Chapter Summaries

Su Wei showed Emily the tidal pool exhibit, and Cotton Candy’s calm reaction convinced her that it had unusual ecological qualities. Emily agreed to submit an honest interim report while recommending the guild delay its next inspection until after the spring thaw, leaving Su Wei’s facilities and construction plans still to be completed.

• Su Wei led Emily to the tidal pool exhibit, where Cotton Candy relaxed and fell asleep in Emily’s arms.
• Emily warned Su Wei that the unfinished lodging, restaurant, shooting range, and transportation facilities would prevent the property from earning a four-star hunting ground rating.
• Su Wei described plans for cabins, a restaurant, a shooting range, and a helipad, but explained that severe winter weather prevented construction until spring.
• Emily said she would report both the exhibits’ ecological quality and the serious lack of supporting facilities, while recommending that the guild postpone its next on-site review until after the thaw.
• Su Wei thanked Emily, and she credited Cotton Candy’s reaction for persuading her the exhibit was special before they headed for the entrance.

Su Wei welcomed Emily into his cabin and began making the braised pork belly he remembered she loved. As the meal simmered, Emily and Cotton Candy waited in the kitchen, while Su Wei prepared a soup pot.

• Su Wei invited Emily inside and said he would make the braised pork belly she had loved as a child.
• Emily entered the cabin, noticed the scattered exhibition-hall plans, and cleared space on the dining table.
• Su Wei thawed and cut the pork belly, blanched it, then browned it and coated it in caramel, spices, and soy sauce.
• Su Wei added boiling water, covered the pot, and said the pork needed forty minutes to simmer.
• Emily sat at the table, and Cotton Candy crouched at her feet watching the stove as Su Wei set water to heat in a second pot.

Su Wei cooked a home-style meal for Emily, whose enthusiastic reaction left her praising his food. The chapter ended with Emily turning to speak seriously to Su Wei about the dishes.

• Su Wei prepared red-braised pork, dry-fried cabbage, hot and sour shredded potatoes, and carrot and tofu soup, triggering a weak temporary buff from the meal.
• Su Wei served Emily soup, and she tasted the dishes and quickly ate several pieces of red-braised pork.
• Su Wei gave Cotton Candy a strip of lean meat, and the fox ate it by the fireplace.
• Emily praised Su Wei's cooking, said it was even better than before, and began addressing him seriously.

Su Wei and Emily shared a warming dinner at his home before he drove her back to Kodiak Town for her Fish and Game Department appointment. Emily asked whether Su Wei could really make his Northern Throne Club succeed, and he answered that he could; she went inside as her apartment light came on.

• Emily praised Su Wei’s cooking and joked that it could make Northern Throne Club’s wealthy members feel their dues were worthwhile.
• The meal’s warmth restored feeling and color to Su Wei and Emily, and they finished nearly all the food.
• Emily said she would report to the Fish and Game Department in the morning, seek approval for her inspection assignment, and collect hunting-ground survey data from the Hunters’ Guild.
• Su Wei drove Emily to her Kodiak Town apartment and unloaded her suitcase.
• Emily asked whether Su Wei could really pull off the club, and Su Wei said he could because she had enjoyed the meal.
• Emily carried her suitcase inside, and Su Wei left after seeing her apartment light turn on.

Su Wei returned to his cabin, welcomed Cotton Candy, and reviewed the growth of his social media accounts. His secondary account had reached 380,000 followers, while his main account had grown to 817,000 as the exhibition hall construction series attracted viewers.

• Su Wei drove alone from Kodiak Town to his cabin near Emerald Lake and remembered the wolf-fang keychain Emily had given him.
• Cotton Candy greeted Su Wei at the cabin door, and he warmed the fireplace before settling in to work.
• Su Wei checked his secondary account and saw that it had reached 380,000 followers through videos of his cooking and Cotton Candy.
• Su Wei switched to his main account and found that its follower count had risen to 817,000 after he posted about building the exhibition hall.

Su Wei earned nearly $100,000 from viral videos documenting his wilderness exhibits and withdrew the money to his personal savings account. He watched the dark exhibition hall as its river valley and tidal pool systems ran overnight, anticipating the final exhibits would be completed the next day.

• Su Wei’s long video about preparing soil went viral, and his next three exhibit videos each gained millions of views.
• Su Wei checked his YouTube and TikTok earnings, which totaled $98,750 after fees and withholding.
• Su Wei sent both platform payouts to his personal savings account, keeping them separate from the Northern Throne Club’s business funds.
• Su Wei looked across Emerald Lake at the dark exhibition hall, where the river valley and tidal pool systems continued running.
• Su Wei received a bank notification that $61,200 had arrived in his account.

Su Wei paid Matt Hogan the final $600,000 for the exhibition hall construction and began setting up the second-floor forest zone. The chapter left Su Wei directing workers as they arranged cedar logs for the exhibit.

• Su Wei transferred Matt Hogan $600,000 as the final payment and saved a screenshot of the transaction.
• Matt confirmed he had received the money and thanked Su Wei for being a punctual boss.
• Su Wei inspected the second floor, which was divided into forest, sky, and resting zones, and directed workers to move materials into the forest zone.
• Su Wei guided the workers as they positioned the first cedar log and secured its root end on volcanic rocks.
• A worker brought over a second cedar log, and Su Wei crouched beside it to decide where it should go.

Su Wei directed the workers in building a woodland floor, carefully arranging soil, deadwood, moss, and ferns. After the groundwork was finished, he began overseeing construction of a realistic vertical rock face for the sky area.

• Su Wei analyzed the deadwood and instructed the workers how to orient it and combine it with pine needle soil, tree fern fiber, and humus.
• Su Wei explained that positioning the active fungal side of the deadwood downward would support the moss rather than compete with it.
• Su Wei supervised the workers as they laid drainage and substrate layers, marked humus patches, arranged three pieces of cedar deadwood, and planted sphagnum moss.
• Su Wei used his Ecological Landscaping passive effect to refine the moss placement and substrate as the woodland floor was completed before two in the afternoon.
• After lunch, Su Wei turned to the sky area and began planning how basalt slabs would fit together on the four-meter steel frame to resemble a natural cliff face.

Su Wei completed the second-floor woodland and cliff displays, and Matt praised his ecological landscaping skill. Emily messaged him about guild data and the hunting area evaluation, then invited him skiing at Pyramid Mountain, revealing she had already checked the weather.

• Su Wei finished shaping the artificial rock wall and concealed the irrigation pipes and lighting mounts.
• The second floor took shape with a woodland zone, a cliff zone, and a central rest area.
• Matt inspected the finished work and told Su Wei his ecological landscaping skill rivaled that of master landscapers.
• Su Wei read Emily’s messages about the guild data and official hunting area evaluation notice.
• Emily invited Su Wei to go out, and he asked whether Pyramid Mountain’s ski runs had opened.
• Emily confirmed the runs were open and said she had checked the forecast, which promised ideal skiing conditions.

Su Wei arranged a snowy outing with Emily for the day after tomorrow, then returned to wiring and installing the exhibition hall’s lighting system. He finished mounting and connecting the Sky Zone’s three light arrays and moved on to the Woodland Zone.

• Su Wei told Emily he could not meet tomorrow because he had to collect the finished brown bear mount, and they agreed to go out with Cotton Candy the day after tomorrow.
• Su Wei inspected the exhibition hall’s electrical conduits and used Mechanical Repair LV2 to identify the cables and their routes.
• Su Wei directed Matt and the crew to tighten the remaining first-floor conduit clamps while he worked upstairs.
• Su Wei used a pulley and winch to mount three full-spectrum light arrays in the Sky Zone.
• Su Wei wired the arrays’ power and DMX signal connections, tested them with a multimeter, and went to the Woodland Zone.

Su Wei finished wiring the exhibit zones and energized the exhibition hall’s electrical systems. After the systems started successfully, his Mechanical Repair skill advanced to LV3.

• Su Wei marked positions and angles for six woodland spotlights, then connected the river valley’s mist makers and installed their circuit breakers.
• Su Wei wired the tidal pool’s wave pump, heating element, and temperature controller in the cramped equipment room.
• Matt reported that the first-floor piping was secured and had passed insulation tests, and Su Wei took him to the basement distribution cabinet.
• Su Wei used Mechanical Repair LV2 to check the cabinet’s circuits before switching on the main power and six branch circuits.
• The exhibit systems started and their indicators settled, while Su Wei’s Mechanical Repair skill reached LV3.

Su Wei activated the completed exhibit hall’s four ecosystems and received perfect assessments and new passive effects for the woodland and cliff zones. The shelter’s range expanded to cover the hall, increasing the territory’s ecological integrity by 15%, while Su Wei planned to fill the reserved display spaces the next day.

• Su Wei touched the distribution box and unlocked System Diagnostics, then the river valley, tide pool, woodland, and cliff systems began operating.
• Su Wei and Matt toured the finished first- and second-floor zones as their mist, waves, lighting, and environmental details came to life.
• The system rated the woodland and cliff ecosystems perfect and granted them the Whispers of the Forest Sea and Cliffside Focus effects.
• Su Wei looked at the reserved spaces for the brown bear mount and king stag’s antlers, which he planned to collect from Old Hope the next day.
• The system extended the Homestead Shelter’s range to cover the exhibition hall and raised territory ecological integrity by 15%.

After discovering that his completed exhibition hall had triggered a growing 12% amplification for its ecosystem effects, Su Wei showed Matt plans for a major expansion of Emerald Lake. Matt began examining the detailed construction blueprint for the shooting range.

• Su Wei learned that Cosmos Within a Square Inch amplified his perfect-quality ecosystem effects by 12%, with further growth possible from additional systems and specimens.
• Su Wei thanked Matt for completing the exhibition hall and invited him to his cabin that evening.
• Su Wei showed Matt blueprints for a shooting range, five themed cabins, a helicopter landing pad, a garage, a workshop conversion, and a new villa.
• Matt studied the overall site plan and turned to the detailed shooting-range blueprint.

Su Wei planned a phased, ten-million-dollar estate construction project with Matt and secured Matt’s commitment to dedicate his engineering team to it. They left with the shooting range and old cabin renovation as the first phase, pending a detailed quote.

• Matt estimated that Su Wei’s plans for a shooting range, cabins, and helipad would require at least ten million dollars.
• Su Wei outlined a phased construction schedule, starting with the shooting range and renovation of the old cabin.
• Matt estimated the first phase would cost between 1.2 and 1.5 million dollars, and Su Wei offered a thirty-percent advance.
• Matt agreed that Polar Solid Shield Engineering Team would work exclusively for Su Wei as long as the funds arrived.
• Su Wei pushed a blank sheet of paper and a pencil toward Matt.

Su Wei finalized a $1.374 million shooting-range quote with Matt, then received an offer from Polaris Outdoors to make a dedicated gear video for $150,000. The chapter ended before Su Wei responded to the brand deal.

• Su Wei and Matt negotiated and revised the shooting-range quote until Matt signed the $1.374 million estimate.
• Su Wei told Matt he would transfer the advance payment the next day, and Matt left to prepare a construction schedule.
• Su Wei fed Cotton Candy venison and fish oil after checking the time.
• Catherine Morales, Polaris Outdoors' business operations director, called Su Wei and offered him $150,000 and free gear for a dedicated promotional video.

Su Wei rejected Polaris’s demand for a dedicated five-minute advertisement, arguing that it would undermine the audience trust he had built with his wilderness videos. He negotiated a more natural sponsorship arrangement with Catherine, though the final terms remained under discussion.

• Su Wei imagined the backlash a long Polaris ad would bring and told Catherine he would not make a dedicated advertising video.
• Su Wei proposed wearing Polaris’s shell jacket in his usual content, with a natural product introduction lasting no more than thirty seconds and creative control remaining with him.
• Su Wei argued that footage of him wearing the jacket during real Alaskan work would promote it better than a spoken pitch.
• Su Wei and Catherine negotiated for twenty minutes, agreeing that the jacket would appear in at least eighty percent of the video and that a natural shot of its logo would remain in the edit.
• Catherine and Su Wei continued haggling over the video length and product introduction, with Su Wei refusing a separate spoken pitch and insisting on integrating the product naturally.

Su Wei negotiated a $100,000 brand placement deal with Catherine for Polaris, with future rates tied to the video’s view count. After confirming the collaboration terms, he reflected on his growing channels and the long-term opportunities ahead.

• Su Wei rejected Catherine’s $120,000 offer and proposed a $100,000 base fee with higher rates if the video passed two or three million views.
• Catherine consulted her team, then agreed to the base fee and said Polaris’s legal team would review the tiered increases.
• Su Wei and Catherine confirmed a fifteen-minute video featuring Polaris’s flagship jacket, a thirty-second brand introduction, and a $100,000 fee with the gear included.
• Catherine said Polaris would send the contract within three business days, and Su Wei agreed to review and sign it if the terms were in order.
• Su Wei considered the earnings from his two growing accounts and expected more brands to approach him as his audience expanded.

Su Wei prepared for an early trip to collect a Kodiak brown bear specimen from Old Hope's, planning to install it in the exhibition hall and raise Cosmos Within a Square Inch's amplification coefficient. He left home before sunrise with venison packed for the road.

• Su Wei checked the refrigerator and decided to take venison with him for the trip to Old Hope's.
• Su Wei noted that the bear specimen and Deer King's antlers would raise the amplification coefficient by two percentage points, and he recorded his plans for the next day.
• Su Wei woke before six, fed the fireplace, and cooked venison steaks for the road.
• Su Wei packed the steaks and bread, checked that Cotton Candy had food, and left the house.
• Su Wei started the black Raptor, let its engine warm, and drove off.

Su Wei drove to Old Hope’s factory to see the completed skeleton of the Kodiak brown bear king. Old Hope gave him a pair of custom glass eyes and left him to fit them, warning that failure would land him in the incinerator.

• Su Wei avoided the icy coastal highway and drove inland to the old industrial district.
• Old Hope let Su Wei into the factory and led him to the temperature-controlled bone room.
• Su Wei inspected the cleaned, mounted skeleton of the Kodiak brown bear king and noticed its empty eye sockets.
• Old Hope handed Su Wei a box containing two amber glass eyes and warned him not to botch the job.
• Old Hope told Su Wei where to find the gloves, then sat nearby as Su Wei examined the eyes.

Su Wei carefully reshaped the bear king skeleton’s eye sockets and began fitting a glass eye. Old Hope stopped him and revealed a worn pouch containing two unusual, dark-brown glass eyes.

• Su Wei used Nimble Hands and Texture Reshaping to inspect and correct flaws in both eye sockets’ foam fillings.
• Su Wei picked up an amber glass eye and slowly began pressing it into the bear king’s left socket.
• Old Hope told Su Wei to wait, then took a worn velvet pouch from a hidden pocket in his apron.
• Old Hope opened the pouch and showed Su Wei two dark-brown glass eyes patterned with deep-red threads.