Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Love Code”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Li Zhengliang joins the Special Response Department as a low-profile Level 5 superpowered individual. Because Xiao He will be unavailable for most of the next points tournament, Li’s arrival is strategically important.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing visit their island to complete construction of their home with designer Zhang Yuan’s help.
• Zhang Yuan plans the villa’s interior: one bedroom, living room, kitchen, bathroom, gym, reading area, glass-domed lounge, and an attic intended for future children and stargazing.
• Xiao He uses his powers to transform seawater into advanced construction material, impressing Zhang Yuan and demonstrating the extraordinary nature of his abilities.
• The Research Department tests the house while Xiao He and Ye Wanqing receive two prototypes:
  • An antimatter generator capable of supplying enormous amounts of electricity.
  • A freshwater filtration device that provides a nearly unlimited water supply.
• The Special Response Department helps furnish and equip the house. Xiao He transports everyone back using his dimensional ability, while Wu Changchun gives him a purple ring and subtly encourages him to propose.
• Returning to the island, Xiao He proposes to Ye Wanqing. She tests him with the “Love Code,” 831143, which Xiao He interprets as “I love you”: eight letters, three words, one sentence, with the numbers matching “I,” “love,” and “you.”
• Ye Wanqing accepts. The two become engaged, though they plan to register their marriage and hold a wedding once she is old enough.
• Xiao He reveals that the ring was made from a rare Martian gemstone, obtained during a previous trip with Wu Changchun.
• The chapter ends with the newly engaged couple happily settling into their home and teasing one another about dinner and spending their first night there.

Character Developments

• Xiao He becomes more openly domestic and future-oriented. He imagines raising children with Ye Wanqing and willingly commits to building a permanent life with her.
• Ye Wanqing moves from being Xiao He’s girlfriend to his fiancée. She is initially playful and teasing, but her emotional reaction shows how deeply meaningful the proposal is to her.
• Zhang Yuan is introduced as a brilliant, highly capable architect whose expertise complements Xiao He’s superhuman construction abilities.
• Wu Changchun demonstrates both institutional support and personal warmth by providing advanced technology and quietly giving Xiao He the engagement ring.
• The Special Response Department staff express gratitude toward Xiao He for repeatedly protecting them from disasters, reinforcing his importance to the organization and the public.

Significant Themes

• Love as shared interpretation: The “Love Code” has no objectively fixed meaning. Its answer becomes “I love you” because that is what both characters want it to mean.
• Building a future together: The house symbolizes Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s relationship. Its rooms, attic, reading space, and future family plans reflect their growing commitment.
• Science and superpowers: Advanced technology and Xiao He’s abilities combine to create a home far beyond normal human standards, emphasizing the story’s blend of romance, science fiction, and superhuman fantasy.
• Reciprocity and gratitude: Xiao He protects society, while the department supports him by helping create a comfortable private life.
• Domestic intimacy: Despite the grand scale of their powers and technology, the chapter focuses on ordinary happiness—choosing furniture, cooking, decorating, and returning home together.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He repeatedly consults Ye Wanqing about the house, showing that he views it as their shared home rather than something he is building alone.
• Zhang Yuan professionally guides their design choices while enthusiastically admiring Xiao He’s construction abilities.
• Wu Changchun exchanges meaningful hints with Xiao He, giving him the ring and encouraging him to seize the moment.
• The department employees and Zhang Yuan share heartfelt appreciation for Xiao He’s past heroism.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s proposal scene combines teasing, emotional vulnerability, and mutual trust, ending with Ye Wanqing happily accepting him as her future husband.

Summary of “Good News”

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He proposes to Ye Wanqing on their private tropical island, presenting her with an extraordinary Purple Crystal Ring made after his journey to Mars. She happily accepts, and they become engaged.
• The couple spends the night celebrating their engagement and discussing their future. They consider holding their wedding on the island, but agree that it will likely wait until after university graduation because of their special identities.
• The next morning, they return to Beichang City and decide to share the news with their parents and colleagues in the Special Response Department.
• At the arena, everyone notices Ye Wanqing’s ring and enthusiastically congratulates the couple. The group jokes about their future children, godchildren, and wedding plans.
• Xiao He briefly leaves Ye Wanqing to get breakfast and meets Sebastian, who asks him to come to the training room under the pretense of teaching him Lane-Shift Kick.
• Sebastian privately warns Xiao He that M Country has sent—or intends to send—a far more dangerous replacement for him. This individual is a powerful Level 5 Mutant with severe mental instability.
• The chapter ends with President Herlangni learning that this dangerous Mutant escaped before being transported to Dragon Country. Furious, he threatens the officials responsible.

2. Character Developments

• Xiao He becomes more openly committed to a domestic future with Ye Wanqing. He imagines having children, bringing their parents to the island, and eventually retiring from Yinglong’s work after completing his current arena obligations.
• Ye Wanqing embraces her new identity as Xiao He’s fiancée and shows greater confidence and playfulness in their relationship. She is affectionate, proud of the engagement, and begins thinking seriously about marriage and children.
• Sebastian reveals that he is only a substitute for the more powerful Mutant originally selected by M Country. His warning shows that he is concerned for Xiao He despite being monitored himself.
• President Herlangni is portrayed as volatile and politically pressured, reacting with outrage when he learns that the dangerous Mutant has escaped.
• The Special Response Department members respond warmly to Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s engagement, reinforcing their close-knit group dynamic.

3. Significant Themes

• Love and commitment: The engagement marks the couple’s transition from romance toward marriage and family life.
• Domestic happiness amid extraordinary circumstances: Despite their roles as powerful supernatural agents, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing focus on cooking, breakfast, household comforts, and future children.
• Privacy and identity: Their unusual identities make a traditional wedding and involvement from ordinary friends difficult, so they discuss limiting the ceremony to trusted colleagues and family.
• The contrast between peace and danger: The island represents safety and intimacy, while the warning about M Country’s Mutant introduces a looming external threat.
• Power and instability: Sebastian’s explanation highlights the danger of abilities that are powerful but difficult to control, especially when governments attempt to weaponize them.

4. Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing tease and flirt constantly, with affectionate exchanges about calling him “husband,” their engagement, and future children.
• They discuss whether their relationship has progressed too quickly, ultimately deciding that spending nearly all their time together has made their bond comparable to a much longer relationship.
• Ye Wanqing proudly shows her ring to Tuantuan and to their colleagues, while Xiao He jokingly calls her foolish for showing off to the cat.
• Xie Haining, Cui Man, Xia Yu, An Xiuru, and Li Xue react to the engagement with congratulations, jokes about children, and playful complaints about being single.
• Sebastian draws Xiao He aside and shifts the mood from celebration to seriousness by warning him about the escaped Mutant.
• The final interaction between Herlangni and Schofield emphasizes the political consequences of the escape and sets up a major threat for future chapters.

Chapter Summary: “Building a Base on Mars”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He trains with Sebastian in the Brazilian Kick, learning to use recoil and shifting momentum to alter the kick’s trajectory. Sebastian warns him to be cautious of newcomers.
• The team postpones Ye Wanqing and Xiao He’s engagement celebration because Xiao He must help Wu Changchun and the Research Department.
• Wu reveals that the day’s mission is to establish a temporary research base on Mars. First, they test a newly modified spacesuit adapted for Martian conditions.
• Xiao He transports the researchers to Mars using his Perfect Cube and Dimensional Walker. The spacesuit functions successfully, though its weight—especially around the head—makes movement difficult.
• Using his ability to convert atmospheric particles into materials, Xiao He constructs a durable, cube-shaped Mars Base from advanced nanomaterials. The base contains laboratories, living quarters, storage areas, an airlock, circulation systems, and an Antimatter Generator.
• Xiao He transports the completed base to Mars, anchors it to the ground, and helps the astronauts activate its power, oxygen, temperature, and air-pressure systems.
• The astronauts confirm that the interior is comfortable and suitable for long-term habitation, even allowing them to remove their spacesuits.
• Wu Changchun becomes overwhelmed with emotion at seeing humans living on Mars. Xiao He then demonstrates that he can duplicate the entire base, causing Wu to faint from shock. They decide to create only two bases initially.
• As the researchers prepare their equipment, NASA receives blurry images of the structures. They mistakenly interpret them as evidence of Martian civilization and decide to conceal the discovery, especially from Dragon Country.

Character Developments

• Xiao He continues developing his combat abilities and shows both humility and confidence. He feels obligated to repay the Research Department’s help and willingly assists with the Mars project.
• His extraordinary powers become even more significant: he can create materials from air, construct complex structures, transport people across dimensions, and replicate entire bases.
• Ye Wanqing remains affectionate and supportive of Xiao He. She eagerly joins him on Mars, worries about his safety, and shares playful romantic moments with him.
• Wu Changchun is portrayed as a passionate, ambitious scientist. His excitement at achieving human habitation on Mars overwhelms him emotionally, highlighting how deeply he values scientific progress.
• Sebastian establishes himself as a skilled mentor and fighter who understands Xiao He’s techniques well enough to counter them.
• The astronauts demonstrate adaptability and professionalism as they test the spacesuit and base systems under unprecedented conditions.

Significant Themes

• Scientific progress and human ambition: The Mars Base represents a major leap in space exploration and the possibility of permanent extraterrestrial habitation.
• The tension between extraordinary power and scientific limitation: Xiao He can solve enormous engineering problems instantly, while researchers must still test safety, equipment, and human adaptability.
• Companionship and romance: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s close relationship provides warmth and humor amid the ambitious mission.
• Responsibility and reciprocity: Xiao He helps the Research Department because he feels he owes them for building his home, emphasizing mutual support.
• International rivalry and secrecy: NASA’s reaction introduces competition between Dragon Country and M Country, as well as the danger of misinformation and concealed breakthroughs.
• The wonder of discovery: Wu’s emotional reaction reflects the historic importance of humanity’s first successful settlement on another planet.

Character Interactions

• Sebastian coaches Xiao He while teasing him about how predictable his new kick would be in battle.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing exchange affectionate gestures and playful banter throughout the mission.
• Xiao He and Wu Changchun work together as scientist and superpowered engineer, with Wu providing technical direction and Xiao He supplying the means to realize the project.
• Wu’s emotional response to the completed base contrasts with Xiao He’s casual attitude toward an achievement he can reproduce almost effortlessly.
• The astronauts cooperate closely during the spacesuit and habitat tests, while NASA’s scientists react with confusion and political secrecy to the unexpected Martian structures.

Chapter Summary: “Outdoing the Master”

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He helps establish Dragon Country’s first Mars base by transporting astronauts, supplies, experimental equipment, food, and water using the Perfect Cube and Dimensional Walker.
• A massive Martian “Dust Demon,” comparable to an enormous tornado, engulfs the base. Xiao He protects everyone with the Perfect Cube, but the base remains completely unaffected, proving its exceptional durability.
• Wu Changchun explains the Mars mission: six researchers will remain for a month, studying long-term survival, communications, resource gathering, and the possibility of colonizing Mars. The Antimatter Generator has solved the energy problem, but water and food remain major challenges.
• Wu predicts that a conventional spacecraft capable of reaching Mars will soon be developed. Xiao He declines a monetary reward and instead asks for an island for himself and Ye Wanqing.
• After returning to Earth, Xiao He and Cui Man watch the ongoing superpowered tournament. Thousand Magnet defeats Y Country’s Apasi using a dramatically improved version of his attraction-and-repulsion ability.
• Xie Haining notices that Thousand Magnet’s powers have changed since the group stage. He no longer needs to mark targets with positive and negative poles, suggesting that his ability has evolved or that he is concealing his true identity.
• Ruiwen confronts Thousand Magnet after the match. He suspects that the man is an impostor and forces him into a private training room.
• Thousand Magnet reveals that he is actually Adam, a shapeshifter with the Superpower “Replication.” He can copy the abilities of up to five people and evolve them into stronger versions.
• Adam claims that the original Thousand Magnet has disappeared. He proposes cooperating with Ruiwen to defeat Yinglong, offering to weaken Yinglong while Ruiwen uses his own power to defeat and plunder Yinglong’s physical strength.
• Adam secretly copies Ruiwen’s Superpower through skin contact. His final statement—that there is no need for two or three “gods”—reveals that he likely has a broader and more dangerous plan.

2. Character Developments

• Xiao He continues to demonstrate immense usefulness beyond combat. His powers make him essential to space exploration, emergency protection, and national technological development. He remains modest, preferring an island over official rewards, and shows affection toward Ye Wanqing.
• Ye Wanqing accompanies Xiao He to Mars, highlighting their close relationship. She finds the Martian environment strange and less enjoyable than their island home.
• Wu Changchun becomes increasingly enthusiastic about Dragon Country’s future in space. His ambition borders on reckless excitement, though Xiao He helps manage his health by returning him to Earth.
• Cui Man remains practical and observant. She jokes with Xiao He about living on Mars but immediately recognizes the need to investigate Thousand Magnet’s suspicious transformation.
• Xie Haining proves attentive and analytical by identifying the differences between Thousand Magnet’s current ability and its earlier version.
• Ruiwen is shown as physically dominant, aggressive, and highly suspicious. He easily restrains Adam, but his desire to defeat Yinglong makes him willing to consider an alliance.
• Adam emerges as the chapter’s principal threat. He is deceptive, ambitious, and manipulative, hiding his identity while improving copied abilities. His excitement after copying Ruiwen suggests that he may be using the proposed alliance for a larger objective rather than genuinely cooperating.

3. Significant Themes

• Scientific progress and national ambition: The Mars base represents humanity’s first major step toward extraterrestrial colonization, while the Antimatter Generator and Perfect Cube symbolize the fusion of superpowers and advanced technology.
• Humanity’s vulnerability versus technological protection: The enormous Dust Demon demonstrates Mars’s dangers, but the base’s immunity shows how technology can make survival possible in hostile environments.
• Power evolution and imitation: Adam’s Replication ability reflects the chapter’s title. He does not merely copy others; he improves upon them, raising the question of whether the student can surpass the master.
• Trust and deception: Adam presents cooperation as mutually beneficial, but his secretive behavior and ominous final words imply betrayal. Ruiwen’s suspicion is justified, yet his ambition makes him vulnerable to manipulation.
• The pursuit of ultimate power: Both Ruiwen and Adam seek Yinglong’s strength, but Adam’s goal appears broader. His reference to multiple “gods” suggests a plan to eliminate or control the strongest superpowered individuals.

4. Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing: They share a relaxed, affectionate hot-pot meal on Mars, contrasting the extraordinary setting with their ordinary relationship.
• Xiao He and Wu Changchun: Their conversation emphasizes Xiao He’s contribution to Dragon Country’s space program and Wu’s ambitious vision for Mars colonization.
• Xiao He and Cui Man: Their playful exchange about owning a house on Mars shows their familiarity, while their discussion of the tournament shifts the chapter back to the superpowered conflict.
• Xie Haining, Cui Man, and Xiao He: They analyze Thousand Magnet’s unusual ability changes and agree that his identity and power evolution require investigation.
• Ruiwen and Adam: Their confrontation moves from intimidation to a temporary alliance. Ruiwen threatens Adam, while Adam manipulates Ruiwen’s desire to defeat Yinglong to obtain a copy of his power.
• Adam and Ruiwen’s final exchange: Adam successfully replicates Ruiwen’s Superpower through physical contact, but conceals his true intentions, setting up a dangerous conflict between the two supposed allies.

Chapter Summary: The One Left Holding the Bag

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing host an engagement celebration at their island resort with their fellow Mutants and friends.
• The group drinks heavily, despite Xiao He’s warnings about the alcohol content. Most of the guests become drunk, while Xiao He and Xie Haining remain sober because of their abilities.
• Xiao He carries the intoxicated Ye Wanqing to bed after she affectionately calls him “hubby” and drunkenly talks about having two children together.
• While cleaning up, the group discusses the political pressure facing Mutants. Conservative domestic factions want to control, monitor, or imprison Mutants, especially powerful combinations like Xiao He and Ye Wanqing. Cui Man has been protecting them and advocating for Mutants to become heroes.
• Xie Xinya gives Xiao He a saved candy and wishes for her father, Xie Haining, to remain healthy. Xie Haining reassures her that his illness is cured.
• The next morning, everyone recovers from the hangover and watches the sunrise together. The gathering strengthens Xiao He’s sense of belonging and confirms how much he values his new companions.
• Cui Man announces that the team’s next competition match against Group B will take place the following day.
• Before the match, Cui Man warns that M Country’s large number of Level 5 Mutants makes Group B extremely dangerous.
• Xiao He, Xie Haining, and the newcomer Li Zhengliang—who uses the title Qilin—are selected for the opening match.
• Li Zhengliang transfers his martial arts techniques, Iron Shirt and Wave-Treading Steps, temporarily to Xie Haining and Xiao He. He reveals that his abilities can be passed to future successors, making Qilin a renewable legacy.
• Xiao He realizes that Qilin can replace him as a lasting national symbol, whereas there can never be another Yinglong. He prepares to use the new Superpower granted to him through Ruiwen’s Usurpation.

Character Developments

• Xiao He becomes more emotionally open and recognizes that he has built a genuine family among the Mutants. His love for Ye Wanqing deepens, and he vows never to leave her.
• Ye Wanqing openly expresses her desire for marriage and children, revealing how deeply her childhood loneliness still affects her. Her affectionate drunkenness emphasizes her trust and attachment to Xiao He.
• Cui Man is shown as both a carefree friend and a responsible leader. Despite her drinking, she carries heavy political pressure to defend the Mutants from hostile authorities.
• Xie Haining demonstrates his devotion to his family, especially Tong Xiaojie and Xie Xinya, while acknowledging the danger and responsibility of remaining a Mutant.
• Xie Xinya displays unusual thoughtfulness by saving a candy for Xiao He and wishing only for her father’s health.
• Li Zhengliang/Qilin is introduced as disciplined, traditional, and highly versatile. His ability to transfer martial arts establishes him as a potential successor-based counterpart to Yinglong.
• The wider team grows closer through their celebration, shared recovery, and preparation for the tournament.

Significant Themes

• Found family and belonging: Xiao He contrasts his former isolation with the companionship he has gained through the Special Response Department.
• Love, marriage, and family: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s engagement symbolizes their commitment, while their discussion of children reflects their desire to overcome loneliness by creating a supportive family.
• Responsibility versus freedom: Friends advise Xiao He and Xie Haining to consider their families’ safety, while political factions seek to restrict Mutants for public security.
• Legacy and succession: Qilin’s transferable martial arts represent continuity and the possibility of successors, contrasting with Yinglong’s unique and irreplaceable role.
• Hope after hardship: The sunrise serves as a symbol of renewed strength and the belief that difficulties can be overcome together.
• Power and political fear: The authorities’ suspicion of powerful Mutants highlights the conflict between heroic individualism and governmental control.

Character Interactions

• Cui Man pressures Xia Yu and Ye Wanqing to drink, creating the chaotic but affectionate engagement celebration.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share intimate, playful exchanges that reveal their emotional closeness and future hopes.
• Tong Xiaojie counsels Xiao He to prioritize Ye Wanqing’s feelings and consider leaving dangerous Mutant conflicts behind.
• Xie Haining and Xiao He discuss Cui Man’s political burdens and the threats posed by domestic factions.
• Xiao He bonds warmly with Xie Xinya after receiving her candy and promising to protect her and her family.
• The team jokes about their drinking abilities, reinforcing their camaraderie.
• Li Zhengliang supports Xiao He and Xie Haining by lending them his martial arts, while his explanation of succession causes Xiao He to reflect on Yinglong’s uniqueness.

Chapter Summary: “A Feast for the Eyes”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Dragon Country’s three fighters—Xiao He, Xie Haining, and Li Zhengliang—enter the arena against the O Continent United Team: Dragon Hawk, Butcher, and Heavy Artillery.
• The O Continent team deliberately sends out its less important fighters, saving its strongest member, Shier Nash, for the semifinals.
• Xiao He immediately attacks Heavy Artillery but is intercepted by Dragon Hawk. Li Zhengliang assigns himself to Dragon Hawk, tells Xiao He to fight Butcher, and leaves Xie Haining to deal with Heavy Artillery.
• Xiao He discovers that Li Zhengliang’s movement ability, Wave-Treading Steps, solves his lack of rapid mobility. He then battles Butcher, whose Psychokinesis manifests as invisible butcher’s knives.
• By using unpredictable movement and exploiting the difficulty of targeting fast-moving opponents, Xiao He avoids Butcher’s attacks and defeats him with a feint followed by a high kick. His Usurpation ability absorbs part of Butcher’s strength, raising Xiao He’s Physique to Level 2.
• Xie Haining defeats Heavy Artillery through the principles of Tai Chi. Rather than resisting the boxer’s overwhelming strength, he redirects and combines Heavy Artillery’s momentum, eventually driving him into the ground and knocking him unconscious.
• Li Zhengliang fights Dragon Hawk in a spectacular aerial battle. Dragon Hawk uses animal-themed tattoos to invoke different animal abilities, while Li employs numerous martial arts techniques, including qinggong, Dark Nether Palm, Six Meridian Divine Sword, Tiger Claw, Mantis Fist, and Nine Yang Divine Skill.
• Li ultimately overwhelms Dragon Hawk with a sequence of attacks, ending with a powerful palm strike that sends him crashing to the ground.
• The commentator praises the Dragon Country fighters for making the match an unforgettable spectacle.

Character Developments

• Xiao He gains confidence in his new movement ability and confirms that Usurpation can permanently strengthen him by absorbing defeated enemies’ power. His goal of becoming less dependent on others’ abilities begins to succeed.
• Xie Haining demonstrates that his calm, philosophical understanding of Tai Chi translates into extremely effective combat. He reveals himself as a fighter capable of defeating a vastly stronger opponent through precision, timing, and control rather than brute force.
• Li Zhengliang showcases an extraordinarily broad martial-arts repertoire and adapts fluidly between techniques. Although he has given his defensive Iron Shirt ability to Xie Haining, he remains capable of fighting powerful aerial opponents through skill and versatility.
• Dragon Hawk, Butcher, and Heavy Artillery each display formidable abilities, but their confidence and distinctive powers are defeated by the Dragon Country team’s superior coordination and technique.

Significant Themes

• Skill versus raw power: Xie Haining’s victory over Heavy Artillery emphasizes that technique, balance, and redirection can overcome overwhelming strength.
• Growth through combat: Xiao He’s Usurpation ability turns every victory into permanent personal advancement, reinforcing the idea that experience and conquest build power.
• Adaptability and versatility: The three Dragon Country fighters each use varied techniques and adjust to their opponents’ abilities rather than relying on a single tactic.
• Spectacle and performance: The battle is not merely a contest of strength; its dramatic movements, supernatural martial arts, and visual effects make it entertainment for the audience.
• Team dynamics: Although the fighters battle separately, their assignments reflect tactical judgment and mutual trust, with each member taking on the opponent best suited to their abilities.

Character Interactions

• Li Zhengliang strategically divides the matchups, recognizing that Xiao He’s abilities can suppress Butcher’s vicious energy while he handles Dragon Hawk.
• Xiao He and Dragon Hawk briefly clash before Li Zhengliang intervenes, showing the team’s willingness to support one another.
• Butcher taunts Xiao He and grows increasingly frustrated when his Psychokinetic attacks fail, while Xiao He remains focused on exploiting his weaknesses.
• Heavy Artillery mocks Tai Chi, but Xie Haining calmly demonstrates its effectiveness and repeatedly humiliates him by neutralizing his punches.
• Dragon Hawk and Li Zhengliang exchange both verbal confidence and increasingly elaborate martial techniques, turning their duel into the chapter’s most visually dramatic confrontation.

Chapter Summary: “The One Person Who Could Counter Yinglong”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Dragon Country’s opening victory, the team continues dominating Group B. Although they do not win every individual match, the best-of-three format gives them the overall advantage, and they finish the day with four wins and one loss.
• Xiao He chooses not to participate in the remaining preliminary matches. Since his Usurpation ability yields more power from stronger opponents, he saves his appearances for the semifinals and finals.
• Dragon Country’s newcomers, Li Zhengliang, Qin Weize, and Li Xue, win their match with difficulty. Li Zhengliang carries the fight and uses his internal-energy ability to heal Qin Weize and Li Xue’s internal injuries, leading to playful and flirtatious exchanges with Li Xue.
• For the crucial first match against M Country, Cui Man sends out Dragon Country’s strongest lineup: Yinglong (Xiao He), Bixi (Han Tianyu), and Black Tortoise (An Xiuru).
• M Country fields Ball Thrower, Taro, and Blastproof Man. Their strategy is to neutralize Dragon Country’s two support fighters while preventing Xiao He from reaching Taro.
• Taro’s card-based Superpower disrupts Han Tianyu’s support abilities by inflicting blindness and later weakens An Xiuru with fear. Xiao He’s Purification removes Han’s blindness but also erases the enhancements Han and An Xiuru had applied.
• Blastproof Man reveals a defensive ability similar to Perfect Cube, creating a crystal shield that absorbs Xiao He’s attacks. Taro’s “The Lovers” card links her to Blastproof Man, transferring damage between them.
• Ball Thrower attacks with projectiles that accelerate endlessly. His rubber balls and steel balls force Xiao He to defend his teammates, while An Xiuru cleverly alters the marbles’ hardness so they shatter harmlessly.
• Ball Thrower then reveals his true counter to Yinglong: instead of throwing objects at Xiao He, he pushes Xiao He directly. Since Xiao He is nearly indestructible, he becomes an ideal projectile that can be continuously accelerated.
• Xiao He is driven backward through a wall and appears unable to stop. Taro then uses a card to make An Xiuru panic, allowing Ball Thrower to strike her and send a rapidly accelerating rubber ball toward Han Tianyu.
• At the last moment, Xiao He reappears and catches the ball effortlessly. The damage to the wall behind him is surprisingly shallow, implying that he found a way to halt or control the acceleration.
• Xiao He identifies himself as the true “accelerator,” turning Ball Thrower’s apparent advantage against him and setting up his counterattack.

Character Developments

• Xiao He/Yinglong: Shows strategic restraint by saving his Usurpation opportunities for stronger opponents. During the match, he initially misjudges Ball Thrower’s threat but quickly recognizes the danger of being used as an indestructible projectile. His final recovery demonstrates that he possesses a new or previously hidden method of controlling momentum.
• Han Tianyu/Bixi: Remains an inexperienced but determined support fighter. He is embarrassed by An Xiuru’s teasing but performs responsibly, attempting to protect Xiao He with summoned walls even when frightened and under pressure.
• An Xiuru/Black Tortoise: Demonstrates tactical creativity by weakening Ball Thrower’s projectiles and willingly engaging Taro to draw attention away from the others. Taro’s fear effect temporarily overwhelms her, but her earlier actions help create an opening.
• Li Zhengliang/Qilin: Establishes himself as a highly capable combatant and healer, effectively carrying his team’s difficult victory. His modest, pure-hearted personality contrasts humorously with Li Xue’s provocative teasing.
• Taro: Proves to be a dangerous support fighter whose guaranteed effects can disable opponents regardless of physical strength. She uses her cards intelligently to disrupt supports, transfer damage, and exploit fear.
• Ball Thrower: Initially appears to be a long-range attacker, but reveals himself as a specialized counter to Xiao He. His ability to accelerate thrown objects indefinitely becomes especially dangerous when combined with Xiao He’s indestructible body.
• Blastproof Man: Functions as M Country’s defensive shield, absorbing attacks and protecting Taro while also serving as the linked target for her damage-sharing ability.

Significant Themes

• Strength can become vulnerability: Xiao He’s indestructibility, normally his greatest advantage, allows Ball Thrower to use him as a weapon against his own team.
• Teamwork and support: The battle emphasizes the importance of protecting support fighters. Both teams focus on disabling the opposing side’s buffers rather than simply overpowering the strongest combatant.
• Adaptability and hidden abilities: Victory depends less on raw power than on recognizing the opponent’s true strategy and adapting quickly.
• Deception and misdirection: Ball Thrower disguises his most dangerous technique behind ordinary projectile attacks, while Taro’s seemingly random cards create unpredictable battlefield conditions.
• Comedic character dynamics amid danger: The serious tournament is balanced by Li Xue’s flirtation, Han Tianyu’s nervousness, and An Xiuru’s teasing, giving the team a lively interpersonal atmosphere.

Important Character Interactions

• Li Zhengliang heals Qin Weize and Li Xue, prompting Qin’s admiration and Li Xue’s flirtatious advances, which visibly embarrass him.
• Cui Man assigns Xiao He, Han Tianyu, and An Xiuru to the opening match against M Country because she believes the opponents may have hidden strength.
• Han Tianyu supports Xiao He and An Xiuru with written barriers, while An Xiuru alters projectiles to protect the team.
• Taro repeatedly targets Han and An Xiuru, understanding that weakening them will leave Xiao He isolated.
• Xiao He clashes directly with Blastproof Man but is blocked by the latter’s near-perfect defense.
• Ball Thrower exploits Xiao He’s durability by pushing him as an endlessly accelerating projectile.
• After Ball Thrower believes Xiao He has been defeated, Xiao He returns in time to catch the final rubber ball, revealing that the enemy’s acceleration strategy may have created the conditions for Xiao He’s counterattack.

Chapter Summary: “Accelerator”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He activates Vector Control in combination with his mechanically enhanced brain, effectively becoming an “Accelerator.” His mechanical body allows him to withstand extreme hardening from An Xiuru’s ability without impairing bodily functions.
• He rescues An Xiuru from Taro’s fear effect, purifies her, and receives defensive, strength, and speed enhancements from Han Tianyu.
• Taro uses Tarot Cards to support her teammates:
  • The Hermit makes Ball Thrower invisible.
  • Death enhances Ball Thrower’s attack with a continuous-damage effect.
• Xiao He tests his vector manipulation on Blastproof Man’s supposedly invincible shield. By disrupting the force-distribution structure inside it, he shatters the shield with a tiny stone—and later even with a strand of hair.
• Ball Thrower launches a complex barrage of steel balls and ricocheting rubber balls. Xiao He deflects the steel balls and catches the rubber balls, but the Death card causes black flames and continuing damage on his hands.
• Mechanical Modification begins overheating from the immense calculations required for Vector Control. Han Tianyu cools him with a “Cold” enhancement, prompting Xiao He to end the battle quickly.
• Xiao He uses gravity manipulation to pin Taro’s Tarot Card and deck to the ground, preventing her from drawing more cards and effectively disabling her.
• By focusing on abnormal vectors created when Ball Thrower attacks, Xiao He locates the invisible fighter.
• He stops Ball Thrower’s rubber ball in midair, redirects it through all three opponents, and knocks out Ball Thrower, Blastproof Man, and Taro simultaneously.
• The host declares Xiao He the victor over the previously undefeated “iron triangle” of the M Country Team.

Character Developments

• Xiao He/Yinglong: Demonstrates the terrifying potential of Vector Control and Mechanical Modification. He evolves from relying on raw strength to using precise, elegant, computer-like calculations. However, his mechanical body is vulnerable to overlooked attacks, and prolonged use causes dangerous processor overheating.
• An Xiuru: Recovers from fear and actively supports Xiao He by hardening his mechanical body. Her flirtatious teasing creates tension with Han Tianyu and highlights her bold personality.
• Han Tianyu: Shows loyalty and usefulness as a support fighter, providing purification, physical boosts, and cooling assistance when Xiao He’s processor overheats.
• Taro: Proves herself tactically dangerous through random but reliable Tarot effects, though her dependence on drawing cards becomes a major weakness once Xiao He restrains her.
• Ball Thrower: Remains the enemy team’s central offensive threat. His invisibility and unpredictable, multi-stage throwing techniques make him difficult to counter, but Xiao He eventually tracks him through the vectors generated by his attacks.
• Blastproof Man: His confidence in Absolute Defense collapses when Xiao He exposes the structural weakness of his shield.

Significant Themes

• Perception versus reality: Abilities that appear absolute or invincible can be defeated by understanding their underlying mechanics.
• Intelligence overcoming brute force: Xiao He does not overpower Blastproof Man directly; he analyzes and redirects the forces sustaining the shield.
• Technology and human ability: Mechanical Modification greatly expands Xiao He’s power, but the overheating warning shows that enhanced capability comes with physical and computational limits.
• Teamwork and complementary powers: Xiao He’s success depends on An Xiuru’s hardening, Han Tianyu’s support, and his own Vector Control working together.
• Control versus chaos: Ball Thrower’s attacks rely on irregular timing and ricochets, while Xiao He imposes perfect control over every projectile and movement.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He calmly directs Han Tianyu to focus on defense, while An Xiuru jokes about wanting him as a fiancé. Han Tianyu reacts irritably because Xiao He’s actual fiancée is present.
• Xiao He humorously provokes An Xiuru by pulling out one of her hairs, then uses it as a vector-controlled weapon against Blastproof Man.
• Taro repeatedly insults and pressures Blastproof Man after his shield is broken, revealing the strain within the enemy team.
• Xiao He and Taro engage in a battle of ability control: she relies on drawing Tarot Cards, while he immobilizes the cards and deck.
• The final exchange emphasizes Xiao He’s composure: he defeats all three opponents with a single redirected rubber ball and ends the match with the understated remark, “Done.”

Chapter Summary: “Crisis”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He explains the weakness of his Accelerator state: overwhelming him with useless data increases his computational burden and shortens the ability’s duration. Despite lasting only about three minutes, he successfully uses Usurpation to steal the powers of three opponents and believes he may reach LV3 or LV4 by the tournament’s end.
• After returning to the lounge, Xiao He is praised by Ye Wanqing and Cui Man. Because he is overheated, Cui Man orders Li Zhengliang, Yue Feng, and Zhang Ming to fight the next match.
• Xiao He cools himself with ice cream, sharing a bite with Ye Wanqing. Their affectionate exchange becomes a lighthearted moment amid the tournament’s tension.
• M Country reveals three previously unseen fighters: Lone King, Spore Man, and Thousand Magnet, apparently sending out trump cards after losing the previous match.
• The battle quickly turns against Dragon Country:
  • Lone King traps Zhang Ming inside an octagonal “duel” cage, forcing a one-on-one fight and neutralizing his illusion-based abilities.
  • Thousand Magnet uses gravity and repulsion to counter Yue Feng. Yue Feng’s different defensive strengths against frontal and rear attacks are exposed.
  • Spore Man infects Li Zhengliang with parasitic and poisonous spores that drain his internal energy.
• Lone King defeats Zhang Ming decisively, eventually breaking his arm and knocking him unconscious. Thousand Magnet defeats Yue Feng, though Yue Feng nearly catches him off guard because of his sense of fairness and refusal to attack a distracted opponent.
• Li Zhengliang briefly turns the fight around by sealing Lone King’s acupoints and attacking Thousand Magnet. However, Spore Man’s poison takes effect, causing Li Zhengliang to collapse.
• Spore Man and Thousand Magnet insult Li Zhengliang and make racist remarks while humiliating him. Lone King objects to their arrogance and prejudice, reminding them that their victory depends largely on his contribution.
• Just as Spore Man prepares to stomp Li Zhengliang’s head, he is suddenly blasted away. Xiao He appears, carrying the injured Li Zhengliang, Yue Feng, and Zhang Ming.
• Xiao He calmly threatens Thousand Magnet and Spore Man, inviting them to face him in the next match. His quiet fury terrifies both opponents. He then leaves the arena with his teammates, ending the chapter on a threatening cliffhanger.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Demonstrates growing confidence in his ability to steal powers and recognizes his own limits. Though physically overheated and unable to fight immediately, witnessing his teammates’ abuse awakens intense protective anger. His calm threat at the end suggests a major retaliation is coming.
• Li Zhengliang: Shows strong individual combat ability and adaptability, using Wave-Treading Steps and Acupoint-Sealing Art to nearly defeat the opposing team alone. His support-oriented abilities also prove useful, but poison and exhaustion leave him vulnerable.
• Yue Feng: Remains impulsive, proud, and hot-blooded, charging recklessly into battle. However, he displays personal honor by refusing to attack Thousand Magnet while his attention is elsewhere.
• Zhang Ming: His illusion abilities are powerful in team combat but ineffective in a forced one-on-one fight. He panics under pressure and suffers a serious defeat, exposing the limits of his combat training.
• Lone King: Emerges as a highly skilled close-combat fighter whose forced-duel ability is particularly effective in team battles. He is arrogant but possesses more honor than his teammates and condemns their racist behavior.
• Thousand Magnet: Uses his gravity and repulsion powers intelligently, exploiting Yue Feng’s defensive weakness. His confidence and contempt for others reveal a cruel, provocative personality.
• Spore Man: Reveals himself as a poisonous, parasitic fighter who wins through attrition and deception. His sadistic behavior and racist insults make him especially detestable.
• Ye Wanqing and Cui Man: Ye Wanqing continues developing a warm, affectionate bond with Xiao He, while Cui Man acts as a practical leader who manages team rotations and recognizes the tactical danger of the opposing abilities.

Significant Themes

• Power and vulnerability: Even seemingly invincible abilities have exploitable weaknesses, such as Xiao He’s computational overload and the team’s dependence on coordinated combat.
• Teamwork versus individual strength: Lone King’s ability exposes weak members, while Dragon Country’s fighters struggle when separated. The match emphasizes the importance of complementary abilities and battlefield coordination.
• Honor versus cruelty: Yue Feng’s refusal to attack a distracted enemy and Lone King’s objection to racist insults contrast sharply with Spore Man and Thousand Magnet’s taunts and humiliation.
• Hidden abilities and tactical discovery: The battle centers on identifying weaknesses—Xiao He’s processing limit, Yue Feng’s uneven defenses, Spore Man’s delayed poison, and Zhang Ming’s lack of offensive power.
• Protective loyalty and righteous anger: Xiao He’s final appearance shows that his teammates’ suffering affects him more deeply than the competition itself. His restrained fury suggests that retaliation will follow.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share an affectionate ice-cream exchange, reinforcing their growing intimacy.
• Cui Man directs the team’s strategy and chooses Li Zhengliang, Yue Feng, and Zhang Ming to fight after Xiao He’s overexertion.
• Lone King isolates Zhang Ming and defeats him in a brutal one-on-one battle.
• Thousand Magnet taunts Yue Feng, while Yue Feng’s straightforward courage clashes with Thousand Magnet’s evasive tactics.
• Spore Man poisons and humiliates Li Zhengliang, with Thousand Magnet encouraging the mockery.
• Lone King criticizes his teammates’ arrogance and racism, creating tension within M Country’s team.
• Xiao He confronts Thousand Magnet and Spore Man indirectly, rescuing his teammates and promising a future match that leaves both opponents terrified.

Chapter Summary: “A Step Away”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He returns to the public lounge with Li Zhengliang, Yue Feng, and Zhang Ming after rescuing them from M Country’s team. He purifies and removes the spore attached to Li Zhengliang, while Yue Feng and Zhang Ming are sent to the infirmary.
• Xiao He immediately returns to the arena, determined to confront M Country’s team. He asks Cui Man to provide two noncombatant teammates so he can enter the required three-person match without exposing more important fighters.
• M Country’s team argues over who must face Xiao He. Spore Man is terrified because he knows Xiao He is targeting him, while Victor, Mike Nader, Thousand Magnet, and others refuse to take responsibility for his actions. Raven eventually agrees to participate, alongside Thousand Magnet and Spore Man.
• Dragon Country sends Zhang Yuxin and Xue Ting as Xiao He’s teammates. They are effectively noncombatants, but Xiao He protects them inside a Perfect Cube before engaging the opposing team.
• Xiao He attacks Spore Man immediately. Using Vector Control to detect Spore Man’s true body underground, he drags him out despite his spore clone and proceeds to beat him severely.
• Thousand Magnet repeatedly attempts to manipulate Xiao’s movements and remove his glove, hoping to touch Xiao He’s hand and activate his own mysterious ability. Each attempt fails, and the force he uses instead pulls him violently across the arena.
• Raven attacks Xiao He to protect Spore Man, but Xiao He’s overwhelming physical strength allows him to ignore and counter every assault. Xiao’s enhanced physique, triggered by his altered player identity, makes him effectively invulnerable to Raven’s attacks.
• Spore Man uses explosive and toxic spores, along with spores that drain Xiao He’s life force, but Xiao He remains unaffected. He continues stomping and striking Spore Man until he is unconscious and nearly killed.
• Xiao He nearly loses control and prepares to deliver a fatal blow, but Ye Wanqing warns him through the earpiece. He regains awareness and stops just short of killing Spore Man.
• Raven manages to tear off Xiao He’s glove while falling, unknowingly creating the opportunity Thousand Magnet needs. Thousand Magnet believes he is only one step away from achieving his goal, but Xiao He traps him in midair before he can make contact.
• Xiao He insults Thousand Magnet’s lack of fighting spirit and knocks him down. He defeats him decisively, leaving both opposing fighters incapacitated.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: His anger over his teammates’ abuse pushes him toward a brutal, uncontrolled state. Although he maintains tactical awareness and protects his own teammates, his violence nearly crosses the line into murder. Ye Wanqing’s intervention helps him regain control. He also demonstrates the effectiveness of Vector Control, Purification, his physical strength, and his combat training.
• Spore Man: His earlier provocations and cowardice catch up with him. He tries to evade responsibility, hide underground, and rely on his abilities, but Xiao He easily tracks and overwhelms him. His fear and helplessness contrast sharply with his previous arrogance.
• Thousand Magnet: He becomes increasingly obsessed with touching Xiao He’s hand, believing doing so will free him from the competition or grant him godlike power. His fixation causes him to neglect basic survival and repeatedly get humiliated.
• Raven: Though sarcastic and reluctant, Raven shows more courage and practical awareness than the others. He recognizes Xiao He’s danger and attempts to intervene, but is ultimately defeated. His accidental removal of Xiao’s glove becomes an important tactical moment.
• Ye Wanqing: She acts as Xiao He’s emotional safeguard, recognizing that he is about to go too far and calling him back from his rage.
• M Country’s team: Their unwillingness to support one another reveals distrust, selfishness, and internal resentment. They treat the battle as both a personal crisis and a political liability.

Significant Themes

• Rage versus self-control: Xiao He’s desire for revenge almost turns justice into slaughter, emphasizing the danger of uncontrolled anger.
• Consequences of provocation: Spore Man’s taunts and mistreatment of Dragon Country’s fighters lead directly to his brutal punishment.
• Cowardice and responsibility: M Country’s team repeatedly tries to shift blame, while the battle exposes who is willing to face the consequences of their actions.
• Power and humiliation: Xiao He’s overwhelming strength strips away the opponents’ confidence and exposes the gap between their abilities and their arrogance.
• The importance of emotional anchors: Ye Wanqing’s intervention proves that Xiao He’s relationships help preserve his humanity when his anger threatens to consume him.
• Hidden intentions and manipulation: Thousand Magnet’s fixation on Xiao He’s glove suggests a larger plan, while the apparent struggle over the glove conceals Raven’s accidental success.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He calmly purifies Li Zhengliang and protects his injured allies before returning to the arena.
• M Country’s members argue bitterly, with Victor accusing Spore Man of causing the crisis and refusing to let others suffer for him.
• Xiao He ignores Spore Man’s attempts to explain himself and attacks without hesitation.
• Raven repeatedly warns Thousand Magnet to focus on survival, but Thousand Magnet remains obsessed with touching Xiao He.
• Xiao He humiliates both opponents verbally and physically, especially Thousand Magnet, whose lack of courage frustrates him.
• Ye Wanqing interrupts Xiao He at the crucial moment, preventing him from killing Spore Man.
• The chapter ends with Xiao He defeating Thousand Magnet and remarking that he needs Ye Wanqing—his “Little Pufferfish”—to calm him down.

Chapter Summary: Why Is It You Again?

Key Plot Points and Events

• After the arena match, Xiao He admits to Xue Ting that although he is physically unharmed, repeated battles have left him mentally exhausted and increasingly aggressive.
• The team celebrates its strong tournament position: it remains undefeated in arena matches and is close to securing first place in its group, which would grant them extra time to prepare.
• Cui Man and the others address the team’s recent defeats. Zhang Ming is especially devastated after his Superpower proves ineffective in a one-on-one fight, while Yue Feng is criticized for relying on reckless head-on combat.
• Zhang Ming asks Xiao He to teach him how to fight, but Cui Man tells him to begin with basic training. She emphasizes that the team’s weakness compared with the Four Cornerstones is mainly a lack of combat experience and practical ability.
• Xiao He worries that his growing aggression is changing him. He nearly killed an opponent during the match, but Ye Wanqing’s voice helped bring him back to his senses. Cui Man gives him three weeks off to recover mentally and return to ordinary life.
• Xie Haining and Xia Yu are assigned to handle the next group of arena matches. Xiao He reminds them that safety matters more than points.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing return to their home in Beichang City instead of staying on the island. They enjoy a peaceful domestic routine—sleeping, cleaning, cooking, teasing each other, and preparing to visit Willow Restaurant.
• At the restaurant, Ye Wanqing proudly announces that she and Xiao He are engaged. The owners warmly congratulate them and admire her unusual amethyst engagement ring, though Xiao He conceals its extraordinary origin.
• Yousuli unexpectedly appears at the restaurant despite supposedly having a match. He insults the restaurant, harasses the owner’s wife, and attempts to force himself on her after she rejects him.
• Xiao He intervenes and brutally defeats Yousuli, slamming him into the floor and rendering him unconscious.
• The restaurant owner secretly disables the cameras before the fight and later claims that an unknown Mutant defended the restaurant, protecting Xiao He and Ye Wanqing from exposure. His apparent foresight suggests that he may possess a predictive ability.
• The Special Response Department arrives and takes Yousuli away. Oliver and Ivan are assigned to escort him as part of their cooperation with the Department, hoping to reduce their prison sentences.
• Ivan and Oliver fail to recognize Xiao He because of his changed appearance. Xiao He silently encourages them, while Oliver comments favorably on the people of Dragon Country.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Shows growing concern about the psychological effects of constant combat. He recognizes that his aggression is becoming dangerous and accepts the need for rest. At home, he relaxes into a playful, affectionate role with Ye Wanqing, but his violent reaction to Yousuli demonstrates how close he still is to losing control.
• Ye Wanqing: Continues to serve as Xiao He’s emotional anchor, helping him regain control after the arena match. She is openly happy about their engagement and embraces their domestic life together. She also displays unexpected courage and fierceness by confronting Yousuli.
• Zhang Ming: Is humbled by his crushing defeat but responds with determination, asking to learn practical combat skills rather than relying solely on his Superpower.
• Yue Feng: Remains stubborn and defensive about his fighting style, but his defeat exposes his lack of experience and the limitations of reckless aggression.
• Cui Man: Takes a firm mentoring role, organizing the team’s training and protecting Xiao He from carrying the entire burden of the tournament. She also shows concern for his mental well-being.
• Yousuli: Is revealed as arrogant, predatory, and abusive. His behavior at the restaurant provokes Xiao He’s intervention and leads to his arrest.
• The restaurant owner and his wife: The wife reveals a sharp, fearless side beneath her usual sweetness, while the owner demonstrates suspiciously accurate foresight and deliberately helps conceal Xiao He’s identity.
• Oliver and Ivan: Continue cooperating with the Special Response Department. Oliver appears to be warming to Dragon Country, while Ivan remains cynical but admits that life there is better than their previous circumstances.

Significant Themes

• The psychological cost of violence: Xiao He’s increasing aggression and fear of becoming “someone else” show that victory in combat carries emotional and moral consequences.
• The importance of emotional support: Ye Wanqing’s intervention and affection help keep Xiao He grounded, while the team shares responsibility for the tournament rather than leaving him to fight alone.
• Home and ordinary happiness: Returning to Beichang City reinforces the contrast between the dangerous tournament world and the comfort of daily life, romance, cooking, and shared chores.
• Growth through failure: Zhang Ming and Yue Feng’s defeats expose their weaknesses, but the losses also motivate them to develop real combat ability and experience.
• Protection and justice: Xiao He’s defense of the restaurant owner’s wife reflects his instinct to protect others, though the severity of his response also raises questions about his self-control.
• Hidden identities and powers: The engagement ring, the owner’s possible precognition, Xiao He’s disguise, and the lack of surveillance all reinforce the chapter’s atmosphere of secrecy.

Important Character Interactions

• Xue Ting and Xiao He discuss his exhaustion and need for mental recovery.
• Cui Man criticizes Zhang Ming and Yue Feng while encouraging them to train, and she assigns Xiao He a three-week leave.
• Ye Wanqing repeatedly comforts Xiao He, helps him regain control, and shares affectionate domestic moments with him.
• Zhang Ming asks Xiao He for combat training, but Cui Man redirects him toward foundational instruction.
• At Willow Restaurant, Ye Wanqing and Xiao He share their engagement with the owners, who respond warmly.
• Yousuli’s harassment of the owner’s wife triggers Xiao He’s violent intervention.
• The owner protects Xiao He and Ye Wanqing by inventing a story about an unknown Mutant and claiming there was no camera footage.
• Xiao He silently interacts with Oliver and Ivan after they fail to recognize him, hinting at the continuing relationship between them.

Chapter Summary: “A Cat Kept for a Thousand Days Comes in Handy Once”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Yousuli is taken away, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing help clean up the restaurant. The proprietress, Yang Xiaoxiao, learns that Ye Wanqing’s boyfriend is a powerful Mutant and jokes about their relationship.
• The restaurant owners thank Xiao He for saving Yang Xiaoxiao by treating the couple to a meal and agree to keep his identity secret.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing attend one of Xiao He’s university classes. Xiao He reflects that he has almost no memories of university life, making him feel as though an important stage of his life was skipped.
• The couple go shopping for household necessities. Xiao He playfully places Ye Wanqing in a shopping cart, while she directs him around the supermarket and chooses discounted ribs.
• At home, Ye Wanqing prepares an elaborate dinner while Xiao He feeds Tuantuan, changes the cat litter, and helps with household chores. Their evening is filled with teasing, affection, and domestic comfort.
• After dinner, they take a walk and discuss the approaching end of the Mutant Competition. Xiao He expects Europe to be their semifinal opponent and the M Country Team to be their likely opponent in the finals.
• Later that night, a large house centipede appears in their room. Despite Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s fear, Tuantuan swiftly kills it, proving unexpectedly useful and saving them from having to use a Superpower.

Character Development

• Xiao He: Shows a growing appreciation for ordinary domestic life with Ye Wanqing. He is affectionate, playful, and comfortable performing household tasks, but remains conscious that their peaceful routine may soon end because of the Mutant Competition. His fear of the centipede also provides a humorous contrast to his usual confidence and combat ability.
• Ye Wanqing: Becomes increasingly relaxed and familiar in her relationship with Xiao He. She comfortably teases, commands, and plays with him, while also demonstrating her domestic skills and caring nature. Although she is frightened by the centipede, she relies on Xiao He and later recognizes Tuantuan’s contribution.
• Tuantuan: Initially appears lazy and indifferent, refusing to play with Xiao He. However, when danger enters the home, it instantly attacks and kills the centipede, earning Xiao He’s admiration and proving that its long-term care has not been wasted.

Significant Themes

• Domestic happiness and normalcy: The chapter emphasizes the simple pleasures of eating together, shopping, cooking, walking, and sharing a home. These ordinary moments are especially meaningful because Xiao He knows their dangerous competition will soon disrupt them.
• Love expressed through everyday interaction: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s affection appears through teasing, physical closeness, shared chores, cooking, and mutual dependence rather than dramatic declarations.
• The contrast between power and ordinary life: Xiao He is a powerful Mutant capable of extraordinary feats, yet he is helpless and frightened by a household insect. The scene humorously shows that supernatural strength does not eliminate ordinary human fears.
• Unexpected usefulness: Tuantuan’s decisive intervention reinforces the idea that seemingly lazy or unhelpful companions may prove valuable at critical moments.
• The cost of a missing past: Xiao He’s lack of university memories causes him to mourn experiences he never had, highlighting the personal consequences of his unusual life.

Character Interactions

• The proprietress and her husband warmly tease Xiao He and Ye Wanqing, while expressing gratitude for Xiao He’s rescue of Yang Xiaoxiao.
• Xiao He affectionately annoys Ye Wanqing throughout the day by touching her, carrying her, placing her in the shopping cart, and flirting with her. Ye Wanqing responds with mock anger, threats to withdraw intimacy, and playful cooperation.
• Their shared meal reflects their intimacy: Ye Wanqing cooks Xiao He’s favorite dishes, films him happily eating, and jokes about recording him after they marry.
• Xiao He interacts with Tuantuan as though it were an ungrateful child, criticizing its laziness while still feeding, caring for, and playing with it.
• During the centipede incident, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing panic together, while Tuantuan calmly handles the threat. Its victory reverses the usual protector dynamic and leaves Xiao He deeply impressed.

Chapter Summary: “Death Amusement Park”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He briefly enjoys ordinary domestic life with Ye Wanqing before returning to his duties during the tournament’s fifth week. Although he is not competing, he must escort dangerous prisoners to the arena.
• At the prison, Xiao He confronts the juggling criminal Adner. Adner attempts to ambush him with explosive juggling balls, but Xiao He easily captures him and seals him inside a crystal ball.
• Xiao also goes to retrieve Ripper Rick, who refuses to participate in the tournament because he is more interested in studying Xiao’s body and blood. Xiao traps him in a mechanical cage, which Rick cannot cut through with his laser-surgery ability.
• Cui Man offers Rick access to fresh samples of Xiao’s blood in exchange for cooperation. Rick eagerly accepts, revealing his ambition to use Xiao’s blood to clone a new Yinglong and gain control over life and death. Xiao remains suspicious but agrees to leave him for further negotiations rather than send him to compete.
• Xiao brings Adner to the arena for his match against Xie Haining. Adner begins the battle by transforming the arena into a bizarre amusement park through his ability, Death Amusement Park.
• Xie Haining initially overwhelms Adner with an extraordinarily precise sequence of gunfire, acrobatics, reloading, and knife evasion. He appears to kill Adner by shooting him repeatedly in the head.
• Adner revives and explains the rules of his amusement park: violence is ineffective inside it, and even his apparent wounds reveal only harmless stuffing. To escape, Xie must collect ten gold coins by completing amusement-park attractions.
• The park has a one-hour time limit, and failure to obtain ten coins leaves a person trapped indefinitely. Adner gleefully begins the game while riding a miniature cartoon car.

Character Developments

• Xiao He remains calm, powerful, and practical, but his threatening treatment of Adner shows his growing impatience with the criminals under his supervision. He also demonstrates a willingness to negotiate when doing so is strategically useful.
• Ye Wanqing and Xiao He’s relationship appears affectionate and domestic. Their playful kiss and teasing exchange provide a brief contrast to Xiao’s dangerous responsibilities.
• Adner is established as a theatrical, sadistic trickster. He treats combat as entertainment, constantly jokes with his opponents, and relies on deception, resurrection, and elaborate rules rather than straightforward attacks.
• Ripper Rick is shown to be obsessive and morally dangerous. His fascination with Xiao’s body outweighs his concern for the tournament, and his talk of cloning Yinglong suggests potentially catastrophic ambitions.
• Xie Haining is portrayed as exceptionally disciplined and technically perfect. His gunplay is so precise and rehearsed that it resembles a flawless magic performance, but he remains composed even after Adner’s apparent death and resurrection.
• The prisoners, including Wasagu and Anna, have become relatively comfortable in prison, spending their free time chatting and discussing movies, suggesting an unusual normalization of their confinement.

Significant Themes

• Appearance versus reality: Adner’s explosions, knives, wounds, and apparent death are all illusions or theatrical effects, emphasizing that nothing in the amusement park can be trusted.
• Violence versus entertainment: Adner condemns violence while constructing a deadly amusement park, turning combat into a game and exposing the contradiction between harmless-looking fun and genuine danger.
• Control and rules: Xiao controls prisoners through force and negotiation, while Adner controls his victims by imposing arbitrary game rules. Both rely on systems that restrict freedom.
• Science and ethics: Rick’s desire to study and clone Xiao raises questions about scientific ambition without moral limits, especially when human life is treated as experimental material.
• Perfection versus unpredictability: Xie Haining’s flawless, carefully calculated combat contrasts with Adner’s chaotic, rule-breaking tricks, setting up a conflict between precision and deception.

Character Interactions

• Xiao and Ye Wanqing share a warm, teasing domestic moment before he leaves.
• Xiao humiliates and restrains Adner after Adner attempts to attack him, reinforcing their adversarial relationship.
• Xiao and Ripper Rick clash over Rick’s refusal to fight, with Cui Man helping broker a deal involving access to Xiao’s blood.
• Xiao jokes about killing Adner during transport, but Adner reminds him that heroes are expected to follow rules.
• Xie Haining and Adner engage in a highly theatrical battle: Xie relies on flawless marksmanship, while Adner transforms the fight into a bizarre game governed by his amusement park’s rules.

Chapter Summary: “The Ultimate Gaming Master”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xie Haining makes a bet with Adner, the amusement park’s sinister master: if he can collect 100 gold coins, Adner must release everyone trapped in the park. If he fails, Adner will devour his soul and turn him into a permanent Joker.
• He begins with a free carousel game. By carefully controlling his balance and center of gravity, Xie avoids being thrown off despite Adner’s increasingly extreme acceleration. He wins his first gold coin.
• Xie then completes a one-coin drop-tower challenge. When the safety harness releases him at the top, he catches a parachute, navigates through flames, spikes, artificial wind, and a Joker’s interference, and lands safely to earn three coins.
• He spends two coins on “Death Drift,” a rafting game filled with hostile monkey soldiers, sharks, and a giant Kraken. Using the raft’s cannonballs and harpoons efficiently, he defeats the enemies and reaches a treasure chest containing five coins.
• At a ring-toss attraction, Xie demonstrates extraordinary precision and timing. He chains his throws together so that the rings strike one another and land on multiple prizes, rapidly increasing his total to forty-six coins.
• Frustrated by Xie’s effortless progress, Adner interrupts the games and creates a go-kart race. He offers a new all-or-nothing challenge: if Xie wins first place, everyone may leave; if he loses, Xie and the others must remain trapped. Xie accepts and enters the race.

Character Developments

• Xie Haining is established as calm, confident, highly athletic, and exceptionally intelligent. He treats dangerous attractions as puzzles, quickly identifies their mechanics, and uses balance, timing, spatial awareness, and available tools to overcome them.
• His confidence gradually becomes more provocative. Rather than merely surviving, he enjoys mastering the games and openly asks what attraction he can try next, irritating Adner.
• Adner shifts from amused game master to increasingly frustrated and threatened antagonist. He repeatedly escalates the challenges and attempts to interfere directly, but Xie’s success undermines his authority.
• Xiao He becomes increasingly impressed with Xie and fascinated by the attractions. Xiao He analyzes Xie’s techniques and begins wishing he could personally participate in the games.

Significant Themes

• Skill versus supernatural power: Although Adner controls the amusement park and its deadly rules, Xie relies on human ability, intelligence, and adaptability to challenge him.
• Composure under pressure: Xie never panics, even when thrown from rides, attacked by monsters, or placed in lethal situations. His calmness is a major source of his advantage.
• Games as tests of ingenuity: Each attraction rewards understanding its rules rather than brute strength. Xie succeeds by recognizing patterns and exploiting the intended mechanics.
• Control and resistance: Adner attempts to control the trapped participants through fear and arbitrary rules, while Xie resists by turning Adner’s own games against him.
• Entertainment masking danger: The cheerful amusement-park setting contrasts with the lethal consequences of failure, emphasizing the chapter’s blend of playfulness and menace.

Character Interactions

• Xie and Adner engage in a tense battle of wills. Xie deliberately challenges Adner’s pride by suggesting the bet may be too easy, while Adner responds with threats and increasingly dangerous games.
• During the attractions, Adner acts as both host and saboteur, appearing to explain rules, accelerate rides, and create obstacles. Xie responds with calm competence rather than fear.
• Xiao He mainly observes from the sidelines, interpreting Xie’s methods and reacting with admiration and excitement. His commentary helps clarify how Xie counters the rides’ physical challenges.
• The chapter ends with Xie and Adner entering a direct competitive confrontation in the go-kart race, setting up the next major test.

Chapter Summary: “Redefining”

Plot Points and Events

• Xie Haining competes against Adner and his monkey drivers in a dangerous, roller-coaster-like go-kart race filled with loops, branching tracks, and collectible weapons.
• Using sharp drifting, strategic item collection, and careful maneuvering, Xie Haining gains an early lead. He avoids bombs, oil slicks, and collisions while causing rival karts to crash into one another.
• Adner eventually takes the lead, but Xie Haining reveals that he has planned a shortcut. At the highest point of a loop, he drives off the track, uses a rocket to propel himself through the air, and lands on a neighboring track just before the finish line.
• Adner becomes distracted by Xie Haining’s apparent “cheating,” crashes off the track, and loses the race. Xie Haining forces him at gunpoint to honor his promise and release the kidnapped children.
• Adner summons the children, but they initially refuse to leave because they enjoy the amusement park and feel neglected by their arguing, unfaithful parents. Xie Haining calls for support, and the children are eventually taken to safety. Adner is returned to prison by Xiao He.
• Xiao He realizes that Adner’s amusement park is an extraordinarily advanced independent domain. Since visitors cannot be permanently harmed and can repeatedly attempt the attractions, Xiao He proposes transforming it into a legitimate amusement park operated with the Special Response Department.
• Adner enthusiastically accepts the possibility, though he insists that difficult and frightening games are what make the park fun. The proposal is left for further discussion after the current competition.
• On his way home to buy ice cream for Ye Wanqing, Xiao He is asked by a young girl to rescue a cat stranded on a building. He finds a dangerous rescue already underway, with one rescuer hanging from the eighth floor and the cat falling.
• Xiao He uses Xie Haining as a Trigger to activate Time Stop, then uses Xia Yu’s abilities to fly upward and catch the cat. He also saves the dangling rescuer and returns both him and the cat safely.
• The grateful crowd applauds Xiao He, but he redirects their praise toward the ordinary rescuer. The supermarket owner gives Xiao He ice cream, and Xiao He sends some to the rescuer as thanks.

Character Developments

• Xie Haining demonstrates exceptional racing skill, tactical planning, composure, and willingness to exploit unconventional solutions. His confident victory reinforces his ability to remain calm under pressure.
• Adner shifts from furious antagonist to defeated, disappointed prisoner. His genuine enthusiasm for games and his dream of sharing the amusement park with everyone reveal a more childish and constructive side beneath his dangerous behavior.
• Xiao He develops a deeper understanding of heroism. He initially considers rescuing a cat beneath his abilities, but the gratitude of the child and bystanders makes him recognize that a hero’s value comes from helping people directly, not merely defeating powerful enemies.
• The cat rescuer is presented as an ordinary person performing a genuinely brave act. Xiao He’s praise gives him confidence and validates everyday courage.
• The children are shown not simply as victims but as neglected youngsters seeking attention, excitement, and escape from troubled homes.

Significant Themes

• Redefining heroism: True heroism is determined by one’s actions and willingness to help, not by power level, fame, or the scale of an enemy.
• The value of ordinary lives: Saving one cat and one rescuer has an immediate, tangible effect on real people, unlike spectacular battles that may only entertain spectators.
• Responsibility and redemption: Adner’s amusement park may be repurposed for public enjoyment, suggesting that dangerous abilities and creations can potentially be redirected toward constructive ends.
• Neglect and emotional needs: The children’s refusal to leave reflects how parental conflict and indifference can drive children toward unhealthy forms of escape.
• Competition versus compassion: The chapter contrasts the excitement of combat and games with the quieter but more meaningful act of helping someone in need.

Character Interactions

• Xie Haining and Adner engage in a tense, competitive rivalry, with Xie Haining’s cool confidence contrasting with Adner’s explosive frustration.
• Xie Haining confronts Adner at gunpoint and compels him to release the children.
• Xiao He and Adner discuss the possibility of converting the amusement park into a public attraction, combining Xiao He’s practical concerns with Adner’s enthusiasm for challenging games.
• Xiao He consults Cui Man, who agrees that Adner’s cooperation may be negotiable but insists that the competition remain the priority.
• Xiao He’s affectionate phone conversation with Ye Wanqing shows their close relationship and his desire to comfort her with ice cream.
• Xiao He encourages the cat rescuer, treating him as a fellow hero rather than accepting all the praise himself. This interaction directly inspires Xiao He’s realization about the true meaning of being a superhero.

Chapter Summary: “Your Friendly Neighborhood Yinglong”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He returns home after his tournament activities, where Ye Wanqing is waiting angrily because she feared he forgot to buy her ice cream. He reassures her that he bought the requested grape flavor, and the two reconcile affectionately.
• Xiao He tells Cui Man that he wants to use his abilities for more meaningful public service, inspired by having rescued a cat. He suggests adapting the Cosmic Core Algorithm into a system that assigns emergencies to nearby Mutants based on their abilities.
• Cui Man explains that a similar AI resource-allocation system is already being developed for police, firefighters, disaster relief, and supply distribution. She agrees to discuss adding Mutant responders after the tournament.
• With Wu Changchun’s help, Xiao He downloads a trial version of the AI rescue app. Ye Wanqing stays behind to monitor the system and alter names if necessary, allowing Xiao He to operate without exposing certain identities.
• After initially receiving no assignments—partly because his ability level is set unrealistically high—Xiao He is dispatched to a fire in an old residential building.
  • He uses Psychokinesis to clear the blocked fire lane.
  • He absorbs the flames with Kinetic Energy Absorption.
  • He uses Entropy Reduction to restore the damaged building, carefully avoiding the trapped residents because reversing their condition could harm them.
  • He later releases the stored flames into the sky as a giant firework.
• Xiao He’s next mission is a massive nine-vehicle collision involving twenty-two injured people, four trapped victims, and leaking gasoline.
  • Using Mechanical Modification, he rapidly analyzes the situation.
  • He converts a dangerous SUV into air with Stone-to-Gold, frees a trapped family, and uses his electric-saw abilities to cut open their vehicle.
  • When another car explodes, his suit transforms into a shield, protecting the family from debris.
  • He frees an injured truck driver pinned by steel bars and discovers that the man is suffering from severe internal injuries.
  • Xiao He summons Ripper Rick, who scans the driver with Quantum CT and performs emergency internal surgery while Xiao He removes the embedded steel bars.
  • The driver survives, and the crowd applauds the successful rescue.

Character Developments

• Xiao He becomes increasingly committed to using his powers for public service rather than only competition or personal matters. He embraces the identity of a practical, neighborhood-style superhero and gains satisfaction from helping ordinary people.
• His confidence and creativity grow as he combines multiple powers—Psychokinesis, Kinetic Energy Absorption, Entropy Reduction, Mechanical Modification, Stone-to-Gold, and his transforming suit—to solve complex emergencies.
• Xiao He also demonstrates greater tactical maturity. He avoids using Entropy Reduction on unknown injured people, recognizes the risks of moving unstable vehicles, and relies on specialists when necessary.
• Ye Wanqing acts as Xiao He’s supportive partner and operational assistant. She is happy to work with him again and reassured that he can help others safely.
• Cui Man recognizes Xiao He’s emotional and moral growth, affectionately noting that he has “grown up.” She supports his proposal to integrate Mutants into the rescue system.
• Ripper Rick is given an opportunity to prove his usefulness. Though initially arrogant, he successfully performs life-saving surgery, leading Xiao He to acknowledge that they may work well together.
• The firefighters, doctors, and traffic officers become important collaborators rather than passive witnesses, providing information and handling the parts of each rescue that Xiao He cannot or should not do alone.

Significant Themes

• Heroism as meaningful service: Xiao He realizes that even a small rescue can matter and seeks a role that directly improves people’s lives.
• Technology and rational resource allocation: The Cosmic Core Algorithm represents an attempt to use data and abilities efficiently, while the narration acknowledges that efficiency cannot completely eliminate inequality.
• Teamwork between powers and professions: Xiao He’s abilities are most effective when combined with firefighters, doctors, police, Ye Wanqing, and Ripper Rick.
• Responsibility and restraint: The chapter emphasizes that powerful abilities must be used carefully. Xiao He considers possible explosions, structural collapse, secondary injuries, and the dangers of altering living bodies.
• Domestic affection alongside public heroism: Xiao He’s loving relationship with Ye Wanqing gives emotional grounding to his superhero identity; they function as partners both personally and operationally.
• The limits of fairness: Even Yinglong and White Marsh cannot make the world perfectly equal, but better systems can reduce waste and improve the distribution of available resources.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing begin with playful tension over ice cream but quickly return to affectionate intimacy. Xiao He describes her as the “heart” of his heroic side, while she encourages him to eat, rest, and work safely.
• Xiao He consults Cui Man about transforming the rescue app into a Mutant-response system. She responds warmly and promises to connect him with the relevant department.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing coordinate the rescue operation, with her staying at the computer to monitor assignments and manage identities.
• Xiao He works closely with firefighters during the building fire, clearing the way for their trucks and leaving them to manage the evacuation.
• At the accident scene, Xiao He cooperates with doctors and traffic officers, using their reports to guide his actions.
• Xiao He recruits Ripper Rick for emergency surgery and challenges him to demonstrate his value. Their successful cooperation ends with Xiao He admitting that they could become a powerful team.

Chapter Summary: “Turning Waste into Treasure”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After helping with a fire, robberies, a traffic accident, and a rescued stray dog, Xiao He returns home satisfied. He reunites with Ye Wanqing, and they share a warm domestic evening over dinner.
• Xiao He imagines a peaceful married life with Ye Wanqing, balancing heroic work with household routines and, eventually, raising children.
• The next day, Xiao He returns to prison to negotiate cooperation with the superpowered criminals Adner and Ripper Rick. Faust ambushes him, but Xiao He easily neutralizes him with Curtain Call and Psychokinesis.
• Xiao He offers Adner a chance to establish an amusement park beside the competition arena. Adner’s proposed attractions are terrifying, but his intentions are surprisingly wholesome: he wants people to have fun rather than make money. Xiao He suggests low, income-based ticket prices, with profits donated to charity.
• Xiao discusses Rick’s potential cooperation. Rick explains that his surgical Superpower, combined with Xiao He’s Miracle Factor, could cure serious illnesses much more efficiently than the Miracle Factor alone.
• Rick argues that the Miracle Factor acts like a “corrective agent,” restoring damaged DNA and bodily functions, but that its effects are wasted when it treats symptoms unrelated to the core disease. By surgically repairing or replacing only the necessary organs or tissues, the Factor could be used in much smaller doses.
• Xiao He recognizes that Rick’s method could allow his limited supply of Miracle Factor to save many more lives before the substance can be mass-produced. He orders Rick to prove his theory using patients with ALS.
• At the Special Response Department, researchers and medical experts gather to observe the experiment. Xiao He provides blood, while Cui Man supervises and remains wary of Rick.
• Rick becomes frantic when ordinary staff attempt to draw Xiao He’s blood, insisting that his specialized “live sampling” method preserves more of the Miracle Factor’s activity. After Xiao He allows him to proceed, Rick extracts a blood sample without visibly injuring Xiao He and prepares to begin the medical demonstration.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Shows increasing comfort with his heroic identity and begins envisioning a stable family life with Ye Wanqing. He also demonstrates strategic thinking by recognizing that former criminals can become valuable allies if their abilities are properly controlled and directed.
• Ye Wanqing: Appears affectionate, playful, and supportive. Her domestic interaction with Xiao He highlights their growing intimacy and the ordinary life they hope to build together.
• Ripper Rick: Remains obsessive, unstable, and fascinated by Xiao He’s body, but his medical insight proves genuine and potentially revolutionary. He shifts from being merely a dangerous criminal to a possible contributor to public welfare.
• Adner: Reveals a gentler side beneath his frightening personality. He rejects profit and violence, caring more about giving people access to his amusement park and helping disadvantaged children.
• Cui Man: Acts as a cautious gatekeeper, willing to consider cooperation but refusing to trust Rick without proof. Her role emphasizes the need to control dangerous individuals even when they possess exceptional abilities.
• Faust: Continues behaving aggressively and attempting ambushes, but Xiao He effortlessly suppresses his attack, reinforcing the power imbalance between them.

Significant Themes

• Turning dangerous people into useful resources: The chapter’s central idea is that even notorious criminals may possess abilities capable of benefiting society.
• Efficient use of scarce resources: Rick’s theory reframes the Miracle Factor from a general cure into a tool that can be strategically applied, allowing limited supplies to save more patients.
• Redemption through purpose: Adner and Rick remain morally unstable, but their talents may be redirected toward entertainment, medicine, and humanitarian work.
• The balance between control and cooperation: The Special Response Department must work with dangerous superpowered individuals while maintaining safeguards and oversight.
• Domestic happiness versus heroic responsibility: Xiao He’s peaceful dinner with Ye Wanqing contrasts with his dangerous public work, suggesting he wants both an ordinary family life and a meaningful heroic role.
• Science and Superpowers working together: The chapter presents medical breakthroughs as the result of combining supernatural abilities with scientific reasoning rather than relying on either alone.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing: Their teasing, affectionate dinner scene shows a comfortable romantic relationship and Xiao He’s longing for a normal married life.
• Xiao He and Adner: Xiao He negotiates the amusement park’s operation, suggesting a charitable pricing model and reassuring Adner about public acceptance.
• Xiao He and Rick: Their conversation transforms Rick’s bizarre obsession into a potentially valuable medical partnership. Xiao He remains skeptical but is persuaded by Rick’s logic.
• Xiao He and Faust: Faust attempts a surprise attack, but Xiao He immediately disables him, demonstrating Xiao He’s superior control and power.
• Cui Man and Rick: Cui Man distrusts Rick and tests him by requiring him to cure two patients before cooperation can proceed. Rick’s uncontrolled excitement reinforces her caution.
• Rick and Xiao He: Rick’s fixation becomes especially intense during the blood draw, but Xiao He’s authority keeps him focused on the experiment. The chapter ends as Rick prepares to demonstrate whether his medical theory can truly produce a miracle.

Chapter Summary: The Duo Who Toyed with Death

Key Plot Points and Events

• Rick demonstrates his ability to obtain highly potent Miracle Factor from living Yinglong blood, producing nearly two milligrams—far more than conventional extraction methods.
• Xiao He and Rick begin treating two advanced ALS patients:
  • Xiang Chen, a twenty-nine-year-old who has suffered from ALS for sixteen years and depends on a ventilator.
  • He Yongcheng, a forty-three-year-old entrepreneur whose family has been plagued by ALS and whose body is almost completely paralyzed.
• Xiao He discovers that his Stone-to-Gold ability cannot create or transform organic matter, meaning he cannot directly produce muscles or Miracle Factor.
• Rick uses Miracle Factor and his Microscopic Surgery ability to repair Xiang Chen’s damaged motor neurons. Her respiratory function immediately improves, allowing her to cough up phlegm without assistance.
• Xiang breaks down in tears after realizing she may finally live normally, expressing gratitude for surviving years of pain and repeated medical crises.
• Rick successfully treats He Yongcheng as well, experimenting with dosages and determining that approximately 0.5 micrograms of Miracle Factor is generally sufficient to repair ALS-damaged motor neurons.
• The treatment does not instantly restore atrophied muscles; both patients will require at least a year of rehabilitation.
• The chapter establishes that one hundred milliliters of Xiao He’s blood could theoretically cure roughly four thousand ALS patients. With regular donations, the world’s ALS patients could potentially be treated within five years.
• Impressed by Rick’s usefulness, Cui Man permits him to join the medical research department, though further conditions remain to be negotiated.
• Cui Man reflects on the frightening implications of Xiao He and Rick’s combined abilities, comparing them to beings who can control life and death.
• The chapter ends with Cui Man warning Xiao He and Ye Wanqing to prepare for the upcoming semifinals, where they will face much more dangerous opponents.

Character Developments

• Xiao He shows compassion toward Xiang Chen and becomes emotionally invested in the patients’ recovery. His impatience with Rick remains evident, but he also recognizes the doctor’s importance and works cooperatively with him.
• Xiao He’s experimentation with Stone-to-Gold reveals a limitation to his power: it cannot generate organic matter. This prevents him from solving every aspect of the patients’ condition himself.
• Rick proves that his arrogance is backed by exceptional medical skill. He successfully repairs motor neurons, carefully tests Miracle Factor dosages, and earns entry into Cui Man’s medical research department.
• Rick also demonstrates a darker or more reckless enthusiasm for Yinglong’s biological potential, treating the opportunity to use Xiao He’s cells as an almost miraculous scientific breakthrough.
• Xiang Chen is portrayed as resilient and optimistic despite sixteen years of severe illness. Her emotional response after treatment emphasizes how deeply she has longed for an ordinary life.
• He Yongcheng evolves from resigned acceptance to renewed hope. Once able to speak again, he immediately expresses a desire to protect Xiao He and Rick, showing gratitude and loyalty.
• Cui Man shifts from clinical supervision to awe and unease as she recognizes the world-changing consequences of the duo’s abilities.
• Ye Wanqing remains cautious and quietly humorous, especially when Xiao He jokes about whether they can alter a god’s name.

Significant Themes

• Hope after prolonged suffering: Xiang Chen and He Yongcheng represent people who have endured seemingly hopeless conditions yet receive a chance at a new life.
• The boundary between medicine and the supernatural: Rick’s surgical Superpower and Xiao He’s blood allow them to accomplish what conventional science cannot, blurring the line between doctors and gods.
• Power and responsibility: Their abilities could eliminate a devastating disease, but the limited supply of Xiao He’s blood and the need to prioritize patients raise practical and ethical questions.
• Human limitations despite extraordinary powers: Xiao He cannot create organic matter, and the patients still need lengthy rehabilitation. Even miraculous treatment cannot instantly undo years of bodily deterioration.
• Scientific ambition and danger: Rick’s excitement about experimenting with Yinglong’s cells contrasts with Cui Man’s fear that the pair may be “playing Death,” emphasizing the risks of unchecked discovery.
• The value of perseverance: Xiang Chen’s survival and He Yongcheng’s years of research suggest that continued endurance can eventually lead to a breakthrough.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He repeatedly restrains and scolds Rick for his arrogant remarks and apparent recklessness, creating a comic but effective partnership.
• Rick and Xiao He cooperate closely during treatment: Xiao He provides the Miracle Factor source, while Rick performs the specialized neurological procedures.
• Xiao He comforts Xiang Chen after her recovery, encouraging her to plan for the future and assuring her that her parents will soon see her improved condition.
• Xiang Chen’s gratitude and He Yongcheng’s promise to form a security team demonstrate the profound emotional impact of the treatment on the patients.
• Cui Man evaluates Rick’s performance and formally offers him a place in medical research.
• Cui Man later confides her fear to Xiao He and Ye Wanqing, warning that their abilities could have consequences far beyond ordinary medical intervention.
• The chapter closes by shifting from medical triumph to impending conflict, as Cui Man reminds Xiao He and Ye Wanqing that more dangerous semifinal opponents are approaching.

Chapter Summary: “Maid Outfit”

Key Plot Points and Events

• During his vacation, Xiao He continues acting as a “good neighbor,” responding to emergencies around Beichang City and other provinces. Because the Aid App efficiently handles most incidents, he has more free time to spend with Ye Wanqing.
• Using Xia Yu as a Remote Trigger allows Xiao He to access a wide range of adaptive abilities, including flight, healing, fire-breathing, psychokinesis, and entropy reduction.
• Xiao He rescues a stray cat trapped more than ten meters deep in a ventilation shaft. He uses psychokinesis to retrieve it and then restores the damaged shaft with Entropy Reduction.
• He buys desserts for Ye Wanqing in preparation for his twenty-second birthday.
• That night, Ye Wanqing surprises him by wearing a maid outfit, intending it as an early birthday gift. The two spend the evening together romantically, and she wishes him a happy birthday at midnight.
• Ye Wanqing gives Xiao He a white shirt as a second, more conventional present. The following morning, she wears it while preparing breakfast, amusing and charming him.
• At noon, Xiao He returns home to find Ye Wanqing, Cui Man, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining holding a surprise birthday celebration. They eat hot pot and cake together.
• The group discusses the approaching Mutant Competition semifinals. Xiao He suggests using his abilities to strengthen the newcomers, but Cui Man hesitates, preferring them to train independently.
• Xie Haining congratulates Xiao He on turning twenty-two, noting that he is now old enough to register for marriage. Since Ye Wanqing is still twenty, they must wait two more months.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Becomes increasingly comfortable with his peaceful domestic life. Although he previously considered birthdays unimportant, Ye Wanqing’s effort changes his perspective. He realizes that being cared for and celebrated by a partner is deeply meaningful.
• Ye Wanqing: Shows greater confidence and initiative in her relationship with Xiao He. Her maid-outfit surprise, birthday preparations, breakfast, and affectionate teasing reveal both her romantic devotion and playful personality. She also makes clear that marriage and children should not be rushed.
• Cui Man: Continues acting as a stern but caring leader. She is concerned about the newcomers’ performance in the competition and resists relying too heavily on Xiao He’s powers.
• Xia Yu and Xie Haining: Participate warmly in Xiao He’s birthday celebration. Xie Haining remains enthusiastic about Xiao He and Ye Wanqing marrying and having children, while Xia Yu responds more practically.
• The cat rescuer: Reappears as a recurring civilian figure, reinforcing Xiao He’s growing reputation as a reliable hero.

Significant Themes

• Domestic happiness and intimacy: The chapter contrasts Xiao He’s powerful public identity with the comfort and affection of his private life with Ye Wanqing.
• Love expressed through thoughtful gestures: Ye Wanqing’s outfit, gift, breakfast, and birthday party show that emotional care matters more to Xiao He than the birthday itself.
• Responsibility and maturity: Xiao He’s birthday marks not only aging but also increased obligations, including the upcoming competition and the possibility of marriage.
• Heroism in ordinary situations: The stray-cat rescue emphasizes that Xiao He’s heroism applies to small, everyday problems as much as major crises.
• Personal effort versus supernatural assistance: The discussion about strengthening the newcomers raises the question of whether success should come from Xiao He’s abilities or the team’s own training.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing exchange constant teasing and flirtation, showing their comfortable, affectionate relationship.
• Ye Wanqing deliberately creates a romantic birthday surprise, while Xiao He responds with enthusiasm and admiration.
• Their morning interaction reinforces their closeness, with Ye Wanqing shyly acknowledging that she already considers herself fully his fiancée.
• Cui Man, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining join Ye Wanqing in surprising Xiao He, demonstrating the group’s camaraderie.
• Xie Haining’s eagerness for Xiao He and Ye Wanqing to marry and have children creates humorous tension, as Ye Wanqing insists they will not rush into either decision.
• The chapter ends with Xiao He confidently promising that Xie Haining will eventually have another child, while Ye Wanqing teasingly reminds him that such decisions require her agreement.

Chapter Summary: “Semifinals”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After Xiao He’s birthday, he returns to his normal routine of attending classes with Ye Wanqing and secretly helping people around the city.
• The round-robin stage of the Mutant Competition ends:
  • Arena matches: Dragon Country, Australia, and R Country advance from Group A; M Country, O Continent, and F Continent United advance from Group B.
  • Team matches: Dragon Country, Y Country, and R Country advance from Group A; M Country, O Continent, and E Country advance from Group B.
• The quarterfinals conclude:
  • Australia defeats F Continent United.
  • O Continent defeats R Country in the arena matches.
  • Y Country defeats E Country in the team matches.
  • R Country defeats O Continent in the team matches.
• The semifinals are set:
  • Arena: Australia vs. M Country; O Continent vs. Dragon Country.
  • Team: Y Country vs. M Country; R Country vs. Dragon Country.
• Global interest in the tournament reaches unprecedented levels, with more than two billion viewers. The upcoming All-Star exhibition match is also highly anticipated because viewers will vote for popular representatives from each team.

Character Developments

• Xiao He/Yinglong: Although he has been resting, Xiao remains Dragon Country’s most important fighter. His limited number of appearances becomes a major strategic concern because opponents intend to exhaust him before the finals against M Country.
• Qin Weize/Horned Dragon: Qin volunteers to lead Dragon Country’s first semifinal match, eager to demonstrate the progress he has made during training. He displays improved control over his impact ability, using it through his feet and fingers and learning to counter attacks more creatively.
• Cui Man: She takes on a serious leadership role, warning the team that their previous victories were partly due to Yinglong’s overwhelming strength and opponents holding back. She carefully analyzes the enemy’s strategy and protects Qin by ordering him to surrender when he is too badly injured.
• Mechanical Hero: He reveals a powerful Overdrive form that temporarily raises his strength and speed to Level 5. However, his mechanical body cannot withstand prolonged combat, and Qin defeats him by exploiting its limited durability.
• Bomb Man/Shier Nash: O Continent’s hidden Level 5 fighter finally appears after being kept in reserve for two months. He is confident, calculating, and specifically challenges Xiao He after defeating Qin.
• Ye Wanqing and Xiao He: Their playful romantic relationship continues. Ye teases Xiao for supposedly slacking off, while he responds with flirtatious physical affection.

Major Match Events

• Qin faces Mechanical Hero, who transforms into a heavily armored mechanical form and attacks with overwhelming speed.
• Qin initially survives by releasing impact through his body at the moment of contact, damaging Mechanical Hero’s arm and later blasting him apart.
• Mechanical Hero’s body separates into drones, allowing him to continue attacking. He catches Qin off guard and nearly defeats him with a brutal combination of strikes and a ground-stomping attack.
• Qin tricks Mechanical Hero into thinking he is severely injured, secretly charging his strongest technique, “Maximum Rotation, MAX Impact.” He unleashes it at close range and destroys Mechanical Hero’s body, stopping before killing him.
• Mechanical Hero concedes defeat, though his Level 5 power was limited by the fragility of his mechanical frame.
• Qin then faces Nash, whose bomb-based ability directly counters Qin’s defensive style. Nash plants or throws unseen explosives, triggering blasts from unexpected locations.
• Qin is repeatedly thrown between explosions and ultimately incapacitated by a powerful final blast. Since he cannot defend against attacks whose locations he cannot predict, his impact technique is ineffective.
• At Cui Man’s urging, Qin surrenders to avoid fatal injuries.
• Nash then openly challenges Xiao He, prompting Xiao to enter the fight with confidence and excitement.

Significant Themes

• Hidden strength and strategic deception: Teams concealed their strongest fighters and deliberately held back during the earlier rounds. The semifinals reveal that previous victories did not fully reflect the competitors’ real abilities.
• Resource management: Xiao He’s limited number of appearances is treated as a strategic resource. Opponents aim to force him into repeated matches so that he will be weakened or unavailable for the finals.
• Growth through training: Qin’s improved technique, battle awareness, and willingness to take responsibility show that he has developed considerably despite having less raw power than the strongest fighters.
• Strength versus limitations: Mechanical Hero can temporarily reach Level 5 power, but his body cannot sustain it. The chapter contrasts overwhelming output with durability and endurance.
• Adaptability and counters: Qin defeats a straightforward, powerful opponent but loses to Nash because Nash’s unpredictable attacks bypass the conditions required for Qin’s defensive technique.
• Popularity and spectacle: The tournament is not only a sporting competition but also a global media event, where fame and popularity may matter as much as combat ability.

Important Character Interactions

• Cui Man warns the team not to underestimate their opponents and discusses the plan to conserve Xiao He for the finals.
• Qin insists on taking the opening match, and Xiao questions whether he is truly ready.
• The team analyzes how M Country and O Continent might repeatedly send strong fighters against Xiao to exhaust him.
• Xiao praises Qin after his victory over Mechanical Hero, acknowledging that Qin’s training has paid off.
• Ye Wanqing jokes with Xiao about his relaxed lifestyle, leading to playful flirtation between them.
• Nash dismisses Qin’s chances, deliberately limits his bombs to avoid killing him, and then challenges Xiao directly.
• Xiao accepts Nash’s provocation, setting up the next major semifinal battle.