Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi’s locally made Demon Beast-calming powder helps stop a High-Rank Magic Beast from pursuing someone. Her own Calming Sleep powder has only a mild effect, leaving the beast sluggish and unfocused.
• After confirming the immediate danger has passed, Ye Chuqi leaves her space and asks San San about the person the beast had chased. He has collapsed nearby, badly injured, inside another High-Rank Magic Beast’s territory.
• Ye Chuqi decides to investigate, willing to help if she can do so without taking excessive risks.
• She finds a badly wounded young boy. When she approaches, he suddenly grabs her wrist, but she quickly subdues him.
• Ye Chuqi gives him a blood-replenishing Healing Potion, treats his cuts, and bandages him. She warns him that they need to leave before danger finds them.
• The boy tries to sit up and reopens a wound. Ye Chuqi tells him her medicines are costly and that he should at least pay for them; the chapter ends with him reacting stiffly.

Character development and interactions

• Ye Chuqi is resourceful and practical: she tests her homemade powder, assesses the risks of helping a stranger, and uses her strength and medical supplies efficiently. Her concern is genuine, but she is blunt about the cost of her help.
• The boy is severely weakened but remains suspicious and combative, instinctively attacking when Ye Chuqi approaches. After she treats him, his hostility eases somewhat, though he remains guarded.
• San San provides information and helps Ye Chuqi evaluate the situation, including the danger posed by the nearby beast’s territory.

Significant themes

• Practical compassion: Ye Chuqi helps despite the danger, while maintaining clear limits and expecting compensation for scarce supplies.
• Resourcefulness and adaptation: Her experiments and use of unfamiliar materials show her trying to apply her knowledge in a new environment.
• Trust and vulnerability: The boy’s defensive reaction contrasts with Ye Chuqi’s attempt to help, making their first interaction tense and uncertain.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi tells the injured, penniless boy that he owes her ten gold coins for the medicine, offering to let him repay her later without interest.
• She gives him a branch as a crutch and leads him out of the danger zone, though she has to abandon the convenience of resting alone in her pocket dimension.
• The boy struggles to keep up, then collapses from exhaustion and fever. Ye Chuqi treats him, makes camp, and brews medicine.
• When he wakes, Ye Chuqi serves him meat soup but reminds him that the medicine has been added to his debt. She lets the soup be free, suspecting he would refuse it if she charged him.
• Meanwhile, Red Beard’s group arrives safely near Monte City, but Ye Chuqi is missing. Red Beard worries despite trusting her abilities, aware that she is young, injured, and alone in the Lost Forest.

Character developments

• Ye Chuqi’s talkative, teasing personality reemerges now that she can communicate. Beneath her joking, she is practical and attentive, treating the boy’s injuries and making sure he eats.
• The boy remains guarded and hostile, but his stubbornness is clear: he hides his pain and keeps walking until he collapses. His reluctance to accept care suggests deep mistrust or pride.
• Red Beard’s concern reveals a protective attachment to Ye Chuqi, even though he believes she is capable.

Character interactions

• Ye Chuqi playfully turns the boy’s treatment into a debt, while still helping him without demanding immediate payment.
• The boy follows her silently and accepts her care, though he avoids showing vulnerability and reacts cautiously to her attention.
• San San mocks Ye Chuqi for taking responsibility for the boy, reinforcing the comic contrast between her complaints and her actual kindness.
• Red Beard’s concern contrasts with Ye Chuqi’s independence and highlights the danger of her separation from the group.

Significant themes

• Care mixed with humor: Ye Chuqi uses teasing and mock business terms to soften serious acts of kindness.
• Stubbornness and vulnerability: The boy’s refusal to complain only worsens his condition, showing the cost of concealing pain.
• Responsibility and attachment: Ye Chuqi takes on the burden of helping him, while Red Beard worries about her despite trusting her strength.

Key plot points

• The group realizes the Teleportation Array was sabotaged. Ye Chuqi disrupted the formation to save them, but was transported somewhere unknown.
• Red Beard orders a broad search: Ed mobilizes available group members, while Coke will return to Kru Town from Monte City and search outward. He also vows to confront Duke Fulton’s people, whom he suspects of tampering with the array.
• The group reaches an Adventurers’ Camp near the Lost Forest and reunites with the young guard at the Red Wind Mercenary Group’s modest tent.
• They learn the camp has swelled with powerful factions because the Nine-Leaf Green Flower is nearing maturity. Three formidable Ninth-Rank Magic Beasts guard it, while the human factions are likely to fight one another as well as the beasts.
• Xiao Nuo, distraught over being separated from Ye Chuqi, suddenly flies from the camp. A huge white Lion Owl approaches and lands nearby, blowing Xiao Nuo off course.

Character developments and interactions

• Red Beard remains fiercely loyal to Ye Chuqi, committing the group’s resources to finding her. Jun Ruofeng recognizes that Red Beard would make the same effort for any of them.
• Xiao Nuo has been unusually quiet and has lost interest in food since Ye Chuqi vanished. Its sudden flight suggests it may sense or recognize something approaching.
• Red Beard and Jun Ruofeng discuss the Lion Owl’s arrival. They suspect Ye Qinglan—who has long guarded the Beast Abyss—must have an important reason to leave it, possibly involving the Ye Family.
• The returning group warmly reassures their young camp guard, who is overwhelmed to see Red Beard back.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and responsibility: The group’s costly search for Ye Chuqi reflects how deeply its members care for one another.
• Dangerous ambition and mistrust: The Nine-Leaf Green Flower draws rival factions into a volatile contest, with greed likely to prevent cooperation.
• Uncertainty and looming threats: Ye Chuqi’s disappearance, the suspected sabotage, and the unexplained arrival of the Lion Owl leave the group facing several unresolved dangers.

Key plot points and events

• Xiao Nuo is caught after nearly being blown away by a giant winged creature, then playfully rampages across its head.
• Ye Qinglan spots Red Beard and Jun Ruofeng and says he is searching for someone. When Red Beard describes a silver-haired, black-eyed girl named Yezi whom they met in the Ashen Wasteland, Ye Qinglan recognizes her as Ye Chuqi.
• Red Beard explains that a teleportation accident separated Ye Chuqi from their group near the Lost Forest. Ye Qinglan sets off toward the Adventurers’ Camp to find her.
• Elsewhere, Ye Chuqi is unaware that anyone is looking for her or that she may have family. She is absorbed in cooking beside a young man, whose main concern is the tempting smell attracting dangerous Magic Beasts.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Qinglan reveals strong concern for Ye Chuqi: the news makes him visibly tense, though he keeps his composure and immediately resumes the search. He corrects Red Beard’s name for her, asserting that she is Ye Chuqi.
• Red Beard and Jun Ruofeng independently recognize the likely connection between Ye Chuqi and Ye Qinglan, while reflecting on clues they previously overlooked.
• Ye Chuqi remains unaware of her origins and possible family, focused instead on preparing food.
• The exchange between Ye Qinglan, Red Beard, and Jun Ruofeng is chilly; their mutual dislike is clear, but Red Beard’s information becomes crucial.

Significant themes

• Identity and hidden origins: Ye Chuqi’s appearance suggests a connection to the Ye Family, though she knows nothing of her birth or relatives.
• Family bonds and recognition: Ye Qinglan’s response suggests a powerful connection that Ye Chuqi herself has never experienced or understood.
• Dramatic irony: The reader knows Ye Qinglan is searching for Ye Chuqi, while she remains unaware and casually risks attracting monsters with her cooking.

Chapter 45 Summary

Key plot points and events

• After two days traveling with Ye Chuqi, the injured boy has grown steadier and helps gather firewood. He even hunted the chicken used for their soup, apparently trying not to be too much of a burden.
• Ye Chuqi offers to teach him to cook. He eagerly agrees, and she expands the lessons to include ingredient preparation and knife skills.
• While he practices, Ye Chuqi asks whether he can read and what his name is. He reveals that he has no name and speaks only after a long silence.
• The boy explains that he grew up among magic beasts, was later brought into human society by adventurers, and never learned to read or write. A group of adventurers took him into the Lost Forest, where they appear to have deliberately used him as bait for a High-Rank Magic Beast while they raided its lair.
• Wanting to give him a proper name, Ye Chuqi suggests “Xiaojiu,” after her own name, Qi Qi, and her friend San San.

Character developments and interactions

• The boy is quiet and wary but proves hardworking, considerate, and determined to learn. Cooking represents both a practical survival skill for him and a way to avoid owing Ye Chuqi too much.
• Ye Chuqi’s practical interest in teaching him gradually becomes personal affection. She admires his persistence and considers bringing him to Lush Mountain to train under one of her martial uncles.
• Their conversation builds trust: Ye Chuqi asks about his past, and he shares the story of his exploitation. She sympathizes, recognizing that his misfortune was likely intentional rather than accidental.
• San San teases Ye Chuqi about taking a liking to the boy, which she openly confirms.

Significant themes

• Survival and self-reliance: Both characters value skills that improve their chances of living, though for different reasons.
• Trust and kindness: Ye Chuqi offers food, instruction, and the possibility of a future home; the boy responds with effort and growing ease.
• Exploitation and vulnerability: The boy’s past shows how unscrupulous adventurers used someone with little power as a disposable tool.
• Identity and belonging: Having never been given a name or a place in human society, the boy may now gain both through Ye Chuqi’s care.

Plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi gives the boy the name Xiaojiu. Moved by having a name and the promise of a possible future, he begins trying to prove his worth by doing too much work and neglecting his injuries and sleep.
• Ye Chuqi confronts him. Xiaojiu explains that he fears being abandoned if he is not useful, a belief shaped by years of surviving through usefulness. He rests and begins helping only when he is able.
• As they travel through the Lost Forest, San San guides them away from danger. Xiaojiu handles the few small magic beasts they meet, though his instinctive, reckless fighting leaves him injured.
• Xiaojiu makes crude clothes from beast hides and shows practical knowledge of survival. He also enjoys learning about herbs from Ye Chuqi, who uses San San’s help to study them herself.
• After half a month, Xiaojiu has recovered from his injuries. Ye Chuqi teases him about the Gold Coins he owes her; worried he cannot repay the debt, he asks what he might be worth. She reassures him that they can earn money by hunting beasts and gathering sellable materials.

Character development

• Xiaojiu grows more trusting and openly happy, but his fear of being discarded still drives him to overwork. He gradually accepts Ye Chuqi’s correction and starts to settle into a less anxious routine. His survival skills and ability to navigate the forest become clear.
• Ye Chuqi responds to Xiaojiu with practical care and humor. She sets limits on his self-sacrifice, encourages him to learn, and tries to ease his anxiety about owing her.

Themes

• Belonging and identity: Receiving a name gives Xiaojiu a sense of hope and a place in a relationship.
• Worth beyond usefulness: Xiaojiu assumes he must earn the right to stay; Ye Chuqi’s care challenges that belief.
• Debt, trust, and independence: Their joking but carefully tracked debt reflects Xiaojiu’s gratitude and worry, while their plan to earn money offers a path forward.
• Survival and learning: The pair rely on practical skills, shared knowledge, and cautious cooperation to make their way through the forest.

Character interactions

• Ye Chuqi gives Xiaojiu his name and responds warmly to his gratitude.
• Xiaojiu tries to serve Ye Chuqi through constant work; she stops him, questions his motives, and persuades him to rest.
• Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu share knowledge about plants and survival, while San San provides guidance and translation support.
• When Xiaojiu worries about repaying Ye Chuqi, she redirects him from self-sale toward earning money together.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu make their way out of the Lost Forest’s dangerous inner depths. Ye Chuqi’s skill at navigating and finding useful plants has made the journey far easier than Xiaojiu expected.
• Ye Chuqi criticizes Xiaojiu’s reckless, strength-based fighting style and offers to teach him a breathing technique to improve his physical resilience. He eagerly agrees, despite her joking that she will sell him if he cannot repay the cost.
• As they travel through areas with more low-rank demon beasts, Xiaojiu teaches Ye Chuqi how to read tracks, damaged vegetation, claw marks, and other signs of animal activity.
• They spot two near-level-four demon beasts fighting over a rare Leaf Pearl. The herb’s toxic leaves produce pearls with powerful detoxifying properties, and Xiaojiu recognizes it from a high-paying Adventurers’ Guild commission.
• Though Ye Chuqi warns that they are no match for the beasts, Xiaojiu proposes waiting until the combatants weaken each other. He reveals that the adventurers who brought him into the forest accepted the same commission, and he wants to complete it himself.

Character developments and interactions

• Xiaojiu shows growing trust in Ye Chuqi, recognizing that she can change his fate and wanting to stay with her. He is eager to learn from her and displays patience and strategic thinking by choosing to wait rather than charge into danger.
• Ye Chuqi acts as Xiaojiu’s mentor, correcting his combat habits and offering practical training. She is cautious about risks, but remains willing to consider opportunities.
• Their relationship is warm and teasing: Ye Chuqi jokes about charging Xiaojiu for lessons and selling him if he cannot pay, while Xiaojiu takes the instruction seriously and promises to repay her.
• Their roles are complementary: Ye Chuqi identifies the broader dangers and makes decisions, while Xiaojiu contributes detailed knowledge of the forest and its creatures.

Significant themes

• Danger and opportunity coexist: The forest is perilous, but knowledge and careful observation can reveal valuable opportunities.
• Trust and mentorship: Xiaojiu’s willingness to follow Ye Chuqi reflects the bond and guidance developing between them.
• Strategy over brute force: Ye Chuqi challenges Xiaojiu’s reckless approach, and his plan to let the beasts exhaust themselves shows emerging tactical judgment.
• Ambition and vindication: Xiaojiu hopes to claim the commission—and prove himself to the adventurers who once brought him into the forest.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu notice several groups of Adventurers gathering near a deadly fight between a Tree Fern Eagle and a Horned Python. Both beasts are badly wounded, and the Adventurers intend to take advantage of their weakness.
• Xiaojiu detects another injured Tree Fern Eagle nearby. Ye Chuqi gives him healing and antidote potions and sends him to help it, promising to head north and meet him later.
• After Xiaojiu slips away, Ye Chuqi covers her face and dashes into the battlefield. While the beasts are too occupied fighting each other to stop her, she grabs the Leaf Pearl and escapes.
• The Adventurers, now exposed and competing for the prize, unite briefly to pursue her. Some remain behind to claim the wounded beasts, while their fastest members chase Ye Chuqi through the forest.

Character developments

• Ye Chuqi shows quick judgment and boldness: she divides the pair’s tasks, accepts the greater risk herself, and uses the chaos to seize the Leaf Pearl.
• Xiaojiu is reluctant to leave her in danger, but trusts her decision. His tracking skills and speed make him well suited to finding her afterward.

Significant themes

• Trust and cooperation: Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu split up despite the danger, relying on each other’s strengths.
• Risk and opportunity: Ye Chuqi exploits the beasts’ battle and the Adventurers’ hesitation to gain an advantage.
• Survival amid competing dangers: The protagonists must navigate not only hostile creatures but also opportunistic humans.

Character interactions

• Ye Chuqi reassures Xiaojiu, gives him potions, and asks him to find her once the danger has passed. Xiaojiu agrees with an aggrieved “Okay. I’ll come find you.”
• The Adventurer groups shift from cautious observation to a shared pursuit once Ye Chuqi takes the Leaf Pearl, though they remain rivals over who will claim it.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi escapes three pursuing Rogues, whose unusual tracking skills keep them on her trail. At a blind spot, she hides inside her private space, taking the Leaf Pearl with her.
• One Rogue notices that her trail ends abruptly beneath a tree and searches the area, but can’t explain her disappearance. The others return empty-handed, and the three adventurer teams debate what happened.
• Unable to find Ye Chuqi, the teams decide to cooperate temporarily and camp at the site. San San overhears that the Nine-Leaf Green Flower is nearing maturity.
• Ye Chuqi rests and heals in her Spirit Spring. San San estimates Xiaojiu could reach her in under half a day, though helping the injured Tree Fern Eagle may delay him.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Chuqi proves resourceful and cautious, having anticipated the possibility of special tracking methods and hidden the Leaf Pearl in her space. She relies heavily on San San for navigation and information.
• The searching Rogue stands out for his keen senses and persistence; even after losing Ye Chuqi, he refuses to dismiss the unexplained break in her trail.
• The other Rogues’ pursuit ends in confusion and frustration, while their teams’ leaders respond by joining forces.
• San San quietly supports Ye Chuqi by monitoring the pursuers and estimating Xiaojiu’s travel time. Big Black Fish, meanwhile, watches from its neighboring pool, hinting at its unusual abilities and mischievous nature.

Significant themes

• Cunning over force: Ye Chuqi escapes not by confronting her pursuers but by using timing, concealment, and her private space.
• Limits of perception: Even a skilled tracker can be baffled when familiar senses and tracking methods fail.
• Trust and dependence: Ye Chuqi’s confidence in San San lets her focus on healing, though the narration notes that relying on him has caused difficulties before.
• Competition and cooperation: The teams begin as rivals but unite when the approaching Nine-Leaf Green Flower offers a shared opportunity.

Key plot points and events

• Big Black Fish has been watching Ye Chuqi and wants to prove he is useful so she will keep him in her space. He gives her his scales, which can strengthen armor against magic, and offers to help in fights—though using him as a projectile would be difficult to explain.
• Ye Chuqi suggests he could be used against demon beasts instead. Though wary of becoming prey, Big Black Fish agrees, then buries himself in the pool’s mud.
• After confirming the adventurers have left, Ye Chuqi resumes traveling north. She changes clothes and disguises her tracks to make herself harder to follow.
• She stops to cook in the Lost Forest, where unusual quiet may signal a powerful beast or dangerous mutated plant. She gathers edible plants, including sweet, potato-like tubers, and grows them in her space.
• The space has gained energy after its Low-Rank Beast Cores were purified. Its borders have expanded, and San San has cultivated additional Spirit Fields. The plants growing there have become more vigorous and, in many cases, mutated.
• Xiaojiu arrives at Ye Chuqi’s camp, apparently unharmed but with something concealed beneath his clothes. He takes it out as he crouches by the fire; the excerpt ends before its identity is revealed.

Character developments and interactions

• Big Black Fish shows insecurity beneath his shameless exterior: he wants to earn his keep and remain in Ye Chuqi’s space. Ye Chuqi is amused by his offers but considers how to use him safely.
• Ye Chuqi remains cautious and practical, taking precautions against pursuit and avoiding risky camping spots. She also makes use of her companions’ strengths and the resources she finds.
• San San acts as Big Black Fish’s interpreter and explains his gifts, while managing the space and its cultivation. Their playful disagreement over planting the tubers highlights San San’s concern for efficient resource use.
• Xiaojiu returns to Ye Chuqi’s camp, drawn by the food, and appears to have brought back an unknown item.

Significant themes

• Usefulness and belonging: Big Black Fish tries to secure his place by contributing what he can.
• Caution and survival: Ye Chuqi plans around pursuit, dangerous wildlife, and the forest’s deceptive silences.
• Growth through cultivation: The expanding, energy-rich space supports new fields and transforms gathered plants into flourishing resources.

• Xiaojiu brings back an orphaned chick: After helping an injured Tree Fern Eagle, Xiaojiu returns with its newborn chick, entrusted to him by its dying parent. Ye Chuqi jokes that it could make soup, alarming him, then agrees to take it—but only if Xiaojiu earns the money to pay for its care and food. He promises to do so. Ye Chuqi stores the chick in her spatial storage, and Xiaojiu quietly calls her a softie; she insists he has misunderstood her.
• The pair continue through the forest: As they near the forest’s edge, they avoid adventurers who might target two young travelers with little visible equipment. Detours slow them down, and useful supplies are scarce. Xiaojiu gathers even poor-quality herbs to earn money, despite Ye Chuqi warning him not to overburden himself and joking that she would charge to store his finds.
• A sudden threat appears: While collecting supplies, Xiaojiu spots something and urgently tells Ye Chuqi they must leave immediately. The chapter ends before revealing what he has seen.
  Character development and interactions: Xiaojiu shows compassion and a growing sense of responsibility: though he doubts he can save the chick, he accepts the obligation and commits to supporting it. His instinct is to rely on Ye Chuqi, whom he sees as more caring than she admits. Ye Chuqi remains teasing, pragmatic, and transactional, but ultimately takes the vulnerable chick into her care. Their banter contrasts with their mutual dependence as they travel together.
  Themes: The chapter emphasizes compassion beneath a hard exterior, responsibility accepted under difficult circumstances, and the practical costs of survival. It also builds suspense around the dangers awaiting the pair near the forest’s edge.

Chapter summary

• Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu discover a Bone-Rot Soldier Ant scout near their resting place. Because a scout can mark prey and alert its colony—and food smells could attract the ants—they abandon their planned meal and leave, using herb pouches to mask their scent.
• San San warns Ye Chuqi that a group of adventurers is fleeing from the main ant colony and that their paths may cross. Ye Chuqi changes direction to avoid them.
• San San briefly shows Ye Chuqi the fleeing group: among them are students from the Imperial Capital Academy, who are helping keep the frightened crowd organized. Their courage reminds Ye Chuqi of her fellow disciples on Lush Mountain, and she decides she may be able to help.
• Ye Chuqi tells Xiaojiu to remain completely still at a chosen spot, placing Purified Beast Cores in his hand and beneath his foot. Xiaojiu agrees, partly because he trusts her and partly because he is thinking about his debt. As he follows her instructions, he begins to change. The chapter ends before the result is revealed.
• Ye Chuqi’s plan draws on her earlier experience using a Demon-Trapping Formation, which had disrupted a rogue’s Spatial Teleportation scroll. She suspects her formations may work unusually well in this world.

Character developments and interactions

Ye Chuqi shows caution around the ants but is willing to risk helping others when she sees them in danger. She is also teaching Xiaojiu movement techniques, helping him become faster and more capable of escaping threats. Xiaojiu trusts Ye Chuqi and follows her unusual instructions without knowing their purpose. San San is wary of her decision but accepts it, confident it can protect her if necessary.

Significant themes

The chapter emphasizes survival and risk management, while contrasting self-preservation with the impulse to help others. It also highlights trust and responsibility: Xiaojiu places himself in Ye Chuqi’s hands, while the academy students maintain order despite their fear. Finally, Ye Chuqi’s reliance on knowledge from past encounters suggests the importance of adaptability and experimentation.

Plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi sets up a stronger, wider version of the Demon-Trapping Formation to deal with the Bone-Rot Soldier Ants pursuing a group of fleeing people. Xiaojiu will serve as one formation eye, making the trap more mobile.
• She also places medicinal-powder packets along the group’s route. The ants rely mainly on scent, so the powder should help obscure the fugitives’ trail.
• The group is led by Kang Nan, an Advanced Class student responsible for protecting his team during an academy assessment. His twenty students have been driven too deep into the Lost Forest after becoming entangled with other travelers and encountering repeated trouble.
• Exhausted and with some already injured, the group cannot outrun the relentless ants. Kang Nan refuses to abandon anyone, though that would be the usual way to escape.
• Ye Chuqi appears on a tree branch and throws packets to the fleeing group. Most dismiss her actions, but Kang Nan stops to speak with her. She explains how the powder may help them escape and gives him a packet. He asks what she plans to do.

Character developments

• Ye Chuqi shows careful planning and a willingness to help others, while recognizing the limits of her strength. She prepares a trap rather than attempting to fight the swarm directly.
• Kang Nan is shown as a capable, responsible leader who puts himself at the rear and refuses to sacrifice anyone, despite the danger and his doubts about surviving.

Character interactions

• San San recognizes Ye Chuqi’s plan to reuse the Demon-Trapping Formation.
• Ye Chuqi and Kang Nan meet as his group passes. She explains her strategy, while he is concerned about what she intends to do after helping them.

Significant themes

• Leadership and responsibility: Kang Nan’s refusal to abandon the vulnerable contrasts with the pragmatic sacrifice often used against the ants.
• Preparation over force: Ye Chuqi relies on planning, formation techniques, and scent-masking powder rather than taking on overwhelming numbers directly.
• Courage and compassion: Ye Chuqi intervenes despite the risks, and Kang Nan stays behind rather than save himself at others’ expense.

Key plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi tells Kang Nan to stand still beneath a tree while she confronts the approaching Bone-Rot Soldier Ants. Though terrified and unsure of her plan, he agrees.
• Ye Chuqi places two Purified Beast Cores in the ground and forms a Demon-Trapping Formation. The ants engulf her, then rush toward Kang Nan—but a protective halo shields him.
• Kang Nan remains motionless, trusting Ye Chuqi’s warning that moving would kill him. The formation holds off the ants surrounding him.
• From the formation’s gate, Ye Chuqi controls the array. Once most of the ants are inside its range, she crushes an essence Beast Core and fully activates it, creating a vast, cage-like barrier over the forest.
• Meanwhile, the Imperial Capital Academy students realize Kang Nan is missing. They consider going back but conclude they are too weak to help. Though grief-stricken, they continue on, believing his sacrifice gave them a chance to survive.

Character developments

• Ye Chuqi reveals her tactical skill and confidence, using Kang Nan as a protected focal point while positioning herself to control the formation. She correctly judges that he can hold his nerve.
• Kang Nan is frightened but chooses to trust Ye Chuqi and obey her instructions, showing courage despite his doubts.
• The students begin to recognize how much they depended on Kang Nan. Their earlier assumptions that protecting them was simply his duty give way to guilt and grief.

Significant themes

• Trust under pressure: Kang Nan’s survival depends on trusting a stranger when he cannot understand her plan.
• Courage and self-control: His refusal to move is an act of bravery, even though he feels terrified.
• Sacrifice and responsibility: The students view Kang Nan’s disappearance as a sacrifice made to help them escape.
• Dependence and gratitude: The rookies confront how vulnerable they are and how often Kang Nan protected them.

Character interactions

• Ye Chuqi gives Kang Nan a stark choice—stand still or flee—and reassures him with a firm warning. Her composure contrasts with his fear.
• The students argue over whether to return for Kang Nan. One turns back in grief, while a companion stops him, insisting that they must survive and not waste Kang Nan’s sacrifice.

• Key events: After escaping the Bone-Rot Soldier Ants, the students follow a Junior Class girl’s instinct that a distant dome of light may offer safety. They find it covered in ants, which cannot pass through and are attacking wildly inside. Ye Chuqi moves among them, killing ants with a plain branch. She tells the students Kang Nan is still alive and asks for help clearing the swarm.
• Character developments: The Junior Class girl’s unusual ability to sense danger and opportunity guides the group back. A boy who had insisted on returning for Kang Nan proves his courage by volunteering first, and the others follow. Ye Chuqi shows both formidable skill and practical judgment: she has adapted the formation to trap the ants and prepared sachets that keep them from attacking the volunteers unless provoked.
• Interactions: Ye Chuqi selects the five strongest students—Intermediate Class fighters—and equips them with sachets, warning them to avoid being surrounded. Though frightened, they enter the dome and join her. Their weapons work, but killing the ants is slow and physically unpleasant; the unarmed fighter suffers especially because he must get close to the ants’ foul burst bodies.
• Themes: Courage means acting despite fear, particularly to protect or rescue others. Cooperation turns a dangerous situation into a manageable one, while practical preparation and trust in others matter as much as raw strength.

Key events

• Ye Chuqi leads five exhausted students into the Formation to help eliminate the Bone-Rot Soldier Ants. They are overwhelmed by the ants’ numbers and quickly lose strength.
• To keep the students from becoming a burden, Ye Chuqi has them rest inside a small circle marking a Formation key point. Staying there is safe; leaving it exposes them to attack.
• With the students occupying that point, Kang Nan can leave his protected position. Ye Chuqi explains how the ants react to the medicine packets, and he joins her in fighting them.
• Kang Nan’s advanced training and projected Fighting Spirit greatly speed up the cleanup. After the last ants are killed, he collapses from exhaustion and lingering terror.

Character developments

• The students recognize the gulf between their abilities and Ye Chuqi’s, but their concern for their companions keeps them fighting.
• Kang Nan moves from paralyzed fear to action, choosing to help despite knowing the danger. His ordeal, however, leaves him shaken.
• Ye Chuqi remains practical and composed, managing the group’s safety while reassessing her own strength. Seeing Kang Nan fight makes her realize that the world’s fighters are more formidable than she had assumed.

Themes

• Courage under pressure: The students and Kang Nan act despite fear and exhaustion.
• Teamwork and sacrifice: The students accept danger to protect those still outside and prevent the ants from escaping.
• Limits and humility: Ye Chuqi learns not to underestimate a world whose fighters cultivate strength in ways unfamiliar to her.
• The cost of survival: Defeating the ants takes both physical effort and a lasting psychological toll.

Character interactions

• Ye Chuqi directs the students firmly, but gives them a chance to rest rather than pushing them past their limits.
• She reassures Kang Nan about the medicine packets and the risks of leaving his protected spot, though her blunt explanation nearly reignites his panic.
• Kang Nan and Ye Chuqi fight side by side, each gaining a new appreciation of the other’s abilities.

• The immediate danger ends: Ye Chuqi clears the last Bone-Rot Soldier Ants from the Demon-Trapping Formation, saving Xiaojiu and the surviving academy students. Once Xiaojiu moves from the formation’s center, its protective halo disappears. The students realize that everyone has survived what seemed an impossible ordeal.
• The survivors prepare for further danger: Ye Chuqi warns that the ant scent may attract more Bone-Rot Soldier Ants, so the group must wash, mask their scent, and destroy their contaminated clothes. Kang Nan leads them to a nearby stream, where they clean up and change.
• Xiaojiu’s practical needs are met: With no spare clothes of his own, Xiaojiu washes in the stream and begins making clothes from the beast hides Ye Chuqi has saved for him. Kang Nan offers him a spare uniform; Xiaojiu hesitates until Ye Chuqi jokes that it is free. He accepts, but keeps the hides as makeshift armor and carefully applies Ye Chuqi’s insect-repelling scent-masking powder.
• The group begins to reconnect: Once the immediate crisis passes, Kang Nan introduces himself and the students as members of the Imperial Capital Academy. His formal introduction unexpectedly makes Ye Chuqi laugh, revealing her youthful side; Kang Nan is surprised to learn she is about the same age as the junior students, despite her extraordinary combat ability and composure.
  Character developments and interactions: Ye Chuqi remains alert and resourceful even after the battle, planning for renewed danger and helping the survivors. Xiaojiu shows his continued reliance on her while also taking care of his own needs in his guarded, practical way. Kang Nan shifts from shock to responsibility, organizing his classmates and offering Xiaojiu clothes; his respect for Ye Chuqi grows as he recognizes the mismatch between her young age and formidable strength.
  Themes: Survival depends on vigilance even after a victory; practical cooperation helps restore order after trauma; and appearances can be misleading, as Ye Chuqi’s age contrasts sharply with her capability.

Plot and key events

• Ye Chuqi’s laughter at the academy’s class naming briefly breaks her sense of being immersed in this unfamiliar world. She introduces herself and Xiaojiu, then asks how the students came so deep into the Lost Forest.
• Kang Nan explains that the group was misled, their compass was tampered with, and they lost their way. They were eventually pursued by Bone-Rot Soldier Ants.
• The students suspect the danger was arranged to harm their supervising teacher, Bai Fenghua. His rival Ernie was meant to lead the trip, but Bai joined out of concern for the students, apparently worsening the feud.
• After resting, the group sets out immediately to find their way back and report what happened to Bai. Ye Chuqi and Xiaojiu lead, Kang Nan brings up the rear, and the Intermediate Class students protect the younger ones.

Character developments and interactions

• Ye Chuqi is curious and outspoken, but also protective: she condemns Ernie’s conduct and urges the students to tell Bai everything. Her confident manner inspires the sole girl among the Junior Class, who admires Ye Chuqi and hopes to become like her.
• Kang Nan is burdened by the responsibility of bringing the younger students home safely, but he regains his spirits when the group resolves to expose Ernie. The students share his regret at having been led astray.
• The students have become tougher and more coordinated through their ordeal. The Intermediate Class members communicate and work together more effectively, while the Junior Class students show greater resilience.
• Ye Chuqi’s amused, casual manner contrasts with the danger of their circumstances, while her exchange with Kang Nan helps reveal the political conflict behind the group’s predicament.

Significant themes

• Political rivalry and abuse of power: Innocent students are put in danger as tools in a feud between teachers.
• Growth through adversity: The students’ teamwork and toughness improve after facing danger.
• Responsibility and protection: Kang Nan’s commitment to the younger students, Bai’s concern for them, and Ye Chuqi’s leadership all highlight the duty to safeguard others.
• Aspiration and role models: The Junior Class girl’s admiration of Ye Chuqi shows how courage and independence can inspire others.

Plot points and events

• Ye Chuqi’s stamina impresses the exhausted students. She teaches Kang Nan and Xiaojiu a horse stance; Kang Nan struggles, while Xiaojiu’s wilderness-honed strength lets him endure long practice and beat several classmates in strength-only sparring.
• The boys quickly accept Xiaojiu into their group, bonding through roughhousing and repeated attempts to make him tell stories about Ye Chuqi.
• After several days, the group reaches the relatively safer outskirts of the Lost Forest. Ye Chuqi warns that human ambushes are more common near the exit, where opportunists target tired returning adventurers.
• Kang Nan realizes the journey has felt unusually easy since Ye Chuqi joined them. Their clean uniforms and energetic appearance attract attention from two groups of suspicious adventurers, though the students’ academy affiliation makes the watchers hesitate.
• Xiaojiu suddenly detects someone unpleasant from his past and grows tense, prompting Ye Chuqi to ask what is wrong.

Character developments and interactions

• Kang Nan moves from skepticism and exhaustion toward cautious trust in Ye Chuqi’s training, noticing that his legs may be getting stronger.
• Xiaojiu demonstrates his physical ability and quickly earns the boys’ camaraderie, despite his stern manner. His sharp senses also make him alert to danger.
• Ye Chuqi acts as trainer and guide, keeping the group moving and recognizing the risks awaiting them near the forest’s edge.
• Kang Nan and Xiaojiu explain the ambushers’ motives and help Ye Chuqi understand the danger posed by people, not just magical beasts.
• The boys’ teasing, sparring, and roughhousing establish an easy, affectionate group bond.

Significant themes

• Effort versus taking the easy way: Ye Chuqi’s training builds strength through persistence, while the ambushers hope to profit from others’ hard work.
• Appearances and misjudgment: The students look like promising targets, but their cheerful bearing reflects relief at surviving rather than valuable spoils.
• Trust and camaraderie: Shared hardship and play bring the boys together, even as the group approaches a new threat.

Chapter Summary

• Ye Chuqi remembers that Xiaojiu had been chased through the forest by a High-Rank Magic Beast because of a group of adventurers. Xiaojiu confirms they are dangerous and worries they may discover he survived and target him—or involve Ye Chuqi.
• Ye Chuqi reassures him that the Imperial Capital Academy teacher leading the rescued students may offer protection, since the adventurers would not want their wrongdoing exposed. She also urges Xiaojiu to become strong enough to defend himself. He agrees, though his attempt to smile shows how unfamiliar he is with expressing warmth.
• When the students emerge from the Lost Forest, relief overwhelms them and they embrace and cry. Ye Chuqi privately jokes about avoiding the emotional scene.
• Bai Fenghua arrives and immediately feels a powerful bloodline resonance with Ye Chuqi. He suspects she may be the child who went missing from the Bai family years ago, despite her changed hair and eyes.
• Bai Fenghua approaches Ye Chuqi gently, asks her name, and wonders whether she dyed her hair. He asks to see her natural appearance. Ye Chuqi senses that he may be about to claim her as family, but believes this cannot be right because she knows she was abandoned as a baby at Lush Mountain. The excerpt ends before the mystery is resolved.

Character Developments and Interactions

• Xiaojiu shows growing trust in Ye Chuqi and accepts her encouragement, while revealing his fear of becoming a burden to her.
• Ye Chuqi is protective and practical, offering Xiaojiu both immediate support and a goal of self-reliance. Her humor also contrasts with the students’ emotional release.
• Bai Fenghua is struck by Ye Chuqi’s presence and behaves with unusual tenderness, apparently trying not to frighten her.
• Ye Chuqi and Bai Fenghua share an unexplained physical or magical connection, setting up a possible family revelation.

Significant Themes

• Trust and protection: Ye Chuqi reassures Xiaojiu that he need not face danger alone.
• Strength and independence: Her support comes with the expectation that he will eventually protect himself.
• Relief after trauma: The students’ tears reflect the weight of surviving the forest.
• Identity and family: Bai Fenghua’s recognition raises questions about Ye Chuqi’s origins and the difference between what she believes about herself and what her bloodline may reveal.