Chapter Summaries

Xinke told Wang Dao how Yebian’s coercion had driven him to seek fuel and how he had entered the Twilight Ark by killing his friend. Wang Dao took Xinke to the Assembly Area to investigate a female slave named Mawu, then left with a boy who recognized her necklace.

• Xinke explained that Yebian had seized his homeland, abused his family, and threatened him into earning fuel, while an evil god’s power made resistance impossible.
• Xinke revealed that the Fallen Fire User had forced him and his friend to fight, and he had earned entry to the Twilight Ark by killing his friend.
• Wang Dao and Xinke visited a slave stall in the Assembly Area, where Wang Dao asked whether Rouba had bought a female slave.
• The slave trader brought out a human boy who recognized Mawu’s necklace, but the trader tried to stop Wang Dao from questioning him without buying him.
• Wang Dao pinned the slave trader beneath his flaming foot and killed him after he interrupted and threatened Wang Dao, then took the boy away to question him.

Wang Dao learned that Mawu’s necklace was connected to the word “Adeluo,” then entered the Twilight Ark’s cellar to investigate its Clay Pots. A mud-and-ash soul told him that an ordinary Clay Pot could not affect him and directed him to the lowest level for a special surprise.

• Wang Dao learned that Mawu had muttered “Adeluo” while holding her necklace, then killed the slave boy at the boy’s request when he refused Xinke’s offer of protection.
• Xinke reflected that the boy had likely feared a painful life under his protection, and Wang Dao asked him to lead the way to the cellar.
• Mad Axe confronted Wang Dao over the slave trader’s death but rolled away when Wang Dao ordered him to move.
• Wang Dao entered a Clay Pot in the cellar, but felt no effect; a mud-and-ash soul explained that his ignition point was too high and sent him to the lowest level.

Wang Dao underwent a transformation in a strange clay pot on the cellar’s third level and gained the Fallen Fire Physique, though Candlefire and Ashes prevented Fallen Fire Twilight from fully changing him. After Wang Dao left with gifts from the Acting God, Rogue considered how to use what he had learned about Fallen Fire Twilight and the lead about Yebian and Xinke.

• Wang Dao entered the bizarre clay pot and endured a clash between his soul, Candle Spirit Physique, Madness Power, and the black liquid’s power.
• A familiar figure appeared in the crimson light and enveloped Wang Dao’s azure soul, after which the pot fell silent and Wang Dao gained the Fallen Fire Physique talent.
• The ash-gray soul body told Wang Dao that he had not fully broken free of Candlefire and offered him a Believer Robe and red clay jar from the Acting God.
• Wang Dao accepted the gifts, left the cellar, and discovered that Fallen Fire Physique gave him the ability Flame Plunder, which could steal some Warfire from other lifeforms.
• Rogue reflected on how he had protected Wang Dao’s soul and gained insight into Fallen Fire Twilight, then considered using the opportunity and investigating Yebian and Xinke.

After hearing Wang Dao’s account of the Twilight Ark, the Storyteller proposed that Candlewood Island pretend to reject him so he could earn Fallen Fire Twilight’s trust. Rogue agreed and assigned Wang Dao a covert mission to deliver a Small Candle to Xinke and investigate the Yebian controlling him, leaving Wang Dao eager to begin the new quest.

• The Storyteller told Rogue about Wang Dao’s mutation and proposed that Candlewood Island pretend to reject him to deceive Fallen Fire Twilight.
• Rogue agreed to the plan, and Wang Dao arrived at Candlefire Hall and enthusiastically accepted the role.
• Rogue gave Wang Dao a specially made Small Candle to deliver to Xinke aboard the Twilight Ark and asked him to seek clues about the evil god from the Yebian controlling Xinke.
• Rogue said he would issue a bounty mission for other warriors to hunt Wang Dao and test his disguises, while Wang Dao received the Twilight Spy Shadow quest.

Rogue received a message from Undying One Kahel asking to meet, while Li Miao learned that Zered had severed contact and left him a final message and a can of Hell Dance. Clemo brought the rescued wanderers to Years of Dense Forest, where Retali asked whether he had found any trace of Atubal.

• Undying One Kahel sent Rogue an enthusiastic reply asking to meet, and Rogue used Spirit Fire Port to begin locating him.
• The Prison Players discussed Wang Dao's new spy quest and envied his chance to play a traitor.
• Li Miao discovered that Zered's Anchor had severed its connection and carried Zered's final message asking him to destroy Zered and the Burial Ship.
• Li Miao mourned the loss of contact with Zered, resolved to find a way to help him, and watched the anchor turn to ashes.
• Clemo delivered the rescued wanderers to Retali in Years of Dense Forest and reflected on the Candle Keepers' costly arrangements.
• Retali asked Clemo whether he had found any trace of Atubal.

Rogue met Kahel, leader of the Corpse Spirit Race, and affirmed that his people deserved to exist despite their inability to burn. Kahel recounted how he had crossed the Dark Boundary seeking answers about the Extinguishing Moment, and his journey had eventually led him to Candlefire.

• Clemo told Retali that he still believed Atubal was alive, though he had not found him.
• Kahel arrived near Candlewood Island aboard the Corpse Spirit giant coffin and greeted Rogue with deep respect.
• Rogue told Kahel that the Corpse Spirit Race was not lowly and invited him to speak without formal restraint.
• Kahel explained that the Extinguishing Moment had erased his people's memories and records, driving many Corpse Spirits to despair.
• Kahel said he had crossed the Dark Boundary with companions, learned that the disaster had extinguished the world rather than targeting his race, and continued wandering in search of meaning.
• Kahel recounted that travelers had led him to hear of Candlefire, bringing him to Rogue.

Kahel asked Rogue to let the Corpse Spirit Race help rekindle the world, then revealed that his people were unaffected by corruption. Rogue suspected they originated from corruption, but Kahel said the power had never contacted his race, leaving their origins and purpose uncertain.

• Kahel asked Rogue to give the Corpse Spirit Race a chance to offer its strength toward rekindling the world, and Rogue said he would ask the Will of Candlelight to decide.
• Rogue questioned Kahel about his people’s abilities and learned that corruption had no effect on the Corpse Spirit Race.
• Rogue connected the race’s immunity and inability to burn with the possibility that they originated from corruption.
• Rogue asked Kahel whether he had considered that possibility, and Kahel admitted it seemed likely while saying corruption had never contacted his people.

Rogue strengthened his ties with Kahel and the Corpse Spirit Race, while Niuniu launched a player-run factory to farm creatures mutated by [Gaze of Gairo]. The operation drew a powerful huge-faced monster, whose strange drop delivered a taunting message from Gairo.

• Rogue discussed the Corpse Spirit Race's history with Kahel and accepted them as Candlewood Island's unofficial members.
• Niuniu gathered players and chose Aisamud as the site for his Slime Ball Factory, where studio players cleared monsters and collected Soft Slime Balls.
• Niuniu lounged on his ship while the players efficiently farmed the mutated creatures around him.
• A huge-faced monster from Torchfire Ignition Point appeared and launched an area mental attack, prompting Deep Blue to coordinate the players' response.
• Watermelon Not Sweet and the others defeated the monster, and Xuan Feng sent Niuniu a [Soft Block Containing Malice] with a message demanding that he beg Gairo for forgiveness.

Niuniu and Deep Blue decided to preserve the Clown Evil God's curse for as long as they could, while Wang Dao began the next stage of his quest and returned to the Twilight Ark. Wang Dao left Xinke's client dead and headed for the cellar.

• Niuniu read the Clown Evil God's demand that he kneel and apologize, but Deep Blue warned him that provoking It could strengthen the curse or end its benefits.
• Deep Blue persuaded Niuniu to wait before using the offered object, so they could squeeze as much value as possible from the curse for Candlewood Island.
• Wang Dao activated the second stage of his quest, which warned that Candlewood Island would reject him and the Spirit Candle's power would fade.
• Storyteller told Wang Dao to act gloomy and sinister, then Wang Dao traveled to the Twilight Ark, where nearby Flame Ignition Life forms fled from him.
• Wang Dao encountered Xinke serving another client and killed the client with Bloody Fang when Xinke hesitated to leave; Xinke then agreed to accompany him.

Wang Dao decided to take Xinke to his Hometown and deal with Yebian, the man threatening Xinke’s family. As they traveled, Wang Dao detected strange whispers and emotional influence in the cellar’s liquid, while the Acting God ordered continued surveillance of him after learning Candlefire had rejected his mutation.

• Wang Dao asked Xinke for Yebian’s name and said they would go to Xinke’s Hometown after he recovered.
• In the cellar, the mud-gray soul body mocked Wang Dao and speculated that Candlefire had rejected him; Wang Dao drove it away with blood-colored power.
• Wang Dao heard faint whispers and felt an unexplained emotional influence while recovering in a Clay Pot, but chose to keep using the liquid.
• Xinke agreed to lead Wang Dao to his Hometown, and they activated a Scorched Shard at the Twilight Altar to travel together.
• The Acting God learned that Candlefire had rejected Wang Dao and ordered the Fallen Fire User to keep observing him.

Xinke brought Wang Dao into Hometown and sacrificed his life to ask him to end Yebian’s rule. Wang Dao reached the manor’s top floor, destroyed Yebian’s statue and captured him, then prepared to take him elsewhere for execution.

• Xinke warned Wang Dao that Yebian knew they had arrived and begged him to kill Yebian and protect Xinke’s mother and sisters before the Curse Seal transformed him and Wang Dao killed him.
• Yebian ordered his guards to bring Xinke’s mother to him and kill Xinke’s two younger sisters.
• Wang Dao burst into the top floor as Yebian prayed to his bloodied statue, and the Incarnated Being told Wang Dao to handle the filthy ritual.
• An azure Flowing Light struck and shattered the statue before it could answer Yebian’s plea for help.
• Wang Dao told Yebian his god could not save him and had an Abyssal Sacrifice living corpse drag him away for execution.

Wang Dao defeated Yebian and interrogated him about the evil god he worshipped, known as the Voracious Virgin. Yebian began explaining how he found a forbidden tome about It, leaving his past unfinished.

• Yebian begged Wang Dao for mercy, but Wang Dao sent Xinke's younger sisters to rescue their mother and told them Xinke was dead.
• Wang Dao dragged Yebian to the corpse pit and cut off both his arms after Yebian threatened to kill people bearing his Curse Seals.
• Wang Dao gave Yebian a choice between answering questions and being handed over to the villagers, then healed him enough to keep him alive.
• Yebian revealed that the evil god's title was the Voracious Virgin and said he had found a forbidden tome about It in an ancient tomb.
• Yebian began recounting how his wandering companions abandoned and humiliated him after he lost his legs.

Wang Dao killed Yebian, found the forbidden tome, and then turned on the villagers who had thanked him. As he began attacking them, a figure appeared and accused him of revealing his true nature.

• Wang Dao rejected Yebian's attempt to bargain and had him delivered to Xinke's fellow villagers, who tore him apart.
• Wang Dao asked the villagers about Yebian's forbidden tome, found it in the secret vault, and took it along with the other treasures.
• After the villagers thanked him, Wang Dao attacked them, saying their lives and suffering would ease his worries.
• Xinke's two younger sisters begged Wang Dao to kill them instead, but he said they would die later.
• An icy voice accused Wang Dao of revealing his true nature, and a figure appeared in gathering azure candlelight.

Rogue’s plan succeeded in convincing Fallen Fire Twilight to extract Wang Dao from Xinke’s Hometown, while Li Miao’s staged battle let Wang Dao deepen his cover as a spy. Wang Dao returned to the cellar with most Spirit Candle functions disabled and faced a mysterious figure who arrived to meet White Can.

• Wang Dao fought Li Miao, who pretended to be trying to arrest him, until a power tied to the Fallen Fire Physique whisked Wang Dao away.
• Rogue revealed that the staged betrayal was meant to win Fallen Fire Twilight’s trust and helped heal and settle Xinke’s fellow townspeople.
• Wang Dao read a changed mission notice stating that most Spirit Candle functions would remain disabled until his next death.
• White Can observed that Wang Dao had lost the ability to convey meaning, and an Acting God-like figure appeared and received White Can’s respectful greeting.

The Acting God explained that Candlefire had allowed Wang Dao to escape Candlewood Island so it could use him to locate revived abominations, then tried to force him to join Fallen Fire Twilight. Wang Dao pretended to resist until the Acting God threatened to return him to Candlefire, and after they left, Wang Dao revealed that he had deceived them.

• The Acting God told Wang Dao that Candlefire had let him escape and later tried to capture him, but Fallen Fire Twilight had intervened.
• The Acting God immobilized Wang Dao and inserted a worm into his ear to help him understand their speech and strengthen his body.
• The Acting God demanded that Wang Dao join Fallen Fire Twilight, and Wang Dao refused until the Acting God threatened to send him back to Candlefire.
• The Acting God sent Wang Dao to Clay Pot to recover, then departed, followed by White Can.
• Wang Dao summoned the blood-red can and laughed, pleased that the others had believed his act.

Rogue anchored a new Primal Flame Mark region, while Yuanfang and the other players discussed the Philosopher's Scepter’s evaluations inside Radiant Land. The scepter revealed cryptic remarks about the Deceased, Azure Candlefire, and Carlos, leaving the players unsure how much of its testimony to trust.

• Rogue decided to open the Primal Flame Mark region and used Spirit Fire Port to anchor the region where a deceased Kindling resided.
• Yuanfang returned the Philosopher's Scepter to Two and a Half Years of Dust Grinding after using it to explore Radiant Land.
• Yuanfang warned Dust Grinding, Wu Liao, and the Storyteller that the scepter could evaluate Kindling-level beings but might lie about gods.
• Yuanfang recounted the scepter’s cryptic evaluations of Waba, himself, and Azure Candlefire, including its reference to the aura of the Deceased.
• The Philosopher's Scepter made a darkly humorous remark about Carlos’s confused body, making the players laugh before the Storyteller continued listening to its evaluations.

Yuanfang explained that the Philosopher's Scepter had described Radiant Beings as having died before and been resurrected, then pieced together by its master's hand. The group questioned how much of the scepter's account was true and decided to consult the Candle Keepers.

• Yuanfang told the Storyteller that the scepter's reference to the deceased did not mean Radiant Beings' final death, and explained its evaluation of Them.
• The scepter's evaluation called Radiant Beings the Incarnation of Wisdom and the Blazing Sun, resurrected from death and pieced together by its master into an extreme fusion.
• Yuanfang warned that the scepter's information could be false, leaving the group uncertain whether Radiant Beings had died again or whether the master and labyrinth existed.
• Radiant Beings recognized a familiar aura from the scepter but had no memories of the events it described.
• Ashbeater suggested asking the Candle Keepers, and the Storyteller set aside his questions to do so.

Rogue considered what the Philosopher's Scepter had revealed about Candlefire and the Radiant Beings, then set aside his questions to ask Nairiel. At Firewood Collector Bonfire, Ryan became a Saint of Blazing Fire and agreed to continue the Yasum clan's dangerous quest after demanding one last meeting with Candlefire's friends.

• Rogue reasoned that finding the Philosopher's Scepter's owner might explain Candlefire's origins and wondered why the Radiant Beings and the Kindling of 'Order and Chaos' had not ignited in sequence.
• Ryan endured severe pain as the souls within him merged with Saint's Fire Aspect, making him a Saint of Blazing Fire.
• The Yasum chieftain urged Ryan to accept the inheritance and seek the Long Slumbering Soul, arguing that splitting the souls would put the clan's goal out of reach.
• Ryan struggled between resisting the clan's control and protecting Yasum, then agreed to go on the quest on the condition that he could see Candlefire's friends once more.
• The Yasum chieftain agreed to Ryan's request.

Ryan reunited with Li Miao, Landfall, and the Storyteller, then explained how Chief Yasum and the Yasum warriors’ lingering souls controlled his body. Their reunion ended with Ryan offering them gifts that he feared were no longer useful.

• Ryan met Li Miao, Landfall, and the Storyteller again and recounted his recent experiences among the Yasum people.
• Ryan explained that the Yasum warriors’ lingering souls were gathered within him and that Chief Yasum could take control of his body.
• Li Miao and Landfall objected to Chief Yasum controlling Ryan, while Chief Yasum argued that the Yasum people needed to sacrifice for their chance at glory.
• The Storyteller questioned whether Chief Yasum had controlled other Yasum Firewood Collectors before, but Chief Yasum dismissed the accusation and returned control to Ryan.
• Ryan apologized for Chief Yasum’s behavior and offered his friends weapons, combat techniques, and spells, though he doubted they could use them.

Li Miao used Carlos's Eye with Ryan's Scale and uncovered the truth behind Ryan’s memories: Yasum had enslaved Ryan and taken his brothers’ souls. The chapter ended with Ryan imprisoned in a coffin as his family’s Lingering Souls faded.

• Ryan gave Li Miao, Landfall, and Storyteller scales that let them view his memories, then left with Chief Yasum.
• Li Miao, Landfall, and Storyteller questioned whether Ryan had changed and whether Chief Yasum could be trusted.
• Li Miao viewed the scale’s warm memories of Ryan’s family, companions, and dream of becoming a warrior, but found no sign of deception.
• Storyteller left to ask others about Chief Yasum, while Landfall went to Teacher Burton to examine a spell Ryan had given him.
• Li Miao activated Carlos's Eye while using Ryan's Scale, revealing that Yasum had enslaved Ryan and captured him despite his resistance.
• Ryan saw his older and younger brothers’ souls stripped away, was locked in a coffin, and lost consciousness as his family’s Lingering Souls faded.