Chapter Summaries

Han Su relived the childhood escape in which he and the little doll nearly reached the exit, then woke as a nineteen-year-old university student, the only child to return from the kidnapping. The chapter left him facing the parents of Manman, whose death he had just witnessed again in his memories.

• Han Su set fire to the curtains to draw in the bloated monster, then stabbed it and stole the brass key while the other children held the puppet cabinet shut.
• Han Su led the children toward the exit, but the ponytail girl, Pot Lid Head, Tuxedo, and skinny monkey died during the escape.
• The little doll retrieved the slippery key for Han Su, but the monster struck her head apart as the exit opened, and Han Su fell through without her.
• Han Su woke in a university lecture hall and saw that his right eye was gray and scarred from the childhood ordeal.
• Manman's grieving parents approached Han Su and asked whether he had remembered anything about their missing daughter.

Han Su avoided the grieving parents of children from the old kidnapping case and refused Xu Ji’s invitation, then recalled how monsters had repeatedly dragged him back to the Dark Fortress. After suffering another injury in the latest escape, he messaged the person with the Black Rose avatar to ask whether everyone had to escape for him to break the curse.

• Han Su apologized to Mr. Li and Ms. Fang for having no clues about their missing daughter, while Xu Ji criticized them for continuing to disrupt Han Su’s life.
• At the school gate, Xu Ji invited Han Su to join his wealthy friends, but Han Su declined and headed for the library.
• Han Su rode the subway and remembered escaping an Ancient Castle as a child, only for investigators to find no evidence of the kidnapped children or the place he described.
• Han Su recalled that monsters had dragged him back to the Kidnapping Case seventeen times over three years, and that injuries suffered in the Dark Fortress had carried into his present life.
• With his right eye throbbing, Han Su messaged the Black Rose contact to ask if everyone had to escape for him to break the curse, and received a reply asking whether he had been sent back again.

Han Su discussed his repeated kidnappings and the Ancient Castle with Black Rose, who argued that he might be delusional but offered a mystical explanation for the curse. He was left facing the possibility that the kidnappings would soon become continuous, while still unsure whether saving every child was necessary to escape.

• Han Su told Black Rose that this Life Path matched his familiar life, though he had lost sight in one eye, and she suggested the children were bound together by a curse that could only be broken by bringing them all out.
• Black Rose proposed that Han Su’s experiences could stem from trauma and delusion, and that he had escaped alone ten years earlier after giving rescuers the wrong location.
• Han Su rejected the idea that he felt guilty for escaping and said he would save children who had helped him, but would put his own survival first.
• Black Rose said Han Su could break the curse by killing the monsters or investigating the kidnapping’s origins, but Han Su believed neither option was possible.
• Han Su recalled that rescuing Xu Ji had changed the bunker and led to the appearance of a strange door, but deliberate attempts to save more children had failed.
• Black Rose warned that the interval between Han Su’s kidnappings was shrinking and might eventually reach zero, leaving him without a present.

Han Su searched the Central City Library for clues about the symbols from the dark Ancient Castle and learned they resembled Radiation Era tribal totems. A private detective approached him about the ten-year-old Kidnapping Case, and when Han Su tried to leave, two men blocked his way.

• Han Su went to Central City Library and searched religious texts for the strange markings he remembered from the dark Ancient Castle.
• A long-haired girl explained that the symbol resembled simple totems used by tribes during the Radiation Era, then left after seeing Han Su's scars.
• A man who introduced himself as Chen said a client had hired him to investigate the Kidnapping Case and questioned Han Su about it.
• Han Su refused to repeat his account, told Chen to leave, and packed up to go.
• Chen snapped his fingers, and a muscular man and a knife-wielding man in a floral shirt blocked Han Su's way.

Han Su defeated three men who tried to question him about the ten-year-old Kidnapping Case and learned that someone had posted a three-million bounty on the Black Table. After leaving the library, he encountered Song Chushi at the bus stop, who said they had met before.

• A man in a baseball cap told Han Su about the Black Table bounty and tried to pressure him into discussing the Kidnapping Case.
• Han Su attacked the three men, broke their arms, and gave the slick-haired private detective a symbol to investigate in exchange for a promised thirty million.
• Han Su left the library wondering who had posted the bounty and why they had offered so much.
• At the bus stop, a thin man in a black raincoat introduced himself as Song Chushi and said he and Han Su had met before.

Han Su recounted his childhood escape from the dark Ancient Castle to Song Chushi, the brother of a girl who died there, describing the monsters and the children they took. Song Chushi believed him and recorded the details, while Han Su revealed that years of recurring dreams had kept the memories vivid.

• Song Chushi invited Han Su to a wonton shop and said he believed Han Su’s account of the Ancient Castle.
• Song Chushi explained that he had begun doubting ordinary explanations and asked Han Su to recall the castle and its monsters.
• Han Su described the children’s arrival at the castle, the monsters’ banquet, and the children taken upstairs, including Song Chushi’s Younger Sister and Li Xiaoman.
• Song Chushi recognized Han Su’s descriptions as the monsters once reported in newspapers, and Han Su recounted how the braided ponytail girl started a fire that let him escape.
• Han Su said he had repeatedly dreamed of returning to the castle and trying to save the other children, explaining why he still remembered so many details.

Song Chushi questioned why Han Su had been among the kidnapped children despite his very different background, then proposed that the monsters’ power might remain in Han Su’s blinded eye. He gave Han Su a recorder containing a fisherman’s spell that might reveal or disperse mysterious forces.

• Song Chushi carefully recorded Han Su’s account of the monsters and pointed out that the other kidnapped children had wealthy or extraordinary backgrounds, unlike Han Su.
• Song Chushi asked why Han Su had been on the bus, and Han Su recalled his missing guardian and the doubts people had raised about his involvement.
• Song Chushi suggested that Han Su’s guardian’s disappearance was suspicious, and Han Su silently considered the possibilities.
• Song Chushi proposed investigating the kidnapping through the logic of the Mysterious Side and theorized that the monsters’ power might remain in Han Su’s eye.
• Song Chushi offered Han Su a voice recorder containing a spell he had obtained from a fisherman at Sea Cape Port, suggesting Han Su try it.

Han Su researched Song Chushi’s Spell and learned from Black Rose that it was a ritual phrase called “Divine Decree,” though she warned that real occult power could bring dangerous consequences. Deciding that his current life left little to lose, Han Su played the recording and heard the words “Sic erat in abysso!”

• Han Su secured his room, searched for information about Sea Cape Port, and found reports linking its fishermen’s sea-demon rituals to a deadly gang shootout.
• Han Su asked Black Rose to identify the Spell, and she translated its meaning as “Divine Decree,” describing it as ordinary ritual language.
• Black Rose warned Han Su that genuine occult forces could twist a person’s life and create unknown dangers, but Han Su questioned whether he still had a peaceful life to protect.
• Han Su ended the conversation, picked up the recording pen, and listened as a deep voice said, “Sic erat in abysso!”

Han Su chanted the Divine Decree and felt his Mental Power surge, briefly showing him a colossal giant before his damaged right eye began to bleed. As an unseen presence seemed to approach his home, Xu Ji called and revealed he was waiting downstairs.

• Han Su chanted the Divine Decree, sensed his Mental Power as an ocean, and saw a vision of a giant worshipped by countless people.
• The surge of power left Han Su in severe pain, but his scarred right eye began to bleed, convincing him the Spell had worked.
• A cold gust blew open Han Su's window, and he felt an unseen entity watching and approaching him.
• Xu Ji called Han Su, first joking that he needed help with pretty girls, then admitting he was downstairs.
• Han Su looked out the window and warned Xu Ji to wait while he fetched a knife.

Han Su went with Xu Ji to meet Zhang He, a wealthy underground figure who might help him deal with a bounty targeting him. Zhang He announced he was leaving Qinggang City's underground scene, while Xu Ji still pressed him to help Han Su before he quit.

• Xu Ji warned Han Su that his family's security department had found an online bounty targeting him, and Han Su agreed to meet one of Xu Ji's friends.
• Xu Ji drove Han Su to Zhang He's remote birthday gathering on the outskirts of the city.
• Zhang He greeted Han Su dismissively and told him to find food while he spoke with Xu Ji.
• Han Su used a camera to watch Xu Ji tell Zhang He that insulting Han Su had damaged their friendship.
• Zhang He said he planned to leave Qinggang City's underground world, and Xu Ji asked him to help Han Su before doing so.

Zhang He told Xu Ji that he planned to leave the underworld and seek a job as Secretary Number 5, then asked him to protect his mother and younger sister if anything happened. During a final mountain race, Han Su and Xu Ji saw Zhang He's car collide with an oncoming vehicle in the fog, while Han Su sensed that something was approaching.

• Zhang He explained that he had quit the underworld and was pursuing a path to work for Secretary Number 5 at the Administrative Hall.
• Zhang He asked Xu Ji to look after his mother and younger sister if he died, and Xu Ji promised to help.
• Zhang He challenged Xu Ji to race to Lilac Courtyard, and Han Su joined Xu Ji in his car.
• Fog thickened as Zhang He sped ahead, and Xu Ji slowed down while watching his headlights on the opposite mountainside.
• A second vehicle appeared and crashed head-on into Zhang He's car, setting it ablaze as Xu Ji stopped in shock.
• Han Su sensed something nearby and exclaimed, "It's here!"

Han Su and Xu Ji encountered the Ghost Truck in the fog on Highway 48, and Han Su used Divine Decree to stop its charge. As ghosts appeared around the truck and Han Su’s right eye bled, he realized that some force prevented Mental Power from entering reality.

• Han Su pulled Xu Ji out of the sports car just before the Ghost Truck smashed it to pieces.
• Xu Ji identified the vehicle as the Murder Truck from Highway 59 and explained its story, though they were on Highway 48.
• Han Su kicked Xu Ji out of the truck’s path as it charged through the fog again, then prepared to face it.
• The Ghost Truck emerged from the fog beside Xu Ji, and Han Su pulled him clear before reciting Divine Decree.
• Han Su’s right eye began bleeding as the Ghost Truck stopped, revealing Zhang He and other ghostly servants in the fog.
• Han Su sensed that a deep-seated rule prevented Mental Power from entering reality.

Han Su awakened the melting ability within his right eye and drove the Ghost Truck away, nearly exhausting his Mental Power. Elsewhere, Song Chushi revealed that he had given Han Su an S-class Spell because he believed Han Su's path was tied to the disappearance of twenty-six children, including Song Chushi's younger sister.

• Han Su chanted the Spell and forced his Mental Power through his blind right eye, pinning the charging Ghost Truck in place.
• Han Su's gaze melted the Ghost Truck's steel body, and he realized his right eye carried the Pallor monster's ability.
• Han Su invoked the Divine Decree again, dispersing the fog and frightening the Ghost Truck into retreating before searchers and police arrived.
• Song Chushi watched Qinggang City from a distant hill while the being in the Silver Briefcase questioned why he had given Han Su the S-class Spell.
• Song Chushi said Han Su had long been meant to walk this path and vowed to uncover the truth about the twenty-six missing children, including his younger sister.

After surviving the Ghost Truck attack, Han Su was questioned by police officers who appeared to be exploiting the Black Table bounty to detain and intimidate him. As he considered testing his strange right-eye ability on living people, an outside force suddenly took over the bureau.

• Han Su told the police he had seen a vehicle but no driver, while an officer challenged his account with evidence suggesting the crashes had been ordinary accidents.
• Han Su pointed out that Xu Ji had witnessed the attack too, but an officer in amber sunglasses threatened to detain him for twenty-four hours.
• The officer revealed that useful information about Han Su could earn money because the Black Table bounty had been divided into smaller tasks.
• The two officers turned the camera away and prepared to intimidate Han Su with strange objects, while Han Su wondered whether his right-eye power could affect living people.
• As the flat-top officer approached Han Su with handcuffs, a voice outside announced that the bureau had been taken over and ordered everyone to leave statements, recordings, and evidence behind.

Han Su was questioned by local police after the Ghost Truck incident until Detective Zhang Chiguo arrived and took over. Han Su told Zhang that a Spell from Song Chushi had driven the truck away, while Zhang’s guarded questions hinted that he knew more about mysterious powers than he admitted.

• Two officers tried to hide evidence of Han Su’s interrogation, but a group led by Zhang Chiguo entered the room and sent them away.
• Han Su recognized Zhang, who had cared for him after the Kidnapping Case and later disappeared from the Public Security Bureau.
• Zhang said he believed Han Su and asked how he had forced the Ghost Truck back.
• Han Su credited a Spell given to him by Song Chushi, and Zhang reacted sharply to Song’s name before confirming the chant on Han Su’s recorder.
• Zhang asked whether reciting the Spell made Han Su’s spirit feel alive and seep into reality, but Han Su concealed his suspicions and explained why he had been at the scene.
• Zhang accepted Han Su’s account and remarked that misfortune kept finding him.

Han Su questioned Zhang Chiguo about the strange entity and the old Kidnapping Case, but Zhang urged him to leave and forget both. As Han Su was about to go, a woman in a black suit warned that the Spell on the recording pen was more than a simple Fishing Horn.

• Zhang Chiguo told Han Su to leave, forget the Spell, and stay away from Song Chushi and the case.
• Han Su pressed Zhang about the Kidnapping Case, and Zhang revealed the original file remained in his desk but said someone had decided it was a child's fantasy.
• Zhang warned that the entity had been deliberately released and that the Xu Family were likely the intended targets, while Han Su insisted he wanted answers about the monster and his past abductions.
• Han Su left the interrogation room and began filling out his contact information as the detectives watched him closely.
• A woman in a black suit rushed out and told Zhang Chiguo not to let Han Su leave because the Spell on the recording pen was not a simple Fishing Horn.

Xu Ji waited for Han Su outside the Public Security Bureau while Assistant Xu explained the danger of the Ghost Truck incident and insisted Xu Ji end his friendship with Han. Han was held back by the Bureau, but the woman in the black suit revealed that he would face neither hypnosis nor disposal, leaving Assistant Xu to conclude that the dead Zhang family boy’s carefully secured path had fallen to Han.

• Assistant Xu warned Xu Ji that the Bureau of Abnormal Disaster Assessment could have hypnotized or disposed of him, and said the Xu family had secured his release in exchange for his silence.
• Assistant Xu told Xu Ji that his friendship with Han had to end because Han’s involvement could expose him to danger, but Xu Ji angrily refused.
• A woman in a black suit arrived with release papers for Xu Ji and said Han would remain in custody.
• The woman asked whether Han had shown unusual behavior during the Ghost Truck encounter, and Xu Ji denied seeing anything beyond Han chanting a spell.
• The woman said Han would face neither hypnosis nor disposal, and Assistant Xu said the dead Zhang family boy had secured a path that had fallen to Han.

Han Su was forced to choose between memory alteration, long-term detention, and joining the Disaster Management Bureau after contacting Ghost Truck. He accepted recruitment, while Zhang Chiguo learned that Han Su’s Spell meant “I am god, and I decree,” though it appeared to have no power.

• Zhang Chiguo told Han Su that the victims’ families and the Spell left him with no option but to join the Disaster Management Bureau or face hypnosis or long-term detention.
• Zhang Chiguo explained that Han Su’s childhood kidnapping had been classified as an ordinary kidnapping, so the Bureau had never registered him as an abnormality contactee.
• Han Su agreed to join the Bureau and was told he would be tested for sensitivity and resistance to containment before beginning enforcement training.
• Zhang Chiguo promised to discuss the kidnapping case with Han Su after he completed training, and warned him not to speak about it to others.
• A woman in a black suit explained that Han Su’s Spell was not merely “Divine Decree” but “I am god, and I decree,” though it contained no Mysterious Power and appeared to be inactive.

Han Su was brought to the Disaster Management Bureau and tested with a recording of a monster’s language, which he recognized from the Dark Fortress. The room began to warp around him, and the familiar signs of another kidnapping appeared.

• Han Su was escorted to a secured Bureau complex, where the woman in the black suit told him he could enter training if he passed an assessment.
• The Bureau placed Han Su in a soundproof room and played an eerie recording, instructing him to listen for meaning and repeat its syllables.
• Han Su recognized the recording as the language spoken by a monster involved in the Kidnapping Case in the Dark Fortress.
• Zhang Chiguo watched Han Su react to the recording and grew worried as the test continued.
• The lights flickered, the room lost its solidity, and Han Su sensed a cold void and a menacing presence drawing near.

Han Su was pulled back into the manor kidnapping after the Disaster Management Bureau played a mysterious Spell, and he suspected the voice had affected the timing. He pretended to be hypnotized as the Old Butler led the children toward the castle, determined to escape back to the future quickly.

• Han Su experienced the Spell at the Disaster Management Bureau, where Zhang Chiguo watched his painful reaction before Han Su closed his eyes and steadied his breathing.
• Han Su found himself back on the school bus entering the manor, surrounded by children who had died during his previous escape.
• Han Su realized the kidnapping had happened sooner than expected and suspected the mysterious voice from the Bureau had altered its timing.
• The bus driver and supervising teacher sat motionless as statues while the children asked questions and tried to wake them.
• The Old Butler welcomed the children, clapped twice, and made them silently line up and follow him toward the castle.
• Han Su pretended to be hypnotized and followed the Old Butler, whom he considered the strangest and cruelest figure in the Ancient Castle.