Chapter Summaries

Jiang Lan reported his exploration mission and learned that he had discovered the eighteenth Ancient Ruins site on Blue Star. The review revealed that the ruins had supplied the technology behind the Inner Domain, while the unusual sphere Jiang Lan found remained unexplained and was to be left untouched.

• Jiang Lan confirmed that he had completed the exploration mission and waited for a Guardian Manor reviewer.
• Qin reviewed Jiang Lan's account and identified the site as the eighteenth Ancient Ruins discovered on Blue Star.
• Qin explained that the ruins predated human civilization and that the Guardian Manor had adapted technology from the third site to create the Inner Domain.
• Jiang Lan learned that the sphere he found had appeared at none of the previous seventeen sites, and Qin told him to keep it and not try to stimulate it.
• Qin awarded Jiang Lan 600 contribution points for completing the mission and discovering the ruins, then told him to keep the events confidential.
• Jiang Lan left the Inner Domain and returned to his room, deciding to take a shower.

After noticing a faint flicker from the blue sphere, Jiang Lan met Gu Changqing at the Four Seas Teahouse and heard that the Guardian Manor would inspect it without taking it unfairly. He then learned the Three-School Alliance ranking tournament was scheduled for next Wednesday and decided to enter.

• Shen Qingqiu noticed a scrape on Jiang Lan's arm, and they spent the evening together before he went to the Training Room the next morning.
• Jiang Lan saw the deep blue sphere flicker faintly as he put it away, then received a call from Gu Changqing.
• Jiang Lan met Gu Changqing, who said the Guardian Manor would arrange an inspection of the sphere and compensate him if it proved useful.
• Gu Changqing praised Jiang Lan's rapid progress and left, while Jiang Lan wondered whether his comment carried a deeper meaning.
• Jiang Lan read Zhao Xuan's messages about the upcoming Three-School Alliance ranking tournament and replied that he would enter; Lin Wan also said she would participate.

Jiang Lan dominated the Three-School Alliance Ranking Tournament and defeated Han Qing in the final to win the championship. After the match, Han Qing accepted his loss and asked to spar again someday.

• Jiang Lan drew Lu Ren of Tianshu Academy as his first opponent and quickly knocked him out of the ring.
• Jiang Lan won his next match with a single punch, while Zhao Xuan won two matches and Lin Wan also won two before Zhao Xuan lost to a stronger opponent.
• Jiang Lan faced late-Blood Exchange Realm Han Qing in the final and blocked several attacks before knocking him back with a kick.
• Han Qing conceded, and Su Wan announced Jiang Lan as the tournament champion.
• Han Qing congratulated Jiang Lan and said he hoped to learn from him again in the future.

Jiang Lan was summoned to an emergency Guardian Manor assembly, where he learned that seven Ancient Ruins were awakening and threatening Blue Star. The organization began assigning investigation teams, and Jiang Lan was placed on Shen Fang’s team.

• Jiang Lan entered the Inner Domain after his Token began summoning him and found dozens of members gathered in the hall.
• A powerful gray-robed man explained that patterns in seven Ancient Ruins had restarted, causing Spiritual Qi levels to shift and Energy Bodies in three ruins to awaken.
• The man revealed that the awakening ruins were provoking Ferocious Beasts worldwide and that their matching energy frequencies suggested the ruins were integrating.
• The organization ordered teams led by Immortal Realm members to investigate the ruins, assess the danger, and eliminate Energy Bodies if necessary.
• The man assigned Jiang Lan to Shen Fang’s team alongside Fang Yi, Zheng Kai, and Su Yao.

Jiang Lan joined Shen Fang’s team for an expedition to Ruins No. 7, bringing along the mysterious sphere because his intuition warned him it might matter. The team gathered at the enormous ruins, where Jiang Lan’s system detected a high-concentration Spiritual Qi environment.

• Shen Fang introduced Jiang Lan to Fang Yi, Zheng Kai, and Su Yao, then briefed the team on their mission to Ruins No. 7.
• Jiang Lan decided to bring the sphere and the Token, told Shen Qingqiu he would be away for several days, and left for the North Gate.
• Jiang Lan met Shen Fang and Zheng Kai at the North Gate, and the three traveled toward the ruins at high speed.
• Shen Fang, Jiang Lan, and Zheng Kai reached the mountain range and saw the immense, patterned ruins exposed in its side.
• Fang Yi and Su Yao joined the team, and Jiang Lan’s system detected a high-concentration Spiritual Qi environment.

Jiang Lan and Shen Fang’s team fought their way through increasingly dangerous Ancient Ruins, where Energy Bodies appeared more frequently and grew stronger. Shen Fang effortlessly destroyed a powerful three-core Energy Body, and the team prepared to face greater dangers deeper inside.

• Shen Fang led Jiang Lan, Fang Yi, Su Yao, and Zheng Kai into well-preserved Ancient Ruins filled with dense Spiritual Qi.
• Fang Yi and Zheng Kai quickly destroyed two Energy Bodies, and the team continued down the passage as more appeared.
• Jiang Lan destroyed an Energy Body with a kick and a punch after the others engaged the remaining enemies.
• Su Yao warned the team that a much stronger Energy Body was ahead, and Shen Fang instantly shattered all three of its chest cores.
• Shen Fang warned that the path ahead would be more dangerous and told the team to stay ready.

Jiang Lan’s indestructible diamond body advanced to layer 43 as the group explored the underground site and found the source of its spiritual qi. The orb in his backpack reacted to the central apparatus, and the group continued downward into a strange passage, choosing its middle branch.

• Jiang Lan completed his upgrade progress and advanced his indestructible diamond body to layer 43 during the group’s rest.
• The group reached a vast underground chamber where Shen Fang identified a spiritual qi siphon surrounded by patterned pillars.
• Su Yao sensed at least two levels beneath the apparatus but could not detect what lay there, so Shen Fang ordered the group to record the chamber and then investigate below.
• Jiang Lan’s orb trembled in his backpack, and he concealed its reaction while suspecting it was connected to the apparatus.
• The group followed a passage downward, reached a three-way fork, and Shen Fang chose the middle path.

Jiang Lan and the others defeated a regenerating Energy Body by striking its five glowing points at once during a brief pause in its repair cycle. A sudden upheaval separated Jiang Lan from the group and dropped him into a dark hall, where Little Ball began vibrating violently in his backpack.

• Jiang Lan noticed that the Energy Body's five lights dimmed together every ten seconds, revealing a brief weakness.
• Su Yao called the timing while Shen Fang, Fang Yi, Zheng Kai, and Jiang Lan attacked together and destroyed all five lights.
• The chamber's patterns flashed white, and a violent pull dragged Jiang Lan underground, separating him from the others.
• Jiang Lan found himself alone in a dark hall with no Energy Bodies nearby and guessed he was on the ruins' third underground level.
• Little Ball vibrated violently inside Jiang Lan's backpack.

Jiang Lan activated a hidden mechanism in the hall, which revealed a spiritual qi core and awakened a humanoid projection. The projection identified itself as an auxiliary intelligent entity with lost memories, but it could not help Jiang Lan yet.

• The little ball flew into a matching recess in the wall, lighting patterns throughout the hall and raising a pedestal from the floor.
• Jiang Lan found a high-purity spiritual qi core on the pedestal as the little ball projected the image of a young boy.
• Jiang Lan learned that the projection was an auxiliary intelligent entity and an intelligent life-form.
• The projection recalled that its spaceship had crashed and said it had awakened in Blue Star with most of its memories gone.
• The projection identified the core as an energy-array power supply and told Jiang Lan it could not do anything right now.

Jiang Lan learned that Blue Star was being cultivated by an array system to accelerate evolution before its inhabitants and resources were harvested. The projection explained how the process could be delayed, and Jiang Lan asked how to stop it permanently.

• The projection absorbed energy from the Spiritual Qi Core and recovered some of his memories.
• Jiang Lan told the projection that eighteen ruins had been discovered on Blue Star and seven had shown abnormalities.
• The projection revealed that the ruins’ arrays had introduced spiritual qi to Blue Star to accelerate the evolution of living things for eventual harvesting.
• The projection said a final surge in spiritual qi would trigger large-scale Ferocious Beast rampages before harvesting.
• The projection explained that removing the Spiritual Qi Cores could suspend integration temporarily, but the arrays would regenerate them.
• Jiang Lan asked how the cultivation process could be stopped for good.

Jiang Lan removed the Spiritual Qi Core from the ruin's array, putting it into dormancy and delaying integration. He learned that six other cores remained and left with Xing hidden in his backpack, planning to keep both the core and Xing secret.

• Projection told Jiang Lan he could either destroy the arrays, which was impossible, or become strong enough to repel the Harvesters.
• Jiang Lan removed the Spiritual Qi Core from its pedestal, causing the array's patterns to dim as it entered dormancy.
• Projection explained that removing all seven cores would halt integration and that Xing could not restore his lost capabilities for at least a year.
• Jiang Lan learned Projection's name was Xing, then dismissed the projection and put Little Ball back in his backpack.
• Jiang Lan decided not to reveal the core or Xing to Shen Fang and the others, and Xing agreed to hide during any inspection.
• Jiang Lan asked Xing to tell him where the other sites were and entered the passage leading upward.

Jiang Lan reunited with Shen Fang and the others after taking the Spiritual Qi Core, and the group left the ruins as its Energy Bodies disappeared. At home, he learned Shen Qingqiu had reached Peak Condensed Astral Force, then used the core to raise his Indestructible Diamond Body to level 46 as its power kept triggering upgrades.

• Jiang Lan met Shen Fang and Fang Yi in the passage and told them he had fallen into the hall on the third floor.
• Jiang Lan regrouped with Zheng Kai and Su Yao, and Shen Fang led everyone out of the ruins as its Spiritual Qi and Energy Bodies dwindled.
• Shen Fang photographed the ruins and arranged for the group to meet in the Inner Domain at ten the next morning to submit their reports.
• Jiang Lan returned home, where Shen Qingqiu told him she had advanced to Peak Condensed Astral Force.
• Jiang Lan took out the Spiritual Qi Core, and the System upgraded his Indestructible Diamond Body to level 44, then level 45, and then level 46.

Jiang Lan used the Spiritual Qi Core to raise his Indestructible Diamond Body from level 42 to level 60, then asked Xing how removing the cores affected the integration process. He learned the array would regenerate the cores, leaving him to seek a more permanent solution and grow stronger.

• Jiang Lan endured repeated surges of heat as he upgraded his Indestructible Diamond Body to level 60.
• Jiang Lan checked his System Panel and saw that his attributes had nearly doubled.
• Jiang Lan put the Spiritual Qi Core in his backpack, showered, and asked Xing whether integration would stop after one core was removed.
• Xing told Jiang Lan that integration would only stop after all the cores were removed, and that the array would regenerate any missing core.
• Jiang Lan realized he would need to keep removing cores or find a fundamental solution, and resolved to grow stronger.

After upgrading Indestructible Diamond Body to sixty layers, Jiang Lan tested his strength and found that he had reached the middle-to-late Diamond Realm. Before heading to an Inner Domain meeting, he asked Xing for the locations of six more Ruins and learned that three were across the sea on another continent.

• Jiang Lan went with Shen Qingqiu to a private Training Room to test his improved abilities.
• Jiang Lan recorded 743,892 kilograms of punching power and 1,198,417 kilograms with his Earth-Cracking Leg, exceeding Diamond Realm strength standards.
• Jiang Lan tested his speed at 13,847 meters per second, while Shen Qingqiu resolved to train harder.
• Jiang Lan told Shen Qingqiu that he had to visit the Inner Domain for a meeting, and Shen Qingqiu agreed to train on his own.
• Jiang Lan asked Xing for the locations of six other Ruins and received their coordinates, including three on a distant continent across the sea.

Jiang Lan attended an Inner Domain meeting where teams reported their failed expeditions and a Diamond Realm expert’s death. After Jiang Lan explained how he had disabled the array by taking its Spiritual Qi Core, the gray-robed man asked to speak with him.

• Jiang Lan joined Shen Fang and Zheng Kai in the hall and noticed that several attendees had returned with serious injuries.
• The first, second, fourth, fifth, and seventh teams reported limited progress, retreats, or no casualties, while the sixth team announced that Xue Yuanxing had died fighting a new Energy Body.
• Shen Fang reported that Jiang Lan had been transported to the third level, where Energy Bodies were less concentrated and the team suffered no injuries.
• Jiang Lan said that he had found and removed a Spiritual Qi Core, causing the array patterns to go dark and the Energy Bodies to dissipate.
• The gray-robed man declared that removing the core was the only confirmed way to disable the array and said a new plan would be ready within three days.
• As Jiang Lan prepared to leave, the gray-robed man stopped him and asked whether he had something to tell him.

Jiang Lan told the gray-robed man that the Ruins were accelerating life’s evolution to prepare for a harvest, and explained how removing their Spiritual Qi Cores could pause integration. The man gave Jiang Lan a private Token and promised a new plan within three days, while Jiang Lan returned to his room still concealing information tied to his system.

• Jiang Lan revealed that the Spiritual Qi Core was still intact and that Xinghe, an intelligent entity inside a ball from Ruins No. 18, had recognized him as its master.
• Jiang Lan explained that the Ruins released Spiritual Qi to cultivate life for harvesting, and that integration caused the recent abnormalities and Ferocious Beast rampages.
• Jiang Lan told the gray-robed man that removing all seven Spiritual Qi Cores could pause integration, and that Xinghe knew their locations across the continent.
• The gray-robed man told Jiang Lan to keep the information confidential, gave him a Token for direct contact, and said he would prepare a plan within three days.
• Jiang Lan returned to his room and reflected that he had disclosed what he could while keeping system-related information secret.

Jiang Lan waited for the Spiritual Qi Core to recover while he examined his increased perception and learned that Shen Qingqiu was nearing a breakthrough. The core released enough spiritual qi for Jiang Lan to advance Indestructible Diamond Body by two layers, and he then asked Xing where the nearest Ruins were.

• Jiang Lan returned to his room and learned from Xing that the Spiritual Qi Core was recovering but would release much less spiritual qi than before.
• Jiang Lan tested his enhanced perception after Indestructible Diamond Body reached the sixtieth layer.
• Shen Qingqiu told Jiang Lan that his bottleneck was loosening and he might soon break through into the Blood Exchange Realm.
• The Spiritual Qi Core released spiritual qi at night, allowing Jiang Lan to advance Indestructible Diamond Body to the sixty-first and sixty-second layers.
• Jiang Lan asked Xing where the nearest Ruins were, then went to sleep.

Jiang Lan joined a new mission to disable three remaining ruins by removing their Spiritual Qi Cores and received 100,000 contribution points for his intelligence. He prepared to leave the next morning and promised Shen Qingqiu a surprise when he returned.

• Ji summoned Jiang Lan to a conference room in the Inner Domain and outlined plans to remove the Spiritual Qi Cores from three remaining ruins.
• Ji assigned Shen Fang to lead a team with Fang Yi, Su Yao, Han Yue, and Jiang Lan to the northern mountain range, naming Jiang Lan as their guide and locator of the core.
• Jiang Lan asked Ji for contribution points in exchange for his intelligence, and Ji awarded him 100,000.
• Jiang Lan returned home and told Shen Qingqiu he would leave early the next morning for a day or two.
• Jiang Lan promised Shen Qingqiu a surprise when he returned, but kept its nature secret.

Jiang Lan and the others arrived at the second ruins, where Xing guided them through the entrance and along the left passage. After Jiang Lan effortlessly destroyed four energy bodies, Su Yao sensed a powerful one ahead, stronger than the five-light energy body they had faced before.

• Jiang Lan met Shen Fang and Zheng Kai at the rally point, and the three traveled to the mountain coordinates where the rest of the group joined them.
• Xing revealed a crack in the rock face as the entrance to the ruins, and Jiang Lan followed Xing's guidance to choose the left passage at a fork.
• Jiang Lan destroyed four weak energy bodies in less than a second, surprising most of the group with his increased strength.
• The group continued deeper into the ruins as the spiritual qi grew denser, and Su Yao sensed a powerful energy body ahead, stronger than the five-light one they had previously encountered.

Jiang Lan joined Shen Fang and Han Yue in fighting a seven-light-point energy body that used spiritual qi resonance and quickly repaired its damaged lights. After Shen Fang and Han Yue shattered six lights at once, Jiang Lan endured the resonance and destroyed the last one, clearing the chamber as the group prepared to continue.

• Jiang Lan, Shen Fang, and Han Yue approached the seven-light-point energy body while the others stayed behind.
• Shen Fang and Han Yue attacked the energy body, but its spiritual qi resonance disrupted them and allowed it to strike Han Yue.
• Shen Fang and Han Yue realized they needed to shatter all seven lights between resonances, and Jiang Lan offered to withstand the resonance and destroy the final light.
• Shen Fang and Han Yue shattered six lights with simultaneous attacks, and Jiang Lan punched out the seventh during the resonance.
• The energy body disintegrated, and Shen Fang confirmed the group was ready to keep moving.