Chapter Summaries

Chapter Summary: “Where There Is Water and Grass, It Is Fit for Settling Down”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping discovers a warning left by a dead Corpse in the Nether Mist King’s world: “Do not study the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet. It will destroy the world!” Since that world has already been destroyed, he becomes uneasy about whether the Tablet caused the catastrophe.
• After spending over half a month studying the laboratory’s documents without understanding them, Zhang Ping abandons the research and searches the building.
• Beneath the building, he finds a massive underground laboratory filled with the corpses of animals and researchers.
• He eventually discovers the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet, a strange gray object covered in unfamiliar writing and surrounded by scientific instruments.
• Unable to decipher the Tablet or provoke a response from it, Zhang Ping jokingly attempts to communicate with it. When he moves his head through the Tablet, his consciousness is struck by a powerful shock.
• The physical Tablet disappears, while a translucent projection appears before him. Zhang Ping realizes that the real Tablet seems to have entered his mind.
• Although he worries that the Tablet may destroy this world as well, it refuses to respond to his attempts at communication.
• Zhang Ping returns to the surface and settles into a bookstore, spending years reading novels and other books.
• He discovers that he can once again use Psychokinesis, apparently because of the Tablet’s influence. This allows him to make books float and read them more easily.
• After exhausting the bookstore’s collection, Zhang Ping begins burying the corpses scattered throughout the area, choosing a scenic wilderness location and giving the dead proper graves.

Character Development

• Zhang Ping demonstrates caution but remains driven by curiosity. Despite the warning about the Tablet, he investigates it because he cannot resist exploring the unknown.
• He acknowledges his own limitations, admitting that he lacks the intelligence and specialized knowledge needed to understand the research documents.
• His humor and self-mockery help him cope with frightening situations. He compares himself to a disposable horror-movie character and jokes with the Tablet even after it appears to attack him.
• Zhang Ping becomes increasingly adaptable. Rather than panicking after the Tablet enters his mind, he accepts the situation and searches for ways to continue living normally.
• His return to reading reveals his desire for companionship, stimulation, and a sense of normal life despite being a disembodied spirit.
• By burying the corpses, he shows growing compassion and responsibility. He cannot revive the dead, but he can at least restore their dignity.

Significant Themes

• Curiosity and danger: Zhang Ping’s investigation of the Tablet reflects humanity’s impulse to pursue forbidden knowledge, even when warned of catastrophic consequences.
• The limits of knowledge: The complex documents and unintelligible writing emphasize how difficult understanding can be without education, guidance, or the proper context.
• Isolation and companionship: Zhang Ping repeatedly tries to make the Tablet respond, suggesting that his jokes and conversations conceal a deep loneliness.
• Survival through adaptation: Rather than confronting danger directly, Zhang Ping adjusts to his spirit form, uses Psychokinesis, reads, and creates a routine.
• Respect for the dead: His decision to bury the corpses highlights his empathy and belief that even those who cannot be saved deserve dignity.
• The relationship between destruction and civilization: The ruined worlds and mysterious Tablet suggest that advanced knowledge or technology may bring both progress and annihilation.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping has no direct human companions in the chapter, but he repeatedly addresses the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet as if it were a person.
• He playfully challenges, bargains with, and attempts to befriend the Tablet, while the Tablet remains silent and enigmatic.
• His interaction with the Tablet changes him physically or spiritually: after touching it, the Tablet appears to become embedded in his mind and seems to restore his Psychokinesis.
• His later interaction with the dead is indirect but meaningful. By burying the corpses, Zhang Ping establishes a compassionate relationship with the remnants of the destroyed civilization.

Chapter Summary

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping spends an immeasurable amount of time burying the corpses of everyone on the dead planet. After ensuring that the entire population has been laid to rest, he leaves and returns to the Giant Dragon’s corpse.
• With his newly acquired Psychokinesis, Zhang Ping examines the dragon’s body in detail. When he looks into its eye, a previously incomprehensible word on the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet becomes understandable: “Soul.”
• Speaking the word causes energy from the dragon’s corpse to surge into Zhang Ping’s spirit body. His spiritual form expands dramatically and develops dragon-like horns and a tail.
• Zhang Ping discovers that his enlarged form is only spiritual and does not physically affect the material world. However, his Psychokinesis has also become vastly more powerful, extending over thousands of kilometers and gaining enough strength to crush diamonds.
• He experiments with his new power by manipulating a star’s magma and attempting, unsuccessfully, to pull out its core. After two days of playing with his abilities, he returns to studying the dragon.
• Zhang Ping dissects the Giant Dragon’s corpse using Psychokinesis and gradually learns about its anatomy, including the mysterious Dragon Orb.
• The dragon’s nine-part spherical heart proves extraordinarily resistant. Zhang Ping spends more than twenty years cutting at it before finally creating a crack and extracting a tiny dark-red keratin fragment.
• As Zhang Ping examines the fragment, the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet suddenly activates. Its words glow, Zhang Ping’s body begins rapidly expanding and shrinking, and the fragment disintegrates.

Character Development

• Zhang Ping demonstrates enormous patience and responsibility by personally burying the planet’s dead, despite the task taking an unknown length of time.
• His discovery of the word “Soul” grants him a major increase in spiritual size and power, though he remains aware that his strength has limits and that his enlarged form is not physically tangible.
• He becomes increasingly curious and scientifically minded, treating the dragon’s corpse as an object of study and patiently dissecting it over decades.
• Zhang’s personality remains playful and eccentric. He experiments with stars for amusement and jokingly negotiates with the stone tablet as though it were a roommate.
• His willingness to persist for decades shows that his seemingly endless lifespan and vast amount of time have begun to shape his outlook.

Significant Themes

• Death and remembrance: Zhang’s burial of the planet’s population reflects respect for the dead and gives meaning to an otherwise devastated world.
• Power and transformation: The word “Soul” changes Zhang’s spiritual form and abilities, suggesting that the stone tablet and the dragon contain immense, still-unexplained power.
• Curiosity and discovery: Zhang approaches the dragon’s corpse with the mindset of an explorer or scientist, pursuing knowledge even when the process takes decades.
• Time and immortality: Ordinary measures of time lose significance for Zhang, who can spend twenty years on a single task without growing discouraged.
• Communication and control: Zhang’s humorous “rules” for the stone tablet reveal his desire to understand and control the mysterious force residing within him.

Character Interactions

• Zhang has no living human companions in the chapter, so his primary “interaction” is with the Giant Dragon’s corpse and the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet.
• He treats the stone tablet as a conscious, potentially mischievous partner, demanding that it communicate with him and respect his privacy.
• Although the tablet never directly answers, its activation in response to the extracted fragment suggests that it possesses its own mysterious functions and may be connected to the dragon’s remains.

Chapter Summary: “Spatial Collapse”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping realizes that the horny fragment he crushed was the fulcrum stabilizing the irregular space. Once destroyed by the stone slab’s radiance, the entire region begins collapsing.
• Space shatters and folds in on itself, with three-dimensional reality gradually compressing into two-dimensional forms. Stars, planets, meteors, and flames become distorted, flattened, or reduced to tiny objects.
• The fragment’s remnants briefly form a dragon-shaped shadow that attacks the stone slab in Zhang Ping’s mind. This triggers a powerful reaction, causing the slab to generate countless folded dimensions resembling a kaleidoscope.
• The radiance revives nearby corpses, including the dissected Giant Dragon and various extraterrestrial creatures. These beings awaken in grotesque, fragmented forms and display hostility toward Zhang Ping.
• Trapped in the collapsing space, Zhang attempts to escape by moving upward through a seemingly more stable region. However, the stone slab continues emitting stronger light, transforming stars and other objects into bizarre living entities.
• Powder from the destroyed fragment enters Zhang Ping’s mind and forms a dragon symbol on the stone slab. The slab’s inscriptions rearrange themselves into rings around the symbol, causing an even greater release of energy.
• Zhang’s spirit is pulled toward an indescribable point and becomes separated from his consciousness. He loses control of his body and can only move along the spirit’s trajectory.
• His spirit passes through stars, rocks, ice, and other matter. Although initial collisions injure him, he later appears invulnerable as everything in his path is destroyed or repelled.
• Zhang eventually discovers the truth: the corpses revived by the stone slab have been absorbing the impact of every collision behind him. His apparent “Indestructible Diamond” state is not his own power but the result of others sacrificing themselves to protect him.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping becomes increasingly desperate and fearful as the space around him collapses. His instinct shifts from investigation to survival.
• Despite his panic, he remains observant and analytical, identifying the fragment’s function, noticing the dragon symbol, and gradually piecing together what happened to his spirit.
• Zhang initially believes he has become physically indestructible, but this confidence is undermined when he realizes that revived corpses have been shielding him from harm.
• His relationship with the stone slab remains mysterious. He treats it almost like a powerful, uncooperative companion, pleading with it to stop emitting light, but it continues acting independently.
• The Giant Dragon is revived but remains helpless because its head has already been cut open, allowing it only to glare and roar at Zhang.

Significant Themes

• Collapse of reality: Space is portrayed as fragile and dependent on hidden structures. Once its stabilizing fulcrum is removed, the universe becomes unstable and transforms into warped dimensions.
• Unintended consequences: Zhang’s actions destroy the fragment and trigger a chain reaction he cannot control, reviving corpses and endangering the entire region.
• Life and death becoming blurred: The stone slab repeatedly animates dead matter, but the resulting “life” is grotesque, hostile, and unstable.
• False invulnerability and hidden sacrifice: Zhang believes he is protected by his own power, only to discover that others have been destroyed in his place. The revelation challenges his understanding of strength and survival.
• Transformation and distortion: Stars, bodies, dimensions, and even written symbols change form, emphasizing the instability of reality and the unknown power of the dragon-related artifact.

Character Interactions

• Zhang interacts indirectly with the stone slab, pleading with it when its radiance creates terrifying life forms. The slab ignores him and grows even more powerful.
• The revived Giant Dragon glares and roars at Zhang but cannot attack because its head has been dissected.
• Revived extraterrestrial corpses and other illuminated objects act aggressively toward Zhang, attempting to attack him but failing as they are destroyed or left behind.
• The dead bodies surrounding Zhang’s trajectory effectively protect him by absorbing the damage from collisions. Their final gestures—salutes, waves, and thumbs-up—create an eerie, almost ceremonial farewell as they are shattered behind him.

Chapter Summary: “Proof of Kingship”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping reaches the lowest level of the mysterious space while surrounded by the remains of countless spirit bodies. He realizes that the corpses and fragments he had previously encountered came from those who sacrificed themselves to protect him.
• Overcome by their gratitude, suffering, and final blessings, Zhang Ping’s spirit body escapes from the collapsed inner space of the Great Sun Boundary-Sealing Divine Needle.
• He emerges into the Mysterious Sewer and uses Reset Eye to restore his physical body, confirming that he has truly returned to life.
• Zhang Ping experiences mixed emotions: relief and happiness at surviving, but grief and guilt over failing to save Chen Juntaing and the other spirit bodies.
• After examining himself, he discovers that his Mental Strength has greatly increased. Even without his superpowers, he can now interfere with reality through naturally generated psychokinesis.
• He also learns that his Elemental Metal reserves are depleted, limiting his giant transformation to roughly seven meters until the metal replenishes.
• Most importantly, he discovers a new King Attribute, apparently granted by the billions of dead inhabitants who endured suffering and blessed him.
• Inspired by their sacrifice and his former life as a rescuer, Zhang Ping decides to establish an organization called the Rescue Team, dedicated to saving worlds and repaying the kindness he has received.
• He examines the red sphere that emerged with him and identifies it as a Primordial Embryo, created by the collapse of the space inside the Great Sun Boundary-Sealing Divine Needle.
• Analysis reveals that Chen Juntaing and the other spirit bodies have completely died after being drawn into the collapse. The Primordial Embryo has become a massive singularity-like object that could explode and destroy the entire world, making it an immensely dangerous “bomb.”
• Unable to determine how to safely dispose of it, Zhang Ping attempts to seal it in a Storage Contract. At that moment, the stone tablet within his spirit body reacts, and the character “Dragon” begins glowing red.

Character Development

• Zhang Ping becomes more emotionally aware of the sacrifices made on his behalf. His earlier instinctive kindness is transformed into a conscious sense of responsibility.
• He feels grief and guilt over being unable to rescue the dead, but instead of becoming paralyzed by sorrow, he turns their blessings into a long-term purpose.
• His discovery of the King Attribute marks a major evolution in his identity. He is no longer merely surviving or helping individuals; he begins to accept a broader leadership role.
• His decision to create the Rescue Team shows that he intends to honor the dead through concrete action and protect people across many worlds.
• He also demonstrates increased caution and maturity by carefully assessing his condition and investigating the Primordial Embryo before acting.

Significant Themes

• Kindness and unintended consequences: Zhang Ping’s simple acts of compassion ultimately earn the loyalty and protection of countless dead people.
• Sacrifice and responsibility: The spirit bodies’ suffering gives Zhang Ping power, but also places a moral burden on him to justify their faith.
• Grief transformed into purpose: His sorrow over failing to save others becomes the foundation for his mission to rescue future victims.
• Leadership and kingship: The King Attribute symbolizes not merely authority, but accountability to those who have placed their hopes in him.
• The danger of power: Zhang Ping gains immense strength, yet the Primordial Embryo reminds him that power can also create catastrophic risks.
• Life, death, and remembrance: Though Chen Juntaing and the others cannot be revived, their sacrifices continue to influence Zhang Ping and shape his future actions.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping’s most important relationships in the chapter are with the deceased spirit bodies, whose final protection and blessings establish a bond of gratitude and obligation.
• His connection to Chen Juntaing is especially significant. Zhang Ping attempts to save him even after escaping, but discovers that Chen Juntaing and the other spirits have died completely.
• Zhang Ping also interacts with the Primordial Embryo through analysis and attempted containment, treating it both as the remains of his companions and as a potential existential threat.
• The final reaction of the “Dragon” character on the stone tablet introduces a new, unexplained force that may connect Zhang Ping’s growth, the Primordial Embryo, or his emerging kingship to a larger mystery.

Chapter Summary: “Entwined Dragon Venerable”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping’s red power enters the primordial embryo, causing it to transform into a five-meter-long red, metallic Eastern dragon covered in an exoskeletal shell.
• Appraisal identifies the creature as the Entwined Dragon Venerable, a biological weapon capable of automatically protecting its master and attacking enemies.
• The dragon appears to recognize Zhang Ping as its master. It coils around him without hindering his movement and allows him to touch it, though it does not communicate or obey explicit commands.
• The Entwined Dragon Venerable creates a golden ring resembling a space-time gate. Zhang Ping uses it to cross the Black Curtain and return to Gui Tower.
• Zhang learns that he has been missing for an entire week. He is relieved to find Zhang Shouzhong and Su Jingyao alive, but they are shocked by his changed appearance.
• Zhang Ping discovers that two horns have grown on his head. He is relieved that the enormous tail he possessed in his spiritual form did not carry over into the physical world.
• Before Zhang Ping can explain what happened, the Entwined Dragon Venerable detects a threat and fires a devastating red beam through Gui Tower.
• The attack destroys Gui Tower and shatters the nearby Eightfold Tower in Mirror Prism Space, where Zhu Chongba had been monitoring Zhang Ping’s return. Zhu Chongba realizes that the planned assassination has failed.
• Debris and corpses rain over Mingzhu City, though capable Awakened manage to prevent civilian injuries.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping gains a powerful new guardian and weapon, the Entwined Dragon Venerable, after the primordial embryo evolves.
• He becomes visibly transformed, developing horns and acquiring an intimidating aura that even his allies notice.
• Zhang Ping remains cautious and uncertain about his new companion, since he cannot directly control or communicate with it.
• His concern for Liu Sishan, Cheng Xuejie, Su Jingyao, Zhang Shouzhong, and the others reveals his strong attachment to his companions and fear that his disappearance may have endangered them.
• Zhang Shouzhong and Su Jingyao react with shock and suspicion to Zhang Ping’s altered appearance and overwhelming new presence.
• Zhu Chongba learns that his ambush failed and is forced to confront Zhang Ping’s dramatically increased power.

Significant Themes

• Transformation and evolution: Zhang Ping and the primordial embryo both emerge from the mysterious space fundamentally changed.
• Power and uncertainty: Although Zhang Ping gains an immensely powerful guardian, he does not fully understand its abilities or limitations.
• Loyalty and protection: The Entwined Dragon Venerable’s instinctive defense of Zhang Ping contrasts with the assassination attempts directed against him.
• Reunion after danger: Zhang Ping’s relief at seeing his friends again emphasizes the importance of companionship amid supernatural conflict.
• Escalating conflict: The destruction of Gui Tower and Eightfold Tower signals that the struggle between Zhang Ping and his enemies has entered a more destructive phase.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping cautiously tests whether the Entwined Dragon Venerable recognizes him, touching its head after observing that it does not attack.
• The dragon silently demonstrates its loyalty by coiling around Zhang Ping and later opening a gateway for his return.
• Zhang Shouzhong accuses Zhang Ping of disappearing for a week, while Su Jingyao points out his newly grown horns.
• Zhang Ping tries to reassure them but cannot immediately explain his experiences.
• The dragon abruptly interrupts the reunion by attacking a perceived threat, causing Zhang Shouzhong, Su Jingyao, and everyone nearby to witness its destructive power.
• Zhu Chongba observes Zhang Ping’s return from afar, only to see the dragon’s beam destroy the structures where his forces were stationed.

Chapter Summary: “Infuriating Zhu Taihao to Death”

Key Plot Points and Events

• The Eightfold Tower is destroyed when it triggers the Coiling Dragon Venerable’s automatic self-defense mechanism. The attack leaves a distorted space in the sky and shocks everyone in Gui Tower.
• Zhang Ping worries about the limits of the Coiling Dragon Venerable’s defense. If insults or hostility toward him could trigger it, the weapon might cause widespread casualties.
• Zhang Ping uses his combined Psychokinesis to survey Mingzhu City, observing people’s reactions and noting several suspicious individuals. He then searches a distant lava pool and retrieves three Storage Contracts.
• From the contracts, he releases Broom Dragon, Liu Dashan, and Chen Mei, who have been trapped and deprived of food. Broom Dragon is starving, while Liu Dashan and Chen Mei are extremely weak. Zhang Ping feels guilty and relieved to find them alive.
• The survivors are given food and allowed to rest. Zhang Shouzhong orders the kitchen to prepare porridge and suitable meat for Broom Dragon.
• Zhang Ping explains his recent experiences to Zhang Shouzhong, Su Jingyao, Zhao Yanlong, and the others. They learn that he spent what felt like over a thousand years inside the Great Sun Boundary-Sealing Divine Needle, even though only about a week passed outside.
• After answering their questions, Zhang Ping privately reflects on his survival, responsibilities, and promises. He resolves to establish a rescue team and help those trapped in dangerous circumstances.
• He begins training immediately, deciding to start with one hundred thousand sit-ups to become stronger.
• At Sunfire Base, Zhu Taihao learns that his son, Zhu Chongba, was killed by Zhang Ping. The shock and rage overwhelm him. He orders anyone who kills Zhang Ping to inherit the patriarchal position, then becomes so enraged that his head explodes and he dies.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping demonstrates greater control over his abilities, using Psychokinesis for surveillance, retrieval, and physical support. Despite his immense and bizarre experiences, he remains compassionate and responsible, especially toward Liu Dashan, Chen Mei, and Broom Dragon.
• Zhang Ping’s time in isolation has strengthened his resolve rather than broken him. He recognizes that power is necessary to fulfill his promise of rescuing others and begins disciplined training.
• Liu Dashan and Chen Mei are revealed to have endured severe deprivation but survive thanks to Zhang Ping’s rescue.
• Broom Dragon remains comic and direct, immediately complaining about hunger after being freed.
• Zhang Shouzhong continues to act as a reliable leader, organizing care for the rescued individuals and accepting Zhang Ping’s extraordinary account with practical understanding.
• Zhu Taihao is shown to be emotionally dependent on and protective of Zhu Chongba. His grief and fury over his son’s death become fatal, making him die from his own rage.

Significant Themes

• Responsibility after survival: Zhang Ping does not indulge in freedom after escaping; he sees survival as a reason to help others.
• The importance of strength: He understands that becoming stronger is essential to protecting people and expanding the rescue team’s reach.
• The psychological effects of isolation and endurance: Zhang Ping’s thousand-year experience could have driven him insane, but exploration, purpose, and his unusual spiritual state helped him endure.
• Power and danger: The Coiling Dragon Venerable’s automatic retaliation emphasizes the destructive consequences of uncontrolled power and the uncertainty surrounding Zhang Ping’s abilities.
• Revenge and emotional excess: Zhu Taihao’s death illustrates how hatred and grief can consume a person, turning his desire for revenge into absurd self-destruction.

Important Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping discusses the Coiling Dragon Venerable’s retaliation with Zhang Shouzhong and the others, who patiently listen to his explanation.
• Zhang Ping apologizes to Broom Dragon, Liu Dashan, and Chen Mei for their suffering and personally helps the weakened pair after releasing them.
• Zhang Shouzhong arranges food and shelter for the rescued group, reinforcing his supportive relationship with Zhang Ping.
• The group questions Zhang Ping about his journey, the stars, and the Extraterrestrial Stone Tablet, showing their curiosity and growing recognition of the scale of his experiences.
• At Sunfire Base, a frightened subordinate informs Zhu Taihao of Zhu Chongba’s death. Zhu Taihao responds with a final order of revenge before dying from his uncontrollable rage.

Chapter Summary: “Rescue Team Established”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping and his companions prepare to return to the Mysterious Sewer, having decided to establish the Rescue Team and eventually recruit members.
• Su Jingyao arranges for Manny to protect Mingzhu City during their absence, believing Zhang Ping’s show of strength has deterred potential troublemakers.
• Zhang Ping demonstrates that his growing Mental Strength allows him to modify how his Sewer ability functions. He creates a large manhole entrance that lets everyone enter directly and travel instantly between locations.
• He further reshapes the Sewer into a vast, inhabitable underground headquarters by combining features inspired by large underground sewer systems from different parts of the world.
• The group discusses decorating the new headquarters, suggesting ideas such as gardens and fish ponds.
• Zhang Ping brings Liu Sishan, Little Sairon, Ye Changchun, and others into the Sewer. He formally announces the creation of the Rescue Team, whose mission is to save humans across the myriad worlds and aid those facing despair or helplessness.
• Everyone present voluntarily agrees to join. Su Jingyao then begins explaining the organization’s structure, which will draw from the Cleanup Team, Investigation Team, and Patrol Team while correcting their weaknesses.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping shows major growth in both power and leadership. His Mental Strength has become strong enough to alter the Sewer’s structure and make it a practical headquarters. He also moves from acting independently to formally founding and leading an organization.
• Su Jingyao continues to serve as a calm, strategic adviser. She manages the organizational planning and proposes a balanced structure based on existing teams.
• Zhang Shouzhong remains supportive but lighthearted, teasing Zhang Ping about his running and suggesting the more grandiose name “Alliance of Ten Thousand Worlds.” He also contributes practical ideas, such as using nanobots to create furnishings.
• Su Jingyao, Zhang Shouzhong, and the others demonstrate trust in Zhang Ping by immediately accepting the Rescue Team’s ideals and joining without hesitation.
• Ye Changchun, Su Qingbo, Cheng Xuejie, and the other newcomers strengthen the team’s initial membership and show enthusiasm for its purpose.

Significant Themes

• Leadership and responsibility: Zhang Ping accepts the burden of organizing a force dedicated to helping others across countless worlds.
• Compassion and altruism: The Rescue Team is founded around aiding people in danger, despair, or helplessness rather than pursuing power for its own sake.
• Trust and voluntary cooperation: Membership is explicitly optional, and everyone joins freely, emphasizing mutual faith rather than coercion.
• Growth and adaptability: Zhang Ping’s ability evolves alongside his Mental Strength, while the Sewer transforms according to his imagination and needs.
• Building a community: The group’s attention to decoration, living space, and future recruitment shows that the Rescue Team is intended to become a lasting home and institution, not merely a temporary alliance.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Shouzhong jokes with Zhang Ping about his daily running, while Zhang Ping explains that he continues it as a form of spiritual cultivation.
• Su Jingyao updates the group on her arrangements for Mingzhu City and later explains the proposed organizational framework.
• Zhang Ping surprises Zhang Shouzhong and Zhao Yanhu by using his ability to create direct entrances and instantly reach the destination.
• The group reacts with amazement as Zhang Ping expands the Sewer, then enthusiastically discusses how to decorate it.
• During the founding meeting, Zhang Ping invites everyone to choose freely whether to join. Every attendee raises their hand, with Cheng Xuejie teasingly commenting that the organization’s name perfectly reflects Zhang Ping’s personality.

Chapter Summary: “All Things Start from Scratch”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping formally establishes the Rescue Team and assigns its initial leadership structure.
• He becomes commander-in-chief, responsible for handling powerful enemies and supervising the organization, including appointing or dismissing squad leaders.
• Su Jingyao becomes assistant commander-in-chief, choosing to remain close to Zhang Ping because she recognizes the danger of his missions and wants to support him personally.
• Zhang Shouzhong is appointed commander of the Parallel World Supervision Team, which will oversee Mingzhu City operations in worlds brought under the Rescue Team’s control.
• Liu Sishan leads the Intelligence Team, Cheng Xuejie leads the Training Team, and Ye Changchun and Su Qingbo handle base security.
• Zhao Yanhu and Zhao Yanlong become Zhang Ping’s personal guards. Zhang originally considered assigning them to intelligence work, but decides their abilities are more valuable at his side because of his newly acquired powers.
• The organization begins recruiting members and expanding its base. Zhang Ping opens passages to World Zero and World Three, though he cannot control exactly where the portals appear.
• Members transport soil into the Sewer to create areas for plants, relaxation, and Ye Changchun, who needs open ground to plant himself.
• Recruitment proves difficult because prospective members must consume a Contract Gem, and many Awakened individuals may secretly belong to the Beast-Taming Zhu Family.
• The team considers recruiting alternate versions of themselves from other worlds, but rejects the idea because such duplicates would eventually resist serving under their counterparts.
• Liu Sishan returns from Mingzhu City with records of publicly known Awakened individuals, allowing the team to identify potential recruits.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Zhang Ping demonstrates growing leadership and strategic judgment. He balances organizational needs with personal security by keeping the Zhao brothers as guards.
• Su Jingyao reveals deep concern for Zhang Ping after hearing about his dangerous past. Her decision to serve as his assistant reflects both loyalty and anxiety over losing him.
• Zhang Shouzhong accepts a powerful but initially symbolic administrative role and becomes involved in recruitment and construction. His complaints about carrying soil add humor to the team’s otherwise serious preparations.
• Liu Sishan fully commits to Zhang Ping’s Rescue Team over the Cleanup Team. Although she has abandoned her former obsession with hatred, she still intends to gain enough strength to confront Li Aoxue.
• Zhao Yanhu and Zhao Yanlong eagerly accept their roles as guards, especially Zhao Yanhu, who views the assignment as his ideal position.
• Cheng Xuejie acts as a practical and teasing presence, challenging Zhang Shouzhong’s complaints and joking about unusual Awakened abilities.
• The team members cooperate in building the base despite their high-ranking positions, emphasizing that the organization is still in its earliest, most labor-intensive stage.

Significant Themes

• Building from nothing: The chapter focuses on the Rescue Team’s transition from an idea into a functioning organization. Leadership, recruitment, infrastructure, and supervision all have to be created from scratch.
• Trust and loyalty: The Contract Gem is necessary because hidden enemies make ordinary recruitment unreliable. Trust is especially complicated when dealing with alternate versions of oneself.
• Responsibility and sacrifice: Su Jingyao’s concern for Zhang Ping highlights the personal cost of his dangerous missions and the responsibilities carried by those close to him.
• Power versus organization: Individual strength is not enough to manage multiple worlds; systems, personnel, intelligence, and infrastructure are equally necessary.
• Identity and self-competition: The discussion of recruiting alternate selves suggests that people naturally resist being subordinate to versions of themselves, even when they share identical personalities and abilities.
• Humor amid tension: The strange abilities listed in the recruitment records—such as communicating with shells or hardening one’s “chrysanthemum”—provide comic relief and show the bizarre diversity of Awakened powers.

Overall Significance

This chapter marks the official beginning of the Rescue Team as an institution. Zhang Ping establishes a leadership hierarchy, gathers loyal allies, prepares a headquarters, and begins searching for new recruits. Although the team has authority and powerful members, it remains understaffed and dependent on careful trust-building.

Chapter Summary: “Linker”

Key Plot Points and Events

• In World Zero’s wilderness, Zhang Ping travels with the Moonchasing Dark Tortoise, a giant snake, and the Giant Dragon. Their overwhelming presence causes nearby animals and Mutated Beasts to flee.
• Zhang Ping explains that he is exploring to increase his own strength, strengthen the rescue organization’s foundation, and discover ways to improve the other rescue team members. He leaves recruitment efforts to Zhang Shouzhong and the others.
• When Little Sairon becomes hungry, Zhang Ping orders Zhao Yanhu to attract nearby animals. He also releases Zhou Qingbai and has him summon Forest Outlaws to guard the area.
• Zhao Yanhu subdues several creatures, including a cobra. Zhang Ping uses a Contract Gem to turn the cobra into a summoned beast and appraises it, discovering its weak abilities.
• Zhang Ping tests his newly acquired Linker ability. It extracts the cobra’s Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes ability and stores it inside a Contract Gem. The cobra is drained of strength and later made into soup.
• The extracted ability remains in the Contract Gem even after the cobra dies. Zhang Ping learns that the ability can be transferred to another eater, but its effectiveness depends on compatibility.
• Poor compatibility can cause Superpower Runaway, potentially resulting in severe injury, disability, or death. Zhang Ping uses his Analysis ability to determine compatibility and finds that the cobra’s ability is unsuitable for everyone present.
• After eating the cobra soup, Zhang Ping continues harvesting abilities from other Mutated Beasts, though most possess mediocre or useless powers.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping becomes more strategic and experimental with his powers. Rather than simply giving people Contract Gems, he begins considering how specific abilities might be matched to suitable users.
• He demonstrates caution and responsibility by refusing to transfer the cobra’s ability when he discovers the high risk of Superpower Runaway.
• Zhao Yanhu continues acting as Zhang Ping’s capable guard and assistant, controlling nearby creatures and preparing the cobra for food.
• Zhou Qingbai fulfills a support and defensive role by summoning the Forest Outlaws to protect the group.
• Little Sairon remains dependent on Zhang Ping and provides a lighthearted interruption through his constant hunger.
• Zhang Ping also shows growing independence from the rescue team, recognizing that its members must develop their own strengths rather than rely entirely on his direct control.

Significant Themes

• Power development and experimentation: Zhang Ping searches for new ways to strengthen himself and his allies through the Linker.
• The danger of uncontrolled power: The possibility of Superpower Runaway emphasizes that gaining abilities is not without consequences.
• Compatibility and specialization: Strength is not enough; an ability must suit its user to be effective and safe.
• Leadership and delegation: Zhang Ping begins allowing the rescue team to function independently while maintaining overall direction.
• Resourcefulness and survival: Even weak Mutated Beasts are harvested for potential abilities, while their bodies are used as food.
• The gap between ordinary and elite creatures: Zhang Ping’s contempt for the cobra’s poor attributes highlights how unusually powerful his usual opponents and companions are.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping comforts and indulges Little Sairon when he asks for food.
• He gives Zhao Yanhu direct orders to gather animals, subdue them, and prepare the cobra.
• He instructs Zhou Qingbai to summon the Forest Outlaws and establish a watch around the group.
• Zhang Ping evaluates the possibility of giving the extracted ability to those around him but ultimately decides that none are compatible enough to risk it.
• His interactions with his companions show a clear hierarchy: Zhang Ping directs operations, while Zhao Yanhu and Zhou Qingbai handle practical security and support tasks.

Chapter Summary: “Zhu Wuneng’s Death”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping finishes seizing eight abilities from Mutated Beasts: Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes, Venomous Fangs, Super Infrared Vision, Touch of Ten Thousand Flavors, Serpent-Swallowing Belly, Electricity-Generating Fur, Reproductive Gigantism, and Stench Feigned Death.
• Serpent-Swallowing Belly has the highest potential, reaching seven stars, but the abilities show poor compatibility with the rescue team. Zhang Ping suspects abilities taken from Mutated Beasts may be harder for humans to use.
• He continues traveling with the Moonchasing Dark Tortoise, accompanied by Big One and the Broom Dragon, who are primarily protecting Little Sairon.
• At a mutated wetland, Zhao Yanhu attempts to tame a massive white wild boar using his blood-based ability. The attempt fails because the boar resists his control and consumes too little blood. Zhang Ping regrets losing the chance to acquire its potentially valuable ability.
• After crossing the wetland, the group enters a dry, scorching region. The Coiling Dragon Venerable suddenly fires a beam into the sky, shooting down a winged Mutated Beast and its rider.
• The rider is identified as Li Yan, apparently a member of the Wu Team. Zhang Ping’s Appraisal Technique fails because Li Yan possesses equipment capable of concealing his information, suggesting he has an important secret.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping demonstrates increasing strategic maturity. He treats abilities as long-term resources for the rescue team and values loyalty and intelligence over raw strength when considering future recruits.
• His attitude toward enemies hardens: he is willing to seize human abilities and kill those connected to threats such as the Beast-Taming Zhu Family and Zuo Xiangming.
• Zhang Ping shows a protective, affectionate side toward Little Sairon, carefully shielding her from danger after the earlier Mourning Crone Bird incident.
• Zhao Yanhu admits the limitations of his blood-based taming ability. It works best on snakes and is unreliable against other Mutated Beasts.
• The Coiling Dragon Venerable is revealed to be extremely dangerous despite usually remaining unobtrusive and nearly invisible in its passive state.

Significant Themes

• Power as a resource: Zhang Ping views abilities as assets to be stored, improved, and assigned to suitable people in the future.
• Nature versus compatibility: Powerful abilities are not automatically useful if their users cannot properly adapt to them.
• Intelligence and loyalty over strength: Zhang Ping believes poor judgment is more dangerous than weak abilities, since strength can be enhanced but stupidity is difficult to remedy.
• Protection and responsibility: His careful treatment of Little Sairon contrasts with his ruthless stance toward enemies.
• Hidden identities and secrets: Li Yan’s concealed information introduces suspicion and foreshadows a larger mystery involving the Wu Team.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping and Little Sairon share a warm, playful moment during the journey. She clings to him, explores the surroundings, and chats while he listens patiently.
• Zhang Ping directs Zhao Yanhu’s attempt to tame the giant wild boar and reacts with disappointment when it escapes.
• Zhang Ping, Zhao Yanlong, and Zhao Yanhu immediately take cover when the Coiling Dragon Venerable attacks, emphasizing the danger of its overwhelming power.
• After finding Li Yan’s body, Zhang Ping investigates him but is unable to use Appraisal, increasing the mystery surrounding the dead rider and the circumstances of his death.

Chapter Summary: “Too Many Abilities”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping retrieves and appraises the corpse of Zhu Wuneng, confirming that he belonged to the Beast-Taming Zhu Family and was a Level 36, top-tier Awakened with powerful sand-based abilities.
• Zhu Wuneng’s equipment includes:
  • A necklace that amplifies Mental Strength.
  • A ring that blocks reconnaissance abilities.
  • A storage ring containing tens of thousands of tons of sand.
  • An earring that resists appraisal abilities.
• Zhang Ping regards Zhu Wuneng’s equipment as another debt owed by the Beast-Taming Zhu Family, especially after witnessing the cruelty involved in creating some of the items.
• Zhao Yanlong suggests that Zhang Ping use Reset Eye and Metal Eater to consume the anti-appraisal earring and potentially gain its ability.
• Zhang Ping realizes that his subconscious disgust toward the suffering embedded in such equipment had prevented him from considering this method.
• After resetting and consuming the earring repeatedly, Zhang Ping fails to gain the anti-appraisal ability directly. Instead, Metallic Coating acquires the ability to block Appraisal Technique.
• Zhang devises a new identity strategy: he will publicly act as Su Jingyao’s assistant, while using Metallic Coating to disguise himself as the “chief commander” whenever he needs to act.
• After nine failed attempts to gain the ability personally, Zhang concludes that his excessive number of abilities causes conflicts and reduces the chance of successfully acquiring new ones.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping demonstrates greater strategic flexibility. Rather than viewing the failed attempt as entirely useless, he quickly turns Metallic Coating’s new property into an effective disguise and anti-reconnaissance tactic.
• He also confronts a personal psychological barrier: his reluctance to consume equipment tied to cruelty and suffering. Although uncomfortable, he accepts that he may need to overcome this resistance.
• Zhang becomes more self-aware, recognizing that his vast collection of abilities is not always an advantage and can interfere with one another.
• Zhao Yanlong shows initiative by offering a practical suggestion, then becomes overly apologetic when the attempt fails. Zhang reassures him that the failure was caused by the interaction between Zhang’s abilities, not by Zhao’s advice.

Significant Themes

• The burden of power: Zhang Ping’s many abilities provide immense strength but also create limitations, conflicts, and unpredictable outcomes.
• Adaptability and resourcefulness: Even when his original goal fails, Zhang finds a secondary use for the result and develops a new tactical identity.
• Moral discomfort and necessity: Zhang must decide whether to use objects created through cruelty, revealing the tension between his principles and survival needs.
• Identity and concealment: The anti-appraisal equipment and Metallic Coating support Zhang’s growing need to hide his true age, abilities, and identity from powerful enemies.
• Responsibility and blame: The exchange between Zhang and Zhao Yanlong emphasizes that failed plans do not always have an individual culprit; sometimes failure results from unavoidable circumstances.

Character Interactions

• Zhang and Zhao Yanlong share a respectful relationship. Zhao provides the key idea about consuming the earring, while Zhang accepts the advice without blaming him when it fails.
• Zhao Yanlong’s reassurance helps Zhang avoid self-condemnation, while Zhang’s response demonstrates his willingness to acknowledge his own mistakes.
• Zhang’s relationship with the Beast-Taming Zhu Family becomes more adversarial as he adds Zhu Wuneng’s death and equipment to the family’s growing “debt.”

Chapter Summary: “Doggie”

Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping considers removing and then reclaiming the Metal Eater ability so he can gain its power from an earring, but rejects the idea because removing abilities may reduce their compatibility. Although most abilities retain full compatibility with their original owners, some do not, making the gamble too risky.
• Zhang Ping’s group camps beside a small lake after traveling on the Moonchasing Dark Tortoise. The aquatic Mutated Beasts flee in terror when the tortoise enters the water.
• To attract more Mutated Beasts, Zhao Yanhu cuts his wrist and uses Zhang Ping’s king-blood form to rapidly replenish his blood. The scent draws many creatures to the camp.
• A talking Chinese rural dog arrives and drinks Zhao Yanhu’s blood, only to panic after mistakenly believing it has been poisoned. Zhang Ping captures it with Psychokinesis.
• Zhang Ping discovers that the dog possesses Beast’s Friend, an ability allowing it to communicate with Mutated Beasts. The ability resembles a weaker version of Zhang Ping’s Communion with All Things.
• The dog, later treated as “Doggie,” reveals that humans raised it before abandoning it in the wilderness after it mutated. Unlike most adult Mutated Beasts, it is gentle, dislikes violence, and prefers cooked food.
• Zhang Ping notices that Doggie has been neutered and jokingly suggests this may explain its lack of aggression. Doggie indignantly denies that neutering is the reason for its kindness.
• Zhang Ping offers Doggie a choice: become food or consume a Contract Gem and receive protection, food, and lodging. Doggie chooses survival and becomes Zhang Ping’s subordinate.
• Zhao Yanhu successfully attracts and controls fifteen Mutated Beasts. Zhang Ping removes their abilities, noting that an Air-Cutting Swallow with the Air Slash ability has especially good potential.
• Zhang Ping chooses a foolish roe deer as dinner and stores the remaining Mutated Beasts as future food supplies.
• Around the campfire, Doggie and Little Sairon begin interacting. Doggie tries to curry favor with Sairon, while Sairon responds with an ominous grin. The system records Doggie’s status decreasing and Theron’s follower count increasing, implying Doggie has begun aligning with or following Theron.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping: Demonstrates caution regarding ability compatibility and shows his usual blend of pragmatism, humor, and control. He recognizes Doggie’s unusual nature and chooses to recruit rather than kill it.
• Zhao Yanhu: Continues serving as bait and controller for Mutated Beasts, willingly enduring blood loss with Zhang Ping’s assistance.
• Doggie: Introduced as a timid, talkative, nonviolent Mutated Beast with strong survival instincts. Though initially terrified of Zhang Ping, it quickly accepts the Contract Gem and becomes part of the group.
• Little Sairon/Theron: Begins forming a relationship with Doggie, apparently gaining it as a follower. His “evil grin” suggests he may intend to tease, manipulate, or otherwise trouble the newly recruited dog.
• Moonchasing Dark Tortoise and the white snake: Reinforce the group’s overwhelming dominance over nearby Mutated Beasts.

Significant Themes

• Risk versus reward: Zhang Ping refuses to gamble with Metal Eater because a failed attempt could permanently damage ability compatibility.
• Power and dependency: Doggie accepts Zhang Ping’s contract because the alternative is death, highlighting how weaker beings survive by submitting to stronger ones.
• Nature versus nurture: Doggie’s gentle personality contrasts with the usual violent behavior of adult Mutated Beasts. Its upbringing by humans—and possibly its neutering—raises questions about whether aggression is innate or shaped by circumstances.
• Morality and exploitation: Zhang Ping treats Mutated Beasts as sources of abilities and food, yet he also protects and provides for those that submit to him. His kindness is genuine but remains tied to power and utility.
• Companionship and hierarchy: The campfire scene begins integrating Doggie into the group while establishing shifting loyalties, particularly Doggie’s apparent connection to Theron.

Character Interactions

• Zhao Yanhu acts as bait under Zhang Ping’s direction, while Zhang Ping enhances his blood production.
• Doggie loudly warns other Mutated Beasts that Zhao Yanhu’s blood is poisoned, creating a comic misunderstanding.
• Zhang Ping interrogates Doggie about its history, temperament, and sex, leading to the humorous neutering discussion.
• Zhang Ping uses the threat of death and the promise of protection to secure Doggie’s loyalty.
• Doggie and Little Sairon gradually acknowledge one another, with Doggie acting submissively and Sairon appearing amused and potentially threatening.

Chapter Summary: A Family of Filial Sons and Loving Fathers

Key Plot Points and Events

• Little Sairon notices that Zhang Ping favors him over Big Yellow. After eating, he rides Big Yellow around the lake until the dog is exhausted.
• Zhang Ping gives the yellow beast the name Big Yellow, which it happily accepts.
• The Coiling Dragon Venerable detects a flying enemy—a golden eagle carrying a man—and attacks. Although the first blast only brings down the eagle, the Venerable uses its Black Curtain ability to launch a second attack that kills or fatally injures the rider.
• Zhang Ping and Zhao Yanhu investigate the crater and discover that the survivor is Zhu Zeming, a member of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family. Zhang Ping restrains the Coiling Dragon Venerable from killing him immediately so he can extract information using his blood-based mental-reading ability.
• Zhang Ping learns that Zhu Chengmian killed Zhu Taihao and seized control of the Zhu Family. Zhu Chengmian had become suspicious and resentful because Zhu Taihao continued insisting that Zhang Ping was alive and apparently had no intention of passing the family leadership to him.
• Zhu Chengmian’s takeover has led to a purge of family members who remain loyal to Zhu Taihao. Zhu Zeming was traveling from Mingzhu City because of this upheaval.
• Zhang Ping and the others find the situation so absurd that they laugh at the Zhu Family’s internal treachery. However, Zhang Ping is disappointed that Zhu Zeming’s knowledge of how to enter Sunfire Base is useless to him.
• The group returns to the Rescue Team headquarters through the sewers. They find Zhang Shouzhong, Liu Sishan, Cheng Xuejie, and the others improving the hidden base by filling it with soil and planting vegetation.
• Zhang Ping proposes disguising himself as an ordinary member of the Rescue Team while using Metallic Coating to appear as the organization’s older commander-in-chief when necessary. He plans to remain mostly behind the scenes and act as Su Jingyao’s assistant.
• Zhang Ping then reveals that he has obtained more than ten Contract Gems, each containing a stolen ability. However, he warns that abilities require compatibility and may cause an uncontrollable ability rampage if implanted in an unsuitable person.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Zhang Ping grows more confident in controlling the Coiling Dragon Venerable, discovering that it will obey him when he orders it to stop attacking. His ability to read memories also exposes his increasing power.
• Big Yellow becomes officially recognized as part of Zhang Ping’s group. His eagerness for Zhang Ping’s affection contrasts with Zhang Ping’s obvious preference for Little Sairon.
• Little Sairon displays cleverness and possessiveness by using Big Yellow for exercise, effectively reinforcing his favored position beside Zhang Ping.
• Zhu Chengmian and Zhu Taihao demonstrate the Zhu Family’s destructive internal politics: the son kills the father after believing that the father will deny him power.
• Zhang Shouzhong and Cheng Xuejie support Zhang Ping’s disguise plan, agreeing that his youthful appearance makes it difficult for others to take him seriously.
• Su Jingyao objects that Zhang Ping’s soul is actually over a thousand years old, but Zhang Shouzhong insists that appearances matter. Zhang Ping resolves the dispute by explaining that he prefers to function as Jingyao’s assistant except when the commander-in-chief persona is needed.
• Zhang Ping’s offer of Contract Gems shocks the group, since stealing abilities is an extremely rare and dangerous Infinite Tier power. He emphasizes his responsibility by refusing to let anyone use an ability unless their compatibility is sufficiently high.

Significant Themes

• Family betrayal and political absurdity: The Zhu Family’s succession conflict becomes an example of self-destruction, with Zhu Chengmian killing Zhu Taihao and then purging rivals.
• Appearance versus reality: Zhang Ping’s young appearance hides his immense age, power, and experience, leading him to deliberately create a false older identity.
• Control over dangerous power: Zhang Ping’s command over the Coiling Dragon Venerable and his ability to distribute stolen abilities highlight the need for restraint and responsibility.
• Loyalty and affection: Little Sairon’s jealousy, Big Yellow’s desire for approval, and the Rescue Team’s cooperation show the emotional bonds within Zhang Ping’s circle.
• Hidden strength and strategic identity: Rather than openly displaying his abilities, Zhang Ping plans to use disguises and layered identities to protect himself and operate more effectively.

Chapter Summary: “Contract Conditions”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Shouzhong asks Zhang Ping to show him the available abilities, which include Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes, Venomous Fangs, Super Infrared Vision, Air Slash, and several other unusual powers.
• Although Zhang Shouzhong initially considers them “second-rate,” he and the others agree that any additional ability could become valuable through training and development.
• Zhang Ping checks everyone’s compatibility with the abilities. None of them has compatibility above ten percent, with most registering around five percent. Directly consuming the ability gems would therefore carry a high risk of superpower loss of control.
• The group wonders whether high compatibility is limited to an ability’s original owner and asks whether Zhang Ping’s ability to communicate with all things can solve the problem.
• Zhang negotiates with the Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes ability. The ability is frightened because Zhang killed and ate its former master, but Zhang argues that the former master’s weakness led to its death and that choosing a stronger new master is preferable.
• The ability demands that its new user consume ten Burrowing Bamboo Rats per day. Zhang bargains the requirement down to one rat daily and then creates a formal contract guaranteeing that the ability will not lose control as long as the condition is fulfilled.
• The contract reveals that Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes creates a tattoo on the consumer’s back; anyone who stares at it experiences hallucinations.
• The group recognizes that contracts provide a solution to low compatibility, but they also realize that difficult or numerous conditions could make possessing many abilities impractical.
• Zhang negotiates with the remaining ability gems, using persuasion and mild coercion to reduce their demands. He succeeds in forming contracts with all of them, although some conditions remain difficult.
• Air Slash, for example, requires its user to fly at high speed for fifteen minutes every day. This is easy for Zhang Ping but impossible for Awakened who cannot fly.
• The group also hears Zhang Ping’s humorous news that Zhu Chengmian killed Zhu Taihao and seized leadership of the Beast-Taming Zhu Family. They laugh at the absurd contrast between events in the two parallel worlds.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping demonstrates increasing confidence and practicality. He uses Communion with All Things, negotiation, bargaining, and intimidation to make dangerous abilities usable despite poor compatibility.
• Zhang Shouzhong remains eager to acquire powers, even when they sound unimpressive, reflecting the Awakened’s belief that every ability can potentially become powerful.
• The group becomes more cautious about collecting abilities. They understand that contracts prevent immediate loss of control but may impose burdensome daily obligations.
• The Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes ability is portrayed as fearful but pragmatic. It abandons its demand for ten rats and accepts one in exchange for escaping permanent confinement.
• Zhang Ping’s companions increasingly recognize him as the person capable of solving the compatibility problem through communication and contract-making.

Significant Themes

• Power and compatibility: Possessing an ability is not enough; poor compatibility can make it dangerous or unusable.
• Negotiation and compromise: Zhang Ping turns potentially hostile abilities into cooperative tools by bargaining over their conditions.
• Risk versus reward: Additional abilities offer great advantages, but every power carries responsibilities and the danger of overload or loss of control.
• Adaptability and long-term growth: Even seemingly weak abilities may become valuable if developed properly.
• Freedom and coercion: The abilities are technically sentient and capable of negotiation, but Zhang’s control over the gems gives him considerable leverage.
• Parallel worlds and absurdity: The contrasting fates of Zhu Chengmian and Zhu Taihao highlight the unpredictability and humor of events across different worlds.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Shouzhong and Zhang Ping argue playfully over the value of the available abilities.
• Cheng Xuejie and Liu Sishan question the unusually low compatibility rates and encourage Zhang Ping to investigate a solution.
• Zhang Ping directly negotiates with Phantom Moon Ghost Eyes, confronting its accusation that he ate its former master and persuading it to accept a new contract.
• The group discusses the practical difficulty of fulfilling contract conditions, especially the need to locate Burrowing Bamboo Rats.
• Zhang Ping later shares the news about Zhu Chengmian’s rise to power, prompting the others to laugh and compare the contradictory events in the two worlds.

Chapter Summary: “Immortal Leopard Guidance”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Half a month later, Zhang Ping is living by the sea in World Zero, spending his time fishing from a cliff rather than managing the rescue team’s headquarters.
• Zhang Shouzhong visits through a sewer manhole and reports that the rescue headquarters is nearly complete. Zhang Ping refuses to leave until he catches a genuinely large fish, though Shouzhong reminds him that he can use his usual “old method” if necessary.
• The chapter reveals Zhang Ping’s newly acquired ability, Immortal Leopard Guidance, obtained from a cheetah. By marking an object, the ability causes it to point toward a designated destination and, when combined with spatial abilities, arrive at the corresponding location.
• Zhang Ping has used this ability to solve the rescue team’s transportation problem. He seals the Mysterious Sewer ability inside Weapon Contract Gems and assigns each gem a specific coordinate. Team members can now travel through sewer entrances independently without Zhang Ping personally opening every passage.
• His only remaining duties are recording new coordinates and fulfilling the ability’s weekly contract: catching and eating a fish weighing at least ten jin.
• Su Jingyao arrives with lunch and sits beside him. The two share a quiet, comfortable moment overlooking the sea.
• Zhang Ping finally catches a massive blue swordfish—estimated at roughly half a ton—using an advanced fishing rod, Biological Metal line, and an exceptionally strong hook.
• The swordfish attempts to attack him with blue vapor after being dragged ashore, but Zhang Ping easily blocks the attack with Psychokinesis and kills it.
• Catching the fish strengthens Immortal Leopard Guidance. Zhang Ping realizes that he may now be able to travel directly to any place he has previously visited.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping becomes more capable and strategically important. His new spatial guidance ability allows him to decentralize the rescue team’s operations and greatly improve its mobility.
• He also develops a sharper sense of spatial fluctuations as the ability grows stronger, demonstrating how abilities can enhance their user in return.
• Zhang Ping shows personal integrity by refusing to rely on Psychokinesis to fake his fishing results, even though doing so would technically satisfy the contract.
• Su Jingyao appears increasingly comfortable around Zhang Ping. Her quiet companionship and shared appreciation of the scenery suggest a growing emotional closeness, though neither openly discusses their relationship.
• Zhang Shouzhong functions as a practical representative of the rescue team, checking on Zhang Ping while keeping the organization’s progress moving.

Significant Themes

• Abilities as systems of growth: The conditions imposed by abilities are not arbitrary; they guide users toward the actions that will strengthen those abilities most effectively.
• Personal development through discipline: Zhang Ping’s repeated fishing gradually improves both Immortal Leopard Guidance and his own spatial awareness.
• Responsibility versus personal preference: Although Zhang Ping would rather fish than manage headquarters, he continues contributing by solving the team’s transportation and coordination problems.
• Trust and self-reliance: The Weapon Contract Gems allow the rescue team to function independently, reducing its reliance on Zhang Ping.
• Quiet companionship: The peaceful scene between Zhang Ping and Su Jingyao contrasts with the chapter’s larger-scale abilities and monsters, emphasizing their developing connection.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping and Zhang Shouzhong discuss the rescue headquarters and the fishing contract, with Shouzhong teasing Zhang Ping about failing to catch anything.
• Su Jingyao brings Zhang Ping lunch and sits beside him in silence, creating a calm and intimate atmosphere.
• When the swordfish attacks, Zhang Ping protects himself effortlessly, highlighting the gap between his strength and that of ordinary powerful creatures.

Chapter Summary: Women Only Slowed Down My Sword Draw

Key Plot Points and Events

• After eating a large fish, Zhang Ping’s Immortal Leopard Guidance strengthens again, though he discovers that fishing—not eating fish—is what truly enhances the ability.
• Having completed his weekly fishing contract, Zhang Ping returns to the Mysterious Sewer with Su Jingyao.
• He is impressed by the partially completed Rescue Team headquarters, which now includes:
  • Grass, flowers, vines, and a small lake
  • A living wooden office building modeled after Gui Tower
  • Improved lighting and fresh air
  • Offices, a lounge, gym, entertainment room, and future dormitories
• Su Jingyao explains the Rescue Team’s planned contribution-based housing and benefits system. Zhang Ping supports providing members with good material conditions rather than relying only on ideals.
• Zhang Ping visits Ye Changchun, who is using his ability to grow and shape trees into dormitories and other buildings. Zhang Shouzhong is helping direct the construction.
• Zhang Ping boasts about catching a half-ton swordfish without cheating. Zhang Shouzhong jokingly suspects that Su Jingyao helped him, leading to playful bickering.
• The group discusses the Rescue Team’s recruitment progress. Liu Sishan has recruited a young man named Zhong Zhicheng, while Zhang Shouzhong has not yet found a suitable recruit.
• Curious—and secretly jealous—Zhang Ping goes to find Liu Sishan and meet the new recruit.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping continues to grow more powerful through unusual interactions with his abilities. He also shows pride in his fishing achievement and enthusiasm for the Rescue Team’s development.
• He reveals increasing emotional confusion regarding Su Jingyao, Liu Sishan, and Cheng Xuejie. Although he has jokingly imagined marrying or pursuing all three, he recognizes that he is fickle and cannot easily choose between them.
• Su Jingyao acts as Zhang Ping’s guide through headquarters and demonstrates her reliability and close partnership with him.
• Ye Changchun contributes significantly to the Rescue Team by using his plant-controlling abilities to construct its buildings.
• Zhang Shouzhong takes on a practical administrative and supervisory role, helping manage construction and recruitment.
• Liu Sishan demonstrates initiative by recruiting Zhong Zhicheng, becoming the first assistant besides Zhang Ping and the others to successfully bring in a new member.

Significant Themes

• Power and irrationality: Zhang Ping’s ability grows through fishing for reasons that even the ability itself may not understand, emphasizing the unpredictable nature of superpowers.
• Building a sustainable organization: The Rescue Team is not founded solely on heroic ideals. Salaries, housing, benefits, and contribution-based rewards are presented as necessary to retain members and motivate them.
• Community and reconstruction: The lush headquarters symbolizes the transformation of the sewer from a bleak, oppressive environment into a livable and hopeful base.
• Romantic indecision versus discipline: Zhang Ping’s attraction to several women conflicts with the world’s emphasis on monogamy among Awakened individuals. The chapter uses this tension humorously while also establishing that emotional imbalance can contribute to mental corruption and entering a Lost State.
• Humor and self-awareness: Zhang Ping recognizes his own fickleness and jokingly concludes that romantic relationships would only interfere with his sword-drawing practice.

Character Interactions

• Zhang Ping and Su Jingyao: She gives him a tour of headquarters, while he relaxes in the lounge and declares that he will sleep there. Their comfortable familiarity is evident.
• Zhang Ping and Zhang Shouzhong: They exchange teasing remarks about Zhang Ping’s fishing and whether he secretly cheated with Su Jingyao’s help.
• Zhang Ping and Ye Changchun: Zhang Ping observes and praises Ye Changchun’s work, while Ye continues shaping the living tree structures.
• Zhang Ping and Liu Sishan: Though they do not meet directly in the chapter, Zhang Ping’s jealousy and curiosity motivate him to seek her out after learning about her new recruit.
• Rescue Team members: Their developing headquarters, recruitment system, salaries, and housing show the organization beginning to function as a serious, structured faction rather than a small informal group.

Chapter Summary: “Head to the Next World!”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping encounters two identical youths named Zhong Zhicheng, realizing they are versions of the same person from different parallel worlds.
• Using Appraisal Technique, he discovers that both possess the talent “Unity of Purpose.” Within ten thousand meters of another version of themselves, their physical attributes and lifespan double, and they gain an additional revival opportunity.
• Zhong Zhicheng has recently advanced from Useless Tier to Convenience Tier and enthusiastically joins the Rescue Team, hoping to save suffering humanity across countless worlds.
• Zhang Ping discusses the Rescue Team’s growing responsibilities with Liu Sishan before escaping Zhong Zhicheng’s overwhelming enthusiasm.
• Su Jingyao explains that the organization is burdened with administrative work despite controlling only Mingzhu City. The Investigation Team is expected to return soon, and Zhang Ping may need to force them to follow the Rescue Team’s authority.
• Zhang reviews the political dangers in several worlds:
  • In World Zero, Zhu Chengmian has murdered his father, Zhu Taihao, and seized control of the Zhu Family. Zhang expects him to target Mingzhu City and possibly Situ Shibai.
  • In World Three, Zhu Chengmian and Situ Shibai died together, suggesting Zhu’s immense power.
  • Zhang also senses that something major has happened in World Three, though the Rescue Team lacks enough personnel to investigate.
• Wanting to expand the Rescue Team’s reach, Zhang manufactures large quantities of Contract Gems, Storage Contracts, and Weapon Contracts, organizing them in the team’s storage room.
• He then travels to the Black Earth through a Sewer passage and attempts to summon the King of Nether Mist, hoping it can open another passage to a new parallel world.
• After Zhang begins losing hope, the King of Nether Mist finally appears in the form of a gigantic claw and asks what he wants.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping continues acting as the Rescue Team’s founder and strategist, balancing organizational growth, political threats, and inter-world rescue efforts. He remains cautious, especially about revealing himself in World Zero.
• Zhong Zhicheng is introduced as intensely idealistic and self-sacrificing. His ability becomes increasingly powerful when more versions of himself gather, giving him enormous long-term potential.
• Liu Sishan appears to be recruiting and guiding new members, including Zhong Zhicheng.
• Su Jingyao has become an essential administrator, managing both the Rescue Team and Mingzhu City while still making time to care for Zhang Ping.
• Zhu Chengmian is established as a dangerous and ambitious antagonist who has taken control of the Zhu Family through patricide.
• The King of Nether Mist remains mysterious but is now shown to be crucial to Zhang Ping’s ability to travel between parallel worlds.

Significant Themes

• Idealism versus responsibility: Zhong Zhicheng’s passionate dedication contrasts with Zhang Ping’s more pragmatic and cautious leadership.
• The power of unity and alternate selves: Zhong’s talent demonstrates how cooperation between parallel versions of one person can create extraordinary strength.
• Expansion and organization: The Rescue Team is evolving from a small group into a larger institution, creating administrative burdens and the need for systems and oversight.
• Political instability and hidden threats: Although Mingzhu City appears peaceful, competing powers and concealed dangers threaten the team’s position.
• Hope, uncertainty, and exploration: Zhang’s attempt to reach another world reflects both his anxiety about failing and his determination to continue rescuing people across the multiverse.

Important Character Interactions

• Zhang evaluates the two Zhong Zhichengs and speaks with them and Liu Sishan. Zhong’s intense declarations of heroism make Zhang uncomfortable and cause him to withdraw.
• Zhang and Su Jingyao discuss the Rescue Team’s administrative problems and the expected return of the Investigation Team. Zhang reassures her that he can handle Shi Jun while believing Bai Yating is unlikely to cause trouble.
• Zhang independently prepares resources for future Rescue Team members, then seeks the King of Nether Mist to reopen a portal to another parallel world.
• The chapter ends with the King of Nether Mist responding to Zhang’s summons, setting up their next conversation and likely inter-world journey.

Chapter Summary: “Zuo Xiangming’s Counterattack”

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping returns to the King of Nether Mist and asks to travel to another world. The King opens a passage for him.
• During the journey, the Coiling Dragon Venerable protects Zhang Ping by forming a black sphere around him, allowing him to crush spatial fragments safely.
• Zhang arrives near Mingzhu City, which has been completely overrun by Living Corpses. The city has been transformed into a fortified corpse stronghold, with no living residents remaining.
• Chen Weihua, a High-Level Awakened with the noncombat ability Encyclopedic Memory, is pursued by Living Corpses after unknowingly approaching corpses hidden in a tree.
• Exhausted and surrounded, Chen expects to be infected and transformed into a Living Corpse.
• Zhang’s arrival interrupts the attack. His black protective sphere lands above Chen, and he uses Psychokinesis to immobilize the pursuing corpses before compressing them into small spheres.
• Chen, overwhelmed with relief, embraces Zhang. After calming down, she introduces herself and agrees to lead him somewhere safe.
• Zhang disguises his true identity, claiming to be an adventurer from another city, while Chen begins explaining the disastrous situation in Mingzhu City.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping is shown to be powerful, cautious, and compassionate. Rather than immediately revealing his identity, he adopts a false background to gather information. His reaction to Chen’s situation also convinces him that this world urgently needs outside help.
• The King of Nether Mist remains calm and dependable but is portrayed as forgetful and somewhat slow-witted. He helps Zhang without asking for anything in return.
• Chen Weihua is introduced as intelligent but physically vulnerable. Despite being a High-Level Awakened, her memory-based ability offers no direct protection against Living Corpses. Her near-death experience exposes the severe danger faced by ordinary survivors.
• Zuo Xiangming, though not present directly, is established as the force behind the Living Corpses’ campaign. His orders have turned the wilderness and Mingzhu City into a death trap.

Significant Themes

• Desperation and survival: Chen’s exhaustion and fear illustrate how thoroughly the Living Corpses have destroyed normal life.
• The consequences of a single mistake: The devastation of Mingzhu City is attributed to one person’s momentary lapse in judgment, suggesting how quickly catastrophe can spread.
• Rescue and responsibility: Zhang recognizes that his arrival may not be an isolated intervention; he begins considering the creation of a rescue team to aid the world’s survivors.
• Identity and trust: Zhang hides his true origins while questioning Chen, creating a tension between the need for information and the need to earn trust.
• Power versus helplessness: Chen possesses a high-level ability but remains nearly defenseless, while Zhang’s overwhelming control of the situation highlights the vast difference between their capabilities.

Character Interactions

• Zhang and the King of Nether Mist share a familiar but understated exchange, with Zhang offering to bring him something in return for his help.
• Zhang rescues Chen without initially knowing her identity. Chen’s emotional embrace reflects her terror and gratitude.
• Zhang comforts Chen and then carefully questions her while presenting himself as a stranger from another city.
• Chen accepts Zhang’s assistance and offers to guide him to safety, beginning a cooperative relationship that will likely provide him with information about Zuo Xiangming’s regime and the fall of Mingzhu City.

Chapter Summary: City of the Living Dead

Key Plot Points and Events

• Chen Weihua explains the likely cause of Mingzhu City’s downfall. Zuo Xiangming had obtained an unusually powerful Corpse, probably one of the many bodies stolen from the city’s funeral facilities, laboratories, Awakened private collections, or outside traffickers.
• Powerful defenders attempted to stop Zuo Xiangming when the attack began, but they were killed by him and his Four Heavenly Kings.
• Chen Weihua leads Zhang Ping to a concealed cave where she has been hiding. She does not know how many Survivors escaped the city.
• While eating with Chen Weihua, Zhang Ping extends his Psychokinesis through the surrounding forest and detects numerous living dead disguised as corpses in the trees. He destroys them all.
• Zhang Ping then scans Mingzhu City and discovers that the entire city is saturated with living dead. Humans, Mutated Beasts, Oceanfolk, and even infected Heavenly Foxes have been transformed and forced to transport Corpses.
• He locates Zuo Xiangming at Pearl Ability Academy, surrounded by living versions of Jingyao, Prince Yue, Moon King, and a Corpse resembling this world’s Zhang Ping.
• Zhang immediately destroys the Corpse of this world’s Zhang Ping, suspecting that Zuo Xiangming’s immense power may have come from obtaining it. He then crushes the Corpses of Prince Yue, Moon King, Su Jingyao, and many others.
• Zuo Xiangming protects himself by forming a massive defensive wall of living dead and a powerful blue barrier made from countless abilities. Zhang cannot penetrate it and withdraws.
• Zuo Xiangming realizes that an unseen enemy has discovered his secret but cannot determine the attacker’s location. He decides to ignore the threat temporarily and accelerate his campaign against Li Aoxue’s forces.

Character Developments

• Chen Weihua is shown to be highly perceptive and resourceful. Her intelligence network allows her to reconstruct the circumstances behind Mingzhu City’s collapse, although she regrets not identifying the stolen Corpses more carefully.
• Zhang Ping becomes increasingly suspicious and aggressive. His concern over the absent Heavenly Fox and the unexplained situation makes him cautious, but discovering the Corpse of this world’s counterpart provokes a decisive and emotional attack.
• Zuo Xiangming is established as an extremely powerful and strategically minded antagonist. He relies not only on personal strength but also on the abilities of countless living dead, making him difficult to kill directly. He remains confident that time favors him.
• Zhang’s reaction to the Corpses of Jingyao, Prince Yue, Moon King, and Su Jingyao reveals his emotional attachment to them and his refusal to allow them to be used against him.

Significant Themes

• The weaponization of death: Corpses are treated as sources of power, commodities, and tools, showing how the living dead crisis is tied to exploitation and corruption.
• Hidden information and deduction: Chen Weihua’s intelligence and Zhang Ping’s Psychokinesis reveal that survival depends on uncovering concealed truths.
• Power through numbers versus individual strength: Zuo Xiangming’s strength comes from controlling an entire city’s worth of living dead, while Zhang possesses overwhelming personal power but cannot defeat such a massive force alone.
• Identity and distorted resurrection: The presence of another Zhang Ping’s Corpse raises questions about alternate selves, personal identity, and the horror of seeing familiar people reduced to weapons.
• Strategic restraint: Both sides recognize that acting too soon could be dangerous. Zhang abandons an unfavorable attack, while Zuo Xiangming postpones retaliation and focuses on expanding his control.

Character Interactions

• Chen Weihua and Zhang Ping cooperate as temporary allies. She provides information about the city, while he offers food and protection.
• Zhang questions Chen about the disaster and the Survivors, relying on her knowledge to understand the situation.
• Zhang attacks Zuo Xiangming remotely, destroying the Corpses under his control. Zuo responds by ordering the living dead into defensive formations.
• Though they never meet face-to-face, Zhang and Zuo engage in a tense psychological and strategic confrontation: Zhang tests the limits of Zuo’s defenses, while Zuo tries to identify his hidden attacker and prepares to conquer Li Aoxue’s forces.

Chapter Summary — Fallen One: Situ Shibai

Key Plot Points and Events

• Zhang Ping uses psychokinesis to survey the wilderness and discovers that numerous savage villages have been overrun by Living Corpses. The villagers have been slaughtered and transformed into zombie-like creatures.
• He reconsiders his theory about Zuo Xiangming. Zuo’s calm reaction after destroying the alternate Zhang Ping suggests that either Zuo did not gain Zhang Ping’s abilities or that unknown developments have altered the situation.
• Zhang notices that several major factions are behaving abnormally:
  • The Cleanup Team has disappeared.
  • The Beast-Taming Zhu Family has gone into hiding.
  • Li Aoxue’s condition is suspicious.
• Investigating the Zhu Family’s bases, Zhang discovers that the formations leading to multiple bases have been destroyed, confirming that the world contains more variables than he expected.
• The chapter reveals that Situ Shibai has fallen into the Lost State and is being controlled by a dark blue-black energy. He has used his mutated ability to manipulate fate through Zuo Xiangming.
• Situ’s plan transformed nearly everyone in Mingzhu City into Living Corpses, creating what he considers an “equal” and eternal world. He continues searching for the survivors who escaped.
• The next morning, Zhang and Chen Weihua avoid a large group of approaching Living Corpses to prevent revealing their location.
• They encounter three survivors, including Qiu Qiang and a woman traveling with him. The survivors explain that most escape groups were annihilated and that perhaps only a few thousand experienced Awakened remain.
• Zhang proposes saving Mingzhu City and asks whether they will help. To demonstrate his strength, he activates the Coiling Dragon Venerable, whose glowing eyes dramatically increase its presence and aura.

Character Developments

• Zhang Ping: Becomes increasingly cautious and analytical. Rather than recklessly attacking the Living Corpses, he chooses to investigate the altered world, locate survivors, and conceal his abilities until he understands the situation. He also demonstrates leadership by attempting to unite survivors.
• Situ Shibai: Is revealed as the true central antagonist of the chapter. His grief, disillusionment, and obsession with creating a perfectly equal world drive him to abandon morality. After entering the Lost State, he becomes a fallen figure who equates universal death with eternal equality.
• Zuo Xiangming: His role remains mysterious. Although he appears to be responsible for the Living Corpses, the chapter reveals that Situ Shibai has been manipulating fate through him.
• Chen Weihua: Continues to follow Zhang and support his decisions, relying on him to navigate the dangerous wilderness.
• Qiu Qiang and the other survivors: Their distrust reflects the hopelessness created by the Living Corpse catastrophe, though the woman shows enough compassion to warn Zhang against approaching Mingzhu City.

Significant Themes

• Corrupted ideals: Situ Shibai originally wanted to fulfill his beloved’s wish and create a fair society, but despair twists that ideal into mass death and forced equality.
• Eternity versus life: The chapter questions whether a world without death—or a world where everyone exists as a Living Corpse—can truly be considered eternal or meaningful.
• Grief and moral collapse: Situ’s trauma over his beloved’s sacrifice and the suicide of the academy student causes his convictions to break.
• Uncertainty and hidden variables: Zhang realizes that this parallel world has diverged in ways he cannot explain, making assumptions based on his own world unreliable.
• Survival and cooperation: The survivors’ fear of gathering together contrasts with Zhang’s attempt to rebuild cooperation and resistance.

Character Interactions

• Zhang and Chen work together cautiously, avoiding the approaching Living Corpses to protect their secrecy.
• Zhang confronts Qiu Qiang’s group and tries to persuade them that cooperation is necessary, while they warn him that united survivor groups have previously been destroyed.
• The woman accompanying Qiu Qiang speaks harshly but ultimately out of concern, advising Zhang to stay away from Mingzhu City.
• Zhang responds to their skepticism by revealing the Coiling Dragon Venerable, signaling that he may possess the power needed to challenge the Living Corpses and giving the survivors a reason to reconsider joining him.