Chapter Summaries

Ling Feiran arrived in Guangnan City, where volunteers and workers were being sent toward the Quarantine Zone, and learned that new medical screenings would check whether volunteers had Cards. Han Xu, revealed as the Scarecrow guarding the train, saw Ling Feiran but expected they would not meet again.

• Ling Feiran got off the train with Wang Xunmei, Lin Pengpeng, Zhang Lu, and Li Yu and watched construction workers and technical specialists depart for the Quarantine Zone.
• The group discussed why workers entering the contaminated area did not wear Protective Suits before reaching high-risk zones.
• A staff member handed the volunteers itinerary notices and explained that a last-minute medical exam would verify that each volunteer possessed a Card.
• Ling Feiran signed the notice and briefly noticed a tall, smoke-obscured man watching the volunteer line.
• Han Xu returned to the train after explaining that he had followed Ling Feiran's line out of curiosity and did not expect them to meet again.

Volunteers underwent Card verification and mandatory pregnancy testing before boarding the Shuttle Bus, while staff distributed condoms under Pei Xianjue’s orders. Lin Pengpeng defended Pei Xianjue from insults on the bus, which fell silent when Pei Xianjue arrived at the intersection.

• Ling Feiran, Zhang Lu, and Lin Pengpeng waited for the Card verification machine, which successfully confirmed their abilities.
• Staff required female volunteers to take pregnancy tests after a pregnant volunteer died from a genetically mutated fetus, and Lin Pengpeng persuaded Wang Xunmei to cooperate.
• Volunteers boarded the Shuttle Bus, where staff handed male volunteers condoms and warned that both partners would be expelled if anyone became pregnant.
• Li Yu objected to the condoms, while passengers mocked Pei Xianjue and Lin Pengpeng stood up to defend her and reprimand the staff member.
• The Shuttle Bus stopped at an intersection, where Pei Xianjue arrived with several people from a military vehicle.

Pei Xianjue welcomed new volunteers to the Quarantine Zone and assigned several to the understaffed Transport Team. Afterward, she warned Bao Changzhi to protect the Iron Curtain Project from interference by her relatives and ordered him to promote the volunteers with filthy mouths to squad leaders.

• Pei Xianjue greeted the volunteers aboard their vehicle, praised the importance of logistics, and introduced Bao Changzhi as its department head.
• When Pei Xianjue asked for volunteers to help the Transport Team, Bao Changzhi selected three men in the back row, while Lin Pengpeng and other drivers were passed over.
• Lin Pengpeng wondered whether Bao Changzhi had deliberately chosen the men who had made dirty jokes, then told herself it was probably a coincidence.
• Pei Xianjue told Bao Changzhi to guard the Iron Curtain Project's materials against interference from her relatives and asked her assistant to polish and post a line from her speech.
• Bao Changzhi asked how to handle the transferred volunteers, and Pei Xianjue ordered him to promote anyone with a filthy mouth to squad leader.

Ling Feiran and the other volunteers settled into the Transition Zone and discussed their upcoming assignments. At dinner, Li Yu revealed rumors that a pregnant volunteer’s rare Card had vanished after her death, and Ling Feiran reasoned that the Quarantine Zone could narrow down who might have taken it.

• Ling Feiran received her room key, volunteer supplies, and handbook, then joined Wang Xunmei and the others for dinner.
• Wang Xunmei read that volunteers would attend a Mobilization Assembly, receive assignments, and become eligible to request transfers after their first week.
• Ling Feiran explained that the volunteers had been recruited because they could not be infected and might initially receive basic assignments.
• Li Yu returned to the table with food and said the pregnant volunteer who had died was found without her Card, prompting rumors that someone had stolen it.
• Ling Feiran learned the missing Card was the rare Hundred-Armed Giant and reasoned that the Quarantine Zone could identify suspects by comparing Cards and compatibility.

Ling Feiran arrived at the Guangnan Quarantine Zone, considered the Hundred-Armed Giant Card theft, and received her hospital assignment. Later that night, Pei Xianjue was alerted to a Sea Monster washed ashore with a possibly human survivor and seven scattered Cards, and hurried to the scene.

• At dinner, Ling Feiran discussed the Inspection Team with Wang Xunmei and Lin Pengpeng, who encouraged her to consider joining it.
• After the Mobilization Assembly, Ling Feiran searched for information about the Hundred-Armed Giant and wondered whether the Card thief could be a volunteer.
• Ling Feiran received a message ordering her to report to the hospital’s Second Inpatient Department before eight the next morning.
• Pei Xianjue studied construction terminology while Baozi attended classes, as she worried about the Quarantine Zone’s costly building projects and her responsibilities.
• The Marine Patrol told Pei Xianjue that a giant Sea Monster had washed ashore with a living woman and seven Cards, and Pei Xianjue ordered them to secure the Cards and call emergency medical personnel.
• Pei Xianjue changed into work clothes and headed to the shore, determined to establish her authority as a newly appointed official.

Pei Xianjue found Huangfu Miaomiao washed ashore on a Sea Monster’s corpse and confirmed her identity after contacting Feng Ling. Feng Ling asked Pei Xianjue to hide Little Skeleton from the Xenomorphs.

• Pei Xianjue inspected the poisonous Sea Monster, ordered its corpse tested and destroyed, and had the beach cordoned off.
• A team member found an injection used by Xenomorphs in the Sea Monster’s wound, and Pei Xianjue suspected the monster was connected to them.
• Huangfu Miaomiao woke and recognized Baozi and Pei Xianjue, explaining that someone had swapped bodies with her and asking to contact Feng Ling.
• Pei Xianjue called Huang Yi, who arranged a brief conversation with Feng Ling before the press conference.
• Feng Ling confirmed Huangfu Miaomiao was likely herself and told Pei Xianjue to hide Little Skeleton from the Xenomorphs.

Pei Xianjue secretly rescued the weakened Huangfu Miaomiao and concealed her existence while arranging for her to stay in her secure residence. Huangfu Miaomiao was cleaned up ahead of a video call with Feng Ling, while Pei Xianjue considered turning the rescue into publicity.

• Pei Xianjue told Huangfu Miaomiao that Feng Ling would video call in an hour and had Baozi carry her to the car.
• Huangfu Miaomiao explained that the Fish Monster had once been human and had saved her; Pei Xianjue promised to investigate his identity.
• Pei Xianjue ordered the Patrol Team to hide Huangfu Miaomiao's existence and destroy the syringe on the corpse, then discussed using the incident as Quarantine Zone publicity.
• Pei Xianjue brought Huangfu Miaomiao to her private residence, where she and her assistant washed her and cut the tangled hair.
• Huangfu Miaomiao thanked Pei Xianjue and prepared for her video call with Feng Ling, unaware that Pei Xianjue had photographed her condition to send to Feng Ling.

Feng Ling and Ye Zheng pieced together Star Society’s history and discussed Meteor’s aims while Short-legged Sheep deteriorated. Feng Ling revealed that Little Skeleton had reached the Quarantine Zone and planned to use Meteor’s Demon Contract to draw her out.

• Feng Ling returned from the press conference, and Ye Zheng explained that Messenger had been exiled to Waste City and had recruited Short-legged Sheep to rescue his son.
• Ye Zheng described Meteor and Black Spot’s secret plan to destroy the game and listed the remaining Star Society members, while Feng Ling crossed out those believed dead.
• Ye Zheng noted that Short-legged Sheep was becoming delirious and growing sheep horns, leaving them unable to question him effectively.
• Feng Ling told Ye Zheng that Little Skeleton was safe in the Quarantine Zone after escaping there on her own, and that Pei Xianjue had contacted her.
• Feng Ling said Meteor would keep her Demon Contract promise to exchange bodies with Little Skeleton, so she expected Meteor to come after learning where Little Skeleton was.

Feng Ling planned to lure Meteor into a trap by using a fake Little Skeleton and asked the Green Weasel to find a way to counter Meteor’s Gargoyle Card. After Huangfu Miaomiao reunited with her by video call, Feng Ling learned she could not log out in Meteor’s body and promised to capture Meteor alive; she then asked Pei Xianjue to send a disguised stand-in.

• Feng Ling proposed making a fake Little Skeleton video to draw Meteor out, and Ye Zheng agreed they could try the plan.
• Feng Ling contacted Pei Xianjue, and Huangfu Miaomiao appeared on the video call and broke down crying.
• Huangfu Miaomiao told Feng Ling that Meteor’s body had been in a game pod for almost a year, so she could not safely log out of it.
• Ye Zheng explained that Feng Ling needed to enter the Abyss Labyrinth and advance before Meteor could eliminate the remaining Administrators.
• Huangfu Miaomiao begged Feng Ling not to kill Meteor before their bodies were exchanged, and Feng Ling promised to capture her alive.
• Feng Ling asked Pei Xianjue to find a Hunter with disguise abilities to impersonate Huangfu Miaomiao and send them to her.

Feng Ling arranged for Pei Xianjue to find someone who could impersonate Huangfu Miaomiao, while Pei Xianjue cared for Miaomiao and reassured her after she felt Feng Ling did not miss her. The next morning, Feng Ling attended Risa’s press conference, where a reporter asked whether the Xenomorphs might retaliate against her.

• Feng Ling asked Pei Xianjue to find a Hunter capable of impersonating Huangfu Miaomiao, offering double payment or Cards.
• Pei Xianjue promised to find a suitable impersonator and said Huangfu Miaomiao would stay with her for safety.
• Pei Xianjue prepared a bed and food for Huangfu Miaomiao, who cried because Feng Ling had ended their video call quickly.
• Pei Xianjue persuaded Huangfu Miaomiao that Feng Ling had restrained herself because she was abroad and in public.
• Feng Ling attended Risa’s press conference beside Huang Yi as reporters questioned the incident and praised her work.
• A reporter asked Feng Ling whether the Xenomorphs might retaliate against her for destroying their organization.

At a press conference about the Yilanka casualties, Feng Ling rejected the demand that she apologize for killing General Singel. She offered the protesting reporter Cards instead and left him backing down as Silver Cards glittered over the crowd.

• Huang Yi told reporters that Feng Ling would not speak or answer questions, but the reporters surged forward with questions about her Corruption Value and the incident.
• A reporter demanded that Feng Ling apologize for the deaths in Yilanka, and Huang Yi explained that General Singel had been logged in by a Xenomorph and had colluded with the Star Society.
• Feng Ling told Huang Yi she could apologize, but Huang Yi warned that she represented more than herself.
• Feng Ling told the reporter that Yilanka feared it could no longer protect itself and offered him Cards to help train new Generals instead of apologizing.
• Feng Ling raised her offer to six Cards and displayed Silver Cards above the crowd, and the reporter withdrew his demand for an apology.

Feng Ling donated Cards to several countries, while Ling Feiran and her friends discussed Feng Ling’s actions and began their volunteer assignments. Ling Feiran was assigned as Team Leader on the Second Inpatient Department’s ninth floor, where a nurse warned her to avoid a surveillance blind spot where something had happened.

• Feng Ling left the press conference after offering to stay in Risado while the countries decided whether to collect their Cards, and Huang Yi declared the event over.
• Volunteers watched the news and discussed Feng Ling’s donation, while Ling Feiran promised to call Feng Ling during lunch and update her friends.
• Ling Feiran and her friends discussed their new assignments, and Li Yu warned Ling Feiran to be cautious because a Card had gone missing after a pregnant woman died at the Second Inpatient Department.
• Ling Feiran arrived at the Second Inpatient Department, completed her onboarding, and was promoted to Team Leader in charge of the ninth floor.
• A nurse explained that the ninth-floor patients were Infected and warned Ling Feiran not to enter a corridor blind spot where something had happened before surveillance equipment was installed.

Ling Feiran began her first shift as team leader on the ninth floor of the Second Inpatient Department, where she learned that staff often leave because the Infected there are receiving end-of-life care. After hearing the suffering of patients upstairs, she recognized the calming flute music played by Amir, an Infected whose symptoms were controlled by a Card.

• Ling Feiran learned from a nurse that Wen Yi had died in an accident and was shown the ninth-floor duty room and surveillance monitors.
• Zhao Xiaolei and Liu Wen explained that staff turnover was high because the Second Inpatient Department offered end-of-life care, and they advised Ling Feiran to apply for a Transfer Post.
• Ling Feiran heard a patient upstairs scream and slam into a wall, and Liu Wen and Zhao Xiaolei described the worsening condition of Infected on the higher floors.
• Amir played a flute melody that soothed the ward, and Liu Wen told Ling Feiran that he was an Infected from Mogu whose symptoms had been controlled after he found a Card.

On her first day in the Second Inpatient Department, Ling Feiran met Marai, an infected girl whose head split open to reveal a mouth, and comforted her by braiding her hair. Marai introduced Ling Feiran to Amir, whose striking appearance left her speechless.

• Ling Feiran struggled through a busy shift caring for patients on the ninth floor of the Second Inpatient Department.
• In the elevator, Marai startled Ling Feiran by opening a mouth in the back of her head and asking her to wipe it.
• Ling Feiran later found Marai on the Activity Ground and combed her hair into braids, easing the itch in her mouth.
• Marai ran to Amir to show him her braids, and Ling Feiran stared in amazement when he approached.

Ling Feiran met Amir and Marai in the Quarantine Zone, then learned from the Head Nurse to avoid getting close to the Infected. Meanwhile, Huangfu Miaomiao asked Feng Ling to help recall the name of the Fish Monster, and Feng Ling suggested asking Zhou Diao.

• Ling Feiran spoke with Amir about Marai and learned that the girl’s infected parents had died.
• The Head Nurse warned Ling Feiran not to ask about the Infected or talk to Amir, and Ling Feiran returned to her dormitory.
• Ling Feiran failed to reach Feng Ling by phone and assumed Feng Ling had lost her phone.
• Huangfu Miaomiao told Feng Ling how Fish Monster had saved her and asked her to remember his name.
• Feng Ling suggested Huangfu Miaomiao ask Zhou Diao, who had also been in the cave.

Feng Ling and her allies discussed ways to expose Meteor if she used the Gargoyle’s concealment, while Huangfu Miaomiao waited for help finding someone who could paint a new skin for her. The chapter ended with Pei Xianjue arranging the meeting and Feng Ling offering most of her spare Cards to the Supervision Bureau.

• Huangfu Miaomiao insisted she would keep trying to find the person Zhou Diao had asked about, and Feng Ling teased her about acting grown-up.
• Ye Zheng grew angry as Feng Ling and Huangfu Miaomiao discussed Meteor killing an Administrator and the resulting Maze contamination.
• Green Weasel presented Cards and tactics that could reveal the Gargoyle’s concealment, including area effects, but Feng Ling refused to involve Ling Feiran in fighting Meteor.
• Feng Ling asked Green Weasel to search her spare Cards for area-effect abilities that could counter Meteor’s escape.
• Pei Xianjue told Huangfu Miaomiao that an auntie with the Skin-Painting Ghost Card would meet her in the Quarantine Zone the next day, then travel to Risa.
• Feng Ling said she had more than eighty Cards left and planned to keep a few and donate the rest to the Supervision Bureau.

Pei Xianjue explained her Iron Curtain Array Global Defense Plan to Huangfu Miaomiao and dealt with refugees occupying its construction sites. The next day, Ling Feiran saw the Second Inpatient Department preparing for a group of Infected.

• Huangfu Miaomiao asked Pei Xianjue about the blueprints, and Pei explained how the modular Iron Curtain would defend Quarantine Zones against Contaminants.
• Pei Xianjue told Huangfu Miaomiao that the Iron Curtain Plan could help her earn a permanent generalship and a place in the Ring Conference.
• The Engineering Department reported that refugees had occupied several planned construction sites, and Pei ordered staff to count them and notify the Second Inpatient Department.
• Ling Feiran arrived at work and saw Zhao Xiaolei and other staff unloading beds and medical equipment in preparation for incoming Infected.

The Second Inpatient Department became overwhelmed after refugees were admitted, and Ling Feiran supported Liu Wen as the exhausting work and deaths took their toll. After learning that Marai had died, Ling Feiran refused Zhang Lu’s suggestion to apply for a Transfer Post and chose to keep caring for the Infected.

• Pei Xianjue’s order to admit refugees overloaded the Second Inpatient Department, leaving Ling Feiran, Liu Wen, Zhao Xiaolei, and their colleagues short-staffed and exhausted.
• Liu Wen broke down after realizing she felt relieved that two patients had died, and Ling Feiran comforted her.
• Ling Feiran and Liu Wen took the two bodies to the Incineration Plant, where they learned that Marai had died.
• Zhang Lu asked Ling Feiran to consider a Transfer Post because the work seemed hopeless, but she said she wanted to stay.

Ling Feiran struggled with a growing sense of unease after a volunteer nurse fell to her death at the Second Inpatient Department. She returned to the ninth floor convinced she alone had sensed hostility from the patients watching the Cards emerge from the nurse’s body.

• Ling Feiran offered Liu Wen a White Rabbit Yogurt Candy when she noticed Liu Wen looked pale, and Liu Wen went to rest in the duty room.
• Ling Feiran noticed Liu Wen was missing, then saw someone fall from above and feared Liu Wen had jumped.
• Ling Feiran found Liu Wen downstairs with medical gauze, watching the body of a volunteer nurse from her batch.
• As the nurse’s Cards emerged, Ling Feiran saw patients on nearly every floor staring at them and sensed indifference, jealousy, and resentment.
• Ling Feiran asked Liu Wen whether anything had felt wrong, but Liu Wen did not understand, leaving Ling Feiran convinced she alone had sensed the hostility.

After a volunteer died by suicide in the Second Inpatient Department, Pei Xianjue ordered safety measures and psychological assessments while preparing for the Iron Curtain Project. When Bao Changzhi suggested investigating possible mental manipulation, Huangfu Miaomiao volunteered to help.

• Ling Feiran wondered whether she had imagined sensing hostility from the patients and planned to discuss it with Wang Xunmei and Lin Pengpeng.
• Pei Xianjue rejected the Medical Department director’s suggestion to report the volunteer’s death as an accident and ordered rooftop access sealed and fall-prevention nets installed.
• Pei Xianjue arranged psychological assessments for volunteers and support staff for the understaffed Second Inpatient Department.
• Pei Xianjue received the Skin-Painting Ghost for Feng Ling, who was to paint Huangfu Miaomiao’s skin before being sent to Risa.
• Bao Changzhi told Pei Xianjue that a volunteer suspected the deceased had been mentally controlled, and Pei Xianjue approved an investigation to ease volunteers’ anxiety.
• Bao Changzhi suggested using an Administrator or a Card holder who could see into others, and Huangfu Miaomiao offered to investigate.