Chapter Summaries

Lin Ye’s Nation-Destroying Fleet emerged from the fog, revealing thirty aircraft carriers and more than a hundred escort ships. Itō Hidetaka and Singh realized the fleet’s overwhelming power, while the dungeon’s viewers fell silent.

• Nearly ten destroyers followed the first giant warship as more carriers and escort vessels emerged from the fog.
• Singh realized that each naval unit in the mission prompt meant one carrier and its accompanying ships.
• Itō Hidetaka recognized the giant ships as aircraft carriers, technology that Azure Star had not yet developed.
• Itō Hidetaka abandoned hope of conquering the dungeon after seeing Lin Ye’s fleet of thirty carriers.
• Viewers stopped posting bullet comments as the Raging Waves dungeon’s screen went silent.

Itō Hidetaka and Singh died when the Nation-Destroying Fleet torpedoed them, ending the Raging Waves instance with a zero percent clear rate. The Great Xia First Research Institute reacted with awe at Lin Ye’s aircraft carriers and military technology, while Zhao Jianyu realized the instance’s one-percent completion meant more threats could remain.

• A torpedo from the Nation-Destroying Fleet killed Itō Hidetaka and Singh, and the instance closed after all challengers had died.
• The Firmament reported that the instance erased 6,500 people, lasted up to 26 hours, had a zero percent clear rate, and reached one percent completion.
• Spectators watched the Nation-Destroying Fleet and feared the Raging Waves instance’s overwhelming naval and air power.
• Researchers at the Great Xia First Research Institute praised Lin Ye’s aircraft carrier technology and urged Ding Chang to recruit him.
• Zhao Jianyu considered the possibility that the instance contained even more advanced weapons before Ding Chang called her back to attention.

Lin Ye’s Raging Waves dungeon topped the Heavenly Ranking and earned him enough points to reach LV2, unlocking the ability to carry weapons from his dungeon into others. As representatives from several settlements gathered to recruit him, Zhao Jianyu arrived and urged him into her car.

• Ding Chang told Zhao Jianyu to ask Lin Ye once more to join the First Research Institute and to keep him from being poached by other settlements.
• Lin Ye noticed Raging Waves had become the top dungeon on the Heavenly Ranking, then learned its first run earned him 14,600 points.
• The Firmament upgraded Lin Ye to LV2 and unlocked his privilege to carry weapons from his own dungeon into other dungeons.
• Lin Ye returned to find representatives from several settlements gathered outside his residence to recruit him.
• Zhao Jianyu arrived by car, recognized Lin Ye, and called for him to get in quickly.

Lin Ye’s Raging Waves dungeon made him the focus of attention across Azure Star, but he rejected Zhao Jianyu’s invitation to join the First Research Institute. He agreed to remain in Dragon Soaring Settlement, settled into a secluded villa, and left the institute with a hint about aircraft carrier research.

• Zhao Jianyu drove Lin Ye away from his apartment and showed him widespread news coverage of the deadly Raging Waves dungeon.
• Lin Ye declined Zhao Jianyu’s renewed invitation to join the First Research Institute and said he had no plans to move to another settlement.
• Lin Ye asked Zhao Jianyu to find him a private place to live, and she brought him to a secluded mountain villa that he bought for 2,000 points.
• Lin Ye asked Zhao Jianyu to keep the villa’s location secret, and she confirmed the institute was helping conceal his whereabouts.
• As Zhao Jianyu left, Lin Ye told her that aircraft carrier research should focus on deck materials and carrier-based aircraft design.

Lin Ye continued developing instances in Creation Space while the Firmament doubled the number of challengers allowed in Raging Waves, which he saw as a chance to earn more points. Meanwhile, Itō Hidetaka vowed to conquer the instance and kill Lin Ye to restore Great He’s reputation.

• Lin Ye admired his new villa, then returned to Creation Space to develop Earth Online and prepare the Winter Is Coming and The Great Wall Watch instances.
• The Firmament increased Raging Waves’ challenger limit from 10,000 to 20,000, reaffirmed its Purgatory-level difficulty, and offered Lin Ye rewards for maintaining first place on the Heaven Ranking.
• Lin Ye welcomed the larger challenger pool because he believed it would not overcome Azure Star’s technological disadvantage and would help him earn points faster.
• Itō Hidetaka knelt before the Emperor and admitted that his side had failed to understand the dangers and complexity of Raging Waves.
• The Emperor rebuked Itō Hidetaka for damaging Great He’s reputation, and Itō Hidetaka vowed to conquer Raging Waves and erase Lin Ye.

Itō Hidetaka urged the Great He Emperor to let him lead elite challengers into Raging Waves and seize Lin Ye’s aircraft carrier technology by bypassing the dungeon’s expected route. The Emperor saw potential in the plan but rejected it because the risks were too great and Itō lacked the authority to command Great He’s elites.

• The Emperor warned Itō Hidetaka not to act rashly while Great He investigated Lin Ye and considered recruiting him.
• Itō Hidetaka argued that Lin Ye would not willingly hand over his technology and insisted that Great He should conquer Raging Waves instead.
• Itō Hidetaka proposed sending twenty thousand Great He elites, all at least LV2, to skip Pearl Harbor and attack Eagle Sauce Country directly.
• The Emperor considered the plan a risky attempt to exploit a loophole in Lin Ye’s dungeon design.
• The Emperor rejected the proposal, citing the danger of committing Great He’s elites and Itō Hidetaka’s lack of standing to command them.

The Emperor pressured Itō Hidetaka into leading Great He clansmen through Raging Waves using the economic overtaking quest, despite Itō’s doubts and lack of expertise. The next day, Lin Ye discovered that Itō and thousands of other Great He people had volunteered to enter his dungeon.

• The Emperor rejected Itō Hidetaka’s request to bring Great He Clan elites and urged him to choose the economic overtaking quest instead.
• Itō warned that Eagle Sauce Country’s advantages and his own lack of economic expertise made the quest difficult, but the Emperor offered him merchants and managers and left him little choice.
• Itō agreed to lead Great He clansmen into Raging Waves when it reset the next day, deciding the gamble was better than being abandoned.
• Lin Ye received notice that enough challengers had applied to enter Raging Waves and asked the Firmament to show him their list.
• Lin Ye saw Itō Hidetaka at the top of the challenger list and was amused that the dungeon designer had volunteered himself for another run.

Lin Ye learned that 20,000 Great He Clan challengers had entered Raging Waves and dismissed warnings that their coordinated assault could threaten his dungeon. Itō Hidetaka and the others arrived at the armory, where viewers expected them to fail again.

• Lin Ye saw that the challengers were all from the Great He Clan, including Itō Hidetaka and many low-level members.
• Zhao Jianyu warned Lin Ye that the Great He Clan used organized group assaults and might have a hidden plan to conquer Raging Waves.
• Lin Ye thanked Zhao Jianyu but refused to accept points, confident that his dungeon could withstand the attack.
• The Firmament deployed 20,000 Great He Clan challengers, including Itō Hidetaka, into Raging Waves.
• The challengers found the Wu Naval Armory as before, while livestream viewers doubted they could conquer the Purgatory-level dungeon.

Itō Hidetaka entered the Raging Waves dungeon with a handpicked team of Great He students and rallied them to fight for the Emperor and their settlements. After reviewing the missions and seeing Singh blame him for their previous failure, Itō shut off the chat and chose the economic overtaking mission.

• The Firmament explained the dungeon's factions and presented missions to destroy Pearl Harbor, overtake Eagle Sauce Country economically, or surrender.
• Shancheng Kojirō introduced himself to Itō Hidetaka and said the Emperor had arranged for him to lead talented students from universities across the settlements.
• Shancheng's students bowed to Itō, who rallied them to fight for the Emperor and their settlements.
• Singh criticized Itō in the livestream chat, blaming his command for their previous defeat.
• Itō switched off the chat and announced that he would choose the economic overtaking mission.

Itō Hidetaka chose mission two, and Firmament turned the Raging Waves instance into a nonwar challenge where weapons and armed violence were forbidden. Researchers at the First Instance Research Institute questioned why Lin Ye would suppress the military technology that gave him his greatest advantage.

• Itō Hidetaka selected mission two, and Firmament announced that the instance would test logic and management without weapons or armed violence.
• Ships, tanks, guns, and other military equipment dissolved into mosaic, startling challengers who had expected economic warfare to include combat.
• Researchers at the First Instance Research Institute praised Lin Ye for creating a new instance format and discussed its possibilities.
• Zhao Jianyu told Ding Chang that the nonwar mode might weaken Lin Ye by shrinking the instance and removing his aircraft carrier advantage.
• Ding Chang agreed that Lin Ye seemed to be cutting off his own strength by making challengers of every level unable to use weapons.

Inside the Raging Waves instance, Itō Hidetaka regained his confidence after concluding that Non-Combat Mode leveled the playing field and favored his team’s expertise. Lin Ye dismissed that assumption and prepared to show that Eagle Sauce Country’s economic and other forms of hegemony made the instance challenging even without weapons.

• Itō Hidetaka laughed at the disappearance of his fleet and argued that locking weapons would weaken Lin Ye’s advantage and make Raging Waves easier to clear.
• Shancheng Kojirō and the other challengers praised Itō’s reasoning, while spectators debated whether the weapon restrictions had created a loophole.
• Lin Ye watched the livestream and dismissed the challengers’ assumption that an instance’s difficulty depended mainly on military weapons.
• Lin Ye considered how dollar, media, oil, and technological hegemony supported Eagle Sauce Country’s power, alongside its naval strength.
• Lin Ye decided to demonstrate how terrifying war without gunpowder could be, then exited the livestream and started his car.

Itō Hidetaka and the challengers learned that they could direct Eastern Ocean Island’s industries to overtake Eagle Sauce Country in GDP or per capita GDP, and they pursued rapid growth with reckless measures. As Eastern Ocean Island’s economy surged, Itō received a call threatening sanctions unless his country stopped its violations and compensated Eagle Sauce Country.

• The Firmament showed the challengers Eagle Sauce Country’s industries and economic indicators, then revealed that Eastern Ocean Island needed to exceed it in either GDP or per capita GDP to complete the mission.
• Itō Hidetaka urged the challengers to use any means necessary, and Shancheng Kojirō led them in making drastic changes to Eastern Ocean Island’s industries.
• The challengers boosted imports and production, cut environmental protections, dumped untreated wastewater, expanded whaling, and promoted Dongying’s action film industry.
• Eastern Ocean Island’s per capita GDP rose to 40,000 dollars in less than half a day, and Itō Hidetaka gloated that Lin Ye had underestimated him.
• Itō Hidetaka answered a call from an unidentified number, and the caller accused his country of violating international conventions, demanded it stop and pay Eagle Sauce Country compensation, and threatened comprehensive sanctions.

Itō Hidetaka rejected Eagle Sauce Country’s demand for one trillion in compensation and ordered Shancheng Kojirō to intensify Eastern Ocean Island’s economic exploitation. The Firmament adjusted Task Two, shortening its time limit and raising the failure penalty, leaving Itō and the challengers facing a deadly challenge.

• Itō Hidetaka received the Eagle Sauce’s Fury event and rejected Eagle Sauce Country’s demand for one trillion in compensation.
• Itō Hidetaka ordered Shancheng Kojirō to squeeze more productivity from Eastern Ocean Island’s people to speed up economic growth.
• The Firmament declared that Itō had rejected Eagle Sauce and shortened Task Two’s time limit to 60 hours while increasing the failure penalty to 500 points per challenger.
• Itō realized that nearly twenty thousand mostly low-level challengers could be wiped out if they failed, and the frightened challengers stopped managing the island and protested.

Itō Hidetaka rallied the challengers in the Arsenal after Lin Ye’s pressure left them demoralized, but Eagle Sauce then imposed hundreds of sanctions on Eastern Ocean Island. The island’s economy and stability began collapsing, leaving Itō furious as the Firmament blamed his earlier choices.

• Shancheng Kojirō warned Itō Hidetaka that the challengers in the Arsenal had lost their will to fight.
• Itō Hidetaka used the loudspeaker to rally the challengers with appeals to their oath, the Emperor, and their chance of survival.
• The challengers renewed their efforts, and Itō Hidetaka vowed that Lin Ye’s tactics would not defeat him.
• The Firmament announced that Eagle Sauce would impose full-scale sanctions on Eastern Ocean Island, including energy, technology, trade, financial, administrative, and public opinion measures.
• Hundreds of sanctions appeared, and Eastern Ocean Island’s statistics plunged as its output turned to negative growth.
• Itō Hidetaka protested that the instance was unreasonable, but the Firmament said his actions had triggered the consequences.

Itō Hidetaka watched Eagle Sauce Country’s sanctions devastate Eastern Ocean Island’s economy and public standing, while researchers in Great Xia recognized the depth of Lin Ye’s worldbuilding. As protests spread and the National Diet moved to impeach Itō’s faction, he faced the prospect of losing control of the island.

• Ding Chang explained to the researchers that Eagle Sauce Country’s sanctions reflected its power as a hegemon in Lin Ye’s Earth Online world.
• Itō Hidetaka dismissed the sanctions as an impossible illusion until Shancheng Kojirō arrived with reports of international condemnation and domestic protests.
• Itō read reports detailing severed trade ties, falling marine revenues, defective Fengtian Motors vehicles, and other scandals harming Eastern Ocean Island.
• Shancheng Kojirō revealed that Eagle Sauce Country’s financial interests controlled many Eastern Ocean Island businesses and media outlets.
• Shancheng Kojirō told Itō that protesters accused his faction of violating human rights and democracy, and that the National Diet had moved to impeach them, potentially stripping them of control over Eastern Ocean Island.

Itō Hidetaka struggled to respond after losing control of Eastern Ocean Island, then ordered harsher repression to keep the economic overtaking mission alive. Shancheng Kojirō reluctantly agreed to carry out his orders as Itō declared that completing the mission mattered more than the island’s people or stability.

• Itō Hidetaka realized that losing control of Eastern Ocean Island threatened the economic overtaking mission and blamed Lin Ye for the crisis.
• Itō ordered Shancheng Kojirō to use warships and troops to suppress unrest, but Shancheng reminded him that the dungeon was in Non-Combat Mode and had no deployable warships.
• Itō told Shancheng to use Eastern Ocean Island’s police, courts, and public security institutions to arrest dissenters and punish workers, bribing officials who refused.
• Shancheng warned that further repression could worsen international sanctions and trigger domestic riots, but Itō dismissed his concerns and demanded that the population work around the clock.
• Itō insisted that the challengers must complete the mission and obtain the technology in Raging Waves, even if Eastern Ocean Island was ruined, and Shancheng agreed to follow his orders.

Itō Hidetaka’s forceful policies temporarily restored Eastern Ocean Island’s economic growth, but Lin Ye judged that the crackdown had already doomed his attempt to clear the second Raging Waves task. With the deadline approaching, Itō Hidetaka remained confident that he could overtake Eagle Sauce Country.

• Shancheng Kojirō enforced Itō Hidetaka’s orders by arresting protesters, silencing negative news, forcing factories to increase production, and halting an impeachment motion.
• Eastern Ocean Island exhausted its reserves and relied on domestic stockpiles as the crackdown briefly stabilized the economy and raised per-capita GDP to $50,000.
• Itō Hidetaka ignored the Firmament’s warning that public loyalty was falling and believed his policies could reach the $70,000 target within two days.
• A day and a half into the second round, Lin Ye watched the livestream and said Itō Hidetaka’s brute-force approach could not clear the dungeon.
• Lin Ye explained that the task required economic understanding and concluded that Itō Hidetaka had already sealed his failure by choosing suppression.

With less than five hours left in the mission, Itō Hidetaka ordered Shancheng Kojirō to blame security agencies and push Eastern Ocean Island’s exhausted people to work harder, but the economy began to decline. Shancheng rushed back to the command room with news of a disaster, leaving Itō’s plan and the mission’s outcome unresolved.

• Itō Hidetaka demanded that Shancheng Kojirō explain why per capita GDP had stalled at 60,000 yuan, and Shancheng said the workers had reached their limits.
• Itō Hidetaka ordered Shancheng to arrest security agency personnel, blame them for the harsh policies, and urge the people to keep working.
• Shancheng Kojirō issued the order to arrest all security agency personnel, shocking the livestream audience.
• Per capita GDP fell from 60,000 to 58,000 yuan, and Itō Hidetaka called for Shancheng.
• Shancheng Kojirō rushed into the command room, sweating and nearly falling, and told Itō Hidetaka that something terrible had happened.

After Eastern Ocean Island’s institutions and industries turn against Itō Hidetaka, Shancheng Kojirō tells him the challengers have lost control and failed the mission. Itō learns Lin Ye’s dungeon setting is keeping the surviving challengers trapped until two remaining special events are complete.

• Shancheng Kojirō shows Itō Hidetaka the wave of negative news and impeachment proposals, then says they have lost control of Eastern Ocean Island and failed the mission.
• Itō Hidetaka accuses Shancheng Kojirō of lying and being Lin Ye’s spy, so Shancheng punches and slaps him before leaving the Command Room.
• Itō Hidetaka asks the Firmament why he has not been teleported out, and it confirms the mission failed but Lin Ye’s special setting has delayed the challengers’ exit because Itō harmed a friendly NPC.
• The Firmament says the dungeon will remain open until the challengers finish the special events [Enemy of the World] and [People's Uprising].

After Itō Hidetaka’s decisions trigger harsher sanctions and a far more punishing mission, the people of Eastern Ocean Island rise against the challengers at the arsenal. Itō is captured by the mob and thrown into the sea, where he begins to drown.

• The Firmament declared Eastern Ocean Island a global enemy and upgraded the mission to Global Hegemon, raising the failure penalty to 5,000 points.
• Itō Hidetaka learned that settlement would follow the changed mission and angrily protested the increased penalty.
• The Firmament announced a people’s uprising, and a crowd of at least a million broke into the arsenal.
• The crowd overwhelmed the unarmed challengers, killing many as the instance population plunged.
• The people tied up Itō Hidetaka, beat him, and threw him into the sea, where he began to drown.