Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• Zhang Huan proposes that Chen Miao infiltrate the nursing home at Kiyotaki Tunnel, where senior residents are core members of the Mountain Physiognomy Organization. Previous attempts to infiltrate it failed, and the Administration has little time before the Island Nation notices its growing operation.
• Chen Miao agrees and studies the available intelligence. He realizes he cannot enter as an unknown recruit, so he asks Zhang Huan and Xia Lin to interrogate the captive Honda Taichi for details that will let him impersonate him.
• Chen Miao demonstrates his upgraded ability, Mimicry, which alters his whole body—not just his face—to resemble Honda, including changing his height.
• Zhang Huan and Xia Lin question Honda extensively, gathering information about his habits and mannerisms. Chen Miao then uses his yin-control ability to extract the signature yin energy of Honda’s superior from Honda’s Nine Chrysanthemum Mark and transfer it into his own mark. This lets Chen Miao both track another person and potentially be targeted by the mark, though he believes his body can withstand it.
• Chen Miao says he has learned what he needs and asks whether Zhang or Xia Lin has a Soul-Calming Pill.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is irritated at being maneuvered into the mission, but accepts it because he has chosen to remain in the Island Nation and wants to follow through on his stated commitment.
• Zhang Huan shows strategic skill in steering Chen toward the mission, then interprets Chen’s willingness to help as patriotism and becomes more warmly disposed toward him.
• Chen and Zhang discuss the infiltration plan; Chen identifies the need to impersonate a higher-ranking member and asks Zhang and Xia Lin for help. Their interrogation is thorough—even asking about Honda’s underwear habits—to make the disguise convincing.
• Chen’s confidence and ingenuity are emphasized by his ability to alter his build and manipulate the Nine Chrysanthemum Mark, while the others are impressed by his disguise.

Significant themes

• Duty and commitment: Chen’s decision to stay leads him to accept a dangerous assignment, despite his lukewarm relationship with the Administration.
• Deception and identity: Mimicry lets Chen assume another person’s appearance, while careful knowledge of Honda’s habits is needed to make the impersonation credible.
• Power and risk: Chen turns the Nine Chrysanthemum Mark’s tracking mechanism to his advantage, while knowingly exposing himself to its potential danger.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao leaves Zhang Huan’s residence with two Spirit-Nourishing Pills. Zhang has reported Chen’s condition to the bureau, which will bring him Soul-Calming Pills.
• Chen visits the Folklore Club at Kyōraku University and borrows its two scarecrow-related items from club president Kyoko Kuroda: a straw hat and clothes. He declines her offers of protective charms and a ghost-sealing gourd.
• After changing his appearance to resemble Honda Taichi, Chen travels to Kiyotaki Tunnel. He briefly uses Mirage-Escape Form to enter unseen, then reveals himself inside.
• Deeper in the tunnel, Chen encounters a livestreamer and a corpse-like ghost crawling along the walls and ceiling. The ghost approaches the livestreamer, apparently intending to kill them, but then senses Chen and turns toward him instead.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao remains focused on his mission and avoids helping the livestreamer, wary that acting unlike Honda Taichi could expose his disguise. He is practical about accepting only items he considers useful.
• Kyoko Kuroda is eager to help Chen and clearly values his prospects under their master, Murakami Shinji. She even considers marriage as a way to keep him connected to the Kuroda family.
• Oshima Masao is disappointed that Chen has been absent from the club, but cheers up when Chen promises to treat him to a meal soon.
• Chen’s interaction with Kyoko is warm and appreciative, while his relationship with Oshima remains friendly despite their time apart.

Significant themes

• Duty versus compassion: Chen prioritizes his mission and cover identity over intervening in the livestreamer’s likely danger.
• Changing fate and unintended consequences: Although Chen chooses not to act, his presence alone alters the ghost’s target.
• Trust, loyalty, and ambition: Kyoko’s support reflects both personal regard and her hopes of strengthening Chen’s ties to her family.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao encounters a human-bodied, dog-headed creature crawling along the tunnel ceiling. The Nine Chrysanthemums mark and his claim to be Honda Taichi of Kifune Shrine persuade it to guide him deeper into Kiyotaki Tunnel.
• He identifies it as a Corpse Hound and reflects on how Island Nation Onmyoji use sacrifice rituals to obtain supernatural tools. The method is convenient but imprecise, relies on the favor of “deities,” and may leave practitioners vulnerable if those deities make demands.
• Meanwhile, paranormal livestreamer Watanabe Junichi explores the tunnel, hoping to break the known safe-distance record and attract donations. His Protective Object has helped him avoid supernatural threats before.
• Viewers spot the Corpse Hound in his footage. At first Watanabe assumes they are teasing him, but a replay reveals the creature—and then he sees it overhead in person.
• Chen Miao passes Watanabe and orders him to lead the way. The Corpse Hound continues into the tunnel, while Watanabe abandons his stream and runs for the exit, realizing his Protective Object cannot help him here.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao remains composed in the face of danger, uses his knowledge of local customs to control the Corpse Hound, and critically assesses the risks of Onmyoji dependence on supernatural patrons.
• Watanabe Junichi shifts abruptly from a confident, profit-minded performer to genuine terror. His encounter reveals the limits of the protection he trusted.
• Chen Miao and the Corpse Hound establish a temporary working relationship: the creature recognizes Chen’s claimed identity and leads him onward.
• Watanabe and his viewers begin with playful suspicion and teasing, but their chat falls silent when the creature appears clearly on camera.

Significant themes

• Convenience versus understanding: Rituals offer broad, accessible power, while specialized expertise provides greater control.
• The cost of dependence: Power granted by “deities” may come with obligations, and practitioners may be at their mercy.
• Performance versus reality: Watanabe’s staged reactions become real fear when he confronts an actual supernatural threat.
• Human ambition and survival: His pursuit of views and money vanishes the moment the danger becomes undeniable.

Plot and events

Chen Miao follows the Corpse Hound through a hidden passage in Kiyotaki Tunnel. His Nine Chrysanthemum Mark lets him enter, while two traces of yin energy check that the signature energy he collected from Honda Taichi matches what the passage recognizes.
Inside, Chen Miao discovers that the barrier distorts both time and space: he experiences the journey as about five minutes, but the Mystic Mirror—left outside the barrier—measures an hour. This explains why earlier investigators repeatedly emerged from other entrances and why Zhang Huan’s group, as well as Xia Lin and Gu Zhong, learned little.
The passage opens into a mountain valley surrounded by several rings of peaks. Using the Mystic Mirror and Qi Observation, Chen Miao identifies a feng shui formation linked to a golden chrysanthemum above the valley. Hidden wild chrysanthemums on nine mountains anchor its golden lines, though many unrelated chrysanthemums make the true components difficult to distinguish. Chen Miao concludes that disrupting the formation would be impractical and follows the Corpse Hound toward the buildings of the Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home.

Character developments

• Chen Miao proves observant and cautious: he uses the Mystic Mirror as an independent reference point, recognizes the barrier’s distortion, and investigates the formation before acting.
• He becomes more confident that his special abilities and feng shui knowledge let him uncover secrets inaccessible to ordinary investigators, while acknowledging that even he could have missed the time distortion by chance.
• The Corpse Hound continues to guide him, selecting the correct passage and urging him onward.

Significant themes

• Perception versus reality: The barrier makes an hour seem like minutes and misleads travelers about where they are.
• Hidden systems and deception: The passage’s fluorescent stones and the scattered chrysanthemums conceal the workings of a larger formation.
• Knowledge and its limits: Chen Miao can identify the formation’s structure, but does not know its exact type and recognizes that understanding it does not make it easy to defeat.

Character interactions

• The Corpse Hound leads Chen Miao through the passage and signals when to continue.
• The barrier tests Chen Miao against the yin-energy signatures associated with Honda Taichi and his superior; the match permits him to proceed.
• Chen Miao’s earlier information from Zhang Huan and the failed investigations of Zhang’s group, Xia Lin, and Gu Zhong inform his interpretation of the barrier.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao enters Nine Chrysanthemums’ secluded retirement-home valley disguised as Honda Taichi. The peaceful setting—river, cherry blossoms, gardens, and residents enjoying their hobbies—contrasts with the valley’s sinister purpose and the fact that its residents cannot leave.
• At the central house, he meets director Satake Shō. Satake dismisses Honda’s request to move in and warns him not to return for a year. Chen also asks permission to consult his master, claiming he has taken a promising disciple; Satake allows the visit.
• Once outside, Chen avoids scrutiny and uses the Mystic Mirror to find Honda Taichi’s master, Ueda Yūya, despite Honda’s directions not matching the valley’s layout.
• Chen tells Ueda about his supposed disciple, “Chen San Shui,” while secretly surveying the valley and surrounding mountains through Yin Control and the Mystic Mirror.
• From a pavilion, Chen gets a clearer view of the terrain and estimates the valley lies several kilometers beyond Kiyotaki Tunnel. He realizes the Nine Chrysanthemum School may use feng shui to conceal the peaks, complicating any search by Zhang Huan and his team.
• Chen concludes that someone must get out to guide the searchers. Otherwise, the school might activate the Nine Chrysanthemum Mark and kill everyone in the retirement home.

Character developments

• Chen Miao remains cautious and resourceful, sustaining his disguise while gathering intelligence. He recognizes that finding the valley’s location may not be enough; he must also account for concealment methods and the danger to its residents.
• Satake Shō comes across as courteous on the surface but controlling and dismissive, asserting authority over Honda.
• Ueda Yūya is warm toward his disciple and begins advising him about the supposed new student, unaware of Chen’s covert investigation.

Significant themes

• Deceptive appearances: The valley looks like a tranquil refuge, yet its residents are trapped and face potential mass death.
• Surveillance and secrecy: Chen’s success depends on disguise, careful observation, and supernatural perception.
• Control and confinement: The residents’ pleasant routines coexist with their inability to leave, while the school’s leadership restricts even Honda’s visits.
• The limits of discovery: Locating the valley is only the first challenge; hidden terrain and the threat of the Nine Chrysanthemum Mark make rescue dangerous.

Character interactions

• Satake questions and restricts Chen while maintaining a polite manner; Chen responds with deference to preserve his cover.
• Chen and Ueda walk and talk as master and disciple. Ueda offers guidance about “Chen San Shui,” while Chen listens outwardly and investigates the valley in secret.

Plot points and events

• Chen Miao, disguised as Honda Taichi, leaves Ueda Yūya frozen in the pavilion using an unknown ability. He tests ways to cross the Feng Shui Barrier but finds that both the Mirror Realm and Nethermist Domain are confined by it.
• Unable to sneak through with his usual powers, Chen Miao thinks of using Twin Birth to create a new route. He links himself to a Corpse Hound, gives it an object, and sends it toward Kiyotaki Tunnel while his real body stays behind.
• Chen returns to the pavilion, takes control of Ueda Yūya, and leads him down the mountain.
• Meanwhile, livestreamer Watanabe Junichi waits outside Kiyotaki Tunnel rather than risk entering again. When viewers claim something has emerged, he ends the stream—but a Dog-Headed Man drops from a streetlight and knocks him unconscious.
• Watanabe wakes unharmed, but terrified. He flees without his phone, which the pursuing figure appears to have taken.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao responds to a dead end with a tactical change, using Twin Birth and the Corpse Hound as a possible way around the barrier. He also demonstrates control over Ueda, who remains helpless.
• Ueda Yūya is caught off guard by Chen’s deception and becomes an unwilling captive.
• Watanabe Junichi is torn between fear and the money offered by viewers. Despite his bravado, he ultimately chooses survival—but is attacked anyway.
• Viewers pressure Watanabe to return to the tunnel, while a passerby later wakes him after the attack.

Significant themes

• Improvisation under constraint: Chen adapts when his powers fail against the barrier.
• Appearance and deception: Chen masquerades as Taichi and leaves a convincing decoy behind.
• Fear versus temptation: Watanabe’s desire for tips conflicts with his awareness of the danger.
• Uncertain safety: Watanabe survives an encounter he believes should have killed him, leaving the threat—and his escape—unresolved.

Plot points and events

• Chen Miao discovers that the mountains around the Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home are hidden by a feng shui formation. Using his connection to the Twin Birth Corpse Hound, he locates the area.
• He sends the Corpse Hound outside to leave behind its phone and clothes, then follows it back into the tunnels. The Hound reaches a cavern filled with Corpse Hounds and is summoned to its master, an old man.
• The old man finds no evidence that the Hound left the tunnel and kills it as defective. Chen Miao abandons the idea of using it again, but notes that his message and items have already been sent and that Zhang Huan’s team is carrying out their plan.
• Chen Miao transforms himself to look exactly like Ueda Yūya, preparing to use the scarecrow method.
• Zhang Huan, Yu Hui, Xia Lin, and Gu Zhong find the Hound’s phone and clothes outside the hidden mountains. They dress Yu Hui’s scarecrow in the clothes and wait.
• The scarecrow gradually transforms, taking on a complete body of flesh and blood beneath its Straw Hat. The team draws Ueda Yūya into Yu Hui’s shadow and escapes with the scarecrow.
• Zhang Huan realizes Chen Miao is still inside the retirement home and urges him to stay hidden. The next day, Zhang meets a group of people posing as tourists at the airport—apparently the arriving Headquarters team.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao remains cautious and resourceful, using concealment, possession, disguise, and a backup plan to support the escape. He accepts the loss of the Corpse Hound but remains confident that the scarecrow may work.
• Zhang Huan demonstrates trust in Chen Miao, committing to the uncertain plan because he sees no better option. He leads the retrieval team and prepares for Headquarters’ arrival.
• The old man is revealed as the Corpse Hounds’ master. His immediate execution of the Hound shows his ruthless treatment of anything he considers defective.
• Yu Hui provides the shadow ability that lets the group carry away both Ueda Yūya and the scarecrow. The four teammates coordinate quietly, dividing up the search and escape.

Significant themes

• Improvisation and risk: The characters rely on an untested scarecrow technique because conventional access is blocked.
• Secrecy and deception: Chen Miao hides his presence, disguises himself, and uses misleading evidence to evade detection.
• Trust under pressure: Zhang Huan acts on Chen Miao’s plan despite uncertainty, while both men depend on their allies’ abilities.
• Inhuman expendability: The old man’s destruction of the Corpse Hound underscores the cold, disposable nature of the forces guarding the retirement home.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Jizhen briefs Zhang Huan and the others on a newly discovered Mountain Physiognomy Organization scheme along Great Xia’s coast. A fishing village’s statue, boat decorations, and tidal ponds form a feng shui formation, activated during traditional twice-yearly sea rituals.
• The formation is designed to hide in ordinary folk customs, requiring no direct action by the organization once the customs are established. Headquarters has sent operatives to observe the village rather than destroy the formation, so as not to alert the enemy.
• The discovery suggests that the organization may have embedded many formations—and perhaps other forms of influence—throughout Great Xia over more than a century. Finding them all would be an enormous task and could expose the investigation.
• Zhang Huan concludes that the most practical way to stop the mountain-river collapse plan is to destroy the Mountain Physiognomy Organization itself, rather than attempt to locate and remove every formation.
• He explains that Chen Miao has infiltrated the Nine Chrysanthemum School’s secret facility, the Nursing Home, and helped Ueda Yūya escape. Capturing other people held there could yield vital intelligence, but the operation must be handled from outside because Chen Miao cannot communicate freely.
• A large feng shui formation and a resident feng shui master protect the Nursing Home. Its prisoners bear the Nine Chrysanthemum Mark and might choose mutual destruction if attackers force their way in. Zhang therefore proposes infiltrating and neutralizing the facility all at once, using its formation—and asks whether anyone present can handle it.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Huan recognizes the true scale of the threat and the burden of the mission. He shifts from reporting what his team has learned to proposing the next operation.
• Chen Jizhen leads the briefing and explains Headquarters’ response; although Wang Yu outranks and slightly surpasses him, Chen remains the operation’s communicator.
• Wang Yu, the Heavenly Sword Star, has joined Chen in Kyoto Prefecture because Zhang’s team is the Administration’s deepest source of intelligence inside the Island Nation.
• Zhang works with Chen and Wang, then turns to their silent comrades for the specialized ability needed to proceed. The chapter ends before anyone answers.

Significant themes

• Cultural infiltration: Customs and everyday practices can conceal mechanisms of attack.
• The danger of hidden, long-term schemes: The organization’s century-long preparation makes the threat difficult to identify or undo.
• Strategic restraint: Destroying a discovered formation could alert the enemy, while an indiscriminate search would be impractical and politically risky.
• Secrecy and coordination: Success depends on protecting Chen Miao’s position, gathering intelligence, and avoiding a direct assault that could trigger the prisoners’ self-destruction.

• Operation plans: Chen Jizhen reassures Zhang Huan that the team has ample support: three Heaven-rank feng shui masters are already in Kyoto, while two more Heavenly Spirits and five Earthly Fiends are due later. Zhang calculates that the combined force should be strong enough to confront the Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home.
• Target and strategy: Zhang proposes leaving the Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s base at Kifune Shrine alone for now and focusing on the retirement home hidden inside Kiyotaki Tunnel. Capturing people there could also provide intelligence useful for dealing with the organization later. Chen and Wang Yu accept Zhang’s lead.
• Reconnaissance: The group travels discreetly through a mountain village to avoid attracting attention. The three feng shui masters examine the retirement home’s formation and establish that it spans nearly two kilometers. Hong Jun, the specialist in Island Nation formations, leads their effort. He suspects the formation uses wood and earth elements and proposes finding natural terrain features that extend beyond it, creating subtle entry points rather than damaging the formation.
• Preparation: The masters work separately to investigate the formation. Zhang accompanies Zhuang Yan, helping with physical tasks while Zhuang prepares a method involving eight red stones and a strange mirror that absorbs and reflects sunlight, combining yin and yang properties. The masters plan to activate their preparations at noon and then compare what they have learned.
• Character developments and interactions: Zhang shifts from worry to confidence as reinforcements are confirmed, and he takes charge of the operation while respecting Chen’s experience. The feng shui masters cooperate by dividing their investigation and appointing Hong Jun to coordinate. Zhuang treats Zhang as a practical assistant, while Zhang follows his instructions despite not understanding the technical work. As they wait, Zhang wonders how Chen Miao is faring inside the concealed formation.
• Themes: The chapter emphasizes strategic patience over a direct assault, teamwork across different specialties, and the importance of intelligence-gathering before confrontation. The mysterious yin-yang mirror and hidden terrain also reinforce the story’s blend of occult technique and careful observation.

Key plot points and events

• Inside the Nine Chrysanthemums Nursing Home, Chen Miao waits for news from Zhang Huan and the others, who are trying to obtain intelligence from Ueda Yūya. Headquarters is expected to send someone to Kyoto Prefecture that day.
• Chen considers what to do if the nursing home is not dealt with soon. Since crossing the feng shui formation would expose him, he plans to escape by using a Corpse Hound. He also considers sneaking into the mountain cavern with the Twin Corpse Hound and using Five Prisons against the person controlling the hounds, but recognizes the risks.
• When another resident invites him fishing, Chen avoids revealing that he is an impostor by claiming he must plan for his grand-disciple. The old man accepts the excuse, and Chen hopes to use it to deflect further invitations.
• Chen studies the formation with qi observation but decides against upgrading the skill: without deeper feng shui expertise, seeing more details would not help him escape.
• Outside the formation, Zhuang Yan and two other feng shui masters activate their own formations. Zhuang Yan’s setup focuses sunlight through a mirror, creating a beam that reveals a mirage-like view of the hidden mountains and valley. A talisman lets Zhang Huan share the beam’s elevated viewpoint, and he sees the Nine Chrysanthemums Nursing Home from above.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao remains cautious and resourceful, weighing escape plans while carefully maintaining his disguise. His exchange with the fishing companion suggests he can improvise convincing excuses, though he stays alert to the residents’ abilities.
• Zhang Huan witnesses the scale of the hidden site firsthand and is brought into Zhuang Yan’s formation through a talisman.
• Zhuang Yan demonstrates his skill by using a carefully prepared formation to expose the concealed valley.
• Chen’s interaction with the old resident is friendly on the surface, but Chen privately recognizes that the nursing-home residents are seasoned Onmyoji and potentially dangerous.

Significant themes

• Preparation under uncertainty: Chen plans for multiple outcomes while waiting on outside allies.
• Knowledge and its limits: More perception cannot replace the expertise needed to understand or overcome a complex formation.
• Disguise and caution: Chen must navigate an environment where even ordinary social encounters could expose him.
• Hidden realities revealed: The feng shui masters’ formation turns an apparently empty landscape into a visible, concealed world.

Key plot points and events

• Zhang Huan scouts the hidden valley from the air using a talisman. He estimates it holds about fifty residents, mostly retired members of the Mountain Physiognomy Organization, with relatively few guards.
• He worries that the feng shui formation may take a long time to break, increasing the risk of discovery. During his survey, he spots Chen Miao disguised as Ueda Yūya, resting safely in the valley.
• The three feng shui masters compare their findings:
  • Hong Jun explains that six outer mountains correspond to particular directions and symbolic positions, together encompassing all five elements. Three inner mountains—Heaven, Earth, and Human Peaks—form a configuration that balances and harmonizes yin and yang. Together, the mountains create interconnected outer, middle, and inner layers.
  • Lü Song suspects distinctive plants on the mountains power effects such as concealment, disorientation, and hallucinations; further dangers may become clear only after entering.
  • Zhuang Yan identifies a river running through the valley and proposes using it as an entry route, though the formation’s designer may have built defenses around it.
• The three masters agree to approach through the river and dismantle the formation from within, changing course if they encounter something beyond their capabilities.
• Chen Jizhen arranges for supplies and reinforcements. He leaves to contact the bureau’s undercover operatives, while Zhang Huan stays behind to protect the masters.

Character developments and interactions

• Zhang Huan shifts from anxious reconnaissance to relief when he sees Chen Miao is unharmed. He also recognizes the formidable power and mobility of Chen Jizhen, the Earthly Chief.
• Hong Jun, Lü Song, and Zhuang Yan work collaboratively, sharing specialized observations and reaching a joint plan rather than relying on one person’s expertise.
• Chen Jizhen prioritizes the mission’s security, insisting on handling bureau communications himself and assigning Zhang Huan to guard the masters.
• Zhang Huan offers to fetch supplies, but Chen Jizhen refuses, reinforcing his role as the team’s operational link to the bureau.

Significant themes

• Cooperation and complementary expertise: The masters combine their separate insights to understand a complex formation and choose a strategy.
• Risk and uncertainty: The formation is powerful, interconnected, and potentially deceptive; the river offers an opportunity but may itself conceal dangers.
• Trust and protection: Zhang Huan’s relief at finding Chen Miao safe, and the team’s reliance on one another, underscore the importance of personal bonds amid the mission.
• Power and capability: Zhang Huan’s assessment of Chen Jizhen highlights how strength depends not only on raw ability but also on circumstances and strategy.

Plot points and events

• On his third day at the Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home, Chen Miao reflects on what he has learned about the nearby residents through the Mystic Mirror, including which elders know Ueda Yūya.
• He studies the inheritance Spirit-Medium Underworld Communion, spending one jin of yin virtue to organize and clarify its information.
• He concludes that the Mortal World’s Soul-Inquiry Hall detects lingering souls through soul-summoning techniques. He considers using Ghost Possession to draw out and fuse the remnant soul inside him with his own, but worries about finding and controlling it, hiding the resulting changes, and whether the Hall would detect the fusion.
• Chen Miao decides that obtaining and testing the Soul-Inquiry Hall’s methods beforehand would be safest. He still depends on Xiao Bai, whose Curse Cult connections may provide access to the relevant information.
• He considers several possible combinations for his states, especially ways to improve qi observation. He also weighs fusing various mental, perception, and affinity states.
• Choosing to experiment with language states, he fuses six low-tier states—such as Ah, Hmph, Wolf Howl, and Don’t Look Down on a Poor Middle-Aged Man—and gains False Speech, which can use spoken falsehoods to unsettle thoughts and influence others.

Character development

• Chen Miao is cautious and methodical: he treats entry into the Mortal World as too dangerous to risk without first understanding the Soul-Inquiry Hall’s screening.
• He shows growing confidence and ingenuity in developing his states, while still recognizing that fusion could cost him useful abilities.
• His willingness to spend a modest amount of resources on an experiment reflects his curiosity and readiness to test new possibilities.

Significant themes

• Preparation versus risk: Chen Miao seeks to eliminate uncertainty before entering the Mortal World.
• Power through experimentation: He builds new abilities by combining states and applying inherited knowledge.
• Identity and concealment: The remnant-soul problem and the prospect of False Speech both raise questions about how inner states can affect outward identity and influence others.

Character interactions

• Chen Miao’s main potential ally is Xiao Bai, whom he hopes will obtain information from the Curse Cult’s Mortal World network, including the Demon-Suppressing Bureau. No direct conversation occurs in this chapter.
• He remains watchful of the retirement-home residents but does not interact with them directly.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao examines his newly fused False Speech status. It does not make lies come true, but it lets him trigger the abilities of its six component statuses through ordinary speech, shorter phrases, or even sounds.
• The Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home director, Satake Shō, visits Chen Miao, who is posing as Ueda Yūya. Satake claims to be checking on Ueda’s plan for his granddisciple, but the plan is only a pretext.
• Chen Miao presents a convincing training plan based on his conversations with Honda Taichi and material from Honda’s teachings and the Five-Wheel Earth Vein Regulation Technique. Satake approves it.
• Satake reveals that he wants help from Shimizu Shinichi, a senior Nine Chrysanthemum School official who has recently become the school’s Chrysanthemum Guardian in Kyoto Prefecture. Satake hopes Shimizu can arrange his transfer out of the retirement home.
• Satake says Shimizu has already contacted him and will visit Ueda in two days. He offers to help with matters involving Honda and his disciple in return for Ueda’s assistance.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao remains cautious and quick-thinking. He uses his observations of Satake’s behavior and [Clearheart] to infer the visit’s real purpose, then carefully avoids promising that Shimizu will help.
• Satake Shō appears unexpectedly polite and eager, revealing that his desire to leave the retirement home motivates his request. He and Chen negotiate indirectly: Satake offers help in exchange for Ueda’s influence.
• Chen’s composure collapses internally when he learns Shimizu is coming in person. Since Chen is an impostor, the impending visit threatens to expose him.

Significant themes

• Deception and identity: Chen must convincingly inhabit Ueda’s role while hiding that he is an impostor.
• Power and dependency: Satake seeks favor from a superior, while Chen’s assumed connection to Shimizu gives him leverage.
• The limits of ability: False Speech improves how Chen activates his existing powers but does not grant the reality-altering ability he had hoped for.
• Imminent danger: Chen’s careful improvisation may not survive direct scrutiny from someone who knows Ueda—or expects to meet him.

Key plot points and events

• Chen Miao learns that Shimizu Shinichi, a powerful Chrysanthemum Guardian, is visiting the Nine Chrysanthemum Retirement Home. Unlike the hands-off director Satake Shō, Shimizu knows the real Ueda Yūya well and could expose Chen’s disguise.
• Chen decides not to risk a confrontation. He plans to find and control a Corpse Hound, escape the valley, and alert Zhang Huan and Headquarters.
• He searches the valley and the cave leading out, but finds no Corpse Hounds. He considers attacking everyone at once, then rejects the idea because he does not know who controls the valley’s feng shui formation or who might alert others.
• The next morning, Chen returns to the cave, intending to trigger the formation to draw out a Corpse Hound. Instead, he spots the Corpse Hounds’ master, Satake Shō, and several important visitors approaching.
• Chen realizes Shimizu has arrived a day early. When he learns that the retirement home’s residents are gathering to welcome him, Chen gives up on attacking and joins them, thinking, “Everyone’s here. Good.”

Character developments

• Chen Miao stays cautious and pragmatic, prioritizing escape and survival over Headquarters’ mission. When events change, he quickly adapts and recognizes a possible opportunity in the gathering.
• Satake Shō is revealed to be a low-ranking member of the school, despite his position as director. He had relied on the real Ueda Yūya for help.
• Shimizu Shinichi’s early arrival raises the immediate threat to Chen’s disguise.

Significant themes

• Survival over duty: Chen refuses to take unnecessary risks for an assignment.
• Uncertainty and preparation: The unknown formation, hidden allies, and possible leaks make a direct attack too dangerous.
• Appearance versus reality: Satake’s apparent authority masks his low rank, while Chen’s assumed identity remains vulnerable to someone who knew the real Ueda.

Character interactions

• Chen brusquely dismisses residents who try to speak with him, using his cold manner to reinforce the impression that he is troubled.
• An old man notices Chen’s behavior and wonders whether something serious has happened.
• A staff member summons Chen to welcome Shimizu. Chen asks whether everyone is attending, then joins the group rather than risk acting alone.

Key plot points and events

• Satake Shō guides Shimizu Shinichi to Kiyotaki Sanatorium, praising its care for retired Onmyoji and explaining that many residents—and the Nine Chrysanthemum School’s senior members—long to escape its restrictions.
• The group meets Iguchi Masato, the Feng Shui Master who maintains the valley’s formation, and Ueda Yūya, an old friend of Shimizu’s.
• Instead of greeting Shimizu warmly, Ueda asks whether everyone from the Nine Chrysanthemums is present. Once Satake confirms it, Ueda violently slams Shimizu into the ground.
• Ueda transforms into a Flame Giant Ape with blood-red, hair-like tendrils. A supernatural chill weakens Shimizu, while the ape’s power overwhelms his defenses and shikigami. Shimizu loses consciousness without understanding the attack.
• A spreading mist, threaded with red tendrils, engulfs Shimizu’s shikigami, the Corpse Hounds, and the residents. Iguchi’s great feng shui formation briefly starts but then goes dormant.
• Within five minutes, the mist fills the retirement-home valley and its formation. At the end, figures emerge from a river elsewhere in the Inner Three Mountains, only to be swallowed by the mist as well.

Character developments

• Shimizu Shinichi arrives expecting a reunion and inspection, but is caught completely off guard by Ueda’s betrayal and the force of the attack.
• Ueda Yūya shifts from apparently calm, elderly resident to a monstrous and devastating attacker. His motives remain unexplained.
• Satake Shō takes pride in the sanatorium’s work and hopes Shimizu’s visit may help him and the other leaders gain freedom, but events turn suddenly against him.
• Sakamoto Taku shares the senior members’ desire to leave and plans to cultivate a connection with Ueda, unaware of the imminent violence.
• Iguchi Masato is introduced as the skilled master of the valley’s protective formation, though its brief activation proves ineffective.

Significant themes

• Betrayal and uncertain loyalties: Ueda’s sudden attack overturns Shimizu’s expectation of friendship and leaves his purpose mysterious.
• Confinement and the desire for freedom: The sanatorium’s residents and leaders feel trapped, even though it was established to care for retired Onmyoji.
• Powerlessness before hidden forces: Shimizu’s techniques, the Corpse Hounds, and the valley’s formation all fail against the chill, the monster, and the mist.
• Escalating danger and mystery: The mist spreads rapidly beyond the initial confrontation, suggesting a threat larger than the retirement home.

Character interactions

• Satake respectfully briefs Shimizu and introduces him to Iguchi, while Sakamoto follows quietly and considers how to build ties with Ueda.
• Shimizu greets Ueda with sincere enthusiasm and tries to reconnect, but Ueda ignores the reunion and checks whether everyone is gathered.
• Once confirmed, Ueda attacks Shimizu, turning their reunion into a violent confrontation witnessed by the assembled residents and staff.

Plot points and events

• Zhang Huan’s six-person team infiltrates the valley, but an unexpected fog immediately disrupts their plan. Hong Jun suspects they have been detected and prepares to contact the reinforcements outside.
• Heavenly Sword Star cuts through the fog with a single sword strike, exposing Chen Miao in his Fire Ape form. The remaining blood-red threads behind Chen Miao bind the valley’s unconscious occupants.
• Mistaking Chen Miao for a threat, Heavenly Sword Star pins him in place with a sword point at his brow. Zhang Huan identifies him as a comrade and an Administration Temporary Consultant, and the sword withdraws.
• Chen Miao explains that he acted to protect himself after the situation changed, and recounts what happened with Shimizu Shinichi. The team brings the captured occupants under control; Chen Miao helps remove their Ice Prison marks but must recover from the strain on his soul.
• In a closing scene in the Island Nation, an old man at a shrine sees a golden star appear over Kyoto Prefecture on a map-like ceiling and walks deeper into the hall.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao demonstrates formidable power and resourcefulness, but the encounter with Heavenly Sword Star reminds him how far the Administration’s strongest fighters surpass him. He is wary of Heavenly Sword Star and envious of his imposing, immortal-like appearance.
• Zhang Huan is relieved to recognize Chen Miao, though frustrated that the team’s successful infiltration came after Chen had already dealt with the danger. He questions why Chen went undercover, then accepts his explanation.
• Heavenly Sword Star is revealed as overwhelmingly powerful and cautious, yet his quiet nod to Chen suggests he may be less aloof than he appears.
• Yu Hui watches Chen Miao with curiosity, while the rest of the team is astonished by Heavenly Sword Star’s nod.

Significant themes

• The cost and limits of power: Chen Miao can defeat threats, but doing so leaves his soul depleted; Heavenly Sword Star’s power makes Chen feel acutely vulnerable.
• Preparation versus unpredictability: The Administration’s careful backup plans are overtaken by events inside the valley.
• Hidden forces and looming threats: The golden star appearing over Kyoto hints that a new development—or danger—is emerging in the Island Nation.

Key plot points

• In an underground hall, the Spirit Lord, Fiend Lord, and Chrysanthemum Lord use a blood-red map to witness events at the Nine Chrysanthemums Sanatorium, including Chen Miao’s arrival and the Administration’s raid and interrogations.
• Now that their Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s plan has been exposed, the Fiend Lord urges them to accelerate the “mountain-river collapse” plan. The Spirit Lord warns that its formations are incomplete and a large-scale sacrifice ritual would be difficult in Great Xia.
• The Fiend Lord proposes triggering an eruption on Snowcap Mountain instead. The Chrysanthemum Lord approves, accepting the likely cost to their “compatriots” in Shizuoka and Yamanashi, and orders Mountain Aspect to act.
• The next day, Chen Miao leaves the sanatorium with Zhang Huan and the others. Interrogations reveal that some residents were members of the Hundred Ghosts Seat as well as the Mountain Physiognomy Organization.
• The Administration uncovers numerous collapse-plan formations and identifies further operatives. Intelligence is dispatched, and senior agents head to other regions. Chen Miao’s mission is nearing completion, though he still has unfinished business.

Character developments and interactions

• The Fiend Lord is ruthless and impatient, favoring sacrifice and disaster to advance the plan. He mocks the Spirit Lord’s caution and pushes the others toward immediate action.
• The Spirit Lord remains focused on the plan’s practical limits, while the Chrysanthemum Lord makes the decisive call, placing the organization’s aims above civilian lives.
• Chen Miao reflects on his contribution and expected rewards, then considers the broader implications of the interrogation findings.
• Zhang Huan briefs Chen Miao on the results and next steps, linking the local operation to a wider campaign by the Administration.

Significant themes

• Escalation at any cost: The villains are willing to cause a volcanic disaster and sacrifice their own supposed allies to meet their objectives.
• Hidden alliances and deception: The presence of both rival organizations at the sanatorium raises the possibility that Nine Chrysanthemums secretly controls them and has manipulated events for decades.
• Personal missions within national crisis: Chen Miao’s mission is ending, but the larger threat to Great Xia—and the response it demands—continues.

Key events

• Chen Miao returns to the Folklore Club and takes its members out to eat. Kyoko Kuroda and Koizumi Shinichi are troubled because they cannot contact their teacher, Uemura.
• At a private tea gathering, Chen Miao says Uemura may belong to an organization and have left on a mission, though he admits he does not know for certain. Koizumi reveals that he is struggling with cultivation and nearly asks Chen Miao to find him another teacher. Kyoko sharply stops him, warning that abandoning their master would bring serious consequences.
• Chen gives Kyoko talismans and peachwood charms as repayment for her help and for lending him the Scarecrow’s clothing. He explains their protective properties but withholds any cultivation teachings, which he believes could expose her to greater danger.
• A live broadcast shows Snowcap Mountain erupting catastrophically, with lava, ash, and avalanches overwhelming the mountain. Chen recognizes the event as connected to the Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s Mountain-River Collapse Plan.
• Fearing the disaster may also be unfolding in Great Xia—especially near Tianmen County—Chen immediately leaps from the balcony and uses his White Ape technique to speed away.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is generous toward the club, but remains guarded about what he knows and what knowledge he is willing to pass on. The eruption abruptly shifts his focus from social obligations to concern for home.
• Kyoko Kuroda is anxious about Uemura, fiercely protective of the teacher’s authority, and grateful—and emotionally flustered—by Chen’s valuable gifts.
• Koizumi Shinichi is frustrated by his teacher’s absence and uncertain about continuing his cultivation. His impulsive suggestion to seek another teacher exposes his conflict between practical need and loyalty.
• The club members welcome Chen’s return and enjoy a lively meal and karaoke, briefly easing the group’s tense mood.

Significant themes

• Loyalty and respect for teachers: Kyoko’s rebuke shows the weight placed on fidelity to one’s master.
• Knowledge and responsibility: Chen offers practical protection but refuses to share a cultivation legacy he believes could endanger Kyoko.
• Disaster and uncertainty: The eruption suggests a wider catastrophe, leaving Chen—and the reader—to wonder whether Great Xia is also under attack.

Plot points and events

• Earth Hero Star Lei Zhan leads investigators to a stretch of coast in Great Xia to locate a hidden feng shui formation. Heaven-Rank Feng Shui Master Li Suifeng discovers it is formed by the seawall, concrete tetrapods, and rising tide; it activates when the afternoon tide submerges the tetrapods.
• Li tells Lei Zhan to inspect the tetrapods for marked stones and concealed holes so the formation can be broken without damaging the seawall. Lei orders the beachgoers taken for questioning and has his investigators search the area.
• While inspecting the tetrapods, Lei realizes they may come from a small number of common manufacturers. He reports that this could help locate other formations, and his superiors confirm there are more.
• Lei receives an urgent order to destroy the formations immediately. Investigators across the country begin demolishing the identified sites, while the government cuts civilian internet access to prevent footage from spreading.
• Li warns Lei that a tsunami is coming. A message explains that the Mountain Physiognomy Organization detonated Snowcap Mountain, triggering an undersea earthquake and a rapidly growing tsunami. Lei abandons the formation site and heads toward nearby settlements to rescue people.

Character developments and interactions

• Lei Zhan begins eager to contribute but frustrated by the limits placed on his mission. His sharp observation produces a useful lead, and his anger at the Mountain Physiognomy Organization gives way to urgent concern for coastal residents.
• Li Suifeng uses his expertise to identify the concealed, tide-dependent formation and helps Lei understand how to dismantle it. He initially doubts the enemy would guard it, but cautions Lei not to underestimate them.
• Lei and Li work cooperatively: Lei handles security and mobilizes investigators, while Li identifies the formation and warns the team of the tsunami.
• Lei’s investigators follow his orders, searching the area and destroying the marked tetrapods.

Significant themes

• Hidden danger and infiltration: The formations are concealed in ordinary infrastructure, suggesting the enemy’s reach is extensive.
• Escalation and unintended consequences: Destroying the formations does not prevent disaster; the enemy’s drastic action triggers a catastrophic tsunami.
• Duty amid crisis: When Lei cannot stop the wave, he shifts from fighting the enemy to saving civilians.
• Urgency and sacrifice: Authorities take extraordinary measures, and the investigators must act quickly as the danger grows.

Plot points and events

• Chen Miao arrives at Zhang Huan’s temporary base, but Zhang and the others have already left for Snowcap Mountain, where a volcanic eruption is rapidly worsening.
• With communications to Great Xia cut off, Chen Miao suspects the government has blocked outside contact—or otherwise restricted communications—to stop the Mountain Physiognomy Organization from coordinating its operatives. He believes the eruption may be the group’s response to the Nine Chrysanthemums Sanatorium.
• Chen Miao uses the Mirror Realm to reach Gao Yue’s evacuated home and finds hidden communications equipment. A call to his Elder Uncle still fails, but he reaches Chen Kun in Tianmen County.
• Chen Kun reports an earthquake and landslides near Tianmen, plus severe damage in Shannan City, where a fissure has split part of the urban area. The Administration has contained the crisis there.
• Chen Miao then contacts Lei Zhan, hoping for a broader update. Lei answers in a rage and urges Chen Miao to kill the Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s members.

Character developments and interactions

• Chen Miao is anxious about his family and the crisis at home, but Chen Kun’s report reassures him somewhat. He asks Chen Kun to help his Elder Uncle’s family if they are in danger.
• Chen Miao remains frustrated by the damage to his soul from his return from the Mortal World, which prevents him from using his usual shortcut through the Mirror Realm. The experience strengthens his resolve to prepare more thoroughly before entering again.
• Chen Miao notices that the Azure Dragon has vanished from the Seimei Shrine’s barrier. He suspects a powerful Seimei Shrine figure may have taken it to Snowcap Mountain, adding another dangerous force to the gathering conflict.
• Chen Kun is surprised by Chen Miao’s high-level Administration phone access and wonders what assignment he is on. Lei Zhan’s anger reveals how personally and urgently he views the Mountain Physiognomy Organization’s actions.

Significant themes

• Disaster and escalating conflict: Natural catastrophes may be deliberate acts, and the eruption threatens ordinary people caught between powerful factions.
• Communication and uncertainty: Cut-off networks leave characters dependent on limited, privileged channels and partial reports.
• Responsibility and preparation: Chen Miao tries to protect his family and recognizes the need to prepare carefully for future dangers.