Chapter Summaries

Lu Yuan's team discovered that a Forest Seed-like organism had paralyzed the Born by devouring and replacing copper inside them, while the Great Ascendant moved the remaining Born to the rear and Adrian sent a nun to warn the surface. At the Collapse Point, a Born that had carried a Wood-Armored Great Ghoul climbed back up fused with it, but the Copper Plate's Seal Inscription suppressed its roots.

• The Great Ascendant opened a stalled Born and found bluish-green roots eating its copper components and replacing them with woody fibers.
• The Great Ascendant confirmed the roots could corrode even his alloy arm, then moved the remaining Born to the back of the group without sending them to the surface.
• Lu Yuan worried that the organism could threaten the copper Bronze Pillars and the Born carrying the Wood-Armored Great Ghoul, while the Great Ascendant noted that the Copper Plate Protective Barriers remained intact.
• Adrian ordered Agnes to send a nun to the surface with a warning about the contamination.
• Glock saw the Born climb out of the Collapse Pit fused with the Wood-Armored Great Ghoul, and ordered everyone to retreat when the Seal Inscription on the Copper Plate burned back its spreading roots.

Margaret contained the Amalgam after learning that metal-devouring roots had corroded the Born, while Lu Yuan’s team descended deeper into The Abyss and found the fifth Bronze Sin being eroded by Forest Seed. As they fought the Ghouls gathered around it, a huge creature emerged from the darkness behind the pillar.

• Margaret sealed the Amalgam in a container and learned from a nun that roots underground devoured metal, especially copper, and had corroded the Born’s internal structures.
• Lu Yuan’s team continued deeper into The Abyss, where Forest Seed-infected Ghouls had become increasingly common.
• Lu Yuan scattered Copper Powder at a three-way fork, drawing several infected Ghouls out of their caves and revealing that they made up roughly thirty to forty percent of the Ghouls there.
• The team found a large cavern containing a damaged Bronze Sin, whose inscriptions were being consumed by blue-gray roots as infected Ghouls gathered around it.
• Leike and the Blue Knight fought the Ghouls, while Lu Yuan noticed that the infected ones moved toward the pillar; then a huge creature crawled out from behind it.

Lu Yuan studied the Copper Pillar while Leike, the Blue Knight, and Adrian fought and killed a Giant Chimera Ghoul. Touching the pillar’s Inscription triggered a vision of its ancient origin and a vast force being sealed in an Abyss, leaving Lu Yuan connected to the same source as the Inscription.

• Leike, the Blue Knight, and Adrian attacked the Giant Chimera Ghoul while Lu Yuan concealed himself with Tandem Brain Cores and examined the Copper Pillar’s Inscription.
• The three Transcendents killed the Chimera, and Adrian used Holy Light to burn away roots encroaching on the pillar before warning that the Inscription’s reserves would not last much longer.
• Lu Yuan felt pain in his left eye when his Seeker perception entered the Inscription and detected an ancient presence from the same source as his own path.
• Lu Yuan saw a vision of a man awakening Inscription across Bronze Pillars around an Abyss.
• Lu Yuan saw the Inscription form a net that forced a massive resisting outline deeper into the Abyss, while corpses covered the wasteland and one person remained standing.

Lu Yuan saw a vision of the Bronze City’s creator shattering a control object and scattering its fragments among Copper Pillars in The Abyss, then continued exploring the inscription network with the group. They descended through increasingly dangerous passages and reached a vast space filled with the stench of decay.

• Lu Yuan touched a Copper Pillar and saw the city’s creator scatter fragments of a glowing object into Copper Pillars before seemingly noticing him.
• Lu Yuan learned that the Bronze City Seal Hub might be externally controlled, and he told Agnes the inscriptions pointed toward another Copper Pillar.
• The Great Ascendant, Adrian, and the Blue Knight agreed to continue deeper, following the inscriptions through passages where Corpse Rot Fungus rapidly regrew.
• The group fought waves of Ghouls as Lu Yuan mapped the passages and found that Forest Seed infection had become more prevalent at greater depths.
• At the third fork, the passage opened into a vast space filled with a strong, cloying stench of decay.

Lu Yuan and the others attacked a vast hive of Great Ghouls clustered around a Bronze Pillar, whose Inscription was being eaten away. As the group fought through the endless swarm, Lu Yuan noticed that the attacking Ghouls showed no signs of Forest Seed infection.

• Lu Yuan saw Forest Seed Infected clinging to the Bronze Pillar and realized the Ghouls were consuming its Inscription.
• Leike, the Blue Knight, Adrian, and the Great Ascendant prepared to fight after learning the hive far exceeded their estimates.
• Adrian blasted the Ghouls off the pillar with Holy Light, drawing a tide of Great Ghouls toward the group.
• Leike unleashed his flesh-worm swarm, the Blue Knight cut down Ghouls with threads, and the Great Ascendant smashed them with his fists.
• Adrian raised a Holy Light barrier for the group and carefully kept it from touching Lu Yuan's Turbid Qi.
• Lu Yuan watched the battle and noticed that every attacking Great Ghoul was uninfected, unlike the Forest Seed Infected on the pillar.

Lu Yuan and Adrian reached the Copper Pillar, where they found a Serpentine Chimera fused from a Ghoul and a Forest Seed and feeding on the Inscription. The group attacked it with Swarm Insects, Holy Light, and the Blue Knight’s Rapier, leaving the Chimera badly wounded but still struggling.

• Lu Yuan saw Forest Seed Infected command ordinary Ghouls as cannon fodder while guarding the Copper Pillar.
• Leike, the Blue Knight, and the Great Ascendant cleared a path, allowing Lu Yuan and Adrian to approach the pillar.
• The Infected formed a living barrier, revealing the Serpentine Chimera coiled around the Copper Pillar and boring into its Inscription.
• Lu Yuan identified Holy Light as the Chimera’s weakness, and Adrian summoned a Holy Eye that burned the cavern’s fungus and scorched the creature.
• Leike covered the Chimera with Swarm Insects while the Blue Knight struck its roots with her Rapier, and the Great Ascendant charged in as it writhed under their assault.

The Blue Knight and the Great Ascendant weakened the Serpentine Chimera’s hold on the Copper Pillar while fighting off its attacks and the arriving Ghoul horde. With the Inscription beginning to repair and reinforcements approaching, Lu Yuan asked Leike to carry him to the pillar.

• The Serpentine Chimera split into several faster bodies and filled the cavern with spores as Lu Yuan took Purification and Antidote Potions.
• The Blue Knight parried the Chimera’s attacks while Great Ghouls and additional Chimeras poured into the cavern.
• The Blue Knight unleashed a scarlet shockwave that severed roots and swept away more than half of the incoming Ghouls.
• The Great Ascendant burned and broke apart the damaged roots, loosening the Serpentine Chimera’s connection to the Copper Pillar.
• Lu Yuan saw the Inscription begin to repair itself as more Ghouls approached, then asked Leike to get him to the pillar.
• Leike formed a passage of Swarm Insects across the cavern toward the Copper Pillar.

Lu Yuan reached the Copper Pillar and discovered that it held the second Key Fragment, along with a warning that the fragments could help him fight when the seal failed. Connecting to the fragments activated the pillar’s defense and drew a larger Ghoul swarm, forcing the group to retreat.

• Leike’s Insect Tunnel carried Lu Yuan alone to the Copper Pillar while Adrian stayed behind to hold off the Ghouls.
• Lu Yuan examined the damaged pillar and found that most of its Inscription remained intact.
• Touching the pillar gave Lu Yuan a vision in which the faceless man warned that the seal had failed, explained the Key Fragments’ purpose, and cautioned him not to remove them all at once.
• Lu Yuan received the second fragment, learned that the fragments could point him toward the others, and suspected the Grey Covenant had been searching for them.
• Lu Yuan’s connection to the fragments triggered the Copper Pillar’s defense, unleashing crushing pressure and drawing an even larger tide of Ghouls.
• Lu Yuan called for retreat, and Leike’s swarm carried him, the Great Ascendant, and the Blue Knight away as Agnes and the nun followed Adrian.

Lu Yuan and the others retreated through tunnels overrun by Great Ghouls and rapidly spreading Corpse Rot Fungus while the Born held the enemy back with fire. The group continued toward the surface, and the Great Ascendant kept a living Serpentine Chimera fragment to take back for research.

• Lu Yuan saw Great Ghouls pour into the cavern as the Corpse Rot Fungus spread, and Adrian used the Holy Eye to cover the group's retreat.
• The Great Ascendant carried a still-living fragment of the Serpentine Chimera and discovered that Forest Seed roots had contaminated several Born.
• The Great Ascendant ordered the less-contaminated Born to retreat and the rest to form a line and attack the Ghouls with flamethrowers and Copper-Shell Incendiary Bombs.
• Adrian withdrew after the Born blocked the tunnel, and the group ran upward while the Born continued fighting behind them.
• Lu Yuan noticed the Blue Knight washing contamination from her clothes with water as they climbed toward the surface.
• Adrian questioned why the Great Ascendant was carrying the fragment, and the Great Ascendant said the Ascension Society would study its ability to consume copper.

The team inspected the Born and found that the Corpse Rot Fungus had corroded their copper components, then climbed out of the Collapse Pit. Aboveground, Leike discovered that the Sea of Knowledge was leaking near the Tower of Erudition, where Klaus and Hilde had gone.

• The Great Ascendant inspected several Born and found shallow corrosion on their copper components, while their iron parts remained mostly intact.
• The Great Ascendant judged the damage minor and sent the Born up the ladder, followed by Adrian, Lu Yuan, and himself.
• Leike emerged from the Collapse Pit and asked Glock to obtain a Containment Vessel for the still-living Serpentine Chimera fragment.
• Leike saw colorful Fragments leaking across the sky near the Tower of Erudition and learned that Klaus and Hilde had gone there after an explosion.
• Margaret arrived at the Collapse Pit as Glock returned with an Iron Guard Battalion soldier carrying a sealed container.

After the first dive, Lu Yuan mapped the tunnels and concluded the next expedition needed to descend deeper, while Klaus stayed behind to contain the crisis at the Tower of Erudition. The chapter ended with Hilde reporting that the expanding River of Light was overwhelming the city’s defenses as Klaus asked how far the harvest had progressed.

• Leike sealed the Serpentine Chimera fragment in a container as Adrian, Lu Yuan, the Great Ascendant, and the Born climbed out of the Collapse Pit.
• Margaret reported that the River of Light above the Tower of Erudition had exploded and that Klaus had ordered everyone to finish their underground work and prepare for a second dive without approaching the tower.
• Lu Yuan mapped the tunnels, identified the Copper Pillars as outer Anchor Points, and concluded that the next dive should follow passages descending more steeply toward the Seal Network’s core.
• Klaus and Arthur failed to find a safe way through the Crystal Protective Gate while the Old Dean’s condition worsened inside the Main Control Room.
• Hilde reported that the River of Light was expanding, the Silver Needles were failing within seconds, and people on the outskirts were developing symptoms; Klaus asked what stage the harvest had reached.

The Guardian entered the Tower of Erudition and sealed the Sea of Knowledge’s breach with a giant Black Eyeball. He then destroyed Kame and cornered K, while the Old Dean remained trapped in the Sarcophagus as the harvest continued.

• Klaus warned Arthur that the Old Dean could not endure the harvest to its end.
• The Guardian appeared in the corridor and sent a giant Black Eyeball through the tower roof to stop the Sea of Knowledge from overflowing.
• The Guardian shattered the barriers around the Main Control Room and approached Kame and K.
• The Guardian caused Black Eyeballs to emerge from Kame’s body, and Kame collapsed into sludge.
• K tried to escape by liquefying his body, but Black Eyeballs emerged wherever he fled and blocked every route.

The Guardian killed K and held the breach in the Sea of Knowledge shut while Arthur freed the Old Dean and began shutting down the harvest program. Lu Yuan and the others rushed to the Tower of Erudition as the Guardian’s darkness began to fade, and Leike found a way through it.

• The Guardian pinned K beneath a mass of eyeballs until K died, while Klaus asked Margaret to send every Suppression Potion for the Guardian to the Tower of Erudition.
• Arthur disconnected the Old Dean from the Sarcophagus and began shutting down the harvest program as the Guardian held the breach closed.
• Lu Yuan saw the Guardian’s enormous eyeball block the flow of knowledge fragments and led the Blue Knight, the Great Ascendant, Adrian, and Leike toward the tower.
• The group reached the shrinking darkness around the Tower of Erudition, and Lu Yuan realized the Guardian’s power was fading.
• Leike tested the darkness with a swarm of insects, pulled them back, and said they could enter.

Lu Yuan and the others entered the Tower of Erudition, where they found the Guardian severely Eerie-fied after the Grey Covenant forced Old Dean to initiate the harvest. Margaret brought potions and supplies, and Lu Yuan began using Deep Study to examine them for a way to help the Guardian.

• Great Ascendant punched open the Guardian's domain wall, and Lu Yuan's group entered the domain.
• Lu Yuan found Calvin Morton, Selina, and other mentors unconscious outside the Tower of Erudition and continued inside with the others.
• The group followed the destruction to the Main Control Room, where Arthur was shutting down the Fishing Channel and Old Dean and an Eerie Transcendent lay dead.
• Klaus explained that the Grey Covenant had used Old Dean to force the harvest, prompting the Guardian to act and leaving him close to complete Eerie-fication.
• Margaret arrived with potions and supplies, and Lu Yuan activated Deep Study to examine them.

Lu Yuan used Deep Study to devise a treatment for the out-of-control Guardian, then prepared a medicine from the drained Seed and began infusing it with the Worm of Knowledge. The worm crawled out to help, but Lu Yuan could not pierce the Guardian’s skin with his copper sword, leaving the procedure stalled.

• Lu Yuan’s Gray-White Text generated a treatment plan using Resentment, Holy Water, an Eerie-fication Inhibitor, Sanity Repair Fluid, and the Worm of Knowledge, with a ten percent success rate.
• Lu Yuan asked Klaus for the drained Seed, and Klaus handed it over before clearing the Main Control Room with the others.
• Lu Yuan ground the Seed into powder and mixed it with the inhibitor, Holy Water, and Sanity Repair Fluid to make the medicine.
• Lu Yuan persuaded the terrified Worm of Knowledge to enter the Guardian’s body and guide the medicine through the path of eerie-fication.
• Lu Yuan tried to pierce the Guardian’s neck with his copper sword, but the tip broke against the Guardian’s skin, so he turned to Klaus for help.

Lu Yuan used the Worm of Knowledge and medicine to treat the contaminated Guardian, who recognized Lu Yuan’s Forbidden Studies Path and began cooperating. As the worm advanced, the Guardian revealed the history of his Path and his bond with Bronze City.

• Klaus cut the Guardian’s skin, revealing black blood contaminated with fragments of eyeballs, and Lu Yuan guided the Worm of Knowledge into the wound with medicinal solution.
• The Worm of Knowledge struggled against the Guardian’s Fifth Order body until the Guardian suppressed the contamination, weakening the resistance and helping it advance.
• The Guardian recognized the creature as a Worm of Knowledge and identified Lu Yuan’s Path as Forbidden Studies, which he had learned about from someone he met when young.
• The Guardian explained that Forbidden Studies had once been more common but nearly disappeared, and said he had lived in Bronze City for five or six hundred years.
• The Guardian said his deep bond with Bronze City let him live nearly a thousand years as long as his Path remained controlled, then described why a city could not bind someone of the Sixth Order.

Lu Yuan used the Worm of Knowledge and the grayish-purple medicinal fluid to treat the Guardian’s Eerification, then projected Time Bestower’s Acceleration through their Symbiotic Link when the worm became trapped. The treatment slowed the Guardian’s decline, but he suddenly convulsed and fell, leaving Klaus prepared for him to lose control.

• The Guardian told Lu Yuan that the city sealed even Sixth Order beings underground and recalled a Forbidden Studies practitioner who had warned that following the path to its end could mean a terrible death.
• The Guardian’s Eerification surged, trapping the Worm of Knowledge and stopping the medicinal fluid partway through its body.
• Lu Yuan projected Time Bestower’s Acceleration through the Symbiotic Link, enabling the worm to cross the Guardian’s passages and deliver the medicinal fluid to his core.
• The Guardian’s black aura and the spread of his eyeballs slowed, but the forces inside him clashed and he fell to the ground.
• Klaus rushed into the corridor with his Short Blade drawn and ordered Lu Yuan to back away.

Lu Yuan and Klaus helped the Guardian reach a fragile balance between Resentment and Eerification, delaying his transformation but binding him to the Tower of Erudition. As the others gathered to assess the damage, the Guardian confirmed he could no longer leave.

• The Guardian stopped suppressing the forces inside him, and the eyeballs and pitch-black aura receded as Resentment and Eerification reached a fragile standoff.
• Gray-White Text warned that the balance depended on the Tower of Erudition, and the Guardian acknowledged he could not leave its range.
• Lu Yuan collapsed against the Copper Wall with his Sanity at twenty-one, while the Worm of Knowledge returned to his eye and Klaus reported that the Guardian had stabilized.
• Arthur brought the unconscious Old Dean into the Main Control Room, where Leike, the Blue Knight, the Great Ascendant, and Adrian joined the others.
• Lu Yuan saw dark tissue spreading from the Guardian into the tower's Inscription system, and Gray-White Text confirmed that their connection was stable without outward contamination.
• Klaus asked the Guardian about his condition, and the Guardian said he could not get out anymore.

After the Guardian stabilized and confirmed he could still perceive much of Bronze City, Klaus investigated the aftermath of the harvest and discovered that Kame’s Black Stone had vanished. The breach sealed and the harvest stopped, but Arthur found no obvious damage to the circuit locks, while Lu Yuan saw that the Worm of Knowledge had been badly injured.

• The Guardian confirmed he could still see through the Tower of Erudition’s inscription system, and Margaret verified that his condition had stabilized.
• Adrian offered the Guardian Holy Water and Sanity Potions, while the Blue Knight silently studied Kame’s remains.
• Klaus and Arthur searched for the Black Stone Kame had held, but it was missing, and the Guardian denied seeing it.
• Arthur severed the remaining circuits, stopping the harvest as the breach sealed and the River of Light began to recede.
• Arthur found no obvious damage to his circuit locks and questioned how Kame had bypassed them.
• Lu Yuan drank his last Sanity Potion and found the Worm of Knowledge badly injured and resting against the Key.

Lu Yuan confirmed that the Worm of Knowledge had only minor injuries, while the Guardian sensed the Person on the Wall sealed at the tower’s summit and was warned not to approach it. Klaus sent Lu Yuan and the Old Dean back to the Branch for treatment as the others stayed behind to handle the Guardian and the tower.

• Lu Yuan checked the Worm of Knowledge through their Symbiotic Link, saw that it had minor problems, and let it rest.
• Margaret and Hilde examined the Guardian as he sensed the dangerous head sealed at the tower’s summit.
• Arthur explained that the head was called the Person on the Wall, and Klaus and Adrian urged the Guardian not to approach it while he recovered.
• Klaus ordered Margaret to take Lu Yuan and the Old Dean back to the Branch, then assigned Hilde and Arthur to remain at the tower while he went to the collapse site.
• The Guardian said he wanted to look around the tower, and Margaret led Lu Yuan and the Old Dean out as dawn approached.