Chapter Summaries

Ron discovered that Noah Pharmaceuticals had placed a 500,000-Credit Points assassination contract on him and entered its sealed laboratory to keep the commission from a rival assassin. After Belen attacked him, Ron survived by transforming into a Corpse Shell and turned his Necromantic Fire on Belen.

• Ron saw Noah Pharmaceuticals’ contract targeting him and realized he needed to prevent anyone else from accepting it.
• Ron signed Noah Pharmaceuticals’ accident insurance policy and entered the sealed laboratory with Belen and a capable woman.
• Ron sensed Corpse Shells in the laboratory, explored its abandoned medical area, and found a notebook describing an experiment involving a Corpse Shell’s finger bone.
• Belen filled the operating room with death-magic fog and struck Ron with an illusory scythe, believing he had killed him.
• Ron rose unharmed as a Corpse Shell, seized Belen, and unleashed Necromantic Fire through his seven orifices.

Ron defeated Belen, spared Jiang Cheng after making her promise to keep his abilities secret, and recruited her as his guide in Ideal City's Inner City. He then read a laboratory notebook revealing Noah Pharmaceuticals’ experiments with creatures from the Historical Hollow and a dangerous modified student who would compete in the College Entrance Exam.

• Ron’s Sequence 8 abilities helped him suppress Belen’s attack, and his Corpse Shells attacked Belen as Ron turned to find Jiang Cheng hiding nearby.
• Ron warned Jiang Cheng to keep his Magic secret, and she eagerly offered to guide him around the Inner City in exchange for a chance to learn from him.
• After Jiang Cheng left, Ron ordered the Corpse Shells to hunt the laboratory’s walking corpses and resumed reading the bloodstained notebook.
• The notebook revealed that Minister Alder had supplied creatures from the Historical Hollow for experiments that turned test subjects into powerful, unstable Beyonders.
• Ron learned that Noah Pharmaceuticals had implanted monster organs into a high school student intended as its College Entrance Exam trump card.
• The notebook’s writer reported hearing voices and warned that the Void was an echo of the Apocalypse, which was coming.

Ron uncovered evidence that the Void could herald an Apocalypse, then completed the underground laboratory commission and received an assassination file naming himself as the target. After collecting his exam admission ticket, he declared that he would take first place in the College Entrance Exam.

• Ron found a Wronged Dead finger bone that generated the Void as a setting anchor, but he needed another setting to create a new world.
• Ron recovered files suggesting that monsters created by failed rituals feared loud or high-frequency sounds, then escaped the laboratory as his Corpse Shells crumbled away.
• The client credited Ron and Jiang Cheng for completing the riot-clearing commission and offered them assassination work; Ron accepted the file bearing his own name and suspected the Patrol Bureau had supplied the information.
• Xia Zhi delivered Ron's Good Citizen medal and told him the reformed College Entrance Exam would involve combat in virtual environments, while An Hui reminded him to collect his admission ticket.
• Ron and Lin De collected their tickets at school, and Ron declared that he would take first place in the College Entrance Exam.

Ron finished the academic-subject exam amid widespread cheating, then reached the ability-testing hall and discovered candidates had to overcome advertising and scarce equipment to qualify. He claimed the hall’s only Fully Immersive Pod, setting himself against the wealthy and powerful candidates competing for it.

• Ron faked his death to placate the assassination client, who paid the old magician’s account another five hundred thousand Credit Points.
• Ron handed in his academic exam early, complained to Lin Shuyao about the rich candidates’ cheating, and followed her advice to reach the ability-testing hall quickly.
• Ron used his [Good Citizen] medal to bypass the advertising robots and enter the hall, where candidates competed for roughly a hundred simulation devices.
• Ron recognized that the sole Fully Immersive Pod was better suited to the ability test than the AR Simulation Headsets and asked the proctor to register it for him.

Ron claimed the Fully Immersive Pod after overpowering an aristocratic examinee with his ability. He entered Simulated Reality, saw Youan Hansen leading the rankings, and received a warning that Mysticism Influence was damaging his Superpowered class.

• The bald proctor announced that examinees could fight to decide who would use the Fully Immersive Pod, and the aristocratic young man challenged the others with a Reality Amplifier.
• The young man used the amplifier’s automatic defense to blow away an attacker, then moved to claim the pod.
• Ron stopped the young man’s punch, shredded his prosthetic arm, and forced him to his knees with overwhelming gravity.
• The proctor registered the pod to Ron and warned him that examinees could die in Simulated Reality and would face a cooldown before reviving.
• Ron entered the simulated ruins, saw Youan Hansen ranked first with three million points, and received a notification that minor Mysticism Influence was wearing away his Superpowered class.

Ron discovered that the simulated Hollow Battlefield contained Mysticism Influence emanating from a giant Void, then learned the ability-test rules and entered a match. He was assigned to a high-level battlefield and found An Hui waiting across the ruins.

• Ron saw illusory creatures inside the Void and concluded that its Mysticism Influence was eroding his [Superpowered] class.
• An invigilator explained that examinees would fight in groups of one hundred for points, and that fallen examinees needed Resurrection Permission to re-enter.
• Ron learned that those who left the simulation had to complete a task involving watching GG before returning.
• Ron swiped his admission card and entered a battlefield enclosed by a Flame Wall, where other examinees hid among the ruins.
• An Hui attacked Ron with an electrified steel bar, and Ron recognized her as a high-ranked opponent with 1,200,000 points.

Ron and An Hui camped an Evacuation Point and ambushed an examinee, earning Ron 35,000 points. When a stronger group surrounded them, Ron refused to evacuate and challenged all of them at once.

• An Hui explained that examinees could form teams to help wealthy competitors farm points, making solo fighting risky for Ron.
• An Hui told Ron to conserve his ability while they waited, and Ron discovered that removing Superpowered let its damaged traits repair themselves.
• An Hui ambushed an examinee at an Evacuation Point and had Ron kill him, giving Ron 35,000 points and seventeen admission cards.
• A group of eight or nine high-ranking examinees attacked Ron and An Hui, and An Hui handed Ron the cards and offered to hold them off.
• Ron returned the cards to An Hui, told the group he would fight them all alone, and reversed gravity around the ruins.

Ron defeated the examinees who tried to kill him, rested in the Preparation Hall, and agreed with Kevin to bet against his own progress while he concealed his strength. Meanwhile, an unidentified teenager revealed that he had reached Lv.3 and intended to remain first as the corporation prepared to target Ron.

• Ron reflected the attackers’ abilities back at them, defeating the examinees and escaping the match with An Hui.
• Ron and An Hui joked together before evacuating, and the proctor was astonished when Ron’s score showed 175,000 points.
• Ron rested in the Preparation Hall and called Kevin, who offered to bet Credit Points on Ron’s ranking.
• Ron told Kevin to bet that he would gain no points or ranks the next day, planning to stay quiet and exploit the exam’s point compensation later.
• Kevin wagered his savings, while an unidentified teenager’s father warned him that the corporation had targeted Ron.
• The teenager said he had reached Lv.3 before the exam and declared that he would take first place.

Ron spent the final day of the exam betting on himself and climbing into the top hundred, where he entered the Peak Contest. A powerful spatial ability user funded by Noah Pharmaceuticals searched the battlefield for Ron, found him in hiding, and confronted him.

• Ron collected 300,000 Credit Points from Kevin and persuaded him to bet the rest on Ron reaching the top ten.
• Ron entered the Hollow Battlefield, defeated examinees waiting to ambush the Evacuation Point, and used the strategy to climb to one hundredth place.
• Ron joined the Peak Contest and watched top-ranked examinees attack one another while he hid among the ruins.
• A powerful spatial ability user funded by Noah Pharmaceuticals searched the battlefield for Ron, crushing examinees who could not help him find his target.
• One examinee pointed the man toward Ron's hiding place, and the spatial ability user teleported in front of Ron and declared that he had found him.

Ron defeated Beck, a Noah Pharmaceuticals-backed examinee whose body had been modified with extraordinary organs, and rose to third place in the Peak Contest. After suspecting first-place contender Youan Hansen had arranged the attack, Ron received Youan’s challenge to a one-on-one duel in the next contest.

• Ron inferred that Beck had been sent by Noah Pharmaceuticals to kill him, then used [Vector Manipulation] to repel Beck’s attacks.
• Beck teleported around Ron and revealed his extraordinary strength, while Ron struggled to break through his defenses without exposing his [Corpse Collector] power.
• Ron recognized Beck’s surgical scars as evidence of biological modification and prepared Iron Sand after recalling that high-frequency sounds harmed the modified monsters.
• Beck unleashed his mutated organs and charged, but Ron’s high-frequency scraping noise shattered the organs, allowing him to kill Beck and rise to third place.
• Ron suspected Youan Hansen, the first-place contender, had arranged the attack to protect his lead and went to the Evacuation Point.
• Back in the Preparation Hall, Youan called Ron and challenged him to a one-on-one duel in the next Peak Contest, asking if Ron dared to accept.

Ron prepared to face Youan, the College Entrance Exam’s top-ranked examinee, by testing an overloaded [Vector Manipulation] in the Simulated Reality. When the next Peak Contest began, Youan revealed he had reached Lv.3 and attacked Ron with a giant meteorite.

• Ron rejected Youan’s claim that he sought a fair duel and accused him of being responsible for the assassination attempts; Youan blamed his father and criticized Deng Yin before their call ended in anger.
• Ron reviewed Youan’s [Gravity Control] ability and considered using [Ability Overload] as a trump card against him.
• Ron received seventy thousand Credit Points from Kevin, bought a Resurrection Coin, and tested overloaded [Vector Manipulation] in the Virtual Reality before exiting and restoring his state.
• At the next Peak Contest, the other examinees fled as Ron faced Youan, who arrived floating above the ground.
• Youan revealed that he was a Lv.3 [Gravity Control] superpowered and hurled a gigantic meteorite at Ron.

The author announced that the novel would go premium on July 30 and planned to write 10,000 words daily. He described returning to writing after more than a year of self-doubt and hoped readers would enjoy the story.

• The author said the novel would go premium at noon on July 30 and outlined his plans for daily updates.
• The author thanked three fellow writers for recommending the novel.
• The author explained that he had struggled for over a year to finish and publish a new story after his previous book ended.
• The author credited his editor, Mingyue, for waiting while he spent a year and a half preparing the manuscript.
• The author said writing daily helped him regain his confidence and creative drive, and he hoped readers would enjoy the story.

Ron fought Yuan, an Lv.3 user of [Gravity Control], and learned that Yuan’s Formula could triple gravity within his Personal Reality. After Ron activated [Ability Overload] and unleashed [Vector Manipulation] without restraint, he overwhelmed Yuan and claimed first place.

• Ron countered Yuan’s giant meteor by reversing its gravity and dismantling it, then charged in to exploit Yuan’s physical weakness.
• Yuan resisted Ron’s attempts to manipulate his blood and slow him with close-range attacks, then used a Formula to triple gravity and bury him under rubble.
• Deng Yin realized Yuan’s father had likely used [Prometheus] to create the Formula that let Yuan reach Lv.3 before the College Entrance Exam.
• Ron survived the attack with Iron Sand armor, identified the Formula’s effect, and mocked Yuan’s confidence in his victory.
• Ron tore off his warning collar and activated [Ability Overload], unleashing [Vector Manipulation] within a boundary that trapped and battered Yuan.
• Ron declared that his ability was now above Yuan’s and that he was first.

Ron defeated Yuan and claimed first place in the College Entrance Exam ability test, then endured the remaining Peak Showdowns and finished the exam. Deng Yin decided Ron was ready to learn about Formulas, Authority, and Laboratory One, while Kevin arrived to take him to meet his new opportunity.

• After surviving the vector riot, Yuan tried to crawl toward the other examinees and persuade them to help kill Ron, but Ron appeared and crushed him with Telekinesis, taking first place.
• The other examinees surrendered their exam IDs to Ron, who collected them and evacuated; watching the livestream, Deng Yin decided to tell Ron about Laboratory One and called Irina to introduce his new student.
• Ron bought an expensive Resurrection Coin bundle, returned to Simulated Reality, and won the two remaining Peak Showdowns after Yuan missed both matches.
• Ron exited the exam as the ability test champion and met An Hui, who congratulated him as they headed for a taxi.
• Kevin arrived in a Heavenly Hearing Media hovercar and invited Ron to ride with him, saying Deng Yin had arranged something valuable for him.

Ron met Irina, the president of Heavenly Hearing Video, who offered him a chance at the company’s highest investment tier if his Personal Reality could erase the Void’s influence. Ron easily annihilated a mysterious crimson eyeball, leaving Irina stunned by his apparent favor from the [Anti-Mystery Equation].

• Kevin took Ron and An Hui to meet Irina, and the driver explained that Heavenly Hearing Media planned to invest in Ron in exchange for participation rights in Moen University experiments.
• Ron and An Hui changed into expensive clothes before entering Heavenly Hearing Video’s building, where Ron saw drugged people gathered outside.
• Irina and Deng Yin discussed Ron’s potential to gain Prometheus’s recognition and wield Sector Authority, while Irina argued that his ability needed testing before she chose an investment tier.
• Irina presented Ron with a Void-corrupted crimson eyeball and explained that erasing its influence with his Personal Reality could earn him a unique investment plan and an Ability Amplifier.
• Ron used [Fantasy Dissolution] to erase the eyeball instantly, astonishing Irina.

Ron learned that the [Anti-Mystery Equation] protects Ideal City from Void monsters and favors him, making him a candidate for the dangerous Knowledge-Seeking Experiments that grant Lv.5 authority. Deng Yin explained that Ron had a year to prepare to compete for [Prometheus]'s supervisory authority, but first he and the other contenders had to reach Lv.3 and construct their own [Ability Formula].

• Ron realized the eye's power contained two kinds of Mysticism Influence, and Irina accidentally revealed the [Anti-Mystery Equation] before agreeing to explain it after Ron and An Hui signed confidentiality agreements.
• Irina explained that Historical Hollows released Void monsters, that the [Anti-Mystery Equation] was the Central Intelligent Brain's primary defense, and that Ron was favored by it.
• Irina revealed that Superpowered advancement stalled at Lv.3 without Sector Authority, which could be earned by completing Knowledge-Seeking Experiments that risked Void outbreaks.
• Irina explained that Deng Yin had failed his experiment because his ability could not resist the Void, and that [Prometheus] was the only sector without a supervising authority.
• Deng Yin told Ron he had a year before the department rankings and Laboratory Zero's repairs, then said Ron needed to reach Lv.3 and construct an [Ability Formula] to compete for [Prometheus]'s authority.

Ron learned how Ability Formulas worked and made rapid progress under an expensive development plan, though his growing Beyonder Loss of Control threatened to stall him again. While collecting his exam report card with An Hui, he caught their old teacher after a monster burst through the teachers' office, and the teacher urged them to run.

• Deng Yin explained Ability Formulas and revealed that Yuan had used Scott Hansen's university authority to get Prometheus to help construct his formula.
• Irina secured Ron an exclusive investment plan, and a week of costly training lifted his Ability Model restrictions by four percent while his Beyonder Loss of Control rose to 35%.
• Ron went with An Hui to their former high school to collect their exam report cards and ran into Lin De, who led them toward the teachers' office.
• A monster smashed through the teachers' office and sent their old teacher flying, and Ron used Vector Manipulation to catch him.
• The old teacher broke free from Ron, charged toward the monster, and shouted for the students to run.

Ron fought off a Void monster at a high school and discovered it had been a student, while more monsters attacked and the Patrol Bureau was overwhelmed by a wave of identical deaths. Xia Zhi brought Team C-112 to the school and sensed that the space above it was about to split apart.

• Ron kicked a Void monster into a wall, where it collapsed and revealed the face and uniform of a student.
• Ron and Lin De called the Patrol Bureau, but operator D-16 said 192 murder cases were ahead of theirs and help might not arrive until morning.
• Xia Zhi and Team C-112 investigated a wave of identical, unclothed corpses that appeared to be clones, while Xia Zhi suspected the deaths were meant to distract the bureau.
• After Ron reported monsters attacking students, Xia Zhi redirected Team C-112 and used her spatial ability to bring them to the high school.
• Xia Zhi saw monsters attacking students and sensed that the space above the school was about to split apart.

Xia Zhi and C-112 Squad fought Void monsters at a high school while rescuing civilians, and Ron helped defeat a Minotaur that had emerged from a Void. Ron secretly took the Minotaur’s heart, learned it was a Sequence Three [War] potion ingredient, and agreed to join the Patrol Bureau for mission credits.

• Xia Zhi directed C-112 Squad to rescue civilians and eliminate the monsters, but the Void creatures weakened her Personal Reality as she fought them.
• Ron saved Xia Zhi from a monster and told her that the creatures had been students, prompting her to suspect a biological experiment.
• A Void opened in the sky and released a Minotaur, which weakened the patrol officers’ abilities and overwhelmed their attacks.
• Ron activated his Ability Amplifier, defeated the Minotaur with Lv.3 [Vector Manipulation], and secretly took its heart as his Loss of Control increased.
• Xia Zhi offered Ron a Patrol Bureau position with the chance to earn credits, and Ron accepted after learning those credits could help him obtain an Intelligent Brain computational Authority.
• At home, Ron used his spellbook to identify the Minotaur’s Heart as the main ingredient for the [War] Sequence Three “War Overseer” potion, while an experiment’s organizer resolved to create another Void to obtain more materials.

Ron returned to the Potion Era, where he rescued Idrila from Scorched Earth Sanctuary by using Vector Manipulation to fly past Father Suul and his Sequence 4 Contained Artifact. After reaching the Truth Society’s bookstore, Ron learned that incomplete Potion digestion could cause loss of control.

• Ron studied the War Sequence 7 Potion formula and decided to seek a way to advance, possibly with Idrila’s help.
• Ron returned to the Potion Era, where Idrila was startled by his sudden power and the disappearance of her Consecrated Dewdrop.
• Idrila warned Ron that Father Suul and the Flame-Chasing Knights were dangerous, then revealed that Suul carried a Contained Artifact made from a dead Trickery Sequence 4 demigod.
• Ron activated his abilities, flew with Idrila from the tower, and escaped the pursuing threat before his settings nearly wore out.
• Ron and Idrila ran to Elvis Bookstore, the Truth Society’s gathering place, where Idrila warned him that advancing without fully digesting a Potion could cause loss of control.