Chapter Summaries

Chen woke from Hua Wenfeng’s hypnosis after receiving advice from the Patriarch, then searched Hua Wenfeng’s consultation records while An Ning confronted the doctor. He found a record for a 49-year-old woman named Jiang Yuan with severe depression and suicidal tendencies, and wondered whether she was his mother.

• Chen realized Hua Wenfeng had hypnotized him using the out-of-place clock, and the Patriarch warned him to trust his judgment and face his troubles himself.
• Chen woke in Hua Wenfeng’s consultation room and pretended he had merely fallen asleep.
• An Ning arrived and accused Hua Wenfeng of treating her cousin before she died, drawing him out of the room.
• Chen photographed more pages from Hua Wenfeng’s consultation record book and found a record for 49-year-old Jiang Yuan.
• Chen read that Jiang Yuan had severe depression and suicidal tendencies, then searched for more records before Hua Wenfeng returned.

Chen learned that his mother, Jiang Yuan, had received treatment from Hua Wenfeng and might be in danger. He found her address and reached her apartment, where she opened the door looking exhausted and shocked.

• Hua Wenfeng discussed depression, suicide, and how some families misunderstand life and death, then ended his session with Chen.
• Chen told Song Xiaotian and An Ning that he had found his mother's name and matching age among Hua Wenfeng's consultation records.
• Chen confirmed that Jiang Yuan's birthday matched the patient's record and asked Song Xiaotian to help locate her.
• Chen contacted Brother Liu, who found Jiang Yuan's address in Lanjiang City.
• Chen went with Song Xiaotian and An Ning to Jiang Yuan's apartment and found her alive at the door.

Chen Mo found his mother’s suicide preparations and begged her not to die, blaming himself for the deaths tied to his resurrection. His mother reassured him that he had done nothing wrong and said she had her own path to walk, while Chen Mo refused to accept that she might leave him.

• Chen Mo rushed into his mother’s home, searched for anything dangerous, and found charcoal and a business card.
• An Ning restrained Chen Mo as Song Xiaotian warned his mother that psychologist Hua Wenfeng had led patients to suicide.
• Chen Mo confronted his mother about her depression medication and begged her to explain why she wanted to die.
• Chen Mo knelt and offered his savings so his mother could travel and start a new life.
• Chen Mo’s mother told him he was not responsible for his resurrection or his father and grandfather’s deaths, and said she had her own path to walk.
• Chen Mo pleaded with his mother not to die and said he would kowtow to her.

The narrator persuaded his mother to stay alive, stop seeing Hua Wenfeng, and accept money for treatment, then went with Song Xiaotian to guard the Seventh Master. The Seventh Master explained that Hua Wenfeng likely would not physically harm the narrator’s mother and that her leaving his care gave them time to investigate him.

• The narrator’s mother promised to stay alive and seek treatment somewhere other than Hua Wenfeng’s clinic, and she accepted the narrator’s money.
• Song Xiaotian and the narrator comforted the mother with sweet rice balls, then waited until her bedroom light went out before leaving.
• On the way to the Seventh Master’s home, Song Xiaotian told the narrator not to blame himself for his father and grandfather reviving him.
• The narrator told the Seventh Master that his mother had been one of Hua Wenfeng’s targets.
• The Seventh Master said Hua Wenfeng manipulated people’s despair and suicidal urges, and that the mother’s departure gave them time to investigate him.

Chen Mo recognized Hua Wenfeng’s argument as a verbal trap that preyed on depressed people, then learned that his former classmate Huang Yingqi had endured a devastating family accident. He found Huang Yingqi working as a tile-layer and reunited with him.

• Chen Mo concluded that Hua Wenfeng twisted an example about a terminally ill elderly person to encourage vulnerable people to seek release, and recalled the Patriarch’s advice to trust his own judgment.
• The Seventh Master said he had contacted former allies to seek revenge for Guo Ying and Shi Yong, while Song Xiaotian continued investigating Hua Wenfeng.
• Chen Mo found Huang Yingqi’s name in the consultation records and learned from Meng Yifan that Huang Yingqi’s parents had died in a car accident that also left him disabled and impoverished.
• Chen Mo went to a renovation job and recognized Huang Yingqi, who greeted him with surprise and embarrassment.

The narrator reunited with Huang Yingqi, who had been left deaf in one ear, partially deaf in the other, and blind in one eye after a car accident, and learned about his depression and upcoming marriage. As they recalled their youthful hopes, Huang Yingqi cried over how far their lives had fallen from what they once dreamed.

• The narrator took Huang Yingqi to a night-market stall, where Huang explained that his accident had damaged his hearing and left him with an artificial eye.
• The two friends admitted that shame over their setbacks had kept them from contacting each other, and they comforted one another about their difficult lives.
• The narrator learned Huang Yingqi had clinical depression, was seeking treatment, and planned to marry a woman from his cousin's village after breaking up with Bao Nana.
• The narrator urged Huang Yingqi to stop visiting Saint An Psychological Clinic, and Huang agreed to switch clinics.
• Huang Yingqi asked the narrator to recall the saying he had given him after the college entrance exam, then cried as they remembered their lost youthful ambitions.

Chen Mo saw Huang Yingqi’s courage in the face of hardship, then learned that Hua Wenfeng’s illness might be connected to an unknown accomplice targeting their group. After visiting his mother with An Ning and Meng Yifan, Chen Mo was startled when his mother offered to tell An Ning that he liked her.

• Chen Mo took Huang Yingqi home after he got drunk and wrote him an encouraging couplet after seeing his books, certificates, and calligraphy tools.
• Song Xiaotian and the Seventh Master revealed that Hua Wenfeng had controlled brain cancer, had no children, and had a late-year birthday, suggesting he was helping someone else extend a life.
• The Seventh Master told Song Xiaotian to investigate Hua Wenfeng’s contacts, who might be linked to the attacks on Guo Ying, Shi Yong, and the others.
• Chen Mo, An Ning, and Meng Yifan visited Chen Mo’s mother, and An Ning admitted her fried-rice stall had closed after two days because customers disliked her cooking.
• Chen Mo’s mother asked whether he and An Ning were dating, then offered to tell her that he liked her, but Chen Mo urgently stopped her.

Chen Mo and Song Xiaotian witnessed Jiang Laosan bid farewell to the Seventh Master before his cursed soul vanished, leaving the Seventh Master overwhelmed with grief. After he woke, Chen Mo resolved to find Hua Wenfeng and explained that Hua’s fear of dying from brain cancer had shaped his beliefs and driven him to manipulate others into suicide.

• Chen Mo, the Seventh Master, and Song Xiaotian opened the door to find the dead Jiang Laosan, who came to say goodbye because a curse was about to destroy his soul.
• Jiang Laosan told the Seventh Master that he and the other brothers had hoped to see him again, then vanished as black smoke.
• The Seventh Master collapsed from grief and woke the next morning, mourning his brothers and admitting he could not think of what to do.
• Chen Mo comforted the Seventh Master and said he had a plan to find the killer; he and Song Xiaotian then left for the clinic.
• Chen Mo explained to Song Xiaotian that Hua Wenfeng feared dying like his family members and had developed his twisted view of death while preparing himself for his own death.

Chen Mo visited Hua Wenfeng to address his depression and revealed that he believed he had driven his father and grandfather to suicide. Hua Wenfeng began hypnotizing him and asked what they had done, leaving Chen Mo under hypnosis before he answered.

• Chen Mo used a knife to demonstrate to Song Xiaotian how arrogance could leave someone vulnerable, then went into the clinic.
• Hua Wenfeng said he could not treat Chen Mo without understanding the source of his depression and promised confidentiality unless a crime was involved.
• Chen Mo told Hua Wenfeng that he had driven his father and grandfather to suicide after investigating their past wrongdoing.
• Hua Wenfeng suggested hypnosis, and Chen Mo agreed while asking him not to probe into what his relatives had done.
• Hua Wenfeng guided Chen Mo into hypnosis and asked him what his father and grandfather had done.

Chen Mo reversed Hua Wenfeng’s hypnosis and learned that Hua had guided patients to kill themselves, believing he was freeing them from pain. Hua did not know why he had chosen people born on the fifteenth day of the fourth lunar month, leading Chen Mo to suspect someone else had hypnotized him.

• Hua Wenfeng questioned Chen Mo about his family’s killings and learned that Chen Mo had been revived through Seven Deaths for a Life.
• Chen Mo revealed that he had used a clock and the Qian Character, Bewildering Soul Formation to reverse-hypnotize Hua Wenfeng.
• Chen Mo questioned Hua Wenfeng, who admitted he was a psychologist and had led patients to kill themselves.
• Hua Wenfeng said he had wanted to free his patients from their suffering but could not explain why they all shared the same birthday.
• Chen Mo concluded that Hua Wenfeng had chosen to guide the suicides himself, but someone else had made him target people born on the fifteenth day of the fourth lunar month.

The narrator used hypnosis and Hua Wenfeng’s patient records to deduce that a woman had implanted a command making him target people born on the fifteenth day of the fourth lunar month. Hua Wenfeng began to recall a short-haired female patient, but her face remained unclear.

• The narrator explained how command hypnosis could implant a thought that activated when Hua Wenfeng tried to induce certain people to commit suicide.
• The narrator used an illusion of An Ning to question Hua Wenfeng, who said his only contact with strangers was through his patients.
• The narrator compared the six patients in the photographed notebook who shared the target birthday and ruled out his mother and the deceased Qu Yan.
• Hua Wenfeng said he had lost his previous notebook, leading the narrator to suspect the hypnotist had stolen it because she was one of Hua Wenfeng’s patients.
• The narrator asked Hua Wenfeng to recall a female patient born on the target date who had come before Qu Yan, and a short-haired figure of light appeared as Hua Wenfeng struggled to remember her face.

Hua Wenfeng identified the short-haired woman who hypnotized him as the narrator’s mother, leaving the narrator shaken and uncertain whether the memory was reliable. Seventh Master questioned the narrator about his mother’s family, uncovering that his father and grandfather had never met any of her relatives.

• The narrator showed Hua Wenfeng photos of Qu Yan and his mother, and Hua Wenfeng identified the mother as the woman who hypnotized him.
• Hua Wenfeng recalled that the woman wore a pale green jacket and blue trousers both times he met her, and the narrator ended the hypnosis.
• The narrator told Song Xiaotian that his mother might be the woman, and Song Xiaotian drove him to Seventh Master’s house.
• The narrator described Hua Wenfeng’s identification to Seventh Master, who asked about the narrator’s maternal grandparents and relatives.
• The narrator explained that his mother’s siblings had cut contact after an inheritance dispute, and Seventh Master confirmed that the narrator’s father and grandfather had never met her family.

Chen Mo confronted the possibility that his mother, Jiang Yuan, was part of the organization behind the Seven Deaths for a Life plot and decided to investigate her despite the danger. He visited her apartment under the pretense of sharing a meal, then opened her wardrobe while she cooked.

• Seventh Master and Chen Mo considered whether Jiang Yuan had joined the organization and whether Li Fuguang's fate had influenced Chen Mo's life.
• Chen Mo decided to investigate his mother, while Seventh Master warned him that she might be dangerous.
• Song Xiaotian drove Chen Mo near Jiang Yuan's home and waited nearby with Seventh Master.
• Chen Mo brought groceries to Jiang Yuan and claimed he was leaving on a business trip the next day.
• While Jiang Yuan cooked, Chen Mo went to the bedroom and opened her wardrobe.

After discovering the clothes Hua Wenfeng had described hidden in a suitcase under her bed, the narrator confronted his mother and exposed her as the one who hypnotized Hua Wenfeng and served the organization. She explained her family’s history and hatred of Zhao Qiankun, while the narrator pleaded for her to abandon the organization.

• The narrator found the light green jacket and blue casual pants hidden in a suitcase under his bed.
• At dinner, the narrator called his mother “Mommy” and attacked her with a knife, but she swiftly disarmed and restrained him.
• The narrator accused his mother of faking her depression and suicidal thoughts, manipulating Hua Wenfeng, and serving the organization.
• His mother said she had to complete her mission because the organization was her family and its orders came from the family.
• His mother revealed that Zhao Qiankun had killed her father and blamed him for her family’s suffering abroad.
• The narrator asked his mother to turn back and promised to face the consequences with her.

Chen Mo confronted Jiang Yuan over her role in his suffering and her loyalty to the organization, but she threatened An Ning to force him to go with her. He agreed to leave with Jiang Yuan after warning Song Xiaotian and Seventh Master to get away and notify Du Yunting.

• Chen Mo accused Jiang Yuan of causing his childhood illness and helping bring about his father’s and grandfather’s deaths, but she stayed silent.
• Chen Mo toasted Jiang Yuan and warned that he would kill her if they met again, and Jiang Yuan told him he could not leave.
• Jiang Yuan revealed that her people had lured An Ning away and threatened to hurt her unless Chen Mo came quietly.
• Chen Mo called Song Xiaotian, told him Jiang Yuan had taken An Ning, and urged him and Seventh Master to leave and notify Du Yunting.
• Chen Mo agreed to go with Jiang Yuan if An Ning stayed safe, and Jiang Yuan searched him and removed the tracker hidden in his jacket.

Chen Mo’s mother, Jiang Yuan, took him to a mountain cemetery where her accomplices had captured An Ning and tied them both up. As Jiang Yuan’s group prepared a ritual using Evil Buddha carvings, they forced a pill on Chen Mo, who resisted even as the shaman stabbed his arm.

• Jiang Yuan drove Chen Mo to Blessed Joy Manor and led him up the mountain with his hands tied.
• Jiang Yuan’s accomplices captured Chen Mo and left An Ning unconscious and bound to a tree.
• Jiang Yuan told her accomplices to pursue their family’s task, obtain three people born on the fifteenth day of the fourth lunar month, and kill Hua Wenfeng.
• Jiang Yuan’s remaining companions arranged Evil Buddha carvings around Chen Mo and tried to make him swallow a pill.
• The shaman beat Chen Mo and stabbed his left arm, but Chen Mo kept the pill in his mouth and condemned Jiang Yuan for allowing him to be hurt.

Chen Mo awakened a violent force that took control of his body, killed the Wizard and the organization’s members, and drove Jiang Yuan away by burning her painting. After the force vanished, Chen Mo freed An Ning and carried her down the mountain until Seventh Master and Song Xiaotian found them.

• The Wizard and two young men beat Chen Mo and forced him to swallow a pill before beginning a ritual with Jiang Yuan.
• As Chen Mo recited the Dao, an unfamiliar force awakened inside him, broke his restraints, and made a man kneel and kill himself.
• The force killed the Wizard and the two young men, while Jiang Yuan opened a painting depicting an Evil Buddha and resisted its command to kneel.
• Chen Mo briefly regained control, used the Dao Finger to set Jiang Yuan’s painting on fire, and watched her flee before the force disappeared.
• Chen Mo cut himself and An Ning free, carried her down the mountain, and collapsed when Seventh Master and Song Xiaotian arrived.

After waking from a weeklong coma, Chen Mo left the hospital to attend Huang Yingqi's wedding, then collapsed and returned for oxygen. He learned that Jiang Yuan had killed Hua Wenfeng and another person born on Lunar April 15, and that she might be the recipient of Seven Deaths for a Life.

• Chen Mo woke in the hospital after seven days unconscious and learned that An Ning and a caregiver had taken turns watching over him.
• Chen Mo insisted on leaving the hospital to attend Huang Yingqi's wedding, and Yi Yang helped him get there.
• Chen Mo left 99,999 yuan as a wedding gift, watched the ceremony from the entrance, and sent Huang Yingqi a message wishing him a happy marriage.
• Chen Mo collapsed after smoking outside the hotel and was taken back to the hospital for oxygen.
• Seventh Master and Song Xiaotian told Chen Mo that Jiang Yuan had killed Hua Wenfeng and another person born on Lunar April 15, and that she might be the recipient of Seven Deaths for a Life.

The narrator learned that Jiang Yuan had been a professional killer who had infiltrated his family and arranged his childhood illness as part of the organization’s plan. Seventh Master urged him to leave her fate to others and live for himself, while her identity and the truth about her father remained unknown.

• The narrator and Seventh Master reasoned that Jiang Yuan had sought a life exchange not because she was terminally ill, but to gain a new identity.
• Song Xiaotian revealed that Jiang Yuan had been linked to killings overseas and had returned to China three years earlier.
• The narrator realized Jiang Yuan had hidden her violent nature during the eleven years she lived with his family and had likely orchestrated his illness and the seven deaths arranged to save him.
• Song Xiaotian said Jiang Yuan’s killings resembled those of a professional killer trained by the organization.
• Seventh Master explained that Jiang Yuan’s real name and her father’s identity were unknown, then urged the narrator to avoid getting involved in her fate.
• Seventh Master apologized for having forced the narrator to kill Du Yuwei and told him to live for himself.

After deciding to stop pursuing the truth about his mother, the narrator returned to work and cast a hexagram for Seventh Master's fortune. He fell asleep and met the Patriarch on a bridge, where the Patriarch told him that interpreting the hexagram would require him to take part in the events it foretold.

• The narrator considered Seventh Master's account of his mother's motives and Li Fuguang's connection to the organization, then resolved to live for himself and stop getting involved.
• After another week in the hospital, the narrator left despite the doctor's warning, returned to work, and called Seventh Master daily to check on him.
• The narrator accidentally scattered six copper coins, read them as a hexagram, and chose the Parents Line to divine Seventh Master's fortune.
• Unable to determine the result, the narrator fell asleep and awoke on a bridge beside the Patriarch, who showed him the same hexagram in the water.
• The Patriarch told the narrator he could leave the hexagram uninterpreted or interpret it and take part in the events it revealed.