Chapter Summaries

Dong Gua, Qiezi, Xiao Hei, and Liu Di showed off their Plants in Garden Warfare before entering a Point Capture match. Their team won the first round, and the chapter ended with the four facing the rest of the match.

• Dong Gua tested Captain Corn’s explosive shots, Qiezi showed off High-Nut’s flame gun and shield, and Xiao Hei demonstrated Sunflower’s healing ability.
• The four streamers chose Point Capture, joined a 6v6 match, and advanced toward the objective with two random teammates.
• Qiezi rolled into the zombie team, killed their Zombie Doctor, then retreated behind his shield to help defend the point.
• The zombies counterattacked with guns and abilities, but Liu Di rooted his Peashooter and unleashed a six-barreled barrage across the capture zone.
• The plants filled the capture bar and won the first round, making the score 1:0.

Dong Gua and Xiao Hei helped the plants win the control-point match with their absurd ultimates, and the game's chaotic action delighted players and livestream viewers. As Golden Wind celebrated the game's reception, the chapter ended by hinting that two people were unhappy.

• The zombie team countered the plants' opening tactics, won the second round, and tied the match 1:1.
• With Xiao Hei alone guarding the point against three zombies, Dong Gua launched himself as a corn missile and exploded near the capture zone.
• A Football Captain survived the blast and entered the point, triggering overtime as Xiao Hei faced him alone.
• Xiao Hei used his Scorching Ray ultimate to kill the Football Captain, securing a 2:1 victory for the plants.
• Players and streamers celebrated the game's absurd, entertaining gameplay, while Jiang Yun, Gu Sheng, and Golden Wind were pleased with its reception and sales prospects.
• The chapter hinted that two people were unhappy as Golden Wind celebrated.

As Garden Warfare's sales and reviews weakened amid a public campaign portraying Golden Wind as past its prime, Komeila's leaders planned to amplify the criticism without realizing it could delay Golden Wind's announcement of Sekiro. Shen Miaomiao welcomed the setback as a chance to lose money, while Gu Sheng prepared to answer Komeila at the Dongjin Game Festival.

• Shen Miaomiao saw Garden Warfare's first-day sales exceed 150,000 copies and feared its success would make losing money difficult.
• At a Komeila meeting, Koizumi Kazuo called Garden Warfare a sign that Gu Sheng and Golden Wind were declining, and Jouetsu Kagemasa decided to promote that narrative.
• Moriya Tetsuya realized Komeila's attack could slow Garden Warfare's sales, delay Golden Wind's festival plans, and make Sekiro collide with Torii: Ghost Phantom.
• Gu Sheng showed Shen Miaomiao that Garden Warfare's reviews had fallen to 69% positive and that negative news coverage was spreading.
• Gu Sheng said Garden Warfare had sold fewer than 500,000 copies and that the delay could push Sekiro's announcement to the week before the festival's list deadline.
• Shen Miaomiao celebrated the setback and encouraged Gu Sheng to prepare for a future face-off, so he left to practice Iron Sand Palm.

As Garden Warfare’s sales fell short of break-even, Shen Miaomiao eagerly waited for the final day of its cashback settlement while Gu Sheng secured Yiyou’s agreement to partner with Xunteng for Sekiro’s promotion. The chapter ended with Shen Miaomiao celebrating and teasing Gu Sheng at home, unaware of whether Garden Warfare would meet its settlement target.

• Shen Miaomiao calculated that Garden Warfare had sold 650,000 copies in six days, still more than 80,000 short of breaking even, and hoped its sales would stay low through the final cashback settlement.
• Yan Sheng told Gu Sheng that Yiyou had agreed to join Golden Wind and Xunteng at the Dongjin Game Festival.
• Shen Miaomiao urged Yan Sheng to focus on promoting Sekiro and leave Garden Warfare’s negative reviews alone, and Yan Sheng agreed.
• Shen Miaomiao celebrated by dragging Gu Sheng out to buy hot pot ingredients, then surprised him at home by stuffing her cold feet inside his sweater.

Shen Miaomiao and Gu Sheng watched Garden Warfare’s seven-day sales settle below her loss threshold, earning her a 9.258 million yuan rebate. She then discovered that her new voucher could raise a derivative project’s rebate multiplier without an upper limit, leaving her contemplating a thousandfold payout.

• Shen Miaomiao painted her toenails while Gu Sheng painted his, and they shared a tender moment before the sales timer rang.
• Gu Sheng asked why Shen Miaomiao cared so much about sales milestones, and she told him she wanted to share both his successes and setbacks.
• Shen Miaomiao and Gu Sheng checked the figures and saw that Garden Warfare had sold 718,900 copies, resulting in a 617,200 yuan loss and a 9.258 million yuan rebate for Shen Miaomiao.
• Shen Miaomiao received the Situation is Reversed achievement and a Loss Project Multiplier Purchase Voucher after reaching five cumulative loss-making projects.
• Shen Miaomiao examined the voucher and calculated that her available rebate funds could raise a derivative project’s multiplier by 1,003, potentially bringing it to 1,018 times.

Komeila celebrated rumors that Golden Wind was failing, but the reunion of the former Silent Hill P.T. team at Steel Chain Fingers alarmed Jouetsu Kagemasa and Koizumi Kazuo. As speculation spread, Yan Sheng prepared to coordinate a major announcement with Golden Wind, which was set to go public at nine-thirty.

• Jouetsu Kagemasa and Koizumi Kazuo laughed at reports that Golden Wind was financially troubled and internally divided, then focused on promoting Koizumi Studio's Torii project.
• Golden Wind announced that Okura Kazu had joined Steel Chain Fingers Studio as Chief Programming Director, reuniting him with the former Silent Hill P.T. team members Gu Sheng, Sato Muneki, and Kamikawa Yuki.
• The announcement sparked intense speculation about Golden Wind's next move and left Koizumi Kazuo and Jouetsu Kagemasa worried.
• Yan Sheng learned that Golden Wind's disposable net assets had reached 1.021 billion yuan and that Huayudian and Xunteng were ready to coordinate an announcement.
• Yan Sheng confirmed that the announcement would be released with Golden Wind at nine-thirty and ordered his departments to prepare.

Golden Wind announced its entry into the 1 Billion Club and revealed SEKIRO, its first 3S-class masterpiece, drawing attention away from Komeila’s newly announced Torii: Ghost Phantom. After the Dongjin Game Festival confirmed Golden Wind’s place, the company premiered a cinematic trailer that left players impressed and Komeila’s Jouetsu Kagemasa alarmed.

• Zhao Yi and Wang Yong saw Golden Wind announce that it had entered the 1 Billion Club, and gaming communities began speculating that the company was preparing a major title.
• Komeila released a trailer for Torii: Ghost Phantom, but Eiki Reluto saw Golden Wind’s post announcing SEKIRO and watched attention shift to the new game.
• Jouetsu Kagemasa grew furious over SEKIRO’s popularity and tried to block Golden Wind from the Dongjin Game Festival, but the festival officially confirmed Golden Wind as an exhibitor.
• Golden Wind premiered a cinematic SEKIRO trailer depicting Isshin Ashina’s battle and the young Wolf’s recruitment and training as a shinobi.
• Eiki and viewers praised the trailer’s Sengoku setting and presentation, while Jouetsu faced the growing threat posed by Golden Wind’s game.

Komeila launched a coordinated campaign to promote Torii and undermine Sekiro, prompting Gu Sheng and Shen Miaomiao to discuss how Golden Wind should respond. Shen Miaomiao decided to promote Sekiro, and her playful show of dominance over Gu Sheng turned unexpectedly intimate.

• Komeila covered major districts and gaming media with Torii promotions while spreading doubts about Sekiro’s gameplay and polish.
• Gu Sheng showed Lu Bian the discussion trends, and they concluded that Moriya Tetsuya was behind the carefully planned offensive.
• Shen Miaomiao explained that Moriya had kept Sekiro’s secret out of personal principle but was now attacking Golden Wind out of loyalty to Komeila.
• Shen Miaomiao adjusted Sekiro’s project settlement period and concluded the game needed to sell three million copies in four weeks to break even.
• Shen Miaomiao proposed launching a promotional campaign for Sekiro, delighting Gu Sheng, then playfully pinned him against the sofa and left them both flustered.

Golden Wind launched an expansive global promotion for SEKIRO, prompting Komeila to counterattack and regain the advantage overseas. Moriya Tetsuya learned that Gu Sheng had deliberately pulled back and discovered SEKIRO’s enormous poster at Ginza, leaving Komeila’s domestic stronghold challenged just before the Dongjin Game Festival.

• Shen Miaomiao and Gu Sheng cooled off after nearly crossing the line, and Golden Wind began a sweeping SEKIRO promotional campaign across China and overseas markets.
• Moriya Tetsuya urged Komeila to hold its Japanese position, but Jouetsu Kagemasa and Koizumi Kazuo opposed retreating from overseas markets.
• Komeila counterattacked, and after five days Golden Wind’s overseas promotion weakened while Komeila regained the upper hand.
• Moriya called Gu Sheng, apologized for his role in the promotional restrictions, and confirmed that Golden Wind’s overseas pullback had been intentional.
• Moriya passed Ginza the next morning and saw a huge SEKIRO poster unfurled on Ginza Mitsukoshi Department Store, realizing the campaign had reached Dongjin too.

Golden Wind’s Sekiro promotion took over Dongjin as the Dongjin Game Festival opened, where Komeila’s Torii drew crowds with its detailed visuals and magical combat. A sudden barrage of metallic clashes and cheers from behind Komeila’s booth left Tiantian and the surrounding players stunned.

• Golden Wind used an overseas promotional push to distract Komeila before placing Sekiro advertisements throughout Dongjin, including beneath the Komeila sign.
• Tiantian reported from the packed Dongjin Game Festival, where Golden Wind’s Sekiro and Torii were among the most anticipated games.
• pew arrived at the festival as the crowd surged into the exhibition hall when it opened.
• Tiantian introduced Komeila’s Torii booth, where a trailer showcased detailed graphics and combat using magical hand seals.
• Players watched Torii’s gameplay demo and praised its visuals and spectacle while some questioned whether its combat looked engaging.
• A metallic clash and a burst of cheers erupted from behind Komeila’s booth, startling Tiantian and the players watching Torii.

Golden Wind’s live demonstration of SEKIRO captivated the game festival with its demanding Guardian Ape battle, resurrection mechanic, and spectacular second phase, drawing crowds away from Komeila’s Torii booth. After the demo ended to thunderous applause, Gu Sheng introduced himself to the audience.

• pew was swept past Komeila’s booth and stopped to watch Golden Wind’s SEKIRO demonstration, where Wolf battled the Guardian Ape on a snowy temple bridge.
• Wolf defeated the Guardian Ape’s first phase, but the boss returned with ink-like shadows and overwhelmed him.
• Wolf resurrected, revealing the meaning of SEKIRO’s subtitle, Shadows Die Twice, and continued the fight against the Guardian Ape’s second phase.
• As the demonstration showcased Wolf’s deflections, counters, and prosthetic tools, crowds left Komeila’s booth and packed around Golden Wind’s.
• Wolf defeated the Guardian Ape, the SEKIRO title appeared, and Gu Sheng greeted the audience after the crowd erupted in applause.

At Golden Wind’s Neon expo booth, Gu Sheng introduced Sekiro’s combat and progression systems to an enthusiastic crowd. Streamer pew began the demo confidently, but ambushes and enemy attacks knocked him off a cliff, leaving him dead and cursing Gu Sheng.

• Gu Sheng addressed the excited players and media, explaining Sekiro’s posture combat, motion-sensing controls, and limited character upgrades.
• After Gu Sheng finished the demonstration, pew entered the media demo area and assured his viewers that he could clear the easier route quickly.
• pew activated the Demon Buddha checkpoint and used his grappling hook to reach an embankment.
• A soldier hidden in the reeds ambushed pew and knocked him off the embankment, nearly sending him over a cliff.
• pew grappled back toward the ledge, but another soldier struck him in the face and sent him plunging to his death.
• pew blamed Gu Sheng for the ambushes and angrily cursed him inside the VR pod.

Streamers struggled with Sekiro’s punishing enemies while pew repeatedly fought Samurai General Kawarada Naomori, gradually mastering the combat and defeating him at the Tokyo Game Show. The victory sent Golden Wind’s booth into celebration and left Sekiro being hailed as the start of a distinct “wolf-type” game genre.

• A Yin, Qiezi, and Brother Shu were killed by Sekiro’s powerful ordinary enemies, including chickens, a musket-wielding guard, and a hammer-wielding giant.
• pew faced Samurai General Kawarada Naomori and repeatedly failed to recognize or counter the general’s perilous attacks.
• pew abandoned guessing the perilous attacks and focused on deflecting, steadily improving through repeated fights and revivals.
• pew adapted to the general’s attacks and defeated Kawarada Naomori with a Shinobi Execution.
• Gu Sheng announced pew as the first player to clear the elite boss at the Tokyo Game Show, and the audience celebrated him.
• Headlines declared Sekiro’s “wolf-type games” a distinct genre attracting attention across the gaming festival.

Jouetsu Kagemasa and Koizumi Kazuo reacted to Golden Wind’s overwhelming first-day game festival numbers, and Kagemasa suggested forcing Gu Sheng away from the booth. On the second day, a group of punks disrupted Golden Wind’s booth, but Moritani intervened and the green-haired leader immediately recognized and apologized to him.

• Jouetsu Kagemasa compared Komeila’s first-day statistics with Golden Wind’s far higher visitor numbers and popularity index.
• Koizumi Kazuo blamed Gu Sheng’s presence at the booth for Golden Wind’s success, and Jouetsu Kagemasa suggested driving Gu Sheng out.
• Gu Sheng asked Moriya Tetsuya about Neon’s Managing Director role and jokingly suggested recruiting him for a future overseas branch.
• A green-haired man and his companions overturned a motion-sensing pod at Golden Wind’s booth and confronted Gu Sheng over the game.
• Moritani arrived, slapped the green-haired man twice, and prompted him to bow and apologize.

After Koizumi’s hired thugs tried to attack Golden Wind’s booth, Moriya confronted the plotters and beat Koizumi at Komeila headquarters. Moriya resigned from leading the expo promotion effort, while Jouetsu Kagemasa called the Nohara Detective Agency.

• Koizumi’s hired thugs confessed to Green Hair that Yamamura had ordered them to cause trouble at Golden Wind’s booth and force Gu Sheng out.
• Moriya asked Gu Sheng to keep the incident private for the time being, then rushed to Komeila headquarters.
• Moriya beat Koizumi and told Jouetsu Kagemasa that Koizumi’s plan to attack Gu Sheng could have caused a serious diplomatic incident.
• Moriya resigned from his promotional leadership duties and agreed to handle the fallout by speaking with Gu Sheng.
• Jouetsu Kagemasa called the Nohara Detective Agency.

After the disturbance at Golden Wind’s booth was settled, Gu Sheng agreed to develop a sports game with Yiyou and learned that Golden Experience already had another project lined up. Shen Miaomiao worried that Gu Sheng’s plans would interfere with her chance to use a voucher on a loss-making project, and asked what he had chosen.

• Moriya-san asked Gu Sheng not to escalate the booth disturbance, and Gu Sheng agreed on the condition that Moriya-san stop handling promotion for Torii.
• Gu Sheng reassured Shen Miaomiao that he was unharmed and explained why he would stay in Japan until the exhibition ended.
• Shen Miaomiao told Gu Sheng that Yan Sheng had proposed a sports game combining Golden Wind’s motion-assist technology with Yiyou x2’s Full Sensory Assist technology.
• Gu Sheng approved the sports game idea and said Steel Chain Fingers could develop it after Sekiro was finished.
• Gu Sheng revealed that he had already chosen a project for Golden Experience, alarming Shen Miaomiao because she wanted to use her loss-project voucher on that studio.
• Shen Miaomiao carefully asked Gu Sheng what project he had planned for Golden Experience.

Shen Miaomiao eagerly approved Gu Sheng’s plan to make a Garden Warfare-based FPS with virtual crosshairs, hoping it would lose money, while Gu Sheng planned to unlock Overwatch once he earned enough Emotion Points. After Sekiro’s success at the Dongjin Game Festival, Gu Sheng parted ways with Moriya Tetsuya, unaware that a man across the street had photographed their meeting.

• Shen Miaomiao celebrated when Gu Sheng proposed a Garden Warfare FPS that abandoned Golden Wind’s familiar iron-sight design for virtual crosshairs, and she approved the project immediately.
• Gu Sheng tried to unlock Overwatch but learned he still needed 168,992 Emotion Points.
• Sekiro’s popularity and acclaim surged at the Dongjin Game Festival, making Golden Wind the event’s rising star and inspiring calls for Wolf-type games.
• Gu Sheng thanked Moriya Tetsuya for helping Golden Wind, and Moriya said he had intervened at the exhibition for Komeila’s sake and thanked Gu Sheng for being magnanimous.
• Gu Sheng and Moriya said goodbye outside a restaurant, while an unseen man in a black trench coat photographed them together.

As Sekiro launched worldwide, streamers and players struggled against its punishing bosses, while Zhao Yi dismissed their complaints and agreed to try the game himself at a motion simulator bar. The chapter ended as Zhao Yi and Wang Yong headed out, setting up Zhao Yi’s firsthand encounter with the game.

• Sekiro launched amid worldwide media coverage, player excitement, and livestream challenges, while Torii released at the same time amid Komeila’s disorganized leadership.
• Old Ju streamed Sekiro, introduced Wolf’s mission to rescue Kuro, and reached the scripted defeat by Genichiro Ashina, whose strength stunned players.
• After Wolf received a prosthetic arm from the Sculptor and met Emma, streamers resumed the familiar demo section and faced the Red Ogre, whose powerful attacks killed them repeatedly.
• Sister Zhou missed clues about the Red Ogre’s fire weakness and was frightened and knocked offline when it broke free; other streamers also died to its attacks and a hidden spearman.
• Wang Yong teased Zhao Yi with streamers’ repeated deaths, but Zhao Yi claimed the game was not as hard as they made it seem.
• Wang Yong offered to pay for a trip to the Motion Simulator Bar, and Zhao Yi agreed to go and try Sekiro himself.

Zhao Yi struggled through Sekiro, dying repeatedly before the Red Ogre killed him and provoked him to keep playing. Meanwhile, Xu Xiaolin explained to Hao Xianming how the game’s difficulty and battle feedback made players feel their skills improve, then began showing him how its elite enemies could be handled.

• Zhao Yi and Wang Yong went to a Motion Simulator Bar, where Wang Yong bet Zhao Yi would not reach the Red Ogre within three PUBG matches.
• Wang Yong played PUBG with a hired companion while Zhao Yi repeatedly fought his way through Sekiro’s enemies and bosses.
• Zhao Yi reached the Red Ogre after many deaths, but it killed him in one punch, prompting him to vow to clear the game.
• Xu Xiaolin reviewed Lin’s gameplay with Hao Xianming and explained that Sekiro’s strong game feedback made its difficulty rewarding.
• Hao Xianming described how repeated battles let players improve and build toward satisfying victories.
• Xu Xiaolin began demonstrating to Hao Xianming that Sekiro’s elite enemies and bosses had techniques players could learn.

Xiaolin demonstrated how to defeat the Red Ogre, while the game’s story revealed Wolf’s past and his pact with Kuro. Zi Yu defeated Genichiro after learning Lightning Reversal, but the chapter left Wolf beginning the quest to sever immortality and save Kuro.

• Xiaolin killed the Red Ogre without taking a hit and explained how exploration revealed the game’s world and story.
• Wolf recovered memories of Kuro saving him with the Dragon’s Heritage and returned to Ashina Castle to protect his lord from Genichiro.
• Zi Yu defeated Genichiro’s first two phases, died to his lightning attack, then revived and used Lightning Reversal to defeat him.
• The chapter revealed that Genichiro’s immortality came from the Gourd of Rejuvenation, while Kuro’s Dragon’s Heritage caused Dragonrot and threatened Ashina.
• Wolf learned that severing Kuro’s immortality required Immortality Sever, Divine Dragon’s Tears, and Everblossom, and that the ritual would cost a life.