Chapter Summaries

Xia Xu tracked down Luo Hongyun and persistently tried to persuade him to become his bodyguard or teach him self-defense. Luo Hongyun refused, but showed a small sign of concern during Xia Xu’s exhausting attempt to keep pace with his morning run.

• Xia Xu deduced where Luo Hongyun lived by following him openly and resolved to build his favorability.
• Xia Xu confronted Luo Hongyun outside his home and asked him to reconsider becoming a bodyguard, but Luo Hongyun threatened to call the police.
• Xia Xu asked Luo Hongyun to teach him self-defense instead, but Luo Hongyun refused and went for his morning jog.
• Xia Xu followed Luo Hongyun around the residential complex and struggled through three laps while Luo Hongyun continued running easily.
• Luo Hongyun advised Xia Xu not to overexert himself, and Xia Xu took this as a sign that he might eventually agree to teach him.

Xia Xu endured Luo Hongyun’s punishing morning workout and gained a little of his respect. He then explained that he had rented the entire neighboring building to reduce the risk of involving others if danger came after him, while leaving Luo Hongyun free to decide whether to help.

• Luo Hongyun ran dozens of laps and continued with intense bodyweight exercises while Xia Xu trained until he was exhausted.
• Xia Xu forced himself to stand after the workout, earning a brief approving glance from Luo Hongyun and raising their affinity score to 10.
• Xia Xu showed Luo Hongyun movers at the opposite building and explained that he had rented the whole building.
• Luo Hongyun said he would not help if someone came after Xia Xu, and Xia Xu asked whether he would respond differently if the threat were not human.
• Xia Xu explained that he chose the neighboring building to avoid forcing Luo Hongyun or other residents into danger while keeping a potential threat focused on himself.

After securing a new apartment, Xia Xu bought legal self-defense equipment and checked on Zhang Jianmin, whose next storyline involved traveling to Tibet. He decided not to follow Zhang on the trip and asked Yang Bowen to alert him when Zhang returned.

• Xia Xu moved into his rented apartment and slept soundly, relieved to have Luo Hongyun as a possible source of help.
• Xia Xu shopped for a stab-resistant vest, a compound bow, pepper spray, a stun gun, a dagger, and a collectible miaodao.
• Xia Xu went to the Golden Sun KTV to collect his belongings and check on Zhang Jianmin, but Yang Bowen told him Zhang was at the Xieyou Travel Agency.
• Xia Xu saw that Zhang Jianmin's next plot involved joining a tour to Tibet, but chose not to follow him because the trip seemed unprofitable and risky.
• Xia Xu asked Yang Bowen to find a pretext to contact Zhang Jianmin and learn when he returned from Tibet.

After arranging to register Nine Suns Comprehensive Consulting and Star Sea Venture Capital, Xia Xu learned that three people had been killed in separate canine attacks, which he suspected were connected to the Hunter plot. Unsure what the Fierce Beast was or whether there was more than one, he decided to exercise and keep trying to win Luo Hongyun’s favor.

• Xia Xu decided to register Nine Suns Comprehensive Consulting and Star Sea Venture Capital, then paid an agency to handle the registrations.
• Xia Xu returned to his apartment and saw that the elite soldier across the hall was home.
• Xia Xu read a report about a third fatal canine attack, with officials suspecting a rabies outbreak.
• Xia Xu found that the three attacks had occurred in different areas and suspected the Fierce Beast from Hunter was roaming Star City or that there was more than one.
• Xia Xu worried that encountering another Hunter supporting character could signal his death, then decided to exercise and work on winning Luo Hongyun’s favor.

Xia Xu discovered Louise, a little girl who claimed Luo Hongyun was her father, and helped the awkward former soldier accept her. Luo Hongyun embraced Louise, while Xia Xu realized that winning his affection had suddenly become much easier.

• Xia Xu exercised with Luo Hongyun again and asked him to teach him combat tricks, but Luo Hongyun ignored the request.
• Luo Hongyun brought Louise to Xia Xu's door after she appeared and called him Daddy.
• Xia Xu recognized Louise as a character from the "Night Owl" plot and saw that she had five-star combat talent.
• Luo Hongyun asked Louise whether her mother was Canary, and Louise said her mother was Olivia and had told her Luo Hongyun was her father.
• Louise said her mother had left her with Luo Hongyun, and Luo Hongyun cautiously embraced her after Xia Xu encouraged him.
• Luo Hongyun's affection for Xia Xu increased three times as he held Louise, and Xia Xu noted that Luo Hongyun had become a doting father.

After Louise reunited with Luo Hongyun, Xia Xu learned that her kidnapping would be the turning point in Night Owl’s plot and decided staying nearby could help him earn Luo Hongyun’s favor. Seeing how poorly prepared Luo Hongyun was to raise his daughter, Xia Xu urged him to find work and ended the chapter by offering the idea.

• Xia Xu read Louise’s newly revealed fate synopsis and concluded that the main danger would come when she was kidnapped.
• Luo Hongyun took Louise home, where Xia Xu helped clean the apartment while Luo showered and shaved.
• Xia Xu pointed out that Luo Hongyun needed income to provide Louise with a proper home, food, clothes, and schooling.
• Luo Hongyun realized he was not ready to raise Louise in his current circumstances, and Xia Xu suggested that he get a job.
• Xia Xu checked Luo Hongyun’s attribute panel and saw that his affection had risen to 45.

Xia Xu hired Luo Hongyun as a combat instructor and explained that he feared becoming the target of an attack by an unusual creature. Luo Hongyun agreed to consider the danger, while Xia Xu realized his combat ability might make him virtually invincible in close combat.

• Luo Hongyun refused dangerous work because he had to care for Louise, so Xia Xu offered to hire him as a combat instructor for ten thousand a month.
• Xia Xu explained that he hoped Luo Hongyun would help protect him if danger arose, but said Luo could call the police if he could not handle it.
• Luo Hongyun asked where the danger was coming from, and Xia Xu showed him the news about a suspected rabid stray dog attack.
• Xia Xu asked whether Luo Hongyun had encountered unusual creatures or people who could match him in combat, but Luo said he had only heard unsubstantiated rumors.
• Luo Hongyun dismissed secret martial arts and miraculous drugs, explaining that combat skill came from training and proper nutrition.
• Xia Xu concluded that Luo Hongyun's confidence came from a record of overwhelming victories and that he might be virtually invincible in the city.

After hiring Luo Hongyun, Xia Xu spent the weekend learning combat basics alongside Louise, who quickly outperformed him. Luo then began more dangerous evasion training to help Xia overcome fear, leaving Xia regretting his agreement as Luo attacked in earnest.

• Luo Hongyun began teaching Xia Xu and Louise combat techniques, prioritizing evasion and defense.
• Louise mastered the moves quickly, while Luo repeatedly corrected Xia Xu and used the comparison to motivate him.
• Xia Xu trained through the weekend and learned the basic moves, and Luo adjusted his schedule for school days.
• Luo demonstrated evasion training by stopping a powerful punch near Xia's face, then explained that the exercises would build his reactions and help him overcome fear.
• Xia agreed to start the training, but Luo immediately attacked with a frighteningly forceful punch, and Xia shouted that it was not what they had agreed on.

Xia Xu learned that Zhang Jianmin’s story continued after his return from Tibet, with a rooftop encounter that might bring him a life-saving opportunity. He went to Zhang’s residential complex and found a despondent young man drinking on the rooftop.

• Xia Xu took a day off from Luo Hongyun’s training after Yang Bowen told him Zhang Jianmin had returned from Tibet.
• Xia Xu checked Zhang Jianmin’s status panel and learned that Zhang would meet a drunken young man on his building’s rooftop.
• Xia Xu decided to investigate the rooftop encounter but planned to go early because nighttime and secluded places seemed dangerous.
• Xia Xu waited at a café until around five, then headed to the Times Royal Court Residential Complex.
• Xia Xu reached the rooftop and found its lock forced, with a despondent young man sitting beside a case of beer.

Xia Xu met Hong Bo, a game-design student who was discouraged after his roommates abandoned their unfinished game, and offered to fund its release. He arranged a 500,000-yuan investment through Star Sea Venture Capital in exchange for 70 percent of the new company, leaving Hong Bo and his roommates to complete and operate the game.

• Xia Xu checked Hong Bo’s attributes and learned that Hong Bo hoped to finish and release the game he had developed with his roommates.
• Hong Bo told Xia Xu that his roommates had lost faith in the project and that he lacked the money for artwork and promotion.
• Xia Xu offered to invest in Hong Bo’s dream and gave him a Star Sea Venture Capital business card.
• Hong Bo said the game needed a little over 300,000 yuan for artwork, and Xia Xu proposed investing 500,000 yuan for development and promotion.
• Xia Xu and Hong Bo agreed that Hong Bo would register a company to finish and operate the game, while Star Sea Venture Capital took 70 percent of the equity.