Chapter Summaries

Lin Xiao visited the temple, where Wong told him the Ancient One had entered seclusion and left him a marked Śūraṅgama Sūtra. As Lin Xiao prepared to leave, Captain America woke in New York and realized he had missed a date.

• Lin Xiao learned from Wong that the Ancient One had gone into seclusion and left him a Śūraṅgama Sūtra containing a marked passage.
• Lin Xiao told Wong he would return with his daughter-in-law, then said goodbye to Peter and Ned, who planned to continue their training.
• Ned admitted he had accidentally burned some of Mordo’s hair while practicing a spell and had been ordered to copy the Calming Mantra thirty times.
• Lin Xiao read the Ancient One’s annotations about seeing one’s nature but struggled to understand the passage.
• Captain America woke in New York, saw a 1945 newspaper, and told Nick Fury he thought he had missed a date.

Lin Xiao returned to New York with Blink, where Tony told him that S.H.I.E.L.D. had brought someone to a facility made to resemble the 1940s. Steve Rogers realized the facility was not in his own time and pretended to sleep while watched.

• Lin Xiao used Blink’s portal to reach Tony’s office at Stark Industries, and Tony teased him about his monk’s robes and his beautiful companion.
• Blink said she had to report in and told Lin Xiao to find her at the embassy when he had news about the doctor, then left through a portal.
• Tony told Lin Xiao that S.H.I.E.L.D. had built a period-style facility outside New York and brought in a man; Lin Xiao recognized him as Steve Rogers.
• Tony wondered whether his father would have gone to see Steve, then said he needed time to process the news.
• At the facility, Steve noticed a nurse’s wristband and other signs that the setting was not 1945, removed his IV, checked the watched street, and returned to bed pretending to sleep.

Lin Xiao warned Tony that the Helicarrier needed redundant systems and stronger defenses, then headed to S.H.I.E.L.D. to meet Reed Richards and Susan Storm. At the research center, Susan sneezed repeatedly while Reed asked her to check a thrust deviation in the prototype.

• Lin Xiao found the Helicarrier blueprint and learned from Doupao that Tony Stark and Reed Richards were developing it for S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Tony explained the project, and Lin Xiao objected that the Helicarrier was too conspicuous and needed more firepower, backup rotors, redundant power, and laser defenses.
• Lin Xiao asked Tony whether Reed's wife, Susan Storm, was pretty, then left for S.H.I.E.L.D. after sending May a message that he would be home soon.
• At S.H.I.E.L.D.'s research center, Susan Storm jumped down from the scaffolding beside the partially assembled Helicarrier and sneezed three times.
• Reed Richards called to Susan about a thrust deviation in the prototype and asked her to inspect the data; Susan said she felt someone was talking about her.

Lin Xiao worried that the Helicarrier could give America and Hydra power over Dragon Country, so he secretly sent its blueprints to Tao Yuhan. Tao examined the plans beside Heartfire’s hospital bed and decided to bring them to Director Zheng for study.

• Lin Xiao returned home with roast duck and rice cakes, and told May and Betty that the Ancient One had given him the Śūraṅgama Sūtra.
• Unable to sleep, Lin Xiao considered the Helicarrier’s threat to Dragon Country and asked Doupao to send an anonymized copy of the blueprints to Tao Yuhan.
• Tao Yuhan received the plans while watching over Heartfire, studied their details, and called Director Zheng to request an in-person meeting.
• Tao noticed a handwritten-looking annotation to install weapons systems and resolved to take the blueprints back for study.

Lin Xiao visited Hill at S.H.I.E.L.D., where they had an intimate encounter and discussed Captain America and an upcoming ship project. He asked Hill to find Wu Zhengkai, while Steve Rogers continued adjusting to his new life and met with Fury.

• Lin Xiao woke beside May and Betty, then went to S.H.I.E.L.D. to see Hill.
• Lin Xiao and Hill had an intimate encounter in her office, then discussed Steve Rogers, Fury, and a large ship project requiring more funding.
• Lin Xiao asked Hill to find Wu Zhengkai, a fellow countryman who seemed to be a doctor, and Hill wrote down his name.
• Steve Rogers offered Fury a banana as a skin-whitening remedy, then listened as Fury discussed recovery and future safety missions.
• Steve Rogers wrote private observations about Fury and watched the gap in the curtains of a nearby building narrow.

Doctor Doom subdued Sabretooth at Kingpin’s factory while seeking information about Reed Richards and Susan. The next day, Lin Xiao reunited with Jane at Kennedy Airport, where he met Doom and learned that the masked stranger was an S-rank threat.

• Doom used rune magic to stop Sabretooth’s healing and left him motionless while Kingpin watched.
• Doom rejected Kingpin’s claim that he had helped him and demanded information about Reed Richards and Susan.
• Kingpin told Doom that Reed and Susan were at S.H.I.E.L.D. and warned him not to play games; Doom threatened him before leaving.
• Lin Xiao met Jane at Kennedy Airport and saw her arrive with a masked man she had met on the plane.
• Jane introduced the man as Victor, and Doupao identified him as Doctor Doom, monarch of Latveria, with an S combat rating.
• Doom departed after greeting Lin Xiao, who privately considered him a dangerous threat.

Lin Xiao brought Jane to meet May and Betty, who welcomed her while Betty warned him not to bring more women into the household without her approval. Meanwhile, a cloaked figure abducted Reed Richards from S.H.I.E.L.D.’s engineering department, and Fury chose Lin Xiao to investigate.

• Lin Xiao brought Jane to May and Betty’s home, where they welcomed her with food and warm water.
• Betty told Lin Xiao that she and May approved of Jane, then threatened him after he listed several other women and explained that Blink had helped him teleport.
• A dark green-cloaked figure disrupted S.H.I.E.L.D.’s engineering department, knocked Susan unconscious, and abducted Reed Richards.
• Jonathan Stone and Ben Grimm confronted Fury over Susan’s injuries and Reed’s disappearance.
• Fury asked Natasha and Hill whom to send, and both recommended Lin Xiao, so Fury ordered them to call him in.

Lin Xiao met Ben Grimm and the Human Torch at the Triskelion, where Fury had summoned him to discuss Reed and Susan. After greeting Natasha, Lin Xiao mocked the Human Torch by joking that his resemblance to Steve Rogers made him look like the Captain’s illegitimate son.

• May and Betty took Jane shopping, and Lin Xiao discovered they had charged 3.17 million dollars to his phone.
• Lin Xiao went to the Triskelion and recognized the Human Torch as a man with Steve Rogers’s face; the Torch insulted him for wearing battered slippers.
• Ben Grimm introduced himself and praised Lin Xiao’s strength after they shook hands.
• Lin Xiao learned Fury had made Ben and the Human Torch wait for him, then agreed to meet Fury after chatting with Ben.
• Natasha greeted Lin Xiao, and he picked her up and spun her around before asking where she had been.
• Lin Xiao teased the Human Torch by calling Steve Rogers an “Old Popsicle” and suggesting the Torch looked like his illegitimate son.

Doom captured Reed Richards and searched his memories for the cosmic-ray formula, but failed to find it before Reed returned to S.H.I.E.L.D. The Fantastic Four reunited with Reed, whose eyes briefly flashed green.

• Doom restrained Reed with magical chains and searched his memories for the cosmic-ray formula, finding it hidden beyond his reach.
• Lin Xiao negotiated with Fury for six million to find Reed, but an agent reported that Reed had returned on his own before they could finalize the deal.
• Lin Xiao warned Fury that the price would double if he asked him about Reed again.
• Jonathan greeted Reed at the S.H.I.E.L.D. lobby, and Reed said Doom had questioned him and asked whether Susan was all right.
• Human Torch and Ben told Reed that Susan was awake and recovering, and Reed's eyes briefly flashed green.

Lin Xiao told Hill he suspected Reed’s return from Doom was suspicious, while Hill revealed that she had located Dr. Wu in Texas. At the S.H.I.E.L.D. hospital, the being inside Reed secretly searched Susan’s mind and found nothing.

• Lin Xiao lied to May that he was working overtime at Hill’s home, and Hill later agreed to help him approach the recovering Captain.
• Hill told Lin Xiao that S.H.I.E.L.D. had tracked Dr. Wu to Texas, where he had been kept as a private doctor for a wealthy German businessman.
• Lin Xiao explained to Hill that Reed’s smooth return from Doom and his changed eyes made him suspect Doom had altered or replaced Reed.
• Reed stayed beside Susan as she recovered in the S.H.I.E.L.D. hospital, then secretly used green runes to search her mind.
• The being inside Reed found nothing in Susan’s mind and stood by the window, speaking in a voice and tone unlike Reed’s.

Lin Xiao visited Steve at the hospital with Hill and told him that he had awakened in 2012, not 1945. Steve passed out after learning he had missed seventy years, and Hill reported the news to Fury.

• Hill took Lin Xiao to visit Steve, after his new suit split at the seams and lost several buttons.
• Steve mistook Lin Xiao for Japanese, and Lin Xiao corrected him and pointed out that Steve was worried about being poisoned.
• Steve attacked Lin Xiao, who easily restrained him and revealed that he and Hill were together.
• Steve suspected he was still in wartime Germany, but Lin Xiao showed him a television broadcast marked 2012 and told him the truth.
• Steve asked to be alone, then passed out; Hill called Fury and reported that Lin Xiao had told Steve the year.

Lin Xiao waited for S.P.E.A.R. to arrange a rescue for Dr. Wu Zhengkai while learning that the superhero rental business had earned over a hundred million in three days. Gwen Stacy arrived after finishing her exams, demanding the promised Disney trip and reminding Lin Xiao that her coming-of-age day was tomorrow.

• Lin Xiao urged Blink to act quickly to rescue Dr. Wu Zhengkai, but Blink said S.P.E.A.R. planned to intercept him during Hans Kruger's trip to Switzerland next month, while Heartfire's condition continued to worsen.
• Lin Xiao messaged Tao Yuhan that he had a private plan if S.P.E.A.R. could not act directly.
• Jane showed Lin Xiao that the superhero rental business had earned 104,700,000 in net revenue in its first three days, with reservations booked two months ahead.
• Jane told Lin Xiao that Gwen Stacy had finished her exams and expected him to honor his promise to take her to Disney.
• Gwen Stacy kicked down Lin Xiao's front door, greeted Jane, and reminded Lin Xiao about the amusement park trip.
• Gwen Stacy told Lin Xiao that her coming-of-age day was tomorrow, and he suddenly realized he had forgotten.

Lin Xiao and Gwen Stacy spent the day together at Disney, where Gwen enjoyed rides and games while Lin Xiao arranged a fireworks show for her. After midnight, Gwen became an adult and Lin Xiao kissed her on the Ferris wheel.

• The ticket attendant questioned Gwen Stacy and Lin Xiao about their relationship, and Lin Xiao showed his S.H.I.E.L.D. credentials to get them admitted.
• Gwen dragged Lin Xiao onto rides, made him take photos, and won every plush toy at a carnival booth.
• Gwen turned off her Spider-Sense to experience the Haunted Mansion, where Lin Xiao scared a staff member with a face and phone light.
• Lin Xiao arranged a fireworks display that cost three hundred thousand dollars, and Gwen admitted she had secretly overheard his call.
• After midnight, Gwen told Lin Xiao she was an adult, and he kissed her at the top of the Ferris wheel.

George Stacy prepared an eighteenth-birthday party for Gwen, but she spent the day with Lin Xiao and missed the celebration. When George was called to stop Rhino's bank robbery, Gwen and Lin Xiao arrived at the scene to help, leaving George furious and worried.

• George bought decorations and a cake for Gwen's birthday, then grew angry when she did not answer her phone or return home.
• After Rhino broke into the John Compson Bank vault, George left the party to lead the police response.
• Gwen returned home after midnight with Lin Xiao, learned that George was confronting Rhino, and decided to go help him.
• Gwen and Lin Xiao transformed and raced across the rooftops toward Fifth Avenue while Helen watched them leave.
• Gwen swung into the bank and Lin Xiao entered through a second-floor window as George ordered officers to guard the rear exit.

Gwen and Lin Xiao stopped Rhino’s bank robbery, and Gwen persuaded him to surrender to the police. Peter and Ned returned to New York from Kamar-Taj, while Wong remained stuck in a toad’s body after Ned’s spell went wrong.

• Gwen dodged Rhino’s attacks and knocked him down while Lin Xiao advised her and taunted Rhino from the sidelines.
• Gwen offered to let Rhino walk out if he admitted guilt, and Rhino surrendered after realizing he could not defeat or escape them.
• George Stacy thanked Ghost-Spider for helping the police, then warned Gwen they would talk at home before forgiving her after she apologized and kissed his cheek.
• Wong told Mordo that Ned had altered a practice spell and turned him into a toad, while Mordo praised his apprentice and Wong angrily objected.
• Peter, Ned, and the Fool returned to Lin Xiao’s Manhattan mansion, where Ned defended his return from Kamar-Taj and Peter offered to find waffles.

Lin Xiao and Blink rescued Dr. Wu Zhengkai from Hans Kruger’s men and brought him through a portal after explaining that Heartfire needed urgent surgery. Kruger later confronted Pierce about the failed pursuit, while the long-haired puppet silently clenched his hand.

• Lin Xiao emerged from a portal onto the interstate, subdued Klaus, and helped Blink protect Dr. Wu when attackers fired an RPG and submachine guns at them.
• Lin Xiao defeated five attackers, and Blink told Dr. Wu that Heartfire had been injured and needed surgery within two weeks.
• Dr. Wu agreed to go with Blink and Lin Xiao, and the three left through her purple portal for Dragon Country.
• Hans Kruger found the fallen puppets, called Pierce, and demanded an explanation for the failed attempt to keep Dr. Wu.
• The long-haired masked man followed Kruger back to the Chevrolet and briefly clenched his hidden hand.

Lin Xiao and Tony turned the viral footage of Lin Xiao and Gwen Stacy into a publicity opportunity for Vought, while Lin Xiao learned Dr. Wu’s surgery was scheduled and Hans Kruger was investigating. At S.H.I.E.L.D., Susan noticed Reed had changed and discovered he had altered the Cosmic Rays formula, but Reed deleted the altered version after she left.

• Tony told Lin Xiao that footage of him and Gwen Stacy leaving the police vault together had gone viral and that Vought staff were working to protect Gwen’s identity.
• Lin Xiao persuaded Tony to market the romance rumors, and Tony left to put the publicity plan into action.
• Blink told Lin Xiao that Dr. Wu’s surgery was scheduled for the next morning, Heartfire was stable for now, and Hans Kruger was investigating.
• Susan watched Reed and noticed that he had become unusually cold and methodical, then spotted changes to his Cosmic Rays experiment formula.
• After Susan left the corridor, Reed looked toward the vending machine and deleted the altered formula from his tablet.

Lin Xiao brought Kara to see S.H.I.E.L.D.'s partially assembled Helicarrier, where he found Reed arguing with Susan over the engineering design. Lin Xiao recognized Reed as Doom and arranged to meet him that night, leaving Kara wondering why.

• Lin Xiao took Kara from the trainee agents' office to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s engineering center to see the Helicarrier.
• Reed argued with Susan about changing the thruster parameters and deciding the rotor configuration, while Ben and Human Torch watched.
• Lin Xiao introduced himself to Reed, privately identified him as Mr. Doom, and said he admired his rule over a country.
• Lin Xiao told Reed to meet him at the west garden at nine that night to discuss the argument's parameters and data.
• Lin Xiao teased Susan, then left with Kara, who asked why he had invited Reed for coffee.

Lin Xiao met Doom in a café and negotiated for Doom’s research in exchange for keeping his identity secret. After their magical confrontation, both men privately realized how close they had come to losing control, and Doom left with his attention turning to Susan Storm.

• Lin Xiao finished Kara’s mission report, sent it to Rivich, and met Doom at the café.
• Lin Xiao offered to protect Doom’s identity in exchange for learning what he had changed in his parameters.
• Doom tried to probe Lin Xiao’s mind, but Lin Xiao’s mental defense threw him into a table and exposed Doom’s identity to nearby café patrons.
• Doom pulled Lin Xiao into a dark void and attacked with black flames, but Lin Xiao’s protection dispelled the flames and broke the illusion.
• Doom accepted Lin Xiao’s terms and left after demanding that Lin Xiao never approach him again.
• After leaving, Doom retched blood and feared Lin Xiao’s power, then watched Susan Storm through a distant window.

Lin Xiao kept visiting the S.H.I.E.L.D. engineering department to question Reed, whom he called Little bro Doom, while juggling Vought’s rapid marketing campaign. Reed finally confronted him and revealed that he had locked the real Reed in the Dark Void, but Lin Xiao mocked the prison and provoked him into ordering Lin Xiao to leave.

• Lin Xiao signed seventeen endorsement contracts as Vought’s marketing campaign rapidly drew attention, while May, Betty, and Jane managed the work around him.
• Lin Xiao visited Reed each afternoon, bringing coffee and asking about blueprints and the Śūraṅgama Sūtra despite Reed’s attempts to ignore him.
• Susan grew wary of Reed, while Ben greeted Lin Xiao and Jonathan continued to disapprove of him.
• Reed confronted Lin Xiao over his daily visits and accused him of staring at Susan, but Lin Xiao denied it and asked to learn Reed’s soul magic.
• Lin Xiao asked what had happened to the real Reed, and Reed admitted that he had locked him in the Dark Void.
• Lin Xiao said the Dark Void was easy to escape, and Reed angrily ordered him to leave.