Chapter Summaries

After recovering from the Molten Eremite operation, Bai Heng accepted President Edmond’s gift and invited Shilna to the company’s celebration banquet. He drove there with Shilna and Xiao Si, while preparing to meet Jingliu at the airport that night.

• Bai Heng rested on Glamour Star before receiving an invitation to Dr. Allen Jones’s celebration banquet.
• Shilna delivered President Edmond’s Curio, Shifting Stars, and told Bai Heng to rest properly.
• Bai Heng invited Shilna to the banquet and told Xiao Si to sit in the back because he was saving the front seat for his sister-in-law.
• Bai Heng drove Shilna and Xiao Si to the banquet and said Jingliu would arrive that night.

Bai Heng built goodwill with the Erudition Society’s security staff and brought Shilna to meet members at the celebration banquet, where he advised her about networking and evening gatherings. The chapter ended when Ruan Mei called to say she had arrived on Glamour Star.

• Bai Heng handed cartons of cigarettes to the venue’s security guards and chatted with them until they warmly greeted him as President Bai.
• As guests arrived for the banquet, Bai Heng took Shilna around to toast Erudition Society members, and she became drunk.
• Bai Heng brought Shilna to the women’s resting area, gave her a sobriety candy, and explained the difference between daytime networking and nighttime socializing.
• Shilna asked about Bai Heng’s girlfriend, and he said she was beautiful, loved him, and was a little older than he was.
• Ruan Mei called Bai Heng and told him she had arrived on Glamour Star.

Bai Heng learned that Ruan Mei was coming to Glamour Star and hurried to meet her, hiding his worry behind a warm welcome. After sharing soup dumplings and recalling their childhood, Ruan Mei felt at ease again, leaving Bai Heng to bear the pressure of his secret.

• Ruan Mei told Bai Heng she had arrived on Glamour Star, and he invited her to the Erudition Society's celebration banquet as his date.
• Bai Heng told Shilna he was leaving to handle a family matter, then used help from the Erudition Society's security staff to drive through the traffic.
• Bai Heng reached the docking port and picked up Ruan Mei, who had concealed her arrival under a false name.
• Bai Heng took Ruan Mei to a soup dumpling shop, where they remembered their childhood and she relaxed after the strain of the previous two days.

Bai Heng spent the day with Ruan Mei at the Erudition Society banquet while concealing that Jingliu would arrive that night. He brought Ruan Mei and the drunken Shilna back to the hotel, where Ruan Mei rejected his suggestion that they share a room, leaving Bai Heng free to prepare for Jingliu’s arrival.

• Bai Heng took Ruan Mei to a soup dumpling shop and used their childhood memories to make the outing special.
• Bai Heng learned that Jingliu's star skiff would arrive around eleven that night and planned to pick her up after taking Ruan Mei back to the hotel.
• Ruan Mei explained that Forget-Me-Not Elixir would keep most people at the banquet from recognizing her, and Bai Heng flirted with her before they entered the venue.
• Bai Heng introduced Ruan Mei to Allen Jones, then spent the afternoon and evening watching operas and sampling pastries with her and Shilna.
• Bai Heng drove Ruan Mei and the drunken Shilna to the hotel, where Ruan Mei refused his three-stack invitation and sent him to the next room.

Bai Heng welcomed Jingliu to Glamour Star with a hot meal and affectionate teasing, but their reunion ended with Jingliu noticing evidence that another woman had ridden in his car. The chapter left Bai Heng facing her silent suspicion over the strand of hair she found.

• Bai Heng waited for Jingliu at the docking port and prepared skewers and noodle soup for her late arrival.
• Bai Heng embraced Jingliu, and she bit his shoulder before telling him to let go so she could hold him instead.
• Bai Heng and Jingliu joked about their Fire-lick Rabbits and how many children they might have together.
• Bai Heng took Jingliu to eat, then insisted she ride beside him in the car while the rabbits sat in the back.
• Jingliu smelled another woman's scent in the car, found a long strand of hair, and stared at Bai Heng without a word.

Bai Heng drove the exhausted Jingliu through the city, then worked on restoring the Astral Remnant Scroll’s Propagation catalog while she slept. After waking her, he suggested finding a hotel, and Jingliu chose a love hotel for them to stay in.

• Bai Heng discarded a strand of black hair from the car and reassured Jingliu that no one but his beloved used the passenger seat.
• Jingliu fell asleep during the drive, and Bai Heng covered her with his coat while he worked on the Molten Knights’ entries in the Astral Society archive.
• Bai Heng reflected on how the Astral Remnant Scroll recorded the universe, influenced its compilers, and might restore the fallen Aeon Greed’s Authority.
• Bai Heng woke Jingliu after half an hour and suggested they find a hotel for the night.
• Jingliu pointed out a love hotel and decided that they would stay there.

Bai Heng took Jingliu to a love hotel, where they spent the night trying to navigate its suggestive surroundings while keeping their relationship proper. After breakfast, Bai Heng announced that it was time to handle “serious business,” leaving what he had planned unclear.

• Bai Heng booked a rarely used room at a love hotel to satisfy Jingliu's curiosity and avoid an unclean room.
• Bai Heng covered the sounds from the neighboring room with the television, and Jingliu refused to let him join her in the bath before they were married.
• Jingliu bathed while Bai Heng kept busy, then Bai Heng showered as she explored the room and rolled around on the waterbed with him.
• Bai Heng barely slept as Jingliu curled up beside him, and he came up with a solution before dawn.
• Jingliu woke at five, threw a pillow at Bai Heng when he returned with buns, and insisted that they were not married yet.
• After breakfast, Bai Heng told Jingliu it was time to handle serious business.

Bai Heng survived a brutal sword spar with Jingliu, secretly healed himself at the hospital, and met Ruan Mei for breakfast. Ruan Mei told him her parents knew she had found the man she loved and that her father had threatened to cut the suitor into a thousand pieces.

• Bai Heng and Jingliu fought for an hour until both collapsed, leaving Jingliu weak and Bai Heng badly wounded.
• At the emergency hospital, Bai Heng healed himself with a crystal chip and asked Miss Deceased to alter the medical staff's memories.
• Bai Heng visited Ruan Mei, brought her rice cakes and tangerine pastries, and told her he planned to return to Pierpoint after completing a handover.
• Bai Heng asked after Ruan Mei's parents, and Ruan Mei revealed she had told them she had found the man she loved.
• Ruan Mei quoted her father's warning that the brat who stole their cabbage must be cut into a thousand pieces.

Bai Heng accompanied Ruan Mei and Shilna shopping on Glamour Star, where the two women dressed him in a Xianzhou-style outfit reminiscent of his old appearance. Exhausted, he took them to a restaurant and slipped away to check a message from Jingliu.

• Bai Heng and Ruan Mei joked about meeting her parents and the father who might confront him for courting her.
• Ruan Mei invited Shilna to join her and Bai Heng on their shopping trip, and Bai Heng carried their purchases.
• Ruan Mei and Shilna tried men's clothes on Bai Heng and styled his hair to recreate the appearance Ruan Mei remembered.
• Bai Heng, drained after two hours of shopping, took Ruan Mei and Shilna to a restaurant and ordered food and SoulGlad.
• Bai Heng went to the restroom and checked his message block after realizing he could no longer ignore Jingliu.

Bai Heng ate with Ruan Mei and Shilna before meeting Jingliu for the dinner she had offered to buy him. The chapter ended with Bai Heng realizing Jingliu had only a dozen Credits to her name and refusing to pawn her sword tassel.

• Jingliu invited Bai Heng to dinner, and he agreed to meet her at six.
• Bai Heng returned to Ruan Mei and Shilna, explained the restaurant’s history, and shared a meal with them.
• Bai Heng paid the bill, said goodbye to Ruan Mei, and headed to meet Jingliu.
• Bai Heng found Jingliu waiting in the snow and took her cold hand as they discussed where to eat.
• Jingliu gave Bai Heng her last dozen or so Credits and offered her sword tassel as collateral, but Bai Heng said the money was enough.

Bai Heng shared a snowy street-stall meal with Jingliu, who revealed that Bai Heng might be waking from her confinement. He suspected Shuhu could be involved, but reassured Jingliu that he would face the threat with her before joking about sparring on their wedding day.

• Bai Heng bought a cheap meal, split it with Jingliu, and gave her his remaining Credits.
• Bai Heng asked Jingliu about Bai Heng, and Jingliu said there were signs she might be waking while Jing Yuan investigated.
• Bai Heng realized Jingliu had withheld the news because Bai Heng's awakening might signal Shuhu's return and endanger the Luofu.
• Bai Heng teased Jingliu until she drew her sword, then told her to smile and said he would burn Shuhu again if necessary.
• Bai Heng joked that he and Jingliu could spar on their wedding day, making her blush.

Bai Heng prepared to confront Shuhu’s possible resurrection by buying powerful items from the Simulation Shop, then used Di Kui’s wooden box to enter a vision and reunite with the imprisoned dragon. Di Kui recognized Bai Heng as she appeared with a strange white flower, and she greeted it as an old friend.

• Bai Heng summoned Xiao Si to the docking port and departed for Jarilo-VI, promising him a top performance bonus.
• Bai Heng bought a White Abyss Flower, two Propagation Emanator remains, Bountiful Rain, and a Key of Reappearance from the Simulation Shop.
• Bai Heng prepared to kill Shuhu again or awaken it herself if its resurrection had become inevitable.
• Bai Heng sensed Di Kui stirring inside its wooden box and touched it, entering a vision of the dragon’s blood-soaked cage.
• Di Kui recognized Bai Heng, who appeared with a white flower and greeted it as her old friend.

Bai Heng invaded Di Kui’s consciousness with the Dark Domain, took the Seed of Shuhuo, and forced Di Kui into unequal cooperation. After sending Di Kui away, Bai Heng spoke with Lady Death and left Di Kui in her care.

• Bai Heng replaced Di Kui’s consciousness space with the Dark Domain and confronted him.
• Bai Heng extracted the Seed of Shuhuo from Di Kui and proposed an unequal partnership.
• Di Kui agreed to cooperate after Bai Heng made clear he would not restore his freedom or reward him.
• Bai Heng found Lady Death in the Dark Domain and learned she had read his recent memories.
• Bai Heng told Lady Death to look after Di Kui and treat him like a pet.

Bai Heng arrived on Jarilo-VI and explored Belobog, learning about the city and its newly appointed Supreme Guardian, Bronya Rand. As Santa described her, Bai Heng heard that people were fighting near the mining area.

• Bai Heng reviewed Jarilo-VI's records and learned how the Stellaron, the cold wave, and the Fragmentum had isolated and threatened Belobog.
• Bai Heng reached Jarilo-VI, noticed the Astral Express nearby, and ordered Xiao Si to land in Belobog's northern ice fields.
• After speaking with Topaz, Bai Heng entered Belobog, booked a room at the Goethe Hotel, and sent Xiao Si to gather information.
• Bai Heng traveled through the Great Mine to the Lower District and gave Santa, a young Silvermane Guard, credits as thanks for guiding him.
• Bai Heng asked Santa about Supreme Guardian Bronya Rand, but their conversation was interrupted by news of a fight near the mining area.

Bai Heng joined Santa in the Underworld mining district, where the Company’s debt collection had sparked violence. He revealed his authority over the asset evaluation team and interrupted a fight between the Company and Seele, March 7th, and Stelle.

• Bai Heng accompanied Santa to the mining district after learning that miners and the Company had clashed.
• Bai Heng found a battered Company employee and made him lead the way by claiming command of the Underworld Asset Evaluation Project Team.
• Bai Heng and Santa reached the depths of the mine, where Company combat units were fighting Seele, March 7th, and Stelle.
• Bai Heng used a quantum barrier to stop attacks from both sides and emerged from the smoke.
• Bai Heng introduced himself to March 7th, Seele, and Stelle as a stargazer affiliated with the Company and responsible for asset evaluation.

Bai Heng stopped the asset appraisal team from disrupting the Great Mine and met the Astral Express members March 7th and Stelle. After leaving the mine, he offered to help Natasha treat the injured miners and revealed a pendant containing Bountiful Rain.

• Bai Heng enforced Topaz's directive by ordering the asset appraisal team to withdraw from the Great Mine and promising to speak up for them if they repaired the damage.
• Seele criticized Bai Heng for the disruption, while March 7th introduced herself and Stelle as Astral Express passengers.
• Bai Heng left the mine with March 7th and Stelle and learned that Seele was maintaining order outside.
• March 7th introduced Natasha, who was treating the injured miners, and allowed Bai Heng into the camp after Natasha agreed.
• Bai Heng offered to help treat the miners and showed Natasha his pendant containing Bountiful Rain.

Bai Heng used the power of Abundance to heal wounded miners, including regrowing a man’s severed fingers, while Seele kept the crowd in order. He then listened as Hook and Erica asked him to save Erica’s dead cat, Pascal, and left them with the hope that Pascal might return in another life.

• Bai Heng used a pendant containing Bountiful Rain to heal a miner’s wounds and regrow his three severed fingers.
• The injured miners rushed toward Bai Heng, but Seele restored order so he and Natasha could treat them.
• After two System Hours, Bai Heng and Natasha had treated all the injured people at the scene.
• Hook brought Erica to Bai Heng and asked him to help save her dead cat, Pascal.
• Bai Heng told Erica that Pascal might one day be reincarnated and return to her, perhaps as a little puppy.

Bai Heng won Natasha and Oleg’s cooperation by explaining the Company’s plans and arranging a peaceful asset assessment in Belobog’s Underworld. As the assessment progressed, he exchanged teasing messages with Topaz and learned that her contract offered to erase Belobog’s debt in exchange for its people becoming Company employees.

• Bai Heng told Natasha he had once founded an orphanage, then asked who led the Underworld; Seele named Natasha and apologized for misunderstanding him.
• Natasha invited Bai Heng to dinner at her clinic, where he met her and Oleg, Wildfire’s leaders.
• Bai Heng explained the Company’s debt claim and deterrence system, then arranged for miners to leave the assessment area so the Company’s team could work without a bloody conflict.
• Natasha negotiated a schedule with the mining area’s administrative staff, allowing the first round of assessments to proceed smoothly.
• Bai Heng and Topaz teased each other over messages, and Topaz suggested they meet after finishing their work.
• Bai Heng considered Topaz’s contract, which would erase Belobog’s debt and provide reconstruction aid in exchange for its people becoming Company employees.

Bai Heng met Topaz in Belobog's Upper District to discuss the Company's proposed contract for the planet. They agreed that Belobog faced severe dangers and that Topaz would seek Bronya's decision by morning, while Bai Heng would help persuade her if needed.

• Bai Heng found Numby in an alley and promised to introduce it to two female rabbits, prompting it to lead him to Topaz.
• Bai Heng met Topaz at a tavern, where they discussed the document proposing that Belobog join the Company.
• Bai Heng described Belobog's threats, including the cold wave, Fragmentum creatures, the Antimatter Legion, its noble system, and the divide between its districts.
• Topaz said the Company's offer was the safest option and told Bai Heng Bronya might decide by morning, asking him to help if negotiations continued.
• Topaz picked up Numby and headed out with Bai Heng, then returned to admit she had forgotten to book a hotel.

Bai Heng helped Topaz finish her work in their Goethe Hotel suite while she prepared for the Aurum Alley Festival. After leaving her warm milk, he returned to the streets to review Xiao Si’s materials and joked that they would have to sleep in the Underworld because someone had taken over their room.

• Topaz persuaded Bai Heng to help with her workload, and they went to their booked suite at Goethe Hotel.
• Bai Heng checked the room for threats before Topaz entered, then helped her and Numby complete hours of reports and other tasks.
• Bai Heng finished his work and left before Topaz took a bath.
• Topaz received a cup of honeyed milk that Bai Heng had arranged for her.
• Bai Heng reviewed Xiao Si’s materials outside and said they could not return to the hotel because someone had taken over their nest.