Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing observes that UI energy changes color at the million-player mark, confirming a threshold. He and Bunier classify ordinary consciousness energy as first-order UI energy and the green, million-scale energy as second-order.
• The team plans experiments to determine whether second-order energy can improve products made with first-order energy. Shen Bing leaves before the next transition appears; at ten million players, the energy has not changed, and the next threshold remains somewhere between ten million and three billion.
• The story shifts to Avalon Star, the planet beyond the African wormhole. Zhong Yuanchang leads early climate-control research there, supported by five assistants and a small robot-production line.
• Hua Long arrives to investigate the Protective Light Barrier’s unusually high energy consumption. A nighttime scan detects a powerful, fast-moving object outside the barrier. Zhong recognizes its shape from an image of an enormous skeleton found beneath their site; most of the skeleton was destroyed, with only a small piece retained for research.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains focused on practical research, delegating the energy classification to Bunier and accepting his straightforward naming system.
• Bunier takes initiative in organizing the new research, while the researchers’ advanced abilities distinguish them from ordinary scientists.
• Zhong is responsible for Avalon Star and connects the mysterious moving object to the planet’s earlier discovery.
• Hua, normally confident in his expertise, is shaken by the scan and presses Zhong for answers. Their exchange turns an energy-system problem into a potentially alarming mystery.

Significant themes

• Scientific discovery proceeds through measurement and experimentation, even when the underlying phenomena are poorly understood.
• Advanced technology offers humanity new possibilities, but its consequences—and the forces encountered beyond Earth—remain uncertain.
• The chapter builds suspense by contrasting the orderly work of research with the unexplained presence of a powerful object on a seemingly lifeless world.

Chapter Summary

Key plot points and events

• Hua Long and Zhong Yuanchang observe a gigantic creature circling outside the Protective Light Barrier on the alien planet. Its attacks drain the barrier’s energy across its entire surface, though it has not yet broken through.
• Shen Bing learns of the creature and considers what its unusual, evenly distributed attacks might mean. He suspects it could use spells and decides that capturing and studying it alive is worth pursuing.
• Since transporting it to Earth would be prohibitively expensive, Shen plans to study it on-site. He orders Hua Long to send Standard Robots to investigate cautiously and evacuate if danger arises, while arranging for Master Qiao to install a Charged Particle Cannon and bring research equipment.
• Meanwhile, Wang Sheng’s secretary, Zhao Lin, is overwhelmed by calls from major business leaders seeking Intelligent Robots. The launch of Firmament has prompted mass resignations, leaving companies short-staffed.
• The executives want robots immediately, but Zhao explains that expanded production takes time. When Walmart’s president presses for urgent delivery, Zhao says bluntly, “This isn’t molding clay figurines!” He agrees to ask Wang whether some robots can be supplied first for critical positions.

Character developments

• Shen Bing shifts from concern about the creature’s threat to scientific ambition: despite the risks, he wants to capture it for study. He also prioritizes his people’s safety, explicitly telling Hua Long that the planet can be abandoned rather than risking their lives.
• Hua Long and Zhong Yuanchang remain cautious and uncertain about the creature’s abilities, but Hua Long is reassured by Shen’s concern and commits to investigating.
• Zhao Lin handles pressure from powerful corporate leaders with professionalism and increasing bluntness, pushing back against unrealistic demands.
• The business executives, particularly Walmart’s president, are shown as anxious and humbled by their companies’ dependence on Phantom Immortal Technology.

Significant themes

• Scientific curiosity versus personal risk: Shen wants to study an unprecedented life-form but refuses to treat his personnel as expendable.
• Uncertainty and preparedness: The creature’s attack method and true strength are unknown, so Shen combines investigation with defensive measures.
• Economic disruption caused by automation: Firmament’s launch triggers widespread worker departures, leaving companies dependent on intelligent robots.
• Limits of power and production: Even wealthy corporations cannot simply demand instant supplies; manufacturing capacity takes time to expand.

Character interactions

• Hua Long and Zhong Yuanchang speculate about the creature’s origins and strength before reporting to Shen.
• Shen reassures Hua Long, gives him cautious reconnaissance orders, and explains his plan to study the monster on-site.
• Zhao Lin fields requests from business leaders and refuses to promise immediate delivery, while agreeing to raise the possibility of prioritizing essential roles.

Key events and plot points

• Phantom Immortal Technology begins a global rollout of Intelligent Robots, shipping millions from its vast Gold Island factory. Domestic companies receive most of the early supply, while foreign companies face national quotas.
• To increase output, the company buys in more components from outside suppliers. The robots’ expected lifespan is reduced from decades to at least ten years, a change it discloses openly.
• The huge orders for robot parts create a worldwide manufacturing boom. Huaxia benefits especially: its factories keep operating, new technologies quickly enter production, and its companies secure major contracts. Foreign manufacturers also profit.
• Phantom Immortal Technology expands outsourcing beyond robot parts, both to raise production and to spread technological progress.
• Economists disagree over Firmament’s economic effects. Some point to surging manufacturing and prosperity; others warn that people’s shift into the game will weaken real-world demand. Their concerns draw little public attention as people prioritize playing.

Character developments

• Shen Bing’s goal of replacing cars worldwide shapes the allocation of robots: automakers such as Volkswagen receive some priority so they can produce Flying Cars.
• Phantom Immortal Technology’s role shifts from guarding its technology to confidently sharing and licensing it, reflecting its position as the world’s leading technological power.
• Ordinary people increasingly prioritize life in Firmament, judging the new way of living by whether necessities remain available and game earnings can be spent.

Character interactions

• Phantom Immortal Technology supplies robots to companies and offers buyers of auctioned technologies practical support, including training, equipment modifications, installation, and commissioning.
• Companies compete for limited robot allocations and contracts; suppliers divide component orders among many firms because none can fulfill them alone.
• Economists attempt to shape public opinion, but their warnings are largely ignored by people focused on the game.

Significant themes

• Disruption and adaptation: Firmament unsettles the economy, but industry adjusts through automation, outsourcing, and new production lines.
• Uneven global gains: Huaxia captures the largest share of the manufacturing opportunities, though foreign firms also benefit.
• Prosperity versus uncertainty: Record production suggests a boom, while concerns about weakened consumer demand remain unresolved.
• Power and openness: Having secured technological dominance, Phantom Immortal Technology can share more of its capabilities without fearing competitors.

Summary

• Firmament’s rapid rise: Over three days, Firmament became a routine part of daily life. Attempts to use robots or hired players failed, and the one-account-per-person rule prevented alternate accounts. Players began discovering opportunities and joining sects, while online communities filled with game discussions and trade requests.
• The Hundred-Year Ginseng: One player found a heavenly treasure whose in-game description promised ten additional years of life. Though people questioned whether that effect could be verified in reality, wealthy buyers soon offered billions for it. The owner remained silent, likely because meeting to trade such a valuable item would be dangerous. This highlighted the need for a secure way to exchange rare items.
• A trading system is arranged: Players called on Phantom Immortal Technology to provide safe remote trading. Wang Sheng discussed the issue with Taobao chairman Niu Yu, whose company had already planned to handle the game’s item-trading services. Wang proposed that Taobao run the platform while Phantom Immortal Technology verified the connection between game characters and real identities. Items would be consigned and transferred through in-game houses once payment was complete.
• Fees and safeguards: To limit the effect of real-world money on the game’s economy and balance, Phantom Immortal Technology set a minimum fee of 20 million yuan per transaction and a 20% fee on items worth over 100 million. Taobao opted for a more modest 1% commission. Their broader agreement also covered in-game-currency trades, with banks and monetary authorities overseeing any conversion to real money.
• The first major sale: The two companies launched the platform jointly, prompting excitement among both ordinary and wealthy players. The Ginseng was listed for auction at two billion yuan, with a 50-billion buyout price. Someone immediately paid the full amount, leaving spectators astonished. The extraordinary sale suggests the buyer urgently needed the promised years of life.

Character and relationship developments

• Wang Sheng acts decisively, turning the public’s demand for secure trading into a practical system while protecting the game’s balance—and securing a substantial fee for his company.
• Niu Yu is initially uneasy about Phantom Immortal Technology’s high charges but accepts the arrangement. He avoids matching its fees, mindful of Taobao’s reputation, and sees the deal as a major opportunity for his platform.
• The Ginseng’s owner remains unseen and unresponsive, illustrating the danger of holding—and trying to sell—an extremely valuable item.
• Players and the public shift from curiosity about the treasure to collective pressure for a trustworthy marketplace, then react with disbelief when it sells instantly for 50 billion yuan.

Significant themes

• The value of life: A decade of extra life is portrayed as worth almost any price to those who can afford it.
• Trust and security in commerce: Rare virtual goods become real-world assets, but their value creates risks that private sellers cannot easily manage.
• The merging of virtual and real economies: The chapter explores how game items, real money, platform companies, and financial institutions become interconnected.
• Power and profit: Phantom Immortal Technology can set terms because players trust it, while Taobao gains access to a lucrative global market.

Plot and events

• A Hundred-Year Ginseng from Firmament sells for an astonishing 50 billion, drawing worldwide attention and sending people flocking to the game in hopes of finding similarly valuable items.
• Shen Bing privately considers the price absurd: he plans to produce more life-extending items, so he expects their value to fall as they become more common.
• The buyer is revealed to be the wealthy Ross Family, who bought the ginseng to save their elderly patriarch. After taking it, the patriarch quickly recovers; tests show his cellular activity has reverted by more than a decade. The family publicizes the result, proving that the item really can extend life by about ten years.
• The revelation intensifies players’ excitement and their belief that rarer, more powerful treasures may exist. Unbeknownst to them, Shen Bing has plans for increasingly potent life-extending items.
• Players are learning that Firmament must be treated as a real world, not a conventional game: killing monsters grants no experience, but fighting them and gathering useful materials can strengthen a character.
• Shen Bing’s junior disciple Zhao Yang finally kills a mutant snake after more than a day of effort. Its gallbladder can improve physical strength and vision—and slightly boost cultivation—though it cannot be extracted into reality.
• Many players have joined factions to learn cultivation, but they struggle to meditate because they cannot quiet their thoughts and are scolded by their masters.
• Shen Bing has been cultivating himself and detects a tiny improvement in his visual perception, confirming that the system works. He then goes to the game’s control room, where he finds Yuan Wei, who has been exploring the game with Yun Xue.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing dismisses the 50-billion sale as foolish while privately managing the game’s life-extending rewards to build trust and attract players. His own small cultivation gain gives him evidence that in-game training is effective.
• The Ross patriarch goes from near death to renewed health after using the ginseng; the Ross Family’s public announcement persuades a skeptical public.
• Zhao Yang persists through a difficult fight and discovers that practical survival and scavenging—not experience points—are central to advancement.
• Ordinary players learn through repeated failures that progress requires patience, discipline, and treating the world as real. Their frustrated interactions with demanding cultivation masters provide comic relief.
• Yuan Wei and Yun Xue have been playing together, but their pills give them a major advantage over ordinary players.

Significant themes

• Life, money, and value: The ginseng’s price reflects the extraordinary worth people place on extra life, while Shen Bing expects its value to change once supply grows.
• Proof and trust: The Ross Family’s firsthand results make the game’s claims more convincing than promotional promises.
• Reality versus game conventions: Players must abandon familiar gaming assumptions; there are no easy levels or instant skill unlocks.
• Effort and discipline: Strength comes from fighting, gathering, and sustained mental practice, not shortcuts.
• Managed anticipation: Shen Bing uses early rewards to reassure players while keeping more powerful discoveries in reserve.

Plot and key events

• Yuan Wei leaves Firmament to investigate weaknesses in its Cultivation Guidance Program, which teaches players to sense dark energy. She proposes analyzing players’ experiences and distilling a shared, common sensation that could be transmitted to help newcomers learn.
• Shen Bing agrees the idea may work, but warns that people’s consciousness and perceptions differ, so copying one person’s experience could be harmful. He asks Yuan Wei to collaborate with Bunier’s team and tells Caso to lower the cultivation qualification difficulty so more players can contribute data.
• Bunier reports a major research breakthrough: converting second-order UI dark energy produces a new form of dark matter, named Heavenly Intelligence No. 2. Used in the Brain-Enhancement Drug, it improves efficacy by 50% over Heavenly Intelligence No. 1, even with the same formula.
• Bunier believes further refinement of the drug and its accompanying physical-stimulation technology could raise Basic Brain Development Technology to three-star level. Shen Bing orders continued development and testing of UI dark energy in other medicines, including gene-enhancement drugs and life-extending potions.
• Shen Bing notes that Firmament has reached a record 4.2 billion players online, though the current need to play through the night without widely available Game Pods is unsustainable.

Character developments and interactions

• Yuan Wei shows initiative as both a player and researcher: her strong consciousness lets her master dark-energy sensing easily, and she turns that experience into a proposal for helping others.
• Shen Bing balances support for her idea with caution about individual differences. After hearing Bunier’s news, he prioritizes the more promising second-order-energy research and assigns resources accordingly.
• Bunier brings the breakthrough to Shen Bing and outlines the potential for significant advances in brain-development technology. His team is also asked to assist Yuan Wei’s work.
• The exchange highlights a collaborative research environment, with Shen Bing directing Yuan Wei, Bunier, and Caso while juggling competing priorities.

Significant themes

• Scientific progress through data and experimentation: Billions of players’ experiences may help refine real-world cultivation technology.
• The challenge of individual variation: A technique that works for one person may not transfer safely or effectively to others.
• Technological independence: Shen Bing sees the prospect of Earth developing its own three-star technology as especially important.
• Growth versus sustainability: Firmament’s enormous popularity brings valuable data, but exhausting overnight play cannot continue indefinitely.

Key plot points and events

• A gigantic, green, two-pair-winged creature circles Avalon Planet’s settlement. It never physically strikes the protective barrier, but its energy consumption rises sharply.
• Master Qiao identifies the creature’s ability as energy absorption: it draws in energy throughout a surrounding area, including the barrier. It may simply be feeding, though it could also be trying to drain the barrier and destroy it.
• Wang Sheng’s order is to capture the creature alive. Master Qiao believes ordinary restraints would fail because the creature contains vast quantities of dark energy, letting it exert far more strength than its size suggests. Adamantium alloy is the only known material likely to hold it; Master Qiao proposes building particle accelerators locally to synthesize the alloy and making a chain to bind its wings.
• Hua Long and Zhong Yuanchang decide not to provoke the creature before confirming it is hostile, despite having charged-particle cannons.
• Meanwhile, Wang Sheng holds a corporate meeting. Phantom Immortal Energy Company reports strong growth, supplying one-third of global electricity and earning over five billion in daily net profit, with demand expected to rise further. Materials Technology is in a costly transition toward new products, though demand for key materials is high.

Character development and interactions

• Hua Long moves from alarm and confusion to clearer understanding, recognizing that the creature may be seeking energy rather than attacking the settlement. He also shows restraint by opposing a risky test that could provoke it.
• Master Qiao provides the scientific diagnosis and a practical capture plan, while openly leaving the creature’s eventual control to the others.
• Zhong Yuanchang presses for ways to restrain the beast and supports caution; he and Hua rely on Master Qiao’s expertise.
• Wang Sheng oversees the company’s response to “Firmament,” acknowledging the departments’ performance and supporting Materials Technology through its transition.

Significant themes

• Scientific curiosity and adaptation: Unfamiliar alien biology is explained through known principles such as energy absorption.
• Caution under uncertainty: The team avoids turning a potentially nonhostile creature into an enemy.
• Technology and interdependence: Capturing the beast depends on advanced materials and local manufacturing, while Phantom Immortal’s businesses depend on one another and adjust to rapid global change.
• Economic transformation: “Firmament,” robots, and new transport technologies are reshaping energy demand and industry.

Key plot points

• Phantom Immortal Technology’s Robot Affairs Department reports smooth operations, though demand for robot maintenance is enormous.
• The Network Department says the company dominates the global smart-terminal market and operates a tested satellite network. Its manager, Chen Wanhua, argues that the company should run the world’s communications network itself.
• Wang Sheng explains that the company should focus on establishing global network standards instead. As humanity expands to other planets, local companies can handle planetary networks while Phantom Immortal Technology profits from connecting planets to one another. Chen recognizes that his thinking has been too Earth-bound and resolves to push the standards negotiations forward.
• Aboard the Hope, Captain Chen Bing works on a star map that will allow autonomous navigation through the Solar System. The ship’s AI warns that they are approaching Jupiter.
• Research chief Wang Lei proposes investigating Jupiter’s metallic hydrogen. Chen Bing raises concerns about Jupiter’s gravity, the difficulty of finding a safe approach, and the challenge of collecting the material.

Character developments

• Wang Sheng demonstrates a strategic, long-term vision, framing the company’s network plans around humanity’s future expansion into space.
• Chen Wanhua shifts from focusing on Earth-based market control to understanding the importance of interplanetary communications. His realization also makes him anxious about keeping up in the company’s competitive environment.
• Chen Bing takes pride in captaining humanity’s first spaceship and approaches the Jupiter proposal cautiously, weighing scientific opportunity against practical risks.
• Wang Lei shows scientific ambition by advocating research into a potentially valuable material.

Significant themes

• Short-term gains versus long-term strategy: Wang Sheng argues that standards and interplanetary links may be more valuable than controlling every part of Earth’s network.
• Expanding horizons: The company and humanity are moving from an Earth-centered outlook toward a future among the planets.
• Ambition balanced by risk: The proposed Jupiter research could advance materials science, but the planet’s harsh conditions make it dangerous and difficult.
• Creating new paths: Chen Bing’s reflection on making space routes through exploration echoes the chapter’s broader idea that progress requires venturing into the unknown.

Character interactions

• Wang Sheng challenges Chen Wanhua’s proposal and reframes the Network Department’s purpose, prompting Chen to reconsider his priorities.
• Chen Bing and Wang Lei discuss whether the Hope should investigate Jupiter; Wang Lei emphasizes the scientific value, while Chen focuses on the crew’s safety and the practical difficulty of the mission.

Key plot points and events

• The Hope reaches Jupiter to investigate the possibility of metallic hydrogen and explore the gas giant’s extreme environment. The crew enters Jupiter’s turbulent atmosphere, where dense gases, powerful gravity, and magnetic storms make navigation and visibility difficult.
• Reporter Xiao Ran broadcasts the approach, entertaining viewers while explaining the planet’s conditions. The crew and audience are awed by Jupiter’s vivid, aurora-like atmospheric displays.
• Research director Wang Lei and his teams collect data that could not be replicated on Earth. His enhanced memory and analytical ability help him coordinate the researchers’ work.
• Captain Chen Bing sends two unmanned Falcon craft ahead to gather data and scout a route. Intensifying magnetic interference disrupts communications, leaving both drones missing. Chen orders the Hope to hold position and hopes the Falcons can retrace their routes.
• On the Moon, a hidden Alien Warship begins emerging through a vast, rippling curtain of light. A concealed Charged Particle Cannon fires, punching a hole in the ship’s bow.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Lei is shown as a tireless, capable research leader, using his enhanced abilities to support multiple teams.
• Chen Bing acts cautiously under pressure, recalling the Falcons and choosing to wait rather than risk advancing blindly. His assistant, Ke Yu, asks what to do as communications fail.
• Xiao Ran combines accurate reporting with humor, keeping Earth’s viewers engaged.
• The crew’s initial excitement about Jupiter is tempered by their recent Mars landing, but the planet’s beauty still captivates them.

Significant themes

• Exploration versus danger: The crew’s pursuit of scientific knowledge brings them into an environment that is difficult to control or predict.
• Human ingenuity and its limits: Advanced technology and AI enable the mission, yet Jupiter’s storms can still defeat communications and navigation.
• Wonder amid uncertainty: Jupiter’s beauty contrasts with its hostility, while the abrupt appearance of the alien ship introduces a new threat.
• Science and public spectacle: The broadcast turns scientific exploration into a shared experience for people on Earth.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing wakes to learn that a second Corgi Empire warship has emerged from the lunar wormhole and crashed after being struck by Earth’s defenses. Its bow is pierced, and it lies motionless near the ruins of the alien base.
• The warship’s arrival seems reckless: the Corgi Empire should know Earth is guarding the wormhole and is strong enough to destroy its forces. Shen Bing suspects a possible trap, though he doubts the ship could have been unable to retreat through the gate.
• With only a small lunar outpost available, Shen sends a Ghost No. 1 robot to inspect the wreck. He tells it to self-destruct if it encounters danger.
• Inside, Ghost No. 1 finds white-armored, partly mechanical aliens. To Shen’s surprise, they are trembling and do not attack. The robot continues searching rather than killing them.
• Its scans reveal that the wreck’s impact left many compartments intact. Nearly half contain aliens—close to a thousand survivors in total.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing moves from irritation and suspicion to bewilderment as the situation proves unlike earlier encounters. Although he regards the aliens as invaders and would normally kill them, he chooses to observe before acting.
• Qiuqiu raises the possibility of a Corgi Empire scheme, advises caution, and carries out Shen’s orders.
• Ghost No. 1 serves as the explorers’ eyes inside the wreck, approaching the aliens and transmitting images while remaining under orders to self-destruct if necessary.
• The aliens’ fearful behavior reverses the expected predator-prey dynamic: rather than attacking the human probe, they appear terrified.

Significant themes

• The limits of assumptions: The apparent wreck seems to repeat past encounters, but the discovery of living aliens changes the situation.
• Caution amid overwhelming power: Shen believes Earth can handle any trap, yet still gathers information before deciding how to respond.
• The unexpected vulnerability of an enemy: The aliens are not presented as an immediate threat in this scene; their fear and survival complicate Shen’s view of them.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing watches footage of the Corgi Empire aliens surrendering after their warship is disabled. Unsure whether they pose a hidden threat, he orders the aliens held at a new Moon Base but brings two—Her and Momo—to Earth for questioning.
• Three additional Ghost No. 1 robots join the force beneath the wormhole. The aliens allow themselves to be disarmed, and a Falcon transports the two captives to Gold Island.
• Shen Bing’s staff imprison Her and Momo separately in heavily fortified adamantium cells designed to contain even an internal explosion. Meanwhile, another Falcon carries equipment and Puppet Artisans to the moon to begin construction of the base.
• The chapter shifts to the prisoners’ perspective, revealing why the Corgians came. Their empire had planned to invade Earth, whose humans could serve as bodies for Corgian brains and support their evolution. But after the empire suffered a devastating attack from its longtime enemy, its surviving leaders sent an elite force through the wormhole to preserve a foothold and hope for a future comeback.
• The Corgians expected to negotiate with Earth, but a powerful cannon disabled their warship before they could make contact. With escape impossible, they surrender and pretend—or genuinely feel—too intimidated to resist. Her and Momo are selected for capture.
• Their interrogation begins when an unseen voice asks their names. The aliens are startled to understand it, since it is not the Earth language they previously learned.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is cautious and strategic: rather than destroy or immediately repatriate the aliens, he contains most of them on the moon and brings two to Earth for investigation.
• Qiuqiu efficiently carries out Shen Bing’s orders, even though it initially questions his priorities.
• Her and Momo are elite Corgian warriors, but their confidence has collapsed after witnessing Earth’s firepower. They comply with their captors and wonder why they, in particular, were chosen.
• The Corgians’ original plan depended on cooperation with Earth; their first encounter instead leaves them frightened and under guard.

Significant themes

• Power and vulnerability: the Corgians’ formidable reputation contrasts with their helplessness against Earth’s weapons.
• Survival and pragmatism: both sides prioritize containment and self-preservation over immediate confrontation.
• Colonial ambition: the Corgians view humans as resources and potential bodies, exposing the threat behind their seemingly desperate arrival.
• Uncertainty and communication: Shen Bing suspects a hidden plot, while the aliens’ surprise at understanding the interrogator raises new questions about how communication is possible.

Key plot points and events

• Corgi Empire officers Her and Momo realize their Earth interrogator is speaking fluent Corgi. They fear Earth has decoded their ship’s stored data and may gain access to the Empire’s technology.
• Difu threatens to have them killed when they hesitate, prompting both to speak. They give their names, then explain that they fled to Earth after another interstellar power attacked the Corgi Empire.
• The aliens try to distance themselves from earlier hostility toward Earth, blaming a wandering legion for provoking the conflict. They concede that Earth’s attack on their warship was understandable.
• In Rongcheng, Shen Bing watches the interrogation. He considers the aliens’ story credible and recognizes that the Corgi Empire’s apparent destruction signals the danger of interstellar conflict.
• Shen and Qiuqiu discuss the possibility that the Corgis deliberately fled through this wormhole to draw Earth into a future confrontation. Shen concludes that conflict with the civilization that defeated them may be unavoidable, so Earth must prepare.
• Qiuqiu reports a new discovery on the Moon, hinting at a potentially valuable find; Shen dismisses the idea of “striking it rich” given his existing wealth.

Character developments and interactions

• Her and Momo shift from fear of Earth’s knowledge to cautious cooperation, offering explanations and trying to reduce Earth’s hostility. Their shared account suggests they are genuinely refugees, though they may still be acting in self-interest.
• Shen Bing moves from evaluating the prisoners’ claims to thinking strategically about Earth’s future security. He treats the threat as a serious, long-term problem.
• Qiuqiu shows sharp strategic insight by suspecting the Corgis chose Earth’s wormhole to entangle it in their conflict, while also bringing Shen the mysterious lunar news.
• Difu uses a deliberately threatening interrogation style, pushing the prisoners to respond and revealing that Earth can communicate in their language.

Significant themes

• The brutality of interstellar war: Shen reflects that cosmic conflicts can mean the destruction of civilizations and the extinction of species, with little room for mercy.
• Knowledge as power and vulnerability: The Corgis fear Earth’s ability to understand their language and access their technical records.
• Unavoidable consequences: Even if the Corgis deliberately brought danger to Earth, the wormhole may make a future confrontation inevitable.
• Shifting power and survival: A civilization once powerful enough to travel between stars has been driven to flee, showing that no empire is secure in a hostile universe.

Key plot points

• Qiuqiu reveals that imprisoned Corgians have been discussing a warship carrying what may be the Corgi Empire’s complete technological database. Shen Bing recognizes its immense value and orders Naga and two Demon Puppet Artisans to investigate and crack it.
• Shen Bing checks the still-unfinished “Restart Yama Hall” task, but is interrupted by Gao Jingchuan, who wants a Game Pod so he can play Firmament. Gao explains that the game has scattered military players across the world, limiting their ability to regroup.
• Gao asks whether Firmament is meant to prepare people for an alien threat. Shen Bing gives an indirect answer, affirming that greater strength and technological progress may help. Gao passes along his father Commander Gao’s message: Shen should not face the threat alone.
• Gao calls again to ask about the military’s spaceship. Shen says it should be ready for delivery in four or five days; Gao is excited to captain it and confirms there will be a formal handover ceremony.
• The chapter ends with a large-scale lunar construction effort underway: materials are being ferried from Earth, the ground is being prepared, and the Demon Puppet Artisans are building facilities beneath a vast protective light barrier.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shifts quickly from irritation and exhaustion to excitement at the prospect of obtaining alien technology. Though he keeps his plans guarded, Gao’s concern clearly affects him.
• Qiuqiu teases and stalls Shen before revealing the crucial intelligence, showing its increasingly cheeky relationship with its boss.
• Gao Jingchuan is playful and persistent, repeatedly calling Shen after being hung up on. Beneath the banter, he conveys Commander Gao’s serious concern and eagerly anticipates his future role as spaceship captain.
• Shen and Gao trade jokes about the game, military logistics, and who deserves credit for spacefaring ships, while their conversation also reveals mutual trust and shared awareness of the alien danger.

Significant themes

• Preparation for an alien threat: Firmament, advanced weapons, and spaceflight may all be part of a broader effort to prepare humanity.
• Technology as a transformative force: The game has changed work routines and military organization, while alien knowledge could accelerate Earth’s development.
• Shared responsibility and cooperation: Gao’s message stresses that confronting the threat should not fall on Shen alone.
• Humor amid danger: The characters’ teasing and banter provide levity alongside the serious stakes of alien invasion and lunar expansion.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing reviews the rapidly developing Moon Base. It has two robot-production lines and two fusion reactors, but transforming the moon into a habitable world will require large-scale climate control and artificial day–night cycles. For now, the base’s main purpose is to serve as a production site and defensive front line near the wormhole, keeping any invasion away from Earth.
• After completing two errands through the Gate to the Immortal Realm, Shen Bing receives a seed for a Wind-Thunder Immortal Pear. Its fruit can restore a person’s youthful appearance and improve fitness, though it cannot extend their lifespan.
• Since the seed cannot provide useful results on its own, Shen Bing plans to grow it and analyze the fruit. He brings it to Gold Island, intending to use UI dark energy—especially higher-tier energy—as a substitute for immortal spiritual qi and as an opportunity to study its effects.
• Shen Bing tours his newly built, elaborate manor on Gold Island, inspired by Suzhou gardens and the Immortal Realm’s palaces. He considers inviting his family to live there.
• Difu reports that the island’s laboratories should be finished in about a week. Shen Bing then considers opening Gold Island to outsiders. With only 371 people currently there, he decides against expanding through abductions and plans to recruit openly instead.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is increasingly confident in Phantom Immortal Technology’s strength. He pursues practical research opportunities, enjoys his private retreat, and begins shifting from secretive, coercive recruitment toward open hiring.
• Difu, Gold Island’s loyal chief steward, eagerly takes the seed for planting and reports on construction. He supports Shen Bing’s decisions without challenging them.
• Shen Bing’s conversation with Difu shows his concern that the island has too few people to staff its research departments, while also revealing his belief that the company can now recruit openly and maintain control.

Significant themes

• Technological ambition and planetary transformation: Moon colonization is presented as a vast energy and engineering challenge, not merely a matter of building a base.
• Experimentation and adaptation: Shen Bing seeks to test whether advanced dark energy can support an immortal plant and produce knowledge useful to the real world.
• Power, security, and responsibility: The Moon Base is designed as a shield for Earth, while Gold Island’s expansion raises questions about how Shen Bing uses his influence.
• Personal aspiration and extravagance: Shen Bing’s palace-like manor expresses his desire to bring a piece of the Immortal Realm into his own life.

Key events

• Shen Bing leaves the laboratory construction in Difu’s hands and returns to Rongcheng.
• Skyflying Cars have become common worldwide, but Phantom Immortal Technology cannot meet demand. Consumers turn to car conversions and competing models that use its antigravity modules and flight-control system.
• At home, Shen Bing finds Li Xiao watering the Immortal Peach Tree. Li Xiao explains that he plays a powerful NPC in Firmament but finds virtual combat unsatisfying because it feels like fighting data.
• Shen Bing notices the jade bottle of Spirit Water still has plenty left. Realizing it may be valuable, he takes it to the underground base and asks Bu Hechang’s team to analyze the water’s dark-matter composition.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shifts from overseeing construction to pursuing a new scientific possibility: understanding and perhaps reproducing the energy in Spirit Water.
• Li Xiao’s preference for watering the tree over playing the game reveals his longing for real, challenging combat. He follows Shen Bing to the lab, puzzled by his sudden interest in the bottle.
• Bu Hechang promptly begins testing the sample, supporting Shen Bing’s research.

Significant themes

• Technology reshaping society: Flying cars spread rapidly, while limited supply pushes people toward conversions and alternatives.
• Virtual versus real experience: Li Xiao rejects simulated combat because it lacks the intensity of a genuine encounter.
• Scientific ambition and discovery: Shen Bing hopes that identifying spiritual qi as a form of dark energy could make it possible to manufacture spiritual qi—and perhaps eventually immortal qi—raising the prospect of a new cultivation era for humanity.

Chapter summary: “The Hidden Crisis”

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing’s researchers analyze “spirit-type” dark energy. Its intensity resembles UI dark energy, but it cannot remain stable in Earth’s natural environment and gradually changes into SAS dark energy—the substance used in Cancer Cure No. 1.
• Shen Bing revisits the apparent effects of spiritual energy on Earth. He suspects that SAS dark energy may explain the gradual health benefits of the herbs and fruits in his courtyard, as well as Feifei’s physical development. He distinguishes Feifei from the more fully developed demon beast Little Doudou: Feifei is physically stronger, while Little Doudou has special skills and can communicate telepathically.
• Still uncertain about how cultivation and supernatural abilities work on Earth, Shen Bing asks Bu Hechang to continue investigating and collect surface samples, then takes his theories to Bunier.
• In Firmament, Evolution Items become more common and cheaper, though still expensive. More significantly, players discover that practicing the Body-Strengthening Exercise and certain eye-related cultivation techniques in the game improves their real-world fitness and eyesight. Some cultivation methods also work when practiced directly in reality.
• The game’s popularity makes Firmament central to human evolution, but its Network Department uncovers a dangerous side effect: many players are spending much of their time in the virtual world, including pursuing sexual relationships there.
• Wang Sheng and Chen Wanhua warn Shen Bing that if people increasingly abandon real-world relationships and reproduction, birth rates could collapse. Shen Bing recognizes the long-term threat: humanity needs population growth to become a major interstellar civilization. He promises to address the problem and reluctantly concludes that stronger intervention may be necessary.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing moves from scientific curiosity to concern. He develops a tentative theory that SAS dark energy explains some benefits attributed to spiritual energy, but remains unsure how supernatural cultivation works. He also confronts an unforeseen social consequence of Firmament and begins considering restrictive measures.
• Bu Hechang continues the scientific investigation, with Shen Bing authorizing him to gather samples outside the laboratory.
• Wang Sheng and Chen Wanhua act as responsible managers, bringing evidence of the game’s potential demographic danger to Shen Bing. Their initially awkward discussion about in-game sex turns into a serious warning.
• Players discover Firmament’s real-world benefits and share their excitement online. Their increasing immersion, however, raises the concern that virtual life may displace real-world family formation.
• Feifei and Little Doudou serve as contrasting examples in Shen Bing’s reasoning: one is a powerful, physically enhanced “warrior” type; the other possesses more overt supernatural abilities.

Significant themes

• Science and cultivation: The boundary between dark energy, matter, spiritual energy, and technology remains uncertain. Firmament’s effects may be creating a path to human evolution that science does not yet understand.
• Unintended consequences of technology: A game designed to entertain and improve people may also draw them away from real life and threaten population growth.
• Individual benefits versus humanity’s future: Better health, longer lives, and immersive experiences are valuable, but Shen Bing weighs them against the collective need for future generations.
• Knowledge and control: Players discover the game’s capabilities on their own, while Shen Bing and his company must decide how much to guide or limit its effects.

Key plot points

• Shen Bing discovers that many Firmament players are having sex in-game and decides the game needs an anti-addiction system. Caso agrees, then proposes a stamina system to discourage excessive in-game sex.
• Fifteen days after launch, Phantom Immortal Technology announces a live update: players will be limited to sixteen hours of play per day, and sex will consume stamina. Stamina recovers slowly, while ordinary activity barely uses any, and low stamina reduces players’ physical abilities.
• Players complain about both restrictions, though those without Game Pods are less affected by the time limit.
• Shen Bing spends the day searching unsuccessfully for Great Luo Golden Immortal Remnant Souls and fighting Outworld Demons.
• At dinner, Yun Xue claims the new limit gives players time to enjoy the outdoors. Yuan Wei hints she is not telling Shen Bing the whole truth.
• Qiuqiu reveals that Yun Xue went for a blood test and is pregnant. Shen Bing is overwhelmed by the news and immediately worries about becoming a father, while also wondering how to tell Yun Xue he knows.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shifts from a former opponent of anti-addiction rules to the person imposing them, rationalizing the decision as necessary for society. The pregnancy news exposes a less composed, anxious side of him.
• Caso supports Shen Bing’s decision and helps devise the stamina mechanic.
• Yun Xue appears to conceal her pregnancy from Shen Bing, while Yuan Wei knows about the secret and teases her for misleading him.
• Qiuqiu bluntly explains the blood-test result, prompting Shen Bing’s stunned reaction and private turmoil.

Significant themes

• The tension between personal freedom and responsible limits, as Firmament’s immersive gameplay begins affecting players’ habits and social life.
• The unintended consequences of regulation: the stamina system targets in-game sex but also substantially weakens players who use it.
• The contrast between Shen Bing’s confident public decisions and his private inexperience and vulnerability—especially in the face of impending fatherhood.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing worries about how to ask Yun Xue about her pregnancy. His AI assistant, Qiuqiu, suggests he approach her in bed and let her explain why sex may be off-limits; Shen Bing praises the idea despite questioning how Qiuqiu learned it.
• Shen Bing soon learns that Yun Xue is pregnant and tries to persuade her to move to Gold Island and stop working. She refuses, saying she feels well and her doctor recommends moderate exercise.
• The couple discuss whether they would prefer a son or daughter. Shen Bing says he would accept either but admits he would choose a son first because he expects an heir. Yun Xue challenges his assumptions about daughters and inheritance, and he retreats from the argument.
• Shen Bing shifts the conversation to marriage, saying he wants to hold a wedding with Yun Xue and Yuan Wei. Yun Xue worries that a public polygamous wedding could provoke backlash and harm the company’s relationship with Huaxia’s leadership. Shen Bing promises a grand wedding, but offers no details.
• They end by discussing names for the baby, though Yun Xue again presses Shen Bing to choose which sex he would prefer.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is anxious and protective about Yun Xue’s pregnancy, but his attempts to manage her choices and plan the family’s future reveal both his confidence and his tendency to speak before thinking. He backs away when their discussion risks becoming an argument.
• Yun Xue appears affectionate and amused by Shen Bing, yet asserts her independence about work and raises serious concerns about the political and public consequences of their wedding.
• Qiuqiu acts as a mischievous, perceptive adviser, teasing Shen Bing about his inexperience and supplying the tactic that prompts his conversation with Yun Xue.
• The couple’s playful banter gives way to disagreements over work, inheritance, marriage, and the baby’s future, but their warmth and trust remain evident. Yun Xue ultimately lets Shen Bing’s wedding promise stand, believing he likely has a plan.

Significant themes

• Pregnancy and care: Shen Bing’s protectiveness contrasts with Yun Xue’s insistence that pregnancy need not make her passive or inactive.
• Gender and inheritance: Their exchange exposes Shen Bing’s traditional preference for a male heir and Yun Xue’s resistance to treating a daughter as less entitled.
• Private love versus public consequences: Their relationship plans are shaped by the potential political and social fallout of a public wedding.
• Affectionate communication: Humor and teasing soften their disagreements, while their exchanges show how easily casual remarks can lead into serious questions about family and commitment.

• Shen Bing and Yun Xue’s relationship advances: The chapter opens with the couple asleep in each other’s arms. Shen Bing reflects on Yun Xue’s pregnancy and the new life growing inside her, seeing the child as a person in its own right. The next morning, he captures a Great Luo Golden Immortal Remnant Soul in the Gate to the Immortal Realm, bringing him halfway toward his goal.
• The pregnancy becomes an open secret: Yuan Wei notices Shen Bing treating Yun Xue differently, and Yun Xue’s embarrassment reveals that she accidentally let the news slip. She blames Shen Bing for getting her pregnant, while he good-naturedly accepts the teasing. The three discuss going out, though Yuan Wei is already thinking about pregnancy supplies.
• Mom discovers the news and backs the women: Shen Bing’s mother overhears the conversation. She publicly scolds him for getting Yun Xue pregnant before marriage, but privately admits she was putting on a show so she could justify the news to Yun Xue’s family. She urges Shen Bing to arrange a wedding and initially misunderstands his hesitation about Yuan Wei. When she learns both women know about the arrangement, she approves of them both, while warning Shen Bing not to hurt either one.
• Family warmth and comic confusion: Back at the house, Mom reassures Yun Xue and Yuan Wei that she will protect them from Shen Bing, then encourages them to choose their own shopping supplies. She also takes Shen’s Father shopping, despite his attempt to bring up his real reason for visiting: he was “slashed” in a game and wants Shen Bing’s insider information.
  Character developments and interactions: Shen Bing is affectionate but awkward when faced with family and wedding questions; Yun Xue is bashful yet comfortable enough to tease and blame him; Yuan Wei enjoys stirring things up while showing concern about the pregnancy. Mom shifts quickly from mock anger to delighted acceptance, becoming a protective future mother-in-law. The chapter’s humor comes from the couple’s secret being exposed, Mom’s theatrical scolding, and the abrupt game-related punchline.
  Themes: The chapter emphasizes family formation, the individuality and wonder of new life, responsibility and commitment, and unconventional relationships handled through mutual understanding. It balances tender intimacy with playful domestic comedy.

After Yun Xue became pregnant, Shen Bing’s parents learned about the baby and accepted both Yun Xue and Yuan Wei as their daughters-in-law. The family discussed marriage and preparations for the baby, while Shen’s Father revealed he had been hacked in a game and wanted Shen Bing’s advice.

• Shen Bing captured a Great Luo Golden Immortal Remnant Soul with the Nerfed Demon-Refining Pot after entering the Gate to the Immortal Realm.
• Yuan Wei noticed Shen Bing treating Yun Xue differently, and Shen Bing told his parents that Yun Xue was pregnant.
• Mom privately congratulated Shen Bing, urged him to arrange a wedding with Yun Xue, and learned that Yuan Wei already knew about their relationship.
• Mom welcomed Yun Xue and Yuan Wei as her daughters-in-law and encouraged them to shop for items needed during the pregnancy.
• Shen’s Father said someone had hacked him in a game and that he had come to ask Shen Bing for inside information.