Recaps

Yu Sheng entered the Prosperous Age Hotel to find Chen Feng, while Sun Wen and the others prepared to ambush him outside. Yu Sheng discovered Chen Feng hiding in room 604 and attacked him, but the others were still waiting anxiously when Yu Sheng had not returned after fifteen minutes.

• Yu Sheng equipped himself with daggers, a crossbow, fishing line, and liquid before entering the hotel to look for Chen Feng.
• Sun Wen planned an ambush outside, assigning Zhao Zicheng to watch the entrance while Lin Xiaoxiao, Big White, Mu Yu, and A Tai prepared to support him.
• Yu Sheng rode the elevator with a disguised middle-aged man, noticed his unnatural walk, and found the sixth-floor corridor empty.
• Yu Sheng set a fishing-line trap at room 603, then used a wire to open room 604 and spotted Chen Feng weakened on the sofa.
• Yu Sheng refused Chen Feng's offer of a deal and advanced with his crossbow as Chen Feng revealed he also had one.
• After fifteen minutes without Yu Sheng emerging, Sun Wen worried that something had gone wrong while the others watched the entrance.

Yu Sheng killed Chen Feng in the hotel by tricking him with a fake bomb, while the rest of the team watched from outside. After the mission, Xu Yuanqing awarded Yu Sheng most of the credits, criticized Sun Wen's intelligence work, and confronted Yu Sheng over abandoning his teammates and risking civilians.

• Yu Sheng used a fake bomb's countdown to force Chen Feng out of cover, then killed him with a crossbow bolt.
• Sun Wen and Zhao Zicheng entered the hotel and found Chen Feng dead in Room 604.
• A middle-aged man and Xu Yuanqing watched from nearby rooms, and Xu Yuanqing left Room 503 after commenting on Yu Sheng's combat style.
• Sun Wen contacted the Dark Pavilion, uploaded Chen Feng's photo to the Bounty Hall, and led the team back to school.
• Xu Yuanqing awarded Yu Sheng 280 of the mission's 300 credits, gave Sun Wen 20, and docked Sun Wen 50 credits for poor intelligence work.
• Xu Yuanqing rebuked Yu Sheng for acting alone, endangering civilians, and failing to trust his teammates.

Xu Yuanqing reprimanded Yu Sheng and the others for their poor teamwork, then assigned Yu Sheng to take missions alone. Meanwhile, Zhao Qingyi arrived too late to find Chen Feng and quietly left after paying for the hotel doors she had broken.

• Xu Yuanqing deducted credits and scolded Yu Sheng, Zhao Zicheng, Mu Yu, Lin Xiaoxiao, A Tai, and Sun Wen for their mistakes during the operation.
• Yu Sheng threatened to report Xu Yuanqing to the vice principal, prompting Xu Yuanqing to return the hundred credits he had deducted.
• Xu Yuanqing told Yu Sheng to take missions alone once every three days, and Yu Sheng agreed.
• Zhao Qingyi broke into rooms 603 and 604 at the Prosperous Age Hotel but found no one inside.
• Zhao Qingyi saw a notice that Chen Feng had been shot dead and the mission canceled, then left money for the broken door handles before departing.

After several days of bizarre training around the campus perimeter, Xu Yuanqing sent the freshmen to take hair from a weak upperclassman, but Tail-Ender easily defeated them. The freshmen learned that graduating in three years was exceptional and that some students never graduated.

• Xu Yuanqing put the freshmen through strange fights and training for several days, while Sun Wen turned back from the inner campus after seeing a despairing, bearded man at its entrance.
• Xu Yuanqing ordered the freshmen to pull out a handful of hair from an upperclassman who had repeated twice and remained at his Third Awakening.
• The upperclassman, Tail-Ender, swiftly incapacitated the freshmen and Big White, then advised them to improve their teamwork and fighting technique.
• An upperclassman photographed the defeated freshmen and criticized Tail-Ender's strikes, worrying that Tail-Ender might be expelled.
• The freshmen learned that most Ink Academy students took more than three years to graduate, and some never graduated.

At Ink Academy, the underachiever spoke with his only remaining classmate about his likely departure and her Awakening Object’s side effects, while Yu Sheng completed a bounty outside Jiangcheng. The chapter left An Xin frustrated after discovering that someone had claimed the Azure Wolf before she could.

• Sun Wen, Zhao Zicheng, and Lin Xiaoxiao tried to encourage one another after a week of beatings from the underachiever, while Big White snarled at Zhao Zicheng for stepping on its tail.
• The underachiever told the long-haired girl that he expected to leave Ink Academy if he lost and hoped the elders could resolve the side effects of her Awakening Object.
• The girl encouraged the underachiever, then returned through the archway as the scruffy drunk muttered about Ink Academy being a madhouse.
• Yu Sheng recovered the Demon Core and Demon Crystal from an Azure Wolf, reported the bounty complete, and marked the corpse for collection.
• An Xin arrived to find the Azure Wolf already dead and angrily vowed to catch the person who kept beating her to her targets.

An Xin abandoned the Azure Wolf mission to hunt other Demon Beasts, while Liu Yu secretly followed a suspected Dark Gate deputy leader to a meeting. After overhearing plans involving the Allure Gate, the Myriad Gods Church, and Demon Crystals, Liu Yu was caught and attacked.

• An Xin checked the Demon-Slaughtering Pavilion's mission list, accepted a different mission, and left determined to find Demon Beasts first.
• Liu Yu watched a hooded man arrive in the red-light district and secretly followed him to a secluded house.
• Liu Yu overheard fragments about plans in half a month involving the Allure Gate, the Myriad Gods Church, and Demon Crystals.
• A woman spotted Liu Yu as he tried to leave, and she and the hooded man cornered him in the street.
• The hooded man's Fifth Awakening black cat struck Liu Yu into a wall, while the woman's fox sealed off the street; the woman then approached Liu Yu to question him.

Liu Yu used the Liu Family’s Black Pupil to mark the woman, but the hat-wearing figure killed him and ordered the woman to make final preparations. Old Sun deduced that the Divine Cult’s Goddess was targeting something inside Ink Academy, then secretly maneuvered to pit her against Ink Academy and the Dark Pavilion while pursuing his own chance to survive and seize the prize.

• Liu Yu marked the woman with Black Pupil, but the hat-wearing figure’s black cat killed him and the figure told the woman to notify the Soul Hunting Hunters and settle her affairs.
• Old Sun called the Dark Pavilion anonymously to report that the Evil Cult’s Goddess, Qiu Xiaoxiao, might be in Jiangcheng, then destroyed his SIM card.
• Old Sun found signs of Liu Yu’s death and reasoned that the Goddess planned to draw Ink Academy’s forces away from something inside the academy.
• Old Sun decided to make the Goddess draw Ink Academy’s and the Dark Pavilion’s attention so he could avoid becoming cannon fodder and possibly take the target himself.
• Old Sun disguised himself, sent an envelope to Ink Academy through a beggar, and anticipated that the Goddess would be pressured by the academy and the Dark Pavilion.
• Zong Ren considered the more than a thousand cultists under his command and concluded that the Goddess’s target was an exceptionally valuable prize, making him expectant.

After learning that Liu Yu had died at the Allure Gate, the short-haired woman set out to investigate and avenge him. She found his final clue, “Soul Hunt,” and caught the fleeing deputy gate master.

• Ink Academy’s bell rang for Liu Yu, and the short-haired woman learned that the Allure Gate and possibly Qiu Xiaoxiao were involved in his death.
• The short-haired woman accepted the Allure Gate assignment, while the bottom-ranked student told the freshmen that she was the only survivor of the 139th Cohort.
• Zhao Zicheng watched a video of Liu Yu and urged the others to work harder.
• The short-haired woman went to the Red-Light District, questioned its residents, and found Liu Yu’s blood-written clue: “Soul Hunt.”
• After contacting the Liu Family and receiving a location, the short-haired woman pursued the deputy gate master and blocked her path with her glaive.

Bai Haitang killed the Allure Gate deputy leader after demanding to know what Soul Hunt meant, but the deputy leader died without answering. A hidden observer suspected Zong Ren was involved and delayed Soul Hunt’s plans for ten days.

• Bai Haitang confronted the Allure Gate deputy leader over her classmate’s death and attacked her while asking about Soul Hunt.
• The deputy leader used her fox awakening object and illusions, but Bai Haitang’s black flower broke through them and shielded her.
• The deputy leader detonated her awakening object and tried to stab Bai Haitang, but Bai Haitang recovered her senses, avoided a fatal wound, and killed her.
• Bai Haitang called the Dark Pavilion to arrange the deputy leader’s body removal and claim the bounty, then left injured.
• A disguised observer wondered how Bai Haitang knew Qiu Xiaoxiao’s name, suspected Zong Ren, and sent instructions to delay the plan by ten days.

Bai Haitang returned to Ink Academy after a failed attempt to get information, while Zhao Zicheng and the other newcomers grew closer and improved through repeated fights. The bottom-ranked student reflected on his limits and urged the long-haired girl to focus on the Human Race’s future before leaving the stage.

• Bai Haitang returned to Ink Academy, where the loudspeaker criticized her naivety and she said she might have wanted to indulge herself one more time.
• Zhao Zicheng and the other new students coordinated better against the bottom-ranked student, while A Tai said his Second Awakening might be near.
• Zhao Zicheng announced that he was nearing his Third Awakening, but Sun Wen warned that it could bring an even stronger opponent to beat them.
• The bottom-ranked student told the long-haired girl that he might last only five more days and said his weak Awakening Object made him unqualified to stay at Ink Academy.
• The long-haired girl praised the bottom-ranked student’s past strength and predicted he would enter the Human Race’s hall of honor, but he remained forlorn and walked away.

The Dark Pavilion investigated an unexplained surge in Jiangcheng’s population while Yu Sheng frustrated An Xin by claiming the demon-beast hunting missions she needed. As the search for the Evil Cult’s plans stalled, a massive beast army attacked Demon-Suppressing Pass, where Zhong Yushu stood to face it.

• The Pavilion Master ordered an investigation into Jiangcheng’s unusual population increase and warned Zhao Qingyi that Qiu Xiaoxiao might be connected to a major Evil Cult plan.
• An Xin confronted Yu Sheng for taking her missions, but he refused to leave her any work and reminded her that she had once followed him in Baichun City.
• Bai Haitang and the Dark Pavilion searched for Zong Ren and questioned captured Evil Cultists, but learned only that the Goddess had already come and gone.
• Ink Academy recalled students from their missions as guards at Jiangcheng’s gates increased, but the investigators found no sign of unusual activity.
• A red alert sounded at Demon-Suppressing Pass as flying creatures and beasts advanced with Xiangliu and a golden eagle, and Zhong Yushu ordered reinforcements before confronting them in midair.

After Tail-Ender accepted his defeat and left to pack, Ink Academy received an alarm ordering experts to reinforce Demon-Suppressing Pass. The academy’s elders and teachers departed, leaving Xu Yuanqing to defend Jiangcheng as the students mobilized to protect its people.

• Tail-Ender congratulated Zhao Zicheng and the others, accepted their bow, and left for the dormitory to pack for Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• The Ink Pavilion sounded an alarm, and its leaders and other forces sent everyone at the Sixth Awakening or above to reinforce Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• The principal ordered Ink Academy to full combat readiness and assigned the students to protect Jiangcheng while the experts were away.
• The principal appointed Xu Yuanqing to remain in Jiangcheng, and Xu Yuanqing promised the city would stand as long as he lived.
• After the elders, teachers, and older students departed, Xu Yuanqing ordered the second-year students to patrol Jiangcheng and kill anyone who threatened or exploited its people.

As Jiangcheng prepared for war, Xu Yuanqing ordered the city locked down and left Ink Academy’s students to defend its gates. Zhao Zicheng and A Tai began absorbing Demon Cores, while Tail-Ender returned to stand guard with the students.

• Xu Yuanqing told Zhao Zicheng and the other students to hold Ink Academy’s gate, then ordered Jiangcheng’s residents indoors and announced a lethal lockdown.
• Sun Wen offered Zhao Zicheng a more suitable Demon Core, but Zhao chose to absorb the one he had for Ink Academy and began an awakening breakthrough.
• A Tai swallowed a blood-red Demon Core and collapsed in pain as he began his own breakthrough.
• Sun Wen told the others he had contacted Boss Yu, gave Zhao Zicheng his Jade Pendant, and brought repeating crossbows and other weapons to the gate.
• Tail-Ender arrived after dropping out, armed himself from Sun Wen’s backpack, and sat with the students to guard Ink Academy one last time.

Yu Sheng headed for Jiangcheng while Demon-Suppressing Pass faced a massive Demon Beast assault and received reinforcements from across the Human Race. In Jiangcheng, Xu Yuanqing mobilized Ink Academy against a sudden cult uprising, while Qiu Xiaoxiao waited in an inn and noted that Zong Ren had not appeared.

• Yu Sheng read a message, decided to try saving people, and left for Jiangcheng after finding that the Bounty Hall could not come out.
• Pavilion Master Lin and Zhong Yushu fought at Demon-Suppressing Pass as Demon Beasts overran the defenses; Ink Academy and other forces arrived to reinforce them.
• Ink Academy's principal and several old fighters joined forces against the golden eagle while Zhong Yushu renewed his duel with Xiangliu and threatened Ji Hong.
• Pavilion Master Lin fought through the Demon Beasts, angered that the older generation still had to carry the battle as the sun sank over the bloodied pass.
• In Jiangcheng, a disguised woman removed her mask and sent a message before crowds of fanatical cultists filled the streets; Xu Yuanqing ordered Ink Academy students to slay anyone causing unrest, and fighting began.
• Qiu Xiaoxiao watched from the inn and said Zong Ren had still not appeared, though he was likely searching for her.

Xu Yuanqing fought three Sixth Awakening cultists while Bai Haitang confronted Qiu Xiaoxiao, and Zong Ren used the chaos to disguise himself and approach Ink Academy. At the academy gates, Zhao Zicheng, A Tai, Mu Yu, Sun Wen, Lin Xiaoxiao, and Tail-Ender prepared to defend against cultists breaking through the encirclement.

• Xu Yuanqing summoned his embryonic Phoenix and faced three Sixth Awakening cultists surrounding him.
• Bai Haitang challenged Qiu Xiaoxiao over Liu Yu’s death, then fought her after Zong Ren’s crossbow bolt shattered a window nearby.
• Zong Ren fled into an alley, changed his appearance to that of an innocent young boy, and headed toward Ink Academy.
• Zhao Zicheng and A Tai joined Tail-Ender at the academy gates as cultists surged toward them.
• Mu Yu slowed the cultists with black threads from his Gravestone, while A Tai charged into the crowd and Sun Wen, Mu Yu, and Lin Xiaoxiao fired crossbows; Sun Wen stopped Lin Xiaoxiao from mishandling an explosive.

Tail-Ender and the Ink Academy students fought off the Evil Cultists while Xu Yuanqing battled their leaders. Yu Sheng and An Xin blasted a hole through Jiangcheng’s gate, and Yu Sheng hurried toward Ink Academy, hoping he was not too late.

• Tail-Ender fought the cultists at close range, then told the long-haired woman to return to safety and taught the students to use their bodies as weapons.
• Zhao Zicheng used Damage Reflection while A Tai, Big White, Mu Yu, and Sun Wen joined the fight against the advancing cultists.
• Xu Yuanqing killed one of his airborne opponents but continued fighting despite his injuries.
• An Xin drove Yu Sheng to Jiangcheng’s sealed gate, where they blew a hole through it with the car.
• Yu Sheng apologized to An Xin, entered the city with daggers in hand, and hurried toward Ink Academy.

Sun Wen, Mu Yu, and the other students prepared to retreat behind Ink Academy's gates while Tail-Ender stayed behind to face the approaching Evil Cultists. Just as the gates began to close, Yu Sheng returned, and Zhao Zicheng rushed out again to join the fight.

• Sun Wen and Mu Yu reflected on Yu Sheng and watched Zhao Zicheng and Tail-Ender fight as the students' defenses weakened.
• Tail-Ender ordered the others to retreat inside Ink Academy and keep its gates shut until he died.
• Sun Wen agreed to retreat, explaining that protecting the academy's inner grounds was the best way to buy time.
• Xu Wenxuan charged the Evil Cultists after the gates began to close, declaring that he had done the academy proud.
• Zhao Zicheng spotted Yu Sheng returning and ran back outside, determined not to miss the fight against the Blood-Colored Twin Fiends.

Yu Sheng and the 140th Cohort’s freshmen held the academy gates against the Evil Cultists, while Xu Yuanqing continued fighting the last blood-saber wielder in the air above Jiangcheng. Ink Academy had gained the upper hand, but both battles were still raging.

• Sun Wen and the other freshmen refused to leave the gates, fighting Tail-Ender and the charging Evil Cultists as Zhao Zicheng boasted about the cohort’s strength.
• Yu Sheng used a transparent fishing line and a sudden burst of speed to kill several attackers, forcing the Evil Cultists to halt and regard him warily.
• After Yu Sheng warned Tail-Ender to stop his bleeding, Tail-Ender joined him in the fight, and Zhao Zicheng charged after them with his saber.
• Xu Yuanqing pressed the last blood-saber wielder into a one-on-one fight despite his grave wounds, while Bai Haitang and Qiu Xiaoxiao fought fiercely below.
• The blood-saber wielder charged again after Xu Yuanqing challenged his ties to the Allure Gate, and Xu Yuanqing put away the Demon Crystal he had been concealing as their battle resumed.

The Human Race began a counterattack at Demon-Suppressing Pass as the Reserve Corps charged out to flank the Demon Clan, while Xiangliu’s assault remained stalled. In Jiangcheng, Zong Ren reached Ink Academy’s gate and attacked the wounded students, but someone grabbed his ankle as he entered the academy.

• Xiangliu grew more anxious as Zhong Yushu held him at bay and the Golden Eagle remained occupied.
• Sun Yingxiong ordered the operation to begin, and a burly man led the Reserve Corps through the mountains to strike the Demon Clan from behind.
• The Reserve Corps’ charge threw the Demon Clan into chaos, while Xiangliu urged the Golden Eagle to help him kill Zhong Yushu.
• In Jiangcheng, Tail-Ender spotted Zong Ren approaching Ink Academy’s gate and tried to stop him, but Zong Ren wounded him and attacked Sun Wen and Zhao Zicheng.
• Zong Ren left the students behind and entered Ink Academy in search of its treasure, but halted when bloodstained hands seized his ankle.

Tail-Ender died after helping defend Ink Academy and save its students from the Evil Cult. As students bid him farewell, he asked Yu Sheng to keep going, then passed away in the hands of the girl he had waited for.

• Tail-Ender held Zong Ren back until returning students neared the gate, and Zong Ren broke his hands before fleeing.
• Xu Yuanqing cleared the entrance and collapsed, while Yu Sheng checked on Sun Wen and Zhao Zicheng and confirmed that they were alive.
• Students from several cohorts gathered to bid Tail-Ender farewell, and Yu Sheng joined them.
• Tail-Ender told Yu Sheng that he saw his own potential in him and asked him to keep walking forward.
• The long-haired girl arrived, held Tail-Ender's bloodied hand to her cheek, and watched as he died.

After Wenxuan’s death, Chu Yu grieved and left the academy, while the Human Race celebrated its victory at Demon-Suppressing Pass and mourned its dead. Three days later, the Ink Academy held a funeral, where Chu Yu said the experiment could begin before departing again, as the injured students faced a long recovery.

• Chu Yu cleaned Wenxuan’s body, entrusted his funeral arrangements to the other students, and left the academy after grieving beside the rockery.
• Zong Ren changed his disguise, decided he could no longer remain in Jiangcheng, and began searching for a scapegoat.
• At Demon-Suppressing Pass, Xiangliu and the golden eagle retreated as Zhong Yushu proclaimed a great victory and led the soldiers in pursuit of the demons.
• The Human Race celebrated the victory, while the Ink Academy rang its bell thirteen times for the master of Jiangcheng’s Ink Pavilion, and Zhao Qingyi received a car key.
• After Xu Yuanqing woke from three days of sleep, the students held Wenxuan’s funeral; Chu Yu told the vice principal to prepare the experiment and left the academy again.
• The doctor warned Zhao Zicheng, Sun Wen, A Tai, Mu Yu, Lin Xiaoxiao, and Big White that their injuries would keep them from fighting for weeks or months.

After the Demon Clan broke its agreement and attacked Demon-Suppressing Pass, Wan Bo of Ink Pavilion retaliated alone, devastating several Demon Domain strongholds and forcing the mountain lords to withdraw. Zhong Yushu recognized his former teacher’s Awakening Object and watched Wan Bo’s assault end with a warning that the Demon Clan must recuperate for two years.

• Six mountain lords attacked Demon-Suppressing Pass, killing many fighters and gravely injuring Zhong Yushu before reinforcements halted them.
• The next day, Wan Bo attacked Eagle Ravine Mountain, killing or injuring most of its inhabitants and leaving a message naming himself as the killer.
• Wan Bo struck Zeshan as well, forcing Xiangliu and the other mountain lords to retreat and easing the pressure on Demon-Suppressing Pass.
• Zhong Yushu recognized Wan Bo’s nine-crystal sickle as his teacher’s Awakening Object and knelt as Wan Bo killed the golden eagle and sent its Demon Core to the pass.
• Wan Bo entered Skyvault Ravine, destroyed part of it, killed countless pure-blooded Demon Beasts and a flood dragon, and warned the Demon Clan to recuperate for two years.

After the Human Race and Demon Clan agreed to a one-year ceasefire, Sun Yingxiong honored the dead and announced rewards for the freshman tournament. The chapter ended with Xu Yuanqing visiting the injured Sun Wen at Ink Academy and asking about his credits.

• Ji Hong left Xiangliu in charge of Zeshan and concealed his own injuries after the battle.
• Zhong Yushu urged the grieving soldiers to celebrate their victory, and Sun Yingxiong secured a one-year ceasefire with the Demon Clan.
• The Human Race mourned Wan Bo and the fallen, while Sun Yingxiong added their plaques to the Human Race Hall and announced rewards for the academy freshman tournament.
• Xu Yuanqing visited the bandaged Sun Wen at Ink Academy and asked whether he had earned many credits.

Xu Yuanqing pitched Sun Wen on investing in a delivery business, but Yu Sheng focused on helping the injured Sun Wen recover in ways that left him miserable. Yu Sheng left Sun Wen alone in the blazing sun with the air conditioner off, while Sun Wen wondered whether the colder Yu Sheng had been better.

• Xu Yuanqing asked Sun Wen to invest in his Hero Takeout delivery venture, but Sun Wen shut his eyes and asked how much a steamed bun delivery would cost.
• Yu Sheng arrived and cheerfully took Sun Wen to the bathroom, breaking the cast over his crotch and using his Sucker Punch to keep him upright.
• Yu Sheng encouraged Sun Wen to keep trying until he managed to urinate, while Xu Yuanqing watched in disbelief and left, convinced he was dreaming.
• Yu Sheng returned Sun Wen to bed, moved him into the noon sunlight, switched off the air conditioner, and said he would return in five hours.
• Sun Wen sat alone in the heat and lamented that the old Yu Sheng might have been better.

Yu Sheng continued learning how to help people by caring for Lin Xiaoxiao and Zhao Zicheng, though his attention left them frightened and exhausted. When Xu Yuanqing announced the Academy Freshmen Competition, the group realized Yu Sheng might be their only able competitor, and the loudspeaker warned that their instructor would face severe penalties if they failed to win.

• Yu Sheng gave Big White his medicine and confiscated Lin Xiaoxiao's potato chips while urging her to rest.
• Yu Sheng helped Zhao Zicheng up, checked that he had done his muscle exercises, and dragged him outside to exercise more.
• Xu Yuanqing told Yu Sheng and Zhao Zicheng that the Academy Freshmen Competition would soon begin in Ink City and that Ink Academy usually won.
• Zhao Zicheng pointed out that he and the others were injured, prompting Xu Yuanqing to realize Yu Sheng might be their only fighter.
• The loudspeaker announced that the instructor would lose a year's salary and three years of scholarship money if they failed to win, and would have to run naked unless he paid 500 credits.