Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “A Life for a Life”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing prepare dinner together, maintaining their increasingly domestic routine despite Ye’s lingering frustration that Xiao He has not formally confessed his feelings.
• They decide to return to school after missing nearly a week due to illness and recovery. Both jokingly plan to announce their relationship and discourage others from pursuing them.
• During dinner, Ye indirectly explores Xiao He’s views on romantic progression. Xiao gives a detailed answer—dating after several months, followed by gradual physical intimacy—which embarrasses Ye because his views closely match her own.
• While washing dishes, they discuss Xiao’s valuable blood, which is being used internationally to study or combat the AME Probiotic Virus. Ye compares him to a “giant panda” involved in diplomatic exchange, while Xiao jokes about trading his blood for another country’s Moon Rock.
• Ye shows concern for Xiao’s health and suggests preparing blood-enriching foods. Their playful discussion of pork liver reveals how comfortable and affectionate their domestic relationship has become.
• During their evening walk, they reflect on caring for each other through recent fevers. Ye asks whether Xiao heard her emotional words while he was ill, but he only remembers her shouting his nickname.
• Xiao teases Ye by poking her puffed cheek, prompting a playful chase. Their teasing ends in reconciliation when they hold hands again.
• Ye helps a beetle that has been overturned, revealing her compassionate nature. Xiao is charmed by her kindness, though he briefly pretends to be disgusted by the insect.
• When Xiao suddenly takes Ye’s hand and their faces come close, Ye becomes flustered. He simply leads her onward, leaving their romantic tension unresolved.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Becomes increasingly aware of Ye’s endearing habits and expresses affection through teasing, attention, and physical closeness. He is proud of their relationship and comfortable behaving like her boyfriend, though he still does not recognize—or act on—her desire for a formal confession.
• Ye Wanqing: Grows more openly attached to Xiao and increasingly imagines deeper romantic intimacy, including kissing. She remains shy and indirect, expressing affection through cooking, concern for his health, and playful jealousy rather than direct confession.
• Their relationship continues shifting from mutual caretaking and implied affection toward a more natural, couple-like intimacy.

Significant Themes

• Unspoken love and romantic hesitation: Both characters clearly regard each other as a couple, but neither directly addresses the remaining gap between implied commitment and explicit confession.
• Domestic intimacy: Cooking, eating, washing dishes, walking, and caring for one another create the atmosphere of an established relationship.
• Mutual care and sacrifice: Xiao’s blood has international value, while Ye worries about the physical cost of donating it. Their personal relationship is connected to larger global concerns.
• Playfulness as affection: Teasing, mock arguments, chasing, and small physical gestures allow them to express feelings they are too embarrassed to state openly.
• Compassion and gentleness: Ye’s rescue of the beetle mirrors her broader instinct to care for others, while Xiao’s admiration shows his growing appreciation of her character.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao teasingly calls Ye a “little pufferfish,” while she responds with mock anger and jealousy.
• They jokingly claim each other as boyfriend and girlfriend and plan to “declare their rights” at school.
• Their conversation about dating and physical intimacy exposes their surprisingly similar romantic expectations.
• Ye offers to cook pork liver and chives for Xiao, and both privately look forward to pleasing the other.
• Ye thanks Xiao for caring for her during her fever, while Xiao acknowledges that he owes her his life for helping him recover.
• Their cheek-poking chase and final hand-holding reinforce their playful but increasingly intimate bond.

Chapter Summary: Wife Unleashed

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing visit a lively morning market instead of going for their usual run. Ye Wanqing enjoys browsing the stalls and buys fresh pork liver, while Xiao He happily follows and carries the groceries.
• After returning home, Ye Wanqing prepares breakfast. Xiao He decides to work on the Plastic Decomposition Problem, also known as the Lin Tiannan Problem, which concerns the urgent issue of plastic waste contaminating the ocean and re-entering the human food chain.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing eat a homemade breakfast of beef rice noodles and fried dough sticks. Their domestic routine emphasizes their comfortable, affectionate life together.
• Xiao He takes Ye Wanqing to school. Her friends, Yin Jia and Zhou Huimei, tease them about living together and imply that they are sexually intimate. Ye Wanqing becomes embarrassed but firmly defends their relationship.
• During class, Ye Wanqing uses her ability to place Xiao He in a semi-out-of-body state, allowing him to concentrate completely on solving the Plastic Decomposition Problem while automatically writing down his thoughts. She plans to have him work on it for about an hour and a half each day.
• After class, a large student deliberately shoulder-checks Xiao He but falls instead. The student then falsely accuses Xiao He of attacking him and attempts to stir up the surrounding crowd.
• Ye Wanqing intervenes and pulls Xiao He away before the confrontation escalates. She then secretly changes the student’s name through her ability. Because of the resulting information distortion, the student’s friend calls him “Chou Sabi,” which others interpret as “Stinky Trash.”
• Humiliated and enraged, the student attacks his friend, triggering a ridiculous public fight. Xiao He and Ye Wanqing leave while watching the chaos unfold.
• Ye Wanqing reveals that a smartphone provided by Cui Man contains an app capable of identifying people’s information through facial scanning. She used it to obtain the student’s identity and manipulate his name, later restoring it to his real name, Liu Minhao.

Character Developments

• Xiao He continues adapting to his new domestic life with Ye Wanqing. He enjoys her small habits, helps with daily tasks, and appreciates the happiness of ordinary routines. He also begins working systematically on another major world problem rather than rushing to solve everything.
• Ye Wanqing is shown as cheerful, domestic, and easily delighted by simple pleasures, especially shopping at the market and preparing food. At the same time, she reveals a mischievous and protective side, using her supernatural ability to punish someone who attempts to bully Xiao He.
• Their relationship becomes increasingly affectionate and intimate. Xiao He treats Ye Wanqing playfully, patting her head and calling her “Little Pufferfish,” while Ye Wanqing quietly thinks of him as “her man.”
• Yin Jia and Zhou Huimei provide contrasting perspectives on relationships. Both express uncertainty about their own boyfriends: Zhou Huimei considers breaking up with a directionless partner, while Yin Jia hopes her wealthy boyfriend might eventually provide her with a privileged life.
• Liu Minhao is established as an arrogant, aggressive student who relies on intimidation and appears to be disliked by others.

Significant Themes

• Domestic happiness and ordinary intimacy: The market trip, cooking, shared breakfast, and school commute show that Xiao He and Ye Wanqing find happiness in simple everyday activities.
• Love expressed through protection: Ye Wanqing’s prank is motivated by anger at someone targeting Xiao He. Her seemingly harmless personality conceals a fierce willingness to defend him.
• Power used creatively: Ye Wanqing’s ability is not limited to obvious supernatural feats. She can manipulate information and social perception, turning a bully’s own arrogance against him without directly fighting.
• Justice and the reversal of power: Liu Minhao tries to twist the truth after attacking Xiao He, but Ye Wanqing exposes his foolishness and causes him to suffer public humiliation.
• Ambition balanced with personal life: Xiao He works on a world-changing scientific problem while maintaining household routines and his relationship, suggesting that extraordinary achievements can coexist with an ordinary life.
• Different ideas of relationships: The conversation among the girls contrasts stable companionship with relationships based on convenience, sex, money, or future security.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing display constant playful affection, with Xiao He teasing and comforting her and Ye Wanqing preparing food and caring about his comfort.
• Ye Wanqing’s friends tease the couple about their closeness, while Ye Wanqing confidently explains that living together will continue to be practical even after Xiao He graduates.
• During class, Ye Wanqing quietly supports Xiao He’s research by controlling his special state, demonstrating trust and cooperation.
• When Liu Minhao attacks Xiao He, Ye Wanqing immediately prioritizes removing him from danger rather than arguing publicly.
• Ye Wanqing later admits enough about her scheme to reveal her cleverness, while pretending innocence. Xiao He is amused rather than disapproving, appreciating both her ingenuity and her protective motives.

Chapter Summary: “Sorry, I’m…”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Ye Wanqing demonstrates the full effectiveness of her ability by altering the name in someone’s mind without the target realizing it. Liu Minhao’s friend unknowingly calls him by an insulting name, causing a fight, yet believes he merely misspoke.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing return home and share a warm lunch. Xiao He enthusiastically eats several bowls of rice, while Ye Wanqing enjoys watching him appreciate her cooking.
• During class, Xiao He, Ye Wanqing, and Huang Ling sit together in an awkward arrangement. Xiao He worries about appearing like a flirtatious or unfaithful person, while Ye Wanqing privately thinks of him as hers and feels jealous of Huang Ling.
• Xiao He instinctively touches Ye Wanqing’s head when he notices her cowlick, unintentionally reassuring her and revealing their growing intimacy.
• After class, Huang Ling reveals that she knows Cui Man, also known as “Sister Man,” and admits she had been cooperating with Cui Man.
• Cui Man explains that she arranged the situation to train Xiao He and Ye Wanqing to be more cautious around potential intelligence agents. Huang Ling had been probing Xiao He for information and would either date him or monitor him, depending on how their relationship developed.
• Huang Ling explains that she accepted the arrangement because she wants independence from her wealthy family and its plans to use her in a political or financial marriage alliance. Cui Man has leverage against Huang Ling’s father and promises to protect her.
• Huang Ling formally gives up pursuing Xiao He, allowing him and Ye Wanqing to be together without emotional or psychological tension.
• Cui Man indicates that she intends to recruit Huang Ling into the Special Response Department after graduation, while continuing to keep an eye on her.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing leave together happily, planning to eat at home. When Xiao He mentions craving fried chicken cutlets, Ye Wanqing cheerfully offers to make them.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Gains a better understanding of Ye Wanqing’s ability and recognizes its subtlety and power. He also realizes that he remains too trusting and inexperienced to think like a trained agent, despite his connection to the Special Response Department. After Huang Ling’s confession, he feels relieved and more confident about committing himself emotionally to Ye Wanqing.
• Ye Wanqing: Shows greater confidence in her ability and enjoys teasing Xiao He. Her jealousy toward Huang Ling reveals how deeply she cares for him, though she hides her insecurity behind pride and competitiveness. Once Huang Ling withdraws, Ye Wanqing becomes noticeably happier and more relaxed.
• Huang Ling: Reveals herself as intelligent, observant, and pragmatic rather than a genuine romantic rival. She had been gathering information on Xiao He while using the situation to secure greater freedom from her family. Her decision to step aside confirms that she values her independence and recognizes Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s relationship.
• Cui Man: Acts as both mentor and manipulator. She deliberately orchestrates situations to train Xiao He and Ye Wanqing in recognizing deception. She also demonstrates a protective, strategic interest in Huang Ling’s future.
• Liu Minhao and his friend: Serve as an example of how completely Ye Wanqing’s ability can alter people’s perceptions without exposing itself.

Significant Themes

• Trust and deception: The chapter explores how easily people can be manipulated, whether through supernatural abilities, intelligence-gathering, or carefully staged relationships.
• Growth from ordinary life into a dangerous world: Xiao He’s failure to suspect Huang Ling reflects how difficult it is for him to abandon his former ordinary-person mindset and become more alert as “Yinglong.”
• Romantic certainty and jealousy: Ye Wanqing’s possessiveness and Huang Ling’s withdrawal clarify the emotional relationships among the characters.
• Domestic affection: Cooking and sharing meals serve as expressions of love and stability. Xiao He’s enthusiasm for Ye Wanqing’s food reinforces the comfort and intimacy of their life together.
• Freedom versus family obligation: Huang Ling’s subplot highlights her struggle to escape her wealthy family’s expectations and determine her own future.

Character Interactions

• Ye Wanqing and Xiao He share playful, affectionate domestic moments, with her cooking and his enthusiastic eating emphasizing their closeness.
• Ye Wanqing silently competes with Huang Ling, believing her own relationship with Xiao He is secure.
• Xiao He’s innocent gesture of fixing Ye Wanqing’s cowlick comforts her and unintentionally signals his affection.
• Huang Ling and Cui Man reveal that their apparent romantic situation with Xiao He was partly an intelligence exercise.
• Cui Man teases and reassures both couples, while Huang Ling graciously steps aside and acknowledges Ye Wanqing’s place beside Xiao He.
• The chapter ends with Xiao He and Ye Wanqing leaving hand in hand, their relationship more secure and free of rivalry.

Chapter Summary: Lin Tiannan 003

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He enjoys Ye Wanqing’s homemade chicken cutlets, praising their crispness and distinctive soy-vinegar dipping sauce. Ye explains that she uses steamed-bun crumbs instead of breadcrumbs, allowing the properly marinated chicken’s flavor to stand out.
• The couple shares a comfortable domestic evening, eating together, washing dishes, walking, doing laundry, and watching The Big Bang Theory. Ye Wanqing gives Xiao He part of her food, showing their increasing intimacy and familiarity.
• While washing dishes, they discuss Huang Ling, whom they now know was an undercover agent testing them. Ye realizes Xiao He avoided discussing personal matters with Huang after she became jealous of their earlier outing, which reassures her. She jokingly asks him to discuss entertainment with her instead.
• Their relaxed evening is interrupted when Cui Man contacts Xiao He about a late-night prisoner escort. The prisoner is “Lin Tiannan 003,” actually a Mutant named Yue Feng.
• Cui Man explains Yue Feng’s Superpower, King’s Pawn: when advancing, he becomes nearly invincible, gaining immense strength and resistance to bullets and blades. However, he cannot retreat while using it, and his back remains vulnerable. Xia Yu captured him by exploiting this weakness with her enhanced agility.
• Yue Feng is a violent and dangerous man who severely injured someone over a discarded cigarette butt. He has a difficult history, having lost his father, been abandoned after his mother remarried, and later lost his grandmother.
• Xiao He meets Xia Yu and Cui Man at a helicopter rendezvous point, takes custody of the anesthetized Yue Feng, and escorts him toward Beichang Mutant Prison.
• Yue Feng awakens during the flight but initially cooperates. Upon reaching the prison, however, he challenges Xiao He, claiming that if Xiao He can stop him, he will remain incarcerated.
• Xiao He accepts the challenge and invites Yue Feng to attack, ending the chapter on the brink of their confrontation.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Shows growing comfort and happiness in his relationship with Ye Wanqing. He is relaxed and confident during the prisoner escort, even though he senses Yue Feng’s considerable strength. His willingness to accept Yue Feng’s challenge reflects his confidence and readiness for combat.
• Ye Wanqing: Demonstrates affection through cooking, sharing food, and wanting to spend time with Xiao He. Her earlier jealousy regarding Huang Ling has eased, and she becomes more openly playful and emotionally secure with Xiao He.
• Cui Man: Acts as the mission coordinator and provides crucial information about Yue Feng. She maintains a teasing but authoritative relationship with Xiao He and Xia Yu.
• Xia Yu: Successfully captures Yue Feng by identifying and exploiting the weakness in his Superpower. Her playful behavior contrasts with her effectiveness and competence in the field.
• Yue Feng: Introduced as physically imposing, psychologically aggressive, and prone to violence. Despite initially cooperating, he becomes excited by the prospect of fighting Xiao He and openly challenges the authorities.

Significant Themes

• Domestic intimacy and emotional trust: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s shared meals and routines show their relationship becoming warmer and more stable.
• Jealousy and reassurance: Their discussion of Huang Ling reveals how jealousy has affected them, but also shows Xiao He’s efforts to respect Ye’s feelings and Ye’s growing trust in him.
• Power and vulnerability: Yue Feng’s seemingly overwhelming invincibility is balanced by a specific weakness, emphasizing that even powerful abilities have limitations.
• Violence and social responsibility: Yue Feng’s brutal response to a minor annoyance raises the issue of how dangerous individuals should be controlled and removed from society.
• Confidence versus recklessness: Xiao He treats the escort casually, while Yue Feng seeks confrontation, setting up a clash between Xiao He’s composure and Yue Feng’s violent aggression.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share affectionate, teasing exchanges over food, entertainment, and their past interactions with Huang Ling.
• Cui Man jokes with Xiao He while briefing him, but also warns him about Yue Feng’s dangerous abilities and history.
• Cui Man lightly scolds Xia Yu for using Xiao He’s personal name during a mission, while still praising her successful capture.
• Yue Feng interacts with Xiao He respectfully but provocatively, first joking about the honor of being escorted by Yinglong and later challenging him directly.
• The chapter concludes with Xiao He and Yue Feng facing one another, preparing for a decisive battle.

Chapter Summary: “King’s Pawn”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Cui Man and Xia Yu step aside so Xiao He can test Yue Feng, a powerful mutant known as the “King’s Pawn.”
• Yue Feng attacks with immense force. His ability, “Invincible Head-On,” makes him nearly unstoppable and invulnerable when moving or fighting forward, but prevents him from retreating.
• Xiao He is shocked when Yue Feng overpowers him in a direct collision. Curious about whether his own rule-based Superpower can overcome Yue Feng’s, Xiao He agrees to fight him head-on.
• During their second clash, Yue Feng again forces Xiao backward and attempts a powerful punch. Xiao He dodges behind him and discovers Yue Feng’s major weakness: he cannot retreat or respond effectively to attacks from behind.
• Yue Feng becomes furious at being attacked from behind and demands another frontal battle.
• Xiao He analyzes Yue Feng’s ability as a combination of an indestructible shield and an unstoppable spear. Instead of allowing Yue Feng to build momentum, he closes the distance and forces him into close combat.
• Using superior speed, training, and technique, Xiao He manipulates Yue Feng’s movements. He blocks Yue Feng’s punch at the elbow and kicks Yue Feng’s fist into his own face, knocking him unconscious.
• Yue Feng soon awakens and admits that Xiao He defeated him fairly in a head-on fight.
• Xiao He brings Yue Feng back to prison, where Cui Man discusses possible cooperation with the Special Response Department.
• Yue Feng explains that he crippled a predatory loan boss who had driven young women to suicide, arguing that his violence was morally justified.
• Cui Man insists that personal justice cannot replace the law and that Yue Feng must follow the department’s rules if he wants to cooperate.
• Yue Feng refuses to change his principles, while Xiao He points out that Yue Feng has found a loophole: he could punish people he despises, then return to prison afterward.
• Cui Man offers cooperation on the condition that Yue Feng obey her rules; otherwise, he must remain imprisoned and face Xiao He if he tries to escape.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Demonstrates humility and curiosity by testing Yue Feng rather than underestimating him. He adapts quickly, identifies Yue Feng’s weakness, and wins through strategy and combat technique rather than brute force. His victory reinforces his reputation as someone who “never loses.”
• Yue Feng: Establishes himself as immensely strong, direct, stubborn, and committed to confronting opponents head-on. Despite his violent nature, he follows through on promises and possesses a personal sense of justice. After losing, he acknowledges Xiao He’s strength and becomes open to discussing cooperation, though he refuses to abandon his principles.
• Cui Man: Acts as the practical authority figure. She values Yue Feng’s potential but emphasizes discipline, law, and the reputation of the Special Response Department. Her teasing relationship with Xiao He contrasts with her firm stance toward Yue Feng.
• Xia Yu: Shows admiration for Xiao He and remains largely an observer, while also protecting Cui Man from the shockwave during the fight.

Significant Themes

• Strength versus strategy: Raw power and invulnerability are not enough when an opponent can analyze weaknesses and control the battlefield.
• Rules and limitations: Both Xiao He’s and Yue Feng’s abilities are governed by absolute rules, making their battle a clash of supernatural conditions as much as physical strength.
• Justice versus law: Yue Feng believes violent punishment is justified against truly harmful people, while Cui Man argues that society depends on consistent laws and order.
• Honor and masculinity: Yue Feng values direct confrontation and views attacking from behind as dishonorable, while Xiao He ultimately proves that tactical intelligence can still produce a legitimate victory.
• Controlled violence: The chapter questions whether violence can be acceptable when used against criminals, but emphasizes the dangers of allowing individuals to decide punishment for themselves.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Yue Feng: Their fight develops from mutual testing into a contest of pride, ability, and tactical intelligence. Yue Feng eventually respects Xiao He after being defeated directly.
• Xiao He and Cui Man: Cui Man teases Xiao He and later complains when he supports Yue Feng’s reasoning, suggesting familiarity and playful affection between them.
• Cui Man and Yue Feng: They clash over law, recruitment, and acceptable behavior. Cui Man offers cooperation only if Yue Feng accepts her authority and rules.
• Xiao He and Xia Yu: Xia Yu admires Xiao He’s apparent invincibility, while Xiao He’s actions confirm her faith in his abilities.

Chapter Summary

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Yue Feng is denied immediate admission to the Special Response Department because of his low assessment score, violent history, and refusal to obey authority.
• Cui Man offers him a probationary position instead. He must remain in Mutant Prison and may only leave for missions. If he fails, he will be imprisoned indefinitely until his Superpower can be suppressed.
• Cui Man personally vouches for Yue Feng, risking suspension or dismissal if he causes serious trouble. Yue Feng agrees to sign the agreement and accepts the arrangement.
• Cui Man reveals that Yue Feng’s power can serve as a “trigger” for Xiao He’s own ability. When Xiao He confronts a powerful person like Yue Feng acting as “Lin Tiannan,” his Superpower automatically strengthens enough to counter that opponent.
• She proposes using different imprisoned “Lin Tiannans” as controlled triggers, allowing Xiao He to activate different abilities and eventually use his Superpower deliberately rather than relying on chance.
• Xiao He realizes that his supposedly useless ability could become a flexible, dependable power system. He is excited by the possibility of controlling it.
• Cui Man reassures him that the department will prevent a repeat of the problems caused during Xia Yu’s capture.
• Xiao He returns home late, where Ye Wanqing has been anxiously waiting. Their reunion is affectionate and mildly bickering, ending with Ye Wanqing finally relaxing enough to sleep.

2. Character Developments

• Yue Feng: Although violent and unruly, Yue Feng demonstrates a sense of responsibility by worrying about the consequences Cui Man might face for supporting him. He agrees to the probationary terms and appears to be someone who keeps his promises.
• Cui Man: She shows herself to be strategic, protective, and willing to take personal risks for her team. Her plan transforms Yue Feng from a potential threat into a useful training and combat resource for Xiao He.
• Xiao He: He becomes more optimistic about his Superpower after understanding Cui Man’s plan. He also shows concern for Cui Man’s safety and continues developing into a more capable and dependable operative.
• Ye Wanqing: Her loneliness and anxiety while waiting for Xiao He reveal how emotionally attached she has become to him. Though she masks her concern with complaints and teasing, she is visibly relieved when he returns.
• Xia Yu: She maintains a warm relationship with Xiao He and appears comfortable enough to exchange playful comments with him.

3. Significant Themes

• Trust and responsibility: Cui Man’s willingness to vouch for Yue Feng reflects the risks involved in trusting flawed individuals, while Yue Feng’s agreement suggests he intends to honor that trust.
• Control versus danger: Yue Feng’s violent nature makes him dangerous within an organization, but proper supervision may turn his strength into an asset.
• Turning weakness into strength: Xiao He’s “trash” Superpower is reinterpreted as potentially versatile and controllable through carefully selected triggers.
• Teamwork and institutional strategy: The Special Response Department uses planning, cooperation, and controlled resources to compensate for individual limitations.
• Affection expressed indirectly: Ye Wanqing’s complaints, waiting, and domestic gestures reveal her feelings more clearly than direct declarations.

4. Character Interactions

• Cui Man negotiates Yue Feng’s probation and openly accepts responsibility for his future behavior.
• Xiao He challenges Cui Man’s decision but ultimately understands and admires her strategy.
• Yue Feng jokes with Xiao He, while Xiao He responds dryly by mentioning his girlfriend, creating comic tension.
• Cui Man and Xiao He share a close, almost sibling-like relationship, with teasing, physical affection, and mutual trust.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing interact through playful domestic conflict: she punches him for returning late, then washes the fruit he bought and feeds him cherry tomatoes.
• Their reunion emphasizes their growing romantic attachment, especially Ye Wanqing’s inability to relax while he is away.

Chapter Summary: “Tricking the Cat!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing spend the evening at home watching dramas while continuing their research into plastic decomposition.
• Cui Man contacts Xiao He and reveals that his research has led scientists to a promising breakthrough: a synthetic enzyme capable of breaking plastic molecules into harmless substances, potentially allowing those substances to be recycled.
• Cui Man emphasizes the enormous environmental implications of the discovery, linking it to problems such as global warming, desertification, freshwater shortages, and pollution.
• She also tells Xiao He that the Special Response Department has encountered several other Mutants. Before Xiao He and Ye Wanqing, six ability users had been found, but most lacked combat-oriented powers and others failed psychological evaluations. As a result, Xiao and Ye became the first Mutants to cooperate with the department.
• Other Mutant-related missions are being assigned to Candle Dragon and the Gluttonous Beast so they can gain experience and public recognition. Xiao agrees to remain focused on research but asks Cui Man to ensure that Old Xie and the others are not endangered.
• Xiao and Ye discuss whether society could ever accept Mutants. Ye imagines a world where people use their abilities to solve humanity’s problems, while Xiao argues that selfishness and malice make such harmony unlikely.
• Xiao tricks their cat, Tuantuan, by secretly switching places with Ye while the cat is being petted. When Tuantuan realizes Ye is touching it, it angrily scratches and bites her, though it stops whenever she cries out.
• Xiao eventually calms Tuantuan, and he and Ye laugh over the prank. Their playful interaction gradually becomes more affectionate and emotionally intimate.
• Ye later prepares beef noodles with homemade chili oil for Xiao, showing that she has begun accommodating his tastes. The chapter ends with Ye quietly wishing that their peaceful domestic life could last forever, while Xiao and Tuantuan silently plot another prank.

Character Developments

• Xiao He is shown as increasingly capable of multitasking while solving complex problems. His research is beginning to produce practical, potentially world-changing results. He also demonstrates concern for his colleagues’ safety and a cautious understanding of human nature.
• Ye Wanqing remains idealistic, hoping Mutants and ordinary humans can cooperate to improve the world. She also becomes more comfortable expressing affection through domestic gestures, such as preparing spicy noodles for Xiao. Her growing emotional attachment is evident in her wish for their current life to continue.
• Cui Man is enthusiastic and encouraging, recognizing the importance of Xiao’s work while also teasing him about his relationship with Ye. She provides important information about the wider Mutant situation.
• Tuantuan acts as a comic but possessive presence. The cat clearly favors Xiao’s attention and reacts dramatically when Ye replaces him, reinforcing the playful rivalry between the cat and Ye.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s relationship develops through teasing, shared humor, comfortable domestic companionship, and subtle romantic tension.

Significant Themes

• Science as a means of saving the world: The plastic-decomposition research offers a realistic, immediate path toward environmental improvement, contrasting with the long-term Cosmic Core Algorithm.
• The social acceptance of Mutants: Ye dreams of cooperation and mutual benefit, while Xiao recognizes prejudice, selfishness, and cruelty as barriers to unity.
• Idealism versus realism: Ye’s hopeful worldview is balanced by Xiao’s more skeptical understanding of human behavior.
• Domestic happiness and intimacy: Their quiet evening, playful prank, shared food, and unspoken affection emphasize the comfort they find in one another.
• Trust, secrecy, and responsibility: Because society may reject their abilities, Xiao and Ye must hide them, while still using their powers carefully to help others.

Character Interactions

• Cui Man praises Xiao’s research and playfully calls him “sweetie,” teasing Ye about jealousy.
• Xiao responds protectively when he learns other Mutants are handling missions, asking Cui Man not to let their allies get hurt.
• Xiao and Ye debate humanity’s capacity for cooperation, revealing their differing philosophies.
• Xiao and Ye collaborate in tricking Tuantuan, turning the cat’s possessiveness into a shared joke.
• Their laughter, prolonged eye contact, and Ye’s thoughtful cooking create a noticeably warmer and more romantic atmosphere between them.

Chapter Summary: “Revenge? Repaying a Favor!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After watching a show, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing spend the night separately, both enjoying their increasingly comfortable life together.
• The next morning, they go jogging. Ye Wanqing struggles with her stamina and subtly offers Xiao He her water, but he misses the romantic implication.
• Ye Wanqing wants to go out with Xiao He and see the riverside night view they missed during their earlier investigation of the Yangtze finless porpoise. She hints repeatedly until Xiao He finally understands and suggests going that weekend.
• They plan an outing to Fine Food and Fashion Street: shopping, eating, watching a movie, and viewing the river at night. Xiao He secretly intends to confess his feelings during a ferry ride.
• On the day of the outing, Ye Wanqing dresses especially carefully, leaving Xiao He stunned and strengthening his resolve to confess.
• They eat their way through the crowded food street and then watch a movie. However, heavy rain begins unexpectedly, ruining Xiao He’s carefully planned riverside confession.
• With public transportation about to stop running, Xiao He offers to buy umbrellas, but Ye Wanqing refuses to remain alone and suggests staying at a hotel. Xiao He realizes the rain may actually be the finless porpoise “repaying” them for sparing its life rather than taking revenge.
• They reach a hotel and obtain the only remaining room with two separate beds. Xiao He is soaked, while Ye Wanqing is mostly protected by his jacket. She dries his clothes while he showers.
• Before sleeping, Ye Wanqing asks Xiao He to keep her company and reveals how she discovered her ability. She once cursed a former classmate, Du Ziheng, for repeatedly using her embarrassing nickname, causing everyone—including his parents—to start calling him “Du Ziteng” instead.
• The two bond over their dislike of people who mock others for attention. Xiao He defends the nickname “Little Pufferfish,” while Ye Wanqing suggests he could call her “Xiaoqing” if he wants something more intimate.
• Just as Xiao He considers confessing, someone suddenly knocks urgently on their hotel-room door, ending the chapter on a cliffhanger.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Becomes increasingly aware of his romantic feelings for Ye Wanqing and plans to confess during their riverside outing. He is attentive and protective, tilting the umbrella toward her and shielding her from the rain with his jacket, though he remains oblivious to many of her hints. His playful resentment toward the finless porpoise turns into gratitude when he realizes the rain may have created an unexpected opportunity for them.
• Ye Wanqing: Grows more openly affectionate and proactive. She engineers the riverside outing through indirect hints, holds Xiao He’s hand in the crowd, and clearly wants private time with him. She is touched by his consideration and becomes emotionally vulnerable while sharing the story behind her ability. Her suggestion to call her “Xiaoqing” signals a desire for greater intimacy.
• Their relationship: The pair behave increasingly like a couple, with mutual concern, physical closeness, teasing, and shared private experiences, though neither has formally confessed.

Significant Themes

• Slow-building romance: Their affection is expressed through small gestures, hints, teasing, and concern rather than direct declarations.
• Miscommunication and emotional obliviousness: Ye Wanqing repeatedly hints at her desire to spend time with Xiao He, while he often fails to recognize her romantic intentions.
• Good deeds being rewarded: The rain, initially blamed on the finless porpoise as revenge, is reinterpreted as a favor because it leads them to spend the night together.
• Shared resentment and emotional bonding: Their conversation about bullying and humiliating nicknames deepens their connection through a shared sense of justice.
• Protection and care: Xiao He’s efforts to protect Ye Wanqing from the rain and avoid exhausting her reveal his feelings more clearly than his words do.

Important Character Interactions

• Ye Wanqing offers Xiao He water after jogging, but he unknowingly rejects the gesture.
• She nudges him toward remembering the riverside night view, eventually prompting him to arrange the outing.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing hold hands while navigating the crowded street, showing increasing comfort with physical intimacy.
• Ye Wanqing protects Xiao He from going out alone in the rain and proposes the hotel stay.
• At the hotel, she takes care of him by drying his clothes, while he worries about their sleeping arrangements.
• Their late-night conversation about Du Ziheng and “Little Pufferfish” allows them to exchange personal histories, joke affectionately, and approach an emotional confession—only to be interrupted by the unexpected knock.

Chapter Summary: “Groundbreaking Invention”

Key Plot Points and Events

• After being stranded overnight by heavy rain, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing are found at their hotel by a Special Response Department agent, who reveals that both of them have GPS trackers for their protection.
• The agent drives them home and awkwardly assures them that their bedroom and bathroom are not monitored, leading Ye Wanqing to defensively deny that anything romantic happened between them.
• Unable to sleep because of hunger, Xiao He accepts Ye Wanqing’s offer of a midnight snack. She makes them hot noodles with fried eggs, and the two quietly discuss trying to visit the riverside again despite their previous mishap.
• The next morning, Xiao He finishes typing his solution to the Plastic Decomposition problem. His supernatural problem-solving ability disappears, confirming that the problem has been solved.
• He sends the solution to Cui Man, who explains that the Special Response Department has strengthened national data security using knowledge from his earlier solution to the “NP=P?” problem. The department also regularly erases sensitive data from his devices to protect his identity.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing decide to celebrate by buying groceries and preparing a feast. During their shopping trip, Cui Man calls with astonishing news: the proposed plastic-decomposing enzyme can be produced using existing technology and inexpensive, common materials.
• Cui Man concludes that, with sufficient funding, a full production line could be established within a year. The invention could make plastic recyclable and reusable, representing a major breakthrough for humanity.

Character Developments

• Xiao He remains straightforward and somewhat oblivious, especially regarding his growing intimacy with Ye Wanqing. He is nevertheless considerate, cautious about information security, and genuinely proud that his abilities can benefit humanity.
• Ye Wanqing becomes increasingly comfortable caring for Xiao He, preparing food for him and suggesting they celebrate together. Her embarrassment and jealousy-like thoughts reveal that she is developing romantic feelings, though she continues to hide them behind irritation and teasing.
• Cui Man is shown as highly enthusiastic and professionally invested in Xiao He’s work. Her excitement over the enzyme’s practical applications emphasizes the real-world importance of his solutions.
• The Special Response Department demonstrates both close surveillance and genuine concern for Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s safety.

Significant Themes

• Science serving humanity: Xiao He’s supernatural talent is portrayed not as personal power but as a means of solving global problems, particularly environmental destruction.
• Environmental responsibility: The plastic-decomposition enzyme offers a practical answer to the pollution crisis by converting plastic waste into reusable industrial materials.
• Privacy versus protection: The couple’s tracking and monitoring highlight the tension between state security measures and personal privacy.
• Growing romance through domestic intimacy: Shared food, teasing, embarrassment, and quiet companionship bring Xiao He and Ye Wanqing closer.
• From theory to application: The chapter emphasizes that groundbreaking discoveries become truly transformative when they can be produced and implemented using current technology.

Character Interactions

• The Special Response Department agent’s dry comments embarrass Ye Wanqing, while Xiao He’s failure to defend her makes her annoyed.
• Ye Wanqing shows affection by making Xiao He a late-night meal, and their mutual glances reveal an unspoken emotional closeness.
• Xiao He deliberately calls her “Xiaoqing” to tease her and enjoys watching her blush, while she responds with mock anger.
• Their decision to celebrate the completed solution together reflects their increasing partnership and emotional attachment.
• Cui Man’s excited phone call transforms Xiao He’s intellectual achievement into a concrete, world-changing accomplishment.

Chapter Summary: “Mutant Competition”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Cui Man proposes publicly attributing the Plastic Decomposition breakthrough to Ye Wanqing, also known as White Marsh, rather than Xiao He.
• The plan serves two purposes:
  1. It establishes that White Marsh’s Superpower is connected to intelligence and scientific research.
  2. It gives her a form of protection, since foreign powers will hesitate to kill someone whose abilities could solve major problems for humanity.
• Ye Wanqing agrees, partly because she enjoys being recognized as “Yinglong’s girlfriend.” Cui Man declares that Xiao He will represent China’s martial strength while Wanqing represents its scientific achievements.
• China announces that White Marsh has developed a cheap, effective synthetic-enzyme process for breaking plastic into two nontoxic, useful industrial substances.
• China promises to share the technology globally instead of monopolizing it through patents. The process could reduce plastic pollution and help poorer countries develop new industries by processing waste for wealthier nations.
• M Country’s president, Trabu Herlangni, views the technology as a threat to his country’s global dominance. He orders allied nations to spread disinformation claiming that the process is toxic and part of a Chinese conspiracy.
• Several allied leaders point out the technology’s practical and economic benefits, but Herlangni pressures them into supporting his opposition. Y Country and A Continent immediately pledge loyalty, while others remain reluctant.
• Defense Minister Schofield proposes creating a global “Mutant Joint Tournament.” Publicly, it would promote cooperation and Superpower research; secretly, M Country would use it to recruit, manipulate, or eliminate powerful Mutants.
• Herlangni initially objects because M Country has no Mutant capable of defeating Xiao He, but Schofield suggests using team-based or adjusted rules, coercing other nations into participating, and exploiting the event for propaganda and profit.
• Herlangni approves the plan, envisioning a globally televised spectacle modeled after the Olympics, complete with sponsorships, advertising, merchandise, and fan culture.
• Unaware of the political scheme developing around them, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing spend the evening peacefully eating hot pot and watching television.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Ye Wanqing becomes more willing to accept public recognition, especially when it reinforces her relationship with Xiao He. Her scientific identity is deliberately separated from Xiao He’s combat-oriented image.
• Xiao He demonstrates trust and affection by immediately supporting Wanqing’s credit and patting her head. He accepts the arrangement as repayment for her past contributions.
• Cui Man proves politically strategic and protective. She understands that controlling the public narrative around Wanqing can shield her from foreign threats.
• President Herlangni is portrayed as paranoid, selfish, and obsessed with preserving M Country’s hegemony. He dismisses environmental and humanitarian benefits in favor of political control.
• Schofield emerges as an opportunistic strategist. He transforms Herlangni’s fear of losing influence into a plan that combines propaganda, espionage, recruitment, and commercial exploitation.
• The international leaders reveal differing priorities: some recognize the technology’s environmental and economic value, while others follow M Country out of fear or political dependence.
• Xiao He and Wanqing’s affectionate domestic life contrasts sharply with the escalating international conflict surrounding their identities.

Significant Themes

• Science versus geopolitics: A technology designed to benefit all humanity is immediately treated as a weapon in the struggle for global influence.
• Humanitarianism versus hegemony: China’s decision to share the invention contrasts with M Country’s attempt to suppress it to preserve dominance.
• Public image as protection: Cui Man uses White Marsh’s reputation and achievements as both propaganda and a practical security measure.
• Exploitation of Mutants: The proposed tournament disguises political manipulation and possible violence as cooperation, research, and entertainment.
• Power and propaganda: Herlangni seeks to control public perception through fabricated rumors and challenges to China’s credibility.
• Personal peace amid global turmoil: The chapter ends by emphasizing the ordinary happiness of Xiao He and Wanqing while governments prepare to turn their existence into an international spectacle.

Chapter Summary: “The Most Urgent Matter”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing celebrate the success of Plastic Decomposition over shabu-shabu and beer. The invention has solved a major global environmental problem, and its recyclable byproducts may even generate profit.
• Their celebration is interrupted by Cui Man and Xia Yu, who join the meal. Cui Man explains that although many countries support the plan, M Country and several allies oppose it for political reasons. Other nations, especially poorer countries, are already cooperating with China to establish processing factories.
• Cui Man reveals the chapter’s main conflict: M Country has proposed an international “Mutant Competition” under the pretext of exchanging Superpower techniques and studying Mutants.
• The competition is likely designed to favor M Country. It may also be intended to investigate Ye Wanqing’s White Light, obtain Xiao He’s Miracle Factor, or poach him.
• China cannot simply refuse to participate because Yinglong—Xiao He’s public identity—is now an important national symbol. Refusal would damage China’s reputation and waste the publicity built around him.
• China currently has only three viable combat Mutants, while the competition requires six participants: five competitors and one substitute. China therefore has three or four months to locate additional Mutants and prepare.
• Cui Man identifies finding more Mutants as the most urgent task and plans to request additional resources and personnel for the search.
• The chapter ends with the group drinking together, even as everyone recognizes that the competition hides dangerous political and personal motives.

Character Developments

• Xiao He remains confident and outspoken. He is proud of Plastic Decomposition and enraged by countries rejecting it, but he also begins thinking strategically about creating future inventions that other nations will be forced to accept.
• His confidence in his combat abilities has increased after defeating AME Influenza. However, Cui Man reminds him that his importance makes him a target for theft, recruitment, or manipulation.
• Ye Wanqing shows growing warmth and concern for Xiao He. She encourages him to eat vegetables, gives him food, and defends him playfully, demonstrating how much more comfortable and caring she has become.
• Cui Man balances praise with realism. She celebrates Xiao He’s achievements but warns him about international politics, unfair competition rules, espionage, and attempts to acquire the Miracle Factor.
• Xia Yu remains shy and hesitant but is recognized as a potentially powerful competitor. Her ability to choose suitable enhancements could allow her to defeat opponents after Xiao He exposes their abilities.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing are presented as an increasingly close and teasing pair, while Cui Man and Xia Yu become part of their informal circle.

Significant Themes

• Scientific progress versus geopolitics: Even a solution that benefits the entire world can be obstructed by national rivalry and political influence.
• Public image and national responsibility: Xiao He and Yinglong are no longer acting only for themselves; their success or failure reflects on China.
• Hidden motives beneath cooperation: The Mutant Competition is presented as diplomacy on the surface but likely conceals efforts to study, exploit, recruit, or weaken China’s Mutants.
• Preparation and uncertainty: China must strengthen its forces despite incomplete information, unreliable contestant profiles, and the possibility of sabotage.
• Friendship and ordinary happiness amid danger: The relaxed shabu-shabu meal contrasts with the serious threats ahead, emphasizing the characters’ attempts to preserve normal companionship.
• The growing Mutant phenomenon: The increasing number of Mutants suggests that the world is entering a new and potentially unstable stage.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share affectionate teasing while celebrating their achievement, with Ye Wanqing showing practical care toward him.
• Cui Man praises Xiao He but immediately challenges his confidence by explaining the political resistance to Plastic Decomposition.
• Cui Man warns Xiao He and Ye Wanqing that the Mutant Competition may target them personally, especially Xiao He’s Miracle Factor and Ye Wanqing’s White Light.
• Xiao He boasts that he can defeat the opposition, while Ye Wanqing and Cui Man emphasize the many unknown variables and the need for caution.
• Cui Man encourages Xia Yu and explains how she can use her enhancement ability strategically.
• The group ultimately joins in a toast, creating a temporary moment of unity before the search for Mutants and preparation for the competition begin.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• After a hot-pot gathering, Cui Man leaves with Xia Yu, while Xiao He and Ye Wanqing stay behind to clean up. Their domestic teamwork and comfortable routine make Xiao He imagine what married life with Ye Wanqing might be like.
• During their evening walk, Xiao He holds Ye Wanqing’s cold hands to warm them. Both enjoy the intimate moment, though neither openly acknowledges their growing romantic feelings.
• The next morning, news reports reveal international opposition to the global “Plastic Decomposition Plan” and other environmental initiatives. Xiao He and Ye Wanqing criticize politicians for prioritizing power over humanity’s survival.
• Xiao He focuses on the upcoming Mutant Competition. His team still needs three more Mutants, along with additional Triggers to make his ability safer and more effective.
• Ye Wanqing helps him choose a future research topic from several environmental crises. They select environmental energy, because Xiao He believes he can create a clean energy source powerful enough to meet global needs and undermine political resistance.
• Xiao He continues preparing for the competition by practicing combat and obstacle skills. His ability is strongest when facing powerful opponents but less useful against weaker ones, so he plans to rely on Triggers while improving his own fighting ability.
• At the Special Response Department, Cui Man proposes testing Xiao He’s ability in a team-battle scenario. Xie Haining’s name is changed to “Lin Tiannan,” allowing Xiao He to treat him as an opponent and attempt to generate a new Superpower.
• Xiao He and Xie Haining begin a controlled sparring match to discover what ability will emerge.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Becomes increasingly comfortable with domestic life alongside Ye Wanqing and begins imagining a future with her. He remains determined to succeed in the Mutant Competition and protect the secrecy of his name-altering Superpower. His ambition also expands from competition preparation to creating a revolutionary clean-energy source.
• Ye Wanqing: Shows practical care by helping clean up, saving leftover food, preparing breakfast, and encouraging Xiao He to eat. She becomes more openly affected by their physical closeness, secretly enjoying his attention while trying to hide her embarrassment.
• Cui Man: Is shown as sociable, affectionate, and easily excited, especially after drinking. She continues organizing the team’s research and training plans.
• Xia Yu: Acts responsibly by escorting the intoxicated Cui Man home.
• Xie Haining: Cooperates with the experimental sparring session and approaches it calmly, showing trust in Xiao He and confidence in his own abilities.

Significant Themes

• Growing intimacy and domestic companionship: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s shared meals, cleaning, walks, and hand-holding reveal a relationship becoming increasingly intimate without either directly confessing.
• Humanity’s self-destructive politics: International disputes over environmental plans demonstrate how political self-interest and misinformation threaten global survival.
• Power and secrecy: Xiao He must carefully conceal the mechanism of his Superpower, since exposing it could make him vulnerable.
• Preparation versus dependence on power: Although Xiao He has a powerful ability, its limitations force him to train physically and develop safer strategies.
• Environmental responsibility and technological hope: The choice of environmental energy presents Xiao He’s potential invention as both a practical solution to the world’s crises and a challenge to corrupt political systems.

Character Interactions

• Cui Man affectionately invites everyone to her home for another hot-pot meal, while Xia Yu takes responsibility for her.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing clean together, discuss future domestic life indirectly, and share a tender hand-holding walk.
• Ye Wanqing cares for Xiao He during breakfast by peeling eggs and pushing food toward him, reinforcing their warm, almost familial closeness.
• While selecting a research topic, the two sit extremely close together, becoming flustered by the physical proximity. Ye Wanqing accidentally blurts out multiplication facts to control her embarrassment.
• Cui Man directs the team’s training and coordinates the plan to test Xiao He’s abilities against Xie Haining.
• The chapter ends with Xiao He and Xie Haining facing each other as sparring partners, setting up the discovery of a new Superpower.

Chapter Summary: “Two Seconds”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He tests his newly acquired Superpower while sparring with Xie Haining, who is disguised as “Lin Tiannan.” Without using his ability, Xiao He is completely outmatched; Xie can evade his attacks effortlessly and defeat him in one exchange.
• Xiao activates his Superpower and discovers that it is Time Stop. The ability freezes the surrounding world, turning it black and white, but lasts for only about two seconds and requires a four-second cooldown.
• The group conducts experiments to determine the ability’s limits:
  • Objects and people become immovable while time is stopped because their molecules are frozen.
  • Objects thrown or fired during the Time Stop remain suspended until time resumes.
  • Xiao can move normally while time is stopped.
  • By holding someone’s hand, he can bring that person into the stopped-time state.
• Cui Man theorizes that Xiao’s White Light is not an energy-based power but one that can alter or “reset” the world’s fundamental laws, such as time, gravity, and mechanics.
• Xie Haining realizes that Time Stop is a natural counter to his extraordinary perception and combat ability.
• The group plans to use Xiao’s power strategically in the upcoming Mutant Competition, potentially combining it with Yue Feng’s physical enhancement abilities and other Superpower triggers.
• Xiao prepares for another blood draw related to the Miracle Factor. The enhanced security reveals that the blood has become highly valuable and dangerous to transport because desperate patients may attempt to steal it.

Character Developments

• Xiao He gains confidence after discovering that his Superpower is far more extraordinary than simple physical enhancement. He is excited by its potential but learns that its short duration severely limits what he can accomplish.
• Xie Haining demonstrates his exceptional combat instincts and analytical ability. He quickly identifies Xiao’s power as Time Stop and acknowledges that it directly counters him.
• Cui Man becomes intensely interested in studying Xiao’s ability. Her scientific curiosity drives the experiments, and she develops the theory that White Light manipulates the laws of reality.
• Ye Wanqing reacts with fear and concern toward the dangerous implications of Time Stop, though she remains supportive of Xiao.
• Xiao and Ye’s relationship is shown through Xiao’s concern for her and his request that she wait for him during the blood draw.

Significant Themes

• Discovery and experimentation: The chapter focuses on uncovering the rules, limitations, and applications of Xiao’s new power.
• The nature of reality: Cui Man’s theory introduces the idea that Superpowers may alter universal laws rather than merely produce energy-based effects.
• Power and limitations: Although Time Stop is immensely powerful, its two-second duration, cooldown, and inability to move frozen objects prevent it from being unlimited.
• Teamwork and strategy: The ability’s greatest value may lie in allowing Xiao to bring allies into stopped time, creating powerful combinations during team battles.
• Danger surrounding the Miracle Factor: The increased security emphasizes the desperation of terminally ill people and the risks created by possessing a potentially life-saving substance.

Character Interactions

• Xie trains Xiao and corrects his poor defensive posture, establishing the gap between their combat abilities.
• Xiao demonstrates Time Stop to Xie, Ye Wanqing, Xia Yu, and Cui Man, shocking everyone.
• Cui Man enthusiastically volunteers as a test subject, while Ye worries that Xiao may exploit the situation.
• Xiao and Cui discover together that he can bring another person into stopped time by maintaining physical contact.
• Cui and Xie discuss the tactical importance of Xiao’s ability, especially its potential to counter Xie and support the team.
• Before the blood draw, Xiao asks Ye to wait for him, while Cui explains the heightened security surrounding the Miracle Factor.

Chapter Summary: “Jealous Rivalry”

1. Key Plot Points and Events

• Cui Man updates Xiao He on the growing international cooperation surrounding the Miracle Factor and the Plastic Decomposition Plan. Several countries are becoming friendlier toward their nation, while M Country remains the main source of opposition.
• Cui Man and Xiao He agree that the upcoming Mutant Competition could be an opportunity to retaliate against M Country.
• Xiao He has gained the ability to stop time. He begins considering ways to combine it with Physical Enhancement and weapons, such as delivering multiple punches or launching projectiles during stopped time so their effects occur simultaneously when time resumes.
• After training, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing return home, prepare and enjoy dinner together, and take an evening walk while holding hands.
• The next day, Xiao He begins working on a new “environmentally friendly energy” project. He estimates that compiling the extensive knowledge will take one or two weeks, though technological limitations may prevent its implementation.
• During their domestic routine, Ye Wanqing becomes increasingly affectionate toward Xiao He and humorously jealous of the attention he gives their cat, Tuantuan.
• The chapter ends with Xiao He helping Ye Wanqing in the kitchen, while she notices that he may have grown taller.

2. Character Developments

• Xiao He grows more confident in his abilities and begins experimenting with the tactical potential of Time Stop. His ambitions also expand from plastic decomposition to environmentally friendly energy.
• He becomes increasingly aware of his attraction to Ye Wanqing, realizing that his previous dislike of her no longer makes sense to him.
• Ye Wanqing becomes more openly comfortable and affectionate around Xiao He. She relies on his shoulder when tired, enjoys holding his hand, cooks for him, and secretly appreciates his concern and assistance.
• Her playful jealousy emerges when Xiao He gives Tuantuan attention, especially when he feeds the kitten yogurt and treats it affectionately.
• Cui Man remains enthusiastic and patriotic, encouraging Xiao He to use the Mutant Competition to oppose M Country.
• Tuantuan acts almost like a rival for Xiao He’s attention, further highlighting the growing romantic tension between Xiao He and Ye Wanqing.

3. Significant Themes

• International cooperation and conflict: Xiao He’s discoveries are gradually bringing countries together, while M Country remains an obstacle.
• Responsibility and technological progress: The environmentally friendly energy project reflects Xiao He’s expanding role in improving the world, though the chapter acknowledges the limits of current technology and political willingness.
• Romantic domesticity: Shared meals, household chores, walks, and small acts of care show Xiao He and Ye Wanqing developing a comfortable, intimate relationship.
• Jealousy and emotional realization: Ye Wanqing’s jealousy toward Tuantuan humorously reveals her growing feelings, while Xiao He begins recognizing his own attraction.
• Power and strategy: Time Stop is presented not merely as a superpower but as an ability whose true value depends on creativity, combinations, and training.

4. Character Interactions

• Cui Man and Xiao He discuss international politics and prepare mentally for their confrontation with M Country.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share a warm domestic evening: she cooks, he praises her food, feeds her, and comforts her when she is tired.
• During their walk, Xiao He worries about Ye Wanqing’s cold hands, while she secretly enjoys his concern.
• While working on the energy project, Xiao He stares at Ye Wanqing admiringly and realizes how much his feelings have changed.
• Xiao He feeds Tuantuan yogurt, provoking Ye Wanqing’s comic jealousy.
• In the kitchen, Xiao He helps Ye Wanqing reach ingredients and offers to assist her in the future, deepening their affectionate bond.

Summary

Key Events and Information

• The author announces that the novel failed to enter the Sanjiang recommendation list and will therefore become a paid (“premium”) work the following afternoon.
• Before that happens, the author plans to release an extra chapter at 10 p.m. and another free chapter the next morning.
• From Friday through the following Friday, the author promises to publish more than 10,000 words daily. Future update frequency will depend on reader response and subscription results.
• The author explains that the novel’s early structural problems arose because two editors initially rejected it. When editor A-Fei accepted the book, the author had only about 20,000 words prepared, leaving insufficient time to organize the plot properly.
• A major example is Commander Cui Man’s command mistake during the Spider-Man incident. This event was originally intended to occur before the “Typhoon” and “Millennium Problem” arcs, but the author moved more novel material forward to attract readers. As a result, Cui Man’s mistake received disproportionate emphasis.
• The author acknowledges responsibility for “screwing over” Cui Man through this flawed setup and jokingly promises to insert themself into the story as a minor character to help Cui Man find happiness.
• The author notes that later chapters should feel smoother because a larger backlog now allows for revision, restructuring, and better pacing.
• The author reports having revised reader-identified problems, restored or adjusted sections that seemed incomplete, and cut unnecessary material. Chapters 113–118, originally equivalent to ten chapters, were heavily condensed to remove padding.
• The book has reached 18,000 bookmarks, but the author is uncertain how many readers will subscribe once it becomes premium. After the update burst, the author promises one extra chapter for every additional 100 average subscriptions.

Character Development

• There is little direct narrative development because this is primarily an author’s note.
• Cui Man receives retrospective development: the author frames her command error as a consequence of poor plotting and expresses sympathy and affection for her.
• The author promises to intervene in the fictional world to give Cui Man a happier outcome, emphasizing the character’s importance to them.
• The author also presents themself as an eventual minor character, blurring the boundary between creator and story.

Character Interactions

• The main “interaction” is between the author and readers. The author compares the trial-reading period to dating: readers and the author initially become interested in one another, discover flaws, and either abandon the book or continue while adapting to each other.
• The author stresses that revision has been a two-sided process: readers offered criticism, while the author responded by changing pacing, repairing omissions, and cutting excess material.
• The author expresses appreciation to readers who continue supporting the book after it becomes premium and frames their continued relationship as having successfully “worked things out.”

Significant Themes

• Authorial responsibility and revision: The author openly admits structural mistakes and explains how limited preparation affected the early plot.
• Reader–author cooperation: The success of the book is portrayed as a shared process in which both sides adjust and compromise.
• Creative growth: The author hopes this book will build an audience and provide experience for preparing the next novel more carefully.
• Attachment to characters: The author’s promise to help Cui Man reflects a personal emotional investment in the characters.
• Uncertainty and perseverance: Even if the book fails to achieve premium success, the author intends to continue writing and improve in future projects.

Chapter Summary: “Antimatter Generator”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He returns to the Special Response Department, where Cui Man measures his improved physical condition. He is now 180 cm tall, weighs 75 kg, and has only 12% body fat—changes attributed partly to the AME Probiotic Virus.
• Cui Man explains that the virus has likely spread to roughly three-quarters of the country’s population and may benefit future generations by unlocking latent human potential.
• The nation’s researchers are overwhelmed by the revolutionary discoveries connected to Xiao He, including the Miracle Factor, AME Probiotic Virus, Universe Origin Algorithm, plastic decomposition technology, and the upcoming Environmental Energy Problem.
• Cui Man assigns Xiao He and Xia Yu to retrieve an eight-year-old Mutant whose Superpower is extremely valuable but noncombat-oriented. Xiao He’s role is mainly to reassure the child by appearing as the superhero Yinglong.
• Before the mission begins, researcher Zhang Chuan arrives in a panic after examining Xiao He’s latest manuscript. He reveals that it contains a blueprint for an antimatter generator.
• Zhang explains that the generator can manufacture antimatter, use its annihilation with matter to generate electricity, and sustain its own operation while supplying power externally.
• Although antimatter could theoretically destroy the Earth—roughly fifty kilograms would be catastrophically powerful—the proposed generator would be extraordinarily useful. One gram could provide the country’s electricity for approximately two years, while a single compact station could produce one gram per month using cheap carbon.
• The chapter ends with the realization that the technology could provide abundant electricity and potentially “light up the entire world.”

Character Developments

• Xiao He: His body continues to improve dramatically because of the AME Probiotic Virus and his training. He remains modest and somewhat embarrassed by the enormous consequences of his discoveries, often failing to grasp how revolutionary his manuscripts are.
• Ye Wanqing: She remains self-conscious about her height but is pleased by her weight loss. Her attraction to Xiao He becomes more apparent as she admires his transformed physique, while Xiao privately recognizes that his training was largely motivated by her.
• Cui Man: She acts as both Xiao He’s handler and an enthusiastic supporter of his work. Her teasing, confidence, and practical planning show her ability to manage both scientific breakthroughs and field operations.
• Xie Haining: He continues to depend on Xiao He’s abilities and expresses hope that Xiao’s high Miracle Factor concentration will help him survive future dangers.
• Zhang Chuan: His reaction to the antimatter blueprint emphasizes the terrifying scale of the technology. Though initially horrified, he also recognizes its immense potential for solving the world’s energy problems.

Significant Themes

• Scientific progress and responsibility: Xiao He’s discoveries can transform civilization but may also create unprecedented risks, especially through antimatter’s destructive potential.
• The double-edged nature of technology: The generator could provide limitless clean energy or become an apocalyptic weapon depending on how it is used.
• Human potential and evolution: The AME Probiotic Virus represents a biological breakthrough that may improve physical development across entire populations and future generations.
• The gap between genius and understanding: Xiao He casually produces world-changing ideas without fully understanding their implications, while researchers struggle to comprehend and develop them.
• Hope amid danger: Despite the risks, the antimatter generator offers the possibility of ending energy shortages and benefiting the entire world.

Character Interactions

• Cui Man examines Xiao He and teases him about his improved physique, while Ye Wanqing reacts shyly and enviously to his height and body.
• Xiao He and Cui Man discuss the growing burden on national researchers and the preparation required for his next major problem.
• Xie Haining greets Xiao He and expresses dependence on his continued success; Cui Man reassures him about Xiao’s enhanced condition.
• Cui Man assigns Xiao He and Xia Yu the mission to retrieve the child Mutant, explaining that Xiao’s superhero identity will help gain the child’s trust.
• Zhang Chuan dramatically presents the antimatter blueprint to Cui Man and Xiao He, translating its scientific implications into terms everyone can understand.

Chapter Summary: “Ownership”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Chuan explains the enormous potential of the Antimatter Generator. A few generators could replace coal, nuclear, and hydroelectric power, while also powering submarines, aircraft carriers, spacecraft, and potentially faster-than-light travel.
• Antimatter technology could enable interstellar exploration, Mars colonization, and the survival of humanity beyond Earth. However, antimatter annihilation is irreversible, permanently converting matter into energy.
• Zhang Chuan emphasizes the danger of the technology being weaponized. In the wrong hands, it could destroy the world almost instantly. Cui Man agrees that humanity’s nature, rather than technology itself, is the greatest threat.
• Zhang Chuan argues that Yinglong/Xiao He should be transferred from combat operations to scientific research because of his immense value to science and medicine. He formally opposes Xiao He’s participation in the Mutant Competition.
• He also threatens to report Cui Man’s previous command error during the attempted capture of Xia Yu, which nearly resulted in Xiao He’s death.
• Xiao He refuses to abandon Cui Man, and Ye Wanqing, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining also declare their support for her. Cui Man orders the team to prepare for their next capture mission.
• After the team leaves, Cui Man privately realizes that higher-ranking officials may be trying to claim “ownership” of Xiao He for political or scientific purposes. She resolves to protect her authority over him.
• On the way home, Ye Wanqing suggests that Xiao He transfer to the science department for his safety. Xiao He admits he enjoys scientific advancement but also prefers combat and the sense of accomplishment it provides.
• Xiao He argues that science cannot explain or solve everything, particularly phenomena such as White Light. He reassures Ye Wanqing that her presence makes him feel nearly invincible.

Character Developments

• Zhang Chuan becomes increasingly protective of Xiao He and reveals that he values him as a scientific and medical asset rather than merely a fighter. His concern also exposes a growing conflict with Cui Man’s leadership.
• Cui Man shifts from joking confidence to serious suspicion. She recognizes that higher authorities may want control over Xiao He and decides that she must retain “ownership” of him. Despite her earlier mistake, she remains committed to her team and trusts Xiao He’s loyalty.
• Xiao He demonstrates strong loyalty to Cui Man and the Special Response Department. He is torn between the safety and importance of research and his personal preference for combat, achievement, and direct action.
• Ye Wanqing shows concern for Xiao He’s safety and supports Cui Man because of her affection for her. Xiao He’s teasing and reassurance deepen their emotional bond.
• Xia Yu and Xie Haining openly defend Cui Man, recognizing her past contributions, including the Miracle Factor, plastic decomposition, and AME Influenza discoveries.

Significant Themes

• Power and responsibility: The Antimatter Generator could transform civilization but could also become humanity’s ultimate weapon.
• Human nature versus technology: The chapter suggests that dangerous technology is not inherently evil; the real danger lies in who controls it and how people use it.
• Ownership and institutional control: Xiao He’s value causes powerful figures to compete over his future, treating him as an asset rather than an individual.
• Loyalty versus authority: The team’s support for Cui Man contrasts with the higher-ups’ attempts to judge her by one mistake and potentially remove Xiao He from her command.
• Science and the unknown: Xiao He respects science but believes it cannot explain every phenomenon, especially mutant abilities and White Light.
• Balancing safety and purpose: Xiao He must choose between a safer scientific role and the danger and fulfillment of fieldwork.

Important Character Interactions

• Zhang Chuan and Cui Man: Their disagreement over Xiao He becomes an open challenge to Cui Man’s authority. Zhang Chuan frames his opposition as concern for Xiao He, while Cui Man suspects hidden political motives.
• Zhang Chuan and Xiao He: Zhang Chuan sees Xiao He as too valuable to risk in combat, while Xiao He rejects being removed from the field.
• Cui Man and Xiao He: Their playful relationship reveals genuine trust and affection. Xiao He’s decision to stay with her reassures Cui Man, while she uses humor to mask her anxiety.
• The team and Cui Man: Xiao He, Ye Wanqing, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining all defend Cui Man and promise to remain with her, strengthening the group’s unity.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing: Their teasing conversation shows intimacy and mutual concern. Ye Wanqing favors a safer future for him, while Xiao He insists that both science and combat are meaningful parts of his identity.

Chapter Summary — “Death Stare”

Plot and events

• After returning home, Xiao He and Ye Wanqing prepare dinner together. Xiao He helps with soy sauce and chopping scallions while admiring how domestic and comfortable their routine feels.
• Ye Wanqing accidentally cuts her finger while chopping onions. Xiao He immediately treats the wound carefully, using disinfectant, iodine, and Cui Man’s healing spray before bandaging it.
• Because of her injury, Xiao He takes over the vegetable cutting and later washes the dishes. Ye Wanqing repeatedly supervises and nags him, creating a playful, domestic quarrel.
• Dinner consists of braised pork, onion-and-cucumber salad, vinegar potatoes, and fried eggs. Xiao He is deeply impressed by Ye Wanqing’s cooking, especially how well the dishes complement one another.
• After dinner, they go downstairs for their usual walk. Xiao He checks Ye Wanqing’s injured finger and tells her he has ordered protective finger guards for her.
• They search for Xiaohua, a friendly stray calico cat. Ye Wanqing feeds and pets the cat, but the moment is interrupted when she notices Tuantuan watching them from the balcony with glowing green eyes.
• The “death stare” leads to a confrontation upstairs. Tuantuan blocks Ye Wanqing from entering and angrily reacts to her affection for Xiaohua. Ye Wanqing argues with the jealous cat while Xiao He humorously withdraws to take a shower.

Character development

• Xiao He shows increasing concern and affection for Ye Wanqing. His immediate response to her injury, willingness to handle chores, and purchase of finger guards reveal that he is becoming protective and attentive.
• He also privately acknowledges how pleasant it is to live with Ye Wanqing and resolves to win her over before their contract ends, showing that his feelings are growing beyond their arrangement.
• Ye Wanqing becomes more openly affectionate and playful. She enjoys Xiao He’s concern after cutting herself and secretly views their cooperation as resembling an old married couple.
• Her teasing, mock anger, and insistence on supervising Xiao He reflect growing comfort and intimacy. She is also affectionate toward animals, especially Xiaohua, despite Tuantuan’s jealousy.
• Tuantuan is characterized as possessive and jealous, reacting aggressively whenever Ye Wanqing shows attention to another cat.

Significant themes

• Domestic intimacy: Shared cooking, caring for an injury, washing dishes, and evening walks make Xiao He and Ye Wanqing seem increasingly like a couple.
• Growing romantic feelings: Xiao He’s protectiveness and Ye Wanqing’s secret happiness suggest their contractual relationship is developing into genuine affection.
• Care expressed through ordinary actions: Small gestures—bandaging a finger, buying protective equipment, and sharing food—carry emotional significance.
• Jealousy and companionship: Tuantuan’s reaction humorously mirrors romantic jealousy, emphasizing Ye Wanqing’s close bonds with both Xiao He and the cats.

Important interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing cooperate in the kitchen, teasing and caring for each other.
• Xiao He treats Ye Wanqing’s wound, prompting her to feel secretly pleased by his concern.
• Their dinner conversation and shared chores reinforce their comfortable, couple-like dynamic.
• Ye Wanqing playfully hits and teases Xiao He after misunderstanding his comment about “protective covers.”
• Ye Wanqing bonds with Xiaohua while Tuantuan watches jealously, culminating in a comic standoff at the apartment door.

Summary: “Oathmark and Absolute Defense”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He joins Cui Man and Xia Yu on an escort mission to retrieve Chen Ting, an eight-year-old Mutant from a poor mountain village.
• Chen Ting possesses Oathmark, an ability that enforces promises made through a pinky oath. Anyone who breaks the agreement suffers the specified supernatural punishment.
• The government wants to bring Chen Ting into its custody and improve his village in exchange for his cooperation. Supplies are delivered, and Cui Man promises that his grandparents will receive a new house.
• Chen Ting asks Xiao He to promise that he will rescue him whenever he is in danger. Xia Yu wisely modifies the promise to “do everything possible” to save him, preventing an impossible absolute guarantee.
• When Chen Ting marks Xiao He with his oath, Xiao He’s newly awakened ability activates. A crystal-like barrier surrounds him, nullifying the oath and apparently isolating him from the laws of the outside world.
• The group safely transports Chen Ting to the Special Response Department. Xiao He encourages him to face the intimidating military base and promises to give him his Yinglong mask if he remains brave and completes his tasks.
• After lunch, the department tests Xiao He’s new power. The barrier withstands weapons, lasers, changes in temperature and air pressure, and other physical forces.
• The ability is identified as Absolute Defense, or “Heart’s Barrier”: Xiao He exists in a separate dimension where outside forces cannot affect him. He cannot attack while protected, but he can control the barrier’s size.
• Xiao He can allow people he trusts—especially Ye Wanqing, Cui Man, Xia Yu, and Xie Haining—to enter the barrier, while others are initially excluded.
• Researchers discover that the barrier’s strange geometry may be connected to advanced mathematical principles and the “Cosmic Core Algorithm” associated with Yinglong.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Gains a powerful defensive ability that counters Chen Ting’s Oathmark. He becomes more compassionate toward Chen Ting after learning that the boy’s parents fear him and abandoned him. Xiao also demonstrates loyalty to Ye Wanqing, though he is embarrassed by how dependent he is on her cooking and affection.
• Chen Ting: Despite being only eight, he is mature, kind-hearted, and concerned about his village’s welfare. His Oathmark is both frightening and useful, but its consequences have caused his parents to fear him. He begins forming trust in Xiao He after Xiao promises to support him.
• Cui Man: Acts as Chen Ting’s protector and negotiator, arranging aid for the village and carefully concealing the truth about his parents’ abandonment. She is also excited by the potential uses of both Oathmark and Xiao He’s new ability.
• Ye Wanqing: Shows increasing affection for Xiao He, bringing him lunch despite pretending to be indifferent. She is secretly delighted to learn that she is among the people he trusts enough to enter his barrier.
• Xia Yu: Comforts Chen Ting with chocolate and gentle encouragement. Her own difficult background helps her understand him, reinforcing her compassionate and dependable nature.
• Chen Ting’s parents: Their fear of their son reveals the emotional cost of his uncontrolled ability. Their broken promises ultimately contribute to their punishment and separation from him.

Significant Themes

• Promises and responsibility: Oathmark turns casual promises into binding moral obligations, emphasizing the danger of making commitments without considering whether they can be fulfilled.
• Trust and acceptance: Heart’s Barrier reflects Xiao He’s inner relationships: people he truly accepts can enter, while outsiders are rejected. The ability therefore symbolizes emotional trust as well as physical protection.
• Childhood innocence and premature maturity: Chen Ting is a child forced to deal with poverty, abandonment, and a dangerous power. His kindness and seriousness contrast with the cruelty of the adults around him.
• Power and social responsibility: The government sees Oathmark as a tool for controlling prisoners, healing injuries, and strengthening Mutants, raising questions about how supernatural abilities should be regulated and used.
• Scientific progress and national development: Cui Man connects Chen Ting’s rescue and the Antimatter Generator to broader efforts to improve impoverished communities and advance the country.
• Isolation versus belonging: Chen Ting is separated from his family because of his ability, while Xiao He’s barrier demonstrates that safety depends on who is accepted into one’s inner world.

Important Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing share a playful domestic relationship, with Xiao insisting that she save him lunch and Ye Wanqing happily bringing food to the base.
• Chen Ting and Xiao He establish a protective relationship through their modified promise, although Chen Ting is surprised when his oath fails against Xiao’s barrier.
• Xia Yu earns Chen Ting’s trust by speaking gently to him and sharing chocolate.
• Cui Man teases Xiao He and Ye Wanqing about their closeness, while also serving as the practical leader of the mission.
• During testing, Cui Man realizes that Xiao’s barrier admits only people he consciously trusts, exposing the depth of his bond with Ye Wanqing.

Chapter Summary: “Stepping Stone”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Xiao He finishes examining Chen Ting’s defensive ability, “Perfect Cube.” Although useful for protection, Xiao He feels that a purely defensive power cannot determine the outcome of a battle. Still, Chen Ting’s unusual ability makes him valuable as a long-term Trigger and potentially useful in the upcoming Mutant Competition.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing stop at a supermarket on their way home. They shop for discounted food, with Ye Wanqing enthusiastically choosing ingredients for dinner.
• Their playful relationship is highlighted when Xiao He buys Ye Wanqing a grape-flavored lollipop. She pretends to be annoyed that he is not romantic, but is secretly pleased that he remembered her preference.
• Near the school, they encounter Zhang Yuxin’s boyfriend proposing to her. The proposal features candles, rose petals, and a bouquet made from stacks of cash.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing both notice that Zhang Yuxin’s boyfriend seems strangely obsessed and submissive compared with his previously arrogant personality. Zhang Yuxin appears less moved than smug and satisfied, as though she is enjoying having him humbled.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing return home and prepare dinner together. Their increasingly natural cooperation creates a warm, domestic atmosphere.
• A television report announces the international Mutant Competition, which M Country is promoting aggressively. Many countries have already agreed to participate, while China has not yet officially responded.
• Xiao He realizes the event is being driven not only by cooperation between Mutants but also by political pressure, media influence, national pride, sponsorships, and profit. He worries that his parents might see the broadcast and discover his involvement.
• In M Country, an unnamed young man watches the report and becomes excited because he believes Yinglong will participate. He obtains an M Country Hero Handbook, studies the listed Mutants, and chooses “Morph Hero” as his first target, describing the hero as a “stepping stone” toward becoming a god.

Character Developments

• Xiao He: Becomes more thoughtful about the strategic value of different Superpowers and recognizes Chen Ting’s long-term potential despite the limitations of Perfect Cube. He continues showing affection through teasing, small gifts, and practical concern for Ye Wanqing. His awareness of the Mutant Competition’s political and commercial implications also shows his growing maturity and caution.
• Ye Wanqing: Displays her cheerful, domestic, and affectionate side while shopping and cooking. She enjoys Xiao He’s attention but often hides her happiness behind teasing and mock irritation. She also proves observant, immediately sensing that Zhang Yuxin’s boyfriend’s behavior is abnormal.
• Chen Ting: Though he has little direct action in the chapter, his ability establishes him as a potentially important future Trigger and competitor.
• Zhang Yuxin and her boyfriend: Their relationship appears unhealthy and unusual. The boyfriend’s personality has seemingly transformed from arrogant to completely infatuated, while Zhang Yuxin appears pleased by his submission rather than genuinely touched.
• The unnamed young man: Introduced as a new antagonist. He is ambitious, dangerous, and fixated on gaining power, beginning his plan by selecting a weaker, publicly known Mutant to defeat.

Significant Themes

• Strategic value versus raw power: Perfect Cube demonstrates that defensive abilities may be useful without being decisive, while the effectiveness of a Trigger depends on how many and what kinds of powers they can activate.
• Domestic intimacy: Xiao He and Ye Wanqing’s supermarket trip and shared cooking emphasize their comfortable, affectionate partnership. Their relationship is contrasted with the artificial extravagance and apparent imbalance of Zhang Yuxin’s relationship.
• Romance versus materialism: The proposal’s cash bouquet initially appears grand but ultimately seems vulgar and emotionally hollow. Xiao He’s modest gesture of buying a lollipop carries more genuine affection.
• The commercialization of Mutants: The Mutant Competition is presented as both an international spectacle and a profitable media event, driven by advertising, tourism, national pride, and public fascination.
• Manipulation and obsession: The strange change in Zhang Yuxin’s boyfriend hints at possible supernatural interference, while the new antagonist’s desire to become a “god” suggests that Mutants may be exploited or hunted for power.
• Foreshadowing: The competition is likely to bring major Mutants into conflict, and the young man’s selection of Morph Hero establishes an impending confrontation.

Character Interactions

• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing flirt and tease each other throughout the chapter, with Xiao He smoothing her hair, holding her hand, buying her candy, and joking about extravagant romantic gestures.
• Ye Wanqing uses food and playful scolding to control Xiao He’s impulsive behavior, successfully stopping him from confronting Zhang Yuxin’s boyfriend.
• The couple works together in the kitchen, showing increasing domestic compatibility and mutual attentiveness.
• Xiao He and Ye Wanqing jointly analyze the suspicious proposal, reinforcing their trust and shared ability to notice unusual behavior.
• The unnamed young man interacts only indirectly with the wider cast, but his interest in Yinglong and choice of Morph Hero establish him as a future threat to the Mutant community.