Chapter Summaries

Liu Shanchun told a delivery-monster horror story during a livestream, then the narrative shifted to Li Changyu, who encountered a supernatural attack in the office restroom. The chapter ended with a man watching the horror video and complaining about its public-service-announcement ending.

• Liu Shanchun entertained his livestream viewers with a story about a monster delivering food outside a tenth-floor window.
• Li Changyu told his coworkers that Liu Shanchun’s delivery-monster story was clichéd and warned the Girl to keep her windows shut.
• Li Changyu left the coworkers in the darkened meeting room and went to the restroom during their overtime break.
• Li Changyu found that the faucet would not run, then black hair burst out and wrapped around his hand as the empty stall doors flew open.
• The restroom lights and door vanished into darkness, and a bloody message about flushing appeared on a phone screen.
• A man watched the video’s ending and complained about the public service announcement.

Bai Zhi investigated a strange subway Dungeon where his actions seemed to be influenced and human-looking passengers were actually Cannibal Monsters. After hearing music from somewhere above the subway, he was left searching for the source.

• Bai Zhi noticed that his choice to leave a substitute behind had been irrational and wondered whether something unseen had influenced him.
• Bai Zhi moved through the subway carriages unseen and examined a Student ID bearing his real name.
• Bai Zhi considered the Dungeon’s clues: the missing Players, the Cannibal Monsters, and a shadow-dwelling Monster that could Devour Shadow Guards.
• Bai Zhi heard what sounded like a melodious piece of music and looked above the subway.

Bai Zhi analyzed the music he alone could hear and the dangers of the [Ordinary World] Dungeon, suspecting it was meant to awaken Players while forcing them to act as ordinary people. He remained on the subway, which never stopped and had a clock that counted beyond 15:59, leaving him trapped aboard.

• Bai Zhi heard a faint melody that the other Passengers seemed unable to hear and considered whether the World's End Singer was contacting him.
• Bai Zhi reasoned that the Players might be separated, stripped of their memories, and required to face Anomalies as ordinary people, with the risk of never regaining their identities.
• Bai Zhi suspected the World's End Singer's music might awaken some of the Players' memories, but admitted he lacked enough clues to be certain.
• Bai Zhi waited without acting recklessly, hoping to find his Teammates when the subway stopped.
• Bai Zhi noticed the subway had no stations and never stopped, while its clock advanced past 15:59, and realized he was trapped.

Yan Yue’s worsening nightmares and fatigue culminated in a spectral prank appearing to cross from a computer game into reality. Meanwhile, Liu Shanchun fled a growing horde of Monsters and discovered he had superhuman abilities.

• Yan Yue woke late after smashing another alarm clock and noticed a Red-clothed Figure crouching on her shoulder in the mirror.
• Yan Yue played a mini-game whose Specter repeated the same pranks she had experienced, then watched the game freeze as hair descended across the screen.
• A melodious tune sounded as a window shattered nearby, startling a man watching a Horror Movie.
• Liu Shanchun sprinted past the man, but a Monster chased him, infected the man, and multiplied as it pursued its original target.
• Liu Shanchun realized twelve Monsters were chasing him and found that his speed, agility, and strength far exceeded those of an ordinary person.

Liu Shanchun was surrounded by intelligent, rapidly multiplying Monsters that had infected his residential complex when a mysterious song interrupted the impending attack. Elsewhere, West Pavilion Gardener escaped a Monster-filled yacht after recovering his sealed memories, but remained unable to find his teammates or learn the Dungeon’s mission as the same melody reached him.

• Liu Shanchun fled as Monsters spread through his residential complex, infecting residents and turning them into Hunters.
• The Monsters surrounded Liu Shanchun, and a family of three was attacked and transformed as he prepared to be overwhelmed.
• A melodious song suddenly sounded before the Monsters could tear Liu Shanchun apart.
• West Pavilion Gardener regained his memories and strength aboard a Monster-owned yacht, where he found no living passengers or teammates.
• West Pavilion Gardener considered how to find the other Players and understand the Dungeon’s mission while the Monsters began reviving again.
• A leisurely melody drifted toward West Pavilion Gardener from the horizon.

Trapped in a subway that looped endlessly, Bai Zhi investigated its strange rules and concluded that the Players’ falling Sanity was likely the Dungeon’s greatest threat. Unable to find the other Teammates or explain the missing System Interface, he confronted a Passenger and declared a robbery.

• Bai Zhi found that the subway’s nine Carriages formed a Mobius Ring, its Passengers turned into unkillable Evil Spirits when he used extraordinary abilities, and the Carriages reset after a minute.
• Bai Zhi tried to escape through a hole in the roof, but the Plush Cat was torn apart by claws from the darkness, and the opening repaired itself.
• Bai Zhi reasoned that the subway had left its original world and suspected that the Players’ Sanity was continuously declining, though his own Sanity Value remained unreadable.
• Bai Zhi decided to search for the other Teammates and find the connection between their separate Anomaly Spaces.
• Bai Zhi walked up to a bald Northeast Big Brother with Tiger Tattoos, demanded his belongings and account passwords, and announced that he was robbing him.

Yan Yue, the Player Fireworks of Romance, fought an Anomaly that had copied her identity, abilities, and equipment while her memories were sealed. Just as she lost her balance and the imposter attacked, an unknown figure dropped onto the table between them.

• Fireworks of Romance recalled entering the Dungeon to recruit someone and enduring an Anomaly’s harassment before recovering her memories.
• The Anomaly evolved into an exact copy of Fireworks of Romance, including her Title, id, Skills, equipment, and combat experience.
• Fireworks of Romance and the imposter fought to a stalemate as the copy repeatedly used [Head Crouching Defense] without worrying about its costs.
• Fireworks of Romance tripped over a shampoo bottle, and the imposter sent knives and forks flying at her with [Pots and pans, hear my command!!].
• An unknown figure suddenly appeared in midair and fell onto the table between Fireworks of Romance and the imposter.

Bai Zhi escaped the subway Anomaly Space by being arrested and found himself in a room with two identical versions of Fireworks of Romance. Unable to distinguish the real one from the copy, he considered simply beating both of them.

• Bai Zhi fought through seven subway carriages, was arrested by police, and left the Anomaly Space when he stepped off the train.
• Bai Zhi arrived in a messy living room where two identical Fireworks of Romance were fighting and each claimed the other was an imposter.
• The two Fireworks of Romance offered conflicting memories and accusations, while Bai Zhi tried and failed to identify the real one.
• Bai Zhi realized the copy had duplicated Fireworks of Romance's memories and personality, then considered taking both of them down.

Bai Zhi tied up two Fireworks of Romance, used [Failed Writer] to shoot and destroy the Specter impersonating one of them, and explained that Players had to defeat Anomalies using ordinary methods. As Fireworks of Romance faced her own copy, Bai Zhi warned that Sanity Value was draining and memory recovery was accelerating, then casually ate instant noodles and played music.

• Bai Zhi bound both Fireworks of Romance to a table and fired blindly, destroying the Specter that had taken one of their forms at a cost of 2,000 Spiritual Energy Value.
• After freeing the surviving Fireworks of Romance, Bai Zhi told her to check her Sanity Value, which was continuously decreasing and would last at most one day.
• Bai Zhi explained that the Specter could not be killed normally and that Players had to defeat Anomalies using common people's methods to move onward.
• Bai Zhi warned that the Dungeon had no safe places, Sanity Value kept falling, and the Players' sealed memories would gradually awaken even without the music.
• Fireworks of Romance prepared to face a Young Girl identical to herself while Bai Zhi ate instant noodles and turned on a radio, changing the tense atmosphere with music.

Bai Zhi and Fireworks of Romance cleared Fireworks of Romance’s Anomaly Scenario and moved through a sequence of connected scenarios, searching for the Player who had already advanced. They arrived at a dark school campus, where Fireworks of Romance spotted a Golden-Light Streetlight King.

• Fireworks of Romance struck the Specter with a frying pan, and Bai Zhi explained that resolving each Anomaly Scenario allowed Players to move to the next one.
• Bai Zhi realized he might have missed a clue in the Subway Scenario and worried that the connected scenarios could form a Closed Loop.
• Bai Zhi and Fireworks of Romance left the apartment and appeared in a Men's Dormitory, where Bai Zhi identified the Player [World's Seven Deadly Sins] as already having moved on.
• Bai Zhi and Fireworks of Romance passed through another door and arrived at a school campus at night.
• Fireworks of Romance pointed out a Streetlight King glowing with Golden Light.

Bai Zhi and Fireworks of Romance encountered Li Tong outside the school and exchanged information while waiting for Chang Xi. After Chang Xi arrived, Bai Zhi urged everyone into the campus before their Sanity Values fell further.

• Bai Zhi recognized Li Tong, who introduced himself as World's Seven Deadly Sins and explained that he had been watching the campus for The World For You Alone.
• Li Tong told Bai Zhi and Fireworks of Romance that he had mistaken The World For You Alone for an Anomaly after seeing her chase what he thought was a high school girl.
• Chang Xi came out of the campus, traded barbs with Fireworks of Romance, and revealed that she had joined the Dungeon because she knew someone from her guild.
• Bai Zhi interrupted the conversation and led the group toward the school gate, warning them that their Sanity Values were being drained.

Bai Zhi and the others rescued OriginDeficit from a swarm of Monsters in a Residential Building Anomaly and discovered that its Anomaly Deliveryman could not be killed. After recreating OriginDeficit’s delivery encounter, Bai Zhi sensed a clue to the Dungeon’s truth, and the group hurried onward with his Sanity Value nearing its critical threshold.

• Bai Zhi and Li Tong fought through the Monsters attacking the rooftop and rescued OriginDeficit from the swarm below.
• Li Tong captured the final Monster after it proved impossible to kill, and OriginDeficit explained that the Anomaly had gone berserk after his mistakes.
• Bai Zhi deduced that OriginDeficit’s Anomaly involved a delivery and had him recreate the encounter by accepting food from the bound Anomaly Deliveryman.
• Bai Zhi noticed a possible clue to the Dungeon’s truth, then the group of five set off for the next location because OriginDeficit had less than half a day before his Sanity Value reached its critical threshold.

Bai Zhi’s group traveled through the sixth to ninth Anomaly Spaces, finding that most Players had moved on before discovering [Big Sister's Panties] dead and [Royal Qianren] gravely wounded. After learning a female Madman had attacked them and fled into the tenth space, Bai Zhi decided to carry Li Changyu toward [World's End Singer] and finish the Dungeon before [Frozen Ice Cream] wore off.

• Bai Zhi’s group found ordinary people and a note naming [Royal Qianren] in the Company Building, then found a writhing tentacle and a note naming [Big Sister's Panties] at the Seaview Villa.
• At the Yacht, Bai Zhi’s group found bound variant Monsters and a note naming [West Pavilion Gardener].
• In the medieval castle, Bai Zhi’s group found [Big Sister's Panties] dead and Li Changyu critically injured, while [West Pavilion Gardener] had chased their attacker into the previous Anomaly Space.
• Li Changyu told the group that a female Madman had ambushed them and that [West Pavilion Gardener] had tied up the Undead Living Corpse before pursuing her.
• Bai Zhi identified [World's End Singer] as the Player in the tenth Anomaly Space, then told OriginDeficit to carry Li Changyu there before [Frozen Ice Cream] wore off.
• [West Pavilion Gardener] appeared at the subway where Bai Zhi had first stayed.

Bai Zhi and the others reached the tenth Anomaly Space, an empty seaside plaza, where they encountered the World's End Singer and learned that the ten scenes formed a Closed Loop. As the others prepared to investigate, Bai Zhi stayed behind to think through the clues and the recurring patterns of the Anomaly Spaces.

• Bai Zhi noticed the Girl with the Red Guitar on a bench, and the others saw her only after he pointed her out.
• The Girl told Bai Zhi that two people had left the plaza and explained that the ten scenes formed a Closed Loop containing real humans in false worlds.
• Bai Zhi asked the others to find West Pavilion Gardener and warned them to be careful of Gelina.
• Li Tong realized that leaving the plaza might lead them back to the Subway, while Bai Zhi sat down to consider the Closed Loop and the Anomaly Spaces' common traits.
• Bai Zhi began listing those traits, then clarified to Fireworks of Romance and OriginDeficit that he was not singling them out.

Bai Zhi deduced that being killed by an Anomaly might let Players escape the Closed Loop, and urged the badly injured Li Changyu to take that risk. Li Changyu faced the choice as his temporary reprieve neared its end.

• Li Tong and Chang Xi left to search for West Pavilion Gardener while Bai Zhi and the others stayed in the Plaza.
• Bai Zhi connected the disappearing system, immortal Anomalies, and the Closed Loop, then asked Li Changyu whether Anomalies had attacked him first in other spaces.
• Bai Zhi proposed that Li Changyu let an Anomaly kill him, reasoning that Anomaly-caused deaths could allow Players to leave the Closed Loop while Player-caused deaths were permanent.
• Bai Zhi said the immortal Anomalies were likely empowered by the system, and Li Changyu asked OriginDeficit to destroy his computer and figurines if he died.

Bai Zhi explained his deduction that the immortal Anomalies were closely connected to the missing system and that the Closed Loop had been designed to kill Players. He left the group with a new question: what was the system trying to achieve by killing them and making them leave the loop?

• Fireworks of Romance wondered whether Players had to die to clear the Dungeon, and Bai Zhi explained why both strong and weak Players faced danger.
• Bai Zhi argued that the system had not truly disappeared and that the Players' real names and immortal Anomalies were clues to its presence.
• Fireworks of Romance realized that an Anomaly had copied her equipment, Skills, Title, and identity, supporting Bai Zhi's theory.
• Bai Zhi pointed out that the Anomalies and music had helped restore the Players' memories, making their existence seem deliberate rather than necessary for killing them.
• Bai Zhi estimated that his deduction was over seventy percent likely to be correct and concluded that the system intended to kill the Players and make them leave the Closed Loop.

Bai Zhi explained his deduction that Players could escape the Closed Loop by letting Anomalies kill them, and warned that death at another Player’s hands would be real. The group split over whether to risk his plan or keep exploring, while Bai Zhi and several others left the Plaza to seek a painless way to die.

• Bai Zhi told West Pavilion Gardener and the others that Anomalies targeted Players rather than common people, supporting his theory that being killed by an Anomaly could get them out of the Closed Loop.
• West Pavilion Gardener said the group would keep exploring rather than immediately seek death, while Bai Zhi warned them about the risks and the consequences of exhausting their Sanity Values.
• Bai Zhi suggested using the restrained Anomaly in OriginDeficit’s residential complex to become a Monster and die painlessly, then said he was going there himself.
• The Girl followed Bai Zhi out of the Plaza, and Fireworks of Romance and Chang Xi followed after them, leaving OriginDeficit, Li Tong, and West Pavilion Gardener behind.

Chang Xi and Fireworks of Romance escaped the real dream world into a seemingly ordinary city where people treated horrific acts as everyday behavior. Chang Xi realized that the Bus required passengers to pay with body parts, while Fireworks of Romance left a supermarket after witnessing the same kind of madness.

• Chang Xi checked the System Interface and learned that she had to survive for three days, explore, and register at the Victory Grand Hotel.
• Chang Xi read the last Player’s cryptic clue, then waited for the Bus with her Suitcase.
• Chang Xi saw a Passenger pay the Bus fare with a bloody eyeball and refused to board.
• Fireworks of Romance recalled seeing a man cut off his own finger to make up the weight of a purchase in the supermarket.
• Fireworks of Romance left the supermarket, disturbed by customers who paid with body parts as if it were normal.

Bai Zhi reached the Victory Grand Hotel and suspected it might be Noah’s Ark, despite the world’s imminent destruction. He checked in with the Girl with a Red Guitar, leaving them sharing a double room for their three-day stay.

• Bai Zhi witnessed a puddle consume a pedestrian while everyone nearby acted as if nothing unusual had happened.
• Bai Zhi checked in at the Victory Grand Hotel and learned that only king bed and double rooms were included in the reservation; booking a single room cost one hundred eyeballs per day.
• The Girl with a Red Guitar arrived and requested a double room with Bai Zhi.
• The Hotel Front Desk Manager assigned them room 8602 and gave them room cards and a Hotel Guide.
• Bai Zhi asked which rooms the two people who had checked in before them were staying in.

Bai Zhi and the Girl arrived at the hotel, settled into their room, and encountered several people with strange bodily alterations. After Li Changyu visited, Bai Zhi realized that an extra ear had grown on the back of his neck.

• Bai Zhi went upstairs with the Girl and saw two young men, one missing a hand and the other carrying a bag of chips with an extra hand growing from his navel.
• Bai Zhi and the Girl reached their eighth-floor room, which appeared clean and ordinary.
• Li Changyu visited Bai Zhi and suggested waiting in the First Floor Hall for the others to arrive.
• Bai Zhi told the Girl that he had seen an extra ear on the back of Li Changyu's neck through God's Perspective.