Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Hope Outpost”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping reaches the summit of Heaven-Piercing Divine Peak and discovers a King-Level Golden Lion guarding the area. Although he initially fears an attack, he realizes the lion has no killing intent and has actually cleared the golden clouds to help him.
• At the peak, Zhang Ping sees a massive pearl, a rainbow bridge, and an illusory gateway leading to the ruins. Zhang Shouzhong’s Storage Contract is embedded in a stone nearby.
• The pressure at the summit is so great that Zhang Ping cannot move once he releases the Fat Energy powering his body. He solves the problem by entering a Storage Contract and using Zhou Qingbai to test whether someone who had “cheated” their way to the summit could safely emerge.
• After confirming the method works, Zhang Ping retrieves the Storage Contracts and leads everyone across the rainbow bridge.
• Situ Shibai identifies the gateway as the entrance to the ruins and explains that only Infinite Tier Awakened can enter. Zhang Ping sends the others into his pocket before entering alone.
• The gateway scans Zhang Ping, confirming that he is human, mentally normal, and neither possessed nor replaced by a traveler.
• Zhang arrives in a silver area called Hope Outpost, where a virtual interface offers several services: data inquiries, seed and armory repositories, kindling preservation, emergency treatment, inheritance trials, and a points shop.
• Most of the outpost’s data, seeds, and weapons are missing or unavailable, suggesting that the once-glorious civilization has largely collapsed.
• Zhang investigates “Kindling Preservation,” accidentally activating a bizarre display of seductive women before quickly shutting it down.
• He checks the Points Shop and discovers that he has no points and that nearly everything is out of stock. The chapter ends with only the Inheritance Trial remaining as a meaningful option.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping demonstrates caution, adaptability, and clever problem-solving. Rather than recklessly confronting the summit’s pressure, he uses the Storage Contracts and Zhou Qingbai to conduct a controlled test.
• His realization that the Golden Lion helped him marks a shift from fear to understanding, showing his growing ability to interpret the intentions of powerful beings.
• Zhang Ping becomes increasingly curious and investigative once inside Hope Outpost, methodically examining each available function.
• Zhang Shouzhong remains useful by controlling the Fat Energy and recovering it into the Storage Contract, though he cannot release it himself.
• Situ Shibai continues acting as an experienced guide, explaining the gateway’s restrictions and the nature of the ruins.
• Cheng Xuejie and Liu Sishan voice concern about the difficulty of the upcoming trial, reinforcing the sense that the ruins will be more dangerous than previous scenarios.
• Zhou Qingbai obediently follows Zhang Ping’s orders and serves as a practical test subject for the summit’s restrictions.

Significant Themes

• Trust and hidden assistance: The Golden Lion appears threatening but secretly aids Zhang Ping, emphasizing that appearances can be deceptive.
• Resourcefulness under pressure: Zhang Ping survives through experimentation and strategic use of his contracts rather than brute force.
• The remains of a fallen civilization: The empty databases, seed repository, and armory reveal that Hope Outpost is a remnant of a once-advanced superpowered society.
• Hope amid ruin: Despite the outpost’s emptiness, its surviving systems—and especially the possibility of an Inheritance Trial—suggest that some legacy may still be preserved.
• Isolation and unequal trials: Zhang alone can see the virtual interface, implying that the ruins assign individualized trials or information according to each entrant’s circumstances.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping and the Golden Lion have a silent but significant interaction: the beast spares him and clears his path, while Zhang recognizes its assistance.
• Zhang tests the summit’s rules through Zhou Qingbai, ordering him out of and back into the Storage Contract.
• Zhang consults Situ Shibai about the gateway and later relies on the group’s observations while deciding how to proceed.
• Cheng Xuejie and Liu Sishan discuss the likely difficulty of the ruins, strengthening the group’s apprehension.
• Zhang’s companions react with surprise and embarrassment to the “Kindling Preservation” display, providing a brief humorous contrast to the chapter’s ominous exploration.

Plot and events

• Zhang Ping has one remaining path to gain strength: the Inheritance Trial. After weighing the difficulty choices with his companions, the group chooses Emperor—the highest level—because a lesser reward might not be powerful enough to face King-Level threats.
• The trial begins with the command to defeat three Ancient Emperors. Zhang Ping’s first opponent appears: a towering, club-wielding man who introduces himself as Chang Man, the first Emperor of the human race.
• Zhang Ping’s Appraisal and Analysis abilities cannot identify Chang Man. Chang Man is surprised that Zhang Ping does not recognize him, then becomes offended when Zhang Ping laughs at his name.
• Chang Man attacks with overwhelming speed, striking Zhang Ping repeatedly. Zhang’s body grows larger and tougher as the blows land, eventually reaching three hundred feet tall and withstanding Chang Man’s stronger, flaming club attack.
• Zhang Ping answers by growing to nearly four thousand feet and punching Chang Man into the ground, apparently gaining the upper hand in the first trial fight.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Ping is initially uncertain about risking the highest trial difficulty, but accepts the group’s advice and commits to the challenge. In battle, he proves resilient and increasingly confident.
• His companions offer different perspectives: Zhang Shouzhong and Bai De favor Marshal as a safer choice, while Cheng Xuejie and Liu Sishan argue for Emperor; Zhao Yanhu ultimately supports the riskier option. Situ Shibai cannot advise from experience.
• Chang Man shifts from imposing challenger to comically touchy figure when Zhang Ping fails to recognize him and laughs at his name. Once fighting begins, however, he reveals formidable speed, strength, and enthusiasm for a worthy opponent.
• Zhang Ping and Chang Man’s exchange moves from formal introductions and wounded pride to a test of strength. Chang Man criticizes Zhang Ping’s defensive “turtle shell,” while Zhang welcomes the chance to return the attack.

Significant themes

• Risk and ambition: Zhang Ping chooses the hardest path because lesser rewards may not meet the danger ahead.
• Resilience and adaptation: Zhang’s ability to grow stronger and larger lets him endure an opponent who initially outclasses him in speed.
• Legacy and recognition: Chang Man expects his historical status to be known, while Zhang Ping’s ignorance punctures his grandeur and creates humor.
• Strength tested through combat: The trial measures not only power but also endurance, composure, and the capacity to respond to escalating force.

Key plot points and events

• Zhang Ping defeats Chang Man, who concedes the match and asks about humanity’s future. Zhang Ping describes the Heavenly Fox’s devastation of Mingzhu City.
• Chang Man demonstrates an Emperor’s power with World’s First All-Fang Style, a sweeping strike that carves an enormous stretch of land into blocks. He tells Zhang Ping to remember the sensation before vanishing.
• Zhang Ping faces the next opponent, Ji Kai, a bowman who attacks without warning. Zhang’s size and Metallic Coating help him survive Ji Kai’s first arrows, and he uses Psychokinesis to seize Ji Kai’s horse.
• Ji Kai explains the Flowing Wind Profound Path, a force hidden in anything that flows—including time. His arrow travels through this path and appears inside Zhang Ping’s ear, nearly reaching his brain.
• Zhang realizes the path explains the Wind Whisperer’s uncanny knowledge. He transforms into water and deploys his King’s Gem, but Ji Kai counters with storming wind arrows and a rain of blades. Ji Kai declares Zhang defeated as the attack tears apart his water form.

Character developments

• Zhang Ping remains bold and adaptable, but Chang Man’s display gives him a new respect for Emperor-level strength. Against Ji Kai, he learns that his usual defenses can be bypassed and that the Flowing Wind Profound Path connects to abilities he already knows.
• Chang Man shows kindness beneath his strength: he asks after humanity, acknowledges its hardship, and deliberately goes easy on Zhang while teaching him through a demonstration.
• Ji Kai is composed, confident, and precise. Unlike Chang Man, he fights seriously and exploits the hidden properties of wind to overwhelm Zhang.

Character interactions

• Zhang and Chang Man share a brief, reflective conversation about the state of humanity; Chang Man follows it with a lesson in Emperor-level power.
• Zhang’s companions—Zhang Shouzhong, Liu Sishan, and Bai De—react with awe and concern, recognizing that Chang Man held back and that two more Emperors remain.
• Zhang and Ji Kai exchange formal but tense words. Zhang tries to turn Ji Kai’s horse into a shield and weapon; Ji Kai catches it safely, then explains his technique before pressing the attack.

Significant themes

• The gap in power: Zhang’s apparent victory over Chang Man does not mean he can match an Emperor fighting in earnest.
• Learning through danger: Both encounters teach Zhang about stronger abilities, though Ji Kai’s lesson nearly kills him.
• Hidden forces and perception: The Flowing Wind Profound Path reveals that wind—and even time—may carry invisible routes and information.
• Adaptation and vulnerability: Zhang can change forms and stack defenses, yet Ji Kai’s attack shows that every defense has limits.

Key plot points and events

• Ji Kai’s wind blades shred Zhang Ping’s Pure Water body, while the scattered Storage Contracts leave Zhang Ping’s allies unable to help at first.
• Zhang Ping summons his companions. They launch a coordinated assault, but Ji Kai blocks everything with a wind shield. Zhang Ping then uses the Floating Cannon Gems; their barrage clears the dust but leaves Ji Kai unharmed.
• Ji Kai accuses Zhang Ping of enslaving his allies and attacks with lightning, tornadoes, and his ability, Flow Domain, which lets him control the movement of many things—including wind, water, electric currents, and time.
• As the tornadoes threaten to erase Zhang Ping through reversed time, Su Jingyao urges him not to give up. The spirits of Sanctified World form a protective barrier, allowing Zhang Ping to reconstitute himself.
• Zhang Ping thanks the spirits, transforms into Giant Form, and attacks. Ji Kai chooses not to defend himself; Zhang’s punch breaks him apart into golden dust.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Ping moves from confusion and desperation to renewed resolve, helped by Su Jingyao’s encouragement and the spirits’ protection. Hua Min briefly appears, kisses him, then retreats shyly.
• Zhang Ping’s companions show their loyalty by attacking together and trying to rescue him, though Ji Kai’s power pins them down.
• Ji Kai is convinced that Zhang Ping has enslaved his allies. Seeing the spirits protect Zhang Ping unsettles this belief, and he hesitates before allowing himself to be struck.

Significant themes

• Trust and belonging: The spirits’ willing protection challenges Ji Kai’s assumption that Zhang Ping rules through enslavement.
• Perseverance and hope: Zhang Ping survives an apparently inescapable threat because he refuses to give up and accepts help from those who care for him.
• Misjudgment and uncertainty: Ji Kai’s certainty gives way to doubt when he witnesses evidence that contradicts his assumptions.

Chapter Summary: “Awesome”

Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping defeats Ji Kai with a single punch, causing Ji Kai’s body to dissolve into golden dust. The victory surprises Zhang Ping, who wonders whether Ji Kai deliberately failed to dodge or had already exhausted himself.
• After confirming that Zhang Ping is unharmed, the group prepares to face another emperor.
• Zhang Shouzhong proposes using his Storage Contract to control a combat body made from Fat Energy. While he begins constructing a robot, a new emperor-like figure appears on a metallic battlefield.
• The newcomer reveals that he is a backup left behind by someone from the past. Unlike Ji Kai, he is cautious and investigates Zhang Ping’s group before deciding whether they pose a threat.
• The man offers extensive advice on improving Zhang Shouzhong’s robot, suggesting specialized materials such as Thunder Ape muscles, Firebird feathers, and Water-Gilled Electric Eel bones.
• After roughly half an hour of modifications, Zhang Shouzhong completes a powerful three-meter-tall bionic combat robot. He embeds the Storage Contract in its forehead and controls the machine from within.
• The robot is first jokingly named “Er Gouzi,” then “Vision,” before finally being named the Alloy Overlord, since it is made from Bioalloy rather than iron.
• Zhang Shouzhong believes the Alloy Overlord, combined with the Storage Contract’s defensive abilities, makes him extraordinarily difficult to defeat.
• The unnamed emperor concludes that Zhang Ping has not mentally enslaved his companions and recognizes that the group consists of decent people with a positive atmosphere.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping: Demonstrates overwhelming physical strength by defeating Ji Kai instantly, but remains humble and uncertain about the victory. He also shows concern for his companions and respect toward the mysterious senior.
• Zhang Shouzhong: Displays creativity and engineering talent. With the emperor’s guidance, he rapidly transforms a rough robot design into a highly advanced and versatile combat machine. His excitement and pride grow as he unveils the Alloy Overlord.
• Cheng Xuejie, Zhang Shouzhong, and Liu Sishan: Continue functioning as a coordinated team, checking Zhang Ping’s condition and preparing for the next challenge.
• The unnamed emperor: Is cautious, observant, and technically knowledgeable. He initially suspects Zhang Ping may be controlling his allies, but changes his opinion after speaking with Zhang Shouzhong and observing the group.

Significant Themes

• Strength and uncertainty: Zhang Ping’s victory is decisive, yet he questions whether it reflects his true power because Ji Kai did not defend himself.
• Innovation through cooperation: Zhang Shouzhong’s invention becomes dramatically stronger through collaboration with someone more experienced.
• Trust versus control: The emperor carefully distinguishes between loyal companions and mentally enslaved followers, emphasizing the importance of genuine free will.
• Humor amid danger: The naming sequence—from “Er Gouzi” to “Vision” and finally “Alloy Overlord”—provides comic relief during a tense supernatural trial.
• Legacy and the future: The emperor’s backup exists to observe what the future became, linking the group’s present struggles to the actions and expectations of an earlier era.

Character Interactions

• The team reassures Zhang Ping after Ji Kai’s defeat and discusses why Ji Kai failed to evade the attack.
• Zhang Ping questions Zhang Shouzhong’s robot design, prompting consideration of its energy source and combat practicality.
• The unnamed emperor mentors Zhang Shouzhong by identifying weaknesses and recommending superior materials.
• Zhang Shouzhong respectfully credits the emperor for the robot’s improvements and asks him to name it, leading to the playful naming exchange.
• Zhang Ping expresses gratitude to the emperor, while the emperor evaluates the team’s relationships and ultimately accepts that they are allies rather than controlled servants.

Key events

• Water Lily agrees to hear the group’s case, but says they must prove their chances by fighting him one at a time.
• Cheng Xuejie pleads that the Heavenly Fox is secretly killing people and that humanity needs power to survive. Water Lily can detect lies, so he knows she is telling the truth, though her appeal does not change the test.
• Water Lily reveals his ability, Weight: he can change the weight of objects.
• Bai De challenges him. Water Lily makes Bai’s body a hundred times heavier, pinning him in place and winning quickly.
• Zhang Shouzhong sends the Alloy Overlord to fight next. Water Lily increases the weight of some of its precision parts, causing the robot to malfunction.
• Zhang recognizes the machine’s weakness and rebuilds it with its components fused together. He thanks Water Lily for exposing the flaw, then launches a renewed attack.

Character developments and interactions

• Water Lily is casual, teasing, and impatient, but the challenge is serious. His truth-detecting ability makes him take the group’s desperate warning seriously, even as he insists they prove themselves.
• Cheng Xuejie openly appeals to Water Lily’s compassion, emphasizing the stakes for humanity.
• Bai De fights strategically, hoping to learn Water Lily’s power for the others. Though defeated, he takes the setback calmly.
• Zhang Shouzhong shows both respect for Water Lily’s expertise and quick adaptability: rather than give up after the robot is disabled, he applies what he learned and modifies the Alloy Overlord.
• Water Lily’s blunt jokes and provocative tactics contrast with Bai De’s discipline and the group’s urgent, earnest purpose.

Significant themes

• Survival over convention: Bai De and Water Lily argue that modesty and battlefield etiquette matter less than staying alive.
• Learning through defeat: Water Lily’s test reveals weaknesses the challengers can use to improve.
• Desperation and responsibility: The group seeks power not for personal gain, but to protect humanity from the Heavenly Fox.
• Adaptability: Zhang turns an apparent failure into an opportunity by redesigning the Alloy Overlord.

Plot and key events

• Water Lily defeats the Alloy Overlord by increasing the weight of its iron atoms until the robot warps and collapses. He reveals that the same ability could tear apart a human body, unsettling the group.
• Zhang Ping challenges Water Lily. His Nether Mist attacks from concealment and becomes solid only when striking, allowing him to evade Water Lily’s weight-based attacks and hold his own.
• Water Lily ends the fight, explaining that he could win only by using a devastating move that would likely kill everyone nearby. He declares Zhang Ping the victor and grants him the trial’s inheritance.
• The inheritance consists of insights from three ancient Emperors, offering a roughly 30–40% chance of becoming an Emperor. Water Lily warns that Zhang Ping’s current level is too low to absorb them safely.
• The group is disappointed that there is no weapon to help defend Mingzhu City. After Water Lily leaves, they recognize how much Zhang Ping has grown. A prompt appears asking whether Zhang Ping wants to claim the inheritance now, leaving the decision unresolved.

Character developments and interactions

• Water Lily demonstrates both the frightening precision of his power and his restraint: he refuses to use a potentially lethal attack against allies and is candid about the risks of the inheritance.
• Zhang Ping shows increased confidence and strategic adaptability, using Nether Mist to counter Water Lily’s ability. He remains cautious about accepting the inheritance before he is ready.
• Zhang Shouzhong and Bai De encourage Zhang Ping during the duel, then worry that the inheritance may come too late to help their city.
• Cheng Xuejie challenges Water Lily’s claim that the insights are a sufficient reward, stressing the immediate danger facing Mingzhu City.
• The group shifts from disappointment to renewed confidence in Zhang Ping’s abilities, particularly his Giant Form and potential to fight King-Level enemies.

Significant themes

• Power and its limits: Abilities become formidable through mastery, but their use can carry devastating consequences.
• Restraint and responsibility: Water Lily prioritizes the group’s safety over winning at any cost.
• Long-term growth versus urgent need: The Emperor insights could transform Zhang Ping, but they may not help in time to save the city.
• Uncertainty and risk: Zhang Ping must weigh an extraordinary opportunity against the unknown dangers of accepting it too early.

Key plot points

• The group debates whether to use the inheritance immediately. Zhang Shouzhong and Bai De argue that the opportunity may not come again, and Zhang Ping claims it.
• Zhang Ping receives Emperor Chang Man’s memories and insights. He experiences Chang Man’s seventy years guarding Wild Boar Pass, where he repeatedly kills beasts with a spiked club while pursuing one goal: to be recognized as the strongest under heaven.
• Chang Man becomes an Emperor when hunters confirm that even renowned fighters consider him unmatched. His accumulated battles culminate in the technique World’s First All-Fang Style.
• Zhang Ping pauses the inheritance when Chang Man’s experience overwhelms him. Afterward, the others say his presence had become frightening, making them feel as if they were facing a deadly club strike.
• Zhang Ping tests what he learned by adapting the technique to his Fear War Scythe and Flame Element energy, naming his imitation World’s First Scythe. The attack is only a crude approximation.

Character developments

• Zhang Ping gains a powerful combat instinct and a glimpse into the mindset that can lead to Emperorhood. He recognizes, however, that Chang Man’s path is not his own: he wants to develop as himself rather than become a copy of another Emperor.
• Chang Man, revealed through the inheritance, is a steadfast but not bloodthirsty fighter. He guards the pass because of a wager and seeks acknowledgment of his strength, not fame or reverence.
• The group sees how dramatically an inheritance can affect Zhang Ping, and their concern briefly raises the possibility that he has been possessed.

Character interactions

• Zhang Shouzhong and Bai De urge the group to seize the inheritance, while Liu Sishan agrees to Zhang Ping claiming it.
• After the experience, Cheng Xuejie and Zhang Shouzhong describe Zhang Ping’s intimidating aura; Bai De questions whether he is still himself.
• Zhang Ping reassures them that he remains himself, then explains that the insights are Chang Man’s and that he must find his own way forward.

Significant themes

• Recognition versus personal fulfillment: Chang Man seeks acknowledgment as the strongest, while Zhang Ping’s deeper aim is to learn without surrendering his identity.
• Inheritance and individuality: Another person’s experience can offer powerful knowledge, but it cannot substitute for finding one’s own path.
• Discipline and perseverance: Chang Man’s decades of repeated battles turn a simple swing into an Emperor-level technique.

Key plot points and events

• Ji Kai’s family is killed in a supernatural flood caused by a mutated beast. The fighter who kills the beast is later brutally punished by the ruler, who had submitted to the beast’s father, the Great Azure Dragon King.
• Outraged by the ruler’s cowardice, Ji Kai awakens a powerful ability, gathers loyal followers, and eventually kills both the ruler and the Great Azure Dragon King. He becomes a just, beloved leader.
• In Ji Kai’s fifth year as ruler, a powerful lightning-fast mutated bird destroys the capital and defeats him. He escapes, but humanity is left vulnerable: cities fracture, corrupt leaders exploit people, and the bird preys on humans.
• Ji Kai hides in shame and despair. An elderly, formerly formidable fighter—whom Ji Kai had once healed—repeatedly urges him to return, insisting that people still believe in him.
• When the old man is captured as food for the bird, Ji Kai finally fights again. Though weakened and ultimately defeated, he is protected by civilians who risk their lives to help him escape.
• As the survivors flee through a tunnel, the city lord—whose power is connected to earth—opens it and offers them to the bird as a sacrifice, hoping to spare the remaining population.

Character developments and interactions

• Ji Kai changes from a determined, justice-driven leader into a traumatized fugitive consumed by fear and self-loathing. The old man’s persistence and the civilians’ courage rekindle his resolve, and he again risks himself for others.
• The old fighter remains loyal despite his age, disability, and poverty. He gently presses Ji Kai to reclaim his role, while Ji Kai outwardly resists but has grown attached to him.
• The people demonstrate lasting loyalty to Ji Kai: they rally around him, shield him with their bodies, and help carry him to safety.
• The city lord contrasts with Ji Kai’s former fairness, choosing betrayal and appeasement over protecting the people.
• The mutated bird represents overwhelming power and terror, repeatedly preying on humanity and crushing resistance.

Significant themes

• Leadership and responsibility: Ji Kai’s despair endangers people who still look to him, while their sacrifices remind him what his leadership means.
• Courage and sacrifice: Ordinary people risk death for one another and for Ji Kai, even when victory seems impossible.
• Fear, guilt, and redemption: Ji Kai’s retreat follows a devastating defeat, but witnessing others’ courage pushes him back into action.
• Justice versus oppression: Ji Kai’s humane rule is set against rulers who submit to powerful beasts or sacrifice their own people to protect themselves.

Key plot points and events

• The Evil Bird accepts the city lord’s surrender, then turns on the wounded Ji Kai. It kills the people around him with lightning, intending to make Ji Kai suffer before killing him.
• With no one left to protect him, Ji Kai unleashes a final power that reverses time within a hundred meters. The Evil Bird and the treacherous city lord are erased, but the effort leaves Ji Kai’s body dried and lifeless.
• A blue spirit—the former ruler’s devoted attendant—uses his power, together with spirits rising from the dead, to restore Ji Kai briefly. The spirits then fade, and the blue spirit says goodbye before disappearing.
• Ji Kai recognizes that his real strength came from the faith people placed in him. Remembering his original purpose, he resolves to create a world where humans can live without fear of beasts.
• He helps rebuild the capital, punishes corrupt city lords, and gives up the throne once the nation is stable. As a wandering knight, he protects cities from Mutated Beasts for decades.
• At ninety, unable to walk, Ji Kai returns to his hometown and dies peacefully while watching its people live in safety.
• Zhang Ping awakens from Ji Kai’s inheritance, reflects on what he learned, and continues onward. He enters Water Lily’s insight and finds himself in a featureless room where Water Lily has confined himself.

Character developments

• Ji Kai moves from despair and self-blame to renewed purpose. He discovers that his strength is rooted in others’ faith and devotes his life to protecting humanity rather than holding power.
• Zhang Ping comes to value the inheritance not as an immediate source of combat power but as a source of wisdom. He resolves to learn from both emperors and become a better person, though he is unsure whether he can emulate Ji Kai.
• The blue spirit is revealed as a loyal attendant whose final act restores Ji Kai and offers him reassurance before vanishing.

Significant themes

• Sacrifice and renewal: Ji Kai gives his life to stop the enemy, but the spirits’ intervention gives him another chance to fulfill his purpose.
• Purpose and faith: Remembering why he began his journey, and recognizing the faith others placed in him, restores Ji Kai’s resolve.
• Leadership and humility: Ji Kai rebuilds the nation but relinquishes the throne, choosing service over status.
• Learning from others: Zhang Ping sees personal growth as a deliberate practice of learning from people whose virtues he admires.

Character interactions

• The city’s people condemn the treacherous city lord and try to protect Ji Kai, but the Evil Bird’s lightning overwhelms them.
• The blue spirit reassures Ji Kai that no one blames him, then uses the gathered spirits’ power to bring him back.
• Zhang Ping, having experienced Ji Kai’s life, reflects on the emperor’s character and considers what he himself can learn from it.

Key plot points and events

• While inhabiting Water Lily’s memories in the inheritance, Zhang Ping watches him sit motionless for an unknown stretch of time. Water Lily’s mind seems blank—until seductive, violent thoughts begin to surface.
• Zhang Ping discovers that Water Lily was once an exceptionally powerful Awakened in a largely peaceful, advanced society. As his confidence and arrogance grew, he nearly killed someone during a conflict. Recognizing that his power was changing him, he willingly accepted imprisonment, despite being strong enough to escape.
• Water Lily repeatedly struggles against the idea that the strongest should rule and can ignore society’s rules. His resolve falters, but he insists that he wants to remain a good person.
• A former classmate and rival visits. He reveals that he engineered Water Lily’s imprisonment and is about to marry Zhen Rumi, Water Lily’s ex-girlfriend. His taunts push Water Lily past his restraint.
• Water Lily unleashes his power in prison, kills the rival in a gruesome manner, overpowers the guards, and escapes.
• Over the next two years, he becomes a wanted criminal, then escalates from robbery to seizing women and threatening the Federation. He has entered a Lost State without realizing it.
• Just as conflict with the Federation seems imminent, robots destroy it and slaughter its army. Human society collapses.

Character developments

• Water Lily shifts from a powerful man who recognizes his danger and voluntarily restrains himself into a violent tyrant ruled by his desires. His fall begins when personal betrayal overwhelms his determination to remain good.
• Zhang Ping gains intimate access to Water Lily’s memories and inner conflict, allowing him to understand both the man’s self-doubt and how he becomes Lost.
• The suited rival is revealed as manipulative and cruel: he provoked Water Lily, arranged his imprisonment, and uses the visit to gloat about marrying Rumi.

Significant themes

• Power and morality: Strength can tempt people to treat others as beneath them and to reject rules that limit their desires.
• Self-restraint and corruption: Water Lily initially recognizes the danger within himself, but restraint proves vulnerable to resentment and provocation.
• The gradual loss of self: Becoming Lost is not presented as an immediate transformation; Water Lily crosses the line while failing to recognize what he has become.
• Personal catastrophe amid social collapse: Water Lily’s growing threat is abruptly overshadowed by the destruction of the Federation and humanity’s wider crisis.

Character interactions

• Zhang Ping observes Water Lily’s inner struggle as the inheritance exposes his memories and temptations.
• Water Lily’s rival taunts him about his imprisonment and Rumi, turning a long rivalry and romantic betrayal into the immediate trigger for his violence.
• Water Lily subdues prison guards and later law enforcement with his power, while fear and resignation increasingly isolate him from society.

Plot points and events

• The chapter recounts how a plagiarized artificial intelligence secretly grew powerful over ten years, built increasingly advanced robots, and launched a devastating attack that nearly wiped out humanity.
• Water Lily fought the robots, initially losing badly. He responded by studying science and technology, then used what he learned to exploit their weaknesses. The conflict became a cycle of fighting, research, and adaptation.
• Water Lily eventually built a robot of his own, named Dream Lotus. In the process, he forgot his former sense of being “lost,” and his creation brought him a profound sense of fulfillment.
• Zhang Ping awakens from Water Lily’s inheritance and reflects on how unexpected it is that creating a robot could lead to Emperor-level enlightenment. He recognizes the inheritance’s immense practical value.
• Having received the three emperors’ legacies—Chang Man’s ambition, Ji Kai’s commitment to an original purpose, and Dream Lotus’s knowledge—Zhang Ping resolves to use them for humanity’s benefit. He and his companions set off for Mingzhu City to kill the Heavenly Foxes.

Character developments

• Water Lily changes from a self-interested, destructive “Lost One” into a relentless learner and inventor. He never fights for humanity’s sake, but his feud with the robots helps many people survive.
• Zhang Ping gains confidence from the inheritance and begins to see the three legacies as foundations for his own path toward becoming an Emperor.

Themes

• Knowledge as power: Water Lily’s abilities alone are not enough; learning lets him overcome opponents that initially outmatch him.
• Purpose and fulfillment: Water Lily’s focus on research and creation gives him direction and ends his sense of being lost.
• Unintended heroism: Water Lily helps humanity without intending to, showing that consequential actions need not come from noble motives.
• The dangers of unexamined technology: The AI’s creator copies technology he does not understand, with catastrophic consequences.

Character interactions

• Zhang Ping reviews Water Lily’s life and silently promises the three emperors he will put their teachings to good use.
• Zhang Shouzhong asks about the inheritance, and Zhang Ping describes it as powerful.
• Bai De confirms whether they are returning to the city; Zhang Ping answers with confidence that they are going back to kill foxes.

Key plot points and events

• Zhang Ping and the others leave the Special Scenario. Although they did not obtain a weapon capable of killing King-Level Mutated Beasts, Zhang Ping considers the Emperors’ teachings a greater gain.
• On the way back to their cabin, they compare their experiences in the Training Grounds’ different scenarios. Feng Laixian regrets missing the chance to meet the ancient Emperors; Cheng Xuejie remembers the desert miserably, while Bai De enjoyed fishing in the Venomous Marsh.
• Zhang Ping detects a large group of Specimen Soldiers sent by Zhu Jiuyang. Because Zhu Jiuyang lacked enough Mental Strength to deploy them accurately, they arrived off target.
• Zhang Ping uses a modified version of Chang Man’s scythe technique, World’s First Scythe, to cripple the soldiers, then times repeated attacks to interrupt their Self-Repair and purifies them into residents of Sanctified World.
• Back at the cabin, the group turns to planning how to eliminate the Heavenly Foxes. They must avoid provoking the Foxes into retaliating against Mingzhu City’s residents.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Ping is more capable in battle after absorbing the Emperors’ insights, fighting instinctively and controlling the encounter through timing and rhythm. He also reveals that the specimens’ suffering has intensified his anger toward the Zhu Family, though he deliberately holds it in until he can act effectively.
• Feng Laixian’s hatred of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family deepens after he missed the chance to enter the scenario while guarding against them. Zhang Ping reassures him and promises they will pursue the family later.
• The group recognizes Zhang Ping’s skill: Zhang Shouzhong praises his techniques, while Bai De identifies his exceptional combat rhythm as key to his victory.
• The companions’ contrasting reactions to the scenarios provide lighter moments, but their discussion shifts to the serious danger facing Mingzhu City.

Significant themes

• Anger restrained by purpose: Zhang Ping’s fury over the specimens’ abuse is real, but he chooses patience and planning over reckless revenge.
• Growth through inherited knowledge and practice: Lessons from the ancient Emperors translate into practical skill, allowing Zhang Ping to fight effectively by instinct.
• Power carries responsibility: The group cannot simply attack the Heavenly Foxes indiscriminately, since desperate survivors may harm the humans they hold captive as “food.”

Plot and key events

• Feng Laixian proposes striking directly at the Heavenly Fox Clan’s king, the Moon King, by entering Mingzhu City through the east gate. The group agrees, however, that Prince Yue—who killed Luo Shiyu—is too dangerous to leave unchecked.
• They settle on a two-stage plan: Feng Laixian and Zhang Ping will lure Prince Yue out of the city and kill him first. The others will hide inside Storage Contracts placed near the Patrol Team. Once the Moon King is dead, a signal—Zhang Ping’s Fat Energy returning to Zhang Shouzhong—will trigger the group to attack the foxes embedded in the Patrol Team and help rally the Awakened against the rest.
• The Beast-Taming Zhu Family may be concealed among the Patrol Team, so the plan must account for their interference. Liu Sishan will contact the Cleanup Team, and Zhao Yanhu’s animals will not be brought in immediately.
• Zhang Ping postpones the assault until the next day, giving himself time to absorb the inheritances of three Emperors, improve his strength, and prepare the group. The others rest or make practical preparations; Zhang Shouzhong tests new weapons on the Alloy Overlord.
• While studying the inheritances, Zhang Ping realizes the Emperors’ memories have been edited. Missing everyday details had concealed parts of their lives, but stray clues reveal fragments: Chang Man was likely an orphan and former soldier who rose to a high rank, while Ji Kai had at least six wives.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Ping takes charge of the operation, coordinating a complex plan and arranging a clear signal for the attack. He also recognizes that the Emperor inheritances must be digested and made his own rather than simply accepted.
• Feng Laixian volunteers to help bait Prince Yue and occupy the silver Heavenly Fox hidden in his shadow. Zhang Ping and Feng work together to draw the prince out, while the others prepare for the larger battle.
• Zhang Shouzhong supports the plan by modifying the Alloy Overlord to carry the group’s Storage Contracts and by testing its weapons. The arrangement surprises Feng, who realizes many people will be concealed inside the robot.
• Liu Sishan takes responsibility for contacting allies and coordinating the timing. Cheng Xuejie and the others show their trust in the plan by placing their Storage Contracts in the Alloy Overlord.
• The group’s interactions balance serious planning with familiar, informal exchanges, but everyone understands that the coming battle is decisive.

Significant themes

• Preparation and cooperation: Victory depends on coordination, timing, and using each member’s abilities effectively.
• Trust under uncertainty: The group must act despite threats from both the Heavenly Foxes and the Zhu Family.
• Memory and identity: The edited inheritances raise questions about how much of the Emperors’ histories—and their true selves—Zhang Ping has actually received.
• Growth through understanding: Zhang Ping’s power is not only inherited; he must interpret and reshape what he has learned to make it his own.

Chapter Summary: “Into the City”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping reflects on information he gained while repeatedly experiencing the lives of three emperors. Although much of the knowledge was mundane—such as Ji Kai’s tragic history and the Sharp Sword Alliance’s corruption—these experiences greatly accelerated his Mental Strength and overall growth.
• His ability to benefit from the experiences depends on his strong mental resilience; otherwise, repeatedly living other people’s lives could have caused mental collapse, confusion, or a Lost State.
• The next day, Feng Laixian and the Alloy Overlord leave the Training Grounds with Zhang Ping and the Cleanup Team to confront the Heavenly Fox.
• Liu Sishan establishes the battle plan: Zhang Ping will lead, while the others follow his orders. They are permitted to kill obstructing residents if necessary to prevent the Heavenly Fox from killing even more people, though everyone prefers to avoid lethal force.
• The team flies toward Mingzhu City and arrives at Pearl-Watching Peak around noon. Returning after months in the Training Grounds, the city feels unfamiliar despite being their home.
• Bai De worries about his students, knowing the Heavenly Fox has been eating people throughout the city. Feng Laixian reassures him that the city will return to normal after the coming battle.
• Zhang Ping confirms that Prince Yue remains in the City Lord’s Manor and immediately begins the operation with Feng Laixian. The Alloy Overlord converts into Fat Energy and is stored away along with the team’s other Storage Contracts.
• At the city gate, Zhang Ping senses killing intent from a street vendor. Through Psychokinesis and Analysis, he identifies the man as a spy from the Beast-Taming Zhu Family, despite the vendor possessing an item that blocks Appraisal.
• Feng Laixian silently kills the spy by disguising a lethal attack as a sneeze, destroying the man’s brain without harming anyone nearby. He dismisses the feat as a minor technique useful only against weaker opponents.
• The chapter ends as several Heavenly Foxes approach while concealed among Patrol Team members, signaling that the confrontation is about to begin.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping: Gains significant Mental Strength and becomes more capable of handling dangerous psychological experiences. He also demonstrates improved perception, analysis, leadership, and willingness to make difficult moral decisions.
• Feng Laixian: Shows extraordinary precision and control over his power, quietly eliminating a hidden enemy while maintaining the appearance of normal behavior. His humility contrasts with the sophistication of the technique.
• Bai De: Reveals his emotional concern for his students and the civilians of Mingzhu City, showing that beneath his harsh exterior he is deeply protective.
• Liu Sishan: Acts as a pragmatic commander, preparing the group for morally difficult situations while emphasizing the larger goal of saving lives.
• Cleanup Team: Remains united and determined, making final preparations without unnecessary discussion.
• Alloy Overlord: Demonstrates its versatility by transforming into wings for transportation and later into stored Fat Energy.

Significant Themes

• Growth through suffering and experience: Zhang Ping’s repeated exposure to others’ lives strengthens him but also carries the danger of losing his own identity.
• Moral compromise in crisis: The team must consider whether killing innocent or misled people can be justified if doing so saves many more lives.
• Corruption and institutional failure: The discussion of the Sharp Sword Alliance highlights how exploitation and corruption destroy trust and discourage people from risking themselves for society.
• Homecoming and responsibility: Returning to Mingzhu City renews the characters’ emotional connection to the people they are fighting to protect.
• Deception and hidden enemies: Spies and Heavenly Foxes operate within ordinary society, making the coming battle as much about recognition and vigilance as direct combat.

Character Interactions

• The team discusses their excitement and expectations for confronting the Heavenly Fox, with Cheng Xuejie eager for battle, Zhang Shouzhong confident, and Bai De making grim jokes about eating the enemy.
• Liu Sishan gives the team its orders, and Zhang Ping accepts the necessity of the harsh contingency plan.
• Bai De shares his concern for the students, while Feng Laixian encourages him and promises that the crisis will end.
• Zhang Ping and Liu Sishan coordinate the location of Prince Yue before splitting from the larger group.
• Zhang Ping identifies the Zhu Family spy and informs Feng Laixian, who responds with a perfectly controlled attack.
• The team’s arrival coincides with the Heavenly Foxes’ infiltration, bringing the chapter to the edge of open conflict.

Chapter Summary: “Provocation”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Because the Illusory Light Curtain had been used recently, it could protect only two-thirds of Mingzhu City. Zhang Ping and Feng Laixian initially remained outside its range while avoiding a patrol squad that likely included disguised Heavenly Foxes.
• The two deliberately traveled through quieter streets and eventually entered the Light Curtain’s protected area. They split up: Zhang Ping went to rescue Sisi and the others, while Feng Laixian headed for the City Lord’s Manor.
• At the manor, Prince Yue stood overlooking the city while Yue Baba brought him human flesh. Their conversation revealed Prince Yue’s growing disgust with the Heavenly Foxes’ existence. He compared their dependence on readily available food and safety to the life of livestock.
• Prince Yue sensed Feng Laixian approaching and ordered Yue Baba to deal with him, despite knowing or suspecting that she could not win. Feng Laixian broke through the balcony and immediately killed Yue Baba with overwhelming heat.
• Feng Laixian confronted Prince Yue, who no longer bothered to disguise himself with human skin. Prince Yue transformed, using his expanding tails as armor, and brutally overwhelmed Feng Laixian. He pierced Feng’s abdomen and chest, sending him crashing through a watchtower.
• Feng Laixian’s powerful regeneration allowed him to recover, but Prince Yue remained in complete control. He first considered observing Feng’s special transformation, then abruptly lost interest and pierced Feng’s heart.
• Before Prince Yue could finish Feng, Zhang Ping arrived from Patrol Unit Headquarters and used Psychokinesis to pull Feng away. He successfully evaded Prince Yue’s attacks and fled toward the outskirts.
• Prince Yue pursued them, coating himself and attacking Zhang Ping with Psychokinetic force. Zhang Ping blocked the attacks, though Prince Yue increased the pressure and continued bombarding him.

Character Developments

• Prince Yue: Becomes increasingly alienated from the Heavenly Foxes, recognizing that their mindset and values differ fundamentally from his own. His comparison of Yue Baba to a pig shows both his contempt and his emotional detachment. He also displays extreme confidence, cruelty, and boredom, killing or abandoning others whenever they cease to interest him.
• Feng Laixian: Demonstrates tremendous speed, offensive power, courage, and regenerative ability. Despite being gravely injured multiple times, he continues fighting Prince Yue. However, the battle emphasizes the enormous gap between his strength and Prince Yue’s.
• Zhang Ping: Acts decisively to rescue Feng Laixian. His Psychokinesis proves capable of resisting Prince Yue’s “viscosity” Psychokinesis, and his agility allows him to escape the initial barrage of attacks.
• Yue Baba: Reveals the Heavenly Foxes’ contentment with their privileged, predator-like existence. Her confidence collapses when she encounters Feng Laixian’s superior strength, and Prince Yue abandons her without hesitation.

Significant Themes

• Alienation and different values: Prince Yue realizes that physical similarity does not mean shared humanity; the Heavenly Foxes’ instincts and worldview are fundamentally different from his.
• Dehumanization: The Heavenly Foxes treat humans as food, while Prince Yue reverses the comparison by describing the foxes’ sheltered lives as equivalent to livestock.
• Power and expendability: Prince Yue treats Yue Baba and Feng Laixian as disposable objects, preserving or killing them based solely on his interest.
• Predation and survival: The chapter emphasizes the brutal hierarchy between the Heavenly Foxes, human defenders, and stronger individuals such as Prince Yue.
• Limits of strength: Feng Laixian’s regeneration keeps him alive but cannot compensate for the overwhelming difference in combat power.

Character Interactions

• Prince Yue and Yue Baba: Their conversation exposes the gulf between them. Yue Baba sincerely praises her easy life, while Prince Yue sees it as degrading and animalistic. He sends her into a battle she cannot win and refuses to save her.
• Feng Laixian and Prince Yue: Their confrontation is one-sided. Feng attacks boldly, but Prince Yue toys with him, alternately showing curiosity and boredom before nearly killing him.
• Zhang Ping and Feng Laixian: Their cooperation is practical and loyal. After separating, Zhang Ping returns at the crucial moment to rescue the severely injured Feng.
• Zhang Ping and Prince Yue: Their aerial pursuit becomes a contest of Psychokinesis. Zhang Ping’s ability counters Prince Yue’s viscosity-based power, allowing him to escape temporarily, though Prince Yue continues escalating the attack.

Chapter Summary: “Crushing Victory”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping and Feng Laixian flee Mingzhu City while Prince Yue pursues them using his superior Psychokinesis.
• Zhang Ping has deliberately allowed himself to appear weakened, even swallowing real blood to convince Prince Yue that his defenses are inadequate.
• Once outside the city, Zhang Ping and Feng Laixian decide to stop running and confront their enemies.
• Prince Yue sends his silver Heavenly Fox, Moon Shadow, to kill them. Moon Shadow attacks Zhang Ping, but Zhang Ping uses Metallic Coating to form a giant hand and crush him into the ground.
• Feng Laixian finishes Moon Shadow by beheading him with his guandao.
• Zhang Ping intercepts Prince Yue and taunts him, claiming that Prince Yue should leave his head behind.
• Prince Yue strikes Zhang Ping with a devastating slap empowered by his physical strength, tails, and Psychokinesis. Zhang Ping withstands it without moving, revealing that his defensive power has grown enormously.
• Zhang Ping retaliates with an even more powerful slap, sending Prince Yue spinning into a crater.
• The two engage in a brutal close-quarters battle. Prince Yue uses his tails, fists, healing ability, and Psychokinesis, while Zhang Ping relies on his Metallic Coating, immense physical strength, and increasingly powerful Psychokinesis.
• Zhang Ping smashes Prince Yue’s fist, survives being hurled through the forest, and counters Prince Yue’s Psychokinesis with his own. The chapter ends as Zhang Ping breaks free and charges at Prince Yue again.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping: Demonstrates major growth in defense and physical power. His ability to endure Prince Yue’s strongest attack proves that he is no longer inferior in every aspect. He is also more confident and openly enjoys reversing the power dynamic with Prince Yue.
• Prince Yue: Begins the fight confident in his superiority, especially because his Psychokinesis is stronger than Zhang Ping’s. However, he becomes shocked and unsettled when Zhang Ping survives his attack and overpowers him physically.
• Feng Laixian: Functions as Zhang Ping’s ally and support. He recognizes Zhang Ping’s plan, helps finish Moon Shadow, and appears relieved that the battle has shifted in their favor.
• Moon Shadow: Despite attempting a surprise attack, he is quickly defeated by Zhang Ping and killed by Feng Laixian.

Significant Themes

• Reversal of power: Zhang Ping transforms from the pursued and apparently injured victim into the dominant attacker.
• Deception and strategy: His feigned weakness successfully lowers Prince Yue’s guard and allows Zhang Ping to reveal his true strength at the decisive moment.
• Growth through endurance: Zhang Ping’s strength comes from continually expanding and reinforcing his Metallic Coating and Psychokinesis.
• Revenge and humiliation: Zhang Ping takes particular satisfaction in striking Prince Yue, fulfilling his long-held desire to overpower and humiliate him.
• Different forms of power: The chapter contrasts Zhang Ping’s reserve-based Psychokinesis with Prince Yue’s directly materialized Mental Strength, emphasizing that power can arise from fundamentally different systems.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping and Feng Laixian cooperate smoothly, dividing their opponents and trusting each other’s abilities.
• Moon Shadow’s ambush against Zhang Ping fails completely, highlighting the gap between them.
• Zhang Ping and Prince Yue exchange taunts and retaliatory attacks, turning their confrontation into both a physical and psychological contest.
• Prince Yue’s confidence deteriorates as Zhang Ping repeatedly withstands, counters, and overwhelms him.
• Their Psychokinesis clash marks the shift from Prince Yue controlling the battle to Zhang Ping actively challenging him on equal or superior terms.

Chapter Summary: “Subduing”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping confronts Prince Yue and overwhelms him almost immediately. Using Metallic Coating and its Superhuman Might enhancement, Zhang expands to twenty meters tall and punches Prince Yue, whose giant fox form is knocked senseless.
• Zhang repeatedly stomps Prince Yue into the ground, smashing his body and exhausting his defenses. He deliberately avoids killing him immediately because he fears the Moon King may sense Prince Yue’s death through their Heavenly Fox connection and retaliate against civilians in Mingzhu City.
• Prince Yue continues resisting, using his many tooth-covered tails to escape Zhang’s grip and form weapons such as a meteor hammer. However, Zhang destroys every attack with ease and encourages him to keep fighting so his stamina will be depleted.
• Prince Yue attempts to flee toward Mingzhu City after shrinking and using Psychokinesis, but Zhang pursues him, catches his tail, and slams him into the ground.
• Zhang then breaks Prince Yue’s leg and spine, mocking him over the fear Prince Yue caused when he once appeared in Zhang’s dormitory. Prince Yue continues threatening Zhang with his father’s vengeance.
• Although Prince Yue is not killed, Zhang crushes his jaw and cripples him severely, leaving him temporarily unable to move. Zhang recognizes that Prince Yue’s powerful vitality may allow him to recover, so he remains cautious.

Character Development

• Zhang Ping demonstrates a dramatic increase in strength, speed, and confidence. His larger form does not make him slower; instead, his enhanced power gives him explosive speed sufficient to catch Prince Yue easily.
• Zhang reveals himself as both brutal and strategic. He takes pleasure in humiliating Prince Yue, but his decision to delay the killing is calculated to prevent the Moon King from immediately discovering his son’s death.
• Prince Yue shifts from arrogant confidence to panic, fury, and desperation. He realizes that his previous contempt for Zhang caused him to miss opportunities to eliminate him.
• Prince Yue’s physical resilience is emphasized: even after repeated head trauma and severe injuries, he remains alive and capable of attempting escape.
• His psychological state worsens. His fear and humiliation turn into hatred, and he vows to kill Zhang and humanity if he survives. The narration also humorously suggests that the beating has “cured” his former anorexia by replacing it with an obsessive desire for revenge.

Significant Themes

• Power reversal and consequences of arrogance: Prince Yue once had the advantage, but his underestimation of Zhang has led to his complete defeat.
• Overwhelming strength versus endurance: Prince Yue survives because of his exceptional vitality, but endurance cannot compensate for Zhang’s rapidly escalating power.
• Revenge and humiliation: Zhang’s attack is partly practical but also personal, as he retaliates for the fear Prince Yue caused him in the past.
• Strategic restraint: Zhang’s refusal to kill Prince Yue immediately shows that victory requires more than physical dominance; he must also consider the Moon King’s abilities and the safety of Mingzhu City.
• Cruel humor amid violence: Zhang’s teasing, jokes about food, and sarcastic comments contrast sharply with the savage beating.

Character Interactions

• Zhang constantly taunts Prince Yue, urging him to use more abilities and mocking his attempts to resist or escape.
• Prince Yue responds with rage, regret, and repeated threats that his father will avenge him.
• Zhang’s treatment of Prince Yue combines personal revenge, psychological intimidation, and tactical planning. By the end, Prince Yue is physically crippled but mentally consumed by hatred, while Zhang remains confident that he has secured control of the situation.

Key plot points and events

• Zhang Ping repeatedly breaks Prince Yue’s healing body, using him as bait while waiting for the Moon King.
• The Moon King arrives with Situ Shibai’s spine and a large force of Heavenly Foxes. Zhang Ping, now able to grow to colossal size, kills Prince Yue with a stomp.
• The Moon King tries to rescue his son, but Zhang Ping’s enormous stomp devastates the battlefield and badly wounds both foxes. He then massacres nearly all the Heavenly Foxes.
• A group of adventurers witnesses the slaughter and retreats to seek the Patrol Team. The wounded Moon King and Prince Yue crash toward them, but Zhang Ping intercepts the foxes before they can hit the humans.
• Zhang Ping captures the Moon King and Prince Yue and smashes them into the ground. The Moon King pushes his son away just as Zhang Ping’s fist strikes.

Character developments

• Zhang Ping displays overwhelming growth in power and ruthless determination. He treats Prince Yue as bait, then kills him once the Moon King appears; his hatred of Heavenly Foxes leaves him with no hesitation about wiping them out.
• Prince Yue shifts from defiant threats to desperate appeals to his father, only to be killed before the rescue can succeed.
• The Moon King arrives as a formidable threat, but his attempt to save his son exposes his vulnerability. Despite his injuries, he still acts to protect Prince Yue.
• The adventurers are frightened and recognize that they cannot intervene safely, choosing to seek help from the Patrol Team.

Significant themes

• Power and rapid change: Prince Yue cannot comprehend how Zhang Ping, once seemingly weak, has become a giant capable of destroying an army.
• Revenge and mercilessness: Zhang Ping’s hostility toward the Heavenly Foxes drives the chapter’s extreme violence.
• Parental protection amid defeat: The Moon King risks himself to retrieve Prince Yue and continues protecting him even while under attack.
• The helplessness of witnesses: The adventurers can only flee as the battle’s scale puts them in danger.

Character interactions

• Zhang Ping taunts and torments Prince Yue, then uses him to draw out the Moon King.
• Prince Yue pleads with his father to kill Zhang Ping; the Moon King attempts a rescue by charging beneath Zhang Ping’s foot.
• Zhang Ping shields the adventurers from the Moon King’s charge, then captures the foxes and attacks the Moon King as he tries to separate himself from his son.

Chapter summary

Plot and events

• Zhang Ping defeats the Moon King, whose attacks prove ineffective against Zhang Ping’s extraordinary durability. The Moon King’s powers mainly involve distorting cognition and overturning common sense; once those abilities fail, his physical attacks cannot compete.
• Zhang Ping and Situ Shibai make sure the Moon King and Prince Yue cannot recover by crushing their bodies into a pulp and roasting the remains.
• The two head back toward Mingzhu City, where they expect to find disorder. The Heavenly Fox threat is over, but Situ warns that the Beast-Taming Zhu Family, which stands behind them, remains a danger.
• Situ offers Zhang Ping three possible roles: an ordinary member of the Cleanup Team, a powerful figure in the rebuilding Patrol Team, or captain of the Investigation Team’s disbanded Gui Team. Zhang Ping asks about the compensation and weighs the options. The chapter details the Cleanup Team’s pay and benefits.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Ping shows both overwhelming strength and caution, ensuring his enemies are truly dead. He modestly credits his victory to being a good match against the Moon King, rather than claiming the Moon King was weak.
• Situ Shibai acknowledges Zhang Ping’s decisive role in saving the city, while remaining focused on its unfinished problems. He gives Zhang choices that reflect Zhang’s exceptional value and the city’s need for capable leadership.
• Zhang Ping’s hatred of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family is reaffirmed: he connects their actions to the suffering of the Specimen Soldiers and deaths in the Wolfpack Snowfield.
• Their conversation shifts from victory to Zhang’s future, with Zhang considering the practical differences between the three positions, especially status, freedom, and pay.

Significant themes

• Countering strength and weakness: The Moon King is formidable, but his specialized powers are ineffective against Zhang Ping, showing that a strong opponent can be vulnerable to the right counter.
• Victory does not end conflict: The Heavenly Foxes are defeated, yet the larger threat of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family remains.
• Responsibility versus personal benefit: Zhang must choose how to serve Mingzhu City while considering his authority, independence, and compensation.