Chapter Summaries

Lin Yu realized the Diviner’s knowledge of the Emperor could help him trace the Copper Furnace and its possible connection to Lin Zhao. As A'yu struggled to show she knew the Night Valley Realm’s lore, she could not correctly name its three great churches.

• Lin Yu connected the Emperor’s past as a Player to Lin Zhao and suspected the Emperor had helped arrange the attacks on him in the Eternal Prison.
• A'yu was shocked to learn that Players from a previous version had survived, while Liuli and the Celestial King teased her for overlooking the evidence.
• Lin Yu pretended not to know about previous versions, and A'yu happily claimed they shared the same casual approach to details.
• The Celestial King and the Diviner urged A'yu to learn more about the Ten Realms and asked her to explain the Night Valley Realm’s three great churches.
• A'yu named the Church of Mercy and the Church of Fire Worship but forgot the third church and got the other names wrong.

Lin Yu, posing as Yayu, drew praise from the Marauders for her role in the Nether Void conflict and her intelligence gathering in Shenzhen. The Diviner noticed a possible inconsistency and asked her to explain how she obtained information about Order.

• A'yu introduced Yayu to the Diviner and the Celestial King, praising her role in the Mermaid-Sea Demon war and her strength.
• The Celestial King praised Yayu and offered to help her, while the Diviner said he would remember her.
• A'yu and Liuli praised Yayu for investigating Order’s plans in Shenzhen, which briefly made the Diviner suspicious.
• Lin Yu admitted that Schreiber had noticed her and took responsibility for Schreiber’s arrival, easing some of the Diviner’s doubts.
• The Diviner asked Yayu to explain in detail how she had obtained information about Order.

Lin Yu defended Yayu’s intelligence-gathering methods and demonstrated that she could evade the Marauders’ perception. The Diviner was left questioning whether Yayu had visited the Gray Domain.

• Lin Yu told the Diviner that Yayu had gathered information about Order through observation, interviews, and investigation near the election venue.
• A'yu and the Celestial King accepted Lin Yu’s explanation, but Liuli and the Diviner worried that Order might have planted the intelligence.
• Lin Yu offered to prove that Order had not noticed her by hiding from the group, and the Diviner darkened the factory and masked its sounds.
• After the Diviner restored visibility, the group could not detect Yayu until the [Gold Seeker Compass] revealed her standing beside him.
• The Diviner questioned Yayu about how she concealed herself, then asked whether she had been to the Gray Domain.

Lin Yu used [Narrative Trick] to convince the Diviner that Yayu’s ability to conceal herself came from the Gray Domain, persuading him to let her continue gathering intelligence. The Diviner then asked her to watch for the Tier 4 Feng Shui Master, Jian Cunyi, and promised a major reward if she uncovered his plans.

• Lin Yu explained his concealment as an innate talent awakened after an unusual instance, and the Diviner accepted his account as evidence that Yayu could gather intelligence safely.
• The Diviner asked Yayu to watch for Jian Cunyi, the Feng Shui Master, whom he considered a major threat.
• A'yu worried that assigning the Tier 1 Yayu to watch a powerful Tier 4 would put her in danger, but the Diviner said her concealment could evade even the Celestial King’s searches.
• Lin Yu agreed to look for Jian Cunyi but asked what reward he would receive for finding him and learning his plans.
• The Diviner offered to make Yayu a branch chief and obtain any confirmed item from the Ten Realms, prompting A'yu and the Celestial King to suggest coveted items and joke about the Diviner fighting Grandmaster again.

Lin Yu left the Marauders’ base as Yayu and warned the Freedom Alliance that Diviner and Emperor were preparing a major attack in Shenzhen. He explained that Director had uncovered the plot by confronting Diviner in the Prison Mountain Realm, leaving the Alliance to consider how to protect its strongest members.

• Lin Yu left the Marauders’ base after gaining Diviner’s permission to act independently, then changed into Zhu Ming and headed to the Freedom Alliance’s base.
• Zhu Ming found Comedian, Fishing Man, and Inventor outside the God of Cookery’s house and urged them to stand guard or leave Shenzhen.
• Zhu Ming warned that Diviner had partnered with Emperor, a Tier 5 Player, to help the Marauders attack the Player Mutual Aid Society’s election center.
• Zhu Ming said Emperor’s role would be to eliminate powerful opponents, including Grandmaster, Swordsman, Feng Shui Master, and Tengshe, and weaken the lawful organizations.
• Chen Le asked how Director had learned the Marauders’ plans, and Zhu Ming explained that Director had confronted Diviner in the Prison Mountain Realm and deduced the plot from what he witnessed and learned there.

Lin Yu told Comedian, Old Wu, and Chen Le that Director and Feng Shui Master had stopped Diviner from freeing Demon Ancestor Gantuo in the Prison Mountain Realm, but Diviner’s plans had brought Emperor and the Marauders into closer cooperation. After revealing that Emperor had nearly killed Director, Lin Yu warned them that Shenzhen was no longer safe if Emperor’s restrictions were lifted.

• Comedian and Old Wu reacted with disbelief that Director had joined Feng Shui Master in confronting Diviner on his home turf, while Chen Le asked whether Director was safe.
• Lin Yu explained that Director had accepted Feng Shui Master’s invitation after judging the risks and learning that Diviner wanted to reforge the Authority of Destiny.
• Old Wu reasoned that Director must have faced serious danger to learn Diviner’s plans, and Lin Yu revealed that Diviner had tried to break the seal holding Demon Ancestor Gantuo in Nine Cold Mountain.
• Lin Yu said Director and Feng Shui Master had stopped Diviner from breaking the seal and reinforced it with help from local experts, but Diviner had gained Emperor as an ally through Cold Cicada.
• Lin Yu revealed that Emperor had attacked Director through multiple restrictions and nearly erased him, then warned that the consequences would be unimaginable if Diviner found a way to let Emperor attack at full strength.

Lin Yu warned the Freedom Alliance that the Diviner planned to attack Shenzhen with help from a Tier 5 player and urged them to evacuate. When the others learned Lin Yu would stay to help the Director, they chose to remain in Shenzhen as well.

• Lin Yu explained how the Director had encountered the Emperor and warned that the Emperor was more dangerous than the God of Desire.
• Lin Yu urged Chen Le, Old Wu, and Comedian to leave Shenzhen by sea that night, but they said they would stay to help Lin Yu.
• Chen Le brought the group inside and told the Freedom Alliance members that the Diviner planned to kill Order's Tier 4s with a surviving Tier 5 player's help.
• Old Zhou and Li Nian initially considered evacuating, but Qianhuan pointed out that Lin Yu was staying behind.
• The Freedom Alliance members decided to remain in Shenzhen, with Old Zhou, Xiao Yun, and the God of Cookery giving their reasons for staying.

Lin Yu tried to persuade the Freedom Alliance to leave Shenzhen, but Li Nian insisted that they had the right to choose danger and stay. After Lin Yu accepted their decision, he privately brought Li Nian a message from an acquaintance in the Prison Mountain Realm, and Qin Siyu appeared to surprise her.

• Lin Yu warned the Freedom Alliance that Shenzhen would become dangerous, but the members chose to stay and support Director.
• Lin Yu argued that the Alliance had no reason to risk their lives, and Li Nian reminded him that he had once made a dangerous choice to rescue her in the Gray Domain.
• Lin Yu accepted the Alliance's decision and urged them to keep safe, then said he had private news for Li Nian from a woman she knew in the Prison Mountain Realm.
• Lin Yu and Li Nian went into a guest room, where Qin Siyu sprang out from behind Li Nian and greeted her with a utility knife.
• Li Nian reacted with delight and readied a bundle of golden needles as she asked Qin Siyu how she had escaped.

Li Nian and Qin Siyu reunited and explained how Qin Siyu had become Lin Yu’s Retainer after Lin Yu saved her soul. Their teasing argument over Qin Siyu’s flirtatious jokes and past misadventures revealed their close friendship, while Lin Yu reflected that saving Qin Siyu had also improved Li Nian’s opinion of “Director” and his standing in the Freedom Alliance.

• Li Nian reunited with Qin Siyu, who explained that “Director” had saved her after Diviner scattered her soul, but a failed Guest Appearance Invitation had made Lin Yu her new master.
• Lin Yu clarified that she and “Director” were not engaged, despite Li Nian’s belief that forum gossip said they were married.
• Li Nian questioned Qin Siyu’s flirtatious remarks about “Director,” and Qin Siyu insisted she was only joking and that nothing had happened between them.
• Qin Siyu and Li Nian argued over their past thefts, including Qin Siyu’s feast at Red Screen House and Li Nian’s botched attempt to make them famous at Lingxiao Martial Arts School.
• Lin Yu warned Qin Siyu not to steal in a world filled with surveillance cameras, explaining that he would otherwise have to bail her out.
• Li Nian admitted that Qin Siyu was her friend, and Lin Yu concluded that saving Qin Siyu had helped strengthen Li Nian’s opinion of “Director” and his standing in the Freedom Alliance.

Lin Yu introduced Qin Siyu to Li Nian and the Freedom Alliance, confirming that she was Li Nian’s friend and would remain his Summoned Creature. He then took Qin Siyu to Stiller and asked him to help her adjust to life in the City That Never Sleeps without revealing Lin Yu’s other identities.

• Lin Yu explained that Qin Siyu would stay with him, and Li Nian confirmed that she was the real Qin Siyu and could be trusted.
• Lin Yu brought Qin Siyu out to meet the Freedom Alliance, where the members welcomed her and she made a good first impression.
• Lin Yu decided to keep Qin Siyu unaware that his different identities belonged to the same person so she would not have to keep secrets from Li Nian.
• Lin Yu teleported with Qin Siyu to Stiller’s vacation house and privately told him not to reveal the connections between Lin Yu’s identities.
• Lin Yu asked Stiller to train Qin Siyu in social customs and help her adapt to life in the City That Never Sleeps, and Stiller agreed.

Lin Yu returned to Shenzhen as Schreiber and argued with Skinner about why he had killed Potassium Chloride, presenting the death as a deliberate trial meant to force stronger Players to break their limits. He revealed that Potassium Chloride and White Sand’s deaths would provoke the Diviner and the Second Generation Freud, leaving Skinner stunned by his plan.

• Lin Yu returned to the Psychology Society’s bar in Shenzhen as Schreiber, where Skinner warned him that he should not have come.
• Skinner accused Lin Yu of unnecessarily killing Potassium Chloride, while Lin Yu challenged the Society’s current policies and defended his approach to trials.
• While Skinner made him a Piña Colada, Lin Yu argued that Potassium Chloride had reached his limit and needed an intense trial to break through toward Tier 4.
• Lin Yu said Potassium Chloride’s death had not been in vain because it, along with White Sand’s death, would begin his trial by enraging the Diviner and destabilizing the Second Generation Freud.
• Skinner called Lin Yu a madman, and Lin Yu praised the drink.

Lin Yu, posing as Schreiber, defended his extreme trials to Skinner and persuaded him to keep watching the results, while Old Zheng challenged Lin Yu’s doubts about his own potential. As Lin Yu lingered at the bar, a short-haired woman arrived and asked him to stay for a longer conversation.

• Skinner questioned Schreiber’s dangerous plan for Potassium Chloride, and Schreiber argued that extreme methods could still be right if they produced growth or useful results.
• Skinner admitted he hoped Schreiber would survive and prove his ideas, while Schreiber maintained that even his death would not make those ideas wrong.
• Lin Yu and Old Zheng discussed Skinner’s wavering stance and Old Zheng’s belief that Lin Yu’s sister could offer hope to the players.
• Lin Yu decided to keep working on swaying Psychology Society members and stayed at the bar to finish his piña colada.
• A short-haired woman sat beside Lin Yu, ordered drinks, and asked Schreiber to stay so they could discuss many things.

Lin Yu met the Second Generation “Freud” at the bar, where she explained why she had changed her view of him and revealed her account of the First Generation’s death. The chapter ended with Lin Yu questioning Old Zheng about her claims, and Old Zheng dismissing Freud as hysterical.

• The Second Generation “Freud” told Lin Yu she had set up Soul Power detection at “Skinner’s” bar and had been waiting in case he returned.
• Freud explained that Lin Yu’s conduct in Shenzhen and the memories he revealed in the Eternal Prison had persuaded her he was not a fraud or a murderer using Trials as an excuse.
• Lin Yu said he had tested Freud’s understanding of the First Generation’s ideals, and she affirmed that the Psychology Society had no place for hatred or revenge.
• Freud claimed the First Generation’s death involved the Death game’s will, the Mist Island Realm’s World Will, the God of Oblivion, the Diviner, Fluoxetine, and Robin, and said the First Generation had foreseen the danger.
• Lin Yu privately asked Old Zheng what was happening, and Old Zheng replied that Freud had hysteria.

Lin Yu rejected Second Generation "Freud's" invitation to join the "Psychology Society" and challenged her to treat their rivalry as a Trial left by their teacher. She accepted the challenge and vowed to take him seriously.

• Lin Yu concluded that Second Generation "Freud's" account of Old Zheng's death was her own conjecture, despite pretending to believe her.
• Second Generation "Freud" invited Lin Yu, as Schreiber, to join the "Psychology Society" and work with her to continue First Generation "Freud's" legacy.
• Lin Yu refused the invitation, condemned her leadership of the organization, and said he would join only when its members begged him to lead them.
• Lin Yu suggested that he and Second Generation "Freud" were Trials their teacher had left for each other, and that they should defeat one another to claim his legacy.
• Second Generation "Freud" embraced the challenge, drained her margarita, and told Lin Yu to come and take the name "Freud" and the "Psychology Society" himself.

Lin Yu rejected Second Generation Freud’s demand to fight and argued that the Psychology Society’s Trials had become crude and overly focused on harming high-potential Players. He persuaded her to consider temporary cooperation in Shenzhen and challenged her to compare the Society’s results with his tailored Trials.

• Second Generation Freud covered the room in visible Soul Power and challenged Lin Yu to fight, but Lin Yu refused, admitted he was not ready, and urged her to consider their teacher’s wishes.
• Second Generation Freud lowered her hand and sat down, and Lin Yu proposed temporary cooperation as conflict between the Marauders, Order, and other factions neared in Shenzhen.
• Second Generation Freud described the Psychology Society’s plans to stage conflict-oriented Trials, and Lin Yu approved the immediate assessment while criticizing the organization’s broader approach.
• Lin Yu argued that the Society relied on formulaic pressure and failed to tailor Trials to individual Players, and Skinner agreed that the criticism matched his own vague concerns.
• Lin Yu questioned the Society’s advancement and survival data, then claimed his personalized Trials had helped Order’s Director and the Freedom Alliance’s Beast Master grow.

Lin Yu and the Second Generation Freud negotiated a trial to compare their strategies for the Psychology Society’s operation in Shenzhen. Their discussion turned to Zheng Jianshen’s past, ending with the Second Generation Freud claiming he had known about the death game all along and had prepared for the Psychology Society’s creation.

• Lin Yu used a lie detector to prove his claims about helping Director and Beast Master, then described finding and mentoring a promising Tier 1 newcomer among the Marauders.
• Lin Yu proposed that the Second Generation Freud give him part of the Psychology Society’s command in Shenzhen so they could compare their strategies during the trial, and she agreed.
• The Second Generation Freud praised Zheng Jianshen’s foresight, while Lin Yu questioned whether Zheng could have anticipated events in Shenzhen.
• The Second Generation Freud described Zheng’s education, psychology career, clinic, and investments, while Lin Yu learned from Old Zheng that some details had been exaggerated.
• The Second Generation Freud claimed Zheng had known about the death game since university and had laid groundwork for the Psychology Society, while Old Zheng dismissed her theory as hysteria.

The Second Generation Freud claimed that Old Zheng had deliberately identified and cultivated powerful Players long before founding the Psychology Society, but Lin Yu saw that her evidence only showed possible connections. Her detailed knowledge of Old Zheng’s past left Lin Yu and Old Zheng suspecting that she had known him during an ordinary stretch of his life.

• The Second Generation Freud argued that Old Zheng had observed future Players and selected the Psychology Society’s core members before entering the Death game.
• Lin Yu rejected her conclusion as reverse-engineered speculation, noting that the connections she cited could have arisen through ordinary social overlap.
• Lin Yu realized that the Second Generation Freud’s account still contained accurate details about Old Zheng’s university relationships and patients.
• Old Zheng confirmed that most of her details were correct, though he did not remember treating Fluoxetine.
• Lin Yu concluded that the Second Generation Freud seemed to know Old Zheng from time spent with him, despite Old Zheng not recognizing her.

Lin Yu used memories from Old Zheng’s graduate-school years to probe the Second Generation Freud and secure equal authority over the Psychology Society for the Shenzhen operation. He then claimed that Old Zheng’s soul fragments were mixed into his own, explaining his memories and unusual soul while suggesting he would increasingly think like his teacher.

• Lin Yu gave the Second Generation Freud blurred memories of Old Zheng studying abroad, leading her to conclude that Lin Yu’s supposed identity, Schreiber, had met him during graduate school.
• Lin Yu suggested he might be Old Zheng’s intended successor, but the Second Generation Freud gave no details about her own real-world relationship with Old Zheng.
• The Second Generation Freud made Lin Yu’s legitimacy depend on the Shenzhen operation and granted him authority equal to hers over the Psychology Society.
• Lin Yu asked whether the Second Generation Freud had infiltrated the Player Mutual Aid Society, and her denial confirmed that the Schreiber impersonator there was not part of her organization.
• Lin Yu told the Second Generation Freud that his soul contained many fragments, especially Old Zheng’s, and claimed that he had inherited his teacher’s will and would think more like him over time.

Lin Yu and Old Zheng tried to identify Second Generation "Freud" and understand her connection to Zheng Jianshen, fearing a forgotten secret might pose a risk to Lin Yu’s plans. They decided to seek help from Sherlock and Fu Luo inside the [Ancient Notebook].

• Second Generation "Freud" warned Lin Yu that his effort to become like their teacher could erase his original self, but said she would judge only the results and paid Skinner before vanishing.
• Lin Yu released Old Zheng and insisted they urgently investigate Second Generation "Freud's" identity and relationship with Zheng Jianshen.
• Old Zheng proposed asking Sherlock to deduce the truth and using the Fluoxetine personality simulator as a witness, since Second Generation "Freud" had called Fluoxetine Zheng Jianshen's patient.
• Lin Yu summoned Hannah, gave her the [Counterfeit] Clapperboard, and told her to call her uncle with the [Guest Appearance Invitation] if anything went wrong.
• Lin Yu and Old Zheng entered the [Ancient Notebook], where Lin Yu asked Fu Luo to solve a puzzle.

Fu Luo analyzed Second Generation Freud’s obsession with Old Zheng and her knowledge of his past, suggesting she may have been a junior and a Psychology Society member whom Old Zheng once helped. Fluoxetine offered no new information but told Old Zheng that he already knew the answer and was afraid to face it.

• Lin Yu explained Second Generation Freud’s behavior and played her conversation for Fu Luo, who asked why she thought Lin Yu was Schreiber.
• Lin Yu confirmed that Schreiber was one of his fabricated identities, and Fu Luo praised him for deceiving the Players.
• Fu Luo reasoned that Second Generation Freud may have investigated Old Zheng’s connections, belonged to the Psychology Society, and once received kindness from him.
• Lin Yu brought Fluoxetine in as another witness, but she said she did not know Second Generation Freud’s origins beyond her fanatical devotion to Old Zheng.
• Fluoxetine told Old Zheng that he already had an answer about Second Generation Freud but was afraid to face it.