Chapter Summaries

Shang-Chi reunited with his sister Xu Xialing, who had built an underground boxing arena after leaving their father’s base. JARVIS revealed he had brought them together and warned that Xu Wenwu was on his way to Los Angeles, while explaining that another organization had carried out the bombings in the Ten Rings’ name.

• Xu Xialing confronted Shang-Chi over abandoning her for eight years, then refused to flee when he warned their father might target her pendant.
• Xu Xialing questioned whether the heat-emitting attackers who could regrow limbs were really Xu Wenwu’s men, and the siblings discussed the lives they had led since leaving the base.
• Shang-Chi learned that Xu Xialing had come to the villa after receiving an electronic postcard, and JARVIS admitted he had sent it after linking the siblings to explosions across North America.
• JARVIS said he had not asked Li Qi’s permission to send the postcard, prompting Xu Xialing to demand an explanation before he told her Xu Wenwu was flying to Los Angeles and would arrive in about half a day.
• JARVIS revealed that another organization had staged the bombings under the Ten Rings’ name and asked the siblings to tell their father the truth and clear the Ten Rings of suspicion.

Xu Xialing sought out Li Qi in the basement, where he used mind control to read her memories and decided she would serve as his bodyguard. The group then gathered for dinner, while Shang-Chi mistook his sister’s obedient behavior for a change of heart.

• Xu Xialing went to find Li Qi, but the villa’s security prevented her from entering the basement until JARVIS received permission to let her in.
• Li Qi welcomed Xu Xialing with coffee and showed her the vast workshop, where he was building a mech with JARVIS’s help.
• Li Qi used mind control to read Xu Xialing’s memories and decided she would stay by his side as a bodyguard while managing her fighting arena remotely.
• After JARVIS told Li Qi that Daisy Johnson had finished dinner, Li Qi invited Xu Xialing upstairs and asked JARVIS to call Shang-Chi and Katy.
• Shang-Chi arrived with Katy and wondered why Xu Xialing was standing quietly beside Li Qi, while Katy eagerly began eating the food.

Li Qi finished and tested his first suit of armor, then learned that Dr. Maya had come seeking Tony Stark and took control of her. With Killian’s squad and Xu Wenwu’s Ten Rings squad approaching the villa, Li Qi prepared to face the incoming threats.

• Li Qi worked through the night with Xu Xialing and assembled a red-and-white suit of armor, then tested its flight and maneuverability despite damaging the villa.
• Shang-Chi asked Xu Xialing about her relationship with Li Qi, but she told him to mind his own business, prompting him to reconsider his direction in life.
• JARVIS announced Dr. Maya’s arrival, and Li Qi learned she had come to warn Tony Stark before using his mind-control ability to take control of her.
• JARVIS detected Killian’s squad and Xu Wenwu’s Ten Rings squad nearing the villa, so Li Qi told Happy and the bodyguards to hide and called Daisy Johnson to join him and Xu Xialing.
• Li Qi put on his armor and brought Daisy Johnson and Xu Xialing to the balcony to await the approaching squads.

Li Qi intercepted Killian's helicopters before they could reach the villa, then confronted Xu Wenwu when the Ten Rings leader arrived looking for Shang-Chi. As their fight reached a stalemate, Li Qi activated his mind-control ability to try to subdue Xu Wenwu.

• Li Qi flew out in his armor and attacked Killian's armed helicopters, damaging one and battling the bald enhanced man who clung to his leg and burned through its armor.
• Li Qi submerged his damaged leg and the bald man in the sea, then blasted the man at close range with a repulsor.
• Li Qi spotted Xu Wenwu among three approaching helicopters and blocked their path, refusing to let him reach Shang-Chi at the villa.
• Xu Wenwu and Li Qi moved toward land and fought with the Ten Rings' energy waves, repulsors, and missiles, but neither gained the upper hand.
• Li Qi recognized Xu Wenwu's strength and activated his mind-control ability to try to bring him under control.

Li Qi used his mind-control ability to subdue Xu Wenwu, claim the Ten Rings, and make Xu Wenwu announce him as the gang’s new leader. He returned to his villa with Xu Wenwu while the Ten Rings squad established a camp nearby.

• Li Qi overwhelmed the Ten Rings’ defenses, took control of Xu Wenwu, and made the Ten Rings leave Xu Wenwu to circle around him.
• Li Qi ordered Xu Wenwu to bring his squad ashore and announce that he had yielded the Ten Rings’ leadership to Li Qi.
• Xu Wenwu landed the helicopters and introduced Li Qi as the new leader, with himself as deputy; the squad accepted the change and pledged their loyalty.
• Li Qi instructed the squad to set up a temporary camp near his villa, making the Ten Rings his second major asset after Stark Industries.
• Happy drove Li Qi and Xu Wenwu to the villa, where Daisy Johnson and Xu Xialing waited to welcome Li Qi home.

Li Qi brought Xu Wenwu and Xu Xialing together as his servants, then told Xu Wenwu to stop pursuing Shang-Chi and let him live as an ordinary person. At lunch, Li Qi considered placing Dr. Maya in charge of continuing Extremis research for the Ten Rings.

• Li Qi introduced Xu Wenwu to Xu Xialing and ordered them to work together in his service.
• At lunch, Shang-Chi confronted Xu Wenwu about sending people after him, and Li Qi told Xu Wenwu to let his son live an ordinary life.
• Xu Wenwu agreed to sever Shang-Chi's ties to the Ten Rings while asking to remain in touch as family.
• Katy enthusiastically introduced herself to Xu Wenwu, while Li Qi told Xu Xialing to sit and wait for the meal.
• Dr. Maya joined the group and discussed the attack helicopters with Li Qi, who decided she should lead the Ten Rings' Extremis research.

Li Qi controlled Maya and welcomed her into the Ten Rings’ research effort, then arranged for Shang-Chi and Katy to leave the villa while Xu Wenwu and Xu Xialing stayed. He restored Ying Li’s magical abilities and assigned her to work in company security with her daughter.

• Li Qi used his mind-control ability on Maya, read her memories, and decided to discuss Extremis Virus research with her.
• Li Qi told the guests to relax during dinner, and Shang-Chi said he and Katy planned to return to downtown Los Angeles the next day.
• Xu Wenwu agreed to provide Shang-Chi with money for living expenses and a house, while Shang-Chi kept quiet about his concerns for Xu Xialing.
• Li Qi arranged rooms for Xu Wenwu and Xu Xialing, then returned to the master bedroom and reunited with Ying Li.
• Li Qi used his system to restore Ying Li’s magical abilities and told her to work in company security with her daughter.

Li Qi prepared to attack Killian’s Extremis Virus gang after consulting Dr. Maya and upgrading his mechs. He led Xu Wenwu, Ying Li, Xu Xialing, and Maya toward the gang’s headquarters, leaving Happy to guard the villa as the battle force flew into position.

• Li Qi discussed kung fu with Ying Li, then consulted Dr. Maya about Extremis research and learned the location and defenses of Killian’s headquarters.
• Li Qi and JARVIS upgraded a second mech and ordered more mechs built, finishing the upgrades by dawn.
• Li Qi gathered his allies for the planned attack, gave the Ten Rings to Xu Wenwu, and left Happy behind to protect the villa.
• Li Qi’s group boarded three armed helicopters and flew toward the headquarters while six JARVIS-controlled mechs traveled above them as the main fighting force.

Li Qi’s assault on Killian’s base uncovered that Killian and the Extremis-enhanced fighters had already left to attack the United States air defense command. After Major Rhodes called for help from the command under attack, Li Qi agreed to lead his forces there.

• Li Qi led Xu Wenwu, Xu Xialing, the Ten Rings, and JARVIS-controlled armor in an assault on Killian’s base, where they quickly defeated the outnumbered guards.
• JARVIS located the base’s bearded public-facing leader hiding with Dijiang; Li Qi spared the man after learning he was only a puppet, and Ying Li took Dijiang back to the villa.
• The bearded man revealed that Killian and the base’s main force had left to kidnap the secretary of the Air Force and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and seize missiles.
• Major Rhodes called Li Qi with live footage of Killian’s Extremis-enhanced fighters attacking the United States air defense command, and Li Qi agreed to go help.

Li Qi and Xu Wenwu led eight mechs to rescue an air defense base from Killian’s assault, then Li Qi intimidated the Joint Chiefs of Staff into leaving him alone. After the battle, the group returned to their stronghold, and Li Qi flew back to the Los Angeles villa with Daisy Johnson.

• Li Qi ordered Xu Wenwu and several mechs to join him in rescuing the air defense base while the others finished securing the stronghold.
• Li Qi and Xu Wenwu attacked Killian’s forces, turning the battle in favor of the base’s military personnel.
• Li Qi used his mind-control ability to kill Killian, then destroyed his body with missiles to prevent regeneration.
• Li Qi entered the conference room and warned the Joint Chiefs of Staff that he would raze the base if they continued to trouble him.
• Li Qi and the mechs returned to the stronghold, where Xu Wenwu took the others back to the Los Angeles villa by helicopter.
• Li Qi flew to the villa with Daisy Johnson encased in a mech, and they landed in the basement.

Li Qi planned visits to Ta Lo Village and the Ten Rings base, while arranging for Daisy Johnson to train with S.H.I.E.L.D. After Black Widow Natasha arrived at the villa, Li Qi asked her about the tasks he had assigned.

• Li Qi discussed Ta Lo Village with Xu Wenwu and Ying Li, who explained that Dijiang could guide them there.
• Li Qi ordered Xu Wenwu to take Dr. Maya to the Ten Rings base, and Xu Wenwu assigned Razor Fist and a masked ninja to guard her.
• Li Qi spent the next morning improving his armor while Xu Wenwu talked with Happy on the villa balcony.
• Black Widow Natasha arrived at the villa, went to Li Qi's bedroom, and met with him privately.
• After they had washed, Li Qi asked Natasha about the progress of his previous assignments.

Li Qi took Ying Li, Xu Wenwu, Xu Xialing, and Dijiang to Ta Lo Village, leaving Black Widow to escort Daisy Johnson to her S.H.I.E.L.D. interview. After passing through the waterfall into the hidden village, they were met by armed villagers, and Ying Li reunited with her sister Ying Nan.

• Black Widow told Li Qi that S.H.I.E.L.D. wanted to interview Daisy Johnson, while Phil Coulson had gone to investigate the meteorite that Li Qi knew was Mjolnir.
• Li Qi sent Black Widow and Daisy Johnson to S.H.I.E.L.D. and spent the afternoon upgrading his iron armor before deciding to leave for Ta Lo Village the next day.
• Li Qi set out by helicopter with Xu Wenwu, Ying Li, Xu Xialing, and Dijiang, escorted by six upgraded suits of armor.
• Guided by Ying Li and Dijiang, Li Qi's group landed near a waterfall and walked through it into Ta Lo Village's hidden realm.
• Armed villagers moved to surround the group, but Ying Li identified herself, and her sister Ying Nan embraced her and welcomed her home.

Ying Li introduced her sister Ying Nan to Li Qi, who used his mind-control ability to subdue her before entering Ta Lo Village. After learning that an ancient seal protecting the village was close to collapse, Li Qi assessed the threats behind it and prepared to deal with them himself.

• Ying Li introduced Ying Nan to Li Qi, and he overcame her mental resistance and took control of her.
• Ying Nan welcomed Li Qi and led him and the others into Ta Lo Village, where she explained the village’s role in protecting the real world.
• Ying Nan reported that the ancient seal was cracking and could soon fail, allowing an evil dragon to invade.
• Li Qi settled at the sisters’ home while Xu Wenwu and Xu Xialing guarded the entrance.
• Li Qi probed beyond the seal and saw an evil dragon and numerous Soul Eaters attacking it, then decided he would need to go there himself.

Li Qi toured Ta Lo Village, learned about its declining population and defenses, and agreed to become its village chief. At the evening celebration, Ying Nan announced his appointment to the gathered villagers.

• Li Qi promised Ying Li and Ying Nan that he would help resolve the threat facing Ta Lo Village.
• Li Qi learned that the village had fewer than three thousand people and had suffered a steep population decline because it accepted no outsiders.
• Ying Li and Ying Nan discussed making Li Qi village chief, and he agreed to bring change to the village.
• Li Qi inspected the village’s yin-yang barrier and learned that the divine dragon’s energy and its shed scales helped protect the villagers.
• The villagers gathered in the square to celebrate Ying Li’s return, and Ying Nan announced that Li Qi would become village chief with the sisters as his deputies.

Li Qi became Ta Lo Village’s new chief and celebrated with the villagers before turning his attention to the weakening dragon-scale seal. The next morning, he prepared to inspect it with Xu Wenwu, while refusing Xu Xialing’s request to join the fight.

• Ying Nan announced Li Qi as Ta Lo Village’s new chief, and the villagers welcomed him with a night of dancing and a communal feast.
• Li Qi planned to have Stark Industries strengthen Ta Lo Village’s defenses and considered the seal’s weakening a danger that required action.
• After the celebration, Li Qi dismissed Xu Wenwu and Xu Xialing from guard duty and returned to the residence with Ying Li and Ying Nan.
• The next morning, Li Qi told Xu Wenwu they would examine the dragon-scale seal after breakfast.
• Xu Xialing asked to fight, but Li Qi refused because he feared she was not prepared to face the evil creatures.
• Li Qi, Xu Wenwu, and the others ate breakfast as Ta Lo Village’s inhabitants began their daily training.

Li Qi prepared to attack the evil creatures behind Ta Lo Village’s failing seal, planning to reinforce it with Xu Wenwu and seven suits of powered armor. The villagers refused to stay behind and followed him to the lake, where the guardian dragon had not yet appeared.

• Li Qi told Xu Wenwu that Ten Rings fighters should train the villagers after the evil creatures were dealt with, and Xu Wenwu agreed.
• Li Qi arranged an afternoon assault with Xu Wenwu and JARVIS, then set out with seven suits of powered armor.
• The villagers learned Li Qi was heading to the sealed mountain and gathered in force to follow him despite his order to return home.
• At the lake, Li Qi saw the seal darkened and weakened by black smoke, and ordered JARVIS to prioritize protecting the villagers.
• Li Qi and the villagers approached the lake, but the guardian dragon had not emerged from the water.

Li Qi woke the guardian dragon and rode it to Ta Lo’s dragon-scale seal, where he and Xu Wenwu fought the Soul Beast and its Soul Eaters. He used nuclear bombs to destroy the creatures and collapse the passage, and the villagers celebrated the mission’s success.

• Li Qi woke the white dragon with a missile, fought it in his armor, and subdued it by riding on its back.
• Li Qi and Xu Wenwu reached the dragon-scale seal, opened a passage, and battled the Soul Eaters and the black Soul Beast with the white dragon and their armor.
• Li Qi ordered the remaining suits into the dark space and told Xu Wenwu to evacuate before using nuclear bombs.
• Xu Wenwu led the villagers away while JARVIS detonated two nuclear bombs inside the dark space, collapsing the mountain peak and dragon-scale seal.
• Li Qi told the villagers the mission had succeeded, and they cheered and thanked him.

Li Qi learned that Ta Lo Village’s ancestral hall held a Transmission Stone that could contact other hidden places, including Paradise Island. After seeing the island appear on the stone, he set his sights on reaching Wonder Woman, Diana.

• Li Qi arranged for two Iron Man suits to keep watch over the collapsed dragon-scale seal, then joined Ta Lo Village’s celebration after the villagers returned.
• The next day, Li Qi asked Ying Nan and Ying Li whether Ta Lo Village should modernize, and Ying Nan told him about the Concealed Transmission Stone in the ancestral hall.
• Ying Nan and Ying Li took Li Qi to the ancestral hall, where he paid his respects to the memorial tablets and examined the Transmission Stone.
• The sisters activated the Transmission Stone and showed Li Qi an image of Paradise Island, which they said they contacted regularly.
• Li Qi wondered whether Diana had already left Paradise Island and decided to make Wonder Woman his next target.

Li Qi met Diana through the transmission stone and learned that she longed to see the human world beyond Paradise Island. After hearing her frustrations about her mother’s restrictions, he resolved to help her leave the island.

• Li Qi contacted Diana through the transmission stone while Ying Nan and Ying Li stood beside him.
• Diana greeted Ying Nan, noticed Li Qi, and excitedly spoke with him about men and the outside world.
• At Li Qi’s signal, Ying Nan explained basic customs to Diana, who changed into her warrior outfit before returning.
• Diana told Li Qi she had never left Paradise Island and complained that her mother restricted her training and independence.
• After nearly an hour of conversation, Li Qi decided to help Diana leave Paradise Island and explore the world.

Li Qi tried to find Paradise Island so he could take Diana to see the outside world, but she knew no clear way to locate it. After Diana sought comfort over accidentally injuring General Antiope, Li Qi encouraged her and left Ta Lo Village for Stark Headquarters, assigning Xu Wenwu to oversee the village’s defenses.

• Li Qi asked Diana where Paradise Island was, but she could not give him its location, so he had JARVIS search for clues.
• Li Qi returned to the village chief's residence, rested with the others, and ate dinner with Xu Xialing, Ying Li, and Ying Nan.
• At the ancestral hall, Li Qi tried to activate other Transmission Stones, but none responded until Diana appeared on the central stone.
• Diana told Li Qi she had accidentally unleashed her divine power and injured General Antiope, and Li Qi reassured her until she smiled.
• Diana again asked Li Qi to take her away, but she could offer no definite clues to Paradise Island's location, so Li Qi told JARVIS to accelerate the search.
• Li Qi left Xu Wenwu in charge of Ta Lo Village's security and departed for Stark Headquarters with the Stark Industries team, leaving Xu Xialing, Ying Li, and Ying Nan behind.