Chapter Summaries

Amon met the veteran hunters hired for a dangerous mission to capture a giant Snake and explained his tracking experience and knowledge of alchemical weapons. After questioning the team's reliance on Frigg Bullets, he asked Sand Scorpion to obtain RPGs, prompting Sand Scorpion to note they were hunting, not going to war.

• Wang Xu introduced the hunters, and Sand Scorpion asked Amon to explain his abilities before he would command the operation.
• Amon described his tracking skills, and Wang Xu confirmed that the employer recognized his abilities.
• Wang Xu presented the team's equipment, including Frigg Bullets, and Amon explained how the low-grade alchemical ammunition worked.
• Amon warned that Frigg Bullets might not stop the giant Snake, but Wang Xu said the young master wanted it captured alive and had supplied no regular bullets.
• Amon asked Sand Scorpion to arrange real firepower, including RPGs, and Sand Scorpion replied that they were going hunting, not to war.

Amon and Wang Xu planned a dangerous rainforest expedition to capture the Scarlet Naga alive, and Amon joined the hunters for a card game to get to know the team. After calling Xia Mi to warn her he might lose phone service, Amon suspected she had gone to see Fenrir.

• Amon argued that the team should prepare for the possibility of encountering a pure-blooded dragon, and Sand Scorpion agreed to obtain powerful weapons for emergencies.
• Wang Xu explained that the hunters would search the rainforest for the Scarlet Naga, capture it alive, and use a tracking device to arrange a helicopter pickup.
• Snow Fox, Sand Scorpion, Brother Jie, and Amon played cards and shared how they had entered the hunter business.
• The hunters judged Amon as timid but courageous, and Snow Fox advised him to leave the dangerous profession after the mission.
• Amon called Xia Mi, who said she was doing well at school, and told her he would be unreachable during a jungle expedition in Thailand.
• After hearing a train rumble through a tunnel during the call, Amon wondered whether Xia Mi had gone to see Fenrir.

Amon and the Hunters prepared to search the Thai rainforest for the Scarlet Naga, but relentless rain postponed their expedition for three days. Once the weather cleared, Wang Xu rallied the cooped-up Hunters and restored their fighting spirit.

• Xia Mi worried that He Xiaomeng might encounter Dragon Kind in the rainforest and sent Amon a teasing text; Amon noticed Jormungandr's mark stir and fell asleep wondering what Xia Mi knew.
• Amon woke to heavy rain, and Brother Jie warned that the weather would make their search for the giant snake more dangerous.
• Snow Fox showed the group a Red-spotted Python, while Sand Scorpion returned with ammunition and weapons, including a rocket launcher for Wang Xu.
• The Hunters played cards as the rain continued, and Wang Xu postponed the operation with Mr. Chen's approval.
• After three days of rain and cards, the sky cleared, and Wang Xu toasted the Hunters and encouraged them to regain their fighting spirit.

Amon and the hunters traveled into the rainforest to hunt the Scarlet Naga, whose red fireballs appeared across the river. They chased the lights at night, collided with an unknown object, and Amon turned on the spotlight to reveal what lay ahead.

• Amon and the hunters boarded Wusen's fishing boat and traveled upriver toward the Scarlet Naga's territory.
• Sand Scorpion assigned the hunters to pairs and ordered them to keep watch as the boat approached the rumored naga's range.
• Dinosaur spotted crimson fireballs rising from the river, and Amon glimpsed a giant snake-like shadow beneath the water.
• Wang Xu detected a long object on the sonar, and Sand Scorpion sped after the fireballs despite Wusen's warnings.
• The boat struck a long, narrow object floating across the river, and Amon climbed to the roof and switched on the spotlight.

The boat crew investigated strange lights and a sonar contact on the Mekong, but found only a dead tree and resumed their watch. During the night shift, Amon and Snow Fox detected another moving object as one of Brother Jie’s hunters went outside alone.

• Amon’s searchlight revealed that the object near the boat was a dead tree, and Wang Xu said the sonar contact might have been a branch.
• Wang Xu calmed Wusen with Thai Baht, then lied that the crew’s glowing yellow eyes came from liver and gallbladder disease.
• Wusen blamed the Naga for the river fireballs, and Amon described local legends and theories about the Naga Fireballs.
• Sand Scorpion decided the crew would follow the original plan, take turns keeping watch, and head deeper into the river in the morning.
• During the night shift, Amon and Snow Fox detected a large moving object on the sonar while a hunter went outside to smoke.
• Snow Fox warned the hunter to be careful outside at night.

After a Hunter was attacked by a Red-spotted Python, Amon drank its blood and absorbed its genes overnight. The Hunters confirmed they were nearing the Scarlet Naga’s territory, and Wang Xu prepared a bait to lure it out.

• Snow Fox and Amon discovered a Hunter had vanished, and the crew sounded the alarm.
• Brother Jie pulled the wounded Hunter from the water after he killed an eleven- or twelve-meter Red-spotted Python.
• Amon collected and drank the snake’s blood despite Wang Xu’s warning about the risk of degeneration into a Dead Servant.
• Amon absorbed the serpent’s superior genetic fragments overnight while he and Snow Fox kept watch.
• Wang Xu told the Hunters to stay in pairs and revealed a colorful liquid he planned to use as bait for Dragon-blooded Subspecies.

Wang Xu and the Hunters used Evolution Potion as bait to lure Dragon-Blooded Creatures from the river. After Amon killed and drank the blood of a smaller Great Serpent, a far more dangerous creature evaded sonar, stole the bait, and dragged one of Sand Scorpion’s men underwater.

• Wang Xu explained the Evolution Potion’s effects and used some to prepare bait from a piece of the Great Serpent carcass.
• Sand Scorpion lowered the bait in a fishing net, and a python approached but failed to tear through the net.
• Amon shot the python, harpooned it, and drank its blood before discarding its carcass.
• After an hour without further sightings, Amon noticed the bait had vanished, and Sand Scorpion found the net torn open despite the sonar detecting nothing.
• A dark creature erupted from the river, dragged away one of Sand Scorpion’s men, and left a headless corpse that soon sank beneath the water.

After a giant snake attacked their boat, the hunters drove it underwater with heavy gunfire and went ashore to continue their search. The group entered the forest and found a huge shed snake skin hanging from a tree.

• Amon identified the creature stalking the boat as a giant snake, and Sand Scorpion argued with Wang Xu over whether to kill it.
• The hunters wounded the snake with machine-gun fire and Frigg Bullets, but it submerged and disappeared.
• Sand Scorpion apologized for losing control, and Brother Jie forced the frightened guide Wusen to leave the boat with the group.
• The hunters set off into the forest, with Brother Jie assigned to protect Wang Xu.
• The group found a translucent shed snake skin more than thirty meters long hanging from a tree, and Brother Jie recognized it.

The team encountered a feathered Great Serpent with Golden Eyes and discovered that removing one of its feathers triggered unsettling visions in Wang Xu. As they continued through the rainforest, they found that many giant pythons had similar feathers, while Sand Scorpion grew increasingly wary of unseen watchers.

• Sand Scorpion explained that the giant snakes might have gathered around a female in heat, and the team continued deeper into the rainforest.
• Wusen spotted a Great Serpent with Golden Eyes swallowing a monkey, but Sand Scorpion initially chose to detour around it to conserve ammunition.
• After Amon pointed out feathers growing among the serpent’s scales, Dinosaur shot it, and Wang Xu removed a feather and saw visions of strange figures and places.
• Amon drank the serpent’s blood, while Wang Xu photographed its body and collected a sample of its flesh.
• The team encountered more feathered giant pythons and discussed whether they resembled the Feathered Serpent God Quetzalcoatl.
• Sand Scorpion urged the team to focus on finding the biggest snake and leaving, saying he felt watched by unseen creatures.

Amon recognized the feathered serpents’ mutations as the influence of God's Blood, then the Hunters were attacked at night by a gigantic winged Giant Python. The beast revealed itself as their target, and Amon withdrew to the back of the group as the Hunters faced it.

• Amon concluded that someone in the rainforest could control God's Blood and suspected a connection to the Hall of Truth.
• Ethan led the exhausted Hunters to shelter in a hollow tree, where they set up cameras and took turns keeping watch.
• A Giant Python attacked the tree hollow and dragged away the Hunter standing guard.
• Dinosaur shot through the tree with her Barrett, and the Hunters fled as the snake climbed away.
• The Giant Python caught and swallowed Wusen, then revealed black wings and its identity as the Feathered Serpent God.
• Snow Fox linked Scarlet Naga to the Feathered Serpent God, while Amon pushed his Spirit Word to its limit and retreated behind the others.

Amon and the Hunters fought a giant serpent that proved to be a Third Generation Dragon Kind, but its Bronze Throne Spirit Word turned the battle against them. Amon escaped with two stolen Evolution Potions, drank them, and awakened his Golden Eyes.

• Amon used Spirit Word: Ghost to make himself a less conspicuous target as Wang Xu and the Hunters opened fire on the serpent.
• The serpent charged through the gunfire, evaded Wang Xu’s rocket, and swallowed Hunters before Dinosaur’s high-explosive rounds wounded it.
• The serpent used Spirit Word: Bronze Throne, hardening and enlarging its body as the Hunters suffered losses and fled.
• Amon slipped away unnoticed and stole two Evolution Potions from Wang Xu.
• Amon drank both potions, suppressed the Dragon Kind’s will, and opened his eyes with Golden Eyes.

Amon hunted Giant Pythons to strengthen his bloodline, then discovered a valley ruled by a vast serpent swarm and an ancient altar. As he reached the altar, the Black Giant Serpent blocked his way and discovered him.

• Amon used Spirit Word: Ghost to approach and kill a Giant Python, then bathed in its blood to strengthen his bloodline.
• Amon killed thirteen more Giant Pythons and found a valley covered with giant serpents and red vines.
• Amon saw a Black Giant Serpent with feathered wings swallow several pythons and guessed that a powerful Second Generation Dragon controlled the ecosystem.
• Amon climbed into the valley and crossed its snake-filled swamp to reach a towering black-stone altar where serpents fed red fireballs into flames.
• The Black Giant Serpent blocked Amon near the altar and fixed its golden-red eyes on him.

Amon entered a Nibelungen and met the Shaman, who performed a ritual to contact an Immortal God through the Gate of Truth. The ritual ended without a response, while Amon realized she could simply speak to him.

• Amon discovered that the path to the altar had become swamp, and a voice ordered the Feathered Serpent to let him approach.
• Amon climbed the altar and recognized the Shaman from the Hall of Truth by her appearance and aura.
• The Shaman danced before the fire of burning snake corpses and raised a vast pattern in the sky resembling the Gate of Truth.
• The Shaman wondered how to make the Immortal Gate respond, and Amon thought that she only needed to speak directly because he was listening.

Amon met Naga after killing several of her Great Serpents and asked about her position toward the Monarch. Naga rejected the Monarch and offered Amon a place at her side, feeling an inexplicable familiarity with him.

• Amon apologized to Naga for killing her Great Serpents and explained that he had not known they belonged to her.
• Naga introduced herself and accepted Amon’s apology after he promised to host her in China.
• Amon asked Naga to share her attitude and goals as the upheaval approached and whether she might join the Monarch.
• Naga told Amon that she would not side with the Monarch again because the Monarch’s past recklessness had ruined their favorable situation.
• Naga accused the Monarch of using Amon and invited him to serve her instead, promising to share the final authority and glory with him.

Amon rejected Naga’s offer to cure his corruption, choosing to remain loyal to his sovereign, and left the Nibelungen. Lost in the forest, he found the surviving Hunters battling a giant python and helped them capture it alive.

• Naga warned Amon that the Power of Feathering would corrupt him and offered to cure him if he followed her, but Amon refused to betray his sovereign.
• Naga sent Little Python to escort Amon out of the Nibelungen, then watched him leave and wondered why he affected her heart.
• Amon emerged in an unfamiliar part of the forest and, after hearing gunshots, hurried toward the surviving Hunters.
• Wang Xu, Sand Scorpion, Snow Fox, and Brother Jie fought a giant python, which crushed Brother Jie before attacking the others.
• Amon asked Wang Xu whether the python could suffer permanent nonfatal injuries, then blinded it and destroyed its heat-sensing organs with Frigg Bullets.
• The wounded python lost its senses, succumbed to the anesthetic, and fell unconscious, allowing the Hunters to capture it alive.

Amon and the surviving hunters escaped the rainforest with the captured Giant Python, and Chen Moxin considered the region’s feathered snakes possible test subjects. A call with Nono revealed her resentment toward their family and left Chen Moxin worrying about the dog’s bald patch.

• Wang Xu sent a distress signal, and several hours later recovery personnel arrived by helicopter to extract the hunters and the Giant Python.
• Snow Fox said he planned to stop repaying his debts and deal with his creditors, while Sand Scorpion mourned their dead companions in silence.
• Wang Xu reported to Mr. Chen that the hunters had failed to capture the Scarlet Naga but had secured the Giant Python, and Amon received two million dollars for the completed mission.
• Chen Moxin speculated that the feathered snakes might be connected to contamination from God's Blood and considered capturing specimens for research.
• Nono called Chen Moxin, complained about being treated as a marriage offering, and asked him to care for her dog.
• Chen Moxin noticed a bald patch on the dog and asked a maid how to treat its hair loss.

Xia Mi wrestled with her growing attachment to Amon while pretending it was only practice for her role as his little sister. When Amon described meeting Naga in Thailand and repeated her cryptic words about diverging paths and ascension, Xia Mi realized he had encountered her old acquaintance and wondered whether Naga intended to betray her.

• Xia Mi discovered that Amon had put five million on her bank card and felt both touched by his concern and anxious about living under a stolen identity.
• Xia Mi and Amon joked over QQ about his dangerous Thailand trip, and she told him to be careful.
• Amon said he had encountered a forty-meter Giant Python and a beautiful woman named Naga in the rainforest.
• Amon recalled that Naga had spoken of diverging paths, listening to the Immortal Gods, opening the Immortal Gate, and achieving Ascension.
• Xia Mi recognized Amon's description of Naga as an old friend and privately wondered what Naga's words meant and whether she planned to betray her.

Amon arrived in Beijing and reunited with Xia Mi, then secretly tested his improved bloodline and newly awakened Spirit Word, Bloodline Web. He sensed Xia Mi through the ability, while she felt watched but chose not to retaliate.

• Xia Mi mistook Amon for a burglar and subdued him before recognizing him beneath his mask.
• Amon explained that he had exchanged his family home’s relocation apartment for cash and brought Xia Mi her turtle, Xiao Ba.
• Xia Mi sensed something unusual about Amon, but he avoided her questions and asked to sleep at her place.
• Amon went to the river and tested Bloodline Web, which let him sense Dragon-blooded people through red threads.
• Amon sensed Xia Mi and withdrew his perception after she noticed she was being watched.

Amon used Bloodline Web across the Capital City and sensed Fenrir, but the connection let a Lin Family elder glimpse Amon’s soul and turn into a Dead Servant. After ending the Spirit Word and moving away, Amon recovered and headed toward the abandoned Subway Line 1 station.

• Amon expanded Bloodline Web across much of the city and sensed Fenrir’s overwhelming presence through a crimson thread.
• A Lin Family elder detected Amon’s perception, amplified the bloodline resonance, and saw the tentacled creature in Amon’s soul, causing his mind to collapse and his body to become a Dead Servant.
• A young Lin Family member raised the alarm and fled while the family’s armed forces assembled to fight the transformed elder.
• Amon ended Bloodline Web, left the area, rested in a public garden, and bought several bags of potato chips.
• Amon took a taxi toward the abandoned Subway Line 1 station as the driver discussed reports of monsters and nonexistent stations.

Amon entered Fenrir’s Nibelungen and reached its gambling-game gatekeeper, where Fenrir offered him a wager for a chance to meet and win a bag of potato chips. The chapter left Amon agreeing to gamble for one hundred Arctic Ocean bottle caps.

• Amon entered the abandoned subway station and found himself in Fenrir’s Nibelungen, where he shot a kamaitachi and drew the attention of many more.
• A subway train carried Amon to Fushouling Station, where he met the nine-headed Kamaitachi Queen acting as the Dealer.
• The Dealer explained that visitors had to gamble for enough chips to leave the labyrinth or earn an audience with Fenrir.
• Fenrir realized Amon had no chips because he claimed not to be lonely, then offered a bag of potato chips as the prize for winning one hundred Arctic Ocean bottle caps.
• Amon accepted Fenrir’s wager and agreed to gamble.