Chapter Summaries

After returning from their trip abroad, Lin Chen and Xu Mengyao reunited with Xu Guofeng and Lin Xiaoqian, who shared what she had learned during the month away. Lin Chen reassured Xu Guofeng about the threat they had faced and agreed to keep a lower profile; back home, he treated Qian Qian’s cold and checked his Ancient Medical Skill’s progress.

• At dinner, Lin Xiaoqian told Xu Guofeng she had learned French, swimming, shooting, drawing, and advanced mathematics, and Lin Chen explained that she had mastered junior-high Math Olympiad topics.
• Xu Guofeng asked Lin Chen about learning to shoot, and Lin Chen offered to request an indoor shooting range for him and Xu Mengyao.
• In the study, Lin Chen told Xu Guofeng the attackers were unlikely to retaliate and described the security drones and a possible identification system for transport hubs.
• Xu Guofeng advised Lin Chen to keep a lower profile after his recent actions, and Lin Chen agreed before making him a calligraphy painting.
• The next day, Lin Chen and his family returned home, where he diagnosed Lin Xiaoqian’s cough as an ordinary cold and began preparing medicine.
• After treating Qian Qian, Lin Chen checked his Ancient Medical Skill and learned it had reached eighty-six hours of experience, short of the 120 hours needed for Legendary level.

Lin Chen arranged a shooting range and approved the limited installation of his drone identification system at public transport hubs. After the family traveled to Silver City for ancestor worship, Lin Xiaoqian learned Xu Mengyao was pregnant and was told to keep the news secret.

• Lin Chen asked Sirius to arrange a nearby indoor shooting range and seek approval to install the identification system at selected Magic City transport hubs.
• Xu Xiangyang approved the shooting range, and government officials agreed to limit the identification system to a few locations; Lin Chen gave Sirius the program on a USB drive.
• A week later, Lin Chen, Xu Mengyao, and Lin Xiaoqian traveled to Silver City for ancestor worship and arrived at Lin Chen's family home.
• Lin Chen told his parents he would ask whether they wanted to move to Magic City, then explained to Lin Xiaoqian that Xu Mengyao was pregnant and the baby was due the following August.
• Lin Chen told Lin Xiaoqian to keep the pregnancy secret because early pregnancy carried risks and enemies might try to harm Xu Mengyao.

Lin Chen returned to his hometown with Xu Mengyao and Lin Xiaoqian, built a Treehouse for his daughter, and completed ancestor worship with his family. After a week, they went back to Magic City, where Lin Chen inspected a newly completed Indoor Shooting Range and reassured Xu Mengyao that practicing there would not harm the baby.

• Lin Chen promised his parents he and Xu Mengyao would stay for a week and invited Lin Hai and Chen Mei to move to Magic City after the New Year.
• Lin Chen and Lin Hai built Lin Xiaoqian a Treehouse, which she happily explored.
• Lin Chen learned the county had improved local roads and visited the ancestors' graves with his family.
• Lin Hai lit firecrackers after the family finished ancestor worship, easing Xu Mengyao's worries about joining the Lin Family.
• A week later, Lin Chen and his family returned to Magic City, where Sirius showed Lin Chen the completed Indoor Shooting Range.
• Xu Mengyao asked whether gun practice could affect the baby, and Lin Chen reassured her that her constitution made it safe.

After the United States lifted its ban on Lin Chen, online attacks against him intensified, with public intellectuals questioning his patriotism and charity work. Lin Chen told Sirius to track those involved and wait before revealing the Qian Qian Charity Foundation, while he reassured Xu Mengyao and his parents.

• Xu Mengyao told Lin Chen that the United States had lifted its ban, and Lin Chen said he did not care whether it stayed in place.
• Xu Mengyao explained that people online were questioning why Lin Chen had not donated to earthquake relief, and Lin Chen said he had put 1.1 billion into the Qian Qian Charity Foundation.
• As Lin Chen's profile rose, online users accused him of secretly moving money overseas, and public intellectuals joined the attacks.
• Lin Chen told Xu Mengyao that the smear campaign did not bother him, while she and Lin Xiaoqian urged each other not to get upset.
• Lin Chen told Sirius not to expose the Qian Qian Charity Foundation yet and asked him to list the public intellectuals and media outlets joining the attacks.
• Lin Chen warned Lin Hai about the online abuse, and Chen Mei worried that Xu Mengyao's anger might affect the baby.

Lin Chen reassured Xu Mengyao about the backlash over their charitable donations, then spent time with his family before discussing the African military exercise with Xu Xiangyang. The chapter left Lin Chen considering the rebel army’s heavy losses as Xu Xiangyang explained how severe its casualties were.

• Lin Chen explained to Xu Mengyao that they had kept their donations private to avoid pressure from people demanding money.
• Lin Chen, Xu Mengyao, and Lin Xiaoqian walked outside and practiced Tai Chi together.
• Lin Chen checked that he had 185 hours of Tai Chi practice and played piano while Xu Mengyao and Lin Xiaoqian tried playing too.
• Xu Xiangyang told Lin Chen that the African military exercise had ended and asked what he thought about the six thousand drones.
• Lin Chen asked about the rebel army, and Xu Xiangyang reported that five thousand fighters had died and many others were injured.

Lin Chen arranged to leave drones behind in the region and invested forty billion in futures through Xu Xiangyang as the Solid-state Battery production line neared completion. As public criticism continued, Shen Qing reported problems facing the foundation, and Lin Chen said he would soon expose those who had obstructed its work.

• Lin Chen and Xu Xiangyang agreed to store three thousand drones locally, and Lin Chen offered to pay double for them.
• Lin Chen asked Xu Xiangyang to manage forty billion for a futures investment tied to the coming Solid-state Battery breakthrough.
• Lin Chen noticed overseas media remained quiet while domestic outlets intensified their criticism, and he resolved to investigate the outlets involved.
• Shen Qing visited Lin Chen and reported that village cadres and Local Bullies had demanded benefits from the foundation.
• Lin Chen said he would wait until the afternoon or the next day before exposing the people obstructing the foundation.

Lin Chen received a final recruitment pitch from the United States, then went outside to confront reporters accusing him of refusing to aid disaster victims. He challenged them to donate one ten-thousandth of his preexisting donations, leaving the reporters to decide whether to accept.

• Shen Qing praised Lin Chen’s cooking, and Xu Mengyao revealed she was a month and a half pregnant.
• An American caller offered Lin Chen wealth, research funding, and protection if he moved to the United States, but Lin Chen hung up.
• Shen Qing warned Xu Mengyao that reporters had gathered outside the residential complex and then left.
• Lin Chen went outside and told the reporters and citizens to leave, but they demanded to know whether he would donate to disaster victims or leave the country.
• Lin Chen challenged the reporters to donate one ten-thousandth of what he had donated before the controversy became public and asked those who agreed to raise their hands.

Lin Chen revealed that he had secretly donated 1.1 billion yuan through the Qian Qian Charity Foundation, exposing reporters who had challenged him and turning public opinion in his favor. The foundation’s records went online, while Lin Chen returned home to reassure Xu Mengyao.

• Lin Chen told reporters and livestream viewers that they had promised to donate one ten-thousandth of his charitable contributions.
• Lin Chen explained that the Qian Qian Charity Foundation had distributed aid under several other foundation names and had spent more than 700 million yuan.
• Lin Chen disclosed that he had donated 1.1 billion yuan and Qian Qian had contributed 263,500 yuan in Lunar New Year money, then challenged the reporters to honor their promised donations of 110,000 yuan each.
• Lin Chen said the foundation rejected outside donations and volunteers, and warned that he would respond harshly to anyone who obstructed its aid work.
• The Qian Qian Charity Foundation’s official website published its records, while public intellectuals deleted posts criticizing Lin Chen and the Internet Department compiled their names.
• Lin Chen returned home, hugged and kissed Xu Mengyao, and told her not to worry.

After Lin Chen exposed his charity work, the online backlash shifted onto the public intellectuals and media outlets that had cyberbullied him. He then sent a virus that disrupted ATM cash withdrawals across East Sakura Country, triggering bank queues and a falling stock market.

• Lin Chen’s evidence about his donations and the Qian Qian Charity Foundation prompted his fans to condemn the public intellectuals and media outlets that had attacked him.
• A prominent public intellectual panicked, deleted his article, and posted an apology claiming he had not meant Lin Chen, but netizens continued to criticize him.
• Xu Xiangyang sent Lin Chen a list of suspected public intellectuals and media outlets and warned that some could be difficult to investigate.
• Lin Chen created and released a virus that made East Sakura Country’s ATMs show zero balances and reject cash withdrawals, while counter withdrawals and card payments still worked.
• Crowds formed at banks across East Sakura Country as technicians failed to find the cause, and the disruption reached the country’s leaders and sent its stock market downward.

Fujiwara Ye and East Sakura Country’s experts failed to find the cause of the Bank System disruption as the stock market crashed and bank runs grew. Suspecting Lin Chen was behind it, Fujiwara Ye urged his superiors to compromise, and they secretly released information implicating over a hundred people in China.

• Fujiwara Ye brought in East Sakura Country’s experts and then American network specialists, but they could not find evidence of a breach as the market fell sharply.
• An official warned Fujiwara Ye to identify the cause by midnight or lose his job, while an adviser suggested Lin Chen might be responsible for the attack on the Bank System.
• Fujiwara Ye told his superior that Lin Chen might be warning East Sakura Country to expose planted public intellectuals, but the superior rejected the idea and gave him until the market opened.
• After a sleepless night, Fujiwara Ye saw the market crash again and heard that crowds were gathering at banks to withdraw money.
• Fujiwara Ye urged his superior to compromise, and the superior ordered a small amount of information implicating over a hundred people in China to be released on the dark web without revealing East Sakura Country’s involvement.

Three waves of materials exposed people accused of serving Foreign Powers, leading to arrests and panic as East Sakura Country’s Bank System remained down and its stock market plunged. Lin Chen stayed at the amusement park while Fujiwara Ye released the third batch, leaving East Sakura Country facing a near-record market crash.

• The first wave of materials spread online, and National Security took the exposed public intellectual Surname Sun and others in for investigation.
• Fujiwara Ye judged the pressure insufficient and released a second batch as the Bank System remained down and the benchmark index fell.
• Lin Chen played at an amusement park with Lin Xiaoqian and chose not to restore East Sakura Country’s Bank System yet.
• Fujiwara Ye released a third wave after the market fell further, prompting more people to fear arrest and flee.
• East Sakura Country’s stock market closed with the benchmark index down eleven points, and Fujiwara Ye wondered if the damage was enough.

Lin Chen restored East Sakura Country’s banking system after a market crash, while U.S. officials suspected him of causing the crisis and discussed having East Sakura Country assassinate him. The chapter ended with them deciding not to act directly for now and to let East Sakura Country handle it.

• Xu Mengyao asked Lin Chen about the people exposed in East Sakura Country, and he said he had pressured the country but would stop exposing people for now.
• As East Sakura Country’s stock market plunged and citizens crowded banks to withdraw cash, Xu Xiangyang asked Lin Chen about the risk of a financial crisis and the people who had slandered him.
• Lin Chen uploaded an antidote mini-program to East Sakura Country’s banking system, restoring ATM withdrawals and allowing Fujiwara Ye to report that the crisis had eased.
• U.S. intelligence officials said they believed Lin Chen had caused the crisis but lacked evidence, and they rejected fabricating proof against him.
• The U.S. officials agreed not to move against Lin Chen directly and proposed letting East Sakura Country’s assassins target him.

Lin Chen attended the launch of the first solid-state battery production line and explained its capabilities and limitations. He left the factory with the technology ready for publicity, while Xu Mengyao’s pregnancy remained a secret.

• Xu Xiangyang invited Lin Chen to the launch ceremony, and Lin Chen agreed to attend the factory opening in Magic City.
• Lin Chen told Xu Mengyao to rest and quietly informed Old Man Li that she was pregnant, asking him to keep it confidential.
• Lin Chen arrived at the factory and pressed the button that started its fully automated solid-state battery production line.
• Lin Chen described the battery’s safety, energy density, low self-discharge, light weight, long lifespan, and recyclability.
• Lin Chen explained that the battery was expensive and still had limited capacity, while noting that it could give electric cars a range of up to 1,200 kilometers and support a five-minute full charge.

Lin Chen demonstrated that his Solid-state Battery was ready for mass production, and Old Man Li arranged heightened security while State Media announced the breakthrough. As the news shook battery companies and futures markets, Lin Chen started a livestream to answer overseas skepticism.

• Lin Chen told Old Man Li that the Solid-state Battery could be produced in three or four hours and would become cheaper with mass production.
• Old Man Li urged Lin Chen to stay at a secure base, but Lin Chen refused, and Xu Xiangyang promised to protect him and monitor his home, food, and water.
• State Media announced that Lin Chen's Solid-state Battery had entered mass production, drawing widespread belief from netizens and intense reactions from battery companies and global futures markets.
• Old Man Li suggested that Lin Chen promote the battery in a livestream, and Lin Chen opened a Douyin Live Stream Room as fans flooded in.

Lin Chen livestreamed from the world’s first factory mass-producing solid-state batteries, explaining their performance and unveiling a global standard he had set for battery dimensions. Foreign car and battery companies realized they would have to adopt his standard or risk falling behind.

• Lin Chen answered viewers’ questions about the batteries’ safety, longevity, range, and expected release of an improved version.
• Lin Chen showed the factory operating as global capital reacted to the news and oil futures came under pressure.
• The first solid-state battery came off the production line, and Lin Chen explained how standardized batteries could be added or rented to suit different vehicles and travel needs.
• Lin Chen declared that his battery dimensions were a global standard, backed by patents and China’s control of most of the required rare materials.
• A foreign new energy company’s owner and executives concluded that developing their own equivalent batteries would take at least five years and that they would have to follow Lin Chen’s standard.

Lin Chen demonstrated the solid-state battery’s rapid charging and durability during a live stream, then saw its unveiling disrupt global markets and provoke an assassination plot. After returning home, he reassured Xu Mengyao that he could withstand sniper fire.

• Lin Chen charged a vehicle battery in under five minutes and showed that it remained operational after being dented and pierced by a forklift.
• Lin Chen ended the live stream after proving the damaged battery could power a machine, then joined Old Man Li for a meal.
• The solid-state battery’s unveiling shook global markets, devastated traditional car companies, and alarmed East Sakura Country’s leaders.
• East Sakura Country’s leaders ordered Mr. Asō to arrange Lin Chen’s assassination during his upcoming book signing.
• Xu Mengyao warned Lin Chen that he might be in danger, and he reassured her that he could nearly withstand sniper rifle fire.

Lin Chen agreed to hold a book signing, but limited attendance to three thousand because of security and venue concerns. Childlike Heart Network began organizing the event, and fans reacted to the announcement with disappointment over the small number of spots.

• Xu Mengyao warned Lin Chen not to hold a book signing until he could withstand sniper rifle bullets, and Lin Chen agreed to wait.
• Lin Chen spent time with Lin Xiaoqian, talked about visiting Tiananmen, and played doctor with her to improve his Western Medicine Skill.
• Lin Chen called Chen Xinhan and set the book signing for ten days later, with a lottery limiting attendance to three thousand.
• Chen Xinhan told Liang Zhirong about the event, and Liang instructed him to organize it well without worrying about the budget.
• Childlike Heart Network announced the signing guidelines two days later, and fans complained that only three thousand people could attend.

Ishihara Taro and Aso Yuu planned to assassinate Lin Chen at his book signing, while Lin Chen learned that his latest financial-market deal had earned him forty-eight billion. He received the money tax-free and told Xu Mengyao about his windfall.

• Ishihara Taro and Aso Yuu planned to poison Lin Chen at his book signing or use a staged crowd injury to draw him outside.
• Xu Xiangyang told Lin Chen that his forty-billion investment had earned a 120 percent profit, bringing his total funds to eighty-eight billion.
• Xu Xiangyang explained that Lin Chen's contributions to the country exempted the profit from taxes, and said the country had earned more than ten times as much.
• Lin Chen received the eighty-eight billion and asked Xu Mengyao what gift she wanted.
• Lin Chen told Xu Mengyao he had made forty-eight billion, and she froze in surprise.

Lin Chen explained how he had amassed ninety billion in cash and described his plans to prepare for financial conflict, then organized a fan lottery for his book signing. After the lottery drew more than twelve million participants, Lin Chen’s Ancient Martial Arts Tai Chi reached Legendary level, boosting Lin Xiaoqian’s Martial Way Talent above one hundred.

• Lin Chen told Xu Mengyao that he had earned money through futures trading and intended to keep cash ready for possible financial warfare.
• Lin Chen created a website for the fan lottery, and more than ten million people registered before the lottery closed.
• The lottery results were announced, and fans who declined their spots were allowed to have them redrawn but not sold.
• Two days later, Lin Chen’s Ancient Martial Arts Tai Chi reached Legendary level, filling him with new information and internal energy.
• Lin Xiaoqian sensed the change, and her Martial Way Talent rose above one hundred.

Lin Chen’s training helped Lin Xiaoqian’s Martial Way talent improve, while his own cultivation and senses grew stronger. That night, he began expanding Xu Mengyao’s meridians and teaching her a cultivation route so she could gradually become stronger.

• Lin Xiaoqian felt that something had changed, and Lin Chen found no physical problem; Xu Mengyao noticed her practice had become smoother.
• Lin Chen explained that Lin Xiaoqian’s Martial Way talent had been brought out and said Xu Mengyao could also improve with his help, though she would not match Lin Xiaoqian’s strength.
• Lin Chen discussed his new abilities with the System, learning he could block one sniper shot and that mastering Grass-Skimming Lightness Skill could let him cross rivers or fly short distances.
• Lin Chen, Xu Mengyao, and Lin Xiaoqian played piano together, and Lin Chen’s Piano Skill came close to the Legendary level.
• After Lin Xiaoqian fell asleep, Lin Chen guided internal energy through Xu Mengyao’s body to expand her meridians and establish a cultivation route.
• Lin Chen told Xu Mengyao he would expand her meridians twice each night for about a month, then began a second round.