Chapter Summaries

Ji Yang suspected that Xu Xi had changed the watch order because Hang Ze’s discovery of a hidden clue might trigger a Dungeon mutation that night. Xu Xi finished burning offerings and appeared to reveal a purpose behind his seemingly carefree behavior.

• Xu Xi left the stove and followed a path through a small door, while viewers speculated about why he had taken the watch.
• Ji Yang said he was considering a possibility and switched to Hang Ze’s livestream, which showed Hang Ze among mourners at another funeral.
• The viewers learned that Hang Ze had climbed out of a small coffin after his livestream returned, suggesting he had uncovered a hidden clue.
• Ji Yang and the viewers speculated that Hang Ze’s clue could cause the Dungeon to mutate and that Xu Xi had changed the watch order in anticipation.
• Xu Xi finished burning the offerings, and his actions began to hint at his real purpose.

Xu Xi realized he could burn the Shen Family Clan Genealogy to sever his ties to the family, and suspected it was hidden in the sealed Ancient Well. He sought out Seventh Concubine and offered to cross her son's name off the genealogy.

• Xu Xi decided that destroying the Clan Genealogy might remove the Shen Family's claims on him and let him leave the residence.
• Xu Xi guessed the genealogy was hidden in the sealed Ancient Well and went to find a creature that could retrieve it.
• Seventh Concubine stayed up embroidering while her maid urged her to rest and offered to pray for Sixth Young Master.
• Xu Xi entered the women's quarters, ignored the maid's objection, and told Seventh Concubine he could cross her son's name off the Clan Genealogy.

After Xu Xi escaped Shen Manor by destroying the Clan Genealogy, Ji Yang reasoned that the players could clear the instance by leaving as outsiders and avoid the Shen Family’s inherited debt. Yu Hao weighed the clues and the Ancestral Hall’s significance before a tremendous boom interrupted him.

• Xu Xi persuaded Seventh Concubine to open the well, had Xueke retrieve the Clan Genealogy, burned it, and left Shen Manor.
• Ji Yang theorized that the Shen Family’s rules were incomplete and that the players could escape their inherited debt by leaving as outsiders.
• Ji Yang concluded that the other players could clear the instance by walking through the Shen Family’s front gate.
• Yu Hao considered whether removing their names from the Clan Genealogy could free the players, but realized none of them knew their names.
• Yu Hao wondered what made the Ancestral Hall important on the second night, then heard a tremendous boom.

After Hang Ze’s explosion altered the Shen Family Dungeon, the players discovered that Xu Xi had already cleared it and escaped. The others followed Hang Ze through the open main gate, though Yu Hao remained unsure how they had completed the Dungeon.

• Ji Yang explained that Hang Ze’s destruction of the Ancestral Hall had changed the Dungeon, while Xu Xi had cleared it by burning the Clan Genealogy with the unusual Stove Hearth.
• Yu Hao, Xing Ge, Lin Zuo, Shi Weiwei, and Tang Shutong left their rooms to investigate the noise and encountered Hang Ze fleeing Master Shen, who had returned as a corpse.
• Hang Ze told the group he had taken Master Shen’s broken writing brush and urged them to find the Clan Genealogy and cross out their names; Shi Weiwei confirmed that Hang Ze had blown up the Ancestral Hall.
• The steward told the six players that the young master had already gone ahead and that he would not stop them from leaving.
• Hang Ze led the group through the open Shen Family gate, and Lin Zuo pulled Tang Shutong across when she froze; white light appeared as they escaped the Dungeon.

Yu Hao and the other players realized Xu Xi had carried their team through the Dungeon, while Hang Ze reflected on his bad luck and sought teammates for his next run. Online players celebrated Xu Xi’s rapid rise and hoped he could survive long enough to become a miracle.

• Yu Hao checked the Huaguo rankings and recognized that Xu Xi, ranked 47th with only seven Dungeons cleared, had been the distant young man on their team.
• Hang Ze watched the rankings, credited Xu Xi with getting them through the Dungeon before his unlucky nature caused more trouble, and posted on the forum looking for tough teammates.
• Shi Weiwei and the others were similarly bewildered that they had cleared the Dungeon without understanding what had happened.
• Players on the forum discussed Xu Xi’s 24-place rise, analyzed how he earned so many floors, and worried about his rapid Dungeon pace and survival.
• The forum users defended Xu Xi against demands that he protect other players and expressed hope that he would remain a miracle.

After clearing the Shen Family Dungeon, Xu Xi returned to Player Space and discovered he had climbed to forty-seventh place in the Huaguo rankings. Tan Xingyun and Ji Yang reacted to his rise, while Xu Xi wondered about the Earring-Wearing Young Man who had disrupted his plans.

• Tan Xingyun checked the rankings after recovering and was stunned to see Xu Xi in forty-seventh place.
• Ji Yang and his livestream viewers discussed the Dungeon and reacted to Xu Xi reaching forty-seventh place.
• Ji Yang calculated that Xu Xi might need only a few more Dungeons to reach the 999th floor and felt both hope and fear.
• Xu Xi reflected on how easily Seventh Concubine, Xueke, and the Stove Hearth had helped him clear the Dungeon and leave the Shen Family.
• Xu Xi wondered whether the Earring-Wearing Young Man was his bane or a son of destiny, then checked his panel, which showed 588 floors climbed and a global rank of 293.

Xu Xi discovered that his first dungeon clear had set the global record and made him famous. After reading the forum’s messages of support, he closed the panel and wondered when he could enter a new dungeon.

• Xu Xi checked his rankings and saw that he had climbed to 588 floors.
• Xu Xi opened a popular forum thread about a player clearing 90 floors in one dungeon and read that the global shortest-clear record was 2 minutes and 48 seconds.
• A commenter confirmed that the record-holder was Xu Xi, and Xu Xi realized his First Instance had made him famous.
• Xu Xi read that players outside the dungeon were supporting him and that one commenter planned to survive until Xu Xi reached the top.
• Xu Xi closed the panel and wished he could enter a new dungeon.

Ji Yang began streaming Xu Xi’s new Dungeon and realized Xu Xi had been matched into an international flight Dungeon. Xu Xi and Itanu woke aboard the plane, and Itanu’s viewers worried that he might again be teamed with a Huaguo player.

• Ji Yang started streaming Xu Xi’s Dungeon and discussed Xu Xi’s growing attention from official commentators.
• Ji Yang identified the setting as an international Dungeon because no nearby-ranked Huaguo players were entering Dungeons.
• Xu Xi woke in a dark-windowed airplane cabin and wondered what kind of Dungeon he had entered and who his teammates were.
• Itanu woke on the same plane, recognized the international Dungeon, and tried to identify the other players.
• Itanu’s viewers recalled his previous Dungeon with a Huaguo player, while Itanu gave up trying to pick out his teammates among the many passengers.

Itanu found a news report about a fatal plane crash and suspected his flight was the one in the story. Aleksye gathered the players in the restroom, where Manya asked whether they had boarded a plane doomed to crash.

• Itanu read a magazine report about a plane crash that killed everyone aboard and wondered if it described their flight.
• Itanu recognized Aleksye as a player and followed her toward the restroom.
• Xu Xi recognized Itanu as a teammate and went to join the gathering.
• Aleksye met with Itanu, Manya, Xu Xi, and another player, while viewers recognized Xu Xi from the fourth Mixed-Team Competition.
• Aleksye asked whether they had read the magazine, and Manya noted that the plane had crashed with no survivors.

The players discussed how to survive the predicted plane crash and split up to investigate the flight and the news report. Xu Xi learned the flight had already been underway for nearly two hours and would last two more, then chose to wait for further clues.

• Aleksye asked what the players should do before the plane crashed, and Itanu and Yansheng argued that they needed to escape the outcome of no survivors.
• Xu Xi suggested confirming whether their plane matched the report and checking the current time; Aleksye organized an investigation, with Manya proposing that they regroup every twenty minutes.
• Xu Xi asked his seatmate for the flight number, route, and timing, but the Dungeon had obscured the flight details; the flight had nearly two hours left.
• Xu Xi showed his seatmate the crash report and learned it was more than twenty years old, so he concluded the reported crash was not happening in the present.
• Xu Xi stopped investigating and decided to wait for more clues, believing he could afford to wait two hours.

Itanu investigated the dust on his palm and became trapped in a dark, flooding lavatory before escaping back to the plane. After noticing the black-haired player watching him, he grew wary of the seemingly bored young man.

• Itanu found dust on his palm after taking a boarding pass and suspected he had picked it up in the lavatory.
• Manya watched the shadow of a pen on her armrest while Yansheng questioned a dozing passenger.
• Itanu returned to the lavatory, smelled something burnt, and saw dark water seep through the floor as the lights went out.
• Itanu heard footsteps and a rolling sound behind him, found the door by touch, and escaped when he opened it.
• Itanu exchanged a glance with the black-haired player and returned to his seat, wondering why the young man seemed bored and feeling wary of him.

Xu Xi investigated the plane’s strange black mist while the players compared clues about its missing crew and stopped time. The chapter ended with Aleksye asking Itanu what he had experienced in the restroom.

• Xu Xi photographed the plane and saw that it was filled with swirling black mist, then decided to wait before investigating the restroom again.
• Itanu discovered that twice as much time had passed outside the restroom as he had experienced inside.
• Xu Xi rejoined the players in the restroom and found nothing visibly unusual there.
• Aleksye reported that the plane’s key information was hidden and that the cockpit and cabin had no crew, though the passengers seemed normal.
• Manya said her tests showed that time was standing still on the plane, and Aleksye asked Itanu what he had experienced.

Itanu reconsidered Xu Xi’s earlier questions and suspected they had been hints about the plane’s unusual relationship with time. He asked Xu Xi if he knew something, then changed the subject and shared his own experience while continuing to search for the answer.

• Itanu connected Xu Xi’s questions about the plane and the time with the revelation that time had stopped.
• The others followed Itanu’s gaze to Xu Xi after noticing his grave expression.
• Itanu asked Xu Xi whether he knew something, leaving Xu Xi baffled when he gave no explanation.
• Itanu realized he might have been rash and began describing his recent experience to the group.
• As he spoke, Itanu continued considering whether the flight information, stopped time, and the news pointed to a special state.

Ji Yang explained how Xu Xi’s hints suggested that the plane might be the one from a crash over twenty years ago, existing at or near the moment of the crash. In the restroom, Itanu described escaping the darkness by following footsteps and a rolling sound, but Yansheng pointed out that the aisle had been empty.

• Ji Yang told viewers that 248’s reminders about the flight number, the time, and the old news story hinted that the plane’s identity and timeline were obscured.
• Ji Yang speculated that the plane could be the aircraft from the crash, despite its possibly changed flight number, and might be caught at the time of the crash.
• Ji Yang concluded that 248 may have learned the Dungeon’s truth after questioning the NPC.
• Itanu told the players that footsteps and a faint rolling sound from behind him had helped him escape the darkness.
• Aleksye questioned Itanu about the sounds, and the players suspected a flight attendant had pushed a meal cart down the aisle.
• Yansheng said the aisle had been empty.

Yansheng and the others heard a food cart approaching and discovered a flight attendant that ordinary passengers could not see. He warned the group to return to their seats and fasten their seat belts before she reached them, then left the restroom and left the choice to everyone.

• A cabin announcement warned of turbulence as the sound of a food cart rolling closer interrupted Yansheng’s plans.
• Yansheng opened the restroom door and saw a pale, lifeless flight attendant pushing a rust-covered cart past passengers who did not react to her.
• Yansheng quietly closed the door and told Xu Xi and the others that their perception differed from the other passengers’ and that the attendant might treat them as uncooperative.
• Yansheng warned that the attendant would arrive in about two minutes, said she blocked the forward aisle, and urged everyone to return to their seats with their seat belts fastened.
• Yansheng left the restroom after telling everyone to decide for themselves.

Xu Xi and the other players avoided answering the flight attendant when she offered drinks, while Aleksye was trapped in the lavatory by the approaching meal cart. She pretended to wash her hands, and the attendant paused at the doorway as Aleksye spotted bloody footprints behind her.

• Xu Xi watched the other players ignore the flight attendant and recalled how answering her had caused him to lose consciousness in an earlier loop.
• Manya stayed silent when the attendant offered her a drink, and the cart continued down the aisle.
• Xu Xi looked out the window and did not answer when the attendant asked whether he wanted a drink.
• Aleksye realized she could not return to her seat and gambled that the attendant would permit a passenger to use the lavatory.
• Aleksye left the lavatory door half open and pretended to wash her hands as the cart stopped at the doorway.
• Aleksye saw bluish-white fingers on the cart’s cloth and bloody footprints behind the attendant’s heels.

Ji Yang explained how the Sakura Country player had pressured Aleksye to test what behavior counted as a rule violation. He then noticed something about the young man on screen and abruptly stopped.

• Aleksye waited until the flight attendant's cart had passed, then left the restroom and returned to her seat.
• Ji Yang told his livestream audience that the Sakura Country player had used urgency to pressure Aleksye and learn how the rules were judged.
• Ji Yang pointed out that Aleksye had followed proper procedure, appearing to be an ordinary passenger who had just used the restroom.
• After noticing the young man on screen, Ji Yang said, “Wait a moment.”

As time resumed on the plane, Xu Xi and the others realized it was heading toward its destined crash and tried to survive the worsening turbulence. The chapter ended with Manya being stabbed by a table knife as Aleksye helped her up.

• Xu Xi sensed turbulence coming, and the cabin lights began flickering as the plane and its passengers rapidly aged.
• Manya realized time had started flowing again, and Yansheng concluded the plane was plunging toward its crash.
• Itanu understood the group had been frozen just before the crash and noticed Xu Xi remained seated while everyone else gathered in the aisle.
• Itanu tried to return to his seat, but Yansheng attempted to use a mental prop to learn why he was interested in Xu Xi.
• The plane lurched, an invisible force struck Manya's wrist, and she was thrown across the aisle.
• Aleksye grabbed Manya and helped her up, but a table knife pierced her body.

As the plane entered its deadly turbulence, Aleksye, Yansheng, and Itanu faced a sudden cutlery attack, and Manya was killed. After the plane steadied, the survivors concluded that the Dungeon had looped them back to the second before the crash.

• A meal cart spilled knives and forks into the aisle during the turbulence, and Manya died after a fork pierced her heart.
• Xu Xi hid behind his seat as the cutlery flew, while Itanu blocked the attack with his Hard as Iron item.
• The turbulence ended, and Aleksye confirmed that Manya had died.
• Aleksye and Yansheng agreed that roughly half an hour had passed before the turbulence and that it had lasted about ten minutes.
• Itanu proposed that the plane had been frozen before the crash, and Aleksye concluded that the Dungeon had entered a loop.

Yansheng, Aleksye, and Itanu considered how to stop the plane from crashing and break the time loop, while Yansheng tried to get Xu Xi’s opinion. Xu Xi noticed something approaching behind them, as viewers watched his calm progress and discussed his rising ranking.

• Yansheng suspected that the players needed to prevent the crash and break the loop, after the group acknowledged that another bout of turbulence could kill them.
• Itanu ruled out external causes and listed possible problems aboard the plane, including technical failures, pilot errors, maintenance oversights, or a passenger carrying something dangerous.
• Aleksye suggested that new information might emerge if time was looping, and Itanu realized she wanted to return to the cockpit.
• Yansheng asked Xu Xi what he thought of their situation, but Xu Xi looked behind the group when the sound of wheels approached.
• Viewers discussed Itanu’s danger during the turbulence and Xu Xi’s calmness, rapid rise in the Global Rankings, and apparent lack of concern about the Dungeon.