Chapter Summaries

He Kui and Chen Zhongming escorted two examiners arrested in a case implicating Pan Youguang, but Han Lingye and his soldiers killed the suspects and shielded Pan. He Kui was left confronting the limits of justice as Han Lingye and Pan escaped in a transforming armored vehicle.

• Chen Zhongming praised He Kui as they escorted the two examiners, but He Kui said the case had succeeded only because Chen had supported him.
• A van blocked their way, and two soldiers shot and killed the arrested examiners.
• Han Lingye identified himself as commander of the Han Character Legion's 12th Battalion and claimed his soldiers had killed the suspects because of psychological issues.
• He Kui tried to arrest Han Lingye, but Chen Zhongming warned that the military's connections would prevent him from being tried.
• Pan Youguang left with Han Lingye, whose van transformed into an armored vehicle and sped away.

Han Lingye beat Pan Youguang over the failed attempt to swap Wen Shu’s Gaokao paper, while Pan Youguang argued that a mole had exposed the scheme. As Han Lingye questioned the soldier injecting Pan Youguang with an unknown drug, Pan feared they were about to silence him.

• Han Lingye slapped and kicked Pan Youguang, blaming him for the failed paper swap and the trouble caused by Mayor Chen Zhongming.
• Pan Youguang argued that someone had leaked the plan before his men could act, since He Kui had arrived before the forged paper was removed from a proctor’s underwear.
• Han Lingye suspected Wen Shu had detected the scheme, but Pan pointed out she had handed in her paper early because she was an exceptional student.
• Pan told Han Lingye that Wen Shu had placed second among more than a million candidates in the Eight-State Joint Examination.
• Han Lingye ordered a soldier to inject Pan Youguang with a pale green drug, and Pan feared they were going to kill him to silence him.

Han Lingye and Pan Youguang left the failed operation behind, while Qin Siyang learned that Wen Shu’s exam paper had been preserved and arranged stronger protection for the Gaokao. The exams ended without further trouble, though Qin Siyang remained puzzled about why the Han Character Legion had targeted Wen Shu.

• Han Lingye questioned Pan Youguang about the leak, then received a call from his uncle and apologized for the failed operation before asking why they had targeted Wen Shu.
• Han Lingye offered to bring Pan Youguang and his family to the Han Character Legion and help secure Pan Youguang’s future.
• Chen Zhongming told Qin Siyang that Wen Shu’s exam paper was intact and reported Han Lingye’s role in the operation.
• Qin Siyang asked Chen Zhongming to watch the Gaokao closely, then called Wen Shu to tell her the trouble was handled.
• Qin Siyang informed Jonathan, who sent elite SWAT officers to the 14121 Region, and the Gaokao ended without further incidents.

Qin Siyang arranged for Wen Shu and her grandmother to travel to Area No. 7, while Jonathan tasked his son Edward with escorting them and urged him to earn Qin Siyang’s favor. Meanwhile, two professors returned to Nanrong University and were summoned to a conference room, where they found two corpses on the table.

• Qin Siyang asked Wen Shu to move to Area No. 7 with her grandmother, and she agreed.
• Jonathan persuaded Edward that Qin Siyang’s favor could transform his prospects and instructed him to escort Wen Shu and her grandmother while following Qin Siyang’s arrangements.
• Two days later, Wen Shu and her grandmother set off for Area No. 7 in the Governor’s backup car with Edward.
• Harrison and Lister returned to Nanrong University after an academic summit and were summoned by Zhao Longfei.
• Harrison and Lister entered the conference room, where Qin Siyang and others waited beside two corpses on the table.

Zhao Longfei questioned Harrison and Lister about their students Jason and Laudno, who had died while trying to kill Li Tianming's group. The professors traced both students to a conference organized by Ren Changyu, and Lister vowed revenge on him.

• Zhao Longfei explained how Jason and Laudno had tried to assassinate Qin Siyang and Li Tianming's group, then asked Harrison and Lister about their students' ties to hostile forces.
• Qin Siyang used his bird to confirm that Harrison and Lister knew nothing about the students' actions or their connections to those forces.
• Lister recalled sending Jason to a Sequence research conference at Zhongrong University, and Harrison learned from Furensa that Laudno had attended it too.
• Zhao Longfei and the others identified Ren Changyu as the conference organizer and suspected he had manipulated both students.
• Lister grew furious when Li Tianming offered to make amends, but Zhao Longfei explained that Jason's father had entrusted Lister with his care before dying.
• Lister smashed a bookshelf and swore he would send Ren Changyu to meet Satan.

After learning that Guo Jiuxiao had used Jason and Laudno as scapegoats to target Li Tianming, Qin Siyang urged Li Tianming to fight back. Li Tianming chose to cooperate and asked Qin Siyang for bluewater glass star ore to study.

• Qin Siyang learned that Jason had been a sequence level six believer and Laudno a sequence level four, and realized Guo Jiuxiao had used them to target Li Tianming and Qin Siyang.
• Lister and Harrison took away Jason and Laudno's bodies, and Lister offered to join a plan against Guo Jiuxiao and Ren Changyu.
• Qin Siyang warned Li Tianming that Guo Jiuxiao might target him and his allies next, and Li Tianming called Qin Siyang back as he was leaving.
• Li Tianming asked Qin Siyang for three kilograms of bluewater glass star ore so he could study its star quality and possibly reproduce yellow-silver star ore.
• Zhao Longfei requested ore for Southern Glory and the Zhao Merchants' Association, and Qin Siyang gave him five kilograms to distribute.

Qin Siyang showed Li Tianming and the professors an unusual core-like piece of bluewater glass star ore, and they arranged to study it in a secure laboratory. Li Tianming and Chen Fenghe also made plans to resume their careers and settle into family life, while Chen Fenghe promised Qin Siyang one of her medical kits.

• Qin Siyang brought out an unusual piece of bluewater glass star ore, and Lu Daoxing, Zhang Kuang, and Li Tianming speculated that it was the ore’s core and might reveal how star ore formed.
• Qin Siyang told Zhao Longfei he would keep the newest research materials with the professors, and Zhao Longfei accepted his decision before leaving to handle school business.
• Li Tianming and the professors decided to establish a laboratory with a Special Lock to study the ore as a closely guarded secret.
• Li Tianming planned to send Li Pengfei to Southern Glory Affiliated Elementary School, while Chen Fenghe prepared to take up her position as dean of the Area No. 7 Joint Hospital.
• Chen Fenghe thanked Qin Siyang and offered him her Medical Kit, then blushed when he asked when she and Li Tianming would marry.

Qin Siyang tried to arrange a trade with Chris and then joined the professors at the Miracle Building to discuss a training plan. Li Tianming and the professors began proposing fields of research, but Qin rejected god research as too slow and of limited use in combat.

• Qin Siyang asked Hu Chan about another trip outside the Safe Zone, but Hu Chan said he was busy praying for the Gaokao results until they came out.
• Chris called Qin Siyang to arrange a trade of Blood Moon Blind Spider eyes for Corrosive Black Centipede remains, and Qin suggested meeting near Nanrong University in five days.
• Qin Siyang rested for two days, then went to the Miracle Building after Li Tianming summoned him.
• Li Tianming and the professors proposed creating a training plan for Qin, who said he wanted lessons that would quickly improve his combat strength.
• Chang Tianxiang offered to teach Qin god research, but Qin rejected it because learning the basics would take two or three years and the identification app was more efficient.

Qin Siyang rejected several professors’ offers to teach him research, then arranged a secret exchange with Chris at Southern Glory's Guesthouse. Chris traded him five Blood Moon Blind Spider eyes for Corrosive Black Centipede remains and asked whether Hu Chan had sought titan reed inner leaf fragments.

• Qin Siyang turned down lessons in Sequence research, pharmaceutical research, Apocalypse research, and God-Hunting Artifact research because they would take years to learn.
• Li Tianming berated Qin Siyang for refusing to study, and Qin Siyang challenged him to teach the Seventy-Two Transformations in three days, leaving Li Tianming strangely silent.
• Qin Siyang received Chris’s call and found him hiding inside a trash can to avoid Principal Zhao’s surveillance.
• Qin Siyang brought the trash can into the Guesthouse by claiming it contained Sequence Potions, then let Chris out in a private room.
• Qin Siyang gave Chris Corrosive Black Centipede remains and received five Blood Moon Blind Spider eyes.
• Chris asked Qin Siyang whether Hu Chan had ever requested titan reed inner leaf fragments.

Qin Siyang deflected Chris’s questions about Hu Chan, then accepted a Pure-Brightness Bracelet in exchange for confirming the trade. Chris learned that Hu Chan had obtained titan reed inner leaf fragments, while Qin Siyang said he would warn Hu Chan that Chris knew.

• Qin Siyang refused to answer Chris’s question about Hu Chan and noticed that Chris had activated a Lie Detector.
• Qin Siyang redirected Chris’s attention by implying someone else was watching their Corrosive Black Centipede remains transaction.
• Chris offered Qin Siyang a Pure-Brightness Bracelet, a single-use Tier-Four God-Hunting Artifact that could negate a mental skill attack.
• Qin Siyang accepted the bracelet and confirmed that Hu Chan had obtained titan reed inner leaf fragments from him.
• Chris asked Qin Siyang to keep the visit confidential, but Qin Siyang said he would tell Hu Chan that Chris knew about the trade.

Qin Siyang traded information about Hu Chan’s deal to Chris for a Tier-Four God-Hunting Artifact, then offered Hu Chan better terms to secure his help. He later brought Blood Moon Blind Spider eyes to the Miracle Building, where the professors praised him.

• Qin Siyang told Chris he would inform Hu Chan that he had disclosed their deal, and Chris asked him to drag the trash bin outside the Guesthouse.
• Qin Siyang told Hu Chan that Chris knew about their deal for the titan reed inner leaf fragment, and Hu Chan warned that Chris and Jin Shengyu might join forces against him after the Gaokao results came out.
• Qin Siyang offered Hu Chan the entire titan reed inner leaf fragment in exchange for helping gather disc carapace offerings, and Hu Chan said he would think about it.
• Qin Siyang took five Blood Moon Blind Spider eyes to the Miracle Building and gave them to Wu Yu.
• The professors praised Qin Siyang for bringing the materials, while Hao Liang was disappointed that Qin Siyang had not obtained a Multi-Headed Weasel.

Wen Shu arrived at Southern Glory with her grandmother and Edward, and Qin Siyang welcomed them to the Guesthouse. He arranged a room for Edward on the ninth floor and offered to pay his rent, leaving Edward suspicious of Qin Siyang’s generosity.

• Qin Siyang met Wen Shu, her grandmother, and Edward outside the Guesthouse after their long journey to Area No. 7.
• Wen Shu praised Edward for taking good care of her and her grandmother, and Qin Siyang greeted him.
• Qin Siyang led them into the Guesthouse and offered to help Edward settle in if Governor Jonathan arranged a place for him.
• Edward was shocked to learn that apartments cost less than ten gold coins and Guesthouse rooms cost one silver coin per day.
• Qin Siyang assigned Edward a room on the ninth floor and told the receptionist to deduct Edward’s rent from his rental income.
• Edward grew uneasy when Qin Siyang said he would cover the rent, wondering whether Qin Siyang had an ulterior motive.

Qin Siyang arranged a room for Edward and offered to cover the rent as a loan, explaining that he wanted to become friends with him despite their different strengths. Edward considered how their paths might complement each other, while Qin Siyang returned to the lobby and found two people standing around Wen Shu.

• Qin Siyang offered to pay Edward's rent and warned him to be careful about discussing Governor Jonathan's finances.
• Edward refused to accept the accommodation as a gift, so Qin Siyang proposed treating the rent as a loan and said he wanted to make a friend.
• Qin Siyang reassured Edward that friends could follow complementary paths and showed him his assigned room.
• Edward wondered how to become Qin Siyang's friend and decided he would ask his father for advice.
• Qin Siyang returned to the lobby and saw two people standing around Wen Shu.

Qin Siyang found Gu Yunpeng and Gu Yunxuan speaking with Wen Shu, and their teasing disrupted his attempts to impress her. After Gu Yunxuan nearly revealed that Wen Shu wrote two dangerous books, Qin Siyang shielded their conversation and asked how she had learned the author's identity.

• Qin Siyang recognized Gu Yunpeng and Gu Yunxuan beside Wen Shu and hurried over, only to be teased by both siblings.
• Wen Shu laughed at Qin Siyang as he tried to regain his composure and asked whether she knew the Gu siblings.
• Wen Shu said Gu Yunxuan had approached her in the lobby because she was a fan of her books.
• Gu Yunxuan began to say that Wen Shu wrote the books, but Gu Yunpeng covered her mouth to stop her from revealing the secret in public.
• Qin Siyang shielded their conversation, and Gu Yunxuan fell silent after realizing her mistake.
• Qin Siyang asked Gu Yunxuan how she knew Wen Shu had written the books when she had previously claimed not to know their author.

Gu Yunxuan revealed how she tracked down Wen Shu, the anonymous author she admired, and Wen Shu welcomed her instead of taking offense. Qin Siyang learned that Gu Yunpeng, Gu Yunxuan, and Zhao Sifang planned to discuss expanding the Zhao Merchants' Association, which had already received a Crimson Crystal as collateral.

• Gu Yunpeng explained that Gu Yunxuan had asked Zhao Sifang to use the Zhao Family's records and internet cafe surveillance to identify the author Sheyu, whom she recognized in the Guesthouse lobby as Wen Shu.
• Qin Siyang called Gu Yunxuan's behavior that of a stalker fan, but Wen Shu graciously introduced herself and reassured Gu Yunxuan that she was glad to have an admirer.
• Qin Siyang introduced Wen Shu and her grandmother to Gu Yunxuan and Gu Yunpeng, and Gu Yunxuan revealed that Wen Shu had placed second in the Eight-State Joint Examination.
• Gu Yunpeng explained that he and Gu Yunxuan had come to settle into the Guesthouse and that Zhao Sifang would soon join them to discuss expanding the Zhao Merchants' Association.
• Gu Yunpeng told Qin Siyang that one of the four Crimson Crystals pledged as collateral had secretly been transferred to the association, and Qin Siyang nearly cursed before noticing Wen Shu.

Qin Siyang rejected Gu Yunpeng’s assumption that he would let the Zhao Merchants' Association use his Crimson Crystal as collateral and postponed discussing the business plan until Zhao Sifang arrived. He settled Wen Shu and Xu Lanzhi into a Private Suite, where Xu Lanzhi began a private conversation with Wen Shu.

• Qin Siyang confronted Gu Yunpeng about Zhao Longfei’s plan to use his Crimson Crystal as collateral and refused to commit to the new business plan.
• Gu Yunpeng took Gu Yunxuan away after she exchanged contact details with Wen Shu, then warned her about her lack of social awareness.
• Qin Siyang escorted Wen Shu and Xu Lanzhi to their Private Suite and explained its facilities and the option of finding them off-campus accommodation.
• Wen Shu and Xu Lanzhi praised the suite and thanked Qin Siyang, who left them to rest.
• Xu Lanzhi took Wen Shu’s hand and said she had a few things to discuss before dinner.

Wen Shu’s grandmother, Xu Lanzhi, revealed that her keen senses had let her notice Wen Shu’s secrets and her growing closeness to Qin Siyang, though she had kept quiet out of concern. Xu Lanzhi worried that Nine Dragons College would expose Wen Shu to danger, but Wen Shu insisted she trusted her choice and would face the future rather than hide from it.

• Xu Lanzhi told Wen Shu that she had noticed her plans and worried that learning too much might put Wen Shu’s secrets at risk.
• Xu Lanzhi explained that she had inferred things about Wen Shu through listening and smell, and said she knew Wen Shu liked Qin Siyang.
• Wen Shu was shocked when Xu Lanzhi hinted that she knew about the bad things Wen Shu had done, including the people she had killed.
• Xu Lanzhi clarified that she had not awakened a Sequence Ability; her sense of smell had simply become unusually keen.
• Xu Lanzhi warned Wen Shu that Nine Dragons College and its dangerous social world might put her life at risk, and offered her a chance to change her college preferences.
• Wen Shu asked Xu Lanzhi to trust her and declared that she would face danger by moving forward rather than retreating and hiding.

Wen Shu visited Qin Siyang to thank him for arranging a private suite for her and Xu Lanzhi, and they discussed the risks and powerful people they had encountered in Area No. 7. Their conversation left Wen Shu questioning Qin Siyang’s claim that he had never faced danger.

• Xu Lanzhi reassured Wen Shu that she trusted her decision and supported her.
• Qin Siyang worried about his messy room when Wen Shu came to see him, then took her to the lounge.
• Wen Shu thanked Qin Siyang for securing accommodation that let her stay with Xu Lanzhi and care for her.
• Wen Shu said she had accepted that talented people in Area No. 7 could trace her through the internet, while Qin Siyang promised to protect her and Xu Lanzhi.
• Wen Shu questioned Qin Siyang about the dangers he had faced, and he denied having encountered anything serious.
• Wen Shu recalled that Qin Siyang had described Gu Yunxuan and Gu Yunpeng’s connections as too powerful to offend.

Qin Siyang and Wen Shu grew closer as they discussed books, friends, and plans for settling her near Nanrong University. Their conversation was interrupted when Hu Chan urgently asked Qin Siyang to bring help to Nanrong's gate, and Qin Siyang left to rescue him from the guardians who might be pursuing him.

• Qin Siyang asked Wen Shu about her plans, and she said she wanted to read for fun, including books she had written under the name Sheyu.
• Wen Shu asked about Qin Siyang's relationship with Gu Yunxuan and Gu Yunpeng, and Qin Siyang insisted Gu Yunxuan was only his buddy's fiancée and Gu Yunpeng was merely an acquaintance.
• Qin Siyang offered to get Wen Shu a Nanrong University library card and take her and Grandmother Xu shopping for essentials.
• Hu Chan repeatedly called Qin Siyang, then urgently told him to bring capable people to Nanrong's gate.
• Wen Shu suggested Hu Chan might be fleeing an attack, and Qin Siyang suspected Chris's two guardians had come after him.
• Qin Siyang decided to help Hu Chan because his ability to detect gods was valuable, then left while Wen Shu complained that trouble had begun on her first day.

Qin Siyang rallied Nanrong University’s professors by claiming his Crimson Crystal had been stolen, then recognized the injured Hu Chan when he was thrown out of a speeding car. He brought Hu Chan and another wounded man to safety at the Guesthouse, while Chris and Jin Shengyu watched from nearby and began competing over who would arrange Hu Chan’s death.

• Qin Siyang summoned Zhao Longfei and the professors to the university gates with a message claiming his Crimson Crystal had been stolen.
• A speeding car tossed two badly injured men out near the gates, and Qin Siyang recognized Hu Chan beneath his disguise.
• Qin Siyang carried Hu Chan toward the Guesthouse and convinced the others to help by reminding them of their debts to him.
• Zhao Longfei spotted two suspicious gray sedans as Qin Siyang led the wounded men through the gates.
• Chris offered a thousand bottles of Sequence Potion for Hu Chan’s death, and Jin Shengyu countered with two thousand bottles if Chris would do it.