Chapter Summaries

Feng Ling tried to escape the Slime Mold while hunting Shorty, then escaped the collapsing fourth floor with help from Su Yuqing’s team. She survived the blast and fall, and Shorty died, but the threat of the Slime Mold remained.

• Huangfu Miaomiao used Ghost Shadow to turn into a black shadow, while Su Yuqing told Feng Ling to evacuate and offered to blast open the building’s outer wall.
• Feng Ling discovered that the Slime Mold avoided Cards and lured it into absorbing one, confirming that it was close to collapse; she planned to bring down the fourth-floor ceiling.
• A flashlight exposed Feng Ling’s position, and Shorty and Old Mo discussed her presence with the Boss as Feng Ling attacked Shorty on the fifth floor.
• Feng Ling severed Shorty’s limbs and jaw, escaped the Slime Mold’s grasp, and threw a Flashbang to signal Su Yuqing’s team.
• A rocket blast shook the hotel and hurled Feng Ling through a window; she landed outside, injured, where Zhou Diao and the others rushed to her.

After the destruction of Mengjia Hotel, Su Yuqing and Ye Zheng discussed the Maze’s spreading pollution and Ye Zheng’s upcoming mission inside it. Elsewhere, Fang Ye killed the injured Fishmen and reached for the Card that emerged from his body.

• Su Yuqing ordered the bombardment of Mengjia Hotel until the building collapsed and the Slime Mold inside was destroyed.
• Ye Zheng read Su Yuqing’s report about the Xenomorph den and learned that he planned to request a bonus for Feng Ling.
• Su Yuqing and Ye Zheng discussed the Maze’s pollution spreading into the real world and Ye Zheng’s impending assignment to the Investigation Team.
• After escaping the hotel, the Fishmen watched it collapse, then went to an alley to inject himself with a Potent Recovery Agent.
• Fang Ye ambushed and beat the armless Fishmen to death, then reached for the silver Card that appeared.

Fang Ye obtained the Fishmen Card after attacking a weakened Xenomorph and decided to join the Supervision Bureau. As Qingjiang residents speculated about the previous night’s operation online, Su Yuqing received word that Fang Ye had come to see him.

• Fang Ye struck down the weakened Xenomorph, took its syringe, and obtained the Fishmen Card.
• Fang Ye decided to go to the Supervision Bureau at dawn and sign up to become an Inspector.
• Photos of the ruined Mengjia Hotel and unusual creatures from the evacuation spread online, prompting speculation about the operation and Qingjiang’s new Inspector.
• Su Yuqing regretted how easily online comments could misrepresent the report he had submitted and fielded calls from other branches asking about extra personnel.
• The receptionist told Su Yuqing that Fang Ye wanted to see him about something important.

Fang Ye asked to join the Supervision Bureau after gaining a Card, but his mediocre assessment and doubts about becoming an Inspector left him undecided. Su Yuqing then visited Feng Ling's lively hospital ward with news to share, though the chapter ended before he revealed it.

• Su Yuqing recognized Fang Ye as one of the people rescued from the underground pit and agreed to meet him.
• Fang Ye told Su Yuqing that he had gained a Card and wanted to become an Inspector, so Su Yuqing explained the application process and sent him for an assessment.
• Fang Ye received mediocre test results and hesitated to pursue the role after learning he might need training before going on missions.
• Fang Ye left without deciding whether to apply, and Su Yuqing and his assistant remarked that Feng Ling was exceptionally gifted.
• Su Yuqing visited Feng Ling's ward, where Feng Ling played on her phone and Huangfu Miaomiao ate snacks, then offered Feng Ling good and bad news.

Feng Ling learned about her Xenomorph rewards and recovery, then asked Su Yuqing to arrange a boat so she could enter the Maze despite her injuries. Su Yuqing reflected on how quickly she had grown and learned about her unusual past.

• Su Yuqing told Feng Ling she had killed eleven Xenomorphs and applied for her bonus, but the reward per Xenomorph had fallen to 800,000.
• Feng Ling showed Su Yuqing that only three segments of her Bone Blade and Fangs and Claws remained, while Huangfu Miaomiao explained that digesting the Blood Worms Card had restored her arm at a cost of 2% Corruption Value.
• Su Yuqing told Feng Ling that Fang Ye had absorbed a Card and wanted to join the Supervision Bureau.
• Feng Ling asked Su Yuqing to contact the River Patrol Team so she could enter the Maze, explaining that her Corruption Value was 29%.
• After leaving the ward, Su Yuqing and his assistant discussed Feng Ling’s combat instincts and rapid growth, and the assistant admitted he admired her.
• Su Yuqing’s assistant recounted Feng Ling’s background, including her orphanage childhood, fighting training, Nursing Home job, and recent work as a sparring partner.

After learning that the Supervision Bureau had wiped out the Xenomorph gathering at Mengjia Hotel while the Hidden Boss remained alive, Li Qing suspected Aisha had survived and possibly joined forces with the authorities. He deleted her from his contacts and received an ominous divination, while Feng Ling traced the mysterious light to Sanqing Mountain and found she could no longer message the Daoist priest.

• The Qingjiang Branch announced that it had killed twelve Xenomorphs and one Class A Large Contaminant at Mengjia Hotel, prompting online commenters to speculate about the concerned citizen who helped.
• Li Qing read the announcement and reasoned that Aisha, the Hidden Boss, was still alive because no system notice had announced her defeat.
• Li Qing recalled telling Bean Paste to flee to Yunhai City and wondered whether he had been deceived.
• Li Qing decided that Aisha could protect herself and deleted her from his friend list to avoid exposing his identity.
• Li Qing cast an inauspicious hexagram on Sanqing Mountain, and two Taoist priests advised him to stay put rather than go down the mountain.
• Feng Ling identified Sanqing Mountain as the location of the mysterious light, then discovered that Aisha's account could no longer message the Daoist priest.

After Feng Ling discovered that Li Qing had deleted and blacklisted her, she set out for Sanqing Mountain intending to confront him before entering the Maze. A stop at the Supervision Bureau introduced her to the Hunter Alliance Plan and its Contribution Value system, leaving her equipped with a new phone and a warning about the dangers of Corruption Value.

• Feng Ling failed to contact Li Qing and became furious after learning that Weasel01 had blacklisted her on the Exo-Star Forum.
• Feng Ling decided to find Li Qing on Sanqing Mountain and demand an explanation for deleting her.
• Feng Ling booked an RV and headed toward Sanqing Mountain, but Su Yuqing persuaded her to visit the Supervision Bureau to collect her bonus and gifts.
• Su Yuqing gave Feng Ling a specialized phone that accessed the internal Hunter Forum, showed Contribution Points, and stored up to two Cards.
• Su Yuqing showed Feng Ling a Blue Pill in the phone for emergencies and explained that civilian Hunters were trusted to control their own Corruption Value during the Hunter Alliance Plan's trial phase.

Feng Ling collected weapons from the Supervision Bureau and set out with Huangfu Miaomiao for Sanqing Mountain, where she hoped to learn about the Idol. On Children's Day, they arrived at the Scenic Area and learned that families were bringing their children to pray for protection from Xenomorphs.

• Feng Ling exchanged her Contribution Value for Grenades, a military Drone, and a terrain Detector before leaving with Su Yuqing's warnings about the Maze and the lack of a rescue team.
• Huangfu Miaomiao described her plan to use a Maze's Safe Zone, but Feng Ling pointed out that humans could not simply hide or log out.
• Feng Ling considered how beings might unknowingly endanger those beneath them, then comforted Huangfu Miaomiao by ruffling her hair.
• Feng Ling and Huangfu Miaomiao reached the Scenic Area amid Children's Day parent-child tours.
• A young mother told Feng Ling that her family had come to Sanqing Mountain to pray for their children's safety from Xenomorphs.

Feng Ling searched for Li Qing, a Taoist priest on Sanqing Mountain, and learned that the priests came down to the foot of the mountain. Li Qing’s divinations warned of danger, and when he spotted a Hidden Boss warning, he fled from Feng Ling.

• Feng Ling left Huangfu Miaomiao and the Cat Spider and Cat Owl in the RV while she went to find Li Qing.
• A shop clerk told Feng Ling that the Taoist priests were at Sanqing Palace on the mountain or came down after work.
• Li Qing cast two divinations, first drawing Bo Gua and then the more ominous Kan Gua, before agreeing to go down the mountain for milk tea with two fellow priests.
• At the foot of the mountain, Li Qing saw a warning that a Hidden Boss was nearby and ran away.
• Feng Ling recognized Li Qing, chased after him, and shouted for him to stop.

Li Qing fled from Feng Ling after she marked him, then returned to face her and was forced into her car. There, Huangfu Miaomiao recognized him as a Labyrinth Administrator and revealed that she and Feng Ling had been searching for the Maze.

• Feng Ling stopped Li Qing as he tried to flee, but a furry creature distracted her and he escaped into the woods.
• Li Qing realized Feng Ling’s Mark remained on him, considered his divination, and decided to confront her instead of continuing to run.
• Feng Ling marked Li Qing’s trail and waited, then took him to her car when he returned.
• Feng Ling shoved Li Qing into the car, where Huangfu Miaomiao recognized him as a Labyrinth Administrator.
• Huangfu Miaomiao explained that Administrators opened Mazes and said their discovery meant the Maze was nearby.

Feng Ling forced Li Qing to sign Huangfu Miaomiao’s Demon Contract and questioned him about the Maze. Li Qing identified when and where he could open it, but revealed that the Administrators responsible for preventing its pollution from spreading had been killed.

• Feng Ling confronted Li Qing about posting Xenomorph information on the human Forum, and he said he had acted to help people as the game’s balance collapsed.
• Feng Ling had Huangfu Miaomiao offer Li Qing a contract requiring both of them to be honest, and Li Qing accepted under threat.
• Feng Ling asked where the Maze was, and Li Qing identified Goddess Peak about twenty minutes before sunset as the place and time he could open it.
• Li Qing said he did not know what was inside the Maze because it changed constantly, though its contents were shaped by local geology, species, and culture.
• Feng Ling asked whether pollution from the Maze could spread outside Sanqing Mountain, and Li Qing said it could and that the responsible Administrators had been killed.

Feng Ling learned from Li Qing that Players had killed many Labyrinth Administrators, leaving at least forty Mazes to spread Pollution and merge with the real world. She warned Su Yuqing that the Pollution could contaminate anyone without a Card, and the chapter ended with him realizing Ye Zheng might already have known.

• Li Qing told Feng Ling and Huangfu Miaomiao that at least one-third of the 122 Labyrinth Administrators had been killed by Players, likely in an organized effort to make Mazes spread Pollution.
• Li Qing explained that Cards protected their holders from Maze contamination, while creatures without Cards were vulnerable to genetic mutation.
• Feng Ling called Su Yuqing and reported that at least forty Mazes worldwide were spreading Pollution and that researchers entering them could be contaminated.
• Li Qing said abnormal Administrator shutdowns made Mazes merge with the world, and that killing a Maze's Labyrinth Master would stop the Maze from spreading further.
• Su Yuqing had his clone warn Ye Zheng to reorganize the Investigation Team and keep researchers out of Mazes, then asked whether she already knew.

Feng Ling and Huangfu Miaomiao headed with Li Qing toward Goddess Peak to enter the Maze, but Huangfu Miaomiao was recognized by a little girl from the family she had logged into. After they returned the child to her parents, the girl's mother called Huangfu Miaomiao a monster, and Straw Hat Boy reported that a Hidden Boss was following the Labyrinth Administrator.

• Su Yuqing told Ye Zheng that the Maze's pollution came from the Labyrinth Administrator's death, but Ye Zheng refused to cancel the next day's operation.
• Feng Ling posted warnings about the Maze on the Exo-Star Forum and Hunter Alliance Forum, then took Huangfu Miaomiao and Li Qing toward Goddess Peak with the two pets.
• Feng Ling paid Li Qing's cable car fare, and the group continued toward the peak through the crowded Scenic Area.
• A little girl named Huangfu Shasha ran up to Huangfu Miaomiao and called her big sister, so the group turned back to find the child's parents.
• The girl's mother snatched her away, called Huangfu Miaomiao a monster, and wept after the group left.
• Straw Hat Boy told someone over the phone that he had found the Labyrinth Administrator and that a Hidden Boss was following it.

Feng Ling, Huangfu Miaomiao, and Li Qing climbed toward Goddess Peak while discussing Huangfu Miaomiao’s rejection by the family whose daughter she had replaced and the differences between their worlds. Li Qing explained the local legend and his Diviner Card, and Feng Ling asked Huangfu Miaomiao to ask him what Card she should consume.

• Straw Hat Boy told someone he planned to test the couple and their daughter, despite being warned that confronting a Hidden Boss was unnecessary.
• Feng Ling reassured Huangfu Miaomiao that the family had rejected her because she was not their daughter, and Huangfu Miaomiao explained that people in her world were raised in Breeding Pods and had no families.
• Li Qing described how Breeding Pods accelerated human growth, and Huangfu Miaomiao said she was seven years old by Feng Ling’s measure.
• Li Qing pointed out Goddess Peak and recounted the legend of Yao Ji, Meng Long, and Giant Python Peak.
• Li Qing explained that his Card was Diviner and that studying Daoist culture helped him choose Cards to consume.
• Feng Ling asked Li Qing what Card she should consume, then told Huangfu Miaomiao to ask him instead.

Feng Ling discussed the Hive and the Maze with Li Qing while waiting for reinforcements, then a transformed monkey abducted Huangfu Miaomiao’s little sister. Huangfu Miaomiao chased after them, and Li Qing was stunned that the Maze seemed to have contaminated an animal despite his watch.

• Feng Ling admitted she did not understand the Hive, and she and Li Qing puzzled over its relation to Cards and Corruption Value.
• Pei Xianjue of the Qingjiang City Abomination Safety Supervision Branch called Feng Ling and arranged to bring reinforcements to her location.
• Li Qing estimated that the Maze entrance would open around 6:50 p.m. and warned that they needed to clear tourists from the Mountain by 4 p.m.
• Feng Ling urged Li Qing to enter the Maze with them, explaining that humans wanted to eliminate the Labyrinth Master rather than repeatedly explore for Points.
• A monkey nearly as tall as a person seized Huangfu Miaomiao’s little sister and leapt through the trees, so Huangfu Miaomiao turned into a shadow and pursued it.
• Feng Ling challenged Li Qing about the monkey’s contamination, but he insisted the Maze could not have contaminated animals while he was guarding the Mountain.

Feng Ling and Li Qing rescued Shasha from a monkey and discovered that a Player’s skill had made a worm parasite attack them. After the Scenic Area closed, Pei Xianjue contacted Feng Ling through a Drone and warned her to bring Shasha to the cable car station while staff screened for the suspected Xenomorph.

• Feng Ling and Li Qing chased the monkey down the mountain, where Huangfu Miaomiao had already caught Shasha and protected her from the fall.
• Feng Ling noticed the monkey twitching and cut it down just as a worm lunged at Li Qing.
• Li Qing identified the worm as a Horsehair Worm and suspected that a Player had used an ability to target him.
• Drones announced the Scenic Area’s closure, and Huangfu Miaomiao, Feng Ling, and Li Qing headed back with Shasha.
• Pei Xianjue contacted Feng Ling by Drone, told her Shasha’s parents were waiting at the cable car station, and agreed to meet there.
• Feng Ling warned Pei Xianjue that a Xenomorph might be hiding among the tourists leaving the mountain.

At Sanqing Mountain, Feng Ling met Pei Xianjue and her Yuquan Supervision Bureau team as they prepared to enter the Maze. Meanwhile, a hidden young man received orders to head north to Daling Forest and interfere with the Bureau’s mission.

• A young man in a cable car learned that the Supervision Bureau had arrived, then received orders to go to the Daling Forest Maze and disrupt the team heading there.
• Feng Ling returned to the cable car station with two pet carriers, and the child’s parents took Little Sister away without thanking Huangfu Miaomiao.
• Pei Xianjue introduced herself to Feng Ling as the deputy captain of the Yuquan Supervision Bureau branch and recognized Li Qing as the Labyrinth Administrator.
• Feng Ling introduced Li Qing and Huangfu Miaomiao, and Pei Xianjue added them to a group chat named the Sanqing Mountain Labyrinth Suicide Squad.
• Pei Xianjue revealed that she was Yuquan City’s only combat-capable Inspector and that Liang Haohan and Baozi were bodyguards hired by her family.

Feng Ling and Pei Xianjue discussed the dangers and purpose of entering the labyrinth as the group prepared to open its gate. When the time came, Huangfu Miaomiao triggered a labyrinth quest, leaving the group poised to enter.

• Pei Xianjue explained that an Administrator's death left the labyrinth unsupervised, allowing its contamination to spread.
• Liang Zhou called the Players and Administrators invaders, and Pei Xianjue urged her team not to jeopardize their mission to destroy the labyrinth.
• Feng Ling questioned why Pei Xianjue's group had come as reinforcements, and Pei Xianjue admitted she planned to enter the labyrinth before reporting it.
• Feng Ling revealed that her high Corruption Value drove her to seek an Idol inside the labyrinth.
• When Li Qing said the time had come, Huangfu Miaomiao saw a golden exclamation mark above him and announced that she had triggered a labyrinth quest.

Huangfu Miaomiao accepted the Labyrinth Trial at Sanqing Blessed Land, transforming Sanqing Mountain into a fog-shrouded labyrinth. Feng Ling decided Li Qing had to guide the group inside, and they set out as strange creatures hunted nearby.

• Huangfu Miaomiao accepted the trial after Feng Ling confirmed the group was prepared, and the mountain changed as modern paths and facilities vanished beneath bluish-gray mist.
• Feng Ling insisted Li Qing accompany them, explaining that Sanqing Mountain’s size and the fog would make it difficult to navigate without him.
• Feng Ling released the Cat Spider and Cat Owl, while Pei Xianjue, Liang Zhou, and Baozi gathered their supplies.
• The Cat Spider and Cat Owl caught and ate mutated creatures, and Li Qing pointed out that Giant Python Peak was missing.

Feng Ling’s group searched for the Safe Zone beneath Goddess Peak and encountered a pack of Yellow Demons, which the group’s creatures and Huangfu Miaomiao quickly killed. Liang Zhou condemned Feng Ling’s reckless approach and challenged Pei Xianjue over entrusting their safety to her.

• Li Qing explained that the Maze might draw on Sanqing Mountain’s giant-python legends to shape biological mutations, while the group continued looking for the Safe Zone.
• The Cat Spider and Cat Owl hunted a Rat Rabbit, and Pei Xianjue filmed an account of the group’s situation before Li Qing led everyone along a difficult mountain path.
• The group spotted more than a dozen Yellow Demons imitating people on the trail, and Pei Xianjue adjusted her camera to record them.
• The Cat Spider and Cat Owl killed three Yellow Demons, and Huangfu Miaomiao used her Ghost Shadow and dagger to kill another for five Points.
• Liang Zhou berated Feng Ling for acting without a plan and told Pei Xianjue he would not entrust his life to someone he considered irresponsible.