Chapter Summaries

Peter used Lin Hai’s Ironwall Fruit shield to protect Gwen as Lin Hai and Harry cleared the Hand ninjas on the second floor. The Hand’s elite red-clad ninjas arrived, and Lin Hai charged them after warning his teammates to stay together.

• Peter eagerly took the tower shield and slowly led the group up the stairs, blocking the Hand ninjas’ shuriken without a scratch.
• Lin Hai and Harry attacked the stunned ninjas while Peter guarded Gwen and Matt handled attackers trying to flank them.
• Lin Hai and Harry defeated most of the more than one hundred ordinary Hand ninjas on the second floor.
• Several dozen elite red-clad ninjas descended from the higher floors, prompting the group to regroup and prepare for their coordinated attacks.
• Lin Hai warned his teammates to stay together, then charged the red-clad ninjas.

Lin Hai overwhelmed the red-clad Hand ninjas, but the last survivors activated special grenades and charged him. He knocked them away and shielded his companions as the grenades exploded.

• Lin Hai used Life Force blasts to defeat most of the red-clad elite ninjas while Matt realized how powerful he was.
• The remaining ninjas discarded their katanas and activated special grenades, intending to take Lin Hai down with them.
• Lin Hai struck the charging ninjas and sent them flying away from his companions.
• Lin Hai took Peter's shield, enlarged it with Life Force, and led Gwen, Peter, Harry, and Matt behind it for cover.
• The grenades detonated in a series of explosions that engulfed the area where the ninjas had landed.

Lin Hai and his allies survived the battle against The Hand’s ninjas and returned to Nelson & Murdock Law Office unharmed. Lin Hai laid out plans to warn The Hand’s leaders, monitor Hell’s Kitchen, and eventually wipe out the organization, before the group headed home for the night.

• Lin Hai, Harry, Gwen, Peter, and Matt emerged safely from the blast, and Matt detected only a few ordinary ninjas and no significant remaining threat.
• Lin Hai reclaimed the Life Force from the greatshield, which crumbled into wood chips as Peter lamented losing it.
• The five returned to Nelson & Murdock Law Office, where Foggy welcomed them and celebrated their injury-free operation.
• Lin Hai proposed letting the surviving ninjas report the battle to The Hand’s five leaders and asked Matt to alert the group if new red-clad ninjas appeared.
• Lin Hai said they should eventually destroy The Hand and investigate whether the Dragon Bone had other valuable uses.
• Lin Hai ended the gathering and left with Harry, Gwen, and Peter before their families could worry about their late return.

Lin Hai asked Kingpin to monitor The Hand in New York as he and his friends prepared to destroy the organization. After returning to Los Angeles, Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry cleaned their house and began their sophomore year at the California Institute of Technology.

• Lin Hai told Kingpin that the group had destroyed The Hand's Hell's Kitchen stronghold and planned to wipe out the organization.
• Kingpin offered men, money, and weapons, but Lin Hai asked him to use his underworld intelligence network to track The Hand and report reliable information.
• Kingpin agreed to alert Lin Hai as soon as he learned anything about The Hand.
• Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry returned through a Portal to their Los Angeles house and cleaned it together.
• The next morning, Lin Hai made breakfast, and the four friends walked to campus to begin sophomore year.

After a tightly scheduled sophomore semester, Lin Hai and his friends learned that The Ancient One had finished crafting Gwen’s staff and traveled to Kamar-Taj to see it. The chapter ended as they examined its unusual, rune-covered design and Lin Hai considered how it might work in combat.

• Lin Hai received Master Hamil’s call informing him that The Ancient One had completed Gwen’s staff.
• Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry hurriedly cleaned up and traveled through a Portal to Kamar-Taj.
• The Ancient One welcomed the four and presented the staff she had made specifically for Gwen.
• Lin Hai and his friends inspected the staff’s metallic surface, intricate runes, and tapered shape.
• Lin Hai compared the staff’s design to a spinning pen and imagined its usefulness in casting and close combat.

The Ancient One explained the black staff’s stored magical power, instant-cast spells, and size-changing function to Gwen and the others. In the courtyard, Gwen tested its defensive shield and invisibility spells, while the group learned that channeling her own power could extend their effects.

• The Ancient One described how the staff stored magical power and used three engraved patterns for a shield, invisibility, and changing the staff’s size.
• The Ancient One took Gwen and the others to the courtyard to test the staff.
• Gwen activated the Rings of Raggadorr, creating a red shield that lasted about five seconds using the staff’s stored power.
• Gwen triggered the Disillusionment Charm and vanished from sight before reappearing roughly ten seconds later.
• Hamil explained that Gwen could maintain both spells longer by continuously channeling her own magical power into the staff.

Gwen tested the staff’s melee form, demonstrating how it expanded into a full-length weapon while retaining its defensive and stealth spells. The Ancient One explained its potential use for Kamar-Taj’s junior mages and said she would finish reforging Pluto’s Dark Spear before the group returned to Los Angeles.

• Gwen activated the staff’s transformation enchantment, extending it into a five-and-a-half-foot pole.
• Gwen practiced staff techniques, and Lin Hai saw how its shield, stealth, and melee capabilities improved her ability to protect herself.
• The Ancient One told Lin Hai that the staff could safeguard beginner and intermediate Kamar-Taj mages and credited his idea with inspiring new artifact research.
• Gwen shrank the staff back to its portable size, then asked The Ancient One and Master Hamil for advice on using it.
• The Ancient One told Lin Hai she had an initial plan for reforging Pluto’s Dark Spear and would return it when it was finished.
• Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry thanked The Ancient One and Master Hamil, then returned to Los Angeles through a Portal.

After Gwen’s classmates admired her magical staff, Lin Hai proposed turning its design and tricks into an ordinary toy for Starsea Studio. The group agreed to test several designs and materials as their next project.

• Gwen’s classmates asked where she had gotten her staff, and she told them Lin Hai had given it to her.
• Lin Hai suggested to Gwen that Starsea Studio could develop a toy inspired by the staff and its spinning trick.
• At dinner, Lin Hai presented the idea to Gwen, Harry, and Peter, and Harry recommended testing a small batch to gauge consumer interest.
• Lin Hai assigned each of the four a design style, with Peter free to choose any style he liked.
• The group agreed to make the first batch in metal, wood, and resin and gather customer feedback after launch.

Lin Hai received an urgent call from Kingpin after Vanessa was badly injured in an attack, while Richard remained safe. Lin Hai opened a Portal to Fisk Tower and arrived with Gwen, Peter, and Harry, then followed Kingpin toward Vanessa.

• Lin Hai and his friends discussed their designs for Starsea Studio's new project when Kingpin called to say Vanessa was gravely hurt.
• Lin Hai reassured Kingpin that he could help Vanessa and learned that Richard was safe and asleep.
• Lin Hai told Kingpin to clear the room, then opened a golden Portal from his living room to Fisk Tower.
• Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry crossed the Portal, shocking Kingpin.
• Kingpin led Lin Hai and his friends toward his private bedroom to check on Vanessa.

Lin Hai examined Vanessa after an attack left her wounded and unconscious, then discovered Dark Energy lodged in her brain. He used the Dragon God's Power to expel it, and Vanessa woke as the chapter ended.

• Kingpin told Lin Hai that attackers had ambushed Vanessa and Richard, killing their driver and bodyguard while Vanessa was wounded protecting Richard.
• Lin Hai healed Vanessa's injuries with Life Energy but found that she remained unconscious.
• Lin Hai detected Dark Energy suppressing Vanessa's consciousness and corroding her brain.
• Lin Hai channeled his full Life Force through Vanessa's temples, and she opened her eyes.
• Lin Hai cleansed the Dark Energy that emerged from Vanessa's eyes.

Lin Hai healed Vanessa by removing the Dark Energy from her brain, and Gwen recognized it as power linked to the Hand and the Beast. After learning the Hand had poisoned his wife, Kingpin vowed to destroy them.

• Lin Hai used Life Force to purge Vanessa's brain of Dark Energy and repair the damage, and Vanessa woke up.
• Kingpin reunited with Vanessa while Lin Hai and Gwen, Peter, and Harry left them alone.
• Lin Hai and the others connected Vanessa's Dark Energy to the red-clad Hand ninjas and the Primordial Demon called the Beast.
• Kingpin thanked Lin Hai and promised that the Fisk Family would honor him as a valued friend and guest.
• Lin Hai told Kingpin that the Hand was likely responsible for the Dark Energy, and Kingpin smashed a desk in fury and vowed to kill them all.

Kingpin and the others investigated The Hand’s attack on Vanessa and Richard, and Lin Hai explained that Vanessa’s dark energy could corrupt her mind if left untreated. Kingpin realized the attack was designed to shackle him and destabilize his empire, while Harry raised the possibility that the group’s destruction of The Hand’s Hell’s Kitchen base had provoked the assault.

• Kingpin dismissed his guards after his roar alarmed them, then discussed The Hand’s attack with Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry.
• Kingpin explained that he and The Hand had maintained a balance and limited cooperation for years, leaving him unsure why they had attacked Vanessa.
• Lin Hai warned that Vanessa might awaken with her mind and personality twisted by the dark energy in her brain.
• Kingpin concluded that The Hand had intended to burden him with a corrupted Vanessa and weaken his control of New York’s underworld.
• Peter asked why The Hand had changed its strategy, and Harry asked whether the group’s destruction of The Hand’s Hell’s Kitchen base had triggered the attack.

Lin Hai and Harry traced the attack on Vanessa to The Hand’s mistaken belief that Kingpin was targeting them, after Lin Hai’s earlier request for surveillance. Kingpin joined Lin Hai’s plan to destroy The Hand, and they agreed to meet the next day to prepare a thorough strike.

• Harry reminded Lin Hai and Kingpin that Lin Hai had asked Kingpin to monitor The Hand after their stronghold in Hell’s Kitchen was destroyed.
• Lin Hai reasoned that The Hand had connected the destruction and Kingpin’s surveillance efforts, then attacked Vanessa as retaliation against Kingpin.
• Kingpin refused to blame Lin Hai and said the attack had exposed The Hand before they could do worse harm to his family.
• Kingpin agreed to join Lin Hai in wiping out The Hand and humorously misinterpreted the Huaxia saying about learning the way in the morning and dying at dusk.
• Lin Hai proposed delaying their planning until the next day so Kingpin could stay with Vanessa, and Kingpin agreed to meet him and Matt.

After saving Vanessa, Lin Hai confirmed that she was recovering and returned with Peter, Harry, and Gwen to Los Angeles through a Portal. As his friends discussed Kingpin’s different sides, Lin Hai considered asking Matt to contact Elektra for help against The Hand.

• Lin Hai checked Vanessa and confirmed that the Dark Energy was gone and that she needed only rest and nourishing food to recover.
• Lin Hai opened a Portal to the Los Angeles home, and he and his companions said goodbye to Kingpin before stepping through.
• Peter, Harry, and Gwen discussed how people showed different sides of themselves, including Kingpin, Norman, and Gwen’s father.
• Lin Hai thought about Elektra’s past with The Hand and considered asking Matt to contact her about joining their plans against the organization.

Lin Hai invited Matt and Elektra to join a meeting with Kingpin about destroying the Hand, then tried to hide his thoughts about Matt's relationship from Gwen. The group planned to meet Matt at his law office the next morning before going to Kingpin.

• Lin Hai called Matt and invited him, Peter, Gwen, and Harry to visit Kingpin the next morning to discuss destroying the Hand.
• Lin Hai asked Matt to invite Elektra, and Matt agreed to pass along the invitation but said she would decide for herself.
• Lin Hai privately joked that Matt seemed henpecked and worried Gwen might learn husband-taming habits from his mother.
• After the call, Peter and Harry teased Lin Hai while Gwen questioned why he had glanced at her.
• Lin Hai explained that he had been thinking about Matt and Elektra's contrasting lives, and Gwen accepted his explanation for the moment.

Lin Hai and his friends met Elektra at Matt’s law office after she agreed to help destroy The Hand. Matt explained that The Hand had driven them apart, and Elektra seemed to soften as he spoke of a future together once it was gone.

• Matt told Lin Hai that Elektra had agreed to join the plan against The Hand and would meet them at his office.
• Lin Hai opened a portal, and he, Gwen, Peter, and Harry traveled to Matt and Foggy’s law office.
• Elektra arrived, and Matt introduced her to Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry as his girlfriend.
• Matt explained that The Hand’s threats had caused their breakup and said destroying it could clear the way for them to be together again.
• Elektra’s expression softened at Matt’s words, and the tension in the reception area eased.

Lin Hai, Matt, Elektra, and Gwen prepared to meet Kingpin at Fisk Tower. After Lin Hai and Gwen showed Elektra that their magic differed from The Hand’s dark sorcery, Lin Hai opened a portal to Kingpin’s office, leaving Elektra astonished as she crossed through.

• Matt asked Lin Hai whether the group should go to Fisk Tower, and Lin Hai called Kingpin to confirm he was ready to meet them.
• Matt explained that Lin Hai and Gwen used magic, prompting Elektra to recall The Hand’s dark rituals and react with suspicion.
• Lin Hai reassured Elektra by showing her his Life Force, and Gwen demonstrated Magic Chains and the Rings of Raggadorr.
• Elektra recognized that their powers were unlike The Hand’s sorcery, apologized for her doubts, and accepted Lin Hai’s explanation.
• Lin Hai opened a portal to Kingpin’s office, and Elektra followed Matt through it in shock.

Lin Hai and his allies met with Kingpin to discuss The Hand, and Elektra outlined the organization’s global reach, leaders, and weaknesses. The group learned that the Five Fingers depended on Dragon Bone to survive and were divided by bitter rivalries, giving them opportunities to exploit.

• Lin Hai, Matt, Elektra, and the others met Kingpin, who thanked Lin Hai for restoring Vanessa and agreed to discuss The Hand.
• Lin Hai identified The Hand’s Five Fingers as Alexandra, Madame Gao, Bakuto, Sowande, and Murakami, and described their connection to the demon called the Beast.
• Elektra explained that The Hand’s strongholds spanned the world, with Murakami controlling its Japanese headquarters and Madame Gao shifting her focus to New York.
• Elektra described Alexandra’s influence in the Americas, Bakuto’s role in training and recruitment in Europe, and Sowande’s military power in Africa.
• Elektra revealed that the Five Fingers relied on Dragon Bone to extend their lives, which constrained their use of power, and that deep rivalries divided them.

Kingpin, Lin Hai, and the others planned to exploit The Hand’s internal rivalries rather than attack its worldwide network head-on. Kingpin agreed to contact Murakami and Bakuto, leaving Lin Hai and the other students to focus on their finals until the group reassessed its next move.

• Kingpin proposed targeting Madame Gao and Alexandra while using Sowande’s self-interest to keep him from supporting them.
• Lin Hai backed Kingpin’s plan and explained that turning The Hand’s leaders against one another would reduce the cost and danger of confronting them directly.
• Lin Hai proposed that Kingpin contact Murakami and Bakuto and offer them benefits for attacking their rivals in the Americas.
• Gwen, Peter, Harry, Matt, and Elektra agreed with the strategy.
• Kingpin said he would arrange the details and told Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry to prepare for their finals before planning their next move during the break.
• Kingpin vowed to exploit The Hand’s divisions and erect a tombstone for the organization.

After returning from Kingpin’s office, Lin Hai and the others learned that preparations were underway to divide and dismantle The Hand. Elektra agreed to move into Matt and Foggy’s law office, bringing her and Matt closer as they reconsidered their relationship.

• Lin Hai, Matt, and the others returned to the law office after agreeing with Kingpin to exploit The Hand’s internal conflict.
• Foggy told Elektra she could stay at the office while Madame Gao focused on Murakami and The Hand’s plans.
• Elektra suggested that she might stay if Matt was willing, and their friends watched for his response.
• Matt welcomed Elektra by claiming she could help with the law firm’s work.
• Elektra agreed to pack and move into the office that day, and Foggy celebrated.