Chapter Summaries

Huang Wei offered imprisoned Ren Ye a dangerous chance to leave prison and serve a greater cause, but Ren Ye hesitated because his family was waiting for him. As Huang Wei departed, he saluted Ren Ye and called him Officer Ren, stirring the feelings Ren Ye had buried since his conviction.

• Huang Wei introduced himself as a member of a special unit and told Ren Ye stories about reincarnation and a mysterious Antarctic mist doorway.
• Huang Wei said strange phenomena were occurring and asked Ren Ye to accept a dangerous opportunity that might cost him his life.
• Ren Ye declined to commit, explaining that his father and sister had visited him every month and were waiting for him to return home.
• As Ren Ye prepared to return to his cellblock, Huang Wei saluted him, called him Officer Ren, and said the two men Ren Ye had killed deserved to die.

Huang Wei brought Ren Ye out of prison and explained that Star Gates were supernatural spaces where players could earn powerful inheritances. After Ren Ye opened a gate linked to a deadly chain mission, a voice recited his birth date and called him by name.

• Huang Wei arranged Ren Ye's release from prison without completing the usual paperwork and brought him to the special department with Niannian.
• Huang Wei revealed his Star Envoy abilities and explained the Star Gates, their missions, and the ordered and unordered inheritance systems.
• Huang Wei told Ren Ye that four players had entered a rare Star Gate, but only one returned, already dead and carrying a token.
• Ren Ye picked up the returned player's brush, traced its inscription, and opened a Startrace Gate in the office.
• The gate recited Ren Ye's birth date and called him to enter, while Huang Wei said that was why they had invited him.

After the Startrace Gate bound itself to Ren Ye and gave him six hours before he was forced to enter, he spent the day preparing and saying goodbye to people from his old life. As the countdown reached ten minutes, Ren Ye sat with Huang Wei, ready to face the gate.

• Ren Ye learned that the Startrace Gate had chosen him and would pull him in when its six-hour countdown ended; Huang Wei confirmed that four previous players had died.
• Ren Ye collected money from Huang Wei and negotiated for support for his father and sister, including healthcare, housing, education, and work.
• Ren Ye visited Duoduo, the young daughter of his deceased colleague, gave her money and a letter for her mother, and reminded her not to forget her father.
• Huang Wei arranged to seek a place for Duoduo at No. 2 Primary School after understanding why Ren Ye had brought him to her.
• Ren Ye visited familiar places and important people but avoided seeing his father and sister, then spent the evening with Huang Wei as the countdown reached ten minutes.

Ren Ye entered the Star Gate and awoke in the Great Qian Dynasty as Zhu Zigui, the last royal prince known as Prince Huai. After inheriting Zhu Zigui’s memories, he realized that Prince Huai’s uncle had been searching for a Heavenly Pardon-Blessed One, the very person Ren Ye might be.

• Ren Ye spoke with Huang Wei, who encouraged him to stay calm and left without taking the letter.
• Ren Ye watched the Star Gate open and was pulled through it as Niannian sensed his Star Source fluctuation.
• Ren Ye awoke in Prince Huai’s Residence wearing a crimson robe and watched his face transform in a bronze mirror.
• Ren Ye received Zhu Zigui’s memories of his family’s wealth, his father’s death, and his uncle’s growing control over the estate.
• Ren Ye learned that his uncle had been searching for a Heavenly Pardon-Blessed One and realized he might be the person they sought.

Ren Ye learned he was Prince Huai, a powerless prince under imperial surveillance, and received a quest to survive, restore the Imperial Brush, and identify ten Hidden Pawns. At the Conscientious Hall, officials pressed him to interrogate his loyal commander Wang Jingzhong for alleged rebellion, leaving Ren Ye isolated as Xu Qingzhao finally looked toward the prisoner.

• Ren Ye received the Hidden Pawn quest and learned about the Imperial Brush, the secret edict, and the ten players hidden in his residence.
• Lian'er told Ren Ye that officials had arrested Wang Jingzhong and summoned him to adjudicate the alleged rebellion.
• Ren Ye went to the Conscientious Hall, where he saw Xu Qingzhao and the wounded, bound Wang Jingzhong surrounded by officials.
• Ji Shan Liu and the Spy Battalion commander accused Wang Jingzhong of trying to recruit allies and demanded severe interrogation to expose his accomplices.
• Ren Ye tried to consult Chief Secretary Li and solicit another opinion, but Li refused and the officials united in demanding interrogation.
• As Ren Ye despaired over his lack of support, Xu Qingzhao turned her gaze toward Wang Jingzhong.

Ren Ye faced officials demanding that he punish Wang Jingzhong’s family, while Xu Qingzhao revealed evidence that Moral Adviser Liu had betrayed the country and challenged Ren Ye to rule on the case. Ren Ye brutally attacked Liu to force the officials to back down, then ordered an investigation into Liu’s family and hurried after Xu Qingzhao.

• Ren Ye questioned Wang Jingzhong, who declared his loyalty to the late prince and killed himself by smashing his head against the hall floor.
• Moral Adviser Liu demanded that Ren Ye arrest Wang Jingzhong’s clan, but Xu Qingzhao had Xue’er read evidence accusing Liu of bribery and selling military intelligence to the Southern Border.
• Xu Qingzhao asked Ren Ye to judge Liu’s case as officials threatened and pressured him to send Liu back to the capital.
• Ren Ye drew a guard’s saber and repeatedly slashed Liu, warning him not to move and making the officials fear that he and Xu Qingzhao had prepared a broader counterattack.
• The officials backed down, and Xu Qingzhao warned them not to push Ren Ye too far before leaving the hall.
• Ren Ye ordered an investigation into Liu’s family and hurried after Xu Qingzhao.

Ren Ye searched the Tranquil Heart Hall with Er Leng for a secret decree that could restore the imperial brush's powers, but found nothing until he lifted the Nation-Guarding Sword. The sword awakened, revealed a hidden passage, and triggered the main quest for the other players.

• Ren Ye learned that Xu Qingzhao wanted him to visit her bedchamber that night, then met Er Leng, who mourned Wang Jingzhong and threatened revenge on Li Yan.
• Ren Ye took Er Leng to the Tranquil Heart Hall and searched for the late emperor's secret decree while asking how many guards Er Leng could command.
• Er Leng admitted that only he himself would obey his orders completely, and Ren Ye continued searching the hall with him.
• Ren Ye lifted the Nation-Guarding Sword, whose power awakened when his blood touched it and whose aura was contained by formations around the hall.
• A hidden passage opened behind the throne, and the other ten players received a notice that a major inheritance storyline had begun.

Ren Ye entered a secret chamber beneath Tranquil Heart Hall, where the Nation-Guarding Sword proved to be powerless without its missing spirit. After discovering a sealed, haunted room, he turned to find a ghostly face before him as the torches went out.

• Ren Ye learned that the Nation-Guarding Sword needed its missing spirit to regain its supernatural powers, then sent Er Leng to scout the passage.
• Ren Ye used a strand of Lian'er’s hair to rig the hall’s doors and windows before entering the passage with Er Leng.
• Ren Ye and Er Leng found a secret chamber filled with treasures, weapons, and records, along with a freezing iron door covered in Taoist talismans.
• A Startrace Gate notification revealed that the sealed chamber was tied to a ghost story and could not be opened until the Nation-Guarding Sword’s spirit was restored.
• Ren Ye turned from the sealed door and saw a pale, bleeding-eyed face; the torches went out as a voice demanded its life and soul back.

Ren Ye found the late emperor’s secret edict, restored the Imperial Brush with the emperor’s heart blood, and gained a skill-copying ability. He rewarded Er Leng with a legendary saber and shared the chamber’s treasures, then visited Xu Qingzhao, who revealed she knew the Nation-Guarding Sword had recognized him as its master.

• Ren Ye found the secret edict explaining that the Heavenly Pardon-Blessed One was needed to open the Former Dynasty Princess’s Tomb and preserve Great Qian.
• Ren Ye used the emperor’s heart blood to restore the Imperial Brush and received 500 source and 200 experience points from the Startrace Gate.
• Ren Ye and Er Leng searched the secret chamber, where Ren Ye discovered a sword formation manual, valuables, and the renowned saber Invite the Moon.
• Ren Ye gave Invite the Moon to Er Leng and ordered him to distribute the chamber’s treasures among the eunuchs and maids.
• Ren Ye visited Xu Qingzhao, who congratulated him for being recognized by the Nation-Guarding Sword and identified him as the Heavenly Pardon-Blessed One.

Xu Qingzhao tested Ren Ye as the Heavenly Pardon-Blessed One by drawing qi from him, then offered him daily help and a Tranquility Talisman in exchange for two hours with him. After returning to Prince Huai’s bedchamber, Ren Ye discovered that someone had entered while he was away and might still be inside.

• Xu Qingzhao trapped Ren Ye in a formation and absorbed qi from him for about two hours, leaving him weak and drained.
• Xu Qingzhao proposed that Ren Ye visit her every evening for two hours, and Ren Ye agreed after learning the emperor might be keeping him alive for a purpose related to Heavenly Pardon Enters the Fate.
• Xu Qingzhao gave Ren Ye a Tranquility Talisman to protect him after his qi of Heavenly Pardon diminished.
• Ren Ye returned to his bedchamber with Er Leng and Lian'er and noticed that the three strands of hair he had left at the door had snapped.
• Ren Ye warned Er Leng that someone had entered the chamber and might still be inside.

Ren Ye discovered a Soul-Control Gu hidden in his bedchamber, but it implanted itself in Little Xu and burned him alive. Realizing the gu had been planted while he was away, Ren Ye concluded that the culprit was a traitor close to him.

• Ren Ye found that someone had entered his bedchamber and ordered Er Leng and four trusted eunuchs to search it.
• A fleshy worm hidden beneath the bedding flew into Little Xu's forehead, and black flames burned him to death.
• Er Leng identified the worm as a male Soul-Control Gu refined for Ren Ye, which would have turned him into a corpse puppet.
• Ren Ye concealed Little Xu's death from the servants and concluded that the person controlling the gu was nearby and had help from a traitor.
• A woman watched her female gu burst after the implantation failed and received a mission penalty from the system.

After Liu Ling'er failed to plant the Soul-Control Gu in Prince Huai, Old Taoist Xu ordered her to infiltrate Tranquil Heart Hall and find a map in two days. As Liu Ling'er wrote a confession revealing her past as Wang Hong, Ren Ye devised a plan to lure out the culprit.

• The black-robed woman concluded that Prince Huai might be a player after his people discovered the hidden Gu.
• Liu Ling'er reported her failure to Old Taoist Xu, who gave her an imperial decree to find the Tomb Passage Map and uncover secrets in Prince Huai's secret chamber within two days.
• Ren Ye and Er Leng secured the sleeping quarters against intruders while Ren Ye worried about another attack.
• Liu Ling'er received the Startrace Gate's last-words prompt and wrote about her life as Wang Hong, her estranged daughter, and her determination to win.
• Ren Ye abruptly sat up and told Er Leng he had devised a way to lure out whoever planted the Gu.

Ren Ye and Er Leng set a trap for the insider helping Liu Ling'er, using a reward of valuables and staged security preparations as bait. Liu Ling'er killed the young eunuch who reported the supposed opportunity, then faced Er Leng as he stepped out of the trees.

• Ren Ye reasoned that an insider among his attendants had helped plant the gu and told Er Leng to leak false information to draw that person out.
• Ren Ye read Huang Wei's journal about Gate Spirits and the Star Gate's rules while Er Leng distributed valuables to the household servants.
• A young eunuch reported the reward and security preparations to Liu Ling'er, claiming Ren Ye would be alone that night.
• Liu Ling'er questioned the young eunuch, realized he had exposed her, and killed him with a dagger.
• Er Leng emerged from the trees with his saber and ordered Liu Ling'er to drop her knife.

Ren Ye’s trap drew Liu Ling'er to Spring Fragrance Garden, but she killed the Young Eunuch and escaped after wounding Er Leng. Er Leng identified her scent as one he had encountered in Liyuan Garden, and Ren Ye planned to find her there; while inspecting the fight scene, he noticed something strange about a pool of blood.

• The Princess Consort refused Ren Ye’s request for medicine, then secretly prepared pills for Prince Huai to avoid becoming entangled with him.
• Er Leng told Ren Ye that a masked woman killed the Young Eunuch and escaped his attempt to capture her.
• Er Leng recognized the woman’s distinctive scent from Liyuan Garden, and Ren Ye ordered him to gather the women there so he could identify her.
• Ren Ye changed the plan’s timing to after the midnight watch began and later went to inspect Spring Fragrance Garden with Lian'er.
• Ren Ye found two pools of blood at the scene and noticed that the second one had an unusually neat outline.

Liu Ling'er planned to sneak into Tranquil Heart Hall and suspected that Prince Huai was being controlled by another player. As Ren Ye prepared a trap for the night, he sought Xu Qingzhao’s strongest strike in exchange for letting her use him for four hours.

• Liu Ling'er charmed Er Leng after he wounded her, then sent him back as bait to provoke Prince Huai's response.
• Liu Ling'er reviewed her mission to find the secret chamber in Tranquil Heart Hall and obtain the Former Dynasty Princess's Tomb plans before her deadline.
• Ren Ye prepared lethal traps in his bedchamber and Tranquil Heart Hall, then learned that Er Leng had gone alone to the Guard Camp's storehouse.
• Ren Ye asked Xu Qingzhao to protect him from the danger in his residence, but she refused to get involved.
• Ren Ye offered Xu Qingzhao four hours of use in exchange for her strongest strike and claimed he could master it after seeing it once.

Ren Ye set a trap for the female thief while Liu Ling'er used Er Leng to infiltrate Tranquil Heart Hall and discover the secret chamber. The chapter ended with Ren Ye and Lian'er confronting Er Leng in the corridor and Lian'er sealing him with a Daoist Talisman.

• Xu Qingzhao warned Ren Ye that she would not interfere if he chose to take a risk, and he left to carry out his plan.
• Ren Ye sent Er Leng to select songstresses and ordered Lian'er to prepare Joyful Music Palace, where he planned to identify and capture the female thief.
• Er Leng identified Liu Ling'er among the songstresses, but Liu Ling'er used their connection to signal him to choose another woman instead.
• Er Leng secretly escorted Liu Ling'er, disguised as a maidservant, into Tranquil Heart Hall and opened the hidden passage with a fake Nation-Guarding Sword.
• Liu Ling'er entered the secret chamber, received mission progress for discovering the passage, and began searching while Er Leng returned to Joyful Music Palace.
• Ren Ye confronted Er Leng in the corridor, and Lian'er slapped him and placed a Daoist Talisman on his chest.

Ren Ye trapped Liu Ling'er in the secret chamber, where she summoned help from her imperial court faction, while armed forces converged on Tranquil Heart Hall. Er Leng, freed from Liu Ling'er's charm, defended the entrance and killed Zhong Kuishan with a single swift strike.

• Lian'er used the Tranquil Heart Daoist Talisman to free Er Leng from Liu Ling'er's charm, and Er Leng revealed that he had told Liu Ling'er about the secret chamber and its traps.
• Ren Ye ordered Er Leng to guard Tranquil Heart Hall's entrance while he and Lian'er gathered others around the secret chamber.
• Liu Ling'er realized she was trapped among blank files, sent a warning to her imperial court faction with the Disc Order, and received replies from Little War Wolf and Old Taoist Xu.
• Er Leng heard approaching riders as Zhong Kuishan arrived with the Qingzhou Guard, followed by Wu Asi's Spy Battalion and Chief Administrator Li Yan with government soldiers.
• Er Leng blindfolded himself and refused to let the armed groups enter Tranquil Heart Hall, then drew Invite the Moon and killed Zhong Kuishan with one strike.

Er Leng defended Tranquil Heart Hall while Ren Ye pursued Liu Ling'er after she trapped him and the others in an illusion. The chapter ended with Er Leng challenging Celestial Master Xu alone to keep the hall’s entrance blocked.

• Er Leng killed the Qingzhou Guard soldiers who charged him and warned the officials that he would strike down anyone who approached.
• Liu Ling'er used the Spring Breeze Wish-Fulfilling Painting to create an illusion, then escaped the secret chamber and hid in a side room.
• Ren Ye broke free when his Tranquility Talisman shattered, recognized the illusion, and chased Liu Ling'er with the real Nation-Guarding Sword.
• Old Taoist Xu stopped Er Leng from killing Wu Asi, then overpowered Er Leng and ordered him to stand aside.
• Er Leng remembered his loyalty to his lord, rose again, and challenged Celestial Master Xu while guarding Tranquil Heart Hall alone.

Ren Ye exposed Liu Ling'er as the intruder and defeated her attempt to kill him, then confronted Old Taoist Xu after he gravely injured Er Leng. With the Soul-Gathering Art, Ren Ye summoned a host of ghosts that destroyed Xu's Power Body, leaving the officials facing him and his command of the hall.

• Ren Ye discovered Liu Ling'er in Tranquil Heart Hall, saw through her attack, and captured her after her Soul-Shattering Nail struck a summoned ghost instead of him.
• Old Taoist Xu's Power Body defeated Er Leng outside the hall, leaving him badly injured as Wu Asi threatened him.
• Ren Ye emerged with Liu Ling'er captive, then turned to Er Leng and confronted Old Taoist Xu for hurting him.
• Ren Ye summoned the female Taoist apparition and countless ghosts, forcing Old Taoist Xu to flee before they dragged down and destroyed his Power Body.
• Ren Ye faced the terrified officials and demanded to know where the blades seeking his life were.

Ren Ye opened Fengdu’s ghost gate, executed Liu Ling'er, and forced the court officials to submit before the Startrace Gate sent him back to the real world. The chapter ended with Liu Ji Shan barely alive in the dungeon at Prince Huai's Residence.

• Ren Ye summoned a host of wronged souls and demanded that the officials reveal the blade meant to kill him, but they stayed silent.
• Ren Ye questioned Liu Ling'er about her accomplices, rejected her threats involving the Bell Society, and beheaded her with the Nation-Guarding Sword.
• The Startrace Gate announced that the Court Faction’s scheme had failed, a player had been killed, and the Star Gate would enter dormancy in ten minutes.
• Ren Ye confronted Chief Administrator Li Yan, who revealed that Wang Jingzhong's family had been brought outside the residence, then knelt and led the officials and soldiers in pledging allegiance to Prince Huai.
• Ren Ye ordered the officials to leave, arranged for Lian'er to care for Er Leng, and waited until the Startrace Gate returned him to the real world.
• Liu Ji Shan lay barely alive in the dungeon at Prince Huai's Residence.