Chapter Summaries

Xia Xu finished producing twelve Spider-Shaped Predators while Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals prepared to launch its new blood pressure medication. Griffin Jones arrived at Star Sea Venture Capital believing he had trapped the company over disputed patent rights, but the chapter ended before he met Chen Leyao.

• Xia Xu finalized the Spider-Shaped Predator design and built twelve units, though transporting them remained a problem.
• Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals completed preparations for producing its controlled-release blood pressure drug, attracting distributors and wholesalers.
• Chen Leyao informed Xia Xu that Griffin Jones had arrived, and Xia Xu headed to Star Sea Venture Capital.
• Griffin Jones recalled his past resentment toward Xia Xu and Chen Leyao and planned to use a patent dispute to pressure Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals.
• Griffin Jones entered Star Sea Venture Capital and asked the receptionist to tell the manager he was there.

Xia Xu confronted Griffin Jones after he threatened Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals, then prepared for a patent lawsuit with Zhang San as his legal representative. At the courthouse, the opposing lawyer recognized Zhang San and immediately refused to handle the case.

• Xia Xu entered Star Sea Venture Capital’s reception room and insulted Griffin Jones, who left after threatening him.
• Griffin Jones’s concealed lawsuit against Delong Pharmaceuticals forced Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals to halt production of its new blood pressure medication.
• Chen Leyao confronted Delong Pharmaceuticals and secured control over the legal representation in the case.
• Xia Xu posted a picture of Zhang San on Weibo, where commenters revealed Zhang San’s fearsome reputation as the Outlaw.
• At court, the opposing lawyer recognized Zhang San and told Griffin Jones he could not handle the case.

Xia Xu and Zhang San defeated Griffin Jones in court, thwarting his scheme to profit from Xinghai Pharmaceuticals and Star Sea Venture Capital. Left with failing investments and little Genius Drug, Griffin took another pill and began to suffer its side effects.

• Griffin struggled to find a lawyer willing and able to challenge Zhang San, and Zhang San quickly won the lawsuit.
• Xia Xu taunted Griffin outside the courthouse, then asked Zhang San to sue the Changlong Research Institute and pursue claims related to Delong Pharmaceuticals.
• Griffin watched Xia Xu and Zhang San leave, realizing his plan to exploit the patent dispute and seize a fortune had collapsed.
• Griffin recognized that his remaining shares were of little value and that he was nearly out of Genius Drug, leaving him close to ruin.
• Griffin took another Genius Drug pill, experienced its effects, and found blood beneath his nose, confirming the drug was damaging his body.

Xia Xu learned that Griffin Jones had placed an assassination contract on him through a notorious dark-web job platform, and he asked Meng Bochao to investigate the site and the assassin. After arranging protection for his associates, Xia Xu called Chen Leyao, leaving the story with her answering his late-night call.

• Meng Bochao warned Xia Xu that Griffin Jones had posted an assassination contract on him and that someone had already accepted it.
• Xia Xu asked Meng Bochao to investigate the platform, its organization, possible supernatural involvement, and the assassin's identity.
• Meng Bochao reported that the site was a well-known job platform used by freelance assassins and mercenaries, and Xia Xu told his people to stay cautious while he handled the threat.
• Xia Xu called Pan Long to protect the people at Nine Suns Consulting, especially Little White Flower.
• Xia Xu called Chen Leyao late at night, and she answered with a sleepy complaint about being woken up.

Xia Xu prepared for Griffin Jones’s hired assassins and deliberately traveled outside to draw them out. When six assassins ambushed his taxi, he and A Tuo killed them before they could escape.

• Xia Xu told Chen Leyao to contact media outlets and prepare reports that would undermine Griffin Jones.
• Xia Xu concluded Griffin Jones’s plot had strayed off course and decided to stop him after learning he had hired killers.
• Xia Xu went out armed with A Tuo, a bulletproof vest, Spider-Shaped Predators, a bow, and a Miao Dao to lure the assassins into attacking.
• A taxi driver posing as an ordinary man stopped in the wilderness, where six assassins surrounded Xia Xu’s car.
• Xia Xu and A Tuo sprang from the taxi and killed all six assassins with the Miao Dao.

Xia Xu killed seven attackers who posed as taxi drivers, then called the police and reported the incident as self-defense. At the police station, he named Griffin Jones as his suspect, while investigators confirmed the dead men were wanted criminals, including former mercenaries.

• Xia Xu reflected on how the Mechanical Centipede Spine and his combat training had made him capable of killing the seven men, then called the police.
• Police and paramedics arrived at the bloody scene and found Xia Xu calmly playing a game with his wolfdog.
• Xia Xu recognized the square-faced officer and explained that the men had been professional assassins who had lured him there.
• Xia Xu told the officer he suspected Griffin Jones had hired the attackers because of their recent business dispute.
• Investigators identified the dead men as high-risk wanted criminals, including two with mercenary backgrounds in Syria, and Zhang San arrived to support Xia Xu.

After leaving the Police Station, Xia Xu used a media campaign to bring Griffin Jones and Celestial Investment into the public eye. The flattering coverage secretly highlighted where Griffin had worked before taking the Superbrain Drug, drawing the attention of people who knew the truth.

• Xia Xu left the Police Station after being cleared as the victim of an assassination attempt, while Griffin Jones remained under investigation.
• Chen Leyao arranged media coverage that publicized Griffin Jones’s suspected crimes and praised his rise as a self-taught entrepreneur.
• Public debate grew over whether the articles were genuine praise or an attempt to whitewash Griffin and pressure Star Sea Venture Capital.
• The articles highlighted that Griffin had worked at a tutoring center beside the plaza where he took the Superbrain Drug.

After leaving the police station, Xia Xu reunited with Louise and Olivia, then went with them to the amusement park for a children's martial arts tournament. Louise was eager to compete, and the chapter left them arriving at the venue just before the tournament began.

• Louise and Olivia met Xia Xu outside the police station, explaining that Luo Hongyun had sent them to see him.
• Louise told Xia Xu she planned to enter a children's martial arts tournament at the amusement park, and he volunteered to come along.
• Louise climbed onto A Tuo's back, and Xia Xu, Olivia, and Louise headed to the amusement park together.
• At the amusement park, Xia Xu thought of Tang Youxin, who could not join them because she was busy writing software.
• Louise hurried Xia Xu and Olivia to the event venue as the tournament was about to begin.

Louise competed in a children's taekwondo tournament at an amusement park and overwhelmed her opponents despite her small size. She advanced through the matches, leaving the crowd astonished by her fighting skill.

• Xia Xu encouraged Louise after a woman warned that she might get hurt in the tournament.
• Louise was drawn for the first match against a much larger boy, and Xia Xu reminded her to avoid using too much strength or dangerous techniques.
• Louise opened the match with a flying kick that gave the boy a black eye, then worried that she had hurt him.
• Xia Xu comforted Louise and told her to use even less strength in her next match.
• Louise continued winning against children her age and older, impressing the spectators with her fighting skill.

As Louise advanced to the final, the Jinbei Taekwondo Gym’s owner sent coach Jeonghun to persuade her family to throw the match. Xia Xu noticed suspicious people closing in on Louise and realized the danger had come while Uncle Luo was away, so he told Olivia to take Louise and leave.

• The Jinbei Taekwondo Gym owner ordered Jeonghun to offer Louise’s family money to let the gym preserve its reputation, authorizing him to act as he saw fit if they refused.
• Louise won another match and advanced to the final as spectators cheered her victories over the gym’s students.
• A Tuo barked a warning, and Xia Xu spotted several expressionless people pushing through the crowd toward Louise.
• Xia Xu hurried to Louise and asked Olivia whether Uncle Luo had left; Olivia confirmed he had gone on an urgent mission.
• Xia Xu recognized the situation as an attempt to lure Uncle Luo away and told Olivia to take Louise and leave.

Xia Xu recognized that Andra had sent a squad of werewolves equipped with Mechanical Centipede Spines and Gleipnir Systems to capture Louise. He and Olivia launched a counterattack, but the fight had only just begun as the werewolves transformed.

• Xia Xu identified the approaching werewolves, assessed their equipment, and realized Andra had likely targeted Louise for her exceptional combat talent.
• Xia Xu assigned Olivia the bald werewolf and ordered A Tuo to attack two enemies while he engaged the others.
• Xia Xu drew his saber and killed one werewolf with a single upward slash.
• Olivia struck the bald werewolf and sent him staggering, but he transformed into a wolf-man before she could follow up.

Xia Xu, Olivia, and A Tuo fought werewolves controlled by the Gleipnir System as panic and casualties spread through the plaza. Louise rescued a stranded child, and Xia Xu seized an opening to request A Tuo’s backpack so he could bring more weapons into the fight.

• Xia Xu warned Olivia not to face the werewolves head-on, while he and A Tuo fought to hold them back.
• The transformed werewolves attacked through the fleeing crowd, causing injuries and deaths as a mother watched her daughter Weiwei stand in their path.
• Louise pulled Weiwei out of the way of a charging werewolf, and Xia Xu praised her before forcing back the two werewolves attacking him.
• Xia Xu called for A Tuo to toss him the backpack, and A Tuo tore off its straps and flung it toward him.

Xia Xu protected Louise and Weiwei while using his saber and two Spider-Shaped Predators to turn the fight against the Werewolves. With his support, A Tuo gained the upper hand, and the remaining Werewolves faced a one-sided rout.

• Louise comforted Weiwei by telling her that Xia Xu and A Tuo would keep them safe.
• Xia Xu killed a charging Werewolf with a saber strike as A Tuo threw him his backpack.
• Xia Xu activated the two Spider-Shaped Predators and used their grappling cables to restrain and kill two pursuing Werewolves.
• Xia Xu sent the Spider-Shaped Predators to help him attack the Werewolves fighting A Tuo, while Olivia continued holding off her opponent.
• Xia Xu's support let A Tuo unleash his full strength, turning the battle into a rout.

Xia Xu and A Tuo killed the last Werewolves and rescued Louise, Weiwei, and other bystanders, but the attack left civilians dead and injured. Xia Xu tried to leave quietly, yet reporters soon crowded his home and companies, demanding answers about the battle, his swordsmanship, and his inventions.

• A Tuo unleashed his full strength, and he and Xia Xu coordinated to kill the remaining Werewolves.
• Bystanders cheered, while others mourned the dead, sought medical help, and called the police.
• Weiwei’s mother returned, thanked Xia Xu, and he advised her to take Weiwei to see a psychologist.
• Xia Xu reflected on Andra’s threat, then worried that the battle would make headlines and left with Louise and her mother after the Special Department’s Logistics Team arrived.
• Before evening, reporters swarmed Xia Xu’s home and Star Sea companies, asking about the Werewolves, A Tuo, his swordsmanship, and the Mechanical Spiders.

After footage of Xia Xu’s battle with a werewolf spread widely, he learned that the Special Department had decided to reveal the existence of Beastmen rather than suppress the news. Xia Xu realized that public disclosure could usher in a new era, and he resolved to face it with the companies, people, and technology he had built.

• Xia Xu woke to widespread media coverage of his battle with a werewolf and suspected someone was deliberately amplifying the incident.
• Xia Xu called Liu Quande to demand an explanation, and Liu said the General Bureau had decided not to contain the story.
• Liu Quande explained that Beastmen were products of genetic engineering and that making them public would help citizens take precautions and allow the authorities to act.
• Xia Xu considered how disclosure would give the authorities legal grounds to manage Beastmen and establish regulations.
• Xia Xu concluded that the revelation could begin a new era and chose to move forward with the resources and companies he had built.

Xia Xu rejected the Special Department's attempt to obtain A Tuo, saying he would not sell his brother, then ended the call while hinting that discussions could resume later. The Logistics Team took his confidence as a sign that he might be able to provide Enhanced Dogs in batches, but Liu Quande kept failing to reach him and was told he was the wrong person to call.

• Xia Xu recognized that Liu Quande wanted to discuss a deal for A Tuo and said he had no intention of selling his brother.
• Liu Quande asked whether Enhanced Dogs could be replicated, and Xia Xu changed the subject and hung up, saying he had to deal with the media at his company.
• The Logistics Team concluded that Xia Xu's confidence suggested he might be able to supply Enhanced Dogs in batches and decided to tone down publicity about the incident.
• Liu Quande repeatedly called Xia Xu, but his calls were rejected at the three-second mark.
• A Logistics Team member told Liu Quande that he was the wrong person to make the call, prompting the others to joke about his deputy title.

Xia Xu met Luo Hongyun and proposed a deal with the Special Department to mass-produce enhanced dogs like A Tuo, using the agreement to secure better treatment after the department’s handling of public discussion exposed him to danger. He acknowledged that conflict with Andra Group was inevitable and resolved not to withdraw from the extraordinary events ahead.

• Xia Xu ignored Luo Hongyun’s calls, then received calls from Chen Leyao, Pan Long, Yang Bowen, and Yao Fu about the recent events.
• Luo Hongyun visited Xia Xu and thanked him for repeatedly protecting Louise, then explained that he had returned to Star City and visited the foreign nationals there.
• Luo Hongyun raised the Special Department’s interest in A Tuo, and Xia Xu said he was willing to discuss a business deal to mass-produce enhanced dogs.
• Xia Xu said the Special Department would have to meet his conditions after its decision to stop controlling public discussion had caused him trouble.
• Luo Hongyun asked about the danger Xia Xu faced, and Xia Xu concluded that conflict with Andra Group was unavoidable and that he wanted its black technology, especially the Transcendence Project.

Xia Xu negotiated with Luo Hongyun over providing the technology to create enhanced dogs, demanding the Xinyuan Building, any seized viral strains, military-industrial qualifications, and help finding an exceptional surgeon. Luo Hongyun agreed to report the conditions and search for a surgeon, though Xia Xu’s standards left him doubtful.

• Luo Hongyun offered to help Xia Xu, who said he had technology for creating enhanced dogs but had several conditions.
• Xia Xu demanded the Xinyuan Building and its equipment, then asked whether authorities had seized any viral strains; Luo Hongyun said none had been found in De City.
• Xia Xu requested military-industrial qualifications for Star Sea Industrial and Star Sea Biotech, and Luo Hongyun said the request was possible but difficult.
• Xia Xu asked Luo Hongyun to find a surgeon with no ties to authorities or special factions, whom Xia Xu could assess in person.
• Xia Xu set the surgeon’s required skill as equal to Luo Hongyun’s close-combat ability, leaving Luo Hongyun unsure he could find anyone suitable.

Xia Xu used the werewolf incident and press coverage to intensify scrutiny of Griffin Jones, while negotiating concessions from the Special Department and launching his company’s new blood-pressure drug. After Griffin was cleared and released, Xia Xu ordered his team to resume monitoring him and prepared for a possible confrontation.

• Xia Xu stuck to his plan as publicity linked Griffin Jones’s sudden rise and professional skills to the Superbrain Drug.
• The Special Department agreed to lease Xinyuan Building to Star Sea Biotech rent-free for ten years, while the surgeon search and manufacturing qualifications remained unresolved.
• Xinghai Biopharmaceuticals launched Star Tranquility, and its strong effects made the new drug an immediate hit.
• Griffin Jones was cleared of suspicion and released from the Police Station.
• After Yang Bowen reported that Griffin had returned to his nest, Xia Xu ordered continued surveillance and checked his combat equipment.

Griffin Jones returned home after buying cigarettes, a lighter, and a drink, unaware that Hogwa Nar had followed him. Hogwa Nar cornered Griffin Jones in his bedroom and demanded the goods Griffin had taken, blaming him for months of pursuit by Carroll Medical Laboratory.

• Griffin Jones bought cigarettes, a lighter, and Coke at a convenience store while the shopkeeper watched an interrogation scene on television.
• Hogwa Nar entered the store after Griffin Jones, asked whether his friend had bought a fruit knife, and purchased one.
• Griffin Jones returned home, bathed, and went to bed, where he sensed someone was watching him.
• Hogwa Nar emerged from the darkness, grabbed Griffin Jones, held the fruit knife to his throat, and demanded the goods.