Chapter Summaries

Barry asked Lin Li to save his father, and Lin Li proposed setting traps for Savitar while revealing that Barry could stop the threat at its source by preventing his mother's murder. Lin Li chose to help Barry try to save his father, even though he doubted the future could be changed, and Barry returned to recover.

• Barry begged Lin Li to save his father, and Lin Li said traps might delay Savitar but suggested Barry could travel back and stop Reverse-Flash from killing his mother.
• Barry worried that changing the past would sever his ties with everyone, then asked whether Lin Li had changed other people's fates.
• Lin Li admitted he had changed events involving Barry, Cisco, Caitlin, and others, and promised they would try to save Barry's father.
• Barry hugged Lin Li, and Iris interrupted them before taking Barry back to the surgical bed to recover.
• Lin Li entered the surgical room and greeted Barry Allen with a smile.

Future Lin Li showed Barry a sped-up version of The Flash depicting Barry’s life without Lin Li’s involvement. Barry watched the losses he might have suffered, including his father’s death, and was left asking whether that future had happened in another world.

• Future Lin Li revealed himself to Barry and asked whether Barry would help Lin Li return home.
• Barry agreed to do anything to help Lin Li, and Future Lin Li began showing him The Flash in Speed Mode.
• Barry watched a version of his life in which Lin Li never appeared, including events that differed from his own experiences.
• Barry watched Zoom kill his father and continued through episode ten of season three, weeping and shaken.
• Barry asked Future Lin Li whether the series showed what he would have experienced without Lin Li in another world.

Future Lin Li urged Barry to change the past before his father died, arguing that doing so could save his father and send Lin Li home. Barry began to see a way forward, but worried that altering history would create an unknown future.

• Future Lin Li told Barry that Lin Li planned to sacrifice his only chance to return home to help save Barry's father.
• Future Lin Li said Barry's father was fated to die and warned that traveling back to stop Reverse-Flash after his father's death would not save him.
• Barry rejected the idea that fate was fixed, and Future Lin Li suggested traveling back before his father died to stop Reverse-Flash from killing Barry's mother.
• Future Lin Li explained that Barry could let Reverse-Flash return afterward, potentially saving his father while forcing Lin Li back to his own world.
• Barry feared that changing history so drastically would bring dangerous consequences, but Future Lin Li challenged him to consider whether he could give up being The Flash and let Lin Li go home.

Lin Li prepared a divine-energy bomb and a trap to stop Savitar, while Henry accepted the possibility of dying and Barry resolved to escape Flashpoint before that happened. On the third day, the preparations were complete, and Barry announced he was going for a run.

• Lin Li told Henry he planned to attach a divine-energy bomb to his back and use him to lure Savitar close enough to attack.
• Henry accepted the risk of death, asked Lin Li to look after Barry, and then went to comfort his son.
• Barry decided to escape Flashpoint before Henry died, hoping to save his father and help Lin Li return home.
• Harry and Joe agreed to let Wally and Jessie become speedsters, and Lin Li also awakened Caitlin's ability to control frost.
• Lin Li prepared a kinetic-energy absorption ability and spent three days organizing the plan against Savitar while Barry rested and cherished time with his friends.
• On the third morning, Barry smiled at everyone and said he was going for a run.

Barry hid his plan from Team Flash and raced away from STAR Labs, thanking Lin Li before entering the frequency needed to travel through time. Lin Li pursued him as Barry disappeared into a wormhole.

• Lin Li and the others prepared traps at Barry's old house but could only wait for Savitar to act.
• Barry entered the control room with Henry and Joe, then said he was going for a run.
• Lin Li noticed Barry seemed unusually calm and realized something was wrong.
• Barry put on his Lightning Suit, thanked Lin Li, and sped away from STAR Labs.
• Lin Li caught up with Barry, who told him to go home before breaking through the time continuum and entering a wormhole.

Batman fought Yoyo for information about the Joker and Judge Dent, while Diana and Aquaman’s devastating war unfolded across the world. Lex Luthor died confirming the location of Aquaman’s weapon, and Barry stared at a death toll above 150 million as World War III began.

• Batman captured Yoyo on a billboard and demanded to know where the Joker had taken Judge Dent, but she refused to tell him.
• Batman threw Yoyo from the billboard, and Cyborg caught her before she hit the ground.
• Diana captured Steve Trevor with the Lasso of Truth, learned that he had come to meet Lois Lane, and ordered her warriors to find Lois.
• Deathstroke and Lex Luthor investigated the weapon Aquaman used to sink western Europe, but Atlanteans attacked their ship and killed them after Lex sent the weapon’s location to the human response base.
• Barry watched Central City Plaza’s death toll exceed 150 million and asked why the catastrophe had happened.

Lin Li escaped Flashpoint and returned to reality in Jiangxia City, but he had lost his Speed Force and Shanshan 2.0 was unresponsive. When he went to find Shanshan, her former coworker told him she was at People's Hospital.

• Barry opened a wormhole to return home, and his Speed Force seized control of Lin Li and dragged him through it.
• Lin Li emerged in the darkness between worlds, confronted Future Lin Li, and used reality's frequency to tear a path back to his world.
• Lin Li arrived in Jiangxia City on September 10, 2017, and discovered that he had returned to an ordinary human body without the Speed Force.
• Lin Li called for Shanshan 2.0 but received no response, then made his way to Wanda Plaza to find Shanshan.
• A coworker told Lin Li that Shanshan had left the cake shop in March and was now at People's Hospital.

After returning to reality, Lin Li learned that Shanshan was dying and reunited with her in the hospital. They spent the night together sharing their stories and making promises, but when Lin Li returned with breakfast, Shanshan had died.

• Lin Li rushed to People's Hospital, and Yang Yuanshang paid his taxi fare and told him Shanshan had congenital cerebral vascular atrophy and little time left.
• Lin Li reunited with Shanshan in Ward 107, held her as they cried, and fed her soup while her parents gave them time together.
• That night, Lin Li told Shanshan about his adventures in The Flash world, and Shanshan urged him to live freely and happily after she was gone.
• Lin Li and Shanshan kissed, talked through the night, and promised to follow the Knight's Code they had made together.
• After Shanshan sent him to get breakfast, Lin Li returned to find that she had died with a smile on her face.

Three months after Shanshan's death, Lin Li remained sunk in grief and alcoholism until Shanshan 2.0 restored his power and reminded him of his promise to move forward. Lin Li began rebuilding his life by cleaning himself up and restoring the house, though memories of Shanshan still brought him to tears.

• Shanshan 2.0 restored Lin Li's power after spending three months adapting Speed Force to reality.
• Lin Li admitted he had been trying to drown his grief in alcohol and questioned what he could do now that his power had returned.
• Shanshan 2.0 reminded Lin Li of his promise to grieve for three months and then face reality, urging him to visit Shanshan's parents.
• Lin Li shaved, cut his hair, showered, and cleaned the alcohol bottles, broken glass, and wreckage from his house.
• As Lin Li finished cleaning, memories of his happy life with Shanshan returned, and he wept while remembering her.

Lin Li visited Shanshan’s parents before deciding to become a hero, embracing the identity of Lightning Rider. He rushed to help an unconscious old man, who immediately accused him of causing the fall and demanded compensation.

• Lin Li rode through Jiangxia City’s holiday traffic while Shanshan 2.0 debated her new existence and tried to ask about his future.
• Lin Li visited Zhou Shan and Yang Yuanshang, offered incense at Shanshan’s memorial portrait, and reassured them that loving Shanshan had been precious to him.
• After leaving Shanshan’s parents, Lin Li told Shanshan 2.0 that he would become a hero and called himself Lightning Rider.
• Lin Li set aside his bike and helped an unconscious old man, who accused him of hitting him and demanded a large sum for medical expenses.

Lin Li stopped a bank robbery at Xialuo KTV, then reflected on why his approach to being a hero differed from Barry’s and decided he preferred facing superpowered threats. After Shanshan 2.0 suggested using the tiny remnant of Barry’s Speed Force in his head to check on him, Lin Li went home to investigate.

• Lin Li used Kinetic Absorption and his Vibrational Hand Blade to disarm seven gunmen at Xialuo KTV and leave them stacked before the police.
• The police arrested the seven thugs while witnesses watched and recorded the mysterious lightning hero.
• Lin Li recalled how uncomfortable he had felt imitating Barry’s willingness to help everyone and decided hero work was his hobby, not a duty to ordinary people.
• Lin Li told Shanshan 2.0 that he wanted to focus on unusual, superpowered threats and nostalgically wondered how Barry was doing.
• Shanshan 2.0 suggested Lin Li use the remnant of Barry’s Speed Force in his head to learn about him, so Lin Li went home to investigate.

Lin Li discovered that Barry’s tiny remnant of Speed Force carried overwhelming fear, guilt, and despair, revealing that Barry was in grave trouble. Determined to help him, Lin Li planned to return to The Flash’s world despite the risks of crossing dimensions.

• Lin Li asked Shanshan 2.0 to scan the remnant of Barry’s Speed Force and found that it transmitted Barry’s emotions.
• Lin Li sensed Barry’s intense fear, guilt, despair, and pain, and concluded that something had happened to him.
• Lin Li realized that Barry’s predicament went beyond the events of Flashpoint and resolved to return to help him.
• Shanshan 2.0 warned that Lin Li’s transition between reality and the two-dimensional world could fail.
• Lin Li decided to use the Book of Magic space as a bridge and his reality frequency as the foundation for crossing back to The Flash’s world.

Lin Li transformed the Book of Magic space into a Speed Force reserve and returned to the Flashpoint world to investigate Barry’s suffering. In Central City, Wally confronted Rival until an armored figure appeared, blinded Wally, and dragged a humanoid body toward him.

• Lin Li inspected the Book of Magic space after filling it with the Speed Force and learned it could grant others limited access to his power.
• Lin Li decided to return to The Flash’s world and help Barry live happily with his parents in Flashpoint.
• Wally and Rival raced through Central City and stopped outside Russell Industrial Technology Company, where Rival threatened the city and its citizens.
• A dark-armored figure flashed past Wally, blinded him with a burst of silver light, and approached through the dust while dragging a humanoid object.

Lin Li defeated the Rival and met Wally, who recognized him as Barry’s friend, the Lightning Rider. At Wally’s hideout, Lin Li learned that Barry had gone to save the world from the war between Atlantis and Amazon, while Captain Cold protected Central City.

• Lin Li knocked out the Rival and asked Wally whether he knew Barry.
• Wally trusted Lin Li because he was Barry’s friend, and Lin Li handed the injured Rival over to the police.
• Wally raced Lin Li around Central City, realized Lin Li was much faster, and brought him to his hideout.
• Wally told Lin Li that Barry had gone to save the world amid the war between Atlantis and Amazon and the sinking of Western Europe.
• Wally explained that he had stayed in Central City to take over Captain Cold’s protective duties, and Lin Li reacted in surprise that Snart was a superhero.

Lin Li learned that Barry had gone to Gotham after Reverse-Flash challenged him and feared Barry’s memories would be overwritten if he used the Speed Force too much. After hearing that Barry trusted him to come help, Lin Li set off for Gotham alone.

• Shanshan 2.0 told Lin Li that Barry’s actions had caused a Flashpoint in which Wonder Woman and Aquaman went to war and Earth was destroyed.
• Wally told Lin Li that Reverse-Flash had sent Barry an arrogant video from Gotham, prompting Barry to leave for the city.
• Lin Li watched Reverse-Flash threaten Barry, kill a hostage, and declare that Barry would destroy the world, before Batman confronted him.
• Lin Li learned that Barry had said he believed Lin Li would return to help him and had asked Wally to watch for Lin Li.
• Lin Li declined Wally’s help and ran toward Gotham City, surrounded by silver electric arcs.

Lin Li searched for Batman after reconstructing his fight with Reverse-Flash, then abducted Penguin to question him about Thomas Wayne and Jim Gordon. He learned that Penguin did not know Batman’s hideout, while Shanshan 2.0 found Joker’s location and suggested capturing him to reach Gordon.

• Lin Li used Shanshan 2.0 to search surveillance footage for Batman and Barry, but the footage provided no clear location.
• Lin Li abducted Penguin from outside Wayne Casino and questioned him about Thomas Wayne.
• Penguin said Thomas was last seen with Commissioner Jim Gordon and admitted he did not know Batman’s Batcave.
• Shanshan 2.0 found Joker’s location and proposed capturing him to pressure Gordon into revealing Batman’s whereabouts.
• Lin Li returned Penguin to his car, and Penguin warned Jim Gordon that a speedster had appeared and told him to alert Batman.

Jim Gordon warned Thomas Wayne that another speedster was searching for Batman, and Thomas prepared to confront him while asking about the Joker. Lin Li found the Joker after searching hundreds of hideouts, captured him, and planned to take him to Thomas.

• Jim Gordon left the police station and entered the secret armory beneath the abandoned Wayne Manor, where he found Thomas recovering from injuries.
• Jim Gordon told Thomas that another speedster was looking for him and was likely connected to the man in yellow; Thomas prepared to fight and asked whether there was news about the Joker.
• Lin Li searched the Joker's hideouts with Shanshan 2.0 and found him killing a man at the two hundred and thirty-first location.
• Lin Li broke both of the Joker's legs and captured him, then he and Shanshan 2.0 decided to take him to Thomas and seek information about Barry and Reverse-Flash.

Lin Li tracked Jim Gordon to Wayne Manor and entered the Batcave with the Joker, intending to ask Batman about Barry. After surviving the cave’s defenses, Lin Li faced an enraged Batman, who fired a rocket at him after the Joker falsely accused him of abuse.

• Lin Li learned that Jim Gordon had gone to Wayne Manor and used Shanshan 2.0 to trace him there.
• Lin Li brought the unconscious Joker to Wayne Manor and found the Batcave entrance behind a grandfather clock.
• The Joker woke and laughed as Lin Li phased through the clock into the Batcave.
• A crossbow bolt and a Vulcan cannon attacked Lin Li, but he stopped the bullets and continued down the stairs unharmed.
• Lin Li called out to Batman and presented the Joker, saying he wanted to ask about someone.
• The Joker accused Lin Li of raping and humiliating him, and Batman angrily fired a rocket at Lin Li.

Lin Li survived Batman’s liquid nitrogen rocket and learned that Batman and Joker were Thomas and Martha Wayne, grieving parents who had become enemies after their son Bruce died. Batman fought Lin Li over Joker’s injuries, but Lin Li easily overpowered him and stopped Jim Gordon from intervening; the chapter ended with Batman ordering the cave’s self-destruct device activated.

• Lin Li threw Joker to Batman and caught Batman’s liquid nitrogen rocket, which froze him inside a block of ice.
• Batman carried Joker to the hospital bed and mourned as she confronted him over their son Bruce’s death before fainting.
• Lin Li shattered the ice, admitted he had broken Joker’s legs, and resumed fighting Batman.
• Lin Li dodged Batman’s attacks and caught his fist, then dismantled Jim Gordon’s M4A1 when Gordon tried to threaten him.
• Batman tried to activate a device, but Lin Li knocked it from his hand, prompting Batman to order the cave’s self-destruct device activated.

Lin Li confronted Batman about Barry’s whereabouts, but Batman refused to help until Lin Li threatened Jim Gordon. Gordon then pressured Batman to reveal what he knew about the red-clad boy.

• Lin Li carried Batman, Jim Gordon, Joker, and the others away from Wayne Manor, then learned Batman’s explosives had released neurotoxins rather than detonating.
• Lin Li punched Jim Gordon to upset Batman, insisting that he would not hurt a fellow superhero but could make Batman suffer by targeting his friend.
• Batman refused to help stop the war between Atlantis and the Amazon, and Lin Li clarified that he only wanted to know where Barry had gone.
• Batman refused to answer Lin Li, so Lin Li picked up Jim Gordon again and threatened to beat him.
• Jim Gordon urged Thomas to reveal the truth to prevent the war from reaching Gotham, and Batman agreed to tell Lin Li about the red-clad boy if he put Gordon down.