Chapter Summaries

Team Leader Wu offered Xu Huo a place on the Vanguard Player team and a Safe Zone for his family, but Xu Huo agreed only to trade information and materials. He discovered that the painting in his hallway had become a sentient item, named her Lichun, and took her out shopping as Ting City continued to mourn its dead.

• Team Leader Wu explained that Safe Zones were limited and invited Xu Huo to join the Vanguard Player team, but Xu Huo offered cooperation without joining the research institute's command.
• After Team Leader Wu left, a woman emerged from a hallway painting; Xu Huo learned she was an unowned item and tried unsuccessfully to persuade her into his inventory with the Medal.
• The painted woman bought breakfast with two yuan, and Xu Huo found the words identifying her as a woman painted by Hua Yu Lichun, then named her Lichun.
• Xu Huo took Lichun to the police station to turn in a wallet and spoke with Zhao Biao, who said several colleagues had died.
• Seeing mourners and reports of cases throughout Ting City, Xu Huo let Lichun choose a skirt but limited her budget to five hundred yuan.

Xu Huo met Yuan Yao, learned about his ability to hide while following people, and asked him to investigate an online account. After shopping with Yuan Yao and Lichun, Xu Huo realized someone was following them and went with Yuan Yao to his place.

• Xu Huo caught Yuan Yao following him and learned that Yuan Yao's Hide and Seek ability helped him stay unnoticed when hiding in plain sight.
• Yuan Yao told Xu Huo about an online gathering for Players, and Xu Huo asked him to find the address behind an account that had posted about the gathering and buying a Ticket.
• At a hot pot restaurant, Xu Huo introduced the painted woman as his mute, intellectually disabled relative, Lichun, and Yuan Yao offered to buy her a phone.
• After dinner, Yuan Yao bought Lichun a phone and took her and Xu Huo shopping until nightfall.
• Lichun warned Xu Huo that someone was following them, and Xu Huo led the group toward Yuan Yao's place while a taxi driver reported tracking him to Sister Ning.

Xu Huo and Yuan Yao discovered that a man they had captured was connected to the Holy Sword Society, then trapped him when he attacked their villa. A woman with snake-like abilities rescued the man and accused Xu Huo of taking her younger brother, leaving Xu Huo questioning her about how she knew he was a Player.

• Yuan Yao uncovered chat logs showing that the short, thin man had joined the Holy Sword Society by submitting an Allegiance Pledge.
• A catlike attacker entered the villa and tried to strike Xu Huo, but Xu Huo and Yuan Yao trapped him.
• The attacker escaped their hold and charged Yuan Yao, but Xu Huo beat him down and injured his arm.
• A woman used black snakes and a giant python illusion to pull the short, thin man away from Xu Huo.
• Xu Huo caught the woman, who denied knowing the Holy Sword Society and demanded to know where he had taken her younger brother.

Xu Huo learned that Zhou Ning and Huzi were searching for Zhou Ning’s missing brother, A Xiao, and uncovered evidence that the Holy Sword Society had lured him away. He agreed to help Zhou Ning use herself as bait, gave her a Hair Growth Potion to test her Ability, and sent her away to prepare for their plan.

• Xu Huo subdued Zhou Ning and Huzi, then learned they were looking for A Xiao and that he had vanished after arranging a Ticket trade.
• Xu Huo revealed he had found A Xiao’s wallet and learned from the forum records that a new Holy Sword Society member had lured A Xiao out and used him as an Allegiance Pledge.
• Zhou Ning offered to act as bait so Xu Huo could help rescue her brother, while Huzi argued that the society threatened Players in general.
• Xu Huo agreed to help, gave Zhou Ning a Hair Growth Potion to test her Ability, and told her to return the next day without contacting the person behind the Bait Post.

Xu Huo assessed Zhou Ning’s group and planned a night operation to rescue Zhou Xiao from the Bait Post’s Players and the Holy Sword Society. After learning that one target was a Cannibal Player, he split the group and prepared to move out.

• Xu Huo moved Yuan Yao and the painted woman to a busier neighborhood, then visited Zhou Ning with them.
• Xu Huo warned Zhou Ning’s group about the risks of fighting stronger Players and asked about their abilities.
• Tian Yun described his speed ability, and Yu Xiaoyu explained that he could make his body light but became physically weak.
• Huang Junjie reported that the Bait Post Player had contacted a man with a triangular sword tattoo, who was a Cannibal Player and had just killed someone.
• Xu Huo arranged to set out after dark and divided the group, sending Zhou Ning and Yuan Yao to Huang Junjie while Hu Wenhu, Tian Yun, and Yu Xiaoyu went with him.

Zhou Ning, Yuan Yao, and Huang Junjie attacked Brother Zhao, a member of the Holy Sword Society, but he escaped with a blade despite being injured. Xu Huo sent the others into Jiayi Residential Area to pursue him while he drove toward the construction site.

• Brother Zhao told the middle-aged man that he had been accepted by the Holy Sword Society but still needed to prove he could kill people.
• Zhou Ning attacked Brother Zhao with her hair after the middle-aged man let her into the apartment, but Brother Zhao fought back and charged at her.
• Zhou Ning transformed into a giant python, and Brother Zhao used the middle-aged man as a shield while Yuan Yao stabbed him from behind.
• Brother Zhao grabbed Yuan Yao by the throat, but Huang Junjie arrived, cut Brother Zhao's wrist, and forced him to flee through the window.
• Huang Junjie reported Brother Zhao's injuries to Xu Huo, who told Hu Wenhu and the others to move into the residential area while he headed to the construction site.

Zhao Sheng was captured after a chase through Ting City, and Xu Huo used him to bargain with the Holy Sword Society for Zhou Xiao’s release. The Society sent Cao Yan, Ma Yu, and several others to investigate and kill or capture Xu Huo’s group.

• Zhao Sheng fled his pursuers through the neighborhood, but Yan Jiayu knocked him unconscious at the construction site.
• Xu Huo placed a Balloon over Zhao Sheng’s face and called the Holy Sword Society’s boss using Zhao Sheng’s phone.
• Xu Huo offered to exchange Zhao Sheng for Zhou Xiao and warned that the group would keep targeting the Society if it refused.
• The Society’s boss sent Cao Yan, Ma Yu, and seven or eight others to find out whether Xu Huo had backing, with orders to kill the group if they did not.

Zhou Ning and her allies ambushed Holy Sword Society Players at the construction site, while Xu Huo fought Ma Yu on the second floor. Xu Huo drove Ma Yu toward the balcony and stopped him from escaping, but Ma Yu lunged for his Dragon Toy Gun.

• Zhou Ning’s group rescued Zhou Xiao and retreated into the building after the tower-crane lights went out.
• Xu Huo ordered the team to kill intruding Players when possible and killed one Player on the second floor.
• Xu Huo confronted Ma Yu, whose Dragon Toy Gun fired real flames, and learned that the Holy Sword Society had given him the weapon.
• Xu Huo fought Ma Yu through the second floor while Huang Junjie drew off another attacker.
• Xu Huo forced Ma Yu back from the balcony window, but Ma Yu lunged for his Dragon Toy Gun.

Xu Huo and Huang Junjie killed Ma Yu as the woman from the crane arrived, while Zhou Ning’s group regrouped on the first floor and split up to face the approaching Holy Sword Society players. Yan Jiayu killed the young rich man, and the painted woman transformed beside Zhou Xiao as the others went to fight.

• Xu Huo took the Toy Gun from Ma Yu, then joined Huang Junjie in killing him after Ma Yu blew a whistle to summon the woman from the crane.
• Zhou Ning reunited with Zhou Xiao, who apologized for disobeying her and trying to trade for a Ticket.
• Yan Jiayu struck the young rich man trapped in Zhou Ning’s Hair Serpent until she killed him.
• Zhou Ning’s group divided up to intercept the Holy Sword Society players approaching from different directions.
• The painted woman transformed into a tall woman in a red dress and high heels while she remained with Zhou Xiao.

Xu Huo and Huang Junjie fought Cao Yan, whose evolved poison badly injured Huang Junjie. Xu Huo forced Cao Yan to produce an antidote, which neutralized the poison, while her fate remained unresolved.

• Xu Huo trapped Cao Yan with his strings and flames, but she spat poison at Huang Junjie, badly corroding his face and hands.
• Xu Huo treated Huang Junjie with Self-Healing Agent and threatened Cao Yan with death and capture by the Special Affairs Bureau until she agreed to help.
• Cao Yan revealed that she could produce poison within her body and offered to betray the Holy Sword Society in exchange for her freedom.
• Cao Yan produced a medicinal bead, and Huang Junjie swallowed it despite the risk.
• The antidote neutralized the poison and formed a white shell over Huang Junjie's damaged skin, which Cao Yan said would come off in three days.

Xu Huo questioned Cao Yan about the Holy Sword Society and proposed that mutated creatures might help Cannibal Players evolve without eating people. After Cao Yan revealed Old Eagle’s location and escaped, Xu Huo asked Liu Jia where another Player had gone.

• Xu Huo questioned Cao Yan about the Holy Sword Society, learning that Old Eagle led sixteen Players in Ting City and had recruited them by advertising game items online.
• Cao Yan revealed that the Society had eaten at least six ordinary Players and that she had become a Cannibal Player after the Preliminary Train.
• Xu Huo suggested that Aliens and other mutated creatures might provide the energy Cannibal Players needed to evolve, and released Cao Yan from his restraints.
• Cao Yan told Xu Huo that Old Eagle was on the Third Floor of Guangde Mall and could turn invisible, then left wearing Xu Huo’s shirt.
• Huang Junjie questioned Xu Huo about his theory and the possibility of Cao Yan seeking revenge, and Xu Huo asked Liu Jia where the other Player on the Second Floor had gone.

Xu Huo and his allies defeated the Holy Sword Society members who came to trade prisoners, capturing one alive and learning that another had escaped. After Zhou Ning and the others left, Xu Huo spotted a Balloon and called Nie Xuan about an opportunity.

• Yan Jiayu saved Zhou Ning, killed a Cannibal Player, and confirmed that the other Holy Sword Society members on the first floor were dead.
• Xu Huo reunited with the group, found the corpses, and had Liu Jia bring in the captured middle-aged man.
• The man called for Miss Cao Yan, but the painted woman appeared instead, and Zhou Ning bound him.
• Xu Huo counted nine Holy Sword Society members: seven dead, one captured, and one escaped; Zhou Ning's group handed over their items and Potions before leaving.
• Xu Huo went outside, spotted a Balloon drifting over the city, and called Nie Xuan about the opportunity.

Zhao Sheng returned to the Holy Sword Society’s base at Guangde Mall, unaware that the Special Affairs Bureau had followed him and surrounded the building. As Nie Xuan entered the mall to confront a rampaging Cannibal Player, several Bureau personnel and soldiers had been killed.

• Zhao Sheng reached Guangde Mall and warned Old Eagle and the remaining Holy Sword Society members that they were being targeted.
• Old Eagle realized Zhao Sheng had led the attackers to them, but Special Affairs Bureau personnel launched a tear-gas assault before the Society could respond.
• Old Eagle fled as the members scattered, while Special Forces captured several Players and Nie Xuan ordered a sniper to kill one who broke through the perimeter.
• Zhao Sheng and two others hid on the second floor, but the burly Player jumped down and impaled a Bureau agent with an iron rod.
• The burly Player killed a Special Forces soldier and attacked more personnel as Nie Xuan entered the mall to stop him.

Nie Xuan’s forces raided the Holy Sword Society’s base at Guangde Mall, killing its murderous new member and searching for its leader, Old Eagle. Old Eagle escaped the destruction but was wounded and pursued, while Xu Huo followed him; the chapter ended as someone called down to Old Eagle from above.

• Nie Xuan used Unbreakable Nails to trap the burly man despite his Elastic Rope, killed him, and arrested the remaining Holy Sword Society members.
• Nie Xuan learned that Old Eagle was missing and ordered his forces to demolish the Mall while searching for him.
• Xu Huo watched from a nearby building, suspected Old Eagle was hiding inside, and later followed his escape route.
• At three in the morning, Special Affairs Bureau players entered the Mall, forcing the wounded Old Eagle to flee while they pursued him.
• Old Eagle used a Fake Golden Pipe to fill several streets with sound-muffling smoke, but someone called to him from above as he moved away.

Xu Huo fought Old Eagle in the fog, discovered how the Ruby Long Sword worked, and used his items to disarm and restrain him. As Xu Huo prepared to finish the fight, Old Eagle realized the painted woman was a Super Artifact, and Xu Huo unleashed a wall of fire.

• Old Eagle blocked Xu Huo’s ambush with a metal shield and cut through a building with the Ruby Long Sword before fleeing into the fog.
• Xu Huo pursued Old Eagle, worked out that the Long Sword could cut only the first target in its path, and overwhelmed him by hurling objects at him.
• Old Eagle turned invisible, but Xu Huo used the Lighter on his shadow and kept pelting him until he revealed himself to attack.
• Xu Huo broke Old Eagle’s right arm, lifted him with the Strings, and used a paper painting to restrain him, but Old Eagle escaped with his metal shield.
• The painted woman transformed into a living person and grabbed Old Eagle’s shield, prompting him to recognize a Super Artifact as Xu Huo sent a wall of fire toward him.

Xu Huo killed Old Eagle, a D-class Player and Holy Sword Society member, then examined his items and questioned the painted woman about her interest in him. After returning to the hotel, Xu Huo told his companions that the Holy Sword Society had been partly captured and killed, and they turned to dividing the loot.

• Xu Huo broke Old Eagle's limbs, killed him as the authorities approached, and escaped before the Special Affairs Bureau arrived.
• Xu Huo checked Old Eagle's player profile and items, including a token marking him as a prospective member of the Holy Sword Society.
• Xu Huo asked the painted woman why she followed him, gave her the Gentleman of Light Medal, and told her to act more like a True Man.
• Xu Huo returned to the hotel near dawn and told Huang Junjie, Yuan Yao, Liu Jia, and Yan Jiayu that some Holy Sword Society members had been captured and others killed.
• Huang Junjie and Liu Jia discussed the threat of Cannibal Players, while Yan Jiayu urged the group to divide the loot.

After the group defeated the Cannibal Players, Xu Huo and his companions divided their loot and celebrated their success. Liu Jia and Yan Jiayu prepared to leave, while Xu Huo later browsed the Vanguard Player Forum and found a thread about trading items.

• Xu Huo and the others counted the loot from the Cannibal Players and divided the items, Potions, Tickets, and cash among themselves.
• Yan Jiayu revealed that her Stone Staff was a Dharmachakra she called the Stone Rolling Pin, and explained that she was a Professional Monk who had returned to secular life.
• Liu Jia said she would enter a Dungeon with someone from the Special Affairs Bureau, and Yan Jiayu prepared to catch an early train.
• Xu Huo gave Huang Junjie a room in his apartment, while Yuan Yao bought the apartment across the hall and hosted a victory feast.
• After everyone dispersed, Xu Huo logged into the Vanguard Player Forum and noticed a thread about trading items.

Xu Huo investigated a shadow that emerged from his computer and learned of similar sightings at Film City. After a famous actress quit the production over the apparitions, Xu Huo told Cai Zhiyuan he was thinking of changing jobs.

• Xu Huo found a Seven-Color Glove for trade, then woke to a shadow in his room and asked Yuan Yao to trace the forum post's address.
• Yuan Yao traced the post to a sealed Haunted House, while Huang Junjie warned the group it might be a trap.
• Before dawn, Xu Huo watched a featureless shadow crawl out of his computer, approach his bed, and vanish when it froze in apparent fear.
• Xu Huo went to Film City for work, where Cai Zhiyuan told him a famous actress had quit after she and her assistant saw a shadow that cameras failed to capture.
• Xu Huo noticed a computer bag in the actress's assistant's hands and told Cai Zhiyuan he was thinking of changing jobs.

Xu Huo realized someone was luring Players to the Haunted House and left with Huang Junjie, while Gu Yu went inside and confronted two people she mistook for harassers. A mysterious force then made Gu Yu, the young man, and Shen Xin disappear.

• Xu Huo asked Nie Xuan about other Random Instances in Ting City, then met Huang Junjie at a nearby Coffee Shop.
• Huang Junjie reported seeing a man and a woman watching the Haunted House, and Xu Huo recognized a celebrity nearby as Gu Yu.
• Xu Huo concluded someone was luring Players to the Haunted House and left with Huang Junjie, while a security camera followed their cab.
• Gu Yu entered the Haunted House and attacked a young man and woman, accusing the man of harassing her.
• The young man called out Shen Xin, who vanished along with him, and a mysterious force then made Gu Yu disappear too.

Xu Huo confronted Wang Chaoqing and Nian Hongan, who had been luring him to the Haunted House, and learned that the Villa swallowed people and produced their belongings. The Villa's danger had spread beyond the building into its Front and Back Yards.

• Xu Huo followed Wang Chaoqing to the Haunted House and waited outside while Wang Chaoqing tried to lure him in.
• Xu Huo caught Wang Chaoqing outside the Villa, restrained him with Strings, and forced Nian Hongan to come out.
• Nian Hongan offered Xu Huo the Colored Glove, and Xu Huo beat both men and demanded to know what was inside the Haunted House.
• Nian Hongan admitted that people disappeared inside the Villa and that belongings and items later appeared there.
• Wang Chaoqing revealed that the Villa had expanded from the building into the Front and Back Yards, which had begun swallowing people too.