Episode Summary
In "Abyss Dweller" Episode 24, Mizuho's victory over the MSB's Shanghai station sparks a power struggle with Director Li when he withholds a key list of agents. Liang Shuo deflects suspicion from Director Cui regarding the mole Zhao Di, just as he learns of Xie Nianci's disappearance following an MSB raid. Realizing she staged her escape, Liang orchestrates a reunion, and she moves into his home for safety. There, they formalize their partnership, and she gives him a new codebook. Meanwhile, the captured Station Chief Wang is interrogated by Mizuho before being assassinated by Lu Xijian to prevent him from exposing other agents. The episode concludes with Liang grieving for Zhao Di, only to be confronted by a deeply suspicious Lu Xijian who questions Zhao Di's true identity and Liang's story.
Spoiler Alert
Abyss Dweller Episode 24 Recap & Spoilers: The Undercurrents of Deceit
The Gist
Mizuho Genxin's victory over the Military-Statistics Bureau's (MSB) Shanghai station creates a new conflict when he conceals a crucial list of agents from his superior, Director Li. Meanwhile, Liang Shuo finds himself under suspicion from Director Cui for failing to notice the mole, Zhao Di, and is forced to deflect blame. Following an attack on the MSB, Xie Nianci goes missing, but Liang Shuo quickly realizes she staged her own disappearance to escape surveillance. After a tense reunion, Xie Nianci moves into Liang Shuo’s home, where they officially become partners, and she entrusts him with a new codebook. Their alliance is formed just as the captured Station Chief Wang is interrogated by Mizuho before being permanently silenced by Lu Xijian. As Liang Shuo grieves the loss of Zhao Di, who died protecting him, Lu Xijian confronts him, casting serious doubt on his cover story and true loyalties.
Key Spoilers & Highlights
- A Power Play: Mizuho and Director Li clash over the intelligence from the MSB raid. Mizuho refuses to hand over his key asset—the list of agents—prompting Director Li to threaten him with official regulations, escalating the tension between them.
- A Staged Disappearance: Xie Nianci executes a clever escape by faking her disappearance after the MSB safe house is hit. She coordinates with Liang Shuo to evade surveillance and establishes a new, unexpected safe house at his home.
- The Codebook Handover: The partnership between Liang Shuo and Xie Nianci is solidified when she sees him writing an unsecured diary and gives him an encrypted codebook. They plan to use a maple tree in a park as their new dead drop, marking the beginning of their formal alliance.
- The End of the Line for Station Chief Wang: After being forced by Mizuho to draw portraits of undercover MSB members, the captured and wounded Wang is assassinated in the hospital by Lu Xijian. Lu Xijian also destroys the drawings, completely thwarting Mizuho's plan to lure out more agents.
- Doubts About Zhao Di: Lu Xijian openly challenges Liang Shuo's story about Zhao Di's identity, refusing to believe she was merely a low-level "informant." His sharp questioning suggests he senses a much deeper secret.
Full Recap
A Victory and a Secret
The episode opens with Mizuho Genxin reporting his successful operation against the MSB's Shanghai station to Director Li. However, when pressed for details on how he achieved such a breakthrough, Mizuho conceals the crucial fact that he used a secret list of agents. He vaguely credits the success to "deciphering a coded telegram." Unconvinced, Director Li invokes internal regulations to pressure him, but Mizuho holds his ground, refusing to reveal his trump card. The meeting ends in a tense stalemate.
Cornered and Concerned
Liang Shuo faces his own crisis when confronted by Director Cui, who questions how he could have worked alongside Zhao Di for so long without detecting she was a mole. Thinking on his feet, Liang Shuo feigns frustration and cleverly shifts the blame, reminding Cui that Zhao Di was originally planted by Director Li. Their tense conversation is interrupted by news that an MSB hideout was attacked the previous night and Xie Nianci is now missing. Liang Shuo rushes to her apartment, where he finds signs of a struggle. However, he recognizes the chaos is staged and correctly deduces that she orchestrated her own escape.
A Calculated Reunion
To draw away the agents Director Cui has watching him, Liang Shuo pretends to launch a desperate search for Xie Nianci around the city. Once the surveillance loosens, she appears and collapses into his arms, crying. She explains that while she received his warning about the impending raid, it came too late to save most of their comrades. Playing along, Director Cui suggests that for her safety, Xie Nianci should stay temporarily at Liang Shuo’s home. She agrees, using the excuse of needing to retrieve "personal belongings" to have Liang Shuo escort her home—a move designed to let them share information privately.
A Partnership Forged in Secret
Once Xie Nianci moves in, Liang Shuo gallantly offers her the master bedroom. Later that night, she recounts the horrific details of the raid. Noticing Liang Shuo writing in a regular, unencrypted diary, she immediately hands him a small codebook. "Use this for your diary from now on," she insists. They agree to hide the book under the same maple tree in the park that Liang Shuo used as a dead drop with Jiang Feiman. "From now on," Xie Nianci declares, "we are true partners."
Silencing the Traitor
Elsewhere, the badly wounded Station Chief Wang is being interrogated by the Japanese Army. Mizuho dangles a false promise of safe passage out of Shanghai, while secretly ordering his subordinate, Takagi Yugi, to force Wang to draw portraits of every undercover MSB agent he can remember. But others are also tying up loose ends. On Xie Jun'an's orders, Lu Xijian infiltrates the hospital that night. He swiftly assassinates Station Chief Wang and burns the completed portraits, ensuring Mizuho's plan to "fish out the remaining partisans" ends in failure.
The Shadow War Continues
The power struggles intensify across the board. Liang Shuo demands that Director Cui remove the surveillance on Xie Nianci, but Cui refuses, claiming it's for her "protection." Director Li, determined not to be outmaneuvered, summons both Liang Shuo and Cui to a meeting. He reveals a partial list of agents that he also possesses, making it clear: "I will not let Mizuho monopolize this intelligence." At the same time, Xie Jun'an reassures Lu Xijian, "Mizuho may have won this round, but we still have our trump card."
A Ghost from the Past, A New Suspicion
In a quiet moment, Liang Shuo is overwhelmed with grief as he remembers Zhao Di, the comrade who secretly protected him and ultimately sacrificed her life to ensure his cover remained intact. His mourning is cut short by a cold confrontation with Lu Xijian. "Zhao Di was never one of ours," Lu states flatly. "What are you hiding?" Liang Shuo claims she was simply an informant he had cultivated, but Lu Xijian stares him down, his eyes sharp with disbelief. "Do you even believe that yourself?" he asks, leaving the accusation hanging in the air.
The risky dead drop for the codebook leaves the new partnership between Liang Shuo and Xie Nianci immediately vulnerable. The struggle for the secret list is escalating, with Director Li and Xie Jun'an now openly competing with Mizuho for control of the valuable intelligence. Most critically, the growing rift between Liang Shuo and Lu Xijian poses an immediate threat, as Lu's profound distrust could unravel everything Liang Shuo is fighting to protect.
