Arc 17Chapters 401–425

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Chapters 401–425 Vol. 5 Read

Ch. 401Replacement

Wang Yu arranged for Cindy to take over the Blood Hand gang while keeping a low profile, and approved a fabricated identity for himself in Pengjie City. After Li Xiaodao agreed to pose as Wang Yu at the villa, Wang Yu went out into the garden.

  • Wang Yu ordered Cindy to take control of the Blood Hand without expanding the gang's influence and gave him a miniature skeleton for protection.
  • Li Xiaodao told Wang Yu that the intelligence agency had prepared Dyson, a fabricated identity, and Wang Yu agreed to use it.
  • Wang Yu asked for Dyson's nominal father, Mai Lun, to leave Pengjie City, and Li Xiaodao explained that the agency had already planned it.
  • Li Xiaodao offered to stay at the villa disguised as Wang Yu, and Wang Yu gave him a miniature skeleton for protection.
  • After Li Xiaodao left, Wang Yu looked toward the garden, rose, and headed to a particular spot there.

Ch. 402The Ring

Wang Yu opened the Bone Box with the Water Refining Art and discovered a ring set with a mysterious black crystal. When the crystal absorbed his yin energy, he threw the ring away and retreated, leaving the White Bone Fiend holding it.

  • Wang Yu used the Water Refining Art to wear down the Bone Box until it became a thin shell.
  • Wang Yu summoned the White Bone Fiend, which shattered the shell and revealed a silver ring with a black crystal.
  • Wang Yu sensed that the crystal held energy close to a Golden Core strike and could not be penetrated by his divine sense.
  • Wang Yu read the engraving, "My beloved, Jenny," and tested the crystal with a wisp of yin energy.
  • The crystal sucked in the yin energy, so Wang Yu flung the ring away and retreated while the White Bone Fiend trapped it between its palms.

Ch. 403Spell-Absorbing Crystal Stone

Wang Yu discovered that the ring’s black crystal stone absorbed spells and Yin Spirit, then returned the energy as dharma power, though with a small loss. Several days later, disguised as Mr. Sai, he settled into a safe house in Pengjie City under the identity Dyson and watched the nearby Star River building.

  • Wang Yu tested the ring with spells and Yin Spirit and saw the black crystal stone absorb them.
  • Wang Yu found that the stone returned absorbed energy to him as dharma power, but returned slightly less than the Yin energy he had supplied.
  • Wang Yu stored the ring in a wooden box so he could test whether it preserved dharma power over time.
  • Several days later, Wang Yu met Li Xiaodao at a house in Pengjie City, where Li gave him a secure phone and told him to use the identity Dyson.
  • After Li Xiaodao left, Wang Yu looked toward the nearby building marked Star River.

Ch. 404Thorn Beasts

Wang Yu defeated the Thorn Beasts in the full-fledged Mech Pilot assessment and earned the right to become a full-fledged Mech Pilot. He wondered whether the Nebula Beasts were the catastrophe that would threaten Blue Star in the future.

  • A squad of trainee Mech Pilots emerged from the assessment instance battered, and the players realized one member was still missing.
  • Wang Yu fought the Thorn Beasts alone, cutting them apart and stopping their spikes with an invisible force.
  • The remaining Thorn Beasts fled, but Wang Yu shot them down with his Mecha’s shoulder gun.
  • The assessment system announced that Wang Yu had passed and invited him to complete his promotion procedures at the base hall.
  • Wang Yu left his Mecha and wondered whether the Nebula Beasts were the great catastrophe awaiting Blue Star.

Ch. 405Testing

After Wang Yu defeated the remaining Thorn Beasts, the assessment system conscripted him as an official Mech Pilot and tested his Star Thought Power. He passed the first three layers but struggled against a fourth-layer test that materialized mental power.

  • Wang Yu used the Skywing Standard Type mecha to kill the remaining Thorn Beasts after the other examinees had failed.
  • The system conscripted Wang Yu into the Special Reserve and assigned him to the Star-Class Tactical Mecha Squad.
  • Wang Yu was transported to a glass room over the ocean, where an elderly man explained the requirements for cultivating Star Thought Power beyond its third layer.
  • The elderly man tested Wang Yu and confirmed that he passed the first, second, and third layers.
  • The elderly man began the fourth-layer test by forming a giant mental-power palm, which shattered Wang Yu's shield and left him staggering.

Ch. 406Fall of the Goddess

Wang Yu passed the official Mech Pilot assessment and earned four-star Thought Power Adept status, gaining access to higher-level cultivation methods. After leaving the Game Pod, he arranged to visit the Slaughterhouse and watched players struggle through the Fall of the Goddess instance.

  • A six-star Thought Power Master verified Wang Yu’s identity, confirmed his Blue Star Human Race status, and granted him four-star senior Thought Power Adept status and cultivation methods for levels four through six.
  • Wang Yu woke from the assessment scenario in the Star River Café, reflecting on his new credentials and the terrifying strength of the white-robed old man.
  • Ellie called Wang Yu about his planned visit to the Slaughterhouse, and he asked her to pick him up at the café.
  • Wang Yu watched a replay of the Fall of the Goddess instance, where thousands of Mech Pilots struggled to protect the Statue of Liberty from waves of Nebula Beasts.
  • Café patrons debated the instance’s difficulty, its twenty-thousand-player limit, and whether official Mech Pilots could clear it.

Ch. 407The Slaughterhouse

Wang Yu visited Ellie’s slaughterhouse and learned about its operations while investigating the strange reaction of the Silver Talisman in his divine sense sea. After using the Qi-Observing Spell, he saw something that jolted him, leaving the nature of the discovery unclear.

  • Wang Yu watched footage of the Great Angel mecha and heard people discuss Prince Aisa and Star-Rank Mech Pilots.
  • Ellie drove Wang Yu to the slaughterhouse, where she and a bearded man showed him the factory and its production line.
  • Wang Yu felt a wave of cold inside the slaughterhouse as the Silver Talisman began trembling in his divine sense sea.
  • Wang Yu suppressed the talisman’s reaction, activated the Qi-Observing Spell, and jolted at what he saw.

Ch. 408Living Soul Iron

Wang Yu infiltrated the Slaughterhouse and removed the tips of two electric stunners, then discovered that one contained ten-thousand-soul-grade living soul iron. He left the Bone Banner to devour part of its spirit while keeping the iron for himself.

  • Wang Yu used Dyson's guise to enter the Slaughterhouse and broke off the tips of the two stunners with the Bone Banner.
  • The factory alarm sounded, and Wang Yu escaped underground as the gatekeeper discovered the damage and called for help.
  • Wang Yu told Ellie to repair the production line and increase security, then examined the Bone Banner and a stunner tip at home.
  • Wang Yu activated the black rod and saw blood-red pig phantoms emerge and devour one another.
  • Wang Yu identified the rod as ten-thousand-soul-grade living soul iron, let the Bone Banner consume some phantoms, and stopped the rest from being drawn into it.

Ch. 409Yin Spirits and Living Souls

Wang Yu examined how yin souls, living souls, and living soul iron differed, then investigated the pig spirits and yin spirits fighting inside his Yin Soul Banner. He suspected the electric stunner had become ten-thousand-soul living soul iron through repeated slaughterhouse killings and considered investigating other slaughterhouses.

  • Wang Yu reviewed the differences between Yin Soul Banners, Living Soul Banners, and Blood Soul Banners, along with how living soul iron was made and graded.
  • Wang Yu wondered why he had only detected living souls at the slaughterhouse and examined the black electric stunner, which had turned dark after he activated it with dharma power.
  • Wang Yu sent divine thought into his Yin Soul Banner and saw its yin spirits fighting the blood-colored pig phantoms emerging from the second piece of living soul iron.
  • Wang Yu realized the living soul iron had triggered mutual devouring inside the banner ahead of schedule, though he believed he could keep the low-tier ghost creatures under control.
  • Wang Yu considered visiting more slaughterhouses to learn how the stunner had become living soul iron and whether other stunners could supply ghost creatures for his banner.

Ch. 410Back Again

Wang Yu confirmed that the slaughter line’s electric stunners could absorb some of the pigs’ living souls, though only a small fraction survived the current and fused with the equipment. He began considering ways to obtain more living soul iron and asked Ellie about hospitals and cemeteries in Pengjie City.

  • Wang Yu sealed the black rod, put away the living soul iron and Bone Banner, and went to sleep before visiting the Slaughterhouse the next day.
  • Ellie told Wang Yu that the production line had been repaired, the backup electric stunners installed, and the police had done little to investigate the previous night’s incident.
  • Wang Yu watched the slaughter line and saw some pigs’ living souls withstand the electric current and enter the new stunners, while most were destroyed.
  • Wang Yu learned that the factory slaughtered over a hundred thousand pigs each year and that replaced stunner heads were discarded as scrap metal.
  • Wang Yu asked Ellie which hospital had the most deaths and where Pengjie City’s largest cemetery was, leaving her puzzled.

Ch. 411Yin Fiend Land

Wang Yu searched Pengjie City for places where living souls might form and secretly stole Electric Stunner components containing living soul iron from its slaughterhouses. After finding no human living souls at hospitals or cemeteries, he uncovered a sinister spirit inscription diagram spanning much of the city and identified it as a Yin Fiend Land.

  • Wang Yu sent Li Xiaodao, disguised as Mr. Sai, to gather slaughterhouse addresses and arrange access to a scrap-metal warehouse.
  • Wang Yu secretly stole components from slaughterhouses across Pengjie City over a fortnight, triggering a series of mysterious thefts that the police later blamed on scapegoats.
  • Wang Yu examined thirty-three pieces of living soul iron and found that one from a large chicken-and-duck slaughterhouse seemed stronger than the Ten-Thousand-Soul grade.
  • Wang Yu searched hospitals and cemeteries for human living souls but found no signs of them.
  • Wang Yu drew a sinister spirit inscription diagram across a satellite map of Pengjie City and recognized the area as a Yin Fiend Land.

Ch. 412Xiyuan

Wang Yu investigated the baleful yin terrain around Pengjie City and confirmed that chickens and ducks could produce living souls only when they died there. He then entered Xiyuan Ecological Recycling Company's oldest scrap warehouse to search for living soul iron, while Li Xiaodao spoke with the warehouse manager outside.

  • Wang Yu noticed that Pengjie City lay at the center of a natural baleful yin terrain and suspected it was connected to the city's living soul iron.
  • Wang Yu tested chickens and ducks outside the city and confirmed that they produced no living souls after leaving the baleful yin terrain.
  • Li Xiaodao arranged for Wang Yu to enter Xiyuan Ecological Recycling Company's scrap warehouse and search for metal.
  • Wang Yu entered the warehouse, destroyed its nearby cameras, and sent out Divine Thought to search the scrap for living soul iron.
  • The warehouse manager questioned Li Xiaodao about why they were searching the junkyard, then asked what Xiyuan Company used to do.

Ch. 413A shadow

Wang Yu and Li Xiaodao escaped an ambush by Xiyuan Company, whose fat old manager tried to seize the treasure they had found. After they covered up the fight and drove away, a hidden watcher identified Wang Yu as a dangerous outsider and supernatural ability user.

  • The fat old man revealed that Xiyuan Company had ties to the Val Gang and surrounded Li Xiaodao with armed men, intending to rob him.
  • Li Xiaodao fought the attackers while the fat old man drew a pistol, but Wang Yu appeared and pulled the weapon from his hand.
  • The fat old man tried to flee, and Li Xiaodao killed him before chasing the remaining black-clad men into the darkness.
  • Wang Yu burned the corpses and cleared the fight's traces, then collected the abandoned weapons as Li Xiaodao returned and promised to handle the aftermath.
  • Wang Yu and Li Xiaodao drove away, while a hidden figure watched and muttered that Wang Yu was a dangerous outsider and supernatural ability user.

Ch. 414First meeting with Kelly

Wang Yu tested how Yin Spirits and Yin Ghosts fought against the blood-red pig phantoms in the Yin Soul Banner, then confirmed that a mysterious ring could preserve dharma power. After contacting White Wolf, he met White Wolf’s employer, Kelly, who asked whether he had opened the Magic Box.

  • Wang Yu stopped new Yin Spirits from forming and watched three Yin Ghosts lead the remaining spirits against the giant blood-red pig phantoms.
  • Wang Yu added two pieces of living soul iron to the Bone Banner and tested the ring’s ability to preserve yin-aspected dharma power.
  • Wang Yu contacted White Wolf and sent him an address, asking to meet his employer after opening the box.
  • Several days later, White Wolf brought Kelly to meet Wang Yu in a hotel room near Pengjie City.
  • Kelly explained her Huaguo ancestry and dual citizenship, then asked Wang Yu whether he had opened the Magic Box.

Ch. 415The Demon Ring and the Deal

Wang Yu met Kelly to learn about the Demon Ring and the black crystal set into it. After Kelly tried to absorb the ring’s energy, Wang Yu reclaimed it and challenged her demand to trade it for information.

  • Wang Yu showed Kelly the ring from the Magic Box, and White Wolf identified its black crystal as demon stone.
  • Kelly put on the ring and began absorbing its energy, but Wang Yu used his Metal-Dowsing Art to pull it from her finger.
  • Kelly stopped the ring with her telekinetic power, but Wang Yu overpowered her and took it back.
  • Wang Yu confronted Kelly about absorbing the ring’s energy and said he wanted to learn about the ring and the crystal’s origin.
  • Kelly demanded the ring in exchange for the information, and Wang Yu warned that he could take it by force.

Ch. 416Ye Xi

Wang Yu subdued Kelly and White Wolf, then fought the Metal Puppet she summoned until a black-haired youth intervened. The youth identified himself as Ye Xi, a Kree Empire envoy, and revealed that Wang Yu was a Four-Star Thought Power Adept.

  • Wang Yu used his star thought power to pin Kelly and White Wolf in their chairs and demanded that Kelly tell him what she knew.
  • Kelly summoned the Black Warrior, a Metal Puppet that resisted Wang Yu's mental pressure and attacked him.
  • Wang Yu blocked the puppet's strike with a shield and sent his White Bone Fiend to fight it.
  • Kelly ordered the Black Warrior into overheat mode, but an unfamiliar male voice commanded it to stop and cool down.
  • Ye Xi appeared, freed Kelly from Wang Yu's pressure, and scolded her for taking the Black Warrior out without permission.
  • Ye Xi identified Wang Yu as a Four-Star Thought Power Adept, introduced himself as a Kree Empire baron and fleet envoy, and prompted Wang Yu to realize he was an alien.

Ch. 417Puppet

Wang Yu learned that the Kree People had come to Blue Star at its leader’s invitation and traded Kelly’s silver ring for a large Demon Stone after asking about its magic power. The black-haired youth and Kelly left, while Wang Yu realized the potbellied man had been a puppet.

  • The black-haired youth explained that the Kree People shared a source of life with Blue Star natives and had come at Blue Star’s leader’s invitation, but refused to reveal more.
  • The black-haired youth stored the Black Metal Puppet in his ring and offered Wang Yu a large Demon Stone in exchange for Kelly’s lost silver ring.
  • Wang Yu inspected the Demon Stone and asked how its magic power could be drained and what magic power pollution was.
  • The black-haired youth explained that Demon Stones contained magic power and described ways to empty them, then Wang Yu handed over the silver ring.
  • The black-haired youth left with Kelly and said he would obscure nearby people’s memories, prompting Wang Yu to realize the potbellied man was Kelly’s puppet.

Ch. 418Enemy of the Empire

Wang Yu left after discovering that White Wolf was a flesh-and-blood puppet whose memories and perceptions had been manipulated. Aboard their flying craft, Ye Xi and Kelly discussed Blue Star’s unusual Thought Power Adept and their fleet’s mission to investigate the possible convergence of worlds and the empire’s enemy.

  • Wang Yu examined White Wolf and found strange threads of light in his skull and a thin disc in his heart, while White Wolf showed no awareness that he was a puppet.
  • Wang Yu left the private room after telling White Wolf that Kelly had departed and wanted him to wrap things up.
  • Kelly asked Ye Xi how a young Blue Star native could have reached four-star Telekinetic Power, and Ye Xi explained how Star Thought Power related to the Kree People’s Psychic Secret Art.
  • Kelly and Ye Xi reviewed their missions to investigate whether Blue Star would become a Space-Time Chaos Zone and whether the empire’s enemy would appear there.
  • Ye Xi told Kelly to avoid drawing attention while observing Blue Star and to report immediately if the empire’s enemies appeared in the star domain.

Ch. 419Undercurrents Stirred

The Seventeenth Fleet weighed how much to trust the time-travelers’ account while investigating Blue Star’s Superbrains and the Huaguo system named Taiyuan. Meanwhile, foreign agents searched Pengjie City for No. 1, and Wang Yu returned there disguised as Dyson, where he unexpectedly met Li Xiaodao and Ouyang Jia.

  • The black-haired youth warned Kelly that the future described by the God-Defiers had changed and ordered her to investigate the Superbrain Taiyuan.
  • Three divers left a submarine near Xierde while it surfaced offshore and then submerged again.
  • A Gang’s agents in Pengjie City interrogated Night Demon, identified Mr. Sai as a key suspect for No. 1, and were ordered to locate him within three days.
  • Two days later, Wang Yu returned to Pengjie City as Dyson and registered for a VIP Game Pod at a Star River Café.
  • Wang Yu met Li Xiaodao and Ouyang Jia on the stairs and casually greeted Li Xiaodao before he could call him Mr. Sai.

Ch. 420Personal and Custom Mecha

Wang Yu entered Star River to earn merit points and obtain his first personal custom Mecha, while noticing Li Xiaodao’s growing familiarity with Ouyang Jia. He reached the Bounty Board and considered how standard and custom Mecha differed, but had not yet begun earning points or commissioning one.

  • Wang Yu passed Li Xiaodao and Ouyang Jia, then overheard Li downplay their acquaintance and invite her to a restaurant.
  • Wang Yu entered a private VIP room at the Star River Café, checked for surveillance, and logged into the game.
  • Wang Yu went to the Bounty Board intending to grind instances and earn merit points for a personal Mecha.
  • Wang Yu reflected that he had only a base-owned Earth Dragon Type I Mecha despite being a full-fledged Mech Pilot.
  • Wang Yu considered the differences between standard Mecha, modified custom models, and entirely independent custom designs.

Ch. 421Blockade

Wang Yu accepted the Moon Canyon Blockade bounty and entered the instance, where a massive Nebula Beast horde overwhelmed the defending Mecha. He emerged from a spacecraft among the players sent to confront the beasts, piloting an Earth Dragon Type I Mecha.

  • Wang Yu considered how mastering Star River’s Mecha and Nebula Beasts could prepare him for future military service and catastrophe.
  • Wang Yu accepted the Moon Canyon Blockade bounty at the counter and headed for the Mecha hangar.
  • Players crowded around Wang Yu to recruit him, but he concealed his face and left without accepting their offers.
  • In the Moon Grand Canyon Blockade, electric-tailed Nebula Beasts broke through the human Mecha defense line.
  • A kilometer-long spacecraft fired its main cannon through the horde, then released colorful player Mecha as the surviving beasts charged toward it.
  • Wang Yu flew out among the players in an Earth Dragon Type I Mecha.

Ch. 422Pheasant Beasts

Wang Yu piloted a basic Earth Dragon Type I into the Nebula Beast horde and fought with astonishing skill despite the mecha’s limitations. He learned about the powerful Pheasant Beast leader as he cut through the flock, drawing shocked praise from nearby Mech Pilots.

  • Wang Yu ignored complaints from organized players and charged alone toward the Nebula Beasts in his Earth Dragon Type I.
  • Players, NPC mecha, spacecraft guns, and drones clashed with the horde as airborne beasts attacked the rear lines and the spacecraft.
  • Wang Yu killed attacking Pheasant Beasts with his golden blade and considered whether he could take on the flock’s powerful leader.
  • Wang Yu recognized that the Earth Dragon Type I performed worse than his assessment mecha but relied on his telekinetic perception to defeat every Pheasant Beast that approached.
  • Nearby Mech Pilots saw Wang Yu’s performance and praised him as an expert.

Ch. 423The Leader

Wang Yu fought through the Pheasant Beasts in his Earth Dragon Type I Mecha as the Pheasant Beast Leader appeared early and unleashed devastating attacks. After the Leader focused its assault on Wang Yu, he remained standing at the center of a vast crater.

  • Wang Yu used his Telekinetic Power to push his Earth Dragon Type I Mecha beyond its normal limits and cut down the Pheasant Beasts.
  • The Pheasant Beast Leader appeared early and used a shrill mental shockwave to knock Mecha and drones from the sky.
  • Players attacked the Leader, but its Force-Field Barrier deflected their bullets and beams.
  • The Leader shattered its barrier and sent a devastating rain of light down toward Wang Yu, destroying Mecha and beasts across the battlefield.
  • The Leader followed with more sonic attacks aimed at Wang Yu's position, but after the dust cleared, Wang Yu's black Mecha stood unharmed at the center of a huge crater.

Ch. 424Crisis

Wang Yu used Cultivation World spells through the black Mecha to kill the golden Pheasant Beast leader, making the mysterious pilot a sensation across Star River. Helena arrived in Pengjie City, ordered a search for No. 1, and raced to find him before the War God Group arrived.

  • Wang Yu cast Golden Needle Technique from the black Mecha, stopping the golden Pheasant Beast leader's attack and pinning it with metal spikes.
  • Wang Yu's golden needles killed the trapped Pheasant Beast leader, while the Flame Veil shielded the Mecha.
  • Star River players spread a video of the mysterious black Mecha slaying the Pheasant Beast leader and debated the pilot's identity.
  • Helena watched the video and ordered her team to search the game for No. 1, whose identity they believed was likely.
  • Helena learned the final suspect was in Pengjie City's southern district and ordered her team to find him before the War God Group arrived.

Ch. 425Betrayal

Li Xiaodao discovered that a bounty had exposed Mr. Sai’s identity and warned Wang Yu to flee Pengjie City. Wang Yu uncovered Cindy’s betrayal through a White Bone Fiend, while Ouyang Jia’s gang attacked the villa and Director York learned the gunfight had begun.

  • Cindy told Li Xiaodao that the Blood Hand Gang had received a portrait of Mr. Sai and was investigating the villa, then left to stall them.
  • Li Xiaodao watched Cindy leave on the surveillance cameras, warned Wang Yu to go west of Karlo, and prepared weapons at the villa.
  • Ouyang Jia arrived at the villa with armed gang members as Li Xiaodao continued checking his guns.
  • Wang Yu used a White Bone Fiend to escape its box and safe, then overheard Cindy reveal that he had deliberately alerted Li Xiaodao to lure Mr. Sai into a trap with Director York.
  • Director York said British Commonwealth forces were coming to capture Mr. Sai, but then received word that another gang had attacked the villa and opened fire.
Arc 17 of 25