Recaps

Milluki used his upgraded mechanical insects to search the ferry and found that its hundreds of passengers and crew had vanished, leaving the ship largely intact. As the insects searched the lowest levels, their feeds all cut out after revealing a pool of viscous liquid in the cargo hold.

• Milluki introduced the Signal Hub, an upgraded Mechanical Dragonfly and swarm of Mechanical Mosquitoes designed for reconnaissance.
• Milluki sent the insects through the ferry, but their camera feeds showed empty rooms and signs of hurried activity without any people or clear evidence of an attack.
• Bai Zhu noticed registration cards left behind and concluded that the passengers had not simply evacuated on their own.
• Milluki revealed his Nen ability, Compression Space, which let him shrink nonliving objects and carry extensive equipment in his bag.
• Morel told Milluki to keep searching, and Bai Zhu directed the insects to inspect the bottom of the ship.
• The insects' feeds suddenly turned to static after a Mechanical Dragonfly showed a pool of viscous liquid in the lowest cargo hold.

After Milluki’s mechanical insects went offline while investigating the empty ferry, Morel’s smoke soldiers found a dangerous, corrosive slime aboard. Morel judged the threat too uncertain to confront and ordered the ship back to port for reinforcements and testing, leaving the ferry drifting empty in the fog.

• Milluki analyzed the loss of his mechanical insects and suggested overwhelming Nen pressure or electromagnetic interference had disabled them.
• Morel sent his Purple Smoke Soldiers onto the ferry, and they retrieved a small, spreading slime from its lower deck.
• The crew found no unusual targets on sonar, despite the missing people and the slime aboard the ferry.
• Morel concluded that the unknown threat was too dangerous to investigate without reinforcements and recommended returning to port.
• Captain Nishimatsu ordered the ship to turn back as Bai Zhu watched the empty ferry disappear into the fog.

After the system forced Bai Zhu to join Morel’s investigation, Milluki chose to stay with him and uncovered evidence that the disappearances converged on a deleted no-sail zone above an old trench. Captain Nishimatsu gave them an old photograph bearing the warning, “Don't turn on the light. The door will see.”

• Morel praised Milluki’s scouting ability and told Bai Zhu he had stayed calm, then said he needed three days to investigate the recovered sample and old sea charts.
• After the system threatened to eliminate him unless he put to sea, Bai Zhu decided to join Morel’s investigation and urged Milluki to leave if he wanted.
• Milluki started to leave but turned back, claiming he needed to recover his destroyed mechanical dragonfly’s data and still had to pass the exam.
• Milluki mapped the missing ferry, distress signal, dragged buoy, and undocking ship routes, finding that they converged near an abandoned no-sail zone over an old trench.
• Milluki discovered that someone had deleted the no-sail zone records, and Captain Nishimatsu brought them an old photograph marked with the warning, “Don't turn on the light. The door will see.”

Bai Zhu strengthened Ryujin Jakka by spending achievement points, then helped Milluki build an underwater reconnaissance unit enhanced with Reiatsu. Morel returned with an elderly survivor from the shipwreck thirty years earlier, and Captain Nishimatsu called Bai Zhu to meet them.

• Captain Nishimatsu told Bai Zhu and Milluki about a fishing vessel whose crew encountered a door beneath the sea, leaving only one survivor, who went insane.
• Bai Zhu spent achievement points on Strength and raised Ryujin Jakka’s flame from a tiny spark to a blade-covering blaze.
• Milluki built underwater mechanical scouts, and Bai Zhu’s Reiatsu improved their resistance to signal interference.
• Milluki completed a reconnaissance unit of Carapace Fish, Relay Rays, a sonar buoy, and Lionfish.
• Morel returned to the harbor with an Association member and an elderly man, whom Captain Nishimatsu identified as a survivor from the ship that vanished thirty years earlier.

Bai Zhu, Milluki, and Morel investigated reports of coordinated animal attacks near the Old Trench aboard Captain Nishimatsu’s ship. The Voyage Bureau suggested the animals might be contaminated rather than controlled, leaving the source of the threat unresolved.

• Bai Zhu and Milluki boarded Captain Nishimatsu’s ship and met Pushi, the survivor of a fishing boat accident thirty years earlier, who reacted fearfully to Bai Zhu’s sword and warned that fire called the door.
• Gisa introduced himself as Pushi’s guardian and a Voyage Bureau staff member, then gave Milluki level-three temporary clearance to review Bureau files.
• Morel showed the group a chart of growing sea-beast activity and missing ships, revealing that incidents were spreading toward the harbor.
• Milluki reviewed reports and footage showing animals attacking ships with coordinated, apparently purposeful behavior, and argued that they were following a command.
• Gisa said the Voyage Bureau suspected the animals were being contaminated rather than controlled.

Gisa revealed that the ferry disappearances were linked to microscopic parasites that could alter people’s perceptions and draw them into the sea. The crew learned the Old Trench had been locked down since 1879 for “Door Resonance,” just as the lookout sounded the alarm.

• Gisa reported that the mucus sample contained active microscopic parasites that spread readily through seawater and bodily contact.
• Gisa explained that the parasites could distort people’s senses and choices, making them believe the sea was safe; Pushi recalled people hearing knocks and loved ones calling from underwater before walking into the sea.
• Milluki questioned why the incidents had expanded recently and accused the Voyage Bureau of withholding information.
• Gisa revealed a restricted record showing the Old Trench’s initial lockdown in 1879, citing Door Resonance and warnings about strong light, black sediment, and answering underwater knocks.
• The lookout rang the alarm bell.

The Xisong was attacked by Gray-Finned Dolphins streaming from the Old Trench, and Morel’s team defended the ship without using weapons or fire. Pushi’s warnings about the door left the crew facing an unclear danger as the dolphin assault continued.

• Pushi warned the crew not to answer, look at the water, or turn on the lights, while Morel ordered the Xisong to slow down and organized its defenses.
• Milluki deployed underwater machines and sonar buoys, which detected a growing swarm of fast-moving contacts approaching from the Old Trench.
• Captain Nishimatsu identified the attackers as Gray-Finned Dolphins, and Morel forbade the crew from firing because blood could attract more creatures.
• Morel used Deep Purple to shield the ship as the dolphins rammed its unusually sturdy hull, which began repairing loosened boards.
• Bai Zhu started to draw his flaming sword, but Pushi warned that fire would call the door, so Morel stopped him and Bai Zhu sheathed the blade.

The Xisong was besieged by infected fish that coordinated attacks on its hull, drains, rudder, and mechanical scouts, while Morel and Milluki struggled to hold them back. As slime began seeping through the ship’s planks, Bai Zhu realized Pushi’s survival in a water-filled fish crate might explain how he avoided infection.

• The Gray-Finned Dolphins and infected fish attacked the Xisong, prompting Captain Nishimatsu to order the crew to steady the ship and keep away from the seawater.
• Milluki discovered that enormous fish schools were swarming toward the ship and attacking his mechanical bugs, while fish clogged a drainage channel and jammed the rudder.
• Morel raised a Purple Smoke Cage around the Xisong, and Milluki used his underwater scouts and screen to guide the Smoke Soldiers in blocking attacks.
• Milluki’s scouts revealed that the fish were rubbing parasite-coated slime into gaps in the ship’s planks, and crew members reported slime seeping into the lower hold.
• Bai Zhu reconsidered Pushi’s survival in a water-filled fish crate and wondered why the seawater had not infected him.

Bai Zhu realized ice had protected Pushi from infection and learned that intense heat could deactivate the parasite colony. With the ship under attack and its defenses failing, the chapter left the crew facing a possible solution that Gisa had concealed in an appendix.

• Bai Zhu deduced that Pushi had survived the disaster because ice in the fish hold lowered his body temperature and activity, and he suggested the crew use Zetsu and cool themselves to avoid detection.
• Morel's Smoke Soldiers plugged the hull leaks, but Milluki reported that infected fish were probing weak points and concentrating their attacks near the stern.
• Bai Zhu confronted Gisa and demanded to know the slime's weakness, while Morel warned that withholding the information would turn negligence into murder.
• Gisa revealed an appendix containing thermal reaction test results, which showed that temperatures above 300 degrees could collapse the parasite colony's structure.
• Captain Nishimatsu asked what temperature was required, and Gisa confirmed that the colony became more active above 120 degrees but collapsed beyond 300 degrees.

Bai Zhu tested whether fire could clear the ship’s slime without shining light onto the sea, then discovered the slime ignored him while he maintained Zetsu. After the slime overwhelmed his first attempt, he used newly gained achievement points to strengthen himself and cleared the lower hold, but Milluki warned that something was happening on the sea.

• Bai Zhu concluded that fire could be used inside the lower hold as long as its light did not reach the sea, and Morel agreed to try the plan.
• Bai Zhu found that the slime did not react to him while he maintained Zetsu, but it surged toward Milluki’s Mechanical Mosquito.
• Bai Zhu used Ryujin Jakka to burn the slime, but more slime rushed in and nearly reached his hand, forcing him to retreat.
• Bai Zhu received the hidden achievement The Essence of Brainworms, gained 50 achievement points, and spent them on Strength.
• Bai Zhu reignited his blade and cleared the slime from the lower hold, while Milluki reported strange activity on the sea.

Bai Zhu ordered the Xisong to retreat from the Old Trench and hide the crew in the refrigerated compartment to evade the parasites. When enormous sea beasts approached, he prepared to lure the fish away with a distant fire and open a path for the ship.

• Bai Zhu told Morel and Captain Nishimatsu to turn the Xisong around because the crew could not survive a deeper push into the Old Trench.
• Bai Zhu directed the crew to hide in the refrigerated compartment, explaining that the cold would make the parasites less likely to detect them.
• Milluki sent Mechanical Mosquitoes out to scan the sea and discovered that something was driving the fish schools apart.
• Bai Zhu and Morel saw enormous sea beasts approaching the ship, and Bai Zhu proposed luring the fish away with a fire while the Xisong sped through a gap.
• Morel agreed to the plan as Captain Nishimatsu prepared the ship and Bai Zhu positioned himself at the bow.

Bai Zhu used Sōkatsui and Ryujin Jakka to draw the fish away and break the Xisong out of the encirclement, leaving him drained on deck. The crew then detected a colossal shadow near the Old Trench, at the coordinates marked Door Resonance, as three deep sonar echoes sounded.

• Milluki tracked the fish and sea beasts while Morel and Captain Nishimatsu prepared the Xisong to flee, and Gisa warned that bright light could trigger Door Resonance.
• Morel drove the Xisong forward with wind and smoke oars as Bai Zhu fired Sōkatsui, drawing most of the fish away from the ship.
• Bai Zhu used Burning Fortress to block the remaining fish, then collapsed as Morel withdrew Purple Smoke and the Xisong escaped the encirclement.
• Milluki detected a massive shadow near the Old Trench, and Gisa recognized that the coordinates matched the Door Resonance file.
• Pushi dropped an old ship tag marked “Don't knock a third time” as three deep echoes sounded through the sonar.

Bai Zhu and the others saw a colossal Black Gold object rise from the sea after Pushi warned that the third knock had opened a door. Morel abandoned his talk of investigating and helped the crew flee as the object continued to emerge.

• Milluki detected something island-sized on the seabed, and Morel argued that they should investigate the knocks rather than leave.
• Pushi warned that the third knock had awakened something behind a door, and the sea bulged beneath the Xisong.
• A towering Black Gold spike rose from the ocean, prompting Bai Zhu to shout that Sun Wukong had appeared and urge everyone to run.
• Nishimatsu ordered the crew to turn the ship around, while Morel agreed to flee and blew wind into the sails to drive the Xisong forward.

The Xisong escaped the Black Gold spike as it sank back into the sea, and Milluki and Bai Zhu reasoned that the creature was unlike the parasites drawn to heat and life force. Gisa recognized the encounter as the first valid sighting in nearly a century, while Milluki blamed him for the dangerous expedition; the ship continued fleeing as Morel powered its sails with his breath.

• Captain Nishimatsu ordered the crew to keep the Xisong moving while Morel blew wind into its sails and the Purple Smoke propellers drove it forward.
• Milluki saw on the damaged terminal that the Black Gold spike was sinking and was not pursuing the ship.
• Milluki and Bai Zhu concluded that the creature ignored the fish and fireball because its behavior differed from the parasites.
• Gisa said the sighting might be the first valid record of Door Resonance in nearly a century, and Milluki rebuked him for the bureau's concealed files and poor intelligence.
• Morel paused to smoke as Captain Nishimatsu urged the ship farther away, then accepted gum from Milluki and resumed blowing into the sail.

After the Black Gold spike vanished beneath the sea, Morel admitted the group could not investigate the Old Trench without backup, and Pushi revealed the history of the Door-Knocking Ship. The chapter ended with Pushi repeating the captain’s demand from inside the trench: the next time the door opened, they had to bring back a living person.

• The Xisong escaped as the Black Gold spike sank underwater, and Milluki confirmed that the sonar had been lost.
• Captain Nishimatsu inspected the damaged ship and found its hull slowly repairing, though its drainage system and stern rudder were damaged.
• Morel accepted that his judgment had been wrong and ordered the group to return to port, change ships, and call the Hunter Association for backup.
• Pushi identified the old ship plate as belonging to the first Door-Knocking Ship and said its captain had carved the warning, “Don't knock a third time.”
• Pushi said the captain of the 1879 ship was still inside the Old Trench and had knocked a third time.
• Pushi revealed the captain’s message: “The next time the door opens, bring a living person back.”

After surviving the Old Trench, Bai Zhu and Milluki learned from Morel that they had passed the Hunter Exam and would receive their licenses when they returned to port. Bai Zhu then saw that his next achievement, “Raging Sea, Whale Tide,” had only reached 1/?, leaving the sea’s threat unresolved.

• Bai Zhu and Milluki discussed their losses from the voyage while the others remained shaken by what happened in the Old Trench.
• Morel decided to return to port, report the encounter, and gather a larger ship and crew before investigating again.
• Morel reported that Bai Zhu and Milluki had provided crucial information and helped save the ship, then confirmed they had passed the Hunter Exam.
• Bai Zhu and Milluki celebrated their passing, and Bai Zhu received 100 achievement points for completing the “Become a Hunter” achievement.
• Bai Zhu saw that “Raging Sea, Whale Tide” had begun at 1/? and stared toward the now-calm Old Trench.

Bai Zhu and Milluki reached Kik Port, where they received their Hunter Licenses and underwent medical examinations. Milluki secretly showed Morel a mysterious fragment, then warned Bai Zhu to deny hearing the sea knock as the fragment began knocking again.

• The Xisong docked at Kik Port, and Association staff and medics received the exhausted crew and candidates.
• Bai Zhu and Milluki were confirmed as the only two candidates to pass the Hunter Exam and received their Hunter Licenses.
• Milluki joked about selling his license for hundreds of millions, and Bai Zhu hurriedly stopped him before Morel warned them not to sell the licenses.
• Morel left to meet Association and Voyage Bureau officials about the Old Trench situation while Bai Zhu and Milluki were sent for examinations.
• Milluki secretly showed Morel a black-gold fragment embedded in a seawater-damaged mechanical core, then told Bai Zhu to deny hearing knocking on the sea.
• The fragment in Milluki's core gave a quiet thud.

After escaping the dock lockdown, Bai Zhu gave Milluki his share of the casino money to help cover his losses, but Milluki refused to sell his Hunter License and acted suspiciously. They ended up outside Huakaka Bank, where Milluki ordered Bai Zhu to follow him.

• Bai Zhu and Milluki hid the Black Gold Fragment and agreed to deny hearing strange knocking sounds during the Old Trench incident.
• Bai Zhu and Milluki gave evasive answers during the Association's registration interview and left the dock lockdown zone.
• Bai Zhu gave Milluki bundles of Jenny from the casino, but Milluki counted the money and complained it was not enough.
• Milluki said he would not sell his Hunter License yet, and Bai Zhu questioned what he had shown Morel.
• Milluki led Bai Zhu through Kik Port to Huakaka Bank and told him to follow.

Milluki used his wealth and bank connections to obtain funds and order equipment for their plans, leaving Bai Zhu stunned by the scale of his resources. The chapter ended when a staff member delivered the temporary testing equipment Milluki had requested.

• Milluki identified himself at Huakaka Bank, and the manager escorted him and Bai Zhu to the VIP room.
• Milluki withdrew gold bars and clarified that his cash-flow problems did not mean he was bankrupt, prompting Bai Zhu to demand his money back.
• Milluki ordered the bank to procure everything on his list, including a Deep-Sea Pressure-Resistant Shell, and authorized additional spending if needed.
• Bai Zhu jokingly called Milluki his foster father and tried to persuade him to accept him as a godson.
• A staff member brought Milluki the requested temporary testing equipment.

Milluki tested the Black Gold Fragment, then used its powder while building equipment for the next voyage into Old Trench. After Morel announced they would sail the next morning, Bai Zhu prayed to Mazu for protection, and Milluki wondered if she accepted family packages.

• Milluki brought the Black Gold Fragment to a VIP suite and found that the detector could not classify it.
• Milluki decided to grind the fragment into powder and used the powder in the coating of the machines he built with Bai Zhu.
• Bai Zhu infused Reiatsu into Milluki’s mechanical bugs, then spent his achievement points on Strength and Stamina.
• Morel called to say the Association’s ship and crew had arrived and that they would sail into Old Trench the next morning.
• Bai Zhu prayed to Mazu for protection and promised her an extra chicken leg, while Milluki asked whether she accepted family packages.

Milluki asked Bai Zhu about worshipping Mazu and decided to pray for safety before their voyage. Morel called with news that the Voyage Bureau had sealed off the harbor, and the two prepared to board the Association's ship early.

• Milluki asked Bai Zhu whether Mazu would protect his household, and Bai Zhu warned that she did not protect foreigners.
• Milluki questioned what Mazu was and, after Bai Zhu said people listened to her beyond the sea, decided to worship her anyway.
• Milluki awkwardly prayed to Mazu for protection on the voyage, while Bai Zhu tried to charge him an incense money fee.
• Morel called Bai Zhu and ordered him to reach the harbor within half an hour because the Voyage Bureau had sealed it off.
• Bai Zhu and Milluki began packing to board the Association's ship, and Milluki confirmed that it had food.

Bai Zhu and Milluki boarded the Hunter Association’s warship to investigate the Old Trench incident, only to find Morel had no human crew and was using Purple Smoke Soldiers to operate the ship. Morel defied the Voyage Bureau’s attempt to stop them and sailed out, while Bai Zhu learned the other reinforcements had already gone ahead to sea.

• Bai Zhu and Milluki left the bank with their equipment and found Hunter Association personnel arguing with the Voyage Bureau over a warship’s departure.
• Bai Zhu and Milluki boarded the empty warship, where Morel created uniformed Purple Smoke Soldiers to fill the crew positions.
• Bai Zhu noticed Milluki and Morel exchanging a secretive glance, but neither revealed what was going on.
• Morel rejected the Voyage Bureau’s demand for joint supervision, citing its concealment of the 1879 files.
• Morel had the warship release its mooring ropes and leave the harbor, then told Bai Zhu that the other reinforcements were already out at sea.

Morel, Bai Zhu, and Milluki prepared the warship for an expedition into the Old Trench using the Hunter Association’s operational rules and equipment modified to avoid Nen detection. Bai Zhu learned he would be responsible for night watch while everyone else entered Zetsu, and he grew suspicious that Morel and Milluki were hiding information about Black Gold.

• Morel told Bai Zhu that their reinforcements would catch up by swimming, then led him and Milluki to the command room to review the Old Trench map.
• Morel explained the Association’s rules, including stopping during darkness or poor visibility, entering Zetsu, and avoiding any Door Resonance.
• Morel said Bai Zhu would handle night watch because his power did not rely on Nen, and Bai Zhu agreed after learning he would receive an allowance.
• Milluki showed them Mechanical Fish and Sonar Anchors modified to operate without Nen, powered by Bai Zhu’s energy and coated with Black Gold Powder.
• Bai Zhu questioned whether Morel and Milluki were hiding information from him, and Milluki challenged him to go one minute without talking.

Gela Jiang joined Morel’s crew and used his water-manipulating ability to speed their warship toward the Old Trench, where the team stopped for the night. As Morel, Milluki, and Gela Jiang slept in Zetsu, Bai Zhu heard ominous knocking from beneath the sea.

• Gela Jiang arrived by surfboard and Morel introduced him to Bai Zhu and Milluki as a one-star Ocean Hunter who specialized in water movement and manipulation.
• Gela Jiang boosted the warship’s speed while Milluki’s sonar detected scattered parasites that circled without pursuing them.
• The crew reached Morel’s temporary anchorage before nightfall, and Morel ordered everyone except Bai Zhu to enter Zetsu and rest.
• Bai Zhu kept watch alone, then heard two increasingly close knocks from beneath the dark sea while the others slept.

Bai Zhu and Morel’s team investigated the expanding Old Trench and discovered that parasites were turning sea life into suspended, thread-covered hosts. Their Mechanical Fish revealed an enormous creature with ghostly green eyes in the trench, and it responded to their signal just as the countdown reached zero.

• Bai Zhu spent the night hearing unexplained knocks from the sea, then concealed the experience when Morel asked about unusual sounds.
• Morel’s team reached the Old Trench, where scans showed that its fissure had widened and the surrounding water was unnaturally still.
• Milluki’s Mechanical Fish recorded parasites infecting ordinary fish within seconds, while ignoring the Black Gold-coated machines.
• Gela Jiang sensed a rhythmic inward current beneath the trench, and the team recorded the same knocking sound Bai Zhu had heard overnight.
• A soundwave opened a passage above the fissure, and a Mechanical Fish was swept toward a massive Black Gold surface with two green eyes.
• The Mechanical Fish received an unknown signal, its response countdown expired, and a voice sounded through the speakers.