Chapter Summaries

Ke Meng traced the ore disease curse from the mine to the homes of missing miners and discovered that their front doors were connected to the Door Organization. The Investigation Bureau collected the doors from all thirty-two victims’ homes, but the source remained unidentified.

• Ke Meng entered the mine with Tangyuan and Shirley, found people transformed into black crystal ore, and concluded that the mine was not the curse’s original source.
• Ke Meng obtained the list of thirty-two missing miners and sent investigators to search their homes while keeping the families away from possible exposure.
• Ke Meng searched Luo Tong’s home and noticed that the family’s sobbing changed sharply in volume as he crossed the front doorway.
• Ke Meng suspected the door was connected to the Door Organization and asked the family to let the Investigation Bureau take it for investigation.
• Investigators found the same strange effect at every missing miner’s home and brought thirty-two doors back to the Investigation Bureau.

Ke Meng and the Investigation Bureau investigated thirty-two victims’ newly installed wooden doors but found no obvious clues in the store and transport footage. As ore disease cases spread outward from the Mining Area, Luo Yuan and the Bureau looked to Ke Meng to find the supernatural source.

• Ke Meng learned that all thirty-two victims’ families had replaced their front doors on the same day and ordered the Bureau to investigate the purchases and installers.
• Ke Meng watched sped-up surveillance footage with several senior staff, but the recordings revealed no apparent anomalies despite their dangerous white noise.
• Ke Meng went to sleep with Tangyuan standing guard so he could use dream synesthesia, while the Bureau investigated timber suppliers and door manufacturers.
• The Branch Director and Luo Yuan discussed the Door Organization’s threat as the ore disease outbreak continued to worsen.
• Luo Yuan checked the internal reports and saw that 301 cases had appeared outside the Mining Area, with infections radiating outward in every direction.
• Luo Yuan looked to the sleeping Ke Meng as the Bureau’s best hope of finding a way to stop the outbreak.

Ke Meng used his Dream World vision to identify a living black crystal called a Calamity Generator as the likely cause of the ore disease and recent flood. After recovering a recording of Sect Master Jin and the Atoner, he helped launch a search for them while the Investigation Bureau struggled to treat the spreading disease.

• Ke Meng saw a five-second vision of Sect Master Jin giving the Atoner a bottle containing living black crystal ore, which the Atoner called a Calamity Generator.
• Ke Meng remembered an extra recording from a Frog Society interrogation and directed the Investigation Bureau to retrieve file 6-4135.
• Ke Meng listened to the recording and told Director Shi that Sect Master Jin had given the Atoner the crystal, which likely caused the flood and ore disease.
• Ke Meng sketched the bottle, the crystal, Sect Master Jin, and the corridor so local branches and the Network Divine Beast could search for them.
• Ke Meng examined the ore disease treatment trials and learned that cutting away infected flesh worked only when paired with a flesh-regrowing item.
• Ke Meng learned that residents had been evacuated and that the city might need to be relocated if investigators could not find a treatment within a day.

Ke Meng helped evacuate residents from the Mining Area, then decided to use himself as bait to draw out the Door Organization. As he prepared for a confrontation, he reviewed the powerful offerings stored in his Storage Scarf.

• The rapid-response unit used a teleportation array and blue rain to transfer the Mining Area’s residents to a quarantine area.
• Ke Meng concluded that the Door Organization might be targeting him because it had learned he could produce Special Items, possibly through information connected to Mrs. Chen and Chen Momo.
• Ke Meng told Old Shi that Ore Disease would spread, paused his livestream, and planned to reveal his location to lure the Door Organization into attacking him.
• Old Shi decided to go to Ke Meng, while Ke Meng examined the strange offerings in his Storage Scarf and found several powerful items.

Ke Meng prepared powerful containment and escape items before Old Shi arrived with a dangerous zero-level item and supplies. After the investigators formed a barrier in Shiyuan City, Ke Meng received authorization to reveal the ore disease in a livestream to lure out the Door Organization, and began broadcasting.

• Ke Meng reviewed his Elf Magic Ball, False Time Pocket Watch, and other enhancements as combat reserves.
• Old Shi came to Shiyuan City and gave Ke Meng Pandora's Box and several hundred Teleportation Stones, including two that could take him to the moon.
• Ke Meng and Old Shi planned to bait the Door Organization while nearby investigators set up a Barrier Formation that allowed entry but prevented escape.
• Ke Meng suggested publicizing the ore disease, and the Director-General authorized him to reveal the disease without mentioning that it bypassed physical isolation.
• Ke Meng started a livestream in the dark and deserted city.

Ke Meng livestreamed his investigation of Shiyuan City's Mining Area as the Investigation Bureau announced the city's relocation because of ore disease. The Atoner abandoned plans to expose the disease himself and prepared to lead an assault on Koi Continent Headquarters to reclaim the Door of Knowledge.

• Ke Meng began a livestream as viewers reacted to news that Shiyuan City was being relocated through spatial transfers because of ore disease.
• The Atoner saw the Investigation Bureau's announcement and decided it did not reveal enough about ore disease, but then noticed Ke Meng livestreaming from Shiyuan City's Mining Area.
• The Atoner recognized Ke Meng as his containment assignment and judged that the mining region was too dangerous for an attack, so he turned to the Door Organization's plan to reclaim the Door of Knowledge.
• The Atoner called his allies, then masked himself and went toward the Koi Door at Koi City's Headquarters.

The Door Organization exposed Ore Disease’s ability to bypass physical isolation, causing worldwide panic as the Network Divine Beast tried to suppress the reports. After Ke Meng reassured viewers during his livestream, Headquarters was attacked, and he and Old Shi teleported there—only for a mysterious voice to reach Ke Meng in the Void.

• Independent media across the Five Continents published reports revealing that Ore Disease ignored physical isolation, and the Network Divine Beast began deleting them.
• Ke Meng explained Ore Disease on livestream while Shirley searched for the reports, and Headquarters told him to reassure the public and support the evacuation.
• Ke Meng warned viewers about the reports, urged them to stay calm and cooperate with the Investigation Bureau, and continued explaining the disease.
• An operator told Ke Meng that Headquarters had been breached, and Ke Meng and Old Shi suspected the Door Organization was targeting the Door of Knowledge.
• Ke Meng ended the livestream, stowed Shirley, and entered the Void with Old Shi, where Ke Meng sensed a threat and heard a voice urging him to embrace knowledge.

Ke Meng and Old Shi used the Sound-Absorbing Sponge to block mysterious sounds during their journey through the void, then discovered that Koi City’s space had been sealed. They escaped by using a second Teleportation Stone and emerged in a neighboring city.

• Ke Meng squeezed the Sound-Absorbing Sponge to silence the sounds, and Old Shi shut off his senses while they waited inside the spatial bubble.
• Ke Meng warned Old Shi that danger awaited them at the end of the teleportation, and both prepared Teleportation Stones.
• Ke Meng sensed a vision of the spatial bubble shattering and told Old Shi to trust his judgment and follow his lead.
• When the first teleportation ended, the bubble shattered before reaching Koi City because the city’s space had been sealed.
• Ke Meng crushed another Teleportation Stone, and he and Old Shi emerged safely at night in a neighboring city.

Ke Meng used Synesthesia to survey the battle in Koi City and locate a possible Door Organization entrance, then discovered that the dome sealing off the city was a living guardian spirit. He and Old Shi remained outside the barrier, searching for a way to get inside.

• Old Shi learned that the Investigation Bureau had been breached and Flaming Man was attacking, so he and Ke Meng hurried toward Koi City.
• Ke Meng used Synesthesia on the Sealing Pavilion and saw the ruined Investigation Bureau, Flaming Man burning inside the Pavilion, and Investigators and Door Organization members battling outside.
• Ke Meng searched Koi City for a Door Organization entrance and sensed a likely location in an old residential complex before waking.
• Ke Meng and Old Shi found that the dome around Koi City absorbed attacks and prevented them from entering.
• Ke Meng used Big-Faced Cat to identify the dome as a growing guardian spirit that could absorb energy, then took out a white Elf Magic Ball.

Ke Meng used the Elf Magic Ball to contain the Guardian Spirit, then established a master-servant pact with it. He ordered the Guardian Spirit to seal an old residential complex and circled above it on Tangyuan.

• Ke Meng threw the Elf Magic Ball at the Guardian Spirit’s dome, triggering the ball’s containment ability.
• The Guardian Spirit’s dome collapsed into streams of light and flowed into the ball as Old Shi flew through the opening into Koi City.
• After eighty seconds, the Elf Magic Ball finished containing the Guardian Spirit and returned to Ke Meng’s hand.
• Ke Meng used the ball to establish a master-servant pact with the Guardian Spirit, which remained resentful of the bond.
• Ke Meng ordered the Guardian Spirit to seal an old residential complex, and it formed a net of light around the area.

Ke Meng expanded the spatial seal around Koi City, then entered the Investigation Bureau through a barrier breach despite the deadly poisonous mist. He discovered that an intelligent Venomous Heart was producing the poison, and it fled as soon as he sensed it.

• Ke Meng ordered the guardian spirit to seal all of Koi City and sent Tangyuan and Shirley to guard the old residential complex.
• Ke Meng flew to the Investigation Bureau, where the building was split in half and poisonous mist was corroding its barrier.
• Ke Meng shot a giant beast in the eye with a Steel-Core Bullet, leaving it badly injured and disoriented.
• Ke Meng crossed the poisonous mist and entered the Investigation Bureau, saving his Storage Scarf from the poison.
• Ke Meng used his mind's eye to locate an intelligent Venomous Heart beneath the barrier breach, and the heart burst from the soil and fled.

Ke Meng killed Venomous Heart and returned to the Investigation Bureau after the barrier sealed, only to find the surviving Investigators gravely injured and the Sealing Pavilion locked. He sensed that uncontrolled flames inside were overwhelming the pavilion as it tried to force them into the Door of Knowledge.

• Venomous Heart fled from Ke Meng, but he used magnetic fields to redirect a shot and destroy its exposed heart.
• Ke Meng contained some of the poisonous mist and slipped back through the shrinking breach before the barrier fully repaired itself.
• Ke Meng found the surviving Investigators outside the Sealing Pavilion, several of whom were dying from the costs of using powerful items.
• An S-Class Investigator offered Ke Meng his storage item and asked him to find a successor or inherit his belongings.
• Ke Meng listened at the sealed pavilion doors and sensed endless flames burning inside, with the pavilion struggling to contain them and force them into the Door of Knowledge.

After the Sealing Pavilion reported that the Door Organization’s flames had killed everyone inside, Ke Meng learned it had saved most of the Special Items but suffered injuries. Wang Bing warned him that the Sealing Pavilion might share the Door Organization’s pursuit of knowledge, then died; Ke Meng called the Director-General to coordinate the transferred items and planned to investigate the Pavilion himself.

• The Sealing Pavilion told Ke Meng that everyone inside had burned to death and that it had transferred eighty percent of the Special Items, though it had been injured and would keep its door closed.
• Ke Meng carried the dying Wang Bing upstairs, but a vitality-boosting fruit could not overcome the lifespan cost that Wang Bing said would kill him within five minutes.
• Wang Bing warned Ke Meng that the Sealing Pavilion and the Door Organization both pursued knowledge and that the Pavilion might defect, then died after urging caution.
• Ke Meng placed Wang Bing’s body in his Storage Scarf and vowed to fulfill his final wishes to find a successor for the Zero-Level Item and protect the Koi Continent.
• Ke Meng called the Director-General, who said he was coordinating outside the Investigation Bureau, and told him the Sealing Pavilion had transferred the items to the Underground Research Institute in the Koi Military District.
• Ke Meng told the Director-General he was unsure of the Sealing Pavilion’s condition and prepared to use Dream Synesthesia to investigate.

Ke Meng investigated the Sealing Pavilion’s deadly flames, sent the grieving Investigators away, and rested while Old Shi kept watch. In a dream, Ke Meng used Synesthesia to inspect the Pavilion and discovered it was sacrificing parts of itself to contain the fire before it sensed his gaze.

• The Director-General ordered Ke Meng to keep the dome locked down and search the Investigation Bureau for intruders.
• Ke Meng sensed that the Sealing Pavilion’s flames could burn souls, then told the Investigators that everyone inside had died and urged them to leave.
• Ke Meng asked Old Shi to keep watch while he slept, promising to explain what was happening later.
• In his dream, Ke Meng listened to Black Ghost’s report and used Synesthesia to examine the Sealing Pavilion, Flaming Man, the Door of Knowledge, and the Atoner.
• Ke Meng saw the Sealing Pavilion cut away burning sections of itself and send them through the Door of Knowledge, while heartflame fire spread through a briefly opened Silver Door.
• The Sealing Pavilion suddenly detected Ke Meng’s gaze and cried out, startling him.

Ke Meng spied on the Sealing Pavilion through Synesthesia and sensed guilt, leaving him to suspect it had betrayed them. After waking, he warned Old Shi, who hesitated to report the suspicion because he feared the Artificial Intelligence might reveal it.

• The Sealing Pavilion sensed an unknown observer, destroyed the Silver Door and closed the spatial passage, but Ke Meng's gaze continued to frighten it.
• Ke Meng concluded that the Sealing Pavilion's emotions carried a scent of guilt, though the heartflame had destroyed the evidence he needed to confirm what happened.
• Black Ghost reported traces of the Elder Gods on the landmass, and Ke Meng suggested that Black Ghost continue investigating.
• Ke Meng woke from his dream, told Old Shi that he suspected the Sealing Pavilion had betrayed them, and shared Wang Bing's account in a notebook.
• Old Shi considered contacting the Director-General but stopped, worried that the Artificial Intelligence could inform the Sealing Pavilion; Ke Meng said his intuition still trusted the Network Divine Beast.

Ke Meng and Old Shi discovered that the Sealing Pavilion situation was suspicious, while the Investigation Bureau prepared for its barrier to lift. Ke Meng used the Iceblood Needle to acquire its abilities and realized they were designed for bodies far beyond ordinary human limits.

• The Director-General told Ke Meng that the Bureau’s barrier would lift in about a day, and Ke Meng revived Old Shi’s fading awareness with mind-clearing incense.
• Old Shi demanded the Iceblood Needle, but Ke Meng refused to let him risk his remaining lifespan and identified the needle with Big-Faced Cat.
• Ke Meng opened the Ice-Sealed Containment Box and learned that the Iceblood Needle granted ice-related skills at the cost of severe bodily damage to human users.
• Ke Meng pierced his own vein with the needle and gained knowledge of Iceblood Burst, temperature reduction, and ice-type perception.
• Ke Meng concluded that the needle’s abilities were unsuitable for humans and required a body made of pure elemental substance.

Ke Meng tested the Iceblood Needle’s power to drain energy and lower temperatures, then used it with Old Shi to hunt surviving Disciples of the Door in the laboratory. After enduring severe backlash from freezing enemies to absolute zero, Ke Meng agreed to use the less costly Iceblood Burst more routinely and continued searching.

• Ke Meng tested his new temperature-lowering ability, endured its physical backlash, and led Old Shi through the rooms to search for survivors.
• Ke Meng sensed a hidden energy entity in a laboratory cabinet and froze it until it burst apart, while Old Shi destroyed the fragments with his Red-Heat Sword.
• Ke Meng and Old Shi found two Disciples of the Door inside a Sealed Item, and Ke Meng froze and drained them while Old Shi struck their hearts and brains.
• Old Shi warned Ke Meng that draining enemies to absolute zero caused excessive backlash, and Ke Meng agreed to rely on Iceblood Burst instead.
• Ke Meng collected the remaining ice fragments and continued checking the laboratory’s Sealed Items with Old Shi.

Ke Meng investigated the Sealing Pavilion after suspecting it had changed during the battle, then followed the Door Organization’s escape route to an Infinite Door in an old apartment. As he tried to redirect the door into the true World Behind the Door, his Spirituality warned him that something was waiting inside.

• Old Shi realized the Iceblood Needle suited Ke Meng, who learned its hidden bodily damage was prevented by his Resistance and decided to respect its limits.
• Ke Meng reached the Sealing Pavilion, pretended not to know when its spatial lockdown would end, and later wrote to the Director-General that something was wrong with it.
• The Director-General agreed to sense the Sealing Pavilion himself, while Ke Meng suspected its unusual Spirituality had grown during the battle.
• Ke Meng and the Director-General went to the old apartment complex, where they learned the landlord had vanished and Disciples of the Door had used the building.
• Ke Meng found an intact Infinite Door behind the apartment’s bathroom door and sensed that something waited behind it as he tried to enter the true World Behind the Door.

Ke Meng prepared to confront the person waiting behind the Infinite Door, relying on the False Time Pocket Watch to counter an unknown trap. He opened the door and stopped time just as he sensed a spatial containment threat.

• Ke Meng and the Director discussed how the Door Organization recruited Disciples and how its methods differed from Shadow Stream's.
• Ke Meng revealed that he planned to use a time item to investigate the danger behind the Infinite Door, then brought out the False Time Pocket Watch.
• Ke Meng sent the Director outside and had Investigators set up cameras at least a hundred meters away before he approached the door with Tangyuan and Shirley.
• Ke Meng opened the Infinite Door slightly and sensed a powerful spatial containment object locking onto him.
• Ke Meng pressed the stopwatch button, freezing time throughout the residential complex while time continued beyond its hundred-meter boundary.

Ke Meng stopped time to kill three Centaurs and destroy their containment net, then learned that stopping time left him and others feeling that familiar people and body parts no longer belonged to them. He survived the fight, but was left unsettled by the strange aftereffects.

• Investigators tested whether they could enter and leave the time-stop zone, then reported that their hands and pets felt alien; the Captain ordered them to stay calm and seek psychiatric treatment.
• During the three seconds of stopped time, Ke Meng used localized cooling and Iceblood Burst to kill the three Centaurs behind the door.
• Ke Meng drained the energy from a prepared fishing net and shattered it with Super Electromagnetic Cannon shots.
• After time resumed, Ke Meng gathered the Centaurs' remains and blasted them into dust, confirming their deaths when the Horse Hunter Leather Boots stopped reacting.
• The Director-General rushed in to check on Ke Meng, who found that the Director-General, Tangyuan, and Shirley all seemed unfamiliar; Ke Meng used his spirituality and concluded they were still the same as before.