Ch. 341Perilous Return Twenty
Chapter Summary: “Perilous Return Twenty”
Key plot points and events
- Outside Deep Well Base, Tianyi’s Shadow Clone detects twelve incoming Tomahawk cruise missiles. Using Magnet Release, he gathers rebar, pipelines, and debris into a massive spinning metal ring, then fires steel bars to intercept and destroy every missile.
- At the Pentagon, officials are stunned by the defense. The president learns that a nuclear ballistic missile is still approaching the base, with roughly two minutes before detonation.
- Inside the base, Tianyi continues performing delicate microscopic surgery on Professor Gao, attempting to remove the XT-7 bomb without damaging Gao’s neck, arteries, or spinal cord.
- Commander Tian warns Tianyi that a fifteen-to-twenty-kiloton tactical nuclear weapon is targeting the base. Evacuating Gao would trigger the bomb once he moved beyond the five-hundred-meter limit, killing him instantly.
- Refusing to abandon Gao, Tianyi decides to protect the entire base instead. He summons Katsuyu, who envelops Gao, the operating table, and the medical equipment in a cushioning, heat-resistant mucus membrane.
- Tianyi then forms a seamless five-meter metal sphere around them using Magnet Release. After dispersing the Shadow Clone, he enters Sage Mode and prepares to withstand the nuclear strike.
Character developments
- Tianyi demonstrates extraordinary precision, combat ability, and composure under extreme pressure. Rather than choosing the easier option of escaping alone, he commits to saving Professor Gao and develops an improvised plan to move beyond the bomb’s limitations.
- His decision to shield the entire base highlights his loyalty, ingenuity, and willingness to risk himself for others.
- Professor Gao remains unconscious and physically vulnerable, but his survival becomes the central concern driving Tianyi’s actions.
- Commander Tian acts as an urgent source of information, warning Tianyi about the missile and emphasizing the danger to Gao.
- Katsuyu responds immediately and obediently to Tianyi’s request, showing trust and cooperation without demanding an explanation.
- The American leadership is portrayed as alarmed and increasingly desperate after conventional missiles fail.
Significant themes
- Sacrifice and responsibility: Tianyi refuses to abandon Gao, even when escape would be safer.
- Ingenuity under pressure: He combines medical skill, Magnet Release, summoning techniques, and Sage Mode to create layered defenses against a nuclear blast.
- Human vulnerability versus overwhelming power: Despite Tianyi’s supernatural abilities, Gao’s fragile human body remains difficult to protect.
- Escalation of conflict: The destruction of the cruise missiles leads to a far more devastating nuclear response, raising the stakes dramatically.
- Protection and trust: Katsuyu’s cooperation and Tianyi’s determination reinforce the importance of allies and mutual reliance.
Character interactions
- Commander Tian urgently communicates the nuclear threat and urges Tianyi to evacuate, but Tianyi ends the conversation after realizing evacuation would kill Gao.
- Tianyi commands Katsuyu to protect Gao and the medical equipment; she immediately obeys and creates the first defensive barrier.
- Tianyi’s actions also indirectly confront the Pentagon and the American military, whose missile attack he neutralizes before preparing for their nuclear strike.