Chapter Summaries

After recounting the costly victory against the Calamity Beasts, Shen Heng discussed the next possible attack with Zhou Zhenguo. They considered intercepting beasts summoned from distant gathering grounds, but left the plan unresolved while weighing how much firepower Bedrock City could spare.

• Han Ling told Shen Heng that the operation killed twenty-five Supervision Bureau members and three hundred and twenty-three soldiers, while the survivors killed over four thousand eight hundred Calamity Beasts; Zhou Xuan and Zheng Guomin described their progress toward the fifth tier.
• Shen Heng went to the command center, where Zhou Zhenguo reported that Chongshan City had held out at the cost of nearly half its people being killed or wounded.
• Zhou Zhenguo showed Shen Heng a map marking locations between Bedrock City and Calamity Beast gathering grounds, proposing that soldiers attack beasts there before they could assemble.
• Shen Heng agreed that Bedrock City should send some firepower to those locations, but advised taking only weapons the soldiers could carry so the city would retain its defenses.

Shen Heng arranged Bedrock City’s defenses around the possibility that the Calamity Beasts would gather forces from nearby sites, while keeping weapons ready to redeploy if they came from the Ruins Realm. Meanwhile, Mei Duo’s group cleared a Light Gate near Linhai without casualties, and the chapter ended with a newcomer asking whether Light Gate exploration usually caused many deaths.

• Shen Heng explained to Zhou Zhenguo and Lu Xunzhou that they should prioritize portable weapons and prepare for the Calamity Beasts’ possible attack methods.
• Shen Heng judged that nearby gathering sites would likely yield a manageable force and confirmed he had inspectors available to assign.
• Thirteen people emerged from the cleared Light Gate outside Linhai after defeating more than a hundred Calamity Beasts in three days.
• Mei Duo dismissed the martial artists and thanked Shi Chongguang for helping clear the Light Gate.
• Lin Xiaoyu and Mei Duo expressed relief that no one had died, and the remaining girl asked whether Light Gate explorations caused many casualties.

Luo Wenshan learned why Light Gate clearing teams needed scouts and why squads balanced safety, resources, and training when choosing members. As the group waited for an inspector to confirm the gate was safe, a dog in armor arrived by car and entered it, leaving Luo Wenshan stunned.

• Luo Wenshan asked why clearing teams did not bring more people or recruit only the strongest, and Lin Xiaoyu explained the limits on resources, training obligations, and the value of different abilities.
• Fang Ji explained that Li Yunfan’s scouting ability was essential because teams needed to explore Light Gates and avoid ambushes, and Mei Duo said other guild teams brought scouts too.
• Mei Duo told Luo Wenshan that they had to wait for an inspector to confirm the Light Gate was safe before specialists could survey it for resources.
• Inspector Dahuang arrived in an expensive car, jumped out as an armored yellow-and-white dog, and ran into the Light Gate.
• Luo Wenshan watched the dog disappear and asked Mei Duo why a dog could drive.

Luo Wenshan learned that Inspector Dahuang was an animal who could drive, then accidentally addressed it by its private nickname instead of its real name, Huang Chen. As the team drove away, she worried about whether Huang Chen would remember the mistake, and Lin Xiaoyu began explaining how the process around Light Gates worked.

• Fang Ji told Luo Wenshan that Inspector Dahuang was an animal and explained that inspectors could get credentials and custom-made cars.
• Inspector Dahuang emerged from the Light Gate and confirmed that all the Calamity Beasts inside had been eliminated.
• Luo Wenshan called Inspector Dahuang by its nickname to its face, and the others’ reactions made her realize her mistake.
• Fang Ji explained that Inspector Dahuang’s real name was Huang Chen, while Mei Duo and Lin Xiaoyu reassured Luo Wenshan that it might not cause trouble.
• Luo Wenshan asked why inspectors arrived only after a Light Gate had been cleared, and Lin Xiaoyu asked whether she knew how the process worked.

Lin Xiaoyu explained to Luo Wenshan how the Supervision Bureau scouted Light Gates and allocated them to associations or guilds, with guilds obtaining clearing rights through competitive bidding. The Qiming Harbor Guild had paid 15.28 million for its current Light Gate and expected to earn a little over ten million in profit.

• Luo Wenshan admitted she did not know how Light Gates were allocated, so Lin Xiaoyu explained that the Supervision Bureau scouted them and handled high-threat gates itself.
• Mei Duo added that allocating lower-threat Light Gates to civilian martial artists also helped nurture them.
• Lin Xiaoyu explained that guilds bid at auctions organized by the Light Gate Management Committee, while about thirty to forty percent of discovered gates went to the association.
• Mei Duo said Qiming Harbor Guild had paid 15.28 million for its current Light Gate, and Fang Ji compared it with the Dust-Cleansing Brigade’s bid of over twenty million.
• Mei Duo explained that guilds used committee data to estimate resources and maintained a tacit understanding during bidding, so Qiming Harbor Guild expected to make a little over ten million in profit.

Fang Ji, Luo Wenshan, Lin Xiaoyu, and Mei Duo discussed the rewards from Light Gate clearings and the Azure Mist Forest before agreeing to attend Su Xingyu’s concert together. At Northern Martial Arts, Shen Shuning finished handing over her duties, and Xiao Bai'er reacted as a pink-haired visitor entered the meeting room.

• Fang Ji explained that guild members split clearing rewards according to their contributions, while the Dust-Cleansing Brigade had earned tens of millions from an Azure Mist Forest and its regrowing Azure Mist Vines.
• Lin Xiaoyu explained that Tiangong Life Sciences, developed jointly by Huaihe Pharmaceuticals and the state, produced Azure Mist Stock Solution.
• Lin Xiaoyu saw a poster calling on martial artists to defend their home and wondered about conditions in the Erosion Zones.
• Luo Wenshan told the group that Su Xingyu would perform in three days, and Mei Duo agreed to join her, Fang Ji, and Lin Xiaoyu at the concert.
• Shen Shuning completed a handover with the new Northern Martial Arts president, then spoke with Xiao Bai'er about their approaching graduation.
• A pink-haired figure entered the meeting room and greeted Shen Shuning and Xiao Bai'er.

Su Xingyu told Xiao Bai'er that she had made the training camp list, and Shen Shuning, Xiao Bai'er, and Su Xingyu later arrived at the camp. Their instructor, Chang Lei, warned them that the three-month training had a death quota, leaving the students to face the possibility that some of them would die.

• Su Xingyu told Xiao Bai'er that she had secured the last place on the training camp list, and Xiao Bai'er celebrated with Shen Shuning and her.
• Shen Shuning asked whether Su Xingyu's upcoming concert in Linhai would interfere with the training camp, and Su Xingyu said she would return promptly afterward.
• Several days later, Shen Shuning, Xiao Bai'er, and Su Xingyu arrived at the training camp and noticed students from other martial arts universities among the recruits.
• Chang Lei introduced himself as their instructor for the next three months and warned the recruits that some of them would die during training unless they performed exceptionally well.

Chang Lei explained that the camp’s next three months would include dangerous Light Gate missions against at least fourth-tier Calamity Beasts, and the students chose whether to stay. Shen Shuning persuaded Xiao Bai'er to remain with her, and Chang Lei led the group onward, clarifying that he would return to the Erosion Zone after his three months of training.

• Chang Lei warned that the students’ Light Gate missions would involve powerful Calamity Beasts and that he would intervene only after the attackers could no longer defeat one.
• Shen Shuning urged Xiao Bai'er to withdraw, while Su Xingyu said she would withdraw too but admitted the university had required her to attend.
• Xiao Bai'er decided to stay because Shen Shuning was staying, and Shen Shuning told her to take the training seriously.
• Chang Lei offered the students a chance to leave, but they all stayed, so he led them toward the buildings.
• A student asked why Chang Lei had said the training lasted three months when the university had announced six, and Chang Lei explained that he would return to the Erosion Zone after three months.

Chang Lei warned the trainees that casualties in the Erosion Zones were already around 40 percent and could rise much higher, despite the first inspectors being highly talented and battle-tested. After showing them the training camps’ wall of honor, he ordered them to prepare to head to the Light Gate the next day.

• Chang Lei told the trainees that Erosion Zones had unusual environments and precautions, but their casualty rate was already around 40 percent and might eventually reach 70 or 80 percent.
• Chang Lei rebuked a trainee who assumed their elite group would fare better, explaining that the first inspectors were talented and experienced fighters and that the new trainees still lacked bloodshed and hardship.
• Xiao Bai'er and Su Xingyu discussed the grim losses and noticed Xiao Xiangtong among the top-ranked members on the wall of honor, while Shen Shuning studied the names and ratings.
• Chang Lei told everyone to take their luggage to the dorms and prepare to head to the Light Gate the next day.

Shen Heng prepared Wu Hao and the soldiers to ambush a Calamity Beast tide in the Plateau Erosion Zone, explaining how to conceal their position and when to abandon the operation. After Shen Heng left Wu Hao in command, Xu Yu said he could not tell which of four possibilities the beasts would use to approach.

• Shen Heng instructed Wu Hao to wait until the beast tide entered the mountain pass and to abandon the ambush if more than 2,000 Calamity Beasts appeared.
• Shen Heng reviewed the ambush preparations, including selecting soldiers and weapons and concealing sound, sight, and Origin Power.
• Headquarters bought the Concealment combat technique and distributed it to the soldiers for free, though they had little time to master it.
• Shen Heng entrusted the ambush site to Wu Hao and flew away, while Wu Hao accepted command despite feeling downcast over his former squadmates.
• Xu Yu joined Wu Hao and said he was unsure which of four possible approaches the Calamity Beasts would take.

Xu Yu explained why the ambush would help determine whether the Calamity Beasts would target Bedrock City or other cities. At Eagle-Sorrow Ravine, Shen Heng reviewed the preparations and warned Xu Ruiyu that the Calamity Beasts’ plans might involve more than attacking another city.

• Xu Yu told Wu Hao that the Calamity Beasts might attack other cities or pause while replacing the dismissed Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi, and that the five-day ambush would help confirm their plans.
• Shen Heng returned to his ambush position and learned from Xu Ruiyu that preparations were underway, with explosives planted along the narrow path at Eagle-Sorrow Ravine.
• Shen Heng assured Xu Ruiyu that clever high-tier Calamity Beasts would scout the route and likely take the mountain path.
• Shen Heng warned Xu Ruiyu that if the Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi did not send Calamity Beasts to the ravine, they might attack other cities, then asked him to identify the Calamity Beasts’ fundamental courses of action.

Shen Heng explained to Xu Ruiyu that the Calamity Beasts could either attack Bedrock City or target other cities, and warned that if they skipped this assault, they might return with a force prepared to destroy Bedrock City. Xu Ruiyu found that withdrawal or guerrilla warfare offered no easy solution, leaving him to ask what they could do if the Calamity Beasts did not come.

• Shen Heng told Xu Ruiyu that the Calamity Beasts had two basic choices: target Bedrock City or attack other cities, with several possible strategies under either choice.
• Xu Ruiyu asked whether Shen Heng had devised the possibilities himself, and Shen Heng said much of the analysis came from Elder Zhou and the other staff officers.
• Shen Heng explained that if the Calamity Beasts delayed their attack, they could return with a force strong enough to wipe out Bedrock City.
• Xu Ruiyu suggested withdrawing Bedrock City and then the other cities, but Shen Heng warned that this would send the beast tide elsewhere and undermine the strategy headquarters' plan.
• Shen Heng said a guerrilla war would require a force capable of threatening the Anchor Points, but without cities and supporting firepower that force would suffer unacceptable casualties.
• Xu Ruiyu asked Shen Heng what they could do if the Calamity Beasts did not come.

Shen Heng and Xu Ruiyu debated whether the Calamity Beasts would attack Bedrock City again, knowing that abandoning their strategy could hasten the Erosion Zone’s advance. At the temple, the Lion King rejected Shuofeng’s request for another chance until an unidentified Calamity Beast spoke up.

• Shen Heng told Xu Ruiyu that withdrawing the soldiers could save them but would undermine the strategy and speed the Erosion Zone’s stabilization.
• Shen Heng said the Calamity Beasts had no necessary reason to attack Bedrock City, though the Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi might come out of pride or anger.
• Xu Ruiyu guessed that the Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi would seek revenge, and Shen Heng agreed that their decision could make an attack possible.
• Shuofeng pleaded with the Lion King for another chance to destroy Bedrock City, while the Molten-Fire Lizard briefly mocked it before voicing support.
• The Lion King refused Shuofeng’s request and ordered it to go back, but another Calamity Beast asked to speak.

Leiya proposed requisitioning Calamity Beasts from Anchor Points to attack the human city, but the Lion King sent him and Shuofeng away for the time being. Eight days into the ambush at Eagle-Sorrow Ravine, Shen Heng decided his group would withdraw the next day.

• Leiya asked the Lion King for another chance and proposed gathering Calamity Beasts from Anchor Points and other locations to attack the human city.
• Shuofeng accused the Lion King of targeting them out of fear they would challenge his position, and the Lion King welcomed a future challenge before sending the brothers away.
• The Lion King praised the Molten-Fire Lizard for his performance after Leiya and Shuofeng left.
• At Eagle-Sorrow Ravine, Shen Heng and Xu Ruiyu ate Tundra Warthog meat and chatted while their group waited in ambush.
• Shen Heng told Xu Ruiyu to inform everyone to pack up, as they would pull out the next day.

Shen Heng concluded that the Calamity Beasts were unlikely to attack the camp, and Xu Ruiyu struggled with the possibility that their preparations would go unused and with the rules for choosing who could withdraw. After Shen Heng helped him recover from his discouragement, an unexpected sign suggested the Calamity Beasts had arrived after all.

• Shen Heng reasoned that the Calamity Beasts had had enough time to arrive from the Ruins Realm, so they probably would not gather forces from other Anchor Points.
• Xu Ruiyu grew tearful and asked how Shen Heng would decide who could withdraw if they failed to stop the next beast tide attacking Bedrock City; Shen Heng said the criteria could not be changed and the remaining places would be assigned by lot.
• Xu Ruiyu admitted he felt discouraged, and Shen Heng told him that victory in the current Erosion Zone strategy was likely but humanity's future remained uncertain.
• After Xu Ruiyu said he had pulled himself together, Shen Heng told him to inform the others, then wondered whether they could win.
• A figure by the campfire looked toward a certain direction and remarked that the Calamity Beasts had taken slacking off to another level.

Zhou Xuan and Zheng Guomin waited for the Calamity Beast tide, which scouts reported would include more than 2,300 beasts and a Fifth Tier One-Horned Tiger. At the command meeting, Qin Yu chose to continue the ambush plan despite the Hook-Tailed Golden Suanni’s A+ threat rating.

• Zhou Xuan promised Zheng Guomin he would cultivate for another half hour each day after Zheng caught him playing with ants.
• Kong Xi reported that a beast tide of roughly 2,300 Calamity Beasts was approaching from seventy kilometers away.
• A scout told Han Ling the tide included one Fifth Tier One-Horned Tiger, and Han Ling went to inform the Military Department’s officer in charge.
• Qin Yu studied the Hook-Tailed Golden Suanni’s combat report while the group considered abandoning the ambush.
• Qin Yu ordered the group to continue with the original plan, saying she could keep the Suanni occupied and prevent it from reaching them.

Shen Heng prepared an ambush at Eagle-Sorrow Ravine as a beast tide of more than seventeen thousand Calamity Beasts approached, led by a Molten-Fire Lizard. The humans took their concealed positions, and the chapter ended as Zhao Ming saw the enormous tide draw near.

• Shen Heng estimated that the Calamity Beasts would arrive in three hours and ordered Xu Ruiyu to prepare everyone for battle and maintain Concealment.
• Shen Heng noted that the Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi was absent and planned to check whether any unidentified fifth-tier Calamity Beasts were among the approaching tide.
• The Sky-Skimming Harrier reported the mountain route to the Molten-Fire Lizard, which ordered the beast tide to continue and reflected on its plans to conquer another city and reach sixth tier.
• The humans completed their preparations, then fell silent and activated Concealment when the command came.
• Kuang Jie pointed out the approaching Calamity Beasts, and Zhao Ming saw the vast tide spreading toward the ambush.

As the Calamity Beast tide moved onto the mountain paths, Zhao Ming and Kuang Jie discussed their confidence in Captain Shen and the planned ambushes. At another ambush point, Wu Hao refused to proceed against a force containing a Fifth Tier Calamity Beast, until Xu Yu proposed changing their objective.

• The Sky-Skimming Harrier watched the Calamity Beasts enter the mountain path while its thoughts drifted to food.
• Zhao Ming worried that his group could not defeat the massive tide, but Kuang Jie trusted Captain Shen and encouraged him to focus on winning.
• Wu Hao refused the officer’s request to attack a force with a Fifth Tier Calamity Beast, saying he trusted Captain Shen to stop the beasts elsewhere.
• Xu Yu questioned Wu Hao’s judgment but believed the opportunity to attack should not be wasted.
• Xu Yu suggested that the group make killing the Calamity Beasts a secondary objective instead of their main one.

Xu Yu persuaded the officer and Wu Hao to use explosives to trigger a landslide, delaying the low-tier Calamity Beasts while they targeted the high-tier ones. At Eagle-Sorrow Ravine, Shen Heng waited for the Molten-Fire Lizard to reach the ambush before ordering an attack, and missiles struck as the beast reacted too late.

• Xu Yu proposed blasting the cliffs after the beast tide entered the gorge, and estimated the plan had a seventy percent chance of success if the explosives were placed and timed correctly.
• The officer accepted Xu Yu's plan, and Wu Hao agreed to proceed as the mountaintop filled with activity.
• At Eagle-Sorrow Ravine, Shen Heng held his ambush team back until the Molten-Fire Lizard reached their position.
• The Molten-Fire Lizard considered its plans to capture human cities while being carried along the path.
• Shen Heng gave the order to attack, and flaming missiles flew toward the Molten-Fire Lizard.

The Molten-Fire Lizard survived a missile barrage and realized humans had prepared an ambush against its horde. It ordered the flying and Fourth Tier Calamity Beasts to attack the human weapons while the others retreated, as Shen Heng judged the horde’s chances slim.

• The Molten-Fire Lizard dodged the missile barrage by rolling off a cliff, then returned to the mountain path injured as the shelling continued.
• The Molten-Fire Lizard suspected the Sky-Sundering Kamaitachi had leaked its plans to the humans and saw that the entire horde was under attack.
• The Molten-Fire Lizard tried to rally the Calamity Beasts but found nearby beasts too terrified to respond.
• The Molten-Fire Lizard summoned the Sky-Skimming Harrier and ordered it to relay commands to the horde.
• The Molten-Fire Lizard ordered the Fourth Tier and flying Calamity Beasts to attack the human weapons and told the rest to retreat toward both sides.
• Shen Heng watched the battle and judged that the ambush had greatly weakened the Calamity Beasts’ chances.