Chapter Summaries

After the Micius Civilization used a spatial shock to banish the Dark Peng into a Cosmic Void Belt, Wang Dong returned to the main universe and spent millions of Source Points upgrading the shipborne Flame Seed. He then led the crew to investigate the Solar Flare Star System, where the Straw Hat Pirate Group’s trail ended, but their initial scans found nothing unusual.

• Mada tracked the Micius Civilization flagship, and the Dark Peng followed it until a distant high-energy reaction struck the Eden Star System’s star and triggered a spatial shock that damaged and displaced the ship.
• The Dark Peng spent the rest of the Otherworldly Space battlefield in a Cosmic Void Belt, then returned to the main universe on May 11.
• Wang Dong spent 3.75 million Source Points and 25 Intermediate Energy Crystals to raise the shipborne Flame Seed from LV.10 to LV.35, increasing its all-attribute bonus to 180%.
• After returning to the Phoenix Star System, Wang Dong gathered the crew and set course for the Solar Flare Star System to investigate the Straw Hat Pirate Group’s suspected lair.
• Mada explained that pheromone-infused intelligence carriers had led them to the Solar Flare Star System, while Wu Baiyi suspected it might be only a transit point for a hidden base in the Weijing River.
• On May 20, the Dark Peng arrived and scanned the Solar Flare Star System, but found no unusual structures or trace of the pheromone in the empty space where it had disappeared.

Wang Dong’s crew discovered that the hidden passage near the Solar Flare Star System was a wormhole leading to the Zhenyuan Star System in the Golden Snapdragon Federation. After seeing the Straw Hat Pirate Group emerge from it, they suspected the Xi Qin Family was behind the pirates and their leader.

• Liu Zhi identified a concealed, closed passage in space, and Wang Dong decided the Dark Peng would wait for it to open.
• Fifteen days later, Wu Baiyi spotted the passage opening, and Liu Zhi determined it was a regularly opening wormhole rather than subspace.
• Wang Dong watched the Straw Hat Pirate Group’s fleet emerge, placed Tracking Beacons on the Golden Rose and its electronic warfare ship, then sent the cloaked Dark Peng through the wormhole.
• The Dark Peng arrived in the Zhenyuan Star System, where Liu Zhi confirmed it was part of the Golden Snapdragon Federation.
• Mada and the crew concluded that the Straw Hat Pirate Group was likely connected to the Xi Qin Family, which controlled and heavily monitored the system.

Wang Dong’s group discovered that the wormhole between the Zhenyuan Star System and the Northern Star Domain could give its controller a decisive advantage in a war, and decided to keep it secret for Black Stone Territory. They struck the Xi Qin Family and the Dingyuan Jin Family before returning to the Northern Star Domain, while Lin Xiaogui privately weighed her kingdom’s weakness against Wang Dong’s growing power.

• Xu Zhenzhi explained that the wormhole passage offered a direct route between the Golden Snapdragon Federation and the Purple Thorn Kingdom, and Wang Dong’s group concluded that the Xi Qin Family had likely taken over the Straw Hat Pirate Group to protect the secret.
• Mada urged Wang Dong to use the wormhole as an opportunity for Black Stone Territory, and Wang Dong ordered everyone to keep its existence confidential while choosing to attack the Xi Qin Family instead.
• Lin Xiaogui asked Wang Dong whether he would report the wormhole to the royal family, and he said Black Stone Territory should retain control because the kingdom was too divided to use it effectively.
• Wang Dong’s group attacked two Xi Qin Family production bases, causing the family to recall its Straw Hat Pirate Group and request an investigation from Golden Snapdragon Federation authorities.
• The Dark Peng detoured to the Dingyuan Star System, where Wang Dong destroyed a Jin Family military base and its battleship fleet before returning to the Northern Star Domain using the Apocalypse High-Dimensional Transporter.
• Lin Xiaogui recognized the scale of Wang Dong’s strength and mobility, which reinforced her confidence in their relationship despite her doubts about the royal family.

Wang Dong and Black Stone Territory’s advisers decided to keep the newly discovered wormhole secret while preparing cautiously for future expansion. After taking Lin Xiaogui home to Yilan Star, Wang Dong returned to the Micius Civilization’s Eden Star System and used a surviving tracking beacon to pursue its fleet.

• Wang Dong met the Marquis and Black Stone Territory’s strategists, who discussed how the wormhole could connect the Northern Star Domain directly to the Golden Snapdragon Federation.
• The advisers agreed to keep the wormhole secret, avoid provoking the Purple Thorn Kingdom’s factions, and continue building up talent and supplies.
• Wang Dong took Lin Xiaogui to Yilan Star, then set course back toward the Northern Star Domain.
• Wang Dong entered the Micius Civilization’s Eden Star System for the third time and found it devastated and abandoned.
• Liu Zhi confirmed that the tracking beacon on the Micius flagship still worked, so Wang Dong ordered the Dark Peng to follow it and pursue the fleet.

The Dark Peng followed a Tracking Beacon to the Micius Civilization’s Viking Star System and found the commander it had defeated, who sensed its arrival and fled toward a stargate. With only about twenty hours left in the Otherworldly Space battlefield, Wang Dong delayed confronting the flagship and discussed expanding the ship’s beacon capacity and strengthening its modules.

• The Dark Peng completed its warp and reached the Viking Star System, where the Abyss Eye reported three habitable planets and a population of 3.58 billion.
• The Micius Civilization commander, vacationing with its family, sensed the mysterious warship’s approach and rushed to escape aboard its flagship.
• Mada located the marked flagship above the system’s third planet, and Wang Dong ordered the crew to leave it alone while they placed more Tracking Beacons.
• Xu Zhenzhi explained that upgrading the shipboard Kindling would not raise the Dark Peng’s combat power level, and Wang Dong recognized the value of the advice.

Wang Dong’s Dark Peng destroyed the Viking Star System and earned over 1.5 million Source Points before a Micius Civilization diplomatic vessel arrived seeking communication. Wang Dong explained that titanium crystals existed in Otherworldly Space but were forbidden from being revealed to alien civilizations, leaving the crew to consider whether the Micius could offer anything worth discussing.

• Xu Zhenzhi urged Wang Dong to connect with higher-level Kindling Warship circles as the Dark Peng traveled farther from the Purple Thorn Kingdom.
• Liu Zhi reported that the Micius fleet commander had sensed the Dark Peng’s presence and fled the Viking Star System without warning anyone.
• The Dark Peng appeared in the Viking Star System, destroyed the Fifth, Fourth, and Third Planets, and wiped out the defending fleet while tracking beacons attached to escaping ships.
• The Dark Peng gained 1,505,692 Source Points, then received a repeated peace offer from the Micius Civilization diplomatic vessel Peace and Friendship.
• Wang Dong explained that titanium crystals could be found in Otherworldly Space but that Kindling Human Civilization forbade revealing their importance, and Xu Zhenzhi said a powerful contract helped keep their nature secret.

Wang Dong sent Wu Baiyi to negotiate with the Micius Civilization for a mineral resource map, and Wu Baiyi used Dark Peng’s intimidating reputation to secure one. The map proved incomplete, but it gave Dark Peng a starting point for searching for titanium crystal deposits.

• Wang Dong assigned Wu Baiyi to negotiate through Mirage Shadow and obtain a mineral resource map from the Micius Civilization.
• Wu Baiyi demanded the map from diplomat Pampas and pressured the Micius Civilization by making Mirage Shadow appear ready to leave.
• The Micius Civilization sent a ship carrying the map, and Liu Zhi and Mada checked the ship and data before Dark Peng retrieved them.
• Wang Guannan teased Wu Baiyi about his cold negotiating act after Dark Peng left the Viking Star System.
• Xu Zhenzhi found that the map covered only barren star systems, and Wang Dong concluded it would still help them search for titanium crystal.

Wang Dong postponed analyzing the Micius Civilization’s mineral map after Lin Xiaogui warned that revealing it could draw pressure from multiple nations, then traveled to the Blue Eagle Federation to collect Cescott’s bounty. The group received most of the reward and learned they could only buy T6-grade supplies without showing mercenary badges.

• Wang Dong chose to visit the Capital Star System for computing help, but returned to Yilan Star to ask Lin Xiaogui to arrange access to a supercomputing center.
• Lin Xiaogui warned that the mineral map could provoke several nations to pressure Black Stone Territory, so Wang Dong decided to postpone its analysis and seek supercomputers in the Blue Eagle Federation later.
• On June 18, the Dark Peng used the Apocalypse High-Dimensional Transporter to reach the Galiford Star System and traveled under the alias Wrath of Winter to the Interstellar Mercenary Association branch in the Raging Waves Star System.
• Wang Dong, Zhou Tai, and their companions submitted evidence of Cescott’s defeat and received 235,000 Origin Coins, with some rewards still to be shipped.
• Wang Dong asked to buy supplies, and the receptionist told the group they could purchase only T6-grade supplies without showing Interstellar Mercenary badges.

Wang Dong joined the Interstellar Mercenary Association’s preliminary assessment to gain access to better resources while protecting his identity. After buying eight supercomputers and reaching the assessment, Dark Peng drew a difficult commission to capture ten live Star Fierce Birds, but the team could not find the restraint-capable main cannon it needed.

• Wang Dong submitted a cautious application for Probationary Mercenary Candidate status and bought a temporary communicator to receive assessment information.
• Wang Dong decided to remain in the Blue Eagle Federation, and the Fuhai Trading Market obtained eight advanced supercomputers for 78,000 Origin Coins.
• On June 30, Dark Peng joined the Blue Eagle branch’s assessment and randomly selected a green-quality commission to capture ten live Star Fierce Birds in the Daxi Galaxy within 40 days.
• The crew discussed the commission’s demands, including long-distance travel, intelligence gathering, and capturing the birds alive.
• The Fuhai Trading Market had no restraint-capable main cannons available, so Mada suggested finding another way to complete the commission.

The Dark Peng hunted Star Fierce Birds in the Green Source Galaxy to complete a capture commission, despite intervention from the Star Beast Protection Association. Wang Dong’s crew captured twenty birds and escaped, leaving the Association threatening the Wrath of Winter.

• Mada proposed using old-model Extreme Cold Missiles and cages to capture Star Fierce Birds, and Wang Dong approved the plan.
• Xu Zhenzhi and Gao Luanqin predicted the flock would be in the Green Source Galaxy, where Liu Zhi located 2,482 birds in the asteroid belt.
• A battleship squadron from the Star Beast Protection Association arrived and ordered the Dark Peng to stop harming the birds.
• Wang Dong chose to proceed, and Shi Zunhou used the secondary guns to reduce the flock before freezing and capturing twenty Star Fierce Birds.
• The Association threatened the Wrath of Winter, but Wu Baiyi piloted the Dark Peng away, and the ship quickly left the squadron behind.

After completing the mercenary candidate assessment, Wang Dong and the Dark Peng ran out of funds for star charts while traveling toward the Freedom Light Federation, so they decided to take exploration commissions. During a stop in the Buteng Federation, the crew learned that its long peace had led to hedonism and technological decline, though Kindling Warships still offered a defense.

• The Star Beast Protection Association placed a bounty on the captain of the Wrath of Winter, but Wang Dong dismissed the threat and continued the journey.
• The Dark Peng completed its commission, earned an excellent rating, and Wang Dong passed the Probationary Mercenary Candidate assessment.
• After more than a month of travel, the crew ran out of Origin Coins for star charts, and Xu Zhenzhi proposed taking exploration commissions to fund the trip.
• The crew applied for an exploration mission through Wang Dong's entry-level Explorer Badge and agreed to tour the Buteng Federation while they waited.
• The crew discussed how the Buteng Federation's comfortable welfare system and lack of threats had caused its technology and military to decline, while Liu Zhi noted that Kindling Warships could still defend it.

Wang Dong’s group rescued Paul from Blondie’s threats and learned that Paul was a disgraced Master Mechanic who had been framed and barred from practicing. The chapter ended with Wang Dong questioning whether Blondie’s crew would face the same punishment as Paul for forcing him to use his skills.

• The Dark Peng reached the Interstellar Explorer Association’s branch in the Capital Star System, where Wang Dong accepted an ancient-ruins exploration mission in the Yoda Star System.
• Paul warned Wang Dong about the dangerous mission, then Blondie and his crew threatened Paul and his sick daughter Chloe to force him to join their exploration group.
• At Wang Dong’s signal, Zhou Tai and Lieba took Paul and Blondie out of the mission hall and brought them aboard the Dark Peng.
• Paul told Wang Dong that the Interstellar Mechanic Association had stripped his Master Mechanic rank and banned him from practicing after he was framed for a project mishap.
• Wang Dong learned Blondie wanted Paul to secretly use his mechanic abilities and asked whether Blondie and his crew would face the same punishment for coercing him.

Wang Dong recruited Paul by promising to cure his daughter Chloe’s Level Five microbial infection, and the Dark Peng’s Biochemical Medical Pod successfully treated her. Paul then identified Vice President James as a possible threat but urged Wang Dong not to confront him without conclusive evidence.

• Wang Dong questioned Paul about the accident and learned that Paul suspected Vice President James had framed him, while Paul admitted he had few connections and could not leave Chloe.
• Wang Dong promised he could treat Chloe’s infection, and Paul agreed to work for him if Chloe recovered.
• Xu Zhenzhi guided the Dark Peng to Paul’s residence on Amp Star, where its cloaking and spatial jump let it evade the planet’s defenses and bring Chloe aboard.
• The Biochemical Medical Pod eradicated Chloe’s microbes in under two hours, and Paul watched her condition improve as he wept with joy.
• Zhou Tai reported that his team had dealt with eight suspicious people near Paul’s residence.
• Paul explained that James was a senior mechanic with strong connections and warned that attacking the Interstellar Mechanic Association would be difficult, adding that he had no conclusive proof against James.

Wang Dong and the Dark Peng crew began exploring the dangerous Yoda Star System in search of ancient ruins. After surviving spatial rifts and avoiding spatial folds, they reached a ruined planet and started scanning it while keeping their distance.

• Wang Dong rejected Paul's suggestion of attacking James and asked Mada to investigate him while the crew prepared to complete the Yoda Star System mission.
• Liu Zhi and Xu Zhenzhi explained the system's destruction, spatial hazards, and plan to scan its two remaining planets for ancient ruins.
• Wu Baiyi piloted the Dark Peng into the Yoda Star System as Liu Zhi watched for danger, and the ship endured dozens of spatial rifts while evading two spatial folds.
• The Dark Peng approached a devastated planet whose atmosphere and ecosystem had been destroyed, then stopped at scanning range on Xu Zhenzhi's orders.
• Xu Zhenzhi told Liu Zhi to prioritize detecting spatial folds while analyzing the planet and to report if he became strained.

Wang Dong’s crew discovered an ancient relic embedded in the core of the second planet in the Yoda Star System, but they needed specialized equipment and personnel to reach it. After withdrawing from the system, Wang Dong rejected a plan to deceive workers and decided to seek legitimate support through the Interstellar Explorer Association.

• Liu Zhi found nothing on the first planet, then detected a relic deep inside the second planet’s core.
• Gao Luanqin identified the relic as a permanent structure connected to the planet’s core and proposed that it might involve planetary activation technology.
• Xu Zhenzhi explained that unstable space and the relic’s depth made precise jumps and weapon drilling too dangerous, so the crew would need specialized equipment to excavate it.
• Wang Dong ordered Dark Peng to leave the Yoda Star System and head for the Buteng Federation’s Capital Star System.
• Wu Baiyi proposed secretly recruiting workers and trapping them in the system, but Wang Dong rejected the plan.
• Xu Zhenzhi recommended hiring equipment and technicians through the local Interstellar Explorer Association branch, and Wang Dong agreed to pursue that option.

Wang Dong publicized the planetary-core relic in the Yoda Star System to attract local partners and lure Vice President James into an inspection, then returned to the Northern Star Domain to support the Marquis and prepare for action against the Dingyuan Jin Family. The chapter ended with Mada warning that the Jin Family still had hidden reserves that might remain concealed even if the family faced annihilation.

• Wang Dong approved a plan to publicize the relic and recruit Buteng Federation partners, hoping Vice President James would come to inspect it.
• Xu Zhenzhi and Mada helped Wang Dong negotiate the Yoda Pioneering Project with Buteng Deep Space Industries Co., Ltd. and four other local forces.
• Mada reported that James would lead the Interstellar Mechanic Association branch team to inspect the relic and provide deep-drilling equipment.
• Wang Dong returned to the Northern Star Domain aboard the Dark Peng, where the eight supercomputers were installed in a new center and began analyzing data at full capacity.
• Wang Dong agreed to remain in the Northern Star Domain, monitor the Golden Snapdragon Federation, and travel through the Solar Flare Star System wormhole to visit the Dingyuan Jin Family.
• Mada explained that the Dingyuan Jin Family had suffered heavy losses but still kept a small portion of its reserves hidden.

Wang Dong decided to destroy the Jin Family’s military forces in the Dingyuan Star System, abandoning a slow campaign of revenge. After the disguised Dark Peng approached the system, it charged its Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal and fired at a newly built Space Fortress.

• Mada explained that the Jin Family’s head could not flee battle without risking his life, so Wang Dong decided to let the Jin Family’s enemies help bring it down rather than pursue a prolonged vendetta.
• The Dark Peng used the wormhole passage from the Zhenyuan Star System to reach the Dingyuan Star System in less than two days.
• Wang Dong ordered an attack on every Jin Family military force in the system and had the Dark Peng transform into the Justice from Heaven.
• Sima Deyou dismissed concerns about an attack until an unidentified battleship approached his Space Fortress, prompting him to prepare level-two weapons fire.
• The Dark Peng charged its Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal beyond the fortress’s weapon range, then Shi Zunhou fired at Sima Deyou’s fortress.

Dark Peng destroyed the Jin Family’s Space Fortresses with Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal while the family scrambled to assemble its fleets. After wiping out all eight fortresses, Wang Dong continued toward the Jin Family’s largest military base in the Dingyuan Star System.

• Paul joined the Dark Peng’s crew, and Wu Baiyi and Lieba reassured him as he reflected on Chloe’s recovery and Wang Dong’s help.
• Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal annihilated Sima Deyou’s Space Fortress and its asteroid, shocking observers across the Dingyuan Star System.
• The Jin Family tried to contact Wang Dong, but he refused their calls and Dark Peng destroyed a second Space Fortress.
• The Jin Family’s head ordered its defense fleets to assemble, while the commander of the third Space Fortress evacuated his crew and stayed behind.
• Dark Peng methodically destroyed all eight perimeter Space Fortresses, then headed toward the Jin Family’s largest military base.

Wang Dong and the Dark Peng lured the Jin Family’s fleets into a concentrated pursuit through the Dingyuan Star System. Shi Zunhou unleashed the Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal’s area attack, annihilating most of the pursuing force while a few cruisers remained to be hunted down.

• The Jin Family sent three defensive fleets and an elders’ task force to surround the Dark Peng, while Wang Dong ordered Shi Zunhou to destroy their main force.
• The Dark Peng retreated toward the home planet, letting the Jin Family’s ships dodge several long-range shots and draw closer.
• The Jin Family head ordered a pincer attack, and the Dark Peng feigned an escape as assault ships rushed ahead to lay space mines.
• The Dark Peng destroyed the suicide squads and their mines while maneuvering to draw most of the Jin Family fleet behind it.
• Shi Zunhou charged the Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal as Wu Baiyi turned the Dark Peng around, then fired its Flowing Sun Skyfire trait into the clustered fleet.
• The Purple Fluorescent Sky Crystal’s beams destroyed nearly every pursuing warship, and Shi Zunhou said the surviving cruisers would not escape.

The Dark Peng annihilated the Jin Family’s remaining fleet and left the Dingyuan Star System after a day of attacks on its military targets. Mada then revealed leads to a Jin Family secret vault in the Kyoto Star System, and the crew began arranging to claim the Space Factory that concealed it.

• Shi Zunhou used the Dark Peng’s speed and Precise Shot to destroy all five surviving Jin Family cruisers.
• Wang Guannan and Xu Zhenzhi explained why the Jin Family could not hold the Dingyuan Star System against rival families, even with its remaining forces and fortifications.
• The Dark Peng prowled the system for more than a day, destroying ships that tried to flee from the main planet, then withdrew when Abyss Eye detected a large fleet approaching.
• Mada told Wang Dong he had leads on the Jin Family’s secret vault, so Wang Dong ordered the Dark Peng to head for the Kyoto Star System.
• Mada obtained a cover identity for the Dark Peng, and the crew docked at a spaceport before heading to the Space Factory that housed the vault.
• Mada revealed he had already transferred the Space Factory’s ownership through official channels, then left with Wu Baiyi and Lieba to complete the legal transfer.