Recaps

After drawing the attention of a being inside the Main Tower, Lu Yuan escaped the Tower of Erudition with Agnes and the nuns, passing its inspection with Agnes's blessing. Outside, Agnes sent the three nuns ahead while she stayed behind to handle something.

• Lu Yuan witnessed the Main Tower's inscriptions flare and briefly saw a vast aura of the Sea of Knowledge above its summit, then drank a Perfect Sanity Potion and left the laboratory.
• Agnes returned with three nuns, secretly gave Lu Yuan an Angel's Blessing, and he joined the group as they headed out.
• Lu Yuan and the others passed a special detection inscription, whose inspection was fooled by the blessing.
• Lu Yuan received another warning that he had drawn the attention of beings in the tower and left with the group.
• At the eastern alley entrance, Agnes told the three nuns to go back while she stayed behind.

Lu Yuan learned that the Ghouls beneath Bronze City had disappeared and might trigger another collapse-site expedition, then studied the Worm of Knowledge and inferred how Laurina had anchored and tamed it. He saw the potential for Forbidden Studies to serve as an unlimited anchor, but ended the chapter unsure how to tame even one worm.

• Agnes asked Lu Yuan if he could help her enter the Sea of Knowledge, and he said he might ask Andre Morris after Bronze City stabilized.
• Agnes warned Lu Yuan that the Ghouls at the collapse site had disappeared without dying and that an exploration team might later select him.
• Lu Yuan returned to his room and wrote down that Worms of Knowledge parasitized any brain containing structured knowledge and depended on a knowledge-rich environment to survive.
• Lu Yuan deduced that Laurina had used Knowledge Anchoring to bind a Worm of Knowledge to her Alchemy knowledge, allowing it to purify knowledge without consuming her mind.
• Lu Yuan reasoned that Forbidden Studies could anchor an unlimited number of Worms of Knowledge, but he lacked the knowledge to tame one and Laurina could not help because she had erased the memory.

Lu Yuan planned to lure a Worm of Knowledge from the Sea of Knowledge without entering it, hoping to use systematic knowledge as bait. He carefully activated Knowledge's Male and established a view into the sea, then sensed an invisible barrier between it and the Alchemy Workshop.

• Lu Yuan concluded that he could not safely enter the Sea of Knowledge because activating Knowledge's Male might alert Bronze City's weakened seals and powerful observers.
• He reasoned that systematic knowledge might lure a Worm of Knowledge through a small opening, using the exchange relationship he had experienced during his previous contact with the sea.
• Lu Yuan examined Knowledge's Male and realized its crack had widened as his Forbidden Studies advanced.
• He locked the Alchemy Workshop, prepared to stop the test if the sea's aura leaked, and used Forbidden Studies to resonate with the shell.
• Lu Yuan saw the Sea of Knowledge through the rift and sensed an invisible barrier separating it from the workshop.

Lu Yuan used Forbidden Studies experience to open a pinprick passage through the Knowledge Wall, hoping to attract a Worm of Knowledge. The passage slowly restored his sanity, and a juvenile Worm of Knowledge emerged through it.

• Lu Yuan discovered that Forbidden Studies perception could make the Knowledge Wall yield, but opening a pinprick passage cost him 0.5 Forbidden Studies experience.
• Lu Yuan released the aura of his Forbidden Studies through the pinprick to try to attract a Worm of Knowledge, but initially noticed no response.
• Lu Yuan found that maintaining a connection with the Sea of Knowledge restored his sanity by one point every few minutes.
• Lu Yuan sensed something moving near the pinprick, and a tiny, translucent juvenile Worm of Knowledge squeezed through.

Lu Yuan encountered three Worms of Knowledge and discovered that the Sea of Knowledge recognized him as an associated entity. He contracted with all three, allowing them to feed on the Consciousness Crystal while their connections remained alive within his perception.

• Lu Yuan recognized that the first Worm of Knowledge viewed him as an associated entity of the Sea of Knowledge, so he approached it without hostility.
• The Worm of Knowledge became excited by the Consciousness Crystal in Lu Yuan’s sample vial, but Lu Yuan refused to let it eat the crystal.
• Two more Worms of Knowledge emerged, and Lu Yuan offered all three a contract in exchange for permission to feed on the crystal.
• The first Worm of Knowledge contracted with Lu Yuan, earning him the Sea of Knowledge Angler achievement, then merged into the Consciousness Crystal.
• The other two Worms of Knowledge also contracted with Lu Yuan and joined the first in feeding on the crystal.

Lu Yuan's Worms of Knowledge absorbed the Consciousness Crystal, fused into one, and entered his eye, granting him enhanced vision and a large amount of knowledge feedback. After glimpsing a mass of strange aura gathering above Bronze City's inner city, he went to sleep, only to be awakened by a dwarf identified as a Master of Inscription Studies.

• Lu Yuan's three Worms of Knowledge consumed the Consciousness Crystal, grew, and merged into one.
• The Worm of Knowledge entered Lu Yuan's left eye, letting him see auras and briefly revealing a dense, shifting mass above Bronze City's inner city.
• The Crystal's knowledge feedback raised Lu Yuan's Forbidden Studies and Imperial Language skills and advanced his Inscription Studies; the Time Bestower Pocket Watch briefly trembled.
• Lu Yuan put the Crystal away and went to sleep while the Worm of Knowledge rested in his eye.
• A short old man knocked on Lu Yuan's door in the morning, and Lu Yuan's sight identified him as a dwarf and a Master of Inscription Studies.

Lu Yuan met the Dwarf Duo Huo Ke, who explained four possible Inscription Studies paths and warned that Ancient Large-Scale Inscription Studies could lock down other Knowledge Paths. After Duo Huo Ke left, Lu Yuan sought Bolen’s more trustworthy advice, and Bolen realized Lu Yuan might have started studying inscriptions.

• Lu Yuan let the invisible-to-others Dwarf Duo Huo Ke into the Alchemy Workshop and heard that joining his guidance would benefit them both.
• Duo Huo Ke described Weapon, Large-Scale, Ancient, and Eerie Inscription Studies, recommending Weapon or Ancient studies while warning that Ancient Large-Scale Inscription Studies carried a knowledge Curse.
• Lu Yuan questioned Duo Huo Ke about Bronze City’s inscriptions and learned they were Ancient Large-Scale Inscription Studies, a path that could lock down other Knowledge Paths.
• Duo Huo Ke left Lu Yuan a stone slab describing the four paths and a whistle for summoning nearby Dwarves.
• Lu Yuan decided to ask Bolen about advancing in Inscription Studies and waited for him to arrive with Kael.
• Bolen asked why Lu Yuan was asking about inscription guidance, then realized Lu Yuan might already have started studying inscriptions.

Bolen explained Lu Yuan’s four Inscription Studies options, warning him away from paths that would conflict with his Knowledge Path or consume too much of his time. He argued that Lu Yuan’s affinity with Eeries might make Eerie Inscription Studies unusually suitable, but had not yet finished weighing the choice.

• Bolen examined Lu Yuan’s stone slab and was astonished that his aura matched four Inscription Studies directions.
• Bolen explained that Dwarves recommended their own specializations to earn rewards, then cautioned Lu Yuan to keep unregistered Transcendent paths secret.
• Bolen advised Lu Yuan to discard Weapon Inscription Studies and warned that pursuing Large-Scale Inscription Studies could let the Knowledge Curse lock down his Forbidden Society.
• Bolen described Ancient Inscription Studies as a rare path that could support research into Bronze City’s Copper Pillars but would keep Lu Yuan in the city.
• Bolen explained the dangers and limited practice of Eerie Inscription Studies, then said Lu Yuan might suit it because his dark aura could reduce the backlash from Eerie materials.

Lu Yuan weighed Ancient Inscription Studies against Eerie Inscription Studies while recovering and monitoring the growing anomaly above the Inner City. At a joint meeting, Klaus reported on Bronze City's collapses, the Copper Pillars, and the contaminated Pipe Network, leaving the distribution of the pillars beneath the city as an open question.

• Lu Yuan considered Bolen's advice and left the choice between Ancient Inscription Studies and Eerie Inscription Studies undecided.
• Over three days, Lu Yuan recovered his Sanity, repaired one layer of his Sanity Barrier, and found that the anomaly above the Inner City kept growing.
• Glock told Lu Yuan that Klaus had called a joint meeting about the Copper Pillars, with Bolen and representatives of several groups attending.
• Klaus summarized the ground collapses across Bronze City, the Ghouls that emerged, and the discovery of rune-carved Copper Pillars beneath the city.
• Klaus reported that Lu Yuan had destroyed the Fungal Hyphae Core beneath the North Textile District and that cleanup had uncovered more Copper Pillars.
• Klaus asked where else Copper Pillars might be located beneath Bronze City, including under the Inner City Collapse Points.

Klaus revised Bronze City's response to the collapse and ordered a new descent beneath the Copper Pillars, which formed part of a vast sealing array. Lu Yuan discovered signs of Fungal Hyphae in Wolf's aura, warned Klaus privately, and was left unsure whether Wolf knew he was infected.

• Klaus announced full patrols across Bronze City and further exploration of the Pipe Network, and Lu Yuan was promoted to official Night Watcher captain.
• Bolen explained that the Copper Pillars were part of a large sealing array suppressing an unknown threat underground, and Klaus scheduled a new descent for dawn the day after tomorrow.
• Klaus assembled a team that included Lu Yuan, Wolf, Heinrich, the Church observer, and Bolen, while Bolen ordered Kael to stay behind.
• Lu Yuan sensed a faint grayish-green trace resembling Fungal Hyphae in Wolf's aura but kept quiet during the meeting to avoid disrupting the team.
• After the meeting, Lu Yuan told Klaus about Wolf's possible infection, and Klaus said he would make arrangements before the expedition.
• Lu Yuan asked Wolf how he was feeling as they left the Branch, but Wolf said he was fine and walked away.

Lu Yuan joined an expedition to investigate whether the Copper Pillar was part of a larger sealing system and whether Fungal Hyphae had spread beyond the North Spinning District. Klaus secretly assigned the Fourth Order Eerie Transcendence Leike to watch Wolf and gave Lu Yuan a Sealing Disk, while the team advanced toward the first predicted pillar site.

• Lu Yuan packed his weapons and the Consciousness Crystal before meeting Klaus, who said Wolf likely knew about his contamination and might be involved in a plan.
• Klaus revealed that Leike was a disguised Fourth Order Eerie Transcendence assigned to watch Wolf, and gave Lu Yuan a three-use Sealing Disk that could suppress Transcendence activity within ten meters.
• Lu Yuan joined Glock's team, and Bolen explained that the Copper Pillar's position suggested three other pillars might form a complete sealing system.
• The team set out to investigate the first predicted location, search for Fungal Hyphae, and clear Ghouls along the route.
• After reaching the relay point, Glock stayed behind while Leike took the Communication Crystals and the remaining twelve members continued onward.

Lu Yuan's team fought through swarms of newly metamorphosed Ghouls in the Northwest Branch and found an active Copper Pillar that Bolen believed was part of the seal beneath Bronze City. As the team prepared to leave, Wolf's furnace fire surged out of control, and the nun cast Angel's Blessing while the others struggled to restrain him.

• Lu Yuan led the team through the Northwest Branch, where they killed over a hundred slow-moving Little Ghouls and several Great Ghouls.
• Leike reported the encounter to Glock, who said they had never seen deathly pale Ghoul larvae in the Pipe Network.
• The team reached a large chamber where Bolen detected and uncovered an active Copper Pillar.
• Bolen took a rubbing of the pillar's inscriptions and concluded that four identical pillars formed a complete seal beneath Bronze City.
• Wolf's body suddenly turned white-hot, burned two Iron Guard Battalion members who tried to restrain him, and forced the nun to cast Angel's Blessing over the group.

Lu Yuan and the others subdued Wolf’s rampage with the Sealing Disk while Leike revealed his true form and pursued an unknown entity through the Pipe Network. After arranging their withdrawal, Lu Yuan realized Wolf’s reaction might point to another Fungal Hyphae Core beneath the Copper Pillar and searched the area for a Rift.

• Wolf burned through the Nun’s restraints, struck Heinrich, and was wounded by Boer’s copper round before Lu Yuan activated the Sealing Disk to suppress the Transcendents.
• Gray-White Text warned of approaching contamination, and Leike exposed his worm-like true form, revealed a hidden figure, and chased it into the Pipe Network.
• Lu Yuan told the group that Klaus had secretly arranged for Leike to help, then had the Nun treat Wolf and reported the incident to Glock, who approved their withdrawal.
• Gray-White Text identified Wolf as a seriously wounded Furnace Fire Transcendent who had passed a trial and was advancing.
• Lu Yuan suspected another Fungal Hyphae Core might lie beneath the Copper Pillar and returned to search the floor for a Rift.

Lu Yuan found an Unknown Seed beneath a Copper Pillar and fled the Pipe Network Layer after an invisible Alienated Transcendent attacked. He reached the relay point with the Seed, where Leike revealed his transformed appearance and went back into the darkness to confront the enemy.

• Lu Yuan had knights pry up a Copper Plate and uncovered an Unknown Seed, which he sealed in his Toolbox.
• As the group retreated, a high-risk pollution warning appeared, and Lu Yuan used Stasis to stop a black liquid ambush before spotting an invisible attacker.
• Lu Yuan activated Time Bestower and ran ahead to warn the relay point that an invisible Alienated Transcendent was pursuing the Seed.
• Glock prepared to lead a rescue team, but Leike emerged in a grotesquely transformed body and said he had injured the Fourth Order enemy.
• Leike returned the Seed to Lu Yuan and went back into the Pipe Network to meet the attacker.

Klaus arrived at the relay point after Lu Yuan reported the Seed beneath the Copper Pillar and the Alienated Transcendents in the Pipe Network. He set out with Lu Yuan, Leike, and Bolen to inspect the site, explaining the dangers and limits of different Transcendence Paths as they traveled.

• Leike returned with the group, and Glock arranged for the wounded Wolf and others to be escorted to the surface for treatment.
• Lu Yuan told Glock about the Seed beneath the Copper Pillar, the Alienated Transcendents, and the possibility of Seeds beneath the other Copper Pillars.
• Leike said he had already informed Klaus, who arrived at the relay point shortly afterward and examined the stone containing the Seed.
• Klaus ordered Glock and Boer to remain at the relay point, then departed with Lu Yuan, Leike, and Bolen to assess the Copper Pillar.
• Klaus explained that Fourth Order Eerie and Alienated Transcendents were deeply corrupted, that the Guardian had reached Fifth Order, and that he expected to become Eerie himself soon.
• Klaus described Knowledge Transcendents and warned Lu Yuan that his chosen path was dangerous, while noting that the Empire's northern war was increasing demand for them.

Lu Yuan and Bolen were caught in a confrontation between Klaus, Leike, and the Grey Covenant in the Pipe Network. Lu Yuan fled as Klaus and Leike sealed the passage, leaving Klaus to face the trapped enemies and vow to expose their allies.

• Leike sensed five enemies surrounding the group, and three Grey Covenant members emerged to demand the stone Klaus carried in exchange for leaving Bronze City and helping him.
• Klaus rejected the offer and revealed his Fourth Order power as Leike transformed into a flood of flesh worms and the Grey Covenant attacked from both ends of the passage.
• Lu Yuan activated Time Bestower, carried Bolen away, and saw Klaus crush one Grey Covenant member before escaping the battlefield.
• Leike's Sea of Worms sealed the passage, and its mental chant weakened Lu Yuan and Bolen until Lu Yuan carried Bolen farther away without using Speed.
• Klaus and Leike trapped the four remaining Grey Covenant members, and Klaus formed a Bone Sword from his ring and declared that they would all stay while he rooted out their allies.

Klaus defeated the Grey Covenant deputy and two Third Order fighters while their leader escaped through the Pipe Network walls. Meanwhile, Lu Yuan and Bolen encountered two more Ashen Society members, and Lu Yuan activated his Sealing Disk as they attacked.

• The Grey Covenant leader and his deputy unleashed corrosive black liquid, but Klaus charged through it and crystallized the deputy.
• The leader’s attack hit his own deputy, whose self-destruction burned the surrounding insects and passage as Klaus cut him in half.
• The leader escaped through gaps in the Copper Wall, while Klaus killed one Third Order fighter and captured the other with Leike’s help.
• Lu Yuan carried Bolen beyond the Hive’s range, then continued along the numbered arrows despite his worsening sanity.
• Two Ashen Society members ambushed Lu Yuan and Bolen, and Lu Yuan pressed the second dark-red crystal on his Sealing Disk.

Lu Yuan, Bolen, Klaus, and Leike fought Grey Covenant members in the Pipe Network and learned the group’s origins and goals. They headed toward the Ashen Society Rejection Point, where Leike sensed something hidden nearby.

• Lu Yuan activated the Sealing Disk, suppressing the attackers’ Transcendence abilities, and he and Bolen defeated two Grey Covenant members.
• Klaus and Leike returned with a mutilated captive and reported that they had killed the group’s second-in-command and two others, but the leader had escaped.
• Klaus learned from the captive that the Grey Covenant had a nearby stronghold and that its members sought an anchor for ascension; he arranged for the captives to be guarded and sent back to Glock.
• As the group continued toward the Ashen Society Rejection Point, Klaus explained the Grey Covenant’s origins and discussed the costs and limits of Transcendence with Lu Yuan and Bolen.
• Leike reappeared ahead of the group and said something seemed to be hidden just around the corner.

Lu Yuan, Klaus, Bolen, and Leike discovered the Grey Covenant’s stronghold in a sealed shaft and found a map marking a sealed area beneath Bronze City’s City Hall. They confirmed that a Copper Pillar’s Seed had been taken, and Klaus suspected the fourth Seed was gone too.

• Lu Yuan and the others climbed a staircase of dried Ghoul corpses to reach the Grey Covenant stronghold, where they found Glazed Worm Secretion and ten humanoid shells.
• Lu Yuan discovered a Copper Plate map showing part of Bronze City’s inner city and a marked sealed area beneath City Hall; Klaus recognized the significance of the location and kept the plate.
• Klaus ordered the group to leave the stronghold untouched and led them toward the third calculated Copper Pillar coordinate.
• Bolen found fresh disturbed earth and scrape marks around the Copper Pillar’s Root, confirming that its Seed had been removed.
• Bolen compared Klaus’s Copper Plate with the Copper Pillar’s runes and found that their patterns appeared to share a source.
• Klaus concluded that the fourth Seed was probably gone and led the group back.

Klaus ordered Lu Yuan back to the Branch, took the Seed and Wolf for processing, and assigned Logistics to clear the Grey Covenant stronghold. After moving into his new quarters, Lu Yuan found the Seed secured in the Branch’s special storage room and went to rest with his sanity at 55.

• Klaus instructed Glock to search and clear the Grey Covenant stronghold, keep the events secret, and arrange for Logistics to recover its materials and corpses.
• Klaus took the Seed and Wolf to the Branch, reassigned Lu Yuan from the North Spinning District Alchemy Workshop, and gave him the choice of leading missions or working in Logistics.
• Lu Yuan packed his remaining supplies from the Alchemy Workshop and directed a Night Watcher to deal with the Great Ghoul corpse behind it.
• Lu Yuan moved into independent Captain accommodation at the Branch and received a key to the special storage room.
• Lu Yuan confirmed the Seed was secured in the storage room, spoke briefly with Margaret, and returned to his room to rest at 55 sanity.

After recovering from his long sleep, Lu Yuan learned to feed the Worm of Knowledge small, controlled bites of a Consciousness Crystal without making it fall unconscious. He then went to the Supply Exchange, where he spent points on a custom firearm and ammunition.

• Lu Yuan woke with his sanity restored to 79 and sensed that the Worm of Knowledge was hungry.
• Lu Yuan let the Worm of Knowledge split into three and take one small bite each from the Consciousness Crystal; they fused again without falling asleep, granting him skill experience and lowering his sanity to 76.
• Lu Yuan visited the Supply Exchange and learned that Klaus had approved 289 points, bringing his balance to 401.
• Lu Yuan ordered a customized large-caliber firearm with effects against Eerie entities and Sources of Pollution, paying 120 points for delivery in about ten days.
• Lu Yuan used his remaining points to restock Silver-Plated Bullets and Copper-Shell Incendiary Bombs, then considered buying Gold-Plated Enchanted Bullets.

Lu Yuan stocked up on weapons, holy water, and materials before choosing Eerie Inscription Studies as his advanced path. Duo Huo Ke gave him a basic symbol guide and hinted that the Dwarves had work for Eerie inscription users, then drank one of Lu Yuan’s bottles of Advanced Holy Water.

• Lu Yuan spent 215 points on a custom weapon, ammunition, Advanced Holy Water, Eerie and Ghoul materials, and a weapon guidebook.
• Lu Yuan organized his supplies, then blew Duo Huo Ke’s copper whistle to summon the Dwarf.
• Lu Yuan chose Eerie Inscription Studies, causing the other three advanced paths on the stone slab to vanish.
• Duo Huo Ke gave Lu Yuan a Basic Eerie Inscription Symbol Table and said he could take jobs from the Dwarves’ list.
• Duo Huo Ke drank a bottle of Lu Yuan’s Advanced Holy Water.

Lu Yuan studied Eerie Inscriptions, sensed an abnormal fluctuation from the Tower of Erudition, and then helped Margaret prepare Sanity Potions. Margaret shared updates about Wolf’s ongoing treatment, a mysterious item found in the Pipe Network, and the church nun’s visits to Klaus.

• Lu Yuan practiced recognizing Eerie Inscription symbols, felt discomfort from one, and gained experience, but memorized only five before going to sleep.
• The Worm of Knowledge sensed an abnormal fluctuation in knowledge density from the direction of the Tower of Erudition, and Lu Yuan watched the inner city before returning to his studies.
• Lu Yuan helped Margaret prepare Sanity Potions and learned that logistics was overwhelmed by Pipe Network cleanup, resumed training, and church personnel.
• Margaret told Lu Yuan that the Iron Guard Battalion had collected suppressive Potions for Wolf, who remained in separate confinement after his rampage.
• Margaret said Deputy Chief Klaus had personally taken a small item found while clearing Ghoul corpses in the Pipe Network Layer, and that a church nun had repeatedly visited Klaus.

Bolen presented his analysis of the copper sheet, the seal beneath City Hall, the Seed, and an anomaly in the Grey Covenant’s shed shell. Klaus ordered the evidence secured and the search for the Covenant’s escaped leader intensified, warning that someone in Bronze City might be helping him.

• Lu Yuan fed the Consciousness Crystal to the Worm of Knowledge, which sensed something underground containing a great deal of knowledge.
• Glock brought Lu Yuan to meet Klaus and Bolen, who explained that the copper sheet shared an Inscription system with the Copper Pillar and might serve as a pass or control key.
• Bolen identified the marked location beneath City Hall as the seal’s core and warned that the complete copper sheet might be able to open it.
• Bolen concluded that the Seed was unrelated to the seal and recommended researching it or moving it somewhere safer, while also reporting plant fiber in the Grey Covenant’s shed shell.
• Klaus ordered the analysis materials and shell samples secured, warned that the Covenant leader might still be hiding in Bronze City with help from an insider, and assigned Hogger to investigate the Von Klein line.

Lu Yuan successfully engraved a Ghoul Brain Core with help from the Worm of Knowledge, then learned that the Grey Covenant was searching beneath Bronze City under orders from the Person on the Wall. Klaus assigned him to investigate a route through the Pipe Network Layer with Bolen and Leike.

• Lu Yuan studied Eerie Inscription symbols and noticed that the seventh symbol shared structural logic with the Bronze Pillar inscriptions.
• Lu Yuan engraved a Ghoul Brain Core, with the Worm of Knowledge warning him when his strokes deviated, and discovered their abilities worked together.
• Lu Yuan spotted a Church nun watching his window before she hurried away.
• Klaus gave Lu Yuan Blake's memory extraction report, which revealed that the Grey Covenant's orders came through dreams from the Person on the Wall and that Fourth Order Nine remained missing.
• Klaus showed Lu Yuan a route that matched Bolen's calculations and assigned him to confirm it with Bolen and Leike in the Pipe Network Layer.