Chapter Summaries

Song Xiaozhu woke in a wasteland shack as Li Siyuan, a dead tycoon’s daughter stranded on Garbage Mountain. She began adjusting to life under Old Man Bai while recalling the catastrophe that had reshaped the world.

• Song Xiaozhu woke to Old Man Bai’s whistle and hurried to cook wild vegetable mush rather than empty the chamber pot.
• Song Xiaozhu tested whether she was dreaming and recognized the filthy shack and Old Man Bai as her reality.
• Song Xiaozhu recalled that a high fever had given her memories of Li Siyuan, a pampered heiress whose father, Li Shihai, had been assassinated.
• Song Xiaozhu remembered how Li Siyuan escaped Tianfu Holy City and ended up on Garbage Mountain outside the Ink City fortress.
• Song Xiaozhu reviewed the asteroid impact and subsequent disasters that had devastated civilization more than two centuries earlier.

After waking in Li Siyuan’s body, Song Xiaozhu struggled to survive in the scavenger community outside Ink City under Bai Jing’s roof. Bai Jing sent her to scavenge for at least fifty cents, and she realized that avoiding other scavengers made meeting the quota nearly impossible.

• Song Xiaozhu recalled that Bai Jing had saved her, charged her for antibiotics, demanded that she work, and said she would marry him when she turned eighteen.
• Song Xiaozhu served Bai Jing wild-greens mush, then agreed to go scavenging to repay her debt.
• Song Xiaozhu disguised herself to avoid attention as she made her way through the scavenger community outside Ink City.
• Song Xiaozhu searched Garbage Mountain for recyclable goods, knowing she needed to earn at least fifty cents that day.
• Song Xiaozhu calculated that collecting enough plastic bottles to meet her quota could take sixteen hours at her current pace.

Song Xiaozhu discovered a damaged Workbench that could synthesize items and found recipes for making a Simple Hoe from raw wood and stone. She tried turning a rotten stick into raw wood material, but the synthesis failed and the stick disappeared.

• Song Xiaozhu found a stone while scavenging and learned that a Simple Hoe recipe required raw wood material and raw stone material.
• Song Xiaozhu examined the Workbench and discovered it was a Level 1 Damaged Item Synthesizer with three unlocked recipes and no Quantum Coins or repair points.
• Song Xiaozhu tested how the Workbench appeared and disappeared, then decided to use her rotten wooden stick as raw wood material.
• Song Xiaozhu selected the raw wood material recipe, but the synthesis failed, and she could not find the stick afterward.

Song Xiaozhu experimented with the synthesizer, turning a plastic bottle into paralyzing milk candy and eventually producing raw wood material. After earning a Quantum Coin through a hundred consecutive failures, she unlocked the Crude Storage Box recipe and found that crafting it required materials and more coins than she had.

• Song Xiaozhu used a plastic bottle for random synthesis and obtained milk candy that could paralyze a target for three minutes.
• Song Xiaozhu learned that random synthesis attempts were limited and that she would need Quantum Coins to buy more.
• After more than twenty attempts with rotten wood, Song Xiaozhu successfully synthesized one raw wood material.
• Song Xiaozhu failed to synthesize raw stone material one hundred times and earned a Quantum Coin by unlocking the level 1 "Unlucky Player" achievement.
• Song Xiaozhu spent the Quantum Coin to unlock the Crude Storage Box recipe and saw that it required twenty raw wood materials, four raw stone materials, and two Quantum Coins.

Song Xiaozhu crafted a simple hoe, used it to gather recyclable scraps, and discovered a possible recipe for turning contaminated food into raw food material. Hungry and unable to return to the shack with her valuable finds, she considered spending her Quantum Coin to unlock a food-related recipe.

• After 106 attempts to synthesize raw stone material, Song Xiaozhu combined it with raw wood material to make a simple hoe and earned a Quantum Coin for unlocking the Digger achievement.
• Song Xiaozhu picked up the palm-sized hoe and watched it expand to full size, then used it to dig through the garbage much faster.
• She collected enough recyclable scraps to earn about fifty cents but avoided returning to the shack because she feared Old Man Bai would question her haul and someone might take her hoe.
• Hungry at midday, Song Xiaozhu placed a green-tinged potato on the workbench and learned that a corresponding recipe existed but remained locked.
• Song Xiaozhu studied the locked recipes and considered spending her sole Quantum Coin to unlock one that might let her make food.

Song Xiaozhu unlocked and crafted a simple skinning knife, earning back her Quantum Coin through the Hunter achievement. As she headed to the recycling station, a Growth Quest offered her a choice between killing an intruder and escaping a crisis, then a massive truck dumped garbage at the foot of Garbage Mountain.

• Song Xiaozhu spent her Quantum Coin to unlock a recipe, revealing a simple skinning knife that required raw wood and raw stone.
• After many failed synthesis attempts, Song Xiaozhu crafted the knife and unlocked the level-one Hunter achievement, earning one Quantum Coin.
• Song Xiaozhu concealed the knife, buried her big hoe, and carried her sack of plastic toward the recycling station while exhausted and hungry.
• A Growth Quest appeared, asking Song Xiaozhu to choose between killing an intruder for Quantum Coins and Repair Points or escaping a crisis for a different reward.
• A huge transport truck dumped garbage at the foot of Garbage Mountain, and Song Xiaozhu feared scavengers might have been buried beneath it.
• Song Xiaozhu saw the truck head toward the Fortress and recognized the silver scales emblem as Ink City's city emblem.

Song Xiaozhu went to the north district recycling station while on alert for danger, exchanged bottles, and encountered Shang Bao. She left after he made an unwelcome remark, with the danger warning still unexplained.

• Song Xiaozhu noticed a red exclamation mark warning her of danger and prepared herself with milk candy and a skinning knife.
• Song Xiaozhu took her bottles to the north district recycling station, where Stationmaster Xia paid her for fifty instead of the fifty-six she had brought.
• Song Xiaozhu looked over the station’s costly tools and provisions as she collected her money.
• Shang Bao arrived, recognized Song Xiaozhu as the girl Bai Jing had picked up, and leered at her.
• Song Xiaozhu told Stationmaster Xia that her grandfather was waiting and said she was leaving.

Song Xiaozhu escaped Shang Bao and returned to Bai Jing’s shack, only to find him missing and worry that she might have to face the growing crisis alone. After eating painful, poorly nourishing gruel, she made a false silhouette of Bai Jing by the window to hide his absence.

• Shang Bao tried to stop Song Xiaozhu and entice her to go with him, but she dodged him and fled the recycling station.
• Song Xiaozhu returned to the shack and discovered that Bai Jing was gone, making her suspect that he had secrets and fear that something had happened to him.
• Song Xiaozhu cooked wild vegetable gruel while listening for Bai Jing and worried that without him she could not protect the shack or Li Siyuan’s body.
• Song Xiaozhu drank the gruel despite the pain it caused her stomach, then arranged Bai Jing’s chair, a plank, and his coat to make a convincing silhouette by the window.

Song Xiaozhu used her quantum coin to unlock and synthesize low-pollution water, earning the purifier achievement and another coin. She unlocked a basic axe recipe but lacked enough materials to make it without risking the shack.

• Song Xiaozhu chose to unlock a recipe rather than spend her last quantum coin on a random synthesis attempt.
• She synthesized low-pollution water, learned it was safe to drink in limited amounts, and earned the level 1 purifier achievement and a quantum coin.
• Song Xiaozhu bottled one portion of the water, synthesized another, and tasted it.
• She spent her returned coin to unlock the basic axe recipe, then worried that gathering its wood and stone materials could leave her without firewood or require tearing down the shack.

Song Xiaozhu hid that Bai Jing was away when Qiu Shuyu arrived with firewood. She gave Qiu Shuyu special low-pollution water, which eased her suspicions and left Song Xiaozhu with a clearer sense of its effect.

• Song Xiaozhu heard Qiu Shuyu knock and concealed Bai Jing's absence by making a mound on the bed.
• Qiu Shuyu brought Bai Jing firewood and accepted a bottle of water from Song Xiaozhu.
• After drinking the water, Qiu Shuyu felt at ease and stopped suspecting Song Xiaozhu.
• Song Xiaozhu saw Qiu Shuyu leave and concluded the water made people more trusting and agreeable.

Song Xiaozhu synthesized low-pollution water in bulk after giving Qiu Shuyu a rare special batch, then waited armed for an intruder while Bai Jing stayed away. At her shack, Qiu Shuyu realized the person in Bai Jing’s bed was not Master Bai and grew suspicious of Song Xiaozhu.

• Song Xiaozhu used up the vat of polluted water synthesizing low-pollution water, but none of her hundred-odd attempts produced another special batch.
• Song Xiaozhu saw that Bai Jing had not returned and decided not to involve him in the crisis, then waited at the doorway with her skinning knife.
• Qiu Shuyu recalled risking her life to bring home a discarded dressing table and how Bai Jing had saved her with three bottles of antibiotics.
• Qiu Shuyu woke with a sense of danger, noticed Bai Jing’s shoes and pipe were missing, and realized the person in the bed was not him.
• Qiu Shuyu remembered Song Xiaozhu’s lie and feared that an upper-city person had entered the shack.

Shang Bao learned that Bai Jing had gone to Liu Family Village to treat a badly bitten man and realized Bai Jing would likely be away overnight. He began thinking about Song Xiaozhu and the chance to approach her while Bai Jing was gone.

• Shang Bao fantasized about Song Xiaozhu, then fled home after Shang Dayuan slapped him for skipping the scavenging rush.
• Shang Bao went to the tavern, where Luo Tong told the patrons that a man from Liu Family Village had suffered a bite wound and Bai Jing had gone to treat him.
• Shang Bao bought drinks to draw the tavern patrons’ attention and learned Bai Jing had been unable to borrow a vehicle.
• Shang Bao concluded Bai Jing would not return until morning and thought that he would be away from the shack overnight.

Song Xiaozhu used a paralyzing milk candy to stop Shang Bao when he broke into her shack and lunged at her. As she prepared to tie him up, Qiu Shuyu arrived and threatened to kill him.

• Tavern patrons discussed Shang Bao’s plan to intimidate Song Xiaozhu and keep Master Bai from finding out.
• Song Xiaozhu waited anxiously in the shack, considering the danger posed by the intruder and preparing to defend herself.
• Shang Bao kicked down the door and lunged at Song Xiaozhu, promising to marry her.
• Song Xiaozhu fed Shang Bao a paralyzing milk candy and watched as his body froze.
• Song Xiaozhu grabbed a rope to tie Shang Bao up, but Qiu Shuyu shouted from outside and threatened to hack him to death.

Qiu Shuyu accidentally killed Shang Bao while trying to save Song Xiaozhu, and Song Xiaozhu took responsibility to protect her. Song Xiaozhu used her Workbench to attempt a random synthesis on Shang Bao’s body to dispose of the evidence.

• Qiu Shuyu struck Shang Bao with her axe, killing him because the paralyzing milk candy had left him unable to dodge.
• Song Xiaozhu cleaned Qiu Shuyu up and told her to return home and deny leaving her shack that night.
• Qiu Shuyu realized Song Xiaozhu had taken the blame and hurried back out to help her.
• Song Xiaozhu received five Quantum Coins and ten Repair Points for completing Growth Quest B.
• Song Xiaozhu placed Shang Bao’s body on the Workbench and chose to continue with Random Inferior Synthesis to erase the evidence.

Song Xiaozhu used her hidden workbench to turn Shang Bao's corpse into fertilizer, then cleaned the shack with Qiu Shuyu, who realized Song Xiaozhu had awakened. Song Xiaozhu tested the workbench in front of Qiu Shuyu and learned that others could see items placed on it but not the workbench itself; she ended the chapter having spent another Quantum Coin on poor-quality ginger candy.

• Song Xiaozhu synthesized Shang Bao's corpse into fertilizer and discovered that Qiu Shuyu had returned and witnessed the corpse vanish.
• Qiu Shuyu said she had come back because she was worried, and Song Xiaozhu enlisted her to wipe away the blood in the shack.
• Song Xiaozhu summoned the workbench in front of Qiu Shuyu and confirmed that Qiu Shuyu could see the items but not the workbench.
• Song Xiaozhu spent a Quantum Coin to synthesize the bloodied cloth and Qiu Shuyu's jacket, receiving one piece of poor-quality ginger candy.
• Qiu Shuyu warned Song Xiaozhu not to overdraw her Force, fearing it could permanently harm her body.

Song Xiaozhu told Qiu Shuyu that Bai Jing had disappeared and that Shang Bao had threatened her, then asked Qiu Shuyu about Awakening Stones and professions. Qiu Shuyu explained what she knew, while Song Xiaozhu concealed that she did not believe she had awakened and tried to learn more before Bai Jing returned.

• Song Xiaozhu told Qiu Shuyu that Bai Jing had left and described her encounter with Shang Bao at the recycling station.
• Qiu Shuyu guessed that Bai Jing had gone to Liu Family Village to treat someone and congratulated Song Xiaozhu on receiving a profession.
• Qiu Shuyu explained that Awakening Stones were rare and that people awakened different professions based on their individual qualities.
• Song Xiaozhu said she did not know her profession and asked Qiu Shuyu what professions she knew about.
• Qiu Shuyu named Bai Jing as a Physician, Boss Mu as a Lumberjack, the district chief as a Digger, and listed Warrior, Hunter, and Purifier as higher-level professions in Fortress.

Song Xiaozhu learned about the awakened classes and decided to present herself as an Artisan, hiding the true nature of her Synthesizer. She resolved to keep a low profile while learning more about the class.

• Song Xiaozhu connected the classes Excavator, Hunter, and Purifier to achievements she had earned by synthesizing items.
• Qiu Shuyu explained that awakened classes reflected their abilities and described the powerful Warrior class.
• Song Xiaozhu avoided revealing her Synthesizer and considered pretending to be a Purifier, but Qiu Shuyu said her ability did not fit.
• Qiu Shuyu introduced the Artisan class, explaining that its abilities involved making things and that it was considered weak.
• Song Xiaozhu insisted she was an Artisan because she could make tools, while Qiu Shuyu worried that she would be upset by the class's low status.
• Song Xiaozhu recognized Qiu Shuyu's pity and decided that passing herself off as an Artisan suited her plan to keep a low profile.

Song Xiaozhu learned from Qiu Shuyu that Artisans used Force only for crafting, while other classes applied it to combat and other abilities. Though Qiu Shuyu feared the class would disappoint her, Song Xiaozhu saw it as a useful cover for her Synthesizer and admitted she could not sense Force.

• Song Xiaozhu told Qiu Shuyu she could make a stone axe, and asked whether Artisans could cook as well as make tools.
• Qiu Shuyu encouraged Song Xiaozhu, explaining that Artisans used Force to improve their crafted items and that Force appeared as white mist.
• Song Xiaozhu learned that a class restricted how its awakened users could apply Force, leaving Artisans limited to crafting.
• Qiu Shuyu privately worried that Song Xiaozhu had awakened into a weak class and feared Master Bai would be upset.
• Song Xiaozhu decided the Artisan class suited her because it gave her cover to use the Synthesizer, and she asked what counted as overusing Force.
• Qiu Shuyu said only awakened people could sense Force, and Song Xiaozhu admitted she could not feel it.

Song Xiaozhu unlocked three new Synthesizer recipes and went to sleep feeling hopeful about her future. She woke early the next morning, let Qiu Shuyu rest, and prepared to cook wild vegetable gruel.

• Song Xiaozhu and Qiu Shuyu agreed to keep the previous night's events secret from Bai Jing.
• Song Xiaozhu spent three Quantum Coins to unlock recipes for a simple pickaxe, an edible meal, and medicinal raw material.
• Song Xiaozhu considered the possible uses of the medicinal recipe but went to sleep without trying it because she lacked materials.
• Song Xiaozhu dreamed of a beam of light and woke early, reflecting on why Bai Jing had taught her to leave before the scavengers.
• Song Xiaozhu woke Qiu Shuyu by getting up, told her to sleep longer, and said she was going to cook wild vegetable gruel.

Song Xiaozhu shared wild vegetable gruel with Qiu Shuyu and learned how the logging camp operated. After Qiu Shuyu offered to bring her timber for free, Song Xiaozhu promised to cook her something delicious and went to inspect the garbage heap where she had buried a simple hoe.

• Song Xiaozhu cooked wild vegetable gruel with low-pollution water, and Qiu Shuyu ate it while asking whether Song Xiaozhu had used Force.
• Song Xiaozhu asked Qiu Shuyu about the logging camp, learning that workers cut timber with their own tools and were paid according to the wood they brought back.
• Song Xiaozhu offered to buy timber from Qiu Shuyu, but Qiu Shuyu insisted on giving it to her for free.
• Song Xiaozhu promised to make Qiu Shuyu something delicious for dinner, and Qiu Shuyu left for the logging camp.
• Song Xiaozhu went to the place where she had buried the simple hoe and carefully examined the garbage heap.