Chapter Summaries

Plot points and events

• Chen Miao’s evidence links Feng Ping’s missing skin to a suspected Curse Cult case. Feng Ping confirms the skin is hers but says she has spent the afternoon studying in her office.
• Jiao Liangcai hesitates to investigate her: Feng’s seniority and powerful family could make the inquiry politically difficult, while Chen Miao’s connections also make it risky to dismiss his evidence.
• Jiao Yue suggests checking Feng for a Curse Cult tattoo, forcing Jiao Liangcai to choose a course of action. After receiving a call, Jiao formally asks Feng to cooperate and says Shi Manman will also be questioned.
• Feng calmly asks to call her family. A female colleague takes her for a tattoo check.
• Headquarters orders Jiao to stop investigating Feng and wait for its personnel. He refuses, insisting that local procedure requires the case to continue until the team arrives.
• Further calls suggest powerful interests are intervening on Feng’s behalf. Chen Miao realizes the backing behind her is substantial, but decides he can pursue his own means if the Administration cannot.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiao Liangcai moves from cautious indecision to a firm, procedure-based stance after Jiao Yue’s suggestion commits him to acting. His resistance to Headquarters’ order shows growing resolve.
• Feng Ping remains composed and cooperative on the surface, neither arguing nor appearing rattled, while invoking her right to contact her family.
• Jiao Yue unintentionally pushes his father into investigating Feng by proposing a direct test.
• Chen Miao stays focused on the case and recognizes that institutional pressure may obstruct the investigation.

Significant themes

• Power and influence: Family connections and Headquarters’ intervention threaten to shape the investigation.
• Duty versus political pressure: Jiao must balance proper procedure against the consequences of investigating a well-connected colleague.
• Suspicion and proof: The missing skin and Chen Miao’s testimony raise serious questions, but Feng’s calm behavior and time spent inside the Administration complicate the case.

Plot points and events

• Feng Ping returns from a physical examination with no Curse Cult tattoos. She asks to be questioned in her office rather than an interrogation room. Jiao Liangcai agrees, assigning Jiao Yue to guard the door and veteran investigator Old Xing to question her.
• Jiao tells Chen Miao that Feng Ping has powerful family connections, but insists he will continue the investigation. He urges Chen to call on Lei Zhan for help; Chen declines rather than incur a major favor.
• Jiao explains that the Administration’s 108 Heavenly Spirit and Earthly Fiend Stars are elite investigators with authority comparable to bureau directors—and practical power to direct local offices. Chen realizes Lei Zhan’s promotion may have followed the dangerous Mirror Pillar mission.
• Chen plans to bring witness Shi Manman in only if Feng Ping remains safely in custody. He waits near the Administration for the Feng Family’s response rather than risk exposing Shi to Yin Cultivation’s methods.
• Before dawn, Feng-family pressure arrives: an Earthly Fiend Star takes over Feng Ping’s case, leaving Jiao without authority. Feng Ping remains in Lin’an, but her fate is uncertain; Jiao expects the struggle to continue.
• Chen returns to Jiao’s office and unexpectedly reports that he, too, lost something about half a month earlier: a Paper Offering.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is cautious and self-reliant. He refuses to use Lei Zhan’s influence because doing so would leave him owing a substantial favor, and he prioritizes Shi Manman’s safety over rushing the investigation.
• Jiao Liangcai remains determined to pursue the case despite political pressure, though his authority is eventually overridden. He and Chen speak frankly about the investigation and its likely outcome.
• Jiao Yue promptly accepts guard duty after previously angering his father, while the female investigator avoids Jiao’s gaze after the delayed examination.
• Feng Ping cooperates outwardly, but her family’s influence soon becomes central to the case.
• Chen and Jiao discuss Lei Zhan’s status, revealing Chen’s limited knowledge of the broader Administration hierarchy.

Significant themes

• Power and institutional pressure: Formal rules give way when influential families and elite investigators intervene.
• Trust and obligation: Chen avoids relying on Lei Zhan because he wants to repay favors on his own terms.
• Protection of witnesses: Chen’s caution reflects the danger Shi Manman could face if brought into a compromised investigation.
• Suspicion and hidden stakes: Chen’s sudden report about the missing Paper Offering hints that the case may connect to something larger.

Key plot points

• Earthly Punishment Star Xia Lin interrogates Feng Ping using his mind-reading ability. She admits she joined the Curse Cult a year earlier for revenge, controlled the skin suit, and has done substantial work for the cult.
• Xia Lin had agreed to help the Feng Family partly to repay an old debt. After learning the truth, he leaves without comment; Feng Xu asks him to keep the findings confidential.
• Feng Ping understands that the Feng Family needs her alive and silent to protect its reputation. Feng Xu gives her a false interrogation record, then uses a costly Dust-Covering Pearl to overwrite her memories.
• When Xia Lin interrogates Feng Ping again, her answers match the fabricated account, and Feng Xu declares the matter resolved.
• After Feng Xu and Xia Lin leave to eat, two Grade-B Investigators remain guarding the office. Mist gathers in the hallway, and a pale Paper Effigy appears.

Character developments and interactions

• Xia Lin is restrained and dutiful: he fulfills his obligation to the Feng Family but does not openly challenge its handling of Feng Ping.
• Feng Xu prioritizes protecting the family over truth, arranging both a false record and Feng Ping’s memory alteration. His contempt for her is evident.
• Feng Ping accepts the family’s plan, recognizing that her survival and silence serve its interests. Her genuine confession is erased and replaced with false memories.
• Xia Lin’s matter-of-fact interrogation contrasts with Feng Xu and Feng Ping’s quiet collusion. The final appearance of the Paper Effigy shifts the scene from cover-up to imminent supernatural danger.

Significant themes

• Family loyalty and reputation: the Feng Family protects its standing even at the cost of truth.
• Manipulation of truth and memory: official records and personal recollections are deliberately falsified.
• Corruption and complicity: Feng Ping’s guilt is concealed through institutional and supernatural means.
• False security: the investigators assume the Administration is safe, just as an unexplained threat arrives.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao tells branch director Jiao Liangcai that he knows something about paper-effigy techniques, prompting Jiao to suspect he may be preparing to target Feng Ping.
• Jiao begins to warn Chen against risking himself, but receives a phone call: Feng Ping has been killed by a paper effigy.
• Chen acts surprised and jokes that it may be his missing effigy, adding that he has an alibi because he was with Jiao. Jiao suspects Chen is involved, though he lacks proof.
• The effigy confused two Grade-B Headquarters Investigators, killed Feng Ping, then burned itself, leaving only ashes and few clues.
• Jiao realizes Chen’s advance report may have been intended to shape how the killing would be investigated. He also sees that killing Feng Ping has left Chen without the possible protection that proof of her being a Curse Cult Member might have provided.
• Jiao orders Chen to remain in his office, guarded, and advises him to call Lei Zhan. The Administration activates a feng shui formation, apparently to prevent further action or escape.
• Chen calls Lei Zhan, not expecting rescue, but hoping for a fairer process in the investigation.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao appears calm and calculating despite the serious consequences. His apparent surprise and jokes conceal his real intentions; he has acted decisively and now plans to rely on procedure and outside support.
• Jiao Liangcai shifts from concern for Chen to treating him as a likely suspect. He admires Chen’s loyalty but recognizes the danger of Chen’s choices and responds by restricting him.
• Chen and Jiao have a tense, indirect exchange: Jiao warns him, while Chen feigns ignorance and offers an alibi.
• Lei Zhan is not present, but Chen’s call signals that their connection may matter as the investigation begins.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and its costs: Chen’s commitment to his own purposes may bring severe personal and political consequences.
• Power, reputation, and protection: The Feng Family’s influence shapes how Feng Ping’s case is handled, while the Administration’s authority can both constrain and protect.
• Cunning and uncertainty: The effigy’s destruction removes evidence, leaving investigators to rely on suspicion and inference.
• Control and escalation: Guards and the feng shui formation show how quickly the killing turns the Administration itself into a controlled, high-stakes environment.

Key events

• Feng Ping is found dead inside the Lin’an Administration. Her body shows no physical injuries, and investigators suspect a direct attack on her soul.
• Jiao Liangcai arrives and hears Feng Xu accuse him of failing to protect Feng Ping. Jiao counters that Headquarters’ team had custody of her and suggests someone may have deliberately allowed the death to occur.
• Two Grade-B Investigators report that their vision was obscured by mist and Feng Ping was dead when it cleared. Jiao considers whether Chen Miao could be responsible, recalling his unusual breadth of skills and the growing evidence of his power.
• Jiao decides the death must be investigated regardless of who is responsible: an attack inside the Administration cannot be excused by Chen Miao’s status as a temporary consultant.
• After Feng Xu demands an explanation, Jiao rebukes him for speaking as if he had authority over a municipal director. Xia Lin then calmly insists that Feng Ping’s murder be investigated.
• Jiao says Headquarters will be notified and additional investigators requested. Until then, the Headquarters visitors—including Feng Xu and Xia Lin—must remain in the Administration as potential suspects.
• Feng Xu insists Feng Ping was not connected to the Curse Cult, offers interrogation records and video, and accuses the Investigator who reported her. Jiao questions the value of Feng Ping’s testimony now that she is dead. Xia Lin agrees to cooperate with the investigation.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiao Liangcai moves from irritation at being blamed to a firm, procedural stance. He privately takes Chen Miao’s abilities more seriously, but prioritizes the Administration’s authority and the need to investigate.
• Feng Xu is furious and defensive, pressing Jiao for accountability and trying to clear Feng Ping. His hostile manner weakens his position and prompts Jiao to treat the Headquarters party as suspects.
• Xia Lin remains composed and observant, intervening only to press for an investigation. Unlike Feng Xu, he accepts Jiao’s restrictions.
• Jiao and Feng Xu clash over responsibility, authority, and Feng Ping’s innocence; Jiao and Xia Lin remain more formal, though Jiao still places Xia Lin under investigation.

Significant themes

• Institutional authority and accountability: Jiao insists that no individual’s status exempts them from scrutiny.
• Suspicion and contested evidence: The obscured cameras and Feng Ping’s death leave competing accounts difficult to verify.
• Power and the law: Chen Miao’s growing abilities raise concerns that he may act beyond institutional rules.
• Political tension: Personal loyalties and accusations complicate an investigation that should be procedural.

Plot points

• After the confrontation, Chen Miao is confined in a furnished, windowless room beneath the Administration while Headquarters prepares to investigate him, Feng Xu, and the others.
• Chen reviews the rewards from the chapter’s events, focusing on Feng Ping’s Memory Fragment. He intends to use it to discover how she concealed her Curse Cult mark and prove she was an infiltrator.
• Chen accepts that attacking someone inside the Administration may bring consequences, but believes his status, past service, Lei Zhan’s support, and Feng Ping’s suspected allegiance will limit the damage.
• His actions are also meant as a warning: anyone who targets the people close to him will face retaliation. By involving Lei Zhan, Chen gives that warning greater weight, though he accepts owing him a favor.
• Chen activates Feng Ping’s memory fragment by going to sleep. Meanwhile, Jiao Liangcai monitors him and is surprised to find him genuinely asleep.
• Jiao believes Headquarters may restrict Chen’s freedom for years, requiring him to earn his way out through dangerous missions and undergo later examinations.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao shows himself to be calculating as well as fiercely protective. He has weighed the risks, prepared a way to substantiate his claim about Feng Ping, and deliberately uses the incident to deter future threats. He does not treat his confinement as an emergency and calmly turns to investigating her memories.
• Lei Zhan supports Chen’s decision rather than dismissing it as not worth the risk, and is willing to let Chen incur a debt to him.
• Jiao Liangcai recognizes Chen’s devotion to Shi Manman and admires his actions, but disapproves of the cost and expects a long, difficult punishment.
• Chen’s relationship with Shi Manman, his disciple, is central even though she does not appear directly: his willingness to risk his freedom stems from defending her.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and protection: Chen is willing to pay a heavy personal price to defend those close to him.
• Power as deterrence: He uses his reputation and Lei Zhan’s influence to send a warning, while reserving other methods for threats operating in secret.
• Justice and consequences: Chen’s defense depends on proving Feng Ping was a Curse Cult infiltrator; even then, his attack on an Administration member may carry serious repercussions.
• Freedom and sacrifice: Jiao’s reflection emphasizes the potentially enormous cost of Chen’s choice—years of confinement and dangerous service in exchange for eventual release.

Plot points and events

• On a high-speed train to Lin’an City, a wealthy general manager tries to sneak into business class after being told it is full. Lei Zhan effortlessly restrains him and puts him in an empty seat. Zhang Huan orders that the man be charged 10,000 for the upgrade.
• Zhang Huan questions Lei Zhan about why he left a chance to cultivate in a blessed land to accompany him. Lei Zhan says he trusts Chen Miao, who claims he can prove Feng Ping was connected to the Curse Cult. He is willing to accept punishment if Chen Miao is responsible for Feng Ping’s death.
• Lei Zhan’s trust stems partly from their past Mirror Pillar mission: Chen Miao gave up his own reward to help fulfill the last wishes of people who had been sacrificed.
• The group arrives at the Lin’an City Administration. Jiao Liangcai recounts the chain of events involving Shi Manman’s disappearance, Chen Miao’s report, Feng Ping’s investigation and death, and the Feng Family’s arrival.
• Zhang Huan detects that Jiao Liangcai has left something out. Jiao admits Chen Miao also reported that his Paper Offerings had gone missing. Zhang Huan jokes that Chen Miao is holding a grudge.
• Rather than meet Chen Miao immediately, Zhang Huan chooses to speak with Xia Lin first. They find Xia Lin meditating amid intense heat, briefly floating in the air before standing to greet them.

Character developments and interactions

• Lei Zhan demonstrates loyalty to Chen Miao, prioritizing him over a rare cultivation opportunity and accepting the risk of professional consequences.
• Zhang Huan is curious and observant, quickly uncovering Jiao Liangcai’s omission. His probing conversation with Lei Zhan also reveals his interest in what kind of figure Chen Miao will become within the Administration.
• Jiao Liangcai initially withholds information to test Zhang Huan, but admits the omission when confronted.
• Xia Lin is introduced as a powerful, unusual presence, with fiery energy and the ability to hover while meditating.
• The general manager is used for comic contrast: his entitlement and attempt to force his way into business class are swiftly checked by Lei Zhan.

Significant themes

• Trust and loyalty: Lei Zhan’s faith in Chen Miao is rooted in Chen’s past selflessness, not merely his claims.
• Justice and consequences: The chapter raises the stakes of Chen Miao’s actions, distinguishing killing a suspected cultist from killing an Administration official.
• Power and scrutiny: Zhang Huan’s investigative ability suggests that even within the Administration, concealed details are unlikely to remain hidden.
• Reputation and moral character: Chen Miao’s previous sacrifice shapes how others judge him and influences their willingness to defend him.

Key plot points and events

• After questioning Xia Lin, Zhang Huan asks only whether Feng Ping belonged to the Curse Cult, whether Xia Lin killed her, and whether Xia Lin knows who did. Xia Lin denies all three points.
• Jiao Liangcai suspects Zhang Huan has a powerful ability to detect deception or otherwise uncover hidden information. He chooses not to resist it, since concealing anything further could worsen matters.
• Zhang Huan questions the other suspects. The Grade-B Investigators know little, and Feng Xu’s account largely matches Xia Lin’s.
• The investigators then visit Chen Miao, the final and most suspicious suspect. He has slept through six hours of confinement and ignores Jiao Liangcai’s attempts to wake him. Lei Zhan and Zhang Huan agree to wait; after another half hour, Chen Miao wakes naturally.
• Chen Miao calmly makes tea for the six investigators. As he offers cups, two of his phrases—“Give Me a Hand” and “Don’t Look Down on a Poor Middle-Aged Man”—trigger strange effects: one investigator’s hand strikes Chen Miao’s cup-holding hand, while another’s suspicion suddenly fades and he gratefully accepts the tea. Chen Miao then offers tea to Jiao Liangcai.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiao Liangcai remains wary of Zhang Huan’s abilities, but his growing uncertainty contrasts with Chen Miao’s composure. He watches Chen Miao’s bizarre tea service in amazement.
• Zhang Huan appears relaxed and confident, conducting brief, direct questioning and choosing patience rather than forcing Chen Miao awake.
• Chen Miao displays striking calm and hospitality despite being detained as the leading suspect. His ordinary-sounding remarks seem to carry unusual powers, unsettling some investigators and disarming another.
• Lei Zhan supports Zhang Huan’s decision to wait, while the other investigators react differently to Chen Miao’s offers: one accepts automatically, one resists, and one becomes unexpectedly appreciative.

Significant themes

• Hidden abilities and uncertainty: The chapter hints at Zhang Huan’s lie-detecting talent and reveals that Chen Miao’s words may also have supernatural effects.
• Composure as power: Chen Miao’s unhurried behavior contrasts with the investigators’ tension, shifting the room’s balance without open confrontation.
• Courtesy and control: Tea service becomes both hospitality and a means of influencing others, making a mundane ritual feel threatening and uncanny.

Key plot points and events

• Jiao Liangcai watches Chen Miao serve tea to the Headquarters investigators and wonders how Chen persuaded two Grade-A Investigators to accept it without releasing any yin energy.
• Chen explains that he made tea partly as a countermeasure against Zhang Huan’s unsettling, probing gaze. He uses [Clearheart] to protect his thoughts from it.
• Zhang Huan questions Chen about Feng Ping’s death. Chen realizes the investigator’s power is more complex than simple lie detection: Zhang can apparently use a lie to uncover the truth behind it.
• Chen briefly combines Clearheart with [Mystic Mirror] to disrupt Zhang’s probing, but soon decides it is safer to answer honestly.
• Chen admits that he controlled his Paper Offerings to kill Feng Ping because she belonged to the Curse Cult and had kidnapped his disciple.
• When Chen claims Feng Ping bore a Curse Cult yin mark on her shoulder, Jiao Liangcai says she was examined twice and no mark was found. Chen remains confident he can prove it.
• Zhang ends the questioning and agrees to take Chen to see Feng Ping’s corpse.

Character developments

• Chen Miao shows himself to be composed, strategically minded, and alert to the danger posed by powerful investigators. He actively conceals the limits of his abilities and adapts quickly when his defenses prove insufficient.
• Zhang Huan, the Earth Observer Star, reveals a formidable investigative ability that seems to expose truths associated with a subject’s own understanding, not merely detect lies. Chen’s evasive maneuvering briefly unsettles him.
• Jiao Liangcai remains cautious and practical, offering the investigators the official findings about Feng Ping’s body.
• Lei Zhan, the Earth Hero Star, watches the exchange with amusement and drinks his tea first, but does not otherwise intervene.

Significant themes

• Truth and perception: Zhang’s ability depends on what the subject believes, so a sincerely held belief may register as true even when evidence contradicts it.
• Power and countermeasures: Chen uses his abilities strategically, seeking to prevent Headquarters from accurately judging his strength.
• Composure under scrutiny: The interrogation becomes a contest of observation and self-control, with both Chen and Zhang testing the other.
• Uncertainty and proof: Chen’s claim about the yin mark conflicts with repeated examinations, setting up a test of whether his account can be verified.

Character interactions

• Chen’s polite tea service masks a deliberate attempt to manage the investigators’ assessment of him.
• Zhang probes Chen with repeated questions, while Chen first disrupts the connection between them and then answers candidly.
• Jiao Liangcai challenges Chen’s claim with the examination results, but Zhang chooses to test it directly by bringing Chen to Feng Ping’s corpse.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao reveals that Feng Ping’s abduction of Shi Manman was not a random attempt to recruit a talented person: Feng was the younger sister of Feng Bujue and had targeted Shi Manman to take revenge on Chen Miao.
• In the morgue, Chen examines Feng Ping’s body and explains how she concealed her Curse Cult mark. He asks Official Corpse Stitcher Old Feng to remove five small patches of skin from her shoulder, chest, and other areas.
• Chen cuts the patches into dozens of pieces, then directs Old Feng to stitch them back together in a specific arrangement. Once Chen infuses the reconstructed patch with yin energy, a tattoo of a headless Daoist appears.
• The tattoo turns blood-red as it draws on the Administration’s feng shui formation, then fades away after consuming the yin energy.
• Chen asks whether this proves Feng Ping belonged to the Curse Cult. Jiao Liangcai accepts that the demonstration is credible: the body was secured, and Chen could not plausibly have altered it. Zhang Huan then challenges Chen to explain how he knew about the hidden tattoo. Chen declines, citing his “special talents.”

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is shown to be observant and unusually knowledgeable about corpse-stitching. His actions also reveal that he possesses—or claims to possess—special abilities that give him access to otherwise hidden information. He remains guarded about their source.
• Feng Ping is revealed as Feng Bujue’s sister and as someone driven by revenge against Chen Miao. Her concealed tattoo confirms her association with the Curse Cult.
• Old Feng, initially cautious and deferential to Jiao Liangcai, carries out Chen’s instructions with precision and quickly grasps that the demonstration may teach him something.
• Jiao Liangcai weighs Chen’s evidence against the possibility of tampering and concludes that the corpse’s security makes fabrication implausible.
• Zhang Huan presses Chen for an explanation, but Chen refuses to disclose how he uncovered the secret.

Significant themes

• Hidden identities and concealed loyalties: Feng Ping’s body literally hides evidence of her allegiance.
• Trust, proof, and suspicion: Chen’s demonstration establishes Feng Ping’s affiliation, while his unexplained knowledge creates fresh doubts about him.
• Specialized knowledge as power: Chen’s understanding of yin energy, feng shui, and corpse-stitching allows him to expose what ordinary examinations missed.

Key plot points and events

• Investigator Zhang Huan suspects Chen Miao has independently worked out how his lie-detecting, secret-probing ability functions. Chen’s quick admissions prevented Zhang from deepening his investigation, but his careful answers strengthen Zhang’s suspicion.
• Zhang considers why Chen killed Feng Ping himself: he believes Chen wanted to prove his usefulness and establish authority, while knowing Feng Ping was tied to the Curse Cult and expecting to clear himself.
• Zhang raises the possibility that Chen’s Paper Effigy altered Feng Ping’s body. Old Feng argues that such a quick repair would be impossible, but Zhang points out that no one can rule out unknown abilities—and challenges Old Feng for missing Feng Ping’s hidden Yin Mark.
• Chen explains that Feng Ping hid the mark by transferring it, along with half her soul body, into a separate skin sheath. The sheath could act independently and shield her from the Administration’s feng shui formation, but using it consumed soul power and the split soul could not be recovered.
• Chen denies tampering with the sheath and proposes a way to verify Feng Ping’s crimes: examine items confiscated from Curse Cult members by nearby Administration branches and compare them with her records.
• Zhang decides to pursue Chen’s lead rather than continue questioning him, and orders Jiao Liangcai to investigate.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao demonstrates composure, strategic thinking, and a strong grasp of investigative methods. He answers without directly revealing everything he knows, particularly about Feng Ping’s past activities.
• Zhang Huan shifts from suspicion toward respect. He sees Chen’s perceptiveness and varied inherited arts as signs that Chen may be unusually capable, perhaps a future colleague.
• Old Feng tries to defend Chen’s account but is silenced when Zhang exposes the limits of his certainty.
• Zhang and Chen engage in a cautious exchange: Zhang tests whether Chen has tampered with evidence, while Chen offers verifiable leads without volunteering potentially compromising details.

Significant themes

• Observation and deduction: Both Zhang and Chen try to read one another’s methods and intentions.
• Caution and accountability: Zhang insists that even plausible explanations must be verified, while Chen encourages further investigation.
• Power beyond raw strength: Zhang recognizes that adaptability, intelligence, and varied abilities can make someone formidable.
• Secrecy and sacrifice: Feng Ping’s skin sheath illustrates the extreme costs she accepted to conceal her identity and continue acting for the Curse Cult.

Plot points and events

• At Zhang Huan’s request, Jiao Liangcai reviews two years of resolved Curse Cult cases across the Seven Surrounding Cities. Of eighteen cases, he finds four with evidence related to Corpse Stitchers.
• One major case—the attack on the Shannan City Administration—stands out. Jiao Liangcai recalls that a powerful Curse Cult figure called Life Bringer had drained a near-Grade-A Investigator of his vital blood.
• The case file includes an unidentified skin shell once dismissed as crude work by an unorthodox rural cultivator. Jiao now suspects it may be linked to Feng Ping, so he requests it, along with evidence from the other relevant incidents.
• He asks five Official Corpse Stitchers to compare the evidence with Feng Ping’s corpse. After two hours, they conclude that three of seven items are definitely connected to her, with a fourth uncertain.
• The confirmed items include the skin shell and two pieces from a medium-scale incident. If the uncertain item is also linked, Feng Ping will have been involved in three of the four known Corpse-Stitcher-related cases—every major and medium-scale case among them.
• Jiao takes the signed findings to Zhang Huan. The evidence is already enough to support Chen Miao’s earlier claim.

Character developments and interactions

• Jiao Liangcai moves from archival investigation to a strong suspicion about Feng Ping. His discovery brings a personal reckoning: she worked as an Official Corpse Stitcher at his own branch without his recognizing her activities, and he expects disciplinary consequences.
• Zhang Huan directs the investigation and gives Jiao’s requests enough backing to move quickly.
• Old Feng and the other Corpse Stitchers methodically examine the evidence, using Feng Ping’s corpse where needed, and cross-check one another’s findings.
• Jiao’s recollection of the Shannan attack highlights the Administration’s awareness of powerful enemies, while also revealing his frustration that it does not simply eradicate them.

Significant themes

• Hidden complicity and institutional failure: Feng Ping’s apparent reach suggests wrongdoing may have gone undetected inside the Administration.
• Evidence and uncertainty: Old records and physical examination can uncover links, but some conclusions remain provisional.
• The scale of concealed activity: The documented cases may be only a fraction of Feng Ping’s involvement, since evidence could be missing from other incidents.
• Powerful factions and uneasy balance: The Administration and evil cultivator groups each possess elite fighters, and their continued rivalry prevents easy solutions.

Key plot points and events

• Test results confirm that Feng Ping was a member of the Curse Cult. Feng Xu denies knowing this or doing anything beyond the necessary interrogation; his answers appear truthful to Zhang Huan’s investigative ability.
• Zhang Huan suspects Feng Xu is using a special item to disguise memories. He asks Xia Lin to place Feng Xu under interrogation again, allowing Zhang Huan to ask questions while Xia Lin’s ability disrupts the concealment.
• Feng Xu’s answers expose the use of a Dust-Covering Pearl and the Feng Family’s willingness to protect Feng Ping. Xia Lin ends the interrogation before Zhang Huan can uncover more, seemingly to limit the damage to the family.
• Zhang Huan stops questioning Feng Xu, confident Headquarters can investigate the concealment later. When Feng Xu tries to appeal to Xia Lin, Zhang Huan knocks him unconscious and orders him taken away.
• Zhang Huan tells Chen Miao that his help eliminating a threat will be reported and rewarded, but that it does not erase his use of violence inside the Administration. Chen can either face likely corrective education and restricted assignments at Headquarters or join an overseas mission to have the incident written off. He chooses to hear more; the destination is the Island Nation.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Huan proves to be both a perceptive investigator and a capable fighter. He balances his investigation with a desire to spare Xia Lin excessive scrutiny, then uses Xia Lin’s ability to expose Feng Xu’s deception.
• Xia Lin avoids directly implicating himself, having originally helped the Feng Family because he believed Feng Ping’s actions did not involve them. Once their protection of her becomes clear, he intervenes to stop further questioning, accepting that this creates another debt to Zhang Huan.
• Feng Xu is revealed to have concealed memories—his own and Feng Ping’s—to shield the Feng Family. Once that strategy fails, he panics and attempts to invoke Xia Lin’s past connection, but Zhang Huan silences him.
• Chen Miao remains composed and curious about the consequences of his actions. He is offered a difficult mission as an alternative to formal punishment.
• Lei Zhan confirms that the mission is a plausible way to settle Chen Miao’s case, while warning that it will be dangerous.

Significant themes

• Truth and deception: The chapter shows how concealed memories can fool one investigator but fail when competing abilities expose the underlying truth.
• Loyalty, favors, and complicity: Xia Lin’s favor to the Feng Family draws him into the investigation, while Zhang Huan turns that obligation into a new debt.
• Accountability and redemption: Chen Miao’s reward for helping the Administration does not cancel his misconduct; he must still face consequences or take on a demanding mission.

Plot points and events

• Zhang Huan invites Chen Miao to join a mission to the Island Nation, where four Earthly Fiends will be deployed. Chen agrees, preferring the trip to six months of restricted service at the Administration.
• The mission is a week away, so Chen is told to remain in Lin’an City. Zhang withholds the details until they depart.
• After giving his statement at the Administration, Chen checks on Shi Manman, reassures her that she can return to work, and rests. The next morning, they share breakfast before she leaves.
• Chen reviews his recent gains: the Curse Cult members yielded little Yin Virtue but several lineage techniques. He focuses especially on methods that could help him understand soul-drawing, expand his talisman-making skills, and craft Peachwood Talismans.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao readily accepts the mission, both to preserve his freedom and because he is curious about the Island Nation. He remains pragmatic, prioritizing recovery of his depleted Soul Body and studying useful techniques.
• Zhang Huan recruits Chen partly as a favor to him and Lei Zhan, but also hopes Chen’s investigative abilities will help the mission—and that his usefulness may soften the consequences of his actions in Lin’an.
• Chen and Shi Manman share a caring, reassuring exchange. Chen hides the more troubling details of his situation to spare her worry; she brings him breakfast the next morning.
• Chen’s review of the techniques shows his practical curiosity: he seeks a defense against Soul-Inquiry Hall’s soul-drawing method and recognizes that even sinister talismans can be useful.

Significant themes

• Pragmatism and moral ambiguity: Chen is willing to study questionable techniques when they may help protect him or solve problems.
• Power gained through conflict: The Curse Cult’s defeat earns little Yin Virtue but grants Chen valuable lineages.
• Obligation versus freedom: The Island Nation mission offers Chen a preferable alternative to prolonged control by the Administration.
• Recovery and restraint: Chen recognizes that repeated use of Soul Power is delaying his Soul Body’s recovery and resolves to rest after the mission.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao studies the Peachwood Talisman Crafting Method and discovers seven categories of peachwood talismans: personal and home protection, demon suppression, evil repulsion, spirit calming, feng shui, and overcoming evil. Century-old peachwood can produce more durable, specialized talismans than the ones he has made himself.
• He recognizes that home-guarding talismans resemble the Demon-Suppressing Bureau’s Calamity-Guarding Objects, though the Bureau’s artifacts have broader functions that peachwood cannot replace. Talismans still appeal to him because he can make them himself and use them to protect people close to him.
• Chen Miao reviews the Yin Blood Art, which lets him create blood-yin energy without pricking his finger, activate talismans, and remotely control them—potentially turning them into long-range weapons.
• He also considers the Spirit-Burning Formula, which converts yin energy into flames through runes drawn at particular apertures. He realizes that a Curse Cult member’s mask probably concealed such facial runes. Though he doubts the art will be especially useful in combat, he wants it for its practical and entertaining uses.
• Chen Miao selects other inherited arts for his companions: Shi Manman may eventually study corpse-sewing and corpse-reading, while Old Ghost is to receive the Yin Mark Spirit-Transference Formula. He postpones several other arts until after his trip to the Island Nation.
• Just as he prepares to check his status, Lei Zhan knocks on his door.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao’s growing collection of abilities shifts his perspective: talismans are no longer a primary fighting tool, but he sees new value in making them remotely deployable and using them to protect loved ones.
• His interest in the Spirit-Burning Formula shows a playful side; he wants more from cultivation than simply surviving.
• He shows consideration for Shi Manman’s workload, deciding not to force new techniques on her or spend yin virtue to transmit them when she already has much to learn. He also plans to give Old Ghost a suitable inheritance.
• Chen Miao’s thoughts connect his discoveries to past encounters: he compares talismans with the Bureau’s artifacts and reinterprets the masked flame-spitting cultist’s appearance in light of the rune technique.

Significant themes

• Practical self-reliance and protection: Chen Miao values techniques he can create himself, especially when they can safeguard people he cares about.
• Adaptation and expanding utility: Familiar tools such as talismans gain new uses through the Yin Blood Art, including remote activation and control.
• Learning at a sustainable pace: Chen Miao recognizes that talent does not eliminate the need for time to master multiple techniques.
• Enjoyment beyond survival: His eagerness to learn fire techniques for convenience and amusement reflects a desire to make cultivation enjoyable, not merely functional.

Key plot points and events

• Lei Zhan visits Chen Miao and explains that the Administration has long recruited people with unusual, innate talents—not just Yin Cultivators or practitioners of its vital-blood path.
• The Administration once used films and television to reassure gifted people about their abilities and encourage them to come under government supervision.
• Lei Zhan describes several talents, ranging from narrowly limited tricks—such as bending only spoons—to more practical abilities, including sensing an object’s last owner, predicting danger through sneezing, organizing nearby objects by command, and borrowing heat from fire.
• Chen Miao privately compares these abilities with the statuses shown in his notebook. He suspects talents can be understood as statuses of varying strength, and that some may be upgraded.
• Lei Zhan encourages Chen Miao not to conceal his own talent. With enough contribution points, a Temporary Worker can apply for specialized training at Headquarters.
• When Chen Miao asks about Zhang Huan, Lei Zhan says the Heavenly Spirits and Earthly Fiends differ from ordinary gifted people and are comparable, in some ways, to Grandmaster Yin Cultivators. He explains that Grandmaster Yin Cultivators can develop acquired talents.
• Chen Miao recognizes that this resembles what he has heard described in the Mortal World as “enlightenment,” though he has pretended not to know about it.

Character developments

• Chen Miao gains a clearer understanding of how the Administration classifies and trains people with unusual abilities. He remains cautious about revealing his own status system, but is interested in whether talents can be cultivated.
• Lei Zhan shows a more open, reassuring side, sharing institutional knowledge and advising Chen Miao about opportunities for advancement.
• Zhang Huan’s unusual status is reinforced: his category is distinct from ordinary talents, though Lei Zhan will not disclose the details.

Significant themes

• Ability and classification: Talents differ greatly in usefulness and limits, and the Administration tries to assess and develop them.
• Growth versus innate potential: Most talents seem fixed, but training may strengthen some; Chen Miao’s ability to upgrade statuses through yin virtue appears unusual.
• Secrecy and trust: Chen Miao hides what he knows, while Lei Zhan offers information and encourages him to be candid.
• Parallel systems of knowledge: The chapter links the Administration’s understanding of acquired talents with the Mortal World’s concept of enlightenment.

Character interactions

• Lei Zhan visits Chen Miao, who offers him hot water; their conversation shifts from casual hospitality to an informative discussion about talents.
• Lei Zhan relays Zhang Huan’s observation that Chen Miao may have a special talent, prompting Chen Miao to listen while concealing the nature of his statuses.
• Chen Miao asks questions about talent types, training, and Zhang Huan, drawing out Lei Zhan’s explanations while carefully feigning ignorance about Grandmaster Yin Cultivators.

Summary

Key plot points and events

• Lei Zhan warns Chen Miao that the Feng Family will suffer political consequences for the recent incident, but the Administration will not destroy them outright because they have long served it. They are unlikely to retaliate immediately, since that would attract suspicion, though Chen Miao should be alert to future threats.
• Lei offers to help if problems arise. He also advises Chen Miao to use his expected reward points to buy defensive or escape items before traveling to the Island Nation, where powerful practitioners may use underhanded tactics.
• Chen Miao considers the advice but plans to spend his points on something more useful to him: an item that repairs or stabilizes his soul body. His existing abilities already provide strong defenses and escape options, while using soul power leaves him needing days to recover.
• Reviewing his status panel, Chen Miao realizes Feng Ping’s hidden state likely merged into his existing [Clear Heart, Mystic Mirror]. Though he regrets losing the chance to gain a separate [Iceheart], he refuses to alter the state he already has, since he values its current abilities.
• Feng Ping’s ability to conceal her intentions convinces Chen Miao that [Good and Evil Perception] is no longer reliable against powerful people. He upgrades it to [Mind’s Eye, Shattering Falsehood], which can pierce disguises of the heart and reveal deeply hidden malice. He decides not to upgrade it further for now, preferring to conserve resources for techniques and strength.
• Six days later, Zhang Huan returns to Lin’an City with three companions, including Xia Lin, the Earthly Punishment Star.

Character developments

• Chen Miao remains deliberately assertive. He believes displaying strength can deter threats to his loved ones and earn the respect and opportunities that come with being taken seriously. He also reassesses his abilities, choosing to improve his perception while preserving a state whose effects he trusts.
• Lei Zhan moves beyond simply repaying an old favor: his visit and offer of future help show that he now wants to maintain a relationship with Chen Miao.
• Chen Miao’s judgment becomes more cautious and strategic. Rather than follow general advice about defensive items, he weighs his undisclosed abilities and prioritizes his specific weakness—soul-body damage.

Significant themes

• Strength and deterrence: Chen Miao sees assertiveness as a way to discourage people from targeting those close to him.
• Pragmatism and self-knowledge: He makes decisions based on the abilities and vulnerabilities he knows he has, rather than accepting advice blindly.
• Power has limits: Chen Miao’s perception works less well against high-level figures, prompting him to adapt.
• Relationships and mutual benefit: Alliances are shaped by demonstrated ability and practical interests, not simply selflessness.

Character interactions

• Lei Zhan gives Chen Miao a candid warning about the Feng Family, offers support, and discusses Administration affairs and the Island Nation assignment, though he lacks details about Zhang Huan’s mission.
• Chen Miao thanks Lei and reciprocates by offering help if needed, while privately recognizing that their relationship is increasingly mutually beneficial.
• Zhang Huan’s return with Xia Lin and two other companions sets up the next stage of the story.

Key plot points and events

• Xia Lin joins the mission because he was implicated in the Feng Xu review incident. Zhang Huan arranged the assignment as a way for him—and another member—to make amends, reinforcing Zhang’s habit of placing others in his debt.
• Chen Miao collects a Soul-Calming Pill from the Administration, bought for 600 contribution points, plus two locally available Vital Blood Pills. He says he wants the pill in reserve because some of his abilities strain his soul.
• Zhang introduces the other mission members: Gu Zhong, the Earth Walker Star, and Yu Hui, the Earth Shadow Star. Their titles suggest their abilities, though these are not explained.
• Zhang gives the team polluted-object necklaces that conceal their vital-blood and yin-energy auras, making them appear ordinary unless they use those powers. Chen Miao tests the necklace and finds its effect returns when his yin energy settles.
• Chen Miao confirms that he can manage everyday conversation in the Island Nation’s language. He has studied it in preparation for the operation, since the team is heading there to target the Mountain Physiognomy Organization.

Character developments

• Chen Miao remains guarded: he gives Zhang a truthful but limited explanation for needing the Soul-Calming Pill and quietly tests the necklace’s mechanics.
• His unusually rapid language learning reflects his strong soul and disciplined use of his abilities, though he does not reveal how much he has learned.
• Zhang Huan shows himself to be resourceful and politically shrewd, arranging Xia Lin’s assignment while cultivating favors and overseeing the team’s preparation.
• Xia Lin’s presence indicates he is trying to make up for his involvement in the earlier incident.

Significant themes

• Favors and obligation: Zhang uses opportunities to help others in ways that leave them indebted to him.
• Concealment and secrecy: The necklaces hide the team’s supernatural signatures, while Chen Miao keeps his own capabilities and preparation understated.
• Preparation for conflict: The team gathers supplies, disguises its power, and learns the local language before entering enemy territory.

Character interactions

• Zhang explains Xia Lin’s inclusion, gives Chen Miao the pill and mission materials, and checks on his language preparation.
• Chen Miao answers Zhang’s questions cautiously, meets Gu Zhong and Yu Hui, and accepts the concealment necklace.
• The chapter ends as Chen Miao opens the mission document and learns that the target is the Island Nation’s Mountain Physiognomy Organization.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao learns that the Administration is investigating the Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s plan, “Overturning Mountains and Rivers,” in the Island Nation. The mission appears connected to the Xiong Family incident in Beitai City.
• He is assigned to enter Kyōraku University in Kyoto as a visiting student and gather information about Feng Shui Masters, Onmyoji, and the organization. Zhang Huan explains that this assignment was added late; the main operation remains in the hands of Zhang and three other agents.
• Chen’s placement is arranged for six months, though the team expects to return sooner if the investigation allows. He will stay with undercover Administration Investigators posing as his aunt and uncle.
• Before leaving, Chen prepares for his absence: he gives Shi Manman instructions, supplies her with talismans and Fire Souls for her Ghost Scorpion’s future advancement, and tells her and Elder Uncle how to keep the funeral-home business running.
• Chen uses [Status: False Face] to disguise himself, then meets the team at the Administration, ready to depart.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen shifts from surprise at being sent abroad to accepting the assignment, while recognizing that his role is supplementary and that Zhang Huan has done him a favor.
• Learning about the undercover Investigators inspires Chen’s respect for the older generation’s quiet service to Great Xia.
• His preparations show his care and sense of responsibility toward Shi Manman, the Ghost Scorpion, Elder Uncle, and the Tianmen Funeral Home.
• Zhang Huan reassures Chen about the mission’s scope and explains the cover arrangements, while trusting Chen to handle his own disguise.

Significant themes

• Patriotism and sacrifice: Ordinary people serve their country undercover, even in peacetime.
• Preparation and responsibility: Chen ensures his people and business are cared for before leaving.
• Identity and secrecy: The mission depends on false identities, disguises, and covert investigation.

Plot and key events

• During the five-hour flight from Lin’an to the Island Nation, Chen Miao sleeps and opens two Flying Jiangshi Memory Fragments. This brings Yin Absorption back to the peak of its second tier; he plans to use yin virtue to advance it to the third tier later.
• After landing, he avoids contacting Zhang Huan and the others, as agreed, and meets Gao Yue and Cai Yin, the “uncle” and “aunt” who will serve as his cover family. He is operating under the name Chen San Shui.
• Gao and Cai keep up their family act throughout the drive, and Chen Miao realizes that even mission-related matters cannot be discussed openly.
• They take him to their traditional machiya in Kyoto’s Sakyo Ward, where he will stay for the next month or two. The house and their comfortable lifestyle establish the upper-middle-class background described in his cover materials.
• After unpacking, Chen Miao uses Qi Observation and discovers qi flows covering the house. He suspects a feng shui formation, though his supposed relatives are ordinary people. He decides to ask about it later.
• The chapter ends with Chen Miao sharing his first meal in the Island Nation with Gao and Cai.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is disciplined and methodical: he maintains a packed routine, chooses to strengthen an existing ability rather than pursue new statuses, and listens carefully to information that might matter to the mission.
• He adapts readily to his assumed family role, greeting Gao and Cai warmly while quietly assessing the home and its occupants.
• Gao is welcoming and practical, handling the luggage and showing Chen Miao to his room. Cai is more talkative and hospitable, arranging a welcome meal and offering to help him shop.
• Their friendly family behavior doubles as operational caution: Cai continues the cover even in private, reinforcing that they must guard their words.

Significant themes

• Discipline and preparation: Chen Miao’s training, language study, and careful choice of advancement reflect a deliberate approach to the mission.
• Secrecy and performance: The characters must maintain their cover and control what they say, even at home.
• Appearance versus reality: A comfortable family home seems ordinary, yet Chen Miao detects a hidden formation within it, hinting that the setting may conceal more than it first appears.