Chapter Summaries

Lu Daoxing planned to investigate the World-Destroying Church, while Qin Siyang learned that Sun Linshou was using the Jiang Yuanrui murder investigation to retaliate over the Department of Justice's Crystal Coin allocation. Zhao Longfei warned Qin Siyang that Sun Linshou might arrange to abduct him if he left Nanrong University alone.

• Lu Daoxing told the man in black he would visit the Underground City to investigate the World-Destroying Church for Old Li and Xiao Qin.
• Sun Linshou called Qin Siyang and demanded that he come alone to the Jiang Yuanrui crime scene for questioning.
• Qin Siyang refused to leave Nanrong University without protection, and Sun Linshou warned him to bear the consequences.
• Zhao Longfei told Qin Siyang that Sun Linshou was angry about the Crystal Coin allocation and might arrange to abduct him.
• Qin Siyang learned that Choi Chan-hoon controlled most of the Department of Justice's allocation and blamed Zhao Longfei and his associates for favoring him over Sun Linshou.

After Sun Linshou took charge of Jiang Yuanrui’s murder investigation, Qin Siyang learned that Secretary-General Gu supported whoever served the Safe Zone’s stability. During questioning, Qin clashed with a young Department of Justice official who tried to label him dangerous and recommend his transfer to Moral College.

• Zhao Longfei explained that Secretary-General Gu had assigned the case to Sun Linshou because Sun’s investigation served justice and the rule of law.
• Zhao Longfei told Qin Siyang that Sun Linshou was bringing investigators to Southern Glory to question them as witnesses.
• Sun Linshou’s team questioned Qin Siyang, and the Lie Detector confirmed his answers that Lu Daoxing killed Jiang Yuanrui and Qin had not wanted to interfere.
• A young official criticized Qin’s lack of compassion and recommended transferring him to Moral College before he became a threat.
• Qin played a video of Gu Weiyang praising him as a future pillar of the Safe Zone, then sarcastically praised the young official for supposedly seeing through him better than Gu did.

Qin Siyang faced questioning by the Department of Justice and turned Minister Sun Linshou’s accusations back on him, forcing Sun to end the interview. Qin Siyang left the meeting room as Zhao Longfei went in to be questioned next.

• Qin Siyang pressured a young official into apologizing and withdrawing from the questioning.
• Qin Siyang challenged Sun Linshou’s claim that Area No. 7 had good public security by citing the recent attack on a Reincarnation Church branch.
• Qin Siyang threatened to report Sun Linshou’s remarks to Minister Cui, and Sun ordered him to leave.
• Qin Siyang met Zhao Longfei outside and joked about Sun Linshou’s poor questioning before Zhao entered the meeting room.

Sun Linshou failed to use Jiang Yuanrui’s death to pressure Qin Siyang and Zhao Longfei, then reflected on his stalled career and lost chance at advancement. Qin Siyang called with an urgent warning that someone planned to kill him.

• Sun Linshou questioned Zhao Longfei, but the Lie Detectors malfunctioned and Zhao deflected every accusation by insisting he could not defeat Lu Daoxing.
• Sun Linshou left without evidence against Zhao Longfei and returned to his hotel, where he recalled how his Crystal Coin plans and career ambitions had failed.
• Qin Siyang called Sun Linshou and told him to escape through the hotel fire stairs because someone was coming to kill him.

Sun Linshou fled an assassination attempt through the sewers, where Wan Tongwei cornered him and revealed he was a Sequence Level Six. Qin Siyang arrived in time to kill Wan Tongwei with a single kick and save Sun Linshou.

• Sun Linshou heard Qin Siyang's warning and tried to escape, but assassins broke into his room and burned it down.
• Sun Linshou escaped through Area No. 7's sewers, while his attackers believed Steward Wan would stop him outside.
• Wan Tongwei burst into the sewer, admitted he planned to kill Sun Linshou, and shrugged off Sun Linshou's [Water Pellet Shot] with his rockified skin.
• Wan Tongwei turned Sun Linshou's feet to stone and charged him, claiming his strength came from being Sequence Level Six.
• Qin Siyang burst through the pipe above and killed Wan Tongwei with a kick, then mocked his claim to be Sequence Level Six.

Qin Siyang and Zhao Longfei rescued Sun Linshou from an assassination attempt, and Sun Linshou suspected Justice Minister Choi Chan-hoon had arranged it to frame the Zhao Family. Choi Chan-hoon then called Zhao Longfei, leaving the accusation untested.

• Qin Siyang killed Wan Tongwei and helped the shaken Sun Linshou escape through a drainpipe.
• Zhao Longfei's men pulled Sun Linshou out, and Sun Linshou thanked Zhao Longfei and Qin Siyang for saving him.
• Sun Linshou and Zhao Longfei saw that the hotel had caught fire and discussed the attempt to kill Sun Linshou and implicate the Zhao Family.
• Sun Linshou identified Choi Chan-hoon as the likely mastermind, while Zhao Longfei questioned why Choi would target the Zhao Family.
• Choi Chan-hoon called Zhao Longfei, and Sun Linshou urged him to use the call to test the accusation.

Zhao Longfei learned that Choi Chan-hoon planned to frame the Reincarnation Church for Sun Linshou’s assassination and demand half the Zhao Family’s Crystal Coin quota. Sun Linshou admitted the Church had recruited him to help abduct Qin Siyang, and Zhao Longfei began considering how to break with Choi Chan-hoon and what role Sun Linshou might play.

• Choi Chan-hoon called Zhao Longfei and proposed that the Zhao Family give half its Crystal Coin quota to the Reincarnation Church in exchange for a scapegoat in Sun Linshou’s assassination.
• After Zhao Longfei hung up, Sun Linshou revealed that Choi Chan-hoon had set a trap and that the Reincarnation Church had paid him to help abduct Qin Siyang.
• Qin Siyang forgave Sun Linshou for being used by the Church, earning the deputy minister’s admiration.
• Zhao Longfei said the Zhao Family had to cut ties with Choi Chan-hoon and asked Sun Linshou what he would do if he became minister of justice.

Sun Linshou allied with Zhao Longfei after surviving an assassination attempt, and Qin Siyang helped conceal him at Southern Glory’s guesthouse. Later, Yan Ran invited Qin Siyang to dinner, where strong liquor quickly began affecting him.

• Zhao Longfei and Sun Linshou agreed to work together, with Zhao requiring Sun to avoid cult organizations.
• Qin Siyang accepted Sun Linshou’s thanks for saving him, and the three planned how to handle the assassination attempt.
• Zhao Longfei gave Sun Linshou a face-concealing item and arranged a hidden room for him at the guesthouse, keeping his survival secret.
• Qin Siyang went to dinner with Yan Ran, who had stayed after the Crystal Coin Issuance Conference.
• Yan Ran poured baijiu for herself and Qin Siyang, and Qin Siyang drank his glass before realizing the liquor was affecting him.

At dinner, Yan Ran thanked Qin Siyang for his help and offered to bring him into the military district, then shocked him by proposing marriage. Qin Siyang refused and urged her to marry Gu Yunpeng instead.

• Yan Ran toasted Qin Siyang for killing Yan Xiaowu and promised to seek an independent Sequence Regiment for him.
• Yan Ran explained that she chose the ninth-floor dining hall because Wen Shu was staying on the Tenth Floor and she wanted to keep their discussion from her.
• Yan Ran told Qin Siyang she wanted to take him to the military district and marry him, offering to meet his terms.
• Yan Ran said she needed a husband and heir after four fiancés had tried to control her troops, and that she could accept being with Qin Siyang.
• Qin Siyang rejected the proposal and recommended Gu Yunpeng as a better match for Yan Ran.

Qin Siyang resisted Yan Ran’s attempt to drug him into agreeing to marry her, then learned she had left Area No. 7. Meanwhile, Sun Linshou reported the assassination attempt, and Choi Chan-hoon discovered the failed plot had been reported to the United Government.

• Qin Siyang refused Yan Ran’s proposal to return to the Yan Character Legion and marry her, arguing that the arrangement would be unfair to him.
• Yan Ran drugged Qin Siyang, but he drank the Apathy Pharmaceuticals Hao Liang had given him and regained his composure.
• Qin Siyang left Yan Ran, and she later departed Area No. 7 after sending him a message of thanks.
• Qin Siyang woke to a breakfast Wen Shu had left for him and learned she had gone to class.
• Sun Linshou reported the assassination attempt to the Area No. 7 government offices with Zhao Longfei, and the case was sent to Secretary-General Gu Weiyang.
• Choi Chan-hoon learned Sun Linshou was alive and argued with a woman in white who had already reported the assassination as successful to the Guardian.

Choi Chan-hoon killed the White-Robed Woman to prevent her from exposing his ties to the Reincarnation Church, then sought an alliance against the Zhao Family and Qin Siyang. Xiao Zhigang agreed to meet him but made any introductions to Chairman Jiang and Professor Guo contingent on their conversation.

• The White-Robed Woman warned Choi Chan-hoon that the church moles in Area No. 7 had lost contact and could expose her.
• Choi Chan-hoon poisoned the White-Robed Woman and told her that her death would protect his identity.
• The White-Robed Woman accused Choi Chan-hoon of betraying her and revealed her connection to Guardian [Fusheng] before he burned her body to ash.
• Choi Chan-hoon contacted Xiao Zhigang and asked to work with him, Chairman Jiang, and Professor Guo against the Zhao Family and Qin Siyang.
• Choi Chan-hoon told Xiao Zhigang that the Zhao Family had protected Sun Linshou, changing his relationship with them, and Xiao invited him to meet at his office in District 2.

Qin Siyang nearly reconnected with the white speck of light during God Arena training, but Zhao Longfei's phone call interrupted him. Zhao told Qin Siyang that he had nominated him for Safe Zone [Five Good Student], an honor that could help him negotiate with the United Government for resources to build his army.

• Qin Siyang trained in the God Arena and nearly felt the white speck of light again before his phone rang and the sacrificial giant vine killed him.
• Qin Siyang answered Zhao Longfei's call and angrily demanded to know why he had interrupted his training.
• Zhao Longfei told Qin Siyang that Southern Glory was submitting [Five Good Student] nominations and that he had added Qin Siyang's name.
• Zhao Longfei explained that [Five Good Student] recipients could negotiate with the United Government for resources, which Qin Siyang would need to raise an army.
• Qin Siyang asked whether he could negotiate directly with Secretary-General Gu when the recipients went to District 2 for their commendations.

Zhao Longfei explained how the Five Good Student honor could let Qin Siyang negotiate directly with Secretary-General Gu Weiyang, then revealed that he had already arranged a campaign to support Qin’s nomination. Qin headed to the Principal’s Office and found a pinned post publicizing how he had saved Deputy Minister Sun Linshou from an assassination attempt.

• Zhao Longfei described the Five Good Student honor and argued that Qin Siyang could make an unprecedented request of Gu Weiyang because he was an orphan.
• Zhao Longfei warned that the selection was only a month away and that Qin faced steep competition despite issuing crystal coins.
• Zhao Longfei told Qin Siyang to build public recognition and revealed that he had already contacted influential people to promote Qin’s nomination.
• Qin Siyang apologized for raising his voice, then headed to the Principal’s Office and checked the forum.
• Qin Siyang saw a pinned post reporting that he had saved Deputy Minister Sun Linshou from an assassination attempt by a Reincarnation Church mole.

Sun Linshou praised Qin Siyang in a public interview for saving him from Wan Tongwei, while concealing Qin Siyang’s true strength and shifting blame for the Department of Justice’s misconduct onto the dead mole. Zhao Longfei then revealed that the interview was the first step in promoting Qin Siyang and assigned him a speech at a district commendation event.

• Sun Linshou told a reporter that Qin Siyang had killed Wan Tongwei and saved his life, while portraying their battle as a close contest.
• Sun Linshou praised Qin Siyang’s courage and generosity, claiming he had risked his life despite having reason to resent the Department of Justice.
• Qin Siyang recognized that Sun Linshou had blamed Wan Tongwei for the hostile interrogation and kept Qin Siyang’s actual strength hidden.
• Qin Siyang visited Zhao Longfei, who said the interview was the first step in building momentum for his nomination as a [Five Good Student].
• Zhao Longfei gave Qin Siyang a speech draft for the [Area No. 7 Commendation for Bravery Study Session], and Qin Siyang objected to its title, [My Mentor, Principal Zhao].

Zhao Longfei pressured Qin Siyang into publicly crediting him as the man who recognized his talent, threatening to send him to the Yan Character Legion to see Yan Ran. At a government meeting, Qin gave the requested speech, while Qian Wendao and Chen Zhongming discussed his knack for showing loyalty and gratitude.

• Qin Siyang refused Zhao Longfei’s demand until Zhao threatened to send him to the Yan Character Legion and suggested Wen Shu might misunderstand his visit to Yan Ran.
• Qin Siyang agreed to follow Zhao Longfei’s instructions for his speech the next day.
• Qin Siyang spoke at an Area No. 7 government meeting, thanking Zhao Longfei for recognizing his talent before recounting his rise and his rescue of Sun Linshou.
• Chen Zhongming noted that Qin Siyang’s speech contradicted an earlier account of his character, and Qian Wendao explained that speeches were performances.
• Chen Zhongming regretted meeting Qin Siyang only after he had become successful and imagined how an earlier mentorship might have advanced his career.

At dinner after Qin Siyang received two honors, Qian Wendao revealed a massive financial shortfall in the Area No. 7 Administration Bureau. The former bureau chief who signed for its loan, Tian Chunfeng, was dead, leaving the tangled accounts unexplained.

• Chen Zhongming and Qian Wendao explained that the Area No. 7 Five Good Student honor would strengthen Qin Siyang's nomination for the Safe Zone-wide award.
• Qin Siyang toasted Chen Zhongming and offered to help him with future problems, while Zhao Longfei joined their dinner.
• Qian Wendao said he had discovered that the Administration Bureau's payouts of points and Sequence Potions did not match the disc carapace it had received.
• Qian Wendao revealed that the bureau had a staggering shortfall, an enormous loan, and years of concealed payments and collateral arrangements that had left its accounts in disarray.
• Zhao Longfei told Qian Wendao to question the person who signed for the loan, and Qian revealed that former Bureau Chief Tian Chunfeng was dead.

Qin Siyang and the others discussed how Tian Chunfeng’s death left Qian Wendao responsible for a massive debt owed by the Administration Bureau. Qin suspected someone had impersonated Tian Chunfeng, and Zhao Longfei identified the Reincarnation Church as a likely culprit.

• Qian Wendao explained that Tian Chunfeng had died in the battle between Lu Daoxing and Jiang Changbai, leaving Qian responsible for the Administration Bureau’s debt.
• Qian Wendao said the Bureau’s stock of disc carapace covered only one-tenth of the Sequence Potions distributed, making repayment difficult before the next transfer deadline.
• Qin Siyang questioned why Tian Chunfeng would take on a debt whose consequences he would face if he stayed alive, and wondered whether his death had been planned.
• After learning Tian Chunfeng’s body had been identified, Qin Siyang proposed that someone had killed him earlier and impersonated him to create the debt and fake his death.
• Zhao Longfei praised Qin Siyang’s theory and suspected the Reincarnation Church, whose [Deceiver] Sequence members could have carried out the impersonation.

Qin Siyang and the others discovered the Reincarnation Church’s elaborate scheme to frame Qian Wendao and force the Zhao Family into cooperation. As Qian considered accepting the blame, Qin Siyang insisted they could turn the tables and expose the Church instead.

• The Reincarnation Church members argued over Choi Chan-hoon’s failure and Greedy Soul’s plan to entrap the Zhao Family.
• Greedy Soul explained how he had killed Tian Chunfeng, staged the death, and arranged financial records to leave Qian Wendao responsible for a disc carapace shortfall.
• The Church members concluded that Qian would have to ask the Zhao Family for help, giving them leverage to force the family to cooperate.
• In Area No. 7, Chen Zhongming and Zhao Longfei discussed containing the fallout and finding a way to cover the shortfall without exposing the Zhao Family.
• Qian Wendao suggested taking responsibility, but Qin Siyang rejected the idea and proposed turning the tables and placing the blame on the Reincarnation Church.

Qin Siyang proposed publicly accusing the Reincarnation Church of stealing disc carapace and accepting an investigation rather than quietly following the United Government’s procedures. In the Sigma District, the Reincarnation Church learned that Qian Wendao’s side had already made the accusation public.

• Qin Siyang explained that the Administration Bureau’s shortfall was in disc carapace, which he believed the Reincarnation Church had stolen.
• Qin Siyang proposed accusing the Reincarnation Church publicly before gathering evidence, and Qian Wendao agreed to face an investigation.
• Qin Siyang argued that Qian Wendao, Chen Zhongming, and Zhao Longfei had a strong chance of prevailing because of their positions and the Church’s need to hide.
• Asura showed Greedy Soul a Godslayer Camp post accusing Tian Chunfeng and Jiang Yuanrui of colluding with the Reincarnation Church to steal disc carapace, while reporting that Qian Wendao had requested an investigation.

Qin Siyang and Zhao Longfei discussed why the Reincarnation Church had avoided attacking Qian Wendao and how its members weighed the risks of retaliation. Qin Siyang defended making Qian’s journey public to keep him safe, even though it made an assassination attempt less likely.

• Qian Wendao traveled publicly from Area No. 7 to District 2 to beg forgiveness, but the Reincarnation Church made no attempt on his life.
• Qin Siyang questioned why the church would not try to assassinate Qian, and Zhao Longfei explained that doing so would require risking valuable high-ranking officers.
• Zhao Longfei described the Reincarnation Church’s Guardians and Senior Stewards and explained that many believers were not powerful enough to appear on the Tiger Cards.
• Zhao Longfei said the church’s members prioritized profit and survival over revenge, so they would avoid a mission likely to get them killed.
• Qin Siyang suspected Zhao Longfei had secretly done business with the church, but Zhao denied it.
• Qin Siyang explained that Qian’s public journey ensured his protection and said they could not risk Qian’s life just to kill a few church members.