Chapter Summaries

Qin Siyang and his companions attacked the Shao Family, with Duan Chongfang and Yu Ziying taking on separate opponents while Qin Siyang overwhelmed Shao Xiaozhan. Qin Siyang recognized Shao Xiaozhan as the person who had complained about his manners, then struck him down before he could finish pleading.

• Duan Chongfang blasted Shao Xiaogong with his shotgun, then left him to Qin Siyang while Shao Xiaozhan and Shao Yanhu faced the others.
• Yu Ziying inhaled Shao Yanhu's black mist and swept him out of the hall to fight him.
• Shao Xiaozhan tried to negotiate with Qin Siyang, but Qin Siyang refused and attacked him with full force.
• Qin Siyang repeatedly struck Shao Xiaozhan until his defenses failed and he collapsed, badly injured.
• Qin Siyang apologized for seeming impolite, and Shao Xiaozhan realized who he was just before Qin Siyang struck him again.

Qin Siyang and Yu Ziying killed Shao Xiaozhan and Shao Yanhu, then left the Shao Family without harming anyone else. Qin Siyang exposed Shao Xiaozhan’s role in a feed factory bombing, and the Safe Zone recognized the danger of challenging his growing power.

• Qin Siyang killed Shao Xiaozhan, while Duan Chongfang finished his own fight and joined him.
• Yu Ziying confronted and killed Shao Yanhu, who had once been spared because of his friendship with her father.
• Qin Siyang, Duan Chongfang, and Yu Ziying left the Shao Family without slaughtering its other members, then met Hao Liang and escaped in the Drill Pod.
• News spread that three members of the Shao Family had been killed, stirring alarm and speculation across the Safe Zone.
• Qin Siyang sent the confessions and evidence about the feed factory explosion to Sun Linshou, and the Department of Justice opened an investigation into Shao Xiaozhan.
• The Safe Zone learned that Qin Siyang had reported Shao Xiaozhan, and factions began to fear his power.

After learning that the feed mill explosion killed over fifteen hundred people, Qin Siyang ordered Governor Kav to make the Shao Family compensate the victims. He threatened to expose the family’s corrupt dealings if they refused to pay.

• Faction leaders grew fearful of assassination after the deaths of prominent figures, while Qin Siyang’s record made others wary of targeting him.
• Qin Siyang asked Hao Liang for medicine to accelerate black sweet potato growth, and Hao Liang gave him ten bottles to test.
• Kav told Qin Siyang that Office Director Lü survived the explosion after taking a potion, but more than fifteen hundred others died at the feed mill.
• Qin Siyang rejected using state funds or paying compensation himself and ordered Kav to demand payment from the Shao Family.
• Qin Siyang instructed Kav to investigate officials who had colluded with the Shao Family and send the family evidence of their crimes to pressure them into paying.

Qin Siyang visited the injured Lü Boming, granted his requests to transfer his daughter to Southern Glory and avenge his mother, and gave him protective items and a gold coin. Lü Boming was left stunned by Qin Siyang’s generosity and newly understood why Kav trusted him.

• Qin Siyang visited Lü Boming in the hospital and urged him to rest after surviving the explosion that killed more than a thousand people.
• Qin Siyang agreed to help transfer Lü Boming’s daughter to Southern Glory after Lü Boming explained that Fang Mo had forced her into an ordinary university.
• Lü Boming told Qin Siyang that Fang Mo’s false embezzlement accusation had caused his mother’s fatal heart attack, and Qin Siyang agreed to help him get revenge.
• Qin Siyang left Lü Boming a Storage Box containing defensive items and transferred one gold coin for his recovery.
• Lü Boming and his wife discussed Qin Siyang’s generosity, and Lü Boming praised Kav’s judgment in devoting himself to Qin Siyang.

After recovering from his injuries, Lü Boming insisted on returning to work by taking charge of planting black sweet potatoes. Qin Siyang left the Shao Family to negotiate compensation for the massacre’s victims, but after they offered too little and tried to bargain, he told them to keep their money and prepare their coffins.

• Lü Boming got out of bed and insisted on leaving the hospital to help plant black sweet potatoes, despite his wife’s objections.
• Qin Siyang discussed black sweet potato cultivation with Kav, then left State No. 12 and assigned Kav to handle the Shao Family’s compensation.
• The Shao Family offered five silver coins per victim’s family, and Kav rejected the proposal as inadequate.
• The Shao Family raised its offer to ten silver coins per victim’s family but demanded a face-to-face meeting with Qin Siyang.
• After Kav reported their response, Qin Siyang said the Shao Family should save its money and choose sturdy coffins for themselves.

Qin Siyang forced the Shao Family to agree to compensation for the bombing victims and destroyed Feed Factories, then helped Lü Boming pursue revenge against Fang Mo. After Qin Siyang sent Lü Boming evidence of Fang Mo’s crimes, Fang Mo turned himself in.

• Kav relayed Qin Siyang’s threat to the Shao Family, prompting them to raise death benefits to thirty silver coins per victim.
• Qin Siyang demanded compensation for the Feed Factories, and the Shao Family agreed to pay two gold coins for each one.
• Qin Siyang asked Sun Linshou for evidence against Fang Mo and received files documenting offenses ranging from failing to report a wanted criminal to aiding the World-Destroying Church and the Reincarnation Church.
• Qin Siyang sent the evidence to Lü Boming and left him to choose how to act, and Lü Boming vowed to confront Fang Mo.
• That afternoon, Fang Mo went to the Judicial Bureau to turn himself in.

After Fang Mo confessed to helping a wanted criminal, he lost his post and arranged a transfer to State No. 12. Meanwhile, Qin Siyang visited Quan Taibin and learned that Quan had found a way to influence certain Small Gods.

• Fang Mo accepted an administrative penalty and arranged to transfer to State No. 12 to work under Lü Boming.
• Fang Mo and his family left Area No. 42 for State No. 12.
• Qin Siyang drove to Quan Taibin's mobile house and found many Small Gods from the Sandworm Servants gathered nearby.
• Quan Taibin explained that he had fed the Small Gods a Sequence Potion mixed with his blood, making them willing to stay near him without attacking.
• Quan Taibin said influencing stronger Gods would require a Large God's disc carapace and blood from a Sequence Ability User far stronger than the target.

Qin Siyang declined to pressure Quan Taibin to return to the Safe Zone and supplied him with research materials before returning to State No. 14. As Black Sweet Potatoes flourished under the Ripening Pharmaceuticals, Qin Siyang’s reputation grew among the poor, and recruitment for his Qin Character Special Brigade was announced.

• Qin Siyang asked Quan Taibin about how high-tier artifacts grew, then offered to escort him back to the Safe Zone, but Quan Taibin chose to keep working alone.
• Qin Siyang gave Quan Taibin a Storage Box of ores, including yellow-silver star ore, which excited Quan Taibin and strengthened his resolve to stay.
• Qin Siyang returned to State No. 14 and later learned from Lü Boming that the Ripening Pharmaceuticals had produced large Black Sweet Potatoes with the same composition as before.
• People in State No. 14 praised Qin Siyang as Little King Qin for continuing food distributions and caring for the poor.
• A staff member announced that Qin Siyang’s Qin Character Special Brigade would begin recruiting in State No. 14 in two days.

Qin Siyang appointed the Three Brothers of the Wang Family and She Haqiang to lead four regiments and oversee recruitment. At Safe Zone 114514, Wang Defa began recruiting under the Qin Character Special Brigade banner, and the crowd recognized him as a former internet cafe owner transformed by Little King Qin.

• Qin Siyang assigned the Three Brothers of the Wang Family to the Qin Character Special Brigade and She Haqiang to manage a regiment in the Chu Character Legion, instructing all recruits to train together.
• Qin Siyang gave the four men half a month to prepare and select their soldiers.
• A huge crowd gathered at the Exit of Safe Zone 114514 before recruitment began, drawn by the promise of a chance to survive and serve.
• Wang Defa arrived to recruit beneath the Qin Character Special Brigade flag and collapsed an abandoned building to stop the crowd from surging.
• People from the 14121 Region recognized Wang Defa as the former internet cafe owner A Fa and were stunned by his rise, crediting Little King Qin.

Wang Defa screened volunteers for the Qin Character Special Brigade and sent the selected recruits to Warehouse Three, while Yao Chengfu tried and failed to pressure He Kui into stopping Qin Siyang's recruitment. The chapter ended with He Kui standing by his refusal and Cui Zhonghua declining to intervene.

• Wang Defa used a Lie Detector to screen Liu Mao and selected only a few dozen volunteers, rejecting nearly half of those he interviewed.
• Wang Defa ordered the selected recruits to gather at Warehouse Three and assured one man that Qin Siyang had arranged for them to see their families soon.
• Yao Chengfu, a commissioner from the Information Security Department, accused Qin Siyang of illegally recruiting people and demanded that He Kui stop him.
• He Kui rejected Yao Chengfu's demand and insisted that official business had to follow the rules.
• Cui Zhonghua refused to persuade He Kui, saying that even the Governor could not change his mind.

He Kui and Cui Zhonghua defied Information Security Department Commissioner Yao Chengfu and reported his attempt to stop Qin Siyang’s work to Governor Jonathan. Jonathan suspected the department was targeting Qin Siyang’s grain distribution rather than his soldier recruitment.

• He Kui refused Yao Chengfu’s demand to obstruct Qin Siyang and ordered Cui Zhonghua to report the commissioner’s visit and threats to Governor Jonathan.
• Cui Zhonghua agreed to draft the report, despite fearing the consequences of standing with He Kui.
• He Kui explained that he hoped the report would embolden other district chiefs to resist the Information Security Department’s demands.
• Jonathan told Qin Siyang that He Kui and Cui Zhonghua were the third district government to report the department’s interference.
• Jonathan said he believed the Information Security Department was trying to stop Qin Siyang from distributing grain, not recruiting soldiers.

Qin Siyang learned from Jonathan that the United Government, rather than Secretary-General Gu, was blocking his grain distribution, and gained a clearer view of the political forces behind the decision. He then appointed Jonathan’s son Edward as a staff officer in the Qin Character Special Brigade, giving him a chance to prove himself.

• Jonathan explained that Secretary-General Gu could not fully represent the United Government and that Gu’s reputation and authority helped keep the factions in the Safe Zone united.
• Qin Siyang reconsidered his view of Gu and thanked Jonathan for helping him understand the United Government’s motives.
• Qin Siyang told Jonathan that Edward had secretly managed food shipments from State No. 12 to State No. 14 and had handled the work well.
• Qin Siyang offered Edward a staff officer position in the Qin Character Special Brigade and promised to support his training.
• Jonathan accepted the offer and agreed to let Edward try the position.

Qin Siyang reviewed the recruitment of eight thousand soldier candidates and rewarded She Haqiang for his work. As the Zhao Family prepared to screen the candidates, Wang Defa warned that lower-ranking members of the family might cause trouble and damage relations with the Qin Family.

• Jonathan ordered every district to support Qin Siyang's free food distribution, and the Information Security Department's people left State No. 14.
• Wang Defa reported that eight thousand candidates had passed the preliminary recruitment screening and were waiting for Qin Siyang's inspection.
• Wang Defa described the spies and infiltrators his team had uncovered, while She Haqiang reported defeating a Sequence Ability User who severed his arm.
• Qin Siyang gave She Haqiang a cloak suited to his [Shadow] Sequence and warned the group to stay alert to further schemes.
• Wang Defa cautioned Qin Siyang that lower-ranking Zhao Family members might disrupt the military formation and damage relations between the Qin and Zhao Families.

Qin Siyang learned that Zhao Family members were covertly pushing relatives and associates into his brigade, while fearing they could obstruct recruitment and grain distribution. As Zhao Longju screened candidates, he discovered his own relative Zhao Longxing had secretly recommended Li Jie and confronted the Zhao Family members involved.

• Wang Defa told Qin Siyang that Zhao Family members were recommending outsiders for battalion commander positions and might sabotage recruitment or grain distribution if rejected.
• Qin Siyang ordered the four men to prioritize unity in the brigade and decided to wait for Zhao Longju's screening results.
• Zhao Longju questioned Li Jie and recognized that the young man was connected to Zhao Longxing.
• Zhao Longxing admitted that Li Jie was his nephew, and Zhao Longju kicked him into a wall for violating his order against planting people in Qin Siyang's troops.
• The other Zhao Family members admitted they had also acted behind Zhao Longju's back, and he angrily rebuked them.

Zhao Longju discovered that his relatives had exploited their work with Qin Siyang’s brigade to place family members in it, and he furiously forced them to admit their wrongdoing. Two days later, he brought them to apologize to Qin Siyang, who pulled Zhao Longju up and addressed him as an elder.

• Zhao Longye questioned Zhao Longju’s harsh treatment of their relatives, and Zhao Longju explained that he had already killed many people bearing the Zhao name.
• Zhao Longju ordered everyone who had planted relatives in Qin Siyang’s army to bring them forward and prepare to apologize to Qin Siyang.
• When one Zhao relative claimed blood ties should protect them, Zhao Longju blasted his head apart.
• Two days later, Zhao Longju brought the offending relatives to a private meeting with Qin Siyang and knelt with them to apologize.
• Qin Siyang pulled Zhao Longju to his feet and called him Fourth Uncle Zhao, reassuring him that the others’ lives might be spared.

Qin Siyang settled the trouble caused by Zhao Longju’s men, learned that Reincarnation Church infiltrators had entered the Qin Character Special Brigade, and gave Zhao Longju crimson crystal as thanks. He then went to meet the more than eight thousand reserve soldiers, who watched him arrive in awe.

• Qin Siyang forgave Zhao Longju’s men for causing trouble, and Zhao Longju ordered them to thank him.
• Zhao Longju told Qin Siyang that he had found three Reincarnation Church [Deceiver] Sequence Ability Users among the reserves, but their Senior Steward had escaped.
• Zhao Longju said he could not reliably detect any World-Destroying Church infiltrators, so Qin Siyang decided to postpone that screening.
• Qin Siyang persuaded Zhao Longju to accept a Storage Box of crimson crystal and to call him Xiao Qin instead of Mr. Qin.
• Qin Siyang went with Chu Baxing and Huo Dangkou to meet the reserve soldiers gathered in the warehouse.
• More than eight thousand reserve soldiers saw Qin Siyang arrive and whispered in admiration at how young he was.

Qin Siyang addressed the more than eight thousand recruits gathered for the Qin Character Special Brigade and Chu Character Legion’s Independent Regiment, presenting their leaders as his close allies and announcing that half would be eliminated during training. He explained that he chose the recruits because he understood their hardship and wanted to give them the chance to awaken sequence abilities.

• Qin Siyang entered the warehouse with Chu Baxing supporting the drooling Huo Dangkou, and the recruits’ doubts about his leadership quickly faded.
• Qin Siyang introduced Huo Dangkou and Chu Baxing as close companions and declared that the two units would eat, live, and train together without distinction.
• Qin Siyang congratulated the recruits on passing the preliminary screening and warned that half of them would be eliminated during future selection at Area No. 4444.
• Qin Siyang explained that he chose the area and the recruits because he wanted people struggling on the edge of survival to have a chance.
• Qin Siyang told the recruits that awakening a sequence ability had changed his own prospects and promised to give them the same opportunity.

Qin Siyang offered State No. 14’s desperate residents a chance to train in Area No. 4444, where they could awaken sequence abilities and earn better lives through military service. He laid out the terms for joining the Qin Character Brigade, and residents began weighing the offer.

• Qin Siyang announced that residents could go to Area No. 4444, where awakening a sequence ability was possible.
• Wang Defa quieted the crowd as Qin Siyang promised to keep providing food for their families while they trained.
• Qin Siyang urged the residents to train hard, pass selection, and earn a better life for their families as soldiers in the Qin Character Brigade.
• Qin Siyang explained that failed candidates could stay for guaranteed food and clothing or leave after repaying five times the value of the resources they had used if they had awakened an ability.
• Qin Siyang presented agreements for willing residents to sign, while people in the crowd debated the repayment terms and a young man defended them.

After the recruits agreed to repay the resources invested in their training, Qin Siyang brought more than eight thousand people to the military camp in Area No. 4444. Their comfortable accommodations and abundant meal transformed their uncertainty into fierce loyalty to him and the Qin Character Brigade.

• A young man defended Qin Siyang's investment in the recruits, signed the agreement, and inspired others to volunteer; everyone present signed up for training and selection.
• The Zhao Merchants' Association transported the recruits to the military camp in more than a hundred buses.
• Qin Siyang arrived at the camp with Chu Baxing, Huo Dangkou, Edward, and others, and saw that it could house the new recruits.
• The recruits entered the camp and were astonished by its size, sturdy walls, and vast training grounds.
• The recruits discovered clean beds, private bathrooms, and hot water in their dormitories.
• The dining hall served chicken and hazel mushroom stew, and the recruits resolved to stay loyal to Qin Siyang and the Qin Character Brigade.

Qin Siyang’s recruits began studying camp regulations and endured strict drills before learning they would face gods outside the Safe Zone in two weeks. As Qin Siyang rested in Southern Glory, students across the Safe Zone awaited the Warren Merchants’ Association’s updated Wolf Cards.

• Qin Siyang introduced Edward Strauss as chief of staff, and Edward announced a closed-book regulations exam with dismissal for anyone who failed.
• Wang Defa, Wang Deyou, Wang Dezhong, and She Haqiang drilled the recruits in discipline, formations, and basic combat skills.
• Wang Defa told the recruits they would march outside the Safe Zone in two weeks to face gods, and none chose to leave camp.
• Qin Siyang returned to Southern Glory while Edward stayed behind to live and work with the reserve soldiers.
• Qin Siyang rested ahead of the Vine Heart Trade Fair as students followed news of the Warren Merchants’ Association’s updated Wolf Cards.