Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Liang Hua, Lei Jun, and Shi Yu expect Shen Bing to support industry-wide standards for AI phones, hoping that doing so will open the door to cooperation with Phantom Immortal Technology.
• Shen Bing argues that standards have little value if other companies cannot match his firm’s technology. He claims Phantom Immortal Technology can keep a generational lead, releasing new advances before rivals can catch up.
• He acknowledges that his company cannot serve the entire global market and says he would prefer to work with domestic manufacturers, partly to help them compete with Apple and Samsung.
• Shen proposes two forms of cooperation: licensing technology for the companies to manufacture themselves, or supplying components. He cautions that neither option will include the technology used in the Phantom Spirit Phone, though both will outperform rival companies’ offerings.
• When Liang Hua asks about pricing, Shen has Li Rong distribute prepared documents to the three executives, signaling that he came to the meeting ready to negotiate.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing presents himself as confident about his company’s technological lead and direct about his preference for domestic partners. His frankness is partly sincere, but he also understands the business dynamics and has come prepared with terms.
• Liang Hua, Lei Jun, and Shi Yu shift from trying to persuade Shen to establish standards to eagerly pursuing the licensing and component deals he offers. They interpret his stance as patriotic enthusiasm, though the narration suggests they underestimate his strategic awareness.
• Shen steers the conversation by interrupting Liang Hua’s initial argument, explaining his position, and then setting the options for cooperation. Li Rong supports him by distributing the documents.

Significant themes

• Technological advantage versus shared standards: Standards matter less when one company is far ahead of the rest of the industry.
• Competition and leverage: Shen’s claimed ability to outpace rivals gives him control over the negotiations.
• National cooperation and commercial ambition: Shen favors domestic companies as partners in the effort to challenge Apple and Samsung, while still reserving his company’s best technology.
• Appearance versus reality: The executives mistake Shen’s directness for youthful impulsiveness, overlooking that he is acting deliberately.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing presents Liang Hua and his colleagues with prices for Phantom Immortal Technology’s components and technologies. Manufacturers can license the Ling-1 chip and remote-charging module, but must buy the Phantom Vision Screen, high-capacity battery, and SLR-grade camera directly from his company.
• Shen explains that other manufacturers could not produce those three items even if they had the technical knowledge, because their manufacture depends on industrial capabilities Phantom Immortal Technology possesses. After more than two hours of negotiations, the parties settle their arrangements.
• Apple’s sharp price cut helps the Apple 10 recover sales, but puts pressure on Huawei and other Chinese phone makers. Customers who bought the phone before the reduction complain, though Apple offers no refunds.
• Huawei, Xiaomi, and Vivo announce partnerships with Phantom Immortal Technology. Rather than put every costly feature into one phone, they plan to offer selected technologies in different models, balancing performance and price.
• The announcements alarm Apple and Samsung and unsettle the global phone market. Many consumers decide to wait for the new models, especially since the Phantom Spirit Phone remains expensive and hard to obtain.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing reinforces his reputation for confidence and technological superiority, presenting a carefully prepared price list and explaining the limits of licensing.
• Liang Hua and his colleagues are impressed by the fair prices and by Phantom Immortal Technology’s manufacturing advantage. They negotiate with Shen rather than challenge his terms.
• Huawei, Xiaomi, and Vivo respond strategically to the competitive threat: they cooperate with Shen’s company and selectively incorporate its technology.
• Apple’s price cut benefits new buyers but frustrates recent customers; Apple refuses to compensate them.

Significant themes

• Technology depends on manufacturing capacity: Knowing how a product works is not enough if a company lacks the industrial precision to make it.
• Strategic cooperation and competition: Phantom Immortal Technology’s components let Chinese brands strengthen their products while reshaping the market.
• Price and consumer uncertainty: Discounts and new product announcements make buyers hesitate, while companies fight to balance advanced features with affordability.
• Uneven access to innovation: The Phantom Spirit Phone remains desirable, but limited production and high cost keep it out of reach for many consumers.

Key plot points and events

• Two incidents showcase the Phantom Spirit Phone’s unusually capable AI. In Huaxia, it detects a driver’s crash, calls the police, and shares his location, enabling a helicopter rescue. In Germany, it alerts police to a kidnapping, leading to the kidnappers’ swift arrest.
• Tests reveal that ordinary phones’ AI cannot match the Phantom Spirit Phone’s independent judgment, especially when screens are off or emergencies become complicated. Users connect this capability to the Ling chips, which Shen Bing described as purpose-built to unlock an AI system’s full potential.
• Public excitement surges. The phone is now seen not just as a high-performance device but as a possible personal protector—especially valuable for children, elderly people living alone, and others at risk.
• At Huawei headquarters, Liang Hua and Ren Fei discuss the chips and the potential elderly-care market. Ren directs Liang to acquire access to the Dragon Scale System’s application interface, develop care-service functions, and coordinate with hospitals and aid organizations.

Character developments and interactions

• Liang Hua moves from surprise at the Ling chips’ performance to recognizing their commercial and social potential. He also questions Shen Bing’s motives.
• Ren Fei sees the chips as an opportunity to build elderly-care services, but also interprets their low price and broad availability as part of a strategy to earn public support. He explains to Liang that goodwill can protect a company from powerful opponents.
• Shen Bing, though absent from the conversation, is portrayed as strategic rather than saintly: his innovations and outreach help balance competing interests and strengthen Phantom Immortal Technology’s position.
• Ren’s analysis impresses Liang, who realizes how carefully the company’s public image and influence may be developing.

Significant themes

• AI as a safety net: Technology can prevent or mitigate emergencies and address gaps in care.
• Innovation and social benefit: A product’s value can extend beyond performance to protecting lives and easing social problems.
• Public support as power: Ren argues that being perceived as beneficial can serve as both a moral good and a shield against hostile interests.
• Corporate ambition and limits: The chapter hints that Phantom Immortal Technology may grow beyond an ordinary company, while acknowledging that national governments remain the dominant powers.

Plot points

• The Ling series chips are recognized worldwide as a breakthrough that could launch a new era of artificial intelligence and reshape the global economy. Because Phantom Immortal Technology controls the only truly capable AI chips, companies rush to develop their own or seek access to the technology.
• Shen Bing works in Phantom Immortal Tower on a high-speed storage chip based on Quantum Information Transmission Technology, while using a custom photon interferometer as part of his effort to build precision experimental equipment.
• Qiuqiu reports that major firms, including Intel, Apple, Google, Microsoft, and Facebook, are investing in AI chips. Shen suspects Samsung is more interested in Phantom Immortal Technology’s display screens than its chips.
• Shen agrees to arrange joint AI-chip development through Facebook, but plans to make Apple and the other companies fund the work while Phantom Immortal Technology retains control—an approach reminiscent of its Dragon Scale System strategy.
• Later, Qiuqiu tells Shen that geneticist Clarence has made an unexpected discovery while re-examining an insect brought back by the Blade Mercenary Corps. Clarence has found a mysterious gene sequence.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen is confident and calculating, using the AI-chip boom to strengthen his company’s leverage over rivals, while continuing ambitious research of his own.
• Qiuqiu acts as both lab assistant and strategic aide. She tracks corporate activity, relays news, and playfully teases Shen with hints about Clarence’s discovery.
• Shen and Qiuqiu’s easy, familiar exchanges show their close working relationship. Her suspenseful delivery briefly frustrates him, but she eventually points him toward the genetics lab.
• Clarence remains offstage, but his work advances the chapter’s biological mystery.

Significant themes

• Technological disruption: AI chips may trigger a new industrial revolution, transforming everyday life, business, and social hierarchies.
• Control and dependence: Companies fear relying on Phantom Immortal Technology, while Shen seeks influence by controlling both AI hardware and software.
• Scientific possibility and uncertainty: The chapter shifts from sweeping technological change to a potentially extraordinary discovery hidden in an insect’s genes.

Key plot points and events

• Clarence tells Shen Bing that, alongside the insects’ unusual gene-fusion sequence, researchers have found a segment of DNA unlike any known biological gene. It forms a closed ring at the end of a chromosome.
• The ring-shaped segment carries substantial genetic information, but its genes are recessive and their purpose is unknown. Clarence suspects an external force may have created it.
• Clarence proposes making the genes dominant to reveal their effects. Shen Bing worries that deliberately altering the DNA could trigger something dangerous, especially if the segment was engineered, but ultimately authorizes the experiment with strict safety precautions.
• Still uneasy, Shen Bing orders Qiuqiu to monitor the lab and report any problems immediately. He leaves before the experiment begins.
• Over dinner with Yun Xue and Yuan Wei, Shen Bing remains distracted and raises the possibility that things like zombies or ghosts might exist beyond humanity’s understanding. Yun Xue dismisses the idea as unprovable, while Yuan Wei jokes that their conversation is ruining the meal.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shows both scientific curiosity and unusual caution: despite normally trusting research, he senses danger in tampering with the mysterious DNA. His unease follows him from the lab to dinner.
• Clarence is eager to investigate the discovery and confident in the lab’s safety procedures. Shen Bing gives him permission but makes the risks clear.
• Yun Xue responds lightheartedly and skeptically to Shen Bing’s speculation.
• Yuan Wei reacts with comic exasperation, cutting off the zombie discussion by feeding Yun Xue a piece of meat.

Significant themes

• The limits of scientific knowledge: The strange DNA challenges accepted ideas about genes, evolution, and what humanity understands about life.
• Curiosity versus caution: Discovering what the sequence does may be straightforward, but changing it could have unpredictable consequences.
• Uncertainty and the unknown: Shen Bing’s speculation about hidden phenomena reflects the chapter’s wider unease about forces science cannot yet explain.

Key events

• The mystery of the unusual insect remains unresolved; Clarence and his colleagues must first alter its genes and clone it.
• Shen Bing postpones supervising the experiment because an Indian delegation arrives to negotiate cooperation with Phantom Immortal Technology. Their chief aim is to import Cancer Cure No. 1, though they also raise geothermal technology and sales channels.
• Shen Bing learns that Russian representatives are also on their way, so he wants to conclude the Indian talks promptly.
• At the meeting, the Indian delegation offers strong sales channels and policy support for Cancer Cure No. 1. Zhao Zijun says production is too limited to meet domestic demand, but Shen Bing admits that some supply could be diverted abroad, suggesting the company is using scarcity to strengthen its bargaining position.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is pragmatic and confident. He values access to the Indian market partly because he sees fewer strong local brands competing with his company, and he treats the negotiations as an opportunity to drive up the medicine’s price.
• Yan Lexuan questions whether rushing into talks will make the company look eager. Shen Bing explains that he is trying to manage a crowded schedule, and their playful, familiar exchange highlights their closeness.
• Wang Sheng opens the negotiations smoothly and invites India to state its proposals.
• Zhao Zijun presents the production-limit argument for withholding exports, while Sabra counters with India’s offer of support and argues that some medicine could be redirected overseas.
• Singh and the Indian delegates remain polite and hopeful, interpreting Shen Bing’s admission of possible exports as a sign that a deal may be possible.

Significant themes

• Scarcity and leverage: Limited supply gives the company power to negotiate with countries competing for the medicine.
• Business pragmatism: Shen Bing weighs markets and competitors in terms of commercial advantage, not sentiment.
• Global demand and public pressure: Governments are eager to obtain a cancer treatment their citizens urgently want.
• Power and confidence: Phantom Immortal Technology’s influence is reflected in the arrival of successive national delegations seeking access to its products.

Plot and key events

• Indian representative Singh negotiates with Shen Bing for access to Cancer Cure No. 1. When Singh offers tariff-free entry for the medicine, Shen jokes that the word “tariffs” makes him dizzy, prompting Singh to wonder whether Shen is demanding broader tax exemptions for Phantom Immortal Technology’s products.
• Singh sweetens the offer: India will, in principle, accept Phantom Immortal Technology’s plan to fund, build, and independently manage deep geothermal power stations. The Indian government will still supervise them, provided that oversight does not disrupt normal operations.
• Shen agrees to the oversight arrangement and condition, leaving details such as station locations and scale for later. He suspects India’s agreement is partly driven by the medicine shortage and partly by the example of Japan’s geothermal project. He also knows the company’s equipment contains safeguards he hopes never to need.
• Singh assumes the power-station agreement has secured a substantial medicine allocation. Shen instead commits to 10,000 courses per month, with doses for late-stage cancer patients, promising more as production rises.
• When Singh asks for a larger supply, Shen says capacity is limited and warns that having Indian officials distribute the medicine could trigger accusations of favoritism. He proposes letting patients apply directly and using Phantom Immortal Technology’s AI to select the most seriously ill, as it does in Huaxia.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains calm, shrewd, and lightly teasing. He uses the tariff remark to unsettle Singh, readily accepts government supervision while protecting the company’s operations, and controls the medicine allocation rather than letting Singh dictate terms.
• Singh is personable but under pressure to secure medicine. He carefully recalculates Shen’s hints, accepts the geothermal arrangement, and grows frustrated when the promised supply proves smaller than hoped.
• Wang Sheng supports Shen’s presentation of geothermal power as a benefit to India and the world, though Singh privately bristles at the implication that India is a source of global pollution.

Themes

• Negotiation and leverage: India trades acceptance of the geothermal plan for access to scarce medicine, while Shen retains control over both the infrastructure terms and allocation.
• Scarcity and fairness: Limited supplies make distribution politically sensitive; transparent, illness-based selection can reduce claims of favoritism.
• Trust versus control: India agrees to let the company operate power stations independently but reserves oversight, while Shen’s hidden safeguards hint at mutual suspicion.
• Public benefit and national interests: Geothermal power and cancer treatment promise broad social gains, yet each side also pursues its own strategic interests.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing explains that Phantom Immortal Technology, rather than India’s government, should sell and distribute Cancer Cure No. 1. This would let India claim credit for securing the medicine while avoiding public blame over who receives limited supplies.
• Singh agrees, asking that India receive the right to designate recipients for 10% of its monthly allocation. He also wants the arrangement kept quiet.
• Shen Bing then presents the company’s own conditions: India should offer favorable policies for Phantom Immortal Technology’s investments, including tax and land concessions, and low tariffs on its exports.
• Singh promises the most favorable policies and lowest tariffs. Wang Sheng treats this as a promise of zero tariffs and offers to increase India’s medicine allocation as production grows. Singh realizes the misunderstanding but decides not to correct it, judging that the immediate benefit outweighs the cost.
• The parties record their agreement in a memorandum and later make a statement of intent public.
• News of India becoming the first approved export destination for Cancer Cure No. 1 causes a worldwide stir. Observers connect the deal to India’s willingness to accept Phantom Immortal Technology’s geothermal power stations, a project previously stalled over control of the facilities.
• Phantom Immortal Technology publicly presents the agreement as a victory for global environmental protection.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is pragmatic and strategic: he recognizes India’s political motives, accepts its allocation request, and uses the negotiations to secure advantages for his company.
• Singh tries to protect his government’s public image while obtaining medicine and investment benefits. He initially speaks confidently, but is unsettled by Wang Sheng’s interpretation of his tariff pledge. He ultimately chooses silence rather than risk disrupting the agreement.
• Wang Sheng handles the commercial negotiations and exploits Singh’s broad wording, linking tariff concessions to a future increase in India’s medicine supply.
• The brief cough from one of Singh’s companions interrupts Singh just as he begins to endorse Shen’s proposal, creating a moment of awkward tension before Singh continues.

Significant themes

• Politics and public perception: Governments seek credit for benefits while shifting blame for unpopular decisions.
• Bargaining and leverage: Access to scarce medicine is traded for investment concessions and cooperation on energy infrastructure.
• Power and national interests: India’s earlier resistance to foreign management of power stations softens when the prospect of Cancer Cure No. 1 raises the stakes.
• Strategic ambiguity: The tariff misunderstanding shows how imprecise promises can become tools in negotiations—and how each side may accept ambiguity when it serves its interests.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• The public speculates that Phantom Immortal Technology could help tackle environmental problems. Its geothermal power technology may reduce pollution from electricity generation, though it cannot solve air pollution on its own.
• People connect the company’s advanced battery technology to electric vehicles. Since batteries and charging remain major weaknesses of existing new energy cars, many believe Phantom Immortal could transform the automotive industry.
• Online discussion quickly shifts from the company’s cancer treatment and geothermal power to demands that its chairman, Shen Bing, make a new energy vehicle. Consumers see it as a reassuring alternative to both polluting fuel cars and still-imperfect electric models.
• At Phantom Immortal Tower, Wang Sheng asks Shen about the public reaction. Shen acknowledges the company’s battery technology has prompted the speculation but says it has only recently entered the phone business and should not rush into cars.
• Wang argues that the timing is ideal: the electric-vehicle market is still open, and competitors may soon catch up. Shen says battery power alone would not be enough; any Phantom Immortal car should feature truly advanced technology. Wang suggests autonomous driving, potentially built on the company’s Dragon Scale Intelligent Core.

Character developments

• Shen Bing remains ambitious but selective. He is open to entering the car industry, yet insists the company’s products must offer more than a single technical advantage.
• Wang Sheng shows a practical, market-focused outlook. He urges Shen to seize the opportunity before competitors mature and proposes autonomous driving as a natural use for the company’s existing technology.

Character interactions

• Wang enthusiastically presses Shen to act on the public’s demand, while Shen responds cautiously and playfully.
• Their exchange highlights their contrasting approaches: Wang focuses on market timing; Shen focuses on making a product worthy of the company’s reputation.

Significant themes

• Technological disruption: Breakthrough batteries and clean power could reshape both energy and transportation.
• Public expectations and hype: Consumers quickly redirect their attention toward whichever innovation seems most relevant to everyday life.
• Environmental progress versus practical needs: Cleaner vehicles appeal to the public, but adoption depends on overcoming shortcomings in range, charging, and affordability.
• Ambition and standards: Shen’s reluctance to enter a market with only an incremental advantage reflects the company’s drive to deliver transformative products.

Key events

• Shen Bing dismisses autonomous driving as a supporting feature rather than a major breakthrough and says his more ambitious automotive idea is not yet technically possible.
• He tells Wang Sheng to build anticipation—and fear—by announcing Phantom Immortal Technology’s entry into the car industry.
• The company announces it will develop cars. After consumers worry this will distract it from producing the Phantom Spirit Phone, it quickly clarifies that phone production remains its top priority and automotive work is still in research and development.
• The announcement unsettles automotive leaders worldwide. They view Phantom Immortal Technology as a proven industry disruptor, citing its impact on telescopes, geothermal power, operating systems, and smartphones.
• In Detroit, General Motors and Ford leaders convene emergency meetings. General Motors chairwoman Mary summons the board despite it being the middle of the night; the chapter ends as a sleepy board member questions the urgency.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains confident and provocative, treating the barrier to his automotive ambitions as a minor obstacle and deliberately using the company’s reputation to unsettle competitors.
• Wang Sheng is initially confused by Shen Bing’s strategy, then recognizes that the announcement alone could influence consumers and shake industry confidence. He becomes eager to see what technology Shen Bing will develop.
• Apple executive Bedi briefly hopes the automotive announcement will distract from Phantom Immortal’s phone business, but the company’s swift clarification ruins that hope. He concludes Apple’s real weakness is inferior technology and considers riskier alternatives.
• Automotive executives, especially at GM and Ford, react with alarm. Mary responds decisively by calling an emergency board meeting, while one director remains skeptical.

Significant themes

• Disruption and reputation: Phantom Immortal’s history makes even an announcement feel like a threat to established industries.
• Corporate power and consumer influence: The company’s plans can affect buying decisions and potentially shake markets before it has released a product.
• Technology as the decisive advantage: Bedi recognizes that competitors cannot recover through public relations alone; they need stronger technology.
• Fear of the unknown: Automotive leaders fear the company’s entry precisely because its capabilities and ambitions remain unclear.

Key plot points and events

• Executives from General Motors debate Phantom Immortal Technology’s announced entry into the automotive industry. Several doubt a phone company can succeed in cars, but Mary and chairman’s assistant Osalo warn that the company’s rapid breakthroughs and record of delivering mature products make it dangerous to underestimate.
• Osalo points to Phantom Immortal’s existing battery, charging, and engine technologies, which could be adapted for vehicles. The executives recognize that the company may already have the expertise to build competitive cars.
• Director Moore urges General Motors to organize allies and persuade the U.S. president to respond, arguing that Phantom Immortal’s rise could threaten American jobs. Mary reminds him that the company has already challenged powerful interests, including Apple and the previous president.
• Similar worried meetings take place at Ford, Toyota, Nissan, and Volkswagen.
• Investors react immediately: automotive shares fall in Huaxia, dragging down the broader market by more than a hundred billion in value. Japan suffers even greater losses, since it has no daily stock-movement limits.
• Many Huaxia consumers postpone buying cars, expecting Phantom Immortal’s future vehicles to be worth waiting for. After the market closes, online discussion focuses on how one announcement from Chairman Shen caused such a sharp sell-off.

Character developments and interactions

• Osalo emerges as a clear-eyed advocate of taking Phantom Immortal seriously, backing his warning with the company’s technical achievements and fast product timelines.
• Mary challenges the executives’ complacency and counters Moore’s political strategy by pointing to Phantom Immortal’s past clashes with powerful companies and leaders.
• Moore shifts the discussion toward coordinated political action, framing the company’s expansion as a threat to American employment and livelihoods.
• The automakers’ executives move from skepticism toward alarm as they consider how Phantom Immortal could repurpose its existing technologies.

Significant themes

• Disruption and established power: A single ambitious entrant can unsettle entire industries and challenge corporate and political authorities.
• Reputation and anticipation: Phantom Immortal’s past breakthroughs make markets and consumers react before it has even revealed a car.
• Investor fear and herd behavior: Expectations of future competition trigger massive losses, particularly in Japan.
• Technological advantage: Control of batteries, charging, and engines gives Phantom Immortal a credible path into automotive manufacturing.

Chapter summary

Key plot points and events

• Phantom Immortal Technology’s announcement has triggered a worldwide market shock, wiping out roughly a trillion in market value.
• Shen Bing inspects a newly completed, improved Ion Cannon built by Colin’s Military-Industrial Experimental Zone. It is smaller than the original design, can reach targets more than a thousand kilometers away through the atmosphere, and could destroy a medium-sized city at maximum power. Its current reactor limits it to 20% output.
• Colin suggests mounting the cannon on a satellite and using it against anyone who displeases Shen Bing. Shen rejects the idea, instead ordering that the future spaceship be fitted with an interface for the weapon and asking researchers to accelerate controlled-fusion development.
• Shen Bing learns that Bunier has produced 120 brain-modification treatments. Ten have already been tested on Bunier’s subordinates, with strong improvements in memory, calculation, and reasoning. Shen orders the remaining program to focus on researchers at the High-Energy Physics Research Institute to speed fusion research.
• Shen reviews progress on the spaceship: its modular structure is expected to be completed within a month. The disk-shaped craft will be made of adamantium alloy and designed for sub-light travel; its fusion ramjet engines remain under development.
• The chapter ends with Gao Jingchuan calling Shen Bing and teasing him about his latest technological announcement.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is pleased by the Ion Cannon’s power but rejects conquest and casual aggression. His ambitions remain focused on space exploration and, eventually, meeting alien civilizations. He is also proud of the spaceship as a personal achievement.
• Colin is enthusiastic, technically capable, and eager to turn the cannon into an offensive weapon. Shen repeatedly reins in his violent suggestions while still valuing his work.
• Qiuqiu provides updates on the drug trials and spaceship construction; it also tries to claim credit for helping design the ship’s modular structure, which Shen pointedly ignores.
• Gao Jingchuan enters through a phone call, bantering with Shen about Phantom Immortal Technology’s activities.

Significant themes

• Scientific power versus responsibility: The Ion Cannon could devastate cities, but Shen refuses to use technology for domination or intimidation.
• Ambition beyond Earth: Shen sees earthly power struggles as trivial compared with building a spaceship and reaching the stars.
• Technological acceleration: Brain enhancement, specialized teams, and advanced manufacturing are presented as ways to overcome research bottlenecks—especially the challenge of controlled nuclear fusion.
• Pride and ownership: Shen takes personal satisfaction in creating a ship that could make Phantom Immortal Technology a world-changing force.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing receives a call from Gao Jingchuan, who first asks whether Phantom Immortal Technology has built any cars. Shen Bing says it has not, despite announcing its plans to enter the automotive industry.
• Gao reveals that the Chief wants reassurance that the company’s move will not disrupt China’s auto industry. Shen Bing says the company will not compete with domestic automakers in the short term and estimates that its cars will be ready in one or two months.
• Gao also reports that the government is pleased with the company’s batteries and that the military is considering broader cooperation on products such as chips and lenses. Shen Bing is unmoved by the prospect of another large order.
• In the genetics laboratory, Clarence’s team decodes a circular gene sequence found in an insect and uses Lu Qi, a Demon Puppet Artisan, to synthesize a modified DNA sample.
• Producing the sample drains an astonishing one million kilowatt-hours of energy. Clarence’s tests find no visible change in its composition or atomic properties, leaving the energy’s whereabouts a mystery.
• Shen Bing orders the sample broken down. The process releases some energy, but less than one-tenth of what Lu Qi used to make it. The chapter ends with the researchers baffled by the apparent energy loss.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains confident and casual, handling the Chief’s concerns diplomatically while showing little interest in government contracts. He responds to the energy mystery with a practical experiment.
• Gao Jingchuan jokes and tries to obtain a prototype car before shifting to his official role as messenger for the Chief and the military.
• Clarence moves from excitement over the successful DNA synthesis to alarm and scientific confusion, promptly consulting Shen Bing.
• Lu Qi follows the synthesis instructions precisely, even at tremendous energy cost, and later reports the incomplete energy recovery.
• Their interactions contrast playful banter between Shen Bing and Gao with the increasingly serious, collaborative investigation in the laboratory.

Significant themes

• Technological ambition and disruption: Phantom Immortal Technology’s plans are powerful enough to concern both government leaders and established industries.
• The limits of scientific understanding: A seemingly successful experiment produces an unexplained energy imbalance that challenges the researchers’ assumptions.
• Human oversight of powerful technology: Clarence reports the anomaly rather than proceeding blindly, and Shen Bing directs a controlled follow-up test.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing and Clarence investigate modified DNA derived from a mysterious insect. Experiments show it can absorb enormous amounts of electrical energy—roughly 100,000 kilowatt-hours per strand—but rapidly loses about 90%, leaving a stable remainder.
• The energy drains at a steady rate, yet produces no detectable heat, mechanical effects, or known radiation. The researchers cannot explain how the DNA stores the energy or where the lost energy goes.
• Qiuqiu proposes that the energy may be released through a form of radiation their instruments cannot detect. It urges Shen Bing to pause the experiments until he obtains the Divine Puppet Artisan, warning that the insect’s origin and abilities may pose a containment risk.
• Shen Bing accepts the need for caution but remains committed to advancing humanity, arguing that fear of the unknown cannot guide its future.
• The chapter then surveys Phantom Immortal Technology’s rapid growth: its Dragon Scale System, Phantom Spirit Phone, Phantom Vision TV, and geothermal power business are major revenue sources. The company is expanding across multiple industries and now employs more than 10,000 people.
• Phantom Immortal Biotechnology Company is fully established, despite objections to appointing a foreigner as its head.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shifts from scientific curiosity to caution when he considers that the living insect may harbor a dangerous, poorly understood phenomenon. He ultimately remains determined to pursue progress despite the risks.
• Qiuqiu demonstrates independent reasoning and directly challenges Shen Bing’s assumptions, pointing out the limits of human detection technology. Its blunt remark about his “narrow-minded” thinking surprises and mildly irritates him, but he takes its warning seriously.
• Clarence, Lu Qi, and the research team carry out repeated experiments as Shen Bing directs, producing data that confirms the DNA’s unusual energy behavior while leaving its mechanism unexplained.

Significant themes

• Limits of scientific knowledge: Existing instruments and theories may fail to detect or explain phenomena, especially those tied to unknown forms of matter or energy.
• Innovation versus caution: Shen Bing must balance the potential value of a revolutionary energy-storage technology against the risks of experimenting on an unknown living organism.
• Humanity’s future and ambition: Shen Bing believes progress requires confronting uncertainty rather than retreating from it.
• Corporate expansion: Phantom Immortal Technology’s success reflects a transition from a company built around a single breakthrough to a diversified, fast-growing enterprise.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing appoints Edmund, an American former biotech-company owner and researcher, to lead Phantom Immortal Biotechnology. Though some object to placing a foreigner in charge, Shen prioritizes Edmund’s ability and, above all, his absolute loyalty.
• Russian officials negotiate with Phantom Immortal Technology, accompanied by senior Huaxian and Sichuan officials. The parties reach a mutually beneficial agreement: Russia will receive Cancer Cure No. 1, Shen Bing gains permission to introduce geothermal power stations there, and Huaxia secures some Russian technology transfers and investment opportunities.
• After Russia follows India in gaining access to the cancer treatment, other nations feel pressure to negotiate. Edmund’s appointment also sparks speculation that Phantom Immortal Technology may be shifting toward becoming a multinational company.
• In the United States, major business leaders confront the president over Phantom Immortal Technology. Oil companies fear its geothermal power and high-capacity batteries could undermine both the oil and automotive industries. Other companies worry about its growing impact on their markets.
• The president explains that previous attempts to stop Shen Bing—including kidnapping, assassination, and missile attacks—failed and contributed to the former president’s impeachment.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shows that loyalty is more important to him than nationality when selecting leaders. He also welcomes the Huaxian government’s involvement in the Russian negotiations, believing the resulting benefits can strengthen the country.
• Edmund becomes the first foreigner in Phantom Immortal Technology’s senior management, making his appointment a signal of the company’s potential global ambitions.
• Rex, ExxonMobil’s chairman, openly berates the president and pushes for decisive action. He is backed by leaders from major technology, automotive, and energy companies.
• The president is caught between corporate pressure and the risks of confronting Shen Bing. He acknowledges the companies’ concerns but insists that forceful measures have already failed.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and merit versus national identity: Shen Bing’s choice of Edmund challenges the company’s previously all-Huaxian senior leadership.
• Innovation versus entrenched interests: Phantom Immortal Technology’s energy advances threaten industries that have long resisted alternatives to oil.
• Corporate power and political influence: The meeting shows how major companies can pressure the U.S. president and shape national policy.
• Failed coercion and shifting power: Earlier attempts to attack Shen Bing have backfired, leaving established powers with fewer options and growing anxiety.

Plot points and events

• President Rex and other US leaders learn that earlier confrontations involving Shen Bing and Phantom Immortal Technology—including violence in London and Seattle and a missile incident—were deliberately orchestrated by the White House.
• The president says conventional force is unlikely to defeat Shen Bing, especially now that Huaxia has advanced stealth weapons and Phantom Immortal Technology has developed Cancer Cure No. 1. Mary proposes exploiting the company’s global supply chains and sales instead.
• Assistant Winnie interrupts with an urgent NASA report: a meteorite over ten meters wide is approaching Earth, and there is a 90% chance it will strike the US mainland.
• NASA’s director identifies Waltham, Massachusetts, as the likely impact area. During the briefing, he notices the object is slowing down—an apparently impossible change that leads Mary to wonder whether it is not an asteroid at all.
• Elsewhere, Thor Company’s Oliver reflects on his disastrous attempts to acquire Phantom Immortal Technology’s superconducting material. His investment in a Golden Pangolin Device yielded nothing, his mercenary group vanished, and his research base was destroyed. He suspects Shen Bing’s company but cannot retaliate in Huaxia. He then learns that major corporate leaders have visited the White House.

Character developments and interactions

• The president reluctantly admits how badly the US has been outmaneuvered, hoping to maintain support from powerful business leaders. His frustration turns to alarm when the asteroid threat emerges.
• Mary shifts the discussion from military force to economic pressure, then raises the possibility that the approaching object is not a natural asteroid.
• Rex, Bedi, and the other executives move from surprise at the White House’s past actions to anxiety about the imminent impact threat, abandoning their discussion of Phantom Immortal Technology.
• Winnie delivers the NASA warning despite her discomfort about interrupting the meeting; the president initially scolds her before taking the news seriously.
• NASA Director Bree reports the agency’s calculations, but the asteroid’s unexpected deceleration leaves him and the White House bewildered.
• Oliver is shown consumed by resentment and financial ruin, while his report about the executives’ White House visit suggests that new opposition to Phantom Immortal Technology may be forming.

Significant themes

• The limits of conventional power: Military and political pressure have failed to control Shen Bing or Huaxia.
• Economic conflict: Mary proposes targeting Phantom Immortal Technology through its international business ties rather than direct violence.
• Uncertainty and the inexplicable: The asteroid’s sudden appearance and slowing speed undermine scientific expectations and introduce the possibility of an extraordinary, non-natural event.
• Revenge and consequences: Oliver’s losses fuel his hatred, while the wider conflict continues to produce unforeseen dangers.

Key plot points and events

• Oliver learns that executives from software, chip, phone, car, and energy companies are heading to the White House, likely to pressure the President over Phantom Immortal Technology. He chooses not to join them, reasoning that the companies’ demands will be powerful enough without him and that Thor Company should avoid taking the lead in an uncertain conflict.
• An unexplained tremor shakes Waltham, Massachusetts. Oliver sends his subordinate Vichy to investigate.
• Vichy and his mercenaries find a huge, smoking, metal sphere by a river, surrounded by scorched rocks. It appears to have fallen from the sky, but it is too intact and the impact too strange to be an ordinary meteorite or crash.
• Before Vichy can report what he has found, Brigadier General Kyle’s troops arrive, disarm and detain his group, and cordon off the area.
• Oliver arrives with his own men but does not resist when Kyle warns him to pretend he saw nothing. Kyle explains that Oliver should take questions to the President, then has Oliver’s group disarmed as well.
• The military imposes martial law across Waltham. Hours later, the sphere and all traces of the incident have been removed. By morning, the town appears normal, though residents remain bewildered.
• Foreign powers detect unusual activity by U.S. forces and turn their spy satellites toward Waltham, but they do not know what caused it.

Character developments and interactions

• Oliver shows caution and strategic restraint: he understands the stakes of the companies’ White House visit but prefers not to risk Thor Company in a conflict he does not yet understand. When confronted by Kyle’s superior force, he wisely avoids a futile fight.
• Vichy is alert and capable, quickly investigating the tremor and recognizing that the object is no ordinary meteorite. His speculation that it might be alien shows his surprise and curiosity.
• Kyle acts under direct presidential orders to secure the object and keep it secret. His warning to Oliver reflects both the seriousness of the mission and the limits of his authority: Oliver is too influential to treat like an ordinary outsider.
• Oliver’s exchange with Vichy establishes their trust and Vichy’s respect for his boss. Oliver’s encounter with Kyle, meanwhile, becomes a tense negotiation shaped by power, mutual caution, and Oliver’s close ties to the military.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and national security: The government swiftly conceals the mysterious object and controls information about it.
• Power and restraint: Wealth, political influence, and military force all matter, but none gives a character unlimited control.
• Uncertainty and escalation: The unexplained object sparks a major military response and international surveillance, foreshadowing wider consequences.
• Pragmatism: Oliver’s decision to avoid unnecessary risks reflects the chapter’s emphasis on survival and strategic patience.

Plot points and events

• In the United States, Oliver leaves Waltham for Washington, hoping to profit from the mysterious object recovered by the military and to enlist the White House’s help against Phantom Immortal Technology.
• The U.S. publicly describes the Waltham operation as a military exercise, keeping its true purpose secret. Shen Bing initially knows nothing: his satellites cannot monitor space, and U.S. communications were kept beyond Qiuqiu’s reach.
• While searching the Gate to the Immortal Realm for missions and awaiting the nearly finished Divine Puppet Artisan, Shen receives images and recordings Qiuqiu gathered by accessing phones near the object. He concludes that it fell from space and may be an alien spacecraft.
• Concerned about the unknown threat, Shen summons Thorne, Lu Xian, Jack, and others to the Underground Base. He decides to go to the U.S. himself, bringing only a small team and protective suits rather than a larger mercenary force.
• Secretary Jiang calls on behalf of the country’s leadership, explaining that China has also detected the object and wants the Godslayer Mercenary Squad to investigate it. Shen agrees and requests the mission details.

Character development

• Shen Bing moves quickly from curiosity to cautious action. He accepts the risk of going personally because the object’s nature and possible occupants are unknown, and he wants to avoid misjudgments.
• Qiuqiu demonstrates her resourcefulness by collecting images and audio through nearby phones, despite being unable to penetrate the U.S. operation’s secure communications.
• Thorne questions Shen’s decision to go himself and suggests bringing more people, but ultimately follows his orders.
• Oliver is shown as opportunistic, seeking a share of the object’s potential value and using the crisis to pursue his conflict with Phantom Immortal Technology.

Themes

• Secrecy and intelligence: Both governments work to conceal or investigate the event, while technological advantages have clear limits.
• Uncertainty and preparedness: Shen’s alien-ship theory is unconfirmed, but the possibility is dangerous enough to justify caution.
• Power and restraint: Shen has formidable resources, yet chooses a small, controlled team rather than treating the mission as a war.
• Competing interests: Oliver sees the discovery as a business opportunity, while Shen and the governments focus on its potential threat.

Character interactions

• Shen relies on Qiuqiu for intelligence and directs her to alert his team.
• He explains his decision to go personally to Thorne and refuses the suggestion to bring a larger force.
• Secretary Jiang approaches Shen through an encrypted call, requesting a covert investigation by the Godslayer Mercenary Squad; Shen cooperates while keeping the exchange cordial.

Key plot points and events

• Secretary Jiang reports that Shen Bing has agreed to help with the American situation. The Chief suspects Shen’s private research and abilities are connected to the Godslayer Mercenary Squad, but accepts that Shen need not give every invention to the state.
• The Chief and Jiang discuss Shen’s influence on public attitudes toward science, and agree that the government should protect Phantom Immortal Technology from greedy officials. The Chief prefers a peaceful approach toward the United States, trusting Shen to handle the matter himself.
• Unaware of this discussion, Shen travels by Immortal Carriage toward the United States, finding the journey painfully slow. To pass the time, he enters the Gate to the Immortal Realm and accepts a quest from Celestial Venerable Taiyi.
• Shen appears in Taiyi’s palace. Taiyi asks for news of Hell, which has been sealed for more than a thousand years. Shen reports that the Sea of Rebirth is full of skeletons and its waters are flowing backward, causing the Yellow Springs River to reverse as well.

Character developments and interactions

• The Chief is shown as pragmatic and protective of Shen, valuing both his scientific contributions and his ability to inspire the public. He recognizes Shen’s independence rather than demanding control over his work.
• Secretary Jiang supports the Chief’s view and praises Shen’s broader social influence.
• Shen Bing remains confident and resourceful, but also careful about conserving resources. He is amused by his companions’ laughter and modestly downplays his abilities to Taiyi, while privately thinking ahead to the reward.
• Celestial Venerable Taiyi is impressed by Shen’s realm-traveling ability and eager for information about Hell. He is surprised by Shen’s account because it contradicts his understanding of the Yellow Springs River’s course.
• Shen travels with Li Xiao, Jack, and others, joking with them during the flight before turning to his quest.

Significant themes

• Personal achievement and national interest: The Chief believes Shen can serve the country without surrendering all his discoveries to it.
• Science and social influence: Shen’s accomplishments have helped make scientific research an object of admiration among young people.
• Trust and responsibility: The Chief trusts Shen to deal with the Americans, though Shen’s personal trip puts him at greater risk than the Chief realizes.
• Curiosity and changing realities: Hell’s altered geography—especially the backward-flowing river—signals that the sealed realm may have undergone profound changes.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing reports to Celestial Venerable Taiyi that Hell is in ruins: the Sea of Rebirth is filled with dry bones, the Yellow Springs flow backward, and the six paths of reincarnation have collapsed. Taiyi declares it a catastrophe threatening all life in the Three Realms and insists reincarnation must be restored.
• Hoping his service will earn him a reward, Shen Bing receives an Immortal Scripture: the Flight Supernatural Art. He is thrilled that he may finally be able to fly, despite Taiyi’s claim that the art could eventually rival the Great Sage Sun’s Somersault Cloud.
• Shen Bing returns to Illusory Void Island and notices an unexpected fragrance. Little Nine explains that an ordinary stalk of immortal grass has ripened. Though nearly worthless to immortals, the grass can rapidly regenerate lost limbs.
• Shen Bing recognizes its potential as a breakthrough in medicine and biotechnology. He learns the island has only two or three stalks, however, and laments that there is not enough to produce much technology.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing balances outward promises of self-sacrifice with comic self-interest: he expects compensation for helping Taiyi, eagerly accepts the flight art, and is more excited by the grass’s practical value to mortals than by its status among immortals. He also wonders whether his mind is connected to the Immortal Realm Gate.
• Celestial Venerable Taiyi responds gravely to the report, prioritizing the restoration of reincarnation, and rewards Shen Bing for his information. Neither he nor Shen Bing raises the unspoken subject of the Nine-Spirit Primordial Sage.
• Little Nine matter-of-factly explains the grass’s properties and scarcity, unintentionally emphasizing how differently immortals and mortals judge its value.

Significant themes

• Different standards of usefulness: What immortals dismiss as a common weed could transform mortal medicine.
• Self-interest alongside duty: Shen Bing is committed to the main quest but privately bargains for rewards and weighs the value of what he receives.
• Catastrophe and responsibility: The collapse of reincarnation is framed as a crisis for all living beings, not merely a problem for Hell.
• Potential of scientific translation: Shen Bing sees divine resources as possible foundations for technologies such as limb regeneration.