figure disappearing into the Base Zone elevator room.

Bai Jun met Himeko at Herta’s office just before the Antimatter Legion attacked Herta Space Station. As Asta organized the station’s response and the Express crew rushed to protect the Stellaron, Bai Jun went to confront the invasion, while Arlan and the security team struggled to hold their position.

• Bai Jun met Himeko, who suggested he ask the Astral Express Conductor about the name he was investigating.
• Explosions shook the station, and Herta realized hackers had disabled communications and left the station vulnerable.
• Arlan reported that an enemy in molten armor had breached the Supply Zone and Antimatter Legion troops were pouring inside.
• Asta began to panic under the pressure, but Bai Jun reassured her, and she rallied the staff and issued orders to evacuate researchers and restore station systems.
• Bai Jun left to assess the damage and confront the attackers, while March 7th, Dan Heng, and Welt headed for the Storage Zone to protect the Stellaron.
• At 01:23, Arlan and several injured Security Department members were exhausted at the junction between the Supply Zone and Storage Zone, wishing Bai Jun were there to help.

Arlan and the Supply Zone staff stood against the Antimatter Legion until Bai Jun arrived and overwhelmed the attackers. After sending them back to the Base Zone, Bai Jun headed for the Storage Zone, where Kafka, Blade, and Silver Wolf prepared to retrieve the Stellaron.

• Arlan chose to hold the connection to the Supply Zone against the Antimatter Legion, and the twin brothers and other staff refused to abandon him.
• Bai Jun arrived, destroyed most of the Antimatter Legion with ease, and gave the survivors emergency medicine.
• Bai Jun ordered Arlan and the staff back to the Base Zone, then set out for the Storage Zone because he was worried about the Stellaron.
• Kafka and Silver Wolf met in the Storage Zone, where Blade followed them after saving Kafka from a surviving Voidranger.
• Silver Wolf led Kafka and Blade toward the room containing the Stellaron, while explaining that Sam had completed her task and that the mission involved an unexpected variable.

Silver Wolf and Kafka found the Stellaron hidden in Herta’s Storage Zone and implanted it into the gray-haired girl, while Bai Jun fought his way to them. After overpowering Blade and resisting the Hunters’ coordinated attack, Bai Jun broke free of their restraints and left Kafka unconscious, with the confrontation still unresolved.

• Silver Wolf located Curio number 211, “Blind Spot,” and revealed the concealed room containing the Stellaron.
• Silver Wolf disabled the containment system, and Kafka placed the Stellaron into the gray-haired girl, who absorbed it.
• Bai Jun intercepted Blade, recognized the Shard Sword, and defeated him after Blade became mara-struck.
• Bai Jun entered the room and attacked Kafka and Silver Wolf, who used gunfire, grenades, and Curio chains to trap him.
• Kafka used Spirit Whisper on Bai Jun, but it failed; Bai Jun broke the chains, incapacitated Blade, and left Kafka unconscious.

Bai Jun defeated the Stellaron Hunters and Antimatter Legion, then carried the unconscious gray-haired girl toward the Master Control Zone. After she woke and clung to him, March 7th and the others reacted with confusion and embarrassment.

• Bai Jun defeated Kafka and Blade, forced Silver Wolf to reveal that the Stellaron was inside the gray-haired girl, and encountered Welt, March 7th, and Dan Heng.
• Welt recognized Bai Jun’s Heavenly Fire and called him Kevin Kaslana, while Blade recognized Dan Heng as Imbibitor Lunae and attacked him verbally before Bai Jun pinned him to the wall again.
• Bai Jun carried the gray-haired girl toward the Master Control Zone, destroyed the Antimatter Legion in their path with a barrage of Sunlight Spears, and the girl woke and embraced him.
• March 7th asked Welt and Dan Heng about Bai Jun and Blade, but both avoided explaining their connections.
• March 7th blushed and gawked when the gray-haired girl burrowed into Bai Jun’s arms, while Dan Heng distanced himself from March 7th’s noisy reaction.