Chapter Summaries

A Fei killed a Ragdoll with the Calamity-blessed broken blade, frightening the remaining dolls into dropping their weapons and fleeing. Fu Qian offered him a replacement weapon, then headed toward the laboratory where they had unleashed the supernova.

• A Fei severed a Ragdoll's head with one slash, using up the blade's remaining Calamity Blessing.
• The onlooking Ragdolls dropped their weapons and ran after seeing A Fei kill their fellow doll.
• Fu Qian praised A Fei for drawing the Ragdolls together before striking to scare them off.
• A Fei chose a strangely curved sword from the Weapon Wheel to replace his ruined Serrated Knife.
• Fu Qian said they would go see if they could sunbathe and turned toward the laboratory where they had unleashed the supernova.

Fu Qian and A Fei reached the building where the supernova had appeared and found the Sun Apostle behind its closed door. After Fu Qian and A Fei bickered outside, the Apostle opened the door, revealing his unusual hooded appearance.

• Fu Qian led the injured A Fei to the building where the supernova had appeared.
• A Fei listened to the strange sword and said that it was calling to him.
• A voice from behind the door interrupted Fu Qian and A Fei, confirming someone was inside.
• Fu Qian kept ignoring the speaker until the irritated Sun Apostle opened the door himself.
• Fu Qian saw the Sun Apostle standing upright in a researcher's robe, his head covered by a large hood marked with silver lines and dots.

Fu Qian and A Fei confronted the Sun Apostle, whose strange mask concealed a radiant, nearly transparent body. A Fei’s attack failed, and he retreated after the Sun Apostle made his rapier glow with searing heat.

• Fu Qian welcomed the Sun Apostle, and A Fei answered his question by saying they were sunbathing.
• A Fei attacked the Sun Apostle while Fu Qian stood aside and let him handle the confrontation.
• The Sun Apostle blocked A Fei’s rapier with his hard, transparent body and revealed a brilliant glow within himself.
• The Sun Apostle stopped A Fei’s next strike with one finger and made the rapier blaze with intense heat.
• A Fei cried out in pain and dropped the glowing rapier before it could burn him.

A Fei endured Sun Apostle’s blazing attack and shattered both of his eyes with precise sword strikes, though the effort left him exhausted. Sun Apostle remained standing, praising A Fei as the fight paused with neither opponent able to immediately finish the other.

• Sun Apostle’s radiant attack burned A Fei badly, but A Fei kept reaching for his sword.
• A Fei struck Sun Apostle’s left eye and shattered the miniature sun within it.
• Sun Apostle recoiled and drew back as the power of his remaining eye faded.
• A Fei’s next precisely aligned strike shattered Sun Apostle’s other eye.
• A Fei ran out of strength and stood panting, while Sun Apostle stayed upright and called him very good.

After A Fei defeated the Demon King, the Sun Apostle praised his insight and used a colorful barrier to treat him and try to recruit him. A Fei soon awakened, questioned Fu Qian’s identity, and attacked him with a newly mastered sword as Fu Qian tested his strength.

• The Sun Apostle praised A Fei for throwing down his sword and learning to wield it properly, while A Fei remained dazed.
• The Sun Apostle raised a vivid barrier that kept Fu Qian out while he tried to recruit A Fei and heal them both.
• A Fei recovered within seconds, opened his eyes, and asked Fu Qian whether he was one of the researchers.
• Fu Qian confirmed that he was a researcher, and A Fei immediately attacked him with his rapier.
• Fu Qian deflected A Fei’s first strike with a finger, then caught the next sword thrust in his palm and acknowledged its doubled power.

Fu Qian tested A Fei’s swordsmanship while sparring with the Sun Apostle, then tried to turn A Fei against the Apostle by arguing that the Apostle had betrayed his own search for truth. A Fei turned on the Sun Apostle, who drew the colorful barrier around his body, revealing a technique belonging to Rainbow of Yao Bian.

• Fu Qian let A Fei’s sword pierce his hand, then flicked the blade away after assessing A Fei’s skill.
• Fu Qian told the Sun Apostle he intended to kill everyone but was waiting for A Fei’s heart to become clear.
• The Sun Apostle argued that Fu Qian had deceived A Fei and that A Fei would realize who had been misleading him.
• Fu Qian accused the Sun Apostle of abandoning his pursuit of knowledge by accepting a more powerful being as the answer to everything.
• A Fei rose and called everyone idiots, then faced the Sun Apostle.
• The Sun Apostle drew his colorful barrier tightly around his body, and Fu Qian recognized the technique as belonging to Rainbow of Yao Bian.

A Fei defeated the Sun Apostle with a series of extraordinary sword strikes, while Fu Qian suspected the Rainbow of Yao Bian was absent. After the Apostle died, Fu Qian offered A Fei a replacement weapon, and A Fei accepted the trade.

• Fu Qian connected the Sun Apostle to the Rainbow of Yao Bian’s poisoned-apple spy device and wondered why the Rainbow had not intervened.
• A Fei struck the Sun Apostle’s shattered eye socket, piercing his skull and breaking through his defenses.
• The wounded Sun Apostle unleashed a destructive storm, but A Fei endured it and struck the other eye socket with another powerful blow.
• The Sun Apostle cried out for light, received no divine help, and died as Fu Qian concluded that the Rainbow of Yao Bian was absent.
• Fu Qian praised A Fei and offered him a heavy replacement weapon, and A Fei traded away his damaged slender sword for it.

Fu Qian and A Fei headed downstairs toward the backrooms after killing the Sun Apostle, stopping at the open laboratory of the absent Behind-the-Gate Person. Fu Qian found a notebook filled on every page with the same sentence: “The starting point is the ending point, and the ending point is the starting point.”

• A Fei exchanged his rapier for a heavy greatsword and asked Fu Qian where they would go next.
• Fu Qian led A Fei downstairs toward the backrooms, and they passed through the silent, damaged facility without encountering anyone.
• A Fei noticed an intact door left open on the floor below, and Fu Qian recognized it as the entrance to the Behind-the-Gate Person’s room.
• Fu Qian entered the empty laboratory and found a black-covered notebook among the scattered belongings.
• Fu Qian opened the notebook and discovered that every page repeated the sentence, “The starting point is the ending point, and the ending point is the starting point.”

Fu Qian discovered that the research group believed the beginning of the world and the end of the supernatural were the same place. He entered the back room with A Fei and found Behind-the-Gate Person standing at the falling point, proclaiming himself the new Creator and Weaver of Wisdom.

• Fu Qian read Behind-the-Gate Person's notebook and realized its repeated claims suggested the beginning of the world and the end of the supernatural overlapped.
• Fu Qian asked A Fei why the beginning was the end, and A Fei suggested that crossing the beginning changed who a person was.
• A Fei forced open the back-room door after a voice invited them inside, and Fu Qian followed with his troops.
• Behind-the-Gate Person appeared alone in the lecture hall and declared himself the new Creator, the Weaver of Wisdom.
• Fu Qian recognized the figure as Behind-the-Gate Person and saw that he stood at the falling point marked by the tilted Twelve-faced Hourglass.

The Wisdom Creator revealed that he had found the endpoint of the organization’s pursuit and welcomed Fu Qian and A Fei as enemies. A Fei’s attack failed against the Wisdom Creator’s invisible defense, and the Wisdom Creator summoned the wills of countless sages to fight.

• The Wisdom Creator claimed he had found the endpoint and revealed a sword cane after saying he was pleased that Fu Qian and A Fei had come with hostile intentions.
• A Fei declared that the Wisdom Creator needed to be eliminated and leaped down to attack him.
• The Wisdom Creator stopped A Fei and his greatsword with an invisible barrier, then let A Fei crash to the ground.
• The Wisdom Creator detected the Calamity Blessing on A Fei’s weapon and used a stream of water to repair his sword cane.
• The Wisdom Creator summoned a web-like formation of countless sages’ wills.

Fu Qian watched the Wisdom Creator unleash a network of Brain Jellyfish that overwhelmed A Fei with divine patterns and drove him berserk. A Fei turned his madness into a weapon, using Fu Qian’s Calamity mark to guide his attack toward the Wisdom Creator.

• The Wisdom Creator connected the Brain Jellyfish and human brains into a network that filled the Backrooms with maddening symbols and knowledge.
• The Wisdom Creator’s attack overwhelmed A Fei, who dropped his greatsword and plunged it into his own body in a frenzy.
• A Fei fixed his gaze on Fu Qian, who understood his intent and marked the Wisdom Creator with a damage-amplifying Calamity effect.
• A Fei tore free, leaped toward the marked target, and used the Calamity on his sword to guide his mad attack.

Fu Qian watched A Fei’s swordsmanship reach a divinely empowered state, allowing him to destroy Wisdom Creator, who quickly resurrected and demonstrated how he could accept the Brain Jellyfish. The chapter left Fu Qian recognizing the spectacle as similar to the Bronze Lady’s illusion and the place where they had found the Bronze Headband.

• Fu Qian gave A Fei a Calamity mark to guide his instincts, and A Fei used a strange sword strike to shatter Wisdom Creator’s barrier and break his Sword Cane.
• A Fei’s sword and body reached a state of unity, and he drove his blade through Wisdom Creator, causing his body to explode.
• Wisdom Creator reassembled himself from droplets of liquid and blocked A Fei’s next attack with an automatic barrier.
• Wisdom Creator explained that people had to learn to be accepting, then opened his skull and summoned the Brain Jellyfish into it.
• Fu Qian compared the Brain Jellyfish entering Wisdom Creator’s skull to the illusion caused by the Bronze Lady, where they found the Bronze Headband.

Fu Qian considered whether Old Master Ji’s message and the Bronze Lady were part of a plan connected to the swollen brain before him. Wisdom Creator questioned why Fu Qian cared about A Fei, then created a shadowy duplicate that made A Fei stop fighting.

• Fu Qian connected the Bronze Lady, the headband, and the Sea of Ashes to Old Master Ji’s possible contingency plan, while wondering whether Ji sought help or intended to guide his descendants.
• Fu Qian asked Wisdom Creator whether he wanted to change his surname to Ji, but Wisdom Creator remained focused on his enlarged brain.
• Wisdom Creator praised Fu Qian’s abilities and asked why he bothered with A Fei, whom he considered an insignificant toy.
• Fu Qian said he enjoyed getting entangled with A Fei, and A Fei charged at Wisdom Creator’s barrier again.
• Wisdom Creator gestured toward A Fei, causing him to stop as an intangible, shadow-casting duplicate appeared before him.

At Depth Three, Fu Qian watched A Fei battle a shadowy greatsword wielder as the Wisdom Creator spoke of correcting the errors in the supernatural. The fighters briefly changed states, with A Fei becoming a shadow and his opponent turning corporeal.

• Fu Qian considered why shadows had not appeared in Etched Wisdom until the two states confronted each other at Depth Three.
• The Wisdom Creator declared that only what was absolutely right had meaning and vowed to correct the errors in the supernatural.
• Fu Qian questioned whether the Wisdom Creator had created A Fei's opponent, and the Wisdom Creator said the opponent had put himself there.
• A Fei and the shadowy greatsword wielder fought while Fu Qian and the others watched, with A Fei appearing to be at a disadvantage.
• Fu Qian saw A Fei's opponent become corporeal while A Fei turned into a shadow.

Fu Qian realized the apparent reversal between the two A Feis came from his own perspective shifting as he became a shadow, and discovered that another King of Prison Break was watching the fight. Wisdom Creator explained that Absolute Correct One reflected the original’s errors and motives, while Fu Qian remained confident that his Tool Person would win.

• Fu Qian inferred that he had briefly slipped into the shadow’s perspective and found a shadowed King of Prison Break observing the battle.
• Fu Qian considered that Absolute Correct One and the original might not be enemies, and that A Fei had been fighting on his own rather than acting on Wisdom Creator’s orders.
• Wisdom Creator confirmed that the correct version arose because the originals were wrong and said Absolute Correct One reflected their existence and inner nature.
• Wisdom Creator warned Fu Qian that his own error was too great for the fragile balance to last and suggested Fu Qian was plotting to attack him.
• Fu Qian dismissed Wisdom Creator’s suspicions and said he believed his Tool Person would win.

Fu Qian watched the two A Feis clash as the Creator of Wisdom’s attempt to correct the error pushed them toward a breaking point. Just as Sword Saint A Fei struck down at the seemingly defeated Tool Person A Fei, the latter somehow blocked the blow with his severed arm.

• Fu Qian judged Sword Saint A Fei to be the more powerful fighter as Tool Person A Fei lost his remaining arm and dropped his soul-bearing greatsword.
• Sword Saint A Fei took on a clearer form while Tool Person A Fei became a shadow, and Fu Qian realized he could still sense the latter through returning Supernatural Perception.
• Fu Qian inferred that the interaction between himself and the True King of Prison Break was intensifying and exposing the King’s inhuman form.
• Tool Person A Fei struggled to his feet, breaking the pause between the two fighters, and Sword Saint A Fei leaped down to execute him.
• Tool Person A Fei raised his severed arm as if holding an invisible sword and blocked Sword Saint A Fei’s descending strike.

Fu Qian watched Tool Person A Fei break through to a divine level of swordsmanship and overwhelm Sword Saint A Fei. He deduced that the Wisdom Creator’s divine authority let him correct deviations from the original supernatural order, leaving Fu Qian aware that his own struggle against his perfect counterpart remained dangerous.

• Tool Person A Fei blocked the execution and transformed into a Second Order fighter, leaving Sword Saint A Fei outmatched.
• The Wisdom Creator questioned how Fu Qian had predicted the transformation, and Fu Qian used their exchange to develop his Theory of Fruit and Sugar.
• Fu Qian argued that the Wisdom Creator’s idea of absolute correctness was only relative and accused him of misleading claims.
• The Wisdom Creator warned Fu Qian that his opponent was as powerful as a god, and Fu Qian recognized his authority over the original supernatural order.
• Fu Qian dismissed the warning and gestured toward the two A Feis, saying he understood their situation.

Second Order A Fei shattered his opponent with a sword strike, turning it into crystals and revealing the crystallization phenomenon Fu Qian had been seeking. As Fu Qian considered how the sword path caused the transformation, the Wisdom Creator’s own thinking core began to sparkle.

• Tool Person A Fei transformed into a refined sword-path form, and the Wisdom Creator explained that his opponent was now absolutely correct.
• Second Order A Fei moved and lowered his sword, causing the invisible giant-sword wielder to shatter into crystals.
• Fu Qian recognized the remains as the crystallization phenomenon suspected of causing the Academy expedition team’s annihilation.
• Fu Qian proposed that the sword path’s killing authority destroyed supernatural forms, then questioned why they all became the same material.
• The Wisdom Creator repeated its shocked cry as its enormous thinking core began to sparkle.

Fu Qian watched Sword Saint A Fei’s strike crystallize the Wisdom Creator and transform the surrounding building into the image of a crystal whale. He realized the whale’s nostril and its twisting crystal column marked the place where his Sanity Value had been devoured, and suspected the whale was containing a destructive storm.

• The Wisdom Creator crystallized after A Fei’s sword strike, and the silver webs in his brain hardened with him.
• Crystal spread across the room and stairs, tracing a whale embedded in the building.
• Fu Qian recognized the whale’s nostril and a crystal column as the site where his Sanity Value had been devoured.
• Fu Qian reconsidered the column as a storm rather than water and noticed the whale’s head was especially shattered.
• Fu Qian suspected the whale was shielding the surrounding space from a storm rather than creating one.

Fu Qian investigated the crystal storm and lake, concluding that the storm drained Sanity while the whale opposed it and may have sacrificed itself to block it. He suspected A Fei had correctly answered an earlier question and prepared to return to the lighthouse lookout.

• Fu Qian compared the crystal storm to an ancient etched shape and theorized that a whale had sacrificed itself to block the storm at the world's beginning and the supernatural's end.
• Fu Qian dove into the crystal lake and recognized it as similar to crystal pools associated with the Nameless Deity and his Second Order ritual.
• Fu Qian touched the storm and lost a large amount of Sanity, then touched the whale and found it caused a more reassuring response.
• Fu Qian told A Fei that he might have answered an earlier question correctly, suggesting that crossing the beginning meant no longer being oneself.
• Fu Qian observed that A Fei remained flesh and blood while the Wisdom Creator and the True King of Prison Break had crystallized, then recalled the route to the lighthouse lookout.