Chapter Summaries

Chen Fan killed the last of Smiling Coffin’s attackers after learning where their hideout was, and Asuna rallied the Strategy Group to plan an assault. The chapter ended as Diabel opened a meeting to organize the fight against Smiling Coffin.

• Kratir revealed Smiling Coffin’s hideout, but Chen Fan killed him after pretending to let him go.
• Chen Fan comforted Asuna, and she agreed to gather Strategy Group leaders to plan a coordinated attack on Smiling Coffin.
• Smiling Coffin learned that its assassination attempt had failed, returned the client’s money, and decided to investigate Chen Fan before trying again.
• Chen Fan and Asuna traveled to the second town on Floor 58, where Asuna sent invitations for a meeting the next morning.
• Diabel hosted the meeting at the Holy Light Knights’ guild base and urged the gathered leaders to stop Smiling Coffin’s killings.

Diabel rallied the Strategy Group to launch a surprise attack on Smiling Coffin in the forty-third-floor labyrinth. The battle began with Chen Fan and Asuna leading the assault against the Red Name Players.

• Diabel called on the gathered guild leaders to eliminate Smiling Coffin, and guilds including the Triumphant Knights, Black Cat Knights, and War Wolf Knights agreed to join.
• Asuna and Chen Fan confirmed Smiling Coffin's hideout and prepared a teleportation point there.
• The Strategy Group gathered on the forty-third floor and teleported into its previously conquered labyrinth.
• The Strategy Group and Smiling Coffin began fighting as soon as they encountered each other.
• Chen Fan weakened Smiling Coffin members for the other players to finish, while Asuna fought at the front and grew paler each time she killed a Red Name Player.

After Chen Fan and the Strategy Group defeated Smiling Coffin, he comforted Asuna as she struggled with having killed someone. The two returned to her home, where Asuna asked Chen Fan to marry her, and they became husband and wife in the game.

• The Strategy Group defeated Smiling Coffin after an hour-long battle, leaving both sides with casualties and the survivors shaken.
• Chen Fan comforted Asuna, who confessed that she had killed someone, and she found comfort in his embrace.
• The guild leaders, Diabel, and Agil bid farewell to Chen Fan and Asuna, and the pair returned to Asuna's house.
• Chen Fan and Asuna grew close as she tried to relieve the pressure of the battle, then Asuna asked him to marry her.
• Chen Fan accepted Asuna's proposal, and they used the game menu to become husband and wife.
• Asuna discovered that their marriage combined their inventories and was astonished by Chen Fan's rare items and wealth.

Chen Fan and Asuna took a weeklong rest on Aincrad’s eighteenth floor, visited Asuna’s friend Lisbeth, and then went to the Blood Pledge Knights’ headquarters so Asuna could announce her departure. The chapter ended with guild leaders accusing Asuna of betrayal after she reported her decision.

• Chen Fan agreed to take Asuna on a quiet honeymoon after she described her exhaustion from the game’s dangers and constant labyrinth clearing.
• Chen Fan and Asuna spent about a week on the eighteenth floor, where Chen Fan helped provide for children cared for by Sasha.
• Chen Fan and Asuna visited Lisbeth, who was upset to learn they had married but warmed to Chen Fan after he gave her rare ore and helped her gather more.
• Chen Fan accompanied Asuna to the Blood Pledge Knights’ headquarters so she could tell the guild she planned to leave and join his Star Guild.
• After Asuna reported her decision to Heathcliff and the other guild leaders, four of them angrily accused her of betraying the guild.

Asuna asked to leave the Blood Pledge Knights and join Chen Fan, but Heathcliff proposed a duel to settle the matter publicly. Chen Fan accepted, agreeing to fight Heathcliff on Floor 49 the following afternoon.

• Heathcliff greeted Chen Fan and acknowledged his reputation and his relationship with Asuna.
• Chen Fan refused Heathcliff’s proposal that he and his friends join the Blood Pledge Knights.
• Heathcliff challenged Chen Fan to a duel, with Asuna’s transfer at stake and the losing side required to join the winner’s guild.
• Chen Fan accepted the duel, scheduled for one in the afternoon the next day at the arena on Floor 49.

Chen Fan faced Heathcliff in a public duel on Floor 49, with Asuna’s future in the Blood Pledge Knights at stake. The fight began with their strength appearing evenly matched, while Heathcliff believed his shield would give him the advantage.

• Chen Fan reassured Asuna that Heathcliff could not defeat him and insisted that no one would take her away.
• News spread that Heathcliff and Chen Fan would duel, and players learned about Chen Fan’s achievements and his marriage to Asuna.
• Players gathered at the Floor 49 arena to watch the duel and place bets.
• Chen Fan and Heathcliff agreed to a duel in which the first player to fall below half HP would lose.
• At the start, Chen Fan’s sword struck Heathcliff’s shield, and neither fighter moved; Heathcliff said his shield would secure his victory.

Chen Fan gained the upper hand in his duel with Heathcliff by exploiting openings and avoiding his attacks. As Chen Fan prepared a surprise follow-up strike, the duel’s outcome remained unresolved.

• Heathcliff charged Chen Fan with his sword, but Chen Fan deflected the attack and wounded his arm.
• Chen Fan repeatedly struck Heathcliff when he attacked, causing Heathcliff’s HP to fall much faster than Chen Fan’s.
• Heathcliff switched to defense and argued that Chen Fan would tire before he did.
• Chen Fan changed his fighting style, leaped over Heathcliff’s shield attack, and slashed his back, leaving him near defeat.
• Chen Fan rushed in as Heathcliff raised his shield, then pressed it down while appearing above it with his sword glowing.

Chen Fan defeated Heathcliff in a duel and welcomed Asuna into the Star Guild. The group celebrated before turning their attention to quickly clearing the labyrinth so the trapped players could return to the real world.

• Chen Fan's attack struck Heathcliff after a strange force briefly froze time, dropping Heathcliff's HP below half and giving Chen Fan the win.
• Heathcliff congratulated Chen Fan and left, while Chen Fan wondered whether the force that had restrained him was a system bug.
• Asuna left the Blood Pledge Knights and accepted Chen Fan's invitation to join the Star Guild.
• Xing and the other guild members welcomed Asuna, and the group went to a nearby restaurant to celebrate.
• The next day, Chen Fan and the others began raiding the labyrinth, agreeing to hurry because the trapped players' lives were at risk.

After the players cleared Floor 71, Chen Fan and Asuna decided to pause further labyrinth raids so everyone could improve their levels and equipment. The chapter ended with Chen Fan, Asuna, Xing, Silica, and Lisbeth enjoying a picnic during the break.

• The players cleared Floors 61 through 70 at an accelerating pace, bringing the labyrinth summit within thirty floors.
• Asuna led the Floor 71 boss raid, and a nimble player struck the BOSS's final HP to clear the floor.
• Asuna told Chen Fan that the increasingly powerful BOSSes could soon one-shot players, and Chen Fan said the Strategy Group needed better levels and equipment.
• Chen Fan, Asuna, Diabel, and Agil agreed to suspend labyrinth raids temporarily and focus on leveling.
• Chen Fan, Asuna, Xing, Silica, and Lisbeth shared a picnic in a grassy field.

Chen Fan and his friends spent weeks resting, leveling, and clearing labyrinths, but the raids had caused several casualties that he could not prevent. At Floor 74, they hunted Skeleton Soldiers together, with Chen Fan using his growing ability to alter game data still in the background.

• Chen Fan took Asuna and Xing on a restful trip and later leveled with them while Qi Tai and the others formed their own party.
• Over roughly half a month, three more floors' labyrinths were cleared, though several players died during the raids.
• Chen Fan reached Level 80, while Asuna, Qi Tai and the others, and Xing reached Levels 76, 75, and 74 respectively.
• In the Corrupted Forest on Floor 74, Chen Fan drew a huge horde of Skeleton Soldiers toward the group to speed up their leveling.
• Asuna, Xing, Qi Tai, and the others attacked the horde, and Chen Fan finished off the remaining Skeleton Soldiers, earning the group experience and equipment.

Chen Fan and Asuna learned that a Blood Pledge Knights exploration team had been wiped out by the seventy-fourth-floor Labyrinth BOSS. Chen Fan agreed to join the collective raid at Bulat Square the next day, leaving Asuna determined to help her former guild.

• Asuna asked Chen Fan when they would raid the labyrinth, and he said they would wait until the Strategy Group found the BOSS room.
• Chen Fan and his companions returned to town and heard that more than ten Blood Pledge Knights had died during an exploration.
• A passerby explained that the Labyrinth BOSS room had sealed its entrance, and the players inside had been killed within minutes.
• The Blood Pledge Knights invited the Strategy Group and other players to gather at Bulat Square for a collective raid the next day.
• Asuna struggled with guilt over the deaths, and Chen Fan agreed that they would join the raid.

Chen Fan, Asuna, and the Strategy Group gathered to raid the 74th-floor Labyrinth BOSS room. The group entered its enormous chamber and cautiously approached the central platform, wary of the powerful BOSS awaiting them.

• Chen Fan and his companions met Diabel and Agil at Bulat Square and discussed the growing dangers of future raids.
• Heathcliff arrived and led more than fifty players through a teleportation gate to the 74th-floor labyrinth.
• Heathcliff rallied the players to defeat the BOSS, then opened the enormous stone gate to the BOSS room.
• The players entered a vast, dark chamber surrounded by a bottomless abyss and advanced toward the central platform with weapons drawn.

Chen Fan and the players discovered a huge bone centipede BOSS clinging to the ceiling, then watched it charge into their group with deadly force. The BOSS killed four players in seconds and attacked Heathcliff as the chapter ended.

• Chen Fan and the other players searched the room but found no sign of the BOSS.
• The players heard a rattling sound above them and spotted a massive bone centipede clinging to the ceiling.
• Heathcliff shouted for the players to defend as the BOSS dropped to the ground and swept through them, killing two players instantly.
• Asuna called for the remaining players to retreat, but the BOSS's slashes killed two more.
• The BOSS charged at Heathcliff and swung its bone forelimbs at him.

Chen Fan, Heathcliff, Asuna, and the other players fought the Labyrinth BOSS, whose enormous body and powerful attacks caused casualties. Chen Fan focused on dealing damage to bring down the BOSS’s HP, and the battle continued as it fell by one-third.

• Heathcliff blocked the BOSS’s attacks while Chen Fan charged in and struck its head.
• Asuna, Qi Tai, Xing, Diabel, and the other players joined the assault on the BOSS.
• The BOSS targeted Chen Fan, and one of its legs killed a player, becoming the fifth casualty.
• Chen Fan watched over his acquaintances as best he could, then gave up futile rescue attempts and attacked at high speed.
• The players called for wounded fighters to heal as the BOSS’s HP dropped by one-third.

During the assault on the BOSS, Xing was knocked down in its path, and Chen Fan tried to save her. He connected with his true body, triggering a massive data intrusion that shook Aincrad and set off system warnings.

• The players coordinated their attacks until the BOSS was reduced to half HP.
• The BOSS swept across the battlefield, killing one player and knocking Xing to the ground in its path.
• Qi Tai, Asuna, Wan, Iron Head, and Dejia could not reach Xing or stop the BOSS.
• Chen Fan connected with his true body and sent a huge stream of data into Aincrad.
• Aincrad shook as red warning grids appeared in the sky and the system reported an abnormal data intrusion.

Chen Fan regained control of his power and crushed the Floor 74 BOSS, giving the players a chance to defeat it. After the BOSS vanished, the system announced that players could enter Floor 75 of Aincrad.

• Players across Aincrad saw a message in the sky and wondered whether a hacker could help them escape.
• Chen Fan regained his superpower and slammed the Giant Centipede-like BOSS into the floor.
• The impact blew Xing away and reduced the BOSS's HP to about one-tenth.
• Asuna rallied the players, who attacked the weakened BOSS with everything they had.
• The players defeated the BOSS, and the system announced that Floor 75 was open.

After the 74th-floor BOSS was defeated, the exhausted players mourned the fifteen people who died in the raid. Chen Fan reassured Xing and Asuna that he would get everyone out of the game, while Heathcliff searched for the data breach that had weakened the BOSS; Chen Fan then asked Asuna about her guild leader’s HP.

• The players celebrated surviving the BOSS raid and learned that fifteen people had died.
• Chen Fan found Xing, confirmed that she was unharmed, and comforted her as Asuna joined them.
• Chen Fan vowed to get everyone safely out of the game and considered taking control of the system only if the Game Administrator broke their agreement.
• Players debated how the BOSS had suddenly lost half its HP, while Heathcliff traced the event to strange data passing through the firewall.
• Heathcliff searched for system vulnerabilities and reinforced the firewall as Chen Fan quietly asked Asuna whether her guild leader’s HP had ever fallen below half.

Chen Fan discovered that Heathcliff had an Immortal Attribute that kept his HP from falling below half, and identified him as game administrator Akihiko Kayaba. Diabel argued that Kayaba may have joined the Strategy Group to monitor the game’s balance, leaving the players confronting the possibility that their commander was the person who trapped them.

• Asuna told Chen Fan that Heathcliff’s HP had never fallen below half, prompting Chen Fan to suspect the anomaly from their last fight was not a system bug.
• Chen Fan attacked Heathcliff, but a red data barrier labeled “Immortal Attribute” blocked his sword.
• Chen Fan explained that the attribute prevented its holder from being killed and kept their HP at half, then accused Heathcliff of being Akihiko Kayaba.
• Agil reacted in disbelief, and Diabel said Heathcliff was likely Kayaba, suggesting Kayaba had joined the Strategy Group to understand and balance the game.

Chen Fan revealed that he had learned Heathcliff was Akihiko Kayaba after breaking through the firewall during the boss battle. Kayaba admitted his identity and remained protected by his Immortal Attribute as the players struggled to respond.

• Chen Fan said the boss had become stronger because the players had cleared floors faster than the game’s creator expected.
• A Blood Pledge Knights member confronted Heathcliff, who admitted he was Akihiko Kayaba.
• The player named Kahn attacked Kayaba, but Kayaba’s shield blocked his strikes before he wounded and kicked Kahn away.
• Asuna stopped the other players from charging at Kayaba and warned them that his Immortal Attribute made him invulnerable.
• Kayaba asked how Chen Fan had identified him, and Chen Fan explained that he had obtained information by breaking through the firewall during the boss battle.
• The players reacted in shock when Chen Fan claimed he had caused the attack that removed half the boss’s HP, and Agil asked whether he could do it again.

Chen Fan revealed why he had concealed his ability to seize control of Aincrad and confronted Akihiko Kayaba over the escalating danger to the players. He accepted Kayaba’s challenge to a one-on-one fight, with the players’ freedom at stake.

• Akihiko Kayaba exposed Chen Fan’s unknown records, and players recognized him as the person who had been hit by Chibaku Tensei.
• Chen Fan explained that he had followed the game’s rules because taking control of Aincrad could destroy the world or put the players at risk.
• Akihiko Kayaba revealed that he had planned to become the final boss on the hundredth floor, prompting Asuna and the other players to condemn him.
• Chen Fan said he had spoken up because Kayaba’s stronger monsters endangered his friends and other players.
• Akihiko Kayaba challenged Chen Fan to a duel, promising to free everyone if Chen Fan won and forbidding him from using his special power.
• Chen Fan accepted, and he reassured Asuna and Xing as they worried about him.