Chapter Summaries

Fu Qian explored the Great Court, wondering about its origins and the Lone King as he headed toward the interview site, where he expected an ambush. A leech-covered man confronted him and tried to expose him to the King’s red, causing a patch of Fu Qian’s skin to twitch.

• Fu Qian noticed the red crisscrossing marks on the hands of people in the Great Court and suspected they were unique identification marks.
• Fu Qian headed toward the interview site, reasoning that others might expect him to search there and lie in wait.
• Fu Qian observed that the Great Court was vast and populated by wanderers who seemed detached from ordinary life, and he questioned when and how the place had formed.
• A leech-covered man blocked Fu Qian and demanded that he look at the King’s red mark on his hand.
• As the man’s leeches shimmered with blood, Fu Qian felt the influence spread to him and saw a patch of skin on his hand twitch.

Fu Qian followed the growing radiance of the Lone King while investigating signs that the Night Watcher had entered the area. He reached the site of his earlier interview, where a familiar rag doll hung inside the empty waiting room.

• Fu Qian praised Brother Leech's fervent devotion and felt the Lone King's radiance affect him.
• Fu Qian spotted a rag doll associated with Kelin, the Needle Witch, and considered whether the Night Watcher and Native Council were cooperating or watching him.
• Fu Qian continued toward the interview site, sensing the Lone King's influence growing stronger around him.
• Fu Qian found the interview building empty, with a familiar rag doll hanging from the ceiling by a red thread.

Fu Qian entered the interview site and openly acknowledged the strange rag doll, challenging the person controlling it to respond. The doll turned toward him and inflicted a blood-related curse, apparently because the Night Watchers mistook him for a Tool Person searching for the Lone King.

• Fu Qian considered how to respond to the conspicuous rag doll and chose to walk in and openly show his interest.
• Fu Qian sat before the doll, making clear that he knew it was unusual and waiting for its controller to act.
• The doll turned its face toward Fu Qian and developed two red spots like blushing cheeks.
• Fu Qian sensed blood flowing unnaturally toward the active patch of skin on his hand and recognized the effect as a likely curse connected to Kelin.
• Fu Qian inferred that the Night Watchers had mistaken him for a Tool Person meant to search for the Lone King.

Fu Qian watched as the Night Watchers and a strange trio gathered around the Lone King, trying to understand their interest in him. He realized the trio had come to transform a rookie, and the chapter ended as one of them began cutting away the brittle flesh around the rookie’s neck.

• Fu Qian let the leeches feed and inferred that Needle Witch and Ragdoll were testing him while the Night Watchers kept their interest in the Lone King concealed.
• A man with an exposed, powder-coated neck entered the room, followed by a woman with a similarly altered neck and a rookie whose skin was dusted with powder.
• Fu Qian recognized that the trio had come to transform the rookie, but stayed in his seat and watched.
• The male office worker ordered the rookie to sit near Fu Qian, then used a knife to break away the brittle flesh around the rookie’s neck.

Fu Qian watched the office workers perform a ritual to strip a man’s skin, but they stopped when the expected sign of the Lone King’s favor failed to appear. The male office worker blamed Fu Qian, who realized the Needle Witch had interfered in the ritual and revealed that she had lost patience with their standoff.

• Fu Qian observed the male office worker cut strips of deadened skin from a man while the female office worker restrained the man’s urge to join in.
• Fu Qian noticed the leech-like mark on his hand continued to grow as Ragdoll’s curse drew him closer to the Lone King.
• The male office worker froze when he saw no sign of God’s Grace on the man’s newly exposed skin, and the female office worker cried out in despair.
• The male office worker accused Fu Qian of profaning God’s Grace and causing the ritual to fail.
• Fu Qian deduced that the Needle Witch had weakened the sign of the Lone King’s favor to provoke a clash and force him to reveal himself.

Fu Qian reasoned that the Night Watcher was holding back to protect the barrier separating the Graveyard of Gods from the human Mind World. After he used Gospel Blast on a fanatic, the man transformed in a violent burst of enlightenment, and Fu Qian answered Kelin’s renewed pressure by unleashing Madness Fire.

• Fu Qian concluded that the Night Watcher’s restraint was likely meant to avoid damaging the barrier around the Great Royal Court.
• A fanatic charged Fu Qian with a blade, and Fu Qian sent Gospel Blast into the man’s mind.
• The fanatic transformed violently, releasing blood, flesh, and white powder in a storm of enlightenment that affected Fu Qian and the leech on his hand.
• Fu Qian ignited Madness Fire as golden flames swept through the surroundings and tightened around the transformed man’s leg.
• Fu Qian told Lady Kelin that he thought he knew what she had come for.

Fu Qian used the Madness Fire to provoke the Night Watchers, hoping to make them take Ariel seriously. A new Ragdoll unleashed a devastating power that Fu Qian recognized as Lord Ariel’s, and his mission updated with a warning about the Lone King.

• Fu Qian reasoned that the Night Watchers had come to investigate the Madness Fire and suspected the site was connected to the White-faced Man and Akons.
• Fu Qian deliberately revealed the Madness Fire to force the Night Watchers to act and help Ariel take center stage.
• A second Ragdoll appeared, smiled at Fu Qian, and unleashed a sea of scorching light.
• Fu Qian recognized the Ragdoll’s power as Lord Ariel’s and saw his mission update to prevent the Lone King from fathering an heir.

Fu Qian deduced that the Native Council had impersonated Kelin to test him and revealed itself to avoid being blamed for the Madness Fire. As the Council used a display of power to prove that its Ariel was real, Fu Qian remained poised to continue the contest over Ariel’s identity.

• Fu Qian concluded that the earlier Ragdoll was the Native Council impersonating Kelin and that the Council had used its test to probe him and clear Kelin’s name.
• Fu Qian reasoned that the Native Council knew the Night Watchers were investigating the Madness Fire and had been monitoring arrivals through the interview process.
• Fu Qian recognized that the Native Council had revealed itself because his actions risked making the Night Watchers blame it for the Madness Fire.
• The Native Council’s second doll unleashed a storm of light to prove it was the real Ariel and redirect the Night Watchers’ suspicion toward Fu Qian.
• Fu Qian stood after the chair beneath him vaporized and did nothing as the display of light continued.

Fu Qian used his strange behavior and a staged imitation of Ariel to confuse the Night Watchers, then attacked the Ragdoll carrying Ariel’s power. Needle Witch tried to restrain and kill him, but Fu Qian escaped by jumping through the Wriggling Seed he had planted in the Ragdoll.

• Fu Qian reasoned that his refusal to flee after being burned would make the Night Watchers question why a powerful supernatural was impersonating Ariel.
• After the Ragdoll carrying Ariel’s power hesitated, Fu Qian gathered golden flames and forced it to fade away, striking it just before it vanished.
• Fu Qian turned his attention to Needle Witch’s Ragdoll as it moved closer and began forming red restraints around him.
• A bolt of plasma struck the place where Fu Qian had been standing, but he had already escaped by using Extreme Hunger Infection to jump through the Wriggling Seed inside the Ragdoll carrying Ariel’s power.

Fu Qian reasoned that the Night Watchers had deliberately held back after he escaped, so he stayed put rather than pursue Ariel and risk exposing his plans. As he waited in hiding, red snow began falling and transformed him and the people outside into White-faced Men.

• Fu Qian revealed that he had planted the Seed of Corrosion in the Ragdoll and used the mark from the interview to glimpse its trail and escape.
• Fu Qian suspected the Night Watchers had tracked him but were waiting to see what he would do, and he wondered what they wanted from him as Ariel.
• Fu Qian chose to stay still instead of chasing Ariel, reasoning that the Night Watchers could help him uncover the Native Council's plans for the Lone King.
• Fu Qian watched red snow fall outside as pale-faced figures walked through the city, then touched his own face and realized he had become a White-faced Man.

Fu Qian reasoned that the Night Watcher had transformed him into a White-faced Man and was bringing him closer to the Lone King. As he walked through the red snow, he wondered whether he was being prepared as a vessel for the Lone King, and sensed Ariel's location again.

• Fu Qian felt the leech beneath his skin grow and spread as the Lone King's radiance bathed him, confirming his connection to Severing and the White-faced Men.
• Fu Qian concluded that the Night Watcher had helped transform him so he could blend into the Lone King's domain and draw closer to the ruler.
• Fu Qian stepped outside into red snow that felt warm and turned into bloodlike pools when it reached the ground.
• Fu Qian observed that passersby seemed unable to perceive the snow and suspected that his transformation let him see more of the world's true nature.
• Fu Qian speculated that the Night Watcher might intend to use him as a vessel for the Lone King, then sensed Ariel's location again.

The narrator followed his connection to Ariel to a building where the Native Council had gathered, while the Night Watchers kept him under surveillance. He concluded that Ariel might have been made a vessel for the Lone King too, then came face-to-face with him.

• The narrator questioned why he could still sense Ariel and headed toward him to investigate his new distinction.
• The Ragdoll appeared nearby, confirming that the Night Watchers were still following the narrator.
• The narrator reached a building where the motionless Native Council members and passersby seemed focused on Ariel.
• A person at the entrance looked between the narrator and Ariel, apparently unable to tell which one was the True King.
• The narrator climbed upstairs and found Ariel alone, greeting him as his brother.

Fu Qian faced the real Ariel as the Lone King’s descent transformed both of their bodies, while the Night Watchers and the Native Council watched for an opening. Ariel then produced a familiar grotesque doll, leaving Fu Qian to recognize it as a Stand User.

• Fu Qian sat across from Ariel while the Night Watchers watched and the Native Council remained unseen.
• The crimson snowfall intensified, and the leeches inside Fu Qian went still as cracks revealed his ash-gray body beneath its glasslike covering.
• Fu Qian realized the Lone King was descending through both him and Ariel, and that Ariel had stayed because the Native Council still meant to eliminate its rival.
• Ariel silently reached into empty air and produced a palm-sized, grotesque doll that Fu Qian recognized as a Stand User.

Fu Qian realized the Native Council had linked him to the Stand User and begun transferring his will into it, forcing him to act. He used the Calamity's Eye to slow the Lone King's descent, but the room transformed into the Lone King's palace.

• Fu Qian recognized the Stand User as resembling the doll Crow Feather had used to transfer a will and survive without a physical body.
• The Stand User began dissolving and revealing a white form that mirrored Fu Qian, while his consciousness gained a second point of view.
• Fu Qian realized the Native Council was using the Stand User to force his will into the doll and chose to respond rather than remain passive.
• Fu Qian opened the Calamity's Eye and imposed the King of Prison Break's authority, halting the spread of the Lone King's power.
• The snow and roof vanished, the surroundings became white ash, and Fu Qian found himself inside what seemed to be the Lone King's palace.

As the Lone King's descent stalled, Fu Qian reasoned that the Night Watchers could observe the characters but not the changing surroundings. A new change then struck the Stand User and Fu Qian: dark-red thorns burst from their bodies, prompting Fu Qian to suspect the Goddess of Sin was involved.

• The landscape rose toward the divine realm, revealing a ruined city and ash-like figures marked with a single wing and horn, while Ragdoll remained unchanged.
• Fu Qian concluded that the Night Watchers likely could not see the altered surroundings and were inferring events from the characters' reactions.
• The Native Council and Night Watchers stayed motionless as the Lone King's descent remained stalled and the Stand User's struggle for control nearly stopped.
• Dark-red thorns erupted from the Stand User and Fu Qian, causing Fu Qian familiar pain.
• Fu Qian recognized the thorns' resemblance to Sir William's second form and wondered whether the Goddess of Sin was involved.

Fu Qian used the Madness Fire to burn away the Stand User’s Sin Thorns, but the Lone King’s power then made Fu Qian’s wounds run wild. The Stand User collapsed first, breaking the standoff, while Ariel’s abdomen had begun to swell.

• Fu Qian realized the Night Watchers could not see the Sin Thorns and suspected the Native Council had prepared the Goddess of Sin’s power as a hidden weapon.
• Fu Qian grasped the thorns on his arm and spread golden Madness Fire throughout the area.
• The Madness Fire overwhelmed the Stand User, but the Lone King’s power emerged through the Messenger and began affecting Fu Qian’s wounds.
• Fu Qian endured the damage as the Stand User’s body collapsed, breaking the three-way standoff.
• Fu Qian noticed that Ariel’s lower abdomen had grown noticeably swollen.

Fu Qian confronted Ariel, who appeared to be carrying the Lone King’s heir, as the Night Watcher’s lightning strike halted in a gap between time and space. Ariel’s words suggested that the Native Council had achieved its goal, but Fu Qian still sought to learn what they stood to gain.

• Fu Qian recognized Ariel as the Lone King’s true host and suspected the Native Council had arranged for the Lone King’s heir to develop within him.
• The Night Watcher unleashed a devastating lightning attack against the gathered groups, but Ariel asked Fu Qian what he was hoping for before the strike could land.
• Fu Qian answered by engulfing Ariel and the surroundings in Madness Fire, making clear that he would continue unless the situation changed.
• Ariel said they were in a gap between time and space beyond others’ perception, where the incoming lightning and the flames had nearly stopped moving.
• Fu Qian asked whether the Lone King had frozen time and wondered what the Native Council expected to gain from delivering His child.

Fu Qian realized the Native Council had brought him close to the Lone King to interfere with the Divine Son’s birth, but Ariel’s offers of peace concealed an attack. The chapter ended with Ariel questioning how Fu Qian had survived the storm of blades.

• Fu Qian concluded that the Native Council had drawn him into the special domain because they wanted to affect the Divine Son’s birth and could not solve the problem without him.
• Ariel admitted to being the Lone King and warned Fu Qian that the Sword of Heavenly Punishment could destroy his backup means of survival.
• Ariel demanded that Fu Qian either leave or become his enemy, while Fu Qian pretended to consider retreating.
• Ariel unleashed a storm of bloodlike blades that tore into Fu Qian’s battered body.
• After the attack subsided, Ariel was surprised that Fu Qian remained unharmed.

The narrator explained how Crow Feather’s perception-based attack had harmed Ariel more than him, then concluded that Crow Feather had likely fled after the failed ambush. As the scene shifted, the narrator saw a flower-covered temple where a familiar woman stood rigidly in the arms of a visibly pregnant figure, with a carpet of flesh beneath them.

• The narrator reasoned that Crow Feather had guided the attack through Ariel’s belief, while the Lone King had amplified it.
• The narrator asked whether Crow Feather had left, and Ariel admitted that Crow Feather had been present.
• The narrator guessed that Crow Feather had fled and stayed calm instead of retaliating, deterring further action.
• Ariel praised the narrator as the deathly scene receded and a flower-covered religious building appeared.
• The narrator saw a familiar woman held stiffly by a pregnant figure, standing above a carpet of flowers made from flesh.

Fu Qian entered the Goddess of Sin’s sanctuary and found the Lone King beside Her, his body stitched together with broken blades and living, independent parts. As the two divine beings’ powers assaulted Fu Qian, his Madness Fire went out and Sin Fire began corrupting him.

• Fu Qian recognized the Goddess of Sin from the survival game and saw that the Disaster Eyes were fixed on Her.
• Fu Qian examined the Lone King’s grotesque body, noticing broken blades, mismatched parts, and a babylike face that breathed independently.
• Fu Qian suspected the blades were the same weapons used by the White-faced Man and wondered whether slaughter had nourished the Lone King’s changing body.
• Fu Qian realized Ariel had disappeared after bringing him into the sanctuary, seemingly leaving him before the Lone King and Goddess of Sin.
• The divine beings’ power extinguished Fu Qian’s golden Madness Fire and replaced it with painful, corrupting Sin Fire.