Chapter Summaries

Rogue considered the cryptic message Sekasi had delivered from the Altar Firewood Collector, while Nonia connected its reference to burning with the Fire Aspect Witches’ teachings. As Retali explored Candlewood Island with Little Snail, she was shocked to learn that its warriors casually cursed the Spirit Candle and its keepers.

• Players debated Sekasi, the Zero Island tragedy, and the Altar Firewood Collector’s message to Spirit Candle.
• Nonia told Rogue that Gray Mother had taught the Fire Aspect Witches that Life Fire’s essence was burning, illumination, and warmth, but Rogue remained wary of the Altar Firewood Collector.
• Rogue returned to Spirit Candle Space and surveyed Candlewood Island after remembering Little Snail and Retali.
• Little Snail showed Retali the players’ chaotic behavior around the island, including their prison jokes, market squabbles, and fishing antics.
• Retali asked whether the warriors respected the Candle Keepers, and Little Snail explained that they cursed the keepers and the Spirit Candle when they were in bad moods.
• Retali was stunned because she had assumed the warriors revered the Spirit Candle as deeply as Years of Dense Forest revered the Sacred Tree.

Retali struggled to understand the strange, casual relationship between Spirit Candle and its warriors while Little Snail took her to Candlelight Hall. Meanwhile, Ryan told Storyteller that a soul in the Legacy Land had gone mad and attacked him through corpses, and Storyteller began suspecting the incident was connected to Zhang Ming entering Zero Island and a series of player-reported bugs.

• Retali overheard players casually insulting Spirit Candle and concluded that its relationship with the warriors was unlike anything she understood.
• Little Snail took Retali to Candlelight Hall, and Leti warned Loti not to provoke Little Snail before rushing off to Shadow Cavern.
• Ryan told Storyteller that a soul in the Legacy Land had possessed warrior corpses and repeatedly attacked him, growing stronger as Ryan killed them.
• Storyteller admitted he had no way to help Ryan, who left still unable to resolve the danger or the cries coming from the Legacy Land.
• After reading player reports, Storyteller noticed that several strange map and dungeon bugs had occurred around the time Zhang Ming entered Zero Island.
• Storyteller questioned the bug reporters and learned that most incidents had happened at the same time, leading him to conclude that there really was a problem.

Rogue reviewed the Spirit Candle’s growth and the players’ situation, then anchored the Serene High Platform to investigate the Firewood Collectors. The anchoring succeeded, and its rewards surprised him.

• Storyteller and the Prison Players discussed clues that a dynamic storyline was approaching, while Mushroom asked Niuniu to help test a new strategy.
• Rogue reviewed the Spirit Candle’s resources, buildings, player base, and ongoing problems with Salary Seizers, and recorded his suspicion that the Salary Seizers were mass-produced.
• Rogue decided to open new maps and dungeons after anchoring special areas, beginning with the Serene High Platform because Firewood Collectors had appeared nearby.
• Rogue anchored the Serene High Platform successfully and was surprised when he checked the rewards.

Rogue examined an ancient ritual scroll fragment and connected the Trialist Dungeon, while Li Miao received unusual treasures from Zered and became the target of his friends’ envy. Nonia and Burton could not identify the fragment, leaving Rogue to investigate its ancient writing and Spirit Candle’s translation power.

• Rogue obtained an Unknown Ritual Scroll fragment describing Medra’s immortality, connected the Trialist Dungeon, and asked Spirit Candle to announce the new area.
• Li Miao activated Zered’s Anchor and received Whale Incense Bait, a Giggling Treasure Chest, a Suction Cup Shield, and a jug of Hell Dance.
• Li Miao drank the Hell Dance and began performing its bizarre dance, then teased Landfall and asked Storyteller to look for treasures Zered might want to trade for.
• Rogue showed the ritual scroll fragment to Nonia and Burton, who could not recognize it but noted that its script was extraordinarily ancient.
• Rogue realized understanding the fragment might require learning how Spirit Candle translated its writing, and concluded that finding other fragments could be more practical.

Li Miao let Landfall open Zered’s Giggling Treasure Chest, which cursed Landfall and yielded bizarre gear. After players mocked and analyzed the loot online, Niuniu bought the Epic weapon from Li Miao, who mistakenly assumed Niuniu’s reasons for wanting it.

• Li Miao let Landfall try to open the Giggling Treasure Chest, and Landfall activated it with Warfire.
• The chest cursed Landfall with a buff that caused an uncontrollable moment of exaltation every ten minutes for three hours, so he logged off to recover.
• Li Miao found a Fluorescent Fire skill book and an Epic Giggler's Pseudo-Artifact in the chest, then recoiled at the weapon’s description.
• Niuniu called the weapon a singer, and players on the Spirit Candle Forum laughed at it while the Storyteller speculated about the Giggler behind the chest.
• Mushroom and Niuniu offered to buy the weapon, and Li Miao sold it to Niuniu after mistakenly thinking Mushroom wanted it.

Li Miao gave Brother Yu two pieces of Whale Incense Bait, then Brother Mangzi entered the new Trialist Dungeon and lost his +6 Skullcrusher Great Hammer while trying to force open its puzzle gate. After solving the puzzle, he explored the dungeon and encountered an Old Man Puppet and a trapped Decayed Corpse.

• Li Miao told Brother Yu he had sold Giggler's Pseudo-Artifact, then realized Brother Yu wanted the Whale Incense Bait and gave him two of the three pieces for free.
• Li Miao suggested Brother Yu explore more of the game to find rare fishing equipment, and Brother Yu worried that someone might obtain a unique Fishing Rod and refuse to sell it.
• Brother Mangzi arrived at the Trialist Dungeon and lost his +6 Skullcrusher Great Hammer when the gate repelled his attack and sent the weapon into the Dark Boundary.
• Brother Mangzi calmed down, solved the sixteen-piece flame puzzle, and entered the dungeon after the gate opened.
• Brother Mangzi found an Old Man Puppet offering common weapons for coins, collected coins from two cabinets, and punched a Decayed Corpse that fell out of the middle cabinet.

Brother Mangzi entered the dungeon, bought a greatsword from the Old Man Puppet, and received the Fool’s Seal after smashing it. He fought through Dungeon Imp ambushes, switched to a shortsword, and reached a cliffside corridor where he found an Uncorrupted Corpse.

• Brother Mangzi bought the greatsword and a hint from the Old Man Puppet, then killed it and gained the Fool’s Seal curse.
• Brother Mangzi was ambushed by three Dungeon Imps, killed them with his fists, and discovered the greatsword was ill-suited to the narrow corridor.
• Brother Mangzi switched to a shortsword, but a floor trap released a spear-wielding imp that helped two others attack him before he killed them.
• Niuniu noticed a passage beneath the floor mechanism but could not work out how to enter it.
• Brother Mangzi killed another group of Dungeon Imps and reached a cliffside passage, where he found an Uncorrupted Corpse in a dark corner.

Brother Mangzi fell into a sludge pit, died to a hidden monster, then returned and killed the Filth-Eating Catfish Head, but could not find a way through a barred gate to a glowing item. Meanwhile, Niuniu used a corpse to reveal a hidden passage and advanced through it, defeating Dungeon Imps as he went.

• Brother Mangzi took a dung block from a glowing item, triggered an ambush, fell into sludge, and died to an unseen attacker.
• Brother Mangzi returned, killed the Dungeon Imps, and defeated the Filth-Eating Catfish Head after it consumed the sludge that had hindered him.
• Brother Mangzi found an upward staircase, another sludge pool, and a barred gate blocking a glowing item, but could not open the gate.
• Niuniu dragged a corpse onto a floor mechanism, revealing a hidden passage, and used his Thief Phantom to scout ahead.
• Niuniu killed Dungeon Imps with Bloodstone Burst and continued through the passage, dealing with traps and mechanisms along the way.

Niuniu navigated the muddy Trialist Dungeon while other players struggled through its traps. Player Lu Guan rescued Clemo, completed a quest to reunite him with Retali, and Clemo was transported to her, where they embraced.

• Niuniu killed two Mud Slugs, collected Exorcist gear and a Dungeon Money Bag, then opened a gate and lit the dungeon with two levers.
• Players in the Trialist Dungeon suffered through its traps, while Lu Guan picked up a Dung block and nearly fell into the mud.
• A knight named Clemo saved Lu Guan from a Spear-wielding Imp, and Lu Guan recognized him as the missing story character.
• Lu Guan told Clemo that Retali was at the Candle Spirits' main base, completing a world side quest and triggering Clemo's reunion quest.
• Blue flames transported Clemo to Retali and Rogue; Retali embraced him, and Rogue used Spirit Candle Power to help Clemo return the embrace.

Rogue asked Clemo about his time in the Abyss of Extinguishment after noticing how much he had changed. In the Trialist Dungeon, Brother Mangzi took a sludge shortcut to the Pool of Filth Fall, where a massive lump of dung killed him.

• Rogue interrupted Clemo and Retali's reunion, then asked Clemo to trade information about the Abyss of Extinguishment.
• Clemo said the Abyss of Extinguishment was the most terrifying place he had ever seen.
• Brother Mangzi gave up on reaching an item behind a barred gate and plunged into a sludge passage as a shortcut.
• Brother Mangzi emerged in the Pool of Filth Fall, lit a Milestone Spirit Candle, and found an Old Man Puppet selling information.
• Brother Mangzi crossed a poisonous pool to a dry island, where a falling lump of dung crushed him.

Brother Mangzi struggled through the Pool of Filth Fall, where falling dung, poisonous water, and monsters made progress dangerous, before stepping into a hidden pit beside a glowing item. Meanwhile, Prison Players explored the Trialist Dungeon and tricked others into entering the filthy hidden map, leaving many players furious at the planners and the pranksters.

• Brother Mangzi retrieved his Wax Ash while dodging enormous dung chunks, then spotted Giant Filth Roundworms emerging from a Giant Dung Pile.
• Brother Mangzi waded toward an opening in the fog while facing toxins, Green Flies, and falling dung, then fell into a pit beside a glowing item.
• Prison Players discussed the Trialist Dungeon's traps and shared different ways to solve its corpse mechanism.
• Players discovered a hidden map beneath a mud pit and lured others into it with false claims about beautiful scenery and rewards.
• The deceived players found a toxic, dung-filled fall pool and cursed the planners and the players who had sent them there.

Niuniu explored the Pool of Filth Fall, strengthened his Fool’s Seal curse to raise the Filth Worshipper’s level, and prepared to fight it for a Tinder to promote his own. The Filth Worshipper revealed its enormous body and attacked, forcing Niuniu to retreat toward a wider battlefield.

• Niuniu explored the Pool of Filth Fall, gathered loot and information, and found a cave filled with the corpses of Exorcists.
• Niuniu used a Daylight Bubble to illuminate a deep pit and discovered a level 40 Filth Worshipper bathing beneath a filthy waterfall.
• Niuniu decided the Filth Worshipper could provide a suitable Tinder, but first sought to strengthen it by deepening his Fool’s Seal curse.
• Niuniu plundered the Pool of Filth Fall’s Old Man Puppet, strengthening Fool’s Seal and raising the Filth Worshipper to level 41 and Fluorescent Fire rank.
• Niuniu descended toward the Filth Worshipper, but it detected him, revealed its enormous body, and attacked with a poisonous Filth Liquid Viper.
• Niuniu dodged the Viper and fled toward the cave entrance to move the fight into a less cramped area.

Niuniu defeated the Filth Worshipper with Explosive Flame and a falling Giant Dung Chunk, then found a strange anomaly in its cave. He entered the Shedding Giant’s cave and, after several deaths, discovered its weakness.

• Niuniu lured the Filth Worshipper into a cloud of Foul Dung Gas and wounded it with Explosive Flame, but a falling Giant Dung Chunk crushed it before he could finish it off.
• Niuniu looted a Solidified Dung Paper whose contents reduced his Sanity, then heard two strange syllables in the cave that briefly stopped him from controlling his body.
• Niuniu entered the green-misted cave and encountered Hard-Shelled Lizards before facing the heavily armored Shedding Giant.
• Niuniu died several times while testing the Shedding Giant’s defenses, including after a Giant Dung Pile barely damaged it, but eventually found its weakness.

Niuniu defeated the Shedding Giant, read an Exorcist’s diary, and survived a mimic disguised as a treasure chest before claiming its loot. Meanwhile, Li Miao illuminated the Remnant Giant Room and discovered the dangerous giants and traps blocking his way.

• Niuniu struck the crack on the Shedding Giant’s back, killed it, and collected its drops.
• Niuniu climbed to a cabin, found an Exorcist’s diary describing the Shedding Giant’s creation and Jelwin’s descent into madness, and confirmed that strange voices he had heard were real.
• Niuniu found a Secret Passage Key and was killed by a Foul Treasure Chest, then revived and destroyed the mimic before collecting its loot, including a Stealing Bracelet.
• Li Miao activated a torch mechanism and saw that the room ahead was filled with Remnant Giants covered in white shells.
• Li Miao recalled the Remnant Giant Room’s lethal giants, noisy tiles, Screaming Flowers, and darkness, then cursed the dungeon’s designer.

Li Miao reached the Pool of Filth Fall while players discussed how its soundproof equipment could help them clear the Remnant Giant Room, and a player’s disastrous encounter with a Firewood Collector became a joke in World Chat. At Candlelight Hall, Rogue learned more about Clemo’s search for the Fire Aspect Temple, revealed his real name, and agreed to shelter Retali while Clemo gathered information for him.

• Li Miao reached the Old Man Puppet’s stall in the Remnant Giant Room, inspected its costly Remnant Set sketches, and discovered a path leading down to the Pool of Filth Fall.
• Niuniu shared information about the Old Man Puppet and the treasure chest, prompting players to realize that the Pool of Filth Fall’s soundproof accessories and shoes could help them avoid detection by the Shedding Giants.
• Brother Mangzi enjoyed fighting a Shedding Giant, noticed that its back was a weak point, and headed back for another battle.
• A player told World Chat that a Firewood Collector had killed him, tied him up, and taken his map; other players mocked his mistakes and advised him to return and communicate more carefully.
• Clemo told Rogue that Firewood Collectors needed an important item from the Trialist Dungeon to enter the Fire Aspect Temple, and Rogue suspected that Gabry had concealed the temple’s location until Clemo became strong enough.
• Rogue revealed that his real name was Candle Keeper, agreed that Retali could remain with him, and gave Clemo a blue candle that let him send messages and return.

Clemo agreed to stay with Rogue while he sought the truth, and Retali considered whether to bring the Candlefolk to save Years of Dense Forest. Meanwhile, Li Miao and Niuniu faced the Rusted Knight in different dungeon encounters, with Li Miao beginning a mounted duel and Niuniu struggling against the stronger, faster foe.

• After Rogue left, Clemo told Retali that he sought the truth as much as he acted for her, and Retali asked whether she should lead the Candlefolk to Years of Dense Forest.
• Li Miao found equipment in the Pool of Filth Fall, then returned to the Remnant Giant Room and used a Thick Fur Mat to pass the Shedding Giants and reach a new area.
• Li Miao entered a vast battlefield, where a level 38 Rusted Knight summoned a shadowy warhorse and challenged him to a mounted charge.
• Li Miao summoned his Candlelight Spirit Steed and clashed with the Rusted Knight, while Niuniu fought a stronger Rusted Knight raised to Fluorescent Fire by his Fool's Seal.
• Niuniu struggled with Rust Corrosion Poison and the mounted knight's hit-and-run attacks, then shouted for the opponent to let him land a single explosive attack.

Li Miao defeated the Rusted Knight but found that the dungeon suppressed the Spirit Candle, forcing him to continue without a proper rest. After a healing formation and a visit to the Old Man Puppet’s rental shop, he entered a consecutive boss battle against the Frostbone Witch.

• Li Miao killed the Rusted Knight, but the Spirit Candle could not manifest, and the Rusted Knight began to reform and revive.
• Li Miao continued down the corridor and recovered from his Rust Corrosion Poison by stepping into a healing formation.
• Li Miao found the Old Man Puppet selling enhanced rental weapons, but he chose to save his Dungeon Gold Coins and fight without buying one.
• Li Miao entered the next arena and faced the Frostbone Witch, then immediately attacked with his Warfire and greatsword.

Li Miao defeated the Frostbone Witch, found a taunting letter and a hint about the Old Man Puppets, then entered the final arena to face the Fluorescent Fire-rank Dungeon King, Ziegleras. Ziegleras repeatedly feinted and overpowered him, finally killing Li Miao with a decisive strike.

• Li Miao defeated the Frostbone Witch and entered the corridor leading to the next boss, hoping it was the last.
• Li Miao found a corpse with a letter from the dungeon’s designer, then discovered a hint urging Trialists to kill the Old Man Puppets and chose not to follow it.
• Li Miao reached the throne room and identified the final boss as the level 41 Dungeon King, Ziegleras, a Fluorescent Fire-rank monster.
• Ziegleras attacked Li Miao with a disorienting black wind and feinted with its sword, leaving him badly wounded.
• Li Miao struggled against Ziegleras’s varied attacks and high poise, then shouted at it to swing as it feinted again.
• Ziegleras answered with a clean strike that cut Li Miao in two.

Players vented their fury at the Dungeon King and Spirit Candle in World Chat, while Clemo witnessed a player blame Spirit Candle after tripping and struggled to understand their irreverence. The chapter left Clemo shaken by how casually the Candle Spirits cursed the power they worshipped.

• Players shared furious insults, jokes, and stories about the Dungeon King and Spirit Candle developers in World Chat.
• Other players laughed at the messages and discussed the Dungeon King's Fast-Slow Blade and the punishing consecutive battles in the Trialist Dungeon.
• The narration explained that players considered the dungeon well designed but malicious, with deaths forcing them to restart at the Rusted Knight.
• A player tripped outside Candlelight Hall, cursed Spirit Candle, and blamed the game for his fall.
• Clemo asked Retali whether the player had really cursed Spirit Candle, and Retali confirmed what he had seen.
• Clemo wondered why the Candle Spirits dared to disrespect Spirit Candle and felt his worldview shaken.

Retali asked Clemo for advice about choosing between Bonfire and Candlelight, while players discussed a humiliating dungeon encounter and celebrated Li Miao’s defeat of the Dungeon King. Li Miao’s loot revealed a Trialist Ring connected to the Fire Aspect Temple, and players realized Clemo might be able to use it.

• Retali asked Clemo what she should do, and Clemo said the choice was hers while explaining that he had already chosen Candlelight.
• Clemo told Retali to wait until he obtained the item needed to enter the Fire Aspect Temple, and they went to look around the player market.
• A Prison Player described how Fear Chaos Bar had apologized to a Firewood Collector, completed a quest without receiving a reward, and lost most of the dungeon’s items.
• Players explained that Fear Chaos Bar had treated the dynamic quest like an ordinary game, then teased him while accepting his apology.
• Brother Miao Won't Fail announced that he had defeated the Dungeon King and shared loot that included Battle Ash: King's Aura and a Trialist Ring.
• Players noticed the Trialist Ring was a hidden quest item for entering the Fire Aspect Temple and realized Clemo was nearby.