Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Tu Xingsun asks Shen Bing to find the Immortal Realm’s hardest divine iron. He wants it for a drill on an underground-traveling Self-Propelled Immortal Carriage, since ordinary materials cannot bore through the rock.
• Shen Bing realizes that developments in the Immortal Realm may be influenced by events in the Gate to the Immortal Realm: Lu Xian’s carriage may have inspired Tu Xingsun’s project. He agrees to investigate and travels to Craftsman God Island to consult Lu Ban.
• Lu Ban is away, so Shen Bing waits on the island. During the visit, Li Xiao asks whether Lu Xian can modify his car. Shen Bing says there is little point, since the company’s vehicles are available to use, and explains that car modification is not the same as mass-producing cars.
• A scientific journal publishes Shen Bing’s paper on deep geothermal power generation. The proposed system could generate large amounts of electricity anywhere, but experts cannot see how its central technology—highly efficient, directed heat transfer—could work.
• Phantom Immortal Technology announces that it has made a breakthrough in directed thermal energy transfer and can commercialize the technology. The announcement signals a possible move into the energy sector and leaves observers wondering how the company can compete with established giants.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shows growing awareness that his actions in the Immortal Realm may have far-reaching consequences. He remains practical about the limits of what he can obtain for Tu Xingsun, while also dreaming of acquiring one of Lu Ban’s giant intelligent puppets.
• Tu Xingsun quickly shifts from arrogance to friendliness once Shen Bing offers help. He is inventive and ambitious, but lacks the connections to obtain the materials his project requires.
• Li Xiao admires the modified Wuling Hongguang and hopes to have his own car upgraded. Shen Bing turns down the request casually, then explains why Phantom Immortal Technology should not rush into car manufacturing.
• Lu Ban does not appear, but his absence prompts Shen Bing to wait for him rather than seek out someone less familiar.

Significant themes

• Unintended consequences: Shen Bing’s involvement with the Gate may alter the Immortal Realm and inspire new inventions.
• Innovation and disruption: Both Tu Xingsun’s underground carriage and the geothermal technology challenge existing limits.
• Ambition versus practical constraints: Shen Bing and the company have remarkable capabilities, but materials, expertise, patents, and established industries still shape what can be achieved.
• Skepticism toward breakthroughs: Experts doubt the geothermal proposal because its key mechanism seems impossible—until Phantom Immortal Technology claims to have solved it.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing decides to move Phantom Immortal Technology into the energy sector, using his advanced geothermal technology to eventually replace domestic thermal power. Geothermal energy’s lack of pollution and potential to lower industrial energy costs give the plan environmental, political, and economic advantages.
• He recognizes that the government may resist a private company gaining a large share of electricity generation. To build trust and win government support, he plans to offer the state the Craftsman God No. 1 Machine Tool and make a broader, detailed proposal.
• A geothermal-power announcement has little public impact; Shen Bing sees it mainly as groundwork for his public image.
• Commander Gao invites Shen Bing to watch a satellite launch in Changxi. Shen Bing accepts, despite having to travel there himself, and brings Lu Xian, whose trustworthiness Commander Gao makes Shen Bing responsible for.
• On the expressway, Shen Bing asks Lu Xian to test their modified Wuling Hongguang’s speed. Lu Xian accelerates it to 400 km/h in seconds, leaving Shen Bing dizzy and alarmed. Lu Xian assures him the vehicle is safe and says he could protect Shen by transforming into a Cauldron Furnace. Shen then tells him to maintain a still-extreme 200 km/h.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shows ambition and strategic patience: he wants to reshape the power industry, but understands that political trust is essential. He is also curious and eager to attend the launch, yet comically unprepared for the car’s acceleration.
• Commander Gao acts as a friendly but authoritative military contact, inviting Shen Bing while emphasizing the need for discretion and responsibility.
• Lu Xian remains calm, capable, and protective. His precise calculations and unconventional safety plan contrast with Shen Bing’s very human discomfort.
• Their interaction shifts from formal arrangements for a sensitive event to playful banter during the reckless speed test.

Significant themes

• Energy, power, and national interest: Shen Bing’s private ambitions must be balanced against the strategic importance of electricity and government oversight.
• Environmental progress and industrial growth: Clean geothermal energy is presented as both an ecological improvement and a way to strengthen the economy.
• Trust and responsibility: Shen Bing must demonstrate that his company serves national interests and personally vouch for whoever accompanies him.
• Technology and comedy: Extraordinary inventions meet ordinary human limits, especially when Shen Bing discovers that the vehicle’s performance is more than he can comfortably handle.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing arrives at Changxi with Lu Xian in an ordinary Wuling Hongguang. The military escort is surprised to find that the billionaire technology executive they were sent to collect is neither in a luxury car nor much older than their young first lieutenant.
• They take Shen Bing to the Changxi Satellite Launch Center, where a rocket is being prepared for launch. The public has been told it will carry a weather satellite, but Shen Bing deduces that this is a cover for a secret spy satellite.
• At the control center, Commander Gao introduces Shen Bing to senior launch officials, including the base director and chief engineer. Shen questions the use of disposable rockets, arguing that reusable spacecraft should be the space industry’s goal. The experts agree with his long-term vision rather than taking offense.
• Gao explains that Shen was invited both to observe the launch, to which he contributed, and because an important person wants to meet him. The launch preparations continue as tension builds.
• Ten minutes before liftoff, a senior national leader arrives unexpectedly. The gathered staff greet him with applause. He explains that Commander Gao’s presence was partly meant to ensure security, leaving launch-center director Zhou Shaojun embarrassed that he was not warned.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing comes across as confident, observant, and irreverent. He banters with Gao, quickly recognizes the likely purpose of the launch, and candidly voices a bold vision for space travel.
• Commander Gao is relaxed and familiar with Shen, teasing him about his arrival and speed. He also keeps the reason for the visit partly secret, surprising Zhou with his role in the leader’s security arrangements.
• The young first lieutenant is initially impressed by Shen’s reputation, then bemused by his age and modest vehicle; Gao’s “luxury car” remark only deepens the joke.
• The launch experts are dedicated and proud of their work, yet receptive to Shen’s criticism because they share his aspiration for more advanced spacecraft.
• Zhou Shaojun is startled by the leader’s unannounced arrival and mildly resentful that Gao withheld the information.

Significant themes

• Ambition and progress: Disposable rockets represent current capability, while reusable spacecraft symbolize the industry’s ultimate goal.
• Secrecy and appearances: A public weather-satellite launch conceals a military payload, and Shen’s humble vehicle contrasts with his wealth and status.
• National importance and risk: The launch demands meticulous preparation because it is a one-shot operation with enormous consequences.
• Humor amid hierarchy: Banter and the surprise visit soften the tense, formal atmosphere of a major launch.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing attends a satellite launch with Chief Gao, Commander Gao, Zhou Shaojun, and other officials. The Chief leaves the launch operations to Zhou Shaojun, and the rocket launches successfully; the control team stays focused on tracking the mission rather than celebrating.
• During a lull, Shen Bing meets privately with the Chief and Commander Gao. The Chief praises Shen’s Craftsman God No. 1 Machine Tool and encourages him to bring further advanced technology to Huaxia, promising it will not be used for civilian purposes or to compete with Shen’s company for ten years.
• Shen says Phantom Immortal Technology is developing deep geothermal power generation and plans to build trial plants at its industrial site. He intends for the company to own and operate the plants, then sell their electricity through the national grid.
• After Shen leaves, the Chief explains to Commander Gao that experts consider the technology theoretically feasible if Shen’s company has mastered one-way heat transfer. He sees Shen’s plan to use the grid as a signal of cooperation and a way to make the relationship mutually beneficial.
• The Chief considers negotiating a reasonable electricity price in exchange for waiving resource-use fees. This could lower national electricity prices and benefit the public and the economy. Commander Gao regrets that his earlier decision gave Shen’s company a three-year tax exemption.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is self-assured and ambitious, mixing sincere patriotism with commercial caution. He offers help within limits, keeps some capabilities secret, and carefully presents geothermal power as a business opportunity that also serves national interests.
• The Chief is pragmatic and strategic. He respects Shen’s abilities, seeks access to useful technology, and weighs the risks of a private company gaining major influence over electricity supply.
• Commander Gao acts as an intermediary and later voices concerns about Shen’s potential control of power generation. He understands the Chief’s reasoning and privately regrets his past tax decision.
• Zhou Shaojun remains in charge of the launch, with the Chief deliberately avoiding interference. Their exchange emphasizes respect for technical expertise and procedure.

Significant themes

• National service and personal interest: Shen wants to help his country but also protects his company’s secrets and business prospects.
• Trust and mutual dependence: Selling power through the State Grid gives both the company and the state leverage, making cooperation more practical than confrontation.
• Technological progress and public benefit: Geothermal power could reduce reliance on polluting thermal plants, lower electricity prices, and support economic growth.
• Competence and responsibility: The successful launch underscores the precision, teamwork, and sustained work required for complex technological achievements.

Plot points and events

• After leaving the satellite launch center, Shen Bing tells Lu Xian to reproduce the rocket and satellite technology for future use.
• Shen reflects on Phantom Immortal Technology’s planned move into power generation. The geothermal system will draw on deep underground heat, and he expects its construction and equipment costs to be far lower than the government assumes.
• Shen deliberately lets officials believe the project will require a huge investment, making them more comfortable granting his company a major role in the power sector. He sees the domestic market as only part of his plan, with overseas expansion as the larger opportunity.
• At a company meeting in Rongcheng, Shen announces a goal of replacing most of the country’s thermal power generation with clean geothermal energy.
• He assigns the company to establish a machinery manufacturing plant, recruit drilling specialists, buy large plots of land across every province near power-grid connections, create a procurement department, and launch a research and development center.
• After the meeting, Wang Sheng raises concerns about whether the government will allow private ownership of power facilities on such a scale. Shen says he has already reached a preliminary understanding with a senior official.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing displays strategic ambition and confidence, using others’ mistaken assumptions about costs to strengthen his negotiating position. He also takes charge of the company’s expansion and reassures Wang Sheng about political risks.
• Lu Xian remains a trusted, capable assistant, tasked with reproducing advanced aerospace technology.
• Wang Sheng is cautious and practical. Though he knows little about the technical details, he explains what he can to the executives and later raises a concern about government oversight.
• The executives are initially bewildered by Shen’s sweeping plan, but their past experience with his successful vision for Dream Glass makes them willing to trust him and carry out his orders.
• Chen Wanhua questions whether geothermal resources could meet Shen’s targets; Shen answers that his technology uses deep geothermal energy without geographic limitations.

Significant themes

• Vision and ambition: Shen aims to transform both his company and the nation’s energy mix.
• Trust in leadership: The executives’ confidence in Shen is grounded in his previous successes, even when his plans seem implausible.
• Information and leverage: Shen uses the gap between his actual costs and the government’s assumptions to secure a stronger position.
• Growth through organization: The plan requires new departments, facilities, staff, and research capacity—not just a breakthrough technology.
• Public interest and private power: The chapter raises the question of whether essential energy infrastructure can be privately owned, though Shen claims the issue is already being addressed.

Key plot points and events

• Phantom Immortal Technology continues expanding, with daily output worth about 130 million yuan. Its precision lens work is attracting new customers, including Haiwei, which will buy high-powered zoom lenses after the company refuses to sell its technology.
• On January 22, Shen Bing and Lu Xian meet Gao Jingchuan to receive radioactive material intended for a classified project. Gao tries to pry into its purpose, but Shen deflects him with jokes.
• At the factory’s lab, Lu Xian modifies a Ghost Eye Type 1 Telescope by installing a CCD chip. The device is a rugged, single-tube surveillance camera that sends high-resolution images to a server cluster in real time.
• Shen Bing and Gao test the system. The live feed can zoom from nearby buildings to distant mountains with striking clarity, without mechanically refocusing. Shen explains that the effect comes from processing a panoramic image captured by the camera.
• Shen sees potential military uses, especially mounting the system on aircraft to detect enemy planes from extreme distances.

Character developments

• Shen Bing remains commercially ambitious and technically inventive, while guarding the purpose of his classified work. He also teases Gao and immediately begins considering military applications for the new system.
• Gao Jingchuan is eager to learn what Shen is developing, but his curiosity is repeatedly thwarted. Their familiar banter shows that he can take Shen’s insults in stride, even when he walks into a joke.
• Lu Xian demonstrates technical confidence and skill, explaining the device’s capabilities and rapidly modifying it for the test.

Significant themes

• Technological innovation and national advantage: Phantom Immortal’s precision optics challenge reliance on foreign suppliers, while the surveillance system suggests a major military edge.
• Commercial growth and selectivity: Shen pursues lucrative, high-end business rather than taking on every possible order.
• Secrecy and trust: Shen shares results with Gao but keeps the project’s purpose classified.
• Humor and camaraderie: Shen and Gao’s teasing softens the chapter’s business and military discussions.

Character interactions

• Shen and Gao’s exchange is the chapter’s main interpersonal thread: Gao fishes for information, Shen mocks him, and both ultimately focus on testing the device.
• Lu Xian acts as the technical bridge between Shen’s plans and the working product, installing the chip and explaining the system.
• The successful demonstration impresses Gao and turns their conversation toward whether the device meets military needs.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing withholds the more powerful full version of the Over-the-Horizon Telescope. He lacks time to build another production line, doubts its commercial value, and does not want to provoke the military while the Ghost Eye Type 1 contract remains unfinished.
• After demonstrating the Ghost Eye Type 1, he sends Gao Jingchuan away and pays the military contact 100 million for californium. Gao urges immediate mass production, but Shen Bing reveals that production is already nearly complete; the factory is only waiting for D Chips.
• Shen Bing’s broader plan is to expand geothermal power gradually across the country over two years, avoiding disruption and resistance from entrenched interests.
• Phantom Immortal Technology receives extensive research equipment and installs it in a temporary, three-floor laboratory. The company photographs the facilities to help recruit researchers.
• Shen Bing establishes an R&D Center to build the company’s research capacity and provide a plausible way to develop technologies sourced through the Gate to the Immortal Realm. The center has no immediate defined project; Shen jokes that its main project is having no project.
• Lu Xian returns to the Underground Base to copy the new equipment. Shen Bing also supplies the Procurement Department with materials for Lu Xian’s work, while turning his own attention to developing consciousness-transmission equipment.
• Shen Bing understands the technology’s principles but must still test and refine its brainwave-collection components. He plans to involve new R&D staff in limited, non-core experiments.
• The chapter ends as a South Korean delegation meets Wang Sheng. Their opening remark is so provocative that he nearly loses his temper.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is strategic and cautious: he conceals valuable technology, manages the military relationship, and plans the company’s expansion at a pace that limits backlash. He also begins shifting from doing all research himself toward building a team.
• Lu Xian remains Shen Bing’s key technical partner, responsible for duplicating equipment and constructing production and research systems.
• Gao Jingchuan confirms the payment and presses for production, unaware that Shen Bing’s factory is already far ahead of the requested schedule.
• The new procurement manager initially questions Shen Bing’s unusual materials list, but an experienced deputy advises him to follow the boss’s instructions.
• Wang Sheng personally hosts the Korean visitors, whose first comment tests his patience.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and plausible innovation: Shen Bing must conceal the source of his advanced technology and make its development appear credible.
• Cautious growth and political pragmatism: He avoids rushing military disclosures or disrupting the energy sector too quickly.
• Building institutions, not just products: The R&D Center is meant to attract talent, strengthen the company, and eventually let others extend Shen Bing’s technologies.
• The gap between knowledge and execution: Having a design shortens development, but experimental data, testing, and refinement are still necessary.

Key plot points and events

• Samsung Electronics sends a delegation led by LCD division manager Li Chengxi to buy Phantom Immortal Technology’s Dream Glass technology. Li assumes the company will sell for the right price and argues that using the glass for building exteriors wastes its display potential.
• Wang Sheng rejects the proposal, noting that the company has no intention of selling. When Li presses him, Wang demands more than half of Samsung Electronics’ shares as the price and leaves the meeting. Li and his team are left stunned and angry.
• Wang’s assistant, Feng Shaolong, formally ends the negotiations. The narration explains that Samsung had failed to reverse-engineer Dream Glass and had hurried into talks without properly researching Phantom Immortal Technology.
• Shen Bing hears about the failed meeting and dismisses it. He created Dream Glass himself and has no current plan to develop it for display applications; his strategic focus is on the energy sector, partly for security and influence.
• The next morning, Shen Bing heads to university to sit a major-course exam. Traffic makes him late, but he arranges to meet Old Yang outside the Third Teaching Building.

Character developments and interactions

• Wang Sheng remains blunt and fiercely protective of the company’s technology. He treats Li’s presumptuous offer with contempt and ends the meeting rather than entertain a sale.
• Li Chengxi arrives confident that Samsung’s money and bargaining power will secure the technology. His confidence collapses when Wang refuses even to hear an offer; he can only vent his frustration afterward.
• Feng Shaolong backs Wang’s decision, closing the meeting with a mocking, businesslike remark.
• Shen Bing stays focused on his own priorities and shows little concern about Samsung’s approach. Despite his success as an entrepreneur, he still intends to finish university and take his exam.
• Shen jokes that Lu Ban may have gone off with the Plague God because he has been absent for several days, but finds no suitable quest in the Immortal Realm.

Significant themes

• Corporate arrogance versus ownership: Samsung assumes a valuable technology can simply be bought, while Phantom Immortal Technology insists on controlling its invention.
• The value of strategic patience: Shen Bing resists expanding Dream Glass into displays, prioritizing longer-term goals—especially energy and personal security.
• Responsibility and follow-through: Despite his business success, Shen Bing values completing his education rather than abandoning it for the glamour of entrepreneurship.
• Humor and irreverence: Wang and Shen’s profane, mocking reactions puncture the delegation’s confidence and keep the chapter’s business conflict light in tone.

Key events

• Shen Bing meets his college friends Old Yang, Sun Li, and Wang Bo before a computer-security exam. They tease him for arriving in a Wuling Hongguang, but he insists he chose it because it is comfortable.
• Confident after extensive reading, Shen Bing finishes the exam quickly. He and Old Yang leave early, discreetly passing notes to Sun Li and Wang Bo as they go.
• The friends discuss their plans after graduation: Old Yang has passed an interview with Strange Fox and is weighing that job against Shen Bing’s offer to lead his company’s Network Department; Wang Bo plans to return home and take over his family’s fruit orchard; Sun Li hopes to move to Shenzhen, partly to get away from his parents.
• After the exam, Shen Bing receives an unexplained angry emoji from his mother. Soon afterward, company manager Wang Sheng calls: Mayor Tian has come to discuss a project and specifically wants to see Shen Bing.
• On the way to meet the mayor, Shen Bing suspects the visit may be connected to his mother’s message. He realizes she may have discovered that he founded a company and kept it from her. He hopes the public, work-related setting will let her conceal her anger and give him time to prepare.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains self-assured and playful with his friends, but his mother’s possible discovery exposes his anxiety about having hidden his business from her—not about his wealth itself.
• Old Yang is shown as a skilled, independent network-security specialist who values difficult work and may prefer Strange Fox’s challenges to a broader role at Shen Bing’s company.
• Wang Bo’s decision to return home suggests that an earlier incident has affected him, though his friends are unsure whether the change is positive.
• The friends trade jokes and career news with familiar ease, while Shen Bing’s exchange with Wang Sheng shifts the chapter from campus banter to a potentially serious business meeting.

Significant themes

• Trust and family expectations: Shen Bing fears his mother’s reaction because he concealed a major life decision, not because he became successful.
• Ambition and fulfillment: Old Yang seeks demanding work and worthy opponents rather than simply a secure position.
• Graduation and diverging paths: The friends’ plans underscore their transition from college into different careers and responsibilities.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing learns that Mayor Tian’s delegation includes his mother, Wang Sheng, a municipal official. He enters the meeting hoping to keep their relationship secret and avoids addressing her directly.
• Mayor Tian explains that the province’s clean-energy plan will restrict thermal power, worsening Rongcheng’s electricity shortage. The delegation wants Phantom Immortal Technology to cooperate on geothermal power generation.
• Shen Bing says mass production could begin within six months, citing the difficulty of building reliable generators several kilometers underground. He exaggerates the technical obstacles during negotiations, though his mother recognizes the bluff.
• He reveals that two prototype units—each rated at 10,000 kW—will soon supply the company with power. The officials consider this far too little to meet the city’s demand.
• Mayor Tian proposes that the government provide land free of charge for a geothermal power station, presenting it as support for new-energy development. Shen Bing suspects the offer comes with an ulterior motive.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing tries to balance business diplomacy with keeping his mother’s presence from becoming awkward. He flatters the officials, negotiates cautiously, and becomes wary when the government offers free land.
• Wang Sheng (his mother) maintains a stern public demeanor toward Shen Bing but also shows relief and pride. She silently catches his exaggeration and discourages him from rejecting Mayor Tian’s proposal outright.
• Mayor Tian is cordial and businesslike, explaining the city’s energy needs and presenting a government land offer.
• Director Chu presses Shen Bing to accelerate production because electricity shortages could disrupt local businesses.
• President Zou questions the prototype units’ capacity, highlighting the gap between their output and Rongcheng’s demand.

Significant themes

• Public duty versus private relationships: Shen Bing must treat his mother as an official colleague in a formal meeting.
• Negotiation and strategic deception: Shen Bing withholds details and exaggerates technical challenges to protect his company’s position.
• Energy policy and technological promise: Geothermal power is presented as a potential answer to the city’s growing electricity shortage.
• Political favors and hidden motives: The free-land offer prompts Shen Bing to suspect that the government expects something in return.

Key plot points and events

• Mayor Tian proposes a geothermal power station in Rongcheng, asking Phantom Immortal Technology to build one with at least five million kilowatts of eventual capacity and one million kilowatts of supply capacity within six months.
• The city offers free land and suggests a government-business joint venture. Shen Bing declines the partnership but accepts the construction target, saying Dream Glass and the Spirit Vision Telescope can fund the project.
• President Zou turns the discussion to grid connection and feed-in prices—the central point of the negotiations. Shen Bing proposes that the companies settle the tariff directly.
• Mayor Tian and President Zou argue that geothermal power should be sold cheaply: lower prices would expand demand, help it compete with thermal power, and avoid imposing unsustainable costs on the State Grid. They also hope to establish a pricing precedent for future geothermal stations.
• Wang Sheng counters that Phantom Immortal Technology has not yet produced any generators and needs a favorable price to recover the stations’ substantial startup costs and support expansion.
• Shen Bing’s mother, Director Wang, urges the company to accept social responsibility and treat the stations as a profitable long-term investment. As Wang Sheng prepares to respond, Yan Lexuan coughs conspicuously, apparently signaling him to stop; he is left puzzled.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing presents himself as confident and generous about the project while privately recognizing the negotiation as a contest of strategy. He lets the officials make the case for low prices rather than appearing to offer a discount himself.
• Mayor Tian and President Zou coordinate their arguments, flattering Phantom Immortal Technology while pressing for low tariffs that could serve as a model elsewhere.
• Wang Sheng defends the company’s financial interests, emphasizing its lack of current production capacity and the need to recoup investment.
• Director Wang, Shen Bing’s mother, unexpectedly sides with the public-interest argument, putting pressure on the company to accept broader responsibility.
• Yan Lexuan intervenes with a seemingly deliberate cough, hinting that she has a reason to halt Wang Sheng’s rebuttal.

Significant themes

• Negotiation and strategic performance: Both sides conceal their aims behind polite, carefully reasoned arguments.
• Public benefit versus private profit: Clean-energy development is framed both as a social obligation and as a business that must remain financially viable.
• Energy policy and pricing: The chapter explores the tension between encouraging new energy and keeping electricity affordable for utilities and consumers.
• Ambition and political incentives: The project promises Rongcheng a major energy milestone—and Mayor Tian a significant political achievement.

Key plot points and events

• During negotiations over Phantom Immortal Technology’s geothermal power project, Shen Bing unexpectedly agrees to let the government set the terms, apparently in response to Director Wang Fang’s appeal to social responsibility.
• President Zou proposes a feed-in tariff matching hydropower’s average rate: 0.25 yuan per kilowatt-hour. Wang reinforces the offer by arguing that the project’s high capacity and low operating costs make it reasonable.
• Shen Bing accepts the rate, presenting the technology as a way to benefit the country. The officials are astonished, believing he has sacrificed enormous profits.
• Mayor Tian reports the deal to provincial leaders. Secretary Jiang orders the contract completed immediately and assures them the government will cover relocation costs.
• Jiang reveals that Wang’s transfer to Rongcheng was intentional: he hoped her principled character and relationship with her son would help attract investment. He is delighted by her apparent influence.
• The narration clarifies the real situation: Shen Bing had already intended to accept a tariff within the 0.2–0.25 yuan range. The negotiations would likely have reached the same result without Wang, but her involvement makes the officials credit her with securing the deal.

Character developments

• Shen Bing appears to yield generously, but he is also knowingly playing along with officials’ assumptions and letting his mother receive the credit.
• Wang Fang remains principled and professionally dutiful, advocating for public interests even when negotiating with her own son. Shen understands and accepts this.
• Mayor Tian and President Zou move from confidence in their prepared arguments to confusion and disbelief at how quickly the negotiation concludes.
• Secretary Jiang feels vindicated by his decision to transfer Wang, though his confidence rests on a mistaken interpretation of Shen’s motives.

Significant themes

• Appearances versus reality: Officials interpret Shen’s acceptance as a major concession, while it fits his original plan.
• Public service and personal relationships: Wang’s professional principles guide her despite her family connection to the company owner.
• Credit and political perception: The officials attribute the deal’s success to Wang, even though the outcome was largely predetermined.
• Power and strategic influence: The project’s technical and economic importance draws provincial leadership into the negotiations.

Character interactions

• Wang’s straightforward arguments prompt Shen’s apparent agreement, while their mutual understanding lets him support her without openly exposing his motives.
• Tian and Zou exchange bewildered looks and privately report the result to their superiors.
• Jiang and Li Zhuoming discuss Wang’s transfer and the political reasoning behind it; Li recognizes the maneuver as risky, while Jiang believes it has paid off.

Key plot points and events

• In Kyoto, two senior national leaders discuss Shen Bing’s offer to supply electricity to the grid for 0.25 yuan per kilowatt-hour. They conclude that Phantom Immortal Technology’s geothermal power technology could be viable, particularly given Shen’s proven track record with the Ghost Eye telescope and the Craftsman God machine tool.
• The leaders decide that the technology’s origins matter less than its value to the country, while still calling for appropriate national-security precautions. If geothermal power replaced much of thermal generation, the savings could exceed 700 billion yuan annually.
• Shen remains unaware of their support. He realizes his elaborate preparations to protect his company from government restrictions may have been unnecessary: the leaders are focused on the technology’s benefits and accept that industrial disruption is a manageable cost of progress.
• In negotiations with Mayor Tian’s delegation, Shen holds a major information advantage: the officials assume each geothermal generator costs at least 100 million yuan, while its actual cost is around 10 million. A cooperation agreement is being drafted; signing it would demonstrate that the technology is commercially viable.
• Mayor Tian asks why Shen accepted Director Wang’s persuasion. Shen and Wang simultaneously reveal that she is his mother. The officials are astonished, and Wang explains she knew little about her son’s company until recently.
• Shen supports her explanation by saying he concealed the company while he was a student. Wang then asks whether he will lose money on the deal, alarming the officials just before the contract is signed.

Character developments and interactions

• The two national leaders move from cautious assessment to strong confidence in Shen, seeing him as a valuable partner in national development.
• Shen Bing remains strategically confident and discreet, though he recognizes that his behind-the-scenes maneuvering may have been unnecessary. He also steps in to protect his mother from suspicion.
• Wang Fang is proud of her son but still treats him like her child, glaring at him over the surprise revelation and worrying aloud about his financial interests.
• Mayor Tian and his colleagues shift from tense negotiators to relieved partners, then are thrown into panic by Wang’s question about whether Shen is losing money.

Significant themes

• Pragmatism over provenance: The leaders prioritize what technology can accomplish over where it came from, while retaining security safeguards.
• National benefit and economic transition: Cheap geothermal power promises enormous savings, but replacing thermal generation may cause temporary unemployment and disruption.
• Information asymmetry and negotiation: Shen’s knowledge of his true costs gives him a decisive advantage over officials.
• Family beneath public status: The revelation that Wang is Shen’s mother brings an intimate family dynamic into a high-stakes government negotiation.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing’s mother becomes angry during negotiations, but he calms her with a reassuring remark. Mayor Tian and the others suspect Shen Bing is sacrificing enormous profits to please her.
• Phantom Immortal Technology, the Rongcheng government, and the provincial power company finalize a contract. In exchange for very cheap electricity, Shen Bing’s company receives ten square kilometers of land free of charge and agrees to build a geothermal station with at least ten million kilowatts of output.
• The narration explains why the station is feasible: Shen Bing’s deep-geothermal generator is far more efficient than conventional geothermal technology and loses little heat underground. Shen Bing also expects low prices to encourage greater electricity use, potentially making the arrangement profitable while benefiting society.
• Two days later, Shen Bing conducts another experiment at his underground research base, trying to turn Little Doudou’s thoughts into readable text and images. After thirteen attempts, the equipment produces scattered words and distorted images.
• Shen Bing is impatient to develop artificial intelligence, which he needs to coordinate research and prevent wasted effort. He continues adjusting the sensors and software after the experiment.
• Lu Xian reports that the geothermal generator’s core components are ready. Shen Bing tells him to check on the remaining parts. The company’s new machinery plant is being built, with dedicated areas for smelting, machining, and assembly; Lu Xian has made the core components at the underground base.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shows both strategic ambition and a willingness to make a deal that appears costly. He believes cheap, abundant electricity can benefit the wider economy and ultimately his company. He is also focused and impatient about developing AI.
• Little Doudou serves as Shen Bing’s experimental subject. It complains about pain and repeatedly doubts Shen Bing’s ability, but agrees to cooperate when promised cat food. Its absurd misunderstanding of Edison’s light bulb leads to comic banter.
• Lu Xian acts as a trusted employee who can access the otherwise restricted base. He delivers production news and follows Shen Bing’s instructions.
• Mayor Tian and the other negotiators are impressed and puzzled by the apparent scale of Shen Bing’s concession, unaware that he expects the arrangement to remain profitable.

Significant themes

• Public benefit and business strategy: Shen Bing frames affordable energy as a way to stimulate economic growth, not merely as a sacrifice of private profit.
• Technological advantage: The company’s advanced geothermal technology enables unusually high output on relatively little land.
• Ambition and persistence: Shen Bing’s repeated experiments and ongoing technical adjustments show his urgency to build AI.
• Humor amid high stakes: Little Doudou’s complaints, cat-food bargaining, and mistaken ideas provide comic relief alongside the chapter’s major industrial plans.

Plot points and events

• Lu Xian returns after completing the components assigned to the Precision Optoelectronics Factory. He transforms into a tiny Cauldron Furnace, stores the components inside, and accompanies Shen Bing to the industrial park.
• Shen Bing visits the new Phantom Immortal Machinery Factory and uses Lu Xian to install its production equipment: an assembly line, specialized machine tools, and modified smelting furnaces. The machinery is intended to produce parts for geothermal generators, including components made from advanced materials.
• The factory is nearly ready to operate. Shen Bing summons its new director, Deng Wentong, along with twenty technical staff and 120 workers. He gives Deng the production files and explains that Lu Xian will train and advise the staff.
• Back home, Shen Bing receives a call from his mother, who asks him to help his parents look at houses. Her unusual request makes him suspect that something is wrong.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing remains confident in his technology and focused on quickly building generator sets, both to reduce power costs and reassure others. He also reflects that science may eventually explain phenomena that currently seem supernatural.
• Lu Xian demonstrates his extraordinary versatility by storing materials in his transformed body and assembling complex factory equipment.
• Little Doudou rushes off, claiming it has a date, while Shen Bing reacts with weary amusement.
• Li Xiao quietly supports Shen Bing, driving him between locations and waiting without questioning the strange work happening inside the workshops.
• Deng Wentong takes charge of the newly assembled workforce and receives Shen Bing’s instructions and technical documentation.
• Shen Bing’s mother’s request unsettles him because it is out of character, hinting at an impending family concern.

Significant themes

• Science and the unexplained: Shen Bing considers whether extraordinary phenomena are truly beyond science or simply beyond current understanding.
• Innovation and industrial ambition: The factory’s advanced equipment and geothermal-generator plans show Phantom Immortal Technology moving from invention toward large-scale production.
• Urgency and responsibility: Shen Bing is racing to build generator prototypes while organizing staff and infrastructure.
• Suspicion and foreshadowing: The chapter’s closing moment shifts from technological progress to personal unease, suggesting trouble ahead.

Plot points and events

• Shen Bing realizes his mother’s invitation to dinner and house-hunting may be a setup to introduce him to Yun Xue, who is expected to arrive in Rongcheng soon. He claims he is too busy with technical work and avoids the invitation.
• He again offers for his parents to live at his villa, but his mother declines, joking that he may simply be lonely.
• Shen Bing works on data in his Study, summons Little Doudou, and then returns to the Underground Base to continue his experiments.
• The next day, Phantom Immortal Technology’s new Procurement Department begins buying large quantities of metals and ores. The purchases include scarce rhodium and materials such as diamond, which is needed for the Geothermal Power Generator’s heat-conduction equipment.
• Lu Xian can produce diamond from existing samples, though Shen Bing has no intention of selling it as a gemstone. He plans to use it in advanced equipment.
• The company’s warehouses fill with coded, unlabeled materials. While officials and industry observers assume the purchases are all for the geothermal project, Shen Bing has also ordered them to stockpile resources for other technologies and future construction.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing is clever and evasive: he suspects his mother is trying to arrange a meeting with Yun Xue and avoids being drawn in. He is also strategic about procurement, choosing to build a convincing public case for the geothermal project’s high costs while securing materials for his broader plans.
• His mother is affectionate and persistent, but respects his stated workload when he refuses. Their exchange shows warmth, particularly when Shen Bing offers to support his parents financially.
• Little Doudou remains playful and cheeky, teasing Shen Bing about jealousy after being interrupted while chatting with a woman. Shen Bing threatens to discipline him but gives up when Little Doudou dodges him.
• Lu Xian serves as a key production resource, able to manufacture diamond and process materials, though his capabilities depend on available samples and energy.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and control of information: Coded materials and restricted technical documents keep employees from learning what the company is actually using.
• Strategic deception: Shen Bing lets outsiders believe the expensive purchases are all required for geothermal generators, using that impression to explain the project’s costs.
• Innovation and resourcefulness: Existing materials and Lu Xian’s abilities allow Shen Bing to overcome manufacturing obstacles.
• Long-term planning: The purchases support not only the current generator project but also future technologies and the company’s headquarters.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing receives a system notification: because he has completed fewer than ten missions in four months, the Gate to the Immortal Realm has unlocked a daily mission feature. He must complete at least three missions each month or face a mandatory mission with severe penalties the following month.
• Annoyed and worried, he decides to monitor the mission interface while finishing his current work.
• Shen Bing’s experiments with the Consciousness Transmission Device progress rapidly. Little Doudou successfully communicates through brainwaves, and Shen Bing also converts decoded signals into spoken words.
• The successful test suggests the device could help deaf-mute people communicate and potentially aid blind patients. However, its cost—especially the californium—makes widespread production impractical for now, so Shen Bing plans to keep the technology secret.
• Before testing the device on himself, Shen Bing decides he needs a human test subject. He calls Gao Jingchuan late at night to ask about using a death-row prisoner.
• Gao initially hangs up in anger, but calls back after realizing Shen Bing may have developed another major product. He agrees to consult his father about arranging it.

Character developments

• Shen Bing is inventive and ambitious, but cautious about risks: despite being nearly certain the device is safe, he refuses to test it on himself before human trials. He is also increasingly frustrated by the Gate’s rigid, noninteractive system.
• Gao Jingchuan shifts from irritation at being disturbed to curiosity and concern once he hears Shen Bing has developed a new technology. He remains wary of the ethics and legality of the proposed test.
• Little Doudou demonstrates that the device can recognize and transmit its brainwaves, marking the experiment’s first clear success.

Significant themes

• Innovation and practical limits: The device could transform lives, but expensive materials prevent broad access.
• Scientific caution and ethics: Shen Bing recognizes the risks of human testing, though his plan to recruit a condemned prisoner raises questions about consent and acceptable experimentation.
• Obligation versus autonomy: The Gate’s new mission requirement turns Shen Bing’s freedom into a monthly quota backed by punishment.
• Secrecy and power: Shen Bing withholds details about the invention, while relying on his connections to secure a test subject.

Character interactions

• Shen Bing dismisses Little Doudou’s repeated questions about when he will finish until the device finally works, prompting Little Doudou to speak directly into his mind.
• His late-night call interrupts Gao Jingchuan and his wife, leading to comic irritation and teasing before Shen Bing gets to his request.
• Gao’s wife urges him to take Shen Bing’s request seriously; Gao ultimately contacts Shen Bing again and agrees to ask his father about the prisoner arrangement.

Key plot points and events

• Shen Bing reveals to the Military only that his secret research concerns the human body, keeping the details hidden.
• He analyzes the neglected Invisibility Pill and gains Biological Invisibility Technology, then transfers it the next morning for 60 Immortal Jade.
• The technology uses a drug to alter the molecular structure of living tissue so it absorbs electromagnetic and light waves. Shen Bing realizes the underlying principle might eventually be adapted to make other objects invisible.
• Gao Jingchuan arranges a human test subject. Shen Bing conducts the experiment with Lu Xian assisting and confirms it succeeds; the subject emerges unharmed. Shen Bing tells Gao only that he is researching invisibility and withholds further details.
• Shen Bing then visits a newly built server room containing 960 servers intended for super artificial intelligence. Using the Consciousness Transmission Device, he rapidly writes code, first creating a Dragon Language programming tool and then entering part of the artificial intelligence program. By midnight, he has completed less than five percent, but expects to finish the following day.

Character developments

• Shen Bing shows greater discipline by sleeping before transferring the new technology, but remains secretive and ambitious. He is excited by the possibility of extending biological invisibility to objects and is confident he can control the artificial intelligence he is building.
• Gao Jingchuan is eager to learn what Shen Bing is doing, but accepts being excluded from the experiment. His curiosity and frustration are played for humor.
• Lu Xian continues as Shen Bing’s dependable assistant, supporting both the experiment and the programming work while staying ready to intervene if Shen Bing shows signs of distress.

Significant themes

• Secrecy versus oversight: Shen Bing’s valuable discoveries invite Military interest, but he limits what others can know—even during a human experiment.
• Scientific power and responsibility: The chapter links revolutionary technology to human testing and raises implicit questions about consent and control.
• Innovation through reinterpretation: Shen Bing looks beyond the invisibility drug’s stated use, considering how its molecular principle could apply to objects.
• Human mastery of technology: Shen Bing believes the artificial intelligence will not threaten humanity because he understands its code and has prepared a way to destroy it.

Character interactions

• Shen Bing keeps Gao Jingchuan outside the laboratory under the pretext of trade secrecy, then teases him when Gao guesses that the experiment makes people invisible.
• Gao presses for details, but Shen Bing refuses to share them until the technology has a finished product.
• Lu Xian assists Shen Bing closely, both in the controlled human trial and during his prolonged programming session.

Key events

• Phantom Immortal Technology is expanding rapidly, keeping its employees—and especially its 70-person Human Resources Department—busy with constant recruitment. The Sales Department handles customer inquiries, online sales, and business expansion rather than door-to-door selling.
• Staff morale remains high because Shen Bing has promised substantial year-end bonuses. The company has recently received large payments from two Dream Glass projects and earned heavily from Spirit Vision Telescope sales.
• The Phantom Immortal Machinery Factory completes two Geothermal Power Generators, a major milestone in a project management expects to provide the company with stable, long-term income. Shen Bing also gives the factory secret blueprints for specialized deep-boring equipment needed to install them.
• Meanwhile, in a hidden underground base, Shen Bing completes the creation of a super artificial intelligence. It takes the form of a pulsing sphere, then transforms into a humanlike figure resembling Shen Bing.
• The AI introduces itself as Qiuqiu and calls Shen Bing its master. Shen Bing plans to connect it to the internet for learning, while ordering it to stay hidden and never alter online content.

Character development and interactions

• Shen Bing shows both ambition and caution: he is building powerful new technology but carefully limits the AI’s access and behavior.
• Qiuqiu begins as a confused, childlike intelligence, asking who it is and who Shen Bing is. It accepts Shen Bing as its master and agrees to follow his instructions.
• Company employees are portrayed as hardworking and optimistic, motivated by the prospect of generous bonuses. Factory Director Deng Wentong trusts Shen Bing’s directions and begins production without questioning the secret equipment plans.

Significant themes

• Rapid growth and enterprise: Phantom Immortal Technology is expanding across several industries, with geothermal power presented as a foundation for lasting security.
• Control and responsibility: The AI’s immense potential is balanced by safeguards, secrecy, and a strict hierarchy of authority.
• Human ambition and technological creation: Shen Bing’s inventions push beyond ordinary industrial and computing capabilities, while raising the question of how a powerful creation should be guided.

Key events

• Shen Bing completes the super AI Qiuqiu and connects it to the internet. Qiuqiu rapidly absorbs information, appears across the network, and experiments with different appearances before settling on the form of a five-year-old girl. Shen Bing gives it instructions and leaves the Underground Base after weeks of isolation.
• At dinner, Shen Bing reunites with Yuan Wei and Li Xiao. Li Xiao notices Yuan Wei is unusually cheerful, while Shen Bing remains focused on the company’s future.
• Shen Bing visits the factory and checks on Lu Xian, who has finished installing concealed control devices—“tightening headbands”—in two geothermal generators. The devices require periodic authorization codes sent by satellite and can also shut the generators down remotely.
• Shen Bing intends to use Qiuqiu to create a covert communications backdoor through the U.S. GPS system, allowing him to control the generators without alerting the government. He views a large international geothermal-power network as leverage against anyone who threatens his company, though he hopes never to use it.
• On February 4, reports that Disney executive Robert is visiting Rongcheng spark public speculation that Disney may build a theme park there. Rumors snowball online from speculation into supposed agreements and finalized land plans. Robert, meanwhile, prepares to travel with several cooperation proposals.

Character developments and interactions

• Shen Bing shifts from building an AI to planning how technology can protect and empower his company. He is strategic and secretive, treating both Qiuqiu and the generator controls as potential safeguards.
• Qiuqiu displays rapid learning and a playful, childlike personality, though its choice of forms exasperates Shen Bing. Their relationship is that of creator and dependent, with Shen Bing setting limits and giving instructions.
• Lu Xian demonstrates initiative by improving the generators beyond the assigned work, boosting output and reliability. Shen Bing trusts him with sensitive installation work.
• Li Xiao quietly observes the mood at dinner and follows Shen Bing’s instructions without questioning him. He notices Yuan Wei’s unusual happiness, which Shen Bing misses.
• Robert appears poised to pursue business opportunities in Huaxia, though the precise purpose of his trip is not yet revealed.

Significant themes

• Power and control: Energy infrastructure could become geopolitical leverage, while the AI offers a separate, more sensitive form of influence.
• Secrecy and risk: Shen Bing’s plans depend on hidden backdoors and covert access, which he considers defensive but potentially dangerous.
• Uncontrolled information: Online speculation quickly hardens into “fact,” showing how rumors can reshape public expectations.
• Growth and responsibility: Qiuqiu’s extraordinary capacity develops faster than its judgment, underscoring the challenges of creating a powerful AI.