Recaps

Lu Chen and the three thousand ghost soldiers faced the enraged Prefectural City God, who attacked them on City God Street. King Yama arrived in time to save them, but the Prefectural City God threatened to appeal to the Capital City God and Great Emperor Fengdu, leaving King Yama wary.

• Lu Chen offered the Prefectural City God fifty million and a chance to let them leave, but the City God transformed and ordered the other City Gods to attack.
• The Prefectural City God’s first strike shattered the ghost soldiers’ defenses, and Lu Chen refused to flee as the soldiers rallied around him.
• King Yama appeared and stopped the City God’s second attack, while Ox-Head revealed that Yama had delayed to test Lu Chen’s ability to adapt.
• King Yama overpowered the Prefectural City God and demanded that he release Lu Chen and the others.
• The Prefectural City God insisted he had followed the law and threatened to report King Yama to the Capital City God and Great Emperor Fengdu, making King Yama hesitate.

Lu Chen exchanged his contributions for Zheng Zhangshi’s return to life and secured protections for the three thousand underworld soldiers he could not take with him. As he prepared to leave City God Street, the Prefectural City God sealed the exit and revealed that he had a powerful backer of his own.

• King Yama and the Prefectural City God argued over Zheng Zhangshi’s fate, and the Prefectural City God refused to let her return to life.
• King Yama seized the Prefectural City God, and Lu Chen condemned him for neglecting his duties and offered his contributions in exchange for Zheng Zhangshi’s return; King Yama agreed.
• King Yama ordered the three thousand underworld soldiers and generals to remain, promising to station Netherworld magistrates at Qianjiang City God Street to protect them from retaliation.
• Lu Chen arranged for the soldiers to receive back pay, said farewell, and watched them salute him as he headed for the exit.
• The Prefectural City God broke free, sealed City God Street, and declared that he would trap Lu Chen and King Yama while relying on his own backer.

Lu Chen’s crisis on City God Street deepened as the Prefectural City God trapped him and taunted King Yama, but the Plague Emperor chose to defy his former patron and send aid. The chapter ended with the Plague Department’s guardian beast and Five Plague Envoys arriving under the Plague Emperor’s decree.

• The Prefectural City God declared that his backing from the Capital City God made him unafraid of King Yama, then warned that Lu Chen would die when his yin energy ran out.
• Lu Chen’s Fortune-Bringing Gold Ingot triggered its [100% Success] passive, giving him confidence that he would survive.
• The Plague Emperor rejected the Plague-Wielding Young Lord’s attempt to stop him, dismissed him, and sent the Five Plague Envoys and the venom dragon plague beast to help Lu Chen.
• Her Ladyship confronted the Plague Emperor, who insisted on choosing another path for the Plague Department, and she ultimately granted his request.
• The venom dragon plague beast tore into City God Street, and the Five Plague Envoys arrived bearing the Plague Emperor’s decree.

The Plague Great Emperor Haotian appointed Zheng Zhangshi the Hundred Flowers Goddess, saving her from reincarnation, while the Five Plague Envoys punished the Prefectural City God for his actions. Lu Chen left City God Street with Zheng Zhangshi’s soul and an invitation to negotiate with the Star Lord, who promised to explain the hidden reason behind the events.

• King Yama and the gathered ghost gods knelt when the Five Plague Envoys arrived, and Zhou Xin summoned Zheng Zhangshi to receive a divine decree.
• Zhou Xin announced Zheng Zhangshi’s appointment as the Hundred Flowers Goddess of the Plague Department, and the Five Plague Envoys told Lu Chen that the Star Lord would explain his reasons in a future negotiation.
• The Five Plague Envoys condemned the Prefectural City God for sealing off City God Street and slaughtering mortals, then killed him with a divine arrow of green miasma.
• King Yama used his divine rank to restore City God Street, and the Five Plague Envoys instructed Lu Chen to return Zheng Zhangshi’s soul and contact the Star Lord.
• Lu Chen left City God Street with Zheng Zhangshi’s soul, while King Yama vowed never to let him visit the underworld again and Li City God remarked on Lu Chen’s stature.

Lu Chen returned from City God Street with Madam Zheng’s soul and restored her to her body, completing the mission before its deadline. After securing Zheng Changguo’s support for the [Plague Department] and the signed mission document, Lu Chen calculated that he had accumulated 28,200 military merit points and prepared to return to Jiangdu City.

• Lu Chen and the four underworld constables reflected on the dangers of City God Street, and Lu Chen resolved to be more cautious about seemingly simple, high-reward missions.
• Lu Chen brought Madam Zheng’s soul back to Number One Courtyard, where the underworld constables reunited it with her body and she awakened.
• Zheng Changguo and Madam Zheng embraced, and Lu Chen asked them to help advance the [Plague Department]’s affairs and reputation.
• Zheng Changguo agreed to support the [Plague Department] and signed and stamped Lu Chen’s mission document.
• Lu Chen calculated that he had earned 28,200 military merit points and celebrated completing the mission before setting out for Jiangdu City.

After rescuing Madam Zheng, Lu Chen returned home and slept for a full day and night. Sun Yourong summoned him to the industrial park, where she handed him a flamboyant pink van as promised and delighted in his reaction.

• Lu Chen bade farewell to Elder Zheng and Madam Zheng, then fell asleep in Secretary Fan's car on the ride home.
• The neighbors carried the sleeping Lu Chen upstairs, and his parents watched over him as he slept through the day and night.
• After waking and eating, Lu Chen received Sun Yourong's message and went to meet her at the Southern Suburban Industrial Park.
• Sun Yourong gave Lu Chen the promised luxury business van, which was pink inside and out, and Lu Chen realized she had picked it to tease him.

Lu Chen inspected the new spirit-money factory, discussed his progress and finances with Sun Yourong, then endured three days of pain while making a full idol of the Plague Great Emperor Haotian. When he finally prayed to the deity, the Plague Emperor appeared and confronted him about his private complaints.

• Sun Yourong showed Lu Chen the factory and spirit-money printing equipment, and they agreed on rent and equipment payments.
• Lu Chen told Sun Yourong about the Prefect mission, and she warned him that missions involving Heavenly Court deities were often called dead ends.
• Lu Chen inspected the factory, turned in two S-rank missions, and began carving the Plague Emperor idol at his villa.
• Lu Chen called Chen Tiansheng, who explained that the pain came from the strain of Idol Communion Technique and that the Chen family's bloodline helped them endure it.
• After three days, Lu Chen finished the idol, burned incense, and summoned the Plague Great Emperor Haotian, who asked whether Lu Chen had cursed him in his heart.

The Plague Emperor rewarded Lu Chen for settling Madam Zheng’s death and fulfilling their agreement, appointing him as the Plague-Wielding Young Lord and giving him powerful treasures and pill formulas. He urged Lu Chen to pursue fleshly-body cultivation, then offered him three thousand people for his project and asked whether he had heard of the [Rakshasa Cult].

• The Plague Emperor confirmed that Madam Zheng’s death had been his final test and praised Lu Chen for spreading the [Plague Department]’s reputation.
• The Plague Emperor appointed Lu Chen as the Plague-Wielding Young Lord, granting him immunity to mortal plagues and limited power to control them.
• The Plague Emperor gave Lu Chen a Plague Emperor Banner that could spread poisonous miasma, refine defeated enemies into Plague Slaves, and summon the Plague Emperor’s Primordial Spirit once at the cost of destroying the banner.
• The Plague Emperor advised Lu Chen to seek fleshly-body cultivation and named Yang Jian, Nezha, and Sun Wukong as immortals who had attained sainthood through their bodies.
• The Plague Emperor sent Lu Chen formulas for 108 Plague Pills and offered to provide three thousand mortals for his project.
• The Plague Emperor asked Lu Chen whether he had heard of the [Rakshasa Cult].

Lu Chen learned that the Plague Emperor had placed the Rakshasa Cult under his command, then broke through to Third Rank and planned to absorb its surviving members. Two days later, Yu Feng received a report that thousands of mysterious Spirit Practitioners had appeared near Jiangdu, including Rakshasa Cult Protector Wang Zhidong.

• The Plague Emperor told Lu Chen that Mystic Gu Ancestor had been a rogue heavenly general and appointed Lu Chen the Rakshasa Cult’s Holy Ancestor Descending into the Mortal Realm.
• Lu Chen’s invocation boosted him to Third Rank Spirit Practitioner and earned him the Plague-Wielding Young Lord position, the Plague Emperor Banner, and other rewards.
• Lu Chen considered how to clear the Rakshasa Cult’s wanted status and claim the instance’s military merit after absorbing its surviving members.
• Two days later, a subordinate reported to Yu Feng that several thousand disguised Spirit Practitioners had appeared in the mountains outside Jiangdu City.
• The subordinate identified Rakshasa Cult Protector Wang Zhidong in one of the photographs.

Yu Feng mobilized Jiangdu City’s forces after the Rakshasa Cult appeared nearby, while Lu Chen met with Zeng Rou and learned the cult had thousands of surviving members. Lu Chen took command of them and planned to bring them openly into the city, leaving Sun Yourong stunned when Zeng Rou addressed him as the Cult Leader.

• Yu Feng ordered Jiangdu City’s gates sealed and gathered its garrison, the Four Great Families, and the Ten Great Upstarts to prepare for the Rakshasa Cult.
• Sun Qingcang sent Sun Yourong to fetch Lu Chen’s family for shelter, but she went to Lu Chen’s home herself.
• Zeng Rou revealed that 3,127 Rakshasa Cult members were waiting at Black Wind Ridge and pledged their allegiance to Lu Chen.
• Lu Chen appointed Zeng Rou to manage the cult and said he would arrange to cleanse its members’ identities before bringing them into the city openly.
• Sun Yourong arrived to warn Lu Chen about the Rakshasa Cult, and Zeng Rou knelt before him and called him the Cult Leader.

Lu Chen revealed that he had become the Rakshasa Cult’s leader and arranged with Elder Zheng to seek amnesty and transform the cult into the Hall of Benevolent Aid. As Lu Chen raced to reach Yu Feng before a battle began, Yu Feng learned the cult’s location and led an assault toward Black Wind Ridge.

• Sun Yourong learned Lu Chen was the Rakshasa Cult’s leader, challenged him, then accepted his explanation and asked what he planned to do.
• Lu Chen called Elder Zheng, explained his new position, and asked him to secure amnesty and stop Yu Feng from attacking; Elder Zheng agreed to contact the authorities and Yu Feng.
• Lu Chen set out with Sun Yourong and Zeng Rou to meet Yu Feng, but Yu Feng did not answer his call, so Lu Chen feared the troops had already moved.
• At the western defensive line, Yu Feng received word that Rakshasa Cult forces were at Black Wind Ridge and ordered Rank Three and higher soldiers to follow him into battle.
• Sun Qingcang and the other family heads joined Yu Feng as hundreds of spiritualists rushed toward Black Wind Ridge.

Yu Feng and the Jiangdu experts attacked the Rakshasa Cult remnants at Black Wind Ridge, but Zheng Changguo ordered Yu Feng to stop after granting the cult amnesty. Lu Chen arrived and claimed responsibility for the pardon as the battle was underway.

• Wang Zhidong sensed Yu Feng's forces approaching and activated the Rakshasa Formation to defend the hidden cult members.
• Yu Feng, Sun Qingcang, and the other experts launched a fierce assault, and Yu Feng prepared to unleash the Myriad-Life Red Lotus.
• Lu Chen, Sun Yourong, and Zeng Rou learned that the fighting had begun and rushed toward Black Wind Ridge.
• Zheng Changguo called Yu Feng and ordered him to stop, explaining that the Rakshasa Cult had been granted amnesty.
• Lu Chen arrived on a blue cloud and shouted that he had granted the Rakshasa Cult amnesty.

Lu Chen stopped Yu Feng from attacking the Rakshasa Cult, and Zeng Rou led its three thousand members in pledging loyalty to him and abandoning their evil ways. He then went to the City Lord's Manor, where he took a seat at the front of a meeting with Jiangcheng City's powerful families.

• Lu Chen arrived with Zeng Rou and Sun Yourong, then claimed a dream had led the Rakshasa Cult to pledge allegiance to him; Zeng Rou and the cult members backed up his story.
• Zheng Changguo called Yu Feng and ordered him to halt the fighting, saying the pacification had official approval; Yu Feng withdrew and summoned the city’s family heads to the City Lord's Manor.
• Lu Chen offered the Rakshasa Cult members the choice to reform and stay with him or leave; all three thousand pledged undying loyalty, and he ordered them to change their black robes before entering the city.
• Lu Chen summoned the Plague Emperor Banner and rode its green miasma away, while Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong praised the power of his magical treasure.
• At the City Lord's Manor, Yu Feng ordered a chair placed for Lu Chen at the front of the hall; despite objections from two New Noble family heads, Lu Chen sat down.

Lu Chen agreed to take responsibility for the three thousand remaining Rakshasa Cult members and signed revised terms allowing them to stay in Jiangdu City. The banquet then turned to his military standing and his ties to the Sun and Zhao families, leaving the hall stunned by his ability to invite King Yama.

• Yu Feng challenged Lu Chen to prove that the three thousand Rakshasa Cult members would not threaten Jiangdu City, and Lu Chen offered to bear joint responsibility for any crimes they committed.
• Yu Feng ordered a revised agreement, which Lu Chen reviewed and signed before promising to give the cultists several jobs that would benefit the people.
• When a New Noble objected to Lu Chen commanding three thousand private soldiers, Lu Chen revealed that he had twenty-eight thousand two hundred military merit, and Yu Feng urged him to become a New Noble.
• Zhao Jiutang offered Lu Chen help as a fellow townsman, but Sun Qingcang countered by calling Lu Chen the Sun family's lifesaving benefactor.
• Sun Qingcang explained that Lu Chen had invited King Yama to save the Sun family's old master, prompting a guest to realize that Lu Chen worshipped two gods.

After Lu Chen explained the Rakshasa Cult’s origins, he negotiated with Yu Feng for the twenty thousand military merits. Yu Feng offered to help in exchange for Lu Chen investigating a case, promising the reward could advance him to rising elite; Lu Chen accepted.

• Zhao Jiutang apologized to Lu Chen for the Zhao Clan Temple incident and invited him to seek the Zhao family’s help, while Yu Feng dismissed the other family heads.
• Yu Feng scolded Lu Chen for guaranteeing the Rakshasa Cult’s conduct, then demanded an explanation of the cult’s connection to the [Plague Department].
• Lu Chen explained that the Rakshasa Cult had been founded by a demon that escaped from the [Plague Department], and asked Yu Feng to award him the rewards for the SS-rank extermination mission.
• Yu Feng rejected Lu Chen’s claim that he qualified for the mission rewards, but agreed to arrange the twenty thousand military merits and asked Lu Chen to investigate a case after settling the Rakshasa Cult.
• Yu Feng said solving the case could help Lu Chen advance to rising elite, and Lu Chen accepted the assignment.

Lu Chen returned with amnesty documents for the three thousand Rakshasa Cult members and found them gathered at Southern Mountain Residential Compound. He told Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong that the authorities had agreed to pardon them but planned to confine and closely monitor them.

• Yu Feng advised Lu Chen to prepare for the Lu Clan Temple and reminded him to act prudently while settling the Rakshasa Cult members.
• Lu Chen collected his [All-God] flagship watch and learned that his worshipped deities’ Divine Service Ratings had risen.
• Lu Chen arrived at Southern Mountain Residential Compound and found three thousand cult members waiting there, while his neighbors warmly welcomed them as his friends.
• Lu Chen told his parents he would explain the crowd later, then met with Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong in the living room.
• Lu Chen announced that the authorities had issued amnesty documents, then warned Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong that the pardon came with strict confinement and surveillance conditions.

Lu Chen revealed his divine rank in the [Plague Department] and persuaded Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong to lead the former Rakshasa Cult's followers in serving it. He then disclosed that he also held an office in the Netherworld, leaving the two elders stunned by the breadth of his authority.

• Lu Chen told Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong that he had personally guaranteed the three thousand followers and asked them to help manage the group after the Rakshasa Cult ceased to exist.
• Lu Chen said the followers would worship the Plague Emperor Haotian instead of the Mystic Gu Ancestor, then revealed that the Ancestor served under the [Plague Department] and that Lu Chen outranked him as the Plague-Wielding Young Lord.
• Lu Chen explained that Zeng Rou had been able to treat Madam Zheng because her illness came from the [Plague Department], and the two elders prostrated themselves after learning his identity.
• Lu Chen described his plan to open medical clinics, treat diseases with the [Plague Elixir Scripture], and use the department's plague abilities to fight epidemics and evil entities.
• Zeng Rou told Lu Chen that Sacred Ancestor Grandmother had introduced them to Netherworld Currency, and Lu Chen confirmed its function before revealing his Netherworld office as the [Mighty Martial Virtue General].

Lu Chen incorporated the Rakshasa Cult into the Hall of Benevolent Aid, gaining Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong’s loyalty and 1.5 billion in assets. After celebrating with the new members and neighbors, he told Lord God of Wealth that he had completed the Heavenly-Triggered Killing Intent mission and showed him designs for the promised temple statue.

• Lu Chen revealed his ties to the Plague Department, the Netherworld, and Lord God of Wealth, convincing Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong to follow him faithfully.
• Zeng Rou gave Lu Chen a Sumeru Ring containing Rakshasa Cult assets worth about 1.5 billion, and Lu Chen assigned her funds to manage the cult’s resettlement.
• Lu Chen arranged hotel rooms and a banquet for the cult members and Southern Mountain Residential Compound neighbors, while Zeng Rou and Wang Zhidong concluded the Rakshasa Cult had become part of the Hall of Benevolent Aid.
• Lu Chen contacted Lord God of Wealth and reported that he had completed the Heavenly-Triggered Killing Intent mission, slain a prefectural City God, become the Plague-Wielding Young Lord, and incorporated the Rakshasa Cult.
• Lu Chen showed Lord God of Wealth designs for his temple statue and reaffirmed his promise to build the temple.

Lu Chen discussed plans for Lord God of Wealth’s temple and asked King Yama how to arrange the Netherworld Hall. King Yama explained that Lu Chen could enshrine his two divine offices as future incarnations, prompting Lu Chen to realize they might give him extra lives and a way to extend his influence.

• Lu Chen and Lord God of Wealth agreed to add Heavenly soldiers, generals, and the Well Dragon King to the temple design, while Lord God of Wealth promised to reserve a higher position for Lu Chen.
• Lu Chen told King Yama about the Plague-Wielding Young Lord office and asked how to arrange the Netherworld Hall; King Yama advised enshrining himself first instead of all Ten Kings of Yama.
• King Yama explained that Lu Chen could enshrine Mighty Martial Virtue General and Plague-Wielding Young Lord as divine offices that might become his incarnations if he attained divine fruition.
• Lu Chen realized that those incarnations could give him additional lives and a way to establish forces in the Heavenly Court and Netherworld.
• King Yama told Lu Chen that guardian gods could listen to worship on his behalf, and said other powerful immortals also had backing.

Lu Chen received guidance from King Yama and Plague Emperor about enshrining deities, then began arranging statues despite the enormous costs. In the Heavenly Court, Lord God of Wealth repaid the Plague Department and privately told Plague Emperor that he had come to discuss Lu Chen.

• King Yama told Lu Chen to enshrine him with underworld officials and explained how divine offices could help Lu Chen gain a foothold in the Heavenly Court and underworld.
• Lu Chen decided that enshrining deities and pursuing fleshly sanctification could go together, then learned from Plague Emperor which gods to enshrine and reported that the Rakshasa Cult had been incorporated.
• Lu Chen asked Chen Tiansheng to arrange the divine statues and learned that enshrinement taxes and statue costs would make the project extremely expensive.
• Lord God of Wealth visited Nine Dragon Palace with tens of thousands of Heavenly Gold to repay the Wealth Department's accumulated debt to the Plague Department.
• Lord God of Wealth met Plague Emperor privately and revealed that he had come because of Lu Chen.

The Plague Emperor and Lord God of Wealth forged a brotherly alliance and agreed to protect Lu Chen as he sought a new path for the Plague Department. Lu Chen organized the Rakshasa Cult members into a company, then accompanied Yu Feng to inspect four mysteriously slain corpses.

• Lord God of Wealth revealed that Lu Chen was his sworn brother, and the Plague Emperor agreed to protect Lu Chen if he could reform the Plague Department.
• The Plague Emperor warned Lord God of Wealth about increasingly frequent disturbances in the Big Dipper and urged him to build up Incense Fire.
• Lu Chen appointed Zeng Rou as general manager and Wang Zhidong as deputy manager of Lu Corporation, giving them funds and Plague Pill formulas to begin production.
• Lu Chen went to the City Lord's Residence, where Yu Feng took him to the morgue to examine four corpses killed in different ways.
• Yu Feng asked Lu Chen whether he had ever heard of a Corpse Liberation Immortal.

Lu Chen identified the corpses as part of the Five-Hells Immortal Corpse-Liberation Method and explained its connection to an earlier ghost-immortal ritual. He joined Yu Feng to investigate the A-rank Jiangdu City Serial Murder Case, where the final victim was expected to die in three days, but the killer’s identity and nature remained uncertain.

• Lu Chen explained that four victims had endured the first four hells of the Five-Hells Immortal Corpse-Liberation Method, leaving the heart-carving ritual unfinished.
• Yu Feng challenged Lu Chen about his detailed knowledge, and Lu Chen showed him a Yin-Thunder Wood plaque recovered from the red-clad vicious ghost at Rebirth Academy.
• Lu Chen described how the plaque had been used in a more sophisticated attempt to create a ghost immortal while retaining a living human body.
• Yu Feng gave Lu Chen the file for the A-rank Jiangdu City Serial Murder Case, which offered three million cash and 1,300 military merit points.
• Lu Chen and Yu Feng linked the four victims’ deaths to their crimes and predicted that the final human demon would be killed by heart-carving three days later.
• Yu Feng said the killer might be a powerful ghostly entity but could not rule out a human culprit.

Lu Chen investigated a series of killings linked to corpse liberation and discovered that the victims’ souls had vanished from the Netherworld’s records. To find the culprit, he decided to seek help from the Four Duty Merit Officers and the City God, leaving the investigation poised to draw him back into conflict with Li City God.

• Yu Feng asked Lu Chen to identify the murderer behind four killings before another human fiend was killed, and Lu Chen summoned Fan Rusong and Xie Qingyi to investigate the victims’ souls.
• Fan Rusong and Xie Qingyi found no records of the victims in the Netherworld, and Yu Feng concluded that their souls had scattered and vanished.
• Lu Chen proposed asking the City God for clues, and Yu Feng suggested contacting the Four Duty Merit Officers instead of the Day-and-Night Patrol Gods.
• Yu Feng clarified that catching the mastermind mattered more than preventing the fifth human fiend’s death, then returned to the City Lord’s Manor.
• Lu Chen sent Fan Rusong and Xie Qingyi to report the case to Lord Yama and resolved to deal with Li City God.

Lu Chen left the South City precinct after sensing something watching him, while the Netherworld officials discussed how to investigate a monster that had destroyed several souls. King Yama summoned Zhong Kui to go to the mortal realm, and Zhong Kui arrived at the Hall of Yama.

• Lu Chen mistook a surveillance camera for the source of his uneasy feeling and left, unaware that a strange presence had followed him before turning away.
• King Yama learned that a monster’s corpse-liberation ritual had caused the souls of the dead to be destroyed and considered four ways to investigate.
• Fan Rusong and Xie Qingyi urged King Yama to seek help from the Jiangdu City God, but he decided that Zhong Kui should handle the matter instead.
• Judge Shen delivered King Yama’s invitation to Zhong Kui, who agreed to go and asked his sister to fetch his official robes.
• Zhong Kui entered the Hall of Yama in a crimson cloud, and the Netherworld officials bowed to him.

King Yama persuaded Zhong Kui to investigate the Jiangdu corpse-liberation immortal case and escort Lu Chen to City God Street, offering him a share of temple incense in return. Zhong Kui arrived at Lu Chen’s office and introduced himself, leaving Lu Chen stunned by the meeting.

• King Yama showed Zhong Kui the Jiangdu case and explained that a villain had used the Five Hells Ascension method to destroy the souls of the dead.
• King Yama asked Zhong Kui to escort Lu Chen to City God Street so Lu Chen could work with the local City God, and Zhong Kui agreed.
• King Yama offered Zhong Kui a divine seat and a share of the incense offerings from Lu Chen’s planned temple.
• Lu Chen praised Zeng Rou’s expansion plan and told her to manage the company’s affairs while he handled other matters.
• Xie Qingyi and Fan Rusong appeared in Lu Chen’s office with Zhong Kui, who introduced himself and drew Lu Chen’s astonished recognition.